Beware the Non-uniqueness of Einstein Rings

We explain how an approximation to the rings formed by the host galaxies in lensed QSOs can be inferred from the QSO data alone. A simple ring image can be made from any lens model by a simple piece of computer graphics: just plot a contour map of the arrival-time surface with closely-spaced contours. We go on to explain that rings should be (a) sensitive to time-delay ratios between different pairs of images, but (b) very insensitive to H_0. We illustrate this for the well-known quads 1115+080 and 1608+656.Comment: To appear in AJ (circa Aug 2001

High-Resolution Three-Dimensional NMR Structure Of The KRAS Proto-Oncogene Promoter Reveals Key Features Of A G-Quadruplex Involved In Transcriptional Regulation

Non-canonical base pairing within guanine-rich DNA and RNA sequences can produce G-quartets, whose stacking leads to the formation of a G-quadruplex (G4). G4s can coexist with canonical duplex DNA in the human genome and have been suggested to suppress gene transcription, and much attention has therefore focused on studying G4s in promotor regions of disease-related genes. For example, the human KRAS proto-oncogene contains a nuclease-hypersensitive element located upstream of the major transcription start site. The KRAS nuclease-hypersensitive element (NHE) region contains a G-rich element (22RT; 5′-AGGGCGGTGTGGGAATAGGGAA-3′) and encompasses a Myc-associated zinc finger-binding site that regulates KRAS transcription. The NEH region therefore has been proposed as a target for new drugs that control KRAS transcription, which requires detailed knowledge of the NHE structure. In this study, we report a high-resolution NMR structure of the G-rich element within the KRAS NHE. We found that the G-rich element forms a parallel structure with three G-quartets connected by a four-nucleotide loop and two short one-nucleotide double-chain reversal loops. In addition, a thymine bulge is found between G8 and G9. The loops of different lengths and the presence of a bulge between the G-quartets are structural elements that potentially can be targeted by small chemical ligands that would further stabilize the structure and interfere or block transcriptional regulators such as Myc-associated zinc finger from accessing their binding sites on the KRAS promoter. In conclusion, our work suggests a possible new route for the development of anticancer agents that could suppress KRAS expression

Extragalactic Radio Sources and the WMAP Cold Spot

We detect a dip of 20-45% in the surface brightness and number counts of NVSS sources smoothed to a few degrees at the location of the WMAP cold spot. The dip has structure on scales of approximately 1-10 degrees. Together with independent all-sky wavelet analyses, our results suggest that the dip in extragalactic brightness and number counts and the WMAP cold spot are physically related, i.e., that the coincidence is neither a statistical anomaly nor a WMAP foreground correction problem. If the cold spot does originate from structures at modest redshifts, as we suggest, then there is no remaining need for non-Gaussian processes at the last scattering surface of the CMB to explain the cold spot. The late integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect, already seen statistically for NVSS source counts, can now be seen to operate on a single region. To create the magnitude and angular size of the WMAP cold spot requires a ~140 Mpc radius completely empty void at z<=1 along this line of sight. This is far outside the current expectations of the concordance cosmology, and adds to the anomalies seen in the CMB.Comment: revised version, ApJ, in pres

Semi-analytical dark matter halos and the Jeans equation

Although N-body studies of dark matter halos show that the density profiles, rho(r), are not simple power-laws, the quantity rho/sigma^3, where sigma(r) is the velocity dispersion, is in fact a featureless power-law over ~3 decades in radius. In the first part of the paper we demonstrate, using the semi-analytic Extended Secondary Infall Model (ESIM), that the nearly scale-free nature of rho/sigma^3 is a robust feature of virialized halos in equilibrium. By examining the processes in common between numerical N-body and semi-analytic approaches, we argue that the scale-free nature of rho/sigma^3 cannot be the result of hierarchical merging, rather it must be an outcome of violent relaxation. The empirical results of the first part of the paper motivate the analytical work of the second part of the paper, where we use rho/sigma^3 proportional to r^{-alpha} as an additional constraint in the isotropic Jeans equation of hydrostatic equilibrium. Our analysis shows that the constrained Jeans equation has different types of solutions, and in particular, it admits a unique ``periodic'' solution with alpha=1.9444. We derive the analytic expression for this density profile, which asymptotes to inner and outer profiles of rho ~ r^{-0.78}, and rho ~ r^{-3.44}, respectively.Comment: 37 pg, 14 fig. Accepted to ApJ: added two figures and extended discussion. Note that an earlier related paper (conference proceedings) astro-ph/0412442 has a mistake in eq.(2.2); the correct version is eq.(5) of the present submissio

Обучение иностранных студентов языку специальности

Teaching the vocation-related language is the most important task facing teachers of Russian at major faculties. However, teachers of vocation-related subjects note the insufficient preparation of students for the development of functional lexis. The training manual “Training for professional activity in Russian of “Public Relations”” speciality foreign students (authors are L.V. Adonina, S.V. Lazarev, S.V. Smirnova, O.S. Fisenko) described by us is a methodological system built in accordance with competency-based, personality-oriented, communicative-active, communicative-cognitive and integrative approaches.La enseñanza del idioma relacionado con la vocación es la tarea más importante que enfrentan los maestros de ruso en las principales facultades. Sin embargo, los profesores de asignaturas relacionadas con la vocación notan la insuficiente preparación de los estudiantes para el desarrollo de la lexis funcional. El manual de capacitación “Capacitación para la actividad profesional en ruso de los estudiantes extranjeros especializados en Relaciones públicas” (autores son LV Adonina, SV Lazarev, SV Smirnova, OS Fisenko)&nbsp;de acuerdo a los autores es un sistema metodológico construido de acuerdo con la personalidad basada en competencias orientado, comunicativo-activo, comunicativo-cognitivo e integrador.Обучение языку специальности – важнейшая задача, стоящая перед преподавателями русского языка как иностранного на основных факультетах. Однако преподаватели профильных предметов отмечают недостаточную подготовку студентов к освоению профессиональной лексики. Описанное нами учебное пособие «Обучение профессиональной деятельности на русском языке иностранных студентов специальности «Связи с общественностью» (авторы Л.В. Адонина, С.В. Лазарев, С.В. Смирнова, О.С. Фисенко) представляет методическую систему, построенную в соответствии с компетентностным, личностно-ориентированным, коммуникативно-деятельностным, коммуникативно-когнитивным и интегративным подходами

Medindo cidades sustentáveis na Rússia: análise crítica de metodologias-chave

The paper provides insights on the critical analysis of the current methodologies of the sustainability cities measurement for the present-day Russia. Based on meta-analysis of more than 90 peer-reviewed papers published in Russian and English, we examined both authoring and corporate methodologies such as the SGM methodology for Russian sustainable cities, the environmental rating of Russian cities, and the rating of the environmental governance of the Russian cities, the environmental efficacy index and several authoring methodologies. The analysis showed that most of the calculation methods are based on quantitative (statistical) data, what is their advantage, on the one hand, making their results as objective as possible, but on the other hand, it is a disadvantage, because in connection with the delay in publication of statistics or even its absence, it does not allow the annual dynamics to observe. In addition, the difficulty in choosing the most suitable methodology lies in the significant differences in the development of large, medium and small cities in Russia, and many rating methods are developed exclusively for one of the types of cities. Authors concluded that in spite of the high level of the existing methodologies development, there was a shortage of comprehensive studies carried out in the qualitative-quantitative paradigm that would, in addition to index assessment and mathematical models generation, explain complex causal relationships and processes within a city.El documento proporciona información sobre el análisis crítico de las metodologías actuales de la medición de ciudades de sostenibilidad para la Rusia actual. Con base en el metanálisis de más de 90 artículos revisados por pares publicados en ruso e inglés, examinamos tanto las metodologías de autoría y corporativas como la metodología SGM para ciudades sostenibles rusas, la calificación ambiental de las ciudades rusas y la calificación de la gobernanza ambiental de las ciudades rusas, el índice de eficacia ambiental y varias metodologías de autoría. El análisis mostró que la mayoría de los métodos de cálculo se basan en datos cuantitativos (estadísticos), lo que es su ventaja, por un lado, hacer que sus resultados sean lo más objetivos posible, pero por otro lado, es una desventaja, porque en conexión con el retraso en la publicación de las estadísticas o incluso su ausencia, no permite observar la dinámica anual. Además, la dificultad de elegir la metodología más adecuada radica en las diferencias significativas en el desarrollo de ciudades grandes, medianas y pequeñas en Rusia, y muchos métodos de calificación se desarrollan exclusivamente para uno de los tipos de ciudades. Los autores concluyeron que, a pesar del alto nivel de desarrollo de las metodologías existentes, había una escasez de estudios exhaustivos llevados a cabo en el paradigma cualitativo-cuantitativo que, además de la evaluación del índice y la generación de modelos matemáticos, explicaran relaciones y procesos causales complejos dentro de una ciudad.O artigo fornece insights sobre a análise crítica das metodologias atuais da medição das cidades de sustentabilidade para a Rússia atual. Com base na meta-análise de mais de 90 artigos revisados por pares publicados em russo e inglês, examinamos metodologias de autoria e corporativas, como a metodologia SGM para cidades russas sustentáveis, a classificação ambiental de cidades russas e a classificação da governança ambiental. das cidades russas, o índice de eficácia ambiental e várias metodologias de autoria. A análise mostrou que a maioria dos métodos de cálculo são baseados em dados quantitativos (estatísticos), o que é sua vantagem, por um lado, tornando seus resultados tão objetivos quanto possível, mas, por outro lado, é uma desvantagem, porque em com o atraso na publicação das estatísticas ou mesmo sua ausência, não permite que a dinâmica anual observe. Além disso, a dificuldade em escolher a metodologia mais adequada reside nas diferenças significativas no desenvolvimento de grandes, médias e pequenas cidades na Rússia, e muitos métodos de classificação são desenvolvidos exclusivamente para um dos tipos de cidades. Os autores concluíram que, apesar do alto nível de desenvolvimento das metodologias existentes, houve escassez de estudos abrangentes realizados no paradigma qualitativo-quantitativo que, além da avaliação de índices e da geração de modelos matemáticos, explicariam relações e processos causais complexos Uma cidade

Role of agricultural clusters in provision of food security

The article is devoted to determination of the role of agricultural clusters in provision of food security. The authors analyzed the statistics of The Global Food Security Index of 2014 in the developing and developed countries and found out that the problem of provision of food security is very urgent in developing countries, which necessitates the search for effective tools for increasing the food security, one of which is creation of agricultural clusters. For the purpose of solving this task, the authors offer the model of uniting manufacturers and processers of agricultural production into a system which allows determining the mechanisms of their organization into the system of agricultural cluster. The authors allocated the following main courses of the increase of the food security by means of development of agricultural complex, through formation of agricultural clusters: development of the sectors of agricultural cluster, implementation of deep specialization, attraction of young specialists into agricultural cluster, increasing the qualification of staff in agriculture and agricultural processing, stipulating the promotion and consumption of local production, creation of regional association for the increase of efficiency of cooperation between members, attraction of investments, cooperation with regional bodies of executive power and federal bodies of state power.peer-reviewe