347 research outputs found
Changes in seabird species abundance near South Georgia during a period of rapid change in sea surface temperature
Antineutrinos from Earth: A reference model and its uncertainties
We predict geoneutrino fluxes in a reference model based on a detailed
description of Earth's crust and mantle and using the best available
information on the abundances of uranium, thorium, and potassium inside Earth's
layers. We estimate the uncertainties of fluxes corresponding to the
uncertainties of the element abundances. In addition to distance integrated
fluxes, we also provide the differential fluxes as a function of distance from
several sites of experimental interest. Event yields at several locations are
estimated and their dependence on the neutrino oscillation parameters is
discussed. At Kamioka we predict N(U+Th)=35 +- 6 events for 10^{32} proton yr
and 100% efficiency assuming sin^2(2theta)=0.863 and delta m^2 = 7.3 X 10^{-5}
eV^2. The maximal prediction is 55 events, obtained in a model with fully
radiogenic production of the terrestrial heat flow.Comment: 24 pages, ReVTeX4, plus 7 postscript figures; minor formal changes to
match version to be published in PR
Primary Dendrite Distribution and Disorder During Directional Solidification of Pb-Sb Alloys
Pb-2.2 wt pct Sb and Pb-5.8 wt pet Sb alloys have been directionally solidified from a single-crystal seed with its [100] orientation parallel to the growth direction, to examine the primary dendrite distribution and disorder of the dendrite arrays. The dendrite distribution and ordering have been investigated using analysis techniques such as the Gauss-amplitude fit to the frequency distribution of nearest and higher-order spacings, minimum spanning tree (MST), Voronoi polygon, and Fourier transform (FT) of the dendrite centers. Since the arrangement of dendrites is driven by the requirement to accommodate side-branch growth along the (100) directions, the FT images of the fully developed dendrite centers contain spots which indicate this preferred alignment. A directional solidification distance of about three mushy-zone lengths is sufficient to ensure a steady-state dendritic array, in terms of reaching a constant mean primary spacing. However, local dendrite ordering continues throughout the directional solidification process. The interdendritic convection not only decreases the mean primary spacing, it also makes the dendrite array more disordered and reduces the ratio of the upper and lower spacing limits, as defined by the largest 5 pct and the smallest 5 pct of the population
Irregular wave runup statistics on plane beaches: application of a Boussinesq-type model incorporating a generating-absorbing sponge layer and second-order wave generation
Efficient absorption of reflected waves at the offshore boundary is a prerequisite for the accurate physical or theoretical modelling of long-duration irregular wave runup statistics at uniform, gently sloped beaches. This paper presents an implementation of the method suggested by Zhang et al. (2014) to achieve reflected wave absorption and simultaneous generation and propagation of incident waves in an existing numerical wave flume incorporating a moving boundary wavemaker. A generatingâabsorbing layer is incorporated within this 1DH hybrid Boussinesq-nonlinear shallow water equation model such that inshore-travelling incident waves, encompassing bound-wave structure approximately correct to second order, propagate unhindered while offshore-travelling reflected waves are absorbed. Once validated, the method is used to compile random wave runup statistics on uniform beach slopes broadly representative of dissipative, intermediate, and reflective beaches. Analyses of the individual runup time series, ensemble statistics and comparison to an empirical formula based on experimental runup data suggest that the main aspects of runup observed in the field are properly represented by the model. Existence of an upper limit on maximum runup is investigated using a simple extreme-value statistical analysis. Spectral saturation is examined by considering ensemble-averaged swash spectra for three representative beach slopes subject to incident waves with two different offshore significant wave heights. All spectra show f^â4 roll-off at high frequencies in agreement with many previous field studies. The effect is also investigated of the swash motions preceding one particular extreme runup event on the eventual maximum runup elevation
Mushy Zone Morphology During Directional Solidification of Pb-5.8 Wt Pct Sb Alloy
The Pb-5.8 wt pet Sb alloy was directionally solidified with a positive thermal gradient of 140 K cm(-1) at a growth speed ranging from 0.8 to 30 mu m s(-1), and then it was quenched to retain the mushy zone morphology. The morphology of the mushy zone along its entire length has been characterized by using a serial sectioning and three-dimensional image reconstruction technique. Variation in the cellular/dendritic shape factor, hydraulic radius of the interdendritic region, and fraction solid along the mushy zone length has been studied. A comparison with predictions from theoretical models indicates that convection remarkably reduces the primary dendrite spacing while its influence on the dendrite tip radius is not as significant
Comprehensive comparison of models for spectral energy distributions from 0.1�m to 1 mm of nearby star-forming galaxies
We have fit the far-ultraviolet (FUV) to sub-millimeter (850 Îźm) spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of the 61 galaxies from the Key Insights on Nearby Galaxies: A Far-Infrared Survey with Herschel (KINGFISH). The fitting has been performed using three models: the Code for Investigating GALaxy Evolution (CIGALE), the GRAphite-SILicate approach (GRASIL), and the Multiwavelength Analysis of Galaxy PHYSical properties (MAGPHYS). We have analyzed the results of the three codes in terms of the SED shapes, and by comparing the derived quantities with simple ârecipesâ for stellar mass (Mstar), star-formation rate (SFR), dust mass (Mdust), and monochromatic luminosities. Although the algorithms rely on different assumptions for star-formation history, dust attenuation and dust reprocessing, they all well approximate the observed SEDs and are in generally good agreement for the associated quantities. However, the three codes show very different behavior in the mid-infrared regime: in the 5â10 Îźm region dominated by PAH emission, and also between 25 and 70 Îźm where there are no observational constraints for the KINGFISH sample. We find that different algorithms give discordant SFR estimates for galaxies with low specific SFR, and that the standard recipes for calculating FUV absorption overestimate the extinction compared to the SED-fitting results. Results also suggest that assuming a âstandardâ constant stellar mass-to-light ratio overestimates Mstar relative to the SED fitting, and we provide new SED-based formulations for estimating Mstar from WISE W1 (3.4 Îźm) luminosities and colors. From a principal component analysis of Mstar, SFR, Mdust, and O/H, we reproduce previous scaling relations among Mstar, SFR, and O/H, and find that Mdust can be predicted to within âź0.3 dex using only Mstar and SFR.SB, GLG, LKH, AR, and LS acknowledge funding by an Italian research grant, PRIN-INAF/2012, and SB, GLG,
LKH, LS, and SZ by the INAF PRIN-SKA 2017 program 1.05.01.88.04. MB
was supported by the FONDECYT regular project 1170618 and the MINEDUCUA projects codes ANT 1655 and ANT 1656. IDL gratefully acknowledges the
support of the Flemish Fund for Scientific Research (FWO-Vlaanderen). RN
acknowledges partial support by FONDECYT grant No. 3140436, and MR support by Spanish MEC Grant AYA-2014-53506-P. This research has made use
of the NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database (NED) which is operated by the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under contract with
the National Aeronautics and Space Administratio
A simplified (modified) Duke Activity Status Index (M-DASI) to characterise functional capacity: A secondary analysis of the Measurement of Exercise Tolerance before Surgery (METS) study
Background
Accurate assessment of functional capacity, a predictor of postoperative morbidity and mortality, is essential to improving surgical planning and outcomes. We assessed if all 12 items of the Duke Activity Status Index (DASI) were equally important in reflecting exercise capacity.
Methods
In this secondary cross-sectional analysis of the international, multicentre Measurement of Exercise Tolerance before Surgery (METS) study, we assessed cardiopulmonary exercise testing and DASI data from 1455 participants. Multivariable regression analyses were used to revise the DASI model in predicting an anaerobic threshold (AT) >11 ml kg â1 min â1 and peak oxygen consumption (VO 2 peak) >16 ml kg â1 min â1, cut-points that represent a reduced risk of postoperative complications.
Results
Five questions were identified to have dominance in predicting AT>11 ml kg â1 min â1 and VO 2 peak>16 ml.kg â1min â1. These items were included in the M-DASI-5Q and retained utility in predicting AT>11 ml.kg â1.min â1 (area under the receiver-operating-characteristic [AUROC]-AT: M-DASI-5Q=0.67 vs original 12-question DASI=0.66) and VO 2 peak (AUROC-VO2 peak: M-DASI-5Q 0.73 vs original 12-question DASI 0.71). Conversely, in a sensitivity analysis we removed one potentially sensitive question related to the ability to have sexual relations, and the ability of the remaining four questions (M-DASI-4Q) to predict an adequate functional threshold remained no worse than the original 12-question DASI model. Adding a dynamic component to the M-DASI-4Q by assessing the chronotropic response to exercise improved its ability to discriminate between those with VO 2 peak>16 ml.kg â1.min â1 and VO 2 peak<16 ml.kg â1.min â1.
Conclusions
The M-DASI provides a simple screening tool for further preoperative evaluation, including with cardiopulmonary exercise testing, to guide perioperative management
Velocity-space sensitivity of the time-of-flight neutron spectrometer at JET
The velocity-space sensitivities of fast-ion diagnostics are often described by so-called weight functions. Recently, we formulated weight functions showing the velocity-space sensitivity of the often dominant beam-target part of neutron energy spectra. These weight functions for neutron emission spectrometry (NES) are independent of the particular NES diagnostic. Here we apply these NES weight functions to the time-of-flight spectrometer TOFOR at JET. By taking the instrumental response function of TOFOR into account, we calculate time-of-flight NES weight functions that enable us to directly determine the velocity-space sensitivity of a given part of a measured time-of-flight spectrum from TOFOR
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