Squeezing enhancement by competing nonlinearities: Almost perfect squeezing without instabilities

4 págs.; 3 figs.; PACS number~s!: 42.50.Dv, 42.50.Lc, 42.65.KyThe competition between the χ(2) nonlinearity of a resonant second-harmonic-generation (SHG) system and an added χ(3) nonlinearity shifts the Hopf bifurcation of the standard SHG towards higher photon numbers eventually completely stabilizing the system. Remarkably, perfect squeezing survives the stabilization. Two important consequences are discussed, namely, efficient bright squeezing generation and strong suppression of the excess noise which, for parameters corresponding to an experiment reported in the literature, can be reduced by two orders of magnitude without diminishing the squeezing. Possible experimental implementations are finally discussed. ©1997 American Physical SocietyThis work was supported in part by Project No. TIC95- 0563-C05-03 (CICYT, Spain).Peer Reviewe

Measurement of Road Surface Deformation Using Images Captured from UAVs

This paper presents a methodology for measuring road surface deformation due to terrain instability processes. The methodology is based on ultra-high resolution images acquired from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Flights are georeferenced by means of Structure from Motion (SfM) techniques. Dense point clouds, obtained using the multiple-view stereo (MVS) approach, are used to generate digital surface models (DSM) and high resolution orthophotographs (0.02 m GSD). The methodology has been applied to an unstable area located in La Guardia (Jaen, Southern Spain), where an active landslide was identified. This landslide affected some roads and accesses to a highway at the landslide foot. The detailed road deformation was monitored between 2012 and 2015 by means of eleven UAV flights of ultrahigh resolution covering an area of about 260 m × 90 m. The accuracy of the analysis has been established in 0.02 ± 0.01 m in XY and 0.04 ± 0.02 m in Z. Large deformations in the order of two meters were registered in the total period analyzed that resulted in maximum average rates of 0.62 m/month in the unstable area. Some boundary conditions were considered because of the low required flying height (<50 m above ground level) in order to achieve a suitable image GSD, the fast landslide dynamic, continuous maintenance works on the affected roads and dramatic seasonal vegetation changes throughout the monitoring period. Finally, we have analyzed the relation of displacements to rainfalls in the area, finding a significant correlation between the two variables, as well as two different reactivation episodes

<i>Phaeocystis globosa</i> Virus DNA Polymerase X: a “Swiss Army knife”, Multifunctional DNA polymerase-lyase-ligase for Base Excision Repair

Phaeocystis globosa virus 16T is a giant virus that belongs to the so-called nucleo-cytoplasmic large DNA virus (NCLDV) group. Its linear dsDNA genome contains an almost full complement of genes required to participate in viral base excision repair (BER). Among them is a gene coding for a bimodular protein consisting of an N-terminal Polβ-like core fused to a C-terminal domain (PgVPolX), which shows homology with NAD+-dependent DNA ligases. Analysis of the biochemical features of the purified enzyme revealed that PgVPolX is a multifunctional protein that could act as a “Swiss army knife” enzyme during BER since it is endowed with: 1) a template-directed DNA polymerization activity, preferentially acting on DNA structures containing gaps; 2) 5′-deoxyribose-5-phosphate (dRP) and abasic (AP) site lyase activities; and 3) an NAD+-dependent DNA ligase activity. We show how the three activities act in concert to efficiently repair BER intermediates, leading us to suggest that PgVPolX may constitute, together with the viral AP-endonuclease, a BER pathway. This is the first time that this type of protein fusion has been demonstrated to be functional

Fusion of 8He with 206Pb around Coulomb barrier energies

5th International Conference FUSION11The experimental study of the fusion of light neutron-rich nucleus 8He with 206Pb is reported in this work. A fusion stack of 206Pb targets has been used for this study. The most prominent evaporation residue (210Po), which has half-life of 138 days and decays by alpha emission, is populated in the reaction. Radiochemical analysis technique is used to extract the yield of this evaporation residueMinisterio Español de Ciencia e Innovación FPA2007-6307

Aircraft icing: in-cloud measurements and sensitivity to physical parameterizations

The prediction of supercooled cloud drops in the atmosphere is a basic tool for aviation safety, owing to their contact with and instant freezing on sensitive locations of the aircraft. One of the main disadvantages for predicting atmospheric icing conditions is the acquisition of observational data. In this study, we used in‐cloud microphysics measurements taken during 10 flights of a C‐212 research aircraft under winter conditions, during which we encountered 37 regions containing supercooled liquid water. To investigate the capability of the Weather Research and Forecasting model to detect regions containing supercooled cloud drops, we propose a multiphysics ensemble approach. We used four microphysics and two planetary boundary layer schemes. The Morrison parameterization yielded superior results, whereas the planetary boundary layer schemes were essential in evaluating the presence of liquid water content. The Goddard microphysics scheme best detected the presence of ice water content but tended to underestimate liquid water content

The role of green and traditional supplier attributes on business performance

Supplier evaluation and selection are fundamental tasks since they are part of the production process and even initiate the supply chain (SC). Despite their importance in the production system, supplier evaluation and selection may be challenging activities to be performed if companies look at the wide range of available evaluation techniques and methodologies, which now seek to integrate both traditional and green attributes. In addition, companies may refuse to take into account green attributes during the supplier selection process, because they do not know their impact on commercial benefits. To overcome this limitation, this study examines the Mexican manufacturing sector and measures the impact of supplier traditional attributes and green attributes on business performance, namely production process benefits and commercial benefits. As data collection instrument, we administered a survey to 253 supplier evaluators and selectors; then, using the gathered data, we constructed a structural equation model. The model includes four variables to determine the impact of traditional and green attributes on business performance: green attributes, traditional attributes, production process benefits, and commercial benefits. The results indicate that all the latent variables have positive direct effects on one another. For instance, process benefits show the largest effects on commercial benefits, but the most significant effect is caused by traditional attributes on commercial benefits through green attributes and production process benefits. © 2017 by the authors

Multitemporal Landslide Inventory and Activity Analysis by Means of aerial Photogrammetry and LiDAR Techniques in an Area of Southern Spain

Este artículo trata sobre el uso de fotogrametría aérea y técnicas LiDAR para analizar la actividad de movimientos de ladera durante un largo período de tiempo, de algo más de 32 años. Los datos corresponden a varias campañas de vuelos aéreos nacionales y autonómicos, incluyendo el Plan PNOA (1984, 1996, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013 y 2016), que abarcan una superficie de unos 50 km2 a lo largo de la autovía A-44, en las inmediaciones de Jaén (Sur de España). Se estableció como referencia un vuelo ad hoc combinado fotogramétrico y LiDAR de 2010, con mayor resolución y precisión que los otros. Este vuelo fue procesado mediante métodos de orientación directa y ajustes iterativos entre ambos conjuntos de datos. Mientras tanto, los vuelos históricos disponibles en servidores públicos de datos geográficos se orientaron transfiriendo puntos de control en tierra desde el vuelo de referencia. Luego se generaron modelos digitales de superficie (MDS) y ortofotografías, así como los correspondientes modelos diferenciales, que, tras la aplicación de filtros y teniendo en cuenta la incertidumbre estimada de ± 1 m, permitieron identificar cambios reales en la superficie del terreno. Este análisis, complementado con fotointerpretación, nos llevó a obtener un inventario multitemporal de deslizamientos en el área de estudio que fue analizado con el fin de caracterizar el tipo, la morfología y la actividad de los movimientos. Se identificaron tres tipologías básicas: desprendimientos-colapsos, deslizamientos y flujos. Estos tipos presentan diferentes propiedades morfométricas (área, perímetro e intervalo de altura) y están asociados a diferentes condiciones (altitud, pendiente, orientación y litología). Además, también se utilizó un conjunto de zonas de monitorización, comunes a los distintos vuelos, para analizar la actividad a lo largo del periodo de estudio. Así, se identificaron algunos períodos más activos (2009-2010, 2010-2011, 2011-2013 y 1996-2001) entre otros menos activos (1984-1996, 2001-2005, 2005-2009 y 2013-2016), que están relacionados con episodios lluviosos y años secos, respectivamente

Effect of sperm concentration and storage temperature on goat spermatozoa during liquid storage

The use of cooled semen is relatively common in goats. There are a number of advantages of cooled semen doses, including easier handling of artificial insemination (AI) doses, transport, more AI doses per ejaculate, and higher fertility rates in comparison with frozen AI doses. However, cooled semen has a short shelf life. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of temperature and sperm concentration on the in vitro sperm quality during liquid storage for 48 h, including sperm motility and kinetics, response to oxidation, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and DNA fragmentation in goats. Three experiments were performed. In the first, the effects of liquid preservation of semen at different temperatures (5 °C or 17 °C), durations (0, 24 and 48 h) and sperm concentrations (250 × 106 sperm/mL (1:2 dilution rate), 166.7 × 106 sperm/mL (1:3 dilution rate) or 50 × 106 sperm/mL (1:10 dilution rate)) on sperm motility and kinetics were studied. In the second experiment, the effect of temperature, sperm washing and concentration on sperm motility and DNA fragmentation was studied. Finally, the effect of sperm concentration and duration of storage at 5 °C on sperm motility, response to oxidative stress and MMP was examined. We found that refrigerated liquid storage of goat sperm impaired sperm quality, such as motility, MMP and response to oxidation, as storage time increased; however, sperm DNA fragmentation index was not significantly affected. Liquid storage at 5 °C preserved higher total motility than at 17 °C. Moreover, we observed that the reduction of sperm concentration below 500 × 106 sperm/mL did not seem to improve the quality of spermatozoa conserved in milk-based extender in the conditions teste

Simultaneous optimization of circadian and color performance for smart lighting systems design

We present in this work a method to design lighting sources that can be adapted to different temperatures of color and, simultaneously, with a tunable circadian character. We obtained an acceptable range of tuning in both parameters compared to the bibliography. This kind of lighting source has potential applications particularly in building lighting, but also in farming or agriculture. At the same time, we have shown the possibilities of multiobjective optimizations in the lighting industry. The optimization has been developed using the Genetic Algorithm and multiobjective merit functions. The lighting source is able to work under two different regimes regarding the circadian effect, with a design based on a combination of two monochromatic and two white Lighting Emitting Diodes (enough for controlling the circadian character and the color performance at the same time). A prototype, which can be manually or automatically controlled, has been also implemented and evaluated, with a performance in terms of color coordinates very close to the daylight, showing a modulation of the Circadian Efficacy of Radiation between 6% and 16%, and a Color Rendering Index above 80%