The contribution of pattern recognition of seismic and morphostructural data to seismic hazard assessment

The reliable statistical characterization of the spatial and temporal properties of large earthquakes occurrence is one of the most debated issues in seismic hazard assessment, due to the unavoidably limited observations from past events. We show that pattern recognition techniques, which are designed in a formal and testable way, may provide significant space-time constraints about impending strong earthquakes. This information, when combined with physically sound methods for ground shaking computation, like the neo-deterministic approach (NDSHA), may produce effectively preventive seismic hazard maps. Pattern recognition analysis of morphostructural data provide quantitative and systematic criteria for identifying the areas prone to the largest events, taking into account a wide set of possible geophysical and geological data, whilst the formal identification of precursory seismicity patterns (by means of CN and M8S algorithms), duly validated by prospective testing, provides useful constraints about impending strong earthquakes at the intermediate space-time scale. According to a multi-scale approach, the information about the areas where a strong earthquake is likely to occur can be effectively integrated with different observations (e.g. geodetic and satellite data), including regional scale modeling of the stress field variations and of the seismic ground shaking, so as to identify a set of priority areas for detailed investigations of short-term precursors at local scale and for microzonation studies. Results from the pattern recognition of earthquake prone areas (M>=5.0) in the Po plain (Northern Italy), as well as from prospective testing and validation of the time-dependent NDSHA scenarios are presented.Comment: 33 pages, 7 Figures, 9 Tables. Submitted to Bollettino di Geofisica Teorica e Applicata (BGTA

On the utility of predictive chromatography to complement mass spectrometry based intact protein identification

The amino acid sequence determines the individual protein three-dimensional structure and its functioning in an organism. Therefore, "reading” a protein sequence and determining its changes due to mutations or post-translational modifications is one of the objectives of proteomic experiments. The commonly utilized approach is gradient high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in combination with tandem mass spectrometry. While serving as a way to simplify the protein mixture, the liquid chromatography may be an additional analytical tool providing complementary information about the protein structure. Previous attempts to develop "predictive” HPLC for large biomacromolecules were limited by empirically derived equations based purely on the adsorption mechanisms of the retention and applicable to relatively small polypeptide molecules. A mechanism of the large biomacromolecule retention in reversed-phase gradient HPLC was described recently in thermodynamics terms by the analytical model of liquid chromatography at critical conditions (BioLCCC). In this work, we applied the BioLCCC model to predict retention of the intact proteins as well as their large proteolytic peptides separated under different HPLC conditions. The specific aim of these proof-of-principle studies was to demonstrate the feasibility of using "predictive” HPLC as a complementary tool to support the analysis of identified intact proteins in top-down, middle-down, and/or targeted selected reaction monitoring (SRM)-based proteomic experiments. Figure Intact protein LC retention time prediction assists protein identification in top- and middle-down proteomic

The water budget of a hurricane as dependent on its movement

Despite the dangers associated with tropical cyclones and their rainfall, the origins of storm moisture remains unclear. Existing studies have focused on the region 40-400 km from the cyclone center. It is known that the rainfall within this area cannot be explained by local processes alone but requires imported moisture. Nonetheless, the dynamics of this imported moisture appears unknown. Here, considering a region up to three thousand kilometers from storm center, we analyze precipitation, atmospheric moisture and movement velocities for North Atlantic hurricanes. Our findings indicate that even over such large areas a hurricane's rainfall cannot be accounted for by concurrent evaporation. We propose instead that a hurricane consumes pre-existing atmospheric water vapor as it moves. The propagation velocity of the cyclone, i.e. the difference between its movement velocity and the mean velocity of the surrounding air (steering flow), determines the water vapor budget. Water vapor available to the hurricane through its movement makes the hurricane self-sufficient at about 700 km from the hurricane center obviating the need to concentrate moisture from greater distances. Such hurricanes leave a dry wake, whereby rainfall is suppressed by up to 40 per cent compared to its long-term mean. The inner radius of this dry footprint approximately coincides with the radius of hurricane self-sufficiency with respect to water vapor. We discuss how Carnot efficiency considerations do not constrain the power of such open systems that deplete the pre-existing moisture. Our findings emphasize the incompletely understood role and importance of atmospheric moisture supplies, condensation and precipitation in hurricane dynamics.Comment: 38 pages, 17 figures, 1 Table; extended analyses: available E/P ratios reviewed and explained (Table 1); rainfall and moisture distributions 3 days before and after hurricanes, propagation velocity and its relationship to radial velocity; efficiency for non-steady hurricanes; hurricane motion and rainfall asymmetries discusse

Realization of Coherent Optically Dense Media via Buffer-Gas Cooling

We demonstrate that buffer-gas cooling combined with laser ablation can be used to create coherent optical media with high optical depth and low Doppler broadening that offers metastable states with low collisional and motional decoherence. Demonstration of this generic technique opens pathways to coherent optics with a large variety of atoms and molecules. We use helium buffer gas to cool 87Rb atoms to below 7 K and slow atom diffusion to the walls. Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in this medium allows for 50% transmission in a medium with initial OD >70 and for slow pulse propagation with large delay-bandwidth products. In the high-OD regime, we observe high-contrast spectrum oscillations due to efficient four-wave mixing.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. V2: modified title, abstract, introduction, conclusion; added references; improved theoretical fit in figure 3(b); shortened slow light theory description; clarified simplicity of apparatus. Final version as published in Phys. Rev.

Thermal Raman study of Li4Ti5O12 and discussion about the number of its characteristic bands

Lithium battery industry is booming, and this fast growth should be supported by developing industry friendly tools to control the quality of positive and negative electrode materials. Raman spectroscopy was shown to be a cost effective and sensitive instrument to study defects and heterogeneities in lithium titanate, popular negative electrode material for high power applications, but there are still some points to be clarified. This work presents a detailed thermal Raman study for lithium titanate and discusses the difference of the number of predicted and experimentally observed Raman-active bands. The low temperature study and the analysis of thermal shifts of bands positions during heating let us to conclude about advantages of the proposed approach with surplus bands and recommend using shifts of major band to estimate the sample heating

Observation of a finite-energy phase transition in a one-dimensional quantum simulator

One of the most striking many-body phenomena in nature is the sudden change of macroscopic properties as the temperature or energy reaches a critical value. Such equilibrium transitions have been predicted and observed in two and three spatial dimensions, but have long been thought not to exist in one-dimensional (1D) systems. Fifty years ago, Dyson and Thouless pointed out that a phase transition in 1D can occur in the presence of long-range interactions, but an experimental realization has so far not been achieved due to the requirement to both prepare equilibrium states and realize sufficiently long-range interactions. Here we report on the first experimental demonstration of a finite-energy phase transition in 1D. We use the simple observation that finite-energy states can be prepared by time-evolving product initial states and letting them thermalize under the dynamics of a many-body Hamiltonian. By preparing initial states with different energies in a 1D trapped-ion quantum simulator, we study the finite-energy phase diagram of a long-range interacting quantum system. We observe a ferromagnetic equilibrium phase transition as well as a crossover from a low-energy polarized paramagnet to a high-energy unpolarized paramagnet in a system of up to $23$ spins, in excellent agreement with numerical simulations. Our work demonstrates the ability of quantum simulators to realize and study previously inaccessible phases at finite energy density.Comment: 5+9 pages, 4+14 figure

Anisotropy in the Interaction of Ultracold Dysprosium

The nature of the interaction between ultracold atoms with a large orbital and spin angular momentum has attracted considerable attention. It was suggested that such interactions can lead to the realization of exotic states of highly correlated matter. Here, we report on a theoretical study of the competing anisotropic dispersion, magnetic dipole-dipole, and electric quadrupole-quadrupole forces between two dysprosium atoms. Each dysprosium atom has an orbital angular momentum L=6 and magnetic moment $\mu=10\mu_B$. We show that the dispersion coefficients of the ground state adiabatic potentials lie between 1865 a.u. and 1890 a.u., creating a non-negligible anisotropy with a spread of 25 a.u. and that the electric quadrupole-quadrupole interaction is weak compared to the other interactions. We also find that for interatomic separations $R< 50\,a_0$ both the anisotropic dispersion and magnetic dipole-dipole potential are larger than the atomic Zeeman splittings for external magnetic fields of order 10 G to 100 G. At these separations spin exchange can occur. We finish by describing two scattering models for inelastic spin exchange. A universal scattering theory is used to model loss due to the anisotropy in the dispersion and a distorted-wave-Born theory is used to model losses from the magnetic dipole-dipole interaction for the $^{164}$Dy isotope. These models find loss rates that are the same order of magnitude as the experimental value.Comment: the manuscript has 6 figures in pdf forma

The District Heating in the Context of the Active Consumers Development in Smart Energy Systems

The paper defines the main factors of the smart energy systems that influence on the district heating. Noted increase in the regulatory impact of electric energy system on the district heating and increase in roles of the distribution and consumption of thermal energy. Urban population and other consumers of energy become equal partners of the utilities and acquire the status of "active" consumers. The heating supply companies need to develop a new model of management of heating regimes with dynamic synchronization with energy system and "active" consumers. One of the most important conditions of the achievement of the cost reduction, reliability and quality increase in community facilities is active consumer's behavior