Experimentation, simulation and analysis of improvised explosive devices-explosively formed projectile

Dentro de los artefactos explosivos improvisados se encuentran aquellos que generan proyectiles formados por explosión, penetradores de blindajes y sistemas acorazados, como los utilizados por grupos insurgentes contra las fuerzas aliadas en zona de operaciones. El objeto de este estudio es reproducir y entender el comportamiento de dichos artefactos explosivos improvisados capaces de generar proyectiles de alta velocidad y gran capacidad de penetración. La comprensión de su comportamiento permitirá mejorar el conocimiento sobre ellos, y por ende, combatirlos de forma más eficaz. Para ello se han realizado los ensayos correspondientes, obteniéndose las primeras caracterizaciones de proyectiles formados por explosión construidos de manera artesanal, tal y como haría un terrorista. Además, se han creado los modelos numéricos correspondientes a cada ensayo, que simulan todo el evento desde su inicio hasta el impacto en el objetivo, recorriendo todos los pasos intermedios. Se han ensayado 3 configuraciones y posteriormente se han simulado, usando el software de análisis por elementos finitos, LS-DYNA® , con una configuración 2 D axisimétrica, con mallados lagrangianos. Los resultados obtenidos por el modelo han alcanzado un alto grado de precisión con relación a los datos experimentales. A partir de aquí se puede concluir que los artefactos explosivos improvisados-proyectiles formados por explosión son una seria amenaza, y que los modelos generados permitirán conocer y ahorrar costes en la lucha contra esta amenaza, y por ende contra el terrorismo, al disponer de un enfoque holístico de la amenaza, y finalmente reducir los costes de la experimentación.Within the category of improvised explosive devices are those that form explosively formed projectiles which penetrate armor and armored systems, such as those used by insurgents against allied forces in operational areas. The purpose of this study is to reproduce and understand the behavior of these improvised explosive devices capable of generating high-velocity, high penetration projectiles. Understanding their behavior will allow for improved knowledge about them, and thus will allow us to more effectively combat them. Thus, the corresponding tests were carried out and the results were obtained from the first characterizations of explosively formed projectiles built using traditional methods, just as a terrorist would have built them. Along with this, numerical models were created for each test simulating the entire event from beginning to impact on the target, including all the intermediate steps. There were three configurations tested and simulated using the software of finite element analysis, LS-DYNA® , a 2-D asymmetric configuration with Lagrangian meshes. The results obtained by the model were compared with data obtained in the experimental tests, yielding a high precision between simulated and tested data. With the data obtained in this study it can be concluded that the improvised explosive devices -explosively formed projectiles is a serious threat. Generated models will allow us to know more about these weapons, to reduce costs in the fight against the threat of improvised explosive devices-explosively formed projectiles and therefore against terrorism with explosively formed projectiles, and to have a holistic approach to the threat and to reduce the cost of experimentation. Minimize the experimental expense.Peer Reviewe

Molecular Characterization of a Novel Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) type VI-causing Mutation – Indirect Proof of Principle on its Pathogenicity

Introduction: With its unprecedented throughput, scalability and speed, next-generation sequencing (NGS) is revolutionizing clinical research. Targeted sequencing in particular is now available in many labs. Still, whenever a novel variant is detected, its pathogenicity must be carefully assessed and every now and again, a case pops up to highlight how tricky and delicate this process can be. Here we present a case of a molecular diagnosis of a patient with a clinical suspicion of MPS type VI, where even though the causal mutation was easy to detect by both Sanger and NGS, only through indirect studies could we present proof of principle on its pathogenicity.This work was partially supported by Fundação Millennium bcp and N2020 (bcp/LIM/DGH/2014;NORTE2020/DESVENDAR/DGH/jn2016). MFC and JIS are grantees from the FCT (SFRH/BPD/101965/2014;SFRH/BD/124372/2016).N/

Serological survey of Australian native reptiles for exposure to ranavirus

Ranaviruses have been isolated from many ectothermic vertebrates, and serological surveys of both amphibians and reptiles have shown the presence of ranaviral antibodies in a proportion of these populations. An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed to measure serum antibodies against ranavirus in Australian reptiles. The ELISA was validated with serum from challenge trials with Bohle iridovirus (BIV) in 6 reptilian species. A preliminary serosurvey of northern Queensland riparian reptile fauna (saw-shelled turtles Myuchelys latisternum, Krefft's river turtles Emydura macquarii krefftii, freshwater crocodiles Crocodylus johnstoni, as well as the snakes Boiga irregularis, Dendrelaphis punctulatus, Tropidonophis mairii, Morelia spilota, Liasis childreni and L. fuscus) revealed evidence of past exposure to Bohle iridoviral antigens in part of the population at several locations sampled. Furthermore, in Krefft's river turtles and freshwater crocodiles, a statistically significant trend was apparent for larger reptiles to be more likely to have BIV-reactive sera than smaller individuals. The use of adult tortoise populations as sentinels can assist in monitoring the presence of BIV in northern Australian freshwater streams, and thereby the potential dangers to native fauna from this agent

Sauropod trackways of the Iberian Peninsula: palaeoetological and palaeoenvironmental implications

More than a hundred sauropod tracksites, ranging in age from Middle Jurassic (Bathonian) to Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), are repor­ted from the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal). Sauropod trackway orientation patterns throughout an entire geographic area such as the Iberian Peninsula and over different time periods may provide new data about the palaeoecology and behavioural patterns of sauropods. The studied tracksites exhibit two main trackway orientation patterns, directional and random, indicating different behaviours in grega­rious or solitary (milling) individuals. Gregarious behavioural patterns are mainly observed within Parabrontopodus/Breviparopus-like and Brontopodus-like ichnotypes of a single size class (either small or medium-sized), indicating age segregation. Among the gregarious sauropods the former ichnotype is linked with inland environments, while the latter is mainly linked with coastal environments. Solitary trackways are mainly of medium-sized to large individuals, are also linked with both inland (Parabrontopodus/Breviparopus-like) and coastal environments (Parabrontopodus/Breviparopus-like, Brontopodus-like), and belong to the above-mentioned ichnotypes as well as to Polyonyx-like ichnotypes. Thus, no obvious link between gregarious behaviour and the palaeoenvironmental setting can be inferred from the sauropod track record of the Iberian Peninsula. Nonetheless, sauropod trackways showing titanosauriform characters (Brontopodus-like) are more common in coastal environments, contrary to what might be expected given this group’s apparent taxonomic preference for inland environments.El registro Ibérico (España y Portugal) de icnitas de saurópodos está representado por más de cien yacimientos cuya edad varía desde el Jurásico Medio (Batoniense) al Cretácico Superior (Maastrichtiense). El estudio de la orientación de los rastros, en un área determinada como la Península Ibérica y en diferentes edades, nos ha permitido obtener nuevos datos sobre el comportamiento de los saurópodos. Los rastros de los yacimientos estudiados presentan dos patrones de movimiento distintos, direccionales y aleatorios, que reflejan distintos com­portamientos en individuos gregarios o solitarios (deambulantes). El patrón que indica comportamiento gregario se observa en los icnotipos “Parabrontopodus/Breviparopus-like” y “Brontopodus-like” en saurópodos del mismo tamaño (pequeño o medio), lo que indica segregación por edad. El primer icnotipo se ha conservado en sedimentos depositados en ambientes terrestres mientras que el segundo lo hace fundamen­talmente en ambientes costeros. Los rastros solitarios son, en su mayoría, de saurópodos de tamaño medio o grande, conservados tanto en medios terrestres (“Parabrontopodus/Breviparopus-like”), como costeros (“Parabrontopodus/Breviparopus-like” y “Brontopodus-like”) y pertenecen a los dos icnotipos mencionados anteriormente y a un tercero: “Polyonyx-like”. Por lo tanto, no hay una significativa influencia paleoambiental en el registro del comportamiento gregario de los saurópodos ibéricos. Sin embargo, los rastros saurópodos que muestran caracteres Titanosauriformes (Brontopodus-like) son más frecuentes en los medios costeros de la Península Ibérica. Estos resultados son diferentes a los expuestos por otros autores que apuntan una aparente preferencia de los Titanosauriformes por los medios terrestres

Recuperación de energía del aire de salida de los extractores en invernaderos

CIES2020 - XVII Congresso Ibérico e XIII Congresso Ibero-americano de Energia SolarRESUMEN: El uso de los extractores axiales en invernaderos para el control de temperatura y renovación de volumen de aire permite la recuperación de la energía eólica residual, esto representa una fuente constante de producción de energía limpia, y reducción de los costos de producción al bajar los costos de consumo de energía. El objetivo de este trabajo fue diseñar, construir y evaluar un sistema de recuperación de energía eólica residual en los invernaderos. Este sistema consiste en una turbina eólica colocada a una distancia óptima, un cono en la descarga de aire y un mecanismo para modificar el ángulo de aspas de la turbina eólica. Se analizó el balance de energía del sistema, midiendo los principales parámetros de energía, tales como: voltaje, amperaje, velocidad del aire y velocidad angular de los rotores. Las pruebas con la turbina eólica se realizaron en el sistema extractor de aire de un invernadero, sin cono y con cono. La implementación del sistema propuesto permitió recuperar la energía eléctrica del motor. Con el cono instalado, la energía eléctrica recuperada se incrementó en comparación que con el sistema de recuperación sin cono.ABSTRACT: The use of axial extractors in greenhouses for temperature control and air volume renewal allows the recovery of residual wind energy, this represents a constant source of clean energy production, and reduction of production costs by lowering energy consumption costs. The objective of this work was to design, build and evaluate a wind energy recovery system in greenhouses. This system consists of a wind turbine placed at an optimal distance, an air discharge cone and a mechanism to modify the angle of the wind turbine blades. The energy balance of the system was analyzed, measuring the main energy parameters, such as: voltage, amperage, air speed and angular velocity of the rotors. The tests with the wind turbine were carried out in the air extraction system of a greenhouse, without cone and with cone. The implementation of the proposed system allowed the recovery of electrical energy from the engine. With the cone installed, the electrical energy recovered was increased compared to the recovery system without cone.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Environmental benchmarks based on ecotoxicological assessment with planktonic species might not adequately protect benthic assemblages in lotic systems

Freshwater ecosystems face widespread diffuse and point-source contamination. Species Sensitivity Distributions (SSDs) have been used as a tool to determine chemical concentration benchmarks that represent protective levels for most species in the environment. Here we used a SSD approach to assess on the adequacy of standard planktonic organisms to reflect the response of benthic communities, critically supporting the structure and function of lotic ecosystems. For the purpose, SSDs reflecting non-lethal responses of standard planktonic and selected benthic organisms were built based on EC50 values (collected in the literature or estimated following testing herein) regarding three model contaminants: potassium dichromate (PD), 3,5-dichlorophenol (DCP) and lead chloride (LC). The derived HC5 estimates were discriminatory between chemicals and the uncertainty associated with the estimate was remarkably low. The HC5 estimates with corresponding uncertainty were generally within the same order of magnitude for the three chemicals tested, with better discrimination between chemicals regarding their hazardous potential being achieved for benthic organisms: DCP was clearly less hazardous than PD, but LC tends to be as hazardous as PD and DCP (assuming the confidence interval ranges). Moreover, benthic communities were more sensitive to both DCP and PD, in this later case the HC5 being lower by more than one order of magnitude than that found for planktonic communities; for LC, confidence intervals overlapped, preventing a feasible assumption regarding differential sensitivity of the compared communities. Microphytobenthos was highlighted as the most sensitive group to the three tested chemicals in SSDs covering the benthic compartment, while SSDs with planktonic organisms did not consistently show trends in sensitivity ordering. Overall, our results suggest that protective benchmarks retrieved from SSDs built with the responses of standard planktonic organisms (which are the most commonly used for regulation purposes) do not adequately protect benthic communities.publishe

The late-Variscan peraluminous Valdepeñas pluton (southern Central Iberian Zone)

The Valdepeñas pluton is the easternmost outcrop of the Cáceres-Valdepeñas magmatic alignment (southern Central Iberian Zone). This massif is constituted by a cordierite-bearing porphyritic monzogranite and may be grouped within the so-called “Serie Mixta” granitoids. The Valdepeñas monzogranite is of magnesian [FeOt/(FeOt+MgO)~0.76], alkali-calcic [(Na2O+K2O)–CaO=7.8–8.5] and peraluminous (A/CNK=1.14–1.20). Multielemental- and REE-normalized patterns are comparable to those of similar rocks in the Nisa- Alburquerque-Los Pedroches magmatic alignment, and slightly differ from those of the Montes de Toledo batholith, both in the southern Central Iberian Zone. The U-Pb zircon age of 303±3Ma is consistent with the late-orogenic character of the intrusion and is in accordance with most of the granitic peraluminous intrusions in the southern Central Iberian Zone.  86Sr/87Sr300Ma ratios (0.707424–0.711253), εNd300Mavalues (-5.53 to -6.68) and whole-rock major and trace element compositions of the studied rocks, suggest that the parental magma of the Valdepeñas monzogranite could derive from a crustal metaigneous source. The U-Pb ages (552–650Ma) of inherited zircon cores found in Valdepeñas monzogranite samples match those often found in Lower Paleozoic metavolcanics and granitic orthogneisses of Central Iberia and, furthermore, point to Upper Neoproterozoic metaigneous basement rocks as possible protoliths at the magma source. Based on the solubility of monazite in peraluminous melts, the estimated emplacement temperature of the studied monzogranite is 742–762ºC. The results obtained in this work would contribute to a better understanding of the origin of the “Serie Mixta” granitoids

Metabolic oscillations on the circadian time scale in <i>Drosophila</i> cells lacking clock genes.

Circadian rhythms are cell-autonomous biological oscillations with a period of about 24 h. Current models propose that transcriptional feedback loops are the primary mechanism for the generation of circadian oscillations. Within this framework, &lt;i&gt;Drosophila&lt;/i&gt; S2 cells are regarded as "non-rhythmic" cells, as they do not express several canonical circadian components. Using an unbiased multi-omics approach, we made the surprising discovery that &lt;i&gt;Drosophila&lt;/i&gt; S2 cells do in fact display widespread daily rhythms. Transcriptomics and proteomics analyses revealed that hundreds of genes and their products, and in particular metabolic enzymes, are rhythmically expressed in a 24-h cycle. Metabolomics analyses extended these findings and demonstrate that central carbon metabolism and amino acid metabolism are core metabolic pathways driven by protein rhythms. We thus demonstrate that 24-h metabolic oscillations, coupled to gene and protein cycles, take place in nucleated cells without the contribution of any known circadian regulators. These results therefore suggest a reconsideration of existing models of the clockwork in &lt;i&gt;Drosophila&lt;/i&gt; and other eukaryotic systems

Entanglement in quantum computers described by the XXZ model with defects

We investigate how to generate maximally entangled states in systems characterized by the Hamiltonian of the XXZ model with defects. Some proposed quantum computers are described by such model. We show how the defects can be used to obtain EPR states and W states when one or two excitations are considered.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur