Loss of functional diversity through anthropogenic extinctions of island birds is not offset by biotic invasions

Human impacts reshape ecological communities through the extinction and introduction of species. The combined impact of these factors depends on whether non-native species fill the functional roles of extinct species, thus buffering the loss of functional diversity. This question has been difficult to address, because comprehensive information about past extinctions and their traits is generally lacking. We combine detailed information about extinct, extant, and established alien birds to quantify historical changes in functional diversity across nine oceanic archipelagos. We found that alien species often equal or exceed the number of anthropogenic extinctions yet apparently perform a narrower set of functional roles as current island assemblages have undergone a substantial and ubiquitous net loss in functional diversity and increased functional similarity among assemblages. Our results reveal that the introduction of alien species has not prevented anthropogenic extinctions from reducing and homogenizing the functional diversity of native bird assemblages on oceanic archipelagos

A method for the reconstruction of unknown non-monotonic growth functions in the chemostat

We propose an adaptive control law that allows one to identify unstable steady states of the open-loop system in the single-species chemostat model without the knowledge of the growth function. We then show how one can use this control law to trace out (reconstruct) the whole graph of the growth function. The process of tracing out the graph can be performed either continuously or step-wise. We present and compare both approaches. Even in the case of two species in competition, which is not directly accessible with our approach due to lack of controllability, feedback control improves identifiability of the non-dominant growth rate.Comment: expansion of ideas from proceedings paper (17 pages, 8 figures), proceedings paper is version v

Theoretical and Phenomenological Constraints on Form Factors for Radiative and Semi-Leptonic B-Meson Decays

We study transition form factors for radiative and rare semi-leptonic B-meson decays into light pseudoscalar or vector mesons, combining theoretical constraints and phenomenological information from Lattice QCD, light-cone sum rules, and dispersive bounds. We pay particular attention to form factor parameterisations which are based on the so-called series expansion, and study the related systematic uncertainties on a quantitative level. In this context, we also provide the NLO corrections to the correlation function between two flavour-changing tensor currents, which enters the unitarity constraints for the coefficients in the series expansion.Comment: 52 pages; v2: normalization error in (29ff.) corrected, conclusion about relevance of unitarity bounds modified; form factor fits unaffected; references added; v3: discussion on truncation of series expansion added, matches version to be published in JHEP; v4: corrected typos in Tables 5 and

Z boson production in Pb+Pb collisions at √Snn = 5.02 TeV measured by the ATLAS experiment

The production yield of Z bosons is measured in the electron and muon decay channels in Pb+Pb collisions at √S = 5.02 TeV with the ATLAS detector. Data from the 2015 LHC run corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 0.49 nb are used for the analysis. The Z boson yield, normalised by the total number of minimum-bias events and the mean nuclear thickness function, is measured as a function of dilepton rapidity and event centrality. The measurements in Pb+Pb collisions are compared with similar measurements made in proton-proton collisions at the same centre-of-mass energy. The nuclear modification factor is found to be consistent with unity for all centrality intervals. The results are compared with theoretical predictions obtained at next-to-leading order using nucleon and nuclear parton distribution functions. The normalised Z boson yields in Pb+Pb collisions lie 1-3σ above the predictions. The nuclear modification factor measured as a function of rapidity agrees with unity and is consistent with a next-to-leading-order QCD calculation including the isospin effect. nn -

Search for flavour-changing neutral currents in processes with one top quark and a photon using 81 fb−1 of pp collisions at s=13TeV with the ATLAS experiment

A search for flavour-changing neutral current (FCNC) events via the coupling of a top quark, a photon, and an up or charm quark is presented using 81 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data taken at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events with a photon, an electron or muon, a b-tagged jet, and missing transverse momentum are selected. A neural network based on kinematic variables differentiates between events from signal and background processes. The data are consistent with the background-only hypothesis, and limits are set on the strength of the tqγ coupling in an effective field theory. These are also interpreted as 95% CL upper limits on the cross section for FCNC tγ production via a left-handed (right-handed) tuγ coupling of 36 fb (78 fb) and on the branching ratio for t→γu of 2.8×10−5 (6.1×10−5). In addition, they are interpreted as 95% CL upper limits on the cross section for FCNC tγ production via a left-handed (right-handed) tcγ coupling of 40 fb (33 fb) and on the branching ratio for t→γc of 22×10−5 (18×10−5)

Measurement of J/ψ production in association with a W ± boson with pp data at 8 TeV

A measurement of the production of a prompt J/ψ meson in association with a W± boson with W± → μν and J/ψ → μ+μ− is presented for J/ψ transverse momenta in the range 8.5–150 GeV and rapidity |yJ/ψ| < 2.1 using ATLAS data recorded in 2012 at the LHC. The data were taken at a proton-proton centre-of-mass energy of s = 8 TeV and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 20.3 fb−1. The ratio of the prompt J/ψ plus W± cross-section to the inclusive W± cross-section is presented as a differential measurement as a function of J/ψ transverse momenta and compared with theoretical predictions using different double-parton-scattering cross-sections. [Figure not available: see fulltext.]

Measurement of Azimuthal Anisotropy of Muons from Charm and Bottom Hadrons in pp Collisions at sqrt[s]=13 TeV with the ATLAS Detector.

The elliptic flow of muons from the decay of charm and bottom hadrons is measured in pp collisions at sqrt[s]=13  TeV using a data sample with an integrated luminosity of 150  pb^{-1} recorded by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The muons from heavy-flavor decay are separated from light-hadron decay muons using momentum imbalance between the tracking and muon spectrometers. The heavy-flavor decay muons are further separated into those from charm decay and those from bottom decay using the distance-of-closest-approach to the collision vertex. The measurement is performed for muons in the transverse momentum range 4-7 GeV and pseudorapidity range |η|<2.4. A significant nonzero elliptic anisotropy coefficient v_{2} is observed for muons from charm decays, while the v_{2} value for muons from bottom decays is consistent with zero within uncertainties

Combination of searches for Higgs boson pairs in pp collisions at s=13TeV with the ATLAS detector

This letter presents a combination of searches for Higgs boson pair production using up to 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy s=13 TeV recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The combination is performed using six analyses searching for Higgs boson pairs decaying into the bb¯bb¯, bb¯W+W−, bb¯τ+τ−, W+W−W+W−, bb¯γγ and W+W−γγ final states. Results are presented for non-resonant and resonant Higgs boson pair production modes. No statistically significant excess in data above the Standard Model predictions is found. The combined observed (expected) limit at 95% confidence level on the non-resonant Higgs boson pair production cross-section is 6.9 (10) times the predicted Standard Model cross-section. Limits are also set on the ratio (κλ) of the Higgs boson self-coupling to its Standard Model value. This ratio is constrained at 95% confidence level in observation (expectation) to −5.0<κλ<12.0 (−5.8<κλ<12.0). In addition, limits are set on the production of narrow scalar resonances and spin-2 Kaluza–Klein Randall–Sundrum gravitons. Exclusion regions are also provided in the parameter space of the habemus Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model and the Electroweak Singlet Model