Resistant barley varieties may facilitate control of Ramularia leaf spot

Ramularia leaf spot (RLS) is widely present in Denmark nowadays and has the potential to reach severity levels high enough to cause economic damage. The results of multi-location surveys and field trials of several years suggest that varietal resistance can be an efficient means for controlling RLS. The spring barley cultivars most affected by RLS possess mlo-resistance against powdery mildew while the least affected ones do not. Other mildew resistances as well as varietal susceptibility to other foliar diseases were not clearly related to the RLS reaction pattern of neither spring- nor winter barley cultivars. Promising RLS resistance donors may be the spring barleys Power, Helium, Isabella, Nathalie, Cruiser and Isotta and the winter barleys Lonni, followed by Chess, Lomerit, Nobilia, and Carola. However, more work is needed to develop reliable methods for efficient RLS resistance testing and to determine the nature and genetic basis of RLS resistance and its relation to varietal resistances against other diseases

Huge quadratic magneto-optical Kerr effect and magnetization reversal in the Co2_2FeSi Heusler compound

Co$_2$FeSi(100) films with L2$_1$ structure deposited onto MgO(100) were studied exploiting both longitudinal (LMOKE) and quadratic (QMOKE) magneto-optical Kerr effect. The films exhibit a huge QMOKE signal with a maximum contribution of up to 30 mdeg, which is the largest QMOKE signal in reflection that has been measured thus far. This large value is a fingerprint of an exceptionally large spin-orbit coupling of second or higher order. The Co$_2$FeSi(100) films exhibit a rather large coercivity of 350 and 70 Oe for film thicknesses of 22 and 98 nm, respectively. Despite the fact that the films are epitaxial, they do not provide an angular dependence of the anisotropy and the remanence in excess of 1% and 2%, respectively

Disordered Bose Einstein Condensates with Interaction in One Dimension

We study the effects of random scatterers on the ground state of the one-dimensional Lieb-Liniger model of interacting bosons on the unit interval in the Gross-Pitaevskii regime. We prove that Bose Einstein condensation survives even a strong random potential with a high density of scatterers. The character of the wave function of the condensate, however, depends in an essential way on the interplay between randomness and the strength of the two-body interaction. For low density of scatterers or strong interactions the wave function extends over the whole interval. High density of scatterers and weak interaction, on the other hand, leads to localization of the wave function in a fragmented subset of the interval

SQUID developments for the gravitational wave antenna MiniGRAIL

We designed two different sensor SQUIDs for the readout of the resonant mass gravitational wave detector MiniGRAIL. Both designs have integrated input inductors in the order of 1.5 muH and are planned for operation in the mK temperature range. Cooling fins were added to the shunt resistors. The fabricated SQUIDs show a behavior that differs from standard DC-SQUIDs. We were able to operate a design with a parallel configuration of washers at reasonable sensitivities. The flux noise saturated to a value of 0.84 muPhi0/radicHz below a temperature of 200 mK. The equivalent noise referred to the current through the input coil is 155 fA/radicHz and the energy resolution yields 62 h

Presenting in Virtual Worlds: An Architecture for a 3D Anthropomorphic Presenter

Multiparty-interaction technology is changing entertainment, education, and training. Deployed examples of such technology include embodied agents and robots that act as a museum guide, a news presenter, a teacher, a receptionist, or someone trying to sell you insurance, homes, or tickets. In all these cases, the embodied agent needs to explain and describe. This article describes the design of a 3D virtual presenter that uses different output channels (including speech and animation of posture, pointing, and involuntary movements) to present and explain. The behavior is scripted and synchronized with a 2D display containing associated text and regions (slides, drawings, and paintings) at which the presenter can point. This article is part of a special issue on interactive entertainment

Bose-Einstein Quantum Phase Transition in an Optical Lattice Model

Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in cold gases can be turned on and off by an external potential, such as that presented by an optical lattice. We present a model of this phenomenon which we are able to analyze rigorously. The system is a hard core lattice gas at half-filling and the optical lattice is modeled by a periodic potential of strength $\lambda$. For small $\lambda$ and temperature, BEC is proved to occur, while at large $\lambda$ or temperature there is no BEC. At large $\lambda$ the low-temperature states are in a Mott insulator phase with a characteristic gap that is absent in the BEC phase. The interparticle interaction is essential for this transition, which occurs even in the ground state. Surprisingly, the condensation is always into the $p=0$ mode in this model, although the density itself has the periodicity of the imposed potential.Comment: RevTeX4, 13 pages, 2 figure

Simulation of GNSS reflected signals and estimation of position accuracy in GNSS-challenged environment

Abstract The paper describes the development and testing of a simulation tool, called QualiSIM. The tool estimates GNSS-based position accuracy based on a simulation of the environment surrounding the GNSS antenna, with a special focus on city-scape environments with large amounts of signal reflections from non-line-of-sight satellites. The signal reflections are implemented using the extended geometric path length of the signal path caused by reflections from the surrounding buildings. Based on real GPS satellite positions, simulated Galileo satellite positions, models of atmospheric effect on the satellite signals, designs of representative environments e.g. urban and rural scenarios, and a method to simulate reflection of satellite signals within the environment we are able to estimate the position accuracy given several prerequisites as described in the paper. The result is a modelling of the signal path from satellite to receiver, the satellite availability, the extended pseudoranges caused by signal reflection, and an estimate of the position accuracy based on a least squares adjustment of the extended pseudoranges. The paper describes the models and algorithms used and a verification test where the results of QualiSIM are compared with results from collection of real GPS data in an environment with much signal reflection.</jats:p

Different methods for administering 17β-estradiol to ovariectomized rats result in opposite effects on ischemic brain damage

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Numerous stroke studies have controversially shown estrogens to be either neuroprotective or neurodamaging. The discordant results observed in rat brain ischemia models may be a consequence of discrepancies in estrogen administration modes resulting in plasma concentration profiles far from those intended. To test this hypothesis we reproduced in detail and extended an earlier study from our lab using a different mode of 17β-estradiol administration; home-made silastic capsules instead of commercial slow-release 17β-estradiol pellets. Four groups of female rats (n = 12) were ovariectomized and administered 17β-estradiol or placebo via silastic capsules. All animals underwent MCAo fourteen days after ovariectomy and were sacrificed three days later.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In contrast to our earlier results using the commercial pellets, the group receiving 17β-estradiol during the entire experiment had significantly smaller lesions than the group receiving placebo (mean ± SEM: 3.85 ± 0.70% versus 7.15 ± 0.27% of total slice area, respectively; p = 0.015). No significant neuroprotection was found when the 17β-estradiol was administered only during the two weeks before or the three days immediately after MCAo.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The results indicate that different estrogen treatment regimens result in diametrically different effects on cerebral ischemia. Thus the effects of estrogens on ischemic damage seem to be concentration-related, with a biphasic, or even more complex, dose-response relation. These findings have implications for the design of animal experiments and also have a bearing on the estrogen doses used for peri-menopausal hormone replacement therapy.</p