Data Reduction Procedure for an Experimental Method of Measuring the Velocity-Coupled Response Function of Solid Propellants

A computer program has been developed for calculation of the velocity-coupled response function of solid-propellants from experimentally measured pressure data. The proposed velocity-coupled response function measurement apparatus consists of an end-burner combustor where the propellant sample is oscillated in a direction normal to the flow in the presence of a standing acoustic wave within the combustion chamber. The pressure measurements are made at select points along the length of the chamber. The data reduction program consists of a Runge-Kutta routine driven by a BFGS multivariable search routine. The Runge-Kutta routine determines the pressure distribution within the chamber of the proposed apparatus for a specific velocity-coupled response function (Rv). The BFGS optimization routine searches for the Rv which minimizes the difference between the calculated and measured pressure distributions. The data reduction program has demonstrated convergence to the proper Rv value for pressure data that was generated by sampling from gaussian distributions

Comprehensive analysis of Hox gene expression in the amphipod crustacean Parhyale hawaiensis.

Hox genes play crucial roles in establishing regional identity along the anterior-posterior axis in bilaterian animals, and have been implicated in generating morphological diversity throughout evolution. Here we report the identification, expression, and initial genomic characterization of the complete set of Hox genes from the amphipod crustacean Parhyale hawaiensis. Parhyale is an emerging model system that is amenable to experimental manipulations and evolutionary comparisons among the arthropods. Our analyses indicate that the Parhyale genome contains a single copy of each canonical Hox gene with the exception of fushi tarazu, and preliminary mapping suggests that at least some of these genes are clustered together in the genome. With few exceptions, Parhyale Hox genes exhibit both temporal and spatial colinearity, and expression boundaries correlate with morphological differences between segments and their associated appendages. This work represents the most comprehensive analysis of Hox gene expression in a crustacean to date, and provides a foundation for functional studies aimed at elucidating the role of Hox genes in arthropod development and evolution

Classification of Singular Fibres on Rational Elliptic Surfaces in Characteristic Three

We determine and list all possible configurations of singular fibres on rational elliptic surfaces in characteristic three. In total, we find that 267 distinct configurations exist. This result complements Miranda and Persson's classification in characteristic zero, and Lang's classification in characteristic two.Comment: 40 Pages. Minor typos correcte

Sulfur dioxide and particles in quiescent volcanic plumes from Poás, Arenal, and Colima Volcanos, Costa Rica and Mexico

Measurements of SO2 emission rates and concentrations and of particle distribution, size, shape, and composition were made in quiescent volcanic plumes emitted into the troposphere from Poás and Arenal volcanos, Costa Rica, and Colima volcano, Mexico. SO2 emission rates were 700±180 metric tons per day (t/d) for Poás, 210±30 t/d for Arenal, and 320±50 t/d for Colima. The concentrations of SO2 calculated from the COSPEC/lidar data were 5–380 ppb. Concentrations of SO2measured directly by flame photometry were 10–250 ppb. Particles collected in the plumes with a quartz crystal microbalance impactor were mostly less than 3 μm in diameter and consisted of droplets of dilute sulfur-bearing solutions and minor amounts of larger silicate particles coated with a sulfur-bearing film or crust. Total particle concentrations were 4.7 μg/m3 for Poás and 18.8 μg/m3for Colima. Comparison of concentrations of SO2 in the plumes with gas samples collected at fumaroles on the ground suggests that the plumes are diluted by the atmosphere by factors of up to 105

Research on atmospheric volcanic emissions: An overview

The project Research on Atmospheric Volcanic Emissions is a unique effort by NASA and university scientists to investigate the detailed chemical nature of plumes from volcanic eruptions. The major goals of the project are to: 1) understand the impact major eruptions will have on atmospheric chemistry processes, 2) understand the importance of volcanic emissions in the atmospheric geochemical cycles of selected species, 3) use knowledge of the plume chemical composition to diagnose and predict magmatic processes. Project RAVE\u27S first mission used the NASA Lockheed Orion P-3 outfitted with equipment to measure concentrations of the gases SO2, OCS, H2S, CS2, NO, O3and trace elements in particles in Mt. St. Helens\u27 plume on September 22, 1980. Measurements of SO2 column densities in the plume permitted calculations of SO2 fluxes. This article is an overview of the first experimental design factors and performance of the initial RAVE experiment

Control of Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus in Health Care Facilities in a Region

Background In late 1996, vancomycin-resistant enterococci were first detected in the Siouxland region of Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. A task force was created, and in 1997 the assistance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was sought in assessing the prevalence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci in the region’s facilities and implementing recommendations for screening, infection control, and education at all 32 health care facilities in the region. Methods The infection-control intervention was evaluated in October 1998 and October 1999. We performed point-prevalence surveys, conducted a case– control study of gastrointestinal colonization with vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and compared infection-control practices and screening policies for vancomycin-resistant enterococci at the acute care and long-term care facilities in the Siouxland region. Results Perianal-swab samples were obtained from 1954 of 2196 eligible patients (89 percent) in 1998 and 1820 of 2049 eligible patients (89 percent) in 1999. The overall prevalence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci at 30 facilities that participated in all three years of the study decreased from 2.2 percent in 1997 to 1.4 percent in 1998 and to 0.5 percent in 1999 (P Conclusions An active infection-control intervention, which includes the obtaining of surveillance cultures and the isolation of infected patients, can reduce or eliminate the transmission of vancomycinresistant enterococci in the health care facilities of a region. (N Engl J Med 2001;344:1427-33.

Evidence for the accelerated expansion of the Universe from weak lensing tomography with COSMOS

We present a tomographic cosmological weak lensing analysis of the HST COSMOS Survey. Applying our lensing-optimized data reduction, principal component interpolation for the ACS PSF, and improved modelling of charge-transfer inefficiency, we measure a lensing signal which is consistent with pure gravitational modes and no significant shape systematics. We carefully estimate the statistical uncertainty from simulated COSMOS-like fields obtained from ray-tracing through the Millennium Simulation. We test our pipeline on simulated space-based data, recalibrate non-linear power spectrum corrections using the ray-tracing, employ photometric redshifts to reduce potential contamination by intrinsic galaxy alignments, and marginalize over systematic uncertainties. We find that the lensing signal scales with redshift as expected from General Relativity for a concordance LCDM cosmology, including the full cross-correlations between different redshift bins. For a flat LCDM cosmology, we measure sigma_8(Omega_m/0.3)^0.51=0.75+-0.08 from lensing, in perfect agreement with WMAP-5, yielding joint constraints Omega_m=0.266+0.025-0.023, sigma_8=0.802+0.028-0.029 (all 68% conf.). Dropping the assumption of flatness and using HST Key Project and BBN priors only, we find a negative deceleration parameter q_0 at 94.3% conf. from the tomographic lensing analysis, providing independent evidence for the accelerated expansion of the Universe. For a flat wCDM cosmology and prior w in [-2,0], we obtain w<-0.41 (90% conf.). Our dark energy constraints are still relatively weak solely due to the limited area of COSMOS. However, they provide an important demonstration for the usefulness of tomographic weak lensing measurements from space. (abridged)Comment: 26 pages, 25 figures, matches version accepted for publication by Astronomy and Astrophysic

News Accuracy in Switzerland and Italy

Nearly 80 years of accuracy research in the United States has documented that the press frequently errs, but empirical study about news accuracy elsewhere in the world is absent. This article presents an accuracy audit of Swiss and Italian daily regional newspapers. Replicating US research, the study offers a trans-Atlantic perspective of news accuracy. To compare newspaper accuracy in Switzerland and Italy to longitudinal accuracy research in the United States, the study followed closely the methodology pioneered by Charnley (1936) and adapted by Maier (2005). News sources found factual inaccuracy in 60 percent of Swiss newspaper stories they reviewed, compared to 48 percent of US and 52 percent of Italian newspapers examined. The results show that newspaper inaccuracy—and its corrosive effect on media credibility—transcends national borders and journalism cultures. Nowadays, digitization offers new ways of implementing correction policies. Media organizations need, however, to adapt to these changes and to adapt their structures in particular to new forms of participative and interactive two-way communication

A high-quality genome and comparison of short- versus long-read transcriptome of the palaearctic duck Aythya fuligula (tufted duck)

Background: The tufted duck is a non-model organism that experiences high mortality in highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks. It belongs to the same bird family (Anatidae) as the mallard, one of the best-studied natural hosts of low-pathogenic avian influenza viruses. Studies in non-model bird species are crucial to disentangle the role of the host response in avian influenza virus infection in the natural reservoir. Such endeavour requires a high-quality genome assembly and transcriptome. Findings: This study presents the first high-quality, chromosome-level reference genome assembly of the tufted duck using the Vertebrate Genomes Project pipeline. We sequenced RNA (complementary DNA) from brain, ileum, lung, ovary, spleen, and testis using Illumina short-read and Pacific Biosciences long-read sequencing platforms, which were used for annotation. We found 34 autosomes plus Z and W sex chromosomes in the curated genome assembly, with 99.6% of the sequence assigned to chromosomes. Functional annotation revealed 14,099 protein-coding genes that generate 111,934 transcripts, which implies a mean of 7.9 isoforms per gene. We also identified 246 small RNA families. Conclusions: This annotated genome contributes to continuing research into the host response in avian influenza virus infections in a natural reservoir. Our findings from a comparison between short-read and long -read reference transcriptomics contribute to a deeper understanding of these competing options. In this study, both technologies complemented each other. We expect this annotation to be a foundation for further comparative and evolutionary genomic studies, including many waterfowl relatives with differing susceptibilities to avian influenza viruses

A solution scan of societal options to reduce transmission and spread of respiratory viruses: SARS-CoV-2 as a case study.

Societal biosecurity - measures built into everyday society to minimize risks from pests and diseases - is an important aspect of managing epidemics and pandemics. We aimed to identify societal options for reducing the transmission and spread of respiratory viruses. We used SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) as a case study to meet the immediate need to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and eventually transition to more normal societal conditions, and to catalog options for managing similar pandemics in the future. We used a 'solution scanning' approach. We read the literature; consulted psychology, public health, medical, and solution scanning experts; crowd-sourced options using social media; and collated comments on a preprint. Here, we present a list of 519 possible measures to reduce SARS-CoV-2 transmission and spread. We provide a long list of options for policymakers and businesses to consider when designing biosecurity plans to combat SARS-CoV-2 and similar pathogens in the future. We also developed an online application to help with this process. We encourage testing of actions, documentation of outcomes, revisions to the current list, and the addition of further options