The IRAS 1.2 Jy Survey: Redshift Data

We present the redshift data for a survey of galaxies selected from the data base of the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS). This survey extends the 1.936 Jy sample of Strauss et al. (1992) from a flux limit of 1.936 Jy at 60 microns to 1.2 Jy. The survey extension consists of 3920 sources in the flux interval 1.2 - 1.936 Jy, of which 2663 are galaxies with measured redshifts. Fourteen objects (0.52%) do not have redshifts. The survey covers 87.6% of the sky. The data for the complete 1.2 Jy survey (the data presented here in addition to that of Strauss \etal 1992) may be obtained in a machine-readable form from the National Space Science Data Center and from the anonymous ftp site given above.Comment: uuencoded postscript file. Figures, data tables, and machine readable data files can be obtained via anonymous ftp to (192.16.204.30) ftp://eku.ias.edu/pub/fisher/12jy/12jy.tar.Z (a compressed tar file)

Probing the qudit depolarizing channel

For the quantum depolarizing channel with any finite dimension, we compare three schemes for channel identification: unentangled probes, probes maximally entangled with an external ancilla, and maximally entangled probe pairs. This comparison includes cases where the ancilla is itself depolarizing and where the probe is circulated back through the channel before measurement. Compared on the basis of (quantum Fisher) information gained per channel use, we find broadly that entanglement with an ancilla dominates the other two schemes, but only if entanglement is cheap relative to the cost per channel use and only if the external ancilla is well shielded from depolarization. We arrive at these results by a relatively simple analytical means. A separate, more complicated analysis for partially entangled probes shows for the qudit depolarizing channel that any amount of probe entanglement is advantageous and that the greatest advantage comes with maximal entanglement

A Multi-scale View of the Emergent Complexity of Life: A Free-energy Proposal

We review some of the main implications of the free-energy principle (FEP) for the study of the self-organization of living systems – and how the FEP can help us to understand (and model) biotic self-organization across the many temporal and spatial scales over which life exists. In order to maintain its integrity as a bounded system, any biological system - from single cells to complex organisms and societies - has to limit the disorder or dispersion (i.e., the long-run entropy) of its constituent states. We review how this can be achieved by living systems that minimize their variational free energy. Variational free energy is an information theoretic construct, originally introduced into theoretical neuroscience and biology to explain perception, action, and learning. It has since been extended to explain the evolution, development, form, and function of entire organisms, providing a principled model of biotic self-organization and autopoiesis. It has provided insights into biological systems across spatiotemporal scales, ranging from microscales (e.g., sub- and multicellular dynamics), to intermediate scales (e.g., groups of interacting animals and culture), through to macroscale phenomena (the evolution of entire species). A crucial corollary of the FEP is that an organism just is (i.e., embodies or entails) an implicit model of its environment. As such, organisms come to embody causal relationships of their ecological niche, which, in turn, is influenced by their resulting behaviors. Crucially, free-energy minimization can be shown to be equivalent to the maximization of Bayesian model evidence. This allows us to cast natural selection in terms of Bayesian model selection, providing a robust theoretical account of how organisms come to match or accommodate the spatiotemporal complexity of their surrounding niche. In line with the theme of this volume; namely, biological complexity and self-organization, this chapter will examine a variational approach to self-organization across multiple dynamical scales

De-ossifying the Internet Transport Layer : A Survey and Future Perspectives

ACKNOWLEDGMENT The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their useful suggestions and comments.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Results from TopFitter

We discuss a global fit of top quark BSM couplings, phrased in the model-independent language of higher-dimensional effective operators, to the currently available data from the LHC and Tevatron. We examine the interplay between inclusive and differential measurements, and the complementarity of LHC and Tevatron results. We conclude with a discussion of projections for improvement over LHC Run II.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, proceedings of the 9th International Workshop on the CKM Unitarity Triangle, 28 November - 3 December 2016, Tata Institute for Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai, Indi

Effectiveness of Milorganite® as a Repellent to Protect Ornamental and Agronomic Plants From Deer Over-Browsing

When deer populations become locally overabundant, browsing of ornamental and agronomic plants negatively affects plant establishment, survival, and productivity. Milorganite® is a slow-release, organic fertilizer produced from human sewage. We tested Milorganite® as a deer repellent on chrysanthemums (Chrysanthemums morifolium) in an urban/suburban environment, and soybeans (Gycine max) in a rural agriculture environment. Six beds of chrysanthemums at two sites were monitored for 28 to 35 days. Treatment plants received a top dressing of 104 grams of Milorganite® (1120.9 kg/ha). Milorganite® treated plants had more (P \u3c 0.001) terminal buds and achieved greater height (P \u3c 0.002) compared to controls at one site, however damage observed was similar at the second site. In a second experiment, 0.2-ha plots of soybeans (Glycine max) were planted on five rural properties in northeastern Georgia and monitored for ≥ 30 days. Treated areas received 269 kg/ha of Milorganite®. In 4 of 5 sites, Milorganite® delayed browsing on treated plants from 1 week to \u3e 5 weeks post-planting. Duration of the protection appeared to be related to the difference in deer density throughout most of the study areas. Results of this study indicate Milorganite® has potential use as a deer repellent

Hydrophobic, Carbon Free Gas Diffusion Electrode for Alkaline Applications

In this work we present a carbon free gas diffusion electrode (GDE) design. It is a first step towards improvement of technologies like alkaline fuel cells, some alkaline electrolyzes and metal-air-batteries by circumventing carbon degradation. A nickel-mesh was made hydrophobic and subsequently electrochemically coated with MnOx as electrocatalyst. By this, a carbon free GDE was prepared. The contact angle, specific surface area (BET), pore size distribution, crystal phase (XRD) and electrochemical properties were determined. The deposition scan rate (rscan) during dynamic MnOx deposition altered the macro surface structure, pore size distribution and deposited mass. High catalyst masses with high specific surface area were achieved by lower rscan, but hydrophobicity was decreased. Impedance spectroscopy showed that higher MnOx mass will increase the ohmic resistance, because of the low conductivity of oxides, such as MnOx. The diffusion of dissolved oxygen is the major contributor to the total resistance. However, the polarization resistance was reduced by increased specific surface area of MnOx. It was concluded that the ORR and OER are limited by diffusion in this design but nevertheless showed reasonable activity for ±10 mA cm−2 corresponding to ∼8 Ω cm−2 while references exhibited ∼3.5 Ω cm−2

Formation of Structure in the Universe

This grant supported research by the investigators through summer salary support for Strauss and Weinberg, support for graduate students at Princeton University and Ohio State University, and travel, visitor, and publication support for the investigators. The grant originally had a duration of 1 year, and it was extended (without additional funding) for an additional year. The impact of the grant was considerable given its relatively modest duration and funding level, in part because it provided 'seed' funding to get Strauss and Weinberg started at new institutions, and in part because it was combined with support from subsequent grants. Here we summarize progress in the three general areas described in the grant proposal: Lyman alpha absorbers and the intergalactic medium, galaxy formation; and large scale structure

The characteristics of a Knowledge Exchange and Enterprise Network (KEEN) project. Report 3

A report on the profiles of the knowledge exchange projects in the KEEN programme funded by the European Regional Development Fund and managed by the University of Wolverhampton