1,477 research outputs found
Freshly ionized matter around the final Helium shell flash object V4334 Sgr (Sakurai's object)
We report on the discovery of recently ionized hydrogen-deficient gas in the
immediate circumstellar environment of the final helium shell flash star V4334
Sgr (Sakurai's object). On spectra obtained with FORS2 multi-object
spectroscopy we have found spatially extended (about 2") emission from [N II],
[O I], [O II] and very faint Halpha and [S II]. In the [N II] (ll6548,83) lines
we have identified two components located at velocities -350 +/-50 and +200
+/-50 km/s, relative to V4334 Sgr itself. The full width of the [N II] l6583
feature at zero intensity corresponds to a velocity spread of about 1500 km/s.
Based on the available data it is not possible to conclusively determine the
mechanism of ionization. Both photo-ionization, from a rapidly evolving central
star, and shock excitation, as the result of the collision of the fast ouflows
with slower circumstellar matter, could account for the observed lines. The
central star is still hidden behind strong dust absorption, since only a faint
highly reddened continuum is apparent in the spectra. Theory states that it
will become hotter and will retrace its post-asymptotic giant branch evolution
towards the planetary nebula domain. Our detection of the ionized ejecta from
the very late helium shell flash marks the beginning of a new phase in this
star's amazingly rapid evolution.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures. Accepted by ApJ
Tri-county pilot study
The author has identified the following significant results. An area inventory was performed for three southeast Texas counties (Montgomery, Walker, and San Jacinto) totaling 0.65 million hectares. The inventory was performed using a two level hierarchy. Level 1 was divided into forestland, rangeland, and other land. Forestland was separated into Level 2 categories: pine, hardwood, and mixed; rangeland was not separated further. Results consisted of area statistics for each county and for the entire study site for pine, hardwood, mixed, rangeland, and other land. Color coded county classification maps were produced for the May data set, and procedures were developed and tested
Towards formal analysis of insider threats for auctions
This paper brings together the world of insider threats and auctions. For online-auction systems, like eBay, but also for high-value one-off auction algorithms as they are used for selling radio wave frequencies, the use of rigorous machine supported modelling and verification techniques is meaningful to prove correctness and scrutinize vulnerability to security and privacy attacks. Surveying the threats in auctions and insider collusions, we present an approach to model and analyze auction protocols for insider threats using the interactive theorem prover Isabelle. As a case study, we use the cocaine auction protocol that represents a nice combination of cryptographic techniques, protocols, and privacy goals suitable for highlighting insider threats for auctions
Insider threats for auctions: formalization, mechanized proof, and code generation
This paper applies machine assisted formal methods to explore insider threats for auctions. Auction systems, like eBay, are an important problem domain for formal analysis because they challenge modelling concepts as well as analysis methods. We use machine assisted formal modelling and proof in Isabelle to demonstrate how security and privacy goals of auction protocols can be formally verified. Applying the costly scrutiny of formal methods is justified for auctions since privacy and trust are prominent issues and auctions are sometimes designed for one-off occasions where high bids are at stake. For example, when radio wave frequencies are on sale, auctions are especially created for just one occasion where fair and consistent behaviour is required. Investigating the threats in auctions and insider collusions, we model and analyze auction protocols for insider threats using the interactive theorem prover Isabelle. We use the existing example of a fictitious cocaine auction protocol from the literature to develop and illustrate our approach. Combining the Isabelle Insider framework with the inductive approach to verifying security protocols in Isabelle, we formalize the cocaine auction protocol, prove that this formal definition excludes sweetheart deals, and also that collusion attacks cannot generally be excluded. The practical implication of the formalization is demonstrated by code generation. Isabelle allows generating code from constructive specifications into the programming language Scala. We provide constructive test functions for cocaine auction traces, prove within Isabelle that these functions conform to the protocol definition, and apply code generation to produce an implementation of the executable test predicate for cocaine auction traces in Scala
A Study Of The White Heart‐Rot Of Locust, Caused By Trametes Robiniophila
Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141421/1/ajb205691.pd
A dense disk of dust around the born-again Sakurai's object
In 1996, Sakurai's object (V4334 Sgr) suddenly brightened in the centre of a
faint Planetary Nebula (PN). This very rare event was interpreted as the
reignition of a hot white dwarf that caused a rapid evolution back to the cool
giant phase. From 1998 on, a copious amount of dust has formed continuously,
screening out the star which has remained embedded in this expanding high
optical depth envelope. The new observations, reported here, are used to study
the morphology of the circumstellar dust in order to investigate the hypothesis
that Sakurai's Object is surrounded by a thick spherical envelope of dust. We
have obtained unprecedented, high-angular resolution spectro-interferometric
observations, taken with the mid-IR interferometer MIDI/VLTI, which resolve the
dust envelope of Sakurai's object. We report the discovery of a unexpectedly
compact (30 x 40 milliarcsec, 105 x 140 AU assuming a distance of 3.5 kpc),
highly inclined, dust disk. We used Monte Carlo radiative-transfer simulations
of a stratified disk to constrain its geometric and physical parameters,
although such a model is only a rough approximation of the rapidly evolving
dust structure. Even though the fits are not fully satisfactory, some useful
and robust constraints can be inferred. The disk inclination is estimated to be
75+/-3 degree with a large scale height of 47+/-7 AU. The dust mass of the disk
is estimated to be 6 10^{-5} solar mass. The major axis of the disk (132+/-3
degree) is aligned with an asymmetry seen in the old PN that was
re-investigated as part of this study. This implies that the mechanism
responsible for shaping the dust envelope surrounding Sakurai's object was
already at work when the old PN formed.Comment: A&A Letter, accepte
Bridge over troubled gas: clusters and associations under the SMC and LMC tidal stresses
We obtained SOAR telescope B and V photometry of 14 star clusters and 2
associations in the Bridge tidal structure connecting the LMC and SMC. These
objects are used to study the formation and evolution of star clusters and
associations under tidal stresses from the Clouds. Typical star clusters in the
Bridge are not richly populated and have in general relatively large diameters
(~30-35 pc), being larger than Galactic counterparts of similar age. Ages and
other fundamental parameters are determined with field-star decontaminated
photometry. A self-consistent approach is used to derive parameters for the
most-populated sample cluster NGC 796 and two young CMD templates built with
the remaining Bridge clusters. We find that the clusters are not coeval in the
Bridge. They range from approximately a few Myr (still related to optical HII
regions and WISE and Spitzer dust emission measurements) to about 100-200 Myr.
The derived distance moduli for the Bridge objects suggests that the Bridge is
a structure connecting the LMC far-side in the East to the foreground of the
SMC to the West. Most of the present clusters are part of the tidal dwarf
candidate D 1, which is associated with an H I overdensity. We find further
evidence that the studied part of the Bridge is evolving into a tidal dwarf
galaxy, decoupling from the Bridge.Comment: 15 pages, 15 figures, MNRAS, Accepted 2015 July 2
Head-on collision of ultrarelativistic charges
We consider the head-on collision of two opposite-charged point particles
moving at the speed of light. Starting from the field of a single charge we
derive in a first step the field generated by uniformly accelerated charge in
the limit of infinite acceleration. From this we then calculate explicitly the
burst of radiation emitted from the head-on collision of two charges and
discuss its distributional structure. The motivation for our investigation
comes from the corresponding gravitational situation where the head-on
collision of two ultrarelativistic particles (black holes) has recently aroused
renewed interest.Comment: 4 figures, uses the AMSmat
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