A SCUBA Scanmap of the HDF: Measuring the bright end of the sub-mm source counts

Using the 850 micron SCUBA camera on the JCMT and a scanning technique different from other sub-mm surveys, we have obtained a 125 square arcminute map centered on the Hubble Deep Field. The one-sigma sensitivity to point sources is roughly 3 mJy and thus our map probes the brighter end of the sub-mm source counts. We find 6 sources with a flux greater than about 12 mJy (>4 sigma) and, after a careful accounting of incompleteness and flux bias, estimate the integrated density of bright sources N(>12 mJy)= 164 (+77/-58) per square degree (68 per cent confidence bounds).Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, Accepted for publication in MNRA

The interaction between science and policy in the control of Phragmites in oligohaline marshes of Delaware Bay

Author Posting. © Blackwell, 2005. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Blackwell for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Restoration Ecology 13 (2005):223-227, doi:10.1111/j.1526-100X.2005.00027.xPublic Service Enterprise Group of New Jersey restored Delaware Bay marshes to enhance fish production as part of a mitigation negotiated in a company’s NJPDES permit. Restoration meant control of an introduced type of the common reed, Phragmites, that had displaced Spartina alterniflora and S. patens. Phragmites dominance altered the function and structure of these brackish marshes and reduced habitat value by raising and flattening marsh surface and covering smaller tidal creeks. A common control technique is to use an herbicide – Glyphosate, but public concern about herbicide use resulted in an agreement between PSEG and NJ regulators to test other methods for reed control and limit the amount of herbicide used. Experiments with methods of Phragmites control indicate that herbicide application over three or more growing seasons, concentrating in an area until control was complete, is the most effective control method

Transposição de marcadores microssatélites derivados de mamona em tungue.

Entre as culturas oleaginosas, o tungue é uma alternativa de grande potencial econômico para o sul do Brasil por apresentar elevado rendimento de óleo. Embora genótipos introduzidos no Estado tenham demonstrado adaptação, é fundamental desenvolver um programa de melhoramento genético para a cultura, a fim de oferecer cultivares mais produtivas. Uma forma eficiente de auxiliar os programas de melhoramento é a análise da variabilidade genética por meio de marcadores moleculares. Muitos estudos têm mostrado que grande parte dos marcadores SSR encontrados numa espécie podem ser transferidos para espécies correlatas. Tanto a mamona (Ricinus communis L.) como o tungue (Aleurites fordii), pertencem à família Euphorbiaceae, o que pode facilitar a transposição de primers microssatélites de mamona para tungue. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo testar a transposição de marcadores microssatélites do genoma de mamona para tungue. Foram utilizados 74 pares de primers sintetizados a partir do genoma da mamona. Os resultados demonstram ser possível utilizar marcadores microssatélites em genótipos de tungue desenvolvidos a partir do genoma de mamona

Home victory for Brazil in the 2014 FIFA World Cup

After 36 years the FIFA World Cup returns to South America with the 2014 event being hosted in Brazil (after 1978 in Argentina). And as in all previous South American FIFA World Cups, a South American team is expected to take the victory: Using a bookmaker consensus rating - obtained by aggregating winning odds from 22 online bookmakers - the clear favorite is the host Brazil with a forecasted winning probability of 22.5%, followed by three serious contenders. Neighbor country Argentina is the expected runner-up with a winning probability of 15.8% before Germany with 13.4% and Spain with 11.8%. All other competitors have much lower winning probabilities with the "best of the rest" being the "insider tip" Belgium with a predicted 4.8%. Furthermore, by complementing the bookmaker consensus results with simulations of the whole tournament, predicted pairwise probabilities for each possible game at the FIFA World Cup are obtained along with "survival" probabilities for each team proceeding to the different stages of the tournament. For example, it can be inferred that the most likely final is a match between neighbors Brazil and Argentina (6.5%) with the odds somewhat in favor of Brazil of winning such a final (with a winning probability of 57.8%). However, this outcome is by no means certain and many other courses of the tournament are not unlikely as will be presented here. All forecasts are the result of an aggregation of quoted winning odds for each team in the 2014 FIFA World Cup: These are first adjusted for profit margins ("overrounds"), averaged on the log-odds scale, and then transformed back to winning probabilities. Moreover, team abilities (or strengths) are approximated by an "inverse" procedure of tournament simulations, yielding estimates of probabilities for all possible pairwise matches at all stages of the tournament. This technique correctly predicted the EURO 2008 final (Leitner, Zeileis, and Hornik 2008), with better results than other rating/forecast methods (Leitner, Zeileis, and Hornik 2010a), and correctly predicted Spain as the 2010 FIFA World Champion (Leitner, Zeileis, and Hornik 2010b) and EURO 2012 Champion (Leitner, Zeileis, and Hornik 2012)