202 research outputs found
Determining Histories of Slip on Normal Faults With Bedrock Scarps Using Cosmogenic Nuclide Exposure Data
Cosmogenic exposure data can be used to calculate time-varying fault slip rates on normal faults with exposed bedrock scarps. The method relies on assumptions related to how the scarp is preserved, which should be consistent at multiple locations along the same fault. Previous work commonly relied on cosmogenic data from a single sample locality to determine the slip rate of a fault. Here we show that by applying strict sampling criteria and using geologically informed modeling parameters in a Bayesian-inference Markov chain Monte Carlo method, similar patterns of slip rate changes can be modeled at multiple sites on the same fault. Consequently, cosmogenic data can be used to resolve along-strike fault activity. We present cosmogenic 36Cl concentrations from seven sites on two faults in the Italian Apennines. The average slip rate varies between sites on the Campo Felice Fault (0.84 ± 0.23 to 1.61 ± 0.27 mm yr−1), and all sites experienced a period of higher than average slip rate between 0.5 and 2 ka and a period of lower than average slip rate before 3 ka. On the Roccapreturo fault, slip rate in the center of the fault is 0.55 ± 0.11 and 0.35 ± 0.05 mm yr−1 at the fault tip near a relay zone. The estimated time since the last earthquake is the same at each site along the same fault (631 ± 620 years at Campo Felice and 2,603 ± 1,355 years at Roccapreturo). These results highlight the potential for cosmogenic exposure data to reveal the detailed millennial history of earthquake slip on active normal faults
An Analytic Variational Study of the Mass Spectrum in 2+1 Dimensional SU(3) Hamiltonian Lattice Gauge Theory
We calculate the masses of the lowest lying eigenstates of improved SU(2) and
SU(3) lattice gauge theory in 2+1 dimensions using an analytic variational
approach. The ground state is approximated by a one plaquette trial state and
mass gaps are calculated in the symmetric and antisymmetric sectors by
minimising over a suitable basis of rectangular states
Characterization of the neural stem cell gene regulatory network identifies OLIG2 as a multifunctional regulator of self-renewal
The gene regulatory network (GRN) that supports neural stem cell (NS cell) self-renewal has so far been poorly characterized. Knowledge of the central transcription factors (TFs), the noncoding gene regulatory regions that they bind to, and the genes whose expression they modulate will be crucial in unlocking the full therapeutic potential of these cells. Here, we use DNase-seq in combination with analysis of histone modifications to identify multiple classes of epigenetically and functionally distinct cis-regulatory elements (CREs). Through motif analysis and ChIP-seq, we identify several of the crucial TF regulators of NS cells. At the core of the network are TFs of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH), nuclear factor I (NFI), SOX, and FOX families, with CREs often densely bound by several of these different TFs. We use machine learning to highlight several crucial regulatory features of the network that underpin NS cell self-renewal and multipotency. We validate our predictions by functional analysis of the bHLH TF OLIG2. This TF makes an important contribution to NS cell self-renewal by concurrently activating pro-proliferation genes and preventing the untimely activation of genes promoting neuronal differentiation and stem cell quiescence.Welcome Trust grants: (WT095908, WT098051), FEBS Long-Term Fellowship, Medical Research Council Grant-in-Aid (U117570528)
On Intercausal Interactions in Probabilistic Relational Models
Probabilistic relational models (PRMs) extend Bayesian networks beyond propositional expressiveness by allowing the representation of multiple interacting classes. For a specific instance of sets of concrete objects per class, a ground Bayesian network is composed by replicating parts of the PRM. The interactions between the objects that are thereby induced, are not always obvious from the PRM. We demonstrate in this paper that the replicative structure of the ground network in fact constrains the space of possible probability distributions and thereby the possible patterns of intercausal interactio
A systematic account of the genus Plagiostoma (Gnomoniaceae, Diaporthales) based on morphology, host-associations, and a four-gene phylogeny
Members of the genus Plagiostoma inhabit leaves, stems, twigs, and
branches of woody and herbaceous plants predominantly in the temperate
Northern Hemisphere. An account of all known species of Plagiostoma
including Cryptodiaporthe is presented based on analyses of
morphological, cultural, and DNA sequence data. Multigene phylogenetic
analyses of DNA sequences from four genes (β-tubulin, ITS,
rpb2, and tef1-α) revealed eight previously
undescribed phylogenetic species and an association between a clade composed
of 11 species of Plagiostoma and the host family Salicaceae.
In this paper these eight new species of Plagiostoma are described,
four species are redescribed, and four new combinations are proposed. A key to
the 25 accepted species of Plagiostoma based on host, shape, and size
of perithecia, perithecial arrangement in the host, and microscopic
characteristics of the asci and ascospores is provided. Disposition of
additional names in Cryptodiaporthe and Plagiostoma is also
discussed
Dual control of fault intersections on stop-start rupture in the 2016 Central Italy seismic sequence
Large continental earthquakes necessarily involve failure of multiple faults or segments. But these same critically-stressed systems sometimes fail in drawn-out sequences of smaller earthquakes over days or years instead. These two modes of failure have vastly different implications for seismic hazard and it is not known why fault systems sometimes fail in one mode or the other, or what controls the termination and reinitiation of slip in protracted seismic sequences. A paucity of modern observations of seismic sequences has hampered our understanding to-date, but a series of three Mw>6 earthquakes from August to November 2016 in Central Italy represents a uniquely well-observed example. Here we exploit a wealth of geodetic, seismological and field data to understand the spatio-temporal evolution of the sequence. Our results suggest that pre-existing fault structures controlled the extent and termination of rupture in each event in the sequence, and that fluid diffusion, channelled along these same structures, may have also determined the timing of rupture reinitiation. This dual control of subsurface structure on the stop-start rupture in seismic sequences may be common; future efforts should focus on investigating its prevalence
Leaf-inhabiting genera of the Gnomoniaceae, Diaporthales
The Gnomoniaceae are characterised by ascomata that are generally
immersed, solitary, without a stroma, or aggregated with a rudimentary stroma,
in herbaceous plant material especially in leaves, twigs or stems, but also in
bark or wood. The ascomata are black, soft-textured, thin-walled, and
pseudoparenchymatous with one or more central or eccentric necks. The asci
usually have a distinct apical ring. The Gnomoniaceae includes
species having ascospores that are small, mostly less than 25 μm long,
although some are longer, and range in septation from non-septate to
one-septate, rarely multi-septate. Molecular studies of the
Gnomoniaceae suggest that the traditional classification of genera
based on characteristics of the ascomata such as position of the neck and
ascospores such as septation have resulted in genera that are not
monophyletic. In this paper the concepts of the leaf-inhabiting genera in the
Gnomoniaceae are reevaluated using multiple genes, specifically
nrLSU, translation elongation factor 1-alpha (tef1-α), and RNA
polymerase II second largest subunit (rpb2) for 64 isolates. ITS sequences
were generated for 322 isolates. Six genera of leaf-inhabiting
Gnomoniaceae are defined based on placement of their type species
within the multigene phylogeny. The new monotypic genus
Ambarignomonia is established for an unusual species, A.
petiolorum. A key to 59 species of leaf-inhabiting Gnomoniaceae is
presented and 22 species of Gnomoniaceae are described and
illustrated
The Phoenix stream : a cold stream in the southern hemisphere
We report the discovery of a stellar stream in the Dark Energy Survey Year 1 (Y1A1) data. The discovery was made through simple color–magnitude filters and visual inspection of the Y1A1 data. We refer to this new object as the Phoenix stream, after its resident constellation. After subtraction of the background stellar population we detect a clear signal of a simple stellar population. By fitting the ridge line of the stream in color–magnitude space, we find that a stellar population with age τ=11.5±0.5 Gyr and [Fe/H]<−1.6, located 17.5±0.9 kpc from the Sun, gives an adequate description of the stream stellar population. The stream is detected over an extension of 8°.1 (2.5 kpc) and has a width of ∼54 pc assuming a Gaussian profile, indicating that a globular cluster (GC) is a probable progenitor. There is no known GC within 5 kpc that is compatible with being the progenitor of the stream, assuming that the stream traces its orbit. We examined overdensities (ODs) along the stream, however, no obvious counterpart-bound stellar system is visible in the coadded images. We also find ODs along the stream that appear to be symmetrically distributed—consistent with the epicyclic OD scenario for the formation of cold streams—as well as a misalignment between the northern and southern part of stream. Despite the close proximity we find no evidence that this stream and the halo cluster NGC 1261 have a common accretion origin linked to the recently found EriPhe OD
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