8,988 research outputs found
Assessment of work performed by paired students: a pedagogical experience
âTeamworkâ is one of the abilities most valued by employers. In [16] we describe the process of adapting to the ECTS methodologies (for ongoing assessment), a course in computer programming for students in a technical degree (Marine Engineering, UPM) not specifically dedicated to computing. As a further step in this process we have emphasized cooperative learning. For this, the students were paired and the work of each pair was evaluated via surprise tests taken and graded jointly, and constituting a substantial part of the final grade. Here we document this experience, discussing methodological aspects, describing indicators for measuring the impact of these methodologies on the educational experience, and reporting on the studentsâ opinion of it
The Biodiversity and Geochemistry of Cryoconite Holes in Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica
Cryoconite holes are oases of microbial diversity on ice surfaces. In contrast to the Arctic, where during the summer most cryoconite holes are âopenâ, in Continental Antarctica they are most often âliddedâ or completely frozen year-round. Thus, they represent ideal systems for the study of microbial community assemblies as well as carbon accumulation, since individual cryoconite holes can be isolated from external inputs for years. Here, we use high-throughput sequencing of the 16S and 18S rRNA genes to describe the bacterial and eukaryotic community compositions in cryoconite holes and surrounding lake, snow, soil and rock samples in Queen Maud Land. We cross correlate our findings with a broad range of geochemical data including for the first time 13C and 14C analyses of Antarctic cryoconites. We show that the geographic location has a larger effect on the distribution of the bacterial community compared to the eukaryotic community. Cryoconite holes are distinct from the local soils in both 13C and 14C and their isotopic composition is different from similar samples from the Arctic. Carbon contents were generally low (â€0.2%) and older (6â10 ky) than the surrounding soils, suggesting that the cryoconite holes are much more isolated from the atmosphere than the soils
Mid-infrared spectroscopy of infrared-luminous galaxies at z~0.5-3
We present results on low-resolution mid-infrared (MIR) spectra of 70
infrared-luminous galaxies obtained with the Infrared Spectrograph (IRS)
onboard Spitzer. We selected sources from the European Large Area Infrared
Survey (ELAIS) with S15 > 0.8 mJy and photometric or spectroscopic z > 1. About
half of the sample are QSOs in the optical, while the remaining sources are
galaxies, comprising both obscured AGN and starbursts. We classify the spectra
using well-known infrared diagnostics, as well as a new one that we propose,
into three types of source: those dominated by an unobscured AGN (QSOs),
obscured AGN, and starburst-dominated sources. Starbursts concentrate at z ~
0.6-1.0 favored by the shift of the 7.7-micron PAH band into the selection 15
micron band, while AGN spread over the 0.5 < z < 3.1 range. Star formation
rates (SFR) are estimated for individual sources from the luminosity of the PAH
features. An estimate of the average PAH luminosity in QSOs and obscured AGN is
obtained from the composite spectrum of all sources with reliable redshifts.
The estimated mean SFR in the QSOs is 50-100 Mo yr^-1, but the implied FIR
luminosity is 3-10 times lower than that obtained from stacking analysis of the
FIR photometry, suggesting destruction of the PAH carriers by energetic photons
from the AGN. The SFR estimated in obscured AGN is 2-3 times higher than in
QSOs of similar MIR luminosity. This discrepancy might not be due to luminosity
effects or selection bias alone, but could instead indicate a connection
between obscuration and star formation. However, the observed correlation
between silicate absorption and the slope of the near- to mid-infrared spectrum
is compatible with the obscuration of the AGN emission in these sources being
produced in a dust torus.Comment: 32 pages, 24 figures, 15 tables, accepted for publication in MNRA
The effects of a starch based carbohydrate alone or in combination with whey protein on a subsequent bout of exercise performance â preliminary findings
Timing by Stellar Pulsations as an Exoplanet Discovery Method
The stable oscillations of pulsating stars can serve as accurate timepieces,
which may be monitored for the influence of exoplanets. An external companion
gravitationally tugs the host star, causing periodic changes in pulsation
arrival times. This method is most sensitive to detecting substellar companions
around the hottest pulsating stars, especially compact remnants like white
dwarfs and hot subdwarfs, as well as delta Scuti variables (A stars). However,
it is applicable to any pulsating star with sufficiently stable oscillations.
Care must be taken to ensure that the changes in pulsation arrival times are
not caused by intrinsic stellar variability; an external, light-travel-time
effect from an exoplanet identically affects all pulsation modes. With more
long-baseline photometric campaigns coming online, this method is yielding new
detections of substellar companions.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures: Invited review to appear in 'Handbook of
Exoplanets,' Springer Reference Works, edited by Hans J. Deeg and Juan
Antonio Belmont
AGN dust tori at low and high luminosities
A cornerstone of AGN unification schemes is the presence of an optically and
geometrically thick dust torus. It provides the obscuration to explain the
difference between type 1 and type 2 AGN. We investigate the influence of the
dust distribution on the Eddington limit of the torus. For smooth dust
distributions, the Eddingtion limit on the dust alone is 5 orders of magnitudes
below the limit for electron scattering in a fully ionized plasma, while a
clumpy dust torus has an Eddington limit slightly larger than the classical
one. We study the behaviour of a clumpy torus at low and high AGN luminosities.
For low luminosities of the order of ~10^42 erg/s, the torus changes its
characteristics and obscuration becomes insufficient. In the high luminosity
regime, the clumpy torus can show a behaviour which is consistent with the
"receding torus" picture. The derived luminosity-dependent fraction of
type-2-objects agrees with recent observational results. Moreover, the
luminosity-dependent covering factor in a clumpy torus may explain the presence
of broad-line AGN with high column densities in X-rays.Comment: 5 pages, 0 figures; Accepted for publication in MNRA
X-ray selected Infrared Excess AGN in the Chandra Deep Fields: a moderate fraction of Compton-thick sources
We examine the properties of the X-ray detected, Infrared Excess AGN or Dust
Obscured Galaxies (DOGs) in the Chandra Deep Fields (CDF). We find 26 X-ray
selected sources which obey the 24 micron to R-band flux ratio criterion
f_24/f_R>1000. These are at a median redshift of 2.3 while their IR
luminosities are above 10^12 solar. Their X-ray luminosities are all above a
few times 10^42 erg s-1 in the 2-10 keV band unambiguously arguing that these
host AGN. Nevertheless, their IR Spectral Energy Distributions are split
between AGN (Mrk231) and star-forming templates (Arp220). Our primary goal is
to examine their individual X-ray spectra in order to assess whether this X-ray
detected DOG population contains heavily obscured or even Compton-thick
sources. The X-ray spectroscopy reveals a mixed bag of objects. We find that
four out of the 12 sources with adequate photon statistics and hence reliable
X-ray spectra, show evidence for a hard X-ray spectral index (~1) or
harder,consistent with a Compton-thick spectrum. In total 12 out of the 26 DOGs
show evidence for flat spectral indices. However, owing to the limited photon
statistics we cannot differentiate whether these are flat because they are
reflection-dominated or because they show moderate amounts of absorption. Seven
DOGs show relatively steep spectra (>1.4) indicative of small column densities.
All the above suggest a fraction of Compton-thick sources that does not exceed
5%. The average X-ray spectrum of all 26 DOGs is hard (~1.1) or even harder
(~0.6) when we exclude the brightest sources. These spectral indices are well
in agreement with the stacked spectrum of X-ray undetected sources (~0.8 in the
CDFN). This could suggest (but not necessarily prove) that X-ray undetected
DOGs, in a similar fashion to the X-ray detected ones presented here, are
hosting a moderate fraction of Compton-thick sources.Comment: 16 pages To appear in A&
Dust covering factor, silicate emission and star formation in luminous QSOs
We present Spitzer IRS low resolution, mid-IR spectra of a sample of 25 high
luminosity QSOs at 2<z<3.5. When combined with archival IRS observations of
local, low luminosity type-I AGNs, the sample spans five orders of magnitude in
luminosity. We find that the continuum dust thermal emission at
lambda(rest)=6.7um is correlated with the optical luminosity, following the
non-linear relation L(6.7um) propto L(5100A)^0.82. We also find an anti
correlation between the ratio L(6.7um)/L(5100A) and the [OIII]5007A line
luminosity. These effects are interpreted as a decreasing covering factor of
the circumnuclear dust as a function of luminosity. Such a result is in
agreement with the decreasing fraction of absorbed AGNs as a function of
luminosity recently found in various surveys. We clearly detect the silicate
emission feature in the average spectrum, but also in four individual objects.
These are the Silicate emission in the most luminous objects obtained so far.
When combined with the silicate emission observed in local, low luminosity
type-I AGNs, we find that the silicate emission strength is correlated with
luminosity.
The silicate strength of all type-I AGNs also follows a positive correlation
with the black hole mass and with the accretion rate. The Polycyclic Aromatic
Hydrocarbon (PAH) emission features, expected from starburst activity, are not
detected in the average spectrum of luminous, high-z QSOs. The upper limit
inferred from the average spectrum points to a ratio between PAH luminosity and
QSO optical luminosity significantly lower than observed in lower luminosity
AGNs, implying that the correlation between star formation rate and AGN power
saturates at high luminosities.Comment: accepted for publication in A&A, 17 pages, 9 figure
Modelling Galaxy and AGN Evolution in the IR: Black Hole Accretion versus Star-Formation Activity
We present a new backward evolution model for galaxies and AGNs in the
infrared (IR). What is new in this model is the separate study of the
evolutionary properties of the different IR populations (i.e. spiral galaxies,
starburst galaxies, low-luminosity AGNs, "unobscured" type 1 AGNs and
"obscured" type 2 AGNs) defined through a detailed analysis of the spectral
energy distributions (SEDs) of large samples of IR selected sources. The
evolutionary parameters have been constrained by means of all the available
observables from surveys in the mid- and far-IR (source counts, redshift and
luminosity distributions, luminosity functions). By decomposing the SEDs
representative of the three AGN classes into three distinct components (a
stellar component emitting most of its power in the optical/near-IR, an AGN
component due to hot dust heated by the central black hole peaking in the
mid-IR, and a starburst component dominating the far-IR spectrum) we have
disentangled the AGN contribution to the monochromatic and total IR luminosity
emitted by the different populations considered in our model from that due to
star-formation activity. We have then obtained an estimate of the total IR
luminosity density (and star-formation density - SFD - produced by IR galaxies)
and the first ever estimate of the black hole mass accretion density (BHAR)
from the IR. The derived evolution of the BHAR is in agreement with estimates
from X-rays, though the BHAR values we derive from IR are slightly higher than
the X-ray ones. Finally, we have simulated source counts, redshift
distributions and SFD and BHAR that we expect to obtain with the future
cosmological Surveys in the mid-/far-IR that will be performed with JWST-MIRI
and SPICA-SAFARI.Comment: 19 pages, 15 figures, 3 tables. Accepted for publication in MNRA
National Institutions and High Tech Industries: A Varieties of Capitalism Perspective on the Failure of Germany's Neuer Markt
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