Gravitational lensing analysis of the Kilo-Degree Survey

The Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS) is a multi-band imaging survey designed for cosmological studies from weak lensing and photometric redshifts. It uses the European Southern Observatory VLT Survey Telescope with its wide-field camera OmegaCAM. KiDS images are taken in four filters similar to the Sloan Digital Sky Survey ugri bands. The best seeing time is reserved for deep r-band observations. The median 5σ limiting AB magnitude is 24.9 and the median seeing is below 0.7 arcsec. Initial KiDS observations have concentrated on the Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA) regions near the celestial equator, where extensive, highly complete redshift catalogues are available. A total of 109 survey tiles, 1 square degree each, form the basis of the first set of lensing analyses of halo properties of GAMA galaxies. Nine galaxies per square arcminute enter the lensing analysis, for an effective inverse shear variance of 69 arcmin−2. Accounting for the shape measurement weight, the median redshift of the sources is 0.53. KiDS data processing follows two parallel tracks, one optimized for weak lensing measurement and one for accurate matched-aperture photometry (for photometric redshifts). This technical paper describes the lensing and photometric redshift measurements (including a detailed description of the Gaussian aperture and photometry pipeline), summarizes the data quality and presents extensive tests for systematic errors that might affect the lensing analyses. We also provide first demonstrations of the suitability of the data for cosmological measurements, and describe our blinding procedure for preventing confirmation bias in the scientific analyses. The KiDS catalogues presented in this paper are released to the community through http://kids.strw.leidenuniv.nl

Gravitational lensing analysis of the Kilo-Degree Survey

Large scale structure and cosmolog

Textural attributes of wheat and gluten free pasta

The protein content and gluten quality are responsible for the cooking quality of pasta with good textural characteristics. A high protein content and a strong gluten are required to process semolina, made from durum wheat, into a suitable final pasta product with optimal cooking performances. Clear-cut relationships between protein content/composition and pasta cooking quality in terms of elasticity, extensibility, and resistance to overcooking have been proposed. While the role of starch with other semolina components in pasta cooking quality is being investigated, a better understanding of the interactions among macromolecules will be useful for improving the texture of the product. Understanding the relationship between starch structures and processing conditions will help the industry re-formulate and develop products with the desired texture as well as improved nutritional and digestive properties. As regards gluten-free pasta, despite the great efforts, the GF pasta is still far from what the consumer is looking for

The Kilo-Degree Survey

The Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS), a 1500- square-degree optical imaging survey with the recently commissioned OmegaCAM wide-field imager on the VLT Survey Tele- scope (VST), is described. KiDS will image two fields in u-,g-,r- and i-bands and, together with the VIKING survey, produce nine-band (u- to K-band) coverage over two fields. For the foreseeable future the KiDS/ VIKING combination of superb image quality with wide wavelength coverage will be unique for surveys of its size and depth. The survey has been designed to tackle some of the most fundamental questions of cos- mology and galaxy formation of today. The main science driver is mapping the dark matter distribution in the Universe and put- ting constraints on the expansion of the Universe and the equation of state of dark energy, all through weak gravitational lens- ing. However, the deep and wide imaging data will facilitate a wide variety of science cases