3,409 research outputs found
The Distribution and Prevalence of the Alfalfa Blotch Leafminer (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in Illinois
Surveys were made in 2001 and 2002 to determine the distribution and prevalence of the alfalfa blotch leafminer, Agromyza frontella (Diptera: Agromyzidae), and its primary parasitoids, Dacnusa dryas and Chrysocharis liriomyzae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae and Eulophidae, respectively), in Illinois. We collected 239 samples from alfalfa fields in the alfalfa-producing regions of Illinois. Samples from each site consisted of 20 cut stems and 10 sets of 10 sweeps in 2001, and 40 stems and 10 sets of 20 sweeps in 2002. Each trifoliate was examined for mining and pinholing injury, and the number of adult A. frontella, D. dryas, and C. liriomyzae per 10 sweeps was calculated for each site. We found that 16.3% of the sites were infested with A. frontella, and all infested fields were north of 39.95 N latitude. Although up to 95% of stems were injured at some sites, mean injury per stem never exceeded 12% of trifoliates. Maximum adult abundance was 8.1 adults per 10 sweeps. We did not detect D. dryas or C. liriomyzae in any of the sweep samples. Because of consistently low populations and the relatively slow rate of A. frontella’s spread in Illinois, we conclude that A. frontella is not a serious threat to alfalfa production in this state at this time
Memory and rejuvenation in a spin glass
The temperature dependence of the magnetisation of a Cu(Mn) spin glass (
57 K) has been investigated using weak probing magnetic fields ( =
0.5 or 0 Oe) and specific thermal protocols. The behaviour of the zero-field
cooled, thermoremanent and isothermal remanent magnetisation on (re-)cooling
the system from a temperature (40 K) where the system has been aged is
investigated. It is observed that the measured magnetisation is formed by two
parts: (i) a temperature- and observation time-dependent thermally activated
relaxational part governed by the age- and temperature-dependent response
function and the (latest) field change made at a lower temperature, superposed
on (ii) a weakly temperature-dependent frozen-in part. Interestingly we observe
that the spin configuration that is imprinted during an elongated halt in the
cooling, if it is accompanied by a field induced magnetisation, also includes a
unidirectional excess magnetisation that is recovered on returning to the
ageing temperature.Comment: EPL style; 7 pages, 5 figure
Relationships between lower-body muscle structure and, lower-body strength, explosiveness and eccentric leg stiffness in adolescent athletes
The purpose of the present study was to determine whether any relationships were present between lower-body muscle structure and, lower-body strength, variables measured during a counter-movement jump (CMJ) and squat jump (SJ), and eccentric leg stiffness, in adolescent athletes. Thirty junior male (n = 23) and female (n = 7) surfing athletes (14.8 ± 1.7 y; 1.63 ± 0.09 m; 54.8 ± 12.1 kg) undertook lower-body muscle structure assessment with ultrasonography and performed a; CMJ, SJ and an isomet-ric mid-thigh pull (IMTP). In addition, eccentric leg stiffness was calculated from variables of the CMJ and IMTP. Moderate to very large relationships (r = 0.46-0.73) were identified be-tween the thickness of the vastus lateralis (VL) and lateral gas-trocnemius (LG) muscles, and VL pennation angle and; peak force (PF) in the CMJ, SJ and IMTP. Additionally, moderate to large relationships (r = 0.37-0.59) were found between eccentric leg stiffness and; VL and LG thickness, VL pennation angle, and LG fascicle length, with a large relationship (r = 0.59) also present with IMTP PF. These results suggest that greater thick-ness of the VL and LG were related to improved maximal dy-namic and isometric strength, likely due to increased hypertro-phy of the extensor muscles. Furthermore, this increased thickness was related to greater eccentric leg stiffness, as the associated enhanced lower-body strength likely allowed for greater neuromuscular activation, and hence less compliance, during a stretch-shortening cycle
Self-Renormalization of the Classical Quasilocal Energy
Pointlike objects cause many of the divergences that afflict physical
theories. For instance, the gravitational binding energy of a point particle in
Newtonian mechanics is infinite. In general relativity, the analog of a point
particle is a black hole and the notion of binding energy must be replaced by
quasilocal energy. The quasilocal energy (QLE) derived by York, and elaborated
by Brown and York, is finite outside the horizon but it was not considered how
to evaluate it inside the horizon. We present a prescription for finding the
QLE inside a horizon, and show that it is finite at the singularity for a
variety of types of black hole. The energy is typically concentrated just
inside the horizon, not at the central singularity.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
Dissecting the spiral galaxy M83: mid-infrared emission and comparison with other tracers of star formation
We present a detailed mid-infrared study of the nearby, face-on spiral galaxy
M83 based on ISOCAM data. M83 is a unique case study, since a wide variety of
MIR broad-band filters as well as spectra, covering the wavelength range of 4
to 18\mu m, were observed and are presented here. Emission maxima trace the
nuclear and bulge area, star-formation regions at the end of the bar, as well
as the inner spiral arms. The fainter outer spiral arms and interarm regions
are also evident in the MIR map. Spectral imaging of the central 3'x3' (4 kpc x
4 kpc) field allows us to investigate five regions of different environments.
The various MIR components (very small grains, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon
(PAH) molecules, ionic lines) are analyzed for different regions throughout the
galaxy. In the total 4\mu m to 18\mu m wavelength range, the PAHs dominate the
luminosity, contributing between 60% in the nuclear and bulge regions and 90%
in the less active, interarm regions. Throughout the galaxy, the underlying
continuum emission from the small grains is always a smaller contribution in
the total MIR wavelength regime, peaking in the nuclear and bulge components.
The implications of using broad-band filters only to characterize the
mid-infrared emission of galaxies, a commonly used ISOCAM observation mode, are
discussed. We present the first quantitative analysis of new H-alpha and 6cm
VLA+Effelsberg radio continuum maps of M83. The distribution of the MIR
emission is compared with that of the CO, HI, R band, H-alpha and 6cm radio. A
striking correlation is found between the intensities in the two mid-infrared
filter bands and the 6cm radio continuum. To explain the tight
mid-infrared-radio correlation we propose the anchoring of magnetic field lines
in the photoionized shells of gas clouds.Comment: 22 pages, 15 figures. Accepted for publication in A&
Memory and superposition in a spin glass
Non-equilibrium dynamics in a Ag(Mn) spin glass are investigated by
measurements of the temperature dependence of the remanent magnetisation. Using
specific cooling protocols before recording the thermo- or isothermal remanent
magnetisations on re-heating, it is found that the measured curves effectively
disclose non-equilibrium spin glass characteristics such as ageing and memory
phenomena as well as an extended validity of the superposition principle for
the relaxation. The usefulness of this "simple" dc-method is discussed, as well
as its applicability to other disordered magnetic systems.Comment: REVTeX style; 8 pages, 4 figure
The Distribution and Prevalence of the Alfalfa Blotch Leafminer (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in Illinois
Surveys were made in 2001 and 2002 to determine the distribution and prevalence of the alfalfa blotch leafminer, Agromyza frontella (Diptera: Agromyzidae), and its primary parasitoids, Dacnusa dryas and Chrysocharis liriomyzae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae and Eulophidae, respectively), in Illinois. We collected 239 samples from alfalfa fields in the alfalfa-producing regions of Illinois. Samples from each site consisted of 20 cut stems and 10 sets of 10 sweeps in 2001, and 40 stems and 10 sets of 20 sweeps in 2002. Each trifoliate was examined for mining and pinholing injury, and the number of adult A. frontella, D. dryas, and C. liriomyzae per 10 sweeps was calculated for each site. We found that 16.3% of the sites were infested with A. frontella, and all infested fields were north of 39.95 N latitude. Although up to 95% of stems were injured at some sites, mean injury per stem never exceeded 12% of trifoliates. Maximum adult abundance was 8.1 adults per 10 sweeps. We did not detect D. dryas or C. liriomyzae in any of the sweep samples. Because of consistently low populations and the relatively slow rate of A. frontella’s spread in Illinois, we conclude that A. frontella is not a serious threat to alfalfa production in this state at this time
Molecular depletion times and the CO-to-H2 conversion factor in metal-poor galaxies
Tracing molecular hydrogen content with carbon monoxide in low-metallicity
galaxies has been exceedingly difficult. Here we present a new effort, with
IRAM 30-m observations of 12CO(1-0) of a sample of 8 dwarf galaxies having
oxygen abundances ranging from 12+logO/H=7.7 to 8.4. CO emission is detected in
all galaxies, including the most metal-poor galaxy of our sample (0.1 Zsun); to
our knowledge this is the largest number of 12CO(1-0) detections ever reported
for galaxies with 12+logO/H<=8 (0.2 Zsun) outside the Local Group. We calculate
stellar masses (Mstar) and star-formation rates (SFRs), and analyze our results
by combining our observations with galaxy samples from the literature.
Extending previous results for a correlation of the molecular gas depletion
time, tau(dep), with Mstar and specific SFR (sSFR), we find a variation in
tau(dep) of a factor of 200 or more (from <50 Myr to 10 Gyr) over a spread of
1000 in sSFR and Mstar. We exploit the variation of tau(dep) to constrain the
CO-to-H2 mass conversion factor alpha(CO) at low metallicity, and assuming a
power-law variation find alpha(CO) \propto (Z/Zsun)^1.9, similar to results
based on dust continuum measurements compared with gas mass. By including HI
measurements, we show that the fraction of total gas mass relative to the
baryonic mass is higher in galaxies that are metal poor, of low mass, and of
high sSFR. Finally, comparisons of the data with star-formation models of the
molecular gas phases suggest that, at metallicities Z/Zsun<=0.2, there are some
discrepancies with model predictions.Comment: 18 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in A&
First-order transition between a small-gap semiconductor and a ferromagnetic metal in the isoelectronic alloys FeSiGe
The contrasting groundstates of isoelectronic and isostructural FeSi and FeGe
can be explained within an extended local density approximation scheme (LDA+U)
by an appropriate choice of the onsite Coulomb repulsion, on the Fe-sites.
A minimal two-band model with interband interactions allows us to obtain a
phase diagram for the alloys FeSiGe. Treating the model in a mean
field approximation, gives a first order transition between a small-gap
semiconductor and a ferromagnetic metal as a function of magnetic field,
temperature, and concentration, . Unusually the transition from metal to
insulator is driven by broadening, not narrowing, the bands and it is the
metallic state that shows magnetic order.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Aging dynamics in reentrant ferromagnet: CuCoCl-FeCl graphite bi-intercalation compound
Aging dynamics of a reentrant ferromagnet
CuCoCl-FeCl graphite bi-intercalation compound has
been studied using AC and DC magnetic susceptibility. This compound undergoes
successive transitions at the transition temperatures ( K) and
( K). The relaxation rate exhibits a characteristic
peak at close to a wait time below , indicating that
the aging phenomena occur in both the reentrant spin glass (RSG) phase below
and the ferromagnetic (FM) phase between and . The
relaxation rate () in the FM phase
exhibits two peaks around and a time much shorter than under
the positive -shift aging, indicating a partial rejuvenation of domains. The
aging state in the FM phase is fragile against a weak magnetic-field
perturbation. The time () dependence of around is well approximated by a stretched exponential relaxation:
. The exponent depends on
, , and . The relaxation time () exhibits a
local maximum around 5 K, reflecting a chaotic nature of the FM phase. It
drastically increases with decreasing temperature below .Comment: 16 pages,16 figures, submitted to Physical Review
- …