Propulsion with a Rotating Elastic Nanorod

The dynamics of a rotating elastic filament is investigated using Stokesian simulations. The filament, straight and tilted with respect to its rotation axis for small driving torques, undergoes at a critical torque a strongly discontinuous shape bifurcation to a helical state. It induces a substantial forward propulsion whatever the sense of rotation: a nanomechanical force-rectification device is established.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to be published in Physical Review Letter

Health effects due to fumigated freight containers and goods: how to detect, how to act

Headache, concentration and memory disorders, dizziness and nausea, skin irritation, respiratory distress, and muscle cramps — isolated or in various combinations — may be the result of acute or chronic intoxication by fumigants. The occurrence of these symptoms in workers who are engaged in the opening and unloading of containers, unpacking of imported goods, ventilating of containers, or working on bulk carriers are urgent indications of intoxication by fumigants or other toxic chemical residues in the transported goods. The severity of the disorder depends on the concentration and duration of exposure, distribution and release of the fumigant, its kinetics, the individual susceptibility of the person, as well as any simultaneous exposure to other toxic substances. Physical symptoms, acute and chronic health effects due to contact with fumigants, are complex and difficult to discover. In this article we explain how to identify the guiding symptoms and describe the appropriate diagnostic steps and the prevention of such events on cargo vessels as well as in the logistics and the handling of imported goods

Auger de-excitation of metastable molecules at metallic surfaces

We study secondary electron emission from metallic surfaces due to Auger de-excitation of diatomic metastable molecules. Our approach is based on an effective model for the two active electrons involved in the process -- a molecular electron described by a linear combination of atomic orbitals when it is bound and a two-center Coulomb wave when it is not and a metal electron described by the eigenfunctions of a step potential -- and employs Keldysh Green's functions. Solving the Dyson equation for the retarded Green's function by exponential resummation we are able to treat time-nonlocal self-energies and to avoid the wide-band approximation.Results are presented for the de-excitation of \NitrogenDominantMetastableState\ on aluminum and tungsten and discussed in view of previous experimental and theoretical investigations. We find quantitative agreement with experimental data for tungsten indicating that the effective model captures the physics of the process quite well. For aluminum we predict secondary electron emission due to Auger de-excitation to be one to two orders of magnitude smaller than the one found for resonant charge-transfer and subsequent auto-detachment.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures, revised version using an improved single-electron basi

Beiträge zur Geschichte des Landkreises Regensburg 40

Marginalien von 12 Autoren, darin: Sparkasse Regensburg: Silbermedaille 'Mittelalter in Ostbayern' (S. 3); Fendl, Josef: Heimatgeschichte in zwei Dialekt-Monologen (S. 3-6); Deml, Hans: Eine Karriere im Mittelalter: Hans Vetter aus "Kohlßriedt" (S. 7); Schwaiger, Dieter: Kriegsnöte in der Pfarrei Deuerling (S. 8-11); Donau Post: Frauenzells großer Baumeister kam aus Wörth (S. 12); Raab, Michael: Großer Hexenprozeß zu Geisling 1689-1691 (S. 13-17); Lermer, Xaver: Die Donau (bei Geisling) / Haidau - Haidauer Weg / Das Jahr 1809 (S. 18-21); Mittelbayerische Zeitung: Zwei Aufsätze zur Schulgeschichte Altenthanns: Für Bemühungen wird nur Spott und Grobheit gebracht - Von Altenthann wollten junge Lehrer sofort wieder weg, Bei unehelichen Kindern verlor Altenthann die Geduld (S. 22-25); Donau Post: In Wolfskofen fanden sie eine neue Heimat (S. 25-26); Mittelbayerische Zeitung: Vor 25 Jahren Fähre von Pfatter nach Wörth eingestellt - Beim Uferer Karl Schiller gingen die Nazi-Größen baden (S. 27); Staudigl, Franz Xaver: Kampf um die Glaubens- und Gewissensfreiheit (S. 28-36); Koschier, Franz: Der Festzug - Hinweise für Organisation und Gestaltung (S. 37-40); Fendl, Josef: Die Kapelle bei St. Johann (S. 40

The contribution of Citizens’ Observatories to validation of satellite‐retrieved soil moisture products

The GROW Observatory (GROW) will create a sustainable citizen platform and community to generate, share and utilise information on land, soil and water resources at a resolution hitherto not previously considered. The European Space Agency’s Sentinel‐1 is the first mission capable of providing high‐resolution soil moisture information, but a proper validation of Sentinel data remains a challenge given the scarcity of available in situ reference measurements. Establishment of a dense network of in situ measurement can bridge the gap in spatial resolution between in situ and satellite‐based soil moisture measurements enabling validation and calibration of ground and remotely measured soil moisture observations. The potential exists to answer scientific questions including the validity of satellite data, the impact of climate change on land management thus supporting the needs of growers and integrating citizen and scientific research to be more directly applicable and relevant

Towards long-term records of rain-on-snow events across the Arctic from satellite data

Rain-on-snow (ROS) events occur across many regions of the terrestrial Arctic in mid-winter. Snowpack properties are changing, and in extreme cases ice layers form which affect wildlife, vegetation and soils beyond the duration of the event. Specifically, satellite microwave observations have been shown to provide insight into known events. Only Ku-band radar (scatterometer) has been applied so far across the entire Arctic. Data availability at this frequency is limited, however. The utility of other frequencies from passive and active systems needs to be explored to develop a concept for long-term monitoring. The latter are of specific interest as they can be potentially provided at higher spatial resolution. Radar records have been shown to capture the associated snow structure change based on time-series analyses. This approach is also applicable when data gaps exist and has capabilities to evaluate the impact severity of events. Active as well as passive microwave sensors can also detect wet snow at the timing of an ROS event if an acquisition is available. The wet snow retrieval methodology is, however, rather mature compared to the identification of snow structure change since ambiguous scattering behaviour needs consideration. C-band radar is of special interest due to good data availability including a range of nominal spatial resolutions (10 m–12.5 km). Scatterometer and SAR (synthetic aperture radar) data have therefore been investigated. The temperature dependence of C-band backscatter at VV (V – vertical) polarization observable down to −40 ◦C is identified as a major issue for ROS retrieval but can be addressed by a combination with a passive microwave wet snow indicator (demonstrated for Metop ASCAT – Advanced Scatterometer – and SMOS – Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity). Results were compared to in situ observations (snowpit records, caribou migration data) and Ku-band products. Ice crusts were found in the snowpack after detected events (overall accuracy 82 %). The more crusts (events) there are, the higher the winter season backscatter increase at C-band will be. ROS events captured on the Yamal and Seward peninsulas have had severe impacts on reindeer and caribou, respectively, due to ice crust formation. SAR specifically from Sentinel-1 is promising regarding ice layer identification at better spatial details for all available polarizations. The fusion of multiple types of microwave satellite observations is suggested for the creation of a climate data record, but the consideration of performance differences due to spatial and temporal cover, as well as microwave frequency, is crucial. Retrieval is most robust in the tundra biome, where results are comparable between sensors. Records can be used to identify extremes and to apply the results for impact studies at regional scale

Impact of rituximab biosimilars on overall survival in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma:a Dutch population-based study

In 2017, the European Medicines Agency approved rituximab biosimilars (R-biosimilars) for treatment of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Thereafter, the Netherlands was one of the first countries to implement R-biosimilars, given lower costs compared with rituximab originator (R-originator). This study's objective was to investigate whether overall survival (OS) of patients with DLBCL receiving R-biosimilars is similar to patients treated with R-originator. DLBCL patients ≥18 years, diagnosed between 2014 and 2018, who received at least 1 cycle of rituximab combined with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisolone (R-CHOP) were identified in the Netherlands Cancer Registry. Patients were categorized into R-originator or R-biosimilars groups based on data from a central repository of the Dutch medicinal drug market. The primary end point was 3-year OS, defined as the time between diagnosis and all-cause death. By the end of 2018, 91% of purchased rituximab were biosimilars. In total, 4429 patients were identified with 876 in the R-biosimilars group and 3553 in the R-originator group. Patients in the R-biosimilars group less frequently received .6 cycles of R-CHOP compared with patients treated with R-originator (24% vs 30%, P 5 .003). The 3-year OS did not differ between patients treated with R-originator or R-biosimilars (73% vs 73%, P = .855). This was confirmed with a multivariable Cox regression analysis accounting for sex, age, International Prognostic Index score, and number of R-CHOP cycles. In conclusion, the 3-year OS is similar for patients treated with CHOP in combination with R-originator or R-biosimilars and, therefore, favors the use of R-biosimilars in DLBCL treatment management