39 research outputs found
TESS hunt for young and maturing exoplanets (THYME). VI. an 11 Myr giant planet transiting a very-low-mass star in lower centaurus crux
Mature super-Earths and sub-Neptunes are predicted to be ≃ Jovian radius when younger than 10 Myr. Thus, we expect to find 5–15 R⊕ planets around young stars even if their older counterparts harbor none. We report the discovery and validation of TOI 1227b, a 0.85 ± 0.05 RJ (9.5 R⊕) planet transiting a very-low-mass star (0.170 ± 0.015 M⊙) every 27.4 days. TOI 1227's kinematics and strong lithium absorption confirm that it is a member of a previously discovered subgroup in the Lower Centaurus Crux OB association, which we designate the Musca group. We derive an age of 11 ± 2 Myr for Musca, based on lithium, rotation, and the color–magnitude diagram of Musca members. The TESS data and ground-based follow-up show a deep (2.5%) transit. We use multiwavelength transit observations and radial velocities from the IGRINS spectrograph to validate the signal as planetary in nature, and we obtain an upper limit on the planet mass of ≃0.5 MJ. Because such large planets are exceptionally rare around mature low-mass stars, we suggest that TOI 1227b is still contracting and will eventually turn into one of the more common <5 R⊕ planets
Rare and common vertebrates span a wide spectrum of population trends
Conservation biologists often assume that rare (or less abundant) species are more likely to be declining under anthropogenic change. Here, the authors synthesise population trend data for ~2000 animal species to show that population trends cover a wide spectrum of change from losses to gains, which are not related to species rarity
Two in one sweep: aluminum tolerance and grain yield in P-limited soils are associated to the same genomic region in West African Sorghum
Numerical methods for the computation of the confluent and Gauss hypergeometric functions
The two most commonly used hypergeometric functions are the confluent hypergeometric function and the Gauss hypergeometric function. We review the available techniques for accurate, fast, and reliable computation of these two hypergeometric functions in different parameter and variable regimes. The methods that we investigate include Taylor and asymptotic series computations, Gauss-Jacobi quadrature, numerical solution of differential equations, recurrence relations, and others. We discuss the results of numerical experiments used to determine the best methods, in practice, for each parameter and variable regime considered. We provide 'roadmaps' with our recommendation for which methods should be used in each situation
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EPIC 220204960: A quadruple star system containing two strongly interacting eclipsing binaries
We present a strongly interacting quadruple system associated with the K2 target EPIC 220204960. The K2 target itself is a Kp = 12.7-mag star at Teff ≃ 6100 K, which we designate as 'B-N' (blue northerly image). The host of the quadruple system, however, is a Kp ≃ 17-mag star with a composite M-star spectrum, which we designate as 'R-S' (red southerly image). With a 3.2-arcsec separation and similar radial velocities and photometric distances, 'B-N' is likely physically associated with 'R-S', making this a quintuple system, but that is incidental to our main claim of a strongly interacting quadruple system in 'R-S'. The two binaries in 'R-S' have orbital periods of 13.27 and 14.41 d, respectively, and each has an inclination angle of ≳89°. From our analysis of radial-velocity (RV) measurements, and of the photometric light curve, we conclude that all four stars are very similar with masses close to 0.4M⊙. Both of the binaries exhibit significant eclipse-timing variations where those of the primary and secondary eclipses 'diverge' by 0.05 d over the course of the 80-d observations. Via a systematic set of numerical simulations of quadruple systems consisting of two interacting binaries, we conclude that the outer orbital period is very likely to be between 300 and 500 d. If sufficient time is devoted to RV studies of this faint target, the outer orbit should be measurable within a year
Limited utility of ICD-10 and DSM-IV classification of dissociative and conversion disorders in India
Assessment and rationalization of genetic diversity of Papua New Guinea taro (Colocasia esculenta) using SSR DNA fingerprinting
Taro (Colocasia esculenta) accessions were collected from 15 provinces of Papua New Guinea (PNG). The collection, totalling 859 accessions was collated for characterization and a core collection of 81 accessions (∼10%) was established on the basis of characterization data generated on 30 agro-morphological descriptors, and DNA fingerprinting using seven SSR primers. The selection of accessions was based on cluster analysis of the morphological data enabling initial selection of 20% accessions. The 20% sample was then reduced and rationalized to 10% based on molecular data generated by SSR primers. This represents the first national core collection of any species established in PNG based on molecular markers. The core has been integrated with core from other Pacific Island countries, contributing to a Pacific regional core collection, which is conserved in vitro in the South Pacific Regional Germplasm Centre at Fiji. The core collection is a valuable resource for food security of the South Pacific region and is currently being utilized by the breeding programmes of small Pacific Island countries to broaden the genetic base of the crop
Improving generation length estimates for the IUCN Red List
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List classifies species according to their risk of extinction, informing local to global conservation decisions. Here we look to advance the estimation of generation length, which is used as a time-scalar in the Red List as a way of accounting for differences in species' life-histories. We calculated or predicted generation length for 86 species of antelope following the Rspan approach. We also tested the importance of both allometry (body-mass) and phylogeny (phylogenetic eigenvectors) as predictors of generation length within a Phylogenetic Eigenvector Map (PEM) framework. We then evaluated the predictive power of this PEM and two binning approaches, following a leave-one-out cross-validation routine. We showed that captive and wild longevity data are nonequivalent and that both body-mass and phylogeny are important predictors for generation length (body-mass explained 64% and phylogeny 36% of the partitioned explained variance). Plus, both the PEM, and the binning approach that included both taxonomic rank and body-mass, had good predictive power and therefore are suitable for extrapolating generation length to missing-data species. Therefore, based on our findings, we advise separating captive and wild data when estimating generation length, and considering the implications of wild and captive data more widely in life-history analyses. We also recommend that body-mass and phylogeny should be used in combination, preferably under a PEM framework (as it was less reliant on available reference species and more explicitly accounts for phylogenetic relatedness) or a binning approach if a PEM is not feasible, to extrapolate generation length to missing-data species. Overall, we provide a transparent, consistent and transferable workflow for improving the use of the Rspan method to calculate generation length for the IUCN Red List.</p
Incorporating Ecosystem Functional Diversity into Geographic Conservation Priorities Using Remotely Sensed Ecosystem Functional Types
Conservation biology must set geographic conservation priorities not only based on the compositional or structural but also on the functional
dimensions of biodiversity. However, assessing
functional diversity is challenging at the regional
scale. We propose the use of satellite-derived
Ecosystem Functional Types (EFTs), defined here as
patches of land surface that share similar primary
production dynamics, to incorporate such aspects
of ecosystem functional diversity into the selection
of protected areas. We applied the EFT approach to
the Baja California Peninsula, Mexico, to characterize the regional heterogeneity of primary production dynamics in terms of EFTs; to set
conservation priorities based on EFT richness and
rarity; and to explore whether such EFT-based
conservation priorities were consistent with and/or
complementary to previous assessments focused on
biodiversity composition and structure. EFTs were
identified based on three ecosystem functional attributes derived from seasonal dynamics of the
Enhanced Vegetation Index: the annual mean
(proxy of primary production), the seasonal coefficient of variation (descriptor of seasonality), and
the date of maximum (indicator of phenology).
EFT-based priorities identified 26% of the peninsula as being of extreme or high priority and reinforced the value of the ecosystem functional
diversity of areas already prioritized by traditional
conservation assessments. In addition, our study
revealed that biodiversity composition- and structure-based assessments had not identified the full
range of important areas for EFT diversity and
tended to better capture areas of high EFT rarity
than those of high EFT richness. Our EFT-based
assessment demonstrates how remotely sensed regional heterogeneity in ecosystem functions could
reinforce and complement traditional conservation
priority setting.European Union (EU)Spanish MINECO
CGL2014-61610-EXPUniversity of Almeria (PhD contract: research training program)European Union (EU)
641762NASA 2016 GEOBON Work Programme Grant
80NSSC18K044