Adams operations on the Green ring of a cyclic group of prime-power order

We consider the Green ring $R_{KC}$ for a cyclic $p$-group $C$ over a field $K$ of prime characteristic $p$ and determine the Adams operations $\psi^n$ in the case where $n$ is not divisible by $p$. This gives information on the decomposition into indecomposables of exterior powers and symmetric powers of $KC$-modules.Comment: 23 page

Development and evolution of the neural crest: An overview

The neural crest is a multipotent and migratory cell type that forms transiently in the developing vertebrate embryo. These cells emerge from the central nervous system, migrate extensively and give rise to diverse cell lineages including melanocytes, craniofacial cartilage and bone, peripheral and enteric neurons and glia, and smooth muscle. A vertebrate innovation, the gene regulatory network underlying neural crest formation appears to be highly conserved, even to the base of vertebrates. Here, we present an overview of important concepts in the neural crest field dating from its discovery 150 years ago to open questions that will motivate future research

Isotope tracing of nitrate : lessons from Malta

Average concentrations of nitrate in Malta’s groundwaters are probably the highest among EU member states. This compromises the quality of an important resource -almost 60% of Malta’s water supply being provided by groundwater. An 15N/14N + 18O/16O isotope study was undertaken as a core part of wide-ranging investigations into the potential sources of the nitrate pollution, its likely future trends, and possible ameliorative actions. The dual isotope (15N/14N + 18O/16O) approach was important for identifying waters affected by denitrification. Excluding these, groundwater from three physically and hydrologically distinct aquifers, with a very wide range in nitrate concentrations (24 to 410 mg NO3 L-1), had remarkably similar isotope compositions: 90% of samples lying within d15N ≈ +8 to +12‰, and d18O ≈ +3 to +6‰. The d18O values are entirely consistent with those expected for microbial nitrification in the presence of surface or groundwaters, and together with 15N values rule out nitrate derivation directly from fertilizers or sewage. In other studies the relatively high d15N values for the waters would probably have been interpreted as indicative of nitrate derived from manure. In Malta, however, cultivated soils have high d15N values, ≈ +6 to +11‰, very similar to the values for nitrate in the groundwater, and argue for a soil-derived source. The implications of a soil-source of such high nitrate levels are discussed, and the study emphasised the importance of characterising the compositions of soils in addition to other sources – a factor often neglected in isotope studies of nitrate

Determining Central Black Hole Masses in Distant Active Galaxies and Quasars. II. Improved Optical and UV Scaling Relationships

We present four improved empirical relationships useful for estimating the central black hole mass in nearby AGNs and distant luminous quasars alike using either optical or UV single-epoch spectroscopy. These mass-scaling relationships between line widths and luminosity are based on recently improved empirical relationships between the broad-line region size and luminosities in various energy bands and are calibrated to the improved mass measurements of nearby AGNs based on emission-line reverberation mapping. The mass-scaling relationship based on the Hbeta line luminosity allows mass estimates for low-redshift sources with strong contamination of the optical continuum luminosity by stellar or non-thermal emission, while that based on the C IV lambda 1549 line dispersion allows mass estimates in cases where only the line dispersion (as opposed to the FWHM) can be reliably determined. We estimate that the absolute uncertainties in masses given by these mass-scaling relationships are typically around a factor of 4. We include in an Appendix mass estimates for all the Bright Quasar Survey (PG) quasars for which direct reverberation-based mass measurements are not available.Comment: 48 pages including 12 figures and 7 tables. Accepted by Ap

First Detection of Mid-Infrared Variability from an Ultraluminous X-Ray Source Holmberg II X-1

We present mid-infrared (IR) light curves of the Ultraluminous X-ray Source (ULX) Holmberg II X-1 from observations taken between 2014 January 13 and 2017 January 5 with the \textit{Spitzer Space Telescope} at 3.6 and 4.5 $\mu$m in the \textit{Spitzer} Infrared Intensive Transients Survey (SPIRITS). The mid-IR light curves, which reveal the first detection of mid-IR variability from a ULX, is determined to arise primarily from dust emission rather than from a jet or an accretion disk outflow. We derived the evolution of the dust temperature ($T_\mathrm{d}\sim600 - 800$ K), IR luminosity ($L_\mathrm{IR}\sim3\times10^4$ $\mathrm{L}_\odot$), mass ($M_\mathrm{d}\sim1-3\times10^{-6}$ $\mathrm{M}_\odot$), and equilibrium temperature radius ($R_\mathrm{eq}\sim10-20$ AU). A comparison of X-1 with a sample spectroscopically identified massive stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud on a mid-IR color-magnitude diagram suggests that the mass donor in X-1 is a supergiant (sg) B[e]-star. The sgB[e]-interpretation is consistent with the derived dust properties and the presence of the [Fe II] ($\lambda=1.644$ $\mu$m) emission line revealed from previous near-IR studies of X-1. We attribute the mid-IR variability of X-1 to increased heating of dust located in a circumbinary torus. It is unclear what physical processes are responsible for the increased dust heating; however, it does not appear to be associated with the X-ray flux from the ULX given the constant X-ray luminosities provided by serendipitous, near-contemporaneous X-ray observations around the first mid-IR variability event in 2014. Our results highlight the importance of mid-IR observations of luminous X-ray sources traditionally studied at X-ray and radio wavelengths.Comment: 9 page, 4 figures, 1 table, Accepted to ApJ Letter