Thermoplasmonics: Quantifying plasmonic heating in single nanowires

Plasmonic absorption of light can lead to significant local heating in metallic nanostructures, an effect that defines the sub-field of thermoplasmonics and has been leveraged in diverse applications from biomedical technology to optoelectronics. Quantitatively characterizing the resulting local temperature increase can be very challenging in isolated nanostructures. By measuring the optically-induced change in resistance of metal nanowires with a transverse plasmon mode, we quantitatively determine the temperature increase in single nanostructures, with the dependence on incident polarization clearly revealing the plasmonic heating mechanism. Computational modeling explains the resonant and nonresonant contributions to the optical heating and the dominant pathways for thermal transport. These results, obtained by combining electronic and optical measurements, place a bound on the role of optical heating in prior experiments, and suggest design guidelines for engineered structures meant to leverage such effects.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures + 3 pages supporting materia

The crown rot ‘deadhead’ phenomenon in durum wheat

[INTRODUCTION] Crown rot of wheat, caused by Fusarium pseudograminearum (Fp), is a serious disease threat across the Australian wheat belt, particularly in durum wheat. Control of this disease is primarily based on crop rotations and reducing inoculum, with a continued goal of producing crops with increased resistance. Plant reactions to disease are typically described using stem browning, sometimes coinciding with the production of ‘deadheads’, or stems undergoing premature senescence due to infection. The mechanism by which crown rot causes yield loss has not yet been clearly described, however evidence is emerging indicating fungal blockage of both xylem and phloem tissues (1). It would be logical to infer that ‘deadhead’ stems had more Fp biomass and greater vascular tissue colonisation, resulting in their premature death. It must, however, be demonstrated. The information gained by examining ‘deadheads’ may be applied to less extreme infections as an explanation for the physiological effects behind crown rot associated yield loss. The idea behind this experiment was to investigate the levels of colonisation of stems of durum plants exhibiting ‘deadheads’ in the field and compare these to stems of the same plants which were still living. Microscopic assessment of stem sections is also planned

Scattering theory and discrete-time quantum walks

We study quantum walks on general graphs from the point of view of scattering theory. For a general finite graph we choose two vertices and attach one half line to each. We are interested in walks that proceed from one half line, through the graph, to the other. The particle propagates freely on the half lines but is scattered at each vertex in the original graph. The probability of starting on one line and reaching the other after n steps can be expressed in terms of the transmission amplitude for the graph. An example is presented.Comment: 7 pages, Latex, replaced with published versio

The Impacts of Retail Promotions on the Demand for Orange Juice: A Study of a Retail Chain

This study examined the impacts of retail promotions on the demand for five brands of orange juices for a retail chain (referred to as Retailer X) and its competitors using the Rotterdam model. Results show that the combination of feature ads and displays had the largest impacts on retail revenue among the four promotional tactics considered, while temporary price reductions had no additional advertising impacts other than price impacts on retail revenues. Results also show that when Retailer X promotes an OJ brand using any of the tactics studied, a larger portion of the increased demand for the promoted brand came from reduced demand for other brands of OJ in the same store and a smaller portion came from the decreased demand in competing stores in the same trading area.Demand and Price Analysis, Marketing,

Heart of glass anchors Rasip1 at endothelial cell-cell junctions to support vascular integrity.

Heart of Glass (HEG1), a transmembrane receptor, and Rasip1, an endothelial-specific Rap1-binding protein, are both essential for cardiovascular development. Here we performed a proteomic screen for novel HEG1 interactors and report that HEG1 binds directly to Rasip1. Rasip1 localizes to forming endothelial cell (EC) cell-cell junctions and silencing HEG1 prevents this localization. Conversely, mitochondria-targeted HEG1 relocalizes Rasip1 to mitochondria in cells. The Rasip1-binding site in HEG1 contains a 9 residue sequence, deletion of which abrogates HEG1's ability to recruit Rasip1. HEG1 binds to a central region of Rasip1 and deletion of this domain eliminates Rasip1's ability to bind HEG1, to translocate to EC junctions, to inhibit ROCK activity, and to maintain EC junctional integrity. These studies establish that the binding of HEG1 to Rasip1 mediates Rap1-dependent recruitment of Rasip1 to and stabilization of EC cell-cell junctions

Wells, Chesterton, and A Theology of Semidetached Reading

This article engages with the work of John Plotz on our experience of being caught between two worlds as we read—a world of fiction that partially absorbs us, and the actual world, to which we remain attached. Noting the lack of attention Plotz pays to religion as he writes about semi-detachment, I respond by developing a theology of semidetached reading. To think through the contribution that theology offers, I turn to two works of fiction: H. G. Wells’s “The Plattner Story” (1896) and G. K. Chesterton’s The Man who was Thursday: A Nightmare (1908). In doing so, I recognize the very different ways in which Wells and Chesterton tease out the strange mix of secular and religious experience that is so important for those who want to understand religion in the modern world. As I go on to argue, paying attention to theology allows to register particular narratives in which people traverse these worlds and seek to hold different threads of meaning together. A theology of semidetached reading can also shed light on the ways in which different worlds are configured, as well as helping us to navigate points of conflict as we move between them