3,092 research outputs found
Effects of Biochar Amendment and Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Inoculation on Availability of Soil Phosphorus and Growth of Maize
A glasshouse experiment was conducted to study the interactive effects of biochar amendment and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation on phosphorus uptake by maize (Zea mayze L.) grown on a calcareous soil of Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara. The biochar was made of cow dung. Twelve treatment combinations (three biochars levels of 0, 5 and 7.5 g/kg of soil, and four AMF inoculation levels of 0, 5, 10 and 15 spores / kg of soil) were arranged in a completely randomized block design with three replicates. Results of the study showed that at 8 weeks after transplanting, the biochar and mycorrhizal treatments increased the availability soil phosphorus and phosphorus uptake by maize. Application 4.5 and 7.5 g biochar/kg of soil combined with inoculation of 10-15 AMF spores / kg of soil provided to high value of phosphorus uptake by maize. Application of biochar alone, however, did not significantly improve maize growth and phosphorus uptake by maize
Non-minimal Einstein-Yang-Mills-Higgs theory: Associated, color and color-acoustic metrics for the Wu-Yang monopole model
We discuss a non-minimal Einstein-Yang-Mills-Higgs model with uniaxial
anisotropy in the group space associated with the Higgs field. We apply this
theory to the problem of propagation of color and color-acoustic waves in the
gravitational background related to the non-minimal regular Wu-Yang monopole.Comment: 14 pages, no figure
Fun moments or consequential experiences? A model for conceptualising and researching equitable youth outcomes from informal STEM learning
While there are many different frameworks seeking to identify what benefits young people might derive from participation in informal STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) learning (ISL), this paper argues that the sector would benefit from an approach that foregrounds equity and social justice outcomes. We propose a new model for reflecting on equitable youth outcomes from ISL that identifies five key areas: (1) Grounded fun; (2) STEM capital; (3) STEM trajectories; (4) STEM identity work; and (5) Agency+ . The model is applied to empirical data (interviews, observations and youth portfolios) collected over one year in four UK-based ISL settings with 33 young people (aged 11–14), largely from communities that are traditionally under-represented in STEM. Analysis considers the extent to which participating youth experienced equitable outcomes, or not, in relation to the five areas. The paper concludes with a discussion of implications for ISL and how the model might support ongoing efforts to reimagine ISL as vehicle for social justice
Temperate and tropical forest canopies are already functioning beyond their thermal thresholds for photosynthesis
Tropical tree species have evolved under very narrow temperature ranges compared to temperate forest species. Studies suggest that tropical trees may be more vulnerable to continued warming compared to temperate species, as tropical trees have shown declines in growth and photosynthesis at elevated temperatures. However, regional and global vegetation models lack the data needed to accurately represent such physiological responses to increased temperatures, especially for tropical forests. To address this need, we compared instantaneous photosynthetic temperature responses of mature canopy foliage, leaf temperatures, and air temperatures across vertical canopy gradients in three forest types: tropical wet, tropical moist, and temperate deciduous. Temperatures at which maximum photosynthesis occurred were greater in the tropical forests canopies than the temperate canopy (30 ± 0.3 °C vs. 27 ± 0.4 °C). However, contrary to expectations that tropical species would be functioning closer to threshold temperatures, photosynthetic temperature optima was exceeded by maximum daily leaf temperatures, resulting in sub-optimal rates of carbon assimilation for much of the day, especially in upper canopy foliage (\u3e10 m). If trees are unable to thermally acclimate to projected elevated temperatures, these forests may shift from net carbon sinks to sources, with potentially dire implications to climate feedbacks and forest community composition
Spin-dependent effective interactions for halo nuclei
We discuss the spin-dependence of the effective two-body interactions
appropriate for three-body computations. The only reasonable choice seems to be
the fine and hyperfine interactions known for atomic electrons interacting with
the nucleus. One exception is the nucleon-nucleon interaction imposing a
different type of symmetry. We use the two-neutron halo nucleus 11Li as
illustration. We demonstrate that models with the wrong spin-dependence are
basically without predictive power. The Pauli forbidden core and valence states
must be consistently treated.Comment: TeX file, 6 pages, 3 postscript figure
Accurate Charge-Dependent Nucleon-Nucleon Potential at Fourth Order of Chiral Perturbation Theory
We present the first nucleon-nucleon potential at
next-to-next-to-next-to-leading order (fourth order) of chiral perturbation
theory. Charge-dependence is included up to next-to-leading order of the
isospin-violation scheme. The accuracy for the reproduction of the NN data
below 290 MeV lab. energy is comparable to the one of phenomenological
high-precision potentials. Since NN potentials of order three and less are
known to be deficient in quantitative terms, the present work shows that the
fourth order is necessary and sufficient for a reliable NN potential derived
from chiral effective Lagrangians. The new potential provides a promising
starting point for exact few-body calculations and microscopic nuclear
structure theory (including chiral many-body forces derived on the same
footing).Comment: 4 pages Revtex including one figur
Possible Cosmological Implications of the Quark-Hadron Phase Transition
We study the quark-hadron phase transition within an effective model of QCD,
and find that in a reasonable range of the main parameters of the model, bodies
with quark content between and 10 solar masses can have been formed
in the early universe. In addition, we show that a significant amount of
entropy is released during the transition. This may imply the existence of a
higher baryon number density than what is usually expected at temperatures
above the QCD scale. The cosmological QCD transition may then provide a natural
way for decreasing the high baryon asymmetry created by an Affleck-Dine like
mechanism down to the value required by primordial nucleosynthesis.Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, 5 Postscript figures included. Submitted to Journal
of Physics
Stacking Entropy of Hard Sphere Crystals
Classical hard spheres crystallize at equilibrium at high enough density.
Crystals made up of stackings of 2-dimensional hexagonal close-packed layers
(e.g. fcc, hcp, etc.) differ in entropy by only about per sphere
(all configurations are degenerate in energy). To readily resolve and study
these small entropy differences, we have implemented two different
multicanonical Monte Carlo algorithms that allow direct equilibration between
crystals with different stacking sequences. Recent work had demonstrated that
the fcc stacking has higher entropy than the hcp stacking. We have studied
other stackings to demonstrate that the fcc stacking does indeed have the
highest entropy of ALL possible stackings. The entropic interactions we could
detect involve three, four and (although with less statistical certainty) five
consecutive layers of spheres. These interlayer entropic interactions fall off
in strength with increasing distance, as expected; this fall-off appears to be
much slower near the melting density than at the maximum (close-packing)
density. At maximum density the entropy difference between fcc and hcp
stackings is per sphere, which is roughly 30% higher
than the same quantity measured near the melting transition.Comment: 15 page
Методика оценки производительности инспекционных досмотровых комплексов с функцией идентификации веществ объектов контроля
Cluster ionization via two-plasmon excitation
We calculate the two-photon ionization of clusters for photon energies near
the surface plasmon resonance. The results are expressed in terms of the
ionization rate of a double plasmon excitation, which is calculated
perturbatively. For the conditions of the experiment by Schlipper et al., we
find an ionization rate of the order of 0.05-0.10 fs^(-1). This rate is used to
determine the ionization probability in an external field in terms of the
number of photons absorbed and the duration of the field. The probability also
depends on the damping rate of the surface plasmon. Agreement with experiment
can only be achieved if the plasmon damping is considerably smaller than its
observed width in the room-temperature single-photon absorption spectrum.Comment: 17 pages and 6 PostScript figure
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