The When (and How) of Intergroup Competition and Discrimination: Distinguishing the Contributions of Competitive Perceptions and Motivations

A new framework is proposed to examine the effects of intergroup competition on discrimination by assessing the influence of participants’ subjective construal of potentially competitive events. It posits that competitive intergroup perceptions (CIP; the perception that one’s ingroup and another group(s) are attempting to gain a reward or desired outcome at the expense of each other) and competitive intergroup motivations (CIM; the desire for one’s ingroup to acquire more of a reward than the other group(s)) are related but distinct constructs. This distinction implies that CIP and CIM should be strongly related, but not to the point of suggesting they are the same variable. A distinction between CIP and CIM also implies that both constructs can be elicited and experimentally manipulated independently of each other. Most importantly, this distinction implies that both constructs will have unique influences on intergroup behaviour. Although this approach has not been systematically investigated previously, the intergroup relations literature suggests two potential explanations by which CIP and CIM may lead to discrimination: i) CIP and CIM have unique, additive effects on intergroup discrimination (the independence perspective); and ii) CIM is the primary contributor to discrimination, such that CIM is more strongly related with discriminatory behaviour than CIP, and that CIP leads to discriminatory behaviour only when CIM is strong (the motivational perspective). These ideas were examined in three studies that assessed and/or manipulated self-reported CIP and CIM within an intergroup context, then assessed discriminatory intentions or behaviour towards a relevant outgroup. The results of these studies collectively supported the construct validity of the proposed framework: CIP and CIM were positively and non-redundantly related with each other, affected to differing degrees by experimental manipulations that were designed for each variable, and had generally distinct influences on intergroup behaviour. Studies 1-3 generally attested to the primary role of CIM over CIP in predicting intergroup discrimination; however, Studies 2-3 illustrated that experimentally-augmented levels of CIM did not lead to very strong discriminatory behaviour without high levels of CIP. The proposed framework may be instrumental in generating more thorough insights on the processes and social consequences of competitive group dynamics

COOL-LAMPS. VI. Lens Model and New Constraints on the Properties of COOL J1241+2219, a Bright z = 5 Lyman Break Galaxy and its z = 1 Cluster Lens

We present a strong lensing analysis of COOL J1241+2219, the brightest known gravitationally lensed galaxy at z ≥ 5, based on new multiband Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging data. The lensed galaxy has a redshift of z = 5.043, placing it shortly after the end of the “Epoch of Reionization,” and an AB magnitude z AB = 20.47 mag (Khullar et al.). As such, it serves as a touchstone for future research of that epoch. The high spatial resolution of HST reveals internal structure in the giant arc, from which we identify 15 constraints and construct a robust lens model. We use the lens model to extract the cluster mass and lensing magnification. We find that the mass enclosed within the Einstein radius of the z = 1.001 cluster lens is M(<5.″77)=1.079−0.007+0.023×1013M☉ , significantly lower than other known strong lensing clusters at its redshift. The average magnification of the giant arc is 〈μ arc〉 = 76−20+40 , a factor of 2.4−0.7+1.4 greater than previously estimated from ground-based data; the flux-weighted average magnification is 〈μ arc〉 = 92−31+37 . We update the current measurements of the stellar mass and star formation rate (SFR) of the source for the revised magnification to log(M⋆/M⊙)= 9.7 ± 0.3 and SFR = 10.3−4.4+7.0 M ⊙ yr−1, respectively. The powerful lensing magnification acting upon COOL J1241+2219 resolves the source and enables future studies of the properties of its star formation on a clump-by-clump basis. The lensing analysis presented here will support upcoming multiwavelength characterization with HST and JWST data of the stellar mass assembly and physical properties of this high-redshift lensed galaxy

COOL-LAMPS VI: Lens model and New Constraints on the Properties of COOL J1241+2219, a Bright z = 5 Lyman Break Galaxy and its z = 1 Cluster Lens

We present a strong lensing analysis of COOL J1241+2219, the brightest known gravitationally lensed galaxy at $z \geq 5$, based on new multi-band Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging data. The lensed galaxy has a redshift of z=5.043, placing it shortly after the end of the Epoch of Reionization, and an AB magnitude z_AB=20.47 mag (Khullar et al. 2021). As such, it serves as a touchstone for future research of that epoch. The high spatial resolution of HST reveals internal structure in the giant arc, from which we identify 15 constraints and construct a robust lens model. We use the lens model to extract cluster mass and lensing magnification. We find that the mass enclosed within the Einstein radius of the z=1.001 cluster lens is M(<5.77'')=$1.079^{+0.023}_{-0.007}$, significantly lower than other known strong lensing clusters at its redshift. The average magnification of the giant arc is $=76^{+40}_{-20}$, a factor of $2.4^{+1.4}_{-0.7}$ greater than previously estimated from ground-based data; the flux-weighted average magnification is $=92^{+37}_{-31}$ We update the current measurements of the stellar mass and star formation rate (SFR) of the source for the revised magnification, $\log(M_\star/M_{\odot})=9.7\pm0.3$ and ${\rm SFR} = 10.3^{+7.0}_{-4.4}$ $M_{\odot}$yr$^{-1}$. The powerful lensing magnification acting upon COOL J1241+2219 resolves the source and enables future studies of the properties of its star formation on a clump-by-clump basis. The lensing analysis presented here will support upcoming multiwavelength characterization with HST and JWST data of the stellar mass assembly and physical properties of this high-redshift lensed galaxy.Comment: Submitted to Ap

Lessons Learned From the United States Ocean Observatories Initiative

The Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) is a United States National Science Foundation-funded major research facility that provides continuous observations of the ocean and seafloor from coastal and open ocean locations in the Atlantic and Pacific. Multiple cycles of OOI infrastructure deployment, recovery, and refurbishment have occurred since operations began in 2014. This heterogeneous ocean observing infrastructure with multidisciplinary sampling in important but challenging locations has provided new scientific and engineering insights into the operation of a sustained ocean observing system. This paper summarizes the challenges, successes, and failures experienced to date and shares recommendations on best practices that will be of benefit to the global ocean observing community

Genomic epidemiology and the role of international and regional travel in the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Zimbabwe: a retrospective study of routinely collected surveillance data.

BACKGROUND: Advances in SARS-CoV-2 sequencing have enabled identification of new variants, tracking of its evolution, and monitoring of its spread. We aimed to use whole genome sequencing to describe the molecular epidemiology of the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak and to inform the implementation of effective public health interventions for control in Zimbabwe. METHODS: We performed a retrospective study of nasopharyngeal samples collected from nine laboratories in Zimbabwe between March 20 and Oct 16, 2020. Samples were taken as a result of quarantine procedures for international arrivals or to test for infection in people who were symptomatic or close contacts of positive cases. Samples that had a cycle threshold of less than 30 in the diagnostic PCR test were processed for sequencing. We began our analysis in July, 2020 (120 days since the first case), with a follow-up in October, 2020 (at 210 days since the first case). The phylogenetic relationship of the genome sequences within Zimbabwe and global samples was established using maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods. FINDINGS: Of 92 299 nasopharyngeal samples collected during the study period, 8099 were PCR-positive and 328 were available for sequencing, with 156 passing sequence quality control. 83 (53%) of 156 were from female participants. At least 26 independent introductions of SARS-CoV-2 into Zimbabwe in the first 210 days were associated with 12 global lineages. 151 (97%) of 156 had the Asp614Gly mutation in the spike protein. Most cases, 93 (60%), were imported from outside Zimbabwe. Community transmission was reported 6 days after the onset of the outbreak. INTERPRETATION: Initial public health interventions delayed onset of SARS-CoV-2 community transmission after the introduction of the virus from international and regional migration in Zimbabwe. Global whole genome sequence data are essential to reveal major routes of spread and guide intervention strategies. FUNDING: WHO, Africa CDC, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Medical Research Council, National Institute for Health Research, and Genome Research Limited.WHO, Africa CDC, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Medical Research Council, National Institute for Health Research, and Genome Research Limite

‘Demand pull’ government policies to support Product-Service System activity: the case of Energy Service Companies (ESCos) in the UK

Product-Service Systems (PSSs) constitute a family of service-based business models designed to satisfy our societal needs in an economically and environmentally sustainable manner. To date however PSS application has remained niche due to a variety of critical barriers. This paper explores how ‘demand pull’ national government policies could support PSS activity by addressing these barriers and cultivating market demand. Lessons are drawn from a case study of how regulatory, economic incentive, informative and procurement policies have supported Energy Service Company (ESCo) activity in the UK; a sub-set of the PSS family focused on energy service provision. Subsequently five policy recommendations are presented to support PSS activity: (1) balancing economic incentives and regulatory disincentives; (2) promoting indirect policy support; (3) redesigning existing market structures; (4) promoting locally-led PSS activity; and (5) creating stable policy frameworks. The paper warns however that national government policy cannot easily address all PSS barriers, such as customer preferences, international developments, technological progress and inherent business model weaknesses, pointing to the need for other complementary solutions. Furthermore, other governance actors beside national government could also implement PSS supporting policies

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Reverberation Mapping project : key results

Funding: Y.S. acknowledges support from NSF grants AST-1715579 and AST-2009947. C.J.G. acknowledges support from NSF grants AST-2009949 and AST-2108667. J.I.L. is supported by the Eric and Wendy Schmidt AI in Science Postdoctoral Fellowship, a Schmidt Futures program. Y.H. was supported as an Eberly Research Fellow by the Eberly College of Science at the Pennsylvania State University. J.R.T. acknowledges support from NSF grants CAREER-1945546, AST-2009539, and AST-2108668. W.N.B. acknowledges support from NSF grant AST-2106990 and the Eberly Endowment at Penn State. L.C.H. was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (11721303, 11991052, 12011540375, 12233001) and the China Manned Space Project (CMS-CSST-2021-A04, CMS-CSST-2021-A06). C.T. acknowledges Tsinghua University for the support to her work.We present the final data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Reverberation Mapping (RM) project, a precursor to the SDSS-V Black Hole Mapper RM program. This data set includes 11 yr photometric and 7 yr spectroscopic light curves for 849 broad-line quasars over a redshift range of 0.1 < z < 4.5 and a luminosity range of Lbol = 1044−47.5 erg s−1, along with spectral and variability measurements. We report 23, 81, 125, and 110 RM lags (relative to optical continuum variability) for broad Hα, Hβ, Mg ii, and C iv using the SDSS-RM sample, spanning much of the luminosity and redshift ranges of the sample. Using 30 low-redshift RM active galactic nuclei with dynamical-modeling black hole masses, we derive a new estimate of the average virial factor of ⟨logf⟩ = 0.62±0.07 for the line dispersion measured from the rms spectrum. The intrinsic scatter of individual virial factors is 0.31 ± 0.07 dex, indicating a factor of 2 systematic uncertainty in RM black hole masses. Our lag measurements reveal significant R–L relations for Hβ and Mg ii at high redshift, consistent with the latest measurements based on heterogeneous samples. While we are unable to robustly constrain the slope of the R–L relation for C iv given the limited dynamic range in luminosity, we found substantially larger scatter in C iv lags at fixed L1350. Using the SDSS-RM lag sample, we derive improved single-epoch (SE) mass recipes for Hβ, Mg ii, and C iv, which are consistent with their respective RM masses as well as between the SE recipes from two different lines, over the luminosity range probed by our sample. The new Hβ and Mg ii recipes are approximately unbiased estimators at given RM masses, but there are systematic biases in the C iv recipe. The intrinsic scatter of SE masses around RM masses is ∼0.45 dex for Hβ and Mg ii, increasing to ∼0.58 dex for C iv.Peer reviewe

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Reverberation Mapping Project: Key Results

We present the final data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Reverberation Mapping (SDSS-RM) project, a precursor to the SDSS-V Black Hole Mapper Reverberation Mapping program. This data set includes 11-year photometric and 7-year spectroscopic light curves for 849 broad-line quasars over a redshift range of 0.1<z<4.5 and a luminosity range of Lbol=1E44-47.5 erg/s, along with spectral and variability measurements. We report 23, 81, 125, and 110 reverberation mapping lags (relative to optical continuum variability) for broad Halpha, Hbeta, MgII and CIV using the SDSS-RM sample, spanning much of the luminosity and redshift ranges of the sample. Using 30 low-redshift RM AGNs with dynamical-modeling black hole masses, we derive a new estimate of the average virial factor of =0.62+-0.07 for the line dispersion measured from the RMS spectrum. The intrinsic scatter of individual virial factors is 0.31+-0.07 dex, indicating a factor of two systematic uncertainty in RM black hole masses. Our lag measurements reveal significant R-L relations for Hbeta and MgII at high redshift, consistent with the latest measurements based on heterogeneous samples. While we are unable to robustly constrain the slope of the R-L relation for CIV given the limited dynamical range in luminosity, we found substantially larger scatter in CIV lags at fixed L1350. Using the SDSS-RM lag sample, we derive improved single-epoch (SE) mass recipes for Hbeta, MgII and CIV, which are consistent with their respective RM masses as well as between the SE recipes from two different lines, over the luminosity range probed by our sample. The new Hbeta and MgII recipes are approximately unbiased estimators at given RM masses, but there are systematic biases in the CIV recipe. The intrinsic scatter of SE masses around RM masses is ~0.45 dex for Hbeta and MgII, increasing to ~0.58 dex for CIV.Comment: 33 pages. Data products available at ftp://quasar.astro.illinois.edu/public/sdssrm/final_result

Programmable Ligand Detection System in Plants through a Synthetic Signal Transduction Pathway

There is an unmet need to monitor human and natural environments for substances that are intentionally or unintentionally introduced. A long-sought goal is to adapt plants to sense and respond to specific substances for use as environmental monitors. Computationally re-designed periplasmic binding proteins (PBPs) provide a means to design highly sensitive and specific ligand sensing capabilities in receptors. Input from these proteins can be linked to gene expression through histidine kinase (HK) mediated signaling. Components of HK signaling systems are evolutionarily conserved between bacteria and plants. We previously reported that in response to cytokinin-mediated HK activation in plants, the bacterial response regulator PhoB translocates to the nucleus and activates transcription. Also, we previously described a plant visual response system, the de-greening circuit, a threshold sensitive reporter system that produces a visual response which is remotely detectable and quantifiable.We describe assembly and function of a complete synthetic signal transduction pathway in plants that links input from computationally re-designed PBPs to a visual response. To sense extracellular ligands, we targeted the computational re-designed PBPs to the apoplast. PBPs bind the ligand and develop affinity for the extracellular domain of a chemotactic protein, Trg. We experimentally developed Trg fusions proteins, which bind the ligand-PBP complex, and activate intracellular PhoR, the HK cognate of PhoB. We then adapted Trg-PhoR fusions for function in plants showing that in the presence of an external ligand PhoB translocates to the nucleus and activates transcription. We linked this input to the de-greening circuit creating a detector plant.Our system is modular and PBPs can theoretically be designed to bind most small molecules. Hence our system, with improvements, may allow plants to serve as a simple and inexpensive means to monitor human surroundings for substances such as pollutants, explosives, or chemical agents

Mismatches in Scale Between Highly Mobile Marine Megafauna and Marine Protected Areas

Marine protected areas (MPAs), particularly large MPAs, are increasing in number and size around the globe in part to facilitate the conservation of marine megafauna under the assumption that large-scale MPAs better align with vagile life histories; however, this alignment is not well established. Using a global tracking dataset from 36 species across five taxa, chosen to reflect the span of home range size in highly mobile marine megafauna, we show most MPAs are too small to encompass complete home ranges of most species. Based on size alone, 40% of existing MPAs could encompass the home ranges of the smallest ranged species, while only \u3c 1% of existing MPAs could encompass those of the largest ranged species. Further, where home ranges and MPAs overlapped in real geographic space, MPAs encompassed \u3c 5% of core areas used by all species. Despite most home ranges of mobile marine megafauna being much larger than existing MPAs, we demonstrate how benefits from MPAs are still likely to accrue by targeting seasonal aggregations and critical life history stages and through other management techniques