Cometary particulate analyzer

A concept for determining the relative abundance of elements contained in cometary particulates was evaluated. The technique utilizes a short, high intensity burst of laser radiation to vaporize and ionize collected particulate material. Ions extracted from this laser produced plasma are analyzed in a time of flight mass spectrometer to yield an atomic mass spectrum representative of the relative abundance of elements in the particulates. Critical aspects of the development of this system are determining the ionization efficiencies for various atomic species and achieving adequate mass resolution. A technique called energy-time focus, which utilizes static electric fields to alter the length of the ion flight path in proportion to the ion initial energy, was used which results in a corresponding compression to the range of ion flight times which effectively improves the inherent resolution. Sufficient data were acquired to develop preliminary specifications for a flight experiment

Raising and lowering operators, factorization and differential/difference operators of hypergeometric type

Starting from Rodrigues formula we present a general construction of raising and lowering operators for orthogonal polynomials of continuous and discrete variable on uniform lattice. In order to have these operators mutually adjoint we introduce orthonormal functions with respect to the scalar product of unit weight. Using the Infeld-Hull factorization method, we generate from the raising and lowering operators the second order self-adjoint differential/difference operator of hypergeometric type.Comment: LaTeX, 24 pages, iopart style (late submission

Quantum Manifestation of Elastic Constants in Nanostructures

Generally, there are two distinct effects in modifying the properties of low-dimensional nanostructures: surface effect (SS) due to increased surface-volume ratio and quantum size effect (QSE) due to quantum confinement in reduced dimension. The SS has been widely shown to affect the elastic constants and mechanical properties of nanostructures. Here, using Pb nanofilm and graphene nanoribbon as model systems, we demonstrate the QSE on the elastic constants of nanostructures by first-principles calculations. We show that generally QSE is dominant in affecting the elastic constants of metallic nanostructures while SS is more pronounced in semiconductor and insulator nanostructures. Our findings have broad implications in quantum aspects of nanomechanics

A NuSTAR observation of disk reflection from close to the neutron star in 4U 1608-52

Studying the reflection of X-rays off the inner edge of the accretion disk in a neutron star low-mass X-ray binary, allows us to investigate the accretion geometry and to constrain the radius of the neutron star. We report on a NuSTAR observation of 4U 1608-52 obtained during a faint outburst in 2014 when the neutron star, which has a known spin frequency of 620 Hz, was accreting at ~1-2% of the Eddington limit. The 3-79 keV continuum emission was dominated by a Gamma~2 power law, with a ~1-2% contribution from a kTbb~0.3-0.6 keV black body component. The high-quality NuSTAR spectrum reveals the hallmarks of disk reflection; a broad iron line peaking near 7~keV and a Compton back-scattering hump around ~20-30 keV. Modeling the disk reflection spectrum points to a binary inclination of i~30-40 degrees and a small `coronal' height of h<8.5 GM/c2. Furthermore, our spectral analysis suggests that the inner disk radius extended to Rin~7-10 GM/c2, close to the innermost stable circular obit. This constrains the neutron star radius to R<21 km and the redshift from the stellar surface to z>0.12, for a mass of M=1.5 Msun and a spin parameter of a=0.29.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, 1 table, MNRAS Letters in pres

An X-ray-UV correlation in Cen X-4 during quiescence

Quiescent emission from the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary Cen X-4 is seen to be variable on timescales from hundreds of seconds to years, suggesting that at least in this object, low-level accretion is important during quiescence. Here we present results from recent XMM-Newton and Swift observations of Cen X-4, where the X-ray flux (0.5 - 10 keV) varies by a factor of 6.5 between the brightest and faintest states. We find a positive correlation between the X-ray flux and the simultaneous near-UV flux, where as there is no significant correlation between the X-ray and simultaneous optical (V, B) fluxes. This suggests that while the X-ray and UV emitting regions are somehow linked, the optical region originates elsewhere. Comparing the luminosities, it is plausible that the UV emission originates due to reprocessing of the X-ray flux by the accretion disk, with the hot inner region of the disk being a possible location for the UV emitting region. The optical emission, however, could be dominated by the donor star. The X-ray/UV correlation does not favour the accretion stream-impact point as the source of the UV emission.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Automated Benchmarking of Incremental SAT and QBF Solvers

Incremental SAT and QBF solving potentially yields improvements when sequences of related formulas are solved. An incremental application is usually tailored towards some specific solver and decomposes a problem into incremental solver calls. This hinders the independent comparison of different solvers, particularly when the application program is not available. As a remedy, we present an approach to automated benchmarking of incremental SAT and QBF solvers. Given a collection of formulas in (Q)DIMACS format generated incrementally by an application program, our approach automatically translates the formulas into instructions to import and solve a formula by an incremental SAT/QBF solver. The result of the translation is a program which replays the incremental solver calls and thus allows to evaluate incremental solvers independently from the application program. We illustrate our approach by different hardware verification problems for SAT and QBF solvers.Comment: camera-ready version (8 pages + 2 pages appendix), to appear in the proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Logic for Programming, Artificial Intelligence and Reasoning (LPAR), LNCS, Springer, 201

Daily, multiwavelength Swift monitoring of the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary Cen X-4: evidence for accretion and reprocessing during quiescence

We conducted the first long-term (60 days), multiwavelength (optical, ultraviolet, and X-ray) simultaneous monitoring of Cen X-4 with daily Swift observations from June to August 2012, with the goal of understanding variability in the low mass X-ray binary Cen X-4 during quiescence. We found Cen X-4 to be highly variable in all energy bands on timescales from days to months, with the strongest quiescent variability a factor of 22 drop in the X-ray count rate in only 4 days. The X-ray, UV and optical (V band) emission are correlated on timescales down to less than 110 s. The shape of the correlation is a power law with index gamma about 0.2-0.6. The X-ray spectrum is well fitted by a hydrogen NS atmosphere (kT=59-80 eV) and a power law (with spectral index Gamma=1.4-2.0), with the spectral shape remaining constant as the flux varies. Both components vary in tandem, with each responsible for about 50% of the total X-ray flux, implying that they are physically linked. We conclude that the X-rays are likely generated by matter accreting down to the NS surface. Moreover, based on the short timescale of the correlation, we also unambiguously demonstrate that the UV emission can not be due to either thermal emission from the stream impact point, or a standard optically thick, geometrically thin disc. The spectral energy distribution shows a small UV emitting region, too hot to arise from the accretion disk, that we identified as a hot spot on the companion star. Therefore, the UV emission is most likely produced by reprocessing from the companion star, indeed the vertical size of the disc is small and can only reprocess a marginal fraction of the X-ray emission. We also found the accretion disc in quiescence to likely be UV faint, with a minimal contribution to the whole UV flux.Comment: 19 pages, 6 figures, 4 table

Reciprocal Recommender System for Learners in Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

Massive open online courses (MOOC) describe platforms where users with completely different backgrounds subscribe to various courses on offer. MOOC forums and discussion boards offer learners a medium to communicate with each other and maximize their learning outcomes. However, oftentimes learners are hesitant to approach each other for different reasons (being shy, don't know the right match, etc.). In this paper, we propose a reciprocal recommender system which matches learners who are mutually interested in, and likely to communicate with each other based on their profile attributes like age, location, gender, qualification, interests, etc. We test our algorithm on data sampled using the publicly available MITx-Harvardx dataset and demonstrate that both attribute importance and reciprocity play an important role in forming the final recommendation list of learners. Our approach provides promising results for such a system to be implemented within an actual MOOC.Comment: 10 pages, accepted as full paper @ ICWL 201

Sir Charles Lyell's travels in New Brunswick, Canada, in 1852

Abstract Geologist Sir Charles Lyell made a brief visit to New Brunswick, Canada, during his 1852 visit to North America. Lyell traveled to Albert Mines during the peak of the albertite controversy, visited the Reversing Falls and graphite mines in Saint John, and took a steamboat trip up the Saint John River to Fredericton where he visited his friend, Lieutenant Governor Sir Edmund Head. Lyell’s friendship with Head likely had a long-term effect on the development of geological sciences in New Brunswick and Canada. New Brunswick newspapers followed Charles Lyell’s travels through the province and expressed hope that Lyell’s observations on the geology of New Brunswick would cast a favourable opinion on the province’s geological wealth and foster economic development. Résumé Le géologue Sir Charles Lyell a effectué un bref arrêt au Nouveau-Brunswick, Canada, au cours de sa visite de 1852 en Amérique du Nord. Lyell s’est rendu à Albert Mines au moment culminant de la controverse au sujet de l’albertite; il a visité les chutes réversibles et les mines de graphite de Saint-Jean; et il a remonté en vapeur le fleuve Saint-Jean jusqu’à Fredericton, où il a rendu visite à son ami, le lieutenant-gouverneur Sir Edmund Head. L’amitié de Lyell et Head a probablement eu un effet de longue durée sur l’essor des sciences de la terre au Nouveau-Brunswick et au Canada. Les journaux du Nouveau-Brunswick ont suivi les déplacements de Charles Lyell à l’intérieur de la province; ils ont exprimé l’espoir que les observations de Lyell sur la géologie du Nouveau-Brunswick engendreraient une opinion favorable sur la richesse géologique de la province et qu’elles favoriseraient le développement économique

Gesner’s Museum of Natural History, An Early Canadian Geological Collection

In 1842, on the fifth of April, Abraham Gesner opened the doors of his museum in Saint John, New Brunswick to the public. The museum displayed part of his collection of almost 4,000 specimens. His published catalogue included more than 1,200 rocks, minerals and fossils along with a smaller number of invertebrate and vertebrate animals and artefacts. It survives today as one of Canada’s oldest geological collections. This national treasure documents the earliest days of the study of the geological sciences in Canada including specimens from Gesner’s surveys of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Although Gesner’s collection moved through three institutions, it has remained partly intact and is accompanied by a catalogue of the museum’s contents. SOMMAIRE Le 5 avril 1842, Abraham Gesner ouvrait au public son musée à Saint-Jean, Nouveau-Brunswick. Le musée exposait alors une partie de sa collection de près de 4 000 spécimens. Le catalogue qu'il a publié alors comprenait plus de 1 200 roches, minéraux et fossiles ainsi qu'un nombre moindre de spécimens de vertébrés, d'invertébrés et d'artéfacts. Il a survécu jusqu'à nos jours et constitue l'une des plus anciennes collections géologiques au Canada. Ce trésor canadien qui témoigne des premières études scientifiques de la géologie au Canada comprend des spécimens tirés de levés effectués par Gesner au Nouveau-Brunswick et en Nouvelle-Écosse. Bien que la collection de Gesner ait été déplacée dans trois institutions, elle demeure encore partiellement intacte et comporte un catalogue de ses spécimens