Power law burst and inter-burst interval distributions in the solar wind: turbulence or dissipative SOC ?

We calculate for the first time the probability density functions (PDFs) P of burst energy e, duration T and inter-burst interval tau for a known turbulent system in nature. Bursts in the earth-sun component of the Poynting flux at 1 AU in the solar wind were measured using the MFI and SWE experiments on the NASA WIND spacecraft. We find P(e) and P(T) to be power laws, consistent with self-organised criticality (SOC). We find also a power law form for P(tau) that distinguishes this turbulent cascade from the exponential P(tau) of ideal SOC, but not from some other SOC-like sandpile models. We discuss the implications for the relation between SOC and turbulence.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure. Submitted to PRL on 25th February 2000. Revised version re-submitted on 9th May 2000. Second revised version submitted Phys. Rev. E on 26th June, 200

The Temperature Evolution of the Out-of-Plane Correlation Lengths of Charge-Stripe Ordered La(1.725)Sr(0.275)NiO(4)

The temperature dependence of the magnetic order of stripe-ordered La(1.725)Sr(0.275)NiO(4) is investigated by neutron diffraction. Upon cooling, the widths if the magnetic Bragg peaks are observed to broaden. The degree of broadening is found to be very different for l = odd-integer and l = even-integer magnetic peaks. We argue that the observed behaviour is a result of competition between magnetic and charge order.Comment: 3 figure

Project for the analysis of technology transfer Quarterly report, 1 Oct. - 31 Dec. 1969

Analysis of Tech Brief-Technical Support Package progra

Peatlands and the carbon cycle: from local processes to global implications - a synthesis

Peatlands cover only 3% of the Earth's land surface but boreal and subarctic peatlands store about 15-30% of the world's soil carbon ( C) as peat. Despite their potential for large positive feedbacks to the climate system through sequestration and emission of greenhouse gases, peatlands are not explicitly included in global climate models and therefore in predictions of future climate change. In April 2007 a symposium was held in Wageningen, the Netherlands, to advance our understanding of peatland C cycling. This paper synthesizes the main findings of the symposium, focusing on (i) small-scale processes, (ii) C fluxes at the landscape scale, and (iii) peatlands in the context of climate change. The main drivers controlling most are related to some aspects of hydrology. Despite high spatial and annual variability in Net Ecosystem Exchange ( NEE), the differences in cumulative annual NEE are more a function of broad scale geographic location and physical setting than internal factors, suggesting the existence of strong feedbacks. In contrast, trace gas emissions seem mainly controlled by local factors. Key uncertainties remain concerning the existence of perturbation thresholds, the relative strengths of the CO2 and CH4 feedback, the links among peatland surface climate, hydrology, ecosystem structure and function, and trace gas biogeochemistry as well as the similarity of process rates across peatland types and climatic zones. Progress on these research areas can only be realized by stronger co-operation between disciplines that address different spatial and temporal scales

Passive immunotherapy against Aβ in aged APP-transgenic mice reverses cognitive deficits and depletes parenchymal amyloid deposits in spite of increased vascular amyloid and microhemorrhage

BACKGROUND: Anti-Aβ immunotherapy in transgenic mice reduces both diffuse and compact amyloid deposits, improves memory function and clears early-stage phospho-tau aggregates. As most Alzheimer disease cases occur well past midlife, the current study examined adoptive transfer of anti-Aβ antibodies to 19- and 23-month old APP-transgenic mice. METHODS: We investigated the effects of weekly anti-Aβ antibody treatment on radial-arm water-maze performance, parenchymal and vascular amyloid loads, and the presence of microhemorrhage in the brain. 19-month-old mice were treated for 1, 2 or 3 months while 23-month-old mice were treated for 5 months. Only the 23-month-old mice were subject to radial-arm water-maze testing. RESULTS: After 3 months of weekly injections, this passive immunization protocol completely reversed learning and memory deficits in these mice, a benefit that was undiminished after 5 months of treatment. Dramatic reductions of diffuse Aβ immunostaining and parenchymal Congophilic amyloid deposits were observed after five months, indicating that even well-established amyloid deposits are susceptible to immunotherapy. However, cerebral amyloid angiopathy increased substantially with immunotherapy, and some deposits were associated with microhemorrhage. Reanalysis of results collected from an earlier time-course study demonstrated that these increases in vascular deposits were dependent on the duration of immunotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The cognitive benefits of passive immunotherapy persist in spite of the presence of vascular amyloid and small hemorrhages. These data suggest that clinical trials evaluating such treatments will require precautions to minimize potential adverse events associated with microhemorrhage

Dysregulation of Na+/K+ ATPase by amyloid in APP+PS1 transgenic mice

BACKGROUND: The pathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is comprised of extracellular amyloid plaques, intracellular tau tangles, dystrophic neurites and neurodegeneration. The mechanisms by which these various pathological features arise are under intense investigation. Here, expanding upon pilot gene expression studies, we have further analyzed the relationship between Na+/K+ ATPase and amyloid using APP+PS1 transgenic mice, a model that develops amyloid plaques and memory deficits in the absence of tangle formation and neuronal or synaptic loss. RESULTS: We report that in addition to decreased mRNA expression, there was decreased overall Na+/K+ ATPase enzyme activity in the amyloid-containing hippocampi of the APP+PS1 mice (although not in the amyloid-free cerebellum). In addition, dual immunolabeling revealed an absence of Na+/K+ ATPase staining in a zone surrounding congophilic plaques that was occupied by dystrophic neurites. We also demonstrate that cerebral Na+/K+ ATPase activity can be directly inhibited by high concentrations of soluble Aβ. CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest that the reductions in Na+/K+ ATPase activity in Alzheimer tissue may not be purely secondary to neuronal loss, but may results from direct effects of amyloid on this enzyme. This disruption of ion homeostasis and osmotic balance may interfere with normal electrotonic properties of dendrites, blocking intraneuronal signal processing, and contribute to neuritic dystrophia. These results suggest that therapies aimed at enhancing Na+/K+ ATPase activity in AD may improve symptoms and/or delay disease progression

Half-metallicity and efficient spin injection in AlN/GaN:Cr (0001) heterostructure

First-principles investigations of the structural, electronic and magnetic properties of Cr-doped AlN/GaN (0001) heterostructures reveal that Cr segregates into the GaN region, that these interfaces retain their important half-metallic character and thus yield efficient (100 %) spin polarized injection from a ferromagnetic GaN:Cr electrode through an AlN tunnel barrier - whose height and width can be controlled by adjusting the Al concentration in the graded bandgap engineered Al(1-x)Ga(x)N (0001) layers.Comment: submitted for publicatio

Casorati Determinant Form of Dark Soliton Solutions of the Discrete Nonlinear Schr\"odinger Equation

It is shown that the $N$-dark soliton solutions of the integrable discrete nonlinear Schr\"odinger (IDNLS) equation are given in terms of the Casorati determinant. The conditions for reduction, complex conjugacy and regularity for the Casorati determinant solution are also given explicitly. The relationship between the IDNLS and the relativistic Toda lattice is discussed.Comment: First version was uploaded in 23 Jun 2005. Published in Journal of the Physical Society of Japan in May, 200