50 research outputs found
Recommended from our members
A survey of macromycete diversity at Los Alamos National Laboratory, Bandelier National Monument, and Los Alamos County; A preliminary report
The authors have completed a 5-year survey (1991--1995) of macromycetes found in Los Alamos County, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and Bandelier National Monument. The authors have compiled a database of 1,048 collections, their characteristics, and identifications. The database represents 123 (98%) genera and 175 (73%) species reliably identified. Issues of habitat loss, species extinction, and ecological relationships are addressed, and comparisons with other surveys are made. With this baseline information and modeling of this baseline data, one can begin to understand more about the fungal flora of the area
Primordial Nucleosynthesis for the New Cosmology: Determining Uncertainties and Examining Concordance
Big bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) and the cosmic microwave background (CMB) have
a long history together in the standard cosmology. The general concordance
between the predicted and observed light element abundances provides a direct
probe of the universal baryon density. Recent CMB anisotropy measurements,
particularly the observations performed by the WMAP satellite, examine this
concordance by independently measuring the cosmic baryon density. Key to this
test of concordance is a quantitative understanding of the uncertainties in the
BBN light element abundance predictions. These uncertainties are dominated by
systematic errors in nuclear cross sections. We critically analyze the cross
section data, producing representations that describe this data and its
uncertainties, taking into account the correlations among data, and explicitly
treating the systematic errors between data sets. Using these updated nuclear
inputs, we compute the new BBN abundance predictions, and quantitatively
examine their concordance with observations. Depending on what deuterium
observations are adopted, one gets the following constraints on the baryon
density: OmegaBh^2=0.0229\pm0.0013 or OmegaBh^2 = 0.0216^{+0.0020}_{-0.0021} at
68% confidence, fixing N_{\nu,eff}=3.0. Concerns over systematics in helium and
lithium observations limit the confidence constraints based on this data
provide. With new nuclear cross section data, light element abundance
observations and the ever increasing resolution of the CMB anisotropy, tighter
constraints can be placed on nuclear and particle astrophysics. ABRIDGEDComment: 54 pages, 20 figures, 5 tables v2: reflects PRD version minor changes
to text and reference
Recommended from our members
Low-energy nuclear fusion data and their relation to magnetic and laser fusion
The accuracy of the basic fusion data for the T(d,n)/sup 4/He, /sup 3/He(d,p)/sup 4/He, T(t,2n)/sup 4/He, D(d,n)/sup 3/He, and D(d,p)T reactions was investigated in the 10- to 100-keV bombarding energy region, and the effects of inaccuracies on the design of fusion reactors were assessed. The data base for these reactions (particularly, the most critical T(d,n)/sup 4/He reaction) rests on 25-year-old experiments the accuracy (often assumed to be +- 5%) of which has rarely been questioned: yet, in all except the d + d reactions, there are significant differences among data sets. The errors in the basic data sets may be considerably larger than previously expected, and the effect on design calculations should be significant. Much of the trouble apparently lies in the accuracy of the energy measurements, which are difficult at low energies. Systematic errors of up to 50% are possible in the reactivity values of the present T(d,n)/sup 4/He data base. The errors in the reactivity will propagate proportionately into the errors in fusion probabilities in reactor calculations. /sup 3/He(d,p)/sup 4/He reaction cross sections could be in error by as much as 50% in the low-energy region. The D(d,n)/sup 3/He and D(d,p)T cross sections appear to be well known and consistent. The T(t,2n)/sup 4/He cross section is poorly known and may be subject to large systematic errors. Improved absolute measurements for all the reactions in the low bombarding energy region (10 to 100 keV) are needed, but until they are done, the data sets should be left as they are (except for T(t,2n)/sup 4/He data, which could be lowered by about 50%). The apparent uncertainties of these data sets should be kept in mind. 14 figures
Recommended from our members
Hydrogen fusion-energy reactions
At the Los Alamos Ion Beam Facility we have installed a low-energy fusion cross section (LEFCS) apparatus specifically designed to measure cross sections to high accuracy for the various fusion-energy reactions among the hydrogen isotopes in the bombarding-energy range 10 to 120 keV. To date, we have completed and published our study of the D(t,..cap alpha..)n reaction, have finished data-taking for the D(d,p)T and D(d,/sup 3/He)n reactions, and have nearly finished data-taking for the T(t,..cap alpha..)nn reaction. Here we describe the LEFCS facility, present final and preliminary results for these reactions, and compare them with R-matrix calculations. 16 refs., 10 figs