149 research outputs found
Incorporating river morphological changes to flood risk assessment: uncertainties, methodology and application
Risk zonation maps are mostly derived from design floods which propagate through the study area. The respective delineation of inundated flood plains is a fundamental input for the flood risk assessment of exposed objects. It is implicitly assumed that the river morphology will not vary, even though it is obvious that the river bed elevation can quickly and drastically change during flood events. The objectives of this study were to integrate the river bed dynamics into the flood risk assessment procedure and to quantify associated uncertainties. The proposed concept was applied to the River Ill in the Western Austrian Alps. In total, 138 flood and associated sediment transport scenarios were considered, simulated and illustrated for the main river stem. The calculated morphological changes of the river bed at the moment of peak flow provided a basis to estimate the variability of possible water surface levels and inundation lines which should be incorporated into flood hazard assessment. In the context of vulnerability assessment an advanced methodological approach to assess flood risk based on damage probability functions is described
Electronic structure of cubic gallium nitride films grown on GaAs
The composition, surface structure, and electronic structure of zinc blendeâGaN films grown on GaAs (100) and (110) by plasmaâassisted molecular beam epitaxy were investigated by means of core and valence level photoemission. Angleâresolved photoelectron spectra (photon energy 30â110 eV) exhibited emission from the Ga 3d and N 2s levels, as well as a clear peak structure in the valence band region. These peaks were found to shift with photon energy, indicative of direct transitions between occupied and unoccupied GaN bands. By using a free electron final band, we are able to derive the course of the bands along the ÎâX and ÎâKâX directions of the Brillouin zone and to determine the energy of critical points at the X point. The relative energies of the Ga 3d and nitrogen 2s bands were also studied, and a small amount of dispersion was detected in the latter. The resulting band structure is discussed in relation to existing band structure calculations
Influence of the substrate lattice structure on the formation of Quantum Well States in thin In and Pb films on silicon
The substrate lattice structure may have a considerable influence on the
formation of quantum well states in a metal overlayer material. Here we study
three model systems using angle resolved photoemission and low energy electron
diffraction: indium films on Si(111) and indium and lead on Si(100). Data are
compared with theoretical predictions based on density functional theory. We
find that the interaction between the substrate and the overlayer strongly
influences the formation of quantum well states; indium layers only exhibit
well defined quantum well states when the layer relaxes from an initial
face-centered cubic to the bulk body-centered tetragonal lattice structure. For
Pb layers on Si(100) a change in growth orientation inhibits the formations of
quantum well states in films thicker than 2 ML.Comment: 16 pages, 7 figure
Introduction: diverging or converging dynamics? EU and US policies in North Africa - an introduction
According to a number of scholars of international relations, the transatlantic relationship is going through a very significant and possibly irreversible crisis. It is claimed that the different reactions of the United States and the European Union to both September 11th and the war in Iraq were the catalyst for a rift that had been deepening for some time, leading to competition between the two actors. The literature on the foreign policy of the US and the EU in the Middle East and North Africa also points to this rift in order to explain the seemingly contradictory policies that the two actors implement in the region, with the US being more forceful in its attempts to export democracy and in supporting Israel while the EU adopts a less confrontational attitude and is perceived to be more friendly to the Palestinians. This article, which introduces a special issue on the nature of US and EU foreign policies in North Africa, argues on the contrary that the transatlantic rift does not really exist. While there are certainly differences in discourse and policies, both the EU and the US share the same concerns and have similar strategic objectives in the region, leading the two actors towards cooperation and division of labour rather than confrontation
Electronic properties and Fermi surface of Ag(111) films deposited onto H-passivated Si(111)-(1x1) surfaces
Silver films were deposited at room temperature onto H-passivated Si(111)
surfaces. Their electronic properties have been analyzed by angle-resolved
photoelectron spectroscopy. Submonolayer films were semiconducting and the
onset of metallization was found at a Ag coverage of 0.6 monolayers. Two
surface states were observed at -point in the metallic films,
with binding energies of 0.1 and 0.35 eV. By measurements of photoelectron
angular distribution at the Fermi level in these films, a cross-sectional cut
of the Fermi surface was obtained. The Fermi vector determined along different
symmetry directions and the photoelectron lifetime of states at the Fermi level
are quite close to those expected for Ag single crystal. In spite of this
concordance, the Fermi surface reflects a sixfold symmetry rather than the
threefold symmetry of Ag single crystal. This behavior was attributed to the
fact that these Ag films are composed by two domains rotated 60.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Physical Review
Molecular changes in articular cartilage and subchondral bone in the rat anterior cruciate ligament transection and meniscectomized models of osteoarthritis
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Osteoarthritis (OA) is a debilitating, progressive joint disease.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Similar to the disease progression in humans, sequential events of early cartilage degradation, subchondral osteopenia followed by sclerosis, and late osteophyte formation were demonstrated in the anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT) or ACLT with partial medial meniscectomy (ACLT + MMx) rat OA models. We describe a reliable and consistent method to examine the time dependent changes in the gene expression profiles in articular cartilage and subchondral bone.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Local regulation of matrix degradation markers was demonstrated by a significant increase in mRNA levels of aggrecanase-1 and MMP-13 as early as the first week post-surgery, and expression remained elevated throughout the 10 week study. Immunohistochemistry confirmed MMP-13 expression in differentiated chondrocytes and synovial fibroblasts at week-2 and cells within osteophytes at week-10 in the surgically-modified-joints. Concomitant increases in chondrocyte differentiation markers, Col IIA and Sox 9, and vascular invasion markers, VEGF and CD31, peaked around week-2 to -4, and returned to Sham levels at later time points in both models. Indeed, VEGF-positive cells were found in the deep articular chondrocytes adjacent to subchondral bone. Osteoclastic bone resorption markers, cathepsin K and TRAP, were also elevated at week-2. Confirming bone resorption is an early local event in OA progression, cathepsin K positive osteoclasts were found invading the articular cartilage from the subchondral region at week 2. This was followed by late disease events, including subchondral sclerosis and osteophyte formation, as demonstrated by the upregulation of the osteoanabolic markers runx2 and osterix, toward week-4 to 6 post-surgery.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In summary, this study demonstrated the temporal and cohesive gene expression changes in articular cartilage and subchondral bone using known markers of OA progression. The findings here support genome-wide profiling efforts to elucidate the sequential and complex regulation of the disease.</p
The HEV Ventilator
HEV is a low-cost, versatile, high-quality ventilator, which has been
designed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ventilator is intended to be
used both in and out of hospital intensive care units, and for both invasive
and non-invasive ventilation. The hardware can be complemented with an external
turbine for use in regions where compressed air supplies are not reliably
available. The standard modes provided include PC-A/C(Pressure Assist
Control),PC-A/C-PRVC(Pressure Regulated Volume Control), PC-PSV (Pressure
Support Ventilation) and CPAP (Continuous Positive airway pressure). HEV is
designed to support remote training and post market surveillance via a web
interface and data logging to complement the standard touch screen operation,
making it suitable for a wide range of geographical deployment. The HEV design
places emphasis on the quality of the pressure curves and the reactivity of the
trigger, delivering a global performance which will be applicable to ventilator
needs beyond theCOVID-19 pandemic. This article describes the conceptual design
and presents the prototype units together with their performance evaluation.Comment: 34 pages, 18 figures, Extended version of the article submitted to
PNA
The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder: Performance of the Boolardy Engineering Test Array
We describe the performance of the Boolardy Engineering Test Array, the prototype for the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder telescope. Boolardy Engineering Test Array is the first aperture synthesis radio telescope to use phased array feed technology, giving it the ability to electronically form up to nine dual-polarisation beams. We report the methods developed for forming and measuring the beams, and the adaptations that have been made to the traditional calibration and imaging procedures in order to allow BETA to function as a multi-beam aperture synthesis telescope. We describe the commissioning of the instrument and present details of Boolardy Engineering Test Arrayâs performance: sensitivity, beam characteristics, polarimetric properties, and image quality. We summarise the astronomical science that it has produced and draw lessons from operating Boolardy Engineering Test Array that will be relevant to the commissioning and operation of the final Australian Square Kilometre Array Path telescope
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