Minimising Bloat Through Development of White Clover (\u3cem\u3eT. Repens\u3c/em\u3e) with High Levels of Condensed Tannins

White clover constitutes a low percentage of the overall sward content in Irish pastureland despite EU directives limiting the use of nitrogenous fertilizers. This is mainly due to the tendency of large amounts of white clover to cause bloat. Bloat is a potentially fatal build up of proteinaceous foam in the guts of ruminants. Some lesser cultivated legumes such as Lotus species contain condensed tannins (CT) that decrease the incidence of bloated animals. The project’s objective is to reduce the risk of bloat by generating white clover cultivars with high CT content. We are investigating whether expression of the ANTHOCYANIN REDUCTASE gene (BAN) in transgenic white clover and Medicago truncatula (model) plants leads to increased CT levels (Xie et al., 2003)

Blockchain vehicles for efficient Medical Record management

The lack of interoperability in Britain’s medical records systems precludes the realisation of benefits generated by increased spending elsewhere in healthcare. Growing concerns regarding the security of online medical data following breaches, and regarding regulations governing data ownership, mandate strict parameters in the development of efficient methods to administrate medical records. Furthermore, consideration must be placed on the rise of connected devices, which vastly increase the amount of data that can be collected in order to improve a patient’s long-term health outcomes. Increasing numbers of healthcare systems are developing Blockchain-based systems to manage medical data. A Blockchain is a decentralised, continuously growing online ledger of records, validated by members of the network. Traditionally used to manage cryptocurrency records, distributed ledger technology can be applied to various aspects of healthcare. In this manuscript, we focus on how Electronic Medical Records in particular can be managed by Blockchain, and how the introduction of this novel technology can create a more efficient and interoperable infrastructure to manage records that leads to improved healthcare outcomes, while maintaining patient data ownership and without compromising privacy or security of sensitive data

IR Monitoring of the Microquasar GRS 1915+105: Detection of Orbital and Superhump Signatures

We present the results of seven years of K-band monitoring of the low-mass X-ray binary GRS 1915+105. Positive correlations between the infrared flux and the X-ray flux and X-ray hardness are demonstrated. Analysis of the frequency spectrum shows that the orbital period of the system is $P_{orb}= 30.8 \pm 0.2$ days. The phase and amplitude of the orbital modulation suggests that the modulation is due to the heating of the face of the secondary star. We also report another periodic signature between 31.2 and 31.6 days, most likely due to a superhump resonance. From the superhump period we then obtain a range on the mass ratio of the system, $0.05 < q < 0.12$.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures; v2: minor change

Persistence in Cluster--Cluster Aggregation

Persistence is considered in diffusion--limited cluster--cluster aggregation, in one dimension and when the diffusion coefficient of a cluster depends on its size $s$ as $D(s) \sim s^\gamma$. The empty and filled site persistences are defined as the probabilities, that a site has been either empty or covered by a cluster all the time whereas the cluster persistence gives the probability of a cluster to remain intact. The filled site one is nonuniversal. The empty site and cluster persistences are found to be universal, as supported by analytical arguments and simulations. The empty site case decays algebraically with the exponent $\theta_E = 2/(2 - \gamma)$. The cluster persistence is related to the small $s$ behavior of the cluster size distribution and behaves also algebraically for $0 \le \gamma < 2$ while for $\gamma < 0$ the behavior is stretched exponential. In the scaling limit $t \to \infty$ and $K(t) \to \infty$ with $t/K(t)$ fixed the distribution of intervals of size $k$ between persistent regions scales as $n(k;t) = K^{-2} f(k/K)$, where $K(t) \sim t^\theta$ is the average interval size and $f(y) = e^{-y}$. For finite $t$ the scaling is poor for $k \ll t^z$, due to the insufficient separation of the two length scales: the distances between clusters, $t^z$, and that between persistent regions, $t^\theta$. For the size distribution of persistent regions the time and size dependences separate, the latter being independent of the diffusion exponent $\gamma$ but depending on the initial cluster size distribution.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures, RevTeX, submitted to Phys. Rev.

First Attempt at Spectroscopic Detection of Gravity Modes in a Long-Period Pulsating Subdwarf B Star -- PG 1627+017

In the first spectroscopic campaign for a PG 1716 variable (or long-period pulsating subdwarf B star), we succeeded in detecting velocity variations due to g-mode pulsations at a level of 1.0-1.5 km/s.The observations were obtained during 40 nights on 2-m class telescopes in Arizona, South Africa,and Australia. The target,PG1627+017, is one of the brightest and largest amplitude stars in its class.It is also the visible component of a post-common envelope binary.Our final radial velocity data set includes 84 hours of time-series spectroscopy over a time baseline of 53 days. Our derived radial velocity amplitude spectrum, after subtracting the orbital motion, shows three potential pulsational modes 3-4 sigma above the mean noise level, at 7201.0s,7014.6s and 7037.3s.Only one of the features is statistically likely to be real,but all three are tantalizingly close to, or a one day alias of, the three strongest periodicities found in the concurrent photometric campaign. We further attempted to detect pulsational variations in the Balmer line amplitudes. The single detected periodicity of 7209 s, although weak, is consistent with theoretical expectations as a function of wavelength.Furthermore, it allows us to rule out a degree index of l= 3 or l= 5 for that mode. Given the extreme weakness of g-mode pulsations in these stars,we conclude that anything beyond simply detecting their presence will require larger telescopes,higher efficiency spectral monitoring over longer time baselines,improved longitude coverage, and increased radial velocity precision.Comment: 39 pages, 9 figures, 4 tables, ApJ accepted. See postscript for full abtrac

Cluster persistence in one-dimensional diffusion--limited cluster--cluster aggregation

The persistence probability, $P_C(t)$, of a cluster to remain unaggregated is studied in cluster-cluster aggregation, when the diffusion coefficient of a cluster depends on its size $s$ as $D(s) \sim s^\gamma$. In the mean-field the problem maps to the survival of three annihilating random walkers with time-dependent noise correlations. For $\gamma \ge 0$ the motion of persistent clusters becomes asymptotically irrelevant and the mean-field theory provides a correct description. For $\gamma < 0$ the spatial fluctuations remain relevant and the persistence probability is overestimated by the random walk theory. The decay of persistence determines the small size tail of the cluster size distribution. For $0 < \gamma < 2$ the distribution is flat and, surprisingly, independent of $\gamma$.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, RevTeX4, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Mode Identification from Combination Frequency Amplitudes in ZZ Ceti Stars

The lightcurves of variable DA stars are usually multi-periodic and non-sinusoidal, so that their Fourier transforms show peaks at eigenfrequencies of the pulsation modes and at sums and differences of these frequencies. These combination frequencies provide extra information about the pulsations, both physical and geometrical, that is lost unless they are analyzed. Several theories provide a context for this analysis by predicting combination frequency amplitudes. In these theories, the combination frequencies arise from nonlinear mixing of oscillation modes in the outer layers of the white dwarf, so their analysis cannot yield direct information on the global structure of the star as eigenmodes provide. However, their sensitivity to mode geometry does make them a useful tool for identifying the spherical degree of the modes that mix to produce them. In this paper, we analyze data from eight hot, low-amplitude DAV white dwarfs and measure the amplitudes of combination frequencies present. By comparing these amplitudes to the predictions of the theory of Goldreich & Wu, we have verified that the theory is crudely consistent with the measurements. We have also investigated to what extent the combination frequencies can be used to measure the spherical degree (ell) of the modes that produce them. We find that modes with ell > 2 are easily identifiable as high ell based on their combination frequencies alone. Distinguishing between ell=1 and 2 is also possible using harmonics. These results will be useful for conducting seismological analysis of large ensembles of ZZ Ceti stars, such as those being discovered using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Because this method relies only on photometry at optical wavelengths, it can be applied to faint stars using 4 m class telescopes.Comment: 73 pages, 22 figures, accepted in the Ap

Nedd8 processing enzymes in Schizosaccharomyces pombe

BACKGROUND: Conjugation of the ubiquitin-like modifier Nedd8 to cullins is critical for the function of SCF-type ubiquitin ligases and thus facilitates ubiquitin conjugation and ultimately degradation of SCF substrates, including several cell cycle regulators. Like ubiquitin, Nedd8 is produced as a precursor that must first be processed before it becomes active. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae this is carried out exclusively by the enzyme Yuh1. RESULTS: Here we show that in the fission yeast, Schizosaccharomyces pombe, the Yuh1 orthologue, Uch1, is not the sole Nedd8 processing enzyme. Instead it appears that deubiquitylating enzymes can efficiently process the Nedd8 precursor in vivo. CONCLUSIONS: Several enzymes contribute to Nedd8 precursor processing including a number of deubiquitylating enzymes

Investing in Prevention or Paying for Recovery - Attitudes to Cyber Risk

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Broadly speaking an individual can invest time and effort to avoid becoming victim to a cyber attack and/or they can invest resource in recovering from any attack. We introduce a new game called the pre-vention and recovery game to study this trade-off. We report results from the experimental lab that allow us to categorize different approaches to risk taking. We show that many individuals appear relatively risk loving in that they invest in recovery rather than prevention. We find little difference in behavior between a gain and loss framing