Radio Band Observations of Blazar Variability

The properties of blazar variability in the radio band are studied using the unique combination of temporal resolution from single dish monitoring and spatial resolution from VLBA imaging; such measurements, now available in all four Stokes parameters, together with theoretical simulations, identify the origin of radio band variability and probe the characteristics of the radio jet where the broadband blazar emission originates. Outbursts in total flux density and linear polarization in the optical-to-radio bands are attributed to shocks propagating within the jet spine, in part based on limited modeling invoking transverse shocks; new radiative transfer simulations allowing for shocks at arbitrary angle to the flow direction confirm this picture by reproducing the observed centimeter-band variations observed more generally, and are of current interest since these shocks may play a role in the gamma-ray flaring detected by Fermi. Recent UMRAO multifrequency Stokes V studies of bright blazars identify the spectral variability properties of circular polarization for the first time and demonstrate that polarity flips are relatively common. All-Stokes data are consistent with the production of circular polarization by linear-to-circular mode conversion in a region that is at least partially self-absorbed. Detailed analysis of single-epoch, multifrequency, all-Stokes VLBA observations of 3C 279 support this physical picture and are best explained by emission from an electron-proton plasma.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, uses, jaa.sty. Invited talk presented at the conference Multifrequency Variability of Blazars, Guangzhou, China, September 22-24, 2010. To appear in J. Astrophys. Ast

Semidefinite Approximations of the Matrix Logarithm

© 2018, SFoCM. The matrix logarithm, when applied to Hermitian positive definite matrices, is concave with respect to the positive semidefinite order. This operator concavity property leads to numerous concavity and convexity results for other matrix functions, many of which are of importance in quantum information theory. In this paper we show how to approximate the matrix logarithm with functions that preserve operator concavity and can be described using the feasible regions of semidefinite optimization problems of fairly small size. Such approximations allow us to use off-the-shelf semidefinite optimization solvers for convex optimization problems involving the matrix logarithm and related functions, such as the quantum relative entropy. The basic ingredients of our approach apply, beyond the matrix logarithm, to functions that are operator concave and operator monotone. As such, we introduce strategies for constructing semidefinite approximations that we expect will be useful, more generally, for studying the approximation power of functions with small semidefinite representations

Hyperfine Structure Constants for Eu Isotopes: Is The Empirical Formula of HFS Anomaly Universal ?

We calculate the hyperfine structure constant for the Eu isotopes with shell model wave functions. The calculated results are compared with those predicted by the Moskowitz-Lombardi (M-L) empirical formula. It turns out that the two approaches give the very different behaviors of the hfs constants in the isotope dependence. This should be easily measured by experiment, which may lead to the universality check of the M-L formula.Comment: 18 pages, Latex, two figure

Signal transducer and activator of transcription-1 localizes to the mitochondria and modulates mitophagy

The signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) proteins are latent transcription factors that have been shown to be involved in cell proliferation, development, apoptosis, and autophagy. STAT proteins undergo activation by phosphorylation at tyrosine 701 and serine 727 where they translocate to the nucleus to regulate gene expression. STAT1 has been shown to be involved in promoting apoptotic cell death in response to cardiac ischemia/reperfusion and has recently been shown by our laboratory to be involved in negatively regulating autophagy. These processes are thought to promote cell death and restrict cell survival leading to the generation of an infarct. Here we present data that shows STAT1 localizes to the mitochondria and co-immunoprecipitates with LC3. Furthermore, electron microscopy studies also reveal mitochondria from ex vivo I/R treated hearts of STAT1KO mice contained within a double membrane autophagosome indicating that STAT1 may be involved in negatively regulating mitophagy. This is the first description of STAT1 being localized to the mitochondria and also having a role in mitophagy

A review on the potential of aquaculture development in Kenya for poverty alleviation and food security

On the global scene, aquaculture accounts for about 50% of total fish production amounting to about 80 million metric tonnes. It is estimated that another 40 million metric tonnes of aquatic food will be required by the year 2030. Today, fish farming represents the fastest growing sector of food production. Moreover, aquaculture has a major role to play in the achievement of the first three Sustainable Development Goals on poverty, hunger, food security and healthy lives of people from developing countries. This is significant especially in the developing countries where poverty and malnutrition are a reality. However, in sub-Saharan Africa, per capita fish production from aquaculture is still below world production levels. In Kenya, inland capture fisheries accounted for over 90% of the total national fish production while marine capture fisheries contributed about 5% in the last decade. Kenya has one of the fastest growing human populations in the world indicating that the demand for fish and fish products will continue to rise, increasing the gap between supply and demand. Currently, aquaculture only produces about 24,000 metric tonnes of fish annually compared to an annual average of 178,000 metric tonnes from natural fisheries. The dominant cultured species include: Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), African catfish (Clarias gariepinus), rainbow trout (Onchorhynchus mykis) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio). Culture systems commonly used are static ponds and raceway systems. In addition, the country is endowed with numerous aquaculture resources ranging from favorable climatic conditions to vast water resources. In the year 2009, the Kenyan government took steps to enhance aquaculture production through an Economic Stimulus Programme. This has increased the contribution of aquaculture in Kenya to 11.0% of the total fish production. This paper discusses the growth and development of aquaculture in Kenya during the last 50 years and the impact of government support to the sub-sector. The paper also proposes strategies for ensuring that Kenya becomes one of the leading producers of fish from aquaculture in Africa.Key words: Fish production, capture fisheries, culture systems, Economic Stimulus Programme, aquacultur

An approach to computing downward closures

The downward closure of a word language is the set of all (not necessarily contiguous) subwords of its members. It is well-known that the downward closure of any language is regular. While the downward closure appears to be a powerful abstraction, algorithms for computing a finite automaton for the downward closure of a given language have been established only for few language classes. This work presents a simple general method for computing downward closures. For language classes that are closed under rational transductions, it is shown that the computation of downward closures can be reduced to checking a certain unboundedness property. This result is used to prove that downward closures are computable for (i) every language class with effectively semilinear Parikh images that are closed under rational transductions, (ii) matrix languages, and (iii) indexed languages (equivalently, languages accepted by higher-order pushdown automata of order 2).Comment: Full version of contribution to ICALP 2015. Comments welcom

Evaluation of a Commercial Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) for the Determination of the Neurotoxin BMAA in Surface Waters

The neurotoxin ß-N-methylamino-L-alanine (BMAA) is suspected to play a role in Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Because BMAA seems to be produced by cyanobacteria, surface waters are screened for BMAA. However, reliable analysis of BMAA requires specialized and expensive equipment. In 2012, a commercial enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for determination of BMAA in surface waters was released. This kit could enable fast and relatively cheap screening of surface waters for BMAA. The objective of this study was to determine whether the BMAA ELISA kit was suitable for the determination of BMAA concentrations in surface waters. We hypothesised that the recovery of spiked samples was close to 100% and that the results of unspiked sample analysis were comparable between ELISA and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis. However, we found that recovery was higher than 100% in most spiked samples, highest determined recovery was over 400%. Furthermore, the ELISA gave a positive signal for nearly each tested sample while no BMAA could be detected by LC-MS/MS. We therefore conclude that in its current state, the kit is not suitable for screening surface waters for BMAA

Pure spinor computation towards open string three-loop

Using the recent results in the pure spinor formulation, we lay out a ground-work towards the full momentum space amplitudes of open superstrings at three-loop. After briefly reviewing the one-loop amplitude, we directly work out the two-loop and reproduce the result that was obtained by a symmetry argument. For the three-loop, first we use the two-loop regulator as a warm-up exercise. The result vanishes. We then employ the regulator that has been recently proposed by Aisaka and Berkovits (AB). It is noted that the terms in higher power in $\frac{1}{\lambda\bar{\lambda}}$ that render the two-loop regulator disqualified for the three-loop do not contribute. This with a few other indications suggests a possibility that the AB regulator might also lead to a vanishing result. Nevertheless, we argue that it is possible to acquire the three-loop amplitude, and present a result that we anticipate to be the three-loop amplitude.Comment: 41 pages, latex, cosmetic change

An oesophageal pulse oximetry system utilising a fibre-optic probe

A dual-wavelength fibre-optic pulse oximetry system is described for the purposes of estimating oxygen saturation (SpO2) from the oesophagus. A probe containing miniature right-angled glass prisms was used to record photoplethysmographic (PPG) signals from the oesophageal wall. Signals were recorded successfully in 19 of 20 patients, demonstrating that PPG signals could be reliably obtained from an internal vascularised tissue site such as the oesophageal epithelium. The value of the mean oxygen saturation recorded from the oesophagus was 94.0 ± 4.0%. These results demonstrate that SpO2 may be estimated in the oesophagus using a fibre-optic probe