The Broad-Line and Narrow-Line Regions of the LINER NGC 4579

We report the discovery of an extremely broad H-alpha emission line in the LINER nucleus of NGC 4579. From ground-based observations, the galaxy was previously known to contain a Type 1 nucleus with a broad H-alpha line of FWHM = 2300 km/s and FWZI ~ 5000 km/s. New spectra obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope and a 0.2 arcsec-wide slit reveal an H-alpha component with FWZI ~ 18,000 km/s. The line is not obviously double-peaked, but it does possess shoulders on the red and blue sides which resemble the H-alpha profiles of double-peaked emitters such as NGC 4203 and NGC 4450. This similarity suggests that the very broad H-alpha profile in NGC 4579 may represent emission from an accretion disk. Three such objects have been found recently in two HST programs which have targeted a total of 30 galaxies, demonstrating that double-peaked or extremely broad-line emission in LINERs must be much more common than would be inferred from ground-based surveys. The ratio of the narrow [S II] 6716, 6731 lines shows a pronounced gradient indicating a steep rise in density toward the nucleus. The direct detection of a density gradient within the inner arcsecond of the narrow-line region confirms expectations from previous observations of linewidth-critical density correlations in several LINERs.Comment: 8 pages, includes 3 figures. To appear in The Astrophysical Journa

Avocado seed moth, stenoma catenifer walsingham (lepidoptera: elachistidae) in Queretaro, Mexico

The avocado seed moth, Stenoma catenifer Walsingham, is recorded for the first time in the State of Queretaro, Mexico. Aspects about its habits and behavior are described

Laser-Beam-Patterned Topological Insulating States on Thin Semiconducting MoS2

Identifying the two-dimensional (2D) topological insulating (TI) state in new materials and its control are crucial aspects towards the development of voltage-controlled spintronic devices with low-power dissipation. Members of the 2D transition metal dichalcogenides have been recently predicted and experimentally reported as a new class of 2D TI materials, but in most cases edge conduction seems fragile and limited to the monolayer phase fabricated on specified substrates. Here, we realize the controlled patterning of the 1T′ phase embedded into the 2H phase of thin semiconducting molybdenum-disulfide by laser beam irradiation. Integer fractions of the quantum of resistance, the dependence on laser-irradiation conditions, magnetic field, and temperature, as well as the bulk gap observation by scanning tunneling spectroscopy and theoretical calculations indicate the presence of the quantum spin Hall phase in our patterned 1T′ phasesThe work carried out at Aoyama Gakuin University was partly supported by a grant for private universities and a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (JP15K13277) awarded by MEXT. The work at the University of Tokyo was partly supported by Grantin-Aid for Scientific Research (JP17K05492, JP18H04218 and JP19H00652). J. J. P. and S. P. acknowledge Spanish MINECO through Grant No. FIS2016-80434-P, the Fundación Ramón Areces, the María de Maeztu Program for Units of Excellence in R&D (MDM-2014- 0377), the Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid through NANOMAGCOST Program, and the European Union Seventh Framework Programme under Grant Agreement No. 604391 Graphene Flagship. S. P. acknowledges the computer resources and assistance provided by the Centro de Computación Científica of the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid. S. P. was also supported by the VILLUM FONDEN via the Center of Excellence for Dirac Materials (Grant No. 11744). D. M. and E. G.-M. gratefully acknowledge support from the Graphene Flagship Graphene Core2 Contract No. 785219. E. G.-M also acknowledges IJCI-2017-32297 from Spanish MINECO/AE

Monte Carlo simulation with time step quantification in terms of Langevin dynamics

For the description of thermally activated dynamics in systems of classical magnetic moments numerical methods are desirable. We consider a simple model for isolated magnetic particles in a uniform field with an oblique angle to the easy axis of the particles. For this model, a comparison of the Monte Carlo method with Langevin dynamics yields new insight in the interpretation of the Monte Carlo process, leading to the implementation of a new algorithm where the Monte Carlo step is time-quantified. The numeric results for the characteristic time of the magnetisation reversal are in excellent agreement with asymptotic solutions which itself are in agreement with the exact numerical results obtained from the Fokker-Planck equation for the Neel-Brown model.Comment: 5 pages, Revtex, 4 Figures include

OPserver: interactive online-computations of opacities and radiative accelerations

Codes to compute mean opacities and radiative accelerations for arbitrary chemical mixtures using the Opacity Project recently revised data have been restructured in a client--server architecture and transcribed as a subroutine library. This implementation increases efficiency in stellar modelling where element stratification due to diffusion processes is depth dependent, and thus requires repeated fast opacity reestimates. Three user modes are provided to fit different computing environments, namely a web browser, a local workstation and a distributed grid.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur

Allelic diversity and patterns of selection at the major histocompatibility complex class I and II loci in a threatened shorebird, the Snowy Plover (Charadrius nivosus)

Background: Understanding the structure and variability of adaptive loci such as the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes is a primary research goal for evolutionary and conservation genetics. Typically, classical MHC genes show high polymorphism and are under strong balancing selection, as their products trigger the adaptive immune response in vertebrates. Here, we assess the allelic diversity and patterns of selection for MHC class I and class II loci in a threatened shorebird with highly flexible mating and parental care behaviour, the Snowy Plover (Charadrius nivosus) across its broad geographic range. Results: We determined the allelic and nucleotide diversity for MHC class I and class II genes using samples of 250 individuals from eight breeding population of Snowy Plovers. We found 40 alleles at MHC class I and six alleles at MHC class II, with individuals carrying two to seven different alleles (mean 3.70) at MHC class I and up to two alleles (mean 1.45) at MHC class II. Diversity was higher in the peptide-binding region, which suggests balancing selection. The MHC class I locus showed stronger signatures of both positive and negative selection than the MHC class II locus. Most alleles were present in more than one population. If present, private alleles generally occurred at very low frequencies in each population, except for the private alleles of MHC class I in one island population (Puerto Rico, lineage tenuirostris). Conclusion: Snowy Plovers exhibited an intermediate level of diversity at the MHC, similar to that reported in other Charadriiformes. The differences found in the patterns of selection between the class I and II loci are consistent with the hypothesis that different mechanisms shape the sequence evolution of MHC class I and class II genes. The rarity of private alleles across populations is consistent with high natal and breeding dispersal and the low genetic structure previously observed at neutral genetic markers in this species