349 research outputs found
Ecological niche and potential geographic distribution of the invasive fruit fly *Bactrocera invadens* (Diptera, Tephritidae)
Two correlative approaches to the challenge of ecological niche modeling (genetic algorithm, maximum entropy) were used to estimate the potential global distribution of the invasive fruit fly, Bactrocera invadens, based on associations between known occurrence records and a set of environmental predictor variables. The two models yielded similar estimates, largely corresponding to Equatorial climate classes with high levels of precipitation. The maximum entropy approach was somewhat more conservative in its evaluation of suitability, depending on thresholds for presence/absence that are selected, largely excluding areas with distinct dry seasons; the genetic algorithm models, in contrast, indicate that climate class as partly suitable. Predictive tests based on independent distributional data indicate that model predictions are quite robust. Field observations in Benin and Tanzania confirm relationships between seasonal occurrences of this species and humidity and temperature
The carpase-like sites of proteasomes: substrate specificity, new inhibitors and substrates, and allosteric interactions with the trypsin-like sites
Bio-Organische synthes
The Distributional Impact of Statewide Property Tax Relief: the Michigan Case
This study uses data from a random survey of 2001 Michigan households to analyze the extent to which the Michigan ctreuit-breaker has been successful in reducing the income regressivity of the property tax and in changing relative property tax burdens. Because of its relatively extensive coverage, including renters as well as homeowners and the nonaged as well as the aged, the circuit-breaker has yielded a more equal distribution of income within Michigan. Its potential to change the distribution of income depends on the particular formula utilized, but redistributional effects have thus far been lamited because program participation has been positively correlated with income. To the extent that reductions in the price ofpublic services created by the circuit-breaker are perceived by households, the biggest stimulus appears to be in high property tax/high-income countiesPeer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68848/2/10.1177_109114218301100201.pd
The Fueling and Evolution of AGN: Internal and External Triggers
In this chapter, I review the fueling and evolution of active galactic nuclei
(AGN) under the influence of internal and external triggers, namely intrinsic
properties of host galaxies (morphological or Hubble type, color, presence of
bars and other non-axisymmetric features, etc) and external factors such as
environment and interactions. The most daunting challenge in fueling AGN is
arguably the angular momentum problem as even matter located at a radius of a
few hundred pc must lose more than 99.99 % of its specific angular momentum
before it is fit for consumption by a BH. I review mass accretion rates,
angular momentum requirements, the effectiveness of different fueling
mechanisms, and the growth and mass density of black BHs at different epochs. I
discuss connections between the nuclear and larger-scale properties of AGN,
both locally and at intermediate redshifts, outlining some recent results from
the GEMS and GOODS HST surveys.Comment: Invited Review Chapter to appear in LNP Volume on "AGN Physics on All
Scales", Chapter 6, in press. 40 pages, 12 figures. Typo in Eq 5 correcte
Horizontal Branch Stars: The Interplay between Observations and Theory, and Insights into the Formation of the Galaxy
We review HB stars in a broad astrophysical context, including both variable
and non-variable stars. A reassessment of the Oosterhoff dichotomy is
presented, which provides unprecedented detail regarding its origin and
systematics. We show that the Oosterhoff dichotomy and the distribution of
globular clusters (GCs) in the HB morphology-metallicity plane both exclude,
with high statistical significance, the possibility that the Galactic halo may
have formed from the accretion of dwarf galaxies resembling present-day Milky
Way satellites such as Fornax, Sagittarius, and the LMC. A rediscussion of the
second-parameter problem is presented. A technique is proposed to estimate the
HB types of extragalactic GCs on the basis of integrated far-UV photometry. The
relationship between the absolute V magnitude of the HB at the RR Lyrae level
and metallicity, as obtained on the basis of trigonometric parallax
measurements for the star RR Lyrae, is also revisited, giving a distance
modulus to the LMC of (m-M)_0 = 18.44+/-0.11. RR Lyrae period change rates are
studied. Finally, the conductive opacities used in evolutionary calculations of
low-mass stars are investigated. [ABRIDGED]Comment: 56 pages, 22 figures. Invited review, to appear in Astrophysics and
Space Scienc
Search for Single Top Production at LEP
Single top production in e+e- annihilations is searched for in data collected
by the L3 detector at centre-of-mass energies from 189 to 209 GeV,
corresponding to a total integrated luminosity of 634 pb-1. Investigating
hadronic and semileptonic top decays, no evidence of single top production at
LEP is obtained and upper limits on the single top cross section as a function
of the centre-of-mass energy are derived. Limits on possible anomalous
couplings, as well as on the scale of contact interactions responsible for
single top production are determined
Flavour Independent Search for Neutral Higgs Bosons at LEP
A flavour independent search for the CP-even and CP-odd neutral Higgs bosons
h and A is performed in 624/pb of data collected with the L3 detector at LEP at
centre-of-mass energies between 189 and 209GeV. Higgs boson production through
the e^+e^- -> Z h and the e^+e^- ->h A processes is considered and decays of
the Higgs bosons into hadrons are studied. No significant signal is observed
and 95% confidence level limits on the hZZ and hAZ couplings are derived as a
function of the Higgs boson masses. Assuming the Standard Model cross section
for the Higgs-strahlung process and a 100% branching fraction into hadrons, a
95% confidence level lower limit on the mass of the Higgs boson is set at
110.3GeV
Measurement of the Probability of Gluon Splitting into Charmed Quarks in Hadronic Z Decays
We have measured the probability, n(g->cc~), of a gluon splitting into a
charm-quark pair using 1.7 million hadronic Z decays collected by the L3
detector. Two independent methods have been applied to events with a three-jet
topology. One method relies on tagging charmed hadrons by identifying a lepton
in the lowest energy jet. The other method uses a neural network based on
global event shape parameters. Combining both methods, we measure n(g->cc~)=
[2.45 +/- 0.29 +/- 0.53]%
Measurement of D* Meson Cross Sections at HERA and Determination of the Gluon Density in the Proton using NLO QCD
With the H1 detector at the ep collider HERA, D* meson production cross
sections have been measured in deep inelastic scattering with four-momentum
transfers Q^2>2 GeV2 and in photoproduction at energies around W(gamma p)~ 88
GeV and 194 GeV. Next-to-Leading Order QCD calculations are found to describe
the differential cross sections within theoretical and experimental
uncertainties. Using these calculations, the NLO gluon momentum distribution in
the proton, x_g g(x_g), has been extracted in the momentum fraction range
7.5x10^{-4}< x_g <4x10^{-2} at average scales mu^2 =25 to 50 GeV2. The gluon
momentum fraction x_g has been obtained from the measured kinematics of the
scattered electron and the D* meson in the final state. The results compare
well with the gluon distribution obtained from the analysis of scaling
violations of the proton structure function F_2.Comment: 27 pages, 9 figures, 2 tables, submitted to Nucl. Phys.
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