Detection of lithium in nearby young late-M dwarfs

Late M-type dwarfs in the solar neighborhood include a mixture of very low-mass stars and brown dwarfs which is difficult to disentangle due to the lack of constraints on their age such as trigonometric parallax, lithium detection and space velocity. We search for young brown dwarf candidates among a sample of 28 nearby late-M dwarfs with spectral types between M5.0 and M9.0, and we also search for debris disks around three of them. Based on theoretical models, we used the color $I-J$, the $J$-band absolute magnitude and the detection of the Li I 6708 $\AA$ doublet line as a strong constraint to estimate masses and ages of our targets. For the search of debris disks, we observed three targets at submillimeter wavelength of 850 $\mu$m. We report here the first clear detections of lithium absorption in four targets and a marginal detection in one target. Our mass estimates indicate that two of them are young brown dwarfs, two are young brown dwarf candidates and one is a young very low-mass star. The closest young field brown dwarf in our sample at only $\sim$15 pc is an excellent benchmark for further studying physical properties of brown dwarfs in the range 100$-$150 Myr. We did not detect any debris disks around three late-M dwarfs, and we estimated upper limits to the dust mass of debris disks around them.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic

One-loop expressions for h→llˉγh\rightarrow l\bar{l}\gamma in Higgs extensions of the Standard Model

A systematic study of one-loop contributions to the decay channels $h\rightarrow l\bar{l}\gamma$ with $l=\nu_{e,\mu, \tau}, e, \mu$, performed in Higgs extended versions of the Standard Model, is presented in the 't Hooft-Veltman gauge. Analytic formulas for one-loop form factors are expressed in terms of the logarithm and di-logarithmic functions. As a result, these form factors can be reduced to those relating to the loop-induced decay processes $h\rightarrow \gamma\gamma, Z\gamma$, confirming not only previous results using different approaches but also close relations between the three kinds of the loop-induced Higgs decay rates. For phenomenological study, we focus on the two observables, namely the enhancement factors defined as ratios of the decay rates calculated between the Higgs extended versions and the standard model, and the forward-backward asymmetries of fermions, which can be used to search for Higgs extensions of the SM. We show that direct effects of mixing between neutral Higgs bosons and indirect contributions of charged Higg boson exchanges can be probed at future colliders.Comment: 39 pages, 9 Figures, 11 Tables of dat

Blood cancer journal

BACKGROUND: Gait impairments increase with advancing age and can lead to falls and loss of independence. Brain atrophy also occurs in older age and may contribute to gait decline. We aimed to investigate global and regional relationships of cerebral gray and white matter volumes with gait speed, and its determinants step length and cadence, in older people. METHODS: In a population-based study, participants aged >60 years without Parkinson's disease or brain infarcts underwent magnetic resonance imaging and gait measurements using a computerized walkway. Linear regression was used to study associations of total gray and white matter volumes with gait, adjusting for each other, age, sex, height and white matter hyperintensity volume. Other covariates considered in analyses included weight and vascular disease history. Voxel-based morphometry was used to study regional relationships of gray and white matter with gait. RESULTS: There were 305 participants, mean age 71.4 (6.9) years, 54% male, mean gait speed 1.16 (0.22) m/s. Smaller total gray matter volume was independently associated with poorer gait speed (p = 0.001) and step length (p<0.001), but not cadence. Smaller volumes of cortical and subcortical gray matter in bilateral regions important for motor control, vision, perception and memory were independently associated with slower gait speed and shorter steps. No global or regional associations were observed between white matter volume and gait independent of gray matter volume, white matter hyperintensity volume and other covariates. CONCLUSION: Smaller gray matter volume in bilaterally distributed brain networks serving motor control was associated with slower gait speed and step length, but not cadence

Flexural-strengthening efficiency of cfrp sheets for unbonded post-tensioned concrete T-beams

There has been a limited number of studies about the flexural behavior of unbonded post-tensioned concrete (UPC) beams strengthened with carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) and these studies have not systematically examined the effect of CFRP sheets on the tendon strain as well as the strengthening efficiency. Moreover, current design guides for the FRP strengthening techniques have not provided any design procedure for UPC structures. This study, thus, investigates the influence of CFRP sheet ratio on the flexural behavior of CFRP-strengthened UPC T-beams and quantifies its effect upon tendon behavior in this kind of UPC beams. The testing program consisted of nine large-scale UPC T-beams strengthened by different layers of CFRP sheets with or without CFRP U-wrapped anchors. The experimental results have shown that the use of CFRP sheets and CFRP U-wrapped anchors significantly affected the tendon strain. The FRP reinforcement ratio governed the flexural capacity, the crack width, the mid-span displacement, and the ductility of the beams in which the strengthening efficiency reduces with the increased number of CFRP layers. The configuration of the CFRP U-wrapped anchors affected the strain of the CFRP sheets, the failure mode and thus the beam behavior. In addition, semi-empirical equations were proposed to estimate the actual strain of unbonded tendons in which the effect of the CFRP sheets and CFRP U-wrapped anchors have been taken into consideration. The proposed equations, which are simple to use, yield reliable predictions with a small variation

Seasonal variation of phytoplankton in My Thanh River, Mekong delta, Vietnam

A study on the seasonal variation of phytoplankton composition was conducted at the upper, middle, and lower parts of the My Thanh River, which supplies an important source of water for aquaculture. Qualitative and quantitative samples of phytoplankton were collected monthly at both high and low tide. The results showed that a total of 171 phytoplankton (algae) species were recorded, belonging to 59 genera and 5 phyla. Diatoms were the most abundant group with the highest species number, followed by green algae. The other phyla possessed a lower number of species. The species composition was more diverse in the rainy season and at high tide at most of the sampling sites. The mean density of algae varied from 30,900-43,521 ind.L^-1^. The density of diatoms was higher in the middle and lower parts. At the same time, euglenoids displayed the highest density in the upper part, showing a difference in the dominant algae group under the influence of salinity. Salinity was found to be significantly positively correlated (p<0.01) with diatoms, whereas it was negatively correlated (p<0.05) with blue-green algae and euglenoids. The algae composition was quite diverse, with the H' index ranging from 2.0-3.3, showing the water quality was slightly to moderately polluted

Magnetic and Magnetotransport Properties of La0.7ca0.3mn1-x(zn,cu)xo3

Magnetic and magnetotransport properties of two perovskite manganite samples of La0.7Ca0.3Mn0.9Zn0.1O3 and La0.7Ca0.3Mn0.95Cu0.05O3 prepared by conventional solid-state reaction have been studied in detail. Experimental results revealed that the temperature dependences of magnetization and resistance varied strongly around the phase-transition temperature. Maximum magnetoresistance (MR) values of La0.7Ca0.3Mn0.9Zn0.1O3 and La0.7Ca0.3Mn0.95Cu0.05O3 under an applied field of 400 Oe were about 21.4 % and 11.0 %, respectively. The maximum magnetic-entropy change (ΔSM) was 2.73 J/kg.K for La0.7Ca0.3Mn0.9Zn0.1O3, and 3.34 J/kg.K for La0.7Ca0.3Mn0.95Cu0.05O3 when the applied field was 45 kOe. Both the MR and ΔSM values obtained from two samples were smaller than those of the parent compound La0.7Ca0.3MnO3. This was due to the change in the Mn3+/Mn4+ ratio caused by Zn and Cu dopants, which led to a change in the type of the ferromagneticparamagnetic phase transition