Anharmonic properties of Raman modes in double wall carbon nanotubes

The temperature dependence of the radial breathing modes (RBMs) and the zone-center tangential optical phonons (G-bands) of double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) has been investigated between 300 and 700 K using Raman scattering. As expected, with increasing temperature, the frequencies of the Raman peaks, including the RBMs and G-bands downshift simultaneously. We show here that the temperature dependence of the RBMs can be fitted by a simple linear dependence and different RBMs have different frequency shifts. We observe a noticeable nonlinearity in the temperature dependence of the G-band associated with the outer semiconducting tube (s). The deviation from the linear trend is due to the contribution of the third-order anharmonic term in the lattice potential energy with a pure temperature effect. An estimated value of 1.5 for the Grüneisen parameter of the (s) band was found.La variación con la temperatura de los modos de respiración radial (RBMs) y los fonones ópticos tangenciales de centro de zona (banda G) de los nanotubos de doble pared (DWCNTs) han sido investigados en el rango de 300 a 700 K utilizando dispersión Raman. Como era de esperarse, con el incremento de la temperatura las frecuencias de los picos Raman de los RBMs y las bandas G se desplazan hacia más bajas frecuencias. Nosotros demostramos que la variación con la temperatura de los RBMs puede ser ajustada mediante un modelo lineal y muestran diferentes desplazamientos en frecuencia. Nosotros observamos una no linealidad importante en la variación con la temperatura de la banda G asociada a los tubos semiconductores externos ¡ G + ext(s) ¢ . La desviación se debe a la contribución del término anarmónico de tercer orden en la energía potencial. Se encontró un valor estimado de 1,5 para el parámetro de Grüneisen de la banda G ¨ + ext(s)

Dependencia con la presión del índice de refracción del AgGaS2

En el presente trabajo estudiamos el comportamiento en presión del espectro de absorción (óptica de una muestra monocristalina de AgGaS2, realizando medidas en el rango de energías del infrarrojo, desde 0.30 hasta 0.70 eV, para presiones P inferiores a 4 GPa y temperatura ambiente T, utilizando para ello una celda de yunques de diamantes en combinación con la técnica de micro?espectroscopia infrarroja [1]. Con este estudio determinamos la variación de su índice de refracción n en función de la presión, en el rango de estabilidad de la estructura calcopirita [2?6], así como la variación en presión de las constantes dielectricas estática (?0) y de alta frecuencia (??). Nuestros resultados del índice de refracción a presión y temperatura ambiente en el AgGaS2 pueden compararse con los valores experimentales reportados por Boyd et al.In this work, we study the pressure behavior of the optical absorption spectrum of a single crystal AgGaS2, taking measurements in the infrared energy range from 0.30 up to 0.70 eV for pressures values P below 4GPa and room temperature T, using a diamond anvil cell in combination with infrared micro spectroscopy technique [1]. With this study, we determine the refraction index n variations in terms of pressure within the stability range of the chalcopyrite structure [2?6] as well as the changes under pressure of both the static (?0) and high frequency (??) dielectric constants. These results can be compared with the experimental values reported by Boyd et al

Absorción óptica a altas presiones del TLGaSe2

En el presente estudio hemos medido el espectro de transmisión óptica normal no polarizado en el compuesto semiconductor laminar TlGaSe2, hasta la presión de 27.6 GPa. Nuestros resultados muestran que en el rango del visible existe la contribución de dos brechas de energía directas, que presentan una dependencia lineal con la presión. La transición débil , asignada a la brecha fundamental de energía, decrece hasta los 0.9 GPa con un coeficient lineal de -5.31 × l0?2 eVGPa-1 y la transición muestra un coeficient de -9.95 × 10-2 eVGPa-1 hasta 5.3 GPa (límite de presión en el espectro visible). Los resultados en el infrarrojo no muestran la presencia de la transición EA, dejando ver solamente el comportamiento de la segunda transición justo hasta la presión de metalización 24.6 GPa. En el rango de presión estudiado de 0.0 a 27.6 GPa, la transición EB muestra un comportamiento no lineal con la presión de coeficient cuadrático 1.83 × l0 -3 eVGPa -2.In this paper the spectrum of optical normal transmission not polarized of TlGaSe2 is measured as a function of pressure up to 27.6 GPa at room temperature. Our results show that in the range of the visible exist the contributions of two direct gaps of energy, which present a linear dependence with the pressure. The weak transition assigned to the fundamental gap of energy, decreases up to 1.5 GPa with a linear coefficien of -31 × l0 ?2 eVGPa-1 and the transition shows a coefficien of -9.95 × 10-2 eVGPa-1 up to 5.3 GPa (limit of pressure in the visible spectrum). The results in the infrared do not show the presence of the transition EA allowing to see only the behavior of the second transition rightly up to the pressure of metallization 24.6 GPa. In the range of pressure studied from 0.0 to 27.6 GPa, the transition EB shows a not linear behavior with the pressure of quadratic coefficien 1.83 × l0 -3 eVGPa -2

The politicisation of evaluation: constructing and contesting EU policy performance

Although systematic policy evaluation has been conducted for decades and has been growing strongly within the European Union (EU) institutions and in the member states, it remains largely underexplored in political science literatures. Extant work in political science and public policy typically focuses on elements such as agenda setting, policy shaping, decision making, or implementation rather than evaluation. Although individual pieces of research on evaluation in the EU have started to emerge, most often regarding policy “effectiveness” (one criterion among many in evaluation), a more structured approach is currently missing. This special issue aims to address this gap in political science by focusing on four key focal points: evaluation institutions (including rules and cultures), evaluation actors and interests (including competencies, power, roles and tasks), evaluation design (including research methods and theories, and their impact on policy design and legislation), and finally, evaluation purpose and use (including the relationships between discourse and scientific evidence, political attitudes and strategic use). The special issue considers how each of these elements contributes to an evolving governance system in the EU, where evaluation is playing an increasingly important role in decision making

Emergent global patterns of ecosystem structure and function from a mechanistic general ecosystem model

Anthropogenic activities are causing widespread degradation of ecosystems worldwide, threatening the ecosystem services upon which all human life depends. Improved understanding of this degradation is urgently needed to improve avoidance and mitigation measures. One tool to assist these efforts is predictive models of ecosystem structure and function that are mechanistic: based on fundamental ecological principles. Here we present the first mechanistic General Ecosystem Model (GEM) of ecosystem structure and function that is both global and applies in all terrestrial and marine environments. Functional forms and parameter values were derived from the theoretical and empirical literature where possible. Simulations of the fate of all organisms with body masses between 10 µg and 150,000 kg (a range of 14 orders of magnitude) across the globe led to emergent properties at individual (e.g., growth rate), community (e.g., biomass turnover rates), ecosystem (e.g., trophic pyramids), and macroecological scales (e.g., global patterns of trophic structure) that are in general agreement with current data and theory. These properties emerged from our encoding of the biology of, and interactions among, individual organisms without any direct constraints on the properties themselves. Our results indicate that ecologists have gathered sufficient information to begin to build realistic, global, and mechanistic models of ecosystems, capable of predicting a diverse range of ecosystem properties and their response to human pressures

TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access

Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives

Organic Farming Improves Pollination Success in Strawberries

Pollination of insect pollinated crops has been found to be correlated to pollinator abundance and diversity. Since organic farming has the potential to mitigate negative effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity, it may also benefit crop pollination, but direct evidence of this is scant. We evaluated the effect of organic farming on pollination of strawberry plants focusing on (1) if pollination success was higher on organic farms compared to conventional farms, and (2) if there was a time lag from conversion to organic farming until an effect was manifested. We found that pollination success and the proportion of fully pollinated berries were higher on organic compared to conventional farms and this difference was already evident 2–4 years after conversion to organic farming. Our results suggest that conversion to organic farming may rapidly increase pollination success and hence benefit the ecosystem service of crop pollination regarding both yield quantity and quality

Is body size at birth related to circadian salivary cortisol levels in adulthood? Results from a longitudinal cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The hypothesis of fetal origins of adult disease has during the last decades received interest as an explanation of chronic, e.g. cardiovascular, disease in adulthood stemming from fetal environmental conditions. Early programming and enduring dysregulations of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA axis), with cortisol as its end product, has been proposed as a possible mechanism by which birth weight influence later health status. However, the fetal origin of the adult cortisol regulation has been insufficiently studied. The present study aims to examine if body size at birth is related to circadian cortisol levels at 43 years.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Participants were drawn from a prospective cohort study (n = 752, 74.5%). Salivary cortisol samples were collected at four times during one day at 43 years, and information on birth size was collected retrospectively from delivery records. Information on body mass during adolescence and adulthood and on health behavior, medication and medical conditions at 43 years was collected prospectively by questionnaire and examined as potential confounders. Participants born preterm or < 2500 g were excluded from the main analyses.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Across the normal spectrum, size at birth (birth weight and ponderal index) was positively related to total (area under the curve, AUC) and bedtime cortisol levels in the total sample. Results were more consistent in men than in women. Descriptively, participants born preterm or < 2500 g also seemed to display elevated evening and total cortisol levels. No associations were found for birth length or for the cortisol awakening response (CAR).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results are contradictory to previously reported negative associations between birth weight and adult cortisol levels, and thus tentatively question the assumption that only low birth weight predicts future physiological dysregulations.</p

Rare disruptive mutations in ciliary function genes contribute to testicular cancer susceptibility

Testicular germ cell tumour (TGCT) is the most common cancer in young men. Here we sought to identify risk factors for TGCT by performing whole-exome sequencing on 328 TGCT cases from 153 families, 634 sporadic TGCT cases and 1,644 controls. We search for genes that are recurrently affected by rare variants (minor allele frequency <0.01) with potentially damaging effects and evidence of segregation in families. A total of 8.7% of TGCT families carry rare disruptive mutations in the cilia-microtubule genes (CMG) as compared with 0.5% of controls (P=2.1 × 10¯⁸). The most significantly mutated CMG is DNAAF1 with biallelic inactivation and loss of DNAAF1 expression shown in tumours from carriers. DNAAF1 mutation as a cause of TGCT is supported by a dnaaf1hu²⁵⁵h(+/−) zebrafish model, which has a 94% risk of TGCT. Our data implicate cilia-microtubule inactivation as a cause of TGCT and provide evidence for CMGs as cancer susceptibility genes