The Distribution and Prevalence of the Alfalfa Blotch Leafminer (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in Illinois

Surveys were made in 2001 and 2002 to determine the distribution and prevalence of the alfalfa blotch leafminer, Agromyza frontella (Diptera: Agromyzidae), and its primary parasitoids, Dacnusa dryas and Chrysocharis liriomyzae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae and Eulophidae, respectively), in Illinois. We collected 239 samples from alfalfa fields in the alfalfa-producing regions of Illinois. Samples from each site consisted of 20 cut stems and 10 sets of 10 sweeps in 2001, and 40 stems and 10 sets of 20 sweeps in 2002. Each trifoliate was examined for mining and pinholing injury, and the number of adult A. frontella, D. dryas, and C. liriomyzae per 10 sweeps was calculated for each site. We found that 16.3% of the sites were infested with A. frontella, and all infested fields were north of 39.95 N latitude. Although up to 95% of stems were injured at some sites, mean injury per stem never exceeded 12% of trifoliates. Maximum adult abundance was 8.1 adults per 10 sweeps. We did not detect D. dryas or C. liriomyzae in any of the sweep samples. Because of consistently low populations and the relatively slow rate of A. frontella’s spread in Illinois, we conclude that A. frontella is not a serious threat to alfalfa production in this state at this time

Fluorescent protein-mediated colour polymorphism in reef corals: multicopy genes extend the adaptation/acclimatization potential to variable light environments

The genomic framework that enables corals to adjust to unfavourable conditions is crucial for coral reef survival in a rapidly changing climate. We have explored the striking intraspecific variability in the expression of coral pigments from the green fluorescent protein (GFP) family to elucidate the genomic basis for the plasticity of stress responses among reef corals. We show that multicopy genes can greatly increase the dynamic range over which corals can modulate transcript levels in response to the light environment. Using the red fluorescent protein amilFP597 in the coral Acropora millepora as a model, we demonstrate that its expression increases with light intensity, but both the minimal and maximal gene transcript levels vary markedly among colour morphs. The pigment concentration in the tissue of different morphs is strongly correlated with the number of gene copies with a particular promoter type. These findings indicate that colour polymorphism in reef corals can be caused by the environmentally regulated expression of multicopy genes. High-level expression of amilFP597 is correlated with reduced photodamage of zooxanthellae under acute light stress, supporting a photoprotective function of this pigment. The cluster of light-regulated pigment genes can enable corals to invest either in expensive high-level pigmentation, offering benefits under light stress, or to rely on low tissue pigment concentrations and use the conserved resources for other purposes, which is preferable in less light-exposed environments. The genomic framework described here allows corals to pursue different strategies to succeed in habitats with highly variable light stress levels. In summary, our results suggest that the intraspecific plasticity of reef corals’ stress responses is larger than previously thought

Laser Intensity as a Basis for the Design of Passive Laser Safety Barriers – A Dangerous Approach

AbstractModern laser beam sources provide radiation with high output power and brilliance. Additionally, innovative laser system technology enables the deflection of the laser into every direction. These developments depict new aspects in laser safety. On the one hand, there is no standard design approach for laser safety barriers and, on the other hand, no practical database of resulting protection times is available. A prototype test rig was built up, which allows the determinationof the protection time of different passive safety barriers. By experimental investigations, a process model for single steel sheets was established, which provides a relation between the applied process parameters and the protection time of the safety barrier. Within the conducted investigations, the laser power and the spot diameter were varied, whereas former investigations only considered the total laser intensity. The presented results show the influence of the varied parameters on the protection time and provide a first database, which will be extended within further investigations

The Distribution and Prevalence of the Alfalfa Blotch Leafminer (Diptera: Agromyzidae) in Illinois

Surveys were made in 2001 and 2002 to determine the distribution and prevalence of the alfalfa blotch leafminer, Agromyza frontella (Diptera: Agromyzidae), and its primary parasitoids, Dacnusa dryas and Chrysocharis liriomyzae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae and Eulophidae, respectively), in Illinois. We collected 239 samples from alfalfa fields in the alfalfa-producing regions of Illinois. Samples from each site consisted of 20 cut stems and 10 sets of 10 sweeps in 2001, and 40 stems and 10 sets of 20 sweeps in 2002. Each trifoliate was examined for mining and pinholing injury, and the number of adult A. frontella, D. dryas, and C. liriomyzae per 10 sweeps was calculated for each site. We found that 16.3% of the sites were infested with A. frontella, and all infested fields were north of 39.95 N latitude. Although up to 95% of stems were injured at some sites, mean injury per stem never exceeded 12% of trifoliates. Maximum adult abundance was 8.1 adults per 10 sweeps. We did not detect D. dryas or C. liriomyzae in any of the sweep samples. Because of consistently low populations and the relatively slow rate of A. frontella’s spread in Illinois, we conclude that A. frontella is not a serious threat to alfalfa production in this state at this time

A configuration system for the ATLAS trigger

The ATLAS detector at CERN's Large Hadron Collider will be exposed to proton-proton collisions from beams crossing at 40 MHz that have to be reduced to the few 100 Hz allowed by the storage systems. A three-level trigger system has been designed to achieve this goal. We describe the configuration system under construction for the ATLAS trigger chain. It provides the trigger system with all the parameters required for decision taking and to record its history. The same system configures the event reconstruction, Monte Carlo simulation and data analysis, and provides tools for accessing and manipulating the configuration data in all contexts.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, contribution to the Conference on Computing in High Energy and Nuclear Physics (CHEP06), 13.-17. Feb 2006, Mumbai, Indi

The Climatology of Blocking Anticyclones for the Northern and Southern Hemispheres: Block Intensity as a Diagnostic

A 30-yr climatology of blocking events was compiled by stratifying the data into seasonal and three regional categories for both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres using the NCEP-NCAR reanalyses. Several characteristics of blocking anticyclones were included in the study and these were frequency of occurrence, preferred formation regions, duration, blocking days, and intensity. The block intensity (BI) calculation was modified successfully from a previous study in order to automate the procedure for use with large datasets, and it is applied for the first time to derive a long-term observational record of this quantity. This modification also makes BI suitable for use as a diagnostic tool. Blocking events in the Northern (Southern) Hemisphere were the most persistent and strongest during the cold season and over the Atlantic (Pacific) region, as found using BI to measure intensity. The characteristics of blocking events derived in this study were compared to previous long-term climatological studies and across each hemisphere. It was found that the temporal and spatial distributions in both hemispheres were similar to those of longer-term studies. The interannual variability of blocking was also examined with respect to ENSO-related variability for the entire blocking year. It was found that Northern (Southern) Hemisphere blocking events were stronger and more frequent during La Nin˜a (El Nin˜o) years, a result that is consistent with cyclone variability in each hemisphere. Additionally, these results were compared with previously published studies of interannual variability in blocking occurrence

Production of Doubly Charged Higgs Bosons at Linear e-e- Colliders

Production of doubly charged Higgs bosons via the s-channel process e-e- -> H-- -> l-l- at future linear collider energies is studied by taking into account initial state radiation (ISR) and beamstrahlung (ISR + BS), final state radiation (FSR) and detector smearing effects. The discovery bounds of lepton flavour conserving and violating couplings are obtained for doubly charged Higgs bosons. It is found that future linear colliders with centre of mass energies and will be able to probe the doubly charged Higgs bosons with diagonal couplings down to 10^-4 and 10^-3, respectively.Comment: 22 pages, 12 figures, 4 table