555 research outputs found
Factors influencing the stable carbon isotopic composition of suspended and sinking organic matter in the coastal Antarctic sea ice environment
A high resolution time-series analysis of stable carbon isotopic signatures in particulate organic carbon (&delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub>) and associated biogeochemical parameters in sea ice and surface waters provides an insight into the factors affecting &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> in the coastal western Antarctic Peninsula sea ice environment. The study covers two austral summer seasons in Ryder Bay, northern Marguerite Bay between 2004 and 2006. A shift in diatom species composition during the 2005/06 summer bloom to near-complete biomass dominance of <i>Proboscia inermis</i> is strongly correlated with a large ~10 &permil; negative isotopic shift in &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> that cannot be explained by a concurrent change in concentration or isotopic signature of CO<sub>2</sub>. We hypothesise that the &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> shift may be driven by the contrasting biochemical mechanisms and utilisation of carbon-concentrating mechanisms (CCMs) in different diatom species. Specifically, very low &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> in <i>P. inermis</i> may be caused by the lack of a CCM, whilst some diatom species abundant at times of higher &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> may employ CCMs. These short-lived yet pronounced negative &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> excursions drive a 4 &permil; decrease in the seasonal average &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> signal, which is transferred to sediment traps and core-top sediments and consequently has the potential for preservation in the sedimentary record. This 4 &permil; difference between seasons of contrasting sea ice conditions and upper water column stratification matches the full amplitude of glacial-interglacial Southern Ocean &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> variability and, as such, we invoke phytoplankton species changes as a potentially important factor influencing sedimentary &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub>. We also find significantly higher &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> in sea ice than surface waters, consistent with autotrophic carbon fixation in a semi-closed environment and possible contributions from post-production degradation, biological utilisation of HCO<sub>3</sub><sup>&minus;</sup> and production of exopolymeric substances. This study demonstrates the importance of surface water diatom speciation effects and isotopically heavy sea ice-derived material for &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> in Antarctic coastal environments and underlying sediments, with consequences for the utility of diatom-based &delta;<sup>13</sup>C<sub>POC</sub> in the sedimentary record
Geometry of Frictionless and Frictional Sphere Packings
We study static packings of frictionless and frictional spheres in three
dimensions, obtained via molecular dynamics simulations, in which we vary
particle hardness, friction coefficient, and coefficient of restitution.
Although frictionless packings of hard-spheres are always isostatic (with six
contacts) regardless of construction history and restitution coefficient,
frictional packings achieve a multitude of hyperstatic packings that depend on
system parameters and construction history. Instead of immediately dropping to
four, the coordination number reduces smoothly from as the friction
coefficient between two particles is increased.Comment: 6 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Does the Red Queen reign in the kingdom of digital organisms?
In competition experiments between two RNA viruses of equal or almost equal
fitness, often both strains gain in fitness before one eventually excludes the
other. This observation has been linked to the Red Queen effect, which
describes a situation in which organisms have to constantly adapt just to keep
their status quo. I carried out experiments with digital organisms
(self-replicating computer programs) in order to clarify how the competing
strains' location in fitness space influences the Red-Queen effect. I found
that gains in fitness during competition were prevalent for organisms that were
taken from the base of a fitness peak, but absent or rare for organisms that
were taken from the top of a peak or from a considerable distance away from the
nearest peak. In the latter two cases, either neutral drift and loss of the
fittest mutants or the waiting time to the first beneficial mutation were more
important factors. Moreover, I found that the Red-Queen dynamic in general led
to faster exclusion than the other two mechanisms.Comment: 10 pages, 5 eps figure
Quantum Chaos in Open versus Closed Quantum Dots: Signatures of Interacting Particles
This paper reviews recent studies of mesoscopic fluctuations in transport
through ballistic quantum dots, emphasizing differences between conduction
through open dots and tunneling through nearly isolated dots. Both the open
dots and the tunnel-contacted dots show random, repeatable conductance
fluctuations with universal statistical proper-ties that are accurately
characterized by a variety of theoretical models including random matrix
theory, semiclassical methods and nonlinear sigma model calculations. We apply
these results in open dots to extract the dephasing rate of electrons within
the dot. In the tunneling regime, electron interaction dominates transport
since the tunneling of a single electron onto a small dot may be sufficiently
energetically costly (due to the small capacitance) that conduction is
suppressed altogether. How interactions combine with quantum interference are
best seen in this regime.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures, PDF 2.1 format, to appear in "Chaos, Solitons &
Fractals
Statistics of the contact network in frictional and frictionless granular packings
Simulated granular packings with different particle friction coefficient mu
are examined. The distribution of the particle-particle and particle-wall
normal and tangential contact forces P(f) are computed and compared with
existing experimental data. Here f equivalent to F/F-bar is the contact force F
normalized by the average value F-bar. P(f) exhibits exponential-like decay at
large forces, a plateau/peak near f = 1, with additional features at forces
smaller than the average that depend on mu. Computations of the force-force
spatial distribution function and the contact point radial distribution
function indicate that correlations between forces are only weakly dependent on
friction and decay rapidly beyond approximately three particle diameters.
Distributions of the particle-particle contact angles show that the contact
network is not isotropic and only weakly dependent on friction. High
force-bearing structures, or force chains, do not play a dominant role in these
three dimensional, unloaded packings.Comment: 11 pages, 13 figures, submitted to PR
Debris disk size distributions: steady state collisional evolution with P-R drag and other loss processes
We present a new scheme for determining the shape of the size distribution,
and its evolution, for collisional cascades of planetesimals undergoing
destructive collisions and loss processes like Poynting-Robertson drag. The
scheme treats the steady state portion of the cascade by equating mass loss and
gain in each size bin; the smallest particles are expected to reach steady
state on their collision timescale, while larger particles retain their
primordial distribution. For collision-dominated disks, steady state means that
mass loss rates in logarithmic size bins are independent of size. This
prescription reproduces the expected two phase size distribution, with ripples
above the blow-out size, and above the transition to gravity-dominated
planetesimal strength. The scheme also reproduces the expected evolution of
disk mass, and of dust mass, but is computationally much faster than evolving
distributions forward in time. For low-mass disks, P-R drag causes a turnover
at small sizes to a size distribution that is set by the redistribution
function (the mass distribution of fragments produced in collisions). Thus
information about the redistribution function may be recovered by measuring the
size distribution of particles undergoing loss by P-R drag, such as that traced
by particles accreted onto Earth. Although cross-sectional area drops with
1/age^2 in the PR-dominated regime, dust mass falls as 1/age^2.8, underlining
the importance of understanding which particle sizes contribute to an
observation when considering how disk detectability evolves. Other loss
processes are readily incorporated; we also discuss generalised power law loss
rates, dynamical depletion, realistic radiation forces and stellar wind drag.Comment: Accepted for publication by Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical
Astronomy (special issue on EXOPLANETS
Considerations in relation to off-site emergency procedures and response for nuclear accidents
The operation of nuclear facilities has, fortunately, not led to many accidents with off-site consequences. However, it is well-recognised that should a large release of radioactivity occur, the effects in the surrounding area and population will be significant. These effects can be mitigated by developing emergency preparedness and response plans prior to the operation of the nuclear facility that can be exercised regularly and implemented if an accident occurs. This review paper details the various stages of a nuclear accident and the corresponding aspects of an emergency preparedness plan that are relevant to these stages, both from a UK and international perspective. The paper also details how certain aspects of emergency preparedness have been affected by the accident at Fukushima Dai-ichi and as a point of comparison how emergency management plans were implemented following the accidents at Three Mile Island 2 and Chernobyl. In addition, the UK’s economic costing model for nuclear accidents COCO-2, and the UK’s Level-3 Probabilistic Safety Assessment code “PACE” are introduced. Finally, the factors that affect the economic impact of a nuclear accident, especially from a UK standpoint, are described
Red Queen Coevolution on Fitness Landscapes
Species do not merely evolve, they also coevolve with other organisms.
Coevolution is a major force driving interacting species to continuously evolve
ex- ploring their fitness landscapes. Coevolution involves the coupling of
species fit- ness landscapes, linking species genetic changes with their
inter-specific ecological interactions. Here we first introduce the Red Queen
hypothesis of evolution com- menting on some theoretical aspects and empirical
evidences. As an introduction to the fitness landscape concept, we review key
issues on evolution on simple and rugged fitness landscapes. Then we present
key modeling examples of coevolution on different fitness landscapes at
different scales, from RNA viruses to complex ecosystems and macroevolution.Comment: 40 pages, 12 figures. To appear in "Recent Advances in the Theory and
Application of Fitness Landscapes" (H. Richter and A. Engelbrecht, eds.).
Springer Series in Emergence, Complexity, and Computation, 201
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