Numerical studies on the link between radioisotopic signatures on Earth and the formation of the Local Bubble. I. 60Fe transport to the solar system by turbulent mixing of ejecta from nearby supernovae into a locally homogeneous ISM

The discovery of radionuclides like 60Fe with half-lives of million years in deep-sea crusts and sediments offers the unique possibility to date and locate nearby supernovae. We want to quantitatively establish that the 60Fe enhancement is the result of several supernovae which are also responsible for the formation of the Local Bubble, our Galactic habitat. We performed three-dimensional hydrodynamic adaptive mesh refinement simulations (with resolutions down to subparsec scale) of the Local Bubble and the neighbouring Loop I superbubble in different homogeneous, self-gravitating environments. For setting up the Local and Loop I superbubble, we took into account the time sequence and locations of the generating core-collapse supernova explosions, which were derived from the mass spectrum of the perished members of certain stellar moving groups. The release of 60Fe and its subsequent turbulent mixing process inside the superbubble cavities was followed via passive scalars, where the yields of the decaying radioisotope were adjusted according to recent stellar evolution calculations. The models are able to reproduce both the timing and the intensity of the 60Fe excess observed with rather high precision, provided that the external density does not exceed 0.3 cm-3 on average. Thus the two best-fit models presented here were obtained with background media mimicking the classical warm ionised and warm neutral medium. We also found that 60Fe (which is condensed onto dust grains) can be delivered to Earth via two physical mechanisms: either through individual fast-paced supernova blast waves, which cross the Earth's orbit sometimes even twice as a result of reflection from the Local Bubble's outer shell, or, alternatively, through the supershell of the Local Bubble itself, injecting the 60Fe content of all previous supernovae at once, but over a longer time range.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Astrophysical bow shocks: An analytical solution for the hypersonic blunt body problem in the intergalactic medium

Aims: Bow shock waves are a common feature of groups and clusters of galaxies since they are generated as a result of supersonic motion of galaxies through the intergalactic medium. The goal of this work is to present an analytical solution technique for such astrophysical hypersonic blunt body problems. Methods: A method, developed by Schneider (1968, JFM, 31, 397) in the context of aeronautics, allows calculation of the galaxy's shape as long as the shape of the bow shock wave is known (so-called inverse method). In contrast to other analytical models, the solution is valid in the whole flow region (from the stagnation point up to the bow shock wings) and in particular takes into account velocity gradients along the streamlines. We compare our analytical results with two-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations carried out with an extended version of the VH-1 hydrocode which is based on the piecewise parabolic method with a Lagrangian remap. Results: It is shown that the applied method accurately predicts the galaxy's shape and the fluid variables in the post-shock flow, thus saving a tremendous amount of computing time for future interpretations of similar objects. We also find that the method can be applied to arbitrary angles between the direction of the incoming flow and the axis of symmetry of the body. We emphasize that it is general enough to be applied to other astrophysical bow shocks, such as those on stellar and galactic scales.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Kartografische Interaktivität bei besonderer Betrachtung von Freizeitkarten

Interaktivität ist ein Konzept das im Rahmen der zunehmenden Internetbasiertheit von kartografischen Produkten ständig an Bedeutung gewann. Interaktivität beendet den unidirektionalen Prozess der Kommunikation vom Kartografen zum Nutzer und erlaubt diesem das kartografische Produkt zu verändern und selbst zu gestalten. Die vorliegende Arbeit soll konzeptuelle und methodologische Fragen des komplexen Themas Interaktivität aufwerfen und versucht diese zu beantworten. Ausgangshypothese ist, dass sich mithilfe von Geobrowsern die Anforderungen an eine interaktive Freizeitkarte qualitativ ausreichend hochwertig umsetzen lassen. Dazu wird eingangs eine umfangreiche Literaturanalyse durchgeführt. Es wird gezeigt, wie sich Interaktivität definieren lässt, und wie sich diese vom Begriff der Interaktion abgrenzt. Die Bedeutung von Interaktivität im Rahmen der Kartografie als Wissenschaft und Praxis wird dargelegt, und die vielfältigen Umsetzungsmethoden werden exemplarisch illustriert. Der Sinn und Zweck von Interaktivität wird identifiziert als Mittel zur Steigerung der Effizienz von Karten, sowie als Grundvoraussetzung bestimmter Anwendungen. Anschließend werden Kriterien einer qualitativ hochwertigen Karte definiert, und Wege aufgezeigt, wie sich ein messbarer Wert von Interaktivität konstituieren lässt. Im praktischen Teil der Arbeit wird die Erstellung einer interaktiven Freizeitkarte der Region Elsbeere Wienerwald für den Geobrowser Google Earth detailliert dokumentiert. Diese Karte, sowie mehrere weitere Beispiele, werden den erwähnten Kriterien gegenüber gestellt, um somit die Ausgangshypothese zu verifizieren. Den Abschluss der Arbeit bildet ein Resümee gewonnener Erkenntnisse, sowie aufgegriffener Fragen und Lösungsansätze, die Ausblick auf weitere Forschung und Entwicklung um Bereich der kartografischen Interaktivität geben.Interactivity is a concept that gained relevance due to the growing internet based distribution of cartographic products. Interactivity ends the one way process of communication from cartographer to user and allows the latter to change and design the product to fit his or her needs. The paper reaches out to answer conceptual and methodological questions concerning the complex issue of interacitvity. It starts with the hypothesis, that the requirements of a highly qualitative interactive recreational map can be sufficiently met by the cartographer using geobrowsers. An extensive literature analysis shows how Interactivity differs from Interaction. The significance of Interacitvity in cartography as science and practice is examined and the various technical methods of implementation are exemplarily illustrated. Interactivity is identified as a means to raise the efficiency of maps, and as a precondition of certain applications. Subsequently, criteria of a maps quality are defined, and ways to constitute a measurable value of Interactivity are shown. The practical part documents in detail the creation of an interactive recreational map of the region Elsbeere Wienerwald for use in Google Earth. This map and a few other examples are compared to the previously defined criteria, to verify the starting hypothesis. The paper concludes with a resume of gained knowledge, raised questions and their possible solutions, which should give an outlook on future research and development of cartographic Interactivity

Feedback-related brain potentials associated with symbolic or socio-emotional feedback and its interaction with socio-emotional personality constructs

Die Verarbeitung von Feedback hat eine zentrale Bedeutung für adaptive Anpassungen des Verhaltens und wird elektrophysiologisch von der sogenannten feedback-related negativity (FRN) und der feedback P3 im ereigniskorrelierten Potential (EKP) repräsentiert. Die vorliegende Studie untersuchte die Modulation der FRN und P3 durch die sozio-emotionale Salienz von Feedbackreizen (emotionale Gesichter vs. Symbole) und in Bezug auf sozio-emotionale Persönlichkeitskonstrukte in einer Zeitschätzungsaufgabe. Negatives Feedback ging mit einer höheren FRN einher, während positives Feedback mit einer größeren feedback P3 assoziiert war. Gesichter, die Emotionen ausdrücken, waren von höheren FRN- und P3-Amplituden begleitet. Dieses Ergebnis könnte auf Unterschiede in der sozio-emotionalen Salienz zurückgeführt werden. Persönlichkeit war in Übereinstimmung mit früheren Studien mit spezifischen Zusammenhängen verbunden. Primäre Psychopathie, welche sich im Subfaktor Sozialer Einfluss des Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised (PPI-R) widerspiegelt, ging mit niedrigeren FRN-Amplituden einher, was mit berichteten Defiziten im Fehlermonitoring und im passiven Vermeidungslernen übereinstimmt. Andererseits waren Aspekte sozialer Angst in der Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS) mit erhöhten FRN Amplituden assoziiert, was frühere EKP-Ergebnisse in Studien über Ängstlichkeit auf soziale Ängstlichkeit und die FRN erweitert. Geringere Ausprägungen in der Körper-bezogenen Symbolisierungs-Subskala der Skala Emotionalen Erlebens (SEE), die möglicherweise geringere interozeptive Sensitivität widerspiegeln, gingen mit reduzierten P3 Amplituden bei Verarbeitung negativen Feedbacks einher, ähnlich früherer EKP Studien. Die SEE Subskala Emotionsregulation, ein Selbstbericht von Emotionsregulations-Kompetenzen, modulierte ebenfalls die P3 Komponente, in Übereinstimmung mit früheren EKP Befunden und modalen Modellen der Emotionsverarbeitung. Die Ergebnisse weisen auf eine starke gegenseitige Beziehung von sozio-emotionalen Prozessen und Feedbackverarbeitung hin.Feedback processing is important for adaptively adjusting behavior and electrophysiologically reflected in the so-called feedback-related negativity (FRN) and feedback P3 of the event-related potential (ERP). Applying a time-estimation task, the present study investigated how the socio-emotional salience of the feedback stimuli (emotional faces vs. symbols) modulates the FRN and P3. Moreover, we were particularly interested how socio-emotional personality constructs such as psychopathy and anxiety affect the FRN and P3. Negative feedback elicited a larger FRN, while positive feedback elicited a larger feedback P3. Faces displaying emotions led to larger FRN and P3 amplitudes than symbols, a finding which might be due to differences in the socio-emotional salience. Personality showed distinct relationships consistent with literature. Primary psychopathy reflected in the subfactor Social Influence of the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Revised was associated with lower FRN amplitudes, consistent with reported deficits in error monitoring and passive avoidance learning. Moreover, aspects of social anxiety in the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale were associated with increased FRN amplitudes, extending previous anxiety-related ERP findings to social anxiety and FRN. Lower scores in the subscale Body-Related Symbolization of the Emotional Experiences Scale (SEE), possibly reflecting lower interoceptive sensitivity, was associated with reduced P3 amplitudes when processing negative feedback, similar to previous ERP studies. The SEE subscale Emotion Regulation, reflecting self-report of emotional regulation competence, also modulated the P3 component, consistent with previous ERP findings and modal models of emotion processing. Thus, the findings suggest a strong interrelationship between the salience of feedback stimuli, distinct personality factors, and feedback processing

Zuckertensid basierte Mikroemulsionen: Struktureigenschaftsbeziehungen, Stabilität und Enzymkinetik

Schulreich C. Zuckertensid basierte Mikroemulsionen: Struktureigenschaftsbeziehungen, Stabilität und Enzymkinetik. Bielefeld: Universität Bielefeld; 2016.Bicontinuous microemulsions exhibit a sponge-like domain structure of oil and water separated by an enormous surfactant interface. These systems are therefore an excellent reaction medium \cite{gar99, hol88, sta99, car00, ros08}. The enzyme diisopropyl fluorophosphatase (DFPase) from the squid \textit{Loligo vulgaris} is of great importance for enzymatically catalysed hydrolysis of highly toxic organophosphates. Related to this application, the phase stability and the internal structure of microemulsions under extreme conditions are of great interest.\\ This work covers the influence of the chain length and headgroup of pure sugar surfactants on the internal structure sizes of the microemulsion system cyclohexane, n-pentanol and water characterized by small angle neutron (SANS) and X-Ray (SAXS) scattering. The phase behaviour of microemulsions based on isononyl isononanoate (Lanol99), sugar surfactant Simulsol SL55 (C$_{12/14}$ G$_{1.3}$), D$_{2}$O / water and the cosurfactant benzyl alcohol is studied and the bicontinuous phase is identified. Using SANS, the internal structure of the bicontinuous phase is characterized. A temperature range of \unit [261]{K} to \unit [343]{K} was covered in the experiments. The prepared microemulsions were found to exhibit nearly no temperature dependence with respect to their structure and phase behaviour. The last part of this thesis focuses on enzymatic reactions in sugar surfactant based microemulsions. A simple model for catalyzing the hydrolysis of highly toxic organophosphates by the DFPase was searched. With the NADH-dependent alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH200) which reduces acetophenone, a simple model was found whereby the enzym is located in the polar phase, and is not surface-active. The substrate is located in the organic phase. This enzymatic reaction was kinetically characterized using the UV/vis spectroscopy. Finally the influence of the internal structure of the microemulsion systems which were studied by SANS and SAXS scattering on the enzyme kinetic are discussed

Spatial-Distance Cues Influence Economic Decision-Making in a Social Context

Social distance (i.e., the degree of closeness to another person) affects the way humans perceive and respond to fairness during financial negotiations. Feeling close to someone enhances the acceptance of monetary offers. Here, we explored whether this effect also extends to the spatial domain. Specifically, using an iterated version of the Ultimatum Game in a within-subject design, we investigated whether different visual spatial distance-cues result in different rates of acceptance of otherwise identical monetary offers. Study 1 found that participants accepted significantly more offers when they were cued with spatial closeness than when they were cued with spatial distance. Study 2 replicated this effect using identical procedures but different spatial- distance cues in an independent sample. Importantly, our results could not be explained by feelings of social closeness. Our results demonstrate that mere perceptions of spatial closeness produce analogous–but independent–effects to those of social closeness

Numerical studies on the link between radioisotopic signatures on Earth and the formation of the Local Bubble. II. Advanced modeling of interstellar 26Al, 53Mn, 60Fe, and 244Pu influxes as traces of past supernovae in the solar neighborhood

Measurements of long-lived radioisotopes provide a means, completely independent of other observational channels, to draw conclusions about near-Earth supernovae (SNe) and thus the origin of the Local Bubble (LB). First and foremost in this context is 60Fe, which has already been detected across the Earth and on the Moon. Using Gaia EDR3, we identified 14 SN explosions, with 13 occurring in UCL/LCC, and one in V1062 Sco, all being subgroups of the Sco-Cen OB association. The timing of these explosions was obtained by us through interpolation of rotating stellar evolution tracks via the initial masses of the already exploded massive stars. We further developed a new Monte Carlo-type approach for deriving the trajectories of the SN progenitors. We then performed 3D hydrodynamic simulations based on these initial conditions to explore the evolution of the LB in an inhomogeneous local interstellar medium and the transport of radioisotopes to Earth. The simulations include the stellar winds from the SN progenitors and additional radioisotopes (26Al, 53Mn, and 244Pu) besides 60Fe. We find that (i) our simulations are consistent with measurements of 60Fe, in particular, a peak 2-3 Myr before present, as well as 26Al, 53Mn, and 244Pu data, (ii) stellar winds contribute to the distribution of radioisotopes and also to the dynamics of the LB, (iii) the solar system (SS) entered the LB about 4.6 Myr ago, and (iv) the measured recent influx of 60Fe can be naturally explained by turbulent radioisotopic transport. Our simulations not only support the recent hypothesis that the LB triggered star formation in the solar vicinity through its expansion, but also suggest that the second, separate 60Fe peak measured at 6-9 Myr ago was generated by the passage of the SS through a neighboring superbubble (SB), possibly the Orion-Eridanus SB, prior to its current residence in the LB.Comment: 30 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Binding of coatomer by the PEX11 C-terminus is not required for function

AbstractMicrobodies are single membrane-bound organelles found in eukaryotes from trypanosomes to man. Although they have diverse roles in metabolism, the mechanisms and molecules involved in membrane biogenesis and matrix protein import are conserved. Similarly, the basic mechanisms and structures involved in vesicular transport are similar throughout eukaryotic evolution. The PEX11 proteins are required for the division of microbodies in trypanosomes, yeast and mammals, and a role of coatomer in this process has been suggested. We show here that the binding of trypanosome, yeast and bovine coatomers to selected peptides is identical. Coatomer binds to the C-termini of trypanosome PEX11 and rat Pex11α, but not yeast Pex11p or human Pex11β. Mutations of the C-terminus of trypanosome PEX11 that eliminated coatomer binding did not affect function in yeast or trypanosomes. Thus binding of coatomer to the C-terminus of PEX11 is not required for PEX11 function

A mosaic of conserved and novel modes of gene expression and morphogenesis in mesoderm and muscle formation of a larval bivalve

The mesoderm gives rise to several key morphological features of bilaterian animals including endoskeletal elements and the musculature. A number of regulatory genes involved in mesoderm and/or muscle formation (e.g., Brachyury (Bra), even-skipped (eve), Mox, myosin II heavy chain (mhc)) have been identified chiefly from chordates and the ecdysozoans Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans, but data for non-model protostomes, especially those belonging to the ecdysozoan sister clade, Lophotrochozoa (e.g., flatworms, annelids, mollusks), are only beginning to emerge. Within the lophotrochozoans, Mollusca constitutes the most speciose and diverse phylum. Interestingly, however, information on the morphological and molecular underpinnings of key ontogenetic processes such as mesoderm formation and myogenesis remains scarce even for prominent molluscan sublineages such as the bivalves. Here, we investigated myogenesis and developmental expression of Bra, eve, Mox, and mhc in the quagga mussel Dreissena rostriformis, an invasive freshwater bivalve and an emerging model in invertebrate evodevo. We found that all four genes are expressed during mesoderm formation, but some show additional, individual sites of expression during ontogeny. While Mox and mhc are involved in early myogenesis, eve is also expressed in the embryonic shell field and Bra is additionally present in the foregut. Comparative analysis suggests that Mox has an ancestral role in mesoderm and possibly muscle formation in bilaterians, while Bra and eve are conserved regulators of mesoderm development of nephrozoans (protostomes and deuterostomes). The fully developed Dreissena veliger larva shows a highly complex muscular architecture, supporting a muscular ground pattern of autobranch bivalve larvae that includes at least a velum muscle ring, three or four pairs of velum retractors, one or two pairs of larval retractors, two pairs of foot retractors, a pedal plexus, possibly two pairs of mantle retractors, and the muscles of the pallial line, as well as an anterior and a posterior adductor. As is typical for their molluscan kin, remodelling and loss of prominent larval features such as the velum musculature and various retractor systems appear to be also common in bivalves

Music-evoked incidental happiness modulates probability weighting during risky lottery choices

We often make decisions with uncertain consequences. The outcomes of the choices we make are usually not perfectly predictable but probabilistic, and the probabilities can be known or unknown. Probability judgments, i.e., the assessment of unknown probabilities, can be influenced by evoked emotional states. This suggests that also the weighting of known probabilities in decision making under risk might be influenced by incidental emotions, i.e., emotions unrelated to the judgments and decisions at issue. Probability weighting describes the transformation of probabilities into subjective decision weights for outcomes and is one of the central components of cumulative prospect theory (CPT) that determine risk attitudes. We hypothesized that music-evoked emotions would modulate risk attitudes in the gain domain and in particular probability weighting. Our experiment featured a within-subject design consisting of four conditions in separate sessions. In each condition, the 41 participants listened to a different kind of music-happy, sad, or no music, or sequences of random tones-and performed a repeated pairwise lottery choice task. We found that participants chose the riskier lotteries significantly more often in the "happy" than in the "sad" and "random tones" conditions. Via structural regressions based on CPT, we found that the observed changes in participants' choices can be attributed to changes in the elevation parameter of the probability weighting function: in the "happy" condition, participants showed significantly higher decision weights associated with the larger payoffs than in the "sad" and "random tones" conditions. Moreover, elevation correlated positively with self-reported music-evoked happiness. Thus, our experimental results provide evidence in favor of a causal effect of incidental happiness on risk attitudes that can be explained by changes in probability weighting