Points and Pits: Archaeological Investigations in Minnesota’s Region 9, the Lake Superior Shore, Carlton, Cook, Lake, and St. Louis Counties, Minnesota

Duluth Archaeology Center Report No. 11-22. Duluth: Duluth Archeology Center.This report is essentially an archeological survey of northeastern Minnesota’s coastal region, for which little is known about prehistoric human occupation. The authors first conducted a literature review, then carried out field investigations at 34 sites in 2010. Most of the sites were already known, and only four new sites suggesting historic use or habitation were found, all in Jay Cooke State Park. The study focused on sites that were not far from water. The report describes archeological and GIS methods used to select and explore the sites. The authors conclude that some progress has been made in contributing to a historical database for the region, but that much more remains to be discovered about prehistoric occupation on the Lake Superior shoreline. Key sections of the report are extracted and reproduced below. Summary: "This project was designed to add to our knowledge of Region 9, which was poorly known as a result of relatively few previously recorded. Four objectives were stated for the project to be conducted in three tasks. A summary of what is currently known about the prehistoric occupation of the region was the first task. Both literature and collections review were specifically included as sources. Updating the State Archaeologist site files for known sites and locating new sites was the second task, including both checking on sites reported by private collectors and new survey. The fourth objective was to develop a narrative predictive model of prehistoric site location for agency managers prehistoric archaeological sites (a total of 34). The field survey for new sites, most of which had to be conducted in fall 2010 before the ground froze, focused on a GIS compilation of several environmental factors previously thought to be important predictors of prehistoric site locations: distance to water (50 and 100 m) and slope (5%, 7%, 10%). Where possible, information on shoreline features from glacial lakes was also incorporated. Factors of access and land ownership (public lands preferable) were also compiled. Specific locations were then selected by the field archaeologist, drawing on decades of experience. Survey followed standard procedures, mainly shovel testing but pedestrian walkover where possible. Only four new archaeological sites were located, all in Jay Cooke State Park and all initially found by surface finds in Park trails. “Most of the areas selected for survey (County and City lands in St. Louis County, Split Rock Lighthouse State Park in Lake County, Judge Magney State Park in Cook County) were either negative or untestable. Concurrently with preparation for new survey, informant reports of new sites were recorded and, where possible, field verified in fall 2010. The response from members of the local archaeological society was overwhelming; over three dozen leads were given, about half for prehistoric sites and half for historic sites that might have prehistoric components. Additional site leads were supplied from members of the general public who heard of the project from media releases or by word of mouth. Although some site leads were either natural items or outside the Region 9 boundary, several prehistoric sites were recorded from this source. The data from both sources suggest that sites in Region 9 do tend to correlate to water, both past and present; however, specific numerical values for environmental variables are not as productive as viewing topography in the field. Areas of low slope are also high potential but not all flat area near water have site materials. Areas of low to no potential would include areas of steep slope (but not all area greater than 10% slope), water saturation (both permanent and seasonal), and/or areas at far distances from water (although quantitative measures are not firm). Much more research needs to be conducted to understand the pre-Contact occupation of the region, as well as develop a better predictive model of site location.

First detection of [CII]158um at high redshift: vigorous star formation in the early universe

We report the detection of the 2P_3/2 -> 2P_1/2 fine-structure line of C+ at 157.74 micron in SDSSJ114816.64+525150.3 (hereafter J1148+5251), the most distant known quasar, at z=6.42, using the IRAM 30-meter telescope. This is the first detection of the [CII] line at high redshift, and also the first detection in a Hyperluminous Infrared Galaxy (L_FIR > 10^13 Lsun). The [CII] line is detected at a significance level of 8 sigma and has a luminosity of 4.4 x 10^9 Lsun. The L_[CII]/L_FIR ratio is 2 x 10^-4, about an order of magnitude smaller than observed in local normal galaxies and similar to the ratio observed in local Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxies. The [CII] line luminosity indicates that the host galaxy of this quasar is undergoing an intense burst of star formation with an estimated rate of ~3000 Msun/yr. The detection of C+ in SDSS J1148+5251 suggests a significant enrichment of metals at z ~ 6 (age of the universe ~870 Myr), although the data are consistent with a reduced carbon to oxygen ratio as expected from chemical evolutionary models of the early phases of galaxy formation.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, accepted by A&A Letter

13CI in high-mass star-forming clouds

We report measurements of the 12C/13C abundance ratio in the three galactic regions G 333.0-0.4, NGC 6334 A and G 351.6-1.3 from observations of the 12CI 3P2-3P1 transition and the hyperfine components of the corresponding 13CI transition near 809 GHz. These transitions were observed simultaneously with the CO 7-6 line emission at 806 GHz with the AST/RO telescope located at the South Pole. From a simultaneous fit to the 12CI 3P2-3P1 transition and the HF components of the corresponding 13CI transition and an independent estimate of an upper limit to the optical depth of the 12CI emission we determine intrinsic 12CI/13CI column density ratios of 23+-1 for G 333.0-0.4, 56+-14 for NGC 6334 A and 69+-12 for G 351.6-1.3. As the regions observed are photon dominated, we argue that the apparent enhancement in the abundance of 13C towards G 333.0-0.4 may be due to strong isotope-selective photodissociation of 13CO, outweighing the effects of chemical isotopic fractionation as suggested by models of PDRs. Towards NGC 6334 A and G 351.6-1.3 these effects appear to be balanced, similar to the situation for the Orion Bar region observed by Keene et al. (1998).Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, submitted to A&A Letter

Estimated Ultraviolet Radiation Doses in Wetlands in Six National Parks

Ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B, 280–320-nm wavelengths) doses were estimated for 1024 wetlands in six national parks: Acadia (Acadia), Glacier (Glacier), Great Smoky Mountains (Smoky), Olympic (Olympic), Rocky Mountain (Rocky), and Sequoia/ Kings Canyon (Sequoia). Estimates were made using ground-based UV-B data (Brewer spectrophotometers), solar radiation models, GIS tools, field characterization of vegetative features, and quantification of DOC concentration and spectral absorbance. UV-B dose estimates were made for the summer solstice, at a depth of 1 cm in each wetland. The mean dose across all wetlands and parks was 19.3 W-h m-2 (range of 3.4–32.1 W-h m-2). The mean dose was lowest in Acadia (13.7 W-h m-2) and highest in Rocky (24.4 W-h m-2). Doses were significantly different among all parks. These wetland doses correspond to UV-B flux of 125.0 µW cm-2 (range 21.4–194.7 µW cm)2) based on a day length, averaged among all parks, of 15.5 h. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC), a key determinant of water-column UV-B flux, ranged from 0.6 (analytical detection limit) to 36.7 mg C L-1 over all wetlands and parks, and reduced potential maximal UV-B doses at 1-cm depth by 1%–87 %. DOC concentration, as well as its effect on dose, was lowest in Sequoia and highest in Acadia (DOC was equivalent in Acadia, Glacier, and Rocky). Landscape reduction of potential maximal UV-B doses ranged from zero to 77% and was lowest in Sequoia. These regional differences in UV-B wetland dose illustrate the importance of considering all aspects of exposure in evaluating the potential impact of UV-B on aquatic organisms

Patterns of HIV-1 Protein Interaction Identify Perturbed Host-Cellular Subsystems

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) exploits a diverse array of host cell functions in order to replicate. This is mediated through a network of virus-host interactions. A variety of recent studies have catalogued this information. In particular the HIV-1, Human Protein Interaction Database (HHPID) has provided a unique depth of protein interaction detail. However, as a map of HIV-1 infection, the HHPID is problematic, as it contains curation error and redundancy; in addition, it is based on a heterogeneous set of experimental methods. Based on identifying shared patterns of HIV-host interaction, we have developed a novel methodology to delimit the core set of host-cellular functions and their associated perturbation from the HHPID. Initially, using biclustering, we identify 279 significant sets of host proteins that undergo the same types of interaction. The functional cohesiveness of these protein sets was validated using a human protein-protein interaction network, gene ontology annotation and sequence similarity. Next, using a distance measure, we group host protein sets and identify 37 distinct higher-level subsystems. We further demonstrate the biological significance of these subsystems by cross-referencing with global siRNA screens that have been used to detect host factors necessary for HIV-1 replication, and investigate the seemingly small intersect between these data sets. Our results highlight significant host-cell subsystems that are perturbed during the course of HIV-1 infection. Moreover, we characterise the patterns of interaction that contribute to these perturbations. Thus, our work disentangles the complex set of HIV-1-host protein interactions in the HHPID, reconciles these with siRNA screens and provides an accessible and interpretable map of infection

RANTES/CCL5 and risk for coronary events: Results from the MONICA/KORA Augsburg case-cohort, Athero-express and CARDIoGRAM studies

Background: The chemokine RANTES (regulated on activation, normal T-cell expressed and secreted)/CCL5 is involved in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease in mice, whereas less is known in humans. We hypothesised that its relevance for atherosclerosis should be reflected by associations between CCL5 gene variants, RANTES serum concentrations and protein levels in atherosclerotic plaques and risk for coronary events. Methods and Findings: We conducted a case-cohort study within the population-based MONICA/KORA Augsburg studies. Baseline RANTES serum levels were measured in 363 individuals with incident coronary events and 1,908 non-cases (mean follow-up: 10.2±

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure