Runaway stars: their impact on the intestellar medium

Runaway, massive stars are not among the most numerous. However, the bow shocks built by their supersonic movement in the interstellar medium have been detected in the infrared range in many cases. Most recently, the stellar bow shocks have been proposed as particle acceleration sites, as radio data analysis at high angular resolution have shown. We present results of different manifestations of the stellar bowshock phenomenon, revealed from modern IR databases.Las estrellas masivas fugitivas no son de las más numerosas. Sin embargo, los bowshocks formados debido a su movimiento supersónico en el medio interestelar han sido detectados en el rango infrarrojo en muchos casos. Muy recientemente, estos bowshocks estelares fueron propuestos como sitios de aceleración de partículas, como lo sugiere el análisis de datos de alta resolución angular a bajas frecuencias de radio. Se presentan aquí resultados de distintas manifestaciones relacionadas con bowshocks estelares, revelados a partir de las bases de datos IR más modernas.Fil: Benaglia, Paula. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto Argentino de Radioastronomía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto Argentino de Radioastronomía; ArgentinaFil: Stevens, I. R.. University Of Birmingham; Reino UnidoFil: Peri, Cintia Soledad. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Instituto Argentino de Radioastronomía. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto Argentino de Radioastronomía; ArgentinaReunion Anual de la Asociacion Argentina de AstronomiaMar del PlataArgentinaInstituto Argentino de Radioastronomí

Development of Transgenic North American White Ash (Fraxinus americana) Expressing a Bacillus thuringiensis Protein for Management of the Emerald Ash Borer

White ash (WA), Fraxinus americana, is an integral part of the hardwood forest ecosystem. Economically, WA provides wood for important products such as baseball bats, tool handles, and hardwood flooring. Ecologically WA provides cover and mast to support wildlife. The emerald ash borer (EAB) is a significant threat to all ash species because of a lack of native resistance in North American ash trees, its rapid spread, and the ineffectiveness and expense of control measures. EAB is a non-native beetle that consumes tree vascular tissue while in the larval stage. The development of an Agrobacterium-mediated transformation protocol may impart systemic resistance to EAB via the Cry8Da toxic protein, which is lethal to EAB larvae and naturally found in Bacillus thuringiensis SDS-502. Development of a transformation system for WA will allow this gene or others imparting resistance to be successfully incorporated into the WA genome. Embryos were extracted, transformed, and cultured on a selection-regeneration medium, killing any non-transgenic tissues while allowing for transgenic shoot formation. Transformed hypocotyls will be further cultured on a selection-elongation medium to allow for shoot development, after which shoots will be rooted and acclimatized to greenhouse conditions. Additional confirmation of transgenic plants will be conducted through quantitative measurements of the FLAG protein, polymerase chain reaction, and finally a feeding assay performed with EAB larvae. WA hypocotyls regenerated shoots after transformation at a 27.8% efficiency rate. The transformed hypocotyls received 6 weeks of exposure to kanamycin in the selection medium, allowing for positive results within the scope of this project. This protocol can be used to further genetically modify F. americana, allowing for preservation of this ecologically and economically important species

Management of complex symptoms in multiple sclerosis (MS)

People with MS can present with a complex range of symptoms. Some of these include dysautonomia (autonomic dysfunction), fatigue, cognitive impairment, and mood disorders. These symptoms must be managed in order to optimise intervention outcomes

Speech Communication

Contains reports on four research projects.U. S. Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories under Contract F19628-69-C-0044National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 RO1 NS 04332-08

Speech Communication

Contains reports on three research projects.U. S. Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories, Office of Aerospace Research under Contract F19628-69-C-0044National Institutes of Health (Grant 2 ROl NB-04332-06

Co-liquefaction of wastes and coal mixtures to produce added value liquid compounds

ABSTRACT: Nowadays there is an increasing need to find alternative fuels to reduce the dependency on imported ones and to decrease the negative environmental impact of wastes accumulation. Plastics are an important components of urban biowaste, thus their conversion into liquid fuels, in mixtures with other solid fuels still remains an important research goal. After the large experience obtained from coal gasification, it was found that co-liquefaction of coal and wastes may be a good solution to produce liquid fuels and raw materials for several industries. Co-liquefaction of coal blended with biomass gave unfavourable results, but co-liquefaction of coal mixed with PE (polyethylene) wastes led to encouraging results. The results obtained showed that the rise of PE content in coal blends led to an increase in liquid yield. As the main objective was the formation of liquid products, the mixture of coal with 50 wt% of PE was selected, as substantial total liquid yields were obtained, while using significant coal content. This blend was used to study the effect of initial hydrogen pressure, reaction temperature and time on products yields, using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) approach. Liquid yields were most affected by reaction temperature and pressure. The rise of temperature decreased liquid yields, while pressure had a positive effect, but the interaction between these two parameters showed a negative influence. Theoretical equations were used to calculate total and direct liquids yield (%daf). Total liquids are the sum of the liquids directly recovered from the autoclave (direct liquids) and the liquids extracted from the solid product. Both the theoretical model and the experimental results showed that the highest total liquids yields were obtained at 380 ºC, 1.4 MPa and 90 minutes.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

E-BOSS: an Extensive stellar BOw Shock Survey : I. Methods and first catalogue

Context. Bow shocks are produced by many astrophysical objects where shock waves are present. Stellar bow shocks, generated by runaway stars, have been previously detected in small numbers and well-studied. Along with progress in model development and improvements in observing instruments, our knowledge of the emission produced by these objects and its origin can now be more clearly understood. Aims. We produce a stellar bow-shock catalogue by applying uniform search criteria and a systematic search process. This catalogue is a starting point for statistical studies, to help us address fundamental questions such as, for instance, the conditions under wich a stellar bow shock is detectable. Methods. By using the newest infrared data releases, we carried out a search for bow shocks produced by early-type runaway stars. We first explored whether a set of known IRAS bow shock candidates are visible in the most recently available IR data, which has much higher resolution and sensitivity. We then carried out a selection of runaway stars from the latest, large runaway catalogue available. In this first release, we focused on OB stars and searched for bow-shaped features in the vicinity of these stars. Results. We provide a bow-shock candidate survey that gathers a total of 28 members, which we call the Extensive stellar BOw Shock Survey (E-BOSS). We derive the main bow-shock parameters, and present some preliminary statistical results on the detected objects. Conclusions. Our analysis of the initial sample and the newly detected objects yields a bow-shock detectability around OB stars of ∼10 per cent. The detections do not seem to depend particularly on either stellar mass, age or position. The extension of the E-BOSS sample, with upcoming IR data, and by considering, for example, other spectral types as well, will allow us to perform a more detailed study of the findings.Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y GeofísicasInstituto Argentino de Radioastronomí

Speech Communication

Contains research objectives and reports on three research projects.U. S. Air Force (Electronic Systems Division) under Contract AF19(628)-5661National Institutes of Health (Grant 5 RO1 NB-04332-04

Speech Communication

Contains research objectives and reports on four research projects.U.S. Air Force (Electronic Systems Division) under Contract AF 19(628)-3325National Institutes of Health (Grant NB-04332-03

Applicant Selection to a Regional Medical Training Program: A Structural Analysis of Interviewer Assessments

Introduction: For regional campuses with specific program foci, assessing applicant fit necessarily extends beyond academic and professional factors. Based on assessments of applicants to a regional Rural Physician Leadership Program (RPLP), this study explores the relationship of academic and socio-demographic factors with interviewers’ ratings of: (1) likelihood of eventually practicing in a rural area of the state; and (2) overall acceptability to medical school. Methods: The study population consisted of 163 first-time RPLP applicants interviewed independently from 2009-2016 by two faculty members at both main and regional medical campuses. Path analysis was used to calculate direct, indirect, and total effects of applicants’ socio-demographic and academic characteristics on interviewers’ composite ratings. This study protocol (#17-0198-X3B) was approved as exempt by the governing Institutional Review Board; the authors report no conflicts of interest. Results: The combined influence of being an in-state resident with rural Appalachian origins, combined with undergraduate GPA, explained 40.7% of the variance in applicants’ predicted likelihood of practicing in rural Kentucky. In terms of applicant acceptability, the strongest direct effects were exerted by academic factors, GPA and total MCAT score, and the sole preceding endogenous variable: likelihood of rural in-state practice. However, two other background factors were modestly but significantly directly associated with overall acceptability: (1) age; and (2) residence. Specifying likelihood of rural practice as an intervening variable explained 42.5% of the variance in applicant acceptability and provided a good fit to the sample data (X2 = 3.19, df = 4, p = .526, CFI = 1.000, RLI = 1.018, RMSEA = .000). Conclusions: Interviewers appear to be assessing programmatic, mission-specific “fit” within the broader context of applicants’ abilities to navigate a demanding professional training curriculum. Future research should examine graduates’ eventual practice locations and intermediate academic performance as empirical validity of faculty interviewers’ assessments. Similarly, pre-professional pipeline efforts should better coordinate with training programs to provide consistent opportunities to nurture interest in mission-specific outcomes