901 research outputs found
Real Time Global Tests of the ALICE High Level Trigger Data Transport Framework
The High Level Trigger (HLT) system of the ALICE experiment is an online
event filter and trigger system designed for input bandwidths of up to 25 GB/s
at event rates of up to 1 kHz. The system is designed as a scalable PC cluster,
implementing several hundred nodes. The transport of data in the system is
handled by an object-oriented data flow framework operating on the basis of the
publisher-subscriber principle, being designed fully pipelined with lowest
processing overhead and communication latency in the cluster. In this paper, we
report the latest measurements where this framework has been operated on five
different sites over a global north-south link extending more than 10,000 km,
processing a ``real-time'' data flow.Comment: 8 pages 4 figure
On RAF Sets and Autocatalytic Cycles in Random Reaction Networks
The emergence of autocatalytic sets of molecules seems to have played an
important role in the origin of life context. Although the possibility to
reproduce this emergence in laboratory has received considerable attention,
this is still far from being achieved. In order to unravel some key properties
enabling the emergence of structures potentially able to sustain their own
existence and growth, in this work we investigate the probability to observe
them in ensembles of random catalytic reaction networks characterized by
different structural properties. From the point of view of network topology, an
autocatalytic set have been defined either in term of strongly connected
components (SCCs) or as reflexively autocatalytic and food-generated sets
(RAFs). We observe that the average level of catalysis differently affects the
probability to observe a SCC or a RAF, highlighting the existence of a region
where the former can be observed, whereas the latter cannot. This parameter
also affects the composition of the RAF, which can be further characterized
into linear structures, autocatalysis or SCCs. Interestingly, we show that the
different network topology (uniform as opposed to power-law catalysis systems)
does not have a significantly divergent impact on SCCs and RAFs appearance,
whereas the proportion between cleavages and condensations seems instead to
play a role. A major factor that limits the probability of RAF appearance and
that may explain some of the difficulties encountered in laboratory seems to be
the presence of molecules which can accumulate without being substrate or
catalyst of any reaction.Comment: pp 113-12
Dogs as carriers of virulent and resistant genotypes of Clostridioides difficile
While previous research on zoonotic transmission of community-acquired Clostridioides difficile infection (CA-CDI) focused on food-producing animals, the present study aimed to investigate whether dogs are carriers of resistant and/or virulent C. difficile strains. Rectal swabs were collected from 323 dogs and 38 C. difficile isolates (11.8%) were obtained. Isolates were characterized by antimicrobial susceptibility testing, whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and a DNA hybridization assay. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST), core genome MLST (cgMLST) and screening for virulence and antimicrobial resistance genes were performed based on WGS. Minimum inhibitory concentrations for erythromycin, clindamycin, tetracycline, vancomycin and metronidazole were determined by E-test. Out of 38 C. difficile isolates, 28 (73.7%) carried genes for toxins. The majority of isolates belonged to MLST sequence types (STs) of clade I and one to clade V. Several isolates belonged to STs previously associated with human CA-CDI. However, cgMLST showed low genetic relatedness between the isolates of this study and C. difficile strains isolated from humans in Austria for which genome sequences were publicly available. Four isolates (10.5%) displayed resistance to three of the tested antimicrobial agents. Isolates exhibited resistance to erythromycin, clindamycin, tetracycline and metronidazole. These phenotypic resistances were supported by the presence of the resistance genes erm(B), cfr(C) and tet(M). All isolates were susceptible to vancomycin. Our results indicate that dogs may carry virulent and antimicrobial-resistant C. difficile strains
THE CC1 PROJECT – SYSTEM FOR PRIVATE CLOUD COMPUTING
The main features of the Cloud Computing system developed at IFJ PAN are described. The project is financed from the structural resources provided by the European Commission and the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education (Innovative Economy, National Cohesion Strategy). The system delivers a solution for carrying out computer calculations on a Private Cloud computing infrastructure. It consists of an intuitive Web based user interface, a module for the users and resources administration and the standard EC2 interface implementation. Thanks to the distributed character of the system it allows for the integration of a geographically distant federation of computer clusters within a uniform user environment
Quantitative analysis of powder mixtures by raman spectrometry : the influence of particle size and its correction
Particle size distribution and compactness have significant confounding effects on Raman signals of powder mixtures, which cannot be effectively modeled or corrected by traditional multivariate linear calibration methods such as partial least-squares (PLS), and therefore greatly deteriorate the predictive abilities of Raman calibration models for powder mixtures. The ability to obtain directly quantitative information from Raman signals of powder mixtures with varying particle size distribution and compactness is, therefore, of considerable interest In this study, an advanced quantitative Raman calibration model was developed to explicitly account for the confounding effects of particle size distribution and compactness on Raman signals of powder mixtures. Under the theoretical guidance of the proposed Raman calibration model, an advanced dual calibration strategy was adopted to separate the Raman contributions caused by the changes in mass fractions of the constituents in powder mixtures from those induced by the variations in the physical properties of samples, and hence achieve accurate quantitative determination for powder mixture samples. The proposed Raman calibration model was applied to the quantitative analysis of backscatter Raman measurements of a proof-of-concept model system of powder mixtures consisting of barium nitrate and potassium chromate. The average relative prediction error of prediction obtained by the proposed Raman calibration model was less than one-third of the corresponding value of the best performing PLS model for mass fractions of barium nitrate in powder mixtures with variations in particle size distribution, as well as compactness
Overturning established chemoselectivities : selective reduction of arenes over malonates and cyanoacetates by photoactivated organic electron donors
The prevalence of metal-based reducing reagents, including metals, metal complexes, and metal salts, has produced an empirical order of reactivity that governs our approach to chemical synthesis. However, this reactivity may be influenced by stabilization of transition states, intermediates, and products through substrate-metal bonding. This article reports that in the absence of such stabilizing interactions, established chemoselectivities can be overthrown. Thus, photoactivation of the recently developed neutral organic superelectron donor 5 selectively reduces alkyl-substituted benzene rings in the presence of activated esters and nitriles, in direct contrast to metal-based reductions, opening a new perspective on reactivity. The altered outcomes arising from the organic electron donors are attributed to selective interactions between the neutral organic donors and the arene rings of the substrates
System Size, Energy and Centrality Dependence of Pseudorapidity Distributions of Charged Particles in Relativistic Heavy Ion Collisions
We present the first measurements of the pseudorapidity distribution of
primary charged particles in Cu+Cu collisions as a function of collision
centrality and energy, \sqrtsnn = 22.4, 62.4 and 200 GeV, over a wide range of
pseudorapidity, using the PHOBOS detector. Making a global comparison of Cu+Cu
and Au+Au results, we find that the total number of produced charged particles
and the rough shape (height and width) of the pseudorapidity distributions are
determined by the number of nucleon participants. More detailed studies reveal
that a more precise matching of the shape of the Cu+Cu and Au+Au pseudorapidity
distributions over the full range of pseudorapidity occurs for the same
Npart/2A value rather than the same Npart value. In other words, it is the
collision geometry rather than just the number of nucleon participants that
drives the detailed shape of the pseudorapidity distribution and its centrality
dependence at RHIC energies.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review Letter
System size and centrality dependence of charged hadron transverse momentum spectra in Au+Au and Cu+Cu collisions at sqrt(s) = 62.4 and 200 GeV
We present transverse momentum distributions of charged hadrons produced in
Cu+Cu collisions at sqrt(s) = 62.4 and 200 GeV. The spectra are measured for
transverse momenta of 0.25 < p_T < 5.0 GeV/c at sqrt(s) = 62.4 GeV and 0.25 <
p_T < 7.0 GeV/c at sqrt(s) = 200 GeV, in a pseudo-rapidity range of 0.2 < eta <
1.4. The nuclear modification factor R_AA is calculated relative to p+p data at
both collision energies as a function of collision centrality. At a given
collision energy and fractional cross-section, R_AA is observed to be
systematically larger in Cu+Cu collisions compared to Au+Au. However, for the
same number of participating nucleons, R_AA is essentially the same in both
systems over the measured range of p_T, in spite of the significantly different
geometries of the Cu+Cu and Au+Au systems.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
System Size, Energy, Pseudorapidity, and Centrality Dependence of Elliptic Flow
This paper presents measurements of the elliptic flow of charged particles as
a function of pseudorapidity and centrality from Cu-Cu collisions at 62.4 and
200 GeV using the PHOBOS detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider
(RHIC). The elliptic flow in Cu-Cu collisions is found to be significant even
for the most central events. For comparison with the Au-Au results, it is found
that the detailed way in which the collision geometry (eccentricity) is
estimated is of critical importance when scaling out system-size effects. A new
form of eccentricity, called the participant eccentricity, is introduced which
yields a scaled elliptic flow in the Cu-Cu system that has the same relative
magnitude and qualitative features as that in the Au-Au system
Identified charged antiparticle to particle ratios near midrapidity in Cu+Cu collisions at sqrt(s) = 62.4 and 200 GeV
Antiparticle to particle ratios for identified protons, kaons and pions at
sqrt(s) = 62.4 and 200 GeV in Cu+Cu collisions are presented as a function of
centrality for the midrapidity region of 0.2 < eta < 1.4. No strong dependence
on centrality is observed. For the / ratio at ~ 0.51 GeV/c, we
observe an average value of 0.50 +/- 0.003_(stat) +/- 0.04_(syst) and 0.77 +/-
0.008_(stat) +/- 0.05_(syst) for the 10% most central collisions of 62.4 and
200 GeV Cu+Cu, respectively. The values for all three particle species measured
at sqrt(s) = 200 GeV are in agreement within systematic uncertainties with that
seen in both heavier and lighter systems measured at the same RHIC energy. This
indicates that system size does not appear to play a strong role in determining
the midrapidity chemical freeze-out properties affecting the antiparticle to
particle ratios of the three most abundant particle species produced in these
collisions.Comment: 5 Pages, 4 figures Made changes to the figures to include the panel
numbers. Slight changes to the text. Updated data points from other
experiment
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