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New Young Star Candidates in BRC 27 and BRC 34

We used archival Spitzer Space Telescope mid-infrared data to search for young stellar objects (YSOs) in the immediate vicinity of two bright-rimmed clouds, BRC 27 (part of CMa R1) and BRC 34 (part of the IC 1396 complex). These regions both appear to be actively forming young stars, perhaps triggered by the proximate OB stars. In BRC 27, we find clear infrared excesses around 22 of the 26 YSOs or YSO candidates identified in the literature, and identify 16 new YSO candidates that appear to have IR excesses. In BRC 34, the one literature-identified YSO has an IR excess, and we suggest 13 new YSO candidates in this region, including a new Class I object. Considering the entire ensemble, both BRCs are likely of comparable ages, within the uncertainties of small number statistics and without spectroscopy to confirm or refute the YSO candidates. Similarly, no clear conclusions can yet be drawn about any possible age gradients that may be present across the BRCs.Comment: 54 pages, 19 figures, accepted by A

Retrieval of Salt Marsh Above-ground Biomass From High-spatial Resolution Hyperspectral Imagery Using PROSAIL

Salt marsh vegetation density varies considerably on short spatial scales, complicating attempts to evaluate plant characteristics using airborne remote sensing approaches. In this study, we used a mast-mounted hyperspectral imaging system to obtain cm-scale imagery of a salt marsh chronosequence on Hog Island, VA, where the morphology and biomass of the dominant plant species, Spartina alterniflora, varies widely. The high-resolution hyperspectral imagery allowed the detailed delineation of variations in above-ground biomass, which we retrieved from the imagery using the PROSAIL radiative transfer model. The retrieved biomass estimates correlated well with contemporaneously collected in situ biomass ground truth data ( R2=0.73 ). In this study, we also rescaled our hyperspectral imagery and retrieved PROSAIL salt marsh biomass to determine the applicability of the method across spatial scales. Histograms of retrieved biomass changed considerably in characteristic marsh regions as the spatial scale of the imagery was progressively degraded. This rescaling revealed a loss of spatial detail and a shift in the mean retrieved biomass. This shift is indicative of the loss of accuracy that may occur when scaling up through a simple averaging approach that does not account for the detail found in the landscape at the natural scale of variation of the salt marsh system. This illustrated the importance of developing methodologies to appropriately scale results from very fine scale resolution up to the more coarse-scale resolutions commonly obtained in airborne and satellite remote sensing

The HADES Tracking System

The tracking system of the dielectron spectrometer HADES at GSI Darmstadt is formed out of 24 low-mass, trapezoidal multi-layer drift chambers providing in total about 30 square meter of active area. Low multiple scattering in the in total four planes of drift chambers before and after the magnetic field is ensured by using helium-based gas mixtures and aluminum cathode and field wires. First in-beam performance results are contrasted with expectations from simulations. Emphasis is placed on the energy loss information, exploring its relevance regarding track recognition.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, presented at the 10th Vienna Conference on Instrumentation, Vienna, February 2004, to be published in NIM A (special issue

Challenges in QCD matter physics --The scientific programme of the Compressed Baryonic Matter experiment at FAIR

Substantial experimental and theoretical efforts worldwide are devoted to explore the phase diagram of strongly interacting matter. At LHC and top RHIC energies, QCD matter is studied at very high temperatures and nearly vanishing net-baryon densities. There is evidence that a Quark-Gluon-Plasma (QGP) was created at experiments at RHIC and LHC. The transition from the QGP back to the hadron gas is found to be a smooth cross over. For larger net-baryon densities and lower temperatures, it is expected that the QCD phase diagram exhibits a rich structure, such as a first-order phase transition between hadronic and partonic matter which terminates in a critical point, or exotic phases like quarkyonic matter. The discovery of these landmarks would be a breakthrough in our understanding of the strong interaction and is therefore in the focus of various high-energy heavy-ion research programs. The Compressed Baryonic Matter (CBM) experiment at FAIR will play a unique role in the exploration of the QCD phase diagram in the region of high net-baryon densities, because it is designed to run at unprecedented interaction rates. High-rate operation is the key prerequisite for high-precision measurements of multi-differential observables and of rare diagnostic probes which are sensitive to the dense phase of the nuclear fireball. The goal of the CBM experiment at SIS100 (sNN= 2.7--4.9 GeV) is to discover fundamental properties of QCD matter: the phase structure at large baryon-chemical potentials (μB> 500 MeV), effects of chiral symmetry, and the equation of state at high density as it is expected to occur in the core of neutron stars. In this article, we review the motivation for and the physics programme of CBM, including activities before the start of data taking in 2024, in the context of the worldwide efforts to explore high-density QCD matter

Competing charge transfer pathways at the photosystem II-electrode interface.

The integration of the water-oxidation enzyme photosystem II (PSII) into electrodes allows the electrons extracted from water oxidation to be harnessed for enzyme characterization and to drive novel endergonic reactions. However, PSII continues to underperform in integrated photoelectrochemical systems despite extensive optimization efforts. Here we carried out protein-film photoelectrochemistry using spinach and Thermosynechococcus elongatus PSII, and we identified a competing charge transfer pathway at the enzyme-electrode interface that short-circuits the known water-oxidation pathway. This undesirable pathway occurs as a result of photo-induced O2 reduction occurring at the chlorophyll pigments and is promoted by the embedment of PSII in an electron-conducting fullerene matrix, a common strategy for enzyme immobilization. Anaerobicity helps to recover the PSII photoresponse and unmasks the onset potentials relating to the QA/QB charge transfer process. These findings impart a fuller understanding of the charge transfer pathways within PSII and at photosystem-electrode interfaces, which will lead to more rational design of pigment-containing photoelectrodes in general.This work was supported by the U.K. Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/H00338X/2 to E. Reisner), the U.K. Biology and Biotechnological Sciences Research Council (BB/K010220/1 to E. Reisner), a Marie Curie International Incoming Fellowship (PIIF-GA-2012-328085 RPSII to J.J.Z.). N.P. was supported by the Winton Fund for the Physics of Sustainability. E. Romero. and R.v.G. were supported by the VU University Amsterdam, the Laserlab-Europe Consortium, the TOP grant (700.58.305) from the Foundation of Chemical Sciences part of NWO, the Advanced Investigator grant (267333, PHOTPROT) from the European Research Council, and the EU FP7 project PAPETS (GA 323901). R.v.G. gratefully acknowledges his `Academy Professor' grant from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). We would also like to thank Miss Katharina Brinkert and Prof A. William Rutherford for a sample of T. elongatus PSII, and H. v. Roon for preparation of the spinach PSII samples

Resilience, redundancy and low-carbon living: co-producing individual and community learning

There is an acknowledged need for buildings and communities to be more resilient in the face of unpredictable effects of climate change, economic crises and energy supplies. The notion and social practices involving redundancy (the ability to switch between numerous available choices beyond optimal design) are explored as an aspect of resilience theory. Practice and Social Learning theories are used as a lens through which to explore the available redundancy in housing and home environments to help prevent performance failure through unexpected circumstances or in response to varying user needs. Findings from an in depth UK housing case study show how redundancy is linked with the capacity to share resources and to learn both individually and collectively as a community. Such learning in relation to resilient low-carbon living is shown to be co-produced effectively through participatory action research. The benefits of introducing extra redundancy in housing design and community development to accommodate varied user’s understanding and preferences are discussed in relation to future proofing, value and scalar issues. Recommendations include better understanding of the design, time and monetary contribution needed to implement social or technical redundancy. These costs should be evaluated in context of savings made through greater resilience achieved

The High-Acceptance Dielectron Spectrometer HADES

HADES is a versatile magnetic spectrometer aimed at studying dielectron production in pion, proton and heavy-ion induced collisions. Its main features include a ring imaging gas Cherenkov detector for electron-hadron discrimination, a tracking system consisting of a set of 6 superconducting coils producing a toroidal field and drift chambers and a multiplicity and electron trigger array for additional electron-hadron discrimination and event characterization. A two-stage trigger system enhances events containing electrons. The physics program is focused on the investigation of hadron properties in nuclei and in the hot and dense hadronic matter. The detector system is characterized by an 85% azimuthal coverage over a polar angle interval from 18 to 85 degree, a single electron efficiency of 50% and a vector meson mass resolution of 2.5%. Identification of pions, kaons and protons is achieved combining time-of-flight and energy loss measurements over a large momentum range. This paper describes the main features and the performance of the detector system

Communication, social capital and workplace health management as determinants of the innovative climate in German banks

The present study aims to measure the determinants of the innovative climate in German banks with a focus on workplace health management (WHM). We analyze the determinants of innovative climate with multiple regressions using a dataset based on standardized telephone interviews conducted with health promotion experts from 198 randomly selected German banks. The regression analysis provided a good explanation of the variance in the dependent variable (RA(2)A = 55%). Communication climate (beta = 0.55; p < 0.001), social capital (beta = 0.21; p < 0.01), the establishment of a WHM program (beta = 0.13; p < 0.05) as well as company size (beta = 0.15; p < 0.01) were found to have a significant impact on an organization's innovative climate. In order to foster an innovation-friendly climate, organizations should establish shared values. An active step in this direction involves strengthening the organizations' social capital and communication climate through trustworthy management decisions such as the implementation of a WHM program