Irreversible energy flow in forced Vlasov dynamics

A recent paper [Phys. Plasmas 20, 032304 (2013)] considered the forced linear Vlasov equation as a model for the quasi-steady state of a single stable plasma wavenumber interacting with a bath of turbulent fluctuations. This approach gives some insight into possible energy flows without solving for nonlinear dynamics. The central result of the present work is that the forced linear Vlasov equation exhibits asymptotically zero (irreversible) dissipation to all orders under a detuning of the forcing frequency and the characteristic frequency associated with particle streaming. We first prove this by direct calculation, tracking energy flow in terms of certain exact conservation laws of the linear (collisionless) Vlasov equation. Then we analyze the steady-state solutions in detail using a weakly collisional Hermite-moment formulation, and compare with numerical solution. This leads to a detailed description of the Hermite energy spectrum, and a proof of no dissipation at all orders, complementing the collisionless Vlasov result.Comment: Small changes for clarit

Recent trends in US patent grants and issues to be considered

The life sciences have changed radically since the Convention on Biological Diversity first opened for signatures in 1992. Traditional organism-based approaches to discovery and use of genetic resources have been supplanted by molecular approaches. Biodiversity prospecting is more likely to be a programmatic bioinformatics activity rather than an activity conducted by field scientists. Access to genetic resources is no longer centered on a hunt for novel species. Rather, the hunt is for novel genes and metabolic pathways that can be cloned into well-understood expression systems and readily scaled-up for industrial production. Information about contemporary research, development, and manufacturing practices needs to be addressed, especially when those genes do not need to be associated with their native host at the time of discovery. Information about the research organizations participating in all phases of the discovery and development process also needs to be considered, especially when it involves partnerships between academic and industrial organizations. 

We present a high-level view of recent trends in the issuance of US patent grants to commercial and non-commercial research organizations, and introduce a technology that is already in place which can be applied to monitoring the use of genetic materials by various stakeholders in an open and transparent manner, as intended under the International Regime for Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS).
&#xa

Habitats and Spider Prey of \u3ci\u3eDipogon Sayi Sayi\u3c/i\u3e (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) in Washington County, Maine

Spider wasps were reared from three types of trap-nests deployed in strip-clearcut areas of a spruce-fir-mixed hardwood forest of Maine. Collections of Dipogon sayi sayi from Mooseborn National Wildlife Refuge, Washington County, represent the easternmost records for the United States. Spider prey included females of Misumena vatia, Xysticus emertoni (new prey record), and X. punctatus, and juveniles and penultimate males of Xysticus sp. We found no evidence of nest-site competition between spider wasps and eumenid wasps (Hymenoptera: Eumenidae) that prey on spruce budwornl, Choristoneura fumiferana, when available nesting sites ranged from 320 to 4400

The Apollo Auxiliary Power Supply System, Project Apollo

No abstract availabl