720 research outputs found
Microwave burst with fine spectral structures in a solar flare on 2011 August 9
On August 9, 2011, there was an X6.9 flare event occurred near the west limb
of solar disk. From the observation obtained by the spectrometer of the Chinese
Solar Broadband Radio Spectrometer in Huairou (SBRS/Huairou) around the flare,
we find that this powerful flare has only a short-duration microwave burst of
about only 5 minutes, and during the short-duration microwave burst, there are
several kinds of fine structures on the spectrogram. These fine structures
include very short-period pulsations, millisecond spike bursts, and type III
bursts. The most interesting is that almost all of the pulses of very
short-period pulsation (VSP) are structured by clusters of millisecond
timescales of spike bursts or type III bursts. And there exists three different
kinds of frequency drift rates in the VSP: the frequency drift rates with
absolute value of about 55 - 130 MHz s^{-1} in the pulse groups, the frequency
drift rates with absolute value of about 2.91 - 16.9 GHz s^{-1} on each
individual pulse, and the frequency drift rates with absolute value of about 15
- 25 GHz s) at each individual spike burst or type III burst.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Development of an e-business selection framework for manufacturing SMEs : a study of the printing industry
The aim of the research is to develop an e-business selection framework for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by integrating established techniques in planning. The research is case based, comprising four case studies carried out in the printing industry for the purpose of evaluating the framework. Two of the companies are from Singapore, while the other two are from Guangzhou, China and Jinan, China respectively. To determine the need of an e-business selection framework for SMEs, extensive literature reviews were carried out in the area of e-business, business planning frameworks, SMEs and the printing industry. An e-business selection framework is then proposed by integrating the three established techniques of the Balanced Scorecard (BSC), Value Chain Analysis (VCA) and Quality Function Deployment (QFD). The newly developed selection framework is pilot tested using a published case study before actual evaluation is carried out in four case study companies. The case study methodology was chosen because of its ability to integrate diverse data collection techniques required to generate the BSC, VCA and QFD for the selection framework. The findings of the case studies revealed that the three techniques of BSC, VCA and QFD can be integrated seamlessly to complement on each other’s strengths in e-business planning. The eight-step methodology of the selection framework can provide SMEs with a step-by-step approach to e-business through structured planning. Also, the project has also provided better understanding and deeper insights into SMEs in the printing industry
Automated mechanism design for B2B e-commerce models
Business-to-business electronic marketplaces (B2B
e-Marketplaces) have been in the limelight since 1999 with the
commercialisation of the Internet and subsequent “dot.com”
boom [1]. Literature is indicative of the growth of the B2B
sectors in all industries, and B2B e-Marketplace is one of the
sectors that have witnessed a rapid increase. Consequently, the
importance of developing the B2B e-Commerce Model for
improved value chain in B2B exchanges is extremely important
for SMEs to expose to the world marketplace. There are three
research objectives (ROs) in this study; first (RO1) to critical
review the concepts of the B2B e-Marketplace including their
technologies, operations, business relationships and
functionalities; second (RO2) to design an automated
mechanism of B2B e-Marketplace for Small to Medium Sized
Enterprises (SMEs); and third (RO3) to propose a conceptual
B2B e-Commerce model for SMEs. The proposed model is
constructed by the analytical findings obtained from the
contemporary B2B e-Marketplace literature
Reversed Drifting Quasi-periodic Pulsating Structure in an X1.3 Solar Flare on 2005 July 30
Based on the analysis of the microwave observations at frequency of 2.60 --
3.80 GHz in a solar X1.3 flare event observed at Solar Broadband
RadioSpectrometer in Huairou (SBRS/Huairou) on 2005 July 30, an interesting
reversed drifting quasi-periodic pulsating structure (R-DPS) is confirmed. The
R-DPS is mainly composed of two drifting pulsating components: one is a
relatively slow very short-period pulsation (VSP) with period of about 130 --
170 ms, the other is a relatively fast VSP with period of about 70 -- 80 ms.
The R-DPS has a weak left-handed circular polarization. Based on the synthetic
investigations of Reuven Ramaty High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imaging
(RHESSI) hard X-ray, Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)
soft X-ray observation, and magnetic field extrapolation, we suggest the R-DPS
possibly reflects flaring dynamic processes of the emission source regions
From large-scale loops to the sites of dense flaring loops: Preferential conditions for long-period pulsations in solar flares
Copyright © 2010 American Astronomical Society / IOP PublishingLong-period quasi-periodic pulsations (QPPs) of solar flares are a class apart from shorter period events. By involving an external resonator, the mechanism they call upon differs from traditional QPP models, but has wider applications. We present a multi-wavelength analysis of spatially resolved QPPs, with periods around 10 minutes, observed in the X-ray spectrum primarily at energies between 3 and 25 keV. Complementary observations obtained in Hα and radio emission in the kHz to GHz frequency range, together with an analysis of the X-ray plasma properties provide a comprehensive picture that is consistent with a dense flaring loop subject to periodic energization and thermalization. The QPPs obtained in Hα and type III radio bursts, with similar periods as the QPPs in soft X-rays, have the longest periods ever reported for those types of data sets. We also report 1-2 GHz radio emission, concurrent with but unrestricted to the QPP time intervals, which is multi-structured at regularly separated narrowband frequencies and modulated with ~18 minute periods. This radio emission can be attributed to the presence of multiple "quiet" large-scale loops in the background corona. Large scale but shorter inner loops below may act as preferential resonators for the QPPs. The observations support interpretations consistent with both inner and outer loops subject to fast kink magnetohydrodynamic waves. Finally, X-ray imaging indicates the presence of double coronal sources in the flaring sites, which could be the particular signatures of the magnetically linked inner loops. We discuss the preferential conditions and the driving mechanisms causing the repeated flaring
Can patterns of everyday consumption indicate lifestyles? A secondary analysis of expenditures for fast moving goods and their social contexts
Ausgangspunkt der vorliegenden Studie bildet die Frage, ob sich Einkaufsformen beim täglichen Verbrauch als grundlegende Indikatoren von Lebensstilen erweisen. Datengrundlage bildet eine Sekundäranalyse von Panel-Daten zum Konsum schnelllebiger Waren, die vom weltweiten Marktforschungsunternehmen GfK im Jahr 1995 erhoben worden sind. Es wird zunächst eine Reihe von Hypothesen aufgestellt und die zugrunde gelegten Daten und die Stichprobe erläutert. Im Hauptteil der Studie werden 15 vollständige Cluster des Kaufverhaltens von Waren aus den Bereichen Nahrungsmittel, Getränke und Hygiene-Artikel untersucht und mit ausgewählten sozialen Indikatoren, wie z.B. sozialer Status, Mentalität und Umweltbewusstsein in Beziehung gesetzt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass selbst der Kauf von schnelllebigen Konsumgütern in breitere Lebensstile eingebettet ist und auch im Zeitverlauf relativ konstant bleibt. (ICI
Observation of Quantum Asymmetry in an Aharonov-Bohm Ring
We have investigated the Aharonov-Bohm effect in a one-dimensional
GaAs/GaAlAs ring at low magnetic fields. The oscillatory magnetoconductance of
these systems are for the first time systematically studied as a function of
density. We observe phase-shifts of in the magnetoconductance
oscillations, and halving of the fundamental period, as the density is
varied. Theoretically we find agreement with the experiment, by introducing an
asymmetry between the two arms of the ring.Comment: 4 pages RevTex including 3 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Chiral Algebras of (0,2) Sigma Models: Beyond Perturbation Theory
We explore the nonperturbative aspects of the chiral algebras of N = (0,2)
sigma models, which perturbatively are intimately related to the theory of
chiral differential operators (CDOs). The grading by charge and scaling
dimension is anomalous if the first Chern class of the target space is nonzero.
This has some nontrivial consequences for the chiral algebra. As an example, we
study the case where the target space is CP^1, and show that worldsheet
instantons trivialize the chiral algebra entirely. Consequently, supersymmetry
is spontaneously broken in this model. We then turn to a closer look at the
supersymmetry breaking from the viewpoint of Morse theory on loop space. We
find that instantons interpolate between pairs of perturbative supersymmetric
states with different fermionic numbers, hence lifting them out of the
supersymmetric spectrum. Our results reveal that a "quantum" deformation of the
geometry of the target space leads to a trivialization of the kernels of
certain twisted Dirac operators on CP^1.Comment: 38 pages. Minor changes to Section 2.3 and corrections to Section
4.2. Final results unchanged. Typos correcte
The phase relation between sunspot numbers and soft X-ray flares
To better understand long-term flare activity, we present a statistical study
on soft X-ray flares from May 1976 to May 2008. It is found that the smoothed
monthly peak fluxes of C-class, M-class, and X-class flares have a very
noticeable time lag of 13, 8, and 8 months in cycle 21 respectively with
respect to the smoothed monthly sunspot numbers. There is no time lag between
the sunspot numbers and M-class flares in cycle 22. However, there is a
one-month time lag for C-class flares and a one-month time lead for X-class
flares with regard to sunspot numbers in cycle 22. For cycle 23, the smoothed
monthly peak fluxes of C-class, M-class, and X-class flares have a very
noticeable time lag of one month, 5 months, and 21 months respectively with
respect to sunspot numbers. If we take the three types of flares together, the
smoothed monthly peak fluxes of soft X-ray flares have a time lag of 9 months
in cycle 21, no time lag in cycle 22 and a characteristic time lag of 5 months
in cycle 23 with respect to the smoothed monthly sunspot numbers. Furthermore,
the correlation coefficients of the smoothed monthly peak fluxes of M-class and
X-class flares and the smoothed monthly sunspot numbers are higher in cycle 22
than those in cycles 21 and 23. The correlation coefficients between the three
kinds of soft X-ray flares in cycle 22 are higher than those in cycles 21 and
23. These findings may be instructive in predicting C-class, M-class, and
X-class flares regarding sunspot numbers in the next cycle and the physical
processes of energy storage and dissipation in the corona.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space
Scienc
Tomato: a crop species amenable to improvement by cellular and molecular methods
Tomato is a crop plant with a relatively small DNA content per haploid genome and a well developed genetics. Plant regeneration from explants and protoplasts is feasable which led to the development of efficient transformation procedures.
In view of the current data, the isolation of useful mutants at the cellular level probably will be of limited value in the genetic improvement of tomato. Protoplast fusion may lead to novel combinations of organelle and nuclear DNA (cybrids), whereas this technique also provides a means of introducing genetic information from alien species into tomato. Important developments have come from molecular approaches. Following the construction of an RFLP map, these RFLP markers can be used in tomato to tag quantitative traits bred in from related species. Both RFLP's and transposons are in the process of being used to clone desired genes for which no gene products are known. Cloned genes can be introduced and potentially improve specific properties of tomato especially those controlled by single genes. Recent results suggest that, in principle, phenotypic mutants can be created for cloned and characterized genes and will prove their value in further improving the cultivated tomato.
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