860 research outputs found
Effects of publication bias on conservation planning
Conservation planning needs reliable information on spatial patterns of
biodiversity. However, existing data sets are skewed: some habitats, taxa, and
locations are under-represented. Here, we map geographic publication density at
the sub-national scale of individual 'provinces'. We query the Web of Science
catalogues SCI and SSCI for biodiversity-related publications including country
and province names (for the period 1993-2016). We combine these data with other
provincial-scale factors hypothesised to affect research (i.e. economic
development, human presence, infrastructure and remoteness). We show that sites
that appear to be understudied, compared with the biodiversity expected from
their bioclimatic conditions, are likely to have been inaccessible to
researchers for a diversity of reasons amongst which current or recent armed
conflicts are notable. Finally, we create a priority list of provinces where
geographic publication bias is of most concern, and discuss how our
provincial-scale model can assist in adjusting for publication biases in
conservation planning.Comment: 10 pages; 3 figures; 1 table;R code on
https://github.com/raffael-hickisch; data at
https://zenodo.org/record/998889; interactive at
http://bit.ly/publication_density_ma
Selective Analysis of Redox Processes at the Electrode Interface with Time-Resolved Raman Spectroscopy
Electrochemistry and electrochemical reactions are increasingly important in the transition to a sustainable chemical industry. The electron transfer that drives such reactions takes place within nanometers of the electrode surface, and follow-up chemical reactions take place within the diffusion layer. Hence, understanding electrochemical reactions requires time-, potential-, and spatially resolved analysis. The confocal nature of Raman spectroscopy provides high spatial resolution, in addition to detailed information on molecular structure. The intrinsic weakness of nonresonant Raman scattering, however, is not sensitive enough for relatively minor changes to the solution resulting from reactions at the electrode interface. Indeed, the limit of detection is typically well above the concentrations used in electrochemical studies. Here, we show that surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and resonance Raman (rR) spectroscopy allow for spatially and time-resolved analysis of solution composition at (<1-2 nm) and near (within 5 μm) the electrode surface, respectively, in a selective manner for species present at low (<1 mM) concentrations. We show changes in concentration of species at the electrode surface, without the need for labels, specific adsorption, or resonance enhancement, using a SERS-active gold electrode prepared readily by electrochemical surface roughening. A combination of smooth and roughened gold electrodes is used to distinguish between surface and resonance enhancement using the well-known redox couples ferrocene and 2,2’-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS). We discuss the impact of specific adsorption on the spectral analysis with the ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complex, [Ru(bpy)3]2+. The dual function of the electrode (surface enhancement and electron transfer) in the analysis of solution processes is demonstrated with the reversible oxidation of TMA (4,N,N-trimethylaniline), where transient soluble species are identified in real time, with rapid spectral acquisition, making use of localized enhancement. We anticipate that this approach will find use in elucidating electro(catalytic) reactions at electrode interfaces.</p
Distorted Copulas: Constructions and Tail Dependence
Given a copula C, we examine under which conditions on an order isomorphism ψ of [0, 1] the distortion C ψ: [0, 1]2 → [0, 1], C ψ(x, y) = ψ{C[ψ−1(x), ψ−1(y)]} is again a copula. In particular, when the copula C is totally positive of order 2, we give a sufficient condition on ψ that ensures that any distortion of C by means of ψ is again a copula. The presented results allow us to introduce in a more flexible way families of copulas exhibiting different behavior in the tails
Strain localization and percolation of stable structure in amorphous solids
Spontaneous strain localization occurs during mechanical tests of a model
amorphous solid simulated using molecular dynamics. The degree of localization
depends upon the extent of structural relaxation prior to mechanical testing.
In the most rapidly quenched samples higher strain rates lead to increased
localization, while the more gradually quenched samples exhibit the opposite
strain rate dependence. This transition coincides with the k-core percolation
of atoms with quasi-crystal-like short range order. The authors infer the
existence of a related microstructural length scale.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Single wavelength colour tuning of spiropyran and dithienylethene based photochromic coatings
Controlling the transmission of thin films with external stimuli is an important goal in functional optical materials and devices. Tuning is especially challenging where both broad band (neutral density filtering) and spectrally varied (colour) transmission are required. The external control provided by photochemically driven switching, between transmission levels and colours, is functionally simple from a device perspective. The limits due to the spectral ranges of individual photochromic compounds can be overcome by combining several photochromes within one material or device. Here we show that a combination of photochromic molecular switches immobilised in a PMMA polymer matrix enables tuning of colour and transparency. We show that only a single excitation wavelength is required through the use of the primary inner filter effect and the layered construction of the films in which the photochromes nitrospiropyran (NSP), and nitrothiospiropyran (TSP) or 1,2-bis-terthienyl-hexafluorocyclopentene (DTE) are separated spatially. The approach taken circumvents the need to match photochemical quantum yields and thermal reactivity of the component photochromes. The photochemical switching of the films was characterised by UV/vis absorption spectroscopy and shows that switching rates and photostationary states are limited by inner filter effects rather than the intrinsic properties of photochromes, such as photochemical quantum yields and thermal stability. The photochemical behaviour and stability of the photochromes in solution and in the PMMA films were compared and the concentration range over which self-inhibition of photochemical switching occurs was established. The rate of photochemical switching and the difference in transmission between the spiropyran and merocyanine forms in solution enable prediction of the performance in the films and enable rational design of colour tuning ranges and responsivity in thin film filters
Photometric identification of blue horizontal branch stars
We investigate the performance of some common machine learning techniques in
identifying BHB stars from photometric data. To train the machine learning
algorithms, we use previously published spectroscopic identifications of BHB
stars from SDSS data. We investigate the performance of three different
techniques, namely k nearest neighbour classification, kernel density
estimation and a support vector machine (SVM). We discuss the performance of
the methods in terms of both completeness and contamination. We discuss the
prospect of trading off these values, achieving lower contamination at the
expense of lower completeness, by adjusting probability thresholds for the
classification. We also discuss the role of prior probabilities in the
classification performance, and we assess via simulations the reliability of
the dataset used for training. Overall it seems that no-prior gives the best
completeness, but adopting a prior lowers the contamination. We find that the
SVM generally delivers the lowest contamination for a given level of
completeness, and so is our method of choice. Finally, we classify a large
sample of SDSS DR7 photometry using the SVM trained on the spectroscopic
sample. We identify 27,074 probable BHB stars out of a sample of 294,652 stars.
We derive photometric parallaxes and demonstrate that our results are
reasonable by comparing to known distances for a selection of globular
clusters. We attach our classifications, including probabilities, as an
electronic table, so that they can be used either directly as a BHB star
catalogue, or as priors to a spectroscopic or other classification method. We
also provide our final models so that they can be directly applied to new data.Comment: To appear in A&A. 19 pages, 22 figures. Tables 7, A3 and A4 available
electronically onlin
Associative polynomial functions over bounded distributive lattices
The associativity property, usually defined for binary functions, can be
generalized to functions of a given fixed arity n>=1 as well as to functions of
multiple arities. In this paper, we investigate these two generalizations in
the case of polynomial functions over bounded distributive lattices and present
explicit descriptions of the corresponding associative functions. We also show
that, in this case, both generalizations of associativity are essentially the
same.Comment: Final versio
Analysis of Peculiarities of the Stellar Velocity Field in the Solar Neighborhood
Based on a new version of the Hipparcos catalogue and an updated
Geneva-Copenhagen survey of F and G dwarfs, we analyze the space velocity field
of about 17000 single stars in the solar neighborhood. The main known clumps,
streams, and branches (Pleiades, Hyades, Sirius, Coma Berenices, Hercules, Wolf
630-alpha Ceti, and Arcturus) have been identified using various approaches.
The evolution of the space velocity field for F and G dwarfs has been traced as
a function of the stellar age. We have managed to confirm the existence of the
recently discovered KFR08 stream. We have found 19 Hipparcos stars, candidates
for membership in the KFR08 stream, and obtained an isochrone age estimate for
the stream, 13 Gyr. The mean stellar ages of the Wolf 630-alpha Ceti and
Hercules streams are shown to be comparable, 4--6 Gyr. No significant
differences in the metallicities of stars belonging to these streams have been
found. This is an argument for the hypothesis that these streams owe their
origin to a common mechanism.Comment: 23 pages, 9 figure
Electrically Tunable Excitonic Light Emitting Diodes based on Monolayer WSe2 p-n Junctions
Light-emitting diodes are of importance for lighting, displays, optical
interconnects, logic and sensors. Hence the development of new systems that
allow improvements in their efficiency, spectral properties, compactness and
integrability could have significant ramifications. Monolayer transition metal
dichalcogenides have recently emerged as interesting candidates for
optoelectronic applications due to their unique optical properties.
Electroluminescence has already been observed from monolayer MoS2 devices.
However, the electroluminescence efficiency was low and the linewidth broad due
both to the poor optical quality of MoS2 and to ineffective contacts. Here, we
report electroluminescence from lateral p-n junctions in monolayer WSe2 induced
electrostatically using a thin boron nitride support as a dielectric layer with
multiple metal gates beneath. This structure allows effective injection of
electrons and holes, and combined with the high optical quality of WSe2 it
yields bright electroluminescence with 1000 times smaller injection current and
10 times smaller linewidth than in MoS2. Furthermore, by increasing the
injection bias we can tune the electroluminescence between regimes of
impurity-bound, charged, and neutral excitons. This system has the required
ingredients for new kinds of optoelectronic devices such as spin- and
valley-polarized light-emitting diodes, on-chip lasers, and two-dimensional
electro-optic modulators.Comment: 13 pages main text with 4 figures + 4 pages upplemental material
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