1,258 research outputs found
The effect of autotrawl systems on the performance of a survey trawl
Three aspects of a survey bottom trawl performance—1) trawl geometry (i.e., net spread, door spread, and headrope height); 2) footrope distance off-bottom; and 3) bridle distance off-bottom—were compared among hauls by using either of two autotrawl systems (equal tension and net symmetry) and hauls conducted with towing cables of equal length and locked winches. The effects of environmental conditions, vessel heave, crabbing (i.e., the difference between vessel heading and actual vessel course over ground), and bottom current on trawl performance with three trawling modes were investigated. Means and standard deviations of trawl geometry measures were not significantly different between autotrawl and locked-winch systems. Bottom trawls performed better with either autotrawl system as compared to trawling with locked winches by reducing the variance and increasing the symmetry of the footrope contact with the bottom. The equal tension autotrawl system was most effective in counteracting effects of environmental conditions on footrope bottom contact. Footrope bottom contact was most inf luenced by environmental conditions during tows with locked winches. Both of the autotrawl systems also reduced the variance and increased the symmetry of bridle bottom contact.
Autotrawl systems proved to be effective in decreasing the effects of environmental factors on some aspects of trawl performance and, as a result, have the potential to reduce among-haul variance in catchability of survey trawls. Therefore, by incorporating an autotrawl system into standard survey procedures, precision of survey estimates of relative abundanc
Whole-gear efficiency of a benthic survey trawl for flatfish
Whole-gear efficiency (the proportion of fish passing between the otter doors of a bottom trawl that are subsequently captured) was estimated from data collected during experiments to measure the herding efficiency of bridles and doors, the capture efficiency of the net, and the length of the bridles sufficiently close to the seafloor to elicit a herding response. The experiments were focused on four species of flatfish: arrowtooth flounder (Atheresthes stomias), flathead sole (Hippoglossoides elassodon), rex sole (Glyptocephalus zachirus), and Dover sole (Microstomus pacificus). Whole-gear efficiency varied with fish length and reached maximum values between 40% and 50% for arrowtooth flounder, flathead sole, and rex sole. For Dover sole, however, whole-gear efficiency declined from a maximum of 33% over the length range sampled. Such efficiency estimates can be used to determine catchability, which, in turn, can be used to improve the accuracy of stock assessment models when the time series of a survey is short
Capture probability of a survey trawl for red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus)
The relative abundance of Bristol Bay red king crab (Paralithodes camtschaticus) is estimated each year for stock assessment by using catch-per-swept-area data collected on the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s annual eastern Bering Sea bottom trawl survey. To estimate survey trawl capture efficiency for red king crab, an experiment was conducted with an auxiliary net (fitted with its own heavy chain-link footrope) that was attached beneath the
trawl to capture crabs escaping under the survey trawl footrope. Capture probability was then estimated by fitting a model to the proportion of crabs captured and crab size data. For males, mean capture probability was 72% at 95 mm (carapace length), the size at which full vulnerability to
the survey trawl is assigned in the current management model; 84.1% at 135 mm, the legal size for the fishery;
and 93% at 184 mm, the maximum size observed in this study. For females, mean capture probability was 70% at 90 mm, the size at which full vulnerability to the survey trawl is
assigned in the current management model, and 77% at 162 mm,
the maximum size observed in this study. The precision of our estimates for each sex decreased for juveniles under 60 mm and for the largest crab because of small sample sizes.
In situ data collected from trawl-mounted video cameras were used to determine the importance of various factors associated with the capture of individual crabs. Capture probability was significantly higher when a crab was standing when struck by the footrope, rather than crouching, and higher when a crab was hit along its body axis, rather than from the side. Capture probability also increased as a function of increasing crab size but
decreased with increasing footrope distance from the bottom and when artificial light was provided for the video camera
Variation in trawl geometry due to unequal warp length
Survey standardization procedures can reduce the variability in trawl catch efficiency thus producing more precise estimates of biomass. One such procedure, towing with equal amounts of trawl warp on both sides of the net, was experimentally investigated for its importance in determining optimal trawl geometry and for evaluating the effectiveness of the recent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) national protocol on accurate measurement of trawl warps. This recent standard for measuring warp length requires that the difference between warp lengths can be no more than 4% of the distance between the otter doors measured along the bridles and footrope. Trawl performance data from repetitive towing with warp differentials of 0, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 20 m were analyzed for their effect on three determinants of flatfish catch efficiency: footrope distance off-bottom, bridle length in contact with the bottom, and area swept by the net. Our results indicated that the distortion of the trawl caused by asymmetry in trawl warp length could have a negative inf luence on flatfish catch efficiency. At a difference of 7 m in warp length, the NOAA 4% threshold value for the 83112 Eastern survey trawl used in our study, we found no effect on the acous-tic-based measures of door spread, wing spread, and headrope height off-bottom. However, the sensitivity of the trawl to 7 m of warp offset could be seen as footrope distances off-bottom increased slightly (particularly in the center region of the net where flatfish escapement is highest), and as the width of the bridle path responsible for flatfish herding, together with the effective net width, was reduced. For this survey trawl, a NOAA threshold value of 4% should be considered a maximum. A more conservative value (less than 4%) would likely reduce potential bias in estimates of relative abundance caused by large differences in warp length approaching 7 m
Resonant and Non-Resonant Effects in Photon-Technipion Production at Lepton Colliders
Lepton collider experiments can search for light technipions in final states
made striking by the presence of an energetic photon: e+e- \to
\photon\technipion. To date, searches have focused on either production
through anomalous coupling of the technipions to electroweak gauge bosons or on
production through a technivector meson (\technirho, \techniomega) resonance.
This paper creates a combined framework in which both contributions are
included. This will allow stronger and more accurate limits on technipion
production to be set using existing data from LEP or future data from a
higher-energy linear collider. We provide explicit formulas and sample
calculations (analytic and Pythia) in the framework of the Technicolor Straw
Man Model, a model that includes light technihadrons.Comment: 11 pages, including title page, 3 figures; version 2: references
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Inactivation of the RB family prevents thymus involution and promotes thymic function by direct control of Foxn1 expression
Thymic involution during aging is a major cause of decreased production of T cells and reduced immunity. Here we show that inactivation of Rb family genes in young mice prevents thymic involution and results in an enlarged thymus competent for increased production of naive T cells. This phenotype originates from the expansion of functional thymic epithelial cells (TECs). In RB family mutant TECs, increased activity of E2F transcription factors drives increased expression of Foxn1, a central regulator of the thymic epithelium. Increased Foxn1 expression is required for the thymic expansion observed in Rb family mutant mice. Thus, the RB family promotes thymic involution and controls T cell production via a bone marrow–independent mechanism, identifying a novel pathway to target to increase thymic function in patients
Vacuum Alignment in Technicolor Theories-I. The Technifermion Sector
We have carried out numerical studies of vacuum alignment in technicolor
models of electroweak and flavor symmetry breaking. The goal is to understand
alignment's implications for strong and weak CP nonconservation in quark
interactions. In this first part, we restrict our attention to the
technifermion sector of simple models. We find several interesting phenomena,
including (1) the possibility that all observable phases in the technifermions'
unitary vacuum-alignment matrix are integer multiples of \pi/N' where N' \le N,
the number of technifermion doublets, and (2) the possibility of exceptionally
light pseudoGoldstone technipions.Comment: 19 pages, Latex with one postscript figur
Lectures on Supersymmetry Breaking
We review the subject of spontaneous supersymmetry breaking. First we
consider supersymmetry breaking in a semiclassical theory. We illustrate it
with several examples, demonstrating different phenomena, including metastable
supersymmetry breaking. Then we give a brief review of the dynamics of
supersymmetric gauge theories. Finally, we use this dynamics to present various
mechanisms for dynamical supersymmetry breaking. These notes are based on
lectures given by the authors in 2007, at various schools.Comment: 47 pages. v2: minor correction
WARNING: Physics Envy May Be Hazardous To Your Wealth!
The quantitative aspirations of economists and financial analysts have for
many years been based on the belief that it should be possible to build models
of economic systems - and financial markets in particular - that are as
predictive as those in physics. While this perspective has led to a number of
important breakthroughs in economics, "physics envy" has also created a false
sense of mathematical precision in some cases. We speculate on the origins of
physics envy, and then describe an alternate perspective of economic behavior
based on a new taxonomy of uncertainty. We illustrate the relevance of this
taxonomy with two concrete examples: the classical harmonic oscillator with
some new twists that make physics look more like economics, and a quantitative
equity market-neutral strategy. We conclude by offering a new interpretation of
tail events, proposing an "uncertainty checklist" with which our taxonomy can
be implemented, and considering the role that quants played in the current
financial crisis.Comment: v3 adds 2 reference
The Collider Phenomenology of Technihadrons in the Technicolor Straw Man Model
We discuss the phenomenology of the lightest SU(3)_C singlet and non-singlet
technihadrons in the Straw Man Model of low-scale technicolor (TCSM). The
technihadrons are assumed to be those arising in topcolor--assisted technicolor
models in which topcolor is broken by technifermion condensates. We improve
upon the description of the color--singlet sector presented in our earlier
paper introducing the TCSM (hep-ph/9903369). These improvements are most
important for subprocess energies well below the masses of the technirho and
techniomega, and, therefore, apply especially to e+e- colliders such as LEP and
a low--energy linear collider. In the color--octet sector, we consider mixing
of the gluon, the coloron V_8 from topcolor breaking, and four isosinglet
color--octet technirho mesons. We assume, as expected in walking technicolor,
that these technirhos decay into qbar-q, gg, and g-technipion final states, but
not into technipion pairs. All the TCSM production and decay processes
discussed here are included in the event generator Pythia. We present several
simulations appropriate for the Tevatron Collider, and suggest benchmark model
lines for further experimental investigation.Comment: 42 pages, 7 figure
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