Tropospheric temperature response to stratospheric ozone recovery in the 21st century

Recent simulations predicted that the stratospheric ozone layer will likely return to pre-1980 levels in the middle of the 21st century, as a result of the decline of ozone depleting substances under the Montreal Protocol. Since the ozone layer is an important component in determining stratospheric and tropospheric-surface energy balance, the recovery of stratospheric ozone may have significant impact on tropospheric-surface climate. Here, using multi-model results from both the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report (IPCC-AR4) models and coupled chemistry-climate models, we show that as ozone recovery is considered, the troposphere is warmed more than that without considering ozone recovery, suggesting an enhancement of tropospheric warming due to ozone recovery. It is found that the enhanced tropospheric warming is mostly significant in the upper troposphere, with a global and annual mean magnitude of ~0.41 K for 2001–2050. We also find that relatively large enhanced warming occurs in the extratropics and polar regions in summer and autumn in both hemispheres, while the enhanced warming is stronger in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere. Enhanced warming is also found at the surface. The global and annual mean enhancement of surface warming is about 0.16 K for 2001–2050, with maximum enhancement in the winter Arctic

Steady Bell state generation via magnon-photon coupling

We show that parity-time ($\mathcal{PT}$) symmetry can be spontaneously broken in the recently reported energy level attraction of magnons and cavity photons. In the $\mathcal{PT}$-broken phase, magnon and photon form a high-fidelity Bell state with maximum entanglement. This entanglement is steady and robust against the perturbation of environment, in contrast to the general wisdom that expects instability of the hybridized state when the symmetry is broken. This anomaly is further understood by the compete of non-Hermitian evolution and particle number conservation of the hybridized system. As a comparison, neither $\mathcal{PT}$-symmetry broken nor steady magnon-photon entanglement is observed inside the normal level repulsion case. Our results may open a novel window to utilize magnon-photon entanglement as a resource for quantum technologies.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Age and gender differences in the self-esteem of Chinese children

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Photometric properties and luminosity function of nearby massive early-type galaxies

We perform photometric analyses for a bright early-type galaxy (ETG) sample with 2949 galaxies ($M_{\rm r}<-22.5$ mag) in the redshift range of 0.05 to 0.15, drawn from the SDSS DR7 with morphological classification from Galaxy Zoo 1. We measure the Petrosian and isophotal magnitudes, as well as the corresponding half-light radius for each galaxy. We find that for brightest galaxies ($M_{\rm r}<-23$ mag), our Petrosian magnitudes, and isophotal magnitudes to 25 ${\rm mag/arcsec^2}$ and 1\% of the sky brightness are on average 0.16 mag, 0.20 mag, and 0.26 mag brighter than the SDSS Petrosian values, respectively. In the first case the underestimations are caused by overestimations in the sky background by the SDSS PHOTO algorithm, while the latter two are also due to deeper photometry. Similarly, the typical half-light radii ($r_{50}$) measured by the SDSS algorithm are smaller than our measurements. As a result, the bright-end of the $r$-band luminosity function is found to decline more slowly than previous works. Our measured luminosity densities at the bright end are more than one order of magnitude higher than those of Blanton et al. (2003), and the stellar mass densities at $M_{\ast}\sim 5\times10^{11} M_{\odot}$ and $M_{\ast}\sim 10^{12} M_{\odot}$ are a few tenths and a factor of few higher than those of Bernardi et al. (2010). These results may significantly alleviate the tension in the assembly of massive galaxies between observations and predictions of the hierarchical structure formation model.Comment: 43 pages, 14 figures, version accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

Kalman filter based estimation of neutral-axis position of bridge deck sections using strain monitoring data

The neutral-axis position has been recognized as a damage indicator for bridge deck assessment because of its high sensitivity to local damage on deck sections. It can be estimated when strain responses at the top and bottom of a deck cross-section under traffic loading are measured. However, the accuracy of neutral-axis position estimation directly using the measured strain responses might be significantly distorted in the presence of measurement noise and varying traffic load patterns. In this study, a Kalman filter (KF) estimator is formulated to locate the neutral-axis position from measured strain responses under traffic loading. Its capability for consistently locating the neutral-axis position under varying traffic load patterns is verified using the field monitoring data of traffic-induced strain responses acquired from the suspension Tsing Ma Bridge under diverse load scenarios (highway traffic, railway traffic, and their combination). The results indicate that the proposed KF estimator gives rise to consistent neutral-axis position estimation results which are independent of load conditions and patterns

Momentum Distribution of Near-Zero-Energy Photoelectrons in the Strong-Field Tunneling Ionization in the Long Wavelength Limit

We investigate the ionization dynamics of Argon atoms irradiated by an ultrashort intense laser of a wavelength up to 3100 nm, addressing the momentum distribution of the photoelectrons with near-zero-energy. We find a surprising accumulation in the momentum distribution corresponding to meV energy and a \textquotedblleft V"-like structure at the slightly larger transverse momenta. Semiclassical simulations indicate the crucial role of the Coulomb attraction between the escaping electron and the remaining ion at extremely large distance. Tracing back classical trajectories, we find the tunneling electrons born in a certain window of the field phase and transverse velocity are responsible for the striking accumulation. Our theoretical results are consistent with recent meV-resolved high-precision measurements.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Carbon nanotube reinforced nanocomposites for energy conversion and storage

This is the final version. Available from Elsevier via the DOI in this record.CNT-reinforced foams comprised of three-dimensional (3D) interconnected macropores with uniform mesoporous walls were developed as multifunctional nanocomposites and tested for electrochemical energy conversion and storage. Multi-walled CNTs grown on the wall surface of the interconnected scaffold structure of carbon foams were found to improve the surface area and electrochemical properties of the nanocomposites. The lightweight CNT-reinforced nanocomposites not only exhibit high structural flexibility, but also possess enhanced electrocatalytic performance for HER at current density of 10 mA cm−2 with overpotentials of 240 mV. In addition, these nanocomposites can be used as flexible, electric double layer capacitor electrodes, and have achieved a specific capacitance of 776 F g−1, with excellent durability and stability after 1000 cycles.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research CouncilLeverhulme Trus

KDM2B/FBXL10 targets c-Fos for ubiquitylation and degradation in response to mitogenic stimulation.

KDM2B (also known as FBXL10) controls stem cell self-renewal, somatic cell reprogramming and senescence, and tumorigenesis. KDM2B contains multiple functional domains, including a JmjC domain that catalyzes H3K36 demethylation and a CxxC zinc-finger that recognizes CpG islands and recruits the polycomb repressive complex 1. Here, we report that KDM2B, via its F-box domain, functions as a subunit of the CUL1-RING ubiquitin ligase (CRL1/SCF(KDM2B)) complex. KDM2B targets c-Fos for polyubiquitylation and regulates c-Fos protein levels. Unlike the phosphorylation of other SCF (SKP1-CUL1-F-box)/CRL1 substrates that promotes substrates binding to F-box, epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced c-Fos S374 phosphorylation dissociates c-Fos from KDM2B and stabilizes c-Fos protein. Non-phosphorylatable and phosphomimetic mutations at S374 result in c-Fos protein which cannot be induced by EGF or accumulates constitutively and lead to decreased or increased cell proliferation, respectively. Multiple tumor-derived KDM2B mutations impaired the function of KDM2B to target c-Fos degradation and to suppress cell proliferation. These results reveal a novel function of KDM2B in the negative regulation of cell proliferation by assembling an E3 ligase to targeting c-Fos protein degradation that is antagonized by mitogenic stimulations

Oxidative stress-mediated reperfusion injury: mechanism and therapies

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