Lattice monopole action in pure SU(3) QCD

We obtain an almost perfect monopole action numerically after abelian projection in pure SU(3) lattice QCD. Performing block-spin transformations on the dual lattice, the action fixed depends only on a physical scale b. Monopole condensation occurs for large b region. The numerical results show that two-point monopole interactions are dominant for large b. We next perform the block-spin transformation analytically in a simplified case of two-point monopole interactions with a Wilson loop on the fine lattice. The perfect operator evaluating the static quark potential on the coarse b-lattice are derived. The monopole partition function can be transformed into that of the string model. The static potential and the string tension are estimated in the string model framework. The rotational invariance of the static potential is recovered, but the string tension is a little larger than the physical one.Comment: 21pages,4figures,to be published in JHE

Cepstral analysis based on the Glimpse proportion measure for improving the intelligibility of HMM-based synthetic speech in noise

In this paper we introduce a new cepstral coefficient extraction method based on an intelligibility measure for speech in noise, the Glimpse Proportion measure. This new method aims to increase the intelligibility of speech in noise by modifying the clean speech, and has applications in scenarios such as public announcement and car navigation systems. We first explain how the Glimpse Proportion measure operates and further show how we approximated it to integrate it into an existing spectral envelope parameter extraction method commonly used in the HMM-based speech synthesis framework. We then demonstrate how this new method changes the modelled spectrum according to the characteristics of the noise and show results for a listening test with vocoded and HMM-based synthetic speech. The test indicates that the proposed method can significantly improve intelligibility of synthetic speech in speech shaped noise. Index Terms — cepstral coefficient extraction, objective measure for speech intelligibility, Lombard speech, HMM-based speech synthesis 1

Near- to mid-infrared spectroscopy of the heavily obscured AGN LEDA 1712304 with AKARI/IRC

Context. Although heavily obscured active galactic nuclei (AGNs) have been found by many observational studies, the properties of the surrounding dust are poorly understood. Using AKARI/IRC spectroscopy, we discover a new sample of a heavily obscured AGN in LEDA 1712304 which shows a deep spectral absorption feature due to silicate dust. Aims. We study the infrared (IR) spectral properties of circumnuclear silicate dust in LEDA 1712304. Methods. We perform IR spectral fitting, considering silicate dust properties such as composition, porosity, size and crystallinity. Spectral energy distribution (SED) fitting is also performed to the flux densities in the UV to sub-millimeter range to investigate the global spectral properties. Results. The best-fit model indicates 0.1 $\mu$m-sized porous amorphous olivine (${\rm Mg_{2x}Fe_{2-2x}SiO_4}$; $x=0.4$) with $4\%$ crystalline pyroxene. The optical depth is $\tau_{\rm sil}{\sim}2.3$, while the total IR luminosity and stellar mass are estimated to be $L_{\rm IR}=(5\pm1){\times}10^{10}\,L_{\odot}$ and $M_{\rm star}=(2.7\pm0.8){\times}10^{9}\,M_{\odot}$, respectively. In such low $L_{\rm IR}$ and $M_{\rm star}$ ranges, there are few galaxies which show that large ${\tau}_{\rm sil}$. Conclusions. The silicate dust in the AGN torus of LEDA 1712304 has properties notably similar to those in other AGNs as a whole, but slightly different in the wing shape of the absorption profile. The porosity of the silicate dust suggests dust coagulation or processing in the circumnuclear environments, while the crystallinity suggests that the silicate dust is relatively fresh.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in A&

Highly efficient inoculation method of apple viruses to apple seedlings

Virus inoculation to original plants is an important step in research for many reasons. For example, it is used to satisfy Koch’s postulates, to test resistance to viruses in breeding programs, and to analyze gene function by virus vectors etc. However, it is generally difficult to inoculate viruses to woody fruit trees like apple, and an efficient inoculation method has not been developed thus far. In this study, we showed that a biolistic inoculation of total RNAs from infected tissues or virus RNAs resulted in a high infection rate in apple seedlings. Total RNAs extracted from Chenopodium quinoa leaves infected with Apple latent spherical virus (ALSV) or Apple chlorotic leaf spot virus (ACLSV) and ALSV- RNAs from purified virus were biolistically inoculated to the cotyledons of apple seedlings by a Helios Gene Gun system (BIO-RAD) or a PDS-1000/He Particle Delivery System (BIO-RAD). Analysis of true leaves 2-4 weeks after inoculation by Northern blot hybridization, RT-PCR, or ELISA showed that 36 out of 38 plants (95%) inoculated with total RNAs from ALSV-infected tissues, 39 out of 41 plants (95%) inoculated with ALSV-RNAs, and 6 out of 7 plants (86%) inoculated with total RNAs from ACLSV-infected tissues were infected with each virus. Thus, the biolistic inoculation of total RNAs from infected tissues or virus RNAs from purified virus to apple seedlings is found to be an efficient inoculation method of apple viruses. We think that the method can be applied to other virus-fruit tree combinations.Keywords: ALSV, ACLSV, biolistic inoculation, apple, cotyledo