Hopf algebras under finiteness conditions

This is a brief survey of some recent developments in the study of infinite dimensional Hopf algebras which are either noetherian or have finite Gelfand-Kirillov dimension. A number of open questions are listed.Comment: Comments welcom

Simulations of Adaptive Optics with a Laser Guide Star for SINFONI

The SINFONI instrument for ESO's VLT combines integral field spectroscopy and adaptive optics (AO). We discuss detailed simulations of the adaptive optics module. These simulations are aimed at assessing the AO module performance, specifically for operations with extended sources and a laser guide star. Simulated point spread function (PSF) images will be used to support scientific preparations and the development of an exposure time calculator, while simulated wavefront sensor measurements will be used to study PSF reconstruction methods. We explain how the adaptive optics simulations work, focusing on the realistic modelling of the laser guide star for a curvature wavefront sensor. The predicted performance of the AO module is discussed, resulting in recommendations for the operation of the SINFONI AO module at the telescope.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, to appear in SPIE conference proceedings vol 5490, "Advancements in Adaptive Optics", eds. D. Bonaccini, B.L. Ellerbroek, R. Ragazonni, Glasgow UK, 21-25 June 200

The role of informal protected areas in maintaining biodiversity in the Western Ghats of India

Although it is widely believed that an important function of protected areas is to conserve species that are unable to survive elsewhere, there are very few empirical studies in which a comparison is made between biodiversity of protected areas and that of the cultivated landscape surrounding them. We examined the diversity of trees, birds, and macrofungi at 58 sites in three land-use types in a tree-covered landscape in Kodagu district in the Western Ghats of India. Ten forest reserve sites in the formal protected area, and 25 sacred groves and 23 coffee plantations in the neighboring cultivated landscape were sampled. A total of 215 tree, 86 bird, and 163 macrofungus species were recorded. The forest reserve had a large number of trees that were restricted in their distribution, and the sacred groves had a large number of macrofungi. We observed that deciduous trees and non-forest-dwelling birds increased, and evergreen trees and forest-dwelling birds decreased with increasing intensity of land management. We found that trees having non-timber uses and macrofungi useful to the local people, as well as those with medicinal properties, were abundant in sacred groves. We found no significant differences in the distribution of endemic and threatened birds across the three land-use types. Although endemic trees were more abundant in the forest reserve than in sacred groves, threatened trees were more abundant in sacred groves than in the forest reserve. We attribute the high diversity in sacred groves to the native tree cover in shade coffee plantations. We conclude that informal protected areas are as important as formal ones for biodiversity conservation in Kodagu. We recommend that a conservation strategy that recognizes informal protection traditions is essential for successful biodiversity conservation in regions where formal reserves are surrounded by a matrix of cultivated land

Extracellular Vesicles: Living Prototypal Communication System

Communication is an ever-present part of our world. Such transfer of information occurs on many levels from the spoken natural languages, to artificial languages, to the cellular exchanges that govern the molecular world. Cells interact using various coded and non-coded molecules, which although not natural languages, could be considered types of biological language. These molecules are packaged into extracellular vesicles by cells from all three domains of life. Vesicles may then participate in intracellular trafficking of their cargo molecules. Or cells may secrete vesicles into the extracellular world, from where they are transported to, and taken up by, target recipient cells. Once delivered, extracellular vesicles exert a plethora of physiological and pathological effects, as well as an influence on recipient cell evolution. In executing their functions, both vesicles and their molecular cargo face evolutionary pressures over time and across habitats, forcing them to adapt to meet changing needs. This chapter will present extracellular vesicles as a highly conserved prototypal communication system

Cumulative Impact of Environmental Pollution and Population Vulnerability on Pediatric Asthma Hospitalizations: A Multilevel Analysis of CalEnviroScreen.

The CalEnviroScreen created by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, Sacramento, USA, is a place-based dataset developed to measure environmental and social indicators that are theorized to have cumulative health impacts on populations. The objective of this study was to examine the extent to which the composite scores of the CalEnviroScreen tool are associated with pediatric asthma hospitalization. This was a retrospective analysis of California hospital discharge data from 2010 to 2012. Children who were hospitalized for asthma-related conditions, were aged 0-14 years, and resided in California were included in analysis. Rates of hospitalization for asthma-related conditions among children residing in California were calculated. Poisson multilevel modeling was used to account for individual- and neighborhood-level risk factors. Every unit increase in the CalEnviroScreen Score was associated with an increase of 1.6% above the mean rate of pediatric asthma hospitalizations (rate ratio (RR) = 1.016, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.014-1.018). Every unit increase in racial/ethnic segregation and diesel particulate matter was associated with an increase of 1.1% and 0.2% above the mean rate of pediatric asthma, respectively (RR = 1.011, 95% CI = 1.010-1.013; RR = 1.002, 95% CI = 1.001-1.004). The CalEnviroScreen is a unique tool that combines socioecological factors and environmental indicators to identify vulnerable communities with major health disparities, including pediatric asthma hospital use. Future research should identify mediating factors that contribute to community-level health disparities

Robustness from flexibility in the fungal circadian clock

Background Robustness is a central property of living systems, enabling function to be maintained against environmental perturbations. A key challenge is to identify the structures in biological circuits that confer system-level properties such as robustness. Circadian clocks allow organisms to adapt to the predictable changes of the 24-hour day/night cycle by generating endogenous rhythms that can be entrained to the external cycle. In all organisms, the clock circuits typically comprise multiple interlocked feedback loops controlling the rhythmic expression of key genes. Previously, we showed that such architectures increase the flexibility of the clock's rhythmic behaviour. We now test the relationship between flexibility and robustness, using a mathematical model of the circuit controlling conidiation in the fungus Neurospora crassa. Results The circuit modelled in this work consists of a central negative feedback loop, in which the frequency (frq) gene inhibits its transcriptional activator white collar-1 (wc-1), interlocked with a positive feedback loop in which FRQ protein upregulates WC-1 production. Importantly, our model reproduces the observed entrainment of this circuit under light/dark cycles with varying photoperiod and cycle duration. Our simulations show that whilst the level of frq mRNA is driven directly by the light input, the falling phase of FRQ protein, a molecular correlate of conidiation, maintains a constant phase that is uncoupled from the times of dawn and dusk. The model predicts the behaviour of mutants that uncouple WC-1 production from FRQ's positive feedback, and shows that the positive loop enhances the buffering of conidiation phase against seasonal photoperiod changes. This property is quantified using Kitano's measure for the overall robustness of a regulated system output. Further analysis demonstrates that this functional robustness is a consequence of the greater evolutionary flexibility conferred on the circuit by the interlocking loop structure. Conclusions Our model shows that the behaviour of the fungal clock in light-dark cycles can be accounted for by a transcription-translation feedback model of the central FRQ-WC oscillator. More generally, we provide an example of a biological circuit in which greater flexibility yields improved robustness, while also introducing novel sensitivity analysis techniques applicable to a broader range of cellular oscillators

SOUSA: the Swift Optical/Ultraviolet Supernova Archive

The Ultra-Violet Optical Telescope on the Swift spacecraft has observed hundreds of supernovae, covering all major types and most subtypes. Here we introduce the Swift Optical/Ultraviolet Supernova Archive (SOUSA), which will contain all of the supernova images and photometry. We describe the observation and reduction procedures and how they impact the final data. We show photometry from well-observed examples of most supernova classes, whose absolute magnitudes and colors may be used to infer supernova types in the absence of a spectrum. A full understanding of the variety within classes and a robust photometric separation of the groups requires a larger sample, which will be provided by the final archive. The data from the existing Swift supernovae are also useful for planning future observations with Swift as well as future UV observatories.Comment: Accepted for publication in the UV issue of Astrophysics and Space Science 10 pages, 6 figures SOUSA is an archive in progress with data being posted to the Swift SN website: http://swift.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/swift/sne/swift_sn.htm