An Ammonia Spectral Atlas of Dense Cores in Perseus

We present ammonia observations of 193 dense cores and core candidates in the Perseus molecular cloud made using the Robert F. Byrd Green Bank Telescope. We simultaneously observed the NH3(1,1), NH3(2,2), CCS (2_1 -> 1_0) and CC34S (2_1 -> 1_0) transitions near 23 GHz for each of the targets with a spectral resolution of dv ~ 0.024 km/s. We find ammonia emission associated with nearly all of the (sub)millimeter sources as well as at several positions with no associated continuum emission. For each detection, we have measured physical properties by fitting a simple model to every spectral line simultaneously. Where appropriate, we have refined the model by accounting for low optical depths, multiple components along the line of sight and imperfect coupling to the GBT beam. For the cores in Perseus, we find a typical kinetic temperature of T=11 K, a typical column density of N(NH3)~ 10^14.5 /cm^2 and velocity dispersions ranging from sigma_v = 0.07 km/s to 0.7 km/s. However, many cores with velocity dispersions > 0.2 km/s show evidence for multiple velocity components along the line of sight.Comment: 19 pages; Accepted to ApJS; version with high resolution figures available at http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/COMPLETE/papers/nh3-paper1.pdf ; online data at http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/COMPLETE/data_html_pages/GBT_NH3.htm

Revisited experimental comparison of node-link and matrix representations

Visualizing network data is applicable in domains such as biology, engineering, and social sciences. We report the results of a study comparing the effectiveness of the two primary techniques for showing network data: node-link diagrams and adjacency matrices. Specifically, an evaluation with a large number of online participants revealed statistically significant differences between the two visualizations. Our work adds to existing research in several ways. First, we explore a broad spectrum of network tasks, many of which had not been previously evaluated. Second, our study uses a large dataset, typical of many real-life networks not explored by previous studies. Third, we leverage crowdsourcing to evaluate many tasks with many participants

Interspecific variation and elevated CO2 influence the relationship between plant chemical resistance and regrowth tolerance

To understand how comprehensive plant defense phenotypes will respond to global change, we investigated the legacy effects of elevated CO2 on the relationships between chemical resistance (constitutive and induced via mechanical damage) and regrowth tolerance in four milkweed species (Asclepias). We quantified potential resistance and tolerance trade‐offs at the physiological level following simulated mowing, which are relevant to milkweed ecology and conservation. We examined the legacy effects of elevated CO2 on four hypothesized trade‐offs between the following: (a) plant growth rate and constitutive chemical resistance (foliar cardenolide concentrations), (b) plant growth rate and mechanically induced chemical resistance, (c) constitutive resistance and regrowth tolerance, and (d) regrowth tolerance and mechanically induced resistance. We observed support for one trade‐off between plant regrowth tolerance and mechanically induced resistance traits that was, surprisingly, independent of CO2 exposure. Across milkweed species, mechanically induced resistance increased by 28% in those plants previously exposed to elevated CO2. In contrast, constitutive resistance and the diversity of mechanically induced chemical resistance traits declined in response to elevated CO2 in two out of four milkweed species. Finally, previous exposure to elevated CO2 uncoupled the positive relationship between plant growth rate and regrowth tolerance following damage. Our data highlight the complex and dynamic nature of plant defense phenotypes under environmental change and question the generality of physiologically based defense trade‐offs.To understand how comprehensive plant defense phenotypes will respond to global change, we investigated the legacy effects of elevated CO2 on the relationships between chemical resistance and regrowth tolerance in four milkweed species (Asclepias). We found interspecific variation among milkweed species influenced the relationship between mechanically induced chemical resistance and regrowth tolerance. Previous exposure to elevated CO2 increased mechanically induced resistance by 28% and uncoupled the positive relationship between plant growth rate and regrowth tolerance following damage.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155974/1/ece36284_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/155974/2/ece36284.pd

The Bones of the Milky Way

The very long, thin infrared dark cloud "Nessie" is even longer than had been previously claimed, and an analysis of its Galactic location suggests that it lies directly in the Milky Way’s mid-plane, tracing out a highly elongated bone-like feature within the prominent Scutum-Centaurus spiral arm. Re-analysis of mid-infrared imagery from the Spitzer Space Telescope shows that this IRDC is at least 2, and possibly as many as 8 times longer than had originally been claimed by Nessie’s discoverers, Jackson et al. (2010); its aspect ratio is therefore at least 150:1, and possibly as large as 800:1. A careful accounting for both the Sun’s offset from the Galactic plane (∼25 pc) and the Galactic center’s offset from the ($l^{II},b^{II}$)=(0,0) position defined by the IAU in 1959 shows that the latitude of the true Galactic mid-plane at the 3.1 kpc distance to the Scutum-Centaurus Arm is not b=0, but instead closer to b=−0.5, which is the latitude of Nessie to within a few pc. Apparently, Nessie lies in the Galactic mid-plane. An analysis of the radial velocities of low-density (CO) and high-density ($NH_3$) gas associated with the Nessie dust feature suggests that Nessie runs along the Scutum-Centaurus Arm in position-position-velocity space, which means it likely forms a dense ‘spine’ of the arm in real space as well. No galaxy-scale simulation to date has the spatial resolution to predict a Nessie-like feature, but extant simulations do suggest that highly elongated over-dense filaments should be associated with a galaxy’s spiral arms. Nessie is situated in the closest major spiral arm to the Sun toward the inner Galaxy, and appears almost perpendicular to our line of sight, making it the easiest feature of its kind to detect from our location (a shadow of an Arm’s bone, illuminated by the Galaxy beyond). Although the Sun’s (∼25 pc) offset from the Galactic plane is not large in comparison with the half-thickness of the plane as traced by Population I objects such as GMCs and HII regions (∼200 pc; Rix et al. (2013)), it may be significant compared with an extremely thin layer that might be traced out by Nessie-like ”bones“ of the Milky Way. Future high-resolution extinction and molecular line data may therefore allow us to exploit the Sun’s position above the plane to gain a (very foreshortened) view "from above” of dense gas in Milky Way’s disk and its structure.Astronom

The Feeling of Numbers: emotions in everyday engagements with data and their visualisation

This paper highlights the role that emotions play in engagements with data and their visualisation. To date, the relationship between data and emotions has rarely been noted, in part because data studies have not attended to everyday engagements with data. We draw on an empirical study to show a wide range of emotional engagements with diverse aspects of data and their visualisation, and so demonstrate the importance of emotions as vital components of making sense of data. We nuance the argument that regimes of datafication, in which numbers, metrics and statistics dominate, are characterised by a renewed faith in objectivity and rationality, arguing that in datafied times, it is not only numbers but also the feeling of numbers that is important. We build on the sociology of a) emotions and b) the everyday to do this, and in so doing, we contribute to the development of a sociology of data

Measures in Visualization Space

Postponed access: the file will be available after 2021-08-12Measurement is an integral part of modern science, providing the fundamental means for evaluation, comparison, and prediction. In the context of visualization, several different types of measures have been proposed, ranging from approaches that evaluate particular aspects of visualization techniques, their perceptual characteristics, and even economic factors. Furthermore, there are approaches that attempt to provide means for measuring general properties of the visualization process as a whole. Measures can be quantitative or qualitative, and one of the primary goals is to provide objective means for reasoning about visualizations and their effectiveness. As such, they play a central role in the development of scientific theories for visualization. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the current state of the art, survey and classify different types of visualization measures, characterize their strengths and drawbacks, and provide an outline of open challenges for future research.acceptedVersio

MASS HINDLIMB DEFORMITIES OF GREEN FROGS (PELOPHYLAX ESCULENTUS COMPLEX) IN PRIDNESTROVIE: CAUSES AND BIOINDICATION

Mass hindlimb abnormalities (above 60 %) were found in twolocalities with syntopic Pelophylax ridibundus and hybridogenous P. esculentus in Pridnestrovie. Individually, frogs can have 1–7 anomalies in P. ridibundus and 2–4 in P. esculentus. Some diffe-rences in variety of deformities and their frequencies were observed between both species and both localities. Importantly, water bodies inhabited by green frogs with mass abnormalities were characterizedby absence of chemical pollution and any significant human impact.Массовые аномалии задних конечностей (свыше 60 %)были отмечены у синтопических Pelophylax ridibundus и гибридных P. esculentus в двух локалитетах в Приднестровье. Особь P. ridibundus может нести 1-7 аномалий, а P. esculentus – 2-4. Для обоих видов и локалитетов отмечены различия в вариантах аномалий и их частотах. Важно отметить, что водоемы, населенные лягушками с массовыми аномалиями, характеризовались отсутствием химического загрязнения и какого-либо существенного антропогенного воздействия

Sympatric woodland Myotis bats form tight-knit social groups with exclusive roost home ranges

Background: The structuring of wild animal populations can influence population dynamics, disease spread, and information transfer. Social network analysis potentially offers insights into these processes but is rarely, if ever, used to investigate more than one species in a community. We therefore compared the social, temporal and spatial networks of sympatric Myotis bats (M. nattereri (Natterer's bats) and M. daubentonii (Daubenton's bats)), and asked: (1) are there long-lasting social associations within species? (2) do the ranges occupied by roosting social groups overlap within or between species? (3) are M. daubentonii bachelor colonies excluded from roosting in areas used by maternity groups? Results: Using data on 490 ringed M. nattereri and 978 M. daubentonii from 379 colonies, we found that both species formed stable social groups encompassing multiple colonies. M. nattereri formed 11 mixed-sex social groups with few (4.3%) inter-group associations. Approximately half of all M. nattereri were associated with the same individuals when recaptured, with many associations being long-term (>100 days). In contrast, M. daubentonii were sexually segregated; only a quarter of pairs were associated at recapture after a few days, and inter-sex associations were not long-lasting. Social groups of M. nattereri and female M. daubentonii had small roost home ranges (mean 0.2 km2 in each case). Intra-specific overlap was low, but inter-specific overlap was high, suggesting territoriality within but not between species. M. daubentonii bachelor colonies did not appear to be excluded from roosting areas used by females. Conclusions: Our data suggest marked species- and sex-specific patterns of disease and information transmission are likely between bats of the same genus despite sharing a common habitat. The clear partitioning of the woodland amongst social groups, and their apparent reliance on small patches of habitat for roosting, means that localised woodland management may be more important to bat conservation than previously recognised