Effect of Martian Suspended Dust on Albedo Measurements from the MGS-TES Data

Suspended dust on Mars influences albedo measurements by orbiting instruments, but not necessary the real surface albedo. The aim of this study is to characterize the role of suspended aerosols on albedo measurement by remote sensing instruments

Immune cells and preterm labour:do invariant NKT cells hold the key?

We have developed our original made-to-measure (M2M) algorithm, PRIMAL, with the aim of modelling the Galactic disc from upcoming Gaia data. From a Milky Way like N-body disc galaxy simulation, we have created mock Gaia data using M0III stars as tracers, taking into account extinction and the expected Gaia errors. In PRIMAL, observables calculated from the N-body model are compared with the target stars, at the position of the target stars. Using PRIMAL, the masses of the N-body model particles are changed to reproduce the target mock data, and the gravitational potential is automatically adjusted by the changing mass of the model particles. We have also adopted a new resampling scheme for the model particles to keep the mass resolution of the N-body model relatively constant. We have applied PRIMAL to this mock Gaia data and we show that PRIMAL can recover the structure and kinematics of a Milky Way like barred spiral disc, along with the apparent bar structure and pattern speed of the bar despite the galactic extinction and the observational errors

Valence band spectroscopy in V-grooved quantum wires

We present a combined theoretical and experimental study of the anisotropy in the optical absorption of V-shaped quantum wires. By means of realistic band structure calculations for these structures, we show that detailed information on the heavy- and light-hole states can be singled out from the anisotropy spectra {\em independently of the electron confinement}, thus allowing accurate valence band spectroscopy.Comment: To be published in Appl. Phys. Lett. (8 pages in REVTeX, two postscipt figures

Some linear recurrences and their combinatorial interpretation by means of regular languages

AbstractIn this paper we apply ECO method and the concept of numeration systems to give a combinatorial interpretation to linear recurrences of the kind an=kan−1+han−2, where k>|h|⩾0. In particular, we define a language L such that the words of L having length n satisfy the recurrence, and then we describe a recursive construction for this language, according to the ECO method, and the corresponding finite succession rule

Nootropics use in the workplace. Psychiatric and ethical aftermath towards the new frontier of bioengineering

OBJECTIVE: The authors have sought to expound upon and shed a light on the rise of nootropics, which have gradually taken on a more and more relevant role in workplaces and academic settings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Multidisciplinary databases have been delved into by entering the following keys: "nootropics", "cognitive enhancement", "workplace", "productivity", "ethics", "bioengineering". In addition, a broad-ranging search has been undertaken on institutional websites in order to identify relevant analysis and recommendations issued by international institutions and agencies. Papers and reports have been independently pored over by each author. This search strategy has led to the identification of 988 sources but only 64 were considered appropriate for the purposes of the paper after being selected by at least 3 of the authors, independently. RESULTS: The notion of an artificially enhanced work performance - carried out by the 'superworker' - is particularly noteworthy and resonates with the conception of contemporary work on so many different levels: the rising need and demands for higher degrees of flexibility and productivity on the job, the implications of a '24/7' society, where more and more services are available at any time, the ever greater emphasis on entrepreneurial spirit, individual self-reliance and self-improvement, and last but not least, the impact of an ageing society on economic standards and performance. CONCLUSIONS: Moreover, it is worth mentioning that human enhancement technologies will predictably and increasingly go hand in hand with gene editing, bioengineering, cybernetics and nanotechnology. Applications are virtually boundless, and may ultimately affect all human traits (physical strength, endurance, vision, intelligence and even personality and mood)

Self-T-Dual Brane Cosmology and the Cosmological Constant Problem

We consider a codimension-one brane embedded in a gravity-dilaton bulk action, whose symmetries are compatible with T-duality along the space-like directions parallel to the brane, and the bulk time-like direction. The equations of motions in the string frame allow for a smooth background obtained by the union of two symmetric patches of AdS space. The Poincar\'{e} invariance of the solution appears to hold independently of the value of the brane vacuum energy, through a self-tuning property of the dilaton ground state. Moreover, the effective cosmology displays a bounce, at which the scale factor does not shrink to zero. Finally, by exploiting the T-duality symmetry, we show how to construct an ever-expanding Universe, along the lines of the Pre-Big Bang scenario.Comment: Minor corrections, comments & references added. Accepted for publicatio

Cytinus under the microscope: Disclosing the secrets of a parasitic plant

Well over 1% of all flowering plants are parasites, obtaining all or part of the nutrients they need from other plants. Among this extremely heterogeneous assemblage, the Cytinaceae form a small group of holoparasites, with Cytinus as the main representative genus. Despite the small number of known species and the fact that it doesn’t attack crops or plants of economic importance, Cytinus is paradigmatic among parasitic plants. Recent research has indeed disclosed many aspects of host–parasite interactions and reproductive biology, the latter displaying a vast array of adaptive traits to lure a range of animal pollinators. Furthermore, analysis of biological activities of extracts of the most common species of Cytinus has provided evidence that this plant could be a valuable source of compounds with high potential in key applicative areas, namely food production (nutraceuticals) and the development of antimicrobial therapeutics. This article offers a complete overview of our current knowledge of Cytinus

PENGARUH STRATEGI BELAJAR QUESTION STUDENT HAVE (PERTANYAAN DARI SISWA) TERHADAP HASIL BELAJAR SISWA PADA STANDAR KOMPETENSI MENJELASKAN DASAR - DASAR SINYAL VIDEO DI SMK RADEN PATAH MOJOKERTO

Abstrak Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh pembelajaran dan respon siswa dengan menggunakan strategi Question Student Have. Sasaran penelitian yaitu kelas XI TAV di SMK Raden Patah Mojokerto tahun ajaran 2014/2015. Jenis penelitian yang digunakan adalah True Experimental Design dan menggunakan  desain Posttest-Only Control Design. Metode pengumpulan data dalam penelitian ini diperoleh melalui, angket respon siswa dan hasil belajar siswa yang dianalisis secara deskriptif kuantitatif. Perlakuan pertama yang dilakukan yaitu memperkenalkan strategi Question Student Have kemudian diterapkan pada proses pembelajaran dan terakhir diadakan post-test untuk mengetahui hasil belajar siswa. Dari hasil penelitian yang diperoleh, menunjukkan bahwa: (1) Perangkat pembelajaran dan butir soal memiliki presentase rata-rata sebesar 80,91% dari hasil validasi oleh para ahli dan dikategorikan valid. (2) Hasil belajar siswa dengan menggunakan strategi Question Student Have, pada uji-t adalah thitung = 3,03 dan t tabel 1,67 sehingga jelas terdapat daerah penolakan H0 karena 3,03 > 1,67. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian di atas maka dapat disimpulkan bahwa rata-rata hasil belajar siswa yang mendapatkan pembelajaran strategi Question Student Have lebih baik daripada rata-rata hasil belajar siswa yang tidak mendapatkan pembelajaran strategi Question Student Have. (3) Respon siswa terhadap pembelajaran secara keseluruhan adalah positif dan termasuk dalam kriteria respon baik dengan rata-rata persentase respon siswa sebesar 81,40%. Kata kunci : strategi belajar Question Student Have, Hasil belajar. Abstract This research aims to determine the effect of learning and student responses using a strategy Question Student Have. Objective studies of class XI TAV 5 at SMK Raden Patah Mojokerto 2014/2015 school year. This type of study is a True Experimental Design and posttest-only design using Control Design. Methods of data collection in this study were obtained through, questionnaire responses of students and student learning outcomes quantitatively analyzed descriptively. The first treatment which done that is introduce strategy Question Student Have then applied to the learning process and the last held post-test to find out the results of student learning. From the research result obtained, show that: (1) The point about learning and have average percentage of 80,91% of the results of the validation by experts and valid categorized. (2) the results of the student learning using strategy Question Student Have, t-test was t arithmetic = 3.03 and 1.67 t table, so obviously there is a region of rejection of H0 since 3.03 > 1.67. Based on the above results it can be concluded that the average learning outcomes of students who have learning strategy Question Student Have better than average learning outcomes of students who did not get the strategy Question Student Have. (3) The response of students toward learning as awhole is positive and included in the response criterion very well with the average percentage of student responses at 81.40%. Key words: strategy Question Student Have, learning results