The decays h+- -> W-+ h0(a0) within an extension of the MSSM with one complex Higgs triplet

The vertex H+-W-+h0, involving the gauge bosons W-+, the charged (H+-) and the lightest neutral (h0) Higgs bosons, arises within the context of many extensions of the SM, and it can be used to probe the Higgs sector of such extensions via the decay H+- -> W+- h0. We discuss the strength of this vertex for an extension of the MSSM with an additional complex Higgs triplet. By using this model, we find regions of the parameter space where the decay H+- -> W+- h0 is not only kinematically allowed, but it also becomes an important decay mode and in some cases the dominant one.Comment: 10 figure

Mechanistic differences between methanol and dimethyl ether in zeolite-catalyzed hydrocarbon synthesis

Water influences critically the kinetics of the autocatalytic conversion of methanol to hydrocarbons in acid zeolites. At very low conversions but otherwise typical reaction conditions, the initiation of the reaction is delayed in presence of H$_{2}$O. In absence of hydrocarbons, the main reactions are the methanol and dimethyl ether (DME) interconversion and the formation of a C$_{1}$ reactive mixture—which in turn initiates the formation of first hydrocarbons in the zeolite pores. We conclude that the dominant reactions for the formation of a reactive C$_{1}$ pool at this stage involve hydrogen transfer from both MeOH and DME to surface methoxy groups, leading to methane and formaldehyde in a 1:1 stoichiometry. While formaldehyde reacts further to other C$_{1}$ intermediates and initiates the formation of first C–C bonds, CH$_{4}$ is not reacting. The hydride transfer to methoxy groups is the rate-determining step in the initiation of the conversion of methanol and DME to hydrocarbons. Thus, CH$_{4}$ formation rates at very low conversions, i.e., in the initiation stage before autocatalysis starts, are used to gauge the formation rates of first hydrocarbons. Kinetics, in good agreement with theoretical calculations, show surprisingly that hydrogen transfer from DME to methoxy species is 10 times faster than hydrogen transfer from methanol. This difference in reactivity causes the observed faster formation of hydrocarbons in dry feeds, when the concentration of methanol is lower than in presence of water. Importantly, the kinetic analysis of CH$_{4}$ formation rates provides a unique quantitative parameter to characterize the activity of catalysts in the methanol-to-hydrocarbon process

Wnt Signaling in Zebrafish Fin Regeneration: Chemical Biology Using GSK3b Inhibitors

poster abstractBone growth can be impaired due to disease, such as osteoporosis, and Wnt signaling pathways regulate bone growth. The parathyroid hormone (PTH) is therapeutic for anabolic bone growth (bone building), which activates Wnt signaling, leading to bone growth. GSK3b (glycogen synthetase kinase 3 beta) protein inhibitors activate Wnt signaling, including in bone growth models. Our study utilized a zebrafish model system to study Wnt activated fin regeneration and bone growth. Wnt signaling is the first genetically identified step in fin regeneration, and bony rays are the main differentiated cell type in fins. Thus, zebrafish fin regeneration may be a useful model to study Wnt signaling mediated bone growth. Fin regeneration experiments were conducted using various concentrations of GSK3b inhibitor compound for different treatment periods and regenerative outgrowth was measured at 4 and 7 days post amputation. Experiments revealed continuous low concentration (5-6 nM) treatment to be most effective at increasing regeneration. Higher concentrations inhibited fin growth, perhaps by excessive stimulation of differentiation programs. In situ hybridization experiments were performed to examine effects of Gsk3b inhibitor on Wnt responsive gene expression. Initial experiments show temporal and spatial changes on individual gene markers following GSK3b inhibitor treatment. Additionally, confocal microscopy and immunofluorescence labeling data indicated that the Wnt signaling intracellular signal transducer, betacatenin, accumulates throughout Gsk3b inhibitor treated tissues. Finally, experiments are underway to quantify phosphohistone-3 staining in regenerating tissue to measure effects of Gsk3b inhibitor on cell proliferation. Together, these data indicate that bone growth in zebrafish fin regeneration is improved by activating Wnt signaling. Zebrafish Wnt signaling experiments provide good model to study bone growth and bone repair mechanisms, and may provide an efficient drug discovery platform

Implementing an IQP Project Center in Japan

In this report, we detail our recommendations for establishing an IQP project center in Kyoto, Japan for our advisor, Jennifer deWinter. We evaluated Kyoto, Hiroshima, and Tokyo as potential locations by assessing sponsors and living logistics. We compared these factors by developing standardized forms and scoring systems to determine how well options fit our criteria. We concluded that the best project center location is Kyoto and made recommendations for sponsors, housing, PQP, the website, and the term of the IQP

A review of satellite-based global agricultural monitoring systems available for Africa

Abstract The increasing frequency and severity of extreme climatic events and their impacts are being realized in many regions of the world, particularly in smallholder crop and livestock production systems in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). These events underscore the need for timely early warning. Satellite Earth Observation (EO) availability, rapid developments in methodology to archive and process them through cloud services and advanced computational capabilities, continue to generate new opportunities for providing accurate, reliable, and timely information for decision-makers across multiple cropping systems and for resource-constrained institutions. Today, systems and tools that leverage these developments to provide open access actionable early warning information exist. Some have already been employed by early adopters and are currently operational in selecting national monitoring programs in Angola, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. Despite these capabilities, many governments in SSA still rely on traditional crop monitoring systems, which mainly rely on sparse and long latency in situ reports with little to no integration of EO-derived crop conditions and yield models. This study reviews open-access operational agricultural monitoring systems available for Africa. These systems provide the best-available open-access EO data that countries can readily take advantage of, adapt, adopt, and leverage to augment national systems and make significant leaps (timeliness, spatial coverage and accuracy) of their monitoring programs. Data accessible (vegetation indices, crop masks) in these systems are described showing typical outputs. Examples are provided including crop conditions maps, and damage assessments and how these have integrated into reporting and decision-making. The discussion compares and contrasts the types of data, assessments and products can expect from using these systems. This paper is intended for individuals and organizations seeking to access and use EO to assess crop conditions who might not have the technical skill or computing facilities to process raw data into informational products

Measurement of Total and Differential Cross Sections of Neutrino and Antineutrino Coherent π±\pi^\pm Production on Carbon

Neutrino induced coherent charged pion production on nuclei, $\overline{\nu}_\mu A\to\mu^\pm\pi^\mp A$, is a rare inelastic interaction in which the four-momentum squared transfered to the nucleus is nearly zero, leaving it intact. We identify such events in the scintillator of MINERvA by reconstructing |t| from the final state pion and muon momenta and by removing events with evidence of energetic nuclear recoil or production of other final state particles. We measure the total neutrino and antineutrino cross sections as a function of neutrino energy between 2 and 20 GeV and measure flux integrated differential cross sections as a function of $Q^2$, $E_\pi$ and $\theta_\pi$. The $Q^2$ dependence and equality of the neutrino and anti-neutrino cross-sections at finite $Q^2$ provide a confirmation of Adler's PCAC hypothesis

Measurement of the muon anti-neutrino double-differential cross section for quasi-elastic scattering on hydrocarbon at~Eν∼3.5E_\nu \sim 3.5 GeV

We present double-differential measurements of anti-neutrino quasi-elastic scattering in the MINERvA detector. This study improves on a previous single differential measurement by using updated reconstruction algorithms and interaction models, and provides a complete description of observed muon kinematics in the form of a double-differential cross section with respect to muon transverse and longitudinal momentum. We include in our signal definition zero-meson final states arising from multi-nucleon interactions and from resonant pion production followed by pion absorption in the primary nucleus. We find that model agreement is considerably improved by a model tuned to MINERvA inclusive neutrino scattering data that incorporates nuclear effects such as weak nuclear screening and two-particle, two-hole enhancements.Comment: 47 pages, 31 figure

Direct transformation of crystalline MoO3_3 into few-layers MoS2_2

We fabricate large-area atomically thin MoS$_2$ layers through the direct transformation of crystalline molybdenum MoS$_2$ (MoO$_3$) by sulfurization at relatively low temperatures. The obtained MoS2 sheets are polycrystalline (~10-20 nm single-crystal domain size) with areas of up to 300x300 um$^2$ with 2-4 layers in thickness and show a marked p-type behaviour. The synthesized films are characterized by a combination of complementary techniques: Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and electronic transport measurements.Comment: 6 figures in main text, 2 figures in supp. inf