A spatial scan statistic for zero-inflated Poisson process

The scan statistic is widely used in spatial cluster detection applications of inhomogeneous Poisson processes. However, real data may present substantial departure from the underlying Poisson process. One of the possible departures has to do with zero excess. Some studies point out that when applied to data with excess zeros, the spatial scan statistic may produce biased inferences. In this work, we develop a closed-form scan statistic for cluster detection of spatial zero-inflated count data. We apply our methodology to simulated and real data. Our simulations revealed that the Scan-Poisson statistic steadily deteriorates as the number of zeros increases, producing biased inferences. On the other hand, our proposed Scan-ZIP and Scan-ZIP+EM statistics are, most of the time, either superior or comparable to the Scan-Poisson statistic

A photometric and spectroscopic survey of solar twin stars within 50 parsecs of the Sun: I. Atmospheric parameters and color similarity to the Sun

Solar twins and analogs are fundamental in the characterization of the Sun's place in the context of stellar measurements, as they are in understanding how typical the solar properties are in its neighborhood. They are also important for representing sunlight observable in the night sky for diverse photometric and spectroscopic tasks, besides being natural candidates for harboring planetary systems similar to ours and possibly even life-bearing environments. We report a photometric and spectroscopic survey of solar twin stars within 50 pc of the Sun. Hipparcos absolute magnitudes and (B-V)_Tycho colors were used to define a 2 sigma box around the solar values, where 133 stars were considered. Additional stars resembling the solar UBV colors in a broad sense, plus stars present in the lists of Hardorp, were also selected. All objects were ranked by a color-similarity index with respect to the Sun, defined by uvby and BV photometry. Moderately high-resolution, high-S/N spectra were used for a subsample of equatorial-southern stars to derive Teff, log g, and [Fe/H] with average internal errors better than 50 K, 0.20 dex, and 0.08 dex, respectively. Ages and masses were estimated from theoretical HR diagrams. The color-similarity index proved very successful. We identify and rank new excellent solar analogs, which are fit to represent the Sun in the night sky. Some of them are faint enough to be of interest for moderately large telescopes. We also identify two stars with near-UV spectra indistinguishable from the Sun's. We present five new "probable" solar twin stars, besides five new "possible" twins. Masses and ages for the best solar twin candidates lie very close to the solar values, but chromospheric activity levels range somewhat. We propose that the solar twins be emphasized in the ongoing searches for extra-solar planets and SETI searches.Comment: 25 pages, 15 figures, 14 table

Adsorption of Xe atoms on metal surfaces: New insights from first-principles calculations

The adsorption of rare gases on metal surfaces serve as the paradigm of weak adsorption where it is typically assumed that the adsorbate occupies maximally coordinated hollow sites. Density-functional theory calculations using the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method for Xe adatoms on Mg(0001), Al(111), Ti(0001), Cu(111), Pd(111), and Pt(111), show, however, that Xe prefers low-coordination on-top sites in all cases. We identify the importance of polarization and a site-dependent Pauli repulsion in actuating the site preference and the principle nature of the rare-gas atom--metal surface interaction.Comment: 5 pages including 4 figure files. Related publications can be found at http://www.fhi-berlin.mpg.de/th/paper.htm

A Framework for Dynamic Web Services Composition

Dynamic composition of web services is a promising approach and at the same time a challenging research area for the dissemination of service-oriented applications. It is widely recognised that service semantics is a key element for the dynamic composition of Web services, since it allows the unambiguous descriptions of a service's capabilities and parameters. This paper introduces a framework for performing dynamic service composition by exploiting the semantic matchmaking between service parameters (i.e., outputs and inputs) to enable their interconnection and interaction. The basic assumption of the framework is that matchmaking enables finding semantic compatibilities among independently defined service descriptions. We also developed a composition algorithm that follows a semantic graph-based approach, in which a graph represents service compositions and the nodes of this graph represent semantic connections between services. Moreover, functional and non-functional properties of services are considered, to enable the computation of relevant and most suitable service compositions for some service request. The suggested end-to-end functional level service composition framework is illustrated with a realistic application scenario from the IST SPICE project

Copper and Barium Abundances in the Ursa Major Moving Group

We present Cu and Ba abundances for 7 G-K dwarf stars, members of the solar-metallicity, 0.3 Gyr old Ursa Major Moving Group. All analyzed member stars show [Ba/Fe] excesses of +0.3-plus, associated with [Cu/Fe] deficiencies of up to -0.23 dex. The present results suggest that there is an anti-correlation between the abundances of Cu and the heavy elements produced by the main component of the neutron capture s-process. Other possible anomalies are Na and C deficiencies with respect to normal solar-metallicity stars. The new data do not confirm the recent claim that the group member HR6094 is a Ba dwarf star.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, accepted to MNRA

Cyclical Effects of Bank Capital Buffers with Imperfect Credit Markets: international evidence

This paper analyzes the cyclical effects of bank capital buffers using an international sample of 2,361 banks from 92 countries over the 1990-2007 period. We find that capital buffers reduce the bank credit supply but – through what could be “monitoring or signaling effects” – have also an expansionary effect on economic activity by reducing lending and deposit rate spreads. This influence on lending and deposit rate spreads is more pronunced in developing countries and during downturns. The results suggest that capital buffers have a counter-cyclical effect in these countries. Our data do not suggest differences in the cyclical effects of capital buffers between Basel I and Basel II.