The taxonomy and anatomy of rauisuchian archosaurs from the Late Triassic of Germany and Poland

The German Late Triassic archosaur Teratosaurus suevicus is a historically important taxon, being the first described rauisuchian. Unfortunately the holotype is a single element, a maxilla, which is poorly preserved and incomplete. We redescribe this maxilla and identify a single potential autapomorphy. The fragmentary type specimen complicates attempts to refer additional material to this taxon, and other unassociated archosaur and rauisuchian specimens from the Mittlerer Stubensandstein of Germany cannot be referred to T. suevicus with any degree of confidence. The stratigraphically older T. silesiacus, from the upper Carnian of Poland, is represented by a much more complete and better preserved specimen. Comparison of the maxillae of T. suevicus and T. silesiacus reveals that the two are distinct taxa, contra recent suggestions, but also that they do not share any synapomorphies or a unique combination of characters relative to Postosuchus kirkpatricki and other rauisuchians. Thus, the Polish material must be transferred to a new genus, Polonosuchus gen. nov. Both Polonosuchus and Teratosaurus are very similar to Postosuchus kirkpatricki, and the three taxa are likely closely related

Reduction of vertebrate coprolite diversity associated with the end-Permian extinction event in Vyazniki region, European Russia

© 2016 Elsevier B.V.This study investigates the paleoecological significance of vertebrate coprolites collected from seven sections and three lithofacies of the uppermost Permian and lowermost Triassic succession from the Vyazniki site in the European part of Russia. The analyzed specimens (coprolites and possibly some cololites) were grouped into nine morphotypes (A-I). The coprolite morphotypes were characterized geochemically and compared to the record of other Permian and Triassic coprolites worldwide. Based on the stratigraphic position, shape, structure and composition, all morphotypes were linked to supposed producers. The phosphatic composition of most of the morphotypes and inclusions of arthropod remains, fish scales and bone fragments, suggest that they were produced by carnivores, but non-phosphatic, carbonate-rich, large and oval-shaped coprolites with impressions after plant remains have also been found. The extinction of terrestrial vertebrates around the Permian-Triassic boundary in Russia is interpreted to have occurred within a few thousands of years. Here, we show a pattern of coprolite morphotypes disappearing across this boundary that is consistent with a relatively sudden change in the vertebrate faunal composition across this interval

The first find of Permian ceratodontids (Dipnoi, Osteichthyes) in Russia

© 2015, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd. A huge dipnoan, Permoceratodus gentilis Krupina, gen. et sp. nov. (order Ceratodontiformes), from the terminal Permian beds (Zhukovian Regional Stage, Vyatkian Stage, Upper Permian) of the Sokovka locality (Vladimir Region) is described. It is characterized by the evolutionarily advanced high extent of fusion of skull roof bones and conservative well defined structures of the seismosensory system of the head. This combination distinguishes the new taxon from other Ceratodontiformes. A set of conservative and advanced characters is observed in many vertebrates of the Vyazniki faunal assemblage. Large tetrapods and fishes characterize the terminal developmental stage of the Permian fauna of Eastern Europe, which was followed by impoverishment of the taxonomic composition accompanied by a decrease in body size. The dipnoan described here, like some other vertebrates of this assemblage, belong to high-rank taxa, which had just appeared in the Paleozoic, but reached flourishing in the Mesozoic

Microbiota and food residues including possible evidence of pre-mammalian hair in Upper Permian coprolites from Russia

© 2015 Lethaia Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons LtdCoprolites (fossil faeces) provide direct evidence on the diet of its producer and unique insights on ancient food webs and ecosystems. We describe the contents of seven coprolites, collected from the Late Permian Vyazniki site of the European part of Russia. Two coprolite morphotypes (A, B) contain remains of putative bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, protists, invertebrate eggs, arthropod elements, undigested bone and tooth fragments, fish scales and elongated hair-like structures with hollow interiors. Content, size and shape of the coprolites together with the associated body fossil record suggest that the most probable scat-producers were carnivorous tetrapods; the bone-rich morphotype A reveals short food retention time and a fast metabolism and is therefore assigned to therapsid carnivores whereas morphotype B with rarer and degraded bones are assigned to archosauromorphs or other non-therapsid carnivores. The general coprolite matrix contains abundant micron-sized spheres and thin-walled vesicles which are interpreted as oxide and phosphatic pseudomorphs after microbial cells. From analyses of the undigested bones, we infer that they represent remains of actinopterygian fish, a therapsid and unrecognizable parts of amphibians and/or reptiles. Additionally, hair-like structures found in one coprolite specimen occur as diagenetically altered (oxide-replaced) structures and moulds (or partly as pseudomorphs) in a microcrystalline carbonate-fluoride-bearing calcium phosphate. This suggests that the latest Permian therapsids probably were equipped with hair-like integument or hairsuit. If true, this is by far the oldest evidence of this mammalian character in the stem group of mammals

關於關西大學圖書館所藏的抄寫本《新刊監本增注司牧療馬安驥集》

《司牧安驥集》是醫馬書古典著作之一，唐代李石撰的．原書早就遺失，現在能目睹的只有明代增注本．關西大學圖書館所藏的《新刊監本增注司牧療馬安驥集》是抄寫明代弘治17年重刊的．現在《司牧安驥集》系列的版本稀有，明代弘治17年重刊本都有兩種，個個只流傳下一本：南京圖書館藏本與日本市立米澤圖書館藏本．關西大學圖書館所藏本屬於米澤圖書館藏本系列，而且有些部分反映了更早時期的版本，是極其重要的史料．以後通過詳細調查此件抄寫本，可能進行《司牧安驥集》之綜合系統研究而明確此件史料原貌與流傳情況．研究論

Scintillator counters with WLS fiber/MPPC readout for the side muon range detector (SMRD)of the T2K experiment

The T2K neutrino experiment at J-PARC uses a set of near detectors to measure the properties of an unoscillated neutrino beam and neutrino interaction cross-sections. One of the sub-detectors of the near-detector complex, the side muon range detector (SMRD), is described in the paper. The detector is designed to help measure the neutrino energy spectrum, to identify background and to calibrate the other detectors. The active elements of the SMRD consist of 0.7 cm thick extruded scintillator slabs inserted into air gaps of the UA1 magnet yokes. The readout of each scintillator slab is provided through a single WLS fiber embedded into a serpentine shaped groove. Two Hamamatsu multi-pixel avalanche photodiodes (MPPC's) are coupled to both ends of the WLS fiber. This design allows us to achieve a high MIP detection efficiency of greater than 99%. A light yield of 25-50 p.e./MIP, a time resolution of about 1 ns and a spatial resolution along the slab better than 10 cm were obtained for the SMRD counters.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures; talk at TIPP09, March 12-17, Tsukuba, Japan; to be published in the conference proceeding

The ICARUS T600 Experiment in the Gran Sasso Underground Laboratory

With a mass of about 600 tons of Liquid Argon (LAr), the ICARUS T600 detector is the biggest, up to now, LAr Time Projection Chamber (TPC). Following its successful test run, on the Earth surface, in Pavia (Italy) in 2001, the detector is now very close to start data taking in the Gran Sasso underground laboratory. The main features of the LAr TPC technique, together with a short discussion of some of the ICARUS T600 test run results, are presented in this paper

The T2K Side Muon Range Detector

The T2K experiment is a long baseline neutrino oscillation experiment aiming to observe the appearance of {\nu} e in a {\nu}{\mu} beam. The {\nu}{\mu} beam is produced at the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC), observed with the 295 km distant Super- Kamiokande Detector and monitored by a suite of near detectors at 280m from the proton target. The near detectors include a magnetized off-axis detector (ND280) which measures the un-oscillated neutrino flux and neutrino cross sections. The present paper describes the outermost component of ND280 which is a side muon range detector (SMRD) composed of scintillation counters with embedded wavelength shifting fibers and Multi-Pixel Photon Counter read-out. The components, performance and response of the SMRD are presented.Comment: 13 pages, 19 figures v2: fixed several typos; fixed reference

The LAGUNA design study- towards giant liquid based underground detectors for neutrino physics and astrophysics and proton decay searches

The feasibility of a next generation neutrino observatory in Europe is being considered within the LAGUNA design study. To accommodate giant neutrino detectors and shield them from cosmic rays, a new very large underground infrastructure is required. Seven potential candidate sites in different parts of Europe and at several distances from CERN are being studied: Boulby (UK), Canfranc (Spain), Fr\'ejus (France/Italy), Pyh\"asalmi (Finland), Polkowice-Sieroszowice (Poland), Slanic (Romania) and Umbria (Italy). The design study aims at the comprehensive and coordinated technical assessment of each site, at a coherent cost estimation, and at a prioritization of the sites within the summer 2010.Comment: 5 pages, contribution to the Workshop "European Strategy for Future Neutrino Physics", CERN, Oct. 200