bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
IAU South West Asian ROAD
Authors: Mickaelian Areg , Azatyan Naira , Farmanyan Sona , Mikayelyan Gor 
Published: October 2016

AbstractArmenia is hosting the IAU South West Asian (SWA) Regional Office of Astronomy for Development (ROAD). It is a county of ancient astronomy and is also rich in modern astronomical facilities and infrastructures, hence may successfully serve as a regional center for various activities. Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory (BAO) has 2.6m and 1m Schmidt, as well as a number of smaller telescopes that are an observational basis for joint projects and collaborations. Armenian Virtual Observatory (ArVO) is hosting astronomical databases, such as the Digitized First Byurakan Survey (DFBS) and may also serve as a basis for development of VO structures in this region. Recently we have conducted a number of new activities; a meeting on “Relation of Astronomy to other Sciences, Culture and Society" (RASCS) was organized by BAO and Armenian Astronomical Society (ArAS) in Oct 2014 in Byurakan. Activities related to Archaeoastronomy and Astronomy in Culture (AAC) were initiated as well. Discussions on future Armenian-Iranian collaboration in astronomy were carried out, including an Armenian-Iranian Astronomical Workshop held in Oct 2015 in Byurakan. Similar workshops have been carried out between BAO and Abastumani Astronomical Observatory (AbAO, Georgia) since 1974.
The Planetary Nebula Luminosity Function and its Issues
Authors: Ciardullo Robin 
Published: October 2016

AbstractThe bright-end cutoff of the [O III] λ5007 planetary nebula luminosity function (PNLF) is insensitive to population age and metallicity, making it an excellent extragalactic standard candle. We review our knowledge of the function and discuss the challenges related to modeling it. We show that, while there has been a great deal of progress in understanding the nuances of its shape, there is still no solid theory which explains the luminosity of the PNLF cutoff in old stellar populations. This is an extremely serious problem, as it affects a myriad of astrophysical issues, from the determination of the stellar masses of galaxies to our understanding of alternative channels of stellar evolution.
Using SOFIA for Stellar Physics Studies
Authors: Sankrit Ravi 
Published: October 2016

AbstractThe Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) operates in the 0.3–240 micron wavelength region, and offers imaging, polarimetric and high-resolution spectroscopic capabilities that can be used for a wide range of observations relevant for stellar physics studies. We summarize the advantages of using SOFIA, list some of the studies related to stellar physics that have been accomplished, and provide an example high-resolution spectrum of a red supergiant.
Observations of Superluminous Supernovae and their Host Galaxies
Authors: Leloudas Giorgos 
Published: October 2016

AbstractSuperluminous supernovae (SLSNe) were discovered during the last decade by wide-field surveys. Despite their importance for stellar evolution and mass loss, especially at low metallicities, and their utility as high-redshift probes and possible distance indicators, their nature remains poorly understood. I present here new exciting observations of SLSNe and their host galaxies that offer new clues in the hunt for their progenitors and explosion mechanism. These include constraints on the ages and the metallicities at the SN environments, double peaks revealed by early observations, the presence of H in nebular spectra, and the first evidence on the explosion geometry, through polarimetry.
X-Shaped Radio Galaxies and the Nanohertz Gravitational Wave Background
Authors: Roberts David H. , Saripalli Lakshmi , Subrahmanyan Ravi 
Published: October 2016

AbstractCoalescence of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in galaxy mergers is potentially the dominant contributor to the low frequency gravitational wave background (GWB). It was proposed by Merritt & Ekers that X-shaped radio galaxies are signposts of such coalescences and that their abundance might be used to predict the magnitude of the GWB. Cheung identified a sample of 100 candidate X-shaped radio galaxies using the NRAO FIRST survey; these are small-axial-ratio extended radio sources with off-axis emission. In Roberts et al. we made radio images of 52 of these sources with resolution of about 1 arcsecond using archival Very Large Array data. Fifty-one of the 52 were observed at 1.4 GHz, seven were observed at 1.4 and 5 GHz, and one was observed only at 5 GHz. Our higher resolution VLA images along with FIRST survey images of the sources in the sample reveal that extended extragalactic radio sources with small axial ratios are largely (60%) cases of double radio sources with twin lobes that have off-axis extensions, usually with inversion-symmetric structure. The available radio images indicate that at most 20% of sources might be genuine X-shaped radio sources that could have formed by a restarting of beams in a new direction following an interruption and axis flip. The remaining 20% are in neither of these categories.These images indicate that at most a small fraction of the candidates might be genuine X-shaped radio sources that were formed by a restarting of beams in a new direction following a major merger, or by spin drift caused by BH-BH interaction. This suggests that fewer than 1.3% of extended radio sources appear to be candidates for genuine axis reorientations (“spin flips”), or 2.2% if possible “axis drift” sources are included, much smaller than the 7% suggested by Leahy & Parma. Thus, the associated GWB may be substantially smaller than previous estimates. These results can be used to normalize detailed calculations of the SMBH coalescence rate and the GWB.
Astrochemical models of water
Authors: Aikawa Yuri 
Published: October 2016

AbstractWe will review the chemical reaction network models of water and its D/H ratio coupled with the dynamics of star formation. Infrared observations show that water ice is abundant even in molecular clouds with relatively low visual extinction (~ 3 mag), which indicates that water ice is formed in early stage of molecular clouds. We thus start from a possible formation site of molecular clouds, i.e. the converging flow of diffuse gas. Then we proceed to dense cloud cores and its gravitational collapse, during which a significant deuterium enrichment occurs. The gas and ice accrete onto the circumstellar disks, which evolve to protoplanetary disks in T Tauri phase. If the disks are turbulent, water could be photodissociated in the disk surface and re-formed in deeper layers. The cycle continues until the dust grains with ice mantle are decoupled from the turbulence and settle to the midplane. The water D/H ratio could thus vary within the disk.
Search for water and life's building blocks in the universe: A summary
Authors: Bergin Edwin A. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractWater and organics need to be supplied to terrestrial worlds like our own to provide the essential compounds required for the origin of life. These molecules form initially during the earliest stages of stellar birth, are supplied by collapse to the planet-forming disk predominantly as ice, and may undergo significant processing during this collapse and within large planetesimals that are heated via radioactive decay. Water and organic carriers can be quite volatile, thus their survival as ices within rocks is not preordained. In this focus meeting our goal is to bring together astronomers, cosmochemists, planetary scientists, chemical physicists, and spectroscopists who each explore individual aspects of this problem. In this summary we discuss some of the main themes that appeared in the meeting. Ultimately, cross-field collaboration is needed to provide greater understanding of the likelihood that terrestrial worlds form with these key compounds readily available on their surfaces – and are hence habitable if present at the right distance from the star.
Detection of rotational CO emission from the red-supergiants in the Large Magellanic Cloud
Authors: Matsuura Mikako , Sargent B. , Swinyard Bruce , Yates J.A. , Royer P. , Barlow M.J. , Boyer M.L. , Decin L. , Khouri Theo , Meixner Margaret , van Loon J.Th. , Woods P.M. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractIt is yet well understood how mass-loss rates from evolved stars depend on metallicities. With a half of the solar metallicity and the distance of only 50 kpc, the evolved stars of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) are an ideal target for studying mass loss at low metallicity. We have obtained spectra of red-supergiants in the LMC, using the Hershel Space Observatory, detecting CO thermal lines fro J=6–5 up to 15–14 lines. Modelling CO lines with non-LTE Radiative transfer code suggests that CO lines intensities can be well explained with high gas-to-dust ratio, with no obvious reduction in mass-loss rate at the LMC. We conclude that the luminosities of the stars are primary factors on mass-loss rates, rather than the metallicity.
Asteroseismology of GD358 with complex core carbon and oxygen profiles
Authors: Bischoff-Kim Agnès , Provencal Judith L. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractGD 358 is the brightest (mv=13.7) and best studied helium atmosphere white dwarf pulsator. We present an analysis based on over 1000 hours of observations spanning 2007-2014 as well as archival data going back to 1982. From the complete data set, we identify a total of 27 independent frequencies and fit 14 of them as m=0 modes in our asteroseismic analysis. We add GD358 to a set of helium atmosphere white dwarfs fitted with similar models. With this consistent set, we can see a trend in the thickness of the pure helium layer that are quantitatively consistent with time-dependent diffusion calculations.
Sound speed and oscillation frequencies for solar models evolved with Los Alamos ATOMIC opacities
Authors: Guzik Joyce A. , Fontes C. J. , Walczak P. , Wood S. R. , Mussack K. , Farag E. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractLos Alamos National Laboratory has calculated a new generation of radiative opacities (OPLIB data using the ATOMIC code) for elements with atomic number Z = 1-30 with improved physics input, updated atomic data, and finer temperature grid to replace the Los Alamos LEDCOP opacities released in the year 2000. We calculate the evolution of standard solar models including these new opacities, and compare with models evolved using the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory OPAL opacities (Iglesias & Rogers 1996). We use the solar abundance mixture of Asplund et al. 2009. The Los Alamos ATOMIC opacities (Colgan et al. 2013a, 2013b, 2015) have steeper opacity derivatives than those of OPAL for temperatures and densities of the solar interior radiative zone. We compare the calculated nonadiabatic solar oscillation frequencies and solar interior sound speed to observed frequencies and helioseismic inferences. The calculated sound-speed profiles are similar for models evolved using either the updated Iben evolution code (see Guzik & Mussack 2010), or the MESA evolution code (Paxton et al. 2015). The LANL ATOMIC opacities partially mitigate the ‘solar abundance problem’.
Light curve modeling of the short-period W UMa star GSC 02049-01164
Authors: Fox-Machado Lester , Echevarria Juan , González-Buitrago Diego , Michel Raul 
Published: October 2016

AbstractThe preliminary results of an analysis of the time-series photometric data of binary star GSC 02049-01164 (ROTSE1 J164341.65+251748.1) are presented. GSC 02049-01164 was observed for eight consecutive nights with the 0.84-m telescope of the San Pedro Martir Observatory in Mexico. The light curve of GSC 02049-01164 is typical of those of W UMa type binary stars. In an effort to gain a better understanding of the binary system and determine its physical properties we have analyzed the light curve with the software PHOEBE V.0 0.31a. We have found that GSC 02049-01164 binary system has a mass ratio of ~ 0.42, an inclination of ~ 85 degrees, a semi-major axis of ~ 2.24 R⊙. It is likely that the two stellar components are in contact, with a degree of overcontact of 13%. The physical parameters of the stellar components have been derived.
An analysis of the solar-like oscillations in the red giant star KIC 5701829 observed withKepler
Authors: Fox-Machado Lester , Deras Dan 
Published: October 2016

AbstractThe preliminary results of an analysis of the red giant star KIC 5701829 observed for 29 days in short-cadence mode with theKeplersatellite are reported. The oscillation spectrum of this star is characterized by the presence of a well-defined solar-like oscillation pattern due to acoustic modes. The characterization of the power spectrum has been performed following three basics steps commonly used in the analysis of solar-like oscillations: fitting and correcting for the background, estimating the frequency of maximum power (νmax) and the large separation (Δν), and extracting individual frequencies. We have found that the frequency of maximum oscillation power, νmax, and the mean large frequency separation, Δν, are around, 143 and 12 μHz, respectively. The global asteroseismic parameters along with atmospheric parameters from the literature allow us to infer about evolutionary status of the star.
The image plane approach to cosmic telescopes
Authors: Oguri Masamune 
Published: October 2016

AbstractStudies of high-redshift galaxies behind the cores of mass clusters require the correction of gravitational lensing effects. We present our approach to estimate shapes, magnitudes, and the selection effect of high-redshift galaxies in the image plane, which allows us to include not only lensing magnifications but also lensing distortions and image multiplications. For this purpose we construct new mass models for the Frontier Fields clusters using the public software glafic. We present some results on faint-end slopes of the luminosity function and the size evolution of high-redshift galaxies from the analysis of Frontier Fields clusters.
Systematics errors in strong lens modeling
Authors: Johnson Traci L. , Sharon Keren , Bayliss Matthew B. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractWe investigate how varying the number of multiple image constraints and the available redshift information can influence the systematic errors of strong lens models, specifically, the image predictability, mass distribution, and magnifications of background sources. This work will not only inform upon Frontier Field science, but also for work on the growing collection of strong lensing galaxy clusters, most of which are less massive and are capable of lensing a handful of galaxies.
Probing the Cosmic Frontier of Galaxies
Authors: Oesch Pascal A. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractUnderstanding when and how the first galaxies formed and what sources reionized the universe are key goals of extragalactic astronomy. Thanks to deep surveys with the powerful WFC3/IR camera on the HST, the observational frontier of galaxy build-up now lies at only ~450 Myr after the Big Bang, at redshifts z ~10-12. In combination with deep data from Spitzer/IRAC we can now probe the evolution of the stellar mass density over 96% of cosmic history. However, detecting and characterizing galaxies at these early epochs is challenging even for HST and the sample sizes at the earliest redshifts are still very small. The Hubble Frontier Fields provide a prime new dataset to improve upon our current, sparse sampling of the UV luminosity function at z>8 from blank fields to answer some of the most pressing open questions. For instance, even the evolution of the cosmic star-formation rate density at z>8 is still debated. While our measurements based on blank field data indicate that galaxies with SFR>0.7 Msol/yr disappear quickly from the cosmic record between z~8 and z~10, other previous results, e.g., from the CLASH survey favor a more moderate decline. Here, we briefly review the recent progress in studying galaxy build-up out to z~10 from the combined blank field and existing Frontier Field datasets and discuss their implications for primordial galaxy formation and cosmic reionization.
Reconciling the rules of international humanitarian law with the rules of European human rights law
Authors: Landais Claire , Bass Léa 
Published: October 2016

AbstractStates party to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms that engage in military operations abroad face an increased risk to be held responsible for violations of the Convention, given the relatively recent case law adopted by the European Court of Human Rights. This article examines some of the issues raised by the concurrent applicability of international humanitarian law and European human rights law. It also seeks to identify ways to reconcile these two different, but not incompatible, branches of international law.
Brain structure in pediatric Tourette syndrome
Authors:   and The Tourette Association of America Neuroimaging Consortium, Greene D J , Williams III A C , Koller J M , Schlaggar B L , Black K J 
Published: October 2016

AbstractPrevious studies of brain structure in Tourette syndrome (TS) have produced mixed results, and most had modest sample sizes. In the present multicenter study, we used structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to compare 103 children and adolescents with TS to a well-matched group of 103 children without tics. We applied voxel-based morphometry methods to test gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) volume differences between diagnostic groups, accounting for MRI scanner and sequence, age, sex and total GM+WM volume. The TS group demonstrated lower WM volume bilaterally in orbital and medial prefrontal cortex, and greater GM volume in posterior thalamus, hypothalamus and midbrain. These results demonstrate evidence for abnormal brain structure in children and youth with TS, consistent with and extending previous findings, and they point to new target regions and avenues of study in TS. For example, as orbital cortex is reciprocally connected with hypothalamus, structural abnormalities in these regions may relate to abnormal decision making, reinforcement learning or somatic processing in TS.
The fungal-specific β-glucan-binding lectin FGB1 alters cell-wall composition and suppresses glucan-triggered immunity in plants
Authors: Wawra Stephan , Fesel Philipp , Widmer Heidi , Timm Malte , Seibel Jürgen , Leson Lisa , Kesseler Leona , Nostadt Robin , Hilbert Magdalena , Langen Gregor , Zuccaro Alga 
Published: October 2016

Abstractβ-glucans are well-known modulators of the immune system in mammals but little is known about β-glucan triggered immunity in planta. Here we show by isothermal titration calorimetry, circular dichroism spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy that the FGB1 gene from the root endophyte Piriformospora indica encodes for a secreted fungal-specific β-glucan-binding lectin with dual function. This lectin has the potential to both alter fungal cell wall composition and properties, and to efficiently suppress β-glucan-triggered immunity in different plant hosts, such as Arabidopsis, barley and Nicotiana benthamiana. Our results hint at the existence of fungal effectors that deregulate innate sensing of β-glucan in plants.
Dynamic microfluidic control of supramolecular peptide self-assembly
Authors: Arnon Zohar A. , Vitalis Andreas , Levin Aviad , Michaels Thomas C. T. , Caflisch Amedeo , Knowles Tuomas P. J. , Adler-Abramovich Lihi , Gazit Ehud 
Published: October 2016

AbstractThe dynamic nature of supramolecular polymers has a key role in their organization. Yet, the manipulation of their dimensions and polarity remains a challenge. Here, the minimalistic diphenylalanine building block was applied to demonstrate control of nano-assemblies growth and shrinkage using microfluidics. To fine-tune differential local environments, peptide nanotubes were confined by micron-scale pillars and subjected to monomer flows of various saturation levels to control assembly and disassembly. The small-volume device allows the rapid adjustment of conditions within the system. A simplified kinetic model was applied to calculate parameters of the growth mechanism. Direct real-time microscopy analysis revealed that different peptide derivatives show unidirectional or bidirectional axial dimension variation. Atomistic simulations show that unidirectional growth is dictated by the differences in the axial ends, as observed in the crystalline order of symmetry. This work lays foundations for the rational control of nano-materials dimensions for applications in biomedicine and material science.
mTORC1 and mTORC2 regulate skin morphogenesis and epidermal barrier formation
Authors: Ding Xiaolei , Bloch Wilhelm , Iden Sandra , Rüegg Markus A. , Hall Michael N. , Leptin Maria , Partridge Linda , Eming Sabine A. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractMammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), a regulator of growth in many tissues, mediates its activity through two multiprotein complexes, mTORC1 or mTORC2. The role of mTOR signalling in skin morphogenesis and epidermal development is unknown. Here we identify mTOR as an essential regulator in skin morphogenesis by epidermis-specific deletion of Mtor in mice (mTOREKO). mTOREKO mutants are viable, but die shortly after birth due to deficits primarily during the early epidermal differentiation programme and lack of a protective barrier development. Epidermis-specific loss of Raptor, which encodes an essential component of mTORC1, confers the same skin phenotype as seen in mTOREKO mutants. In contrast, newborns with an epidermal deficiency of Rictor, an essential component of mTORC2, survive despite a hypoplastic epidermis and disruption in late stage terminal differentiation. These findings highlight a fundamental role for mTOR in epidermal morphogenesis that is regulated by distinct functions for mTORC1 and mTORC2.
Self-motion evokes precise spike timing in the primate vestibular system
Authors: Jamali Mohsen , Chacron Maurice J. , Cullen Kathleen E. 
Published: October 2016

AbstractThe accurate representation of self-motion requires the efficient processing of sensory input by the vestibular system. Conventional wisdom is that vestibular information is exclusively transmitted through changes in firing rate, yet under this assumption vestibular neurons display relatively poor detection and information transmission. Here, we carry out an analysis of the system’s coding capabilities by recording neuronal responses to repeated presentations of naturalistic stimuli. We find that afferents with greater intrinsic variability reliably discriminate between different stimulus waveforms through differential patterns of precise (∼6 ms) spike timing, while those with minimal intrinsic variability do not. A simple mathematical model provides an explanation for this result. Postsynaptic central neurons also demonstrate precise spike timing, suggesting that higher brain areas also represent self-motion using temporally precise firing. These findings demonstrate that two distinct sensory channels represent vestibular information: one using rate coding and the other that takes advantage of precise spike timing.