Abstract
We compute the spherically averaged power spectrum from four seasons of data obtained for the Epoch of Reionization (EoR) project observed with the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA). We ...measure the EoR power spectrum over k = 0.07–3.0 h Mpc−1 at redshifts $z$ = 6.5–8.7. The largest aggregation of 110 h on EoR0 high band (3340 observations), yields a lowest measurement of (43 mK)2 = 1.8 × 103 mK2 at k = 0.14 h Mpc−1 and $z$ = 6.5 (2σ thermal noise plus sample variance). Using the Real-Time System to calibrate and the CHIPS pipeline to estimate power spectra, we select the best observations from the central five pointings within the 2013–2016 observing seasons, observing three independent fields and in two frequency bands. This yields 13 591 2-min snapshots (453 h), based on a quality assurance metric that measures ionospheric activity. We perform another cut to remove poorly calibrated data, based on power in the foreground-dominated and EoR-dominated regions of the two-dimensional power spectrum, reducing the set to 12 569 observations (419 h). These data are processed in groups of 20 observations, to retain the capacity to identify poor data, and used to analyse the evolution and structure of the data over field, frequency, and data quality. We subsequently choose the cleanest 8935 observations (298 h of data) to form integrated power spectra over the different fields, pointings, and redshift ranges.
Measurements of 21 cm Epoch of Reionization (EoR) structure are subject to systematics originating from both the analysis and the observation conditions. Using 2013 data from the Murchison Widefield ...Array (MWA), we show the importance of mitigating both sources of contamination. A direct comparison between results from Beardsley et al. and our updated analysis demonstrates new precision techniques, lowering analysis systematics by a factor of 2.8 in power. We then further lower systematics by excising observations contaminated by ultra-faint RFI, reducing by an additional factor of 3.8 in power for the zenith pointing. With this enhanced analysis precision and newly developed RFI mitigation, we calculate a noise-dominated upper limit on the EoR structure of Δ2 ≤ 3.9 × 103 mK2 at k = 0.20 h Mpc−1 and z = 7 using 21 hr of data, improving previous MWA limits by almost an order of magnitude.
We present a sample of 1483 sources that display spectral peaks between 72 MHz and 1.4 GHz, selected from the GaLactic and Extragalactic All-sky Murchison Widefield Array (GLEAM) survey. The GLEAM ...survey is the widest fractional bandwidth all-sky survey to date, ideal for identifying peaked-spectrum sources at low radio frequencies. Our peaked-spectrum sources are the low-frequency analogs of gigahertz-peaked spectrum (GPS) and compact-steep spectrum (CSS) sources, which have been hypothesized to be the precursors to massive radio galaxies. Our sample more than doubles the number of known peaked-spectrum candidates, and 95% of our sample have a newly characterized spectral peak. We highlight that some GPS sources peaking above 5 GHz have had multiple epochs of nuclear activity, and we demonstrate the possibility of identifying high-redshift (z > 2) galaxies via steep optically thin spectral indices and low observed peak frequencies. The distribution of the optically thick spectral indices of our sample is consistent with past GPS/CSS samples but with a large dispersion, suggesting that the spectral peak is a product of an inhomogeneous environment that is individualistic. We find no dependence of observed peak frequency with redshift, consistent with the peaked-spectrum sample comprising both local CSS sources and high-redshift GPS sources. The 5 GHz luminosity distribution lacks the brightest GPS and CSS sources of previous samples, implying that a convolution of source evolution and redshift influences the type of peaked-spectrum sources identified below 1 GHz. Finally, we discuss sources with optically thick spectral indices that exceed the synchrotron self-absorption limit.
Ecosystem management that attempts to maximize the production of one ecosystem service often results in substantial declines in the provision of other ecosystem services. For this reason, recent ...studies have called for increased attention to development of a theoretical understanding behind the relationships among ecosystem services. Here, we review the literature on ecosystem services and propose a typology of relationships between ecosystem services based on the role of drivers and the interactions between services. We use this typology to develop three propositions to help drive ecological science towards a better understanding of the relationships among multiple ecosystem services. Research which aims to understand the relationships among multiple ecosystem services and the mechanisms behind these relationships will improve our ability to sustainably manage landscapes to provide multiple ecosystem services.
ABSTRACT
Current attempts to measure the 21 cm power spectrum of neutral hydrogen during the epoch of reionization (EoR) are limited by systematics that produce measured upper limits above both the ...thermal noise and the expected cosmological signal. These systematics arise from a combination of observational, instrumental, and analysis effects. In order to further understand and mitigate these effects, it is instructive to explore different aspects of existing data sets. One such aspect is the choice of observing field. To date, MWA EoR observations have largely focused on the EoR0 field. In this work, we present a new detailed analysis of the EoR1 field. The EoR1 field is one of the coldest regions of the southern radio sky, but contains the very bright radio galaxy Fornax-A. The presence of this bright extended source in the primary beam of the interferometer makes the calibration and analysis of EoR1 particularly challenging. We demonstrate the effectiveness of a recently developed shapelet model of Fornax-A in improving the results from this field. We also describe and apply a series of data quality metrics that identify and remove systematically contaminated data. With substantially improved source models, upgraded analysis algorithms and enhanced data quality metrics, we determine EoR power spectrum upper limits based on analysis of the best ∼14-h data observed during 2015 and 2014 at redshifts 6.5, 6.8, and 7.1, with the lowest 2σ upper limit at z = 6.5 of Δ2 ≤ (73.78 mK)2 at k = 0.13 h Mpc−1, improving on previous EoR1 measurement results.
Mental health professionals typically encounter patients at 1 point in patients' lives. This cross-sectional window understandably fosters focus on the current presenting diagnosis. Research ...programs, treatment protocols, specialist clinics, and specialist journals are oriented to presenting diagnoses, on the assumption that diagnosis informs about causes and prognosis. This study tests an alternative hypothesis: people with mental disorders experience many different kinds of disorders across diagnostic families, when followed for 4 decades.
To describe mental disorder life histories across the first half of the life course.
This cohort study involved participants born in New Zealand from 1972 to 1973 who were enrolled in the population-representative Dunedin Study. Participants were observed from birth to age 45 years (until April 2019). Data were analyzed from May 2019 to January 2020.
Diagnosed impairing disorders were assessed 9 times from ages 11 to 45 years. Brain function was assessed through neurocognitive examinations conducted at age 3 years, neuropsychological testing during childhood and adulthood, and midlife neuroimaging-based brain age.
Of 1037 original participants (535 male 51.6%), 1013 had mental health data available. The proportions of participants meeting the criteria for a mental disorder were as follows: 35% (346 of 975) at ages 11 to 15 years, 50% (473 of 941) at age 18 years, 51% (489 of 961) at age 21 years, 48% (472 of 977) at age 26 years, 46% (444 of 969) at age 32 years, 45% (429 of 955) at age 38 years, and 44% (407 of 927) at age 45 years. The onset of the disorder occurred by adolescence for 59% of participants (600 of 1013), eventually affecting 86% of the cohort (869 of 1013) by midlife. By age 45 years, 85% of participants (737 of 869) with a disorder had accumulated comorbid diagnoses. Participants with adolescent-onset disorders subsequently presented with disorders at more past-year assessments (r = 0.71; 95% CI, 0.68 to 0.74; P < .001) and met the criteria for more diverse disorders (r = 0.64; 95% CI, 0.60 to 0.67; P < .001). Confirmatory factor analysis summarizing mental disorder life histories across 4 decades identified a general factor of psychopathology, the p-factor. Longitudinal analyses showed that high p-factor scores (indicating extensive mental disorder life histories) were antedated by poor neurocognitive functioning at age 3 years (r = -0.18; 95% CI, -0.24 to -0.12; P < .001), were accompanied by childhood-to-adulthood cognitive decline (r = -0.11; 95% CI, -0.17 to -0.04; P < .001), and were associated with older brain age at midlife (r = 0.14; 95% CI, 0.07 to 0.20; P < .001).
These findings suggest that mental disorder life histories shift among different successive disorders. Data from the present study, alongside nationwide data from Danish health registers, inform a life-course perspective on mental disorders. This perspective cautions against overreliance on diagnosis-specific research and clinical protocols.
An ecosystem service is a benefit derived by humanity that can be traced back to an ecological process. Although ecosystem services related to surface water have been thoroughly described, the ...relationship between atmospheric water and ecosystem services has been mostly neglected, and perhaps misunderstood. Recent advances in land-atmosphere modeling have revealed the importance of terrestrial ecosystems for moisture recycling. In this paper, we analyze the extent to which vegetation sustains the supply of atmospheric moisture and precipitation for downwind beneficiaries, globally. We simulate land-surface evaporation with a global hydrology model and track changes to moisture recycling using an atmospheric moisture budget model, and we define vegetation-regulated moisture recycling as the difference in moisture recycling between current vegetation and a hypothetical desert world. Our results show that nearly a fifth of annual average precipitation falling on land is from vegetation-regulated moisture recycling, but the global variability is large, with many places receiving nearly half their precipitation from this ecosystem service. The largest potential impacts for changes to this ecosystem service are land-use changes across temperate regions in North America and Russia. Likewise, in semi-arid regions reliant on rainfed agricultural production, land-use change that even modestly reduces evaporation and subsequent precipitation, could significantly affect human well-being. We also present a regional case study in the Mato Grosso region of Brazil, where we identify the specific moisture recycling ecosystem services associated with the vegetation in Mato Grosso. We find that Mato Grosso vegetation regulates some internal precipitation, with a diffuse region of benefit downwind, primarily to the south and east, including the La Plata River basin and the megacities of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. We synthesize our global and regional results into a generalized framework for describing moisture recycling as an ecosystem service. We conclude that future work ought to disentangle whether and how this vegetation-regulated moisture recycling interacts with other ecosystem services, so that trade-offs can be assessed in a comprehensive and sustainable manner.
The food system is a major driver of climate change, changes in land use, depletion of freshwater resources, and pollution of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems through excessive nitrogen and ...phosphorus inputs. Here we show that between 2010 and 2050, as a result of expected changes in population and income levels, the environmental effects of the food system could increase by 50-90% in the absence of technological changes and dedicated mitigation measures, reaching levels that are beyond the planetary boundaries that define a safe operating space for humanity. We analyse several options for reducing the environmental effects of the food system, including dietary changes towards healthier, more plant-based diets, improvements in technologies and management, and reductions in food loss and waste. We find that no single measure is enough to keep these effects within all planetary boundaries simultaneously, and that a synergistic combination of measures will be needed to sufficiently mitigate the projected increase in environmental pressures.
Hepatic circadian gene transcription is tightly coupled to feeding behavior, which has a profound impact on metabolic disorders associated with diet-induced obesity. Here, we describe a genomics ...approach to uncover mechanisms controlling hepatic postprandial gene expression. Combined transcriptomic and cistromic analysis identified hundreds of circadian-regulated genes and enhancers controlled by feeding. Postprandial suppression of enhancer activity was associated with reduced glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and Forkhead box O1 (FOXO1) occupancy of chromatin correlating with reduced serum corticosterone levels and increased serum insulin levels. Despite substantial co-occupancy of feeding-regulated enhancers by GR and FOXO1, selective disruption of corticosteroid and/or insulin signaling resulted in dysregulation of specific postprandial regulated gene programs. In combination, these signaling pathways operate a major part of the genes suppressed by feeding. Importantly, the feeding response was disrupted in diet-induced obese animals, which was associated with dysregulation of several corticosteroid- and insulin-regulated genes, providing mechanistic insights to dysregulated circadian gene transcription associated with obesity.
ABSTRACT
Observations in the lowest Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) band between 75 and 100 MHz have the potential to constrain the distribution of neutral hydrogen in the intergalactic medium at ...redshift ∼13–17. Using 15 h of MWA data, we analyse systematics in this band such as radio-frequency interference (RFI), ionospheric and wide field effects. By updating the position of point sources, we mitigate the direction-independent calibration error due to ionospheric offsets. Our calibration strategy is optimized for the lowest frequency bands by reducing the number of direction-dependent calibrators and taking into account radio sources within a wider field of view. We remove data polluted by systematics based on the RFI occupancy and ionospheric conditions, finally selecting 5.5 h of the cleanest data. Using these data, we obtain 2σ upper limits on the 21 cm power spectrum in the range of $0.1~ h~{\mathrm{ Mpc}}^{-1}\lessapprox k \lessapprox 1 ~ ~h~{\mathrm{ Mpc}}^{-1}$ and at z = 14.2, 15.2, and 16.5, with the lowest limit being $6.3\times 10^6 ~\rm mK^2$ at $k=0.14 ~h~{\mathrm{ Mpc}}^{-1}$ and at z = 15.2 with a possibility of a few per cent of signal loss due to direction-independent calibration.