Abstract
We investigate the X-ray and UV emission from the contact binary star KIC 9832227, which was observed with XMM-Newton for one orbital cycle. The binary is detected with an average X-ray ...luminosity of 3.4 × 10
30
erg s
−1
. The X-ray emission is restricted to energies below 3 keV and originates from a multitemperature plasma with temperatures up to 1 keV. The X-ray spectrum has at least two distinct components, a cooler, mostly steady component, and a hotter component exhibiting significant variability. The variable X-ray emission appears to originate from a compact flare near the contact region between the two stars that is being eclipsed by the secondary. We analyze the eclipse profile to constrain the location, size, and density of the flaring region. The remaining X-ray emission is not eclipsed and could originate from the polar region on the primary star or an extended corona. The UV emission exhibits the same nearly sinusoidal modulation at half the orbital period that is observed at longer wavelengths. The primary and secondary eclipses have slightly different depths, which is generally attributed to starspot activity. Using simulations of the UV light curve with stellar atmosphere models, we deduce the presence of a starspot near the polar region of the primary, and we determine the time of primary eclipse.
Traditional habitat knowledge, like the classification of folk habitats and how people partition their landscape into habitats, is an emerging but still understudied part of traditional ecological ...knowledge. Our objectives were to reconstruct the folk habitats and the partitioning of the landscape into these folk habitats by Mongolian herders in Northern Mongolia and to compare it with other Northern Hemisphere boreal-temperate classifications.
The study area is located in Seruun Gilad (Khuvsugul province) and belongs to the mountain forest steppe of the Khangai region (dominated by meadow steppes and larch forests). Most herder families use the area for summer pasturing. Data collection was based on indoor and outdoor, structured and semi-structured interviews and interviews during landscape walks and participatory fieldwork. We interviewed 20 people using 76+ photos of plant species and 25+ photos of habitats and asked them to name and describe the habitats and describe the habitat preferences of the species.
Mongolian herders distinguished at least 88 folk habitat categories and knew well the habitat preferences of the 76 plant species. They argued that a herder has to be observant of nature. The habitat classification was moderately lexicalized, with many descriptive expressions. Most habitats (77%) belonged to the meso-scale, while macro-scale habitats (like taiga, Gobi) and micro-scale habitats (like marmot burrow, top of the tussock) were few. Habitat names did not reflect directly the usefulness of the habitat. Classification was multidimensional; key dimensions were geomorphological and edaphic. There were some species (e.g., botyuul, hyag, shireg) and species groups (hot plants, leafy plants) that were often used to describe habitat types.
Landscape partitionings in the Northern Hemisphere differed considerably in the importance of various dimensions used, with edaphic, geomorphological, hydrological, and dominant species-based dimensions having higher importance, while land use, successional, and zoological dimensions having lower importance. We argue that conducting research on folk habitats will contribute to a deeper understanding of how nature is perceived by locals and to a more efficient management of the Mongolian pastures.
Aim.
Accurate knowledge of the extent and local distribution of pollution plays a key role in many areas of life.
Method.
Although there are many well-known and generally-accepted methods for ...obtaining the intended data, these methods do not give a satisfactory result in cases when it is necessary to determine the exact parameters of pollution quickly and in a relatively small area (e.g. an industrial zone of several square kilometers, a residential area, etc.) and to determine changes in these parameters as expressed numerically. Small UAVs (multicopter with fixed or rotating wing) were equipped with sensitive detectors for gamma rays and polluting gases, including the assignation of flight data coordinates to the measured data. Such informational groupings provide the opportunity to determine the distribution of radiation or air polluting gases. Using this method, it is possible to identify and localise illegally-stored or illegally-released gamma ray emitting materials, continuously monitor pollution caused by chemical disasters and determine the spatial distribution of pollution.
Results.
The article presents systems based on practical experiments, which, in the case of using a gamma detector, allow the localisation of objects using low radiation doses along with a high-quality map of gamma radiation in a specific area; and, in the case of gas sensors, the visualisation of the spatial distribution of a polluting gas. The method is used primarily in the field to detect gamma emitters with low activity or to analyse the emission of industrial facilities with the emission of pollutants.
Conclusion.
The combination of spatial coordinates with remote sensing data comprises an effective meas-urement method. The developed system is generally applicable for mobile platforms equipped with sensors. The systems are designed to provide fast, efficient and reliable measurements that can be used for both detection and control. The type of pollutants to be measured depends on the sensors used. The experiments also indicate that, when replacing the used sensors, it may be necessary to change the processing of the measured data in accordance with the characteristics of the particular sensor; however, in general, data processing and visualisation of the results can be carried out in practice.
Surgical repair of complex abdominal wall hernias remains technically demanding and is widely recognized as a risk factor for unfavorable outcomes with high recurrence and morbidity rates. The ...objective is to assess short- and long-term complications after open intraperitoneal onlay mesh (IPOM) repair combined with bilateral anterior component separation (ACS) for large and difficult incisional hernias, alongside evaluating hernia recurrence rates.
This retrospective analysis utilized data sourced from Hospital electronic health records and a prospective database at an academic tertiary referral center. Data collection was carried out from patients operated between January 2006 and December 2017. Eligible patients had complex incisional hernias measuring at least 10 cm in their transverse diameter and had an open IPOM repair with bilateral ACS.
In our study group of 45 patients, the 30-day surgical site occurrence (SSO) rate was high (37.8%), primarily consisting of superficial postoperative complications as seroma (17.8%) and wound dehiscence (6.7%). Among six patients (13.3%), wound complications escalated to chronic infected mesh-related problems, leading to complete mesh removal in four cases (8.9%) and partial mesh removal in two cases (4.4%). Regarding long-term complications, five patients (11.1%) developed enterocutaneous fistula. The recurrence rate was modest 5 out of 41 (12.2%) over a median follow-up period of 99 months.
Despite a high SSO rate, application of the open IPOM technique with ACS could serve as a valuable rescue option for managing large and complex hernias, with acceptable hernia recurrence rates at long-term follow-up.
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The metalloid element, selenium (Se) is in many ways special and perhaps because of this its research in human and plant systems is of great interest. Despite its non-essentiality, ...higher plants take it up and metabolize it via sulfur pathways, but higher amounts of Se cause toxic symptoms in plants. However, the molecular mechanisms of selenium phytotoxicity have been only partly revealed; the data obtained so far point out that Se toxicity targets the plant proteome. Besides seleno- and oxyproteins, nitroproteins are also formed due to Se stress. In order to minimize proteomic damages induced by Se, certain plants are able to redirect selenocysteine away from protein synthesis thus preventing Se-protein formation. Additionally, the damaged or malformed selenoproteins, oxyproteins and nitroproteins may be removed by proteasomes. Based on the literature this review sets Se toxicity mechanisms into a new concept and it draws attention to the importance of Se-induced protein-level changes.
This paper synthesizes data on aerosol (particulate matter, PM) physical and chemical characteristics, which were obtained over the past decade in aerosol research and monitoring activities at more ...than 60 natural background, rural, near-city, urban, and kerbside sites across Europe. The data include simultaneously measured PM
10 and/or PM
2.5 mass on the one hand, and aerosol particle number concentrations or PM chemistry on the other hand. The aerosol data presented in our previous works (
Van Dingenen et al., 2004; Putaud et al., 2004) were updated and merged to those collected in the framework of the EU supported European Cooperation in the field of Scientific and Technical action COST633 (
Particulate matter:
Properties related to health effects). A number of conclusions from our previous studies were confirmed. There is no single ratio between PM
2.5 and PM
10 mass concentrations valid for all sites, although fairly constant ratios ranging from 0.5 to 0.9 are observed at most individual sites. There is no general correlation between PM mass and particle number concentrations, although particle number concentrations increase with PM
2.5 levels at most sites. The main constituents of both PM
10 and PM
2.5 are generally organic matter, sulfate and nitrate. Mineral dust can also be a major constituent of PM
10 at kerbside sites and in Southern Europe. There is a clear decreasing gradient in SO
4
2− and NO
3
− contribution to PM
10 when moving from rural to urban to kerbside sites. In contrast, the total carbon/PM
10 ratio increases from rural to kerbside sites. Some new conclusions were also drawn from this work: the ratio between ultrafine particle and total particle number concentration decreases with PM
2.5 concentration at all sites but one, and significant gradients in PM chemistry are observed when moving from Northwestern, to Southern to Central Europe. Compiling an even larger number of data sets would have further increased the significance of our conclusions, but collecting all the aerosol data sets obtained also through research projects remains a tedious task.
In our work, we developed a ferrofluid core differential transformer sensor, which can be used to measure tilt and acceleration. The proposed sensor consisted of three coils, from which the primary ...was excited with an alternating current. In the space surrounded by the coils was a cell half-filled with ferrofluid, therefore in the horizontal state of the sensor the fluid distributes equally in the three sections of the cell surrounded by the three coils. Nevertheless when the cell is being tilted or accelerated (in the direction of the axis of the coils), there is a different amount of ferrofluid in the three sections. The voltage induced in the secondary coils strongly depends on the amount of ferrofluid found in the core surrounded by them, so the tilt or the acceleration of the cell becomes measurable. We constructed the sensor in several layouts. The linearly coiled sensor had an excellent resolution. Another version with a toroidal cell had almost perfect linearity and a virtually infinite measuring range.
•A ferrofluid core differential transformer can be used to measure tilt.•The theoretical description of two different type of the sensor is introduced.•The measuring range, and the sensitivity depends on the dimensions of the sensor.
Road management practices, such as winter de-icing create ideal habitats and competitive advantage for salt-tolerant species. We aimed to map the occurrences of halophytes along roads in Hungary. ...Furthermore, we tested factors that might play a role in the roadside occurrences of five chosen native halophytes from rare to common, we encountered during our field surveys. These were Festuca pseudovina, Limonium gmelinii subsp. hungaricum, Podospermum canum, Puccinellia distans and Spergularia media. We found, that at least one halophyte species was documented in 71% of the total sampling points. Germination experiments indicated that substrate salt concentration significantly decreased germination rates in each of the five species, but in case of L. gmelinii subsp. hungaricum, or P. distans germination occurred on extremely high salt concentrations. Traffic intensity, the presence of other halophytes at the sampling point and the presence of a given species in the surrounding landscape had a significant positive effect on the occurrence of four of the five model species. Our results suggest that the studied species are mostly in the early stage of their roadside spread, colonizing roadsides close to their native distribution ranges. The possibility of a future range expansion along roads cannot be excluded.
During Europe's 2015 refugee crisis, more than a hundred thousand asylum seekers from the western Balkans sought refuge in Germany. This was nothing new, however; immigrants from the Balkans have ...streamed into West Germany in massive numbers throughout the long postwar era.Memory, Politics, and Yugoslav Migrations to Postwar Germanytells the story of how Germans received the many thousands of Yugoslavs who migrated to Germany as political emigres, labor migrants, asylum seekers, and war refugees from 1945 to the mid-1990s. While Yugoslavs made up the second largest immigrant group in the country, their impact has received little critical attention until now. With a particular focus on German policies and attitudes toward immigrants, Christopher Molnar argues that considerations of race played only a marginal role in German attitudes and policies towards Yugoslavs. Rather, the history of Yugoslavs in postwar Germany was most profoundly shaped by the memory of World War II and the shifting Cold War context. Molnar shows how immigration was a key way in which Germany negotiated the meaning and legacy of the war.
Matrix product states and projected entangled pair states (PEPS) are powerful analytical and numerical tools to assess quantum many-body systems in one and higher dimensions, respectively. While ...matrix product states are comprehensively understood, in PEPS fundamental questions, relevant analytically as well as numerically, remain open, such as how to encode symmetries in full generality, or how to stabilize numerical methods using canonical forms. Here, we show that these key problems, as well as a number of related questions, are algorithmically undecidable, that is, they cannot be fully resolved in a systematic way. Our work thereby exposes fundamental limitations to a full and unbiased understanding of quantum many-body systems using PEPS.
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