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We present the catalog of Interplanetary Network (IPN) localizations for 199 short-duration gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs) detected by the Konus-Wind (KW) experiment between 2011 January 1 and 2021 August 31, which extends the initial sample of IPN localized KW sGRBs (arXiv:1301.3740) to 495 events. We present the most comprehensive IPN localization data on these events, including probability sky maps in HEALPix format., Published in ApJS

Supergiant Fast X-ray Transients (SFXT) are High Mass X-ray Binaries displaying X-ray outbursts reaching peak luminosities of 10$^{38}$ erg/s and spend most of their life in more quiescent states with luminosities as low as 10$^{32}$-10$^{33}$ erg/s. The main goal of our comprehensive and uniform analysis of the SFXT Swift triggers is to provide tools to predict whether a transient which has no known X-ray counterpart may be an SFXT candidate. These tools can be exploited for the development of future missions exploring the variable X-ray sky through large FoV instruments. We examined all available data on outbursts of SFXTs that triggered the Swift/BAT collected between 2005-08-30 and 2014-12-31, in particular those for which broad-band data, including the Swift/XRT ones, are also available. We processed all BAT and XRT data uniformly with the Swift Burst Analyser to produce spectral evolution dependent flux light curves for each outburst. The BAT data allowed us to infer useful diagnostics to set SFXT triggers apart from the general GRB population, showing that SFXTs give rise uniquely to image triggers and are simultaneously very long, faint, and `soft' hard-X-ray transients. The BAT data alone can discriminate very well the SFXTs from other fast transients such as anomalous X-ray pulsars and soft gamma repeaters. However, to distinguish SFXTs from, for instance, accreting millisecond X-ray pulsars and jetted tidal disruption events, the XRT data collected around the time of the BAT triggers are decisive. The XRT observations of 35/52 SFXT BAT triggers show that in the soft X-ray energy band, SFXTs display a decay in flux from the peak of the outburst of at least 3 orders of magnitude within a day and rarely undergo large re-brightening episodes, favouring in most cases a rapid decay down to the quiescent level within 3-5 days (at most). [Abridged], Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics. 18 pages, 11 figures

Magnetars are young, highly magnetized neutron stars that produce extremely rare giant flares of gamma-rays, the most luminous astrophysical phenomena in our Galaxy. The detection of these flares from outside the Local Group of galaxies has been predicted, with just two candidates so far. Here we report on the extremely bright gamma-ray flare GRB 200415A of April 15, 2020, which we localize, using the Interplanetary Network, to a tiny (20 sq. arcmin) area on the celestial sphere, that overlaps the central region of the Sculptor galaxy at 3.5 Mpc from the Milky Way. From the Konus-Wind detections, we find a striking similarity between GRB 200415A and GRB 051103, the even more energetic flare that presumably originated from the M81/M82 group of galaxies at nearly the same distance (3.6 Mpc). Both bursts display a sharp, millisecond-scale, hard-spectrum initial pulse, followed by an approximately 0.2 s long steadily fading and softening tail. Apart from the huge initial pulses of magnetar giant flares, no astrophysical signal with this combination of temporal and spectral properties and implied energy has been reported previously. At the inferred distances, the energy released in both flares is on par with that of the December 27, 2004 superflare from the Galactic magnetar SGR 1806-20, but with a higher peak luminosity. Taken all together, this makes GRB 200415A and its twin GRB 051103 the most significant candidates for extragalactic magnetar giant flares, both a factor of five more luminous than the brightest Galactic magnetar flare observed previously, thus providing an important step towards a better understanding of this fascinating phenomenon., Preprint version of Nature paper

We present a revision to the astrometric calibration of the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI), an instrument designed to achieve the high contrast at small angular separations necessary to image substellar and planetary-mass companions around nearby, young stars. We identified several issues with the GPI Data Reduction Pipeline (DRP) that significantly affected the determination of angle of north in reduced GPI images. As well as introducing a small error in position angle measurements for targets observed at small zenith distances, this error led to a significant error in the previous astrometric calibration that has affected all subsequent astrometric measurements. We present a detailed description of these issues, and how they were corrected. We reduced GPI observations of calibration binaries taken periodically since the instrument was commissioned in 2014 using an updated version of the DRP. These measurements were compared to observations obtained with the NIRC2 instrument on Keck II, an instrument with an excellent astrometric calibration, allowing us to derive an updated plate scale and north offset angle for GPI. This revised astrometric calibration should be used to calibrate all measurements obtained with GPI for the purposes of precision astrometry., Comment: 36 pages, 17 figures, accepted for publication in the Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments, and Systems. Updated version includes revisions made during the referee process

Background This review of scholarly work in health care knowledge translation advances understanding of implementation components that support the complete and timely integration of new knowledge. We adopt a realist approach to investigate what is known from the current literature about the impact of, and the potential relationships between, context, complexity and implementation process. Methods Informed by two distinct pathways, knowledge utilization and knowledge translation, we utilize Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations theory (DOI) and Harvey and Kitson’s integrated- Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Service framework (PARIHS) to ground this review. Articles from 5 databases; Medline, Scopus, PsycInfo, Web of Science, and Google Scholar and a search of authors were retrieved. Themes and patterns related to these implementation components were extracted. Literature was selected for inclusion by consensus. Data extraction was iterative and was moderated by the authors. Results A total of 67 articles were included in the review. Context was a central component to implementation. It was not clear how and to what extent context impacted implementation. Complexity was found to be a characteristic of context, implementation process, innovations and a product of the relationship between these three elements. Social processes in particular were reported as influential however; descriptions of how these social process impact were limited. Multiple theoretical and operational models were found to ground implementation processes. We offer an emerging conceptual model to illustrate the key discoveries. Conclusions The review findings indicate there are dynamic relationship between context, complexity and implementation process for enhancing uptake of evidence-based knowledge in hospital settings. These are represented in a conceptual model. Limited empiric evidence was found to explain the nature of the relationships.

We have obtained Hubble Space Telescope STIS and NICMOS, and Gemini/GPI scattered light images of the HD 191089 debris disk. We identify two spatial components: a ring resembling Kuiper Belt in radial extent (FWHM: ${\sim}$25 au, centered at ${\sim}$46 au), and a halo extending to ${\sim}$640 au. We find that the halo is significantly bluer than the ring, consistent with the scenario that the ring serves as the "birth ring" for the smaller dust in the halo. We measure the scattering phase functions in the 30{\deg}-150{\deg} scattering angle range and find the halo dust is both more forward- and backward-scattering than the ring dust. We measure a surface density power law index of -0.68${\pm}$0.04 for the halo, which indicates the slow-down of the radial outward motion of the dust. Using radiative transfer modeling, we attempt to simultaneously reproduce the (visible) total and (near-infrared) polarized intensity images of the birth ring. Our modeling leads to mutually inconsistent results, indicating that more complex models, such as the inclusion of more realistic aggregate particles, are needed., Comment: 29 pages, 18 figures, ApJ accepted

Eutardigrada systematics relies mainly on the morphology of the sclerified structures of the animals. In particular, the main division of Parachela into four superfamilies relies heavily upon claw morphology; however, this character, alone, may be either inadequate or useless for tardigrades with no claws, or when secondary claw branches are reduced or absent, as in the case of species belonging to the genus Haplomacrobiotus. This is a very uncommon genus, so far reported only in North America. The systematic position of this genus has been debated since its description, having first been placed in the family Macrobiotidae (Macrobiotoidea) and then in the family Calohypsibiidae (Hypsibioidea). Currently, the position of the supposedly related genus Hexapodibius is still debated, being attributed to Isohypsibiidae (Isohypsibioidea) or to Calohypsibiidae (Hypsibioidea), i.e. to two different superfamilies. The morphological (light and electron microscopy), chemical (X–ray spectroscopy), and molecular (18S and 28S genes) analyses of a population of Haplomacrobiotus utahensis Pilato & Beasley, 2005 from Snow Canyon State Park (Utah, USA) allowed us to validate the position of this genus within Isohypsibioidea. Our integrated findings placed Haplomacrobiotus in a close relationship with the genus Hexapodibius, and allowed us to erect the new family Hexapodibiidae, comprising the genera Hexapodibius, Parhexapodibius, Haplomacrobiotus, and Haplohexapodibius.

There is little published information on effective treatment of Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS) in children in low-income countries. We prospectively treated 12 patients with an institutional review board-approved protocol consisting of four monthly courses of doxorubicin (Adriamycin), bleomycin and vincristine sulphate (ABV), with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) plus co-trimoxazole prophylaxis for those who were HIV-positive, with additional vincristine if remission was not achieved after 4 months. Maintenance HAART plus co-trimoxazole was given to all HIV-positive patients. A fine-needle aspirate and CD4+ count were done if possible, and staging was performed according to Mitsuyasu. Eight of ten HIV-positive patients with stage III - IVB disease, and both HIV-negative patients with stage I disease, were in remission after 473 - 1 490 (mean 939) days. One patient died after absconding during treatment, and one died from neutropenia-related pulmonary infection. ABV with or without HAART is an effective treatment option for children with KS.

GRB 051103 is considered to be a candidate soft gamma repeater (SGR) extragalactic giant magnetar flare by virtue of its proximity on the sky to M81/M82, as well as its time history, localization, and energy spectrum. We have derived a refined interplanetary network localization for this burst which reduces the size of the error box by over a factor of two. We examine its time history for evidence of a periodic component, which would be one signature of an SGR giant flare, and conclude that this component is neither detected nor detectable under reasonable assumptions. We analyze the time-resolved energy spectra of this event with improved time- and energy resolution, and conclude that although the spectrum is very hard, its temporal evolution at late times cannot be determined, which further complicates the giant flare association. We also present new optical observations reaching limiting magnitudes of R > 24.5, about 4 magnitudes deeper than previously reported. In tandem with serendipitous observations of M81 taken immediately before and one month after the burst, these place strong constraints on any rapidly variable sources in the region of the refined error ellipse proximate to M81. We do not find any convincing afterglow candidates from either background galaxies or sources in M81, although within the refined error region we do locate two UV bright star forming regions which may host SGRs. A supernova remnant (SNR) within the error ellipse could provide further support for an SGR giant flare association, but we were unable to identify any SNR within the error ellipse. These data still do not allow strong constraints on the nature of the GRB 051103 progenitor, and suggest that candidate extragalactic SGR giant flares will be difficult, although not impossible, to confirm.

Contradictory findings have been reported from Africa with regard to the risk of developing Burkitt’s lymphoma (BL) in sickle cell trait (AS) carriers. Haemoglobin electrophoresis was performed in 78 BL patients in the Northwest region of Cameroon, and in 78 nearest-neighbour controls of the same age, sex and tribe from the same village. AS was confirmed in 4 of 78 (5.13%) BL patients and in 11 of 78 (14.10%) controls (χ2, p=0.052; Fisher’s exact, one-tailed, p=0.050). Sickle cell trait carriers had a marginal statistically reduced risk of developing BL.

The purpose of our project was to explore the explicit or implicit engagement of faculty members across the curriculum in teaching the entrepreneurial mindset. We begin by defining entrepreneurship on a spectrum, recognizing the contextual nature and psychological development associated with entrepreneurial thinking. We developed a self-report survey containing a combination of quantitative and qualitative items to determine faculty member knowledge of entrepreneurship and their engagement in teaching elements of the entrepreneurial mindset. We surveyed the faculty at a primarily teaching university in the western United States. Sixty-four faculty members (~20%) with representation from across the disciplines completed our survey. We found constrained knowledge of entrepreneurship, indications of teaching elements of the entrepreneurial mindset, and approaches to assignments that were limited in scope for fostering entrepreneurial thinking. The implications of our research are a need for professional development to enhance faculty members’ knowledge of entrepreneurial thinking and support for instructional and content choices that could enhance student development of an entrepreneurial mindset.

Zusammenfassung Epithelablosungen der Haut bei Schildkroten sind schon mehrfach beobachtet worden. Es wurde vermutet, daβ es sich dabei um eine Hypervitaminose A als Folge einer Vitamintherapie handelt. Zur Abklarung der Ursachen wurden 18 griechische Landschildkroten in 6 Gruppen eingeteilt. Diese erhielten 100 000 bzw. 400 000 IE/kg Kgw Vitamin A als olige Losung oder in wasserdispergierbarer Form intramuskular injiziert. Eine Gruppe wurde mit 100 000 IE/kg Kgw Vitamin A als olige Losung in Kombination mit dem Vitamin A-Emulgator CREMOPHOR®an separaten Injektionsstellen behandelt und der letzten Gruppe wurde nur CREMOPHOR®verabreicht. Nach 10 bzw. 15 Tagen wurden die Tiere euthanasiert und histologisch untersucht. Der Vitamin A-Gehalt der Leber war bei Tieren, die die wasserdispergierbare Form des Vitamin A erhalten hatten, wesentlich hoher als bei den ubrigen Gruppen. Diese Tiere zeigten auch alle eine Epithelablosung der Haut. Die mikroskopischen und elektronenoptischen Befunde der Hautlasionen werden beschrieben. Bei den ubrigen Gruppen konnten keine Hautveranderungen festgestellt werden. Die Bedeutung der Resultate in bezug auf die Prophylaxe und Therapie der Hypovitaminose A bei Schildkroten wird diskutiert. Danksagung Die Autoren danken Frau J. Hollinger fur die Reinschrift des Manuskripts. Summary Experimentally induced skin changes in tortoises by high parenteral doses of Vitamin A Generalized sloughing of the skin epithelium in tortoises has been reported. Since hypervitaminosis A has been suspected in these cases, the following experiments were carried out to clarify the cause of the disease: Eighteen Creek tortoises were divided into six equal groups and injected intramuscularly with 400,000 or 100,000 IU/kg bodyweight vitamin A as a fat- or water-soluble solution. One group was given fat-soluble vitamin A in combination with the vitamin A emulgator CREMOPHOR®at two separate injection sites and one group was treated with CREMOPHOR®alone. The animals were killed 10 or 15 days later. All animals receiving vitamin A in water-soluble form had a very high vitamin A content in the liver and developed severe sloughing of the skin epidermis. The light- and electron microscopic findings of the epidermis are described. The animals of all other groups did not develop skin lesions. The results are discussed in relation to therapeutic and prophylactic vitamin A administration. Resume Lesions de la peau provoquees experimentalement chez des tortues terrestres par des applications parenterales elevees en vitamine A Des desquamations epitheliales de la peau chez des tortues ont ete deja plusieurs fois observees. On suppose qu'il s'agit d'une hypervitaminose. A a la suite d'une therapie de vitamines. 18 tortues grecques ont ete reparties en 6 groupes pour rechercher les causes. Ces tortues ont recu 100 000 et 400 000 UI/kg de poids de vitamine A en solution huileuse ou aqueuse par voie intramusculaire. Un groupe a ete traite avec 100 000 UI/kg de poids de vitamine A en solution huileuse combinee avec l'emulgateur de vitamine A CREMOPOR®en injections separees et le dernier groupe n'a recu que CREMOPHOR®. Les animaux furent euthanasies apres 10 et 15 jours et examines histologiquement. Le taux de vitamine A du foie fut nettement plus eleve chez les animaux qui avaient recu la vitamine A sous forme aqueuse. Tous ces animaux ont presente egalement une desquamation epitheliale de la peau. Les resultats microscopiques et electro-optiques sont decrits. Aucune lesions de la peau n'a ete constatee dans les autres groupes. La signification des resultats est discutee en fonction de la prophylaxie et de la therapie de l'hypervitaminose A chez des tortues. Resumen Lesiones dermatologicas producidas en tortugas terrestres por dosis parenterales elevadas de vitamina A Ya han sido observadas varias veces descamaciones epiteliales de la piel en las tortugas. Se llego a sospechar que se trataba de una hipervitaminosis A como consecuencia de una vitaminoterapia. Para poder aclarar las causas, se repartieron 18 tortugas terrestres griegas en 6 grupos. Estas tortugas recibieron 100.000 o 400.000 UI/kg peso vivo de vitamina A, resp., en solucion oleosa o hidrodispergible por via intramuscular. Un grupo fue tratado con 100.000 UI/kg peso corporal de vitamina A como solucion oleosa en combinacion con el emulgente de vitamina A CREMOFOR®en inyecciones por separado, y al grupo ultimo solo se le administro CREMOFOR®. Al cabo de 10 y 15 dias, resp., fueron eutanasiados los animales, examinandose histologicamente. La tasa de vitamina A en el higado era netamente mayor en los animales que habian recibido la forma hidrodispergible de la vitamina A. Todos estos animales tambien presentaban una descamacion epitelial de la piel. Se describen los hallazgos microscopicos y electronicoopticos de las lesiones dermatologicas. En los grupos restantes no se pudieron constatar lesiones en la piel. Se discute la significacion de los resultados en funcion de la profilaxis y terapeutica de la hipovitaminosis A en las tortugas.

We present the earliest ever ultraviolet spectrum of a gamma-ray burst (GRB) as observed with the Swift-UVOT. The GRB 081203A spectrum was observed for 50 seconds with the UV grism starting 251 seconds after the Swift-BAT trigger when the GRB was of u ~13.4 mag and still rising to its peak optical brightness. The UV grism spectrum shows a damped Ly-alpha line, Ly-beta, and the Lyman continuum break at a redshift z = 2.05 +/- 0.01. A model fit to the Lyman absorption implies log N(HI) = 22.0 +/- 0.2 cm-2, which is typical for GRB host galaxies with damped Ly-alpha absorbers. This observation of GRB 081203A demonstrates that for GRBs brighter than v ~14 mag and with 0.5 < z < 3.5 the UVOT will be able to provide redshifts, and probe for damped Ly-alpha absorbers within 4-6 minutes from the time of the Swift-BAT trigger.

We report a correlation based on a spectral simulation study of the prompt emission spectra of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) detected by the Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT). The correlation is between the Epeak energy, which is the peak energy in the \nu F_\nu spectrum, and the photon index (\Gamma) derived from a simple power-law model. The Epeak - \Gamma relation, assuming the typical smoothly broken power-law spectrum of GRBs, is \log Epeak = 3.258 - 0.829\Gamma (1.3 < \Gamma < 2.3). We take into account not only a range of Epeak energies and fluences, but also distributions for both the low-energy photon index and the high-energy photon index in the smoothly broken power-law model. The distribution of burst durations in the BAT GRB sample is also included in the simulation. Our correlation is consistent with the index observed by BAT and Epeak measured by the BAT, and by other GRB instruments. Since about 85% of GRBs observed by the BAT are acceptably fit with the simple power-law model because of the relatively narrow energy range of the BAT, this relationship can be used to estimate Epeak when it is located within the BAT energy range., Comment: 27 pages, 31 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

This article takes a critical look at the integration of the probation service with after-care. It expresses the personal views and the difficulties experienced by two probation officers who attempted integration by serving a part of their time inside a prison and the rest outside as local after-care officers. It also gives an indication of their approach to case work and to what they feel are the right priorities for prison welfare work. For such priorities to have a chance of surviving, prison officers would themselves have to assume a more positive role.

Recent developments in stereoscopy are reviewed, and their relevance to photogrammetry discussed. Resume Ľairteur passe en revue les developments recents de la stereoscopie et leur emploi en photogrammetrie.

The short/hard GRB051210 was detected and located by the Swift-BAT instrument and rapidly pointed towards by the narrow field instrumens. The XRT was able to observe a bright X-ray afterglow, one of the few ever observed for this class of bursts. We present the analysis of the prompt and afterglow emission of this event The BAT spectrum is a power-law with photon index 1.1 +/-0.3. The X-ray light curve decays with slope 2.58+/-0.11 and shows a small flare in the early phases. The spectrum can be described with a power law with photon index 1.54+/-0.16 and absorption (7.5 (-3.2, +4.3)*10^20 cm-2 We find that the X-ray emission is consistent with the hypothesis that we are observing the curvature effect of a GRB occurred in a low density medium, with no detectable afterglow. We estimate the density of the circumburst medium to be lower than 4*10^-3 cm^-3. We also discuss different hypothesis on the possible origin of the flare., Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, submitted to A&A Letters

Summary. Background: Adenoviral vector-mediated gene therapy might have potential for long-term correction of the monogenic disease hemophilia A. Objective: In this study, we tested the efficacy of administering a helper-dependent adenoviral vector (HDV) designed for maximal liver-restricted canine factor VIII (cFVIII) expression on three out-bred hemophilia A dogs. Methods: Three FVIII-deficient animals from the University of North Carolina colony were injected with 1 × 1012 (Dog A), and 3 × 1012 (Dog B and C) vp kg−1 helper-dependent adenoviral vector, and we performed systematic analysis of toxicity, persistence of therapeutic gene expression, and molecular analysis of gene transfer. Results: We observed acute dose-dependent elevation in liver enzymes and thrombocytopenia after injection, although both were transient and resolved within 2 weeks. The whole blood clotting time (WBCT), plasma FVIII concentration, FVIII activity, and activated partial thromboplastin time in all animals improved significantly after treatment, and two animals receiving a higher dose reached near normal WBCT with low-level FVIII activity until terminal sacrifice at 3 months, and 2 years. Importantly, the treated dogs suffered no bleeding events after injection. Moreover, we observed persistent vector-specific DNA and RNA in liver tissue collected from one high-dose animal at days 18 and 79, and could not detect the formation of inhibitory antibodies. Conclusion: Although vector-associated toxicity remains an obstacle, a single injection of HDV led to long-term transgene expression and vector persistence in two FVIII-deficient animals with conversion of their severe phenotype to a moderate one.

The bright gamma-ray burst GRB050525a has been detected with the Swift observatory, providing unique multiwavelength coverage from the very earliest phases of the burst. The X-ray and optical/UV afterglow decay light curves both exhibit a steeper slope ~0.15 days after the burst, indicative of a jet break. This jet break time combined with the total gamma-ray energy of the burst constrains the opening angle of the jet to be 3.2 degrees. We derive an empirical `time-lag' redshift from the BAT data of z_hat = 0.69 +/- 0.02, in good agreement with the spectroscopic redshift of 0.61. Prior to the jet break, the X-ray data can be modelled by a simple power law with index alpha = -1.2. However after 300 s the X-ray flux brightens by about 30% compared to the power-law fit. The optical/UV data have a more complex decay, with evidence of a rapidly falling reverse shock component that dominates in the first minute or so, giving way to a flatter forward shock component at later times. The multiwavelength X-ray/UV/Optical spectrum of the afterglow shows evidence for migration of the electron cooling frequency through the optical range within 25000 s. The measured temporal decay and spectral indices in the X-ray and optical/UV regimes compare favourably with the standard fireball model for Gamma-ray bursts assuming expansion into a constant density interstellar medium., Comment: 31 pages, 7 figures, referee comments implemented, typo corrected in author list, accepted by ApJ

We report Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) observations of the X-ray Flash (XRF) XRF 050416A. The fluence ratio between the 15-25 keV and 25-50 keV energy bands of this event is 1.5, thus making it the softest gamma-ray burst (GRB) observed by BAT so far. The spectrum is well fitted by the Band function with E^{\rm obs}_{\rm peak} of 15.0_{-2.7}^{+2.3} keV. Assuming the redshift of the host galaxy (z = 0.6535), the isotropic-equivalent radiated energy E_{\rm iso} and the peak energy at the GRB rest frame (E^{\rm src}_{\rm peak}) of XRF 050416A are not only consistent with the correlation found by Amati et al. and extended to XRFs by Sakamoto et al., but also fill-in the gap of this relation around the 30 - 80 keV range of E^{\rm src}_{\rm peak}. This result tightens the validity of the E^{\rm src}_{\rm peak} - E_{\rm iso} relation from XRFs to GRBs. We also find that the jet break time estimated using the empirical relation between E^{\rm src}_{\rm peak} and the collimation corrected energy E_{\gamma} is inconsistent with the afterglow observation by Swift X-ray Telescope. This could be due to the extra external shock emission overlaid around the jet break time or to the non existence of a jet break feature for XRF, which might be a further challenging for GRB jet emission, models and XRF/GRB unification scenarios.

The Glasgow group is involved in the construction of the GE0600 interferometer as well as in R&D activity on technology for advanced gravitational wave detectors, GE0600 will be the first GW detector using quasi-monolithic silica suspensions in order to decrease thermal noise significantly with respect to steel wire suspensions. The results concerning GE0600 suspension mounting and performance will be shown in the first section. Section 2 is devoted to the present results from the direct measurement of thermal noise in mirrors mounted in the 10 m interferometer in Glasgow which has a sensitivity limit of 4 x 10(-19) m Hz(-1/2) above I kHz. Section 3 presents results on the measurements of coating losses. R&D activity has been carried out to understand better how thermal noise in the suspensions affects the detector sensitivity, and in section 4 a discussion on the non-linear thermoelastic effect is presented.

The GEO 600 laser interferometer with 600 m armlength is part of a worldwide network of gravitational wave detectors. Due to the use of advanced technologies like multiple pendulum suspensions with a monolithic last stage and signal recycling, the anticipated sensitivity of GEO 600 is close to the initial sensitivity of detectors with several kilometres armlength. This paper describes the subsystems of GEO 600, the status of the detector by September 2001 and the plans towards the first science run.

Deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) are the principal host species of Sin Nombre (SN) virus, the primary etiologic agent of hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome in North America. The disease is a cytokine-mediated immunopathology characterized by pulmonary mononuclear infiltrates without discernible viral pathology. Infected deer mice remain life-long carriers and virus is found in many organs, including the lungs, but without pathology. It is unclear how deer mice respond to SN virus because no tools exist to examine the immune response in infected animals. As an initial step in examining host responses to SN virus, we have cloned partial cDNAs of deer mouse interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), interleukin-10 (IL-10), tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and lymphotoxin-alpha (LTalpha). IL-10, TNF and LTalpha sequences are highly conserved compared to orthologs of other mammalian species, while IFN-gamma is substantially less conserved. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that the amino acid sequences of IFN-gamma and TNF may be useful in resolving relationships at the subfamily level within the rodent family Muridae. While all four sets of analyses were able to reconstruct clade Rodentia, they were not able to resolve the relationships among the mammalian orders represented in this study. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis of concanavalin A-stimulated splenocytes determined that maximal IFN-gamma and TNF expression occurred rapidly while IL-10 and LTalpha expression was maximal at 24 h.

The radial profiles of the potential of mean force for the H3O+···Cl- pair are determined by constraint molecular dynamics of infinitely dilute high-temperature HCl aqueous solutions over a wide range of state conditions. The ion-pair association constant are consequently calculated and compared with those obtained from the most accurate recent electrical conductance experiments [Ho, P. C.; Palmer, D. A.; Gruszkiewicz, M. S. J. Phys. Chem. B 2001, 105, 1260−1266] at corresponding states. Resulting equilibrium constants between contact and solvent-shared ion-pair configurations indicate that more than 97% of configurations are contact ion-pairs. The adequacy of some simple fully electrostatic models to represent ion-pair association behavior in high-temperature aqueous solutions is also discussed.

To determine the specificity and sensitivity of a commercial copro-antigen ELISA for the detection of Fasciola hepatica infection in cattle and sheep and to assess the suitability of the test for use in horses.Testing was done on more than 100 negative faecal samples from each of sheep, cattle and horses and on at least 40 positive faecal samples from each species. Positive samples were selected based on a positive sedimentation test for liver fluke eggs. Faecal samples of animals from Western Australia, which is free of liver fluke infection, served as negative controls. Specificity and sensitivity were assessed for each species using the recommended kit cut-off and also custom cut-offs specific for each species based on the mean plus 3-fold standard deviation of the mean of the negative samples for each species.Using the cut-off recommended by the kit manufacturer, the specificity was 100% for all species and the sensitivity was 88%, 80% and 9% for sheep, cattle and horses, respectively. Using the lower custom cut-offs for each species improved the sensitivity to 100% for sheep, 87% for cattle and 28% for horses, while maintaining the specificity above 99% for all species.The sensitivity of the commercial copro-antigen ELISA can be improved by using custom cut-off values for each species. With this modification, it is a suitable alternative screening test to the currently used sedimentation test for border control of sheep and cattle movement. The test is not suitable for use in horses.

We report experiments in which laser-induced fluorescence detection is incorporated into a flowing afterglow helium plasma to study the kinetics and dynamics of excited helium atoms. Following excitation of helium in the 3 3P-2 3S band at 388.9 nm, dispersed fluorescence spectra show major features at 388.9, 706.5 and 587.6 nm corresponding to emission from the 3 3P, 3 3S and 3 3D states as observed in previous studies. In addition to these major features, we also observe weaker, molecular emissions in the 430-500 and 710-725 nm regions which we assign to fluorescence from He2 states. Similar experiments in which the 3 1P-2 1S band at 501.6 nm is excited afford strong atomic fluorescence from the 3 1P and 3 1D states at 501.6 and 667.8 nm, respectively. A weak emission feature can also be assigned to 3 1S-2 1P emission at 728.1 nm. Weak molecular emissions are again observed but in this case in the 440-470 and 535-600 nm regions.

Light-emitting diodes based on GaAs crystals ion-implanted with ytterbium and oxygen were fabricated. The current-voltage and capacitance-voltage characteristics of these diodes were analyzed. The deep-level centers were studied by the deep-level transient spectroscopy. The electroluminescence spectra of the structures include the emission lines related to optical transitions within the 4f shell of Yb3+ ions.

A search for spectral lines in gamma-ray bursts detected with the Transient Gamma-Ray Spectrometer has been unable to confirm their existence. The spectrometer, aboard the Wind spacecraft, has detected gamma-ray bursts and other transients since 1995. We have performed a systematic search for narrow spectral lines in gamma-ray bursts detected with this instrument that augments and extends the results of a similar search of bursts detected with BATSE. This search procedure tests for statistically significant lines at all possible times and durations during a burst using the method of maximum likelihood and C-statistic. Simulations demonstrated the effectiveness of this procedure, particularly on Poisson distributed data, for distinguishing real features from statistical fluctuations. The most promising line candidates were consistent with chance fluctuations, given the large number of spectra searched.

In free-radical polymerization, solvents are routinely used to reduce the solution viscosity and molecular weight. In the case of the α-methyl styrene/methyl methacrylate copolymer system, reducing the monomer concentration also has significant effects on the copolymer composition and maximum conversion obtained. Reactivity-ratio studies as well as full-conversion-range data were provided, and the results were compared to similar data in the bulk phase from our earlier work. A 30 wt % toluene solution was used for all experimental conditions. Copolymer composition modeling results were also presented. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 39: 1753–1763, 2001