The stochastic background of gravitational waves from neutron star formation at cosmological distances

We investigate the stochastic gravitational wave background that results from neutron star birth throughout the Universe. The neutron star birth rate, as a function of redshift, is calculated using an observation-based model for the evolving star formation rate, together with an estimate of the rate of core-collapse supernovae in the nearby Universe and an estimate of the neutron star/black hole branching ratio. Using three sample waveforms, based on numerical models of stellar core collapse by Zwerger & Müller, the spectral flux density, spectral strain, spectral energy density and duty cycle of the background have been computed. Our results show, contrary to recent claims, that the spectrum of the stochastic background clearly reflects the different physics in the core-collapse models. For a star formation model that is corrected for dust extinction, the neutron star formation rate throughout the Universe is high enough to result in a nearly continuous background of gravitational waves, with spectral features that can be related to emission mechanisms.     

First Mass-resolved Measurement of High-Energy Cosmic-Ray Antiprotons

We report new results for the cosmic-ray antiproton-to-proton ratio from 3 to 50 GeV at the top of the atmosphere. These results represent the first measurements, on an event-by-event basis, of mass-resolved antiprotons above 18 GeV. The results were obtained with the NMSU-WIZARD/CAPRICE98 balloon-borne magnet spectrometer equipped with a gas-RICH (Ring-Imaging Cerenkov) counter and a silicon-tungsten imaging calorimeter. The RICH detector was the first ever flown that is capable of identifying charge-one particles at energies above 5 GeV. The spectrometer was flown on 1998 May 28-29 from Fort Sumner, New Mexico. The measured p&d1;/p ratio is in agreement with a pure secondary interstellar production.     

Texture and fabric studies across the Kishorn Nappe, near Kyle of Lochalsh, Western Scotland

The progressive development of mylonitic fabrics in a series of Torridonian sandstones and shales has been studied along traverses across the Kishorn Nappe. The fabrics developed have been investigated using the following techniques.

1. 1. Optical examination of thin sections.

2. 2. Measurements of the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility.

3. 3. X-ray texture goniometry.

The results are used in support of a proposed deformation history of the area and the relative advantages of the techniques used are discussed.The early deformation was well lubricated with layer-parallel sliding and little internal deformation of the rocks, except for development, in the east, of a layer-parallel penetrative fabric with an extension direction to the ESE. This deformation produced a westward facing isoclinal anticline and a recumbent syncline in the Torridonian rocks which became at least partly decoupled from the basement.The important phases of fabric development post date this folding. In the west the sandstones developed a spaced, pressure solution cleavage, but in the east the grain shape fabric has been produced by both dislocation and diffusion processes. The shales reveal more details of the deformation episodes than do the sandstones and thus show different fabric intensities and orientations when measured by magnetic and X-ray techniques.The magnetic anisotropy technique of fabric analysis gives a rapid method of mapping the deformation domains formed by different deformation mechanisms and intensities. However, the rocks carry several magnetic components and these have different anisotropy tensors and different responses to deformation, also, measurements made at high fields (5 kOe) give magnitudes and orientations of the magnetic anisotropy tensor which are different from those made at low fields. It is concluded that it is not possible to relate variations in the magnitude and shape of the magnetic anisotropy ellipsoid quantitatively to the deformation.Chlorite and muscovite fabrics measured by X-ray techniques show variations in intensity and orientation similar to those of the magnetic anisotropy ellipsoid due to paramagnetic minerals. However, the data demonstrate the difficulty of correlating this fabric intensity with deformation intensity where there has been a change in deformation mechanisms with time and space.     

The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile and their hot avalanche deposits

The twin 6000 m volcanoes San Pedro and San Pablo rise 2000 m above the extensive ignimbrite plateau of northern Chile. San Pablo is extinct and quite deeply eroded, San Pedro has an active fumarole and a record of several historic volcanic eruptions. Activity on both has on the whole migrated westwards with time. The volcanoes consist of pyroxene and hornblende andesite lavas with broad aprons of volcaniclastic rocks, including hot avalanche deposits, on their flanks. 30 new chemical analyses show that the composition range of the rocks composing the volcanoes is small, with silica varying between 56 and 66%, significantly higher than that of Quaternary volcanic suites of the western Pacific. The hornblende andesite lavas are very thick (commonly 100 to 200 m) indicating a high viscosity. Where such flows were erupted high on San Pedro, large portions of them collapsed when they became mechanically unstable and the resulting avalanche deposits form an important part of the volcano. Most avalanches took place when the source-lava was still hot, though so viscous that it broke by brittle fracture when it collapsed. The larger blocks have a prismatic jointing normal to their outer surface, showing that they cooled down in place after collapse. Evidence is presented that the mechanism of transport of these hot avalanches is not likely to be different from that of non-volcanic rock avalanches. Pumiceous pyroclastic flows also occur, one on the flanks of San Pedro, while others comprise the ignimbrite plateau. The latter is made up of many pyroclastic flows different from the San Pedro example only in size, and there are good grounds for believing that the ignimbrites likewise originated by eruptions on the andesitic volcanoes. Many of the ignimbrites are rhyolites, much more acidic than the andesite stratovolcanoes and a process of surface transport separation has operated whereby the andesites are concentrated on and near their source, while most of the rhyolites, because of their different style of eruption, have spread widely from it.

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Zusammenfassung Die beiden 6000 m hohen Vulkane San Pedro und San Pablo erheben sich etwa 2000 m über der breiten, von Ignimbrit gebildeten Hochebene Nordchiles. San Pablo ist längst erloschen und tief erodiert; dagegen weist San Pedro mehrere historische Eruptionen und dazu eine noch aktive Fumarole auf. Bei beiden hat sich die vulkanische Tätigkeit im Laufe der Zeit nach Westen verlagert. Die Vulkane sind aus Pyroxen- und Hornblende-Andesit-Laven gebildet; ihre äußeren Flanken bestehen aus breiten vulkanoklastischen Ablagerungen, die heiße Erdrutsch-Ablagerungen einschließen. Chemische Analysen von 30 Gesteinsproben ergeben, daß die Produkte der Vulkane nur geringe chemische Schwankungen zeigen und daß die SiO₂-Werte zwischen 56% und 66% liegen; deutlich höher als die SiO₂-Werte der quartären westpazifischen vulkanischen Serien. Ihrer Mächtigkeit nach (100–200 m) müssen die Hornblende-Andesit-Laven eine hohe Viskosität gehabt haben. Wo solche Laven hoch auf San Pedro ausflossen, verloren größere Teile der Lava ihr Gleichgewicht und rutschten ab. Die so gebildeten Erdrutsch-Ablagerungen sind ein wichtiger Teil des ganzen Vulkans geworden. Die meisten Erdrutsche entstanden, als die Lava noch in heißem Zustand war, aber schon so hohe Viskosität hatte, daß sie mit sprödem Bruch abbrach und niederstürzte. Die größeren Brocken davon zeigen radiale, säulige Klüfte, die senkrecht zur Oberfläche laufen. Dies zeigt, daß sie nach dem Abrutschen als einzelne große Brocken gekühlt sind. Es wurde bewiesen, daß der Transportmechanismus dieser heißen Erdrutsche wahrscheinlich sehr ähnlich den nicht-vulkanischen Erdrutschen ist. Bimsstein-pyroklastische Lavadecken sind auch vorhanden, eine befindet sich an der Flanke von San Pedro, während andere die Ignimbrit-Hochebene bilden. Die letztgenannte erhält ebenfalls viele pyroklastische Lavadecken von geringerer Mächtigkeit als jene von San Pedro. Es ist sehr wahrscheinlich, daß auch diese Ignimbrite ihren Ursprung an den andesitischen Vulkanen fanden. Manche von den Ignimbriten sind Rhyolithe, viel saurer als die andesitischen Stratovulkane. Die Trennung der rhyolitischen und andesitischen Laven wurde auf der Erdoberfläche durch Transport vollzogen: die Andesite wurden nahe am Vulkan angehäuft, während die meisten der Rhyolite wegen ihres völlig anderen Eruptionsvorganges weiter entfernt vom Vulkanzentrum abgelagert sind.

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Resumen Los volcanes gemelos de San Pedro y San Pablo se elevan 2000 m. sobre la extensiva altiplanicie ignimbrítica del norte de Chile. El San Pablo yace extínto y fuertemente erosionado, mientras que el San Pedro demuestra actividad fumarólica y ha registrado erupciones en tiempos históricos. En ambos volcanes la actividad se ha desplazado prpgresivamente hacia el occidente. Los volcanes se hallan constituídos por lavas de andesita piroxénica y hornbléndica. Tienen amplias falds de rocas volcanoclásticas, con depósitos de tipo hot avalanche. Treinta nuevos analisis demuestran que las rocas no varían mucho en cuanto a composición química. El porcentaje de sílice es de 56% a 66%, cantidad que supera la de de las rocas volcánicas cuaternarias del mergen pacífico occidental. Las lavas de andesita homblendica alcanzan grandes espesores (de entre 100 y 200 m.), lo que indicaría una alta viscosidad. Cuando una lava de estas brotara en la superficie alta del San Pedro, gran parte de ella devendría inestable, deslizándose y originanado depósitos que ahora constituyen una importante fracción del edificio volcánico. En su mayoriál los depósitos provinieron por disagregación mecánica de la lava paterna, la que fracturó formando bloques mientras se hallaba aun cálida. La presencia de un sistema de un sistema de fracturas perpendicular a la superficie externa de los bloques mas grandes indicaría que estos alcanzaron temperaturas ambientes en el propio sito donde ahora se hallan. El mecanismo de transporte de estos deslizamientos volcanicos no sería muy differente al de los deslizamientos formados por transporte Únicamente terrestre. Flujos piroclásticos con piedra pómez se hallan, uno sobre las faldas del San Pedro, otros constituyendo la altiplanicie ignimbrítica. Estos Últimos se distnguen del primero Únicamente por su mayor volÚmen. Uno que otros probablemente originaron por erupción en los propios volcanes. En su mayoria las ignimbritas son riolíticas, es decir, mas acídas que los estratovolcanes andesíticos. Por lo tanto, ha operado un proceso de separación en transporte superficial, cual proceso ha concentrado las andesitas cerca de su origien, mientras que las riolitas, con su propio estilo eruptivo, se han dispersado más, alcanzando grandes distancias.

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Résumé Les deux volcans San Pedro et San Pablo, hauts de 6000 m, du Chili Septentrional, s'élèvent à 2000 m au-dessus d'un vaste plateau d'ignimbrites. San Pablo est éteint et profondément érodé, tandis que San Pedro montre une activité fumerollienne après plusieurs éruptions survenues au cours de la période historique. L'activité volcanique chez les deux volcans s'est déplacée dans le temps vers l'ouest. Les volcans sont composés de laves d'andésite à pyroxène et à hornblende, avec, sur leurs flancs, des roches volcanoclastiques comprenant des dépÔts dûs à des éboulements chauds. 30 nouvelles analyses chimiques montrent que les limites de composition sont étroites, avec de 56 à 66% de silice, soit une composition nettement plus élevée que celle des roches volcaniques quaternaires du Pacifique Occidental. Etant donné leur épaisseur (100 à 200 m), les laves andésitiques à hornblende doivent avoir eu une viscosité très grande. Dans les endroits élevés de San Pedro où de telles coulées se sont épanchées, une grande partie d'entre elles se sont effondrées. Les produits de ces éboulements forment une partie importante du volcan. La plupart des éboulements se sont produits quand la lave était encore chaude, mais si visqueuse qu'elle s'est fracturée avec une cassure nette pendant l'effondrement. Les blocs les plus grands sont cassés le long de lignes perpendiculaires à leur surface extérieure, ce qui montre qu'ils se sont refroidis sur place après leur effondrement. Cela montre avec évidence que le mécanisme de transport de ces «éboulements chauds» n'est vraisemblablement pas différent de celui des éboulements non-volcaniques. Il y a aussi des coulées de laves pyroclastiques ponceuses, dont une sur les flancs du San Pedro, tandis que d'autres forment le plateau ignimbritique. Le plateau est aussi composé de nombreuses coulées pyroclastiques d'épaisseur moindre que celles du San Pedro. Il est très vraisemblable que les ignimbrites aussi proviennent des volcans andésitiques. Beaucoup d'ignimbrites sont rhyolitiques, encore plus acides que les andésites des stratovolcans. Un processus de séparation au cours du transport a concentré les andésites près du volcan, tandis que la plupart des rhyolites, à cause d'un style d'éruption différent, se sont répandues à plus grande distance.

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Interactive effects of pH and temperature on native and alien mussels from the west coast of South Africa

Global warming and ocean acidification influence marine calcifying organisms, particularly those with external shells. Among these, mussels may compensate for environmental changes by phenotypic plasticity, but this may entail trade-offs between shell deposition, growth and reproduction. We assessed main and interactive effects of pH and temperature on four mussel species on the west coast of South Africa (33°48′ S, 18°27′ E) in October 2012 by comparing shell dissolution, shell growth, shell breaking force and condition index of two native species, the ribbed mussel Aulacomya atra and the black mussel Choromytilus meridionalis, and two aliens, the Mediterranean mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis and the bisexual mussel Semimytilus algosus. Live mussels and dead shells were exposed for 42 days to seawater of pH 7.5 or 8.0, at 14 °C or 20 °C. Low pH, high temperature and their combination increased shell dissolution of the two aliens but their growth rates and condition indices remained unchanged. Aulacomya atra also experienced greater shell dissolution at a low pH and high temperature, but grew faster in low-pH treatments. For C. meridionalis, shell dissolution was unaffected by pH or temperature; it also grew faster in low-pH treatments, but had a lower condition index in the higher temperature treatment. Shell strength was not determined by thickness alone. In most respects, all four species proved to be robust to short-term reduction of pH and elevation of temperature, but the native species compensated for greater shell dissolution at low pH by increasing growth rate, whereas the aliens did not, so their invasive success cannot be ascribed to benefits accruing from climate change.     

The deformation patterns of two Archaean greenstone belts in Rhodesia and Botswana

Variations in intensity of deformation have been examined in the Fort Victoria greenstone belt in southern Rhodesia and in the Tati belt in northeast Botswana, both of which are on the diffuse northern border of the Limpopo mobile belt. Much of the deformation is related to widespread Limpopo events, and not to diapiric granite intrusions previously considered of major importance in the development of the Early Precambrian crust.Variations in intensity of deformation are due to the form of the major structures and to localised major ductile shear zones which cut both granites and greenstone belts. The pattern of deformation within the belts depends partly on how the granites behaved. Whether the schist belts deformed homogeneously or were part rotated and cut by shear zones depended on whether the granites deformed homogenously with the schist belt matrix or whether they were deformed by block sliding.     

电子束CT三维重建技术与颅颌面外科

目的 探讨电子束CT三维重建技术在颅颌面外科的适应症和应用价值。方法 采用美国Imatron公司的电子束CT(electron beam CT,以下简称EBCT)C-150,对76例严重颅颌面病人实行薄层CT容积扫描。将所获CT图象经数字接口传至加拿大ISG公司生产的Allegro工作站进行三维重建。结果EBCT成像技术能立体的、详尽和精确的显示机体组织三维解剖结构极其相互关系。其再现畸形或病体模型的程度可以达到近乎解剖学的精度,为准确了解和掌握病情并制定合理的手术治疗计划提供了极为重要的依据,提高了手术治疗效果。结论EBCT三维重建技术是现代颅颌面外科最主要的诊断方法之一并具有重要的临床应用价值。     

Shelf-basin exchange in the Laptev Sea in the warming climate: a model study

GCM-based forecast simulations predict continuously increasing seasonality of the sea ice cover and an almost ice-free, summer-time, Arctic Ocean within several decades from the present. In this study we use a primitive equation ocean model: NEMO, coupled with the sea ice model LIM2, to test the hypothesis that under such an increased range in seasonal ice cover the intensity of shelf-basin water exchange will significantly increase. We use the simulated results for the Laptev Sea from a global model run 1958–2007 and compare results for two years with anomalously high and low summer sea ice extents: 1986–1987 and 2006–2007. The shelf–basin fluxes of volume, heat and salt during specific seasons are evaluated and attributed to plausible driving processes, with particular attention to dense water cascading. Analyses of the model temperature distribution at the depth of the intermediate maximum, associated with Atlantic Water, have shown a marked increase of the amount of the local origin cold water in late winter 2007 in the region, where dense water typically appears as a result of its formation on the shelf and subsequent downslope leakage. Calculation of the shelf-basin exchange during March-May in both years confirmed a substantial increase (a factor of two) of fluxes in “ice-free” 2007 compared to the “icy” 1987. According to several past model studies, dense water production on Arctic shelves in winter driven by ice freezing and brine rejection is not likely to cease in a warmer climate, but rather to increase. There is also observational evidence that cascading in the seasonally ice covered seas (e.g. the Barents Sea) is much more efficient than it is in the permanently ice covered Arctic Ocean, which supports these model results.