The Ferrara hard X-ray facility for testing/calibrating hard X-ray focusing telescopes

We will report on the current configuration of the X-ray facility of the University of Ferrara recently used to perform reflectivity tests of mosaic crystals and to calibrate the experiment JEM–X aboard Integral. The facility is now located in the technological campus of the University of Ferrara in a new building (named LARIX laboratory= ̳LARge ̳Italian ̳X-ray facility) that includes a tunnel 100 m long with, on the sides, two large experimental rooms. The facility is being improved for determining the optical axis of mosaic crystals in Laue configuration, for calibrating Laue lenses and hard X-ray mirror prototypes.     

Groundwater characteristics within loessic deposits: the coastal springs of Los Acantilados,Mar del Plata,Argentina

The urban growth of the southern neighborhoods of Mar del Plata City provoked significant changes in the groundwater balance of the loessic sequences. These regional loessic levels with a significant portion of volcanic ash layers were reported subject to fluoride and nitrate concentrations. Residential houses pump from sands located 70 m depth and withdraw the sewages to depths less than 5 m. These effects cause significant local and seasonal (summer) increments of the water table outcropping via springs at certain unconformities of the coastal cliffs. A mathematical model was applied to analyze the water level lowering at the productive levels, while there is a decrease in the quality of the upper levels subject to waste discharges. Much of this groundwater flow is concentrated in unconformities between different types of sediments. Human activities have affected the aquifer dynamics increasing the groundwater pumping rates and the return velocity of the sewages. This should be considered in the management strategies of coastal hydric resources.     

Stratigraphic framework of gas accumulations in the Ría de Pontevedra (NW Spain)

Knowledge of marine geological environments in which shallow gas is accumulating is becoming increasingly important in global studies of climate change because a measurable proportion of the total methane source comes from continental margins. Previous studies have revealed that coastal environments represent important geological environments where microbial methane is being generated, is accumulating, and is being released. In the Ría de Pontevedra, at least 4.5 km² of seafloor in the innermost part of the ría is underlain by sediments containing natural gas. Seismic interpretation contributes new findings for the definition of periods and geological environments in which the gas could have been generated, and is accumulating and released in the Ría de Pontevedra. Groundtruthing the seismic data (facies, environments) makes it possible to identify favourable geological environments for gas generation in the sedimentary infill of the Ría de Pontevedra. Sequence stratigraphy based on high-resolution seismic profiles and post-Last Glacial Maximum sea-level records makes it possible to establish the stratigraphic architecture of the ría and to define the periods in which gas could have been generated. The results of this study show that the sedimentary infill is composed of a fifth-order sequence developed since the Last Glacial Maximum. Within this sequence, gas appears to have accumulated in the Holocene deposits associated with the latest transgressive and highstand system tracts. Seismic analysis shows that gas could have been generated in different geological environments in the Ría de Pontevedra. If coastal environments at times of lower sea level were similar to those of the present, organic-rich mud deposits (deposited mainly in lakes, estuaries and floodplains) could have survived transgression and remained buried as potential gas sources in the inner part of the ría.     

Grains accretion processes in a proto-planetary nebula

Some mechanisms which are expected to produce the growth of dust grains in the protosolar nebula are studied during the isothermal and the adiabatic phase of the gravitational collapse. Owing to the low sticking efficiency in the grain-grain collisions and also to the impossibility of gas capture by solid particles in the physical environment considered, the main result is the production in about 10⁶ yr of a set of particles similar in mass. The obtained mass limit (10⁻⁸–10⁻⁹ g) depends on the physical properties of the grains, and seems to be independent of the turbulence model used for the gas motion.     

Star-formation modes in the solar neighborhood

We perform a study into the spatial and kinematical distribution of young open clusters in the solar neighborhood, distinguishing between Gould Belt and local Galactic disk members. We use a previous estimate of the structural parameters of both systems obtained from a sample of O to B6 stars from Hipparcos. The two star-forming regions that dominate and give the Gould Belt its characteristic inclined shape show a striking difference in their content of star clusters: while Ori OB1 is richly populated by open clusters, not a single one can be found within the boundaries of Sco OB2. This is mirrored in velocity space, translating again into an abundance of clusters in the region of the kinematic space populated by the members of Ori OB1, and a marginal number of them associated with Sco OB2. We interpret all these differences by characterizing the Orion region as a cluster complex typically surrounded by a stellar halo, and the Sco-Cen region as an OB association in the outskirts of the complex. The different contents of star clusters, the different heights above the Galactic plane and the different residual velocities of Ori OB1 and Sco OB2 can be explained in terms of their relative position with respect to the density maximum of the Local Arm in the solar neighborhood. The origin of this feature could have been the interaction of a density wave with the local interstellar medium close to the Galactic co-rotation radius.     

Interrogating urban experiments

The notion of the “urban experiment” has become increasingly prevalent and popular as a guiding concept and trope used by both scholars and policymakers, as well as by corporate actors with a stake in the future of the city. In this paper, we critically engage with this emerging focus on “urban experiments”, and with its articulation through the associated concepts of “living labs”, “future labs”, “urban labs” and the like. A critical engagement with the notion of urban experimentation is now not only useful, but a necessity: we introduce seven specific areas that need critical attention when considering urban experiments: these are focused on normativity, crisis discourses, the definition of “experimental subjects”, boundaries and boundedness, historical precedents, “dark” experiments and non-human experimental agency.     

Prediction of Stellar Atmospheric Parameters using Instance-Based Machine Learning and Genetic Algorithms

In this article we present a method for the automated prediction of stellar atmospheric parameters from spectral indices. This method uses a genetic algorithm (GA) for the selection of relevant spectral indices and prototypical stars and predicts their properties, using the k-nearest neighbors method (KNN). We have applied the method to predict the effective temperature, surface gravity, metallicity, luminosity class and spectral class of stars from spectral indices. Our experimental results show that the feature selection performed by the genetic algorithm reduces the running time of KNN up to 92%, and the predictive accuracy error up to 35%. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Weathering characterization for landslides modeling in granitoid rock masses of the Capo Vaticano promontory (Calabria,Italy)

This work focuses on developing multidisciplinary researches concerning weathering profiles related to landscape evolution of the Capo Vaticano promontory on the Calabria Tyrrhenian side (southern Italy). In this area, the tectonic uplift, occurred at least since Pleistocene, together with the Mediterranean climatic conditions, is the main cause of deep weathering and denudation processes. The latter occurred on the outcropping rocks of the crystalline-metamorphic basement, made up of weathered granitoids, in turn belonging to the Monte Poro granitoid complex (intermediate to felsic plutonic rocks covered by Cenozoic sedimentary successions). Field observations coupled to borehole explorations, geophysical surveys, and minero-petrographical analyses allowed the characterization of the granitoid outcrops typical of the studied area in terms of kind and degree of slope instability. This characterization was based on suitable correlations verified between several factors as weathering degree, elastic properties of rocks, and discontinuity features. Weathering profiles are mainly composed by rock masses varying from completely weathered rock with corestones of highly weathered rock (classes IV–V) to slightly weathered rocks (class II). The weathered rocks are involved in several landslide typologies such as debris flow (frequency 48.5%), translational slide (frequency 33.3%), and minor rock fall and rotational slide (frequency 9%). The achieved data allowed the establishment of a general correlation between weathering degree and type of slope instability. Debris flow-type instabilities are predominant on the steeper slopes, involving very poor rock masses ascribed to the shallowest portions of the weathering class IV. Translational slides are less widespread than the previous ones and often involve a mixture of soil and highly weathered rocks. Rotational slides are more frequently close to the top of the slopes, where the thicknesses of more weathered rocks increase, and involve mainly rock masses belonging to the weathering classes IV and V. Rock falls mostly occur on the vertical escarpments of the road cuts and are controlled by the characteristics of the main discontinuities. The assessment of rock mass rating and slope mass rating, based on the application of the discontinuity data, allowed respectively an evaluation of the quality of rock masses and of the susceptibility of rock slopes to failure. The comparison between the last one and the real stability conditions along the cut slopes shows a good correspondence. Finally, the geological strength index system was also applied for the estimation of rock mass properties. The achieved results give a worthy support for a better understanding of the relationship between the distribution of landslides and the geological features related to different weathering degrees. Therefore, they can provide a reliable tool to evaluate the potential stability conditions of the rock slopes in the studied area and a general reference framework for the study of weathering processes in other regions with similar geological features.