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At least 1,027 records · Page 57

Real Time Intelligent Target Detection and Analysis with Machine Vision

We present an algorithm for detecting a specified set of targets for an Automatic Target Recognition (ATR) application. ATR involves processing images for detecting, classifying, and tracking targets embedded in a background scene. We address the problem of discriminating between targets and nontarget objects in a scene by evaluating 40x40 image blocks belonging to an image. Each image block is first projected onto a set of templates specifically designed to separate images of targets embedded in a typical background scene from those background images without targets. These filters are found using directed principal component analysis which maximally separates the two groups. The projected images are then clustered into one of n classes based on a minimum distance to a set of n cluster prototypes. These cluster prototypes have previously been identified using a modified clustering algorithm based on prior sensed data. Each projected image pattern is then fed into the associated cluster's trained neural network for classification. A detailed description of our algorithm will be given in this paper. We outline our methodology for designing the templates, describe our modified clustering algorithm, and provide details on the neural network classifiers. Evaluation of the overall algorithm demonstrates that our detection rates approach 96% with a false positive rate of less than 0.03%.

Howard, Ayanna↗

Functional Genomics with a Comprehensive Library of Transposon Mutants for the Sulfate-Reducing Bacterium Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20

The genomes of sulfate-reducing bacteria remain poorly characterized, largely due to a paucity of experimental data and genetic tools. To meet this challenge, we generated an archived library of 15,477 mapped transposon insertion mutants in the sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio alaskensis G20. To demonstrate the utility of the individual mutants, we profiled gene expression in mutants of six regulatory genes and used these data, together with 1,313 high-confidence transcription start sites identified by tiling microarrays and transcriptome sequencing (5' RNA-Seq), to update the regulons of Fur and Rex and to confirm the predicted regulons of LysX, PhnF, PerR, and Dde_3000, a histidine kinase. In addition to enabling single mutant investigations, the D. alaskensis G20 transposon mutants also contain DNA bar codes, which enables the pooling and analysis of mutant fitness for thousands of strains simultaneously. Using two pools of mutants that represent insertions in 2,369 unique protein-coding genes, we demonstrate that the hypothetical gene Dde_3007 is required for methionine biosynthesis. Using comparative genomics, we propose that Dde_3007 performs a missing step in methionine biosynthesis by transferring a sulfur group to O-phosphohomoserine to form homocysteine. Additionally, we show that the entire choline utilization cluster is important for fitness in choline sulfate medium, which confirms that a functional microcompartment is required for choline oxidation. Finally, we demonstrate that Dde_3291, a MerR-like transcription factor, is a choline-dependent activator of the choline utilization cluster. Taken together, our data set and genetic resources provide a foundation for systems-level investigation of a poorly studied group of bacteria of environmental and industrial importance.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗

State-based network similarity visualization

We introduce an approach for the interactive visual analysis of weighted, dynamic networks. These networks arise in areas such as computational neuroscience, sociology, and biology. Network analysis remains challenging due to complex time-varying network behavior. For example, edges disappear/reappear, communities grow/vanish, or overall network topology changes. Our technique, TimeSum, detects the important topological changes in graph data to abstract the dynamic network and visualize one summary representation for each temporal phase, a state. We define a network state as a graph with similar topology over a specific time interval. To enable a holistic comparison of networks, we use a difference network to depict edge and community changes. Here, we present case studies to demonstrate that our methods are effective and useful for extracting and exploring complex dynamic behavior of networks.

96 KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND PRESERVATION↗

THE CONTRIBUTION OF RADIO GALAXY CONTAMINATION TO MEASUREMENTS OF THE SUNYAEV-ZEL'DOVICH DECREMENT IN MASSIVE GALAXY CLUSTERS AT 140 GHz WITH BOLOCAM

We describe in detail our characterization of the compact radio source population in 140 GHz Bolocam observations of a set of 45 massive galaxy clusters. We use a combination of 1.4 and 30 GHz data to select a total of 28 probable cluster-member radio galaxies and also to predict their 140 GHz flux densities. All of these galaxies are steep-spectrum radio sources and they are found preferentially in the cool-core clusters within our sample. In particular, 11 of the 12 brightest cluster-member radio sources are associated with cool-core systems. Although none of the individual galaxies are robustly detected in the Bolocam data, the ensemble-average flux density at 140 GHz is consistent with, but slightly lower than, the extrapolation from lower frequencies assuming a constant spectral index. In addition, our data indicate an intrinsic scatter of {approx_equal} 30% around the power-law extrapolated flux densities at 140 GHz, although our data do not tightly constrain this scatter. For our cluster sample, which is composed of high-mass and moderate-redshift systems, we find that the maximum fractional change in the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich signal integrated over any single cluster due to the presence of these radio sources is {approx_equal} 20%, and only {approx_equal} 1/4 of the clusters show a fractional change of more than 1%. The amount of contamination is strongly dependent on cluster morphology, and nearly all of the clusters with {>=}1% contamination are cool-core systems. This result indicates that radio contamination is not significant compared with current noise levels in 140 GHz images of massive clusters and is in good agreement with the level of radio contamination found in previous results based on lower frequency data or simulations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

On the Unusually High Temperature of the Cluster of Galaxies 1E 0657-56

A recent X-ray observation of the cluster 1E 0657-56 (z = 0.296) with ASC,4 implied an unusually high temperature of approx. 17 keV. Such a high temperature would make it the hottest known cluster and severely constrain cosmological models since, in a Universe with critical density (Omega = 1) the probability of observing such a cluster is only approx. 4 x 10(exp -5). Here we test the robustness of this observational result since it has such important implications. We analysed the data using a variety of different data analysis methods and spectral analysis assumptions and find a temperature of approx. 11 - 12 keV in all cases, except for one class of spectral fits. These are fits in which the absorbing column density is fixed at the Galactic value. Using simulated data for a 12 keV cluster, we show that a high temperature of approx. 17 keV is artificially obtained if the true spectrum has a stronger low-energy cut-off than that for Galactic absorption only. The apparent extra absorption may be astrophysical in origin, (either intrinsic or line-of-sight), or it may be a problem with the low-energy CCD efficiency. Although significantly lower than previous measurements, this temperature of kT approx. 11 - 12 keV is still relatively high since only a few clusters have been found to have temperatures higher than 10 keV and the data therefore still present some difficulty for an Omega = 1 Universe. Our results will also be useful to anyone who wants to estimate the systematic errors involved in different methods of background subtraction of ASCA data for sources with similar signal-to-noise to that of the IE 0657-56 data reported here.

Yaqoob, Tahir↗

HERSCHEL FAR-IR OBSERVATIONS OF THE GIANT H II REGION NGC 3603

We observed the giant H II region around the NGC 3603 YC with the five broad bands (70, 160, 250, 350, 500 μm) of the SPIRE and PACS instruments, on board the Herschel Space Observatory. Together with what is currently known of the stellar, atomic, molecular, and warm dust components, this additional and crucial information should allow us to better understand the details of the star-formation history in this region. The main objective of the investigation is to study, at high spatial resolution, the distribution and main physical characteristics of the cold dust. By reconstructing the temperature and density maps, we found, respectively, a mean value of 36 K and log{sub 10} N {sub H} = 22.0 ± 0.1 cm{sup –2}. We carried out a photometric analysis detecting 107 point-like sources, mostly confined to the north and south of the cluster. By comparing our data with spectral energy distribution models, we found that 35 sources are well represented by young stellar objects in early evolutionary phases, from Class 0 to Class I. The Herschel detections also provided far-IR counterparts for 4 H{sub 2}O masers and 11 objects previously known from mid-IR observations. The existence of so many embedded sources confirms the hypothesis of intense and ongoing star-formation activity in the region around NGC 3603 YC.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

GALAXY CLUSTERS DISCOVERED VIA THE SUNYAEV-ZEL'DOVICH EFFECT IN THE 2500-SQUARE-DEGREE SPT-SZ SURVEY

We present a catalog of galaxy clusters selected via their Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect signature from 2500 deg{sup 2} of South Pole Telescope (SPT) data. This work represents the complete sample of clusters detected at high significance in the 2500 deg{sup 2} SPT-SZ survey, which was completed in 2011. A total of 677 (409) cluster candidates are identified above a signal-to-noise threshold of ξ = 4.5 (5.0). Ground- and space-based optical and near-infrared (NIR) imaging confirms overdensities of similarly colored galaxies in the direction of 516 (or 76%) of the ξ > 4.5 candidates and 387 (or 95%) of the ξ > 5 candidates; the measured purity is consistent with expectations from simulations. Of these confirmed clusters, 415 were first identified in SPT data, including 251 new discoveries reported in this work. We estimate photometric redshifts for all candidates with identified optical and/or NIR counterparts; we additionally report redshifts derived from spectroscopic observations for 141 of these systems. The mass threshold of the catalog is roughly independent of redshift above z ∼ 0.25 leading to a sample of massive clusters that extends to high redshift. The median mass of the sample is M {sub 500c}(ρ{sub crit}) ∼3.5×10{sup 14} M{sub ⊙} h{sub 70}{sup −1}, the median redshift is z {sub med} = 0.55, and the highest-redshift systems are at z > 1.4. The combination of large redshift extent, clean selection, and high typical mass makes this cluster sample of particular interest for cosmological analyses and studies of cluster formation and evolution.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Extrapolation of nuclear structure observables with artificial neural networks

Calculations of nuclei are often carried out in finite model spaces. Thus, finite-size corrections enter, and it is necessary to extrapolate the computed observables to infinite model spaces. In this work, we employ extrapolation methods based on artificial neural networks for observables such as the ground-state energy and the point-proton radius. We extrapolate results from no-core shell model and coupled-cluster calculations to very large model spaces and estimate uncertainties. Training the network on different data typically yields extrapolation results that cluster around distinct values. We show that a preprocessing of input data, and the inclusion of correlations among the input data, reduces the problem of multiple solutions and yields more stable extrapolated results and consistent uncertainty estimates. We perform extrapolations for ground-state energies and radii in 4 He, 6 Li, and 16 O, and compare the predictions from neural networks with results from infrared extrapolations.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

NONLINEAR COLOR-METALLICITY RELATIONS OF GLOBULAR CLUSTERS. IV. TESTING THE NONLINEARITY SCENARIO FOR COLOR BIMODALITY VIA HST/WFC3 u-BAND PHOTOMETRY OF M84 (NGC 4374)

Color distributions of globular clusters (GCs) in most massive galaxies are bimodal. Assuming linear color-to-metallicity conversions, bimodality is viewed as the presence of merely two GC subsystems with distinct metallicities, which serves as a critical backbone of various galaxy formation theories. Recent studies, however, revealed that the color-metallicity relations (CMRs) often used to derive GC metallicities (e.g., CMRs of g - z, V - I, and C - T{sub 1}) are in fact inflected. Such inflection can create bimodal color distributions if the underlying GC metallicity spread is simply broad as expected from the hierarchical merging paradigm of galaxy formation. In order to test the nonlinear-CMR scenario for GC color bimodality, the u-band photometry is proposed because the u-related CMRs (e.g., CMRs of u - g and u - z) are theoretically predicted to be least inflected and most distinctive among commonly used optical CMRs. Here, we present Hubble Space Telescope (HST)/WFC3 F336W (u-band) photometry of the GC system in M84, a giant elliptical in the Virgo galaxy cluster. Combining the u data with the existing HST ACS/WFC g and z data, we find that the u - z and u - g color distributions are different from the g - z distribution in a very systematic manner and remarkably consistent with our model predictions based on the nonlinear-CMR hypothesis. The results lend further confidence to the validity of the nonlinear-CMR scenario as an explanation for GC color bimodality. There are some GC systems showing bimodal spectroscopic metallicity, and in such systems the inflected CMRs often create stronger bimodality in the color domain.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Resurrecting Hitomi for Decaying Dark Matter and Forecasting Leading Sensitivity for XRISM

The Hitomi x-ray satellite mission carried unique high-resolution spectrometers that were set to revolutionize the search for sterile neutrino dark matter (DM) by looking for narrow x-ray lines arising from DM decays. Unfortunately, the satellite was lost shortly after launch, and to date the only analysis using Hitomi for DM decay used data taken towards the Perseus cluster. Here, in this work we present a significantly more sensitive search from an analysis of archival Hitomi data towards blank sky locations, searching for DM decaying in our own Milky Way. The recently launched XRISM satellite has nearly identical soft-x-ray spectral capabilities to Hitomi; we project the full-mission sensitivity of XRISM for analyses of their future blank-sky data, and we find that XRISM will have the leading sensitivity to decaying DM for masses between roughly 1 to 18 keV, with important implications for sterile neutrino and heavy axionlike particle DM scenarios.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Semiempirical limits on the thermal conductivity of intracluster gas

A semiempirical method for establishing lower limits on the thermal conductivity of hot gas in clusters of galaxies is described. The method is based on the observation that the X-ray imaging data (e.g., Einstein IPC) for clusters are well described by the hydrostatic-isothermal beta model, even for cooling flow clusters beyond about one core radius. In addition, there are strong indications that noncooling flow clusters (like the Coma Cluster) have a large central region (up to several core radii) of nearly constant gas temperature. This suggests that thermal conduction is an effective means of transporting and redistributing the thermal energy of the gas. This in turn has implications for the extent to which magnetic fields in the cluster are effective in reducing the thermal conductivity of the gas. Time-dependent hydrodynamic simulations for the gas in the Coma Cluster under two separate evolutionary scenarios are presented. One scenario assumes that the cluster potential is static and that the gas has an initial adiabatic distribution. The second scenario uses an evolving cluster potential. These models along with analytic results show that the thermal conductivity of the gas in the Coma Cluster cannot be less than 0.1 of full Spitzer conductivity. These models also show that high gas conductivity assists rather than hinders the development of radiative cooling in the central regions of clusters.

David, Laurence P.↗

Effects of magnetic fields on lithium evolution in F and G stars

To study the effects of magnetic fields on lithium depletion and to explain the characteristics of lithium evolution in F- and G-type stars in open clusters, we construct a stellar model that includes a Tayler-Spruit dynamo-type field. Through examining the features of extra-mixing caused by magnetic fields in stellar interiors and the relationship between lithium depletion and the input parameters (i.e., mass, metallicity, and the initial rotational condition), we find that the magnetic model produces extra-mixing processes different from other models. During pre-main sequence, the model exhibits very efficient extra-mixing, resulting in strong lithium depletion. As a star evolves, the efficiency of extra-mixing rapidly decreases and lithium depletion slows down at old ages. By setting up different initial rotating conditions, the model predicts dispersions of lithium abundance in both main sequence and pre-main sequence stages. The dispersion begins when a radiative core forms in the interior. The number sees a rapid growth afterward, reaching 0.1-0.5 dex at zero age main sequence in G and late-F stars. The increase of dispersion continues in the main sequence, which is slight in G and late-F stars while significant in mid-F stars. Finally, a comparison is carried out between the theoretical results and the observed data in four open clusters. Good agreements are obtained.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Dynamics of the order parameter and the potential of the hydrogen bond in a ferroelectric DKDP crystal

Within a pseudospin model of a KD{sub 2}PO{sub 4} crystal, the relaxation time of the average pseudospin (the order parameter) in the mean-field approximation depends on the activation energy of the jump of a deuteron between the minima of the hydrogen bond potential, the average equilibrium value of the pseudospin, and the dielectric susceptibility. Calculating the average equilibrium spin and the susceptibility within the four-particle cluster approximation and fitting the data for the width of the central peak from a Raman scattering experiment, we numerically estimate the activation energy. For the same values of the parameters of the cluster method, the calculated inverse relaxation time is in good agreement with the data of ultrasonic measurements.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Reindeer range inventory in western Alaska from computer-aided digital classification of LANDSAT data

An inventory of reindeer-range resources was conducted for the USDA Soil Conservation Service of 1.6 million hectares of wildlands in western Alaska using clustering techniques with digital Landsat data. Computer-aided digital analysis produced a provisional map of rangeland types which was used to design the field collection of vegetation and soil types data. This field data facilitated refinement of the inventory map and was used to describe the map units. The informational classes important to range resources were wet, moist and alpine tundra, tidal marsh, brush and open spruce forest. A significant feature of the study was the extraction of acreage figures by administrative boundaries within the study area. In addition to soil and vegetation association map products (at scales of 1:250,000 and 1:63,360) acreage values were tallied from the digital data for each of the four grazing permit areas established by the Bureau of Land Management.

George, T. H.↗

Variable stars in Local Group galaxies – V. The fast and early evolution of the low-mass Eridanus II dSph galaxy

ABSTRACT We present a detailed study of the variable star population of Eridanus II (Eri II), an ultra-faint dwarf galaxy that lies close to the Milky Way virial radius. We analyse multi-epoch g, r, i ground-based data from Goodman and the Dark Energy Camera, plus F475W, F606W, F814W space data from the Advanced Camera for Surveys. We report the detection of 67 RR Lyrae (RRL) stars and 2 Anomalous Cepheids, most of them new discoveries. With the RRL stars, we measure the distance modulus of Eri II, μ0 = 22.84 ± 0.05 mag (D⊙ = 370 ± 9 kpc), and derive a metallicity spread of 0.3 dex (0.2 dex intrinsic). The colour distribution of the horizontal branch (HB) and the period distribution of the RRL stars can be nicely reproduced by a combination of two stellar models of [Fe/H] = (−2.62, −2.14). The overall low metallicity is consistent with the red giant branch bump location, 0.65 mag brighter than the HB. These results are in agreement with previous spectroscopic studies. The more metal-rich RRL and the RRab stars have greater central concentration than the more metal-poor RRL and the RRc stars that are mainly located outside ∼1 rh. This is similar to what is found in larger dwarf galaxies such as Sculptor, and in agreement with an outside-in galaxy formation scenario. This is remarkable in such a faint dwarf galaxy with an apparently single and extremely short (<1 Gyr) star formation burst. Finally, we have derived new and independent structural parameters for Eri II and its star cluster using our new data that are in very good agreement with previous estimates.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

THE NARROW X-RAY TAIL AND DOUBLE Hα TAILS OF ESO 137-002 IN A3627

We present the analysis of a deep Chandra observation of a ∼2 L{sub *} late-type galaxy, ESO 137-002, in the closest rich cluster A3627. The Chandra data reveal a long (∼>40 kpc) and narrow tail with a nearly constant width (∼3 kpc) to the southeast of the galaxy, and a leading edge ∼1.5 kpc from the galaxy center on the upstream side of the tail. The tail is most likely caused by the nearly edge-on stripping of ESO 137-002's interstellar medium (ISM) by ram pressure, compared to the nearly face-on stripping of ESO 137-001 discussed in our previous work. Spectral analysis of individual regions along the tail shows that the gas throughout it has a rather constant temperature, ∼1 keV, very close to the temperature of the tails of ESO 137-001, if the same atomic database is used. The derived gas abundance is low (∼0.2 solar with the single-kT model), an indication of the multiphase nature of the gas in the tail. The mass of the X-ray tail is only a small fraction (<5%) of the initial ISM mass of the galaxy, suggesting that the stripping is most likely at an early stage. However, with any of the single-kT, double-kT, and multi-kT models we tried, the tail is always 'over-pressured' relative to the surrounding intracluster medium (ICM), which could be due to the uncertainties in the abundance, thermal versus non-thermal X-ray emission, or magnetic support in the ICM. The Hα data from the Southern Observatory for Astrophysical Research show a ∼21 kpc tail spatially coincident with the X-ray tail, as well as a secondary tail (∼12 kpc long) to the east of the main tail diverging at an angle of ∼23° and starting at a distance of ∼7.5 kpc from the nucleus. At the position of the secondary Hα tail, the X-ray emission is also enhanced at the ∼2σ level. We compare the tails of ESO 137-001 and ESO 137-002, and also compare the tails to simulations. Both the similarities and differences of the tails pose challenges to the simulations. Several implications are briefly discussed.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Nanoscale analysis of ion irradiated ODS 14YWT ferritic alloy

In this work, the nanoscale microstructure of an advanced oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) 14YWT ferritic alloy (SM13 heat) with nominal composition Fe–14Cr–3W-0.4Ti-0.3Y 2 O 3 (wt. %) has been characterized by atom probe tomography (APT) before and after ion irradiation with 70 MeV Fe 9+ ions at 450 °C to a total dose of 21 dpa. A detailed solute cluster analysis of APT data reveals that, in the manufacturing process, larger nanoparticles form in or close to the grain boundaries respective to those inside grains. The evolution of the nanoparticles after irradiation seems to be related to their location, as a higher increase in the number density and in the Y:Ti ratio is observed for the nanoparticles in or close to grain boundaries. Furthermore, APT analysis also shows Cr, W and C segregation to grain boundaries enhanced by the irradiation. A previous study of this same alloy before and after irradiation reports that the mechanical properties do not seem to be affected, but the microstructure was not investigated to confirm. The present work confirms little microstructural evolution after irradiation in this 14YWT alloy, indicating tolerance at the given irradiation conditions.

14YWT↗

Age density patterns in patients medical conditions: A clustering approach

This paper presents a data analysis framework to uncover relationships between health conditions, age and sex for a large population of patients. We study a massive heterogeneous sample of 1.7 million patients in Brazil, containing 47 million of health records with detailed medical conditions for visits to medical facilities for a period of 17 months. The findings suggest that medical conditions can be grouped into clusters that share very distinctive densities in the ages of the patients. For each cluster, we further present the ICD-10 chapters within it. Finally, we relate the findings to comorbidity networks, uncovering the relation of the discovered clusters of age densities to comorbidity networks literature.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗