EVALUATION OF THE EVOLVING STRESS FIELD OF THE YELLOWSTONE VOLCANIC PLATEAU FROM 1988 TO 2010 FROM EARTHQUAKE FIRST MOTIONS INVERSION

Within the Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, the silicic Yellowstone volcanic field is one of the most active volcanic systems all over the world. Although the last rhyolite eruption occurred around 70,000 years ago, Yellowstone is still believed to be volcanically active, due to high hydrothermal and seismic activity. The earthquake data used in this study cover the period of time between 1988 and 2010. Earthquake relocations and a set of 369 well-constrained, double-couple, focal mechanism solutions were computed. Events were grouped according to location and time to investigate trends in faulting. The majority of the events has oblique, normal-faulting solutions. The overall direction of extension throughout the 0.64 Ma Yellowstone caldera looks nearly ENE, consistently with the direction of alignments of volcanic vents within the caldera, but detailed study revealed spatial and temporal variations. Stress-field solutions for different areas and time periods were calculated from earthquake focal mechanism inversion. A well-resolved rotation of σ3 was found, from NNE-SSW near the Hebgen Lake fault zone, to ENE-WSW near Norris Junction. In particular, the σ3 direction changed throughout the years in the Norris Junction area, from being ENE-WSW, as calculated in the study by Waite and Smith (2004), to NNE-SSW, while the other σ3 directions are mostly unchanged over time. The Yellowstone caldera was subject to periods of net uplift and subsidence over the past century, explained in previous studies as caused by expanding or contracting sills, at different depths. Based on the models used to explain these deformation periods, we investigated the relationship between variability in aseismic deformation and seismic activity and faulting styles. Focal mechanisms and P and T axes were divided into temporal and depth intervals, in order to identify spatial or temporal trends in deformation. The presence of “chocolate tablet” structures, with composite dilational faults, was identified in many stages of the deformation history both in the Norris Geyser Basin area and inside the caldera. Strike-slip component movement was found in a depth interval below a contracting sill, indicating the movement of magma towards the caldera.

Transbilayer Phospholipid Asymmetry in Plasmodium knowlesi- Infected Host Cell Membrane

The membranes from normal and Plasmodium knowlesi-infected rhemsus monkey erythrocytes (90 to 95 percent infected with early ring stage) were analyzed for transbilayer distribution of phosphatidylcholine (PC). hosphatidylethanolamine (PE). and hosphatidylserine (PS). by means of chemical and enzymatic probes. The external monolayer of the normal red cell membrane contained at least 68 to 72 percent of the total phosphatidylcholine and 15 to 20 percent of the total phosphati dylethanolamine. In the infected cell, the transmembrane phosphatidylcholine distribution appeared to be reversed, with only 20 to 30 percent of it being externally localized, whereas roughly equal amounts of phosphatidylethanolamine were present in the outer and'inner surfaces. However, total pho.~phatid)'lserine in both the infected and normal red cells was exc/usi~'ely internal. Unlike that in the normal intact cell, external phosphatidylethanolamine in the parasitized cell was readily accessible to phospholipase A2. These results indicate that significant changes in molecular architecture of the host cell membrane are the result of varasitization.

The Magnetism of Power in Helping Relationships. Professional Attitude and Asymmetry

What makes helping relationships - or social interventions in general - so sensitive to abuse? These problems are directly related to the nature of the helping relationship. The core of this relationship is the inequality, the asymmetry, between the helper and the person being helped, and the dependence of the latter. Asymmetry is the driving force behind every social intervention and at the same time its weakest point. Handling asymmetry in an appropriate manner constitutes a major part of the work of the intervening party. This asymmetry makes heavy demands on the professional attitude of the intervening party i.e. the helper. Is s/he capable of dealing with dependence in an acceptable way? Is s/he well-versed in her/his profession? This article contains a comprehensive sketch of many of the possible dangers and pitfalls which beset asymmetric intervention relations. At the end it will be argued that, for a better understanding, the proximity of helping and power has to be taken into account.

KrigInv: An efficient and user-friendly implementation of batch-sequential inversion strategies based on kriging

Several strategies relying on kriging have recently been proposed for adaptively estimating contour lines and excursion sets of functions under severely limited evaluation budget. The recently released R package KrigInv 3 is presented and offers a sound implementation of various sampling criteria for those kinds of inverse problems. KrigInv is based on the DiceKriging package, and thus benefits from a number of options concerning the underlying kriging models. Six implemented sampling criteria are detailed in a tutorial and illustrated with graphical examples. Different functionalities of KrigInv are gradually explained. Additionally, two recently proposed criteria for batch-sequential inversion are presented, enabling advanced users to distribute function evaluations in parallel on clusters or clouds of machines. Finally, auxiliary problems are discussed. These include the fine tuning of numerical integration and optimization procedures used within the computation and the optimization of the considered criteria.

Hemispheric asymmetry in visuospatial attention assessed with transcranial magnetic stimulation

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to study visuospatial attention processing in ten healthy volunteers. In a forced choice recognition task the subjects were confronted with two symbols simultaneously presented during 120 ms at random positions, one in the left and the other in the right visual field. The subject had to identify the presented pattern out of four possible combinations and to press the corresponding response key within 2 s. Double-pulse TMS (dTMS) with a 100-ms interstimulus interval (ISI) and an intensity of 80% of the stimulator output (corresponding to 110-120% of the motor threshold) was applied by a non-focal coil over the right or left posterior parietal cortex (PPC, corresponding to P3/P4 of the international 10-20 system) at different time intervals after onset of the visual stimulus (starting at 120 ms, 270 ms and 520 ms). Double-pulse TMS over the right PPC starting at 270 ms led to a significant increase in percentage of errors in the contralateral, left visual field (median: 23% with TMS vs 13% without TMS, P=0.0025). TMS applied earlier or later showed no effect. Furthermore, no significant increase in contra- or ipsilateral percentage of errors was found when the left parietal cortex was stimulated with the same timing. These data indicate that: (1) parietal influence on visuospatial attention is mainly controlled by the right lobe since the same stimulation over the left parietal cortex had no significant effect, and (2) there is a vulnerable time window to disturb this cortical process, since dTMS had a significant effect on the percentage of errors in the contralateral visual hemifield only when applied 270 ms after visual stimulus presentation.

Net CO 2 surface emissions at Bern, Switzerland inferred from ambient observations of CO 2 , δ(O 2 /N 2 ), and 222 Rn using a customized radon tracer inversion

The 222Radon tracer method is a powerful tool to estimate local and regional surface emissions of, e.g., greenhouse gases. In this paper we demonstrate that in practice, the method as it is commonly used, produces inaccurate results in case of nonhomogeneously spread emission sources, and we propose a different approach to account for this. We have applied the new methodology to ambient observations of CO2 and 222Radon to estimate CO2 surface emissions for the city of Bern, Switzerland. Furthermore, by utilizing combined measurements of CO2 and δ(O2/N2) we obtain valuable information about the spatial and temporal variability of the main emission sources. Mean net CO2 emissions based on 2 years of observations are estimated at (11.2 ± 2.9) kt km−2 a−1. Oxidative ratios indicate a significant influence from the regional biosphere in summer/spring and fossil fuel combustion processes in winter/autumn. Our data indicate that the emissions from fossil fuels are, to a large degree, related to the combustion of natural gas which is used for heating purposes.

Temporal lobe white matter asymmetry and language laterality in epilepsy patients.

Recent studies using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) have advanced our knowledge of the organization of white matter subserving language function. It remains unclear, however, how DTI may be used to predict accurately a key feature of language organization: its asymmetric representation in one cerebral hemisphere. In this study of epilepsy patients with unambiguous lateralization on Wada testing (19 left and 4 right lateralized subjects; no bilateral subjects), the predictive value of DTI for classifying the dominant hemisphere for language was assessed relative to the existing standard-the intra-carotid Amytal (Wada) procedure. Our specific hypothesis is that language laterality in both unilateral left- and right-hemisphere language dominant subjects may be predicted by hemispheric asymmetry in the relative density of three white matter pathways terminating in the temporal lobe implicated in different aspects of language function: the arcuate (AF), uncinate (UF), and inferior longitudinal fasciculi (ILF). Laterality indices computed from asymmetry of high anisotropy AF pathways, but not the other pathways, classified the majority (19 of 23) of patients using the Wada results as the standard. A logistic regression model incorporating information from DTI of the AF, fMRI activity in Broca's area, and handedness was able to classify 22 of 23 (95.6%) patients correctly according to their Wada score. We conclude that evaluation of highly anisotropic components of the AF alone has significant predictive power for determining language laterality, and that this markedly asymmetric distribution in the dominant hemisphere may reflect enhanced connectivity between frontal and temporal sites to support fluent language processes. Given the small sample reported in this preliminary study, future research should assess this method on a larger group of patients, including subjects with bi-hemispheric dominance.

Determination of the Weak Axial Vector Coupling λ=g_{A}/g_{V} from a Measurement of the β-Asymmetry Parameter A in Neutron Beta Decay

We report on a new measurement of the neutron beta-asymmetry parameter A with the instrument \perkeo. Main advancements are the high neutron polarization of P=99.7(1) from a novel arrangement of super mirror polarizers and reduced background from improvements in beam line and shielding. Leading corrections were thus reduced by a factor of 4, pushing them below the level of statistical error and resulting in a significant reduction of systematic uncertainty compared to our previous experiments. From the result A0=−0.11996(58), we derive the ratio of the axial-vector to the vector coupling constant λ=gA/gV=−1.2767(16)

Maintenance of phosphatidylserine asymmetry in erythroid cells during differentiation, aging, and its significance for macrophage recognition

Phosphatidylserine (PS) is distributed almost entirely in the inner leaflet of the erythrocyte membrane bilayer, and appears to be maintained by a 32 kDa integral membrane protein (PS translocase). The expression of PS on the outer leaflet may serve as a recognition signal for macrophages, since insertion of PS into erythrocytes enhances their adherence to macrophages and clearance from the circulation. Therefore I have hypothesized that erythroid cells display PS on their outer leaflet early in differentiation and upon aging. Analysis of murine erythroleukemia cells (MELC, undifferentiated erythroid progenitor cells) showed high levels of PS on the outer leaflet that decreased during differentiation, correlating with the pattern of macrophage adherence. The activity of the PS translocase during differentiation appears to be unchanged although the equilibrium distribution of PS differs. This difference may be due to qualitative changes in the PS translocase. $\sp{125}$I-Bolton/Hunter-labeled-pyridyldithioethylamine ($\sp{125}$I-B/H-PDA), a radiolabeled probe for the PS translocase, labeled a 32 kDa protein in mature erythrocytes whereas in MELC a 45 kDa protein as well as a 32 kDa protein was identified. The abundance of the 45 kDa protein in relation to the 32 kDa protein declined during differentiation, possibly indicating this protein was a precursor of the 32 kDa protein. Analysis of the 45 kDa protein by N-glycosidase F and endoproteinase cleavage suggested this protein was not a glycosylated form of the 32 kDa protein but appeared to share some structural homology. Aged murine erythrocytes had elevated levels of PS on their outer leaflet, as well as decreased PS translocase activity. $\sp{125}$I-B/H-PDA labeled a 32 kDa protein in both normal and aged erythrocytes. However, the latter cells also contained a 28 kDa protein. Experimental evidence suggests that the appearance of the 28 kDa protein may be due to increased oxidation of aged erythrocytes. Examination of PS distribution showed that the levels of PS on the outer leaflet were elevated early in differentiation, decreased during the mature state, and returned to high levels as the erythrocyte aged. In conclusion,the levels of outer leaflet PS correlated with the differentiation status and macrophage recognition of erythroid cells. ^

The Frontal Eye Field Is Involved in Visual Vector Inversion in Humans – A Theta Burst Stimulation Study

In the antisaccade task, subjects are requested to suppress a reflexive saccade towards a visual target and to perform a saccade towards the opposite side. In addition, in order to reproduce an accurate saccadic amplitude, the visual saccade vector (i.e., the distance between a central fixation point and the peripheral target) must be exactly inverted from one visual hemifield to the other. Results from recent studies using a correlational approach (i.e., fMRI, MEG) suggest that not only the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) but also the frontal eye field (FEF) might play an important role in such a visual vector inversion process. In order to assess whether the FEF contributes to visual vector inversion, we applied an interference approach with continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) during a memory-guided antisaccade task. In 10 healthy subjects, one train of cTBS was applied over the right FEF prior to a memory-guided antisaccade task. In comparison to the performance without stimulation or with sham stimulation, cTBS over the right FEF induced a hypometric gain for rightward but not leftward antisaccades. These results obtained with an interference approach confirm that the FEF is also involved in the process of visual vector inversion.

Measurement of the top quark pair production charge asymmetry in proton-proton collisions at s√ = 7 TeV using the ATLAS detector

This paper presents a measurement of the top quark pair () production charge asymmetry A (C) using 4.7 fb(-1) of proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy root s = 7 TeV collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC. A -enriched sample of events with a single lepton (electron or muon), missing transverse momentum and at least four high transverse momentum jets, of which at least one is tagged as coming from a b-quark, is selected. A likelihood fit is used to reconstruct the event kinematics. A Bayesian unfolding procedure is employed to estimate A (C) at the parton-level. The measured value of the production charge asymmetry is A (C) = 0.006 +/- 0.010, where the uncertainty includes both the statistical and the systematic components. Differential A (C) measurements as a function of the invariant mass, the rapidity and the transverse momentum of the system are also presented. In addition, A (C) is measured for a subset of events with large velocity, where physics beyond the Standard Model could contribute. All measurements are consistent with the Standard Model predictions.

Use of contrast-enhanced fluid-attenuated inversion recovery sequence to detect brain lesions in dogs and cats.

BACKGROUND The diagnostic value of a contrast-enhanced T2-weighted FLAIR sequence (ceFLAIR) in brain imaging is unclear. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES That the number of brain lesions detected with ceFLAIR would be no greater than the sum of lesions detected with nFLAIR and ceT1W sequence. ANIMALS One hundred and twenty-nine animals (108 dogs and 21 cats) undergoing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the head between July 2010 and October 2011 were included in the study. METHODS A transverse ceFLAIR was added to a standard brain MRI protocol. Presence and number of lesions were determined based on all available MRI sequences by 3 examiners in consensus and lesion visibility was evaluated for nFLAIR, ceFLAIR, and ceT1W sequences. RESULTS Eighty-three lesions (58 intra-axial and 25 extra-axial) were identified in 51 patients. Five lesions were detected with nFLAIR alone, 2 with ceT1W alone, and 1 with ceFLAIR alone. Significantly higher numbers of lesions were detected using ceFLAIR than nFLAIR (76 versus 67 lesions; P = 0.04), in particular for lesions also detected with ceT1W images (53 versus 40; P =.01). There was no significant difference between the number of lesions detected with combined nFLAIR and ceT1W sequences compared to those detected with ceFLAIR (82 versus 76; P =.25). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE Use of ceFLAIR as a complementary sequence to nFLAIR and ceT1W sequences did not improve the detection of brain lesions and cannot be recommended as part of a routine brain MRI protocol in dogs and cats with suspected brain lesions.