The POINT-AGAPE survey - I. The variable stars in M31

For the purposes of identifying microlensing events, the POINT-AGAPE collaboration has been monitoring the Andromeda galaxy (M31) for three seasons (1999-2001) with the Wide Field Camera on the Isaac Newton Telescope. In each season, data are taken for one hour per night for roughly 60 nights during the six months that M31 is visible. The two 33 x 33 arcmin(2) fields of view straddle the central bulge, northwards and southwards. We have calculated the locations, periods and brightness of 35 414 variable stars in M31 as a by-product of the microlensing search. The variables are classified according to their period and brightness. Rough correspondences with classical types of variable star (such as Population I and II Cepheids, Miras and semiregular long-period variables) are established. The spatial distribution of Population I Cepheids is clearly associated with the spiral arms, while the central concentration of the Miras and long-period variables varies noticeably, the brighter and the shorter period Miras being much more centrally concentrated.

Familial ossification of the stylohyoid ligament in a three generation family--a new clinical entity displaying autosomal dominant inheritance

Ossification of the stylohyoid ligament is very common in the Caucasian population. More than 9000 descriptions of apparently isolated case reports on PubMed have been cited over the last 20 years, often associated with an incidental finding on imaging after neck trauma. No cases of familial ossification have been described. We document a family with several affected members, each with an ossified stylohyoid ligament, confirming that ossification may be hereditary in some families and is most likely due to an autosomal dominant gene.

Information disclosure and depositor discipline in the Chinese banking sector

We investigate the relationship between information disclosure and depositor behaviour in the Chinese banking sector. Specifically, we enquire whether enhanced information disclosure enables investors to more effectively infer a banking institution's risk profile, thereby influencing their deposit decisions. Utilising an unbalanced panel, incorporating financial data from 169 Chinese banks over the 1998–2009 period, we employ generalised-method-of-moments (GMM) estimation procedures to control for potential endogeneity, unobserved heterogeneity, and persistence in the dependent variable. We uncover evidence that: (i) the growth rate of deposits is sensitive to bank fundamentals after controlling for macroeconomic factors, diversity in ownership structure, and government intervention; (ii) a bank publicly disclosing more transparent information in its financial reports, is more likely to experience growth in its deposit base; and (iii) banks characterised by high information transparency, well-capitalised and adopted international accounting standards, are more able to attract funds by offering higher interest rates.

Thermomechanical Response of Variable Stiffness Composite Panels

Analysis of non-traditional Variable Stiffness (VS) laminates, obtained by steering the fiber orientation as a spatial function of location, have shown to improve buckling load carrying capacity of flat rectangular panels under axial compressive loads. In some cases the buckling load of simply supported panels doubled compared to the best conventional laminate with straight fibers. Two distinct cases of stiffness variation, one due to fiber orientation variation in the direction of the loading, and the other one perpendicular to the loading direction, were identified as possible contributors to the buckling load improvements. In the first case, the increase was attributed to the favorable distribution of the transverse in-plane stresses over the panel platform. In the second case, a higher degree of improvement was obtained due to the re-distribution of the applied in-plane loads. Experimental results, however, showed substantially higher levels of buckling load improvements compared with theoretical predictions. The additional improvement was determined to be due to residual stresses introduced during curing of the laminates. The present paper provides a simplified thermomechanical analysis of residual stress state of variable stiffness laminates. Systematic parametric analyses of both cases of fiber orientation variations show that, indeed much higher buckling loads could result from the residual stresses present in such laminates.

Transient Heat Conduction of Variable Stiffness Composite Laminate

Recent research on Variable Stiffness (VS) laminates, which are constructed by steering the fiber orientation as a spatial function of location, have shown to improve laminate performance under mechanical loads. Two distinct cases of stiffness variation can be achieved either by variation of the fiber orientation in the direction of the global x-axis, or perpendicular to it. In the present paper, thermal analysis of a VS laminate is performed to study the effect of steering fibers on transient heat conduction under uniform heat flux using finite element method. The goal of the present paper is a parametric study of the effect of variable stiffness properties on transient response including time to reach steady state and temperature profile. Also, stress resultants and maximum stress location are investigated under different boundary conditions. A FEM algorithm is applied to exactly incorporate the boundary conditions for stress resultant analysis.

Transient Heat Conduction of Variable Stiffness Composite Laminate

Recent research on Variable Stiffness (VS) laminates, which are constructed by steering the fiber orientation as a spatial function of location, have shown to improve laminate performance under mechanical loads. Two distinct cases of stiffness variation can be achieved either by variation of the fiber orientation in the direction of the global x-axis, or perpendicular to it. In the present paper, thermal analysis of VS laminate is performed to study the effect of steering fibers on transient heat conduction under uniform heat flux using finite element method. The goal of the present paper is a parametric study of the
effect of variable stiffness properties on transient response including time to reach steady state and temperature profile. Also, stress resultants and maximum stress location are investigated under different boundary conditions. A FEM algorithm is applied to exactly incorporate the boundary conditions.

Multiple Luminaire Identification in Airborne Images of Airport’s Approach Lighting Using Mathematical Morphology With Variable Length Structuring Element

The increasing demand for fast air transportation around the clock
has increased the number of night flights in civil aviation over
the past few decades. In night aviation, to land an aircraft, a
pilot needs to be able to identify an airport. The approach
lighting system (ALS) at an airport is used to provide
identification and guidance to pilots from a distance. ALS
consists of more than $100$ luminaires which are installed in a
defined pattern following strict guidelines by the International
Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). ICAO also has strict
regulations for maintaining the performance level of the
luminaires. However, once installed, to date there is no automated
technique by which to monitor the performance of the lighting. We
suggest using images of the lighting pattern captured using a camera
placed inside an aircraft. Based on the information contained
within these images, the performance of the luminaires has to be
evaluated which requires identification of over $100$ luminaires
within the pattern of ALS image. This research proposes analysis
of the pattern using morphology filters which use a variable
length structuring element (VLSE). The dimension of the VLSE changes
continuously within an image and varies for different images.
A novel
technique for automatic determination of the VLSE is proposed and
it allows successful identification of the luminaires from the
image data as verified through the use of simulated and real data.

AMD and micronutrient antioxidants

Age-related maculopathy (ARM) is a common clinical entity. The late-stage manifestations of ARM, which are known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), have devastating consequences for vision. Various risk factors have been identified in the development of the condition, which are consistent with the premise that oxidative stress plays an important role in its pathogenesis. Thus, the possibility that antioxidant balance can be manipulated through diet or supplementation has created much interest. Associations between diet and nutrition and the clinical features of ARM have been described. Scrutiny of the literature shows consistency in the report of notable reductions in serum micronutrients in wet AMD, however, the evidence for causation is still circumstantial. In this comprehensive review of the clinical literature, we have assessed the evidence for a link between diet and nutrition as risk factors for the development of ARM and AMD. All published case control, population-based, and interventional studies on ARM were examined. Although initial support appeared to be moderate and somewhat contradictory, the evidence that lifetime oxidative stress plays an important role in the development of ARM is now compelling. The positive outcomes in the Age-Related Eye Diseases Study, a major controlled clinical trial, have given hope that modulation of the antioxidant balance through supplementation can help prevent progression of ARM to AMD.

Variable selection via RIVAL and its application in nuclear material detection

In many situations, the number of data points is fixed, and the asymptotic convergence results of popular model selection tools may not be useful. A new algorithm for model selection, RIVAL (removing irrelevant variables amidst Lasso iterations), is presented and shown to be particularly effective for a large but fixed number of data points. The algorithm is motivated by an application of nuclear material detection where all unknown parameters are to be non-negative. Thus, positive Lasso and its variants are analyzed. Then, RIVAL is proposed and is shown to have some desirable properties, namely the number of data points needed to have convergence is smaller than existing methods.