The dynamics of electron-plasma waves is described at arbitrary collisionality by considering the full Coulomb collision operator. The description is based on a Hermite–Laguerre decomposition of the velocity dependence of the electron distribution function. The damping rate, frequency and eigenmode spectrum of electron-plasma waves are found as functions of the collision frequency and wavelength. A comparison is made between the collisionless Landau damping limit, the Lenard–Bernstein and Dougherty collision operators and the electron–ion collision operator, finding large deviations in the damping rates and eigenmode spectra. A purely damped entropy mode, characteristic of a plasma where pitch-angle scattering effects are dominant with respect to collisionless effects, is shown to emerge numerically, and its dispersion relation is analytically derived. It is shown that such a mode is absent when simplified collision operators are used, and that like-particle collisions strongly influence the damping rate of the entropy mode.

In a reactor plasma like demonstration power station (DEMO), when using the radio frequency (RF) for heating or current drive in the lower hybrid (LH) frequency range (Franke et al., Fusion Engng Des., vol. 96–97, 2015, p. 46; Cardinali et al., Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion, vol. 59, 2017, 074002), a large fraction of the ion population (the continuously born $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ -particle, and/or the neutral beam injection (NBI) injected ions) is characterized by a non-thermal distribution function. The interaction (propagation and absorption) of the LH wave must be reformulated by considering the quasi-linear approach for each species separately. The collisional slowing down of such an ion population in a background of an electron and ion plasma is balanced by a quasi-linear diffusion in velocity space due to the propagating electromagnetic wave. In this paper, both propagations are considered by including the ion distribution function, solution of the Fokker–Planck equation, which describes the collisional dynamics of the $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ -particles including the effects of frictional slowing down, energy diffusion and pitch-angle scattering. Analytical solutions of the Fokker–Planck equation for the distribution function of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ -particles with a background of ions and electrons at steady state are included in the calculation of the dielectric tensor. In the LH frequency domain, ray tracing (including quasi-linear damping), can be analytically solved by iterating with the Fokker–Planck solution, and the interaction of the LH wave with $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ -particles, thermal ions and electrons can be accounted self-consistently and the current drive efficiency can be evaluated in this more general scenario.

Functional abilities are needed for activities of daily living. In general, these skills expand with age. We hypothesised that, in contrast to what is normally expected, children surviving the Fontan may have deterioration of functional abilities, and that peri-Fontan stroke is associated with this deterioration. All children registered in the Western Canadian Complex Pediatric Therapies Follow-up Program who survived a Fontan operation in the period 1999–2016 were eligible for inclusion. At the age of 2 years (pre-Fontan) and 4.5 years (post-Fontan), the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System-II general adaptive composite score was determined (population mean: 100, standard deviation: 15). Deterioration of functional abilities was defined as ⩾1 standard deviation decrease in pre- to post-Fontan scores. Perioperative strokes were identified through chart review. Multivariable logistic regression analysis determined predictors of deterioration of functional abilities. Of 133 children, with a mean age at Fontan of 3.3 years (standard deviation 0.8) and 65% male, the mean (standard deviation) general adaptive composite score was 90.6 (17.5) at 2 years and 88.3 (19.1) at 4.5 years. After Fontan, deterioration of functional abilities occurred in 34 (26%) children, with a mean decline of 21.8 (7.1) points. Evidence of peri-Fontan stroke was found in 10 (29%) children who had deterioration of functional abilities. Peri-Fontan stroke (odds ratio 5.00 (95% CI 1.74, 14.36)) and older age at Fontan (odds ratio 1.67 (95% CI 1.02, 2.73)) predicted functional deterioration. The trajectory of functional abilities should be assessed in this population, as more than 25% experience deterioration. Efforts to prevent peri-Fontan stroke, and to complete the Fontan operation at an earlier age, may lead to reduction of this deterioration.

A drift-kinetic model to describe the plasma dynamics in the scrape-off layer region of tokamak devices at arbitrary collisionality is derived. Our formulation is based on a gyroaveraged Lagrangian description of the charged particle motion, and the corresponding drift-kinetic Boltzmann equation that includes a full Coulomb collision operator. Using a Hermite–Laguerre velocity space decomposition of the gyroaveraged distribution function, a set of equations to evolve the coefficients of the expansion is presented. By evaluating explicitly the moments of the Coulomb collision operator, distribution functions arbitrarily far from equilibrium can be studied at arbitrary collisionalities. A fluid closure in the high-collisionality limit is presented, and the corresponding fluid equations are compared with previously derived fluid models.

In the framework of the Astronomical Validation and Early Science activities of the Sardinia Radio Telescope (SRT, www.srt.inaf.it), we performed 22 GHz imaging observations of SNR W44 and IC443. Thanks to the single-dish imaging performances of SRT and innovative ad hoc imaging techniques, we obtained maps that provide a detailed view of the structure of the remnants. We are planning to exploit the high-frequency radio data of SNRs to better characterize the spatially-resolved spectra and search for possible spectral steepening or breaks in selected SNR regions, assessing the high-energy tail of the region-dependent electron distribution.

Two Compact Steep-spectrum Sources (CSSs), 0548+165 and 1524-136, have been observed in dual polarization with the VLBA at 4.9 and 8.4 GHz. Rotation measures (RMs) up to 104 rad m−2 were derived for the jets of both sources. These high values possibly arise due to the external medium interacting with the radio jets, with measured depolarization being due to small-scale inhomogeneities in the medium.

The aim of this study was to compare a fully slatted concrete floor (concrete slatted (CS)) with the same floor on which synthetic rubber slats were placed on the concrete slats (rubber slatted (RS)) as housing solution for finishing beef cattle. The present study involved five commercial beef cattle farms in which the floor of at least three pens was kept as fully slatted, and in an equal number of pens a rubber cover was placed on the floor, tightly matching the gap profile of the concrete slats to allow the drainage of manure. A total of 326 finishing beef bulls were used (153 on CS and 173 on RS), and regardless of the floor treatment animals were housed in groups of 6 to 12 bulls/pen with a space allowance of 3.1±0.2 m2/bull. Bulls had similar initial live weights (422.3 kg on CS and 425.0 kg on RS), but bulls on RS were heavier at the end of the finishing period with a higher average daily gain than bulls kept on CS (1.53 v. 1.46 kg/day; P<0.05). The proportion of bulls treated for locomotor problems was lower in RS pens compared with CS. Rubber covering prevented the occurrence of bursitis, but it increased the odds for hoof overgrowth at end of the finishing period. Hoof overgrowth detected in vivo in bulls on RS was confirmed at the slaughterhouse by the longer dorsal wall and diagonal lengths of the hoof as well as by a more acute toe angle. Compared with bulls on CS, bulls on RS showed less inactivity and resting time, increased social interactions, decreased abnormal lying down and unsuccessful attempts to lie down, as well as shortened the time for lying down. Bulls in RS pens were dirtier compared with those in CS pens, likely due to the draining gaps being reduced to 11.6±1.2% of the total pen surface compared with the 16.9±1.7% in CS pens. This study gave further evidence about the positive effects of the RS floor on growth performance and welfare of finishing beef cattle, although compromising cleanliness and hoof overgrowth.

Hospital evacuations that occur during, or as a result of, infrastructure outages are complicated and demanding. Loss of infrastructure services can initiate a chain of events with corresponding management challenges. This report describes a modeling case study of the 2001 evacuation of the Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, Texas (USA). The study uses a model designed to track such cascading events following loss of infrastructure services and to identify the staff, resources, and operational adaptations required to sustain patient care and/or conduct an evacuation. The model is based on the assumption that a hospital’s primary mission is to provide necessary medical care to all of its patients, even when critical infrastructure services to the hospital and surrounding areas are disrupted. Model logic evaluates the hospital’s ability to provide an adequate level of care for all of its patients throughout a period of disruption. If hospital resources are insufficient to provide such care, the model recommends an evacuation. Model features also provide information to support evacuation and resource allocation decisions for optimizing care over the entire population of patients. This report documents the application of the model to a scenario designed to resemble the 2001 evacuation of the Memorial Hermann Hospital, demonstrating the model’s ability to recreate the timeline of an actual evacuation. The model is also applied to scenarios demonstrating how its output can inform evacuation planning activities and timing.

Vugrin ED , Verzi SJ , Finley PD , Turnquist MA , Griffin AR , Ricci KA , Wyte-Lake T . Modeling Evacuation of a Hospital without Electric Power. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2015;30(3):1-9

Recent surveys conducted by the Italo-Libyan Joint Mission of the University of Rome “La Sapienza” in the region of Wadi Tanezzuft (Libyan Sahara) revealed a huge number of sites characterised by the presence of stone tumuli and other megalithic constructions, usually associated with funerary rituals. During the 1999-2000 field seasons, one of these sites—site 96/129—was subjected to systematic excavation, revealing the construction technique of these monuments and showing evidence of human burials. It sheds new light on the funerary practices and anthropological features of the ancient populations of the region. Radiocarbon determinations placed this site at the very end of the Late Pastoral culture, some 3000 uncalibrated years bp. The skeletal material generally shows a good state of preservation and has been the object of a first morphological appraisal. The population of site 96/129 comprised long-limbed and relatively gracile humans, with labour-related afflictions; their dental dimensions consistently follow the trend of dental reduction known for post-Pleistocene human populations. Of great interest are the relationships with the emergence of Garamantian civilisation. Some traits of the funerary practices show the existence of a local heritage, whose roots may be sought in prehistoric times, in particular the position of the corpses and features of grave goods. On the other hand, the presence of multiple burials, the evidence of burnt animal bones, together with small concentrations of ashes in the monuments seem in contrast with the known funerary practices of prehistoric Pastoral sites of the Acacus and surroundings. Such evidence is compared with the regional analysis of megalithic architecture in the Tanezzuft valley, and discloses a tantalising perspective on the cultural trajectories and related biological pulsation in the area.

This study aimed at evaluating short- and long-term effects of housing beef cattle on deep litter (DL) or concrete fully slatted floor (FS) on their welfare. Animal-based measures of the Welfare Quality® assessment protocol for cattle were used to assess health status and behaviour of bulls. The assessment was carried out in a large commercial farm on 15 batches of bulls (4 DL and 11 FS) 1 month after their receiving day (short-term) and on 12 batches (three DL and nine FS) the week before slaughter (long-term). Signs of better comfort on deep litter in terms of shorter lying down durations (5.1±0.5 v. 6.5±0.4 s; P<0.05) and lower risk of hairless patches (odds ratio=0.09; 95% confidence interval=0.01 to 0.68; P<0.05) were already observed after 1 month. Heavy bulls after a long-term housing on FS showed a higher prevalence of bursitis, hairless patches and lesions/swellings than animals on DL. Bulls on fully slatted floor were at higher risk of early culling (odds ratio=6.44; 95% confidence interval=1.57 to 26.37; P<0.01), mainly due to musculoskeletal system pathologies/lameness. Deep litter proved to be a valid alternative to slatted floor, making animals more confident to interact with powerful movements such as mounting at the end of the finishing period. A negative aspect of the deep litter was the poor cleanliness of the bulls. Compared with the fully slatted floor, there were higher odds ratios for dirty bulls at both, the short- (odds ratio=25.09; 95% confidence interval=8.96 to 70.22; P<0.001) and the long-term housing (odds ratio=276.13; 95% confidence interval=98.21 to 776.38; P<0.001). In order to improve health and welfare of beef cattle finished at a heavy weight, deep litter systems are a promising alternative to fully slatted floors. However, proper management of deep litter is necessary to maintain satisfactory cleanliness of the bulls.

Antarctic and Southern Ocean science is vital to understanding natural variability, the processes that govern global change and the role of humans in the Earth and climate system. The potential for new knowledge to be gained from future Antarctic science is substantial. Therefore, the international Antarctic community came together to ‘scan the horizon’ to identify the highest priority scientific questions that researchers should aspire to answer in the next two decades and beyond. Wide consultation was a fundamental principle for the development of a collective, international view of the most important future directions in Antarctic science. From the many possibilities, the horizon scan identified 80 key scientific questions through structured debate, discussion, revision and voting. Questions were clustered into seven topics: i) Antarctic atmosphere and global connections, ii) Southern Ocean and sea ice in a warming world, iii) ice sheet and sea level, iv) the dynamic Earth, v) life on the precipice, vi) near-Earth space and beyond, and vii) human presence in Antarctica. Answering the questions identified by the horizon scan will require innovative experimental designs, novel applications of technology, invention of next-generation field and laboratory approaches, and expanded observing systems and networks. Unbiased, non-contaminating procedures will be required to retrieve the requisite air, biota, sediment, rock, ice and water samples. Sustained year-round access to Antarctica and the Southern Ocean will be essential to increase winter-time measurements. Improved models are needed that represent Antarctica and the Southern Ocean in the Earth System, and provide predictions at spatial and temporal resolutions useful for decision making. A co-ordinated portfolio of cross-disciplinary science, based on new models of international collaboration, will be essential as no scientist, programme or nation can realize these aspirations alone.

A significant fraction (~ 30%) of the gamma-ray sources detected by the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is still of unknown origin, being not yet associated with counterparts at lower energies. Many unidentified gamma-ray sources (UGSs) could be blazars, the largest identified population of extragalactic gamma-ray sources and the rarest class of active galactic nuclei. In particular, it has been found that blazars occupy a defined region in WISE three dimensional color space, well separated from that occupied by other sources in which thermal emission prevails. For farther sources with weaker IR emission, additional informations can be obtained combining WISE data with X-ray or radio emission. Alternatively, the low-frequency radio emission can be used for identifying potential gamma-ray candidate blazars. However, optical spectroscopic observations represent the tell-tale tool to confirm the exact nature of these sources. To this end, an extensive observational campaign has been performed with several optical telescopes, aimed at pinpointing the exact nature of gamma-ray candidate blazars selected with the different selection methods mentioned above. The results of this campaign lead to the discovery of 60 new gamma-ray blazars, thus confirming the effectiveness of these selection criteria.

Exoplanetary transit observations were carried out for the first time with all the three telescopes at the San Pedro Mártir National Astronomical Observatory in Baja California, Mexico.

We present preliminary results on WASP-39 and WASP-43, two Hot Jupiters known for the presence of a highly-inflated radius. Using the defocused photometry technique, we observed these systems, achieving photometric precision of ± 3–5mmag peak-to-valley. The preliminary fit of their lightcurves shows physical and orbital parameters consistent with published results.

Context: we present a study of the central 200 pc of NGC 6951, in the optical and NIR, taken with the Gemini North Telescope integral field spectrographs, with resolution of ~ 0”.1 Methods: we used a set of image processing techniques, as the filtering of high spatial and spectral frequencies, Richardson-Lucy deconvolution and PCA Tomography (Steiner et al.2009) to map the distribution and kinematics of the emission lines. Results: we found a thick molecular disk, with the ionization cone highly misaligned.

The Dutch and modified Hald source attribution models were adapted to Italian Salmonella data to attribute human infections caused by the top 30 serotypes between 2002 and 2010 to four putative sources (Gallus gallus, turkeys, pigs, ruminants), at the points of animal reservoir (farm), exposure (food), and both combined. Attribution estimates were thus compared between different models, time periods and sampling points. All models identified pigs as the main source of human salmonellosis in Italy, accounting for 43–60% of infections, followed by G. gallus (18–34%). Attributions to turkeys and ruminants were minor. An increasing temporal trend in attributions to pigs and a decreasing one in those to G. gallus was also observed. Although the outcomes of the two models applied at farm and food levels essentially agree, they can be refined once more information becomes available, providing valuable insights about potential targets along the production chain.

For over a decade, the structure of the inner “hole” in the transition disk around TW Hydrae has been a subject of debate. To probe the innermost regions of the protoplanetary disk, observations at the highest possible spatial resolution are required. We present new interferometric data of TW Hya from near-infrared to millimeter wavelengths. We confront existing models of the disk structure with the complete data set and develop a new, detailed radiative-transfer model. This model is characterized by: 1) a spatial separation of the largest grains from the small disk grains; and 2) a smooth inner rim structure, rather than a sharp disk edge.

We present global VLBI and VLBA observations of the compact steep spectrum quasar B1524–136. These observations reveal well-defined radio jets on both sides of the active nucleus. Also, the overall radio structure appears highly distorted and asymmetric with the counter-jet exhibiting several oscillations. A possible scenario is one in which jet and counter-jet are inclined at about 25° and 75° to the line of sight respectively and an environment which is dense on the jet side. Possible implications of these results are discussed.

We report Raman study of highly strained single InAs−In0.53Ga0.47As quantum wells grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on InP substrates with the well thickness between 4 and 15 monolayers. We have used Raman spectroscopy to characterize quality, disorder and strain of these structures which are of considerable interest for long wavelength optical communications.

In the Raman spectra we have observed an intense narrow line corresponding to the GaAslike LO mode of In0.53Ga0.47As cap layer and a narrow peak due to the LO phonon mode of the InAs layer. These dominant and sharp features characterize the high homogeneity of our samples. In addition to these features we have observed the appearance of distinct peaks with the increase of the InAs layer thickness. In our opinion the presence of these modes is indicative of a slight deterioration of the structural perfection of the sample with the increase of the well thickness. Our investigation shows the ability of Raman spectroscopy to describe these systems and the good quality of our structures.

The aim of this study was to determine the potential association between housing type and multiple drug resistance (MDR) in Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis isolates recovered from 283 laying-hen flocks. In each flock, a cloacal swab from four hens was collected and produced 1102 E. coli and 792 E. faecalis isolates. Broth microdilution was used to test susceptibility to antimicrobials. Country and housing type interacted differently with the MDR levels of both species. In the E. coli model, housing in a raised-floor system was associated with an increased risk of MDR compared to the conventional battery system [odds ratio (OR) 2·12, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1·13–3·97)]. In the E. faecalis model the MDR levels were lower in free-range systems than in conventional battery cages (OR 0·51, 95% CI 0·27–0·94). In Belgium, ceftiofur-resistant E. coli isolates were more numerous than in the other countries.