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Showing papers by "University of California, Santa Barbara published in 2012"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, results from searches for the standard model Higgs boson in proton-proton collisions at 7 and 8 TeV in the CMS experiment at the LHC, using data samples corresponding to integrated luminosities of up to 5.8 standard deviations.

8,857 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
Kaoru Hagiwara, Ken Ichi Hikasa1, Koji Nakamura, Masaharu Tanabashi1, M. Aguilar-Benitez, Claude Amsler2, R. M. Barnett3, P. R. Burchat4, C. D. Carone5, C. Caso6, G. Conforto7, Olav Dahl3, Michael Doser8, Semen Eidelman9, Jonathan L. Feng10, L. K. Gibbons11, M. C. Goodman12, Christoph Grab13, D. E. Groom3, Atul Gurtu14, Atul Gurtu8, K. G. Hayes15, J.J. Hernández-Rey16, K. Honscheid17, Christopher Kolda18, Michelangelo L. Mangano8, D. M. Manley19, Aneesh V. Manohar20, John March-Russell8, Alberto Masoni, Ramon Miquel3, Klaus Mönig, Hitoshi Murayama3, Hitoshi Murayama21, S. Sánchez Navas13, Keith A. Olive22, Luc Pape8, C. Patrignani6, A. Piepke23, Matts Roos24, John Terning25, Nils A. Tornqvist24, T. G. Trippe3, Petr Vogel26, C. G. Wohl3, Ron L. Workman27, W-M. Yao3, B. Armstrong3, P. S. Gee3, K. S. Lugovsky, S. B. Lugovsky, V. S. Lugovsky, Marina Artuso28, D. Asner29, K. S. Babu30, E. L. Barberio8, Marco Battaglia8, H. Bichsel31, O. Biebel32, P. Bloch8, Robert N. Cahn3, Ariella Cattai8, R.S. Chivukula33, R. Cousins34, G. A. Cowan35, Thibault Damour36, K. Desler, R. J. Donahue3, D. A. Edwards, Victor Daniel Elvira37, Jens Erler38, V. V. Ezhela, A Fassò8, W. Fetscher13, Brian D. Fields39, B. Foster40, Daniel Froidevaux8, Masataka Fukugita41, Thomas K. Gaisser42, L. A. Garren37, H J Gerber13, Frederick J. Gilman43, Howard E. Haber44, C. A. Hagmann29, J.L. Hewett4, Ian Hinchliffe3, Craig J. Hogan31, G. Höhler45, P. Igo-Kemenes46, John David Jackson3, Kurtis F Johnson47, D. Karlen48, B. Kayser37, S. R. Klein3, Konrad Kleinknecht49, I.G. Knowles50, P. Kreitz4, Yu V. Kuyanov, R. Landua8, Paul Langacker38, L. S. Littenberg51, Alan D. Martin52, Tatsuya Nakada8, Tatsuya Nakada53, Meenakshi Narain33, Paolo Nason, John A. Peacock54, H. R. Quinn55, Stuart Raby17, Georg G. Raffelt32, E. A. Razuvaev, B. Renk49, L. Rolandi8, Michael T Ronan3, L.J. Rosenberg54, C.T. Sachrajda55, A. I. Sanda56, Subir Sarkar57, Michael Schmitt58, O. Schneider53, Douglas Scott59, W. G. Seligman60, M. H. Shaevitz60, Torbjörn Sjöstrand61, George F. Smoot3, Stefan M Spanier4, H. Spieler3, N. J. C. Spooner62, Mark Srednicki63, Achim Stahl, Todor Stanev42, M. Suzuki3, N. P. Tkachenko, German Valencia64, K. van Bibber29, Manuella Vincter65, D. R. Ward66, Bryan R. Webber66, M R Whalley52, Lincoln Wolfenstein43, J. Womersley37, C. L. Woody51, Oleg Zenin 
Tohoku University1, University of Zurich2, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory3, Stanford University4, College of William & Mary5, University of Genoa6, University of Urbino7, CERN8, Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics9, University of California, Irvine10, Cornell University11, Argonne National Laboratory12, ETH Zurich13, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research14, Hillsdale College15, Spanish National Research Council16, Ohio State University17, University of Notre Dame18, Kent State University19, University of California, San Diego20, University of California, Berkeley21, University of Minnesota22, University of Alabama23, University of Helsinki24, Los Alamos National Laboratory25, California Institute of Technology26, George Washington University27, Syracuse University28, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory29, Oklahoma State University–Stillwater30, University of Washington31, Max Planck Society32, Boston University33, University of California, Los Angeles34, Royal Holloway, University of London35, Université Paris-Saclay36, Fermilab37, University of Pennsylvania38, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign39, University of Bristol40, University of Tokyo41, University of Delaware42, Carnegie Mellon University43, University of California, Santa Cruz44, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology45, Heidelberg University46, Florida State University47, Carleton University48, University of Mainz49, University of Edinburgh50, Brookhaven National Laboratory51, Durham University52, University of Lausanne53, Massachusetts Institute of Technology54, University of Southampton55, Nagoya University56, University of Oxford57, Northwestern University58, University of British Columbia59, Columbia University60, Lund University61, University of Sheffield62, University of California, Santa Barbara63, Iowa State University64, University of Alberta65, University of Cambridge66
TL;DR: The Particle Data Group's biennial review as mentioned in this paper summarizes much of particle physics, using data from previous editions, plus 2658 new measurements from 644 papers, and lists, evaluates, and average measured properties of gauge bosons, leptons, quarks, mesons, and baryons.
Abstract: This biennial Review summarizes much of particle physics. Using data from previous editions, plus 2658 new measurements from 644 papers, we list, evaluate, and average measured properties of gauge bosons, leptons, quarks, mesons, and baryons. We summarize searches for hypothetical particles such as Higgs bosons, heavy neutrinos, and supersymmetric particles. All the particle properties and search limits are listed in Summary Tables. We also give numerous tables, figures, formulae, and reviews of topics such as the Standard Model, particle detectors, probability, and statistics. Among the 112 reviews are many that are new or heavily revised including those on Heavy-Quark and Soft-Collinear Effective Theory, Neutrino Cross Section Measurements, Monte Carlo Event Generators, Lattice QCD, Heavy Quarkonium Spectroscopy, Top Quark, Dark Matter, V-cb & V-ub, Quantum Chromodynamics, High-Energy Collider Parameters, Astrophysical Constants, Cosmological Parameters, and Dark Matter. A booklet is available containing the Summary Tables and abbreviated versions of some of the other sections of this full Review. All tables, listings, and reviews (and errata) are also available on the Particle Data Group website: http://pdg.lbl.gov.

4,465 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
12 Apr 2012-Nature
TL;DR: It is argued that nascent fungal infections will cause increasing attrition of biodiversity, with wider implications for human and ecosystem health, unless steps are taken to tighten biosecurity worldwide.
Abstract: The past two decades have seen an increasing number of virulent infectious diseases in natural populations and managed landscapes. In both animals and plants, an unprecedented number of fungal and fungal-like diseases have recently caused some of the most severe die-offs and extinctions ever witnessed in wild species, and are jeopardizing food security. Human activity is intensifying fungal disease dispersal by modifying natural environments and thus creating new opportunities for evolution. We argue that nascent fungal infections will cause increasing attrition of biodiversity, with wider implications for human and ecosystem health, unless steps are taken to tighten biosecurity worldwide.

2,408 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The concept of the stabilizer, using two qubits, is introduced, and the single-qubit Hadamard, S and T operators are described, completing the set of required gates for a universal quantum computer.
Abstract: This article provides an introduction to surface code quantum computing. We first estimate the size and speed of a surface code quantum computer. We then introduce the concept of the stabilizer, using two qubits, and extend this concept to stabilizers acting on a two-dimensional array of physical qubits, on which we implement the surface code. We next describe how logical qubits are formed in the surface code array and give numerical estimates of their fault tolerance. We outline how logical qubits are physically moved on the array, how qubit braid transformations are constructed, and how a braid between two logical qubits is equivalent to a controlled-not. We then describe the single-qubit Hadamard, Ŝ and T operators, completing the set of required gates for a universal quantum computer. We conclude by briefly discussing physical implementations of the surface code. We include a number of Appendices in which we provide supplementary information to the main text. © 2012 American Physical Society.

2,205 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an overview of the achievements and the status of integrability in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence as of the year 2010.
Abstract: This is the introductory chapter of a review collection on integrability in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence. In the collection we present an overview of the achievements and the status of this subject as of the year 2010.

1,564 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Efficient solution-processed SM BHJ solar cells based on a new molecular donor, DTS(PTTh(2))(2) are reported and it is demonstrated that solar cells fabricated from small donor molecules can compete with their polymeric counterparts.
Abstract: Polymer-based bulk-heterojunction solar cells have shown some of the highest photoconversion efficiencies in organic photovoltaics, but polymer polydispersity impacts their performance. A small-molecule donor is now reported that enables the fabrication of bulk-heterojunction devices with low acceptor content and photoconversion efficiencies of up to 6.7%.

1,436 citations



Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that the following three statements cannot all be true: (i) Hawking radiation is in a pure state, (ii) the information carried by the radiation is emitted from the region near the horizon, with low energy effective field theory valid beyond some microscopic distance from the horizon.
Abstract: We argue that the following three statements cannot all be true: (i) Hawking radiation is in a pure state, (ii) the information carried by the radiation is emitted from the region near the horizon, with low energy effective field theory valid beyond some microscopic distance from the horizon, and (iii) the infalling observer encounters nothing unusual at the horizon. Perhaps the most conservative resolution is that the infalling observer burns up at the horizon. Alternatives would seem to require novel dynamics that nevertheless cause notable violations of semiclassical physics at macroscopic distances from the horizon.

1,201 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that women invest less and appear to be more financially risk averse than men, while men are more willing to take financial risks than women, and that women are more likely to buy stocks than men.
Abstract: Are men more willing to take financial risks than women? The answer to this question has immediate relevance for many economic issues. We assemble the data from 15 sets of experiments with one simple underlying investment game. Most of these experiments were not designed to investigate gender differences and were conducted by different researchers in different countries, with different instructions, durations, payments, subject pools, etc. The fact that all data come from the same basic investment game allows us to test the robustness of the findings. We find a very consistent result that women invest less, and thus appear to be more financially risk averse than men.

1,180 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report the distribution of planets as a function of planet radius, orbital period, and stellar effective temperature for orbital periods less than 50 days around solar-type (GK) stars.
Abstract: We report the distribution of planets as a function of planet radius, orbital period, and stellar effective temperature for orbital periods less than 50 days around solar-type (GK) stars. These results are based on the 1235 planets (formally "planet candidates") from the Kepler mission that include a nearly complete set of detected planets as small as 2 R_⊕. For each of the 156,000 target stars, we assess the detectability of planets as a function of planet radius, R_p, and orbital period, P, using a measure of the detection efficiency for each star. We also correct for the geometric probability of transit, R_*/a. We consider first Kepler target stars within the "solar subset" having T_eff = 4100-6100 K, log g = 4.0-4.9, and Kepler magnitude K_p 2 R_⊕ we measure an occurrence of less than 0.001 planets per star. For all planets with orbital periods less than 50 days, we measure occurrence of 0.130 ± 0.008, 0.023 ± 0.003, and 0.013 ± 0.002 planets per star for planets with radii 2-4, 4-8, and 8-32 R_⊕, in agreement with Doppler surveys. We fit occurrence as a function of P to a power-law model with an exponential cutoff below a critical period P_0. For smaller planets, P_0 has larger values, suggesting that the "parking distance" for migrating planets moves outward with decreasing planet size. We also measured planet occurrence over a broader stellar T_eff range of 3600-7100 K, spanning M0 to F2 dwarfs. Over this range, the occurrence of 2-4 R_⊕ planets in the Kepler field increases with decreasing T_eff, with these small planets being seven times more abundant around cool stars (3600-4100 K) than the hottest stars in our sample (6600-7100 K).

1,159 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, it is proposed that spin-fluctuation mediated pairing is the common thread linking a broad class of superconducting materials, including cuprates, the Fe-pnictides/chalcogenides as well as some heavy fermion and actinide materials.
Abstract: The structures, the phase diagrams, and the appearance of a neutron resonance signaling an unconventional superconducting state provide phenomenological evidence relating the cuprates, the Fe-pnictides/chalcogenides as well as some heavy fermion and actinide materials Single- and multi-band Hubbard models have been found to describe a number of the observed properties of these materials so that it is reasonable to examine the origin of the pairing interaction in these models In this review, based on the experimental phenomenology and studies of the pairing interaction for Hubbard-like models, it is proposed that spin-fluctuation mediated pairing is the common thread linking a broad class of superconducting materials

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the chiral and deconfinement properties of the QCD transition at finite temperature were investigated using the p4, asqtad, and HISQ/tree actions.
Abstract: We present results on the chiral and deconfinement properties of the QCD transition at finite temperature. Calculations are performed with $2+1$ flavors of quarks using the p4, asqtad, and HISQ/tree actions. Lattices with temporal extent ${N}_{\ensuremath{\tau}}=6$, 8, and 12 are used to understand and control discretization errors and to reliably extrapolate estimates obtained at finite lattice spacings to the continuum limit. The chiral transition temperature is defined in terms of the phase transition in a theory with two massless flavors and analyzed using $O(N)$ scaling fits to the chiral condensate and susceptibility. We find consistent estimates from the HISQ/tree and asqtad actions and our main result is ${T}_{c}=154\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}9\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{MeV}$.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The phylogenetic level at which microbes form meaningful guilds is considered, based on overall life history strategies, and it is suggested that these are associated with deep evolutionary divergences, while much of the species-level diversity probably reflects functional redundancy.
Abstract: A major thrust of terrestrial microbial ecology is focused on understanding when and how the composition of the microbial community affects the functioning of biogeochemical processes at the ecosystem scale (meters-to-kilometers and days-to-years). While research has demonstrated these linkages for physiologically and phylogenetically “narrow” processes such as trace gas emissions and nitrification, there is less conclusive evidence that microbial community composition influences the “broad” processes of decomposition and organic matter turnover in soil. In this paper, we consider how soil microbial community structure influences C-cycling. We consider the phylogenetic level at which microbes form meaningful guilds, based on overall life history strategies, and suggest that these are associated with deep evolutionary divergences, while much of the species-level diversity probably reflects functional redundancy. We then consider under what conditions it is possible for differences among microbes to affect process dynamics, and argue that while microbial community structure may be important in the rate of OM breakdown in the rhizosphere and in detritus, it is likely not important in the mineral soil. In mineral soil, physical access to occluded or sorbed substrates is the rate-limiting process. Microbial community influences on OM turnover in mineral soils are based on how organisms allocate the C they take up—not only do the fates of the molecules differ, but they can affect the soil system differently as well. For example, extracellular enzymes and extracellular polysaccharides can be key controls on soil structure and function. How microbes allocate C may also be particularly important for understanding the long-term fate of C in soil—is it sequestered or not?

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The issues that surround within-subject and between-subject designs are explored, finding that both designs have their merits, and the choice of designs should be carefully considered in the context of the question being studied and in terms of the practical implementation of the research study.
Abstract: a b s t r a c t In this article we explore the issues that surround within-subject and between-subject designs. We describe experiments in economics and in psychology that make comparisons using either of these designs (or both) that sometimes yield the same results and some- times do not. The overall goal is to establish a framework for understanding which critical questions need to be asked about such experimental studies, what authors of such studies can do to ameliorate fears of confoundedness, and which scenarios are particularly suscep- tible to divergent results from the two approaches. Overall, we find that both designs have their merits, and the choice of designs should be carefully considered in the context of the question being studied and in terms of the practical implementation of the research study. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Journal ArticleDOI
27 Apr 2012-Science
TL;DR: Recent developments in the field of block polymers are reviewed, offering alluring opportunities to generate exquisitely tailored materials with unparalleled control over nanoscale-domain geometry, packing symmetry, and chemical composition.
Abstract: Advances in synthetic polymer chemistry have unleashed seemingly unlimited strategies for producing block polymers with arbitrary numbers (n) and types (k) of unique sequences of repeating units. Increasing (k,n) leads to a geometric expansion of possible molecular architectures, beyond conventional ABA-type triblock copolymers (k = 2, n = 3), offering alluring opportunities to generate exquisitely tailored materials with unparalleled control over nanoscale-domain geometry, packing symmetry, and chemical composition. Transforming this potential into targeted structures endowed with useful properties hinges on imaginative molecular designs guided by predictive theory and computer simulation. Here, we review recent developments in the field of block polymers.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors develop a framework for ecosystem services research and practice, addressing three challenges: (1) non-material values are ill suited to characterization using monetary methods; (2) it is difficult to unequivocally link particular changes in socioecological systems to cultural benefits; and (3) cultural benefits are associated with many services, not just cultural ES.
Abstract: A focus on ecosystem services (ES) is seen as a means for improving decisionmaking. In the research to date, the valuation of the material contributions of ecosystems to human well-being has been emphasized, with less attention to important cultural ES and nonmaterial values. This gap persists because there is no commonly accepted framework for eliciting less tangible values, characterizing their changes, and including them alongside other services in decisionmaking. Here, we develop such a framework for ES research and practice, addressing three challenges: (1) Nonmaterial values are ill suited to characterization using monetary methods; (2) it is difficult to unequivocally link particular changes in socioecological systems to particular changes in cultural benefits; and (3) cultural benefits are associated with many services, not just cultural ES. There is no magic bullet, but our framework may facilitate fuller and more socially acceptable integrations of ES information into planning and management.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the use of reinforcement learning to design feedback controllers for discrete and continuous-time dynamical systems that combine features of adaptive control and optimal control, which are not usually designed to be optimal in the sense of minimizing user-prescribed performance functions.
Abstract: This article describes the use of principles of reinforcement learning to design feedback controllers for discrete- and continuous-time dynamical systems that combine features of adaptive control and optimal control. Adaptive control [1], [2] and optimal control [3] represent different philosophies for designing feedback controllers. Optimal controllers are normally designed of ine by solving Hamilton JacobiBellman (HJB) equations, for example, the Riccati equation, using complete knowledge of the system dynamics. Determining optimal control policies for nonlinear systems requires the offline solution of nonlinear HJB equations, which are often difficult or impossible to solve. By contrast, adaptive controllers learn online to control unknown systems using data measured in real time along the system trajectories. Adaptive controllers are not usually designed to be optimal in the sense of minimizing user-prescribed performance functions. Indirect adaptive controllers use system identification techniques to first identify the system parameters and then use the obtained model to solve optimal design equations [1]. Adaptive controllers may satisfy certain inverse optimality conditions [4].

Journal ArticleDOI
29 Mar 2012
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reported results from searches for the standard model Higgs boson in proton-proton collisions at square root(s) = 7 TeV in five decay modes: gamma pair, b-quark pair, tau lepton pair, W pair, and Z pair.
Abstract: Combined results are reported from searches for the standard model Higgs boson in proton-proton collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV in five Higgs boson decay modes: gamma pair, b-quark pair, tau lepton pair, W pair, and Z pair. The explored Higgs boson mass range is 110-600 GeV. The analysed data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6-4.8 inverse femtobarns. The expected excluded mass range in the absence of the standard model Higgs boson is 118-543 GeV at 95% CL. The observed results exclude the standard model Higgs boson in the mass range 127-600 GeV at 95% CL, and in the mass range 129-525 GeV at 99% CL. An excess of events above the expected standard model background is observed at the low end of the explored mass range making the observed limits weaker than expected in the absence of a signal. The largest excess, with a local significance of 3.1 sigma, is observed for a Higgs boson mass hypothesis of 124 GeV. The global significance of observing an excess with a local significance greater than 3.1 sigma anywhere in the search range 110-600 (110-145) GeV is estimated to be 1.5 sigma (2.1 sigma). More data are required to ascertain the origin of this excess.

Journal ArticleDOI
24 May 2012-Nature
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared phenology (the timing of recurring life history events) in observational studies and warming experiments spanning four continents and 1,634 plant species using a common measure of temperature sensitivity (change in days per degree Celsius).
Abstract: Warming experiments are increasingly relied on to estimate plant responses to global climate change. For experiments to provide meaningful predictions of future responses, they should reflect the empirical record of responses to temperature variability and recent warming, including advances in the timing of flowering and leafing. We compared phenology (the timing of recurring life history events) in observational studies and warming experiments spanning four continents and 1,634 plant species using a common measure of temperature sensitivity (change in days per degree Celsius). We show that warming experiments underpredict advances in the timing of flowering and leafing by 8.5-fold and 4.0-fold, respectively, compared with long-term observations. For species that were common to both study types, the experimental results did not match the observational data in sign or magnitude. The observational data also showed that species that flower earliest in the spring have the highest temperature sensitivities, but this trend was not reflected in the experimental data. These significant mismatches seem to be unrelated to the study length or to the degree of manipulated warming in experiments. The discrepancy between experiments and observations, however, could arise from complex interactions among multiple drivers in the observational data, or it could arise from remediable artefacts in the experiments that result in lower irradiance and drier soils, thus dampening the phenological responses to manipulated warming. Our results introduce uncertainty into ecosystem models that are informed solely by experiments and suggest that responses to climate change that are predicted using such models should be re-evaluated.

Journal ArticleDOI
21 Jun 2012-Nature
TL;DR: Spectroscopic metallicities of the host stars of 226 small exoplanet candidates discovered by NASA's Kepler mission are reported, finding that planets with radii less than four Earth radii form around host stars with a wide range of metallicities (but on average a metallicity close to that of the Sun), whereas large planets preferentially form around stars with higher metallicities.
Abstract: The abundance of heavy elements (metallicity) in the photospheres of stars similar to the Sun provides a 'fossil' record of the chemical composition of the initial protoplanetary disk. Metal-rich stars are much more likely to harbour gas giant planets(1-4), supporting the model that planets form by accumulation of dust and ice particles(5). Recent ground-based surveys suggest that this correlation is weakened for Neptunian-sized planets(4,6-9). However, how the relationship between size and metallicity extends into the regime of terrestrial-sized exoplanets is unknown. Here we report spectroscopic metallicities of the host stars of 226 small exoplanet candidates discovered by NASA's Kepler mission(10), including objects that are comparable in size to the terrestrial planets in the Solar System. We find that planets with radii less than four Earth radii form around host stars with a wide range of metallicities (but on average a metallicity close to that of the Sun), whereas large planets preferentially form around stars with higher metallicities. This observation suggests that terrestrial planets may be widespread in the disk of the Galaxy, with no special requirement of enhanced metallicity for their formation.

Journal ArticleDOI
30 Aug 2012-Nature
TL;DR: An index comprising ten diverse public goals for a healthy coupled human–ocean system and calculated the index for every coastal country provides a powerful tool to raise public awareness, direct resource management, improve policy and prioritize scientific research.
Abstract: The ocean plays a critical role in supporting human well-being, from providing food, livelihoods and recreational opportunities to regulating the global climate. Sustainable management aimed at maintaining the flow of a broad range of benefits from the ocean requires a comprehensive and quantitative method to measure and monitor the health of coupled human–ocean systems. We created an index comprising ten diverse public goals for a healthy coupled human–ocean system and calculated the index for every coastal country. Globally, the overall index score was 60 out of 100 (range 36–86), with developed countries generally performing better than developing countries, but with notable exceptions. Only 5% of countries scored higher than 70, whereas 32% scored lower than 50. The index provides a powerful tool to raise public awareness, direct resource management, improve policy and prioritize scientific research.

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Apr 2012-Ecology
TL;DR: It is shown that responses of decomposers at the community level are different in soils and surface litter, but similar across biomes and climates, which results in a nearly constant soil-moisture threshold corresponding to the point when biological activity ceases.
Abstract: Soil heterotrophic respiration and nutrient mineralization are strongly affected by environmental conditions, in particular by moisture fluctuations triggered by rainfall events. When soil moisture decreases, so does decomposers' activity, with microfauna generally undergoing stress sooner than bacteria and fungi. Despite differences in the responses of individual decomposer groups to moisture availability (e.g., bacteria are typically more sensitive than fungi to water stress), we show that responses of decomposers at the community level are different in soils and surface litter, but similar across biomes and climates. This results in a nearly constant soil-moisture threshold corresponding to the point when biological activity ceases, at a water potential of about -14 MPa in mineral soils and -36 MPa in surface litter. This threshold is shown to be comparable to the soil moisture value where solute diffusion becomes strongly inhibited in soil, while in litter it is dehydration rather than diffusion that likely limits biological activity around the stress point. Because of these intrinsic constraints and lack of adaptation to different hydro-climatic regimes, changes in rainfall patterns (primary drivers of the soil moisture balance) may have dramatic impacts on soil carbon and nutrient cycling.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A recent survey of volunteer geographic information (VGI) for geography and geographers can be found in this article with an eye toward identifying its potential in our field, as well as the most pressing research needed to realize this potential.
Abstract: The convergence of newly interactive Web-based technologies with growing practices of user-generated content disseminated on the Internet is generating a remarkable new form of geographic information. Citizens are using handheld devices to collect geographic information and contribute it to crowd-sourced data sets, using Web-based mapping interfaces to mark and annotate geographic features, or adding geographic location to photographs, text, and other media shared online. These phenomena, which generate what we refer to collectively as volunteered geographic information (VGI), represent a paradigmatic shift in how geographic information is created and shared and by whom, as well as its content and characteristics. This article, which draws on our recently completed inventory of VGI initiatives, is intended to frame the crucial dimensions of VGI for geography and geographers, with an eye toward identifying its potential in our field, as well as the most pressing research needed to realize this potential. D...

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Assessing whether performance on validated creativity problems can be facilitated by engaging in either a demanding task or an undemanding task that maximizes mind wandering suggested that engaging in simple external tasks that allow the mind to wander may facilitate creative problem solving.
Abstract: Although anecdotes that creative thoughts often arise when one is engaged in an unrelated train of thought date back thousands of years, empirical research has not yet investigated this potentially critical source of inspiration. We used an incubation paradigm to assess whether performance on validated creativity problems (the Unusual Uses Task, or UUT) can be facilitated by engaging in either a demanding task or an undemanding task that maximizes mind wandering. Compared with engaging in a demanding task, rest, or no break, engaging in an undemanding task during an incubation period led to substantial improvements in performance on previously encountered problems. Critically, the context that improved performance after the incubation period was associated with higher levels of mind wandering but not with a greater number of explicitly directed thoughts about the UUT. These data suggest that engaging in simple external tasks that allow the mind to wander may facilitate creative problem solving.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The development of a highly responsive photocontrolled living radical procedure, which affords control over the chain growth process, is both a major opportunity as well as challenge for the future of living polymerizations.
Abstract: The ability to precisely control molecular weight and molecular weight distributions, as well as gain sequence and architecture control in polymer synthesis is of considerable importance and has greatly impacted the advancement of science and technology. Indeed, the development of controlled living polymerization methods has profoundly changed polymer research with strategies, such as nitroxidemediated radical polymerization (NMP), atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), and reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (RAFT), allowing the facile synthesis of well-defined polymers that are diverse in both their structure and function. Recently there has been an effort to dramatically increase the scope of living radical polymerization through the development of strategies to regulate the activation and deactivation steps by using an external stimulus. Arguably, the most successful strategy that controls both the initiation and growth steps has been the recent work of Matyjaszewski and co-workers who exploited the unique aspects of electrochemistry to control the ratio of activator to deactivator in ATRP. By selective targeting of redox-active catalytic species, the polymerization reaction could be turned “on” and “off” by adjusting parameters such as applied current, potential, and total charge passed. As with traditional radical polymerization, the most robust and widely used form of regulation is through photopolymerization, which is a pervasive procedure in both academia and industry. The ability to develop a photocontrolled living radical polymerization would, therefore, represent a significant breakthrough. Interestingly, one of the earliest attempts to develop a living radical polymerization involved iniferter polymerization using a dithiocarbamate under UV irradiation. However, the procedure was intrinsically limited and poor control and broad molecular weight distributions were obtained. Subsequently, photoinitiation of ATRP, NMP, and RAFT polymerizations have been developed, though in all cases only the initiation step was photocontrolled and all subsequent growth steps could not be photoregulated. As a result, the development of a highly responsive photocontrolled living radical procedure, which affords control over the chain growth process, is both a major opportunity as well as challenge for the future of living polymerizations. The key to addressing this challenge was recent work by the research groups of Macmillan, Yoon, Stephenson, and others who have exploited the power of photoredox catalysts for organic transformations that are mediated by visible light. We envisaged that the unique properties of these photoredox catalysts would allow for the development of a highly responsive photocontrolled living radical polymerization. Our proposed mechanism for this process is shown in Scheme 1. The fac-[Ir(ppy)3] (1, Figure 1), a com-

Journal ArticleDOI
04 May 2012-Science
TL;DR: This paper showed that the effects of diversity on biomass productivity increased and became less saturating over time, causing high-diversity species combinations that appeared functionally redundant during early years to become more functionally unique through time.
Abstract: Plant diversity generally promotes biomass production, but how the shape of the response curve changes with time remains unclear. This is a critical knowledge gap because the shape of this relationship indicates the extent to which loss of the first few species will influence biomass production. Using two long-term (≥13 years) biodiversity experiments, we show that the effects of diversity on biomass productivity increased and became less saturating over time. Our analyses suggest that effects of diversity-dependent ecosystem feedbacks and interspecific complementarity accumulate over time, causing high-diversity species combinations that appeared functionally redundant during early years to become more functionally unique through time. Consequently, simplification of diverse ecosystems will likely have greater negative impacts on ecosystem functioning than has been suggested by short-term experiments.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The issues involved in the determination of quality for geospatial data, and the history of research on VGI quality are traced, as well as three approaches to quality assurance, which are described as crowd-sourcing, social, and geographic approaches respectively.
Abstract: Volunteered geographic information (VGI) is a phenomenon of recent years, offering an alternative mechanism for the acquisition and compilation of geographic information. As such it offers substantial advantages, but suffers from a general lack of quality assurance. We discuss the issues involved in the determination of quality for geospatial data, and trace the history of research on VGI quality. We describe three approaches to quality assurance, which we term the crowd-sourcing, social, and geographic approaches respectively. We discuss the advantages and limitations of each, and the research that will be needed to operationalize the geographic approach.

Journal ArticleDOI
J. P. Lees1, V. Poireau1, V. Tisserand1, J. Garra Tico2  +362 moreInstitutions (77)
TL;DR: In this article, the BaBar data sample was used to investigate the sensitivity of BaBar ratios to new physics contributions in the form of a charged Higgs boson in the type II two-Higgs doublet model.
Abstract: Based on the full BaBar data sample, we report improved measurements of the ratios R(D(*)) = B(B -> D(*) Tau Nu)/B(B -> D(*) l Nu), where l is either e or mu. These ratios are sensitive to new physics contributions in the form of a charged Higgs boson. We measure R(D) = 0.440 +- 0.058 +- 0.042 and R(D*) = 0.332 +- 0.024 +- 0.018, which exceed the Standard Model expectations by 2.0 sigma and 2.7 sigma, respectively. Taken together, our results disagree with these expectations at the 3.4 sigma level. This excess cannot be explained by a charged Higgs boson in the type II two-Higgs-doublet model. We also report the observation of the decay B -> D Tau Nu, with a significance of 6.8 sigma.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It can be argued that microtubules represent the single best cancer target identified to date, as considerable evidence indicates that, at lower concentrations, these drugs have a common mechanism of action; they suppress the dynamics of micro Tubulin without appreciably changing the mass of microtubule in the cell.
Abstract: Microtubules, major structural components in cells, are the target of a large and diverse group of natural product anticancer drugs. Given the success of this class of drugs in cancer treatment, it can be argued that microtubules represent the single best cancer target identified to date. Microtubules are highly dynamic assemblies of the protein tubulin. They readily polymerize and depolymerize in cells, and they undergo two interesting kinds of dynamics called dynamic instability and treadmilling. These dynamic behaviors are crucial to mitosis, the process of chromosomal division to form new cells. Microtubule dynamics are highly regulated during the cell cycle by endogenous cellular regulators. In addition, many antitumor drugs and natural compounds alter the polymerization dynamics of microtubules, blocking mitosis, and consequently, inducing cell death by apoptosis. These drugs include several that inhibit microtubule polymerization at high drug concentrations, namely, the Vinca alkaloids, cryptophycins, halichondrins, estramustine, and colchicine. Another group of these compounds stimulates microtubule polymerization and stabilizes microtubules at high concentrations. These include Taxol, Taxotere, eleutherobins, epothilones, laulimalide, sarcodictyins, and discodermolide. Importantly, considerable evidence indicates that, at lower concentrations, these drugs have a common mechanism of action; they suppress the dynamics of microtubules without appreciably changing the mass of microtubules in the cell. The drugs bind to diverse sites on tubulin and at different positions within the microtubule, and they have diverse effects on microtubule dynamics. However, by their common mechanism of suppression microtubule dynamics, they all block mitosis at the metaphase/anaphase transition, and induce cell death.

Journal ArticleDOI
26 Oct 2012-Science
TL;DR: It is found that small unass assessed fisheries are in substantially worse condition than assessed fisheries, but that large unassessed fisheries may be performing nearly as well as their assessed counterparts.
Abstract: Recent reports suggest that many well-assessed fisheries in developed countries are moving toward sustainability. We examined whether the same conclusion holds for fisheries lacking formal assessment, which comprise >80% of global catch. We developed a method using species' life-history, catch, and fishery development data to estimate the status of thousands of unassessed fisheries worldwide. We found that small unassessed fisheries are in substantially worse condition than assessed fisheries, but that large unassessed fisheries may be performing nearly as well as their assessed counterparts. Both small and large stocks, however, continue to decline; 64% of unassessed stocks could provide increased sustainable harvest if rebuilt. Our results suggest that global fishery recovery would simultaneously create increases in abundance (56%) and fishery yields (8 to 40%).