Project description:Fluid-solid reactions result in material flux from or to the solid surface. The prediction of the flux, its variations, and changes with time are of interest to a wide array of disciplines, ranging from the material and earth sciences to pharmaceutical sciences. Reaction rate maps that are derived from sequences of topography maps illustrate the spatial distribution of reaction rates across the crystal surface. Here, we present highly spatially resolved rate maps that reveal the existence of rhythmic pulses of the material flux from the crystal surface. This observation leads to a change in our understanding of the way crystalline matter dissolves. Rhythmic fluctuations of the reactive surface site density and potentially concomitant oscillations in the fluid saturation imply spatial and temporal variability in surface reaction rates. Knowledge of such variability could aid attempts to upscale microscopic rates and predict reactive transport through changing porous media.
Project description:Humans and dogs have interacted for millennia. As a result, humans (and especially dog owners) sometimes try to interpret dog behaviour. While there is extensive research on the brain regions that are involved in mentalizing about other peoples' behaviour, surprisingly little is known of whether we use these same brain regions to mentalize about animal behaviour. In this fMRI study we investigate whether brain regions involved in mentalizing about human behaviour are also engaged when observing dog behaviour. Here we show that these brain regions are more engaged when observing dog behaviour that is difficult to interpret compared to dog behaviour that is easy to interpret. Interestingly, these results were not only obtained when participants were instructed to infer reasons for the behaviour but also when they passively viewed the behaviour, indicating that these brain regions are activated by spontaneous mentalizing processes.
Project description:Pulsating aurorae (PsA) are caused by the intermittent precipitations of magnetospheric electrons (energies of a few keV to a few tens of keV) through wave-particle interactions, thereby depositing most of their energy at altitudes ~ 100 km. However, the maximum energy of precipitated electrons and its impacts on the atmosphere are unknown. Herein, we report unique observations by the European Incoherent Scatter (EISCAT) radar showing electron precipitations ranging from a few hundred keV to a few MeV during a PsA associated with a weak geomagnetic storm. Simultaneously, the Arase spacecraft has observed intense whistler-mode chorus waves at the conjugate location along magnetic field lines. A computer simulation based on the EISCAT observations shows immediate catalytic ozone depletion at the mesospheric altitudes. Since PsA occurs frequently, often in daily basis, and extends its impact over large MLT areas, we anticipate that the PsA possesses a significant forcing to the mesospheric ozone chemistry in high latitudes through high energy electron precipitations. Therefore, the generation of PsA results in the depletion of mesospheric ozone through high-energy electron precipitations caused by whistler-mode chorus waves, which are similar to the well-known effect due to solar energetic protons triggered by solar flares.
Project description:The purpose of this study was to investigate the contribution of stereopsis to the processing of observed manipulative actions. To this end, we first combined the factors "stimulus type" (action, static control, and dynamic control), "stereopsis" (present, absent) and "viewpoint" (frontal, lateral) into a single design. Four sites in premotor, retro-insular (2) and parietal cortex operated specifically when actions were viewed stereoscopically and frontally. A second experiment clarified that the stereo-action-specific regions were driven by actions moving out of the frontoparallel plane, an effect amplified by frontal viewing in premotor cortex. Analysis of single voxels and their discriminatory power showed that the representation of action in the stereo-action-specific areas was more accurate when stereopsis was active. Further analyses showed that the 4 stereo-action-specific sites form a closed network converging onto the premotor node, which connects to parietal and occipitotemporal regions outside the network. Several of the specific sites are known to process vestibular signals, suggesting that the network combines observed actions in peripersonal space with gravitational signals. These findings have wider implications for the function of premotor cortex and the role of stereopsis in human behavior.
Project description:A persistent problem of surface mounted permanent magnet (SMPM) motors is the non-uniformity of the developed torque. Either the motor design or the motor control needs to be improved in order to minimize the periodic disturbances. This paper proposes a new control technique for reducing periodic disturbances in permanent magnet (PM) electro-mechanical actuators, by advancing a new observer/estimator paradigm. A recursive estimation algorithm is implemented for online control. The compensating signal is identified and added as feedback to the control signal of the servo motor. Compensation is evaluated for different values of the input signal, to show robustness of the proposed method.
Project description:The interaction of laser-generated tandem microbubble (maximum diameter of about 50 μm) with single (rat mammary carcinoma) cells is investigated in a 25-μm liquid layer. Antiphase and coupled oscillation of the tandem microbubble leads to the formation of alternating, directional microjets (with max microstreaming velocity of 10 m/s) and vortices (max vorticity of 350 000 s{-1}) in opposite directions. Localized and directional membrane poration (200 nm to 2 μm in pore size) can be produced by the tandem microbubble in an orientation and proximity-dependent manner, which is absent from a single oscillating microbubble of comparable size and at the same stand-off distance.
Project description:Despite its importance in oxidation catalysis, the active phase of Pt remains uncertain, even for the Pt(111) single-crystal surface. Here, using a ReactorSTM, the catalytically relevant structures are identified as two surface oxides, different from bulk α-PtO2, previously observed. They are constructed from expanded oxide rows with a lattice constant close to that of α-PtO2, either assembling into spoked wheels, 1-5 bar O2, or closely packed in parallel lines, above 2.2 bar. Both are only ordered at elevated temperatures (400-500 K). The triangular oxide can also form on the square lattice of Pt(100). Under NO and CO oxidation conditions, similar features are observed. Furthermore, both oxides are unstable outside the O2 atmosphere, indicating the presence of active O atoms, crucial for oxidation catalysts.Improving platinum as an oxidation catalyst requires understanding its structure under catalytic conditions. Here, the authors discover that catalytically important surface oxides form only when Pt is exposed to high pressure and temperature, highlighting the need to study catalysts in realistic environments.
Project description:The AUSTRAL observing program was started in 2011, performing geodetic and astrometric very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) sessions using the new Australian AuScope VLBI antennas at Hobart, Katherine, and Yarragadee, with contribution from the Warkworth (New Zealand) 12 m and Hartebeesthoek (South Africa) 15 m antennas to make a southern hemisphere array of telescopes with similar design and capability. Designed in the style of the next-generation VLBI system, these small and fast antennas allow for a new way of observing, comprising higher data rates and more observations than the standard observing sessions coordinated by the International VLBI Service for Geodesy and Astrometry (IVS). In this contribution, the continuous development of the AUSTRAL sessions is described, leading to an improvement of the results in terms of baseline length repeatabilities by a factor of two since the start of this program. The focus is on the scheduling strategy and increased number of observations, aspects of automated operation, and data logistics, as well as results of the 151 AUSTRAL sessions performed so far. The high number of the AUSTRAL sessions makes them an important contributor to VLBI end-products, such as the terrestrial and celestial reference frames and Earth orientation parameters. We compare AUSTRAL results with other IVS sessions and discuss their suitability for the determination of baselines, station coordinates, source coordinates, and Earth orientation parameters.