Analysis of the atmospheric distribution, sources, and sinks of oxygenated volatile organic chemicals based on measurements over the Pacific during TRACE-P

Airborne measurements of a large number of oxygenated volatile organic chemicals (OVOC) were carried out in the Pacific troposphere (0.1 - 12 km) in winter/spring of 2001 (24 February to 10 April). Specifically, these measurements included acetone (CH3COCHA3), methylethyl ketone (CH3COC2H5, MEK), methanol (CH3OH), ethanol (C2H5OH), acetaldehyde (CH3CHO), propionaldehyde C2H 5CHO), peroxyacylnitrates (PANs) (CnH 2n+1COO2NO2), and organic nitrates (CnH2n+1ONO2). Complementary measurements of formaldehyde (HCHO), methyl hydroperoxide (CH 3OOH), and selected tracers were also available. OVOC were abundant in the clean troposphere and were greatly enhanced in the outflow regions from Asia. Background mixing ratios were typically highest in the lower troposphere and declined toward the upper troposphere and the lowermost stratosphere. Their total abundance (ΣOVOC) was nearly twice that of nonmethane hydrocarbons (Σ C2-C8 NMHC. Throughout the troposphere, the OH reactivity of OVOC is comparable to that of methane and far exceeds that of NMHC. A comparison of these data with western Pacific observations collected some 7 years earlier (February-March 1994) did not reveal significant differences. Mixing ratios of OVOC were strongly correlated with each other as well as with tracers of fossil and biomass/biofuel combustion. Analysis of the relative enhancement of selected OVOC with respect to CH 3Cl and CO in 12 plumes originating from fires and sampled in the free troposphere (3-11 km) is used to assess their primary and secondary emissions from biomass combustion. The composition of these plumes also indicates a large shift of reactive nitrogen into the PAN reservoir thereby limiting ozone formation. A three-dimensional global model that uses state of the art chemistry and source information is used to compare measured and simulated mixing ratios of selected OVOC. While there is reasonable agreement in many cases, measured aldehyde concentrations are significantly larger than predicted. At their observed levels, acetaldehyde mixing ratios are shown to be an important source of HCHO (and HOx) and PAN in the troposphere. On the basis of presently known chemistry, measured mixing ratios of aldehydes and PANs are mutually incompatible. We provide rough estimates of the global sources of several OVOC and conclude that collectively these are extremely large (150-500 Tg C yr-1) but remain poorly quantified. Copyright 2004 by the American Geophysical Union

Processing of Drosophila endo-siRNAs depends on a specific Loquacious isoform

Drosophila melanogaster expresses three classes of small RNAs, which are classified according to their mechanisms of biogenesis. MicroRNAs are ∼22-23 nucleotides (nt), ubiquitously expressed small RNAs that are sequentially processed from hairpin-like precursors by Drosha/Pasha and Dcr-1/Loquacious complexes. MicroRNAs usually associate with AGO1 and regulate the expression of protein-coding genes. Piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) of ∼24-28 nt associate with Piwi-family proteins and can arise from single-stranded precursors. piRNAs function in transposon silencing and are mainly restricted to gonadal tissues. Endo-siRNAs are found in both germline and somatic tissues. These ∼21-nt RNAs are produced by a distinct Dicer, Dcr-2, and do not depend on Drosha/Pasha complexes. They predominantly bind to AGO2 and target both mobile elements and protein-coding genes. Surprisingly, a subset of endo-siRNAs strongly depend for their production on the dsRNA-binding protein Loquacious (Loqs), thought generally to be a partner for Dcr-1 and a cofactor for miRNA biogenesis. Endo-siRNA production depends on a specific Loqs isoform, Loqs-PD, which is distinct from the one, Loqs-PB, required for the production of microRNAs. Paralleling their roles in the biogenesis of distinct small RNA classes, Loqs-PD and Loqs-PB bind to different Dicer proteins, with Dcr-1/Loqs-PB complexes and Dcr-2/Loqs-PD complexes driving microRNA and endo-siRNA biogenesis, respectively. Copyright © 2009 RNA Society

The Gravity Dual of a Density Matrix

For a state in a quantum field theory on some spacetime, we can associate a density matrix to any subset of a given spacelike slice by tracing out the remaining degrees of freedom. In the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence, if the original state has a dual bulk spacetime with a good classical description, it is natural to ask how much information about the bulk spacetime is carried by the density matrix for such a subset of field theory degrees of freedom. In this note, we provide several constraints on the largest region that can be fully reconstructed, and discuss specific proposals for the geometric construction of this dual region.Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, 8 figures, v2: footnote and reference adde

Dipolar ordering in Fe8?

We show that the low-temperature physics of molecular nanomagnets, contrary to the prevailing one-molecule picture, must be determined by the long-range magnetic ordering due to many-body dipolar interactions. The calculations here performed, using Ewald's summation, suggest a ferromagnetic ground state with a Curie temperature of about 130 mK. The energy of this state is quite close to those of an antiferromagnetic state and to a glass of frozen spin chains. The latter may be realized at finite temperature due to its high entropy.Comment: 7 pages, no figures, submitted to EP

In situ measurements of HCN and CH3CN over the Pacific Ocean: Sources, sinks, and budgets

We report the first in situ measurements of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and methyl cyanide (CH3CN, acetonitrile) from the Pacific troposphere (0-12 km) obtained during the NASA Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P) airborne mission (February-April 2001). Mean HCN and CH3CN mixing ratios of 243 ± 118 (median 218) ppt and 149 ± 56 (median 138) ppt, respectively, were measured. These in situ observations correspond to a mean tropospheric HCN column of 4.2 × 1015 molecules cm-2 and a CH3CN column of 2.5 × 1015 molecules cm-2. This is in good agreement with the 0-12 km HCN column of 4.4 (±0.6) × 1015 molecules cm-2 derived from infrared solar spectroscopic observations over Japan. Mixing ratios of HCN and CH3CN were greatly enhanced in pollution outflow from Asia and were well correlated with each other as well as with known tracers of biomass combustion (e.g., CH3Cl, CO). Volumetric enhancement (or emission) ratios (ERs) relative to CO in free tropospheric plumes, likely originating from fires, were 0.34% for HCN and 0.17% for CH3CN. ERs with respect to CH3Cl and CO in selected biomass burning (BB) plumes in the free troposphere and in boundary layer pollution episodes are used to estimate a global BB source of 0.8 ± 0.4 Tg (N) yr-1 for HCN and 0.4 ± 0.1 Tg (N) yr-1 for CH3CN. In comparison, emissions from industry and fossil fuel combustion are quite small (<0.05 Tg (N) yr-1). The vertical structure of HCN and CH3CN indicated reduced mixing ratios in the marine boundary layer (MBL). Using a simple box model, the observed gradients across the top of the MBL are used to derive an oceanic loss rate of 8.8 × 10-15 g (N) cm-2 s-1 for HCN and 3.4 × 10-15 g (N) cm-2 s-1 for CH3CN. An air-sea exchange model is used to conclude that this flux can be maintained if the oceans are undersaturated in HCN and CH3CN by 27% and 6%, respectively. These observations also correspond to an open ocean mean deposition velocity (vd) of 0.12 cm s-1 for HCN and 0.06 cm s-1 for CH3CN. It is inferred that oceanic loss is a dominant sink for these cyanides and that they deposit some 1.4 Tg (N) of nitrogen annually to the oceans. Assuming loss to the oceans and reaction with OH radicals as the major removal processes, a mean atmospheric residence time of 5.0 months for HCN and 6.6 months for CH3CN is calculated. A global budget analysis shows that the sources and sinks of HCN and CH3CN are roughly in balance but large uncertainties remain in part due to a lack of observational data from the atmosphere and the oceans. Pathways leading to the oceanic (and soil) degradation of these cyanides are poorly known but are expected to be biological in nature

Polarizing Bubble Collisions

We predict the polarization of cosmic microwave background (CMB) photons that results from a cosmic bubble collision. The polarization is purely E-mode, symmetric around the axis pointing towards the collision bubble, and has several salient features in its radial dependence that can help distinguish it from a more conventional explanation for unusually cold or hot features in the CMB sky. The anomalous "cold spot" detected by the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) satellite is a candidate for a feature produced by such a collision, and the Planck satellite and other proposed surveys will measure the polarization on it in the near future. The detection of such a collision would provide compelling evidence for the string theory landscape.Comment: Published version. 15 pages, 8 figure

Bubble collisions and measures of the multiverse

To compute the spectrum of bubble collisions seen by an observer in an eternally-inflating multiverse, one must choose a measure over the diverging spacetime volume, including choosing an "initial" hypersurface below which there are no bubble nucleations. Previous calculations focused on the case where the initial hypersurface is pushed arbitrarily deep into the past. Interestingly, the observed spectrum depends on the orientation of the initial hypersurface, however one's ability observe the effect rapidly decreases with the ratio of inflationary Hubble rates inside and outside one's bubble. We investigate whether this conclusion might be avoided under more general circumstances, in particular placing the observer's bubble near the initial hypersurface. We find that it is not. As a point of reference, a substantial appendix reviews relevant aspects of the measure problem of eternal inflation.Comment: 24 pages, two figures, plus 16-page appendix with one figure; v2: minor improvements and clarifications, conclusions unchanged (version to appear in JCAP