An unusually massive stellar black hole in the Galaxy.

The X-ray source known as GRS1915+105 belongs to a group dubbed 'microquasars'. These objects are binary systems which sporadically eject matter at speeds that appear superluminal, as is the case for some quasars. GRS1915+105 is also one of only two known binary sources thought to contain a maximally spinning black hole. Determining the basic parameters of GRS195+105, such as the masses of the components, will help us to understand jet formation in this system, as well as providing links to other objects which exhibit jets. Using X-ray data, indirect methods have previously been used to infer a variety of masses for the accreting compact object in the range 10-30 solar masses (M middle dot in circle). Here we report a direct measurement of the orbital period and mass function of GRS1915+105, which allow us to deduce a mass of 14 +/- 4 M middle dot in circle for the black hole. Black holes with masses >5-7 M middle dot in circle challenge the conventional picture of black-hole formation in binary systems. Based on the mass estimate, we interpret the distinct X-ray variability of GRS1915+105 as arising from instabilities in an accretion disk that is dominated by radiation pressure, and radiating near the Eddington limit (the point where radiation pressure supports matter against gravity). Also, the mass estimate constrains most models which relate observable X-ray properties to the spin of black holes in microquasars.     

A very faint core-collapse supernova in M85

An anomalous transient in the early Hubble-type (S0) galaxy Messier 85 (M85) in the Virgo cluster was discovered by Kulkarni et al. on 7 January 2006 that had very low luminosity (peak absolute R-band magnitude M(R) of about -12) that was constant over more than 80 days, red colour and narrow spectral lines, which seem inconsistent with those observed in any known class of transient events. Kulkarni et al. suggest an exotic stellar merger as the possible origin. An alternative explanation is that the transient in M85 was a type II-plateau supernova of extremely low luminosity, exploding in a lenticular galaxy with residual star-forming activity. This intriguing transient might be the faintest supernova that has ever been discovered.     

A giant stream of metal-rich stars in the halo of the galaxy M31.

Recent observations have revealed streams of gas and stars in the halo of the Milky Way that are the debris from interactions between our Galaxy and some of its dwarf companion galaxies; the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy and the Magellanic clouds. Analysis of the material has shown that much of the halo is made up of cannibalized satellite galaxies, and that dark matter is distributed nearly spherically in the Milky Way. It remains unclear, however, whether cannibalized substructures are as common in the haloes of galaxies as predicted by galaxy-formation theory. Here we report the discovery of a giant stream of metal-rich stars within the halo of the nearest large galaxy, M31 (the Andromeda galaxy). The source of this stream could be the dwarf galaxies M32 and NGC205, which are close companions of M31 and which may have lost a substantial number of stars owing to tidal interactions. The results demonstrate that the epoch of galaxy building still continues, albeit at a modest rate, and that tidal streams may be a generic feature of galaxy haloes.     

An unusually large multifunctional polypeptide in the erythromycin-producing polyketide synthase of Saccharopolyspora erythraea

Erythromycin A, a clinically important polyketide antibiotic, is produced by the Gram-positive bacterium Saccharopolyspora erythraea. In an arrangement that seems to be generally true of antibiotic biosynthetic genes in Streptomyces and related bacteria like S. erythraea, the ery genes encoding the biosynthetic pathway to erythromycin are clustered around the gene (ermE) that confers self-resistance on S. erythraea. The aglycone core of erythromycin A is derived from one propionyl-CoA and six methylmalonyl-CoA units, which are incorporated head-to-tail into the growing polyketide chain, in a process similar to that of fatty-acid biosynthesis, to generate a macrolide intermediate, 6-deoxyerythronolide B. 6-Deoxyerythronolide B is converted into erythromycin A through the action of specific hydroxylases, glycosyltransferases and a methyltransferase. We report here the analysis of about 10 kilobases of DNA from S. erythraea, cloned by chromosome 'walking' outwards from the erythromycin-resistance determinant ermE, and previously shown to be essential for erythromycin biosynthesis. Partial sequencing of this region indicates that it encodes the synthase. Our results confirm this, and reveal a novel organization of the erythromycin-producing polyketide synthase, which provides further insight into the mechanism of chain assembly.     

A 15.65-solar-mass black hole in an eclipsing binary in the nearby spiral galaxy M 33

Stellar-mass black holes are found in X-ray-emitting binary systems, where their mass can be determined from the dynamics of their companion stars. Models of stellar evolution have difficulty producing black holes in close binaries with masses more than ten times that of the Sun (>10; ref. 4), which is consistent with the fact that the most massive stellar black holes known so far all have masses within one standard deviation of 10. Here we report a mass of (15.65 +/- 1.45) for the black hole in the recently discovered system M 33 X-7, which is located in the nearby galaxy Messier 33 (M 33) and is the only known black hole that is in an eclipsing binary. To produce such a massive black hole, the progenitor star must have retained much of its outer envelope until after helium fusion in the core was completed. On the other hand, in order for the black hole to be in its present 3.45-day orbit about its (70.0 +/- 6.9) companion, there must have been a 'common envelope' phase of evolution in which a significant amount of mass was lost from the system. We find that the common envelope phase could not have occurred in M 33 X-7 unless the amount of mass lost from the progenitor during its evolution was an order of magnitude less than what is usually assumed in evolutionary models of massive stars.     

Magnetic field surrounding the starburst nucleus of the galaxy M82 from polarized dust emission

Magnetic fields may play an important role in the star-formation process, especially in the central regions of 'starburst' galaxies where star formation is vigorous. But the field directions are very difficult to determine in the dense molecular gas out of which the stars form, so it has hitherto been impossible to test this hypothesis. Dust grains in interstellar clouds tend to be magnetically aligned, and it is possible to determine the alignment direction based on the polarization of optical light due to preferential extinction along the long axes of the aligned grains. This technique works, however, only for diffuse gas, not for the dense molecular gas. Here we report observations of polarized thermal emission from the aligned dust grains in the central region of M82, which directly traces the magnetic field structure (as projected onto the plane of the sky). Organized field lines are seen around the brightest star-forming regions, while in the dusty halo the field lines form a giant magnetic bubble possibly blown out by the galaxy's 'superwind'.     

An apparently normal gamma-ray burst with an unusually low luminosity

Much of the progress in understanding gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) has come from studies of distant events (redshift z approximately 1). In the brightest GRBs, the gamma-rays are so highly collimated that the events can be seen across the Universe. It has long been suspected that the nearest and most common events have been missed because they are not as collimated or they are under-energetic (or both). Here we report soft gamma-ray observations of GRB 031203, the nearest event to date (z = 0.106; ref. 2). It had a duration of 40 s and peak energy of >190 keV, and therefore appears to be a typical long-duration GRB. The isotropic gamma-ray energy of < or =10(50) erg, however, is about three orders of magnitude smaller than that of the cosmological population. This event--as well as the other nearby but somewhat controversial GRB 980425--is a clear outlier from the isotropic-energy/peak-energy relation and luminosity/spectral-lag relations that describe the majority of GRBs. Radio calorimetry shows that both of these events are under-energetic explosions. We conclude that there does indeed exist a large population of under-energetic events.     

An almost head-on collision as the origin of two off-centre rings in the Andromeda galaxy

The unusual morphology of the Andromeda galaxy (Messier 31, the closest spiral galaxy to the Milky Way) has long been an enigma. Although regarded for decades as showing little evidence of a violent history, M31 has a well-known outer ring of star formation at a radius of ten kiloparsecs whose centre is offset from the galaxy nucleus. In addition, the outer galaxy disk is warped, as seen at both optical and radio wavelengths. The halo contains numerous loops and ripples. Here we report the presence of a second, inner dust ring with projected dimensions of 1.5 x 1 kiloparsecs and offset by about half a kiloparsec from the centre of the galaxy (based upon an analysis of previously-obtained data). The two rings appear to be density waves propagating in the disk. Numerical simulations indicate that both rings result from a companion galaxy plunging through the centre of the disk of M31. The most likely interloper is M32. Head-on collisions between galaxies are rare, but it appears nonetheless that one took place 210 million years ago in our Local Group of galaxies.     

An 84-microG magnetic field in a galaxy at redshift z = 0.692

The magnetic field pervading our Galaxy is a crucial constituent of the interstellar medium: it mediates the dynamics of interstellar clouds, the energy density of cosmic rays, and the formation of stars. The field associated with ionized interstellar gas has been determined through observations of pulsars in our Galaxy. Radio-frequency measurements of pulse dispersion and the rotation of the plane of linear polarization, that is, Faraday rotation, yield an average value for the magnetic field of B approximately 3 microG (ref. 2). The possible detection of Faraday rotation of linearly polarized photons emitted by high-redshift quasars suggests similar magnetic fields are present in foreground galaxies with redshifts z > 1. As Faraday rotation alone, however, determines neither the magnitude nor the redshift of the magnetic field, the strength of galactic magnetic fields at redshifts z > 0 remains uncertain. Here we report a measurement of a magnetic field of B approximately 84 microG in a galaxy at z = 0.692, using the same Zeeman-splitting technique that revealed an average value of B = 6 microG in the neutral interstellar gas of our Galaxy. This is unexpected, as the leading theory of magnetic field generation, the mean-field dynamo model, predicts large-scale magnetic fields to be weaker in the past rather than stronger.     

Expansion motions in the inner parts of the galaxy

As well as the high velocity expansion features already known in the inner parts of the galaxy, there also seem to be expansion features at low velocities. Two new features with velocities of -27 km s(-1) and -14 km s(-1) at a distance of about 4.5 kpc are identified in this article and their relationship to the other expanding features is discussed.     

RC串联电路暂态过程时间常数的分析

对RC串联电路暂态过程的波形进行了分析,介绍了两种在不同波形情况下测量电路时间常数的方法,并进行了实验验证．实验结果表明,这两种方法是可行的,其误差分别为2．66％和6．61％,有效地解决了平时实验误差大的问题．     

瞬态瑞利波相速度算法研究

瑞利波勘探是近年来发展起来的一种新型的岩土原位测试勘探方法。目前对其计算出的相速度偏差太大,因此本文利用平面瑞利波在层状介质条件下的频散特性,对瞬态瑞利波相速度的算法进行了研究。利用快速傅里叶变换(FFT)方法,提出了对信号进行预先调制,之后再对所求得的相位进行修正的方法;另为还须考虑其仪器采集信号时的时间差影响。根据以上算法求得的相速度更接近瑞利波真速度,从而提高了相速度的分辨率和精确度。通过现场试验总结出了三种类型信号模板。     

弦割法的一个改进

利用 Newton迭代法给出了弦割法的一个改进 .     

495Q汽油机燃用M85甲醇时化油器的改造

为了能在４９５Ｑ汽油机上使用甲醇混合燃料,对原４９５Ｑ汽油机化油器进行了技术改造和实验研究。通过理论分析确定了燃用Ｍ８５甲醇时化油器的主要结构参数;把改造后的化油器装于４９５Ｑ汽油机上燃用Ｍ８５甲醇燃料,进行了台架实验,实验结果表明,发动机运转稳定,性能良好。     

GaAs光导开关瞬态光电导效应的研究

光导半导体开关自问世以来,以其优良的特性受到人们广泛的关注,其应用领域不断地拓展。本文对立了一个光导开关的瞬态响应模型,对ＧａＡｓ瞬态光电导效应进行了研究,重点研究了是光作用过程的Ｄｅｍｂｅｒ效应和各种重要的复合机制对ＧａＡｓ光导开关光电导响应的影响。     

An excitable gene regulatory circuit induces transient cellular differentiation

Certain types of cellular differentiation are probabilistic and transient. In such systems individual cells can switch to an alternative state and, after some time, switch back again. In Bacillus subtilis, competence is an example of such a transiently differentiated state associated with the capability for DNA uptake from the environment. Individual genes and proteins underlying differentiation into the competent state have been identified, but it has been unclear how these genes interact dynamically in individual cells to control both spontaneous entry into competence and return to vegetative growth. Here we show that this behaviour can be understood in terms of excitability in the underlying genetic circuit. Using quantitative fluorescence time-lapse microscopy, we directly observed the activities of multiple circuit components simultaneously in individual cells, and analysed the resulting data in terms of a mathematical model. We find that an excitable core module containing positive and negative feedback loops can explain both entry into, and exit from, the competent state. We further tested this model by analysing initiation in sister cells, and by re-engineering the gene circuit to specifically block exit. Excitable dynamics driven by noise naturally generate stochastic and transient responses, thereby providing an ideal mechanism for competence regulation.     

Earthquake nucleation by transient deformations caused by the M = 7.9 Denali, Alaska, earthquake

The permanent and dynamic (transient) stress changes inferred to trigger earthquakes are usually orders of magnitude smaller than the stresses relaxed by the earthquakes themselves, implying that triggering occurs on critically stressed faults. Triggered seismicity rate increases may therefore be most likely to occur in areas where loading rates are highest and elevated pore pressures, perhaps facilitated by high-temperature fluids, reduce frictional stresses and promote failure. Here we show that the 2002 magnitude M = 7.9 Denali, Alaska, earthquake triggered widespread seismicity rate increases throughout British Columbia and into the western United States. Dynamic triggering by seismic waves should be enhanced in directions where rupture directivity focuses radiated energy, and we verify this using seismic and new high-sample GPS recordings of the Denali mainshock. These observations are comparable in scale only to the triggering caused by the 1992 M = 7.4 Landers, California, earthquake, and demonstrate that Landers triggering did not reflect some peculiarity of the region or the earthquake. However, the rate increases triggered by the Denali earthquake occurred in areas not obviously tectonically active, implying that even in areas of low ambient stressing rates, faults may still be critically stressed and that dynamic triggering may be ubiquitous and unpredictable.     

495Q汽油机燃用M85甲醇时预热系统的研究

为适应我国能源开发和环境保护的需要,将点燃式发动机改造成燃用甲醇（M85）发动机时,由于甲醇汽化潜热大,其混合气预热是一个关键问题。论述了预热系统的理论及应用废气预热和电加热方法的实验研究。     

A close nuclear black-hole pair in the spiral galaxy NGC 3393

The current picture of galaxy evolution advocates co-evolution of galaxies and their nuclear massive black holes, through accretion and galactic merging. Pairs of quasars, each with a massive black hole at the centre of its galaxy, have separations of 6,000 to 300,000 light years (refs 2 and 3; 1 parsec = 3.26 light years) and exemplify the first stages of this gravitational interaction. The final stages of the black-hole merging process, through binary black holes and final collapse into a single black hole with gravitational wave emission, are consistent with the sub-light-year separation inferred from the optical spectra and light-variability of two such quasars. The double active nuclei of a few nearby galaxies with disrupted morphology and intense star formation (such as NGC 6240 with a separation of about 2,600 light years and Mrk 463 with a separation of about 13,000 light years between the nuclei) demonstrate the importance of major mergers of equal-mass spiral galaxies in this evolution; such mergers lead to an elliptical galaxy, as in the case of the double-radio-nucleus elliptical galaxy 0402+379 (with a separation of about 24 light years between the nuclei). Minor mergers of a spiral galaxy with a smaller companion should be a more common occurrence, evolving into spiral galaxies with active massive black-hole pairs, but have hitherto not been seen. Here we report the presence of two active massive black holes, separated by about 490 light years, in the Seyfert galaxy NGC 3393 (50 Mpc, about 160 million light years). The regular spiral morphology and predominantly old circum-nuclear stellar population of this galaxy, and the closeness of the black holes embedded in the bulge, provide a hitherto missing observational point to the study of galaxy/black hole evolution. Comparison of our observations with current theoretical models of mergers suggests that they are the result of minor merger evolution.