Nuclear isomers in superheavy elements as stepping stones towards the island of stability

A long-standing prediction of nuclear models is the emergence of a region of long-lived, or even stable, superheavy elements beyond the actinides. These nuclei owe their enhanced stability to closed shells in the structure of both protons and neutrons. However, theoretical approaches to date do not yield consistent predictions of the precise limits of the 'island of stability'; experimental studies are therefore crucial. The bulk of experimental effort so far has been focused on the direct creation of superheavy elements in heavy ion fusion reactions, leading to the production of elements up to proton number Z = 118 (refs 4, 5). Recently, it has become possible to make detailed spectroscopic studies of nuclei beyond fermium (Z = 100), with the aim of understanding the underlying single-particle structure of superheavy elements. Here we report such a study of the nobelium isotope 254No, with 102 protons and 152 neutrons--the heaviest nucleus studied in this manner to date. We find three excited structures, two of which are isomeric (metastable). One of these structures is firmly assigned to a two-proton excitation. These states are highly significant as their location is sensitive to single-particle levels above the gap in shell energies predicted at Z = 114, and thus provide a microscopic benchmark for nuclear models of the superheavy elements.     

A novel explosive process is required for the gamma-ray burst GRB 060614

Over the past decade, our physical understanding of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) has progressed rapidly, thanks to the discovery and observation of their long-lived afterglow emission. Long-duration (> 2 s) GRBs are associated with the explosive deaths of massive stars ('collapsars', ref. 1), which produce accompanying supernovae; the short-duration (< or = 2 s) GRBs have a different origin, which has been argued to be the merger of two compact objects. Here we report optical observations of GRB 060614 (duration approximately 100 s, ref. 10) that rule out the presence of an associated supernova. This would seem to require a new explosive process: either a massive collapsar that powers a GRB without any associated supernova, or a new type of 'engine', as long-lived as the collapsar but without a massive star. We also show that the properties of the host galaxy (redshift z = 0.125) distinguish it from other long-duration GRB hosts and suggest that an entirely new type of GRB progenitor may be required.     

基于麦克风阵列多声源定位的新方法

针对传统方法不能准确地测量远场多声源位置的问题,提出了在近场和远场都能用的多声源定位新方法.该方法采用两个L型麦克风阵列,在每个阵列通过多声源的频率及到达角的联合估计求得信号源的夹角,基于每个信号源的夹角对估计多声源的位置.通过仿真实验验证了该方法在近场、远场都能准确地测量多声源位置,通过调节两个L型麦克风阵列之间的距离能得到误差在5%以下的声源定位精度.     

The afterglow and elliptical host galaxy of the short gamma-ray burst GRB 050724

Despite a rich phenomenology, gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are divided into two classes based on their duration and spectral hardness--the long-soft and the short-hard bursts. The discovery of afterglow emission from long GRBs was a watershed event, pinpointing their origin to star-forming galaxies, and hence the death of massive stars, and indicating an energy release of about 10(51) erg. While theoretical arguments suggest that short GRBs are produced in the coalescence of binary compact objects (neutron stars or black holes), the progenitors, energetics and environments of these events remain elusive despite recent localizations. Here we report the discovery of the first radio afterglow from the short burst GRB 050724, which unambiguously associates it with an elliptical galaxy at a redshift z = 0.257. We show that the burst is powered by the same relativistic fireball mechanism as long GRBs, with the ejecta possibly collimated in jets, but that the total energy release is 10-1,000 times smaller. More importantly, the nature of the host galaxy demonstrates that short GRBs arise from an old (> 1 Gyr) stellar population, strengthening earlier suggestions and providing support for coalescing compact object binaries as the progenitors.     

Bactericidal activity in conventional or decontaminated mice undergoing GVHD or radiation-induced injury

Summary Oral antibiotic prophylaxis of mice, particularly those with radiation-induced injury or those undergoing GVHD, alters bactericidal activity of the host.     

Sequence of Plasmodium falciparum chromosomes 1, 3-9 and 13

Since the sequencing of the first two chromosomes of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium falciparum, there has been a concerted effort to sequence and assemble the entire genome of this organism. Here we report the sequence of chromosomes 1, 3-9 and 13 of P. falciparum clone 3D7--these chromosomes account for approximately 55% of the total genome. We describe the methods used to map, sequence and annotate these chromosomes. By comparing our assemblies with the optical map, we indicate the completeness of the resulting sequence. During annotation, we assign Gene Ontology terms to the predicted gene products, and observe clustering of some malaria-specific terms to specific chromosomes. We identify a highly conserved sequence element found in the intergenic region of internal var genes that is not associated with their telomeric counterparts.     

传动角最优的曲柄滑块机构多变量优化设计

在给定的设计要求范围内,希望设计出的机构具有最优的有效力传动性能.通过对曲柄滑块机构的几何关系和工作行程传动角的分析,确定了曲柄滑块机构的设计变量和工作行程最小传动角公式,建立了以工作行程最小传动角最大为目标的多维变量非线性优化数学模型,并给出算例,通过对比计算验证了提出的传动角最优的曲柄滑块机构多维变量优化设计方法.在行程速比系数、滑块行程和偏距等没有精确要求的情况下,为提高曲柄滑块机构有效的力传动性能,提供了一种实用的方法.     

基于MSVR和Arousal Valence情感模型的表情识别研究

通常的表情识别方法是对基本情绪进行表情分类,然而基本情绪对情感的表达能力有限。为了丰富情感的表达,研究采用Arousal-Valence情感模型,从心理学的角度对Arousal-Valence模型中Arousal维度和Valence维度之间的相关性进行了分析,并用统计学方法对AVEC2013,NVIE和Recola 3个数据集进行研究,实验结果表明它们之间具有正相关关系。为了利用Arousal-Valence 之间的相关性,采用多输出支持向量回归（multiple dimensional output support vector regression,MSVR）算法作为表情的训练和预测算法,并结合特征融合和决策融合提出了一种基于MSVR的两层融合表情识别方法。实验结果表明提出的表情识别方法比传统的方法能取得更好的识别效果。