| 1. |
- Marklund, Göran T., et al.
(författare)
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Dynamics and characteristics of electric-field structures in the auroral return current region observed by Cluster
- 2006
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Ingår i: Physica Scripta. - 0031-8949 .- 1402-4896. ; T122, s. 34-43
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The temporal evolution and other characteristics of intense quasi- static electric fields in the return current region are discussed using Cluster observations. A narrow- scale, divergent electric field, the high- altitude signature of a positive U- shaped potential structure, was observed at the poleward edge of the central plasma sheet, close to magnetic midnight at a geocentric distance of about 4.2 Earth radii. Its acceleration potential increased from less than 1 to 3 kV on a 100 s timescale, similar to the formation time for ionospheric plasma density holes, and consistent with previous results for this kind of structure. In the adjacent upward current region, an energy decrease in inverted- V ions was observed some minutes prior to this. The inverted- V potential decrease was roughly equal to the subsequent perpendicular potential increase in the return current region, suggesting that a potential redistribution took place between the two adjacent current branches. Other characteristics of this and three other return current structures are summarized, to illustrate both common and different features of these. The structures are characterized by ( all values have been mapped to the ionospheric level) peak electric- field magnitudes of approximate to 1Vm(-1), bipolar or unipolar profiles, occurrence at plasma boundaries associated with plasma density gradients, perpendicular scale sizes of approximate to 10 km, downward field-aligned currents of approximate to 10 mu A m(-2), and upward electron beams with characteristic energies of a few hundred to a few thousand eV. The bipolar and unipolar electric- field profiles are proposed to reflect whether plasma populations, dense enough to support upward field-aligned currents (by which the return current can close) exist on both sides, or on one side only of the boundary.
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| 2. |
- Azevedo, M, et al.
(författare)
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Infection by Helicobacter pylori expressing the BabA adhesin is influenced by the secretor phenotype
- 2008
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Ingår i: Journal of Pathology. - : Wiley. - 0022-3417 .- 1096-9896. ; 215:3, s. 308-316
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infects half the world's population and causes diverse gastric lesions, from gastritis to gastric cancer. Our aim was to evaluate the significance of secretor and Lewis status in infection and in vitro adherence by Hp expressing BabA adhesin. We enrolled 304 Hp-infected individuals from Northern Portugal. Gastric biopsies, blood and saliva were collected. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunofluorescence were used to detect BabA+ Hp in gastric biopsies. In vitro adherence by a BabA expressing Hp strain to gastric biopsies was performed. Secretor status was identified by Ulex, a lectin that recognizes secretor-dependent glycan structures in saliva and in gastric mucosa, and by Lewis(a/b) antibodies, and indirectly by identification of an inactivating mutation in the FUT2 gene (G428A). BabA status of infecting Hp was associated with CagA and VacAs1 (p < 0.05), intercellular localization of Hp (p < 0.01) and the presence of intestinal metaplasia (p < 0.05) and degenerative alterations (p < 0.005) in the biopsies. BabA was associated (p < 0.05) with Ulex staining of gastric biopsies and, although not significantly, to absence of homozygosity for FUT2 G428A inactivating polymorphism. In vitro Hp adherence was higher in cases wild-type or heterozygous for FUT2 G428A mutation (p < 0.0001), cases staining for Ulex (p < 0.0001) and a(-)b+ and a(-)b(-) secretor phenotypes (p < 0.001). In conclusion, BabA+ Hp infection/adhesion is secretor-dependent and associated with the severity of gastric lesions.
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| 3. |
- Berk, H. L., et al.
(författare)
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Explanation of the JET n=0 chirping mode
- 2006
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Ingår i: Nuclear Fusion. - 0029-5515 .- 1741-4326. ; 46:10, s. S888-S897
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Persistent rapid up and down frequency chirping modes with a toroidal mode number of zero (n = 0) are observed in the JET tokamak when energetic ions, in the range of several hundred keV, are created by high field side ion cyclotron resonance frequency heating. Fokker-Planck calculations demonstrate that the heating method enables the formation of an energetically inverted ion distribution which supplies the free energy for the ions to excite a mode related to the geodesic acoustic mode. The large frequency shifts of this mode are attributed to the formation of phase space structures whose frequencies, which are locked to an ion orbit bounce resonance frequency, are forced to continually shift so that energetic particle energy can be released to counterbalance the energy dissipation present in the background plasma.
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| 4. |
- Figueiredo, Sonia, et al.
(författare)
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Temporal and spatial evolution of discrete auroral arcs as seen by Cluster
- 2005
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Ingår i: Annales Geophysicae. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 0992-7689 .- 1432-0576. ; 23:7, s. 2531-2557
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two event studies are presented in this paper where intense convergent electric fields, with mapped intensities up to 1350 mV/m, are measured in the auroral upward current region by the Cluster spacecraft, at altitudes between 3 and 5 Earth radii. Both events are from May 2003, Southern Hemisphere, with equatorward crossings by the Cluster spacecraft of the pre-midnight auroral oval. Event 1 occurs during the end of the recovery phase of a strong substorm. A system of auroral arcs associated with convergent electric field structures, with a maximum perpendicular potential drop of about similar to 10 kV, and upflowing field-aligned currents with densities of 3 mu A/m(2) (mapped to the ionosphere), was detected at the boundary between the Plasma Sheet Boundary Layer (PSBL) and the Plasma Sheet (PS). The auroral arc structures evolve in shape and in magnitude on a timescale of tens of minutes, merging, broadening and intensifying, until finally fading away after about 50 min. Throughout this time, both the PS region and the auroral arc structure in its poleward part remain relatively fixed in space, reflecting the rather quiet auroral conditions during the end of the substorm. The auroral upward acceleration region is shown for this event to extend beyond 3.9 Earth radii altitude. Event 2 occurs during a more active period associated with the expansion phase of a moderate substorm. Images from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F13 spacecraft show that the Cluster spacecraft crossed the horn region of a surge-type aurora. Conjugated with the Cluster spacecraft crossing above the surge horn, the South Pole All Sky Imager recorded the motion and the temporal evolution of an east-west aligned auroral arc, 30 to 50 km wide. Intense electric field variations are measured by the Cluster spacecraft when crossing above the auroral arc structure, collocated with the density gradient at the PS poleward boundary, and coupled to intense upflowing field-aligned currents with mapped densities of up to 20 mu A/m(2). The surge horn consists of multiple arc structures which later merge into one structure and intensify at the PS poleward boundary. The surge horn and the associated PS region moved poleward with a velocity at the ionospheric level of 0.5 km/s, following the large-scale poleward expansion of the auroral oval associated with the substorm expansion phase.
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| 5. |
- Reiner, David, et al.
(författare)
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American exceptionalism? Similarities and differences in national attitudes toward energy policy and global warming
- 2006
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Ingår i: Environmental Science & Technology. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0013-936X .- 1520-5851. ; 40:7, s. 2093-2098
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Despite sharp differences in government policy, the views of the U.S. public on energy and global warming are remarkably similar to those in Sweden, Britain, and Japan. Americans do exhibit some differences, placing lower priority on the environment and global warming, and with fewer believing that "global warming has been established as a serious problem and immediate action is necessary". There also remains a small hard core of skeptics (
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| 6. |
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