Description: Large igneous provinces (LIPs) lie approximately above the margins of the African and Pacific large low shear velocity provinces (LLSVPs) in the deep mantle. This spatial correlation has been used to argue that plumes are preferentially generated at the margins of LLSVPs. We perform a series of Monte Carlo–based statistical tests to assess the uniqueness of this conclusion. These tests indicate that (1) the reconstructed locations of LIPs are significantly correlated with both slower-than-average shear wave velocity regions, which contain LLSVPs, and the margins of these structures; and (2) these correlations cannot be statistically distinguished. That is, given current constraints, if plumes were generated randomly throughout regions of slower-than-average shear wave velocity in the deep mantle, then statistical tests are expected to show a significant correlation between the locations of LIPs and the margins of LLSVPs. We therefore conclude that it is premature to argue that the margins of LLSVPs represent preferred zones of plume generation. This conclusion is reinforced in our analysis by a demonstration that the expected mean distance of a set of points randomly placed in slower-than-average shear wave velocity regions is consistent with the observed mean distance between LIPs and the margins of LLSVPs. Finally, we also test the correlation between the reconstructed locations of LIPs and the horizontal gradient in deep mantle shear velocity perturbations. We find, given the uncertainty implied by different tomography models, that there is no statistically significant correlation and that being in a slow region (i.e. in the region of LLSVPs) is a stronger geographic requirement for plume generation than being at a specific (high) gradient.

Description: We present the results of the first, deep Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) imaging covering the full ~=4.5 arcmin 2 of the Hubble Ultra Deep Field (HUDF) imaged with Wide Field Camera 3/IR on HST . Using a 45-pointing mosaic, we have obtained a homogeneous 1.3-mm image reaching 1.3 ~= 35 μJy, at a resolution of ~=0.7 arcsec. From an initial list of ~=50 〉 3.5 peaks, a rigorous analysis confirms 16 sources with S 1.3 〉 120 μJy. All of these have secure galaxy counterparts with robust redshifts (〈 z 〉 = 2.15). Due to the unparalleled supporting data, the physical properties of the ALMA sources are well constrained, including their stellar masses ( M * ) and UV+FIR star formation rates (SFR). Our results show that stellar mass is the best predictor of SFR in the high-redshift Universe; indeed at z ≥ 2 our ALMA sample contains seven of the nine galaxies in the HUDF with M * ≥ 2 x 10 10 M , and we detect only one galaxy at z 〉 3.5, reflecting the rapid drop-off of high-mass galaxies with increasing redshift. The detections, coupled with stacking, allow us to probe the redshift/mass distribution of the 1.3-mm background down to S 1.3 ~= 10 μJy. We find strong evidence for a steep star-forming ‘main sequence’ at z ~= 2, with SFR M * and a mean specific SFR ~= 2.2 Gyr –1 . Moreover, we find that ~=85 per cent of total star formation at z ~= 2 is enshrouded in dust, with ~=65 per cent of all star formation at this epoch occurring in high-mass galaxies ( M * 〉 2 x 10 10 M ), for which the average obscured:unobscured SF ratio is ~=200. Finally, we revisit the cosmic evolution of SFR density; we find this peaks at z ~= 2.5, and that the star-forming Universe transits from primarily unobscured to primarily obscured at z ~= 4.

Description: Estimating minimum ice volume during the last interglacial based on local sea-level indicators requires that these indicators are corrected for processes that alter local sea level relative to the global average. Although glacial isostatic adjustment is generally accounted for, global scale dynamic changes in topography driven by convective mantle flow are generally not considered. We use numerical models of mantle flow to quantify vertical deflections caused by dynamic topography and compare predictions at passive margins to a globally distributed set of last interglacial sea-level markers. The deflections predicted as a result of dynamic topography are significantly correlated with marker elevations (〉95% probability) and are consistent with construction and preservation attributes across marker types. We conclude that a dynamic topography signal is present in the elevation of last interglacial sea-level records and that the signal must be accounted for in any effort to determine peak global mean sea level during the last interglacial to within an accuracy of several meters.

Description: We present the results from a 1.1-mm imaging survey of the SSA22 field, known for having an overdensity of z  = 3.1 Lyman α emitting galaxies (LAEs), taken with the astronomical thermal emission camera (AzTEC) on the Atacama Submillimeter Telescope Experiment (ASTE). We imaged a 950-arcmin 2 field down to a 1 sensitivity of 0.7–1.3 mJy beam –1 to find 125 submillimetre galaxies (SMGs) with a signal-to-noise ratio ≥3.5. Counterpart identification using radio and near/mid-infrared data was performed and one or more counterpart candidates were found for 59 SMGs. Photometric redshifts based on optical to near-infrared images were evaluated for 45 of these SMGs with Spitzer /IRAC data and the median value is found to be z  = 2.4. By combining these estimations with estimates from the literature, we determined that 10 SMGs might lie within the large-scale structure at z  = 3.1. The two-point angular cross-correlation function between LAEs and SMGs indicates that the positions of the SMGs are correlated with the z  = 3.1 protocluster. These results suggest that the SMGs were formed and evolved selectively in the high dense environment of the high-redshift Universe. This picture is consistent with the predictions of the standard model of hierarchical structure formation.

Description: The alarmins myeloid-related protein (MRP)8 and MRP14 are the most prevalent cytoplasmic proteins in phagocytes. When released from activated or necrotic phagocytes, extracellular MRP8/MRP14 promote inflammation in many diseases, including infections, allergies, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease. The involvement of TLR4 and the multiligand receptor for advanced glycation end products as receptors during MRP8-mediated effects on inflammation remains controversial. By comparative bioinformatic analysis of genome-wide response patterns of human monocytes to MRP8, endotoxins, and various cytokines, we have developed a model in which TLR4 is the dominant receptor for MRP8-mediated phagocyte activation. The relevance of the TLR4 signaling pathway was experimentally validated using human and murine models of TLR4- and receptor for advanced glycation end products–dependent signaling. Furthermore, our systems biology approach has uncovered an antiapoptotic role for MRP8 in monocytes, which was corroborated by independent functional experiments. Our data confirm the primary importance of the TLR4/MRP8 axis in the activation of human monocytes, representing a novel and attractive target for modulation of the overwhelming innate immune response.

Description: The evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet during the mid-Pliocene warm period (MPWP) remains uncertain and has important implications for our understanding of ice sheet response to modern global warming. The extent to which marine-based sectors of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS) retreated during the MPWP is particularly contentious, with geological observations and geochemical analyses being cited to argue for either a relatively minor or a significant ice sheet retreat in response to mid-Pliocene warming. The stability of marine-based ice sheets is intimately linked to bedrock elevation at their grounding lines, and previous ice sheet modeling assumed that Antarctic bedrock elevation during the MPWP was the same as today with the exception of a correction for the crustal response to ice loading. However, various processes may have perturbed bedrock elevation over the past 3 m.y., most notably vertical deflections of the crust driven by mantle convective flow, or dynamic topography. Here we present simulations of mantle convective flow that are consistent with a wide range of present-day observables and use them to predict changes in dynamic topography and reconstruct bedrock elevations during the MPWP. We incorporate these elevations into a simulation of the Antarctic ice sheet during the MPWP and find that the correction for dynamic topography change has a significant effect on the stability of the EAIS within the marine-based Wilkes Basin, with the ice margin in that sector retreating considerably further inland (200–560 km) relative to simulations that do not include this correction for bedrock elevation.

Description: We present a generalized formalism for computing gravitationally self-consistent sea level changes driven by the combined effects of dynamic topography, geoid perturbations due to mantle convection, ice mass fluctuations and sediment redistribution on a deforming Earth. Our mathematical treatment conserves mass of the surface (ice plus ocean) load and the solid Earth. Moreover, it takes precise account of shoreline migration and the associated ocean loading. The new formalism avoids a variety of approximations adopted in previous models of sea level change driven by dynamic topography, including the assumption that a spatially fixed isostatic amplification of ‘air-loaded’ dynamic topography accurately accounts for ocean loading effects. While our approach is valid for Earth models of arbitrary complexity, we present numerical results for a set of simple cases in which a pattern of dynamic topography is imposed, the response to surface mass loading assumes that Earth structure varies only with depth and that isostatic equilibrium is maintained at all times. These calculations, involving fluid Love number theory, indicate that the largest errors in previous predictions of sea level change driven by dynamic topography occur in regions of shoreline migration, and thus in the vicinity of most geological markers of ancient sea level. We conclude that a gravitationally self-consistent treatment of long-term sea level change is necessary in any effort to use such geological markers to estimate ancient ice volumes.

Description: We observed the spiral galaxies M 51 and M 83 at 20 arscec spatial resolution with the bolometer array Aztronomical Thermal Emission Camera (AzTEC) on the JCMT in the 1.1 mm continuum, recovering the extended emission out to galactocentric radii of more than 12 kpc in both galaxies. The 1.1 mm-continuum fluxes are 5.6 ± 0.7 and 9.9 ± 1.4 Jy, with associated gas masses estimated at 9.4 x 10 9 M and 7.2 x 10 9 M for M 51 and M 83, respectively. In the interarm regions of both galaxies, the N(H 2 )/I(CO) (or X-factor) ratios exceed those in the arms by factors of ~1.5–2. In the inner discs of both galaxies, the X-factor is about 1 x 10 20 cm – 2 (K km s – 1 ) – 1 . In the outer parts, the CO-dark molecular gas becomes more important. While the spiral density wave in M 51 appears to influence the interstellar medium and stars in a similar way, the bar potential in M 83 influences the interstellar medium and the stars differently. We confirm the result of Foyle et al. that the arms merely heighten the star formation rate (SFR) and the gas surface density in the same proportion. Our maps reveal a threshold gas surface density for an SFR increase by two or more orders of magnitude. In both galaxy centres, the molecular gas depletion time is about 1 Gyr climbing to 10–20 Gyr at radii of 6–8 kpc. This is consistent with an inside-out depletion of the molecular gas in the discs of spiral galaxies.

Description: For nearly a century, the Atlantic Coastal Plain (ACP) of the United States has been the focus of studies investigating Pliocene and Pleistocene shorelines, however, the mapping of paleoshorelines was primarily done by using elevation contours on topographic maps. Here we review published geologic maps and compare them to paleoshoreline locations obtained through geomorphometric classification and satellite data. We furthermore present the results of an extensive field campaign that measured the mid-Pliocene (~ 3.3-2.9 Ma) shorelines of the Atlantic Coastal Plain using high-accuracy GPS and digital elevation models. We compare our new dataset to positions and elevations extracted from published maps and find that the extracted site information from earlier studies is prone to significant error, both in the location and, more severely, in the elevation of the paleoshoreline. We also investigate, using geophysical modeling, the origin of post-depositional displacement of the shoreline from Georgia to Virginia. In particular, we correct the elevation of our shoreline for glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) and then compare the corrected elevation to predictions of mantle flow-induced dynamic topography (DT). While a subset of these models does reconcile the general trends in the observed elevation of the mid-Pliocene shoreline, local discrepancies persist. These discrepancies suggests that either (i) the DT and GIA models presented here do not capture the full range of uncertainty in the input parameters; and/or (ii) other influences, such as sediment loading and unloading or local fault-driven tectonics, may have contributed to post-depositional deformation of the mid-Pliocene shoreline that are not captured in the above models. In this context, our field measurements represent an important observational dataset with which to compare future generations of geodynamic models. Improvements in models for DT, GIA and other relevant processes, together with an expanded, geographically distributed set of shoreline records, will ultimately be the key to obtaining more accurate estimates of eustatic sea level not only in the mid-Pliocene but also earlier in the Cenozoic.