Detector Characterization and Mitigation of Noise in Ground-Based Gravitational-Wave Interferometers

Since the early stages of operation of ground-based gravitational-wave interferometers, careful monitoring of these detectors has been an important component of their successful operation and observations. Characterization of gravitational-wave detectors blends computational and instrumental methods of investigating the detector performance. These efforts focus both on identifying ways to improve detector sensitivity for future observations and understand the non-idealized features in data that has already been recorded. Alongside a focus on the detectors themselves, detector characterization includes careful studies of how astrophysical analyses are affected by different data quality issues. This article presents an overview of the multifaceted aspects of the characterization of interferometric gravitational-wave detectors, including investigations of instrumental performance, characterization of interferometer data quality, and the identification and mitigation of data quality issues that impact analysis of gravitational-wave events. Looking forward, we discuss efforts to adapt current detector characterization methods to meet the changing needs of gravitational-wave astronomy.

Historical origins of modern vocal and instrumental performance in Ukraine at the beginning of the XXI century

The purpose of the article is to determine the historical origins of vocal-instrumental performance from ancient times to the present day, in revealing the influence of some prominent personalities on the further development of vocal and instrumental art and the selection of famous modern ensembles, which are the face of the late XX-early XXI century. Methodology. The research methodology is based on methods of analysis and synthesis, comparative method, method of historicism, and interpretation. The combination of such a technological process makes it possible to more fully disclose the research topic. Scientific novelty. The scientific novelty lies in the systematization of the material on the development of vocal-instrumental performance in Ukraine from its origins to the beginning of the XXI century and the substantiation of the originality of performance in different historical circumstances. Conclusions. Performance as an aspect of the synthesis of the arts over the centuries has had various forms of self-expression. It developed in the conditions of real events, improved according to time, and acquired certain advantages at the turn of the century in different historical periods of spiritual upsurge. Kobzars, bandura players, chamber-instrumental and vocal-instrumental ensembles have passed a difficult way of professional growth and laid the foundation for further development of performing arts. The formation of the national school and the development of bandura performance in Ukraine took place thanks to the great work of the outstanding composer Mykola Lysenko, which inspired the creative work of Ukrainian artists Hnat Khotkevych, Serhiy Bashtan, and others. In the 70s of the XX century ensembles enriched their concert repertoire with arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs and compositions of outstanding composers of their time. Vocal-instrumental ensemble "DakhaBrakha", born in modern conditions at the beginning of the XXI century (2004) stylistically diversified the direction of its activities, synthesizing folk and contemporary music. Keywords: historical milestones of vocal-instrumental development performance, synthesis of arts, the figure of Gregory Skovoroda as a philosopher, composer and musician, activity of the founder of the national school Mykola Lysenko, bandura performance, Ukrainian group "DakhaBrakha".

Domra and Chamber Orchestra in Concertos by Igor Rogalyov and Andrey Tikhomirov. An Alliance with a “Stranger”?

Статья посвящена сочинениям известных петербургских композиторов — Концерту «Доменико Скарлатти» для четырехструнной домры (мандолины) и камерного оркестра Игоря Ефимовича Рогалёва и Концерту для домры и камерно-симфонического оркестра Андрея Генриховича Тихомирова. Эти произведения представляют примеры взаимодействия сфер народно-инструментального исполнительства и академического музыкального искусства. Ранее данная проблема не рассматривалась в отечественном музыкознании. Появление в последней четверти XX века сочинений, в которых домра выступает в качестве солиста с симфоническим оркестром, в значительной мере способствовало расширению ее выразительных возможностей, а также становлению и развитию нового направления в домровом репертуаре. Основными позициями сравнительного анализа концертов И. Е. Рогалёва и А. Г. Тихомирова стали трактовка роли солирующей домры, различия в композиции и драматургии названных сочинений. Отдельное внимание уделяется вопросам исполнительской интерпретации. Автором статьи приведены нотные примеры, иллюстрирующие наиболее важные с его точки зрения идеи и положения. The article is devoted to the works of famous St. Petersburg composers — Concerto Domenico Scarlatti for four-string domra (mandolin) and chamber orchestra by Igor Ye. Rogalyov and Concerto for domra and chamber symphony orchestra by Andrey G. Tikhomirov. These works are examples of interaction of the spheres of folk-instrumental performance and academic musical art. Previously, this problem was not considered in Russian musicology. In the last quarter of the 20th century, compositions appeared, where domra acts as a soloist with a symphony orchestra, which to a large extent contributed to expansion of its expressive capabilities, as well as formation and development of a new direction in the domra repertoire. The main positions of the comparative analysis of the Rogalyov’s and Tikhomirov’s concertos were: interpretation of the solo domra’s role, differences in the composition and dramaturgy of the above works. Special attention is paid to the issues of performing interpretation. The author of the article proposes musical examples illustrating the most important ideas and provisions from her point of view.

Method modified AOAC 2015.01 in the microwave conditions and the addition of HCl during sample digestion for simultaneous Pb, Cd, Hg, and As in infant formula using ICP-MS: a method validation

The presence of heavy metals in infant formula has become a global concern. The most common method to determine heavy metals is AAS. However, as this technique is lacking in several aspects, including the instrument’s low sensitivity, a more sensitive instrument such as ICP-MS is necessary. The Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICPMS) was used in accordance with the standard method AOAC 2015.01 with modifications on the microwave condition and the addition of hydrochloric acid (HCl) during the sample digestion process. The modified standard method requires a validation process. This research aimed to validate the method of analysis for the determination of Pb, Cd, Hg, As in infant formula using ICP-MS and its application in formula milk. This research consists of five stages: 1) instrumental performance; 2) homogeneity test; 3) method orientation; 4) method validation; and 5) the application of the validated method to other products. The findings in the research were: the method linearity was confirmed at working concentration 5-30 µg/kg for all the heavy metals with R2 value of nearly 1,000; the method limits of detection (LOD) were 0.74 µg/kg (Pb), 0.41 µg/kg (Cd), 0.08 µg/kg (Hg), 0.50 µg/kg (As), while the method’s limits of quantification (LOQ) were 2.48 µg/kg (Pb), 1.36 µg/kg (Cd), 0.27 µg/kg (Hg), 1.67 µg/kg (As); the method was found precise with Relative Standard Deviation (RSD) below 2/3 RSD Horwitz and all the recovery values were found to fall within the acceptable range (60–115%); the % RSD intra-lab reproducibility was below RSD Horwitz; and the method was robust, indicating that it was unaffected by small changes in its variables. The validated method can be applied routinely to determine heavy metals in infant formula and formula milk.

Spectral performance analysis of the Aeolus Fabry-Pérot and Fizeau interferometers during the first years of operation

In August 2018, the European Space Agency (ESA) launched the first Doppler wind lidar into space which has since then been providing continuous profiles of the horizontal line-of-sight wind component at a global scale. Aeolus data has been successfully assimilated into several NWP models and demonstrated a positive impact on the quality of the weather forecasts. In order to provide valuable input data for NWP models, a detailed characterization of the Aeolus instrumental performance as well as the realization and minimization of systematic error sources is crucial. In this paper, Aeolus interferometer spectral drifts and their potential as systematic error sources for the aerosol and wind product are investigated by means of instrument spectral registration (ISR) measurements that are performed on a weekly basis. During these measurements, the laser frequency is scanned over a range of 11 GHz in steps of 25 MHz and thus spectrally resolves the transmission curves of the Fizeau interferometer and the Fabry-Perot interferometers (FPIs) used in Aeolus. Mathematical model functions are derived in order to analyze the measured transmission curves by means of non-linear fit procedures. The obtained fit parameters are used to draw conclusions about the Aeolus instrumental alignment and potentially ongoing drifts. The introduced instrumental functions and analysis tools may also be applied for the upcoming missions using similar spectrometers as for instance EarthCARE (ESA) which is based on the Aeolus FPI design.

Twenty years of ground-based NDACC FTIR spectrometry at Izaña Observatory – overview and long-term comparison to other techniques

High-resolution Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) solar observations are particularly relevant for climate studies, as they allow atmospheric gaseous composition and multiple climate processes to be monitored in detail. In this context, the present paper provides an overview of 20 years of FTIR measurements taken in the framework of the NDACC (Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change) from 1999 to 2018 at the subtropical Izaña Observatory (IZO, Spain). Firstly, long-term instrumental performance is comprehensively assessed, corroborating the temporal stability and reliable instrumental characterization of the two FTIR spectrometers installed at IZO since 1999. Then, the time series of all trace gases contributing to NDACC at IZO are presented (i.e. C2H6, CH4, ClONO2, CO, HCl, HCN, H2CO, HF, HNO3, N2O, NO2, NO, O3, carbonyl sulfide (OCS), and water vapour isotopologues H216O, H218O, and HD16O), reviewing the major accomplishments drawn from these observations. In order to examine the quality and long-term consistency of the IZO FTIR observations, a comparison of those NDACC products for which other high-quality measurement techniques are available at IZO has been performed (i.e. CH4, CO, H2O, NO2, N2O, and O3). This quality assessment was carried out on different timescales to examine what temporal signals are captured by the FTIR records, and to what extent. After 20 years of operation, the IZO NDACC FTIR observations have been found to be very consistent and reliable over time, demonstrating great potential for climate research. Long-term NDACC FTIR data sets, such as IZO, are indispensable tools for the investigation of atmospheric composition trends, multi-year phenomena, and complex climate feedback processes, as well as for the validation of past and present space-based missions and chemistry climate models.

Scattering efficiencies measurements of soft protons at grazing incidence from an Athena Silicon Pore Optics sample

Soft protons are a potential threat for X-ray missions using grazing incidence optics, as once focused onto the detectors they can contribute to increase the background and possibly induce radiation damage as well. The assessment of these undesired effects is especially relevant for the future ESA X-ray mission Athena, due to its large collecting area. To prevent degradation of the instrumental performance, which ultimately could compromise some of the scientific goals of the mission, the adoption of ad-hoc magnetic diverters is envisaged. Dedicated laboratory measurements are fundamental to understand the mechanisms of proton forward scattering, validate the application of the existing physical models to the Athena case and support the design of the diverters. In this paper we report on scattering efficiency measurements of soft protons impinging at grazing incidence onto a Silicon Pore Optics sample, conducted in the framework of the EXACRAD project. Measurements were taken at two different energies, $\sim $ ∼ 470 keV and $\sim $ ∼ 170 keV, and at four different scattering angles between 0.6∘ and 1.2∘. The results are generally consistent with previous measurements conducted on eROSITA mirror samples, and as expected the peak of the scattering efficiency is found around the angle of specular reflection.

Multiresidue antibiotic-metabolite quantification method using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry for environmental and public exposure estimation

This manuscript describes a new multiresidue method utilising ultra-performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) via multiple reaction monitoring (MRM), for the identification and quantification of 58 antibiotics and their 26 metabolites, in various solid and liquid environmental matrices. The method was designed with a ‘one health’ approach in mind requiring multidisciplinary and multisectoral collaborative efforts. It enables comprehensive evaluation of antibiotic usage in surveyed communities via wastewater-based epidemiology, as well as allowing for the assessment of potential environmental impacts. The instrumental performance was very good, demonstrating linearity up to 3000 μg L−1, and high accuracy and precision. The method accuracy in several compounds was significantly improved by dividing calibration curves into separate ranges. This was accompanied by applying a weighting factor (1/x). Microwave-assisted and/or solid-phase extraction of analytes from liquid and solid matrices provided good recoveries for most compounds, with only a few analytes underperforming. Method quantification limits were determined as low as 0.017 ng L−1 in river water, 0.044 ng L−1 in wastewater, 0.008 ng g−1 in river sediment, and 0.009 ng g−1 in suspended solids. Overall, the method was successfully validated for the quantification of 64 analytes extracted from aqueous samples, and 45 from solids. The analytes that underperformed are considered on a semi-quantitative basis, including aminoglycosides and carbapenems. The method was applied to both solid and liquid environmental matrices, whereby several antibiotics and their metabolites were quantified. The most notable antibiotic-metabolite pairs are three sulfonamides and their N-acetyl metabolites; four macrolides/lincomycins and their N-desmethyl metabolites; and five quinolone metabolites. Graphical abstract

Moodle System One of the Way to Monitoring Competence of Future Teachers of Music Art

The article are given the scientific and methodological conditions for the production and progress of distance learning courses for future teachers of music through the competencebased, system, action approaches. The author identifies the components that are formed on the basis of the content of the course are and portion of the structure of the competence hierarchy of future music teacher. Materials of research are founded on the experience of education in the course of distance learning of Basic Musical Instrument (piano). The study considers the principal components of development and design of a distance learning course, including theoretical, practical, individual work, and control. The author grounds the specifics methods of distance learning for future teachers of music, in specific their instrumental training and the effectiveness of this training, differentiating the following main methods: of collecting information and using technologies of communication , such us multimedia and method of project . The criteria for control of information and skills were developed. The research was portion of educational experiment involving 52 bachelor students, Music Specialization. According to the results of the study, the study of the subject Basic Musical Instrument (Piano) using the Moodle learning environment contains a number of advantages, which are primarily manifested in higher assessment results of students’ learning. The motivational, musical instrumental and cognitive abilities of these students were approximately 10% higher than students who studied according to traditional methods. The opinion characterize the results of implementation and effectiveness of experimental study on the use of distance learning courses for the progressof instrumental performance competence of future teachers of music. The influence of different methods of distance learning on learner performance is also determined