40 research outputs found
Low-Luminosity Accretion in Black Hole X-ray Binaries and Active Galactic Nuclei
At luminosities below a few percent of Eddington, accreting black holes
switch to a hard spectral state which is very different from the soft
blackbody-like spectral state that is found at higher luminosities. The hard
state is well-described by a two-temperature, optically thin, geometrically
thick, advection-dominated accretion flow (ADAF) in which the ions are
extremely hot (up to K near the black hole), the electrons are also
hot ( K), and thermal Comptonization dominates the X-ray
emission. The radiative efficiency of an ADAF decreases rapidly with decreasing
mass accretion rate, becoming extremely low when a source reaches quiescence.
ADAFs are expected to have strong outflows, which may explain why relativistic
jets are often inferred from the radio emission of these sources. It has been
suggested that most of the X-ray emission also comes from a jet, but this is
less well established.Comment: To appear in "From X-ray Binaries to Quasars: Black Hole Accretion on
All Mass Scales" edited by T. Maccarone, R. Fender, L. Ho, to be published as
a special edition of "Astrophysics and Space Science" by Kluwe
Self-similar solutions of viscous and resistive ADAFs with thermal conduction
We have studied the effects of thermal conduction on the structure of viscous
and resistive advection-dominated accretion flows (ADAFs). The importance of
thermal conduction on hot accretion flow is confirmed by observations of hot
gas that surrounds Sgr A and a few other nearby galactic nuclei. In this
research, thermal conduction is studied by a saturated form of it, as is
appropriated for weakly-collisional systems. It is assumed the viscosity and
the magnetic diffusivity are due to turbulence and dissipation in the flow. The
viscosity also is due to angular momentum transport. Here, the magnetic
diffusivity and the kinematic viscosity are not constant and vary by position
and -prescription is used for them. The govern equations on system have
been solved by the steady self-similar method. The solutions show the radial
velocity is highly subsonic and the rotational velocity behaves sub-Keplerian.
The rotational velocity for a specific value of the thermal conduction
coefficient becomes zero. This amount of conductivity strongly depends on
magnetic pressure fraction, magnetic Prandtl number, and viscosity parameter.
Comparison of energy transport by thermal conduction with the other energy
mechanisms implies that thermal conduction can be a significant energy
mechanism in resistive and magnetized ADAFs. This property is confirmed by
non-ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulations.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, accepted by Ap&S
Accretion and ejection in black-hole X-ray transients
Aims: We summarize the current observational picture of the outbursts of
black-hole X-ray transients (BHTs), based on the evolution traced in a
hardness-luminosity diagram (HLD), and we offer a physical interpretation.
Methods: The basic ingredient in our interpretation is the Poynting-Robertson
Cosmic Battery (PRCB, Contopoulos & Kazanas 1998), which provides locally the
poloidal magnetic field needed for the ejection of the jet. In addition, we
make two assumptions, easily justifiable. The first is that the mass-accretion
rate to the black hole in a BHT outburst has a generic bell-shaped form. This
is guaranteed by the observational fact that all BHTs start their outburst and
end it at the quiescent state. The second assumption is that at low accretion
rates the accretion flow is geometrically thick, ADAF-like, while at high
accretion rates it is geometrically thin.
Results: Both, at the beginning and the end of an outburst, the PRCB
establishes a strong poloidal magnetic field in the ADAF-like part of the
accretion flow, and this explains naturally why a jet is always present in the
right part of the HLD. In the left part of the HLD, the accretion flow is in
the form of a thin disk, and such a disk cannot sustain a strong poloidal
magnetic filed. Thus, no jet is expected in this part of the HLD. The
counterclockwise traversal of the HLD is explained as follows: the poloidal
magnetic field in the ADAF forces the flow to remain ADAF and the source to
move upwards in the HLD rather than to turn left. Thus, the history of the
system determines the counterclockwise traversal of the HLD. As a result, no
BHT is expected to ever traverse the entire HLD curve in the clockwise
direction.
Conclusions: We offer a physical interpretation of accretion and ejection in
BHTs with only one parameter, the mass transfer rate.Comment: Accepted for publication in A&
Cancer survival in the elderly: Effects of socio-economic factors and health care system features (ELDCARE project)
The purpose of the ELDCARE project is to study differences in cancer survival for elderly patients by country, taking into account the socio-economic conditions and the characteristics of health care systems at the ecological level. Fifty-three European cancer registries, from 19 countries, participating in the EUROCARE 3 programme, collected information to compute relative survival on patients aged 65-84 years, diagnosed over the period 1990-1994. National statistics offices provided the macro-economic and labour force indicators (gross domestic product, total health expenditure, and proportion of people employed in the agriculture sector) as well as the features of national health care systems. Survival for several of the cancer sites had high positive Pearson's correlations (r) with the affluence indicators (usually r > 0.7), but survival for the poor prognosis cancers (lung, ovary, stomach) and for cervix uteri was not so well correlated. Among the medical resources considered, the number of computed tomography scanners was the variable most related to survival in the elderly; the number of total health practitioners in the country did not show any relationship. Survival was related to the marital status of elderly women more strongly than for men and younger people. The highest correlations of survival with the percentage of married elderly women in the population were for cancers of the rectum (r = 0.79) and breast (r = 0.66), while survival correlated negatively with the proportion of widows for most cancers. Being married or widowed is for elderly people, in particular elderly women, an important factor influencing psychological status, life habits and social relationships. Social conditions could play a major role in determining health outcomes, particularly in the elderly, by affecting access to health care and delay in diagnosis
High-precision molecular dynamics simulation of UO2-PuO2: superionic transition in uranium dioxide
Our series of articles is devoted to high-precision molecular dynamics
simulation of mixed actinide-oxide (MOX) fuel in the rigid ions approximation
using high-performance graphics processors (GPU). In this article we assess the
10 most relevant interatomic sets of pair potential (SPP) by reproduction of
the Bredig superionic phase transition (anion sublattice premelting) in uranium
dioxide. The measurements carried out in a wide temperature range from 300K up
to melting point with 1K accuracy allowed reliable detection of this phase
transition with each SPP. The {\lambda}-peaks obtained are smoother and wider
than it was assumed previously. In addition, for the first time a pressure
dependence of the {\lambda}-peak characteristics was measured, in a range from
-5 GPa to 5 GPa its amplitudes had parabolic plot and temperatures had linear
(that is similar to the Clausius-Clapeyron equation for melting temperature).Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl
General Overview of Black Hole Accretion Theory
I provide a broad overview of the basic theoretical paradigms of black hole
accretion flows. Models that make contact with observations continue to be
mostly based on the four decade old alpha stress prescription of Shakura &
Sunyaev (1973), and I discuss the properties of both radiatively efficient and
inefficient models, including their local properties, their expected stability
to secular perturbations, and how they might be tied together in global flow
geometries. The alpha stress is a prescription for turbulence, for which the
only existing plausible candidate is that which develops from the
magnetorotational instability (MRI). I therefore also review what is currently
known about the local properties of such turbulence, and the physical issues
that have been elucidated and that remain uncertain that are relevant for the
various alpha-based black hole accretion flow models.Comment: To be published in Space Science Reviews and as hard cover in the
Space Sciences Series of ISSI: The Physics of Accretion on to Black Holes
(Springer Publisher
Global surveillance of cancer survival 1995-2009: analysis of individual data for 25,676,887 patients from 279 population-based registries in 67 countries (CONCORD-2)
BACKGROUND:
Worldwide data for cancer survival are scarce. We aimed to initiate worldwide surveillance of cancer survival by central analysis of population-based registry data, as a metric of the effectiveness of health systems, and to inform global policy on cancer control.
METHODS:
Individual tumour records were submitted by 279 population-based cancer registries in 67 countries for 25·7 million adults (age 15-99 years) and 75,000 children (age 0-14 years) diagnosed with cancer during 1995-2009 and followed up to Dec 31, 2009, or later. We looked at cancers of the stomach, colon, rectum, liver, lung, breast (women), cervix, ovary, and prostate in adults, and adult and childhood leukaemia. Standardised quality control procedures were applied; errors were corrected by the registry concerned. We estimated 5-year net survival, adjusted for background mortality in every country or region by age (single year), sex, and calendar year, and by race or ethnic origin in some countries. Estimates were age-standardised with the International Cancer Survival Standard weights.
FINDINGS:
5-year survival from colon, rectal, and breast cancers has increased steadily in most developed countries. For patients diagnosed during 2005-09, survival for colon and rectal cancer reached 60% or more in 22 countries around the world; for breast cancer, 5-year survival rose to 85% or higher in 17 countries worldwide. Liver and lung cancer remain lethal in all nations: for both cancers, 5-year survival is below 20% everywhere in Europe, in the range 15-19% in North America, and as low as 7-9% in Mongolia and Thailand. Striking rises in 5-year survival from prostate cancer have occurred in many countries: survival rose by 10-20% between 1995-99 and 2005-09 in 22 countries in South America, Asia, and Europe, but survival still varies widely around the world, from less than 60% in Bulgaria and Thailand to 95% or more in Brazil, Puerto Rico, and the USA. For cervical cancer, national estimates of 5-year survival range from less than 50% to more than 70%; regional variations are much wider, and improvements between 1995-99 and 2005-09 have generally been slight. For women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2005-09, 5-year survival was 40% or higher only in Ecuador, the USA, and 17 countries in Asia and Europe. 5-year survival for stomach cancer in 2005-09 was high (54-58%) in Japan and South Korea, compared with less than 40% in other countries. By contrast, 5-year survival from adult leukaemia in Japan and South Korea (18-23%) is lower than in most other countries. 5-year survival from childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is less than 60% in several countries, but as high as 90% in Canada and four European countries, which suggests major deficiencies in the management of a largely curable disease.
INTERPRETATION:
International comparison of survival trends reveals very wide differences that are likely to be attributable to differences in access to early diagnosis and optimum treatment. Continuous worldwide surveillance of cancer survival should become an indispensable source of information for cancer patients and researchers and a stimulus for politicians to improve health policy and health-care systems
The origins and spread of domestic horses from the Western Eurasian steppes
Analysis of 273 ancient horse genomes reveals that modern domestic horses originated in the Western Eurasian steppes, especially the lower Volga-Don region.Domestication of horses fundamentally transformed long-range mobility and warfare(1). However, modern domesticated breeds do not descend from the earliest domestic horse lineage associated with archaeological evidence of bridling, milking and corralling(2-4) at Botai, Central Asia around 3500 bc(3). Other longstanding candidate regions for horse domestication, such as Iberia(5) and Anatolia(6), have also recently been challenged. Thus, the genetic, geographic and temporal origins of modern domestic horses have remained unknown. Here we pinpoint the Western Eurasian steppes, especially the lower Volga-Don region, as the homeland of modern domestic horses. Furthermore, we map the population changes accompanying domestication from 273 ancient horse genomes. This reveals that modern domestic horses ultimately replaced almost all other local populations as they expanded rapidly across Eurasia from about 2000 bc, synchronously with equestrian material culture, including Sintashta spoke-wheeled chariots. We find that equestrianism involved strong selection for critical locomotor and behavioural adaptations at the GSDMC and ZFPM1 genes. Our results reject the commonly held association(7) between horseback riding and the massive expansion of Yamnaya steppe pastoralists into Europe around 3000 bc(8,9) driving the spread of Indo-European languages(10). This contrasts with the scenario in Asia where Indo-Iranian languages, chariots and horses spread together, following the early second millennium bc Sintashta culture(11,12).Descriptive and Comparative Linguistic
The origins and spread of domestic horses from the Western Eurasian steppes
Domestication of horses fundamentally transformed long-range mobility and warfare. However, modern domesticated breeds do not descend from the earliest domestic horse lineage associated with archaeological evidence of bridling, milking and corralling at Botai, Central Asia around 3500 bc. Other longstanding candidate regions for horse domestication, such as Iberia and Anatolia, have also recently been challenged. Thus, the genetic, geographic and temporal origins of modern domestic horses have remained unknown. Here we pinpoint the Western Eurasian steppes, especially the lower Volga-Don region, as the homeland of modern domestic horses. Furthermore, we map the population changes accompanying domestication from 273 ancient horse genomes. This reveals that modern domestic horses ultimately replaced almost all other local populations as they expanded rapidly across Eurasia from about 2000 bc, synchronously with equestrian material culture, including Sintashta spoke-wheeled chariots. We find that equestrianism involved strong selection for critical locomotor and behavioural adaptations at the GSDMC and ZFPM1 genes. Our results reject the commonly held association between horseback riding and the massive expansion of Yamnaya steppe pastoralists into Europe around 3000 bc driving the spread of Indo-European languages. This contrasts with the scenario in Asia where Indo-Iranian languages, chariots and horses spread together, following the early second millennium bc Sintashta culture