95,980 research outputs found
Spatial distribution and galactic model parameters of cataclysmic variables
The spatial distribution, galactic model parameters and luminosity function
of cataclysmic variables (CVs) in the solar neighbourhood have been determined
from a carefully established sample of 459 CVs. The sample contains all of the
CVs with distances computed from the Period-Luminosity-Colours (PLCs) relation
of CVs which has been recently derived and calibrated with {\em 2MASS}
photometric data. It has been found that an exponential function fits best to
the observational z-distributions of all of the CVs in the sample, non-magnetic
CVs and dwarf novae, while the sech^{2} function is more appropriate for
nova-like stars and polars. The vertical scaleheight of CVs is 15814 pc
for the {\em 2MASS} J-band limiting apparent magnitude of 15.8. On the other
hand, the vertical scaleheights are 12820 and 1605 pc for dwarf novae
and nova-like stars, respectively. The local space density of CVs is found to
be pc^{-3} which is in agreement with the lower limit of
the theoretical predictions. The luminosity function of CVs shows an increasing
trend toward higher space densities at low luminosities, implying that the
number of short-period systems should be high. The discrepancies between the
theoretical and observational population studies of CVs will almost disappear
if for the z-dependence of the space density the sech^{2} density function is
used.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures and 5 tables, accepted for publication in New
Astronom
Metallicity Calibration and Photometric Parallax Estimation: I. UBV photometry
We present metallicity and photometric parallax calibrations for the F and G
type dwarfs with photometric, astrometric and spectroscopic data. The sample
consists of 168 dwarf stars covering the colour, iron abundance and absolute
magnitude intervals mag, dex and
mag, respectively. The means and standard deviations of the
metallicity and absolute magnitude residuals are small, i.e.
and dex, and and mag, respectively, which indicate
accurate metallicity and photometric parallax estimations.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figures and 2 tables, accepted for publication in
Astrophysics and Space Scienc
Local Stellar Kinematics from RAVE data - VII. Metallicity Gradients from Red Clump Stars
We investigate the Milky Way Galaxy's radial and vertical metallicity
gradients using a sample of 47,406 red clump stars from the RAVE DR4. This
sample is more than twice the size of the largest sample in the literature
investigating radial and vertical metallicity gradients. The absolute magnitude
of Groenewegen (2008) is used to determine distances to our sample stars. The
resulting distances agree with the RAVE DR4 distances Binney et al. (2014) of
the same stars. Our photometric method also provides distances to 6185 stars
that are not assigned a distance in RAVE DR4. The metallicity gradients are
calculated with their current orbital positions ( and ) and with
their orbital properties (mean Galactocentric distance, and ),
as a function of the distance to the Galactic plane:
d[Fe/H]/d- dex/kpc for kpc and
d[Fe/H]/d- dex/kpc for kpc. This
reaffirms the radial metallicity gradient in the thin disc but highlights that
gradients are sensitive to the selection effects caused by the difference
between and . The radial gradient is flat in the distance
interval 0.5-1 kpc from the plane and then becomes positive greater than 1 kpc
from the plane. The radial metallicity gradients are also eccentricity
dependent. We showed that d[Fe/H]/d-, -,
- and - dex/kpc for , ,
and sub-samples, respectively, in the distance
interval kpc. Similar trend is found for vertical
metallicity gradients. Both the radial and vertical metallicity gradients are
found to become shallower as the eccentricity of the sample increases. These
findings can be used to constrain different formation scenarios of the thick
and thin discs.Comment: 18 pages, including 16 figures and 6 tables, accepted for publication
in PAS
Undifferentiated Carcinoma of Larynx of Nasopharyngeal Type
Undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type arising in the larynx is unusual. This type of carcinoma-which occurs almost exclusively in nasopharynx-is very infrequent in the larynx (0.2%). Till date only 17 cases are reported in the medical literature. We present the clinical and histopathological findings along with the management of one additional case of undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type in the larynx which was managed successfully with radiotherapy
Feeding difficulties in disabled children leads to malnutrition: experience in an Indian slum
Assessment of maximum inspiratory pressure: Prior submaximal respiratory muscle activity (âwarm-upâ) enhances maximum inspiratory activity and attenuates the learning effect of repeated measurement
The official published version can be obtained from the link belowBackground: The variability of maximal inspiratory pressure (PImax) in response to repeated measurement affects its reliability; published studies have used between three and twenty PImax measurements on a single occasion. Objective: This study investigated the influence of a specific respiratory âwarm-upâ upon the repeated measurement of inspiratory muscle strength and attempts to establish a procedure by which PImax can be assessed with maximum reliability using the smallest number of manoeuvres. Methods: Fourteen healthy subjects, familiar with the Mueller manoeuvre, were studied. The influence of repeated testing on a single occasion was assessed using an 18-measurement protocol. Using a randomised cross-over design, subjects performed the protocol, preceded by a specific respiratory warm-up (RWU) and on another occasion, without any preliminary activity (control). Comparisons were made amongst âbaselineâ (best of the first 3 measurements), âshortâ series (best of 7th to 9th measurement) and âlongâ series (best of the last 3 measurements). Results: Under control conditions, the mean increase (âbaselineâ vs. âlongâ series) was 11.4 (5.8)%; following the RWU, the increase (post RWU âbaselineâ vs. âlongâ series) was 3.2 (10.0)%. There were statistically significant differences between measurements made at all 3 protocol stages (âbaselineâ, âshortâ and âlongâ series) under control conditions, but none following the RWU. Conclusions: The present data suggest that a specific RWU may attenuate the âlearning effectâ during repeated PImax measurements, which is one of the main contributors of the test variability. The use of a RWU may provide a means of obtaining reliable values of PImax following just 3 measurements.This work was partially supported by a grant from the University of Wolverhampton, UK
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