487 research outputs found
Probing ISM Structure in Trumpler 14 & Carina I Using The Stratospheric Terahertz Observatory 2
We present observations of the Trumpler 14/Carina I region carried out using
the Stratospheric Terahertz Observatory 2 (STO2). The Trumpler 14/Carina I
region is in the west part of the Carina Nebula Complex, which is one of the
most extreme star-forming regions in the Milky Way. We observed Trumpler
14/Carina I in the 158 m transition of [C\,{\sc ii}] with a spatial
resolution of 48 and a velocity resolution of 0.17 km s. The
observations cover a 0.25 by 0.28 area with central position
{\it l} = 297.34, {\it b} = -0.60. The kinematics show that
bright [C\,{\sc ii}] structures are spatially and spectrally correlated with
the surfaces of CO clouds, tracing the photodissociation region and ionization
front of each molecular cloud. Along 7 lines of sight that traverse Tr 14 into
the dark ridge to the southwest, we find that the [C\,{\sc ii}] luminosity from
the HII region is 3.7 times that from the PDR. In same los we find in the PDRs
an average ratio of 1:4.1:5.6 for the mass in atomic gas:dark-CO gas: molecular
gas traced by CO. Comparing multiple gas tracers including HI 21cm, [C\,{\sc
ii}], CO, and radio recombination lines, we find that the HII regions of the
Carina Nebula Complex are well-described as HII regions with one-side freely
expanding towards us, consistent with the champagne model of ionized gas
evolution. The dispersal of the GMC in this region is dominated by EUV
photoevaporation; the dispersal timescale is 20-30 Myr.Comment: ApJ accepte
Structural gray matter alterations in glioblastoma and high-grade glioma- A potential biomarker of survival
BACKGROUND: Patients with glioblastoma (GBM) and high-grade glioma (HGG, World Health Organization [WHO] grade IV glioma) have a poor prognosis. Consequently, there is an unmet clinical need for accessible and noninvasively acquired predictive biomarkers of overall survival in patients. This study evaluated morphological changes in the brain separated from the tumor invasion site (ie, contralateral hemisphere). Specifically, we examined the prognostic value of widespread alterations of cortical thickness (CT) in GBM/HGG patients.
METHODS: We used FreeSurfer, applied with high-resolution T1-weighted MRI, to examine CT, evaluated prior to standard treatment with surgery and chemoradiation in patients (GBM/HGG,
RESULTS: Compared to HC cases, patients had thinner gray matter in the contralesional hemisphere at the time of tumor diagnosis. patients had significant cortical thinning in parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. Fourteen cortical parcels showed reduced CT, whereas in 5, it was thicker in patients\u27 cases. Notably, CT in the contralesional hemisphere, various lobes, and parcels was predictive of overall survival. A machine learning classification algorithm showed that CT could differentiate short- and long-term survival patients with an accuracy of 83.3%.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings identify previously unnoticed structural changes in the cortex located in the hemisphere contralateral to the primary tumor mass. Observed changes in CT may have prognostic value, which could influence care and treatment planning for individual patients
Training of Instrumentalists and Development of New Technologies on SOFIA
This white paper is submitted to the Astronomy and Astrophysics 2010 Decadal
Survey (Astro2010)1 Committee on the State of the Profession to emphasize the
potential of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) to
contribute to the training of instrumentalists and observers, and to related
technology developments. This potential goes beyond the primary mission of
SOFIA, which is to carry out unique, high priority astronomical research.
SOFIA is a Boeing 747SP aircraft with a 2.5 meter telescope. It will enable
astronomical observations anywhere, any time, and at most wavelengths between
0.3 microns and 1.6 mm not accessible from ground-based observatories. These
attributes, accruing from the mobility and flight altitude of SOFIA, guarantee
a wealth of scientific return. Its instrument teams (nine in the first
generation) and guest investigators will do suborbital astronomy in a
shirt-sleeve environment. The project will invest $10M per year in science
instrument development over a lifetime of 20 years. This, frequent flight
opportunities, and operation that enables rapid changes of science instruments
and hands-on in-flight access to the instruments, assure a unique and extensive
potential - both for training young instrumentalists and for encouraging and
deploying nascent technologies. Novel instruments covering optical, infrared,
and submillimeter bands can be developed for and tested on SOFIA by their
developers (including apprentices) for their own observations and for those of
guest observers, to validate technologies and maximize observational
effectiveness.Comment: 10 pages, no figures, White Paper for Astro 2010 Survey Committee on
State of the Professio
Altered networks in bothersome tinnitus: a functional connectivity study
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The objective was to examine functional connectivity linked to the auditory system in patients with bothersome tinnitus. Activity was low frequency (< 0.1 Hz), spontaneous blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) responses at rest. The question was whether the experience of chronic bothersome tinnitus induced changes in synaptic efficacy between co-activated components. Functional connectivity for seed regions in auditory, visual, attention, and control networks was computed across all 2 mm<sup>3 </sup>brain volumes in 17 patients with moderate-severe bothersome tinnitus (<it>Tinnitus Handicap Index: average </it>53.5 ± 3.6 (range 38-76)) and 17 age-matched controls.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In bothersome tinnitus, negative correlations reciprocally characterized functional connectivity between auditory and occipital/visual cortex. Negative correlations indicate that when BOLD response magnitudes increased in auditory or visual cortex they decreased in the linked visual or auditory cortex, suggesting reciprocally phase reversed activity between functionally connected locations in tinnitus. Both groups showed similar connectivity with positive correlations within the auditory network. Connectivity for primary visual cortex in tinnitus included extensive negative correlations in the ventral attention temporoparietal junction and in the inferior frontal gyrus and rostral insula - executive control network components. Rostral insula and inferior frontal gyrus connectivity in tinnitus also showed greater negative correlations in occipital cortex.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These results imply that in bothersome tinnitus there is dissociation between activity in auditory cortex and visual, attention and control networks. The reciprocal negative correlations in connectivity between these networks might be maladaptive or reflect adaptations to reduce phantom noise salience and conflict with attention to non-auditory tasks.</p
Administrative Managers – A Critical Link
Institutional responses to changes in the higher education environment have caused movements in the roles and identities of administrative managers in UK universities. These shifts have highlighted the problem for individuals of balancing traditional public service considerations of administration with institutional innovation and development. Administrative managers find themselves not only acting as independent arbiters, giving impartial advice on the basis of professional expertise, but also becoming involved in political judgements about institutional futures. They increasingly undertake an interpretive function between the various communities of the university and its external partners. As the boundaries of the university have become more permeable, administrative and academic management have inter-digitated, and hybrid roles have developed. In undertaking increasingly complex functions, therefore, administrative managers play a critical role in linking the academic and executive arms of governance in the university
Bostonia: The Boston University Alumni Magazine. Volume 17
Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs
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