7,167 research outputs found
Disk Galaxy Formation in a LambdaCDM Universe
We describe hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy formation in a Lambda cold
dark matter (CDM) cosmology performed using a subresolution model for star
formation and feedback in a multiphase interstellar medium (ISM). In
particular, we demonstrate the formation of a well-resolved disk galaxy. The
surface brightness profile of the galaxy is exponential, with a B-band central
surface brightness of 21.0 mag arcsec^-2 and a scale-length of R_d = 2.0 h^-1
kpc. We find no evidence for a significant bulge component. The simulated
galaxy falls within the I-band Tully-Fisher relation, with an absolute
magnitude of I = -21.2 and a peak stellar rotation velocity of V_rot=121.3 km
s^-1. While the total specific angular momentum of the stars in the galaxy
agrees with observations, the angular momentum in the inner regions appears to
be low by a factor of ~2. The star formation rate of the galaxy peaks at ~7
M_sun yr^-1 between redshifts z=2-4, with the mean stellar age decreasing from
\~10 Gyrs in the outer regions of the disk to ~7.5 Gyrs in the center,
indicating that the disk did not simply form inside-out. The stars exhibit a
metallicity gradient from 0.7 Z_sun at the edge of the disk to 1.3 Z_sun in the
center. Using a suite of idealized galaxy formation simulations with different
models for the ISM, we show that the effective pressure support provided by
star formation and feedback in our multiphase model is instrumental in allowing
the formation of large, stable disk galaxies. If ISM gas is instead modeled
with an isothermal equation of state, or if star formation is suppressed
entirely, growing gaseous disks quickly violate the Toomre stability criterion
and undergo catastrophic fragmentation.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures, LaTex (emulateapj.cls), submitted to ApJ, high
resolution images available at
http://www-cfa.harvard.edu/~brobertson/papers/galaxy
The Distance of the Gamma-ray Binary 1FGL J1018.6-5856
The recently discovered gamma-ray binary 1FGL J1018.6-5856 has a proposed
optical/near-infrared (OIR) counterpart 2MASS 10185560-5856459. We present
Stromgren photometry of this star to investigate its photometric variability
and measure the reddening and distance to the system. We find that the
gamma-ray binary has E(B-V) = 1.34 +/- 0.04 and d = 5.4^+4.6_-2.1 kpc. While
E(B-V) is consistent with X-ray observations of the neutral hydrogen column
density, the distance is somewhat closer than some previous authors have
suggested.Comment: Accepted to PAS
New optical and near-infrared Surface Brightness Fluctuations models. A primary distance indicator ranging from Globular Clusters to distant galaxies?
We present new theoretical models for Surface Brightness Fluctuations (SBF)
both for optical and near-infrared bands in standard ground-based and Hubble
Space Telescope filter systems. Simple Stellar Population simulations are
adopted. Models cover the age and metallicity ranges from to and
from to 0.04 respectively. Effects due to the variation of the
Initial Mass Function and the stellar color-temperature relations are explored.
Particular attention is devoted to very bright stars in the color-magnitude
diagram and to investigate the effects of mass loss along the Red Giant Branch
(RGB) and the Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB). It is found that and bands
SBF amplitudes are powerful diagnostics for the morphology of the Horizontal
Branch and the Post-AGB stars population. We point out that a careful treatment
of mass loss process along the RGB and AGB is fundamental in determining
reliable SBF evaluations. The SBF measurements are used to give robust
constraints on the evolution of AGB stars, suggesting that mass loss activity
on AGB stars should be twice more efficient than on the RGB stars. Our models
are able to reproduce the absolute SBF magnitudes of the Galactic Globular
Clusters and of galaxies, and their integrated colors. New calibrations of
absolute SBF magnitude in , , , and photometric filters are
provided, which appear reliable enough to directly gauge distances bypassing
other distance indicators. The SBF technique is also used as stellar population
tracer to derive age and metallicity of a selected sample of galaxies of known
distances. Finally, {\it SBF color} versus {\it integrated color} diagrams are
proposed as particularly useful in removing the well known {\it age-metallicity
degeneracy} affecting our knowledge of remote stellar systems.Comment: AJ accepted, 46 pages, 21 figures, 10 tables, uses aastex.cl
Prevalence of and associations with agitation in residents with dementia living in care homes: MARQUE cross-sectional study
BACKGROUND: Agitation is reportedly the most common neuropsychiatric symptom in care home residents with dementia. AIMS: To report, in a large care home survey, prevalence and determinants of agitation in residents with dementia. METHOD: We interviewed staff from 86 care homes between 13 January 2014 and 12 November 2015 about residents with dementia with respect to agitation (Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI)), quality of life (DEMQOL-proxy) and dementia severity (Clinical Dementia Rating). We also interviewed residents and their relatives. We used random effects models adjusted for resident age, gender, dementia severity and care home type with CMAI as a continuous score. RESULTS: Out of 3053 (86.2%) residents who had dementia, 1489 (52.7%) eligible residents participated. Fifteen per cent of residents with very mild dementia had clinically significant agitation compared with 33% with mild (odds ratios (ORs)=4.49 95% confidence interval (CI)=2.30) and 45% with moderate or severe dementia (OR=6.95 95% CI=3.63, 13.31 and OR=6.23 95% CI=3.25, 11.94, respectively). More agitation was associated with lower quality of life (regression coefficient (rc)=-0.53; 95% CI=-0.61, -0.46) but not with staffing or resident ratio (rc=0.03; 95% CI=-0.04, 0.11), level of residents' engagement in home activities (rc=3.21; 95% CI=-0.82, 7.21) or family visit numbers (rc=-0.03; 95% CI=-0.15, 0.08). It was correlated with antipsychotic use (rc=6.45; 95% CI=3.98, 8.91). CONCLUSIONS: Care home residents with dementia and agitation have lower quality of life. More staffing time and activities as currently provided are not associated with lower agitation levels. New approaches to develop staff skills in understanding and responding to the underlying reasons for individual resident's agitation require development and testing. DECLARATION OF INTEREST: None. COPYRIGHT AND USAGE: © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 2017. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Non-Commercial, No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) license
Inference for bounded parameters
The estimation of signal frequency count in the presence of background noise
has had much discussion in the recent physics literature, and Mandelkern [1]
brings the central issues to the statistical community, leading in turn to
extensive discussion by statisticians. The primary focus however in [1] and the
accompanying discussion is on the construction of a confidence interval. We
argue that the likelihood function and -value function provide a
comprehensive presentation of the information available from the model and the
data. This is illustrated for Gaussian and Poisson models with lower bounds for
the mean parameter
The Palomar Testbed Interferometer Calibrator Catalog
The Palomar Testbed Interferometer (PTI) archive of observations between 1998
and 2005 is examined for objects appropriate for calibration of optical
long-baseline interferometer observations - stars that are predictably
point-like and single. Approximately 1,400 nights of data on 1,800 objects were
examined for this investigation. We compare those observations to an
intensively studied object that is a suitable calibrator, HD217014, and
statistically compare each candidate calibrator to that object by computing
both a Mahalanobis distance and a Principal Component Analysis. Our hypothesis
is that the frequency distribution of visibility data associated with
calibrator stars differs from non-calibrator stars such as binary stars.
Spectroscopic binaries resolved by PTI, objects known to be unsuitable for
calibrator use, are similarly tested to establish detection limits of this
approach. From this investigation, we find more than 350 observed stars
suitable for use as calibrators (with an additional being
rejected), corresponding to sky coverage for PTI. This approach
is noteworthy in that it rigorously establishes calibration sources through a
traceable, empirical methodology, leveraging the predictions of spectral energy
distribution modeling but also verifying it with the rich body of PTI's on-sky
observations.Comment: 100 pages, 7 figures, 7 tables; to appear in the May 2008ApJS, v176n
Spectroscopy and Time Variability of Absorption Lines in the Direction of the Vela Supernova Remnant
We present high resolution (R~75,000), high signal-to-noise (S/N~100) Ca II
3933.663 and Na I 5889.951, 5895.924 spectra of 68
stars in the direction of the Vela supernova remnant. The spectra comprise the
most complete high resolution, high S/N, optical survey of early type stars in
this region of the sky. A subset of the sight lines has been observed at
multiple epochs, 1993/1994 and 1996. Of the thirteen stars observed twice,
seven have spectra revealing changes in the equivalent width and/or velocity
structure of lines, most of which arise from remnant gas. Such time variability
has been reported previously for the sight lines towards HD 72089 and HD 72997
by Danks & Sembach (1995) and for HD 72127 by Hobbs et al. (1991). We have
confirmed the ongoing time variability of these spectra and present new
evidence of variability in the spectra of HD 73658, HD 74455, HD 75309 and HD
75821. We have tabulated Na I and Ca II absorption line information for the
sight lines in our sample to serve as a benchmark for further investigations of
the dynamics and evolution of the Vela SNR.Comment: 8 pages of text, 4 tables, 16 pages of figures Accepted and to be
published in ApJ
Synthetic properties of bright metal-poor variables. I. "Anomalous" Cepheids
We present new grids of evolutionary models for the so-colled ``Anomalous''
Cepheids (ACs), adopting Z=0.0001 and various assumptions on the progenitor
mass and mass-loss efficiency. These computations are combined with the results
of our previous set of pulsation models and used to build synthetic populations
of the predicted pulsators as well as to provide a Mass-Luminosity relation in
the absence of mass-loss. We investigate the effect of mass-loss on the
predicted boundaries of the instability strip and we find that the only
significant dependence occurs in the Period-Magnitude plane, where the
synthetic distribution of the pulsators is, on average, brighter by about 0.1
mag than the one in absence of mass-loss. Tight Period-Magnitude relations are
derived in the K band for both fundamental and first overtone pulsators,
providing a useful tool for distance evaluations with an intrinsic uncertainty
of about 0.15 mag, which decreases to about 0.04 mag if the mass term is taken
into account. The constraints provided by the evolutionary models are used to
derive evolutionary (i.e, mass-independent) Period-Magnitude-Color relations
which provide distance determinations with a formal uncertainty of the order of
about 0.1 mag, once the intrinsic colors are well known. We also use model
computations from the literature to investigate the effect of metal content
both on the instability strip and on the evolutionary Period-Magnitude-Color
relations. Finally, we compare our theoretical predictions with observed
variables and we confirm that a secure identification of actual ACs requires
the simultaneous information on period, magnitude and color, that also provide
constraints on the pulsation mode.Comment: accepte
Surprising dissimilarities in a newly formed pair of 'identical twin' stars
The mass and chemical composition of a star are the primary determinants of
its basic physical properties--radius, temperature, luminosity--and how those
properties evolve with time. Thus, two stars born at the same time, from the
same natal material, and with the same mass are 'identical twins,' and as such
might be expected to possess identical physical attributes. We have discovered
in the Orion Nebula a pair of stellar twins in a newborn binary star system.
Each star in the binary has a mass of 0.41 +/- 0.01 solar masses, identical to
within 2 percent. Here we report that these twin stars have surface
temperatures that differ by ~300K (~10%), and luminosities that differ by ~50%,
both at high confidence level. Preliminary results indicate that the stars'
radii also differ, by 5-10%. These surprising dissimilarities suggest that one
of the twins may have been delayed by several hundred thousand years in its
formation relative to its sibling. Such a delay could only have been detected
in a very young, definitively equal-mass binary system3 such as that reported
here. Our findings reveal cosmic limits on the age synchronisation of young
binary stars, often used as tests for the age calibrations of star-formation
models.Comment: Published in Nature, 19 June 200
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