4,268 research outputs found
Spatially Correlated Cluster Populations in the Outer Disk of NGC 3184
We use deep (~27.5 mag V-band point-source limiting magnitude) V- and U-band
LBT imaging to study the outer disk (beyond the optical radius R_25) of the
non-interacting, face-on spiral galaxy NGC 3184 (D = 11.1 Mpc; R_25 = 11.1 kpc)
and find that this outer disk contains >1000 objects (or marginally-resolved
'knots') resembling star clusters with masses ~10^2 - 10^4 M_sun and ages up to
~1 Gyr. We find statistically significant numbers of these cluster-like knots
extending to ~1.4 R_25, with the redder knots outnumbering bluer at the largest
radii. We measure clustering among knots and find significant correlation to
galactocentric radii of 1.5 R_25 for knot separations <1 kpc. The effective
integrated surface brightness of this outer disk cluster population ranges from
30 - 32 mag arcsec^-2 in V. We compare the HI extent to that of the correlated
knots and find that the clusters extend at least to the damped Lyman-alpha
threshold of HI column density (2e20 cm^-2; 1.62 R_25). The blue knots are
correlated with HI spiral structure to 1.5 R_25, while the red knots may be
correlated with the outer fringes of the HI disk to 1.7 R_25. These results
suggest that outer disks are well-populated, common, and long-lasting features
of many nearby disk galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal. 12 pages, 10
figure
Moving from a Product-Based Economy to a Service-Based Economy for a More Sustainable Future
Traditionally, economic growth and prosperity have been linked with the availability, production and distribution of tangible goods as well as the ability of consumers to acquire such goods. Early evidence regarding this connection dates back to Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations (1776), in which any activity not resulting in the production of a tangible good is characterized as unproductive of any value." Since then, this coupling of economic value and material production has been prevalent in both developed and developing economies throughout the world. One unintended consequence of this coupling has been the exponential increase in the amount of solid waste being generated. The reason is that any production and consumption of material goods eventually generates the equivalent amount of (or even more) waste. Exacerbating this problem is the fact that, with today's manufacturing and supply chain management technologies, it has become cheaper to dispose and replace most products rather than to repair and reuse them. This has given rise to what some call a disposable society." To put things in perspective: In 2012 households in the U.K. generated approximately 22 thousand tons of waste, which amounted to 411 kg of waste generated per person (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, 2015). During the same time period, households in the U.S. generated 251 million tons of waste, which is equivalent to a person generating approximately 2 kg of waste every day (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2012). Out of these 251 million tons of total waste generated, approximately 20% of the discarded items were categorized as durable goods. The disposal of durable goods is particularly worrisome because they are typically produced using material from non- renewable resources such as iron, minerals, and petroleum-based raw materials
A Study of the Type II-P Supernova 2003gd in M74
We present photometric and spectroscopic data of the type II-P supernova
2003gd, which was discovered in M74 close to the end of its plateau phase. SN
2003gd is the first type II supernova to have a directly confirmed red
supergiant progenitor. We compare SN 2003gd with SN 1999em, a similar type II-P
supernova, and estimate an explosion date of 18th March 2003. We determine a
reddening towards the supernova of E(B-V) = 0.14+/-0.06, using three different
methods. We also calculate three new distances to M74 of 9.6+/-2.8 Mpc,
7.7+/-1.7 Mpc and 9.6+/-2.2 Mpc. The former was estimated using the
Standardised Candle Method (SCM), for type II supernovae, and the latter two
using the Brightest Supergiants Method (BSM). When combined with existing
kinematic and BSM distance estimates, we derive a mean value of 9.3+/-1.8 Mpc.
SN 2003gd was found to have a lower tail luminosity compared to other
``normal'' type II-P SNe bringing into question the nature of this supernova.
We present a discussion concluding that this is a ``normal'' type II-P
supernova which is consistent with the observed progenitor mass of 8(+4/-2) Mo.Comment: 23 pages, 24 figures to appear in MNRA
A Redetermination of the Hubble Constant with the Hubble Space Telescope from a Differential Distance Ladder
We report observations of 240 Cepheid variables obtained with the Near
Infrared Camera (NICMOS) through the F160W filter on the Hubble Space Telescope
(HST). The Cepheids are distributed across six recent hosts of Type Ia
supernovae (SNe Ia) and the "maser galaxy" NGC 4258, allowing us to directly
calibrate the peak luminosities of the SNe Ia from the precise, geometric
distance measurements provided by the masers. New features of our measurement
include the use of the same instrument for all Cepheid measurements across the
distance ladder and homogeneity of the Cepheid periods and metallicities thus
necessitating only a differential measurement of Cepheid fluxes and reducing
the largest systematic uncertainties in the determination of the fiducial SN Ia
luminosity. The NICMOS measurements reduce differential extinction in the host
galaxies by a factor of 5 over past optical data. Combined with an expanded of
240 SNe Ia at z<0.1 which define their magnitude-redshift relation, we find
H_0=74.2 +/-3.6, a 4.8% uncertainty including both statistical and systematic
errors. We show that the factor of 2.2 improvement in the precision of H_0 is a
significant aid to the determination of the equation-of-state of dark energy, w
= P/(rho c^2). Combined with the WMAP 5-year measurement of Omega_M h^2, we
find w= -1.12 +/- 0.12 independent of high-redshift SNe Ia or baryon acoustic
oscillations (BAO). This result is also consistent with analyses based on the
combination of high-z SNe Ia and BAO. The constraints on w(z) now with high-z
SNe Ia and BAO are consistent with a cosmological constant and improved by a
factor of 3 from the refinement in H_0 alone. We show future improvements in
H_0 are likely and will further contribute to multi-technique studies of dark
energy.Comment: 60 pages, 15 figures Accepted for Publication, ApJ. This is the
second of two papers reporting results from a program to determine the Hubble
constant to 5% precision from a refurbished distance ladder based on
extensive use of differential measurement
A point-of-care clinical trial comparing insulin administered using a sliding scale versus a weight-based regimen
Background Clinical trials are widely considered
the gold standard in comparative effectiveness research (CER) but the high cost
and complexity of traditional trials and concerns about generalizability to
broad patient populations and general clinical practice limit their appeal.
Unsuccessful implementation of CER results limits the value of even the highest
quality trials. Planning for a trial comparing two standard strategies of
insulin administration for hospitalized patients led us to develop a new method
for a clinical trial designed to be embedded directly into the clinical care
setting thereby lowering the cost, increasing the pragmatic nature of the
overall trial, strengthening implementation, and creating an integrated
environment of research-based care
Search for New Physics with Jets and Missing Transverse Momentum in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
A search for new physics is presented based on an event signature of at least
three jets accompanied by large missing transverse momentum, using a data
sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36 inverse picobarns
collected in proton--proton collisions at sqrt(s)=7 TeV with the CMS detector
at the LHC. No excess of events is observed above the expected standard model
backgrounds, which are all estimated from the data. Exclusion limits are
presented for the constrained minimal supersymmetric extension of the standard
model. Cross section limits are also presented using simplified models with new
particles decaying to an undetected particle and one or two jets
Search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
A search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu decay
channel, where l = e or mu, in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7
TeV is presented. The data were collected at the LHC, with the CMS detector,
and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 inverse femtobarns. No
significant excess is observed above the background expectation, and upper
limits are set on the Higgs boson production cross section. The presence of the
standard model Higgs boson with a mass in the 270-440 GeV range is excluded at
95% confidence level.Comment: Submitted to JHE
Measurement of the Z/gamma* + b-jet cross section in pp collisions at 7 TeV
The production of b jets in association with a Z/gamma* boson is studied
using proton-proton collisions delivered by the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy
of 7 TeV and recorded by the CMS detector. The inclusive cross section for
Z/gamma* + b-jet production is measured in a sample corresponding to an
integrated luminosity of 2.2 inverse femtobarns. The Z/gamma* + b-jet cross
section with Z/gamma* to ll (where ll = ee or mu mu) for events with the
invariant mass 60 < M(ll) < 120 GeV, at least one b jet at the hadron level
with pT > 25 GeV and abs(eta) < 2.1, and a separation between the leptons and
the jets of Delta R > 0.5 is found to be 5.84 +/- 0.08 (stat.) +/- 0.72 (syst.)
+(0.25)/-(0.55) (theory) pb. The kinematic properties of the events are also
studied and found to be in agreement with the predictions made by the MadGraph
event generator with the parton shower and the hadronisation performed by
PYTHIA.Comment: Submitted to the Journal of High Energy Physic
Combined search for the quarks of a sequential fourth generation
Results are presented from a search for a fourth generation of quarks
produced singly or in pairs in a data set corresponding to an integrated
luminosity of 5 inverse femtobarns recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC in
2011. A novel strategy has been developed for a combined search for quarks of
the up and down type in decay channels with at least one isolated muon or
electron. Limits on the mass of the fourth-generation quarks and the relevant
Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix elements are derived in the context of a
simple extension of the standard model with a sequential fourth generation of
fermions. The existence of mass-degenerate fourth-generation quarks with masses
below 685 GeV is excluded at 95% confidence level for minimal off-diagonal
mixing between the third- and the fourth-generation quarks. With a mass
difference of 25 GeV between the quark masses, the obtained limit on the masses
of the fourth-generation quarks shifts by about +/- 20 GeV. These results
significantly reduce the allowed parameter space for a fourth generation of
fermions.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
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