The MAORY ICS software architecture

The Multi Conjugate Adaptive Optics RelaY (MAORY) for ESO's Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) is an adaptive optics module offering multi-conjugate (MCAO) and single-conjugate (SCAO) compensation modes. In MCAO, it relies on the use of up to six Laser Guide Stars (LGS) and three Natural Guide Stars (NGS) for atmospheric turbulence sensing and multiple mirrors for correction, providing high Strehl and high sky coverage. In SCAO mode, a single natural source is used as reference, providing better correction but in a smaller field. MAORY will be installed at the Nasmyth focus of the ELT. It will feed the MICADO first-light diffraction limited imager and a future second instrument. MAORY is being built by a Consortium composed by INAF in Italy and IPAG in France and is currently approaching end of phase B. In this paper we describe the preliminary design of the MAORY Instrument Control System Software (ICS SW). We start with an overview of the MAORY module and then describe the general architecture of the MAORY control network and software. We then describe the main software components, with particular emphasis to those managing the NGS and LGS wavefront sensors functions and the AO off-load and secondary loops, and the main interfaces to subsystems and external systems. We then conclude with a description of the software engineering practices adopted for the development of MAORY ICS SW

MORFEO enters final design phase

MORFEO (Multi-conjugate adaptive Optics Relay For ELT Observations, formerly MAORY), the MCAO system for the ELT, will provide diffraction-limited optical quality to the large field camera MICADO. MORFEO has officially passed the Preliminary Design Review and it is entering the final design phase. We present the current status of the project, with a focus on the adaptive optics system aspects and expected milestones during the next project phase

MAORY for ELT: preliminary design overview

MAORY is one of the approved instruments for the European Extremely Large Telescope. It is an adaptive optics module, enabling high-angular resolution observations in the near infrared by real-time compensation of the wavefront distortions due to atmospheric turbulence and other disturbances such as wind action on the telescope. An overview of the instrument design is given in this paper

The MAORY first-light adaptive optics module for E-ELT

The MAORY adaptive optics module is part of the first light instrumentation suite for the E-ELT. The MAORY project phase B is going to start soon. This paper contains a system-level overview of the current instrument design

Increasing frailty is associated with higher prevalence and reduced recognition of delirium in older hospitalised inpatients: results of a multi-centre study

Purpose: Delirium is a neuropsychiatric disorder delineated by an acute change in cognition, attention, and consciousness. It is common, particularly in older adults, but poorly recognised. Frailty is the accumulation of deficits conferring an increased risk of adverse outcomes. We set out to determine how severity of frailty, as measured using the CFS, affected delirium rates, and recognition in hospitalised older people in the United Kingdom. Methods: Adults over 65 years were included in an observational multi-centre audit across UK hospitals, two prospective rounds, and one retrospective note review. Clinical Frailty Scale (CFS), delirium status, and 30-day outcomes were recorded. Results: The overall prevalence of delirium was 16.3% (483). Patients with delirium were more frail than patients without delirium (median CFS 6 vs 4). The risk of delirium was greater with increasing frailty [OR 2.9 (1.8–4.6) in CFS 4 vs 1–3; OR 12.4 (6.2–24.5) in CFS 8 vs 1–3]. Higher CFS was associated with reduced recognition of delirium (OR of 0.7 (0.3–1.9) in CFS 4 compared to 0.2 (0.1–0.7) in CFS 8). These risks were both independent of age and dementia. Conclusion: We have demonstrated an incremental increase in risk of delirium with increasing frailty. This has important clinical implications, suggesting that frailty may provide a more nuanced measure of vulnerability to delirium and poor outcomes. However, the most frail patients are least likely to have their delirium diagnosed and there is a significant lack of research into the underlying pathophysiology of both of these common geriatric syndromes

Evidence for short-patch mismatch repair in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Recombination events between non-identical sequences most often involve heteroduplex DNA intermediates that are subjected to mismatch repair. The well-characterized long-patch mismatch repair process, controlled in eukaryotes by bacterial MutS and MutL orthologs, is the major system involved in repair of mispaired bases. Here we present evidence for an alternative short-patch mismatch repair pathway that operates on a broad spectrum of mismatches. In msh2 mutants lacking the long-patch repair system, sequence analysis of recombination tracts resulting from exchanges between similar but non-identical (homeologous) parental DNAs showed the occurrence of short-patch repair events that can involve <12 nucleotides. Such events were detected both in mitotic and in meiotic recombinants. Confirming the existence of a distinct short-patch repair activity, we found in a recombination assay involving homologous alleles that closely spaced mismatches are repaired independently with high efficiency in cells lacking MSH2 or PMS1. We show that this activity does not depend on genes required for nucleotide excision repair and thus differs from the short-patch mismatch repair described in Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Amplitude adaptive optics with a digital micro-mirror device for exoplanet high-contrast imaging

International audienceAmplitude adaptive optics with a digital micro-mirror device for exoplanet high-contrast imagin