1,102 research outputs found
Survey of Childhood Blindness and Visual Impairment in Botswana
Background/aims In terms of blind-person years, the worldwide burden of childhood blindness is second only to cataracts. In many developing countries, 30–72% of childhood blindness is avoidable. The authors conducted this study to determine the causes of childhood blindness and visual impairment (VI) in Botswana, a middle-income country with limited access to ophthalmic care. Methods This study was conducted over 4 weeks in eight cities and villages in Botswana. Children were recruited through a radio advertisement and local outreach programmes. Those ≤15 years of age with visual acuity \u3c6/18 in either eye were enrolled. The WHO/Prevention of Blindness Eye Examination Record for Children with Blindness and Low Vision was used to record data. Results The authors enrolled 241 children, 79 with unilateral and 162 with bilateral VI. Of unilateral cases, 89% were avoidable: 23% preventable (83% trauma-related) and 66% treatable (40% refractive error and 31% amblyopia). Of bilateral cases, 63% were avoidable: 5% preventable and 58% treatable (33% refractive error and 31% congenital cataracts). Conclusion Refractive error, which is easily correctable with glasses, is the most common cause of bilateral VI, with cataracts a close second. A nationwide intervention is currently being planned to reduce the burden of avoidable childhood VI in Botswana
Gemini Planet Imager Observational Calibrations VI: Photometric and Spectroscopic Calibration for the Integral Field Spectrograph
The Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) is a new facility instrument for the Gemini
Observatory designed to provide direct detection and characterization of
planets and debris disks around stars in the solar neighborhood. In addition to
its extreme adaptive optics and corona graphic systems which give access to
high angular resolution and high-contrast imaging capabilities, GPI contains an
integral field spectrograph providing low resolution spectroscopy across five
bands between 0.95 and 2.5 m. This paper describes the sequence of
processing steps required for the spectro-photometric calibration of GPI
science data, and the necessary calibration files. Based on calibration
observations of the white dwarf HD 8049B we estimate that the systematic error
in spectra extracted from GPI observations is less than 5%. The flux ratio of
the occulted star and fiducial satellite spots within coronagraphic GPI
observations, required to estimate the magnitude difference between a target
and any resolved companions, was measured in the -band to be in laboratory measurements and using
on-sky observations. Laboratory measurements for the , , and
filters are also presented. The total throughput of GPI, Gemini South and the
atmosphere of the Earth was also measured in each photometric passband, with a
typical throughput in -band of 18% in the non-coronagraphic mode, with some
variation observed over the six-month period for which observations were
available. We also report ongoing development and improvement of the data cube
extraction algorithm.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figures. Proceedings of the SPIE, 9147-30
Search for Light Gluinos via the Spontaneous Appearance of pi+pi- Pairs with an 800 GeV/c Proton Beam at Fermilab
We searched for the appearance of pi+pi- pairs with invariant mass greater
than 648 MeV in a neutral beam. Such an observation could signify the decay of
a long-lived light neutral particle. We find no evidence for this decay. Our
null result severely constrains the existence of an R0 hadron, which is the
lightest bound state of a gluon and a light gluino, and thereby also the
possibility of a light gluino. Depending on the photino mass, we exclude the R0
in the mass and lifetime ranges of 1.2 -- 4.6 GeV and 2E-10 -- 7E-4 seconds,
respectively. (To Appear in Phys. Rev. Lett.)Comment: Documentstyle aps,epsfig,prl (revtex), 6 pages, 7 figure
Observation of light echoes around very young stars
The goal of the paper is to present new results on light echoes from young
stellar objects. Broad band CCD images were obtained over three months at
one-to-two week intervals for the field of NGC 6726, using the large
field-of-view remotely-operated telescope on top of Cerro Burek. We detected
scattered light echoes around two young, low-amplitude, irregular variable
stars. Observations revealed not just one, but multiple light echoes from
brightness pulses of the T Tauri star S CrA and the Herbig Ae/Be star R CrA.
Analysis of S CrA's recurring echoes suggests that the star is located 138 +/-
16 pc from Earth, making these the closest echoes ever detected. The
environment that scatters the stellar light from S CrA is compatible with an
incomplete dust shell or an inclined torus some 10,000 AU in radius and
containing M_{\sun} of dust. The cause of such
concentration at 10,000AU from the star is unknown. It could be the
remnant of the envelope from which the star formed, but the distance of the
cloud is remarkably similar to the nominal distance of the Oort cloud to the
Sun, leading us to also speculate that the dust (or ice) seen around S CrA
might have the same origin as the Solar System Oort cloud.Comment: A&A, in press Received: 16 March 2010 / Accepted: 01 June 201
Search for the Decay K_L -> pi^0 nu nubar using pi^0 -> e^+ e^- gamma
We report on a search for the decay K_L -> pi^0 nu nubar, carried out as a
part of E799-II, a rare K_L decay experiment at Fermilab. Within the Standard
Model, the K_L -> pi^0 nu nubar decay is dominated by direct CP violating
processes, and thus an observation of the decay implies confirmation of direct
CP violation. Due to theoretically clean calculations, a measurement of B(K_L
-> pi^0 nu nubar) is one of the best ways to determine the CKM parameter eta.
No events were observed, and we set an upper limit B(K_L -> pi^0 nu nubar) <
5.9 times 10^-7 at the 90% confidence level.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
A Measurement of the KL Charge Asymmetry
We present a measurement of the charge asymmetry in the mode based on 298 million analyzed decays. We measure a
value of , in good
agreement with previous measurements and 2.4 times more precise than the
current best published result. The result is used to place more stringent
limits on CPT and violation in the neutral kaon system.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review Letters, Dec 31, 2001. 4 pages, 4
figure
Observation of the Decay
We have observed the decay at the KTeV
experiment at Fermilab. This decay presents a formidable background to the
search for new physics in . The 1997 data yielded a
sample of 4 signal events, with an expected background of 0.155 0.081
events. The branching ratio is )
with
, consistent with a QED calculation
which predicts .Comment: See also the paper "Search for the Decay ", also by the KTeV collaboratio
Search for the Decay Kl -> pi0 e+ e-
We report on a search for the decay Kl -> pi0 e+ e- carried out by the
KTeV/E799 experiment at Fermilab. This decay is expected to have a significant
CP violating contribution and the measurement of its branching ratio could
support the CKM mechanism for CP violation or could point to new physics. Two
events were observed in the 1997 data with an expected background of 1.06
+-0.41 events, and we set an upper limit Br(Kl -> pi0 e+ e-) < 5.1 x 10^-10 at
the 90% confidence level.Comment: 13 pages, 2 figure
Search for the Decay
We report on a search for the decay \klpimumu carried out as a part of the
KTeV experiment at Fermilab. This decay is expected to have a significant
violating contribution and a direct measurement will either support the CKM
mechanism for CP violation or point to new physics. Two events were observed in
the 1997 data with an expected background of events, and we set
an upper limit \BR{\klpimumu} at the 90% confidence
level.Comment: See also "Observation of the Decay ", also by the KTeV collaboratio
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