The ERE of the "Red Rectangle" revisited

We present in this paper high signal-to-noise long-slit optical spectra of the Extended Red Emission (ERE) in the "Red Rectangle" (RR) nebula. These spectra, obtained at different positions in the nebula, reveal an extremely complex emission pattern on top of the broad ERE continuum. It is well known that three features converge at large distance from the central object, in wavelength and profile to the diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) at 5797, 5849.8 and 6614 ang., (e.g. Sarre et al., 1995). In this paper we give a detailed inventory of all spectral subfeatures observed in the 5550--6850 ang. spectral range. Thanks to our high S/N spectra, we propose 5 new features in the RR that can be associated with DIBs. For the 5550--6200 ang. spectral range our slit position was on top of the NE spike of the X shaped nebula. A detailed description of the spatial profile-changes is given of the strongest features revealing that even far out in the nebula at 24 arcsec from the central star, there remains a small shift in wavelength of 1 respectively 2 ang between the ERE subfeatures and the DIB wavelengths of 5797.11 and 5849.78 ang.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysic

On the polarisation of the Red Rectangle optical emission bands

The origin of the narrow optical emission bands seen toward the Red Rectangle is not yet understood. In this paper we investigate further the proposal that these are due to luminescence of large carbonaceous molecules. Polarised signals of several percent could be expected from certain asymmetric molecular rotators. The ESPaDOnS echelle spectrograph mounted at the CFHT was used to obtain high-resolution optical spectropolarimetric data of the Red Rectangle nebular emission. The RRBs at 5800, 5850, and 6615 Angstrom are detected in spectra of the nebular emission 7" and 13" North-East from the central star. The 5826 and 6635 Angstrom RRB are detected only at the position nearest to the central star. For both positions the Stokes Q and U spectra show no unambiguous polarisation signal in any of the RRBs. We derive an upper limit of 0.02% line polarisation for these RRBs. A tentative feature with peak polarisation of 0.05% is seen for the 5800 RRB at 7" offset. However, the Null spectra suggest that this may be an instrumental artifact. The lack of a clear polarisation signal for the five detected RRBs implies that, if the emission is due to luminescence of complex organics, these gas-phase molecular carriers are likely to have a high degree of symmetry, as they do not exhibit a Q-branch in their rotational profile, although this may be modified by statistical effects.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, accepted for A&

Linear/circular spectropolarimetry of diffuse interstellar bands

Context. The identification of the carriers of diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) remains one of the long-standing mysteries in astronomy. The detection of a polarisation signal in a DIB profile can be used to distinguish between a dust or gas-phase carrier. The polarisation profile can give additional information on the grain or molecular properties of the absorber. In order to detect and measure the linear and circular polarisation of the DIBs we observed reddened lines of sight showing continuum polarisation. For this study we selected two stars HD 197770 and HD 194279. We used high-resolution (R~64.000) spectropolarimetry in the wavelength range from 3700 to 10480 Angstrom with the ESPaDOnS echelle spectrograph mounted at the CFHT. Results. High S/N and high resolution Stokes V (circular), Q and U (linear) spectra were obtained. We constrained upper limits by a factor of 10 for previously observed DIBs. Furthermore, we analysed ~30 additional DIBs for which no spectropolarimetry data has been obtained before. This included the 9577 A DIB and the 8621 A DIB. Conclusions. The lack of polarisation in 45 DIB profiles suggests that none of the absorption lines is induced by a grain-type carrier. The strict upper limits, less than ~0.01%, derived for the observed lines-of-sight imply that if DIBs are due to gas-phase molecules these carriers have polarisation efficiencies which are at least 6 times, and up to 300 times, smaller than those predicted for grain-related carriers.Comment: 6 pages + 13 pages online material, submitted to A&

Sequence structure emission in The Red Rectangle Bands

We report high resolution (R~37,000) integral field spectroscopy of the central region (r<14arcsec) of the Red Rectangle nebula surrounding HD44179. The observations focus on the 5800A emission feature, the bluest of the yellow/red emission bands in the Red Rectangle. We propose that the emission feature, widely believed to be a molecular emission band, is not a molecular rotation contour, but a vibrational contour caused by overlapping sequence bands from a molecule with an extended chromophore. We model the feature as arising in a Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) with 45-100 carbon atoms.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ. A version of the paper with full resolution figures is available at: http://www.aao.gov.au/local/www/rgs/Sequence-Structure

Varhaiskasvatusta vai -säilytystä?:varhaiskasvatuksen laatu varhaiskasvatuslain ja opettajien työn näkökulmasta

Tiivistelmä. Tutkielmamme aiheena olivat varhaiskasvatuksen laatutekijät varhaiskasvatuslain (540/2018) ja opettajan näkökulmasta. Kiinnostuimme aiheesta varhaiskasvatusta koskevan yhteiskunnallisen keskustelun ja omien kokemustemme myötä; varhaiskasvatus ei aina yllä tavoitteisiinsa ja varhaiskasvatuksen opettajista on pulaa monessa paikassa. Kuitenkin samaan aikaan tiedostetaan laadukkaan varhaiskasvatuksen merkitys lasten hyvinvointia ja oppimista edistävänä tekijänä. Kyselymme kohdistettiin varhaiskasvatuksen opettajille, koska he ovat vastuussa ryhmän toteuttamasta pedagogiikasta. Tavoitteenamme oli selvittää varhaiskasvatuksen opettajana toimivien ajatuksia varhaiskasvatuslain edellyttämästä laadukkaan varhaiskasvatuksen toteutumisesta. Tutkimuskysymykset olivat: 1. Mitkä laatutekijät vaikuttavat varhaiskasvatuslain tavoitteiden toteutumiseen varhaiskasvatuksen opettajan työssä? 2. Mitkä tekijät edistävät tai estävät varhaiskasvatuslain tavoitteiden toteutumista varhaiskasvatuksen opettajan työssä? Varhaiskasvatuksen laatu on kaikkien osatekijöidensä summa. Se koostuu useista pienistä asioista, jotka kaikki vaikuttavat toisiinsa. Kaikki laadun osatekijät rakentuvat ihmisten välisessä vuorovaikutuksessa. Sekä laatu, että varhaiskasvatus ovat käsitteinä aikaan ja paikkaan sidottuja, sillä molempiin vaikuttavat ympäröivän yhteiskunnan arvot ja normit sekä määrittelijän näkökulma. Näin ollen myös laadukkaan varhaiskasvatuksen määritelmä on sidottu siihen kontekstiin, jossa sitä määritellään. Tämän takia tutkielmamme on sidottu suomalaiseen tämänhetkiseen varhaiskasvatukseen. Varhaiskasvatuksen laatua on selvittänyt aikaisemmin kattavasti kansallinen koulutuksen arviointikeskus (Karvi, 2018), joka on luonut varhaiskasvatukselle laatuindikaattorit. Toteutimme tutkielman laadullisena kyselytutkimuksena, jonka aineiston analysoimme teoriaohjaavalla aineistoanalyysilla. Analyysia ohjaavana teoriana toimivat varhaiskasvatuksen laatuindikaattorit. Kyselyyn vastasi 31 opettajana toimivaa, joista 21 täytti varhaiskasvatuksen opettajan kelpoisuusvaatimukset. Tutkielman keskeinen tulos oli se, että varhaiskasvatusta toteutetaan laadultaan hyvin vaihtelevasti. Eniten laatua estäviä tekijöitä löytyi laadun rakennetekijöistä, joista eniten negatiivisia mainintoja saivat liian vähäiset resurssit, henkilöstön poissaolot ja niistä johtuva sijaisten tarve sekä arjen häiriötekijät. Laatua edistävät tekijät puolestaan painottuivat laadun prosessitekijöihin, joista eniten positiivisia mainintoja saivat opettajan ja tiimin ammattitaito sekä monialainen yhteistyö. Toisin sanoen toteutetun pedagogiikan ajateltiin olevan laadukasta, mutta rakenteet sen sijaan koettiin vähemmän laadukkaiksi

Mediating punitiveness: understanding public attitudes towards work-related fatality cases

This paper concerns an empirical investigation into public attitudes towards work-related fatality cases, where organizational offenders cause the death of workers or members of the public. This issue is particularly relevant following the introduction of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 into UK law. Here, as elsewhere, the use of criminal law against companies reflects governmental concerns over public confidence in the law’s ability to regulate risk. The empirical findings demonstrate that high levels of public concern over these cases do not translate into punitive attitudes. Such cases are viewed rationally and constructively, and lead to instrumental rather than purely expressive enforcement preferences

Detections of Diffuse Interstellar Bands in the SDSS Low-resolution Spectra

Diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) have been discovered for almost a century, but their nature remains one of the most challenging problems in astronomical spectroscopy. Most recent work to identify and investigate the properties and carriers of DIBs concentrates on high-resolution spectroscopy of selected sight-lines. In this paper, we report detections of DIBs in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) low-resolution spectra of a large sample of Galactic stars. Using a template subtraction method, we have successfully identified the DIBs $\lambda$$\lambda$5780, 6283 in the SDSS spectra of a sample of about 2,000 stars and measured their strengths and radial velocities. The sample is by far the largest ever assembled. The targets span a large range of reddening, E(B-V) ~ 0.2 -- 1.0, and are distributed over a large sky area and involve a wide range of stellar parameters (effective temperature, surface gravity and metallicity), confirming that the carriers of DIBs are ubiquitous in the diffuse interstellar medium (ISM). The sample is used to investigate relations between strengths of DIBs and magnitudes of line-of-sight extinction, yielding results (i.e., EW(5780)= 0.61 x E(B-V) and EW(6283) = 1.26 x E(B-V)) consistent with previous studies. DIB features have also been detected in the commissioning spectra of the Guoshoujing Telescope (LAMOST) of resolving power similar to that of SDSS. Detections of DIBs towards hundreds of thousands of stars are expected from the on-going and up-coming large scale spectroscopic surveys such as RAVE, SDSS III and LAMOST, particularly from the LAMOST Digital Sky Survey of the Galactic Anti-center (DSS-GAC). Such a huge database will provide an unprecedented opportunity to study the demographical distribution and nature of DIBs as well as using DIBs to probe the distribution and properties of the ISM and the dust extinction.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA

Resveratrol Reverses Endothelial Colony-Forming Cell Dysfunction in Adulthood in a Rat Model of Intrauterine Growth Restriction.

Individuals born after intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) are at risk of developing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Endothelial dysfunction plays a role in the pathogenesis of CVDs; and endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFCs) have been identified as key factors in endothelial repair. In a rat model of IUGR induced by a maternal low-protein diet, we observed an altered functionality of ECFCs in 6-month-old males, which was associated with arterial hypertension related to oxidative stress and stress-induced premature senescence (SIPS). Resveratrol (R), a polyphenol compound, was found to improve cardiovascular function. In this study, we investigated whether resveratrol could reverse ECFC dysfunctions in the IUGR group. ECFCs were isolated from IUGR and control (CTRL) males and were treated with R (1 μM) or dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) for 48 h. In the IUGR-ECFCs, R increased proliferation (5'-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation, p &lt; 0.001) and improved capillary-like outgrowth sprout formation (in Matrigel), nitric oxide (NO) production (fluorescent dye, p &lt; 0.01), and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression (immunofluorescence, p &lt; 0.001). In addition, R decreased oxidative stress with reduced superoxide anion production (fluorescent dye, p &lt; 0.001); increased Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase expression (Western blot, p &lt; 0.05); and reversed SIPS with decreased beta-galactosidase activity (p &lt; 0.001), and decreased p16 &lt;sup&gt;ink4a&lt;/sup&gt; (p &lt; 0.05) and increased Sirtuin-1 (p &lt; 0.05) expressions (Western blot). No effects of R were observed in the CTRL-ECFCs. These results suggest that R reverses long-term ECFC dysfunctions related to IUGR