636 research outputs found
Distances from Surface Brightness Fluctuations
The practice of measuring galaxy distances from their spatial fluctuations in
surface brightness is now a decade old. While several past articles have
included some review material, this is the first intended as a comprehensive
review of the surface brightness fluctuation (SBF) method. The method is
conceptually quite simple, the basic idea being that nearby (but unresolved)
star clusters and galaxies appear "bumpy", while more distant ones appear
smooth. This is quantified via a measurement of the amplitude of the Poisson
fluctuations in the number of unresolved stars encompassed by a CCD pixel
(usually in an image of an elliptical galaxy). Here, we describe the technical
details and difficulties involved in making SBF measurements, discuss
theoretical and empirical calibrations of the method, and review the numerous
applications of the method from the ground and space, in the optical and
near-infrared. We include discussions of stellar population effects and the
"universality" of the SBF standard candle. A final section considers the future
of the method.Comment: Invited review article to appear in: `Post-Hipparcos Cosmic Candles',
A. Heck & F. Caputo (Eds), Kluwer Academic Publ., Dordrecht, in press. 22
pages, including 3 postscript figures; uses Kluwer's crckapb.sty LaTex macro
file, enclose
Clues from nearby galaxies to a better theory of cosmic evolution
The great advances in the network of cosmological tests show that the
relativistic Big Bang theory is a good description of our expanding universe.
But the properties of nearby galaxies that can be observed in greatest detail
suggest a still better theory would more rapidly gather matter into galaxies
and groups of galaxies. This happens in theoretical ideas now under discussion.Comment: published in Natur
Long-term outcome of displaced radial neck fractures in adulthood: 16–21 year follow-up of 5 patients treated with radial head excision
Background There have been no reports on the long-term outcome of radial neck Mason type IIIb fractures in adults
Strong Ultraviolet Pulse From a Newborn Type Ia Supernova
Type Ia supernovae are destructive explosions of carbon oxygen white dwarfs.
Although they are used empirically to measure cosmological distances, the
nature of their progenitors remains mysterious, One of the leading progenitor
models, called the single degenerate channel, hypothesizes that a white dwarf
accretes matter from a companion star and the resulting increase in its central
pressure and temperature ignites thermonuclear explosion. Here we report
observations of strong but declining ultraviolet emission from a Type Ia
supernova within four days of its explosion. This emission is consistent with
theoretical expectations of collision between material ejected by the supernova
and a companion star, and therefore provides evidence that some Type Ia
supernovae arise from the single degenerate channel.Comment: Accepted for publication on the 21 May 2015 issue of Natur
Database-driven High-Throughput Calculations and Machine Learning Models for Materials Design
This paper reviews past and ongoing efforts in using high-throughput ab-inito
calculations in combination with machine learning models for materials design.
The primary focus is on bulk materials, i.e., materials with fixed, ordered,
crystal structures, although the methods naturally extend into more complicated
configurations. Efficient and robust computational methods, computational
power, and reliable methods for automated database-driven high-throughput
computation are combined to produce high-quality data sets. This data can be
used to train machine learning models for predicting the stability of bulk
materials and their properties. The underlying computational methods and the
tools for automated calculations are discussed in some detail. Various machine
learning models and, in particular, descriptors for general use in materials
design are also covered.Comment: 19 pages, 2 figure
Lead exposure in adult males in urban Transvaal Province, South Africa during the apartheid era
Human exposure to lead is a substantial public health hazard worldwide and is particularly problematic in the Republic of South Africa given the country’s late cessation of leaded petrol. Lead exposure is associated with a number of serious health issues and diseases including developmental and cognitive deficiency, hypertension and heart disease. Understanding the distribution of lifetime lead burden within a given population is critical for reducing exposure rates. Femoral bone from 101 deceased adult males living in urban Transvaal Province (now Gauteng Province), South Africa between 1960 and 1998 were analyzed for lead concentration by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). Of the 72 black and 29 white individuals sampled, chronic lead exposure was apparent in nearly all individuals. White males showed significantly higher median bone lead concentration (ME = 10.04 µg·g−1), than black males (ME = 3.80 µg·g−1) despite higher socioeconomic status. Bone lead concentration covaries significantly, though weakly, with individual age. There was no significant temporal trend in bone lead concentration. These results indicate that long-term low to moderate lead exposure is the historical norm among South African males. Unexpectedly, this research indicates that white males in the sample population were more highly exposed to lead
Dental Occlusion in a Split Amazon Indigenous Population: Genetics Prevails over Environment
Background: Studies examining human and nonhuman primates have supported the hypothesis that the recent increase in
the occurrence of misalignment of teeth and/or incorrect relation of dental arches, named dental malocclusion, is mainly
attributed to the availability of a more processed diet and the reduced need for powerful masticatory action. For the first
time on live human populations, genetic and tooth wear influences on occlusal variation were examined in a split
indigenous population. The Arara-Iriri people are descendants of a single couple expelled from a larger village. In the
resultant village, expansion occurred through the mating of close relatives, resulting in marked genetic cohesion with
substantial genetic differences.
Methodology/Principal Findings: Dental malocclusion, tooth wear and inbreeding coefficient were evaluated. The sample
examined was composed of 176 individuals from both villages. Prevalence Ratio and descriptive differences in the
outcomes frequency for each developmental stage of the dentition were considered. Statistical differences between the
villages were examined using the chi-square test or Fisher’s exact statistic. Tooth wear and the inbreeding coefficient (F)
between the villages was tested with Mann-Whitney statistics. All the statistics were performed using two-tailed distribution
at p#0.05. The coefficient inbreeding (F) confirmed the frequent incestuous unions among the Arara-Iriri indigenous group.
Despite the tooth wear similarities, we found a striking difference in occlusal patterns between the two Arara villages. In the
original village, dental malocclusion was present in about one third of the population; whilst in the resultant village, the
occurrence was almost doubled. Furthermore, the morphological characteristics of malocclusion were strongly different
between the groups.
Conclusions/Significance: Our findings downplay the widespread influence of tooth wear, a direct evidence of what an
individual ate in the past, on occlusal variation of living human populations. They also suggest that genetics plays the most
important role on dental malocclusion etiology
Mite community composition across a European transect and its relationships to variation in other components of soil biodiversity
The sustainable use of soils requires the protection of soil biodiversity because of its importance in the delivery of ecosystems services. However, no effective indicator exists which would allow assessment of the current state of biodiversity and is sensitive to change. This study, which is a component of the EcoFINDERS project, examines the use of mites (Acari) as a possible biological indicator of soil community composition. Thirty-six sites were sampled across 10 European countries spanning four bio-climatic zones (Alpine, Atlantic, Continental and Mediterranean) and 3 land uses (arable, grassland and forestry) for both biotic and abiotic variables. Results show a significant effect of bio-climatic zone on mite communities; in particular, the Mediterranean region had a rather distinct composition. Land use type significantly affected mite community composition and there was a distinct association with forestry. Cross-taxon congruence among soil taxa was variable and generally weak. Procrustes analysis showed that there was little similarity between the patterns of variation in mite community composition and those of other taxonomic groups (Collembola, Enchytraeidae, Nematoda and microbes). Mite and Collembola communities had the strongest correlation ( r= 0.4316, p</p
A review of elliptical and disc galaxy structure, and modern scaling laws
A century ago, in 1911 and 1913, Plummer and then Reynolds introduced their
models to describe the radial distribution of stars in `nebulae'. This article
reviews the progress since then, providing both an historical perspective and a
contemporary review of the stellar structure of bulges, discs and elliptical
galaxies. The quantification of galaxy nuclei, such as central mass deficits
and excess nuclear light, plus the structure of dark matter halos and cD galaxy
envelopes, are discussed. Issues pertaining to spiral galaxies including dust,
bulge-to-disc ratios, bulgeless galaxies, bars and the identification of
pseudobulges are also reviewed. An array of modern scaling relations involving
sizes, luminosities, surface brightnesses and stellar concentrations are
presented, many of which are shown to be curved. These 'redshift zero'
relations not only quantify the behavior and nature of galaxies in the Universe
today, but are the modern benchmark for evolutionary studies of galaxies,
whether based on observations, N-body-simulations or semi-analytical modelling.
For example, it is shown that some of the recently discovered compact
elliptical galaxies at 1.5 < z < 2.5 may be the bulges of modern disc galaxies.Comment: Condensed version (due to Contract) of an invited review article to
appear in "Planets, Stars and Stellar
Systems"(www.springer.com/astronomy/book/978-90-481-8818-5). 500+ references
incl. many somewhat forgotten, pioneer papers. Original submission to
Springer: 07-June-201
Genetic Dissection of the Canq1 Locus Governing Variation in Extent of the Collateral Circulation
<div><h3>Background</h3><p>Native (pre-existing) collaterals are arteriole-to-arteriole anastomoses that interconnect adjacent arterial trees and serve as endogenous bypass vessels that limit tissue injury in ischemic stroke, myocardial infarction, coronary and peripheral artery disease. Their extent (number and diameter) varies widely among mouse strains and healthy humans. We previously identified a major quantitative trait locus on chromosome 7 (<em>Canq1</em>, LOD = 29) responsible for 37% of the heritable variation in collateral extent between C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice. We sought to identify candidate genes in <em>Canq1</em> responsible for collateral variation in the cerebral pial circulation, a tissue whose strain-dependent variation is shared by similar variation in other tissues.</p> <h3>Methods and Findings</h3><p>Collateral extent was intermediate in a recombinant inbred line that splits <em>Canq1</em> between the C57BL/6 and BALB/c strains. Phenotyping and SNP-mapping of an expanded panel of twenty-one informative inbred strains narrowed the <em>Canq1</em> locus, and genome-wide linkage analysis of a SWRxSJL-F2 cross confirmed its haplotype structure. Collateral extent, infarct volume after cerebral artery occlusion, bleeding time, and re-bleeding time did not differ in knockout mice for two vascular-related genes located in <em>Canq1</em>, <em>IL4ra</em> and <em>Itgal</em>. Transcript abundance of 6 out of 116 genes within the 95% confidence interval of <em>Canq1</em> were differentially expressed >2-fold (p-value<0.05÷150) in the cortical <em>pia mater</em> from C57BL/6 and BALB/c embryos at E14.5, E16.5 and E18.5 time-points that span the period of collateral formation.</p> <h3>Conclusions</h3><p>These findings refine the <em>Canq1</em> locus and identify several genes as high-priority candidates important in specifying native collateral formation and its wide variation.</p> </div
- …