169 research outputs found
The reliability, validity and clinical utility of the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation – ten-item version (CORE-10) in post-acute patients with stroke
Objective: To explore the validity, reliability, and clinical utility of the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation – ten-item version (CORE-10: a ten-item questionnaire designed to measure psychological distress) in a stroke inpatient sample and calculate reliable and clinically significant change scores. Setting: A post-acute stroke rehabilitation ward in the East of England. Participants: A total of 53 patients with stroke, capable of completing the CORE-10 as part of their routine clinical assessment. Exclusion criteria included moderate to severe aphasia and/or alexia. Main measures: Alongside the CORE-10, the Patient Health Questionnaire – 9, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Centre for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale, and the Beck Depression Inventory Second Edition were used as concurrent measures. Results: To assess reliability, the internal consistency and test–retest reliability of the CORE-10 were calculated. The average number of days between CORE-10 test–retest administrations was 2.84 (SD = 3.12, Mdn = 1). Concurrent validity was assessed by examining correlations between the CORE-10 and comparable measures, and clinical utility was assessed using the criteria of Burton and Tyson (2015). The internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) for the CORE-10 was .80, and test–retest reliability interclass correlation coefficient was .81. Total score correlations between the CORE-10 and concurrent measures ranged from r = .49 to r = .89. The CORE-10 achieved the maximum score (i.e. 6/6) on criteria for clinical utility. Calculations demonstrated a reliable change index of nine points and a clinically significant change cut point of 12 on the CORE-10. Percentiles for CORE-10 total scores are reported. Conclusions: This study provides preliminary support for the CORE-10 as a valid and reliable measure that has clinical utility for screening distress in inpatients with stroke
BLAST Observations of the South Ecliptic Pole field: Number Counts and Source Catalogs
We present results from a survey carried out by the Balloon-borne Large
Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST) on a 9 deg^2 field near the South
Ecliptic Pole at 250, 350 and 500 {\mu}m. The median 1{\sigma} depths of the
maps are 36.0, 26.4 and 18.4 mJy, respectively. We apply a statistical method
to estimate submillimeter galaxy number counts and find that they are in
agreement with other measurements made with the same instrument and with the
more recent results from Herschel/SPIRE. Thanks to the large field observed,
the new measurements give additional constraints on the bright end of the
counts. We identify 132, 89 and 61 sources with S/N>4 at 250, 350, 500 {\mu}m,
respectively and provide a multi-wavelength combined catalog of 232 sources
with a significance >4{\sigma} in at least one BLAST band. The new BLAST maps
and catalogs are available publicly at http://blastexperiment.info.Comment: 25 pages, 6 figures, 4 tables, Accepted by ApJS. Maps and catalogs
available at http://blastexperiment.info
Submillimeter Number Counts From Statistical Analysis of BLAST Maps
We describe the application of a statistical method to estimate submillimeter
galaxy number counts from confusion limited observations by the Balloon-borne
Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST). Our method is based on a
maximum likelihood fit to the pixel histogram, sometimes called 'P(D)', an
approach which has been used before to probe faint counts, the difference being
that here we advocate its use even for sources with relatively high
signal-to-noise ratios. This method has an advantage over standard techniques
of source extraction in providing an unbiased estimate of the counts from the
bright end down to flux densities well below the confusion limit. We
specifically analyse BLAST observations of a roughly 10 sq. deg. map centered
on the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey South (GOODS-S) field. We
provide estimates of number counts at the three BLAST wavelengths, 250, 350,
and 500 microns; instead of counting sources in flux bins we estimate the
counts at several flux density nodes connected with power-laws. We observe a
generally very steep slope for the counts of about -3.7 at 250 microns and -4.5
at 350 and 500 microns, over the range ~0.02-0.5 Jy, breaking to a shallower
slope below about 0.015 Jy at all three wavelengths. We also describe how to
estimate the uncertainties and correlations in this method so that the results
can be used for model-fitting. This method should be well-suited for analysis
of data from the Herschel satellite.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal; see associated
data and other papers at http://blastexperiment.info
A Bright Submillimeter Source in the Bullet Cluster (1E0657--56) Field Detected with BLAST
We present the 250, 350, and 500 micron detection of bright submillimeter
emission in the direction of the Bullet Cluster measured by the Balloon-borne
Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST). The 500 micron centroid is
coincident with an AzTEC 1.1 mm point-source detection at a position close to
the peak lensing magnification produced by the cluster. However, the 250 micron
and 350 micron centroids are elongated and shifted toward the south with a
differential shift between bands that cannot be explained by pointing
uncertainties. We therefore conclude that the BLAST detection is likely
contaminated by emission from foreground galaxies associated with the Bullet
Cluster. The submillimeter redshift estimate based on 250-1100 micron
photometry at the position of the AzTEC source is z_phot = 2.9 (+0.6 -0.3),
consistent with the infrared color redshift estimation of the most likely IRAC
counterpart. These flux densities indicate an apparent far-infrared luminosity
of L_FIR = 2E13 Lsun. When the amplification due to the gravitational lensing
of the cluster is removed, the intrinsic far-infrared luminosity of the source
is found to be L_FIR <= 10^12 Lsun, consistent with typical luminous infrared
galaxies.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Maps are
available at http://blastexperiment.info
Over half of the far-infrared background light comes from galaxies at z >= 1.2
Submillimetre surveys during the past decade have discovered a population of
luminous, high-redshift, dusty starburst galaxies. In the redshift range 1 <= z
<= 4, these massive submillimetre galaxies go through a phase characterized by
optically obscured star formation at rates several hundred times that in the
local Universe. Half of the starlight from this highly energetic process is
absorbed and thermally re-radiated by clouds of dust at temperatures near 30 K
with spectral energy distributions peaking at 100 microns in the rest frame. At
1 <= z <= 4, the peak is redshifted to wavelengths between 200 and 500 microns.
The cumulative effect of these galaxies is to yield extragalactic optical and
far-infrared backgrounds with approximately equal energy densities. Since the
initial detection of the far-infrared background (FIRB), higher-resolution
experiments have sought to decompose this integrated radiation into the
contributions from individual galaxies. Here we report the results of an
extragalactic survey at 250, 350 and 500 microns. Combining our results at 500
microns with those at 24 microns, we determine that all of the FIRB comes from
individual galaxies, with galaxies at z >= 1.2 accounting for 70 per cent of
it. As expected, at the longest wavelengths the signal is dominated by
ultraluminous galaxies at z > 1.Comment: Accepted to Nature. Maps available at http://blastexperiment.info
The balloon-borne large-aperture submillimeter telescope for polarimetry: BLAST-Pol
The Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope for Polarimetry
(BLAST-Pol) is a suborbital mapping experiment designed to study the role
played by magnetic fields in the star formation process. BLAST-Pol is the
reconstructed BLAST telescope, with the addition of linear polarization
capability. Using a 1.8 m Cassegrain telescope, BLAST-Pol images the sky onto a
focal plane that consists of 280 bolometric detectors in three arrays,
observing simultaneously at 250, 350, and 500 um. The diffraction-limited
optical system provides a resolution of 30'' at 250 um. The polarimeter
consists of photolithographic polarizing grids mounted in front of each
bolometer/detector array. A rotating 4 K achromatic half-wave plate provides
additional polarization modulation. With its unprecedented mapping speed and
resolution, BLAST-Pol will produce three-color polarization maps for a large
number of molecular clouds. The instrument provides a much needed bridge in
spatial coverage between larger-scale, coarse resolution surveys and narrow
field of view, and high resolution observations of substructure within
molecular cloud cores. The first science flight will be from McMurdo Station,
Antarctica in December 2010.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures Submitted to SPIE Astronomical Telescopes and
Instrumentation Conference 201
BLAST: Correlations in the Cosmic Far-Infrared Background at 250, 350, and 500 microns Reveal Clustering of Star-Forming Galaxies
We detect correlations in the cosmic far-infrared background due to the
clustering of star-forming galaxies in observations made with the Balloon-borne
Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope, BLAST, at 250, 350, and 500 microns. We
perform jackknife and other tests to confirm the reality of the signal. The
measured correlations are well fit by a power law over scales of 5-25
arcminutes, with Delta I/I = 15.1 +/- 1.7%. We adopt a specific model for
submillimeter sources in which the contribution to clustering comes from
sources in the redshift ranges 1.3 <= z <= 2.2, 1.5 <= z <= 2.7, and 1.7 <= z
<= 3.2, at 250, 350, and 500 microns, respectively. With these distributions,
our measurement of the power spectrum, P(k_theta), corresponds to linear bias
parameters, b = 3.8 +/- 0.6, 3.9 +/- 0.6 and 4.4 +/- 0.7, respectively. We
further interpret the results in terms of the halo model, and find that at the
smaller scales, the simplest halo model fails to fit our results. One way to
improve the fit is to increase the radius at which dark matter halos are
artificially truncated in the model, which is equivalent to having some
star-forming galaxies at z >= 1 located in the outskirts of groups and
clusters. In the context of this model we find a minimum halo mass required to
host a galaxy is log (M_min / M_sun) = 11.5 (+0.4/-0.1), and we derive
effective biases $b_eff = 2.2 +/- 0.2, 2.4 +/- 0.2, and 2.6 +/- 0.2, and
effective masses log (M_eff / M_sun) = 12.9 +/- 0.3, 12.8 +/- 0.2, and 12.7 +/-
0.2, at 250, 350, and 500 microns, corresponding to spatial correlation lengths
of r_0 = 4.9, 5.0, and 5.2 +/- 0.7 h^-1 Mpc, respectively. Finally, we discuss
implications for clustering measurement strategies with Herschel and Planck.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Maps and other
results available at http://blastexperiment.info
BLAST05: Power Spectra of Bright Galactic Cirrus at Submillimeter Wavelengths
We report multi-wavelength power spectra of diffuse Galactic dust emission
from BLAST observations at 250, 350, and 500 microns in Galactic Plane fields
in Cygnus X and Aquila. These submillimeter power spectra statistically
quantify the self-similar structure observable over a broad range of scales and
can be used to assess the cirrus noise which limits the detection of faint
point sources. The advent of submillimeter surveys with the Herschel Space
Observatory makes the wavelength dependence a matter of interest. We show that
the observed relative amplitudes of the power spectra can be related through a
spectral energy distribution (SED). Fitting a simple modified black body to
this SED, we find the dust temperature in Cygnus X to be 19.9 +/- 1.3 K and in
the Aquila region 16.9 +/- 0.7 K. Our empirical estimates provide important new
insight into the substantial cirrus noise that will be encountered in
forthcoming observations.Comment: Submitted to the Astrophysical Journal. Maps and other data are
available at http://blastexperiment.info
BLAST: The Mass Function, Lifetimes, and Properties of Intermediate Mass Cores from a 50 Square Degree Submillimeter Galactic Survey in Vela (l = ~265)
We present first results from an unbiased 50 deg^2 submillimeter Galactic
survey at 250, 350, and 500 micron from the 2006 flight of the Balloon-borne
Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST). The map has resolution ranging
from 36 arcsec to 60 arcsec in the three submillimeter bands spanning the
thermal emission peak of cold starless cores. We determine the temperature,
luminosity, and mass of more than one thousand compact sources in a range of
evolutionary stages and an unbiased statistical characterization of the
population. From comparison with C^(18)O data, we find the dust opacity per gas
mass, kappa r = 0.16 cm^2 g^(-1) at 250 micron, for cold clumps. We find that
2% of the mass of the molecular gas over this diverse region is in cores colder
than 14 K, and that the mass function for these cold cores is consistent with a
power law with index alpha = -3.22 +/- 0.14 over the mass range 14 M_sun < M <
80 M_sun. Additionally, we infer a mass-dependent cold core lifetime of t_c(M)
= 4E6 (M/20 M_sun)^(-0.9) years - longer than what has been found in previous
surveys of either low or high mass cores, and significantly longer than free
fall or likely turbulent decay times. This implies some form of non-thermal
support for cold cores during this early stage of star formation.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Maps available
at http://blastexperiment.info
Deconvolution of Images from BLAST 2005: Insight into the K3-50 and IC 5146 Star-Forming Regions
We present an implementation of the iterative flux-conserving Lucy-Richardson
(L-R) deconvolution method of image restoration for maps produced by the
Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope (BLAST). We have analyzed
its performance and convergence extensively through simulations and
cross-correlations of the deconvolved images with available highresolution
maps. We present new science results from two BLAST surveys, in the Galactic
regions K3-50 and IC 5146, further demonstrating the benefits of performing
this deconvolution.
We have resolved three clumps within a radius of 4.'5 inside the star-forming
molecular cloud containing K3-50. Combining the well-resolved dust emission map
with available multi-wavelength data, we have constrained the Spectral Energy
Distributions (SEDs) of five clumps to obtain masses (M), bolometric
luminosities (L), and dust temperatures (T). The L-M diagram has been used as a
diagnostic tool to estimate the evolutionary stages of the clumps. There are
close relationships between dust continuum emission and both 21-cm radio
continuum and 12CO molecular line emission.
The restored extended large scale structures in the Northern Streamer of IC
5146 have a strong spatial correlation with both SCUBA and high resolution
extinction images. A dust temperature of 12 K has been obtained for the central
filament. We report physical properties of ten compact sources, including six
associated protostars, by fitting SEDs to multi-wavelength data. All of these
compact sources are still quite cold (typical temperature below ~ 16 K) and are
above the critical Bonner-Ebert mass. They have associated low-power Young
Stellar Objects (YSOs). Further evidence for starless clumps has also been
found in the IC 5146 region.Comment: 13 pages, 12 Figures, 3 Table
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