87 research outputs found
M87: A Misaligned BL LAC?
The nuclear region of M87 was observed with the Faint Object Spectrograph
(FOS) on the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) at 6 epochs, spanning 18 months,
after the HST image quality was improved with the deployment of the corrective
optics (COSTAR) in December 1993. From the FOS target acquisition data, we have
established that the flux from the optical nucleus of M87 varies by a factor ~2
on time scales of ~2.5 months and by as much as 25% over 3 weeks, and remains
unchanged (<= 2.5%) on time scales of ~1 day. The changes occur in an
unresolved central region <= 5 pc in diameter, with the physical size of the
emitting region limited by the observed time scales to a few hundred
gravitational radii. The featureless continuum spectrum becomes bluer as it
brightens while emission lines remain unchanged. This variability combined with
the observations of the continuum spectral shape, strong relativistic boosting
and the detection of significant superluminal motions in the jet, strongly
suggest that M87 belongs to the class of BL Lac objects but is viewed at an
angle too large to reveal the classical BL Lac properties.Comment: 12 pages, 3 Postscript figure
Physical Properties of Young Stellar Populations in 24 Starburst Galaxies Observed with FUSE
We presents the main physical properties of very young stellar populations
seen with FUSE in 24 individual starbursts. These characteristics have been
obtained using the evolutionary spectral synthesis technique in the
far-ultraviolet range with the LavalSB code. For each starburst, quantitative
values for age, metallicity, initial mass function slope, stellar mass, and
internal extinction have been obtained and discussed in details. Limits of the
code have been tested. One main conclusion is that most starbursts (and
probably all of them) cannot be represented by any continuous star formation
burst in the far-ultraviolet. Also, quantitative values of various optical
diagnostics related to these stellar populations have been predicted.
Underlying stellar populations, dominated by B-type stars, have been detected
in NGC 1140, NGC 4449, and possibly NGC 3991. We characterized the young
stellar populations of less than 5 Myr in Seyfert 2 nuclei.Comment: 24 pages including figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA
Hemangiopericytomas of the spine: case report and review of the literature
We describe a rare case of a primary intracranial meningeal hemangiopericytoma (HPC) with late metastasis to the cervical spine. A 36-year-old woman had a left occipital lesion that was histopathologically identified as HPC. Fourteen years after resection, the tumor recurred and was treated with radiotherapy. Three years later, CT imaging showed a large mass in the liver consistent with metastatic HPC, and MRI of the cervical spine showed an extensive lesion of the C3 vertebral body. The patient underwent C3 corpectomy with en-bloc tumor removal and follow-up radiation with no local recurrence or other spinal metastasis for the following 4 years. Regardless of the subtype of spinal HPC, complete surgical removal and radiotherapy appear to be treatment of choice
Expression Profiling of a Genetic Animal Model of Depression Reveals Novel Molecular Pathways Underlying Depressive-Like Behaviours
The Flinders model is a validated genetic rat model of depression that exhibits a number of behavioural, neurochemical and pharmacological features consistent with those observed in human depression.In this study we have used genome-wide microarray expression profiling of the hippocampus and prefrontal/frontal cortex of Flinders Depression Sensitive (FSL) and control Flinders Depression Resistant (FRL) lines to understand molecular basis for the differences between the two lines. We profiled two independent cohorts of Flinders animals derived from the same colony six months apart, each cohort statistically powered to allow independent as well as combined analysis. Using this approach, we were able to validate using real-time-PCR a core set of gene expression differences that showed statistical significance in each of the temporally distinct cohorts, representing consistently maintained features of the model. Small but statistically significant increases were confirmed for cholinergic (chrm2, chrna7) and serotonergic receptors (Htr1a, Htr2a) in FSL rats consistent with known neurochemical changes in the model. Much larger gene changes were validated in a number of novel genes as exemplified by TMEM176A, which showed 35-fold enrichment in the cortex and 30-fold enrichment in hippocampus of FRL animals relative to FSL.These data provide significant insights into the molecular differences underlying the Flinders model, and have potential relevance to broader depression research
The James Webb Space Telescope Mission
Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies,
expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling
for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least .
With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000
people realized that vision as the James Webb Space Telescope. A
generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of
the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the
scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000
team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image
quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief
history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing
program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite
detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space
Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure
Management of nystagmus in children: A review of the literature and current practice in UK specialist services
Nystagmus is an eye movement disorder characterised by abnormal, involuntary rhythmic oscillations of one or both eyes, initiated by a slow phase. It is not uncommon in the UK and regularly seen in paediatric ophthalmology and adult general/strabismus clinics. In some cases, it occurs in isolation, and in others, it occurs as part of a multisystem disorder, severe visual impairment or neurological disorder. Similarly, in some cases, visual acuity can be normal and in others can be severely degraded. Furthermore, the impact on vision goes well beyond static acuity alone, is rarely measured and may vary on a minute-to-minute, day-to-day or month-to-month basis. For these reasons, management of children with nystagmus in the UK is varied, and patients report hugely different experiences and investigations. In this review, we hope to shine a light on the current management of children with nystagmus across five specialist centres in the UK in order to present, for the first time, a consensus on investigation and clinical management
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