The CHilean Automatic Supernova sEarch (CHASE)

The CHASE project started in 2007 with the aim of providing young southern supernovae (SNe) to the Carnegie Supernova Project (CSP) and Millennium Center for Supernova Studies (MCSS) follow-up programs. So far CHASE has discovered 33 SNe with an average of more than 2.5 SNe per month in 2008. In addition to the search we are carrying out a follow-up program targeting bright SNe. Our fully automated data reduction allows us to follow the evolution on the light curve in real time, triggering further observations if something potentially interesting is detectedComment: 4 pages, 2 figures, conference proceedin

Estudio de caso: Evaluación de impacto de la intervención del Proyecto INCOPA/ ADERS en Huánuco

El desafío de identificar y aprovechar nuevas oportunidades de mercado para los pequeños productores de papa peruana, articulándolos con otros actores de la cadena agro- alimentaria de este tubérculo, es asumido por el proyecto INCOPA – Promoción Competitiva de la Papa Peruana para Responder a Nuevas Oportunidades de Mercado1 – desde su origen en el año 2001. Este proyecto, que es financiado por la Agencia Suiza para la Cooperación y el Desarrollo (COSUDE) y coordinado por el Centro Internacional de la Papa (CIP), realizó en el año 2006 una evaluación de su segunda fase, en la cual se observaron algunos indicios sobre cambios positivos en cuanto a ingresos económicos y mejor relacionamiento con el mercado en las organizaciones y familias de productores participantes. Con el fin de complementar este estudio anterior, se decidió realizar un estudio de impacto para conocer la dimensión de estos y otros cambios en las familias de productores de una de sus sedes de operación, Huánuco, donde viene trabajando desde el año 2002, a través de su socio local ADERS. INCOPA y ADERS combinaron sus esfuerzos y capacidades en esta sede, en una intervención que no fue planificada del modo en que finalmente se implementó. Esta fue tomando forma en el camino, aprovechando la oportunidad que dio el proyecto PRO-PAPA, y bajo la influencia del Enfoque Participativo de Cadenas Productivas (EPCP), en pleno desarrollo durante la intervención. Se llegó a consolidar una forma de trabajar que tanto ADERS como INCOPA han sabido sacar provecho y extender a otros lugares

The Distance to SN 1999em from the Expanding Photosphere Method

We present optical and IR spectroscopy of the first two months of evolution of the Type II SN 1999em. We combine these data with high-quality optical/IR photometry beginning only three days after shock breakout, in order to study the performance of the ``Expanding Photosphere Method'' (EPM) in the determination of distances. With this purpose we develop a technique to measure accurate photospheric velocities by cross-correlating observed and model spectra. The application of this technique to SN 1999em shows that we can reach an average uncertainty of 11% in velocity from an individual spectrum. Our analysis shows that EPM is quite robust to the effects of dust. In particular, the distances derived from the VI filters change by only 7% when the adopted visual extinction in the host galaxy is varied by 0.45 mag. The superb time sampling of the BVIZJHK light-curves of SN 1999em permits us to study the internal consistency of EPM and test the dilution factors computed from atmosphere models for Type II plateau supernovae. We find that, in the first week since explosion, the EPM distances are up to 50% lower than the average, possibly due the presence of circumstellar material. Over the following 65 days, on the other hand, our tests lend strong credence to the atmosphere models, and confirm previous claims that EPM can produce consistent distances without having to craft specific models to each supernova. This is particularly true for the VI filters which yield distances with an internal consistency of 4%. From the whole set of BVIZJHK photometry, we obtain an average distance of 7.5+/-0.5 Mpc, where the quoted uncertainty (7%) is a conservative estimate of the internal precision of the method obtained from the analysis of the first 70 days of the supernova evolution.Comment: 68 pages, 15 tables, 22 figures, to appear in Ap

Optical Photometry of the Type Ia SN 1999ee and the Type Ib/c SN 1999ex in IC 5179

We present UBVRIz lightcurves of the Type Ia SN 1999ee and the Type Ib/c SN 1999ex, both located in the galaxy IC 5179. SN 1999ee has an extremely well sampled lightcurve spanning from 10 days before Bmax through 53 days after peak. Near maximum we find systematic differences ~0.05 mag in photometry measured with two different telescopes, even though the photometry is reduced to the same local standards around the supernova using the specific color terms for each instrumental system. We use models for our bandpasses and spectrophotometry of SN 1999ee to derive magnitude corrections (S-corrections) and remedy this problem. This exercise demonstrates the need of accurately characterizing the instrumental system before great photometric accuracies of Type Ia supernovae can be claimed. It also shows that this effect can have important astrophysical consequences since a small systematic shift of 0.02 mag in the B-V color can introduce a 0.08 mag error in the extinction corrected peak B magnitudes of a supernova and thus lead to biased cosmological parameters. The data for the Type Ib/c SN 1999ex present us with the first ever observed shock breakout of a supernova of this class. These observations show that shock breakout occurred 18 days before Bmax and support the idea that Type Ib/c supernovae are due to core collapse of massive stars rather than thermonuclear disruption of white dwarfs.Comment: 55 pages, 15 figures, accepted by the Astronomical Journa

Climate Change and invasibility of the Antarctic benthos

Benthic communities living in shallow-shelf habitats in Antarctica (<100-m depth) are archaic in their structure and function. Modern predators, including fast-moving, durophagous (skeleton-crushing) bony fish, sharks, and crabs, are rare or absent; slow-moving invertebrates are the top predators; and epifaunal suspension feeders dominate many soft substratum communities. Cooling temperatures beginning in the late Eocene excluded durophagous predators, ultimately resulting in the endemic living fauna and its unique food-web structure. Although the Southern Ocean is oceanographically isolated, the barriers to biological invasion are primarily physiological rather than geographic. Cold temperatures impose limits to performance that exclude modern predators. Global warming is now removing those physiological barriers, and crabs are reinvading Antarctica. As sea temperatures continue to rise, the invasion of durophagous predators will modernize the shelf benthos and erode the indigenous character of marine life in Antarctica

Optical and Infrared Photometry of the Nearby Type Ia Supernovae 1999ee, 2000bh, 2000ca, and 2001ba

We present near infrared photometry of the Type Ia supernova 1999ee; also, optical and infrared photometry of the Type Ia SNe 2000bh, 2000ca, and 2001ba. For SNe 1999ee and 2000bh we present the first-ever SN photometry at 1.035 microns (the Y-band). We present K-corrections which transform the infrared photometry in the observer's frame to the supernova rest frame. Using our infrared K-corrections and stretch factors derived from optical photometry, we construct JHK templates which can be used to determine the apparent magnitudes at maximum if one has some data in the window -12 to +10 d with respect to T(B_max). Following up previous work on the uniformity of V minus IR loci of Type Ia supernovae of mid-range decline rates, we present unreddened loci for slow decliners. We also discuss evidence for a continuous change of color at a given epoch as a function of decline rate.Comment: 53 pages, 14 figures, to be published in the March 2004 issue of the Astronomical Journa

One session of remote ischemic preconditioning does not improve vascular function in acute normobaric and chronic hypobaric hypoxia

Application of repeated short duration bouts of ischemia to the limbs, termed remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC), is a novel technique that may have protective effects on vascular function during hypoxic exposures. In separate parallel-design studies, at sea-level (SL; n=16), and after 8-12 days at high-altitude (HA; n=12; White Mountain, 3800m), participants underwent either a sham protocol or one session of 4x5 minutes of dual-thigh cuff occlusion with 5-minutes recovery. Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD; ultrasound), pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP; echocardiography), and internal carotid artery flow (ICA; ultrasound) were measured at SL in normoxia and isocapnic hypoxia [end-tidal PO (PETO ) maintained to 50mmHg], and during normal breathing at HA. The hypoxic ventilatory response (HVR) was measured at each location. All measures at SL and HA were obtained at baseline (BL), 1 hour, 24 hours, and 48 hours post-RIPC or sham. At SL, RIPC produced no changes in FMD, PASP, ICA flow, end-tidal gases or HVR in normoxia or hypoxia. At HA, although HVR increased 24 hours post RIPC compared to BL (2.05{plus minus}1.4 vs. 3.21{plus minus}1.2 L•min-1•%SaO2-1, p<0.01), there were no significant differences in FMD, PASP, ICA flow, resting end-tidal gases. Accordingly, a single session of RIPC is insufficient to evoke changes in peripheral, pulmonary, and cerebral vascular function in healthy adults. Although chemosensitivity may increase following RIPC at HA, this did not confer any vascular changes. The utility of a single RIPC session seems unremarkable during acute and chronic hypoxia

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London