2,232 research outputs found
The local space density of dwarf galaxies
We estimate the luminosity function of field galaxies over a range of ten
magnitudes (-22 < M_{B_J} < -12 for H_0 = 100 km/s/Mpc) by counting the number
of faint APM galaxies around Stromlo-APM redshift survey galaxies at known
distance. The faint end of the luminosity function rises steeply at M_{B_J}
\approx -15, implying that the space density of dwarf galaxies is at least two
times larger than predicted by a Schechter function with flat faint-end slope.
Such a high abundance of dwarf galaxies at low redshift can help explain the
observed number counts and redshift distributions of faint galaxies without
invoking exotic models for galaxy evolution.Comment: 20 pages, 5 included postscript figures, uses AAS LaTex macros.
Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Two figures and
associated discussion added; results and conclusions unchange
The Apm Galaxy Survey IV: Redshifts of Rich Clusters of Galaxies
We present redshifts for a sample of 229 clusters selected from the APM
Galaxy Survey, 189 of which are new redshift determinations. Non-cluster galaxy
redshifts have been rejected from this sample using a likelihood ratio test
based on the projected and apparent magnitude distributions of the cluster
fields. We test this technique using cluster fields in which redshifts have
been measured for more than 10 galaxies. Our redshift sample is nearly complete
and has been used in previous papers to study the three dimensional
distribution of rich clusters of galaxies. 157 of the clusters in our sample
are listed in the Abell catalogue or supplement, and the remainder are new
cluster identifications.Comment: 15 pages UUencoded compressed postscript. Submitted to Monthly
Notices of the R.A.
Clustering of the Diffuse Infrared Light from the COBE DIRBE maps. III. Power spectrum analysis and excess isotropic component of fluctuations
The cosmic infrared background (CIB) radiation is the cosmic repository for
energy release throughout the history of the universe. Using the all-sky data
from the COBE DIRBE instrument at wavelengths 1.25 - 100 mic we attempt to
measure the CIB fluctuations. In the near-IR, foreground emission is dominated
by small scale structure due to stars in the Galaxy. There we find a strong
correlation between the amplitude of the fluctuations and Galactic latitude
after removing bright foreground stars. Using data outside the Galactic plane
() and away from the center () we extrapolate
the amplitude of the fluctuations to cosec. We find a positive intercept
of nW/m2/sr at 1.25, 2.2,3.5 and 4.9 mic
respectively, where the errors are the range of 92% confidence limits. For
color subtracted maps between band 1 and 2 we find the isotropic part of the
fluctuations at nW/m2/sr. Based on detailed numerical and
analytic models, this residual is not likely to originate from the Galaxy, our
clipping algorithm, or instrumental noise. We demonstrate that the residuals
from the fit used in the extrapolation are distributed isotropically and
suggest that this extra variance may result from structure in the CIB. For
2\deg< \theta < 15^\deg, a power-spectrum analysis yields firm upper limits
of (\theta/5^\deg) \times\delta F_{\rm rms} (\theta) < 6, 2.5, 0.8, 0.5
nW/m2/sr at 1.25, 2.2, 3.5 and 4.9 mic respectively. From 10-100 mic, the upper
limits <1 nW/m2/sr.Comment: Ap.J., in press. 69 pages including 24 fig
Two-Dimensional Topology of the 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey
We study the topology of the publicly available data released by the 2dFGRS.
The 2dFGRS data contains over 100,000 galaxy redshifts with a magnitude limit
of b_J=19.45 and is the largest such survey to date. The data lie over a wide
range of right ascension (75 degree strips) but only within a narrow range of
declination (10 degree and 15 degree strips). This allows measurements of the
two-dimensional genus to be made.
The NGP displays a slight meatball shift topology, whereas the SGP displays a
bubble like topology. The current SGP data also have a slightly higher genus
amplitude. In both cases, a slight excess of overdense regions are found over
underdense regions. We assess the significance of these features using mock
catalogs drawn from the Virgo Consortium's Hubble Volume LCDM z=0 simulation.
We find that differences between the NGP and SGP genus curves are only
significant at the 1 sigma level. The average genus curve of the 2dFGRS agrees
well with that extracted from the LCDM mock catalogs.
We compare the amplitude of the 2dFGRS genus curve to the amplitude of a
Gaussian random field with the same power spectrum as the 2dFGRS and find,
contradictory to results for the 3D genus of other samples, that the amplitude
of the GRF genus curve is slightly lower than that of the 2dFGRS. This could be
due to a a feature in the current data set or the 2D genus may not be as
sensitive as the 3D genus to non-linear clustering due to the averaging over
the thickness of the slice in 2D. (Abridged)Comment: Submitted to ApJ A version with Figure 1 in higher resolution can be
obtained from http://www.physics.drexel.edu/~hoyle
Age-Based Differences in Strategy Use in Choice Tasks
We incorporated behavioral and computational modeling techniques to examine age-based differences in strategy use in two four-choice decision-making tasks. Healthy older (aged 60–82 years) and younger adults (aged 18–23 years) performed one of two decision-making tasks that differed in the degree to which rewards for each option depended on the choices made on previous trials. In the choice-independent task rewards for each choice were not affected by the sequence of previous choices that had been made. In contrast, in the choice-dependent task rewards for each option were based on how often each option had been chosen in the past. We compared the fits of a model that assumes the use of a win-stay–lose-shift (WSLS) heuristic to make decisions, to the fits of a reinforcement-learning (RL) model that compared expected reward values for each option to make decisions. Younger adults were best fit by the RL model, while older adults showed significantly more evidence of being best fit by the WSLS heuristic model. This led older adults to perform worse than younger adults in the choice-independent task, but better in the choice-dependent task. These results coincide with previous work in our labs that also found better performance for older adults in choice-dependent tasks (Worthy et al., 2011), and the present results suggest that qualitative age-based differences in the strategies used in choice tasks may underlie older adults’ advantage in choice-dependent tasks. We discuss possible factors behind these differences such as neurobiological changes associated with aging, and increased use of heuristics by older adults
Modeling Amyloid Beta Peptide Insertion into Lipid Bilayers
Inspired by recent suggestions that the Alzheimer's amyloid beta peptide (A
beta) can insert into cell membranes and form harmful ion channels, we model
insertion of the 40 and 42 residue forms of the peptide into cell membranes
using a Monte Carlo code which is specific at the amino acid level. We examine
insertion of the regular A-beta peptide as well as mutants causing familial
Alzheimer's disease, and find that all but one of the mutants change the
insertion behavior by causing the peptide to spend more simulation steps in
only one leaflet of the bilayer. We also find that A-beta 42, because of the
extra hydrophobic residues relative to A-beta 40, is more likely to adopt this
conformation than A-beta 40 in both wild-type and mutant forms. We argue
qualitatively why these effects happen. Here, we present our results and
develop the hypothesis that this partial insertion increases the probability of
harmful channel formation. This hypothesis can partly explain why these
mutations are neurotoxic simply due to peptide insertion behavior. We further
apply this model to various artificial A-beta mutants which have been examined
experimentally, and offer testable experimental predictions contrasting the
roles of aggregation and insertion with regard to toxicity of A-beta mutants.
These can be used through further experiments to test our hypothesis.Comment: 14 pages; 8 figures; 2nd revisio
A Local Hubble Bubble from SNe Ia?
We analyze the monopole in the peculiar velocities of 44 Type Ia supernovae
(SNe Ia) to test for a local void. The sample extends from 20 to 300 Mpc/h,
with distances, deduced from light-curve shapes, accurate to ~6%. Assuming
Omega_m=1 and Omega_lambda=0, the most significant deviation we find from the
Hubble law is an outwards flow of (6.6+/-2.2)% inside a sphere of radius 70
Mpc/h as would be produced by a void of ~20% underdensity surrounded by a dense
shell. This shell roughly coincides with the local Great Walls. Monte Carlo
analyses, using Gaussian errors or bootstrap resampling, show the probability
for chance occurrence of this result out of a pure Hubble flow to be ~2%. The
monopole could be contaminated by higher moments of the velocity field,
especially a quadrupole, which are not properly probed by the current limited
sky coverage. The void would be less significant if Omega_m is low and
Omega_lambda is high. It would be more significant if one outlier is removed
from the sample, or if the size of the void is constrained a-priori. This
putative void is not in significant conflict with any of the standard
cosmological scenarios. It suggests that the Hubble constant as determined
within 70 Mpc/h could be overestimated by ~6% and the local value of Omega may
be underestimated by ~20%. While the present evidence for a local void is
marginal in this data set, the analysis shows that the accumulation of SNe Ia
distances will soon provide useful constraints on elusive and important aspects
of regional cosmic dynamics.Comment: 21 pages, 3 figures. Slightly revised version. To appear in ApJ, 503,
Aug. 20, 199
- …