2,412 research outputs found
MR-Guided Interventions for Prostate Cancer
Cataloged from PDF version of article.MR imaging is currently the most effective diagnostic imaging tool for visualizing the anatomy and pathology of the prostate gland. Currently, the practicality and cost effectiveness of transrectal ultrasound dominates image guidance for needle-based prostate interventions. Challenges to the integration of diagnostic and interventional MR imaging have included the lack of real-time feedback, the complexity of the imaging technique, and limited access to the perineum within the geometric constraints of the MR imaging scanner. Two basic strategies have been explored and clinically demonstrated in the literature: (1) coregistration of previously acquired diagnostic MR imaging to interventional TRUS or open scanner MR images, and (2) stereotactic needle interventions within conventional diagnostic scanners using careful patient positioning or the aid of simple manipulators. Currently, researchers are developing techniques that render MR imaging the method of choice for the direct guidance of many procedures. This article focuses on needle-based interventions for prostate cancer, including biopsy, brachytherapy, and thermal therapy. With rapid progress in biologic imaging of the prostate gland, the authors believe that MR imaging guidance will play an increasing role in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. © 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved
Where is the warm H2 ? A search for H2 emission from disks around Herbig Ae/Be stars
Mid-IR emission lines of H2 are useful probes to determine the mass of warm
gas present in the surface layers of disks. Numerous observations of Herbig
Ae/Be stars (HAeBes) have been performed, but only 2 detections of mid-IR H2
toward HD97048 and AB Aur have been reported. We aim at tracing the warm gas in
the disks of 5 HAeBes with gas-rich environments and physical characteristics
close to those of AB Aur and HD97048, to discuss whether the detections toward
these 2 objects are suggestive of peculiar conditions for the gas. We search
for the H2 S(1) emission line at 17.035 \mu\m with VISIR, and complemented by
CH molecule observations with UVES. We gather the H2 measurements from the
literature to put the new results in context and search for a correlation with
some disk properties. None of the 5 VISIR targets shows evidence for H2
emission. From the 3sigma upper limits on the integrated line fluxes we
constrain the amount of optically thin warm gas to be less than 1.4 M_Jup in
the disk surface layers. There are now 20 HAeBes observed with VISIR and TEXES
instruments to search for warm H2, but only two detections (HD97048 and AB Aur)
were made so far. We find that the two stars with detected warm H2 show at the
same time high 30/13 \mu\m flux ratios and large PAH line fluxes at 8.6 and
11.3 \mu\m compared to the bulk of observed HAeBes and have emission CO lines
detected at 4.7 \mu\m. We detect the CH 4300.3A absorption line toward both
HD97048 and AB Aur with UVES. The CH to H2 abundance ratios that this would
imply if it were to arise from the same component as well as the radial
velocity of the CH lines both suggest that CH arises from a surrounding
envelope, while the detected H2 would reside in the disk. The two detections of
the S(1) line in the disks of HD97048 and AB Aur suggest either peculiar
physical conditions or a particular stage of evolution.Comment: accepted for publication in A&A : 10 pages, 6 figure
When to transfuse: Red blood cell and platelet transfusion thresholds in clinical practice
Blood component transfusion is a frequently prescribed intervention in healthcare that depends on the availability of a limited and expensive resource. The transfusion of blood products may be life-saving, but it is not without risk. Society guidelines and clinical trials guide transfusion decisions regarding transfusion thresholds, as well as the appropriateness of prophylactic v. therapeutic transfusion strategies. This review provides a practical and evidence-informed approach to the transfusion of red blood cells and platelets in commonly encountered clinical settings
Non-stationary dynamo & magnetospheric accretion processes of the classical T Tauri star V2129 Oph
We report here the first results of a multi-wavelength campaign focussing on
magnetospheric accretion processes of the classical TTauri star (cTTS)
V2129Oph. In this paper, we present spectropolarimetric observations collected
in 2009 July with ESPaDOnS at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT).
Circularly polarised Zeeman signatures are clearly detected, both in
photospheric absorption and accretion-powered emission lines, from time-series
of which we reconstruct new maps of the magnetic field, photospheric brightness
and accretion-powered emission at the surface of V2129Oph using our newest
tomographic imaging tool - to be compared with those derived from our old 2005
June data set, reanalyzed in the exact same way.
We find that in 2009 July, V2129Oph hosts octupolar & dipolar field
components of about 2.1 & 0.9kG respectively, both tilted by about 20deg with
respect to the rotation axis; we conclude that the large-scale magnetic
topology changed significantly since 2005 June (when the octupole and dipole
components were about 1.5 and 3 times weaker respectively), demonstrating that
the field of V2129Oph is generated by a non-stationary dynamo. We also show
that V2129Oph features a dark photospheric spot and a localised area of
accretion-powered emission, both close to the main surface magnetic region
(hosting fields of up to about 4kG in 2009 July). We finally obtain that the
surface shear of V2129Oph is about half as strong as solar.
From the fluxes of accretion-powered emission lines, we estimate that the
observed average logarithmic accretion rate (in Msun/yr) at the surface of
V2129Oph is -9.2+-0.3 at both epochs, peaking at -9.0 at magnetic maximum. It
implies in particular that the radius at which the magnetic field of V2129Oph
truncates the inner accretion disc is 0.93x and 0.50x the corotation radius in
2009 July and 2005 June respectively.Comment: MNRAS in press - 16 pages, 9 figure
Observations of Reduced Electron Gyroscale Fluctuations in National Spherical Torus Experiment H-Mode Plasmas with Large E X B Flow Shear
Electron gyroscale fluctuation measurements in National Spherical Torus Experiment H-mode plasmas with large toroidal rotation reveal fluctuations consistent with electron temperature gradient (ETG) turbulence. Large toroidal rotation in National Spherical Torus Experiment plasmas with neutral beam injection generates ExB flow shear rates comparable to ETG linear growth rates. Enhanced fluctuations occur when the electron temperature gradient is marginally stable with respect to the ETG linear critical gradient. Fluctuation amplitudes decrease when the ExB flow shear rate exceeds ETG linear growth rates. The observations indicate that ExB flow shear can be an effective suppression mechanism for ETG turbulence.X1129sciescopu
Effect of kinetic resonances on the stability of Resistive Wall Mode in Reversed Field Pinch
The kinetic effects, due to the mode resonance with thermal particle drift
motions in the reversed field pinch (RFP) plasmas, are numerically investigated
for the stability of the resistive wall mode, using a non-perturbative
MHD-kinetic hybrid formulation. The kinetic effects are generally found too
weak to substantially change the mode growth rate, or the stability margin,
re-enforcing the fact that the ideal MHD model is rather adequate for
describing the RWM physics in RFP experiments.Comment: Submitted to: Plasma Phys. Control. Fusio
ECONOMIC IMPACTS RESULTING FROM CO-FIRING BIOMASS FEEDSTOCKS IN SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES COAL-FIRED PLANTS
Economic impacts of using biomass in Southeast United States coal-fired plants are estimated using a county-level biomass database; ORCED, a dynamic electricity distribution model that estimates feedstock value; ORIBAS, a GIS model that estimates feedstock transportation costs; and IMPLAN, an input-output model that determines the impacts of co-firing on economic activity.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,
Low temperature (down to 450° C) annealed TiAl contacts on N-type gallium nitride characterized by differential scanning calorimetry
International audienceThis work reports on Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) measurements performed on Ti-Al metallic layers stacks deposited on n+-GaN. The aim is to get better understanding of the mechanisms leading to ohmic contact formation during the annealing stage. Two exothermic peaks were found, one below 500°C and the other one around 660°C. They can be respectively attributed to Al3Ti and Al2Ti compounds formation. The locations of these peaks provide clear evidence of solid-solid reac-tions. Lowest contact resistance is well correlated with the presence of Al3Ti compound, corresponding to Al(200nm)/Ti(50nm) stoichiometric ratio. Subsequently, Al(200 nm)Ti(50 nm) stacks on n+-GaN were annealed from 400°C to 650°C. Specific Contact Resistivity (SCR) values stay in the mid 10-5 Ω.cm² range for annealing temperatures between 450°C and 650°C. Such low-temperature annealed contacts on n+-GaN may open new device processing routes, simpler and cheaper, in which Ohmic and Schottky contacts are annealed together
Recommended from our members
Mapping The Interstellar Medium With Near-Infrared Diffuse Interstellar Bands
We map the distribution and properties of the Milky Way's interstellar medium as traced by diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) detected in near-infrared stellar spectra from the SDSS-III/APOGEE survey. Focusing exclusively on the strongest DIB in the H band, at lambda similar to 1.527 mu m, we present a projected map of the DIB absorption field in the Galactic plane, using a set of about 60,000 sightlines that reach up to 15 kpc from the Sun and probe up to 30 mag of visual extinction. The strength of this DIB is linearly correlated with dust reddening over three orders of magnitude in both DIB equivalent width (Wpm) and extinction, with a power law index of 1.01 +/- 0.01, a mean relationship of W-DIB/A(v) = 0.1 angstrom mag(-1) and a dispersion of similar to 0.05 angstrom mag(-1) at extinctions characteristic of the Galactic midplane. These properties establish this DIB as a powerful, independent probe of dust extinction over a wide range of Av values. The subset of about 14,000 robustly detected DIB features have a W-DIB distribution that follows an exponential trend. We empirically determine the intrinsic rest wavelength of this transition to be lambda(0) = 15 272.42 angstrom and use it to calculate absolute radial velocities of the carrier, which display the kinematical signature of the rotating Galactic disk. We probe the DIB carrier distribution in three dimensions and show that it can be characterized by an exponential disk model with a scale height of about 100 pc and a scale length of about 5 kpc. Finally, we show that the DIB distribution also traces large-scale Galactic structures, including the Galactic long bar and the warp of the outer disk.NSF Astronomy & Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship AST-1203017NSF AST-1109665Alfred P. Sloan FoundationNational Science FoundationU.S. Department of Energy Office of ScienceUniversity of ArizonaBrazilian Participation GroupBrookhaven National LaboratoryUniversity of CambridgeCarnegie Mellon UniversityUniversity of FloridaFrench Participation GroupGerman Participation GroupHarvard UniversityInstituto de Astrofisica de CanariasMichigan State/Notre Dame/JINA Participation GroupJohns Hopkins UniversityLawrence Berkeley National LaboratoryMax Planck Institute for AstrophysicsMax Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial PhysicsNew Mexico State UniversityNew York UniversityOhio State UniversityPennsylvania State UniversityUniversity of PortsmouthPrinceton UniversitySpanish Participation GroupUniversity of TokyoUniversity of UtahVanderbilt UniversityUniversity of VirginiaUniversity of WashingtonYale UniversitySpanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness AYA-2011-27754McDonald Observator
- …