6,068 research outputs found
An Extended Star Formation History for the Galactic Center from Hubble Space Telescope/NICMOS Observations
We present Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Near-Infrared Camera and Multiobject
Spectrometer (NICMOS) observations as evidence that continuous star formation
has created much of the central stellar cusp of the Galaxy. The data are the
deepest ever obtained for a Galactic Center (GC) population, being 50%
complete for \mnk, or initial stellar masses 2 \Msun. We use
Geneva and Padova stellar evolution models to produce synthetic luminosity
functions for burst and continuous star formation scenarios, finding that the
observations are fit best by continuous star formation at a rate that is
consistent with the recent star formation activity that produced the three
massive young clusters in the central 50 \pc. Further, it is not possible to
fit the observations with ancient burst models, such as would be appropriate
for an old population like that in Baade's Window or NGC6528
Are there excellent service firms, and do they perform well?
While the construct of business excellence, as defined in the very successful hook by Peters and Waterman, had a marked influence on managers in the 1980s, and in all likelihood in the 1990s, it met with some scepticism in academic circles. This was because the construct as conceptualised did not meet the more rigorous requirements of reliability and validity established by critical researchers, and also because many of the so-called excellent firms later showed themselves to be rather ordinary performers at best. Recently, an apparently successful instrument to measure the original Peters and Waterman excellence construct named EXCEL has been developed by Shama et al., in the United States. In this article the authors describe the use of EXCEL in a sample of large UK service firms and comment on its reliability and validity. Links are also established between excellence and overrall business performance in these firms.peer-reviewe
User cost in oil production
The assumption of an initial fixed mineral stock is superfluous and wrong. User cost (resource rent) in mineral production is the present value of expected increases in development cost. It can be measured as the difference between in-ground market value and development cost, or estimated approximately from current development cost. For private or national-income accounting, mineral reserves should be treated as a renewable inventory. Adjustment for change in inventory may increase or decrease the income of a mineral producer, but an increase is more likely.Supported by the National Science Foundation. Supported by the Center for Energy Policy Research of the M.I.T. Energy Laboratory
Classification as a Factor in the Scientific Evolution of Entrepreneurship
Taxonomy, or the establishment of meaningful classification schemes, is examined as a major stage in the development of disciplines. The role of classification in the advancement of entrepreneurship is established Approaches to developing classification schemes, and criteria for assessing them, are discussed. Key classification schemes in five different areas within entrepreneurship are evaluated Shortcomings are noted, and priorities are established for taxonomic development. A framework is proposed for developing an integrative classification for the discipline of entrepreneurship
HST/NICMOS Observations of Massive Stellar Clusters Near the Galactic Center
We report Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Near-infrared Camera and Multi-object
Spectrometer (NICMOS) observations of the Arches and Quintuplet clusters, two
extraordinary young clusters near the Galactic Center. For the first time, we
have identified main sequence stars in the Galactic Center with initial masses
well below 10 Msun. We present the first determination of the initial mass
function (IMF) for any population in the Galactic Center, finding an IMF slope
which is significantly more positive (Gamma approx -0.65) than the average for
young clusters elsewhere in the Galaxy (Gamma approx -1.4). The apparent
turnoffs in the color-magnitude diagrams suggest cluster ages which are
consistent with the ages implied by the mixture of spectral types in the
clusters; we find tau(age) approx 2+/-1 Myr for the Arches cluster, and
tau(age) approx 4+/-1 Myr for the Quintuplet. We estimate total cluster masses
by adding the masses of observed stars down to the 50% completeness limit, and
then extrapolating down to a lower mass cutoff of 1 Msun. Using this method, we
find > 10^4 Msun for the total mass of the Arches cluster. Such a determination
for the Quintuplet cluster is complicated by the double-valued mass-magnitude
relationship for clusters with ages > 3 Myr. We find a lower limit of 6300 Msun
for the total cluster mass, and suggest a best estimate of twice this value
which accounts for the outlying members of the cluster. Both clusters have
masses which place them as the two most massive clusters in the Galaxy.Comment: accepted by ApJ higher resolution versions of figures 1 and 2 can be
found at: ftp://quintup.astro.ucla.edu/nicmos1
Casting Alloys: the Materials and "the Clinical Effects"
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67282/2/10.1177_08959374920060011101.pd
Overcoming the liability of poorness: disadvantage, fragility, and the poverty entrepreneur
All entrepreneurs must overcome the liabilities of newness and smallness as they attempt to launch and grow a new venture. However, those in poverty face an even greater challenge due to a concept we introduce, known as the liability of poorness, which centers on literacy gaps, a scarcity mindset, intense non-business pressures, and the lack of a safety net. Each of these components of the liability of poorness contributes to the disadvantage and fragility of the enterprises confronting the poor. Implications of this fragility for venture dynamics as well as how some poverty entrepreneurs overcome this liability are explored. Research priorities are discussed for ongoing work on the liability of poorness
Ultrastructural elastic deformation of cortical bone tissue probed by NIR Raman spectroscopy
Raman spectroscopy is used as a probe of ultrastructural (molecular) changes in both the mineral and matrix (protein and glycoprotein, predominantly type I collagen) components of murine cortical bone as it responds to loading in the elastic regime. At the ultrastructural level, crystal structure and protein secondary structure distort as the tissue is loaded. These structural changes are followed as perturbations to tissue spectra. We load tissue in a custom-made dynamic mechanical tester that fits on the stage of a Raman microprobe and can accept hydrated tissue specimens. As the specimen is loaded in tension and/or compression, the shifts in mineral P-O4v 1 and relative band heights in the Amide III band envelope are followed with the microprobe. Average load is measured using a load cell while the tissue is loaded under displacement control. Changes occur in both the mineral and matrix components of bone as a response to elastic deformation. We propose that the mineral apatitic crystal lattice is deformed by movement of calcium and other ions. The matrix is proposed to respond by deformation of the collagen backbone. Raman microspectroscopy shows that bone mineral is not a passive contributor to tissue strength. The mineral active response to loading may function as a local energy storage and dissipation mechanism, thus helping to protect tissue from catastrophic damage
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