1,707 research outputs found
OPserver: interactive online-computations of opacities and radiative accelerations
Codes to compute mean opacities and radiative accelerations for arbitrary
chemical mixtures using the Opacity Project recently revised data have been
restructured in a client--server architecture and transcribed as a subroutine
library. This implementation increases efficiency in stellar modelling where
element stratification due to diffusion processes is depth dependent, and thus
requires repeated fast opacity reestimates. Three user modes are provided to
fit different computing environments, namely a web browser, a local workstation
and a distributed grid.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur
Near-Infrared Spectroscopy of 0.4<z<1.0 CFRS Galaxies: Oxygen Abundances, SFRs and Dust
Using new J-band VLT-ISAAC and Keck-NIRSPEC spectroscopy, we have measured
Halpha and [NII] line fluxes for 0.47<z<0.92 CFRS galaxies which have [OII],
Hbeta and [OIII]a line fluxes available from optical spectroscopy, to
investigate how the properties of the star forming gas in galaxies evolve with
redshift. We derive the extinction and oxygen abundances for the sample using a
method based on a set of ionisation parameter and oxygen abundance diagnostics,
simultaneously fitting the [OII], Hbeta,[OIII], Halpha, and [NII] line fluxes.
The individual reddening measurements allow us to accurately correct the
Halpha-based star formation rate (SFR) estimates for extinction. Our most
salient conclusions are: a) in all 30 CFRS galaxies the source of gas
ionisation is not due to AGN activity; b) we find a range of 0<AV<3, suggesting
that it is important to determine the extinction for every single galaxy in
order to reliably measure SFRs and oxygen abundances in high redshift galaxies;
c) high values of [NII]/Halpha >0.1 for most (but not all) of the CFRS galaxies
indicate that they lie on the high-metallicity branch of the R23 calibration;
d) about one third of the 0.47<z<0.92 CFRS galaxies in our sample have lower
metallicities than local galaxies with similar luminosities and star formation
rates; e) comparison with a chemical evolution model indicates that these low
metallicity galaxies are unlikely to be the progenitors of metal-poor dwarf
galaxies at z~0.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa
Closed-form solutions of the Schroedinger equation for a class of smoothed Coulomb potentials
An infinite family of closed-form solutions is exhibited for the Schroedinger
equation for the potential . Evidence is
presented for an approximate dynamical symmetry for large values of the angular
momentum .Comment: 13 pages LaTeX, uses included Institute of Physics style files, 3
PostScript figures. In press at J. Phys. B: At. Mol. Opt. Phys. (1997
Risk factors for failure of outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy (OPAT) in infective endocarditis
Objectives:
To identify risk factors for failure of outpatient antibiotic therapy (OPAT) in infective endocarditis (IE).
Patients and methods:
We identified IE cases managed at a single centre over 12 years from a prospectively maintained database. âOPAT failureâ was defined as unplanned readmission or antibiotic switch due to adverse drug reaction or antibiotic resistance. We analysed patient and disease-related risk factors for OPAT failure by univariate and multivariate logistic regression. We also retrospectively collected follow-up data on adverse disease outcome (defined as IE-related death or relapse) and performed KaplanâMeier survival analysis up to 36 months following OPAT.
Results:
We identified 80 episodes of OPAT in IE. Failure occurred in 25/80 episodes (31.3%). On multivariate analysis, cardiac or renal failure [pooled OR 7.39 (95% CI 1.84â29.66), Pâ=â0.005] and teicoplanin therapy [OR 8.69 (95% CI 2.01â37.47), Pâ=â0.004] were independently associated with increased OPAT failure. OPAT failure with teicoplanin occurred despite therapeutic plasma levels. OPAT failure predicted adverse disease outcome up to 36 months (Pâ=â0.016 log-rank test).
Conclusions:
These data caution against selecting patients with endocarditis for OPAT in the presence of cardiac or renal failure and suggest teicoplanin therapy may be associated with suboptimal OPAT outcomes. Alternative regimens to teicoplanin in the OPAT setting should be further investigated
The Ha Luminosity Function and Star Formation Rate at z\sim 0.2
We have measured the Ha+[N II] fluxes of the I-selected Canada-France
Redshift Survey (CFRS) galaxies lying at a redshift z below 0.3, and hence
derived the Ha luminosity function. The magnitude limits of the CFRS mean that
only the galaxies with M(B) > -21 mag were observed at these redshifts. We
obtained a total Ha luminosity density of at least 10^{39.44\pm 0.04}
erg/s/Mpc^{3} at a mean z=0.2 for galaxies with rest-fame EW(Ha+[N II]) > 10
Angs. This is twice the value found in the local universe by Gallego et al.
1995. Our Ha star formation rate, derived from Madau (1997) is higher than the
UV observations at same z, implying a UV dust extinction of about 1 mag. We
found a strong correlation between the Ha luminosity and the absolute magnitude
in the B-band: M(B(AB)) = 46.7 - 1.6 log L(Ha). This work will serve as a basis
of future studies of Ha luminosity distributions measured from
optically-selected spectroscopic surveys of the distant universe, and it will
provide a better understanding of the physical processes responsible for the
observed galaxy evolution.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ, 14 pages, LaTeX (macro aas2pp4.sty),
6 figure
ortho-Substituent effect on the crystal packing and solid state speciation of aromatic C-nitroso compounds
A New Look At Carbon Abundances In Planetary Nebulae. III. DDDM1, IC 3568, IC4593, NGC 6210, NGC 6720, NGC 6826, & NGC 7009
This paper is the third in a series reporting on a study of carbon abundances
in a carefully chosen sample of planetary nebulae representing a large range in
progenitor mass and metallicity. We make use of the IUE Final Archive database
containing consistently-reduced spectra to measure line strengths of C III]
1909 along with numerous other UV lines for the planetary nebulae DDDM1, IC
3568, IC 4593, NGC 6210, NGC 6720, NGC 6826, & NGC 7009. We combine the IUE
data with line strengths from optical spectra obtained specifically to match
the IUE slit positions as closely as possible, to determine values for the
abundance ratios He/H, O/H, C/O, N/O, and Ne/O. The ratio of C III] 1909/C II
4267 is found to be effective for merging UV and optical spectra when He II
1640/4686 is unavailable. Our abundance determination method includes a 5-level
program whose results are fine-tuned by corrections derived from detailed
photoionization models constrained by the same set of emission lines. All
objects appear to have subsolar levels of O/H, and all but one show N/O levels
above solar. In addition, the seven planetary nebulae span a broad range in C/O
values. We infer that many of our objects are matter bounded, and thus the
standard ionization correction factor for N/O may be inappropriate for these
PNe. Finally, we estimate C/O using both collisionally-excited and
recombination lines associated with C+2 and find the well established result
that abundances from recombination lines usually exceed those from
collisionally-excited lines by several times.Comment: 36 pages, 7 tables, 2 figures, latex. Tables and figures supplied as
two separate postscript files. Accepted for publication in Ap
New HST Observations of the Halo Gas of NGC 3067: Limits on the Extragalactic Ionizing Background at Low Redshift and the Lyman Continuum Escape Fraction
We present UV spectroscopy from HST/GHRS and reanalyze existing H_alpha
images of the quasar/galaxy pair 3C 232/NGC 3067 and of the halo gas associated
with NGC 3067. The spectra permit measurement of, or limits on, the column
densities of Fe I, Fe II, Mg I, and Mg II in the absorbing cloud. Two distinct
models of the extragalactic radiation field are considered: (1) the ionizing
spectrum is dominated by a power-law extragalactic continuum, and (2) the
power-law spectrum contains a Lyman break, implying enhanced flux longward of
912 A relative to the hydrogen-ionizing flux. The H_alpha images constrain the
escape fraction of Lyman continuum photons from the galaxy to f_esc <= 0.02.
With the assumption that the cloud is shielded from all galactic contributions,
we can constrain the intensity and shape of the extragalactic continuum. For an
AGN-dominated power-law extragalactic spectrum, we derive a limit on the
extragalactic ionizing flux Phi_ion >= 2600 photons cm^-2 s^-1, or I_0 >=
10^-23 erg cm^-2 s^-1 Hz^-1 sr^-1 for an ionizing spectrum with power-law index
of 1.8 and a cloud of constant density. When combined with previous upper
limits from the absence of H_alpha recombination emission from intergalactic
clouds, our observations require 2600 <= Phi_ion <= 10000 photons cm^-2 s^-1.
We show that if galactic contributions to the incident radiation are important,
it is difficult to constrain Phi_ion. These results demonstrate that galactic
halo opacities and their wavelength dependence are crucial to understanding the
abundance of low-ionization metals in the IGM.Comment: 25 Pages LaTex, 8 PostScript Figures, accepted for publication in AJ,
Nov. 99 issu
Residual Symmetries in the Spectrum of Periodically Driven Alkali Rydberg States
We identify a fundamental structure in the spectrum of microwave driven
alkali Rydberg states, which highlights the remnants of the Coulomb symmetry in
the presence of a non-hydrogenic core. Core-induced corrections with respect to
the hydrogen spectrum can be accounted for by a perturbative approach.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, to be published in Europhysics Letter
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