66 research outputs found
Formation of Supermassive Black Holes
Evidence shows that massive black holes reside in most local galaxies.
Studies have also established a number of relations between the MBH mass and
properties of the host galaxy such as bulge mass and velocity dispersion. These
results suggest that central MBHs, while much less massive than the host (~
0.1%), are linked to the evolution of galactic structure. In hierarchical
cosmologies, a single big galaxy today can be traced back to the stage when it
was split up in hundreds of smaller components. Did MBH seeds form with the
same efficiency in small proto-galaxies, or did their formation had to await
the buildup of substantial galaxies with deeper potential wells? I briefly
review here some of the physical processes that are conducive to the evolution
of the massive black hole population. I will discuss black hole formation
processes for `seed' black holes that are likely to place at early cosmic
epochs, and possible observational tests of these scenarios.Comment: To appear in The Astronomy and Astrophysics Review. The final
publication is available at http://www.springerlink.co
The JCMT Plane Survey: early results from the l = 30 degree field
We present early results from the JCMT Plane Survey (JPS), which has surveyed the northern inner Galactic plane between longitudes l=7 and l=63 degrees in the 850-{\mu}m continuum with SCUBA-2, as part of the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope Legacy Survey programme. Data from the l=30 degree survey region, which contains the massive star-forming regions W43 and G29.96, are analysed after approximately 40% of the observations had been completed. The pixel-to-pixel noise is found to be 19 mJy/beam, after a smooth over the beam area, and the projected equivalent noise levels in the final survey are expected to be around 10 mJy/beam. An initial extraction of compact sources was performed using the FellWalker method resulting in the detection of 1029 sources above a 5-{\sigma} surface-brightness threshold. The completeness limits in these data are estimated to be around 0.2 Jy/beam (peak flux density) and 0.8 Jy (integrated flux density) and are therefore probably already dominated by source confusion in this relatively crowded section of the survey. The flux densities of extracted compact sources are consistent with those of matching detections in the shallower ATLASGAL survey. We analyse the virial and evolutionary state of the detected clumps in the W43 star-forming complex and find that they appear younger than the Galactic-plane average
The design of a randomised controlled trial to evaluate the (cost-) effectiveness of the posterolateral versus the direct anterior approach for THA (POLADA â trial)
Hand osteoarthritis: clinical phenotypes, molecular mechanisms and disease management
Osteoarthritis (OA) is a highly prevalent condition and the hand is the most commonly affected site. Patients with hand OA frequently report symptoms of pain, functional limitations, and frustration in undertaking everyday activities. The condition presents clinically with changes to the bone, ligaments, cartilage and synovial tissue, which can be observed using radiography, ultrasonography or MRI. Hand OA is a heterogeneous disorder and is considered to be multifactorial in aetiology. This review provides an overview of the epidemiology, presentation and burden of hand OA, including an update on hand OA imaging (including the development of novel techniques), disease mechanisms and management. In particular, areas for which new evidence has substantially changed the way we understand, consider and treat hand OA are highlighted. For example, genetic studies, clinical trials and careful prospective imaging studies from the past 5 years are beginning to provide insights into the pathogenesis of hand OA that might uncover new therapeutic targets in disease
Open wedge correctieosteotomie voor malunited extra-articulaire distale radiusfracturen.
High molecular weight polyurethanes and a polyurethane urea based on 1,4-butanediisocyanate
High molecular weight polyurethanes and a polyurethane urea based on 1,4-butanediisocyanate
New biomedical polyurethanes and a polyurethane urea based on epsilon-caprolactone and 1,4-butanediisocyanate have been developed. On degradation, only non-toxic products are produced. The polyurethane urea with poly(epsilon-caprolactone) soft segments and butanediisocyanate/butanediamine hard segments shows a high tensile strength, a high modulus and a high resistance to tearing but as a result of the strong interactions between the solvent and the polymer processing is difficult. When butanediamine is replaced by butanediol in the chain extension step, a processible polyurethane is obtained but the polymer lacks the desired mechanical properties for biomedical applications. By chain extending with a longer urethane diol block, a processible polymer was obtained with mechanical properties comparable to the polyurethane urea. This polyurethane has been made porous and can be used as a meniscal prosthesis
On the role of aminolysis and transesterification in the synthesis of epsilon-caprolactone and L-lactide based polyurethanes
Polyurethanes based on a 50/50 copoly(L-lactide/epsilon-caprolactone) prepolymer and butanediisocyanate were made. Chain extending a diisocyanate terminated prepolymer with butanediamine was not possible due to the susceptibility of the lactide bond to aminolysis. Chain extension with butanediol resulted in a polymer with poor mechanical properties due to transesterification. When the copolymer prepolymer was chain-extended with an isocyanate terminated block, transesterification with the chain-extender was avoided and the mechanical properties were increased. When the length of the hard segments was increased the mechanical properties increased further. A L-lactide/epsilon-caprolactone based polyurethane with a tensile strength and modulus of respectively 45 MPa and 60 MPa was made. The polymer contained no poly(L-lactide) crystals and was easy to process. Compared to the high molecular weight 50/50 copoly(L-lactide/epsilon-caprolactone) the polyurethane showed better mechanical properties, is expected to have the same adhesive properties and is expected to have a slower degradation rate. These factors makes this polymer excessively useful for in-vivo tissue engineering in for instance meniscal reconstruction material, nerve guide and artificial skin
A new biomedical polyurethane with a high modulus based on 1,4-butanediisocyanate and epsilon-caprolactone
A new approach to the synthesis of biomedical polyurethanes based on epsilon-caprolactone and 1,4-butanediisocyanate with a high modulus, has been developed. By chain extending an epsilon-caprolactone prepolymer with a long uniform-size diisocyanate block, a segmented polyurethane with uniform-size hard segments was obtained. It shows excellent mechanical properties; an extremely high modulus of 105 MPa and a tensile strength of 35 MPa. The polymer is soluble at high concentrations in various volatile solvents such as chloroform and 1,4-dioxane. By a combination of salt-leaching and freeze-drying, porous materials have been obtained in which macropores ranging in size from 150-300 mu m are highly interconnected by micropores. The material shows a sufficiently high compression modulus of 200 kPa and appears to be suitable for biomedical applications such as meniscal prostheses. (C) 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers.</p
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