Stellar escapers from M67 can reach solar-like Galactic orbits

We investigate the possibility that the Sun could have been born in M67 by carrying out $N$-body simulations of M67-like clusters in a time-varying Galactic environment, and following the galactic orbits of stars that escape from them. We find that model clusters that occupy similar orbits to M67 today can be divided up into three groups. Hot clusters are born with a high initial $z$-velocity, depleted clusters are born on cold orbits but are destroyed by GMC encounters in the Galactic disc, and scattered clusters are born on cold orbits and survive with more than 1000 stars at an age of 4.6 Gyr. We find that all cluster models in all three cluster groups have stellar escapers that are kinematicaly similar to the Sun. Hot clusters having the lowest such fraction $f_{\odot} = 0.06$ %, whilst depleted clusters have the highest fraction, $f_{\odot} = 6.61$ %. We calculate that clusters that are destroyed in the Galactic disc have a specific frequency of escapers that end up on solar-like orbits that is $\sim$ 2 times that of escapers from clusters that survive their journey

Violence by clients towards female prostitutes in different work settings: questionnaire survey

No abstract available

Low-Mass X-ray Binaries and Globular Clusters in Early-Type Galaxies. I. Chandra Observations

We present a Chandra survey of LMXBs in 24 early-type galaxies. Correcting for detection incompleteness, the X-ray luminosity function (XLF) of each galaxy is consistent with a powerlaw with negative logarithmic differential slope, beta~2.0. However, beta strongly correlates with incompleteness, indicating the XLF flattens at low-Lx. The composite XLF is well-fitted by a powerlaw with a break at 2.21(+0.65,-0.56)E38 erg/s and beta=1.40(+0.10,-0.13) and 2.84(+0.39,-0.30) below and above it, respectively. The break is close to the Eddington limit for a 1.4Msun neutron-star, but the XLF shape rules out its representing the division between neutron-star and black-hole systems. Although the XLFs are similar, we find evidence of some variation between galaxies. The high-Lx XLF slope does not correlate with age, but may correlate with [alpha/Fe]. Considering only LMXBs with Lx>1E37 erg/s, matching the LMXBs with globular clusters (GCs) identified in HST observations of 19 of the galaxies, we find the probability a GC hosts an LMXB is proportional to LGC^alpha ZFe^gamma} where alpha=1.01+/-0.19 and gamma=0.33+/-0.11. Correcting for GC luminosity and colour effects, and detection incompleteness, we find no evidence that the fraction of LMXBs with Lx>1e37 erg/s in GCs (40%), or the fraction of GCs hosting LMXBs (~6.5%) varies between galaxies. The spatial distribution of LMXBs resembles that of GCs, and the specific frequency of LMXBs is proportional to the GC specific luminosity, consistent with the hypothesis that all LMXBs form in GCs. If the LMXB lifetime is tau and the duty cycle is Fd, our results imply ~1.5 (tau/1E8 yr)^-1 /Fd LMXBs are formed per Gyr per GC and we place an upper limit of 1 active LMXB in the field per 3.4E9Lsun of V-band luminosity.Comment: 24 pages, 17 figures and 6 tables. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal. Expanded discussion and various minor revisions to improve robustness of results. Conclusions unchange

Identification of the soft X-ray excess in Cygnus X-1 with disc emission

We present results of a study of the soft X-ray excess in the black hole candidate Cygnus X-1 made with the {\it Rosat PSPC}, using observations taken during persistent emission at orbital phases close to 0.5. The soft excess can be well fitted as a blackbody with temperature $\rm {kT_{bb}}$ = $\rm {0.13\pm 0.02}$ keV. $\rm {kT_{bb}}$ did not vary appreciably with intensity of the source. By assuming that the distance of the source is its lower limit of 2.5 kpc, a luminosity of the soft excess of $\rm {4.7\cdot 10^{36}}$ erg $\rm {s^{-1}}$ was obtained. From this, disc temperatures were calculated as a function of radius, assuming the compact object to be a 10 \rm{M_{\sun}} black hole, in particular, the temperature at 7 Schwarzschild radii expected to be highly representative of the total disc emission. This was found to be 0.13 keV, in very good agreement with the spectral fitting result. This good agreement strongly supports the identification of the soft excess with emission from the disc around a black hole.Comment: PostScript, 3 figures, accepted for publication Astronomy and Astrophysics Lette

Concept design and alternate arrangements of orbiter mid-deck habitability features

The evaluations and recommendations for habitability features in the space shuttle orbiter mid-deck are summarized. The orbiter mission plans, the mid-deck dimensions and baseline arrangements along with crew compliments and typical activities were defined. Female and male anthropometric data based on zero-g operations were also defined. Evaluations of baseline and alternate feasible concepts provided several recommendations which are discussed

The Ephemeris and Dipping Spectral Behavior of X1624-490

We present striking results from Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) observations of the 21-hr low mass X-ray binary X1624-490, showing five complex dips in unprecedented detail. For the first time, dipping is detected up to 15 keV. Prominent flares are also observed in the light curves, limited to energies above 8 keV. Spectra selected by intensity during dip episodes can be well fit with a two-component model consisting of a point-like blackbody from the neutron star and progressive covering of an extended Comptonized region, presumably an accretion disk corona (ADC), corrected for photons scattered into and out of the X-ray beam by a interstellar dust halo. We find that the outer regions of the absorber are highly ionized and that electron scattering is totally responsible for the X-ray attenuation during shallow dipping. The timescales of dip ingress and egress indicate that the envelope of material absorbing the ADC has smaller angular size than the ADC itself, and that the ADC is likely limited to a height-to-radius ratio of 10%, rather than being spherical in extent. In addition, we have analyzed 4.5 yrs of RXTE All Sky Monitor (ASM) coverage to derive the first accurate orbital ephemeris for X1624-490, with phase zero (the time of dip centers) well-described by the relation 2450088.63918(69) + N*0.869907(12) (JD).Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure

Longevity and mortality of owned dogs in England

Improved understanding of longevity represents a significant welfare opportunity for the domestic dog, given its unparalleled morphological diversity. Epidemiological research using electronic patient records (EPRs) collected from primary veterinary practices overcomes many inherent limitations of referral clinic, owner questionnaire and pet insurance data. Clinical health data from 102,609 owned dogs attending first opinion veterinary practices (n = 86) in central and southeast England were analysed, focusing on 5095 confirmed deaths. Of deceased dogs with information available, 3961 (77.9%) were purebred, 2386 (47.0%) were female, 2528 (49.8%) were neutered and 1105 (21.7%) were insured. The overall median longevity was 12.0 years (IQR 8.9–14.2). The longest-lived breeds were the Miniature poodle, Bearded collie, Border collie and Miniature dachshund, while the shortest-lived were the Dogue de Bordeaux and Great Dane. The most frequently attributed causes of death were neoplastic, musculoskeletal and neurological disorders. The results of multivariable modelling indicated that longevity in crossbred dogs exceeded purebred dogs by 1.2 years (95% confidence interval 0.9–1.4; P < 0.001) and that increasing bodyweight was negatively correlated with longevity. The current findings highlight major breed differences for longevity and support the concept of hybrid vigour in dogs

Approaches to canine health surveillance

Effective canine health surveillance systems can be used to monitor disease in the general population, prioritise disorders for strategic control and focus clinical research, and to evaluate the success of these measures. The key attributes for optimal data collection systems that support canine disease surveillance are representativeness of the general population, validity of disorder data and sustainability. Limitations in these areas present as selection bias, misclassification bias and discontinuation of the system respectively. Canine health data sources are reviewed to identify their strengths and weaknesses for supporting effective canine health surveillance. Insurance data benefit from large and well-defined denominator populations but are limited by selection bias relating to the clinical events claimed and animals covered. Veterinary referral clinical data offer good reliability for diagnoses but are limited by referral bias for the disorders and animals included. Primary-care practice data have the advantage of excellent representation of the general dog population and recording at the point of care by veterinary professionals but may encounter misclassification problems and technical difficulties related to management and analysis of large datasets. Questionnaire surveys offer speed and low cost but may suffer from low response rates, poor data validation, recall bias and ill-defined denominator population information. Canine health scheme data benefit from well-characterised disorder and animal data but reflect selection bias during the voluntary submissions process. Formal UK passive surveillance systems are limited by chronic under-reporting and selection bias. It is concluded that active collection systems using secondary health data provide the optimal resource for canine health surveillance