3,435 research outputs found
Gemini GNIRS near-infrared spectroscopy of 50 quasars at z>~5.7
We report initial results from a large Gemini program to observe z>~5.7
quasars with GNIRS near-IR spectroscopy. Our sample includes 50 quasars with
simultaneous ~0.85-2.5 micron spectra covering the rest-frame ultraviolet and
major broad emission lines from Ly-alpha to MgII. We present spectral
measurements for these quasars and compare to their lower-redshift counterparts
at z=1.5-2.3. We find that when quasar luminosity is matched, there are no
significant differences between the rest-UV spectra of z>~5.7 quasars and the
low-z comparison sample. High-z quasars have similar continuum and emission
line properties and occupy the same region in the black hole mass and
luminosity space as the comparison sample, accreting at an average Eddington
ratio of ~0.3. There is no evidence for super-Eddington accretion or
hypermassive (>10^10 Msun) black holes within our sample. We find a mild excess
of quasars with weak CIV lines relative to the control sample. Our results,
corroborating earlier studies but with better statistics, demonstrate that
these high-z quasars are already mature systems of accreting supermassive black
holes operating with the same physical mechanisms as those at lower redshifts.Comment: replaced with the accepted version (ApJ); improved the fitting
results and replaced all figures and tables (w/ minor changes); conclusions
unchange
Primary Liver Abscess Caused by One Clone of Klebsiella pneumoniae with Two Colonial Morphotypes and Resistotypes
Two diabetic patients with primary liver abscess, who initially responded unsatisfactorily to intravenous ceftriaxone or cefoxitin treatment and had abscess drainage, were found to be infected with a single clone of Klebsiella pneumoniae with two different colonial morphotypes and resistotypes. Primary liver abscess caused by second-generation cephalosporin-resistant K. pneumoniae strains may be an emerging problem in Taiwan
A Giant Protocluster of Galaxies at Redshift 5.7
Galaxy clusters trace the largest structures of the Universe and provide
ideal laboratories for studying galaxy evolution and cosmology. Clusters with
extended X-ray emission have been discovered at redshifts up to z ~ 2.5.
Meanwhile, there has been growing interest in hunting for protoclusters, the
progenitors of clusters, at higher redshifts. It is, however, very challenging
to find the largest protoclusters at early times when they start to assemble.
Here we report a giant protocluster of galaxies at redshift z = 5.7, when the
Universe was only one billion years old. This protocluster occupies a volume of
about 35x35x35 cubic co-moving megaparsecs. It is embedded in an even larger
overdense region with at least 41 spectroscopically confirmed, luminous
Lyman-alpha emitting galaxies (Lyman-alpha Emitters, or LAEs), including
several previously reported LAEs. Its LAE density is 6.6 times the average
density at z ~ 5.7. It is the only one of its kind in an LAE survey in four
square degrees on the sky. Such a large structure is also rarely seen in
current cosmological simulations. This protocluster will collapse into a galaxy
cluster with a mass of (3.6+/-0.9) x 10^{15} solar masses, comparable to those
of the most massive clusters or protoclusters known to date.Comment: Published in Nature Astronomy on Oct 15, 2018 (DOI:
10.1038/s41550-018-0587-9
The Magellan M2FS Spectroscopic Survey of High-Redshift Galaxies: A Sample of 260 Ly Emitters at Redshift
We present a spectroscopic survey of Ly emitters (LAEs) at
using the multi-object spectrograph M2FS on the Magellan Clay
telescope. This is part of a high-redshift galaxy survey carried out in several
well-studied deep fields. These fields have deep images in multiple UV/optical
bands, including a narrow NB816 band that has allowed an efficient selection of
LAE candidates at . Our sample consists of 260 LAEs and covers a
total effective area of more than two square degrees on the sky. This is so far
the largest (spectroscopically confirmed) sample of LAEs at this redshift. We
use the secure redshifts and narrowband photometry to measure Ly
luminosities. We find that these LAEs span a Ly luminosity range of
erg s, and include some of the
most luminous galaxies known at in terms of Ly luminosity.
Most of them have rest-frame equivalent widths between 20 and 300 \r{A}, and
more luminous Ly emission lines tend to have broader line widths. We
detect a clear offset of \r{A} between the observed Ly
wavelength distribution and the NB816 filter transmission curve, which can be
explained by the intergalactic medium absorption of continua blueward of
Ly in the high-redshift spectra. This sample is being used to study the
Ly luminosity function and galaxy properties at .Comment: 16 pages, 12 figures, 3 tables; Accepted for publication in Ap
A Magellan M2FS Spectroscopic Survey of Galaxies at 5.5<z<6.8: Program Overview and a Sample of the Brightest Lyman-alpha Emitters
We present a spectroscopic survey of high-redshift, luminous galaxies over
four square degrees on the sky, aiming to build a large and homogeneous sample
of Ly emitters (LAEs) at and 6.5, and Lyman-break
galaxies (LBGs) at . The fields that we choose to observe are
well-studied, such as SXDS and COSMOS. They have deep optical imaging data in a
series of broad and narrow bands, allowing efficient selection of galaxy
candidates. Spectroscopic observations are being carried out using the
multi-object spectrograph M2FS on the Magellan Clay telescope. M2FS is
efficient to identify high-redshift galaxies, owing to its 256 optical fibers
deployed over a circular field-of-view 30 arcmin in diameter. We have observed
square degrees. When the program is completed, we expect to identify
more than 400 bright LAEs at and 6.5, and a substantial number of
LBGs at . This unique sample will be used to study a variety of galaxy
properties and to search for large protoclusters. Furthermore, the statistical
properties of these galaxies will be used to probe cosmic reionization. We
describe the motivation, program design, target selection, and M2FS
observations. We also outline our science goals, and present a sample of the
brightest LAEs at and 6.5. This sample contains 32 LAEs with
Ly luminosities higher than 10 erg s. A few of them reach
erg s, comparable to the two most luminous LAEs
known at , `CR7' and `COLA1'. These LAEs provide ideal targets to study
extreme galaxies in the distant universe.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures, Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical
Journa
The infection attack rate and severity of 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza in Hong Kong
Background. Serial cross-sectional data on antibody levels to the 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza A virus from a population can be used to estimate the infection attack rates and immunity against future infection in the community. Methods. From April through December 2009, we obtained 12,217 serum specimens from blood donors (aged 16-59 years), 2520 specimens from hospital outpatients (aged 5-59 years), and 917 specimens from subjects involved in a community pediatric cohort study (aged 5-14 years). We estimated infection attack rates by comparing the proportions of specimens with antibody titers ≥1:40 by viral microneutralization before and after the first wave of the pandemic. Estimates were validated using paired serum samples from 324 individuals that spanned the first wave. Combining these estimates with epidemiologic surveillance data, we calculated the proportion of infections that led to hospitalization, admission to the intensive care unit (ICU), and death. Results. We found that 3.3% and 14% of persons aged 5-59 years had antibody titers ≥1:40 before and after the first wave, respectively. The overall attack rate was 10.7%, with age stratification as follows: 43.4% in persons aged 5-14 years, 15.8% in persons aged 15-19 years, 11.8% in persons aged 20-29 years, and 4%-4.6% in persons aged 30-59 years. Case-hospitalization rates were 0.47%-0.87% among persons aged 5-59 years. Case-ICU rates were 7.9 cases per 100,000 infections in persons aged 5-14 years and 75 cases per 100,000 infections in persons aged 50-59 years, respectively. Case-fatality rates were 0.4 cases per 100,000 infections in persons aged 5-14 years and 26.5 cases per 100,000 infections in persons aged 50-59 years, respectively. Conclusions. Almost half of all school-aged children in Hong Kong were infected during the first wave. Compared with school children aged 5-14 years, older adults aged 50-59 years had 9.5 and 66 times higher risks of ICU admission and death if infected, respectively. © 2010 by the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved.published_or_final_versio
Pulsed Wave Doppler Ultrasound Is Useful to Assess Vasomotor Response in Patients with Multiple System Atrophy and Well Correlated with Tilt Table Study
The study aim was to assess sympathetic vasomotor response (SVR) by using pulsed wave Doppler (PWD) ultrasound in patients with multiple system atrophy (MSA) and correlate with the tilt table study. We recruited 18 male patients and 10 healthy men as controls. The SVR of the radial artery was evaluated by PWD, using inspiratory cough as a provocative maneuver. The response to head-up tilt was studied by a tilt table with simultaneous heart rate and blood pressure recording. The hemodynamic variables were compared between groups, and were examined by correlation analysis. Regarding SVR, MSA patients exhibited a prolonged latency and less heart rate acceleration following inspiratory cough. Compared with the tilt table test, the elevation of heart rate upon SVR was positively correlated to the increase of heart rate after head-up tilt. The correlation analysis indicated that the magnitude of blood pressure drop from supine to upright was positively associated with the SVR latency but negatively correlated with the heart rate changes upon SVR. The present study demonstrated that blunted heart rate response might explain MSA's vulnerability to postural challenge. PWD may be used to predict cardiovascular response to orthostatic stress upon head-up tilt in MSA patients
Room-temperature multiferroic hexagonal LuFeO films
The crystal and magnetic structures of single-crystalline hexagonal LuFeO
films have been studied using x-ray, electron and neutron diffraction methods.
The polar structure of these films are found to persist up to 1050 K; and the
switchability of the polar behavior is observed at room temperature, indicating
ferroelectricity. An antiferromagnetic order was shown to occur below 440 K,
followed by a spin reorientation resulting in a weak ferromagnetic order below
130 K. This observation of coexisting multiple ferroic orders demonstrates that
hexagonal LuFeO films are room-temperature multiferroics
Long-term Characteristics of Healthcare-associated Infections in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Background/PurposeHealthcare-associated infections in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) are associated with a significant risk of morbidity and mortality. Knowledge regarding pathogens, primary sources of infection and antibiotic resistance in the NICU is essential for developing management strategies. This study aimed to analyze the long-term characteristics of healthcare-associated infections in a tertiary referral center in southern Taiwan.MethodsInfants < 30 days old, with positive blood, cerebrospinal fluid, urine or tissue fluid cultures during hospitalization in the NICU of National Cheng Kung University Hospital from July 1989 to June 2008 were included in the study.ResultsIn total, 1,417 organisms and episodes were identified during the study period. Gram-positive organisms, Gram-negative organisms and fungi constituted 923 (65.1%), 358 (25.3%) and 136 (9.6%) of the pathogens, respectively. Of the Gram-positive organisms, coagulase-negative staphylococci (51.5%), Staphylococcus aureus (34.8%) and Enterococcus spp. (6.1%) were the major pathogens; and 27% of Staphylococcus aureus isolates were oxacillin-resistant. For the Gram-negative organisms, Klebsiella pneumoniae (22%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (21.8%), Escherichia coli (16.7%) and Enterobacter cloacae (16.7%) were dominant. Also, Candida albicans accounted for 50% of fungal infections. The most common source of infection was bloodstream infection (59.0%), and 5.6% of these were catheter-related. Skin and soft tissue infections were also frequent (26.3%).ConclusionBloodstream and skin/soft tissue infections caused by commensal species play an important role in healthcare-associated infections in the NICU. New measures should be developed in response to the changing patterns in the NICU
Preparation, purification and characterization of aminopropyl-functionalized silica sol
A new, simple and “green” method was developed for the surface modification of 20 nm diameter Stöber silica particles with 3-aminopropyl(diethoxy)methylsilane in ethanol. The bulk polycondensation of the reagent was inhibited and the stability of the sol preserved by adding a small amount of glacial acetic acid after appropriate reaction time. Centrifugation, ultrafiltration and dialysis were compared in order to choose a convenient purification technique that allows the separation of unreacted silylating agent from the nanoparticles without destabilizing the sol. The exchange of the solvent to acidic water during the purification yielded a stable colloid, as well. Structural and morphological analysis of the obtained aminopropyl silica was performed using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS) and zeta potential measurements, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), 13C and 29Si MAS nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopies, as well as small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). Our investigations revealed that the silica nanoparticle surfaces were partially covered with aminopropyl groups, and multilayer adsorption followed by polycondensation of the silylating reagent was successfully avoided. The resulting stable aminopropyl silica sol (ethanolic or aqueous) is suitable for biomedical uses due to its purity
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