We present precise constraints on the normalization of the power spectrum of mass fluctuations in the nearby Universe, σ8, as a function of the mean local matter density, Ωm. Using the observed local ...X-ray luminosity function of galaxy clusters from the extended BCS and REFLEX studies, a mass–luminosity relation determined from Chandra and ROSAT X-ray data and weak gravitational lensing observations, and the mass function predicted by the Hubble Volume simulations of Evrard et al., we obtain σ8= (0.508 ± 0.019) Ω−(0.253±0.024)m, with Ωm < 0.34 at 68 per cent confidence. The degeneracy between σ8 and Ωm can be broken using Chandra measurements of the X-ray gas mass fractions in dynamically relaxed clusters. Using this information and including Gaussian priors on the mean baryon density of the Universe and the Hubble constant, we obtain σ8= 0.695 ± 0.042 and Ωm= 0.287 ± 0.036, for an assumed flat Λ-cold dark matter cosmology (marginalized 68 per cent confidence limits). Our results are in good agreement with some recent studies based on the local X-ray temperature function of clusters, the redshift evolution of the X-ray luminosity and temperature functions of clusters, early results from the Sloan Digitized Sky Survey, the most recent results from studies of cosmic shear, and combined analyses of the 2dF galaxy redshift survey and cosmic microwave background anisotropies.
The present study investigated the effects of suggestion on the processing of visual stimuli. Participants counted rare visual stimuli presented on a screen, once during a hypnosis condition where ...they were suggested that their vision of the screen is blocked by a virtual wooden board in front of their eyes and once during a control condition without suggestion. In the hypnosis condition, counting performance was about 20% worse than in the control condition. At the same time, the P3b amplitude of the event-related brain potential was about 37% reduced. Smaller P3b amplitudes were significantly associated with deficient counting performance, and this effect was largest in participants who reported the blockade as real. In contrast, earlier brain responses (N1, P2) that reflect basic processing of the visual stimuli were not affected by the suggested blockade. We conclude that the suggestion of the blockade affects later stages of visual perception, leaving early processes intact. This illustrates the impact of suggestions and the power of mind.
We present time series photometric observations of 13 transits in the planetary systems WASP-24, WASP-25 and WASP-26. All three systems have orbital obliquity measurements, WASP-24 and WASP-26 have ...been observed with Spitzer, and WASP-25 was previously comparatively neglected. Our light curves were obtained using the telescope-defocussing method and have scatters of 0.5–1.2 mmag relative to their best-fitting geometric models. We use these data to measure the physical properties and orbital ephemerides of the systems to high precision, finding that our improved measurements are in good agreement with previous studies. High-resolution Lucky Imaging observations of all three targets show no evidence for faint stars close enough to contaminate our photometry. We confirm the eclipsing nature of the star closest to WASP-24 and present the detection of a detached eclipsing binary within 4.25 arcmin of WASP-26.
We report the discovery by the HATSouth network of HATS-7b, a transiting Super-Neptune with a mass of 0.120 + or - 0.012 MsubJ, a radius of 0.563 + 0.046 - 0.034 RsubJ, and an orbital period of ...3.1853 days. The host star is a moderately bright K dwarf star with a mass of 0.849 + or - 0.027 MsubS, a radius of 0.815 + 0.049 - 0.035 RsubS, and a metallicity of Fe/H= +0.250 + or - 0.080. HATS-7b, which, together with the recently discovered HATS-8b, is one of the first two transiting Neptunes discovered in the Southern sky, is a prime target for additional follow-up observations with southern hemisphere facilities to characterize the atmospheres of super-Neptunes.
We examine the relations linking mass, X-ray temperature and bolometric luminosity for a sample of luminous, relatively relaxed clusters of galaxies observed with the Chandra Observatory, for which ...independent confirmation of the mass results is available from gravitational lensing studies. Within radii corresponding to a fixed overdensity Δ = 2500 with respect to the critical density at the redshifts of the clusters, the observed temperature profiles, scaled in units of T2500 and r2500, exhibit an approximately universal form which rises within r ∼ 0.3r2500 and then remains approximately constant out to r2500. We obtain best-fitting slopes for the mass–temperature and temperature–luminosity relations consistent with the predictions from simple scaling arguments i.e. and , respectively. We confirm the presence of a systematic offset of ∼40 per cent between the normalizations of the observed and predicted mass–temperature relations for both SCDM and ΛCDM cosmologies.
The impacts of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) on the ecology of the northeast Pacific are well known. However, recently there has been a shift in ...the dominance of El Niño events from the eastern Pacific (canonical) El Niño, to the central Pacific (Modoki) El Niño, concurrent with a strengthening of the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO). Our examination of ocean conditions and seabird reproductive success in central California shows that the way these physical factors affect the pelagic food web is also changing. Reproduction of Cassin’s auklet Ptycoramphus aleuticus and Brandt’s cormorant Phalacrocorax penicillatus, species that forage at different trophic levels, responded primarily to ENSO variability from the 1970s to the 1990s. By 1995, however, NPGO had become the dominant variable determining Cassin’s auklet reproductive success. Eventually, NPGO also became correlated with Brandt’s cormorant success but in the opposite direction to Cassin’s auklet. Thus, during the mid-1990s, the correlation between the reproduction of these 2 species weakened and eventually became inversely correlated. This shift from coherent reproduction, presumably bottom-up driven, to an inverse relationship between the 2 species suggests that the structure of the local marine food web changed as the equatorial forcing changed. This non-stationary response of seabirds to physical forcing is cause for concern since predictions of future ecosystem productivity and effects of climate change rely on the assumption that a species’ response to environmental conditions is consistent over time.
We use the high magnification event seen in the 1999 OGLE campaign light curve of image C of the quadruply imaged gravitational lens Q2237+0305 to study the structure of the quasar engine. We have ...obtained g'- and r'-band photometry at the Apache Point Observatory 3.5 m telescope where we find that the event has a smaller amplitude in the r'-band than in the g'- and OGLE V-bands. By comparing the light curves with microlensing simulations we obtain constraints on the sizes of the quasar regions contributing to the g'- and r'-band flux. Assuming that most of the surface mass density in the central kiloparsec of the lensing galaxy is due to stars and by modeling the source with a Gaussian profile, we obtain for the Gaussian width 1.20$\times$1015$\sqrt{{M}/{0.1~M_\odot}}$ cm $\la \sigma_{g'} \la$ 7.96$\times$ 10$^{15} \sqrt{{M}/{0.1~M_\odot}}$ cm, where M is the mean microlensing mass, and a ratio $\sigma_{r'}/\sigma_{g'} = 1.25^{+0.45}_{-0.15}$. With the limits on the velocity of the lensing galaxy from Gil-Merino et al. (2005) as our only prior, we obtain 0.60$\times$1015 $\sqrt{{M}/{0.1~M_\odot}}$ cm $\la \sigma_{g'} \la$ 1.57$\times$1015 $\sqrt{{M}/{0.1~M_\odot}}$ cm and a ratio $\sigma_{r'}/\sigma_{g'} = 1.45^{+0.90}_{-0.25}$ (all values at 68 percent confidence). Additionally, from our microlensing simulations we find that, during the chromatic microlensing event observed, the continuum emitting region of the quasar crossed a caustic at ≥72 percent confidence.
Endothelial function and integrity are compromised after allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT), but how this affects immune responses broadly remains unknown. Using a preclinical model of CMV ...reactivation after BMT, we found compromised antiviral humoral responses induced by IL-6 signaling. IL-6 signaling in T cells maintained Th1 cells, resulting in sustained IFN-γ secretion, which promoted endothelial cell (EC) injury, loss of the neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn) responsible for IgG recycling, and rapid IgG loss. T cell-specific deletion of IL-6R led to persistence of recipient-derived, CMV-specific IgG and inhibited CMV reactivation. Deletion of IFN-γ in donor T cells also eliminated EC injury and FcRn loss. In a phase III clinical trial, blockade of IL-6R with tocilizumab promoted CMV-specific IgG persistence and significantly attenuated early HCMV reactivation. In sum, IL-6 invoked IFN-γ-dependent EC injury and consequent IgG loss, leading to CMV reactivation. Hence, cytokine inhibition represents a logical strategy to prevent endothelial injury, thereby preserving humoral immunity after immunotherapy.
We report the discovery by the HATSouth survey of HATS-4b, an extrasolar planet transiting a V = 13.46 mag G star. HATS-4b has a period of P approximately 2.5167 days, mass of M sub(p) approximately ...1.32 M sub(Jup), radius of R sub(p) approximately 1.02 R sub(Jup), and density of rho sub(p) = 1.55 + or - 0.16 g cm super(-3) approximately 1.24 rho sub(Jup). The host star has a mass of 1.00 M sub(odot), a radius of 0.92 R sub(odot), and a very high metallicity Fe/H = 0.43 + or - 0.08. HATS-4b is among the densest known planets with masses between 1 and 2 M sub(J) and is thus likely to have a significant content of heavy elements of the order of 75 M sub(+ in circle). In this paper we present the data reduction, radial velocity measurements, and stellar classification techniques adopted by the HATSouth survey for the CORALIE spectrograph. We also detail a technique for simultaneously estimating v sin i and macroturbulence using high resolution spectra.
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