Disturbed Fossil Group Galaxy NGC 1132

We have analyzed the Chandra archival data of NGC 1132, a well-known fossil group, i.e. a system expected to be old and relaxed long after the giant elliptical galaxy assembly. Instead, the Chandra data reveal that the hot gas morphology is disturbed and asymmetrical, with a cold front following a possible bow shock. We discuss possible origins of the disturbed hot halo, including sloshing by a nearby object, merger, ram pressure by external hotter gas and nuclear outburst. We consider that the first two mechanisms are likely explanations for the disturbed hot halo, with a slight preference for a minor merger with a low impact parameter because of the match with simulations and previous optical observations. In this case, NGC 1132 may be a rare example of unusual late mergers seen in recent simulations. Regardless of the origin of the disturbed hot halo, the paradigm of the fossil system needs to be reconsidered.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate for prevention of HIV infection in women: a phase 2, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

ObjectivesThe objective of this trial was to investigate the safety and preliminary effectiveness of a daily dose of 300 mg of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) versus placebo in preventing HIV infection in women.DesignThis was a phase 2, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.SettingThe study was conducted between June 2004 and March 2006 in Tema, Ghana; Douala, Cameroon; and Ibadan, Nigeria.ParticipantsWe enrolled 936 HIV-negative women at high risk of HIV infection into this study.InterventionParticipants were randomized 1:1 to once daily use of 300 mg of TDF or placebo.Outcome measuresThe primary safety endpoints were grade 2 or higher serum creatinine elevations (>2.0 mg/dl) for renal function, grade 3 or 4 aspartate aminotransferase or alanine aminotransferase elevations (>170 U/l) for hepatic function, and grade 3 or 4 phosphorus abnormalities (<1.5 mg/dl). The effectiveness endpoint was infection with HIV-1 or HIV-2.ResultsStudy participants contributed 428 person-years of laboratory testing to the primary safety analysis. No significant differences emerged between treatment groups in clinical or laboratory safety outcomes. Study participants contributed 476 person-years of HIV testing to the primary effectiveness analysis, during which time eight seroconversions occurred. Two were diagnosed in participants randomized to TDF (0.86 per 100 person-years) and six in participants receiving placebo (2.48 per 100 person-years), yielding a rate ratio of 0.35 (95% confidence interval = 0.03-1.93), which did not achieve statistical significance. Owing to premature closures of the Cameroon and Nigeria study sites, the planned person-years of follow-up and study power could not be achieved.ConclusionDaily oral use of TDF in HIV-uninfected women was not associated with increased clinical or laboratory adverse events. Effectiveness could not be conclusively evaluated because of the small number of HIV infections observed during the study

Rethinking \u27Duty\u27: The City of Toronto, a Stretch of the Humber River, and Indigenous-Municipal Relationships

The nation-to-nation relationship between Indigenous peoples and cities remains largely unexplored in the Canadian context. This oversight is especially problematic in light of the significant percentage of Indigenous people who live in urban areas, and the many concerns that Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples share. These shared concerns include the environment, land use, housing, social services, and much more, and modern municipalities do make attempts to address Indigenous-specific needs in these areas; but Indigenous-municipal relationships have implications that far exceed the technocratic and siloed ways in which Canadian systems generally approach these broad areas of concern - implications not only with regard for Indigenous people, but for all people. In many ways Indigenous people exist in the margins of cities (or Canada, or any modern nation, although this is changing ), and this marginalization has much to do with the ways in which Indigenous knowledge and perspectives are generally marginalized. However, Indigenous concerns include deeply principled relationships with all life and everything conceivable, since all layers of reality are inseparable, from Indigenous cultural perspectives. These principled relationships are reflected through Indigenous laws, which in turn have profound implications for how all law, and all relationships, may unfold in large urban centres, which are increasingly the predominating sites of human activity everywhere. Neglect of Indigenous-municipal relationships and of the consequences of municipal action on Indigenous peoples is an oversight affecting all our lives and all layers of being around us. Questions of Indigenous-municipal relations and the law are therefore urgent, and this urgency has motivated the authors to contribute to conversations on Indigenous and Canadian law in the municipal context

Doug Anderson and David Hays in a Joint Junior Voice Recital

This is the program for the joint junior voice recital of Doug Anderson and David Hays. Pianist Ron Davis accompanied Anderson, and pianist Mike Sharp accompanied Hays. This recital took place on April 8, 1976, in the Mabee Fine Arts Center Recital Hall

Uncertainties in the timing of unprecedented climates

The question of when the signal of climate change will emerge from the background noise of climate variability—the ‘time of emergence’—is potentially important for adaptation planning. Mora et al.1 presented precise projections of the time of emergence of unprecedented regional climates. However, their methodology produces artificially early dates at which specific regions will permanently experience unprecedented climates and artificially low uncertainty in those dates everywhere. This overconfidence could impair the effectiveness of climate risk management decisions 2. There is a Reply to this Brief Communication Arising by Mora, C. et al. Nature 511, http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature13524 (2014)

Production of high-value wheats : one sustainable answer to the cost:price squeeze

Farmers and scientists alike over the past decade have sought to address the declining terms of farm trade (the cost.price squeeze) by increasing wheat yields in ways that will ensure both their economic and ecological survival. Nevertheless, costs have continued to increase as a proportion of the value of the product. Many farmers have increased their wheat yields substantially and the industry as a whole is more conscious of the quality of its product. Over the past 10 years or more there has been intense interest in, and considerable adoption of. conservation farming techniques such as minimum tillage, residue retention, cultivation on the contour, diverse rotations and tree planting. Yet in many places salinity has increased, soil erosion has continued, herbicide resistant grasses have appeared and soil fertility has possibly declined