The Second Byurakan Survey Galaxies. I. The Optical Database

A database for the entire catalog of the Second Byurakan Survey (SBS) galaxies is presented. It contains new measurements of their optical parameters and additional information taken from the literature and other databases. The measurements were made using Ipg(near-infrared), Fpg(red) and Jpg(blue) band images from photographic sky survey plates obtained by the Palomar Schmidt telescope and extracted from the STScI Digital Sky Survey (DSS). The database provides accurate coordinates, morphological type, spectral and activity classes, apparent magnitudes and diameters, axial ratios, and position angles, as well as number counts of neighboring objects in a circle of radius 50 kpc. The total number of individual SBS objects in the database is now 1676. The 188 Markarian galaxies which were re-discovered by SBS are not included in this database. We also include redshifts that are now available for 1576 SBS objects, as well as 2MASS infrared magnitudes for 1117 SBS galaxies.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure, 1 tabl

Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) Val(108/158 )Met polymorphism does not modulate executive function in children with ADHD

BACKGROUND: An association has been observed between the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene, the predominant means of catecholamine catabolism within the prefrontal cortex (PFC), and neuropsychological task performance in healthy and schizophrenic adults. Since several of the cognitive functions typically deficient in children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are mediated by prefrontal dopamine (DA) mechanisms, we investigated the relationship between a functional polymorphism of the COMT gene and neuropsychological task performance in these children. METHODS: The Val(108/158 )Met polymorphism of the COMT gene was genotyped in 118 children with ADHD (DSM-IV). The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), Tower of London (TOL), and Self-Ordered Pointing Task (SOPT) were employed to evaluate executive functions. Neuropsychological task performance was compared across genotype groups using analysis of variance. RESULTS: ADHD children with the Val/Val, Val/Met and Met/Met genotypes were similar with regard to demographic and clinical characteristics. No genotype effects were observed for WCST standardized perseverative error scores [F(2,97 )= 0.67; p > 0.05], TOL standardized scores [F(2,99 )= 0.97; p > 0.05], and SOPT error scores [F(2,108 )= 0.62; p > 0.05]. CONCLUSIONS: Contrary to the observed association between WCST performance and the Val(108/158 )Met polymorphism of the COMT gene in both healthy and schizophrenic adults, this polymorphism does not appear to modulate executive functions in children with ADHD

Observation of Gamma Rays from the Galactic Center with the MAGIC Telescope

Recently, the Galactic Center has been reported to be a source of very high energy (VHE) gamma-rays by the VERITAS, CANGAROO and HESS experiments. The energy spectra as measured by these experiments show substantial differences. In this Letter we present MAGIC observations of the Galactic Center, resulting in the detection of a differential gamma-ray flux consistent with a steady, hard-slope power law, described as dN/(dA dt dE) = (2.9+/-0.6)*10^{-12} (E/TeV)^{-2.2+/-0.2} cm^{-2}s^{-1}TeV^{-1}. The gamma-ray source is centered at (Ra, Dec)=(17h 45m 20s, -29deg 2'. This result confirms the previous measurements by the HESS experiment and indicates a steady source of TeV gamma-rays. We briefly describe the observational technique used, the procedure implemented for the data analysis, and discuss the results in the perspective of different models proposed for the acceleration of the VHE gamma-rays.Comment: ApJL submitte

Using weather radar to monitor the number, timing and directions of flying-foxes emerging from their roosts

Knowledge of species' population trends is crucial when planning for conservation and management; however, this information can be difficult to obtain for extremely mobile species such as flying-foxes (Pteropus spp.; Chiroptera, Pteropodidae). In mainland Australia, flying-foxes are of particular management concern due their involvement in human-wildlife conflict, and their role as vectors of zoonotic diseases; and two species, the grey-headed flying-fox (Pteropus poliocephalus) and the spectacled flying-fox (P. conspicillatus), are currently threatened with extinction. Here we demonstrate that archival weather radar data over a period of ten years can be used to monitor a large colony of grey-headed flying-foxes near Melbourne. We show that radar estimates of colony size closely match those derived from traditional counting methods. Moreover, we show that radar data can be used to determine the timing and departure direction of flying-foxes emerging from the roost. Finally, we show that radar observations of flying-foxes can be used to identify signals of important ecological events, such as mass flowering and extreme heat events, and can inform human activities, e.g. the safe operation of airports and windfarms. As such, radar represents an extremely promising tool for the conservation and management of vulnerable flying-fox populations and for managing human interactions with these ecologically-important mammals