The new very small angle neutron scattering spectrometer at Laboratoire Leon Brillouin

The design and characteristics of the new very small angle neutron scattering spectrometer under construction at the Laboratoire Leon Brillouin is described. Its goal is to extend the range of scattering vectors magnitudes towards 2x10{-4} /A. The unique feature of this new spectrometer is a high resolution two dimensional image plate detector sensitive to neutrons. The wavelength selection is achieved by a double reflection supermirror monochromator and the collimator uses a novel multibeam design

High Energy Cosmic Rays From Supernovae

Cosmic rays are charged relativistic particles that reach the Earth with extremely high energies, providing striking evidence of the existence of effective accelerators in the Universe. Below an energy around $\sim 10^{17}$ eV cosmic rays are believed to be produced in the Milky Way while above that energy their origin is probably extragalactic. In the early '30s supernovae were already identified as possible sources for the Galactic component of cosmic rays. After the '70s this idea has gained more and more credibility thanks to the the development of the diffusive shock acceleration theory, which provides a robust theoretical framework for particle energization in astrophysical environments. Afterwards, mostly in recent years, much observational evidence has been gathered in support of this framework, converting a speculative idea in a real paradigm. In this Chapter the basic pillars of this paradigm will be illustrated. This includes the acceleration mechanism, the non linear effects produced by accelerated particles onto the shock dynamics needed to reach the highest energies, the escape process from the sources and the transportation of cosmic rays through the Galaxy. The theoretical picture will be corroborated by discussing several observations which support the idea that supernova remnants are effective cosmic ray factories.Comment: Final draft of a chapter in "Handbook of Supernovae" edited by Athem W. Alsabti and Paul Murdi

Infrared composition of the Large Magellanic Cloud

The evolution of galaxies and the history of star formation in the Universe are among the most important topics in today's astrophysics. Especially, the role of small, irregular galaxies in the star-formation history of the Universe is not yet clear. Using the data from the AKARI IRC survey of the Large Magellanic Cloud at 3.2, 7, 11, 15, and 24 {\mu}m wavelengths, i.e., at the mid- and near-infrared, we have constructed a multiwavelength catalog containing data from a cross-correlation with a number of other databases at different wavelengths. We present the separation of different classes of stars in the LMC in color-color, and color-magnitude, diagrams, and analyze their contribution to the total LMC flux, related to point sources at different infrared wavelengths

Non-thermal emission processes in massive binaries

In this paper, I present a general discussion of several astrophysical processes likely to play a role in the production of non-thermal emission in massive stars, with emphasis on massive binaries. Even though the discussion will start in the radio domain where the non-thermal emission was first detected, the census of physical processes involved in the non-thermal emission from massive stars shows that many spectral domains are concerned, from the radio to the very high energies. First, the theoretical aspects of the non-thermal emission from early-type stars will be addressed. The main topics that will be discussed are respectively the physics of individual stellar winds and their interaction in binary systems, the acceleration of relativistic electrons, the magnetic field of massive stars, and finally the non-thermal emission processes relevant to the case of massive stars. Second, this general qualitative discussion will be followed by a more quantitative one, devoted to the most probable scenario where non-thermal radio emitters are massive binaries. I will show how several stellar, wind and orbital parameters can be combined in order to make some semi-quantitative predictions on the high-energy counterpart to the non-thermal emission detected in the radio domain. These theoretical considerations will be followed by a census of results obtained so far, and related to this topic... (see paper for full abstract)Comment: 47 pages, 5 postscript figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics Review. Astronomy and Astrophysics Review, in pres

High energy emission from microquasars

The microquasar phenomenon is associated with the production of jets by X-ray binaries and, as such, may be associated with the majority of such systems. In this chapter we briefly outline the associations, definite, probable, possible, and speculative, between such jets and X-ray, gamma-ray and particle emission.Comment: Contributing chapter to the book Cosmic Gamma-Ray Sources, K.S. Cheng and G.E. Romero (eds.), to be published by Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, 2004. (19 pages

Theorems on existence and global dynamics for the Einstein equations

This article is a guide to theorems on existence and global dynamics of solutions of the Einstein equations. It draws attention to open questions in the field. The local-in-time Cauchy problem, which is relatively well understood, is surveyed. Global results for solutions with various types of symmetry are discussed. A selection of results from Newtonian theory and special relativity that offer useful comparisons is presented. Treatments of global results in the case of small data and results on constructing spacetimes with prescribed singularity structure or late-time asymptotics are given. A conjectural picture of the asymptotic behaviour of general cosmological solutions of the Einstein equations is built up. Some miscellaneous topics connected with the main theme are collected in a separate section.Comment: Submitted to Living Reviews in Relativity, major update of Living Rev. Rel. 5 (2002)

Whole-body tissue stabilization and selective extractions via tissue-hydrogel hybrids for high-resolution intact circuit mapping and phenotyping

To facilitate fine-scale phenotyping of whole specimens, we describe here a set of tissue fixation-embedding, detergent-clearing and staining protocols that can be used to transform excised organs and whole organisms into optically transparent samples within 1–2 weeks without compromising their cellular architecture or endogenous fluorescence. PACT (passive CLARITY technique) and PARS (perfusion-assisted agent release in situ) use tissue-hydrogel hybrids to stabilize tissue biomolecules during selective lipid extraction, resulting in enhanced clearing efficiency and sample integrity. Furthermore, the macromolecule permeability of PACT- and PARS-processed tissue hybrids supports the diffusion of immunolabels throughout intact tissue, whereas RIMS (refractive index matching solution) grants high-resolution imaging at depth by further reducing light scattering in cleared and uncleared samples alike. These methods are adaptable to difficult-to-image tissues, such as bone (PACT-deCAL), and to magnified single-cell visualization (ePACT). Together, these protocols and solutions enable phenotyping of subcellular components and tracing cellular connectivity in intact biological networks

The Effect of Particulate Air Pollution on Emergency Admissions for Myocardial Infarction: A Multicity Case-Crossover Analysis

Recently, attention has focused on whether particulate air pollution is a specific trigger of myocardial infarction (MI). The results of several studies of single locations assessing the effects of ambient particular matter on the risk of MI have been disparate. We used a multicity case-crossover study to examine risk of emergency hospitalization associated with fine particulate matter (PM) with aerodynamic diameter < 10 μm (PM(10)) for > 300,000 MIs during 1985–1999 among elderly residents of 21 U.S. cities. We used time-stratified controls matched on day of the week or on temperature to detect possible residual confounding by weather. Overall, we found a 0.65% [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.3–1.0%] increased risk of hospitalization for MI per 10 μg/m(3) increase in ambient PM(10) concentration. Matching on apparent temperature yielded a 0.64% increase in risk (95% CI, 0.1–1.2%). We found that the effect size for PM(10) doubled for subjects with a previous admission for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or a secondary diagnosis of pneumonia, although these differences did not achieve statistical significance. There was a weaker indication of a larger effect on males but no evidence of effect modification by age or the other diagnoses. We also found that the shape of the exposure–response relationship between MI hospitalizations and PM(10) is almost linear, but with a steeper slope at levels of PM(10) < 50 μg/m(3). We conclude that increased concentrations of ambient PM(10) are associated with increased risk of MI among the elderly

Differential surface density and modulatory effects of presynaptic GABAB receptors in hippocampal cholecystokinin and parvalbumin basket cells

The perisomatic domain of cortical neurons is under the control of two major GABAergic inhibitory interneuron types: regular-spiking cholecystokinin (CCK) basket cells (BCs) and fast-spiking parvalbumin (PV) BCs. CCK and PV BCs are different not only in their intrinsic physiological, anatomical and molecular characteristics, but also in their presynaptic modulation of their synaptic output. Most GABAergic terminals are known to contain GABAB receptors (GABABR), but their role in presynaptic inhibition and surface expression have not been comparatively characterized in the two BC types. To address this, we performed whole-cell recordings from CCK and PV BCs and postsynaptic pyramidal cells (PCs), as well as freeze-fracture replica-based quantitative immunogold electron microscopy of their synapses in the rat hippocampal CA1 area. Our results demonstrate that while both CCK and PV BCs contain functional presynaptic GABABRs, their modulatory effects and relative abundance are markedly different at these two synapses: GABA release is dramatically inhibited by the agonist baclofen at CCK BC synapses, whereas a moderate reduction in inhibitory transmission is observed at PV BC synapses. Furthermore, GABABR activation has divergent effects on synaptic dynamics: paired-pulse depression (PPD) is enhanced at CCK BC synapses, but abolished at PV BC synapses. Consistent with the quantitative differences in presynaptic inhibition, virtually all CCK BC terminals were found to contain GABABRs at high densities, but only 40% of PV BC axon terminals contain GABABRs at detectable levels. These findings add to an increasing list of differences between these two interneuron types, with implications for their network functions

Evolution of active galactic nuclei

[Abriged] Supermassive black holes (SMBH) lurk in the nuclei of most massive galaxies, perhaps in all of them. The tight observed scaling relations between SMBH masses and structural properties of their host spheroids likely indicate that the processes fostering the growth of both components are physically linked, despite the many orders of magnitude difference in their physical size. This chapter discusses how we constrain the evolution of SMBH, probed by their actively growing phases, when they shine as active galactic nuclei (AGN) with luminosities often in excess of that of the entire stellar population of their host galaxies. Following loosely the chronological developments of the field, we begin by discussing early evolutionary studies, when AGN represented beacons of light probing the most distant reaches of the universe and were used as tracers of the large scale structure. This early study turned into AGN "Demography", once it was realized that the strong evolution (in luminosity, number density) of the AGN population hindered any attempt to derive cosmological parameters from AGN observations directly. Following a discussion of the state of the art in the study of AGN luminosity functions, we move on to discuss the "modern" view of AGN evolution, one in which a bigger emphasis is given to the physical relationships between the population of growing black holes and their environment. This includes observational and theoretical efforts aimed at constraining and understanding the evolution of scaling relations, as well as the resulting limits on the evolution of the SMBH mass function. Physical models of AGN feedback and the ongoing efforts to isolate them observationally are discussed next. Finally, we touch upon the problem of when and how the first black holes formed and the role of black holes in the high-redshift universe.Comment: 75 pages, 35 figures. Modified version of the chapter accepted to appear in "Planets, Stars and Stellar Systems", vol 6, ed W. Keel (www.springer.com/astronomy/book/978-90-481-8818-5). The number of references is limited upon request of the editors. Original submission to Springer: June 201