Global dynamics of asymptotically locally AdS spacetimes with negative mass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dold, Dominic

2018-05-01

The Einstein vacuum equations in 5D with negative cosmological constant are studied in biaxial Bianchi IX symmetry. We show that if initial data of Eguchi–Hanson type, modelled after the 4D Riemannian Eguchi–Hanson space, have negative mass, the future maximal development does not contain horizons, i. e. the complement of the causal past of null infinity is empty. In particular, perturbations of Eguchi–Hanson–AdS spacetimes within the biaxial Bianchi IX symmetry class cannot form horizons, suggesting that such spacetimes are potential candidates for a naked singularity to form. The proof relies on an extension principle proven for this system and a priori estimates following from the monotonicity of the Hawking mass.

CFD Based Added Mass Prediction in Cruise Condition of Underwater Vehicle Dynamic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Agoes Moelyadi, Mochammad; Bambang Riswandi, Bagus

2018-04-01

One of the unsteady flow behavior on the hydrodynamic characteristics of underwater vehicle is the presence of added mass. In cruising conditions, the underwater vehicle may require the addition of speed or experience the disturbance in the form of unsteady flow so that cause the hydrodynamic interaction between the surface of the vehicle with the surrounding fluid. This leads to the rise of local velocity of flow and the great changes of hydrodynamic forces which are very influential on the stability of the underwater vehicle. One of the result is an additional force called added mass. It is very useful parameter to control underwater vehicle dynamic.This paper reports the research on the added mass coefficient of underwater vehicles obtained through the Computational Fluid Dynmaic (CFD) simulation method using CFX software. Added mass coefficient is calculated by performing an unsteady simulation or known as transient simulation. Computational simulations are based on the Reynold Average Navier- Stokes (RANS) equation solution. The simulated vehicle moves forward and backward according to the sinus function, with a frequency of 0.25 Hz, a 2 m amplitude, a cruising depth of 10 m below sea level, and Vcruise 1.54 m / s (Re = 9.000.000). Simulation result data includes velocity contour, variation of force and acceleration to frequency, and added mass coefficient.

Feasibility Study of a Wearable Exoskeleton for Children: Is the Gait Altered by Adding Masses on Lower Limbs?

PubMed Central

Rossi, Stefano; Colazza, Alessandra; Petrarca, Maurizio; Castelli, Enrico; Cappa, Paolo; Krebs, Hermano Igo

2013-01-01

We are designing a pediatric exoskeletal ankle robot (pediatric Anklebot) to promote gait habilitation in children with Cerebral Palsy (CP). Few studies have evaluated how much or whether the unilateral loading of a wearable exoskeleton may have the unwanted effect of altering significantly the gait. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether adding masses up to 2.5 kg, the estimated overall added mass of the mentioned device, at the knee level alters the gait kinematics. Ten healthy children and eight children with CP, with light or mild gait impairment, walked wearing a knee brace with several masses. Gait parameters and lower-limb joint kinematics were analyzed with an optoelectronic system under six conditions: without brace (natural gait) and with masses placed at the knee level (0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 kg). T-tests and repeated measures ANOVA tests were conducted in order to find noteworthy differences among the trial conditions and between loaded and unloaded legs. No statistically significant differences in gait parameters for both healthy children and children with CP were observed in the five “with added mass” conditions. We found significant differences among “natural gait” and “with added masses” conditions in knee flexion and hip extension angles for healthy children and in knee flexion angle for children with CP. This result can be interpreted as an effect of the mechanical constraint induced by the knee brace rather than the effect associated with load increase. The study demonstrates that the mechanical constraint induced by the brace has a measurable effect on the gait of healthy children and children with CP and that the added mass up to 2.5 kg does not alter the lower limb kinematics. This suggests that wearable devices weighing 25 N or less will not noticeably modify the gait patterns of the population examined here. PMID:24023822

Added Value of Assessing Adnexal Masses with Advanced MRI Techniques

PubMed Central

Thomassin-Naggara, I.; Balvay, D.; Rockall, A.; Carette, M. F.; Ballester, M.; Darai, E.; Bazot, M.

2015-01-01

This review will present the added value of perfusion and diffusion MR sequences to characterize adnexal masses. These two functional MR techniques are readily available in routine clinical practice. We will describe the acquisition parameters and a method of analysis to optimize their added value compared with conventional images. We will then propose a model of interpretation that combines the anatomical and morphological information from conventional MRI sequences with the functional information provided by perfusion and diffusion weighted sequences. PMID:26413542

Proposed Framework for Determining Added Mass of Orion Drogue Parachutes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fraire, Usbaldo, Jr.; Dearman, James; Morris, Aaron

2011-01-01

The Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) project is executing a program to qualify a parachute system for a next generation human spacecraft. Part of the qualification process involves predicting parachute riser tension during system descent with flight simulations. Human rating the CPAS hardware requires a high degree of confidence in the simulation models used to predict parachute loads. However, uncertainty exists in the heritage added mass models used for loads predictions due to a lack of supporting documentation and data. Even though CPAS anchors flight simulation loads predictions to flight tests, extrapolation of these models outside the test regime carries the risk of producing non-bounding loads. A set of equations based on empirically derived functions of skirt radius is recommended as the simplest and most viable method to test and derive an enhanced added mass model for an inflating parachute. This will increase confidence in the capability to predict parachute loads. The selected equations are based on those published in A Simplified Dynamic Model of Parachute Inflation by Dean Wolf. An Ames 80x120 wind tunnel test campaign is recommended to acquire the reefing line tension and canopy photogrammetric data needed to quantify the terms in the Wolf equations and reduce uncertainties in parachute loads predictions. Once the campaign is completed, the Wolf equations can be used to predict loads in a typical CPAS Drogue Flight test. Comprehensive descriptions of added mass test techniques from the Apollo Era to the current CPAS project are included for reference.

The Influence of Added Mass on Optimal Step Length in Running.

PubMed

Reenalda, Jasper; Maas, Maurice T F; de Koning, Jos J

2016-10-01

To examine the influence of induced changes in the morphology of the leg by adding mass on the optimal step length (OSL) in experienced runners to get more insight into parameters that influence preferred step length (PSL) and OSL. Thirteen experienced male runners (mean age 26.9 ± 6.1 y, height 183.7 ± 7.1 cm, mass 71.8 ± 5.9 kg) ran on a treadmill in 3 different conditions: unloaded (UL), loaded with 2 kg mass at the ankles (MA), and loaded with 2 kg mass at the hips (MH) at 7 different step lengths (SLs). SL deviations were expressed as deviations in relative leg length (%LL) from the individual PSL: 0%LL, ±5%LL, ±10%LL, and ±15%LL. Trials lasted 8 min, and 8 min of rest was given between trials. Oxygen uptake (V̇O 2 ) was expressed as a fraction of V̇O 2 at PSL + 0%LL in the unloaded condition (%V̇O 2 ). The %SL with the lowest value of %V̇O 2 was considered the OSL for this group of participants. OSL at the UL condition was 6% shorter than PSL. The MA condition resulted in a 7%LL larger OSL than at UL and MH (P < .05). The mass distribution of the leg is a determinant of the OSL. As a consequence of the added mass to the ankles, OSL was 7%LL longer. Morphological characteristics of the leg might therefore play an important role in determining the runner's individual optimal SL.

Isolating Added Mass Load Components of CPAS Main Clusters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ray, Eric S.

2017-01-01

The current simulation for the Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) lacks fidelity in representing added mass for the 116 ft Do ringsail Main parachute. The availability of 3-D models of inflating Main canopies allowed for better estimation the enclosed air volume as a function of time. This was combined with trajectory state information to estimate the components making up measured axial loads. A proof-of-concept for an alternate simulation algorithm was developed based on enclosed volume as the primary independent variable rather than drag area growth. Databases of volume growth and parachute drag area vs. volume were developed for several flight tests. Other state information was read directly from test data, rather than numerically propagated. The resulting simulated peak loads were close in timing and magnitude to the measured loads data. However, results are very sensitive to data curve fitting and may not be suitable for Monte Carlo simulations. It was assumed that apparent mass was either negligible or a small fraction of enclosed mass, with little difference in results.

Mass attenuation coefficient of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards at 16.59-25.56 keV photons, and 137Cs and 60Co gamma energies.

PubMed

Yusof, Mohd Fahmi Mohd; Hamid, Puteri Nor Khatijah Abd; Tajuddin, Abd Aziz; Hashim, Rokiah; Bauk, Sabar; Isa, Norriza Mohd; Isa, Muhammad Jamal Md

2017-09-01

The aim of this study was to determine the suitability of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards as phantom materials in the application of low- and high-energy photons. The tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards and density plug phantoms were created with a target density of 1.0 g/cm 3 . The elemental composition and effective atomic number of the particleboards were measured using energy dispersive X-ray analysis. The mass attenuation coefficient of the particleboards for low-energy photons were measured using the attenuation of X-ray fluorescence. The mass attenuation coefficients of high-energy photons were measured using the attenuation of 137 Cs and 60 Co gamma energies. The results were compared to the calculated value of water using XCOM calculations. The results showed that the effective atomic number and mass attenuation coefficients of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards were similar to those of water, indicating the suitability of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards as phantom materials for low- and high-energy photons.

Resistive thrust production can be as crucial as added mass mechanisms for inertial undulatory swimmers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piñeirua, M.; Godoy-Diana, R.; Thiria, B.

2015-08-01

In this Rapid Communication, we address a crucial point regarding the description of moderate to high Reynolds numbers aquatic swimmers. For decades, swimming animals have been classified in two different families of propulsive mechanisms based on the Reynolds number: the resistive swimmers, using local friction to produce the necessary thrust force for locomotion at low Reynolds number, and the reactive swimmers, lying in the high Reynolds range, and using added mass acceleration (described by perfect fluid theory). However, inertial swimmers are also systems that dissipate energy, due to their finite size, therefore involving strong resistive contributions, even for high Reynolds numbers. Using a complete model for the hydrodynamic forces, involving both reactive and resistive contributions, we revisit here the physical mechanisms responsible for the thrust production of such swimmers. We show, for instance, that the resistive part of the force balance is as crucial as added mass effects in the modeling of the thrust force, especially for elongated species. The conclusions brought by this work may have significant contributions to the understanding of complex swimming mechanisms, especially for the future design of artificial swimmers.

A note on physical mass and the thermodynamics of AdS-Kerr black holes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McInnes, Brett; Ong, Yen Chin, E-mail: matmcinn@nus.edu.sg, E-mail: yenchin.ong@nordita.org

As with any black hole, asymptotically anti-de Sitter Kerr black holes are described by a small number of parameters, including a ''mass parameter'' M that reduces to the AdS-Schwarzschild mass in the limit of vanishing angular momentum. In sharp contrast to the asymptotically flat case, the horizon area of such a black hole increases with the angular momentum parameter a if one fixes M; this appears to mean that the Penrose process in this case would violate the Second Law of black hole thermodynamics. We show that the correct procedure is to fix not M but rather the ''physical'' massmore » E=M/(1−a{sup 2}/L{sup 2}){sup 2}; this is motivated by the First Law. For then the horizon area decreases with a. We recommend that E always be used as the mass in physical processes: for example, in attempts to ''over-spin'' AdS-Kerr black holes.« less

Effects of independently altering body weight and body mass on the metabolic cost of running.

PubMed

Teunissen, Lennart P J; Grabowski, Alena; Kram, Rodger

2007-12-01

The metabolic cost of running is substantial, despite the savings from elastic energy storage and return. Previous studies suggest that generating vertical force to support body weight and horizontal forces to brake and propel body mass are the major determinants of the metabolic cost of running. In the present study, we investigated how independently altering body weight and body mass affects the metabolic cost of running. Based on previous studies, we hypothesized that reducing body weight would decrease metabolic rate proportionally, and adding mass and weight would increase metabolic rate proportionally. Further, because previous studies show that adding mass alone does not affect the forces generated on the ground, we hypothesized that adding mass alone would have no substantial effect on metabolic rate. We manipulated the body weight and body mass of 10 recreational human runners and measured their metabolic rates while they ran at 3 m s(-1). We reduced weight using a harness system, increased mass and weight using lead worn about the waist, and increased mass alone using a combination of weight support and added load. We found that net metabolic rate decreased in less than direct proportion to reduced body weight, increased in slightly more than direct proportion to added load (added mass and weight), and was not substantially different from normal running with added mass alone. Adding mass alone was not an effective method for determining the metabolic cost attributable to braking/propelling body mass. Runners loaded with mass alone did not generate greater vertical or horizontal impulses and their metabolic costs did not substantially differ from those of normal running. Our results show that generating force to support body weight is the primary determinant of the metabolic cost of running. Extrapolating our reduced weight data to zero weight suggests that supporting body weight comprises at most 74% of the net cost of running. However, 74% is probably an

The Effective Mass of a Ball in the Air

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Messer, J.; Pantaleone, J.

2010-01-01

The air surrounding a projectile affects the projectile's motion in three very different ways: the drag force, the buoyant force, and the added mass. The added mass is an increase in the projectile's inertia from the motion of the air around it. Here we experimentally measure the added mass of a spherical projectile in air. The results agree well…

Transformations of asymptotically AdS hyperbolic initial data and associated geometric inequalities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cha, Ye Sle; Khuri, Marcus

2018-01-01

We construct transformations which take asymptotically AdS hyperbolic initial data into asymptotically flat initial data, and which preserve relevant physical quantities. This is used to derive geometric inequalities in the asymptotically AdS hyperbolic setting from counterparts in the asymptotically flat realm, whenever a geometrically motivated system of elliptic equations admits a solution. The inequalities treated here relate mass, angular momentum, charge, and horizon area. Furthermore, new mass-angular momentum inequalities in this setting are conjectured and discussed.

The AdS3 propagator and the fate of locality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Hongbin; Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared; Li, Daliang

2018-04-01

We recently used Virasoro symmetry considerations to propose an exact formula for a bulk proto-field ϕ in AdS3. In this paper we study the propagator < ϕϕ>. We show that many techniques from the study of conformal blocks can be generalized to compute it, including the semiclassical monodromy method and both forms of the Zamolodchikov recursion relations. When the results from recursion are expanded at large central charge, they match gravitational perturbation theory for a free scalar field coupled to gravity in our chosen gauge. We find that although the propagator is finite and well-defined at long distances, its perturbative expansion in {G}_N=3/2c exhibits UV/IR mixing effects. If we nevertheless interpret < ϕϕ> as a probe of bulk locality, then when {G}_{N{m}_{φ }}≪ 1 locality breaks down at the new short-distance scale {σ}_{\\ast}˜ √[4]{G_N{R}_{AdS}^3} . For ϕ with very large bulk mass, or at small central charge, bulk locality fails at the AdS length scale. In all cases, locality `breakdown' manifests as singularities or branch cuts at spacelike separation arising from non-perturbative quantum gravitational effects.

The Effect of Increasing Mass upon Locomotion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeWitt, John; Hagan, Donald

2007-01-01

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if increasing body mass while maintaining bodyweight would affect ground reaction forces and joint kinetics during walking and running. It was hypothesized that performing gait with increased mass while maintaining body weight would result in greater ground reaction forces, and would affect the net joint torques and work at the ankle, knee and hip when compared to gait with normal mass and bodyweight. Vertical ground reaction force was measured for ten subjects (5M/5F) during walking (1.34 m/s) and running (3.13 m/s) on a treadmill. Subjects completed one minute of locomotion at normal mass and bodyweight and at four added mass (AM) conditions (10%, 20%, 30% and 40% of body mass) in random order. Three-dimensional joint position data were collected via videography. Walking and running were analyzed separately. The addition of mass resulted in several effects. Peak impact forces and loading rates increased during walking, but decreased during running. Peak propulsive forces decreased during walking and did not change during running. Stride time increased and hip extensor angular impulse and positive work increased as mass was added for both styles of locomotion. Work increased at a greater rate during running than walking. The adaptations to additional mass that occur during walking are different than during running. Increasing mass during exercise in microgravity may be beneficial to increasing ground reaction forces during walking and strengthening hip musculature during both walking and running. Future study in true microgravity is required to determine if the adaptations found would be similar in a weightless environment.

Closed Timelike Curves in (2+1)-AdS Gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valtancoli, P.

We build the (2+1)-AdS gravity generalization of the Gott time machine using a first-order formalism for solving the scattering of point sources. The two-body dynamics is solved by two invariant masses, whose difference is simply related to the total angular momentum of the system. We show how to build a time machine when at least one of the two invariant masses is no more real but acquires an imaginary part.

Higher Daily Energy Expenditure and Respiratory Quotient, Rather Than Fat-Free Mass, Independently Determine Greater ad Libitum Overeating.

PubMed

Piaggi, Paolo; Thearle, Marie S; Krakoff, Jonathan; Votruba, Susanne B

2015-08-01

Body fat-free mass (FFM), energy expenditure (EE), and respiratory quotient (RQ) are known predictors of daily food intake. Because FFM largely determines EE, it is unclear whether body composition per se or the underlying metabolism drives dietary intake. The objective of the study was to test whether 24-hour measures of EE and RQ and their components influence ad libitum food intake independently of FFM. One hundred seven healthy individuals (62 males/45 females, 84 Native Americans/23 whites; age 33 ± 8 y; body mass index 33 ± 8 kg/m(2); body fat 31% ± 8%) had 24-hour measures of EE in a whole-room indirect calorimeter during energy balance, followed by 3 days of ad libitum food intake using computerized vending machine systems. Body composition was estimated by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. FFM, 24-hour EE, RQ, spontaneous physical activity, sleeping EE (sleeping metabolic rate), awake and fed thermogenesis, and ad libitum food intake (INTAKE) were measured. Higher 24-hour RQ (P < .001, partial R(2) = 16%) and EE (P = .01, partial R(2) = 7%), but not FFM (P = .65), were independent predictors of INTAKE. Mediation analysis demonstrated that 24-hour EE is responsible for 80% of the FFM effect on INTAKE (44.5 ± 16.9 kcal ingested per kilogram of FFM, P= .01), whereas the unique effect due to solely FFM was negligible (10.6 ± 23.2, P = .65). Spontaneous physical activity (r = 0.33, P = .001), but not sleeping metabolic rate (P = .71), positively predicted INTAKE, whereas higher awake and fed thermogenesis determined greater INTAKE only in subjects with a body mass index of 29 kg/m(2) or less (r = 0.44, P = .01). EE and RQ, rather than FFM, independently determine INTAKE, suggesting that competitive energy-sensing mechanisms driven by the preferential macronutrient oxidation and total energy demands may regulate food intake.

Higher Daily Energy Expenditure and Respiratory Quotient, Rather Than Fat-Free Mass, Independently Determine Greater ad Libitum Overeating

PubMed Central

Thearle, Marie S.; Krakoff, Jonathan; Votruba, Susanne B.

2015-01-01

Context: Body fat-free mass (FFM), energy expenditure (EE), and respiratory quotient (RQ) are known predictors of daily food intake. Because FFM largely determines EE, it is unclear whether body composition per se or the underlying metabolism drives dietary intake. Objective: The objective of the study was to test whether 24-hour measures of EE and RQ and their components influence ad libitum food intake independently of FFM. Design and Participants: One hundred seven healthy individuals (62 males/45 females, 84 Native Americans/23 whites; age 33 ± 8 y; body mass index 33 ± 8 kg/m2; body fat 31% ± 8%) had 24-hour measures of EE in a whole-room indirect calorimeter during energy balance, followed by 3 days of ad libitum food intake using computerized vending machine systems. Body composition was estimated by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Main Outcome Measures: FFM, 24-hour EE, RQ, spontaneous physical activity, sleeping EE (sleeping metabolic rate), awake and fed thermogenesis, and ad libitum food intake (INTAKE) were measured. Results: Higher 24-hour RQ (P < .001, partial R2 = 16%) and EE (P = .01, partial R2 = 7%), but not FFM (P = .65), were independent predictors of INTAKE. Mediation analysis demonstrated that 24-hour EE is responsible for 80% of the FFM effect on INTAKE (44.5 ± 16.9 kcal ingested per kilogram of FFM, P= .01), whereas the unique effect due to solely FFM was negligible (10.6 ± 23.2, P = .65). Spontaneous physical activity (r = 0.33, P = .001), but not sleeping metabolic rate (P = .71), positively predicted INTAKE, whereas higher awake and fed thermogenesis determined greater INTAKE only in subjects with a body mass index of 29 kg/m2 or less (r = 0.44, P = .01). Conclusions: EE and RQ, rather than FFM, independently determine INTAKE, suggesting that competitive energy-sensing mechanisms driven by the preferential macronutrient oxidation and total energy demands may regulate food intake. PMID:26086330

Spinning AdS loop diagrams: two point functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giombi, Simone; Sleight, Charlotte; Taronna, Massimo

2018-06-01

We develop a systematic approach to evaluating AdS loop amplitudes with spinning legs based on the spectral (or "split") representation of bulk-to-bulk propagators, which re-expresses loop diagrams in terms of spectral integrals and higher-point tree diagrams. In this work we focus on 2pt one-loop Witten diagrams involving totally symmetric fields of arbitrary mass and integer spin. As an application of this framework, we study the contribution to the anomalous dimension of higher-spin currents generated by bubble diagrams in higher-spin gauge theories on AdS.

Asymptotical AdS space from nonlinear gravitational models with stabilized extra dimensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Günther, U.; Moniz, P.; Zhuk, A.

2002-08-01

We consider nonlinear gravitational models with a multidimensional warped product geometry. Particular attention is payed to models with quadratic scalar curvature terms. It is shown that for certain parameter ranges, the extra dimensions are stabilized if the internal spaces have a negative constant curvature. In this case, the four-dimensional effective cosmological constant as well as the bulk cosmological constant become negative. As a consequence, the homogeneous and isotropic external space is asymptotically AdS4. The connection between the D-dimensional and the four-dimensional fundamental mass scales sets a restriction on the parameters of the considered nonlinear models.

Warped AdS3 black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Wei; Anninos, Dionysios; Li, Wei; Padi, Megha; Strominger, Andrew

2009-03-01

Three dimensional topologically massive gravity (TMG) with a negative cosmological constant -ell-2 and positive Newton constant G admits an AdS3 vacuum solution for any value of the graviton mass μ. These are all known to be perturbatively unstable except at the recently explored chiral point μell = 1. However we show herein that for every value of μell ≠ 3 there are two other (potentially stable) vacuum solutions given by SL(2,Bbb R) × U(1)-invariant warped AdS3 geometries, with a timelike or spacelike U(1) isometry. Critical behavior occurs at μell = 3, where the warping transitions from a stretching to a squashing, and there are a pair of warped solutions with a null U(1) isometry. For μell > 3, there are known warped black hole solutions which are asymptotic to warped AdS3. We show that these black holes are discrete quotients of warped AdS3 just as BTZ black holes are discrete quotients of ordinary AdS3. Moreover new solutions of this type, relevant to any theory with warped AdS3 solutions, are exhibited. Finally we note that the black hole thermodynamics is consistent with the hypothesis that, for μell > 3, the warped AdS3 ground state of TMG is holographically dual to a 2D boundary CFT with central charges c_R-formula and c_L-formula.

Warped AdS3 black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anninos, Dionysios; Li, Wei; Padi, Megha; Song, Wei; Strominger, Andrew

2009-03-01

Three dimensional topologically massive gravity (TMG) with a negative cosmological constant -l-2 and positive Newton constant G admits an AdS3 vacuum solution for any value of the graviton mass μ. These are all known to be perturbatively unstable except at the recently explored chiral point μl = 1. However we show herein that for every value of μl ≠ 3 there are two other (potentially stable) vacuum solutions given by SL(2,Bbb R) × U(1)-invariant warped AdS3 geometries, with a timelike or spacelike U(1) isometry. Critical behavior occurs at μl = 3, where the warping transitions from a stretching to a squashing, and there are a pair of warped solutions with a null U(1) isometry. For μl > 3, there are known warped black hole solutions which are asymptotic to warped AdS3. We show that these black holes are discrete quotients of warped AdS3 just as BTZ black holes are discrete quotients of ordinary AdS3. Moreover new solutions of this type, relevant to any theory with warped AdS3 solutions, are exhibited. Finally we note that the black hole thermodynamics is consistent with the hypothesis that, for μl > 3, the warped AdS3 ground state of TMG is holographically dual to a 2D boundary CFT with central charges c_R-formula and c_L-formula.

Maintained total body water content and serum sodium concentrations despite body mass loss in female ultra-runners drinking ad libitum during a 100 km race.

PubMed

Knechtle, Beat; Senn, Oliver; Imoberdorf, Reinhard; Joleska, Irena; Wirth, Andrea; Knechtle, Patrizia; Rosemann, Thomas

2010-01-01

We investigated in 11 female ultra-runners during a 100 km ultra-run, the association between fluid intake and prevalence of exercise-associated hyponatremia in a cross-sectional study. Athletes drank ad libitum and recorded their fluid intake. They competed at 8.0 (1.0) km/h and finished within 762 (91) min. Fluid intake was 4.1 (1.3) L during the race, equal to 0.3 (0.1) L/h. Body mass decreased by 1.5 kg (p< 0.01); pre race body mass was related to speed in the race (r = -0.78, p< 0.05); and change (Delta) in body mass was not associated with speed in the race. Change in body mass was positively (r = 0.70; p< 0.05), and Delta urinary specific gravity negatively (r = -0.67; p< 0.05), correlated to Delta percent total body water. Changes in body mass were not related to fluid intake during the race. Fluid intake was not correlated to running speed and showed no association with either Delta percent total body water nor Delta [Na] in plasma. Fluid intake showed no relationship with both Delta haematocrit and Delta plasma volume. No exercise-associated hyponatremia occurred. Female ultra- runners consuming fluids ad libitum during the race experienced no fluid overload, and ad libitum drinking protects against exercise-associated hyponatremia. The reported higher incidence of exercise-associated hyponatremia in women is not really a gender effect but due to women being more prone to overdrink.

Hairy black holes and the endpoint of AdS4 charged superradiance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dias, Óscar J. C.; Masachs, Ramon

2017-02-01

We construct hairy black hole solutions that merge with the anti-de Sitter (AdS4) Reissner-Nordström black hole at the onset of superradiance. These hairy black holes have, for a given mass and charge, higher entropy than the corresponding AdS4-Reissner-Nordström black hole. Therefore, they are natural candidates for the endpoint of the charged superradiant instability. On the other hand, hairy black holes never dominate the canonical and grand-canonical ensembles. The zero-horizon radius of the hairy black holes is a soliton (i.e. a boson star under a gauge transformation). We construct our solutions perturbatively, for small mass and charge, so that the properties of hairy black holes can be used to testify and compare with the endpoint of initial value simulations. We further discuss the near-horizon scalar condensation instability which is also present in global AdS4-Reissner-Nordström black holes. We highlight the different nature of the near-horizon and superradiant instabilities and that hairy black holes ultimately exist because of the non-linear instability of AdS.

Fermionic currents in AdS spacetime with compact dimensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bellucci, S.; Saharian, A. A.; Vardanyan, V.

2017-09-01

We derive a closed expression for the vacuum expectation value (VEV) of the fermionic current density in a (D +1 )-dimensional locally AdS spacetime with an arbitrary number of toroidally compactified Poincaré spatial dimensions and in the presence of a constant gauge field. The latter can be formally interpreted in terms of a magnetic flux treading the compact dimensions. In the compact subspace, the field operator obeys quasiperiodicity conditions with arbitrary phases. The VEV of the charge density is zero and the current density has nonzero components along the compact dimensions only. They are periodic functions of the magnetic flux with the period equal to the flux quantum and tend to zero on the AdS boundary. Near the horizon, the effect of the background gravitational field is small and the leading term in the corresponding asymptotic expansion coincides with the VEV for a massless field in the locally Minkowski bulk. Unlike the Minkowskian case, in the system consisting of an equal number of fermionic and scalar degrees of freedom, with same masses, charges and phases in the periodicity conditions, the total current density does not vanish. In these systems, the leading divergences in the scalar and fermionic contributions on the horizon are canceled and, as a consequence of that, the charge flux, integrated over the coordinate perpendicular to the AdS boundary, becomes finite. We show that in odd spacetime dimensions the fermionic fields realizing two inequivalent representations of the Clifford algebra and having equal phases in the periodicity conditions give the same contribution to the VEV of the current density. Combining the contributions from these fields, the current density in odd-dimensional C -,P - and T -symmetric models are obtained. As an application, we consider the ground state current density in curved carbon nanotubes described in terms of a (2 +1 )-dimensional effective Dirac model.

An added-mass partition algorithm for fluid–structure interactions of compressible fluids and nonlinear solids

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Banks, J.W., E-mail: banksj3@rpi.edu; Henshaw, W.D., E-mail: henshw@rpi.edu; Kapila, A.K., E-mail: kapila@rpi.edu

We describe an added-mass partitioned (AMP) algorithm for solving fluid–structure interaction (FSI) problems involving inviscid compressible fluids interacting with nonlinear solids that undergo large rotations and displacements. The computational approach is a mixed Eulerian–Lagrangian scheme that makes use of deforming composite grids (DCG) to treat large changes in the geometry in an accurate, flexible, and robust manner. The current work extends the AMP algorithm developed in Banks et al. [1] for linearly elasticity to the case of nonlinear solids. To ensure stability for the case of light solids, the new AMP algorithm embeds an approximate solution of a nonlinear fluid–solidmore » Riemann (FSR) problem into the interface treatment. The solution to the FSR problem is derived and shown to be of a similar form to that derived for linear solids: the state on the interface being fundamentally an impedance-weighted average of the fluid and solid states. Numerical simulations demonstrate that the AMP algorithm is stable even for light solids when added-mass effects are large. The accuracy and stability of the AMP scheme is verified by comparison to an exact solution using the method of analytical solutions and to a semi-analytical solution that is obtained for a rotating solid disk immersed in a fluid. The scheme is applied to the simulation of a planar shock impacting a light elliptical-shaped solid, and comparisons are made between solutions of the FSI problem for a neo-Hookean solid, a linearly elastic solid, and a rigid solid. The ability of the approach to handle large deformations is demonstrated for a problem of a high-speed flow past a light, thin, and flexible solid beam.« less

Examining impacts of mass-diameter (m-D) and area-diameter (A-D) relationships of ice particles on retrievals of effective radius and ice water content from radar and lidar measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ham, Seung-Hee; Kato, Seiji; Rose, Fred G.

2017-03-01

Mass-diameter (m-D) and projected area-diameter (A-D) relations are often used to describe the shape of nonspherical ice particles. This study analytically investigates how retrieved effective radius (reff) and ice water content (IWC) from radar and lidar measurements depend on the assumption of m-D [m(D) = a Db] and A-D [A(D) = γ Dδ] relationships. We assume that unattenuated reflectivity factor (Z) and visible extinction coefficient (kext) by cloud particles are available from the radar and lidar measurements, respectively. A sensitivity test shows that reff increases with increasing a, decreasing b, decreasing γ, and increasing δ. It also shows that a 10% variation of a, b, γ, and δ induces more than a 100% change of reff. In addition, we consider both gamma and lognormal particle size distributions (PSDs) and examine the sensitivity of reff to the assumption of PSD. It is shown that reff increases by up to 10% with increasing dispersion (μ) of the gamma PSD by 2, when large ice particles are predominant. Moreover, reff decreases by up to 20% with increasing the width parameter (ω) of the lognormal PSD by 0.1. We also derive an analytic conversion equation between two effective radii when different particle shapes and PSD assumptions are used. When applying the conversion equation to nine types of m-D and A-D relationships, reff easily changes up to 30%. The proposed reff conversion method can be used to eliminate the inconsistency of assumptions that made in a cloud retrieval algorithm and a forward radiative transfer model.

Aspects of warped AdS3/CFT2 correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Bin; Zhang, Jia-Ju; Zhang, Jian-Dong; Zhong, De-Liang

2013-04-01

In this paper we apply the thermodynamics method to investigate the holographic pictures for the BTZ black hole, the spacelike and the null warped black holes in three-dimensional topologically massive gravity (TMG) and new massive gravity (NMG). Even though there are higher derivative terms in these theories, the thermodynamics method is still effective. It gives consistent results with the ones obtained by using asymptotical symmetry group (ASG) analysis. In doing the ASG analysis we develop a brute-force realization of the Barnich-Brandt-Compere formalism with Mathematica code, which also allows us to calculate the masses and the angular momenta of the black holes. In particular, we propose the warped AdS3/CFT2 correspondence in the new massive gravity, which states that quantum gravity in the warped spacetime could holographically dual to a two-dimensional CFT with {c_R}={c_L}=24 /{Gm{β^2√{{2( {21-4{β^2}} )}}}}.

Between simplicity and accuracy: Effect of adding modeling details on quarter vehicle model accuracy.

PubMed

Soong, Ming Foong; Ramli, Rahizar; Saifizul, Ahmad

2017-01-01

Quarter vehicle model is the simplest representation of a vehicle that belongs to lumped-mass vehicle models. It is widely used in vehicle and suspension analyses, particularly those related to ride dynamics. However, as much as its common adoption, it is also commonly accepted without quantification that this model is not as accurate as many higher-degree-of-freedom models due to its simplicity and limited degrees of freedom. This study investigates the trade-off between simplicity and accuracy within the context of quarter vehicle model by determining the effect of adding various modeling details on model accuracy. In the study, road input detail, tire detail, suspension stiffness detail and suspension damping detail were factored in, and several enhanced models were compared to the base model to assess the significance of these details. The results clearly indicated that these details do have effect on simulated vehicle response, but to various extents. In particular, road input detail and suspension damping detail have the most significance and are worth being added to quarter vehicle model, as the inclusion of these details changed the response quite fundamentally. Overall, when it comes to lumped-mass vehicle modeling, it is reasonable to say that model accuracy depends not just on the number of degrees of freedom employed, but also on the contributions from various modeling details.

Between simplicity and accuracy: Effect of adding modeling details on quarter vehicle model accuracy

PubMed Central

2017-01-01

Quarter vehicle model is the simplest representation of a vehicle that belongs to lumped-mass vehicle models. It is widely used in vehicle and suspension analyses, particularly those related to ride dynamics. However, as much as its common adoption, it is also commonly accepted without quantification that this model is not as accurate as many higher-degree-of-freedom models due to its simplicity and limited degrees of freedom. This study investigates the trade-off between simplicity and accuracy within the context of quarter vehicle model by determining the effect of adding various modeling details on model accuracy. In the study, road input detail, tire detail, suspension stiffness detail and suspension damping detail were factored in, and several enhanced models were compared to the base model to assess the significance of these details. The results clearly indicated that these details do have effect on simulated vehicle response, but to various extents. In particular, road input detail and suspension damping detail have the most significance and are worth being added to quarter vehicle model, as the inclusion of these details changed the response quite fundamentally. Overall, when it comes to lumped-mass vehicle modeling, it is reasonable to say that model accuracy depends not just on the number of degrees of freedom employed, but also on the contributions from various modeling details. PMID:28617819

Throat quantization of the Schwarzschild-Tangherlini(-AdS) black hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maeda, Hideki

2018-01-01

By the throat quantization pioneered by Louko and Mäkelä, we derive the mass and area/entropy spectra for the Schwarzschild-Tangherlini-type asymptotically flat or AdS vacuum black hole in arbitrary dimensions. Using the WKB approximation for black holes with large mass, we show that area/entropy is equally spaced for asymptotically flat black holes, while mass is equally spaced for asymptotically AdS black holes. Exact spectra can be obtained for toroidal AdS black holes in arbitrary dimensions including the three-dimensional BTZ black hole.

Progressing towards more quantitative analytical pyrolysis of soil organic matter using molecular beam mass spectroscopy of whole soils and added standards

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Haddix, Michelle L.; Magrini-Bair, Kim; Evans, Robert J.

Soil organic matter (SOM) is extremely complex. It is composed of hundreds of different organic substances and it has been difficult to quantify these diverse substances in a dynamic-ecosystem functioning standpoint. Analytical pyrolysis has been used to compare chemical differences between soils, but its ability to measure the absolute amount of a specific compound in the soil is still in question. Our objective was to assess whether utilizing pyrolysis-molecular beam mass spectroscopy (py-MBMS) to define the signature of known reference compounds (adenine, indole, palmitic acid, etc.) and biological samples (chitin, fungi, cellulose, etc.) separately and when added to whole soilsmore » it was possible to make py-MBMS more quantitative. Reference compounds, spanning a wide variety of compound categories, and biological samples, expected to be present in SOM, were added to three soils from Colorado, Ohio, and Massachusetts that have varying total C, % clay, and clay type. Py-MBMS, a rapid analysis technique originally developed to analyze complex biomolecules, flash pyrolyzes soil organic matter to form products that are often considered characteristic of the original molecular structure. Samples were pyrolyzed at 550 degrees C by py-MBMS. All samples were weighed and %C and %N determined both before and after pyrolysis to evaluate mass loss, C loss, and N loss for the samples.An average relationship of r2 = 0.76 (P = 0.005) was found for the amount of cellulose added to soil at 25, 50, and 100% of soil C relative to the ion intensity of select mass/charge of the compound.There was a relationship of r2 = 0.93 (P < 0.001) for the amount of indole added to soil at 25, 50, and 100% of soil C and the ion intensity of the associated mass variables (mass/charge). Comparing spectra of pure compounds with the spectra of the compounds added to soil and isolated clay showed that interference could occur based on soil type and compound with the Massachusetts soil with high

Massive quiver matrix models for massive charged particles in AdS

DOE PAGES

Asplund, Curtis T.; Denef, Frederik; Dzienkowski, Eric

2016-01-11

Here, we present a new class of N = 4 supersymmetric quiver matrix models and argue that it describes the stringy low-energy dynamics of internally wrapped D-branes in four-dimensional anti-de Sitter (AdS) flux compactifications. The Lagrangians of these models differ from previously studied quiver matrix models by the presence of mass terms, associated with the AdS gravitational potential, as well as additional terms dictated by supersymmetry. These give rise to dynamical phenomena typically associated with the presence of fluxes, such as fuzzy membranes, internal cyclotron motion and the appearance of confining strings. We also show how these models can bemore » obtained by dimensional reduction of four-dimensional supersymmetric quiver gauge theories on a three-sphere.« less

Exact microstate counting for dyonic black holes in AdS4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benini, Francesco; Hristov, Kiril; Zaffaroni, Alberto

2017-08-01

We present a counting of microstates of a class of dyonic BPS black holes in AdS4 which precisely reproduces their Bekenstein-Hawking entropy. The counting is performed in the dual boundary description, that provides a non-perturbative definition of quantum gravity, in terms of a twisted and mass-deformed ABJM theory. We evaluate its twisted index and propose an extremization principle to extract the entropy, which reproduces the attractor mechanism in gauged supergravity.

Effective Ad-Hoc Committees.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, David G.

1983-01-01

Ad-hoc committees may be symbolic, informational, or action committees. A literature survey indicates such committees' structural components include a suprasystem and three subsystems involving linkages, production, and implementation. Other variables include size, personal factors, and timing. All the factors carry implications about ad-hoc…

Holographic thermalization and generalized Vaidya-AdS solutions in massive gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Ya-Peng; Zeng, Xiao-Xiong; Zhang, Hai-Qing

2017-02-01

We investigate the effect of massive graviton on the holographic thermalization process. Before doing this, we first find out the generalized Vaidya-AdS solutions in the de Rham-Gabadadze-Tolley (dRGT) massive gravity by directly solving the gravitational equations. Then, we study the thermodynamics of these Vaidya-AdS solutions by using the Misner-Sharp energy and unified first law, which also shows that the massive gravity is in a thermodynamic equilibrium state. Moreover, we adopt the two-point correlation function at equal time to explore the thermalization process in the dual field theory, and to see how the graviton mass parameter affects this process from the viewpoint of AdS/CFT correspondence. Our results show that the graviton mass parameter will increase the holographic thermalization process.

Adding to Leader-Follower Transactions: The Augmenting Effect of Charismatic Leadership

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-12-01

leaders are able to influence and inspire followers on the basis of these values. The Augmenting Effect of Charismatic Leadership Two aspects of...III AD-A204 115 F r’ Adding to Leader -Follower Transactions: The Augmenting Effect of Charismatic Leadership David A. Waldman, Bernard M. Bass, and...OF NEW YORK m E L iLETI iA i .1’ Adding to Leader -Follower Transactions: The Augmenting Effect of Charismatic Leadership David A. Waldman, Bernard M

Effect of Various Sodium Chloride Mass Fractions on Wheat and Rye Bread Using Different Dough Preparation Techniques

PubMed Central

Tańska, Małgorzata; Rotkiewicz, Daniela; Piętak, Andrzej

2016-01-01

Summary This study assessed the selected properties of bread with reduced amount of sodium chloride. The bread was made from white and wholemeal wheat flour and rye flour. The dough was prepared using three techniques: with yeast, natural sourdough or starter sourdough. Sodium chloride was added to the dough at 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% of the flour mass. The following bread properties were examined in the study: yield and volume of the loaf, moisture content, crumb firmness and porosity, and organoleptic properties. Reducing the mass fraction of added sodium chloride was not found to have considerable effect on bread yield, whereas it had a significant and variable effect on the loaf volume, and crumb firmness and porosity. Organoleptic assessment showed diverse effects of sodium chloride addition on sensory properties of bread, depending on the type of bread and the dough preparation method. Reduced mass fractions of sodium chloride changed the organoleptic properties of bread made with yeast and with starter sourdough to a greater extent than of bread prepared with natural sourdough. PMID:27904407

The Effect of Mission Location on Mission Costs and Equivalent System Mass

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fisher, John W.; Levri, Julie

2002-01-01

It is the goal of developers of advanced life support researcher to develop technology that reduces the cost of life support for future space missions and thereby enables missions that are currently infeasible or too expensive. Because the cost of propulsion dominates the cost of hardware emplacement in space and because the mass of a deliverable object controls its propulsive requirements, equivalent system mass (ESM) is used as a means for accounting for mission costs. ESM is typically calculated by adding to the actual mass the equivalent amount of mass that must be added to a mission due to other characteristics of a piece of hardware such as the item s volume or energy requirements. This approach works well for comparing different pieces of hardware when they go to the same location in space. However, different locations in mission space such low Earth orbit, Mars surface, or full trip to Mars and return to low Earth orbit require vastly different amounts of propulsion. Moving an object from Earth surface to the Martian surface and returning it to Earth will require as much as 100 times the propulsion that is required to move the object to low Earth orbit only. This paper presents the case for including the effect that location can have on cost as a part of ESM and suggests a method for achieving this improvement of ESM.

Delay-dependent stability and added damping of SDOF real-time dynamic hybrid testing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chi, Fudong; Wang, Jinting; Jin, Feng

2010-09-01

It is well-recognized that a transfer system response delay that reduces the test stability inevitably exists in real-time dynamic hybrid testing (RTDHT). This paper focuses on the delay-dependent stability and added damping of SDOF systems in RTDHT. The exponential delay term is transferred into a rational fraction by the Padé approximation, and the delay-dependent stability conditions and instability mechanism of SDOF RTDHT systems are investigated by the root locus technique. First, the stability conditions are discussed separately for the cases of stiffness, mass, and damping experimental substructure. The use of root locus plots shows that the added damping effect and instability mechanism for mass are different from those for stiffness. For the stiffness experimental substructure case, the instability results from the inherent mode because of an obvious negative damping effect of the delay. For the mass case, the delay introduces an equivalent positive damping into the inherent mode, and instability occurs at an added high frequency mode. Then, the compound stability condition is investigated for a general case and the results show that the mass ratio may have both upper and lower limits to remain stable. Finally, a high-emulational virtual shaking table model is built to validate the stability conclusions.

The Effect of Comparatively-Framed versus Similarity-Framed E-Cigarette and Snus Print Ads on Young Adults' Ad and Product Perceptions.

PubMed

Banerjee, Smita C; Greene, Kathryn; Li, Yuelin; Ostroff, Jamie S

2016-07-01

This study examined the effects of comparative-framing [C-F; ads highlighting differences between the advertised product and conventional cigarettes and/or smokeless tobacco products] versus similarity-framing (S-F; ads highlighting congruence with conventional cigarettes and/or smokeless tobacco products) in e-cigarette and snus ads on young adult smokers' and non-smokers' ad- and product-related perceptions. One thousand fifty one (1,051) young adults (18-24 years; 76% women; 50% smokers) from existing consumer panels were recruited in a within-subjects quasi-experiment. Each participant viewed 4 online advertisements, varied by tobacco product type (e-cigarette or snus) and ad framing (C-F or S-F). The dependent measures for this study were ad-related (ad perceptions, ad credibility) and product-related perceptions (absolute and comparative risk perceptions, product appeal, and product use intentions). Former and current smokers rated C-F ads as more persuasive than S-F ads, as evidenced by favorable ad perceptions and high product use intentions. Former and current smokers also rated e-cigarette ads with more favorable ad perceptions, low absolute and comparative risk perceptions, high product appeal, and high product use intentions as compared to snus ads. However, the effect sizes of the significant differences are less than.2, indicating small magnitude of difference between the study variables. Unless FDA regulates e-cig and snus advertising, there is a potential of decreasing risk perceptions and increasing use of e-cigs among young adults. Further research on implicit/explicit comparative claims in e-cigarettes and snus advertisements that encourage risk misperceptions is recommended.

Comparison between overweight due to pregnancy and due to added weight to simulate body mass distribution in pregnancy.

PubMed

Aguiar, Liliana; Santos-Rocha, Rita; Vieira, Filomena; Branco, Marco; Andrade, Carlos; Veloso, António

2015-10-01

The assessment of biomechanical loading in the musculoskeletal system of the pregnant women is particularly interesting since they are subject to morphological, physiological and hormonal changes, which may lead to adaptations in gait. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of the increased mass in the trunk associated to pregnancy on the lower limb and pelvis, during walking, on temporal-distance parameters, joint range of motion and moments of force, by comparing a pregnant women group to a non-pregnant group, and to this group while carrying a 5 kg additional load located in the abdomen and breasts during walking, to understand which gait adaptations may be more related with the increased trunk mass, or if may be more associated with other factors such as the girth of the thigh. The subjects performed a previous 12 min training adaption to the added load. To calculate ankle, knee and hip joint angles and moments of force, a three-dimensional biomechanical model was developed. The inverse dynamics method was used to estimate net joint moments of force. The increased mass of the anterior trunk associated with second trimester of pregnancy may influence some gait variables such as the left step time, left and right stance times, double limb support time, maximum hip extension, maximum pelvic right obliquity, pelvic obliquity range of motion, maximum transversal left rotation and peak hip flexion moments of force. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Partition functions with spin in AdS2 via quasinormal mode methods

DOE PAGES

Keeler, Cynthia; Lisbão, Pedro; Ng, Gim Seng

2016-10-12

We extend the results of [1], computing one loop partition functions for massive fields with spin half in AdS 2 using the quasinormal mode method proposed by Denef, Hartnoll, and Sachdev [2]. We find the finite representations of SO(2,1) for spin zero and spin half, consisting of a highest weight state |hi and descendants with non-unitary values of h. These finite representations capture the poles and zeroes of the one loop determinants. Together with the asymptotic behavior of the partition functions (which can be easily computed using a large mass heat kernel expansion), these are sufficient to determine the fullmore » answer for the one loop determinants. We also discuss extensions to higher dimensional AdS 2n and higher spins.« less

The Effect of Comparatively-Framed versus Similarity-Framed E-Cigarette and Snus Print Ads on Young Adults’ Ad and Product Perceptions

PubMed Central

Banerjee, Smita C.; Greene, Kathryn; Li, Yuelin; Ostroff, Jamie S.

2016-01-01

Objectives This study examined the effects of comparative-framing [C-F; ads highlighting differences between the advertised product and conventional cigarettes and/or smokeless tobacco products] versus similarity-framing (S-F; ads highlighting congruence with conventional cigarettes and/or smokeless tobacco products) in e-cigarette and snus ads on young adult smokers’ and non-smokers’ ad- and product-related perceptions. Methods One thousand fifty one (1,051) young adults (18–24 years; 76% women; 50% smokers) from existing consumer panels were recruited in a within-subjects quasi-experiment. Each participant viewed 4 online advertisements, varied by tobacco product type (e-cigarette or snus) and ad framing (C-F or S-F). The dependent measures for this study were ad-related (ad perceptions, ad credibility) and product-related perceptions (absolute and comparative risk perceptions, product appeal, and product use intentions). Results Former and current smokers rated C-F ads as more persuasive than S-F ads, as evidenced by favorable ad perceptions and high product use intentions. Former and current smokers also rated e-cigarette ads with more favorable ad perceptions, low absolute and comparative risk perceptions, high product appeal, and high product use intentions as compared to snus ads. However, the effect sizes of the significant differences are less than.2, indicating small magnitude of difference between the study variables. Conclusions Unless FDA regulates e-cig and snus advertising, there is a potential of decreasing risk perceptions and increasing use of e-cigs among young adults. Further research on implicit/explicit comparative claims in e-cigarettes and snus advertisements that encourage risk misperceptions is recommended. PMID:28042597

Implementing Value-Added Measures of School Effectiveness: Getting the Incentives Right.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ladd, Helen F.; Walsh, Randall P.

2002-01-01

Evaluates value-added approach to measuring school effectiveness in North and South Carolina. Finds that value-added approach favors high-achievement schools, with large percentage of students from high-SES backgrounds. Discusses statistical problems in measuring value added. Concludes teachers' and administrators' avoidance of low-achievement,…

Impacts of Mass-dimension and Area-dimension relationships on retrieval ice particle effective radius from radar and lidar measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ham, S. H.; Kato, S.; Rose, F. G.

2016-12-01

In the retrieval of ice clouds from Radar and Lidar Measurements, mass-Dimension (m-D) and Area-Dimension (A-D) relationships are often used to describe nonspherical ice particle shapes. This study analytically investigates how the assumption of m-D and A-D relationships affects retrieval of ice effective radius. We use gamma and lognormal particle distributions and integrate optical parameters over the size distribution. The effective radius is expressed as a function of radar reflectivity factor, visible extinction coefficient, and parameters describing m-D and A-D relationships. The analytic expressions are used for converting effective radius retrieved from one set of m-D and A-D relationships into that with another set of m-D and A-D, including plates, solid columns, bullets, and mixture of different habits. The conversion method can be used for consistent radiative transfer simulation with cloud retrieval algorithms. In addition, when we want to merge cloud effective radii retrieved from different m-D and A-D, the conversion method can be efficiently used to remove undesired biases caused by m-D and A-D assumptions. Furthermore, the sensitivity of the effective radius to m-D and A-D relationships can be quantified by taking the first derivative of the effective radius with respect to parameters expressing the m-D and A-D relationships.

The effect of marijuana scenes in anti-marijuana public service announcements on adolescents' evaluation of ad effectiveness.

PubMed

Kang, Yahui; Cappella, Joseph N; Fishbein, Martin

2009-09-01

This study explored the possible negative impact of a specific ad feature-marijuana scenes-on adolescents' perceptions of ad effectiveness. A secondary data analysis was conducted on adolescents' evaluations of 60 anti-marijuana public service announcements that were a part of national and state anti-drug campaigns directed at adolescents. The major finding of the study was that marijuana scenes in anti-marijuana public service announcements negatively affected ad liking and thought valence toward the ads among adolescents who were at higher levels of risk for marijuana use. This negative impact was not reversed in the presence of strong anti-marijuana arguments. The results may be used to partially explain the lack of effectiveness of the anti-drug media campaign. It may also help researchers design more effective anti-marijuana ads by isolating adverse elements in the ads that may elicit boomerang effects in the target population.

Protection of total body water content and absence of hyperthermia despite 2% body mass loss ('voluntary dehydration') in soldiers drinking ad libitum during prolonged exercise in cool environmental conditions.

PubMed

Nolte, Heinrich W; Noakes, Timothy D; van Vuuren, Bernard

2011-11-01

The extent to which humans need to replace fluid losses during exercise remains contentious despite years of focused research. The primary objective was to evaluate ad libitum drinking on hydration status to determine whether body mass loss can be used as an accurate surrogate for changes in total body water (TBW) during exercise. Data were collected during a 14.6-km route march (wet bulb globe temperature of 14.1°C ). 18 subjects with an average age of 26 ± 2.5 (SD) years participated. Their mean ad libitum total fluid intake was 2.1 ± 1.4 litres during the exercise. Predicted sweat rate was 1.289 ± 0.530 l/h. There were no significant changes (p>0.05) in TBW, urine specific gravity or urine osmolality despite an average body mass loss (p<0.05) of 1.3 ± 0.45 kg during the march. Core temperature rose as a function of marching speed and was unrelated to the % change in body mass. This suggests that changes in mass do not accurately predict changes in TBW (r=-0.16) because either the body mass loss during exercise includes losses other than water or there is an endogenous body water source that is released during exercise not requiring replacement during exercise, or both. Ad libitum water replacement between 65% and 70% of sweat losses maintained safe levels of hydration during the experiment. The finding that TBW was protected by ad libitum drinking despite approximately 2% body mass loss suggests that the concept of 'voluntary dehydration' may require revision.

Antismoking Ads at the Point of Sale: The Influence of Ad Type and Context on Ad Reactions.

PubMed

Kim, Annice; Nonnemaker, James; Guillory, Jamie; Shafer, Paul; Parvanta, Sarah; Holloway, John; Farrelly, Matthew

2017-06-01

Efforts are underway to educate consumers about the dangers of smoking at the point of sale (POS). Research is limited about the efficacy of POS antismoking ads to guide campaign development. This study experimentally tests whether the type of antismoking ad and the context in which ads are viewed influence people's reactions to the ads. A national convenience sample of 7,812 adult current smokers and recent quitters was randomized to 1 of 39 conditions. Participants viewed one of the four types of antismoking ads (negative health consequences-graphic, negative social consequences-intended emotive, benefits of quitting-informational, benefits of quitting-graphic) in one of the three contexts (alone, next to a cigarette ad, POS tobacco display). We assessed participants' reactions to the ads, including perceived effectiveness, negative emotion, affective dissonance, and motivational reaction. Graphic ads elicited more negative emotion and affective dissonance than benefits of quitting ads. Graphic ads elicited higher perceived effectiveness and more affective dissonance than intended emotive ads. Antismoking ads fared best when viewed alone, and graphic ads were least influenced by the context in which they were viewed. These results suggest that in developing POS campaigns, it is important to consider the competitive pro-tobacco context in which antismoking ads will be viewed.

On information loss in AdS 3/CFT 2

DOE PAGES

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared; Li, Daliang; ...

2016-05-18

We discuss information loss from black hole physics in AdS 3, focusing on two sharp signatures infecting CFT 2 correlators at large central charge c: ‘forbidden singularities’ arising from Euclidean-time periodicity due to the effective Hawking temperature, and late-time exponential decay in the Lorentzian region. We study an infinite class of examples where forbidden singularities can be resolved by non-perturbative effects at finite c, and we show that the resolution has certain universal features that also apply in the general case. Analytically continuing to the Lorentzian regime, we find that the non-perturbative effects that resolve forbidden singularities qualitatively change themore » behavior of correlators at times t ~S BH, the black hole entropy. This may resolve the exponential decay of correlators at late times in black hole backgrounds. By Borel resumming the 1/c expansion of exact examples, we explicitly identify ‘information-restoring’ effects from heavy states that should correspond to classical solutions in AdS 3. Lastly, our results suggest a line of inquiry towards a more precise formulation of the gravitational path integral in AdS 3.« less

Adiabatic pumping solutions in global AdS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carracedo, Pablo; Mas, Javier; Musso, Daniele; Serantes, Alexandre

2017-05-01

We construct a family of very simple stationary solutions to gravity coupled to a massless scalar field in global AdS. They involve a constantly rising source for the scalar field at the boundary and thereby we name them pumping solutions. We construct them numerically in D = 4. They are regular and, generically, have negative mass. We perform a study of linear and nonlinear stability and find both stable and unstable branches. In the latter case, solutions belonging to different sub-branches can either decay to black holes or to limiting cycles. This observation motivates the search for non-stationary exactly timeperiodic solutions which we actually construct. We clarify the role of pumping solutions in the context of quasistatic adiabatic quenches. In D = 3 the pumping solutions can be related to other previously known solutions, like magnetic or translationally-breaking backgrounds. From this we derive an analytic expression.

Teacher Effects, Value-Added Models, and Accountability

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Konstantopoulos, Spyros

2014-01-01

Background: In the last decade, the effects of teachers on student performance (typically manifested as state-wide standardized tests) have been re-examined using statistical models that are known as value-added models. These statistical models aim to compute the unique contribution of the teachers in promoting student achievement gains from grade…

Advertising health: the case for counter-ads.

PubMed Central

Dorfman, L; Wallack, L

1993-01-01

Public service advertisements have been used by many in hopes of "selling" good health behaviors. But selling good behavior--even if it could be done more effectively--is not the best goal for using mass media to prevent health problems. Personal behavior is only part of what determines health status. Social conditions and the physical environment are important determinants of health that are usually ignored by health promotion advertising. Public service advertising may be doing more harm than good if it is diverting attention from more effective socially based health promotion strategies. Counter-ads are one communications strategy that could be used to promote a broader responsibility for rectifying health problems. In the tradition of advocacy advertising directly promoting policy rather than products, counter-ads promote views consistent with a public health perspective. Counter-ads set the agenda for health issues, conferring status on policy-oriented strategies for addressing health problems. The primary purpose of counter-ads is to challenge the dominant view that public health problems reflect personal health habits. They are controversial because they place health issues in a social and political context. Advertising strategies for health promotion range over a spectrum from individually oriented public service advertising to socially oriented counter-advertising. The recent anti-tobacco campaign from the California Department of Health Services represents advertisements across the spectrum. Counter-ads that focus on a politically controversial definition for health problems are an appropriate and necessary alternative to public service advertising. PMID:8265756

Advertising health: the case for counter-ads.

PubMed

Dorfman, L; Wallack, L

1993-01-01

Public service advertisements have been used by many in hopes of "selling" good health behaviors. But selling good behavior--even if it could be done more effectively--is not the best goal for using mass media to prevent health problems. Personal behavior is only part of what determines health status. Social conditions and the physical environment are important determinants of health that are usually ignored by health promotion advertising. Public service advertising may be doing more harm than good if it is diverting attention from more effective socially based health promotion strategies. Counter-ads are one communications strategy that could be used to promote a broader responsibility for rectifying health problems. In the tradition of advocacy advertising directly promoting policy rather than products, counter-ads promote views consistent with a public health perspective. Counter-ads set the agenda for health issues, conferring status on policy-oriented strategies for addressing health problems. The primary purpose of counter-ads is to challenge the dominant view that public health problems reflect personal health habits. They are controversial because they place health issues in a social and political context. Advertising strategies for health promotion range over a spectrum from individually oriented public service advertising to socially oriented counter-advertising. The recent anti-tobacco campaign from the California Department of Health Services represents advertisements across the spectrum. Counter-ads that focus on a politically controversial definition for health problems are an appropriate and necessary alternative to public service advertising.

Degenerate stars and gravitational collapse in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arsiwalla, Xerxes; de Boer, Jan; Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Verlinde, Erik

2011-01-01

We construct composite CFT operators from a large number of fermionic primary fields corresponding to states that are holographically dual to a zero temperature Fermi gas in AdS space. We identify a large N regime in which the fermions behave as free particles. In the hydrodynamic limit the Fermi gas forms a degenerate star with a radius determined by the Fermi level, and a mass and angular momentum that exactly matches the boundary calculations. Next we consider an interacting regime, and calculate the effect of the gravitational back-reaction on the radius and the mass of the star using the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equations. Ignoring other interactions, we determine the "Chandrasekhar limit" beyond which the degenerate star (presumably) undergoes gravitational collapse towards a black hole. This is interpreted on the boundary as a high density phase transition from a cold baryonic phase to a hot deconfined phase.

The Effect of Marijuana Scenes in Anti-marijuana Public Service Announcements on Adolescents’ Evaluation of Ad Effectiveness

PubMed Central

Kang, Yahui; Cappella, Joseph N.; Fishbein, Martin

2014-01-01

This study explored the possible negative impact of a specific ad feature—marijuana scenes—on adolescents’ perception of ad effectiveness. A secondary data analysis was conducted on adolescents’ evaluations of 60 anti-marijuana public service announcements (PSAs) that were a part of national and state anti-drug campaigns directed at adolescents. The major finding of the study was that marijuana scenes in anti-marijuana PSAs negatively affected ad liking and thought valence toward the ads among adolescents who are at higher levels of risk for marijuana use. This negative impact was not reversed in the presence of strong anti-marijuana arguments. The results may be used to partially explain the lack of effectiveness of the anti-drug media campaign. It may also help us design more effective anti-marijuana PSAs by isolating adverse elements in the ads that may elicit boomerang effects in the target population. Limitations of the study and future directions were discussed. PMID:19735026

Added value of shear-wave elastography for evaluation of breast masses detected with screening US imaging.

PubMed

Lee, Su Hyun; Chang, Jung Min; Kim, Won Hwa; Bae, Min Sun; Seo, Mirinae; Koo, Hye Ryoung; Chu, A Jung; Gweon, Hye Mi; Cho, Nariya; Moon, Woo Kyung

2014-10-01

To evaluate the additional value of shear-wave elastography (SWE) to B-mode ultrasonography (US) and to determine an appropriate guideline for the combined assessment of screening US-detected breast masses. This study was conducted with institutional review board approval, and written informed consent was obtained. From March 2010 to February 2012, B-mode US and SWE were performed in 159 US-detected breast masses before biopsy. For each lesion, Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS) category on B-mode US images and the maximum stiffness color and elasticity values on SWE images were assessed. A guideline for adding SWE data to B-mode US was developed with the retrospective cohort to improve diagnostic performance in sensitivity and specificity and was validated in a distinct prospective cohort of 207 women prior to biopsy. Twenty-one of 159 masses in the development cohort and 12 of 207 breast masses in the validation cohort were malignant. In the development cohort, when BI-RADS category 4a masses showing a dark blue color or a maximum elasticity value of 30 kPa or less on SWE images were downgraded to category 3, specificity increased from 9.4% (13 of 138) to 59.4% (82 of 138) and 57.2% (79 of 138) (P < .001), respectively, without loss in sensitivity (100% [21 of 21]). In the validation cohort, specificity increased from 17.4% (34 of 195) to 62.1% (121 of 195) and 53.3% (104 of 195) (P < .001) respectively, without loss in sensitivity (91.7% [11 of 12]). The addition of SWE to B-mode US improved diagnostic performance with increased specificity for screening US-detected breast masses. BI-RADS category 4a masses detected at US screening that showed a dark blue color or a maximum elasticity value of 30 kPa or less on SWE images can be safely followed up instead of performing biopsy. © RSNA, 2014.

Adding Liquid Payloads Effects to the 6-DOF Trajectory of Spinning Projectiles

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-03-01

Adding Liquid Payloads Effects to the 6-DOF Trajectory of Spinning Projectiles by Gene R. Cooper ARL-TR-5118 March 2010...Liquid Payloads Effects to the 6-DOF Trajectory of Spinning Projectiles Gene R. Cooper Weapons and Materials Research Directorate, ARL...September 2007 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Adding Liquid Payloads Effects to the 6-DOF Trajectory of Spinning Projectiles 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER 5b. GRANT

Effects of message framing and visual-fear appeals on smoker responses to antismoking ads.

PubMed

Kang, Jungsuk; Lin, Carolyn A

2015-01-01

This study examined the effects of antismoking ads on Korean adult male smokers. An experiment was conducted to explore how message framing and visual-fear appeals embedded in antismoking ads may influence ad-evoked fear, threat appraisals, and intention to quit smoking. Results showed that (a) antismoking ad exposure increased ad-evoked fear and cessation intention; (b) optimistic bias was stronger when the visual-fear appeal was absent in antismoking ads; and (c) preexposure cessation intension as well as postexposure perceived severity and optimistic bias were positively predictive of smokers' postexposure cessation intention The study provided the first preliminary empirical evidence for validating the combined effects of message frames and visual-fear appeals in antismoking ads on facilitating cessation intention.

Industry sponsored anti-smoking ads and adolescent reactance: test of a boomerang effect.

PubMed

Henriksen, L; Dauphinee, A L; Wang, Y; Fortmann, S P

2006-02-01

To examine whether adolescents' exposure to youth smoking prevention ads sponsored by tobacco companies promotes intentions to smoke, curiosity about smoking, and positive attitudes toward the tobacco industry. A randomised controlled experiment compared adolescents' responses to five smoking prevention ads sponsored by a tobacco company (Philip Morris or Lorillard), or to five smoking prevention ads sponsored by a non-profit organisation (the American Legacy Foundation), or to five ads about preventing drunk driving. A large public high school in California's central valley. A convenience sample of 9th and 10th graders (n = 832) ages 14-17 years. Perceptions of ad effectiveness, intention to smoke, and attitudes toward tobacco companies measured immediately after exposure. As predicted, adolescents rated Philip Morris and Lorillard ads less favourably than the other youth smoking prevention ads. Adolescents' intention to smoke did not differ as a function of ad exposure. However, exposure to Philip Morris and Lorillard ads engendered more favourable attitudes toward tobacco companies. This study demonstrates that industry sponsored anti-smoking ads do more to promote corporate image than to prevent youth smoking. By cultivating public opinion that is more sympathetic toward tobacco companies, the effect of such advertising is likely to be more harmful than helpful to youth.

Shear-wave elastography quantitative assessment of the male breast: added value to distinguish benign and malignant palpable masses.

PubMed

Crombé, Amandine; Hurtevent-Labrot, Gabrielle; Asad-Syed, Maryam; Palussière, Jean; MacGrogan, Gaetan; Kind, Michèle; Ferron, Stéphane

2018-02-01

To evaluate the ability of shear-wave elastography (SWE) to distinguish between benign and malignant palpable masses of the adult male breast. Clinical examination, mammography, B-mode and Doppler ultrasound findings and SWE quantitative parameters were compared in 50 benign lesions (including 40 gynaecomastias) and 15 malignant lesions (invasive ductal carcinomas) from 65 patients who were consecutively addressed for specialized advice at our comprehensive cancer centre. Mean elasticity (El mean), maximum elasticity (El max), El mean of the surrounding fatty tissue and lesion to fat ratio (El ratio) were reported for each patient. Malignant masses displayed significantly higher El mean (p < 0.0001), El max (p < 0.0001) and El ratio (p < 0.0001) compared to benign masses without overlap of values between the two groups. By adding SWE to clinical examination, mammography and ultrasound, all the lesions would have been retrospectively correctly diagnosed as benign or malignant. One false positive could have been downstaged, 14/65 undetermined masses could have been correctly reclassified as 4 malignant and 10 benign lesions, for which biopsies could have consequently been avoided. Evaluation of male breast palpable masses by SWE demonstrates that malignant masses are significantly stiffer lesions and may improve diagnostic management when clinical examination, mammography and conventional ultrasound are doubtful. Advances in knowledge: Quantitative SWE is feasible in male breast and could be of great interest to help classify doubtful lesions after classical clinical and radiological evaluations, probably because of different anatomy and different tumours epidemiology compared with female breast.

Added effect of heat wave on mortality in Seoul, Korea.

PubMed

Lee, Won Kyung; Lee, Hye Ah; Lim, Youn Hee; Park, Hyesook

2016-05-01

A heat wave could increase mortality owing to high temperature. However, little is known about the added (duration) effect of heat wave from the prolonged period of high temperature on mortality and different effect sizes depending on the definition of heat waves and models. A distributed lag non-linear model with a quasi-Poisson distribution was used to evaluate the added effect of heat wave on mortality after adjusting for long-term and intra-seasonal trends and apparent temperature. We evaluated the cumulative relative risk of the added wave effect on mortality on lag days 0-30. The models were constructed using nine definitions of heat wave and two relationships (cubic spline and linear threshold model) between temperature and mortality to leave out the high temperature effect. Further, we performed sensitivity analysis to evaluate the changes in the effect of heat wave on mortality according to the different degrees of freedom for time trend and cubic spline of temperature. We found that heat wave had the added effect from the prolonged period of high temperature on mortality and it was considerable in the aspect of cumulative risk because of the lagged influence. When heat wave was defined with a threshold of 98th percentile temperature and ≥2, 3, and 4 consecutive days, mortality increased by 14.8 % (7.5-22.6, 95 % confidence interval (CI)), 18.1 % (10.8-26.0, 95 % CI), 18.1 % (10.7-25.9, 95 % CI), respectively, in cubic spline model. When it came to the definitions of 90th and 95th percentile, the risk increase in mortality declined to 3.7-5.8 % and 8.6-11.3 %, respectively. This effect was robust to the flexibility of the model for temperature and time trend, while the definitions of a heat wave were critical in estimating its relationship with mortality. This finding could help deepen our understanding and quantifying of the relationship between heat wave and mortality and select an appropriate definition of heat wave and temperature model in the future

AdS 2 holographic dictionary

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cvetic, Mirjam; Papadimitriou, Ioannis

Here, we construct the holographic dictionary for both running and constant dilaton solutions of the two dimensional Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton theory that is obtained by a circle reduction from Einstein-Hilbert gravity with negative cosmological constant in three dimensions. This specific model ensures that the dual theory has a well defined ultraviolet completion in terms of a two dimensional conformal field theory, but our results apply qualitatively to a wider class of two dimensional dilaton gravity theories. For each type of solutions we perform holographic renormalization, compute the exact renormalized one-point functions in the presence of arbitrary sources, and derive the asymptotic symmetriesmore » and the corresponding conserved charges. In both cases we find that the scalar operator dual to the dilaton plays a crucial role in the description of the dynamics. Its source gives rise to a matter conformal anomaly for the running dilaton solutions, while its expectation value is the only non trivial observable for constant dilaton solutions. The role of this operator has been largely overlooked in the literature. We further show that the only non trivial conserved charges for running dilaton solutions are the mass and the electric charge, while for constant dilaton solutions only the electric charge is non zero. However, by uplifting the solutions to three dimensions we show that constant dilaton solutions can support non trivial extended symmetry algebras, including the one found by Compère, Song and Strominger, in agreement with the results of Castro and Song. Finally, we demonstrate that any solution of this specific dilaton gravity model can be uplifted to a family of asymptotically AdS 2 × S 2 or conformally AdS 2 × S 2 solutions of the STU model in four dimensions, including non extremal black holes. As a result, the four dimensional solutions obtained by uplifting the running dilaton solutions coincide with the so called ‘subtracted geometries�

AdS 2 holographic dictionary

DOE PAGES

Cvetic, Mirjam; Papadimitriou, Ioannis

2016-12-02

Here, we construct the holographic dictionary for both running and constant dilaton solutions of the two dimensional Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton theory that is obtained by a circle reduction from Einstein-Hilbert gravity with negative cosmological constant in three dimensions. This specific model ensures that the dual theory has a well defined ultraviolet completion in terms of a two dimensional conformal field theory, but our results apply qualitatively to a wider class of two dimensional dilaton gravity theories. For each type of solutions we perform holographic renormalization, compute the exact renormalized one-point functions in the presence of arbitrary sources, and derive the asymptotic symmetriesmore » and the corresponding conserved charges. In both cases we find that the scalar operator dual to the dilaton plays a crucial role in the description of the dynamics. Its source gives rise to a matter conformal anomaly for the running dilaton solutions, while its expectation value is the only non trivial observable for constant dilaton solutions. The role of this operator has been largely overlooked in the literature. We further show that the only non trivial conserved charges for running dilaton solutions are the mass and the electric charge, while for constant dilaton solutions only the electric charge is non zero. However, by uplifting the solutions to three dimensions we show that constant dilaton solutions can support non trivial extended symmetry algebras, including the one found by Compère, Song and Strominger, in agreement with the results of Castro and Song. Finally, we demonstrate that any solution of this specific dilaton gravity model can be uplifted to a family of asymptotically AdS 2 × S 2 or conformally AdS 2 × S 2 solutions of the STU model in four dimensions, including non extremal black holes. As a result, the four dimensional solutions obtained by uplifting the running dilaton solutions coincide with the so called ‘subtracted geometries�

Consistency Between Increasing Trends in Added-Sugar Intake and Body Mass Index Among Adults: The Minnesota Heart Survey, 1980–1982 to 2007–2009

PubMed Central

Wang, Huifen; Zhou, Xia; Harnack, Lisa; Luepker, Russell V.

2013-01-01

Objectives. We described 27-year secular trends in added-sugar intake and body mass index (BMI) among Americans aged 25 to 74 years. Methods. The Minnesota Heart Survey (1980–1982 to 2007–2009) is a surveillance study of cardiovascular risk factors among residents of the Minneapolis–St Paul area. We used generalized linear mixed regressions to describe trends in added-sugar intake and BMI by gender and age groups and intake trends by weight status. Results. BMI increased concurrently with added-sugar intake in both genders and all age and weight groups. Percentage of energy intake from added sugar increased by 54% in women between 1980 to 1982 and 2000 to 2002, but declined somewhat in 2007 to 2009; men followed the same pattern (all P < .001). Added-sugar intake was lower among women than men and higher among younger than older adults. BMI in women paralleled added-sugar intake, but men's BMI increased through 2009. Percentage of energy intake from added sugar was similar among weight groups. Conclusions. Limiting added-sugar intake should be part of energy balance strategies in response to the obesity epidemic. PMID:22698050

The Effect of QBO on the Total Mass Density

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saǧır, Selçuk; Atıcı, Ramazan

2016-07-01

The relationship between Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO) measured at 10 hPa altitude and total mass density (TMD) values obtained from NRLMSIS-00 model for 90 km altitude of ionosphere known as Mesosphere-Lower Thermosphere (MLT) region is statistically investigated. For this study, multiple-regression model is used. To see the effect on TMD of QBO directions, Dummy variables are also added to model. In the result of calculations, it is observed that QBO is effected on TMD. It is determined that 69% of variations at TMD can be explainable by QBO. It is determined that the explainable ratio is at the rate of 5%. Also, it is seen that an increase/a decrease of 1 meter per second at QBO give rise to an increase/a decrease of 7,2x10-4 g/cm3 at TMD.

Evaluating Special Educator Effectiveness: Addressing Issues Inherent to Value-Added Modeling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Steinbrecher, Trisha D.; Selig, James P.; Cosbey, Joanna; Thorstensen, Beata I.

2014-01-01

States are increasingly using value-added approaches to evaluate teacher effectiveness. There is much debate regarding whether these methods should be employed and, if employed, what role such methods should play in comprehensive teacher evaluation systems. In this article, we consider the use of value-added modeling (VAM) to evaluate special…

The kinetic energy operator for distance-dependent effective nuclear masses: Derivation for a triatomic molecule.

PubMed

Khoma, Mykhaylo; Jaquet, Ralph

2017-09-21

The kinetic energy operator for triatomic molecules with coordinate or distance-dependent nuclear masses has been derived. By combination of the chain rule method and the analysis of infinitesimal variations of molecular coordinates, a simple and general technique for the construction of the kinetic energy operator has been proposed. The asymptotic properties of the Hamiltonian have been investigated with respect to the ratio of the electron and proton mass. We have demonstrated that an ad hoc introduction of distance (and direction) dependent nuclear masses in Cartesian coordinates preserves the total rotational invariance of the problem. With the help of Wigner rotation functions, an effective Hamiltonian for nuclear motion can be derived. In the derivation, we have focused on the effective trinuclear Hamiltonian. All necessary matrix elements are given in closed analytical form. Preliminary results for the influence of non-adiabaticity on vibrational band origins are presented for H 3 + .

Industry sponsored anti‐smoking ads and adolescent reactance: test of a boomerang effect

PubMed Central

Henriksen, L; Dauphinee, A L; Wang, Y; Fortmann, S P

2006-01-01

Objective To examine whether adolescents' exposure to youth smoking prevention ads sponsored by tobacco companies promotes intentions to smoke, curiosity about smoking, and positive attitudes toward the tobacco industry. Design A randomised controlled experiment compared adolescents' responses to five smoking prevention ads sponsored by a tobacco company (Philip Morris or Lorillard), or to five smoking prevention ads sponsored by a non‐profit organisation (the American Legacy Foundation), or to five ads about preventing drunk driving. Setting A large public high school in California's central valley. Subjects A convenience sample of 9th and 10th graders (n  =  832) ages 14–17 years. Main outcome measures Perceptions of ad effectiveness, intention to smoke, and attitudes toward tobacco companies measured immediately after exposure. Results As predicted, adolescents rated Philip Morris and Lorillard ads less favourably than the other youth smoking prevention ads. Adolescents' intention to smoke did not differ as a function of ad exposure. However, exposure to Philip Morris and Lorillard ads engendered more favourable attitudes toward tobacco companies. Conclusions This study demonstrates that industry sponsored anti‐smoking ads do more to promote corporate image than to prevent youth smoking. By cultivating public opinion that is more sympathetic toward tobacco companies, the effect of such advertising is likely to be more harmful than helpful to youth. PMID:16436398

Negative effective mass in acoustic metamaterial with nonlinear mass-in-mass subsystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cveticanin, L.; Zukovic, M.

2017-10-01

In this paper the dynamics of the nonlinear mass-in-mass system as the basic subsystem of the acoustic metamaterial is investigated. The excitation of the system is in the form of the Jacobi elliptic function. The corresponding model to this forcing is the mass-in-mass system with cubic nonlinearity of the Duffing type. Mathematical model of the motion is a system of two coupled strong nonlinear and nonhomogeneous second order differential equations. Particular solution to the system is obtained. The analytical solution of the problem is based on the simple and double integral of the cosine Jacobi function. In the paper the integrals are given in the form of series of trigonometric functions. These results are new one. After some modification the simplified solution in the first approximation is obtained. The result is convenient for discussion. Conditions for elimination of the motion of the mass 1 by connection of the nonlinear dynamic absorber (mass - spring system) are defined. In the consideration the effective mass ratio is introduced in the nonlinear mass-in-mass system. Negative effective mass ratio gives the absorption of vibrations with certain frequencies. The advantage of the nonlinear subunit in comparison to the linear one is that the frequency gap is significantly wider. Nevertheless, it has to be mentioned that the amplitude of vibration differs from zero for a small value. In the paper the analytical results are compared with numerical one and are in agreement.

Plant litter functional diversity effects on litter mass loss depend on the macro-detritivore community.

PubMed

Patoine, Guillaume; Thakur, Madhav P; Friese, Julia; Nock, Charles; Hönig, Lydia; Haase, Josephine; Scherer-Lorenzen, Michael; Eisenhauer, Nico

2017-11-01

A better understanding of the mechanisms driving litter diversity effects on decomposition is needed to predict how biodiversity losses affect this crucial ecosystem process. In a microcosm study, we investigated the effects of litter functional diversity and two major groups of soil macro-detritivores on the mass loss of tree leaf litter mixtures. Furthermore, we tested the effects of litter trait community means and dissimilarity on litter mass loss for seven traits relevant to decomposition. We expected macro-detritivore effects on litter mass loss to be most pronounced in litter mixtures of high functional diversity. We used 24 leaf mixtures differing in functional diversity, which were composed of litter from four species from a pool of 16 common European tree species. Earthworms, isopods, or a combination of both were added to each litter combination for two months. Litter mass loss was significantly higher in the presence of earthworms than in that of isopods, whereas no synergistic effects of macro-detritivore mixtures were found. The effect of functional diversity of the litter material was highest in the presence of both macro-detritivore groups, supporting the notion that litter diversity effects are most pronounced in the presence of different detritivore species. Species-specific litter mass loss was explained by nutrient content, secondary compound concentration, and structural components. Moreover, dissimilarity in N concentrations increased litter mass loss, probably because detritivores having access to nutritionally diverse food sources. Furthermore, strong competition between the two macro-detritivores for soil surface litter resulted in a decrease of survival of both macro-detritivores. These results show that the effects of litter functional diversity on decomposition are contingent upon the macro-detritivore community and composition. We conclude that the temporal dynamics of litter trait diversity effects and their interaction with

Plant litter functional diversity effects on litter mass loss depend on the macro-detritivore community

PubMed Central

Patoine, Guillaume; Thakur, Madhav P.; Friese, Julia; Nock, Charles; Hönig, Lydia; Haase, Josephine; Scherer-Lorenzen, Michael; Eisenhauer, Nico

2017-01-01

A better understanding of the mechanisms driving litter diversity effects on decomposition is needed to predict how biodiversity losses affect this crucial ecosystem process. In a microcosm study, we investigated the effects of litter functional diversity and two major groups of soil macro-detritivores on the mass loss of tree leaf litter mixtures. Furthermore, we tested the effects of litter trait community means and dissimilarity on litter mass loss for seven traits relevant to decomposition. We expected macro-detritivore effects on litter mass loss to be most pronounced in litter mixtures of high functional diversity. We used 24 leaf mixtures differing in functional diversity, which were composed of litter from four species from a pool of 16 common European tree species. Earthworms, isopods, or a combination of both were added to each litter combination for two months. Litter mass loss was significantly higher in the presence of earthworms than in that of isopods, whereas no synergistic effects of macro-detritivore mixtures were found. The effect of functional diversity of the litter material was highest in the presence of both macro-detritivore groups, supporting the notion that litter diversity effects are most pronounced in the presence of different detritivore species. Species-specific litter mass loss was explained by nutrient content, secondary compound concentration, and structural components. Moreover, dissimilarity in N concentrations increased litter mass loss, probably because detritivores having access to nutritionally diverse food sources. Furthermore, strong competition between the two macro-detritivores for soil surface litter resulted in a decrease of survival of both macro-detritivores. These results show that the effects of litter functional diversity on decomposition are contingent upon the macro-detritivore community and composition. We conclude that the temporal dynamics of litter trait diversity effects and their interaction with

AdS/CFT beyond the N = 4 SYM paradigm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pomoni, Elli

In this thesis we present studies in the AdS/CFT correspondence that intend to push the present knowledge beyond the N = 4 super Yang-Mills (SYM) paradigm. The first part is concerned with the study of non-supersymmetric deformations of N = 4 SYM (which still are in the N = 4 universality class). For non-supersymmetric CFT's at Large N we explore the correspondence between string theory tachyons in the bulk and instabilities on the boundary effective action. The operators dual to AdS tachyons have anomalous dimensions that are purely complex numbers. We give a prescription for calculating the mass of the tachyon from the field theory side. Moreover, we apply this general dictionary to the case of intersecting D7 flavor branes in AdS 5 x S5 and obtain the mass of the open string tachyon that is dual to the instability in the mesonic sector of the theory. In the second part we present work aiming at finding string theory duals for gauge theories beyond the N = 4 universality class, i.e. theories that have genuinely less supersymmetry and unquenched flavor. Arguably the next simplest example after N = 4 SYM is N = 2 SU(Nc) SYM coupled to Nf = 2Nc fundamental hypermultiplets. The theory admits a Veneziano expansion of large Nc and large Nf, with Nf/Nc and lambda = g2Nc kept fixed. The topological structure of large N diagrams invites a general conjecture: the flavor-singlet sector of a gauge theory in the Veneziano limit is dual to a closed string theory. We present the one-loop Hamiltonian for the scalar sector of N = 2 superconformal QCD and study this integrability of the theory. Furthermore, we explore the chiral spectrum of the protected operators of the theory using the one-loop anomalous dimensions and, additionally, by studying the index of the theory. We finally search for possible AdS dual trying to match the chiral spectrum. We conclude that the string dual is a sub-critical background containing both an AdS 5 and an S1 factor.

Consumption of Added Sugars and Cardiometabolic Risk Indicators Among US Adolescents

PubMed Central

Welsh, Jean A.; Sharma, Andrea; Argeseanu, Solveig; Vos, Miriam B.

2014-01-01

Background Increased carbohydrate and sugar consumption has been associated with dyslipidemia among adults. However, the effect of high consumption of added sugars (caloric sweeteners) on measures of cardiometabolic risk among US adolescents is unknown. Methods and Results This was a cross-sectional study of 2,252 US adolescents (13–18 y) in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999–2004. Dietary data from one 24-hour recall were merged with added sugar content data from the USDA MyPyramid Equivalents Databases. Multivariate-adjusted means of cardiometabolic indicators were estimated by added sugar consumption level (<10%, 10– <15%, 15– <20%, 20– <25%, 25– <30%, and ≥30% total energy) and weighted to be representative of US adolescents. Mean consumption of added sugars was 21.4% of daily energy intake. Adjusted mean high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) levels were lower, 1.38 mmol/L (95% CI: 1.32, 1.43) among the lowest consumers to 1.28 mmol/L (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.23, 1.33) among the highest (p-trend=0.007). Geometric mean triglyceride levels ranged from 0.79 mmol/L (95% CI: 0.72, 0.86) to 0.89 mmol/L (95% CI: 0.83, 0.96) (p-trend=0.03) with greater consumption of added sugars. Among those overweight/obese (≥85th percentile body-mass-index [BMI]), HOMA-IRs were positively associated with added sugars (p-linear trend<0.001), averaging 78% higher among the highest vs. the lowest consumers (p<0.001). No significant trends were seen with low-density lipoproteins, body-mass-index, or blood pressure. Conclusion In US adolescents, consumption of added sugars is positively associated with measures of cardiometabolic risk. Long-term studies are needed to determine if reduction in added sugars will improve these parameters and, thereby decrease future cardiovascular events. PMID:21220734

The Effect of Manipulating Subject Mass on Lower Extremity Torque Patterns During Locomotion

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

DeWitt, John K.; Cromwell, Ronita L.; Hagan, R. Donald

2007-01-01

During locomotion, humans adapt their motor patterns to maintain coordination despite changing conditions (Reisman et al., 2005). Bernstein (1967) proposed that in addition to the present state of a given joint, other factors, including limb inertia and velocity, must be taken into account to allow proper motion to occur. During locomotion with added mass counterbalanced using vertical suspension to maintain body weight, vertical ground reaction forces (GRF's) increase during walking but decrease during running, suggesting that adaptation may be velocity-specific (De Witt et al., 2006). It is not known, however, how lower extremity joint torques adapt to changes in inertial forces. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effects of increasing body mass while maintaining body weight upon lower-limb joint torque during walking and running. We hypothesized that adaptations in joint torque patterns would occur with the addition of body mass.

Determination of effective thoracic mass.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1996-02-01

Effective thoracic mass is a critical parameter in specifying mathematical and mechanical models (such as crash dummies) of humans exposed to impact conditions. A method is developed using a numerical optimizer to determine effective thoracic mass (a...

Value Added?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

UCLA IDEA, 2012

2012-01-01

Value added measures (VAM) uses changes in student test scores to determine how much "value" an individual teacher has "added" to student growth during the school year. Some policymakers, school districts, and educational advocates have applauded VAM as a straightforward measure of teacher effectiveness: the better a teacher,…

The Reliability, Impact, and Cost-Effectiveness of Value-Added Teacher Assessment Methods

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeh, Stuart S.

2012-01-01

This article reviews evidence regarding the intertemporal reliability of teacher rankings based on value-added methods. Value-added methods exhibit low reliability, yet are broadly supported by prominent educational researchers and are increasingly being used to evaluate and fire teachers. The article then presents a cost-effectiveness analysis…

Can Teachers Be Evaluated by Their Students' Test Scores? Should They Be? The Use of Value-Added Measures of Teacher Effectiveness in Policy and Practice. Education Policy for Action Series

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Corcoran, Sean P.

2010-01-01

Value-added measures of teacher effectiveness are the centerpiece of a national movement to evaluate, promote, compensate, and dismiss teachers based in part on their students' test results. Federal, state, and local policy-makers have adopted these methods en masse in recent years in an attempt to objectively quantify teaching effectiveness and…

Characterization and attenuation study on tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboard at high energy photon and electron

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yusof, Mohd Fahmi Mohd; Hamid, Puteri Nor Khatijah Abd; Tajuddin, Abd Aziz; Abdullah, Reduan; Hashim, Rokiah; Bauk, Sabar; Isa, Norriza Mohd; Isa, Muhammad Jamal Md

2017-01-01

The effective atomic number of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards was determined based on elemental composition using Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis (EDXA). The value of mass attenuation coefficients were measured using 137Cs and 60Co gamma energies. The attenuation properties of PDD curves and beam profile of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards were investigated using Gafchromic EBT2 film at 6 MV photon and 6 MeV electrons and compared to the value in water and solid water phantoms. The results showed that tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards having effective atomic number close to the value of water. The mass attenuation coefficients were near to the value of water with χ2 values of 0.018 and 0.357 to 137Cs and 60Co gamma energies respectively. The PDD of tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards at 6 MV photons showed good agreement within 3.21 and 5.91% to that in solid water phantoms and water respectively. The PDD at 6 MeV electrons showed a good agreement within 3.32 and 3.12% to that in solid water phantoms and water respectively. The depth of R50 and R90 in tannin-added Rhizophora spp. also showed a good agreement to that in water and solid water pahtoms. Lower surface dose was observed in tannin-added Rhizophora spp. particleboards at electron beams in comparison to solid water phantoms and water.

Long-term effect of nutritional counselling on desired gain in body mass and lean body mass in elite athletes.

PubMed

Garthe, Ina; Raastad, Truls; Sundgot-Borgen, Jorunn

2011-08-01

Lean body mass (LBM) is important in power-related sports. In athletes with heavy training loads and competitions, it may be difficult to increase and maintain LBM during the season. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the long-term effects on body composition after an 8-12 week weight-gain period with or without nutritional guidance. Twenty-one elite athletes where randomized to 1 of 2 groups: the nutritional counselling group (NCG; n = 12, 18.5 ± 1.7 y, 67.8 ± 7.4 kg) and the ad libitum group (ALG; n = 9, 19.6 ± 2.7 y, 74.2 ± 5.7 kg). The NCG followed a meal plan that provided a surplus of 506 ± 84 kcal·day(-1), whereas the ALG had an ad libitum energy intake (EI) during the strength-training (4 sessions per week) intervention. Body mass (BM) and body composition were measured pre- and postintervention, and 6 and 12 months after the intervention. EI in the NCG was normalized after 12 months, whereas EI in the ALG was unchanged during or after the intervention. BM increased more in the NCG than in the ALG during the intervention (4.3% ± 0.9% vs. 1.0% ± 0.6%) and after 12 months (6.0% ± 0.9% vs. 1.8% ± 0.7%). LBM increased in the NCG during the intervention (2.8% ± 0.5%) and after 12 months (4.4% ± 1.0%), whereas LBM in the ALG was unchanged. The NCG managed to maintain and increase BM and LBM after the intervention period. Hence, the focus on nutritional guidance, in addition to strength training, seems to be preferable for obtaining the long-term effect of weight gain in athletes.

Adding Insult to Imagery? Art Education and Censorship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sweeny, Robert W.

2007-01-01

The "Adding Insult to Imagery? Artistic Responses to Censorship and Mass-Media" exhibition opened in January 16, 2006, Kipp Gallery on the Indiana University of Pennsylvania campus. Eleven gallery-based works, 9 videos, and 10 web-based artworks comprised the show; each dealt with the relationship between censorship and mass mediated…

Effective vortex mass from microscopic theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Jung Hoon; Kim, June Seo; Kim, Min Jae; Ao, Ping

2005-03-01

We calculate the effective mass of a single quantized vortex in the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer superconductor at finite temperature. Based on effective action approach, we arrive at the effective mass of a vortex as integral of the spectral function J(ω) divided by ω3 over frequency. The spectral function is given in terms of the quantum-mechanical transition elements of the gradient of the Hamiltonian between two Bogoliubov-deGennes (BdG) eigenstates. Based on self-consistent numerical diagonalization of the BdG equation we find that the effective mass per unit length of vortex at zero temperature is of order m(kfξ0)2 ( kf=Fermi momentum, ξ0=coherence length), essentially equaling the electron mass displaced within the coherence length from the vortex core. Transitions between the core states are responsible for most of the mass. The mass reaches a maximum value at T≈0.5Tc and decreases continuously to zero at Tc .

The Black Hole Firewall and Top-Down Constructions of AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almheiri, Ahmed Eid Khamis Thani

In the first part of this dissertation we argue that the following statements cannot be all true: (i) Black hole formation and evaporation is a unitary process as viewed by external observers, (ii) Physics outside some microscopic distance away from the event horizon is described by local effective quantum field theory, (iii) A black hole is a quantum system with a finite number of states given by the exponential of the Bekenstein Hawking entropy, and (iv) An infalling observer's experience in the vicinity of the horizon is well described by local effective quantum field theory in the infalling reference frame. We argue that the most conservative resolution is that an infalling observer will see drastic violations of effective field theory far away from the singularity, and encounter high energy quanta, a firewall, just behind the black hole event horizon. We address counter proposals to the firewall which involve, in one way or another, radical modifications of quantum mechanics or locality, and argue that they are unsatisfactory in their current formulation. We conclude this part with an investigation into the existence of firewalls in the two dimensional Einstein-dilaton gravity model of CGHS. We find that black holes in such models do not develop firewalls, but rather evaporate down to form small mass remnants. We elaborate on why this is inevitable in two dimensions and argue against a similar conclusion in higher dimensions. In the second part of this dissertation we construct AdS2 and AdS3 magnetic brane solutions within the abelian truncations of AdS4 x orbifolded S7 and AdS5 x S5 supergravity. We find a class of supersymmetric solutions of the bulk theory to assure stability. We perform a preliminary analysis demonstrating the stability of some nonsupersymmetric embeddings. We identify the dual field theory and compare the thermal entropies across the duality. We end with an investigatation into the effects of backreaction on holography in AdS2. We study a

Effects of exercise on capillaries in the white matter of transgenic AD mice.

PubMed

Zhang, Yi; Chao, Feng-Lei; Zhou, Chun-Ni; Jiang, Lin; Zhang, Lei; Chen, Lin-Mu; Luo, Yan-Min; Xiao, Qian; Tang, Yong

2017-09-12

Previous studies have shown that exercise can prevent white matter atrophy in APP/PS1 transgenic Alzheimer's disease (AD) mice. However, the mechanism of this protective effect remains unknown. To further understand this issue, we investigated the effects of exercise on the blood supply of white matter in transgenic AD mice. Six-month-old male APP/PS1 mice were randomly divided into a control group and a running group, and age-matched non-transgenic littermates were used as a wild-type control group. Mice in the running group ran on a treadmill at low intensity for four months. Then, spatial learning and memory abilities, white matter and white matter capillaries were examined in all mice. The 10-month-old AD mice exhibited deficits in cognitive function, and 4 months of exercise improved these deficits. The white matter volume and the total length, total volume and total surface area of the white matter capillaries were decreased in the 10-month-old AD mice, and 4 months of exercise dramatically delayed the changes in these parameters in the AD mice. Our results demonstrate that even low-intensity running exercise can improve spatial learning and memory abilities, delay white matter atrophy and protect white matter capillaries in early-stage AD mice. Protecting capillaries might be an important structural basis for the exercise-induced protection of the structural integrity of white matter in AD.

Effect of soil-added cadmium on several plant species

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Miles, L.J.; Parker, G.R.

Several species (Andropogon scoparius, Rhus radicans, Rudbeckia hirta, Anemone cylindrica, Monarda fistulosa, Poa pratensis, and Liatris spicata) native to northwestern Indiana were grown from seed in the greenhouse for 6 weeks. An uncontaminated sandy soil was utilized as the substrate with four levels of soil-added Cd. The concentrations added ranged from 0 to 100 ..mu..g Cd/g soil and were comparable to surface soil Cd concentration levels found in the urban-industrial region of northwestern Indiana. Data on germination, survival, height, and dry weight were collected. Germination, survival, and weight were found to exhibit a negative response to increasing soil Cd concentrationmore » over all species. Height, however, was not found to be a consistently good indicator of Cd response. While overall species' differences were noted, no differences could be conclusively shown among the species for Cd tolerance, although there were indications that this was the case. All effects noted were of a low level for the soil-added Cd concentrations utilized.« less

Particle collisions near a three-dimensional warped AdS black hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bécar, Ramón; González, P. A.; Vásquez, Yerko

2018-04-01

In this paper we consider the warped AdS3 black hole solution of topologically massive gravity with a negative cosmological constant, and we study the possibility that it acts as a particle accelerator by analyzing the energy in the center of mass (CM) frame of two colliding particles in the vicinity of its horizon, which is known as the Bañnados, Silk and West (BSW) process. Mainly, we show that the critical angular momentum (L_c) of the particle decreases when the warping parameter(ν ) increases. Also, we show that despite the particle with L_c being able to exist for certain values of the conserved energy outside the horizon, it will never reach the event horizon; therefore, the black hole cannot act as a particle accelerator with arbitrarily high CM energy on the event horizon. However, such a particle could also exist inside the outer horizon, with the BSW process being possible on the inner horizon. On the other hand, for the extremal warped AdS3 black hole, the particle with L_c and energy E could exist outside the event horizon and, the CM energy blows up on the event horizon if its conserved energy fulfills the condition E2>(ν 2+3)l2/3(ν ^{2-1)}, with the BSW process being possible.

Effect of AHA dietary counselling on added sugar intake among participants with metabolic syndrome.

PubMed

Zhang, Lijuan; Pagoto, Sherry; May, Christine; Olendzki, Barbara; L Tucker, Katherine; Ruiz, Carolina; Cao, Yu; Ma, Yunsheng

2018-04-01

High added sugar consumption has been associated with the development of metabolic syndrome (MetS). The American Heart Association (AHA) diet is designed to prevent and treat MetS; however, it remains unclear whether the AHA diet is effective on decreasing added sugar consumption. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of the AHA dietary counselling on added sugar consumption among participants with MetS. The AHA dietary counselling was conducted among 119 participants with MetS from June 2009 to January 2014 (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT00911885). Unannounced 24-hour recalls were collected at baseline, 3, 6 and 12 months. Added sugar consumption patterns over time were examined using linear mixed models. After 1-year dietary counselling, intake of added sugars decreased by 23.8 g/day (95% CI 15.1, 32.4 g/day); intake of nonalcoholic beverages dropped from the leading contributor of added sugar intake to number 7 (from 11.9 to 4.4%); the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI) score increased by 5.4 (95% CI 2.9, 8.0); however, added sugar intake for 48% participants still exceeded the recommendation. Added sugar intake per meal among different meal type was similar (24.2-25.8%) at baseline. After the 1-year dietary counselling, breakfast became the major resource of added sugar intake (33.3%); the proportion of added sugar intake from snacks decreased from 25.8% (CI 23.1, 28.5%) to 20.9% (CI 19.6, 22.3%). Although the consumption of added sugars in participants with MetS decreased after the 1-year AHA dietary counselling, added sugar intake from majority of participants still exceeds recommended limits. Actions of successful public health strategies that focus on reducing added sugar intake are needed.

Multiplicative effects model with internal standard in mobile phase for quantitative liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Song, Mi; Chen, Zeng-Ping; Chen, Yao; Jin, Jing-Wen

2014-07-01

Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry assays suffer from signal instability caused by the gradual fouling of the ion source, vacuum instability, aging of the ion multiplier, etc. To address this issue, in this contribution, an internal standard was added into the mobile phase. The internal standard was therefore ionized and detected together with the analytes of interest by the mass spectrometer to ensure that variations in measurement conditions and/or instrument have similar effects on the signal contributions of both the analytes of interest and the internal standard. Subsequently, based on the unique strategy of adding internal standard in mobile phase, a multiplicative effects model was developed for quantitative LC-MS assays and tested on a proof of concept model system: the determination of amino acids in water by LC-MS. The experimental results demonstrated that the proposed method could efficiently mitigate the detrimental effects of continuous signal variation, and achieved quantitative results with average relative predictive error values in the range of 8.0-15.0%, which were much more accurate than the corresponding results of conventional internal standard method based on the peak height ratio and partial least squares method (their average relative predictive error values were as high as 66.3% and 64.8%, respectively). Therefore, it is expected that the proposed method can be developed and extended in quantitative LC-MS analysis of more complex systems. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Beyond AdS Space-times, New Holographic Correspondences and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghodrati, Mahdis

The AdS/CFT correspondence conjectures a mathematical equivalence between string theories and gauge theories. In a particular limit it allows a description of strongly coupled conformal field theory via weakly coupled gravity. This feature has been used to gain insight into many condensed matter (CM) systems. However, to apply the duality in more physical scenarios, one needs to go beyond the usual AdS/CFT framework and extend the duality to non-AdS situations. To describe Lifshitz and hyperscaling violating (HSV) phenomena in CM one uses gauge fields on the gravity side which naturally realize the breaking of Lorentz invariance. These gravity constructions often contain naked singularities. In this thesis, we construct a resolution of the infra-red (IR) singularity of the HSV background. The idea is to add squared curvature terms to the Einstein-Maxwell dilaton action to build a flow from AdS4 in the ultra violate (UV) to an intermediating HSV region and then to an AdS2 x R 2 region in the IR. This general solution is free from the naked singularities and would be more appropriate for applications of HSV in physical systems. We also study the Schwinger effect by using the AdS/CFT duality. We present the phase diagrams of the Schwinger effect and also the "butterfly shaped-phase diagrams" of the entanglement entropy for four different confining supergravity backgrounds. Comparing different features of all of these diagrams could point out to a potential relation between the Schwinger effect and the entanglement entropy which could lead to a method of measuring entanglement entropy in the laboratory. Finally, we study the "new massive gravity" theory and the different black hole solutions it admits. We first present three different methods of calculating the conserved charges. Then, by calculating the on-shell Gibbs free energy we construct the Hawking-Page phase diagrams for different solutions in two thermodynamical ensembles. As the massive gravity models are

Effects of exercise on capillaries in the white matter of transgenic AD mice

PubMed Central

Zhang, Yi; Chao, Feng-Lei; Zhou, Chun-Ni; Jiang, Lin; Zhang, Lei; Chen, Lin-Mu; Luo, Yan-Min; Xiao, Qian; Tang, Yong

2017-01-01

Previous studies have shown that exercise can prevent white matter atrophy in APP/PS1 transgenic Alzheimer’s disease (AD) mice. However, the mechanism of this protective effect remains unknown. To further understand this issue, we investigated the effects of exercise on the blood supply of white matter in transgenic AD mice. Six-month-old male APP/PS1 mice were randomly divided into a control group and a running group, and age-matched non-transgenic littermates were used as a wild-type control group. Mice in the running group ran on a treadmill at low intensity for four months. Then, spatial learning and memory abilities, white matter and white matter capillaries were examined in all mice. The 10-month-old AD mice exhibited deficits in cognitive function, and 4 months of exercise improved these deficits. The white matter volume and the total length, total volume and total surface area of the white matter capillaries were decreased in the 10-month-old AD mice, and 4 months of exercise dramatically delayed the changes in these parameters in the AD mice. Our results demonstrate that even low-intensity running exercise can improve spatial learning and memory abilities, delay white matter atrophy and protect white matter capillaries in early-stage AD mice. Protecting capillaries might be an important structural basis for the exercise-induced protection of the structural integrity of white matter in AD. PMID:29029478

Surface term effects on mass estimators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Membrado, M.; Pacheco, A. F.

2016-05-01

Context. We propose a way of estimating the mass contained in the volume occupied by a sample of galaxies in a virialized system. Aims: We analyze the influence of surface effects and the contribution of the cosmological constant terms on our mass estimations of galaxy systems. Methods: We propose two equations that contain surface terms to estimate galaxy sample masses. When the surface terms are neglected, these equations provide the so-called virial and projected masses. Both equations lead to a single equation that allows sample masses to be estimated without the need for calculating surface terms. Sample masses for some nearest galaxy groups are estimated and compared with virialized masses determined from turn-around radii and results of a spherical infall model. Results: Surface effects have a considerable effect on the mass estimations of the studied galaxy groups. According to our results, they lead sample masses of some groups to being less than half the virial mass estimations and even less than 10% of projected mass estimations. However, the contributions of cosmological constant terms to mass estimations are smaller than 2% for the majority of the virialized groups studied. Our estimations are in agreement with virialized masses calculated from turn-around radii. Virialized masses for complexes were found to be: (8.9 ± 2.8) × 1011 M⊙ for the Milky Way - M 31; (12.5 ± 2.5) × 1011 M⊙ for M 81 - NGC 2403; (21.5 ± 7.7) × 1011 M⊙. for Cantaurs A - M 83; and (7.9 ± 2.6) × 1011 M⊙. for IC 324 - Maffei. Conclusions: The nearest galaxy groups located inside a sphere of 5 Mpc have been addressed to explore the performance of our mass estimator. We have seen that surface effects make mass estimations of galaxy groups rather smaller than both virial and projected masses. In mass calculations, cosmological constant terms can be neglected; nevertheless, the collapse of cold dark matter leading to virialized structures is strongly affected by the

Smooth causal patches for AdS black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raju, Suvrat

2017-06-01

We review the paradox of low energy excitations of a black hole in anti-de Sitter space (AdS). An appropriately chosen unitary operator in the boundary theory can create a locally strong excitation near the black hole horizon, whose global energy is small as a result of the gravitational redshift. The paradox is that this seems to violate a general rule of statistical mechanics, which states that an operator with energy parametrically smaller than k T cannot create a significant excitation in a thermal system. When we carefully examine the position dependence of the boundary unitary operator that produces the excitation and the bulk observable necessary to detect the anomalously large effect, we find that they do not both fit in a single causal patch. This follows from a remarkable property of position-space AdS correlators that we establish explicitly and resolves the paradox in a generic state of the system, since no combination of observers can both create the excitation and observe its effect. As a special case of our analysis, we show how this resolves the "Born rule" paradox of Marolf and Polchinski [J. High Energy Phys. 01 (2016) 008, 10.1007/JHEP01(2016)008] and we verify our solution using an independent calculation. We then consider boundary states that are finely tuned to display a spontaneous excitation outside the causal patch of the infalling observer, and we propose a version of causal patch complementarity in AdS/CFT that resolves the paradox for such states as well.

Constructing the AdS dual of a Fermi liquid: AdS black holes with Dirac hair

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Čubrović, Mihailo; Zaanen, Jan; Schalm, Koenraad

2011-10-01

We provide evidence that the holographic dual to a strongly coupled charged Fermi liquid has a non-zero fermion density in the bulk. We show that the pole-strength of the stable quasiparticle characterizing the Fermi surface is encoded in the AdS probability density of a single normalizable fermion wavefunction in AdS. Recalling Migdal's theorem which relates the pole strength to the Fermi-Dirac characteristic discontinuity in the number density at ω F , we conclude that the AdS dual of a Fermi liquid is described by occupied on-shell fermionic modes in AdS. Encoding the occupied levels in the total spatially averaged probability density of the fermion field directly, we show that an AdS Reissner-Nordström black holein a theory with charged fermions has a critical temperature, at which the system undergoes a first-order transition to a black hole with a non-vanishing profile for the bulk fermion field. Thermodynamics and spectral analysis support that the solution with non-zero AdS fermion-profile is the preferred ground state at low temperatures.

Vibration-based monitoring to detect mass changes in satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maji, Arup; Vernon, Breck

2012-04-01

Vibration-based structural health monitoring could be a useful form of determining the health and safety of space structures. A particular concern is the possibility of a foreign object that attaches itself to a satellite in orbit for adverse reasons. A frequency response analysis was used to determine the changes in mass and moment of inertia of the space structure based on a change in the natural frequencies of the structure or components of the structure. Feasibility studies were first conducted on a 7 in x 19 in aluminum plate with various boundary conditions. Effect of environmental conditions on the frequency response was determined. The baseline frequency response for the plate was then used as the basis for detection of the addition, and possibly the location, of added masses on the plate. The test results were compared to both analytical solutions and finite element models created in SAP2000. The testing was subsequently expanded to aluminum alloy satellite panels and a mock satellite with dummy payloads. Statistical analysis was conducted on variations of frequency due to added mass and thermal changes to determine the threshold of added mass that can be detected.

Segmented strings in AdS 3

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Callebaut, Nele; Gubser, Steven S.; Samberg, Andreas

We study segmented strings in flat space and in AdS 3. In flat space, these well known classical motions describe strings which at any instant of time are piecewise linear. In AdS 3, the worldsheet is composed of faces each of which is a region bounded by null geodesics in an AdS 2 subspace of AdS 3. The time evolution can be described by specifying the null geodesic motion of kinks in the string at which two segments are joined. The outcome of collisions of kinks on the worldsheet can be worked out essentially using considerations of causality. We studymore » several examples of closed segmented strings in AdS 3 and find an unexpected quasi-periodic behavior. Here, we also work out a WKB analysis of quantum states of yo-yo strings in AdS 5 and find a logarithmic term reminiscent of the logarithmic twist of string states on the leading Regge trajectory.« less

Segmented strings in AdS 3

DOE PAGES

Callebaut, Nele; Gubser, Steven S.; Samberg, Andreas; ...

2015-11-17

We study segmented strings in flat space and in AdS 3. In flat space, these well known classical motions describe strings which at any instant of time are piecewise linear. In AdS 3, the worldsheet is composed of faces each of which is a region bounded by null geodesics in an AdS 2 subspace of AdS 3. The time evolution can be described by specifying the null geodesic motion of kinks in the string at which two segments are joined. The outcome of collisions of kinks on the worldsheet can be worked out essentially using considerations of causality. We studymore » several examples of closed segmented strings in AdS 3 and find an unexpected quasi-periodic behavior. Here, we also work out a WKB analysis of quantum states of yo-yo strings in AdS 5 and find a logarithmic term reminiscent of the logarithmic twist of string states on the leading Regge trajectory.« less

Lumped mass model of a 1D metastructure for vibration suppression with no additional mass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reichl, Katherine K.; Inman, Daniel J.

2017-09-01

The article examines the effectiveness of metastructures for vibration suppression from a weight standpoint. Metastructures, a metamaterial inspired concept, are structures with distributed vibration absorbers. In automotive and aerospace industries, it is critical to have low levels of vibrations while also using lightweight materials. Previous work has shown that metastructures are effective at mitigating vibrations, but do not consider the effects of mass. This work takes mass into consideration by comparing a structure with vibration absorbers to a structure of equal mass with no absorbers. These structures are modeled as one-dimensional lumped mass models, chosen for simplicity. Results compare both the steady-state and the transient responses. As a quantitative performance measure, the H2 norm, which is related to the area under the frequency response function, is calculated and compared for both the metastructure and the baseline structure. These results show that it is possible to obtain a favorable vibration response without adding additional mass to the structure. Additionally, the performance measure is utilized to optimize the geometry of the structure, determine the optimal ratio of mass in the absorber to mass of the host structure, and determine the frequencies of the absorbers. The dynamic response of this model is verified using a finite element analysis.

The biomechanical effect of arm mass on long jump performance: A case study of a paralympic upper limb amputee.

PubMed

Pradon, Didier; Mazure-Bonnefoy, Alice; Rabita, Giuseppe; Hutin, Emilie; Zory, Raphael; Slawinski, Jean

2014-06-01

The role of arm motion during the long jump has been well studied. The aim of this study was to quantify the effect of forearm mass on impulse and the kinematics of the flight phase in an upper limb amputee. A world-record paralympic long jumper carried out jumps in three conditions: wearing his usual forearm prosthesis and with 0.3 and 0.4 kg added mass. A motion capture system including force plates was used to record the jump. At take-off, the addition of 0.4 kg to the prosthesis decreased the vertical velocity of the centre of mass but increased horizontal velocity. These modifications were associated with an increase in landing distance and an improvement of the synchronization between arms. Increasing forearm mass appears to improve long jump performance. Further studies need to evaluate the optimal prosthetic mass for both training and competition. This biomechanical analysis of the long jump highlighted the effects of changing prosthesis mass on performance. This methodological approach may be useful in the context of sport and performance research. © The International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics 2013.

Ad libitum vs. restricted fluid replacement on hydration and performance of military tasks.

PubMed

Nolte, Heinrich W; Noakes, Timothy D; Nolte, Kim

2013-02-01

The primary objective was to evaluate the effect of ad libitum vs. restricted fluid replacement protocol on hydration markers and performance in selected military tasks. The secondary objective was to determine if 300 ml x h(-1) could be considered a safe minimum fluid intake under the experimental conditions. Data were collected simulating a route march over 16 km. There were 57 subjects who participated in the study. The mean pre-exercise body mass of the ad libitum group was 70.4 +/- 13.3 (SD) kg compared to 69.3 +/- 8.9 kg in the restricted group. The mean total fluid intake of the ad libitum group was 2.1 +/- 0.9 L compared to 1.2 +/- 0.0 L in the restricted group. The ad libitum and restricted intake groups, respectively, lost a mean of 1.05 kg +/- 0.77 (1.5%) and 1.34 kg +/- 0.37 (1.9%). Calculated sweat rate was 608 +/- 93 ml x h(-1) compared to 762 +/- 162 ml x h(-1) in the ad libitum group. There were no significant differences for either urine specific gravity (USG) or urine osmolality (UOsm) before or after the exercise. It is not clear whether fluid intake and calculated sweat rates are causally related or explained by their codependence on a third variable; for example, the exercising metabolic rate. Thus, 300 ml x h(-1) intake could be considered a current safe minimum water intake for soldiers of similar mass under similar experimental conditions, namely similar exercise durations at equivalent exercise intensities in a moderate, dry climate.

New Low-mass Eclipsing Binary Systems in Praesepe Discovered by K2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gillen, Edward; Hillenbrand, Lynne A.; David, Trevor J.; Aigrain, Suzanne; Rebull, Luisa; Stauffer, John; Cody, Ann Marie; Queloz, Didier

2017-11-01

We present the discovery and characterization of four low-mass (M< 0.6 {M}⊙ ) eclipsing binary (EB) systems in the sub-Gyr old Praesepe open cluster using Kepler/K2 time series photometry and Keck/HIRES spectroscopy. We present a new Gaussian process EB model, GP-EBOP, as well as a method of simultaneously determining effective temperatures and distances for EBs. Three of the reported systems (AD 3814, AD 2615 and AD 1508) are detached and double-lined, and precise solutions are presented for the first two. We determine masses and radii to 1%-3% precision for AD 3814 and to 5%-6% for AD 2615. Together with effective temperatures determined to ˜50 K precision, we test the PARSEC v1.2 and BHAC15 stellar evolution models. Our EB parameters are more consistent with the PARSEC models, primarily because the BHAC15 temperature scale is hotter than our data over the mid-M-dwarf mass range probed. Both ADs 3814 and 2615, which have orbital periods of 6.0 and 11.6 days, are circularized but not synchronized. This suggests that either synchronization proceeds more slowly in fully convective stars than the theory of equilibrium tides predicts, or magnetic braking is currently playing a more important role than tidal forces in the spin evolution of these binaries. The fourth system (AD 3116) comprises a brown dwarf transiting a mid-M-dwarf, which is the first such system discovered in a sub-Gyr open cluster. Finally, these new discoveries increase the number of characterized EBs in sub-Gyr open clusters by 20% (40%) below M< 1.5 M ⊙ (M< 0.6 M ⊙).

Nonequilibrium dynamics of the O( N ) model on dS3 and AdS crunches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, S. Prem; Vaganov, Vladislav

2018-03-01

We study the nonperturbative quantum evolution of the interacting O( N ) vector model at large- N , formulated on a spatial two-sphere, with time dependent couplings which diverge at finite time. This model - the so-called "E-frame" theory, is related via a conformal transformation to the interacting O( N ) model in three dimensional global de Sitter spacetime with time independent couplings. We show that with a purely quartic, relevant deformation the quantum evolution of the E-frame model is regular even when the classical theory is rendered singular at the end of time by the diverging coupling. Time evolution drives the E-frame theory to the large- N Wilson-Fisher fixed point when the classical coupling diverges. We study the quantum evolution numerically for a variety of initial conditions and demonstrate the finiteness of the energy at the classical "end of time". With an additional (time dependent) mass deformation, quantum backreaction lowers the mass, with a putative smooth time evolution only possible in the limit of infinite quartic coupling. We discuss the relevance of these results for the resolution of crunch singularities in AdS geometries dual to E-frame theories with a classical gravity dual.

Cost effectiveness of budesonide/formoterol added to tiotropium bromide versus placebo added to tiotropium bromide in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Australian, Canadian and Swedish healthcare perspectives.

PubMed

Mittmann, Nicole; Hernandez, Paul; Mellström, Carl; Brannman, Lance; Welte, Tobias

2011-05-01

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive inflammatory lung disease associated with increasing morbidity and mortality and an economic burden that stretches beyond the patient to healthcare systems. Avoiding exacerbations and subsequent hospitalizations is an important clinical aim and can avoid significant costs associated with the disease. International guidelines recommend the addition of an inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) to a long-acting β₂-adrenoceptor agonist (LABA) for patients with severe to very severe COPD and a history of exacerbations. To evaluate retrospectively over a 3-month period, the cost effectiveness of budesonide/formoterol added to tiotropium bromide (tiotropium) compared with placebo added to tiotropium in COPD patients eligible for ICS/LABA combination therapy, based on the CLIMB study (NCT00496470). A cost-effectiveness analysis of data from the 12-week, randomized, double-blind CLIMB study of COPD patients (n = 659; eligible for ICS/LABA; aged ≥ 40 years) comparing budesonide/formoterol (Symbicort® Turbuhaler® 320/9 μg twice daily) added to tiotropium (18 μg daily) or placebo added to tiotropium was conducted. A severe exacerbation was defined as a requirement for systemic glucocorticosteroids and/or ED visit and/or hospitalization. The effectiveness variable used for this analysis was the number of severe exacerbations avoided. Direct costs (medications, hospitalizations, ED and GP visits) were calculated by applying year 2009 unit costs from Australia ($A), Canada ($Can) and Sweden (Swedish krona [SEK]) to the study's pooled resource use. One-way sensitivity analyses for each country's mean incremental cost-effectiveness ratio and sensitivity to overall exacerbations were conducted. Bootstrapping was performed to estimate the variation around resource use, exacerbations and each country's mean incremental cost-effectiveness ratio. The mean number of severe exacerbations per patient 3-month period was 0

Measuring Teacher Effectiveness with the Pennsylvania Value-Added Assessment System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowen, Naomi

2017-01-01

The purpose of this research was to determine if the Pennsylvania Value-Added Assessment System Average Growth Index (PVAAS AGI) scores, derived from standardized tests and calculated for Pennsylvania schools, provide a valid and reliable assessment of teacher effectiveness, as these scores are currently used to derive 15% of the annual…

MASS SPECTROMETRY

DOEpatents

Friedman, L.

1962-01-01

method is described for operating a mass spectrometer to improve its resolution qualities and to extend its period of use substantially between cleanings. In this method, a small amount of a beta emitting gas such as hydrogen titride or carbon-14 methane is added to the sample being supplied to the spectrometer for investigation. The additive establishes leakage paths on the surface of the non-conducting film accumulating within the vacuum chamber of the spectrometer, thereby reducing the effect of an accumulated static charge on the electrostatic and magnetic fields established within the instrument. (AEC)

Nucleon effective masses in neutron-rich matter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Bao-An; Cai, Bao-Jun; Chen, Lie-Wen; Xu, Jun

2018-03-01

Various kinds of isovector nucleon effective masses are used in the literature to characterize the momentum/energy dependence of the nucleon symmetry potential or self-energy due to the space/time non-locality of the underlying isovector strong interaction in neutron-rich nucleonic matter. The multifaceted studies on nucleon isovector effective masses are multi-disciplinary in nature. Besides structures, masses and low-lying excited states of nuclei as well as nuclear reactions, studies of the isospin dependence of short-range correlations in nuclei from scatterings of high-energy electrons and protons on heavy nuclei also help understand nucleon effective masses especially the so-called E-mass in neutron-rich matter. A thorough understanding of all kinds of nucleon effective masses has multiple impacts on many interesting issues in both nuclear physics and astrophysics. Indeed, essentially all microscopic many-body theories and phenomenological models with various nuclear forces available in the literature have been used to calculate single-nucleon potentials and the associated nucleon effective masses in neutron-rich matter. There are also fundamental principles connecting different aspects and impacts of isovector strong interactions. In particular, the Hugenholtz-Van Hove theorem connects analytically nuclear symmetry energy with both isoscalar and isovector nucleon effective masses as well as their own momentum dependences. It also reveals how the isospin-quartic term in the equation of state of neutron-rich matter depends on the high-order momentum-derivatives of both isoscalar and isovector nucleon potentials. The Migdal-Luttinger theorem facilitates the extraction of nucleon E-mass and its isospin dependence from experimentally constrained single-nucleon momentum distributions. The momentum/energy dependence of the symmetry potential and the corresponding neutron-proton effective mass splitting also affect transport properties and the liquid-gas phase

The effect of directional inertias added to pelvis and ankle on gait

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Gait training robots should display a minimum added inertia in order to allow normal walking. The effect of inertias in specific directions is yet unknown. We set up two experiments to assess the effect of inertia in anteroposterior (AP) direction to the ankle and AP and mediolateral (ML) direction to the pelvis. Methods We developed an experimental setup to apply inertia in forward backward and or sideways directions. In two experiments nine healthy subjects walked on a treadmill at 1.5 km/h and 4.5 km/h with no load and with AP loads of 0.3, 1.55 and 3.5 kg to the left ankle in the first experiment and combinations of AP and ML loads on the pelvis (AP loads 0.7, 4.3 and 10.2 kg; ML loads 0.6, 2.3 and 5.3 kg). We recorded metabolic rate, EMG of major leg muscles, gait parameters and kinematics. Results & discussion Adding 1.55 kg or more inertia to the ankle in AP direction increases the pelvis acceleration and decreases the foot acceleration in AP direction both at speeds of 4.5 km/h. Adding 3.5 kg of inertia to the ankle also increases the swing time as well as AP motions of the pelvis and head-arms-trunk (HAT) segment. Muscle activity remains largely unchanged. Adding 10.2 kg of inertia to the pelvis in AP direction causes a significant decrease of the pelvis and HAT segment motions, particularly at high speeds. Also the sagittal back flexion increases. Lower values of AP inertia and ML inertias up to 5.3 kg had negligible effect. In general the found effects are larger at high speeds. Conclusions We found that inertia up to 2 kg at the ankle or 6 kg added to the pelvis induced significant changes, but since these changes were all within the normal inter subject variability we considered these changes as negligible for application as rehabilitation robotics and assistive devices. PMID:23597391

Effective nucleon mass and the nuclear caloric curve

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shetty, D. V.; Souliotis, G. A.; Galanopoulos, S.

2009-03-15

Assuming a schematic form of the nucleon effective mass as a function of nuclear excitation energy and mass, we provide a simple explanation for understanding the experimentally observed mass dependence of the nuclear caloric curve. It is observed that the excitation energy at which the caloric curve enters into a plateau region could be sensitive to the nuclear mass evolution of the effective nucleon mass.

Wheelchair Mobility Performance enhancement by Changing Wheelchair Properties; What is the Effect of Grip, Seat Height and Mass?

PubMed

van der Slikke, Rienk M A; de Witte, Annemarie M H; Berger, Monique A M; Bregman, Daan J J; Veeger, Dirk Jan H E J

2018-02-12

The purpose of this study was to provide insight in the effect of wheelchair settings on wheelchair mobility performance. Twenty elite wheelchair basketball athletes of low (n=10) and high classification (n=10), were tested in a wheelchair basketball directed field test. Athletes performed the test in their own wheelchair, which was modified for five additional conditions regarding seat height (high - low), mass (central - distributed) and grip. The previously developed, inertial sensor based wheelchair mobility performance monitor 1 was used to extract wheelchair kinematics in all conditions. Adding mass showed most effect on wheelchair mobility performance, with a reduced average acceleration across all activities. Once distributed, additional mass also reduced maximal rotational speed and rotational acceleration. Elevating seat height had effect on several performance aspects in sprinting and turning, whereas lowering seat height influenced performance minimally. Increased rim grip did not alter performance. No differences in response were evident between low and high classified athletes. The wheelchair mobility performance monitor showed sensitive to detect performance differences due to the small changes in wheelchair configuration made. Distributed additional mass had the most effect on wheelchair mobility performance, whereas additional grip had the least effect of conditions tested. Performance effects appear similar for both low and high classified athletes. Athletes, coaches and wheelchair experts are provided with insight in the performance effect of key wheelchair settings, and they are offered a proven sensitive method to apply in sports practice, in their search for the best wheelchair-athlete combination.

Position-dependent effective masses in semiconductor theory. II

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Von Roos, O.; Mavromatis, H.

1985-01-01

A compound semiconductor possessing a slowly varying position-dependent chemical composition is considered. An effective-mass equation governing the dynamics of electron (or hole) motion using the Kohn-Luttinger representation and canonical transformations is derived. It is shown that, as long as the variation in chemical composition may be treated as a perturbation, the effective masses become constant, position-independent quantities. The effective-mass equation derived here is identical to the effective-mass equation derived previously by von Roos (1983), using a Wannier representation.

A mass diffusion-based interpretation of the effect of total solids content on solid-state anaerobic digestion of cellulosic biomass.

PubMed

Xu, Fuqing; Wang, Zhi-Wu; Tang, Li; Li, Yebo

2014-09-01

In solid-state anaerobic digestion (SS-AD) of cellulosic biomass, the volumetric methane production rate has often been found to increase with the increase in total solids (TS) content until a threshold is reached, and then to decrease. This phenomenon cannot be explained by conventional understanding derived from liquid anaerobic digestion. This study proposed that the high TS content-caused mass diffusion limitation may be responsible for the observed methane production deterioration. Based on this hypothesis, a new SS-AD model was developed by taking into account the mass diffusion limitation and hydrolysis inhibition. The good agreement between model simulation and the experimental as well as literature data verified that the observed reduction in volumetric methane production rate could be ascribed to hydrolysis inhibition as a result of the mass diffusion limitation in SS-AD. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Conserved charges for black holes in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity coupled to nonlinear electrodynamics in AdS space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mišković, Olivera; Olea, Rodrigo

2011-01-01

Motivated by possible applications within the framework of anti-de Sitter gravity/conformal field theory correspondence, charged black holes with AdS asymptotics, which are solutions to Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity in D dimensions, and whose electric field is described by nonlinear electrodynamics are studied. For a topological static black hole ansatz, the field equations are exactly solved in terms of the electromagnetic stress tensor for an arbitrary nonlinear electrodynamic Lagrangian in any dimension D and for arbitrary positive values of Gauss-Bonnet coupling. In particular, this procedure reproduces the black hole metric in Born-Infeld and conformally invariant electrodynamics previously found in the literature. Altogether, it extends to D>4 the four-dimensional solution obtained by Soleng in logarithmic electrodynamics, which comes from vacuum polarization effects. Falloff conditions for the electromagnetic field that ensure the finiteness of the electric charge are also discussed. The black hole mass and vacuum energy as conserved quantities associated to an asymptotic timelike Killing vector are computed using a background-independent regularization of the gravitational action based on the addition of counterterms which are a given polynomial in the intrinsic and extrinsic curvatures.

Conserved charges for black holes in Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity coupled to nonlinear electrodynamics in AdS space

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Miskovic, Olivera; Olea, Rodrigo; Instituto de Fisica, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso, Casilla 4059, Valparaiso

2011-01-15

Motivated by possible applications within the framework of anti-de Sitter gravity/conformal field theory correspondence, charged black holes with AdS asymptotics, which are solutions to Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet gravity in D dimensions, and whose electric field is described by nonlinear electrodynamics are studied. For a topological static black hole ansatz, the field equations are exactly solved in terms of the electromagnetic stress tensor for an arbitrary nonlinear electrodynamic Lagrangian in any dimension D and for arbitrary positive values of Gauss-Bonnet coupling. In particular, this procedure reproduces the black hole metric in Born-Infeld and conformally invariant electrodynamics previously found in the literature. Altogether, itmore » extends to D>4 the four-dimensional solution obtained by Soleng in logarithmic electrodynamics, which comes from vacuum polarization effects. Falloff conditions for the electromagnetic field that ensure the finiteness of the electric charge are also discussed. The black hole mass and vacuum energy as conserved quantities associated to an asymptotic timelike Killing vector are computed using a background-independent regularization of the gravitational action based on the addition of counterterms which are a given polynomial in the intrinsic and extrinsic curvatures.« less

Suspensions of polymer-grafted nanoparticles with added polymers-Structure and effective pair-interactions.

PubMed

Chandran, Sivasurender; Saw, Shibu; Kandar, A K; Dasgupta, C; Sprung, M; Basu, J K

2015-08-28

We present the results of combined experimental and theoretical (molecular dynamics simulations and integral equation theory) studies of the structure and effective interactions of suspensions of polymer grafted nanoparticles (PGNPs) in the presence of linear polymers. Due to the absence of systematic experimental and theoretical studies of PGNPs, it is widely believed that the structure and effective interactions in such binary mixtures would be very similar to those of an analogous soft colloidal material-star polymers. In our study, polystyrene-grafted gold nanoparticles with functionality f = 70 were mixed with linear polystyrene (PS) of two different molecular weights for obtaining two PGNP:PS size ratios, ξ = 0.14 and 2.76 (where, ξ = Mg/Mm, Mg and Mm being the molecular weights of grafting and matrix polymers, respectively). The experimental structure factor of PGNPs could be modeled with an effective potential (Model-X), which has been found to be widely applicable for star polymers. Similarly, the structure factor of the blends with ξ = 0.14 could be modeled reasonably well, while the structure of blends with ξ = 2.76 could not be captured, especially for high density of added polymers. A model (Model-Y) for effective interactions between PGNPs in a melt of matrix polymers also failed to provide good agreement with the experimental data for samples with ξ = 2.76 and high density of added polymers. We tentatively attribute this anomaly in modeling the structure factor of blends with ξ = 2.76 to the questionable assumption of Model-X in describing the added polymers as star polymers with functionality 2, which gets manifested in both polymer-polymer and polymer-PGNP interactions especially at higher fractions of added polymers. The failure of Model-Y may be due to the neglect of possible many-body interactions among PGNPs mediated by matrix polymers when the fraction of added polymers is high. These observations point to the need for a new framework to

Three dimensional view of the SYK/AdS duality

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Das, Sumit R.; Jevicki, Antal; Suzuki, Kenta

2017-09-05

We show that the spectrum of the SYK model can be interpreted as that of a 3D scalar coupled to gravity. The scalar has a mass which is at the Breitenholer-Freedman bound of AdS 2, and subject to a delta function potential at the center of the interval along the third direction. This, through Kaluza-Klein procedure on AdS 2 × (S 1)/Z 2, generates the spectrum reproducing the bi-local propagator at strong coupling. Furthermore, the leading 1/J correction calculated in this picture reproduces the known correction to the poles of the SYK propagator, providing credence to a conjecture that themore » bulk dual of this model can be interpreted as a three dimensional theory.« less

Sleep duration modifies effects of free ad libitum school meals on adiposity and blood pressure.

PubMed

Hjorth, Mads F; Sjödin, Anders; Dalskov, Stine-Mathilde; Damsgaard, Camilla Trab; Michaelsen, Kim F; Biltoft-Jensen, Anja; Andersen, Rikke; Ritz, Christian; Chaput, Jean-Philippe; Astrup, Arne

2016-01-01

Insufficient sleep can potentially affect both energy intake and energy expenditure, resulting in obesity and reduced cardiometabolic health. The objective of the study was to investigate if habitual sleep duration of 8- to 11-year-olds modifies the effect of free ad libitum school meals on cardiometabolic markers, body composition, dietary intake, and physical activity. For 2 consecutive 3-month periods, this cluster-randomized, controlled, cross-over trial provided 530 children with school meals or usual lunch brought from home. Dietary intake, activity, and sleep were measured simultaneously for 7 consecutive days using dietary records and accelerometers. Short- and long-sleeping children were defined as lower and upper tertile of sleep duration. Body composition, blood pressure, blood lipids, and homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMAIR) were measured/calculated. Overall, school meals compared with lunch from home had positive effects on physical activity and blood pressure in long-sleeping children and negative effects on body fat in short-sleeping children. Short-sleeping children increased fat mass compared with long-sleeping children by 0.21 (95% confidence interval 0.03-0.38) kg, android fat mass by 0.02 (0.001-0.04) kg, waist circumference by 0.73 (0.23-1.24) cm, blood pressure by 1.5 (0.4-2.6) mm Hg, fat intake by 1.1 (0.2-2.0) percentage of energy, and decreased total physical activity by 7.2 (1.6-12.7) % (all P ≤ 0.04), while HOMAIR and blood lipids were not modified by sleep duration (all P ≥ 0.32). In conclusion, the susceptibility to increase abdominal adiposity and blood pressure when exposed to dietary changes can potentially be explained by too little sleep, which results in increased caloric intake and reduced physical activity.

Effect of salt intensity in soup on ad libitum intake and on subsequent food choice.

PubMed

Bolhuis, Dieuwerke P; Lakemond, Catriona M M; de Wijk, Rene A; Luning, Pieternel A; de Graaf, Cees

2012-02-01

The effect of salt intensity on ad libitum intake of tomato soup was investigated when soup was served as a first course and as a second course. Also the effect of salt intensity in soup on subsequent sweet vs. savory choice of sandwich fillings was investigated. Forty-three healthy subjects consumed ad libitum a low-salt (LS), ideal-salt (IS) and high-salt (HS) tomato soup in both meal settings. The salt concentrations were selected on an individual basis, in a way that IS was most pleasant and LS and HS were similar in pleasantness. The ad libitum intake of IS soup was higher than that of LS and HS soup, and the ad libitum intake of LS soup was higher than that of HS soup. The meal setting, soup as a first or as a second course, did not affect ad libitum intake. Salt intensity in soup did not predict sweet vs. savory choice of fillings in grams or energy, although most sodium from fillings was consumed after intake of HS soup. In conclusion, a higher salt intensity lead to lower ad libitum intake of soup similar in palatability (LS vs. HS). In addition, salt intensity in soup does not predict sweet vs. savory food choice. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effective Mass Theory of 2D Excitons Revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonzalez, Joseph; Oleynik, Ivan

Two-dimensional (2D) semiconducting materials possess an exceptionally unique set of electronic and excitonic properties due to the combined effects of quantum and dielectric confinement. Reliable determination of exciton binding energies from both first-principles many-body perturbation theory (GW/BSE) and experiment is very challenging due to the enormous computational expense as well as the tremendous technical difficulties in experiment.. Very recently, effective mass theories of 2D excitons have been developed as an attractive alternative for inexpensive and accurate evaluation of the exciton binding energies. In this presentation, we evaluate two effective mass theory approaches by Velizhanin et al and Olsen et al in predicting exciton binding energies across a wide range of 2D materials. We specifically analyze the trends related to the varying screening lengths and exciton effective masses. We also extended the effective mass theory of 2D excitons to include effects of electron and hole mass anisotropies (mx ≠ my) , the latter showing a substantial influence on exciton binding energies. The recent predictions of exciton binding energies being independent of the exciton effective mass and a linear correlation with the band gap of a specific material are also critically reexamined.

Acute effect of infection by adipogenic human adenovirus Ad36

PubMed Central

Pasarica, Magdalena; Loiler, Scott; Dhurandhar, Nikhil V.

2009-01-01

Human adenovirus Ad36 is causally and correlatively associated in animals and humans, respectively, with increased adiposity and altered metabolic profile. We inoculated rats with Ad36, UV-inactivated Ad36 or mock-infected. Four-days later, Ad36-infected rats showed 23% greater epididymal fat pad weight and viral mRNA, the viral DNA could also be detected in tissues viz. the liver, brain, and adipose tissue. Intranasal or intra-peritoneal routes of viral inoculations showed similar tissue affinity. Serum cytokine response was remarkably down regulated. Ad36 acutely suppresses systemic immune response and spreads widely. This information will help to determine Ad36 tissue tropism and its metabolic consequences. PMID:18830560

Cost-effective advertising through TV and newspaper "banner" ads.

PubMed

Gombeski, William R; Taylor, Jan; Krauss, Katie; Medeiros, Clayton

2003-01-01

Banner ads, small strip ads in newspapers used to specifically promote an information piece, were introduced into one newspaper in the Connecticut market in 1999 by Yale-New Haven Hospital (YNHH). Based on their success, the concept was expanded to six additional newspapers in late 2000 and to TV in the summer of 2001. Between 2000-2002, even as the overall marketing/advertising budget declined 30%, switching advertising dollars from image/display ads to banner ads resulted in consumer awareness of YNHH increasing from 29% to 42%. Perception of YNHH as "the advanced medicine" hospital grew from 22% to 40% during the same period. The specific strategic and operational actions generated since the implementation of the program are detailed and the advantages and disadvantages of this banner advertising approach are discussed. Banner ads may offer an alternative approach for organizations to advertise their products and programs.

Finding the Effective Mass and Spring Constant of a Force Probe from Simple Harmonic Motion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Greene, Nathaniel R.; Gill, Tom; Eyerly, Stephen

2016-03-01

Force probes are versatile tools in the physics lab, but their internal workings can introduce artifacts when measuring rapidly changing forces. The Dual-Range Force Sensor by Vernier (Fig. 1) uses strain gage technology to measure force, based on the bending of a beam. Strain gages along the length of the beam change resistance as the beam bends (Fig. 2). The elasticity of the beam leads to oscillations that persist after being excited by an impulsive force. How quickly the force probe freely returns to zero is thus related to the rigidity of the beam and the total mass attached to it. By varying the added mass and measuring the resulting frequency of the probe's internal free oscillations, the effective mass and spring constant of the probe's moveable parts can be found. Weighing of the probe parts and conducting a Hooke's law experiment provide static verification of these parameters. Study of the force sensor's behavior helps students to learn about damped harmonic motion, mathematical modeling, and the limitations of measuring devices.

Sex steroid levels and AD-like pathology in 3xTgAD mice

PubMed Central

Ma, Chunqi; Taves, Matthew D.; Soma, Kiran K.; Mufson, Elliott J.

2014-01-01

Decreases in testosterone (T) and 17β-oestradiol (E2) are associated with an increased risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD), which has been attributed to an increase in beta amyloid (Aβ) and tau pathologic lesions. While recent studies have used transgenic animal models to test the effects of sex steroid manipulations on AD-like pathology, virtually none have systematically characterised the associations between AD lesions and sex steroid levels in the blood or brain in any mutant model. The present study evaluated age-related changes in T and E2 concentrations, as well as androgen receptor (AR) and oestrogen receptor (ER) α and β expression, in brain regions displaying AD pathology in intact male and female 3xTgAD and non-transgenic (ntg) mice. We report for the first time that circulating and brain T levels significantly increase in male 3xTgAD mice with age, but without changes in AR-immunoreactive (ir) cell number in either the hippocampal CA1 or medial amygdala. The age-related increase in hippocampal T levels correlated positively with increases in the conformational tau isoform, Alz50. These data suggest that the over-expression of human tau may up regulate the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis in these mice. Although circulating and brain E2 levels remained stable with age in both male and female 3xTgAD and ntg mice, ER-ir cell number in the hippocampus and medial amygdala decreased with age in female transgenic mice. Further, E2 levels were significantly higher in the hippocampus than in serum, suggesting local production of E2. Although triple transgenic mice mimic AD-like pathology, they do not fully replicate changes in human sex steroid levels, and may not be the best model for studying the effects of sex steroids on AD lesions. PMID:22889357

The Effect of Ad Libitum Consumption of a Milk-Based Liquid Meal Supplement vs. a Traditional Sports Drink on Fluid Balance After Exercise.

PubMed

Baguley, Brenton; Zilujko, Jessica; Leveritt, Michael D; Desbrow, Ben; Irwin, Christopher

2016-08-01

The aim of this study was to compare the effect of ad libitum intake of a milk-based liquid meal supplement against a carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink following exercise induced fluid loss. Seven male participants (age 22.3 ± 3.4 years, height 179.3 ± 7.9 cm, body mass 74.3 ± 7.3 kg; mean ± SD) completed 4 separate trials and lost 1.89 ± 0.44% body mass through moderate intensity exercise in the laboratory. After exercise, participants consumed ad libitum over 2 h a milk-based liquid meal supplement (Sustagen Sport) on two of the trials (S1, S2) or a carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink (Powerade) on two of the trials (P1, P2), with an additional 1 hr observational period. Measures of body mass, urine output, gastrointestinal tolerance and palatability were collected throughout the recovery period. Participants consumed significantly more Powerade than Sustagen Sport over the 2 h rehydration period (P1 = 2225 ± 888 ml, P2 = 2602 ± 1119 mL, S1 = 1375 ± 711 mL, S2 = 1447 ± 857 ml). Total urine output on both Sustagen trails was significantly lower than the second Powerade trial (P2 = 1447 ± 656 ml, S1 = 153 ± 62 ml, S2 = 182 ± 118 mL; p < .05) and trended toward being lower compared with the first Powerade trial (P1 = 1057 ± 699 ml vs. S1, p = .067 and vs. S2, p = .061). No significant differences in net fluid balance were observed between any of the drinks at the conclusion of each trial (P1 = -0.50 ±0. 46 kg, P2 = -0.40 ± 0.35 kg, S1 = -0.61 ± 0.74 kg, S2 = -0.45 ± 0.58 kg). Gastrointestinal tolerance and beverage palatability measures indicated Powerade to be preferred as a rehydration beverage. Ad libitum milk-based liquid meal supplement results in similar net fluid balance as a carbohydrate-electrolyte sports drink after exercise induced fluid loss.

[Neurophysiological effect of flavor and caffeine added to toothpaste].

PubMed

Sadachi, Hidetoshi; Murakami, Yoshinori; Hosoya, Manabu; Yada, Yukihiro

2010-01-01

We previously reported that tooth brushing can be used for active resting as a fatigue-reducing method. In this study, we focused on toothpaste, aiming at increasing the fatigue-reducing effect of tooth brushing. Flavoring and caffeine were added to toothpaste, and their effects were investigated employing the Flicker value, event-related potential P300, and mood scale. Thirteen healthy male and female adults (6 males and 7 females, mean age +/- standard deviation: 28.2 +/- 6.5 yr) performed a 25-minute calculation task using a personal computer, brushed their teeth using the toothpaste, and then repeated the calculation task. The P300 peak latency was significantly shortened after tooth brushing with the toothpaste containing flavoring and caffeine, compared to that after brushing with toothpaste containing no additives (p<0.01), and prolongation of the P300 peak latency after the calculation task was significantly inhibited (p<0.01). In addition, the accuracy of the calculation task tended to increase (p<0.1). Regarding the mood scale, "general fatigue" decreased (p<0.1), "lassitude" was significantly reduced (p<0.05), and "feeling of being refreshed" and "feeling of clear-headedness" were significantly increased (p<0.01 and p<0.05, respectively). These findings suggest the usefulness of tooth brushing with toothpaste with added flavoring and caffeine as a fatigue-reducing method.

Heavy-light mesons in chiral AdS/QCD

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Yizhuang; Zahed, Ismail

2017-06-01

We discuss a minimal holographic model for the description of heavy-light and light mesons with chiral symmetry, defined in a slab of AdS space. The model consists of a pair of chiral Yang-Mills and tachyon fields with specific boundary conditions that break spontaneously chiral symmetry in the infrared. The heavy-light spectrum and decay constants are evaluated explicitly. In the heavy mass limit the model exhibits both heavy-quark and chiral symmetry and allows for the explicit derivation of the one-pion axial couplings to the heavy-light mesons.

Excited-State Effective Masses in Lattice QCD

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

George Fleming, Saul Cohen, Huey-Wen Lin

2009-10-01

We apply black-box methods, i.e. where the performance of the method does not depend upon initial guesses, to extract excited-state energies from Euclidean-time hadron correlation functions. In particular, we extend the widely used effective-mass method to incorporate multiple correlation functions and produce effective mass estimates for multiple excited states. In general, these excited-state effective masses will be determined by finding the roots of some polynomial. We demonstrate the method using sample lattice data to determine excited-state energies of the nucleon and compare the results to other energy-level finding techniques.

Mass spectrometry and tandem mass spectrometry of citrus limonoids.

PubMed

Tian, Qingguo; Schwartz, Steven J

2003-10-15

Methods for atmospheric pressure chemical ionization tandem mass spectrometry (APCI-MS/MS) of citrus limonoid aglycones and electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) of limonoid glucosides are reported. The fragmentation patterns of four citrus limonoid aglycones (limonin, nomilin, obacunone, and deacetylnomilin) and six limonoid glucosides, that is, limonin 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside (LG), nomilin 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside (NG), nomilinic acid 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside (NAG), deacetyl nomilinic acid 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside (DNAG), obacunone 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside (OG), and obacunoic acid 17-beta-D-glucopyranoside (OAG) were investigated using a quadruple mass spectrometer in low-energy collisionally activated dissociation (CAD). The four limonoid aglycones and four limonoid glucosides (LG, OG, NAG, and DNAG) were purified from citrus seeds; the other two limonoid glucosides (NG and OAG) were tentatively identified in the crude extract of grapefruit seeds by ESI mass spectrometry in both positive and negative ion analysis. Ammonium hydroxide or acetic acid was added to the mobile phase to facilitate ionization. During positive ion APCI analysis of limonoid aglycones, protonated molecular ion, [M + H]+, or adduct ion, [M + NH3 + H]-, was formed as base peaks when ammonium hydroxide was added to the mobile phase. Molecular anions or adduct ions with acetic acid ([M + HOAc - H] and [M + HOAc]-) or a deprotonated molecular ion were produced during negative ion APCI analysis of limonoid aglycones, depending on the mobile-phase modifier used. Positive ion ESI-MS of limonoid glucosides produced adduct ions of [M + H + NH3]+, [M + Na]+, and [M + K]+ when ammonium hydroxide was added to the mobile phase. After collisionally activated dissociation (CAD) of the limonoid aglycone molecular ions in negative ion APCI analysis, fragment ions indicated structural information of the precursor ions, showing the presence of methyl, carboxyl, and oxygenated ring

Effect of adding cofactors to exogenous fibrolytic enzymes on preingestive hydrolysis, in vitro digestibility, and fermentation of bermudagrass haylage.

PubMed

Romero, J J; Ma, Z X; Gonzalez, C F; Adesogan, A T

2015-07-01

Our objectives were to examine if adding metal ion cofactors (COF) to exogenous fibrolytic enzymes (EFE) would increase the beneficial effects of the EFE on the preingestive hydrolysis and in vitro digestibility and fermentation of bermudagrass haylage. In experiment 1, 5 COF (Mn(2+), Co(2+), Fe(2+), Ca(2+), and Mg(2+)) were screened to select the best candidates for synergistically enhancing release of water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC) from bermudagrass haylage by 5 EFE. The 5 EFE (1A, 2A, 11C, 13D, and 15D) were sourced from Trichoderma reesei and Aspergillus oryzae and they were the most effective of 12 EFE at increasing the neutral detergent fiber digestibility of bermudagrass haylage in a previous trial. Adding 1mM of each of the COF to EFE 2A or 11C synergistically increased release of WSC from bermudagrass haylage, as did adding (1mM) Fe(2+) to 1A, Mn(2+), Co(2+), or Fe(2+) to 13D, or Co(2+)or Fe(2+) to 15D. The greatest release of WSC responses were obtained by adding Mn(2+) to 11C (38%) or by adding Fe(2+) to 2A or 13D (10 and 21.9%, respectively). In experiment 2, the effect of increasing the COF dose on in vitro digestibility and fermentation of bermudagrass haylage was examined using the best EFE-COF combinations from experiment 1. Effects of adding increasing doses of these COF on EFE-mediated changes in vitro digestibility depended on the COF-EFE combination. Adding 10mM Mn(2+) alone to bermudagrass haylage increased DMD and NDFD by 2.7 and 6.3% and adding 11C alone increased these measures by 6.6 and 15.5%, respectively. However, adding 10mM Mn(2+) with 11C resulted in 3.5 and 8.1% increases in DMD and NDFD, respectively, beyond the increases caused by adding 11C alone. Adding Fe(2+) to 2A had no effects on EFE-mediated digestibility responses, but 2A prevented adverse effects of adding Fe(2+) alone on DMD and NDFD. In contrast, adding Fe(2+) to 13D reduced the increases in DMD and NDFD caused by adding the EFE alone. This study shows that adding COF

Fetal Adrenal Demedullation Lowers Circulating Norepinephrine and Attenuates Growth Restriction but not Reduction of Endocrine Cell Mass in an Ovine Model of Intrauterine Growth Restriction

PubMed Central

Davis, Melissa A.; Macko, Antoni R.; Steyn, Leah V.; Anderson, Miranda J.; Limesand, Sean W.

2015-01-01

Placental insufficiency is associated with fetal hypoglycemia, hypoxemia, and elevated plasma norepinephrine (NE) that become increasingly pronounced throughout the third trimester and contribute to intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). This study evaluated the effect of fetal adrenal demedullation (AD) on growth and pancreatic endocrine cell mass. Placental insufficiency-induced IUGR was created by exposing pregnant ewes to elevated ambient temperatures during mid-gestation. Treatment groups consisted of control and IUGR fetuses with either surgical sham or AD at 98 days gestational age (dGA; term = 147 dGA), a time-point that precedes IUGR. Samples were collected at 134 dGA. IUGR-sham fetuses were hypoxemic, hypoglycemic, and hypoinsulinemic, and values were similar in IUGR-AD fetuses. Plasma NE concentrations were ~5-fold greater in IUGR-sham compared to control-sham, control-AD, and IUGR-AD fetuses. IUGR-sham and IUGR-AD fetuses weighed less than controls. Compared to IUGR-sham fetuses, IUGR-AD fetuses weighed more and asymmetrical organ growth was absent. Pancreatic β-cell mass and α-cell mass were lower in both IUGR-sham and IUGR-AD fetuses compared to controls, however, pancreatic endocrine cell mass relative to fetal mass was lower in IUGR-AD fetuses. These findings indicate that NE, independently of hypoxemia, hypoglycemia and hypoinsulinemia, influence growth and asymmetry of growth but not pancreatic endocrine cell mass in IUGR fetuses. PMID:25584967

Effects of added polyacrylamide on changes in water states during the composting of kitchen waste.

PubMed

Yang, Yu-Qiang; Chen, Zhuo-Xian; Zhang, Xue-Qing; Hu, Li-Fang; Shen, Dong-Sheng; Long, Yu-Yang

2015-02-01

The effects of adding polyacrylamide (PAM), to attempt to delay the loss of capillary water and achieve a better level of organic matter humification, in the composting of kitchen waste were evaluated. Four treatments, with initial moisture content of 60 % were used: 0.1 % PAM added before the start of composting (R1), 0.1 % PAM added when the thermophilic phase of composting became stable (at >50 °C) (R2), 0.1 % PAM added when the moisture content significantly decreased (R3), and no PAM added (R4). The introduction of PAM in R1 and R2 significantly increased the capillary force and delayed the loss of moisture content and capillary water. The introduction of PAM in R2 and R3 improved the composting process, in terms of the degradation of biochemical fractions and the humification degree. These results show that the optimal time for adding PAM was the initial stage of the thermophilic phase.

The sea anemone toxin AdE-1 modifies both sodium and potassium currents of rat cardiomyocytes.

PubMed

Nesher, Nir; Zlotkin, Eliahu; Hochner, Binyamin

2014-07-01

AdE-1, a cardiotonic peptide recently isolated from the sea anemone Aiptasia diaphana, contains 44 amino acids and has a molecular mass of 4907 Da. It was previously found to resemble other sea anemone type 1 and 2 Na+ channel toxins, enhancing contractions of rat cardiomyocytes and slowing their twitch relaxation; however, it did not induce spontaneous twitches. AdE-1 increased the duration of the cardiomyocyte action potential and decreased its amplitude and its time-to-peak in a concentration-dependent manner, without affecting its threshold and cell resting potential. Nor did it generate the early and delayed after-depolarizations characteristic of sea anemone Na+ channel toxins. To further understand its mechanism of action we investigated the effect of AdE-1 on the major ion currents of rat cardiomyocytes. In the present study we show that AdE-1 markedly slowed inactivation of the Na+ current, enhancing and prolonging the current influx with no effect on current activation, possibly through direct interaction with the site 3 receptor of the Na+ channel. No significant effect of AdE-1 on the Ca2+ current was observed, but, unexpectedly, AdE-1 significantly increased the amplitude of the transient component of the K+ current, shifting the current threshold to more negative membrane potentials. This effect on the K+ current has not been found in any other sea anemone toxin and may explain the exclusive reduction in action potential amplitude and the absence of the action potential disorders found with other toxins, such as early and delayed after-depolarizations.

Critical behavior and microscopic structure of charged AdS black holes via an alternative phase space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dehyadegari, Amin; Sheykhi, Ahmad; Montakhab, Afshin

2017-05-01

It has been argued that charged Anti-de Sitter (AdS) black holes have similar thermodynamic behavior as the Van der Waals fluid system, provided one treats the cosmological constant as a thermodynamic variable (pressure) in an extended phase space. In this paper, we disclose the deep connection between charged AdS black holes and Van der Waals fluid system from an alternative point of view. We consider the mass of an AdS black hole as a function of square of the charge Q2 instead of the standard Q, i.e. M = M (S ,Q2 , P). We first justify such a change of view mathematically and then ask if a phase transition can occur as a function of Q2 for fixed P. Therefore, we write the equation of state as Q2 =Q2 (T , Ψ) where Ψ (conjugate of Q2) is the inverse of the specific volume, Ψ = 1 / v. This allows us to complete the analogy of charged AdS black holes with Van der Waals fluid system and derive the phase transition as well as critical exponents of the system. We identify a thermodynamic instability in this new picture with real analogy to Van der Waals fluid with physically relevant Maxwell construction. We therefore study the critical behavior of isotherms in Q2- Ψ diagram and deduce all the critical exponents of the system and determine that the system exhibits a small-large black hole phase transition at the critical point (Tc , Qc2 ,Ψc). This alternative view is important as one can imagine such a change for a given single black hole i.e. acquiring charge which induces the phase transition. Finally, we disclose the microscopic properties of charged AdS black holes by using thermodynamic geometry. Interestingly, we find that scalar curvature has a gap between small and large black holes, and this gap becomes exceedingly large as one moves away from the critical point along the transition line. Therefore, we are able to attribute the sudden enlargement of the black hole to the strong repulsive nature of the internal constituents at the phase transition.

Effect of Tong Luo Jiu Nao on Aβ-degrading enzymes in AD rat brains.

PubMed

Liu, Yuan; Hua, Qian; Lei, Hongtao; Li, Pengtao

2011-09-02

Tong Luo Jiu Nao (TLJN) is a modern Chinese formula based on Traditional Chinese Medicine theory that has been used to treat ischemic cerebral stroke and vascular dementia. TLJN belongs to the ethnopharmacological family of medicines. In this study, we investigated the mechanism of the TLJN effect on Alzheimer's disease (AD). To investigate the effect of TLJN on β-amyloid-degrading enzymes and learning and memory in the AD rat brain. AD rats whose disease was induced by Aβ(25-35) injection into the bilateral hippocampus CA1 region were subjected to intragastric administration of various preparations. The experimental animals were healthy male Sprague-Dawley rats which were randomly divided into normal, sham, model, TLJN min, TLJN max and donepezil hydrochloride groups. Spontaneous alternation and passive avoidance behavior, which are regarded as measures of spatial learning and memory, were investigated using Y-maze testing. Western blotting and immunohistochemistry were used to observe the therapeutic effect of TLJN on the deposits of amyloid plaque and on the expression of synaptophysin, insulin-degrading enzyme and neprilysin. Y-maze results showed that the AD model group presented with spatial learning and memory impairments. Hematoxylin-eosin and Congo red staining indicated neuronal impairment and deposits of amyloid plaque in the model group and these results were consistent with their learning and memory deficits in the Y-maze. The TLJN-treated groups exhibited prolonged a cavity delitescence, decreased arm entries and improvement in learning and memory. Moreover, the structure of the neurons of the treated groups was restored and the expression of synaptophysin increased in both the hippocampus and cortex. In addition, their levels of insulin-degrading enzyme and neprilysin in the cortex and hippocampus were upregulated and the amyloid plaque was decreased. TLJN can improve learning and memory, up-regulate insulin-degrading enzyme and neprilysin levels

Marine and terrestrial factors affecting Adélie penguin Pygoscelis adeliae chick growth and recruitment off the western Antarctic Peninsula

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chapman, Erik W.; Hofmann, Eileen E.; Patterson, Donna L.; Ribic, Christine A.; Fraser, William R.

2011-01-01

An individual-based bioenergetics model that simulates the growth of an Adélie penguin Pygoscelis adeliaechick from hatching to fledging was used to assess marine and terrestrial factors that affect chick growth and fledging mass off the western Antarctic Peninsula. Simulations considered the effects on Adélie penguin fledging mass of (1) modification of chick diet through the addition of Antarctic silverfish Pleuragramma antarcticum to an all-Antarctic krillEuphausia superba diet, (2) reduction of provisioning rate which may occur as a result of an environmental stress such as reduced prey availability, and (3) increased thermoregulatory costs due to wetting of chicks which may result from increased precipitation or snow-melt in colonies. Addition of 17% Antarctic silverfish of Age-Class 3 yr (AC3) to a penguin chick diet composed of Antarctic krill increased chick fledging mass by 5%. Environmental stress that results in >4% reduction in provisioning rate or wetting of just 10% of the chick’s surface area decreased fledging mass enough to reduce the chick’s probability of successful recruitment. The negative effects of reduced provisioning and wetting on chick growth can be compensated for by inclusion of Antarctic silverfish of AC3 and older in the chick diet. Results provide insight into climate-driven processes that influence chick growth and highlight a need for field research designed to investigate factors that determine the availability of AC3 and older Antarctic silverfish to foraging Adélie penguins and the influence of snowfall on chick wetting, thermoregulation and adult provisioning rate.

The type of caloric sweetener added to water influences weight gain, fat mass, and reproduction in growing Sprague-Dawley female rats.

PubMed

Light, Heather R; Tsanzi, Embedzayi; Gigliotti, Joseph; Morgan, Keri; Tou, Janet C

2009-06-01

Caloric sweetened beverages have been suggested to be a major dietary contributor to weight gain, particularly among adolescents. Dietary recommendations are for moderating intakes of added sugars; however, the question remains whether certain types of sugars should be limited. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of drinking different caloric sweetened beverages on the development of adiposity, metabolic, and endocrine disorders. Young (age 28 days) female Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 8-9 rats/group) were randomly assigned to drink either deionized distilled water (ddH2O) or ddH2O sweetened with 13% (w/v) glucose, sucrose, fructose or high fructose corn syrup 55 (HFCS-55) for 8 weeks. Rats drinking caloric sweetened solutions failed to completely compensate for liquid calories ingested by reducing their consumption of solid food. This resulted in greater total energy intake compared to the ddH2O control; however, there was no significant difference in total energy intake between rats drinking sucrose, fructose or HFCS-55. Of the different caloric sweeteners, only rats drinking HFCS-55 had greater (P < 0.05) final body weights and fat mass compared to the rats drinking ddH2O or glucose solution. This may have occurred because drinking HFCS-55 solution promoted a faster body weight gain. Adiposity induced by caloric sweetened water was not accompanied by metabolic disorders indicated by the absence of dyslipidemia and no differences in fasting serum glucose, insulin or C-peptide among the treatment groups. However, rats drinking HFCS-55 showed lengthened estrous cycles due to prolonged estrus. Based on this study, the type of caloric sweetener added to beverages should be considered when making dietary recommendation for reducing excess body weight and related health risk.

Effect of methylphenidate on attention in apathetic AD patients in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

PubMed

Lanctôt, Krista L; Chau, Sarah A; Herrmann, Nathan; Drye, Lea T; Rosenberg, Paul B; Scherer, Roberta W; Black, Sandra E; Vaidya, Vijay; Bachman, David L; Mintzer, Jacobo E

2014-02-01

Little is known about the effect of methylphenidate (MPH) on attention in Alzheimer's disease (AD). MPH has shown to improve apathy in AD, and both apathy and attention have been related to dopaminergic function. The goal was to investigate MPH effects on attention in AD and assess the relationship between attention and apathy responses. MPH (10 mg PO twice daily) or placebo was administered for six weeks in a randomized, double-blind trial in mild-to-moderate AD outpatients with apathy (Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) Apathy ≥ 4). Attention was measured with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale--Digit Span (DS) subtest (DS forward, selective attention) and apathy with the Apathy Evaluation Scale (AES). A mixed effects linear regression estimated the difference in change from baseline between treatment groups, defined as δ (MPH (DS week 6-DS baseline)) - (placebo (DS week 6-DS baseline)). In 60 patients (37 females, age = 76 ± 8, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) = 20 ± 5, NPI Apathy = 7 ± 2), the change in DS forward (δ = 0.87 (95% CI: 0.06-1.68), p = 0.03) and DS total (δ = 1.01 (95% CI: 0.09-1.93), p = 0.03) favored MPH over placebo. Of 57 completers, 17 patients had improved apathy (≥3.3 points on the AES from baseline to end point) and 40 did not. There were no significant associations between AES and NPI Apathy with DS change scores in the MPH, placebo, AES responder, or non-responder groups. DS scores did not predict apathy response to MPH treatment. These results suggest MPH can improve attention and apathy in AD; however, the effects appear independent in this population.

Many-body theory of effective mass in degenerate semiconductors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tripathi, G. S.; Shadangi, S. K.

2018-03-01

We derive the many-body theory of the effective mass in the effective mass representation (EMR). In the EMR, we need to solve the equation of motion of an electron in the presence of electron-electron interactions, where the wavefunction is expanded over a complete set of Luttinger-Kohn wavefunctions. We use the Luttinger-Ward thermodynamic potential and the Green’s function perturbation to derive an expression for the band effective mass by taking into account the electron-electron interactions. Both quasi-particle and the correlation contributions are considered. We show that had we considered only the quasi-particle contribution, we would have missed important cancellations. Thus the correlated motion of electrons has important effects in the renormalization of the effective mass. Considering the exchange self-energy in the band model, we derive a tractable expression for the band effective mass. We apply the theory to n-type degenerate semiconductors, PbTe and SnTe, and analyze the impact of the theory on the anisotropic effective mass of the conduction bands in these systems.

Thermodynamics and phase transition of charged AdS black holes with a global monopole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Gao-Ming; Fan, Jinbo; Li, Xinfei; Huang, Yong-Chang

2018-01-01

Thermodynamical properties of charged AdS black holes with a global monopole still remain obscure. In this paper, we investigate the thermodynamics and phase transition of the black holes in the extended phase space. It is shown that thermodynamical quantities of the black holes exhibit an interesting dependence on the internal global monopole, and they perfectly satisfy both the first law of thermodynamics and Smarr relation. Furthermore, analysis of the local and the global thermodynamical stability manifests that the charged AdS black hole undergoes an elegant phase transition at critical point. Of special interest, critical behaviors of the black holes resemble a Van der Waals liquid-gas system. Our results not only reveal the effect of a global monopole on thermodynamics of AdS black holes, but also further support that Van der Waals-like behavior of the black holes is a universal phenomenon.

Effects of adding a virtual reality environment to different modes of treadmill walking.

PubMed

Sloot, L H; van der Krogt, M M; Harlaar, J

2014-03-01

Differences in gait between overground and treadmill walking are suggested to result from imposed treadmill speed and lack of visual flow. To counteract this effect, feedback-controlled treadmills that allow the subject to control the belt speed along with an immersive virtual reality (VR) have recently been developed. We studied the effect of adding a VR during both fixed speed (FS) and self-paced (SP) treadmill walking. Nineteen subjects walked on a dual-belt instrumented treadmill with a simple endless road projected on a 180° circular screen. A main effect of VR was found for hip flexion offset, peak hip extension, peak knee extension moment, knee flexion moment gain and ankle power during push off. A consistent interaction effect between VR and treadmill mode was found for 12 out of 30 parameters, although the differences were small and did not exceed 50% of the within subject stride variance. At FS, the VR seemed to slightly improve the walking pattern towards overground walking, with for example a 6.5mm increase in stride length. At SP, gait became slightly more cautious by adding a VR, with a 9.1mm decrease in stride length. Irrespective of treadmill mode, subjects rated walking with the VR as more similar to overground walking. In the context of clinical gait analysis, the effects of VR are too small to be relevant and are outweighed by the gains of adding a VR, such as a more stimulating experience and possibility of augmenting it by real-time feedback. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

SAO/NASA ADS at SAO: ADS Browse Service

Science.gov Websites

Sign on [SAO/NASA ADS] ADS Browse Service ADS Home | HELP | Sitemap ADS Services Search Browse myADS Mirrors Feedback FAQ What's new Site Map Help Other NASA Centers CXC HEASARC IRSA MAST NED NSSDC -Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics [ Smithsonian logo ] The NASA Astrophysics Data System provides different

AdS-phobia, the WGC, the Standard Model and Supersymmetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gonzalo, Eduardo; Herráez, Alvaro; Ibáñez, Luis E.

2018-06-01

It has been recently argued that an embedding of the SM into a consistent theory of quantum gravity may imply important constraints on the mass of the lightest neutrino and the cosmological constant Λ4. The constraints come from imposing the absence of any non-SUSY AdS stable vacua obtained from any consistent compactification of the SM to 3 or 2 dimensions. This condition comes as a corollary of a recent extension of the Weak Gravity Conjecture (WGC) by Ooguri and Vafa. In this paper we study T 2 /Z N compactifications of the SM to two dimensions in which SM Wilson lines are projected out, leading to a considerable simplification. We analyze in detail a T 2 /Z 4 compactification of the SM in which both complex structure and Wilson line scalars are fixed and the potential is only a function of the area of the torus a 2. We find that the SM is not robust against the appearance of AdS vacua in 2D and hence would be by itself inconsistent with quantum gravity. On the contrary, if the SM is embedded at some scale M SS into a SUSY version like the MSSM, the AdS vacua present in the non-SUSY case disappear or become unstable. This means that WGC arguments favor a SUSY version of the SM, independently of the usual hierarchy problem arguments. In a T 2 /Z 4 compactification in which the orbifold action is embedded into the B - L symmetry the bounds on neutrino masses and the cosmological constant are recovered. This suggests that the MSSM should be extended with a U(1) B- L gauge group. In other families of vacua the spectrum of SUSY particles is further constrained in order to avoid the appearance of new AdS vacua or instabilities. We discuss a possible understanding of the little hierarchy problem in this context.

Tensionless string spectra on AdS3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaberdiel, Matthias R.; Gopakumar, Rajesh

2018-05-01

The spectrum of superstrings on AdS3 × S3 × M 4 with pure NS-NS flux is analysed for the background where the radius of the AdS space takes the minimal value ( k = 1). Both for M 4 = S3 × S1 and M 4 = T 4 we show that there is a special set of physical states, coming from the bottom of the spectrally flowed continuous representations, which agree in precise detail with the single particle spectrum of a free symmetric product orbifold. For the case of AdS3 × S3 × T 4 this relies on making sense of the world-sheet theory at k = 1, for which we make a concrete proposal. We also comment on the implications of this striking result.

A systematic review: effectiveness of mass media campaigns for reducing alcohol-impaired driving and alcohol-related crashes.

PubMed

Yadav, Rajendra-Prasad; Kobayashi, Miwako

2015-09-04

Mass media campaigns have long been used as a tool for promoting public health. In the past decade, the growth of social media has allowed more diverse options for mass media campaigns. This systematic review was conducted to assess newer evidence from quantitative studies on the effectiveness of mass media campaigns for reducing alcohol-impaired driving (AID) and alcohol-related crashes, particularly after the paper that Elder et al. published in 2004. This review focused on English language studies that evaluated the effect of mass media campaigns for reducing AID and alcohol-related crashes, with or without enforcement efforts. A systematic search was conducted for studies published between January 1, 2002 and December 31, 2013. Studies from the review by Elder et al. were added as well. A total of 19 studies met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review, including three studies from the review by Elder et al. Nine of them had concomitant enforcement measures and did not evaluate the impact of media campaigns independently. Studies that evaluated the impact of mass media independently showed reduction more consistently (median -15.1%, range -28.8 to 0%), whereas results of studies that had concomitant enforcement activities were more variable (median -8.6%, range -36.4 to +14.6%). Summary effects calculated from seven studies showed no evidence of media campaigns reducing the risk of alcohol-related injuries or fatalities (RR 1.00, 95% CI = 0.94 to 1.06). Despite additional decade of evidence, reviewed studies were heterogeneous in their approaches; therefore, we could not conclude that media campaigns reduced the risk of alcohol-related injuries or crashes. More studies are needed, including studies evaluating newly emerging media and cost-effectiveness of media campaigns.

A non-resonant mass sensor to eliminate the "missing mass" effect during mass measurement of biological materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shrikanth, V.; Bobji, M. S.

2014-10-01

Resonant sensors and crystal oscillators for mass detection need to be excited at very high natural frequencies (MHz). Use of such systems to measure mass of biological materials affects the accuracy of mass measurement due to their viscous and/or viscoelastic properties. The measurement limitation of such sensor system is the difficulty in accounting for the "missing mass" of the biological specimen in question. A sensor system has been developed in this work, to be operated in the stiffness controlled region at very low frequencies as compared to its fundamental natural frequency. The resulting reduction in the sensitivity due to non-resonant mode of operation of this sensor is compensated by the high resolution of the sensor. The mass of different aged drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) is measured. The difference in its mass measurement during resonant mode of operation is also presented. That, viscosity effects do not affect the working of this non-resonant mass sensor is clearly established by direct comparison.

Associations between added sugar (solid vs. liquid) intakes, diet quality, and adiposity indicators in Canadian children.

PubMed

Wang, JiaWei; Shang, Lei; Light, Kelly; O'Loughlin, Jennifer; Paradis, Gilles; Gray-Donald, Katherine

2015-08-01

Little is known about the influence of different forms of added sugar intake on diet quality or their association with obesity among youth. Dietary intake was assessed by three 24-h recalls in 613 Canadian children (aged 8-10 years). Added sugars (mean of 3-day intakes) were categorized according to source (solid or liquid). Dietary intake and the Canadian Healthy Eating Index (« HEI-C ») were compared across tertiles of solid and liquid added sugars separately as were adiposity indicators (body mass index (BMI), fat mass (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), and waist circumference). Cross-sectional associations were examined in linear regression models adjusting for age, sex, energy intake, and physical activity (7-day accelerometer). Added sugar contributed 12% of total energy intake (204 kcal) on average, of which 78% was from solid sources. Higher consumption of added sugars from either solid or liquid source was associated with higher total energy, lower intake of micronutrients, vegetables and fruit, and lower HEI-C score. Additionally liquid sources were associated with lower intake of dairy products. A 10-g higher consumption of added sugars from liquid sources was associated with 0.4 serving/day lower of vegetables and fruit, 0.4-kg/m(2) higher BMI, a 0.5-kg higher fat mass, and a 0.9-cm higher waist circumference whereas the associations of added sugars from solid sources and adiposity indicators tended to be negative. In conclusion, higher consumption of added sugar from either solid or liquid sources was associated with lower overall diet quality. Adiposity indicators were only positively associated with added sugars from liquid sources.

The effects of involvement and ad type on attitudes toward direct-to-consumer advertising of prescription drugs.

PubMed

Limbu, Yam; Torres, Ivonne M

2009-01-01

This article examines consumers' attitudes toward Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) advertising of prescription drugs that are influenced by the use different types of DTC ads and product involvement. Our findings suggest that product involvement and the type of DTC ad are significant predictors of consumers' attitudinal responses toward DTC advertising. High involvement consumers have more favorable attitudes toward the drug's price, DTC ad and brand name, and a higher intention to ask a doctor about the advertised drug than low involvement consumers. In contrast to Informational and Reminder DTC ads, Persuasive ads have more favorable effects on consumers' reactions to DTC prescription drug advertising.

Absolute dimensions of eclipsing binaries. XXVI.. Setting a new standard: Masses, radii, and abundances for the F-type systems AD Bootis VZ Hydrae, and WZ Ophiuchi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clausen, J. V.; Torres, G.; Bruntt, H.; Andersen, J.; Nordström, B.; Stefanik, R. P.; Latham, D. W.; Southworth, J.

2008-09-01

Context: Accurate mass, radius, and abundance determinations from binaries provide important information on stellar evolution, fundamental to central fields in modern astrophysics and cosmology. Aims: We aim to determine absolute dimensions and abundances for the three F-type main-sequence detached eclipsing binaries AD Boo, VZ Hya, and WZ Oph and to perform a detailed comparison with results from recent stellar evolutionary models. Methods: uvby light curves and uvbyβ standard photometry were obtained with the Strömgren Automatic Telescope at ESO, La Silla, radial velocity observations at CfA facilities, and supplementary high-resolution spectra with ESO's FEROS spectrograph. State-of-the-art methods were applied for the analyses: the EBOP and Wilson-Devinney binary models, two-dimensional cross-correlation and disentangling, and the VWA abundance analysis tool. Results: Masses and radii that are precise to 0.5-0.7% and 0.4-0.9%, respectively, have been established for the components, which span the ranges of 1.1 to 1.4 M⊙ and 1.1 to 1.6 R⊙. The [Fe/H] abundances are from -0.27 to +0.10, with uncertainties between 0.07 and 0.15 dex. We find indications of a slight α-element overabundance of [α/Fe] ˜ + 0.1 for WZ Oph. The secondary component of AD Boo and both components of WZ Oph appear to be slightly active. Yale-Yonsai and Victoria-Regina evolutionary models fit the components of AD Boo and VZ Hya almost equally well, assuming coeval formation, at ages of about 1.75/1.50 Gyr (AD Boo) and 1.25/1.00 Gyr (VZ Hya). BaSTI models, however, predict somewhat different ages for the primary and secondary components. For WZ Oph, the models from all three grids are significantly hotter than observed. A low He content, decreased envelope convection coupled with surface activity, and/or higher interstellar absorption would remove the discrepancy, but its cause has not been definitively identified. Conclusions: We have demonstrated the power of testing and comparing

Ambient temperature and added heat wave effects on hospitalizations in California from 1999 to 2009.

PubMed

Sherbakov, Toki; Malig, Brian; Guirguis, Kristen; Gershunov, Alexander; Basu, Rupa

2018-01-01

Investigators have examined how heat waves or incremental changes in temperature affect health outcomes, but few have examined both simultaneously. We utilized distributed lag nonlinear models (DLNM) to explore temperature associations and evaluate possible added heat wave effects on hospitalizations in 16 climate zones throughout California from May through October 1999-2009. We define heat waves as a period when daily mean temperatures were above the zone- and month-specific 95th percentile for at least two consecutive days. DLNMs were used to estimate climate zone-specific non-linear temperature and heat wave effects, which were then combined using random effects meta-analysis to produce an overall estimate for each. With higher temperatures, admissions for acute renal failure, appendicitis, dehydration, ischemic stroke, mental health, non-infectious enteritis, and primary diabetes were significantly increased, with added effects from heat waves observed for acute renal failure and dehydration. Higher temperatures also predicted statistically significant decreases in hypertension admissions, respiratory admissions, and respiratory diseases with secondary diagnoses of diabetes, though heat waves independently predicted an added increase in risk for both respiratory types. Our findings provide evidence that both heat wave and temperature exposures can exert effects independently. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The effect of feature selection methods on computer-aided detection of masses in mammograms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hupse, Rianne; Karssemeijer, Nico

2010-05-01

In computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) research, feature selection methods are often used to improve generalization performance of classifiers and shorten computation times. In an application that detects malignant masses in mammograms, we investigated the effect of using a selection criterion that is similar to the final performance measure we are optimizing, namely the mean sensitivity of the system in a predefined range of the free-response receiver operating characteristics (FROC). To obtain the generalization performance of the selected feature subsets, a cross validation procedure was performed on a dataset containing 351 abnormal and 7879 normal regions, each region providing a set of 71 mass features. The same number of noise features, not containing any information, were added to investigate the ability of the feature selection algorithms to distinguish between useful and non-useful features. It was found that significantly higher performances were obtained using feature sets selected by the general test statistic Wilks' lambda than using feature sets selected by the more specific FROC measure. Feature selection leads to better performance when compared to a system in which all features were used.

COGNITIVELY NORMAL INDIVIDUALS WITH AD PARENTS MAY BE AT RISK FOR DEVELOPING AGING-RELATED CORTICAL THINNING PATTERNS CHARACTERISTIC OF AD

PubMed Central

Reiter, Katherine; Alpert, Kathryn I.; Cobia, Derin J.; Kwasny, Mary J.; Morris, John C.; Csernansky, John C.; Wang, Lei

2012-01-01

Children of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) patients are at heightened risk of developing AD due to genetic influences, including the apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) allele. In this study, we assessed the earliest cortical changes associated with AD in 71 cognitively healthy, adult children of AD patients (AD offspring) as compared with 69 with no family history of AD (non-AD offspring). Cortical thickness measures were obtained using FreeSurfer from 1.5T magnetic resonance (MR) scans. ApoE genotyping was obtained. Primary analyses examined family history and ApoeE4 effects on cortical thickness. Secondary analyses examined age effects within groups. All comparisons were adjusted using False Discovery Rate at a significance threshold of p < 0.05. There were no statistically significant differences between family history and ApoE4 groups. Within AD offspring, increasing age was related to reduced cortical thickness (atrophy) over large areas of the precuneus, superior frontal and superior temporal gyri, starting at around age 60. Further, these patterns existed within female and maternal AD offspring, but were absent in male and paternal AD offspring. Within non-AD offspring, negative correlations existed over small regions of the superior temporal, insula and lingual cortices. These results suggest that as AD offspring age, cortical atrophy is more prominent, particularly if the parent with AD is mother or if the AD offspring is female. PMID:22503937

Effects of micro-sized and nano-sized WO3 on mass attenauation coefficients of concrete by using MCNPX code.

PubMed

Tekin, H O; Singh, V P; Manici, T

2017-03-01

In the present work the effect of tungsten oxide (WO 3 ) nanoparticles on mass attenauation coefficients of concrete has been investigated by using MCNPX (version 2.4.0). The validation of generated MCNPX simulation geometry has been provided by comparing the results with standard XCOM data for mass attenuation coefficients of concrete. A very good agreement between XCOM and MCNPX have been obtained. The validated geometry has been used for definition of nano-WO 3 and micro-WO 3 into concrete sample. The mass attenuation coefficients of pure concrete and WO 3 added concrete with micro-sized and nano-sized have been compared. It was observed that shielding properties of concrete doped with WO 3 increased. The results of mass attenauation coefficients also showed that the concrete doped with nano-WO 3 significanlty improve shielding properties than micro-WO 3 . It can be concluded that addition of nano-sized particles can be considered as another mechanism to reduce radiation dose. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

AdS7/CFT6 with orientifolds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Apruzzi, Fabio; Fazzi, Marco

2018-01-01

AdS7 solutions of massive type IIA have been classified, and are dual to a large class of six-dimensional (1, 0) SCFT's whose tensor branch deformations are described by linear quivers of SU groups. Quivers and AdS vacua depend solely on the group theory data of the NS5-D6-D8 brane configurations engineering the field theories. This has allowed for a direct holographic match of their a conformal anomaly. In this paper we extend the match to cases where O6 and O8-planes are present, thereby introducing SO and USp groups in the quivers. In all of them we show that the a anomaly computed in supergravity agrees with the holographic limit of the exact field theory result, which we extract from the anomaly polynomial. As a byproduct we construct special AdS7 vacua dual to nonperturbative F-theory configurations. Finally, we propose a holographic a-theorem for six-dimensional Higgs branch RG flows.

Duality invariance of s ≥ 3/2 fermions in AdS

DOE PAGES

Deser, S.; Seminara, D.

2014-09-30

The research show that in D = 4 AdS, s ≥ 3/2 partially massless (PM) fermions retain the duality invariances of their flat space massless counterparts. They have tuned ratios m 2/M 2 ≠ 0 that turn them into sums of effectively massless unconstrained helicity ±(s, ···, 3/2) excitations, shorn of the lowest (non-dual) helicity ±1/2-rung and — more generally — of succeeding higher rung as well. Each helicity mode is separately duality invariant, like its flat space counterpart.

New Kaluza-Klein instantons and the decay of AdS vacua

DOE PAGES

Ooguri, Hirosi; Spodyneiko, Lev

2017-07-19

We construct a generalization of Witten’s Kaluza-Klein instanton, where a higher-dimensional sphere (rather than a circle as in Witten’s instanton) collapses to zero size and the geometry terminates at a bubble of nothing, in a low energy effective theory of M theory. We then use the solution to exhibit the instability of nonsupersymmetric AdS 5 vacua in M theory compactified on positive Kähler-Einstein spaces, providing further evidence for the recent conjecture that any nonsupersymmetric anti–de Sitter vacuum supported by fluxes must be unstable.

Evaluation of absorbent materials for use as ad hoc dry decontaminants during mass casualty incidents as part of the UK’s Initial Operational Response (IOR)

PubMed Central

Kassouf, Nick; Syed, Sara; Larner, Joanne; Amlôt, Richard

2017-01-01

The UK’s Initial Operational Response (IOR) is a revised process for the medical management of mass casualties potentially contaminated with hazardous materials. A critical element of the IOR is the introduction of immediate, on-scene disrobing and decontamination of casualties to limit the adverse health effects of exposure. Ad hoc cleansing of the skin with dry absorbent materials has previously been identified as a potential means of facilitating emergency decontamination. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the in vitro oil and water absorbency of a range of materials commonly found in the domestic and clinical environments and to determine the effectiveness of a small, but representative selection of such materials in skin decontamination, using an established ex vivo model. Five contaminants were used in the study: methyl salicylate, parathion, diethyl malonate, phorate and potassium cyanide. In vitro measurements of water and oil absorbency did not correlate with ex vivo measurements of skin decontamination. When measured ex vivo, dry decontamination was consistently more effective than a standard wet decontamination method (“rinse-wipe-rinse”) for removing liquid contaminants. However, dry decontamination was ineffective against particulate contamination. Collectively, these data confirm that absorbent materials such as wound dressings and tissue paper provide an effective, generic capability for emergency removal of liquid contaminants from the skin surface, but that wet decontamination should be used for non-liquid contaminants. PMID:28152053

The Effects of Added Hydrogen on Noble Gas Discharges Used as Ambient Desorption/Ionization Sources for Mass Spectrometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellis, Wade C.; Lewis, Charlotte R.; Openshaw, Anna P.; Farnsworth, Paul B.

2016-09-01

We demonstrate the effectiveness of using hydrogen-doped argon as the support gas for the dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) ambient desorption/ionization (ADI) source in mass spectrometry. Also, we explore the chemistry responsible for the signal enhancement observed when using both hydrogen-doped argon and hydrogen-doped helium. The hydrogen-doped argon was tested for five analytes representing different classes of molecules. Addition of hydrogen to the argon plasma gas enhanced signals for gas-phase analytes and for analytes coated onto glass slides in positive and negative ion mode. The enhancements ranged from factors of 4 to 5 for gas-phase analytes and factors of 2 to 40 for coated slides. There was no significant increase in the background. The limit of detection for caffeine was lowered by a factor of 79 using H2/Ar and 2 using H2/He. Results are shown that help explain the fundamental differences between the pure-gas discharges and those that are hydrogen-doped for both argon and helium. Experiments with different discharge geometries and grounding schemes indicate that observed signal enhancements are strongly dependent on discharge configuration.

Two Virasoro symmetries in stringy warped AdS 3

DOE PAGES

Compere, Geoffrey; Guica, Monica; Rodriguez, Maria J.

2014-12-02

We study three-dimensional consistent truncations of type IIB supergravity which admit warped AdS 3 solutions. These theories contain subsectors that have no bulk dynamics. We show that the symplectic form for these theories, when restricted to the non-dynamical subsectors, equals the symplectic form for pure Einstein gravity in AdS 3. Consequently, for each consistent choice of boundary conditions in AdS 3, we can define a consistent phase space in warped AdS 3 with identical conserved charges. This way, we easily obtain a Virasoro × Virasoro asymptotic symmetry algebra in warped AdS 3; two different types of Virasoro × Kač-Moody symmetriesmore » are also consistent alternatives. Next, we study the phase space of these theories when propagating modes are included. We show that, as long as one can define a conserved symplectic form without introducing instabilities, the Virasoro × Virasoro asymptotic symmetries can be extended to the entire (linearised) phase space. In conclusion, this implies that, at least at semi-classical level, consistent theories of gravity in warped AdS 3 are described by a two-dimensional conformal field theory, as long as stability is not an issue.« less

Two Virasoro symmetries in stringy warped AdS 3

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Compere, Geoffrey; Guica, Monica; Rodriguez, Maria J.

We study three-dimensional consistent truncations of type IIB supergravity which admit warped AdS 3 solutions. These theories contain subsectors that have no bulk dynamics. We show that the symplectic form for these theories, when restricted to the non-dynamical subsectors, equals the symplectic form for pure Einstein gravity in AdS 3. Consequently, for each consistent choice of boundary conditions in AdS 3, we can define a consistent phase space in warped AdS 3 with identical conserved charges. This way, we easily obtain a Virasoro × Virasoro asymptotic symmetry algebra in warped AdS 3; two different types of Virasoro × Kač-Moody symmetriesmore » are also consistent alternatives. Next, we study the phase space of these theories when propagating modes are included. We show that, as long as one can define a conserved symplectic form without introducing instabilities, the Virasoro × Virasoro asymptotic symmetries can be extended to the entire (linearised) phase space. In conclusion, this implies that, at least at semi-classical level, consistent theories of gravity in warped AdS 3 are described by a two-dimensional conformal field theory, as long as stability is not an issue.« less

Phases of global AdS black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Basu, Pallab; Krishnan, Chethan; Subramanian, P. N. Bala

2016-06-01

We study the phases of gravity coupled to a charged scalar and gauge field in an asymptotically Anti-de Sitter spacetime ( AdS 4) in the grand canonical ensemble. For the conformally coupled scalar, an intricate phase diagram is charted out between the four relevant solutions: global AdS, boson star, Reissner-Nordstrom black hole and the hairy black hole. The nature of the phase diagram undergoes qualitative changes as the charge of the scalar is changed, which we discuss. We also discuss the new features that arise in the extremal limit.

New massive gravity and AdS(4) counterterms.

PubMed

Jatkar, Dileep P; Sinha, Aninda

2011-04-29

We show that the recently proposed Dirac-Born-Infeld extension of new massive gravity emerges naturally as a counterterm in four-dimensional anti-de Sitter space (AdS(4)). The resulting on-shell Euclidean action is independent of the cutoff at zero temperature. We also find that the same choice of counterterm gives the usual area law for the AdS(4) Schwarzschild black hole entropy in a cutoff-independent manner. The parameter values of the resulting counterterm action correspond to a c=0 theory in the context of the duality between AdS(3) gravity and two-dimensional conformal field theory. We rewrite this theory in terms of the gauge field that is used to recast 3D gravity as a Chern-Simons theory.

Cognitively normal individuals with AD parents may be at risk for developing aging-related cortical thinning patterns characteristic of AD.

PubMed

Reiter, Katherine; Alpert, Kathryn I; Cobia, Derin J; Kwasny, Mary J; Morris, John C; Csernansky, John C; Wang, Lei

2012-07-02

Children of Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients are at heightened risk of developing AD due to genetic influences, including the apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) allele. In this study, we assessed the earliest cortical changes associated with AD in 71 cognitively healthy, adult children of AD patients (AD offspring) as compared with 69 with no family history of AD (non-AD offspring). Cortical thickness measures were obtained using FreeSurfer from 1.5T magnetic resonance (MR) scans. ApoE genotyping was obtained. Primary analyses examined family history and ApoeE4 effects on cortical thickness. Secondary analyses examined age effects within groups. All comparisons were adjusted using False Discovery Rate at a significance threshold of p<0.05. There were no statistically significant differences between family history and ApoE4 groups. Within AD offspring, increasing age was related to reduced cortical thickness (atrophy) over large areas of the precuneus, superior frontal and superior temporal gyri, starting at around age 60. Further, these patterns existed within female and maternal AD offspring, but were absent in male and paternal AD offspring. Within non-AD offspring, negative correlations existed over small regions of the superior temporal, insula and lingual cortices. These results suggest that as AD offspring age, cortical atrophy is more prominent, particularly if the parent with AD is mother or if the AD offspring is female. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effect of added weight on landing kinematics in jumping horses.

PubMed

Clayton, H M

1997-05-01

Six event horses jumped a 1.10 m high table fence 4 times under each of 2 conditions; the rider weight condition involved carrying the weight of the rider and saddle (61 kg), whereas the added weight condition included an additional 18 kg weight cloth. Sagittal view, 60 Hz video recordings were analysed using standard methods. Comparisons between the rider weight and added weight conditions using paired t tests (P<0.05) showed a number of significant differences. In the added weight condition the leading forelimb landed closer to the fence, and there were increases in the maximal extension of the fetlock and carpal joints in this limb during the landing phase. In the first departure stride, the stance durations of both hindlimbs increased, and the advanced placement between them was reduced for the added weight condition. The head was significantly further ahead of the vertical in the added weight condition at the instants of ground contact of the TrH, LdH and TrF in the first departure stride.

[Chemicals added to cigarettes and their effects on tobacco dependence].

PubMed

Gonseth, S; Cornuz, J

2009-07-01

This paper summarizes data on the factors involved in addiction and dependence to cigarettes. Nicotine has been intensively studied by the tobacco industry, for instance for its addictive effect at the lowest possible rates. The addition of diammonium phosphate and urea produces an alcalinization of the pH of cigarette smoke, and promotes the absorption and the trans-membrane passage of nicotine. The taste, the smell of smoke, and the visual aspect of the pack of cigarettes are also sensory components that promote addiction. Finally, menthol, sugar, cocoa and liquorice added to cigarettes also play a role in dependence and addiction to cigarettes by, for instance, making an anesthetic effect on the airways.

Floquet scalar dynamics in global AdS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biasi, Anxo; Carracedo, Pablo; Mas, Javier; Musso, Daniele; Serantes, Alexandre

2018-04-01

We study periodically driven scalar fields and the resulting geometries with global AdS asymptotics. These solutions describe the strongly coupled dynamics of dual finite-size quantum systems under a periodic driving which we interpret as Floquet condensates. They span a continuous two-parameter space that extends the linearized solutions on AdS. We map the regions of stability in the solution space. In a significant portion of the unstable subspace, two very different endpoints are reached depending upon the sign of the perturbation. Collapse into a black hole occurs for one sign. For the opposite sign instead one attains a regular solution with periodic modulation. We also construct quenches where the driving frequency and amplitude are continuously varied. Quasistatic quenches can interpolate between pure AdS and sourced solutions with time periodic vev. By suitably choosing the quasistatic path one can obtain boson stars dual to Floquet condensates at zero driving field. We characterize the adiabaticity of the quenching processes. Besides, we speculate on the possible connections of this framework with time crystals.

Effects of Added Organic Matter and Water on Soil Carbon Sequestration in an Arid Region

PubMed Central

Tian, Yuan; Jiang, Lianhe; Zhao, Xuechun; Zhu, Linhai; Chen, Xi; Gao, Yong; Wang, Shaoming; Zheng, Yuanrun; Rimmington, Glyn M.

2013-01-01

It is generally predicted that global warming will stimulate primary production and lead to more carbon (C) inputs to soil. However, many studies have found that soil C does not necessarily increase with increased plant litter input. Precipitation has increased in arid central Asia, and is predicted to increase more, so we tested the effects of adding fresh organic matter (FOM) and water on soil C sequestration in an arid region in northwest China. The results suggested that added FOM quickly decomposed and had minor effects on the soil organic carbon (SOC) pool to a depth of 30 cm. Both FOM and water addition had significant effects on the soil microbial biomass. The soil microbial biomass increased with added FOM, reached a maximum, and then declined as the FOM decomposed. The FOM had a more significant stimulating effect on microbial biomass with water addition. Under the soil moisture ranges used in this experiment (21.0%–29.7%), FOM input was more important than water addition in the soil C mineralization process. We concluded that short-term FOM input into the belowground soil and water addition do not affect the SOC pool in shrubland in an arid region. PMID:23875022

Miniature Piezoelectric Macro-Mass Balance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sherrit, Stewart; Trebi-Ollennu, Ashitey; Bonitz, Robert G.; Bar-Cohen, Yoseph

2010-01-01

Mass balances usually use a strain gauge that requires an impedance measurement and is susceptible to noise and thermal drift. A piezoelectric balance can be used to measure mass directly by monitoring the voltage developed across the piezoelectric balance, which is linear with weight or it can be used in resonance to produce a frequency change proportional to the mass change (see figure). The piezoelectric actuator/balance is swept in frequency through its fundamental resonance. If a small mass is added to the balance, the resonance frequency shifts down in proportion to the mass. By monitoring the frequency shift, the mass can be determined. This design allows for two independent measurements of mass. Additionally, more than one sample can be verified because this invention allows for each sample to be transported away from the measuring device upon completion of the measurement, if required. A piezoelectric actuator, or many piezoelectric actuators, was placed between the collection plate of the sampling system and the support structure. As the sample mass is added to the plate, the piezoelectrics are stressed, causing them to produce a voltage that is proportional to the mass and acceleration. In addition, a change in mass delta m produces a change in the resonance frequency with delta f proportional to delta m. In a microgravity environment, the spacecraft could be accelerated to produce a force on the piezoelectric actuator that would produce a voltage proportional to the mass and acceleration. Alternatively, the acceleration could be used to force the mass on the plate, and the inertial effects of the mass on the plate would produce a shift in the resonance frequency with the change in frequency related to the mass change. Three prototypes of the mass balance mechanism were developed. These macro-mass balances each consist of a solid base and an APA 60 Cedrat flextensional piezoelectric actuator supporting a measuring plate. A similar structure with 3 APA

A bias in the "mass-normalized" DTT response - An effect of non-linear concentration-response curves for copper and manganese

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Charrier, Jessica G.; McFall, Alexander S.; Vu, Kennedy K.-T.; Baroi, James; Olea, Catalina; Hasson, Alam; Anastasio, Cort

2016-11-01

The dithiothreitol (DTT) assay is widely used to measure the oxidative potential of particulate matter. Results are typically presented in mass-normalized units (e.g., pmols DTT lost per minute per microgram PM) to allow for comparison among samples. Use of this unit assumes that the mass-normalized DTT response is constant and independent of the mass concentration of PM added to the DTT assay. However, based on previous work that identified non-linear DTT responses for copper and manganese, this basic assumption (that the mass-normalized DTT response is independent of the concentration of PM added to the assay) should not be true for samples where Cu and Mn contribute significantly to the DTT signal. To test this we measured the DTT response at multiple PM concentrations for eight ambient particulate samples collected at two locations in California. The results confirm that for samples with significant contributions from Cu and Mn, the mass-normalized DTT response can strongly depend on the concentration of PM added to the assay, varying by up to an order of magnitude for PM concentrations between 2 and 34 μg mL-1. This mass dependence confounds useful interpretation of DTT assay data in samples with significant contributions from Cu and Mn, requiring additional quality control steps to check for this bias. To minimize this problem, we discuss two methods to correct the mass-normalized DTT result and we apply those methods to our samples. We find that it is possible to correct the mass-normalized DTT result, although the correction methods have some drawbacks and add uncertainty to DTT analyses. More broadly, other DTT-active species might also have non-linear concentration-responses in the assay and cause a bias. In addition, the same problem of Cu- and Mn-mediated bias in mass-normalized DTT results might affect other measures of acellular redox activity in PM and needs to be addressed.

Effects of BMI, Fat Mass, and Lean Mass on Asthma in Childhood: A Mendelian Randomization Study

PubMed Central

Granell, Raquel; Henderson, A. John; Evans, David M.; Smith, George Davey; Ness, Andrew R.; Lewis, Sarah; Palmer, Tom M.; Sterne, Jonathan A. C.

2014-01-01

Background Observational studies have reported associations between body mass index (BMI) and asthma, but confounding and reverse causality remain plausible explanations. We aim to investigate evidence for a causal effect of BMI on asthma using a Mendelian randomization approach. Methods and Findings We used Mendelian randomization to investigate causal effects of BMI, fat mass, and lean mass on current asthma at age 7½ y in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). A weighted allele score based on 32 independent BMI-related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was derived from external data, and associations with BMI, fat mass, lean mass, and asthma were estimated. We derived instrumental variable (IV) estimates of causal risk ratios (RRs). 4,835 children had available data on BMI-associated SNPs, asthma, and BMI. The weighted allele score was strongly associated with BMI, fat mass, and lean mass (all p-values<0.001) and with childhood asthma (RR 2.56, 95% CI 1.38–4.76 per unit score, p = 0.003). The estimated causal RR for the effect of BMI on asthma was 1.55 (95% CI 1.16–2.07) per kg/m2, p = 0.003. This effect appeared stronger for non-atopic (1.90, 95% CI 1.19–3.03) than for atopic asthma (1.37, 95% CI 0.89–2.11) though there was little evidence of heterogeneity (p = 0.31). The estimated causal RRs for the effects of fat mass and lean mass on asthma were 1.41 (95% CI 1.11–1.79) per 0.5 kg and 2.25 (95% CI 1.23–4.11) per kg, respectively. The possibility of genetic pleiotropy could not be discounted completely; however, additional IV analyses using FTO variant rs1558902 and the other BMI-related SNPs separately provided similar causal effects with wider confidence intervals. Loss of follow-up was unlikely to bias the estimated effects. Conclusions Higher BMI increases the risk of asthma in mid-childhood. Higher BMI may have contributed to the increase in asthma risk toward the end of the 20th century. Please see

Hairy black hole stability in AdS, quantum mechanics on the half-line and holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anabalón, Andrés; Astefanesei, Dumitru; Oliva, Julio

2015-10-01

We consider the linear stability of 4-dimensional hairy black holes with mixed boundary conditions in Anti-de Sitter spacetime. We focus on the mass of scalar fields around the maximally supersymmetric vacuum of the gauged N=8 supergravity in four dimensions, m 2 = -2 l -2. It is shown that the Schrödinger operator on the half-line, governing the S 2, H 2 or {{R}}^2 invariant mode around the hairy black hole, allows for non-trivial self-adjoint extensions and each of them corresponds to a class of mixed boundary conditions in the gravitational theory. Discarding the self-adjoint extensions with a negative mode impose a restriction on these boundary conditions. The restriction is given in terms of an integral of the potential in the Schrödinger operator resembling the estimate of Simon for Schrödinger operators on the real line. In the context of AdS/CFT duality, our result has a natural interpretation in terms of the field theory dual effective potential.

Loops in AdS from conformal field theory

DOE PAGES

Aharony, Ofer; Alday, Luis F.; Bissi, Agnese; ...

2017-07-10

We propose and demonstrate a new use for conformal field theory (CFT) crossing equations in the context of AdS/CFT: the computation of loop amplitudes in AdS, dual to non-planar correlators in holographic CFTs. Loops in AdS are largely unexplored, mostly due to technical difficulties in direct calculations. We revisit this problem, and the dual 1=N expansion of CFTs, in two independent ways. The first is to show how to explicitly solve the crossing equations to the first subleading order in 1=N 2, given a leading order solution. This is done as a systematic expansion in inverse powers of the spin, to all orders. These expansions can be resummed, leading to the CFT data for nite values of the spin. Our second approach involves Mellin space. We show how the polar part of the four-point, loop-level Mellin amplitudes can be fully reconstructed from the leading-order data. The anomalous dimensions computed with both methods agree. In the case ofmore » $$\\phi$$ 4 theory in AdS, our crossing solution reproduces a previous computation of the one-loop bubble diagram. We can go further, deriving the four-point scalar triangle diagram in AdS, which had never been computed. In the process, we show how to analytically derive anomalous dimensions from Mellin amplitudes with an in nite series of poles, and discuss applications to more complicated cases such as the N = 4 super-Yang-Mills theory.« less

Loops in AdS from conformal field theory

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aharony, Ofer; Alday, Luis F.; Bissi, Agnese

We propose and demonstrate a new use for conformal field theory (CFT) crossing equations in the context of AdS/CFT: the computation of loop amplitudes in AdS, dual to non-planar correlators in holographic CFTs. Loops in AdS are largely unexplored, mostly due to technical difficulties in direct calculations. We revisit this problem, and the dual 1=N expansion of CFTs, in two independent ways. The first is to show how to explicitly solve the crossing equations to the first subleading order in 1=N 2, given a leading order solution. This is done as a systematic expansion in inverse powers of the spin, to all orders. These expansions can be resummed, leading to the CFT data for nite values of the spin. Our second approach involves Mellin space. We show how the polar part of the four-point, loop-level Mellin amplitudes can be fully reconstructed from the leading-order data. The anomalous dimensions computed with both methods agree. In the case ofmore » $$\\phi$$ 4 theory in AdS, our crossing solution reproduces a previous computation of the one-loop bubble diagram. We can go further, deriving the four-point scalar triangle diagram in AdS, which had never been computed. In the process, we show how to analytically derive anomalous dimensions from Mellin amplitudes with an in nite series of poles, and discuss applications to more complicated cases such as the N = 4 super-Yang-Mills theory.« less

Loops in AdS from conformal field theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aharony, Ofer; Alday, Luis F.; Bissi, Agnese; Perlmutter, Eric

2017-07-01

We propose and demonstrate a new use for conformal field theory (CFT) crossing equations in the context of AdS/CFT: the computation of loop amplitudes in AdS, dual to non-planar correlators in holographic CFTs. Loops in AdS are largely unexplored, mostly due to technical difficulties in direct calculations. We revisit this problem, and the dual 1 /N expansion of CFTs, in two independent ways. The first is to show how to explicitly solve the crossing equations to the first subleading order in 1 /N 2, given a leading order solution. This is done as a systematic expansion in inverse powers of the spin, to all orders. These expansions can be resummed, leading to the CFT data for finite values of the spin. Our second approach involves Mellin space. We show how the polar part of the four-point, loop-level Mellin amplitudes can be fully reconstructed from the leading-order data. The anomalous dimensions computed with both methods agree. In the case of ϕ 4 theory in AdS, our crossing solution reproduces a previous computation of the one-loop bubble diagram. We can go further, deriving the four-point scalar triangle diagram in AdS, which had never been computed. In the process, we show how to analytically derive anomalous dimensions from Mellin amplitudes with an infinite series of poles, and discuss applications to more complicated cases such as the N = 4 super-Yang-Mills theory.

Alterations in energy balance from an exercise intervention with ad libitum food intake.

PubMed

Melzer, Katarina; Renaud, Anne; Zurbuchen, Stefanie; Tschopp, Céline; Lehmann, Jan; Malatesta, Davide; Ruch, Nicole; Schutz, Yves; Kayser, Bengt; Mäder, Urs

2016-01-01

Better understanding is needed regarding the effects of exercise alone, without any imposed dietary regimens, as a single tool for body-weight regulation. Thus, we evaluated the effects of an 8-week increase in activity energy expenditure (AEE) on ad libitum energy intake (EI), body mass and composition in healthy participants with baseline physical activity levels (PAL) in line with international recommendations. Forty-six male adults (BMI = 19·7-29·3 kg/m(2)) participated in an intervention group, and ten (BMI = 21·0-28·4 kg/m(2)) in a control group. Anthropometric measures, cardiorespiratory fitness, EI, AEE and exercise intensity were recorded at baseline and during the 1st, 5th and 8th intervention weeks, and movement was recorded throughout. Body composition was measured at the beginning and at the end of the study, and resting energy expenditure was measured after the study. The intervention group increased PAL from 1·74 (se 0·03) to 1·93 (se 0·03) (P < 0·0001) and cardiorespiratory fitness from 41·4 (se 0·9) to 45·7 (se 1·1) ml O2/kg per min (P = 0·001) while decreasing body mass (-1·36 (se 0·2) kg; P = 0·001) through adipose tissue mass loss (ATM) (-1·61 (se 0·2) kg; P = 0·0001) compared with baseline. The control group did not show any significant changes in activity, body mass or ATM. EI was unchanged in both groups. The results indicate that in normal-weight and overweight men, increasing PAL from 1·7 to 1·9 while keeping EI ad libitum over an 8-week period produces a prolonged negative energy balance. Replication using a longer period (and/or more intense increase in PAL) is needed to investigate if and at what body composition the increase in AEE is met by an equivalent increase in EI.

Public Health Effects of Restricting Retail Tobacco Product Displays and Ads

PubMed Central

Levy, David T.; Lindblom, Eric N.; Fleischer, Nancy L.; Thrasher, James; Mohlman, Mary Kate; Zhang, Yian; Monshouwer, Karin; Nagelhout, Gera E.

2015-01-01

Objectives To estimate the public health impact from restricting US retail point-of-sale (POS) tobacco product displays and advertising. Methods Based on existing research, this paper estimates the effects on initiation and cessation rates from restricting POS tobacco product displays and ads in the US and uses the SimSmoke simulation model to project related smoking declines and health benefits. Results New comprehensive POS restrictions are projected to reduce smoking prevalence by approximately 16% [range=3%–31%] relative to the status quo by 2065, preventing about 630,000 smoking-attributable deaths [range=108,000–1,225,000], 215,000 low birth weight births [range=33,000–421,000], 140,000 preterm births [range=22,000–271,000], and 1900 infant deaths from SIDSs [range=300–3800]. Conclusions Federal, state, or local action to restrict POS tobacco product displays and ads would contribute to a substantial reduction in smoking-attributed death and disease. PMID:26191538

Closed strings and moduli in AdS3/CFT2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sax, Olof Ohlsson; Stefański, Bogdan

2018-05-01

String theory on AdS3 × S3 × T4 has 20 moduli. We investigate how the perturbative closed string spectrum changes as we move around this moduli space in both the RR and NSNS flux backgrounds. We find that, at weak string coupling, only four of the moduli affect the energies. In the RR background the only effect of these moduli is to change the radius of curvature of the background. On the other hand, in the NSNS background, the moduli introduce worldsheet interactions which enable the use of integrability methods to solve the spectral problem. Our results show that the worldsheet theory is integrable across the 20 dimensional moduli space.

Fermion masses and mixing in general warped extra dimensional models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frank, Mariana; Hamzaoui, Cherif; Pourtolami, Nima; Toharia, Manuel

2015-06-01

We analyze fermion masses and mixing in a general warped extra dimensional model, where all the Standard Model (SM) fields, including the Higgs, are allowed to propagate in the bulk. In this context, a slightly broken flavor symmetry imposed universally on all fermion fields, without distinction, can generate the full flavor structure of the SM, including quarks, charged leptons and neutrinos. For quarks and charged leptons, the exponential sensitivity of their wave functions to small flavor breaking effects yield hierarchical masses and mixing as it is usual in warped models with fermions in the bulk. In the neutrino sector, the exponential wave-function factors can be flavor blind and thus insensitive to the small flavor symmetry breaking effects, directly linking their masses and mixing angles to the flavor symmetric structure of the five-dimensional neutrino Yukawa couplings. The Higgs must be localized in the bulk and the model is more successful in generalized warped scenarios where the metric background solution is different than five-dimensional anti-de Sitter (AdS5 ). We study these features in two simple frameworks, flavor complimentarity and flavor democracy, which provide specific predictions and correlations between quarks and leptons, testable as more precise data in the neutrino sector becomes available.

Robustness of Value-Added Analysis of School Effectiveness. Research Report. ETS RR-08-22

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Braun, Henry; Qu, Yanxuan

2008-01-01

This paper reports on a study conducted to investigate the consistency of the results between 2 approaches to estimating school effectiveness through value-added modeling. Estimates of school effects from the layered model employing item response theory (IRT) scaled data are compared to estimates derived from a discrete growth model based on the…

Worldsheet scattering in AdS3/CFT2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sundin, Per; Wulff, Linus

2013-07-01

We confront the recently proposed exact S-matrices for AdS 3/ CFT 2 with direct worldsheet calculations. Utilizing the BMN and Near Flat Space (NFS) expansions for strings on AdS 3 × S 3 × S 3 × S 1 and AdS 3 × S 3 × T 4 we compute both tree-level and one-loop scattering amplitudes. Up to some minor issues we find nice agreement in the tree-level sector. At the one-loop level however we find that certain non-zero tree-level processes, which are not visible in the exact solution, contribute, via the optical theorem, and give an apparent mismatch for certain amplitudes. Furthermore we find that a proposed one-loop modification of the dressing phase correctly reproduces the worldsheet calculation while the standard Hernandez-Lopez phase does not. We also compute several massless to massless processes.

Manipulated Changes in Limb Mass and Rotational Inertia in Trotting Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) and Their Effect on Limb Kinematics.

PubMed

Kilbourne, Brandon M; Carrier, David R

2016-12-01

While the mass distribution of limbs is known to influence the metabolic energy consumed during locomotion, it remains unknown how the mass distribution of limbs may influence overall limb kinematics and whether the influence of limb mass distribution on limb kinematics differs between fore- and hindlimbs. To examine limb mass distribution's influence upon fore- and hindlimb kinematics, temporal stride parameters and swing phase joint kinematics were recorded from four dogs trotting on a treadmill with 0.5% and 1.0% body mass added to each limb, forelimbs alone, and hindlimbs alone, as well as with no added mass. Under all loading conditions, stride period did not differ between fore- and hindlimbs; however, forelimbs exhibited greater duty factors and stance durations, whereas hindlimbs exhibited greater swing durations, which may be related to the hindlimb's greater mass. Changes in forelimb joint and hip range of motion (RoM), flexion, and extension were subject to a high amount of kinematic plasticity among dogs. In contrast, for the knee and ankle, distally loading all four limbs or hindlimbs alone substantially increased joint RoM and flexion. Increased flexion of the knee and ankle has the potential to reduce the hindlimb's rotational inertia during swing phase. The differing response of fore- and hindlimbs with regard to joint kinematics is likely due to differences in their mass and mass distribution and differences in the physiological traits of fore- and hindlimb protractors and joint flexors. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

School system evaluation by value added analysis under endogeneity.

PubMed

Manzi, Jorge; San Martín, Ernesto; Van Bellegem, Sébastien

2014-01-01

Value added is a common tool in educational research on effectiveness. It is often modeled as a (prediction of a) random effect in a specific hierarchical linear model. This paper shows that this modeling strategy is not valid when endogeneity is present. Endogeneity stems, for instance, from a correlation between the random effect in the hierarchical model and some of its covariates. This paper shows that this phenomenon is far from exceptional and can even be a generic problem when the covariates contain the prior score attainments, a typical situation in value added modeling. Starting from a general, model-free definition of value added, the paper derives an explicit expression of the value added in an endogeneous hierarchical linear Gaussian model. Inference on value added is proposed using an instrumental variable approach. The impact of endogeneity on the value added and the estimated value added is calculated accurately. This is also illustrated on a large data set of individual scores of about 200,000 students in Chile.

Relationship of body mass index with efficacy of exenatide twice daily added to insulin glargine in patients with type 2 diabetes.

PubMed

Wolffenbuttel, B H R; Van Gaal, L; Durán-Garcia, S; Han, J

2016-08-01

This post hoc analysis assessed the evidence behind common reimbursement practices by evaluating the relationship of body mass index (BMI) ranges (<30, 30-35 and >35 kg/m(2) ) with treatment effects of exenatide twice daily among patients with type 2 diabetes. Patients received exenatide twice daily added to insulin glargine in two 30-week studies (exenatide twice daily vs insulin lispro, n = 627; exenatide twice daily vs placebo, n = 259). No association of baseline BMI with changes in efficacy variables was observed. Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) reductions were significant (p < 0.0001) and similar across BMI range groups in the lispro-comparator study and greater for exenatide versus placebo in the placebo-controlled study. Significant weight loss occurred with exenatide across BMI range groups (p < 0.0001), while weight increased with both comparators. Achievement of HbA1c <7.0% (<53 mmol/mol) without weight gain was greater for exenatide versus comparators. Systolic blood pressure decreased across BMI range groups with exenatide in the lispro-comparator study (p < 0.0001); changes in lipids were not clinically meaningful. Minor hypoglycaemia was less frequent for exenatide versus insulin lispro. These findings suggest that BMI alone should not limit clinical decision-making or patient access to medication. © 2016 The Authors. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of the Mass Media of Communication.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiss, Walter

The mass media are considered to be television, radio, movies, and newspapers. They may generate changes in cognition and comprehension. They do effect emotional arousal, sex and behavior identification, and changes in allocation of time, consumer purchase, and voting behavior. The only data which show a clear relationship between the mass media…

Potential effects of fat mass and fat-free mass on energy intake in different states of energy balance.

PubMed

Stubbs, R James; Hopkins, M; Finlayson, G S; Duarte, C; Gibbons, C; Blundell, J E

2018-05-01

Recently models have attempted to integrate the functional relationships of fat mass (FM) and fat-free mass (FFM) with the control of human energy intake (EI). Cross-sectional evidence suggests that at or close to EB, FFM is positively related to hunger and EI, whereas FM either shows a weak negative or no association with ad libitum EI. Further analysis suggests that the effects of FFM and FM on EI may be mediated by resting metabolic rate (RMR). These studies suggest that energy turnover is associated with EI and the largest determinant of energy requirements in most humans is FFM. During chronic positive EBs both FM and FFM expand (but disproportionately so), increasing energy demands. There is little evidence that an expanding FM exerts strong negative feedback on longer term EI. However, during chronic negative EBs FM, FFM and RMR all decrease but appetite increases. Some studies suggest that proportionate loss of FFM during weight loss predicts subsequent weight regain. Taken together these lines of evidence suggest that changes in the size and functional integrity of FFM may influence appetite and EI. Increases in FFM associated with either weight gain or high levels of exercise may 'pull' EI upwards but energy deficits that decrease FFM may exert a distinct drive on appetite. The current paper discusses how FM and FFM relationships influence appetite regulation, and how size, structure and functional integrity of FFM may drive EI in humans (i) at EB (ii) during positive EB and (iii) during negative EB.

MassTRIX: mass translator into pathways.

PubMed

Suhre, Karsten; Schmitt-Kopplin, Philippe

2008-07-01

Recent technical advances in mass spectrometry (MS) have brought the field of metabolomics to a point where large numbers of metabolites from numerous prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms can now be easily and precisely detected. The challenge today lies in the correct annotation of these metabolites on the basis of their accurate measured masses. Assignment of bulk chemical formula is generally possible, but without consideration of the biological and genomic context, concrete metabolite annotations remain difficult and uncertain. MassTRIX responds to this challenge by providing a hypothesis-driven approach to high precision MS data annotation. It presents the identified chemical compounds in their genomic context as differentially colored objects on KEGG pathway maps. Information on gene transcription or differences in the gene complement (e.g. samples from different bacterial strains) can be easily added. The user can thus interpret the metabolic state of the organism in the context of its potential and, in the case of submitted transcriptomics data, real enzymatic capacities. The MassTRIX web server is freely accessible at http://masstrix.org.

The Implications of Summer Learning Loss for Value-Added Estimates of Teacher Effectiveness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gershenson, Seth; Hayes, Michael S.

2018-01-01

School districts across the United States increasingly use value-added models (VAMs) to evaluate teachers. In practice, VAMs typically rely on lagged test scores from the previous academic year, which necessarily conflate summer with school-year learning and potentially bias estimates of teacher effectiveness. We investigate the practical…

Holography in Lovelock Chern-Simons AdS gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cvetković, Branislav; Miskovic, Olivera; Simić, Dejan

2017-08-01

We analyze holographic field theory dual to Lovelock Chern-Simons anti-de Sitter (AdS) gravity in higher dimensions using first order formalism. We first find asymptotic symmetries in the AdS sector showing that they consist of local translations, local Lorentz rotations, dilatations and non-Abelian gauge transformations. Then, we compute 1-point functions of energy-momentum and spin currents in a dual conformal field theory and write Ward identities. We find that the holographic theory possesses Weyl anomaly and also breaks non-Abelian gauge symmetry at the quantum level.

Adapted head- and eye-movement responses to added-head inertia

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gauthier, G. M.; Martin, B. J.; Stark, L. W.

1986-01-01

Adaptation to inertia added to the head was studied in men by mounting masses on a rigidly attached helmet until two- to ten-fold increases of inertia were produced, while an overhead suspension compensated for the weights. The observed changes in the eye and head movement coordination included increased head movement latencies, as well as changes in the eye movement amplitude, and later stabilizing alternate contractions of the neck muscles. Oscillopsia, or continual displacement or instability of the visual world, which is a symptom of a breakdown of space constancy, was prominent and consistent in the perceptual reports of the subjects. Although adaptation resulting from adding inertia to the head occurred much faster than that induced by adding prisms or lenses, it has similar perceptual and motor components that may be objectively studied in detail.

Gauge boson exchange in AdS d+1

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

D'Hoker, Eric; Freedman, Daniel Z.

1999-04-01

We study the amplitude for exchange of massless gauge bosons between pairs of massive scalar fields in anti-de Sitter space. In the AdS/CFT correspondence this amplitude describes the contribution of conserved flavor symmetry currents to 4-point functions of scalar operators in the boundary conformal theory. A concise, covariant, Y2K compatible derivation of the gauge boson propagator in AdS d + 1 is given. Techniques are developed to calculate the two bulk integrals over AdS space leading to explicit expressions or convenient, simple integral representations for the amplitude. The amplitude contains leading power and sub-leading logarithmic singularities in the gauge boson channel and leading logarithms in the crossed channel. The new methods of this paper are expected to have other applications in the study of the Maldacena conjecture.

Sebestenoids A-D, BACE1 inhibitors from Cordia sebestena.

PubMed

Dai, Jingqiu; Sorribas, Analia; Yoshida, Wesley Y; Williams, Philip G

2010-12-01

Bioassay-guided fractionation of an extract prepared from the fruits of Cordia sebestena led to the isolation of sebestenoids A-D (1-4). Their structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive NMR experiments and mass spectroscopic measurements. Compounds 1-4 exhibited moderate inhibition of the aspartic protease BACE1. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sebestenoids A-D, BACE1 inhibitors from Cordia sebestena

PubMed Central

Dai, Jingqiu; Sorribas, Analia; Yoshida, Wesley Y.; Williams, Philip G.

2010-01-01

Bioassay-guided fractionation of an extract prepared from the fruits of Cordia sebestena has led to the isolation of sebestenoids A-D (1-4). The structures of these new phenylpropanoid esters were elucidated on the basis of extensive NMR experiments and mass spectroscopic measurements. Compounds 1-4 exhibited moderate inhibition of the aspartic protease BACE1. PMID:20952040

27 CFR 19.456 - Adding denaturants.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... methods of mixing denaturants and spirits if he deems such denaturation will not hinder effective... Denaturation § 19.456 Adding denaturants. Denaturants and spirits shall be mixed in packages, tanks, or bulk... proprietor shall submit a flow diagram of the intended process or method of adding denaturants. (Sec. 201...

The Effect of Working Condition on Math Teacher Effectiveness: Value-Added Scores and Student Satisfaction in Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ye, Yincheng; Singh, Kusum

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to better understand how math teachers' effectiveness as measured by value-added scores and student satisfaction with teaching is influenced by school's working conditions. The data for the study were derived from 2009 to 2010 Teacher Working Condition Survey and Student Perception Survey in Measures of Effective…

Next-Generation A/D Sampler ADS3000+ for VLBI2010

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Takefuji, Kazuhiro; Takeuchi, Hiroshi; Tsutsumi, Masanori; Koyama, Yasuhiro

2010-01-01

A high-speed A/D sampler, called ADS3000+, has been developed in 2008, which can sample one analog signal up to 4 Gbps to versatile Linux PC. After A/D conversion, the ADS3000+ can perform digital signal processing such as real-time DBBC (Digital Base Band Conversion) and FIR filtering such as simple CW RFI filtering using the installed FPGAs. A 4 Gsps fringe test with the ADS3000+ has been successfully performed. The ADS3000+ will not exclusively be used for VLBI but will also be employed in other applications.

Ischemic mass effect from biliary surgical clips.

PubMed

Mateo, Rod; Tsai, Steven; Stapfer, Maria V; Sher, Linda S; Selby, Rick; Genyk, Yuri S

2008-02-01

Migrating surgical clips in the hepatic hilum are known causes of biliary stricture or obstruction, most often due to direct intraluminal obstruction or secondary stone formation. Two cases are reported on patients with previous cholecystectomies presenting with delayed symptoms of biliary tract stricture. Both patients were successfully treated with a resection of the strictured area and a Roux-en-Y hepatico-jejunostomy. Resected specimens grossly demonstrated surgical clips adjacent to the stricture, but not directly within the lumen, suggestive of an ischemic mass effect, which was supported by histology. In addition to the direct intraluminal obstruction and lithogenic effects of migratory surgical clips, "clipomas" due to an ischemic mass effect can also lead to biliary tract strictures.

Modelling baryonic effects on galaxy cluster mass profiles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shirasaki, Masato; Lau, Erwin T.; Nagai, Daisuke

2018-06-01

Gravitational lensing is a powerful probe of the mass distribution of galaxy clusters and cosmology. However, accurate measurements of the cluster mass profiles are limited by uncertainties in cluster astrophysics. In this work, we present a physically motivated model of baryonic effects on the cluster mass profiles, which self-consistently takes into account the impact of baryons on the concentration as well as mass accretion histories of galaxy clusters. We calibrate this model using the Omega500 hydrodynamical cosmological simulations of galaxy clusters with varying baryonic physics. Our model will enable us to simultaneously constrain cluster mass, concentration, and cosmological parameters using stacked weak lensing measurements from upcoming optical cluster surveys.

A small effect of adding antiviral agents in treating patients with severe Bell palsy.

PubMed

van der Veen, Erwin L; Rovers, Maroeska M; de Ru, J Alexander; van der Heijden, Geert J

2012-03-01

In this evidence-based case report, the authors studied the following clinical question: What is the effect of adding antiviral agents to corticosteroids in the treatment of patients with severe or complete Bell palsy? The search yielded 250 original research articles. The 6 randomized trials of these that could be used all reported low-quality data for answering the clinical question; apart from apparent flaws, they did not primarily include patients with severe or complete Bell palsy. Complete functional facial nerve recovery was seen in 75% of the patients receiving prednisolone only and in 83% with additional antiviral treatment. The pooled risk difference of 7% (95% confidence interval, -1% to 15%) results in a number needed to treat of 14 (ie, slightly favors adding an antiviral agent). The authors conclude that although a strong recommendation for adding antiviral agents to corticosteroids to further improve the recovery of patients with severe Bell palsy is precluded by the lack of robust evidence, it should be discussed with the patient.

Chromospherically active stars. 12: ADS 11060 C: A double lined K dwarf binary in a quintuple system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fekel, Francis C.; Henry, Gregory W.; Hampton, Melissa L.; Fried, Robert; Morton, Mary D.

1994-01-01

ADS 11060 C is a double lined spectroscopic binary with a period of 25.7631 days and an eccentricity of 0.565. Spectral types of the two stars are estimated as K7 V and MO V with a magnitude difference of about 0.55 mag in V. The stars appear to be somewhat metal rich with respect to the Sun. Despite the relatively large masses of 0.53 and 0.51 solar mass, our photometric observations find no evidence for eclipses and we estimate an inclination of 77 deg plus or minus 11 deg. ADS 11060 C is, however, photometrically variable with a period of 9 plus or minus 1 day and an amplitude of 0.05 mag in V. Thus, it is a newly identified BY Draconis variable. The center-of-mass velocity of ADS 11060 C and an estimated parallax of 0.030 sec support its physical association with ADS 11060 AB, making this a quintuple system. The projected separation of the AB-C system is nearly 1200 AU. Although the log lithium abundances of the two components of ADS 11060 C are only upper limits, less than or equal to -0.14, lithium abundances of the AB-C components appear to be consistent with those of similar stars in the alpha Persei and Pleiades clusters, suggesting an age of about 70 Myr for ADS 11060 AB-C. The system is a possible member of the Pleiades moving group. Listed as an optical counterpart to a source in the ROSAT Wide Field Camera extreme-ultraviolet bright source catalog, both ADS 11060 AB and C may contribute to the observed flux.

Natural Higgs mass in supersymmetry from nondecoupling effects.

PubMed

Lu, Xiaochuan; Murayama, Hitoshi; Ruderman, Joshua T; Tobioka, Kohsaku

2014-05-16

The Higgs mass implies fine-tuning for minimal theories of weak-scale supersymmetry (SUSY). Nondecoupling effects can boost the Higgs mass when new states interact with the Higgs boson, but new sources of SUSY breaking that accompany such extensions threaten naturalness. We show that two singlets with a Dirac mass can increase the Higgs mass while maintaining naturalness in the presence of large SUSY breaking in the singlet sector. We explore the modified Higgs phenomenology of this scenario, which we call the "Dirac next-to-minimal supersymmetric standard model."

Inter-Method Reliability of School Effectiveness Measures: A Comparison of Value-Added and Regression Discontinuity Estimates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perry, Thomas

2017-01-01

Value-added (VA) measures are currently the predominant approach used to compare the effectiveness of schools. Recent educational effectiveness research, however, has developed alternative approaches including the regression discontinuity (RD) design, which also allows estimation of absolute school effects. Initial research suggests RD is a viable…

AdS/QCD and Applications of Light-Front Holography

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Brodsky, Stanley J.; /SLAC /Southern Denmark U., CP3-Origins; Cao, Fu-Guang

2012-02-16

Light-Front Holography leads to a rigorous connection between hadronic amplitudes in a higher dimensional anti-de Sitter (AdS) space and frame-independent light-front wavefunctions of hadrons in 3 + 1 physical space-time, thus providing a compelling physical interpretation of the AdS/CFT correspondence principle and AdS/QCD, a useful framework which describes the correspondence between theories in a modified AdS5 background and confining field theories in physical space-time. To a first semiclassical approximation, where quantum loops and quark masses are not included, this approach leads to a single-variable light-front Schroedinger equation which determines the eigenspectrum and the light-front wavefunctions of hadrons for general spinmore » and orbital angular momentum. The coordinate z in AdS space is uniquely identified with a Lorentz-invariant coordinate {zeta} which measures the separation of the constituents within a hadron at equal light-front time. The internal structure of hadrons is explicitly introduced and the angular momentum of the constituents plays a key role. We give an overview of the light-front holographic approach to strongly coupled QCD. In particular, we study the photon-to-meson transition form factors (TFFs) F{sub M{gamma}}(Q{sup 2}) for {gamma}{gamma}* {yields} M using light-front holographic methods. The results for the TFFs for the {eta} and {eta}' mesons are also presented. Some novel features of QCD are discussed, including the consequences of confinement for quark and gluon condensates. A method for computing the hadronization of quark and gluon jets at the amplitude level is outlined.« less

Reduced prefrontal and temporal processing and recall of high "sensation value" ads.

PubMed

Langleben, Daniel D; Loughead, James W; Ruparel, Kosha; Hakun, Jonathan G; Busch-Winokur, Samantha; Holloway, Matthew B; Strasser, Andrew A; Cappella, Joseph N; Lerman, Caryn

2009-05-15

Public service announcements (PSAs) are non-commercial broadcast ads that are an important part of televised public health campaigns. "Message sensation value" (MSV), a measure of sensory intensity of audio, visual, and content features of an ad, is an important factor in PSA impact. Some communication theories propose that higher message sensation value brings increased attention and cognitive processing, leading to higher ad impact. Others argue that the attention-intensive format could compete with ad's message for cognitive resources and result in reduced processing of PSA content and reduced overall effectiveness. Brain imaging during PSA viewing provides a quantitative surrogate measure of PSA impact and addresses questions of PSA evaluation and design not accessible with traditional subjective and epidemiological methods. We used Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and recognition memory measures to compare high and low MSV anti-tobacco PSAs and neutral videos. In a short-delay, forced-choice memory test, frames extracted from PSAs were recognized more accurately than frames extracted from the NV. Frames from the low MSV PSAs were better recognized than frames from the high MSV PSAs. The accuracy of recognition of PSA frames was positively correlated with the prefrontal and temporal, and negatively correlated with the occipital cortex activation. The low MSV PSAs were associated with greater prefrontal and temporal activation, than the high MSV PSAs. The high MSV PSAs produced greater activation primarily in the occipital cortex. These findings support the "dual processing" and "limited capacity" theories of communication that postulate a competition between ad's content and format for the viewers' cognitive resources and suggest that the "attention-grabbing" high MSV format could impede the learning and retention of an ad. These findings demonstrate the potential of using neuroimaging in the design and

Is effective mass in combat sports punching above its weight?

PubMed

Lenetsky, Seth; Nates, Roy J; Brughelli, Matt; Harris, Nigel K

2015-04-01

The segmental and muscular complexity of the human body can result in challenges when examining the kinetics of impacts. To better understand this complexity, combat sports literature has selected effective mass as a measure of an athlete's inertial contribution to the momentum transfer during the impact of strikes. This measure helps to clarify the analysis of striking kinetics in combat sports. This paper will review: (1) effective mass as a concept and its usage as a measure of impact intensity in combat sports, (2) the neuromuscular pattern known as "double peak muscle activation" which has been theorized to help enhance initial hand velocity upon impact and joint stiffening during impact, (3) the methods and equations used to calculate effective mass, and (4) practitioner recommendations based on the literature. We will argue in this manuscript that the act of punching presents unique challenges to the current understanding of effective mass due to additional force application during impact. This review will improve the understanding of effective mass and its roles in effective striking serving to underpin future research into performance enhancement in striking based combat sports. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Is adding maternal vaccination to prevent whooping cough cost-effective in Australia?

PubMed

Van Bellinghen, Laure-Anne; Dimitroff, Alex; Haberl, Michael; Li, Xiao; Manton, Andrew; Moeremans, Karen; Demarteau, Nadia

2018-05-17

Pertussis or whooping cough, a highly infectious respiratory infection, causes significant morbidity and mortality in infants. In adolescents and adults, pertussis presents with atypical symptoms often resulting in under-diagnosis and under-reporting, increasing the risk of transmission to more vulnerable groups. Maternal vaccination against pertussis protects mothers and newborns. This evaluation assessed the cost-effectiveness of adding maternal dTpa (reduced antigen diphtheria, Tetanus, acellular pertussis) vaccination to the 2016 nationally-funded pertussis program (DTPa [Diphtheria, Tetanus, acellular Pertussis] at 2, 4, 6, 18 months, 4 years and dTpa at 12-13 years) in Australia. A static cross-sectional population model was developed using a one-year period at steady-state. The model considered the total Australian population, stratified by age. Vaccine effectiveness against pertussis infection was assumed to be 92% in mothers and 91% in newborns, based on observational and case-control studies. The model included conservative assumptions around unreported cases. With 70% coverage, adding maternal vaccination to the existing pertussis program would prevent 8,847 pertussis cases, 422 outpatient cases, 146 hospitalizations and 0.54 deaths per year at the population level. With a 5% discount rate, 138.5 quality-adjusted-life-years (QALYs) would be gained at an extra cost of AUS$ 4.44 million and an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of AUS$ 32,065 per QALY gained. Sensitivity and scenario analyses demonstrated that outcomes were most sensitive to assumptions around vaccine effectiveness, duration of protection in mothers, and disutility of unreported cases. In conclusion, dTpa vaccination in the third trimester of pregnancy is likely to be cost-effective from a healthcare payer perspective in Australia.

The Effect of Summer on Value-Added Assessments of Teacher and School Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palardy, Gregory J.; Peng, Luyao

2015-01-01

This study examines the effects of including the summer period on value-added assessments (VAA) of teacher and school performance at the early grades. The results indicate that 40-62% of the variance in VAA estimates originates from the summer period, depending on the outcome (i.e., reading or math achievement gains). Furthermore, when summer is…

The Cost-Effectiveness of Replacing the Bottom Quartile of Novice Teachers through Value-Added Teacher Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeh, Stuart S.; Ritter, Joseph

2009-01-01

A cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted of Gordon, Kane, and Staiger's (2006) proposal to raise student achievement by identifying and replacing the bottom quartile of novice teachers, using value-added assessment of teacher performance. The cost effectiveness of this proposal was compared to the cost effectiveness of voucher programs, charter…

Long-term Ameliorative Effects of the Antidepressant Fluoxetine Exposure on Cognitive Deficits in 3 × TgAD Mice.

PubMed

Jin, Li; Gao, Li-Feng; Sun, Dong-Sheng; Wu, Hao; Wang, Qun; Ke, Dan; Lei, Hao; Wang, Jian-Zhi; Liu, Gong-Ping

2017-08-01

Fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, is neuroprotective; therefore, it has been applied to treat some neurodegenerative disorders. For instance, chronic fluoxetine exposure has short-term effects on Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the long-term ameliorative effects of fluoxetine exposure on AD have not been reported. In the present study, 6-month-old 3 × TgAD mice were treated with fluoxetine for 15 days, and then the influence of fluoxetine was detected at 20 days after the drug withdrawal. We found that chronic fluoxetine treatment ameliorated cognitive deficits of 3 × TgAD mice and increased the volume of the hippocampal CA1 and dentate gyrus (DG) with increased neuron number and dendritic spine density. Meanwhile, fluoxetine exposure also stimulated the long-term potentiation (LTP) in hippocampal DG. The synaptic-related protein expression increased via activation of the cyclic AMP response element binding (CREB) protein/brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) signaling pathway induced by fluoxetine exposure. Lastly, we found that fluoxetine treatment decreased beta-amyloid (Aβ) levels. These results further certified that fluoxetine may be a potent effective drug for AD.

What caused terrestrial dust loading and climate downturns between A.D. 533 and 540?

USGS Publications Warehouse

Abbott, Dallas H.; Breger, Dee; Biscaye, Pierre E.; Barron, John A.; Juhl, Robert A.; McCafferty, Patrick

2014-01-01

Sn-rich particles, Ni-rich particles, and cosmic spherules are found together at four discrete stratigraphic levels within the 362-360 m depth interval of the Greenland Ice Sheet Project 2 (GISP2) ice core (72.6°N, 38.5°W, elevation: 3203 m). Using a previously derived calendar-year time scale, these particles span a time of increased dust loading of Earth's atmosphere between A.D. 533 and 540. The Sn-rich and Ni-rich particles contain an average of 10–11 wt% C. Their high C contents coupled with local enrichments in the volatile elements I, Zn, Cu, and Xe suggest a cometary source for the dust. The late spring timing of extraterrestrial input best matches the Eta Aquarid meteor shower associated with comet 1P/Halley. An increased flux of cometary dust might explain a modest climate downturn in A.D. 533. Both cometary dust and volcanic sulfate probably contributed to the profound global dimming during A.D. 536 and 537 but may be insufficient sources of fine aerosols. We found tropical marine microfossils and aerosol-sized CaCO3 particles at the end A.D. 535–start A.D. 536 level that we attribute to a low-latitude explosion in the ocean. This additional source of dust is probably needed to explain the solar dimming during A.D. 536 and 537. Although there has been no extinction documented at A.D. 536, our results are relevant because mass extinctions may also have multiple drivers. Detailed examinations of fine particles at and near extinction horizons can help to determine the relative contributions of cosmic and volcanic drivers to mass extinctions.

Diffusion and chaos from near AdS 2 horizons

DOE PAGES

Blake, Mike; Donos, Aristomenis

2017-02-03

We calculate the thermal diffusivity D =more » $$\\kappa/c_\\rho$$ and butterfy velocity $$\\upsilon_\\beta$$ in holographic models that flow to $$AdS_2$$ x $R^d$ fixed points in the infra-red. We show that both these quantities are governed by the same irrelevant deformation of $$AdS_2$$ and hence establish a simple relationship between them. When this deformation corresponds to a universal dilaton mode of dimension $$\\Delta$$ = 2 then this relationship is always given by D = $$\\upsilon_B^2$$/(2$$\\pi$$T).« less

AdS6 solutions of type II supergravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Apruzzi, Fabio; Fazzi, Marco; Passias, Achilleas; Rosa, Dario; Tomasiello, Alessandro

2014-11-01

Very few AdS6 × M 4 supersymmetric solutions are known: one in massive IIA, and two IIB solutions dual to it. The IIA solution is known to be unique; in this paper, we use the pure spinor approach to give a classification for IIB supergravity. We reduce the problem to two PDEs on a two-dimensional space Σ. M 4 is then a fibration of S 2 over Σ; the metric and fluxes are completely determined in terms of the solution to the PDEs. The results seem likely to accommodate near-horizon limits of ( p, q)-fivebrane webs studied in the literature as a source of CFT5's. We also show that there are no AdS6 solutions in eleven-dimensional supergravity.

Quasilocal energy for three-dimensional massive gravity solutions with chiral deformations of AdS{sub 3} boundary conditions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Garbarz, Alan, E-mail: alan-at@df.uba.ar; Giribet, Gaston, E-mail: gaston-at@df.uba.ar, E-mail: af.goya-at@df.uba.ar; Goya, Andrés, E-mail: gaston-at@df.uba.ar, E-mail: af.goya-at@df.uba.ar

2015-03-26

We consider critical gravity in three dimensions; that is, the New Massive Gravity theory formulated about Anti-de Sitter (AdS) space with the specific value of the graviton mass for which it results dual to a two-dimensional conformai field theory with vanishing central charge. As it happens with Kerr black holes in four-dimensional critical gravity, in three-dimensional critical gravity the Bañados-Teitelboim-Zanelli black holes have vanishing mass and vanishing angular momentum. However, provided suitable asymptotic conditions are chosen, the theory may also admit solutions carrying non-vanishing charges. Here, we give simple examples of exact solutions that exhibit falling-off conditions that are evenmore » weaker than those of the so-called Log-gravity. For such solutions, we define the quasilocal stress-tensor and use it to compute conserved charges. Despite the drastic deformation of AdS{sub 3} asymptotic, these solutions have finite mass and angular momentum, which are shown to be non-zero.« less

Effect of adding powder on joint properties of laser penetration welding for dual phase steel and aluminum alloy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, D. W.; Liu, J. S.; Lu, Y. Z.; Xu, S. H.

2017-09-01

The experiments of laser penetration welding for dual phase steel and aluminum alloy were carried out, and the effect of adding Mn or Si powder on mechanical properties and microstructure of the weld was investigated. Some defects, such as spatter, inclusion, cracks and softening in heat affected zone (HAZ), can be avoided in welding joints, and the increased penetration depth is obtained by adding Mn or Si powder. The average tensile-shear strength of Si-added joint is 3.84% higher than that of Mn-added joint, and the strength of both joints exceeds that of no-added joint. In the case of adding Mn powder, small amount of liquid Al is mixed into steel molten pool, and the Al content increases in both sides of the weld, which leads to the increased weld width in aluminum molten pool. Thus, transverse area increases in jointing steel to aluminum, which is significant for the improved tensile-shear strength of joints. As far as adding Si powder is concerned, it is not the case, the enhancement of the joint properties benefits from improvement of metallurgical reaction.

Geometry and supersymmetry of heterotic warped flux AdS backgrounds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beck, S.; Gutowski, J.; Papadopoulos, G.

2015-07-01

We classify the geometries of the most general warped, flux AdS backgrounds of heterotic supergravity up to two loop order in sigma model perturbation theory. We show under some mild assumptions that there are no AdS n backgrounds with n ≠ 3. Moreover the warp factor of AdS3 backgrounds is constant, the geometry is a product AdS 3 × M 7 and such solutions preserve, 2, 4, 6 and 8 supersymmetries. The geometry of M 7 has been specified in all cases. For 2 supersymmetries, it has been found that M 7 admits a suitably restricted G 2 structure. For 4 supersymmetries, M 7 has an SU(3) structure and can be described locally as a circle fibration over a 6-dimensional KT manifold. For 6 and 8 supersymmetries, M 7 has an SU(2) structure and can be described locally as a S 3 fibration over a 4-dimensional manifold which either has an anti-self dual Weyl tensor or a hyper-Kähler structure, respectively. We also demonstrate a new Lichnerowicz type theorem in the presence of α' corrections.

N-acetylcysteine amide (AD4) reduces cocaine-induced reinstatement.

PubMed

Jastrzębska, Joanna; Frankowska, Malgorzata; Filip, Malgorzata; Atlas, Daphne

2016-09-01

Chronic exposure to drugs of abuse changes glutamatergic transmission in human addicts and animal models. N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a cysteine prodrug that indirectly activates cysteine-glutamate antiporters. In the extrasynaptic space, NAC restores basal glutamate levels during drug abstinence and normalizes increased glutamatergic tone in rats during reinstatement to drugs of abuse. In initial clinical trials, repeated NAC administration seems to be promising for reduced craving in cocaine addicts. In this study, NAC-amide, called AD4 or NACA, was examined in intravenous cocaine self-administration and extinction/reinstatement procedures in rats. We investigated the behavioral effects of AD4 in the olfactory bulbectomized (OBX) rats, considered an animal model of depression. Finally, we tested rats injected with AD4 or NAC during 10-daily extinction training sessions to examine subsequent cocaine seeking. AD4 (25-75 mg kg(-1)) given acutely did not alter the rewarding effects of cocaine in OBX rats and sham-operated controls. However, at 6.25-50 mg kg(-1), AD4 decreased dose-dependently cocaine seeking and relapse triggered by cocaine priming or drug-associated conditioned cues in both phenotypes. Furthermore, repeated treatment with AD4 (25 mg kg(-1)) or NAC (100 mg kg(-1)) during daily extinction trials reduced reinstatement of drug-seeking behavior in sham-operated controls. In the OBX rats only, AD4 effectively blocked cocaine-seeking behavior. Our results demonstrate that AD4 is effective at blocking cocaine-seeking behavior, highlighting its potential clinical use toward cocaine use disorder.

Effects of diet on rate of body mass gain by wintering canvasbacks

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jorde, Dennis G.; Haramis, G.M.; Bunck, C.M.; Pendleton, G.W.

1995-01-01

Because habitat degradation has led to the loss of submerged vegetation in Chesapeake Bay, wintering canvasbacks (Aythya valisineria) have shifted from a plant diet of American wildcelery (Vallisneria americana) to an animal diet of Baltic clams (Macoma balthica). We conducted experiments with pen-reared canvasbacks (n = 32, 1990; n = 32, 1991) to assess the effect of this diet change on mass recovery rate following a simulated period of food deprivation. During the recovery phase, canvasbacks were fed ad libitum either (1) Baltic clams (1991 only), (2) tubers of wildcelery, 3) corn, or (4) commercial control diet. Initial body mass of ducks did not differ between years (P = 0.754) or among pens (P > 0.264) or diets within years (1990, P = 0.520; 1991, P = 0.684). Body mass decline during food deprivation (x super(-) = 26.0 g/day plus or minus 0.6 SE) did not differ among diets (1990, P = 0.239; 1991, P = 0.062) or between sexes in 1990 (P = 0.197), but was greater (P = 0.039) for males (x super(-) = 28 g/day plus or minus 0.8 SE) than females (x super(-) = 25 g/day plus or minus 0.9) in 1991. Mass recovery rate differed between diets (clams excluded) in 1990 (P = 0.003) and 1991 (clams included) (P = 0.011); mean = 42 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) plus or minus 3.8 (SE) control diet, mean = 32 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) plus or minus 2.8 wildcelery tubers, mean = 24 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) plus or minus 4.9 whole corn, and mean = 23 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) plus or minus 1.0 Baltic clams. Canvasbacks consumed an average of 2,169 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) of Baltic clams, 1,158 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) of wildcelery tubers, 152 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) whole corn, and 208 g/bird super(-1)/day super(-1) (dry mass) control diet during recovery. Managers should restore and maintain aquatic plant foods that enhance winter survival of canvasbacks and other waterfowl in response to declining habitat quality.

Adenovirus expressing IFN-λ (Ad/hIFN-λ) produced anti-tumor effects through inducing apoptosis in human tongue squamous cell carcinoma cell.

PubMed

Song, Bing; Yang, Yong; Wang, Yan-Li; Fan, Xiao-Hui; Huang, Yu-Mei; Ci, Hao-Su; Zuo, Jin-Hua

2015-01-01

To investigate the potential therapeutic effects of adenovirus expressing IFN-λ1 and IFN-λ2 (Ad/hIFN-λ) in treating squamous cell carcinoma of the oral tongue (SCCOT) and to explore the underlying mechanisms. Two SCCOT cell lines HSC-3 and Tca8113 were adopted as study objects. Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) cell proliferation and viability assay was performed to evaluate the antiproliferative effects of Ad/hIFN-λ and IFN-λ treatments at different dosages. Flow cytometry (FCM) was performed to investigate the apoptosis rate induced by Ad/hIFN-λ. In vivo study was performed through evaluating tumorigenicity and tumor volume on BALB/c nu/nu mice inoculated with HSC-3 cells with or without infection of Ad/hIFN-λ. qPCR was used to screen important apoptosis related genes expression and western blot (WB) was performed to verify the results. WB was also used to test the phosphorylation of STATs protein in the JAK/STAT signaling pathways. Our results indicated an obvious antiproliferative effect of Ad/hIFN-λ in vitro on infected HSC-3 and Tca8113 cells. The antiproliferative effects started to appear at 48 h (day 2) after infection. IFN-λs alone treating HSC-3 and Tca8113 cells also showed a dose-dependent inhibitory manner. Though the antiproliferative effects did not show on 24 h (day 1), early apoptosis rate already increased significantly in cells infected with Ad/hIFN-λ (P<0.05) detected by FCM. The underlying mechanisms of antiproliferative activity rely on the IFN-λ signaling by phosphorylation of STATs protein. Expression of Bax, Bcl-2 and Caspase-3 were promoted by Ad/hIFN-λ leading to higher apoptosis rate. Upper stream of p21 and Rb dephosphorylation explained the Caspase-3 activation. Animal study showed that HSC-3 cells infected with Ad/hIFN-λ significantly promoted the survival rate and decreased mean tumor volume comparing to HSC-3 cells group. Ad/hIFN-λ injection had obvious antiproliferative effects on HSC-3 and Tca8113 cells. Ad

[Value-Added--Adding Economic Value in the Food Industry].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Welch, Mary A., Ed.

1989-01-01

This booklet focuses on the economic concept of "value added" to goods and services. A student activity worksheet illustrates how the steps involved in processing food are examples of the concept of value added. The booklet further links food processing to the idea of value added to the Gross National Product (GNP). Discussion questions,…

Does it really matter that people zip through ads? Testing the effectiveness of simultaneous presentation advertising in an IDTV environment.

PubMed

Nam, Yoonjae; Kwon, Kyonghee H; Lee, Sungjoon

2010-04-01

In an IDTV environment, which facilitates self-scheduling, skipping advertisements by zipping is an emerging ad-avoidance behavior. This study explores whether an alternative ad format, called simultaneous presentation advertising (SPA), may overcome the limitations of classical sequential advertising (CSA) in controlling zipping behavior and increasing the effectiveness of ads. The experiment revealed that SPA is more effective than CSA in reducing zipping and increasing recall, but SPA was more intrusive and produced a negative product image. There was no difference regarding cognitive avoidance. This work discusses the implications of these findings in the interactive media environment.

How Effective Are Active Videogames Among the Young and the Old? Adding Meta-analyses to Two Recent Systematic Reviews.

PubMed

van 't Riet, Jonathan; Crutzen, Rik; Lu, Amy Shirong

2014-10-01

Two recent systematic reviews have surveyed the existing evidence for the effectiveness of active videogames in children/adolescents and in elderly people. In the present study, effect sizes were added to these systematic reviews, and meta-analyses were performed. All reviewed studies were considered for inclusion in the meta-analyses, but only studies were included that investigated the effectiveness of active videogames, used an experimental design, and used actual health outcomes as the outcome measures (body mass index for children/adolescents [k=5] and functional balance for the elderly [k=6]). The average effect of active videogames in children and adolescents was small and nonsignificant: Hedges' g=0.20 (95 percent confidence interval, -0.08 to 0.48). Limited heterogeneity was observed, and no moderator analyses were performed. For the effect of active videogames on functional balance in the elderly, the analyses revealed a medium-sized and significant effect of g=0.68 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.13-1.24). For the elderly studies, substantial heterogeneity was observed. Moderator analyses showed that there were no significant effects of using a no-treatment control group versus an alternative treatment control group or of using games that were especially created for health-promotion purposes versus off-the-shelf games. Also, intervention duration and frequency, sample size, study quality, and dropout did not significantly moderate the effect of active videogames. The results of these meta-analyses provide preliminary evidence that active videogames can have positive effects on relevant outcome measures in children/adolescents and elderly individuals.

Caregivers' male gender is associated with poor nutrient intake in AD families (NuAD-trial).

PubMed

Puranen, T M; Pietila, S E; Pitkala, K H; Kautiainen, H; Raivio, M; Eloniemi-Sulkava, U; Jyvakorpi, S K; Suominen, M

2014-07-01

Alzheimer patients (AD) are known to be at risk for malnutrition and their older spouses may also have nutritional problems. The aim of our study was to clarify the association of caregivers' sex on the nutrient intake of AD couples. Our study uses the baseline data of a randomized nutritional trial exploring the effectiveness of nutrition intervention among home-dwelling AD patients. The central AD register in Finland was used to recruit AD patients living with a spousal caregiver, 99 couples participated in our study. Nutritional status was assessed using the Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA). Nutrient intakes for both AD patients and their spouses were calculated from 3-day food diaries. The mean age of caregivers and AD spouses was 75.2 (SD 7.0) and 77.4 years (SD 5.6), respectively. According to the MNA, 40% of male and 52% of female AD spouses were at risk for malnutrition. Among male caregivers, the mean energy and protein intakes were 1605 kcal (SD 458) and 0.93 g/body kg (SD 0.30), whereas the respective figures for their female AD spouses were 1313 kcal (SD 340) and 0.86 g/body kg (SD 0.32), respectively. Among female caregivers, the mean energy and protein intakes were 1536 kcal (SD 402) and 1.00 g/body kg (SD 0.30), whereas the respective figures for their male AD spouses were 1897 kcal (SD 416) and 1.04 g/body kg (SD 0.30). The interaction between male caregiver sex and lower energy (p<0.001) and lower protein intake (p=0.0048) (adjusted for age and MMSE) was significant. Similar differences between caregiver sexes were observed with the intake of various nutrients. A gender difference exists in the ability to cope with caregiver responsibilities related to nutrition. A need exists for tailored nutritional guidance among older individuals and especially among male caregivers.

Do Sex and Violence Sell? A Meta-Analytic Review of the Effects of Sexual and Violent Media and Ad Content on Memory, Attitudes, and Buying Intentions.

PubMed

Lull, Robert B; Bushman, Brad J

2015-09-01

It is commonly assumed that sex and violence sell. However, we predicted that sex and violence would have the opposite effect. We based our predictions on the evolution and emotional arousal theoretical framework, which states that people are evolutionarily predisposed to attend to emotionally arousing cues such as sex and violence. Thus, sexual and violent cues demand more cognitive resources than nonsexual and nonviolent cues. Using this framework, we meta-analyzed the effects of sexual media, violent media, sexual ads, and violent ads on the advertising outcomes of brand memory, brand attitudes, and buying intentions. The meta-analysis included 53 experiments involving 8,489 participants. Analyses found that brands advertised in violent media content were remembered less often, evaluated less favorably, and less likely to be purchased than brands advertised in nonviolent, nonsexual media. Brands advertised using sexual ads were evaluated less favorably than brands advertised using nonviolent, nonsexual ads. There were no significant effects of sexual media on memory or buying intentions. There were no significant effects of sexual or violent ads on memory or buying intentions. As intensity of sexual ad content increased, memory, attitudes, and buying intentions decreased. When media content and ad content were congruent (e.g., violent ad in a violent program), memory improved and buying intentions increased. Violence and sex never helped and often hurt ad effectiveness. These results support the evolution and emotional arousal framework. Thus, advertisers should consider the effects of media content, ad content, content intensity, and congruity to design and place more effective ads. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Mass Society/Culture/Media: An Eclectic Approach.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clavner, Jerry B.

Instructors of courses in mass society, culture, and communication start out facing three types of difficulties: the historical orientation of learning, the parochialism of various disciplines, and negative intellectually elitist attitudes toward mass culture/media. Added to these problems is the fact that many instructors have little or no…

Thermodynamic and classical instability of AdS black holes in fourth-order gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Myung, Yun Soo; Moon, Taeyoon

2014-04-01

We study thermodynamic and classical instability of AdS black holes in fourth-order gravity. These include the BTZ black hole in new massive gravity, Schwarzschild-AdS black hole, and higher-dimensional AdS black holes in fourth-order gravity. All thermo-dynamic quantities which are computed using the Abbot-Deser-Tekin method are used to study thermodynamic instability of AdS black holes. On the other hand, we investigate the s-mode Gregory-Laflamme instability of the massive graviton propagating around the AdS black holes. We establish the connection between the thermodynamic instability and the GL instability of AdS black holes in fourth-order gravity. This shows that the Gubser-Mitra conjecture holds for AdS black holes found from fourth-order gravity.

Effect of neutrino rest mass on ionization equilibrium freeze-out

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Grohs, Evan Bradley; Fuller, George M.; Kishimoto, Chad T.

2015-12-23

We show how small neutrino rest masses can increase the expansion rate near the photon decoupling epoch in the early Universe, causing an earlier, higher temperature freeze-out for ionization equilibrium compared to the massless neutrino case. This yields a larger free-electron fraction, thereby affecting the photon diffusion length differently than the sound horizon at photon decoupling. This neutrino-mass and recombination effect depends strongly on the neutrino rest masses. Ultimately, though below current sensitivity, this effect could be probed by next-generation cosmic microwave background experiments, giving another observational handle on neutrino rest mass.

a European Global Navigation Satellite System — the German Market and Value Adding Chain Effects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vollerthun, A.; Wieser, M.

2002-03-01

Since Europe is considering to establish a "market-driven" European Global Navigation Satellite System, the German Center of Aerospace initiated a market research to justify a German investment in such a European project. The market research performed included the following market segments: aviation, railway, road traffic, shipping, surveying, farming, military, space applications, leisure, and sport. In these market segments, the forementioned inputs were determined for satellite navigation hardware (receivers) as well as satellite navigation services. The forecast period was from year 2007 to 2017. For the considered period, the market amounts to a total of DM 83.0 billion (approx. US $50 billion), whereas the satellite navigation equipment market makes up DM 39.8 billion, and charges for value-added-services amount to DM 43.2 billion. On closer examination road traffic can be identified as the dominant market share, both in the receiver-market and service-market. With a share of 96% for receivers and 73% for services the significance of the road traffic segment becomes obvious. The second part of this paper investigates the effects the market potential has on the Value-Adding-Chain. Therefore, all participants in the Value-Adding-Chain are identified, using industrial cost structure models the employment effect is analyzed, and possible tax revenues for the state are examined.

Effects of added CeCl3 on resistance of fifth-instar larvae of silkworm to Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus infection.

PubMed

Li, Bing; Xie, Yi; Cheng, Zhe; Cheng, Jie; Hu, Rengping; Cui, Yaling; Gong, Xiaolan; Shen, Weide; Hong, Fashui

2012-06-01

One of the most important agents causing lethal disease in the silkworm is the Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV), while low-dose rare earths are demonstrated to increase immune capacity in animals. However, very little is known about the effects of added CeCl(3) on decreasing BmNPV infection of silkworm. The present study investigated the effects of added CeCl(3) to an artificial diet on resistance of fifth-instar larvae of silkworm to BmNPV infection. Our findings indicated that added CeCl(3) significantly decreased inhibition of growth and mortality of fifth-instar larvae caused by BmNPV infection. Furthermore, the added CeCl(3) obviously decreased lipid peroxidation level and accumulation of reactive oxygen species such as O(2)(-), H(2)O(2), (·)OH, and NO and increased activities of the antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, glutathione peroxidase, ascorbate, and glutathione contents in the BmNPV-infected fifth-instar larvae. In addition, the added CeCl(3) could significantly promote acetylcholine esterase activity and attenuate the activity of inducible nitric oxide synthase in the BmNPV-infected fifth-instar larvae. These findings suggested that added CeCl(3) may relieve oxidative damage and neurotoxicity of silkworm caused by BmNPV infection via increasing antioxidant capacity and acetylcholine esterase activity.

Added sugar intake that exceeds current recommendations is associated with nutrient dilution in older Australians.

PubMed

Moshtaghian, Hanieh; Louie, Jimmy Chun Yu; Charlton, Karen E; Probst, Yasmine C; Gopinath, Bamini; Mitchell, Paul; Flood, Victoria M

2016-09-01

A nutrient dilution effect of diets high in added sugar has been reported in some older populations, but the evidence is inconsistent. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between added sugar intakes (according to recommended guidelines) and nutrient intake, food consumption, and body mass index (BMI). A cross-sectional analysis of data collected between 2007 and 2009 from participants of the Blue Mountains Eye study 4 was performed (n = 879). Dietary intake was assessed using a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Added sugar content of foods was determined by applying a systematic step-wise method. BMI was calculated from measured weight and height. Food and nutrient intakes and BMI were assessed according to categories of percentage energy from added sugar (EAS% < 5%, EAS% = 5%-10%, and EAS% >10%) using analysis of covariance for multivariate analysis. Micronutrient intake including retinol equivalents, vitamins B6, B12, C, E, and D, and minerals including calcium, iron, and magnesium showed a significant inverse association with EAS% intakes (Ptrend < 0.05). In people with the lowest intake of added sugars (<5% energy) intake of alcohol, fruits, and vegetables were higher and intake of sugar sweetened beverages was lower compared to other participants (all Ptrend < 0.001). BMI was similar between the three EAS% categories. Energy intake from added sugar greater than the recommended level of 10% is associated with lower micronutrient intakes, indicating micronutrient dilution. Conversely, added sugar intakes <5% of energy intake are associated with higher micronutrient intakes. This information may inform dietary messages targeted at optimizing diet quality in older adults. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Qualitative effect of added gluten on dough properties and quality of Chinese steamed bread

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Glutens isolated from fifteen soft red winter (SRW) wheat flours were added into a SRW wheat flour to obtain protein levels of 9.6% and 11.3% for determination of the qualitative effect of gluten protein on the dough properties and quality of northern-style Chinese steamed bread (CSB). Sodium dodecy...

Added Sugars and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Children

PubMed Central

Vos, Miriam B.; Kaar, Jill L.; Welsh, Jean A.; Van Horn, Linda V.; Feig, Daniel I.; Anderson, Cheryl A.M.; Patel, Mahesh J.; Munos, Jessica Cruz; Krebs, Nancy F.; Xanthakos, Stavra A.; Johnson, Rachel K.

2017-01-01

BACKGROUND Poor lifestyle behaviors are leading causes of preventable diseases globally. Added sugars contribute to a diet that is energy dense but nutrient poor and increase risk of developing obesity, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, obesity-related cancers, and dental caries. METHODS AND RESULTS For this American Heart Association scientific statement, the writing group reviewed and graded the current scientific evidence for studies examining the cardiovascular health effects of added sugars on children. The available literature was subdivided into 5 broad subareas: effects on blood pressure, lipids, insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and obesity. CONCLUSIONS Associations between added sugars and increased cardiovascular disease risk factors among US children are present at levels far below current consumption levels. Strong evidence supports the association of added sugars with increased cardiovascular disease risk in children through increased energy intake, increased adiposity, and dyslipidemia. The committee found that it is reasonable to recommend that children consume ≤25 g (100 cal or ≈6 teaspoons) of added sugars per day and to avoid added sugars for children <2 years of age. Although added sugars most likely can be safely consumed in low amounts as part of a healthy diet, few children achieve such levels, making this an important public health target. PMID:27550974

Collapse and Nonlinear Instability of AdS Space with Angular Momentum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choptuik, Matthew W.; Dias, Óscar J. C.; Santos, Jorge E.; Way, Benson

2017-11-01

We present a numerical study of rotational dynamics in AdS5 with equal angular momenta in the presence of a complex doublet scalar field. We determine that the endpoint of gravitational collapse is a Myers-Perry black hole for high energies and a hairy black hole for low energies. We investigate the time scale for collapse at low energies E , keeping the angular momenta J ∝E in anti-de Sitter (AdS) length units. We find that the inclusion of angular momenta delays the collapse time, but retains a t ˜1 /E scaling. We perturb and evolve rotating boson stars, and find that boson stars near AdS space appear stable, but those sufficiently far from AdS space are unstable. We find that the dynamics of the boson star instability depend on the perturbation, resulting either in collapse to a Myers-Perry black hole, or development towards a stable oscillating solution.

Value-Added Teacher Estimates as Part of Teacher Evaluations: Exploring the Effects of Data and Model Specifications on the Stability of Teacher Value-Added Scores

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kersting, Nicole B.; Chen, Mei-kuang; Stigler, James W.

2013-01-01

If teacher value-added estimates (VAEs) are to be used as indicators of individual teacher performance in teacher evaluation and accountability systems, it is important to understand how much VAEs are affected by the data and model specifications used to estimate them. In this study we explored the effects of three conditions on the stability of…

Effectiveness Measures for Cross-Sectional Studies: A Comparison of Value-Added Models and Contextualised Attainment Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lenkeit, Jenny

2013-01-01

Educational effectiveness research often appeals to "value-added models (VAM)" to gauge the impact of schooling on student learning net of the effect of student background variables. A huge amount of cross-sectional studies do not, however, meet VAM's requirement for longitudinal data. "Contextualised attainment models (CAM)"…

Semiclassical Virasoro blocks from AdS 3 gravity

DOE PAGES

Hijano, Eliot; Kraus, Per; Perlmutter, Eric; ...

2015-12-14

We present a unified framework for the holographic computation of Virasoro conformal blocks at large central charge. In particular, we provide bulk constructions that correctly reproduce all semiclassical Virasoro blocks that are known explicitly from conformal field theory computations. The results revolve around the use of geodesic Witten diagrams, recently introduced in [1], evaluated in locally AdS 3 geometries generated by backreaction of heavy operators. We also provide an alternative computation of the heavy-light semiclassical block — in which two external operators become parametrically heavy — as a certain scattering process involving higher spin gauge fields in AdS 3; thismore » approach highlights the chiral nature of Virasoro blocks. Finally, these techniques may be systematically extended to compute corrections to these blocks and to interpolate amongst the different semiclassical regimes.« less

EXACT S-MATRICES FOR AdS3/CFT2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahn, Changrim; Bombardelli, Diego

2013-12-01

We propose exact S-matrices for the AdS3/CFT2 duality between type IIB strings on AdS3×S3×M4 with M4 = S3×S1 or T4 and the corresponding two-dimensional conformal field theories. We fix the two-particle S-matrices on the basis of the symmetries su(1|1) and su(1|1)×su(1|1). A crucial justification comes from the derivation of the all-loop Bethe ansatz matching exactly the recent conjecture proposed by Babichenko et al. [J. High Energy Phys.1003, 058 (2010), arXiv:0912.1723 [hep-th

Minimal surfaces in AdS space and integrable systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burrington, Benjamin A.; Gao, Peng

2010-04-01

We consider the Pohlmeyer reduction for spacelike minimal area worldsheets in AdS5. The Lax pair for the reduced theory is found, and written entirely in terms of the A3 = D3 root system, generalizing the B2 affine Toda system which appears for the AdS4 string. For the B2 affine Toda system, we show that the area of the worlsheet is obtainable from the moduli space Kähler potential of a related Hitchin system. We also explore the Saveliev-Leznov construction for solutions of the B2 affine Toda system, and recover the rotationally symmetric solution associated to Painleve transcendent.

Prospective association between added sugars and frailty in older adults.

PubMed

Laclaustra, Martin; Rodriguez-Artalejo, Fernando; Guallar-Castillon, Pilar; Banegas, Jose R; Graciani, Auxiliadora; Garcia-Esquinas, Esther; Ordovas, Jose; Lopez-Garcia, Esther

2018-05-01

Sugar-sweetened beverages and added sugars (monosaccharides and disaccharides) in the diet are associated with obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, which are all risk factors for decline in physical function among older adults. The aim of this study was to examine the association between added sugars in the diet and incidence of frailty in older people. Data were taken from 1973 Spanish adults ≥60 y old from the Seniors-ENRICA cohort. In 2008-2010 (baseline), consumption of added sugars (including those in fruit juices) was obtained using a validated diet history. Study participants were followed up until 2012-2013 to assess frailty based on Fried's criteria. Statistical analyses were performed with logistic regression adjusted for age, sex, education, smoking status, body mass index, energy intake, self-reported comorbidities, Mediterranean Diet Adherence Score (excluding sweetened drinks and pastries), TV watching time, and leisure-time physical activity. Compared with participants consuming <15 g/d added sugars (lowest tertile), those consuming ≥36 g/d (highest tertile) were more likely to develop frailty (OR: 2.27; 95% CI: 1.34, 3.90; P-trend = 0.003). The frailty components "low physical activity" and "unintentional weight loss" increased dose dependently with added sugars. Association with frailty was strongest for sugars added during food production. Intake of sugars naturally appearing in foods was not associated with frailty. The consumption of added sugars in the diet of older people was associated with frailty, mainly when present in processed foods. The frailty components that were most closely associated with added sugars were low level of physical activity and unintentional weight loss. Future research should determine whether there is a causal relation between added sugars and frailty.

Financial and health literacy predict incident AD dementia and AD pathology

PubMed Central

Yu, Lei; Wilson, Robert S.; Schneider, Julie A.; Bennett, David A.; Boyle, Patricia A.

2017-01-01

Background Domain specific literacy is a multidimensional construct that requires multiple resources including cognitive and non-cognitive factors. Objective We test the hypothesis that domain specific literacy is associated with AD dementia and AD pathology after controlling for cognition. Methods Participants were community based older persons who completed a baseline literacy assessment, underwent annual clinical evaluations for up to 8 years and agreed to organ donation after death. Financial and health literacy was measured using 32 questions and cognition was measured using 19 tests. Annual diagnosis of AD dementia followed standard criteria. AD pathology was examined post-mortem by quantifying plaques and tangles. Cox models examined the association of literacy with incident AD dementia. Performance of model prediction for incident AD dementia was assessed using indices for integrated discrimination improvement and continuous net reclassification improvement. Linear regression models examined the independent association of literacy with AD pathology in autopsied participants. Results All 805 participants were free of dementia at baseline and 102 (12.7%) developed AD dementia during the follow-up. Lower literacy was associated with higher risk for incident AD dementia (p<0.001), and the association persisted after controlling for cognition (Hazard Ratio=1.50, p=0.004). The model including the literacy measure had better predictive performance than the one with demographics and cognition only. Lower literacy also was associated with higher burden of AD pathology after controlling for cognition (β=0.07, p=0.035). Conclusion Literacy predicts incident AD dementia and AD pathology in community-dwelling older persons, and the association is independent of traditional measures of cognition. PMID:28157101

The effect of added fullness and ventilation holes in T-shirt design on thermal comfort.

PubMed

Ho, Chupo; Fan, Jintu; Newton, Edward; Au, Raymond

2011-04-01

This paper reports on an experimental investigation on the effect of added fullness and ventilation holes in T-shirt design on clothing comfort measured in terms of thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance. Four T-shirts in four different sizes (S, M, L, XL) were cut under the traditional sizing method while another (F-1) was cut with specially added fullness to create a 'flared' drape. A thermal manikin 'Walter' was used to measure the thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance of the T-shirts in a chamber with controlled temperature, relative humidity and air velocity. The tests included four conditions: manikin standing still in the no-wind and windy conditions and walking in the no-wind and windy condition. It was found that adding fullness in the T-shirt design (F-1) to create the 'flared' drape can significantly reduce the T-shirt's thermal insulation and moisture vapour resistance under walking or windy conditions. Heat and moisture transmission through the T-shirt can be further enhanced by creating small apertures on the front and back of the T-shirt with specially added fullness. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: The thermal comfort of the human body is one of the key issues in the study of ergonomics. When doing exercise, a human body will generate heat, which will eventually result in sweating. If heat and moisture are not released effectively from the body, heat stress may occur and the person's performance will be negatively affected. Therefore, contemporary athletic T-shirts are designed to improve the heat and moisture transfer from the wearer. Through special cutting, such athletic T-shirts can be designed to improve the ventilation of the wearer.

Micromechanical Oscillating Mass Balance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Altemir, David A. (Inventor)

1997-01-01

A micromechanical oscillating mass balance and method adapted for measuring minute quantities of material deposited at a selected location, such as during a vapor deposition process. The invention comprises a vibratory composite beam which includes a dielectric layer sandwiched between two conductive layers. The beam is positioned in a magnetic field. An alternating current passes through one conductive layers, the beam oscillates, inducing an output current in the second conductive layer, which is analyzed to determine the resonant frequency of the beam. As material is deposited on the beam, the mass of the beam increases and the resonant frequency of the beam shifts, and the mass added is determined.

What's the point? Hole-ography in Poincaré AdS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espíndola, Ricardo; Güijosa, Alberto; Landetta, Alberto; Pedraza, Juan F.

2018-01-01

In the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence, we study bulk reconstruction of the Poincaré wedge of AdS_3 via hole-ography, i.e., in terms of differential entropy of the dual CFT_2. Previous work had considered the reconstruction of closed or open spacelike curves in global AdS, and of infinitely extended spacelike curves in Poincaré AdS that are subject to a periodicity condition at infinity. Working first at constant time, we find that a closed curve in Poincaré is described in the CFT by a family of intervals that covers the spatial axis at least twice. We also show how to reconstruct open curves, points and distances, and obtain a CFT action whose extremization leads to bulk points. We then generalize all of these results to the case of curves that vary in time, and discover that generic curves have segments that cannot be reconstructed using the standard hole-ographic construction. This happens because, for the nonreconstructible segments, the tangent geodesics fail to be fully contained within the Poincaré wedge. We show that a previously discovered variant of the hole-ographic method allows us to overcome this challenge, by reorienting the geodesics touching the bulk curve to ensure that they all remain within the wedge. Our conclusion is that all spacelike curves in Poincaré AdS can be completely reconstructed with CFT data, and each curve has in fact an infinite number of representations within the CFT.

Sensitivity of Value Added School Effect Estimates to Different Model Specifications and Outcome Measures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pride, Bryce L.

2012-01-01

The Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) Model has been used to make many high-stakes decisions concerning schools, though it does not provide a complete assessment of student academic achievement and school effectiveness. To provide a clearer perspective, many states have implemented various Growth and Value Added Models, in addition to AYP. The…

Negative muon chemistry: the quantum muon effect and the finite nuclear mass effect.

PubMed

Posada, Edwin; Moncada, Félix; Reyes, Andrés

2014-10-09

The any-particle molecular orbital method at the full configuration interaction level has been employed to study atoms in which one electron has been replaced by a negative muon. In this approach electrons and muons are described as quantum waves. A scheme has been proposed to discriminate nuclear mass and quantum muon effects on chemical properties of muonic and regular atoms. This study reveals that the differences in the ionization potentials of isoelectronic muonic atoms and regular atoms are of the order of millielectronvolts. For the valence ionizations of muonic helium and muonic lithium the nuclear mass effects are more important. On the other hand, for 1s ionizations of muonic atoms heavier than beryllium, the quantum muon effects are more important. In addition, this study presents an assessment of the nuclear mass and quantum muon effects on the barrier of Heμ + H2 reaction.

Asymptotically locally AdS and flat black holes in Horndeski theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anabalon, Andres; Cisterna, Adolfo; Oliva, Julio

2014-04-01

In this paper we construct asymptotically locally AdS and flat black holes in the presence of a scalar field whose kinetic term is constructed out from a linear combination of the metric and the Einstein tensor. The field equations as well as the energy-momentum tensor are second order in the metric and the field, therefore the theory belongs to the ones defined by Horndeski. We show that in the presence of a cosmological term in the action, it is possible to have a real scalar field in the region outside the event horizon. The solutions are characterized by a single integration constant, the scalar field vanishes at the horizon and it contributes to the effective cosmological constant at infinity. We extend these results to the topological case. The solution is disconnected from the maximally symmetric AdS background, however, within this family there exists a gravitational soliton which is everywhere regular. This soliton is therefore used as a background to define a finite Euclidean action and to obtain the thermodynamics of the black holes. For a certain region in the space of parameters, the thermodynamic analysis reveals a critical temperature at which a Hawking-Page phase transition between the black hole and the soliton occurs. We extend the solution to arbitrary dimensions greater than 4 and show that the presence of a cosmological term in the action allows one to consider the case in which the standard kinetic term for the scalar it is not present. In such a scenario, the solution reduces to an asymptotically flat black hole.

Effective Dose Calculation Program (EDCP) for the usage of NORM-added consumer product.

PubMed

Yoo, Do Hyeon; Lee, Jaekook; Min, Chul Hee

2018-04-09

The aim of this study is to develop the Effective Dose Calculation Program (EDCP) for the usage of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Material (NORM) added consumer products. The EDCP was developed based on a database of effective dose conversion coefficient and the Matrix Laboratory (MATLAB) program to incorporate a Graphic User Interface (GUI) for ease of use. To validate EDCP, the effective dose calculated with EDCP by manually determining the source region by using the GUI and that by using the reference mathematical algorithm were compared for pillow, waist supporter, eye-patch and sleeping mattress. The results show that the annual effective dose calculated with EDCP was almost identical to that calculated using the reference mathematical algorithm in most of the assessment cases. With the assumption of the gamma energy of 1 MeV and activity of 1 MBq, the annual effective doses of pillow, waist supporter, sleeping mattress, and eye-patch determined using the reference algorithm were 3.444 mSv year -1 , 2.770 mSv year -1 , 4.629 mSv year -1 , and 3.567 mSv year -1 , respectively, while those calculated using EDCP were 3.561 mSv year -1 , 2.630 mSv year -1 , 4.740 mSv year -1 , and 3.780 mSv year -1 , respectively. The differences in the annual effective doses were less than 5%, despite the different calculation methods employed. The EDCP can therefore be effectively used for radiation protection management in the context of the usage of NORM-added consumer products. Additionally, EDCP can be used by members of the public through the GUI for various studies in the field of radiation protection, thus facilitating easy access to the program. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

String in AdS black hole: A thermo field dynamic approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cantcheff, M. Botta; Gadelha, Alexandre L.; Marchioro, Dáfni F. Z.; Nedel, Daniel Luiz

2012-10-01

Based on Maldacena’s description of an eternal anti-de Sitter (AdS) black hole, we reassess the thermo field dynamics (TFD) formalism in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence. The model studied here involves the maximally extended AdS-Schwarschild solution and two (noninteracting) copies of the conformal field theory (CFT) associated to the global AdS spacetime, along with an extension of the string by imposing natural gluing conditions in the horizon. We show that the gluing conditions in the horizon define a string boundary state which is identified with the TFD thermal vacuum, globally defined in the Kruskal extension of the AdS black hole. We emphasize the connection of this picture with unitary SU(1,1) TFD formulation, and we show that information about the bulk and the conformal boundary is present in the SU(1,1) parameters. Using the unitary SU(1,1) TFD formulation, a canonical prescription for calculating the world sheet real time thermal Green’s function is made, and the entropy associated with the entanglement of the two CFT’s is calculated.

Tweaking one-loop determinants in AdS3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castro, Alejandra; Keeler, Cynthia; Szepietowski, Phillip

2017-10-01

We revisit the subject of one-loop determinants in AdS3 gravity via the quasi-normal mode method. Our goal is to evaluate a one-loop determinant with chiral boundary conditions for the metric field; chirality is achieved by imposing Dirichlet boundary conditions on certain components while others satisfy Neumann. Along the way, we give a generalization of the quasinormal mode method for stationary (non-static) thermal backgrounds, and propose a treatment for Neumann boundary conditions in this framework. We evaluate the graviton one-loop determinant on the Euclidean BTZ background with parity-violating boundary conditions (CSS), and find excellent agreement with the dual warped CFT. We also discuss a more general falloff in AdS3 that is related to two dimensional quantum gravity in lightcone gauge. The behavior of the ghost fields under both sets of boundary conditions is novel and we discuss potential interpretations.

Continuous-spin mixed-symmetry fields in AdS(5)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Metsaev, R. R.

2018-05-01

Free mixed-symmetry continuous-spin fields propagating in AdS(5) space and flat R(4,1) space are studied. In the framework of a light-cone gauge formulation of relativistic dynamics, we build simple actions for such fields. The realization of relativistic symmetries on the space of light-cone gauge mixed-symmetry continuous-spin fields is also found. Interrelations between constant parameters entering the light-cone gauge actions and eigenvalues of the Casimir operators of space-time symmetry algebras are obtained. Using these interrelations and requiring that the field dynamics in AdS(5) be irreducible and classically unitary, we derive restrictions on the constant parameters and eigenvalues of the second-order Casimir operator of the algebra.

Bargmann's theorem and position-dependent effective mass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawamura, Kiyoshi; Brown, Ronald A.

1988-03-01

The physical significance of Galilean transformations applied to effective-mass (EM) equations for Bloch electrons in Wannier representation is discussed and contrasted with that of Galilean coordinate transformations applied to the free-particle Schrödinger equation. Mass constraints imposed on the latter by Bargmann's (1954) superselection rule do not extend to the EM, and criticisms of the position-dependent EM concept which have invoked Bargmann's theorem are shown to be without foundation. Other criticisms concerning the nonuniqueness and non-Hermiticity of effective Hamiltonians which employ this concept to describe crystals of graded composition are discussed, and it is argued that the problems are associated with the heuristic nature of the virtual-crystal model which is adopted rather than with the position-dependent EM.

Navy Shipbuilding: Need to Document Rationale for the Use of Fixed-Price Incentive Contracts and Study Effectiveness of Added Incentives

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-03-01

NAVY SHIPBUILDING Need to Document Rationale for the Use of Fixed-Price Incentive Contracts and Study Effectiveness of Added...Use of Fixed-Price Incentive Contracts and Study Effectiveness of Added Incentives What GAO Found Over 80 percent of the Navy’s shipbuilding...mackinm@gao.gov. Why GAO Did This Study DOD encourages the use of FPI contracts because they allow for equitable sharing of costs savings and risk

Sex-Based Differences in Adélie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) Chick Growth Rates and Diet.

PubMed

Jennings, Scott; Varsani, Arvind; Dugger, Katie M; Ballard, Grant; Ainley, David G

2016-01-01

Sexually size-dimorphic species must show some difference between the sexes in growth rate and/or length of growing period. Such differences in growth parameters can cause the sexes to be impacted by environmental variability in different ways, and understanding these differences allows a better understanding of patterns in productivity between individuals and populations. We investigated differences in growth rate and diet between male and female Adélie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) chicks during two breeding seasons at Cape Crozier, Ross Island, Antarctica. Adélie Penguins are a slightly dimorphic species, with adult males averaging larger than adult females in mass (~11%) as well as bill (~8%) and flipper length (~3%). We measured mass and length of flipper, bill, tibiotarsus, and foot at 5-day intervals for 45 male and 40 female individually-marked chicks. Chick sex was molecularly determined from feathers. We used linear mixed effects models to estimate daily growth rate as a function of chick sex, while controlling for hatching order, brood size, year, and potential variation in breeding quality between pairs of parents. Accounting for season and hatching order, male chicks gained mass an average of 15.6 g d(-1) faster than females. Similarly, growth in bill length was faster for males, and the calculated bill size difference at fledging was similar to that observed in adults. There was no evidence for sex-based differences in growth of other morphological features. Adélie diet at Ross Island is composed almost entirely of two species--one krill (Euphausia crystallorophias) and one fish (Pleuragramma antarctica), with fish having a higher caloric value. Using isotopic analyses of feather samples, we also determined that male chicks were fed a higher proportion of fish than female chicks. The related differences in provisioning and growth rates of male and female offspring provides a greater understanding of the ways in which ecological factors may impact

Sex-Based Differences in Adélie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) Chick Growth Rates and Diet

PubMed Central

Jennings, Scott; Varsani, Arvind; Dugger, Katie M.; Ballard, Grant; Ainley, David G.

2016-01-01

Sexually size-dimorphic species must show some difference between the sexes in growth rate and/or length of growing period. Such differences in growth parameters can cause the sexes to be impacted by environmental variability in different ways, and understanding these differences allows a better understanding of patterns in productivity between individuals and populations. We investigated differences in growth rate and diet between male and female Adélie Penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae) chicks during two breeding seasons at Cape Crozier, Ross Island, Antarctica. Adélie Penguins are a slightly dimorphic species, with adult males averaging larger than adult females in mass (~11%) as well as bill (~8%) and flipper length (~3%). We measured mass and length of flipper, bill, tibiotarsus, and foot at 5-day intervals for 45 male and 40 female individually-marked chicks. Chick sex was molecularly determined from feathers. We used linear mixed effects models to estimate daily growth rate as a function of chick sex, while controlling for hatching order, brood size, year, and potential variation in breeding quality between pairs of parents. Accounting for season and hatching order, male chicks gained mass an average of 15.6 g d-1 faster than females. Similarly, growth in bill length was faster for males, and the calculated bill size difference at fledging was similar to that observed in adults. There was no evidence for sex-based differences in growth of other morphological features. Adélie diet at Ross Island is composed almost entirely of two species—one krill (Euphausia crystallorophias) and one fish (Pleuragramma antarctica), with fish having a higher caloric value. Using isotopic analyses of feather samples, we also determined that male chicks were fed a higher proportion of fish than female chicks. The related differences in provisioning and growth rates of male and female offspring provides a greater understanding of the ways in which ecological factors may impact the

FRW Solutions and Holography from Uplifted AdS/CFT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Dong, Xi; Horn, Bart; /Stanford U., ITP /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /SLAC

2012-02-15

Starting from concrete AdS/CFT dual pairs, one can introduce ingredients which produce cosmological solutions, including metastable de Sitter and its decay to non-accelerating FRW. We present simple FRW solutions sourced by magnetic flavor branes and analyze correlation functions and particle and brane dynamics. To obtain a holographic description, we exhibit a time-dependent warped metric on the solution and interpret the resulting redshifted region as a Lorentzian low energy effective field theory in one fewer dimension. At finite times, this theory has a finite cutoff, a propagating lower dimensional graviton and a finite covariant entropy bound, but at late times themore » lower dimensional Planck mass and entropy go off to infinity in a way that is dominated by contributions from the low energy effective theory. This opens up the possibility of a precise dual at late times. We reproduce the time-dependent growth of the number of degrees of freedom in the system via a count of available microscopic states in the corresponding magnetic brane construction.« less

The effect of adding metformin to insulin therapy for type 1 diabetes mellitus children: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Al Khalifah, Reem A; Alnhdi, Abdulrahman; Alghar, Hassan; Alanazi, Mohammad; Florez, Ivan D

2017-11-01

We aimed to assess the effectiveness of adding metformin to insulin in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) children for improving metabolic outcomes. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) conducted on children age 6 to 19 years who are diagnosed with T1DM, and examined the effect of adding Metformin to standard insulin therapy. We performed literature searches on Ovid Midline, Ovid Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) from the date of inception of the database to February 15, 2016. Two reviewers screened titles and abstracts independently, assessed full text eligibility, and extracted information from eligible trials. The primary outcome is glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and the secondary outcomes are health-related quality of life, body mass index (BMI), lipid profile, total insulin daily dose, hypoglycaemia, and diabetes ketoacidosis. We screened 736 studies, and included 6 RCTs with 325 patients. All RCTs were of low risk of bias, and included adolescents (mean age 15 years). The meta-analysis showed that the addition of Metformin resulted in decreased total insulin daily dose (TIDD) (unit/kg/d) (mean difference [MD] = -0.15, 95%CI, -0.24, -0.06), and reduced BMI kg/m 2 (MD -1.46, 95%CI -2.54, 0.38), and BMI z-score (MD= - 0.11, 95%CI -0.21, -0.01), and similar HbA1c (%) (MD= - 0.05, 95%CI, -0.19, 0.29). The overall evidence quality was high to moderate. Current evidence does not support use of Metformin in T1DM adolescents to improve HbA1c. However, Metformin may provide modest reduction in TIDD and BMI. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

F-theory and AdS3/CFT2 (2, 0)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Couzens, Christopher; Martelli, Dario; Schäfer-Nameki, Sakura

2018-06-01

We continue to develop the program initiated in [1] of studying supersymmetric AdS3 backgrounds of F-theory and their holographic dual 2d superconformal field theories, which are dimensional reductions of theories with varying coupling. Imposing 2d N=(0,2) supersymmetry,wederivethegeneralconditionsonthegeometryforTypeIIB AdS3 solutions with varying axio-dilaton and five-form flux. Locally the compact part of spacetime takes the form of a circle fibration over an eight-fold Y_8^{τ } , which is elliptically fibered over a base \\tilde{M}_6 . We construct two classes of solutions given in terms of a product ansatz \\tilde{M}_6}=Σ × {M}_4 , where Σ is a complex curve and \\tilde{M}_4 is locally a Kähler surface. In the first class \\tilde{M}_4 is globally a Kähler surface and we take the elliptic fibration to vary non-trivially over either of these two factors, where in both cases the metrics on the total space of the elliptic fibrations are not Ricci-flat. In the second class the metric on the total space of the elliptic fibration over either curve or surface are Ricci-flat. This results in solutions of the type AdS3 × K3 × ℳ 5 τ , dual to 2d (0, 2) SCFTs, and AdS3 × S 3/Γ × CY 3, dual to 2d (0, 4) SCFTs, respectively. In all cases we compute the charges for the dual field theories with varying coupling and find agreement with the holographic results. We also show that solutions with enhanced 2d N=(2,2) supersymmetry must have constant axio-dilaton. Allowing the internal geometry to be non-compact leads to the most general class of Type IIB AdS5 solutions with varying axio-dilaton, i.e. F-theoretic solutions, that are dual to 4d N=1 SCFTs.

Tradeoffs in the Use of Value-Added Estimates of Teacher Effectiveness by School Districts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baxter, Andrew David

2011-01-01

A new capacity to track the inputs and outcomes of individual students' education production function has spurred a growing number of school districts to attempt to measure the productivity of their teachers in terms of student outcomes. The use of these value-added measures of teacher effectiveness is at the center of current education reform.…

How Effective Are Active Videogames Among the Young and the Old? Adding Meta-analyses to Two Recent Systematic Reviews

PubMed Central

Crutzen, Rik; Lu, Amy Shirong

2014-01-01

Abstract Objective: Two recent systematic reviews have surveyed the existing evidence for the effectiveness of active videogames in children/adolescents and in elderly people. In the present study, effect sizes were added to these systematic reviews, and meta-analyses were performed. Materials and Methods: All reviewed studies were considered for inclusion in the meta-analyses, but only studies were included that investigated the effectiveness of active videogames, used an experimental design, and used actual health outcomes as the outcome measures (body mass index for children/adolescents [k=5] and functional balance for the elderly [k=6]). Results: The average effect of active videogames in children and adolescents was small and nonsignificant: Hedges' g=0.20 (95 percent confidence interval, −0.08 to 0.48). Limited heterogeneity was observed, and no moderator analyses were performed. For the effect of active videogames on functional balance in the elderly, the analyses revealed a medium-sized and significant effect of g=0.68 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.13–1.24). For the elderly studies, substantial heterogeneity was observed. Moderator analyses showed that there were no significant effects of using a no-treatment control group versus an alternative treatment control group or of using games that were especially created for health-promotion purposes versus off-the-shelf games. Also, intervention duration and frequency, sample size, study quality, and dropout did not significantly moderate the effect of active videogames. Conclusions: The results of these meta-analyses provide preliminary evidence that active videogames can have positive effects on relevant outcome measures in children/adolescents and elderly individuals. PMID:26192486

An image morphing technique based on optimal mass preserving mapping.

PubMed

Zhu, Lei; Yang, Yan; Haker, Steven; Tannenbaum, Allen

2007-06-01

Image morphing, or image interpolation in the time domain, deals with the metamorphosis of one image into another. In this paper, a new class of image morphing algorithms is proposed based on the theory of optimal mass transport. The L(2) mass moving energy functional is modified by adding an intensity penalizing term, in order to reduce the undesired double exposure effect. It is an intensity-based approach and, thus, is parameter free. The optimal warping function is computed using an iterative gradient descent approach. This proposed morphing method is also extended to doubly connected domains using a harmonic parameterization technique, along with finite-element methods.

An Image Morphing Technique Based on Optimal Mass Preserving Mapping

PubMed Central

Zhu, Lei; Yang, Yan; Haker, Steven; Tannenbaum, Allen

2013-01-01

Image morphing, or image interpolation in the time domain, deals with the metamorphosis of one image into another. In this paper, a new class of image morphing algorithms is proposed based on the theory of optimal mass transport. The L2 mass moving energy functional is modified by adding an intensity penalizing term, in order to reduce the undesired double exposure effect. It is an intensity-based approach and, thus, is parameter free. The optimal warping function is computed using an iterative gradient descent approach. This proposed morphing method is also extended to doubly connected domains using a harmonic parameterization technique, along with finite-element methods. PMID:17547128

Neutron-proton effective mass splitting in terms of symmetry energy and its density slope

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chakraborty, S.; Sahoo, B.; Sahoo, S., E-mail: sukadevsahoo@yahoo.com

2015-01-15

Using a simple density-dependent finite-range effective interaction having Yukawa form, the density dependence of isoscalar and isovector effective masses is studied. The isovector effective mass is found to be different for different pairs of like and unlike nucleons. Using HVH theorem, the neutron-proton effective mass splitting is represented in terms of symmetry energy and its density slope. It is again observed that the neutron-proton effective mass splitting has got a positive value when isoscalar effective mass is greater than the isovector effective mass and has a negative value for the opposite case. Furthermore, the neutron-proton effective mass splitting is foundmore » to have a linear dependence on asymmetry β. The second-order symmetry potential has a vital role in the determination of density slope of symmetry energy but it does not have any contribution on neutron-proton effective mass splitting. The finite-range effective interaction is compared with the SLy2, SKM, f{sub −}, f{sub 0}, and f{sub +} forms of interactions.« less

Protective Effect of Ad-VEGF-Bone Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Cerebral Infarction.

PubMed

Chen, Bo; Zhang, Feng; Li, Qiao-Yu; Gong, Aihua; Lan, Qing

2016-01-01

To understand the mechanism of intracerebroventricular transplantation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) genemodified bone mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) in rats after cerebral infarction. The middle cerebral artery occlusion ischemia/reperfusion (MCAO I/R) model was established in rats using the Zea-Longa suture method. A recombinant adenovirus (Ad-VEGF) was engineered to express VEGF. The rats were divided into 3 groups. Control BMSC infected with control adenovirus (BMSC-Ad), BMSC infected by Ad-VEGF (BMSC-Ad-VEGF), and phosphate buffered saline (PBS) suspension were injected into the intracerebroventricular system of the rats in groups 1, 2 and 3 respectively, 24 hours after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). The neurological function of rats was evaluated with the modified Neurological Severity Scores (mNSS). The infarct volume of brain in rats was determined using 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (TTC) stain at 14 days. GFAP and pGSK3β expression of ischemic penumbra was determined using immunohistochemical method. GFAP, pAKT, AKT, and pGSK3β expressions were determined with Western blot. Functional improvement was accelerated in animals receiving BMSC-Ad, while improvement at all times between 7 days and 28 days post MCAO was significantly greater in animals transplanted with BMSC-Ad-VEGF than for other treated animals. The number of GFAP-labeled cells was prevented by post-ischemic BMSC-Ad-VEGF treatment; pMCAO activate the PI3K/AKT/GSK3β pathway to reduce reactive gliosis. Our findings demonstrate that PI3K/AKT/GSK3β pathway could reduce reactive gliosis, ameliorate neurological deficit, diminish the percentage of cerebral infarction volume in rats, and facilitate angiogenesis.

Effects of Plinian Eruptions of Somma-vesuvius On People, Animals, Structures and Objects: Inferences From Avellino (3760 Yr B.p.) and Pompei (79 A.d.) Events.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mastrolorenzo, G.; Petrone, P. P.; Geraci, G.; Guarino, F.; Incoronato, A.

An interdisciplinary approach to the archaeological sites affected by Avellino (3750 yr. B.P.) and Pompei (79 A.D.) plinian eruptions of Somma-Vesuvius provides new data relative to the depositional mechanisms. Large scale stratigraphy and local evi- dences provide new informations about the physical conditions at the emplacement of PDCs and their effects on structures, people and environment. Field evidences indicate that fine grained pyroclastic deposits related to the column collapses propagate up to a distance of about 15 km from the crater and emplaced with conspicuous thickness. In both Avellino and Pompei eruptions, direct evidences from archaeological sites in- dicate that the emplacement in intermediate and distal areas was relatively quite (low mechanical energy). The recognition of thin, continuous, fine grained surge deposits up to a distance of ca. 15 km from the crater suggests that turbulence was important and the PDCs advanced as a relatively thick dilute current, very poorly controlled by the topography. Furthermore, due to the very small sizes, the particles were always transported in suspension, even at very low current velocity, thus avoiding vertical grading to occur. However, due to the very high depositional mass rate, the emplace- ment was very rapid causing buildings and hut, objects, animals and people to be engulfed within the ash deposits thus preserving their original position, as seen at Herculaneum, Oplontis, Pompeii (79 AD) and Nola (3760 bp). The skeletons of hu- man as well animal victims show high temperature effects. In particular, microscopic bones texture of the victims in the sites affected by the 79 A.D are consistent with very high temperatures, which are anomalous in pyroclastic surge clouds.

Stability of warped AdS3 vacua of topologically massive gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anninos, Dionysios; Esole, Mboyo; Guica, Monica

2009-10-01

AdS3 vacua of topologically massive gravity (TMG) have been shown to be perturbatively unstable for all values of the coupling constant except the chiral point μl = 1. We study the possibility that the warped vacua of TMG, which exist for all values of μ, are stable under linearized perturbations. In this paper, we show that spacelike warped AdS3 vacua with Compère-Detournay boundary conditions are indeed stable in the range μl>3. This is precisely the range in which black hole solutions arise as discrete identifications of the warped AdS3 vacuum. The situation somewhat resembles chiral gravity: although negative energy modes do exist, they are all excluded by the boundary conditions, and the perturbative spectrum solely consists of boundary (pure large gauge) gravitons.

Lysophosphatidylcholine and amide as metabolites for detecting alzheimer disease using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry-based metabonomics.

PubMed

Cui, Yu; Liu, Xiuqin; Wang, Maoqing; Liu, Liyan; Sun, Xiaohong; Ma, Lan; Xie, Wei; Wang, Chao; Tang, Sisi; Wang, Decai; Wu, Qunhong

2014-10-01

Alzheimer disease (AD) can be diagnosed by clinical and neuropsychologic tests and at autopsy, but there are no simple effective diagnostic methods for detecting biomarkers in patients at early stages of cognitive impairment. Early metabolic alterations that may facilitate AD diagnosis have not been thoroughly explored. We applied a nontargeted metabonomic approach using ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry to analyze serum and urine samples from 46 patients with AD and 36 healthy controls. Metabolite profiles were processed using multivariate analysis to identify potential metabolites, which were further confirmed using tandem mass spectrometry. Ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry methods were additionally used to quantify potentially important biomarkers. Independent samples were then selected to validate the identified biomarkers. There was a clear separation between healthy controls and AD patients; AD patient samples had disordered amino acid and phospholipid metabolism and dysregulated palmitic amide. Receiver operator characteristic curve and quantification suggested that palmitic amide, lysophosphatidylcholine (LysoPC, 18:0), LysoPC(18:2), L-glutamine, and 5-L-glutamylglycine were the optimal metabolites. In addition, areas under the curve from the palmitic amide, LysoPC(18:2), and 5-L-glutamylglycine in the validation study were 0.714, 0.996, and 0.734, respectively. These data elucidate the metabolic alterations associated with AD and suggest new biomarkers for AD diagnosis, thereby permitting early intervention designed to prevent disease progression.

17 CFR 240.17Ad-4 - Applicability of §§ 240.17Ad-2, 240.17Ad-3 and 240.17Ad-6(a) (1) through (7) and (11).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 17 Commodity and Securities Exchanges 3 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Applicability of §§ 240.17Ad-2, 240.17Ad-3 and 240.17Ad-6(a) (1) through (7) and (11). 240.17Ad-4 Section 240.17Ad-4 Commodity... Commission or the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, prepare and maintain in its possession a...

17 CFR 240.17Ad-4 - Applicability of §§ 240.17Ad-2, 240.17Ad-3 and 240.17Ad-6(a) (1) through (7) and (11).

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 17 Commodity and Securities Exchanges 3 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Applicability of §§ 240.17Ad-2, 240.17Ad-3 and 240.17Ad-6(a) (1) through (7) and (11). 240.17Ad-4 Section 240.17Ad-4 Commodity... Commission or the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, prepare and maintain in its possession a...

Constraining neutrino masses, the cosmological constant and BSM physics from the weak gravity conjecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibáñez, Luis E.; Martín-Lozano, Víctor; Valenzuela, Irene

2017-11-01

It is known that there are AdS vacua obtained from compactifying the SM to 2 or 3 dimensions. The existence of such vacua depends on the value of neutrino masses through the Casimir effect. Using the Weak Gravity Conjecture, it has been recently argued by Ooguri and Vafa that such vacua are incompatible with the SM embedding into a consistent theory of quantum gravity. We study the limits obtained for both the cosmological constant Λ4 and neutrino masses from the absence of such dangerous 3D and 2D SM AdS vacua. One interesting implication is that Λ4 is bounded to be larger than a scale of order m ν 4 , as observed experimentally. Interestingly, this is the first argument implying a non-vanishing Λ4 only on the basis of particle physics, with no cosmological input. Conversely, the observed Λ4 implies strong constraints on neutrino masses in the SM and also for some BSM extensions including extra Weyl or Dirac spinors, gravitinos and axions. The upper bounds obtained for neutrino masses imply (for fixed neutrino Yukawa and Λ4) the existence of upper bounds on the EW scale. In the case of massive Majorana neutrinos with a see-saw mechanism associated to a large scale M ≃ 1010 - 14 GeV and Y ν1 ≃ 10-3, one obtains that the EW scale cannot exceed M EW ≲ 102 - 104 GeV. From this point of view, the delicate fine-tuning required to get a small EW scale would be a mirage, since parameters yielding higher EW scales would be in the swampland and would not count as possible consistent theories. This would bring a new perspective into the issue of the EW hierarchy.

Heat Transfer and Entropy Generation Analysis of an Intermediate Heat Exchanger in ADS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yongwei; Huai, Xiulan

2018-04-01

The intermediate heat exchanger for enhancement heat transfer is the important equipment in the usage of nuclear energy. In the present work, heat transfer and entropy generation of an intermediate heat exchanger (IHX) in the accelerator driven subcritical system (ADS) are investigated experimentally. The variation of entropy generation number with performance parameters of the IHX is analyzed, and effects of inlet conditions of the IHX on entropy generation number and heat transfer are discussed. Compared with the results at two working conditions of the constant mass flow rates of liquid lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) and helium gas, the total pumping power all tends to reduce with the decreasing entropy generation number, but the variations of the effectiveness, number of transfer units and thermal capacity rate ratio are inconsistent, and need to analyze respectively. With the increasing inlet mass flow rate or LBE inlet temperature, the entropy generation number increases and the heat transfer is enhanced, while the opposite trend occurs with the increasing helium gas inlet temperature. The further study is necessary for obtaining the optimized operation parameters of the IHX to minimize entropy generation and enhance heat transfer.

Effects of Added Lipids on Digestibility and Nitrogen Balance in Oiled Common Murres ( Uria aalge ) and Western Grebes ( Aechmophorus occidentalis ) Fed Four Formulations of a Critical Care Diet.

PubMed

Duerr, Rebecca S; Klasing, Kirk C

2017-06-01

Nutritional support is a primary therapy administered to oiled animals during responses to oil spills, but data informing nutritional decision-making during events are limited. In this study, 44 common murres ( Uria aalge ) and 6 Western grebes ( Aechmophorus occidentalis ), naturally oiled by oceanic seeps off the coast of Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties, CA, USA, were assigned to 1 of 4 groups fed diets with varying levels (6.8% [no added oil], 11%, and 20%) and types (salmon, corn) of oil added to a partially purified basal diet. Birds used in the study ranged from extremely emaciated to thin body condition (62%-80% wild bird mean body mass). Acid-insoluble ash was used as an indigestible dietary marker to quantify nitrogen retention, apparent nitrogen digestibility, nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy, energy digestibility, fat retention, fat digestibility, and estimated fat excretion. Fat excretion is important in these species because once birds have been cleaned they are at risk of plumage recontamination from excreted fat during care. Lower fat diets resulted in lower fat excretion but higher nitrogen retention, higher apparent nitrogen digestibility, and higher apparent metabolizable energy. Decreases in nitrogen retention were significantly related to increases in fat excretion. Regardless of diet, energy digestibility significantly declined with declines in body mass, suggesting severity of emaciation reduced a birds' ability to extract energy from food. Energy digestibility was highest in the 11% (low) salmon oil diet; hence, this diet had the highest effective energy content despite a lower gross kcal/kg diet. Diets fed during oil spills historically have had high fat concentrations to provide maximum caloric support. Results of this study suggest that lower fat diets may be more efficacious for nutritionally depleted seabirds. This study provides valuable data to guide clinical decision making regarding nutritional support during oil

ADIABATIC MASS LOSS IN BINARY STARS. II. FROM ZERO-AGE MAIN SEQUENCE TO THE BASE OF THE GIANT BRANCH

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ge, Hongwei; Chen, Xuefei; Han, Zhanwen

2015-10-10

In the limit of extremely rapid mass transfer, the response of a donor star in an interacting binary becomes asymptotically one of adiabatic expansion. We survey here adiabatic mass loss from Population I stars (Z = 0.02) of mass 0.10 M{sub ⊙}–100 M{sub ⊙} from the zero-age main sequence to the base of the giant branch, or to central hydrogen exhaustion for lower main sequence stars. The logarithmic derivatives of radius with respect to mass along adiabatic mass-loss sequences translate into critical mass ratios for runaway (dynamical timescale) mass transfer, evaluated here under the assumption of conservative mass transfer. Formore » intermediate- and high-mass stars, dynamical mass transfer is preceded by an extended phase of thermal timescale mass transfer as the star is stripped of most of its envelope mass. The critical mass ratio q{sub ad} (throughout this paper, we follow the convention of defining the binary mass ratio as q ≡ M{sub donor}/M{sub accretor}) above which this delayed dynamical instability occurs increases with advancing evolutionary age of the donor star, by ever-increasing factors for more massive donors. Most intermediate- or high-mass binaries with nondegenerate accretors probably evolve into contact before manifesting this instability. As they approach the base of the giant branch, however, and begin developing a convective envelope, q{sub ad} plummets dramatically among intermediate-mass stars, to values of order unity, and a prompt dynamical instability occurs. Among low-mass stars, the prompt instability prevails throughout main sequence evolution, with q{sub ad} declining with decreasing mass, and asymptotically approaching q{sub ad} = 2/3, appropriate to a classical isentropic n = 3/2 polytrope. Our calculated q{sub ad} values agree well with the behavior of time-dependent models by Chen and Han of intermediate-mass stars initiating mass transfer in the Hertzsprung gap. Application of our results to cataclysmic variables, as

Dual functional bioactive-peptide, AIMP1-derived peptide (AdP), for anti-aging.

PubMed

Kim, Jina; Kang, Sujin; Kwon, HanJin; Moon, HoSang; Park, Min Chul

2018-06-19

Human skin aging is caused by several factors, such as UV irradiation, stress, hormone, and pollution. Wrinkle formation and skin pigmentation are representative features of skin aging. Although EGF and arbutin are used as anti-wrinkle and skin whitening agents, respectively, they have adverse effects on skin. When more cosmeceutical ingredients are added to cosmetic product, adverse effects are also accumulated. For these reasons, multifunctional and safe cosmetic ingredients are in demand. The aim of the present study is to investigate the novel anti-aging agents, AIMP1-derived peptide (AdP, INCI name: sh-oligopeptide-5/sh-oligopeptide SP) for cosmetic products. To assess the anti-wrinkle effect of AdP, collagen type I synthesis and fibroblast proliferation were determined on human fibroblasts. The anti-wrinkle effect of AdP was examined by ELISA and cell titer glo assay. To assess the whitening, melanin content and tyrosinase activity were determined on melanocytes. The whitening effect of AdP was examined by melanin measurement and enzyme activity assay. The safety of AdP was determined by cytotoxicity and immunogenicity, CCK-8 and TNF-α ELISA assay, respectively. AdP treatment induced the collagen type I synthesis and fibroblast proliferation. Also, AdP treatment inhibited melanin synthesis by regulating tyrosinase activity. The anti-aging effect of AdP is more potent than EGF and albutin. AdP did not show adverse effects. These results show that AdP can be dual functional and safe cosmeceutical agent to prevent skin aging. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Assessing the effect of adding interactive modeling to the geoscience curriculum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castillo, A.; Marshall, J.; Cardenas, M.

2013-12-01

Technology and computer models enhance the learning experience when appropriately utilized. Moreover, learning is significantly improved when effective visualization is combined with models of processes allowing for inquiry-based problem solving. Still, hands-on experiences in real scenarios result in better contextualization of related problems compared to virtual laboratories. Therefore, the role of scientific visualization, technology, and computer modeling is to enhance, not displace, the learning experience by supplementing real-world problem solving and experiences, although in some circumstances, they can adequately serve to take the place of reality. The key to improving scientific education is to embrace an inquiry-based approach that favorably uses technology. This study will attempt to evaluate the effect of adding interactive modeling to the geological sciences curriculum. An assessment tool, designed to assess student understanding of physical hydrology, was used to evaluate a curriculum intervention based on student learning with a data- and modeling-driven approach using COMSOL Multiphysics software. This intervention was implemented in an upper division and graduate physical hydrology course in fall 2012. Students enrolled in the course in fall 2011 served as the control group. Interactive modeling was added to the curriculum in fall 2012 to replace the analogous mathematical modeling done by hand in fall 2011. Pre- and post-test results were used to assess and report its effectiveness. Student interviews were also used to probe student reactions to both the experimental and control curricula. The pre- and post-tests asked students to describe the significant processes in the hydrological cycle and describe the laws governing these processes. Their ability to apply their knowledge in a real-world problem was also assessed. Since the pre- and post-test data failed to meet the assumption of normality, a non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test was run to

The effects of malicious nodes on performance of mobile ad hoc networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Fanzhi; Shi, Xiyu; Jassim, Sabah; Adams, Christopher

2006-05-01

Wireless ad hoc networking offers convenient infrastructureless communication over the shared wireless channel. However, the nature of ad hoc networks makes them vulnerable to security attacks. Unlike their wired counterpart, infrastructureless ad hoc networks do not have a clear line of defense, their topology is dynamically changing, and every mobile node can receive messages from its neighbors and can be contacted by all other nodes in its neighborhood. This poses a great danger to network security if some nodes behave in a malicious manner. The immediate concern about the security in this type of networks is how to protect the network and the individual mobile nodes against malicious act of rogue nodes from within the network. This paper is concerned with security aspects of wireless ad hoc networks. We shall present results of simulation experiments on ad hoc network's performance in the presence of malicious nodes. We shall investigate two types of attacks and the consequences will be simulated and quantified in terms of loss of packets and other factors. The results show that network performance, in terms of successful packet delivery ratios, significantly deteriorates when malicious nodes act according to the defined misbehaving characteristics.

Effects of Distortion on Mass Flow Plug Calibration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sasson, Jonathan; Davis, David O.; Barnhart, Paul J.

2015-01-01

A numerical, and experimental investigation to study the effects of flow distortion on a Mass Flow Plug (MFP) used to control and measure mass-flow during an inlet test has been conducted. The MFP was first calibrated using the WIND-US flow solver for uniform (undistorted) inflow conditions. These results are shown to compare favorably with an experimental calibration under similar conditions. The effects of distortion were investigated by imposing distorted flow conditions taken from an actual inlet test to the inflow plane of the numerical simulation. The computational fluid dynamic (CFD) based distortion study only showed the general trend in mass flow rate. The study used only total pressure as the upstream boundary condition, which was not enough to define the flow. A better simulation requires knowledge of the turbulence structure and a specific distortion pattern over a range of plug positions. It is recommended that future distortion studies utilize a rake with at least the same amount of pitot tubes as the AIP rake.

Drinking to Thirst Versus Drinking Ad Libitum During Road Cycling

PubMed Central

Armstrong, Lawrence E.; Johnson, Evan C.; Kunces, Laura J.; Ganio, Matthew S.; Judelson, Daniel A.; Kupchak, Brian R.; Vingren, Jakob L.; Munoz, Colleen X.; Huggins, Robert A.; Hydren, Jay R.; Moyen, Nicole E.; Williamson, Keith H.

2014-01-01

Context: The sensation of thirst is different from the complex behavior of drinking ad libitum. Rehydration recommendations to athletes differ, depending on the source, yet no previous researchers have systematically compared drinking to thirst (DTT) versus ad libitum drinking behavior (DAL). Objective: To compare 2 groups of trained cyclists (DTT and DAL) who had similar physical characteristics and training programs (P > .05). The DTT group (n = 12, age = 47 ± 7 years) drank only when thirsty, whereas the DAL group (n = 12, age = 44 ± 7 years) consumed fluid ad libitum (ie, whenever and in whatever volume desired). Design: Cohort study. Setting: Road cycling (164 km) in the heat (36.1°C ± 6.5°C). Patients or Other Participants: Ultraendurance cyclists (4 women, 20 men). Intervention(s): We recorded measurements 1 day before the event, on event day before the start, at 3 roadside aid stations, at the finish line, and 1 day after the event. Main Outcome Measure(s): Body mass, urinary hydration indices, and food and fluids consumed. Results: No between-groups differences were seen on event day for total exercise time (DTT = 6.69 ± 0.89 hours, DAL = 6.66 ± 0.77 hours), urinary indices (specific gravity, color), body mass change (DTT = −2.22% ± 1.73%, DAL = −2.29% ± 1.62%), fluid intake (DTT = 5.63 ± 2.59 L/6.7 h, DAL = 6.04 ± 2.37 L/6.7 h), dietary energy intake, macronutrient intake, ratings of thirst (DTT start = 2 ± 1, DTT finish = 6 ± 1, DAL start = 2 ± 1, DAL finish = 6 ± 1), pain, perceived exertion, or thermal sensation. Total fluid intake on recovery day +1 was the primary significant difference (DAL = 5.13 ± 1.87 L/24 h, DTT = 3.13 ± 1.53 L/24 h, t18 = 2.59, P = .02). Conclusions: Observations on event day indicated that drinking to thirst and drinking ad libitum resulted in similar physiologic and perceptual outcomes. This suggests that specific instructions to “drink to thirst” were unnecessary. Indeed, if athletes drink ad libitum

Issue ads and the health reform debate.

PubMed

Bergan, Daniel; Risner, Genevieve

2012-06-01

The public debate over health care reform in 2009 was carried out partly through issue advertisements aired online and on television. Did these advertisements alter the course of the debate over health care reform? While millions of dollars are spent each year on issue ads, little is known about their effects. Results from a naturalistic online experiment on the effects of issue ads suggest that they can influence the perceived importance of an issue and perceptions of politicians associated with the featured policy while influencing policy support only among those low in political awareness.

Infrared realization of dS2 in AdS2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anninos, Dionysios; Hofman, Diego M.

2018-04-01

We describe a two-dimensional geometry that smoothly interpolates between an asymptotically AdS2 geometry and the static patch of dS2. We find this ‘centaur’ geometry to be a solution of dilaton gravity with a specific class of potentials for the dilaton. We interpret the centaur geometry as a thermal state in the putative quantum mechanics dual to the AdS2 evolved with the global Hamiltonian. We compute the thermodynamic properties and observe that the centaur state has finite entropy and positive specific heat. The static patch is the infrared part of the centaur geometry. We discuss boundary observables sensitive to the static patch region.

QCD Condensates and Holographic Wilson Loops for Asymptotically AdS Spaces

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Quevedo, R. Carcasses; Goity, Jose L.; Trinchero, Roberto C.

2014-02-01

The minimization of the Nambu-Goto (NG) action for a surface whose contour defines a circular Wilson loop of radius a placed at a finite value of the coordinate orthogonal to the border is considered. This is done for asymptotically AdS spaces. The condensates of dimension n = 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 are calculated in terms of the coefficients in the expansion in powers of the radius a of the on-shell subtracted NG action for small a->0. The subtraction employed is such that it presents no conflict with conformal invariance in the AdS case and need not introduce anmore » additional infrared scale for the case of confining geometries. It is shown that the UV value of the gluon condensates is universal in the sense that it only depends on the first coefficients of the difference with the AdS case.« less

Effect of Sodium Selenate on Hippocampal Proteome of 3×Tg-AD Mice-Exploring the Antioxidant Dogma of Selenium against Alzheimer's Disease.

PubMed

Iqbal, Javed; Zhang, Kaoyuan; Jin, Na; Zhao, Yuxi; Liu, Qiong; Ni, Jiazuan; Shen, Liming

2018-04-19

Selenium (Se), an antioxidant trace element, is an important nutrient for maintaining brain functions and is reported to be involved in Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathologies. The present study has been designed to elucidate the protein changes in hippocampus of 3×Tg-AD mice after supplementing sodium selenate as an inorganic source of selenium. By using iTRAQ proteomics technology, 113 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) are found in AD/WT mice with 37 upregulated and 76 downregulated proteins. Similarly, in selenate-treated 3×Tg-AD (ADSe/AD) mice, 115 DEPs are found with 98 upregulated and 17 downregulated proteins. The third group of mice (ADSe/WT) showed 75 DEPs with 46 upregulated and 29 downregulated proteins. Among these results, 42 proteins (40 downregulated and 2 upregulated) in the diseased group showed reverse expression when treated with selenate. These DEPs are analyzed with different bioinformatics tools and are found associated with various AD pathologies and pathways. Based on their functions, selenate-reversed proteins are classified as structural proteins, metabolic proteins, calcium regulating proteins, synaptic proteins, signaling proteins, stress related proteins, and transport proteins. Six altered AD associated proteins are successfully validated by Western blot analysis. This study shows that sodium selenate has a profound effect on the hippocampus of the triple transgenic AD mice. This might be established as an effective therapeutic agent after further investigation.

Static Einstein-Maxwell Black Holes with No Spatial Isometries in AdS Space.

PubMed

Herdeiro, Carlos A R; Radu, Eugen

2016-11-25

We explicitly construct static black hole solutions to the fully nonlinear, D=4, Einstein-Maxwell-anti-de Sitter (AdS) equations that have no continuous spatial symmetries. These black holes have a smooth, topologically spherical horizon (section), but without isometries, and approach, asymptotically, global AdS spacetime. They are interpreted as bound states of a horizon with the Einstein-Maxwell-AdS solitons recently discovered, for appropriate boundary data. In sharp contrast to the uniqueness results for a Minkowski electrovacuum, the existence of these black holes shows that single, equilibrium, black hole solutions in an AdS electrovacuum admit an arbitrary multipole structure.

On the Effective Mass of the Electron Neutrino in Beta Decay

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Farzan, Yasaman

2002-12-20

In the presence of mixing between massive neutrino states, the distortion of the electron spectrum in beta decay is, in general, a function of several masses and mixing angles. For 3{nu}-schemes which describe the solar and atmospheric neutrino data, this distortion can be described by a single effective mass, under certain conditions. In the literature, two different definitions for the effective mass have been suggested. We show that for quasi-degenerate mass schemes (with an overall mass scale m and splitting {Delta}m{sup 2}) the two definitions coincide up to ({Delta}m{sup 2}){sup 2}/m{sup 4} corrections. We consider the impact of different effectivemore » masses on the integral energy spectrum. We show that the spectrum with a single mass can be used also to fit the data in the case of 4{nu}-schemes motivated, in particular, by the LSND results. In this case the accuracy of the mass determination turns out to be better than (10-15)%.« less

Beyond Traditional School Value-Added Models: A Multilevel Analysis of Complex School Effects in Chile

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Troncoso, Patricio; Pampaka, Maria; Olsen, Wendy

2016-01-01

School value-added studies have largely demonstrated the effects of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of the schools and the pupils on performance in standardised tests. Traditionally, these studies have assessed the variation coming only from the schools and the pupils. However, recent studies have shown that the analysis of academic…

Optical Spring Effect in Micro-Bubble Resonators and Its Application for the Effective Mass Measurement of Optomechanical Resonant Mode

PubMed Central

Chen, Zhenmin; Wu, Xiang; Liu, Liying; Xu, Lei

2017-01-01

In this work, we present a novel approach for obtaining the effective mass of mechanical vibration mode in micro-bubble resonators (MBRs). To be specific, the effective mass is deduced from the measurement of optical spring effect (OSE) in MBRs. This approach is demonstrated and applied to analyze the effective mass of hollow MBRs and liquid-filled MBRs, respectively. It is found that the liquid-filled MBRs has significantly stronger OSE and a less effective mass than hollow MBRs, both of the extraordinary behaviors can be beneficial for applications such as mass sensing. Larger OSE from higher order harmonics of the mechanical modes is also observed. Our work paves a way towards the developing of OSE-based high sensitive mass sensor in MBRs. PMID:28974004

Optical Spring Effect in Micro-Bubble Resonators and Its Application for the Effective Mass Measurement of Optomechanical Resonant Mode.

PubMed

Chen, Zhenmin; Wu, Xiang; Liu, Liying; Xu, Lei

2017-09-30

In this work, we present a novel approach for obtaining the effective mass of mechanical vibration mode in micro-bubble resonators (MBRs). To be specific, the effective mass is deduced from the measurement of optical spring effect (OSE) in MBRs. This approach is demonstrated and applied to analyze the effective mass of hollow MBRs and liquid-filled MBRs, respectively. It is found that the liquid-filled MBRs has significantly stronger OSE and a less effective mass than hollow MBRs, both of the extraordinary behaviors can be beneficial for applications such as mass sensing. Larger OSE from higher order harmonics of the mechanical modes is also observed. Our work paves a way towards the developing of OSE-based high sensitive mass sensor in MBRs.

Mass transfer effects in a gasification riser

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Breault, Ronald W.; Li, Tingwen; Nicoletti, Phillip

2013-07-01

In the development of multiphase reacting computational fluid dynamics (CFD) codes, a number of simplifications were incorporated into the codes and models. One of these simplifications was the use of a simplistic mass transfer correlation for the faster reactions and omission of mass transfer effects completely on the moderate speed and slow speed reactions such as those in a fluidized bed gasifier. Another problem that has propagated is that the mass transfer correlation used in the codes is not universal and is being used far from its developed bubbling fluidized bed regime when applied to circulating fluidized bed (CFB) risermore » reactors. These problems are true for the major CFD codes. To alleviate this problem, a mechanistic based mass transfer coefficient algorithm has been developed based upon an earlier work by Breault et al. This fundamental approach uses the local hydrodynamics to predict a local, time varying mass transfer coefficient. The predicted mass transfer coefficients and the corresponding Sherwood numbers agree well with literature data and are typically about an order of magnitude lower than the correlation noted above. The incorporation of the new mass transfer model gives the expected behavior for all the gasification reactions evaluated in the paper. At the expected and typical design values for the solid flow rate in a CFB riser gasifier an ANOVA analysis has shown the predictions from the new code to be significantly different from the original code predictions. The new algorithm should be used such that the conversions are not over predicted. Additionally, its behaviors with changes in solid flow rate are consistent with the changes in the hydrodynamics.« less

Inferring Social Influence of Anti-Tobacco Mass Media Campaign.

PubMed

Zhan, Qianyi; Zhang, Jiawei; Yu, Philip S; Emery, Sherry; Xie, Junyuan

2017-07-01

Anti-tobacco mass media campaigns are designed to influence tobacco users. It has been proved that campaigns will produce users' changes in awareness, knowledge, and attitudes, and also produce meaningful behavior change of audience. Anti-smoking television advertising is the most important part in the campaign. Meanwhile, nowadays, successful online social networks are creating new media environment, however, little is known about the relation between social conversations and anti-tobacco campaigns. This paper aims to infer social influence of these campaigns, and the problem is formally referred to as the Social Influence inference of anti-Tobacco mass mEdia campaigns (Site) problem. To address the Site problem, a novel influence inference framework, TV advertising social influence estimation (Asie), is proposed based on our analysis of two real anti-tobacco campaigns. Asie divides audience attitudes toward TV ads into three distinct stages: 1) cognitive; 2) affective; and 3) conative. Audience online reactions at each of these three stages are depicted by Asie with specific probabilistic models based on the synergistic influences from both online social friends and offline TV ads. Extensive experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of Asie.

Effect of processing and storage on the stability of flaxseed lignan added to bakery products.

PubMed

Hyvärinen, Helena K; Pihlava, Juha-Matti; Hiidenhovi, Jaakko A; Hietaniemi, Veli; Korhonen, Hannu J T; Ryhänen, Eeva-Liisa

2006-01-11

The study focused on the effects of processing and storage on the stability of flaxseed-derived secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG) added to various bakery products. The SDG concentration of doughs, baked rye breads, graham buns, and muffins was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection; the baked products were analyzed immediately after baking and upon storage at room temperature for 1 week and at -25 degrees C for 1 and 2 months, respectively. Added SDG was found to withstand normal baking temperatures in all bakery products. SDG also was a relatively stable compound during storage. Similarly, the content of SDG in flax buns containing fat-free flaxseed meal was unaffected by storage. We conclude that cereal-based bakery products can be supplemented with flaxseed-derived SDG.

Hole effective masses and subband splitting in type-II superlattice infrared detectors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ting, David Z., E-mail: David.Z.Ting@jpl.nasa.gov; Soibel, Alexander; Gunapala, Sarath D.

We explore band structure effects to help determine the suitability of n-type type-II superlattice (T2SL) absorbers for infrared detectors. It is often assumed that the exceedingly large growth-direction band-edge curvature hole effective mass in n-type long wavelength infrared (LWIR) T2SL would lead to low hole mobility and therefore low detector collection quantum efficiency. We computed the thermally averaged conductivity effective mass and show that the LWIR T2SL hole conductivity effective mass along the growth direction can be orders of magnitude smaller than the corresponding band-edge effective mass. LWIR InAs/GaSb T2SL can have significantly smaller growth-direction hole conductivity effective mass thanmore » its InAs/InAsSb counterpart. For the InAs/InAsSb T2SL, higher Sb fraction is more favorable for hole transport. Achieving long hole diffusion length becomes progressively more difficult for the InAs/InAsSb T2SL as the cutoff wavelength increases, since its growth-direction hole conductivity effective mass increases significantly with decreasing band gap. However, this is mitigated by the fact that the splitting between the top valence subbands also increases with the cutoff wavelength, leading to reduced inter-subband scattering and increased relaxation time.« less

Spatial and temporal distribution of mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet since AD 1900.

PubMed

Kjeldsen, Kristian K; Korsgaard, Niels J; Bjørk, Anders A; Khan, Shfaqat A; Box, Jason E; Funder, Svend; Larsen, Nicolaj K; Bamber, Jonathan L; Colgan, William; van den Broeke, Michiel; Siggaard-Andersen, Marie-Louise; Nuth, Christopher; Schomacker, Anders; Andresen, Camilla S; Willerslev, Eske; Kjær, Kurt H

2015-12-17

The response of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) to changes in temperature during the twentieth century remains contentious, largely owing to difficulties in estimating the spatial and temporal distribution of ice mass changes before 1992, when Greenland-wide observations first became available. The only previous estimates of change during the twentieth century are based on empirical modelling and energy balance modelling. Consequently, no observation-based estimates of the contribution from the GIS to the global-mean sea level budget before 1990 are included in the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Here we calculate spatial ice mass loss around the entire GIS from 1900 to the present using aerial imagery from the 1980s. This allows accurate high-resolution mapping of geomorphic features related to the maximum extent of the GIS during the Little Ice Age at the end of the nineteenth century. We estimate the total ice mass loss and its spatial distribution for three periods: 1900-1983 (75.1 ± 29.4 gigatonnes per year), 1983-2003 (73.8 ± 40.5 gigatonnes per year), and 2003-2010 (186.4 ± 18.9 gigatonnes per year). Furthermore, using two surface mass balance models we partition the mass balance into a term for surface mass balance (that is, total precipitation minus total sublimation minus runoff) and a dynamic term. We find that many areas currently undergoing change are identical to those that experienced considerable thinning throughout the twentieth century. We also reveal that the surface mass balance term shows a considerable decrease since 2003, whereas the dynamic term is constant over the past 110 years. Overall, our observation-based findings show that during the twentieth century the GIS contributed at least 25.0 ± 9.4 millimetres of global-mean sea level rise. Our result will help to close the twentieth-century sea level budget, which remains crucial for evaluating the reliability of models used to

Spatial and temporal distribution of mass loss from the Greenland Ice Sheet since AD 1900

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kjeldsen, Kristian K.; Korsgaard, Niels J.; Bjørk, Anders A.; Khan, Shfaqat A.; Box, Jason E.; Funder, Svend; Larsen, Nicolaj K.; Bamber, Jonathan L.; Colgan, William; van den Broeke, Michiel; Siggaard-Andersen, Marie-Louise; Nuth, Christopher; Schomacker, Anders; Andresen, Camilla S.; Willerslev, Eske; Kjær, Kurt H.

2015-12-01

The response of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) to changes in temperature during the twentieth century remains contentious, largely owing to difficulties in estimating the spatial and temporal distribution of ice mass changes before 1992, when Greenland-wide observations first became available. The only previous estimates of change during the twentieth century are based on empirical modelling and energy balance modelling. Consequently, no observation-based estimates of the contribution from the GIS to the global-mean sea level budget before 1990 are included in the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Here we calculate spatial ice mass loss around the entire GIS from 1900 to the present using aerial imagery from the 1980s. This allows accurate high-resolution mapping of geomorphic features related to the maximum extent of the GIS during the Little Ice Age at the end of the nineteenth century. We estimate the total ice mass loss and its spatial distribution for three periods: 1900-1983 (75.1 ± 29.4 gigatonnes per year), 1983-2003 (73.8 ± 40.5 gigatonnes per year), and 2003-2010 (186.4 ± 18.9 gigatonnes per year). Furthermore, using two surface mass balance models we partition the mass balance into a term for surface mass balance (that is, total precipitation minus total sublimation minus runoff) and a dynamic term. We find that many areas currently undergoing change are identical to those that experienced considerable thinning throughout the twentieth century. We also reveal that the surface mass balance term shows a considerable decrease since 2003, whereas the dynamic term is constant over the past 110 years. Overall, our observation-based findings show that during the twentieth century the GIS contributed at least 25.0 ± 9.4 millimetres of global-mean sea level rise. Our result will help to close the twentieth-century sea level budget, which remains crucial for evaluating the reliability of models used to

Witten diagrams revisited: the AdS geometry of conformal blocks

DOE PAGES

Hijano, Eliot; Kraus, Per; Perlmutter, Eric; ...

2016-01-25

Here, we develop a new method for decomposing blocks. The steps involved are elementary, requiring no explicit integration, and operate directly in position space. Central to this construction is an appealingly simple answer to the question: what object in AdS computes a conformal block? The answer is a "geodesic Witten diagram", which is essentially an ordinary exchange Witten diagram, except that the cubic vertices are not integrated over all of AdS, but only over bulk geodesics connecting the boundary operators. In particular, we also consider the case of four-point functions of scalar operators, and show how to easily reproduce existingmore » results for the relevant conformal blocks in arbitrary dimension.« less

On Mass Polarization Effect in Three-Body Nuclear Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Filikhin, I.; Kezerashvili, R. Ya.; Suslov, V. M.; Vlahovic, B.

2018-05-01

The mass polarization effect is considered for different three-body nuclear AAB systems having a strongly bound AB and unbound AA subsystems. We employ the Faddeev equations for calculations and the Schrödinger equation for analysis of the contribution of the mass polarization term of the kinetic-energy operator. For a three-boson system the mass polarization effect is determined by the difference of the doubled binding energy of the AB subsystem 2E2 and the three-body binding energy E3(V_{AA}=0) when the interaction between the identical particles is omitted. In this case: | E3(V_{AA}=0)| >2| E2| . In the case of a system complicated by isospins(spins), such as the kaonic clusters K-K-p and ppK-, a similar evaluation is impossible. For these systems it is found that | E3(V_{AA}=0)| <2| E2| . A model with an AB potential averaged over spin(isospin) variables transforms the latter case to the first one. The mass polarization effect calculated within this model is essential for the kaonic clusters. In addition we have obtained the relation |E_3|≤|2E_2| for the binding energy of the kaonic clusters.

Arousal-state modulation in children with AD/HD.

PubMed

Benikos, Nicholas; Johnstone, Stuart J

2009-01-01

To investigate the effect of arousal-state modulation, via manipulation of stimulus event-rate, on response inhibition in children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) using behavioural and ERP measures. Eighteen children with AD/HD, aged 7-14years, and 18 age-and sex-matched controls performed a cued visual Go/Nogo task (70% Go) with stimuli presented at fast, medium and slow event-rates. Task performance and ERPs to Warning, Go and Nogo stimuli, as well as preparation between the S1-S2 interval, were examined for group differences. AD/HD subjects displayed poorer response inhibition during the fast condition, accompanied by a reduced Nogo P3. Group differences during the fast rate extended to Warning cues, with the AD/HD group showing ERP evidence of atypical orienting/preparation, as indexed by the early and late CNV, and early sensory/attentive processing prior to S2. Although deficient response inhibition has been proposed as the core deficit in AD/HD, the results of the present study highlight the key role of energetic factors. Furthermore, group differences found to cues suggest that this effect extends to the processing of task-irrelevant stimuli. This was the first ERP Go/Nogo task investigation using three event-rates, and the results support the theory that state factors may contribute to response inhibition deficits in AD/HD.

Baryon masses and σ terms in SU(3) BChPT × 1/Nc

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fernando, I. P.; Alarcón, J. M.; Goity, J. L.

2018-06-01

Baryon masses and nucleon σ terms are studied with the effective theory that combines the chiral and 1 /Nc expansions for three flavors. In particular the connection between the deviation of the Gell-Mann-Okubo relation and the σ term associated with the scalar density u bar u + d bar d - 2 s bar s is emphasized. The latter is at lowest order related to a mass combination whose low value has given rise to a σ term puzzle. It is shown that while the nucleon σ terms have a well behaved low energy expansion, that mass combination is affected by large higher order corrections non-analytic in quark masses. Adding to the analysis lattice QCD baryon masses, it is found that σπN = 69 (10) MeV and σs has natural magnitude within its relatively large uncertainty.

Cost-effectiveness of dapagliflozin (Forxiga®) added to metformin compared with sulfonylurea added to metformin in type 2 diabetes in the Nordic countries.

PubMed

Sabale, Ugne; Ekman, Mattias; Granström, Ola; Bergenheim, Klas; McEwan, Phil

2015-02-01

The aim of this study was to assess the long-term cost-effectiveness of dapagliflozin (Forxiga(®)) added to metformin, compared with sulfonylurea (SU) added to metformin, in Nordic Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients inadequately controlled on metformin. Data from a 52-week clinical trial comparing dapagliflozin and SU in combination with metformin was used in a Cardiff simulation model to estimate long term diabetes-related complications in a cohort of T2DM patients. Costs and QALYs were calculated from a healthcare provider perspective and estimated over a patient's lifetime. Compared with metformin+SU, the cost per QALY gained with dapagliflozin+metformin was €7944 in Denmark, €5424 in Finland, €4769 in Norway, and €6093 in Sweden. Metformin+dapagliflozin was associated with QALY gains ranging from 0.236 in Norway to 0.278 in Sweden and incremental cost ranging from €1125 in Norway to €1962 in Denmark. Results were robust across both one-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. Results were driven by weight changes associated with each treatment. Results indicate that metformin+dapagliflozin is associated with gains in QALY compared with metformin+SU in Nordic T2DM patients inadequately controlled on metformin. Dapagliflozin treatment is a cost-effective treatment alternative for Type 2 diabetes in all four Nordic countries. Copyright © 2014 Primary Care Diabetes Europe. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Half-BPS Wilson loop and AdS 2/CFT 1

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Giombi, Simone; Roiban, Radu; Tseytlin, Arkady A.

Here, we study correlation functions of local operator insertions on the 1/2-BPS Wilson line in N=4 super Yang–Mills theory. These correlation functions are constrained by the 1d superconformal symmetry pre-served by the 1/2-BPS Wilson line and define a defect CFT 1 living on the line. At strong coupling, a set of elementary operator insertions with protected scaling dimensions correspond to fluctuations of the dual fundamental string in AdS 5×S 5 ending on the line at the boundary and can be thought of as light fields propagating on the AdS 2 worldsheet. We use AdS/CFT techniques to compute the tree-level AdSmore » 2 Witten diagrams describing the strong coupling limit of the four-point functions of the dual operator insertions. Using the OPE, we also extract the leading strong coupling corrections to the anomalous dimensions of the “two-particle” operators built out of elementary excitations. In the case of the circular Wilson loop, we match our results for the 4-point functions of a special type of scalar insertions to the prediction of localization to 2d Yang–Mills theory.« less

Half-BPS Wilson loop and AdS 2/CFT 1

DOE PAGES

Giombi, Simone; Roiban, Radu; Tseytlin, Arkady A.

2017-09-01

Here, we study correlation functions of local operator insertions on the 1/2-BPS Wilson line in N=4 super Yang–Mills theory. These correlation functions are constrained by the 1d superconformal symmetry pre-served by the 1/2-BPS Wilson line and define a defect CFT 1 living on the line. At strong coupling, a set of elementary operator insertions with protected scaling dimensions correspond to fluctuations of the dual fundamental string in AdS 5×S 5 ending on the line at the boundary and can be thought of as light fields propagating on the AdS 2 worldsheet. We use AdS/CFT techniques to compute the tree-level AdSmore » 2 Witten diagrams describing the strong coupling limit of the four-point functions of the dual operator insertions. Using the OPE, we also extract the leading strong coupling corrections to the anomalous dimensions of the “two-particle” operators built out of elementary excitations. In the case of the circular Wilson loop, we match our results for the 4-point functions of a special type of scalar insertions to the prediction of localization to 2d Yang–Mills theory.« less

Are restrictive guidelines for added sugars science based?

PubMed

Erickson, Jennifer; Slavin, Joanne

2015-12-12

Added sugar regulations and recommendations have been proposed by policy makers around the world. With no universal definition, limited access to added sugar values in food products and no analytical difference from intrinsic sugars, added sugar recommendations present a unique challenge. Average added sugar intake by American adults is approximately 13% of total energy intake, and recommendations have been made as low 5% of total energy intake. In addition to public health recommendations, the Food and Drug Administration has proposed the inclusion of added sugar data to the Nutrition and Supplemental Facts Panel. The adoption of such regulations would have implications for both consumers as well as the food industry. There are certainly advantages to including added sugar data to the Nutrition Facts Panel; however, consumer research does not consistently show the addition of this information to improve consumer knowledge. With excess calorie consumption resulting in weight gain and increased risk of obesity and obesity related co-morbidities, added sugar consumption should be minimized. However, there is currently no evidence stating that added sugar is more harmful than excess calories from any other food source. The addition of restrictive added sugar recommendations may not be the most effective intervention in the treatment and prevention of obesity and other health concerns.

Effects of adding bulking agents on the biodrying of kitchen waste and the odor emissions produced.

PubMed

Yuan, Jing; Li, Yun; Zhang, Hongyu; Zhang, Difang; Chadwick, David; Li, Guoxue; Wang, Guoying; Chi, Menghao; Yang, Fan

2018-05-01

The effects of adding a bulking agent on the performance and odor emissions (ammonia and eight sulfur-containing odorous compounds) when biodrying kitchen waste were investigated. Three treatments were considered: the addition of either cornstalks (CS) or wood peat (WP) to kitchen waste as a bulking agent before biodrying, and a control treatment (CK). The water-removal rates for CK, CS, and WP treatments were 0.35, 0.56, and 0.43kg/kg, respectively. Addition of bulking agents to kitchen waste produced less leachate, higher moisture-removal rates, and lower consumption of volatile solids. The CS treatment had the highest biodrying index (4.07), and those for the WP and CK treatments were 3.67 and 1.97, respectively. Adding cornstalks or wood peat decreased NH 3 emissions by 55.8% and 71.7%, respectively. Total sulfur losses were 3.6%-21.6% after 21days biodrying, and H 2 S and Me 2 SS were the main (>95%) sulfur compounds released. The smallest amounts of sulfur-containing odorous compounds were emitted when cornstalks were added, and adding cornstalks and wood peat decreased total sulfur losses by 50.6%-64.8%. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Examining the effects of mass media campaign exposure and interpersonal discussions on youth's drug use: the mediating role of visiting pro-drug websites.

PubMed

Kam, Jennifer A; Lee, Chul-Joo

2013-01-01

To extend past research on interpersonal communication and campaign effects, we hypothesized that anti-drug mass media campaign message exposure indirectly affects visiting anti- and pro-drug websites through targeted parent-child and friend-to-friend communication against drugs, as well as through having drug-related discussions during organized group activities. Second, we posited that engaging in anti-drug interpersonal communication indirectly affects adolescents' drug use through two intervening variables: visiting anti-drug websites and visiting pro-drug websites. Using self-reported longitudinal data from 2,749 youth, we found that as youth reported higher levels of anti-drug mass media campaign message exposure, they were more likely to talk to friends about the bad consequences of drugs, how to avoid drugs, and anti-drug ads. In turn, however, they were more likely to visit pro-drug websites, and subsequently, to smoke cigarettes.

Energy dependence of effective electron mass and laser-induced ionization of wide band-gap solids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gruzdev, V. E.

2008-10-01

Most of the traditional theoretical models of laser-induced ionization were developed under the assumption of constant effective electron mass or weak dependence of the effective mass on electron energy. Those assumptions exclude from consideration all the effects resulting from significant increase of the effective mass with increasing of electron energy in real the conduction band. Promotion of electrons to the states with high effective mass can be done either via laserinduced electron oscillations or via electron-particle collisions. Increase of the effective mass during laser-material interactions can result in specific regimes of ionization. Performing a simple qualitative analysis by comparison of the constant-mass approximation vs realistic dependences of the effective mass on electron energy, we demonstrate that the traditional ionization models provide reliable estimation of the ionization rate in a very limited domain of laser intensity and wavelength. By taking into account increase of the effective mass with electron energy, we demonstrate that special regimes of high-intensity photo-ionization are possible depending on laser and material parameters. Qualitative analysis of the energy dependence of the effective mass also leads to conclusion that the avalanche ionization can be stopped by the effect of electron trapping in the states with large values of the effective mass.

Value-Added to What? How a Ceiling in the Testing Instrument Influences Value-Added Estimation. NBER Working Paper No. 14778

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koedel, Cory; Betts, Julian

2009-01-01

Value-added measures of teacher quality may be sensitive to the quantitative properties of the student tests upon which they are based. This paper focuses on the sensitivity of value- added to test-score-ceiling effects. Test-score ceilings are increasingly common in testing instruments across the country as education policy continues to emphasize…

Evaporation of large black holes in AdS: coupling to the evaporon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rocha, Jorge V.

2008-08-01

Large black holes in an asymptotically AdS spacetime have a dual description in terms of approximately thermal states in the boundary CFT. The reflecting boundary conditions of AdS prevent such black holes from evaporating completely. On the other hand, the formulation of the information paradox becomes more stringent when a black hole is allowed to evaporate. In order to address the information loss problem from the AdS/CFT perspective we then need the boundary to become partially absorptive. We present a simple model that produces the necessary changes on the boundary by coupling a bulk scalar field to the evaporon, an external field propagating in one extra spatial dimension. The interaction is localized at the boundary of AdS and leads to partial transmission into the additional space. The transmission coefficient is computed in the planar limit and perturbatively in the coupling constant. Evaporation of the large black hole corresponds to cooling down the CFT by transferring energy to an external sector.

The AdS/CFT Correspondence: Classical, Quantum, and Thermodynamical Aspects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, Donovan

2007-06-01

Certain aspects of the AdS/CFT correspondence are studied in detail. We investigate the one-loop mass shift to certain two-impurity string states in light-cone string field theory on a plane wave background. We find that there exist logarithmic divergences in the sums over intermediate mode numbers which cancel between the cubic Hamiltonian and quartic "contact term". We argue that generically, every order in intermediate state impurities contributes to the mass shift at leading perturbative order. The same mass shift is also computed using an improved 3-string vertex proposed by Dobashi and Yoneya. The result is found to agree with gauge theory at leading order and is close but not quite in agreement at subleading order. We extend the analysis to include discrete light-cone quantization, considering states with up to three units of p+. We study the (apparently) first-order phase transition in the weakly coupled plane-wave matrix model at finite temperature. We analyze the effect of interactions by computing the relevant parts of the effective potential for the Polyakov loop operator to three loop order. We show that the phase transition is indeed of first order. We also compute the 2-loop correction to the Hagedorn temperature. Finally, correlation functions of 1/4 BPS Wilson loops with the infinite family of 1/2 BPS chiral primary operators are computed in N=4 super Yang-Mills theory by summing planar ladder diagrams. The correlation functions are also computed in the strong-coupling limit using string theory; the result is found to agree with the extrapolation of the planar ladders. The result is related to similar correlators of 1/2 BPS loops by a simple re-scaling of the coupling constant, discovered by Drukker for the case of the 1/4 BPS loop VEV.

Position space analysis of the AdS (in)stability problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dimitrakopoulos, Fotios V.; Freivogel, Ben; Lippert, Matthew; Yang, I.-Sheng

2015-08-01

We investigate whether arbitrarily small perturbations in global AdS space are generically unstable and collapse into black holes on the time scale set by gravitational interactions. We argue that current evidence, combined with our analysis, strongly suggests that a set of nonzero measure in the space of initial conditions does not collapse on this time scale. We perform an analysis in position space to study this puzzle, and our formalism allows us to directly study the vanishing-amplitude limit. We show that gravitational self-interaction leads to tidal deformations which are equally likely to focus or defocus energy, and we sketch the phase diagram accordingly. We also clarify the connection between gravitational evolution in global AdS and holographic thermalization.

Aspects of AdS/CFT: Conformal Deformations and the Goldstone Equivalence Theorem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cantrell, Sean Andrew

The AdS/CFT correspondence provides a map from the states of theories situated in AdSd+1 to those in dual conformal theories in a d-dimensional space. The correspondence can be used to establish certain universal properties of some theories in one space by examining the behave of general objects in the other. In this thesis, we develop various formal aspects of AdS/CFT. Conformal deformations manifest in the AdS/CFT correspondence as boundary conditions on the AdS field. Heretofore, double-trace deformations have been the primary focus in this context. To better understand multitrace deformations, we revisit the relationship between the generating AdS partition function for a free bulk theory and the boundary CFT partition function subject to arbitrary conformal deformations. The procedure leads us to a formalism that constructs bulk fields from boundary operators. We independently replicate the holographic RG flow narrative to go on to interpret the brane used to regulate the AdS theory as a renormalization scale. The scale-dependence of the dilatation spectrum of a boundary theory in the presence of general deformations can be thus understood on the AdS side using this formalism. The Goldstone equivalence theorem allows one to relate scattering amplitudes of massive gauge fields to those of scalar fields in the limit of large scattering energies. We generalize this theorem under the framework of the AdS/CFT correspondence. First, we obtain an expression of the equivalence theorem in terms of correlation functions of creation and annihilation operators by using an AdS wave function approach to the AdS/CFT dictionary. It is shown that the divergence of the non-conserved conformal current dual to the bulk gauge field is approximately primary when computing correlators for theories in which the masses of all the exchanged particles are sufficiently large. The results are then generalized to higher spin fields. We then go on to generalize the theorem using conformal

A Value-Added Study of Teacher Spillover Effects across Four Core Subjects in Middle Schools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yuan, Kun

2015-01-01

This study examined the existence, magnitude, and impact of teacher spillover effects (TSEs) across teachers of four subject areas (i.e., mathematics, English language arts [ELA], science, and social studies) on student achievement in each of the four subjects at the middle school level. The author conducted a series of value-added (VA) analyses,…

Comparing the Effects of Four Instructional Treatments on EFL Students' Achievement in Writing Classified Ads

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Khodabandeh, Farzaneh

2016-01-01

The current study set out to compare the effect of traditional and non-traditional instructional treatments; i.e. explicit, implicit, task-based and no-instruction approaches on students' abilities to learn how to write classified ads. 72 junior students who have all taken a course in Reading Journalistic Texts at the Payame-Noor University…

Quantum spectral curve for the η-deformed AdS5 × S5 superstring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klabbers, Rob; van Tongeren, Stijn J.

2017-12-01

The spectral problem for the AdS5 ×S5 superstring and its dual planar maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory can be efficiently solved through a set of functional equations known as the quantum spectral curve. We discuss how the same concepts apply to the η-deformed AdS5 ×S5 superstring, an integrable deformation of the AdS5 ×S5 superstring with quantum group symmetry. This model can be viewed as a trigonometric version of the AdS5 ×S5 superstring, like the relation between the XXZ and XXX spin chains, or the sausage and the S2 sigma models for instance. We derive the quantum spectral curve for the η-deformed string by reformulating the corresponding ground-state thermodynamic Bethe ansatz equations as an analytic Y system, and map this to an analytic T system which upon suitable gauge fixing leads to a Pμ system - the quantum spectral curve. We then discuss constraints on the asymptotics of this system to single out particular excited states. At the spectral level the η-deformed string and its quantum spectral curve interpolate between the AdS5 ×S5 superstring and a superstring on "mirror" AdS5 ×S5, reflecting a more general relationship between the spectral and thermodynamic data of the η-deformed string. In particular, the spectral problem of the mirror AdS5 ×S5 string, and the thermodynamics of the undeformed AdS5 ×S5 string, are described by a second rational limit of our trigonometric quantum spectral curve, distinct from the regular undeformed limit.

FRW solutions and holography from uplifted AdS/CFT systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Xi; Horn, Bart; Matsuura, Shunji; Silverstein, Eva; Torroba, Gonzalo

2012-05-01

Starting from concrete AdS/CFT dual pairs, one can introduce ingredients which produce cosmological solutions, including metastable de Sitter and its decay to nonaccelerating Friedmann-Robertson-Walker. We present simple Friedmann-Robertson-Walker solutions sourced by magnetic flavor branes and analyze correlation functions and particle and brane dynamics. To obtain a holographic description, we exhibit a time-dependent warped metric on the solution and interpret the resulting redshifted region as a Lorentzian low energy effective field theory in one fewer dimension. At finite times, this theory has a finite cutoff, a propagating lower-dimensional graviton, and a finite covariant entropy bound, but at late times the lower-dimensional Planck mass and entropy go off to infinity in a way that is dominated by contributions from the low energy effective theory. This opens up the possibility of a precise dual at late times. We reproduce the time-dependent growth of the number of degrees of freedom in the system via a count of available microscopic states in the corresponding magnetic brane construction.

Determination of microcystin-LR in drinking water using UPLC tandem mass spectrometry-matrix effects and measurement.

PubMed

Li, Wei; Duan, Jinming; Niu, Chaoying; Qiang, Naichen; Mulcahy, Dennis

2011-10-01

A simple detection method using ultra-performance liquid chromatography electrospray ionisation tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS-MS) coupled with the sample dilution method for determining trace microcystin-LR (MC-LR) in drinking water is presented. The limit of detection (LOD) was 0.04 µg/L and the limit of quantitation (LOQ) was 0.1 µg/L. Water matrix effects of ionic strength, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and pH were examined. The results indicate that signal detection intensity for MC-LR was significantly suppressed as the ionic strength increased from ultrapure water condition, whereas it increased slightly with solution pH and DOC at low concentrations. However, addition of methanol (MeOH) into the sample was able to counter the signal suppression effects. In this study, dilution of the tap water sample by adding 4% MeOH (v/v) was observed to be adequate to compensate for the signal suppression. The recoveries of the samples fortified with MC-LR (0.2, 1, and 10 µg/L) for three different tap water samples ranged from 84.4% to 112.9%.

High-fat Diet Decreases Cancellous Bone Mass But Has No Effect on Cortical Bone Mass in the Tibia in Mice

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Introduction: Body mass has a positive effect on bone mineral density and the strength. Whether mass derived from an obesity condition is beneficial to bone has not been established; neither have the mechanism by which obesity affects bone metabolism. The aim of this study was to examine the effects...

Effects of E-Cigarette Health Warnings and Modified Risk Ad Claims on Adolescent E-Cigarette Craving and Susceptibility.

PubMed

Andrews, J Craig; Mays, Darren; Netemeyer, Richard G; Burton, Scot; Kees, Jeremy

2018-04-16

A between-subjects experiment examines the effects of different warning types and modified risk e-cigarette ad claims on adolescent e-cigarette craving and future e-cigarette susceptibility for two different themes. One theme focuses on nicotine and addiction, and the other on the effects of potentially harmful constituents (e.g., flavored chemicals and lung disease). The effects of warning type (control, text-only, graphic health warning (GHW) and text) and modified risk e-cigarette ad claims (control, exposure reduction, risk reduction) are tested experimentally with two different arms (themes) for a sample of 1,011 adolescents who had tried either e-cigarettes or cigarettes. For addiction, the text-only warning led to significantly less e-cigarette susceptibility than the no warning control condition. As expected, there were no differences between the GHW + text condition and text-only or control conditions for e-cigarette craving. An interaction between warning type and modified risk claims revealed significantly fewer e-cigarette cravings and less susceptibility for the text-only warning and no claim (control) condition than for any other condition. For fatal lung disease, the GHW + text condition led to fewer e-cigarette cravings and less susceptibility than the text-only warning and no warning (control) conditions. Warning type effects can be very different under different themes (e.g., addiction, fatal lung disease). In general, our results point to the effectiveness of the text-only warning for addiction and GHW + text for fatal lung disease. Relative exposure and risk modification claims (e.g., less nicotine; less addicting) tend to undercut addiction warnings. More than one type of e-cigarette warning may be necessary as e-cigarette research evolves. Our results show different warning type effects (e.g., text-only; GHW + text) on e-cigarette craving and future susceptibility for adolescent experimenters depending on the risk theme (e.g., addiction; lung

Fermionic halos at finite temperature in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Argüelles, Carlos R.; Grandi, Nicolás E.

2018-05-01

We explore the gravitational backreaction of a system consisting in a very large number of elementary fermions at finite temperature, in asymptotically AdS space. We work in the hydrodynamic approximation, and solve the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equations with a perfect fluid whose equation of state takes into account both the relativistic effects of the fermionic constituents, as well as its finite temperature effects. We find a novel dense core-diluted halo structure for the density profiles in the AdS bulk, similarly as recently reported in flat space, for the case of astrophysical dark matter halos in galaxies. We further study the critical equilibrium configurations above which the core undergoes gravitational collapse towards a massive black hole, and calculate the corresponding critical central temperatures, for two qualitatively different central regimes of the fermions: the diluted-Fermi case, and the degenerate case. As a probe for the dual CFT, we construct the holographic two-point correlator of a scalar operator with large conformal dimension in the worldline limit, and briefly discuss on the boundary CFT effects at the critical points.

Effective Mass Calculations for Two-dimensional Gas of Dipolar Fermions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seydi, I.; Abedinpour, S. H.; Tanatar, B.

2017-06-01

We consider a two-dimensional system of ultracold dipolar fermions with dipole moments aligned in the perpendicular direction. We use the static structure factor information from Fermi-Hypernetted-Chain calculations to obtain the effective many-body dipole-dipole interaction and calculate the many-body effective mass of the system within the G0W approximation to the self-energy. A large cancellation between different contributions to the self-energy results in a weak dependence of the effective mass on the interaction strength over a large range of coupling constants.

A Correlated Random Effects Model for Nonignorable Missing Data in Value-Added Assessment of Teacher Effects

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karl, Andrew T.; Yang, Yan; Lohr, Sharon L.

2013-01-01

Value-added models have been widely used to assess the contributions of individual teachers and schools to students' academic growth based on longitudinal student achievement outcomes. There is concern, however, that ignoring the presence of missing values, which are common in longitudinal studies, can bias teachers' value-added scores.…

Can mass media advetising increase contraceptive use?

PubMed

Udry, J R; Clark, L T; Chase, C L; Levy, M

1972-07-01

A $330,000 multimedia advertising campaign was undertaken in 4 U.S. cities (Columbus, Ohio; Memphis, Tennessee; Altoona, Pennsylvania; Jackson, Mississippi) November 1970-May 1971 by the Family Planning Evaluation project (University of North Carolina) to evaluate the cost and effectiveness of commercial advertising in increasing contraceptive utilization among active fertile individuals. The ads ran on radio, television, in special editions of Life and Look, and in local daily, ethnic, and community newspapers. The level of complaints was below what had been anticipated, and there was no unacceptable community opposition even in the saturation cases. The level of awareness was higher during the campaign for television and radio advertising but not for newspaper and magazine advertising (interviews). The number of "new" patients to family planning clinics was low (ranging from 24 to 444) and it appears that mass media advertising is not an effective recruitment technique. No differences were found in new prescription sales of oral contraceptives or sales of condoms between the media sites and their controls during the 6-month campaign. Mass media campaigns might be more effective in non-US settings where contraceptive knowledge is not great and usage is not widespread.

Music and Moral Judgment: The Effect of Background Music on the Evaluation of Ads Promoting Unethical Behavior

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ziv, Naomi; Hoftman, Moran; Geyer, Mor

2012-01-01

Background music is often used in ads as a means of persuasion. Previous research has studied the effect of music in advertising using neutral or uncontroversial products. The aim of the studies reported here was to examine the effect of music on the perception of products promoting unethical behavior. Each of the series of three studies described…

Vacuum currents in braneworlds on AdS bulk with compact dimensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bellucci, S.; Saharian, A. A.; Vardanyan, V.

2015-11-01

The two-point function and the vacuum expectation value (VEV) of the current density are investigated for a massive charged scalar field with arbitrary curvature coupling in the geometry of a brane on the background of AdS spacetime with partial toroidal compactification. The presence of a gauge field flux, enclosed by compact dimensions, is assumed. On the brane the field obeys Robin boundary condition and along compact dimensions periodicity conditions with general phases are imposed. There is a range in the space of the values for the coefficient in the boundary condition where the Poincaré vacuum is unstable. This range depends on the location of the brane and is different for the regions between the brane and AdS boundary and between the brane and the horizon. In models with compact dimensions the stability condition is less restrictive than that for the AdS bulk with trivial topology. The vacuum charge density and the components of the current along non-compact dimensions vanish. The VEV of the current density along compact dimensions is a periodic function of the gauge field flux with the period equal to the flux quantum. It is decomposed into the boundary-free and brane-induced contributions. The asymptotic behavior of the latter is investigated near the brane, near the AdS boundary and near the horizon. It is shown that, in contrast to the VEVs of the field squared an denergy-momentum tensor, the current density is finite on the brane and vanishes for the special case of Dirichlet boundary condition. Both the boundary-free and brane-induced contributions vanish on the AdS boundary. The brane-induced contribution vanishes on the horizon and for points near the horizon the current is dominated by the boundary-free part. In the near-horizon limit, the latter is connected to the corresponding quantity for a massless field in the Minkowski bulk by a simple conformal relation. Depending on the value of the Robin coefficient, the presence of the brane can either

Adding value to laboratory medicine: a professional responsibility.

PubMed

Beastall, Graham H

2013-01-01

Laboratory medicine is a medical specialty at the centre of healthcare. When used optimally laboratory medicine generates knowledge that can facilitate patient safety, improve patient outcomes, shorten patient journeys and lead to more cost-effective healthcare. Optimal use of laboratory medicine relies on dynamic and authoritative leadership outside as well as inside the laboratory. The first responsibility of the head of a clinical laboratory is to ensure the provision of a high quality service across a wide range of parameters culminating in laboratory accreditation against an international standard, such as ISO 15189. From that essential baseline the leadership of laboratory medicine at local, national and international level needs to 'add value' to ensure the optimal delivery, use, development and evaluation of the services provided for individuals and for groups of patients. A convenient tool to illustrate added value is use of the mnemonic 'SCIENCE'. This tool allows added value to be considered in seven domains: standardisation and harmonisation; clinical effectiveness; innovation; evidence-based practice; novel applications; cost-effectiveness; and education of others. The assessment of added value in laboratory medicine may be considered against a framework that comprises three dimensions: operational efficiency; patient management; and patient behaviours. The profession and the patient will benefit from sharing examples of adding value to laboratory medicine.

Open string fluctuations in AdS space with and without torsion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larsen, A. L.; Lomholt, M. A.

2003-09-01

The equations of motion and boundary conditions for the fluctuations around a classical open string, in a curved space-time with torsion, are considered in compact and world-sheet covariant form. The rigidly rotating open strings in anti de Sitter space with and without torsion are investigated in detail. By carefully analyzing the tangential fluctuations at the boundary, we show explicitly that the physical fluctuations (which at the boundary are combinations of normal and tangential fluctuations) are finite, even though the world-sheet is singular there. The divergent 2-curvature thus seems less dangerous than expected in these cases. The general formalism can be straightforwardly used also to study the (bosonic part of the) fluctuations around the closed strings, recently considered in connection with the AdS/conformal field theory duality, on AdS5×S5 and AdS3×S3×T4.

AdS5×S(5) mirror model as a string sigma model.

PubMed

Arutyunov, Gleb; van Tongeren, Stijn J

2014-12-31

Doing a double Wick rotation in the world sheet theory of the light cone AdS5×S(5) superstring results in an inequivalent, so-called mirror theory that plays a central role in the field of integrability in the AdS-CFT correspondence. We show that this mirror theory can be interpreted as the light cone theory of a free string on a different background. This background is related to dS5×H(5) by a double T-duality, and has hidden supersymmetry. The geometry can also be extracted from an integrable deformation of the AdS5×S(5) sigma model, and we prove the observed mirror duality of these deformed models at the bosonic level as a byproduct. While we focus on AdS5×S(5), our results apply more generally.

Symmetry operators of Killing spinors and superalgebras in AdS5

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ertem, Ümit

2016-04-01

We construct the first-order symmetry operators of Killing spinor equation in terms of odd Killing-Yano forms. By modifying the Schouten-Nijenhuis bracket of Killing-Yano forms, we show that the symmetry operators of Killing spinors close into an algebra in AdS5 spacetime. Since the symmetry operator algebra of Killing spinors corresponds to a Jacobi identity in extended Killing superalgebras, we investigate the possible extensions of Killing superalgebras to include higher-degree Killing-Yano forms. We found that there is a superalgebra extension but no Lie superalgebra extension of the Killing superalgebra constructed out of Killing spinors and odd Killing-Yano forms in AdS5 background.

Functional determinants of radial operators in AdS2

DOE PAGES

Aguilera-Damia, Jeremías; Faraggi, Alberto; Zayas, Leopoldo Pando; ...

2018-06-01

We study the zeta-function regularization of functional determinants of Laplace and Dirac-type operators in two-dimensional Euclidean AdS2 space. More specifically, we consider the ratio of determinants between an operator in the presence of background fields with circular symmetry and the free operator in which the background fields are absent. By Fourier-transforming the angular dependence, one obtains an infinite number of one-dimensional radial operators, the determinants of which are easy to compute. The summation over modes is then treated with care so as to guarantee that the result coincides with the two-dimensional zeta-function formalism. The method relies on some well-known techniquesmore » to compute functional determinants using contour integrals and the construction of the Jost function from scattering theory. Our work generalizes some known results in flat space. The extension to conformal AdS2 geometries is also considered. We provide two examples, one bosonic and one fermionic, borrowed from the spectrum of fluctuations of the holographic 1/4-BPS latitude Wilson loop.« less

Functional determinants of radial operators in AdS 2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aguilera-Damia, Jeremías; Faraggi, Alberto; Zayas, Leopoldo Pando; Rathee, Vimal; Silva, Guillermo A.

2018-06-01

We study the zeta-function regularization of functional determinants of Laplace and Dirac-type operators in two-dimensional Euclidean AdS 2 space. More specifically, we consider the ratio of determinants between an operator in the presence of background fields with circular symmetry and the free operator in which the background fields are absent. By Fourier-transforming the angular dependence, one obtains an infinite number of one-dimensional radial operators, the determinants of which are easy to compute. The summation over modes is then treated with care so as to guarantee that the result coincides with the two-dimensional zeta-function formalism. The method relies on some well-known techniques to compute functional determinants using contour integrals and the construction of the Jost function from scattering theory. Our work generalizes some known results in flat space. The extension to conformal AdS 2 geometries is also considered. We provide two examples, one bosonic and one fermionic, borrowed from the spectrum of fluctuations of the holographic 1/4 -BPS latitude Wilson loop.

First archeointensity results from Portuguese potteries (1550-1750 AD)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartmann, Gelvam A.; Trindade, Ricardo I. F.; Goguitchaichvili, Avto; Etchevarne, Carlos; Morales, Juan; Afonso, Marisa C.

2009-01-01

Geomagnetic field variations at archeomagnetic timescales can be obtained from well-dated heated structures and archeological potsherds. Here, we present the first archeointensity results obtained on Portuguese ceramics (1550 to 1750 AD) collected at Brazilian archeological sites. The results are compared to those obtained from Western Europe and currently available geomagnetic field models. Continuous thermomagnetic and IRM acquisitions curves indicate that Ti-poor titanomagnetite is responsible for the remanence in these ceramic fragments. Five fragments (24 samples) out of twelve analyzed yielded reliable intensity estimates. The row archeointensity data were corrected for TRM anisotropy and cooling rate effect. The mean dipole moments are obtained for three different age intervals: 1550±30 AD, 1600±30 AD and 1750±50 AD. Mean intensities vary from 37.9±4.2 μT to 54.8±7.6 μT in agreement with the previously reported data for 1550 AD and 1750 AD. Relatively weaker, but still highly dispersed, values were obtained for 1600 AD ceramics.

Baryon masses and σ terms in SU(3) BChPT×1/N c

DOE PAGES

Fernando, Ishara P.; Alarcon-Soriano, Jose-Manuel; Goity, Jose Luis

2018-04-27

Baryon masses and nucleonmore » $$\\sigma$$ terms are studied with the effective theory that combines the chiral and $$1/N_c$$ expansions for three flavors. In particular the connection between the deviation of the Gell-Mann-Okubo relation and the $$\\sigma$$ term associated with the scalar density $$\\bar u u+\\bar d d-2\\bar s s$$ is emphasized. The latter is at lowest order related to a mass combination whose low value has given rise to a $$\\sigma$$ term puzzle. It is shown that while the nucleon $$\\sigma$$ terms have a well behaved low energy expansion, that mass combination is affected by large higher order corrections non-analytic in quark masses. Lastly, adding to the analysis lattice QCD baryon masses, it is found that $$\\sigma_{\\pi N}=69(10)$$~MeV and $$\\sigma_s$$ has natural magnitude within its relative large uncertainty.« less

Baryon masses and σ terms in SU(3) BChPT×1/N c

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fernando, Ishara P.; Alarcon-Soriano, Jose-Manuel; Goity, Jose Luis

Baryon masses and nucleonmore » $$\\sigma$$ terms are studied with the effective theory that combines the chiral and $$1/N_c$$ expansions for three flavors. In particular the connection between the deviation of the Gell-Mann-Okubo relation and the $$\\sigma$$ term associated with the scalar density $$\\bar u u+\\bar d d-2\\bar s s$$ is emphasized. The latter is at lowest order related to a mass combination whose low value has given rise to a $$\\sigma$$ term puzzle. It is shown that while the nucleon $$\\sigma$$ terms have a well behaved low energy expansion, that mass combination is affected by large higher order corrections non-analytic in quark masses. Lastly, adding to the analysis lattice QCD baryon masses, it is found that $$\\sigma_{\\pi N}=69(10)$$~MeV and $$\\sigma_s$$ has natural magnitude within its relative large uncertainty.« less

Quantification of free convection effects on 1 kg mass standards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schreiber, M.; Emran, M. S.; Fröhlich, T.; Schumacher, J.; Thess, A.

2015-12-01

We determine the free-convection effects and the resulting mass differences in a high-precision mass comparator for cylindrical and spherical 1 kg mass standards at different air pressures. The temperature differences are chosen in the millikelvin range and lead to microgram updrafts. Our studies reveal a good agreement between the measurements and direct numerical simulations of the Boussinesq equations of free thermal convection. A higher sensitivity to the free convection effects is found for the spherical case compared to the cylindrical one. We also translate our results on the free convection effects into a form which is used in fluid mechanics: a dimensionless updraft coefficient as a function of the dimensionless Grashof number Gr that quantifies the thermal driving due to temperature differences. This relation displays a unique scaling behavior over nearly four decades in Gr and levels off into geometry-specific constants for the very small Grashof numbers. The obtained results provide a rational framework for estimating systematic errors in mass metrology due to the effects of free convection.

Sources of Added Sugars in Young Children, Adolescents, and Adults with Low and High Intakes of Added Sugars

PubMed Central

Fulgoni, Victor L.; Cowan, Alexandra E.; Gaine, P. Courtney

2018-01-01

High intake of added sugars is associated with excess energy intake and poorer diet quality. The objective of this cross-sectional study (n = 16,806) was to estimate usual intakes and the primary food sources of added sugars across the range of intakes (i.e., deciles) among U.S. children (2–8 years), adolescents and teens (9–18 years), and adults (≥19 years) using the National Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES) data from 2009–2012. The percent energy contributed by added sugars was 14.3 ± 0.2% (2–8 years), 16.2 ± 0.2% (9–18 years), and 13.1 ± 0.2% (≥19 years), suggesting the highest intakes are among adolescents and teens. However, the primary foods/beverages that contribute to added sugars were remarkably consistent across the range of intakes, with the exception of the lowest decile, and include sweetened beverages and sweet bakery products. Interestingly across all age groups, even those in the lowest decile of added sugars exceed the 10% guidelines. Additional foods contributing to high intakes were candy and other desserts (e.g., ice cream) in children and adolescents, and coffee and teas in adults. Tailoring public health messaging to reduce intakes of these identified food groups may be of utility in designing effective strategies to reduce added sugar intake in the U.S. PMID:29342109

Sources of Added Sugars in Young Children, Adolescents, and Adults with Low and High Intakes of Added Sugars.

PubMed

Bailey, Regan L; Fulgoni, Victor L; Cowan, Alexandra E; Gaine, P Courtney

2018-01-17

High intake of added sugars is associated with excess energy intake and poorer diet quality. The objective of this cross-sectional study ( n = 16,806) was to estimate usual intakes and the primary food sources of added sugars across the range of intakes (i.e., deciles) among U.S. children (2-8 years), adolescents and teens (9-18 years), and adults (≥19 years) using the National Health and Nutrition Examination (NHANES) data from 2009-2012. The percent energy contributed by added sugars was 14.3 ± 0.2% (2-8 years), 16.2 ± 0.2% (9-18 years), and 13.1 ± 0.2% (≥19 years), suggesting the highest intakes are among adolescents and teens. However, the primary foods/beverages that contribute to added sugars were remarkably consistent across the range of intakes, with the exception of the lowest decile, and include sweetened beverages and sweet bakery products. Interestingly across all age groups, even those in the lowest decile of added sugars exceed the 10% guidelines. Additional foods contributing to high intakes were candy and other desserts (e.g., ice cream) in children and adolescents, and coffee and teas in adults. Tailoring public health messaging to reduce intakes of these identified food groups may be of utility in designing effective strategies to reduce added sugar intake in the U.S.

Euclidean Wilson loops and minimal area surfaces in lorentzian AdS 3

DOE PAGES

Irrgang, Andrew; Kruczenski, Martin

2015-12-14

The AdS/CFT correspondence relates Wilson loops in N=4 SYM theory to minimal area surfaces in AdS 5 × S 5 space. If the Wilson loop is Euclidean and confined to a plane (t, x) then the dual surface is Euclidean and lives in Lorentzian AdS 3 c AdS 5. In this paper we study such minimal area surfaces generalizing previous results obtained in the Euclidean case. Since the surfaces we consider have the topology of a disk, the holonomy of the flat current vanishes which is equivalent to the condition that a certain boundary Schrödinger equation has all its solutionsmore » anti-periodic. If the potential for that Schrödinger equation is found then reconstructing the surface and finding the area become simpler. In particular we write a formula for the Area in terms of the Schwarzian derivative of the contour. Finally an infinite parameter family of analytical solutions using Riemann Theta functions is described. In this case, both the area and the shape of the surface are given analytically and used to check the previous results.« less

Holographic Rényi entropy in AdS3/LCFT2 correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Bin; Song, Feng-yan; Zhang, Jia-ju

2014-03-01

The recent study in AdS3/CFT2 correspondence shows that the tree level contribution and 1-loop correction of holographic Rényi entanglement entropy (HRE) exactly match the direct CFT computation in the large central charge limit. This allows the Rényi entanglement entropy to be a new window to study the AdS/CFT correspondence. In this paper we generalize the study of Rényi entanglement entropy in pure AdS3 gravity to the massive gravity theories at the critical points. For the cosmological topological massive gravity (CTMG), the dual conformal field theory (CFT) could be a chiral conformal field theory or a logarithmic conformal field theory (LCFT), depending on the asymptotic boundary conditions imposed. In both cases, by studying the short interval expansion of the Rényi entanglement entropy of two disjoint intervals with small cross ratio x, we find that the classical and 1-loop HRE are in exact match with the CFT results, up to order x 6. To this order, the difference between the massless graviton and logarithmic mode can be seen clearly. Moreover, for the cosmological new massive gravity (CNMG) at critical point, which could be dual to a logarithmic CFT as well, we find the similar agreement in the CNMG/LCFT correspondence. Furthermore we read the 2-loop correction of graviton and logarithmic mode to HRE from CFT computation. It has distinct feature from the one in pure AdS3 gravity.

Algebraic solutions of shape-invariant position-dependent effective mass systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Amir, Naila, E-mail: naila.amir@live.com, E-mail: naila.amir@seecs.edu.pk; Iqbal, Shahid, E-mail: sic80@hotmail.com, E-mail: siqbal@sns.nust.edu.pk

2016-06-15

Keeping in view the ordering ambiguity that arises due to the presence of position-dependent effective mass in the kinetic energy term of the Hamiltonian, a general scheme for obtaining algebraic solutions of quantum mechanical systems with position-dependent effective mass is discussed. We quantize the Hamiltonian of the pertaining system by using symmetric ordering of the operators concerning momentum and the spatially varying mass, initially proposed by von Roos and Lévy-Leblond. The algebraic method, used to obtain the solutions, is based on the concepts of supersymmetric quantum mechanics and shape invariance. In order to exemplify the general formalism a class ofmore » non-linear oscillators has been considered. This class includes the particular example of a one-dimensional oscillator with different position-dependent effective mass profiles. Explicit expressions for the eigenenergies and eigenfunctions in terms of generalized Hermite polynomials are presented. Moreover, properties of these modified Hermite polynomials, like existence of generating function and recurrence relations among the polynomials have also been studied. Furthermore, it has been shown that in the harmonic limit, all the results for the linear harmonic oscillator are recovered.« less

Scale effects and morphological diversification in hindlimb segment mass proportions in neognath birds.

PubMed

Kilbourne, Brandon M

2014-01-01

In spite of considerable work on the linear proportions of limbs in amniotes, it remains unknown whether differences in scale effects between proximal and distal limb segments has the potential to influence locomotor costs in amniote lineages and how changes in the mass proportions of limbs have factored into amniote diversification. To broaden our understanding of how the mass proportions of limbs vary within amniote lineages, I collected data on hindlimb segment masses - thigh, shank, pes, tarsometatarsal segment, and digits - from 38 species of neognath birds, one of the most speciose amniote clades. I scaled each of these traits against measures of body size (body mass) and hindlimb size (hindlimb length) to test for departures from isometry. Additionally, I applied two parameters of trait evolution (Pagel's λ and δ) to understand patterns of diversification in hindlimb segment mass in neognaths. All segment masses are positively allometric with body mass. Segment masses are isometric with hindlimb length. When examining scale effects in the neognath subclade Land Birds, segment masses were again positively allometric with body mass; however, shank, pedal, and tarsometatarsal segment masses were also positively allometric with hindlimb length. Methods of branch length scaling to detect phylogenetic signal (i.e., Pagel's λ) and increasing or decreasing rates of trait change over time (i.e., Pagel's δ) suffer from wide confidence intervals, likely due to small sample size and deep divergence times. The scaling of segment masses appears to be more strongly related to the scaling of limb bone mass as opposed to length, and the scaling of hindlimb mass distribution is more a function of scale effects in limb posture than proximo-distal differences in the scaling of limb segment mass. Though negative allometry of segment masses appears to be precluded by the need for mechanically sound limbs, the positive allometry of segment masses relative to body mass may

Scale effects and morphological diversification in hindlimb segment mass proportions in neognath birds

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Introduction In spite of considerable work on the linear proportions of limbs in amniotes, it remains unknown whether differences in scale effects between proximal and distal limb segments has the potential to influence locomotor costs in amniote lineages and how changes in the mass proportions of limbs have factored into amniote diversification. To broaden our understanding of how the mass proportions of limbs vary within amniote lineages, I collected data on hindlimb segment masses – thigh, shank, pes, tarsometatarsal segment, and digits – from 38 species of neognath birds, one of the most speciose amniote clades. I scaled each of these traits against measures of body size (body mass) and hindlimb size (hindlimb length) to test for departures from isometry. Additionally, I applied two parameters of trait evolution (Pagel’s λ and δ) to understand patterns of diversification in hindlimb segment mass in neognaths. Results All segment masses are positively allometric with body mass. Segment masses are isometric with hindlimb length. When examining scale effects in the neognath subclade Land Birds, segment masses were again positively allometric with body mass; however, shank, pedal, and tarsometatarsal segment masses were also positively allometric with hindlimb length. Methods of branch length scaling to detect phylogenetic signal (i.e., Pagel’s λ) and increasing or decreasing rates of trait change over time (i.e., Pagel’s δ) suffer from wide confidence intervals, likely due to small sample size and deep divergence times. Conclusions The scaling of segment masses appears to be more strongly related to the scaling of limb bone mass as opposed to length, and the scaling of hindlimb mass distribution is more a function of scale effects in limb posture than proximo-distal differences in the scaling of limb segment mass. Though negative allometry of segment masses appears to be precluded by the need for mechanically sound limbs, the positive allometry of

Boundary stress tensor and asymptotically AdS3 non-Einstein spaces at the chiral point

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giribet, Gaston; Goya, Andrés; Leston, Mauricio

2011-09-01

Chiral gravity admits asymptotically AdS3 solutions that are not locally equivalent to AdS3; meaning that solutions do exist which, while obeying the strong boundary conditions usually imposed in general relativity, happen not to be Einstein spaces. In topologically massive gravity (TMG), the existence of non-Einstein solutions is particularly connected to the question about the role played by complex saddle points in the Euclidean path integral. Consequently, studying (the existence of) nonlocally AdS3 solutions to chiral gravity is relevant to understanding the quantum theory. Here, we discuss a special family of nonlocally AdS3 solutions to chiral gravity. In particular, we show that such solutions persist when one deforms the theory by adding the higher-curvature terms of the so-called new massive gravity. Moreover, the addition of higher-curvature terms to the gravity action introduces new nonlocally AdS3 solutions that have no analogues in TMG. Both stationary and time-dependent, axially symmetric solutions that asymptote AdS3 space without being locally equivalent to it appear. Defining the boundary stress tensor for the full theory, we show that these non-Einstein geometries have associated vanishing conserved charges.

A universal counting of black hole microstates in AdS4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Azzurli, Francesco; Bobev, Nikolay; Crichigno, P. Marcos; Min, Vincent S.; Zaffaroni, Alberto

2018-02-01

Many three-dimensional N=2 SCFTs admit a universal partial topological twist when placed on hyperbolic Riemann surfaces. We exploit this fact to derive a universal formula which relates the planar limit of the topologically twisted index of these SCFTs and their three-sphere partition function. We then utilize this to account for the entropy of a large class of supersymmetric asymptotically AdS4 magnetically charged black holes in M-theory and massive type IIA string theory. In this context we also discuss novel AdS2 solutions of eleven-dimensional supergravity which describe the near horizon region of large new families of supersymmetric black holes arising from M2-branes wrapping Riemann surfaces.

Nurse Value-Added and Patient Outcomes in Acute Care

PubMed Central

Yakusheva, Olga; Lindrooth, Richard; Weiss, Marianne

2014-01-01

Objective The aims of the study were to (1) estimate the relative nurse effectiveness, or individual nurse value-added (NVA), to patients’ clinical condition change during hospitalization; (2) examine nurse characteristics contributing to NVA; and (3) estimate the contribution of value-added nursing care to patient outcomes. Data Sources/Study Setting Electronic data on 1,203 staff nurses matched with 7,318 adult medical–surgical patients discharged between July 1, 2011 and December 31, 2011 from an urban Magnet-designated, 854-bed teaching hospital. Study Design Retrospective observational longitudinal analysis using a covariate-adjustment value-added model with nurse fixed effects. Data Collection/Extraction Methods Data were extracted from the study hospital's electronic patient records and human resources databases. Principal Findings Nurse effects were jointly significant and explained 7.9 percent of variance in patient clinical condition change during hospitalization. NVA was positively associated with having a baccalaureate degree or higher (0.55, p = .04) and expertise level (0.66, p = .03). NVA contributed to patient outcomes of shorter length of stay and lower costs. Conclusions Nurses differ in their value-added to patient outcomes. The ability to measure individual nurse relative value-added opens the possibility for development of performance metrics, performance-based rankings, and merit-based salary schemes to improve patient outcomes and reduce costs. PMID:25256089

UPLC-ESI-Q-TOF-MS(E) and GC-MS identification and quantification of non-intentionally added substances coming from biodegradable food packaging.

PubMed

Canellas, Elena; Vera, Paula; Nerín, Cristina

2015-09-01

Biodegradable packagings are made by combination of several materials creating a multilayer with the properties needed. Each material, including the adhesive, could contain substances that could migrate to the food. In this work, gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry and ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry were used to identify the biodegradable adhesive compounds. Five of the 13 compounds identified were nonintentionally added substances; they were neoformed compounds created by the reaction of added compounds in the adhesive. Moreover, the migration of the compounds through four different biodegradable materials-paper, polylactic acid, ecovio®, and polyvinyl alcohol-was studied for the first time. Three of the 13 compounds identified in the adhesive migrated from the adhesive to Tenax®, which was used as a solid food simulant. One of them, 2,4,7,9-tetramethyl-5-decyne-4,7-diol, was an intentionally added substance, and the other two were 1,6-dioxacyclododecane-7,12-dione and 1,6,13,18-tetraoxacyclotetracosane-7,12,19,24-tetraone, which were nonintentionally added substances identified in this work. Higher migration values (ranging from 0.81 to 2.07 mg/kg) were observed for migration through ecovio® than through the multilayer made by combination of ecovio® and polyvinyl alcohol (0.07-0.39 mg/kg) owing to the barrier effect provided by polyvinyl alcohol. The migration values for migration through paper and polylactic acid were below the limits of detection.

Image Ads and Issue Ads in U.S. Presidential Advertising: Using Videostyle To Explore Stylistic Differences in Televised Political Ads From 1952 to 2000.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnston, Anne; Kaid, Lynda Lee

2002-01-01

Explores the differences in techniques, strategies, narratives, and symbols used in 1,213 television issue ads and image ads from 13 U.S. presidential campaigns. Concludes that although the majority of both types of ads were positive, negative appeals dominated a higher percentage of issue ads as compared with image ads. (SG)

Effective dose evaluation of NORM-added consumer products using Monte Carlo simulations and the ICRP computational human phantoms.

PubMed

Lee, Hyun Cheol; Yoo, Do Hyeon; Testa, Mauro; Shin, Wook-Geun; Choi, Hyun Joon; Ha, Wi-Ho; Yoo, Jaeryong; Yoon, Seokwon; Min, Chul Hee

2016-04-01

The aim of this study is to evaluate the potential hazard of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) added consumer products. Using the Monte Carlo method, the radioactive products were simulated with ICRP reference phantom and the organ doses were calculated with the usage scenario. Finally, the annual effective doses were evaluated as lower than the public dose limit of 1mSv y(-1) for 44 products. It was demonstrated that NORM-added consumer products could be quantitatively assessed for the safety regulation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Genetically Predicted Body Mass Index and Alzheimer’s Disease Related Phenotypes in Three Large Samples: Mendelian Randomization Analyses

PubMed Central

Mukherjee, Shubhabrata; Walter, Stefan; Kauwe, John S.K.; Saykin, Andrew J.; Bennett, David A.; Larson, Eric B.; Crane, Paul K.; Glymour, M. Maria

2015-01-01

Observational research shows that higher body mass index (BMI) increases Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk, but it is unclear whether this association is causal. We applied genetic variants that predict BMI in Mendelian Randomization analyses, an approach that is not biased by reverse causation or confounding, to evaluate whether higher BMI increases AD risk. We evaluated individual level data from the AD Genetics Consortium (ADGC: 10,079 AD cases and 9,613 controls), the Health and Retirement Study (HRS: 8,403 participants with algorithm-predicted dementia status) and published associations from the Genetic and Environmental Risk for AD consortium (GERAD1: 3,177 AD cases and 7,277 controls). No evidence from individual SNPs or polygenic scores indicated BMI increased AD risk. Mendelian Randomization effect estimates per BMI point (95% confidence intervals) were: ADGC OR=0.95 (0.90, 1.01); HRS OR=1.00 (0.75, 1.32); GERAD1 OR=0.96 (0.87, 1.07). One subscore (cellular processes not otherwise specified) unexpectedly predicted lower AD risk. PMID:26079416

Hadron Mass Effects: Kaons at HERMES vs. COMPASS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Guerrero Teran, Juan V.; Accardi, Alberto

Experimental data for integrated kaon multiplicities taken at HERMES and COMPASS measurements look incompatible with each other. In this talk, we investigate the effects of hadron masses calculated at leading-order and leading twist at the kinematics of these two experiments. We present evidence that Hadron Mass Corrections can fully reconcile the data for the K+/K- multiplicity ratio, and can also sizeably reduce the apparent large discrepancy in the case of K++K- data. Residual differences in the shape of the latter one remains to be understood.

Double relaxation via AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amiri-Sharifi, S.; Ali-Akbari, M.; Kishani-Farahani, A.; Shafie, N.

2016-08-01

We exploit the AdS/CFT correspondence to investigate thermalization in an N = 2 strongly coupled gauge theory including massless fundamental matter (quark). More precisely, we consider the response of a zero temperature state of the gauge theory under influence of an external electric field which leads to a time-dependent current. The holographic dual of the above set-up is given by introducing a time-dependent electric field on the probe D7-brane embedded in an AdS5 ×S5 background. In the dual gravity theory an apparent horizon forms on the brane which, according to AdS/CFT dictionary, is the counterpart of the thermalization process in the gauge theory side. We classify different functions for time-dependent electric field and study their effect on the apparent horizon formation. In the case of pulse functions, where the electric field varies from zero to zero, apart from non-equilibrium phase, we observe the formation of two separate apparent horizons on the brane. This means that the state of the gauge theory experiences two different temperature regimes during its time evolution.

Effect of body mass and clothing on carrion entomofauna.

PubMed

Matuszewski, Szymon; Frątczak, Katarzyna; Konwerski, Szymon; Bajerlein, Daria; Szpila, Krzysztof; Jarmusz, Mateusz; Szafałowicz, Michał; Grzywacz, Andrzej; Mądra, Anna

2016-01-01

Carcass mass largely affects pattern and rate of carrion decomposition. Supposedly, it is similarly important for carrion entomofauna; however, most of its likely effects have not been tested experimentally. Here, simultaneous effects of carcass mass and clothing are analyzed. A factorial block experiment with four levels of carcass mass (small carcasses 5-15 kg, medium carcasses 15.1-30 kg, medium/large carcasses 35-50 kg, large carcasses 55-70 kg) and two levels of carcass clothing (clothed and unclothed) was made in a grassland habitat of Western Poland. Pig carcasses (N = 24) were grouped into spring, early summer, and late summer blocks. Insects were sampled manually and with pitfall traps. Results demonstrate that insect assemblages are more complex, abundant, and long-lasting on larger carcasses, whereas clothing is of minor importance in this respect. Only large or medium/large carcasses were colonized by all guilds of carrion insects, while small or medium carcasses revealed high underrepresentation of late-colonizing insects (e.g., Cleridae or Nitidulidae). This finding indicates that carcasses weighing about 23 kg-a standard in forensic decomposition studies-give an incomplete picture of carrion entomofauna. Residencies of all forensically relevant insects were distinctly prolonged on larger carcasses, indicating that cadaver mass is a factor of great importance in this respect. The pre-appearance interval of most taxa was found to be unrelated to mass or clothing of a carcass. Moreover, current results suggest that rate of larval development is higher on smaller carcasses. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that carcass mass is a factor of crucial importance for carrion entomofauna, whereas the importance of clothing is small.

Perceived Effectiveness of Antismoking Ads and Association with Quit Attempts Among Smokers: Evidence from the Tips From Former Smokers Campaign.

PubMed

Davis, Kevin C; Duke, Jennifer; Shafer, Paul; Patel, Deesha; Rodes, Robert; Beistle, Diane

2017-08-01

Measures of perceived effectiveness (PE) of ads have been validated to predict changes in cognitive precursors of quit attempts, but a relationship between PE and actual quit attempts has not been shown in population-based studies. We analyzed smokers' PE ratings of ads from the national Tips From Former Smokers (Tips) campaign to (1) establish the validity of PE in predicting quit attempts in a large, nationally representative sample of smokers; (2) identify behavioral and demographic correlates of PE among respondents; and (3) examine whether PE is influenced by matching the race/ethnicity of ad participants with that of the ad viewer. We used survey data from two waves (baseline and follow-up) of a longitudinal online cohort of adult U.S. cigarette smokers. Respondents were shown one or more of 14 Tips campaign ads and were asked to assess each ad in terms of PE. We used multivariate models to estimate the association between baseline PE and prospective quit attempts; cross-sectional associations between PE and various respondent characteristics, including race/ethnicity, desire to quit, and health conditions; and the association between race/ethnicity of respondents and Tips ad participants. Higher PE at baseline was associated with increased odds of a quit attempt at follow-up. Higher PE scores were associated with non-Hispanic black race, Hispanic ethnicity, higher desire to quit, presence of a chronic health condition, and presence of a mental health condition. There was no relationship between PE scores and matched race/ethnicity of the respondent and Tips ad participants. This is the first study to demonstrate an association between PE scores for antismoking ads and prospective quit attempts in a large, nationally representative sample of smokers. Our findings also provide strong evidence that racial/ethnic minority subpopulations, including non-Hispanic blacks and Hispanics, react more favorably to Tips campaign ads irrespective of race/ethnicity of

The eleven observations of comets between 687 AD and 1114 AD recorded in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mardon, E. G.; Williams, J.; Mardon, A. A.

1992-01-01

This research paper is an examination of the eleven cometary references (679AD, 729AD, 892AD, 950AD, 975AD, 995AD, 1066AD, 1097AD, 1106AD, 1110AD and 1114AD) found in the various manuscripts of The Anglo Saxon Chronicle between 678 AD and 1114 AD. The manuscripts contain more than 35 celestial observations. This is an examination of astronomical phenomena and other climatic or natural events, that are described in The Anglo Saxon Chronicle, which is also referred to as The Old English Annals.

The eleven observations of comets between 687 AD and 1114 AD recorded in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mardon, E. G.; Mardon, A. A.; Williams, J.

1992-12-01

This research paper is an examination of the eleven cometary references (679AD, 729AD, 892AD, 950AD, 975AD, 995AD, 1066AD, 1097AD, 1106AD, 1110AD and 1114AD) found in the various manuscripts of The Anglo Saxon Chronicle between 678 AD and 1114 AD. The manuscripts contain more than 35 celestial observations. This is an examination of astronomical phenomena and other climatic or natural events, that are described in The Anglo Saxon Chronicle, which is also referred to as The Old English Annals.

Effect of Psychopharmacotherapy on Body Mass Index Among Children and Adolescents with Bipolar Disorders.

PubMed

Patel, Ayush; Chan, Wenyaw; Aparasu, Rajender R; Ochoa-Perez, Melissa; Sherer, Jeff T; Medhekar, Rohan; Chen, Hua

2017-05-01

To assess the long-term effect of all treatment options for pediatric bipolar disorders on body mass index (BMI) and to explore individual characteristics associated with less BMI increase during psychotropic medication exposures. A retrospective cohort study was conducted by using the 1995 to 2010 General Electric Electronic Medical Record database. Individuals aged 18 years or younger who had a new bipolar disorder episode were identified. Treatment exposure was defined based on the medication regimens patients received, which include atypical antipsychotic (AT) monotherapy, mood stabilizer (MS) monotherapy, antidepressant (AD) monotherapy, AT+MS polytherapy, AT+AD polytherapy, MS+AD polytherapy, and no treatment. Both treatment exposure and BMI were coded as time varying, which could change from month to month. According to the duration of treatment and the availability of BMI measures, individuals were followed for up to 3, 6, 9, and 12 months since the treatment initiation. Repeated-measures mixed models were applied to compare the impact of different medication regimens and the length of drug exposure on BMI after adjusting for the baseline BMI, sociodemographic factors, comorbidities, and psychotherapy. A total of 2299 treated and 4544 untreated children and adolescents who met the inclusion criteria were identified. Analysis using repeated-measures mixed models showed that those on AT monotherapy (the reference group) had a gradually diminished, but statistically significant, monthly increase in BMI during all durations of drug exposure (3 months: 0.36 kg/m 2 , 6 months: 0.20 kg/m 2 , 9 months: 0.17 kg/m 2 , and 12 months: 0.16 kg/m 2 ). As compared with AT monotherapy, the magnitude of increase in BMI associated with MS, AD monotherapy, and no treatment was significantly less at all time points, indicating less steep slopes of BMI change over time compared with AT monotherapy, especially during the short-term exposure. The combinations of AT with

Proper temperature of the Schwarzschild AdS black hole revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eune, Myungseok; Kim, Wontae

2017-10-01

The Unruh temperature calculated by using the global embedding of the Schwarzschild AdS spacetime into the Minkowski spacetime was identified with the local proper temperature; however, it became imaginary in a certain region outside the event horizon. So, the temperature was assumed to be zero of non-thermal radiation for that region. In this work, we revisit this issue in an exactly soluble two-dimensional Schwarzschild AdS black hole and present an alternative resolution to this problem in terms of the Tolman's procedure. However, the process appears to be non-trivial in the sense that the original procedure assuming the traceless energy-momentum tensor should be extended in such a way that it should cover the non-vanishing case of the energy-momentum tensor in the presence of the trace anomaly. Consequently, we show that the proper temperature turns out to be real everywhere outside the event horizon without any imaginary value, in particular, it vanishes at both the horizon and the asymptotic infinity.

Mass effects and internal space geometry in triatomic reaction dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanao, Tomohiro; Koon, Wang S.; Marsden, Jerrold E.

2006-05-01

The effect of the distribution of mass in triatomic reaction dynamics is analyzed using the geometry of the associated internal space. Atomic masses are appropriately incorporated into internal coordinates as well as the associated non-Euclidean internal space metric tensor after a separation of the rotational degrees of freedom. Because of the non-Euclidean nature of the metric in the internal space, terms such as connection coefficients arise in the internal equations of motion, which act as velocity-dependent forces in a coordinate chart. By statistically averaging these terms, an effective force field is deduced, which accounts for the statistical tendency of geodesics in the internal space. This force field is shown to play a crucial role in determining mass-related branching ratios of isomerization and dissociation dynamics of a triatomic molecule. The methodology presented can be useful for qualitatively predicting branching ratios in general triatomic reactions, and may be applied to the study of isotope effects.

Humor and Comparatives in Ads for High- and Low-Involvement Products.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wu, Bob T. W.; And Others

1989-01-01

Investigates the effectiveness of humor in advertising, comparative advertising, and consumer involvement with the product. Finds that humorous ads are more eye catching but less impressive and less sufficient in information than nonhumorous ads. Finds the performance of comparative ads is generally negative and especially so in the high…

[Effects of adding straw carbon source to root knot nematode diseased soil on soil microbial biomass and protozoa abundance].

PubMed

Zhang, Si-Hui; Lian, Jian-Hong; Cao, Zhi-Ping; Zhao, Li

2013-06-01

A field experiment with successive planting of tomato was conducted to study the effects of adding different amounts of winter wheat straw (2.08 g x kg(-1), 1N; 4.16 g x kg(-1), 2N; and 8.32 g x kg(-1), 4N) to the soil seriously suffered from root knot nematode disease on the soil microbial biomass and protozoa abundance. Adding straw carbon source had significant effects on the contents of soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) and the abundance of soil protozoa, which all decreased in the order of 4N > 2N > 1N > CK. The community structure of soil protozoa also changed significantly under straw addition. In the treatments with straw addition, the average proportion of fagellate, amoeba, and ciliates accounted for 36.0%, 59.5%, and 4.5% of the total protozoa, respectively. Under the same adding amounts of wheat straw, there was an increase in the soil MBC and MBN contents, MBC/MBN ratio, and protozoa abundance with increasing cultivation period.

Deformation and Plateau Region of Functionally Graded Aluminum Foam by Amount Combinations of Added Blowing Agent.

PubMed

Hangai, Yoshihiko; Utsunomiya, Takao; Kuwazuru, Osamu; Kitahara, Soichiro; Yoshikawa, Nobuhiro

2015-10-21

Recently, to further improve the performance of aluminum foam, functionally graded (FG) aluminum foams, whose pore structure varies with their position, have been developed. In this study, three types of FG aluminum foam of aluminum alloy die casting ADC12 with combinations of two different amounts of added blowing agent titanium(II) hydride (TiH₂) powder were fabricated by a friction stir welding (FSW) route precursor foaming method. The combinations of 1.0-0 mass %, 0.4-0 mass %, and 0.2-0 mass % TiH₂ were selected as the amounts of TiH₂ relative to the mass of the volume stirred by FSW. The static compression tests of the fabricated FG aluminum foams were carried out. The deformation and fracture of FG aluminum foams fundamentally started in the high-porosity (with TiH₂ addition) layer and shifted to the low-porosity (without TiH₂ addition) layer. The first and second plateau regions in the relationship between compressive stress and strain independently appeared with the occurrence of deformations and fractures in the high- and low-porosity layers. It was shown that FG aluminum foams, whose plateau region varies in steps by the combination of amounts of added TiH₂ ( i.e. , the combination of pore structures), can be fabricated.

Integrability of the Ad{{S}_{5}}\\times {{S}^{5}} superstring and its deformations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Tongeren, Stijn J.

2014-10-01

This article reviews the application of integrability to the spectral problem of strings on Ad{{S}5}× {{S}5} and its deformations. We begin with a pedagogical introduction to integrable field theories culminating in the description of their finite-volume spectra through the thermodynamic Bethe ansatz (TBA). Next, we apply these ideas to the Ad{{S}5}× {{S}5} string and in later sections discuss how to account for particular integrable deformations. Through the AdS/CFT correspondence this gives an exact description of anomalous scaling dimensions of single trace operators in planar N=4 supersymmetry Yang-Mills theory, its ‘orbifolds’, and β and γ-deformed supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory. We also touch upon some subtleties arising in these deformed theories. Furthermore, we consider complex excited states (bound states) in the su(2) sector and give their TBA description. Finally we discuss the TBA for a quantum deformation of the Ad{{S}5}× {{S}5} superstring S-matrix, with close relations to among others Pohlmeyer reduced string theory, and briefly indicate more recent developments in this area.

Consumption of added sugars from liquid but not solid sources predicts impaired glucose homeostasis and insulin resistance among youth at risk of obesity.

PubMed

Wang, Jiawei; Light, Kelly; Henderson, Mélanie; O'Loughlin, Jennifer; Mathieu, Marie-Eve; Paradis, Gilles; Gray-Donald, Katherine

2014-01-01

Little is known about longitudinal associations between added sugar consumption (solid and liquid sources) and glucose-insulin homeostasis among youth. Caucasian children (8-10 y) with at least one obese biological parent were recruited in the QUébec Adipose and Lifestyle InvesTigation in Youth (QUALITY) cohort (n = 630) and followed-up 2 y later (n = 564). Added sugars were assessed by 3 24-h dietary recalls at baseline. Two-year changes were examined in multivariate linear regression models, adjusting for baseline level, age, sex, Tanner stage, energy intake, fat mass (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), and physical activity (7 d accelerometer). Added sugar intake in either liquid or solid sources was not related to changes in adiposity measures (fat mass, body mass index, or waist circumference). However, a higher consumption (10 g/d) of added sugars from liquid sources was associated with 0.04 mmol/L higher fasting glucose, 2.3 pmol/L higher fasting insulin, 0.1 unit higher homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and 0.4 unit lower Matsuda-insulin sensitivity index (Matsuda-ISI) in all participants (P < 0.01). No associations were observed with consumption of added sugars from solid sources. Overweight/obese children at baseline had greater increases in adiposity indicators, fasting insulin, and HOMA-IR and decreases in Matsuda-ISI during those 2 y than normal-weight children. Consumption of added sugars from liquid or solid sources was not associated with changes in adiposity, but liquid added sugars were a risk factor for the development of impaired glucose homeostasis and insulin resistance over 2 y among youth at risk of obesity.

How Can Value-Added Measures Be Used for Teacher Improvement? What We Know Series: Value-Added Methods and Applications. Knowledge Brief 13

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Loeb, Susanna

2013-01-01

The question for this brief is whether education leaders can use value-added measures as tools for improving schooling and, if so, how to do this. Districts, states, and schools can, at least in theory, generate gains in educational outcomes for students using value-added measures in three ways: creating information on effective programs, making…

Study on the effect of different concentration of Spirulina platensis paste added into dried noodle to its quality characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Agustini, T. W.; Ma'ruf, W. F.; Widayat; Wibowo, B. A.; Hadiyanto

2017-02-01

High nutritional content of microalgae S. platensis is very good for human health especially for its protein and β-carotene. These compounds can be used for improving quality of food from nutritional point of view. This study was designed to observe the effect of different concentration of S. platensis paste to dried noodle quality based on physical, chemical and sensory perspectives. Material used in this study was S. platensis powder obtained from CV Neoalgae, Sukoharjo. The best treatment observed from preliminary study was then used for further study and compared to control treatment (without added S. platensis paste). The dried noodle resulted was then analyzed for elasticity, chemical (β-carotene, water, protein, ash, fat and carbohydrate) and sensory (hedonic). Parametric data obtained were analyzed using t-Test while non-parametric data was analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis followed by Multiple Comparison test. The study showed that dried noodle added with 9% S. platensis paste give significant effect (P<0.05) on elasticity; β-carotene, water, protein, ash, fat and carbohydrate and also sensory (hedonic). Dried noodle without added S. platensis paste has lower in β-carotene and protein compared to that of added S. platensis paste with the value of 0.06 mg/100 gr and 17.51 mg/100gr (β-carotene) and 8.88% and 38.6% (protein), respectively. Those, chemical composition of dried noodle added with S. platensis comply with Indonesian National Standard in term of protein, water, and ash content with sensory of 7.26 ≤ μ ≤ 7.63. Addition of S. platensis can significantly increase the nutritional of dried noodle especially protein (by 4 times) and β-carotene.

Active mass damper system for high-rise buildings using neural oscillator and position controller considering stroke limitation of the auxiliary mass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hongu, J.; Iba, D.; Nakamura, M.; Moriwaki, I.

2016-04-01

This paper proposes a problem-solving method for the stroke limitation problem, which is related to auxiliary masses of active mass damper systems for high-rise buildings. The proposed method is used in a new simple control system for the active mass dampers mimicking the motion of bipedal mammals, which has a neural oscillator synchronizing with the acceleration response of structures and a position controller. In the system, the travel distance and direction of the auxiliary mass of the active mass damper is determined by reference to the output of the neural oscillator, and then, the auxiliary mass is transferred to the decided location by using a PID controller. The one of the purpose of the previouslyproposed system is stroke restriction problem avoidance of the auxiliary mass during large earthquakes by the determination of the desired value within the stroke limitation of the auxiliary mass. However, only applying the limited desired value could not rigorously restrict the auxiliary mass within the limitation, because the excessive inertia force except for the control force produced by the position controller affected on the motion of the auxiliary mass. In order to eliminate the effect on the auxiliary mass by the structural absolute acceleration, a cancellation method is introduced by adding a term to the control force of the position controller. We first develop the previously-proposed system for the active mass damper and the additional term for cancellation, and verity through numerical experiments that the new system is able to operate the auxiliary mass within the restriction during large earthquakes. Based on the comparison of the proposed system with the LQ system, a conclusion was drawn regarding which the proposed neuronal system with the additional term appears to be able to limit the stroke of the auxiliary mass of the AMD.

Adding gauge fields to Kaplan's fermions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blum, T.; Kärkkäinen, Leo

1994-04-01

We experiment with adding dynamical gauge field to Kaplan (defect) fermions. In the case of U (1) gauge theory we use an inhomogenous Higgs mechanism to restrict the 3d gauge dynamics to a planar 2d defect. In our simulations the 3d theory produce the correct 2d gauge dynamics. We measure fermion propagators with dynamical gauge fields. They posses the correct chiral structure. The fermions at the boundary of the support of the gauge field (waveguide) are non-chiral, and have a mass two times heavier than the chiral modes. Moreover, these modes cannot be excited by a source at the defect; implying that they are dynamically decoupled. We have also checked that the anomaly relation is fullfilled for the case of a smooth external gauge field.

On supersymmetric AdS6 solutions in 10 and 11 dimensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gutowski, J.; Papadopoulos, G.

2017-12-01

We prove a non-existence theorem for smooth, supersymmetric, warped AdS 6 solutions with connected, compact without boundary internal space in D = 11 and (massive) IIA supergravities. In IIB supergravity we show that if such AdS 6 solutions exist, then the NSNS and RR 3-form fluxes must be linearly independent and certain spinor bilinears must be appropriately restricted. Moreover we demonstrate that the internal space admits an so(3) action which leaves all the fields invariant and for smooth solutions the principal orbits must have co-dimension two. We also describe the topology and geometry of internal spaces that admit such a so(3) action and show that there are no solutions for which the internal space has topology F × S 2, where F is an oriented surface.

Symposium on accelerator mass spectrometry

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

1981-01-01

The area of accelerator mass spectrometry has expanded considerably over the past few years and established itself as an independent and interdisciplinary research field. Three years have passed since the first meeting was held at Rochester. A Symposium on Accelerator Mass Spectrometry was held at Argonne on May 11-13, 1981. In attendance were 96 scientists of whom 26 were from outside the United States. The present proceedings document the program and excitement of the field. Papers are arranged according to the original program. A few papers not presented at the meeting have been added to complete the information on themore » status of accelerator mass spectrometry. Individual papers were prepared separately for the data base.« less

Coffee-ring effects in laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry.

PubMed

Hu, Jie-Bi; Chen, Yu-Chie; Urban, Pawel L

2013-03-05

This report focuses on the heterogeneous distribution of small molecules (e.g. metabolites) within dry deposits of suspensions and solutions of inorganic and organic compounds with implications for chemical analysis of small molecules by laser desorption/ionization (LDI) mass spectrometry (MS). Taking advantage of the imaging capabilities of a modern mass spectrometer, we have investigated the occurrence of "coffee rings" in matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) and surface-assisted laser desorption/ionization (SALDI) sample spots. It is seen that the "coffee-ring effect" in MALDI/SALDI samples can be both beneficial and disadvantageous. For example, formation of the coffee rings gives rise to heterogeneous distribution of analytes and matrices, thus compromising analytical performance and reproducibility of the mass spectrometric analysis. On the other hand, the coffee-ring effect can also be advantageous because it enables partial separation of analytes from some of the interfering molecules present in the sample. We report a "hidden coffee-ring effect" where under certain conditions the sample/matrix deposit appears relatively homogeneous when inspected by optical microscopy. Even in such cases, hidden coffee rings can still be found by implementing the MALDI-MS imaging technique. We have also found that to some extent, the coffee-ring effect can be suppressed during SALDI sample preparation. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

AdVance male sling

PubMed Central

Chung, Amanda S. J.; Suarez, Oscar A.

2017-01-01

The AdVance sling (American Medical Systems, Minnetonka, MN, United States of America) is a synthetic transobturator sling, which is a safe and effective minimally invasive treatment for mild to moderate stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in male patients. This article provides a step-by-step description of our technique for placement of the AdVance male sling, including details and nuances gained from surgical experience, advice for avoidance of complications and discussion on management of complications and sling failures. Patient selection is very important, including exclusion and preoperative treatment of urethral stenosis and bladder dysfunction. Previous pelvic radiation is a poor prognostic factor. In brief, the steps of sling placement are: (I) mobilization of the corpus spongiosum (CS); (II) marking and mobilization of the central tendon; (III) passage of the helical trocar needles exiting at the apex of the angle between the CS and inferior pubic ramus; (IV) fixation of the broad part of the sling body to the CS at the previous mark; (V) cystoscopy during sling tensioning; (VI) placement of a Foley urethral catheter; (VII) Subcutaneous tunnelling of the sling arms back toward the midline; (VIII) wound closure. The most common early postoperative complication is urinary retention but long-term retention is extremely rare. Management of sling failures include placement of an artificial urinary sphincter, repeat AdVance sling, urethral bulking agent or ProACT device. PMID:28904900

Digital Quantum Simulation of Minimal AdS /CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

García-Álvarez, L.; Egusquiza, I. L.; Lamata, L.; del Campo, A.; Sonner, J.; Solano, E.

2017-07-01

We propose the digital quantum simulation of a minimal AdS /CFT model in controllable quantum platforms. We consider the Sachdev-Ye-Kitaev model describing interacting Majorana fermions with randomly distributed all-to-all couplings, encoding nonlocal fermionic operators onto qubits to efficiently implement their dynamics via digital techniques. Moreover, we also give a method for probing nonequilibrium dynamics and the scrambling of information. Finally, our approach serves as a protocol for reproducing a simplified low-dimensional model of quantum gravity in advanced quantum platforms as trapped ions and superconducting circuits.

The effect of added dimensionality on perceived image value

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farnand, Susan

2008-01-01

Texture is an important element of the world around us. It can convey information about the object at hand. Although embossing has been used in a limited way, to enhance the appearance of greeting cards and book covers for example, texture is something that printed material traditionally lacks. Recently, techniques have been developed that allow the incorporation of texture in printed material. Prints made using such processes are similar to traditional 2D prints but have added texture such that a reproduction of an oil painting can have the texture of oil paint on canvas or a picture of a lizard can actually have the texture of lizard skin. It seems intuitive that the added dimensionality would add to the perceived quality of the image, but to what degree? To examine the question of the impact of a third dimension on the perceived quality of printed images, a survey was conducted asking participants to determine the relative worth of sets of print products. Pairs of print products were created, where one print of each pair was 2D and the other was the same image with added texture. Using these print pairs, thirty people from the Rochester Institute of Technology community were surveyed. The participants were shown seven pairs of print products and asked to rate the relative value of each pair by apportioning a specified amount of money between the two items according to their perception of what each item was worth. The results indicated that the addition of a third dimension or texture to the printed images gave a clear boost to the perceived worth of the printed products. The rating results were 50% higher for the 3D products than the 2D products, with the participants apportioning approximately 60% of each dollar to the 3D product and 40% to the 2D product. About 80% of the time participants felt that the 3D items had at least some added value over their 2D counterparts, about 15% of the time, they felt the products were essentially equivalent in value and 4% of

Adélie penguins coping with environmental change: Results from a natural experiment at the edge of their breeding range

USGS Publications Warehouse

Dugger, Catherine; Ballard, Grant; Ainley, David G.; Lyber, Phil O'B.; Schine, Casey

2014-01-01

We investigated life history responses to extreme variation in physical environmental conditions during a long-term demographic study of Adélie penguins at 3 colonies representing 9% of the world population and the full range of breeding colony sizes. Five years into the 14-year study (1997–2010) two very large icebergs (spanning 1.5 latitude degrees in length) grounded in waters adjacent to breeding colonies, dramatically altering environmental conditions during 2001–2005. This natural experiment allowed us to evaluate the relative impacts of expected long-term, but also extreme, short-term climate perturbations on important natural history parameters that can regulate populations. The icebergs presented physical barriers, not just to the penguins but to polynya formation, which profoundly increased foraging effort and movement rates, while reducing breeding propensity and productivity, especially at the smallest colony. We evaluated the effect of a variety of environmental parameters during breeding, molt, migration and wintering periods during years with and without icebergs on penguin breeding productivity, chick mass, and nesting chronology. The icebergs had far more influence on the natural history parameters of penguins than any of the other environmental variables measured, resulting in population level changes to metrics of reproductive performance, including delays in nesting chronology, depressed breeding productivity, and lower chick mass. These effects were strongest at the smallest, southern-most colony, which was most affected by alteration of the Ross Sea Polynya during years the iceberg was present. Additionally, chick mass was negatively correlated with colony size, supporting previous findings indicating density-dependent energetic constraints at the largest colony. Understanding the negative effects of the icebergs on the short-term natural history of Adélie penguins, as well as their response to long-term environmental variation, are

Multiple vantage points on the mental health effects of mass shootings.

PubMed

Shultz, James M; Thoresen, Siri; Flynn, Brian W; Muschert, Glenn W; Shaw, Jon A; Espinel, Zelde; Walter, Frank G; Gaither, Joshua B; Garcia-Barcena, Yanira; O'Keefe, Kaitlin; Cohen, Alyssa M

2014-09-01

The phenomenon of mass shootings has emerged over the past 50 years. A high proportion of rampage shootings have occurred in the United States, and secondarily, in European nations with otherwise low firearm homicide rates; yet, paradoxically, shooting massacres are not prominent in the Latin American nations with the highest firearm homicide rates in the world. A review of the scientific literature from 2010 to early 2014 reveals that, at the individual level, mental health effects include psychological distress and clinically significant elevations in posttraumatic stress, depression, and anxiety symptoms in relation to the degree of physical exposure and social proximity to the shooting incident. Psychological repercussions extend to the surrounding affected community. In the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting on record, Norway has been in the vanguard of intervention research focusing on rapid delivery of psychological support and services to survivors of the "Oslo Terror." Grounded on a detailed review of the clinical literature on the mental health effects of mass shootings, this paper also incorporates wide-ranging co-author expertise to delineate: 1) the patterning of mass shootings within the international context of firearm homicides, 2) the effects of shooting rampages on children and adolescents, 3) the psychological effects for wounded victims and the emergency healthcare personnel who care for them, 4) the disaster behavioral health considerations for preparedness and response, and 5) the media "framing" of mass shooting incidents in relation to the portrayal of mental health themes.

Multi-Skyrmions on AdS2 × S2, rational maps and popcorn transitions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Canfora, Fabrizio; Tallarita, Gianni

2017-08-01

By combining two different techniques to construct multi-soliton solutions of the (3 + 1)-dimensional Skyrme model, the generalized hedgehog and the rational map ansatz, we find multi-Skyrmion configurations in AdS2 ×S2. We construct Skyrmionic multi-layered configurations such that the total Baryon charge is the product of the number of kinks along the radial AdS2 direction and the degree of the rational map. We show that, for fixed total Baryon charge, as one increases the charge density on ∂ (AdS2 ×S2) , it becomes increasingly convenient energetically to have configurations with more peaks in the radial AdS2 direction but a lower degree of the rational map. This has a direct relation with the so-called holographic popcorn transitions in which, when the charge density is high, multi-layered configurations with low charge on each layer are favored over configurations with few layers but with higher charge on each layer. The case in which the geometry is M2 ×S2 can also be analyzed.

Topological terms, AdS2 n gravity, and renormalized entanglement entropy of holographic CFTs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anastasiou, Giorgos; Araya, Ignacio J.; Olea, Rodrigo

2018-05-01

We extend our topological renormalization scheme for entanglement entropy to holographic CFTs of arbitrary odd dimensions in the context of the AdS /CFT correspondence. The procedure consists in adding the Chern form as a boundary term to the area functional of the Ryu-Takayanagi minimal surface. The renormalized entanglement entropy thus obtained can be rewritten in terms of the Euler characteristic and the AdS curvature of the minimal surface. This prescription considers the use of the replica trick to express the renormalized entanglement entropy in terms of the renormalized gravitational action evaluated on the conically singular replica manifold extended to the bulk. This renormalized action is obtained in turn by adding the Chern form as the counterterm at the boundary of the 2 n -dimensional asymptotically AdS bulk manifold. We explicitly show that, up to next-to-leading order in the holographic radial coordinate, the addition of this boundary term cancels the divergent part of the entanglement entropy. We discuss possible applications of the method for studying CFT parameters like central charges.

Effect of exercise on cigarette cravings and ad libitum smoking following concurrent stressors.

PubMed

Fong, Angela J; De Jesus, Stefanie; Bray, Steven R; Prapavessis, Harry

2014-10-01

The health consequences of smoking are well documented, yet quit rates are modest. While exercise has supported decreased cravings and withdrawal symptoms in temporarily abstinent smokers, it has yet to be applied when smokers are experiencing concurrent stressors. This study examined the effect of an acute bout of moderate intensity exercise on cravings (primary outcome) and ad libitum smoking (secondary outcome) following concurrent stressors (i.e., temporary abstinence and environmental manipulation-Stroop cognitive task+cue-elicited smoking stimuli). Twenty-five smokers (>10cig/day; Mean age=37.4years) were randomized into either exercise (n=12) or passive sitting conditions. A repeated measure (RM) ANOVA showed that psychological withdrawal symptoms (a measure of distress) were significantly exacerbated after temporary abstinence and then again after the environmental manipulation for all participants (p<.0001, η(2)=.50). Furthermore, a treatment by time RM ANOVA revealed decreases in psychological withdrawal symptoms for only the exercise condition (p<.001, η(2)=.42). A treatment by time RM ANOVA also revealed craving reductions for only the exercise condition (p<.0001, η(2)=.82). Exercise had no effect on ad libitum smoking. This is the first study to use a lab-based scenario with high ecological validity to show that an acute bout of exercise can reduce cravings following concurrent stressors. Future work is now needed where momentary assessment is used in people's natural environment to examine changes in cigarette cravings following acute bouts of exercise. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving Biomethane Production and Mass Bioconversion of Corn Stover Anaerobic Digestion by Adding NaOH Pretreatment and Trace Elements

PubMed Central

Liu, ChunMei; Yuan, HaiRong; Zou, DeXun; Liu, YanPing; Zhu, BaoNing; Li, XiuJin

2015-01-01

This research applied sodium hydroxide (NaOH) pretreatment and trace elements to improve biomethane production when using corn stover for anaerobic digestion. Full-factor experimental tests identified the best combination of trace elements with the NaOH pretreatment, indicating that the best combination was with 1.0, 0.4, and 0.4 mg·L−1·d−1 of elements Fe, Co, and Ni, respectively. The cumulative biomethane production adding NaOH pretreatment and trace elements was 11,367 mL; total solid bioconversion rate was 55.7%, which was 41.8%–62.2% higher than with NaOH-pretreatment alone and 22.2%–56.3% higher than with untreated corn stover. The best combination was obtained 5–9 days shorter than T90 and maintained good system operation stability. Only a fraction of the trace elements in the best combination was present in the resulting solution; more than 85% of the total amounts added were transferred into the solid fraction. Adding 0.897 g of Fe, 0.389 g of Co, and 0.349 g of Ni satisfied anaerobic digestion needs and enhanced biological activity at the beginning of the operation. The results showed that NaOH pretreatment and adding trace elements improve corn stover biodegradability and enhance biomethane production. PMID:26137469

Stochastic quantization of conformally coupled scalar in AdS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jatkar, Dileep P.; Oh, Jae-Hyuk

2013-10-01

We explore the relation between stochastic quantization and holographic Wilsonian renormalization group flow further by studying conformally coupled scalar in AdS d+1. We establish one to one mapping between the radial flow of its double trace deformation and stochastic 2-point correlation function. This map is shown to be identical, up to a suitable field re-definition of the bulk scalar, to the original proposal in arXiv:1209.2242.

Tryptophan depletion and formation of alpha-aminoadipic and gamma-glutamic semialdehydes in porcine burger patties with added phenolic-rich fruit extracts.

PubMed

Ganhão, Rui; Morcuende, David; Estévez, Mario

2010-03-24

The effect of added fruit extracts on the oxidation of muscle proteins in porcine burger patties subjected to cooking and chill storage was studied. Extracts from arbutus berries (Arbutus unedo L., AU), common hawthorns (Crataegus monogyna L., CM), dog roses (Rosa canina L., RC), and elm-leaf blackberries (Rubus ulmifolius Schott, RU) were prepared, characterized, added to burger patties (3% of total weight), and evaluated as inhibitors of protein oxidation. Negative (no added extract, C) and positive control (added quercetin, 230 mg/kg, Q) groups were also included in the design. Protein oxidation was assessed by means of tryptophan loss using fluorescence spectroscopy (FS) and formation of the specific protein carbonyls alpha-aminoadipic (AAS) and gamma-glutamic semialdehyde (GGS) using liquid chromatography and mass spectroscopy (LC-MS). Both advanced methodologies (FS and LC-MS) were found to be reliable and specific protein oxidation measurements that allow us to gain chemical insight into protein oxidation. The mechanisms likely involved in the oxidative reactions affecting proteins during cooking and storage of burger patties are profusely discussed. Phenolic-rich fruit extracts protected tryptophan residues against oxidation and inhibited the formation of both semialdehydes in burger patties during cooking and subsequent chill storage. In general, RC, RU, and AU were the most effective inhibitors of protein oxidation, with this effect being more intense than that of pure polyphenols like quercetin. These fruit extracts could be considered functional ingredients as their antioxidant actions contribute to the enhancement of the nutritional value of the meat products.

Exploring the bulk in AdS /CFT : A covariant approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Engelhardt, Netta

2017-03-01

I propose a general, covariant way of defining when one region is "deeper in the bulk" than another. This definition is formulated outside of an event horizon (or in the absence thereof) in generic geometries; it may be applied to both points and surfaces, and it may be used to compare the depth of bulk points or surfaces relative to a particular boundary subregion or relative to the entire boundary. Using the recently proposed "light-cone cut" formalism, the comparative depth between two bulk points can be determined from the singularity structure of Lorentzian correlators in the dual field theory. I prove that, by this definition, causal wedges of progressively larger regions probe monotonically deeper in the bulk. The definition furthermore matches expectations in pure AdS and in static AdS black holes with isotropic spatial slices, where a well-defined holographic coordinate exists. In terms of holographic renormalization group flow, this new definition of bulk depth makes contact with coarse graining over both large distances and long time scales.

Ultrasound in gas-liquid systems: effects on solubility and mass transfer.

PubMed

Laugier, F; Andriantsiferana, C; Wilhelm, A M; Delmas, H

2008-09-01

The effect of ultrasound on the pseudo-solubility of nitrogen in water and on gas-liquid mass transfer kinetics has been investigated in an autoclave reactor equipped with a gas induced impeller. In order to use organic liquids and to investigate the effect of pressure, gas-liquid mass transfer coefficient was calculated from the evolution of autoclave pressure during gas absorption to avoid any side-effects of ultrasound on the concentrations measurements. Ultrasound effect on the apparent solubility is very low (below 12%). Conversely ultrasound greatly improves gas-liquid mass transfer, especially below gas induction speed, this improvement being boosted by pressure. In typical conditions of organic synthesis: 323 K, 1100 rpm, 10 bar, k(L).a is multiplied by 11 with ultrasound (20 kHz/62.6 W). The impact of sonication is much higher on gassing out than on gassing in. In the same conditions, this enhancement is at least five times higher for degassing.

Effects of Ad libitum Low-Carbohydrate High-Fat Dieting in Middle-Age Male Runners.

PubMed

Heatherly, Alexander J; Killen, Lauren G; Smith, Ashton F; Waldman, Hunter S; Seltmann, Christie L; Hollingsworth, Angela; O'Neal, Eric K

2018-03-01

This study examined the effects of a 3-wk ad libitum, low-carbohydrate (<50 g·d) high-fat (~70% of calories) (LCHF) diet on markers of endurance performance in middle-age, recreationally competitive male runners. All subjects (n = 8) after their normal high-carbohydrate (HC) diet had anthropometric measures assessed and completed five 10-min running bouts at multiple individual race paces in the heat while physiological variables, metabolic variables, and perceptual responses were recorded. After 20 min of rest, participants completed a 5-km time trial on a road course. Subjects then consumed an LCHF diet for 3 wk and returned for repeat testing. Body mass and seven-site skinfold thickness sum decreased by approximately 2.5 kg (P < 0.01) and 13 mm (P < 0.05) after LCHF diet. Rectal temperature was higher after the first 10 min of exercise (37.7°C ± 0.3°C vs 37.3°C ± 0.2°C) in the HC diet but did not differ at any other time with LCHF diet. Heart rate and perceptual measures did not display any consistent differences between treatments excluding thirst sensation for LCHF diet. RER and carbohydrate oxidation declined significantly, whereas fat oxidation increased after LCHF diet for every pace (P < 0.01). There was no significant difference (P = 0.25) in a 5-km time trial performance, but LCHF diet (23.45 ± 2.25 min) displayed a trend of improved performance versus HC (23.92 ± 2.57 min). Improved body composition and fat oxidation from LCHF diet potentially negate expected performance decrement from reduced carbohydrate use late in exercise for nonelite runners. An acute decrease in training capacity is expected; however, if performance improvement is not exhibited after 3 wk, diet cessation is suggested for negative responders.

BONE MASS BY QUANTITATIVE ULTRASOUND OF FINGER PHALANGES IN YOUNG KARATE PRACTITIONERS

PubMed Central

Barbeta, Camila Justino de Oliveira; Gonçalves, Ezequiel Moreira; Ribeiro, Keila Donassolo Santos; Ribeiro, Roberto; Roman, Everton Paulo; Guerra-Júnior, Gil

2017-01-01

ABSTRACT Objective: To evaluate bone mass by quantitative ultrasound of the phalanges in young karate practitioners compared to a control group. Methods: Sample composed of 162 karate practitioners (52 females) and 326 healthy controls (110 females) aged 6 to 16 years old, in Western Paraná (Southern Brazil). Weight, height, BMI, amplitude-dependent speed of sound (AD-SoS) and bone transmission time (BTT) were evaluated. BMI, AD-SoS and BTT values were converted to Z scores. Mann-Whitney, chi-square or Fisher Exact tests and multiple linear regression were applied, with significance level set at p≤0.05. Results: Both genders showed higher values of BTT as Z scores when compared to control group. Females from the control group had higher AD-SoS values (m/s and Z score) compared to female karate practitioners. When relative and absolute frequencies were assessed according to BTT Z score in both groups, male karate practitioners’ bone mass was shown to be adequate more frequently. In female practitioners, age and weight were independent predictors of AD-SoS (R2=0.42) and BTT (R2=0.45), respectively. Among male karate practitioners, age was related to 26% of AD-SoS variances and height was responsible for 36% of BTT variances. Conclusions: Children and adolescents who practice karate were shown to have more bone mass in comparison to the control group, regardless of gender. BTT was more sensitive for this evaluation. PMID:28977128

The Evaluation of Damage Effects on MgO Added Concrete with Slag Cement Exposed to Calcium Chloride Deicing Salt.

PubMed

Jang, Jae-Kyeong; Kim, Hong-Gi; Kim, Jun-Hyeong; Ryou, Jae-Suk

2018-05-14

Concrete systems exposed to deicers are damaged in physical and chemical ways. In mitigating the damage from CaCl₂ deicers, the usage of ground slag cement and MgO are investigated. Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and slag cement are used in different proportions as the binding material, and MgO in doses of 0%, 5%, 7%, and 10% are added to the systems. After 28 days of water-curing, the specimens are immersed in 30% CaCl₂ solution by mass for 180 days. Compressive strength test, carbonation test, chloride penetration test, chloride content test, XRD analysis, and SEM-EDAX analysis are conducted to evaluate the damage effects of the deicing solution. Up to 28 days, plain specimens with increasing MgO show a decrease in compressive strength, an increase in carbonation resistance, and a decrease in chloride penetration resistance, whereas the S30- and S50- specimens show a slight increase in compressive strength, an increase in carbonation resistance, and a slight increase in chloride penetration resistance. After 180 days of immersion in deicing solution, specimens with MgO retain their compressive strength longer and show improved durability. Furthermore, the addition of MgO to concrete systems with slag cement induces the formation of magnesium silicate hydrate (M-S-H) phases.

The Evaluation of Damage Effects on MgO Added Concrete with Slag Cement Exposed to Calcium Chloride Deicing Salt

PubMed Central

Jang, Jae-Kyeong; Kim, Hong-Gi; Kim, Jun-Hyeong

2018-01-01

Concrete systems exposed to deicers are damaged in physical and chemical ways. In mitigating the damage from CaCl2 deicers, the usage of ground slag cement and MgO are investigated. Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and slag cement are used in different proportions as the binding material, and MgO in doses of 0%, 5%, 7%, and 10% are added to the systems. After 28 days of water-curing, the specimens are immersed in 30% CaCl2 solution by mass for 180 days. Compressive strength test, carbonation test, chloride penetration test, chloride content test, XRD analysis, and SEM-EDAX analysis are conducted to evaluate the damage effects of the deicing solution. Up to 28 days, plain specimens with increasing MgO show a decrease in compressive strength, an increase in carbonation resistance, and a decrease in chloride penetration resistance, whereas the S30- and S50- specimens show a slight increase in compressive strength, an increase in carbonation resistance, and a slight increase in chloride penetration resistance. After 180 days of immersion in deicing solution, specimens with MgO retain their compressive strength longer and show improved durability. Furthermore, the addition of MgO to concrete systems with slag cement induces the formation of magnesium silicate hydrate (M-S-H) phases. PMID:29758008

Determination of PM mass emissions from an aircraft turbine engine using particle effective density

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Durdina, L.; Brem, B. T.; Abegglen, M.; Lobo, P.; Rindlisbacher, T.; Thomson, K. A.; Smallwood, G. J.; Hagen, D. E.; Sierau, B.; Wang, J.

2014-12-01

Inventories of particulate matter (PM) emissions from civil aviation and air quality models need to be validated using up-to-date measurement data corrected for sampling artifacts. We compared the measured black carbon (BC) mass and the total PM mass determined from particle size distributions (PSD) and effective density for a commercial turbofan engine CFM56-7B26/3. The effective density was then used to calculate the PM mass losses in the sampling system. The effective density was determined using a differential mobility analyzer and a centrifugal particle mass analyzer, and increased from engine idle to take-off by up to 60%. The determined mass-mobility exponents ranged from 2.37 to 2.64. The mean effective density determined by weighting the effective density distributions by PM volume was within 10% of the unit density (1000 kg/m3) that is widely assumed in aircraft PM studies. We found ratios close to unity between the PM mass determined by the integrated PSD method and the real-time BC mass measurements. The integrated PSD method achieved higher precision at ultra-low PM concentrations at which current mass instruments reach their detection limit. The line loss model predicted ∼60% PM mass loss at engine idle, decreasing to ∼27% at high thrust. Replacing the effective density distributions with unit density lead to comparable estimates that were within 20% and 5% at engine idle and high thrust, respectively. These results could be used for the development of a robust method for sampling loss correction of the future PM emissions database from commercial aircraft engines.

Sexual Orientation as a Peripheral Cue in Advertising: Effects of Models' Sexual Orientation, Argument Strength, and Involvement on Responses to Magazine Ads.

PubMed

Ivory, Adrienne Holz

2017-10-12

This study examines how sexual orientation of couples featured in magazine advertisements affects heterosexual viewers' responses using the elaboration likelihood model as a framework. A 3 × 2 × 2 × 3 experiment tested effects of sexual orientation, argument strength, involvement, and attitudes toward homosexuality on heterosexuals' attitudes toward the couple, advertisement, brand, and product, purchase intentions, and recall. Results indicate that consumers were accepting of ads with lesbian portrayals. Participants showed more negative attitudes toward gay male portrayals, but attitudes toward heterosexual and lesbian ads were similar. This effect was moderated by participants' attitudes toward homosexuals. Low-involvement consumers showed more negative attitudes toward homosexual portrayals than toward heterosexual portrayals, indicating that sexual orientation may have served as a peripheral cue negatively impacting attitudes toward the couple and ad under low elaboration. These effects were not observed for attitudes toward the brand and product, purchase intentions, or recall.

Modeling water mass formation in the Mertz Glacier Polynya and Adélie Depression, East Antarctica

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marsland, S. J.; Bindoff, N. L.; Williams, G. D.; Budd, W. F.

2004-11-01

High rates of sea ice growth and brine rejection in the Mertz Glacier Polynya drive the production of dense continental shelf waters in the Adélie Depression. We consider the rate of outflow of waters having sufficient density to sink into the neighboring abyssal ocean and form Adélie Land Bottom Water (ALBW). Along with Weddell and Ross Sea Bottom Waters, the ALBW is an important source of Antarctic Bottom Water. The relevant processes are modeled using a variant of the Max Planck Institute Ocean Model (MPIOM) under daily NCEP-NCAR reanalysis forcing for the period 1991-2000. The orthogonal curvilinear horizontal grid allows for the construction of a global domain with high resolution in our region of interest. The modeled Mertz Glacier Polynya is realistic in location and extent, exhibiting low ice thickness (<0.4 m) and low ice fraction (<50%). The net surface ocean to atmosphere heat flux exceeds 200 W m2 and is dominated by sensible heat exchange. In wintertime (May through September inclusive), 7.5 m of sea ice forms over the Adélie Depression at a rate of 4.9 cm d-1: this results in annual average volumetric production of 99 km3 of sea ice. The associated brine release drives dense shelf water formation. The off-shelf flow of dense water exhibits strong interannual variability in response to variability in both atmospheric forcing and ocean preconditioning. Averaged over the period 1991-2000 the off shelf flow of dense water is 0.15 Sv: for a period of strong outflow (1993-1997), this increases to 0.24 Sv. Most of the outflow occurs during July through October, at a rate of 0.40 (0.63) Sv over the period 1991-2000 (1993-1997). The peak mean monthly outflow can exceed 1 Sv.

[Rapid determination of 40 pesticide residues in fruits using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry coupled with analyte protectants to compensate for matrix effects].

PubMed

Xu, Xiuli; Zhao, Haixiang; Li, Li; Liu, Hanxia; Ren, Heling; Zhong, Weike

2012-03-01

A gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) method was developed for the determination of 40 pesticides in fruits. The effects of adding analyte protectants were evaluated for compensating matrix effects and the impacts on the quantitative results. A new combination of analyte protectants - Polyethylene Glycol 400 (PEG 400) and olive oil combination, which can be dissolved in acetone, was used for the quantitative analysis. The pesticides were extracted from fruit samples with acetonitrile and the extracts were cleaned up using micro-solid phase extraction. A GC-MS method in selective ion monitoring (SIM) mode coupled with large volume injection was finally developed. Using the newly developed analyte protectant combination of PEG 400 and olive oil, a good linearity was obtained in the range of 1 - 200 microg/L with coefficients better than 0.99, and the detection limits were between 0.1 - 3.0 microg/L. The mean recoveries of the pesticides were 75% - 119% with the relative standard deviation values less than 16.6% except for dimethoate. The performance of the analyte protectants was compared with matrix-matched standards calibration curves in terms of quantitative accuracy. The results showed that the method of adding analyte protectants can replace the matrix-matched standard calibration, and can also reduce the sample pretreatment. When the devel- oped method was used for the analysis of apple, peache, orange, banana, grape and other fruit samples, a good matrix compensation effect was achieved, and thus effectively reduced the bad effects of the water-soluble agents to the gas chromatographic column.

Small black holes in global AdS spacetime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jokela, Niko; Pönni, Arttu; Vuorinen, Aleksi

2016-04-01

We study the properties of two-point functions and quasinormal modes in a strongly coupled field theory holographically dual to a small black hole in global anti-de Sitter spacetime. Our results are seen to smoothly interpolate between known limits corresponding to large black holes and thermal AdS space, demonstrating that the Son-Starinets prescription works even when there is no black hole in the spacetime. Omitting issues related to the internal space, the results can be given a field theory interpretation in terms of the microcanonical ensemble, which provides access to energy densities forbidden in the canonical description.

Nuclear binding energy using semi empirical mass formula

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ankita,, E-mail: ankitagoyal@gmail.com; Suthar, B.

2016-05-06

In the present communication, semi empirical mass formula using the liquid drop model has been presented. Nuclear binding energies are calculated using semi empirical mass formula with various constants given by different researchers. We also compare these calculated values with experimental data and comparative study for finding suitable constants is added using the error plot. The study is extended to find the more suitable constant to reduce the error.

Processing of Mass/Count Information in Alzheimer's Disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taler, Vanessa; Jarema, Gonia

2004-01-01

This study examines the processing of a specific linguistic distinction, the mass/count distinction, in patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Fourteen AD and 10 MCI subjects were tested using a sentence grammaticality judgement task where grammaticality violations were caused by determiner--noun…

Constant curvature black holes in Einstein AdS gravity: Euclidean action and thermodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guilleminot, Pablo; Olea, Rodrigo; Petrov, Alexander N.

2018-03-01

We compute the Euclidean action for constant curvature black holes (CCBHs), as an attempt to associate thermodynamic quantities to these solutions of Einstein anti-de Sitter (AdS) gravity. CCBHs are gravitational configurations obtained by identifications along isometries of a D -dimensional globally AdS space, such that the Riemann tensor remains constant. Here, these solutions are interpreted as extended objects, which contain a (D -2 )-dimensional de-Sitter brane as a subspace. Nevertheless, the computation of the free energy for these solutions shows that they do not obey standard thermodynamic relations.

Dynamic Effective Mass of Granular Media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hsu, Chaur-Jian; Johnson, David L.; Ingale, Rohit A.; Valenza, John J.; Gland, Nicolas; Makse, Hernán A.

2009-02-01

We develop the concept of frequency dependent effective mass, Mtilde (ω), of jammed granular materials which occupy a rigid cavity to a filling fraction of 48%, the remaining volume being air of normal room condition or controlled humidity. The dominant features of Mtilde (ω) provide signatures of the dissipation of acoustic modes, elasticity, and aging effects in the granular medium. We perform humidity controlled experiments and interpret the data in terms of a continuum model and a “trap” model of thermally activated capillary bridges at the contact points. The results suggest that attenuation of acoustic waves in granular materials can be influenced significantly by the kinetics of capillary condensation between the asperities at the contacts.

Effect of shell corrections on the beta decay isobaric mass parabolas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaur, Sarbjeet; Kaur, Manpreet; Singh, Bir Bikram

2018-05-01

The beta decay isobaric mass parabolas have been studied for isobaric families in di erent mass regions. The mass parabolas have been studied using the semi empirical mass formula of Seeger to find the most stable isobar for a particular isobaric family. In addition to liquid drop part VLDM, the shell correction part δU to give binding energy B. E. = VLDM + δU, defined within Strutinsky renormalization procedure, has been used. To elucidate the role of shell e ects on the structure shape of mass parabola, we have made comparison for the δU = 0 and δU ≠ 0 cases. For a particular mass value of isobaric family, the results show that with the inclusion of shell corrections i.e. δU ≠ 0, the minimum for the most stable isobar is strongly pronounced compared to the case without shell corrections. In other words, shell corrections significantly enhance the stability of stable isobar. The study reveals that the role of shell effects on the mass minima is more pronounced in heavy mass region compared to light and intermediate mass regions.

Study of pH-responsive microgels containing methacrylic acid: effects of particle composition and added calcium.

PubMed

Dalmont, Helene; Pinprayoon, Orawan; Saunders, Brian R

2008-03-18

pH-responsive microgel dispersions contain cross-linked polymer particles that swell when the pH approaches the pKa of the ionic monomer incorporated within the particles. In recent work from our group, it was demonstrated that the mechanical properties of degenerated intervertebral discs (IVDs) could be restored to normal values by injection of pH-responsive microgel dispersions (Saunders, J. M.; Tong, T.; LeMaitre, C.; Freemont, A. J.; Saunders, B. R. Soft Matter 2007, 3, 486). These dispersions change from a fluid to a gel with increasing pH. The present work investigates the pH-dependent properties of dispersions of microgel particles containing MAA (methacrylic acid) and also the effects of added Ca2+. Two microgels are discussed: microgel A is poly(EA/MAA/AM) (EA and AM are ethyl acrylate and allyl methacrylate), and microgel B is poly(EA/MAA/BDDA) (butanediol diacrylate). The pH-dependent particle properties investigated include hydrodynamic diameters and electrophoretic mobilities. The critical coagulation concentrations (CCC) of dilute dispersions and the elastic modulus (G') of concentrated, gelled microgel dispersions were also investigated. In the absence of added Ca2+, the particle swelling and G' were smallest and largest, respectively, for microgel A. The changes in hydrodynamic diameter and mobility with pH were explained in terms of a core-shell swelling mechanism. Added Ca2+ was found to significantly decrease the CCCs, extents of particle swelling, and magnitude of the electrophoretic mobility. This was attributed to the ionic cross-linking of neighboring RCOO- groups by Ca2+. It is suggested that the formation of ionic cross-links is inefficient within the microgel particles because of the presence of covalent cross-links that oppose the large-scale conformational rearrangement of neighboring RCOO- groups. The effect of Ca2+ on the properties of the gelled dispersions is important from the viewpoint of potential application in vivo. Rheological

A family of triaxial modified Hubble mass models: Effects of the additional radial functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Das, Mousumi; Thakur, Parijat; Ann, H. B.

2005-03-01

The projected properties of triaxial generalization of the modified Hubble mass models are studied. These models are constructed by adding the additional radial functions, each multiplied by a low-order spherical harmonic, to the models of [Chakraborty, D.K., Thakur, P., 2000. MNRAS 318, 1273]. The projected surface density of mass models can be calculated analytically which allows us to derive the analytic expressions of axial ratio and position angle of major axis of constant density elliptical contours at asymptotic radii. The models are more general than those studied earlier in the sense that the inclusions of additional terms in density distribution, allow one to produce varieties of the radial profile of axial ratio and position angle, in particular, their small scale variations at inner radii. Strong correlations are found to exist between the observed axial ratio evaluated at 0.25Re and at 4Re which occupy well-separated regions in the parameter space for different choices of the intrinsic axial ratios. These correlations can be exploited to predict the intrinsic shape of the mass model, independent of the viewing angles. Using Bayesian statistics, the result of a test case launched for an estimation of the shape of a model galaxy is found to be satisfactory.

Exogenous Variables and Value-Added Assessments: A Fatal Flaw

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berliner, David C.

2014-01-01

Background: There has been rapid growth in value-added assessment of teachers to meet the widely supported policy goal of identifying the most effective and the most ineffective teachers in a school system. The former group is to be rewarded while the latter group is to be helped or fired for their poor performance. But, value-added approaches to…

Effect of body mass and clothing on decomposition of pig carcasses.

PubMed

Matuszewski, Szymon; Konwerski, Szymon; Frątczak, Katarzyna; Szafałowicz, Michał

2014-11-01

Carcass mass and carcass clothing are factors of potential high forensic importance. In casework, corpses differ in mass and kind or extent of clothing; hence, a question arises whether methods for post-mortem interval estimation should take these differences into account. Unfortunately, effects of carcass mass and clothing on specific processes in decomposition and related entomological phenomena are unclear. In this article, simultaneous effects of these factors are analysed. The experiment followed a complete factorial block design with four levels of carcass mass (small carcasses 5-15 kg, medium carcasses 15.1-30 kg, medium/large carcasses 35-50 kg, large carcasses 55-70 kg) and two levels of carcass clothing (clothed and unclothed). Pig carcasses (N = 24) were grouped into three blocks, which were separated in time. Generally, carcass mass revealed significant and frequently large effects in almost all analyses, whereas carcass clothing had only minor influence on some phenomena related to the advanced decay. Carcass mass differently affected particular gross processes in decomposition. Putrefaction was more efficient in larger carcasses, which manifested itself through earlier onset and longer duration of bloating. On the other hand, active decay was less efficient in these carcasses, with relatively low average rate, resulting in slower mass loss and later onset of advanced decay. The average rate of active decay showed a significant, logarithmic increase with an increase in carcass mass, but only in these carcasses on which active decay was driven solely by larval blowflies. If a blowfly-driven active decay was followed by active decay driven by larval Necrodes littoralis (Coleoptera: Silphidae), which was regularly found in medium/large and large carcasses, the average rate showed only a slight and insignificant increase with an increase in carcass mass. These results indicate that lower efficiency of active decay in larger carcasses is a consequence