Considerations for the scientific support process and applications to case studies

Case studies are vehicle to bridge the gap between science and practice because they provide opportunities to blend observations and interventions that have taken place in real-world environments with scientific rigour. The purpose of this invited commentary is to present considerations for those providing applied sport science support to athletes with the intention of broadcasting this information to the scientific community. We present a four phased approach (1: Athlete overview; 2: Needs analysis; 3: Intervention planning; 4: Results,evaluation and conclusion) for scientific support to assist practitioners in the development and implementation of scientific support. These considerations are presented in the form of ‘performance questions’ designed to guide and critically evaluate the scientific support process and aid the transfer of this knowledge via case studies

Quantum channels in nonlinear optical processes

Quantum electrodynamics furnishes a new type of representation for the characterisation of nonlinear optical processes. The treatment elicits the detailed role and interplay of specific quantum channels, information that is not afforded by other methods. Following an illustrative application to the case of Rayleigh scattering, the method is applied to second and third harmonic generation. Derivations are given of parameters that quantify the various quantum channels and their interferences; the results are illustrated graphically. With given examples, it is shown in some systems that optical nonlinearity owes its origin to an isolated channel, or a small group of channels. © 2009 World Scientific Publishing Company

5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) cellular sequestration during chronic exposure delays 5-HT₃ receptor resensitization due to Its subsequent release

The serotonergic synapse is dynamically regulated by serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)) with elevated levels leading to the down-regulation of the serotonin transporter and a variety of 5-HT receptors, including the 5-HT type-3 (5-HT(3)) receptors. We report that recombinantly expressed 5-HT(3) receptor binding sites are reduced by chronic exposure to 5-HT (IC(50) of 154.0 ± 45.7 μm, t(½) = 28.6 min). This is confirmed for 5-HT(3) receptor-induced contractions in the guinea pig ileum, which are down-regulated after chronic, but not acute, exposure to 5-HT. The loss of receptor function does not involve endocytosis, and surface receptor levels are unaltered. The rate and extent of down-regulation is potentiated by serotonin transporter function (IC(50) of 2.3 ± 1.0 μm, t(½) = 3.4 min). Interestingly, the level of 5-HT uptake correlates with the extent of down-regulation. Using TX-114 extraction, we find that accumulated 5-HT remains soluble and not membrane-bound. This cytoplasmically sequestered 5-HT is readily releasable from both COS-7 cells and the guinea pig ileum. Moreover, the 5-HT level released is sufficient to prevent recovery from receptor desensitization in the guinea pig ileum. Together, these findings suggest the existence of a novel mechanism of down-regulation where the chronic release of sequestered 5-HT prolongs receptor desensitization

In Media Res: Sam & Frodo on the Journey

In one of the more pivotal passages in Lord of the Rings, Sam makes a couple of insightful comments to Frodo in a way that transcends his earlier foolishness. In a kind of moral and philosophical epiphany he says, “It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. . . But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going, because they were holding on to something. That there is some good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for.” Sam’s comments speak to the central importance of hope for the wayfarers. And this would resonate with Fleiger’s account of the role of light and darkness as it parallels hope and despair. Hope is the virtue of “being on the way,” or as Josef Pieper says, it is the status viatoris. Persons on a journey have yet “to arrive” at their destination but feel the magnetic pull of some good that demands their efforts. Aquinas writes that hope is “the patient expectation of a difficult but possible future good.” I argue that the journey of hope, as Tolkien narrates it, is where we all find ourselves: in the midst of an ongoing story. And the essential elements of the journey include: fellowship, hope, and a good worth striving for

Quenched hadron spectroscopy with improved staggered quark action

We investigate light hadron spectroscopy with an improved quenched staggered quark action. We compare the results obtained with an improved gauge plus an improved quark action, an improved gauge plus standard quark action, and the standard gauge plus standard quark action. Most of the improvement in the spectroscopy results is due to the improved gauge sector. However, the improved quark action substantially reduces violations of Lorentz invariance, as evidenced by the meson dispersion relations.Comment: New references adde

Natural Law & Right Reason in the Moral Theory of St. Thomas Aquinas

A major problem with current discussions on the moral theory of St. Thomas Aquinas is the fact that many interpreters present Thomas\u27s thought as a natural-law morality. While natural law is an element of Thomas\u27s moral theory, it plays a subordinate role to the virtue of prudence. The natural law interpreters of St. Thomas\u27s moral theory hold that (1) natural law is the dominant element, (2) natural law can be treated in isolation from Thomas\u27s account of virtue, and (3) the principles of natural law make Thomas\u27s moral theory abstract and deontological. These interpretations rarely consider the virtue of prudence. Natural law, in Thomas\u27s moral theory, makes general statements about human nature and also sets the parameters for morally good human activity. However, it fails to function adequately on the level of an agent\u27s particular moral problems. The general precepts of natural law do not function as proximate principles of human action. But the special function of moral virtue is to provide the agent with the necessary proximate principles of human action. Virtue is an acquired disposition of the soul that functions as a proximate principle of action. Holding a special place in Thomas\u27s moral theory, prudence is primary among the moral virtues. It is defined as right reason concerning things to be done. Prudence holds a middle place between he intellectual virtues and the moral virtues. It requires right thinking about moral matters, but it also requires the possession of a right appetite. This essay includes some discussion of human nature, as ethics is subordinated to psychology. Furthermore, we must show how the human agent engages in moral activity, and this requires discussing the psychological processes involved in human action. It is my purpose to explore the functions of natural law and virtue and to take account of the relationship between them in Thomas\u27s moral theory. After establishing a proper understanding of Thomas\u27s view, it will be clear that the natural-law interpreters have missed a crucial element in his ethical theory