3,150 research outputs found
Later prehistory from the Trent to the Tyne
The object of the thesis is to present a study of the later Bronze Age and Iron Age periods in the area from the river Tyne southwards to the English Midlands. A large quantity of unpublished material is illustrated, and is discussed in a suggested chronological sequence devised on the basis of site association and relevant British and European context. The evidence of settlement sites, economy, and burial is also reviewed. Specific conclusions have been reached throughout all aspects of the discussion. To a great extent these conclusions are provisional, since much evidence is not yet published and research in many fields has been limited, but some are of considerable importance. Pottery forms owing much to earlier urn styles are identified in the Late Bronze Age alongside intrusive types. The widespread influence of Hallstatt traits is discussed. The scored pottery of the East Midlands is seen to have been introduced in the fifth century B.C. or even earlier. The identification of distinctive "angular" pottery in the East Riding adds credence to the theory of an early La Tene immigration. The importance of arable farming in the Iron Age food-producing economy, and the development of an enclosed, intensively occupied landscape in parts of the south and east are shown. The fact that most excavated hill-forts in the area are demonstrably pre-fifth century B.C. is highlighted. An analysis of the distinctive character of constituent parts of the area of study is made. The results of palynological investigations are cited whenever possible to demonstrate the presence, character, and effects of prehistoric populations. It is seen that the paucity of material evidence from the north and west is not wholly a result of an imbalance in research effort. Suggestions for future work are made
Gut-seeded α-synuclein fibrils promote gut dysfunction and brain pathology specifically in aged mice
Parkinson’s disease is a synucleinopathy that is characterized by motor dysfunction, death of midbrain dopaminergic neurons and accumulation of α-synuclein (α-Syn) aggregates. Evidence suggests that α-Syn aggregation can originate in peripheral tissues and progress to the brain via autonomic fibers. We tested this by inoculating the duodenal wall of mice with α-Syn preformed fibrils. Following inoculation, we observed gastrointestinal deficits and physiological changes to the enteric nervous system. Using the AAV-PHP.S capsid to target the lysosomal enzyme glucocerebrosidase for peripheral gene transfer, we found that α-Syn pathology is reduced due to the increased expression of this protein. Lastly, inoculation of α-Syn fibrils in aged mice, but not younger mice, resulted in progression of α-Syn histopathology to the midbrain and subsequent motor defects. Our results characterize peripheral synucleinopathy in prodromal Parkinson’s disease and explore cellular mechanisms for the gut-to-brain progression of α-Syn pathology
Developing the evidence base for adult social care practice: The NIHR School for Social Care Research
In a foreword to 'Shaping the Future of Care Together', Prime Minister Gordon Brown says that a care and support system reflecting the needs of our times and meeting our rising aspirations is achievable, but 'only if we are prepared to rise to the challenge of radical reform'. A number of initiatives will be needed to meet the challenge of improving social care for the growing older population. Before the unveiling of the green paper, The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) announced that it has provided 15m pounds over a five-year period to establish the NIHR School for Social Care Research. The School's primary aim is to conduct or commission research that will help to improve adult social care practice in England. The School is seeking ideas for research topics, outline proposals for new studies and expert advice in developing research methods
Client self-assessment in community aged care: A comparative study involving older Australians and their case managers
Self-assessment of support needs is a relatively new and under-researched phenomenon in domiciliary aged care. This article outlines the results of a comparative study focusing on whether a self-assessment approach assists clients to identify support needs and the degree to which self-assessed needs differ from an assessment conducted by community care professionals. A total of 48 older people and their case managers completed a needs assessment tool. Twenty-two semi-structured interviews were used to ascertain older people’s views and preferences regarding the self-assessment process. The study suggests that while a co-assessment approach as outlined in this article has the potential to assist older people to gain a better understanding of their care needs as well as the assessment process and its ramifications, client self-assessment should be seen as part of a co-assessment process involving care professionals. Such a co-assessment process allows older people to gain a better understanding of their support needs and the wider community aged care context. The article suggests that a co-assessment process involving both clients and care professionals contains features that have the capacity to enhance domiciliary aged care
Nonlinear atom-optical delta-kicked harmonic oscillator using a Bose-Einstein condensate
We experimentally investigate the atom-optical delta-kicked harmonic
oscillator for the case of nonlinearity due to collisional interactions present
in a Bose-Einstein condensate. A Bose condensate of rubidium atoms tightly
confined in a static harmonic magnetic trap is exposed to a one-dimensional
optical standing-wave potential that is pulsed on periodically. We focus on the
quantum anti-resonance case for which the classical periodic behavior is simple
and well understood. We show that after a small number of kicks the dynamics is
dominated by dephasing of matter wave interference due to the finite width of
the condensate's initial momentum distribution. In addition, we demonstrate
that the nonlinear mean-field interaction in a typical harmonically confined
Bose condensate is not sufficient to give rise to chaotic behavior.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Impact of active and passive social facilitation on self paced endurance and sprint exercise: encouragement augments performance and motivation to exercise
Objective
The positive effect of an audience on performance is anecdotally well known, but the impact of such social facilitation to both performance and the motivation to exercise have not been thoroughly explored. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate verbal encouragement as a means to promote positive behavioural adherence to exercise and augmented performance.
Methods
Twelve untrained but active individuals (seven female), age 24±3 years participated in this study. Exercise conditions with external verbal encouragement (EVE) and without external verbal encouragement (WEVE) were compared in both endurance (20 min) and sprint (2 × 30 s Wingate) cycling tasks in a randomised crossover design. Results were analysed by separate 2 (EVE/WEVE) × 2 (sprint/endurance) within-subjects analyses of variance for each dependent variable. Statistical significance was set at p≤0.05.
Results
EVE resulted in a significant increase, F (1,11)=15.37, p=0.002, η p 2=0.58 in the average power generated by participants in each exercise bout on the cycle ergometer. EVE also had a significant effect on reported motivation to exercise the next day, F (1,11)=5.5, p=0.04, η p 2 =0.33, which did not differ between type of exercise.
Conclusion
External encouragement in both sprint and endurance activities resulted in large improvements in performance and motivation to continue an exercise regimen the next day, which has important implications for health, adherence and maximising physical performance using a practical intervention
SN~1991T: Reflections of Past Glory
We have obtained photometry and spectra of SN~1991T which extend more than
1000 days past maximum light, by far the longest a SN~Ia has been followed.
Although SN~1991T exhibited nearly normal photometric behavior in the first 400
days following maximum, by 600 days its decline had slowed, and by 950~days the
supernova brightness was consistent with a constant apparent magnitude of
. Spectra near maximum showed minor variations on the SN~Ia theme
which grew less conspicuous during the exponential decline. At 270 days the
nebular spectrum was composed of Fe and Co lines common to SNe~Ia. However, by
750 days past maximum light, these lines had shifted in wavelength, and were
superimposed on a strong blue continuum. The luminosity of SN~1991T at 950 days
is more than ~ergs~s with a rate of
decline of less than mags/100~days. We show that this emission is likely
to be light that was emitted by SN~1991T near maximum light which has reflected
from foreground dust, much like the light echos observed around SN~1987A.Comment: 15 pages (includes figures and tables) uuencoded compressed
postscript, CfA Preprint - To Appear in ApJ
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