1,903 research outputs found
Nearly strain-free heteroepitaxial system for fundamental studies of pulsed laser deposition: EuTiO3 on SrTiO3
High quality epitaxial thin-films of EuTiO3 have been grown on the (001)
surface of SrTiO3 using pulsed laser deposition. In situ x-ray reflectivity
measurements reveal that the growth is two-dimensional and enable real-time
monitoring of the film thickness and roughness during growth. The film
thickness, surface mosaic, surface roughness, and strain were characterized in
detail using ex situ x-ray diffraction. The thicnkess and composition were
confirmed with Rutherford Backscattering. The EuTiO3 films grow
two-dimensionally, epitaxially, pseudomorphically, with no measurable in-plane
lattice mismatch.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure
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The relationship of Asperger’s syndrome to autism: a preliminary EEG coherence study
Background: It has long been debated whether Asperger’s Syndrome (ASP) should be considered part of the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) or whether it constitutes a unique entity. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, fourth edition (DSM-IV) differentiated ASP from high functioning autism. However, the new DSM-5 umbrellas ASP within ASD, thus eliminating the ASP diagnosis. To date, no clear biomarkers have reliably distinguished ASP and ASD populations. This study uses EEG coherence, a measure of brain connectivity, to explore possible neurophysiological differences between ASP and ASD. Methods: Voluminous coherence data derived from all possible electrode pairs and frequencies were previously reduced by principal components analysis (PCA) to produce a smaller number of unbiased, data-driven coherence factors. In a previous study, these factors significantly and reliably differentiated neurotypical controls from ASD subjects by discriminant function analysis (DFA). These previous DFA rules are now applied to an ASP population to determine if ASP subjects classify as control or ASD subjects. Additionally, a new set of coherence based DFA rules are used to determine whether ASP and ASD subjects can be differentiated from each other. Results: Using prior EEG coherence based DFA rules that successfully classified subjects as either controls or ASD, 96.2% of ASP subjects are classified as ASD. However, when ASP subjects are directly compared to ASD subjects using new DFA rules, 92.3% ASP subjects are identified as separate from the ASD population. By contrast, five randomly selected subsamples of ASD subjects fail to reach significance when compared to the remaining ASD populations. When represented by the discriminant variable, both the ASD and ASD populations are normally distributed. Conclusions: Within a control-ASD dichotomy, an ASP population falls closer to ASD than controls. However, when compared directly with ASD, an ASP population is distinctly separate. The ASP population appears to constitute a neurophysiologically identifiable, normally distributed entity within the higher functioning tail of the ASD population distribution. These results must be replicated with a larger sample given their potentially immense clinical, emotional and financial implications for affected individuals, their families and their caregivers
Primary cervical malignant teratoma with a rib metastasis in an adult: Five-year survival after surgery and chemotherapy: A case report with a review of the literature
We report a case of a man presenting with a cervical malignant teratoma and a chondrosarcomatous rib metastasis. He was alive and free of recurrence five years and 10 months (= 70 months) after resection of the primary mass, followed by chemotherapy and subsequent resection of the rib tumor. This is the 35th patient reported in the literature and the first description in which an ‘adjuvant' or primary chemotherapy was used. Previous patients with a cervical malignant teratoma, reported after lethal outcome, had survivals of one to 22 months (median nine months). In all patients with a preoperative clinical impression of an aggressive, differentiated or undifferentiated malignancy, the definite diagnosis of teratoma could only be made histologically. By analogy to germ cell tumors, the prognosis of malignant teratoma might be improved if complete excision is combined with new, adjuvant chemotherapy protocols for germ cell tumors. Lessons learned from this case are placed in the context of germ cell tumors in general and of non-gonadal malignant teratomas in particula
Spectroscopy of stripe order in La1.8Sr0.2NiO4 using resonant soft x-ray diffraction
Strong resonant enhancements of the charge-order and spin-order
superstructure-diffraction intensities in La1.8Sr0.2NiO4 are observed when
x-ray energies in the vicinity of the Ni L2,3 absorption edges are used. The
pronounced photon-energy and polarization dependences of these diffraction
intensities allow for a critical determination of the local symmetry of the
ordered spin and charge carriers. We found that not only the antiferromagnetic
order but also the charge-order superstructure resides within the NiO2 layers;
the holes are mainly located on in-plane oxygens surrounding a Ni2+ site with
the spins coupled antiparallel in close analogy to Zhang-Rice singlets in the
cuprates.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
On electromagnetic contributions in WIMP quests
The effect pointed out by A. B. Migdal in the 40's (hereafter named Migdal
effect) has so far been usually neglected in the direct searches for WIMP Dark
Matter candidates. This effect consists in the ionization and the excitation of
bound atomic electrons induced by the recoiling atomic nucleus. In the present
paper the related theoretical arguments are developed and some consequences of
the proper accounting for this effect are discussed by some examples of
practical interest.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, Int. J. Mod. Phys. A (in publication
Capillary Filling of Anodized Alumina Nanopore Arrays
The filling behavior of a room temperature solvent,
perfluoromethylcyclohexane, in approximately 20 nm nanoporous alumina membranes
was investigated in situ with small angle x-ray scattering. Adsorption in the
pores was controlled reversibly by varying the chemical potential between the
sample and a liquid reservoir via a thermal offset, T. The system
exhibited a pronounced hysteretic capillary filling transition as liquid was
condensed into the nanopores. These results are compared with Kelvin-Cohan
theory, with a modified Derjaguin approximation, as well as with predictions by
Cole and Saam.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, pre-proof
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The frequency modulated auditory evoked response (FMAER), a technical advance for study of childhood language disorders: cortical source localization and selected case studies
Background: Language comprehension requires decoding of complex, rapidly changing speech streams. Detecting changes of frequency modulation (FM) within speech is hypothesized as essential for accurate phoneme detection, and thus, for spoken word comprehension. Despite past demonstration of FM auditory evoked response (FMAER) utility in language disorder investigations, it is seldom utilized clinically. This report's purpose is to facilitate clinical use by explaining analytic pitfalls, demonstrating sites of cortical origin, and illustrating potential utility. Results: FMAERs collected from children with language disorders, including Developmental Dysphasia, Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS), and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and also normal controls - utilizing multi-channel reference-free recordings assisted by discrete source analysis - provided demonstratrions of cortical origin and examples of clinical utility. Recordings from inpatient epileptics with indwelling cortical electrodes provided direct assessment of FMAER origin. The FMAER is shown to normally arise from bilateral posterior superior temporal gyri and immediate temporal lobe surround. Childhood language disorders associated with prominent receptive deficits demonstrate absent left or bilateral FMAER temporal lobe responses. When receptive language is spared, the FMAER may remain present bilaterally. Analyses based upon mastoid or ear reference electrodes are shown to result in erroneous conclusions. Serial FMAER studies may dynamically track status of underlying language processing in LKS. FMAERs in ASD with language impairment may be normal or abnormal. Cortical FMAERs can locate language cortex when conventional cortical stimulation does not. Conclusion: The FMAER measures the processing by the superior temporal gyri and adjacent cortex of rapid frequency modulation within an auditory stream. Clinical disorders associated with receptive deficits are shown to demonstrate absent left or bilateral responses. Serial FMAERs may be useful for tracking language change in LKS. Cortical FMAERs may augment invasive cortical language testing in epilepsy surgical patients. The FMAER may be normal in ASD and other language disorders when pathology spares the superior temporal gyrus and surround but presumably involves other brain regions. Ear/mastoid reference electrodes should be avoided and multichannel, reference free recordings utilized. Source analysis may assist in better understanding of complex FMAER findings
Induced Crystallization of Polyelectrolyte-Surfactant Complexes at the Gas-Water Interface
Synchrotron-X-ray and surface tension studies of a strong polyelectrolyte
(PE) in the semi-dilute regime (~ 0.1M monomer-charges) with varying surfactant
concentrations show that minute surfactant concentrations induce the formation
of a PE-surfactant complex at the gas/solution interface. X-ray reflectivity
and grazing angle X-ray diffraction (GIXD) provide detailed information of the
top most layer, where it is found that the surfactant forms a two-dimensional
liquid-like monolayer, with a noticeable disruption of the structure of water
at the interface. With the addition of salt (NaCl) columnar-crystals with
distorted-hexagonal symmetry are formed.Comment: 4 pages, 5 eps figure
Domain Growth and Finite-Size-Scaling in the Kinetic Ising Model
This paper describes the application of finite-size scaling concepts to
domain growth in systems with a non-conserved order parameter. A finite-size
scaling ansatz for the time-dependent order parameter distribution function is
proposed, and tested with extensive Monte-Carlo simulations of domain growth in
the 2-D spin-flip kinetic Ising model. The scaling properties of the
distribution functions serve to elucidate the configurational self-similarity
that underlies the dynamic scaling picture. Moreover, it is demonstrated that
the application of finite-size-scaling techniques facilitates the accurate
determination of the bulk growth exponent even in the presence of strong
finite-size effects, the scale and character of which are graphically exposed
by the order parameter distribution function. In addition it is found that one
commonly used measure of domain size--the scaled second moment of the
magnetisation distribution--belies the full extent of these finite-size
effects.Comment: 13 pages, Latex. Figures available on request. Rep #9401
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Corticosteroid therapy in regressive autism: a retrospective study of effects on the Frequency Modulated Auditory Evoked Response (FMAER), language, and behavior
Background: Up to a third of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) manifest regressive autism (R-ASD).They show normal early development followed by loss of language and social skills. Absent evidence-based therapies, anecdotal evidence suggests improvement following use of corticosteroids. This study examined the effects of corticosteroids for R-ASD children upon the 4 Hz frequency modulated evoked response (FMAER) arising from language cortex of the superior temporal gyrus (STG) and upon EEG background activity, language, and behavior. An untreated clinical convenience sample of ASD children served as control sample. Methods: Twenty steroid-treated R-ASD (STAR) and 24 not-treated ASD patients (NSA), aged 3 - 5 years, were retrospectively identified from a large database. All study participants had two sequential FMAER and EEG studies;Landau-Kleffner syndrome diagnosis was excluded. All subjects’ records contained clinical receptive and expressive language ratings based upon a priori developed metrics. The STAR group additionally was scored behaviorally regarding symptom severity as based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM-IV) ASD criteria list. EEGs were visually scored for abnormalities. FMAER responses were assessed quantitatively by spectral analysis. Treated and untreated group means and standard deviations for the FMAER, EEG, language, and behavior, were compared by paired t-test and Fisher’s exact tests. Results: The STAR group showed a significant increase in the 4 Hz FMAER spectral response and a significant reduction in response distortion compared to the NSA group. Star group subjects’ language ratings were significantly improved and more STAR than NSA group subjects showed significant language improvement. Most STAR group children showed significant behavioral improvement after treatment. STAR group language and behavior improvement was retained one year after treatment. Groups did not differ in terms of minor EEG abnormalities. Steroid treatment produced no lasting morbidity. Conclusions: Steroid treatment was associated with a significantly increased FMAER response magnitude, reduction of FMAER response distortion, and improvement in language and behavior scores. This was not observed in the non-treated group. These pilot findings warrant a prospective randomized validation trial of steroid treatment for R-ASD utilizing FMAER, EEG, and standardized ASD, language and behavior measures, and a longer follow-up period. Please see related article http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/12/7
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