Measurement of the cross-section and charge asymmetry of WW bosons produced in proton-proton collisions at s=8\sqrt{s}=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

This paper presents measurements of the $W^+ \rightarrow \mu^+\nu$ and $W^- \rightarrow \mu^-\nu$ cross-sections and the associated charge asymmetry as a function of the absolute pseudorapidity of the decay muon. The data were collected in proton--proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV with the ATLAS experiment at the LHC and correspond to a total integrated luminosity of 20.2~\mbox{fb^{-1}}. The precision of the cross-section measurements varies between 0.8% to 1.5% as a function of the pseudorapidity, excluding the 1.9% uncertainty on the integrated luminosity. The charge asymmetry is measured with an uncertainty between 0.002 and 0.003. The results are compared with predictions based on next-to-next-to-leading-order calculations with various parton distribution functions and have the sensitivity to discriminate between them.Comment: 38 pages in total, author list starting page 22, 5 figures, 4 tables, submitted to EPJC. All figures including auxiliary figures are available at https://atlas.web.cern.ch/Atlas/GROUPS/PHYSICS/PAPERS/STDM-2017-13

Search for chargino-neutralino production with mass splittings near the electroweak scale in three-lepton final states in √s=13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for supersymmetry through the pair production of electroweakinos with mass splittings near the electroweak scale and decaying via on-shell W and Z bosons is presented for a three-lepton final state. The analyzed proton-proton collision data taken at a center-of-mass energy of √s=13  TeV were collected between 2015 and 2018 by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139  fb−1. A search, emulating the recursive jigsaw reconstruction technique with easily reproducible laboratory-frame variables, is performed. The two excesses observed in the 2015–2016 data recursive jigsaw analysis in the low-mass three-lepton phase space are reproduced. Results with the full data set are in agreement with the Standard Model expectations. They are interpreted to set exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level on simplified models of chargino-neutralino pair production for masses up to 345 GeV

Search for direct stau production in events with two hadronic tau-leptons in root s=13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for the direct production of the supersymmetric partners ofτ-leptons (staus) in final stateswith two hadronically decayingτ-leptons is presented. The analysis uses a dataset of pp collisions corresponding to an integrated luminosity of139fb−1, recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LargeHadron Collider at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. No significant deviation from the expected StandardModel background is observed. Limits are derived in scenarios of direct production of stau pairs with eachstau decaying into the stable lightest neutralino and oneτ-lepton in simplified models where the two staumass eigenstates are degenerate. Stau masses from 120 GeV to 390 GeV are excluded at 95% confidencelevel for a massless lightest neutralino

Strategies to Control a Common Carp Population by Pulsed Commercial Harvest

Commercial fisheries are commonly used to manage nuisance fishes in freshwater systems, but such efforts are often unsuccessful. Strategies for successfully controlling a nuisance population of common carpCyprinus carpio by pulsed commercial harvest were evaluated with a combination of (1) field sampling, (2) population estimation and CPUE indexing, and (3) simulation using an exponential semidiscrete biomass dynamics model (SDBDM). The range of annual fishing mortalities (F) that resulted in successful control (F= 0.244–0.265) was narrow. Common carp biomass dynamics were sensitive to unintentional underharvest due to high rates of surplus production and a biomass doubling time of 2.7 years. Simulations indicated that biomanipulation never achieved successful control unless supplemental fishing mortality was imposed. Harvest of a majority of annual production was required to achieve successful control, as indicated by the ecotrophic coefficient (EC). Readily available biomass data and tools such as SDBDMs and ECs can be used in an adaptive management framework to successfully control common carp and other nuisance fishes by pulsed commercial fishing

Search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum in pp collisions at √ s = 8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

Results of a search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum are reported. The search uses 20.3 fb−1 of √ s = 8 TeV data collected in 2012 with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events are required to have at least one jet with pT > 120 GeV and no leptons. Nine signal regions are considered with increasing missing transverse momentum requirements between Emiss T > 150 GeV and Emiss T > 700 GeV. Good agreement is observed between the number of events in data and Standard Model expectations. The results are translated into exclusion limits on models with either large extra spatial dimensions, pair production of weakly interacting dark matter candidates, or production of very light gravitinos in a gauge-mediated supersymmetric model. In addition, limits on the production of an invisibly decaying Higgs-like boson leading to similar topologies in the final state are presente

Compartmentalized Culture of Perivascular Stroma and Endothelial Cells in a Microfluidic Model of the Human Endometrium

The endometrium is the inner lining of the uterus. Following specific cyclic hormonal stimulation, endometrial stromal fibroblasts (stroma) and vascular endothelial cells exhibit morphological and biochemical changes to support embryo implantation and regulate vascular function, respectively. Herein, we integrated a resin-based porous membrane in a dual chamber microfluidic device in polydimethylsiloxane that allows long term in vitro co-culture of human endometrial stromal and endothelial cells. This transparent, 2-m porous membrane separates the two chambers, allows for the diffusion of small molecules and enables high resolution bright field and fluorescent imaging. Within our primary human co-culture model of stromal and endothelial cells, we simulated the temporal hormone changes occurring during an idealized 28-day menstrual cycle. We observed the successful differentiation of stroma into functional decidual cells, determined by morphology as well as biochemically as measured by increased production of prolactin. By controlling the microfluidic properties of the device, we additionally found that shear stress forces promoted cytoskeleton alignment and tight junction formation in the endothelial layer. Finally, we demonstrated that the endometrial perivascular stroma model was sustainable for up to 4 weeks, remained sensitive to steroids and is suitable for quantitative biochemical analysis. Future utilization of this device will allow the direct evaluation of paracrine and endocrine crosstalk between these two cell types as well as studies of immunological events associated with normal versus disease-related endometrial microenvironments

Breastfeeding and weaning practices among Hong Kong mothers: a prospective study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Breastfeeding provides optimal and complete nutrition for newborn babies. Although new mothers in Hong Kong are increasingly choosing to breastfeed their babies, rates of exclusive breastfeeding are low and duration remains short. The purpose of this study was to describe the breastfeeding and weaning practices of Hong Kong mothers over the infant's first year of life to determine the factors associated with early cessation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cohort of 1417 mother-infant pairs was recruited from the obstetric units of four public hospitals in Hong Kong in the immediate post-partum period and followed prospectively for 12 months or until weaned. We used descriptive statistics to describe breastfeeding and weaning practices and multiple logistic regression to investigate the relationship between maternal characteristics and breastfeeding cessation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>At 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 12 months only 63%, 37.3%, 26.9%, and 12.5% of the infants respectively, were still receiving any breast milk; approximately one-half of breastfeeding mothers were exclusively breastfeeding. Younger mothers, those with a longer duration of residence in Hong Kong, and those returning to work postpartum were more likely to wean before 1 month. Mothers with higher education, previous breastfeeding experience, who were breastfed themselves and those who were planning to exclusively breastfeed and whose husbands preferred breastfeeding were more likely to continue breastfeeding beyond 1 month. The introduction of infant formula before 1 month and returning to work postpartum were predictive of weaning before 3 months.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Breastfeeding promotion programs have been successful in achieving high rates of breastfeeding initiation but the focus must now shift to helping new mothers exclusively breastfeed and sustain breastfeeding for longer.</p

The Terneuzen Birth Cohort. Longer exclusive breastfeeding duration is associated with leaner body mass and a healthier diet in young adulthood

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Breastfeeding (BF) is protective against overweight and is associated with dietary behaviour. The aims of our study were to assess the relationship between exclusive BF duration and BMI, waist circumference (WC) and waist-hip ratio (WHR) at adulthood, and to study whether dietary behaviour could explain the relationship between BF duration and the proxies of fat mass.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>In 2004-2005, 822 subjects from the Terneuzen Birth Cohort (n = 2,604), aged 18-28 years, filled in postal questionnaires including sociodemographic factors and aspects of dietary behaviour (dietary pattern, and consumption of fruit and vegetables, snacks, sweetened beverages and alcohol); 737 subjects also underwent anthropometric measurements of weight, height, and waist and hip circumference. The relationship between exclusive BF duration and dietary outcomes was investigated by logistic regression analysis. The relationships of BF duration with the anthropometric measures were investigated by linear regression analyses. All results were corrected for age, gender and possible confounders. Finally, regression analyses were performed to investigate if diet factors had a mediating effect on the relationship between BF duration and fat mass.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A significant inverse dose-response relationship of BF duration was found for BMI (β-0.13, SE 0.06), WC (β-0.39, SE 0.18) and WHR (β-0.003, SE 0.001), after correction for age, gender and confounders. The odds ratio (OR) of exclusive BF duration in months for a breakfast frequency of at least 5 times a week was 1.16 (95%CI 1.06-1.27), and for snack consumption of less than twice a week was 1.15 (95%CI 1.06-1.25). Both ORs were corrected for age, gender and confounders. For other dietary outcomes, the results point in the same direction, i.e. a positive relationship with BF duration, but these were not statistically significant. A mediating effect of the diet factors on the association between BF and anthropometric outcomes was not shown.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Exclusive BF duration had a significant inverse dose-response relationship with BMI, WC and WHR at young adulthood. BF duration was positively related to a healthier diet at adulthood, but this did not explain the protective effect of BF against body fat. Our results underline the recommendation of the WHO to exclusively breastfeed for 6 months or longer.</p