Diffusion of Hydrogen in Pd Assisted by Inelastic Ballistic Hot Electrons

Sykes {\it et al.} [Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. {\bf 102}, 17907 (2005)] have reported how electrons injected from a scanning tunneling microscope modify the diffusion rates of H buried beneath Pd(111). A key point in that experiment is the symmetry between positive and negative voltages for H extraction, which is difficult to explain in view of the large asymmetry in Pd between the electron and hole densities of states. Combining concepts from the theory of ballistic electron microscopy and electron-phonon scattering we show that H diffusion is driven by the $s$-band electrons only, which explains the observed symmetry.Comment: 5 pages and 4 figure

Propionibacterium acnes infections in patients with idiopathic scoliosis: a case-control study and review of the literature.

Purpose:Surgical site infection (SSI) caused by Propionibacterium acnes is an infrequent but devastating complication after spinal fusion. The purpose of this study was to identify risk factors for SSI with Propionibacterium acnes after spinal fusion for juvenile and adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (JIS and AIS). Methods:A case-control study was performed. Each case was matched 2:1 for age, gender and diagnosis. Retrospective chart review was performed to obtain relevant demographic, surgical and clinical data for all cases and controls. Statistical analysis included paired t-test and McNemar test, as well as exact logistic regression and robust regression models. Results:This study included ten infection cases (eight AIS, two JIS) and 20 controls (16 AIS, four JIS). In total, six infected cases presented within two weeks of the index procedure (acute infection) and four infected cases presented more than one year from the index procedure (delayed infection). The most common presentation for acute infections was wound drainage, while back pain was more common in delayed infections. All infections were successfully treated with surgical irrigation and debridement and postoperative antibiotics. Hardware was removed for patients with delayed infections. The strongest risk factor for infection was increased requirement for blood transfusion, but it did not reach statistical significance. Conclusion:SSI with Propionibacterium acnes is an important complication after spinal fusion for idiopathic scoliosis. These infections can be successfully treated, but larger studies are needed to further identify risk factors and establish standardized guidelines for the treatment and prevention of this complication. Level of Evidence Level III

Diaries, letters and reflections: life-writing in Carmen Martín Gaite's Cuadernos de Todo and her novels of the 1990s

This thesis examines the various kinds of material (including diary-style writing, impressions of people and places, and notes on work in progress) collected in Carmen Martìn Gaite's Cuadernos de todo and subsequently considers the significance of diaries, letters, and life-writing in her novels of the 1990s. After observations on the importance of diaries and letters in women‟s literature, there is an assessment of such narrative material in the contemporary novel and references to how Foucault's essay on 'self-writing' serves to channel the ideas of the self-reflective capacities of letters and diaries. There follows an examination of Cuadernos de todo, with particular reference to the use of diaries and letters in Martín Gaite's work, their relationship to the 'writing-cure'. The section dedicated to Cuadernos de todo opens with an analysis of the first cuadernos (which were written in the 1960s) as notebooks used by the author as a site for her reflections on society and other matters, themes which are developed in her later novels. Next, there is a discussion of how Martín Gaite used these cuadernos as a writer‟s notebooks, for developing ideas on her novels and essays, showing the close link between the authors 'diaries' and her work, between life and literature. The cuadernos americanos constitute the last part of the assessment of Cuadernos de todo. Written during different periods the author spent on lecture-tours and as a university teacher in the United States, these cuadernos americanos are particularly significant for her development as a novelist. They reveal a new approach to diary-writing as, free from the family and the social commitments she had in Spain, the author found more time for reflection. The last of the cuadernos americanos is also a clear example of the use of diary writing as therapy, of the 'writing-cure'. The final part of the thesis focuses on Martìn Gaite's four novels of the 1990s – in which the use of diaries, letters, and life-writing is especially significant. Here the theories of Donald Winnicott and Nancy Chodorow on child development and motherhood, themes which run troughout Martín Gaite's writing, are discussed to shed additional light on the author's approach to life-writing and fiction

Improved model for the analysis of air fluorescence induced by electrons

A model recently proposed for the calculation of air-fluorescence yield excited by electrons is revisited. Improved energy distributions of secondary electrons and a more realistic Monte Carlo simulation including some additional processes have allowed us to obtain more accurate results. The model is used to study in detail the relationship between fluorescence intensity and deposited energy in a wide range of primary energy (keVs - GeVs). In addition, predictions on the absolute value of the fluorescence efficiency in the absence of collisional quenching will be presented and compared with available experimental data.Comment: Contribution to the 5th Fluorescence Workshop, El Escorial, Madrid, Spain, September 2007, to appear in Nuclear Instruments and Methods A. Revised version.- More details on the comparison with experimental dat