Type and density of independent takeaway outlets: a geographical mapping study in a low socioeconomic ward, Manchester.

OBJECTIVES: The socioeconomic disparity in childhood and early adult obesity prevalence has been well characterised. Takeaway outlets may cluster in lower socioeconomic areas and their proximity to schools is of concern. This study aimed to map takeaway food outlets, characterise takeaway types and their proximity to educational institutions within a low socioeconomic ward in Manchester. DESIGN: The Rusholme ward and a 2 km Euclidean buffer were included as the study area. Local authority Environmental Health data were used to map the takeaway outlets, using QGIS V.2.18.0 (OPENGIS.ch LLC, Einsiedeln, Switzerland). The types of takeaway outlets and major roads were included. Number of outlets within a 400 m Euclidean walking buffer of educational institutions were mapped. SETTING: Rusholme, Manchester, UK. RESULTS: Within the study area, 202 takeaway food outlets were identified and mapped as cluster points. Of these, 62.3% are located on major (A and B) roads, while the remaining outlets were located on minor roads. The majority (57.4%) of takeaway outlets sold similar items (fried chicken, burgers, pizzas, kebabs), with the remainder offering more diverse menus. Of the 53 schools, colleges and universities within the study area, 28 (52.8%) had 1-5 takeaway food outlets within 400 m, 9 (17.0%) had 6-10 outlets; 4 (7.5%) more than 11 outlets with 12 (22.6%) having zero outlets within 400 m. CONCLUSION: Within this low socioeconomic area, there was a high concentration of takeaway food outlets, predominantly along major roads and in easy walking distance of educational establishments with the majority offering similar foods. In addition, a high proportion of these outlets were in easy walking distance of educational establishments. Public health policy needs to consider the implications of current takeaway food outlets and not just the proliferation of these outlets with current planning laws

Polarization-squeezed light formation in a medium with electronic Kerr nonlinearity

We analyze the formation of polarization-squeezed light in a medium with electronic Kerr nonlinearity. Quantum Stokes parameters are considered and the spectra of their quantum fluctuations are investigated. It is established that the frequency at which the suppression of quantum fluctuations is the greatest can be controlled by adjusting the linear phase difference between pulses. We shown that by varying the intensity or the nonlinear phase shift per photon for one pulse, one can effectively control the suppression of quantum fluctuations of the quantum Stokes parameters.Comment: final version, RevTeX, 10 pages, 5 eps figure

Bod1, a novel kinetochore protein required for chromosome biorientation

We have combined the proteomic analysis of Xenopus laevis in vitro–assembled chromosomes with RNA interference and live cell imaging in HeLa cells to identify novel factors required for proper chromosome segregation. The first of these is Bod1, a protein conserved throughout metazoans that associates with a large macromolecular complex and localizes with kinetochores and spindle poles during mitosis. Small interfering RNA depletion of Bod1 in HeLa cells produces elongated mitotic spindles with severe biorientation defects. Bod1-depleted cells form syntelic attachments that can oscillate and generate enough force to separate sister kinetochores, suggesting that microtubule–kinetochore interactions were intact. Releasing Bod1-depleted cells from a monastrol block increases the frequency of syntelic attachments and the number of cells displaying biorientation defects. Bod1 depletion does not affect the activity or localization of Aurora B but does cause mislocalization of the microtubule depolymerase mitotic centromere- associated kinesin and prevents its efficient phosphorylation by Aurora B. Therefore, Bod1 is a novel kinetochore protein that is required for the detection or resolution of syntelic attachments in mitotic spindles

Birth Cohort Differences in Features of Antisocial Alcoholism among Men and Women

Background: This study examines the relations between birth cohort, gender, and family history of alcohol problems on alcohol dependence, and on the endorsement of alcohol abuse/dependence symptoms related to antisocial behavior. Methods: Men (n = 1365) and women (n = 625) were recruited from the community, hospitals, and other treatment sites and were given a structured diagnostic interview. Data were analyzed by using logistic regression. Results: Age of first regular alcohol use was lower in more recent birth cohorts for both men and women, with those born in the most recent cohort reporting earliest regular use. The decline across cohort was more dramatic in women than in men. For those participants with a diagnosis of alcohol dependence, being born in a more recent cohort was associated with increased risk of dependence onset before age 25. Among those participants with onset of alcohol dependence before age 25 (nmen = 400; nwomen = 51), being born in a more recent cohort was associated with increased risk of fights while drinking, police involvement, and drunk driving trouble as well as with increased risk for a diagnosis of abuse or dependence on another drug. Conclusions: These results suggest that the prevalence of antisocial alcoholism may be increasing for both men and women. These data exemplify how societal change may affect expression of underlying vulnerability for traits thought to be genetically influenced

Spatiotemporal dispersion and wave envelopes with relativistic and pseudorelativistic characteristics

A generic nonparaxial model for pulse envelopes is presented. Classic Schro¨dinger-type descriptions of wave propagation have their origins in slowly-varying envelopes combined with a Galilean boost to the local time frame. By abandoning these two simplifications, a picture of pulse evolution emerges in which frame-of-reference considerations and space-time transformations take center stage. A wide range of effects, analogous to those in special relativity, then follows for both linear and nonlinear systems. Explicit demonstration is presented through exact bright and dark soliton pulse solutions

Spatial solitary-wave optical memory

We consider some features of spatial solitary-wave switching in a unidirectional ring cavity that is partially filled with a fast and saturably self-focusing nonlinear medium. Large (part-beam switched) solitary arrays are considered. It is found that prescribed binary patterns may be encoded in the duration of a single cavity transit and subsequently remain stable over thousands of transits. Beam interrupt allows pixels to be switched off in fewer than ten cavity transits. Pixel instabilities on an unpixelated beam are shown to arise from spatial solitary attractive forces and intensity gradients

Continuous-Variable Quantum Teleportation with a Conventional Laser

We give a description of balanced homodyne detection (BHD) using a conventional laser as a local oscillator (LO), where the laser field outside the cavity is a mixed state whose phase is completely unknown. Our description is based on the standard interpretation of the quantum theory for measurement, and accords with the experimental result in the squeezed state generation scheme. We apply our description of BHD to continuous-variable quantum teleportation (CVQT) with a conventional laser to analyze the CVQT experiment [A. Furusawa et al., Science 282, 706 (1998)], whose validity has been questioned on the ground of intrinsic phase indeterminacy of the laser field [T. Rudolph and B.C. Sanders, Phys. Rev. Lett. 87, 077903 (2001)]. We show that CVQT with a laser is valid only if the unknown phase of the laser field is shared among sender's LOs, the EPR state, and receiver's LO. The CVQT experiment is considered valid with the aid of an optical path other than the EPR channel and a classical channel, directly linking between a sender and a receiver. We also propose a method to probabilistically generate a strongly phase-correlated quantum state via continuous measurement of independent lasers, which is applicable to realizing CVQT without the additional optical path.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure

Universal continuous-variable quantum computation: Requirement of optical nonlinearity for photon counting

Although universal continuous-variable quantum computation cannot be achieved via linear optics (including squeezing), homodyne detection and feed-forward, inclusion of ideal photon counting measurements overcomes this obstacle. These measurements are sometimes described by arrays of beam splitters to distribute the photons across several modes. We show that such a scheme cannot be used to implement ideal photon counting and that such measurements necessarily involve nonlinear evolution. However, this requirement of nonlinearity can be moved "off-line," thereby permitting universal continuous-variable quantum computation with linear optics.Comment: 6 pages, no figures, replaced with published versio