Mandated data archiving greatly improves access to research data

The data underlying scientific papers should be accessible to researchers both now and in the future, but how best can we ensure that these data are available? Here we examine the effectiveness of four approaches to data archiving: no stated archiving policy, recommending (but not requiring) archiving, and two versions of mandating data deposition at acceptance. We control for differences between data types by trying to obtain data from papers that use a single, widespread population genetic analysis, STRUCTURE. At one extreme, we found that mandated data archiving policies that require the inclusion of a data availability statement in the manuscript improve the odds of finding the data online almost a thousand-fold compared to having no policy. However, archiving rates at journals with less stringent policies were only very slightly higher than those with no policy at all. At one extreme, we found that mandated data archiving policies that require the inclusion of a data availability statement in the manuscript improve the odds of finding the data online almost a thousand fold compared to having no policy. However, archiving rates at journals with less stringent policies were only very slightly higher than those with no policy at all. We also assessed the effectiveness of asking for data directly from authors and obtained over half of the requested datasets, albeit with about 8 days delay and some disagreement with authors. Given the long term benefits of data accessibility to the academic community, we believe that journal based mandatory data archiving policies and mandatory data availability statements should be more widely adopted

Formation and Evolution of the Disk System of the Milky Way: [alpha/Fe] Ratios and Kinematics of the SEGUE G-Dwarf Sample

We employ measurements of the [alpha/Fe] ratio derived from low-resolution (R~2000) spectra of 17,277 G-type dwarfs from the SEGUE survey to separate them into likely thin- and thick-disk subsamples. Both subsamples exhibit strong gradients of orbital rotational velocity with metallicity, of opposite signs, -20 to -30 km/s/dex for the thin-disk and +40 to +50 km/s/dex for the thick-disk population. The rotational velocity is uncorrelated with Galactocentric distance for the thin-disk subsample, and exhibits a small trend for the thick-disk subsample. The rotational velocity decreases with distance from the plane for both disk components, with similar slopes (-9.0 {\pm} 1.0 km/s/kpc). Thick-disk stars exhibit a strong trend of orbital eccentricity with metallicity (about -0.2/dex), while the eccentricity does not change with metallicity for the thin-disk subsample. The eccentricity is almost independent of Galactocentric radius for the thin-disk population, while a marginal gradient of the eccentricity with radius exists for the thick-disk population. Both subsamples possess similar positive gradients of eccentricity with distance from the Galactic plane. The shapes of the eccentricity distributions for the thin- and thick-disk populations are independent of distance from the plane, and include no significant numbers of stars with eccentricity above 0.6. Among several contemporary models of disk evolution we consider, radial migration appears to have played an important role in the evolution of the thin-disk population, but possibly less so for the thick disk, relative to the gas-rich merger or disk heating scenarios. We emphasize that more physically realistic models and simulations need to be constructed in order to carry out the detailed quantitative comparisons that our new data enable.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ, 18 pages, 12 figures, 2 tables, emulateapj forma

Effects of a Commercial Insurance Policy Restriction on Lumbar Fusion in North Carolina and the Implications for National Adoption

Analysis of the State Inpatient Database of North Carolina, 2005–2012, and the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, including all inpatient lumbar fusion admissions from non-federal hospitals

Beam tests of a large-scale TORCH time-of-flight demonstrator

The TORCH time-of-flight detector is designed to provide particle identification in the momentum range 2-10 GeV/c over large areas. The detector exploits prompt Cherenkov light produced by charged particles traversing a 10 mm thick quartz plate. The photons propagate via total internal reflection and are focused onto a detector plane comprising position-sensitive Micro-Channel Plate Photo-Multiplier Tubes (MCP-PMT) detectors. The goal is to achieve a single-photon timing resolution of 70 ps, giving a timing precision of 15 ps per charged particle by combining the information from around 30 detected photons. The MCP-PMT detectors have been developed with a commercial partner (Photek Ltd, UK), leading to the delivery of a square tube of active area 53 $\times$ 53mm$^2$ with a granularity of 8 $\times$ 128 pixels equivalent. A large-scale demonstrator of TORCH, having a quartz plate of dimensions 660 $\times$ 1250 $\times$ 10 mm$^3$ and read out by a pair of MCP-PMTs with custom readout electronics, has been verified in a test beam campaign at the CERN PS. Preliminary results indicate that the required performance is close to being achieved. The anticipated performance of a full-scale TORCH detector at the LHCb experiment is presented.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, Paper submitted to Nuclear Instruments & Methods in Physics Research, Section A - Special Issue VCI 201

Exposures to Airborne Particulate Matter and Adverse Perinatal Outcomes: A Biologically Plausible Mechanistic Framework for Exploring Potential Effect Modification by Nutrition

OBJECTIVES: The specific objectives are threefold: to describe the biologically plausible mechanistic pathways by which exposure to particulate matter (PM) may lead to the adverse perinatal outcomes of low birth weight (LBW), intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), and preterm delivery (PTD); review the evidence showing that nutrition affects the biologic pathways; and explain the mechanisms by which nutrition may modify the impact of PM exposure on perinatal outcomes. METHODS: We propose an interdisciplinary conceptual framework that brings together maternal and infant nutrition, air pollution exposure assessment, and cardiopulmonary and perinatal epidemiology. Five possible albeit not exclusive biologic mechanisms have been put forth in the emerging environmental sciences literature and provide corollaries for the proposed framework. CONCLUSIONS: Protecting the environmental health of mothers and infants remains a top global priority. The existing literature indicates that the effects of PM on LBW, PTD, and IUGR may manifest through the cardiovascular mechanisms of oxidative stress, inflammation, coagulation, endothelial function, and hemodynamic responses. PM exposure studies relating mechanistic pathways to perinatal outcomes should consider the likelihood that biologic responses and adverse birth outcomes may be derived from both PM and non-PM sources (e.g., nutrition). In the concluding section, we present strategies for empirically testing the proposed model and developing future research efforts

The vertical motions of mono-abundance sub-populations in the Milky Way disk

We present the vertical kinematics of stars in the Milky Way's stellar disk inferred from SDSS/SEGUE G-dwarf data, deriving the vertical velocity dispersion, \sigma_z, as a function of vertical height |z| and Galactocentric radius R for a set of 'mono-abundance' sub-populations of stars with very similar elemental abundances [\alpha/Fe] and [Fe/H]. We find that all components exhibit nearly isothermal kinematics in |z|, and a slow outward decrease of the vertical velocity dispersion: \sigma_z (z,R|[\alpha/Fe],[Fe/H]) ~ \sigma_z ([\alpha/Fe],[Fe/H]) x \exp (-(R-R_0)/7 kpc}). The characteristic velocity dispersions of these components vary from ~ 15 km/s for chemically young, metal-rich stars, to >~ 50 km/s for metal poor stars. The mean \sigma_z gradient away from the mid plane is only 0.3 +/- 0.2 km/s/kpc. We find a continuum of vertical kinetic temperatures (~\sigma^2_z) as function of ([\alpha/Fe],[Fe/H]), which contribute to the stellar surface mass density as \Sigma_{R_0}(\sigma^2_z) ~ \exp(-\sigma^2_z). The existence of isothermal mono-abundance populations with intermediate dispersions reject the notion of a thin-thick disk dichotomy. This continuum of disks argues against models where the thicker disk portions arise from massive satellite infall or heating; scenarios where either the oldest disk portion was born hot, or where internal evolution plays a major role, seem the most viable. The wide range of \sigma_z ([\alpha/Fe],[Fe/H]) combined with a constant \sigma_z(z) for each abundance bin provides an independent check on the precision of the SEGUE abundances: \delta_[\alpha/Fe] ~ 0.07 dex and \delta_[Fe/H] ~ 0.15 dex. The radial decline of the vertical dispersion presumably reflects the decrease in disk surface-mass density. This measurement constitutes a first step toward a purely dynamical estimate of the mass profile the disk in our Galaxy. [abridged

Combined histomorphometric and gene-expression profiling applied to toxicology

We have developed a unique methodology for the combined analysis of histomorphometric and gene-expression profiles amenable to intensive data mining and multisample comparison for a comprehensive approach to toxicology. This hybrid technology, termed extensible morphometric relational gene-expression analysis (EMeRGE), is applied in a toxicological study of time-varied vehicle- and carbon-tetrachloride (CCl(4))-treated rats, and demonstrates correlations between specific genes and tissue structures that can augment interpretation of biological observations and diagnosis

Law and the Body in Joseon Korea: Statecraft and the Negotiation of Ideology

Once considered almost exclusively to be the domain of legal scholars, Joseon dynasty criminal law is recently attracting increasing attention from social, political and intellectual historians of Korea. Despite often reaching opposing conclusions on the characteristics of Joseon legal culture, historians and legal scholars share a strong focus on the dominating role of Confucian ideology. While acknowledging the importance of Confucianism for Joseon statecraft, this paper argues that in actual statecraft and the application of the law, this ideology was negotiated with the perceived needs of the state. The focus of analysis is the relationship between the judicial process—investigation, interrogation and punishment—and cosmological, ideological and cultural notions related to the body. The purpose is to show the tension between the state need to maintain the system and uphold social order (as defined by the state) and the need for the state itself to adhere to the basic principles of the ideology that underpinned this system. Addressing the role of law and punishment in statecraft, the analysis is based on a theoretical framework that combines a conflict-based understanding of society with one that is consensus-based. While on the one hand the violation of notions related to the body was the purport of punishment when dealing with the most severe crimes against the state and its ideology, we can also see how such notions influenced the discourses on penal benevolence, torture and exhumation, whilst partly constituting the reason why some forms of torture were prohibited

The NANOGrav 11-year Data Set: Pulse Profile Variability

Access to 50 years of data has led to the discovery of pulsar emission and rotation variability on timescales of months and years. Most of this long-term variability has been seen in long-period pulsars, with relatively little focus on recycled millisecond pulsars. We have analyzed a 38-pulsar subset of the 45 millisecond pulsars in the NANOGrav 11-year data set, in order to review their pulse profile stability. The most variability, on any timescale, is seen in PSRs J1713+0747, B1937+21, and J2145-0750. The strongest evidence for long-timescale pulse profile changes is seen in PSRs B1937+21 and J1643-1224. We have focused our analyses on these four pulsars in an attempt to elucidate the causes of their profile variability. Effects of scintillation seem to be responsible for the profile modifications of PSR J2145-0750. We see evidence that imperfect polarization calibration contributes to the profile variability of PSRs J1713+0747 and B1937+21, along with radio frequency interference around 2 GHz, but find that propagation effects also have an influence. The changes seen in PSR J1643-1224 have been reported previously, yet elude explanation beyond their astrophysical nature. Regardless of cause, unmodeled pulse profile changes are detrimental to the accuracy of pulsar timing and must be incorporated into the timing models where possible