A fifty year record of winter glacier melt events in southern Chile, 38°–42°S

Little is known about the frequency and potential mass balance impact of winter glacier melt events. In this study, daily atmospheric temperature soundings from the Puerto Montt radiosonde (41.43°S) are used to reconstruct winter melting events at the glacier equilibrium line altitude in the 38°–42°S region of southern Chile, between 1960 and 2010. The representativeness of the radiosonde temperatures to near-surface glacier temperatures is demonstrated using meteorological records from close to the equilibrium line on two glaciers in the region over five winters. Using a degree-day model we estimate an average of 0.28 m of melt and 21 melt days in the 15 June–15 September period each year, with high inter-annual variability. The majority of melt events are associated with midlatitude migratory high pressure systems crossing Chile and northwesterly flows, that force adiabatic compression and warm advection, respectively. There are no trends in the frequency or magnitude of melt events over the period of record, but the annual frequency of winter melt days shows a significant, although rather weak and probably non-linear, relationship to late winter and early spring values of a multivariate El Niño Southern Oscillation Index (MEI)

Viscosity Is Not a Parameter of Postdeglutitive Pharyngeal Residue: Quantification and Analysis with Scintigraphy

The aim of this study was to explore the influence of viscosity on pharyngeal residue in normal healthy volunteers. Scintigraphy was used to measure pharyngeal residue in 11 healthy volunteers after swallowing three different substances (age = 20.2–48.3 years). The first substance was a 10-ml solution of tap water with 0.5% xanthan with a viscosity of 4500 mPa s, comparable to a yogurt drink. The second and third substances were a 0.75% xanthan and a 1.00% xanthan solution, with viscosities of 10,500 and 21,000 mPa s, comparable to low-fat yogurt and 3% fat yogurt, respectively. Tap water was used as the control substance. Mean pharyngeal residue after swallowing tap water was 2.3% (SD = 1.2) of the initial volume in the oral cavity. Pharyngeal residue after swallowing 0.5% xanthan solution was 1.8% (SD = 0.8), after swallowing 0.75% xanthan solution 2.6% (SD = 2.2), and after swallowing 1.00% xanthan solution 2.8% (SD = 1.7). No significant correlation between increase of viscosity and pharyngeal residue was found. In healthy persons viscosity does not seem to be a significant parameter for pharyngeal residue for boluses with viscosities ranging from tap water to solutions having a viscosity comparable to 3% fat yogurt

Discrepancies in Determinations of the Ginzburg-Landau Parameter

Long-standing discrepancies within determinations of the Ginzburg-Landau parameter $\kappa$ from supercritical field measurements on superconducting microspheres are reexamined. The discrepancy in tin is shown to result from differing methods of analyses, whereas the discrepancy in indium is a consequence of significantly differing experimental results. The reanalyses however confirms the lower $\kappa$ determinations to within experimental uncertainties.Comment: submitted to Phys. Rev.

The Observations Of The X-Ray Source Hz Herculis-Hercules X-1

NASAESASRCAstronom

Pine growth variation associated with overburden rock type on a reclaimed surface mine in Virginia

ABSTRACT This study was designed to compare the effects of two overburden spoil types and various mixtures of the two spoils on the performance of pitch X loblolly hybrid pine (Pinus X rigitaeda). Sandstone and siltstone overburden were used to create five rock mix treatments: pure sandstone (SS), pure siltstone (SiS), a 2:1 SS/SiS mix, a 1:1 SS/SiS mix, and a 1:2 SS/SiS mix. Tree survival was not affected by rock mix, but growth was greatly affected. The greatest growth response occurred on the SS treatment and decreased as the amount of siltstone increased in the rock mix. The average stem volume of trees on the SS treatment was nearly five times greater than trees on the SiS treatment. The coarse fragment content of the SS (52%) was much lower than the SiS (72%), thus providing a greater volume of fine earth (<2 mm) for water retention and root exploitation. The pH of the SS was much lower than SiS (5.7 vs. 7.1), and available Mn was higher in the SS than in the SiS (540 vs. 160 mg kg ' foliar Mn). The results of this study demonstrate the need to consider the effects of various overburden types on tree growth when forest land is the designated post-mining land use. T^ORESTRY is a logical land use for many reclaimed r mined sites in the Appalachians, especially those that are too remote or steep to be useful for crops, hay production, or grazing. Studies have revealed that excellent tree growth is possible on reclaimed mined sites. Torbert et al. (1988) reported white pine (Pinus strobus L.) heights of up to 6.9 m for 10-yr-old white pines on reclaimed sites in Virginia. On mined sites in Illinois, Ashby et al. (1984) reported excellent growth of 30-yr-old white oak (Quercus alba L.) and yellow-poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.) with site indices (base age 50) of 28.6 and 29.6 m, respectively

Phase engineering of controlled entangled number states in a single component Bose-Einstein condensate in a double well

We propose a model for the creation of entangled number states (Schr\"odinger cat states) of a Bose-Einstein condensate in a double well through simple phase engineering. We show that a $\pi$-phase imprinted condensate in a double-well evolves, with a simultaneous change of barrier height, to number states with well defined and controlled entanglement. The cat state generation is understood in terms of the underlying classical phase space dynamics of a $\pi$-phase displaced coherent state put at the hyperbolic fixed point of the separatrix of a physical pendulum. The extremity and sharpness of the final cat state is determined by the initial barrier height and the rate at which it is ramped during the evolution.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, Submitted to J. Phys. B (letter to the editor

Combining Contrast Invariant L1 Data Fidelities with Nonlinear Spectral Image Decomposition

This paper focuses on multi-scale approaches for variational methods and corresponding gradient flows. Recently, for convex regularization functionals such as total variation, new theory and algorithms for nonlinear eigenvalue problems via nonlinear spectral decompositions have been developed. Those methods open new directions for advanced image filtering. However, for an effective use in image segmentation and shape decomposition, a clear interpretation of the spectral response regarding size and intensity scales is needed but lacking in current approaches. In this context, $L^1$ data fidelities are particularly helpful due to their interesting multi-scale properties such as contrast invariance. Hence, the novelty of this work is the combination of $L^1$-based multi-scale methods with nonlinear spectral decompositions. We compare $L^1$ with $L^2$ scale-space methods in view of spectral image representation and decomposition. We show that the contrast invariant multi-scale behavior of $L^1-TV$ promotes sparsity in the spectral response providing more informative decompositions. We provide a numerical method and analyze synthetic and biomedical images at which decomposition leads to improved segmentation.Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures, conference SSVM 201

Dietary Glycemic Load and Glycemic Index and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease and Stroke in Dutch Men and Women: The EPIC-MORGEN Study

BACKGROUND: The associations of glycemic load (GL) and glycemic index (GI) with the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are not well-established, particularly in men, and may be modified by gender. OBJECTIVE: To assess whether high dietary GL and GI increase the risk of CVD in men and women. METHODS: A large prospective cohort study (EPIC-MORGEN) was conducted within the general Dutch population among 8,855 men and 10,753 women, aged 21-64 years at baseline (1993-1997) and free of diabetes and CVD. Dietary intake was assessed with a validated food-frequency questionnaire and GI and GL were calculated using Foster-Powell's international table of GI. Information on morbidity and mortality was obtained through linkage with national registries. Cox proportional hazards analysis was performed to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for incident coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke, while adjusting for age, CVD risk factors, and dietary factors. RESULTS: During a mean follow-up of 11.9 years, 581 CHD cases and 120 stroke cases occurred among men, and 300 CHD cases and 109 stroke cases occurred among women. In men, GL was associated with an increased CHD risk (adjusted HR per SD increase, 1.17 [95% CI, 1.02-1.35]), while no significant association was found in women (1.09 [0.89-1.33]). GI was not associated with CHD risk in both genders, while it was associated with increased stroke risk in men (1.27 [1.02-1.58]) but not in women (0.96 [0.75-1.22]). Similarly, total carbohydrate intake and starch intake were associated with a higher CHD risk in men (1.23 [1.04-1.46]; and 1.24 [1.07-1.45]), but not in women. CONCLUSION: Among men, high GL and GI, and high carbohydrate and starch intake, were associated with increased risk of CVD

Endoscopic bilateral adrenalectomy in patients with ectopic Cushing’s syndrome

Background: Bilateral adrenalectomy (BLA) is a treatment option to alleviate symptoms in patients with ectopic Cushing's syndrome (ECS) for whom surgical treatment of the responsible nonpituitary tumor is not possible. ECS patients have an increased risk for complications, because of high cortisol levels, poor clinical condition, and metabolic disturbances. This study aims to evaluate the safety and long-term efficacy of endoscopic BLA for ECS. Methods: From 1990 to present, 38 patients were diagnosed and treated for ECS in the Erasmus University Medical Center, a tertiary referral center. Twenty-four patients were treated with BLA (21 endoscopic, 3 open), 9 patients were treated medically, and 5 patients could be cured by complete resection of the adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)-producing tumor. The medical records were retrospectively reviewed and entered into a database. For evaluation of the efficacy of BLA, preoperative biochemical and physical symptoms were assessed and compared with postoperative data. Results: Endoscopic BLA was successfully completed in 20 of the 21 patients; one required conversion to open BLA. Intraoperative complications occurred in two (10%) patients, and postoperative complications occurred in three (14%) patients. Median hospitalization was 9 (2-95) days, and median operating time was 246 (205-347) min. Hypercortisolism was resolved in all patients. Improvements of hypertension, body weight, Cushingoid appearance, impaired muscle strength, and ankle edema were achieved in 87, 90, 65, 61, and 78% of the patients, respectively. Resolution of diabetes, hypokalemia, and metabolic alkalosis was achieved in 33, 89, and 80%, respectively. Conclusion: Endoscopic BLA is a