Quantum Electro and Chromodynamics treated by Thompson's heuristic approach

In this work we apply Thompson's method (of the dimensions and scales) to study some features of the Quantum Electro and Chromodynamics. This heuristic method can be considered as a simple and alternative way to the Renormalisation Group (R.G.) approach and when applied to QED-lagrangian is able to obtain in a first approximation both the running coupling constant behavior of alpha(mu) and the mass m(mu).The calculations are evaluated just at d_c=4, where d_c is the upper critical dimension of the problem, so that we obtain the logarithmic behavior both for the coupling alpha and the excess of mass Delta m on the energy scale mu. Although our results are well-known in the vast literature of field theories,it seems that one of the advantages of Thompson's method, beyond its simplicity is that it is able to extract directly from QED-lagrangian the physical (finite) behavior of alpha(mu) and m(mu), bypassing hard problems of divergences which normally appear in the conventional renormalisation schemes applied to field theories like QED. Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) is also treated by the present method in order to obtain the quark condensate value. Besides this, the method is also able to evaluate the vacuum pressure at the boundary of the nucleon. This is done by assumming a step function behavior for the running coupling constant of the QCD, which fits nicely to some quantities related to the strong interaction evaluated through the MIT-bag model.Comment: RevTex, 25 pages, no figure

Resposta de plantas jovens de limeira-ácida 'Tahiti' a diferentes níveis de irrigação

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of different irrigation levels on canopy and root growth, productivity, and fruit quality of young ‘Tahiti’ acid lime trees. The experiment was installed in Piracicaba, Brazil in a 1.0-ha orchard plot with ‘Tahiti’ acid lime trees, grafted on ‘Swingle’ citrumelo rootstock and carried out from August of 2002 to May 2005. Each treatment was assigned to a drip irrigation level, based on ETc as follows: T1) non-irrigated, T2) 25%, T3) 50%, T4) 75% and T5) 100% of ETc determined by weighing lysimeter presented in the orchard plot. Trunk diameter and tree height were evaluated monthly. The roots were evaluated when the trees were 30 and 48 months old. The yield and fruit quality was evaluated in 2004 and 2005. The results showed that irrigation did not influence root distribution in depth, and trees irrigated with 75% and 100% ETc showed horizontal root distribution concentrated until 0.6 m from the trunk. Irrigation did not improve the quality of fruit. Yield increased in all irrigated treatment, but the most efficient yield mean per unit of water applied was the 25% ETc treatment.O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o efeito de diferentes níveis de irrigação sobre o crescimento da copa e raízes, produtividade e qualidade de frutos de plantas jovens de limeira-ácida ‘Tahiti’. O experimento foi instalado em Piracicaba, em um hectare plantado com limeira-ácida ‘Tahiti’ enxertadas sobre porta-enxerto citromelo ‘Swingle’e irrigadas por gotejamento. O experimento foi conduzido durante o período de agosto de 2002 a maio de 2005. Cada tratamento correspondeu a um nível de irrigação baseado nos valores de evapotranspiração da cultura (ETc): T1) não irrigado; T2) 25%; T3) 50%; T4) 75% e T5) 100% da ETc determinada por meio de um lisímetro de pesagem, presente na área. O diâmetro e a altura das plantas foram avaliados mensalmente. As raízes foram avaliadas quando as plantas estavam com 30 e 48 meses de idade. A produtividade e a qualidade dos frutos foram avaliadas em 2004 e 2005. Os resultados mostraram que a irrigação não influenciou na distribuição do sistema radicular em profundidade, e que plantas irrigadas com lâminas de água equivalentes a 75 e 100% da ETc mostraram uma distribuição horizontal de raízes concentradas a 0,60 m de distância do tronco. Aos 48 meses, a irrigação não influenciou na distribuição do sistema radicular no perfil do solo. A irrigação não melhorou a qualidade dos frutos. A produtividade aumentou em todos os tratamentos irrigados, mas o tratamento correspondente à lâmina de 25% da ETc foi o mais eficiente por unidade de água aplicada

Profiling alumni of a Brazilian public dental school

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Follow-up studies of former students are an efficient way to organize the entire process of professional training and curriculum evaluation. The aim of this study was to identify professional profile subgroups based on job-related variables in a sample of former students of a Brazilian public dental school.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A web-based password-protected questionnaire was sent to 633 registered dentists who graduated from the Federal University of Goias between 1988 and 2007. Job-related information was retrieved from 14 closed questions, on subjects such as gender, occupational routine, training, profits, income status, and self-perception of professional career, generating an automatic database for analysis. The two-step cluster method was used for dividing dentists into groups on the basis of minimal within-group and maximal between-group variation, using job-related variables to represent attributes upon which the clustering was based.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There were 322 respondents (50.9%), predominantly female (64.9%) and the mean age was 34 years (SD = 6.0). The automatic selection of an optimal number of clusters included 289 cases (89.8%) in 3 natural clusters. Clusters 1, 2 and 3 included 52.2%, 30.8% and 17.0% of the sample respectively. Interpretation of within-group rank of variable importance for cluster segmentation resulted in the following characterization of clusters: Cluster 1 - specialist dentists with higher profits and positive views of the profession; Cluster 2 - general dental practitioners in small cities; Cluster 3 - underpaid and less motivated dentists with negative views of the profession. Male dentists were predominant in cluster 1 and females in cluster 3. One-way Anova showed that age and time since graduation were significantly lower in Cluster 2 (<it>P </it>< 0.001). Alternative solutions with 4 and 5 clusters revealed specific discrimination of Cluster 1 by gender and dental education professionals.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Cluster analysis was a valuable method for identifying natural grouping with relatively homogeneous cases, providing potentially meaningful information for professional orientation in dentistry in a variety of professional situations and environments.</p

Heart rate and cardiovascular responses to commercial flights: relationships with physical fitness

The aim of this study was to examine the influence of physical fitness on cardiac autonomic control in passengers prior to, during and following commercial flights. Twenty-two, physically active men (36.4 +/- 6.4 years) undertook assessments of physical fitness followed by recordings of 24-h heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV), and blood pressure (BP) on a Control (no flight) and Experimental (flight) day. Recordings were analyzed using a two-way analysis of variance for repeated measures with relationships between variables examined via Pearson product moment correlation coefficients. Compared to the Control day, 24-h HR was significantly greater (>7%) and HRV measures (5-39%) significantly lower on the Experimental day. During the 1-h flight, HR (24%), and BP (6%) were increased while measures of HRV (26-45%) were reduced. Absolute values of HRV during the Experimental day and relative changes in HRV measures (Control-Experimental) were significantly correlated with measures of aerobic fitness (r = 0.43 to 0.51;-0.53 to -0.52) and body composition (r = -0.63 to -0.43; 0.48-0.61). The current results demonstrated that short-term commercial flying significantly altered cardiovascular function including the reduction of parasympathetic modulations. Further, greater physical fitness and lower body fat composition were associated with greater cardiac autonomic control for passengers during flights. Enhanced physical fitness and leaner body composition may enable passengers to cope better with the cardiovascular stress and high allostatic load associated with air travel for enhanced passenger well-being

Growth of melon cultivated under saline stress and potassium doses

O Estado do Rio Grande do Norte, em destaque a região da Chapada do Apodi, se destaca na produção e exportação de melão no País, em regime de irrigação, devido à distribuição pluvial baixa e irregular. A Chapada do Apodi possui dois aqüíferos subterrâneos; a do lençol menos profundo de alta salinidade, porém com menor custo de bombeamento, ocorrendo o contrário com o de maior profundidade. Objetivou-se, ante o exposto, avaliar o efeito de duas águas de salinidades diferentes (0,52 e 2,41 dS m-1), combinadas com cinco doses de K2O (218, 273, 328, 383 e 438 kg ha-1) sobre o crescimento do meloeiro (Cucumis melo L.), cultivar Goldex, utilizando-se do delineamento de blocos ao acaso, com parcelas subdivididas; amostras de planta foram coletadas aos 21, 28, 35, 49 e 63 dias após a semeadura, determinando-se a fitomassa seca das plantas, estas separadas em ramos (caule + folhas), flores e frutos; avaliou-se, também, a taxa de crescimento absoluto e relativo e a produção de frutos. Em geral, o crescimento do melão foi favorecido com o uso de água mais salina; a taxa de crescimento absoluto foi máxima entre 35 e 49 dias após a semeadura. Obteve-se maior produção de fitomassa total com 438 kg ha-1 de K2O e uso de água mais salina, ao final do ciclo.The region of 'Chapada do Apodi', in the State of Rio Grande do Norte, stands out in Brazilian production and exportation of melon. This region possesses two aquiffers, one of lower exploration cost, though of high salinity, another of low salinity, with higher cost and limited use. This work was carried out with the objective to evaluate the effect of waters of different salinities combined with five doses of K in the dry matter accumulation and productivity of the melon (Cucumis melo L.) cultivar Goldex. The experimental design adopted was split plot in completely randomized blocks. The melon crop was irrigated with low (0.52 dS m-1) and high (2.41 dS m-1) salinity water combined with five doses of K2O (218, 273, 328, 383 and 438 kg ha-1). Plants were collected at 21, 28, 35, 49 and 63 days after sowing, and were separated in branches (shoot + leaves), flowers and fruits, and the total dry matter of the aerial parts obtained by summation. The absolute and relative growth rates and the production of fruits were also evaluated. The absolute growth rate of the plant was maximum between 35 and 49 days. The highest total biomass was obtained with 438 kg ha-1 K2O and use of high salinity water at the end of crop cycle.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq

Heart Rate and Cardiovascular Responses to Commercial Flights: Relationships with Physical Fitness

[EN] The aim of this study was to examine the influence of physical fitness on cardiac autonomic control in passengers prior to, during and following commercial flights. Twenty-two, physically active men (36.4 ± 6.4 years) undertook assessments of physical fitness followed by recordings of 24-h heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV), and blood pressure (BP) on a Control (no flight) and Experimental (flight) day. Recordings were analyzed using a two-way analysis of variance for repeated measures with relationships between variables examined via Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients. Compared to the Control day, 24-h HR was significantly greater (>7%) and HRV measures (5–39%) significantly lower on the Experimental day. During the 1-h flight, HR (24%), and BP (6%) were increased while measures of HRV (26–45%) were reduced. Absolute values of HRV during the Experimental day and relative changes in HRV measures (Control-Experimental) were significantly correlated with measures of aerobic fitness (r = 0.43 to 0.51; −0.53 to −0.52) and body composition (r = −0.63 to −0.43; 0.48–0.61). The current results demonstrated that short-term commercial flying significantly altered cardiovascular function including the reduction of parasympathetic modulations. Further, greater physical fitness and lower body fat composition were associated with greater cardiac autonomic control for passengers during flights. Enhanced physical fitness and leaner body composition may enable passengers to cope better with the cardiovascular stress and high allostatic load associated with air travel for enhanced passenger well-being

Vertical Distribution of Leaves and Stems on the Sward and Forage Intake by Lambs in Tifton-85 Pasture

Sward characteristics affect the performance of grazing livestock, especially for the youngest animals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the vertical distribution of leaves and stems on the sward and the forage intake parameters of lambs in four sheep meat production systems grazing a Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) cv. Tifton-85 pasture

Non-COVID-19 respiratory viral infection

Implemented control measures brought about by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have changed the prevalence of other respiratory viruses, often relegating them to a secondary plan. However, it must not be forgotten that a diverse group of viruses, including other human coronaviruses, rhinoviruses, respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumoviruses, parainfluenza and influenza, continue to be responsible for a large burden of disease. In fact, they are among the most common causes of acute upper and lower respiratory tract infections globally. Viral respiratory infections can be categorised in several ways, including by clinical syndrome or aetiological agent. We describe their clinical spectrum. Distinctive imaging features, advances in microbiological diagnosis and treatment of severe forms are also discussed.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio