314 research outputs found
The polarized electron target as a new solar-neutrino detector
In this paper, we analyze the scattering of solar neutrinos on the polarized
electron target, and predict how the effect of parity violation in weak
interactions may help to distinguish neutrino signal from detector background.
We indicate that the knowledge of the Sun motion across the sky is sufficient
to predict the day/night asymmetry in the scattering on the
polarized electron target. To make this detection feasible, the polarized
electron target for solar neutrinos needs to be build from magnetic materials,
e.g. from ferromagnetic iron foils, paramagnetic scintillator crystals or
scintillating ferrofluids.Comment: 3 pages, 2 eps figures, revte
Investigation of DC-8 nacelle modifications to reduce fan-compressor noise in airport communities. Part 4 - Flight acoustical and performance evaluations, for period May 1967 - October 1969
Flight acoustical and performance evaluations of DC 8 nacelle modifications to reduce fan-compressor noise in airport communitie
Communicating population health statistics through graphs: a randomised controlled trial of graph design interventions
BACKGROUND: Australian epidemiologists have recognised that lay readers have difficulty understanding statistical graphs in reports on population health. This study aimed to provide evidence for graph design improvements that increase comprehension by non-experts. METHODS: This was a double-blind, randomised, controlled trial of graph-design interventions, conducted as a postal survey. Control and intervention participants were randomly selected from telephone directories of health system employees. Eligible participants were on duty at the listed location during the study period. Controls received a booklet of 12 graphs from original publications, and intervention participants received a booklet of the same graphs with design modifications. A questionnaire with 39 interpretation tasks was included with the booklet. Interventions were assessed using the ratio of the prevalence of correct responses given by the intervention group to those given by the control group for each task. RESULTS: The response rate from 543 eligible participants (261 intervention and 282 control) was 67%. The prevalence of correct answers in the control group ranged from 13% for a task requiring knowledge of an acronym to 97% for a task identifying the largest category in a pie chart. Interventions producing the greatest improvement in comprehension were: changing a pie chart to a bar graph (3.6-fold increase in correct point reading), changing the y axis of a graph so that the upward direction represented an increase (2.9-fold increase in correct judgement of trend direction), a footnote to explain an acronym (2.5-fold increase in knowledge of the acronym), and matching the y axis range of two adjacent graphs (two-fold increase in correct comparison of the relative difference in prevalence between two population subgroups). CONCLUSION: Profound population health messages can be lost through use of overly technical language and unfamiliar statistical measures. In our study, most participants did not understand age standardisation and confidence intervals. Inventive approaches are required to address this problem
An Immunocompetent Mouse Model of HPV16(+) Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma
The incidence of human papilloma virus (HPV)-associated head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is increasing and implicated in more than 60% of all oropharyngeal carcinomas (OPSCCs). Although whole-genome, transcriptome, and proteome analyses have identified altered signaling pathways in HPV-induced HNSCCs, additional tools are needed to investigate the unique pathobiology of OPSCC. Herein, bioinformatics analyses of human HPV(+) HNSCCs revealed that all tumors express full-length E6 and identified molecular subtypes based on relative E6 and E7 expression levels. To recapitulate the levels, stoichiometric ratios, and anatomic location of E6/E7 expression, we generated a genetically engineered mouse model whereby balanced expression of E6/E7 is directed to the oropharyngeal epithelium. The addition of a mutant PIK3CAE545K allele leads to the rapid development of pre-malignant lesions marked by immune cell accumulation, and a subset of these lesions progress to OPSCC. This mouse provides a faithful immunocompetent model for testing treatments and investigating mechanisms of immunosuppression
The State-of-the-Art of Set Visualization
Sets comprise a generic data model that has been used in a variety of data analysis problems. Such problems involve analysing and visualizing set relations between multiple sets defined over the same collection of elements. However, visualizing sets is a non-trivial problem due to the large number of possible relations between them. We provide a systematic overview of state-of-the-art techniques for visualizing different kinds of set relations. We classify these techniques into six main categories according to the visual representations they use and the tasks they support. We compare the categories to provide guidance for choosing an appropriate technique for a given problem. Finally, we identify challenges in this area that need further research and propose possible directions to address these challenges. Further resources on set visualization are available at http://www.setviz.net
The social and behavioral influences (SBI) study: study design and rationale for studying the effects of race and activation on cancer pain management
Background
Racial disparities exist in the care provided to advanced cancer patients. This article describes an investigation designed to advance the science of healthcare disparities by isolating the effects of patient race and patient activation on physician behavior using novel standardized patient (SP) methodology. Methods/design
The Social and Behavioral Influences (SBI) Study is a National Cancer Institute sponsored trial conducted in Western New York State, Northern/Central Indiana, and lower Michigan. The trial uses an incomplete randomized block design, randomizing physicians to see patients who are either black or white and who are “typical” or “activated” (e.g., ask questions, express opinions, ask for clarification, etc.). The study will enroll 91 physicians. Discussion
The SBI study addresses important gaps in our knowledge about racial disparities and methods to reduce them in patients with advanced cancer by using standardized patient methodology. This study is innovative in aims, design, and methodology and will point the way to interventions that can reduce racial disparities and discrimination and draw links between implicit attitudes and physician behaviors
Military-Civilian Collaborations for mTBI Rehabilitation Research in an Active Duty Population: Lessons Learned From the Assessment of Military Multitasking Performance Project
This article describes lessons learned in the planning, development, and administration of a collaborative military-civilian research project, the Assessment of Military Multitasking Performance, which was designed to address a gap in clinical assessment for active duty service members with mild traumatic brain injury who wish to return to active duty. Our team worked over the course of multiple years to develop an assessment for military therapists to address this need. Insights gained through trial and error are shared to provide guidance for civilian researchers who may wish to collaborate with active duty researchers
Different W cluster deposition regimes in pulsed laser ablation observed by in situ Scanning Tunneling Microscopy
We report on how different cluster deposition regimes can be obtained and
observed by in situ Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) by exploiting
deposition parameters in a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) process. Tungsten
clusters were produced by nanosecond Pulsed Laser Ablation in Ar atmosphere at
different pressures and deposited on Au(111) and HOPG surfaces. Deposition
regimes including cluster deposition-diffusion-aggregation (DDA), cluster
melting and coalescence and cluster implantation were observed, depending on
background gas pressure and target-to-substrate distance which influence the
kinetic energy of the ablated species. These parameters can thus be easily
employed for surface modification by cluster bombardment, deposition of
supported clusters and growth of films with different morphologies. The
variation in cluster mobility on different substrates and its influence on
aggregation and growth mechanisms has also been investigated.Comment: 12 pages (3 figures); Surface Science (accepted
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