Precessing supermassive black hole binaries and dark energy measurements with LISA

Spin induced precessional modulations of gravitational wave signals from supermassive black hole binaries can improve the estimation of luminosity distance to the source by space based gravitational wave missions like the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). We study how this impacts the ablity of LISA to do cosmology, specifically, to measure the dark energy equation of state (EOS) parameter $w$. Using the $\Lambda$CDM model of cosmology, we show that observations of precessing binaries by LISA, combined with a redshift measurement, can improve the determination of $w$ up to an order of magnitude with respect to the non precessing case depending on the masses, mass ratio and the redshift.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, version accepted to PR

What are the Benefits and Barriers of Communicating Parental HIV Status to Seronegative Children and the Implications for Jamaica? A narrative review of the literature in low/middle income countries

OBJECTIVE: To examine the benefits/barriers for HIV positive parents of communicating their status to seronegative children in low/middle income countries in order to inform policy and practice in Jamaica. METHODS: The authors carried out a systematic search of published literature on parental disclosure in low/middle income countries written in the English language between January 1991 and September 2012, identified from databases: Academic Search Complete, CINAHL, EBSCOhostEJS, Gender Studies Database, Health Policy Reference Centre, MEDLINE (includes the West Indian Medical Journal), PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO, SocINDEX, AMED, Global Health, Embase, Social Policy and Practice, Maternity and Infant Care. The authors also refer to articles on parental disclosure in high income countries which appeared in peer-reviewed journals and conducted a local search in Jamaica for articles on HIV disclosure in the Caribbean region. RESULTS: Global estimates of parental disclosure rates were 20–97% in high income countries and 11–44% in resource constrained countries. Mean age of children at disclosure was age 10–18 years. Mothers were more likely to disclose to older children, female children, and when they had strong support networks. Barriers included fear of stigma/discrimination, not knowing how to tell the child, fear of the child disclosing to others and believing a child was too young to cope. Of the 16 articles identified which met the search criteria, 10 studies and three reviews noted positive benefits of disclosure on parental health and the parent-child relationship. CONCLUSION: Significant differences in attitudes and rates of maternal disclosure in low/middle income countries compared to high income countries reflect the impact of cultural, structural, economic and social factors and highlight the need for culturally-specific research. Implications for policy and practice in Jamaica are discussed

Objective identification and analysis of physiological and behavioral signs of schizophrenia

BACKGROUND: A patient\u27s physical activity is often used by psychiatrists to contribute to the diagnostic process for mental disorders. Typically, it is based mostly on self-reports or observations, and hardly ever upon actigraphy. Other signals related to physiology are rarely used, despite the fact that the autonomic nervous system is often affected by mental disorders. AIM: This study attempted to fuse physiological and physical activity data and discover features that are predictive for schizophrenia. METHOD: Continuous simultaneous heart rate (HR) and physical activity recordings were made on 16 individuals with schizophrenia and 19 healthy controls. Statistical characteristics of the recorded data were analyzed, as well as non-linear rest-activity measures and disorganization measures. RESULTS: Four most predictive features for schizophrenia were identified, namely, the standard deviation and mode of locomotor activity, dynamics of Multiscale Entropy change over scales of HR signal and the mean HR. A classifier trained on these features provided a cross-validation accuracy of 95.3% (AUC = 0.99) for differentiating between schizophrenia patients and controls, compared to 78.5 and 85.5% accuracy (AUC = 0.85 and AUC = 0.90) using only the HR or locomotor activity features. CONCLUSION: Physiological and physical activity signals provide complimentary information for assessment of mental health

Using Decision Analysis to Improve Malaria Control Policy Making

Malaria and other vector-borne diseases represent a significant and growing burden in many tropical countries. Successfully addressing these threats will require policies that expand access to and use of existing control methods, such as insecticide-treated bed nets (ITNs) and artemesinin combination therapies (ACTs) for malaria, while weighing the costs and benefits of alternative approaches over time. This paper argues that decision analysis provides a valuable framework for formulating such policies and combating the emergence and re-emergence of malaria and other diseases. We outline five challenges that policy makers and practitioners face in the struggle against malaria, and demonstrate how decision analysis can help to address and overcome these challenges. A prototype decision analysis framework for malaria control in Tanzania is presented, highlighting the key components that a decision support tool should include. Developing and applying such a framework can promote stronger and more effective linkages between research and policy, ultimately helping to reduce the burden of malaria and other vector-borne diseases

Stochastic oscillations of adaptive networks: application to epidemic modelling

Adaptive-network models are typically studied using deterministic differential equations which approximately describe their dynamics. In simulations, however, the discrete nature of the network gives rise to intrinsic noise which can radically alter the system's behaviour. In this article we develop a method to predict the effects of stochasticity in adaptive networks by making use of a pair-based proxy model. The technique is developed in the context of an epidemiological model of a disease spreading over an adaptive network of infectious contact. Our analysis reveals that in this model the structure of the network exhibits stochastic oscillations in response to fluctuations in the disease dynamic.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure

The Route of Sir John Franklin's Third Arctic Expedition: An Evaluation and Test of an Alternative Hypothesis

An archaeological survey to aid in the determination of the exact route of the last Sir John Franklin expedition following its overwintering at Beechey Island in 1845-46 was conducted in June 1982. The survey was designed to test the hypothesis that the expedition sailed from Beechey Island south to King William Island via McClintock Channel, rather than through Peel Sound and Franklin Strait, as is generally accepted. Surveyed areas included Kilian, Stefansson, and northeast Victoria Islands in northwest McClintock Channel, and Russell and northern Prince of Wales Islands to the northeast of McClintock Channel. Although three cairns associated with Austin's searching expedition of 1850-51 were located, as well as several prehistoric and historic Inuit sites, no structures or materials associated with the Franklin expedition were identified. While inconclusive, the survey essentially completes the examination of coastlines along which the Franklin expedition may have sailed.Key words: Sir John Franklin, route of third arctic expedition, McClintock ChannelEn juin 1982, on a effectué une étude archéologique destinée à permettre de retracer la route empruntée par la dernière expédition de sir John Franklin après le long hivernage de 1845-46 à l'île Beechey. L'étude avait pour but de vérifier l'hypothèse selon laquelle l'expédition avait navigué de l'île Beechey en direction du sud vers l'île du Roi-Guillaume via le chenal McClintock, plutôt qu'à travers le détroit de Peel et celui de Franklin, comme on le pense habituellement. Les régions de l'étude comprenaient les îles Kilian et Stefansson et le nord-est de l'île Victoria dans la partie nord-ouest du chenal McClintock, ainsi que l'île Russell et la partie septentrionale de l'île du Prince-de-Galles au nord-est du chenal McClintock. Bien qu'on ait localisé trois cairns datant de l'expédition de recherche menée par Austin en 1850-51, ainsi que divers sites inuit préhistoriques et historiques, on n'a pu identifier ni structure ni matériaux remontant à l'expédition Franklin. Si l'étude n'a pas abouti à une conclusion définitive, elle a du moins permis de compléter l'examen du rivage côtier le long duquel l'expédition Franklin a pu naviguer.Mots clés: sir John Franklin, route de la troisième expédition arctique, chenal McClintoc

Use of Low Plasticity for Soil Liners and Covers

Loess, which consists predominantly of low plasticity to non-plastic silt (PI≤10) with varying amounts of sand and clay-sized (- 5 microns) material, covers much of north-central Oregon and eastern Washington. Several landfills operate in this area. Because of the lack of clayey soils and clayey bedrock in the region, loess was proposed for use as the low permeability soil barrier layer. Laboratory testing and large-scale field tests of test fills using SDRI\u27s have shown that the remolded permeability of the loess is related to grain-size, soil gradation, and the percent saturation of the placed soil. We had an approximately 1:1 correlation between the permeability results of laboratory remolded samples, undisturbed Shelby tube samples of test fills, and field SDRI tests. Data from six different sites have consistently shown that in order to achieve a permeability of less than 1x10-6 cm/s, the loess must contain greater than 70 percent minus U.S. No. 200 sieve and have at least 15 percent minus 5 microns material. In addition, the loess must be placed at a minimum of 2 percent over standard Proctor optimum moisture content and be compacted to a dry density which corresponds to a minimum of 85 percent saturation at the measured moisture content