64,601 research outputs found
Sex differences in the associations between birthweight and lipid levels in middle-age: findings from the 1958 British birth cohort
Objective
To examine sex differences in birthweight–lipid associations.
Methods and results
Using prospectively collected data on birthweight and non-fasting lipid levels at age 44–45 y from the 1958 British birth cohort (3603 men and 3583 women), sex differences in birthweight–lipid associations were examined.
There were inverse associations between birthweight and total and low-density-lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol among women (a 1 kg increase in birthweight was associated with a 0.13 mmol/L reduction in total cholesterol (p < 0.001) and a 0.07 mmol/L reduction in LDL-cholesterol (p = 0.02)) but no associations among men (p = 0.005 and p = 0.01, respectively, for birthweight × sex interactions). There was an inverse association between birthweight and triglycerides of a similar magnitude in both sexes (a 1 kg increase in birthweight was associated with a 7% reduction in triglyceride levels in sex-adjusted models (p < 0.001)). There was no association between birthweight and high-density-lipoprotein-cholesterol. Associations were largely unaltered after adjustment for covariates. Of birthweight, current height and BMI, the latter was the strongest predictor of lipid levels.
Conclusions
The finding of an inverse association between birthweight and triglycerides in both sexes and of inverse associations between birthweight and total and LDL-cholesterol only in women suggests that the mechanisms underlying the associations with birthweight may vary for different lipids
Knowledge transfer in a tourism destination: the effects of a network structure
Tourism destinations have a necessity to innovate to remain competitive in an
increasingly global environment. A pre-requisite for innovation is the
understanding of how destinations source, share and use knowledge. This
conceptual paper examines the nature of networks and how their analysis can
shed light upon the processes of knowledge sharing in destinations as they
strive to innovate. The paper conceptualizes destinations as networks of
connected organizations, both public and private, each of which can be
considered as a destination stakeholder. In network theory they represent the
nodes within the system. The paper shows how epidemic diffusion models can act
as an analogy for knowledge communication and transfer within a destination
network. These models can be combined with other approaches to network analysis
to shed light on how destination networks operate, and how they can be
optimized with policy intervention to deliver innovative and competitive
destinations. The paper closes with a practical tourism example taken from the
Italian destination of Elba. Using numerical simulations the case demonstrates
how the Elba network can be optimized. Overall this paper demonstrates the
considerable utility of network analysis for tourism in delivering destination
competitiveness.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figures, 2 tables. Forthcoming in: The Service Industries
Journal, vol. 30, n. 8, 2010. Special Issue on: Advances in service network
analysis v2: addeded and corrected reference
Underwater space suit pressure control regulator
A device is reported for regulating the pneumatic pressure in a ventilated space suit relative to the pressure imposed on the suit when being worn by a person underwater to simulate space environment for testing and experimentation. A box unit located on the chest area of the suit comprises connections for suit air supply and return lines and carries a regulator valve that stabilizes the air pressure differential between the inside and outside of the suit. The valve and suit pressure is controlled by the suit occupant and the valve includes a mechanism for quickly dumping the suit pressure in case of emergency. Pressure monitoring and relief devices are also included in the box unit
Low Temperature Superfluid Response of High-Tc Superconductors
We have reviewed our theoretical and experimental results of the low
temperature superfluid response function of high temperature superconductors
(HTSC). In clean high-Tc materials the in-plane superfluid density rho_s^{ab}
varies linearly with temperature. The slope of this linear T term is found to
scale approximately with 1/Tc which, according to the weak coupling BCS theory
for a d-wave superconductor, implies that the gap amplitude scales
approximately with Tc. A T^5 behavior of the out-of-plane superfluid density
rho_s^c for clean tetragonal HTSC was predicted and observed experimentally in
the single layer Hg-compound HgBa_2CuO_{4+delta}. In other tetragonal high-Tc
compounds with relatively high anisotropy, such as Hg_2Ba_2Ca_2Cu_3O_{8+delta},
rho_s^c varies as T^2 due to disorder effects. In optimally doped
YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-delta}, rho_s^c varies linearly with temperature at low
temperatures, but in underdoped YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-delta}, rho_s^c varies as T^2 at
low temperatures; these results are consistent with our theoretical
calculations.Comment: 26 pages, 8 figure
Operation of a haynes alloy no. 25 forced circulation loop to study the effects of hydrogen in a simulated sunflower system
Haynes alloy forced circulation mercury loop for studying hydrogen effects in working fluid of Rankine cycle Sunflower solar power syste
Study of lunar reflective components of solar radio emission semiannual status report
Solar radio frequency reflection from lunar surface for scattering measuremen
Optical response of high- cuprates: possible role of scattering rate saturation and in-plane anisotropy
We present a generalized Drude analysis of the in-plane optical conductivity
(,) in cuprates taking into account the effects of
in-plane anisotropy. A simple ansatz for the scattering rate
(,), that includes anisotropy, a quadratic frequency
dependence and saturation at the Mott-Ioffe-Regel limit, is able to reproduce
recent normal state data on an optimally doped cuprate over a wide frequency
range. We highlight the potential importance of including anisotropy in the
full expression for (,) and challenge previous
determinations of () in which anisotropy was neglected and
() was indicated to be strictly linear in frequency over a wide
frequency range. Possible implications of our findings for understanding
thermodynamic properties and self-energy effects in high- cuprates will
also be discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures. To be published in Physical Review
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