160 research outputs found
An index for the Dirac operator on D3 branes with background fluxes
We study the problem of instanton generated superpotentials in Calabi-Yau
orientifold compactifications directly in type IIB string theory. To this end,
we derive the Dirac equation on a Euclidean D3 brane in the presence of
background fluxes. We propose an index which governs whether the generation of
a superpotential in the effective 4d theory by D3 brane instantons is possible.
Applying the formalism to various classes of examples, including the K3 x
T^2/Z_2 orientifold, in the absence and presence of fluxes, we show that our
results are consistent with conclusions attainable via duality from an M-theory
analysis.Comment: Fermion coupling to five-form restored, conclusions of the paper
unchange
De Sitter vacua from N=2 gauged supergravity
Typical de Sitter (dS) vacua of gauged supergravity correspond to saddle
points of the potential and often the unstable mode runs into a singularity. We
explore the possibility to obtain dS points where the unstable mode goes on
both sides into a supersymmetric smooth vacuum. Within N=2 gauged supergravity
coupled to the universal hypermultiplet, we have found a potential which has
two supersymmetric minima (one of them can be flat) and these are connected by
a de Sitter saddle point. In order to obtain this potential by an Abelian
gauging, it was important to include the recently proposed quantum corrections
to the universal hypermultiplet sector. Our results apply to four as well as
five dimensional gauged supergravity theories.Comment: 25 pages, 1 figure, add refs and corrected typo
Metastable de Sitter vacua in N=2 to N=1 truncated supergravity
We study the possibility of achieving metastable de Sitter vacua in general
N=2 to N=1 truncated supergravities without vector multiplets, and compare with
the situations arising in N=2 theories with only hypermultiplets and N=1
theories with only chiral multiplets. In N=2 theories based on a quaternionic
manifold and a graviphoton gauging, de Sitter vacua are necessarily unstable,
as a result of the peculiar properties of the geometry. In N=1 theories based
on a Kahler manifold and a superpotential, de Sitter vacua can instead be
metastable provided the geometry satisfies some constraint and the
superpotential can be freely adjusted. In N=2 to N=1 truncations, the crucial
requirement is then that the tachyon of the mother theory be projected out from
the daughter theory, so that the original unstable vacuum is projected to a
metastable vacuum. We study the circumstances under which this may happen and
derive general constraints for metastability on the geometry and the gauging.
We then study in full detail the simplest case of quaternionic manifolds of
dimension four with at least one isometry, for which there exists a general
parametrization, and study two types of truncations defining Kahler
submanifolds of dimension two. As an application, we finally discuss the case
of the universal hypermultiplet of N=2 superstrings and its truncations to the
dilaton chiral multiplet of N=1 superstrings. We argue that de Sitter vacua in
such theories are necessarily unstable in weakly coupled situations, while they
can in principle be metastable in strongly coupled regimes.Comment: 40 pages, no figure
Low Energy Supersymmetry from Non-Geometry
We study a class of flux compactifications that have all the moduli
stabilised, a high (GUT) string scale and a low (TeV) gravitino mass that is
generated dynamically. These non-geometric compactifications correspond to type
II string theories on SU(3)xSU(3) structure orientifolds. The resulting
superpotentials admit, excluding non-perturbative effects, supersymmetric
Minkowski vacua with any number of moduli stabilised. We argue that
non-perturbative effects are present and introduce terms in the superpotential
that are exponentially suppressed by the same moduli that appear
perturbatively. These deform the supersymmetric Minkowski vacua to
supersymmetric AdS vacua with an exponentially small gravitino mass. The
resulting vacua allow for low scale supersymmetry breaking which can be
realised by a number of mechanisms.Comment: 36pp; v2 references added, minor clarifications, JHEP versio
Inter- and Intra-Observer Variability and the Effect of Experience in Cine-MRI for Adhesion Detection
Cine-MRI for adhesion detection is a promising novel modality that can help the large group of patients developing pain after abdominal surgery. Few studies into its diagnostic accuracy are available, and none address observer variability. This retrospective study explores the inter- and intra-observer variability, diagnostic accuracy, and the effect of experience. A total of 15 observers with a variety of experience reviewed 61 sagittal cine-MRI slices, placing box annotations with a confidence score at locations suspect for adhesions. Five observers reviewed the slices again one year later. Inter- and intra-observer variability are quantified using Fleiss’ (inter) and Cohen’s (intra) κ and percentage agreement. Diagnostic accuracy is quantified with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis based on a consensus standard. Inter-observer Fleiss’ κ values range from 0.04 to 0.34, showing poor to fair agreement. High general and cine-MRI experience led to significantly (p < 0.001) better agreement among observers. The intra-observer results show Cohen’s κ values between 0.37 and 0.53 for all observers, except one with a low κ of −0.11. Group AUC scores lie between 0.66 and 0.72, with individual observers reaching 0.78. This study confirms that cine-MRI can diagnose adhesions, with respect to a radiologist consensus panel and shows that experience improves reading cine-MRI. Observers without specific experience adapt to this modality quickly after a short online tutorial. Observer agreement is fair at best and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) scores leave room for improvement. Consistently interpreting this novel modality needs further research, for instance, by developing reporting guidelines or artificial intelligence-based methods
The MMSE should not be the sole indicator of fitness to drive in mild Alzheimer's dementia
Since Alzheimer’s disease may affect driving performance, patients with Alzheimer’s disease are assessed on fitness to drive. On-road driving assessments are widely used, and attempts have also been made to develop strategies to assess fitness to drive in a clinical setting. Preferably, a first indication of fitness to drive is obtained quickly after diagnosis using a single test such as the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE). The aim of this study is to investigate whether the MMSE can be used to predict whether patients with Alzheimer’s disease will pass or fail an on-road driving assessment. Patients with Alzheimer’s disease (n = 81) participated in a comprehensive fitness-to-drive assessment which included the MMSE as well as an on-road driving assessment [PLoS One 11(2):e0149566, 2016]. MMSE cutoffs were applied as suggested by Versijpt and colleagues [Acta Neurol Belg 117(4):811–819, 2017]. All patients with Alzheimer’s disease who scored below the lower cutoff (MMSE ≤ 19) failed the on-road driving assessment. However, a third of the patients with Alzheimer’s disease who scored above the upper cutoff (MMSE ≥ 25) failed the on-road driving assessment as well. We conclude that the MMSE alone has insufficient predictive value to correctly identify fitness to drive in patients with very mild-to-mild Alzheimer’s disease implicating the need for comprehensive assessments to determine fitness to drive in a clinical setting
Searching for converging research using field to field citations
We define converging research as the emergence of an interdisciplinary research area from fields that did not show interdisciplinary connections before. This paper presents a process to search for converging research using journal subject categories as a proxy for fields and citations to measure interdisciplinary connections, as well as an application of this search. The search consists of two phases: a quantitative phase in which pairs of citing and cited fields are located that show a significant change in number of citations, followed by a qualitative phase in which thematic focus is sought in publications associated with located pairs. Applying this search on publications from the Web of Science published between 1995 and 2005, 38 candidate converging pairs were located, 27 of which showed thematic focus, and 20 also showed a similar focus in the other, reciprocal pair
Cognitive and environmental predictors of early literacy skills
Not all young children benefit from book exposure in preschool age. It is claimed that the ability to hold information in mind (short-term memory), to ignore distraction (inhibition), and to focus attention and stay focused (sustained attention) may have a moderating effect on children’s reactions to the home literacy environment. In a group of 228 junior kindergarten children with a native Dutch background, with a mean age of 54.29 months (SD = 2.12 months), we explored therefore the relationship between book exposure, cognitive control and early literacy skills. Parents filled in a HLE questionnaire (book sharing frequency and an author recognition checklist as indicator of parental leisure reading habits), and children completed several tests in individual sessions with the researcher (a book-cover recognition test, PPVT, letter knowledge test, the subtests categories and patterns of the SON, and cognitive control measures namely digit span of the KABC, a peg tapping task and sustained attention of the ANT). Main findings were: (1) Children’s storybook knowledge mediated the relationship between home literacy environment and literacy skills. (2) Both vocabulary and letter knowledge were predicted by book exposure. (3) Short-term memory predicted vocabulary over and above book exposure. (4) None of the cognitive control mechanisms moderated the beneficial effects of book exposure
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