Search for time-dependent B0s - B0s-bar oscillations using a vertex charge dipole technique

We report a search for B0s - B0s-bar oscillations using a sample of 400,000 hadronic Z0 decays collected by the SLD experiment. The analysis takes advantage of the electron beam polarization as well as information from the hemisphere opposite that of the reconstructed B decay to tag the B production flavor. The excellent resolution provided by the pixel CCD vertex detector is exploited to cleanly reconstruct both B and cascade D decay vertices, and tag the B decay flavor from the charge difference between them. We exclude the following values of the B0s - B0s-bar oscillation frequency: Delta m_s < 4.9 ps-1 and 7.9 < Delta m_s < 10.3 ps-1 at the 95% confidence level.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figures, replaced by version accepted for publication in Phys.Rev.D; results differ slightly from first versio

Spontaneous and deliberate future thinking: A dual process account

© 2019 Springer Nature.This is the final published version of an article published in Psychological Research, licensed under a Creative Commons Attri-bution 4.0 International License. Available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-019-01262-7.In this article, we address an apparent paradox in the literature on mental time travel and mind-wandering: How is it possible that future thinking is both constructive, yet often experienced as occurring spontaneously? We identify and describe two ‘routes’ whereby episodic future thoughts are brought to consciousness, with each of the ‘routes’ being associated with separable cognitive processes and functions. Voluntary future thinking relies on controlled, deliberate and slow cognitive processing. The other, termed involuntary or spontaneous future thinking, relies on automatic processes that allows ‘fully-fledged’ episodic future thoughts to freely come to mind, often triggered by internal or external cues. To unravel the paradox, we propose that the majority of spontaneous future thoughts are ‘pre-made’ (i.e., each spontaneous future thought is a re-iteration of a previously constructed future event), and therefore based on simple, well-understood, memory processes. We also propose that the pre-made hypothesis explains why spontaneous future thoughts occur rapidly, are similar to involuntary memories, and predominantly about upcoming tasks and goals. We also raise the possibility that spontaneous future thinking is the default mode of imagining the future. This dual process approach complements and extends standard theoretical approaches that emphasise constructive simulation, and outlines novel opportunities for researchers examining voluntary and spontaneous forms of future thinking.Peer reviewe

Long-Term Neurodevelopmental Outcome of Monochorionic and Matched Dichorionic Twins

Contains fulltext : 79941.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)BACKGROUND: Monochorionic (MC) twins are at increased risk for perinatal mortality and serious morbidity due to the presence of placental vascular anastomoses. Cerebral injury can be secondary to haemodynamic and hematological disorders during pregnancy (especially twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) or intrauterine co-twin death) or from postnatal injury associated with prematurity and low birth weight, common complications in twin pregnancies. We investigated neurodevelopmental outcome in MC and dichorionic (DC) twins at the age of two years. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study. Cerebral palsy (CP) was studied in 182 MC infants and 189 DC infants matched for weight and age at delivery, gender, ethnicity of the mother and study center. After losses to follow-up, 282 of the 366 infants without CP were available to be tested with the Griffiths Mental Developmental Scales at 22 months corrected age, all born between January 2005 and January 2006 in nine perinatal centers in The Netherlands. Due to phenotypic (un)alikeness in mono-or dizygosity, the principal investigator was not blinded to chorionic status; perinatal outcome, with exception of co-twin death, was not known to the examiner. FINDINGS: Four out of 182 MC infants had CP (2.2%) - two of the four CP-cases were due to complications specific to MC twin pregnancies (TTTS and co-twin death) and the other two cases of CP were the result of cystic PVL after preterm birth - compared to one sibling of a DC twin (0.5%; OR 4.2, 95% CI 0.5-38.2) of unknown origin. Follow-up rate of neurodevelopmental outcome by Griffith's test was 76%. The majority of 2-year-old twins had normal developmental status. There were no significant differences between MC and DC twins. One MC infant (0.7%) had a developmental delay compared to 6 DC infants (4.2%; OR 0.2, 95% 0.0-1.4). Birth weight discordancy did not influence long-term outcome, though the smaller twin had slightly lower developmental scores than its larger co-twin. CONCLUSIONS: There were no significant differences in occurrence of cerebral palsy as well as neurodevelopmental outcome between MC and DC twins. Outcome of MC twins seems favourable in the absence of TTTS or co-twin death

Systemic Signature of the Lung Response to Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection

Respiratory Syncytial Virus is a frequent cause of severe bronchiolitis in children. To improve our understanding of systemic host responses to RSV, we compared BALB/c mouse gene expression responses at day 1, 2, and 5 during primary RSV infection in lung, bronchial lymph nodes, and blood. We identified a set of 53 interferon-associated and innate immunity genes that give correlated responses in all three murine tissues. Additionally, we identified blood gene signatures that are indicative of acute infection, secondary immune response, and vaccine-enhanced disease, respectively. Eosinophil-associated ribonucleases were characteristic for the vaccine-enhanced disease blood signature. These results indicate that it may be possible to distinguish protective and unfavorable patient lung responses via blood diagnostics

Evolutionary Trajectory of White Spot Syndrome Virus (WSSV) Genome Shrinkage during Spread in Asia

Background - White spot syndrome virus (WSSV) is the sole member of the novel Nimaviridae family, and the source of major economic problems in shrimp aquaculture. WSSV appears to have rapidly spread worldwide after the first reported outbreak in the early 1990s. Genomic deletions of various sizes occur at two loci in the WSSV genome, the ORF14/15 and ORF23/24 variable regions, and these have been used as molecular markers to study patterns of viral spread over space and time. We describe the dynamics underlying the process of WSSV genome shrinkage using empirical data and a simple mathematical model. Methodology/Principal Findings - We genotyped new WSSV isolates from five Asian countries, and analyzed this information together with published data. Genome size appears to stabilize over time, and deletion size in the ORF23/24 variable region was significantly related to the time of the first WSSV outbreak in a particular country. Parameter estimates derived from fitting a simple mathematical model of genome shrinkage to the data support a geometric progression (

A search for pair-produced resonances in four-jet final states at root s=13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for massive coloured resonances which are pair-produced and decay into two jets is presented. The analysis uses 36.7 fb−1 − 1 of √ s = 13 TeV pp collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC in 2015 and 2016. No significant deviation from the background prediction is observed. Results are interpreted in a SUSY simplified model where the lightest supersymmetric particle is the top squark, ̃ t ~ , which decays promptly into two quarks through R-parity-violating couplings. Top squarks with masses in the range 100 GeV<̃<410 100 GeV < m t ~ < 410 GeV GeV are excluded at 95% confidence level. If the decay is into a b-quark and a light quark, a dedicated selection requiring two b-tags is used to exclude masses in the ranges 100 GeV<̃<470 100 GeV < m t ~ < 470 GeV GeV and 480 GeV<̃<610 480 GeV < m t ~ < 610 GeV GeV . Additional limits are set on the pair-production of massive colour-octet resonances