Phenomenology Tools on Cloud Infrastructures using OpenStack

We present a new environment for computations in particle physics phenomenology employing recent developments in cloud computing. On this environment users can create and manage "virtual" machines on which the phenomenology codes/tools can be deployed easily in an automated way. We analyze the performance of this environment based on "virtual" machines versus the utilization of "real" physical hardware. In this way we provide a qualitative result for the influence of the host operating system on the performance of a representative set of applications for phenomenology calculations.Comment: 25 pages, 12 figures; information on memory usage included, as well as minor modifications. Version to appear in EPJ

An Analysis of Renewable Resource Development Alternatives for the Northern Arid Region of Mexico: Study Prospectus

In 1980, IIASA joined with the Centro de Investigation en Quimica Aplicada (CIQA) in order to study alternative production chains based on the renewable resources of the Northern Arid Region of Mexico. This study applied the "WELMM Approach" developed at IIASA. Its objective was to account for the basic resources used and processed along alternative production chains, from cultivation and harvesting of the plants to the final products. WELMM analyses of each of the production chains are now being completed, and IIASA and CIQA have decided to expand their cooperative efforts to include an analysis of alternative development projects for the Northern Arid Region based on these production chains. This paper presents a prospectus for the expanded study

Natural Resources and Development in Arid Regions

Forestry and the forestry industry are facing major structural changes. On the production side, the development of processing technology has made the industrial use of wood possible in many new areas; at the same time, wood growing has reached its economic and institutional limits in some old forest areas. As a consequence, a major shift in the global pattern of the supply of wood raw material is taking place. Over the long term, the consumption pattern of forest products is changing: for traditional products, some countries are reaching saturation level whilst in others a considerable increase in demand is anticipated, and technological innovations are changing the overall demand for different products. These issues pose problems that require a global analysis. This book, based on the First North American Conference, includes many impressive state-of-the-art papers in terms of current knowledge and econometric models; it covers modelling the forest products industry with emphasis on international trade, and represents an important step in improving the ability to model forest management investment. Part I introduces the Forest Sector Project of IIASA; Part II presents approaches to developing forest sector models; Part III emphasises some of the sub-problems in model development, specifically on the development of realistic long-term supply response estimation capabilities; Part IV covers approaches to modelling demand and international trade components

Dynamics of executive functions, basic psychological needs, impulsivity, and depressive symptoms in american football players

Executive functions play an important role in sports since the ability to plan, organize, and regulate behavior to reach an objective or goal depends on these functions. Some of the components of executive functions, such as inhibition of impulsive behavior and cognitive flexibility, are necessary for contact sports (e.g., American football) to carry out successful plays on the sports field. Executive functions have been studied in the sporting environment, but their relationship with the athletes' basic psychological needs (BPN), such as autonomy, competence, and relatedness, remains unexplored. Due to the importance of motivational processes over cognitive functions and in the generated adaptive results in athletes, this relationship should be taken into account. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze and compare executive functioning and psychological need thwarting overimpulsivity and psychological distress, before and after the season (4 months) in 28 undergraduate football players. Neuropsychological and psychological tests were applied. The results showed that there was an improvement in inhibition and planning at the end of the season. There was also an increase in attention and motor impulsiveness, and a decrease in need thwarting at the end of the season. A positive association between executive function, impulsiveness, psychological needs, and affective symptoms were also found. Our findings reveal the dynamics of sport-related psychological variables throughout the sport season in American football players, the association of these for the achievement of sport success, and the importance of encouraging proper management of emotions

Bioderived dyes-mediated vat photopolymerization 3D printing of chitosan hydrogels for tissue engineering

The importance of 3D printable hydrogels is constantly increasing in the field of tissue engineering, due to their characteristic structure and similarity with the human body extracellular matrix (ECM). Herein, Quinizarin-based bioderived photoactive dyes were employed for the 3D printing of methacrylated chitosan by vat pho-topolymerization (VPP). Dyes are commonly needed in VPP to obtain good resolution avoiding the light scattering in the vat, here the bioderived molecules had further utility granting the printability with good resolution while acting both as photosensitizers and fillers/crosslinkers. Defined and detailed architectures in the range of millimetres were obtained with low printing times showing for the first time the possibility to obtain all-chitosan 3D structures with suspended features by Digital Light Processing (DLP), which is a form of vat photopolymerization; such a result is not achievable without the quinizarin-derived dyes. The same structures were achieved with an opti-mized concentration of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate, as a comparison, enhancing the resolution. For all the formulations, the important feature to obtain the gel printability (considering reactiveness, viscosity, shear thinning behaviour, mechanical properties and stability) were evaluated. The hydrogels mechanical character-ization and swelling properties were also tested and reported. Lastly, the possible application in tissue engi-neering was also evaluated through cell proliferation analysis over samples, including metabolic activity and DNA contempt assays. The use of such bioderived photoactive molecules that simultaneously act as photosensitizer enhancing the ink reactivity, as dye improving the definition of the final structures and as filler/crosslinker increasing the me-chanical stability, could represent a valuable route for the DLP printing of soft hydrogels

Exact anisotropic brane cosmologies

We present exact solutions of the gravitational field equations in the generalized Randall-Sundrum model for an anisotropic brane with Bianchi type I and V geometry, with perfect fluid and scalar fields as matter sources. Under the assumption of a conformally flat bulk (with vanishing Weyl tensor) for a cosmological fluid obeying a linear barotropic equation of state the general solution of the field equations can be expressed in an exact parametric form for both Bianchi type I and V space-times. In the limiting case of a stiff cosmological fluid with pressure equal to the energy density, for a Bianchi type I Universe the solution of the field equations are obtained in an exact analytic form. Several classes of scalar field models evolution on the brane are also considered, corresponding to different choices of the scalar field potential. For all models the behavior of the observationally important parameters like shear, anisotropy and deceleration parameter is considered in detail.Comment: revised version to appear in PR

Steady state free radical budgets and ozone photochemistry during TOPSE

A steady state model, constrained by a number of measured quantities, was used to derive peroxy radical levels for the conditions of the Tropospheric Ozone Production about the Spring Equinox (TOPSE) campaign. The analysis is made using data collected aboard the NCAR/NSF C-130 aircraft from February through May 2000 at latitudes from 40° to 85°N, and at altitudes from the surface to 7.6 km. HO2 + RO2 radical concentrations were measured during the experiment, which are compared with model results over the domain of the study showing good agreement on the average. Average measurement/model ratios are 1.04 (σ = 0.73) and 0.96 (σ = 0.52) for the MLB and HLB, respectively. Budgets of total peroxy radical levels as well as of individual free radical members were constructed, which reveal interesting differences compared to studies at lower latitudes. The midlatitude part of the study region is a significant net source of ozone, while the high latitudes constitute a small net sink leading to the hypothesis that transport from the middle latitudes can explain the observed increase in ozone in the high latitudes. Radical reservoir species concentrations are modeled and compared with the observations. For most conditions, the model does a good job of reproducing the formaldehyde observations, but the peroxide observations are significantly less than steady state for this study. Photostationary state (PSS) derived total peroxy radical levels and NO/NO2ratios are compared with the measurements and the model; PSS-derived results are higher than observations or the steady state model at low NO concentrations

Work-Related Asthma: Diagnosis and Prognosis of Immunological Occupational Asthma and Work-Exacerbated Asthma

Abstract The incidence and prevalence of asthma are increasing. One reason for this trend is the rise in adult-onset asthma, especially occupational asthma, which is 1 of the 2 forms of work-related asthma. Occupational asthma is defined as asthma caused by agents that are present exclusively in the workplace. The presence of pre-existing asthma does not rule out the possibility of developing occupational asthma. A distinction has traditionally been made between immunological occupational asthma (whether IgE-mediated or not) and nonimmunological occupational asthma caused by irritants, the most characteristic example of which is reactive airway dysfunction syndrome. The other form of work-related asthma is known as work-exacerbated asthma, which affects persons with pre-existing or concurrent asthma that is worsened by work-related factors. It is important to differentiate between the 2 entities because their treatment, prognosis, and medical and social repercussions can differ widely. In this review, we discuss diagnostic methods, treatment, and avoidance/nonavoidance of the antigen in immunological occupational asthma and work-exacerbated asthma. Key words: Specific inhalation challenge. Peak expiratory flow. Workplace. Irritants. Resumen La incidencia y prevalencia del asma van en aumento. El asma de inicio en la edad adulta y especialmente el asma ocupacional (AO) podrían ser una de las causas que influyeran en este incremento. El AO, una de las dos formas de asma relacionada con el trabajo (ART), se define como el asma causada por agentes que están presentes exclusivamente en el lugar de trabajo. Clásicamente, se ha realizado una distinción entre AO inmunológica (mediada o no por un mecanismo IgE) y AO no inmunológica causada por irritantes, cuyo ejemplo más característico es el síndrome reactivo de disfunción de la vía aérea. La presencia de asma previa no descarta la posibilidad de desarrollar AO. El asma exacerbada por el trabajo (AET) es la otra forma de ART y se define como aquel asma pre-existente o concurrente que empeora por factores relacionados con el trabajo. Diferenciar estas dos entidades es importante ya que su tratamiento, pronóstico y repercusiones médica y social, pueden diferir ampliamente. En esta revisión se discuten los diversos métodos diagnósticos, tratamientos y las diferentes estrategias de evitación / no evitación del antígeno tanto en el AO inmunológica como en el AET. Palabras clave: Prueba de provocación bronquial específica. Pico flujo espiratorio. Lugar de trabajo. Irritantes. X Muñoz, et al

p21(Cip1) plays a critical role in the physiological adaptation to fasting through activation of PPARα.

Fasting is a physiological stress that elicits well-known metabolic adaptations, however, little is known about the role of stress-responsive tumor suppressors in fasting. Here, we have examined the expression of several tumor suppressors upon fasting in mice. Interestingly, p21 mRNA is uniquely induced in all the tissues tested, particularly in liver and muscle (>10 fold), and this upregulation is independent of p53. Remarkably, in contrast to wild-type mice, p21-null mice become severely morbid after prolonged fasting. The defective adaptation to fasting of p21-null mice is associated to elevated energy expenditure, accelerated depletion of fat stores, and premature activation of protein catabolism in the muscle. Analysis of the liver transcriptome and cell-based assays revealed that the absence of p21 partially impairs the transcriptional program of PPARα, a key regulator of fasting metabolism. Finally, treatment of p21-null mice with a PPARα agonist substantially protects them from their accelerated loss of fat upon fasting. We conclude that p21 plays a relevant role in fasting adaptation through the positive regulation of PPARα