Concert recording 2015-11-30

[Track 01]. Danza brasiliera / Jorge Morel -- [Track 02]. Sunburst / Andrew York -- [Track 03]. Ladron broma / Chase Chamberlin -- [Track 04]. Etudes 1, 2, & 3 / Matteo Carcassi -- [Track 05]. Invitation / Bronislaw Kaper -- [Track 06]. Ami etude / Ferdinando Carulli -- Variation (slur study) / Mauro Giuliani -- [Track 07]. Tango / Isaac Albeniz -- [Track 08]. Invention no. 8 / J.S. Bach -- [Track 09]. Don\u27t get around much anymore / Duke Ellington -- [Track 10]. Turnaround / Omette Coleman -- [Track 11]. Julia Florida / Augustin Barrios -- [Track 12]. Estudio 9 / Fernando Sor -- [Track 13]. Billie\u27s bounce / C. Parker -- [Track 14]. Emily / J. Mandel -- [Track 15]. Lagrima, Adelita / F. Tarrega

Body Composition and Anthropometric Changes During a 10-week Training Academy in Police Recruits

Obesity and cardiometabolic risk factors are often present in law enforcement personnel, which may compromise physical readiness and long-term health. As such, physical fitness interventions are warranted for promoting officers\u27 performance and wellbeing. PURPOSE: To determine the body composition and anthropometric changes experienced by police recruits undergoing a departmental training academy. METHODS: Twenty-one police recruits (20 M, 1 F; age: 25.1 ± 5.0 y; BMI: 27.8 ± 4.3 kg/m2) were tested before and after a 10-week training academy in Lubbock, Texas. Supervised physical training was conducted 5 times per week and consisted of ~1–1.5 hours of high-intensity, multi-modal (i.e., running, weightlifting, calisthenics), functional training following linear periodization. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA; GE Lunar iDXA) and 3-dimensional optical imaging (3DO; Size Stream SS20) were performed to assess body composition and anthropometry. Paired-samples t-tests were performed to compare values before and after the training academy, and Cohen’s d effect sizes were generated. After Bonferroni correction, statistical significance was accepted at p\u3c0.003. Changes are presented as mean ± SD. RESULTS: From DXA, statistically significant decreases in total fat mass (FM; -3.3 ± 3.1 kg, p\u3c0.001, d=1.1), trunk FM (-2.1 ± 2.2 kg, p\u3c0.001, d=1.0), arms FM (-0.3 ± 0.3 kg, p=0.001, d=1.1), legs FM (-0.9 ± 0.9 kg, p\u3c0.001, d=1.1), and body fat percentage (-3.1 ± 2.5%, p\u3c0.001, d=1.2) were observed. Increases in total lean soft tissue (LST; 1.3 ± 1.3 kg, p=0.002, d=1.0) and trunk LST (0.8 ± 0.9 kg, p\u3c0.001, d=0.9) were also noted, with trends for increases in leg LST (0.2 ± 0.7 kg, p=0.096, d=0.4) and arm LST (0.2 ± 0.4, p=0.04, d=0.5). Decreases in 3DO abdomen circumference (-3.5 ± 3.8 cm, p\u3c0.001, d=0.9) and hip circumference (-2.2 ± 2.2 cm, p\u3c0.001, d=1.0) were noted, with trends for decreases in the circumferences of the waist (-2.4 ± 3.6 cm, p=0.007, d=0.7) and upper arm (-0.9 ± 1.5 cm, p=0.02, d=0.6). No significant changes in thigh circumference (-0.7 ± 1.9 cm, p=0.12, d=0.4) or calf circumference (-0.2 ± 1.5 cm, p=0.52, d=0.1) were noted. A trend for a decrease in body mass (-2.0 ± 3.1 kg, p=0.007, d=0.7) was also observed. CONCLUSION: The present study indicates that police academy training significantly improves recruits\u27 body composition, both reducing FM and increasing LST, which has the potential to positively affect operational performance. Future studies should track these changes over time to help develop ongoing health and fitness strategies for career police officers, ultimately improving their long-term wellbeing and job readiness

Evaluation of novel beverage formulations for hydration enhancement in humans

This study evaluated the influence of novel beverage formulations on bioimpedance- and urine-based hydration markers. Thirty young healthy adults (n=16 females, n=14 males; age: 23.2±3.7 years; BMI: 24.3±3.3 kg/m2 ) participated in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study. Participants completed three conditions with baseline bioimpedance, urine, and body mass assessments, followed by ingestion of one liter of a test beverage over a 30-minute period. The three beverages were: active hydration formulation in still (AFstill) or sparkling (AFspark) water and a still water control. The active formulations were identical in concentrations of alpha-cyclodextrin and complexing agents. Following beverage ingestion, bioimpedance assessments were performed every 15 minutes for two hours, followed by final urinary and body mass assessments. The primary bioimpedance outcomes were phase angle at 50 kHz, resistance of the extracellular compartment (R0), and resistance of the intracellular compartment (Ri). Data were analyzed using linear mixed effects models, Friedman tests, and Wilcoxon tests. Statistically significant changes in phase angle values were observed at 30 (p=0.004) and 45 minutes (p=0.024) following the initiation of beverage ingestion in the AFstill condition as compared to the reference model (i.e., control condition at baseline). Although differences between conditions were not statistically significant at later time points, the data were consistent with AFstill having greater elevations in phase angle throughout the monitoring period. At the 30-minute time point only, statistically significant differences in R0 for AFspark (p\u3c0.001) and in Ri for AFstill (p=0.008) were observed. When averaged across post-ingestion time points, there was a trend (p=0.08) for Ri differences between conditions. The net fluid balance was greater than zero, indicating retention of ingested fluid, for AFstill (p=0.02) and control (p=0.03), with a trend for AFspark (p=0.06). In conclusion, an active formulation containing alpha-cyclodextrin in still water demonstrated potential benefits for enhancing hydration markers in humans

BILBY:A User-friendly Bayesian Inference Library for Gravitational-wave Astronomy

Bayesian parameter estimation is fast becoming the language of gravitational-wave astronomy. It is the method by which gravitational-wave data is used to infer the sources' astrophysical properties. We introduce a user-friendly Bayesian inference library for gravitational-wave astronomy, Bilby. This Python code provides expert-level parameter estimation infrastructure with straightforward syntax and tools that facilitate use by beginners. It allows users to perform accurate and reliable gravitational-wave parameter estimation on both real, freely available data from LIGO/Virgo and simulated data. We provide a suite of examples for the analysis of compact binary mergers and other types of signal models, including supernovae and the remnants of binary neutron star mergers. These examples illustrate how to change the signal model, implement new likelihood functions, and add new detectors. Bilby has additional functionality to do population studies using hierarchical Bayesian modeling. We provide an example in which we infer the shape of the black hole mass distribution from an ensemble of observations of binary black hole mergers

The transcription factor 7-like 2 (TCF7L2) polymorphism may be associated with focal arteriolar narrowing in Caucasians with hypertension or without diabetes: the ARIC Study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Transcription factor 7-like 2 (<it>TCF7L2</it>) has emerged as a consistently replicated susceptibility gene for type 2 diabetes, however, whether the <it>TCF7L2 </it>gene also has similar effects on the retinal microvasculature is less clear. We therefore aimed to investigate the association between the transcription factor 7-like 2 (<it>TCF7L2</it>) rs7903146 polymorphism and retinal microvascular phenotypes in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study (1993-1995).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This was a population-based, cross-sectional study of 10,320 middle-aged African American (n = 2,199) and Caucasian (n = 8,121) men and women selected from four United States communities to examine the association between <it>TCF7L2 </it>rs7903146 polymorphism and retinal microvascular signs (retinopathy, focal arteriolar narrowing, arteriovenous nicking, arteriolar and venular calibers). Photographs on one randomly selected eye were graded for presence of retinal microvascular signs and used to measure retinal vessel calibres.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>After adjusting for age, sex, study center, mean arterial blood pressure, total serum cholesterol, triglycerides, and other covariates, few associations of <it>TCF7L2 </it>rs7903146 and retinal microvascular signs were noted. <it>TCF7L2 </it>rs7903146 T risk allele was significantly associated with focal arteriolar narrowing in Caucasians with hypertension [odds ratio (OR)_{CT vs. CC}(95% CI) = 1.25 (1.09-1.44); OR_{TT vs. CC}= 1.56 (1.18-2.06); <it>P </it>= 0.002] and in Caucasians without diabetes [OR _{CT vs. CC}= 1.18 (1.06-1.32); OR _{TT vs. CC}= 1.40 (1.12, 1.75); <it>P </it>= 0.003]. No significant association of the <it>TCF7L2 </it>rs7903146 polymorphism and retinal vascular signs was noted among African American individuals.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p><it>TCF7L2 </it>rs7903146 is not consistently associated with retinal microvascular signs. However, we report an association between the <it>TCF7L2 </it>rs7903146 polymorphism and focal arteriolar narrowing in Caucasians with hypertension or without diabetes. Further research in other large, population-based studies is needed to replicate these findings.</p

Observing low elevation sky and the CMB Cold Spot with BICEP3 at the South Pole

BICEP3 is a 520 mm aperture on-axis refracting telescope at the South Pole, which observes the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) at 95 GHz to search for the B-mode signal from inflationary gravitational waves. In addition to this main target, we have developed a low-elevation observation strategy to extend coverage of the Southern sky at the South Pole, where BICEP3 can quickly achieve degree-scale E-mode measurements over a large area. An interesting E-mode measurement is probing a potential polarization anomaly around the CMB Cold Spot. During the austral summer seasons of 2018-19 and 2019-20, BICEP3 observed the sky with a flat mirror to redirect the beams to various low elevation ranges. The preliminary data analysis shows degree-scale E-modes measured with high signal-to-noise ratio

Observing low elevation sky and the CMB Cold Spot with BICEP3 at the South Pole

BICEP3 is a 520 mm aperture on-axis refracting telescope at the South Pole, which observes the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) at 95 GHz to search for the B-mode signal from inflationary gravitational waves. In addition to this main target, we have developed a low-elevation observation strategy to extend coverage of the Southern sky at the South Pole, where BICEP3 can quickly achieve degree-scale E-mode measurements over a large area. An interesting E-mode measurement is probing a potential polarization anomaly around the CMB Cold Spot. During the austral summer seasons of 2018-19 and 2019-20, BICEP3 observed the sky with a flat mirror to redirect the beams to various low elevation ranges. The preliminary data analysis shows degree-scale E-modes measured with high signal-to-noise ratio

Analysis of Temperature-to-Polarization Leakage in BICEP3 and Keck CMB Data from 2016 to 2018

The Bicep/Keck Array experiment is a series of small-aperture refracting telescopes observing degree-scale Cosmic Microwave Background polarization from the South Pole in search of a primordial B-mode signature. As a pair differencing experiment, an important systematic that must be controlled is the differential beam response between the co-located, orthogonally polarized detectors. We use high-fidelity, in-situ measurements of the beam response to estimate the temperature-to-polarization (T → P) leakage in our latest data including observations from 2016 through 2018. This includes three years of Bicep3 observing at 95 GHz, and multifrequency data from Keck Array. Here we present band-averaged far-field beam maps, differential beam mismatch, and residual beam power (after filtering out the leading difference modes via deprojection) for these receivers. We show preliminary results of "beam map simulations," which use these beam maps to observe a simulated temperature (no Q/U) sky to estimate T → P leakage in our real data

Analysis of Temperature-to-Polarization Leakage in BICEP3 and Keck CMB Data from 2016 to 2018

The Bicep/Keck Array experiment is a series of small-aperture refracting telescopes observing degree-scale Cosmic Microwave Background polarization from the South Pole in search of a primordial B-mode signature. As a pair differencing experiment, an important systematic that must be controlled is the differential beam response between the co-located, orthogonally polarized detectors. We use high-fidelity, in-situ measurements of the beam response to estimate the temperature-to-polarization (T → P) leakage in our latest data including observations from 2016 through 2018. This includes three years of Bicep3 observing at 95 GHz, and multifrequency data from Keck Array. Here we present band-averaged far-field beam maps, differential beam mismatch, and residual beam power (after filtering out the leading difference modes via deprojection) for these receivers. We show preliminary results of "beam map simulations," which use these beam maps to observe a simulated temperature (no Q/U) sky to estimate T → P leakage in our real data