Rejuvenated radio galaxies J0041+3224 and J1835+6204 : how long can the quiescent phase of nuclear activity last?

We present radio observations of two well-known doubledouble radio galaxies, J0041+3224 and J1835+6204, at frequencies ranging from 150 to 8460 MHz, using both the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope and the Very Large Array. These observations, over a large radio frequency range, enable us to determine the spectra of the inner and outer lobes. Our detailed spectral ageing analysis of their inner and outer lobes demonstrates that the outer doubles of doubledouble radio galaxies are created by the previous cycle of activity, while the inner doubles are due to the present cycle of activity. The (core subtracted) spectra of the inner doubles of both sources are power laws over a large frequency range. We found that the duration of the quiescent phase of J0041+3224 is between 4 and 28 per cent of the active phase of the previous activity. The outer north-western lobe of J1835+6204 has a compact hotspot and the regions of both the outer hotspots have close to power-law (rather than curved) spectra, which indicates that the outer lobes are still fed by jet material ejected in the previous episode just before the central engine stopped powering the jet. We estimate that the duration of the quiescent phase of J1835+6204 is ?5 per cent of the duration of the active phase of the previous activity. Therefore, we conclude that the duration of the quiescent phase can be as short as a few per cent of the active phase in radio galaxies of this type.Peer reviewe

Registry of Older South Australians (ROSA): framework and plan

First published as 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-026319 on 19 June 2019INTRODUCTION:Australia's ageing population puts significant demands on the aged care and healthcare sectors. To monitor the provision of aged care and healthcare services to older people, each government body has an individual data collection system. Together these systems can be the basis for creating the evidence necessary to support future allocation of resources for our ageing community. The Registry of Older South Australians (ROSA) is a cross-sector multidisciplinary (ie, aged care and healthcare) platform built to address the challenges of monitoring people in aged care settings. This protocol describes the ROSA's framework and plans. METHODS AND ANALYSIS:A registry to capture 16 000 South Australians/year undergoing an aged care eligibility assessment was designed. ROSA will contain information captured by the Commonwealth and South Australian state Health Authority, linked by two data integrating authorities, and housed on a secured data platform. ROSA will contain information on the sociodemographic, health, function, psychological, social, home and safety assessment and concerns characteristics, aged care services, general health services, and mortality of people receiving aged care services. Registered participants will be prospectively monitored until their death and yearly updates of their aged care and healthcare services information will be added to the registry. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION:ROSA will longitudinally monitor the services provided to a population that puts costly demands on the state healthcare and aged care systems, identify unwanted variation, and underpin future research. ROSA's expected outputs include an annual report, a research agenda that focuses on high burden conditions and potentially economically impactful questions, educational materials, and risk profiling tools. ROSA was approved by the South Australian Department for Health and Ageing HREC (HREC/17/SAH/125) and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare HREC (EO2018/2/429).Maria C Inacio, Sarah Catherine Elizabeth Bray, Craig Whitehead, Megan Corlis, Renuka Visvanathan, Keith Evans, Elizabeth C Griffith, Steve L Wesseling

Swift follow-up of unidentified X-ray sources in the XMM-Newton Slew Survey

We present deep Swift follow-up observations of a sample of 94 unidentified X-ray sources from the XMM-Newton Slew Survey. The X-ray Telescope on-board Swift detected 29% of the sample sources; the flux limits for undetected sources suggests the bulk of the Slew Survey sources are drawn from one or more transient populations. We report revised X-ray positions for the XRT-detected sources, with typical uncertainties of 2.9", reducing the number of catalogued optical matches to just a single source in most cases. We characterise the sources detected by Swift through their X-ray spectra and variability and via UVOT photometry and catalogued nIR, optical and radio observations. Six sources can be associated with known objects and 8 may be associated with unidentified ROSAT sources within the 3-sigma error radii of our revised X-ray positions. We find 10 of the 30 XRT-detected sources are clearly stellar in nature, including one periodic variable star and 2 high proper motion stars. For 11 sources we propose an AGN classification, among which 4 are detected with BAT and 3 have redshifts spanning z = 0.2 - 0.9 obtained from the literature or from optical spectroscopy presented here. The 67 Slew Survey sources we do not detect with Swift are studied via their characteristics in the Slew Survey and by comparison with the XRT and BAT detected population. We suggest that these are mostly if not all extragalactic, though unlikely to be highly absorbed sources in the X-rays such as Compton thick AGN. A large number of these are highly variable soft X-ray sources. A small fraction of mainly hard-band detections may be spurious. This follow-up programme brings us a step further to completing the identifications of a substantial sample of XMM-Newton Slew Survey sources, important for understanding the nature of the transient sky and allowing flux-limited samples to be constructed.Comment: 19 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRA

Health status and healthcare trends of individuals accessing Australian aged care programmes over a decade: the Registry of Senior Australians historical cohort

BACKGROUND:Understanding the health profile, service, and medicine use of Australians in the aged care sector will help inform appropriate service provision for our ageing population. AIMS:To examine the 2006-2015 trends in (1) co-morbidities and frailty of individuals accessing aged care and (2) health services, medicine use, and mortality after entry into long term care. METHODS:A cross-sectional and population-based trend analysis were conducted using the Registry of Senior Australians. RESULTS:From 2006-2015, 509,944 individuals accessed permanent residential care, 206,394 home care, 283,014 respite, and 124,943 transition care. Over this time, the proportion of individuals accessing permanent residential care with high frailty scores (≥0.3) increased (19.7% to 49.7%), as did the proportion with 5-9 co-morbidities (46.4% to 54.5%), with similar trends observed for those accessing other services. The median number of medicines dispensed in the year after entering permanent residential care increased from 9 (interquartile range (IQR) 6-12) to 10 (IQR 7-14), while remaining stable in home care (2006:9 IQR 5-12, 2015:9, IQR 6-13). Short-term (within 100 days) mortality in those accessing permanent care was higher in 2006 (15.6%, 95%CI 15.2-16.0%) than 2015 (14.6%, 95%CI 14.3-14.9%), while longer term (101-1095 days, 2006: 44.3%, 95%CI 43.7-45.0%, 2015: 46.4%, 95%CI 45.8-46.9%) mortality was higher. Mortality in individuals accessing home care did not change. CONCLUSION:The health of older Australians accessing aged care programs has declined while frailty increased, with an increasing use of medicine and worse long-term mortality in some. Funding and care models need to adapt to this changing profile.Maria C. Inacio, Catherine Lang, Sarah C. E. Bray, Renuka Visvanathan, Craig Whitehead, Elizabeth C. Griffith, Keith Evans, Megan Corlis and Steve Wesseling

Mycobacterial infections in a large Virginia hospital, 2001-2009

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In areas where both tuberculosis (TB) and nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are prevalent, descriptive studies of the clinical features of individual mycobacteria are needed to inform clinical triage.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We queried the University of Virginia Clinical Data Repository for all mycobacterial infections from 2001-2009.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of 494 mycobacterial infections in 467 patients there were 22 species. Patients with pulmonary Tb were more likely to be reported as immigrants (p < 0.001) and less likely to have a predisposing risk factor for NTM (pre-existing lung disease or host predisposition; p = 0.002). Review of chest CT scans revealed that TB infection was more likely to exhibit cavities and pleural effusion than NTM infection (p < 0.05). Among NTM infections <it>M. kansasii</it>, <it>M. xenopi</it>, and <it>M. fortuitum </it>were more likely than MAC to have cavities. There were at least 83 patients that met criteria for NTM lung disease and these were caused by 9 species. <it>M. abscessus </it>infection was associated with cystic fibrosis and <it>M. xenopi </it>infection was associated with male gender.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>In our center mycobacterial infections were common and of diverse species. Immigrant status, cavities, and effusion were associated with TB vs. NTM.</p

Molecular motors robustly drive active gels to a critically connected state

Living systems often exhibit internal driving: active, molecular processes drive nonequilibrium phenomena such as metabolism or migration. Active gels constitute a fascinating class of internally driven matter, where molecular motors exert localized stresses inside polymer networks. There is evidence that network crosslinking is required to allow motors to induce macroscopic contraction. Yet a quantitative understanding of how network connectivity enables contraction is lacking. Here we show experimentally that myosin motors contract crosslinked actin polymer networks to clusters with a scale-free size distribution. This critical behavior occurs over an unexpectedly broad range of crosslink concentrations. To understand this robustness, we develop a quantitative model of contractile networks that takes into account network restructuring: motors reduce connectivity by forcing crosslinks to unbind. Paradoxically, to coordinate global contractions, motor activity should be low. Otherwise, motors drive initially well-connected networks to a critical state where ruptures form across the entire network.Comment: Main text: 21 pages, 5 figures. Supplementary Information: 13 pages, 8 figure

The Predictive Validity of the MoCA-LD for Assessing Mental Capacity in Adults with Intellectual Disabilities

Mental capacity assessments currently rely on subjective opinion. Researchers have yet to explore the association between key cognitive functions of rational decision-making and mental capacity classifications for people with intellectual disabilities. Sixty-three adults completed the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, which yielded estimates of their overall cognitive ability (MoCA-LD) as well as their memory, attention, language and executive functioning. Differences in scores were explored for those who had, and lacked, capacity and logistic regression was used to test the predictive validity of each measure. There were significant differences between both groups for all measures. Logistic regression identified MoCA-LD as a significant predictor of capacity assessment outcomes. ROC curve analysis provided novel, evidence-based benchmarks to help guide clinical practice based on individual MoCA-LD scores. This study offers a foundation for more objective approaches to mental capacity assessment. This demonstrates that assessments of cognitive ability can yield information that is helpful for mental capacity evaluations

Wild zebra finches choose neighbours for synchronized breeding

Organisms should aim to time their reproduction to match the optimal ecological conditions and thus maximize their fitness. However, social cues have been identified as determinants of reproductive decisions and might also be involved in coordinating the timing of reproduction. Breeding synchronously with other individuals can bring several advantages, including a reduced individual predation risk and an increased opportunity for social foraging. The behavioural mechanisms underlying reproductive synchrony are versatile and not well understood, particularly in species inhabiting unpredictable environments. In contrast to highly seasonal environments, more variable and unpredictable environments can support periods of extended breeding with lower levels of synchronous breeding overall, but opportunities for individuals to breed synchronously at a finer temporal and spatial scale. Zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata, are a highly social species, naturally inhabiting the ecologically unpredictable arid zone of Australia. In the wild, reproduction at a broad population level is not highly synchronized and, at any time during a period of breeding activity, reproductive attempts can be found at different stages. However, previous work has suggested that at a finer spatial scale neighbours tend to breed at approximately the same time. Using nestboxes, we tested whether wild zebra finches preferentially seek to settle and initiate a breeding attempt adjacent to conspecifics at an early stage of breeding (nest building), as opposed to others at later stages of breeding and with which the opportunity to breed synchronously was reduced or absent. Pairs were more likely to initiate egg laying in nestboxes close to conspecifics at an early stage of breeding, suggesting that they do try to maximize the level of synchronicity with neighbours. Our results indicate the importance of social effects on both the phenology and spatial distribution of breeding

War of Ontology Worlds: Mathematics, Computer Code, or Esperanto?

The use of structured knowledge representations—ontologies and terminologies—has become standard in biomedicine. Definitions of ontologies vary widely, as do the values and philosophies that underlie them. In seeking to make these views explicit, we conducted and summarized interviews with a dozen leading ontologists. Their views clustered into three broad perspectives that we summarize as mathematics, computer code, and Esperanto. Ontology as mathematics puts the ultimate premium on rigor and logic, symmetry and consistency of representation across scientific subfields, and the inclusion of only established, non-contradictory knowledge. Ontology as computer code focuses on utility and cultivates diversity, fitting ontologies to their purpose. Like computer languages C++, Prolog, and HTML, the code perspective holds that diverse applications warrant custom designed ontologies. Ontology as Esperanto focuses on facilitating cross-disciplinary communication, knowledge cross-referencing, and computation across datasets from diverse communities. We show how these views align with classical divides in science and suggest how a synthesis of their concerns could strengthen the next generation of biomedical ontologies

Single-Scale Natural SUSY

We consider the prospects for natural SUSY models consistent with current data. Recent constraints make the standard paradigm unnatural so we consider what could be a minimal extension consistent with what we now know. The most promising such scenarios extend the MSSM with new tree-level Higgs interactions that can lift its mass to at least 125 GeV and also allow for flavor-dependent soft terms so that the third generation squarks are lighter than current bounds on the first and second generation squarks. We argue that a common feature of almost all such models is the need for a new scale near 10 TeV, such as a scale of Higgsing or confinement of a new gauge group. We consider the question whether such a model can naturally derive from a single mass scale associated with supersymmetry breaking. Most such models simply postulate new scales, leaving their proximity to the scale of MSSM soft terms a mystery. This coincidence problem may be thought of as a mild tuning, analogous to the usual mu problem. We find that a single mass scale origin is challenging, but suggest that a more natural origin for such a new dynamical scale is the gravitino mass, m_{3/2}, in theories where the MSSM soft terms are a loop factor below m_{3/2}. As an example, we build a variant of the NMSSM where the singlet S is composite, and the strong dynamics leading to compositeness is triggered by masses of order m_{3/2} for some fields. Our focus is the Higgs sector, but our model is compatible with a light stop (with the other generation squarks heavy, or with R-parity violation or another mechanism to hide them from current searches). All the interesting low-energy mass scales, including linear terms for S playing a key role in EWSB, arise dynamically from the single scale m_{3/2}. However, numerical coefficients from RG effects and wavefunction factors in an extra dimension complicate the otherwise simple story.Comment: 32 pages, 3 figures; version accepted by JHE