The Integrability of Pauli System in Lorentz Violating Background

We systematically analyze the integrability of a Pauli system in Lorentz violating background at the non-relativistic level both in two- and three-dimensions. We consider the non-relativistic limit of the Dirac equation from the QED sector of the so-called Standard Model Extension by keeping only two types of background couplings, the vector a_mu and the axial vector b_mu. We show that the spin-orbit interaction comes as a higher order correction in the non-relativistic limit of the Dirac equation. Such an interaction allows the inclusion of spin degree non-trivially, and if Lorentz violating terms are allowed, they might be comparable under special circumstances. By including all possible first-order derivative terms and considering the cases a\ne 0, b\ne 0, and b_0\ne 0 one at a time, we determine the possible forms of constants of motion operator, and discuss the existence or continuity of integrability due to Lorentz violating background.Comment: 19 page

Molecular species discovery in the diatom <i>Sellaphora</i> and its congruence with mating trials

Many diatom and other microbial eukaryote morphospecies consist of a variable number of (pseudo)cryptic species, with obvious consequences for such fields as biogeography and community ecology. Here, we investigated the species limits of morphologically similar small–celled strains of the model diatom Sellaphora from the United Kingdom and Australia, using cox1 mitochondrial and rbcL chloroplast gene sequences. Based on cox1 sequence data, the sequenced strains belonged to six closely related lineages, presumably species, of which one corresponds to the previously described S. auldreekie D.G. Mann & S.M. McDonald. Although rbcL displayed less sequence variation, the same six lineages were also recovered in an rbcL phylogeny of the genus. Molecular species discovery was compared to mating trials involving three of the lineages, showing that they were reproductively isolated. Incomplete evidence from a fourth lineage suggested that it too was reproductively isolated. A posteriori examination of light microscope morphology revealed no simple metrics or presence/absence characters that could consistently separate all species of the auldreekie complex, even though some do differ in pole width or stria density. While it is premature to make conclusions about their biogeography, it is obvious that a number of cryptic Sellaphora species thus far undetected in the UK are easily found at several localities in warm–temperate Australia

APOCALYPSE NO: Population Aging and the Future of Health Care Systems

Illness increases with age. All else equal, an older population has greater needs for health care. This logic has led to dire predictions of skyrocketing costs-- "apocalyptic demography". Yet numerous studies have shown that aging effects are relatively small, and all else is not equal. Cost projections rest on specific assumptions about trends in age- specific morbidity and health care use that are far from self-evident. Sharply contrasting assumptions, for example, are made by Fries, who foresees a "compression of morbidity" and falling needs. Long term trends in health care use in British Columbia show minimal effects of population aging, but major effects, up and down, from changes in age- specific use patterns. Why then is the demographic apocalypse story so persistent, despite numerous contrary studies? It serves identifiable economic interests.aging, health care utilization, demography, health care financing

Butterfly richness and abundance along a gradient of imperviousness and the importance of matrix quality

Heterogeneity in quantity and quality of resources provided in the urban matrix may mitigate adverse effects of urbanization intensity on the structure of biotic communities. To assess this we quantified the spatial variation in butterfly richness and abundance along an impervious surface gradient using three measures of urban matrix quality: floral resource availability and origin (native vs exotic plants), tree cover, and the occurrence of remnant habitat patches. Butterfly richness and abundance were surveyed in 100 cells (500 x 500‐m), selected using a random‐stratified sampling design, across a continuous gradient of imperviousness in Melbourne, Australia. Sampling occurred twice during the butterfly flight season. Occurrence data were analyzed using generalized linear models at local and meso‐ scales. Despite high sampling completeness we did not detect 75% of species from the regional species pool in the urban area, suggesting that urbanization has caused a large proportion of the region’s butterflies to become absent or extremely rare within Melbourne’s metro‐area. Those species that do remain are largely very generalist in their choice of larval host plants. Butterfly species richness and abundance declined with increasing impervious surface cover and, contrary to evidence for other taxa, there was no evidence that richness peaked at intermediate levels of urbanization. Declines in abundance appeared to be more noticeable when impervious surface cover exceeded 25%, while richness declined linearly with increasing impervious surface cover. We find evidence that the quality of the urban matrix (floral resources and remnant vegetation) influenced butterfly richness and abundance although the effects were small. Total butterfly abundance responded negatively to exotic floral abundance early in the sampling season and positively to total floral abundance later in the sampling season. Butterfly species richness increased with tree cover. Negative impacts of increased urbanization intensity on butterfly species richness and abundance may be mitigated to some extent by improving the quality of the urban matrix by enhancing tree cover and the provision of floral resources – with some evidence that native plants are more effective

Expression of recombinant human ceruloplasmin – an absolute requirement for splicing signals in the expression cassette

AbstractWe report the successful expression of recombinant human ceruloplasmin which was made possible by inclusion of splicing signals in the expression vector. Ceruloplasmin cDNA expressed from the vector pNUT in baby hamster kidney cells gave protein yields of 0.03 mg/l which increased to 15 mg/l with splicing signals present. The defect in expression from the intronless cDNA is due to complete retention of ceruloplasmin mRNA in cell nuclei. The block to cytoplasmic export is alleviated by splicing signals, allowing full expression of the mRNA

Impaired neural synchrony in the theta frequency range in adolescents at familial risk for schizophrenia

Puberty is a critical period for the maturation of the fronto-limbic and fronto-striate brain circuits responsible for executive function and affective processing. Puberty also coincides with the emergence of the prodromal signs of schizophrenia, which may indicate an association between these two processes.Time-domain analysis and wavelet based time-frequency analysis was performed on electroencephalographic (EEG) data of 30 healthy control (HC) subjects and 24 individuals at familial risk(FR) for schizophrenia. All participants were between the ages of 13 and 18 years and were carefully matched for age, gender, ethnicity, education, andTanner Stage. Electrophysiological recordings were obtained from 32 EEG channels while participants performed a visual oddball task, where they identified rare visual targets among standard "scrambled" images and rare aversive and neutral dis-tracter pictures. The time-domain analysis showed that during target processing the FR group showed smaller event-related potentials in the P2 and P3 range as compared to the HC group. In addition, EEG activity in the theta (4-8 Hz) frequency range was significantly reduced during target processing in the FR group. Inefficient cortical information processing during puberty may be an early indicator of altered brain function in adolescents at FR for schizophrenia and may represent a vulnerability marker for illness onset. Longitudinal assessments will have to determine their predictive value for illness onset in populations at FR for psychotic illness

2D/3D Continuum Modeling of Proto-Planetary Disks Observed in the c2d Spitzer Legacy Program

Wetensch. publicatieFaculteit der Wiskunde en Natuurwetenschappe

Facilitators and Barriers to Adaptive Implementation of the Meeting Centers Support Program (MCSP) in Three European Countries; the Process Evaluation Within the MEETINGDEM Study

Background: In the MEETINGDEM project, the Meeting Centers Support Program (MCSP) was adaptively implemented and evaluated in three European countries: Italy, Poland, and the United Kingdom. The aim of this study was to investigate overall and country-specific facilitators and barriers to the implementation of MCSP in these European countries. Methods: A qualitative multiple case study design was used. Based on the theoretical model of adaptive implementation, a checklist was composed of potential facilitators and barriers to the implementation of MCSP. This checklist was administered among stakeholders involved in the implementation of MCSP to trace the experienced facilitators and barriers. Twenty-eight checklists were completed. Results: Main similarities between countries were related to the presence of suitable staff, management, and a project manager, and the fact that the MCSP is attuned to needs and wishes of people with dementia and informal caregivers. Main differences between countries were related to: communication with potential referrers, setting up an inter-organizational collaboration network, receiving support of national organizations, having clear discharge criteria for the MCSP and continuous PR in the region. Conclusion: The results of this study provide insight into generic and country specific factors that can influence the implementation of MCSP in different European countries. This study informs further implementation and dissemination of MCSP in Europe and may also serve as an example for the dissemination and implementation of other effective psychosocial support interventions for people with dementia and their informal caregivers across and beyond Europe

Localization dynamics in a binary two-dimensional cellular automaton: the Diffusion Rule

We study a two-dimensional cellular automaton (CA), called Diffusion Rule (DR), which exhibits diffusion-like dynamics of propagating patterns. In computational experiments we discover a wide range of mobile and stationary localizations (gliders, oscillators, glider guns, puffer trains, etc), analyze spatio-temporal dynamics of collisions between localizations, and discuss possible applications in unconventional computing.Comment: Accepted to Journal of Cellular Automat