Thermal hadron production in high energy collisions

It is shown that hadron abundances in high energy e+e-, pp and p{\bar p} collisions, calculated by assuming that particles originate in hadron gas fireballs at thermal and partial chemical equilibrium, are in very good agreement with the data. The freeze-out temperature of the hadron gas fireballs turns out to be nearly constant over a large center of mass energy range and not dependent on the initial colliding system. The only deviation from chemical equilibrium resides in the incomplete strangeness phase space saturation. Preliminary results of an analysis of hadron abundances in S+S and S+Ag heavy ion collisions are presented.Comment: 10 pages, 1 .eps figure, talk given at the Strangeness and Quark Matter 97 conferenc

The Churches' Bans on Consanguineous Marriages, Kin-Networks and Democracy

This paper highlights the role of kin-networks for the functioning of modern societies: countries with strong extended families as characterized by a high level of cousin marriages exhibit a weak rule of law and are more likely autocratic. To assess causality, I exploit a quasi-natural experiment. In the early medieval ages the Church started to prohibit kin-marriages. Using the variation in the duration and extent of the Eastern and Western Churches' bans on consanguineous marriages as instrumental variables, reveals highly significant point estimates of the percentage of cousin marriage on an index of democracy. An additional novel instrument, cousin-terms, strengthens this point: the estimates are very similar and do not rest on the European experience alone. Exploiting within country variation of cousin marriages in Italy, as well as within variation of a 'societal marriage pressure' indicator for a larger set of countries support these results. These findings point to a causal effect of marriage patterns on the proper functioning of formal institutions and democracy. The study further suggests that the Churches' marriage rules - by destroying extended kin-groups - led Europe on its special path of institutional and democratic development

Tubeless percutaneous nephrolithotomy: Can be a choice, why not?

Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) has been widely accepted and is commonly used to treat renal calculi. The optimal drainage of kidney after PCNL has not been clearly determined yet. Placement of an 18F to 24F nephrostomy tube at the end of the procedure is accepted as standard of care to date. The main advantages are adequate renal drainage, hemostatic tamponade and providing renal access for second look PCNL. However, based on the concept that the purpose of the tube is only to maintain adequate drainage of the kidney, a "tubeless" approach has been developed by placing a ureteral stent or catheter to provide drainage after PCNL instead of a nephrostomy tube. Tubeless PCNL is an effective and safe procedure for treatment of renal stones in selected cases. This procedure can even be chosen for patients with previous renal surgery, and hemorrhagic tendency. By using this method, less postoperative pain and a shorter hospital stay can be achieved, when compared with conventional PCNL. There is a controversy over ideal drainage system after PCNL in recent years. Herein, we made a systematic review for efficacy and safety of tubeless PCNL, totally tubeless PCNL, discussed different variations and compared the outcomes of this technique with standart PCNL. © Karadag et al.; Licensee Bentham Open

Erectile dysfunction is a marker for obstructive sleep apnea

Purpose: To investigate the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED) in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) with and without any other comorbidities