83 research outputs found
What is the effect of a decision aid in potentially vulnerable parents? Insights from the head CT choice randomized trial.
ObjectiveTo test the hypotheses that use of the Head CT Choice decision aid would be similarly effective in all parent/patient dyads but parents with high (vs low) numeracy experience a greater increase in knowledge while those with low (vs high) health literacy experience a greater increase in trust.MethodsThis was a secondary analysis of a cluster randomized trial conducted at seven sites. One hundred seventy-two clinicians caring for 971 children at intermediate risk for clinically important traumatic brain injuries were randomized to shared decision making facilitated by the DA (n = 493) or to usual care (n = 478). We assessed for subgroup effects based on patient and parent characteristics, including socioeconomic status (health literacy, numeracy and income). We tested for interactions using regression models with indicators for arm assignment and study site.ResultsThe decision aid did not increase knowledge more in parents with high numeracy (P for interaction [Pint ] = 0.14) or physician trust more in parents with low health literacy (Pint = 0.34). The decision aid decreased decisional conflict more in non-white parents (decisional conflict scale, -8.14, 95% CI: -12.33 to -3.95; Pint = 0.05) and increased physician trust more in socioeconomically disadvantaged parents (trust in physician scale, OR: 8.59, 95% CI: 2.35-14.83; Pint = 0.04).ConclusionsUse of the Head CT Choice decision aid resulted in less decisional conflict in non-white parents and greater physician trust in socioeconomically disadvantaged parents. Decision aids may be particularly effective in potentially vulnerable parents
Brane-induced supersymmetry breaking
We study spontaneous supersymmetry breaking induced by brane-localized
dynamics in five-dimensional supergravity compactified on S^1/Z_2. We consider
a model with gravity in the bulk and matter localized on tensionless branes at
the orbifold fixed points. We assume that the brane dynamics give rise to
effective brane superpotentials that trigger the supersymmetry breaking. We
analyze in detail the super-Higgs effect. We compute the full spectrum and show
that the symmetry breaking is spontaneous but nonlocal in the fifth dimension.
We demonstrate that the model can be interpreted as a new, non-trivial
implementation of a coordinate-dependent Scherk-Schwarz compactification.Comment: 15 pages. v2: improved treatment of brane actions, relation with
conventional Scherk-Schwarz mechanism clarified, version to be published in
JHE
Supersymmetry and the Anomalous Anomalous Magnetic Moment of the Muon
The recently reported measurement of the muon's anomalous magnetic moment
differs from the standard model prediction by 2.6 standard deviations. We
examine the implications of this discrepancy for supersymmetry. Deviations of
the reported magnitude are generic in supersymmetric theories. Based on the new
result, we derive model-independent upper bounds on the masses of observable
supersymmetric particles. We also examine several model frameworks. The sign of
the reported deviation is as predicted in many simple models, but disfavors
anomaly-mediated supersymmetry breaking.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, version to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Gaugino Condensation in N=1 Supergravity Models with Multiple Dilaton-Like Fields
We study supersymmetry breaking by hidden-sector gaugino condensation in N=1
D=4 supergravity models with multiple dilaton-like moduli fields. Our work is
motivated by Type I string theory, in which the low-energy effective Lagrangian
can have different dilaton-like fields coupling to different sectors of the
theory. We construct the effective Lagrangian for gaugino condensation and use
it to compute the visible-sector gaugino masses. We find that the gaugino
masses can be of order the gravitino mass, in stark contrast to heterotic
string models with a single dilaton field.Comment: LaTeX, 17 pages, 2 eps figure
Generalized symmetry breaking on orbifolds
We reconsider the phenomenon of mass generation via coordinate-dependent
compatifications of higher-dimensional theories on orbifolds. For definiteness,
we study a generic five-dimensional (5D) theory compactified on S^1/Z_2. We
show that the presence of fixed points, where the fields or their derivatives
may be discontinuous, permits new realizations of the Scherk-Schwarz mechanism
where, for example, the mass terms are localized at the orbifold fixed points.
Our technique can be used to describe the explicit breaking of global flavor
symmetries and supersymmetries by brane-localized mass terms. It can also be
applied to the spontaneous breaking of local symmetries, such as gauge
symmetries or supergravities.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure. Published versio
A large scale hearing loss screen reveals an extensive unexplored genetic landscape for auditory dysfunction
The developmental and physiological complexity of the auditory system is likely reflected in the underlying set of genes involved in auditory function. In humans, over 150 non-syndromic loci have been identified, and there are more than 400 human genetic syndromes with a hearing loss component. Over 100 non-syndromic hearing loss genes have been identified in mouse and human, but we remain ignorant of the full extent of the genetic landscape involved in auditory dysfunction. As part of the International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium, we undertook a hearing loss screen in a cohort of 3006 mouse knockout strains. In total, we identify 67 candidate hearing loss genes. We detect known hearing loss genes, but the vast majority, 52, of the candidate genes were novel. Our analysis reveals a large and unexplored genetic landscape involved with auditory function
Cyclic and Sleep-Like Spontaneous Alternations of Brain State Under Urethane Anaesthesia
Background: Although the induction of behavioural unconsciousness during sleep and general anaesthesia has been shown to involve overlapping brain mechanisms, sleep involves cyclic fluctuations between different brain states known as active (paradoxical or rapid eye movement: REM) and quiet (slow-wave or non-REM: nREM) stages whereas commonly used general anaesthetics induce a unitary slow-wave brain state. Methodology/Principal Findings: Long-duration, multi-site forebrain field recordings were performed in urethaneanaesthetized rats. A spontaneous and rhythmic alternation of brain state between activated and deactivated electroencephalographic (EEG) patterns was observed. Individual states and their transitions resembled the REM/nREM cycle of natural sleep in their EEG components, evolution, and time frame (,11 minute period). Other physiological variables such as muscular tone, respiration rate, and cardiac frequency also covaried with forebrain state in a manner identical to sleep. The brain mechanisms of state alternations under urethane also closely overlapped those of natural sleep in their sensitivity to cholinergic pharmacological agents and dependence upon activity in the basal forebrain nuclei that are the major source of forebrain acetylcholine. Lastly, stimulation of brainstem regions thought to pace state alternations in sleep transiently disrupted state alternations under urethane. Conclusions/Significance: Our results suggest that urethane promotes a condition of behavioural unconsciousness tha
The NANOGrav 15-year Data Set: Evidence for a Gravitational-Wave Background
We report multiple lines of evidence for a stochastic signal that is
correlated among 67 pulsars from the 15-year pulsar-timing data set collected
by the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves. The
correlations follow the Hellings-Downs pattern expected for a stochastic
gravitational-wave background. The presence of such a gravitational-wave
background with a power-law-spectrum is favored over a model with only
independent pulsar noises with a Bayes factor in excess of , and this
same model is favored over an uncorrelated common power-law-spectrum model with
Bayes factors of 200-1000, depending on spectral modeling choices. We have
built a statistical background distribution for these latter Bayes factors
using a method that removes inter-pulsar correlations from our data set,
finding (approx. ) for the observed Bayes factors in the
null no-correlation scenario. A frequentist test statistic built directly as a
weighted sum of inter-pulsar correlations yields (approx. ). Assuming a fiducial
characteristic-strain spectrum, as appropriate for an ensemble of binary
supermassive black-hole inspirals, the strain amplitude is (median + 90% credible interval) at a reference frequency of
1/(1 yr). The inferred gravitational-wave background amplitude and spectrum are
consistent with astrophysical expectations for a signal from a population of
supermassive black-hole binaries, although more exotic cosmological and
astrophysical sources cannot be excluded. The observation of Hellings-Downs
correlations points to the gravitational-wave origin of this signal.Comment: 30 pages, 18 figures. Published in Astrophysical Journal Letters as
part of Focus on NANOGrav's 15-year Data Set and the Gravitational Wave
Background. For questions or comments, please email [email protected]
- …