The smooth cut-off Hierarchical Reference Theory of fluids

We provide a comprehensive presentation of the Hierarchical Reference Theory (HRT) in the smooth cut-off formulation. A simple and self-consistent derivation of the hierarchy of differential equations is supplemented by a comparison with the known sharp cut-off HRT. Then, the theory is applied to a hard core Yukawa fluid (HCYF): a closure, based on a mean spherical approximation ansatz, is studied in detail and its intriguing relationship to the self consistent Ornstein-Zernike approximation is discussed. The asymptotic properties, close to the critical point are investigated and compared to the renormalization group results both above and below the critical temperature. The HRT free energy is always a convex function of the density, leading to flat isotherms in the two-phase region with a finite compressibility at coexistence. This makes HRT the sole liquid-state theory able to obtain directly fluid-fluid phase equilibrium without resorting to the Maxwell construction. The way the mean field free energy is modified due to the inclusion of density fluctuations suggests how to identify the spinodal curve. Thermodynamic properties and correlation functions of the HCYF are investigated for three values of the inverse Yukawa range: z=1.8, z=4 and z=7 where Monte Carlo simulations are available. The stability of the liquid-vapor critical point with respect to freezing is also studied.Comment: 23 pages, 15 figures, 1 tabl

Assessment of the Cultural Competence, Dementia Attitude, and Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge among Tertiary Healthcare Providers.

Ph.D. Thesis. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 2017

Assessment and management of recurrent abdominal pain in the emergency department

Recurrent abdominal pain accounts for a significant proportion of attenders and high impact users in the emergency department. Due to the heterogeneity of presentation and the broad spectrum of possible causes, abdominal pain presents as a significant clinical challenge within the emergency department, particularly as distress and pain are commonly elevated. Patients in this group are routinely prescribed opiate-based interventions and repeated investigations in a 'better safe than sorry' culture which saturates the field of persistent physical symptoms. This approach is contributing to the growing problem, and fuelling a cycle of repeated attendance and failure to resolve. This article reviews the current clinical and psychophysiological understanding of recurrent abdominal pain, critiquing guidelines and approaches to diagnosis and management. We offer an alternative evidence-based biopsychosocial approach using the mnemonic 'ERROR', recommending five steps to assessment and clinical management of recurrent abdominal pain in the emergency department.</p

Anticipatory Postural Adjustments and Spatial Organization of Motor Cortex: Evidence of Adaptive Compensations in Healthy Older Adults

During anticipated postural perturbations induced by limb movement, the central nervous system generates anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) in the trunk and hip musculature to minimize disturbances to equilibrium. Age-related changes in functional organization of the nervous system may contribute to changes in APAs in healthy older adults. Here we examined if altered APAs of trunk/hip musculature in older adults are accompanied by changes in the representation of these muscles in motor cortex. Twelve healthy older adults, 5 with a history of falls and 7 nonfallers, were compared with 13 young adults. APAs were assessed during a mediolateral arm raise task in standing. Temporal organization of postural adjustments was quantified as latency of APAs in the contralateral external oblique, lumbar paraspinals, and gluteus medius relative to activation of the deltoid. Spatial organization was quantified as extent of synergistic coactivation between muscles. Volume and location of the muscle representations in motor cortex were mapped using transcranial magnetic stimulation. We found that older adults demonstrated significantly delayed APAs in the gluteus medius muscle. Spatial organization of the three muscles in motor cortex differed between groups, with the older adults demonstrating more lateral external oblique representation than the other two muscles. Separate comparisons of the faller and nonfaller subgroups with young adults indicated that nonfallers had the greatest delay in gluteus medius APAs and a reduced distance between the representational areas of the lumbar paraspinals and gluteus medius. This study indicates that altered spatial organization of motor cortex accompanies altered temporal organization of APA synergies in older adults

STICKY: Taboo Topics In Deaf Communities

This chapter offers an overview of taboo topics within deaf communities to bring forward issues not obvious to those outside deaf communities. We look at taboo behaviors of hearing people as they interact with deaf communities, considering linguistic and cultural appropriation, exploitation, and hearing privilege. We also look at taboo topics regarding social hierarchies within deaf communities, those based on gender and race, as well as those based on cognitive abilities, particularly language. These topics present a nuanced and diverse representation of deaf people, which is intended to sensitize those aiming to work with deaf communities or, in fact, with any oppressed group. Scholars need to behave responsibly. Linguists, unwittingly, may well have had a negative effect on deaf communities by exalting the language of those who were privileged enough to acquire a firm foundation in signing during the sensitive period for language development and discounting the language of others

Book Reviews

Book Review

Superfluid to Mott-insulator transition in an anizotropic two--dimensional optical lattice

We study the superfluid to Mott-insulator transition of bosons in an optical anizotropic lattice by employing the Bose-Hubbard model living on a two-dimensional lattice with anizotropy parameter $\kappa$. The compressible superfluid state and incompressible Mott-insulator (MI) lobes are efficiently described analytically, using the quantum U(1) rotor approach. The ground state phase diagram showing the evolution of the MI lobes is quantified for arbitrary values of $\kappa$, corresponding to various kind of lattices: from square, through rectangular to almost one-dimensional.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure