Hospital Mergers with Regulated Prices

We study the effects of a hospital merger in a spatial competition framework where semi-altruistic hospitals choose quality and cost-containment effort. Whereas a merger always leads to higher average cost efficiency, the effect on quality provision depends on the strategic nature of quality competition, which in turn depends on the degree of altruism and the effectiveness of cost-containment effort. If qualities are strategic complements, then a merger leads to lower quality for all hospitals. If qualities are strategic substitutes, then a merger leads to higher quality for at least one hospital, and might also yield higher average quality provision and increased patient utility

A construction of Frobenius manifolds with logarithmic poles and applications

A construction theorem for Frobenius manifolds with logarithmic poles is established. This is a generalization of a theorem of Hertling and Manin. As an application we prove a generalization of the reconstruction theorem of Kontsevich and Manin for projective smooth varieties with convergent Gromov-Witten potential. A second application is a construction of Frobenius manifolds out of a variation of polarized Hodge structures which degenerates along a normal crossing divisor when certain generation conditions are fulfilled.Comment: 46 page

Modified Partition Functions, Consistent Anomalies and Consistent Schwinger Terms

A gauge invariant partition function is defined for gauge theories which leads to the standard quantization. It is shown that the descent equations and consequently the consistent anomalies and Schwinger terms can be extracted from this modified partition function naturally.Comment: 25 page

The reproducibility of T2 relaxation time measurement of knee cartilage in women aged over 50 [Abstract]

The reproducibility of T2 relaxation time measurement of knee cartilage in women aged over 50 [Abstract

Local states of free bose fields

These notes contain an extended version of lectures given at the ``Summer School on Large Coulomb Systems'' in Nordfjordeid, Norway, in august 2003. They furnish a short introduction to the theory of quantum harmonic systems, or free bose fields. The main issue addressed is the one of local states. I will adopt the definition of Knight of ``strictly local excitation of the vacuum'' and will then state and prove a generalization of Knight's Theorem which asserts that finite particle states cannot be perfectly localized. It will furthermore be explained how Knight's a priori counterintuitive result can be readily understood if one remembers the analogy between finite and infinite dimensional harmonic systems alluded to above. I will also discuss the link between the above result and the so-called Newton-Wigner position operator thereby illuminating, I believe, the difficulties associated with the latter. I will in particular argue that those difficulties do not find their origin in special relativity or in any form of causality violation, as is usually claimed

Adherence and feasibility of a high impact exercise intervention in post-menopausal women [Abstract]

Adherence and feasibility of a high impact exercise intervention in post-menopausal women [Abstract

THE RELATIONSHIP OF ANTHROPOMETRY AND BODY COMPOSITION WITH RUNNING ECONOMY

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships of anthropometry and body composition with running economy within a large heterogeneous cohort of runners. Locomotory energy cost was determined in ninety-four healthy male and female endurance runners across a range of performance standards. Various anthropometric and body composition measurements were taken manually and via DXA scans. The relationships between anthropometry and running economy were assessed using independent Pearson’s correlation and stepwise multiple linear regression. Three parameters, normalised neck and calf perimeters and normalised whole body bone mass explained 30% of the variance in locomotory energy cost. Low locomotory energy cost was related solely to parameters indicating relative slenderness of the body

A smooth introduction to the wavefront set

The wavefront set provides a precise description of the singularities of a distribution. Because of its ability to control the product of distributions, the wavefront set was a key element of recent progress in renormalized quantum field theory in curved spacetime, quantum gravity, the discussion of time machines or quantum energy inequalitites. However, the wavefront set is a somewhat subtle concept whose standard definition is not easy to grasp. This paper is a step by step introduction to the wavefront set, with examples and motivation. Many different definitions and new interpretations of the wavefront set are presented. Some of them involve a Radon transform.Comment: 29 pages, 7 figure