When Intelligence is (Dys)Functional for Achieving Sales Performance

Using two different samples of salespeople, the authors investigate how a combination of general mental ability (GMA) and specific skills and capabilities (social competence and thinking styles) allows salespeople to reach their sales goals. The study finds evidence for an interaction between GMA and social competence. If combined with high social competence, high GMA leads to highest sales performance; if combined with low social competence, high GMA leads to lowest sales performance. In addition, interaction effects between GMA and a judicial thinking style were found. Salespeople high on GMA have the most potential for attaining high levels of sales performance when combined with specific skills; when lacking these skills they may become the firm’s worst performers

Characterization of neutrino signals with radiopulses in dense media through the LPM effect

We discuss the possibilities of detecting radio pulses from high energy showers in ice, such as those produced by PeV and EeV neutrino interactions. It is shown that the rich radiation pattern structure in the 100 MHz to few GHz allows the separation of electromagnetic showers induced by photons or electrons above 100 PeV from those induced by hadrons. This opens up the possibility of measuring the energy fraction transmitted to the electron in a charged current electron neutrino interaction with adequate sampling of the angular distribution of the signal. The radio technique has the potential to complement conventional high energy neutrino detectors with flavor information.Comment: 5 pages, 4 ps figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

Refining the predictions of supersymmetric CP-violating models: A top-down approach

We explore in detail the consequences of the CP-violating phases residing in the supersymmetric and soft SUSY breaking parameters in the approximation that family flavour mixings are ignored. We allow for non-universal boundary conditions and in such a consideration the model is described by twelve independent CP-violating phases and one angle which misaligns the vacuum expectation values (VEVs) of the Higgs scalars. We run two-loop renormalization group equations (RGEs), for all parameters involved, including phases, and we properly treat the minimization conditions using the one-loop effective potential with CP-violating phases included. We show that the two-loop running of phases may induce sizable effects for the electric dipole moments (EDMs) that are absent in the one-loop RGE analysis. Also important corrections to the EDMs are induced by the Higgs VEVs misalignment angle which are sizable in the large tanb region. Scanning the available parameter space we seek regions compatible with accelerator and cosmological data with emphasis on rapid neutralino annihilations through a Higgs resonance. It is shown that large CP-violating phases, as required in Baryogenesis scenarios, can be tuned to obtain agreement with WMAP3 cold dark matter constraints, EDMs and all available accelerator data, in extended regions of the parameter space which may be accessible to LHC.Comment: 41 pages, 22 eps figures. A reference added and a typo corrected; version to appear in JHE

Self-organization and Mechanical Properties of Active Filament Bundles

A phenomenological description for active bundles of polar filaments is presented. The activity of the bundle results from crosslinks, that induce relative displacements between the aligned filaments. Our generic description is based on momentum conservation within the bundle. By specifying the internal forces, a simple minimal model for the bundle dynamics is obtained, capturing generic dynamic behaviors. In particular, contracted states as well as solitary and oscillatory waves appear through dynamic instabilities. The introduction of filament adhesion leads to self-organized persistent filament transport. Furthermore, calculating the tension, homogeneous bundles are shown to be able to actively contract and to perform work against external forces. Our description is motivated by dynamic phenomena in the cytoskeleton and could apply to stress-fibers and self-organization phenomena during cell-locomotion.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figure

Transferring an extremely premature infant to an extra-uterine life support system:a prospective view on the obstetric procedure

To improve care for extremely premature infants, the development of an extrauterine environment for newborn development is being researched, known as Artificial Placenta and Artificial Womb (APAW) technology. APAW facilitates extended development in a liquid-filled incubator with oxygen and nutrient supply through an oxygenator connected to the umbilical vessels. This setup is intended to provide the optimal environment for further development, allowing further lung maturation by delaying gas exposure to oxygen. This innovative treatment necessitates interventions in obstetric procedures to transfer an infant from the native to an artificial womb, while preventing fetal-to-neonatal transition. In this narrative review we analyze relevant fetal physiology literature, provide an overview of insights from APAW studies, and identify considerations for the obstetric procedure from the native uterus to an APAW system. Lastly, this review provides suggestions to improve sterility, fetal and maternal well-being, and the prevention of neonatal transition

Nitric oxide precursors and congenital heart surgery: A randomized controlled trial of oral citrulline

ObjectiveThe study sought to determine whether citrulline supplementation, a precursor to nitric oxide synthesis, is safe and efficacious in increasing plasma citrulline concentrations and decreasing the risk of postoperative pulmonary hypertension.Study DesignForty children, undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass and at risk for pulmonary hypertension, were randomized to receive 5 perioperative doses (1.9 g/m2 per dose) of either oral citrulline or placebo. Plasma citrulline and arginine concentrations were measured at 5 time points. Measurements of systemic blood pressure and presence of pulmonary hypertension were collected.ResultsMedian citrulline concentrations were significantly higher in the citrulline group versus the placebo group immediately postoperatively (36 μmol/L vs 26 μmol/L, P = .012) and at 12 hours postoperatively (37 μmol/L vs 20 μmol/L, P = .015). Mean plasma arginine concentrations were significantly higher in the citrulline group versus the placebo group by 12 hours postoperatively (36 μmol/L vs 23 μmol/L, P = .037). Mean systemic blood pressure did not differ between groups (P = .53). Postoperative pulmonary hypertension developed in 9 patients, 6 of 20 (30%) in the placebo group and 3 of 20 (15%) in the citrulline group (P = .451), all of whom had plasma citrulline concentrations less than age-specific norms. Postoperative pulmonary hypertension did not develop in patients who demonstrated plasma citrulline concentrations in excess of 37 μmol/L (P = .036).ConclusionsOral citrulline supplementation safely increased plasma citrulline and arginine concentrations compared with placebo after cardiopulmonary bypass. Postoperative pulmonary hypertension did not occur in children with naturally elevated citrulline levels or elevations through supplementation. Oral citrulline supplementation may be effective in reducing postoperative pulmonary hypertension

Monitoring storage induced changes in the platelet proteome employing label free quantitative mass spectrometry

Shelf life of platelet concentrates is limited to 5-7 days due to loss of platelet function during storage, commonly referred to as the platelet storage lesion (PSL). To get more insight into the development of the PSL, we used label free quantitative mass spectrometry to identify changes in the platelet proteome during storage. In total 2501 proteins were accurately quantified in 3 biological replicates on at least 1 of the 7 different time-points analyzed. Significant changes in levels of 21 proteins were observed over time. Gene ontology enrichment analysis of these proteins revealed that the majority of this set was involved in platelet degranulation, secretion and regulated exocytosis. Twelve of these proteins have been shown to reside in α-granules. Upon prolonged storage (13-16 days) elevated levels of α-2-macroglobulin, glycogenin and Ig μ chain C region were identified. Taken together this study identifies novel markers for monitoring of the PSL that may potentially also be used for the detection of "young" and "old" platelets in the circulation

Constrained Supersymmetric Flipped SU(5) GUT Phenomenology

We explore the phenomenology of the minimal supersymmetric flipped SU(5) GUT model (CFSU(5)), whose soft supersymmetry-breaking (SSB) mass parameters are constrained to be universal at some input scale, $M_{in}$, above the GUT scale, $M_{GUT}$. We analyze the parameter space of CFSU(5) assuming that the lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP) provides the cosmological cold dark matter, paying careful attention to the matching of parameters at the GUT scale. We first display some specific examples of the evolutions of the SSB parameters that exhibit some generic features. Specifically, we note that the relationship between the masses of the lightest neutralino and the lighter stau is sensitive to $M_{in}$, as is the relationship between the neutralino mass and the masses of the heavier Higgs bosons. For these reasons, prominent features in generic $(m_{1/2}, m_0)$ planes such as coannihilation strips and rapid-annihilation funnels are also sensitive to $M_{in}$, as we illustrate for several cases with tan(beta)=10 and 55. However, these features do not necessarily disappear at large $M_{in}$, unlike the case in the minimal conventional SU(5) GUT. Our results are relatively insensitive to neutrino masses.Comment: 23 pages, 8 figures; (v2) added explanations and corrected typos, version to appear in EPJ

High frequency of inactivating tetraspanin CD37 mutations in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma at immune-privileged sites

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