Varying constants, Gravitation and Cosmology

Fundamental constants are a cornerstone of our physical laws. Any constant varying in space and/or time would reflect the existence of an almost massless field that couples to matter. This will induce a violation of the universality of free fall. It is thus of utmost importance for our understanding of gravity and of the domain of validity of general relativity to test for their constancy. We thus detail the relations between the constants, the tests of the local position invariance and of the universality of free fall. We then review the main experimental and observational constraints that have been obtained from atomic clocks, the Oklo phenomenon, Solar system observations, meteorites dating, quasar absorption spectra, stellar physics, pulsar timing, the cosmic microwave background and big bang nucleosynthesis. At each step we describe the basics of each system, its dependence with respect to the constants, the known systematic effects and the most recent constraints that have been obtained. We then describe the main theoretical frameworks in which the low-energy constants may actually be varying and we focus on the unification mechanisms and the relations between the variation of different constants. To finish, we discuss the more speculative possibility of understanding their numerical values and the apparent fine-tuning that they confront us with.Comment: 145 pages, 10 figures, Review for Living Reviews in Relativit

An investigation of the diagnostic value of bilateral femoral neck bone mineral density measurements.

This paper describes a study to assess the clinical value of bilateral femoral neck bone mineral density (BMD) measurements. Although a range of factors will determine clinical decisions, the classification of the site with the lowest T-score is likely to have significant bearing on the management of a patient. While it is common practice to measure BMD at the lumbar spine and a single neck of femur, knowledge of the BMD of the second femur may also be of diagnostic value. Using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, BMD of the lumbar spine and right and left femoral neck was measured in a group of 2372 white, Caucasian women (mean age +/- SD, 56.6 +/- 13.9 years) routinely referred for bone densitometry. Analysis of the measurements showed a significant (p = 0.02) but small difference between the mean BMD of the right (0.840 +/- 0.152 g/cm2) and left (0.837 +/- 0.150 g/cm2) femoral neck. Further investigation of femur scans revealed 79 (3.3%) patients in whom one side was osteoporotic while the other side and spine were normal or osteopenic using the World Health Organization diagnostic criteria in combination with manufacturer's reference data. Patients in whom the femoral neck BMD measurements differed by less than the precision error of the system were then excluded. This left only 51 (2.2%) patients, that is 29 (1.2%) for right femur and spine scan and 22 (0.9%) for left femur and spine scan, in whom knowledge of both femoral neck BMD measurements could have altered the classification of the lowest site assessed to osteoporotic. These data suggest that there is only a small benefit from performing bilateral femoral neck BMD measurements. Since BMD measurements are only one of a range of factors considered as part of a patient's management, it is suggested that the extra time, cost and radiation dose associated with measurement of the second femur may not be justified

What is the optimal paddle force for defibrillation? (presented at 18th Spring Meeting of the Association of Cardiothoracic Anaesthetists: Selected abstracts Cambridge, UK. 22 June 2001)

Introduction - Firm paddle pressure during defibrillation is important to minimize transthoracic impedance (TTI) and optimize trans-myocardial current. Previous European Resuscitation Council (ERC) guidelines recommended that 12 kg force should be used [1] and the more recent International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) guidelines recommend 'firm' pressure [2]. The actual relationship between force and transthoracic impedance has not been established. Methods - 55 patients (36 male, 19 female) undergoing general anaesthesia for cardiac surgery were investigated. Male chests were shaved. A pair of gel pads and paddles were placed in the anterior-apical position according to the ILCOR guidelines. The endotracheal tube was opened to air and paddles instrumented with force sensors were applied to the chest wall with progressive force to a maximum of 12 kgf. The resultant TTI was recorded at 10 measurements per second to a hard drive.Results - Light pressure results in a high TTI that rapidly decreases as paddle force increases (Fig. 1). An 18.7% fall in overall TTI occurs when applying force from 0.5 to 6.0 kg. Increasing paddle force from 6 to 12 kg results in a further decrease in TTI of 3.2%.Conclusion - A minimum of 6 kg force applied to each paddle is necessary to achieve 83% of the overall decrease in TTI seen at 12 kgf. Further decrease in TTI as force is applied in excess of 6 kgf is small and a force of 12 kgf only reduces TTI by a further 3.2% compared with TTI at 6 kgf. The additional clinical benefit of applying 12 kgf as opposed to 6 kgf is questionable. <br/

Comparison of calcaneal ultrasound and DXA to assess the risk of corticosteroid-induced osteoporosis: a cross-sectional study.

Patients on long-term oral corticosteroids have an increased risk of low bone mass and fragility fractures. Fracture risk rises soon after commencement of corticosteroid therapy and it is possible that these agents adversely influence bone architecture disproportionately to their effect on bone mass. The best means of assessing bone status in patients using corticosteroids remains uncertain, but quantitative ultrasound of the calcaneus may provide evidence of microarchitectural changes not detected by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Patients with Crohn's disease have an increased risk of low bone mineral density (BMD), the etiology of which is multifactorial but includes corticosteroid use. We studied 118 consecutive patients with Crohn's disease, 21 of whom used continuous oral corticosteroids, 70 of whom were intermittent users, and 27 who had never used the drug. All patients received DXA of the lumbar spine, hip and calcaneus and quantitative ultrasound (QUS) of the calcaneus. The different techniques were compared using a femoral neck T-score &lt; or = -1.5 as the threshold of corticosteroid-induced osteoporosis. When compared with the femoral neck T-score, there were no significant differences between the predictive values of lumbar spine DXA, calcaneal DXA or calcaneal QUS to identify low femoral neck BMD. However, the absolute T-score required to give similar discriminatory capacity to femoral neck T-score varied substantially (T= -0.81 to -1.5) between the different measurement techniques and sites