Metal Abundance Calibration of the Ca II Triplet Lines in RR Lyrae Stars

The GAIA satellite is likely to observe thousands of RR Lyrae stars within a small spectral window, between 8470A and 8750A, at a resolution of 11,500. In order to derive the metallicity of RR Lyrae stars from Gaia, we have obtained numerous spectra of RR Lyrae stars at a resolution of 35,000 with the Apache Point Observatory 3.5 m echelle spectrograph. We have correlated the Ca II triplet line strengths with metallicity as derived from Fe II abundances, analogous to Preston's (1959) use of the Ca II K line to estimate the metallicity of RR Lyrae stars. The Ca II line at 8498A is the least blended with neighboring Paschen lines and thus provides the best correlation.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc

QUALITY OF 'SWEETHEART' CHERRY UNDER DIFFERENT STORAGE CONDITIONS

Abstract: In Portalegre, Portugal, sweet cherry production is very important to the region’s economic sustainability. The sweet cherry ‘Sweetheart’ has exhibited short shelf life in spite of being highly appreciated by consumers due to its organoleptic characteristics. In this trial, we evaluated fruit quality of ‘Sweetheart’ stored under different storage conditions: 1) cold conditions (1ºC and high humidity 95%), 2) cold conditions and polypropylene film bags (MA), and 3) controlled atmosphere (CA) (1°C, 95% humidity, 10% CO2 and 8% O2). Fruit physical and chemical parameters were evaluated after 0, 6, 13, 20 and 27 days of cold storage. Quality parameters tested included weight loss, external colour (L* a* b*), visual assessment of the epidermis, epidermis and mesocarp penetration test, soluble solids content (SSC), and titratable acidity (TA). We also performed sensory analyses. The results for textural properties, colour coordinates and sensory analysis suggest that ‘Sweetheart’ fruit can be stored under cold conditions, 1°C, 95% humidity, for up to 21 days without significant loss of quality. Controlled atmosphere maintained tissue turgidity during storage; however, this was not noticed by the panelists, who consistently classified fruits stored under CA conditions with lower overall ratings than fruits under cold conditions with or without film bags

Continuous measurements of greenhouse gases and atmospheric oxygen at the Namib Desert atmospheric observatory

A new coastal background site has been established for observations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the central Namib Desert at Gobabeb, Namibia. The location of the site was chosen to provide observations for a data-poor region in the global sampling network for GHGs. Semi-automated continuous measurements of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, atmospheric oxygen, and basic meteorology are made at a height of 21 m a.g.l., 50 km from the coast at the northern border of the Namib Sand Sea. Atmospheric oxygen is measured with a differential fuel cell analyzer (DFCA). Carbon dioxide and methane are measured with an early-model cavity ring-down spectrometer (CRDS); nitrous oxide and carbon monoxide are measured with an off-axis integrated cavity output spectrometer (OA-ICOS). Instrument-specific water corrections are employed for both the CRDS and OA-ICOS instruments in lieu of drying. The performance and measurement uncertainties are discussed in detail. As the station is located in a remote desert environment, there are some particular challenges, namely fine dust, high diurnal temperature variability, and minimal infrastructure. The gas handling system and calibration scheme were tailored to best fit the conditions of the site. The CRDS and DFCA provide data of acceptable quality when base requirements for operation are met, specifically adequate temperature control in the laboratory and regular supply of electricity. In the case of the OA-ICOS instrument, performance is significantly improved through the implementation of a drift correction through frequent measurements of a reference cylinder

Earnings responses to disability insurance stringency

Accurate assessment of earnings capacity is critical to the efficient operation of disability insurance (DI) programs. We use administrative data on the universe of Dutch DI recipients to estimate employment and earnings responses to reassessment of their earnings capacity under more stringent rules. We estimate that reassessment of recipients aged 30–44 removed 17 percent from the program and reduced benefit income by 20 percent, on average. In response, employment increased by 6.7 percentage points and earnings rose by 18 percent. Recipients were able to increase earnings by € 636 for every € 1000 reduction in DI benefit. This earnings response was strongest from those with more subjectively defined disabilities and a shorter claim duration, as well as younger and female recipients

Step-by-step Guideline for disease-specific costing studies in low and middle income countries: a mixed methodology.

__Abstract__ BACKGROUND: Disease-specific costing studies can be used as input into cost-effectiveness analyses and provide important information for efficient resource allocation. However, limited data availability and limited expertise constrain such studies in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). OBJECTIVE: To describe a step-by-step guideline for conducting disease-specific costing studies in LMICs where data availability is limited and to illustrate how the guideline was applied in a costing study of cardiovascular disease prevention care in rural Nigeria. DESIGN: The step-by-step guideline provides practical recommendations on methods and data requirements for six sequential steps: 1) definition of the study perspective, 2) characterization of the unit of analysis, 3) identification of cost items, 4) measurement of cost items, 5) valuation of cost items, and 6) uncertainty analyses.Please provide the significance of asterisk given in table body. RESULTS: We discuss the necessary tradeoffs between the accuracy of estimates and data availability constraints at each step and illustrate how a mixed methodology of accurate bottom-up micro-costing and more feasible approaches can be used to make optimal use of all available data. An illustrative example from Nigeria is provided. CONCLUSIONS: An innovative, user-friendly guideline for disease-specific costing in LMICs is presented, using a mixed methodology to account for limited data availability. The illustrative example showed that the step-by-step guideline can be used by healthcare professionals in LMICs to conduct feasible and accurate disease-specific cost analyses

Strong-coupling study of the Gribov ambiguity in lattice Landau gauge

We study the strong-coupling limit beta=0 of lattice SU(2) Landau gauge Yang-Mills theory. In this limit the lattice spacing is infinite, and thus all momenta in physical units are infinitesimally small. Hence, the infrared behavior can be assessed at sufficiently large lattice momenta. Our results show that at the lattice volumes used here, the Gribov ambiguity has an enormous effect on the ghost propagator in all dimensions. This underlines the severity of the Gribov problem and calls for refined studies also at finite beta. In turn, the gluon propagator only mildly depends on the Gribov ambiguity.Comment: 14 pages, 22 figures; minor changes, matches version to appear in Eur. Phys. J.

Determination of nuclear parton distributions

Parametrization of nuclear parton distributions is investigated in the leading order of alpha_s. The parton distributions are provided at Q^2=1 GeV^2 with a number of parameters, which are determined by a chi^2 analysis of the data on nuclear structure functions. Quadratic or cubic functional form is assumed for the initial distributions. Although valence quark distributions in the medium x region are relatively well determined, the small x distributions depend slightly on the assumed functional form. It is difficult to determine the antiquark distributions at medium x and gluon distributions. From the analysis, we propose parton distributions at Q^2=1 GeV^2 for nuclei from deuteron to heavy ones with the mass number A~208. They are provided either analytical expressions or computer subroutines for practical usage. Our studies should be important for understanding the physics mechanism of the nuclear modification and also for applications to heavy-ion reactions. This kind of nuclear parametrization should also affect existing parametrization studies in the nucleon because "nuclear" data are partially used for obtaining the optimum distributions in the "nucleon".Comment: 16 pages, REVTeX4b5, revtex4.cls, url.sty, natbib.sty, 10pt.rtx, aps.rtx, revsymb.sty, 21 eps figures. Submitted for publication. Computer codes for the nuclear parton distributions could be obtained from http://www-hs.phys.saga-u.ac.jp Email: [email protected]

Mechanisms Associated with Clinical Improvement in Interventions That Address Health-Related Social Needs: A Mixed-Methods Analysis

Linking individuals to community resources in order to help meet health-related social needs, such as food, medications, or transportation, may improve clinical outcomes. However, little is known about the mechanisms whereby such linkage interventions might improve health. The authors conducted a mixed-methods analysis consisting of outcomes from a prospective cohort study of a linkage intervention and a qualitative analysis of case records from participants. The cohort study included intervention participants who first enrolled between December 2014 and March 2015. Participants were excluded if they could not complete the assessment because of illness or language. The authors examined changes in cost-related medication underuse (CRMU), transportation barriers, and food insecurity (FI). For the qualitative analysis, a random sample of 80 participants was selected for electronic health record review - 40 cases who showed clinical improvement (responders) and 40 cases who did not (nonresponders). Themes were extracted by 3 reviewers guided by the immersion/crystallization approach. For the cohort study, 141 individuals were included 138 (97.9%) completed follow-up. Comparing baseline to follow-up, there were significant reductions in the prevalence of CRMU (from 44.2% to 39.1%, P = .003) and transportation barriers (from 46.3% to 30.2%, P = .001), but not FI (from 40.4% to 38.2%, P = .73). For the qualitative study, emergent themes that helped differentiate responders and nonresponders included acuity of need, resource availability/access, and adequacy of the resource utilized. CRMU and transportation barriers may be important mechanisms by which linkage interventions improve health-related social needs. Patient-centered themes can help guide intervention improvements

Global QCD Analysis and the CTEQ Parton Distributions

The CTEQ program for the determination of parton distributions through a global QCD analysis of data for various hard scattering processes is fully described. A new set of distributions, CTEQ3, incorporating several new types of data is reported and compared to the two previous sets of CTEQ distributions. Comparison with current data is discussed in some detail. The remaining uncertainties in the parton distributions and methods to further reduce them are assessed. Comparisons with the results of other global analyses are also presented.Comment: (Change in Latex style only: 2up style removed since many don't have it.) 35 pages, 23 figures separately submitted as uuencoded compressed ps-file; Michigan State Report # MSU-HEP/41024 and CTEQ 40