480 research outputs found
Online, social media and mobile technologies for psychosis treatment: a systematic review on novel user-led interventions
Internet and mobile-based interventions provide a unique opportunity to deliver cost-effective, accessible, time-unlimited support to people with psychosis. The aims of this study were to systematically compile and analyze the evidence on the acceptability, feasibility, safety and benefits of online and mobile-based interventio is
for psychosis. Methods: Systematic review of peer-reviewed studies examining the usability, acceptability, feasibility, safety or efficacy of user-led, Internet or mobile-based interventions, with at least 80% of participants diagnosed with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. Results: Of 38 potentially relevant articles, 12 were eligible for inclusion. Interventions included web-based psycho-education; web-based psycho-education plus moderated forums for patients and supporters; integrated web-based therapy, social networking and peer and expert moderation; web-based CBT; personalized advice
based on clinical monitoring; and text messaging interventions. Results showed that 74–86% of patients used the web-based interventions efficiently, 75–92% perceived them as positive and useful, and 70–86% completed or were engaged with the interventions over the follow-up. Preliminary evidence indicated that online and mobile-based interventions show promise in improving positive psychotic symptoms, hospital admissions, socialization, social connectedness, depression and medication adherence.
Conclusions: Internet and mobile-based interventions for psychosis seem to be acceptable and feasible and have the potential to improve clinical and social outcomes. The heterogeneity, poor quality and early state of current research precludes any definite conclusions. Future research should investigate the efficacy of online and mobile
interventions through controlled, well-powered studies, which investigate intervention and patient factors associated with take-up and intervention effects
Two-dimensional simulation of the electron transport in a photomultiplier tube
Photomultiplier tubes are widely used in experimental physics because they convert small light
signals into a measurable electric current. Although their working principle is well known, it is
very difficult to find simulations of the electron transport in these devices. For this reason, the
electron transport in the Hamamatsu R13408-100 photomultiplier tube has been simulated in
2D. The software SUPERFISH is used for calculating the electrostatic fields and the Boris method
for the effective electron dynamics. The secondary electron emission in the dynodes is
implemented using an effective electron model and the modified Vaughan’s model. Some
figures of merit for photomultiplier tubes (e.g. the gain, the electron transit time or the transit
time spread) in function of the supply voltage and an external magnetic field have been studied
obtaining a good qualitative accordance with the Hamamatsu datasheet. In further studies, we
are going to compare our simulations with experimental measurements
Novel reaction force for ultra-relativistic dynamics of a classical point charge
The problem of the electromagnetic radiation of an accelerated charged
particle is one of the most controversial issues in Physics since the beginning
of the last century, representing one of the most popular unsolved problems of
the Modern Physics. Different equations of motion have been proposed throughout
history for a point charge including the electromagnetic radiation emitted, but
all these expressions show some limitations. An equation based on the principle
of conservation of energy is proposed in this work for the ultra-relativistic
motion. Different examples are analyzed showing that the energy lost by the
charge agrees with the Li\'enard formula. This proposed equation has been
compared with the Landau-Lifshitz equation obtaining a good agreement in the
range of application of the Landau-Lifshitz formula.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figure
Relativistic particle motion of a charge including the radiation reaction
The problem of the electromagnetic radiation of an accelerated charged particle is one of the
most controversial issues in Physics since the beginning of the last century representing one of
the most popular unsolved problems of the Modern Physics. Different equations of motion for
a point charge including the electromagnetic radiation emitted have been proposed throughout
history, but all these expressions show some limitations. An equation based on the principle of
conservation of energy is proposed for the ultra-relativistic motion. Different examples are
analyzed showing that the energy lost by the charge agrees with the relativistic generalization
of the Larmor formula. This proposed equation has been compared with the Landau-Lifshitz
equation obtaining a good agreement in the range of application of the Landau-Lifshitz formula.
Finally, it is discussed a possible variation of the typical relativistic particle integrators (e.g. Boris,
Vay or Higuera-Cary methods) in order to include the radiation reaction
Numerical study of dark current dynamics in a high-gradient backward travelling wave accelerating cavity using the electromagnetic simulation software CST studio.
High-Gradient accelerating cavities are one of the main research lines in the development of
compact linear colliders. However, the operation of such cavities is currently limited by nonlinear
effects that are intensified at high electric fields, such as dark currents and radiation
emission or RF breakdowns.
A new normal-conducting High-Gradient S-band Backward Travelling Wave accelerating
cavity for medical application (v=0.38c) designed and constructed at Conseil Européen pour la
Recherche Nucléaire (CERN) is being tested at Instituto de Física Corpuscular (IFIC) High Power
RF Laboratory. The objective consists of studying its viability in the development of compact
linear accelerators for hadrontherapy treatments in hospitals.
Due to the high surface electric field in the cavity, electrons are emitted following Fowler-
Nordheim equation, also known as dark currents. The emission and dynamic of these
electrons are of fundamental importance on different phenomena such as RF Breakdowns or
radiation dose emission.
In this work, 3D electromagnetic numerical simulations have been performed using the
computer simulation technology software CST Studio Suite. Then, the resulting EM field maps
are used to study the emission and electron dynamics inside the cavity. The simulation results
are compared with experimental data and first conclusions discussed
Study of the RF pulse heating phenomenon in high gradient accelerating devices by means of analytical approximations
The main objective of this work is to present a
simple method, based on analytical expressions, for obtaining
a quick approximation of the temperature rise due to the Joule
effect inside the metallic walls of an RF accelerating device. This
proposal relies on solving the 1D heat-transfer equation for a
thick wall, where the heat sources inside the wall are the ohmic
losses produced by the RF electromagnetic fields penetrating
the metal with finite electrical conductivity. Furthermore, it is
discussed how the theoretical expressions of this method can be
applied to obtain an approximation to the temperature increase
in realistic 3D RF accelerating structures, taking as an example
the cavity of an RF electron gun. These theoretical results have
been benchmarked with numerical simulations carried out with
commercial finite-element method codes, finding good agreement
among them
Influence of the ovine genital tract microbiota on the species artificial insemination outcome. A pilot study in commercial sheep farms
To date, there is a lack of research into the vaginal and sperm microbiome and its bearing on artificial insemination (AI) success in the ovine species. Using hypervariable regions V3–V4 of the 16S rRNA, we describe, for the first time, the combined effect of the ovine microbiome of both females (50 ewes belonging to five herds) and males (five AI rams from an AI center) on AI outcome. Differences in microbiota abundance between pregnant and non-pregnant ewes and between ewes carrying progesterone-releasing intravaginal devices (PRID) with or without antibiotic were tested at different taxonomic levels. The antibiotic treatment applied with the PRID only altered Streptobacillus genus abundance, which was significantly lower in ewes carrying PRID with antibiotic. Mageebacillus, Histophilus, Actinobacilllus and Sneathia genera were significantly less abundant in pregnant ewes. In addition, these genera were more abundant in two farms with higher AI failure. Species of these genera such as Actinobacillus seminis and Histophilus somni have been associated with reproductive disorders in the ovine species. These genera were not present in the sperm samples of AI rams, but were found in the foreskin samples of rams belonging to herd 2 (with high AI failure rate) indicating that their presence in ewes’ vagina could be due to prior transmission by natural mating with rams reared in the herd
Active wetting of epithelial tissues
Development, regeneration and cancer involve drastic transitions in tissue
morphology. In analogy with the behavior of inert fluids, some of these
transitions have been interpreted as wetting transitions. The validity and
scope of this analogy are unclear, however, because the active cellular forces
that drive tissue wetting have been neither measured nor theoretically
accounted for. Here we show that the transition between 2D epithelial
monolayers and 3D spheroidal aggregates can be understood as an active wetting
transition whose physics differs fundamentally from that of passive wetting
phenomena. By combining an active polar fluid model with measurements of
physical forces as a function of tissue size, contractility, cell-cell and
cell-substrate adhesion, and substrate stiffness, we show that the wetting
transition results from the competition between traction forces and contractile
intercellular stresses. This competition defines a new intrinsic lengthscale
that gives rise to a critical size for the wetting transition in tissues, a
striking feature that has no counterpart in classical wetting. Finally, we show
that active shape fluctuations are dynamically amplified during tissue
dewetting. Overall, we conclude that tissue spreading constitutes a prominent
example of active wetting --- a novel physical scenario that may explain
morphological transitions during tissue morphogenesis and tumor progression
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