RESTING HEART RATE VARIABILITY AS A POSSIBLE MARKER OF COGNITIVE DECLINE

Cognition is a major subject to be addressed nowadays due to the increasing number of cognitively affected people in most societies. Because of a lack of pharmaceutical therapies treating cognitive decline, its indicators should be diagnosed before it becomes prevalent. Scientific evidence indicates a relationship between cognition and the nervous system, especially its autonomic part. Heart rate variability (HRV) as an indicator of the autonomic nervous system functioning has been studied as a biological marker for the evaluation of cognitive performance. Therefore, HRV is a possible indicator of cognitive impairment. The aim was to provide a systematic literature review about the association between resting HRV and the cognitive performance. Five cognitive functions were analysed separately: executive functions, memory and learning, language abilities, visuospatial functioning, and processing speed. Furthermore, the global cognitive function evaluated with cognitive test batteries was considered too. An electronic database search was conducted with five databases. Three search fields comprised HRV, cognitive performance, and adult subjects. The final dataset consisted of 27 articles. Significant correlations in each cognitive function were found, except for processing speed, suggesting a positive association between resting HRV and cognitive performance. Mechanisms underlying this association between cardiovascular health and cognition are discussed. For the future, HRV could be used in diagnostics as an indicator of cognitive impairment before symptoms of dementia get apparent. With a timely diagnosis, preventative tools could be initiated at an early stage of dementia

Neutrino induced threshold production of two pions and N^*(1440) electroweak form factors

We study the threshold production of two pions induced by neutrinos in nucleon targets. The contribution of nucleon, pion and contact terms are calculated using a chiral Lagrangian. The contribution of the Roper resonance, neglected in earlier studies, has also been taken into account. The numerical results for the cross sections are presented and compared with the available experimental data. It has been found that in the two pion channels with $\pi^+\pi^-$ and $\pi^0\pi^0$ in the final state, the contribution of the $N^*(1440)$ is quite important and could be used to determine the $N^*(1440)$ electroweak transition form factors if experimental data with better statistics become available in the future.Comment: This version corrects a mistake on the helicity amplitudes sign. Additional comments on resonance-background relative sign are added. Other minor corrections. Matches published version. 17 pages, 7 figure

Disappearance of Elliptic Flow: A New Probe for the Nuclear Equation of State

Using a relativistic hadron transport model, we investigate the utility of the elliptic flow excitation function as a probe for the stiffness of nuclear matter and for the onset of a possible quark-gluon-plasma (QGP) phase-transition at AGS energies 1 < E_Beam < 11 AGeV. The excitation function shows a strong dependence on the nuclear equation of state, and exhibits characteristic signatures which could signal the onset of a phase transition to the QGP.Comment: 11 pages, 4 Postscript figures, uses epsf.sty, submitted to Physical Review Letter

The total yields of K^+(892), Sigma^+(1385) and Sigma^0 in neutrino-induced reactions at <E_nu> = 10 GeV

Using the data obtained with SKAT bubble chamber, the total yields of $K^+(892)$, $\Sigma^+(1385)$ and $\Sigma^0$ are estimated for the first time in neutrino-induced reactions at moderate energies ($$ = 10.4 GeV). It is shown, that the recently observed \cite{ref1,ref2} enhancement of the $K^0$ and $\Lambda$ yields in $\nu A$ interactions (as compared to $\nu N$ interactions) is contributed only slightly by the $K^+(892)$ and $\Sigma^+(1385)$ production, respectively. The decay contribution to the $K^0$ and $\Lambda$ yields is found to be in qualitative agreement with higher energy ($\geq$ 40 GeV) data. It is shown, that the energy dependence of the $K^+(892)$ mean multiplicity in $\nu N$ interactions is approximately linear in the range of $\approx$ 10-60 GeV, while that for $\Sigma^0$ in $\nu A$ interactions (for $A$ = 20-21) is approximately logarithmic in the range of $\approx$ 10-150 GeV.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure

Charged-Particle Multiplicities in Charged-Current Neutrino-- and Anti-Neutrino--Nucleus Interactions

The CHORUS experiment, designed to search for $\nu_{\mu}\to\nu_{\tau}$ oscillations, consists of a nuclear emulsion target and electronic detectors. In this paper, results on the production of charged particles in a small sample of charged-current neutrino-- and anti-neutrino--nucleus interactions at high energy are presented. For each event, the emission angle and the ionization features of the charged particles produced in the interaction are recorded, while the standard kinematic variables are reconstructed using the electronic detectors. The average multiplicities for charged tracks, the pseudo-rapidity distributions, the dispersion in the multiplicity of charged particles and the KNO scaling are studied in different kinematical regions. A study of quasi-elastic topologies performed for the first time in nuclear emulsions is also reported. The results are presented in a form suitable for use in the validation of Monte Carlo generators of neutrino--nucleus interactions.Comment: 17 pages, 5 figure

A Search for Selectrons and Squarks at HERA

Data from electron-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 300 GeV are used for a search for selectrons and squarks within the framework of the minimal supersymmetric model. The decays of selectrons and squarks into the lightest supersymmetric particle lead to final states with an electron and hadrons accompanied by large missing energy and transverse momentum. No signal is found and new bounds on the existence of these particles are derived. At 95% confidence level the excluded region extends to 65 GeV for selectron and squark masses, and to 40 GeV for the mass of the lightest supersymmetric particle.Comment: 13 pages, latex, 6 Figure

The A - dependence of K0K^{0} and Λ\Lambda neutrinoproduction on nuclei

For the first time, the A- dependence of the production of $K^0$, $\Lambda$ and, for comparison, $\pi^-$ mesons is investigated in neutrinonuclear reactions, using the data obtained with SKAT bubble chamber. An exponential parametrization ($\sim A^{\beta}$) of the particle yields results in ${\beta}_{V^0} = 0.20 \pm 0.05$ for $V^0$ particles (combined $K^0$ and $\Lambda$), while for $\pi^-$ mesons the A- dependence is much weaker, ${\beta}_{\pi^-} = 0.068 \pm 0.007$. A nuclear enhancement of the ratio $K^0/\pi^-$ is found; this ratio increases from $0.055 \pm 0.013$ for $\nu N$- interactions up to $0.070 \pm 0.011$ at $A \approx 21$ and $0.099 \pm 0.011$ at $A \approx 45$. It is observed, that the multiplicity rise of $V^0$'s occures predominantely in the backward hemisphere of the hadronic c.m.s. It is shown, that the A- dependence of the nuclear enhancement of the ${\Lambda}^0$ and $\pi^-$ yields can be reproduced in the framework of a model, incorporating the secondary intranuclear interactions of pions originating from the primary $\nu N$- interactions, while only (29$\pm$9)% of that for $K^0$ at $A \approx 45$ can be attributed to intranuclear interactions.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figure

Low Q^2 Jet Production at HERA and Virtual Photon Structure

The transition between photoproduction and deep-inelastic scattering is investigated in jet production at the HERA ep collider, using data collected by the H1 experiment. Measurements of the differential inclusive jet cross-sections dsigep/dEt* and dsigmep/deta*, where Et* and eta* are the transverse energy and the pseudorapidity of the jets in the virtual photon-proton centre of mass frame, are presented for 0 < Q2 < 49 GeV2 and 0.3 < y < 0.6. The interpretation of the results in terms of the structure of the virtual photon is discussed. The data are best described by QCD calculations which include a partonic structure of the virtual photon that evolves with Q2.Comment: 20 pages, 5 Figure

Hadron Production in Diffractive Deep-Inelastic Scattering

Characteristics of hadron production in diffractive deep-inelastic positron-proton scattering are studied using data collected in 1994 by the H1 experiment at HERA. The following distributions are measured in the centre-of-mass frame of the photon dissociation system: the hadronic energy flow, the Feynman-x (x_F) variable for charged particles, the squared transverse momentum of charged particles (p_T^{*2}), and the mean p_T^{*2} as a function of x_F. These distributions are compared with results in the gamma^* p centre-of-mass frame from inclusive deep-inelastic scattering in the fixed-target experiment EMC, and also with the predictions of several Monte Carlo calculations. The data are consistent with a picture in which the partonic structure of the diffractive exchange is dominated at low Q^2 by hard gluons.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Lett.

Measurement of D* Meson Cross Sections at HERA and Determination of the Gluon Density in the Proton using NLO QCD

With the H1 detector at the ep collider HERA, D* meson production cross sections have been measured in deep inelastic scattering with four-momentum transfers Q^2>2 GeV2 and in photoproduction at energies around W(gamma p)~ 88 GeV and 194 GeV. Next-to-Leading Order QCD calculations are found to describe the differential cross sections within theoretical and experimental uncertainties. Using these calculations, the NLO gluon momentum distribution in the proton, x_g g(x_g), has been extracted in the momentum fraction range 7.5x10^{-4}< x_g <4x10^{-2} at average scales mu^2 =25 to 50 GeV2. The gluon momentum fraction x_g has been obtained from the measured kinematics of the scattered electron and the D* meson in the final state. The results compare well with the gluon distribution obtained from the analysis of scaling violations of the proton structure function F_2.Comment: 27 pages, 9 figures, 2 tables, submitted to Nucl. Phys.