2,900 research outputs found
The safety of double- and triple-drug community mass drug administration for lymphatic filariasis: A multicenter, open-label, cluster-randomized study
CP violation in the secluded U(1)'-extended MSSM
We study the Higgs sector of the secluded -extended MSSM (sMSSM)
focusing on CP violation. Using the one-loop effective potential that includes
contributions from quarks and squarks in the third generation, we search for
the allowed region under theoretical and experimental constraints. It is found
that the possible region for the electroweak vacuum to exist is quite limited,
depending on the parameters in the model. The masses and couplings of the Higgs
bosons are calculated with/without CP violation. Even at the tree level, CP
violation is possible by complex soft SUSY breaking masses. Similar to the CPX
scenario in the MSSM, the scalar-pseudoscalar mixing enables the lightest Higgs
boson mass to become smaller than the boson mass while the coupling with
the boson is sufficiently suppressed to avoid the LEP experimental
constraints. However, unlike the CPX scenario, large and are not
required for the realization of large CP violation. The typical spectrum of the
SUSY particles is thus different. We also investigate the possible upper bound
of the lightest Higgs boson in the case of spontaneous CP violation. The
maximal value of it can reach above 100 GeV with maximal CP-violating phases.Comment: 28 pages, 16 figures, JHEP styl
"Free" Constituent Quarks and Dilepton Production in Heavy Ion Collisions
An approach is suggested, invoking vitally the notion of constituent massive
quarks (valons) which can survive and propagate rather than hadrons (except of
pions) within the hot and dense matter formed below the chiral transition
temperature in course of the heavy ion collisions at high energies. This
approach is shown to be quite good for description of the experimentally
observed excess in dilepton yield at masses 250 MeV < M < 700 MeV over the
prompt resonance decay mechanism (CERES cocktail) predictions. In certain
aspects, it looks to be even more successful, than the conventional approaches:
it seems to match the data somewhat better at dilepton masses before the
two-pion threshold and before the rho-meson peak as well as at higher dilepton
masses (beyond the phi-meson one). The approach implies no specific assumptions
on the equation of state (EOS) or peculiarities of phase transitions in the
expanding nuclear matter.Comment: 13 pages, 3 PNG figures. submitted to Sov. Nucl. Phy
Prevention of Breast cancer with tamoxifen:preliminary findings from the italian randomised trial among hysterectomised women
Prevention of breast cancer with tamoxifen: preliminary findings from the Italian randomised trial among hysterectomised women. Italian Tamoxifen Prevention Study.
Veronesi U, Maisonneuve P, Costa A, Sacchini V, Maltoni C, Robertson C, Rotmensz N, Boyle P.
SourceEuropean Institute of Oncology, Milan, Italy.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Tamoxifen is a candidate chemopreventive agent in breast cancer, although the drug may be associated with the development of endometrial cancer. Therefore we did a trial in hysterectomised women of tamoxifen as a chemopreventive.
METHODS: In October, 1992, we started a double-blind placebo-controlled, randomised trial of tamoxifen in women (mainly in Italy) who did not have breast cancer and who had had a hysterectomy. Women were randomised to receive tamoxifen 20 mg per day or placebo, both orally for 5 years. The original plan was to follow the intervention phase by 5 years' follow-up. In June, 1997, the trialists and the data-monitoring committee decided to end recruitment primarily because of the number of women dropping out of the study. Recruitment ended on July 11, 1997, and the study will continue as planned. The primary endpoints are the occurrence of and deaths from breast cancer. This preliminary interim analysis is based on intention-to-treat.
FINDINGS: 5408 women were randomised; participating women have a median follow-up of 46 months for major endpoints. 41 cases of breast cancer occurred so far; there have been no deaths from breast cancer. There is no difference in breast-cancer frequency between the placebo (22 cases) and tamoxifen (19) arms. There is a statistically significant reduction of breast cancer among women receiving tamoxifen who also used hormone-replacement therapy during the trial: among 390 women on such therapy and allocated to placebo, we found eight cases of breast cancer compared with one case among 362 women allocated to tamoxifen. Compared with the placebo group, there was a significantly increased risk of vascular events and hypertriglyceridaemia among women on tamoxifen.
INTERPRETATION: Although this preliminary analysis has low power, in this cohort of women at low-to-normal risk of breast cancer, the postulated protective effects of tamoxifen are not yet apparent. Women using hormone-replacement therapy appear to have benefited from use of tamoxifen. There were no deaths from breast cancer recorded in women in the study. It is essential to continue follow-up to quantify the long-term risks and benefits of tamoxifen therapy
Dark Matter in a Constrained NMSSM
We explore the parameter space of a Constrained Next-to-Minimal
Supersymmetric Standard Model with GUT scale boundary conditions (CNMSSM) and
find regions where the relic density of the lightest neutralino is compatible
with the WMAP measurement. We emphasize differences with the MSSM: cases where
annihilation of the LSP occurs via a Higgs resonance at low values of tan\beta
and cases where the LSP has a large singlino component. The particle spectrum
as well as theoretical and collider constraints are calculated with NMSSMTools.
All neutralino annihilation and coannihilation processes are then computed with
micrOMEGAs, taking into account higher order corrections to the Higgs sector.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figures, references added, some comments added, version
to be published in JCA
The future of enterprise groupware applications
This paper provides a review of groupware technology and products. The purpose of this review is to investigate the appropriateness of current groupware technology as the basis for future enterprise systems and evaluate its role in realising, the currently emerging, Virtual Enterprise model for business organisation. It also identifies in which way current technological phenomena will transform groupware technology and will drive the development of the enterprise systems of the future
Pollen exposure is associated with risk of respiratory symptoms during the first year of life.
BACKGROUND
Pollen exposure is associated with respiratory symptoms in children and adults. However, the association of pollen exposure with respiratory symptoms during infancy, a particularly vulnerable period, remains unclear. We examined whether pollen exposure is associated with respiratory symptoms in infants and if maternal atopy, infant's sex or air pollution modify this association.
METHODS
We investigated 14,874 observations from 401 healthy infants of a prospective birth cohort. The association between pollen exposure and respiratory symptoms, assessed in weekly telephone interviews, was evaluated using generalized additive mixed models (GAMM). Effect modification by maternal atopy, infant's sex and air pollution (NO2 , PM2.5 ) was assessed with interaction terms.
RESULTS
Per infant 37±2 (mean±SD) respiratory symptom scores were assessed during the analysis period (January through September). Pollen exposure was associated with increased respiratory symptoms during the daytime (RR [95% CI] per 10% pollen/m3 : combined 1.006 [1.002, 1.009]; tree 1.005 [1.002, 1.008]; grass 1.009 [1.000, 1.23]) and nighttime (combined 1.003 [0.999, 1.007]; tree 1.003 [0.999, 1.007]; grass 1.014 [1.004, 1.024]). While there was no effect modification by maternal atopy and infant's sex, a complex crossover interaction between combined pollen and PM2.5 was found (p-Value 0.002).
CONCLUSION
Even as early as during the first year of life, pollen exposure was associated with an increased risk of respiratory symptoms, independent of maternal atopy and infant's sex. Because infancy is a particularly vulnerable period for lung development, the identified adverse effect of pollen exposure may be relevant for the evolvement of chronic childhood asthma
Music for Thought: Examining Saudi Identities Expressed Through Music on Social Media
The aim of this chapter is to investigate how social media help create and diffuse popular music in Saudi Arabia and how such music questions the officially accepted identities and social practices. Social media are widely used as means of promotion among artists around the world; yet Saudi Arabia deserves special attention. This is because traditional media act much more strictly as gatekeepers in the kingdom; hence, social media offer greater possibility for circulation of popular entertainment, especially when it touches upon the questions related to the core values of the Saudi society. Such is the case of recordings by Hesham Fageeh “No woman, No drive” (2013) or the recently trending video clip “Hwages” that, both, received peak visibility online and sparked debates about women empowerment. Similarly, some videos trending online prompted a dance craze, for instance, “Barbs” showed a choreography that was subsequently copied by fans who uploaded their performances online. Dancing is a prohibition among the conservative segments of society; yet, the vastly young population of Saudi Arabia seeks entertainment.Social media in Saudi Arabia have become primordial means of communication in the kingdom with highest rates of social media participation in the Middle East and seventh rank in the world (2016). Consequently, this chapter employs a mixed-method approach in order to uncover how social media breaks the monopoly on entertainment by promoting different musical genres and encouraging social debate
Educational Attainment and Employment Outcome of Survivors of Pediatric CNS Tumors in Switzerland-A Report from the Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study
BACKGROUND: Childhood cancer survivors diagnosed with a central nervous system (CNS) tumor are at risk for educational and vocational challenges. This study compared educational attainment and employment outcome in survivors of CNS tumors to survivors of other malignancies.
METHODS: The questionnaire-based Swiss Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (SCCSS) included cancer patients diagnosed between 1976 and 2010, aged ≤20 years, who survived ≥5 years after diagnosis. We classified participants aged ≥16 years into three groups: CNS tumor and non-CNS malignancy with and without CNS-directed treatment. We analyzed educational attainment, employment outcome and special schooling. Subgroup analyses included survivors aged ≥25 years.
RESULTS: We analyzed 2154 survivors, including 329 (15%) CNS tumor survivors, 850 (40%) non-CNS tumor survivors with and 975 (45%) without CNS-directed treatment. Fewer CNS tumor survivors aged ≥25 years reached tertiary education (44%) compared to those without CNS-directed treatment (51%) but performed similar to survivors with CNS-directed treatment (42%). Among CNS tumor survivors, 36 (14%) received special schooling. Higher parental education was associated with higher levels in survivors. Employment outcome did not significantly differ between the three diagnostic groups. A higher proportion of CNS tumor survivors received disability pension or were unemployed.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that CNS tumor survivors need more time to achieve their highest educational level. This should influence clinical care of these survivors by offering vocational counseling
On the reliability of the theoretical internal conversion coefficients
Possible sources of uncertainties in the calculations of the internal
conversion coefficients are studied. The uncertainties induced by them are
estimated.Comment: 16 pages (including 3 figures inserted by 'epsfig' macro
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