1,661 research outputs found
Research Program towards Observation of Neutrino-Nucleus Coherent Scattering
The article describes the research program pursued by the TEXONO
Collaboration towards an experiment to observe coherent scattering between
neutrinos and the nucleus at the power reactor. The motivations of studying
this process are surveyed. In particular, a threshold of 100-200 eV has been
achieved with an ultra-low-energy germanium detector prototype. This detection
capability at low energy can also be adapted to conduct searches of Cold Dark
Matter in the low-mass region as well as to enhance the sensitivities in the
study of neutrino magnetic moments.Comment: 5 pages, 8 figures ; Proceedings of TAUP-2005 Workshop, Spain, 2005.
Updated on 2006/9/15 for Proceedings of Neutrino-2006 Conference, Santa Fe,
200
Dried fruits, nuts, and cancer risk and survival: a review of the evidence and future research directions
Dried fruits and nuts contain high amounts of nutrients and phytochemicalsâall of which may have anticarcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. This narrative review summarizes the evidence for dried fruits and nuts and cancer incidence, mortality, and survival and their potential anticancer properties. The evidence for dried fruits in cancer outcomes is limited, but existing studies have suggested an inverse relationship between total dried fruit consumption and cancer risk. A higher consumption of nuts has been associated with a reduced risk of several site-specific cancers in prospective cohort studies, including cancers of the colon, lung, and pancreas, with relative risks per 5 g/day increment equal to 0.75 (95% CI 0.60, 0.94), 0.97 (95% CI 0.95, 0.98), and 0.94 (95% CI 0.89, 0.99), respectively. A daily intake of total nuts of 28 g/day has also been associated with a 21% reduction in the rate of cancer mortality. There is also some evidence that frequent nut consumption is associated with improved survival outcomes among patients with colorectal, breast, and prostate cancer; however, further studies are needed. Future research directions include the investigation of additional cancer types, including rare types of cancer. For cancer prognosis, additional studies with pre- and postdiagnosis dietary assessment are warranted
Is attending a mental process?
The nature of attention has been the topic of a lively research programme in psychology for over a century. But there is widespread agreement that none of the theories on offer manage to fully capture the nature of attention. Recently, philosophers have become interested in the debate again after a prolonged period of neglect. This paper contributes to the project of explaining the nature of attention. It starts off by critically examining Christopher Moleâs prominent âadverbialâ account of attention, which traces the failure of extant psychological theories to their assumption that attending is a kind of process. It then defends an alternative, process-based view of the metaphysics of attention, on which attention is understood as an activity and not, as psychologists seem to implicitly assume, an accomplishment. The entrenched distinction between accomplishments and activities is shown to shed new light on the metaphysics of attention. It also provides a novel diagnosis of the empirical state of play
Using geographic information systems for radon exposure assessment in dwellings in the Oslo region, Norway
Radon exposures were assigned to each residential address in the Oslo region
using a geographic information system (GIS) that included indoor radon
measurements. The results will be used in an epidemiologic study regarding
leukemia and brain cancer. The model is based on 6% of measured
residential buildings. High density of indoor radon measurements allowed us
to develop a buffer model where indoor radon measurements found around each
dwelling were used to assign a radon value for homes lacking radon
measurement.
<br><br>
Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were used to study the agreement
between radon values from the buffer method, from indoor
radon values of measured houses, and from a regression model constructed
with radiometric data (<i>e</i><sub>Th</sub>, <i>e</i><sub>U</sub>) and bedrock geology. We obtained good
agreement for both comparisons with ICC values between 0.54 and 0.68.
<br><br>
GIS offers a useful variety of tools to study the indoor-radon exposure
assessment. By using the buffer method it is more likely that geological
conditions are similar within the buffer and this may take more into account
the variation of radon over short distances. It is also probable that short-distance-scale correlation patterns express similarities in building styles
and living habits. Although the method has certain limitations, we regard it
as acceptable for use in epidemiological studies
Guided Neuronal Growth on Arrays of Biofunctionalized GaAs/InGaAs Semiconductor Microtubes
We demonstrate embedded growth of cortical mouse neurons in dense arrays of
semiconductor microtubes. The microtubes, fabricated from a strained
GaAs/InGaAs heterostructure, guide axon growth through them and enable
electrical and optical probing of propagating action potentials. The coaxial
nature of the microtubes -- similar to myelin -- is expected to enhance the
signal transduction along the axon. We present a technique of suppressing
arsenic toxicity and prove the success of this technique by overgrowing
neuronal mouse cells.Comment: 3 pages, 4 figure
Progress on a spherical TPC for low energy neutrino detection
The new concept of the spherical TPC aims at relatively large target masses
with low threshold and background, keeping an extremely simple and robust
operation. Such a device would open the way to detect the neutrino-nucleus
interaction, which, although a standard process, remains undetected due to the
low energy of the neutrino-induced nuclear recoils. The progress in the
development of the fist 1 m prototype at Saclay is presented. Other physics
goals of such a device could include supernova detection, low energy neutrino
oscillations and study of non-standard properties of the neutrino, among
others.Comment: 3 pages, talk given at the 9th Workshop on Topics in Astroparticle
and Underground Physics, Zaragoza, September 10-1
Astroclimatic Characterization of Vallecitos: A candidate site for the Cherenkov Telescope Array at San Pedro Martir
We conducted an 18 month long study of the weather conditions of the
Vallecitos, a proposed site in Mexico to harbor the northern array of the
Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA). It is located in Sierra de San Pedro Martir
(SPM) a few kilometers away from Observatorio Astron\'omico Nacional. The study
is based on data collected by the ATMOSCOPE, a multi-sensor instrument
measuring the weather and sky conditions, which was commissioned and built by
the CTA Consortium. Additionally, we compare the weather conditions of the
optical observatory at SPM to the Vallecitos regarding temperature, humidity,
and wind distributions. It appears that the excellent conditions at the optical
observatory benefit from the presence of microclimate established in the
Vallecitos.Comment: 16 pages, 16 figures, Publication of the Astronomical Society of the
Pacific, accepte
Characterization of microbulk detectors in argon- and neon-based mixtures
A recent Micromegas manufacturing technique, so called Microbulk, has been
developed, improving the uniformity and stability of this kind of detectors.
Excellent energy resolutions have been obtained, reaching values as low as 11%
FWHM at 5.9 keV in Ar+5%iC4H10. This detector has other advantages like its
flexible structure, low material budget and high radio-purity. Two microbulk
detectors with gaps of 50 and 25 um have been characterized in argon- and
neon-based mixtures with ethane, isobutane and cyclohexane. The results will be
presented and discussed. The gain curves have been fitted to the Rose-Korff
gain model and dependences of the electron mean free path and the threshold
energy for ionization have been obtained. The possible relation between these
two parameters and the energy resolution will be also discussed.Comment: Submitted to the Journal of Instrumentatio
Improvement Of Cavity Performance By Electro-polishing In The 1.3ghz Nb Superconducting Cavities
CAST microbulk micromegas in the Canfranc Underground Laboratory
During the last taking data campaigns of the CAST experiment, the micromegas
detectors have achieved background levels of keVcms between 2 and 9 keV. This performance has
been possible thanks to the introduction of the microbulk technology, the
implementation of a shielding and the development of discrimination algorithms.
It has motivated new studies towards a deeper understanding of CAST detectors
background. One of the working lines includes the construction of a replica of
the set-up used in CAST by micromegas detectors and its installation in the
Canfranc Underground Laboratory. Thanks to the comparison between the
performance of the detectors underground and at surface, shielding upgrades,
etc, different contributions to the detectors background have been evaluated.
In particular, an upper limit keVcms
for the intrinsic background of the detector has been obtained. This work means
a first evaluation of the potential of the newest micromegas technology in an
underground laboratory, the most suitable environment for Rare Event Searches.Comment: 6 pages, 8 figures. To appear in the proceedings of the 2nd
International Conference on Technology and Instrumentation for Particle
Physics (TIPP 2011
- âŠ