2,497 research outputs found
Optimizing canola and field pea production: disease implications of intensive canola and field pea rotations
Non-Peer Reviewe
The geochemistry of sea-bed sediments of the United Kingdom Continental Shelf : the North Sea, Hebrides and West Shetland shelves, and the Malin-Hebrides sea area
The sea area around the United Kingdom is used for a wide range of human activities all of
which have a significant impact on the marine environment. The naturally-occurring
concentrations of chemical elements in sea-bed sediments may be enhanced by contaminants
introduced by input from rivers and the atmosphere and by more localised sources arising
from shipping operations, exploitation of oil and gas, and by direct discharges from drainage
systems, sewage outfalls, effluents from industry and waste' disposal at sea. It is therefore
important to identify components of sea-floor sediments which are due to the rocks or older
sediments from which they are derived, and those which are introduced into the environment.
This report presents regional geochemical data for a variety of sediment types occurring in
a wide range of environments. Samples have been collected offshore of the eastern coast of
the UK where major river systems which drain heavily populated and industrialised
catchment areas, such as the Thames, Humber and Tyne, flow into the North Sea, and on the
shelf west of Scotland where man's activities have had much less impact.
The data presented here provide a baseline for chemical element concentrations in sea-bed
sediments against which future work may be assessed. It should therefore be of significance
to a diverse range of interests including pollution control, fishing, natural resources, nature
conservation, shipping, tourism, recreation, and waste disposal management. In addition the
information will be of use to geologists in identifying the source of sea-bed sediments and
the underlying glacial deposits
Analysis of the instantaneous Bethe-Salpeter equation for -bound-states
We investigate the structure of the instantaneous Bethe-Salpeter equation for
-bound states in the general case of unequal quark masses and
develop a numerical scheme for the calculation of mass spectra and
Bethe-Salpeter amplitudes. In order to appreciate the merits of the various
competing models beyond the reproduction of the mass spectra we present
explicit formulas to calculate electroweak decays. The results for an explicit
quark model will be compared to experimental data in a subsequent paperComment: 11 pages, RevTeX, TK-93-1
A Bethe-Salpeter model for light mesons: spectra and decays
The spectra and electroweak decay properties of light mesons are analyzed
within the framework of the instantaneous Bethe-Salpeter equation. The
interaction kernel comprises alternative spin-structures for a parameterization
of confinement and a residual quark-antiquark interaction based on instanton
effects. It is shown that only with a vector confinement the parameters can be
chosen such as to yield an excellent description of the light pseudoscalar and
vector mesons including weak and two photon decays. However it is found that it
is not possible to reconcile this with the Regge behavior of higher lying meson
states with the same parameter set.Comment: 12 pages, RevTeX, TK-93-1
The Upper Critical Field in Disordered Two-Dimensional Superconductors
We present calculations of the upper critical field in superconducting films
as a function of increasing disorder (as measured by the normal state
resistance per square). In contradiction to previous work, we find that there
is no anomalous low-temperature positive curvature in the upper critical field
as disorder is increased. We show that the previous prediction of this effect
is due to an unjustified analytical approximation of sums occuring in the
perturbative calculation. Our treatment includes both a careful analysis of
first-order perturbation theory, and a non-perturbative resummation technique.
No anomalous curvature is found in either case. We present our results in
graphical form.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure
Resistance training enhances delayed memory in healthy middle-aged and older adults: A randomised controlled trial
Objectives
High-intensity exercise is a potential therapeutic tool to postpone or prevent the onset of cognitive decline. However, there is a lack of sufficient evidence regarding the longitudinal effects of structured resistance training on cognitive function in healthy adults. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of two ecologically valid, intense 12-week resistance training programs on cognitive function in late middle-aged adults.
Design
Single-site parallel randomised controlled trial at the Department of Exercise Science strength and conditioning laboratory. Groups allocated by minimisation randomisation.
Methods
Forty-five healthy adults (age range = 41-69 years) were enrolled and randomised into A.) high-load, long rest resistance training (n = 14), or B.) moderate-load, short rest resistance training (n = 15) twice per week for 12 weeks, or a non-exercising control (n = 16). Follow-up within 7 days. Data were collected September 2016-December 2017. Cognitive function assessed using the CogState computerised battery. Assessors were blinded to participant group allocation. Secondary outcomes were maximal muscle strength and body composition.
Results
Forty-four participants were analysed in 2018. Delayed verbal memory performance was improved (p = 0.02) in resistance training groups (g = 0.67-0.79) when compared to the control group, with no differences between training groups. Likewise, increases in maximal muscle strength were observed (p < 0.01) in resistance training groups when compared to the control group, with no differences between training groups. No differences in body composition were observed. There were no adverse events or side-effects of the intervention.
Conclusions
12 weeks of intense resistance training improves delayed verbal memory irrespective of training design (i.e., high-load vs. moderate-load)
Effect of Magnetic Impurities on Suppression of the Transition Temperature in Disordered Superconductors
We calculate the first-order perturbative correction to the transition
temperature in a superconductor with both non-magnetic and magnetic
impurities. We do this by first evaluating the correction to the effective
potential, , and then obtain the first-order correction to the
order parameter, , by finding the minimum of . Setting
finally allows to be evaluated. is now a function of
both the resistance per square, , a measure of the non-magnetic
disorder, and the spin-flip scattering rate, , a measure of the
magnetic disorder. We find that the effective pair-breaking rate per magnetic
impurity is virtually independent of the resistance per square of the film, in
agreement with an experiment of Chervenak and Valles. This conclusion is
supported by both the perturbative calculation, and by a non-perturbative
re-summation technique.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figure
ISML: an interface specification meta-language
In this paper we present an abstract metaphor model situated within a model-based user interface framework. The inclusion of metaphors in graphical user interfaces is a well established, but mostly craft-based strategy to design. A substantial body of notations and tools can be found within the model-based user interface design literature, however an explicit treatment of metaphor and its mappings to other design views has yet to be addressed. We introduce the Interface Specification Meta-Language (ISML) framework and demonstrate its use in comparing the semantic and syntactic features of an interactive system. Challenges facing this research are outlined and further work proposed
A randomized controlled trial of high-intensity exercise and executive functioning in cognitively normal older adults
Background
There is a paucity of interventional research that systematically assesses the role of exercise intensity and cardiorespiratory fitness, and their relationship with executive function in older adults. To address this limitation, we have examined the effect of a systematically manipulated exercise intervention on executive function.
Methods
Ninety-nine cognitively normal participants (age = 69.10 ± 5.2 years; n = 54 female) were randomized into either a high-intensity cycle-based exercise, moderate-intensity cycle-based exercise, or no-intervention control group. All participants underwent neuropsychological testing and fitness assessment at baseline (preintervention), 6-month follow-up (postintervention), and 12-month postintervention. Executive function was measured comprehensively, including measures of each subdomain: Shifting, Updating/ Working Memory, Inhibition, Verbal Generativity, and Nonverbal Reasoning. Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured by analysis of peak aerobic capacity; VO2peak.
Results
First, the exercise intervention was found to increase cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2peak) in the intervention groups, in comparison to the control group (F =10.40, p≤0.01). However, the authors failed to find mean differences in executive function scores between the high-intensity, moderate intensity, or inactive control group. On the basis of change scores, cardiorespiratory fitness was found to associate positively with the executive function (EF) subdomains of Updating/Working Memory (β = 0.37, p = 0.01, r = 0.34) and Verbal Generativity (β = 0.30, p = 0.03, r = 0.28) for intervention, but not control participants.
Conclusion
At the aggregate level, the authors failed to find evidence that 6-months of high-intensity aerobic exercise improves EF in older adults. However, it remains possible that individual differences in experimentally induced changes in cardiorespiratory fitness may be associated with changes in Updating/ Working Memory and Verbal Generativity
Pressure and linear heat capacity in the superconducting state of thoriated UBe13
Even well below Tc, the heavy-fermion superconductor (U,Th)Be13 has a large
linear term in its specific heat. We show that under uniaxial pressure, the
linear heat capacity increases in magnitude by more than a factor of two. The
change is reversible and suggests that the linear term is an intrinsic property
of the material. In addition, we find no evidence of hysteresis or of latent
heat in the low-temperature and low-pressure portion of the phase diagram,
showing that all transitions in this region are second order.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
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