Spectral super-resolution in metamaterial composites

We investigate the optical properties of periodic composites containing metamaterial inclusions in a normal material matrix. We consider the case where these inclusions have sharp corners, and following Hetherington and Thorpe, use analytic results to argue that it is then possible to deduce the shape of the corner (its included angle) by measurements of the absorptance of such composites when the scale size of the inclusions and period cell is much finer than the wavelength. These analytic arguments are supported by highly accurate numerical results for the effective permittivity function of such composites as a function of the permittivity ratio of inclusions to matrix. The results show that this function has a continuous spectral component with limits independent of the area fraction of inclusions, and with the same limits for both square and staggered square arrays.Comment: 17 pages, 6 figure

The effects of the spontaneous presence of a spouse/partner and others on cardiovascular reactions to an acute psychological challenge

The presence of supportive others has been associated with attenuated cardiovascular reactivity in the laboratory. The effects of the presence of a spouse and others in a more naturalistic setting have received little attention. Blood pressure and heart rate reactions to mental stress were recorded at home in 1028 married/partnered individuals. For 112 participants, their spouse/partner was present; for 78, at least one other person was present. Women tested with a spouse/partner present showed lower magnitude systolic blood pressure and heart rate reactivity than those tested without. Individuals tested with at least one nonspousal other present also displayed attenuated reactivity. This extends the results of laboratory studies and indicates that the spontaneous presence of others is associated with a reduction in cardiovascular reactivity in an everyday environment; spouse/partner presence would appear to be especially effective for women.\ud \u

Control of wood rot in waterfront structures

Published August 1981. Facts and recommendations in this publication may no longer be valid. Please look for up-to-date information in the Sea Grant Catalog: http://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/publication

Standardized Management Protocol in Severe Postpartum Hemorrhage: A Single-Center Study.

Severe postpartum hemorrhage (sPPH) is an obstetric emergency that needs prompt and effective therapy to reduce the risk of complications. In this study, women who developed sPPH (study cohort, n = 27) were treated according to a standardized management protocol prescribing sequential administration of uterotonic drugs, crystalloids, tranexamic acid, labile blood products, low-dose fibrinogen, and recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa). This group was compared to patients treated with different strategies during 2 preceding periods: an in-house guideline regulating the administration of rFVIIa (historical cohort 1, n = 20) and no specific guideline (historical cohort 2, n = 27). The management protocol was used over 33 months. The study cohort had a lower estimated blood loss ( P = .004) and required less red blood cell concentrates ( P = .007), fresh frozen plasma units ( P = .004), and platelet concentrates ( P = .020) compared to historical cohort 1 and historical cohort 2, respectively. The necessity of emergency postpartum hysterectomy was lower in the study group ( P = .012). In conclusion, in patients with sPPH treated with this standardized management protocol, we observed a decreased requirement of labile blood products and lower need to proceed to emergency postpartum hysterectomy

Spectral bounds for the Neumann-Poincaré operator on planar domains with corners

The boundary double layer potential, or the Neumann-Poincaré operator, is studied on the Sobolev space of order 1/2 along the boundary, coinciding with the space of charges giving rise to double layer potentials with finite energy in the whole space. Poincaré’s program of studying the spectrum of the boundary double layer potential is developed in complete generality on closed Lipschitz hypersurfaces in euclidean space. Furthermore, the Neumann-Poincaré operator is realized as a singular integral transform bearing similarities to the Beurling-Ahlfors transform in 2 dimensions. As an application, in the case of planar curves with corners, bounds for the spectrum of the Neumann-Poincaré operator are derived from recent results in quasi-conformal mapping theory

Widowhood and Mortality: A Meta-Analysis

While the "widowhood effect" is well known, there is substantial heterogeneity in the magnitude of effects reported in different studies. We conducted a meta-analysis of widowhood and mortality, focusing on longitudinal studies with follow-up from the time of bereavement.A random-effects meta-analysis was conducted to calculate the overall relative risk (RR) for subsequent mortality among 2,263,888 subjects from 15 prospective cohort studies. We found a statistically significant positive association between widowhood and mortality, but the widowhood effect was stronger in the period earlier than six months since bereavement (overall RR = 1.41, 95% CI: 1.26, 1.57) compared to the effect after six months (overall RR = 1.14, 95% CI: 1.10, 1.18). Meta-regression showed that the widowhood effect was not different for those aged younger than 65 years compared to those older than 65 (P = 0.25). There was, however, a difference in the magnitude of the widowhood effect by gender; for women the RR was not statistically significantly different from the null (overall RR = 1.04, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.08), while it was for men (overall RR = 1.23, 95% CI: 1.18, 1.28).The results suggest that further studies should focus more on the mechanisms that generate this association especially among men