High pressure cryogenic liquid flow sight assembly provides streamlined flow for easy observation

Window assembly facilitates observation of cryogenic liquids flowing through a smooth pipe at pressures up to several hundred pounds per square inch. This high-pressure cryogenic observation assembly which houses a thin wall glass pipe held within a steel retainer can accommodate fluids under a wide range of pressures and temperatures

Studies of hepatic synthesis in vivo of plasma proteins, including orosomucoid, transferrin, α-antitrypsin, C8, and factor B

Serum protein types were determined in eight recipients and donors in cases of hepatic homotransplantation. A change from recipient type to donor type was observed for factor B, C8, orosomucoid, haptoglobin, transferrin, α1-antitrypsin, C3 and C6, but not for Gm and Inv immunoglobulin markers. The results indicate that all the proteins studied (except immunoglobulins) are produced primarily by the liver in vivo. © 1980

The Ontology of Intentional Agency in Light of Neurobiological Determinism: Philosophy Meets Folk Psychology

The moot point of the Western philosophical rhetoric about free will consists in examining whether the claim of authorship to intentional, deliberative actions fits into or is undermined by a one-way causal framework of determinism. Philosophers who think that reconciliation between the two is possible are known as metaphysical compatibilists. However, there are philosophers populating the other end of the spectrum, known as the metaphysical libertarians, who maintain that claim to intentional agency cannot be sustained unless it is assumed that indeterministic causal processes pervade the action-implementation apparatus employed by the agent. The metaphysical libertarians differ among themselves on the question of whether the indeterministic causal relation exists between the series of intentional states and processes, both conscious and unconscious, and the action, making claim for what has come to be known as the event-causal view, or between the agent and the action, arguing that a sort of agent causation is at work. In this paper, I have tried to propose that certain features of both event-causal and agent-causal libertarian views need to be combined in order to provide a more defendable compatibilist account accommodating deliberative actions with deterministic causation. The ‘‘agent-executed-eventcausal libertarianism’’, the account of agency I have tried to develop here, integrates certain plausible features of the two competing accounts of libertarianism turning them into a consistent whole. I hope to show in the process that the integration of these two variants of libertarianism does not challenge what some accounts of metaphysical compatibilism propose—that there exists a broader deterministic relation between the web of mental and extra-mental components constituting the agent’s dispositional system—the agent’s beliefs, desires, short-term and long-term goals based on them, the acquired social, cultural and religious beliefs, the general and immediate and situational environment in which the agent is placed, etc. on the one hand and the decisions she makes over her lifetime on the basis of these factors. While in the ‘‘Introduction’’ the philosophically assumed anomaly between deterministic causation and the intentional act of deciding has been briefly surveyed, the second section is devoted to the task of bridging the gap between compatibilism and libertarianism. The next section of the paper turns to an analysis of folk-psychological concepts and intuitions about the effects of neurochemical processes and prior mental events on the freedom of making choices. How philosophical insights can be beneficially informed by taking into consideration folk-psychological intuitions has also been discussed, thus setting up the background for such analysis. It has been suggested in the end that support for the proposed theory of intentional agency can be found in the folk-psychological intuitions, when they are taken in the right perspective

Static solitons with non-zero Hopf number

We investigate a generalized non-linear O(3) $\sigma$-model in three space dimensions where the fields are maps $S^3 \mapsto S^2$. Such maps are classified by a homotopy invariant called the Hopf number which takes integer values. The model exhibits soliton solutions of closed vortex type which have a lower topological bound on their energies. We explicitly compute the fields for topological charge 1 and 2 and discuss their shapes and binding energies. The effect of an additional potential term is considered and an approximation is given for the spectrum of slowly rotating solitons.Comment: 13 pages, RevTeX, 7 Postscript figures, minor changes have been made, a reference has been corrected and a figure replace

Low Temperature Static and Dynamic Behavior of the Two-Dimensional Easy-Axis Heisenberg Model

We apply the self-consistent harmonic approximation (SCHA) to study static and dynamic properties of the two-dimensional classical Heisenberg model with easy-axis anisotropy. The static properties obtained are magnetization and spin wave energy as functions of temperature, and the critical temperature as a function of the easy-axis anisotropy. We also calculate the dynamic correlation functions using the SCHA renormalized spin wave energy. Our analytical results, for both static properties and dynamic correlation functions, are compared to numerical simulation data combining cluster-Monte Carlo algorithms and Spin Dynamics. The comparison allows us to conclude that far below the transition temperature, where the SCHA is valid, spin waves are responsible for all relevant features observed in the numerical simulation data; topological excitations do not seem to contribute appreciably. For temperatures closer to the transition temperature, there are differences between the dynamic correlation functions from SCHA theory and Spin Dynamics; these may be due to the presence of domain walls and solitons.Comment: 12 pages, 14 figure

From Effective Lagrangians, to Chiral Bags, to Skyrmions with the Large-N_c Renormalization Group

We explicitly relate effective meson-baryon Lagrangian models, chiral bags, and Skyrmions in the following way. First, effective Lagrangians are constructed in a manner consistent with an underlying large-N_c QCD. An infinite set of graphs dress the bare Yukawa couplings at *leading* order in 1/N_c, and are summed using semiclassical techniques. What emerges is a picture of the large-N_c baryon reminiscent of the chiral bag: hedgehog pions for r > 1/\Lambda patched onto bare nucleon degrees of freedom for r < 1/\Lambda, where the ``bag radius'' 1/\Lambda is the UV cutoff on the graphs. Next, a novel renormalization group (RG) is derived, in which the bare Yukawa couplings, baryon masses and hyperfine baryon mass splittings run with \Lambda. Finally, this RG flow is shown to act as a *filter* on the renormalized Lagrangian parameters: when they are fine-tuned to obey Skyrme-model relations the continuum limit \Lambda --> \infty exists and is, in fact, a Skyrme model; otherwise there is no continuum limit.Comment: Figures included (separate file). This ``replaced'' version corrects the discussion of backwards-in-time baryon

A systematic review of biomarkers for disease progression in Parkinson's disease

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Localized D-dimensional global k-defects

We explicitly demonstrate the existence of static global defect solutions of arbitrary dimensionality whose energy does not diverge at spatial infinity, by considering maximally symmetric solutions described by an action with non-standard kinetic terms in a D+1 dimensional Minkowski space-time. We analytically determine the defect profile both at small and large distances from the defect centre. We verify the stability of such solutions and discuss possible implications of our findings, in particular for dark matter and charge fractionalization in graphene.Comment: 6 pages, published versio

Multi-centre parallel arm randomised controlled trial to assess the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a group-based cognitive behavioural approach to managing fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis

Abstract (provisional) Background Fatigue is one of the most commonly reported and debilitating symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS); approximately two-thirds of people with MS consider it to be one of their three most troubling symptoms. It may limit or prevent participation in everyday activities, work, leisure, and social pursuits, reduce psychological well-being and is one of the key precipitants of early retirement. Energy effectiveness approaches have been shown to be effective in reducing MS-fatigue, increasing self-efficacy and improving quality of life. Cognitive behavioural approaches have been found to be effective for managing fatigue in other conditions, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, and more recently, in MS. The aim of this pragmatic trial is to evaluate the clinical and cost-effectiveness of a recently developed group-based fatigue management intervention (that blends cognitive behavioural and energy effectiveness approaches) compared with current local practice. Methods This is a multi-centre parallel arm block-randomised controlled trial (RCT) of a six session group-based fatigue management intervention, delivered by health professionals, compared with current local practice. 180 consenting adults with a confirmed diagnosis of MS and significant fatigue levels, recruited via secondary/primary care or newsletters/websites, will be randomised to receive the fatigue management intervention or current local practice. An economic evaluation will be undertaken alongside the trial. Primary outcomes are fatigue severity, self-efficacy and disease-specific quality of life. Secondary outcomes include fatigue impact, general quality of life, mood, activity patterns, and cost-effectiveness. Outcomes in those receiving the fatigue management intervention will be measured 1 week prior to, and 1, 4, and 12 months after the intervention (and at equivalent times in those receiving current local practice). A qualitative component will examine what aspects of the fatigue management intervention participants found helpful/unhelpful and barriers to change. Discussion This trial is the fourth stage of a research programme that has followed the Medical Research Council guidance for developing and evaluating complex interventions. What makes the intervention unique is that it blends cognitive behavioural and energy effectiveness approaches. A potential strength of the intervention is that it could be integrated into existing service delivery models as it has been designed to be delivered by staff already working with people with MS. Service users will be involved throughout this research. Trial registration: Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN7651747