Two-field cosmological phase transitions and gravitational waves in the singlet Majoron model

In the singlet Majoron model, we study cosmological phase transitions (PTs) and their resulting gravitational waves (GWs), in the two-field phase space, without freezing any of the field directions. We first calculate the effective potential, at one loop and at finite temperature, of the Standard Model Higgs doublet together with one extra Higgs singlet. We make use of the public available Python package CosmoTransitions to simulate the two-dimensional cosmological PTs and evaluate the gravitational waves generated by first-order PTs. With the full 2D simulation, we are able not only to confirm the PTs' properties previously discussed in the literature, but also we find new patterns, such as strong first-order PTs tunneling from a vacuum located on one axis to another vacuum located on the second axis. The two-field phase space analysis presents a richer panel of cosmological PT patterns compared to analysis with a single-field approximation. The PTGW amplitudes turn out to be out of the reach for the space-borne gravitational wave interferometers such as LISA, DECIGO, BBO, TAIJI and TianQin when constraints from colliders physics are taken into account.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, 3 tables; references added; accepted by EPJ

Updated constraints on superconducting cosmic strings from the astronomy of fast radio bursts

In this article we update constraints on superconducting cosmic strings (SCSs) in light of the recent observational developments of fast radio bursts (FRBs) astronomy. Assuming strings follow an exponential distribution characterized by current, we show that two parameters in our context, which are the characteristic tension ($G\mu$) and a parameter which describes the aforementioned exponential distribution ($I_c$), can be constrained by FRB experiments. Particularly, we investigate data sets from Parkes and ASKAP. We looked through a parameter space where $G\mu \sim [10^{-17}, 10^{-12}]$ and $I_c\sim [10^{-1}, 10^{2}]$ GeV, and found our results show that Parkes jointly with ASKAP can constrain the parameter space for SCSs.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure

Testing the coupling of dark radiations in light of the Hubble tension

Self-interacting dark radiations (SIdr) can have significant implications in the evolution of the universe, affecting the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and the clustering of large-scale structures. In this work, we analyze the implications of SIdr on the CMB power spectrum and explore its potential in resolving the Hubble tension. SIdr exhibits two distinct behaviors based on the interacting strength: strongly self-coupled and medium self-coupled. These behaviors are evident in the analysis of CMB data. According to Planck data, the dark radiation component consists of both free-streaming neutrinos and possible SIdr. The total contribution from these components yields relativistic species with $N_{\rm eff}=3.046$. In the framework of universal coupling between dark radiations, a consistent value of $N_{\rm eff}=3.27_{-0.31}^{+0.23}$ is obtained. Additionally, this coupling results in an increase in the Hubble constant ($H_0$) to $70.1_{-1.6}^{+1.3}, \text{km/s/Mpc}$. However, when considering the number of free-streaming neutrinos as a parameter, the existence of SIdr is not supported. This makes its fraction in radiation to be $R_x=0.047^{+0.025}_{-0.053}$. Although the Hubble constant is still enhanced, it comes at the expense of a higher $N_{\rm eff}=3.52\pm0.25$. Our findings reveal that the ACT and SPT data provide support for the presence of SIdr, particularly when considering a variable number of free-streaming species. In this case, SIdr accounts for approximately 12.7\% of the total radiation content. However, it is important to note that relying solely on SIdr is insufficient to completely resolve the Hubble tension. Finally, we investigate the constraints on SIdr imposed by future experiments, which improve the limits on scaled interacting strength $\log_{10}\tilde G_{\rm eff}$ by a factor of 4.5 compared to the current constraints.Comment: 23 pages, 8 figures, 4 table

Association of neck pain with stress, anxiety and depression among young adults

Objective :To determine the pain intensity of non-specific neck pain and find out the association of neck pain with stress, anxiety and depression. Methodology: A cross sectional study was carried out on 254 young adults in Shifa Tameer-e-Millat University Islamabad, Pakistan from July to December 2017. Participants of either gender in age range 18 to 24 years and have non-specific neck pain were included in the study. All the participants with any illness or trauma that might cause neck pain and pathological condition associated with neck were excluded from the study. “Numeric Pain Rating Scale” and “Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21” were used to evaluate pain intensity and negative emotions such as depression, anxiety and stress.  Chi square test was applied to determine the association between pain and depression, anxiety and stress. The data was analyzed through SPSS v-21. Results: Out of total 254 participants 212 (83.5%) were females and 42 (16.5%) were males. Participants mean age was 20.66±1.83 (years). According to the results stress and depression had significant association with neck pain (p value 0.05. Conclusion: The study concluded that majority of the participants had mild level of non-specific neck pain and significant association of neck pain was found with depression and stress. Key words: Anxiety, Depression, Mental health, Pain, Stress

Clinical effectiveness of Carbimazole and Propylthiouracil for Hyperthyroidism in Patients of Punjab, Pakistan

Background: The primary objective of any drug for hyperthyroidism is to control clinical manifestations and maintenance of normal levels of hormonal concentrations. It also targets to prevent the recurrence of disease along with minimizing associated risk factors. In this study, effectiveness of oral anti thyroid agents was checked to normalize altered levels of thyroid hormones due to hyperthyroidism.Methods: The study was comprised of 40 subjects of whom 30 were experiencing hyperthyroidism and were administered anti-hyperthyroid drugs. 10 patients of hyperthyroidism were not taking any medication. Standard dose regimens of carbimazole and propylthiouracil were employed for all 30 hyperthyroid patients under closed monitoring. Physical as well as biochemical analyses of all subjects were done and thyroid profiling was performed for measuring levels of free thyroxine (fT4), free triiodothyronine (fT3), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and antibodies against thyroglobulin (Tg).Results: Thyroid profiles of medicated hyperthyroid patients were compared with the profiles of non-medicated group. Statistical analysis appeared with non-significant values for all four parameters.Conclusion: No significant difference was found between medicated and non-medicated groups. We recommend that combinatorial drugs and new derivatives with better efficacy and fewer side effects should be employed to treat hyperthyroidism

A Survey on Cybersecurity Challenges, Detection, and Mitigation Techniques for the Smart Grid

The world is transitioning from the conventional grid to the smart grid at a rapid pace. Innovation always comes with some flaws; such is the case with a smart grid. One of the major challenges in the smart grid is to protect it from potential cyberattacks. There are millions of sensors continuously sending and receiving data packets over the network, so managing such a gigantic network is the biggest challenge. Any cyberattack can damage the key elements, confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the smart grid. The overall smart grid network is comprised of customers accessing the network, communication network of the smart devices and sensors, and the people managing the network (decision makers); all three of these levels are vulnerable to cyberattacks. In this survey, we explore various threats and vulnerabilities that can affect the key elements of cybersecurity in the smart grid network and then present the security measures to avert those threats and vulnerabilities at three different levels. In addition to that, we suggest techniques to minimize the chances of cyberattack at all three levels

Biochemical profiling of tuberculosis patients co-infected with hepatitis C virus

The present research work was planned to investigate the biochemical parameters in tuberculosis (TB) patients in comparison with healthy individual and TB patients co-infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). For the study, we determined liver enzymes, serum proteins, hemoglobin photometrically, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) by the Westergren method. The results showed a significant ( P 0.05) increase in the level of aspartate aminotransferase was observed in the Test group while a non-significantly ( P >0.05) reduced level was observed in the TB control group when compared with healthy controls. Alkaline phosphatase was increased significantly ( P 0.05) in the TB control group compared to healthy control group. Significant ( P 0.05) variation in serum calcium level was observed among study groups. ESR was found to be lower in the healthy control group while significantly ( P <0.05) increased in the Test and TB control groups. The HCV co-infected patients were investigated through HCV screening by the immunochromatographic method. We concluded that variation in biochemical and hematological parameters observed in the studied population help us to diagnose HCV co-infected TB patients