980 research outputs found
A framework for the prospective analysis of super-diversity coming from high levels of immigration
Background
Pressures to keep immigration rates at relatively high levels are likely to persist in most developed countries. At the same time, immigrant cohorts are becoming more and more diverse, leading host societies to become increasingly heterogeneous across multiple dimensions. For scholars who study demographic or socio-economic behaviours, the need to account for ethnocultural âsuper-diversityâ brings new challenges and complications.
Objective
The main objective of this paper is to present a framework for the prospective analysis of super-diversity in several high immigration countries.
Methods
We developed microsimulation models that simultaneously project several population-dimensions for Canada, the United States and countries of the European Union, with the aim of studying the consequences of alternate future population and migration trends.
Results
The paper presents the projected progression of three indicators of diversity for Canada, the USA and the EU28: percentage of foreign-born population, percentage of the population using a non-official language at home and percentage of non-Christians under the reference scenario. Results from alternative scenarios show the potential impact of modifying the composition of migrant cohorts. The paper also examines the projected changes in the labour force for each region by education level and language. Finally, the paper proposes a new longitudinal indicator that counts the number of years lived as active and inactive over the life course for foreign- and native-born cohorts.
Contribution
The microsimulation models provide much more informative results than more traditional cohort-component or multi-state models to study the future effects of ethnocultural super-diversity on high immigration countries
Cross-sectional evaluation of a longitudinal consultation skills course at a new UK medical school
Background: Good communication is a crucial element of good clinical care, and it is important to provide appropriate consultation skills teaching in undergraduate medical training to ensure that doctors have the necessary skills to communicate effectively with patients and other key stakeholders. This article aims to provide research evidence of the acceptability of a longitudinal consultation skills strand in an undergraduate medical course, as assessed by a cross-sectional evaluation of students' perceptions of their teaching and learning experiences. Methods: A structured questionnaire was used to collect student views. The questionnaire comprised two parts: 16 closed questions to evaluate content and process of teaching and 5 open-ended questions. Questionnaires were completed at the end of each consultation skills session across all year groups during the 2006-7 academic year (5 sessions in Year 1, 3 in Year 2, 3 in Year 3, 10 in Year 4 and 10 in Year 5). 2519 questionnaires were returned in total. Results: Students rated Tutor Facilitation most favourably, followed by Teaching, then Practice & Feedback, with suitability of the Rooms being most poorly rated. All years listed the following as important aspects they had learnt during the session: âą how to structure the consultation âą importance of patient-centredness âą aspects of professionalism (including recognising own limits, being prepared, generally acting professionally). All years also noted that the sessions had increased their confidence, particularly through practice. Conclusions: Our results suggest that a longitudinal and integrated approach to teaching consultation skills using a well structured model such as Calgary-Cambridge, facilitates and consolidates learning of desired process skills, increases student confidence, encourages integration of process and content, and reinforces appreciation of patient-centredness and professionalism
A generalized quantum microcanonical ensemble
We discuss a generalized quantum microcanonical ensemble. It describes
isolated systems that are not necessarily in an eigenstate of the Hamilton
operator. Statistical averages are obtained by a combination of a time average
and a maximum entropy argument to resolve the lack of knowledge about initial
conditions. As a result, statistical averages of linear observables coincide
with values obtained in the canonical ensemble. Non-canonical averages can be
obtained by taking into account conserved quantities which are non-linear
functions of the microstate.Comment: improved version, new titl
A framework for the prospective analysis of ethno-cultural super-diversity
Background: Pressures to keep immigration rates at relatively high levels are likely to persist in most developed countries. At the same time, immigrant cohorts are becoming more and more diverse, leading host societies to become increasingly heterogeneous across multiple dimensions. For scholars who study demographic or socio-economic behaviours, the need to account for ethno-cultural âsuper-diversityâ brings new challenges.
Objective: The main objective of this paper is to present a framework for the prospective analysis of super-diversity in several high immigration countries.
Methods: We developed microsimulation models that simultaneously project several population dimensions for Canada, the United States and countries of the European Union, with the aim of studying the consequences of alternate future population and migration trends.
Results: The paper presents the projected progression of three indicators of diversity: percentage of foreign-born population, percentage of the population using a non-official language at home and percentage of non-Christians. It also examines the projected changes in the labour force by education levels and language. Using alternative scenarios, we also show that the proportion of highly educated in the US and EU28 labour force could increase by 11 and 15 percentage points respectively if future immigrants were selected as in Canada. Finally, the paper proposes a new longitudinal indicator that counts the number of years lived as active and inactive over the life course for foreign- and native-born cohorts.
Contribution: The microsimulation models provide much more informative results than more traditional cohort-component models to study the future effects of ethno-cultural super-diversity on high immigration countries
Clustering of supernova Ia host galaxies
For the first time the cross-correlation between type Ia supernova host
galaxies and surrounding field galaxies is measured using the Supernova Legacy
Survey sample. Over the z=0.2 to 0.9 redshift range we find that supernova
hosts are correlated an average of 60% more strongly than similarly selected
field galaxies over the 3-100 arcsec range and about a factor of 3 more
strongly below 10 arcsec. The correlation errors are empirically established
with a jackknife analysis of the four SNLS fields. The hosts are more
correlated than the field at a significance of 99% in the fitted amplitude and
slope, with the point-by-point difference of the two correlation functions
having a reduced for 8 degrees of freedom of 4.3, which has a
probability of random occurrence of less than 3x10^{-5}. The correlation angle
is 1.5+/-0.5 arcsec, which deprojects to a fixed co-moving correlation length
of approximately 6.5+/- 2/h mpc. Weighting the field galaxies with the mass and
star formation rate supernova frequencies of the simple A+B model produces good
agreement with the observed clustering. We conclude that these supernova
clustering differences are primarily the expected outcome of the dependence of
supernova rates on galaxy masses and stellar populations with their clustering
environment.Comment: ApJ (Letts) accepte
Breaking the Disk/Halo Degeneracy with Gravitational Lensing
The degeneracy between the disk and the dark matter contribution to galaxy
rotation curves remains an important uncertainty in our understanding of disk
galaxies. Here we discuss a new method for breaking this degeneracy using
gravitational lensing by spiral galaxies, and apply this method to the spiral
lens B1600+434 as an example. The combined image and lens photometry
constraints allow models for B1600+434 with either a nearly singular dark
matter halo, or a halo with a sizable core. A maximum disk model is ruled out
with high confidence. Further information, such as the circular velocity of
this galaxy, will help break the degeneracies. Future studies of spiral galaxy
lenses will be able to determine the relative contribution of disk, bulge, and
halo to the mass in the inner parts of galaxies.Comment: Replaced with minor revisions, a typo fixed, and reference added; 21
pages, 8 figures, ApJ accepte
The Nature of Composite LINER/HII Galaxies, As Revealed from High-Resolution VLA Observations
A sample of 37 nearby galaxies displaying composite LINER/HII and pure HII
spectra was observed with the VLA in an investigation of the nature of their
weak radio emission. The resulting radio contour maps overlaid on optical
galaxy images are presented here, together with an extensive literature list
and discussion of the individual galaxies. Radio morphological data permit
assessment of the ``classical AGN'' contribution to the global activity
observed in these ``transition'' LINER galaxies. One in five of the latter
objects display clear AGN characteristics: these occur exclusively in
bulge-dominated hosts.Comment: 31 pages, 27 figures, accepted by ApJ
On the Progenitor and Supernova of the SN 2002cx-like Supernova 2008ge
We present observations of supernova (SN) 2008ge, which is spectroscopically
similar to the peculiar SN 2002cx, and its pre-explosion site that indicate
that its progenitor was probably a white dwarf. NGC 1527, the host galaxy of SN
2008ge, is an S0 galaxy with no evidence of star formation or massive stars.
Astrometrically matching late-time imaging of SN 2008ge to pre-explosion HST
imaging, we constrain the luminosity of the progenitor star. Since SN 2008ge
has no indication of hydrogen or helium in its spectrum, its progenitor must
have lost its outer layers before exploding, requiring that it be a white
dwarf, a Wolf-Rayet star, or a lower-mass star in a binary system. Observations
of the host galaxy show no signs of individual massive stars, star clusters, or
H II regions at the SN position or anywhere else, making a Wolf-Rayet
progenitor unlikely. Late-time spectroscopy of SN 2008ge show strong [Fe II]
lines with large velocity widths compared to other members of this class at
similar epochs. These previously unseen features indicate that a significant
amount of the SN ejecta is Fe (presumably the result of radioactive decay of
56Ni generated in the SN), further supporting a thermonuclear explosion.
Placing the observations of SN 2008ge in the context of observations of other
objects in the class of SN, we suggest that the progenitor was most likely a
white dwarf.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, accepted by A
The Hubble Legacy Archive ACS Grism Data
A public release of slitless spectra, obtained with ACS/WFC and the G800L
grism, is presented. Spectra were automatically extracted in a uniform way from
153 archival fields (or "associations") distributed across the two Galactic
caps, covering all observations to 2008. The ACS G800L grism provides a
wavelength range of 0.55-1.00 \mu40 \ \AA / pixel\sim 80\ \AA32,149i_{\rm
AB}0.2-4.6$.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics; 29 pages, 16
Figures, 4 Tables in text and 3Tables in Appendi
Estimating the incidence of equine viral arteritis and the sensitivity of its surveillance in the French breeding stock
Equine viral arteritis (EVA) may have serious economic impact on the equine industry. For this reason, it is monitored in many countries, especially in breeding stock, to avoid its spread during breeding activities. In France, surveillance is mainly based on serological tests, since mares are not vaccinated, but difficulties in interpreting certain series of results may impair the estimation of the number of outbreaks. In this study, we propose specific rules for identifying seroconversion in order to estimate the number of outbreaks that were detected by the breeding stock surveillance component (BSSC) in France between 2006 and 2013. A consensus among multidisciplinary experts was reached to consider seroconversion as a change in antibody titer from negative to at least 32, or as an eight-fold or greater increase in antibody level. Using these rules, 239 cases and 177 outbreaks were identified. Subsequently, we calculated the BSSC's sensitivity as the ratio of the number of detected outbreaks to the total number of outbreaks that occurred in breeding stock (including unreported outbreaks) estimated using a capture-recapture model. The total number of outbreaks was estimated at 215 (95% credible interval 195-249) and the surveillance sensitivity at 82% (CrI95% 71-91). Our results confirm EVA circulation in French breeding stock, show that neutralizing antibodies can persist up to eight years in naturally infected mares and suggest that certain mares have been reinfected. This study shows that the sensitivity of the BSSC is relatively high and supports its relevance to prevent the disease spreading through mating
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