Shear-induced quench of long-range correlations in a liquid mixture

A static correlation function of concentration fluctuations in a (dilute) binary liquid mixture subjected to both a concentration gradient and uniform shear flow is investigated within the framework of fluctuating hydrodynamics. It is shown that a well-known $|\nabla c|^2/k^4$ long-range correlation at large wave numbers $k$ crosses over to a weaker divergent one for wave numbers satisfying $k<(\dot{\gamma}/D)^{1/2}$, while an asymptotic shear-controlled power-law dependence is confirmed at much smaller wave numbers given by $k\ll (\dot{\gamma}/\nu)^{1/2}$, where $c$, $\dot{\gamma}$, $D$ and $\nu$ are the mass concentration, the rate of the shear, the mass diffusivity and the kinematic viscosity of the mixture, respectively. The result will provide for the first time the possibility to observe the shear-induced suppression of a long-range correlation experimentally by using, for example, a low-angle light scattering technique.Comment: 8pages, 2figure

Amyloid and tau pathology associations with personality traits, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and cognitive lifestyle in the preclinical phases of sporadic and autosomal dominant Alzheimer’s disease

Background Major prevention trials for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are now focusing on multidomain lifestyle interventions. However, the exact combination of behavioral factors related to AD pathology remains unclear. In 2 cohorts of cognitively unimpaired individuals at risk of AD, we examined which combinations of personality traits, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and cognitive lifestyle (years of education or lifetime cognitive activity) related to the pathological hallmarks of AD, amyloid-β, and tau deposits. Methods A total of 115 older adults with a parental or multiple-sibling family history of sporadic AD (PREVENT-AD [PRe-symptomatic EValuation of Experimental or Novel Treatments for AD] cohort) underwent amyloid and tau positron emission tomography and answered several questionnaires related to behavioral attributes. Separately, we studied 117 mutation carriers from the DIAN (Dominant Inherited Alzheimer Network) study group cohort with amyloid positron emission tomography and behavioral data. Using partial least squares analysis, we identified latent variables relating amyloid or tau pathology with combinations of personality traits, neuropsychiatric symptoms, and cognitive lifestyle. Results In PREVENT-AD, lower neuroticism, neuropsychiatric burden, and higher education were associated with less amyloid deposition (p = .014). Lower neuroticism and neuropsychiatric features, along with higher measures of openness and extraversion, were related to less tau deposition (p = .006). In DIAN, lower neuropsychiatric burden and higher education were also associated with less amyloid (p = .005). The combination of these factors accounted for up to 14% of AD pathology. Conclusions In the preclinical phase of both sporadic and autosomal dominant AD, multiple behavioral features were associated with AD pathology. These results may suggest potential pathways by which multidomain interventions might help delay AD onset or progression

A standard protocol to report discrete stage‐structured demographic information

Stage-based demographic methods, such as matrix population models (MPMs), are powerful tools used to address a broad range of fundamental questions in ecology, evolutionary biology and conservation science. Accordingly, MPMs now exist for over 3000 species worldwide. These data are being digitised as an ongoing process and periodically released into two large open-access online repositories: the COMPADRE Plant Matrix Database and the COMADRE Animal Matrix Database. During the last decade, data archiving and curation of COMPADRE and COMADRE, and subsequent comparative research, have revealed pronounced variation in how MPMs are parameterized and reported. Here, we summarise current issues related to the parameterisation and reporting of MPMs that arise most frequently and outline how they affect MPM construction, analysis, and interpretation. To quantify variation in how MPMs are reported, we present results from a survey identifying key aspects of MPMs that are frequently unreported in manuscripts. We then screen COMPADRE and COMADRE to quantify how often key pieces of information are omitted from manuscripts using MPMs. Over 80% of surveyed researchers (n = 60) state a clear benefit to adopting more standardised methodologies for reporting MPMs. Furthermore, over 85% of the 300 MPMs assessed from COMPADRE and COMADRE omitted one or more elements that are key to their accurate interpretation. Based on these insights, we identify fundamental issues that can arise from MPM construction and communication and provide suggestions to improve clarity, reproducibility and future research utilising MPMs and their required metadata. To fortify reproducibility and empower researchers to take full advantage of their demographic data, we introduce a standardised protocol to present MPMs in publications. This standard is linked to www.compadre-db.org, so that authors wishing to archive their MPMs can do so prior to submission of publications, following examples from other open-access repositories such as DRYAD, Figshare and Zenodo. Combining and standardising MPMs parameterized from populations around the globe and across the tree of life opens up powerful research opportunities in evolutionary biology, ecology and conservation research. However, this potential can only be fully realised by adopting standardised methods to ensure reproducibility

Accelerometer Measured Levels of Moderate-to-Vigorous Intensity Physical Activity and Sedentary Time in Children and Adolescents with Chronic Disease: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Context: Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and sedentary time (ST) are important for child and adolescent health. Objective: To examine habitual levels of accelerometer measured MVPA and ST in children and adolescents with chronic disease, and how these levels compare with healthy peers. Methods: Data sources: An extensive search was carried out in Medline, Cochrane library, EMBASE, SPORTDiscus and CINAHL from 2000–2017. Study selection: Studies with accelerometer-measured MVPA and/or ST (at least 3 days and 6 hours/day to provide estimates of habitual levels) in children 0–19 years of age with chronic diseases but without co-morbidities that would present major impediments to physical activity. In all cases patients were studied while well and clinically stable. Results: Out of 1592 records, 25 studies were eligible, in four chronic disease categories: cardiovascular disease (7 studies), respiratory disease (7 studies), diabetes (8 studies), and malignancy (3 studies). Patient MVPA was generally below the recommended 60 min/day and ST generally high regardless of the disease condition. Comparison with healthy controls suggested no marked differences in MVPA between controls and patients with cardiovascular disease (1 study, n = 42) and type 1 diabetes (5 studies, n = 400; SMD -0.70, 95% CI -1.89 to 0.48, p = 0.25). In patients with respiratory disease, MVPA was lower in patients than controls (4 studies, n = 470; SMD -0.39, 95% CI -0.80, 0.02, p = 0.06). Meta-analysis indicated significantly lower MVPA in patients with malignancies than in the controls (2 studies, n = 90; SMD -2.2, 95% CI -4.08 to -0.26, p = 0.03). Time spent sedentary was significantly higher in patients in 4/10 studies compared with healthy control groups, significantly lower in 1 study, while 5 studies showed no significant group difference. Conclusions: MVPA in children/adolescents with chronic disease appear to be well below guideline recommendations, although comparable with activity levels of their healthy peers except for children with malignancies. Tailored and disease appropriate intervention strategies may be needed to increase MVPA and reduce ST in children and adolescents with chronic disease

The Influence of Age and Sex on Genetic Associations with Adult Body Size and Shape : A Large-Scale Genome-Wide Interaction Study

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified more than 100 genetic variants contributing to BMI, a measure of body size, or waist-to-hip ratio (adjusted for BMI, WHRadjBMI), a measure of body shape. Body size and shape change as people grow older and these changes differ substantially between men and women. To systematically screen for age-and/or sex-specific effects of genetic variants on BMI and WHRadjBMI, we performed meta-analyses of 114 studies (up to 320,485 individuals of European descent) with genome-wide chip and/or Metabochip data by the Genetic Investigation of Anthropometric Traits (GIANT) Consortium. Each study tested the association of up to similar to 2.8M SNPs with BMI and WHRadjBMI in four strata (men 50y, women 50y) and summary statistics were combined in stratum-specific meta-analyses. We then screened for variants that showed age-specific effects (G x AGE), sex-specific effects (G x SEX) or age-specific effects that differed between men and women (G x AGE x SEX). For BMI, we identified 15 loci (11 previously established for main effects, four novel) that showed significant (FDR= 50y). No sex-dependent effects were identified for BMI. For WHRadjBMI, we identified 44 loci (27 previously established for main effects, 17 novel) with sex-specific effects, of which 28 showed larger effects in women than in men, five showed larger effects in men than in women, and 11 showed opposite effects between sexes. No age-dependent effects were identified for WHRadjBMI. This is the first genome-wide interaction meta-analysis to report convincing evidence of age-dependent genetic effects on BMI. In addition, we confirm the sex-specificity of genetic effects on WHRadjBMI. These results may providefurther insights into the biology that underlies weight change with age or the sexually dimorphism of body shape.Peer reviewe

People of color mobilization in LGBT movements in the Netherlands and the United States

The Ashgate Research Companion to Lesbian and Gay Activism provides scholars and students with a comprehensive and authoritative state-of-the-art review of the current research in this subject. Each of the 22 specially commissioned chapters develops and summarises their key issue or debate in relation to activism-that is the claims, strategies and mobilisations (including internal debates and divisions, impediments and state responses) of the lesbian and gay movement. By drawing together leading scholars from political science, sociology, anthropology and history this companion provides an up to the minute snapshot of current scholarship as well as signposting several fruitful avenues for future research. This book is both an invaluable resource for scholars and an indispensable teaching tool for use in the classroom

Great tits Parus major and blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus as indicators of agri-environmental habitat quality

This study examined relationships between habitat and breeding success for two common bird species, the great tit Parus major and blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus. The aim was to determine the potential of these species to act as indicators of food resource availability for birds in managed semi-natural habitats on farmland and thus as a measure of the effectiveness of specific management practices under agri-environment schemes (AES). Breeding success was recorded for four years (2007–2010) using 90 nestboxes on arable farmland in central England. Habitat parameters were derived from high spatial resolution airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and hyperspectral data. Relationships of breeding variables with a range of habitat variables, many of which were influenced by AES management, were evident for both species, despite strong interannual variation in breeding parameters. Relationships were strongest for models using habitat variables within a 100 m radius of the nest, compared to values of 50 and 200 m. Both species showed significant, positive relationships with the area and proximity of tree canopy and, for great tits especially, with hedgerow height and volume. Therefore, tits may act as indicators of the quality of local habitat, particularly within-hedge trees and hedgerows, managed under agri-environmental provision, and provide insight into the spatial arrangement of AES options at the field scale