Giant Colloidal Diffusivity on Corrugated Optical Vortices

A single colloidal sphere circulating around a periodically modulated optical vortex trap can enter a dynamical state in which it intermittently alternates between freely running around the ring-like optical vortex and becoming trapped in local potential energy minima. Velocity fluctuations in this randomly switching state still are characterized by a linear Einstein-like diffusion law, but with an effective diffusion coefficient that is enhanced by more than two orders of magnitude.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Colloidal hydrodynamic coupling in concentric optical vortices

Optical vortex traps created from helical modes of light can drive fluid-borne colloidal particles in circular trajectories. Concentric circulating rings of particles formed by coaxial optical vortices form a microscopic Couette cell, in which the amount of hydrodynamic drag experienced by the spheres depends on the relative sense of the rings' circulation. Tracking the particles' motions makes possible measurements of the hydrodynamic coupling between the circular particle trains and addresses recently proposed hydrodynamic instabilities for collective colloidal motions on optical vortices.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Europhysics Letter

The cancer's Margins project: access to knowledge and Its mobilization by LGBQ/T cancer patients

Sexual and/or gender minority populations (LGBQ/T) have particular cancer risks, lower involvement in cancer screening, and experience barriers in communication with healthcare providers. All of these factors increase the probability of health decisions linked with poor outcomes that include higher levels of cancer mortality. Persistent discrimination against, and stigmatization of, LGBQ/T people is reflected in sparse medical curriculum addressing LGBQ/T communities. Marginalization makes LGBQ/T persons particularly reliant on knowledge derived from online networks and mainstream media sources. In what is likely the first nationally-funded and nation-wide study of LGBQ/T experiences of cancer, the Cancer's Margins project (www.lgbtcancer.ca) conducted face-to-face interviews with 81 sexual and/or gender minority patients diagnosed and treated for breast and/or gynecological cancer in five Canadian provinces and the San Francisco Bay area (US). With specific attention to knowledge access, sharing, and mobilization, our objective was to document and analyze complex intersectional relationships between marginalization, gender and sexuality, and cancer health decision-making and care experiences. Findings indicate that cancer care knowledge in online environments is shaped by cisnormative and heteronormative narratives. Cancer knowledge and support environments need, by contrast, to be designed by taking into account intersectionally diverse models of minority identities and communities

Maternal depression trajectories relate to youths' psychosocial and cognitive functioning at adolescence and young adulthood

This study evaluated how patterns of mothers' depressive symptoms across their child's childhood relate to children's psychosocial adjustment at adolescence and young adulthood and to cognitive functioning at adolescence. Depressive symptoms were measured in 1,273 mothers when their children were 1, 5, 10, and 14.6 years of age. Children (53.5% male; n = 1,024) completed the Youth Self-Report at adolescence (M = 14.6y), and the Adult Self-Report in young adulthood (M = 20.5y; n = 817) to assess internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Adolescents also completed standardized cognitive tests to assess verbal and mathematical skills. Growth mixture modeling analyses identified four patterns of maternal depressive symptom trajectories: infrequent (55%), increasing at adolescence (20%), decreasing at adolescence (14%), and chronic severe (11%). Results indicated that exposure to maternal depression of any duration, severity or time period during childhood portended higher levels of externalizing and attention problems at both adolescence and adulthood and higher levels of internalizing problems at adulthood. Adolescents whose mothers had chronic severe depressive symptoms had lower language, vocabulary, reading comprehension and mathematical test scores than youth whose mothers had stable infrequent depressive symptoms. Findings illustrate the significance and long-term ramifications of mothers' depressed mood for their children's mental and psychosocial health into adulthood. Findings also demonstrate that the lower cognitive abilities among children of severely depressed mothers persist beyond childhood and pertain to a broad range of cognitive abilities.R01 DA021181 - NIDA NIH HHS; R01 HD033487 - NICHD NIH HHS; R01 HL088530 - NHLBI NIH HHS; R03 HD097295 - NICHD NIH HHSAccepted manuscrip

Entanglement by linear SU(2) transformations: generation and evolution of quantum vortex states

We consider the evolution of a two-mode system of bosons under the action of a Hamiltonian that generates linear SU(2) transformations. The Hamiltonian is generic in that it represents a host of entanglement mechanisms, which can thus be treated in a unified way. We start by solving the quantum dynamics analytically when the system is initially in a Fock state. We show how the two modes get entangled by evolution to produce a coherent superposition of vortex states in general, and a single vortex state under certain conditions. The degree of entanglement between the modes is measured by finding the explicit analytical dependence of the Von Neumann entropy on the system parameters. The reduced state of each mode is analyzed by means of its correlation function and spatial coherence function. Remarkably, our analysis is shown to be equally as valid for a variety of initial states that can be prepared from a two-mode Fock state via a unitary transformation and for which the results can be obtained by mere inspection of the corresponding results for an initial Fock state. As an example, we consider a quantum vortex as the initial state and also find conditions for its revival and charge conjugation. While studying the evolution of the initial vortex state, we have encountered and explained an interesting situation in which the entropy of the system does not evolve whereas its wave function does. Although the modal concept has been used throughout the paper, it is important to note that the theory is equally applicable for a two-particle system in which each particle is represented by its bosonic creation and annihilation operators.Comment: 6 figure

The spectrum of bladder health: The relationship between lower urinary tract symptoms and interference with activities

Background: Little research to date has focused on lower urinary tract symptom (LUTS) prevention and bladder health promotion in women. To address this gap, the Prevention of LUTS Research Consortium developed the following working bladder health definition: "A complete state of physical, mental, and social well-being related to bladder function [that] permits daily activities [and] allows optimal well-being." To begin to inform and quantify this definition, we used data from the Boston Area Community Health Survey, drawing upon its rare collection of information on LUTS and LUTS-specific interference with activities. Methods: At baseline, participants reported their frequency of 15 LUTS and interference with 7 activities. Prevalence ratios (PRs) were calculated by generalized linear models with robust variance estimation, adjusting for LUTS risk factors and individual LUTS. Results: Of the 3169 eligible participants, 17.5% reported no LUTS or interference, whereas the remaining 82.5% reported some frequency of LUTS/interference: 15.1% rarely; 21.7% a few times; 22.6% fairly often/usually; and 22.9% almost always. LUTS independently associated with interference were urgency incontinence, any incontinence, urgency, nocturia, perceived frequency, and urinating again after <2 hours (PRs = 1.2-1.5, all p < 0.05). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that bladder health exists on a continuum, with approximately one in five women considered to have optimal bladder health (no LUTS/interference), the majority to have intermediate health (LUTS/interference rarely to usually), and a further one in five to have worse or poor health (LUTS/interference almost always). These findings underscore the need for LUTS prevention and bladder health promotion

Polarisation Patterns and Vectorial Defects in Type II Optical Parametric Oscillators

Previous studies of lasers and nonlinear resonators have revealed that the polarisation degree of freedom allows for the formation of polarisation patterns and novel localized structures, such as vectorial defects. Type II optical parametric oscillators are characterised by the fact that the down-converted beams are emitted in orthogonal polarisations. In this paper we show the results of the study of pattern and defect formation and dynamics in a Type II degenerate optical parametric oscillator for which the pump field is not resonated in the cavity. We find that traveling waves are the predominant solutions and that the defects are vectorial dislocations which appear at the boundaries of the regions where traveling waves of different phase or wave-vector orientation are formed. A dislocation is defined by two topological charges, one associated with the phase and another with the wave-vector orientation. We also show how to stabilize a single defect in a realistic experimental situation. The effects of phase mismatch of nonlinear interaction are finally considered.Comment: 38 pages, including 15 figures, LATeX. Related material, including movies, can be obtained from http://www.imedea.uib.es/Nonlinear/research_topics/OPO

School Toileting Environment, Bullying, and Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in a Population of Adolescent and Young Adult Girls:Preventing Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms Consortium Analysis of Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children

AIM: Little is known about the association of the school toilet environment with voiding behaviors and lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in adolescents. The purpose of the present longitudinal, secondary data analysis is to examine whether the school toilet environment at age 13, including bullying, is associated with LUTS at ages 13 and 19. METHODS: The sample comprised 3962 female participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). At age 13, participants reported on 7 school toilet environment characteristics and a range of LUTS items. At age 19, participants completed the Bristol Female Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms (ICIQ-BFLUTS) questionnaire. RESULTS: All toilet environmental factors were associated with at least one LUTS outcome at age 13. Holding behavior was associated with all school toilet environmental factors, with odds ratios (ORs) ranging from 1.36 (95% CI: 1.05, 1.76) for dirty toilets to 2.38 (95% CI: 1.60, 3.52) for feeling bullied at toilets. Bullying was associated with all LUTS symptoms; ORs ranged from 1.60 (95% CI: 1.04, 2.07) for nocturia to 2.90 (95% CI: 1.77, 4.75) for urgency. Associations between age 13 school toilets and age 19 LUTS were in the same direction as age 13 LUTS. CONCLUSION: This is the first examination of associations between school toilets and LUTS. Toileting environments were cross-sectionally associated with LUTS in adolescent girls. While further work is needed to determine whether these associations are causal, school toilet environments are modifiable and thus a promising target for LUTS prevention

Relationship of Adiposity and Insulin Resistance Mediated by Inflammation in a Group of Overweight and Obese Chilean Adolescents

The mild chronic inflammatory state associated with obesity may be an important link between adiposity and insulin resistance (IR). In a sample of 137 overweight and obese Chilean adolescents, we assessed associations between high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), IR and adiposity; explored sex differences; and evaluated whether hs-CRP mediated the relationship between adiposity and IR. Positive relationships between hs-CRP, IR and 2 measures of adiposity were found. Hs-CRP was associated with waist circumference (WC) in boys and fat mass index (FMI) in girls. Using path analysis, we found that hs-CRP mediated the relationship between adiposity (WC and FMI) and the homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (p < 0.05) in both sexes. Our novel finding is that inflammation statistically mediated the well described link between increased adiposity and IR