4,496 research outputs found
Exercise-induced asthma in a group of South African schoolchildren during physical education classes
Objectives. The study was conducted to ascertain whether physical education teachers, using a peak flow meter, could reliably screen for exercise-induced asthma (EIA) in children during free running.Design, setting and subjects. The study was conducted using a convenience sample of male pupils between the ages of 12 and 18 years. They were tested with a peak flow meter for peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR) and with a flow-volume curve for forced expiratory flow in 1 second (FEV1) before and 10 minutes after a self-paced free running test during physical education classes. Testing was undertaken by teachers using the peak flow meter and by a medical doctor using a flow-volume curve.Results. Using a 10% decrease in flow parameters (PEFR and FEV1), teachers detected EIA in 14.9% of pupils and the doctor detected EIA in 21.7% of pupils.Conclusion. We conclude that EIA is common and that teachers using a peak flow meter can detect EIA and thus screen for it; they do, however, underestimate the true magnitude of the problem
Investigating the intrinsic noise limit of Dayem bridge NanoSQUIDs
NanoSQUIDs made from Nb thin films have been produced with nanometre loop sizes down to 200 nm, using weak-link junctions with dimensions less than 60 nm. These composite (W/Nb) single layer thin film devices, patterned by FIB milling, show extremely good low-noise performance ∼170 nΦ0 at temperatures between 5 and 8.5 K and can operate in rather high magnetic fields (at least up to 1 T). The devices produced so far have a limited operating temperature range, typically only 1–2 K. We have the goal of achieving operation at 4.2 K, to be compatible with the best SQUID series array (SSA) preamplifier available. Using the SSA to readout the nanoSQUIDs provides us with a means of investigating the intrinsic noise of the former. In this paper we report improved white noise levels of these nanoSQUIDs, enabling potential detection of a single electronic spin flip in a 1-Hz bandwidth. At low frequencies the noise performance is already limited by SSA preamplifier noise
Comparison of optical model results from a microscopic Schr\"odinger approach to nucleon-nucleus elastic scattering with those from a global Dirac phenomenology
Comparisons are made between results of calculations for intermediate energy
nucleon-nucleus scattering for 12C, 16O, 40Ca, 90Zr, and 208Pb, using optical
potentials obtained from global Dirac phenomenology and from a microscopic
Schr\"odinger model. Differential cross sections and spin observables for
scattering from the set of five nuclei at 65 MeV and 200 MeV have been studied
to assess the relative merits of each approach. Total reaction cross sections
from proton-nucleus and total cross sections from neutron-nucleus scattering
have been evaluated and compared with data for those five targets in the energy
range 20 MeV to 800 MeV. The methods of analyses give results that compare well
with experimental data in those energy regimes for which the procedures are
suited.Comment: 22 pages, 12 figure
Broadband distortion modeling in Lyman- forest BAO fitting
In recent years, the Lyman- absorption observed in the spectra of
high-redshift quasars has been used as a tracer of large-scale structure by
means of the three-dimensional Lyman- forest auto-correlation function
at redshift , but the need to fit the quasar continuum in every
absorption spectrum introduces a broadband distortion that is difficult to
correct and causes a systematic error for measuring any broadband properties.
We describe a -space model for this broadband distortion based on a
multiplicative correction to the power spectrum of the transmitted flux
fraction that suppresses power on scales corresponding to the typical length of
a Lyman- forest spectrum. Implementing the distortion model in fits for
the baryon acoustic oscillation (BAO) peak position in the Lyman-
forest auto-correlation, we find that the fitting method recovers the input
values of the linear bias parameter and the redshift-space distortion
parameter for mock data sets with a systematic error of less than
0.5\%. Applied to the auto-correlation measured for BOSS Data Release 11, our
method improves on the previous treatment of broadband distortions in BAO
fitting by providing a better fit to the data using fewer parameters and
reducing the statistical errors on and the combination
by more than a factor of seven. The measured values at
redshift are $\beta_{F}=1.39^{+0.11\ +0.24\ +0.38}_{-0.10\ -0.19\
-0.28}b_{F}(1+\beta_{F})=-0.374^{+0.007\ +0.013\ +0.020}_{-0.007\
-0.014\ -0.022}\sigma\sigma\sigma$ statistical errors). Our
fitting software and the input files needed to reproduce our main results are
publicly available.Comment: 28 pages, 15 figures, matches the published versio
Fundamental principles of rehabilitation and musculoskeletal tissue healing
OBJECTIVE: To review fundamental principles of tissue healing and physical rehabilitation as they apply to dogs recovering from cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) surgery
STUDY DESIGN: Invited Review
SAMPLE POPULATION: None
METHODS: A multidisciplinary group of specialists in small animal surgery, rehabilitation/sports medicine, and human physical and occupational therapy reviewed the currently available evidence for rehabilitation post-CCL surgery. Because current evidence is limited, this group proposes guidelines for rehabilitation after CCL surgery based on the fundamental principles of tissue healing and physical therapy
RESULTS: This Review proposes four fundamental principles of small animal physical rehabilitation based on the foundations of tissue healing and patient-centric and goal-oriented therapy. Postoperative rehabilitation programs should be designed such that patient progress is based on individual assessment according to the degree of tissue healing, strength, and achievement of functional goals. Therapists must fully understand phases of tissue healing, reassess the patient frequently, and use clinical reasoning skills to progress treatment appropriately for the individual patient.
CONCLUSION: Until more robust evidence is available to guide treatment protocols, fundamental principles of rehabilitation should ideally be adhered to when providing rehabilitation, including after CCL surgery.
CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: While this Review specifically addresses post-CCL surgery rehabilitation, these fundamental principles should be applied broadly to animals enrolled in rehabilitation programs
Potassium fertilization: paradox or K management dilemma?
In 2014, Khan et al. presented evidence that soil exchangeable K (Exch-K) increases over time without addition of potassium (K) to the soil despite the removal of K in crops on a soil rich in montmorillonite and illite. The authors term this behavior ‘The potassium paradox’. From their review of the literature, the authors also report a lack of crop response to potassium chloride (KCl) fertilization. Close evaluation of these findings reveals that their observations can be interpreted and predicted using current knowledge of K in soil chemistry and its uptake by plants, and there is no paradox in K behavior in the soil–plant system. There is also no evidence of a detrimental effect of KCl on crop yield or quality. Their conclusion that the widely used Exch-K soil test is inadequate for managing K fertilization is discussed and some possible modifications to improve its performance are included. We believe that measurement of Exch-K is an essential and valuable tool and its use should be continued, along with improvements in recommending K fertilizer application
Measurement of the Fermi Constant by FAST
An initial measurement of the lifetime of the positive muon to a precision of
16 parts per million (ppm) has been performed with the FAST detector at the
Paul Scherrer Institute. The result is tau_mu = 2.197083 (32) (15) microsec,
where the first error is statistical and the second is systematic. The muon
lifetime determines the Fermi constant, G_F = 1.166353 (9) x 10^-5 GeV^-2 (8
ppm).Comment: 15 pages, 6 figure
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