Nanocrystalline iron at high pressure

X-ray diffraction measurements were performed on nanocrystalline iron up to 46 GPa. For nanocrystalline epsilon-Fe, analysis of lattice parameter data provides a bulk modulus, K, of 179±8 GPa and a pressure derivative of the bulk modulus, K[prime], of 3.6±0.7, similar to the large-grained control sample. The extrapolated zero-pressure unit cell volume of nanocrystalline epsilon-Fe is 22.9±0.2 Å^3, compared to 22.3±0.2 Å^3 for large-grained epsilon-Fe. No significant grain growth was observed to occur under pressure

The impact of nebular emission on the broadband fluxes of high-redshift galaxies

A substantial fraction of the light emitted from young or star-forming galaxies at ultraviolet to near-infrared wavelengths comes from the ionized interstellar medium in the form of emission lines and a nebular continuum. At high redshifts, star formation rates are on average higher and stellar populations younger than in the local Universe. Both of these effects act to boost the impact of nebular emission on the overall spectrum of galaxies. Even so, the broadband fluxes and colours of high-redshift galaxies are routinely analyzed under the assumption that the light observed originates directly from stars. Here, we assess the impact of nebular emission on broadband fluxes in Johnson/Cousins BVRIJHK, Sloan Digital Sky Survey griz and Spitzer IRAC/MIPS filters as a function of observed redshift (up to z=15) for galaxies with different star formation histories. We find that nebular emission may account for a non-negligible fraction of the light received from high-redshift galaxies. The ages and masses inferred for such objects through the use of spectral evolutionary models that omit the nebular contribution are therefore likely to contain systematic errors. We argue that a careful treatment of the nebular component will be essential for the interpretation of the rest-frame ultraviolet-to-infrared properties of the first galaxies formed, like the ones expected to be detected with the James Webb Space Telescope.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

Sexual Offences Courts: Better justice for children?

Child victims of sexual abuse are vulnerable witnesses who experience trauma and secondary victimisation when they testify in sexual abuse cases. Sexual Offences Courts aim to alleviate this problem in various ways. The main focus of this article is to examine the prescribed blueprint for Sexual Offences Courts in order to determine whether blueprint-compliant Sexual Offences Courts contribute to better justice for child victims of sexual offences. Each blueprint requirement is therefore analysed with the aim of determining whether possible advantages for child victims can be identified.The conclusion is reached that substantial advantages for child victims are provided by blueprint compliant Sexual Offences Courts. By 2005 54 Sexual Offences Courts were established countrywide and official statistics indicate that these courts are very successful. However, despite numerous commitments by government to establish more of these courts, a moratorium on the establishment of new courts was announced. It is argued that blueprint compliant Sexual Offences Courts do indeed provide better justice for children and therefore more of these courts should be established at a much faster rate

Sexual Offences Courts in South Africa: Quo vadis?

Since the establishment of the first Sexual Offences Court in Wynberg in 1993, various developments have taken place that include, but are not limited to, the following: several investigations into these courts were undertaken; the Sexual Offences and Community Affairs Unit (SOCA Unit) was established; a blueprint for Sexual Offences Courts was drafted and later refined; and, by 2007, the number of Sexual Offences Courts had increased to 59. These courts have performed exceptionally well compared with general regional courts and conviction rates rose to 70 per cent on average. Despite the obvious success of these courts, the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development declared a moratorium on the establishment of additional Sexual Offences Courts pending the outcome of an evaluation of existing Sexual Offences Courts. In this article, a synopsis of the development of Sexual Offences Courts is given and the subsequent evaluation commissioned by the Minister is assessed and is supplemented with recommendations to enhance efforts to combat sexual offences through the Sexual Offences Courts

A New Spinning-test Method

This report contains a description of a new spinning-test arrangement wherein the otherwise customary rotation of the model about a fixed axis is abandoned in favor of a corresponding rotation of the air stream. The advantage of this method lies in the fact that the model is at rest while the spin is recorded. In this manner it is possible to secure systematic results with little loss of time while employing 3- or 6-component wind-tunnel balances. The troublesome equalization of the mass forces is eliminated and the flow phenomena are accessible to direct observation

Environmental control on anaerobic oxidation of methane in the gassy sediments of Eckernforde Bay (German Baltic)

We investigated the effect of seasonal environmental changes on the rate and distribution of anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) in Eckernforde Bay sediments (German Baltic Sea) and identified organisms that are likely to be involved in the process. Surface sediments were sampled during September and March. Field rates of AOM and sulfate reduction (SR) were measured with radiotracer methods. Additional parameters were determined that potentially influence AOM, i.e., temperature, salinity, methane, sulfate, and chlorophyll a. Methanogenesis as well as potential rates of AOM and aerobic oxidation of methane were measured in vitro. AOM changed seasonally within the upper 20 cm of the sediment, with rates being between 1 and 14 nmol cm−3 d−1. Its distribution is suggested to be controlled by oxygen and sulfate penetration, temperature, as well as methane supply, leading to a shallow AOM zone during the warm productive season and to a slightly deeper AOM zone during the cold winter season. Rising methane bubbles apparently fed AOM above the sulfate‐methane transition. Methanosarcinales‐related anaerobic methanotrophs (ANME‐2), identified with fluorescence in situ hybridization, is suggested to mediate AOM in Eckernforde Bay. These archaea are known also from other marine methane‐rich locations. However, they were not directly associated with sulfate‐reducing bacteria. AOM is possibly mediated solely by these archaea that show a mesophilic physiology according to the seasonal temperature changes in Eckernforde Bay

Analysis of healthcare service utilization after transport-related injuries by a mixture of hidden Markov models

© 2018 Esmaili et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Background Transport injuries commonly result in significant disease burden, leading to physical disability, mental health deterioration and reduced quality of life. Analyzing the patterns of healthcare service utilization after transport injuries can provide an insight into the health of the affected parties, allow improved health system resource planning, and provide a baseline against which any future system-level interventions can be evaluated. Therefore, this research aims to use time series of service utilization provided by a compensation agency to identify groups of claimants with similar utilization patterns, describe such patterns, and characterize the groups in terms of demographic, accident type and injury type. Methods To achieve this aim, we have proposed an analytical framework that utilizes latent variables to describe the utilization patterns over time and group the claimants into clusters based on their service utilization time series. To perform the clustering without dismissing the temporal dimension of the time series, we have used a well-established statistical approach known as the mixture of hidden Markov models (MHMM). Ensuing the clustering, we have applied multinomial logistic regression to provide a description of the clusters against demographic, injury and accident covariates. Results We have tested our model with data on psychology service utilization from one of the main compensation agencies for transport accidents in Australia, and found that three clear clusters of service utilization can be evinced from the data. These three clusters correspond to claimants who have tended to use the services 1) only briefly after the accident; 2) for an intermediate period of time and in moderate amounts; and 3) for a sustained period of time, and intensely. The size of these clusters is approximately 67%, 27% and 6% of the number of claimants, respectively. The multinomial logistic regression analysis has showed that claimants who were 30 to 60-year-old at the time of accident, were witnesses, and who suffered a soft tissue injury were more likely to be part of the intermediate cluster than the majority cluster. Conversely, claimants who suffered more severe injuries such as a brain head injury or anon-limb fracture injury and who started their service utilization later were more likely to be part of the sustained cluster

Factors deterring and prompting the decision to attempt suicide on the railway networks: findings from 353 online surveys and 34 semi-structured interviews

Background There is a suicide on the British railways every 36 hours. However, the reasons why people choose to die by train are not well understood. Aims To explore factors influencing and discouraging the decision to attempt suicide on the railway networks. Method We conducted an online survey and qualitative interviews with individuals who had contemplated or attempted suicide by train. Results A total of 353 survey responders had considered and 23 had attempted suicide at rail locations (including railways and metro/underground); a third of these cases were impulsive. The most frequently reported motivations for contemplating or attempting suicide were perceptions of quick and certain lethality (54 and 37%, respectively) and easy access to rail settings (33 and 38%, respectively). The main factor discouraging people from rail suicide was its wider impact, especially on train drivers (19%). In qualitative interviews (N = 34) the desire to avoid intervention from others was also a common motivating factor for attempting suicide on the railway networks. Conclusions People attempt suicide by train because railway settings are easy to access and because of an inaccurate perception of certain and quick lethality. Tackling exaggerated perceptions of lethality may help reduce suicides by train

The effects of lifestyle and diet on gut microbiota composition, inflammation and muscle performance in our aging society

Living longer is associated with an increased risk of chronic diseases, including impairments of the musculoskeletal and immune system as well as metabolic disorders and certain cancers, each of which can negatively affect the relationship between host and microbiota up to the occurrence of dysbiosis. On the other hand, lifestyle factors, including regular physical exercise and a healthy diet, can affect skeletal muscle and immune aging positively at all ages. Accordingly, health benefits could partly depend on the effect of such interventions that influence the biodiversity and functionality of intestinal microbiota. In the present review, we first discuss the physiological effects of aging on the gut microbiota, immune system, and skeletal muscle. Secondly, we describe human epidemiological evidence about the associations between physical activity and fitness and the gut microbiota composition in older adults. The third part highlights the relevance and restorative mechanisms of immune protection through physical activity and specific exercise interventions during aging. Fourth, we present important research findings on the effects of exercise and protein as well as other nutrients on skeletal muscle performance in older adults. Finally, we provide nutritional recommendations to prevent malnutrition and support healthy active aging with a focus on gut microbiota. Key nutrition‐related concerns include the need for adequate energy and protein intake for preventing low muscle mass and a higher demand for specific nutrients (e.g., dietary fiber, polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids) that can modify the composition, diversity, and metabolic capacity of the gut microbiota, and may thus provide a practical means of enhancing gut and systemic immune function

Fourth-generation SM imprints in B -> K^*l^+l^- decays with polarized K^*

The implication of the fourth-generation quarks in the B -> K^*l^+l^- (l=mu,tau) decays, when K^* meson is longitudinally or transversely polarized, is presented. In this context, the dependence of the branching ratio with polarized K^* and the helicity fractions (f_{L,T}) of K^* meson are studied. It is observed that the polarized branching ratios as well as helicity fractions are sensitive to the NP parameters, especially when the final state leptons are tauons. Hence the measurements of these observables at LHC can serve as a good tool to investigate the indirect searches of new physics beyond the Standard Model.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figures, V2: some of the graphs are modified according to the new data from recent experiments. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with arXiv:1107.569