The time traveler's guide to the quantization of zero modes

We study the relationship between the quantization of a massless scalar field on the two-dimensional Einstein cylinder and in a spacetime with a time machine. We find that the latter picks out a unique prescription for the state of the zero mode in the Einstein cylinder. We show how this choice arises from the computation of the vacuum Wightman function and the vacuum renormalized stress-energy tensor in the time-machine geometry. Finally, we relate the previously proposed regularization of the zero mode state as a squeezed state with the time-machine warp parameter, thus demonstrating that the quantization in the latter regularizes the quantization in an Einstein cylinder

Orthodontic aligner therapy outcomes in children with autism spectrum disorder.

BACKGROUND Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face unique challenges in oral care. Aligner therapy offers a promising alternative to conventional approaches for this patient group. AIM To evaluate orthodontic aligner therapy outcomes in children with ASD using the Peer Assessment Rating (PAR) Index and the Index of Complexity, Outcome, and Need (ICON), and to investigate whether concomitant disorders affect ICON, PAR scores, and treatment duration. DESIGN Two calibrated observers assessed digital dental casts and intraoral pictures of 37 children with ASD before (T0) and after (T1) their treatment. At T0, the participants' average age was 12.9 years (SD = 1.68); at T1, post-therapy, the average age was 14.9 years (SD = 1.51). All participants underwent orthodontic aligner therapy. Statistical methods employed in this study included descriptive analysis, Wilcoxon tests, and univariate linear regression. RESULTS Posttreatment, median ICON scores decreased significantly from 74 to 14, and median PAR scores from 36 to 8 (p < .0001), demonstrating "excellent to substantial" improvement in 89.2% (n = 33) of the children. Comorbidities, present in 62% of patients, did not significantly affect treatment duration (22.6 ± 11.02 months). CONCLUSION Children with ASD significantly benefit from orthodontic aligner therapy, emphasizing the need for tailored orthodontic care

Examining the representativeness of home outdoor PM2.5, EC, and OC estimates for daily personal exposures in Southern California

Recent studies have linked acute respiratory and cardiovascular outcomes to measurements or estimates of traffic-related air pollutants at homes or schools. However, few studies have evaluated these outdoor measurements and estimates against personal exposure measurements. We compared measured and modeled home outdoor concentrations with personal measurements of traffic-related air pollutants in the Los Angeles air basin (Whittier and Riverside). Personal exposure of 63 children with asthma and 15 homes were assessed for particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5μm (PM2.5), elemental carbon (EC), and organic carbon (OC) during sixteen 10-day monitoring runs. Regression models to predict daily home outdoor PM2.5, EC, and OC were constructed using home outdoor measurements, geographical and meteorological parameters, as well as CALINE4 estimates at outdoor home sites, which represent the concentrations from local traffic sources. These home outdoor models showed the variance explained (R 2) was 0.97 and 0.94 for PM2.5, 0.91 and 0.83 for OC, and 0.76 and 0.87 for EC in Riverside and Whittier, respectively. The PM2.5 outdoor estimates correlated well with the personal measurements (Riverside R 2 = 0.65 and Whittier R 2 = 0.69). However, excluding potentially inaccurate samples from Riverside, the correlation between personal exposure to carbonaceous species and home outdoor estimates in Whittier was moderate for EC (R 2 = 0.37) and poor for OC (R 2 = 0.08). The CALINE4 estimates alone were not correlated with personal measurements of EC or other pollutants. While home outdoor estimates provide good approximations for daily personal PM2.5 exposure, they may not be adequate for estimating daily personal exposure to EC and O

Malocclusion complexity and orthodontic treatment need in children with autism spectrum disorder.

OBJECTIVES This study aimed to investigate the malocclusion complexity and orthodontic treatment need among children with and without autism spectrum disorder (ASD) referred for orthodontic treatment by quantifying the Discrepancy Index (DI) and Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN). MATERIALS AND METHODS Dental records of 48 ASD and 49 non-ASD consecutive patients aged between 9 and 18 years (median age 13.0 years) referred for orthodontic treatment were reviewed and compared. The Discrepancy Index (DI) was quantified to determine the malocclusion complexity, and the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN), including the Dental Health Component (IOTN-DHC) and Aesthetic Component (IOTN-AC), was quantified to determine the orthodontic treatment need. Statistical analysis included descriptive analysis, Pearson chi-square tests, Fisher's exact test, Mann-Whitney U tests, and several univariate and multivariate regression analyses. The statistical analysis used descriptive analysis, Pearson chi-square test, Fisher's exact test, and multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS The results show that both malocclusion complexity (DI, p = 0.0010) and orthodontic treatment need (IOTN-DHC, p = 0.0025; IOTN-AC p = 0.0009) were significantly higher in children with ASD. Furthermore, children with ASD had a higher prevalence of increased overjet (p = .0016) and overbite (p = .031). CONCLUSIONS Malocclusion complexity and orthodontic treatment need are statistically significantly higher among children with ASD than children without ASD, independent of age and sex. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Children with autism may benefit from visits to a dental specialist (orthodontist) to prevent, to some extent, developing malocclusions from an early age

Electrocardiographic ST-Segment Depression and Exposure to Traffic‐Related Aerosols in Elderly Subjects with Coronary Artery Disease

BackgroundAir pollutants have not been associated with ambulatory electrocardiographic evidence of ST-segment depression ≥ 1 mm (probable cardiac ischemia). We previously found that markers of primary (combustion-related) organic aerosols and gases were positively associated with circulating biomarkers of inflammation and ambulatory blood pressure in the present cohort panel study of elderly subjects with coronary artery disease.ObjectivesWe specifically aimed to evaluate whether exposure markers of primary organic aerosols and ultrafine particles were more strongly associated with ST-segment depression of ≥ 1 mm than were secondary organic aerosols or PM2.5 (particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 µm) mass.MethodsWe evaluated relations of air pollutants to ambulatory electrocardiographic evidence of cardiac ischemia over 10 days in 38 subjects without ST depression on baseline electrocardiographs. Exposures were measured outdoors in retirement communities in the Los Angeles basin, including daily size-fractionated particle mass and hourly markers of primary and secondary organic aerosols and gases. Generalized estimating equations were used to estimate odds of hourly ST-segment depression (≥ 1 mm) from hourly air pollution exposures and to estimate relative rates of daily counts of ST-segment depression from daily average exposures, controlling for potential confounders.ResultsWe found significant positive associations of hourly ST-segment depression with markers of combustion-related aerosols and gases averaged 1-hr through 3-4 days, but not secondary (photochemically aged) organic aerosols or ozone. The odds ratio per interquartile increase in 2-day average primary organic carbon (5.2 µg/m3) was 15.4 (95% confidence interval, 3.5-68.2). Daily counts of ST-segment depression were consistently associated with primary combustion markers and 2-day average quasi-ultrafine particles &lt; 0.25 µm.ConclusionsResults suggest that exposure to quasi-ultrafine particles and combustion-related pollutants (predominantly from traffic) increase the risk of myocardial ischemia, coherent with our previous findings for systemic inflammation and blood pressure

Modelling Clock Synchronization in the Chess gMAC WSN Protocol

We present a detailled timed automata model of the clock synchronization algorithm that is currently being used in a wireless sensor network (WSN) that has been developed by the Dutch company Chess. Using the Uppaal model checker, we establish that in certain cases a static, fully synchronized network may eventually become unsynchronized if the current algorithm is used, even in a setting with infinitesimal clock drifts

First-Trimester Follistatin-Like-3 Levels in Pregnancies Complicated by Subsequent Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Objective: To determine whether maternal levels of follistatin-like-3 (FSTL3), an inhibitor of activin and myostatin involved in glucose homeostasis, are altered in the first trimester of pregnancies complicated by subsequent gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Research Design and Methods: This was a nested case-control study of subjects enrolled in a prospective cohort of pregnant women with and without GDM ($\geq$2 abnormal values on a 100-g glucose tolerance test at ~28 weeks of gestation). We measured FSTL3 levels in serum collected during the first trimester of pregnancy. Logistic regression analyses were used to determine the risk of GDM. Results: Women who developed GDM (n = 37) had lower first-trimester serum levels of FSTL3 compared with women who did not (n = 127) (median 10,789 [interquartile range 7,013-18,939] vs. 30,670 [18,370-55,484] pg/ml, P < 0.001). When subjects were divided into tertiles based on FSTL3 levels, women with the lowest levels demonstrated a marked increase in risk for developing GDM in univariate (odds ratio 11.2 [95% CI 3.6-35.3]) and multivariate (14.0 [4.1-47.9]) analyses. There was a significant negative correlation between first-trimester FSTL3 levels and ~28-week nonfasting glucose levels (r = -0.30, P < 0.001). Conclusions: First-trimester FSTL3 levels are associated with glucose intolerance and GDM later in pregnancy