Job search requirements for older unemployment: Transitions to employment, early retirement and disability benefits

We use a recent policy change in the Netherlands to study how changes in search requirements for the older unemployed affect their transition rates to employment, early retirement and sickness/disability benefits. The reform, becoming effective on January 1 2004, requires the elderly to formally report their job search efforts to the employment office in order to avoid a (temporary) cut in benefits. Before the new law was passed, unemployed individuals were allowed to stop all search activity at the moment they turned 57.5. Estimating various duration models using difference-in-difference and regression discontinuity approaches, we find that for several groups of individuals who are affected by the policy change, the stricter search requirements significantly increases their entry rate into employment. However, we also find evidence of a higher outflow to sickness/disability insurance schemes, a presumably unwanted side-effect of the policy change

Does influence beget autonomy? Clarifying the relationship between social and personal power

We iteratively develop and test a model to clarify the relationship between both high and low levels of social (influence) and personal (autonomy) power. A meta-analysis synthesising primary data (n = 298) and secondary data (n = 498) found that impaired personal power coincided with impaired social power, but not vice versa. Unexpectedly, elevated social power did not coincide with elevated personal power, suggesting that the association between influence and autonomy attenuates with increasing levels of power. Predictions arising from the meta-analysis and our revised theoretical model were supported in a subsequent study (n = 266). We discuss implications of these findings and avenues for future research

Gain spectroscopy of a type-II VECSEL chip

Using optical pump-white light probe spectroscopy the gain dynamics is investigated for a VECSEL chip which is based on a type-II heterostructure. The active region the chip consists of a GaAs/(GaIn)As/Ga(AsSb)/(GaIn)As/GaAs multiple quantum well. For this structure, a fully microscopic theory predicts a modal room temperature gain at a wavelength of 1170 nm, which is confirmed by experimental spectra. The results show a gain buildup on the type-II chip which is delayed relative to that of a type-I chip. This slower gain dynamics is attributed to a diminished cooling rate arising from reduced electron-hole scattering.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Snowmass 2001: Jet Energy Flow Project

Conventional cone jet algorithms arose from heuristic considerations of LO hard scattering coupled to independent showering. These algorithms implicitly assume that the final states of individual events can be mapped onto a unique set of jets that are in turn associated with a unique set of underlying hard scattering partons. Thus each final state hadron is assigned to a unique underlying parton. The Jet Energy Flow (JEF) analysis described here does not make such assumptions. The final states of individual events are instead described in terms of flow distributions of hadronic energy. Quantities of physical interest are constructed from the energy flow distribution summed over all events. The resulting analysis is less sensitive to higher order perturbative corrections and the impact of showering and hadronization than the standard cone algorithms.Comment: REVTeX4, 13 pages, 6 figures; Contribution to the P5 Working Group on QCD and Strong Interactions at Snowmass 200

High frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over the motor cortex: No diagnostic value for narcolepsy/cataplexy

Contains fulltext : 53462.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access

Gliadin induces neutrophil migration via engagement of the formyl peptide receptor, FPR1

Background Gliadin, the immunogenic component within gluten and trigger of celiac disease, is known to induce the production of Interleukin-8, a potent neutrophil-Activating and chemoattractant chemokine.We sought to study the involvement of neutrophils in the early immunological changes following gliadin exposure. Methods Utilizing immunofluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry, the redistribution of major tight junction protein, Zonula occludens (ZO)-1, and neutrophil recruitment were assessed in duodenal tissues of gliadin-gavaged C57BL/6 wild-Type and Lys-GFP reporter mice, respectively. Intravital microscopy with Lys-GFP mice allowed monitoring of neutrophil recruitment in response to luminal gliadin exposure in real time. In vitro chemotaxis assays were used to study murine and human neutrophil chemotaxis to gliadin, synthetic alpha-gliadin peptides and the neutrophil chemoattractant, fMet-Leu-Phe, in the presence or absence of a specific inhibitor of the fMet-Leu-Phe receptor-1 (FPR1), cyclosporine H. An irrelevant protein, zein, served as a control. Results Redistribution of ZO-1 and an influx of CD11b+Lys6G+ cells in the lamina propria of the small intestine were observed upon oral gavage of gliadin. In vivo intravital microscopy revealed a slowing down of GFP+ cells within the vessels and influx in the mucosal tissue within 2 hours after challenge. In vitro chemotaxis assays showed that gliadin strongly induced neutrophil migration, similar to fMet-Leu-Phe.We identified thirteen synthetic gliadin peptide motifs that induced cell migration. Blocking of FPR1 completely abrogated the fMet-Leu-Phe-, gliadin- and synthetic peptide-induced migration. Conclusions Gliadin possesses neutrophil chemoattractant properties similar to the classical neutrophil chemoattractant, fMet-Leu-Phe, and likewise uses FPR1 in the process. Copyright