Formation of dense partonic matter in relativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions at RHIC: Experimental evaluation by the PHENIX collaboration

Extensive experimental data from high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions were recorded using the PHENIX detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The comprehensive set of measurements from the first three years of RHIC operation includes charged particle multiplicities, transverse energy, yield ratios and spectra of identified hadrons in a wide range of transverse momenta (p_T), elliptic flow, two-particle correlations, non-statistical fluctuations, and suppression of particle production at high p_T. The results are examined with an emphasis on implications for the formation of a new state of dense matter. We find that the state of matter created at RHIC cannot be described in terms of ordinary color neutral hadrons.Comment: 510 authors, 127 pages text, 56 figures, 1 tables, LaTeX. Submitted to Nuclear Physics A as a regular article; v3 has minor changes in response to referee comments. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (or will be) publicly available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.htm

A multidisciplinary perspective on COVID-19 exit strategies

Lockdowns and associated measures imposed in response to the COVID-19 crisis inflict severe damage to society. Across the globe, scientists and policymakers study ways to lift measures while maintaining control of virus spread in circumstances that continuously change due to the evolution of new variants and increasing vaccination coverage. In this process, it has become clear that finding and analysing exit strategies, which are a key aspect of pandemic mitigation in all consecutive waves of infection, is not solely a matter of epidemiological modeling but has many different dimensions that need to be balanced and therefore requires input from many different disciplines. Here, we document an attempt to investigate exit strategies from a multidisciplinary perspective through the Science versus Corona project in the Netherlands. In this project, scientists and laypeople were challenged to submit (components of) exit strategies. A selection of these were implemented in a formal model, and we have evaluated the scenarios from a multidisciplinary perspective, utilizing expertise in epidemiology, economics, psychology, law, mathematics, and history. We argue for the integration of multidisciplinary perspectives on COVID-19 and more generally in pandemic mitigation, highlight open challenges, and present an agenda for further research into exit strategies and their assessmen

The diversity and evolution of pollination systems in large plant clades: Apocynaceae as a case study

Background and Aims Large clades of angiosperms are often characterized by diverse interactions with pollinators, but how these pollination systems are structured phylogenetically and biogeographically is still uncertain for most families. Apocynaceae is a clade of >5300 species with a worldwide distribution. A database representing >10 % of species in the family was used to explore the diversity of pollinators and evolutionary shifts in pollination systems across major clades and regions. Methods The database was compiled from published and unpublished reports. Plants were categorized into broad pollination systems and then subdivided to include bimodal systems. These were mapped against the five major divisions of the family, and against the smaller clades. Finally, pollination systems were mapped onto a phylogenetic reconstruction that included those species for which sequence data are available, and transition rates between pollination systems were calculated. Key Results Most Apocynaceae are insect pollinated with few records of bird pollination. Almost three-quarters of species are pollinated by a single higher taxon (e.g. flies or moths); 7 % have bimodal pollination systems, whilst the remaining approx. 20 % are insect generalists. The less phenotypically specialized flowers of the Rauvolfioids are pollinated by a more restricted set of pollinators than are more complex flowers within the Apocynoids + Periplocoideae + Secamonoideae + Asclepiadoideae (APSA) clade. Certain combinations of bimodal pollination systems are more common than others. Some pollination systems are missing from particular regions, whilst others are over-represented. Conclusions Within Apocynaceae, interactions with pollinators are highly structured both phylogenetically and biogeographically. Variation in transition rates between pollination systems suggest constraints on their evolution, whereas regional differences point to environmental effects such as filtering of certain pollinators from habitats. This is the most extensive analysis of its type so far attempted and gives important insights into the diversity and evolution of pollination systems in large clades

PHASE 1/2A STUDY OF GLUTATHIONE PEGYLATED LIPOSOMAL DOXORUBICIN (2B3-101) IN BREAST CANCER PATIENTS WITH BRAIN METASTASES (BCBM) OR RECURRENT HIGH GRADE GLIOMAS (HGG)

Experimentele farmacotherapi