The sign of the day-night asymmetry for solar neutrinos

A qualitative understanding of the day-night asymmetry for solar neutrinos is provided. The greater night flux in nu_e is seen to be a consequence of the fact that the matter effect in the sun and that in the earth have the same sign. It is shown in the adiabatic approximation for the sun that for all values of the mixing angle theta_V between 0 and pi/2, the night flux of neutrinos is greater than the day flux. Only for small values of theta_V where the adiabatic approximation badly fails does the sign of the day-night asymmetry reverse.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figures, typos corrected and references adde

Global Analysis with SNO: Toward the Solution of the Solar Neutrino Problem

We perform a global analysis of the latest solar neutrino data including the SNO result on the CC-event rate. This result further favors the LMA solution of the solar neutrino problem. The best fit values of parameters we find are: \Delta m^2 = (4.8 - 5.0)10^{-5} eV^2, tan^2 \theta = 0.35 - 0.38, f_B = 1.08 - 1.12, and f_{hep} = 1 - 4. With respect to this best fit the LOW solution is accepted at 90% C.L.. The Vacuum oscillation solution with \Delta m^2 = 1.4 10^{-10} eV^2, gives good fit of the data provided that the boron neutrino flux is substantially smaller than the SSM flux (f_B \sim 0.5). The SMA solution is accepted only at 3\sigma level. We find that vacuum oscillations to sterile neutrino, VAC(sterile), with f_B \sim 0.5 also give rather good global fit of the data. All other sterile solutions are strongly disfavored. We check the quality of the fit by constructing the pull-off diagrams of observables. Predictions for the day-night asymmetry, spectrum distortion and NC/CC ratio at SNO are calculated. In the best fit points of the global solutions we find: A_{DN}^{CC} \approx (7 - 8)% for LMA, \sim 3% for LOW, and (2 - 3)% for SMA. It will be difficult to see the distortion of the spectrum expected for LMA as well as LOW solutions. However, future SNO spectral data can significantly affect the VAC and SMA solutions. We also calculate expectations for the BOREXINO rate.Comment: 35 pages, latex, 9 figures; results of analysis slightly changed due to different treatment of the hep neutrino flux; predictions for NC/CC ratio and Borexino rate adde

The effect of spontaneous collapses on neutrino oscillations

We compute the effect of collapse models on neutrino oscillations. The effect of the collapse is to modify the evolution of the `spatial' part of the wave function, which indirectly amounts to a change on the flavor components. In many respects, this phenomenon is similar to neutrino propagation through matter. For the analysis we use the mass proportional CSL model, and perform the calculation to second order perturbation theory. As we will show, the CSL prediction is very small - mainly due to the very small mass of neutrinos - and practically undetectable.Comment: 24 pages, RevTeX. Updated versio

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Mining Relational Association Rules for Propositional Classification

In traditional classification setting, training data are represented as a single table, where each row corresponds to an example and each column to a predictor variable or the target variable. However, this prepositional (feature-based) representation is quite restrictive when data are organized into several tables of a database. In principle, relational data can be transformed into prepositional one by constructing prepositional features and performing classification according to some robust and well-known prepositional classification methods. Since prepositional features should capture relational properties of examples, multi-relational association rules can be adopted in feature construction. Propositionalisation based on relational association rules discovery is implemented in a relational classification framework, named MSRC, tightly integrated with a relational database. It performs the classification at different granularity levels and takes advantage from domain specific knowledge in form of hierarchies and rules. In addition, a feature reduction algorithm is integrated to remove redundant features. An application in classification of real-world geo-referenced census data analysis is reported

Dynamic control of MOF-5 crystal positioning using a magnetic field

Dynamic spatial control of MOF position is obtained by incorporating carbon-coated cobalt nanoparticles within metal organic framework (MOF)-5 crystals. The cobalt framework composite obtained responds efficiently to magnetic stimuli. A luminescent functionality is added, showing that multifunctional MOF devices can be prepared. This new generation of adaptive material is tested as a position-controlled molecular sensor. Copyright \ua9 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye

Interferon lambda-3 is not associated with clinical outcome in patients with HCV-induced compensated cirrhosis : a long-term cohort study

BACKGROUND: Interferon Lambda-3 (IFN-\u3bb3) gene polymorphism is associated with spontaneous clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and response to IFN-based therapy (IFN). However, very few data are available about its value in predicting sustained virologic response (SVR) in patients with cirrhosis, and whether IFN-\u3bb3 genotype influences liver disease progression remains unclear. METHODS: We determined IFN-\u3bb3 genotype by PCR in a cohort of patients with compensated HCV-related cirrhosis, enrolled between 1989 and 1992. Person-years follow-up was calculated for each individual from the date of enrolment to the development of first episode of decompensation, HCC, liver transplant, death or end of follow-up. The follow-up of patients who achieved SVR was censored at the time of IFN initiation. Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression analyses were used to assess the association between IFN-\u3bb3 genotype and clinical outcome. RESULTS: IFN-\u3bb3 was determined in 264 patients (52% males, mean age 57\ub18 years, 67% HCV genotype (G)1, while CC, CT and TT genotypes were 36%, 50% and 14%, respectively. During a median follow-up of 14.8 years, 149 (56%) patients received IFN. Overall, SVR was achieved in 31 (21%) patients, 40% among those with CC genotype (22% in G1 and 61% in G2, respectively) compared to 10% and 13% among patients with CT and TT genotypes (p<0.0001). Univariate and multivariate analyses found no association between IFN-\u3bb3 (CC vs. non-CC genotype) and disease progression. CONCLUSION: IFN-\u3bb3 determination is fundamental for allocating cirrhotic patients to be treated with IFN, while it has no value in predicting the outcome of the disease

The Relationship of Parental Knowledge to the Development of Extremely Low Birth Weight Infants

This study examined the relationship between parental experience, parental knowledge, and the development of extremely low birth weight infants. The subjects (N = 40) were extremely high-risk infants averaging 1000.0 grams birthweight and 28.1 weeks gestational age. The study found that mothers of preterm infants called upon the same types of experiences and sources of information about infancy as mothers of full-term infants. Further, ratings of maternal accuracy on the Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory accounted for 13% to 15% of the variation on the Mental Development Index (MDI) and Psychomotor Development Index (PDI) of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development at 8 months corrected age. The infants of mothers with greater than average knowledge about infancy scored approximately one standard deviation higher on both the MDI and the PDI than did the infants of mothers who had less than average knowledge about Infancy. Implications for intervention are discussed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67695/2/10.1177_105381519201600302.pd