Spin asymmetries for electron-thallium scattering calculated with the relativistic convergentclose-coupling method

Spin asymmetries for elastic and inelastic scattering of electrons from thallium are presented. Thalliumis a heavy target (Z 81) and the spin asymmetries can be caused by relativistic effects (spin-orbit interactions) in addition to exchange effects

Short-interval intracortical inhibition: Comparison between conventional and threshold-tracking techniques

BACKGROUND: Short-interval intracortical inhibition (SICI) is conventionally measured as the relative amplitude reduction of motor evoked potentials (MEPs) by subthreshold conditioning stimuli. In threshold-tracking SICI (T-SICI), stimulus intensity is instead adjusted repeatedly to maintain a constant MEP and inhibition is measured as the relative threshold increase. T-SICI is emerging as a useful diagnostic test, but its relationship to conventional amplitude SICI (A-SICI) is unclear. OBJECTIVE: To compare T-SICI and its reliability with conventional A-SICI measurements. METHODS: In twelve healthy volunteers (6 men, median age 30 years), conventional and T-SICI were recorded at conditioning stimuli (CS) of 50-80% resting motor threshold (RMT) and interstimulus interval of 2.5 ms. Measurements were repeated on the same day and at least a week later by a single operator. RESULTS: Across the CS range, mean group T-SICI showed a strong linear relationship to the mean group values measured by conventional technique (y = 29.7-0.3x, R2 = 0.99), but there was considerable interindividual variability. At CS 60-80% RMT, T-SICI had excellent intraday (intraclass correlation coefficient, ICC, 0.81-0.92) and adequate-to-excellent interday (ICC 0.61-0.88) reproducibility. Conventional SICI took longer to complete (median of 5.8 vs 3.8 min, p < 0.001) and tended to have poorer reproducibility (ICC 0.17-0.42 intraday, 0.37-0.51 interday). With T-SICI, smaller sample sizes were calculated for equally powered interventional studies. CONCLUSION: The close relationship between conventional and T-SICI suggests that both techniques reflect similar cortical inhibitory mechanisms. Threshold-tracking measurements of SICI may be able to improve reproducibility, to shorten acquisition time and to reduce sample sizes for interventional studies compared with the conventional technique

Exploratory topic modeling with distributional semantics

As we continue to collect and store textual data in a multitude of domains, we are regularly confronted with material whose largely unknown thematic structure we want to uncover. With unsupervised, exploratory analysis, no prior knowledge about the content is required and highly open-ended tasks can be supported. In the past few years, probabilistic topic modeling has emerged as a popular approach to this problem. Nevertheless, the representation of the latent topics as aggregations of semi-coherent terms limits their interpretability and level of detail. This paper presents an alternative approach to topic modeling that maps topics as a network for exploration, based on distributional semantics using learned word vectors. From the granular level of terms and their semantic similarity relations global topic structures emerge as clustered regions and gradients of concepts. Moreover, the paper discusses the visual interactive representation of the topic map, which plays an important role in supporting its exploration.Comment: Conference: The Fourteenth International Symposium on Intelligent Data Analysis (IDA 2015

Application of random coherence order selection in gradient-enhanced multidimensional NMR

Development of multidimensional NMR is essential to many applications, for example in high resolution structural studies of biomolecules. Multidimensional techniques enable separation of NMR signals over several dimensions, improving signal resolution, whilst also allowing identification of new connectivities. However, these advantages come at a significant cost. The Fourier transform theorem requires acquisition of a grid of regularly spaced points to satisfy the Nyquist criterion, while frequency discrimination and acquisition of a pure phase spectrum require acquisition of both quadrature components for each time point in every indirect (non-acquisition) dimension, adding a factor of 2$^{N−1}$ to the number of free-induction decays which must be acquired, where $N$ is the number of dimensions. Compressed sensing (CS) ℓ$_{1}$-norm minimisation in combination with non-uniform sampling (NUS) has been shown to be extremely successful in overcoming the Nyquist criterion. Previously, maximum entropy reconstruction has also been used to overcome the limitation of frequency discrimination, processing data acquired with only one quadrature component at a given time interval, known as random phase detection (RPD), allowing a factor of two reduction in the number of points for each indirect dimension (Maciejewski et al. 2011 $\small \textit{PNAS}$ 108 16640). However, whilst this approach can be easily applied in situations where the quadrature components are acquired as amplitude modulated data, the same principle is not easily extended to phase modulated (P-/N-type) experiments where data is acquired in the form exp ($\textit{iωt}$) or exp (−$\textit{iωt}$), and which make up many of the multidimensional experiments used in modern NMR. Here we demonstrate a modification of the CS ℓ$_1$-norm approach to allow random coherence order selection (RCS) for phase modulated experiments; we generalise the nomenclature for RCS and RPD as random quadrature detection (RQD). With this method, the power of RQD can be extended to the full suite of experiments available to modern NMR spectroscopy, allowing resolution enhancements for all indirect dimensions; alone or in combination with NUS, RQD can be used to improve experimental resolution, or shorten experiment times, of considerable benefit to the challenging applications undertaken by modern NMR.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from IOP Publishing via http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/699/1/01200

Application of genomic and quantitative genetic tools to identify candidate resistance genes for brown rot resistance in peach.

The availability of a complete peach genome assembly and three different peach genome sequences created by our group provide new opportunities for application of genomic data and can improve the power of the classical Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL) approaches to identify candidate genes for peach disease resistance. Brown rot caused by Monilinia spp., is the most important fungal disease of stone fruits worldwide. Improved levels of peach fruit rot resistance have been identified in some cultivars and advanced selections developed in the UC Davis and USDA breeding programs. Whole genome sequencing of the Pop-DF parents lead to discovery of high-quality SNP markers for QTL genome scanning in this experimental population. Pop-DF created by crossing a brown rot moderately resistant cultivar 'Dr. Davis' and a brown rot resistant introgression line, 'F8,1-42', derived from an initial almond × peach interspecific hybrid, was evaluated for brown rot resistance in fruit of harvest maturity over three seasons. Using the SNP linkage map of Pop-DF and phenotypic data collected with inoculated fruit, a genome scan for QTL identified several SNP markers associated with brown rot resistance. Two of these QTLs were placed on linkage group 1, covering a large (physical) region on chromosome 1. The genome scan for QTL and SNP effects predicted several candidate genes associated with disease resistance responses in other host-pathogen systems. Two potential candidate genes, ppa011763m and ppa026453m, may be the genes primarily responsible for M. fructicola recognition in peach, activating both PAMP-triggered immunity (PTI) and effector-triggered immunity (ETI) responses. Our results provide a foundation for further genetic dissection, marker assisted breeding for brown rot resistance, and development of peach cultivars resistant to brown rot

Quaternary research in New Zealand since 2000: an overview

With the AQUA milestone of 30 years it seems an appropriate time to review the progress and achievements of Quaternary research in New Zealand. This article highlights some of the major achievements since the formal review of New Zealand’s Quaternary record by Newnham et al. (1999). The focus here is on paleoclimate and geochronology and is by no means a comprehensive review. We encourage members to write future articles for Quaternary Australasia (QA) about their exciting projects to keep the wider Australasian community informed. One of the main differences between Australian and New Zealand Quaternary science is the wide use of tephrochronology to correlate and date deposits and events across the landscape, helping to link terrestrial and marine records, especially in the North Island. There have been significant advances using glass-based fission-track dating, corrected for annealing, and the use of the electron microprobe and laser ablation inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry for obtaining major- and trace-element analyses, respectively, to chemically fingerprint individual glass shards in tephras to aid their correlation (Shane, 2000; Lowe, 2011). Also the identification and analysis of cryptotephras (concentrations of glass shards not visible as a layer) have greatly expanded the geographic range of many tephras, allowing the application of tephrochronology as a stratigraphic and dating tool across much wider areas than previously possible (Gehrels et al., 2008)

Conventional and threshold-tracking transcranial magnetic stimulation tests for single-handed operation

Most single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) parameters (e.g., motor threshold, stimulus-response function, cortical silent period) are used to examine corticospinal excitability. Paired-pulse TMS paradigms (e.g., short-and long-interval intracortical inhibition (SICI/LICI), short-interval intracortical facilitation (SICF), and short-and long-latency afferent inhibition (SAI/LAI)) provide information about intracortical inhibitory and facilitatory networks. This has long been done by the conventional TMS method of measuring changes in the size of the motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) in response to stimuli of constant intensity. An alternative threshold-tracking approach has recently been introduced whereby the stimulus intensity for a target amplitude is tracked. The diagnostic utility of threshold-tracking SICI in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has been shown in previous studies. However, threshold-tracking TMS has only been used in a few centers, in part due to the lack of readily available software but also perhaps due to uncertainty over its relationship to conventional single-and paired-pulse TMS measurements. A menu-driven suite of semi-automatic programs has been developed to facilitate the broader use of threshold-tracking TMS techniques and to enable direct comparisons with conventional amplitude measurements. These have been designed to control three types of magnetic stimulators and allow recording by a single operator of the common single-and paired-pulse TMS protocols. This paper shows how to record a number of single-and paired-pulse TMS protocols on healthy subjects and analyze the recordings. These TMS protocols are fast and easy to perform and can provide useful biomarkers in different neurological disorders, particularly neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS

Short interval intracortical inhibition: Variability of amplitude and threshold-tracking measurements with 6 or 10 stimuli per point

Reduced short-interval intracortical inhibition (SICI) in motor neuron disease has been demonstrated by amplitude changes (A-SICI) and threshold-tracking (T-SICI) using 10 stimuli per inter-stimulus interval (ISI). To test whether fewer stimuli would suffice, A-SICI and T-SICI were recorded twice from 30 healthy subjects using 6 and 10 stimuli per ISI. Using fewer stimuli increased mean A-SICI variances by 23.8% but the 7.3% increase in T-SICI variance was not significant. We conclude that our new parallel threshold-tracking SICI protocol, with 6 stimuli per ISI, can reduce time and stimulus numbers by 40% without appreciable loss of accuracy

Fitness, fatness and active school commuting among Liverpool schoolchildren

This study investigated differences in health outcomes between active and passive school commuters, and examined associations between parent perceptions of the neighborhood environment and active school commuting (ASC). One hundred-ninety-four children (107 girls), aged 9–10 years from ten primary schools in Liverpool, England, participated in this cross-sectional study. Measures of stature, body mass, waist circumference and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) were taken. School commute mode (active/passive) was self-reported and parents completed the neighborhood environment walkability scale for youth. Fifty-three percent of children commuted to school actively. Schoolchildren who lived in more deprived neighborhoods perceived by parents as being highly connected, unaesthetic and having mixed land-use were more likely to commute to school actively (p < 0.05). These children were at greatest risk of being obese and aerobically unfit(p < 0.01). Our results suggest that deprivation may explain the counterintuitive relationship between obesity, CRF and ASC in Liverpool schoolchildren. These findings encourage researchers and policy makers to be equally mindful of the social determinants of health when advocating behavioral and environmental health interventions. Further research exploring contextual factors to ASC, and examining the concurrent effect of ASC and diet on weight status by deprivation is needed

Critical thinking in community nursing: Is this the 7th C?

Compassion in practice and the drive to deliver the 6Cs—care, compassion, competence, communication, courage, and commitment—has been embraced within community nursing practice since its launch in 2012 (Commissioning Board Chief Nursing Officer and Department of Health (DH) Chief Nursing Adviser, 2012). Following the shortcomings in care discovered at the Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust and the findings of inquiries (e.g. Francis, 2013; Keogh, 2013), nursing as a profession has been under pressure to demonstrate to the public that nurses do care. This need comes under increasing scrutiny when working in the homes of patients, who rightly require demonstration of accountability of care. Effective therapeutic relationships with patients in the community are built on trust, and patients should feel confident that clinical care is appropriate and evidence based (Griffith, 2015). A strong focus upon the core themes of the 6Cs is both integral to and apparent in daily practice within the community setting. The terminology of the 6Cs is a frequent feature of discussions, supervision, teaching, and record keeping. However, is it possible that in this drive to improve the public image of nursing through the focus of care and compassion, the concept of critical thinking is considered secondary? Should critical thinking in community nursing practice be awarded a ‘C’ in its own right