IBA-Europhysics prize in applied nuclear science and nuclear methods in medicine

The Nuclear Physics Board of the European Physical Society is pleased to announce that the 2013 IBA-Europhysics Prize in Applied Nuclear Science and Nuclear Methods in Medicine is awarded to Prof. Marco Durante, Director of the Biophysics Department at GSI Helmholtz Center (Darmstadt, Germany); Professor at the Technical University of Darmstadt (Germany) and Adjunct Professor at the Temple University, Philadelphia, USA. The prize was presented in the closing Session of the INPC 2013 conference by Mr. Thomas Servais, R&D Manager for Accelerator Development at the IBA group, who sponsor the IBA Europhysics Prize. The Prize Diploma was presented by Dr. I J Douglas MacGregor, Chair-elect of the EPS Nuclear Physics Division and Chair of the IBA Prize committee

Short range nucleon correlations studied with electron and photon probes

This paper reviews experimental research into two- and three-body nucleon-nucleon interactions, carried out by the University of Glasgow Nuclear Physics research group. A key aim of these studies has been to elucidate the role of short-range nucleon-nucleon correlations (SRC). Studies of photon-induced two- and three-nucleon emission reactions from a range of light nuclei, carried out at the 840 MeV Mainz electron microtron MAMI-B, have provided detailed information on the contributing mechanisms. More recent electron scattering studies at the 6.0 GeV Jefferson Laboratory have probed SRC at high values of Q^2 and x_B and suggested a connection between SRC and the EMC effect

Strategy, Operations, and the Margin of Victory

Margin of Victory: Five Battles That Changed the Face of Modern War, by Douglas Macgrego

Making hospital shops healthier:evaluating the implementation of a mandatory standard for limiting food products and promotions in hospital retail outlets

Background The range of products stocked and their promotions in food retail outlets in healthcare settings can affect food choices by staff, patients and visitors. The innovative Scottish Healthcare Retail Standard (HRS) is a national mandatory scheme requiring all hospital food retail outlets to change the balance of food products stocked and their promotion to comply with nutritional criteria and promotional restrictions. The aim is to facilitate healthier food choices in healthcare settings. This study examined the implementation of HRS and the impact on foods stocked and promoted. Methods The study aimed to examine implementation process and changes to the retail environment in relation to food promotions and choice. A sample of hospital retail outlets (n=17) including shops and trolley services were surveyed using a mixed methods design comprising: (a) structured observational audits of stock, layout and promotions (with a specific focus on chocolate and fruit product lines, and) (b) face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with the shop manager or nominated members of staff (n=32). Data were collected at Wave 1 (2016), at the beginning and during the early stages of HRS implementation; and Wave 2, 12 months later, after the HRS implementation deadline. Results All outlets, both commercial and not-for-profit, in the sample successfully implemented HRS. Implementation was reported to be more challenging by independent shop managers compared to chain store staff. Retail managers identified areas where more implementation guidance and support could have been provided. The number of chocolate product lines and promotions reduced substantially between Waves 1 and 2, but with no substantial increase in fruit product lines and promotions. Despite initial negative expectations of HRS’s impact, managers identified some opportunities in the scheme and positive changes in the supply chain. Conclusions Positive changes in food retail outlets occurred after hospital shops were required to implement HRS. By creating a consistent approach across hospital shops in Scotland, HRS changed the food retail environment for hospital staff, visitors and patients. HRS provides a regulatory template and implementation learning points for influencing retail environments in other jurisdictions and settings

Two- and three-nucleon emission reactions measured using photon and electron probes

Nuclear mean-field models [1] are highly successful in describing a wide range of properties of atomic nuclei, including their structure, binding energies, and the spins and parities of their quantum states. However, by their very nature, mean-field models cannot account for the effects of residual two- and three-body forces between nucleons. In particular they over-predict the measured occupancy of valence nucleon orbits in a wide range of nuclei and under-predict the occupancies of states above the Fermi surface [2]. It has long been thought that this transfer of occupation from valence to higher-lying energy levels may be due to interactions, or correlations, between nucleons, which are not described by mean-field models. The electromagnetic interaction is well understood [3]. Hence electron and photon probes provide an excellent means of studying the internal structure of nuclei and the interactions between nucleons. This thesis describes an extensive programme of photon- and electron-induced experiments, most of which were led by the author, which studied the ejection of two, or three, correlated nucleons from atomic nuclei, in order to deduce information about the interactions between them. This work was carried out over a period of many years, primarily at the electron Microtron facility (MAMI) of the University of Mainz, Germany [4]. The author was assisted in this work by six Research Associates and ten Research Students working on different aspects of the programme. A wide range of experiments was carried out on several light nuclei: 3He, 4He, 6Li, 12C and 16O. Real photon experiments used the tagged-photon technique [A1] to measure the energy of incident photons. Many different aspects of two-nucleon emission reactions were studied, including their photon energy dependence, missing energy dependence, recoil momentum dependence, angular dependence, dependence on kinematic conditions, isospin dependence and their dependence on photon linear polarisation. The work was extended to study the contribution of three-body interactions in 3He and 12C by looking at the simultaneous emission of three nucleons from light nuclei, as well as the emission of proton-deuteron pairs. Collaborations were formed with nuclear theoreticians working in Valencia, Ghent and Pavia in order to provide a detailed interpretation of the data obtained. This involved filtering the predictions of theory calculations through the physical acceptance of the experimental apparatus to allow meaningful comparisons with measured observables. The author joined the CLAS collaboration at the Jefferson Lab 6.0 GeV electron accelerator at Newport News, Virginia, USA in 2009. The Jefferson Lab facilities allowed nucleon-nucleon correlations to be studied with higher energy probes, permitting electron scattering measurements to be carried out at large values of fourmomentum transfer and at values of Bjoerken-x greater than 1. This latter condition explicitly requires the participation of more than one nucleon. Several key results from this work have advanced our understanding of nucleon-nucleon correlations. The previously-noted strong isospin dependence of nucleon-nucleon correlations was observed to persist at higher energies, even though the detailed mechanisms evolve with energy transfer. In addition, the strong observed charge dependence of the highmomentum fraction of nucleons within the nucleus has been related to the isospin dependence of the correlations. Finally, evidence has been found which supports a connection between short-range correlations (SRC) and the “EMC effect”, in which the structure function for Deep Inelastic Scattering (DIS) of leptons on nucleons in heavy nuclei is strongly suppressed compared to the same reaction in light nuclei. The author led the programme of two- and three-nucleon emission studies at Mainz from the mid-1980s onwards, writing and presenting seven experiment proposals [5-11] which were approved by the Mainz International Programme Advisory Committee. These proposals provide a strong rationale for undertaking these investigations. Throughout his Mainz work, the author worked closely with academic colleagues from the University of Glasgow, as well as physicists from Mainz, Edinburgh and Tübingen. The Glasgow research group designed, constructed, tested and subsequently upgraded, two tagged photon spectrometers which underpinned and enabled the photon-induced experiments described in this thesis. The author took responsibility for the design, production, installation and testing of two “trigger” proton detector hodoscopes. The first detector array was used in experiments at photon energies up to 180 MeV, while the second was used in experiments at higher energies. Correlated neutrons and protons were detected in a separate “time-of-flight” scintillation detector array [12], developed jointly by physicists from Glasgow and Tübingen universities. The author directed the analysis of the majority of the data obtained from the experiments at Mainz, while other Glasgow research staff developed data collection and analysis software. Colleagues from Tübingen, Mainz and Edinburgh contributed cryogenic targets and analysed the data from the remaining experiments. The author’s work on equipment development is detailed in section A of this thesis. The author contributed to the design, installation and testing of the initial tagged photon spectrometer at the Mainz laboratory, before leading the development and production of two detector hodoscopes used to detect protons from photon-induced reactions. He also made contributions to studies of diamond radiators which were used to produce linearly polarised photons used in some of the later experiments. Section B forms the central part of this thesis. The papers in this section describe the results and interpretation of an extended programme of two- and three-nucleon emission reaction studies carried out at Mainz under the leadership of the author. In addition to directing the experimental work, the author led the drafting, revision and production of the majority of the papers in this section. He initiated close working relationships with three different groups of theoretical physicists in order to carry out calculations to interpret the experimental data. Some of these theoreticians are coauthors on particular papers. The papers in Section C report results from a small number of selected experiments at the higher energy 6.0 GeV Jefferson Laboratory electron accelerator. This work provides valuable additional insight into correlations between nucleons in atomic nuclei and shows how this field has developed with the availability of higher energy electromagnetic probes. The author was co-investigator on a major Jefferson Lab grant [13] which laid the foundations for the analyses reported in this section. Section D contains a recent conference review paper by the author which provides a concise and succinct summary of the most important work included in this thesis

Experimental Tests of Nonsurgical Reproductive Inhibitors to Prevent Coyote Reproduction

Sterilization is an effective nonlethal tool to reduce livestock depredation by coyotes (Canis latrans) because adults without pups to provision are less likely to kill livestock. Surgical sterilization is costly and invasive, so identifying non-surgical methods for canids that allows wide-scale application is important. We conducted a preliminary assessment of two types of reproductive inhibitors (gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) vaccine and deslorelin, a GnRH agonist, on coyote reproductive capabilities. We treated captive coyotes with a GnRH vaccine (n = 6 males, n = 6 females) or deslorelin (n = 6 males), measured number of litters and pups born, and compared their behavior and hormone levels to captive coyote pairs in which the male was surgically vasectomized (n = 6). At least half of the pairs receiving treatment with either of the non-surgical reproductive inhibitors produced pups and litter size was larger than expected compared to historical records. Male coyotes treated with deslorelin showed decreased testosterone levels, whereas there was no difference in testosterone levels in males treated with GnRH vaccine compared to controls. Behavior did not differ between any groups. Despite the lack of efficacy of either reproductive inhibitor tested, our research suggests that hormonal alterations that disrupt reproduction of coyotes are unlikely to negatively affect behavior and further investigation of non-surgical reproductive inhibitors for wild canids is warranted

“It's like sludge green”: Young people's perceptions of standardised tobacco packaging in the UK

Background and Aims Standardised tobacco packaging was introduced in the United Kingdom (UK) in May 2016, together with larger graphic warnings. This study explored young Scottish people's awareness of and perceptions about standardised tobacco packaging in the UK Design Qualitative study using 16 focus groups conducted February‐March 2017. Setting Four schools in Scotland based in areas of differing socioeconomic status (high vs medium/low) and two levels of urbanity (large urban vs small town/other urban). Participants Eighty‐two S2 (13‐14 years) and S4 (15‐16 years) students who were smokers or at‐risk non‐smokers. Measurements Focus groups explored perceptions of standardised packaging and health warnings. The qualitative data underwent thematic analysis. Findings Views about standardised packaging were generally negative. Packs were described as being unattractive, drab and less appealing than non‐standardised versions. The new health warnings generated negative affective, often aversive, responses. These varied depending on the image's perceived ‘gruesomeness' and authenticity. Most participants thought that the impact would be greatest on young non/occasional smokers. There were divergent views about whether established smokers would be affected. Conclusions The introduction of standardised tobacco packaging and new larger graphic health warnings in the United Kingdom seems have reduced the perceived attractiveness of cigarette packs among young people in the UK who smoke or are at elevated risk of becoming smokers, disrupting positive brand imagery (the brand heuristic), increasing the salience of health warnings, and contributing to denormalising smoking

The genome sequence of the rosy footman, Miltochrista miniata (Forster, 1771)

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Miltochrista miniata (the Rosy Footman; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Erebidae). The genome sequence is 1057.0 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 32 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the W and Z sex chromosomes. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.93 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 23,879 protein coding genes

Deficiency in the mouse mitochondrial adenine nucleotide translocator isoform 2 gene is associated with cardiac noncompaction.

The mouse fetal and adult hearts express two adenine nucleotide translocator (ANT) isoform genes. The predominant isoform is the heart-muscle-brain ANT-isoform gene 1 (Ant1) while the other is the systemic Ant2 gene. Genetic inactivation of the Ant1 gene does not impair fetal development but results in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in postnatal mice. Using a knockin X-linked Ant2 allele in which exons 3 and 4 are flanked by loxP sites combined in males with a protamine 1 promoter driven Cre recombinase we created females heterozygous for a null Ant2 allele. Crossing the heterozygous females with the Ant2(fl), PrmCre(+) males resulted in male and female ANT2-null embryos. These fetuses proved to be embryonic lethal by day E14.5 in association with cardiac developmental failure, immature cardiomyocytes having swollen mitochondria, cardiomyocyte hyperproliferation, and cardiac failure due to hypertrabeculation/noncompaction. ANTs have two main functions, mitochondrial-cytosol ATP/ADP exchange and modulation of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore (mtPTP). Previous studies imply that ANT2 biases the mtPTP toward closed while ANT1 biases the mtPTP toward open. It has been reported that immature cardiomyocytes have a constitutively opened mtPTP, the closure of which signals the maturation of cardiomyocytes. Therefore, we hypothesize that the developmental toxicity of the Ant2 null mutation may be the result of biasing the cardiomyocyte mtPTP to remain open thus impairing cardiomyocyte maturation and resulting in cardiomyocyte hyperproliferation and failure of trabecular maturation. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled 'EBEC 2016: 19th European Bioenergetics Conference, Riva del Garda, Italy, July 2-6, 2016', edited by Prof. Paolo Bernardi