Calogero-Vasiliev Oscillator in Dynamically Evolving Curved Spacetime

In a recent work, the consequences of quantizing a real scalar field $\Phi$ according to generalized ``quon'' statistics in a dynamically evolving curved spacetime (~which, prior to some initial time and subsequent to some later time, is flat~) were considered. Here a similar calculation is performed; this time we quantize $\Phi$ via the Calogero-Vasiliev oscillator algebra, described by a real parameter $\nu > -1/2$. It is found that both conservation ( $\nu \rightarrow \nu$ ) and anticonservation ( $\nu \rightarrow - \nu$ ) of statistics is allowed. We find that for mathematical consistency the Bogoliubov coefficients associated with the $i$'th field mode must satisfy $|\alpha_i |^2 - | \beta_i |^2 = 1$ with $| \beta_i |^2$ taking an integer value.Comment: 11 pages ( no figures ), RevTex - To appear in Physics Letters

The Canonical Partition Function for Quons

We calculate the canonical partition function $Z_N$ for a system of $N$ free particles obeying so-called `quon' statistics where $q$ is real and satisfies $|q|<1$ by using simple counting arguments. We observe that this system is afflicted by the Gibbs paradox and that $Z_N$ is independent of $q$. We demonstrate that such a system of particles obeys the ideal gas law and that the internal energy $U$ ( and hence the specific heat capacity $C_V$ ) is identical to that of a system of $N$ free particles obeying Maxwell-Boltzmann statistics.Comment: 12 pages RevTex, NCL94-TP5 ( To be published in Physics Letters A

Borderline Q-waves in individuals without overt cardiovascular disease: relations with adiposity, subclinical atherosclerosis and vascular stiffness

Background: Characteristics and risk factors associated with electrocardiographic borderline Q-waves are not fully elucidated, especially in individuals without overt cardiovascular disease (CVD). Also, the relation of isolated and non-isolated borderline Q-waves with subclinical atherosclerosis and vascular stiffness is unknown. Methods and results: We included 5746 Netherlands Epidemiology of Obesity study participants without overt CVD. Participants were divided in three groups: no Q-waves (93.7%), isolated (4.6%) and non-isolated borderline Q-waves (1.7%). Borderline Q-waves were defined as Minnesota Codes 1.2.x and 1.3.x and non-isolated as ≥1 of abnormal QRS axis, left ventricular hypertrophy or ST/T abnormalities. Several characteristics and measures of body fat were assessed. Vascular stiffness was assessed by pulse wave velocity (PWV) and subclinical atherosclerosis by carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT). Percentage of men, alcohol intake, blood pressure and fasting glucose concentrations were, compared with no Q-waves, higher in the isolated and highest in the non-isolated borderline Q-wave group. Isolated borderline Q-waves were associated with higher body mass index (difference compared with no Q-waves: 1.0 kg/m2; 95%CI: 0.3–1.7; p-value: 0.006), waist circumference (3.4 cm; 1.0–5.8; 0.005), and visceral adipose tissue (21.9 cm2; 7.4–36.3; 0.003) and differences were even larger for non-isolated borderline Q-waves. Compared with no Q-waves, non-isolated borderline Q-waves were associated with higher PWV (1.2 m/s; 0.4–2.0; 0.004) and cIMT (23.4 μm; 3.0–43.8; 0.024), whereas isolated borderline Q-waves were not. Conclusion: Cardiovascular risk factors and measures of body fat, especially abdominal adiposity, were higher in participants with isolated borderline Q-waves, compared with no Q-waves, and highest in the non-isolated borderline Q-wave group. Non-isolated borderline Q-waves were associated with subclinical atherosclerosis and vascular stiffness. Future studies should investigate potential added value of borderline Q-waves in CVD prediction

Design of an enquiry-based ‘Practical Only’ course for the teaching of basis skills in first year Biology

First year Biology teaching at the Callaghan Campus of the University of Newcastle has undergone a significant reorganisation in 2006. The rearrangement was conducted with the aims of increasing flexible delivery, improving student learning, reducing overall teaching effort, targeting teaching effort to biology majors and standardising course delivery throughout the university campuses. Key to the reorganisation has been the separation of the practical and lecture components of first year into distinctly separate courses. The practical course runs only in semester 2 and is compulsory for students that intend to graduate with a major in biology. Students that do not intend to continue their biology studies past 1st year are not required nor expected to enrol in the course. Separation of the courses has allowed a renewed focus on basis skills including laboratory and field techniques, the scientific method and practice, report writing and personal interaction. In this paper we present the design of this practical course and explain the process and logic we have used in its construction. Skill acquisition is situated in authentic learning contexts, employing the University campus as a unifying theme. Through an enquiry- based approach, students learn how to think as scientists, posing and testing questions rather than ‘doing the experiment’. The process of building and reinforcing skills (scaffolded learning) and the use of assessment & peer interaction to facilitate the learning process is discussed

Are markers of inflammation more strongly associated with risk for fatal than for nonfatal vascular events?

&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Background:&lt;/b&gt; Circulating inflammatory markers may more strongly relate to risk of fatal versus nonfatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) events, but robust prospective evidence is lacking. We tested whether interleukin (IL)-6, C-reactive protein (CRP), and fibrinogen more strongly associate with fatal compared to nonfatal myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Methods and Findings:&lt;/b&gt; In the Prospective Study of Pravastatin in the Elderly at Risk (PROSPER), baseline inflammatory markers in up to 5,680 men and women aged 70-82 y were related to risk for endpoints; nonfatal CVD (i.e., nonfatal MI and nonfatal stroke [n = 672]), fatal CVD (n = 190), death from other CV causes (n = 38), and non-CVD mortality (n = 300), over 3.2-y follow-up. Elevations in baseline IL-6 levels were significantly (p = 0.0009; competing risks model analysis) more strongly associated with fatal CVD (hazard ratio [HR] for 1 log unit increase in IL-6 1.75, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.44-2.12) than with risk of nonfatal CVD (1.17, 95% CI 1.04-1.31), in analyses adjusted for treatment allocation. The findings were consistent in a fully adjusted model. These broad trends were similar for CRP and, to a lesser extent, for fibrinogen. The results were also similar in placebo and statin recipients (i.e., no interaction). The C-statistic for fatal CVD using traditional risk factors was significantly (+0.017; p&lt;0.0001) improved by inclusion of IL-6 but not so for nonfatal CVD events (p = 0.20).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/b&gt; In PROSPER, inflammatory markers, in particular IL-6 and CRP, are more strongly associated with risk of fatal vascular events than nonfatal vascular events. These novel observations may have important implications for better understanding aetiology of CVD mortality, and have potential clinical relevance.&lt;/p&gt

Melting and Dimensionality of the Vortex Lattice in Underdoped YBa2Cu3O6.60

Muon spin rotation measurements of the magnetic field distribution in the vortex state of the oxygen deficient high-Tc superconductor YBa{2}Cu{3}O{6.60} reveal a vortex-lattice melting transition at much lower temperature than that in the fully oxygenated material. The transition is best described by a model in which adjacent layers of ``pancake'' vortices decouple in the liquid phase. Evidence is also found for a pinning-induced crossover from a solid 3D to quasi-2D vortex lattice, similar to that observed in the highly anisotropic superconductor Bi{2+x}Sr{2-x}CaCu{2}O{8+y}.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, 5 postscript file

Hole concentration and phonon renormalization in Ca-doped YBa_2Cu_3O_y (6.76 < y < 7.00)

In order to access the overdoped regime of the YBa_2Cu_3O_y phase diagram, 2% Ca is substituted for Y in YBa_2Cu_3O_y (y = 7.00,6.93,6.88,6.76). Raman scattering studies have been carried out on these four single crystals. Measurements of the superconductivity-induced renormalization in frequency (Delta \omega) and linewidth (\Delta 2\gamma) of the 340 cm^{-1} B_{1g} phonon demonstrate that the magnitude of the renormalization is directly related to the hole concentration (p), and not simply the oxygen content. The changes in \Delta \omega with p imply that the superconducting gap (\Delta_{max}) decreases monotonically with increasing hole concentration in the overdoped regime, and \Delta \omega falls to zero in the underdoped regime. The linewidth renormalization \Delta 2\gamma is negative in the underdoped regime, crossing over at optimal doping to a positive value in the overdoped state.Comment: 18 pages; 5 figures; submitted to Phys. Rev. B Oct. 24, 2002 (BX8292

Measurement of the branching fraction for Υ(1S)→τ+τ−\Upsilon (1S) \to \tau^+ \tau^-

We have studied the leptonic decay of the $\Upsilon (1S)$ resonance into tau pairs using the CLEO II detector. A clean sample of tau pair events is identified via events containing two charged particles where exactly one of the particles is an identified electron. We find $B(\Upsilon(1S) \to \tau^+ \tau^-) = (2.61~\pm~0.12~{+0.09\atop{-0.13}})$. The result is consistent with expectations from lepton universality.Comment: 9 pages, RevTeX, two Postscript figures available upon request, CLNS 94/1297, CLEO 94-20 (submitted to Physics Letters B

Study of the B^0 Semileptonic Decay Spectrum at the Upsilon(4S) Resonance

We have made a first measurement of the lepton momentum spectrum in a sample of events enriched in neutral B's through a partial reconstruction of B0 --> D*- l+ nu. This spectrum, measured with 2.38 fb**-1 of data collected at the Upsilon(4S) resonance by the CLEO II detector, is compared directly to the inclusive lepton spectrum from all Upsilon(4S) events in the same data set. These two spectra are consistent with having the same shape above 1.5 GeV/c. From the two spectra and two other CLEO measurements, we obtain the B0 and B+ semileptonic branching fractions, b0 and b+, their ratio, and the production ratio f+-/f00 of B+ and B0 pairs at the Upsilon(4S). We report b+/b0=0.950 (+0.117-0.080) +- 0.091, b0 = (10.78 +- 0.60 +- 0.69)%, and b+ = (10.25 +- 0.57 +- 0.65)%. b+/b0 is equivalent to the ratio of charged to neutral B lifetimes, tau+/tau0.Comment: 14 page, postscript file also available at http://w4.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLN

Measurement of the Decay Asymmetry Parameters in Λc+→Λπ+\Lambda_c^+ \to \Lambda\pi^+ and Λc+→Σ+π0\Lambda_c^+ \to \Sigma^+\pi^0

We have measured the weak decay asymmetry parameters (\aLC ) for two \LC\ decay modes. Our measurements are \aLC = -0.94^{+0.21+0.12}_{-0.06-0.06} for the decay mode $\Lambda_c^+ \to \Lambda\pi^+$ and \aLC = -0.45\pm 0.31 \pm 0.06 for the decay mode $\Lambda_c \to \Sigma^+\pi^0$. By combining these measurements with the previously measured decay rates, we have extracted the parity-violating and parity-conserving amplitudes. These amplitudes are used to test models of nonleptonic charmed baryon decay.Comment: 11 pages including the figures. Uses REVTEX and psfig macros. Figures as uuencoded postscript. Also available as http://w4.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/1995/CLNS95-1319.p