Fabrication and subband gap optical properties of silicon supersaturated with chalcogens by ion implantation and pulsed laser melting

Topographically flat, single crystal silicon supersaturated with the chalcogens S, Se, and Te was prepared by ion implantation followed by pulsed laser melting and rapid solidification. The influences of the number of laser shots on the atomic and carrier concentration-depth profiles were measured with secondary ion mass spectrometry and spreading resistance profiling, respectively. We found good agreement between the atomic concentration-depth profiles obtained from experiments and a one-dimensional model for plane-front melting, solidification, liquid-phase diffusion, with kinetic solute trapping, and surface evaporation. Broadband subband gap absorption is exhibited by all dopants over a wavelength range from 1 to 2.5 microns. The absorption did not change appreciably with increasing number of laser shots, despite a measurable loss of chalcogen and of electronic carriers after each shot.One of the authors M.T. acknowledges the financial support of the Fulbright Program. This research was supported in part by the U.S. Army ARDEC under Contract No. W15QKN-07- P-0092

Renal Insufficiency and Early Bystander CPR Predict In-Hospital Outcomes in Cardiac Arrest Patients Undergoing Mild Therapeutic Hypothermia and Cardiac Catheterization: Return of Spontaneous Circulation, Cooling, and Catheterization Registry (ROSCCC Registry)

Objective. Out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients are a critically ill patient population with high mortality. Combining mild therapeutic hypothermia (MTH) with early coronary intervention may improve outcomes in this population. The aim of this study was to evaluate predictors of mortality in OHCA patients undergoing MTH with and without cardiac catheterization. Design. A retrospective cohort of OHCA patients who underwent MTH with catheterization (MTH + C) and without catheterization (MTH + NC) between 2006 and 2011 was analyzed at a single tertiary care centre. Predictors of in-hospital mortality and neurologic outcome were determined. Results. The study population included 176 patients who underwent MTH for OHCA. A total of 66 patients underwent cardiac catheterization (MTH + C) and 110 patients did not undergo cardiac catheterization (MTH + NC). Immediate bystander CPR occurred in approximately half of the total population. In the MTH + C and MTH + NC groups, the in-hospital mortality was 48% and 78%, respectively. The only independent predictor of in-hospital mortality for patients with MTH + C, after multivariate analysis, was baseline renal insufficiency (OR = 8.2, 95% CI 1.8–47.1, and p = 0.009). Conclusion. Despite early cardiac catheterization, renal insufficiency and the absence of immediate CPR are potent predictors of death and poor neurologic outcome in patients with OHCA

LXRs regulate features of age-related macular degeneration and may be a potential therapeutic target

Effective treatments and animal models for the most prevalent neurodegenerative form of blindness in elderly people, called age-related macular degeneration (AMD), are lacking. Genome-wide association studies have identified lipid metabolism and inflammation as AMD-associated pathogenic pathways. Given liver X receptors (LXRs), encoded by the nuclear receptor subfamily 1 group H members 2 and 3 (NR1H3 and NR1H2), are master regulators of these pathways, herein we investigated the role of LXR in human and mouse eyes as a function of age and disease and tested the therapeutic potential of targeting LXR. We identified immunopositive LXR fragments in human extracellular early dry AMD lesions and a decrease in LXR expression within the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) as a function of age. Aged mice lacking LXR presented with isoform-dependent ocular pathologies. Specifically, loss of the Nr1h3 isoform resulted in pathobiologies aligned with AMD, supported by compromised visual function, accumulation of native and oxidized lipids in the outer retina, and upregulation of ocular inflammatory cytokines, while absence of Nr1h2 was associated with ocular lipoidal degeneration. LXR activation not only ameliorated lipid accumulation and oxidant-induced injury in RPE cells but also decreased ocular inflammatory markers and lipid deposition in a mouse model, thereby providing translational support for pursuing LXR-active pharmaceuticals as potential therapies for dry AMD

Stryd 25 vs. Stryd 27: Comparing Running Metrics Between a Predecessor and “The Next Gen Stryd”

Wearable technology has claimed the top spot in the Worldwide Survey of Fitness Trends in all but two years since 2016. A popular wearable among runners is the Stryd power meter. The company markets its latest model, the Stryd 27, as 5x more responsive in measuring running power. Yet, it is unclear whether the new model performs differently than its predecessor. PURPOSE: This study aimed to compare running metrics of the Stryd 25 and Stryd 27 in self-paced and interval runs. METHODS: Participants consented (N = 16; 50% female; height = 174.1 ± 8.1 centimeters [cm]; mass = 73.0 ± 12.4 kilograms) and were equipped with the Stryd 25 and Stryd 27, attached randomly to the left and right shoelaces. Each Stryd was paired with a separate mobile device using the Stryd app. Researchers started and stopped recording on each Stryd simultaneously. Participants ran for 10 minutes at a self-selected pace counterclockwise around an indoor track (10 laps/mile) before resting for five minutes. Then participants ran 10 more minutes, alternating between fast and slow intervals: 120 seconds (s) × 2, 60 s × 2, 30 s × 4, and 15 s × 8. Fast and slow intervals were 20% faster and 20% slower, respectively, than the participant’s mean pace of the first run. The Stryd app recorded power in watts (W), cadence in steps per minute (spm), vertical oscillation (VO) in cm, and stride length in meters (m). Four independent t-tests were run to compare these measurements between the two Stryd models for the self-paced and interval runs. The alpha level was .05, and the effect size was Cohen’s d (0.2 small, 0.5 medium, 0.8 large). RESULTS: See Table 1. CONCLUSION: Four running metrics were statistically similar between the Stryd 25 and Stryd 27 during two indoor runs. Runners using the predecessor indoors can be confident it returns similar data to the newest model

Emergence of Very Broad Infrared Absorption Band by Hyperdoping of Silicon with Chalcogens

We report the near through mid-infrared (MIR) optical absorption spectra, over the range 0.05–1.3 eV, of monocrystalline silicon layers hyperdoped with chalcogen atoms synthesized by ion implantation followed by pulsed laser melting. A broad mid-infrared optical absorption band emerges, peaking near 0.5 eV for sulfur and selenium and 0.3 eV for tellurium hyperdoped samples. Its strength and width increase with impurity concentration. Its strength decreases markedly with subsequent thermal annealing. The emergence of a broad MIR absorption band is consistent with the formation of an impurity band from isolated deep donor levels as the concentration of chalcogen atoms in metastable local configurations increases.Engineering and Applied Science

Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF) and Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) Conceptual Design Report Volume 2: The Physics Program for DUNE at LBNF

The Physics Program for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) at the Fermilab Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF) is described

Deprived children or deprived neighbourhoods? A public health approach to the investigation of links between deprivation and injury risk with specific reference to child road safety in Devon County, UK

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, injuries from road traffic collisions are a rapidly growing problem in terms of morbidity and mortality. The UK has amongst the worst records in Europe with regard to child pedestrian safety. A traditional view holds that resources should be directed towards training child pedestrians. In order to reduce socio-economic differentials in child pedestrian casualty rates it is suggested that these should be directed at deprived children. This paper seeks to question whether analysis of extant routinely collected data supports this view. METHODS: Routine administrative data on road collisions has been used. A deprivation measure has been assigned to the location where a collision was reported, and the home postcode of the casualty. Aggregate data was analysed using a number of epidemiological models, concentrating on the Generalised Linear Mixed Model. RESULTS: This study confirms evidence suggesting a link between increasing deprivation and increasing casualty involvement of child pedestrians. However, suggestions are made that it may be necessary to control for the urban nature of an area where collisions occur. More importantly, the question is raised as to whether the casualty rate is more closely associated with deprivation measures of the ward in which the collision occurred than with the deprivation measures of the home address of the child. CONCLUSION: Conclusions have to be drawn with great caution. Limitations in the utility of the officially collected data are apparent, but the implication is that the deprivation measures of the area around the collision is a more important determinant of socio-economic differentials in casualty rates than the deprivation measures of the casualties' home location. Whilst this result must be treated with caution, if confirmed by individual level case-controlled studies this would have a strong implication for the most appropriate interventions

Measurement of the production of a W boson in association with a charm quark in pp collisions at √s = 7 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The production of a W boson in association with a single charm quark is studied using 4.6 fb−1 of pp collision data at s√ = 7 TeV collected with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. In events in which a W boson decays to an electron or muon, the charm quark is tagged either by its semileptonic decay to a muon or by the presence of a charmed meson. The integrated and differential cross sections as a function of the pseudorapidity of the lepton from the W-boson decay are measured. Results are compared to the predictions of next-to-leading-order QCD calculations obtained from various parton distribution function parameterisations. The ratio of the strange-to-down sea-quark distributions is determined to be 0.96+0.26−0.30 at Q 2 = 1.9 GeV2, which supports the hypothesis of an SU(3)-symmetric composition of the light-quark sea. Additionally, the cross-section ratio σ(W + +c¯¯)/σ(W − + c) is compared to the predictions obtained using parton distribution function parameterisations with different assumptions about the s−s¯¯¯ quark asymmetry