A strong pair correlation bound implies the CLT for Sinai Billiards

For Dynamical Systems, a strong bound on multiple correlations implies the Central Limit Theorem (CLT) [ChMa]. In Chernov's paper [Ch2], such a bound is derived for dynamically Holder continuous observables of dispersing Billiards. Here we weaken the regularity assumption and subsequently show that the bound on multiple correlations follows directly from the bound on pair correlations. Thus, a strong bound on pair correlations alone implies the CLT, for a wider class of observables. The result is extended to Anosov diffeomorphisms in any dimension.Comment: 13 page

Isotope Effect in the Presence of Magnetic and Nonmagnetic Impurities

The effect of impurities on the isotope coefficient is studied theoretically in the framework of Abrikosov-Gor'kov approach generalized to account for both potential and spin-flip scattering in anisotropic superconductors. An expression for the isotope coefficient as a function of the critical temperature is obtained for a superconductor with an arbitrary contribution of spin-flip processes to the total scattering rate and an arbitrary degree of anisotropy of the superconducting order parameter, ranging from isotropic s-wave to d-wave and including anisotropic s-wave and mixed (s+d)-wave as particular cases. It is found that both magnetic and nonmagnetic impurities enhance the isotope coefficient, the enhancement due to magnetic impurities being generally greater than that due to nonmagnetic impurities. From the analysis of the experimental results on La-Sr-Cu-M-O high temperature superconductor, it is concluded that the symmetry of the pairing state in this system differs from a pure d-wave.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Saturn's icy satellites and rings investigated by Cassini - VIMS. III. Radial compositional variability

In the last few years Cassini-VIMS, the Visible and Infared Mapping Spectrometer, returned to us a comprehensive view of the Saturn's icy satellites and rings. After having analyzed the satellites' spectral properties (Filacchione et al. (2007a)) and their distribution across the satellites' hemispheres (Filacchione et al. (2010)), we proceed in this paper to investigate the radial variability of icy satellites (principal and minor) and main rings average spectral properties. This analysis is done by using 2,264 disk-integrated observations of the satellites and a 12x700 pixels-wide rings radial mosaic acquired with a spatial resolution of about 125 km/pixel. The comparative analysis of these data allows us to retrieve the amount of both water ice and red contaminant materials distributed across Saturn's system and the typical surface regolith grain sizes. These measurements highlight very striking differences in the population here analyzed, which vary from the almost uncontaminated and water ice-rich surfaces of Enceladus and Calypso to the metal/organic-rich and red surfaces of Iapetus' leading hemisphere and Phoebe. Rings spectra appear more red than the icy satellites in the visible range but show more intense 1.5-2.0 micron band depths. The correlations among spectral slopes, band depths, visual albedo and phase permit us to cluster the saturnian population in different spectral classes which are detected not only among the principal satellites and rings but among co-orbital minor moons as well. Finally, we have applied Hapke's theory to retrieve the best spectral fits to Saturn's inner regular satellites using the same methodology applied previously for Rhea data discussed in Ciarniello et al. (2011).Comment: 44 pages, 27 figures, 7 tables. Submitted to Icaru

Black women are more likely than white women to schedule a uterine-sparing treatment for leiomyomas

Background: To evaluate differences in the proportion of uterine fibroid (UF) treatments that are uterine-sparing between Black women and White women and identify factors that could explain disparities. Methods: Women at age 18-54 years who were enrolled from 10 clinical sites in the United States into the Comparing Options for Management: Patient-Centered Results for UFs (COMPARE-UF) treatment registry completed questionnaires before their UF procedure. UF symptoms and quality of life were assessed by questionnaires. Details on UF imaging and treatment (hysterectomy, myomectomy, or uterine artery embolization [UAE]) were collected from each patient's medical record. Random-effects logistic regression was used to assess the association between race and the odds of having a uterine-sparing procedure versus hysterectomy. Subgroup analyses compared each uterine-sparing procedure with hysterectomy. Results: In this cohort of 1141 White women and 1196 Black women, Black women tended to be younger (median 41.0 vs. 42.0 years) and report worse symptoms, pain, and function on every scale compared with White women. Black women were more likely to have had a prior UF treatment compared with White women (22.8% vs. 14.6%). White women had more hysterectomies (43.6% vs. 32.2%) and myomectomies (50.9% vs. 50.2%) versus Black women. Black women had more UAEs (15.1% vs. 4.7%) than White women. After adjusting for clinical site and other variables, Black women had greater odds than White women of having a myomectomy (odds ratio [OR] = 2.41, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.63-3.56) or a UAE versus hysterectomy (OR = 4.24, 95% CI = 2.41-7.46). Conclusion: In these participants, Black women were more likely to schedule a uterine-sparing UF treatment and a nonsurgical UF treatment than their White counterparts; this may not be true for all women. Longer comparative effectiveness studies are needed to inform women about the durability of UF treatments. Greater understanding of factors influencing treatment selection is needed as are studies that include women without access to tertiary care centers. Clinical Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT02260752 (enrollment start: November 2015)

Effects of sleep deprivation on neural functioning: an integrative review

Sleep deprivation has a broad variety of effects on human performance and neural functioning that manifest themselves at different levels of description. On a macroscopic level, sleep deprivation mainly affects executive functions, especially in novel tasks. Macroscopic and mesoscopic effects of sleep deprivation on brain activity include reduced cortical responsiveness to incoming stimuli, reflecting reduced attention. On a microscopic level, sleep deprivation is associated with increased levels of adenosine, a neuromodulator that has a general inhibitory effect on neural activity. The inhibition of cholinergic nuclei appears particularly relevant, as the associated decrease in cortical acetylcholine seems to cause effects of sleep deprivation on macroscopic brain activity. In general, however, the relationships between the neural effects of sleep deprivation across observation scales are poorly understood and uncovering these relationships should be a primary target in future research

Genome-wide association and Mendelian randomisation analysis provide insights into the pathogenesis of heart failure

Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. A small proportion of HF cases are attributable to monogenic cardiomyopathies and existing genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have yielded only limited insights, leaving the observed heritability of HF largely unexplained. We report results from a GWAS meta-analysis of HF comprising 47,309 cases and 930,014 controls. Twelve independent variants at 11 genomic loci are associated with HF, all of which demonstrate one or more associations with coronary artery disease (CAD), atrial fibrillation, or reduced left ventricular function, suggesting shared genetic aetiology. Functional analysis of non-CAD-associated loci implicate genes involved in cardiac development (MYOZ1, SYNPO2L), protein homoeostasis (BAG3), and cellular senescence (CDKN1A). Mendelian randomisation analysis supports causal roles for several HF risk factors, and demonstrates CAD-independent effects for atrial fibrillation, body mass index, and hypertension. These findings extend our knowledge of the pathways underlying HF and may inform new therapeutic strategies

The new Victorians? Celebrity charity and the demise of the welfare state

This article asks whether the expansion of celebrity involvement in charitable and humanitarian issues in Northern Europe and the US might be a comparable historical phenomenon with the philanthropic endeavours of prominent nineteenth-century persons. The article notes that the conspicuous nature of star philanthropy in both Victorian times and the present is fairly dramatic in comparison with that of the mid twentieth century, when the welfare state and the New Deal were at their peak: a welfare-oriented era which, to some, now increasingly looks like a ‘historical blip’. It asks whether the rise of contemporary celebrity involvement in charity can therefore be explained in terms of the contemporary political conjuncture, inasmuch as celebrities could be understood as individuals with large amounts of private capital seeking to intervene in – and gain forms of power through – involvement in humanitarian and charitable causes that might have formerly been the job of the state. Can celebrity involvement in charity be explained in these terms? Does the marriage of celebrity and charity today take a neoliberal form, one that parallels the liberal form of nineteenth-century interventions, bequests and donations? What might the key differences between forms of spectacular ‘philanthrocapitalism’ in these eras (particularly the contemporary insistence on the confessional and intimate modes of address) reveal about its workings, its internal traditions and about the specificity of our own age? This article draws on contemporary media discourse, debate in the voluntary sector, historical scholarship and Foucault’s distinctions between liberalism and neoliberalism to argue that whereas ‘celanthropy’ in the Victorian period eventually came to contribute to the welfare state, today it is more involved in privatising and dismantling it

Involking silvern voices in healthcare : transforming practice by engaging older adults in collaborative partnerships

Canada's population is aging. This growing trend will ultimately have an impact on nursing practice as older individuals continue to seek healthcare services. Nurses must be able to work in collaboration with the older population to provide quality care. This action research study explored participative healthcare from an older adult's perspective. This study revealed that older adults prefer to be active participants in their care. The major theme that emerged was true partnership. Three sub-themes that emerged were communication, respect, and trust. These three sub-themes work in unity to contribute to a healthcare experience that exemplifies true partnerships. This study proposes a definition of true partnership as being open to and inviting mutual communication in an atmosphere that encourages equity sharing of information contributing to respect and the development of trust that results in confident collaboration in care