Measuring Armenia's progress on the Tobacco Control Scale: an evaluation of tobacco control in an economy in transition, 2005–2009

Objectives: This study aimed to measure the 5-year progress in the implementation of WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) in Armenia by applying the Tobacco Control Scale, a rapid assessment tool developed to assess the strength of tobacco control policies in Europe. Setting: Armenia, an economy in transition, has extreme smoking rates among men (62.5%) despite acceding to FCTC in 2004. However, little research has been carried out to evaluate Armenia's progress in tobacco control. Methods: The Tobacco Control Scale total score was estimated for Armenia using the original methodology; however, a different source of data was used in estimating the subscores on tobacco price and tobacco control spending. Results: Armenia's total score on Tobacco Control Scale has considerably improved from 2005 to 2009, mostly due to larger health warnings and advertising ban, and increased public spending on tobacco control. The scores for smoke-free public places, advertising ban, health warnings and treatment categories were below the European average in 2005 and 2007, while the price score was higher. Neither total tobacco control score nor any of its components showed a significant predictive value in a simple regression analysis using the total score and subscores as predictors for log-transformed per capita tobacco consumption. Conclusions: Higher than the European average price score for Armenia cannot be explained by the concept of affordability alone and may reflect a measurement error due to peculiarities of transition economies. The applicability of the Tobacco Control Scale could be limited to countries with mature economies, but not to transition countries such as Armenia with different social, political and economic environment. The scale modification, such as an adjustment for the policy enforcement and the effectiveness of public tobacco control spending along with alternative measures of affordability would be warranted to enhance its applicability in low-income and middle-income countries

Optical transition radiation in fused quartz under external acoustic field

In the present paper we have investigated the optical transition radiation in a plate excited by a longitudinal acoustic wave. The spectral-angular density of the radiated energy is calculated. The numerical examples are given for a plate of fused quartz. These results show that the acoustic waves allow to control the parameters of the radiation. In particular, new resonance peaks appear in the spectral distribution of the radiation intensity. The height of the peaks can be tuned by choosing the parameters of the acoustic wave

Influence of temperature gradient on diffracted X-ray spectrum in quartz crystal

In this work characteristics of hard X-ray (with energy higher than 30 keV) were investigated. In the experiment we measured spectra of X-ray reflected by a quartz monocrystal in Laue geometry under influence of the temperature gradient. The measurements were made by the spectrometer BDER-KI-11K with 300 eV resolution on the 17.74 keV spectral line of Am241 and the spectrometer XR-100CR with 270 eV resolution on the same spectral line. An existence of temperature gradient leads to increasing of the diffracted beam intensity. The intensity was measured dependently on the temperature of one of the edge of the crystal

Test of the CLAS12 RICH large scale prototype in the direct proximity focusing configuration

A large area ring-imaging Cherenkov detector has been designed to provide clean hadron identification capability in the momentum range from 3 GeV/c up to 8 GeV/c for the CLAS12 experiments at the upgraded 12 GeV continuous electron beam accelerator facility of Jefferson Laboratory. The adopted solution foresees a novel hybrid optics design based on aerogel radiator, composite mirrors and high-packed and high-segmented photon detectors. Cherenkov light will either be imaged directly (forward tracks) or after two mirror reflections (large angle tracks). We report here the results of the tests of a large scale prototype of the RICH detector performed with the hadron beam of the CERN T9 experimental hall for the direct detection configuration. The tests demonstrated that the proposed design provides the required pion-to-kaon rejection factor of 1:500 in the whole momentum range.Comment: 15 pages, 23 figures, to appear on EPJ

Hard Two-Photon Contribution to Elastic Lepton-Proton Scattering: Determined by the OLYMPUS Experiment

The OLYMPUS collaboration reports on a precision measurement of the positron-proton to electron-proton elastic cross section ratio, $R_{2\gamma}$, a direct measure of the contribution of hard two-photon exchange to the elastic cross section. In the OLYMPUS measurement, 2.01~GeV electron and positron beams were directed through a hydrogen gas target internal to the DORIS storage ring at DESY. A toroidal magnetic spectrometer instrumented with drift chambers and time-of-flight scintillators detected elastically scattered leptons in coincidence with recoiling protons over a scattering angle range of $\approx 20\degree$ to $80\degree$. The relative luminosity between the two beam species was monitored using tracking telescopes of interleaved GEM and MWPC detectors at $12\degree$, as well as symmetric M{\o}ller/Bhabha calorimeters at $1.29\degree$. A total integrated luminosity of 4.5~fb$^{-1}$ was collected. In the extraction of $R_{2\gamma}$, radiative effects were taken into account using a Monte Carlo generator to simulate the convolutions of internal bremsstrahlung with experiment-specific conditions such as detector acceptance and reconstruction efficiency. The resulting values of $R_{2\gamma}$, presented here for a wide range of virtual photon polarization $0.456<\epsilon<0.978$, are smaller than some hadronic two-photon exchange calculations predict, but are in reasonable agreement with a subtracted dispersion model and a phenomenological fit to the form factor data.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, 2 table

Dark matter search in a Beam-Dump eXperiment (BDX) at Jefferson Lab

MeV-GeV dark matter (DM) is theoretically well motivated but remarkably unexplored. This Letter of Intent presents the MeV-GeV DM discovery potential for a 1 m$^3$ segmented plastic scintillator detector placed downstream of the beam-dump at one of the high intensity JLab experimental Halls, receiving up to 10$^{22}$ electrons-on-target (EOT) in a one-year period. This experiment (Beam-Dump eXperiment or BDX) is sensitive to DM-nucleon elastic scattering at the level of a thousand counts per year, with very low threshold recoil energies ($\sim$1 MeV), and limited only by reducible cosmogenic backgrounds. Sensitivity to DM-electron elastic scattering and/or inelastic DM would be below 10 counts per year after requiring all electromagnetic showers in the detector to exceed a few-hundred MeV, which dramatically reduces or altogether eliminates all backgrounds. Detailed Monte Carlo simulations are in progress to finalize the detector design and experimental set up. An existing 0.036 m$^3$ prototype based on the same technology will be used to validate simulations with background rate estimates, driving the necessary R$\&$D towards an optimized detector. The final detector design and experimental set up will be presented in a full proposal to be submitted to the next JLab PAC. A fully realized experiment would be sensitive to large regions of DM parameter space, exceeding the discovery potential of existing and planned experiments by two orders of magnitude in the MeV-GeV DM mass range.Comment: 28 pages, 17 figures, submitted to JLab PAC 4

Возможные пути решения вопросов доставки лекарственных препаратов к заднему отделу глаза

PURPOSE: To identify visual functions dynamics in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) with preserved visual functions and compensated intraocular pressure (IOP) after trophic modified laser coagulation (tMLC) and subsequent subconjunctive injection of Retinalamin® to the laser burn sites with local vasoconstriction.MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included two groups: main (118 eyes) and control (40 eyes) with moderate and advanced stages of open-angle glaucoma and normalized IOP. Main group patients underwent tMLC followed by Retinalamin® injection, while control group patients’ treatment was limited solely to tMLC. All patients underwent a general examination, which consisted of the collection of symptoms, anamnesis vitae and morbi, and a comprehensive ophthalmological examination, including visometry, tonometry, biomicroophthalmoscopy and automated static perimetry using a central threshold test. The study was conducted before treatment, on the 5th day after tMLC, 1 month after tMLC and 5 months after tMLC. Trophic modified laser photocoagulation was carried out in two stages: the creation of zones of increased permeability in the blood-ocular barrier (BOB) and the injection of Retinalamin® into this area.RESULTS: In the study group, there was a significant improvement in visual fields parameters immediately after the treatment and long-term preservation of the effect after treatment. In the control group, visual functions improvement was achieved only immediately after treatment, and after one month the parameters practically did not differ from baseline. The trend of parameters’ return to baseline values was revealed in both groups, but in the control group this phenomenon was registered by the 1 month timepoint, while in the study group the effect lasted longer and the decrease was observed only 5 months after the treatment, indicating a long-term preservation of the positive treatment effect. CONCLUSION: The method of subconjunctival Retinalamin® injection with local vasoconstriction at the laser burn sites (tMLC) showed an increase in local permeability of blood-ocular barrier for drug delivery, resulting in visual functions improvement. The obtained data suggest the efficacy, safety and promising use of tMLC in combination with Retinalamin® injection as a neuroretinoprotective therapy in patients with compensated POAG and preserved visual functions.ЦЕЛЬ. Выявление динамики зрительных функций у больных первичной открытоугольной глаукомой (ПОУГ) с сохраненными зрительными функциями и компенсированным внутриглазным давлением (ВГД) после проведения трофической модифицированной лазерной коагуляции (тМЛК) и последующим субконъюнктивальным введением Ретиналамина в область нанесенных коагулятов на фоне местной вазоконстрикции.МАТЕРИАЛЫ И МЕТОДЫ. Исследование включало 2 груп- пы — исследуемая (118 глаз) и контрольная (40 глаз) — пациентов с развитой и далеко зашедшей стадиями открытоугольной глаукомы и нормализованным офталь- мотонусом. В исследуемой группе проводилась тМЛК с последующим введением Ретиналамина, группе контроля проводилась только тМЛК. У всех пациентов выяснялись жалобы, анамнез заболевания и жизни, а также осуществлялось комплексное офтальмологическое обследование, включающее визометрию, тонометрию, биомикроофтальмоскопию, автоматическую статическую периметрию с использованием центрального порогового теста. Исследование проводилось в динамике: до начала лечения, на 5 день после проведения тМЛК, через 1 и 5 месяцев после тМЛК. Трофическая модифицированная лазерная коагуляция состояла из двух этапов: создания зон повышенной проницаемости гематоофтальмического барьера (ГОБ) и введения Ретиналамина в эту область.РЕЗУЛЬТАТЫ. В исследуемой группе отмечается значительное улучшение показателей полей зрения сразу после проведения лечения и длительное сохранение эффекта после лечения. В контрольной группе улучшение показателей зрительных функций достигается лишь сразу после лечения, а уже через один месяц они практически не отличаются от исходных. Тенденция возвращения показателей к исходным значениям выявлена в обеих группах, однако в контрольной группе данное явление зафиксировано к 1 месяцу, тогда как в исследуемой группе оно наблюдается к 5 месяцу после лечения и говорит о продолжительном сохранении положительного эффекта.ВЫВОДЫ. Методика введения Ретиналамина в субконъюнктивальное пространство на фоне местной вазоконстрикции в области нанесенных коагулятов (тМЛК) способствует увеличению проницаемости гематоофтальмического барьера в этой области для лекарственных препаратов, что приводит к улучшению зрительных функций. Полученные данные говорят об эффективности, безопасности и перспективном использовании тМЛК в сочетании с введением Ретиналамина в качестве нейроретинопротекторной терапии у больных с компенсированной ПОУГ и сохранными зрительными функциями

Precision measurements of g1g_1 of the proton and the deuteron with 6 GeV electrons

The inclusive polarized structure functions of the proton and deuteron, g1p and g1d, were measured with high statistical precision using polarized 6 GeV electrons incident on a polarized ammonia target in Hall B at Jefferson Laboratory. Electrons scattered at lab angles between 18 and 45 degrees were detected using the CEBAF Large Acceptance Spectrometer (CLAS). For the usual DIS kinematics, Q^2>1 GeV^2 and the final-state invariant mass W>2 GeV, the ratio of polarized to unpolarized structure functions g1/F1 is found to be nearly independent of Q^2 at fixed x. Significant resonant structure is apparent at values of W up to 2.3 GeV. In the framework of perturbative QCD, the high-W results can be used to better constrain the polarization of quarks and gluons in the nucleon, as well as high-twist contributions