Reconstruction of the primordial power spectrum from CMB data

Measuring the deviation from scale invariance of the primordial power spectrum is a critical test of inflation. In this paper we reconstruct the shape of the primordial power spectrum of curvature perturbations from the cosmic microwave background data, including the 7-year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe data and the Atacama Cosmology Telescope 148 GHz data, by using a binning method of a cubic spline interpolation in log-log space. We find that the power-law spectrum is preferred by the data and that the Harrison-Zel'dovich spectrum is disfavored at 95% confidence level. These conclusions hold with and without allowing for tensor modes, however the simpler model without tensors is preferred by the data. We do not find evidence for a feature in the primordial power spectrum - in full agreement with generic predictions from cosmological inflation.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures, 3 tables, JCAP style, published versio

BINGO: A code for the efficient computation of the scalar bi-spectrum

We present a new and accurate Fortran code, the BI-spectra and Non-Gaussianity Operator (BINGO), for the efficient numerical computation of the scalar bi-spectrum and the non-Gaussianity parameter f_{NL} in single field inflationary models involving the canonical scalar field. The code can calculate all the different contributions to the bi-spectrum and the parameter f_{NL} for an arbitrary triangular configuration of the wavevectors. Focusing firstly on the equilateral limit, we illustrate the accuracy of BINGO by comparing the results from the code with the spectral dependence of the bi-spectrum expected in power law inflation. Then, considering an arbitrary triangular configuration, we contrast the numerical results with the analytical expression available in the slow roll limit, for, say, the case of the conventional quadratic potential. Considering a non-trivial scenario involving deviations from slow roll, we compare the results from the code with the analytical results that have recently been obtained in the case of the Starobinsky model in the equilateral limit. As an immediate application, we utilize BINGO to examine of the power of the non-Gaussianity parameter f_{NL} to discriminate between various inflationary models that admit departures from slow roll and lead to similar features in the scalar power spectrum. We close with a summary and discussion on the implications of the results we obtain.Comment: v1: 5 pages, 5 figures; v2: 35 pages, 11 figures, title changed, extensively revised; v3: 36 pages, 11 figures, to appear in JCAP. The BINGO code is available online at http://www.physics.iitm.ac.in/~sriram/bingo/bingo.htm

Review of experimental methods to determine spontaneous combustion susceptibility of coal – Indian context

This paper presents a critical review of the different techniques developed to investigate the susceptibility of coal to spontaneous combustion and fire. These methods may be sub-classified into the two following areas: (1) Basic coal characterisation studies (chemical constituents) and their influence on spontaneous combustion susceptibility. (2) Test methods to assess the susceptibility of a coal sample to spontaneous combustion. This is followed by a critical literature review that summarises previous research with special emphasis given to Indian coals

Clinical predictors of 3- and 6-month outcome for mild traumatic brain injury patients with a negative head CT scan in the emergency department: A TRACK-TBI pilot study

Aconsiderable subset of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) patients fail to return to baseline functional status at or beyond 3 months postinjury. Identifying at-risk patients for poor outcome in the emergency department (ED) may improve surveillance strategies and referral to care. Subjects with mTBI (Glasgow Coma Scale 13–15) and negative ED initial head CT < 24 h of injury, completing 3- or 6-month functional outcome (Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended; GOSE), were extracted from the prospective, multicenter Transforming Research and Clinical Knowledge in Traumatic Brain Injury (TRACK-TBI) Pilot study. Outcomes were dichotomized to full recovery (GOSE = 8) vs functional deficits (GOSE < 8). Univariate predictors with p < 0.10 were considered for multivariable regression. Adjusted odds ratios (AOR) were reported for outcome predictors. Significance was assessed at p < 0.05. Subjects who completed GOSE at 3- and 6-month were 211 (GOSE < 8: 60%) and 185 (GOSE < 8: 65%). Risk factors for 6-month GOSE < 8 included less education (AOR = 0.85 per-year increase, 95% CI: (0.74–0.98)), prior psychiatric history (AOR = 3.75 (1.73–8.12)), Asian/minority race (American Indian/Alaskan/Hawaiian/Pacific Islander) (AOR = 23.99 (2.93–196.84)), and Hispanic ethnicity (AOR = 3.48 (1.29–9.37)). Risk factors for 3-month GOSE < 8 were similar with the addition of injury by assault predicting poorer outcome (AOR = 3.53 (1.17–10.63)). In mTBI patients seen in urban trauma center EDs with negative CT, education, injury by assault, Asian/minority race, and prior psychiatric history emerged as risk factors for prolonged disability

Pion condensation of quark matter in the static Einstein universe

In the framework of an extended Nambu--Jona-Lasinio model we are studying pion condensation in quark matter with an asymmetric isospin composition in a gravitational field of the static Einstein universe at finite temperature and chemical potential. This particular choice of the gravitational field configuration enables us to investigate phase transitions of the system with exact consideration of the role of this field in the formation of quark and pion condensates and to point out its influence on the phase portraits. We demonstrate the effect of oscillations of the thermodynamic quantities as functions of the curvature and also refer to a certain similarity between the behavior of these quantities as functions of curvature and finite temperature. Finally, the role of quantum fluctuations for spontaneous symmetry breaking in the case of a finite volume of the universe is shortly discussed.Comment: RevTex4; 15 pages, 10 figure

Photochemically produced SO2 in the atmosphere of WASP-39b

S.-M.T. is supported by the European Research Council advanced grant EXOCONDENSE (no. 740963; principal investigator: R. T. Pierrehumbert). E.K.H.L. is supported by the SNSF Ambizione Fellowship grant (no. 193448). X.Z. is supported by NASA Exoplanet Research grant 80NSSC22K0236. O.V. acknowledges funding from the ANR project ‘EXACT’ (ANR-21-CE49-0008-01), from the Centre National d’Études Spatiales (CNES) and from the CNRS/INSU Programme National de Planétologie (PNP). L.D. acknowledges support from the European Union H2020-MSCA-ITN-2109 under grant no. 860470 (CHAMELEON) and the KU Leuven IDN/19/028 grant Escher. This work benefited from the 2022 Exoplanet Summer Program at the Other Worlds Laboratory (OWL) at the University of California, Santa Cruz, a programme financed by the Heising-Simons Foundation. T.D. is an LSSTC Catalyst Fellow. J.K. is an Imperial College Research Fellow. B.V.R. is a 51 Pegasi b Fellow. L.W. is an NHFP Sagan Fellow. A.D.F. is an NSF Graduate Research Fellow.Photochemistry is a fundamental process of planetary atmospheres that regulates the atmospheric composition and stability1. However, no unambiguous photochemical products have been detected in exoplanet atmospheres so far. Recent observations from the JWST Transiting Exoplanet Community Early Release Science Program2,3 found a spectral absorption feature at 4.05 μm arising from sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the atmosphere of WASP-39b. WASP-39b is a 1.27-Jupiter-radii, Saturn-mass (0.28 MJ) gas giant exoplanet orbiting a Sun-like star with an equilibrium temperature of around 1,100 K (ref. 4). The most plausible way of generating SO2 in such an atmosphere is through photochemical processes5,6. Here we show that the SO2 distribution computed by a suite of photochemical models robustly explains the 4.05-μm spectral feature identified by JWST transmission observations7 with NIRSpec PRISM (2.7σ)8 and G395H (4.5σ)9. SO2 is produced by successive oxidation of sulfur radicals freed when hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is destroyed. The sensitivity of the SO2 feature to the enrichment of the atmosphere by heavy elements (metallicity) suggests that it can be used as a tracer of atmospheric properties, with WASP-39b exhibiting an inferred metallicity of about 10× solar. We further point out that SO2 also shows observable features at ultraviolet and thermal infrared wavelengths not available from the existing observations.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Pre-injury Comorbidities Are Associated With Functional Impairment and Post-concussive Symptoms at 3-and 6-Months After Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: A TRACK-TBI Study

Introduction: Over 70% of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are classified as mild (mTBI), which present heterogeneously. Associations between pre-injury comorbidities and outcomes are not well-understood, and understanding their status as risk factors may improve mTBI management and prognostication. Methods: mTBI subjects (GCS 13–15) from TRACK-TBI Pilot completing 3- and 6-month functional [Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended (GOSE)] and post-concussive outcomes [Acute Concussion Evaluation (ACE) physical/cognitive/sleep/emotional subdomains] were extracted. Pre-injury comorbidities >10% incidence were included in regressions for functional disability (GOSE ≤ 6) and post-concussive symptoms by subdomain. Odds ratios (OR) and mean differences (B) were reported. Significance was assessed at p < 0.0083 (Bonferroni correction). Results: In 260 subjects sustaining blunt mTBI, mean age was 44.0-years and 70.4% were male. Baseline comorbidities >10% incidence included psychiatric-30.0%, cardiac (hypertension)-23.8%, cardiac (structural/valvular/ischemic)-20.4%, gastrointestinal15.8%, pulmonary-15.0%, and headache/migraine-11.5%. At 3- and 6-months separately, 30.8% had GOSE ≤ 6. At 3-months, psychiatric (GOSE ≤ 6: OR = 2.75, 95% CI [1.44–5.27]; ACE-physical: B = 1.06 [0.38–1.73]; ACE-cognitive: B = 0.72 [0.26–1.17]; ACE-sleep: B = 0.46 [0.17–0.75]; ACE-emotional: B = 0.64 [0.25–1.03]), headache/migraine (GOSE ≤ 6: OR = 4.10 [1.67–10.07]; ACE-sleep: B = 0.57 [0.15–1.00]; ACE-emotional: B = 0.92 [0.35–1.49]), and gastrointestinal history (ACE-physical: B = 1.25 [0.41–2.10]) were multivariable predictors of worse outcomes. At 6-months, psychiatric (GOSE ≤ 6: OR = 2.57 [1.38–4.77]; ACE-physical: B = 1.38 [0.68–2.09]; ACE-cognitive: B = 0.74 [0.28–1.20]; ACE-sleep: B = 0.51 [0.20–0.83]; ACE-emotional: B = 0.93 [0.53–1.33]), and headache/migraine history (ACE-physical: B = 1.81 [0.79–2.84]) predicted worse outcomes. Conclusions: Pre-injury psychiat

Systematic Review of Medicine-Related Problems in Adult Patients with Atrial Fibrillation on Direct Oral Anticoagulants

New oral anticoagulant agents continue to emerge on the market and their safety requires assessment to provide evidence of their suitability for clinical use. There-fore, we searched standard databases to summarize the English language literature on medicine-related problems (MRPs) of direct oral anticoagulants DOACs (dabigtran, rivaroxban, apixban, and edoxban) in the treatment of adults with atri-al fibrillation. Electronic databases including Medline, Embase, International Pharmaceutical Abstract (IPA), Scopus, CINAHL, the Web of Science and Cochrane were searched from 2008 through 2016 for original articles. Studies pub-lished in English reporting MRPs of DOACs in adult patients with AF were in-cluded. Seventeen studies were identified using standardized protocols, and two reviewers serially abstracted data from each article. Most articles were inconclusive on major safety end points including major bleeding. Data on major safety end points were combined with efficacy. Most studies inconsistently reported adverse drug reactions and not adverse events or medication error, and no definitions were consistent across studies. Some harmful drug effects were not assessed in studies and may have been overlooked. Little evidence is provided on MRPs of DOACs in patients with AF and, therefore, further studies are needed to establish the safety of DOACs in real-life clinical practice

Search for leptophobic Z ' bosons decaying into four-lepton final states in proton-proton collisions at root s=8 TeV

Peer reviewe