A note on edge oriented reinforced random walks and RWRE

This work introduces the notion of edge oriented reinforced random walk which proposes in a general framework an alternative understanding of the annealed law of random walks in random environment.Comment: 5 page

The Arcsine law as the limit of the internal DLA cluster generated by Sinai's walk

We identify the limit of the internal DLA cluster generated by Sinai's walk as the law of a functional of a Brownian motion which turns out to be a new interpretation of the Arcsine law.Comment: 10 pages, 1 figur

Microwave Induced Instability Observed in BSCCO 2212 in a Static Magnetic Field

We have measured the microwave dissipation at 10 GHz through the imaginary part of the susceptibility, $\chi^"$, in a BSCCO 2212 single crystal in an external static magnetic field $H$ parallel to the c-axis at various fixed temperatures. The characteristics of $\chi^"(H)$ exhibit a sharp step at a field $H_{step}$ which strongly depends on the amplitude of the microwave excitation $h_{ac}$. The characteristics of $h_{ac}$ vs. $H_{step}$, qualitatively reveal the behavior expected for the magnetic field dependence of Josephson coupling.Comment: 4 pages, 3 Postscript figure

Random walks in random Dirichlet environment are transient in dimension d≥3d\ge 3

We consider random walks in random Dirichlet environment (RWDE) which is a special type of random walks in random environment where the exit probabilities at each site are i.i.d. Dirichlet random variables. On $\Z^d$, RWDE are parameterized by a $2d$-uplet of positive reals. We prove that for all values of the parameters, RWDE are transient in dimension $d\ge 3$. We also prove that the Green function has some finite moments and we characterize the finite moments. Our result is more general and applies for example to finitely generated symmetric transient Cayley graphs. In terms of reinforced random walks it implies that directed edge reinforced random walks are transient for $d\ge 3$.Comment: New version published at PTRF with an analytic proof of lemma

Synchronous genitourinary lichen sclerosus signals a distinct urinary microbiome profile in men with urethral stricture disease.

PurposeAlterations in the urinary microbiome have been associated with urological diseases. The microbiome of patients with urethral stricture disease (USD) remains unknown. Our objective is to examine the microbiome of USD with a focus on inflammatory USD caused by lichen sclerosus (LS).MethodsWe collected mid-stream urine samples from men with LS-USD (cases; n = 22) and non-LS USD (controls; n = 76). DNA extraction, PCR amplification of the V4 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene, and sequencing was done on the samples. Operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were defined using a > 97% sequence similarity threshold. Alpha diversity measurements of diversity, including microbiome richness (number of different OTUs) and evenness (distribution of OTUs) were calculated and compared. Microbiome beta diversity (difference between microbial communities) relationships with cases and controls were also assessed.ResultsFifty specimens (13 cases and 37 controls) produced a 16S rRNA amplicon. Mean sample richness was 25.9 vs. 16.8 (p = 0.076) for LS-USD vs. non-LS USD, respectively. LS-USD had a unique profile of bacteria by taxonomic order including Bacillales, Bacteroidales and Pasteurellales enriched urine. The beta variation of observed bacterial communities was best explained by the richness.ConclusionsMen with LS-USD may have a unique microbiologic richness, specifically inclusive of Bacillales, Bacteroidales and Pasteurellales enriched urine compared to those with non-LS USD. Further work will be required to elucidate the clinical relevance of these variations in the urinary microbiome

Dispersionful analogues of Benney's equations and NN-wave systems

We recall Krichever's construction of additional flows to Benney's hierarchy, attached to poles at finite distance of the Lax operator. Then we construct a ``dispersionful'' analogue of this hierarchy, in which the role of poles at finite distance is played by Miura fields. We connect this hierarchy with $N$-wave systems, and prove several facts about the latter (Lax representation, Chern-Simons-type Lagrangian, connection with Liouville equation, $\tau$-functions).Comment: 12 pages, latex, no figure

Effects of smoking on vital capacity in healthy students

INTRODUCTION: Although the tobacco consumption has been reported to obstruct the effects of physical culture in young adults, there are few reports that include physical and laboratory evidence of this. Health education appears not to prevent impairment of the vital capacity associated with tobacco consumption. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was estimate the effect of tobacco consumption on vital capacity after four months of participation in a theoretical-practical program on movement fundamentals.METHODS: Preexperimental design of two measurements. Lung function and a physical test were performed on seventeen healthy students. Course-Navette test was carried out to estimate vital capacity (heart rate at rest, maximum heart rate, physical level, VO2 max, distance and average speed). Forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) was measured by Welch Allyn Schiller spirometer. The sample was divided on the consumption of cigarettes (12 consumers vs. 5 abstainers). T-tests were used to evaluate the differences between groups. RESULTS: Participants were men of 20.94 years (SD = 2.69, 18-19 years) with normal body complexion (Body mass index = 24.51 kg/m 2 (SD = 1.69). There were no baseline differences between groups regarding age or body composition (p \u3e .05). Differences in all parameters related to vital capacity were observed in the abstainers group (p \u3c .01), except for maximal heart rate and resting heart rate (p \u3e .05). The smokers group decreased their results in both tests but without significant differences. CONCLUSION: Tobacco consumption affected the vital capacity of young adults despite the participation in theoretical-practical program of fundamentals of the movement. Tobacco abstinence coupled with participation in an educational program increased vital capacity measured with a physical and a laboratory test

Predictive Markers of Coagulopathy in COVID-19 Infection: A Meta Narrative Review

In late 2019, COVID was initially discovered in Wuhan, China, and the COVID-19 pandemic primarily began in early 2020. Along with respiratory distress, COVID-19 patients had an increased risk of forming abnormal clotting. In ICU COVID-19 patients, abnormal clotting increases the risk of mortality by approximately 74% (Montiel et al., 2022). The aim for this meta-narrative review was to identify what hemostatic parameters are predictive of coagulopathy in COVID-19 patients. Determining predictive markers of coagulopathy in COVID-19 infection may allow for early identification of severe cases before bleeding and thrombotic manifestations occur. The review included articles primarily from PubMed and were published between 2020 and 2022. After screening for eligibility, seven articles were deemed fit to be included. Our findings indicate that elevated D-dimer levels were the most common predictive hemostatic parameter utilized, along with elevated Von Willebrand Factor, elevated Factor VIII, and decreased fibrinogen levels. COVID-19 patients that presented with these parameters upon admission were highly likely to experience clotting events such as deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. Although many of the articles in this review focused on elevated D-dimer as an early marker of coagulopathy, one study found that elevated soluble thrombomodulin was the best predictor of coagulopathy in COVID patients. Future research will be needed to confirm soluble thrombomodulin’s ability as a predictive parameter and compare its suggestive power to D-dimer levels. Clinical trials will also be needed to assess how these predictive markers can be used to inform prophylactic treatment in COVID-19 patients.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/rmps/1003/thumbnail.jp