Auditory frequency threshold comparisons of humans and pre-adolescent chimpanzees

Auditory frequency threshold comparisons of humans and pre-adolescent chimpanzee

An algorithm for quantifying dependence in multivariate data sets

We describe an algorithm to quantify dependence in a multivariate data set. The algorithm is able to identify any linear and non-linear dependence in the data set by performing a hypothesis test for two variables being independent. As a result we obtain a reliable measure of dependence. In high energy physics understanding dependencies is especially important in multidimensional maximum likelihood analyses. We therefore describe the problem of a multidimensional maximum likelihood analysis applied on a multivariate data set with variables that are dependent on each other. We review common procedures used in high energy physics and show that general dependence is not the same as linear correlation and discuss their limitations in practical application. Finally we present the tool CAT, which is able to perform all reviewed methods in a fully automatic mode and creates an analysis report document with numeric results and visual review.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

A study to assess the effectiveness of acupressure on relief of dysmenorrhoea symptoms among adolescent girls in selected schools at Nagercoil

A study to assess the effectiveness of acupressure on relief of dysmenorrhoea symptoms among adolescent girls in selected schools at Nagercoil. Objectives • To assess the level of pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms among adolescent girls in Experimental and Control group. • To compare the level of pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms before and after the application of acupressure in experimental group and without intervention in control group. • To determine the association of pretest level of pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms with selected demographic variables in Experimental group Hypotheses H1: There is a significant difference in level of pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms before and after application of acupressure in experimental group and without intervention in control group. H2: There is significant association of pre intervention level of pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms with selected demographic variables among adolescent girls. Methods The research design selected for the study was Time Series design .The study was conducted in LMPC Higher secondary School, Puthalam and LMS Higher secondary School, Zionpuram. The tool used for data collection was consisting of demographic variables such as Age, age at menarche, type of family,duration of menstruation and family history of dysmenorrhoea. Numerical pain rating scale and dysmenorrhoea symptoms assessment rating scale was used to assess the the level of pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms. The pilot study was conducted in LMPC Higher secondary School, Puthalam and LMS Higher secondary School, Zionpuram. The tool was validated by five experts and the reliability of the tool was established by inter-rater reliability method. Findings revealed that the tool was feasible, reliable and practicable to conduct the main study. 60 adolescent girls who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were selected for the study. Out of which 30 adolescent girls were assigned to experimental group and 30 were assigned to control group through the convenient sampling technique. Based on the inclusion criteria the samples were selected and allotted to the experimental and control group. Results For comparing the level of pain soon after the intervention in experimental group , the mean post test score was 3.7. In control group ,the mean post test score was 5.20. Calculated unpaired t test value 4.23was found to be more than the table value. This data had indicated that there was significant reduction of pain score. 30 minutes after intervention in experimental group , the mean post test score was 1.56. In control group ,the mean post test score was 5.13. Calculated unpaired t test value 11.74 was found to be more than the table value. This data had indicated that there was significant reduction of pain score. The whole data had denoted that Acupressure was highly effective in reducing level of pain . For comparing the level of dysmenorrhoea symptoms soon after the intervention in experimental group , the mean post test score was 24.2. In control group, the mean post test score was 36.8. Calculated unpaired t test value 5.12 was found to be more than the table value. This data had indicated that there was significant reduction of dysmenorrhoea symptoms score. 30 minutes after intervention in experimental group , the mean post test score was 13.3. In control group, the mean post test score was 37.96. Calculated un paired t test value 12.20was found to be more than the table value. This data had indicated that there was significant reduction of dysmenorrhoea symptoms score, The whole data had denoted that Acupressure was highly effective in reducing dysmenorrhoea symptoms The study shows that in Experimental group soon after the intervention, 15(50%) had mild pain, 15(50%) had moderate pain, and none of them had severe pain . In control group 1(3.33%) had mild pain, 27(90%) had moderate pain, 2(6.67%) had severe pain. 30 minutes after the intervention 4(13.33%) had no pain, 26(86.67%) had mild pain, and none of them had moderate, and severe pain . In control group 1(3.33%) had mild pain, 28(93.33%) had moderate pain, 1(3.33%) had severe pain. It is inferred that application of Acupressure was highly effective in relieving pain and dysmenorrhoea symptoms among all experimental adolescent girls. Also the study reveals that there is no significant association between selected demographic variables such as age, age at menarche, type of family and family history of dysmenorrhoea except duration of menstruation

Correlation, Network and Multifractal Analysis of Global Financial Indices

We apply RMT, Network and MF-DFA methods to investigate correlation, network and multifractal properties of 20 global financial indices. We compare results before and during the financial crisis of 2008 respectively. We find that the network method gives more useful information about the formation of clusters as compared to results obtained from eigenvectors corresponding to second largest eigenvalue and these sectors are formed on the basis of geographical location of indices. At threshold 0.6, indices corresponding to Americas, Europe and Asia/Pacific disconnect and form different clusters before the crisis but during the crisis, indices corresponding to Americas and Europe are combined together to form a cluster while the Asia/Pacific indices forms another cluster. By further increasing the value of threshold to 0.9, European countries France, Germany and UK constitute the most tightly linked markets. We study multifractal properties of global financial indices and find that financial indices corresponding to Americas and Europe almost lie in the same range of degree of multifractality as compared to other indices. India, South Korea, Hong Kong are found to be near the degree of multifractality of indices corresponding to Americas and Europe. A large variation in the degree of multifractality in Egypt, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Singapore may be a reason that when we increase the threshold in financial network these countries first start getting disconnected at low threshold from the correlation network of financial indices. We fit Binomial Multifractal Model (BMFM) to these financial markets.Comment: 32 pages, 25 figures, 1 tabl

Recycling of Cr/Ni/Cu plating wastes as black ceramic pigments

The non-ferrous metal industry, such as Cr/Ni/Cu plating, produces acid sludge which is usually neutralized with lime slurry in batch processes, and the resulting waste is dewatered by vacuum filtration or filter-pressing. Dewatered sludge contains calcium sulphate (CaSO4) coming from the neutralization process, as well as transition metals (Cr, Ni and Cu), oil, grease and suspended solids. In this communication, two residual sludges from Cr/Ni/Cu plating have been dried (110 C) and fired (1100 C), and both dried (gray coloured) and fired powders (black coloured) have been characterized by DTA-TG, XRD and SEMEDX techniques. XRD shows only quartz crystallization in dried samples, while NiCr2O4 chromite spinel and NiO periclase crystallize in fired powders, along with CaSO4 anhydrite and CaSiO3 wollastonite. The powders have been introduced as ceramic pigments into three different conventional glazes: a) a lead bisilicate (PbO.2SiO2) double fire frit (1000 C), b) a double fire frit with low lead content (1000 C), and c) a double fire frit without lead (1050 C). Glazed samples were characterized by UV-Vis-NIR (diffuse reflectance) and CIEL⁄a⁄b⁄ (color parameters). Dried powders induce glaze defects (pin-holing and crawling), but fired powders did not show these faults exhibiting more intense (higher L⁄ ) and yellowish (higher b⁄ ) black colors than the standard spinel

The spatial distribution of substellar objects in IC348 and the Orion Trapezium Cluster

Aims: Some theoretical scenarios suggest the formation of brown dwarfs as ejected stellar embryos in star-forming clusters. Such a formation mechanism can result in different spatial distributions of stars and substellar objects. We aim to investigate the spatial structure of stellar and substellar objects in two well sampled and nearby embedded clusters, namely IC348 and the Orion Trapezium Cluster (OTC) to test this hypothesis. Methods:Deep near-infrared K-band data complete enough to sample the substellar population in IC348 and OTC are obtained from the literature. The spatial distribution of the K-band point sources is analysed using the Minimum Spanning Tree (MST) method. The Q parameter and the spanning trees are evaluated for stellar and substellar objects as a function of cluster core radius R$_c$. Results: The stellar population in both IC348 and OTC display a clustered distribution whereas the substellar population is distributed homogeneously in space within twice the cluster core radius. Although the substellar objects do not appear to be bound by the cluster potential well, they are still within the limits of the cluster and not significantly displaced from their birth sites. Conclusions: The spatially homogeneous distribution of substellar objects is best explained by assuming higher initial velocities, distributed in a random manner and going through multiple interactions. The overall spatial coincidence of these objects with the cluster locations can be understood if these objects are nevertheless travelling slowly enough so as to feel the gravitational effect of the cluster. The observations support the formation of substellar objects as ``ejected stellar embryos''. Higher ejection velocities are necessary but net spatial displacements may not be necessary to explain the observational data.Comment: 4 pages. Accepted by A&A Letter

Biomechanical signals and the C-type natriuretic peptide counteract catabolic activities induced by IL-1β in chondrocyte/agarose constructs

Introduction: The present study examined the effect of C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) on the anabolic and catabolic activities in chondrocyte/agarose constructs subjected to dynamic compression. Methods: Constructs were cultured under free-swelling conditions or subjected to dynamic compression with low (0.1 to 100 pM) or high concentrations (1 to 1,000 nM) of CNP, interleukin-1? (IL-1?), and/or KT-5823 (inhibits cyclic GMP-dependent protein kinase II (PKGII)). Anabolic and catabolic activities were assessed as follows: nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) release, and [3H]-thymidine and 35SO4 incorporation were quantified by using biochemical assays. Gene expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), aggrecan, and collagen type II were assessed with real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR). Two-way ANOVA and the post hoc Bonferroni-corrected t tests were used to examine data. Results: CNP reduced NO and PGE2 release and partially restored [3H]-thymidine and 35SO4 incorporation in constructs cultured with IL-1?. The response was dependent on the concentration of CNP, such that 100 pM increased [3H]-thymidine incorporation (P &lt; 0.001). This is in contrast to 35SO4 incorporation, which was enhanced with 100 or 1000 nM CNP in the presence and absence of IL-1? (P &lt; 0.001). Stimulation by both dynamic compression and CNP and/or the PKGII inhibitor further reduced NO and PGE2 release and restored [3H]-thymidine and 35SO4 incorporation. In the presence and absence of IL-1?, the magnitude of stimulation for [3H]-thymidine and 35SO4 incorporation by dynamic compression was dependent on the concentration of CNP and the response was inhibited with the PKGII inhibitor. In addition, stimulation by CNP and/or dynamic compression reduced IL-1?-induced iNOS and COX-2 expression and restored aggrecan and collagen type II expression. The catabolic response was not further influenced with the PKGII inhibitor in IL-1?-treated constructs. Conclusions: Treatment with CNP and dynamic compression increased anabolic activities and blocked catabolic effects induced by IL-1?. The anabolic response was PKGII mediated and raises important questions about the molecular mechanisms of CNP with mechanical signals in cartilage. Therapeutic agents like CNP could be administered in conjunction with controlled exercise therapy to slow the OA disease progression and to repair damaged cartilage. The findings from this research provide the potential for developing novel agents to slow the pathophysiologic mechanisms and to treat OA in the young and old. <br/

Scalar--flat K\"ahler metrics with conformal Bianchi V symmetry

We provide an affirmative answer to a question posed by Tod \cite{Tod:1995b}, and construct all four-dimensional Kahler metrics with vanishing scalar curvature which are invariant under the conformal action of Bianchi V group. The construction is based on the combination of twistor theory and the isomonodromic problem with two double poles. The resulting metrics are non-diagonal in the left-invariant basis and are explicitly given in terms of Bessel functions and their integrals. We also make a connection with the LeBrun ansatz, and characterise the associated solutions of the SU(\infty) Toda equation by the existence a non-abelian two-dimensional group of point symmetries.Comment: Dedicated to Maciej Przanowski on the occasion of his 65th birthday. Minor corrections. To appear in CQ