217 research outputs found
Measurement of the electron electric dipole moment using YbF molecules
The most sensitive measurements of the electron electric dipole moment d_e
have previously been made using heavy atoms. Heavy polar molecules offer a
greater sensitivity to d_e because the interaction energy to be measured is
typically 10^3 times larger than in a heavy atom. We report the first
measurement of this kind, for which we have used the molecule YbF. Together,
the large interaction energy and the strong tensor polarizability of the
molecule make our experiment essentially free of the systematic errors that
currently limit d_e measurements in atoms. Our first result d_e = (- 0.2 \pm
3.2) x 10^-26 e.cm is less sensitive than the best atom measurement, but is
limited only by counting statistics and demonstrates the power of the method.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. v2. Minor corrections and clarifications made in
response to referee comment
Search for the electric dipole moment of the electron with thorium monoxide
The electric dipole moment of the electron (eEDM) is a signature of
CP-violating physics beyond the Standard Model. We describe an ongoing
experiment to measure or set improved limits to the eEDM, using a cold beam of
thorium monoxide (ThO) molecules. The metastable state in ThO
has important advantages for such an experiment. We argue that the statistical
uncertainty of an eEDM measurement could be improved by as much as 3 orders of
magnitude compared to the current experimental limit, in a first-generation
apparatus using a cold ThO beam. We describe our measurements of the state
lifetime and the production of ThO molecules in a beam, which provide crucial
data for the eEDM sensitivity estimate. ThO also has ideal properties for the
rejection of a number of known systematic errors; these properties and their
implications are described.Comment: v2: Equation (11) correcte
Limits on the monopole magnetic field from measurements of the electric dipole moments of atoms, molecules and the neutron
A radial magnetic field can induce a time invariance violating electric
dipole moment (EDM) in quantum systems. The EDMs of the Tl, Cs, Xe and Hg atoms
and the neutron that are produced by such a field are estimated. The
contributions of such a field to the constants, of the T,P-odd
interactions and are also estimated for the TlF, HgF and YbF molecules (where
() is the electron (nuclear) spin and is the molecular
axis). The best limit on the contact monopole field can be obtained from the
measured value of the Tl EDM. The possibility of such a field being produced
from polarization of the vacuum of electrically charged magnetic monopoles
(dyons) by a Coulomb field is discussed, as well as the limit on these dyons.
An alternative mechanism involves chromomagnetic and chromoelectric fields in
QCD.Comment: Uses RevTex, 16 pages, 4 postscript figures. An explanation of why
there is no orbital contribution to the EDM has been added, and the
presentation has been improved in genera
Transverse Fresnel-Fizeau drag effects in strongly dispersive media
A light beam normally incident upon an uniformly moving dielectric medium is
in general subject to bendings due to a transverse Fresnel-Fizeau light drag
effect. In conventional dielectrics, the magnitude of this bending effect is
very small and hard to detect. Yet, it can be dramatically enhanced in strongly
dispersive media where slow group velocities in the m/s range have been
recently observed taking advantage of the electromagnetically induced
transparency (EIT) effect. In addition to the usual downstream drag that takes
place for positive group velocities, we predict a significant anomalous
upstream drag to occur for small and negative group velocities. Furthermore,
for sufficiently fast speeds of the medium, higher order dispersion terms are
found to play an important role and to be responsible for peculiar effects such
as light propagation along curved paths and the restoration of the spatial
coherence of an incident noisy beam. The physics underlying this new class of
slow-light effects is thoroughly discussed
Online patient simulation training to improve clinical reasoning: a feasibility randomised controlled trial
Online patient simulations (OPS) are a novel method for teaching clinical reasoning skills to students and could contribute to reducing diagnostic errors. However, little is known about how best to implement and evaluate OPS in medical curricula. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility, acceptability and potential effects of eCREST — the electronic Clinical Reasoning Educational Simulation Tool
Women, resettlement and desistance
With the numbers of women imprisoned increasing across Western jurisdictions over the last 15 or so years, so too have the numbers of women returning to the community following a period in custody. Despite increasing policy attention in the UK and elsewhere to prisoner resettlement, women’s experiences on release from prison have received limited empirical and policy attention. Drawing upon interviews with women leaving prison in Victoria, Australia, this article discusses the resettlement challenges faced by the women and highlights their similarity to the experiences of women leaving prison in other jurisdictions. Women had mixed (and predominantly negative) experiences and views of accessing services and supports following release, though experiences of parole supervision by community corrections officers were often positive, especially if women felt valued and supported by workers who demonstrated genuine concern. Analysis of factors associated with further offending and with desistance, points to the critical role of flexible, tailored and women-centred post-release support building, and, where possible, upon relationships established with women while they are still in prison
The META tool optimizes metagenomic analyses across sequencing platforms and classifiers
A major challenge in the field of metagenomics is the selection of the correct combination of sequencing platform and downstream metagenomic analysis algorithm, or “classifier”. Here, we present the Metagenomic Evaluation Tool Analyzer (META), which produces simulated data and facilitates platform and algorithm selection for any given metagenomic use case. META-generated in silico read data are modular, scalable, and reflect user-defined community profiles, while the downstream analysis is done using a variety of metagenomic classifiers. Reported results include information on resource utilization, time-to-answer, and performance. Real-world data can also be analyzed using selected classifiers and results benchmarked against simulations. To test the utility of the META software, simulated data was compared to real-world viral and bacterial metagenomic samples run on four different sequencers and analyzed using 12 metagenomic classifiers. Lastly, we introduce “META Score”: a unified, quantitative value which rates an analytic classifier’s ability to both identify and count taxa in a representative sample
Programmable in situ amplification for multiplexed imaging of mRNA expression
In situ hybridization methods enable the mapping of mRNA expression within intact biological samples. With current approaches, it is challenging to simultaneously map multiple target mRNAs within whole-mount vertebrate embryos, representing a significant limitation in attempting to study interacting regulatory elements in systems most relevant to human development and disease. Here, we report a multiplexed fluorescent in situ hybridization method based on orthogonal amplification with hybridization chain reactions (HCR). With this approach, RNA probes complementary to mRNA targets trigger chain reactions in which fluorophore-labeled RNA hairpins self-assemble into tethered fluorescent amplification polymers. The programmability and sequence specificity of these amplification cascades enable multiple HCR amplifiers to operate orthogonally at the same time in the same sample. Robust performance is achieved when imaging five target mRNAs simultaneously in fixed whole-mount and sectioned zebrafish embryos. HCR amplifiers exhibit deep sample penetration, high signal-to-background ratios and sharp signal localization
Potency analysis of cellular therapies: the emerging role of molecular assays
Potency testing is an important part of the evaluation of cellular therapy products. Potency assays are quantitative measures of a product-specific biological activity that is linked to a relevant biological property and, ideally, a product's in vivo mechanism of action. Both in vivo and in vitro assays can be used for potency testing. Since there is often a limited period of time between the completion of production and the release from the laboratory for administration to the patient, in vitro assays such are flow cytometry, ELISA, and cytotoxicity are typically used. Better potency assays are needed to assess the complex and multiple functions of cellular therapy products, some of which are not well understood. Gene expression profiling using microarray technology has been widely and effectively used to assess changes of cells in response to stimuli and to classify cancers. Preliminary studies have shown that the expression of noncoding microRNA which play an important role in cellular development, differentiation, metabolism and signal transduction can distinguish different types of stem cells and leukocytes. Both gene and microRNA expression profiling have the potential to be important tools for testing the potency of cellular therapies. Potency testing, the complexities associated with potency testing of cellular therapies, and the potential role of gene and microRNA expression microarrays in potency testing of cellular therapies is discussed
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