Potential model calculations and predictions for heavy quarkonium

We investigate the spectroscopy and decays of the charmonium and upsilon systems in a potential model consisting of a relativistic kinetic energy term, a linear confining term including its scalar and vector relativistic corrections and the complete perturbative one-loop quantum chromodynamic short distance potential. The masses and wave functions of the various states are obtained using a variational technique, which allows us to compare the results for both perturbative and nonperturbative treatments of the potential. As well as comparing the mass spectra, radiative widths and leptonic widths with the available data, we include a discussion of the errors on the parameters contained in the potential, the effect of mixing on the leptonic widths, the Lorentz nature of the confining potential and the possible $c\bar{c}$ interpretation of recently discovered charmonium-like states.Comment: Physical Review published versio

Stability of the Submillimeter Brightness of the Atmosphere Above Mauna Kea, Chajnantor and the South Pole

The summit of Mauna Kea in Hawaii, the area near Cerro Chajnantor in Chile, and the South Pole are sites of large millimeter or submillimeter wavelength telescopes. We have placed 860 GHz sky brightness monitors at all three sites and present a comparative study of the measured submillimeter brightness due to atmospheric thermal emission. We report the stability of that quantity at each site.Comment: 6 figure

FRI0592-HPR Work rehabilitation in inflammatory arthritis: A pilot randomised controlled trial

Background Work problems are common in people with inflammatory arthritis (IA): with 28-40% of people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) stopping work in 5y of diagnosis. There is little research into effectiveness of job retention vocational rehabilitation (JRVR)for employed people with IA. Brief JR-VR led to significantly fewer job losses at 3.5 years in the USA (Allaire et al, 2003) and a UK pilot trial demonstrated 6m improvements in work instability and work satisfaction (Macedo et al, 2009). Objectives: To conduct a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) evaluating a JR-VR intervention with employed people with IA,to facilitate planning a full RCT. Methods: Participants with IA were recruited from 6 Rheumatology departments and randomised to VR (delivered by Rheumatology OTs with VR training) or a control group. Both groups received written self-help information about managing work problems. The VR group could receive up to 6h JR-VR, including a work visit. Presenteeism outcomes included: RA-Work Instability Scale (RAWIS:0-23), Work Limitations Questionnaire Productivity Loss (WLQPL: %), Work Activities Limitations Scale (WALS:0-33). Absenteeism was measured using monthly work diaries. Health outcomes included: SF12v2 Physical component(SF12-PC), pain, fatigue and perceived health status VAS (0-100). Mean (SD) change scores and effect sizes were calculated. Results: 213 eligible employed patients with IA were identified, of whom 55 (26%) participated (34 with RA): 13M, 42F; aged 49y (SD 8.8); 7.9y (SD 8.9) disease duration; 33 worked full-time; job types were professional (27%), associated professional/skilled (15%), partly skilled/admin/caring/retain (53%), unskilled (5%). Both groups were comparable at baseline (see Table). At 9m: effect sizes were moderate to large for changes in work and health outcomes in the JR-VR group and none to small in the control group; %working days lost due to sickness: JR-VR =9.6% (SD 13.6); control = 20% (SD 27.1). JR-VR lasted on average 3.08 (SD 1.8)hours and cost £74.98 (SD £46.80) per patient. Conclusions: This pilot suggests brief JR-VR provided by Rheumatology OTs can improve presenteeism, absenteeism and health status, indicating a RCT is warranted. Recruitment was problematic, with many not consenting. Potential reasons include: fear about employers (in a recession) learning they have arthritis; concerns about time out of work attending VR; and not perceiving VR is needed as yet. JR-VR intends to prevent work problems. Support is needed to enable employed people with IA and work problems to attend JR-VR

Low-momentum nucleon-nucleon interaction and shell-model calculations

We discuss the use of the low-momentum nucleon-nucleon NN interaction V-low-k in the derivation of the shell-model effective interaction and emphasize its practical value as an alternative to the Brueckner G-matrix method. We present some selected results of our current study of exotic nuclei around closed shells, which have been obtained starting from the CD-Bonn potential. We also show some results of calculations performed with different phase-shift equivalent NN potentials, and discuss the effect of changes in the cutoff momentum which defines the V-low-k potential.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, 1 table, Talk presented at CDN05, 31 Jan - 4 Feb 2005, University of Tokyo, Japa

Clinicians’ views on cognitive assessment with Aboriginal Australians

Background: A shortage of standardised cognitive assessment tools for use with Aboriginal Australians is evident. Clinicians also miss the range of guidelines necessary to inform test selection and interpretation for all Aboriginal clients. This mixed methods study examines clinicians’ confidence, views and current practices when conducting cognitive assessments with Aboriginal Australian clients. Methods: Clinicians were asked about factors that influence their likelihood of using standardised testing in Aboriginal vs non-Indigenous Australian people. Twenty-one health professionals with experience conducting cognitive assessments with Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians participated. Clinicians were presented with a series of different scenarios per the client’s level of education and language of origin via an online survey. Clinicians rated their likelihood and confidence using standardised cognitive assessment for each scenario. Open-ended questions captured clinicians’ views and information about their current clinical practices. Results: Clients’ age, education and language of origin influence the likelihood of clinicians’ use of standardised cognitive assessment measures with Aboriginal people. Overall, clinicians reported feeling only slightly more confident working with non-Indigenous clients than Aboriginal clients. Qualitative data indicate a lack of consistency regarding test selection. Conclusion: Clinicians expressed concerns about the validity of available cognitive assessment tools for use with Aboriginal Australians and the absence of evidence to assist decision-making. Cited barriers included language, educational attainment and cultural factors

The Q/U Imaging Experiment: Polarization Measurements of Radio Sources at 43 and 95 GHz

We present polarization measurements of extragalactic radio sources observed during the cosmic microwave background polarization survey of the Q/U Imaging Experiment (QUIET), operating at 43 GHz (Q-band) and 95 GHz (W-band). We examine sources selected at 20 GHz from the public, >40 mJy catalog of the Australia Telescope (AT20G) survey. There are ~480 such sources within QUIET's four low-foreground survey patches, including the nearby radio galaxies Centaurus A and Pictor A. The median error on our polarized flux density measurements is 30–40 mJy per Stokes parameter. At signal-to-noise ratio > 3 significance, we detect linear polarization for seven sources in Q-band and six in W-band; only 1.3 ± 1.1 detections per frequency band are expected by chance. For sources without a detection of polarized emission, we find that half of the sources have polarization amplitudes below 90 mJy (Q-band) and 106 mJy (W-band), at 95% confidence. Finally, we compare our polarization measurements to intensity and polarization measurements of the same sources from the literature. For the four sources with WMAP and Planck intensity measurements >1 Jy, the polarization fractions are above 1% in both QUIET bands. At high significance, we compute polarization fractions as much as 10%–20% for some sources, but the effects of source variability may cut that level in half for contemporaneous comparisons. Our results indicate that simple models—ones that scale a fixed polarization fraction with frequency—are inadequate to model the behavior of these sources and their contributions to polarization maps

First Season QUIET Observations: Measurements of Cosmic Microwave Background Polarization Power Spectra at 43 GHz in the Multipole Range 25 ≤ ℓ ≤ 475

The Q/U Imaging ExperimenT (QUIET) employs coherent receivers at 43 GHz and 94 GHz, operating on the Chajnantor plateau in the Atacama Desert in Chile, to measure the anisotropy in the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB). QUIET primarily targets the B modes from primordial gravitational waves. The combination of these frequencies gives sensitivity to foreground contributions from diffuse Galactic synchrotron radiation. Between 2008 October and 2010 December, over 10,000 hr of data were collected, first with the 19 element 43 GHz array (3458 hr) and then with the 90 element 94 GHz array. Each array observes the same four fields, selected for low foregrounds, together covering ≈1000 deg^2. This paper reports initial results from the 43 GHz receiver, which has an array sensitivity to CMB fluctuations of 69 μK√s. The data were extensively studied with a large suite of null tests before the power spectra, determined with two independent pipelines, were examined. Analysis choices, including data selection, were modified until the null tests passed. Cross-correlating maps with different telescope pointings is used to eliminate a bias. This paper reports the EE, BB, and EB power spectra in the multipole range ℓ = 25-475. With the exception of the lowest multipole bin for one of the fields, where a polarized foreground, consistent with Galactic synchrotron radiation, is detected with 3σ significance, the E-mode spectrum is consistent with the ΛCDM model, confirming the only previous detection of the first acoustic peak. The B-mode spectrum is consistent with zero, leading to a measurement of the tensor-to-scalar ratio of r = 0.35^(+1.06)_(–0.87). The combination of a new time-stream "double-demodulation" technique, side-fed Dragonian optics, natural sky rotation, and frequent boresight rotation leads to the lowest level of systematic contamination in the B-mode power so far reported, below the level of r = 0.1

Frailty in Indigenous Populations: A Scoping Review

Background: Indigenous populations experience high rates of age-related illness when compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts. Frailty is a challenging expression of aging and an important public health priority. The purpose of this review was to map what the existing literature reports around frailty in Indigenous populations and to highlight the current gaps in frailty research within the Indigenous landscape. Method: Scoping review of English language original research articles focusing on frailty within Indigenous adult populations in settler colonial countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand and USA). Ten electronic databases and eight relevant institutional websites were searched from inception to October 2020. Results: Nine articles met our inclusion criteria, finding this population having a higher prevalence of frailty and frailty occurring at younger ages when compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts, but two did not use a formal frailty tool. Females presented with higher levels of frailty. No culturally specific frailty tool was identified, and the included articles did not assess strategies or interventions to manage or prevent frailty in Indigenous peoples. Conclusions: There was little definitive evidence of the true frailty prevalence, approaches to frailty screening and of potential points of intervention to manage or prevent the onset of frailty. Improvements in the quality of evidence are urgently needed, along with further research to determine the factors contributing to higher rates of frailty within Indigenous populations. Incorporation of Indigenous views of frailty, and instruments and programs that are led and designed by Indigenous communities, are crucial to address this public health priority

Neuropathologic basis of frontotemporal dementia in progressive supranuclear palsy.

BackgroundProgressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by neuronal loss in the extrapyramidal system with pathologic accumulation of tau in neurons and glia. The most common clinical presentation of PSP, referred to as Richardson syndrome, is that of atypical parkinsonism with vertical gaze palsy, axial rigidity, and frequent falls. Although cognitive deficits in PSP are often ascribed to subcortical dysfunction, a subset of patients has dementia with behavioral features similar to the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia. In this study we aimed to identify the clinical and pathological characteristics of PSP presenting with frontotemporal dementia.MethodsIn this study, we compared clinical and pathologic characteristics of 31 patients with PSP with Richardson syndrome with 15 patients with PSP with frontotemporal dementia. For pathological analysis, we used semiquantitative methods to assess neuronal and glial lesions with tau immunohistochemistry, as well image analysis of tau burden using digital microscopic methods.ResultsWe found greater frontal and temporal neocortical neuronal tau pathology in PSP with frontotemporal dementia compared with PSP with Richardson syndrome. White matter tau pathology was also greater in PSP with frontotemporal dementia than PSP with Richardson syndrome. Genetic and demographic factors were not associated with atypical distribution of tau pathology in PSP with frontotemporal dementia.ConclusionsThe results confirm the subset of cognitive-predominant PSP mimicking frontotemporal dementia in PSP. PSP with frontotemporal dementia has distinct clinical features that differ from PSP with Richardson syndrome, as well as differences in distribution and density of tau pathology. © 2019 The Authors. Movement Disorders published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society