Results and Frontiers in Lattice Baryon Spectroscopy

The Lattice Hadron Physics Collaboration (LHPC) baryon spectroscopy effort is reviewed. To date the LHPC has performed exploratory Lattice QCD calculations of the low-lying spectrum of Nucleon and Delta baryons. These calculations demonstrate the effectiveness of our method by obtaining the masses of an unprecedented number of excited states with definite quantum numbers. Future work of the project is outlined.Comment: To appear in the proceedings for the VII Latin American Symposium of Nuclear Physics and Application

Hadronic Resonances from Lattice QCD

The determination of the pattern of hadronic resonances as predicted by Quantum Chromodynamics requires the use of non-perturbative techniques. Lattice QCD has emerged as the dominant tool for such calculations, and has produced many QCD predictions which can be directly compared to experiment. The concepts underlying lattice QCD are outlined, methods for calculating excited states are discussed, and results from an exploratory Nucleon and Delta baryon spectrum study are presented.Comment: 8 pages, VII Latin American Symposium on Nuclear Physics and Application

Exposure to environmental stressors result in increased viral load and further reduction of production parameters in pigs experimentally infected with PCV2b

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) has been identified as the essential, but not sole, underlying infectious component for PCV-associated diseases (PCVAD). Several co-factors have been suggested to convert an infection with PCV2 into the clinical signs of PCVAD, including co-infection with a secondary pathogen and the genetic background of the pig. In the present study, we investigated the role of environmental stressors in the form of changes in environmental temperature and increased stocking-density on viral load in serum and tissue, average daily weight gain (ADG) and food conversion rate (FCR) of pigs experimentally infected with a defined PCV2b strain over an eight week period. These stressors were identified recently as risk factors leading to the occurrence of severe PCVAD on a farm level. In the current study, PCV2-free pigs were housed in separate, environmentally controlled rooms, and the experiment was performed in a 2 × 2 factorial design. In general, PCV2b infection reduced ADG and increased FCR, and these were further impacted on by the environmental stressors. Furthermore, all stressors led to an increased viral load in serum and tissue as assessed by qPCR, although levels did not reach statistical significance. Our data suggest that there is no need for an additional pathogen to develop PCVAD in conventional status pigs, and growth retardation and clinical signs can be induced in PCV2 infected pigs that are exposed to environmental stressors alone

Strukturdynamik- und Maschinendiagnose an einem Cherenkov-Teleskop

Das Deutsche Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY) in Zeuthen entwickelt zurzeit die 12m-Teleskope im Rahmen des internationalen Cherenkov-Telescope-Array (CTA)-Konsortiums. Es ist geplant, die Teleskope über einen Zeitraum von mindestens 30 Jahren kostengünstig zu betreiben. Dabei führt der autarke Betrieb von Teleskopen an abgelegenen Standorten zu speziellen Anforderungen an die Ausfallsicherheit. Diese Anforderungen gelten sowohl für die Tragstruktur als auch für die Antriebskomponenten. Zustandsüberwachung und Verschleißanalysen sind in diesem Anwendungsfall mit klassischen Methoden der Maschinen- und Strukturüberwachung nur eingeschränkt möglich. Methoden der Mustererkennung aus dem Bereich der Psychoakustik konnten erfolgreich verwendet werden, um den Langsamlauf zu analysieren. In diesem Beitrag werden Ergebnisse von Schwingungsuntersuchungen an einem 1:1-Prototyp des Teleskops vorgestellt. Zusätzlich wird die Frage beantwortet, wie ein kostengünstiges Überwachungssystem mit minimaler Sensoranzahl realisiert werden kann.The Deutsche Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY) in Zeuthen currently develops telescopes with 12 m diameter in the framework of the international Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) consortium. These telescopes are supposed to work cost-efficiently for a period of at least 30 years. Their operation at remote locations leads to special demands for the telescope’s support structure and drive components system stability. In this case, traditional methods of condition monitoring and structural health monitoring reach their limits. Psychoacoustical methods could be successfully applied in order to analyse low revolution speed regime. In this paper, we present results of a structural dynamic analysis of a real-sized telescope prototype. Additionally, the question of how to realise a monitoring system with a minimum amount of sensors is addressed

Identificación de las variables producto de embarazo y período de embarazo sobre la muerte fetal mediante el uso de estadístico de chi cuadrado

The objective of this research is to raise awareness of the sociodemographic and maternity risk factors that occur during the gestal period to achieve a decrease in the fetal death rate. The problem lies in the fact that in recent years the rate of fetal death has been increasing in Ecuador. To solve this problem, a 2016 INEC database on fetal death in Ecuador was used. The calculations will be carried out in the Rstudio work environment, designed for statistics, where contingency tables will be applied to group variables that could be related and chi-square that will allow to determine if there is a relationship between the variables. It was possible to obtain as a result the relationship between the gestation period and the pregnancy product, it was also concluded that the pregnancy product and dead born children obtain a higher percentage of relation that is present in the product of packaging Simple ration with 93.62% and the relationship between gestation period and the sex of the baby, gives the highest incidence in men with a total of 0.56% and women with 0.42%.El objetivo de esta investigación es dar a conocer los factores de riesgos sociodemográficos y de maternidad que ocurren durante el período gestal para lograr así una disminución de la tasa de defunción fetal. El problema radica debido a que en los últimos años el índice de defunción fetal se ha visto en aumento en el Ecuador. Para resolver este problema se recurrió a tomar una base de datos de la INEC del 2016 sobre la defunción fetal en el Ecuador. Los cálculos se realizarán en el entorno de trabajo Rstudio, diseñado para la estadística, donde se aplicará las tablas de contingencia para agrupar variables que podrían estar relacionadas y chi-cuadrado que permitirá determinar si existe una relación entre las variables. Se logró obtener como resultado la relación entre el periodo de gestación y el producto del embarazo, también se llegó a la conclusión que el producto de embarazo e hijos nacidos muertos obtienen un mayor porcentaje de relación que está presente en el producto de embarazo simple con un 93.62% y la relación entre periodo de gestación y el sexo del bebe, da como mayor incidencia en los hombres con un total de 0.56% y las mujeres con un 0.42%

A Hybrid Machine-Learning-Based Method for Analytic Representation of the Vocal Fold Edges during Connected Speech

Investigating the phonatory processes in connected speech from high-speed videoendoscopy (HSV) demands the accurate detection of the vocal fold edges during vibration. The present paper proposes a new spatio-temporal technique to automatically segment vocal fold edges in HSV data during running speech. The HSV data were recorded from a vocally normal adult during a reading of the “Rainbow Passage.” The introduced technique was based on an unsupervised machine-learning (ML) approach combined with an active contour modeling (ACM) technique (also known as a hybrid approach). The hybrid method was implemented to capture the edges of vocal folds on different HSV kymograms, extracted at various cross-sections of vocal folds during vibration. The k-means clustering method, an ML approach, was first applied to cluster the kymograms to identify the clustered glottal area and consequently provided an initialized contour for the ACM. The ACM algorithm was then used to precisely detect the glottal edges of the vibrating vocal folds. The developed algorithm was able to accurately track the vocal fold edges across frames with low computational cost and high robustness against image noise. This algorithm offers a fully automated tool for analyzing the vibratory features of vocal folds in connected speech

Spin-Dependent Electron Scattering from Polarized Protons and Deuterons with the BLAST Experiment at MIT-Bates

The Bates Large Acceptance Spectrometer Toroid (BLAST) experiment was operated at the MIT-Bates Linear Accelerator Center from 2003 until 2005. The experiment was designed to exploit the power of a polarized electron beam incident on polarized targets of hydrogen and deuterium to measure, in a systematic manner, the neutron, proton, and deuteron form factors as well as other aspects of the electromagnetic interaction on few-nucleon systems. We briefly describe the experiment, and present and discuss the numerous results obtained.United States. Dept. of EnergyNational Science Foundation (U.S.

Oral application of freeze-dried yeast particles expressing the PCV2b Cap protein on their surface induce protection to subsequent PCV2b challenge in vivo

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is now endemic in every major pig producing country, causing PCV-associated disease (PCVAD), linked with large scale economic losses. Current vaccination strategies are based on the capsid protein of the virus and are reasonably successful in preventing PCVAD but fail to induce sterile immunity. Additionally, vaccinating whole herds is expensive and time consuming. In the present study a “proof of concept” vaccine trial was employed to test the effectiveness of powdered freeze-dried recombinant Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast stably expressing the capsid protein of PCV2b on its surface as an orally applied vaccine. PCV2-free pigs were given 3 doses of vaccine or left un-vaccinated before challenge with a defined PCV2b strain. Rectal temperatures were measured and serum and faeces samples were collected weekly. At the end of the study, pigs were euthanized, tissue samples taken and tested for PCV2b load by qPCR and immunohistochemistry. The peak of viraemia in sera and faeces of unvaccinated pigs was higher than that of vaccinated pigs. Additionally more sIgA was found in faeces of vaccinated pigs than unvaccinated. Vaccination was associated with lower serum concentrations of TNFα and IL-1β but higher concentrations of IFNα and IFNγ in comparison to the unvaccinated animals. At the end of the trial, a higher viral load was found in several lymphatic tissues and the ileum of unvaccinated pigs in comparison to vaccinated pigs. The difference between groups was especially apparent in the ileum. The results presented here demonstrate a possible use for recombinant S. cerevisiae expressing viral proteins as an oral vaccine against PCV2. A powdered freeze-dried recombinant S. cerevisiae used as an oral vaccine could be mixed with feed and may offer a cheap and less labour intensive alternative to inoculation with the additional advantage that no cooling chain would be required for vaccine transport and storage

A mathematical model of tumour & blood pHe regulation: The HCO-3/CO2 buffering system

Malignant tumours are characterised by a low, acidic extracellular pH (pHe) which facilitates invasion and metastasis. Previous research has proposed the potential benefits of manipulating systemic pHe, and recent experiments have highlighted the potential for buffer therapy to raise tumour pHe, prevent metastases, and prolong survival in laboratory mice. To examine the physiological regulation of tumour buffering and investigate how perturbations of the buffering system (via metabolic/respiratory disorders or changes in parameters) can alter tumour and blood pHe, we develop a simple compartmentalised ordinary differential equation model of pHe regulation by the View the MathML source buffering system. An approximate analytical solution is constructed and used to carry out a sensitivity analysis, where we identify key parameters that regulate tumour pHe in both humans and mice. From this analysis, we suggest promising alternative and combination therapies, and identify specific patient groups which may show an enhanced response to buffer therapy. In addition, numerical simulations are performed, validating the model against well-known metabolic/respiratory disorders and predicting how these disorders could change tumour pHe