Incoherent pion photoproduction on the deuteron with polarization observables I: Formal expressions

Formal expressions are developed for the general five-fold differential cross section of incoherent $\pi$-photoproduction on the deuteron including beam and target polarization. The polarization observables of the cross section are described by various beam, target and beam-target asymmetries for polarized photons and/or polarized deuterons. They are given as bilinear hermitean forms in the reaction matrix elements divided by the unpolarized cross section. In addition, the corresponding observables for the semi-exclusive reaction $\vec d(\vec \gamma,\pi)NN$ are also given.Comment: 11 pages, 1 figur

Participant views on involvement in a trial of social recovery cognitive behaviour therapy

Background The PRODIGY trial (Prevention of long term social disability amongst young people with emerging psychological difficulties, ISRCTN47998710) is a pilot trial of social recovery cognitive behaviour therapy (SRCBT). Aims The PRODIGY qualitative substudy aimed to (a) explore individual experiences of participating in the pilot randomised, controlled trial (recruitment, randomisation, assessment) andinitial views of therapy, and (b) to explore perceived benefits of taking part in research v. ethical concerns and potential risks. Method Qualitative investigation using semi-structured interviews with thematic analysis. Results Analysis revealed participant experiences around the key themes of acceptability, disclosure, practicalities, altruism and engagement. Conclusions Participants in both trial arms perceived themselves as gaining benefits from being involved in the study, above and beyond the intervention. This has implications for the design of future research and services for this client group, highlighting the importance of being flexible and an individualised approach as key engagement tools

Polarization observables in π0η\pi^0\eta-photoproduction on the proton

For $\pi^0\eta$-photoproduction on the nucleon formal expressions are developed for the five-fold differential cross section and the recoil polarization including beam and target polarizations. The polarization observables are described by various beam, target and beam-target asymmetries for polarized photons and/or polarized nucleons. They are given as bilinear hermitean forms in the reaction matrix elements divided by the unpolarized cross section. Numerical results for the linear and circular beam asymmetries for $\gamma p\to\pi^0\eta p$ are obtained within an isobar model and are compared with existing data. Predictions are also given for the target asymmetry $T_{11}$, and the beam-target asymmetries $T^c_{10}$ and $T^c_{11}$ for circularly polarized photons.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figure

‘I can see it and I can feel it, but I can’t put my finger on it’: A Foucauldian discourse analysis of experiences of relating on psychiatric inpatient units

Objectives. Research has shown interpersonal relationships influence experiences of inpatient psychiatric services. This study explored inpatient staff and service users’ talk about relating, and consequences on available/limited social actions. Design. A Foucauldian discourse analysis was used to analyse transcribed semistructured interviews and focus groups with current inpatient staff members and members of a service-user involvement group. Method. Two focus groups (service users n = 10; staff n = 6) and five interviews (service users n = 2; staff n = 3) were held, with participants responding to questions regarding the discursive object of ‘experiences of relating on inpatient wards’. Results. A dominant ‘medical–technical–legal’ discourse was seen, alongside a counter discourse of ‘ordinary humane relating’. Through the tensions between these discourses emerged a discourse of ‘collaborative exploration’. Conclusion. The medical–technical–legal discourse perpetuates notions of mental illness as impenetrable to relating. Staff fear of causing harm and positions of legal accountability generate mistrust which obstructs relating, whilst patients expect to be asked their opinions on their experiences and to be involved in deciding what treatment to accept, and experience frustration and alienation when this is not forthcoming. Ordinary humane relating was described as vital for service users in regaining a sense of self, although not considered enough in itself to promote recovery/wellness. ‘Treatment for my problems’ was constructed by service users as emerging through the collaborative exploration discourse, where therapeutic relationships can develop, enabling change and a return to safety

A Century of Cardiomythology: Exercise and the Heart c.1880–1980

The relationship between health and exercise involves risks as well as rewards. This article focuses on heart disease and the marathon to show how doctors have negotiated that relationship over a century. Three distinct changes in biomedical attitudes towards vigorous exercise are outlined. First, the mid-Victorian interpretation of pathological hypertrophy of the heart was overturned at the end of the nineteenth century. Secondly, hypertrophy was reinvented as a beneficial physiological adaptation in the 1940s and 1950s. Thirdly, these claims of distinctiveness were challenged by the leisure revolution. Sports doctors and cardiologists reinvented exercise as a drug that could only be safely used with the guidance of a medical professional. Medicalising sport reduced its risk and maximised its reward, both to the individual and the state

Análise das vendas das lojas de vestuário da área central de Francisco Beltrão: um estudo após a implantação do pix / Analysis of sales in clothing stores in the central area of Francisco Beltrão: a study after the implementation of the pix

O presente trabalho tem como objetivo identificar se a utilização a ferramenta de pagamento PIX contribuiu para o aumento das vendas em empresas do ramo de vestuário da região central de Francisco Beltrão. No Brasil, cabe ao Sistema Financeiro Nacional integrar agentes tomadores e aplicadores de recursos, de maneira segura, concreta e confiável. O SFN é composto por órgãos normativos, supervisores e operadores, que realizam as atividades pertinentes à movimentação de recursos em todo o território nacional. Uma das formas de pagamento existentes, o recém-criado PIX, tem visto sua utilização crescer cada dia mais no mercado. Além de ser rápido e seguro, o PIX traz muitos outros benefícios tanto a pagadores quanto a recebedores, pois ele está amplamente disponível para todas as pessoas que tenham uma conta em alguma instituição financeira. Buscando responder a problemática do estudo foi realizado uma survey, por meio do envio de um questionário estruturado para os lojistas alvo do estudo de modo a identificar se após a implementação do PIX houve aumento ou não das vendas nas referidas empresas. Dos lojistas entrevistados, 75,28% concordam que suas lojas tiveram aumento em suas vendas após a implantação do PIX, outros 16,85% não concordam nem discordam, pois, suas vendas permaneceram como eram, e 7,86% discordam que sua loja teve aumento das vendas após a implantação do PIX.  Portanto, perante a maioria dos respondentes houve sim um resultado positivo com a implementação da utilização do PIX nas lojas de vestuário de Francisco Beltrão

Forty years studying British politics : the decline of Anglo-America

The still present belief some 40 years ago that British politics was both exceptional and superior has been replaced by more theoretically sophisticated analyses based on a wider and more rigorously deployed range of research techniques, although historical analysis appropriately remains important. The American influence on the study of British politics has declined, but the European Union dimension has not been fully integrated. The study of interest groups has been in some respects a fading paradigm, but important questions related to democratic health have still to be addressed. Public administration has been supplanted by public policy, but economic policy remains under-studied. A key challenge for the future is the study of the management of expectations

Images of reality: Iris Murdoch's five ways from art to religion

Art plays a significant role in Iris Murdoch’s moral philosophy, a major part of which may be interpreted as a proposal for the revision of religious belief. In this paper, I identify within Murdoch’s philosophical writings five distinct but related ways in which great art can assist moral/religious belief and practice: art can reveal to us “the world as we were never able so clearly to see it before”; this revelatory capacity provides us with evidence for the existence of the Good, a metaphor for a transcendent reality of which God was also a symbol; art is a “hall of reflection” in which “everything under the sun can be examined and considered”; art provides us with an analogue for the way in which we should try to perceive our world; and art enables us to transcend our selfish concerns. I consider three possible objections: that Murdoch’s theory is not applicable to all forms of art; that the meaning of works of art is often ambiguous; and that there is disagreement about what constitutes a great work of art. I argue that none of these objections are decisive, and that all forms of art have at least the potential to furnish us with important tools for developing the insight required to live a moral/religious life

Technology Enhanced Writing Therapy for People with Aphasia: Results of a Quasi-Randomised Waitlist Controlled Study

Background: Acquired writing impairment, or dysgraphia, is common in aphasia. It affects both handwriting and typing, and may recover less well than other aphasic symptoms. Dysgraphia is an increasing priority for intervention, particularly for those wishing to participate in online written communication. Effective dysgraphia treatment studies have been reported, but many did not target, or did not achieve, improvements in functional writing. Functional outcomes might be promoted by therapies that exploit digital technologies, such as voice recognition and word prediction software. Aims: This study evaluated the benefits of technology enhanced writing therapy for people with acquired dysgraphia. It aimed to explore the impact of therapy on a functional writing activity, and to examine whether treatment remediated or compensated for the writing impairment. The primary question was: Does therapy improve performance on a functional assessment of writing; and, if so, do gains occur only when writing is assisted by technology? Secondary measures examined whether therapy improved unassisted written naming, functional communication, mood and quality of life. Methods & Procedures: The study employed a quasi randomised waitlist controlled design. 21 people with dysgraphia received 12 hours of writing therapy, either immediately, or after a 6 week delay. The primary outcome measure was a functional assessment of writing, which was administered in handwriting and on a computer with assistive technology enabled. Secondary measures were: The Boston Naming Test (written version), Communication Activities of Daily Living - 2, Visual Analogue Mood Scales (Sad question), and the Assessment of Living with Aphasia. ANOVA analyses were used to examine change on the outcome measures over two time points, between which the immediate group had received therapy, but the delayed group had not. Pre therapy, post therapy and follow up scores on the measures were also examined for all participants. Outcomes & Results: Time x group interactions in the ANOVA analyses showed that therapy improved performance on the functional writing assessment. Further interactions with condition showed that gains occurred only when writing was assisted by technology. There were no significant interactions in the analyses of the secondary outcome measures. A treatment effect on these measures was therefore unconfirmed. Conclusions & Implications. This study showed that 21 people with dysgraphia improved on a functional writing measure following therapy using assistive technology. The results suggest that treatment compensated for, rather than remediated the impairment, given that unassisted writing did not change. Further studies of technology enhanced writing therapy are warranted. What this paper adds What is known already: Writing abilities are typically impaired in aphasia, and may recover less well than other language modalities. Many previous writing therapy studies did not achieve functional gains on everyday writing tasks. What this study adds: This study shows that mainstream digital technologies, such as speech to text software, can be used in therapy to help compensate for writing impairments. Gains were shown on a functional task (writing emails) after 12 hours of treatment. Clinical implications: With specific training, people with aphasia can learn to use mainstream technologies in order to support writing. Greater use of such technologies could be made in practice