Superstring dualities and p-brane bound states

We show that the M-theory/IIA and IIA/IIB superstring dualities together with the diffeomorphism invariance of the underlying theories require the presence of certain p-brane bound states in IIA and IIB superstring theories preserving 1/2 of the spacetime supersymmetry. We then confirm the existence of IIA and IIB supergravity solutions having the appropriate p-brane bound states interpretation.Comment: 21 pages, Phyzzx, Minor corrections, Version that will appear in Nucl. Phys.

The POOL Data Storage, Cache and Conversion Mechanism

The POOL data storage mechanism is intended to satisfy the needs of the LHC experiments to store and analyze the data from the detector response of particle collisions at the LHC proton-proton collider. Both the data rate and the data volumes will largely differ from the past experience. The POOL data storage mechanism is intended to be able to cope with the experiment's requirements applying a flexible multi technology data persistency mechanism. The developed technology independent approach is flexible enough to adopt new technologies, take advantage of existing schema evolution mechanisms and allows users to access data in a technology independent way. The framework consists of several components, which can be individually adopted and integrated into existing experiment frameworks.Comment: Talk from the 2003 Computing in High Energy and Nuclear Physics (CHEP03), La Jolla, Ca, USA, March 2003, 5 pages, PDF, 6 figures. PSN MOKT00

Promoting cultural competence in health care through a research based intervention in the UK.

There is an urgent need to develop cultural competence among nurses and other care workers if they are to meet the needs of the diverse populations they serve, yet there is limited clarity about what this means, or how it can be measured. To date few attempts have been made to measure the effectiveness of education and training programmes which are designed to promote cultural competence. A research project commissioned by mental health service providers was undertaken to deal with the increasing need for cultural competence in a number of mental health care settings. It involved the delivery of a training intervention with an assessment of cultural competence before and after the intervention. The training intervention was negotiated with the participating teams and was based on the Papadopoulos, Tilki & Taylor model (1998). The project included the design and development of a tool for assessing cultural competence (CCATool). The paper discusses the challenges faced by the trainers during this intervention and proposes a set of principles for the development of effective cultural competence programmes

The vulnerability and resiliency of childhood

Life is full of stressors, which have to be confronted efficiently to grow up. However, reaction to stressors is personalized, complex and coordinated. Vulnerable persons adjust poorly to stressors and express inappropriate responses, while resilient persons practice adaptive physiological and psychological responses. Promotion of resiliency is an intricated issue, which demands strategies at both macro and micro-level. Microlevel strategies are focused on the community, family and individual level, while macrolevel strategies formulate the principles. Nevertheless, prediction of vulnerability and resiliency is really a challenge, as different persons facing same stressors react differently. Some are growing as resilient and others as vulnerable. We aimed to discuss resiliency, vulnerability, importance in relation to health outcome, promotion of resiliency and controversies of vulnerability and resiliency

(1,0) superconformal theories in six dimensions and Killing spinor equations

We solve the Killing spinor equations of 6-dimensional (1,0) superconformal theories in all cases. In particular, we derive the conditions on the fields imposed by the Killing spinor equations and demonstrate that these depend on the isotropy group of the Killing spinors. We focus on the models proposed by Samtleben et al in \cite{ssw} and find that there are solutions preserving 1,2, 4 and 8 supersymmetries. We also explore the solutions which preserve 4 supersymmetries and find that many models admit string and 3-brane solitons as expected from the M-brane intersection rules. The string solitons are smooth regulated by the moduli of instanton configurations.Comment: 26 page

Spinorial geometry and Killing spinor equations of 6-D supergravity

We solve the Killing spinor equations of 6-dimensional (1,0)-supergravity coupled to any number of tensor, vector and scalar multiplets in all cases. The isotropy groups of Killing spinors are Sp(1)\cdot Sp(1)\ltimes \bH (1), U(1)\cdot Sp(1)\ltimes \bH (2), Sp(1)\ltimes \bH (3,4), $Sp(1) (2)$, $U(1) (4)$ and $\{1\} (8)$, where in parenthesis is the number of supersymmetries preserved in each case. If the isotropy group is non-compact, the spacetime admits a parallel null 1-form with respect to a connection with torsion the 3-form field strength of the gravitational multiplet. The associated vector field is Killing and the 3-form is determined in terms of the geometry of spacetime. The Sp(1)\ltimes \bH case admits a descendant solution preserving 3 out of 4 supersymmetries due to the hyperini Killing spinor equation. If the isotropy group is compact, the spacetime admits a natural frame constructed from 1-form spinor bi-linears. In the $Sp(1)$ and U(1) cases, the spacetime admits 3 and 4 parallel 1-forms with respect to the connection with torsion, respectively. The associated vector fields are Killing and under some additional restrictions the spacetime is a principal bundle with fibre a Lorentzian Lie group. The conditions imposed by the Killing spinor equations on all other fields are also determined.Comment: 34 pages, Minor change

Penrose Limits and Spacetime Singularities

We give a covariant characterisation of the Penrose plane wave limit: the plane wave profile matrix $A(u)$ is the restriction of the null geodesic deviation matrix (curvature tensor) of the original spacetime metric to the null geodesic, evaluated in a comoving frame. We also consider the Penrose limits of spacetime singularities and show that for a large class of black hole, cosmological and null singularities (of Szekeres-Iyer ``power-law type''), including those of the FRW and Schwarzschild metrics, the result is a singular homogeneous plane wave with profile $A(u)\sim u^{-2}$, the scale invariance of the latter reflecting the power-law behaviour of the singularities.Comment: 9 pages, LaTeX2e; v2: additional references and cosmetic correction

Ethiopian refugees in the UK: migration, adaptation and settlement experiences and their relevance to health.

Aim: The study explores Ethiopian refugees’ and asylum seekers’ experiences of migration, adaptation and settlement in the UK and their health beliefs and practices. Design: Data was collected using semi-structured depth interviews and a semi-structured questionnaire. The sample consisted of 106 Ethiopians resident in the UK. Results: The majority of the participants fled Ethiopia due to political reasons. Whilst 65% of them had lived in the UK for over five years only 7% had full refugee status. Many of the participants faced difficulties with the immigration system, housing and social services and felt socially isolated. Many also had problems with gaining employment or employment appropriate to their qualifications, and 29% were unemployed. The majority of the participants believe that happiness is a prerequisite to healthiness and also an indication of healthiness. On the other hand the majority believed that sickness is caused by disease and mental illness is caused by both supernatural and psychosocial causes. Most of the participants sought the help of their GP in the first instance of illness although some had experienced difficulties accessing health services due to language problems and poor understanding of the primary health care system. The participants also believed that the stress of adaptation and settlement affected their mental health and led to stress and depression. Conclusion: Migration, adaptation and settlement experiences impact on the health of refugees and are dependent on a number of barriers and enablers, both at a personal and societal level. These should be taken into account in the provision of health and social care services, in particular services should be provided in a culturally competent manner