1,613 research outputs found
Analytical Behaviour of Positronium Decay Amplitudes
Positronium annihilation amplitudes that are computed by assuming a
factorization approximation with on-shell intermediate leptons do not exhibit
good analytical behaviour. Using dispersion techniques, we find new
contributions that interfere with the known results to restore analytical
properties. Those new amplitudes which cannot be obtained using standard
factorized amplitude formalism, contribute at order alpha^2. Therefore they
have to be evaluated before any theoretical conclusion can be drawn upon the
orthopositronium lifetime puzzle.Comment: LaTeX, 22 pages, 3 eps figure
Parapositronium Decay and Dispersion Relations
Positronium decay rates are computed at the one-loop level, using
convolution-type factorized amplitudes. The dynamics of this factorization is
probed with dispersion relations, showing that unallowed approximations are
usually made, and some ordre alpha^2 corrections missed. Further, we discuss
the relevance of the Schrodinger wavefunction as the basis for perturbative
calculations. Finally, we apply our formalism to the parapositronium two-photon
decay.Comment: LaTeX, 13 pages, 1 eps figur
Can economic evaluation in telemedicine be trusted? A systematic review of the literature
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Telemedicine has been advocated as an effective means to provide health care services over a distance. Systematic information on costs and consequences has been called for to support decision-making in this field. This paper provides a review of the quality, validity and generalisability of economic evaluations in telemedicine.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A systematic literature search in all relevant databases was conducted and forms the basis for addressing these issues. Only articles published in peer-reviewed journals and written in English in the period from 1990 to 2007 were analysed. The literature search identified 33 economic evaluations where both costs (resource use) and outcomes (non-resource consequences) were measured.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>This review shows that economic evaluations in telemedicine are highly diverse in terms of both the study context and the methods applied. The articles covered several medical specialities ranging from cardiology and dermatology to psychiatry. The studies analysed telemedicine in home care, and in primary and secondary care settings using a variety of different technologies including videoconferencing, still-images and monitoring (store-and-forward telemedicine). Most studies used multiple outcome measures and analysed the effects using disaggregated cost-consequence frameworks. Objectives, study design, and choice of comparators were mostly well reported. The majority of the studies lacked information on perspective and costing method, few used general statistics and sensitivity analysis to assess validity, and even fewer used marginal analysis.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>As this paper demonstrates, the majority of the economic evaluations reviewed were not in accordance with standard evaluation techniques. Further research is needed to explore the reasons for this and to address how economic evaluation in telemedicine best can take advantage of local constraints and at the same time produce valid and generalisable results.</p
Application of processed organic municipal solid waste on agricultural land - a scenario analysis
Source separation, composting and anaerobic digestion, with associated land application, are increasingly being considered as alternative waste management strategies to landfilling and incineration of municipal solid waste (MSW). Environmental life cycle
assessments are a useful tool in political decision-making about waste management strategies. However, due to the diversity of processed organic MSW and the situations in which it can be applied, the environmental impacts of land application are very hard to determine by experimental means. In the current study, we used the agroecosystem model Daisy to simulate a range of different scenarios representing different geographical areas, farm and soil types under Danish conditions and legislation. Generally, the application of processed organic MSW resulted in increased emissions compared with the corresponding standard scenarios, but with large differences between scenarios.
Emission coefficients for nitrogen leaching to the groundwater ranged from 0.03 to 0.87, while those for nitrogen lost to surface waters through tile drains ranged from 0 to 0.30. Emission coefficients for N2O formation ranged from 0.013 to 0.022 and for ammonia
volatilization from 0.016 to 0.11. These estimates are within reasonable range of observed values under similar conditions. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis showed that the estimates were not very sensitive to the mineralization dynamics of the processed organic MSW. The results show that agroecosystem models can be powerful tools to estimate the environmental impacts of land application of processed MSW under different conditions. Despite this, agroecosystem models have only been used to a very limited degree for this purpose
Positronium Decay : Gauge Invariance and Analyticity
The construction of positronium decay amplitudes is handled through the use
of dispersion relations. In this way, emphasis is put on basic QED principles:
gauge invariance and soft-photon limits (analyticity).
A firm grounding is given to the factorization approaches, and some
ambiguities in the spin and energy structures of the positronium wavefunction
are removed. Non-factorizable amplitudes are naturally introduced. Their
dynamics is described, especially regarding the enforcement of gauge invariance
and analyticity through delicate interferences. The important question of the
completeness of the present theoretical predictions for the decay rates is then
addressed. Indeed, some of those non-factorizable contributions are unaccounted
for by NRQED analyses. However, it is shown that such new contributions are
highly suppressed, being of order alpha^3.
Finally, a particular effective form factor formalism is constructed for
parapositronium, allowing a thorough analysis of binding energy effects and
analyticity implementation.Comment: 34 pages, 13 figure
Transmission and wind investment in a deregulated electricity industry
Adoption of dispersed renewable energy technologies
requires transmission network expansion. Besides the transmission system operator (TSO), restructuring of electricity industries has introduced a merchant investor (MI), who earns congestion rents from constructing new lines. We compare these two market designs via a stochastic bi-level programming model that has either the MI or the TSO making transmission investment decisions at the upper level and power producers determining generation investment and operation at the lower level while facing wind power variability. We find that social welfare is always higher under the TSO because the MI has incentive to boost congestion rents by restricting capacities of transmission
lines. Such strategic behaviour also limits investment in wind power by producers. However, regardless of the market design (MI or TSO), when producers behave a la Cournot, a higher proportion of energy is produced by wind. In effect, withholding of generation capacity by producers prompts more transmission investment since the TSO aims to increase welfare by subsidising wind and the MI creates more flow to maximise profit
Recombination and selectional forces in cyanopeptolin NRPS operons from highly similar, but geographically remote Planktothrix strains
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cyanopeptolins are nonribosomally produced heptapetides showing a highly variable composition. The cyanopeptolin synthetase operon has previously been investigated in three strains from the genera <it>Microcystis</it>, <it>Planktothrix </it>and <it>Anabaena</it>. Cyanopeptolins are displaying protease inhibitor activity, but the biological function(s) is (are) unknown. Cyanopeptolin gene cluster variability and biological functions of the peptide variants are likely to be interconnected.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We have investigated two cyanopeptolin gene clusters from highly similar, but geographically remote strains of the same genus. Sequencing of a nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) cyanopeptolin gene cluster from the Japanese strain <it>Planktothrix </it>NIES 205 (205-<it>oci</it>), showed the 30 kb gene cluster to be highly similar to the <it>oci </it>gene cluster previously described in <it>Planktothrix </it>NIVA CYA 116, isolated in Norway. Both operons contained seven NRPS modules, a sulfotransferase (S) and a glyceric acid loading (GA)-domain. Sequence analyses showed a high degree of conservation, except for the presence of an epimerase domain in NIES 205 and the regions around the epimerase, showing high substitution rates and Ka/Ks values above 1. The two strains produce almost identical cyanopeptolins, cyanopeptolin-1138 and oscillapeptin E respectively, but with slight differences regarding the production of minor cyanopeptolin variants. These variants may be the result of relaxed adenylation (A)-domain specificity in the nonribosomal enzyme complex. Other genetic markers (16S rRNA, <it>ntc</it>A and the phycocyanin <it>cpc</it>BA spacer) were identical, supporting that these geographically separated <it>Planktothrix </it>strains are closely related.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A horizontal gene transfer event resulting in exchange of a whole module-encoding region was observed. Nucleotide statistics indicate that both purifying selection and positive selection forces are operating on the gene cluster. The positive selection forces are acting within and around the epimerase insertion while purifying selection conserves the remaining (major) part of the gene cluster. The presence of an epimerase in the gene cluster is in line with the D-configuration of Htyr, determined experimentally in oscillapeptin E in a previous study.</p
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