728 research outputs found
IUCF High Intensity Polarized Ion Source
This research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation Grant NSF PHY-931478
Quality of Life with Late-Onset Pompe Disease: Qualitative Interviews and General Public Utility Estimation in the United Kingdom
Background: Late-onset Pompe disease (LOPD) is a rare, progressive neuromuscular condition typically characterized by weakness of skeletal muscles, including those involved in respiration and diaphragmatic dysfunction. Individuals with LOPD typically eventually require mobility and/or ventilatory support. / Objectives: This study aimed to develop health state vignettes and estimate health state utility values for LOPD in the United Kingdom. / Methods: Vignettes were developed for 7 health states of LOPD with states defined in terms of mobility and/or ventilatory support. Vignettes were drafted based on patient-reported outcome data from the Phase 3 PROPEL trial (NCT03729362) and supplemented by a literature review. Qualitative interviews with individuals living with LOPD and clinical experts were conducted to explore the health-related quality-of-life (HRQoL) impact of LOPD and to review the draft vignettes. Vignettes were finalized following a second round of interviews with individuals living with LOPD and used in health state valuation exercises with people of the UK population. Participants rated the health states using the EQ-5D-5L, visual analog scale, and time trade-off interviews. / Results: Twelve individuals living with LOPD and 2 clinical experts were interviewed. Following the interviews, 4 new statements were added regarding dependence on others, bladder control problems, balance issues/fear of falling, and frustration. One hundred interviews with a representative UK population sample were completed. Mean time trade-off utilities ranged from 0.754 (SD = 0.31) (no support) to 0.132 (SD = 0.50) (invasive ventilatory and mobility support-dependent). Similarly, EQ- 5D-5L utilities ranged from 0.608 (SD = 0.12) to -0.078 (SD = 0.22). / Discussion: The utilities obtained in the study are consistent with utilities reported in the literature (0.670-0.853 for nonsupport state). The vignette content was based on robust quantitative and qualitative evidence and captured the main HRQoL impacts of LOPD. The general public rated the health states consistently lower with increasing disease progression. There was greater uncertainty around utility estimates for the severe states, suggesting that participants found it harder to rate them. / Conclusion: This study provides utility estimates for LOPD that can be used in economic modeling of treatments for LOPD. Our findings highlight the high disease burden of LOPD and reinforce the societal value of slowing disease progression
Eikonal phase retrieval: Unleashing the fourth generation sources potential for enhanced propagation based tomography on biological samples
The evolution of synchrotrons towards higher brilliance beams has increased
the possible sample-to-detector propagation distances for which the source
confusion circle does not lead to geometrical blurring. This makes it possible
to push near-field propagation driven phase contrast enhancement to the limit,
revealing low contrast features which would otherwise remain hidden under an
excessive noise-to-signal ratio. Until today this possibility was hindered, in
most objects of scientific interest, by the simultaneous presence of strong
phase gradient regions and low contrast features. The strong gradients, when
enhanced with the now possible long propagation distances, induce such strong
phase effects that the linearisation assumptions of current state-of-the-art
single-distance phase retrieval filters are broken, and the resulting image
quality is jeopardized. Our work provides an innovative algorithm which
efficiently performs the phase retrieval task over the entire near-field range,
producing images of exceptional quality for mixed objects
Gamow-Teller Strengths for Neutrino Detectors
This research was sponsored by the National Science Foundation Grant NSF PHY-931478
An Experimental Test of Charge Symmetry in n-p Scattering
Supported by the National Science Foundation and Indiana Universit
Low-energy p-d Scattering: High Precision Data, Comparisons with Theory, and Phase-Shift Analyses
Angular distributions of sigma(theta), A_y, iT_11, T_20, T_21, and T_22 have
been measured for d-p scattering at E_c.m.=667 keV. This set of high-precision
data is compared to variational calculations with the nucleon-nucleon potential
alone and also to calculations including a three-nucleon (3N) potential.
Agreement with cross-section and tensor analyzing power data is excellent when
a 3N potential is used. However, a comparison between the vector analyzing
powers reveals differences of approximately 40% in the maxima of the angular
distributions which is larger than reported at higher energies for both p-d and
n-d scattering. Single-energy phase-shift analyses were performed on this data
set and a similar data set at E_c.m.=431.3 keV. The role of the different
phase-shift parameters in fitting these data is discussed.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figure
The SST-1M camera for the Cherenkov Telescope Array
The prototype camera of the single-mirror Small Size Telescopes (SST-1M)
proposed for the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) project has been designed to
be very compact and to deliver high performance over thirty years of operation.
The camera is composed of an hexagonal photo-detection plane made of custom
designed large area hexagonal silicon photomultipliers and a high throughput,
highly configurable, fully digital readout and trigger system (DigiCam). The
camera will be installed on the telescope structure at the H.
Niewodnicza{\'n}ski institute of Nuclear Physics in Krakow in fall 2015. In
this contribution, we review the steps that led to the development of the
innovative photo-detection plane and readout electronics, and we describe the
test and calibration strategy adopted.Comment: In Proceedings of the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference
(ICRC2015), The Hague, The Netherlands. All CTA contributions at
arXiv:1508.05894; Full consortium author list at http://cta-observatory.or
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