773 research outputs found
Polarographic Determination of Germanium
In the past germanium has been determined by either wet methods or by the spectograph; the spectograph being used for the determination of very small amounts of gerÂmanium and wet methods used when more than one hundredth of one percent germanium is present. Both of these analytiÂcal schemes have weaknesses
Galactic Archaeology with TESS: Prospects for Testing the Star Formation History in the Solar Neighbourhood
A period of quenching between the formation of the thick and thin disks of
the Milky Way has been recently proposed to explain the observed
age-[{\alpha}/Fe] distribution of stars in the solar neighbourhood. However,
robust constraints on stellar ages are currently available for only a limited
number of stars. The all-sky survey TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey
Satellite) will observe the brightest stars in the sky and thus can be used to
investigate the age distributions of stars in these components of the Galaxy
via asteroseismology, where previously this has been difficult using other
techniques. The aim of this preliminary study was to determine whether TESS
will be able to provide evidence for quenching periods during the star
formation history of the Milky Way. Using a population synthesis code, we
produced populations based on various stellar formation history models and
limited the analysis to red-giant-branch stars. We investigated the
mass-Galactic-disk-height distributions, where stellar mass was used as an age
proxy, to test for whether periods of quenching can be observed by TESS. We
found that even with the addition of 15% noise to the inferred masses, it will
be possible for TESS to find evidence for/against quenching periods suggested
in the literature (e.g. between 7 and 9 Gyr ago), therefore providing stringent
constraints on the formation and evolution of the Milky Way.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, proceedings of "Seismology of the Sun and the
Distant Stars 2016", Mario J. P. F. G. Monteiro, Margarida S. Cunha, Joao
Miguel T. Ferreira editor
Variational Field Theoretic Approach to Relativistic Scattering
Nonperturbative polaron variational methods are applied, within the so-called
particle or worldline representation of relativistic field theory, to study
scattering in the context of the scalar Wick - Cutkosky model. Important
features of the variational calculation are that it is a controlled
approximation scheme valid for arbitrary coupling strengths, the Green
functions have all the cuts and poles expected for the exact result at any
order in perturbation theory and that the variational parameters are
simultaneously sensitive to the infrared as well as the ultraviolet behaviour
of the theory. We generalize the previously used quadratic trial action by
allowing more freedom for off-shell propagation without a change in the
on-shell variational equations and evaluate the scattering amplitude at first
order in the variational scheme. Particular attention is paid to the
-channel scattering near threshold because here non-perturbative effects can
be large. We check the unitarity of a our numerical calculation and find it
greatly improved compared to perturbation theory and to the zeroth order
variational results.Comment: 26 pages, Latex, 5 postscript figures embedded with epsf, submitted
to Nucl. Phys.
First Order Variational Calculation of Form Factor in a Scalar Nucleon--Meson Theory
We investigate a relativistic quantum field theory in the particle
representation using a non-perturbative variational technique. The theory is
that of two massive scalar particles, `nucleons' and `mesons', interacting via
a Yukawa coupling. We calculate the general Euclidean Green function involving
two external nucleons and an arbitrary number of external mesons in the
quenched approximation for the nucleons. The non-perturbative renormalization
and truncation is done in a consistent manner and results in the same
variational functional independent of the number of external mesons. We check
that the calculation agrees with one-loop perturbation theory for small
couplings. As an illustration the special case of meson absorption on the
nucleon is considered in detail. We derive the radius of the dressed particle
and numerically investigate the vertex function after analytic continuation to
Minkowski space.Comment: 28 pages standard LaTeX, 13 uuencoded postscript figures embedded
with psfig.st
Knowledge and Perceptions of Non-Nutritive Sweeteners Within the UK Adult Population
Non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) are popular sugar substitutes that can help in weight and diabetes management, but concerns regarding their use have been raised by the public. This study aimed to investigate knowledge, benefits and safety perceptions of NNS in a sample of UK adults. The impact of knowledge dissemination on the change in perceptions was also examined. An online survey was distributed through social media platforms and UK Universities and was completed by 1589 participants aged 18 years and above. Results showed a high-risk perception of NNS and a lack of knowledge in regulations in nearly half the population sample. The artificial attributes of NNS further limited their acceptance. Risk perception has been significantly linked to a lower con-sumption of sweeteners (p < 0.001) and was affected by gender, occupation, education levels, age and body weight status. Information dissemination significantly reduced risk perception and increased awareness of the benefits of NNS. Results suggest that developing effective communi-cation strategies to educate consumers, potentially through trusted health government agencies and professional bodies, can help them to make informed choices. Education of health profes-sionals could also be valuable in reassuring the public of the benefits of NNS
Summer Conference on âNutrition at Key Stages of the Life Cycleâ:Summer conference, Liverpool.
Nutritional requirements of individuals vary across the lifecycle, according to activity,age, and gender. To optimize human health, consideration of nutritional priorities at each stage is needed. This conference brought together multidisciplinary experts in maternal and child nutrition and health, cardiometabolic and plant-based nutrition, and dietitians involved in the care of vulnerable populations, plus nutritional metabolism, health, and ageing. The presentations highlighted the most important nutrition research in these areas, updating knowledge and suggesting how dietary advice and policy could be adapted to incorporate research findings. With the global increase in non-communicable disease (NCD) and nutrition being considered as a key modifiable risk factor for the prevention and management of NCD, this conference was much needed
The Physics of Crystallization from Globular Cluster White Dwarf Stars in NGC 6397
We explore the physics of crystallization in the deep interiors of white
dwarf stars using the color-magnitude diagram and luminosity function
constructed from proper motion cleaned Hubble Space Telescope photometry of the
globular cluster NGC 6397. We demonstrate that the data are consistent with the
theory of crystallization of the ions in the interior of white dwarf stars and
provide the first empirical evidence that the phase transition is first order:
latent heat is released in the process of crystallization as predicted by van
Horn (1968). We outline how this data can be used to observationally constrain
the value of Gamma = E_{Coulomb}/E_{thermal} near the onset of crystallization,
the central carbon/oxygen abundance, and the importance of phase separation.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journal Letter
The Adherence of Singaporean Students in Different Educational Institutions to National Food-Based Dietary Guidelines
There are currently limited data on the dietary habits of young Singaporeans. This study aimed to evaluate the adherence of 17â21 year olds attending different educational institutions using a novel diet-quality scoring method. Dietary data were collected using a single weekday 24 h dietary recall in a cross section of 536 Singaporeans aged 17â21 years. An 11 category scoring system (0.0â100.0) was used to define adherence to food based dietary guidelines. Demographic and self-reported data were also collected via a questionnaire, BMI status, and using Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis (non-parametric) tests, with post-hoc Bonferroni-corrected tests. The median diet quality score was 48.5 (IQR 40.5, 56.4) for this cohort, with component scores for âTotal fruitâ, âWhole fruitâ, âTotal vegetablesâ, âDark green leafy & orange vegetablesâ, âWhole grainsâ, âDairy productsâ, and âSodiumâ frequently scoring the minimum value. Median diet quality scores were statistically different for groups by ethnic origin (p < 0.001) and by educational institution (p < 0.001). Intake of fruit, vegetables, and whole grains is minimal, while sodium intake is frequently too high in young Singaporeans. Differences across ethnic groups and types of educational institutions suggest the need for targeted interventions to improve dietary habits in this population
Developing community-based urine sampling methods to deploy biomarker technology for the assessment of dietary exposure
Objective:
Obtaining objective, dietary exposure information from individuals is challenging because of the complexity of food consumption patterns and the limitations of self-reporting tools (e.g., FFQ and diet diaries). This hinders research efforts to associate intakes of specific foods or eating patterns with population health outcomes.
Design:
Dietary exposure can be assessed by the measurement of food-derived chemicals in urine samples. We aimed to develop methodologies for urine collection that minimised impact on the day-to-day activities of participants but also yielded samples that were data-rich in terms of targeted biomarker measurements.
Setting:
Urine collection methodologies were developed within home settings.
Participants:
Different cohorts of free-living volunteers.
Results:
Home collection of urine samples using vacuum transfer technology was deemed highly acceptable by volunteers. Statistical analysis of both metabolome and selected dietary exposure biomarkers in spot urine collected and stored using this method showed that they were compositionally similar to urine collected using a standard method with immediate sample freezing. Even without chemical preservatives, samples can be stored under different temperature regimes without any significant impact on the overall urine composition or concentration of forty-six exemplar dietary exposure biomarkers. Importantly, the samples could be posted directly to analytical facilities, without the need for refrigerated transport and involvement of clinical professionals.
Conclusions:
This urine sampling methodology appears to be suitable for routine use and may provide a scalable, cost-effective means to collect urine samples and to assess diet in epidemiological studies
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