The Immunomodulating Effects of Morphine Dependence and Withdrawal in a Rat Model

Would you like to know what happens to the immune system during opioid drug withdrawal

The Fiscal Impact of the U. S. Military Assistance Program, 1967-1976

The study of U.S. arms transfers and their impact on the fiscal decisions of aid recipients has been the subject of various interpretations and competing explanations. Absent in this literature has been a systematic testing of propositions derived from a general theory of aid impacts. A larger and somewhat related body of research has examined the political (Chaudhuri 1972; Hughes 1967; Gutteridge 1967) and general economic effects of domestic military spending (Deger and Smith 1983; Smith 1977, 1980; Benoit 1978; Kennedy 1974; Whynes 1979). These studies, however, have not examined the fiscal impact of foreign military assistance. To date only a few researchers have studied this issue in any systematic fashion (McGuire 1979, 1982; Wolf 1971). In this study we seek to fill this gap by applying grant economics theory (Pigou 1932; Oates 1972) to study the fiscal impact of U.S. military arms transfers on foreign nations. Drawing on the domestic aid literature (Oates 1972; Gramlich 1972), we identify a set of propositions concerning the expenditure decisions of domestic aid recipients, and test these propositions against the fiscal behavior of Military Assistance Program (MAP) recipients between 1967-1976. In addition to the substantive import of this question and its bearing on the implementation of U.S. foreign policy, this research provides a unique opportunity to test the applicability of domestic aid theory to the study of foreign aid policy

Drag Reduction Through Distributed Electric Propulsion

One promising application of recent advances in electric aircraft propulsion technologies is a blown wing realized through the placement of a number of electric motors driving individual tractor propellers spaced along each wing. This configuration increases the maximum lift coefficient by providing substantially increased dynamic pressure across the wing at low speeds. This allows for a wing sized near the ideal area for maximum range at cruise conditions, imparting the cruise drag and ride quality benefits of this smaller wing size without decreasing takeoff and landing performance. A reference four-seat general aviation aircraft was chosen as an exemplary application case. Idealized momentum theory relations were derived to investigate tradeoffs in various design variables. Navier-Stokes aeropropulsive simulations were performed with various wing and propeller configurations at takeoff and landing conditions to provide insight into the effect of different wing and propeller designs on the realizable effective maximum lift coefficient. Similar analyses were performed at the cruise condition to ensure that drag targets are attainable. Results indicate that this configuration shows great promise to drastically improve the efficiency of small aircraft

Maternal Influenza Immunization and Reduced Likelihood of Prematurity and Small for Gestational Age Births: A Retrospective Cohort Study

In an analysis of surveillance data from the state of Georgia (US), Saad Omer and colleagues show an association between receipt of influenza vaccination among pregnant women and reduced risk of premature births

Stock price and volume effects associated with changes in the composition of the FTSE Bursa Malaysian KLCI

We examine the stock price and volume effects associated with changes in the composition of the FTSE Bursa Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI), over the time period of 2005–2012. We find evidence to support the price pressure hypothesis for both additions to and deletions from the KLCI. This is because significant stock price and trading volume effects in the pre index revision period are entirely reversed after the announcement of the news. Our empirical findings can be explained by the market microstructure literature. Significant changes in liquidity cause trading volume and stock prices to reverse back to their original level before the index revisions took place

Evidence for Efimov quantum states in an ultracold gas of cesium atoms

Systems of three interacting particles are notorious for their complex physical behavior. A landmark theoretical result in few-body quantum physics is Efimov's prediction of a universal set of bound trimer states appearing for three identical bosons with a resonant two-body interaction. Counterintuitively, these states even exist in the absence of a corresponding two-body bound state. Since the formulation of Efimov's problem in the context of nuclear physics 35 years ago, it has attracted great interest in many areas of physics. However, the observation of Efimov quantum states has remained an elusive goal. Here we report the observation of an Efimov resonance in an ultracold gas of cesium atoms. The resonance occurs in the range of large negative two-body scattering lengths, arising from the coupling of three free atoms to an Efimov trimer. Experimentally, we observe its signature as a giant three-body recombination loss when the strength of the two-body interaction is varied. We also detect a minimum in the recombination loss for positive scattering lengths, indicating destructive interference of decay pathways. Our results confirm central theoretical predictions of Efimov physics and represent a starting point with which to explore the universal properties of resonantly interacting few-body systems. While Feshbach resonances have provided the key to control quantum-mechanical interactions on the two-body level, Efimov resonances connect ultracold matter to the world of few-body quantum phenomena.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figure