24,466 research outputs found
The feasibility of a cognitive behavioural therapy group for men with mild/moderate cognitive impairment
Memory aid groups have often been used as a method for teaching mnemonic strategies to older adults in early stages of dementia. This study describes the use of CBT to address unhelpful memory-related beliefs in three older men with mild/moderate dementia and associated low mood or anxiety. The members were able to participate and engage in the sessions, and changes in behaviour, cognition and affect were monitored over the course of a 7 week group intervention. Recommendations are made for further research
Multiple differences in calling songs and other traits between solitary and gregarious Mormon crickets from allopatric mtDNA clades
The Linnaean Society, The British Ecological Society, The Russell Trust (St. Andrews), The Orthopterists' Society and an NSERC (Canada) grant to DTG. Gordon S. Brown provided assistance with digital imaging and morphological measurements.Background: In acoustic species, traits such as male calling song are likely to diverge quickly between allopatric populations due to sexual selection, and divergence in parameters such as carrier frequency, chirp structure, and other important song characters can influence sexual isolation. Here we make use of two forms of Mormon crickets to examine differences in a broad suite of traits that have the potential to influence speciation via sexual isolation. Mormon crickets in "gregarious" populations aggregate into dense migratory bands, and females are the sexually competitive Fsex ( sex- role reversal). There is also a non-outbreak "solitary" form. These two forms are largely but not perfectly correlated with a significant mtDNA subdivision within the species that is thought to have arisen in allopatry. Combined information about multiple, independently evolving traits, such as morphology and structural and behavioural differences in calling song, provides greater resolution of the overall differences between these allopatric populations, and allows us to assess their stage of divergence. We test two predictions, first that the forms differ in song and second that gregarious males are more reluctant to sing than solitary males due to sex role reversal. We also tested for a difference in the relationship between the size of the forewing resonator, the mirror, and carrier frequency, as most models of sound production in crickets indicate that mirror size should predict carrier frequency. Results: Multivariate analyses showed that solitary and gregarious individuals from different populations representing the two mtDNA clades had almost non-overlapping distributions based on multiple song and morphological measurements. Carrier frequency differed between the two, and gregarious males were more reluctant to sing overall. Mirror size predicted carrier frequency; however, the relationship between mirror size and surface area varied between solitary and gregarious forms, suggesting that factors above and beyond mirror size contribute to carrier frequency. Conclusion: The two clades of Mormon crickets differ in a broad suite of independent traits that probably justify subspecies status ( the two can successfully mate so may not be reproductively isolated). However, our results emphasize the importance of carefully distinguishing the ultimate causation of differences between traits used to delineate species or subspecies boundaries.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe
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An Evaluation of a Battery of Functional and Structural Tests as Predictors of Likely Risk of Progression of Age-Related Macular Degeneration.
Purpose: To evaluate the ability of visual function and structural tests to identify the likely risk of progression from early/intermediate to advanced AMD, using the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) simplified scale as a surrogate for risk of progression. The secondary aim was to determine the relationship between disease severity grade and the observed functional and structural deficits. Methods: A total of 100 participants whose AMD status varied from early to advanced were recruited. Visual function was assessed using cone dark adaptation, 14 Hz flicker and chromatic threshold tests and retinal structure was assessed by measuring drusen volume and macular thickness. The predictive value of the tests was estimated using ordinal regression analysis. Group comparisons were assessed using analysis of covariance. Results: Change in cone dark adaptation (cone τ) and yellow-blue (YB) chromatic sensitivity were independent predictors for AMD progression risk (cone τ, pseudo R2 = 0.35, P < 0.001; YB chromatic threshold, pseudo R2 = 0.16, P < 0.001). The only structural predictor was foveal thickness (R2 = 0.05, P = 0.047). Chromatic sensitivity and cone dark adaptation were also the best functional tests at distinguishing between severity groups. Drusen characteristics clearly differentiated between participants with early and advanced disease, but were not able to differentiate between those with early AMD and controls. Mean differences in retinal thickness existed between severity groups at the foveal (P = 0.040) and inner (P = 0.001) subfields. Conclusions: This study indicates that cone τ, YB chromatic threshold and foveal thickness are independent predictors of likely risk of AMD progression
Experimental investigation of open-ended microwave oven assisted encapsulation process
An open ended microwave oven is presented with improved uniform heating, heating rates and power conversion efficiency. This next generation oven produces more uniform EM fields in the evanescent region forming part of the heating area of the oven. These fields are vital for the rapid and uniform heating of various electromagnetically lossy materials. A fibre optic temperature sensor and an IR pyrometer are used to measure in situ and in real-time the temperature of the curing materials. An automatic computer controlled closed feedback loop measures the temperature in the curing material and drives the microwave components to
obtain predetermined curing temperature cycles for efficient curing. Uniform curing of the lossy encapsulants
is achieved with this oven with typical cure cycle of 270
seconds with a ramp rate of 1oC/s and a hold period of 2
minutes. Differential scanning calorimeter based measurement for the pulsed microwave based curing of
the polymer dielectric indicates a ~ 100% degree of cure
Fine Structure of the 1s3p ^3P_J Level in Atomic ^4He: Theory and Experiment
We report on a theoretical calculation and a new experimental determination
of the 1s3p ^3P_J fine structure intervals in atomic ^4He. The values from the
theoretical calculation of 8113.730(6) MHz and 658.801(6) MHz for the nu_{01}
and nu_{12} intervals, respectively, disagree significantly with previous
experimental results. However, the new laser spectroscopic measurement reported
here yields values of 8113.714(28) MHz and 658.810(18) MHz for these intervals.
These results show an excellent agreement with the theoretical values and
resolve the apparent discrepancy between theory and experiment.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figure
Generalized MICZ-Kepler Problems and Unitary Highest Weight Modules
For each integer , we demonstrate that a -dimensional
generalized MICZ-Kepler problem has an \mr{Spin}(2, 2n+2) dynamical symmetry
which extends the manifest \mr{Spin}(2n+1) symmetry. The Hilbert space of
bound states is shown to form a unitary highest weight \mr{Spin}(2,
2n+2)-module which occurs at the first reduction point in the
Enright-Howe-Wallach classification diagram for the unitary highest weight
modules. As a byproduct, we get a simple geometric realization for such a
unitary highest weight \mr{Spin}(2, 2n+2)-module.Comment: 27 pages, Refs. update
Invasion threshold in heterogeneous metapopulation networks
We study the dynamics of epidemic and reaction-diffusion processes in
metapopulation models with heterogeneous connectivity pattern. In SIR-like
processes, along with the standard local epidemic threshold, the system
exhibits a global invasion threshold. We provide an explicit expression of the
threshold that sets a critical value of the diffusion/mobility rate below which
the epidemic is not able to spread to a macroscopic fraction of subpopulations.
The invasion threshold is found to be affected by the topological fluctuations
of the metapopulation network. The presented results provide a general
framework for the understanding of the effect of travel restrictions in
epidemic containment.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure
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