Three-body monopole corrections to the realistic interactions

It is shown that a very simple three-body monopole term can solve practically all the spectroscopic problems--in the $p$, $sd$ and $pf$ shells--that were hitherto assumed to need drastic revisions of the realistic potentials.Comment: 4 pages, 5figure

Groundwater surface mapping informs sources of catchment baseflow

This work is funded by the Australian Research Council Discovery Project scheme through project DP120100253. We greatly appreciate the provision of groundwater chemistry data and introduction to the Gellibrand catchment by Alex Atkinson and Ian Cartwright from Monash University. We thank two anonymous reviewers and Ian Cartwright for their insightful and constructive reviews that helped improve this paper.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The Birmingham Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) project : developments towards selective internal particle therapy

This paper will review progress on two aspects of the Birmingham BNCT project. Firstly on evaluation of the effects of high and low LET radiations when delivered simultaneously, and secondly on attempts to optimise delivery of the boron carrier compound BPA through pharmacokinetic studies. Simultaneous or non-simultaneous irradiations of V79 cells with alpha-particle and X-ray irradiations were performed. Alpha doses of 2 and 2.5 Gy were chosen and the impact on survival when delivered separately or simultaneously with variable doses of X-rays was evaluated. The pharmacokinetics of the delivery of a new formulation of BPA (BPA-mannitol) are being investigated in brain tumour patients through a study with 2 × 2 design featuring intravenous and intracarotid artery infusion of BPA, with or without a mannitol bolus. On the combined effect of low and high LET radiations, a synergistic effect was observed when alpha and X-ray doses are delivered simultaneously. The effect is only present at the 2.5 Gy alpha dose and is a very substantial effect on both the shape of the survival curve and the level of cell killing. This indicates that the alpha component may have the effect of inhibiting the repair of damage from the low LET radiation dose delivered simultaneously. On the pharmacokinetics of BPA, data on the first three cohorts indicate that bioavailability of BPA in brain ECF is increased substantially through the addition of a mannitol bolus, as well as by the use of intracarotid artery route of infusion. In both cases, for some patients the levels after infusion approach those seen in blood, whereas the ECF levels for intravenous infusion without mannitol are typically less than 10% of the blood values

Life table analysis of Diaphorina citri (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) infesting sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) in São Paulo

An ecological life table for eggs and nymphs of Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) was constructed with data obtained from orange orchards (Citrus sinensis Osbeck) in 2 regions of the State of São Paulo, over 4 generations in the period from XI-2006 to V-2007, comprising spring, summer, and fall seasons. Young growing shoots with D. citri eggs present were identifed, and live individuals were counted until adult emergence. No predatory arthropods were observed in association with D. citri eggs and nymphs during the study. The mean parasitism of fourth- and ffth-instar nymphs by Tamarixia radiata Waterston (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) was 2.3%. The durations of the egg–adult period were similar among the 4 generations, ranging from 18.0 to 24.7 d (at mean temperatures ranging from 21.6 to 26.0 °C) and followed the temperature requirement models obtained in the laboratory for D. citri. However, survival from the egg to the adult stage for the same period varied considerably from 1.7 to 21.4%; the highest mortalities were observed in the egg and small nymphal (frst- to thirdinstar) stages, which were considered to be key phases for population growth of the pest.Uma tabela de vida ecológica foi construída para ovos e ninfas de Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) com dados obtidos em pomares de laranja (Citrus sinensis Osbeck) em 2 regiões do estado de São Paulo, com 4 gerações, no período de novembro de 2006 a maio de 2007, compreendendo as estações de primavera, verão e outono. Ramos jovens em crescimento com a presença de ovos de D. citri foram identificados e os indivíduos vivos foram contados até a emergência dos adultos. Nenhum predador foi observado associado a ovos e ninfas de D. citri durante o estudo. A taxa média de parasitismo de ninfas de quarto e quinto ínstares por Tamarixia radiata Waterson (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) foi de 2.3%. A duração do período de ovo a adulto foi semelhante entre as quatro gerações, variando de 18.0 a 24.7 dias (com temperaturas médias de 21.6 a 26.0 °C) e seguiram os modelos de exigencias térmicas obtidas em laboratório para D. citri. Todavia, a sobrevivencia de ovo até o estágio adulto variou consideravelmente para o mesmo período, de 1.7 a 21.4%, sendo que as maiores mortalidades foram observadas nos estágios de ovos e ninfas pequenas (de primeiro a terceiro ínstares), as quais foram consideradas fases chaves para o crescimento populacional desta praga.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The validity of using ICD-9 codes and pharmacy records to identify patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Background: Administrative data is often used to identify patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), yet the validity of this approach is unclear. We sought to develop a predictive model utilizing administrative data to accurately identify patients with COPD. Methods: Sequential logistic regression models were constructed using 9573 patients with postbronchodilator spirometry at two Veterans Affairs medical centers (2003-2007). COPD was defined as: 1) FEV1/FVC <0.70, and 2) FEV1/FVC < lower limits of normal. Model inputs included age, outpatient or inpatient COPD-related ICD-9 codes, and the number of metered does inhalers (MDI) prescribed over the one year prior to and one year post spirometry. Model performance was assessed using standard criteria. Results: 4564 of 9573 patients (47.7%) had an FEV1/FVC < 0.70. The presence of ≥1 outpatient COPD visit had a sensitivity of 76% and specificity of 67%; the AUC was 0.75 (95% CI 0.74-0.76). Adding the use of albuterol MDI increased the AUC of this model to 0.76 (95% CI 0.75-0.77) while the addition of ipratropium bromide MDI increased the AUC to 0.77 (95% CI 0.76-0.78). The best performing model included: ≥6 albuterol MDI, ≥3 ipratropium MDI, ≥1 outpatient ICD-9 code, ≥1 inpatient ICD-9 code, and age, achieving an AUC of 0.79 (95% CI 0.78-0.80). Conclusion: Commonly used definitions of COPD in observational studies misclassify the majority of patients as having COPD. Using multiple diagnostic codes in combination with pharmacy data improves the ability to accurately identify patients with COPD.Department of Veterans Affairs, Health Services Research and Development (DHA), American Lung Association (CI- 51755-N) awarded to DHA, the American Thoracic Society Fellow Career Development AwardPeer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/84155/1/Cooke - ICD9 validity in COPD.pd

Convergent origination of a Drosophila-like dosage compensation mechanism in a reptile lineage

Sex chromosomes differentiated from different ancestral autosomes in various vertebrate lineages. Here, we trace the functional evolution of the XY Chromosomes of the green anole lizard (Anolis carolinensis), on the basis of extensive high-throughput genome, transcriptome and histone modification sequencing data and revisit dosage compensation evolution in representative mammals and birds with substantial new expression data. Our analyses show that Anolis sex chromosomes represent an ancient XY system that originated at least ≈160 million years ago in the ancestor of Iguania lizards, shortly after the separation from the snake lineage. The age of this system approximately coincides with the ages of the avian and two mammalian sex chromosomes systems. To compensate for the almost complete Y Chromosome degeneration, X-linked genes have become twofold up-regulated, restoring ancestral expression levels. The highly efficient dosage compensation mechanism of Anolis represents the only vertebrate case identified so far to fully support Ohno’s original dosage compensation hypothesis. Further analyses reveal that X up-regulation occurs only in males and is mediated by a male-specific chromatin machinery that leads to global hyperacetylation of histone H4 at lysine 16 specifically on the X Chromosome. The green anole dosage compensation mechanism is highly reminiscent of that of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. Altogether, our work unveils the convergent emergence of a Drosophila-like dosage compensation mechanism in an ancient reptilian sex chromosome system and highlights that the evolutionary pressures imposed by sex chromosome dosage reductions in different amniotes were resolved in fundamentally different ways

Collective Flow from the Intranuclear Cascade Model

The phenomenon of collective flow in relativistic heavy ion collisions is studied using the hadronic cascade model ARC. Direct comparison is made to data gathered at the Bevalac, for Au+Au at $p=1-2$ GeV/c. In contrast to the standard lore about the cascade model, collective flow is well described quantitatively without the need for explicit mean field terms to simulate the nuclear equation of state. Pion collective flow is in the opposite direction to nucleon flow as is that of anti-nucleons and other produced particles. Pion and nucleon flow are predicted at AGS energies also, where, in light of the higher baryon densities achieved, we speculate that equation of state effects may be observable.Comment: 9 pages, 2 figures include

Delays Associated with Elementary Processes in Nuclear Reaction Simulations

Scatterings, particularly those involving resonances, and other elementary processes do not happen instantaneously. In the context of semiclassical nuclear reaction simulations, we consider delays associated with an interaction for incident quantum wave-packets. As a consequence, we express delays associated with elementary processes in terms of elements of the scattering matrix and phase shifts for elastic scattering. We show that, to within the second order in density, the simulation must account for delays in scattering consistently with the mean field in order to properly model thermodynamic properties such as pressure and free-energy density. The delays associated with nucleon-nucleon and pion-nucleon scattering in free space are analysed with their nontrivial energy dependence. Finally, an example of s-channel scattering of massless partons is studied, and scattering schemes in nuclear reaction simulations are investigated in the context of scattering delays.Comment: 45 pages, 5 uuencoded Postscript figure

Quantum Tunneling in Nuclear Fusion

Recent theoretical advances in the study of heavy ion fusion reactions below the Coulomb barrier are reviewed. Particular emphasis is given to new ways of analyzing data, such as studying barrier distributions; new approaches to channel coupling, such as the path integral and Green function formalisms; and alternative methods to describe nuclear structure effects, such as those using the Interacting Boson Model. The roles of nucleon transfer, asymmetry effects, higher-order couplings, and shape-phase transitions are elucidated. The current status of the fusion of unstable nuclei and very massive systems are briefly discussed.Comment: To appear in the January 1998 issue of Reviews of Modern Physics. 13 Figures (postscript file for Figure 6 is not available; a hard copy can be requested from the authors). Full text and figures are also available at http://nucth.physics.wisc.edu/preprints