6,449 research outputs found
Spherically Symmetric Solutions to Fourth-Order Theories of Gravity
Gravitational theories generated from Lagrangians of the form f(R) are
considered. The spherically symmetric solutions to these equations are
discussed, paying particular attention to features that differ from the
standard Schwarzschild solution. The asymptotic form of solutions is described,
as is the lack of validity of Birkhoff's theorem. Exact solutions are presented
which illustrate these points and their stability and geodesics are
investigated.Comment: 10 pages, published versio
Lifetime Adherence to Physical Activity Recommendations and Fall Occurrence in Community-dwelling Older Adults: a Retrospective Cohort Study
Falling is a major health concern for community-dwelling older adults. Regular physical activity has been proposed to prevent falls. The aim of this study was to assess whether the achievement of the 2004 UK Department of Health physical activity recommendations over a lifetime had a protective effect against falling in older people. 313 community-dwelling older adults completed a questionnaire about lifetime physical activity and fall occurrence. There were significantly fewer falls in those who had led an active lifestyle compared to those who had not (χ2Yates=4.568, p=0.033), with a lower relative risk of fall occurrence for the active respondents (RR=0.671) compared to the inactive (RR=1.210). Of those who were sufficiently active in their early adulthood, the decade where there was the biggest decrease in remaining active enough was in the 60s. It is concluded that an active lifestyle may have decreased the likelihood of having a fall in older ag
Modelling the Galactic Magnetic Field on the Plane in 2D
We present a method for parametric modelling of the physical components of
the Galaxy's magnetised interstellar medium, simulating the observables, and
mapping out the likelihood space using a Markov Chain Monte-Carlo analysis. We
then demonstrate it using total and polarised synchrotron emission data as well
as rotation measures of extragalactic sources. With these three datasets, we
define and study three components of the magnetic field: the large-scale
coherent field, the small-scale isotropic random field, and the ordered field.
In this first paper, we use only data along the Galactic plane and test a
simple 2D logarithmic spiral model for the magnetic field that includes a
compression and a shearing of the random component giving rise to an ordered
component. We demonstrate with simulations that the method can indeed constrain
multiple parameters yielding measures of, for example, the ratios of the
magnetic field components. Though subject to uncertainties in thermal and
cosmic ray electron densities and depending on our particular model
parametrisation, our preliminary analysis shows that the coherent component is
a small fraction of the total magnetic field and that an ordered component
comparable in strength to the isotropic random component is required to explain
the polarisation fraction of synchrotron emission. We outline further work to
extend this type of analysis to study the magnetic spiral arm structure, the
details of the turbulence as well as the 3D structure of the magnetic field.Comment: 18 pages, 11 figures, updated to published MNRAS versio
EXITE2 Observation of the SIGMA Source GRS 1227+025
We report the EXITE2 hard X-ray imaging of the sky around 3C273. A 2h
observation on May 8, 1997, shows a 260 mCrab source detected at
in each of two bands (50-70 and 70-93 keV) and located 30'
from 3C273 and consistent in position with the SIGMA source GRS1227+025. The
EXITE2 spectrum is consistent with a power law with photon index 3 and large
low energy absorption, as indicated by the GRANAT/SIGMA results. No source was
detected in more sensitive followup EXITE2 observations in 2000 and 2001 with
3 upper limits of 190 and 65 mCrab, respectively. Comparison with the
flux detected by SIGMA shows the source to be highly variable, suggesting it
may be non-thermal and beamed and thus the first example of a ``type 2''
(absorbed) Blazar. Alternatively it might be (an unprecedented) very highly
absorbed binary system undergoing accretion disk instability outbursts,
possibly either a magnetic CV, or a black hole X-ray nova.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Ap
Analytic Behaviour of Competition among Three Species
We analyse the classical model of competition between three species studied
by May and Leonard ({\it SIAM J Appl Math} \textbf{29} (1975) 243-256) with the
approaches of singularity analysis and symmetry analysis to identify values of
the parameters for which the system is integrable. We observe some striking
relations between critical values arising from the approach of dynamical
systems and the singularity and symmetry analyses.Comment: 14 pages, to appear in Journal of Nonlinear Mathematical Physic
Impact of swimming on chronic suppurative otitis media in Aboriginal children: a randomised controlled trial
Objectives: To measure the impact of 4 weeks of daily swimming on rates of ear discharge among Aboriginal children with a tympanic membrane perforation (TMP) and on the microbiology of the nasopharynx and middle ear.Design, setting and participants: A randomised controlled trial involving 89 Aboriginal children (aged 5–12 years) with a TMP, conducted in two remote Northern Territory Aboriginal communities from August to December 2009.Intervention: 4 school weeks of daily swimming lessons (45 minutes) in a chlorinated pool.Main outcome measures: Proportions of children with ear discharge and respiratory and opportunistic bacteria in the nasopharynx and middle ear.Results: Of 89 children randomly assigned to the swimming or non-swimming groups, 58 (26/41 swimmers and 32/48 non-swimmers) had ear discharge at baseline. After 4 weeks, 24 of 41 swimmers had ear discharge compared with 32 of 48 non-swimmers (risk difference, − 8% (95% CI, − 28% to 12%). There were no statistically significant changes in the microbiology of the nasopharynx or middle ear in swimmers or non-swimmers. Streptococcus pneumoniae and non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae were the dominant organisms cultured from the nasopharynx, and H. influenzae, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were the dominant organisms in the middle ear.Conclusions: Swimming lessons for Aboriginal children in remote communities should be supported, but it is unlikely that they will substantially reduce rates of chronic suppurative otitis media and associated bacteria in the nasopharynx and middle ear. However, swimming was not associated with increased risk of ear discharge and we found no reason to discourage it. 
Investigating Biological Matter with Theoretical Nuclear Physics Methods
The internal dynamics of strongly interacting systems and that of
biomolecules such as proteins display several important analogies, despite the
huge difference in their characteristic energy and length scales. For example,
in all such systems, collective excitations, cooperative transitions and phase
transitions emerge as the result of the interplay of strong correlations with
quantum or thermal fluctuations. In view of such an observation, some
theoretical methods initially developed in the context of theoretical nuclear
physics have been adapted to investigate the dynamics of biomolecules. In this
talk, we review some of our recent studies performed along this direction. In
particular, we discuss how the path integral formulation of the molecular
dynamics allows to overcome some of the long-standing problems and limitations
which emerge when simulating the protein folding dynamics at the atomistic
level of detail.Comment: Prepared for the proceedings of the "XII Meeting on the Problems of
Theoretical Nuclear Physics" (Cortona11
Conventional and complementary health care use and out-of-pocket expenses among Australians with a self-reported mental health diagnosis: a cross-sectional survey.
BACKGROUND: Mental health disorders are a global health concern. In Australia, numerous national reports have found that the current mental healthcare system does not adequately meet the needs of Australians with mental illness. Consequently, a greater understanding of how people with a mental health disorder are using the broader healthcare system is needed. The aim of this paper is to explore conventional and complementary health care use and expenditure among Australian adults reporting a mental health disorder diagnosis. METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey of 2,019 Australian adults examined socio-demographic characteristics, complementary and conventional health care use and the health status of participants. RESULTS: 32 % (n = 641) of the total sample (N = 2019) reported a mental health disorder in the previous 3 years. Of these, 96 % reported consulting a general practitioner, 90.6 % reported using prescription medicines, 42.4 % consulted a complementary medicine practitioner, 56.9 % used a complementary medicine product and 23 % used a complementary medicine practice. The estimated 12-month out-of-pocket health care expenditure among Australians with a mental health disorder was AUD 3,398,293,672) for conventional health care practitioners and medicines, and AUD 880,729,891) for complementary medicine practitioners, products and practices. Older people (50-59 and 60 and over) were less likely to consult a CM practitioner (OR = 0.538, 95% CI [0.373, 0.775]; OR = 0.398, 95% CI [0.273, 0.581] respectively) or a psychologist/counsellor (OR = 0.394, 95% CI [0.243, 0.639]; OR = 0.267, 95% CI [0.160, 0.447] respectively). People either looking for work or not in the workforce were less likely to visit a CM practitioner (OR = 0.298, 95% CI [0.194, 0.458]; OR = 0.476, 95% CI [0.353, 0.642], respectively). CONCLUSIONS: A substantial proportion of Australian adults living with a mental health disorder pay for both complementary and conventional health care directly out-of-pocket. This finding suggests improved coordination of healthcare services is needed for individuals living with a mental health disorder. Research examining the redesign of primary health care provision should also consider whether complementary medicine practitioners and/or integrative health care service delivery models could play a role in addressing risks associated with complementary medicine use and the unmet needs of people living with a mental health disorder
Global gravitational instability of FLRW backgrounds - interpreting the dark sectors
The standard model of cosmology is based on homogeneous-isotropic solutions
of Einstein's equations. These solutions are known to be gravitationally
unstable to local inhomogeneous perturbations, commonly described as evolving
on a background given by the same solutions. In this picture, the FLRW
backgrounds are taken to describe the average over inhomogeneous perturbations
for all times. We study in the present article the (in)stability of FLRW dust
backgrounds within a class of averaged inhomogeneous cosmologies. We examine
the phase portraits of the latter, discuss their fixed points and orbital
structure and provide detailed illustrations. We show that FLRW cosmologies are
unstable in some relevant cases: averaged models are driven away from them
through structure formation and accelerated expansion. We find support for the
proposal that the dark components of the FLRW framework may be associated to
these instability sectors. Our conclusion is that FLRW cosmologies have to be
considered critically as for their role to serve as reliable models for the
physical background.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures, 1 table. Matches published version in CQ
- …