Localisations of cobordism categories and invertible TFTs in dimension two

Cobordism categories have played an important role in classical geometry and more recently in mathematical treatments of quantum field theory. Here we will compute localisations of two-dimensional discrete cobordism categories. This allows us, up to equivalence, to determine the category of invertible two-dimensional topological field theories in the sense of Atiyah. We are able to treat the orientable, non-orientable, closed and open cases.Comment: 30 pages, accepted for publication by Homology, Homotopy and Application

Adhesion of HVOF-sprayed WC-Co coatings on 316L substrates processed by SLM

Different studies have been demonstrated that the surface integrity of substrate bulk materials to be coated has a significant impact on the adhesion of thermally sprayed coatings. It is known that the surface integrity of parts processed by selective laser melting (SLM) differs from those obtained from bulk materials. Although 316L stainless steel is among the most investigated material for SLM, the adhesion of thermally sprayed coatings on 316L stainless steel substrates processed by SLM has not been studied yet. This study aims at evaluating the effect of various mechanical pre-treatments onto 316L stainless steel substrates processed by SLM and their effect on the adhesion of high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF)-sprayed WC-Co coatings. To differentiate between topographical effects and residual stress-related phenomena, a stress-relief heat treatment of the SLM substrates served as a reference throughout the investigations. The differently pre-treated SLM substrates were investigated with regard to the surface roughness and residual stresses. For the HVOF-sprayed SLM composites, Vickers interfacial indentation tests were conducted to assess the resulting coating adhesion. The findings demonstrated that the HVOF-sprayed WC-Co coatings predominantly exhibit good adhesion to the SLM 316L substrates. However, it was found that the stress state in the SLM 316L substrate surface is more likely to affect the adhesion of the WC-Co coating, while the substrate surface roughness showed a marginal effect

Structure and toxicity of AZA-59, an azaspiracid shellfish poisoning toxin produced by Azadinium poporum (Dinophyceae)

To date, the putative shellfish toxin azaspiracid 59 (AZA-59) produced by Azadinium poporum (Dinophyceae) has been the only AZA found in isolates from the Pacific Northwest coast of the USA (Northeast Pacific Ocean). Anecdotal reports of sporadic diarrhetic shellfish poisoning-like illness, with the absence of DSP toxin or Vibrio contamination, led to efforts to look for other potential toxins, such as AZAs, in water and shellfish from the region. A. poporum was found in Puget Sound and the outer coast of Washington State, USA, and a novel AZA (putative AZA-59) was detected in low quantities in SPATT resins and shellfish. Here, an A. poporum strain from Puget Sound was mass-cultured and AZA-59 was subsequently purified and structurally characterized. In vitro cytotoxicity of AZA-59 towards Jurkat T lymphocytes and acute intraperitoneal toxicity in mice in comparison to AZA-1 allowed the derivation of a provisional toxicity equivalency factor of 0.8 for AZA-59. Quantification of AZA-59 using ELISA and LC-MS/MS yielded reasonable quantitative results when AZA-1 was used as an external reference standard. This study assesses the toxic potency of AZA-59 and will inform guidelines for its potential monitoring in case of increasing toxin levels in edible shellfish

A numerical method for the generation of hierarchical Poisson Voronoi microstructures applied in micromechanical finite element simulations : part I: method

Poisson Voronoi (PV) tessellations as artificial microstructures are widely used in investigations of material deformation behaviors. However, a PV structure usually describes a relative homogeneous field. This work presents a simple numerical method for generating 2D/3D artificial microstructures based on hierarchical PV tessellations. If grains/particles of a phase cover a large size span, the concept of “artificial phases” can be used to create a more realistic size distribution. From case to case, detailed microstructural features cannot be directly achieved by commercial or free softwares, but they are necessary for a deep or thorough study of the material deformation behavior. PV tessellations created in our process can fulfill individual requirements from material designs. Another reason to use PV tessellations is due to the limited experimental data. Concerning the application of PV microstructures, four examples are given. The FE models and results will be presented in consecutive works, i.e. “part II: applications”.Deutsche ForschungsgemeinschaftProjekt DEA

The structure of 2D semi-simple field theories

I classify all cohomological 2D field theories based on a semi-simple complex Frobenius algebra A. They are controlled by a linear combination of kappa-classes and by an extension datum to the Deligne-Mumford boundary. Their effect on the Gromov-Witten potential is described by Givental's Fock space formulae. This leads to the reconstruction of Gromov-Witten invariants from the quantum cup-product at a single semi-simple point and from the first Chern class, confirming Givental's higher-genus reconstruction conjecture. The proof uses the Mumford conjecture proved by Madsen and Weiss.Comment: Small errors corrected in v3. Agrees with published versio

Soziale Bedingungen von Schulleistungen: Zur Erfassung von Kontextmerkmalen durch Schüler-, Schul- und Elternfragebögen [Elektronische Ressource]

Author's comment: sine ann

Interleukin-2 therapy in patients with HIV infection

BACKGROUND Used in combination with antiretroviral therapy, subcutaneous recombinant interleukin-2 raises CD4+ cell counts more than does antiretroviral therapy alone. The clinical implication of these increases is not known. METHODS We conducted two trials: the Subcutaneous Recombinant, Human Interleukin-2 in HIV-Infected Patients with Low CD4+ Counts under Active Antiretroviral Therapy (SILCAAT) study and the Evaluation of Subcutaneous Proleukin in a Randomized International Trial (ESPRIT). In each, patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) who had CD4+ cell counts of either 50 to 299 per cubic millimeter (SILCAAT) or 300 or more per cubic millimeter (ESPRIT) were randomly assigned to receive interleukin-2 plus antiretroviral therapy or antiretroviral therapy alone. The interleukin-2 regimen consisted of cycles of 5 consecutive days each, administered at 8-week intervals. The SILCAAT study involved six cycles and a dose of 4.5 million IU of interleukin-2 twice daily; ESPRIT involved three cycles and a dose of 7.5 million IU twice daily. Additional cycles were recommended to maintain the CD4+ cell count above predefined target levels. The primary end point of both studies was opportunistic disease or death from any cause. RESULTS In the SILCAAT study, 1695 patients (849 receiving interleukin-2 plus antiretroviral therapy and 846 receiving antiretroviral therapy alone) who had a median CD4+ cell count of 202 cells per cubic millimeter were enrolled; in ESPRIT, 4111 patients (2071 receiving interleukin-2 plus antiretroviral therapy and 2040 receiving antiretroviral therapy alone) who had a median CD4+ cell count of 457 cells per cubic millimeter were enrolled. Over a median follow-up period of 7 to 8 years, the CD4+ cell count was higher in the interleukin-2 group than in the group receiving antiretroviral therapy alone--by 53 and 159 cells per cubic millimeter, on average, in the SILCAAT study and ESPRIT, respectively. Hazard ratios for opportunistic disease or death from any cause with interleukin-2 plus antiretroviral therapy (vs. antiretroviral therapy alone) were 0.91 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.70 to 1.18; P=0.47) in the SILCAAT study and 0.94 (95% CI, 0.75 to 1.16; P=0.55) in ESPRIT. The hazard ratios for death from any cause and for grade 4 clinical events were 1.06 (P=0.73) and 1.10 (P=0.35), respectively, in the SILCAAT study and 0.90 (P=0.42) and 1.23 (P=0.003), respectively, in ESPRIT. CONCLUSIONS Despite a substantial and sustained increase in the CD4+ cell count, as compared with antiretroviral therapy alone, interleukin-2 plus antiretroviral therapy yielded no clinical benefit in either study. (ClinicalTrials.gov numbers, NCT00004978 [ESPRIT] and NCT00013611 [SILCAAT study].

The Swiss Household Panel Study : Observing social change since 1999

Collecting data on households and individuals since 1999, the Swiss Household Panel (SHP) is an ongoing, unique, large-scale, nationally representative, longitudinal study in Switzerland (N=7,383 households and N=12,119 persons interviewed in 2014). The data of the SHP provide a rich source of information to study social change in Switzerland over a significant period on a wide variety of topics. The SHP aims to provide both continuity and innovation in measurement and data collection, with the combination of retrospective and prospective longitudinal data in the most recent refreshment sample as one notable example of such an innovation. This paper provides an overview of the SHP – focusing on its origin, aims, design, content, data collection and adjustments, possibilities for cross-national comparisons, data use and accomplishments

Comparison of vertical aerosol extinction coefficients from in-situ and LIDAR measurements

Vertical profiles of aerosol optical properties were explored in a case study near the San Pietro Capofiume (SPC) ground station during the PEGASOS Po Valley campaign in the summer of 2012. A Zeppelin NT airship was employed to investigate the effect of the dynamics of the planetary boundary layer at altitudes between ~ 50–800 m above ground. Determined properties included the aerosol size distribution, the hygroscopic growth factor, the effective index of refraction and the light absorption coefficient. The first three parameters were used to retrieve the light scattering coefficient. Simultaneously, direct measurements of both the scattering and absorption coefficient were carried out at the SPC ground station. Additionally, a LIDAR system provided aerosol extinction coefficients for a vertically resolved comparison between in-situ and remote sensing results. First, the airborne results at low altitudes were validated with the ground measurements. Agreement within approximately ±25 and ±20% was found for the dry scattering and absorption coefficient, respectively. The single scattering albedo, ranged between 0.83 to 0.95, indicating the importance of the absorbing particles in the Po Valley region. A clear layering of the atmosphere was observed during the beginning of the flight (until ~ 10 local time) before the mixed layer (ML) was fully developed. Highest extinction coefficients were found at low altitudes, in the new ML, while values in the residual layer, which could be probed at the beginning of the flight at elevated altitudes, were lower. At the end of the flight (after ~ 12 local time) the ML was fully developed, resulting in constant extinction coefficients at all altitudes measured on the Zeppelin NT. LIDAR results captured these dynamic features well and good agreement was found for the extinction coefficients compared to the in-situ results, using fixed LIDAR ratios (LR) between 30 and 70 sr for the altitudes probed with the Zeppelin. These LR are consistent with values for continental aerosol particles that can be expected in this region