383 research outputs found
A comparison of center of pressure variables recorded during running in barefoot, minimalist footwear, and traditional running shoes in the female population
In recent years, barefoot running and running in minimalist footwear as opposed to running in traditional running shoes has increased in popularity. The influence of such footwear choices on center of pressure (COP) displacements and velocity variables linked to injuries is yet to be understood. The aim of this study was to investigate differences between COP variables, linked to injuries measured in barefoot running, a minimalist running shoe, and with traditional running shoes and conditions during running in a healthy female population. Seventeen healthy female participants were examined. Participants performed five footfalls in each footwear condition while running at 12km/h±10% over a pressure plate while COP variables were recorded at 500Hz. The results suggest that minimalist running shoe COP characteristics were similar to those of barefoot runners, with various significant differences reported in both groups compared to runners with the traditional running shoe
A d.c. SQUID susceptometer for the study of dHvA oscillations in heavy fermion compounds.
SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:DXN023987 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo
Finite geometries and diffractive orbits in isospectral billiards
Several examples of pairs of isospectral planar domains have been produced in
the two-dimensional Euclidean space by various methods. We show that all these
examples rely on the symmetry between points and blocks in finite projective
spaces; from the properties of these spaces, one can derive a relation between
Green functions as well as a relation between diffractive orbits in isospectral
billiards.Comment: 10 page
Diffractive orbits in isospectral billiards
Isospectral domains are non-isometric regions of space for which the spectra
of the Laplace-Beltrami operator coincide. In the two-dimensional Euclidean
space, instances of such domains have been given. It has been proved for these
examples that the length spectrum, that is the set of the lengths of all
periodic trajectories, coincides as well. However there is no one-to-one
correspondence between the diffractive trajectories. It will be shown here how
the diffractive contributions to the Green functions match nevertheless in a
''one-to-three'' correspondence.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figure
Flexible Session Management in a Distributed Environment
Many secure communication libraries used by distributed systems, such as SSL,
TLS, and Kerberos, fail to make a clear distinction between the authentication,
session, and communication layers. In this paper we introduce CEDAR, the secure
communication library used by the Condor High Throughput Computing software,
and present the advantages to a distributed computing system resulting from
CEDAR's separation of these layers. Regardless of the authentication method
used, CEDAR establishes a secure session key, which has the flexibility to be
used for multiple capabilities. We demonstrate how a layered approach to
security sessions can avoid round-trips and latency inherent in network
authentication. The creation of a distinct session management layer allows for
optimizations to improve scalability by way of delegating sessions to other
components in the system. This session delegation creates a chain of trust that
reduces the overhead of establishing secure connections and enables centralized
enforcement of system-wide security policies. Additionally, secure channels
based upon UDP datagrams are often overlooked by existing libraries; we show
how CEDAR's structure accommodates this as well. As an example of the utility
of this work, we show how the use of delegated security sessions and other
techniques inherent in CEDAR's architecture enables US CMS to meet their
scalability requirements in deploying Condor over large-scale, wide-area grid
systems
UK-Wide Multicenter Evaluation of Second-line Therapies in Primary Biliary Cholangitis
Background & Aims: Thirty-to-forty percent of patients with primary biliary cholangitis inadequately respond to ursodeoxycholic acid. Our aim was to assemble national, real-world data on the effectiveness of obeticholic acid (OCA) as a second-line treatment, alongside non-licensed therapy with fibric acid derivatives (bezafibrate or fenofibrate). Methods: This was a nationwide observational cohort study conducted from August 2017 until June 2021. Results: We accrued data from 457 patients; 349 treated with OCA and 108 with fibric acid derivatives. At baseline/pre-treatment, individuals in the OCA group manifest higher risk features compared with those taking fibric acid derivatives, evidenced by more elevated alkaline phosphatase values, and a larger proportion of individuals with cirrhosis, abnormal bilirubin, prior non-response to ursodeoxycholic acid, and elastography readings >9.6kPa (P <.05 for all). Overall, 259 patients (OCA) and 80 patients (fibric acid derivatives) completed 12 months of second-line therapy, yielding a dropout rate of 25.7% and 25.9%, respectively. At 12 months, the magnitude of alkaline phosphatase reduction was 29.5% and 56.7% in OCA and fibric acid groups (P <.001). Conversely, 55.9% and 36.4% of patients normalized serum alanine transaminase and bilirubin in the OCA group (P <.001). The proportion with normal alanine transaminase or bilirubin values in the fibric acid group was no different at 12 months compared with baseline. Twelve-month biochemical response rates were 70.6% with OCA and 80% under fibric acid treatment (P =.121). Response rates between treatment groups were no different on propensity-score matching or on sub-analysis of high-risk groups defined at baseline. Conclusion: Across the population of patients with primary biliary cholangitis in the United Kingdom, rates of biochemical response and drug discontinuation appear similar under fibric acid and OCA treatment
The Role of the State in the Financialisation of the UK Economy
This article looks at the role of UK governments in the financialisation of the British economy and its industry. It argues two things. First, the UK state has had a rather more active role here than most observers have acknowledged. Successive governments since the 1970s have not merely abandoned industry, they have handed much of its control to the financial sector. Second, a key part of this policy shift was linked to the rising power of the Treasury and its reshaping of the former Department of Trade and Industry in its own ideal economic policy image. This both boosted the City and disadvantaged industry, thus propelling the UK towards financialisation at a faster pace than almost all rival economies. The arguments are based on evidence from a mix of interviews with central actors, published insider accounts and an analysis of budget statements in the period 1976–2010
Shrunk loop theorem for the topology probabilities of closed Brownian (or Feynman) paths on the twice punctured plane
The shrunk loop theorem presented here is an integral identity which
facilitates the calculation of the relative probability (or probability
amplitude) of any given topology that a free, closed Brownian or Feynman path
of a given 'duration' might have on the twice punctured plane (the plane with
two marked points). The result is expressed as a scattering series of integrals
of increasing dimensionality based on the maximally shrunk version of the path.
Physically, this applies in different contexts: (i) the topology probability of
a closed ideal polymer chain on a plane with two impassable points, (ii) the
trace of the Schroedinger Green function, and thence spectral information, in
the presence of two Aharonov-Bohm fluxes, (iii) the same with two branch points
of a Riemann surface instead of fluxes. Our theorem starts with the Stovicek
expansion for the Green function in the presence of two Aharonov-Bohm flux
lines, which itself is based on the famous Sommerfeld one puncture point
solution of 1896 (the one puncture case has much easier topology, just one
winding number). Stovicek's expansion itself can supply the results at the
expense of choosing a base point on the loop and then integrating it away. The
shrunk loop theorem eliminates this extra two dimensional integration,
distilling the topology from the geometry.Comment: 29 pages, 5 figures (accepted by J. Phys. A: Math. Gen.
Multi-year fertility reduction in free-roaming feral horses with single-injection immunocontraceptive formulations
Abstract Context. Contraception is increasingly used as a management technique to reduce fertility in wildlife populations; however, the feasibility of contraceptive formulations has been limited until recently because they have required multiple treatments to achieve prolonged infertility. Aims. We tested the efficacy and evaluated potential side effects of two contraceptive formulations, a porcine zona pellucida (PZP) formulation, SpayVac ® and a gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) formulation GonaCon-BÔ, in a population of free-roaming feral horses (Equus caballus). Both formulations were developed to provide several years of infertility with one injection. Methods. Females were treated in June 2005 with either GonaCon-B (n = 24), SpayVac (n = 20), adjuvant only (n = 22), or received no injection (n = 18). Females were monitored for fertility status year round for 3 years after treatment. Key results. Both contraceptive treatments significantly reduced fertility for 3 years. Fertility rates for GonaCon-B mares were 39%, 42% and 31%, respectively, and 37%, 50% and 44% for SpayVac mares. During the same seasons, 61%, 67% and 76% of control females were fertile. We found no significant effects from contraceptive treatment on the sex ratio of foals, birthing season or foal survival. Conclusions. These results demonstrated that both vaccines are capable of significantly reducing fertility for several years without boosters. Implications. Contraceptive vaccines examined in the present study represent a useful tool for the management of feral horses, because of their being efficacious for 3 years in the absence of booster immunisations
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