501 research outputs found
Antibranes don't go black
When D-branes are inserted in flux backgrounds of opposite charge, the
resulting solution has a certain singularity in the fluxes. Recently it has
been argued, using numerical solutions, that for anti-D3 branes in the
Klebanov-Strassler background these singularities cannot be cloaked by a
horizon, which strongly suggests they are not physical. In this note we provide
an analytic proof that the singularity of all codimension-three antibrane
solutions (such as anti-D6 branes in massive type IIA supergravity or anti-D3
branes smeared on the T^3 of R^3xT^3 with fluxes) cannot be hidden behind a
horizon, and that the charge of black branes with smooth event horizons must
have the same sign as the charge of the flux background. Our result indicates
that infinitesimally blackening the antibranes immediately triggers brane-flux
annihilation, and strengthens the intuition that antibranes placed in flux with
positive charge immediately annihilate against it.Comment: 9 pages, 1 figur
Insomnia and the incidence, recurrence and persistence of common mental disorders:Sex-differences in the general population
Insomnia is common throughout the population and thought to be a risk factor for mental disorders. We assessed the association of insomnia symptoms with incidence, recurrence and persistence of mood, anxiety and substance use disorders. In 4007 participants (55 % women, mean age 51.0 ± 12.3) of the population-based Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study (NEMESIS), having insomnia symptoms increased the odds of developing, recurring and persisting mood disorders, mostly in men. Insomnia only associated with recurring anxiety disorders, particularly in women, and not with substance use disorders. Treating insomnia may aid recovery and prevention of mental disorders, particularly mood disorders.</p
Variation in test ordering behaviour of GPs: professional or context-related factors?
Objective. The aim of this study was to describe GPs' test ordering behaviour, and to establish professional and context-related determinants of GPs' inclination to order tests. Methods. A cross-sectional analysis was carried out of 229 GPs in 40 local GP groups from five regions in The Netherlands of the combined number of 19 laboratory and eight imaging tests ordered by GPs, collected from five regional diagnostic centres. In a multivariable multilevel regression analysis, these data were linked with survey data on professional characteristics such as knowledge about and attitude towards test ordering, and with data on context-related factors such as practice type or experience with feedback on test ordering data. The main outcome measure was the percentage point differences associated with professional and context-related factors. Results. The total median number of tests per GP per year was 998 (interquartile range 663-1500), with significant differences between the regions. The response to the survey was 97%. At the professional level, ‘individual involvement in developing guidelines' (yes versus no), and at the context-related level ‘group practice' (versus single-handed and two-person practices) and ‘more than 1 year of experience working with a problem-oriented laboratory order form' (yes versus no) were associated with 27, 18 and 41% lower numbers of tests ordered, respectively. Conclusion. In addition to professional determinants, context-related factors appeared to be strongly associated with the numbers of tests ordered. Further studies on GPs' test ordering behaviour should include local and regional factor
Dynamics of Generalized Assisted Inflation
We study the dynamics of multiple scalar fields and a barotropic fluid in an
FLRW-universe. The scalar potential is a sum of exponentials. All critical
points are constructed and these include scaling and de Sitter solutions. A
stability analysis of the critical points is performed for generalized assisted
inflation, which is an extension of assisted inflation where the fields
mutually interact. Effects in generalized assisted inflation which differ from
assisted inflation are emphasized. One such a difference is that an
(inflationary) attractor can exist if some of the exponential terms in the
potential are negative.Comment: 27 page
Screening for Postpartum Depression in Well-Baby Care Settings:A Systematic Review
Introduction Postpartum depression (PPD) is a mental health problem frequently experienced by mothers in the first year postpartum. Early detection and treatment can help to reduce its negative effect on the development of the newborn child. Well-baby care (WBC) is a promising screening setting for early detection of PPD. This systematic review investigates the evidence of the effectiveness of screening for PPD in WBC settings regarding mother and child outcomes. Methods Three electronic databases were searched: SCOPUS, PsychINFO and CINAHL. Two reviewers independently performed the study selection. Data extraction was based on a predefined data extraction form. Results Six studies were included; a quality assessment rated two studies as strong and four as weak. Four studies measuring outcomes at process level showed improvement in detection, referral and/or treatment rates. Four studies, including the two strong ones, where screening and enhanced care were combined, showed improvements in the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale scores of the mothers in the intervention groups. No improvements were reported on other outcomes at parent level or at child level. At child level, weight was the only outcome that was measured. Discussion This review provides limited yet positive evidence for the value of screening for PPD in a WBC setting. The outcomes are comparable with studies on screening for PPD in general. The evidence that we found is very promising but the small number of available studies shows a need for additional high-quality studies, to strengthen the evidence regarding the potential benefits of screening in a WBC setting.</p
Persistent anti-brane singularities
Anti-D-branes inserted in warped throat geometries (supported by fluxes that
carry D-brane charges) develop unphysical singularities. It has been argued
that these singularities could be resolved when one goes beyond the linearized
approximation or includes the effects of brane polarization. In this paper we
consider anti-D6 branes, whose singularities have been shown to exist at the
full non-linear level, and demonstrate that there is no D8 brane polarization
that can resolve the singularity. We comment on the potential implications of
this result for the resolution of anti-D3 brane singularities in the
Klebanov-Strassler geometry.Comment: 16 pages; v2: comments added, version to appear in JHE
(Anti-)Brane backreaction beyond perturbation theory
We improve on the understanding of the backreaction of anti-D6-branes in a
flux background that is mutually BPS with D6-branes. This setup is analogous to
the study of the backreaction of anti-D3-branes inserted in the KS throat, but
does not require us to smear the anti-branes or do a perturbative analysis
around the BPS background. We solve the full equations of motion near the
anti-D6-branes and show that only two boundary conditions are consistent with
the equations of motion. Upon invoking a topological argument we eliminate the
boundary condition with regular H flux since it cannot lead to a solution that
approaches the right kind of flux away from the anti-D6-brane. This leaves us
with a boundary condition which has singular, but integrable, H flux energy
density.Comment: 12 pages + appendices, 1 figure; v2: minor changes, version published
in JHE
Chemokine receptor CCR2 is expressed by human multiple myeloma cells and mediates migration to bone marrow stromal cell-produced monocyte chemotactic proteins MCP-1, -2 and -3
The restricted bone marrow (BM) localisation of multiple myeloma (MM) cells most likely results from a specific homing influenced by chemotactic factors, combined with the proper signals for growth and survival provided by the BM microenvironment. In analogy to the migration and homing of normal lymphocytes, one can hypothesise that the BM homing of MM cells is mediated by a multistep process, involving the concerted action of adhesion molecules and chemokines. In this study, we report that primary MM cells and myeloma derived cell lines (Karpas, LP-1 and MM5.1) express the chemokine receptor CCR2. In addition, we found that the monocyte chemotactic proteins (MCPs) MCP-1, -2 and -3, three chemokines acting as prominent ligands for CCR2, are produced by stromal cells, cultured from normal and MM BM samples. Conditioned medium (CM) from BM stromal cells, as well as MCP-1, -2 and -3, act as chemoattractants for human MM cells. Moreover, a blocking antibody against CCR2, as well as a combination of neutralizing antibodies against MCP-1, -2 and -3, significantly reduced the migration of human MM cells to BM stromal cell CM. The results obtained in this study indicate the involvement of CCR2 and the MCPs in the BM homing of human MM cells. (C) 2003 Cancer Research UK
A 'civilized' drink and a 'civilizing' industry: wine growing and cultural imagining in colonial New South Wales
My starting point for this thesis was the absence of a foundation history of Australian wine growing conducted by an historian rather than researchers in other disciplines or the media. I have used existing work on wine history in New South Wales from 1788 to 1901 alongside a significant body of new research to create an historical argument suitable for incorporation into more broadly-themed narratives of Australian history and to inform studies of wine growing in other academic fields. My main argument is that although wine growing proved of little economic value in colonial primary production compared with nation-building commodities - such as pastoralism, wheat growing and gold - advocates of the cultivation of wine grapes believed wine growing embodied beneficial, even transformative, cultural value so they persisted in attempting to create a ‘civilizing’ industry producing a ‘civilized’ drink despite lacklustre consumption of their product and very modest profits. Several times, from 1788 to 1901, these advocates spoke out or wrote about wine and wine growing as capable of creating order in a wild or ‘savage’ landscape and within a settler society shaped culturally by shifting adaptations to both imported and ‘native’ influences in agriculture as well as alcohol production, consumption and distribution. While the methodological framework employed here falls mainly within cultural and economic history, sociological theories have contributed to findings on causation. The result is a comprehensive narrative of colonial wine growing in New South Wales enriched by links to key developments in Australian colonial history and with reference to wine growing in other British colonies or former territories
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