13,052 research outputs found
Ab Initio Liquid Hydrogen Muon Cooling Simulations with ELMS in ICOOL
This paper presents new theoretical results on the passage of muons through
liquid hydrogen which have been confirmed in a recent experiment. These are
used to demonstrate that muon bunches may be compressed by ionisation cooling
more effectively than suggested by previous calculations.
Muon cooling depends on the differential cross section for energy loss and
scattering of muons. We have calculated this cross section for liquid H2 from
first principles and atomic data, avoiding traditional assumptions. Thence, 2-D
probability maps of energy loss and scattering in mm-scale thicknesses are
derived by folding, and stored in a database. Large first-order correlations
between energy loss and scattering are found for H2, which are absent in other
simulations. This code is named ELMS, Energy Loss & Multiple Scattering. Single
particle trajectories may then be tracked by Monte Carlo sampling from this
database on a scale of 1 mm or less. This processor has been inserted into the
cooling code ICOOL. Significant improvements in 6-D muon cooling are predicted
compared with previous predictions based on GEANT. This is examined in various
geometries. The large correlation effect is found to have only a small effect
on cooling. The experimental scattering observed for liquid H2 in the MUSCAT
experiment has recently been reported to be in good agreement with the ELMS
prediction, but in poor agreement with GEANT simulation.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure
Using 21-cm absorption surveys to measure the average HI spin temperature in distant galaxies
We present a statistical method for measuring the average HI spin temperature
in distant galaxies using the expected detection yields from future wide-field
21cm absorption surveys. As a demonstrative case study we consider a simulated
all-southern-sky survey of 2-h per pointing with the Australian Square
Kilometre Array Pathfinder for intervening HI absorbers at intermediate
cosmological redshifts between and . For example, if such a survey
yielded absorbers we would infer a harmonic-mean spin temperature of
K for the population of damped Lyman
(DLAs) absorbers at these redshifts, indicating that more than
per cent of the neutral gas in these systems is in a cold neutral medium (CNM).
Conversely, a lower yield of only 100 detections would imply
K and a CNM fraction less than per
cent. We propose that this method can be used to provide independent
verification of the spin temperature evolution reported in recent 21cm surveys
of known DLAs at high redshift and for measuring the spin temperature at
intermediate redshifts below , where the Lyman- line is
inaccessible using ground-based observatories. Increasingly more sensitive and
larger surveys with the Square Kilometre Array should provide stronger
statistical constraints on the average spin temperature. However, these will
ultimately be limited by the accuracy to which we can determine the HI column
density frequency distribution, the covering factor and the redshift
distribution of the background radio source population.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figures, 1 table. Proof corrected versio
Observations and models for needle-tissue interactions
The asymmetry of a bevel-tip needle results in the needle naturally bending when it is inserted into soft tissue. In this study we present a mechanics-based model that calculates the deflection of the needle embedded in an elastic medium. Microscopic observations for several needle- gel interactions were used to characterize the interactions at the bevel tip and along the needle shaft. The model design was guided by microscopic observations of several needle- gel interactions. The energy-based model formulation incor- porates tissue-specific parameters such as rupture toughness, nonlinear material elasticity, and interaction stiffness, and needle geometric and material properties. Simulation results follow similar trends (deflection and radius of curvature) to those observed in macroscopic experimental studies of a robot- driven needle interacting with different kinds of gels. These results contribute to a mechanics-based model of robotic needle steering, extending previous work on kinematic models
Role of a plausible nuisance contributor in the declining obesity-mortality risks over time.
CONTEXT: Recent analyses of epidemiological data including the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) have suggested that the harmful effects of obesity may have decreased over calendar time. The shifting BMI distribution over time coupled with the application of fixed broad BMI categories in these analyses could be a plausible nuisance contributor to this observed change in the obesity-associated mortality over calendar time.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the extent to which observed temporal changes in the obesity-mortality association may be due to a shifting population distribution for body mass index (BMI), coupled with analyses based on static, broad BMI categories.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Simulations were conducted using data from NHANES I and III linked with mortality data. Data from NHANES I were used to fit a true model treating BMI as a continuous variable. Coefficients estimated from this model were used to simulate mortality for participants in NHANES III. Hence, the population-level association between BMI and mortality in NHANES III was fixed to be identical to the association estimated in NHANES I. Hazard ratios (HRs) for obesity categories based on BMI for NHANES III with simulated mortality data were compared to the corresponding estimated HRs from NHANES I.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Change in hazard ratios for simulated data in NHANES III compared to observed estimates from NHANES I.
RESULTS: On average, hazard ratios for NHANES III based on simulated mortality data were 29.3% lower than the estimates from NHANES I using observed mortality follow-up. This reduction accounted for roughly three-fourths of the apparent decrease in the obesity-mortality association observed in a previous analysis of these data.
CONCLUSIONS: Some of the apparent diminution of the association between obesity and mortality may be an artifact of treating BMI as a categorical variable
Reconstruction of deglacial sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific from selective analysis of a fossil coral
The Sr/Ca of coral skeletons demonstrates potential as an indicator of sea surface temperatures (SSTs). However, the glacial-interglacial SST ranges predicted from Sr/Ca of fossil corals are usually higher than from other marine proxies. We observed infilling of secondary aragonite, characterised by high Sr/Ca ratios, along intraskeletal pores of a fossil coral from Papua New Guinea that grew during the penultimate deglaciation (130 +/- 2 ka). Selective microanalysis of unaltered areas of the fossil coral indicates that SSTs at similar to 130 ka were <= 1 degrees C cooler than at present in contrast with bulk measurements ( combining infilled and unaltered areas) which indicate a difference of 6-7 degrees C. The analysis of unaltered areas of fossil skeletons by microprobe techniques may offer a route to more accurate reconstruction of past SSTs.</p
Cool Companions to White Dwarf Stars from the Two Micron All Sky Survey All Sky Data Release
We present the culmination of our near-infrared survey of the optically spectroscopically identified white dwarf stars from the McCook and Sion catalog, conducted using photometric data from the Two Micron All Sky Survey final All Sky Data Release. The color selection technique, which identifies candidate binaries containing a white dwarf and a low-mass stellar (or substellar) companion via their distinctive locus in the near-infrared color-color diagram, is demonstrated to be simple to apply and to yield candidates with a high rate of subsequent confirmation. We recover 105 confirmed binaries, and identify 27 firm candidates (19 of which are new to this work) and 21 tentative candidates (17 of which are new to this work) from the 2MASS data. Only a small number of candidates from our survey have likely companion spectral types later than M5, none of which is an obvious L-type (i.e., potential brown dwarf) companion. Only one previously known white dwarf + brown dwarf binary is detected. This result is discussed in the context of the 2MASS detection limits, as well as other recent observational surveys that suggest a very low rate of formation (or survival) for binary stars with extreme mass ratios
Influence of Graduate Speech Language Pathology Student’s Learning Style and Coping Strategies on Training and Development
A hierarchical model using grounded theory analysis was used to investigate clinical development of speech-language pathology graduate students. Eight female students attending a graduate speech-language pathology program participated in interviews prior to beginning graduate training and after each of five subsequent semesters. The interviews were then qualitatively analyzed to create the model of clinical development. This is the first of two companion papers and summarizes two of the five main findings identified. These findings indicated that both stress and the coping strategies used by students influenced clinical abilities and the student’s feelings of self-efficacy throughout graduate training. The results support that learning theory, motivation theory, and understanding of student coping strategies could better promote clinical development and these factors in combination can be used to explain how students progress successfully through a graduate training program. The companion paper describes the remaining three findings that emphasize characteristics associated with the supervision and clinical experiences of graduate students
Femtosecond Spectroscopy with Vacuum Ultraviolet Pulse Pairs
We combine different wavelengths from an intense high-order harmonics source
with variable delay at the focus of a split-mirror interferometer to conduct
pump-probe experiments on gas-phase molecules. We report measurements of the
time resolution (<44 fs) and spatial profiles (4 {\mu}m x 12 {\mu}m) at the
focus of the apparatus. We demonstrate the utility of this two-color,
high-order-harmonic technique by time resolving molecular hydrogen elimination
from C2H4 excited into its absorption band at 161 nm
Speech-Language Pathology Student Anxiety, Expectations, and Needs During Clinical Practicum
The current study investigates clinical supervision with regard to millennial student clinician expectations, needs, and anxiety related to the supervisory process. Seven graduate students in speech-language pathology completed questionnaires at six points during their graduate education – The Student Clinician Anxiety Test (Sleight, 1985), as well as Larson’s Supervisory Expectations Rating Scale and Supervisory Needs Rating Scale (Larson, 1981). Results indicated that supervisory needs and expectations were significantly greater pre-practicum when compared to post-externship, with no significant changes in student clinician anxiety noted across six semesters of graduate training. Student clinicians demonstrated less anxiety than Sleight’s data, but had greater needs and expectations than Larson’s data. The difference in anxiety may be a reflection of the cited confidence of millennials. The possibility also exists that supervisors have shifted their methods to incorporate recommended practices, promoting decreased anxiety. The higher level of expectation and needs is in keeping with the literature, which suggests that millennials live relatively structured lives and expect supervisors to provide structure and support to meet their learning needs
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