Preserving Value in the Post-BAPCPA Era — An Empirical Study

Through the use of a multivariate regression model, this article studies the effect on debtor reorganization values of the shortened reorganization timeframe imposed by the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act (“BAPCPA”). The study shows that BAPCPA is positively correlated at a statistically significant level with higher reorganization recoveries. This result is attributed to the increased proportion of prepackaged and prenegotiated bankruptcies observed in the post-2005 era, as these “fast-track” bankruptcy cases entail lower costs and better preserve the firm’s value

On the sensitivity of HeI singlet lines to the FeIV model atom in O stars

Recent calculations and analyses of O star spectra have revealed discrepancies between theory and observations, and between different theoretical calculations, for the strength of optical HeI singlet transitions.We investigate the source of these discrepancies. Using a non-LTE radiative transfer code we have undertaken detailed test calculations for a range of O star properties. Our principal test model has parameters similar to those of the O9V star, 10 Lac. We show that the discrepancies arise from uncertainties in the radiation field in the HeI resonance transition near 584Angs. The radiation field at 584Angs. is influenced by model assumptions, such as the treatment of line-blanketing and the adopted turbulent velocity, and by the FeIV atomic data. It isshown that two FeIV transitions near 584Angs can have a substantial influence on the strength of the HeI singlet transitions. Because of the difficulty of modeling the HeI singlet lines, particularly in stars with solar metalicity, the HeI triplet lines should be preferred in spectral analyses. These lines are much less sensitive to model assumptions.Comment: 7 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in A&

PySubdiv 1.0: open-source geological modeling and reconstruction by non-manifold subdivision surfaces

Sealed geological models are commonly used as an input to process simulations, for example, in hydrogeological or geomechanical studies. Creating these meshes often requires tedious manual work, and it is therefore difficult to adjust a once-created model. In this work, we propose a flexible framework to create and interact with geological models using explicit surface representations. The essence of the work lies in the determination of the control mesh and the definition of semi-sharp-crease values, which, in combination, enable the representation of complex structural settings with a low number of control points. We achieve this flexibility through the adaptation of recent algorithms from the field of computer graphics to the specific requirements of geological modeling, specifically the representation of non-manifold topologies and sharp features. We combine the method with a particle swarm optimization (PSO) approach to enable the automatic optimization of vertex position and crease sharpness values. The result of this work is implemented in an open-source software (PySubdiv) for reconstructing geological structures while resulting in a model which is (1) sealed/watertight, (2) controllable with a control mesh and (3) topologically similar to the input geological structure. Also, the reconstructed model may include a lower number of vertices compared to the input geological structure, which results in reducing the cost of modeling and simulation. In addition to enabling a manual adjustment of sealed geological models, the algorithm also provides a method for the integration of explicit surface representations in inverse frameworks and the consideration of uncertainties.</p

Constraining stochastic 3-D structural geological models with topology information using Approximate Bayesian Computation in GemPy 2.1

Acknowledgements. We would like to thank Total E&P UK in Aberdeen for funding this research. We also thank Fabian Stamm for providing the wonderful synthetic geomodel used in this paper. We are grateful for the constructive reviews from Ashton Krajnovich and an anonymous reviewer for helping us improve this manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Low noise 400 W coherently combined single frequency laser beam for next generation gravitational wave detectors

Design studies for the next generation of interferometric gravitational wave detectors propose the use of low-noise single-frequency high power laser sources at 1064 nm. Fiber amplifiers are a promising design option because of their high output power and excellent optical beam properties. We performed filled-aperture coherent beam combining with independently amplified beams from two low-noise high-power single-frequency fiber amplifiers to further scale the available optical power. An optical power of approximately 400 W with a combining efficiency of more than 93% was achieved. The combined beam contained 370 W of linearly polarized TEM00-mode and was characterized with respect to the application requirements of low relative power noise, relative beam pointing noise, and frequency noise. The noise performance of the combined beam is comparable to the single amplifier noise. This represents, to our knowledge, the highest measured power in the TEM00-mode of single frequency signals that fulfills the low noise requirements of gravitational wave detectors

Absolute-Magnitude Distributions and Light Curves of Stripped-Envelope Supernovae

The absolute visual magnitudes of three Type IIb, 11 Type Ib and 13 Type Ic supernovae (collectively known as stripped-envelope supernovae) are studied by collecting data on the apparent magnitude, distance, and interstellar extinction of each event. Weighted and unweighted mean absolute magnitudes of the combined sample as well as various subsets of the sample are reported. The limited sample size and the considerable uncertainties, especially those associated with extinction in the host galaxies, prevent firm conclusions regarding differences between the absolute magnitudes of supernovae of Type Ib and Ic, and regarding the existence of separate groups of overluminous and normal-luminosity stripped-envelope supernovae. The spectroscopic characteristics of the events of the sample are considered. Three of the four overluminous events are known to have had unusual spectra. Most but not all of the normal luminosity events had typical spectra. Light curves of stripped-envelope supernovae are collected and compared. Because SN 1994I in M51 was very well observed it often is regarded as the prototypical Type Ic supernova, but it has the fastest light curve in the sample. Light curves are modeled by means of a simple analytical technique that, combined with a constraint on E/M from spectroscopy, yields internally consistent values of ejected mass, kinetic energy, and nickel mass.Comment: 39 pages, 14 figures, 7 tables; Accepted to A

Emergency calls and need for emergency care in patients looked after by a palliative care team: Retrospective interview study with bereaved relatives

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>During the last stage of life, palliative care patients often experience episodes of respiratory distress, bleeding, pain or seizures. In such situations, caregivers may call emergency medical services leading to unwanted hospital admissions. The study aims to show the influence of our palliative care team to reducing emergency calls by cancer patients or their relatives during the last six month of life.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Fifty relatives of deceased patients who had been attended by our palliative care team were randomly selected. Data was obtained retrospectively during a structured interview. In addition to demographic data, the number of emergency calls made during the final six months of the patient's life, the reason for the call and the mental compound score (MCS-12) of the caregivers was registered.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Forty-six relatives agreed to the interview. Emergency calls were placed for 18 patients (39%) during the final six months of their lives. There were a total of 23 emergency calls. In 16 cases (70%) the patient was admitted to the hospital. Twenty-one (91%) of the calls were made before patients had been enrolled to receive palliative care from the team, and two (9%) were made afterwards. The mean mental compound score of the caregivers at the time of the interview was 41 (range 28–57). There was a lack of correlation between MCS-12 and number of emergency calls.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Emergency calls were more likely to occur if the patients were not being attended by our palliative care team. Because of the lack of correlation between MCS-12 and the number of emergency calls, the MCS-12 cannot indicate that acutely stressful situations triggered the calls. However, we conclude that special palliative care programs can reduce psychosocial strain in family caregivers. Therefore, the number of emergency calls may be reduced and this fact allows more palliative patients to die at home.</p

The ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury VII. The NGC 4214 Starburst and the Effects of Star Formation History on Dwarf Morphology

We present deep Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) optical observations obtained as part of the ACS Nearby Galaxy Survey Treasury (ANGST) as well as early release Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) ultra-violet and infrared observations of the nearby dwarf starbursting galaxy NGC 4214. Our data provide a detailed example of how covering such a broad range in wavelength provides a powerful tool for constraining the physical properties of stellar populations. The deepest data reach the ancient red clump at M_F814W -0.2. All of the optical data reach the main sequence turnoff for stars younger than ~300 Myr, and the blue He burning sequence for stars younger than 500 Myr. The full CMD-fitting analysis shows that all three fields in our data set are consistent with ~75% of the stellar mass being older than 8 Gyr, in spite of showing a wide range in star formation rates at the present day. Thus, our results suggest that the scale length of NGC 4214 has remained relatively constant for many Gyr. As previously noted by others, we also find the galaxy has recently ramped up production, consistent with its bright UV luminosity and its population of UV-bright massive stars. In the central field we find UV point sources with F336W magnitudes as bright as -9.9. These are as bright as stars with masses of at least 52-56 M_sun and ages near 4 Myr in stellar evolution models. Assuming a standard IMF, our CMD is well-fitted by an increase in star formation rate beginning 100 Myr ago. The stellar populations of this late-type dwarf are compared with those of NGC 404, an early-type dwarf that is also the most massive galaxy in its local environment. The late-type dwarf appears to have a similar high fraction of ancient stars, suggesting that these dominant galaxies may form at early epochs even if they have low total mass and very different present-day morphologies.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in Ap

P2Y1 receptor inhibition rescues impaired synaptic plasticity and astroglial Ca2+-dependent activity in the epileptic hippocampus

Indexación ScopusEpilepsy is characterized by a progressive predisposition to suffer seizures due to neuronal hyperexcitability, and one of its most common co-morbidities is cognitive decline. In animal models of chronic epilepsy, such as kindling, electrically induced seizures impair long-term potentiation (LTP), deteriorating learning and memory performance. Astrocytes are known to actively modulate synaptic plasticity and neuronal excitability through Ca2+-dependent gliotransmitter release. It is unclear, however, if astroglial Ca2+ signaling could contribute to the development of synaptic plasticity alterations in the epileptic hippocampus. By employing electrophysiological tools and Ca2+ imaging, we found that glutamatergic CA3-CA1 synapses from kindled rats exhibit an impairment in theta burst (TBS) and high frequency stimulation (HFS)-induced LTP, which is accompanied by an increased probability of neurotransmitter release (Pr) and an abnormal pattern of astroglial Ca2+-dependent transients. Both the impairment in LTP and the Pr were reversed by inhibiting purinergic P2Y1 receptors (P2Y1R) with the specific antagonist MRS2179, which also restored the spontaneous and TBS-induced pattern of astroglial Ca2+-dependent signals. Two consecutive, spaced TBS protocols also failed to induce LTP in the kindled group, however, this impairment was reversed and a strong LTP was induced when the second TBS was applied in the presence of MRS2179, suggesting that the mechanisms underlying the alterations in TBS-induced LTP are likely associated with an aberrant modulation of the induction threshold for LTP. Altogether, these results indicate that P2Y1R inhibition rescues both the pattern of astroglial Ca2+-activity and the plastic properties of CA3-CA1 synapses in the epileptic hippocampus, suggesting that astrocytes might take part in the mechanisms that deteriorate synaptic plasticity and thus cause cognitive decline in epileptic patients. © 2020https://www-sciencedirect-com.recursosbiblioteca.unab.cl/science/article/pii/S0969996120304071?via%3Dihu