15,160 research outputs found
Kaon production and propagation at intermediate relativistic energies
We systematically study observables in nucleus-nucleus collisions at
1-2 A GeV within the Boltzmann-Uehling-Uhlenbeck (BUU) transport model. We
compare our calculations with the KaoS data on the kaon multiplicities and
spectra. In addition, the kaon collective flow is computed and compared with
the FOPI and KaoS data. We show, that the elliptic kaon flow measured recently
by the KaoS Collaboration is best described by using the Brown-Rho
parametrization of the kaon potential ( MeV).Comment: 21 pages, 3 tables, 17 figures; references added; version accepted in
PR
Step-wedge cluster-randomised community-based trials: An application to the study of the impact of community health insurance
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.BACKGROUND: We describe a step-wedge cluster-randomised community-based trial which has been conducted since 2003 to accompany the implementation of a community health insurance (CHI) scheme in West Africa. The trial aims at overcoming the paucity of evidence-based information on the impact of CHI. Impact is defined in terms of changes in health service utilisation and household protection against the cost of illness. Our exclusive focus on the description and discussion of the methods is justified by the fact that the study relies on a methodology previously applied in the field of disease control, but never in the field of health financing. METHODS: First, we clarify how clusters were defined both in respect of statistical considerations and of local geographical and socio-cultural concerns. Second, we illustrate how households within clusters were sampled. Third, we expound the data collection process and the survey instruments. Finally, we outline the statistical tools to be applied to estimate the impact of CHI. CONCLUSION: We discuss all design choices both in relation to methodological considerations and to specific ethical and organisational concerns faced in the field. On the basis of the appraisal of our experience, we postulate that conducting relatively sophisticated trials (such as our step-wedge cluster-randomised community-based trial) aimed at generating sound public health evidence, is both feasible and valuable also in low income settings. Our work shows that if accurately designed in conjunction with local health authorities, such trials have the potential to generate sound scientific evidence and do not hinder, but at times even facilitate, the implementation of complex health interventions such as CHI
Novel methods for evaluating Thomson scattering data to improve the accuracy of the electron density and its error estimate
Assessment of recent outbreaks of Dickeya sp (syn. Erwinia chrysanthemi) slow wilt in potato crops in Israel
Suspected Dickeya sp. strains were obtained from potato plants and tubers collected from commercial plots. The disease was observed on crops of various cultivars grown from seed tubers imported from the Netherlands during the spring seasons of 2004-2006, with disease incidence of 2-30% ( 10% in average). In addition to typical wilting symptoms on the foliage, in cases of severe infection, progeny tubers were rotten in the soil. Six strains were characterised by biochemical, serological and PCR amplification. All tests verified the strains as Dickeya sp. The repPCR and the biochemical assays showed that the strains isolated from blackleg diseased plants in Israel were very similar, if not identical to strains isolated from Dutch seed potatoes, suggesting that the infection in Israel originated from the Dutch seed. The strains were distantly related to D. dianthicola strains, typically found in potatoes in Western Europe, and were similar to biovar 3 D. dadanti or D. zeae. This is the first time that the presence of biovar 3 strains in potato in the Netherlands is described. One of the strains was used for pathogenicity assays on potato cvs Nicola and Mondial. Symptoms appeared 2 to 3 days after stem inoculation, and 7 to 10 days after soil inoculation. The control plants treated with water, or plants inoculated with Pectobacterium carotovorum, did not develop any symptoms with either method of inoculation. The identity of Dickeya sp. and P. carotovorum re- isolated from inoculated plants was confirmed by PCR and ELISA
Probing nuclear expansion dynamics with -spectra
We study the dynamics of charged pions in the nuclear medium via the ratio of
differential - and -spectra in a coupled-channel BUU (CBUU)
approach. The relative energy shift of the charged pions is found to correlate
with the pion freeze-out time in nucleus-nucleus collisions as well as with the
impact parameter of the heavy-ion reaction. Furthermore, the long-range Coulomb
force provides a 'clock' for the expansion of the hot nuclear system. Detailed
comparisons with experimental data for at 1 GeV/A and at
2.0 GeV/A are presented.Comment: 21 pages, latex, figures include
PB15. Neurophysiological biomarker for the clinical development of tuberous sclerosis [Abstract]
Aim
To investigate the neuronal networks in children with tuberous sclerosis complex (TS) undergoing treatment with Everolimus.
Methods
Sleep and wake electroencephalography (EEG) before and one year after the start of the treatment with Everolimus were investigated in 13 patients with TS. To investigate functional and effective connectivity within the network generating the delta and theta activity in the background sleep and wake EEG, the methods of dynamic imaging of coherent sources (DICS) and renormalized partial directed coherence (RPDC) were applied.
Results
Sources before the treatment. Independent of location of the tubera and severity of epilepsy, delta activity in the background EEG pattern in patients with TS was associated with the sources in the medial prefrontal cortex, the supplementary motor area and the putamen during sleep. Theta waves during sleep were associated with sources in the prefrontal cortex, sensory cortex, hippocampus and the thalamus. The sources of delta frequency during wakefulness were identified at the posterior parietal cortex, the parahippocampal gyrus and the Broca area. Sources at theta frequency were found at the sensorymotor cortex, the prefrontal cortex, the primary visual cortex and the thalamus at awake state.
Sources after the treatment. The sources one year after the start of the therapy, for both delta and delta frequencies were located in the same areas as before, however with a significantly weaker strength of coherence.
The RPDC analysis at baseline showed strong bidirectional connections between described sources. The RPDC analyses after the one year of treatment showed significantly weaker unidirectional connections within the described network.
At the follow up patients were grouped in two groups; group 1: five patients with >50% reduction of seizures and spike wave index, group 2: eight patients with <50% reduction of seizures and spike wave index. Interestingly, at follow up patients from the group 1 had decreased values in absolute power of the sources, coherence values and strength of connections. Whereas, patients from the group 2 had increased values in all above mentioned parameters.
Conclusion
The current study described the neuronal network in children with severe epilepsies due to TS. Regardless of the locations of the tubera the DICS analyses showed a complex network of cortical and subcortical sources with strong bidirectional connections. The described network was significantly weaker after one year under the treatment with Everolimus and appears to be characteristic for the children with TS and severe epilepsy
Predictability in the large: an extension of the concept of Lyapunov exponent
We investigate the predictability problem in dynamical systems with many
degrees of freedom and a wide spectrum of temporal scales. In particular, we
study the case of turbulence at high Reynolds numbers by introducing a
finite-size Lyapunov exponent which measures the growth rate of finite-size
perturbations. For sufficiently small perturbations this quantity coincides
with the usual Lyapunov exponent. When the perturbation is still small compared
to large-scale fluctuations, but large compared to fluctuations at the smallest
dynamically active scales, the finite-size Lyapunov exponent is inversely
proportional to the square of the perturbation size. Our results are supported
by numerical experiments on shell models. We find that intermittency
corrections do not change the scaling law of predictability. We also discuss
the relation between finite-size Lyapunov exponent and information entropy.Comment: 4 pages, 2 Postscript figures (included), RevTeX 3.0, files packed
with uufile
On the Inequivalence of Weak-Localization and Coherent Backscattering
We define a current-conserving approximation for the local conductivity
tensor of a disordered system which includes the effects of weak localization.
Using this approximation we show that the weak localization effect in
conductance is not obtained simply from the diagram corresponding to the
coherent back-scattering peak observed in optical experiments. Other diagrams
contribute to the effect at the same order and decrease its value. These
diagrams appear to have no semiclassical analogues, a fact which may have
implications for the semiclassical theory of chaotic systems. The effects of
discrete symmetries on weak localization in disordered conductors is evaluated
and and compared to results from chaotic scatterers.Comment: 24 pages revtex + 12 figures on request; hub.94.
Pion-Production in Heavy-Ion Collisions at SIS energies
We investigate the production of pions in heavy-ion collisions in the energy
range of - GeV/A. The dynamics of the nucleus-nucleus collisions is
described by a set of coupled transport equations of the
Boltzmann-Uehling-Uhlenbeck type for baryons and mesons. Besides the
and the we also take into account nucleon resonances up to
masses of as well as -, - and -mesons. We study
in detail the influence of the higher baryonic resonances and the
-production channels () on the pion spectra in
comparison to data from collisions at GeV/A and
-data for at 1.0 GeV/A. We, furthermore, present a detailed
comparison of differential pion angular distributions with the BEVALAC data for
Ar + KCl at 1.8 GeV/A. The general agreement obtained indicates that the
overall reactions dynamics is well described by our novel transport approach.Comment: 31 pages, 18 figures (inlcuded), to appear in Z. Phys.
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