Precision machining, polishing and measurement of mechanical and toxicological properties of lead tungstate crystals for the CMS electromagnetic calorimeter

We have developed new machining and polishing techniques that have previously been applied to large scintillating crystal arrays for high energy physics experiments such as the Barium Fluoride Electromagnetic Calorimeter for the GEM Detector at SSCL, the LCsI Electromagnetic Calorimeter for the BaBar Detector at PEP-II B Factory at SLAC and the 110,000 crystal CMS Lead Tungstate Electromagnetic Calorimeter at LHC at CERN. We discuss earlier results achieved with diamond machining and polishing methods and present new results on diamond machining of lead tungstate crystals. Additionally we present new results on mechanical properties of lead tungstate including toxicological data important for the safe handling and processing of this material

Experimental limits on nucleon decay and ΔB=2 processes

Results from the IMB collabration to detect possible proton decay in a salt mine near Cleveland, Ohio are presented. Detection apparatus is described.(AIP)Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/87900/2/1_1.pd

The search for proton decay

Following a very brief description of the theoretical developments which motivated the search for proton decay, I shall describe one of these experiments (the IMB experiment) in some detail. Then I shall compare recent results from that experiment with those from other detectors.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/87399/2/321_1.pd

The IMB photomultiplier test facility

An automatic system for testing up to 32 photomultiplier tubes (PMs) simultaneously under single photon counting conditions has been used to measure characteristics of more than 2500 PMs for use in the Irvine-Michigan-Brookhaven (IMB) proton decay experiment, 2048 tubes (64 EMI 9834B 8" diameter, and 1984 EMI 9870B 5" diameter) were selected for use in the 8000 m3 IMB water Cherenkov detector, now in operation for over a year. The PM test system is described and results of testing are presented along with PM performance in the IMB detector over the last year. In general, we find that the tube characteristics have smaller fluctuations than expected and that the tubes have proven to be reliable under rugged handling and operating conditions. On the basis of our experience, we make suggestions as to new industry standards for PMs to be used in particle counting.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/25571/1/0000113.pd

A one-stop perineal clinic: our eleven-year experience.

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: The perineal clinic is a dedicated setting offering assessment for various childbirth-related presentations including obstetric anal sphincter injuries (OASIs), perineal wound complications, pelvic floor dysfunction and other conditions such as female genital mutilation(FGM). We describe the clinical presentation and outcomes of women from a tertiary perineal clinic based on data collected over an 11-year period. METHODS: This is a retrospective observational study. A one-stop outpatient service was offered to all women who sustained OASIs (postnatally and antenatally in a subsequent pregnancy), perineal complications (within 16 weeks postpartum), FGM and/or peripartum symptoms of urinary/anal incontinence or prolapse. Assessment included history with validated questionnaires, examination and anal manometry and endoanal ultrasound when appropriate. Outcomes were compared among different grades of OASIs. Management of each type of presentation was reported with outcomes. RESULTS: There were 3254 first attendance episodes between 2006 and 2016. The majority (58.1%) were for OASIs, followed by perineal wound complications. Compared to the lower grades, the higher grades of OASI were associated with poorer outcomes in terms of symptoms, investigations and complications. Women with OASIs had unrelated symptoms such as urinary incontinence, perineal pain and wound infections that needed further intervention. A high proportion(42%) of wound complications required further specialist management. CONCLUSION: We describe a dedicated, one-stop perineal clinic model for antenatal and postnatal women for management of perineal and pelvic floor disorders. This comprehensive and novel data will enable clinicians to better counsel women regarding of outcomes after OASI and focus training to minimize risks of morbidities

The Herpes Simplex Virus-1 Transactivator Infected Cell Protein-4 Drives VEGF-A Dependent Neovascularization

Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) causes lifelong infection affecting between 50 and 90% of the global population. In addition to causing dermal lesions, HSV-1 is a leading cause of blindness resulting from recurrent corneal infection. Corneal disease is characterized by loss of corneal immunologic privilege and extensive neovascularization driven by vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A). In the current study, we identify HSV-1 infected cells as the dominant source of VEGF-A during acute infection, and VEGF-A transcription did not require TLR signaling or MAP kinase activation. Rather than being an innate response to the pathogen, VEGF-A transcription was directly activated by the HSV-1 encoded immediate early transcription factor, ICP4. ICP4 bound the proximal human VEGF-A promoter and was sufficient to promote transcription. Transcriptional activation also required cis GC-box elements common to the VEGF-A promoter and HSV-1 early genes. Our results suggest that the neovascularization characteristic of ocular HSV-1 disease is a direct result of HSV-1's major transcriptional regulator, ICP4, and similarities between the VEGF-A promoter and those of HSV-1 early genes

IMB Detector‐The first 30 Days

A large water Chernekov detector, located 2000 feet below ground, has recently been turned on. The primary purpose of the device is to measure nucleon stability to limits 100 times better than previous measurements. The properties of the detector are described along with its operating characteristics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/87428/2/138_1.pd

Synthesis of fluorosugar reagents for the construction of well-defined fluoroglycoproteins.

2-Deoxy-2-fluoroglycosyl iodides are privileged glycosyl donors for the stereoselective preparation of 1-Nu-β-fluorosugars, which are useful reagents for chemical site-selective protein glycosylation. Ready access to such β-fluorosugars enables the mild and efficient construction of well-defined fluoroglycoproteins.We thank the European Commission (Marie Curie CIG, O.B. and G.J.L.B.), MICINN, Spain (Juan de la Cierva Fellowship, O.B.), MINECO, Spain (CTQ2011-22872BQU) and Generalitat de Catalunya (M.S.) for generous financial support. We also thank Mr. Adrià Cardona-Benages (URV) for technical assis-tance. G.J.L.B. thanks the Royal Society (University Research Fellowship), Fundação para a Ciência a Tecnologia, Portugal (FCT Investigator), and the EPSRC for funding.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from ACS via http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.orglett.5b01259

Defining authorship in user-generated content : copyright struggles in The Game of Thrones

The notion of authorship is a core element in antipiracy campaigns accompanying an emerging copyright regime, worldwide. These campaigns are built on discourses that aim to ‘problematize’ the issues of ‘legality’ of content downloading practices, ‘protection’ for content creators and the alleged damage caused to creators’ livelihood by piracy. Under these tensions, fandom both subverts such discourses, through sharing and production practices, and legitimizes industry’s mythology of an ‘original’ author. However, how is the notion of authorship constructed in the cooperative spaces of fandom? The article explores the most popular fandom sites of A Song of Ice and Fire, the book series that inspires the TV-show Game of Thrones and argues that the notion of authorship is not one-dimensional, but rather consists of attributes that develop across three processes: community building, the creative and the industrial/production process. Here, fandom constructs a figure of the ‘author’ which, although more complex than the one presented by the industry in its copyright/anti-piracy campaigns, maintains the status quo of regulatory frameworks based on the idea of a ‘primary’ creator

Spatial Resolution Attainable with Cathode Strip Chambers at the Trigger Level

A simple network of comparators applied to the strip signals of a cathode strip chamber allows quick hit localization to within a halfstrip width, or +/- a quarter-strip. A six-plane chamber with 6.4 mm wide strips was tested in a high-energy muon beam. The chamber was placed behind a 30 cm thick iron block. We show that patterns of hits localized to within a halfstrip allowed us to identify 300 GeV/c muon tracks with 99% probability and 0.7 mm spatial resolution in the presence of muon bremsstrahlung radiation. This technique of finding muon tracks will be used in the cathode strip chambers of the CMS Endcap Muon System