Perceptual Pluralism

Perceptual systems respond to proximal stimuli by forming mental representations of distal stimuli. A central goal for the philosophy of perception is to characterize the representations delivered by perceptual systems. It may be that all perceptual representations are in some way proprietarily perceptual and differ from the representational format of thought (Dretske 1981; Carey 2009; Burge 2010; Block ms.). Or it may instead be that perception and cognition always trade in the same code (Prinz 2002; Pylyshyn 2003). This paper rejects both approaches in favor of perceptual pluralism, the thesis that perception delivers a multiplicity of representational formats, some proprietary and some shared with cognition. The argument for perceptual pluralism marshals a wide array of empirical evidence in favor of iconic (i.e., image-like, analog) representations in perception as well as discursive (i.e., language-like, digital) perceptual object representations

Preoperative quality of life and surgical outcomes in gynecologic oncology patients: A new predictor of operative risk?

Quality of life (QoL) for women with gynecologic malignancies is predictive of chemotherapy related toxicity and overall survival but has not been studied in relation to surgical outcomes and hospital readmissions. Our goal was to evaluate the association between baseline, pre-operative QoL measures and 30-day post-operative morbidity and health resource utilization by gynecologic oncology patients

Titan's Prolific Propane: The Cassini CIRS Perspective

In this paper we select large spectral averages of data from the Cassini Composite Infrared Spectrometer (CIRS) obtained in limb-viewing mode at low latitudes (30S--30N), greatly increasing the path length and hence signal-to-noise ratio for optically thin trace species such as propane. By modeling and subtracting the emissions of other gas species, we demonstrate that at least six infrared bands of propane are detected by CIRS, including two not previously identified in Titan spectra. Using a new line list for the range 1300-1400cm -1, along with an existing GEISA list, we retrieve propane abundances from two bands at 748 and 1376 cm-1. At 748 cm-1 we retrieve 4.2 +/- 0.5 x 10(-7) (1-sigma error) at 2 mbar, in good agreement with previous studies, although lack of hotbands in the present spectral atlas remains a problem. We also determine 5.7 +/- 0.8 x 10(-7) at 2 mbar from the 1376 cm-1 band - a value that is probably affected by systematic errors including continuum gradients due to haze and also an imperfect model of the n6 band of ethane. This study clearly shows for the first time the ubiquity of propane's emission bands across the thermal infrared spectrum of Titan, and points to an urgent need for further laboratory spectroscopy work, both to provide the line positions and intensities needed to model these bands, and also to further characterize haze spectral opacity. The present lack of accurate modeling capability for propane is an impediment not only for the measurement of propane itself, but also for the search for the emissions of new molecules in many spectral regions.Comment: 7 Figures, 3 Tables. Typeset in Latex with elsart.cls. In press for Planetary and Space Scienc

Obesity is associated with worse quality of life in women with gynecologic malignancies: An opportunity to improve patient-centered outcomes

BACKGROUND: The objective of the current study was to evaluate the effect of obesity on pretreatment quality of life (QoL) in gynecologic oncology patients. METHODS: The authors analyzed collected data from an institution-wide cohort study of women with gynecologic cancers enrolled from August 2012 to June 2013. The Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General, site-specific symptom scales, and the National Institutes of Health Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) global mental and physical health tools were administered. Survey results were linked to clinical data abstracted from medical records (demographics and comorbid conditions). Bivariate tests and multivariate linear regression models were used to evaluate factors associated with QoL scores. RESULTS: A total of 182 women with ovarian, uterine, cervical, and vulvar/vaginal cancers were identified; of these, 152 (84%) were assessed before surgery. Mean body mass index was 33.5 kg/m2 and race included white (120 patients [79%]), black (22 patients [15%]), and other (10 patients [6.5%]). A total of 98 patients (64.5%) were obese (body mass index ≥30). On multivariate analysis, subscales for functional (17 vs 19; P=.04), emotional (16 vs 19; P=.008), and social (22 vs 24; P=.02) well-being as well as overall Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General scores (77 vs 86; P5.002) and Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System global physical health scores (45 vs 49; P=.003) were found to be significantly lower in obese versus nonobese patients. CONCLUSIONS: Before cancer treatment, obese patients with gynecologic malignancies appear to have worse baseline QoL than their normal-weight counterparts. Emerging models of QoL-based cancer outcome measures may disproportionately affect populations with a high obesity burden. The potential disparate impact of cancer therapy on longitudinal QoL in the obese versus nonobese patients needs to be evaluated

Exclusion limits on the WIMP-nucleon cross-section from the Cryogenic Dark Matter Search

The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search (CDMS) employs low-temperature Ge and Si detectors to search for Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs) via their elastic-scattering interactions with nuclei while discriminating against interactions of background particles. For recoil energies above 10 keV, events due to background photons are rejected with >99.9% efficiency, and surface events are rejected with >95% efficiency. The estimate of the background due to neutrons is based primarily on the observation of multiple-scatter events that should all be neutrons. Data selection is determined primarily by examining calibration data and vetoed events. Resulting efficiencies should be accurate to about 10%. Results of CDMS data from 1998 and 1999 with a relaxed fiducial-volume cut (resulting in 15.8 kg-days exposure on Ge) are consistent with an earlier analysis with a more restrictive fiducial-volume cut. Twenty-three WIMP candidate events are observed, but these events are consistent with a background from neutrons in all ways tested. Resulting limits on the spin-independent WIMP-nucleon elastic-scattering cross-section exclude unexplored parameter space for WIMPs with masses between 10-70 GeV c^{-2}. These limits border, but do not exclude, parameter space allowed by supersymmetry models and accelerator constraints. Results are compatible with some regions reported as allowed at 3-sigma by the annual-modulation measurement of the DAMA collaboration. However, under the assumptions of standard WIMP interactions and a standard halo, the results are incompatible with the DAMA most likely value at >99.9% CL, and are incompatible with the model-independent annual-modulation signal of DAMA at 99.99% CL in the asymptotic limit.Comment: 40 pages, 49 figures (4 in color), submitted to Phys. Rev. D; v.2:clarified conclusions, added content and references based on referee's and readers' comments; v.3: clarified introductory sections, added figure based on referee's comment

Phenomenology of the Lense-Thirring effect in the Solar System

Recent years have seen increasing efforts to directly measure some aspects of the general relativistic gravitomagnetic interaction in several astronomical scenarios in the solar system. After briefly overviewing the concept of gravitomagnetism from a theoretical point of view, we review the performed or proposed attempts to detect the Lense-Thirring effect affecting the orbital motions of natural and artificial bodies in the gravitational fields of the Sun, Earth, Mars and Jupiter. In particular, we will focus on the evaluation of the impact of several sources of systematic uncertainties of dynamical origin to realistically elucidate the present and future perspectives in directly measuring such an elusive relativistic effect.Comment: LaTex, 51 pages, 14 figures, 22 tables. Invited review, to appear in Astrophysics and Space Science (ApSS). Some uncited references in the text now correctly quoted. One reference added. A footnote adde

Reactive Halogens in the Marine Boundary Layer (RHaMBLe): The tropical North Atlantic experiments

The NERC UK SOLAS-funded Reactive Halogens in the Marine Boundary Layer (RHaMBLe) programme comprised three field experiments. This manuscript presents an overview of the measurements made within the two simultaneous remote experiments conducted in the tropical North Atlantic in May and June 2007. Measurements were made from two mobile and one ground-based platforms. The heavily instrumented cruise D319 on the RRS Discovery from Lisbon, Portugal to São Vicente, Cape Verde and back to Falmouth, UK was used to characterise the spatial distribution of boundary layer components likely to play a role in reactive halogen chemistry. Measurements onboard the ARSF Dornier aircraft were used to allow the observations to be interpreted in the context of their vertical distribution and to confirm the interpretation of atmospheric structure in the vicinity of the Cape Verde islands. Long-term ground-based measurements at the Cape Verde Atmospheric Observatory (CVAO) on São Vicente were supplemented by long-term measurements of reactive halogen species and characterisation of additional trace gas and aerosol species during the intensive experimental period. This paper presents a summary of the measurements made within the RHaMBLe remote experiments and discusses them in their meteorological and chemical context as determined from these three platforms and from additional meteorological analyses. Air always arrived at the CVAO from the North East with a range of air mass origins (European, Atlantic and North American continental). Trace gases were present at stable and fairly low concentrations with the exception of a slight increase in some anthropogenic components in air of North American origin, though NOx mixing ratios during this period remained below 20 pptv (note the non-IUPAC adoption in this manuscript of pptv and ppbv, equivalent to pmol mol−1 and nmol mol−1 to reflect common practice). Consistency with these air mass classifications is observed in the time series of soluble gas and aerosol composition measurements, with additional identification of periods of slightly elevated dust concentrations consistent with the trajectories passing over the African continent. The CVAO is shown to be broadly representative of the wider North Atlantic marine boundary layer; measurements of NO, O3 and black carbon from the ship are consistent with a clean Northern Hemisphere marine background. Aerosol composition measurements do not indicate elevated organic material associated with clean marine air. Closer to the African coast, black carbon and NO levels start to increase, indicating greater anthropogenic influence. Lower ozone in this region is possibly associated with the increased levels of measured halocarbons, associated with the nutrient rich waters of the Mauritanian upwelling. Bromide and chloride deficits in coarse mode aerosol at both the CVAO and on D319 and the continuous abundance of inorganic gaseous halogen species at CVAO indicate significant reactive cycling of halogens. Aircraft measurements of O3 and CO show that surface measurements are representative of the entire boundary layer in the vicinity both in diurnal variability and absolute levels. Above the inversion layer similar diurnal behaviour in O3 and CO is observed at lower mixing ratios in the air that had originated from south of Cape Verde, possibly from within the ITCZ. ECMWF calculations on two days indicate very different boundary layer depths and aircraft flights over the ship replicate this, giving confidence in the calculated boundary layer depth