Addressing LISA Science Analysis Challenges

The principal goal of the \emph{LISA Science Analysis Workshop} is to encourage the development and maturation of science analysis technology in preparation for LISA science operations. Exactly because LISA is a pathfinder for a new scientific discipline -- gravitational wave astronomy -- LISA data processing and science analysis methodologies are in their infancy and require considerable maturation if they are to be ready to take advantage of LISA data. Here we offer some thoughts, in anticipation of the LISA Science Analysis Workshop, on analysis research problems that demonstrate the capabilities of different proposed analysis methodologies and, simultaneously, help to push those techniques toward greater maturity. Particular emphasis is placed on formulating questions that can be turned into well-posed problems involving tests run on specific data sets, which can be shared among different groups to enable the comparison of techniques on a well-defined platform.Comment: 7 page

The Testbed for LISA Analysis Project

The Testbed for LISA Analysis (TLA) Project aims to facilitate the development, validation and comparison of different methods for LISA science data analysis, by the broad LISA Science Community, to meet the special challenges that LISA poses. It includes a well-defined Simulated LISA Data Product (SLDP), which provides a clean interface between the communities that have developed to model and to analyze the LISA science data stream; a web-based clearinghouse (at ) providing SLDP software libraries, relevant software, papers and other documentation, and a repository for SLDP data sets; a set of mailing lists for communication between and among LISA simulators and LISA science analysts; a problem tracking system for SLDP support; and a program of workshops to allow the burgeoning LISA science community to further refine the SLDP definition, define specific LISA science analysis challenges, and report their results. This note describes the TLA Project, the resources it provides immediately, its future plans, and invites the participation of the broader community in the furtherance of its goals.Comment: 5 pages, no figure

Glaucoma Screening in the Haitian Afro-Caribbean Population of South Florida

Objective: To evaluate the presence of clinical signs consistent with suspected glaucoma in Haitian Afro-Caribbean individuals residing in South Florida who do not receive regular eye examinations. Design: Retrospective, cross-sectional study. Methods: SETTING: Community health center in the Little Haiti district of Miami, Florida. PATIENT POPULATION: We reviewed medical records and screening forms from five health screenings between October 2011 to October 2013 of 939 Afro-Caribbean individuals older than 18 years, who were never diagnosed with glaucoma or had an eye examination within the last ten years. PROCEDURES: Measurements of distance visual acuity (VA), intraocular eye pressure (IOP), central corneal thickness (CCT), cup-to-disc ratio (CDR), frequency doubling technology (FDT) perimeter visual field (VF). Main Outcome Measures: Proportion of glaucoma suspects, based on IOP greater than or equal to 24 mm Hg or CDR greater than or equal to 0.7 in either eye, and determinants of CDR and IOP. Results: One hundred ninety-one (25.5%) of 750 patients were identified as glaucoma suspects. Glaucoma suspects were common in both the youngest and oldest age groups (70 years, 25.0%; 95% CI, 21.8–28.2) and higher in men than women less than 70 years; the reverse was true after 70 years. Among all patients, mean IOP was 19.2±4.5 mmHg, mean CDR was 0.37±0.17, and mean CCT was 532±37.1 µm. In multiple linear stepwise regression analysis, determinates of increased CDR included increasing age (P = 0.004), lack of insurance (P = 0.019), and higher IOP (P<0.001), while increasing CDR (P<0.001) and thicker CCT (P<0.001) were associated with higher IOP. Conclusions: This first glaucoma survey in a U.S. Haitian Afro-Caribbean population indicates glaucoma suspect status is high across all age groups, and suggests glaucoma monitoring in people less than 40 years of age is indicated in this population

Lack of Association of Polymorphisms in Homocysteine Metabolism Genes with Pseudoexfoliation Syndrome and Glaucoma

Purpose: To evaluate genes involved in homocysteine metabolism as secondary risk factors for pseudoexfoliation syndrome (PXFS) and the associated glaucoma (PXFG). Methods: One hundred eighty-six unrelated patients with PXFS, including 140 patients with PXFG and 127 unrelated control subjects were recruited from the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. All the patients and controls were Caucasian of European ancestry. Seventeen tag SNPs from 5 genes (methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase [MTHFR], methionine synthase [MTR], methionine synthase reductase [MTRR], methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase [MTHFD1], and cystathionine β-synthase [CBS]) were genotyped. Single-SNP association was analyzed using Fisher’s exact test (unconditional) or logistic regression after conditioning on the effects of age and three LOXL1 SNPs (rs1048661, rs3825942, and rs2165241). Interaction analysis was performed between the homocysteine and LOXL1 SNPs using logistic regression. Haplotype analysis and the set-based test were used to test for association of individual genes. Multiple comparisons were corrected using the Bonferroni method. Results: One SNP (rs8006686) in MTHFD1 showed a nominally significant association with PXFG (p=0.015, OR=2.23). None of the seventeen SNPs tested were significantly associated with PXFS or PXFG after correcting for multiple comparisons (Bonferroni corrected p>0.25). After controlling for the effects of age and three associated LOXL1 SNPs, none of the seventeen tested SNPs were associated with PXFS (p>0.12). No significant interaction effects on PXFS were identified between the homocysteine and LOXL1 SNPs (p>0.06). Haplotype analysis and the set-based test did not find significant association of individual genes with PXFS (p>0.23 and 0.20, respectively). Conclusions: Five genes that are critical components of the homocysteine metabolism pathway were evaluated as secondary factors for PXFS and PXFG. Our results suggest that these genes are not significant risk factors for the development of these conditions

Tunable Superconducting Properties of a-NbSi Thin Films and Application to Detection in Astrophysics

We report on the superconducting properties of amorphous NbxSi1-x thin films. The normal-state resistance and critical temperatures can be separately adjusted to suit the desired application. Notably, the relatively low electron-phonon coupling of these films makes them good candidates for an "all electron bolometer" for Cosmological Microwave Background radiation detection. Moreover, this device can be made to suit both high and low impedance readouts

Quasifree Pion Electroproduction from Nuclei in the Δ\Delta Region

We present calculations of the reaction $A(e,e^\prime \pi N)B$ in the distorted wave impulse approximation. The reaction allows for the study of the production process in the nuclear medium without being obscured by the details of nuclear transition densities. First, a pion electroproduction operator suitable for nuclear calculations is obtained by extending the Blomqvist-Laget photoproduction operator to the virtual photon case. The operator is gauge invariant, unitary, reference frame independent, and describes the existing data reasonably well. Then it is applied in nuclei to predict nuclear cross sections under a variety of kinematic arrangements. Issues such as the effects of gauge-fixing, the interference of the $\Delta$ resonance with the background, sensitivities to the quadrupole component of the $\Delta$ excitation and to the electromagnetic form factors, the role of final-state interactions, are studied in detail. Methods on how to experimentally separate the various pieces in the coincidence cross section are suggested. Finally, the model is compared to a recent SLAC experiment.Comment: 27 pages in REVTEX, plus 22 PS figures embedded using psfig.sty (included), uuencode

Global patterns of diapycnal mixing from measurements of the turbulent dissipation rate

The authors present inferences of diapycnal diffusivity from a compilation of over 5200 microstructure profiles. As microstructure observations are sparse, these are supplemented with indirect measurements of mixing obtained from (i) Thorpe-scale overturns from moored profilers, a finescale parameterization applied to (ii) shipboard observations of upper-ocean shear, (iii) strain as measured by profiling floats, and (iv) shear and strain from full-depth lowered acoustic Doppler current profilers (LADCP) and CTD profiles. Vertical profiles of the turbulent dissipation rate are bottom enhanced over rough topography and abrupt, isolated ridges. The geography of depth-integrated dissipation rate shows spatial variability related to internal wave generation, suggesting one direct energy pathway to turbulence. The global-averaged diapycnal diffusivity below 1000-m depth is O(10?4) m2 s?1 and above 1000-m depth is O(10?5) m2 s?1. The compiled microstructure observations sample a wide range of internal wave power inputs and topographic roughness, providing a dataset with which to estimate a representative global-averaged dissipation rate and diffusivity. However, there is strong regional variability in the ratio between local internal wave generation and local dissipation. In some regions, the depth-integrated dissipation rate is comparable to the estimated power input into the local internal wave field. In a few cases, more internal wave power is dissipated than locally generated, suggesting remote internal wave sources. However, at most locations the total power lost through turbulent dissipation is less than the input into the local internal wave field. This suggests dissipation elsewhere, such as continental margins