Angular Momentum Regulates Atomic Gas Fractions of Galactic Disks

We show that the mass fraction f_atm = 1.35*MHI/M of neutral atomic gas (HI and He) in isolated local disk galaxies of baryonic mass M is well described by a straightforward stability model for flat exponential disks. In the outer disk parts, where gas at the characteristic dispersion of the warm neutral medium is stable in the sense of Toomre (1964), the disk consists of neutral atomic gas; conversely the inner part where this medium would be Toomre-unstable, is dominated by stars and molecules. Within this model, f_atm only depends on a global stability parameter q=j*sigma/(GM), where j is the baryonic specific angular momentum of the disk and sigma the velocity dispersion of the atomic gas. The analytically derived first-order solution f_atm = min{1,2.5q^1.12} provides a good fit to all plausible rotation curves. This model, with no free parameters, agrees remarkably well (+-0.2 dex) with measurements of f_atm in isolated local disk galaxies, even with galaxies that are extremely HI-rich or HI-poor for their mass. The finding that f_atm increases monotonically with q for pure stability reasons offers a powerful intuitive explanation for the mean variation of f_atm with M: in a cold dark matter universe galaxies are expected to follow j~M^(2/3), which implies the average scaling q~M^(-1/3) and hence f_atm~M^(-0.37), in agreement with observations.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Age-related impairment of human T lymphocytes' activation: specific differences between CD4+ and CD8+ subsets

The relevance of physiological immune aging is of great interest with respect to determining disorders with pathologic immune function in aging individuals. In recent years, the relevance of changes in peripheral lymphocytes in age-associated neurologic diseases has become more evident. Due to the lack of immunological studies, covering more than one event after mitogenic activation, we envisaged a new concept in the present study, aiming to investigate several events, starting from T cell receptor (TCR) ligation up to T cell proliferation. In addition, we addressed the question whether changes are present in the subsets (CD4, CD8) with aging. Phosphorylation of tyrosine residues declines with increasing age in CD4+ cells. Fewer levels of CD69 positive cells after 4 h mitogenic activation, altered expression of cytokines (IL2, IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha; 22 h) and lower proliferation (72 h) were determined in aging. Moreover, it could be shown that CD8+ lymphocytes react more effectively to mitogenic stimulation with reference to CD69 expression and proliferation in both age groups (60 years old). These data indicate that T cell activation, mediated by TCR engagement, is significantly impaired in aging and both subsets are affected. However, bypassing the TCR does not fully restore T cell function, indicating that there are more mechanisms involved than impaired signal transduction through TCR only. The results will be discussed in relation to their relevance in neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders

Symplectic Dirac Operators on Hermitian Symmetric Spaces

We describe the shape of the symplectic Dirac operators on Hermitian symmetric spaces. For this, we consider these operators as families of operators that can be handled more easily than the original ones.Comment: 17 page

Der kurvige Weg zurück in den Arbeitsmarkt: Erwerbsunterbrechungen und Berufswechsel von Müttern nach der Geburt ihres ersten Kindes

"Die Erwerbsverläufe von Frauen sind in Deutschland weiter stark durch familiäre Unterbrechungen geprägt. Der vorliegende Beitrag betrachtet zwei Aspekte des mütterlichen Erwerbsverlaufs nach der Geburt des ersten Kindes: die Dauer bis zur Rückkehr in den Arbeitsmarkt und berufliche Wechsel, und zwar in Abhängigkeit vom vor der Geburt ausgeübten Beruf. Auf Basis der neoklassischen Theorie des Arbeitsangebots und der Theorie der Sozialen Produktionsfunktion wird die These aufgestellt, dass Frauen den Nutzen der Familienzeit mit dem Nutzen der Arbeitszeit vergleichen und der Wiedereinstieg in den Arbeitsmarkt und in den Herkunftsberuf von dieser Nutzenkalkulation abhängt. Die empirische Untersuchung auf Basis des Sozio-oekonomischen Panels zeigt, dass psychische Belastungen im Herkunftsberuf Frauen nach der Geburt des ersten Kindes eher veranlassen, den Beruf zu wechseln. Ein hohes Einkommen vor der Geburt wirkt beschleunigend auf den Wiedereintritt in den Arbeitsmarkt ohne beruflichen Wechsel." (Autorenreferat)"Women’s careers in Germany are strongly shaped by employment interruptions following child birth. This article examines the duration of employment interruption and job changes after the birth of a first child, employing the occupational characteristics of the job held before the familyrelated break as central predictors. In line with economic theory of labor supply and the theory of social production function, we argue that mothers compare the benefits of family time and the benefits of employment before they decide to return to the labor market. The empirical analysis uses data from the German Socio-Economic Panel and reveals that psychological strains in the job held before the birth increase the likelihood of a job change after a family-related break. A high income before the birth accelerates women’s return to the labor market without a job change." (author's abstract

Defining Early Positive Response to Psychotherapy: An Empirical Comparison Between Clinically Significant Change Criteria and Growth Mixture Modeling

Several different approaches have been applied to identify early positive change in response to psychotherapy so as to predict later treatment outcome and length as well as use this information for outcome monitoring and treatment planning. In this study, simple methods based on clinically significant change criteria and computationally demanding growth mixture modeling (GMM) are compared with regard to their overlap and uniqueness as well as their characteristics in terms of initial impairment, therapy outcome, and treatment length. The GMM approach identified a highly specific subgroup of early improving patients. These patients were characterized by higher average intake impairments and higher pre- to-posttreatment score differences. Although being more specific for the prediction of treatment success, GMM was much less sensitive than clinically significant and reliable change criteria. There were no differences between the groups with regard to treatment length. Because each of the approaches had specific advantages, results suggest a combination of both methods for practical use in routine outcome monitoring and treatment planning

Adaptation and Psychometric Evaluation of the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire (YDQ) for Parental Assessment of Adolescent Problematic Internet Use

Background and aims The surge of problematic Internet use in adolescents is a continuously growing problem across the globe. To our knowledge, to date valid questionnaire-based measurement of problematic Internet use is possible only by self-assessment. The objective for the present study was to adapt an established instrument for a parental assessment of adolescent problematic Internet use and to evaluate the psychometric properties of this questionnaire. Methods Data were collected from a representative German sample of 1,000 parents of adolescents aged between 12 and 17 years using a standardized questionnaire. To assess problematic Internet use, we adapted the established Young Diagnostic Questionnaire by rewording the items to survey a parental rating instead of a self-report (“Parental version of the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire,” PYDQ). Additionally, we assessed the Internet usage time, parental monitoring, family functioning, school performance of the adolescent, and parent–adolescent conflicts. We conducted a confirmatory factor analysis based on the 8 items of the PYDQ modeled as categorical indicators and one latent factor using a robust weighted least squares estimator. We also calculated a reliability coefficient, the acceptance of the instrument, and performed correlation analyses. Results The unidimensional model showed excellent global goodness-of-fit (χ2/df = 1.65, RMSEA = 0.03, CFI = 0.99, TLI = 0.99) and satisfactory factor loadings (standardized values ranged from 0.60 to 0.77). We observed a reliability coefficient of 0.70, a good acceptance of the instrument, and the correlation analyses indicated the construct validity of the PYDQ. Discussion and conclusion The proposed PYDQ is a suitable instrument for parental assessment of adolescent problematic Internet use

Essential Management of Pediatric Brain Tumors.

Brain tumors are the most common solid tumors in children and are associated with high mortality. The most common childhood brain tumors are grouped as low-grade gliomas (LGG), high grade gliomas (HGG), ependymomas, and embryonal tumors, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Advances in molecular genetics have led to a shift from pure histopathological diagnosis to integrated diagnosis. For the first time, these new criteria were included in the WHO classification published in 2016 and has been further updated in the 2021 edition. Integrated diagnosis is based on molecular genomic similarities of the tumor subclasses, and it can better explain the differences in clinical courses of previously histopathologically identical entities. Important advances have also been made in pediatric neuro-oncology. A growing understanding of the molecular-genetic background of tumorigenesis has improved the diagnostic accuracy. Re-stratification of treatment protocols and the development of targeted therapies will significantly affect overall survival and quality of life. For some pediatric tumors, these advances have significantly improved therapeutic management and prognosis in certain tumor subgroups. Some therapeutic approaches also have serious long-term consequences. Therefore, optimized treatments are greatly needed. Here, we discuss the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration and the role of (pediatric) neurosurgery by briefly describing the most common childhood brain tumors and their currently recognized molecular subgroups

Ergebnisbericht der Studie „GesundheitsKompetenz bei Kindern mit Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung in der GrundSchule (GeKoS)“

Hintergrund: Die Studie „Gesundheitskompetenz bei Kindern mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung in der Grundschule (GeKoS)“ untersucht die Bedeutung der und Möglichkeiten zur Stärkung der Gesundheitskompetenz bei Schüler*innen mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung in inklusiven Regelschulen und Förderschulen. Ziele der GeKoS-Studie sind: (1) die Bedeutung der Gesundheitskompetenz in Schulen (inklusive Grundschule und Förderschule mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung) zu ermitteln und (2) Herausforderungen und Bedarfe zur Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz von Kindern mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung in den Schulen zu erfassen. Schließlich stehen (3) Unterschiede zwischen den beiden Schularten bzgl. der Bedeutung und Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz von Schulkindern mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung im Fokus. Material und Methoden: Die Daten wurden in einer qualitativen Primärerhebung leitfadengestützt erhoben. Die Interviews wurden mit N=23 (unterrichtendem) Schulpersonal an N=12 Schulen durchgeführt. Dazu gehörten n=4 Gesundheitsbeauftragte, n=7 Schulleitungen und n=12 Lehrer*innen an n=3 inklusiven Grundschulen und n=9 Förderschulen mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Die Auswertung erfolgte mittels der qualitativen Inhaltsanalyse nach Mayring (2015). Ergebnisse: Die Bedeutung der Gesundheitskompetenz gestaltet sich an den Schulen heterogen. Das Finden, Verstehen und Beurteilen von gesundheitsrelevanten Informationen ist an den Schulen weniger relevant. Das Anwenden von Gesundheitsinformationen sowie die funktionalen und interaktiven Kompetenzen haben dagegen einen hohen Stellenwert. Die häufigsten Herausforderungen und Unterstützungsbedarfe zur Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz stellen die Zusammenarbeit mit den Erziehungsberechtigten, die wenig angepasste außerschulische Umwelt (z. B. keine barrierefreie Kommunikation im medizinischen Sektor und der Lebensmittelkennzeichnung), ungünstige Personalschlüssel und die geringe Verfügbarkeit von Sonderpädagog*innen insbesondere an den inklusiven Grundschulen dar. Zudem stellen das geringe Wissen um das Konzept der Gesundheitskompetenz und die geringe Verfügbarkeit von zielgruppenadäquaten Materialien zur Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz Barrieren für die Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz dar. Die strukturellen Bedingungen der Förderschulen (z. B. gebundener Ganztagsunterricht oder vergleichsweise hohe Personalschlüssel) und die inhaltliche Schwerpunktsetzung (z. B. gemeinsames Einkaufen und Kochen als Unterrichtsinhalt an den Förderschulen) tragen zur Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz durch die Schulen bei. Schlussfolgerungen: Die Ergebnisse der GeKoS-Studie verdeutlichen die Relevanz des Themas und die Bedarfe zur Förderung der Gesundheitskompetenz an den Schulen, in denen Schüler*innen mit Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung unterrichtet werden. Neben zielgruppenadäquaten Maßnahmen zur Stärkung der Gesundheitskompetenz der Schüler*innen mit dem Förderschwerpunkt Geistige Entwicklung sind zudem strukturelle Anpassungen der Rahmenbedingungen an den Schulen (z. B. durch höhere Personalschlüssel) und die Gestaltung der außerschulischen Umwelt (z. B. barrierefreie Kommunikation im medizinischen Sektor und der Lebensmittelkennzeichnung) notwendig