Probing the Constituent Structure of Black Holes

Based on recent ideas, we propose a framework for the description of black holes in terms of constituent graviton degrees of freedom. Within this formalism a large black hole can be understood as a bound state of N longitudinal gravitons. In this context black holes are similar to baryonic bound states in quantum chromodynamics which are described by fundamental quark degrees of freedom. As a quantitative tool we employ a quantum bound state description originally developed in QCD that allows to consider black holes in a relativistic Hartree like framework. As an application of our framework we calculate the cross section for scattering processes between graviton emitters outside of a Schwarzschild black hole and absorbers in its interior, that is gravitons. We show that these scatterings allow to directly extract structural observables such as the momentum distribution of black hole constituents.Comment: Extended version, accepted for publication in JHE

How Do Firms Form Expectations of Aggregate Growth? New Evidence from a Large-scale Business Survey

Expectations are highly relevant for macroeconomic dynamics. Yet, the empirical evidence about properties of corporate macroeconomic expectations is scarce. Using new survey data on quantitative growth expectations of firms in Germany, we show that expectations are highly dispersed. The degree of dispersion depends on firm size and on how important the general economy is for the business of firms, supporting theories of rational inattention. Firms seem to extrapolate from local economic conditions and business experiences to aggregate growth expectations. Differences in growth expectations are associated with di erences in firms' Investment and labor demand.Not Reviewe

The Effects of Virtual Reality in Targeting Transdiagnostic Factors for Mental Health: A Systematic Review of the Literature.

Virtual reality (VR) was found to be effective in the treatment of several specific psychopathologies. However, the effects of VR-based interventions beyond the disorder-specific approach and their ability to improve transdiagnostic factors of mental disorders are unknown. This PRISMA systematic review was conducted using databases PubMed and PsycINFO, searching articles published between 2010 and September 2022. Keywords "emotion regulation", "cognitive reappraisal", "avoidance", "impulsivity", "aggression", and "disinhibition" were combined with "virtual reality" to retrieve studies showing the effects of VR-based interventions on these transdiagnostic factors. 29 experimental studies and seven case-studies were selected. A total of 23 considered avoidance, eight dealt with emotion regulation, three concerned aggression, two addressed impulsivity, two dealt with cognitive reappraisal, and none examined disinhibition. Most of the studies included anxiety disorder patients (n = 15), especially with specific phobias (n = 8) and social anxiety disorder (n = 4). VR managed to improve all transdiagnostic factors, with results often maintained at follow-ups (n = 21 studies; range: 1-12 months) and similar to traditional interventions (e.g., cognitive-behavioral therapy). Exploring the transdiagnostic potential of VR may help to reduce costs and improve applicability in clinical psychology. While results were promising, further studies are needed for aggression, impulsivity and cognitive reappraisal, especially including follow-ups, comparisons with first-line treatments, and understudied clinical populations

Third generation autologous chondrocyte implantation is a good treatment option for athletic persons

PURPOSE Autologous chondrocyte implantation is an established method for the treatment of joint cartilage damage. However, to date it has not been established that autologous chondrocyte implantation is an appropriate procedure for cartilage defects therapy in athletic persons. The aim of this study is to analyze if third-generation autologous chondrocyte implantation is an appropriate treatment for athletic persons with full cartilage defect of the knee joints. METHODS A total of 84 patients were treated with third-generation autologous chondrocyte implantation (NOVOCART® 3D). The mean follow-up time was 8 years (5–14). Sports activity was measured via UCLA Activity Score and Tegner Activity Scale before the onset of knee pain and postoperatively in an annual clinical evaluation. 41 athletic persons and 43 non-athletic persons (UCLA-Cut-off: 7; Tegner Activity Scale-Cut-off: 4) were analyzed. Patient reported outcomes were captured using IKDC subjective, KOOS, Lysholm score and VAS score on movement. RESULTS Patient reported outcomes (IKDC, VAS at rest, VAS on movement) showed significant improvement (p < 0.001) postoperatively. Athletic persons demonstrated significantly better results than non-athletic persons in the analyzed outcome scores (IKDC: p < 0.01, KOOS: p < 0.01, Lysholm score: p < 0.01). 96.4% of the patients were able to return to sport and over 50% returned or surpassed their preinjury sports level. The remaining patients were downgraded by a median of two points on the UCLA- and 2.5 on the Tegner Activity Scale. A shift from high-impact sports to active events and moderate or mild activities was found. Furthermore, it was shown that preoperative UCLA score and Tegner Activity Scale correlated significantly with the patient reported outcome postoperatively. CONCLUSION Autologous chondrocyte implantation is a suitable treatment option for athletic persons with full-thickness cartilage defects in the knee. The return to sports activity is possible, but includes a shift from high-impact sports to less strenuous activities

Qualitätssicherung in medizinischen Laboratorien – Eine Unentbehrlichkeit mit Nutzen und Risiken

Der Stellenwert von Qualitätssicherung (QS) und Qualitätsmanagement (QM) in medizinischen Laboratorien ist gerade seit Beginn der SARS-CoV-2-Pandemie ein Thema in vielen politischen und öffentlichen Diskussionen. Einheitliche Standards werden benötigt, um Vergleichbarkeit nicht nur in Deutschland unter den medizinischen Laboratorien zu schaffen, sondern auch über die Landesgrenze hinaus. Dafür gibt es in Deutschland zwei federführende Systeme: die Richtlinie der Bundesärztekammer zur Qualitätssicherung laboratoriumsmedizinischer Untersuchungen (Rili-BÄK) und die Akkreditierung nach der Norm DIN EN ISO 15189. Der Artikel dient der Sensibilisierung für Qualität in medizinischen Laboren zur Gewährleistung der Patientensicherheit durch eine kompetente Diagnostik am Patienten. Es wurde eine Literaturrecherche u. a. von Gesetzestexten, Normen sowie weiterführenden Dokumenten und Veröffentlichungen des QM durchgeführt sowie Erfahrungswerte von Vertretern unterschiedlicher Institutionen berücksichtigt. Ein umfassendes QM-System unterstützt die Arbeit in der medizinischen Laboratoriumsdiagnostik maßgeblich. Die Wahrung des Vertrauens in die Leistungsfähigkeit von medizinischen Laboratorien und die jeweils tragenden Einrichtungen ist für eine bestmögliche Versorgung der Bevölkerung von großer Bedeutung. Auch der Mehraufwand, der mit einer Akkreditierung einhergeht, ist mit Blick auf die Patientensicherheit gerechtfertigt, sollte jedoch keine zusätzliche Bürokratie erfahren.The importance of quality assurance (QA) and quality management (QM) in medical laboratories has been a topic in many political and public discussions, especially since the beginning of the SARS-CoV‑2 pandemic. Uniform standards are required in order to create comparability not only among medical laboratories in Germany, but also across national borders. There are two leading systems in Germany: The Guideline of the German Medical Association (Rili-BÄK) and accreditation according to DIN EN ISO 15189. This article is intended to raise awareness of quality in medical laboratories to ensure patient safety through competent diagnostics on the patient. A literature search was carried out, including legal texts, standards, and further QM documents and publications. Furthermore, empirical values from representatives of various institutions are considered. A comprehensive QM system significantly supports work in medical laboratory diagnostics. Maintaining trust in the efficiency of medical laboratories and the facilities that support them is of great importance for the best possible care for the population. The additional effort associated with accreditation is justified with regard to patient safety but should not experience any additional bureaucracy.Peer Reviewe

An open-access stress magnitude database for Germany and adjacent regions

Knowledge of the crustal stress state is important for the assessment of subsurface stability. In particular, stress magnitudes are essential for the calibration of geomechanical models that estimate a continuous description of the 3-D stress field from pointwise and incomplete stress data. Well established is the World Stress Map Project, a global and publicly available database for stress orientations, but for stress magnitude data only local data collections are available. Herein, we present the first comprehensive and open-access stress magnitude database for Germany and adjacent regions, consisting of 568 data records. In addition, we introduce a quality ranking scheme for stress magnitude data for the first time

New particle formation and sub-10nm size distribution measurements during the A-LIFE field experiment in Paphos, Cyprus

Atmospheric particle size distributions were measured in Paphos, Cyprus, during the A-LIFE (absorbing aerosol layers in a changing climate: ageing, lifetime and dynamics) field experiment from 3 to 30 April 2017. The newly developed differential mobility analyser train (DMAtrain) was deployed for the first time in an atmospheric environment for the direct measurement of the nucleation mode size range between 1.8 and 10 nm diameter. The DMA-train set-up consists of seven size channels, of which five are set to fixed particle mobility diameters and two additional diameters are obtained by alternating voltage settings in one DMA every 10 s. In combination with a conventional mobility particle size spectrometer (MPSS) and an aerodynamic particle sizer (APS) the complete atmospheric aerosol size distribution from 1.8 nm to 10 μ m was covered. The focus of the A-LIFE study was to characterize new particle formation (NPF) in the eastern Mediterranean region at a measurement site with strong local pollution sources. The nearby Paphos airport was found to be a large emission source for nucleation mode particles, and we analysed the size distribution of the airport emission plumes at approximately 500 m from the main runway. The analysis yielded nine NPF events in 27 measurement days from the combined analysis of the DMAtrain, MPSS and trace gas monitors. Growth rate calculations were performed, and a size dependency of the initial growth rate (< 10 nm) was observed for one event case. Fast changes of the sub-10 nm size distribution on a timescale of a few minutes were captured by the DMA-train measurement during early particle growth and are discussed in a second event case. In two cases, particle formation and growth were detected in the nucleation mode size range which did not exceed the 10 nm threshold. This finding implies that NPF likely occurs more frequently than estimated from studies where the lower nanometre size regime is not covered by the size distribution measurements. © 2020 Author(s)