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the remarkable precision of relastivistic mechanics and electrodynamics allows , for instance the good localizations by the the global positioning system . however , a discrepancy appears in the observation of the probes ( in particular pioneers 10 and 11 ) when their distance from the sun becomes larger than about five astronomical units . the the frequencies of the received radio signals are too high , so that it seems that the attraction by the sun increases over newton s law . several prudent explanations are proposed , in particular new physics or an acceleration by an anisotropic radiation of the energy provided by the disintegration of the plutonium which feeds the probes in energy . in section [ description ] , we show why the previous explanations can not work , showing that the problem occurs during the propagation of the radio waves . other discrepancies are found in observations of the solar system : - the explanations of the redshifts of the uv emission spectra of the sun observed by soho , by spicules or siphon - flows , appear weak ; - the anisotropy of the microwave background appears bound to the solar system . this section defines the properties required for an optical effect able to solve these three problems . in section [ creil ] , we study this effect , deduced from standard rules of spectroscopy , but observable only in conditions which allow to qualify the light pulses ultrashort . this effect appears , in particular while light is refracted by a low pressure gas containing atomic hydrogen in states 2s or 2p . the original description of the pioneer probes , and of the detection of anomalies in the radio - signals of several probes was given by anderson et al . @xcite . anderson et al . deduce the radial speed of the probes through an assumed doppler shift of radio waves : an electromagnetic wave is sent from the earth to the probes at a frequency deduced from the frequency of an hydrogen maser by a multiplication such that the frequency received by the probe is close to 2.11 ghz . this frequency is multiplied by 240/221 to avoid an interference with the received frequency , amplified and sent back to the earth where it is detected by an heterodyne system , producing a frequency close to 1 mhz . the weakness of the received signal requires a track more and more difficult with an increase of the distance . taking into account the main computed frequency shifts , doppler and gravitational , less important perturbations such as the pressures of radiation of the solar light , and the pressure of the solar wind , the gravity of the kuiper belt ... , the received frequency has the computed value until the distance of the probe is lower than 5au ; at a longer distance the received frequency becomes more and more too high , until the extra acceleration stabilises over 15 au at the value @xmath0 cm s@xmath1 . see figure [ f1 ] . if the origin of the acceleration were a leakage of the valves of the thrusters allowing the maneuvers , the probability that both pioneers have leaks producing the same acceleration , and that a leak reproduces after a maneuver , is low . therefore , the main hypothesis is an anisotropy of the radiation of the 2 kw produced by the decay of the plutonium on board the aircraft . the decrease of this energy with the time is not observed , but it may correspond to the uncertainty of the measure of the acceleration@xcite . we think that the origin of the anomalous accelerations does not lie in the apparatus for the following reasons : i)the identities of the accelerations of both pioneers show that they do not probably result from an accidental disworking such as a leakage of a valve . ii)on figure [ f2 ] , the interferences with the corona produce large perturbations of the observed frequencies ( `` c '' regions ) , but , after , the linear increase of speed is restored .. if the `` n '' regions were produced in the apparatus , the large anomalous speeds which would appear should translate the following segments ; thus something similar to a path through the corona , happens on the path of the light , and the properties of this path are more easily restored than the properties of a complex apparatus . what can happen on the path of light in the solar wind ? maybe the proximity of a planet , maybe an increase of the solar activity . how do this change in the solar wind may be transferred to the radio signal ? the chromosphere of the quiet sun was studied by peter and judge @xcite using data acquired by the solar ultraviolet measurement of emitted radiation ( sumer ) , on the soho spacecraft . we consider here only residual frequency shifts obtained by subtraction from the observed shifts of a " main correction : a ) the the doppler shift produced by the rotation of the sun and the relative movement of the sun and the probe ; b ) the relativistic shift . after a description of spectra , peter & judge present the current state of their interpretation , founded on an attribution of the ( residual ) frequency shifts of the spectral lines to a doppler effect produced by vertical movements of the gas in the chromosphere . to explain that lines emitted at the same , or at very close places have different redshifts , an hypothesis is that gas is ejected in vertical spicules , then cools and flows down ; an other hypothesis is siphon flows through loops . but peter & judge write : as for the spicule idea , the existing siphon - flow pictures are either non valid or only part of the story . other hypothesis are tried , but " still more work is needed . with the hypothesis of doppler effects and vertical movements , for all lines , there is no ( residual ) frequency shift at the limb of the sun . this hypothesis implies that the frequencies measured at the limb are , after subtraction of the " main correction , the absolute frequencies . comparing the absolute frequencies deduced from sumer measures at the limb to older measured or computed frequencies , discrepancies appear , attributed to a lack of precision of the old results . for instance , a computed value of the wavelength of mg x is 62495.2 pm , while the value deduced from the observation of the limb is 62496.8 @xmath2 .7 pm . the wavelength of the ne viii line was measured in the laboratory by bockasten et al @xcite who found 77040.9 @xmath2 .5 pm . from sumer measures , at the limb , peter & judge obtained 77042.8 @xmath2 .7 pm . considering that this value is a rest wavelength , there is a discrepancy attributed to a too short error bar in the laboratory measure . peter & judge write : " if one would take the bockasten et al . value for granted , this would imply that the ne viii is indeed redshifted at disk center and would beg the question of how the redshift of a line seen at disk center @xmath3 can even increase toward the limb - - we would not be able to explain such a variation with our current understanding of the solar atmosphere . peter & judge do not rely much on the theory they use : neither the nature of the driving motions nor the response of the plasma can be reliably constrained by currently available observations or by numerical simulations ... it might be that the blueshifts we observe are not caused by the out - flowing solar wind but by some other processes . an other process , a new understanding is supposing that the shifts occurs during the propagation of the light through a shell of the chromosphere : the path through this shell for the rays emitted at @xmath3 is the thickness of the shell , while it is larger for other rays . writing @xmath4 the frequency shift obtained by peter & judge at a point @xmath5 , @xmath6 the newly defined shift , @xmath7 being a point at the limb , the relation between the shifts is : @xmath8 as @xmath9 is larger than @xmath10 , the signs of @xmath4 and @xmath6 are opposite , the variations of the frequency shifts along a radius are opposite . , height=453 ] with formation temperature of the line . error bars for the data of brekke et al ( 1997 ) were typically 2 km s@xmath11 . the solid line is a by - eye fit of the doppler shifts in peter & judge study . from peter & judge @xcite . [ pj ] figure [ pj ] shows the shifts of various lines @xmath12 as a function of the temperature of the emitting gas . suppose that the column density is sufficient to reach nearly a saturation , that is an equilibrium between the temperature of the emitting gas and the temperature of the light at the centre of the lines . thermodynamics says that energy flows from hot to cold , so that the three high energy lines ne viii , mg x and fe xii are allowed by thermodynamics to transfer energy to the other lines provided that the light is refracted by a convenient medium playing the role of a catalyst . this transfer redshifts the three hot lines , and blueshifts the other in conformity with the definition @xmath6 of the redshifts . why do the lines emitted at the lowest temperatures ( he i , c ii , si iv and c iv ) are less blueshifted than the other cold lines ? a simple explanation is that the catalytic power of the refracting medium is nearly zero at temperatures lower than 30 000 k ( temperature of emission of he i ) and gets a maximal mean value if the temperature along the path varies from about 170 000 k ( maximum of the curve on figure [ pj ] ) to 30 000 k , leading to an optimal temperature of the effect , very roughly , of the order of 100 000 k. in subsection [ pioneer ] , we explained the anomalous increase of frequency of the pioneer probes by an interaction in the solar wind . if this interaction is similar to the interaction whose characteristics were found in subsection [ sun ] , it is a transfer of energy from the solar light to radio waves . this transfer applies to all radio waves propagating in the solar wind over 5 ua , in particular to the cosmic microwave background . the solar wind is generated in the holes of the corona , so that it is anisotropic . its structure may be modified by the magnetic fields of the planets . thus , the blueshift of the radio frequencies by the solar wind is anisotropic . for the cmb , a thermal radiation , this shift is an amplification which adds a contribution to the anisotropy due to the movement of the sun in the galaxy . the analysis of the observed cmb leads to a similar result @xcite . a simultaneous explanation of the anomalies studied in section [ description ] uses an optical effect having the following properties : i)the images and the spectra are not blurred ; else the signals from the pioneers would be too much weakened ; ii)the energy transferred from hot beams to cold beams shifts the frequencies ; iii)the interacting beams must be refracted by a gas whose optimal temperature is of the order of 100 000 k ; observed from the solar frequency shifts and the cooling of the solar wind . this section explains the required effect , which appears very similar to the refraction , but which requires very particular media , or ultra - short laser pulses . - a doppler - like redshift must avoid a blur of the images . therefore , it must be space - coherent , so that the wave surfaces are not disturbed : for an involved molecule , it exists relations between the local phases of all involved electromagnetic fields , and the phases of all molecular oscillators ; space coherence means that these relations are identical for all involved molecules . consequently , supposing that the number of involved molecules is large , huygens construction shows that the radiated fields generate clean wave surfaces related with the wave surfaces of the exciting fields . - for a time - coherent source ( continuous wave laser ) , frequency shift means that while the source emits @xmath13 cycles , the detector receives a different number @xmath14 . thus , the number of cycles between the source and the receiver is increased of @xmath15 ; it is an increase of the number of wavelengths , thus an increase of the distance , therefore a doppler effect . consequently , a doppler - like redshift is only possible with time - incoherent light ; a parameter measuring this incoherence must appear in the theory to forbid an application to time - coherent light . - the energy absorbed by the redshifting process must not be quantised to avoid a blur of the spectra : if a light beam exchanges a quantified energy with a molecule , a fraction of the intensity of the beam gets a finite shift . in a parametric process , the molecules leave their stationary state only temporarily , their states becoming dressed during their interactions with the light ; the light beams exchange not - quantified energy , the matter plays the role of a catalyst . to simplify the explanations , suppose that the refracting medium is perfectly transparent . a sheet of matter between two close wave surfaces distant of @xmath16 is excited at a pulsation @xmath17 . the sheet radiates a rayleigh coherent wave late of @xmath18 whose amplitude is a small fraction @xmath19 of the exciting amplitude @xmath20 . from huygens construction it generates the same wave surfaces , so that the fields add into @xmath21\nonumber\\ \approx e_0[\sin(\omega t)\cos(k\epsilon)+\sin(k\epsilon ) \cos(\omega t)]=e_0\sin(\omega t -k\epsilon).\end{aligned}\ ] ] this result defines the index of refraction @xmath13 by the identification @xmath22 suppose that the light interacts with free identical molecules , initially in the same non - degenerate stationary state @xmath23 . the perturbation of a molecule by an electromagnetic wave mixes @xmath23 with other states @xmath24 , producing a non - stationary state @xmath25 , where the @xmath26 are very small . we must consider the set of all interacting molecules , adding an upper index @xmath27 to distinguish the molecules . without a field , the total , stationary state is @xmath28 . its degeneracy is the number of molecules . perturbed by an external field , the refracting medium radiates a scattered , coherent field late of @xmath18 , generating the same wave surfaces than the exciting field ; therefore , the dynamically excited , non - stationary , dressed ( or polarisation ) state @xmath29 which emits this field is characterised by an index @xmath14 representing the exciting mode . considering other refracted modes , @xmath30 splits as @xmath31 . remark that the coherent interactions are much stronger than the incoherent : a refraction by @xmath32 of water delays the light of @xmath18 , that is the light is fully scattered by the coherent rayleigh scattering . in a swimming pool , we see well through 25 metres of water , only a fraction of the light is scattered by the incoherent rayleigh scattering ; the factor is @xmath33 . the creil results from an interaction between dressed states @xmath29 ; as these states have the same parity , the interaction must be of raman type , for instance quadrupolar electric . thermodynamics says that the entropy must increase , so that the floods of energy are from the modes which have a high planck s temperature to the colder ones . for an astrophysical application we consider a purely parametric effect : the matter , a low pressure gas in low fields , returns to its initial state after an interaction . the dressed state @xmath29 radiates a mixture of the coherent rayleigh scattering which produces the refraction and coherent raman scatterings . these locally weak scatterings may be studied independently , so that the creil may be considered as a set of _ simultaneous _ stokes and anti - stokes coherent raman scatterings with a zero balance of energy for the molecules . the scattered beams have the same wave surfaces than the exciting beams , so that these beams may interfere , as in the coherent rayleigh scattering making the refraction ; as the scattered fields are much weaker than the exciting field , they may be added independently to it . the pulsations of the raman beams are shifted by @xmath34 , and , at the beginning of a pulse , in phase because the resonance introduces a @xmath35 phaseshift . the sum of the exciting wave and the coherent anti - stokes scattered wave is : @xmath36 \hskip 3 mm ( { \rm with } ( k'>0 ) \nonumber\\ e = e_0[\sin(\omega t)+k'\epsilon[\sin(\omega t)\cos(\omega t)+\sin(\omega t)\cos(\omega t)]].\end{aligned}\ ] ] supposing that @xmath37 and @xmath38 are small , the second term , product of two small quantities , may be neglected , and the last one transformed : @xmath39\nonumber\\ e\approx e_0[\sin(\omega t)\cos(k'\epsilon\omega t)+ \sin(k'\epsilon\omega t)\cos(\omega t)=e_0\sin[(\omega+k'\epsilon\omega)t].\label{eq4}\end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath38 is an infinitesimal term , but the hypothesis @xmath37 small requires that the raman period @xmath40 is large in comparison with the duration of the experiment @xmath41 . this condition was set by g. l. lamb jr . for the definition of ultrashort pulses : shorter than all relevant time constants @xcite . with ordinary light , the time coherence plays the role of length of the pulses : thus , the time - coherence , some nanoseconds , must be shorter than all relevant time constants . we have found a first relevant time constant . a second is the collisional time constant , because the collisions destroy the space - coherence , producing an ordinary , weak , incoherent raman scattering ; a low pressure gas is needed . the same computation , replacing @xmath42 by a negative @xmath43 gives the stokes contribution , so that we replace @xmath42 by @xmath44 in formula [ eq4 ] . @xmath44 depends on the difference of population in both levels , that is on @xmath45 , where @xmath46 is the temperature of the gas . the theory of the refraction shows that the index of refraction is nearly constant in the absence of resonance close to @xmath17 , so that , using for the polarisability a formula equivalent to formula [ refr ] , @xmath47 appears nearly proportional to @xmath48 , and the frequency shift is : @xmath49 the relative frequency shift @xmath50 is nearly independent on @xmath17 . all required properties are obtained : space coherence , limitation of the time - coherence , no excitation of the gas , nearly constant relative frequency shift . as the shift is proportional to @xmath51 , a strong effect requires a raman pulsation @xmath52 as large as allowed by the preservation of the coherence . as the time - coherence of ordinary light is some nanoseconds , an raman frequency is of the order of 100 mhz . usually , it is not necessary to take into account the radiations which receive energy because we are surrounded by thermal radiations whose blueshift is simply a heating . in a convenient medium , the creil effect transfers also energy between the radio frequencies which make the thermal radiation as long as the thermal equilibrium , including the isotropy , is not reached ; this creil effect is strong because , all involved frequencies being low , it is nearly resonant , so that the radio frequencies get quickly a thermal equilibrium . the creil in optical fibres is so easily obtained that it makes problems for the use of short pulses in telecommunications . with the high peak power of femtosecond lasers , the index of refraction and the components of the tensor of polarisability become increasing functions of the intensity , allowing a study of the effect in small cells . this nonlinear effect named `` impulsive stimulated raman scattering '' ( isrs ) allows an easy study of the properties of the coherent raman effect on incoherent light : transfer of energy from a laser beam to another producing frequency shifts , verification of lamb s conditions ( yan et al . @xcite ) . while the lengths of the laser pulses increase , the experiments become more and more difficult : to increase the collisional time , it becomes impossible to use dense matter , a gas less and less dense must be used . while it is easy to find strong raman resonances at the rotational and vibrational frequencies of molecules , resonances close to 100 mhz appear generally in highly excited states , almost unpopulated . therefore , an observation of a creil effect , using ordinary incoherent light would require an expansive experiment while it is well verified in the whole easily accessible domain of frequencies . as atomic hydrogen has a simple spectrum , its levels of energy may be well populated . its electric quadrupole spin recoupling transition ( @xmath53 ) in the ground state has the frequency 1420 mhz , too high . but , in the first excited state , the frequencies 178 mhz in the 2s@xmath54 state , 59 mhz in 2p@xmath54 state , and 24 mhz in 2p@xmath55 are very convenient ; in these states , the gas will be named h*. it is more difficult to populate higher states , and the resonance frequencies are low , so that , in these states , the creil effect is negligible . excited atomic hydrogen which redshifts the light may be generated by various processes : the ionisation energy equals @xmath56 for a temperature @xmath57 ; as the energy needed for a pumping to the states of principal quantum number @xmath58 ( h * states ) is the three fourth of the ionisation energy , it equals @xmath56 for @xmath59 . using boltzman law , these temperatures may be considered as indicating roughly where these particular states of hydrogen are abundant , remarking however that by a thermal excitation , the proportion of hydrogen in the h * states is limited by the excitation to higher values of @xmath13 , and by the ionisation at low pressures . remark that , from figure [ pj ] , we found in [ sun ] an approximate optimal value @xmath60 : h * is clearly the source of the anomalous frequency shifts on the sun . over a temperature @xmath61 , the molecules of hydrogen are dissociated . the strong absorption of the lyman alpha line produces h*. the effective decay of h * is very slow at low pressures because this decay can only re - emit the ly@xmath62 line which is strongly , immediately re - absorbed . the surface of the sun is too cold to provide much energy at the ly@xmath62 frequency . but h * may be produced close to very hot objects such as quasars , accreting neutron stars . a feed - back may appear in unexcited atomic hydrogen illuminated by a far uv continuous spectrum : the excitation at the lyman @xmath63 frequency produces h * , therefore a redshift which renews the intensity of the light at the lyman @xmath63 frequency until a previously absorbed line almost stops the redshift , so that the other lyman lines are strongly absorbed and will nearly stop the following fast redshift . the combination of the protons and electrons of a plasma produces atomic hydrogen in various states of excitation . the 2s state is stable at a low pressure . the optical transitions from the 2p states generate a ly@xmath62 line which may be reabsorbed . the cooling of the solar wind beyond 5 ua produces h * and explains the blueshift of the radio - frequencies of the pioneers 10 and 11 , at least a part of the anisotropy of the cmb bound to the ecliptic . introducing coherent optical interactions other than the refraction seems the key of a lot of explanations of up to now difficult to understand astrophysical observations . in particular , the coherent raman effects on incoherent light ( creil ) is the true origin of frequency shifts usually considered as produced by a doppler effect . the use of the creil is very simple : light beams refracted simultaneously by a gas containing atomic hydrogen in states 2s or 2p exchange energy to increase the entropy of their set , producing frequency shifts . where the physical conditions allow the production of h * , anomalous frequency shifts appear . 9 anderson j. d. , p. a. laing , e. l. lau , a. s. liu , m. m. nieto , & s. g. turyshev , _ phys . * 81 * , 2858 - 2861 ( 1998 ) . anderson j. d. , p. a. laing , e. l. lau , a. s. liu , m. m. nieto , & s. g. turyshev , _ phys . * d 65 * , 082004 ( 2002 ) . markwardt c. b. , arxiv : gr - cq/0208046(2002 ) . scheffer l. k. , _ phys.rev . _ * d67 * ( 2003 ) 08402 . peter h. & p. g. judge _ apj , _ * 522 * , 1148 - 1166 ( 1999 ) . bockasten , k. , r. hallin & t. hughes , _ proc . soc . _ * 81 * 522 ( 1963 ) . schwarz , d. j. , g. d. starkman , d. huterer , c. j. copi , _ phys . lett . _ * * 93 * * , 221301 , arxiv : astro - ph/0403353 ( 2004 ) . land k. , & j. magueijo , _ mon . not . r. astron . soc . _ * * 357 * * , 994 ( 2005 ) . naselsky p. , l .- y chiang . , p. olesen & i. novikov , arxiv : astro - ph/0505011 ( 2005 ) . lamb g. l. jr . , _ rev . _ , * 43 * , 99 - 124 ( 1971 ) . yan y .- x . , e. b. gamble jr . & k. a. nelson , _ j. chem phys . _ , * 83 * , 5391 ( 1985 ) .

the improvements of the observations of the solar system allowed by the use of probes and big instruments let appear several problems : the frequencies of the radio signals received from the probes sent over 5 ua from the sun are too high ; the explanation by spicules or siphon - flows of the frequency shifts of uv emissions observed on the surface of the sun by soho is not satisfactory ; the anisotropy of the cmb seems bound to the ecliptic . this problems are solved using a coherent optical effect , deduced from standard spectroscopy and easily observed with lasers . in a gas containing atomic hydrogen in states 2s and ( or ) 2p , transfers of energy between light beams , allowed by thermodynamics , produce the required frequency shifts or amplifications . [email protected]

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Fairness in Admiralty and Maritime Law Act''. SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO LIMITATION OF SHIPOWNERS' LIABILITY ACT OF 1851. (a) In General.--Chapter 305 of title 46, United States Code, is amended as follows: (1) Subsection (a) of section 30505 is amended to read as follows: ``(a) In General.--Except as provided in section 30506 of this title, the liability of the owner of a vessel for any claim, debt, or liability described in subsection (b) shall not exceed the value of the vessel and pending freight. If the vessel has more than one owner, the proportionate share of the liability of any one owner shall not exceed that owner's proportionate interest in the vessel and pending freight.''. (2) Subsection (c) of section 30505 is amended to read as follows: ``(c) Claims Not Subject to Limitation.--Subsection (a) does not apply-- ``(1) to a claim for wages; ``(2) to a claim for personal injury; ``(3) to a claim for wrongful death; or ``(4) to a claim relating to oil drilling or exploration or the discharge of oil from a vessel or offshore facility, as those terms are defined in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (33 U.S.C. 2701).''. (3) By adding at the end of the section: ``(d) Exclusion.-- ``(1) Exclusion.--Unless the claim involves the privity or knowledge of the owner, claims for personal injury or wrongful death are subject to the limitation in subsection (a) if the vessel was a fishing vessel. ``(2) Fishing vessel defined.--In this subsection, the term `fishing vessel' means-- ``(A) a vessel, boat, ship, or other watercraft that is used for, equipped to be used for, or of a type normally used for-- ``(i) charter fishing (as defined in section 3(3) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802(3))); ``(ii) commercial fishing (as defined in section 3(4) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1802 (4))); or ``(iii) aiding or assisting one or more vessels at sea in the performance of any activity relating to commercial fishing (as so defined), including preparation, supply, storage, refrigeration, transportation, or processing; but ``(B) does not include a passenger vessel (as defined in section 2101(22)).''. (4) Subsection (c) of section 30511 is amended to read as follows: ``(c) Cessation of Other Actions.--At the time that an action has been brought under this section and the owner has complied with subsection (b), all claims and proceedings against the owner related to the matter in question which are subject to limitation under section 30505 shall cease.''. SEC. 3. ASSESSMENT OF PUNITIVE DAMAGES IN MARITIME LAW. (a) In General.--Chapter 301 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: ``Sec. 30107. Punitive damages ``Except as otherwise provided in this title, in a civil action for damages arising out of a maritime tort, punitive damages may be assessed without regard to the amount of compensatory damages assessed in the action.''. (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for chapter 301 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: ``30107. Punitive damages''. SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO THE DEATH ON THE HIGH SEAS ACT. (a) In General.--Chapter 303 of title 46, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in section 30302, by inserting ``or law'' after ``admiralty''; (2) in section 30303, by inserting ``and nonpecuniary loss'' after ``pecuniary loss''; (3) in section 30303, by striking ``sustained by'' and all that follows and inserting ``sustained, plus a fair compensation for the decedent's pain and suffering. In this section, the term `nonpecuniary loss' means the loss of care, comfort, and companionship.''; (4) in section 30305, by inserting ``or law'' after ``admiralty''; and (5) in section 30306, by inserting ``or law'' after ``admiralty''. (b) Aviation Accidents.-- (1) In general.--Section 30307 of title 46, United States Code, is amended-- (A) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following: ``(a) Definitions.-- ``(1) Commercial aviation; general aviation.--The terms `commercial aviation' and `general aviation' have the same meaning as those terms, respectively, as used in subtitle VII of title 49, United States Code. ``(2) Nonpecuniary damages.--The term `nonpecuniary damages' means damages for loss of care, comfort, and companionship.''; (B) by inserting ``or general aviation'' after ``commercial aviation'' in subsections (b) and (c); and (C) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(d) Procedure.--Notwithstanding sections 30302, 30305, and 30306, an action to which this section applies may be brought in admiralty and may not be brought in law.''. (2) Conforming amendments.-- (A) Section heading.--Section 30307 of title 46, United States Code, is amended in the heading by striking ``commercial aviation'' and by inserting ``aviation''. (B) Clerical amendment.--The table of contents for chapter 303 of title 46, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 30307 and inserting the following: ``30307. Aviation accidents''. (c) Application to Fishing Vessels.-- (1) In general.--None of the amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to a fishing vessel. (2) Fishing vessel defined.--In this subsection, the term ``fishing vessel'' means-- (A) a vessel, boat, ship, or other watercraft that is used for, equipped to be used for, or of a type normally used for-- (i) charter fishing (as defined in section 3(3) of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1802(3))); (ii) commercial fishing (as defined in section 3(4) of such Act (16 U.S.C. 1802 (4))); or (iii) aiding or assisting one or more vessels at sea in the performance of any activity relating to commercial fishing (as so defined), including preparation, supply, storage, refrigeration, transportation, or processing; but (B) does not include a passenger vessel (as defined in section 2101(22) of title 46, United States Code). SEC. 5. IMPROVEMENTS TO RECOVERY UNDER THE JONES ACT. Section 30104 of title 46, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: ``Sec. 30104. Personal injury to or death of seamen ``(a) In General.--A seaman injured in the course of employment or, if the seaman dies from the injury, the personal representative of the seaman may elect to bring a civil action at law, with the right of trial by jury, against the employer. Laws of the United States regulating recovery for personal injury to, or death of, a railway employee apply to an action under this section. ``(b) Loss of Care, Comfort, and Companionship.--In addition to other amounts authorized under such laws, for any claim relating to oil drilling or exploration or the discharge of oil the recovery for a seaman who so dies shall include recovery for loss of care, comfort, and companionship.''. SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. The amendments made by this title shall apply to-- (1) causes of action and claims arising after April 19, 2010; or (2) actions commenced before the date of enactment of this Act that have not been finally adjudicated, including appellate review, as of that date.

Fairness in Admiralty and Maritime Law Act - Expands a shipowner's liability to claims not subject to limitation to include: (1) personal injury claims; (2) wrongful death claims; and (3) claims relating to oil drilling or exploration or the discharge of oil from a vessel or offshore facility. Excepts the owner of a fishing vessel from such limitation for claims for personal injury or wrongful death, unless the claim involves the privity or knowledge of the owner. Allows punitive damages to be assessed without regard to the amount of compensatory damages assessed in a civil maritime action for damages arising out of a maritime tort, subject to exception. Amends the Death on the High Seas Act to permit the personal representative of a decedent to bring a civil action in admiralty or law (limited to admiralty under current law) against the person or vessel responsible for the decedent's death when the death was caused by wrongful act, neglect, or default occurring on the high seas beyond three nautical miles from the shore of the United States. Allows recovery in such an action for fair compensation for nonpecuniary loss (limited to pecuniary loss under current law), plus a fair compensation for the decedent's pain and suffering. Defines "nonpecuniary loss" as loss of care, comfort, and companionship. Amends provisions concerning commercial aviation accidents to include general aviation accidents. Amends the Jones Act to allow recovery for the loss of care, comfort, and companionship of a seaman in a claim by the seaman's representative relating to oil drilling or exploration or the discharge of oil when the seaman died as the result of such oil drilling or exploration or the discharge of oil.

FILE - This Jan. 10, 2016 file photo shows the red carpet at the 73rd annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif. The 74th annual Golden Globe nominations will be streamed live online, beginning... (Associated Press) FILE - This Jan. 10, 2016 file photo shows the red carpet at the 73rd annual Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, Calif. The 74th annual Golden Globe nominations will be streamed live online, beginning at 8:10 a.m. EST. Among the films expected to take in a number of nods are Damien Chazelle’s nostalgic... (Associated Press) Damien Chazelle's Los Angeles musical "La La Land" sang and danced its way to a leading seven Golden Globes nominations, with Barry Jenkins' celebrated coming-of-age tale "Moonlight" close on its heels with six nods. "La La Land" earned nominations for its lead actors, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, as well as best picture, comedy or musical. The film also scored nominations for directing, screenplay, score and original song in the nominations announced Monday in Los Angeles by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. "Moonlight," spread across three chapters of a young man's life in Miami, led the field in the dramatic categories, including best picture. It earned nods for Jenkins' directing and script, supporting actor favorite Mahershala Ali and supporting actress Naomie Harris. "When you see that the HFPA comes back with six nominations you know they saw the work and the love put into the film," Jenkins said by phone. "It fills my heart." The other nominees for best picture, drama, were "Manchester by the Sea," ''Lion," ''Hell or High Water" and "Hacksaw Ridge." On the television side, "The People v. O.J. Simpson" continued its awards success with five nominations, including best limited series and nods for stars Sarah Paulson, Courtney B. Vance, Sterling K. Brown and John Travolta. Other awards regulars ("Veep," ''Transparent") were recognized, too, though a number of more recent acclaimed shows not eligible for September's Emmy Awards elbowed their way in, including "The Night Of," ''Westworld," ''Atlanta," ''This Is Us" and "Insecure." HBO led the networks with 14 nominations. "Huge thanks to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and the Russian hackers that made our nominations possible," joked "Veep" star Julia Louis-Dreyfus on her eighth Globe nod. The film nominees also verified that this year's awards season isn't nearly so white as last year's. Along with "Moonlight," nominations were heaped on Denzel Washington's August Wilson adaptation "Fences" (including acting nods for Washington and Viola Davis), the interracial marriage drama "Loving" (leads Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton were each nominated) and the inspirational NASA drama about African-American mathematicians "Hidden Figures" (for which Octavia Spencer was nominated). Those nominations confirm what has already solidified as a notably more diverse Oscar field. Kenneth Lonergan's tender portrait of grief, "Manchester by the Sea," landed five nominations, including best actor in a drama for Casey Affleck and best supporting actress for Michele Williams. "It will actually be my first time attending the Golden Globes and I've been working for more than 20 years, so this moment isn't lost on me," said Affleck. The Weinstein Co.'s "Lion," about an Indian boy separated from his family, had an especially good morning. The film also earned four nods, including acting nominations for Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman. Mel Gibson, long a divisive, controversial figure in Hollywood, also had reason to celebrate. His World War II drama "Hacksaw Ridge" landed three nominations, including best director and best actor in a drama for star Andrew Garfield. But a few of Hollywood's most revered directors went empty-handed. Neither Martin Scorsese's "Silence" nor Clint Eastwood's "Sully" landed anything. The best actress race is one of the year's most competitive, though it's so far been dominated by "Elle" star Isabelle Huppert. She was nominated for best actress in a drama, along with Amy Adams ("Arrival"), Natalie Portman ("Jackie"), Jessica Chastain ("Miss Sloane") and Negga. Along with "La La Land," the best picture, comedy or musical, nominees were "20th Century Women," ''Sing Street," ''Florence Foster Jenkins" and — most strikingly — the R-rated superhero romp "Deadpool." ''As we speak, the entire 'Deadpool' team is engaged in a grotesque, early morning tickle-fight," tweeted the film's star, Ryan Reynolds, who was also nominated. The Hollywood Foreign Press, a collection of mostly freelance journalists, has a history of sometimes playing favorites and packing its lively banquet with stars. This year's picks featured some eyebrow-raising outliers like the unheralded Aaron Taylor-Johnson for Tom Ford's "Nocturnal Animals" for best supporting actor and Jonah Hill for the poorly reviewed "War Dogs." The Globes, which will be hosted in Beverly Hills by Jimmy Fallon in Jan. 8, are no Oscar predictor. But their nominations did nothing to unsettle the front-runner status of "La La Land" (the top choice by the New York Film Critics and the Critics Choice Awards) or the close pursuit of "Moonlight" (Los Angeles Film Critics Association and Gotham Independent Film Awards winner). "Manchester by Sea" also has the look of a shoo-in. Other choices were anything but surprising. Meryl Streep landed her 30th nomination for best actress in a musical or comedy for "Florence Foster Jenkins." The film, about a Manhattan heiress' quixotic dreams of singing opera, was one of the morning's biggest winners, scoring four nominations including nods for Hugh Grant and Simon Helberg. Streep, an eight-time winner, will also be the recipient of the Cecil B. DeMille Award for career achievement. Along with Streep and Stone, the best actress, comedy or musical, nominees include Annette Bening ("20th Century Women"), Hailee Steinfeld for the teen comedy "The Edge of Seventeen" and Lily Collins for Warren Beatty's Howard Hughes tale "Rules Don't Apply." In a sign of Hollywood's increasing division between mega blockbusters and smaller independent films, the lead nominee getters were overwhelmingly independent. Lionsgate led the way with 13 nods thanks largely to "La La Land." The indie outfit A24, producer of "Moonlight," followed with nine. Amazon Studios, which is distributing "Manchester by the Sea," outranked goliaths like the Walt Disney Co. (three noms) and Warner Bros. (just one). Plus, Amazon earned five TV nods for "Transparent" and "Mozart in the Jungle." The nominees for best animated film are: "Zootopia," ''Kubo and the Two Strings," ''Moana," ''My Life as a Zucchini" and "Sing." Left out was Pixar's "Finding Dory," the year's top domestic box-office hit. The best foreign language film nominees are "Elle," ''The Salesman," ''Toni Erdmann," ''Neruda" and "Divines." ___ Associated Press writers Jocelyn Noveck in New York, and Lindsey Bahr and Lynn Elber in Los Angeles contributed to this report. ||||| This image released by A24 Films shows Mahershala Ali, left, and Alex Hibbert in a scene from, "Moonlight." Ali was nominated for a Golden Globe award for best supporting actor for his role in the film... (Associated Press) This image released by A24 Films shows Mahershala Ali, left, and Alex Hibbert in a scene from, "Moonlight." Ali was nominated for a Golden Globe award for best supporting actor for his role in the film on Monday, Dec. 12, 2016. The 74th Golden Globe Awards ceremony will be broadcast on Jan. 8, on NBC.... (Associated Press) List of nominees for the 74th annual Golden Globe Awards, announced Monday in Beverly Hills, California: MOTION PICTURES —Picture, Drama: "Hacksaw Ridge," ''Hell or High Water," ''Lion," ''Manchester by the Sea," ''Moonlight." —Picture, Musical or Comedy: "20th Century Women," ''Deadpool," ''Florence Foster Jenkins," ''La La Land," Sing Street." —Actor, Drama: Casey Affleck, "Manchester by the Sea"; Joel Edgerton, "Loving"; Andrew Garfield, "Hacksaw Ridge"; Viggo Mortensen, "Captain Fantastic"; Denzel Washington, "Fences." —Actress, Drama: Amy Adams, "Arrival"; Jessica Chastain, "Miss Sloane"; Isabelle Huppert, "Elle"; Ruth Negga, "Loving"; Natalie Portman, "Jackie." —Director: Damien Chazelle, "La La Land"; Tom Ford, "Nocturnal Animals"; Mel Gibson, "Hacksaw Ridge"; Barry Jenkins, "Moonlight"; Kenneth Lonergan, "Manchester by the Sea." —Actor, Musical or Comedy: Colin Farrell, "The Lobster"; Ryan Gosling, "La La Land"; Hugh Grant, "Florence Foster Jenkins"; Jonah Hill, "War Dogs"; Ryan Reynolds, "Deadpool." —Actress, Musical or Comedy: Annette Bening, "20th Century Women"; Lily Collins, "Rules Don't Apply"; Hailee Steinfeld, "The Edge of Seventeen"; Emma Stone, "La La Land"; Meryl Streep, " Florence Foster Jenkins." —Supporting Actor: Mahershala Ali, "Moonlight"; Jeff Bridges, "Hell or High Water"; Simon Helberg," Florence Foster Jenkins"; Dev Patel, "Lion"; Aaron Taylor-Johnson, "Nocturnal Animals." —Supporting Actress, Motion Picture: Viola Davis, "Fences"; Naomie Harris, "Moonlight"; Nicole Kidman, "Lion"; Octavia Spencer, "Hidden Figures"; Michelle Williams, "Manchester by the Sea." —Foreign Language: "Divines," ''Elle," ''Neruda," ''The Salesman," ''Toni Erdmann." —Animated Film: "Kubo and the Two Strings," ''Moana," ''My Life as a Zucchini," ''Sing," ''Zootopia." —Screenplay: Damien Chazelle, "La La Land"; Tom Ford, "Nocturnal Animals"; Barry Jenkins, "Moonlight"; Kenneth Lonergan, "Manchester by the Sea"; Taylor Sheridan, "Hell or High Water." —Original Score: Nicholas Britell, "Moonlight"; Justin Hurwitz, "La La Land"; Johann Johannsson, "Arrival"; Dustin O'Halloran, Hauschka, "Lion"; Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams, Benjamin Wallfisch, "Hidden Figures." —Original Song: "Can't Stop the Feeling!", "Trolls"; "City of Stars," ''La La Land"; "Faith," ''Sing"; "Gold," ''Gold"; "How Far I'll Go," ''Moana." TELEVISION: — Series, Drama: "The Crown," ''Game of Thrones," ''Stranger Things," ''This Is Us," ''Westworld." — Actress, Drama: Caitriona Balfe, "Outlander"; Claire Foy, "The Crown"; Keri Russell, "The Americans"; Winona Ryder, "Stranger Things"; Evan Rachel Wood, "Westworld." — Actor, Drama: Rami Malek, "Mr. Robot"; Bob Odenkirk, "Better Call Saul"; Matthew Rhys, "The Americans"; Liev Schreiber, "Ray Donovan"; Billie Bob Thornton, "Goliath." — Actor, Limited Series or Movie: Riz Ahmed, "The Night Of"; Bryan Cranston, "All the Way"; Tom Hiddleston," The Night Manager"; John Turturro, "The Night Of"; Courtney B. Vance, "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story." — Series, Musical or Comedy: "Atlanta," ''black-ish," ''Mozart in the Jungle," ''Transparent," ''Veep." — Supporting Actor, Series, Limited Series or Movie: Sterling K. Brown, "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story"; Hugh Laurie, "The Night Manager"; John Lithgow, "The Crown"; Christian Slater, "Mr. Robot"; John Travolta, "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story." — Actress, Limited Series or Movie: Felicity Huffman, "American Crime"; Riley Keough, "The Girlfriend Experience"; Sarah Paulson, "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story"; Charlotte Rampling, "London Spy"; Kerry Washington, "Confirmation." — Supporting Actress, Series, Limited Series or Movie: Olivia Colman, "The Night Manager"; Lena Headey, "Game of Thrones"; Chrissy Metz, "This Is Us"; Mandy Moore, "This Is Us"; Thandie Newton, "Westworld." — Limited Series or Movie: "American Crime," ''The Dresser," ''The Night Manager," ''The Night Of," ''The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story." — Actress, Musical or Comedy: Rachel Bloom, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"; Julia Louis-Dreyfus, "Veep"; Sarah Jessica Parker, "Divorce"; Issa Rae, "Insecure"; Gina Rodriguez, "Jane the Virgin"; Tracee Ellis Ross, "black-ish." — Actor, Musical or Comedy: Anthony Anderson, "black-ish"; Gael Garcia Bernal, "Mozart in the Jungle"; Donald Glover, "Atlanta"; Nick Nolte, "Graves"; Jeffrey Tambor, "Transparent." ___ Meryl Streep will be honored with the Cecil B. DeMille Award. ||||| This image released by A24 shows Alex Hibbert, foreground, and Mahershala Ali in a scene from the film, "Moonlight." The 74th annual Golden Globe nominations will be streamed live online, beginning at... (Associated Press) This image released by A24 shows Alex Hibbert, foreground, and Mahershala Ali in a scene from the film, "Moonlight." The 74th annual Golden Globe nominations will be streamed live online, beginning at 8:10 a.m. EST. Among the films expected to take in a number of nods are Damien Chazelle’s nostalgic... (Associated Press) BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — The Latest on nominations for the 74th annual Golden Globe Awards announced Monday in Beverly Hills, California (all times local): 5:45 a.m. The Golden Globe nominees for best film drama have been announced in Beverly Hills, California. They are: "Hacksaw Ridge," ''Hell or High Water," ''Lion," ''Manchester by the Sea," ''Moonlight." Also announced Monday were the nominees for best film comedy or musical have been announced in Beverly Hills, California. They are: "20th Century Women," ''Deadpool," ''Florence Foster Jenkins," ''La La Land," ''Sing Street." ___ 5:41 a.m. The Golden Globe nominees for best TV drama series have been announced in Beverly Hills, California. They are: "The Crown," ''Game of Thrones," ''Stranger Things," ''This is Us" and Westworld." ___ 5:30 a.m. The Golden Globe nominees for best TV comedy series have been announced in Beverly Hills, California. They are: "Atlanta," ''black-ish," ''Mozart in the Jungle," ''Transparent" and "Veep." ___ 5:25 a.m. The Golden Globe nominees for best foreign film have been announced in Beverly Hills, California. The nominees are: "Divines," ''Elle," ''Neruda," ''The Salesman," ''Toni Erdmann," Also announced Monday were the nominations for best animated film. The nominees are: "Kubo and the Two Strings," ''Moana," ''My Life as a Zucchini," ''Sing," ''Zootopia." ___ 5 a.m. Sound checks and other final preparations are underway for the announcement of this year's Golden Globe Awards . Reporters gathered early Monday at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where nominations for top film and television performances will be announced. Don Cheadle, Anna Kendrick and Laura Dern will announce the nominees on a stage flanked by two oversized Golden Globe Award statues. Some of those in attendance snapped selfies in front of the stage Monday. The winners will be announced on Jan. 8 in a ceremony hosted by Jimmy Fallon and broadcast by NBC. ___ 9:01 p.m. Nominations for the 74th annual Golden Globes will be announced Monday morning from Beverly Hills, California. The nominations will be streamed live online, beginning at 8:20 a.m. EST. Among the films expected to take in a number of nods are the nostalgic Los Angeles musical "La La Land," the lyrical coming-of-age tale "Moonlight" and the August Wilson adaptation "Fences." On the television side, HBO's sci-fi puzzle "Westworld" could be in for a big morning. Meryl Streep, a 29-time nominee, will be the recipient of the Cecil B. DeMille Award. Streep may also add a 30th nod to her resume for her lead performance in the period comedy "Florence Foster Jenkins." The Jan. 8 Golden Globes will be hosted by Jimmy Fallon and broadcast by NBC from the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

– Sunday night came the Critics' Choice Awards; Monday morning came a continuation of awards season: the nominations for the 74th annual Golden Globe Awards. Don Cheadle, Anna Kendrick, and Laura Dern gathered in Beverly Hills to announce those in the running, as reported by the AP: Best film drama: Hacksaw Ridge, Hell or High Water, Lion, Manchester by the Sea, and Moonlight. Best film comedy or musical: 20th Century Women, Deadpool, Florence Foster Jenkins, La La Land, and Sing Street. Best director: Damien Chazelle, La La Land; Tom Ford, Nocturnal Animals; Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge; Barry Jenkins, Moonlight; Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea. Best TV drama series: The Crown, Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, This is Us, and Westworld. Best TV comedy series: Atlanta, black-ish, Mozart in the Jungle, Transparent, and Veep. Best actress in a film comedy or musical: Annette Bening, 20th Century Women; Lily Collins, Rules Don't Apply; Hailee Steinfeld, The Edge Of Seventeen; Emma Stone, La La Land; Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins. Best actor in a film comedy or musical: Colin Farrell, The Lobster; Ryan Gosling, La La Land; Hugh Grant, Florence Foster Jenkins; Jonah Hill, War Dogs; Ryan Reynolds, Deadpool. Best actress in a film drama: Amy Adams, Arrival; Jessica Chastain, Miss Sloane; Isabelle Huppert, Elle; Ruth Negga, Loving; Natalie Portman, Jackie. Best actor in a film drama: Casey Affleck, Manchester By The Sea; Joel Edgerton, Loving; Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge; Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic; Denzel Washington, Fences. Best foreign film: Divines, Elle, Neruda, The Salesman, and Toni Erdmann. Best animated film. Kubo and the Two Strings, Moana, My Life as a Zucchini, Sing, and Zootopia. Read the full list of categories, including best screenplay, original score, and supporting actors, here. The winners will be announced on Jan. 8 in a ceremony hosted by Jimmy Fallon and broadcast by NBC. Read much more on the nominees (and snubs) here.

a galaxy can be well described by an ecosystem . there is an intimate relationship , much like a symbiosis , between the discrete components of the galaxy such as stars , and its interstellar medium ( ism ) . the ism provides the foundation for the birth of a new generation of stars , while at the same time it is enriched by the remains of the older generations and their byproducts during their life cycle . hence , it is natural to expect that the understanding of formation and evolution of galaxies is closely related to the understanding of their ism . the ism of the milky way has been found to have many components . magnetic fields and cosmic ray gas compose the relativistic fluid , while the gaseous phase consists of both ionized and neutral components . the hot ionized medium observable in uv and x - ray has a temperature above @xmath8 k and is composed of hot coronal gas heated by supernova shocks . a good portion of the energy of the ism resides in this component . the warm ionized medium ( e.g. hii , planetary nebulae ) is visible in @xmath9 , uv , and optical , and has a temperature as high as @xmath10 k. the neutral atomic gas appears to have both cold ( @xmath11 k ; e.g. hi clouds ) and warm ( 100 k @xmath12 8000 k ) components . molecular clouds compose the self - gravitating gaseous phase . finally the ism ( with the exception of its hot phase ) is filled with dust , particles typically a few tenth of microns in size and visible through their infrared radiation . since the peak emission of each component arises in different wavebands , multi - wavelength observations from radio to @xmath13-rays are needed to probe the ism . diffuse x - ray emission from our galaxy is a powerful diagnostic of the hot phase of the ism . it is our purpose here to use this tool to probe the processes that contribute to its energetics and dynamics . the first detection of the x - ray emission from the galactic disk was achieved by the pioneering rocket experiment of bleach et al . they detected excess emission associated with a narrow disk component of angular size @xmath14 . since then , x - ray emission from the galactic plane and in particular the ridge ( the narrow region centered on the galactic mid - plane extending approximately to @xmath15 in longitude and @xmath16 in latitude ) has been measured in the past with several satellites ( e.g. _ heao-1 _ [ 2 - 50 kev ] : worrall et . 1982 ; _ exosat _ [ 2 - 6 kev ] : warwick et al . 1985 ; _ tenma _ [ 2 - 11 kev ] : koyama et al . 1986 ; _ ginga _ [ 2 - 16 kev ] : yamasaki et al . 1997 ; _ asca _ [ 0.5 - 10 kev ] : kaneda et al . 1997 ) . the presence of the @xmath17 kev iron line in the spectrum discovered with _ tenma _ has motivated the idea that part of the emission below 10 kev is due to a hot optically thin plasma of temperature @xmath7 kev . because of its high spectral resolution , _ asca _ has provided the most accurate measurement of the spectrum of the emission to date . the presence of mg , si , and fe k - lines in the spectrum obtained by _ asca _ suggests that at least part of the emission is of thermal origin . close examination of _ asca _ data has also revealed that unresolved , discrete sources are not responsible for the bulk of the emission ( yamauchi et al . 1996 ; kaneda 1997 ) . the most recent investigation of the diffuse emission from the scutum arm region with _ asca _ ( kaneda et al . 1997 ) has concluded that the emission below 10 kev has both soft ( @xmath18 kev ) and hard ( @xmath19 kev ) thermal components . if indeed the super hot gas ( @xmath20 kev ) exists in an extended form in the ism , it is not clear how to explain its confinement to the galactic disk since its temperature exceeds the gravitational potential of the disk by at least an order of magnitude ( townes 1989 ) . unfortunately , the two - temperature model does not produce a good fit to the data above 10 kev indicating the presence of additional component(s ) at higher energies . indeed , a hard power law tail has been detected in the hard x - ray / soft @xmath13-ray band from observations of the ridge with _ ginga _ and the balloon experiment _ welcome-1 _ ( yamasaki et al . 1997 ) , and _ osse _ ( skibo et al . 1997 ) . in this paper , we present the results from _ rxte _ measurement of the diffuse x - ray emission from the galactic ridge in the 3 - 35 kev band . observations in the hard x - ray / soft @xmath13-ray band have usually been complicated by the presence of numerous variable discrete sources , and the fact that the instruments generally have large fields of view and no imaging capabilities , or have imaging capability but no diffuse emission sensitivity . the combination of these factors makes the separation of emission between diffuse and compact sources a difficult task . the advantage of _ rxte _ over previous missions is its small field of view ( @xmath21 fwhm ) combined with its wide energy bandpass ( 2 - 60 kev for the pca ) , allowing for the subtraction of the contribution of discrete sources from the diffuse emission spectrum in the hard x - ray band . in addition to reporting on the detection of a hard power law tail in the _ rxte _ data , we also offer an alternative interpretation for the origin of the emission below 10 kev ( i.e. instead of a super hot plasma of temperature @xmath7 kev ) . in agreement with previous studies , our results indicate that the emission is most likely of diffuse origin as opposed to the superposition of discrete sources . however , we present a model in which the x - ray emission is the superposition of both thermal ( modelled by a raymond - smith plasma ) and possibly non - thermal ( modelled by a power law ) components . we discuss the origin of the thermal component in terms of a population of snrs residing in the disk . the origin of the power law component remains uncertain . by comparing the spectrum of the diffuse emission in hard x - rays ( _ rxte _ ) and soft @xmath13-rays ( _ osse _ ) , we find indications that the emission in the two bands are related . we discuss its origin in terms of both discrete hard x - ray sources and radiation mechanisms such as non - thermal bremsstrahlung from cosmic ray electrons and protons , and inverse compton scattering . the plan of this paper is as follows . in 2 , we describe the observations . in 3 , we present the results of our spatial and spectral analysis of the data . 4 is devoted to the discussion of the results , and their implications for the origin of the emission . finally in 5 , we present our conclusions . the galactic ridge observations were performed in september of 1996 , with the pca instrument onboard the _ rxte _ satellite . the pca ( jahoda et al . 1996 ) has a total collecting area of 6500 @xmath22 , an energy range of @xmath23 kev , and energy resolution of @xmath24 at 6 kev . the collimator field of view is approximately circular ( @xmath25 diameter ) with fwhm of @xmath21 . the observations consist of 14 long scans ( from @xmath26 to @xmath27 in galactic longitude ) parallel to the galactic plane up to @xmath28 and separated by @xmath29 in galactic latitude . the galactic mid - plane ( i.e. @xmath30 ) was scanned twice . fourteen shorter scans at higher latitudes parallel to the plane ( @xmath31 ; @xmath32 and @xmath33 ) were also performed . the speed of scans ranged from @xmath34 per minute for the shorter scans to @xmath35 per minute for the longer ones . we constructed maps of the galactic ridge x - ray emission from these scans in 3 energy bands . the results are shown in figure 1 . after subtraction of the instrument background ( described in 3.2 ) , the net counts were binned into @xmath36 pixels for the long scans ( @xmath37 ) in each pixel . to smooth the images , we have interpolated them using idl ( interactive data language ) . since the pixel size for the long and short scans were different , each image was broken into 3 pieces : one consisting of long scans , and two others consisting of short scans at larger positive and negative latitudes . each piece was then interpolated separately . some of the scans at larger @xmath38 were occulted by the earth . therefore , we have only shown regions that were devoid of data gaps and could be smoothly interpolated . in order to emphasize the galactic ridge diffuse emission in the images , we have used a color table that saturates the emission from discrete sources . furthermore , we did not attempt to de - convolve the detector s response function with the light curves . as a result , discrete sources appear as brown extended regions . for the first time , it is clear from these maps that the longitude extent of the diffuse emission in the hard x - ray band ( above 10 kev ) is similar to that in the softer 2 - 10 kev band . to measure the spectrum of the diffuse x - ray emission from the galactic ridge , we must first identify and exclude the contribution of compact sources within the paths of the scans . this task was done by an automatic routine which identifies sources with a minimum detection of @xmath39 . the location of each source was calculated and compared with a catalogue of known x - ray sources . the time interval in which each source was within the field of view of pca was then excluded . finally , the remaining good time intervals were inspected manually for detection of possible new sources . a detection of at least 10 @xmath40 ( @xmath41 mcrab ) above background was interpreted as a discrete x - ray source and the time interval corresponding to the excess counts above background was excluded . from hereafter , these sources are excluded in the analysis reported in this paper . table 1 lists all the identified sources and their positions which lied in the path of the scans . the faintest detected source in the scans has an intensity of @xmath42 mcrab . we used the pca background estimator program _ pcabackest _ ( version 1.4h ) provided by the _ rxte _ gof ( guest observer facility ) to estimate the background . the total background consists of the instrument background and the cosmic x - ray background ( cxb ) . variations in the instrument background are modelled as two components . one component is related to changes in the anti - coincidence rate , while the other is related to the activation by the saa ( southern atlantic anomaly ) passages . our galactic ridge scans were performed during non - saa orbits and therefore the activation induced background was estimated to be zero by _ pcabackest_. for modeling the latitude distribution of the diffuse emission ( 3.3 ) , we subtracted the instrument background only . for spectral analysis of the diffuse emission ( 3.4 ) , we have subtracted both the instrument and the cosmic x - ray background . since galactic absorption distorts the cxb spectrum at lower energies , this will result in an underestimate of the galactic ridge flux at energies below @xmath43 kev . we describe how we correct the spectrum for this effect in 3.4.2 . before performing a spectral analysis of the diffuse emission , it is crucial to have some understanding of its spatial distribution in the galactic plane . determining the scale height of the emission is particularly important for at least two reasons . firstly , it provides important clues for the origin of the emission . for example , the scale height of the emission from inverse compton scattering is expected to be larger than that from bremsstrahlung . this is due to the homogeneous nature of the cosmic microwave background radiation and the large scale height of the optical and infrared photons and cosmic ray electrons . secondly , it reveals the multi - component nature of the emission . for example , it can be determined whether the emission is confined to a narrow disk centered on the galactic mid - plane or whether a broad halo around the disk also contributes to the diffuse emission . in order to quantify the latitude distribution of the diffuse emission shown in figure 1 , we convolve the detector s response function with a given spatial model and perform a least squared fit to the data . in figure 2a , we have plotted the averaged diffuse emission count rate in the 5 - 8 kev and 8 - 35 kev energy bands vs. galactic latitude . the count rate is obtained by averaging the counts at a fixed latitude over the central @xmath0 of the galactic plane ( @xmath44 ) and then normalizing for exposure time . instrumental background is subtracted . we chose the 5 - 8 kev energy band since above 5 kev the effects of galactic absorption is small , and also this band implicitly maps the 6.7 kev iron line . the 8 - 35 kev band was chosen to map the distribution of the hard x - rays . we found that the best fit is given by a 2-component model consisting of thin and broad distributions for both energy bands . we modelled the thin component with a uniform thin disk , and the broad component with a disk of gaussian distribution as a function of galactic latitude . the contribution from the thin component is proportional to the distance that our line of sight traverses through the thin disk . its value drops rapidly as @xmath38 increases , and reaches a minimum at @xmath45 . the contribution from the gaussian distribution is integrated along the line of sight to the edge of the galaxy . moreover , we added a constant component to the model to account for the cosmic x - ray background . to determine the parameters of the thin and broad components , we constrained the count rate at large galactic latitudes to that of the cosmic x - ray background estimated from _ pcabackest _ and searched the parameter space for the best fit . for the @xmath46 kev energy band , the best fit parameters are found to be @xmath47 for the full width of the thin component , and @xmath48 for the fwhm of the broad component at the far edge of the galaxy ( @xmath49 , @xmath50 ) . the best fit is found when the thin component is centered at mid - galactic plane , while the broad component is centered at @xmath51 . in figure 2b , we have deconvolved the detector s response function and plotted the actual contribution of each component from the model in the @xmath46 kev band . for the @xmath52 kev band , the best fit parameters are @xmath53 and @xmath54 for the full width of the thin component and fwhm of the broad component at the far edge of the galaxy , respectively ( @xmath55 , @xmath50 ) . the best fit is obtained when both components are centered at @xmath56 . error bars indicate @xmath57 confidence limits . ( since the fits are poor , the confidence limits are derived by setting @xmath58 . ) we notice that a survey of the latitude distribution of the emission in the @xmath59 kev with _ osse _ yields a broad distribution that is approximated with a gaussian distribution of @xmath60 fwhm with no significant evidence of energy dependence ( purcell et al . 1996 ) . however , in our survey , the detection of the thin disk component is statistically significant . if we fit the emission in the @xmath52 kev band with a single gaussian component , the @xmath61 of the fit will increase from @xmath62 ( for the 2-component model ) to @xmath63 . it is likely that the detection of the thin component may not be possible with _ osse _ due to its large field of view . however , we can not determine the functional form of the thin component other than deriving limits on its width , due to the fact that the upper limit is smaller than the field of view of the pca . as for the broad component , we point out that it is most likely related to the one reported by iwan et al . ( 1982 ) from the measurements taken with the _ heao _ a-2 instrument . the scale height of the diffuse emission from that study was determined to be greater than @xmath64 kpc . from the reduced @xmath61 reported above , it is clear that the fits are poor . this is partly the result of the asymmetry of the overall profile of the diffuse emission with respect to the galactic mid - plane . from figure 2a , it also appears that at some latitudes the count rates substantially deviate from that of the model . we have inspected the source excluded data , but they do not appear to be contaminated with any sources above our detection level . hence , we conclude that additional spatial components at certain latitudes corresponding to localized features of the diffuse emission are needed to produce a better fit . however , the derived parameters provide a good global description of the spatial distribution of the diffuse emission in the galactic plane . to determine the spectral variation of the diffuse emission from the galactic ridge as a function of galactic latitude , we performed separate spectral analysis on the data from the central ridge ( r1 ) , the northern ridge ( r2 ) , and the southern ridge ( r3 ) . the coordinates of each region are given in table 2 . we will discuss the results of spectral fitting for the central ridge first . spectral analysis for regions r2 and r3 will be presented in 3.4.3 . since galactic disk absorption distorts the spectrum of both the galactic ridge emission and the cosmic x - ray background ( cxb ) at lower energies , we analyse the data above 10 kev first , where absorption is negligible for the expected galactic column densities . this strategy will allow us to constrain the component(s ) that dominate the spectrum in the hard x - ray band . we will then use this derived information to model the spectrum at lower energies . the presence of a hard power law tail above 10 kev has been reported from combined observations with _ ginga _ and _ welcome-1 _ ( yamasaki et al . 1997 ) and _ osse _ ( skibo et al . 1997 ) . here , we search for this component by fitting the _ rxte _ data in the @xmath65 kev energy range with a single power law component . the best fit yields a photon index of @xmath66 with a normalization of @xmath67 at 1 kev ( @xmath68 ) . the surface brightness for the @xmath65 kev band is @xmath69 . figure 3 shows the unfolded spectrum . a thermal bremsstrahlung for the data above 10 kev requires a temperature of @xmath70 kev . however , we prefer the power law model since it is not clear how the hot plasma can be bound to the galactic disk ( the gravitational potential of the disk is @xmath71 kev ) . furthermore , the presence of the power law at soft @xmath13-ray energies has been established with _ osse_. it is likely that the emission in the hard x - ray and soft @xmath13-ray both modelled by a power law are related . we will discuss this further in 3.6 . let us now extend the data analysis to lower energies . below 10 kev , the presence of a @xmath17 kev emission line from he - like iron was discovered with _ tenma _ ( koyama et al . further extensive study of the ridge spectrum with the high resolution capability of _ asca _ has revealed the presence of lower energy emission lines from mg , si , and s ( kaneda et al . these findings have motivated the idea that part of the emission has thermal origin . furthermore , we use the results of the previous section where the presence of a power law tail in the spectrum above 10 kev has been established . hence , we model the data with both raymond - smith ( rs ) plasma and power law components . notice from figure 2 that the emission in the central ridge ( r1 ) arises from both the thin disk and the broad components . however , since the spectral decomposition of the broad and thin components is complicated and not well constrained with current statistics , we model the averaged effect of the two components . before modeling the data , we should first consider the effect of galactic disk absorption on the final spectrum . since we have subtracted the high latitude cosmic x - ray background from our data , the galactic ridge flux at lower energies may have been underestimated . this is because for expected galactic column densities , absorption reduces the cxb flux mostly below @xmath72 kev , but will leave the spectrum above 10 kev unchanged . therefore , in order to compensate for this effect , we subtract the high latitude cxb model from our spectral model but add the absorbed cxb model ( had it been absorbed by the galactic disk ) . the spectrum of the cxb below 15 kev was modelled from _ rxte _ high latitude observations . the spectrum was found to have a power law shape of photon index @xmath73 with normalization @xmath74 at 1 kev corresponding to a surface brightness of @xmath75 in the @xmath76 kev . notice that since _ rxte _ is not designed to separate instrument background from the cosmic x - ray background , some residual counts inherent to the detectors background may exist in the cxb model at higher energies , but its effect on our modeling is negligible . in effect , we add the term @xmath77 to our model where @xmath78 is the cxb model and @xmath79 and @xmath80 are the galactic column density and the photoelectric cross section as a function of energy , respectively . however , the precise value of the galactic hydrogen column density as a function of position and its averaged effect over @xmath81 in galactic longitude ( the span of the central ridge studied here ) are not well known . therefore , while we freeze the parameters of the cxb model in our analysis , we fit for the galactic column density along with the rest of the model parameters . this correction is applied to all models we present hereafter . the best fit parameters for the model described above are presented in table 3 . the data and unfolded spectrum are shown in figure 4 . from these results , on average , the emission can be explained by a raymond - smith plasma of temperature @xmath82 kev and a power law component with photon index @xmath83 @xmath6 which dominates above 10 kev . in the @xmath76 kev band , 54% of the flux is from the thermal raymond - smith plasma component . above 10 kev , the power law component dominates by providing 95% of the flux . confidence contours for @xmath84 are shown in figure 5 . the average column density derived from this model is well within the expected galactic values . it may be argued that the column density @xmath79 absorbing the cxb component may be larger than that absorbing the rs plasma and power law components since in the case of cxb the entire material between us and the edge of the galaxy acts as the absorber ( i.e. longer path length ) . had we frozen the value of the column density absorbing the cxb component at an upper limit of @xmath85 , the key fit parameters would change to @xmath86 , @xmath87 , and @xmath88 kev ( @xmath89 ) . these are all within the error bars of the values presented in table 3 . we point out that these results do not indicate that the spectrum measured with _ rxte _ is inconsistent with that from _ asca_. we modeled the _ data from region r1 in the @xmath76 kev with the same components with which _ asca _ data from the scutum arm region was modeled ( kaneda et al . 1997 ) , namely 2 thermal components of temperature @xmath90 and @xmath20 kev , respectively . the fit was acceptable with @xmath91 . however , when we extend this model to higher energies , the fit is poor ( @xmath92 ) . this is mainly due to the observed count rate being greater than that of the model at higher energies , and can be easily seen from figure 6 . in the case of _ rxte _ analysis , the additional data at higher energies allows us to constrain the component that dominates in the hard x - ray band . this in turn , affects the results of spectral modeling at lower energies . finally , we present a slight variation of our model in which the power law is flattening below some energy between @xmath93 kev . the motivation for this model is two - fold . first , unusually large power is required to be injected into the galaxy in order to explain the presence of the power law tail via non - thermal bremsstrahlung process . we will discuss the physical reasons for this in 4.2 . second , there is evidence for the flattening of the slope at lower energies ( see 3.6 where we discuss simultaneous fitting of the spectrum with that from _ osse _ ) . but for now , we will only present the model . the attenuation of the power law can be mimicked by multiplying the power law function by an exponentially absorbing function @xmath94 . table 4 lists the best fit parameters for this model . figure 7 shows the model and unfolded spectrum . approximately 58% of the flux in the @xmath76 kev is due to the thermal component in this model . let us now examine the spectrum of the diffuse emission from the ridge at larger galactic latitudes . from figure 2 , it can be seen that the broad spatial component dominates the emission at larger latitudes . we used the same model discussed in the previous section to fit the data for galactic regions r2 and r3 ( table 3 ) . the results of the fits are summarized in tables 5 and 6 , respectively . since , the broad component is expected to be less absorbed than the thin disk component , it is reasonable that the average values of the hydrogen column density for these regions have decreased compared to that of the central ridge . the key fit parameters ( namely @xmath95 of the rs component and the photon index of the power law ) have remained within error bars of those derived for the central ridge indicating similar physical origins at higher latitudes . the average flux in the @xmath4 kev band from both regions is about 82% of that from the central ridge after removing the effect of absorption . let us now estimate the x - ray luminosity of the diffuse emission for the galactic disk in the @xmath96 kev and @xmath97 kev bands . in reality , this is a complex problem since it depends on the geometry and spatial distribution of the emitting and absorbing regions . a rigorous treatment of this problem is outside of the scope of this paper . however , we proceed to estimate the luminosity by making a few simple assumptions . from our spatial modeling of the latitude distribution of the emission ( 3.3 ) , we found that 2 spatial components ( i.e. a thin disk and a broad component ) contribute to the emission . since the flux at @xmath98 is dominated by the broad component ( as seen from figure 2 ) , we will first estimate the average volume emissivity of the broad component from spectral models of regions r2 and r3 . from the models presented in tables 5 and 6 , we find an average flux of @xmath99 and @xmath100 in the @xmath96 kev and @xmath97 kev bands , respectively , after removing the effect of absorption . dividing the flux by the _ effective _ solid angle of _ rxte _ ( @xmath101 sr ) yields an average surface brightness @xmath102 of @xmath103 . for a spherical geometry with uniform emissivity , the average volume emissivity along the line of sight can be estimated to be @xmath104 where @xmath105 is the depth of the emitting region . this is a good approximation for the broad component . we assume that the distance to the galactic center and the radius of the galactic disk are 8 and 10 kpc , respectively . choosing an average line of sight of length 16 kpc , we find the average volume emissivity @xmath106 to be @xmath107 . the fwhm of the broad component is about @xmath108 corresponding to a disk of height @xmath42 kpc . this yields @xmath109 for the the x - ray luminosity of the broad disk . from our spatial model presented in 3.3 , the ratio of the luminosity of the broad to the thin disk is about 14 . the total luminosity of the disk ( thin plus broad ) in this model is then estimated to be @xmath110 in the @xmath96 kev band . similarly , we derive a luminosity of @xmath111 in the @xmath97 kev . for comparison purposes , we should mention that koyama et al . ( 1986 ) have reported a luminosity of @xmath112 from observations with _ tenma _ ( @xmath113 kev ) . worrall et al . ( 1982 ) have reported a luminosity of @xmath114 in the @xmath96 kev band with heao-1 , while warwick et al . ( 1985 ) have reported a luminosity of @xmath115 with _ exosat _ in the @xmath116 kev band ( notice that this band does not include the iron line emission ) . from the latest _ asca _ survey , kaneda et al . ( 1997 ) report a luminosity of @xmath117 for the hard component in the @xmath118 kev band where the hard component is modelled by a bremsstrahlung of temperature 7 kev . the effect of absorption has been taken into account in all the previously reported estimates . in the previous sections , we established the presence of a hard power law tail above 10 kev . recent diffuse emission measurement of the galactic plane at longitude @xmath119 with _ osse _ in the @xmath120 kev band also reveals that the spectrum can be fitted with a power law model ( @xmath121 ; skibo et al . [ 1997 ] ) . if the spectrum extends smoothly from the hard x - ray to the soft @xmath13-ray regime , it means that the same physical processes are dominating the emission in a wide bandpass . unfortunately _ rxte _ data at galactic longitude of @xmath119 are not available yet . however , assuming that the spectral shape of the diffuse emission is the same as a function of galactic longitude for @xmath122 ( purcell et al . 1996 ) , and that only the normalization varies , we attempt a simultaneous spectral fit to the spectrum of the diffuse emission from both _ rxte _ and _ osse_. we use the _ rxte _ data from the central ridge ( r1 ) above 10 kev and simultaneously fit it with the data obtained with _ osse _ at galactic longitude of @xmath119 . the results of the fit appear in figure 8 . the fit yields a power law photon index of @xmath123 which is within the errors bars of the values derived from either _ rxte _ above 10 kev ( @xmath66 ) or _ osse _ ( @xmath121 ) alone . the normalization for the _ rxte _ and _ osse _ data are @xmath124 and @xmath125 @xmath126 at 1 kev , respectively . the fit is acceptable with a total @xmath61 of @xmath127 for 118 degrees of freedom . in order to compare the normalizations of the power law component derived from _ rxte _ and _ osse _ , we must calculate the flux per steradian ( @xmath128 ) for each instrument . however , for extended emission , the measured flux depends on the field of view of each instrument and the distribution function of the diffuse emission . hence , an _ effective _ solid angle ( i.e. the convolution of the distribution of the emission with the detector s response function ) should be calculated for each instrument . in the case of _ osse _ ( fov of @xmath129 fwhm ) , convolving the soft @xmath13-ray galactic diffuse emission ( assuming a gaussian distribution with @xmath130 fwhm [ purcell et al . 1996 ] ) , and _ osse _ s triangular response function yields an _ effective _ solid angle of @xmath131 sr . similarly _ rxte _ s solid angle is @xmath132 sr . therefore , the normalization parameter for the power law component from _ osse _ should be multiplied by @xmath133 to be compared with the normalization derived from _ rxte_. this yields a normalization of @xmath134 at 1 kev for the power law component measured with _ osse _ , which is a factor of @xmath135 smaller than the normalization of the power law component from _ rxte _ data . this is expected since the intensity of the emission seen with _ rxte _ decreases away from the galactic center . if we assume that the physical origin of the power law is the same for the averaged central ridge and at galactic longitude @xmath119 , then the combined _ rxte / osse _ fit gives a narrower constraint on the power law slope . however , the slope at higher energies is noticeably steeper than that derived for the spectrum below 35 kev , perhaps hinting that the power law either flattens or slowly attenuates at lower energies . we first consider the contribution of unresolved discrete sources to the diffuse emission spectrum . the important question is whether there exist classes of unresolved discrete sources with appropriate spatial number densities and similar spectra to that of the diffuse emission that can comprise the bulk of the spectrum . in the hard x - ray band ( above 10 kev ) , the number of known galactic hard x - ray sources with similar spectra to that of the galactic ridge diffuse emission is small ( levine et al . black hole candidates in their soft state have spectra similar to that of the ridge , but this is usually seen at high luminosities when individual sources can be easily detected . neutron star binaries are known to have hard power law spectra with an exponential cut off around 20 kev . however , only a handful of them are known to be active at a time in the galactic disk . also , their luminosities are mostly in the range @xmath136 which can easily be detected from the diffuse emission . unresolved pulsars are also thought to contribute to the galactic ridge diffuse emission particularly in the @xmath13-ray band . a recent study , however , concludes that pulsar contribution to the diffuse galactic emission is significant only above 1 gev ( pohl et al . 1997 ) . in the soft @xmath13-ray band , sigma_/_osse _ observations of the galactic center region has been performed to distinguish the diffuse emission from that of compact sources ( purcell et al . comparison of the source excluded spectrum from the galactic center and that from regions which are known to have fewer sources ( i.e. @xmath137 and @xmath138 ) has revealed that the spectra are similar in both intensity and spectral index . if the emission is due to discrete sources , 10 x - ray sources of flux @xmath139 at 100 kev must be present in the field of view of _ osse _ to make up the spectrum . because of the lack of knowledge of such class of sources with a uniform space density in longitude , it is likely that the emission above 10 kev is of diffuse origin . below 10 kev , because of its better spatial resolution , _ asca _ is far better equipped than _ rxte _ to resolve individual faint sources . a recent fluctuation analysis of the surface brightness of the ridge emission in the scutum arm region ( @xmath140 ) with _ asca _ has concluded that if discrete sources are to make up the entire spectrum , their luminosity must be less than @xmath141 ( yamauchi et al . this conclusion narrows the field of candidate class of sources that can make up the diffuse emission spectrum of the galactic ridge . among possible class of sources , neutron stars ( with x - ray luminosities mostly in the range @xmath142 ) are unlikely due to their large luminosities . a likely class of sources that has been thought to account for the emission is the rs cvn type binaries , since they exhibit the iron k line in their emission spectra however , a study by ottmann & schmitt ( 1992 ) on the contribution of rs cvn systems to the galactic diffuse emission concludes that while they contribute about 6% to the total galactic background , their contribution to the galactic ridge iron line is too small ( @xmath143 ) . therefore , given the strength of the iron line in the spectrum of the diffuse emission , it seems that unresolved rs cvn sources do not contribute to the bulk of the emission . cataclysmic variables ( cvs ) are another candidate that may contribute to the galactic ridge diffuse emission . they have similar spectra to that of the ridge and their luminosities fall in the range @xmath144 . however , from the analysis of the _ asca _ gis pointings of the galactic ridge , kaneda ( 1997 ) has shown that in order for cvs to make up the diffuse emission , their space densities would have to be @xmath145 , a factor of 100 larger than the estimated density of cvs ( patterson 1984 ) . for these reasons , it is more likely that the emission is due to diffuse or extended sources . a more detailed review of the previous works on the contribution of the discrete sources to the ridge spectrum can be found in kaneda ( 1997 ) and yamasaki ( 1996 ) , and references therein . finally , we point out that with the upcoming launch of _ axaf _ , a more sensitive number - flux distribution of galactic sources and their exact contribution to the diffuse galactic background can be determined . based on our measurements presented in this paper , we conclude that the diffuse emission from the ridge in the broad x - ray and soft @xmath13-ray band has both thermal and possibly non - thermal origins . in what follows , we speculate on the origin of the emission , first focusing on the thermal component and then speculating on the origin of the power law tail . the thermal component can be modelled with a raymond - smith plasma of temperature @xmath5 kev ( tables 3 and 4 ) . however , we point out that the spectral resolution of _ asca _ gis or sis is far superior to that of _ rxte _ pca . therefore , in order to interpret the spectrum accurately , we need to carefully examine the spectral features of the diffuse emission below 10 kev using the _ asca _ data . for this reason , we refer to the latest investigation of the diffuse emission from the galactic ridge with _ asca _ ( kaneda 1997 ; kaneda et al . the spectral examination of the _ asca _ data has clearly verified the presence of lower energy emission lines from mg , si , and s. the spectrum has also been carefully examined for the presence of fe k lines . while the emission line from he - like iron was clearly detected , the presence of the emission lines from neutral and h - like iron was not firmly established . this is important since the equivalent width of the h - like iron line sets an upper limit for the plasma temperature . kaneda et al . ( 1997 ) give an upper limit of @xmath146 of that of the he - like iron for the normalization of the h - like iron line . this implies an upper limit of @xmath147 kev for the plasma temperature . this is in agreement with our results since the emission line from h - like fe is expected to be very weak from a @xmath148 kev plasma , supporting our finding that the thermal component of the emission arises from a gas of cooler temperature . therefore , we argue that unlike previous conclusions ( koyama et al . 1986 ; kaneda et al . 1997 ) , the temperature of the x - ray emitting gas need not be so high ( 5 - 15 kev ) in order to produce the observed spectrum . this interpretation lessens the difficulties toward explaining the origin and confinement of the super hot ( @xmath149 kev ) gas . due to the similarities between the characteristics of supernova remnants and the thermal nature of the diffuse emission spectrum presented here , we speculate that a collection of supernova remnants in the galactic disk , below current x - ray and/or radio detection limits , is responsible for the thermal origin of the diffuse emission . the idea was originally introduced by koyama , ikeuchi , & tomisaka ( 1986 , hereafter kit86 ) . however , in their calculation , they assumed that the temperature of the emitting gas is about @xmath20 kev . in addition to the fact that no snr with such high temperature has ever been detected , this assumption also requires a large sn explosion rate ( one per 10 years ) which exceeds the expected galactic rate of 2 - 3 per century ( tammann 1982 ) . below , we revisit their argument in order to derive the sn explosion rate capable of powering the thermal emission from the ridge using the adjusted temperature of @xmath148 kev for the emitting plasma . the first step is to estimate the criteria for which a given snr is below radio detection limit . due to absorption in the galactic disk , the minimum radio surface brightness for detecting a snr is @xmath150 . using the empirical relation between the surface brightness @xmath151 , and the diameter of the snr ( milne 1979 ) , and accounting for the ambient gas density as a function of scale height of the galactic plane ( tomisaka , habe , & ikeuchi 1980 ) , kit86 reduce the criteria to @xmath152 where @xmath153 , and @xmath154 where @xmath155 is the radius of the snr in the adiabatic stage described by the similarity solution ( sedov 1959 ; spitzer 1968 ) , and @xmath156 , @xmath157 and @xmath158 are the age ( years ) , total energy of the snr ( in units of @xmath159 erg ) , and the density of the ambient medium ( @xmath160 ) , respectively . substitution of equation ( 2 ) in equation ( 1 ) yields @xmath161 where @xmath162 . assuming that the thickness of the emitting region at the shock is @xmath163 , the x - ray luminosity of the blast wave shell can be calculated from @xmath164 where @xmath155 is described by equation ( 2 ) and @xmath165 is the total emissivity of the gas and depends on the electron density @xmath166 and the cooling function @xmath167 via the relation @xmath168 . for a strong shock @xmath169 . the cooling function @xmath170 is estimated to be ( raymond , cox , & smith 1976 ) @xmath171 for a gas of @xmath172 ( @xmath173 ) . in figure 9 , we have plotted the condition for the undetectability of a snr in the radio band ( eq . [ 1 ] ) , and the restriction on the temperature of the blast wave ( @xmath174 ) in the @xmath175 phase space where the temperature just behind the shock front can be calculated from @xmath176 and @xmath177 and @xmath178 are the mean mass of the gas particle and the boltzman constant , respectively . we have also plotted relevant constant luminosity lines . from the region of the allowed parameters in this plot , we conclude that the average luminosity and age of the contributing snrs is expected to be @xmath179 and @xmath180 years , respectively . the x - ray luminosity of the entire disk in the @xmath96 kev band from the _ thermal _ component ( which accounts for approximately 50% of the emission ) is estimated to be @xmath181 ( 3.4.2 ) . this implies that a sn explosion rate of @xmath182 per century is required to power the thermal emission from the entire disk . on the other hand , the luminosity of the thermal component of the thin disk is about @xmath183 . then a sn explosion rate of @xmath42 per century is sufficient to power the thermal emission from the thin disk . whether this scenario is viable depends on the number of snrs that are actually detected in the x - ray band in the galactic ridge . if the snrs have an average luminosity of @xmath184 , approximately 200 of them are needed to power the thermal emission from the ridge . so far , 215 snrs have been detected in the radio band ( green 1996 ) . based on the prevalence of snrs among a sample of unidentified galactic radio sources , helfand et al . ( 1989 ) have built a model which predicts the existence of up to @xmath185 snrs in the galactic disk in the radio band . according to their results , these remnants are within detection capability of current instruments but are not yet identified . one of the goals of the _ asca _ galactic plane survey project is to identify snrs in the galactic disk ( in the region @xmath186 and @xmath187 ) that have already been catalogued in other wavebands , and to discover new ones . because of galactic absorption , remnants with low surface brightness will be missed in the survey . however , snrs with fluxes greater than 10 jy at 1ghz will be detected with _ asca _ provided no bright sources are in the field of view . from the most recent _ asca _ survey covering the region @xmath188 and @xmath189 pointed at @xmath30 , 13 snr were detected ( yamauchi et al . 1998 and references therein ) , where 25 snrs in radio and 1 snr in x - ray ( discovered with rosat ) were already known to exist . based on this trend , it can be estimated that approximately half of the radio snrs have significant emission in x - ray . it may then be expected that out of the 215 snrs catalogued in radio , approximately 100 of them should be detected in x - ray . if , we take the prediction of helfand et al . ( 1989 ) at face value , this number increases to @xmath190 . ultimately , whether the galactic snr population can power the thermal emission from the ridge depends on the final number of detected snrs and their average luminosity when the _ asca _ survey is completed . we now turn to the discussion of the origin of the power law tail of the spectrum dominating the hard x - ray / soft @xmath13-ray band . recent analysis of diffuse emission from the galactic ridge with _ asca _ ( kaneda et al . 1997 ) indicates that the spectrum can be fitted with a two temperature non - equilibrium ionization plasma of @xmath191 and 7 , respectively . two factors lead us to believe that the reported high temperature component of 7 kev with _ asca _ is in fact a different interpretation of the power law component reported in this paper . firstly , _ asca _ s sensitivity above 10 kev decreases substantially and goes to zero around 12 kev . thus , distinguishing the power law from the hard thermal component in the _ asca _ data may not be possible . secondly , extension of the two - temperature model above 10 kev does not produce a good fit to the data at higher energies ( as shown in on the other hand , we have unambiguously shown here the presence of the hard power law tail in hard x - ray data . this leads us to conclude that the previously reported super hot ( @xmath192 kev ) component of the ism , is most likely due to non - thermal emission with a power law spectrum that dominates above 10 kev and extends to beyond 100 kev . below , we speculate on the origin of the power law tail . one scenario is to interpret the hard x - ray emission as the result of the superposition of non - thermal tails from snrs . previously non - thermal x - ray emission from sn1006 ( koyama et al . 1995 ) and rx j1713.7 - 3946 ( koyama et al . 1997 ) has been reported . non - thermal @xmath13-ray emission from cas a ( the et al . 1995 ) and a high energy tail in its x - ray spectrum which can be possibly attributed to non - thermal processes ( allen et al . 1997 ) has also been discovered . however , it is not clear if this scenario can account for the bulk of the emission . the x - ray luminosity of the non - thermal emission discovered is about an order of magnitude smaller than the luminosity of the thermal component . in the case of cas a for example ( g. e. allen , private communication ) , the luminosity in the 2 - 10 kev band is @xmath193 , while the luminosity in the 10 - 60 kev is about @xmath194 . from our estimates , the luminosity of the ridge is approximately @xmath195 and @xmath196 in the 2 - 10 kev and 10 - 60 kev bands , respectively . the contribution of the snrs to the thermal component of the spectrum was previously addressed in this section . for the power law tail ( interpreted as non - thermal component ) , this suggests that approximately 750 snrs with non - thermal luminosities of @xmath194 are needed to make up the high energy tail of the spectrum . thus far , substantial number of remnants that exhibit non - thermal emission has not been discovered . therefore , the viability of this scenario awaits further observations . x - rays of 10 - 100 kev can also be produced via inverse compton scattering of energetic electrons on the ambient microwave background , optical , and infrared photons . a power law scattered photon spectrum with photon index @xmath197 is expected if the electron spectrum has energy index @xmath198 . however , the exact contribution from this process is model dependent due to the uncertainty in the interstellar radiation field and the electron spectrum . direct measurement of the electron spectrum is reliable only at gev energies because of the effects of solar modulation at lower energies . irrespective of existing models for the compton scattering contribution and their extrapolation to lower energies , skibo , ramaty , & purcell ( 1996 ) have argued that this mechanism does not produce the bulk of the emission below 100 kev . since compton scattering of microwave background and star light photons require electron energies of 100 mev-10 gev , the electron spectrum must turn up somewhere in that energy range . however , electrons at these energies produce the galactic synchrotron radio emission at 100 mhz frequencies . but since the observed radio spectrum breaks at @xmath199 mhz in the opposite sense to that of the @xmath13-ray emission , they argue that an inverse compton origin is unlikely . a likely possibility for the origin of the power law tail is non - thermal bremsstrahlung . however , bremsstrahlung of sub - mev electrons is highly inefficient due to the fact that ionization and coulomb collision losses exceed bremsstrahlung radiation . for example , for a 100 kev electron , the radiation yield ( i.e. the ratio of energy loss from radiation to that from collision ) is @xmath200 ( berger & seltzer 1964 ) . for a 10 kev electron , the yield drops to @xmath201 . from our estimate , the luminosity of the ridge in the @xmath97 kev band is @xmath202 . an order of magnitude estimate implies that in order to account for the power law tail via electron bremsstrahlung , a power of @xmath203 is required . skibo et al . ( 1996 ) have calculated that a total power input up to @xmath204 is required if the tail extends down to 10 kev . the total injected power into the galaxy via supernova explosion is only @xmath205 assuming @xmath206 is released in a sn explosion every 30 years . several attempts have been made to explain the source of this large power . skibo et al . ( 1996 ) have suggested that the power is derived from the release of the gravitational potential upon the passage of ism through galactic spiral arm compressions . schlickeiser ( 1997 ) explains the implied presence of large population of sub - mev electrons with the existence of interstellar in - situ reacceleration of cosmic ray particles by the ambient interstellar plasma turbulence . based on the empirical results of modelling the data in the wide bandpass of 3 - 500 kev , we suggest that the power law tail should gradually attenuate below some energy in the 10 - 100 kev range ( table 4 ) . this speculation is motivated by comparing the spectral fits of the data above and below 10 kev . above 10 kev , we found that the spectrum can be modelled with a power law of photon index @xmath207 up to 500 kev . on the other hand , when modelling the data in the @xmath4 kev band , the power law slope is @xmath208 . this interpretation lessens the large power requirement for the origin of the power law component via bremsstrahlung and results in the required injection power to be consistent with that expected from sn explosion in the galaxy . unfortunately , the electron spectrum can not be measured due to solar modulation at lower energies . however , our interpretation of the data in this way makes a prediction for the shape of the electron spectrum at lower energies . a detailed calculation of the electron spectrum in this scenario is out of the scope of this paper . in addition to electron bremsstrahlung , we suggest the possibility that _ inverse _ ( or proton ) bremsstrahlung may also contribute to the diffuse emission from the galactic ridge . in the inverse process , the rapidly moving proton radiates instead of the electron and the center of momentum of the proton - electron system is approximately that of the moving proton . boldt & serlemitsos ( 1969 ) have shown that significant radiation is associated with the collisions of suprathermal protons with ambient electrons ( free and bound ) . for the non - relativistic case ( @xmath209 ) , the spectral intensity from the bremsstrahlung of an electron with kinetic energy @xmath210 is the same as that from a suprathermal proton of kinetic energy @xmath211 , where @xmath212 and @xmath213 are the rest mass of the electron and proton , respectively . for example , an electron with kinetic energy of 10 kev produces the same spectral intensity as that of a proton with kinetic energy of @xmath214 mev . the scenario is particularly attractive in the context of particle acceleration and reacceleration in supernova shocks via the diffusive fermi process . for many years , the perception has persisted that supernova remnants are a major source of galactic cosmic rays ( e.g. lagage & cesarsky 1983 ) . recently much work has been done regarding the production of @xmath13-rays in the snrs . modelling of @xmath13-ray production via interaction of the energetic particles with the remnants ambient environment through neutral pion decay , bremsstrahlung , and inverse compton scattering is reviewed by baring ( 1997 ) . one expects that if both electrons and protons are accelerated with equal velocities in the explosion process , both should contribute to the bremsstrahlung emission . the ratio of the bremsstrahlung losses to the collisional losses is roughly the same for both electrons and protons since it is only dependent on the velocity of the radiating particles . however , a simple calculation shows that not only the accelerated protons lifetime is longer than that of electrons , but also they travel farther than electrons from their birthplace . to illustrate this , let us consider bremsstrahlung radiation from an electron of 25 kev . its spectral intensity is similar to that from a proton of 50 mev . however , the range @xmath215 of the 25 kev electron in hydrogen is @xmath216 as opposed to @xmath217 for the 50 mev protons ( berger & seltzer 1964 ; barkas & berger 1964 ) . this translates to distances of approximately 100 pc and @xmath218 mpc for the electrons and protons , respectively . the radial distance @xmath219 from the birthplace of the energetic particles which the particles will travel before they lose all their energy depends on the random walk step length @xmath220 via the relation @xmath221 . while the value of @xmath220 is not well known , it is expected to be much larger than the gyro radii of the particles for the expected galactic magnetic fields but somewhat smaller than the height of the galactic disk . a good estimate is that it is on the order of the coherence length of the magnetic fields . as a quantitative value for this length , we use the study of kim , kronberg , & lancecker ( 1988 ) where they probed the structure of magnetic fields in and around the supernova remnant oa 184 ( g166.2 + 2.5 ) using background radio source rotation measures . based on their study , they find an interstellar magnetic irregularity scale of order 100 pc . using this value , we find the total radial distance @xmath219 from the birthplace of the particles to be approximately 100 pc and @xmath222 kpc for the electrons and protons , respectively . in any case , it is clear that the radial distance travelled by the protons is much larger than that by electrons . likewise , the energy loss lifetime of protons ( @xmath223 ) is much larger than that of the electrons ( by a factor of @xmath224 ) since it is proportional to the mass of the particles . from these estimates , one expects that the proton bremsstrahlung should play a significant role if bremsstrahlung is responsible for the presence of the hard power law tail in the spectrum . this is due to the longer range and energy loss lifetime of the protons compared to electrons . if indeed the birthplace of the energetic electrons and protons are the sites of supernova explosions in the galaxy , electron bremsstrahlung will produce localized hard x - ray emission ( i.e. hot spots ) . on the other hand , proton bremsstrahlung will cause the radiation to be smoothly distributed over the galaxy . this interpretation implies that snrs play a dominant role in the energetics of ism via both thermal and non - thermal emission processes . finally , we calculate the hydrogen ionization rate for the ism in this model . if non - thermal bremsstrahlung dominates above 10 kev , then from our model , the average volume emissivity in the @xmath97 kev for the ridge is @xmath225 . the average radiation yield in the @xmath97 kev band is @xmath226 . this yields a collisional loss rate of @xmath227 . for an average energy loss of 36 ev ( @xmath228 erg ) per hydrogen atom ionized in the ism ( dalgarno & griffing 1958 ) , we find an average ionization rate of @xmath229 for the entire ridge where @xmath230 is the average hydrogen density . previous values derived from observations have been within @xmath231 ( dalgarno & mccray 1972 ; reynolds et al . 1973 from @xmath232 observations ) . our estimate is consistent with these values for an average @xmath233 in the ism . independent of @xmath230 , from the intensity of galactic @xmath234 background at high galactic latitudes , reynolds ( 1984 ) has derived @xmath235 hydrogen ionizations ( with a `` best fit '' value of @xmath236 ) per @xmath237 column perpendicular to the galactic disk for the region within @xmath148 kpc of the sun . our results imply @xmath238 hydrogen ionizations averaged for the ridge . since in our model , the thickness of the broad disk is @xmath42 kpc , our results imply hydrogen ionizations of @xmath239 of the galactic disk which is larger than the @xmath234 estimate by more than a factor of 2 . one reason could be that our estimate is derived by averaging over the central @xmath0 of the plane in longitude where the hard x - ray emission is more intense , while the rate from @xmath234 observation is for regions within @xmath148 kpc of the sun . in any case , this indicates that the collisional losses associated with the bremsstrahlung emission from energetic particles to produce the hard x - ray tail are more than adequate to account for the observed hydrogen ionization rate in the ism . our results are summarized as follows : ( 1 ) from the _ rxte _ survey of the galactic plane , we find that the diffuse emission from the galactic ridge has two spatial components : a thin disk of width @xmath240 , and a broad component with a functional form that can be approximated by a gaussian distribution of about @xmath108 fwhm . assuming an average distance of 16 kpc to the edge of galaxy , this translates to a height of 70 pc and 500 pc for the thin and broad disk , respectively . ( 2 ) a hard power law tail is clearly detected in the spectrum and dominates above 10 kev , implying that the emission in hard x - ray possibly has non - thermal origin . on the other hand , the detection of the emission line from he - like iron in the spectrum ( and also lower energy lines from mg , si , s in the spectrum from _ asca _ ) motivates the idea that part of the emission below 10 kev has thermal origin . ( 3 ) the spectrum in the @xmath4 kev band can be well modelled with a raymond - smith plasma component of @xmath148 kev plus a power law component of photon index @xmath6 . the spectrum above 10 kev simultaneously fitted with _ osse _ s spectrum can be fitted with a power law of photon index @xmath123 . the change in the power law slope at lower energies hints at the possibility that the power law either flattens or gradually attenuates below some energy between 10 - 100 kev . ( 5 ) the characteristics of the thermal component of the diffuse emission resembles that of the snrs . from this interpretation , we calculate that a sn explosion rate of less than 5 per century is adequate to power the thermal emission from the ridge . ( 6 ) the origin of the emission in the hard x - ray band modelled by a power law is uncertain . while unresolved discrete sources are expected to contribute , the bulk of the emission is expected to be of diffuse origin . one possibility is the non - thermal bremsstrahlung of electrons and protons which may have been accelerated in the snr sites . based on the empirical modeling of the data in a wide energy band , we speculate that the power law either flattens or gradually attenuates at lower energies . this lessens the large power injection required to explain the hard power law tail via either electron or proton bremsstrahlung . it will also make it consistent with the power injected to the galaxy via supernova explosion . ( 7 ) the hydrogen ionization rate implied from our model is @xmath229 averaged over the central ridge . generally , values of @xmath231 are expected in the ism . this is an indication that the collisional losses associated with the bremsstrahlung radiation of energetic particles that produce the hard power law tail are sufficient to explain the ionization rates observed in the ism . finally , we expect that simultaneous _ rxte_/_osse _ observations of the diffuse emission from the galactic ridge will allow the exclusion of hard discrete sources from the spectrum and will tightly constrain the hard tail slope that dominates in the hard x - ray / soft @xmath13-ray band . this will enhance our understanding of the origin of the power law tail and the energetics of ism . we are grateful to elihu a. boldt for many valuable discussions , in particular for bringing the process of proton bremsstrahlung to our attention and his contribution to the relevant arguments presented in this paper . we also thank him for a careful reading of the manuscript . we acknowledge g. e. allen , e. boldt , k. ebisawa , s. hunter , k. jahoda , g. m. madejski , r. m. mushotzky , and r. petre for useful discussions . we are grateful to j. g. skibo for providing the diffuse emission spectrum measured with _ osse_. the help of pat tyler and seth digel in producing plate 1 is greatly appreciated . we thank the referee , k. koyama , for many insightful comments that led to the improvement of this paper . acknowledges support from the national academy of sciences and the national research council through a research associateship at nasa s goddard space flight center . green , d. a. 1996 , a catalogue of galactic supernova remnants ( 1996 august version) , mullard radio astronomical observatory , cambridge , uk ( available on the www at http://www.mrao.cam.ac.uk/survey/snr/ ) . j1744 - 28 & 0.044 & 0.301 grs1739 - 278 & 0.660 & 1.167 sl1735 - 269 & 0.785 & 2.400 k1731 - 260 & 1.074 & 3.655 4u1744 - 26 & 2.294 & 0.793 gx5 - 1 & 5.079 & -1.018 4u1745 - 203 & 7.725 & 3.795 gx9 + 1 & 9.072 & 1.154 gx13 + 1 & 13.518 & 0.108 gx17 + 2 & 16.432 & 1.276 4u1812 - 12 & 18.033 & 2.362 g21.5 - 0.9 & 21.493 & -0.887 gr11(1 ) & 22.001 & -0.002 exo1846 - 031 & 29.954 & -0.917 g1843 + 009 & 33.108 & 1.746 gps1858 + 015 & 35.416 & -1.648 xte j1856 + 053 & 38.258 & 1.266 exo1902 + 054 & 39.33 & -0.390 ss433 & 39.695 & -2.247 4u1909 + 07 & 42.089 & -0.940 w49b & 43.275 & -0.189 a1907 + 09 & 43.743 & 0.477 grs1915 + 105 & 45.366 & -0.219 msh15 - 52 & 320.321 & -1.161 circinusx-1 & 322.117 & 0.038 4u1553 - 542 & 327.945 & -0.857 2e1614 - 505 & 332.421 & -0.422 1608 - 522 & 330.926 & -0.850 4u1624 - 49 & 334.914 & -0.263 gx340 + 0 & 339.587 & -0.079 2s1702 - 429 & 343.887 & -1.314 oao1653 - 40 & 344.369 & 0.326 nsco94 & 344.982 & 2.456 4u1708 - 408 & 346.327 & -0.928 gps1709 - 396 & 347.300 & -0.333 4u1700 - 37 & 347.755 & 2.173 gps1713 - 388 & 348.394 & -0.543 ctb37a / b & 348.598 & 0.232 gx349 + 2 & 349.105 & 2.750 exo1722 - 363 & 351.474 & -0.548 a1744 - 361 & 354.121 & -4.192 mxb1728 - 34 & 354.305 & -0.151 x1730 - 333 & 354.843 & -0.159 terzan2 & 356.320 & 2.298 sl1746 - 331 & 356.816 & -2.997 h1741 - 322 & 357.125 & -1.607 r1747 - 313 & 358.556 & -2.168 2s1742 - 294 & 359.559 & -0.390 a1742 - 289 & 359.930 & -0.043 absorption & @xmath79 ( @xmath247 ) & @xmath248 raymond - smith & @xmath95 ( kev ) & @xmath249 & abundance ( solar ) & @xmath250 & normalization & @xmath251 power law & photon index & @xmath208 & normalization & @xmath252 & @xmath253 & absorption & @xmath79 ( @xmath247 ) & @xmath254 raymond - smith & @xmath95 ( kev ) & @xmath255 & abundance ( solar ) & @xmath250 & normalization & @xmath256 power law & photon index & @xmath257 & @xmath258 & @xmath259 & normalization & @xmath260 & @xmath261 & absorption & @xmath79 ( @xmath247 ) & @xmath262 raymond - smith & @xmath95 ( kev ) & @xmath263 & abundance ( solar ) & @xmath250 & normalization & @xmath264 power law & photon index & @xmath265 & normalization & @xmath266 & @xmath267 & absorption & @xmath79 ( @xmath247 ) & @xmath268 raymond - smith & @xmath95 ( kev ) & @xmath269 & abundance ( solar ) & @xmath250 & normalization & @xmath270 power law & photon index & @xmath271 & normalization & @xmath272 & @xmath273 &

the diffuse x - ray emission from the thin disk surrounding the galactic mid - plane ( the so - called galactic ridge ) was measured with _ rxte _ pca in order to determine the spatial extent , spectral nature , and origin of the emission . spatial examination of the diffuse emission in the central @xmath0 of the plane in galactic longitude reveals the presence of two components : a thin disk of full width @xmath1 centered roughly on the galactic mid - plane , and a broad component which can be approximated as a gaussian distribution with fwhm of about @xmath2 . assuming an average distance of 16 kpc to the edge of the galaxy , a scale height of about @xmath3 pc and 500 pc is derived for the thin and broad disk components , respectively . spectral examination of the emission clearly reveals the presence of a hard power law tail above 10 kev and an emission line from he - like iron , indicating both thermal and possibly non - thermal origins for the diffuse emission . the averaged spectrum from the ridge in the @xmath4 kev band can be modelled with a raymond - smith plasma component of temperature @xmath5 kev and a power law component of photon index @xmath6 . based on this finding , we argue that the temperature of the hot phase of the interstellar medium ( ism ) is less than the previously reported values of @xmath7 kev . motivated by the similarities between the characteristics of the thermal component of the galactic ridge emission in our model and the thermal emission from supernova remnants ( snrs ) , we discuss the origin of the thermal emission in terms of a population of snrs residing in the galactic disk . we find that a sn explosion rate of less than 5 per century is adequate to power the thermal emission from the ridge . the origin of the emission in the hard x - ray band modelled by a power law remains uncertain . possible contributions from non - thermal bremsstrahlung of cosmic ray electrons and protons , inverse compton scattering of energetic electrons from ambient microwave , infrared , and optical photons , non - thermal emission from snrs , and emission from discrete x - ray sources are discussed . we speculate that bremsstrahlung of accelerated electrons and protons in snr sites can play a significant role in producing the hard tail of the spectrum . moreover , their collisional losses can play a major role in the ionization of the ism . accepted for publication in the astrophysical journal

In Inside Amy Schumer’s only episode-long sketch 12 Angry Men—a parody of the play and film of the same name—12 middle-aged, white men deliberate whether Schumer is attractive enough to be on television. Jeff Goldblum, Paul Giamatti and other famous actors pose questions and make ruthless comments as they puff on cigars: “She’s built like a lineman, has cabbage patch-like features, and her ass makes me furious,” one quips. Turns out Schumer is not only attractive enough for television, she thrives on screen. Her success earned her $17 million last year, making her the fourth highest-paid comedian and also the only woman to ever make the list of the world’s top-paid comics. Her earnings come from a variety of sources, including her aforementioned Emmy and Peabody Award-winning Comedy Central show and a tour with Aziz Ansari, who did not make the list. She also received a piece of her $8 million book advance for The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo in the time period, became a film star with her role in Trainwreck (though she reportedly only earned $300,000 for her star turn) and likely earned in the seven figures for a Bud Light Super Bowl commercial. This packed schedule is par for the course for women in entertainment, who often have to work more—readily combining film and TV roles with endorsement deals and commercial work—to earn the same amount as their male counterparts. Schumer often plays off the sexism faced by women in the industry in her work. In another notable skit from her show, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Patricia Arquette and Tina Fey gather to celebrate Louis-Dreyfus’ “last f**kable day,” or the last day the actress is young enough to be cast as an attractive love interest. The bit pokes at the ageism women experience in Hollywood, where their male love interests can be years--or decades--older. Her show challenges gender disparity behind the camera, as well. Five out of eight writers of the most recent season were women, far more than many other shows on TV, particularly comedies. Women accounted for just 28.9% of writers across broadcast, cable , streaming and film in 2015 , with the number even lower, at 28,5% when looking at cable, alone. Unlike other female comics, however, Schumer has been able to cash in millions from stand up on the road—a historic moneymaker for the majority of male comedians on the ranking. Even the women that many consider the pioneers of 21st century female humor—Amy Poehler, Fey, Louis-Dreyfus—have achieved most of their success on television or in films. Onstage, many women still face the gendered stereotype that women just aren’t funny, or double standards with subject matter, When female comedians use the raunchy material that stand ups often turn to, it is oftentimes still considered taboo. “I’m labeled a sex comic. I think it’s just because I’m a girl,” Schumer said at a gig at the Apollo Theater, which was later air on HBO. “A guy could get up here and literally pull his [penis] out, and people would be like, ‘he’s a thinker!’” It also has to do with attractiveness: According to studies, while women find funny men attractive, a sense of humor does not seem to affect how men view women. This means that there is more pressure on men to be funny, and culturally, we have evolved to encourage men to tell jokes or make us laugh. In one 2006 study, both men and women were shown images of equally attractive members of the opposite sex, but some were attached to funny statements and others attached to not funny statements. While female participants often selected the funny male, males tended not to factor humor into their choice. In another study, men and women participants could spend money on traits they wanted in their partners, either choosing between being funny or bring appreciative. The results of the study found similar results, with women caring about men who produce humor, and men caring about women who are receptive to their own humor. Perhaps as a result, there have historically been fewer female comedians. Only a handful, including Joan Rivers, Lucille Ball and Phyllis Diller achieved successful, sustained careers. Without possibility models and precedents, it has made it even harder for contemporary and up-and-coming ones to succeed on the level of their male counterparts—or join the highest-paid comedians ranking. While Sarah Silverman and Chelsea Handler have been extremely successful, neither of them played Madison Square Garden (Schumer became the first woman to do so in June). And in smaller stand up shows, organizers and audience members are so used to having no women on the bill, it is almost as if they have forgotten to include them entirely. It seems that, until recently, this was so often the case that no one bothered to say anything. Luckily, this is changing. Last year, only three out of 40 comics on the line up of the Houston Whatever Fest were women, which caused pushback, though no changes or additions. A festival featuring only women--the All Jane No Dick Comedy Festival--was founded in 2011 to help foster female comedians. But even when they do get booked (and make money), there is still work to be done to make comedy a gender-neutral industry. Just last year, Schumer told GQ that "All I've ever wanted is to be treated like a comedian who's performing at your venue, who sold it out. Just talk to me how you would talk to Bill Burr, who was here the week before me. Like Patton Oswalt, who'll be here next week." The industry, unfortunately, may not be there just yet. But thanks to Schumer, it is getting closer. ||||| Since 2006, Jerry Seinfeld has seemed the insurmountable King of Comedy. His combined pretax earnings over the last 10 years top $900 million, and year after year he has claimed the top spot on our list of the world’s highest-paid comedians. No longer: For the first time since FORBES started delving into the money of the funny business, someone other than Seinfeld has taken the title of the top-earning joker. Between June 2015 and June 2016, Kevin Hart made $87.5 million—over $30 million more than Seinfeld’s $43.5 million. That haul also earned Hart sixth place on the Celebrity 100, FORBES’ annual list of celebrity money-makers. Combined, the world’s 10 highest-paid comedians made $233.5 million over our scoring period, prior to taxes and management fees. Their earnings came from touring, endorsements, films, DVD sales, TV specials and paid appearances. FORBES’ earnings estimates are based on data from Pollstar, Box Office Mojo and IMDB, as well as interviews with agents, managers, lawyers and industry insiders The reason for Hart’s dominance is simple: He tours like no other comedian. In the 12-month period, Hart played over 100 shows with an average gross of over $1 million at each stop. And these shows aren’t at dingy comedy clubs; Hart played stadiums and arenas, including Madison Square Garden and the Staples Center. Because the stand-up comedian’s set requires little more than a stool, water bottle and microphone, he takes home a larger cut of that gross than most rock stars would. “He is a comedian, of course, but he is drawing crowds that you would typically only see for musician,” says Gary Bongiovanni, editor of Pollstar. “Only a few comedians [are] capable of playing sports arenas the way that Kevin Hart does.” To pad his tour earnings—which make up the overwhelming majority of his eight-figure haul—Hart took to both the big and small screens, starring in the films Central Intelligence and Secret Life of Pets, and shooting commercials for Hyundai , and H&M . Hart isn’t the only one to have a big year. Amy Schumer debuts on our ranking in fourth place with earnings of $17 million. Not only is she the only female comic on this year’s list, Schumer is also the only woman to ever make the highest-paid comedians list—a big first as women have historically faced difficulty being taken seriously in the funny business. While she made millions from touring —most of her tour was a co-bill with Aziz Ansari, who didn’t make the list—she also has her Peabody and Emmy-winning Comedy Central show Inside Amy Schumer, an $8 million book deal for The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo and commercial work to thank for big payday. Still, as the only woman on the list, there is clearly work to be done, something which Schumer often discusses. “I feel like there won't be enough change ... until there's no wage gap, and until someone says ‘You're my favorite comic,’ not ‘You're my favorite female comic,’ she said on NPR last month. So she has taken to making sexism in the entertainment industry a common subject of her work. In one of her show’s famous skits with Tina Fey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Patricia Arquette, the women celebrate Louis-Dreyfus’ “last f**kable day,” or the last day Hollywood would find her young enough to play an attractive love interest. The writers of her show are also mainly women, not only giving women a voice, but also allowing audience members to become familiar with other female comedians who may one day make it big. Jim Gaffigan joins Schumer as a newcomer on the list with earnings of $12.5 million. Though his Contagious tour wasn’t quite as big as Hart’s What Now? tour, Gaffigan managed to pull in impressive audiences around the world, playing shows all over the country, as well as in Oslo and Helsinki. He fattens up his paycheck with his role as Colonel Sanders in KFC commercials and as the stereotypical dad in Chrysler minivan spots. Comedy veterans round out the list. Dave Chappelle, who had his first film role in over a decade in Spike Lee’s Chi-Raq, almost doubled his earnings, going from $7.5 million last year to $13 million this year. And Russell Peters managed to tour his way to $9 million, padding his earnings with private performances for Saudi princes. When Charles Lamb said that that a laugh is worth a hundred groans, he may have been onto something, but perhaps it's worth is closer to a million dollars.

– For the first time, a woman has made it onto Forbes' list of the highest-paid comedians in the world. And Amy Schumer isn't just on the list, she's in the fourth spot. At Forbes, Madeline Berg looks at how Schumer pulled off the huge accomplishment. She made $17 million last year between her Comedy Central show, a comedy tour, a book advance, a Super Bowl commercial, and her role in Trainwreck. The big difference, Berg writes, is how much Schumer makes for touring. While tours typically make big bucks for male comedians, the biggest females names in comedy see most of their success thanks to TV and movies. Meanwhile, Schumer became the first woman to do stand-up at Madison Square Garden back in June. "Onstage, many women still face the gendered stereotype that women just aren’t funny, or double standards with subject matter," such as raunchy material being considered taboo territory, Berg writes. There's also the fact that, as studies have shown, women find funny men attractive—while men don't particularly care if a woman is funny or not when considering how attractive she is. "This means that there is more pressure on men to be funny," Berg writes, and thus our culture has evolved so that there are more male comedians than female in stand-up. That makes it harder for women to break through, a fact Schumer is changing. See the rest of the list here.

herpes zoster typically affects the thoracic and lumbar vertebra ( t3-l3 ) , and sacral herpes zoster is found in only 4% of cases . it usually occurs on one side of the sacrum , and in less than 1% of cases , it occurs on both sides . this dysfunction is experienced by only 4% of herpes zoster patients , but it can happen if the virus affects the sacral nerve . voiding dysfunctions caused by herpes zoster have also been reported in korea . however , the cases identified so far are limited to elderly people or patients with a deteriorated immune system , and no such occurrence has been found among young adults . against this background , we present the case of a 25-year - old man with a normal immune system who was hospitalized for scrub typhus and experienced herpes zoster on both sides of the sacral nerve . a 25-year - old man was hospitalized after seven continuous days of fever , chills , and a general feeling of weakness . his blood pressure was 140/70 mmhg , his pulse rate was 90 beats a minute , his respiratory rate was 20 breaths per minute , and his body temperature was 39.2. the patient reported feeling fatigued , pain upon urination , and pain in the anal area during urination and bowel movements . a skin rash was observed on the right side of the body , which was probably a eschar ( fig . 1 ) . the patient was a college student with no previous illness , and nothing of note was found in terms of family history , personal history , or travel history . the patient had climbed a mountain on september 20th , about two weeks before his hospitalization . the fever and chills started one week before hospitalization , and a dark red eschar of dead skin was found on the right side of the abdomen . because the diagnosis was scrub typhus , the patient was treated with doxycycline ( 100 mg orally 2 times a day for seven days ) . the fever began to subside three days after hospitalization . on the second day , the patient reported bloody stools and severe pain around the anus . the patient was examined by a surgeon to see if there was an anal laceration . a hip bath was advised , and anti - inflammatory medicine was administered . on the sixth day of hospitalization , the pain during urination lessened , but the patient still complained about voiding dysfunction . he had to suck in his stomach to urinate , and the amount of urine produced was less than usual . constipation started on the sixth day , and the anal sphincter was weaker than usual . on the eighth day , a skin rash , several blisters the size of rice grains , and calluses were observed on both sides of the anus ( fig . three days after the administration , the constipation improved , and from the fourth day the urinary dysfunction improved to the point of waiting a few seconds before urination and not needing to suck in the stomach anymore . the results of a blood test were as follows : white blood cell count , 4,930/mm ; hemoglobin , 14.1 g / dl ; platelet count , 179,000/mm ; aspartate aminotransferase , 56 iu / l ; alanine aminotransferase , 43 iu / l ; blood urea nitrogen , 17.35 mg / dl ; creatinine , 0.97 mg / dl ; albumin , 4.43 g / dl ; c - reactive protein , 7.9 mg / dl ; and erythrocyte sedimentation rate , 26 mm / hour . the immunofluorescence assay titer ( green cross labs , yongin , korea ) against orientia tsutsugamushi increased 4-fold or more . the fact that the blisters appeared bilaterally on each buttock simultaneously without any previous history , the size of the blister , intensity of pain , and the depth of the ulcer all indicated the diagnosis more likely as herpes zoster than herpes simplex . acyclovir ( 10 mg / kg every 8 hours ) was administered for seven days , and dexamethasone ( 10 mg / day ) was administered for six days and changed to prednisolone ( 100 mg orally ) . although urinary dysfunction due to herpes zoster is rare , it can happen if the virus affects related nerves , particularly s2 and s3 of the sacral nerve ; this affects the motor and sensory nerves of the bladder . chen , et al . reported that herpes zoster causes urinary dysfunction in only 4% of patients , but the ratio was 29% for patients who had the virus in the lumbosacral dermatome . regarding age and gender , herpes zoster accompanied by urinary dysfunction was mostly observed in middle - aged men , and the rate increased with age . richmond reported that 78% of herpes zoster patients who experienced urinary retention had the virus in the sacral nerve , 11% had the virus in the thoracolumbar nerve , and 11% had the virus in the upper sternal nerve . in cases where the virus affected the sacral nerve , many patients also experienced constipation or bowel incontinence . there are three types of urinary dysfunction caused by herpes zoster : cystitis , neuritis , and myelitis . vzv directly attacks the bladder wall to cause urinary dysfunction , and inflammation of the mucous membrane or blisters are observed upon cystoscopy . in neuritis , vzv lurks in a posterior ganglion and then affects the motor nerve of the sacral nerve . this disrupts the reflex of the detrusor muscle and weakens the bladder . in myelitis , the upper sacral nerve of the spinal cord is damaged , which causes a rigid bladder . voiding dysfunction caused by herpes zoster responds well to treatment and usually improves along with the disappearance of skin rashes . however , in some cases , acute urinary retention requires intermittent catheterization or an in - dwelling catheter . chen , et al . reported cases of catheter insertion or urethral catheterization for patients with urinary dysfunction caused by herpes zoster . the recovery took as little as two days to as long as eight weeks , but the average was 16 days . yamanashi , et al . reported an average recovery period of 5.4 weeks for seven patients , and park , et al . reported an average recovery period of 12 days for 20 patients . cases of urinary dysfunction caused by herpes zoster reported so far have included symptoms such as acute urinary retention , pain upon urination , urinary incontinence , cystitis , and neurogenic bladders . all the patients had either an impaired immune system or were elderly people aged 60 or older . there has been no reported case where a young adult with a normal immune system and without a previous illness had a dual infection of vzv and o. tsutsugamushi . there was a case of a 75-year - old female patient who had a hip replacement surgery , followed by a knee replacement surgery . she was affected by vzv in the sacral nerve , showing that in elderly people , multiple joint replacement surgeries can reactivate vzv . cases of the simultaneous outbreak of o. tsutsugamushi and rickettsia typhi , leptospira , or malaria have been reported in the past , but no case involving dual infection with herpes zoster has been recorded . one report discussed o. tsutsugamushi , a microorganism that causes monocyte - derived cells to trigger replication and activation of the cell , which in turn activates cd4 positive t lymphocyte . both vzv and o. tsutsugamushi cause infection within cells , but their interaction mechanisms have yet to be determined . this case study examined a patient who had voiding dysfunction and pain upon urination as the first symptoms of herpes zoster without dermatome lesions . his symptoms improved with the administration of acyclovir and steroids without catheter insertion , intermittent catheterization , or administration of an -blocker or anticholinergic drugs . in conclusion , when patients under treatment for acute infection report sudden urinary retention , the possibility of voiding dysfunction caused by herpes zoster needs to be considered . skin rashes on the bottom or lower limbs and changes in sensory nerves need to be checked . early administration of acyclovir or steroids might help to reduce the duration of urinary dysfunction .

when a patient presents with acute voiding dysfunction without a typical skin rash , it may be difficult to make a diagnosis of herpes zoster . here , we present a case of scrub typhus in a 25-year - old man with the complication of urinary dysfunction . the patient complained of loss of urinary voiding sensation and constipation . after eight days , he had typical herpes zoster eruptions on the sacral dermatomes and hypalgesia of the s1-s5 dermatomes . no cases of dual infection with varicella zoster virus and orientia tsutsugamushi were found in the literature . in the described case , scrub typhus probably induced sufficient stress to reactivate the varicella zoster virus . early recognition of this problem is imperative for prompt and appropriate management , as misdiagnosis can lead to long - term urinary dysfunction . it is important that a diagnosis of herpes zoster be considered , especially in patients with sudden onset urinary retention .

for the restoration of endodontically treated teeth , the use of fiber - posts luted with resin cement and combined with composite core build - up materials is becoming very frequent . since 1990 many new fiber posts and resin adhesive luting systems have been made available by industry and numerous researches revealed their successful clinical results when joined to adhesive / resin systems , due to their superior retention values and behavior under mechanical stress [ 13 ] . since fiber - reinforced posts have a modulus of elasticity ( e ) similar to that of dentin ( resp . , 1822 gpa and 18 gpa ) , they produce a stress field similar to that of natural teeth , thereby reducing the risk of root fracture [ 47 ] . the selection of the composite plays an important role , not only for the clinical success of a post / core restoration but also for the quality of the post / core interface , where different materials are in close contact . many studies focused particularly on the possibility of improving adhesion at the fiber post - composite interface through various treatments of post surface [ 912 ] . surface treatments are common methods for improving the general adhesion properties of a material by facilitating chemical and micromechanical retention . to improve the bonding of resin cements to fiber posts , several treatments of the post surface have been suggested , such as etching with hydrofluoric acid , the use of hydrogen peroxide or potassium permanganate , the airborne - particle abrasion with aluminum oxide or silica particles , and the application of a silane coupling agent [ 1319 ] . resin - based adhesive luting materials are widely used for the fixation of posts , and currently all the resin cements are based upon the use of either an etch - and - rinse or of a self - etch adhesive , along with a low - viscosity resin composite . this multistep application technique is complex and somewhat technique sensitive and consequently may compromise bonding effectiveness . recently , a new resin - based cement ( relyx unicem cement , 3 m espe , seefeld , germany ) has combined the use of adhesive and cement in one single application , eliminating the need for pretreatment of both tooth and restoration . the adhesive proprieties are claimed by the manufacturer to be based upon acid monomers that demineralize and infiltrate the tooth substrate , resulting in micromechanical retention . secondary reactions have been suggested to provide chemical adhesion to hydroxyapatite , a feature currently only proven for glass - ionomers . moreover , according to manufacturer data , relyx unicem cement should adhere to relyx fiber posts ( 3 m espe ) in 3 ways : mechanical interlocking , covalent bonds , and hydrogen bonds . a recent systematic review of the role of resin cement on bond strength of glass - fiber posts seems to suggest that the use of self - adhesive resin cement , especially with relyx unicem , could improve the retention of glass fiber post in root canals . the purpose of this in vitro study was to evaluate the influence of different post - surface treatments on the interfacial bond strength between glass fiber - reinforced posts and 2 different resin luting cements . in this study an experimental model to simulate an endodontic channel has been used : this permitted the analysis of only a particular aspect of the adhesion of the posts to the root canals , the post - cement interface , excluding interference of the cement - dentin interface [ 17 , 21 ] . the morphological aspects of the fibers and the post - surface characteristics following the different pretreatments were also observed using scanning electron microscopy ( sem ) . pull - out tests were performed on the samples to measure the bond strength at the post / resin cement interface . the null hypothesis test was to demonstrate that the type of resin cement used for post cementation has no influence on the post - cement interfacial bond strength . a simulated root canal ( a plexiglass mold equipped with an artificial tapered post space , industrially prepared ( 3 m espe ) with a coronal diameter of 1.80 mm , an apical diameter of 1.30 mm , and a length of 15 mm ) was used to exclude interference of the cement dentin interface as illustrated in previous articles [ 17 , 21 ] . sixty glass fiber posts ( relyx fiber post , 3 m espe ) , size number 1 , with a diameter of 0.70 mm at the apical post end and a diameter of 1.30 mm at the coronal post end , were used in this study . all the materials used in this study are presented in table 1 . to evaluate the effects of different surface treatments on bond strength , all posts were divided into 3 groups ( n = 20 ) and received different surface treatments.group 1 : all posts were brushed with ethanol ( 95% ) for 30 seconds and dried with air for 10 seconds ( control).group 2 : all posts were pretreated with methyl methacrylate ( pro base cold monomer , ivoclar vivadent , schaan , liechtenstein ) for 1 minute and dried with air for 10 seconds.group 3 : all posts were pretreated with methyl methacrylate ( pro base cold monomer ) for 1 minute and dried with air for 10 seconds and tribochemically coated ( cojet , 3 m espe ) . group 1 : all posts were brushed with ethanol ( 95% ) for 30 seconds and dried with air for 10 seconds ( control ) . group 2 : all posts were pretreated with methyl methacrylate ( pro base cold monomer , ivoclar vivadent , schaan , liechtenstein ) for 1 minute and dried with air for 10 seconds . group 3 : all posts were pretreated with methyl methacrylate ( pro base cold monomer ) for 1 minute and dried with air for 10 seconds and tribochemically coated ( cojet , 3 m espe ) . the pretreatment with methyl methacrylate was effected by immersing every post in a dappen dish for 1 minute at room temperature ; after 1 minute the posts were gently air - dried for 10 seconds . in group 3 , after the pretreatment with methyl methacrylate , the post was tribochemically coated . silica - coated alumina particles ( 30 m diameter ) were blasted onto the post surface for 20 seconds at 2.8-bar pressure from a distance of approximately 50 mm . every group was divided into 2 subgroups , a and b. in subgroups a , the posts were luted with a dual - polymerizing self - adhesive universal resin cement ( relyx unicem , 3 m espe ) ; in subgroups b , the posts were luted with a dual - polymerizing resin cement ( relyx arc , 3 m espe ) . in all subgroups b , scotchbond multi - purpose plus ( 3 m espe ) was used for the treatment of posts surface , according to the manufacturer 's indications . the sample size of each subgroup was determined through a power analysis as follows : for the test , a minimum detectable difference among means of 5 mpa was needed . the required probability in order to detect it was set to 0.98 for the material factor and to 0.80 for the pretreatment factor . all specimens were prepared by the same investigator to ensure standardization . in every plexiglass block , the post space was roughened with a small round stainless - steel bur to create small undercuts for improving cement retention : in this way an early dislodgment of the cement from the plexiglass during pull - out test could be avoided . in the subgroups a , the self - adhesive universal cement relyx unicem was used , in accordance with the manufacturer 's instructions . relyx unicem was processed in a capsule system ( aplicap , 3 m espe ) , activated with the activator aplicap , and mechanically triturated with a mixing machine ( silamat , ivoclar vivadent ) for 15 seconds as recommended by the manufacturer ; the cement was then applied into the artificial post spaces with light pressure and rotation using the correspondent aplicap elongation tip ( 3 m espe ) in order to apply cement in the canal from bottom to top . posts were positioned into the artificial root canals immediately after the insertion of the resin cement , and photopolymerization with a led curing unit ( bluephase , ivoclar vivadent ag . fl , 9494 serial number 1537528 ) was performed from the top of plexiglass endo - block for 40 seconds . light intensity was measured with a visible curing light meter ( cure rite , dentsply caulk , model number 644726 , serial number 7239 , milford , de 19963 , usa ) , and the output was 1370 mw / cm . in the subgroups b , where the resin cement relyx arc was used , every post surface received , in addition to the surface pretreatment , a single coat of catalyst ( scotchbond multi - purpose plus activator 3.5 ; 3 m espe ) the dual - polymerizing resin cement ( relyx arc , 3 m espe ) was placed into the artificial root canals with the aid of a spiral drill ( lentulo , dentsply maillefer , 1338 , ballaigues , switzerland ) , and the posts were placed into the canals with light pressure and rotation . excess luting material was removed with a disposable microbrush ; then photoactivation was performed for 40 seconds ( bluephase , ivoclar vivadent ) . every post was luted into the artificial post space to a length of 10 mm using a rubber ring as a stop . the plexiglass blocks were sectioned to obtain 3 mm thick slices in order to reduce the necessary force to debond posts from the cement during the pull - out test ( figure 1 ) . for every sample , only one section was obtained to be used for the pull - out test , for a total of 60 specimens ( figure 2 ) . the pull - out test was performed along the long axis of the post at a cross - head speed of 1.00 mm / min . the post was loaded ( pull - out ) until its extrusion from the plexiglass block disks by means of a universal testing machine ( erichsen 476 , erichsen gmbh & co. kg , hemer , germany ) . for the pull - out test , a stainless steel device suitable for the testing machine was realized in order to be able to bond firmly onto the post on its upper side ; the force required to dislodge each post was then recorded in newtons . bond strength was expressed in mpa , dividing the load at failure ( newtons ) by the bonding surface area . as the bonded interface was the lateral surface of the post , 3 mm in height , its area was calculated using the formula of a conical frustrum : (r1 + rb2)(r1r2)+h . after testing , failure modes were evaluated with a stereomicroscope ( leica microsystems gmbh wetzlar , germany ) at 20x magnification and recorded as adhesive , cohesive , and mixed . the types of fracture were classified in 3 categories : adhesive , at the post / composite interface ( no resin cement visible around the post),cohesive within the composite , mixed with resin cement covering the post surface between 0 and 50% . adhesive , at the post / composite interface ( no resin cement visible around the post ) , cohesive within the composite , mixed with resin cement covering the post surface between 0 and 50% . data were analyzed with two - way anova since for this dataset underlying assumptions are completely fulfilled . two specimens from each group were examined with a sem ( jsm 6490 jeol ltd . akishima , tokyo , japan ) in order to evaluate the characteristics of the post surface after various chemical treatments and the post / cement interface after the pull - out test . each specimen was sputter - coated with gold - palladium and examined with a sem at different magnifications . the results obtained from the testing machine ( n ) were divided by the previously calculated bonding surface area ( mm ) . the comparative box and whisker plots for each sample are shown . in order to detect significant differences among groups statistically , a two - way analysis of variance ( anova ) was applied with pull - out bond strength in mpa as the dependent variable , with luting material and surface pretreatment procedures as factors . software ( 2.12.2 free software foundation 's gnu general public license ) . statistical analysis revealed that the interaction between the surface pretreatment and the post cementation did not have any significant effect ( p > 0.9 ) . the effect of the surface pretreatment was the same , regardless of the type of resin cement used ( and , conversely , the type of cement effect was the same whichever pretreatment was applied : see figure 4 ) . this meant that the optimal pretreatment and the optimal cement material could be chosen independently of each other . in detail , relyx unicem proved to be superior compared to scotchbond multi - purpose plus and relyx arc ( p < 0.0001 ) , and the pretreatment resulted also as a significant factor ( p = 0.0465 ) ; in particular , methylmetacrylate post conditioning gave higher bond strength than the other two treatments used which were equivalent . it should be noted that the assumptions underlying the anova tests applied were completely fulfilled for this dataset . in figure 5 a normal probability plot of residuals of the anova model is shown ; since only minor departures of points from the theoretical line can be observed , it should be concluded that residuals agree with a gaussian distribution assumption . moreover , in order to check the assumption of constant variance among the different groups , levene 's test was performed . the result of this test leads to the conclusion that there was no statistically significant difference amongst the standard deviations ( p = 0.1253 ) . with regard to the type of failure ( table 3 ) , it was observed that it was independent of pretreatment ( pearson 's chi - squared test = 0.987 , p = 0.6105 ) . conversely , the null hypothesis of independence between resin cement and type of failure ( = 37.297 , p < 0.01 ) could not be accepted . when relyx arc was used as the resin cement , when relyx unicem was used , the failures were mixed with portions of resin cement visible around the post . sem evaluation revealed that the post surface morphology was modified following treatment with methyl methacrylate and that this treatment produced a change in the ultrastructure of the post surface . in figure 6 a particular of a post sample surface ( group 2a ) is shown : it was possible to observe a partial dissolution of the organic matrix of the post . exposed fibers did not appear to be damaged by the action of methyl methacrylate , and no defects or fractures were evident on their surfaces . sem evaluation of the specimens after the pull - out test revealed the presence of a portion of resin cement on the post surface , especially when relyx unicem was used ( figure 7 ) . this is in accordance with the presence of a great number of mixed fractures visible on the post surface of the specimens in which relyx unicem was used . in the groups where scotchbond multi - purpose and relyx arc were applied , adhesive fractures were observed , both on airborne - particle abraded and control posts , without any difference in occurrence and morphological appearance . as recently described in scientific literature , also in this study , an experimental model to simulate an endodontic channel has been used [ 17 , 21 ] : this permitted the analysis of only one particular aspect of the adhesion of the posts to the root canals , the post - cement interface , excluding interference of the cement - dentin interface [ 17 , 21 ] . the retention of the cement onto the post depends on the strength of the chemical and micromechanical interaction between a fiber - reinforced material and resin cement . in this study , a simulated root canal was used to exclude interference of the cement dentin interface : if extracted human teeth had been used , the effect would probably not have been detected due to premature debonding based on lower bond strength between post and dentin . the use of extracted teeth would have added many more variables : the method of detersion of dentin , the type and timing of dentin pretreatment , and the type of dentin ( dentin of a vital tooth or of a previously endodontically treated tooth ) . in this investigation , the adhesion of 2 types of resin cements ( a dual - polymerizing self - adhesive universal resin cement and a dual - polymerizing resin cement combined with a dual - polymerizing enamel - dentine adhesive ) to a glass fiber post was assessed with the pull - out test . according to the results of this study , the relyx unicem system seems to be the most appropriate method for post adhesion , and it recorded a significantly higher bond strength , since a statistical difference was found between the two different resin cements used . the pull - out test showed that the bond strength in the specimens prepared using methyl methacrylate as surface pretreatment was superior to that recorded in the other specimens using the same resin cement . according to the results of this study , the relyx unicem system seems to be the most appropriate method for post adhesion and recorded a significantly higher bond strength , since a statistical difference was found between the two different resin cements used . adhesive post restorations rely on the strengths of the bonds established at different interfaces for their retention : in fact , the interface between root dentin and resin cement has been investigated in several studies involving bond strength tests and microscopic investigations [ 2426 ] . for a successful adhesion of the resin cement , it is necessary to establish a strong bond between resin and post as well as between resin and dentine . if bonding at these interfaces is poor , debonding and/or fracture of the post and core will occur . therefore , good adhesion of these interfaces is an important factor for a successful fiber post restoration . in order to improve the bond strength between the post and the resin cement , many surface pretreatment procedures for posts that involve the use of mechanical or chemical agents mechanical treatment is aimed at roughening the post surface , thus enhancing mechanical interlocking between post and resin cement . the use of chemical surface treatment procedures affects the interfacial bond strength between fiber posts and core build - up materials . in a recent study , the use of hydrogen peroxide for pretreatment significantly enhanced the interfacial bond strength between fiber post and resins materials used for core build up . silane coupling agents have been utilized in dentistry since the advent of glass - reinforced resin - based materials . according to recently published data , treating the post surface with a silane coupling agent is advisable in order to enhance the adhesion of the resin cement used for luting . besides silanization , also post airborne - particle abrasion and the combination of this with silane coating were found to significantly increase the bond strength of resin cement to glass fiber posts . in group 3 of this study cojet was used after post conditioning with methyl methacrylate , but this post surface treatment did not produce a statistically significant increase in the bond strength for both luting cements used . from the results of the pull - out test , it is possible to consider the majority of the failures in this study as mixed failures , in which there was some resin cement still visibly covering the post surface . sem analysis showed significant changes of the post surface after methyl methacrylate conditioning pretreatment , but few irregularities were visible . it seems that the epoxy resinous matrix is partially dissolved on the post 's surface , presumably favoring a greater interaction with the resinous cements . it is possible that the adhesion mechanism between the resin cement and the post surface treated with methyl methacrylate may be mainly chemical and not micromechanical . in all the groups in which relyx arc was used , numerous adhesive fractures were observed at the resin cement / post interface , although they were also observed in those groups in which methyl methacrylate was used as pretreatment . when relyx unicem was used , it was possible to recognize a great number of mixed fractures . a reason for these different results may be connected to the chemical bond between the parts and in addition , probably to the micromechanical interlocking as indicated by the manufacturer . moreover , it could be possible that the application of methyl methacrylate as a pretreatment on the post surface may increase the chemical adhesion of the two resinous components . at the sem evaluation , the airborne - particle abraded specimens did not appear to be very rough and the cojet sand particles seemed to be immersed in the resin matrix . those particles did not contribute to the micromechanical adhesion and this fact can support the decrease of the bond strength between the fiber post and the resin cement due to the reduction of the micromechanical interlocking for the resin cement . many previous studies have demonstrated the role of airborne - particle abrasion in increasing the strength of adhesion of resin cement to fiber posts [ 13 , 18 , 26 ] , and it was demonstrated that an increment of the adhesion force was essentially due to a type of micromechanical adhesion that was developed between the two surfaces . in this study , the results showed that the use of cojet after methyl methacrylate post conditioning did not produce a statistically significant increase in the bond strength . surface treatments with only methyl methacrylate increased the retention of the glass fiber posts for both relyx unicem and relyx arc in association with scotch bond mp , where methyl methacrylate and cojet were used for treating post surfaces and the bond strength decreased . although airborne - particle abrasion may give an increase in microtensile bond strength to glass fiber posts , its effects after methyl methacrylate post conditioning should be further investigated and new research is necessary in order to agree on the optimal particle size , distance , pressure , and time of application . future studies should also demonstrate the type of bond that develops on those fiber posts ( relyx fiber post ) which have been pretreated with methyl methacrylate and luted with relyx unicem . the main goal of fiber - reinforced composite material is to achieve a tough bond between the various components so as to get a unique material inside the root canal with improved performance : in this way it is possible to create a monoblock between the tooth and the restorative material . within the limitations of this in vitro study , the following conclusions were made : the dual - polymerizing self - adhesive universal resin cement achieved higher mpa values than the dual - polymerizing resin cement combined with a dual - polymerizing bonding system ( p < 0.0001 ) . the use of methyl methacrylate as a pretreatment agent provided an increased bond strength between glass fiber posts and both resin cements used ; the association of methyl methacrylate and airborne - particle abrasion as the surface treatment did not improve the bond strength between the glass fiber posts and the resin cement . the use of methyl methacrylate for 1 minute as a surface treatment of glass fiber posts increased the pull - out bond strengths for both test materials used in this study .

the purpose of this study was to evaluate the bond strength at the post / resin - cement interface with 3 different surface treatments of glass fiber posts and with 2 different luting resin cements . sixty glass fiber posts ( relyx fiber post ) were randomly divided into 3 groups ( n = 20 ) and were luted with a dual - polymerizing self - adhesive universal resin cement ( relyx unicem ) and with a dual - polymerizing resin cement ( relyx arc ) . this was carried out in association with a dual - polymerizing adhesive ( scotchbond multi - purpose plus ) in simulated plexiglass root canals after receiving three different pretreatment procedures . a pull - out test was performed on each sample to measure bond strengths . data were analyzed with two - way anova . two samples from each group were processed for sem observations in order to investigate the morphologic aspect of the post / cement interface . both resin cements demonstrated significant different bond strength values ( p < 0.0001 ) . the surface treatment result was also statistically significant ( p = 0.0465 ) . sem examination showed a modification of the post surface after pretreatment with methyl methacrylate . the dual - polymerizing self - adhesive universal resin cement achieved higher mpa bond strength values . the use of methyl methacrylate as a surface treatment of glass fiber posts provided a significant increase in bond strengths between the posts and both luting materials .

retropharyngeal abscess is a disease occurring secondary to acute infection of the pharynx1 ) . in young infants , nasopharyngeal infection may be common , but secondary retropharyngeal abscess formation is rare2 ) . in the event that a retropharyngeal abscess does develop , s. aureus is a very common source of superinfection after respiratory viral infection due to bacterial - viral interactions4 ) . it is possible for tuberculous cervical lymphadenitis to extend into retropharyngeal space , as the lymphatics of the upper airway and oropharynx drain into this region . however , mycobacterium tuberculosis is almost never detected from lymph nodes in this age group2,3,5,6 ) . this case report details a 5-week - old boy with a retropharyngeal abscesses coinfected with both s. aureus and m. tuberculosis after rhinoviral infection . a 5-week - old boy was admitted to the hospital due to perioral cyanosis during crying , stridor , and refusal of feeds for three days . one week prior to admission , he developed rhinorrhea and sneezing , which continued to worsen after onset with the development of agitation and mild chest wall retractions . on admission , although his mother perceived a tactile fever , he was afebrile . though stridor was heard during inspiration and the respiratory rate was 60 breaths per minute , his oxygen saturation remained at 100% on room air . due to his stridor , he was diagnosed with croup in addition to the common cold and was treated conservatively with budesonide and epinephrine nebulizer treatments . initial laboratory testing displayed leukocytosis ( white blood cell count 25,030/l ) , thrombocytosis ( platelet count 603,000/l ) , and increased c - reactive protein ( 12.07 mg / dl , reference range < 0.3 mg / dl ) . his electrolyte panel was within normal limits and chest radiograph did not show any lung abnormalities . as bacterial infection still could not be ruled out , ampicillin and gentamicin were administered . in spite of conservative treatment and administration of intravenous antibiotics , follow - up laboratory results revealed that his complete blood count was similar to the first results , but the c - reactive protein had decreased slightly ( 8.97 mg / dl ) . because his symptoms and laboratory results had not improved as drastically as had been expected , we decided to pursue other causes of upper airway obstruction . on hospital day 3 , he had anteroposterior and lateral neck radiographs . the films showed a mass - like bulging lesion in the retropharyngeal area , complicated by severe narrowing of pharyngeal airway ( fig . multi - septated retropharyngeal abscesses and multifocal cervical lymphadenopathy with central necrosis were seen on computed tomography ( ct ) of the neck ( fig . after making the diagnosing of a retropharyngeal abscess , screening tests for immunodeficiency were performed in light of this being such an uncommon diagnosis in this age range . absolute neutrophil count , absolute lymphocyte count , lymphocyte subset analysis , respiratory burst assay , ch50 , and immunoglobulin ( ig ) levels were within normal limits with the exception of an increased ige ( 29.3 iu / ml ) . at follow - up , one day after the ct scan , incision and drainage of the right cervical lymph nodes , needle aspiration , and tissue biopsy from the bilateral retropharyngeal spaces were performed by otolaryngologists under general anesthesia . gram stain and cultures for bacteria and tuberculosis were sent . despite group b streptococcus and s. aureus being the most common pathogens in retropharyngeal abscesses intravenous antibiotics were changed empirically to vancomycin and imipenem to cover methicillin - resistant s. aureus , gram - negative bacteria , and anaerobes . ultimately , methicillin - sensitive s. aureus was isolated from the exudate five days after the procedure . while he was receiving antibiotic therapy , his symptoms mostly improved except for the hoarseness and weakly audible stridor . follow - up laboratory tests also normalized . to assess vocal cord injury after ventilator care the vocal cords were observed to move symmetrically , but there was a slight protrusion of a mass - like lesion on the posterior pharyngeal wall ( fig . follow - up ct scan showed that the abscesses , especially in the left pharyngeal space , still remained ( fig . afterward , pansensitive m. tuberculosis was cultured from the pus of the first procedure using the automated bactec mgit 960 system ( bd , franklin lakes , nj , usa ) . the patient had a history of bacillus calmette - guerin ( bcg ) vaccination but we could n't find any bcg scar on his deltoid . mantoux testing of the patient and all acid - fast bacilli staining from the exudate , cerebrospinal fluid ( csf ) , and morning gastric aspirates were negative . mantoux test and quantiferon - tb test were checked in the mother to determine the possibility of congenital tuberculosis infection and were negative . the antituberculosis drugs isoniazid , pyrazinamide , rifampin , and ethambutol were started . on hospital day 29 , the infant was discharged without any respiratory symptoms . after three weeks , no mycobacteria were cultured from the exudate of the second procedure , csf , or gastric aspirates . ethambutol was discontinued one month after initiation of treatment because of difficulty to evaluate opthalmologic problems . after finishing 6 months antituberculosis therapy ( 2 months of pyrazinamide and 6 months of isoniazide and rifampin ) , he had no residual lesion on the neck ct scan ( fig . 2c ) unusual presenting symptoms such as stridor and cyanosis , along with poor response to appropriate treatment , should prompt an expanded differential diagnosis including congenital malformations such as laryngomalacia , subglottic stenosis , and vocal cord paralysis7 ) . in this case , neck radiographs demonstrating retropharyngeal space widening narrowed the differential diagnosis , and a diagnosis of retropharyngeal abscess and cervical lymphadenopathy ultimately were made using ct scanning . rhinovirus is a major pathogen causing the common cold and leading to other respiratory diseases such as sinusitis , otitis media , pneumonia , and bacterial infection of the oropharynx8 ) . bacteria of one infected node can spread to other nodes , as the lymph nodes in the deep neck space are in communication with one other9 ) . complicating matters is that two species of bacteria were obtained from the exudate of the first procedure . although s. aureus is one of the common pathogens in retropharyngeal abscess formation in this age group2,3 ) , m. tuberculosis is very rare . the most common mechanism of neonatal tuberculosis transmission is postnatal inhalation of infected droplets from an adult with pulmonary tuberculosis infection10 ) . their clinical presentations are usually endothoracic in nature , including hilar or paratracheal lymphadenopathy , lobar infiltrations , atelectasis , and miliary tuberculosis10,12 ) . cervical lymphadenopathy with normal chest radiograph is a rare presentation in this population . in our case , congenital tuberculosis was excluded by performing mantoux and quantiferon - tb test in the mother . his grandmother , one of his close caregivers , had a history of pulmonary tuberculosis treatment 20 years ago , which suggests the possibility of postnatal transmission . tuberculous retropharyngeal abscess formation is a very rare presentation of infection with m. tuberculosis6,13 ) . most reported cases are associated with spinal tuberculosis , also known as pott 's disease6,14 ) ; however , this was not the case in this infant . in those cases , abscesses are the result of direct invasion through the anterior longitudinal ligament of the spine6 ) . tuberculosis of the middle ear can develop as a primary focus by direct extension from the upper respiratory tract via eustachian tube in neonates or infants15,16 ) . but we did n't evaluate it because the baby presented no otorrhea and intact tympanic membrane on physical examination . additionally , m. tuberculosis is a difficult pathogen to isolate . in this case , it was only cultured from one sample of the aspirated exudate . after much research into the matter , this appears to be the first case of neonatal retropharyngeal abscess coinfection with both s. aureus and m. tuberculosis . in the future , one must consider a variety of possible diagnoses if the baby demonstrates an unusual clinical presentation , as was the case in our patient . because it is difficult to isolate , m. tuberculosis should be considered in any case in which infection with the bacteria is suspected and response to appropriate antibiotics is suboptimal .

a retropharyngeal abscess is a rare disease entity in young infants but can develop after nasopharyngeal viral infection . group b streptococcus and staphylococcus aureus are the most common pathogens in young infants , however , mycobacterium tuberculosis is very rare . we report the case of retropharyngeal abscess and coinfection with s. aureus and m. tuberculosis in a very young infant presenting with respiratory symptoms due to upper airway obstruction . usually tuberculous retropharyngeal abscesses are caused by the direct invasion of the bacteria from the spine via anterior longitudinal ligament of the spine . however , in this case , no associated spinal disease was observed .

recently jefferson lab(jlab ) @xcite using a high intensity electron beam of energy 5.767 gev has measured the nuclear dependence of the structure function in some nuclei by studying the ratio r(@xmath3)=@xmath4 , where @xmath5 is the inclusive cross section in nuclei and @xmath6 is the inclusive cross section in deuterium . the experimental results for the ratio r(@xmath3 ) have been presented by them @xcite for 0.3 @xmath7 0.9 and have re - confirmed the older emc results @xcite that the structure function of a nucleon is modified when it is placed inside a nucleus . this experiment shows that the slope of the emc effect does not scale with the nuclear density and therefore the simple models to implement these nuclear effects , based on a or average density fits , for example as described by gomez et al . @xcite , fail to describe the new and precise results for light nuclei . the behavior of @xmath8 can be broadly divided into four categories viz . @xmath9 is the shadowing region , [email protected] is the anti - shadowing region , [email protected] is the emc region and beyond @xmath11 , known as the fermi motion region . theoretically , many analysis have been done to study the emc effect and various models have been proposed and discussed in the literature @xcite . several phenomenological parameterizations for the nuclear parton distribution functions(npdfs ) have been discussed in the literature like the works of hirai et al . @xcite , eskola et al . @xcite , schienbein et al . @xcite which successfully reproduce the nuclear modifications in the deep inelastic lepton - nucleus and neutrino - nucleus scattering . in this work , we study the nuclear medium effects on the structure function within a model based on the theoretical calculation of ref . @xcite with the aim of comparing it with the recent jlab data . the spectral function that describes the energy and momentum distribution of the nucleons in nuclei is obtained by using the lehmann s representation for the relativistic nucleon propagator and nuclear many body theory is used to calculate it for an interacting fermi sea in nuclear matter @xcite . a local density approximation is then applied to translate these results into finite nuclei . the contributions of the pion and rho meson clouds are taken into account in a many body field theoretical approach which is based on refs . @xcite . the model from ref . @xcite has been improved in several ways . the old model used the bjorken limit and assumed the callan - gross relationship for nuclear structure functions @xmath12 and @xmath13 . due to the fact that jlab data have been taken in a region of relatively low @xmath14 ( @xmath15 gev@xmath16 ) we have not assumed the bjorken limit . also , for low @xmath17 and moderate @xmath2 values target mass corrections ( tmc ) might play an important role . we have incorporated them following ref . another difference with respect to ref . @xcite is the fact that for the ratios we divide by the deuteron structure function , rather than the nucleon one . this only implies substantial changes at moderate and high @xmath2 values . we have also considered shadowing because it reduces the contribution coming from the pion and rho meson clouds @xcite . for the numerical calculations , next to leading order ( nlo ) parton distribution functions ( pdf ) for the nucleons have been taken from the parameterization of martin et al . ( mstw ) @xcite . the nlo evolution of the deep inelastic structure functions has been taken from the works of vermaseren et al . @xcite and van neerven and vogt @xcite . in the case of pions we have taken the pionic parton distribution functions given by gluck et al . @xcite . for the rho mesons , we have applied the same pdfs as for the pions as in ref . @xcite . the structure of the paper is as follows : in sect . [ dis_lepton_nucleon ] we introduce some basic formalism for lepton - nucleon scattering , in sect . [ sec : ne ] we analyse the different nuclear effects , in sect . [ sec : de ] we consider the deuteron case and we end by comparing our results with data in sect . [ sec : re ] . the double differential cross section for the reaction of scattering of a charged lepton from an unpolarized nucleon in the one photon exchange approximation , @xmath18 depicted in fig.[fg : fig1 ] is given , in terms of the bjorken variables @xmath2 and @xmath19 , by @xmath20 where @xmath21 and @xmath22 is the energy transferred to the hadronic system . @xmath23 are dimensionless structure functions . in the bjorken limit , i.e. @xmath24 , @xmath25 , @xmath2 finite , the structure functions @xmath26 depend only on the variable @xmath2 and satisfy the callan - gross relation @xcite given by @xmath27 . using this , the cross section of eq.([diff_dxdy ] ) can be expressed in terms of @xmath28 and thus the ratio of cross sections is equal to the ratio of structure functions @xmath29 . even far from the bjorken limit or when one goes beyond the lowest order ( lo ) , where the callan - gross relation does not hold , the ratio of cross sections still equals the ratio of structure functions @xmath29 if the ratio of longitudinal to transverse cross sections @xmath30 does not depend on @xmath31 . there is a considerable amount of experimental evidence supporting this fact ( e.g. fig . 6 of ref . therefore , in the following we only consider @xmath29 and compare directly @xmath29 ratios with cross section ones . the nucleon structure functions are determined in terms of parton distribution functions for quarks and anti - quarks . in this work , for the nucleons we work at nlo and we have used the parton distribution functions ( pdf ) of martin et al . ( mstw ) @xcite . at this order , the expression for the @xmath29 and @xmath32 structure functions can be expressed as functions of the pdfs by @xcite @xmath33 where @xmath34 are the coefficient functions for the quarks and gluons @xcite and @xmath35 represents the quark and gluon distributions @xcite . we have used the local density approximation ( lda ) to incorporate nuclear medium effects . inside the nucleus , when the reaction given by eq.([reaction ] ) takes place , several nuclear effects like fermi motion , binding , pion and rho meson cloud contributions must be taken into account . fermi motion and nucleon binding are implemented through the use of a nucleon spectral function . the relativistic nucleon propagator in a nuclear medium can be cast as @xcite : @xmath36\,,\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath37 and @xmath38 are the hole and particle spectral functions respectively . full details can be found in ref . we ensure that the spectral function is properly normalized and we get the correct baryon number for the nucleus . furthermore , we have also calculated the kinetic energy and the binding energy per nucleon and have found that the theoretical binding energy is very close to the experimentally observed ones for @xmath39be , @xmath40c , @xmath41ca and @xmath42fe . our base equation for the nuclear structure function @xmath43 in an isoscalar target is : @xmath44 with @xmath45 , @xmath46 and @xmath47 is @xmath48 . this expression is equivalent to that of ref . @xcite after trivial algebraic transformations and taking into account the different normalization of the spectral function @xmath49 used in @xcite such that @xmath50 in an earlier study , the behaviour of different nucleon spectral functions has been analysed @xcite . in particular , the spectral functions given by fernndez de crdoba and oset @xcite , kulagin and petti @xcite , and ankowski et al . @xcite were used and compared . it was found that the results do not change appreciably . finally , we should comment that the present formalism has also been used to study the nuclear effects in the @xmath51 structure function @xcite . [ sec : meson ] the pion and rho meson cloud contributions to the @xmath29 structure function have been implemented following the many body field theoretical approach of refs . the pion structure function @xmath54 is written as @xmath55 where @xmath56 the pion propagator in the medium given in terms of the pion self energy @xmath57 : @xmath58^{- 1}\,,\ ] ] where @xmath59 here , @xmath60 is the @xmath61 form factor and @xmath62=1 gev , @xmath63 , @xmath64 is the longitudinal part of the spin - isospin interaction and @xmath65 is the irreducible pion self energy that contains the contribution of particle - hole and delta - hole excitations . in eq.([f2pion ] ) , @xmath66 is given by @xmath67 and @xmath68 assuming su(3 ) symmetry and following the same notation as in ref.@xcite , the pion structure function at lo can be written in terms of pionic pdfs as @xmath69 where @xmath70 is the valence distribution and @xmath71 is the light su(3)-symmetric sea distribution . similarly , the contribution of the @xmath53-meson cloud to the structure function is written as @xcite @xmath72 where @xmath73 is the @xmath53-meson propagator and @xmath74 is the @xmath53-meson structure function , which we have taken equal to the pion structure function @xmath75 using the valence and sea pionic pdfs from reference @xcite . @xmath76 in @xmath77 form factor @xmath78 has also been taken as 1 gev . further details concerning the pion and @xmath53-meson propagator can be found in ref . this model for the pion and @xmath53 selfenergies has been abundantly used in the intermediate energy region and provides a quite solid description of a wide range of phenomenology in pion , electron and photon induced reactions in nuclei , see e.g. refs . @xcite and references in @xcite . in particular , a careful study of the in medium pion propagator used here was carried out in ref . @xcite . there , several tests concerning the fulfillment of sum rules , and the preservation of the analytical properties of the meson propagator and the consistency of the results with similar calculations were considered . in addition , the balance of light - cone momentum between bound nucleons and pions can be studied by means of a momentum sum rule as done in ref . @xcite . the pion @xmath79 and nucleon @xmath80 fractions of the light cone momentum are related by @xmath81 where @xmath82 is the nucleus mass . see section 5.3 of ref . @xcite for details . the sum rule should be valid for a nuclear model where the hamiltonian would contain only pions and nucleons . in fact , our model for the nucleon spectral function is based on a phenomenological approach that also contains many other pieces in the nucleon - nucleon interaction and thus the sum rule is not directly applicable . nonetheless , it can provide further constraints on the size of the mesonic contribution and it will be discussed in the results section . the mesonic cloud contribution is expected to be negligible for deuteron as it depends , roughly speaking , quadratically on the baryon density which is quite small for this case range . thus , its inclusion would have a very minor effect in the ratios . nonetheless , we should mention that our formalism , which starts from selfenergies calculated in nuclear matter , is not expected to be very reliable for the calculation of the mesonic effects in deuteron . ] . therefore , these contributions have not been included in the evaluation of the deuteron structure function . target mass corrections have been incorporated by means of the approximate formula @xcite @xmath83,\ ] ] where @xmath84 , @xmath85 and @xmath86 is the natchmann variable defined as @xmath87 furthermore , we have taken into account the shadowing effect following the works of kulagin and petti @xcite . we are interested in the relative effect in @xmath43 that can be written as @xmath88 where @xmath89 is calculated for the free nucleon . for @xmath90 we use expression 63 in ref . @xcite . the most general expression for @xmath89 , taking into account the target mass is : @xmath91 the difference between dividing by the deuteron @xmath92 or by the free isoscalar @xmath93 structure function to calculate the ratios of structure functions is of only a few percent in the @xmath94 region . however , the quality of data requires a proper description of @xmath92 . on the other hand , our local density approach is not appropriate for such a light nucleus ( or even for @xmath95he ) . therefore , we need another method to calculate @xmath29 in these cases . in terms of the deuteron wave function , @xmath92 can be written as @xmath96 alternatively , a particularly appealing approach because of its simplicity , is the use of derivative expansions that provide the structure function per nucleon of a nucleus in terms of the free nucleon one , its derivatives and a few expected values of nuclear observables @xcite . we can write @xmath97 where @xmath98 is the mean nucleon kinetic energy taken as 11.07 mev , @xmath99 is the nucleon removal energy taken as 2.226 mev , @xmath100 with @xmath101 @xmath102 the average of the square of the nucleon momentum . to include tmc , one must substitute in eq . ( [ ciofi:2007 ] ) the free nucleon structure function and its derivatives by the approximate one given in eq . ( [ f2tmc ] ) . the derivative expansions have some intrinsic limitations and it has been shown that they fail to converge to the results obtained by folding with the nuclear spectral functions for @xmath103 , for the case of medium and heavy nuclei . a detailed study can be found in ref . the convergence is expected to be much better for a loosely bound nucleus such as the deuteron . indeed , @xmath92 obtained using the paris wave function @xcite and the results of the derivative expansion differ by less than 0.6 percent up to @xmath104 as shown in fig . [ fig : f2d ] . in fig . [ fig : f2d ] , we also include for comparison the same ratio from ref . @xcite , which uses a different set of pdf s . we have observed that the main difference with that calculation comes from the inclusion of a parametrization of the off - shell effects ( see dashed - dotted line ) absent in our model . as a function of @xmath2 at @xmath17=10 gev@xmath16 . solid line : derivative expansion . dashed line : eq . [ f2a_deut ] . dashed dotted : eq . [ f2a_deut ] including off - shell effects following the prescription of ref . dotted line : ref . at different @xmath2 values . the theoretical curves are obtained by using eq . ( [ f2a_deut ] ) . experimental data are taken from ref . @xcite.,scaledwidth=75.0% ] our aim in this paper is to confront the model with the recent jlab results of ref . @xcite that correspond to ratios of nuclei with deuteron and more precisely with the slope of the @xmath2 dependence that is more insensitive to the normalization uncertainties . nonetheless , we will also show some results for the deuteron @xmath105 structure function as well as the ratio r(x , q@xmath16)=@xmath106 in intermediate mass nuclei like @xmath41ca and @xmath42fe . at different @xmath2 values . solid lines are obtained by using eq . ( [ f2a_deut ] ) and the dotted lines are the results for the free nucleon case . experimental data are taken from ref . @xcite.,scaledwidth=75.0% ] in fig . [ fig2 ] , we compare the theoretical calculation obtained using eq . ( [ f2a_deut ] ) with the experimental results of benvenuti et al . overall , we find a good agreement in the @xmath2 region relevant for our study . although the data correspond to large @xmath17 values , this gives us confidence in the quality of this approach for the evaluation of the ratios with respect to other nuclei . in fig . [ fig3 ] , we compare our results with data obtained with a muon beam on a deuterium target @xcite . we also show the results for the free nucleon case . the nuclear corrections are very small for the range of @xmath2 values analysed in the experiment . ) = @xmath107 . full model ( solid line ) , without shadowing ( dotted line ) and without pion , rho and shadowing contributions ( dashed line ) . for each value of @xmath2 , @xmath17 has been calculated using an electron beam of 5.767gev and scattering angle of @xmath108 corresponding to jlab kinematics . data are cross section ratios from ref . @xcite.,scaledwidth=78.0% ] one of the most interesting results of the recent jlab data is that for both beryllium and carbon the cross section ratios show a similar slope even when they have a quite different average nuclear density . this conflicts with some simple fits that describe well the slope for medium and heavy nuclei as a function of the average nuclear density or with simple a dependences @xcite . on the other hand , the slope of the ratio in the region @xmath109 is particularly well suited to analysis because from the experimental point of view it is quite unaffected by normalization uncertainties . also theoretically it is relatively simple because shadowing , or fermi motion are of a little importance over this region of @xmath2 . ) = @xmath110 . full model : solid line with @xmath62 , @xmath76 = 1gev ; the band corresponds to @xmath11120% variation on @xmath62 and @xmath76 . full model without pion , rho and shadowing : dashed line . @xmath17 for calculation and jlab data @xcite as described in previous figure . slac data @xcite correspond to @xmath112 gev@xmath16.,scaledwidth=75.0% ] in fig . [ fig4 ] , we show the results for beryllium . the dashed line has been calculated using eq . ( [ f2a_kulagin ] ) with tmc and the solid line corresponds to the full model , including the meson cloud contributions , shadowing and tmc . we show explicitly the effect of shadowing . it reduces the structure function ratio by around 1% at @xmath113 and even less for higher @xmath2 . we have found that tmc has a really minor effect in the ratio for these @xmath2 values ( less than 1% at @xmath114 and even smaller for lower @xmath2 values ) . therefore , the difference between the base curve and the full one comes basically from the @xmath52 and @xmath53 contributions that play an important role . the size of the rho meson correction is about half that of the pion . we find that the full model agrees quite well with data both in slope and the size of the ratio . a good agreement with data is also obtained for carbon as shown in fig . [ fig : ratiocarbon ] . the slope and size of the nuclear effects are similar to the beryllium case . this could look surprising given the quite different average density as discussed in @xcite . this points out to the fact that `` average density '' could not be the appropriate parameter for the description of the emc effect in light nuclei . for example , this has been discussed in sect . iv of ref . again , a determining factor in the agreement is the mesonic cloud contribution . given this , some words of caution are needed here . first , the parton distribution functions are poorly known for the mesons and possible off - shell effects have not been included in the calculation . second , the results depend on the meson selfenergies in the medium that also contain some uncertainties such as the specific form of the spin - isospin interaction , specially for the @xmath53 meson . a full analysis of these uncertainties is out of the scope of this paper . to give an idea of their size , we have shown in this figure the results for the ratio using the full model with @xmath62 , @xmath76=1gev and @xmath62 , @xmath76=1.2gev and 0.8gev . we find that a 20@xmath115 variation in the @xmath62 s , results in a 2 - 3@xmath115 change in the ratio . we have also tested the momentum sum rule discussed in section [ sec : meson ] . the mesons carry a light - cone momentum fraction of 3 percent for @xmath116 gev . the 2 percent prescribed by the sum rule can be obtained for a cut - off @xmath117 gev . this suggests that lower cut - off values should be preferred but one must be careful before reaching such conclusion . for instance , the nucleon momentum fraction is very sensitive to parameters like the expected value of the nucleon kinetic energy that are not very well known and has some uncertainty . we have used the values obtained with our nucleon spectral function . the same results are obtained for @xmath118 . heavier nuclei , such as iron and calcium , have a mesonic momentum fraction of 5 percent and fulfill the sum rule for @xmath119 gev . in fig . [ fig : ratiocarbon ] , the systematic difference in size between jlab and slac data is consistent with the normalization uncertainties quoted in refs . . it may be noted , however , that the slope is very similar for both experiments and in good agreement with our results . these normalization differences have been recently discussed in ref . @xcite . for both nuclei , our results slightly overestimate data by around 2% at @xmath2 around 0.6 and more above that . however , that region is much affected by possible off - shell effects @xcite , not included in our approach , and by high momentum components of the nucleons wave function . therefore , we can not make any strong statement about this discrepancy apart from the fact that we are reaching one of the limits of validity of our model . we have also checked that the use of next to next to leading order pdfs , that considerably lengthens and complicates the calculation , does not appreciably change the results , at the level of precision of the current data and the size of other theoretical uncertainties . there are jlab results even for lighter nuclei like @xmath120he and @xmath95he . our local density model is certainly not adequate for these cases that would require a more microscopical approach for the calculation of a proper nucleon spectral function and of the meson cloud contribution . also , good data for larger @xmath2 values are available . they are particularly sensitive to tmc and to high momentum components of the nucleon spectral functions . in order to analyse these data , further work would be required to extend the validity of the theoretical approach describing the nucleon spectral function . ) = @xmath121 . full model : solid line . full model without pion , rho and shadowing : dashed line . dotted curve is the full result scaled by a factor 0.97 . calculations have been done for @xmath112 gev@xmath16 . the experimental points are taken from ref . @xcite ( averaged @xmath17).,scaledwidth=75.0% ] [ fig7 ] ) = @xmath122 . lines have the same meaning as in fig . [ fig : ratiocalcium ] . calculations have been done for @xmath112 gev@xmath16 . experimental points from ref . @xcite ( averaged @xmath17).,scaledwidth=75.0% ] as a further test , we have also studied the results for the ratio r(x , q@xmath16)=@xmath123 for intermediate mass nuclei like calcium and iron . the results are shown in figs . [ fig : ratiocalcium ] and [ fig : ratioiron ] . in both cases , we have compared with slac results from ref . @xcite , with averaged @xmath17 . no significant @xmath17 dependence was found in ref . @xcite for their kinematic range . the theoretical curves have been calculated for @xmath112gev@xmath16 and we observe little sensitivity to that value . in the case of calcium , our results overestimate the data by around 3% . this is larger than the normalization uncertainties quoted in ref . nonetheless , scaling our theoretical curve , we observe a good agreement with the slope of the structure function . the situation is much the same for heavier nuclei , such as iron . the slope is well reproduced and calculation overestimates again data by around a 3% . similar results are obtained for silver and gold . this overestimation seems to be consistent with the results of recent global fits to the nuclear parton distribution functions ( see e.g. fig . 4 of ref . their results might point out to some normalization uncertainty in the slac results such that the medium and heavy nuclei ratios are too small . however , the recent more microscopical analysis of ref . @xcite that also finds normalization inconsistencies between light and heavy nuclei favours the interpretation that the recent jlab data should be rescaled by a global factor of around 0.98 and that the slac data are correct . we should also mention that the two discussed experiments had significantly different lepton energies and the simple @xmath31 dependence assumed for the @xmath124 ratio could have to be revised . certainly , these normalization issues should be settled with new and better experiments . from the theoretical point of view , it seems that microscopical models are hardly able to reproduce at the same time the high statistic data from light nuclei at jlab and medium and heavy nuclei from other collaborations . in any case , this does not affect the main point discussed in this paper , namely the slope produced by the nuclear effects that is well reproduced in our model . in summary , the electromagnetic nuclear structure function @xmath43 has been studied including nucleonic and mesonic degrees of freedom for a @xmath2 region where shadowing , antishadowing and fermi motion are not too important . we have started from up to date nucleonic pdf . nuclear effects like fermi motion and binding have been incorporated by means of the use of a spectral function obtained for nuclear matter and implemented in nuclei using the local density approximation . a similar approach has been used for the inclusion of the contribution of mesonic clouds . also shadowing and tmc have been considered . the deuteron structure function has been calculated using a derivative expansion and with the paris wave function . the results successfully reproduce recent very precise jlab results for light nuclei at relatively low @xmath17 values . also the slope of previous experiments for heavier nuclei is well reproduced although we fail to agree with them on the absolute size by up to a 3% , larger than the quoted experimental uncertainty . we have found that the mesonic cloud ( basically pion ) gives an important contribution to the cross section ratios but it still has considerable uncertainties . even small changes of the pion nuclear selfenergy can produce appreciable changes in the cross section ratios . the success of this local density model for light nuclei is in contrast with the failure of simple models / parametrizations that fit well for the nuclear effects for medium and heavy nuclei as a function of average density or the mass number @xmath31 @xcite . the use of an approach that incorporates in an adequate manner the nucleon and meson properties in the nuclei is clearly mandatory for the analysis of the emc effect in these cases . this work is partly supported by dgicyt contract number fis2006 - 03438 . we acknowledge the support of the european community - research infrastructure integrating activity hadronphysics2 , grant agreement n. 227431 . one of us ( m. s. a. ) wishes to acknowledge the financial support from the university of valencia and aligarh muslim university under the academic exchange program and also to the dst , government of india for the financial support under the grant sr / s2/hep-0001/2008 . acknowledges spanish ministry of science and innovation for its support via a fpu grant . we also want to thank dr . aji daniel for fruitful discussions and for his interest in this work . j. nieves , e. oset and c. garcia - recio , nucl . phys . a 554 ( 1993 ) 509 . a. gil , j. nieves and e. oset , nucl . a 627 ( 1997 ) 543 . c. ciofi degli atti , l. l. frankfurt , l. p. kaptari and m. i. strikman , phys . c 76 ( 2007 ) 055206 .

we study the nuclear effects in the electromagnetic structure function @xmath0 in the deep inelastic lepton nucleus scattering process by taking into account fermi motion , binding , pion and rho meson cloud contributions . calculations have been done in a local density approximation using relativistic nuclear spectral functions which include nucleon correlations . the ratios @xmath1 are obtained and compared with recent jlab results for light nuclei with special attention to the slope of the @xmath2 distributions . this magnitude shows a non trivial a dependence and it is insensitive to possible normalization uncertainties . the results have also been compared with some of the older experiments using intermediate mass nuclei . structure function , nuclear medium effects , deep inelastic scattering , local density approximation

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Medicare Chronic Kidney Disease Management Act of 2002''. SEC. 2. DELAYING ONSET OF ESRD. (a) Medicare Coverage of Chronic Kidney Disease Patients.-- (1) In general.--Section 226A of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 426-1) is amended-- (A) by redesignating the last subsection as subsection (e); and (B) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new subsection: ``(d)(1)(A) Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in section 226 or title XVIII, every qualified chronic kidney disease patient (as defined in paragraph (2)) shall, in accordance with the succeeding provisions of this section, be entitled to benefits under part A and eligible to enroll under part B of title XVIII, subject to the deductible, premium, and coinsurance provisions of that title. ``(B) No qualified chronic kidney disease patient may enroll under part C of title XVIII. ``(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term ``qualified chronic kidney disease patient'' means an individual-- ``(A) who would otherwise be described in subsection (a) but for paragraph (2) of that subsection; ``(B) who has been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease; ``(C) with respect to whom, a physician certifies that-- ``(i) the individual, under generally accepted clinical standards, will likely need dialysis treatments or a kidney transplant within the two-year period beginning on the date of certification; and ``(ii) the individual may benefit from a program of pre-ESRD services (as defined in section 1861(ww)(1)); and ``(D) who certifies that the individual does not have health insurance coverage.''. (2) Conforming amendments.--Section 1811 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395c) is amended by inserting before the period the following: ``or who are qualified chronic kidney disease patient (as defined in section 226A(d)(2))''. (3) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this subsection shall take effect January 1, 2004. (b) Coverage of pre-ESRD Services.-- (1) In general.--Section 1861(s)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(s)(2)) is amended-- (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (U); (B) by inserting ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (V); and (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ``(W) pre-ESRD services (as defined in subsection (ww)(1)) for an individual who has been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease and, with respect to whom, a physician certifies that-- ``(i) the individual, under generally accepted clinical standards, will likely need dialysis treatments within the two-year period beginning on the date of certification; and ``(ii) the individual may benefit from a program of pre-ESRD services;''. (2) Services Described.--Section 1861 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``Pre-ESRD Services ``(ww)(1) The term `pre-ESRD Services' means any or all of the following services: ``(A) Individual and group nutritional counseling services for the purpose of chronic kidney disease management that are furnished by a registered dietitian or nutrition professional (as defined in subsection (vv)(2)) pursuant to a referral by a physician (as defined in subsection (r)(1)). ``(B) Counseling furnished by qualified health care providers that-- ``(i) provides comprehensive information regarding the management of comorbidities, and the prevention of uremic complications; ``(ii) ensures active participation of the individual in the choice of therapy or therapies; and ``(iii) provides comprehensive information regarding modalities of treatment for kidney disease and end-stage renal disease, including organ transplantation, hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, and home dialysis. ``(C) Counseling, items and services, including tissue typing, furnished by qualified health care providers for preparation of possible organ transplantation. ``(D) Items and services furnished by qualified health care providers for the preparation of vascular access required for dialysis treatment. ``(E) Such other services as the Secretary determines appropriate, in consultation with national organizations representing individuals and entities who furnish pre-ESRD services and patients receiving such services. ``(2) The Secretary shall establish such criteria as the Secretary determines appropriate for qualifications required for individuals to furnish pre-ESRD services under paragraph (1).''. (3) Payment amount.-- (A) In general.--Section 1833(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395l(a)(1)) is amended-- (i) by striking ``and'' before ``(U)''; and (ii) by inserting before the semicolon at the end the following: ``, and (V) with respect to pre-ESRD services, the amount paid shall be 80 percent of the amount determined under the fee schedule established under section 1834(e)''. (B) Establishment of fee schedule.--Section 1834 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m) is amended by inserting after subsection (d) the following new subsection: ``(e) Fee Schedule for pre-ESRD Services.-- ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a fee schedule for payment for pre-ESRD services in accordance with the requirements of this subsection. ``(2) Considerations.--In establishing such fee schedule, the Secretary shall-- ``(A) establish mechanisms to promote the efficient delivery of care; ``(B) establish definitions for pre-ESRD services which link payments to the type of services provided; ``(C) consider appropriate regional and operational differences; and ``(D) consider adjustments to payment rates to account for inflation and other relevant factors. ``(3) Consultation.--In establishing the fee schedule for pre-ESRD services under this subsection, the Secretary shall consult with various national organizations representing individuals and entities who furnish pre-ESRD services and patients receiving such services. ``(4) Coding system.--The Secretary may require the claim for any services for which the amount of payment is determined under this subsection to include a code (or codes) under a uniform coding system specified by the Secretary that identifies the services furnished.''. (3) Permitting dialysis facilities to bill for pre-ESRD services furnished in the facility.--Section 1881(b) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: ``(12) A renal dialysis facility may provide for the furnishing of some or all pre-ESRD services (as defined in section 1861(ww)(2). The facility may submit to the Secretary a claim for payment for such services furnished in the facility, and the Secretary shall not require the facility, or the employee of the facility who is qualified to furnish such services, to apply for a separate provider number for purposes of payment under this title.''.

Medicare Chronic Kidney Disease Management Act of 2002 - Entitles qualified chronic kidney disease patients to benefits under part A (Hospital Insurance) of title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act. Prohibits enrollment of chronic kidney disease patients in part C (Medicare+Choice) of the Social Security Act.

for over 40 years , colorectal cancer incidence has reportedly been lower in west africans than in caucasians [ 26 ] . the prevalence of colorectal cancer in caucasian countries has been linked to hereditary / genetic predispositions and environmental influences like life - style patterns and diet . the adenoma - carcinoma sequence has been suggested to be the final pathway of these links mentioned above . in west africa , the rarity of these colonic adenomata has led to the consideration of a different mechanism by which colorectal carcinoma develops [ 68 ] . this paper intends to review literature that may have relevance to the possible reason for the low incidence of colorectal carcinoma in the native west african . colorectal carcinoma in nigeria , the most populous nation in west africa with 155 million inhabitants , seems to be increasing in incidence . the time trends in common cancers in men from the ibadan cancer registry in nigeria show that , four decades ago ( 19601969 ) , the top five cancers in men did not include colorectal cancer . but , by the last decade , carcinoma of the colon and rectum moved from the tenth to the fourth position . however , studies that have been published from various centres in the country show that the number of patients seen per year with colorectal cancer in each centre ranges from about 6 to 25 [ 1118 ] . each of these centres is a teaching hospital or tertiary health facility that serves populations of about one million to 1.5 million people . in a westernized country like australia , up to 317 new cases of either colon or rectal cancers are reportedly seen yearly . incidence rates in nigeria are put at 3.4 cases per 100,000 compared with 35.8 cases per 100,000 each year in the state of connecticut , usa . a recent study from ibadan , nigeria showed the average annual incidence of colorectal cancer was 27 patients per year . this shows that even if it seems that incidence rates are increasing in nigeria , such rates are still about one - tenth of what is seen in the truly developed countries . this situation seems to prevail in developing countries , especially in africa , and it has been shown in south africa that , in spite of the long - established caucasian - like dietary habits in urbanized south african blacks living in the witwatersrand , they still have a much lower incidence of colorectal cancer than south african whites . the crude incidence of bowel cancer in the south african blacks living in the witwatersrand was assessed as less than one - tenth of the whites living in the same location ( 3.5/100,000/year in blacks to 41/100,000/year for whites ) despite 3 to 4 generations of westernization of the blacks . these caucasian - like diets include grilled meats like steaks , deep - fried chicken , and burger meats which are served in ever - growing and popular western fast - food establishments . in a bid to find reasons and explanations for this observed rarity of colon and rectal cancer in west africans generally and nigerians specifically , this review will concentrate on the following areas . only four cases of adenomatous polyposis have been reported in nigeria in the last 35 years [ 7 , 2325 ] , and two cases of hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer have been reported within the last 15 years . this relative absence of premalignant conditions like adenomatous polyps in the west african has been reported by several authors [ 8 , 12 , 21 , 27 , 28 ] . this lack of a detectable adenoma - carcinoma sequence in africans may indicate a different aetiopathogenesis of colorectal cancer . in addition , the relatively younger age at which africans develop this disease has also been said to be against the adenoma - carcinoma link [ 13 , 21 , 29 , 30 ] . the mean age of patients with colorectal cancer in ibadan was 41 years in a study by irabor et al . , and studies have shown that the age when colonic polyps start to develop is in the late 1940s to subsequently undergo malignant change 1520 years after [ 8 , 20 ] . the incidence of colorectal cancer in nigeria has been estimated to be 3.4/100,000/year . in the united kingdom , comparing the incidence rates for the age of 50 and below , it was found that for those between 4044 years it was 12/100,000/year and 24/100,000/year for ages 4549 . this shows that , even though nigerians have an average life span of 49 years , the incidence of crc is still less than their caucasian counterparts when comparable age groups are scrutinized . nevertheless , one can only speculate whether nigerians would eventually develop adenomatous polyps or have comparable incidence rates of crc if the life expectancy increases to seventy or eighty years . this is one area that has been extensively researched in the epidemiology of colorectal carcinoma . appreciation of the environmental dependence of bowel cancer was noticed from migration studies as one can see the contrast between american blacks , who now have an incidence comparable to caucasians , and that of native africans . indeed , the idea that colon cancer is linked to diet is usually credited to dennis burkitt who reported that colorectal cancer was rare among rural africans . this , he suggested , was because africans had little meat in their diet and instead ate a lot of fibre from fruits , grains , and vegetables . colonic adenocarcinoma is the 3rd commonest malignant neoplasm in societies with western type lifestyle as diet rich in red meat and fat , lacking in vegetables , fruit , and fibre is implicated in colonic carcinogenesis [ 3 , 4 , 8 ] . it is without doubt that countries that consume a lot of meat and animal fat have the highest rates of colon cancer , and this inversely correlates with the consumption of dietary fiber [ 3234 ] . the protection that fibre offers has been shown to be dependent on the type of fibre consumed as many studies have found no protective effect of cereals type fibre and have consistently found a protective effect of vegetable and fruit fiber [ 3438 ] . the typical west african diet consists of a carbohydrate - based bolus type of meal which can not be consumed alone but with soup that is usually vegetable based . in very rural and poor communities , meat is hardly eaten and fleshy fruits may be the lunch or dinner of many . another problem concerning meat intake is the mode of preparation or cooking of the meat . meat cooked at high temperatures contains a class of carcinogens called heterocyclic amines ( hcas ) [ 3840 ] . these are produced when meat is heated above 180c for long periods , and these hcas have consistently been identified in well - done meat products from the north american diet [ 40 , 41 ] . the poor electricity supply in most rural and urban areas in this country ( nigeria ) does not allow proper refrigeration of meat , thus many households deep - fry meat for preservation and consumption . meat grilled or barbecued contains the highest amount of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons ( pahs ) because of the exposure to smoke formed from the pyrolysis of fatty juices that drip down onto the heat source . maybe this may have a role to play in some of the colon cancers seen in these parts . indeed , some authors have alluded to the carcinogenic properties of charcoal - roasted meat called suya in nigeria [ 42 , 43 ] . however , meat intake forms a small part of the nigerian diet , consequently exposure to pahs and hcas is likely to be minimal and not in the magnitude at which caucasians are exposed to these carcinogens . the carbohydrate - based diet of nigerians had been mentioned earlier , and this has been shown to be protective against the development of colon cancer . the human colonic bacteria ferment starch and nonstarch polysaccharides to short - chain fatty acids , mainly acetate , proprionate , and butyrate . butyrate has been found to be a preferred substrate for colonocytes and appears to promote a normal phenotype in these cells [ 44 , 45 ] . resistant starch fermentation favours butyrate production and may be more protective against colorectal cancer than nonstarch polysaccharides which are the major components of dietary fiber [ 4448 ] . also the resistant starch from maize has been shown experimentally to produce more colon - friendly cassava may also , by a different mechanism , be protective against cancer because it contains a chemical called tamarin which is responsible for the production of hydrocyanide . this tamarin has been shown in vitro to cause death of cancer cells by self - toxicity with hydrocyanide . epidemiological data supports the fact that the lowest incidence rates of colorectal cancer are found in india , asia , and africa [ 5053 ] . the typical nigerian stews are hot and spicy with a base of ground tomatoes , red chilli peppers , and onions ( in various proportions depending on the individual or community preference ) which are then cooked in palm oil or vegetable oil till everything blends . this has led to a closer look at these phytonutrients as they are now called and their mode of protection against colorectal cancer . turmeric ( curcumin ) , which is an ingredient in indian curry , has anticancer properties [ 5457 ] . curcumin is diferuloylmethane , and it targets multiple signalling pathways that may protect the colon by decreasing the activity of beta - glucuronidase and mucinase [ 54 , 55 ] . other anticancer properties of curcumin include inhibition of lipooxygenase activity , specific inhibition of cyclooxygenase 2 expression , and the promotion / progression stages of carcinogenesis [ 55 , 56 ] . garlic and onions , which contain diallyl sulphide , were found to suppress cell division in human colon tumor cells . onions have an additional anticancer property as a result of their high antioxidant property ( due to their wide content of flavonoids ) , and they are much more widely used in nigeria than garlic ; indeed , raw onions are commonly eaten with charcoal - roasted meat called suya . all stews and soups cooked in nigeria have onions as essential ingredients . curcumin which is in indian curry is also widely used in cooking in nigeria but not as much as indian cooking . red pepper which is used widely in nigerian cooking has been shown to protect against colorectal carcinoma [ 59 , 60 ] . the main ingredient of red chili pepper is capsaicin , and this is known to cause death of colon cancer cells . increased caloric intake and reduced physical activity seems to be the sign of improved economic development and civilization , and this leads to obesity which is a common ailment in the united states . many studies have shown a link between an increase in body size and colorectal cancer [ 6165 ] . those who indulge in a lot of physical activity have a lower chance of developing colorectal cancer [ 61 , 63 ] . in the developing countries , the level of poverty precludes the luxury of overindulgence in food and ensures continuous physical activity either from farming , manual labour , or self - employment . for in the developing countries , one starves if one does not work . ironically , this has now been seen to reduce the chance of developing colorectal cancer because obesity and lack of physical activity are not as common in west africans in general and nigerians in particular when compared to the population of the united states . interestingly , the malabsorption that this causes has now been hypothesized to be a protective factor against the development of colorectal cancer . this protective factor stems from the fact that malabsorption increases the concentration of fermentable substances reaching the colon and shortens the intestinal transit time . the maintenance of a normal phenotype in colon cells is said to be influenced by short - chain fatty acids , especially butyrate , which are formed in the colon from fermentation of carbohydrates , especially resistant starch [ 44 , 45 ] . supporting this is the fact that short - chain fatty acid production is significantly higher in native africans than in caucasians . asians and africans , as earlier mentioned , have the lowest incidences of colorectal cancer worldwide , and reports have shown that 90% of asians and africans are said to lack the lactase enzyme . in terms of the history of dairying in africa , it was determined that nigeria straddles the boundary between the traditional zones of milking and nonmilking . the fulanis , mainly cattle rearers , who lived in the north were milk users and were found to be lactose absorbers in contrast to the yorubas in southern nigeria who lived in a nonmilking zone and were predominantly lactose intolerant . the prevalence of lactose intolerance has been estimated at 52% for the fulani , 85.9% for the yoruba and ibo , and 76% for the hausa in nigeria [ 69 , 70 ] . majority of south african blacks are lactose intolerant irrespective of tribe of origin , and this is attributed to origination and migration of south african blacks from the west and central african zone of nonmilking . vitamin d and calcium have been shown to be protective against colorectal cancer [ 71 , 72 ] . countries that receive the highest amount of sunshine annually include those in west and north africa , the middle east , and pakistan , and these are the places that have very low incidences of colorectal cancer [ 52 , 53 , 74 ] . thus , geographical serendipity also plays a part in the provision of factors that keep the incidence of colorectal cancer low in west africans . to conclude , one may infer that the explanation why the incidence of colorectal cancer in west africans as a whole and in nigerians specifically remains low is rooted in ( a ) the rarity of adenomatous polyposis syndromes , ( b ) the protective effects of our starch - based , vegetable - based , fruit - based , and spicy , peppery diet , and ( c ) our geographical location which ensures sunshine all year round .

carcinoma of the colon and rectum is the 2nd commonest cancer in the united states ; the leading cancer being lung cancer . it has been estimated that 130,200 new cases of colorectal cancer will be diagnosed annually while 56,300 sufferers will die from the disease ( murphy et al . , 2000 ) . in developing countries especially west africa , the rate has not yet reached such magnitude . this suggests that there may be factors either anthropomorphic or environmental which may be responsible for this . the paper acknowledges the reduced incidence of colorectal cancer in native west africans living in africa and endeavours to highlight the various factors that produce this observation in medical literature . a diligent search through available literature on the aetiology , epidemiology and comparative anthropology of colorectal cancer was done . internet search using pubmed , british library online and google scholar was also utilized . the rarity of adenomatous polyposis syndromes in the native west african contributes to the reduced incidence of colorectal cancer . cancer prevention and cancer - protective factors are deemed to lie in the starchy , high - fiber , spicy , peppery foodstuff low in animal protein which many west african nations consume .

the case subjects described in this study come from a large group of children with hyperinsulinism who were referred to the children s hospital of philadelphia between 1990 and 2010 . the diagnosis of hyperinsulinism was based on previously described criteria : fasting hypoglycemia accompanied by inadequate suppression of plasma insulin , inappropriately low plasma free fatty acid and plasma -hydroxybutyrate concentrations , and an inappropriate increase in serum glucose levels after administration of glucagon injection at the time of hypoglycemia ( 10,11 ) . patients were defined as being unresponsive to diazoxide if hypoglycemia could not be controlled by treatment with 15 mg / kg / day diazoxide for a minimum of 5 days ( i.e. , able to keep blood glucose > 70 mg / dl for more than 810 h of fasting ) . genomic dna was isolated from peripheral blood samples of patients and family members ( 5 prime , gaithersburg , md ) . where peripheral blood was not available , saliva was collected via the oragene dna self collection kit ( dna genotek , kanata , ontario , canada ) and extracted according to the manufacturer s protocol . dna was extracted from surgical pancreatic specimens using the dna / rna allprep kit ( qiagen , valencia , ca ) . the coding sequences and intron / exon splice junctions of the abcc8 and kcnj11 genes were amplified and directly sequenced on an abi 3730 capillary dna analyzer ( applied biosystems , carlsbad , ca ) . resulting chromatograms were analyzed with the sequencher 4.9 program ( gene codes , ann arbor , mi ) . the nucleotides of the abcc8 gene and the translated amino acids were numbered according to the sequence reported by nestorowicz et al . ( 2 ) that includes the alternatively spliced exon 17 sequence ( ncbi accession no . putative mutations were analyzed with mutation prediction software sift ( 12 ) and polyphen ( 13 ) and were also screened in dna from 50 control subjects ( coriell cell depository , camden , nj ) to rule out the possibility of rare polymorphisms . taqman copy number assays ( applied biosystems / life technologies , carlsbad , ca ) were used to test for intragenic deletions / insertions that may have been missed by direct sequencing . real - time pcr was performed on genomic dna using an abi prism 7900ht sequence detection system and analyzed using sds software ( version 2.3 ; applied biosystems / life technologies ) . applied biosystems copycaller software ( version 1.0 ) was used to determine the copy number of each exon in each sample . assays were run in quadruplicate for case subjects with two control samples and a negative control subject for each assay . point mutations were introduced into hamster sur1 cdna in the pece plasmid using the quikchange mutagenesis kit ( agilent technologies , santa clara , ca ) and confirmed by dna sequencing ( 5 ) . cosm6 cells were transfected with wild - type or mutant sur1 and wild - type rat kir6.2 cdna ( in pcdnai ) using fugene6 and subjected to analysis by western blot , immunofluorescence staining , and a quantitative chemiluminescence assay 4872 h post - transfection as previously described ( 14 ) . for these experiments , a sur1 tagged with a flag - epitope at the nh2-terminus ( denoted as flag - sur1 hereinafter ) was used . the flag tag has been shown not to affect channel expression and function ( 15 ) . for western blotting , cells were lysed in 20 mmol / l hepes , ph 7.0/5 mmol / l edta/150 mmol / l nacl/1% nonidet p-40 with protease inhibitors . proteins were separated by sds - page ( 8% ) , transferred to nitrocellulose , probed with m2 anti - flag antibody ( sigma , st . louis , mo ) followed by horseradish peroxidase ( hrp)-conjugated anti - mouse secondary antibodies , and visualized by enhanced chemiluminescence ( super signal west femto ; pierce ) . for surface staining , living cells were incubated with anti - flag antibody for 1 h at 4c . cells were then fixed with cold ( 20c ) methanol for 10 min , incubated with cy-3 conjugated anti - mouse secondary antibodies for 30 min at room temperature , and viewed with an olympus fluoview confocal microscope . for chemiluminescence assays , cells were fixed with 2% paraformaldehyde for 30 min at 4c , preblocked in pbs/0.1% bsa for 30 min , incubated in m2 anti - flag antibody for an hour , washed 4 30 min in pbs/0.1% bsa , incubated in hrp - conjugated anti - mouse for 20 min , and washed again 4 30 min in pbs/0.1% bsa . chemiluminescence was quantified using a td-20/20 luminometer ( turner designs ) following 5-s incubation in power signal elisa femto luminol solution ( pierce ) . functional properties of channels were studied using inside - out patch - clamp recordings ( 14 ) . cosm6 cells transfected with katp channel subunits and the green fluorescent protein ( to identify transfected cells ) cdnas were plated onto coverslips and recorded 4872 h posttransfection using micropipettes with resistance 1.01.5 m. the bath and pipette solution ( k - int ) contained the following : 140 mmol / l kcl , 10 mmol / l k - hepes , and 1 mmol / l k - egta , ph 7.3 . currents were measured at membrane potential of 50 mv and inward currents shown as upward deflections . the mgadp or diazoxide response was calculated as the current in k - int solution plus 0.1 mmol / l atp , 0.5 mmol / l adp or 0.2 mmol / l diazoxide , and 1 mmol / l free mg relative to that in plain k - int solution . to compare the differences in diazoxide and mgadp stimulation between the diazoxide - responsive and diazoxide - unresponsive groups , a nonparametric mann - whitney u test was performed using graphpad instat ( version 3.0b for macintosh ; graphpad software , san diego , ca ) . the study was reviewed and approved by the children s hospital of philadelphia institutional review board . 1 ) , now aged 6 years , was the 1,760-g large - for - gestational - age ( lga ) product of a 28-week pregnancy , delivered by cesarean section . during the pregnancy , the proband s mother was treated with insulin for diabetes resulting from a subtotal pancreatectomy at 3 months of age for congenital hyperinsulinism ( see below ) . hypoglycemia was identified at birth ( blood glucose 21 mg / dl ) , initially attributed to the maternal diabetes . the hypoglycemia remained difficult to control ( maximal glucose infusion rate of 37 mg / kg / min ) . a diagnosis of hyperinsulinism was made based on multiple elevated insulin levels at times of hypoglycemia ( 99 , 94 , and 125 u / ml ) . diazoxide treatment ( 17.6 mg / kg / day ) was begun at 4 days of age but failed to control the hypoglycemia . addition of octreotide ( 33 g / kg / day ) and 1 mg / day glucagon infusion were also ineffective . on day of life 27 , the infant was transferred to the children s hospital of philadelphia for pancreatectomy because of intractable hypoglycemia . at surgery , biopsies of the pancreas were consistent with diffuse hyperinsulinism ( islets in multiple areas showed evidence of nucleomegaly in a small percentage of -cells ) . a 98% pancreatectomy was performed . at discharge , insulin was briefly needed for hyperglycemia , but the proband was subsequently hypoglycemic and able to tolerate fasts of only 6 h. pedigrees of families with dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations of sur1 . black shapes , hypoglycemia diagnosed ; diagonal lines , asymptomatic carrier ; and filled gray , suspected hypoglycemia . four years later , the proband s brother was born weighing 1,000 g , appropriate for gestational age ( aga ) , after 27 weeks gestation . the initial blood glucose was low , 44 mg / dl , and the insulin was elevated , 189 u / ml . this infant also required a high rate of dextrose infusion to control hypoglycemia ( 23 mg / kg / day ) . he was treated with diazoxide ( 15 mg / kg / day for 5 days ) and subsequently with octreotide without improvement of his hypoglycemia . at 10 weeks of age , the proband s mother presented at 3 months of age with a hypoglycemic seizure and required a 95% pancreatectomy for uncontrolled hyperinsulinism . at 5 years of age , she developed insulin - requiring diabetes . she was 20 years of age at the time of her first delivery , and her pregnancies were complicated by poor diabetes control , edema , hypertension , and diabetic nephropathy with proteinuria . direct sequencing of genomic dna from the proband , his affected mother , and younger brother revealed a single heterozygous a478d mutation in exon 9 of abcc8 ( sur1 ) ( fig . genomic dna was isolated from peripheral blood samples of patients and family members ( 5 prime , gaithersburg , md ) . where peripheral blood was not available , saliva was collected via the oragene dna self collection kit ( dna genotek , kanata , ontario , canada ) and extracted according to the manufacturer s protocol . dna was extracted from surgical pancreatic specimens using the dna / rna allprep kit ( qiagen , valencia , ca ) . the coding sequences and intron / exon splice junctions of the abcc8 and kcnj11 genes were amplified and directly sequenced on an abi 3730 capillary dna analyzer ( applied biosystems , carlsbad , ca ) . resulting chromatograms were analyzed with the sequencher 4.9 program ( gene codes , ann arbor , mi ) . the nucleotides of the abcc8 gene and the translated amino acids were numbered according to the sequence reported by nestorowicz et al . ( 2 ) that includes the alternatively spliced exon 17 sequence ( ncbi accession no . putative mutations were analyzed with mutation prediction software sift ( 12 ) and polyphen ( 13 ) and were also screened in dna from 50 control subjects ( coriell cell depository , camden , nj ) to rule out the possibility of rare polymorphisms . taqman copy number assays ( applied biosystems / life technologies , carlsbad , ca ) were used to test for intragenic deletions / insertions that may have been missed by direct sequencing . real - time pcr was performed on genomic dna using an abi prism 7900ht sequence detection system and analyzed using sds software ( version 2.3 ; applied biosystems / life technologies ) . applied biosystems copycaller software ( version 1.0 ) was used to determine the copy number of each exon in each sample . assays were run in quadruplicate for case subjects with two control samples and a negative control subject for each assay . point mutations were introduced into hamster sur1 cdna in the pece plasmid using the quikchange mutagenesis kit ( agilent technologies , santa clara , ca ) and confirmed by dna sequencing ( 5 ) . cosm6 cells were transfected with wild - type or mutant sur1 and wild - type rat kir6.2 cdna ( in pcdnai ) using fugene6 and subjected to analysis by western blot , immunofluorescence staining , and a quantitative chemiluminescence assay 4872 h post - transfection as previously described ( 14 ) . for these experiments , a sur1 tagged with a flag - epitope at the nh2-terminus ( denoted as flag - sur1 hereinafter ) was used . the flag tag has been shown not to affect channel expression and function ( 15 ) . for western blotting , cells were lysed in 20 mmol / l hepes , ph 7.0/5 mmol / l edta/150 mmol / l nacl/1% nonidet p-40 with protease inhibitors . proteins were separated by sds - page ( 8% ) , transferred to nitrocellulose , probed with m2 anti - flag antibody ( sigma , st . louis , mo ) followed by horseradish peroxidase ( hrp)-conjugated anti - mouse secondary antibodies , and visualized by enhanced chemiluminescence ( super signal west femto ; pierce ) . for surface staining , living cells were incubated with anti - flag antibody for 1 h at 4c . cells were then fixed with cold ( 20c ) methanol for 10 min , incubated with cy-3 conjugated anti - mouse secondary antibodies for 30 min at room temperature , and viewed with an olympus fluoview confocal microscope . for chemiluminescence assays , cells were fixed with 2% paraformaldehyde for 30 min at 4c , preblocked in pbs/0.1% bsa for 30 min , incubated in m2 anti - flag antibody for an hour , washed 4 30 min in pbs/0.1% bsa , incubated in hrp - conjugated anti - mouse for 20 min , and washed again 4 30 min in pbs/0.1% bsa . chemiluminescence was quantified using a td-20/20 luminometer ( turner designs ) following 5-s incubation in power signal elisa femto luminol solution ( pierce ) . functional properties of channels were studied using inside - out patch - clamp recordings ( 14 ) . cosm6 cells transfected with katp channel subunits and the green fluorescent protein ( to identify transfected cells ) cdnas were plated onto coverslips and recorded 4872 h posttransfection using micropipettes with resistance 1.01.5 m. the bath and pipette solution ( k - int ) contained the following : 140 mmol / l kcl , 10 mmol / l k - hepes , and 1 mmol / l k - egta , ph 7.3 . currents were measured at membrane potential of 50 mv and inward currents shown as upward deflections . the mgadp or diazoxide response was calculated as the current in k - int solution plus 0.1 mmol / l atp , 0.5 mmol / l adp or 0.2 mmol / l diazoxide , and 1 mmol / l free mg relative to that in plain k - int solution . to compare the differences in diazoxide and mgadp stimulation between the diazoxide - responsive and diazoxide - unresponsive groups , a nonparametric mann - whitney u test was performed using graphpad instat ( version 3.0b for macintosh ; graphpad software , san diego , ca ) . written informed consent was obtained from patients parents for this study . the study was reviewed and approved by the children s hospital of philadelphia institutional review board . 1 ) , now aged 6 years , was the 1,760-g large - for - gestational - age ( lga ) product of a 28-week pregnancy , delivered by cesarean section . during the pregnancy , the proband s mother was treated with insulin for diabetes resulting from a subtotal pancreatectomy at 3 months of age for congenital hyperinsulinism ( see below ) . hypoglycemia was identified at birth ( blood glucose 21 mg / dl ) , initially attributed to the maternal diabetes . the hypoglycemia remained difficult to control ( maximal glucose infusion rate of 37 mg / kg / min ) . a diagnosis of hyperinsulinism was made based on multiple elevated insulin levels at times of hypoglycemia ( 99 , 94 , and 125 u / ml ) . diazoxide treatment ( 17.6 mg / kg / day ) was begun at 4 days of age but failed to control the hypoglycemia . addition of octreotide ( 33 g / kg / day ) and 1 mg / day glucagon infusion were also ineffective . on day of life 27 , the infant was transferred to the children s hospital of philadelphia for pancreatectomy because of intractable hypoglycemia . at surgery , biopsies of the pancreas were consistent with diffuse hyperinsulinism ( islets in multiple areas showed evidence of nucleomegaly in a small percentage of -cells ) . a 98% pancreatectomy was performed . at discharge , insulin was briefly needed for hyperglycemia , but the proband was subsequently hypoglycemic and able to tolerate fasts of only 6 h. pedigrees of families with dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations of sur1 . black shapes , hypoglycemia diagnosed ; diagonal lines , asymptomatic carrier ; and filled gray , suspected hypoglycemia . four years later , the proband s brother was born weighing 1,000 g , appropriate for gestational age ( aga ) , after 27 weeks gestation . the initial blood glucose was low , 44 mg / dl , and the insulin was elevated , 189 u / ml . this infant also required a high rate of dextrose infusion to control hypoglycemia ( 23 mg / kg / day ) . he was treated with diazoxide ( 15 mg / kg / day for 5 days ) and subsequently with octreotide without improvement of his hypoglycemia . at 10 weeks of age , the proband s mother presented at 3 months of age with a hypoglycemic seizure and required a 95% pancreatectomy for uncontrolled hyperinsulinism . at 5 years of age , she developed insulin - requiring diabetes . she was 20 years of age at the time of her first delivery , and her pregnancies were complicated by poor diabetes control , edema , hypertension , and diabetic nephropathy with proteinuria . direct sequencing of genomic dna from the proband , his affected mother , and younger brother revealed a single heterozygous a478d mutation in exon 9 of abcc8 ( sur1 ) ( fig . direct sequencing of the two katp channel genes , abcc8 and kcnj11 , on patients with diazoxide - unresponsive congenital hyperinsulinism seen at the children s hospital of philadelphia between 1990 and 2010 identified mutations in 232 cases . most of these were patients with diffuse disease who were biallelic for recessive mutations or were patients with focal hyperinsulinism who were monoallelic for a paternal mutation . however , in 17 children from 15 families , monoallelic missense amino acid substitutions were found that appeared to be responsible for diazoxide - unresponsive hyperinsulinism through an autosomal dominant mode of expression . as shown in fig . 1 and table 1 , a total of 13 different missense mutations were found in the 15 families . the mutations all affected the abcc8 gene , which encodes the sur1 subunit of the -cell katp channel . these apparently dominant sur1 mutations accounted for 17% of diffuse cases associated with abcc8 mutations and 16% of total diffuse cases with katp mutations . twelve of the mutations were novel ; the s1387f mutation has been previously reported in a patient who was heterozygous for this single mutation and had diazoxide - unresponsive diffuse hyperinsulinism ( 16 ) . we are aware of a third case with the s1387f mutation and diazoxide - unresponsive hyperinsulinism . sift and polyphen predicted that only the q1459h substitution would be tolerated . in 7 of the 15 families ( families 2 , 911 , and 1315 ) , copy number variation assays excluded the existence of intragenic insertions or deletions on the other allele that would have been missed by direct sequencing . mutation analysis of genomic dna isolated from pancreatic surgical specimens ( families 3 , 78 , 12 , and 13 ) confirmed the germline mutation , but failed to detect any postzygotic , second katp mutations . clinical phenotype of patients with dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive sur1 mutations lga , aga , sga = large , appropriate , small for gestational age . table 1 compares the clinical features of the 17 children with diazoxide - unresponsive , dominant sur1 mutations with patients with diazoxide - responsive , dominant katp mutations , and with patients with typical diffuse disease due to biallelic recessive mutations . the majority of the diazoxide - unresponsive , dominant patients were lga , which was similar to the other two groups of patients . the median age at presentation was similar to that of the group with recessive mutations but was earlier than that in the diazoxide - responsive dominant group , suggesting a more severe form of hyperinsulinism . fifteen of the 17 diazoxide - unresponsive , dominant cases required near - total pancreatectomy to control their hypoglycemia ; two patients were treated with octreotide and frequent feeds . all of the 15 patients who underwent surgery had histologic evidence of diffuse hyperinsulinism as evidenced by islets containing enlarged nuclei throughout the pancreas . these include the mother and her two sons in family 2 and two siblings in family 3 . the v715 g mutation occurred in three different , unrelated probands ; in two of these , the mutation was de novo . three of the four parents who carried a mutation were asymptomatic ; however , one of these parents had a sibling with a history of childhood seizures and retardation consistent with symptomatic hypoglycemia ( family 13 ) . two additional case subjects , with the v715 g and g716d mutations , may also be de novo mutations ; however , dna was available on only one of the parents for genetic testing . overall , a dominant mode of inheritance could be confirmed for 5 of the 13 mutations . figure 2 illustrates the predicted location of the dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations in the sur1 protein ( 17,18 ) . most are clustered in the second nucleotide binding fold of sur1 , where many of the known dominant , diazoxide - responsive mutations are also located . several of the diazoxide - unresponsive mutations affect the same or closely adjacent residues that are also affected by diazoxide - responsive mutations ( e.g. , s1384 , s1387 , s1389 , and e1517 ) . however , four of the diazoxide - unresponsive mutations cluster around the walker a and b motifs of the first nucleotide binding fold , in which none of the diazoxide - responsive mutations occur . the v715 and s1387 codons are mutated to multiple different amino acids that cause diazoxide - unresponsive disease . location of dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive ( black circles ) and dominant , diazoxide - responsive ( gray circles ) mutations of sur1 ( 7 ) . secondary structures of sur1 are shown , including the amino ( nh2- ) and carboxy ( cooh- ) termini of the protein , glycosylation sites , and nucleotide binding fold 1 ( nbf1 ) and nucleotide binding fold 2 ( nbf2 ) , which contain walker a and b motifs ( a and b ) associated with regulatory nucleotide binding . functional testing was performed on these dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations in cosm6 cells . first , western blots and surface immunofluorescence staining were used to determine whether the mutant channels were appropriately glycosylated and transported to the cell surface . figure 3 shows an example of one of the dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations , s1387y . the s1387y mutant channels are correctly glycosylated and transported to the plasma membrane surface like wild - type channels and like the dominant , diazoxide - responsive mutation r1539e ( fig . 3a and b ) . 3d ) were evaluated using inside - out patch - clamp electrophysiological recordings . as shown in the representative traces and the averaged response from multiple recordings ( fig . 3e ) , wild - type channels were well stimulated by mgadp or diazoxide in the presence of inhibitory atp ( 0.1 mmol / l ) . by contrast , the diazoxide - responsive mutant r1539e had reduced , although still significant , residual response to both mgadp and diazoxide , whereas the diazoxide - unresponsive mutant s1387y completely lacked responses to mgadp and diazoxide . under the simulated heterozygous expression condition , the diazoxide - responsive mutant r1539e also exhibited better response to mgadp and diazoxide than the diazoxide - unresponsive mutant s1387y ( fig . cosm6 cells were cotransfected with cdnas for kir6.2 and wild - type ( wt ) flag - sur1 , the diazoxide ( diaz)-responsive mutant r1539e flag - sur1 or the diazoxide - unresponsive mutant s1387y flag - sur1 . both mutants exhibit the lower core glycosylated band ( solid arrow ) and the upper complex glycosylated band ( open arrow ) as seen in wild - type , indicating that the mutant proteins are processed correctly like the wild - type protein . b : immunofluorescence staining of surface channels in cosm6 cells transfected with wild - type , r1539e , or s1387y flag - sur1 and wild - type kir6.2 . c : representative inside - out patch - clamp recordings of wild - type , the diazoxide - responsive mutant r1539e , and the diazoxide - unresponsive mutant s1387y show differences in mgadp response . currents were measured at 50 mv in symmetrical k - int solution , and inward currents are shown as upward deflections . patches were exposed to differing concentrations of atp and adp , as indicated by the bars above the records . d : the same as in c except that channel response to diazoxide was compared . e : quantification of mgadp response ( left panel ) and diazoxide response ( right panel ) using recordings shown in c and d. currents were normalized to that seen in k - int and expressed as percentage of currents . responses in both homozygous and simulated heterozygous expression conditions are shown . in the mgadp response graph , each bar represents means sem of 16 wild - type and 46 mutant patches . in the mgadp response graph , each bar represents means sem of 15 wild - type and 46 mutant patches . ( a high - quality digital representation of this figure is available in the online issue . ) table 2 summarizes the quantitative chemiluminescence surface expression and functional testing results for the dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations . however , once at the membrane surface , the responses of the dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations to mgadp and diazoxide were practically obliterated . figure 4 compares the responses to diazoxide and mgadp of channels expressing the diazoxide - unresponsive and the diazoxide - responsive mutations . while there was overlap between the two groups of mutations , the diazoxide - responsive , dominant mutations retained significantly greater responses to effectors compared with the diazoxide - unresponsive mutations ( mgadp , p = 0.0003 ; diazoxide , p = 0.0002 ) . mutant protein biogenesis and activity * compared with the dominant diazoxide - responsive group , p = 0.0002 responses to diazoxide and mgadp of expressed katp channels containing diazoxide - unresponsive sur1 mutations ( black circles ) and diazoxide - responsive sur1 mutations ( gray squares ) are compared . diazoxide - responsive mutations are as follows : a , d310n ; b , r370 g ; c , r1353h ; d , k1374r ; e , g1478v ; f , g1479r ; g , s1386p ; h , r1539q ; i , i1512 t ; and j , e1507k . in this group of children with congenital hyperinsulinism who failed to respond to treatment with diazoxide , we identified 13 mutations of the katp channel that appear to cause diffuse hyperinsulinism in an autosomal dominant fashion . all of the mutations involved the abcc8 gene that encodes the sur1 subunit of the channel . evidence for autosomal dominant expression included one example of transmission from affected parent to affected child and several examples of hyperinsulinism occurring in multiple individuals sharing the same mutation . the clinical phenotype of hyperinsulinism in this disorder is indistinguishable from that of children with the more common form of diffuse hyperinsulinism due to two recessive katp mutations , including onset of symptomatic hypoglycemia at birth and need for surgical pancreatectomy to control hypoglycemia . however , the phenotype appeared to be more severe than that seen in children with dominantly expressed katp mutations that are responsive to diazoxide , as reflected by an earlier median age of onset . in vitro expression studies showed that the mutations associated with diazoxide - unresponsive hyperinsulinism produce sur1 subunits that can form channels with kir6.2 that traffic normally to the plasma membrane similar to mutations associated with diazoxide - responsive dominant disease . however , the diazoxide - unresponsive mutations produced a more severe impairment in the expressed channel responses to activation by diazoxide and mgadp . the thirteen dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive mutations identified in this study are all missense mutations and were primarily , but not exclusively , located in the first and second nucleotide - binding folds of the sur1 subunit of the katp channel ( fig . these mutation sites involve the same regions or , in some cases , the same amino acid residues as many of the dominant , diazoxide - responsive mutations of sur1 , indicating that the two types of dominant mutations can not be distinguished by location alone . it is interesting to note that involvement of the walker a and b sites of nucleotide binding fold 1 appears to be limited to the diazoxide - unresponsive dominant mutations , whereas both types of dominant mutations can affect nucleotide binding fold 2 . ( 9 ) have also described three novel mutations of sur1 associated with diazoxide - unresponsive hyperinsulinism that appear to act in an autosomal dominant fashion . one of these mutations , d1506e , occurred in an affected mother and child , confirming dominant expression . these three mutations were located in the nucleotide binding fold 2 of sur1 . in the current study , seven of the thirteen diazoxide - unresponsive , dominant mutations were also located in the nucleotide binding fold 2 ; however , this was not the only region of sur1 affected by these types of defects ( see fig . 2 ) . it is also interesting to note that , although three of the fourteen diazoxide - responsive dominant mutations that we previously reported involved the kir6.2 subunit ( 7 ) , to date diazoxide - unresponsive defects have exclusively involved sur1 . the important distinction between dominant and recessive missense mutations of the abcc8 gene that cause hyperinsulinism appears to be whether they produce sur1 subunits that can combine with kir6.2 and then be trafficked to the plasma membrane surface . in vitro expression studies of missense mutations of sur1 that act in a recessive fashion show that they interfere with normal surface expression of channels by preventing trafficking of channels from the endoplasmic reticulum to the plasma membrane ( 5,14 ) . in contrast , both types of dominant sur1 mutations , when expressed in vitro , permit the normal assembly of channels and subsequent trafficking to the plasma membrane . once at the surface , the difference between diazoxide - unresponsive dominant mutations and diazoxide - responsive mutations appears to be their degree of residual responsiveness to activation by mgadp and diazoxide . stimulated potassium channel currents were reduced to only 12% of normal in the diazoxide - unresponsive mutations such as s1387y , whereas the responsive mutations such as r1539e retain about 20% of normal channel activities . under simulated heterozygous expression conditions , the diazoxide - unresponsive mutation s1387y also exhibited decreased responses to mgadp and diazoxide when compared with the diazoxide - responsive mutant r1539e , although the difference was not as pronounced ( fig . 4 , however , there was a small overlap between the two types of mutations , making it difficult to differentiate them completely by in vitro expression studies . an interesting feature of the dominant , diazoxide - responsive katp mutations we previously reported was the high frequency of asymptomatic carriers ( 7 ) . this was also true of the diazoxide - unresponsive group , despite the fact that the affected children appeared to be more severely affected , as reflected by their younger age of onset ( fig . 1 and table 1 ) . the diazoxide - unresponsive , dominant mutation case subjects closely resemble patients with recessive katp defects , in which patients with biallelic mutations almost always present in the first days of life . we have encountered one patient with a homozygous , recessive sur1 mutation who escaped detection until 18 months of age , but such examples are extremely rare . because katp channels are hetero - octamers containing four subunits of sur1 and four of kir6.2 , it is attractive to speculate that dominant katp defects act as dominant negatives to impair function of channels containing one or more mutant subunits . using concatemers to express channels containing from zero to four subunits of a mutant sur1 associated with neonatal diabetes , babenko ( 19 ) recently reported that the activation of channel activity increased with increasing numbers of mutant subunits . we previously speculated that the small percentage of channels formed entirely of wild - type subunits might account for diazoxide responsiveness of dominant katp mutations ( 7 ) . however , the present series of diazoxide - unresponsive dominant defects demonstrate that this explanation of spare channels is not sufficient . the reasons for the lack of symptoms in some carriers with dominant sur1 mutations might include nongenetic factors , such as chance exposure to fasting stress or protein meals , or possibly epigenetic modifiers . it should , however , be noted that the sur1 mouse model has only a mild hypoglycemia phenotype ( 20,21 ) , suggesting that genetic deficiency of katp function alone may not be sufficient to always cause readily appreciated symptomatic hypoglycemia . the data strongly support the idea that the single mutations found in the patients in this report all act in dominant fashion . evidence of dominant transmission from affected parent to affected child occurred only once , and the series by flanagan et al . the present series also included several instances in which de novo mutations were associated with disease in multiple affected individuals , consistent with a dominant mode of action . for some of the de novo mutations in our series , there was no additional clinical genetic evidence to support a dominant mode of action . the in vitro mutation expression data , however , provide strong evidence in favor of dominant action for all of the mutations studied ; when expressed with wild - type kir6.2 , the mutations produced channels that trafficked to the plasma membrane but had markedly reduced responses to mg - adp or diazoxide . in summary , these observations expand the range of hyperinsulinism disorders that can be associated with inactivating missense mutations of the -cell katp channel . these missense mutations may be 1 ) recessive , 2 ) dominant and diazoxide - responsive , or 3 ) dominant and diazoxide unresponsive . in our series , the third group made up 17% of the children who required surgery for diffuse hyperinsulinism associated with sur1 mutations . in vitro expression studies may often be necessary for determining which category a mutation fits . because many katp mutations associated with hyperinsulinism are novel , information about the specific functional effect of a mutation is increasingly necessary for accurate genetic diagnosis . the present results suggest that dominant mutations of sur1 may be a relatively common cause of hyperinsulinism in children whose hypoglycemia can not be controlled by usual medical management .

objectivecongenital hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia is a group of genetic disorders of insulin secretion most commonly associated with inactivating mutations of the -cell atp - sensitive k+ channel ( katp channel ) genes abcc8 ( sur1 ) and kcnj11 ( kir6.2 ) . recessive mutations of these genes cause hyperinsulinism that is unresponsive to treatment with diazoxide , a channel agonist . dominant katp mutations have been associated with diazoxide - responsive disease . we hypothesized that some medically uncontrollable cases with only one katp mutation might have dominant , diazoxide - unresponsive disease.research design and methodsmutations of the katp genes were identified by sequencing genomic dna . effects of mutations on katp channel function in vitro were studied by expression in cosm6 cells.resultsin 15 families with diazoxide - unresponsive diffuse hyperinsulism , we found 17 patients with a monoallelic missense mutation of sur1 . nine probands had de novo mutations , two had an affected sibling or parent , and four had an asymptomatic carrier parent . of the 13 different mutations , 12 were novel . expression of mutations revealed normal trafficking of channels but severely impaired responses to diazoxide or mgadp . responses were significantly lower compared with nine sur1 mutations associated with dominant , diazoxide - responsive hyperinsulinism.conclusionsthese results demonstrate that some dominant mutations of sur1 can cause diazoxide - unresponsive hyperinsulinism . in vitro expression studies may be helpful in distinguishing such mutations from dominant mutations of sur1 associated with diazoxide - responsive disease .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Fair Sentencing Act of 2010''. SEC. 2. COCAINE SENTENCING DISPARITY REDUCTION. (a) CSA.--Section 401(b)(1) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841(b)(1)) is amended-- (1) in subparagraph (A)(iii), by striking ``50 grams'' and inserting ``280 grams''; and (2) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by striking ``5 grams'' and inserting ``28 grams''. (b) Import and Export Act.--Section 1010(b) of the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960(b)) is amended-- (1) in paragraph (1)(C), by striking ``50 grams'' and inserting ``280 grams''; and (2) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ``5 grams'' and inserting ``28 grams''. SEC. 3. ELIMINATION OF MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCE FOR SIMPLE POSSESSION. Section 404(a) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 844(a)) is amended by striking the sentence beginning ``Notwithstanding the preceding sentence,''. SEC. 4. INCREASED PENALTIES FOR MAJOR DRUG TRAFFICKERS. (a) Increased Penalties for Manufacture, Distribution, Dispensation, or Possession With Intent To Manufacture, Distribute, or Dispense.--Section 401(b)(1) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841(b)) is amended-- (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``$4,000,000'', ``$10,000,000'', ``$8,000,000'', and ``$20,000,000'' and inserting ``$10,000,000'', ``$50,000,000'', ``$20,000,000'', and ``$75,000,000'', respectively; and (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``$2,000,000'', ``$5,000,000'', ``$4,000,000'', and ``$10,000,000'' and inserting ``$5,000,000'', ``$25,000,000'', ``$8,000,000'', and ``$50,000,000'', respectively. (b) Increased Penalties for Importation and Exportation.--Section 1010(b) of the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960(b)) is amended-- (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``$4,000,000'', ``$10,000,000'', ``$8,000,000'', and ``$20,000,000'' and inserting ``$10,000,000'', ``$50,000,000'', ``$20,000,000'', and ``$75,000,000'', respectively; and (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``$2,000,000'', ``$5,000,000'', ``$4,000,000'', and ``$10,000,000'' and inserting ``$5,000,000'', ``$25,000,000'', ``$8,000,000'', and ``$50,000,000'', respectively. SEC. 5. ENHANCEMENTS FOR ACTS OF VIOLENCE DURING THE COURSE OF A DRUG TRAFFICKING OFFENSE. Pursuant to its authority under section 994 of title 28, United States Code, the United States Sentencing Commission shall review and amend the Federal sentencing guidelines to ensure that the guidelines provide an additional penalty increase of at least 2 offense levels if the defendant used violence, made a credible threat to use violence, or directed the use of violence during a drug trafficking offense. SEC. 6. INCREASED EMPHASIS ON DEFENDANT'S ROLE AND CERTAIN AGGRAVATING FACTORS. Pursuant to its authority under section 994 of title 28, United States Code, the United States Sentencing Commission shall review and amend the Federal sentencing guidelines to ensure an additional increase of at least 2 offense levels if-- (1) the defendant bribed, or attempted to bribe, a Federal, State, or local law enforcement official in connection with a drug trafficking offense; (2) the defendant maintained an establishment for the manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance, as generally described in section 416 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 856); or (3)(A) the defendant is an organizer, leader, manager, or supervisor of drug trafficking activity subject to an aggravating role enhancement under the guidelines; and (B) the offense involved 1 or more of the following super- aggravating factors: (i) The defendant-- (I) used another person to purchase, sell, transport, or store controlled substances; (II) used impulse, fear, friendship, affection, or some combination thereof to involve such person in the offense; and (III) such person had a minimum knowledge of the illegal enterprise and was to receive little or no compensation from the illegal transaction. (ii) The defendant-- (I) knowingly distributed a controlled substance to a person under the age of 18 years, a person over the age of 64 years, or a pregnant individual; (II) knowingly involved a person under the age of 18 years, a person over the age of 64 years, or a pregnant individual in drug trafficking; (III) knowingly distributed a controlled substance to an individual who was unusually vulnerable due to physical or mental condition, or who was particularly susceptible to criminal conduct; or (IV) knowingly involved an individual who was unusually vulnerable due to physical or mental condition, or who was particularly susceptible to criminal conduct, in the offense. (iii) The defendant was involved in the importation into the United States of a controlled substance. (iv) The defendant engaged in witness intimidation, tampered with or destroyed evidence, or otherwise obstructed justice in connection with the investigation or prosecution of the offense. (v) The defendant committed the drug trafficking offense as part of a pattern of criminal conduct engaged in as a livelihood. SEC. 7. INCREASED EMPHASIS ON DEFENDANT'S ROLE AND CERTAIN MITIGATING FACTORS. Pursuant to its authority under section 994 of title 28, United States Code, the United States Sentencing Commission shall review and amend the Federal sentencing guidelines and policy statements to ensure that-- (1) if the defendant is subject to a minimal role adjustment under the guidelines, the base offense level for the defendant based solely on drug quantity shall not exceed level 32; and (2) there is an additional reduction of 2 offense levels if the defendant-- (A) otherwise qualifies for a minimal role adjustment under the guidelines and had a minimum knowledge of the illegal enterprise; (B) was to receive no monetary compensation from the illegal transaction; and (C) was motivated by an intimate or familial relationship or by threats or fear when the defendant was otherwise unlikely to commit such an offense. SEC. 8. EMERGENCY AUTHORITY FOR UNITED STATES SENTENCING COMMISSION. The United States Sentencing Commission shall-- (1) promulgate the guidelines, policy statements, or amendments provided for in this Act as soon as practicable, and in any event not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, in accordance with the procedure set forth in section 21(a) of the Sentencing Act of 1987 (28 U.S.C. 994 note), as though the authority under that Act had not expired; and (2) pursuant to the emergency authority provided under paragraph (1), make such conforming amendments to the Federal sentencing guidelines as the Commission determines necessary to achieve consistency with other guideline provisions and applicable law. SEC. 9. REPORT ON EFFECTIVENESS OF DRUG COURTS. (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report analyzing the effectiveness of drug court programs receiving funds under the drug court grant program under part EE of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3797-u et seq.). (b) Contents.--The report submitted under subsection (a) shall-- (1) assess the efforts of the Department of Justice to collect data on the performance of federally funded drug courts; (2) address the effect of drug courts on recidivism and substance abuse rates; (3) address any cost benefits resulting from the use of drug courts as alternatives to incarceration; (4) assess the response of the Department of Justice to previous recommendations made by the Comptroller General regarding drug court programs; and (5) make recommendations concerning the performance, impact, and cost-effectiveness of federally funded drug court programs. SEC. 10. UNITED STATES SENTENCING COMMISSION REPORT ON IMPACT OF CHANGES TO FEDERAL COCAINE SENTENCING LAW. Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the United States Sentencing Commission, pursuant to the authority under sections 994 and 995 of title 28, United States Code, and the responsibility of the United States Sentencing Commission to advise Congress on sentencing policy under section 995(a)(20) of title 28, United States Code, shall study and submit to Congress a report regarding the impact of the changes in Federal sentencing law under this Act and the amendments made by this Act. Speaker of the House of Representatives. Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.

Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 - Amends the Controlled Substances Act and the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act to: (1) increase the amount of a controlled substance or mixture containing a cocaine base (i.e., crack cocaine) required for the imposition of mandatory minimum prison terms for trafficking; and (2) increase monetary penalties for drug trafficking and for the importation and exportation of controlled substances. Eliminates the five-year mandatory minimum prison term for first-time possession of crack cocaine. Directs the United States Sentencing Commission to: (1) review and amend its sentencing guidelines to increase sentences for defendants convicted of using violence during a drug trafficking offense; (2) incorporate aggravating and mitigating factors in its guidelines for drug trafficking offenses; (3) promulgate guidelines, policy statements, or amendments required by this Act as soon as practicable, but not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act; and (4) study and report to Congress on the impact of changes in sentencing law under this Act. Directs the Comptroller General, within one year after the enactment of this Act, to report to Congress analyzing the effectiveness of drug court programs under the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968.

it is widely accepted that an accreting black hole ( bh ) of an arbitrary size can produce a pair of relativistic plasma jets , which are often observed in various wavelengths from radio to very - high - energy ( vhe ) @xmath0-rays . the most plausible mechanism for powering such jets is the extraction of the bh rotational energy through the blandford - znajek ( bz ) process @xcite . in this electromagnetic process , the magnetic field lines threading the event horizon exert a counter torque on it to spin down the bh , launching poynting - flux - dominated outflows @xcite . indeed , general relativistic ( gr ) magnetohydrodynamic ( mhd ) models show the existence of nearly steady , collimated , magnetically dominated jets in the polar regions @xcite , whose structures are similar to those in the force - free models @xcite . since the centrifugal - force barrier prevents plasma accretion towards the rotation axis , the magnetic energy density dominates the plasmas rest - mass energy density in these polar funnels . even if the axial funnels are almost force - free in this sense , it is the electric current that sustains the electromagnetic power , and it is the charged particles that carry the electric current . that is , even under the assumption of masslessness , it must be the real charged particles that constitute the electric currents . in the direct vicinity of the horizon , causality requires that positive ( or negative ) charges must flow into the horizon when an electric current flows into ( or out from ) the horizon . since accreting plasmas can not easily penetrate into the funnels , and since they can not emit sufficient mev photons that are capable of materializing as electron - positron pairs when the accretion rate is very low , we need a process of plasma supply deep within the magnetosphere somewhere above the horizon . to contrive a plasma source in the vicinity of the horizon , @xcite extended the pulsar outer - magnetospheric lepton accelerator model @xcite to bh magnetospheres , and proposed the bh gap model . extending this pioneering work , @xcite demonstrated that a sufficient electric current can be supplied via copious pair production around super - massive bhs ( smbhs ) . however , the predicted @xmath0-ray luminosity was too small to be detected by any instruments , because they assumed a substantial accretion rate ( as in quasars ) , which leads to a very thin gap width along the magnetic field lines . on these grounds , @xcite and @xcite revisited the bh gap model and applied it the central bh of radio galaxy m87 ( i.e. , m87 * ) and srg a * , adopting a much thicker gap width as large as the horizon radius . their assumption of a thick gap was , indeed , reasonable , because such a low luminosity active galactic nucleus generally possesses a less dense radiation field in the center and hence a geometrically extended gap slightly above the horizon . then @xcite demonstrated that the two - stream instability does not grow in the ultra - relativistic , counter - streaming pairs in bh gaps . subsequently , ( * ? ? ? * hereafter hp16 ) showed that a gap arises around the so - called null - charge surface , on which the gr goldreich - julian ( gj ) charge density vanishes , by solving the set of an inhomogeneous part of the maxwell equations , lepton equations of motion , and the radiative transfer equation . then they applied their bh - gap model to the radio galaxy ic310 , whose central bh ( i.e. , ic310 * ) is accreting plasmas at much smaller rate than the eddington rate . they demonstrated that the gap width becomes as large as the horizon radius when the accretion rate is very low , and that the observed vhe flux during the flare can not be reproduced by their bh gap model , unless the magnetic field becomes much stronger than the equipartition value with the plasma accretions . noting that gr effects most importantly appear in the formation of the null - charge surface through frame dragging , they evaluated the gj charge density general relativistically . however , they neglected the gr effects in any other terms of the basic equations as the first step , because the electromagnetic interaction dominates the gravitational one except for the direct vicinity of the horizon , and because the photons emitted from the horizon vicinity will not strongly affect the emission spectra due to redshift . in the present paper , to further quantify the gap model , we include the gr effects in all the basic equations and calculations , extending the method of hp16 . in the next section , we examine the detectability of bh gap emissions for various bh masses . then in [ sec : geometry ] , we describe the background space time and derive the gr gj charge density in a rotating bh magnetosphere . we then formulate the basic equations of gap electrodynamics in [ sec : accelerator ] , and investigate their emission properties in [ sec : solutions ] . in the final section , we discuss how to discriminate the gap emission from the jet emission . since the gap liberate only a portion of the electromagnetic power extracted from a rotating bh , the upper limit of its luminosity can be given by the blandford - znajek power @xcite @xmath1 where @xmath2 denotes the dimensionless bh s spin parameter , @xmath3 the spin parameter , @xmath4 the bh s angular momentum , @xmath5 the bh mass , @xmath6 the speed of light , @xmath7 the gravitational radius , @xmath8 the gravitational constant , @xmath9 the magnetic field strength in gauss , and @xmath10 . in the present paper , unless explicitly mentioned , we assume that the magnetic buoyancy balances disk gravity and evaluate @xmath9 with the equi - partition value . near the horizon , we obtain @xcite @xmath11 where @xmath12 refers to the dimensionless accretion rate near the horizon and is defined as @xmath13 ; @xmath14 denotes the mass accretion rate , @xmath15 , @xmath16 , and @xmath17 @xcite . substituting @xmath18 into equation ( [ eq : l_bz ] ) , we obtain @xmath19 the magnetosphere becomes force - free , that is , an electric field does not arise along the magnetic field lines , if the pair density exceeds the gj value , @xmath20 , where @xmath21 denotes the angular frequency of the magnetic field and @xmath22 the magnitude of the charge on the electron . in the vicinity of an accreting bh , a plasma accretion becomes radiatively inefficient when the accretion rate typically reduces to @xmath23 @xcite . from such a radiatively inefficient accretion flow ( riaf ) , mev photons are emitted via free - free process , colliding each other to materialize as electron - positron pairs in the magnetosphere . if the number density , @xmath24 , of such created pairs becomes less than @xmath25 , charges can not completely screen an electric field , @xmath26 , along the magnetic field line ; that is , a gap ( i.e. , a charge - starved region ) appears . the riaf theory gives @xmath24 as a function of @xmath5 and @xmath12 @xcite . thus , putting @xmath27 , we obtain a condition for a gap to appear , @xmath28 in figure [ fig : mdot ] , we plot this upper limit , @xmath29 as the thick solid line . the dotted lines denote @xmath30 ( eq . [ [ eq : l_bz_2 ] ] ) as labeled . the crossing of the solid line and a dotted line gives the blandford - znajek power at each bh mass . for example , the thick solid line and the dotted line labeled @xmath31 cross at @xmath32 ; thus , we find that a super - massive bh with @xmath32 has a gap whose luminosity can attain up to @xmath33 . , versus black hole mass , @xmath5 . the thick solid line shows the upper limit of @xmath12 above which the copious pair production by the riaf emission prevents the formation of a gap ( and ensures the force - free magnetosphere ) . the filled circles , open circles , and open squares denote the solved lower limits of @xmath12 ( [ sec : general ] ) for @xmath34 , @xmath35 , and @xmath36 , respectively . the thin dashed line shows a linear fit of the filled circles , @xmath37 . the dotted lines show the extracted power from the black hole ( eq . [ eq : l_bz ] ) for an extremely rotating case , @xmath38 . for the explanation of the red - graded region , see the end of [ sec : smbh ] . [ fig : mdot ] ] to consider the case of an efficient energy extraction from a bh , we assume @xmath39 unless explicitly mentioned . substituting @xmath40 into equation ( [ eq : l_bz_2 ] ) , we then obtain the maximum gap luminosity @xmath41 assuming that 100 % of this power is converted into radiation , we obtain the upper limit of its flux at earth , @xmath42 , where @xmath43 is the distance to the bh . for stellar - mass bhs , we obtain the flux upper limit , @xmath44 as will be seen in [ sec : stellar ] , the gap emission spectrum peaks between gev and 10 gev for @xmath45 . thus , if a small portion of this bz power ( e.g. , @xmath46 % ) is dissipated in the gap , we can expect a large time - averaged high - energy ( he ) flux ( e.g. , @xmath47 ) that is detectable with _ fermi_/lat . there is another component , which is formed by the inverse - compton ( ic ) scatterings , appears in vhe . this component may be detectable with ground - based , imaging atmospheric cherenkov telescopes ( iact ) . note that equation ( [ eq : f_bz ] ) merely gives the upper limit , and that the actual photon flux can be obtained when we solve the gap electrodynamics from the basic equations . will will examine this issue in [ sec : stellar ] . for intermediate - mass bhs ( imbhs ) , we obtain the maximum flux of @xmath48 where @xmath49 . the spectrum has two peaks : the curvature photons peak in 1 - 10 gev and the ic ones above tev . both spectral components are potentially detectable in he and vhe , if an imbh is located within our galaxy . we will examine this possibility in [ sec : imbh ] . for supermassive bhs , we obtain the maximum flux of @xmath50 where @xmath51 . the ic component , which appears in vhe , may be detectable with iact . we will examine this possibility in [ sec : smbh ] . the self - gravity of the plasma particles and the electromagnetic field little affects the space - time geometry . thus , around a rotating bh , the background geometry is described by the kerr metric @xcite . in the boyer - lindquist coordinates , it becomes @xcite @xmath52 where @xmath53 @xmath54 @xmath55 , @xmath56 , @xmath57 . at the event horizon , @xmath58 vanishes , giving @xmath59 as the horizon radius . if the bh is extremely rotating ( i.e. , if @xmath60 ) for instance , we obtain @xmath61 . in a stationary and axisymmetric space time ( as described by eq . [ eq : metric ] ) , the gauss s law becomes @xmath62 = \frac{4\pi}{c^2 } \rho , \label{eq : poisson_1}\ ] ] where @xmath63 denotes the covariant derivative , the greek indices run over @xmath64 , @xmath65 , @xmath66 , @xmath67 ; @xmath68 and @xmath69 , @xmath70 the real charge density . the electromagnetic fields are observed by an observer that is static with respect to asymptotic infinity , and are given by @xcite @xmath71 , @xmath72 , where @xmath73 and @xmath74 denotes the vector potential . in this paper , we assume that the electromagnetic fields ( i.e. , all components of the faraday tensor , @xmath75 ) depend on @xmath64 and @xmath67 through @xmath76 . in this case , we can introduce the non - corotational potential @xmath77 such that @xmath78 if @xmath79 holds for @xmath80 and @xmath66 , @xmath81 is conserved along the field line . however , in a particle acceleration region , @xmath82 deviates from @xmath83 and the magnetic field does not rigidly rotate . the deviation from rigid rotation is expressed in terms of @xmath77 , which gives the strength of the acceleration electric field measured by an observer that is static to asymptotic infinity as @xmath84 where the latin index @xmath85 runs over spatial coordinates @xmath65 , @xmath66 , @xmath67 . note that @xmath86 . substituting eq . ( [ eq : def_phi ] ) into ( [ eq : poisson_1 ] ) , we obtain the poisson equation for the non - corotational potential , @xmath87 where the gr goldreich - julian charge density is defined as @xmath88 . \label{eq : def_gj}\ ] ] in the limit @xmath89 , equation ( [ eq : def_gj ] ) reduces to the ordinary , special - relativistic expression @xcite , @xmath90 therefore , the corrections due to magnetospheric currents , which are expressed by the second term of eq . ( [ eq : def_rhogj_1 ] ) , are included in equation ( [ eq : def_gj ] ) . in addition to @xmath75 and @xmath77 , @xmath70 may also depend on @xmath64 and @xmath67 only through @xmath76 . in this case , equation ( [ eq : pois ] ) gives a stationary gap solution in the co - rotational frame , in the sense that @xmath77 and @xmath70 are a function of @xmath65 , @xmath66 , and @xmath76 . note that such stationary solutions are valid not only between the two light surfaces ( i.e. , where @xmath91 ) , but also inside the inner light surface and outside the outer light surface ( i.e. , where @xmath92 ) . equation ( [ eq : pois ] ) shows that @xmath93 is exerted along @xmath94 if @xmath70 deviates from @xmath95 in any region . in the close vicinity of the inner and outer boundaries , we can neglect the trans - field derivatives to obtain @xmath96 . thus , @xmath97 , and hence @xmath98 must have different signs at the two boundaries so that the gap may be closed . in a nearly vacuum gap , @xmath99 shows that @xmath95 should change sign within the gap . therefore , a gap should appear around the null - charge surface , where @xmath95 vanishes . the null surface is , therefore , a natural place for a particle accelerator ( i.e. , a gap ) to arise , in the same way as pulsar vacuum gap models @xcite . it should be noted that the null surface appears * near * the place where @xmath21 coincides with the space - time dragging angular frequency , @xmath100 @xcite . the deviation of the null surface from this @xmath101 surface is , indeed , small , as figure 1 of @xcite indicates . since @xmath100 matches @xmath21 only near the horizon , the null surface , and hence the gap generally appears within one or two gravitational radii above the horizon , irrespective of the bh mass . in this section , we formulate the bh - gap electrodynamics , extending the method described in @xcite and hp16 . throughout this paper , we assume an aligned rotator in the sense that the magnetic axis coincides with the rotational axis of the bh , and seek an axisymmetric solution . as described in hp16 , a stationary bh gap is formed around the null surface , as long as the injected current density across the inner or outer boundaries is much small compared to the gj value . since the null surface is formed by the frame - dragging effect , the gap electrodynamics is essentially governed by the frame - dragging effect rather than the magnetic field configurations . this forms a striking contrast to the pulsar outer - magnetospheric gap model , in which the null surface is formed by the convex geometry of the poloidal magnetic field lines . thus , in a bh magnetosphere , the gap position and its spatial extent , as well as the exerted @xmath102 in the gap , little depend on the magnetic flux function , @xmath103 . we thus assume a radial magnetic field on the poloidal plane , @xmath104 . because of axial symmetry , the gap electrodynamic structure can be described in the poloidal plane . for simplicity , we assume that the photons propagate radially in this 2-d plane , which is justified if the photons have negligible angular momenta . provided that the drift motion ( e.g. , due to toroidal radiation drag in a radial magnetic field , or due to radial gravity in a toroidal magnetic field ) is small in the meridional direction , charged particles roughly move along the magnetic field lines in the poloidal plane . in this case , due to relativistic beaming , ultra - relativistic particles emit photons along the instantaneous magnetic field lines ; thus , as long as the poloidal magnetic field is radial , photons propagate on the same magnetic flux surface , @xmath105 . as a result , we can solve the particle equations of motion and the radiative transfer equation along individual radial poloidal magnetic field lines separately . even when the magnetic field lines are radial in the poloidal plane , there exists a toroidal magnetic component , @xmath106 , due to retardation , magnetospheric currents , and a frame dragging . it is , however , out of the scope of this paper to restrict the functional form of @xmath107 , taking account of such effects . in addition , @xmath106 does not affect @xmath95 or the propagation direction of particles and photons in the poloidal plane . thus , we do not specify @xmath106 . accordingly , instead of computing the curvature radius , @xmath108 , of the leptons from their 3-d motion in the rotating magnetosphere , we parameterize @xmath108 when we calculate the curvature emission . although @xmath108 affects the spectral shape of curvature emission , it little affects the total luminosity , because the latter is essentially determined by the potential drop within the gap , and because the potential drop is determined by the gap width , which is in turn predominantly determined by the pair production rate of the ic - emitted , vhe photons ( not the curvature - emitted , lower energy photons ) . on these grounds , we adopt @xmath109 in the present paper , leaving @xmath106 unconstrained . in the same way as hp16 , we solve the stationary gap solution from the set of the poisson equation for @xmath77 , the equations of motion for electrons and positrons , and the radiative transfer equation for the emitted photons . to solve the radial dependence of @xmath77 in the poisson equation ( [ eq : pois ] ) , we introduce the following dimensionless tortoise coordinate , @xmath110 , @xmath111 in this coordinate , the horizon corresponds to the inward infinity , @xmath112 . in this paper , we set @xmath113 at @xmath114 , where the value of @xmath115 can be chosen arbitrarily and does not affect the results in any ways . the distribution of @xmath110 is depicted as a function of @xmath116 in figure [ fig : tortois ] . note that the relationship between @xmath110 and @xmath65 does not depend on the colatitude , @xmath66 . since the gap is located near the horizon , we take the limit @xmath117 . assuming that @xmath77 does not depend on @xmath76 , that is , @xmath118 , we can recast the poisson equation ( [ eq : pois ] ) into the two - dimensional form , @xmath119 where @xmath120 denotes the dimensionless non - corotational potential . dimensionless lepton densities per magnetic flux tube are defined by @xmath121 where the number densities of positrons and electrons , @xmath122 and @xmath123 , are computed from the pair production rate at each position @xcite . dimensionless gj charge density per magnetic flux tube is defined by @xmath124 for a radial poloidal magnetic field , @xmath104 , we can compute the acceleration electric field by @xmath125 without loss of any generality , we can assume @xmath126 in the northern hemisphere . in this case , a negative @xmath26 arises in the gap , which is consistent with the direction of the global current flow pattern . equation ( [ eq : def_gj ] ) shows that @xmath95 is essentially determined by @xmath127 , rather than @xmath128 , near the horizon . in a stationary and axisymmetric magnetosphere , equation ( [ eq : def_gj ] ) becomes @xmath129 where @xmath130 . since @xmath8 , @xmath131 , and @xmath132 are well - behaved at the horizon , we find that the second term dominates the first one at @xmath133 . therefore , although the null surface itself is formed by the _ frame - dragging _ effect , the radial component of the magnetic field essentially determines @xmath95 near the horizon owing to the _ redshift _ effect . we next consider @xmath134 and @xmath135 in equation ( [ eq : pois_3 ] ) . because of @xmath136 , electrons are accelerated outwards , while positrons inwards . as s result , as long as there is no current injection across either outer or inner boundaries , charge density , @xmath137 , becomes negative ( or positive ) at the outer ( or inner ) boundary . in a stationary gap , @xmath26 should not change sign in it . in a vacuum gap , a positive ( or a negative ) @xmath138 near the outer ( or inner ) boundary makes @xmath139 ( or @xmath140 ) , thereby closing the gap . in a non - vacuum gap , the right - hand side of equation ( [ eq : pois_3 ] ) should become positive ( or negative ) near the outer ( or inner ) boundary so that the gap may be closed . therefore , @xmath141 should not exceed @xmath142 at either boundary . at the outer boundary , for instance , we can put @xmath143 where the dimensionless parameter @xmath144 should be in the range , @xmath145 , so that the gap solution may be stationary . since @xmath126 is assumed , it is enough to consider a positive @xmath144 . if @xmath146 , there is no surface charge at the outer boundary . however , if @xmath147 , the surface charge results in a jump of @xmath97 at the outer boundary . that is , the parameter @xmath144 specifies the strength of @xmath97 at the outer boundary . thus , the inner boundary position , @xmath148 , is determined as a free boundary problem by this additional constraint , @xmath144 . the outer boundary position , @xmath149 , or equivalently the gap width @xmath150 , is constrained by the gap closure condition ( [ sec : closure ] ) . it is noteworthy that the charge conservation ensures that the dimensionless current density ( per magnetic flux tube ) , @xmath151 conserves along the flowline . at the outer boundary , we obtain @xmath152 thus , @xmath144 specifies not only @xmath97 at the outer boundary , but also the conserved current density , @xmath153 . in general , under a given electro - motive force exerted in the ergosphere , @xmath153 should be constrained by the global current flow pattern , which includes an electric load at the large distances where the force - free approximation breaks down and the trans - magnetic - field current gives rise to the outward acceleration of charged particles by lorentz forces ( thereby converting the poynting flux into particle kinetic energies ) . however , we will not go deep into the determination of @xmath153 in this paper , because we are concerned with the acceleration processes near the horizon , not the global current closure issue . note that @xmath154 ( or @xmath155 ) is essentially determined by @xmath12 ; thus , @xmath144 and @xmath12 give the actual current density @xmath156 , where @xmath9 should be evaluated at each position . on these grounds , instead of determining @xmath153 by a global requirement , we treat @xmath144 as a free parameter in the present paper . it may be worth mentioning , in passing , that we may not have to consider a time - dependent solution , which may be obtained when @xmath157 as in pulsar polar - cap models @xcite . in the polar cap model , the absence of the null surface results in a non - stationary gap solution @xcite . however , in the pulsar outer gap models @xcite or in the present bh gap model , the existence of the null surface leads to a formation of a stationary gap around this surface . we thus adopt @xmath145 and consider a stationary gap solution . let us describe the motion of electrons and positrons . for simplicity , we assume that the distribution functions of electrons and positrons are mono - energetic . we evaluate the lorentz factors of electrons ( or positron ) by the motion of a test particle injected across the inner ( or the outer ) boundary of the gap . for example , an injected test electron is accelerated by a negative @xmath26 outwards and loses the kinetic energy via curvature and ic processes . the former , curvature radiation rate ( per particle ) is computed by the standard synchrotron emission formula with the gyration radius replaced with @xmath108 @xcite . the latter , ic radiation rate is computed by multiplying the scattering probability ( per unit time ) and the scattered photon energy . thus , the particle lorentz factor saturates at the curvature- or ic - limited value , whichever smaller . throughout this paper , we assume that all photons are emitted with vanishing angular momenta . in this case , photons propagate on a constant-@xmath66 surface ; thus , the radiative transfer equation is solved one - dimensionally along the radial magnetic field lines on the poloidal plane . these primary leptons emit photons via curvature and ic processes both inside and outside the gap . for the details of how to compute the emissivities of curvature and ic processes , see 4.2 and 4.3 of hp16 . some portions of the photons are emitted above 10 tev via ic process . a significant fraction of such hard @xmath0-rays are absorbed , colliding with the riaf soft photons . if such collisions take place within the gap , the created electrons and positrons polarize to be accelerated in opposite directions , becoming the primary leptons . if the collisions take place outside the gap , the created , secondary pairs migrate along the magnetic filed lines to emit photons via ic and synchrotron processes . some of such secondary ic photons are absorbed again to materialize as tertiary pairs , which emit tertiary photons via synchrotron and ic processes , eventually cascading into higher generations . as a representative model of the riaf , we adopt the analytic solution of the advection - dominated accretion flow ( adaf ) obtained by @xcite . we assume that the adaf soft photon specific intensity is isotropic in the zero - angular - momentum observer ( zamo ) . this assumption simplifies the calculations of photon - photon pair production and ic scatterings , because photons are assumed to be emitted by leptons with vanishing angular momenta . to calculate the flux of adaf photons , we assume that their number density is homogeneous and becomes @xmath158 within @xmath159 , where @xmath160 denotes the adaf luminosity given by @xcite . we assume that the adaf luminosity becomes @xmath160 at @xmath161 . outside this radius , @xmath162 , we assume that their number density decreases by @xmath163 law . this treatment may be justified , because the submillimeter - ir photons , which most effectively work both for pair production and ic scatterings , are emitted from the inner - most region of the adaf . we solve the gap in the 2-d poloidal plane . we assume a reflection symmetry with respect to the magnetic axis . thus , we put @xmath164 at @xmath165 . we assume that the polar funnel is bounded at a fixed colatitude , @xmath166 and impose that this lower - latitude boundary is equi - potential and put @xmath167 at @xmath166 . both the outer and inner boundaries are treated as free boundaries . their positions are determined by the two conditions , the value of @xmath144 along each magnetic field line ( specified by @xmath168 ) , and the gap closure condition ( to be described in [ sec : closure ] ) . for simplicity , we assume that @xmath144 is constant for @xmath168 . at the outer boundary , @xmath169 is specified by @xmath144 . at the inner boundary , we impose @xmath170 . we assume that electrons , positrons or photons are not injected across either the outer or the inner boundaries . the set of poisson and radiative - transfer equations are solved together with the terminal lorentz factor @xmath0 and the @xmath171 obtained by the local pair production rate . unlike hp16 , we discard the reflection symmetry ( along radial magnetic field lines ) with respect to the null - charge surface , and explicitly consider the asymmetric distribution of @xmath26 , @xmath0 and @xmath171 , and the photon specific intensity at each point @xmath65 . accordingly , the gap closure condition should be modified as @xmath172 , where @xmath173 and @xmath174 denote the multiplicity ( eq . [ 41 ] of hp16 ) associated with the in - going and out - going leptons , respectively . see @xcite for a detailed treatment of the asymmetric multiplicities , @xmath175 . in [ sec : detect ] , we examined the upper limits of the bh gap luminosity , imposing the charge - starvation condition ( eq . [ [ eq : mdot_up ] ] ) that requires the adaf to be less luminous so that their mev photons may not produce pairs above the gj density . in this section , solving the gap electrodynamics by the method described in [ sec : accelerator ] for various bh masses , we demonstrate that the gap becomes most luminous when the gap longitudinal width becomes much greater than the horizon radius , and that there is a lower - limit accretion rate below which a stationary pair - production cascade can not be maintained within the gap . throughout this paper , we assume a radial poloidal magnetic field , @xmath176 . the magnitude of @xmath168 is adjusted so that @xmath18 ( eq . [ [ eq : b_eq ] ] ) may be satisfied at @xmath177 . assuming that the poloidal magnetic components dominate the toroidal one , we put @xmath178 and compute the synchrotron emission outside the gap . unless explicitly mentioned , we adopt @xmath179 , @xmath180 , @xmath181 , @xmath182 , and @xmath109 . to solve the poisson equation ( [ eq : pois_3 ] ) , we set the meridional boundary at @xmath183 . we assume that the entire system is axisymmetric with respect to the rotation axis , which coincides with the magnetic axis . let us first examine the case of @xmath184 . we begin with describing the 2-d distribution of the @xmath26 in [ sec : stellar_e2d ] , and demonstrate that the gap emission becomes strongest within the colatitude , @xmath185 along the magnetic axis in [ sec : stellar_sed_theta ] . then in [ sec : stellar_density] [ sec : stellar_ell ] , we examine the lepton densities and acceleration electric field . adopting a distance of @xmath186 kpc , we present the expected spectra of gap emissions in [ sec : stellar_sed ] , and examine its dependence on @xmath144 , @xmath187 , and @xmath21 in [ sec : stellar_current][sec : stellar_omegaf ] . finally , in [ sec : stellar_cascaded ] , we demonstrate that the magnetosphere becomes entirely force - free ( except for the gap region ) by the cascaded pairs outside the gap . we first present the distribution of the magnetic - field - aligned electric field on the poloidal plane . in figure [ fig : e2d_1e1 ] , we plot @xmath26 ( in statvolt @xmath188 ) as a function of the dimensionless tortoise coordinate , @xmath110 , and the magnetic colatitude , @xmath66 ( in degrees ) , for @xmath189 . we also plot @xmath26 at six discrete colatitudes in figure [ fig : e2d_th_1e1 ] . it follows that the @xmath190 distribution little changes in the polar region within @xmath191 . ) on the poloidal plane . the abscissa denotes the magnetic colatitudes , @xmath66 , in degrees , where @xmath83 ( i.e. , the ordinate ) corresponds to the magnetic axis . the ordinate denotes the dimensionless tortoise coordinate , where @xmath192 corresponds to the event horizon . the gap is solved for a black hole with @xmath184 and @xmath39 . dimensionless accretion rate is chosen to be @xmath193 . [ fig : e2d_1e1 ] ] , as a function of the dimensionless tortoise coordinate , @xmath110 , for @xmath193 . the values of @xmath194 in figure [ fig : e2d_1e1 ] is plotted at six discrete @xmath66 s : the black solid , green dashed , blue dashed , magenta dotted , red dash - dotted , and purple dash - dotted curves denote the @xmath26 at @xmath195 , @xmath196 , @xmath197 , @xmath198 , @xmath199 , and @xmath200 , respectively . [ fig : e2d_th_1e1 ] ] we next compare the @xmath0-ray spectra of a bh gap emission as a function of the colatitude , @xmath66 . in figure [ fig : sed_th_1e1 ] , we compare the seds at the same six discrete @xmath66 s as in figure [ fig : e2d_th_1e1 ] . it follows that the gap emission becomes most luminous if we observe the gap with a viewing angle @xmath185 . this conclusion is unchanged if we adopt different bh masses or spins . in what follows , we therefore adopt @xmath165 as the representative colatitude to estimate the maximum @xmath0-ray flux of bh gaps . , at a distance of 1 kpc . the gap is solved for a black hole with @xmath184 and @xmath39 . the dimensionless accretion rate is fixed at @xmath193 . the six lines correspond to the same @xmath66 s as in figure [ fig : e2d_th_1e1 ] . [ fig : sed_th_1e1 ] ] we plot the solved lepton densities at five discrete @xmath12 in figure [ fig : crtd_1e1 ] . since @xmath26 is negative , electrons are accelerated outwards while positrons inwards . thus , the dimensionless electronic density ( solid curve ) , @xmath134 , per magnetic flux tube , increases outwards , while the positronic one ( dashed curve ) , @xmath135 , decreases outwards . note that the abscissa , @xmath201 , is converted from the tortoise coordinate to the boyer - lindquist radial coordinate for presentation purpose . thus , @xmath202 corresponds to the null - charge surface . these solved @xmath203 are used to compute the real charge density @xmath204 at each position , which is necessary to solve @xmath26 on the poloidal plane . we continue iterations until @xmath205 , @xmath194 , and the photon specific intensity saturate . , from the null - charge surface , in the boyer - lindquist radial coordinate ( in @xmath206 unit ) . the gap is solved for a black hole with @xmath184 and @xmath39 . viewing angle is chosen to be @xmath165 . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves represent the solutions for @xmath207 , @xmath208 , @xmath209 , @xmath210 , and @xmath211 , respectively . the vertical dashed line at @xmath202 shows the null surface position . [ fig : crtd_1e1 ] ] as @xmath12 decreases , the reduced adaf near - ir photon field leads to less efficient pair production , thereby resulting in an extended gap to sustain the externally required current density , @xmath144 , per magnetic flux tube . we plot @xmath212 for five discrete @xmath12 s in figure [ fig : ell_1e1 ] . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves correspond to the cases of @xmath213 , @xmath214 , @xmath215 , @xmath216 , and @xmath217 , respectively ; that is , same as figure [ fig : crtd_1e1 ] . integrating @xmath26 over the gap width , we obtain the potential drop at each @xmath12 . it becomes @xmath218 v , @xmath219 v , @xmath220 v , @xmath221 v , and @xmath222 v , for @xmath213 , @xmath214 , @xmath215 , @xmath216 , and @xmath217 , respectively . thus , the potential drop increases with decreasing @xmath12 because of the increased gap width , @xmath223 . more specifically , as the accretion rate reduces , the decreased adaf near - ir photon field results in a less effective pair production for the gap - emitted ic photons , thereby increasing the mean - free path for two - photon collisions . since @xmath154 essentially becomes the pair - production mean - free path divided by the number of photons emitted by a single electron above the pair production threshold energy @xcite , the reduced pair production leads to an extended gap along the magnetic field lines . as a result , the smaller @xmath12 is , the greater the potential drop becomes . as @xmath154 increases , the trans - field derivative begins to contribute in the poisson equation ( [ eq : pois_3 ] ) . as a result , the @xmath26 distribution shifts outwards , in the same way as in pulsar outer - magnetospheric gaps ( fig . 12 of * ? ? ? that is , a pulsar outer gap extends from the null surface to ( or beyond ) the light cylinder because the transverse thickness is limited by the efficient screening of @xmath26 due to the trans - field propagation in concave poloidal magnetic field lines , whereas a bh gap shifts from the null surface towards the outer light surface because the longitudinal width becomes comparable to the transverse thickness when the accretion rate is small . , for five discrete accretion rates . the gap is solved for a black hole with @xmath184 and @xmath39 . each color corresponds to the same cases of @xmath12 s as in figure [ fig : crtd_1e1 ] . the vertical dashed line shows the null surface position . [ fig : ell_1e1 ] ] let us briefly examine how the gap width , @xmath154 , is affected when the adaf soft photon field changes . in figure [ fig : width_1e1 ] , we plot the gap inner and outer boundary positions as a function of @xmath12 , where the ordinate is converted into the boyer - lindquist radial coordinate . it follows that the gap inner boundary ( solid curve , @xmath148 ) , infinitesimally approaches the horizon ( dash - dotted horizontal line , @xmath224 ) , while the outer boundary ( dashed curve , @xmath149 ) moves outwards , with decreasing @xmath12 . below the accretion rate @xmath225 , the outer boundary moves rapidly away from the horizon with decreasing @xmath12 , so that the required current density , @xmath182 , may be produced within the gap under a diminished adaf photon field . at @xmath226 , and @xmath227 , the outer boundary is located at @xmath228 and @xmath229 . we consider that the solution with @xmath230 may not have significant physical meaning , because the funnel boundary with the equatorial disk will deviate from a conical shape beyond this radius @xcite . we thus define the lower - limit accretion rate , @xmath231 when @xmath155 exceeds @xmath232 in this paper . indeed , at further lower accretion rate , @xmath233 , we fail to find a 2-d gap solution , because the weak adaf photon field can no longer sustain the current density , @xmath182 , per magnetic flux tube . thus , we obtain @xmath234 for @xmath184 , @xmath179 , @xmath180 , and @xmath182 , interpolating @xmath235 and putting @xmath236 . because @xmath155 rapidly increases near @xmath237 , the value of @xmath231 little depends on whether we define it by e.g. , @xmath238 or @xmath239 . and thick solid and dashed curves denote the position of the inner and the outer boundaries of the gap , in the unit of the gravitational radius , @xmath206 . these boundary positions ( in the ordinate ) are transformed from the tortoise coordinate into the boyer - lindquist coordinate . the horizontal dash - dotted line shows the horizon radius , whereas the horizontal dotted line does the null surface position on the magnetic axis , @xmath165 . [ fig : width_1e1 ] ] the predicted photon spectra are depicted in figure [ fig : seda_1e1 ] for the same set of @xmath12 as in figures [ fig : crtd_1e1 ] and [ fig : ell_1e1 ] . the thin curves on the left denote the input adaf spectra , while the thick lines on the right do the output spectra from the gap . we find that the emitted flux increases with decreasing @xmath12 , because the potential drop in the gap increases with decreasing @xmath12 . the spectral peak around gev is due to the curvature emission , while that around tev is due to the ic scatterings . provided that the distance is within several kpc , these he and vhe fluxes appear above the fermi/_lat _ detection limits ( three thin solid curves labeled with lat 10 yrs ) , and the cta detection limits ( dashed and dotted curves labeled with cta 50 hrs ) . since bh transients spend bulk of their time in a ( very weakly accreting ) quiescent state ( e.g. , * ; * ? ? ? * ) , it is possible for near - by bh transients to exhibit detectable bh emissions . for example , in he , the flraring photons will be detectable if the duty cycle of the flaring activities is not too small ( e.g. , @xmath240 ) . we plot the individual emission components in figure [ fig : sedb_1e1 ] , picking up the case of @xmath241 ( i.e. , the case of the black solid line in fig . [ fig : seda_1e1 ] ) . the red dashed line shows the primary curvature component , while the red dash - dotted line the primary ic component . the former component is not absorbed and appear as the spectral peak at several gev when @xmath237 ( i.e. , when the gap outer boundary is located at @xmath242 ) . the latter component is heavily absorbed by the adaf near - ir photons to be reprocessed as the secondary component ( blue dash - dot - dot - dotted line ) . in this secondary component , ic emission dominates above gev and the synchrotron component dominates only below this energy . the secondary component above 500 gev is absorbed again to be reprocess as the tertiary component ( purple dotted ) . and @xmath39 , for five discrete dimensionless accretion rates , @xmath12 s at 1 kpc . the thin curves denote the input adaf spectra , while the thick lines do the output gap spectra . each color corresponds to the same cases of @xmath12 s as in figures [ fig : crtd_1e1][fig : ell_1e1 ] . the thin solid curves ( with horizontal bars ) denote the fermi/_lat _ detection limits after 10 years observation , while the thin dashed and dotted curves ( with horizontal bars ) denote the cta detection limits after a 50 hours observation . magnetic field strength is assumed to be the equipartition value with the plasma accretion . [ fig : seda_1e1 ] ] , but only the case of @xmath241 is depicted . the thick and thin black curves correspond to the same ones in figure [ fig : seda_1e1 ] . the red dashed and dash - dotted lines denote the primary curvature and inverse - compton components , respectively . the blue dash - dot - dot - dotted and purple dotted ones do the secondary and tertiary emission via synchrotron and inverse - compton processes outside the gap . [ fig : sedb_1e1 ] ] to grasp the strength of the absorption taking place inside and outside the gap , we examine the optical depth for photon - photon collisions . for presentation purpose , we compute a representative optical depth for test photons emitted outwards at the gap inner boundary , @xmath148 . with vanishing angular momenta , photons propagate in the ( @xmath65,@xmath66 ) surface ( with constant @xmath66 ) . thus , the invariant distance , @xmath243 , of a photon path after propagating @xmath244 and @xmath245 in @xmath65 and @xmath67 coordinates becomes @xmath246 .\ ] ] thus , near the pole , @xmath247 , and near the horizon , @xmath248 , we can put @xmath249 . integrating the local absorption probability over the photon ray , we can compute the optical depth by @xmath250 where @xmath243 coincides with the distance of radial interval , @xmath244 , measured by zamo . the radial gradient of the optical depth becomes @xmath251 where the primes denote quantities evaluated by zamo ; @xmath252 is the cosine of the collision angle of two photons , @xmath253 the soft photon energy , and @xmath254 the soft photon number flux . we employ zamo here , because the photons are assumed to be emitted with vanishing angular momenta in this paper . the threshold energy is defined by @xmath255(m_{\rm e}c)^2/h^2\nu'$ ] , where @xmath256 means the planck constant . the photon frequency @xmath257 ( at infinity ) is de - redshifted to the zamo s value , @xmath258 at each altitude , @xmath65 . specifically , the local photon energy , @xmath259 , is related to @xmath260 , by @xmath261 , where @xmath262 denotes the photon angular momentum and @xmath263 the local observer s angular frequency in @xmath264-basis at @xmath65 . however , we here have @xmath265 , which gives the zamo s angular frequency , @xmath266 . the quantity @xmath267 is given by the definition of the proper time , @xmath268= -1 $ ] , which reduces to @xmath269 for a zamo . thus , we obtain @xmath270 as the redshift relation between us and zamo . note that the integral @xmath271 in equation ( [ eq : tau ] ) is finite for a finite @xmath65 , and that @xmath272 , and hence @xmath273 vanishes at large distances . in figure [ fig : f_tau_1e1 ] , we present @xmath274 for five discrete accretion rates : the five lines correspond to the same cases of @xmath12 s as in figures [ fig : crtd_1e1 ] , [ fig : ell_1e1 ] , and [ fig : seda_1e1 ] . it follows that the photon - photon absorption optical depth exceeds unity above 16 gev , 90 gev , 0.3 tev , 0.5 tev , and 0.9 tev for @xmath207 , @xmath208 , @xmath209 , @xmath210 , and @xmath211 , respectively . the optical depth peaks at several tev , because the adaf photon spectrum peaks in near - ir wavelengths for stellar - mass bhs . it should be stressed that the actual photons are absorbed by smaller optical depths than this figure , because the individual photons are emitted at different positions whose altitudes are always higher than the inner boundary . , for photon - photon absorption as a function of the photon energy , @xmath260 , at infinity for five @xmath12 s . a test photon is supposed to be emitted outwards with zero angular momentum from the gap inner boundary to infinity . the photon energy @xmath260 is de - redshited at each altitude , @xmath65 , and the absorption probability gradient @xmath273 is integrated from the inner boundary to @xmath275 , which is large enough . [ fig : f_tau_1e1 ] ] it is worth examining the relative importance of the curvature and ic processes . in figure [ fig : luminosity_1e1 ] , we plot the luminosity of the outward curvature - emitted photons as the solid curve , and that of the ic - emitted photons as the dash - dotted one , as a function of @xmath12 . the outward curvature photons are mostly emitted inside the gap , while the ic photons are emitted both inside and outside the gap . figure [ fig : luminosity_1e1 ] shows that the curvature luminosity exceeds the ic one when @xmath276 , or equivalently when the gap extends enough . this is because the curvature power is proportional to @xmath277 , while the ic power approximately to @xmath278 , depending on whether the collisions take place mainly in the extreme klein - nishina or the thomson regime . the ic power also depends on the specific intensity of the soft photon field ; thus , its dependence on @xmath0 is more complicated than the curvature process . and the solid and dash - dotted curves denote the luminosity of the curvature and inverse - compton processes , respectively . [ fig : luminosity_1e1 ] ] let us briefly examine the dependence of the spectrum on the created current density , @xmath144 . in figure [ fig : sed_j_1e1 ] , we plot the gap spectra at six discrete @xmath144 s . it follows that the he emission becomes most luminous when @xmath279 and the vhe one does when @xmath280 . in what follows , we thus adopt @xmath182 as a compromise to optimize the he and vhe fluxes . note that we restrict our argument for @xmath281 , because @xmath282 would incur a sign reversal of the @xmath98 in equation ( [ eq : pois_3 ] ) , thereby resulting in a sign reversal of @xmath26 at the outer boundary , @xmath149 , which would violate the present assumption of stationarity . , at the distance of 1 kpc , from a bh with @xmath184 and @xmath283 . the cyan solid , green dash - dot - dot - dotted , blue dotted , black solid , red dashed , and purple dash - dotted lines correspond to the dimensionless created current densities , @xmath284 , @xmath285 , @xmath286 , @xmath287 , @xmath288 , and @xmath289 , respectively . the accretion rate is fixed at @xmath193 . [ fig : sed_j_1e1 ] ] we next briefly investigate how the spectrum depends on the bh spin parameter , @xmath290 . in figures [ fig : sed_a500_1e1 ] and [ fig : sed_a998_1e1 ] , we present the gap spectra for @xmath291 and @xmath292 when @xmath193 . it follows that the gap flux increases with increasing bh spin . thus , we adopt @xmath39 as the representative value in this paper . , but the bh spin is chosen to be @xmath291 , while other parameters are the same , including the accretion rate , @xmath12 . [ fig : sed_a500_1e1 ] ] and [ fig : sed_a500_1e1 ] , but the bh is maximally rotating , @xmath293 . other parameters are the same as figures [ fig : seda_1e1 ] and [ fig : sed_a500_1e1 ] , including the accretion rate , @xmath12 . [ fig : sed_a998_1e1 ] ] it is numerically suggested that the angular frequency , @xmath21 , of an accreting bh magnetosphere decreases from @xmath294 in the middle latitudes to @xmath295 in the higher latitudes ( i.e. , near the pole ) @xcite . similar tendency , from @xmath296 to @xmath297 is , indeed , analytically suggested @xcite . thus , in this subsection , we examine a smaller @xmath21 case . in figure [ fig : seda_omg02_1e1 ] , we plot the sed for @xmath298 , keeping other parameters unchanged from figure [ fig : seda_1e1 ] . it follows that the he flux decreases to about 17 % of the @xmath299 case , while the vhe flux is roughly unchanged . the vhe flux changes mildly , because the ic process depends on the lepton lorentz factor weakly , compared to the curvature process . note that the bz power , which is proportional to @xmath300 , reduces to only 64 % of the @xmath299 case . it means that the gap becomes less efficient at smaller ( in fact , also at greater ) @xmath301 than @xmath302 . thus , we adopt @xmath303 as the representative value . , but the magnetosphere is more slowly rotating , @xmath304 . other parameters are the same , including the accretion rate , @xmath12 . [ fig : seda_omg02_1e1 ] ] let us investigate if a force - free magnetosphere is realized outside the gap . we compute the densities of the cascaded pairs within the cutting radius @xmath305 , which is well above the gap outer boundary , @xmath149 . in figure [ fig : pairs_1e1 ] , we plot the secondary , tertiary , and quaternary pair densities by the red dashed , green dash - dotted , and blue dash - dot - dot - dotted curves , respectively . here , the secondary pairs denote those cascaded from the primary @xmath0-rays , which are defined to be emitted by the primary electrons or positrons that are accelerated in the gap . the tertiary pairs denote those cascaded from the secondary @xmath0-rays , which are defined to be emitted by these secondary pairs . it follows that the density of the cascaded pairs exceeds the gj one ( black dotted line ) , as long as a stationary gap is formed . thus , the magnetosphere becomes force - free outside the gap , as long as @xmath306 . this conclusion does not depend on the choice of @xmath307 . , is plotted as a function of @xmath12 for @xmath184 and @xmath39 . the red dashed , green dash - dotted , and blue dash - dot - dot - dotted curves denote the the densities of the secondary , tertiary , and quaternary , pairs , respectively . the black dotted curve shows the goldreich - julian charge density , which is volume - averaged within the sphere of @xmath308 . [ fig : pairs_1e1 ] ] in short , gap solutions exist if the dimensionless accretion rate is in the range @xmath309 . for stellar - mass bhs , the gap emission peaks at several gev and its maximum flux @xmath310 is detectable with _ fermi_/lat , if the duty cycle of the flaring activity is not too small . the gap luminosity increases with decreasing @xmath12 , because the gap is dissipating a portion of the bh s spin - down luminosity . this forms a striking contrast to accretion - powered systems , whose luminosity will decrease with decreasing @xmath12 . the cascaded pairs outside the gap have a greater density than the goldreich - julian value ; thus , the magnetosphere becomes force - free in the downstream of the gap - generated flow ( i.e. , outside the gap outer boundary ) . let us examine the gap emission from intermediate - mass bhs . we put @xmath311 and calculate the gap emission for @xmath39 and @xmath299 . the predicted spectra become as the top panel in figure [ fig : seda_1e5 ] for a distance of @xmath312 kpc . it shows that the @xmath0-ray fluxes are detectable in both he and vhe if an imbh is located within our galaxy , as long as the accretion rate is in the range , @xmath313 . since the absolute luminosity of the gap increases with @xmath5 , we also compute the seds for @xmath314 ( bottom panel of fig . [ fig : seda_1e5 ] ) , assuming @xmath315 kpc . it shows that such a heavy bh is detectable in he or vhe only when the distance is comparable to or less than @xmath316 kpc . , @xmath39 , and @xmath303 . the distance is assumed to be 10 kpc . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves represent the seds for @xmath207 , @xmath208 , @xmath209 , @xmath317 , and @xmath318 , respectively . _ bottom panel : _ sed for @xmath314 , @xmath39 , and @xmath303 . the distance is assumed to be 100 kpc . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves represent the seds for @xmath209 , @xmath319 , @xmath320 , @xmath321 , and @xmath322 , respectively . [ fig : seda_1e5 ] , title="fig : " ] , @xmath39 , and @xmath303 . the distance is assumed to be 10 kpc . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves represent the seds for @xmath207 , @xmath208 , @xmath209 , @xmath317 , and @xmath318 , respectively . _ bottom panel : _ sed for @xmath314 , @xmath39 , and @xmath303 . the distance is assumed to be 100 kpc . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves represent the seds for @xmath209 , @xmath319 , @xmath320 , @xmath321 , and @xmath322 , respectively . [ fig : seda_1e5 ] , title="fig : " ] the curvature and ic luminosities are plotted as a function of @xmath12 in figure [ fig : luminosity_1e5 ] . it shows that the curvature process works stronger than the ic when @xmath323 for @xmath311 , and when @xmath324 for @xmath314 . , @xmath39 , and @xmath303 . the solid and dash - dotted curves denote the luminosity of the curvature and inverse - compton processes , respectively . _ bottom panel : _ similar figure as the top panel but for @xmath314 . [ fig : luminosity_1e5 ] , title="fig : " ] , @xmath39 , and @xmath303 . the solid and dash - dotted curves denote the luminosity of the curvature and inverse - compton processes , respectively . _ bottom panel : _ similar figure as the top panel but for @xmath314 . [ fig : luminosity_1e5 ] , title="fig : " ] we examine if a force - free magnetosphere is sustained . figure [ fig : pairs_1e5 ] shows the densities of the pairs cascaded between @xmath155 and @xmath325 . it follows that the density of the cascaded pairs exceeds the gj one for both @xmath311 and @xmath314 . , but for a bh with @xmath311 ( top panel ) and @xmath314 ( bottom panel ) ; @xmath39 and @xmath303 are unchanged . the dashed and dash - dotted curves denote the densities , @xmath24 , of the secondary and tertiary pairs , while the dotted one the gj value , @xmath25 . [ fig : pairs_1e5 ] , title="fig : " ] , but for a bh with @xmath311 ( top panel ) and @xmath314 ( bottom panel ) ; @xmath39 and @xmath303 are unchanged . the dashed and dash - dotted curves denote the densities , @xmath24 , of the secondary and tertiary pairs , while the dotted one the gj value , @xmath25 . [ fig : pairs_1e5 ] , title="fig : " ] next , let us examine super - massive bhs . we present the acceleration electric field in [ sec : smbh_ell ] , gap spectrum in [ sec : smbh_sed ] , and cascaded pair densities in [ sec : smbh_cascaded ] . we briefly examine the dependence on the soft photon density in [ sec : smbh_dep_riaf ] . choosing a typical mass of @xmath326 , we plot @xmath194 distribution in figure [ fig : e2d_1e9 ] , whose ordinate is the dimensionless tortoise coordinate , @xmath110 . comparing with figure [ fig : e2d_1e1 ] , we find that the essential behavior of @xmath26 is unchanged from the case of @xmath184 . in boyer - lindquist radial coordinate , the gap outer and inner boundaries distribute as a function of @xmath12 as depicted in figure [ fig : width_1e9 ] . the gap outer boundary is located at @xmath327 and @xmath328 at @xmath329 and @xmath330 , respectively ; thus , we obtain @xmath331 for @xmath326 , @xmath179 , @xmath180 , and @xmath182 . figure [ fig : width_1e9 ] shows that the gap longitudinal width becomes comparable or greater than @xmath332 when the accretion rate reduces to @xmath333 , whereas it is realized when @xmath334 for a stellar - mass case ( fig . [ fig : width_1e1 ] ) . it also follows that the gap outer boundary shifts outwards with decreasing @xmath12 , in the same manner as the @xmath184 case . , but for @xmath326 . the dimensionless accretion rate is chosen to be @xmath335 . [ fig : e2d_1e9 ] ] , but for a super - massive black hole with @xmath326 and @xmath39 . [ fig : width_1e9 ] ] figure [ fig : seda_1e9 ] shows the gap spectra as the thick lines for five discrete @xmath12 s , assuming a luminosity distance of @xmath312 mpc . when the accretion rate is in the range @xmath336 , we find that the gap emission will be marginally detectable with cta , if the source is located in the southern sky . and @xmath39 at 10 mpc . the cyan , blue , green , black , and red curves represent the seds for @xmath337 , @xmath338 , @xmath339 , @xmath340 , and @xmath330 , respectively . [ fig : seda_1e9 ] ] the emission components are depicted in figure [ fig : sedb_1e9 ] for @xmath341 . since @xmath12 is much smaller than the stellar - mass cases , the absorption optical depth decreases accordingly ; as a result , most of the primary ic component ( red dash - dotted line ) cascades only to the secondary generation pairs , whose emission is represented by the blue dash - dot - dot - dotted line . , but only the case of @xmath341 is depicted . the thick and thin black curves correspond to the same ones in figure [ fig : seda_1e9 ] . the red dashed and dash - dotted lines denote the primary curvature and inverse - compton components , respectively . the blue dash - dot - dot - dotted line do the secondary emission via synchrotron and inverse - compton processes outside the gap . [ fig : sedb_1e9 ] ] the curvature and ic luminosities are plotted as a function of @xmath12 in figure [ fig : luminosity_1e9 ] . it is clear that the ic process dominates the curvature one in the entire range of @xmath12 for super - massive bhs . and @xmath39 . the solid and dash - dotted curves denote the luminosity of the curvature and inverse - compton processes , respectively . [ fig : luminosity_1e9 ] ] the created pair densities between @xmath155 and @xmath275 are depicted as a function of @xmath12 in figure [ fig : pairs_1e9 ] . in the same way as stellar - mass bhs ( [ sec : stellar ] ) and intermediate - mass bhs ( [ sec : imbh ] ) , the magnetosphere becomes force - free outside the gap , as long as the gap solution exists . figures [ fig : pairs_1e1 ] , [ fig : pairs_1e5 ] and [ fig : pairs_1e9 ] show that the bh magnetosphere becomes force - free for @xmath184 , @xmath342 , @xmath343 , and @xmath344 . indeed , a bh magnetosphere becomes force - free irrespective of the bh mass , as long as a stationary gap is sustained in it by @xmath345 . , but for a super - massive bh case , @xmath326 . the dashed and dash - dotted curves denote the densities , @xmath24 , of the secondary and tertiary pairs , while the dotted one the gj value , @xmath25 . [ fig : pairs_1e9 ] ] let us quickly examine how the gap luminosity depends on the adaf photon field density , fixing @xmath12 so that the magnetic field near the horizon may not be changed . as a test model , we artificially reduce the photon density near the horizon to one - fourth of its original value by doubling @xmath346 . in figure [ fig : seda_12rg_1e9 ] , we plot the gap spectra for @xmath347 . we find that the gap emission increases because of the diminished soft photon density , as expected . to predict the gap spectrum of smbhs further precisely , we must constrain the specific intensity of the riaf photon field near the horizon such as by numerical simulations . , but the adaf photon field is artificially reduced to one - fourth by adopting @xmath347 , instead of @xmath181 . [ fig : seda_12rg_1e9 ] ] finally , we apply the method to various bh masses from @xmath348 to @xmath349 , the filled circles in figure [ fig : mdot ] denote the solved @xmath350 for @xmath34 . it follows that @xmath350 always lies below the upper limit , @xmath351 ( upper straight line ) . therefore , bh gaps exist for arbitrary bh masses . we fit the filled circles in figure [ fig : mdot ] with a straight line by least square method to obtain @xmath352 . the luminosity , @xmath353 , of a bh gap , could be estimated by substituting this @xmath354 into @xmath355 , where equation ( [ eq : l_bz_2 ] ) is used . the factor @xmath356 comes from the fact that the gap luminosity can attain at most @xmath357 % of @xmath30 , because @xmath26 is partly screened by the created pairs within the gap , and because a stationary gap solution can possess only a sub - gj current density . it is also noteworthy that the bh - gap solution at such a low @xmath12 corresponds to the case of the middle - aged pulsars whose outer - gap luminosity attains at most 30 % of the spin - down luminosity from the same reasons @xcite . if we artificially change @xmath346 , we can consider the impact of the adaf photon field density , without changing @xmath9 at the same @xmath12 . in figure [ fig : mdot ] , we plot the @xmath358 for @xmath359 as the open squares . it follows that the reduction of the soft photon field ( by doubling @xmath346 ) changes the gap solution to some extent , because it affects the pair production process in the gap . in figure [ fig : mdot ] we also plot a slower bh spin , @xmath360 as the open circles . it follows that @xmath350 has a weak dependence on @xmath187 due to the negative feedback effect @xcite . to further constrain @xmath350 , we need to specify the specific intensity of the riaf ( e.g. , adaf ) photon field near the horizon by numerical computation . such details are , however , out of scope of the present paper . therefore , the region @xmath361 ( in which stationary gaps do not exist ) is depicted in red _ gradation _ in figure [ fig : mdot ] . to sum up , we have solved stationary lepton accelerators ( or gaps ) in the magnetospheres of rotating black holes with arbitrary masses . by solving the set of an inhomogeneous part of the maxwell equations , lepton equations of motion , and the radiative transfer equation , we demonstrate that an electric field arises along the magnetic field line around the null charge surface on which the frame - dragging angular frequency coincides with the magnetic - field angular frequency . in the gap , electrons and positrons are created via two - photon collisions and accelerated in opposite directions by the acceleration electric field into ultra - relativistic energies . such leptons emit copious @xmath0-rays via curvature and inverse - compton ( ic ) processes , leading to a pair - production cascade inside and outside the gap . the gap longitudinal width is self - regulated so that a single electron eventually cascade into a single pair within the gap , and approximately coincides with the mean - free path ( for an ic photon to materialize via two - photon collision ) divided by the number of ic photons emitted by a single electron . as the accretion rate decreases , the increased mean - free path results in an extended gap , and hence an increased luminosity . the gap luminosity maximizes when the gap width becomes much greater than the horizon radius . for stellar - mass bhs , we can expect that their curvature emission are detectable with _ fermi_/lat and the ic emission with _ cta _ , when the bh binary is in a quiescent state , provided that the distance is within several kpc . for super - massive bhs , their ic emission may be marginally detectable with _ cta _ for low luminosity agn , if their distances are within a few tens of mpc . in the present work , there are mainly two improvements from hp16 , which formulated a bh gap model and applied it to the radio galaxy ic310 . first , in the present work , the poisson equation ( [ eq : pois ] ) is solved general - relativistically on the poloidal plane . however , in hp16 , the left - hand side of equation ( [ eq : pois ] ) was approximated one - dimensionally in the newtonian limit . second , in the present work , @xmath362 ( in the poisson equation ) is solved from the local pair production rate in a consistent manner with the radiative transfer equation . however , hp16 assumed that @xmath363 changes linearly with @xmath65 ( see their eq . both above - mentioned simplifications suppress @xmath26 to some extent , comparing the gr treatment . to compare the difference , we apply the present 2-d , gr method to ic310 , assuming @xmath18 . figure [ fig : seda_ic310 ] show the resultant sed , where the parameter set is basically the same as hp16 ; namely , we adopt @xmath293 and @xmath364 . comparing with figure 13 of hp16 , which was obtained for @xmath18 , we find that the 1-d newtonian approximation in hp16 underestimated the gap luminosity about @xmath365 times from the present 2-d gr treatment . , is assumed to compare with figure 13 ( @xmath18 case ) of hp16 . the cyan , blue , green , and black curves correspond to @xmath337 , @xmath338 , @xmath339 , and @xmath340 , respectively . the black triangles and squares show the observed fluxes in the low and high states @xcite respectively , while the red circles do those in the flaring state @xcite . the observed vhe fluxes are corrected for the absorption by the extragalactic background light . the solid bowtie represents the x - ray fluxes obtained by re - analyzing the observational data taken with _ xmm - newton _ in 2003 , _ chandra _ in 2004 , and _ swift _ in 2007 @xcite . the dotted bowtie represents the re - analyzed data of _ chandra _ in 2005 @xcite . the open circles denote the _ fermi_/lat spectrum . [ fig : seda_ic310 ] ] we have assumed that @xmath81 is constant along each magnetic field line . however , @xmath21 is not conserved when the electric potential drop along the magnetic field line becomes a non - negligible fraction of the electro - motive force exerted across the horizon . nevertheless , for all the cases in the present paper , the gap luminosity is less than two percent of the blandford - znajek power . noting that the particle energy is predominantly converted into radiation within the gap , we can conclude that the deviation of @xmath21 from a constant value ( e.g. , @xmath366 ) is at most a few percent . thus , the assumption of a constant @xmath21 along each magnetic field line is mostly justified . it is worth comparing the gap position with the separation surface where both inflows and outflows start without @xmath26 . since the plasma particles will not be accelerated either outward or inward at this surface , the sum of the gravitational , lorentz and centrifugal forces will vanish along the magnetic field lines there . one of the convenient ways to find such a surface is to put both @xmath367 and @xmath368 in the poloidal wind equation of mhd @xcite , where @xmath369 refers to the poloidal velocity of the fluid . note that this mhd argument is valid in the magnetically dominated limit , which is close to ( but not equal to ) the force - free limit . in a stationary and axisymmetric bh magnetosphere , the separation surface is determined by the condition @xmath370 in mhd ( see end of [ sec : geometry ] ; * ? ? ? * ) , where the prime denotes the derivative along the poloidal magnetic field line . for a radial poloidal field lines , @xmath371 attains its maximum value @xmath372 , @xmath373 , @xmath374 , and @xmath375 at @xmath376 , @xmath377 , @xmath378 , and @xmath379 , along the field lines at @xmath380 , @xmath197 , @xmath199 , and @xmath381 , respectively . thus , the separation surface is approximately located at @xmath382 at @xmath383 . as for the gap position , figures [ fig : e2d_1e1 ] , [ fig : e2d_th_1e1 ] , and [ fig : e2d_1e9 ] show that @xmath384 distribution , and hence the gap longitudinal extent little depends on @xmath66 , except near the meridional boundary , @xmath385 . thus , near the magnetic pole ( e.g. , @xmath386 ) , the separation surface is generally located outside the gap ( figs [ fig : width_1e1 ] & [ fig : width_1e9 ] ) . this conclusion little depends on the poloidal magnetic field structure , because the gap solution is essentially determined by the @xmath95 distribution , which is governed by the radial component of the magnetic field near the horizon ( eq . [ eq : rhogj_2 ] ) and because the separation surface distribution has a weak dependence on the poloidal field structure as well ( fig . 2 of hp16 ) . if a plasma fluid begins to flow with @xmath387 from the separation surface , the plasma particles are accelerated up to the lorentz factor of a few by the mhd interaction ( e.g. , eq . 5.2 of * ? ? ? on the other hand , the electron - positron pairs that cascaded from outward - propagating pev @xmath0-rays have typical lorentz factors @xmath388 ( for stellar - mass bhs ) . thus , such pairs continue their outward motion across the separation surface , climbing up the hill of the mhd effective potential @xmath371 ( fig . 2 of hp16 ) very easily . in another word , the large charge - to - mass ratio of the electron makes the electrostatic acceleration dominate the mhd acceleration , which is comparable to the centrifugal or gravitational one . only in the direct vicinity of the horizon , the plasma mass and the causality at the horizon makes the gravitational interaction overcome the electromagnetic one . in another word , we can forget about the separation surface when we consider the formation of a gap in a bh magnetosphere . it is worth noting that the above - mentioned mhd separation surface is distinct from what is argued in recent mhd simulations . in numerical simulations , the flow density decreases to zero at a specific surface , which requires an imposition of density floors. without the density floors , a vacuum would develop in the funnel . however , such a limitation of numerical mhd has nothing to do with the gap formation discussed in the present paper . let us discuss what is expected when @xmath12 becomes even less than @xmath350 . the adaf photon field peaks around ev for stellar - mass bhs and around mev for super - massive bhs . these photons are emitted from the inner - most region , @xmath389 , and decreases outward approximately by @xmath163 law . thus , when the gap outer boundary is located at @xmath390 , as in the case of @xmath391 , stationary pair production can be sustained only marginally in an extended gap . however , at @xmath392 , a stationary pair production can be no longer sustained and a vacuum region develops in the entire polar funnel . in this vacuum region , migratory leptons are accelerated by the vacuum @xmath26 and cascade into copious primary electrons and positrons accelerated in opposite directions . emissions from such cascading primaries will be time - dependent and may consist of many shots , whose power spectrum density ( psd ) may show some characteristic power law . in this case , the lower cutoff frequency of the power - law psd will be given by the reciprocal of the light crossing time of the extended gap , which is much longer than the horizon - light - crossing time scale . we finally discuss how to discriminate the gap and jet emissions . it follows from figure [ fig : seda_1e1 ] that the gap he and vhe fluxes increases with decreasing @xmath12 . that is , we can predict an _ anti - correlation _ between the ir / optical and he / vhe fluxes . it forms a contrast to the standard shock - in - jet scenario , in which the ir / optical and the he / vhe fluxes will correlate . therefore , we propose to simultaneously observe nearby black hole transients during quiescence both in near - ir / optical and vhe . if their time - varying multi - wavelength spectra show anti - correlation , it strongly suggests that the photons are emitted from the bh gap . for nearby low - luminosity agns , the anti - correlation will appear between submillimeter wavelength and vhe . stellar - mass bhs exhibit the strongest gap emission in he . figure [ fig : seda_1e1 ] shows that nearby bh transients are capable of emitting an order of magnitude greater fluxes than the lat detection limit ( with 10 years observation ) . it means that a he flare could be detected by _ lat _ if the flare lasts for a month or so , particularly for the sources located away from the galactic plane . we will examine the plausible sources in a subsequent paper . one of the authors ( k. h. ) is indebted to dr . t. y. saito for valuable discussion on the cta sensitivity , and to drs . k. kashiyama , k. asada , m. nakamura , a. k. harding , d. kazanas , s. shibata for fruitful discussion . this work is supported by the theoretical institute for advanced research in astrophysics ( tiara ) operated under academia sinica . camenzind , m. a. 1986a , , 156 , 137 camenzind , m. a. 1986b , , 162 , 32 cheng , k. s. , ho , c. & ruderman , m. 1986a , , 300 , 500 cheng , k. s. , ho , c. & ruderman , m. 1986b , , 300 , 522 cheng , k. s. , ruderman , m. & zhang , l. 2000 , , 537 , 964 chiang , j. & romani , r. w. 1992 , , 400 , 629 daugherty , j. k. & harding , a. k. 1982 , , 252 , 337 dermer , c. d. & sturner , s. j. 1994 , , 420 , l75 goldreich , p. , julian , w. h. , 1969 , , 157 , 869 ghosh , p. , pethick , c. j. , lamb , f. k. 1977 , , 217 , 578 harding , a. k. , tademaru , e. & esposito , l. s. 1978 , , 225 , 226 hassan , t. , arrabito , l. , bernlhr , k. , bregeon , j. , hinton , j. , jogler , t. , maier , g. , moralejo , a. et al . 2015 , in proc . of the 34th international cosmic ray conference ( icrc2015 ) , the hague , the netherlands .

we investigate the electrostatic acceleration of electrons and positrons in the vicinity of the event horizon , applying the pulsar outer - gap model to black hole magnetospheres . during a low accretion phase , the radiatively inefficient accretion flow ( riaf ) can not emit enough mev photons that are needed to sustain the force - free magnetosphere via two - photon collisions . in such a charge - starved region ( or a gap ) , an electric field arises along the magnetic field lines to accelerate electrons and positrons into ultra - relativistic energies . these relativistic leptons emit copious gamma - rays via curvature and inverse - compton ( ic ) processes . some of such gamma - rays collide with the submillimeter - ir photons emitted from the riaf to materialize as pairs , which polarize to partially screen the original acceleration electric field . it is found that the gap gamma - ray luminosity increases with decreasing accretion rate . however , if the accretion rate decreases too much , the diminished riaf soft photon field can no longer sustain a stationary pair production within the gap . as long as a stationary gap is formed , the magnetosphere becomes force - free outside the gap by the cascaded pairs , irrespective of the bh mass . if a nearby stellar - mass black hole ( bh ) is in quiescence , or if a galactic intermediate - mass bh is in a very low accretion state , its curvature and ic emissions are found to be detectable with _ fermi_/lat and imaging atmospheric cherenkov telescopes ( iact ) . if a low - luminosity active galactic nucleus is located within a few tens of mpc , the ic emission from its super - massive bh is marginally detectable with iact .

Washington (CNN) A heated argument in the West Wing between chief of staff John Kelly and national security adviser John Bolton over a recent surge in border crossings turned into a shouting match Thursday, two sources familiar with the argument told CNN. The exchange lay bare a bitter disagreement that has existed between two of President Donald Trump's top aides for weeks now. Trump, who was incensed about the rising levels of migrants and threatened to shut down the southern border on Twitter earlier that morning, took Bolton's side during the argument. Bolton favors a harder line approach to the issue and criticized Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen during the argument, a source said. Nielsen used to serve as Kelly's deputy when he ran DHS. Bolton reportedly said Nielsen needed to start doing her job, which incensed Kelly. The President, who sources say was present for the beginning of the shouting match, later denied knowledge of it. "I've not heard about it. No," Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One to fly to Montana on Thursday afternoon. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders did not deny the incident, and instead pushed blame onto Democrats in a statement later Thursday, insisting that her colleagues are "not angry at one another." "While we are passionate about solving the issue of illegal immigration, we are not angry at one another. However, we are furious at the failure of Congressional Democrats to help us address this growing crisis," she said. The statement continued, "They should be ashamed for pushing an open borders agenda and are only doing this for strictly political reasons. Despite us having the worst laws in the world and no help from Democrats, our Administration is doing a great job on the border." This isn't the first time Nielsen's handling of border security has been scrutinized by the Trump White House. Trump said he didn't think she was doing enough to secure the border and two people told The New York Times , which first reported the argument, that Nielsen drafted a resignation letter over the matter. While arguing is frequent in this divided West Wing, a source familiar with the clash equated it with a falling out. Bolton continued on with scheduled meetings throughout the afternoon. The fight between Kelly and Bolton startled several aides throughout the West Wing on Thursday, a person who heard the shouting said, adding that the raised voices went well beyond the heated discussions of the Trump administration. After the blowup, aides whispered privately that one of the men might leave the White House given the deep disagreement over the border. The fact that the President sided with Bolton, which only added to Kelly's fury. A White House official said later that tempers had cooled and Kelly was not going to leave. Another declined to comment. The caravan issue has been the subject of several White House meetings in recent days, according to an administration official. The conversations have centered around not only how to stop the caravan, but also how to use the issue for the upcoming midterms, the official said. Stephen Miller has been heavily involved. According to unpublished Department of Homeland Security statistics reviewed by The Washington Post , the number of migrant families entering the US reached record levels in the three months since Trump ended migrant family separations -- a result of the administration's zero tolerance immigration policy. Earlier this week Trump also took note of a migrant caravan formed in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula on Saturday and crossed into Guatemala on Monday. The caravan numbers in the thousands, organizers say. Members of the group told CNN en Español that they decided to join the caravan and head to the United States because of insecurity and a lack of jobs in Honduras. Many are traveling with children in tow. Trump posted several tweets about the caravan on Tuesday, calling for an end to foreign aid should they continue to travel. "We have today informed the countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador that if they allow their citizens, or others, to journey through their borders and up to the United States, with the intention of entering our country illegally, all payments made to them will STOP (END)!" Trump tweeted Tuesday night Trump has repeatedly called for cuts to foreign aid in Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico, which, in all, obtained some $260 million in foreign aid for fiscal year 2019. ||||| LISTEN TO ARTICLE 2:14 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Share Tweet Post Email Photographer: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Photographer: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP President Donald Trump’s chief of staff and his national security adviser engaged in a heated argument outside the Oval Office on Thursday, according to three people familiar with the episode. The chief of staff, John Kelly, and the national security adviser, John Bolton, fought over immigration and border crossings, including the performance of the Homeland Security Department under Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, one person familiar with the matter said. She was at the White House for meetings on Thursday, but the people disagreed about whether she witnessed the argument. Bolton criticized DHS, and Kelly defended Nielsen, a former deputy whom he supported to replace him at the department. Two people described the exchange as less a shouting match than an intense argument. Kelly then stormed away, so upset that he uttered some profanities. Bolton and Nielsen had a good conversation after Kelly and Bolton’s argument, a White House official said. Both believe the goal is to protect the border, the official said. Trump has lately expressed fury about a large group of migrants who are traveling from Honduras toward the U.S. border. He vowed Thursday to deploy the military and shut down the Mexican border unless the migrants are turned back. ....In addition to stopping all payments to these countries, which seem to have almost no control over their population, I must, in the strongest of terms, ask Mexico to stop this onslaught - and if unable to do so I will call up the U.S. Military and CLOSE OUR SOUTHERN BORDER!.. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 18, 2018 The clash is an indication that tension is flaring in the White House 19 days before midterm elections in which Republican control of Congress is at stake. The shouting match was so intense that other White House aides worried one of the two men might immediately resign. Neither of the men is resigning, the people said. Trump is aware of the argument, the people said, even though the president told reporters he didn’t know about it before boarding Air Force One to travel to Montana for a campaign rally. He has recently sought to make immigration a more prominent political issue, blaming Democrats for increased numbers of migrants crossing the border. After the confrontation was reported, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued a statement indicating that there are no hard feelings among the president’s senior advisers. The statement didn’t address the specific details of the argument. “While we are passionate about solving the issue of illegal immigration, we are not angry at one another,” Sanders said, adding “our Administration is doing a great job on the border.”

– There was shouting in the West Wing on Thursday, and it was even more intense than usual, sources tell CNN. The blowup—"profanity-laced," per Bloomberg— between Chief of Staff John Kelly and National Security Advisor John Bolton was related to an ongoing disagreement over how to handle increased crossings at the Mexico border. Sources tell CNN that Bolton took a verbal swipe at Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Kelly's former deputy at the DHS, saying she needs to start doing her job. President Trump reportedly sided with Bolton, further angering Kelly. It got so bad that startled staffers speculated that Kelly would resign, a source tells Bloomberg. Sources say that Trump is aware of the argument, although he later told reporters, "I've not heard about it. No," according to CNN, which adds that arguing is commonplace "in this divided West Wing" but the Kelly-Bolton blowup "went well beyond" what is typical. Later, a White House official said everyone had cooled off and Kelly was not going anywhere. (Trump is threatening to shut down the border.)

sjogren s syndrome ( ss ) is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by a chronic inflammation of lacrimal and salivary glands , which leads to loss of tears ( keratoconjunctivitis ) and saliva ( xerostomia).1 it could be termed primary or secondary to another chronic inflammatory diseases ( mainly rheumatoid arthritis , systemic lupus erythematosus , multiple sclerosis , or progressive systemic sclerosis ) . higher rates of central nervous system ( cns ) involvement than expected have been documented recently.2 here , we report a case with primary ss who presented schizophrenia - like symptoms , which is a relative rare presentation . a 41-year - old female with ss developed acute psychotic symptoms with evident auditory hallucinations and delusions of being possessed for 2 months . traced back to her prior history , there were no other medical or surgical history , traumatic history , and substance - abuse history except for underlying ss comorbid with major depressive disorder treated with escitalopram 10 mg / d . this case report was written retrospectively so informed consent was unable to be obtained and information was gained anonymously without ethical conflicts . the study protocols were approved by the taipei tzu chi hospital , buddhist tzu chi medical foundation institutional review board . primary ss was diagnosed based on subjective symptoms of dry mouth and dry eyes for more than 3 months plus objective signs of salivary scintigraphy and autoantibodies to ro ( ss - a ) and l ( ss - b ) , showing severely impaired uptake of bilateral submandibular glands and markedly impaired uptake of bilateral parotid glands . moreover , she had one prior psychotic episode 2 years ago , while laboratory data showed anti - ro antibody ( ss - a ) and anti - la ( ss - b ) positive . this time , she was admitted in the psychiatric ward first and treated with escitalopram 10 mg / d and risperidone titrated upward gradually to 4 mg / d within 2 weeks . furthermore , she was also treated with immunosuppressant ( hydroxychloroquine 200 mg orally once a day ) as usual . during admission , laboratory data for autoimmune disease revealed that antinuclear antibody was negative , whereas anti - ro antibody ( ss - a ) and anti - la ( ss - b ) were positive . electroencephalogram and magnetic resonance image showed no biological abnormality . despite optimal dose and duration of risperidone administered therefore , we then consulted a rheumatologist , and methylprednisolone 500 mg intravenous infusion once daily was suggested to be used for 3 days during initial 2 weeks admission . dramatically , her psychotic symptoms were in remission totally within 3 days after methylprednisolone therapy completed . escitalopram 10 mg / d and hydroxychloroquine 200 mg / d were kept for therapy . no further psychotic symptom recurrences were observed received during 6 months follow - up after discharge . primary ss is a systemic autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation and lymphocytic infiltration of exocrine lacrimal and saliva glands , causing dry mouth ( xerostomia ) and dry eye ( xerophthalmia).3 other than affecting glandular organs , ss can also have cns manifestations , including focal neurological deficits , diffuse cerebral involvement ( ie , aseptic meningitis , vascular encephalopathy , and dementia ) , and psychiatric disorders , including schizophrenia - like psychosis , somatization , dementia , dissociation , mood disorders , anxiety disorders , and abnormal personality traits.4 the prevalence of primary ss varies between 0.5% and 1% of the general population with female predominance , and it can occur at any age , especially after age 40 years.3,5 primary ss generally does not affect the brain , and so most clinicians fail to consider cns involvement in their differential diagnosis,6 which results in delayed diagnosis . the reasons for a huge variability in the reported prevalence of cns involvement can be explained in four parts . third , some studies included patients with secondary ss , some of whom may have lupus with cns disease . finally , confounding factors included cerebrovascular disease such as diabetes , hypertension , and hyperlipidemia or factors that may be associated with psychiatric disease . therefore , the association of schizophrenia - like symptoms and primary ss is still unclear . till date , one taiwanese nationwide population - based study revealed that primary ss patients had higher psychotic disorder comorbidity than patients without primary ss,7 but this was not shown in another taiwanese study.8 the discrepancy between the two studies may stem from the difference in study design ( retrospective cohort study versus cross - sectional study ) and psychiatric diagnosis ( icd-9-cm codes for schizophrenia ( 295 ) versus the elixhauser comorbidity index for psychosis ) . the patient failed to show treatment response to optimal dose and duration of risperidone until methylprednisolone administration , which may indicate possible base for cns involvement : immune - mediated inflammatory vascular disease and direct infiltration of cerebral tissue with chronic inflammation.9 this may partially explain why risperidone alone did not work until methylprednisolone administration . moreover , the titer of ss - a antibody in serum is associated with psychiatric disorders,4 and patients with ss - a - positive antibody have certain clinical , neurodiagnostic , and immunopathological features distinguishing them from patients without these antibodies.10 this supports the idea that neuroimmune mechanisms may play a role in the etiology and pathophysiology of psychotic disorders , including antibodies to n - methyl - d - aspartate receptors , -aminobutyric acid a receptors , and voltage - gated ion channels , all of which have previously been linked to the pathophysiology of psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia.11,12 the ss - cns patient suffered recurrent schizophrenia - like symptoms in contrast with her usual psychiatric presentation , major depression , indicating that one patient may present different psychiatric disorders in different phases of ss . on the basis of this case report , cns - ss should be ruled out when patients display different or treatment - refractory psychiatric symptoms , since the incidence of psychiatric and/or cognitive impairment may be as high as 80% in patients with cns - ss.4 in addition , serum autoantibody titers should be checked to confirm if ss is in active phase and methylprednisolone is to be used .

comorbid depression in patients with sjogren s syndrome has been reported frequently , while comorbid psychosis in subjects with sjogren s syndrome has rarely been reported . here we report a patient with sjogren s syndrome who presented with schizophrenia - like symptoms such as persecutory delusions and auditory hallucinations in contrast to her previous psychiatric presentations , which only included depression and anxiety .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Greater Accountability in the Lending Fund Act of 2011''. SEC. 2. REPAYMENT DEADLINE UNDER THE SMALL BUSINESS LENDING FUND PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Section 4103(d)(5)(H) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended-- (1) in clause (i)-- (A) in subclause (I), by striking ``; or'' and inserting a period; (B) by striking subclause (II); and (C) by striking ``will--'' and all that follows through ``be repaid'' and inserting ``will be repaid''; (2) by striking clause (ii); and (3) by striking ``that--'' and all that follows through ``includes,'' and inserting ``that includes,''. (b) Effective Date; Applicability; Savings Clause.-- (1) Effective date; applicability.--The amendments made by this section shall-- (A) take effect on the date of enactment of this Act; and (B) apply to any investment made by the Secretary of the Treasury under the Small Business Lending Fund Program established under section 4103(a)(2) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) (in this subsection referred to as the ``Program'') on or after the date of enactment of this Act. (2) Savings clause.--Notwithstanding the amendments made by this section, an investment made by the Secretary of the Treasury under the Program before the date of enactment of this Act shall remain in full force and effect under the terms and conditions under the investment. SEC. 3. SMALL BUSINESS LENDING FUND SUNSET. Section 4109 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended-- (1) in subsection (b), by inserting ``and shall be limited by the termination date in subsection (c)'' before the period at the end; and (2) by adding at the end the following: ``(c) Termination of Program.-- ``(1) Investments.--On and after the date that is 15 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Federal Government may not own any preferred stock or other financial instrument purchased under this subtitle or otherwise maintain any capital investment in an eligible institution made under this subtitle. ``(2) Authorities.--Except as provided in subsection (a), all the authorities provided under this subtitle shall terminate 15 years after the date of enactment of this Act.''. SEC. 4. SMALL BUSINESS LENDING FUND TRIGGER. Section 4109 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note), as amended by section 3, is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(d) FDIC Receivership.--The Secretary may not make any purchases, including commitments to purchase, under this subtitle if the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is appointed receiver of 5 percent or more of the number of eligible institutions that receive a capital investment under the Program.''. SEC. 5. SMALL BUSINESS LENDING FUND LIMITATION. (a) In General.--Section 4103(d) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended-- (1) by striking ``, less the amount of any CDCI investment and any CPP investment'' each place it appears; (2) by striking paragraph (7); (3) by redesignating paragraphs (8), (9), and (10) as paragraphs (7), (8), and (9), respectively; and (4) by adding at the end the following: ``(10) Prohibition on tarp participants participating in the program.--An institution in which the Secretary made a investment under the CPP, the CDCI, or any other program established by the Secretary under the Troubled Asset Relief Program established under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (12 U.S.C. 5201 et seq.) shall not be eligible to participate in the Program.''. (b) Effective Date; Applicability; Savings Clause.-- (1) Effective date; applicability.--The amendments made by this section shall-- (A) take effect on the date of enactment of this Act; and (B) apply to any investment made by the Secretary of the Treasury under the Small Business Lending Fund Program established under section 4103(a)(2) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) (in this subsection referred to as the ``Program'') on or after the date of enactment of this Act. (2) Savings clause.--Notwithstanding the amendments made by this section, an investment made by the Secretary of the Treasury under the Program before the date of enactment of this Act shall remain in full force and effect under the terms and conditions under the investment. SEC. 6. PRIVATE INVESTMENTS UNDER THE SMALL BUSINESS LENDING FUND PROGRAM. Section 4103(d)(3) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended-- (1) in the paragraph heading, by striking ``matched''; and (2) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking ``both under the Program and''. SEC. 7. APPROVAL OF REGULATORS. (a) In General.--Section 4103(d)(2) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended-- (1) in the paragraph heading, by striking ``Consultation with'' and inserting ``Approval of''; (2) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking ``the Secretary shall'' and inserting ``the Secretary may not make a purchase under this subtitle unless''; (3) in subparagraph (A)-- (A) by striking ``consult with''; and (B) by striking ``to determine whether the eligible institution may receive'' and inserting ``determines that, based on the financial condition of the eligible institution, the eligible institution should receive''; (4) in subparagraph (B)-- (A) by striking ``consider any views received from''; and (B) by striking ``regarding the financial condition of the eligible institution'' and inserting ``determines that, based on the financial condition of the eligible institution, the eligible institution should receive such capital investment''; and (5) in subparagraph (C)-- (A) by striking ``consult with''; and (B) by inserting ``determines that, based on the financial condition of the eligible institution, the eligible institution should receive such capital investment'' before the period at the end. (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 4103(d)(3)(A) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended-- (1) by striking ``to be consulted under paragraph (2) would not otherwise recommend'' and inserting ``required to make a determination under paragraph (2) does not approve''; (2) by striking ``to be so consulted''; and (3) by striking ``to be consulted would recommend'' and insert ``would approve''. SEC. 8. BENCHMARK FOR SMALL BUSINESS LENDING. Section 4103(d)(5)(A)(ii) of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 4741 note) is amended by striking ``for the 4 full quarters immediately preceding the date of enactment of this Act'' and inserting ``during calendar year 2007''.

Greater Accountability in the Lending Fund Act of 2011 - Amends the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 relating to the Small Business Lending Fund Program to: (1) remove a requirement that the capital investment received by an eligible small business under the Program be evidenced by stock or other financial instrument that carries the highest dividend or interest rate payable; (2) terminate the Program 15 years after the enactment of such Act; (3) prohibit the Secretary of the Treasury from making capital investments under the Program if the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is appointed receiver of 5% or more of the institutions receiving an investment under the Program; (4) prohibit Program participation by any institution in which the Secretary made an investment under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) under the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008; (5) revise provisions concerning consideration of private investment under the Program; (6) require the approval of (under current law, requires consultation with) appropriate financial regulators when determining whether an institution should receive a capital investment; and (7) revise the benchmark against which changes in the amount of small business lending shall be measured.

the study of geometric or analytic problems on two dimensional tori is the same as the study of problems on @xmath0 with doubly periodic data . such situations occur naturally in sciences and mathematics since early days . the mathematical foundation of elliptic functions was subsequently developed in the 19th century . it turns out that these special functions are rather deep objects by themselves . tori of different shape may result in very different behavior of the elliptic functions and their associated objects . arithmetic on elliptic curves is perhaps the eldest and the most vivid example . in this paper , we show that this is also the case for certain non - linear partial differential equations . indeed , researches on doubly periodic problems in mathematical physics or differential equations often restrict the study to rectangular tori for simplicity . this leaves the impression that the theory for general tori may resemble much the same way as for the rectangular case . however this turns out to be false . we will show that the solvability of the _ mean field equation _ depends on the shape of the green function , which in turn depends on the geometry of the tori in an essential way . recall that the green function @xmath1 on a flat torus @xmath2 is the unique function on @xmath3 which satisfies @xmath4 and @xmath5 , where @xmath6 is the dirac measure with singularity at @xmath7 . because of the translation invariance of @xmath8 , we have @xmath9 and it is enough to consider _ the green function _ @xmath10 . not surprisingly , @xmath11 can be explicitly solved in terms of elliptic functions . for example , using theta functions we have ( cf . lemma [ green - w ] , lemma [ green - theta ] ) @xmath12 where @xmath13 and @xmath14 . the structure of @xmath11 , especially its critical points and critical values , will be the fundamental objects that interest us . the critical point equation @xmath15 is given by @xmath16 in terms of weierstrass elliptic functions @xmath17 , @xmath18 and using the relation @xmath19 with @xmath20 the quasi - periods , the equation takes the simpler form : @xmath21 is a critical point of @xmath11 if and only if the following linear relation ( lemma [ critical ] ) holds : @xmath22 since @xmath11 is even , it is elementary to see that half periods @xmath23 , @xmath24 and @xmath25 are the three obvious critical points and other critical points must appear in pair . the question is : _ are there other critical points ? _ or _ how many critical points might @xmath11 have?_. it turns out that this is a delicate question and can not be attacked easily from the simple looking equation ( [ linear ] ) . one of our chief purposes in this paper is to understand the geometry of the critical point set over the moduli space of flat tori @xmath26 and to study its interaction with the non - linear mean field equation . the mean field equation on a flat torus @xmath27 takes the form ( @xmath28 ) @xmath29 this equation has its origin in the prescribed curvature problem in geometry like the nirenberg problem , cone metrics etc .. it also comes from statistical physics as the mean field limits of the euler flow , hence the name . recently it was shown to be related to the self dual condensation of chern - simons - higgs model . we refer to @xcite , @xcite , @xcite , @xcite , @xcite , @xcite , @xcite and @xcite for the recent development of this subject . when @xmath30 for any @xmath31 , it has been recently proved in @xcite , @xcite , @xcite that the leray - schauder degree is non - zero , so the equation always has solutions , regardless on the actual shape of @xmath27 . the first interesting case remained is when @xmath32 where the degree theory fails completely . instead of the topological degree , the precise knowledge on the green function plays a fundamental role in the investigation of ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) . the first main result of this paper is the following existence criterion whose proof is given in 3 by a detailed manipulation on elliptic functions : [ main ] for @xmath32 , the mean field equation on a flat torus has solutions if and only if the green function has critical points other than the three half period points . moreover , each extra pair of critical points corresponds to an one parameter scaling family of solutions . it is known that for rectangular tori @xmath33 has precisely the three obvious critical points , hence for @xmath32 equation ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) has no solutions . however we will show in 2 that for the case @xmath34 and @xmath35 there are at least five critical points and the solutions of ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) exist . our second main result is the uniqueness theorem . [ uniq ] for @xmath32 , the mean field equation on a flat torus has at most one solution up to scaling . in view of the correspondence in theorem [ main ] , an equivalent statement of theorem [ uniq ] is the following result : [ green ] the green function has at most five critical points . unfortunately we were unable to find a direct proof of theorem [ green ] from the critical point equation ( [ linear ] ) . instead , we will prove the uniqueness theorem first , and then theorem [ green ] is an immediate corollary . our proof of theorem [ uniq ] is based on the method of symmetrization applied to the linearized equation at a particularly chosen even solution in the scaling family . in fact we study in 4 the one parameter family @xmath36\ ] ] on @xmath27 within _ even solutions_. this extra assumption allows us to construct a double cover @xmath37 via the weierstrass @xmath38 function and to transform equation ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) into a similar one on @xmath39 but with three more delta singularities with negative coefficients . the condition @xmath40 is to guarantee that the original singularity at @xmath41 still has non - negative coefficient of delta singularity . the uniqueness is proved for this family via the method of continuity . for the starting point @xmath42 , by a construction similar to the proof of theorem [ main ] we sharpen the result on nontrivial degree to the existence and uniqueness of solution ( theorem [ 4pi ] ) . for @xmath43 $ ] , the symmetrization reduces the problem on the non - degeneracy of the linearized equation to the isoperimetric inequality on domains in @xmath0 with respect to certain singular measure : [ sym ] let @xmath44 be a simply connected domain and let @xmath45 be a solution of @xmath46 in @xmath47 . suppose that the first eigenvalue of @xmath48 is zero on @xmath47 with @xmath49 the first eigenfunction . if the isoperimetric inequality with respect to @xmath50 : @xmath51 holds for all level domains @xmath52 with @xmath53 , then @xmath54 moreover , ( [ iso ] ) holds if there is only one negative @xmath55 and @xmath56 . the proof on the number of critical points appears to be one of the very few instances that one needs to study a simple analytic equation , here the critical point equation ( [ linear ] ) , by way of sophisticated non - linear analysis . to get a deeper understanding of the underlying structure of solutions , we first notice that for @xmath32 , ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) is the euler - lagrange equation of the non - linear functional @xmath57 on @xmath58 , the sobolev space of functions with @xmath59-integrable first derivative . from this viewpoint , the non - existence of minimizers for rectangular tori was known in @xcite . here we sharpen the result to the non - existence of solutions . also for @xmath60 we sharpen the result on non - trivial degree of equation ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) in @xcite to the uniqueness of solutions within even functions . we expect the uniqueness holds true without the even assumption , but our method only achieves this at @xmath42 . obviously , uniqueness without even assumption fails at @xmath61 due to the existence of scaling . naturally , the next question after theorem [ uniq ] is to determine those tori whose green functions have five critical points . it is the case if the three half - periods are all saddle points . a strong converse is proved in @xcite : * theorem a. * _ if the green function has five critical points then the extra pair of critical points are minimum points and the three half - periods are all saddle points . _ together with theorem [ main ] , this implies that _ a minimizer of @xmath62 exists if and only if the green function has more than three critical points_. in fact we show in @xcite that any solution of equation ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) must be a minimizer of the nonlinear functional @xmath62 . thus we completely solve the existence problem on minimizers , a question raised by nolasco and tarantello in @xcite . by theorem a , we have reduced the question on detecting a given torus to have five critical points to the technically much simpler criterion on ( non)-local minimality of the three half period points . in this paper , however , no reference to theorem a is needed . instead , it motivates the following comparison result , which also simplifies the criterion further : [ comparison - intro ] let @xmath63 and @xmath64 be two half period points . then @xmath65 h : c v : c ( 0 -0.15)@xmath41 h : c v : c ( 0.5 -0.15)@xmath66 h : c v : c ( 1 -0.15)1 ( 0 1 ) f:0 r:0.025 h : c v : c ( 0 0.9)@xmath67 ( 0.5 0.5 ) f:0 r:0.025 ( 0.37 1.5 ) ( 0.01 0.03 ) ( 0.63 1.5 ) ( 0.365 1.45 ) ( 0.635 1.45 ) ( 0.36 1.4 ) ( 0.64 1.4 ) ( 0.355 1.35 ) ( 0.645 1.35 ) ( 0.35 1.3 ) ( 0.65 1.3 ) ( 0.345 1.25 ) ( 0.655 1.25 ) ( 0.34 1.2 ) ( 0.66 1.2 ) ( 0.335 1.15 ) ( 0.665 1.15 ) ( 0.33 1.1 ) ( 0.67 1.1 ) ( 0.31 1.05 ) ( 0.69 1.05 ) ( 0.30 1.0 ) ( 0.70 1.0 ) ( 0.28 0.95 ) ( 0.72 0.95 ) ( 0.27 0.9 ) ( 0.73 0.9 ) ( 0.25 0.85 ) ( 0.75 0.85 ) ( 0.23 0.8 ) ( 0.77 0.8 ) ( 0.21 0.75 ) ( 0.79 0.75 ) ( 0.19 0.7 ) ( 0.81 0.7 ) ( 0.16 0.65 ) ( 0.40 0.65 ) ( 0.60 0.65 ) ( 0.84 0.65 ) ( 0.13 0.6 ) ( 0.30 0.6 ) ( 0.70 0.6 ) ( 0.87 0.6 ) ( 0.11 0.55 ) ( 0.25 0.55 ) ( 0.75 0.55 ) ( 0.89 0.55 ) ( 0.09 0.5 ) ( 0.20 0.5 ) ( 0.80 0.5 ) ( 0.91 0.5 ) ( ) h : c v : c ( 0.5 0.35)@xmath68 ( 0.5 0.7 ) 0.5 0.04 ( 0.5 1.5 ) ( 1 0 ) r:1 sd:108 ed:175 ( 0 0 ) r:1 sd:5 ed:72 0 0.005 ( 0.5 0.7 ) f:0 r:0.025 ( 1 0.7 ) t : f ( 0.55 0.7 ) h : c v : c ( 1.3 0.7)@xmath69 for general flat tori , a computer simulation suggests the following picture : let @xmath70 ( resp . @xmath71 ) be the subset of the moduli space @xmath72 which corresponds to tori with three ( resp . five ) critical points , then @xmath73 is a closed subset containing @xmath67 , @xmath71 is an open subset containing @xmath74 , both of them are simply connected and their common boundary @xmath75 is a curve homeomorphic to @xmath76 containing @xmath77 . moreover , the extra critical points are split out from some half period point when the tori move from @xmath70 to @xmath71 across @xmath78 . concerning with the experimental observation , we propose to prove it by the method of deformations in @xmath79 . the degeneracy analysis of critical points , especially the half period points , is a crucial step . in this direction we have the following partial result on tori corresponding to the line @xmath80 . these are equivalent to the rhombus tori and @xmath81 is equivalent to the square torus where there are only three critical points . let @xmath34 and @xmath82 with @xmath83 . then * there exists @xmath84 such that @xmath85 is a degenerate critical point of @xmath86 if and only if @xmath87 or @xmath88 . moreover , @xmath85 is a local minimum point of @xmath86 if @xmath89 and it is a saddle point if @xmath90 or @xmath91 . * both @xmath24 and @xmath92 are non - degenerate saddle points of @xmath11 . * @xmath86 has two more critical points @xmath93 when @xmath90 or @xmath94 . they are non - degenerate global minimum points of @xmath11 and in the former case @xmath95 part ( 1 ) gives a strong support of the conjectural shape of the decomposition @xmath96 . part ( 3 ) implies that minimizers of @xmath62 exist for tori with @xmath97 with @xmath90 or @xmath94 . the proofs are given in 6 . notably lemma 6.1 , 6.2 and theorem 6.6 , 6.7 . they rely on two fundamental inequalities on special values of elliptic functions and we would like to single out the statements ( recall that @xmath98 and @xmath99 ) : [ thm:1 - 3 ] let @xmath34 and @xmath82 with @xmath83 . then * @xmath100 . * @xmath101 and @xmath102 . the same holds for @xmath103 . in particular , @xmath104 increases in @xmath105 . ( the left one ) and @xmath104 in @xmath105 where @xmath104 is increasing.,scaledwidth=50.0% ] ( the upper one ) and @xmath106 . both functions are increasing in @xmath105 and @xmath107.,scaledwidth=50.0% ] these modular functions come into play due to the explicit computation of hessian at half periods along @xmath108 ( cf . ( [ eq:4 - 3 ] ) and ( [ eq:4 - 21 ] ) ) : @xmath109 although @xmath110 s and @xmath111 s are classical objects , we were unable to find an appropriate reference where these inequalities were studied . part of ( 2 ) , namely @xmath112 , can be proved within the weierstrass theory ( cf.([eq:4 - 23 ] ) ) . the whole theorem , however , requires theta functions in an essential way . theta functions are recalled in 7 and the theorem is proved in theorem 8.1 and theorem 9.1 . the proofs make use of the modularity of special values of theta functions ( jacobi s imaginary transformation formula ) as well as the jacobi triple product formula . notice that the geometric meaning of these two inequalities has not yet been fully explored . for example , the variation on signs from @xmath113 to @xmath114 is still mysterious to us . * acknowledgements * : c .- s . lin is partially supported by the national science council . wang is partially supported by the shiing - shen chern fellowship of the national center for theoretic sciences at hsinchu , taiwan . we start with some basic properties of the green functions that will be used in the proof of theorem 1.1 . detailed behavior of the green functions and their critical points will be studied in later sections . let @xmath115 be a flat torus . as usual we let @xmath116 . the green function @xmath1 is the unique function on @xmath27 which satisfies @xmath4 and @xmath5 . it has the property that @xmath117 and it is smooth in @xmath118 except along the diagonal @xmath119 , where @xmath120 for a constant @xmath78 which is independent of @xmath121 and @xmath122 . moreover , due to the translation invariance of @xmath27 we have that @xmath123 . hence it is also customary to call @xmath10 the green function . it is an even function with the only singularity at 0 . there are explicit formulae for @xmath1 in terms of elliptic functions , either in terms of the weierstrass @xmath38 function or the jacobi - riemann theta functions @xmath124 . both are developed in this paper since they have different advantages . we adopt the first approach in this section . [ green - w ] there exists a constant @xmath125 , @xmath126 , such that @xmath127 it is straightforward to verify that the function of @xmath121 , defined in the right hand side of ( [ eq:3 - 1 ] ) , satisfies the equation for the green function . by comparing with the behavior near 0 we obtain lemma [ green - w ] . since the proof is elementary , also an equivalent form in theta functions will be proved in lemma [ green - theta ] , we skip the details here . in view of lemma [ green - w ] , in order to analyze critical points of @xmath33 , it is natural to consider the following periods integral @xmath128 where @xmath129 is a line segment in @xmath27 which is parallel to the @xmath130-axis . fix a fundamental domain @xmath131 and set @xmath132 . then @xmath133 is an analytic function , except at 0 , in each region of @xmath134 divided by @xmath135 . clearly , @xmath136 has residue @xmath137 at @xmath138 . thus for any fixed @xmath121 , @xmath133 may change its value by @xmath139 if the integration lines cross @xmath121 . let @xmath140 , where @xmath141 is the region above @xmath142 , @xmath143 is the region bounded by @xmath129 and @xmath144 and @xmath145 is the region below @xmath135 . recall that @xmath146 and @xmath20 for @xmath147 . then we have [ lem:2 - 2 ] let @xmath148 , @xmath149 and @xmath150 . then for @xmath151 , @xmath152 for @xmath153 , we have @xmath154 clearly , @xmath121 and @xmath155 are the only ( double ) poles of @xmath156 as a meromorphic function of @xmath157 and @xmath156 has zero residues at @xmath158 and @xmath155 . thus the value of @xmath159 is independent of @xmath129 and it is easy to see @xmath159 is a meromorphic function with the only singularity at 0 . by fixing @xmath129 such that @xmath160 , a straightforward computation shows that @xmath161 in a neighborhood of @xmath41 . therefore @xmath162 by integrating @xmath163 , we get @xmath164 since @xmath165 and @xmath166 , @xmath167 is as claimed . here we have used the legendre relation @xmath168 . from ( [ eq:3 - 1 ] ) , we have @xmath169 [ critical ] let @xmath11 be the green function . then for @xmath170 , @xmath171 in particular , @xmath121 is a critical point of @xmath11 if and only if @xmath172 we shall prove ( [ eq:3 - 3 ] ) by applying lemma [ lem:2 - 2 ] . since critical points appear in pair , without loss of generality we may assume that @xmath173 with @xmath174 . we first integrate ( [ eq:3 - 2 ] ) along the @xmath130 direction and obtain @xmath175 where @xmath176 . thus , @xmath177 where the legendre relation is used again . [ lem:2 - 3 ] let @xmath33 be the green function . then @xmath178 , @xmath179 are critical points of @xmath33 . furthermore , if @xmath121 is a critical point of @xmath11 then both periods integrals @xmath180 are purely imaginary numbers . the half - periods @xmath85 , @xmath181 and @xmath182 are obvious solutions of ( [ eq:3 - 4 ] ) . alternatively , the half periods are critical points of any even functions . indeed for @xmath183 , we get @xmath184 . let @xmath185 for some @xmath186 , then @xmath187 in @xmath27 and so @xmath188 . if @xmath173 is a critical point , then by lemma [ critical ] , @xmath189 the proof for @xmath190 is similar . when @xmath191 , by symmetry considerations it is known ( cf . @xcite , lemma 2.1 ) that the half periods are all the critical points . there are tori such that equation ( [ eq:3 - 4 ] ) has more than three solutions . one such example is the torus with @xmath34 and @xmath192 . in this case , the multiplication map @xmath193 is simply the counterclockwise rotation by angle @xmath194 , which preserves the lattice @xmath195 , hence @xmath38 satisfies @xmath196 similarly in @xmath197 , @xmath198 which implies that @xmath199 and @xmath200 let @xmath63 be a zero of @xmath17 . then @xmath201 too . by ( [ eq:305 ] ) , @xmath202 , hence either @xmath203 or @xmath204 on @xmath27 since @xmath205 has zeros at @xmath63 and @xmath206 only . from here , it is easy to check that either @xmath63 is one of the half periods or @xmath207 . but @xmath63 can not be a half period because @xmath208 at any half period . therefore , we conclude that @xmath209 and @xmath210 . we claim that @xmath211 is a critical point . indeed from the addition formula @xmath212 we have @xmath213 on the other hand , @xmath214 together with ( [ eq:3 - 7 ] ) we get @xmath215 that is , @xmath211 satisfies the critical point equation . thus @xmath33 has at least five critical points at @xmath178 , @xmath216 and @xmath217 when @xmath218 . by way of theorem [ green ] , these are precisely the five critical points , though we do not know how to prove this directly . to conclude this section , let @xmath219 be a solution of ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) with @xmath32 and set @xmath220 then @xmath221 satisfies @xmath222 in @xmath27 . by ( [ eq:2 - 2 ] ) , it is obvious that @xmath221 is a smooth solution of ( [ eq:2 - 7 ] ) . an important fact which we need is the following : assume that there is a blow - up sequence of solutions @xmath223 of ( [ eq:2 - 7 ] ) . that is , @xmath224 then the limit @xmath225 is the only blow - up point of @xmath226 and @xmath227 is in fact a critical point of @xmath33 : @xmath228 we refer the reader to @xcite ( p. 739 , estimate b ) for a proof of ( [ eq:2 - 8 ] ) . consider the mean field equation @xmath229 in a flat torus @xmath27 , where @xmath230 is the dirac measure with singularity at 0 and the volume of @xmath27 is normalized to be 1 . a well known theorem due to liouville says that any solution @xmath219 of @xmath231 in a simply connected domain @xmath232 must be of the form @xmath233 where @xmath234 is holomorphic in @xmath47 . conventionally @xmath234 is called a developing map of @xmath219 . given a torus @xmath235 , by gluing the @xmath234 s among simply connected domains it was shown in @xcite that for @xmath236 , @xmath237 , ( [ 3 - 2 ] ) holds on the whole @xmath238 with @xmath234 a meromorphic function . ( the statement there is for rectangular tori with @xmath239 , but the proof works for the general case . ) it is straightforward to show that @xmath219 and @xmath234 satisfy @xmath240 the right hand side of ( [ 3 - 3 ] ) is the schwartz derivative of @xmath234 . thus for any two developing maps @xmath234 and @xmath241 of @xmath219 , there exists @xmath242 ( i.e. @xmath227 , @xmath243 and @xmath244 ) such that @xmath245 now we look for the constraints . the first type of constraints are imposed by the double periodicity of the equation . by applying ( [ 3 - 4 ] ) to @xmath246 and @xmath247 , we find @xmath248 and @xmath249 in @xmath250 with @xmath251 these relations also force that @xmath252 ( up to a sign , as @xmath253 in @xmath250 ) . the second type of constraints are imposed by the dirac singularity of ( [ 3 - 1 ] ) at 0 . a straightforward local computation with ( [ 3 - 2 ] ) shows that [ order ] * if @xmath254 has a pole at @xmath255 , then the order @xmath256 . * if @xmath257 is regular at @xmath258 with @xmath259 then @xmath260 . * if @xmath254 has a pole at @xmath261 , then the order is 1 . * if @xmath262 is regular at @xmath263 with @xmath259 then @xmath264 . now we are in a position to prove theorem 1.1 , namely the case @xmath265 . we first prove the `` only if '' part . let @xmath219 be a solution and @xmath234 be a developing map of @xmath219 . by the above discussion , we may assume , after conjugating a matrix in @xmath250 , that @xmath266 for some @xmath267 . let @xmath268 and then ( [ can ] ) becomes @xmath269 since @xmath270 , a direct computation shows that there are three possibilities : * @xmath271 and @xmath272 ; * @xmath273 ; and * @xmath274 . * case ( 1 ) . * by assumption we have @xmath275 for any @xmath237 , the logarithmic derivative @xmath276 is a non - constant elliptic function on @xmath277 which has a simple pole at each zero or pole of @xmath234 . by lemma [ order ] , if @xmath234 or @xmath278 is singular at @xmath279 then @xmath280 has no zero , which is not possible . so @xmath234 must be regular at @xmath279 with @xmath281 . moreover @xmath280 has two zeros of order @xmath282 at @xmath41 and @xmath283 . let @xmath17 , @xmath284 and @xmath285 be the weierstrass elliptic functions on @xmath286 . recall that @xmath287 is odd with a simple zero at each lattice point . moreover , for @xmath288 , @xmath289 and @xmath290 , @xmath291 now @xmath239 . by the standard representation of elliptic functions , @xmath292 with four distinct simple poles such that @xmath293 . we will show that such a function @xmath294 does not exist . by ( [ case-1 - 1 ] ) , we have @xmath295 . hence we may assume that @xmath296 and @xmath297 modulo @xmath298 . thus @xmath299 modulo @xmath300 and we arrive at two inequivalent cases . ( i ) @xmath301 . ( ii ) @xmath302 . using ( [ sigma - period ] ) , it is easily checked that ( i ) leads to @xmath303 and ( ii ) leads to @xmath295 . hence we are left with case ( ii ) . the residues of @xmath280 at @xmath304 and @xmath305 are equal to @xmath306 , @xmath307 , @xmath308 and @xmath309 respectively , where @xmath310 and @xmath311 we claim that @xmath312 and @xmath313 : since @xmath314 is well - defined , by the residue theorem , we must have @xmath315 for some @xmath316 . moreover one of @xmath317 , @xmath105 is a pole of order @xmath318 of @xmath234 and then by lemma [ order ] we conclude that @xmath319 . similarly @xmath313 . in particular we must have @xmath320 . using ( [ sigma - period ] ) , this is equivalent to @xmath321 to solve @xmath317 from this equation , we first recall that @xmath322 by substituting @xmath323 into it and using ( [ sigma - period ] ) , we get @xmath324 with ( [ p - e ] ) , the `` @xmath325 '' case in equation ( [ r / r ] ) simplifies to @xmath326 that is , @xmath327 . but this implies that @xmath328 , a contradiction . similarly , the `` @xmath329 '' case in ( [ r / r ] ) simplifies to ( using the legendre relation ) @xmath330 that is , @xmath331 . this leads to @xmath332 , which is again a contradiction . * case ( 2 ) . * in this case we have @xmath333 the logarithmic derivative @xmath334 is now elliptic on @xmath27 which has a simple pole at each zero or pole of @xmath234 . as in case ( 1 ) , it suffices to investigate the situation when @xmath234 is regular at 0 and @xmath335 . since @xmath280 has 0 as its only zero ( of order 2 ) , we have @xmath336 where @xmath337 is the weierstrass sigma function on @xmath27 . without loss of generality we may assume that @xmath234 has a zero at @xmath63 and a pole at @xmath206 . in particular @xmath338 in @xmath27 and we conclude that @xmath339 for any @xmath340 . notice that if a meromorphic function @xmath234 satisfies ( [ eq:2 - 14 ] ) , then @xmath341 also satisfies ( [ eq:2 - 14 ] ) for any @xmath342 . thus @xmath343 is a scaling family of solutions of ( [ 3 - 1 ] ) . clearly @xmath344 as @xmath345 for any @xmath121 such that @xmath346 and @xmath347 as @xmath345 . hence @xmath63 is the blow - up point and we have by ( [ eq:2 - 8 ] ) that @xmath348 namely , it is a critical point other than the half periods . * case ( 3 ) . * in this case we get that @xmath248 is the identity . so by another conjugation in @xmath250 we may assume that @xmath249 is in diagonal form . but this case is then reduced to case ( 2 ) . the proof of the `` only if '' part is completed . now we prove the `` if '' part . suppose that there is a critical point @xmath63 of @xmath33 with @xmath349 for any @xmath350 . for any closed curve @xmath78 such that @xmath63 and @xmath351 , the residue theorem implies that @xmath352 for some @xmath353 . hence @xmath354 is well - defined as a meromorphic function . notice that @xmath234 is non - constant since @xmath355 . let @xmath356 and @xmath357 be lines in @xmath27 which are parallel to the @xmath130-axis and @xmath283-axis respectively and with @xmath358 . then for @xmath359 , @xmath360 by lemma [ lem:2 - 2 ] , @xmath361 for some @xmath362 . also by corollary [ lem:2 - 3 ] , @xmath363 hence for @xmath359 , @xmath364 holds . set @xmath365 then @xmath366 satisfies ( [ 3 - 1 ] ) for any @xmath367 and @xmath368 is doubly periodic by ( [ eq:22 - 34 ] ) . therefore , solutions have been constructed and the proof of theorem [ 1 - 1 ] is completed . a similar argument leads to [ 4pi ] for @xmath42 , there exists an unique solution of ( [ 3 - 1 ] ) . by the same procedure of the previous proof , there are three cases to be discussed . for case ( 2 ) , the subcases that @xmath234 or @xmath278 is singular at @xmath279 leads to contradiction as before . for the subcase that @xmath234 is regular at @xmath279 and @xmath281 we see that @xmath369 is an elliptic function with @xmath41 as its only simple pole ( since now @xmath370 ) . hence case ( 2 ) does not occur . similarly case ( 3 ) is not possible . now we consider case ( 1 ) . by ( [ case-1 - 1 ] ) , the function @xmath276 is elliptic on @xmath371 . @xmath280 has a simple pole at each zero or pole of @xmath234 . by lemma [ order ] , if @xmath234 or @xmath278 is singular at @xmath279 then @xmath280 has no zero and we get a contradiction . so @xmath234 is regular at @xmath372 , @xmath281 and @xmath280 has two simple zeros at @xmath41 and @xmath283 . let @xmath373 be the weierstrass sigma function on @xmath374 . @xmath287 is odd with a simple zero at each lattice point . then @xmath375 for some @xmath317 , @xmath105 with @xmath376 . from ( [ case-1 - 1 ] ) , we have @xmath295 . so @xmath377 . since the representation of @xmath280 in terms of sigma functions is unique up to the lattice @xmath378 , there is an unique solution of @xmath379 : @xmath380 notice that the residues of @xmath280 at @xmath317 and @xmath105 are equal to @xmath306 and @xmath308 respectively , where @xmath381 we claim that @xmath312 . since @xmath314 is well defined , by the residue theorem , we must have @xmath315 for some @xmath316 . moreover one of @xmath317 , @xmath105 is a pole of order @xmath318 and then by lemma [ order ] we conclude that @xmath382 . conversely , by picking up @xmath317 , @xmath105 and @xmath383 as above , @xmath254 is a uniquely defined meromorphic function up to a factor @xmath384 . there is an unique choice of @xmath384 up to a norm one factor such that @xmath385 has @xmath386 . thus by integrating @xmath295 we get @xmath387 . by integrating @xmath388 we get @xmath389 where @xmath390 to evaluate the period integral , notice that @xmath391 . by using the cauchy principal value integral and the fact that the residue of @xmath280 at @xmath392 is @xmath137 , we get @xmath393 and so @xmath394 . thus @xmath234 gives rise to a solution of ( [ 3 - 1 ] ) for @xmath395 . the developing map for the other choice @xmath396 is @xmath397 which leads to the same solution . the proof is completed . since equation ( [ 3 - 1 ] ) is invariant under @xmath398 , the unique solution is necessarily even . from the previous section , for @xmath32 , solutions to the mean field equation exist in a one parameter scaling family in @xmath399 with developing map @xmath234 and centered at a critical point other than the half periods . by choosing @xmath400 we may assume that @xmath401 . then we have @xmath402 consider the particular solution @xmath403 it is easy to verify that @xmath404 and @xmath219 is the unique even function in this family of solutions . in order to prove the uniqueness up to scaling , it is equivalent to prove the uniqueness within the class of even functions . the idea is to consider the following equation @xmath405 where @xmath406 $ ] . we will use the _ method of symmetrization _ to prove [ nondeg ] for @xmath43 $ ] , the linearized equation of ( [ eq:1 ] ) is non - degenerate . that is , the linearized equation has only trivial solutions . together with the uniqueness of solution in the case @xmath42 ( theorem [ 4pi ] ) , we conclude the proof of theorem [ uniq ] by the inverse function theorem . we first prove theorem [ sym ] , the symmetrization lemma . the proof will consist of several lemmas . the first step is an extension of the classical isoperimetric inequality of bol for domains in @xmath407 with metric @xmath408 to the case when the metric becomes singular . let @xmath44 be a domain and @xmath409 satisfy @xmath410 this is equivalent to saying that the gaussian curvature of @xmath411 is @xmath412 for any domain @xmath413 , we set @xmath414 bol s isoperimetric inequality says that if @xmath47 is simply - connected then @xmath415 we first extend it to the case when @xmath122 acquires singularities : @xmath416 with @xmath417 , @xmath418 . [ lem 4 - 2 ] let @xmath47 be a simply - connected domain and @xmath122 be a solution of ( [ eq:5 ] ) , or more generally a sub - solution with prescribed singularities : @xmath419 . then for any domain @xmath413 , we have @xmath420 define @xmath45 and @xmath421 by @xmath422 @xmath423 by straightforward computations , we have @xmath424 let @xmath425 and @xmath426 be defined as in ( [ eq:3 ] ) with respect to the metric @xmath427 . then we have @xmath428 by letting @xmath429 we obtain ( [ eq:6 ] ) . next we consider the case that some of the @xmath55 s are negative . for our purpose , it suffices to consider the case with only one singularity @xmath430 with negative @xmath431 ( and we only need the case that @xmath432 ) . in view of ( the proof of ) lemma [ lem 4 - 2 ] , the problem is reduced to the case with only one singularity @xmath430 . in other words , let @xmath122 satisfy @xmath433 [ isoperimetric ] let @xmath122 satisfy ( [ eq:7 ] ) with @xmath47 simply - connected . suppose that @xmath434 then @xmath435 we may assume that @xmath436 . if @xmath437 then @xmath438 by bol s inequality trivially . if @xmath439 , we consider the double cover @xmath440 of @xmath47 branched at @xmath41 . namely we set @xmath441 where @xmath442 the induced metric @xmath443 on @xmath440 satisfies @xmath444 that is , the metric potential @xmath45 is the regular part @xmath445 by construction , @xmath45 satisfies @xmath446 since @xmath45 is bounded in a neighborhood of 0 , by the regularity of elliptic equations , @xmath221 is smooth at 0 . hence @xmath45 satisfies @xmath447 let @xmath448 . clearly @xmath449 . also @xmath450 where @xmath451 by bol s inequality , we have @xmath452 thus @xmath453 . [ symmetry ] let @xmath44 be a simply - connected domain with @xmath454 and let @xmath45 be a solution of @xmath455 in @xmath47 . if the first eigenvalue of @xmath456 is zero on @xmath47 then @xmath457 let @xmath458 be the first eigenfunction of @xmath456 : @xmath459 in @xmath0 , let @xmath460 and @xmath49 be the radially symmetric functions @xmath461 from @xmath462 , it is easy to verify that @xmath460 and @xmath49 satisfy @xmath463 for any @xmath464 , set @xmath465 and @xmath466 such that @xmath467 where @xmath468 is the ball with center 0 and radius @xmath469 . clearly @xmath469 is strictly decreasing in @xmath470 for @xmath471 . in fact , @xmath469 is lipschitz in @xmath470 . denote by @xmath472 the symmetrization of @xmath458 with respect to the measure @xmath473 and @xmath474 . that is , @xmath475 obviously @xmath472 is decreasing in @xmath476 and for @xmath477 , @xmath478 if and only if @xmath479 . thus by ( [ eq:19 ] ) , we have a decreasing function @xmath480 by lemma [ isoperimetric ] , for any @xmath464 , @xmath481 we will use inequality ( [ eq:21 ] ) in the following computation : for any @xmath482 , by the co - area formula , @xmath483 hold almost everywhere in @xmath470 . thus @xmath484 it is known that @xmath485 and the same procedure for @xmath486 leads to @xmath487 with all inequalities being equalities . hence @xmath488 holds almost everywhere in @xmath470 . by integrating along @xmath470 , we get latexmath:[\[\int_\omega |\nabla\psi|^2 \,dx \geq \int_{b_{r(0 ) } } @xmath486 have the same distribution ( or by looking at @xmath490 directly ) , we have @xmath491 therefore @xmath492 this implies that the linearized equation @xmath493 has non - positive first eigenvalue . by ( [ eq:17 ] ) , this happens if and only if @xmath494 . thus @xmath495 [ easy - sym ] ( see @xcite . ) by applying symmetrization to @xmath496 in @xmath47 with @xmath497 , the corresponding radially symmetric functions are @xmath498 the same computations leads to @xmath499 . a closer look at the proof of lemma [ symmetry ] shows that it works for more general situations as long as the isoperimetric inequality holds : [ symmetry+ ] let @xmath44 be a simply - connected domain and let @xmath45 be a solution of @xmath46 in @xmath47 . suppose that the first eigenvalue of @xmath48 is zero on @xmath47 with @xmath49 the first eigenfunction . if the isoperimetric inequality with respect to @xmath50 : @xmath500 holds for all level domains @xmath501 with @xmath502 , then @xmath503 notice that we do not need any further constraint on the sign of @xmath55 . for the last statement of theorem [ sym ] , the limiting procedure of lemma [ lem 4 - 2 ] implies that the isoperimetric inequality ( lemma [ isoperimetric ] ) and symmetrization i ( lemma [ symmetry ] ) both hold regardless on the presence of singularities with non - negative @xmath504 . indeed the proof of lemma [ isoperimetric ] can be adapted to the case @xmath505 with @xmath417 for @xmath506 . on the double cover @xmath507 branched over @xmath436 , the metric potential @xmath221 again extends smoothly over @xmath279 and satisfies @xmath508 where @xmath509 are points lying over @xmath510 . the remaining argument works by using lemma [ lem 4 - 2 ] and we still conclude @xmath453 . thus the proof of theorem [ sym ] is completed . ( of theorem [ nondeg ] . ) let @xmath219 be a solution of equation ( [ eq:1 ] ) . it is clear that we must have @xmath511 . suppose that @xmath512 is a non - trivial solution of the linearized equation at @xmath219 : @xmath513 we will derive from this a contradiction . since both @xmath219 and @xmath49 are even functions , by using @xmath514 as two - fold covering map of @xmath27 onto @xmath515 , we may require that @xmath38 being an isometry : @xmath516 namely we set @xmath517 there are four branch points on @xmath518 , namely @xmath519 and @xmath520 for @xmath521 . since @xmath522 , by construction @xmath523 and @xmath524 then satisfy @xmath525 to take care of the point at infinity , we use coordinate @xmath526 or equivalently we consider @xmath37 via @xmath527 . the isometry condition reads as @xmath528 near @xmath529 we get @xmath530 thus @xmath40 implies that @xmath531 is a singularity with non - negative @xmath532 : @xmath533 in dealing with equation ( [ eq:1 ] ) and the above resulting equations , by replacing @xmath219 by @xmath534 etc . , we may ( and will ) replace the @xmath535 in the left hand side by 1 for simplicity . the total measure on @xmath27 and @xmath407 are then given by @xmath536 the nodal line of @xmath458 decomposes @xmath39 into at least two connected components and at least two of them are simply connected . if there is a simply connected component @xmath47 which contains no @xmath510 s , then the symmetrization ( remark [ easy - sym ] ) leads to @xmath537 which is a contradiction because @xmath538 . if every simply connected component @xmath539 , @xmath540 , contains only one @xmath510 , then lemma [ symmetry ] implies that @xmath541 the sum is at least @xmath542 , which is again impossible unless @xmath543 and @xmath544 . so without lost of generality we are left with one of the following two situations : @xmath545 where @xmath546 both @xmath547 and @xmath548 are simply - connected . * either @xmath548 contains @xmath549 and @xmath550 or * @xmath551 , @xmath552 and @xmath553 . assume that we are in case ( 1 ) . by lemma [ isoperimetric ] , we have on @xmath547 @xmath554 for @xmath555 . we will show that the similar inequality @xmath556 holds on @xmath548 for all @xmath557 . let @xmath557 and @xmath558 be a component of @xmath559 . if @xmath558 contains at most one point of @xmath430 and @xmath560 , then lemma [ isoperimetric ] implies that @xmath561 if @xmath558 contains both @xmath430 and @xmath560 , then @xmath562 is simply connected which contains @xmath563 only . thus by lemma [ isoperimetric ] @xmath564 since @xmath565 and @xmath566 , we get @xmath567 then again @xmath568 with equality holds only when @xmath32 and @xmath569 . now it is a simple observation that domains which satisfy the isoperimetric inequality ( [ isoperi ] ) have the addition property . indeed , if @xmath570 and @xmath571 , then @xmath572 hence ( [ keypoint ] ) holds for all @xmath557 . now we can apply lemma [ symmetry+ ] to @xmath548 to conclude that @xmath573 ( which already leads to a contradiction if @xmath574 ) and the equality @xmath575 in ( [ keypoint ] ) holds for all @xmath576 . this implies that @xmath577 has only one component and it contains @xmath430 and @xmath560 for all @xmath576 . but then @xmath458 attains its minimum along a connected set @xmath578 containing @xmath430 and @xmath560 , which is impossible . in case ( 2 ) , @xmath574 again leads to a contradiction via the same argument . for @xmath32 , we have @xmath579 and all inequalities in ( [ eq:22 ] ) are equalities . so under the notations there @xmath580 for all @xmath581 . this implies that @xmath582 almost everywhere in @xmath583 for some constant @xmath78 which depends only on @xmath470 . by continuity we have @xmath584 or @xmath585 . by letting @xmath586 , we find @xmath587 by ( [ final ] ) this implies that @xmath588 for all @xmath589 , which is clearly impossible . hence the proof of theorem [ nondeg ] is completed . since equation ( [ eq:1 ] ) has an unique solution at @xmath395 , by the continuation from @xmath42 to @xmath590 and theorem [ nondeg ] , we conclude that ( [ eq:1 ] ) has a most a solution at @xmath32 , and it implies that the mean field equation ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) has at most one solution up to scaling . thus , theorem [ uniq ] is proved and then theorem [ green ] follows immediately . for simplicity , from now on we normalize all tori to have @xmath34 , @xmath591 . in section 3 we have shown that the existence of solutions of equation ( [ 1 - 1 ] ) is equivalent to the existence of non - half - period critical points of @xmath33 . the main goal of this and next sections is to provide criteria for detecting minimum points of @xmath33 . the following theorem is useful in this regard . [ thm:4 - 2 ] let @xmath63 and @xmath64 be two half - periods . then @xmath592 if and only if @xmath593 . by integrating ( [ eq:3 - 3 ] ) , the green function @xmath33 can be represented by @xmath594 thus @xmath595 set @xmath596 . we have @xmath597 and @xmath598 + \eta_2 - \eta_1 \omega_2\\ & = -\big[\zeta\big(\frac{\omega_2}{2 } - t\big ) - \eta_1 \big(\frac{\omega_2}{2 } - t\big)\big ] - 2\pi i , \end{split}\ ] ] hence @xmath599 is antisymmetric in @xmath600 . to calculate the integral in ( [ eq:3 - 10 ] ) , we use the addition theorem to get @xmath601 integrating it along the segment from @xmath24 to @xmath92 , we get @xmath602 where @xmath356 is the line from @xmath603 to @xmath24 , @xmath357 is the line from @xmath92 to @xmath604 and @xmath605 is the line from @xmath24 to @xmath92 . since @xmath606 and @xmath607 is antisymmetric with respect to @xmath24 , we have @xmath608 where @xmath129 is the line from @xmath603 to @xmath92 . thus we have @xmath609 that is , @xmath610 similarly , by integrating ( [ eq:3 - 3 ] ) in the @xmath283 direction , we get @xmath611 the same proof then gives rise to @xmath612 by combining the above two formulae we get also that @xmath613 in order to compare , say , @xmath614 and @xmath615 , we may use ( [ eq:5 - 5 ] ) . let @xmath616 by using @xmath617 , we get @xmath618 it is easy to see that @xmath619 if and only if @xmath620 . hence @xmath621 the same argument applies to the other two cases too and the theorem follows . it remains to make the criterion effective in @xmath622 . recall the modular function @xmath623 by ( [ eq:3 - 11 ] ) , we have @xmath624 therefore , it is important to know when @xmath625 . [ comparison ] @xmath625 if and only if @xmath626 . let @xmath627 be the weierstrass @xmath38 function with periods @xmath628 and @xmath622 , then @xmath629 for @xmath630 , @xmath631 and then @xmath632 . thus @xmath633 note that if @xmath634 then @xmath635 . therefore @xmath636 since @xmath617 , we have @xmath637 thus @xmath638 a classic result says that @xmath639 for all @xmath622 . by this and ( [ eq:3 - 20 ] ) , it follows that @xmath399 maps @xmath640 bijectively onto @xmath641 . let @xmath47 be the fundamental domain for @xmath642 , i.e. , @xmath643 and let @xmath644 be the reflection of @xmath47 with respect to the imaginary axis . since @xmath645 for @xmath646 , we conclude that for @xmath647 , @xmath648 if and only if @xmath649 . therefore for @xmath650 , @xmath651 for @xmath652 , using suitable mbius transformations we may obtain similar results . for example , from the definition of @xmath38 , ( [ eq:3 - 18 ] ) implies that @xmath653 and so ( compare ( [ eq:3 - 1 ] ) ) @xmath654 clearly , for @xmath655 , ( [ eq:3 - 22 ] ) implies that @xmath656 . so @xmath657 @xmath658 similarly , @xmath659 by ( [ eq:3 - 3 ] ) , the derivatives of @xmath11 can be computed by @xmath661 when @xmath630 , since @xmath17 is real for @xmath662 , @xmath663 is real and ( [ eq:4 - 1 ] ) becomes @xmath664 thus the hessian of @xmath11 is given by @xmath665 we first consider the point @xmath85 . the degeneracy condition of @xmath11 at @xmath85 reads as @xmath666 we will use the following two inequalities ( theorem [ thm:1 - 3 ] ) whose proofs will be given in 8 and 9 through theta functions : @xmath667 @xmath668 [ 5 - 1 ] there exists @xmath84 such that @xmath85 is a degenerate critical point of @xmath86 if and only if @xmath87 or @xmath88 . moreover , @xmath85 is a local minimum point of @xmath86 if @xmath669 and is a saddle point of @xmath86 if @xmath670 or @xmath671 . let @xmath672 and @xmath673 be the zero of @xmath674 and @xmath675 respectively . then lemma [ 5 - 1 ] follows from the explicit expression of the hessian of @xmath11 by ( [ eq:4 - 4 ] ) . numerically we know that @xmath676 . now we analyze the behavior of @xmath11 near @xmath85 for @xmath677 . [ no - real ] suppose that @xmath678 , then @xmath85 is the only critical point of @xmath11 along the @xmath679-axis . @xmath680 is real if @xmath681 . since @xmath682 for @xmath683 , @xmath684 for @xmath685 . since @xmath686 , by ( [ eq:4 - 3 ] ) , ( [ eq:4 - 4 ] ) and lemma [ 5 - 1 ] , @xmath687 which implies that @xmath688 if @xmath689 . hence @xmath11 has no critical points on @xmath690 . since @xmath183 , @xmath11 can not have any critical point on @xmath691 . by lemma [ 5 - 1 ] and the conservation of local morse indices , we know that @xmath86 has two more critical points near @xmath85 when @xmath105 is close to @xmath673 and @xmath91 . we denote these two extra points by @xmath692 and @xmath693 . in this case , @xmath85 becomes a saddle point and @xmath692 and @xmath693 are local minimum points . from lemma [ comparison ] , ( [ eq:3 - 24 ] ) and ( [ eq:3 - 25 ] ) we know that @xmath694 thus in this region @xmath695 must exist and they turn out to be the minimum point of @xmath11 since there are at most five critical points . in fact we will see below that this is true for all @xmath94 and @xmath24 , @xmath92 are all saddle points . [ 5 - 3 ] the critical point @xmath692 is on the line @xmath696 . moreover , the green function @xmath86 is symmetric with respect to the line @xmath697 . representing the torus @xmath27 in question by the rhombus torus with sides @xmath622 and @xmath698 , then the obvious symmetries @xmath699 , @xmath700 of @xmath27 and theorem [ uniq ] show that @xmath692 must be on the @xmath679-axis or the line @xmath701 . the former case is excluded by lemma [ no - real ] . let @xmath702 be the restriction of @xmath11 on the line @xmath703 , namely @xmath704 . lemma [ 5 - 3 ] implies that any critical point of @xmath702 is automatically a critical point of @xmath11 . [ 5 - 4 ] for @xmath94 , @xmath705 has exactly one critical point in @xmath706 . this point is necessarily a non - degenerate minimal point . let @xmath173 . then @xmath696 is equivalent to @xmath707 , which implies @xmath708 . by ( [ eq:3 - 18 ] ) @xmath709 hence @xmath627 is real for @xmath697 . by ( [ eq:4 - 3 ] ) , @xmath710 since @xmath711 for @xmath712 and @xmath697 , @xmath713 has at most one zero . let @xmath692 be the critical point above ( which exists at least for @xmath94 and close to @xmath673 ) . then @xmath714 and so @xmath715 for some @xmath716 in the open line segment @xmath717 . since @xmath718 , we have @xmath719 . hence @xmath692 is a non - degenerate minimum point of @xmath702 as long as it exists with @xmath94 . by the stability of non - degenerate minimal points ( here for one variable functions ) , we conclude that @xmath692 exists for all @xmath94 . [ char - rhombus - tori ] if @xmath720 then @xmath721 . let @xmath722 . if @xmath723 , by the addition theorem ( [ eq:3 - 6 ] ) @xmath724 so @xmath725 is also a critical point . note that @xmath726 . since @xmath727 is also a critical point with @xmath728 , we have either @xmath729 or @xmath730 . the later leads to @xmath731 , which is not impossible . thus we have @xmath732 in @xmath27 and @xmath733 . by the addition theorem for @xmath38 , @xmath734 therefore @xmath735 . together with @xmath736 we find @xmath199 , which is equivalent to that @xmath737 . we need also the following technical lemma : [ eq:4 - 22 ] @xmath38 maps @xmath738 \cup [ \frac{1}{2}(1-\omega_2 ) , \frac{1}{2}\omega_2]$ ] one to one and onto the circle @xmath739 , where @xmath740 , @xmath741 and @xmath742 . here @xmath738 $ ] means segment @xmath743 , and @xmath744 $ ] is @xmath745 . thus , the image of @xmath738 $ ] is the arc connecting @xmath746 and @xmath747 through @xmath748 and the image of @xmath749 $ ] is the arc connecting @xmath747 and @xmath746 through @xmath750 . see figure 4 . cm 0.8 0.02 ( 0 0 ) ( 7.5 0 ) ( 3 3.2 ) ( 3 -3.2 ) ( 4 0 ) r:3 f:0 r:0.06 h : c v : c ( 4 0.4)@xmath104 ( 1 0 ) f:0 r:0.06 h : c v : c ( 1 -0.5)@xmath751 ( 7 0 ) f:0 r:0.06 h : c v : c ( 7.6 -0.5)@xmath752 ( 3 0 ) f:0 r:0.06 h : c v : c ( 2.4 0.5)@xmath753 ( 3 2.83 ) f:0 r:0.06 h : c v : c ( 2.6 2.2)@xmath747 ( 3 -2.83 ) f:0 r:0.06 h : c v : c ( 2.6 -2.2)@xmath746 note our figure is for the case @xmath754 , i.e. , @xmath755 . in this case , the angle @xmath756 is less than @xmath757 . for the case @xmath758 , the angle is greater than @xmath757 . first we have @xmath759 since @xmath760 , @xmath761 let @xmath762 , @xmath681 . we have @xmath763 by ( [ eq:4 - 30 ] ) , @xmath764 since @xmath17 is decreasing in @xmath765 for @xmath766 , @xmath767 thus @xmath768 and the image of @xmath738 $ ] is exactly the arc on the circle @xmath769 connecting @xmath746 and @xmath747 through @xmath770 . it is one to one since @xmath771 for @xmath772 , @xmath773 . next let @xmath774 . then we have @xmath775 thus by ( [ eq:4 - 30 ] ) again , @xmath776 since @xmath777 is decreasing in @xmath470 for @xmath778 , @xmath779 . so @xmath780 and the image of @xmath781 $ ] is the arc of @xmath782 connecting @xmath747 and @xmath746 through @xmath783 . we are ready to prove the main results of this section : for @xmath94 , @xmath695 are non - degenerate ( local ) minimum points of @xmath11 . furthermore , @xmath784 we want to prove @xmath785 and @xmath786 . by ( [ eq:4 - 3 ] ) , @xmath787 note that @xmath788 and @xmath789 as in ( [ eq:3 - 14 ] ) , in terms of @xmath642 , @xmath790 thus @xmath791 from here , we have @xmath792 for @xmath793 , which implies that @xmath794 for @xmath795 . therefore at @xmath796 ( where @xmath797 ) we have @xmath798 since @xmath799 at @xmath721 , we have @xmath800 for @xmath801 and sufficiently close to @xmath802 . by lemma [ char - rhombus - tori ] , we then have that @xmath803 for all @xmath804 . thus @xmath805 where @xmath806 is used ( cf . ( [ eq:3 - 19 ] ) ) . later we will show that @xmath807 always holds ( this is part of theorem [ thm:1 - 3 ] to be proved in 9 , another direct proof will be given in ( [ eq:4 - 23 ] ) ) . thus the non - degeneracy of @xmath692 for @xmath804 follows . for @xmath808 , write @xmath809 . it is clear that when @xmath810 , @xmath811 . we claim that @xmath812 if @xmath808 . for if @xmath813 , i.e.@xmath814 , then @xmath815 is also a critical point . by the addition formula of @xmath816 we get @xmath817 , and then lemma [ char - rhombus - tori ] implies that @xmath818 , which is a contradiction . note that by ( [ addition - p ] ) , it is easy to see for @xmath97 , @xmath819 hence by the monotone property of @xmath820 in @xmath821 , it decreases to @xmath822 when @xmath823 and @xmath824 let @xmath825 . we have @xmath826 and @xmath827 . therefore there exists a @xmath828 such that @xmath829 . for this @xmath830 and at @xmath831 we compute @xmath832 plug in these into ( [ eq:4 - 16 ] ) we solve @xmath833 numerically at @xmath88 , @xmath834 . by the decreasing property of @xmath835 ( c.f . ( [ eq:4 - 12 ] ) ) we find that @xmath830 is unique with @xmath836 . thus @xmath837 for @xmath91 . together with ( [ eq:4 - 15 ] ) , @xmath838 for @xmath839 . the completes the proof of @xmath785 . it remains to show that @xmath840 . this has already been proved in the case @xmath839 since @xmath841 . for @xmath842 , from the continuity of @xmath692 in @xmath105 and @xmath843 it is enough to show that @xmath844 since @xmath845 the positivity at @xmath846 follows from @xmath847 and the negativity of the right hand side via lemma [ eq:4 - 22 ] , figure 4 . now we discuss the non - degeneracy of @xmath11 at @xmath24 and @xmath92 . the local minimum property of @xmath692 is in fact global by [ thm:5 - 7 ] for @xmath848 , both @xmath24 and @xmath92 are non - degenerate saddle points of @xmath11 . by ( [ eq:4 - 3 ] ) , we have @xmath849 hence the non - degeneracy of @xmath24 is true if @xmath850 first we claim that @xmath851 and @xmath852 to prove ( [ eq:4 - 23 ] ) , we have @xmath853 where @xmath854 is used . by lemma [ eq:4 - 22 ] , @xmath855 hence @xmath856 . to prove ( [ eq:4 - 24 ] ) , we have @xmath857 therefore , @xmath858 and the inequality ( [ eq:4 - 24 ] ) follows . to prove ( [ eq:4 - 21 ] ) , we need two more inequalities . by ( [ eq:4 - 25 ] ) , @xmath859 and by lemma [ eq:4 - 22 ] , @xmath860 thus @xmath861 therefore , the non - degeneracy of @xmath11 at @xmath24 is proved . by ( [ eq:4 - 21 ] ) , @xmath24 is always a saddle point . representing the torus @xmath27 by the rhombus torus with sides @xmath622 and @xmath698 , then the case for @xmath92 follows from the case for @xmath24 by symmetry reasons . the purpose of 7 to 9 is to prove the two fundamental inequalities ( theorem [ thm:1 - 3 ] ) that have been used in previous sections . the natural setup is based on theta functions ( we take @xcite as our general reference ) . this is easy to explain since the moduli variable @xmath622 is explicit in theta functions and differentiations in @xmath622 is much easier than in the weierstrass theory . to avoid cross references , the discussions here are independent of previous sections . consider a torus @xmath862 with @xmath863 , a lattice with @xmath864 , @xmath865 let @xmath866 with @xmath867 . the theta function @xmath868 is the exponentially convergent series @xmath869 for simplicity we also write it as @xmath870 . it is entire with @xmath871 which has simple zeros at the lattice points ( and no others ) . the following heat equation is clear from the definition @xmath872 as usual we use @xmath13 . here comes the starting point : [ green - theta ] up to a constant @xmath125 , the green s function @xmath1 for the laplace operator @xmath873 on @xmath27 is given by @xmath874 let @xmath875 be the right hand side . clearly for @xmath876 we have @xmath877 which integrated over @xmath27 gives 1 . near @xmath7 , @xmath875 has the correct behavior . so it remains to show that @xmath875 is indeed a function on @xmath27 . from the quasi - periodicity , @xmath878 is obvious . also @xmath879 these properties characterize the green s function up to a constant . by the translation invariance of @xmath11 , it is enough to consider @xmath880 . let @xmath881 if we represent the torus @xmath27 as centered at @xmath41 , then the symmetry @xmath398 shows that @xmath183 . by differentiation , we get @xmath882 . if @xmath883 in @xmath27 , that is @xmath884 , then we get @xmath885 . hence we obtain the half periods @xmath66 , @xmath886 and @xmath887 as three obvious critical points of @xmath33 for any @xmath27 . by computing @xmath888 we find the equation of critical points @xmath13 of @xmath33 is given by @xmath889 with @xmath890 understood ( cf.([link ] ) ) , this leads to alternative simple proofs to lemma [ critical ] and corollary [ lem:2 - 3 ] . we compute easily @xmath891 and the hessian @xmath892\\ & = \frac{-1}{4\pi^2 } \left[\big|(\log{\vartheta}_1)_{zz } + \frac{\pi}{b}\big|^2 - \big(\frac{\pi}{b}\big)^2\right ] . \end{split}\ ] ] to analyze the critical point of @xmath33 in general , we use the methods of continuity to connect @xmath622 to a standard model like the square toris , that is @xmath893 , which under the modular group @xmath894 is equivalent to the point @xmath81 by @xmath895 . on this special torus , there are precisely three critical points given by the half periods ( cf . @xcite , lemma 2.1 ) . the idea is , new critical points should be born only at certain half period points when it degenerates under the deformation in @xmath622 . the heat equation provides a bridge between the degeneracy condition and deformations in @xmath622 . in the following , we focus on the critical point @xmath896 and analyze its degeneracy behavior along the half line @xmath129 given by @xmath897 , @xmath898 . when @xmath899 , we have @xmath900 hence the important observation that @xmath901 similarly this holds for any derivatives of @xmath870 in @xmath121 . in particular , @xmath902 is real - valued for all @xmath903 and @xmath904 . here the heat equation and the holomorphicity of @xmath905 have been used . now we focus on the critical point @xmath896 . the value @xmath906 is fixed till the end of this section . the critical point equation implies that @xmath907 since now @xmath529 . thus @xmath908 as real functions in @xmath105 . in this case , the point @xmath66 is a degenerate critical point ( @xmath909 ) if and only if that @xmath910 notice that as functions in @xmath83 , @xmath911 to see this , notice that the right hand side is non - zero , real and positive for large @xmath105 , hence positive for all @xmath105 . clearly @xmath912 . over the line @xmath129 , @xmath913 . namely that @xmath914 is decreasing from positive infinity to @xmath915 . hence that @xmath916 and @xmath917 occur exactly once on @xmath129 respectively . denote @xmath918 by @xmath919 and @xmath920 . since @xmath921 , we get @xmath922 denote the arithmetic sum @xmath923 by @xmath924 , then @xmath925 we will prove @xmath926 in two steps . first we show by direct estimate that this is true for @xmath927 ( indeed the argument holds for @xmath928 ) . then we derive a functional equation for @xmath929 which implies that the case with @xmath930 is equivalent to the case @xmath931 . step 1 : ( direct estimate ) . the point is to show that in the above expression the sum of positive ( even degree ) terms is small . so let @xmath932 . the number of terms with degree @xmath933 is certainly no more than @xmath933 , so a trivial upper bound for the positive part is given by @xmath934 where the last equality is an easy exercise in power series calculations in calculus . for @xmath935 we compute @xmath936 so @xmath926 for @xmath937 . step 2 : ( functional equation ) . by the lemma to be proved below , we have for @xmath938 , it holds that @xmath939 when @xmath940 , we have @xmath941 . as before we may then replace @xmath942 by @xmath943 . under @xmath944 , @xmath945 is mapped onto @xmath946 $ ] with directions reversed . let @xmath947 . then we get @xmath948 plug in @xmath949 we get that @xmath950 . so @xmath951 for @xmath952 . then @xmath953\\ & = 2\big[b - \frac{1}{2}\big]^2 - \frac{1}{2 } + 4b^2\big[-\frac{1}{2 } - f(b)\big ] \end{split}\ ] ] is strictly increasing in @xmath795 . that is , @xmath954 is strictly decreasing in @xmath955 $ ] . the remaining statements are all clear . now we prove the functional equation . for this we need to use jacobi s imaginary transformation formula , which explains the modularity for certain special theta values ( cf . p.475 in @xcite ) . it reads that for @xmath956 , @xmath957 recall the two generators of @xmath894 are @xmath958 and @xmath959 . since @xmath960 , @xmath27 plays no role in @xmath961 . let @xmath962 . then @xmath963 let @xmath964 , @xmath965 , @xmath966 and finally @xmath967 . notice that for @xmath956 we have @xmath968 . then @xmath969\\ & = \frac{\tau_1}{2 } + \frac{\pi i \tau_1 ^ 2}{4 } + \tau_1 ^ 2 \frac{d}{d\tau_1}\log{\vartheta}_1(\tau_1/{2};\tau_1)\\ & = \frac{\tau_2 - 2}{2 } + \frac{\pi i ( \tau_2 - 2)^2}{4 } + ( \tau_2 - 2)^2 \frac{d}{d\tau_2}\log{\vartheta}_1(\tau_2/2;\tau_2)\\ & = \frac{1}{2}\big[\frac{-1}{\tau_3 } - 2\big ] + \frac{\pi i}{4 } \big[\frac{-1}{\tau_3 } - 2\big]^2 + \big[\frac{-1}{\tau_3 } - 2\big]^2\times\\ & \qquad\left(\frac{\tau_3}{2 } + \pi i \tau_3 ^ 2\frac{d}{d\tau_3}\left[\tau_3(\tau_2/2)^2\right ] + \tau_3 ^ 2 \frac{d}{d\tau_3}\log{\vartheta}_1(\tau_2\tau_3/2;\tau_3 ) \right).\\ \end{split}\ ] ] we plug in @xmath970 and @xmath971 . it is clear that the second and the fourth terms are cancelled out , the first and the third terms are combined into @xmath972 = -(1 - 2\tau).\ ] ] this proves the result . by the previous explicit computations , @xmath973 a numerical computation shows that @xmath974 for @xmath975 and @xmath976 for @xmath977 . hence the sign of @xmath978 is @xmath979 , @xmath980 and @xmath981 for @xmath90 , @xmath982 and @xmath983 respectively . that is , @xmath66 is a saddle point , local minimum point and saddle point respectively . this implies that for @xmath984 , there are more critical points near @xmath66 which come from the degeneracy of @xmath66 at @xmath88 and the conservation of local morse index . the analysis of extra critical points split from @xmath66 also relies on other though similar inequalities . recall the three other theta functions we had seen previously that @xmath987 over the line @xmath988 . this is equivalent to that @xmath989 . we now discuss the case for @xmath990 and @xmath991 where the situation is reversed ( ! ) and it turns out the proof is easier and purely algebraic . since @xmath995 , @xmath996 , we see that @xmath997 where @xmath998 . then we compute directly that @xmath999 where @xmath1000 is the number of ways to represent @xmath1001 as the ( ordered ) sum of two squares of integers . then @xmath1002 and in particular @xmath1003 . now we relate these to weierstrass elliptic functions . from @xmath1006 , @xmath337 is entire , odd with a simple zero on lattice points . moreover , @xmath1007 this is similar to the theta function transformation law , indeed @xmath1008 hence @xmath1009_z = ( \log{\vartheta}_1(z))_z\ ] ] and @xmath1010 ^ 2.\ ] ] the jacobi triple product formula ( cf . p.490 in @xcite ) asserts that @xmath1015 so @xmath1016_\tau \\ & = 2\pi i ( \log{\vartheta}_3(0){\vartheta}_4(0))_\tau = 4\pi ( \log|{\vartheta}_3(0)|)_b . \end{split}\ ] ] our second inequality then says that on the line @xmath108 , @xmath112 , @xmath1017 and @xmath1018 increases to zero in @xmath105 . together with the first inequality ( [ eq-1 ] ) , we find also that @xmath104 increases in @xmath105 . l. alhfors ; _ complex analysis _ , 2nd edition , mcgraw - hill book co. , new york , 1966 . s .- a. chang , c.c . chen and c.s . lin ; _ extremal functions for a mean field equation in two dimensions _ , in lectures on partial differential equations : proceedings in honor of louis nirenberg s 75th birthday , international press 2003 , 61 - 94 . c.c . chen and c.s . lin ; _ sharp estimates for solutions of multi - bubbles in compact riemann surfaces _ , comm . pure appl . lv ( 2002 ) , 0728 - 0771 . ; _ topological degree for a mean field equation on a riemann surfaces _ , comm . pure appl . lvi ( 2003 ) , 1667 - 1727 . ; _ topological degree for a mean field equation with singular data _ , in preparation . chen , c.s . lin and g. wang ; _ concentration phenomenon of two - vortex solutions in a chern - simons model _ , ann . scuola norm . pisa ci . ( 5 ) vol . iii ( 2004 ) , 367 - 379 . j. jost , c .- s . lin and g. wang ; _ analytic aspects of the toda system _ , comm . pure appl.math . * 59 * ( 2006 ) , no . 4 , 526 - 558 . li ; _ harnack type inequalities : the method of moving planes _ , comm . * 200 * ( 1999 ) , 421 - 444 . lin and c .- l . wang ; _ on the minimality of extra critical points of green functions on flat tori _ , in preparation . m. nolasco and g. tarantello ; _ on a sharp sobolev - type inequality on two dimensional compact manifolds _ , arch . * 154 * ( 1998 ) , no.2 , 161 - 195 . ; _ double vortex condensates in the chern - simons - higgs theory _ , calc . var . and pde * 9 * ( 1999 ) , no . 1 , 31 - 94 . ; _ vortex condensates for the @xmath1019 chern - simons theory _ , comm . * 213 * ( 2000 ) , no.3 , 599 - 639 . whittaker and g.n . watson ; _ a course of modern analysis _ , 4th edition , cambridge university press , 1927 .

we show that the green functions on flat tori can have either 3 or 5 critical points only . there does not seem to be any direct method to attack this problem . instead , we have to employ sophisticated non - linear partial differential equations to study it . we also study the distribution of number of critical points over the moduli space of flat tori through deformations . the functional equations of special theta values provide important inequalities which lead to a solution for all rhombus tori .

a lattice @xmath1 is _ biatomic _ , if it is atomic ( i.e. , every element of @xmath2 lies above some atom of @xmath1 ) and whenever @xmath3 , @xmath4 , and @xmath5 are elements of @xmath1 such that @xmath3 is an atom , @xmath4 and @xmath5 are nonzero , and @xmath6 , there are atoms @xmath7 and @xmath8 such that @xmath9 , see definition [ d : atatbiat ] . in our first result of this paper , theorem [ t : allfinlatt ] , we prove that any finite lattice can be easily embedded atom - preservingly into a finite biatomic one . biatomicity arises naturally in geometric lattices such as lattices of subspaces of a vector space or , more generally , projective geometries . it was also noticed by m.k . bennett @xcite that in geometric lattices , biatomicity is equivalent to modularity . biatomicity is probably even more common among _ convex geometries_. the lattice theoretical facet of these at first finite and purely combinatorial structures was studied in p.h . edelman @xcite and p.h . edelman and r. jamison @xcite . in @xcite , these structures , now generalized to the infinite case , were considered as an antithesis of geometric lattices , in terms of the properties of the closure operators that define them . we mention the lattices of convex subsets of a given affine space and the lattice of subsemilattices of a given meet - semilattice as a few examples of biatomic convex geometries . still , not all convex geometries are biatomic , thus to describe the biatomic members within a given class of such structures would be of great interest . convex geometries are closely connected with the class of join - semidistributive lattices . a lattice @xmath1 is called _ join - semidistributive _ , if @xmath10 it is proved in @xcite that every finite join - semidistributive lattice can be embedded , in an atom - preserving way , into a finite , atomistic , join - semidistributivelattice , or , equivalently , into a finite atomistic convex geometry . this convex geometry is not generally biatomic . the other construction in @xcite embeds any finite join - semidistributive lattice into the lattice @xmath11 of algebraic subsets of some ( generally infinite ) algebraic and dually algebraic lattice @xmath12 . this is also a convex geometry with the additional properties that it is atomistic , biatomic , and join - semidistributive . this , together with ( * ? ? ? * theorem 1.4 ) , implies that _ every join - semidistributivelattice @xmath1 can be embedded into an atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice @xmath13 _ , see also the proof of ( * ? ? ? * theorem 3.26 ) . it is asked in problem 4 of @xcite whether @xmath13 can be taken to be finite whenever @xmath1 is finite . in the present paper , we solve this problem in the negative , by showing a quasi - identity @xmath14 that is satisfied by all finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattices but not by all finite atomistic join - semidistributive lattices , see theorem [ t : biatquasid ] . this result is inspired by a geometrical example of finite convex geometry that in general produces non - biatomic join - semidistributive lattices . in contrast with this , we prove that every finite atomistic join - semidistributive lattice @xmath1 can be @xmath15-embedded , in an atom - preserving way and with the congruence extension property , into a finite , atomistic , join - semidistributivelattice @xmath13 such that all biatomicity problems of @xmath1 can be solved in @xmath13 , see theorem [ t : partsd+ ] . we also study the case of finite _ lower bounded _ lattices , an important subclass of join - semidistributive lattices . the first author s earlier work @xcite provides an embedding of any finite lower bounded lattice into some finite biatomic convex geometry , which implies corollary [ c : embsubp ] ( see also theorem [ t : partsd+ ] ) . still , we do not know whether such an embedding can be done atom - preservingly . this contributes to the list of open problems that concludes the paper . for a lattice @xmath1 with zero ( i.e. , least element ) , we denote by @xmath16 the set of atoms of @xmath1 . the following definition recalls classical notions , related to their counterparts in @xcite . [ d : atatbiat ] a lattice @xmath1 with zero is * _ atomic _ , if every element of @xmath1 is above an atom of @xmath1 ; * _ atomistic _ , if every element of @xmath1 is a join of atoms of @xmath1 ; * _ biatomic _ , if @xmath1 is atomic and for every atom @xmath3 of @xmath1 and all nonzero @xmath4 , @xmath17 , if @xmath6 , then there are atoms @xmath7 and @xmath8 such that @xmath9 . we observe that every finite lattice is atomic , and @xmath1 is atomistic iff for all @xmath4 , @xmath17 such that @xmath18 , there exists @xmath19 such that @xmath20 and @xmath21 . the following lemma is trivial . [ l : charactbiat ] let @xmath1 be an atomic lattice . then @xmath1 is biatomic iff for every atom @xmath3 of @xmath1 and all @xmath4 , @xmath22 such that @xmath23 , @xmath21 , and @xmath6 , there exists an atom @xmath24 of @xmath1 such that @xmath25 . for a lattice @xmath1 with zero and @xmath26 , let @xmath27 be the statement that @xmath28 is an atom of @xmath1 . we can prove right away the following easy embedding result . [ t : allfinlatt ] let @xmath1 be a finite lattice . then @xmath1 has a @xmath29-embedding into some finite , atomistic , biatomic lattice @xmath30 . put @xmath31 . for each @xmath32 , let @xmath33 and @xmath34 be new distinct elements , and put @xmath35 we define a partial ordering on @xmath30 , extending the partial ordering of @xmath1 , by making all the elements of @xmath36 mutually incomparable , and by saying that @xmath37 for all @xmath32 and @xmath26 . then it is straightforward to verify that @xmath38 is a lattice ordering on @xmath30 and that the inclusion map from @xmath1 into @xmath30 is a @xmath29-embedding . since @xmath39 for all @xmath32 , the lattice @xmath30 is atomistic . to prove that @xmath30 is biatomic , it is convenient to use lemma [ l : charactbiat ] . so let @xmath40 , let @xmath4 , @xmath41 such that @xmath23 , @xmath21 , and @xmath6 ( in particular , @xmath4 and @xmath5 are incomparable , thus they are nonzero ) , we find an atom @xmath42 of @xmath30 such that @xmath24 and @xmath25 . if @xmath4 is an atom of @xmath30 then @xmath43 works , so suppose from now on that @xmath32 . if @xmath17 , then @xmath44 , thus @xmath45 is as required . if @xmath46 , say , @xmath47 for some @xmath48 such that @xmath49 , then @xmath50 , so @xmath45 is as required again . we say that a partially ordered set is _ ntherian _ , if it has no infinite strictly increasing chain . equivalently , every nonempty subset has a maximal element . of course , every finite partially ordered set is ntherian . in this paragraph we will prove that if an atomistic lattice can be embedded into some ntherian , join - semidistributive , biatomic lattice , then it also can be embedded into an _ atomistic _ such lattice . we will work toward the proof of this statement in corollary [ c : equivbae2 ] . an immediate application of ntherianity gives the following result . [ l : finrep ] let @xmath1 be a ntherian lattice and let @xmath51 be a subset of @xmath1 . then every join of elements of @xmath51 is a finite join of elements of @xmath51 . we recall the following elementary property of join - semidistributive lattices that follows immediately from ( * ? ? ? * theorem 1.21 ) . [ l : xcapy ] let @xmath52 be a join - semidistributive lattice with zero , let @xmath53 and let @xmath54 and @xmath55 be finite sets of atoms of @xmath52 . if @xmath56 , then @xmath57 . for a subset @xmath58 of a join - semilattice @xmath1 , we denote the set of all joins of nonempty finite subsets of @xmath58 by @xmath59 . [ p : genat ] let @xmath1 be a ntherian , biatomic , lattice and let @xmath60 . we put @xmath61\cap\operatorname{at}l$ ] . then @xmath62 is a ntherian , biatomic , , atomistic lattice . by definition , @xmath63 is a @xmath64-subsemilattice of @xmath1 . since @xmath1 is ntherian , it follows from lemma [ l : finrep ] that @xmath63 is a lattice in its own right , and it is ntherian . it is obviously atomistic , with @xmath65 . let @xmath66 and let @xmath28 , @xmath67 such that @xmath9 . since @xmath1 is biatomic , there are atoms @xmath68 and @xmath69 of @xmath1 such that @xmath70 . from @xmath28 , @xmath71 , it follows that @xmath72 , @xmath73 . this shows that @xmath63 is biatomic . now we prove that @xmath63 is join - semidistributive provided @xmath1 is . let @xmath5 , @xmath28 , @xmath74 such that @xmath75 . by the definition of @xmath63 , there are finite subsets @xmath54 and @xmath55 of @xmath58 such that @xmath76 and @xmath77 . it follows from lemma [ l : xcapy ] that @xmath78 . since @xmath79 , we get @xmath80 , thus completing the proof that @xmath63 is join - semidistributive . for subsets @xmath81 and @xmath82 in a lattice @xmath1 , we say that @xmath81 _ separates the elements of @xmath82 _ , if for all @xmath28 , @xmath83 with @xmath84 , there exists @xmath85 such that @xmath86 and @xmath87 . observe , in particular , that @xmath1 is atomistic iff @xmath16 separates the elements of @xmath1 . [ c : equivbae ] let @xmath1 be a lattice . then the following are equivalent : 1 . there is a lattice embedding from @xmath1 into some finite resp . , ntherian , join - semidistributive , biatomic lattice @xmath30 such that @xmath88 separates the elements of @xmath1 . 2 . there is a lattice embedding from @xmath1 into some finite resp . , ntherian , join - semidistributive , biatomic , atomistic lattice . the results above also hold for `` @xmath89-lattice embedding '' instead of `` lattice embedding '' . we prove the nontrivial direction ( i)@xmath90(ii ) , for `` ntherian''the proof for `` finite '' is similar . let @xmath30 be a ntherian , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice containing @xmath1 as a sublattice such that @xmath88 separates the elements of @xmath1 . we put @xmath91 and we observe that @xmath58 separates the elements of @xmath1 . now we put @xmath92 . by proposition [ p : genat ] , @xmath63 is a ntherian , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice , with @xmath65 and @xmath93 . now we shall investigate further the interaction of the lattices @xmath63 , @xmath30 , @xmath1 . define a map @xmath94 by the rule @xmath95 in view of lemma [ l : finrep ] , @xmath96 is well - defined . we observe that @xmath97 , for all @xmath26 . [ cl : fmemb ] the map @xmath96 is a meet - embedding from @xmath1 into @xmath63 . if @xmath98 , then @xmath99 . it is clear that @xmath96 is order - preserving and that if @xmath98 , then @xmath99 . let @xmath28 , @xmath100 such that @xmath84 . since @xmath58 separates the elements of @xmath1 , there exists @xmath66 such that @xmath86 and @xmath87 . thus @xmath101 ( by the definition of @xmath96 ) and @xmath102 ( because @xmath103 ) , whence @xmath104 . so @xmath96 is an order - embedding . now let @xmath28 , @xmath100 . we prove that @xmath105 . let @xmath66 such that @xmath106 . since @xmath97 and @xmath103 , this implies that @xmath86 and @xmath107 . thus , since @xmath1 is a sublattice of @xmath30 , the inequality @xmath108 holds , whence @xmath109 . therefore , since @xmath96 is order - preserving , @xmath96 is a meet - homomorphism . [ cl : joinhom ] the map @xmath96 is a join - homomorphism from @xmath1 to @xmath63 . let @xmath28 , @xmath100 and let @xmath66 such that @xmath110 . suppose that @xmath111 . in particular , @xmath28 and @xmath112 are nonzero in @xmath1 , thus in @xmath30 . by the definition of @xmath96 , this means that @xmath113 . hence , since @xmath30 is biatomic and @xmath28 and @xmath112 are nonzero in @xmath30 , there are atoms @xmath68 and @xmath69 of @xmath30 such that @xmath114 . observe that @xmath72 , @xmath73 . moreover , @xmath115 and @xmath116 , whence @xmath117 , a contradiction . therefore , we have proved that @xmath118 . since @xmath96 is order - preserving , the converse inequality holds , which concludes the proof of the claim . the proof of corollary [ c : equivbae ] is completed . [ c : equivbae2 ] let @xmath1 be an atomistic lattice . then the following are equivalent : 1 . @xmath1 has a @xmath119-embedding into some finite resp . , ntherian , join - semidistributive , biatomic lattice . @xmath1 has a @xmath119-embedding into some finite resp . , ntherian , join - semidistributive , biatomic , atomistic lattice . we prove the nontrivial direction ( i)@xmath90(ii ) , for `` ntherian '' ( the proof for `` finite '' is similar ) . let @xmath30 be a ntherian , join - semidistributive , biatomic lattice such that @xmath1 is a @xmath89-sublattice of @xmath30 . by corollary [ c : equivbae ] , it is sufficient to prove that the atoms of @xmath30 separate the elements of @xmath1 . so let @xmath28 , @xmath100 such that @xmath84 . since @xmath1 is atomistic , there exists @xmath19 such that @xmath86 and @xmath87 . since @xmath30 is atomic , there exists an atom @xmath42 of @xmath30 below @xmath3 . then @xmath120 . furthermore , @xmath121 , and hence @xmath122 , that is , @xmath123 . this proves our assertion . for lattices @xmath52 and @xmath1 , a lattice homomorphism @xmath124 is _ lower bounded _ , if the preimage under @xmath96 of any principal dual ideal of @xmath1 is either empty or has a least element . a lattice @xmath1 is _ lower bounded _ , if every homomorphism from a finitely generated lattice to @xmath1 is lower bounded . we refer the reader to @xcite for more details . for a finite meet - semilattice @xmath81 , we denote by @xmath125 the lattice of all subsemilattices of @xmath81 ( @xmath126 included ) . we state here the following result from the first author s paper @xcite . [ t : embsubp ] a finite lattice @xmath1 is lower bounded iff it can be embedded into @xmath125 for some finite meet - semilattice @xmath81 . as @xmath125 is lower bounded , atomistic , and biatomic , this implies immediately the following result . [ c : embsubp ] any finite lower bounded lattice can be embedded into some finite , atomistic , biatomic , lower bounded lattice . for a finite , atomistic , lower bounded lattice @xmath1 , theorem [ t : embsubp ] says that there exists an embedding from @xmath1 into @xmath125 for some finite meet - semilattice @xmath81 . this embedding can be chosen to preserve the zero , however , it may not preserve atoms . the reason for this is that all lattices of the form @xmath125 have the property that for all atoms @xmath28 and @xmath112 , there are at most three atoms below @xmath127 , while there are finite , atomistic , lower bounded lattices that fail this property . we start with the following definition . [ d : extpair ] let @xmath1 be a finite atomistic lattice . extension pair _ of @xmath1 is a pair @xmath128 , where the following are satisfied : 1 . @xmath129 ; 2 . @xmath30 is a meet - subsemilattice of @xmath1 that contains @xmath130 $ ] . for any @xmath60 , we put @xmath131 $ ] . for an extension pair @xmath128 , we put @xmath132 endowed with the componentwise ordering . by definition , a _ closure operator _ of @xmath1 is a map @xmath133 such that @xmath134 , @xmath135 , and @xmath136 implies that @xmath137 , for all @xmath28 , @xmath100 . fix an extension pair @xmath128 of a finite atomistic lattice @xmath1 . let @xmath96 be the closure operator of @xmath1 associated with @xmath30 , that is , @xmath133 is given by the rule @xmath138 we observe that @xmath139 is a meet - subsemilattice of @xmath140 ( where @xmath141 ) that contains both @xmath142 and @xmath143 as elements . hence it is a lattice in its own right . for @xmath144 , we denote by @xmath145 the least element of @xmath139 above @xmath146 . this element can easily be calculated , by the rule @xmath147 we leave to the reader the straightforward proof of the following lemma . [ l : basiclam ] let @xmath1 be a finite atomistic lattice and let @xmath128 be an extension pair of @xmath1 . then the lattice @xmath139 is finite atomistic , and the map @xmath148 defined by @xmath149 for all @xmath26 is a @xmath29-embedding from @xmath1 into @xmath139 . furthermore , @xmath150 . hence , @xmath139 is an atomistic extension of @xmath1 by exactly one atom , here @xmath151 . in the sequel , the only properties of @xmath152 $ ] , where @xmath153 is the new atom , that will be used are the ones listed below : @xmath154 for all @xmath28 , @xmath100 . furthermore , @xmath155 . from now on we shall use the more wieldy description of @xmath139 given by , , and . it is not difficult to verify that conversely , every @xmath156-extension of @xmath1 by exactly one atom below @xmath157 is , up to isomorphism above @xmath1 , of the form @xmath139 for exactly one extension pair @xmath128 of @xmath1 . however , we shall not need this fact . our next result describes when @xmath139 is join - semidistributive . for a subset @xmath54 of @xmath1 , we denote by @xmath158 the set of all maximal elements of @xmath54 . [ l : lamjsd ] let @xmath1 be a finite , atomistic , join - semidistributive lattice and let @xmath128 be an extension pair of @xmath1 with associated closure operator @xmath96 . then @xmath139 is join - semidistributive iff the following conditions are satisfied : 1 . @xmath159 ; 2 . @xmath160 implies that @xmath115 , for all @xmath26 and all distinct atoms @xmath72 and @xmath161 of @xmath1 . we put @xmath162 . suppose first that @xmath13 is join - semidistributive . let @xmath163 . suppose that @xmath164 . since @xmath1 is atomistic , there exists an atom @xmath72 of @xmath1 such that @xmath115 while @xmath165 . from @xmath166 and the maximality of @xmath28 in @xmath131 $ ] , it follows that @xmath167 , whence @xmath168 . so , since @xmath169 , we obtain that @xmath170 . moreover , @xmath171 , thus @xmath172 , and so , by the join - semidistributivity of @xmath13 , @xmath68 , a contradiction . therefore , @xmath159 . now let @xmath26 and @xmath72 , @xmath161 be distinct atoms of @xmath1 such that @xmath160 . it follows from that @xmath173 , whence , by the join - semidistributivity of @xmath13 , @xmath174 , and therefore , again by , @xmath115 . conversely , suppose that both conditions ( i ) and ( ii ) are satisfied . to prove the join - semidistributivity of @xmath13 , if suffices to prove that @xmath175 can not happen , for all @xmath176 and all distinct atoms @xmath72 and @xmath161 of @xmath13 ( see ( * ? ? ? * lemma 1.2 ) ) . since @xmath1 is join - semidistributive , this holds if @xmath28 , @xmath72 , @xmath177 . now suppose that @xmath26 and @xmath178 , so @xmath179 . hence , by using , we obtain that @xmath180 , thus @xmath181 , that is , by , @xmath182 . moreover , @xmath183 , so @xmath184 . hence there exists @xmath185 such that @xmath136 . by assumption , @xmath186 , and consequently @xmath187 , a contradiction since @xmath182 and @xmath188 . since @xmath175 , the last case to consider is @xmath189 for some @xmath100 ( see ) . it follows again from that @xmath190 , and consequently , by assumption , @xmath191 , and so @xmath192 , a contradiction . by definition , a `` biatomicity problem '' in a lattice @xmath1 is a formal expression of the form @xmath6 , where @xmath19 , @xmath4 , @xmath193 , and the inequality @xmath6 holds while @xmath23 , @xmath21 . solution _ of the problem above in @xmath1 consists of atoms @xmath7 and @xmath8 of @xmath1 such that @xmath9 . recall that a lattice embedding @xmath194 has the _ congruence extension property _ , if every congruence of @xmath52 is the inverse image under @xmath96 of some congruence of @xmath1 . the present section will be mainly devoted to proving the following results . [ t : partsd+ ] every finite , atomistic , join - semidistributive resp . , lower bounded lattice @xmath1 admits a @xmath29-embedding with the congruence extension property into some finite , atomistic , join - semidistributive resp . , lower bounded lattice @xmath13 such that all biatomicity problems in @xmath1 can be solved in @xmath13 . it will turn out that the embedding from @xmath1 into @xmath13 in theorem [ t : partsd+ ] preserves more than the congruences , it is in fact an embedding for the transitive closure @xmath195 of the join - dependency relation @xmath196 . this is equivalent to @xmath13 being a congruence - preserving extension of @xmath1 in the finite , lower bounded case , but not in general . the core of the difficulty underlying theorem [ t : partsd+ ] consists of solving very special sorts of biatomicity problems . in lemma [ l : onebb ] to corollary [ c : f , mcep ] , we let @xmath1 be a finite , atomistic , join - semidistributivelattice , and @xmath3 , @xmath42 , @xmath60 such that @xmath3 and @xmath42 are distinct atoms , @xmath129 , @xmath197 , and @xmath198 for all @xmath199 in @xmath1 . furthermore , we let @xmath133 be the map defined by the rule @xmath200 for all @xmath26 . [ l : onebb ] the following assertions hold . 1 . the map @xmath96 is a closure operator of @xmath1 . if we denote by @xmath30 the range of @xmath96 , then @xmath128 is an extension pair of @xmath1 . @xmath139 is join - semidistributive . 4 . denote by @xmath201 the unique atom of @xmath202 . then @xmath203 and @xmath204 . hence , @xmath139 is a join - semidistributive extension of @xmath1 in which the biatomicity problem @xmath197 has a solution . the assertion ( i ) is straightforward . furthermore , it is obvious that @xmath205 is contained in @xmath30 . now let @xmath206 $ ] , we prove that @xmath207 . this is obvious if @xmath208 , so suppose that @xmath209 . from @xmath197 , @xmath209 , and the join - semidistributivity of @xmath1 , it follows that @xmath210 , whence @xmath211 . this completes the proof of ( ii ) . now let @xmath163 . we prove that @xmath207 . this is trivial if @xmath208 , so suppose that @xmath209 . if @xmath212 , then , by the maximality assumption on @xmath28 , @xmath213 thus , from @xmath197 , @xmath214 , and the join - semidistributivity of @xmath1 , it follows that @xmath215 . thus , since @xmath209 and by the join - semidistributivity of @xmath1 , we obtain that @xmath86 , a contradiction . therefore , @xmath86 , so @xmath216 . this proves that @xmath159 . let @xmath26 and @xmath72 , @xmath161 be distinct atoms of @xmath1 such that @xmath160 . we prove that @xmath115 . if @xmath217 , then @xmath218 . otherwise we would have @xmath219 thus @xmath220 , a contradiction . thus @xmath221 , whence , by the join - semidistributivity of @xmath1 , @xmath222 . suppose now that @xmath223 . by the previous paragraph , @xmath224 , and thus @xmath225 . hence , by the join - semidistributivity of @xmath1 , we have @xmath226 , and so @xmath227 . therefore , @xmath228 . by lemma [ l : lamjsd ] , this completes the proof of assertion ( iii ) . the assertion ( iv ) follows immediately from @xmath229 . from lemma [ l : pdlu ] to corollary [ c : f , mcep ] , we let @xmath30 and @xmath201 be as in the statement and proof of lemma [ l : onebb ] . for a finite lattice @xmath52 , we let @xmath230 denote the relation of join - dependency on the set of join - irreducible elements of @xmath52 . observe that for _ atoms _ @xmath28 and @xmath112 of @xmath52 , the relation @xmath230 takes the following simple form : @xmath231 further , we denote by @xmath232 the binary relation on @xmath233 defined by @xmath234 iff either @xmath235 or @xmath236 . then we let @xmath237 denote the transitive closure of @xmath230 and @xmath238 denote the reflexive , transitive closure of @xmath230 . furthermore , since @xmath1 is finite , atomistic , and join - semidistributive , it follows from lemma [ l : xcapy ] that every element @xmath4 of @xmath1 has a minimal decomposition , that is , a least ( with respect to containment ) subset @xmath54 of @xmath16 such that @xmath239 . we denote this set of atoms by @xmath240 ( `` extreme boundary of @xmath4 '' ) , or @xmath241 if @xmath1 is understood . note that @xmath241 is also the unique irredundant decomposition of @xmath4 . observe that @xmath241 consists exactly of the elements which are join - prime in the interval @xmath242 $ ] . first it is convenient to prove the following lemma . [ l : pdlu ] for any @xmath243 , the following relations hold : 1 . @xmath244 ; 2 . @xmath245}u$ ] . for any @xmath243 , we put @xmath246 . from the fact that @xmath243 , it follows that @xmath247 , and so @xmath248 by the minimality assumption on @xmath4 . however , @xmath249 while @xmath250 ( because @xmath23 ) , whence @xmath244 . furthermore , @xmath251 while , since @xmath247 , we have by that @xmath252 , and consequently @xmath245}u$ ] . [ l : drelsd ] for all @xmath28 , @xmath253 , the following assertions hold : 1 . @xmath254}y$ ] implies that @xmath255 ; 2 . @xmath254}p^*$ ] implies that @xmath256 ; 3 . @xmath245}x$ ] implies that there exists @xmath243 such that @xmath257 ; 4 . @xmath258}y$ ] iff @xmath255 ; 5 . @xmath259}p^*$ ] iff there exists @xmath243 such that @xmath260 . \(i ) by assumption , @xmath261 and there exists @xmath262 $ ] such that @xmath263 and @xmath264 . suppose that the relation @xmath265 does _ not _ hold . so @xmath266 , and therefore there exists @xmath267 such that @xmath268 , hence , by , @xmath269 and @xmath270 . since the relation @xmath265 does not hold , we obtain that @xmath271 . hence @xmath272 , from where we obtain @xmath273 ( so @xmath274 ) . then , since @xmath275 and @xmath271 , we obtain that @xmath276 if @xmath277 , then , since @xmath267 , the equalities @xmath278 holds by the definition of @xmath96 , whence @xmath279 , and so @xmath280 , a contradiction . hence @xmath281 , but @xmath282 , so we obtain the relation @xmath283 finally , since @xmath197 and @xmath23 , we obtain that @xmath284 , therefore , from and , it follows that @xmath255 . \(ii ) there exists @xmath262 $ ] such that @xmath285 and @xmath264 . thus @xmath286 , so @xmath287 and @xmath288 . from the relation @xmath264 , it follows that @xmath289 , so @xmath290 while @xmath264 , and so @xmath256 . \(iii ) there exists @xmath291 $ ] such that @xmath292 and @xmath293 . thus @xmath177 , and @xmath294 while @xmath295 . from the second relation , it follows that there exists @xmath243 such that @xmath296 . however , @xmath297 , and so @xmath257 . \(iv ) from the fact that the natural embedding from @xmath1 into @xmath298 $ ] is atom - preserving , it follows that @xmath255 implies that @xmath258}y$ ] for all @xmath28 , @xmath253 . conversely , for any @xmath28 , @xmath253 , the relation @xmath258}y$ ] means that there are a positive integer @xmath299 and atoms @xmath300 , @xmath301 of @xmath298 $ ] such that @xmath302}z_{i+1}$ ] for all @xmath303 . we prove by induction on @xmath299 that this implies that @xmath255 . for @xmath304 , the conclusion follows from item ( i ) above . suppose that @xmath305 . if @xmath306 , then it follows from the induction hypothesis that @xmath307 , while , by item ( i ) above , @xmath308 , so @xmath255 . suppose now that @xmath309 . then @xmath310 . thus , by the induction hypothesis , @xmath311 ( the equality may hold , _ e.g _ , for @xmath312 ) . furthermore , it follows from items ( ii ) and ( iii ) above that @xmath313 and @xmath314 for some @xmath243 . but from lemma [ l : pdlu](i ) , it follows that @xmath244 , and so @xmath315 . therefore , @xmath255 . \(v ) there exists @xmath316 such that @xmath259}z{\vartriangleleft}_{l[p^*]}p^*$ ] . from ( ii ) , ( iii ) , and ( iv ) , it follows that @xmath317 , for some @xmath243 , and @xmath318 , whence @xmath319 , but @xmath320 ( because @xmath23 ) , and so @xmath260 . conversely , let @xmath243 such that @xmath260 . thus we also have @xmath321}p$ ] . since @xmath322 by lemma [ l : onebb ] ( iv ) and since @xmath3 , @xmath201 , and @xmath42 are distinct atoms , the relation @xmath323}p^*$ ] holds . from lemma [ l : pdlu](ii ) , it follows that @xmath245}u$ ] , so @xmath245}u{\vartriangleleft}_{l[p^*]}p{\mathbin{d}}_{l[p^*]}p^*$ ] , whence @xmath259}p^*$ ] . [ c : f , mcep ] 1 . the canonical embedding from @xmath1 into @xmath298 $ ] has the congruence extension property ; in fact , it is an embedding for the @xmath195 relation on atoms . 2 . if @xmath1 is lower bounded , then @xmath298 $ ] is lower bounded . \(i ) by theorem 2.30 and lemma 2.36 in @xcite , it is sufficient to prove that @xmath324 iff @xmath325}y$ ] , for all atoms @xmath28 and @xmath112 of @xmath1 , which follows immediately from the stronger statement lemma [ l : drelsd](iv ) . \(ii ) it is well - known that a finite lattice @xmath52 is lower bounded iff it has no @xmath326-cycle , that is , the relation @xmath237 is _ irreflexive _ , see ( * ? ? ? * corollary 2.39 ) . suppose that @xmath1 is lower bounded . it follows from lemma [ l : drelsd](iv ) that the relation @xmath258}x$ ] holds for no @xmath327 . suppose that @xmath259}p^*$ ] . it follows from lemma [ l : drelsd](v ) that there exists @xmath243 such that @xmath260 . by lemma [ l : pdlu](i ) , @xmath328 , whence @xmath1 has a @xmath329-cycle , a contradiction . therefore , the relation @xmath258}x$ ] holds for no atom @xmath28 of @xmath298 $ ] . we present the proof for `` join - semidistributive '' , the proof for `` lower bounded '' is similar . since @xmath1 is finite , it suffices to prove that every biatomicity problem @xmath6 in @xmath1 can be solved in some finite , atomistic , join - semidistributive @xmath29-extension of @xmath1 in which @xmath1 has the congruence extension property . we argue by induction on @xmath330 , where @xmath331 denotes the minimal size of a subset @xmath54 of @xmath16 such that @xmath76 , for all @xmath26 . if @xmath332 then the biatomicity problem @xmath6 is already solved in @xmath1 , by @xmath333 and @xmath334 . now suppose , for example , that @xmath335 , for some @xmath336 and some atom @xmath42 such that @xmath337 . let @xmath338 be minimal such that @xmath339 . by lemma [ l : onebb ] , there exists a finite join - semidistributive@xmath29-extension @xmath340 of @xmath1 , in which @xmath1 has the congruence extension property , such that there exists an atom @xmath341 with @xmath342 . so @xmath343 in @xmath340 and @xmath344 . thus , arguing as above , we obtain a finite join - semidistributive@xmath29-extension @xmath345 of @xmath340 , in which @xmath340 has the congruence extension property , with atoms @xmath7 and @xmath346 such that @xmath347 . so @xmath348 . thus , again by lemma [ l : onebb ] , there exists a finite join - semidistributive@xmath29-extension @xmath349 of @xmath345 , in which @xmath345 has the congruence extension property , with an atom @xmath350 such that @xmath9 . observe that @xmath351 . let @xmath14 be the following quasi - identity in the language @xmath352 of lattice theory : @xmath353\\ \longrightarrow u\leq a.\end{gathered}\ ] ] the present section will be mainly devoted to proving the following result . [ t : biatquasid ] every ntherian , atomistic , biatomic join - semidistributive lattice with zero satisfies @xmath14 . let @xmath30 be a ntherian , atomistic , biatomic join - semidistributive lattice with zero . observe that @xmath30 is a _ complete _ lattice . let @xmath4 , @xmath5 , @xmath354 , @xmath72 , and @xmath161 be elements of @xmath30 satisfying the premise of @xmath14 , that is , the statement @xmath355 suppose that @xmath356 , and put @xmath357 $ ] . since @xmath30 is atomistic , there exists @xmath66 such that @xmath358 . [ l : u0v0 ] there are elements @xmath359 , @xmath360 of @xmath59 such that the following inequalities hold : @xmath361 suppose that @xmath362 . then @xmath363 , thus @xmath364 , a contradiction . hence @xmath365 . put @xmath366 ; observe that @xmath367 . so @xmath368 , with @xmath161 nonzero ( because @xmath365 ) . thus , since @xmath30 is biatomic , there exists an atom @xmath369 of @xmath30 such that @xmath370 and @xmath371 . if @xmath372 , then @xmath373 , but @xmath374 , and so @xmath375 , a contradiction . hence @xmath376 . proceeding the same way with the inequality @xmath377 and then inductively , we obtain elements @xmath378 and @xmath379 , for @xmath380 , of @xmath58 such that @xmath381 , @xmath382 , @xmath383 , and @xmath384 , for all @xmath380 . then @xmath385 and @xmath386 ( these are , by lemma [ l : finrep ] , finite joins ) are as required . now , for @xmath380 , suppose we have constructed @xmath387 , @xmath388 that satisfy the following inequalities : @xmath389 since @xmath390 and @xmath30 is biatomic , for every @xmath391 $ ] , there exists an atom @xmath392 of @xmath30 such that @xmath393 . if @xmath394 , then @xmath395 . however , @xmath396 , and so @xmath397 , a contradiction since @xmath398 . hence , @xmath399 , so that @xmath400\}}$ ] belongs to @xmath401 $ ] and @xmath402 . proceeding in a similar fashion with the inequality @xmath403 , we obtain elements @xmath404 and @xmath405 of @xmath59 such that the following inequalities hold , see the right half of figure 1 : @xmath406 we verify that all the inequalities are satisfied with @xmath299 replaced by @xmath407 . * @xmath408 , and , similarly , @xmath409 . * @xmath410 , and , similarly , @xmath411 . therefore , the values @xmath359 and @xmath360 obtained in lemma [ l : u0v0 ] can be extended to sequences @xmath412 and @xmath413 of elements of @xmath59 that satisfy the inequalities listed in and for all @xmath380 . a straightforward application of the last two inequalities in yields immediately the following lemma . [ l : bcuv ] the sequence @xmath414 is increasing . since @xmath30 is ntherian , there exists @xmath380 such that @xmath415 . therefore , by using the last two inequalities in , we also obtain the following equality : @xmath416 for any @xmath380 , we let @xmath417 and @xmath418 be finite subsets of @xmath58 such that @xmath419 and @xmath420 . the existence of such sets is ensured by lemma [ l : finrep ] . [ l : uvdisj ] @xmath421 , for all @xmath422 , @xmath423 . . then @xmath425 and @xmath426 , thus @xmath427 , which contradicts the fact that @xmath398 . now can be written as @xmath428 . but from lemma [ l : xcapy ] ( applied to @xmath429 ) and lemma [ l : uvdisj ] , it follows that @xmath430 , and consequently @xmath431 . however , @xmath432 , so @xmath433 , a contradiction since @xmath434 . this completes the proof of theorem [ t : biatquasid ] . [ c : ljtrnumber6 ] there exists a finite , atomistic , join - semidistributive lattice @xmath1 that can not be embedded into any finite or even ntherian atomistic biatomic join - semidistributive lattice . put @xmath435 where @xmath4 , @xmath5 , @xmath354 , @xmath72 , @xmath161 are as on the left half of figure 1 , the lattice of all intersections with @xmath436 of all convex subsets of @xmath437 , see @xcite . it is well - known that all lattices of that form are join - semidistributive . this configuration is obtained , for example , with @xmath438 , @xmath439 , @xmath440 , @xmath441 , and @xmath442 . then the premise of @xmath14 holds in @xmath1 for these elements , although @xmath356 : hence @xmath1 does not satisfy @xmath14 . a closer look at the proof of theorem [ t : biatquasid ] shows that @xmath1 can not be embedded into any finite , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice @xmath30 such that there is an atom of @xmath30 below either @xmath72 or @xmath161 but not below @xmath4 . the lattice @xmath1 can be embedded into an algebraic , atomistic , biatomic convex geometry ( see @xcite ) , namely , the lattice @xmath443 of all convex subsets of @xmath437 . in fact , @xmath1 can be embedded into a _ join - semidistributive _ atomistic biatomic sublattice of @xmath443 , namely , the lattice of convex polytopes of @xmath437 , that is , finitely generated convex subsets of @xmath437 . of course , this lattice is neither ntherian , nor complete . [ rk : dcc ] we recall that a partially ordered set is _ well - founded _ , if every nonempty subset has a minimal element . then one can prove that the quasi - identity @xmath14 is satisfied by every well - founded , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice @xmath1 , _ under the additional assumption that @xmath72 is an atom of @xmath1_. we do not know whether the latter assumption can be eliminated , see problem [ pb : biatquasid ] . [ rkloco ] it is proved in @xcite that every finite join - semidistributive lattice has a zero - preserving lattice embedding into a lattice of the form @xmath11 ( the lattice of all algebraic subsets of @xmath12 ) , for a lattice @xmath12 that is both algebraic and dually algebraic . in particular , @xmath11 is biatomic and lower continuous . it follows that @xmath14 is not satisfied by all lower continuous , atomistic , biatomic join - semidistributive lattices . we observe the following immediate consequence of corollary [ c : equivbae2 ] and theorem [ t : biatquasid ] . [ c : ljtrnb0 ] the lattice @xmath435 of corollary can not be embedded into any ntherian , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice . we denote by @xmath445 the class of all atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributivelattices , and by @xmath446 the class of all lower bounded lattices . we use standard notation for the basic operators defined on @xmath352-structures , in particular , for a class @xmath447 of @xmath352-structures , we define * the class @xmath448 of all _ finite _ structures from @xmath447 , * the class @xmath449 of all structures that are embeddable into some structure of @xmath447 , * the class @xmath450 of all _ finite _ direct products of structures of @xmath447 , * the class @xmath451 of all ultraproducts of structures of @xmath447 , * the quasivariety @xmath452 generated by @xmath447 . it was proved in @xcite that @xmath453 , both containments being proper . the class of biatomic join - semidistributive lattices provides a new element in this hierarchy . our interest in this section will be focused on the quasivariety generated by @xmath454 . first we state that the finite members of this quasivariety are those embeddable into lattices from @xmath454 . [ p : qbi ] the finite members of @xmath444 are exactly the lattices that are embeddable into some finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice . in formula , @xmath455 . it follows from results of the algebraic theory of quasivarieties that the equality @xmath456 holds for any class @xmath447 , see , for example , ( * ? ? ? * corollary 2.3.4(3 ) ) . we wish to prove that any finite member @xmath1 of @xmath444 is embeddable into some member of @xmath454 . since the class @xmath454 is closed under finite direct products , that is , @xmath457 , it follows from the formula above that there exists a lattice embedding @xmath458 where @xmath459 , that is , @xmath13 is an ultraproduct of members of @xmath454 . since @xmath1 is a finite system in a finite first - order language , a standard argument about ultraproducts shows that @xmath1 can be embedded into some system from @xmath454 . evidently , the proof above can be extended to any finite first - order language , in particular the language @xmath119 if we want to deal with lattices with zero , and so on . [ p : qbif ] the following proper containments hold : @xmath460 . it follows from corollary [ c : embsubp ] that @xmath461 . furthermore , the finite members of @xmath462 are exactly the finite lower bounded lattices while the lattice @xmath463 of all order - convex subsets of a four - element chain is finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive , and not lower bounded , which shows that the containment above is proper . the containment @xmath464 holds by definition , and corollary [ c : ljtrnumber6 ] provides an example of a finite join - semidistributive lattice which , by proposition [ p : qbi ] , does not belong to @xmath444 . according to corollary [ c : ljtrnumber6 ] , there exists a finite atomistic join - semidistributive lattice that can not be embedded into any finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice . however , it is not hard to prove that for all finite atomistic lattices @xmath52 and @xmath1 such that @xmath52 has a @xmath465-embedding into @xmath1 , if @xmath1 is join - semidistributive(resp . lower bounded ) , then so is @xmath52 . thus , in view of theorem [ t : partsd+ ] , the following question is natural . [ pb : vee0 ] let @xmath1 be a finite , atomistic , join - semidistributive ( resp . , lower bounded ) lattice . does @xmath1 have a @xmath465-embedding into some finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive ( resp . , lower bounded ) lattice ? [ pb : embdec ] for a finite join - semidistributive lattice @xmath1 , is it _ decidable _ whether @xmath1 can be embedded into some finite atomistic biatomic join - semidistributive lattice ? a variant of problem [ pb : embdec ] is the following . [ pb : finax ] is the quasivariety @xmath444 ( see section [ s : quasiv ] ) finitely based ? that is , is the set of all quasi - identities satisfied by all finite atomistic biatomic join - semidistributive lattices equivalent to one of its finite subsets ? by proposition [ p : qbi ] , a positive answer to problem [ pb : finax ] would imply a positive answer to problem [ pb : embdec ] . nevertheless we conjecture that problem [ pb : finax ] has a negative solution . [ pb : sdat ] let @xmath1 be a finite lattice . if @xmath1 has a @xmath119-embedding into some finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice , then does @xmath1 have an _ atom - preserving _ such embedding ? [ pb : lbat ] does every finite lower bounded lattice @xmath1 have an _ atom - preserving _ embedding into some finite , biatomic , lower bounded lattice ? we have seen that every finite lower bounded lattice admits a zero - preserving lattice embedding into some finite atomistic biatomic lower bounded lattice , see corollary [ c : embsubp ] . our final problem asks for extensions of theorem [ t : biatquasid ] . [ pb : biatquasid ] does any complete , _ upper continuous _ _ well - founded _ ) , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattice satisfy the quasi - identity @xmath14 defined in section [ s : ljtr ] ? if we replace `` join - semidistributive '' by `` convex geometry '' then the answer to the corresponding problem is _ no _ , as , for example , @xmath443 does not satisfy @xmath14 while it is a complete , algebraic ( thus upper continuous ) , atomistic , biatomic convex geometry . however , @xmath443 is not join - semidistributive , see @xcite . see also remarks [ rk : dcc ] and [ rkloco ] . the work on this paper was initiated in february 2001 during both authors visit of vanderbilt university , arranged by prof . r. mckenzie , to whom we wish to express our gratitude . the authors are grateful to the referees for careful reading of the paper . gorbunov , `` algebraic theory of quasivarieties '' , ( algebraicheskaya teoriya kvazimnogoobrazij ) ( russian ) sibirskaya shkola algebry i logiki . 5 . novosibirsk : nauchnaya kniga , 1999 . xii+368 p. english translation by plenum , new york , 1998 . xii+298 p.

for a class @xmath0 of finite lattices , the question arises whether any lattice in @xmath0 can be embedded into some atomistic , _ biatomic _ lattice in @xmath0 . we provide answers to the question above for @xmath0 being , respectively , * the class of all finite lattices ; * the class of all finite _ lower bounded _ lattices ( solved by the first author s earlier work ) . * the class of all finite _ join - semidistributive lattices _ ( this problem was , until now , open ) . we solve the latter problem by finding a quasi - identity valid in all finite , atomistic , biatomic , join - semidistributive lattices but not in all finite join - semidistributivelattices .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Act to Improve the American Diet''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. The Congress finds as follows: (1) The Surgeon General of the Public Health Service has stated that dietary patterns with excessive intake of foods high in fat (especially saturated fat), calories, cholesterol and sodium, contribute to the high rates of chronic diseases among Americans. Reversing such dietary patterns should decrease the incidence of these chronic diseases. (2) Currently, diet plays a major role in the development of 4 of the top 7 diseases that are killers in the United States: heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes. (3) According to the Department of Health and Human Services, America's poor diet and sedentary lifestyle contribute to 300,000 to 580,000 deaths each year. (4) To make significant strides toward improving the health of Americans, greater attention must be made to nutrition education. The President could provide leadership by giving a higher profile to the importance of a healthy diet. (5) Good nutrition is one of the most important factors in determining long-term health. (6) Improvements in the diet of Americans can reduce the health care cost of treating dietary-related diseases and produce a savings of up to $200,000,000,000. (7) The Department of Health and Human Services and the Preventive Services Task Force have recommended that health care programs for individuals of all ages should include dietary counselling. (8) Efforts must be made to identify and to remove the barriers to optimal health and nutritional status in high-risk groups, including minority and low-income population groups (using methods that take into consideration their diverse cultural, ethnic and economic backgrounds); and special attention should also be made to pregnant and lactating women, to children, and to the elderly, who have special nutritional needs. SEC. 3. COORDINATION BETWEEN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, VOLUNTARY ORGANIZATIONS, AND PRIVATE ENTERPRISE REGARDING THE NATIONAL PROGRAM FOR A HEALTHY DIET. (a) In General.--The President shall establish a national program for diet and health in accordance with the purpose described in subsection (b). (b) Purpose of Program.--The purpose of the National Program is to help coordinate, support, and assist nutrition education activities and programs by State and local governments and by private entities, including educational institutions, voluntary organizations, civic groups, professional associations, business organizations, and other private entities. (c) Coordination Regarding Intergovernmental Relationships and Public and Private Entities.-- (1) Coordination in federal activities.--The National Program shall assess the extent to which the purpose described in subsection (b) is being carried out by the various departments and agencies of the Federal Government, and shall carry out the activities of the Program in coordination with the departments and agencies involved. (2) Intergovernmental relationships.--The National Program shall assess the nutrition education activities and programs being carried out by State and local governments and by private entities, and shall help coordinate, support, and assist the activities and programs. (d) Certain Program Activities.--The activities of the National Program shall include (but are not limited to) the following: (1) Promoting the health of Americans by facilitating and collaborating with Federal, State, local, and private strategies to encourage the American people to eat a healthy diet. (2) Initiating programs to inform the general public of the importance of a healthy diet and its link to good health and disease prevention. (3) Enlisting the active support and assistance of individual citizens, civic groups, private enterprise, voluntary organizations and others in efforts to promote and improve the health of all Americans through healthy eating habits. (4) Inviting appropriate Federal health agencies to participate in the National Program. (5) Seeking to improve the diets of children, youth, adults, minorities, senior citizens, and low-income individuals by encouraging the development of community-wellness programs and health education programs. (6) Working with State and local government to develop and implement nutrition education programs. (7) Assisting health educational agencies at all levels in developing high quality, innovative health programs which emphasize the importance of diet to good health. (8) Developing cooperative programs with medical, dental, social workers and other similar professional schools and educational associations to encourage the implementation of sound nutrition practices in medical services and education. (9) Assisting business, industry, government, and labor organizations, and other workplace organizations or groups, in developing and implementing sound nutrition programs to elevate employee health and reduce the financial and human costs resulting from a poor diet. (10) Increasing awareness among the American people about the importance of producing healthy food and of the availability of healthy food in the supermarkets, food establishments, and food programs, and to encourage food providers to provide and serve healthy meals and products. (e) Authority Regarding Non-Federal Contributions.--In carrying out activities under the National Program in a community (or other geographic area), the National Program may require that, as a condition of carrying out the Federal activities, non-Federal contributions be provided toward the costs of the activities. (f) Requirement Regarding Participation of Private Entities.--A private entity may be permitted to sponsor or otherwise participate in a particular activity of the National Program only if the entity does not promote, directly or indirectly, any health-related behavior that is inconsistent with the purpose of such activity. SEC. 4. PRESIDENT'S COUNCIL ON DIET AND HEALTH. (a) In General.--The President shall provide for the establishment and operation of a council to be known as the President's Council on Diet and Health. (b) Duties.--The Council shall provide advice to the President regarding the National Program, including advice on the extent of progress being made toward achieving the goals of the Program, and shall recommend, as necessary, actions to accelerate progress. The Council shall assist in carrying out the Program, as necessary, and provide advice and guidance to State and local public health officials, and to private entities (including educational, voluntary, and civic groups), on how to promote diet and health. (c) Composition.-- (1) In general.--The Council shall be composed of-- (A) such Federal officials or employees as the President may designate to serve as members of the Council; and (B) 20 members appointed to the Council by the President from among individuals who are not officers or employees of the Federal Government and who possess appropriate expertise or experience regarding nutrition and health. (2) Certain requirements.--Of the members of the Council appointed under paragraph (1)(B)-- (A) not fewer than 3 shall be individuals representing a national organization concerned with nutrition and health; and (B) not fewer than 7 shall be individuals who possess professional credentials demonstrating particular expertise regarding food, nutrition, or health, of which 3 individuals shall be knowledgeable on nutrition and health among low-income populations or among one or more racial or ethnic minority groups. (d) Chair.--The President shall designate an individual or individuals who are not officers or employees of the Federal Government to serve as the chair or chairs of the Council. A Chair shall serve at the pleasure of the President. The President shall seek to ensure that the Chair of the Council is an individual who is well-known by the public and who will be an appropriate advocate among the public with respect to obtaining the goals of the National Program. (e) Terms.--Each of the members of the Council appointed under paragraph (1)(B) shall be appointed for a term of 4 years, except that up to half of the initial appointments, when the Council is first created, may be for 2 years, and may upon the expiration of a term be reappointed by the President. A member of the Council may continue to serve after the expiration of his or her term until a successor is appointed. The President may at any time terminate the membership on the Council of any individual for cause. (f) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the membership of the Council does not affect the power of the remaining members to execute the duties of the Council. (g) Meetings.--The Council shall meet not less than once each fiscal year. (h) Compensation and Reimbursement of Expenses.--Members of the Council may not receive compensation for service on the Council. The members may, in accordance with chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, be reimbursed for travel, subsistence, and other necessary expenses incurred in carrying out the duties of the Council. (i) Staff; Administrative Support.-- (1) In general.--The President shall furnish the Council with such staff, quarters, supplies, facilities, and other administrative support as may be necessary to carry out the duties of the Council and assist in carrying out the National Program. (2) Executive director.--To carry out the National Program, the President shall appoint an executive director for the Council, who shall serve until a new one is appointed. (j) Seal of Program.--The President shall provide for the development and use of a seal for the National Program. (k) Termination.--For purposes of section 14(a)(2)(B) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the Council shall continue in existence until otherwise provided by law after the date of the enactment of this Act. SEC. 5. GENERAL PROVISIONS. (a) Requests for Federal Information and Assistance.--The National Program and the Council may upon request receive from Federal agencies such information and other assistance as may otherwise be permitted by law, subject to the availability of funds to comply with the request. (b) Definitions.--For purposes of this Act: (1) The term ``Council'' means the council established under section 4(a). (2) The term ``National Program'' means the program established under section 3(a). SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. In addition to any other authorizations of appropriations that are available for the purpose of carrying out this Act, there are authorized to be appropriated to the National Program and the Council for such purpose $300,000 for fiscal year 1995, $500,000 for fiscal year 1996, and $1,000,000 for fiscal year 1997 and each subsequent fiscal year.

Act to Improve the American Diet - Directs the President to establish a national program for diet and health through the coordination of activities between the Federal Government, State and local governments, voluntary organizations, and private entities. Requires the establishment of the President's Council on Diet and Health to advise the President on the national program. Authorizes appropriations.

TITLE I--ASSAULT WEAPONS SECTION 101. SHORT TITLE. This title may be cited as the ``Antidrug Assault Weapons Limitation Act of 1993''. SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS. (a) In General.--Section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraphs: ``(29) The term `assault weapon' means any of the firearms known as-- ``(A) Norinco, Mitchell, and Poly Technologies Avtomat Kalashnikovs (all models); ``(B) Action Arms Israeli Military Industries UZI and Galil; ``(C) Beretta AR-70 (SC-70); ``(D) Colt AR-15 and CAR-15; ``(E) Fabrique Nationale FN/FAL, FN/LAR, and FNC; ``(F) MAC 10 and MAC 11; ``(G) Steyr AUG; ``(H) INTRATEC TEC-9; and ``(I) Street Sweeper and Striker 12. ``(30) The term `form 4473' means the form prescribed by the Secretary in section 178.124 of the Code of Regulations as of the date of enactment of this paragraph, as that form or paragraph may be amended, or a successor form or regulation, or the equivalent of such a form.''. (b) Recommendations of the Secretary.-- Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, is amended-- (1) by adding at the end the following new section: ``Sec. 931. Additional assault weapons ``The Secretary, in consultation with the Attorney General, may recommend to the Congress the addition or deletion of firearms designated as assault weapons under section 921(29).''; and (2) in the chapter analysis by adding at the end the following new item: ``931. Additional assault weapons.''. SEC. 103. UNLAWFUL ACTS. Section 922 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsections: ``(s)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), it shall be unlawful for a person to transfer, import, transport, ship, receive, or possess an assault weapon. ``(2) This subsection does not apply with respect to-- ``(A) the transfer, importation, transportation, shipping, and receipt to or by, or possession by or under, authority of the United States or any department or agency thereof or of any State or any department, agency, or political subdivision thereof, of an assault weapon; or ``(B) a lawful transfer, transportation, shipping, receipt, or possession of an assault weapon that was lawfully possessed before the effective date of this subsection. ``(t)(1) It shall be unlawful for a person to sell, ship, or deliver an assault weapon to a person who does not fill out a form 4473 in connection with the purchase of the assault weapon. ``(2) It shall be unlawful for a person to purchase, possess, or accept delivery of an assault weapon unless the person has filled out a form 4473 in connection with the purchase of the assault weapon. ``(3) If a person purchases an assault weapon from anyone other than a licensed dealer, both the purchaser and the seller shall maintain a record of the sale on the seller's original copy of form 4473. ``(4) An owner of an assault weapon on the effective date of this subsection who requires retention of form 4473 under this subsection shall, within 90 days after publication of regulations by the Secretary under paragraph (5), request a copy of form 4473 from a licensed dealer in accordance with those regulations. ``(5) The Secretary shall, within 90 days after the date of enactment of this subsection, prescribe regulations for the request and delivery of form 4473 under paragraph (4).''. SEC. 104. PENALTIES. Section 924 of title 18, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in subsection (c) by inserting ``and if the firearm is an assault weapon, to imprisonment for 10 years,'' after ``sentenced to imprisonment for five years,''; and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(i) A person who knowingly violates section 922(t) shall be fined not more than $1,000 (in accordance with section 3571(e)), imprisoned not more than 6 months, or both.''. SEC. 105. DISABILITY. Section 922(g)(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting ``or a violation of section 922(t)'' before the semicolon at the end. SEC. 106. STUDY BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL. (a) Study.--The Attorney General shall investigate and study the effect of this Act and the amendments made by this Act and in particular shall determine their impact, if any, on violent and drug trafficking crime. The study shall be conducted over a period of 18 months, commencing 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. (b) Report.--Not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall prepare and submit to Congress a report setting forth in detail the findings and determinations made in the study under subsection (a). SEC. 107. EFFECTIVE DATE. This title and the amendments made by this title-- (1) shall become effective on the date that is 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act; and (2) are repealed effective as of the date that is 3 years after the effective date. TITLE II--INDISCRIMINATE USE OF WEAPONS TO FURTHER DRUG CONSPIRACIES SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. This title may be cited as the ``Drive-By Shooting Prevention Act of 1993''. SEC. 202. DRIVE-BY SHOOTING. (a) In General.--Chapter 2 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section: ``Sec. 36. Drive-by shooting ``(a) Offense and Penalties.-- ``(1) Whoever, in furtherance or to escape detection of a major drug offense listed in subsection (b) and, with the intent to intimidate, harass, injure, or maim, fires a weapon into a group of two or more persons and who, in the course of such conduct, causes grave risk to any human life shall be punished by a term of no more than 25 years, or by fine as provided under this title, or both. ``(2) Whoever, in furtherance or to escape detection of a major drug offense listed in subsection (b) and, with the intent to intimidate, harass, injure, or maim, fires a weapon into a group of two or more persons and who, in the course of such conduct, kills any person shall, if the killing-- ``(A) is a first degree murder as defined in section 1111(a) of this title, be punished by death or imprisonment for any term of years or for life, fined under this title, or both: or ``(B) is a murder other than a first degree murder as defined in section 1111(a) of this title, be fined under this title, imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both. ``(b) Major Drug Offense Defined.--A major drug offense within the meaning of subsection (a) is one of the following: ``(1) a continuing criminal enterprise, punishable under section 403(c) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 848(c)); ``(2) a conspiracy to distribute controlled substances punishable under section 406 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 846) or punishable under section 1013 of the Controlled Substances Import and Export Control Act (21 U.S.C. 963); or ``(3) an offense involving major quantities of drugs and punishable under section 401(b)(1)(A) of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 841(b)(1)(A)) or section 1010(b)(1) of the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (21 U.S.C. 960(b)(1)).''. (b) Technical Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 2 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new item: ``36. Drive-by shooting.''. TITLE III--MISCELLANEOUS FIREARMS OFFENSES SEC. 301. STEALING AND SMUGGLING OF FIREARMS. Section 924 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsections: ``(i) A person who steals a firearm that is moving as, is a part of, or has moved in interstate or foreign commerce shall be imprisoned not less than 2 nor more than 10 years and may be fined under this title. ``(j) A person who, with the intent to engage in or to promote conduct that-- ``(1) is punishable under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), the Controlled Substances Import and Export Act (212 U.S.C. 951 et seq.), or the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (46 U.S.C. App. 1901 et seq.); ``(2) violates a State law relating to a controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)); or ``(3) constitutes a crime of violence (as defined in subsection (c)(3)); smuggles or knowingly brings into the United States a firearm, or attempts to do so, shall be imprisoned not more than 10 years, fined under this title, or both.''. SEC. 302. MANDATORY REVOCATION OF SUPERVISED RELEASE FOR POSSESSION OF A FIREARM. Section 3583 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(h) Mandatory Revocation of Supervised Release for Possession of a Firearm.--If the court has provided, as a condition of supervised release, that the defendant refrain from possessing a firearm (as defined in section 921), and if the defendant is in actual possession of such a firearm at any time prior to the expiration or termination of a term of supervised release, the court, after a hearing pursuant to the provisions of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure that are applicable to probation revocation, shall-- ``(1) revoke the term of supervised release; and ``(2) subject to subsection (e)(3), require the defendant to serve in prison all or part of the term of supervised release without credit for time previously served on postrelease supervision.''.

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Assault Weapons Title II: Indiscriminate Use of Weapons to Further Drug Conspiracies Title III: Miscellaneous Firearms Offenses Title I: Assault Weapons - Antidrug Assault Weapons Limitation Act of 1993 - Amends the Federal criminal code to prohibit the: (1) transfer, importation, transportation, shipment, receipt, or possession of an assault weapon, with exceptions; (2) sale, shipment, or delivery of an assault weapon to a person who does not fill out a form 4473 (prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury) in connection with the purchase; and (3) purchase, possession, or acceptance of delivery of an assault weapon by a person who has not filled out such form. Sets penalties for: (1) the use of an assault weapon during and in relation to any crime of violence or drug trafficking crime; and (2) knowingly violating requirements regarding the filling out of form 4473. Prohibits persons convicted of the latter offense from shipping or transporting firearms or ammunition in interstate or foreign commerce. Directs the Attorney General to investigate the effect of this Act and determine its impact on violent and drug trafficking crime. Title II: Indiscriminate Use of Weapons to Further Drug Conspiracies - Drive-By Shooting Prevention Act of 1993 - Sets penalties for causing grave risk to human life or the death of any person by firing a weapon into a group of two or more persons with intent to intimidate, harass, injure, or maim and in furtherance of, or to escape detection of, a major drug offense. Title III: Miscellaneous Firearms Offenses - Sets penalties for: (1) stealing a firearm that is moving in, or that has moved in, interstate or foreign commerce; and (2) smuggling or knowingly bringing a firearm, into the United States, or attempting to do so, with intent to engage in or promote conduct that is punishable under specified controlled substances Acts, violates a State law relating to a controlled substance, or constitutes a crime of violence. Provides for mandatory revocation of supervised release for possession of a firearm.

PALO ALTO -- Opening a new front in the effort to remove Judge Aaron Persky from office, activists Tuesday announced they have collected more than 5,000 signatures online from Californians who are so incensed about his decision to spare former Stanford swimmer Brock Turner prison for a sex crime that they refuse to ever serve in his court on a jury. The "Don't Serve in Judge Persky's Court" petition was posted by the national women's advocacy group UltraViolet, and the California-based organization Courage Campaign, which supports a variety of progressive causes. File photo: Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Aaron Persky. (Jason Doiy/The Recorder archives) "With this latest action, potential jurors in California are sending a powerful message to Judge Persky and the California Commission on Judicial Performance: the public does not trust Judge Persky to deliver justice, and he should be removed from the bench," said Nita Chaudhary, co-founder of UltraViolet, in a news release. Persky is prohibited from commenting because Turner has filed a notice preserving his right to appeal the verdict. It was unclear how many of those who signed the online petition are registered Santa Clara County voters who could be called for jury service in Persky's Palo Alto courtroom. Advertisement Jurors who state a bias of any kind, whether it is against a judge, defense or prosecution, will be dismissed without fear of being held in contempt of court or any other reprisal, a court spokesman said Tuesday. Last month, in his first trial after the Turner decision, Persky excused more than 10 jurors who informed him they did not want to serve in his court in an unrelated misdemeanor case. Michele Dauber, the Stanford law professor who is heading the campaign to recall the Santa Clara County Superior Court judge in 2017, said she wasn't aware of the petition until Tuesday, but was gratified by the action. "It's further evidence that many people agree with our judgment that Judge Persky is biased and cannot be relied on to rule fairly in sexual assault cases and violence against women," Dauber said. However, he drew support Tuesday from 18 retired Santa Clara County judges, who signed an open letter warning that removing him from office would set a dangerous precedent. Among those who signed were LaDoris Cordell, Len Edwards, Andrea Bryan, Eugene Hyman and Ron Del Pozzo, who successfully ran against Persky in 2002 while both were prosecutors. A year later, Persky was appointed to the bench by then-Gov. Gray Davis. "The purpose of this letter is not to take sides as to whether the sentence was adequate or appropriate," the judges wrote. "The essence of judicial independence is that judges must be able to make decisions without fear of political repercussions." Edwards, a civil rights worker in Mississippi in the 1960s, said he remembers another effort to recall a sitting jurist who supported an unpopular decision. Southerners called for the impeachment of former Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warren for the unanimous decision in landmark school desegregation case, Brown v. Board of Education. "There are ways to do things if you don't like the Turner decision, like get the law changed,'' Edwards said, "not recall a judge who made a lawful decision.'' But Dauber said it is not a threat to judicial independence to remove a judge who is biased. Turner faced at least two years in state prison until Persky followed a probation report recommendation and found grounds to sentence him last month to six months in county jail and three years probation. Persky cited 20-year-old Turner's youth and his lack of a criminal record as "unusual circumstances" warranting leniency. The sentence has sparked worldwide outrage and the recall effort, fueled by social media and the victim's impassioned, 12-page statement. Under California law, the recall campaign cannot officially begin until April 3, three months after Persky officially begins serving his next six-year term, Dauber said. However, the Recall 2017 campaign has already raised $300,000 in donations and pledges, she said, adding she expects the group will easily gather some 80,000 signatures from Santa Clara County residents for a special election. The online petitions sponsored by UltraViolet and Courage Campaign will not count toward qualifying the measure for the ballot because they were signed by voters throughout the state. But Laura Leavitt, who manages Courage Campaign's various political efforts, said the petitions reflect widespread opinion. "Even if you're not likely to be called for jury duty in his court, you can still protest Judge Persky by protesting his court," the online petitions state. "If he doesn't have a jury, he can't do his job." Courage Campaign's website lists the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and more than a dozen other well-known organizations as its general partners. However, Leavitt said the group is working only with UltraViolet on the Persky matter. Contact Tracey Kaplan at 408-278-3482. Follow her at Twitter.com/tkaplanreport. ||||| SIGN THE PLEDGE: Don't Serve in Judge Persky's Court Judge Aaron Persky -- from the Brock Turner rape case -- is so toxic that California residents are literally refusing to serve as jurors for cases he presides over. These jurors are sending a powerful message: The California public has lost complete faith in Judge Persky. You can join them. Even if you're not likely to be called for jury duty in his court, you can still protest Judge Persky by protesting his court. If he doesn't have a jury, he can't do his job. Join us and our friends at UltraViolet and add your name! SIGN THE PLEDGE and tell Judge Aaron Persky: "I will never serve as a juror in your court."

– More than 5,000 Californians have signed a petition stating they will refuse to serve on a jury in Aaron Persky’s courtroom following his lenient sentence for Stanford sex criminal Brock Turner, reports the San Jose Mercury News. The "Don't Serve in Judge Persky's Court" petition shows "the public does not trust Judge Persky to deliver justice, and he should be removed from the bench," says a rep for women's advocacy group UltraViolet, which backed the petition along with California's Courage Campaign. A separate campaign has raised $300,000 in an effort to recall Persky after he sentenced Turner to six months in county jail—Turner will likely serve only three—and three years of probation following a sexual assault on Stanford’s campus. The recall campaign can't kick off until April 3, three months into Persky's next six-year term, according to California law. At that point, 80,000 signatures from Santa Clara County residents will be needed to call a special election. But "if he doesn't have a jury, he can't do his job," the petition states. Persky already had to excuse jurors who refused to serve in his court in his first case since the Turner decision; he was also pulled from another sex assault case. In an open letter published Thursday, however, 18 retired Santa Clara County judges say Persky should stay put. "The essence of judicial independence is that judges must be able to make decisions without fear of political repercussions," they wrote, adding they weren't taking sides on "whether [Turner's] sentence was adequate or appropriate."

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Latin America Military Training Review Act of 2005''. SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF AUTHORITY FOR WESTERN HEMISPHERE INSTITUTE FOR SECURITY COOPERATION. (a) Suspension of Institute.--The Secretary of the Army shall suspend the operation of the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation until the submission of the report under section 4(e) of this Act. (b) Suspension of Authority.--The authority of the Secretary of Defense to operate an education and training facility under section 2166 of title 10, United States Code, is suspended until the submission of the report under section 4(e) of this Act. (c) Limitation on Establishment of New Education and Training Facility.--No training or education facility may be established in the Department of Defense for Latin American military personnel (as a successor to the United States Army School of the Americas, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, or otherwise) until the submission of the report under section 4(e) of this Act. SEC. 3. JOINT CONGRESSIONAL TASK FORCE. (a) Establishment.--There is established a joint congressional task force to conduct an assessment of the kind of education and training that is appropriate for the Department of Defense to provide to military personnel of Latin American nations. (b) Composition.--The task force shall be composed of eight Members of Congress, of whom two each shall be designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the minority leader of the House of Representatives, the majority leader of the Senate, and the minority leader of the Senate. (c) Report.--Not later than six months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the task force shall submit to Congress a report on its assessment under subsection (a). The report shall include-- (1) a critical assessment of courses, curriculum, and procedures appropriate for such education and training; and (2) an evaluation of the effect of such education and training on the performance of Latin American military personnel in the areas of human rights and adherence to democratic principles and the rule of law. (d) Definition.--In this section, the term ``Member'' includes a Delegate to, or Resident Commissioner, in the Congress. SEC. 4. COMMISSION TO INVESTIGATE HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES AT THE UNITED STATES ARMY SCHOOL OF THE AMERICAS. (a) Establishment.--There is established a commission to investigate the activities of the United States Army School of the Americas and its successor institution, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. (b) Membership.-- (1) Appointment.--The commission shall be composed of eight members, of whom two each shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the minority leader of the House of Representatives, the majority leader of the Senate, and the minority leader of the Senate. (2) Qualifications.--Members of the commission shall be selected from among individuals noted for their knowledge and experience in foreign military training and international human rights who are not officers or employees of the Federal Government. (3) Deadline for appointment.--The members of the commission shall be appointed not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. (4) Vacancies.--Any vacancy of the commission shall not affect its powers and shall be filled in the manner in which the original appointment was made. (5) Chairperson; vice chairperson.--The Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the commission shall be elected by the members. (6) Compensation.--Members of the commission shall serve without pay. (7) Travel expenses.--Each member of the commission shall receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with applicable provisions under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code. (c) Powers.-- (1) Hearings and sessions.--The commission may, for the purpose of carrying out this section, hold hearings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and receive evidence as the commission considers appropriate. (2) Information from federal agencies.--The commission may secure directly from any Federal department or agency such information as the commission considers necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. Upon request of the Chairperson of the commission, the head of such department or agency shall furnish such information to the commission. (d) Investigation.--Not later than two years after the date on which all members of the commission have been appointed, the commission shall complete an investigation into the activities of the United States Army School of the Americas and its successor institution, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation. The investigation shall-- (1) identify those individuals responsible for drafting or approving manuals for use at either such institution advocating tactics that violate international law or the laws of the United States; (2) determine how such manuals were used in training conducted by either such institution; (3) determine the effect of such training; and (4) identify those individuals responsible for teaching such tactics. (e) Report.--Not later than 30 days after the completion of the investigation under subsection (d), the commission shall submit to Congress and the Secretary of Defense a report containing the results of the investigation and recommendations for actions in response to any violations of human rights to which training at the United States Army School of the Americas or its successor institution, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, contributed. (f) Termination.--The commission shall terminate 30 days after the date of the submission of the report under subsection (e).

Latin America Military Training Review Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of the Army to suspend operation of the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (Institute). Suspends the authority of the Secretary of Defense to operate such an education and training facility until submission of a report containing the results of an investigation in response to violations of human rights to which training at such Institute contributed. Establishes: (1) a joint congressional task force to assess appropriate education and training for DOD to provide to military personnel of Latin American nations; and (2) a commission to investigate activities of the United States Army School of the Americas and its successor institution, the Institute.

the earliest example of a ( nonlinear ) @xmath0-algebra is zamolodchikov s @xmath2 algebra @xcite . it arose in a study of additional symmetries in two - dimensional conformal field theories @xcite , and is generated by the virasoro generator and a primary field of conformal weight @xmath9 . the construction introduced a new type of extended conformal symmetry , and gave hope to classify rational conformal field theories with arbitrary central charge@xcite . the @xmath2 algebra was subsequently studied extensively and a myriad of generalisations were proposed , see @xcite and references therein . this flurry of activity took place primarily in the physics literature but lasted only a little more than a decade . the field has witnessed a resurgence of interest in recent years , however , due to significant progress in the mathematical understanding and description of @xmath0-algebras , see @xcite and references therein , and to new applications in physics . most of the recent developments in physics have taken place in the context of vasiliev s higher - spin theory @xcite , see also @xcite . in particular , it has been conjectured @xcite that the three - dimensional @xmath10 vector model at its critical points is dual to a vasiliev theory on ads@xmath11 . it has also been argued @xcite that the asymptotic algebra of higher - spin gravity on ads@xmath12 exhibits a @xmath0-symmetry . by essentially morphing these ideas and observations , it was subsequently conjectured @xcite that a particular vasiliev theory on ads@xmath12 is dual to the @xmath13 minimal models @xcite at large @xmath14 . studies of this conjecture have led to significant advances in the understanding of @xmath13 algebras , their representation theory and their large-@xmath14 limit . there has also been a renewed interest @xcite in the infinite - dimensional symmetry algebras of asymptotically flat spacetimes at null infinity @xcite , known as bms algebras . in @xmath15 dimensions , this algebra is occasionally denoted by bms@xmath12 and is an extension of the virasoro algebra by an additional spin-@xmath16 generator . here , we shall refer to this algebra as the _ galilean virasoro algebra_. further extensions of the bms and galilean virasoro algebras have also been considered . in particular , supersymmetric extensions already appeared in @xcite and have been discussed more recently in @xcite . also related to higher - spin theories , the galilean virasoro algebra has been extended by adding two spin-@xmath9 generators , resulting in a higher - spin bms@xmath12 algebra or a _ galilean @xmath2 algebra _ @xcite . other @xmath0-algebraic extensions have also been considered @xcite . the galilean virasoro ( or conformal ) algebra can be obtained @xcite as an inn - wigner contraction @xcite of a commuting pair of virasoro algebras . likewise , the galilean @xmath2 algebra follows @xcite by contracting a pair of @xmath2 algebras . in these constructions , the contractions are performed in terms of the modes generating the infinite - dimensional virasoro and @xmath2 algebras . however , in conformal field theory , it is often more convenient to work with the corresponding operator - product algebras ( opas ) given in terms of operator - product expansions @xcite . here , we thus develop a general contraction prescription , which we call _ galilean contraction _ , of the tensor product of two copies of the same opa ; they are only allowed to differ in the values of their central charges . this offers a systematic approach to the construction of infinite - dimensional galilean algebras . it also allows us to derive conditions necessary for the existence of such a galilean algebra and to determine properties of the ensuing algebras . as the notions of opas and vertex algebras @xcite are intimately related , the approach and results apply to tensor products of vertex algebras as well . the concrete computations and analyses of the operator - product expansions underlying the construction are conveniently performed using the mathematica @xcite package developed in @xcite . the layout of the present paper is as follows . in section [ sec : opa ] , we review the notion of an opa , with emphasis on the role and structure of quasi - primary fields . some details not readily available in the literature are included . we introduce star products as an economical way to encode the information stored in an operator - product expansion , and discuss the opa pendant to the tensor product of vertex algebras . in section [ sec : galilean ] , we introduce the galilean contraction prescription of tensor products of pairs of opas and outline some general properties of the ensuing galilean opas . with this , we reproduce the known galilean conformal and @xmath1 superconformal algebras ( see section [ sec : gca ] for comments on alternative superconformal extensions ) . we also identify a class of opas , called simply - extended opas , whose galilean counterparts are readily obtained . in section [ sec : comp ] , we consider various superconformal extensions of the galilean virasoro algebra and demonstrate compatibility between galilean contractions and certain other operations on opas , such as topological twisting and a variety of known inn - wigner contractions . affine lie algebras are examples of simply - extended opas and give rise to galilean affine lie algebras . their contractions are shown to be compatible with the sugawara construction , yielding a realisation of the galilean virasoro algebra with central charge given by twice the dimension of the underlying finite - dimensional lie algebra . in section [ sec : aag ] , we explore the properties of an opa necessary for the galilean contraction prescription to be well - defined . several general conditions on the structure constants are identified , and the corresponding structure constants of the ensuing galilean opa are determined . in section [ sec : w ] , we apply the galilean contraction prescription to the @xmath0-algebras @xmath2 , @xmath5 , @xmath6 , @xmath7 , @xmath8 , and the infinitely generated @xmath0-algebra @xmath17 and some of its extensions . details of the @xmath0-algebras @xmath6 , @xmath7 and @xmath8 are reviewed in appendix [ sec : walg ] , and their galilean counterparts are given in appendix [ sec : gw ] . in preparation for the derivation of these new galilean @xmath0-algebras , we discuss the vacuum module of the galilean virasoro algebra and work out a number of quasi - primary fields involving the galilean virasoro generators and a primary field . section [ sec : discussion ] contains some concluding remarks . we are interested in symmetry algebras in conformal field theory , such as infinite - dimensional lie algebras and @xmath0-algebras . for convenience , we combine the algebra generators @xmath18 into generating fields , a^(z)=_n-_a^+a_n^z^-n-_a^ , [ aa ] where @xmath19 labels the set of fields , and where @xmath20 is the conformal weight of @xmath21 . accordingly , instead of commutator algebras , we thus work with the corresponding operator - product algebras ( opas ) formed by the fields . as already indicated in ( [ aa ] ) , we shall assume that an opa is generated by a set of scaling fields , see ( [ scaling ] ) , and that their conformal weights are ( half-)integer : _ 0 . [ da ] as we recall below , the virasoro field algebra is such an example ; it is generated by the single field @xmath22 of conformal weight @xmath23 . we shall admit both even ( or bosonic ) and odd ( or fermionic ) fields . the operator - product expansion ( ope ) of the two fields @xmath21 and @xmath24 of conformal weights @xmath20 and @xmath25 , respectively , can be written as a(z)b(w)=_n=-^_a , b . [ azbw ] here , @xmath26 is some integer satisfying @xmath27 , while @xmath28_n$ ] are fields of conformal weights _ [ ab]_n=_a+_b - n . as we shall assume that the identity field @xmath29 is the only symmetry generator of conformal weight @xmath30 , the ope ( [ azbw ] ) can be re - expressed as a(z)b(w)= + _ n=-^_a+_b-1 , [ ab ] for some @xmath31 . since the identity field @xmath29 is of even parity , the conservation of parity in an ope implies that @xmath32 if @xmath21 and @xmath24 have different parities . adopting a widespread tradition in conformal field theory , we will usually not indicate the identity field explicitly in an ope like ( [ ab ] ) . the singular part of the ope ( [ azbw ] ) is referred to as the corresponding contraction and is usually denoted by a(z)b(w)=_n=1^_a , b , [ abcont ] whereas the nonsingular part is given by the normal - ordered product : a(z)b(w):=_n=0^[ab]_-n(w)(z - w)^n . [ : ab : ] because the contraction encapsulates all the nontrivial information about the ope , one often writes a(z)b(w)~ a(z)b(w ) , simply ignoring the nonsingular part of the ope . in particular , the commutator relations for the modes of the fields @xmath21 and @xmath24 are determined by the contraction ( [ abcont ] ) alone . as we will use the term contraction " in more than one context , we shall refer to ( [ abcont ] ) as an _ ope contraction_. if the opes of a set of fields closes on itself in a ` sufficiently nice ' way , the result is an opa . largely following @xcite , this will be qualified in section [ sec : opadef ] . an opa @xmath33 is a @xmath34-graded vector space with a distinguished vector ( or element ) @xmath29 and an even linear map @xmath35 . moreover , @xmath33 is equipped with a bilinear operation ( or product ) for every integer @xmath36 , [ ] _ n:,(a , b)_n , where , for any pair @xmath37 , @xmath28_n=0 $ ] for @xmath38 sufficiently large . these data satisfy the following conditions . first , @xmath29 is the _ identity _ in the sense that [ a]_n = a_n,0 . [ identity ] second , the map @xmath39 is a derivation and thus follows the leibniz rule only acts on the symbol to its immediate right , that is , @xmath40 , for example . ] _ n=[ab]_n+[ab]_n . third , with @xmath41 denoting the parity of @xmath21 , _ commutativity _ of @xmath33 reads [ ba]_n=(-1)^|a||b|_n^-n[ab]_,n . [ commutativity ] fourth , _ associativity _ of @xmath33 amounts to the relations [ a[bc]_m]_n=(-1)^|a||b|[b[ac]_n]_m+_>0 n-1 + -1 [ [ ab]_c]_m+n-,m , n . [ associativity ] finally , @xmath33 may depend on a set of complex parameters , here referred to as _ central parameters_. we will denote such parameters by @xmath42 , where @xmath43 is in some index set @xmath44 . one may regard @xmath33 as being defined only once values for the central parameters have been fixed . in that case , two distinct sets of values for the central parameters define inequivalent opas . here , however , we find it convenient to leave the central parameters undetermined and thus let @xmath33 depend on them . the normal ordering , indicated by @xmath45 , of @xmath37 is defined by ( ab)=[ab]_0 , in accordance with ( [ : ab : ] ) . normal ordering of three or more fields is performed iteratively , right - nesting the normal - ordered parts such that ( abc)=(a(bc ) ) . in general , a field @xmath28_n$ ] is a linear combination of normal - ordered expressions of fields and derivatives thereof . in this work , the distinction between composite and non - composite fields will play a crucial role . we thus say that a field @xmath46 is a _ composite field _ if it is equal to @xmath28_0 $ ] for some @xmath47 , except if @xmath48 ( both ) odd . accordingly , _ non - composite fields _ are fields which can not be written in a way involving normal ordering without the use of the identity field or a pair of identical odd fields . a set of fields is a set of _ generators _ of @xmath33 if every element of @xmath33 can be written as a linear combination of normal - ordered products of the generators ( including @xmath29 ) and their derivatives . a generating set of fields consists of _ elementary fields _ only , if no field in the set can be constructed in terms of the other generators by taking linear combinations , computing derivatives or forming normal - ordered products . an opa is _ conformal _ if it contains a field @xmath22 generating the virasoro ( field ) algebra , see ( [ vir ] ) . a field in a conformal opa is a _ scaling field _ with respect to @xmath22 if [ ta]_2=_aa,_1=a . [ scaling ] such a scaling field is called _ quasi - primary _ if [ ta]_3=0 , and _ primary _ if [ ta]_n=0,n3 . we denote by @xmath49 the vector space of quasi - primary fields in the conformal opa @xmath33 . we will in general assume that a conformal opa is generated by a set of quasi - primary fields , except for the topologically twisted @xmath3 superconformal algebra in section [ sec : top ] . in fact , all the other conformal opas we consider explicitly are generated by a set of _ primary _ fields in addition to @xmath22 . a scaling field @xmath21 of conformal weight @xmath20 as in ( [ da ] ) admits the mode expansion a(z)=_n-_a+a_nz^-_a - n , as in ( [ aa ] ) . it is standard to denote the modes of the virasoro generator by @xmath50 such that t(z)=_nl_nz^-2-n . for a general opa @xmath33 , we denote the set of quasi - primary fields by _ = ( _ ) , where @xmath51 is a ( formal ) basis for @xmath49 . in the case of a conformal opa , one of these quasi - primary fields is the virasoro field @xmath22 , and in the case @xmath52 , @xmath49 is merely the linear span of the quasi - primary descendants of the identity ( including the identity itself ) . as discussed in the following , with focus on @xmath53 , a basis for the set of quasi - primary fields can be constructed using the state - field correspondence . although the results should be known to experts , some of the details do not seem to be readily available in the literature . the virasoro verma module @xmath54 , with highest - weight vector @xmath55 of conformal weight @xmath56 , has a submodule generated from the singular vector @xmath57 . the corresponding quotient module , @xmath58 , is @xmath59-graded , = _ n=0^_n , [ msum ] and its conformal character is given by ( q)= _ _ q^l_0 = = _ n=2^ = _ n=0^a_nq^n , a_n=_n . concretely , the character begins as ( q)=1+q^2+q^3 + 2q^4 + 2q^5 + 4q^6 + 4q^7 + 7q^8 + 8q^9 + 12q^10 + ( q^11 ) . n=\{v_n|l_1v=0 } [ mnp ] consists of the _ quasi - primary vectors _ in @xmath60 , i.e. the vectors associated with quasi - primary fields under the state - field correspondence . with respect to ( [ mnp ] ) , the vector space @xmath60 decomposes as _ n=_nl_-1_n-1 . [ mmlm ] to see this , we first show that @xmath61 . to this end , we let @xmath62 and verify that l_1(v+_k=1^n-2 b_kl_-1^kl_1^kv)=0 is solved by b_k=,k=1, ,n-2 . we can thus write v=(__n ) + l_-1(__n-1 ) . the converse inclusion , @xmath63 , is obvious , while the remaining condition , @xmath64 , follows by induction on @xmath38 . indeed , the induction assumption implies that any nonzero @xmath65 can be written as @xmath66 for some @xmath67 and nonzero @xmath68 . we then have l_1v = k(2n - k-1)l_-1^k-1w0 , so @xmath69 . hence , @xmath64 , thereby establishing ( [ mmlm ] ) . now , since the linear map l_-1:_n-1_n is injective ( see @xcite , for example ) , it follows that @xmath70 for @xmath71 , so _ n=a_n - a_n-1,n>1 . in particular , c _ 0=1 , _ 1=0 , _ 2=1 , _ 3=0 , _ 4=1 , 5=0 , _ 6=2 , _ 7=0 , _ 8=3 , _ 9=1 , _ 10=4 . in terms of fields , the decomposition ( [ msum ] ) reads = _ n=0^_n , where @xmath72 consists of the descendant fields of the identity of conformal weight @xmath38 . the field version of the decomposition ( [ mmlm ] ) then reads _ n=_n_n-1 , where @xmath73 denotes the set of quasi - primary fields of conformal weight @xmath38 . this means , in particular , that a quasi - primary field is one that can not be written as a derivative of another field , as pointed out in @xcite citing earlier observations by nahm . moreover , every normal - ordered product ( corresponding to a vector @xmath62 ) not equal to the derivative of a quasi - primary field ( thus assuming that @xmath69 ) gives rise to a unique quasi - primary field ( corresponding to a vector in @xmath74 ) by addition of some derivative of a quasi - primary field ( corresponding to a vector in @xmath75 ) . for example , the normal - ordered product @xmath76 gives rise to the well - known quasi - primary field ^2,2=(tt)-^2 t . [ la22 ] conversely , the absence of a quasi - primary field of weight @xmath77 , for example , follows from ( l_-1l_-2 ^ 2-l_-2l_-1l_-2)|0=l_-3l_-2|0=(-l_-5+l_-2l_-1l_-2)|0 , as these relations correspond to ( tt)-(tt)=(tt)=-^3t+(tt ) , implying that ( tt)= , ( tt)=. let @xmath78 denote a basis for @xmath79 , where , by construction , @xmath80 . a formal basis , @xmath81 , for the infinite - dimensional vector space @xmath53 can thus be obtained as _ = _ n=0^_n . [ bvir ] in our discussion of @xmath0-algebras in section [ sec : w ] and appendix [ sec : walg ] , we will need explicit bases for @xmath78 , for @xmath82 ; for ease of reference , and to emphasise some key features , we discuss these bases here . first , of weight @xmath83 , we have the normal - ordered products ( ttt)(t(tt)),((tt)t),(^2tt),(tt),(t^2 t ) . the corresponding quasi - primary fields are ^2,2,2=(ttt)-^2 ^ 2,2-^4 t , ^(2,2),2=((tt)t)-^2 ^ 2,2-^4 t , [ la222 ] and @xmath84 \la^{\s2',2'}&=(\pa t\pa t)-\tfrac{2}{9}\pa^2\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{3}{70}\pa^4 t , \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,2''}&=(t\pa^2t)-\tfrac{5}{18}\pa^2\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{4}{21}\pa^4t.\end{aligned}\ ] ] however , these fields are related as ^2,2,2=^(2,2),2 , ^2,2=-^2,2=^2,2 , leaving only two linearly independent quasi - primary fields of weight @xmath83 , in accordance with @xmath85 . in the following , we shall work with @xmath86 and @xmath87 . likewise , a basis @xmath88 for @xmath89 is given by @xmath90 \la^{\s2'',2,2}&=(\pa^2ttt)-\tfrac{5}{39}\pa^2\la^{\s2,2,2}+\tfrac{2}{13}\pa^2\la^{\s2'',2 } -\tfrac{2}{99}\pa^4\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{1}{420}\pa^6 t , \label{t2tt } \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'''',2}&=(\pa^4tt)-\tfrac{21}{13}\pa^2\la^{\s2'',2}-\tfrac{7}{66}\pa^4\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{1}{180}\pa^6 t , \label{t4t}\end{aligned}\ ] ] while a basis @xmath91 for @xmath92 is given by ^2,2,2=(^3ttt)-^2,2,2+^2,2 -^3 ^ 2,2,2+^3 ^ 2,2-^5 ^ 2,2 -^7 t . it may seem surprising at first that @xmath93 , for example , does not give rise to an independent quasi - primary field @xmath94 in @xmath92 ; after all , it is built from a normal - ordered product with four copies of @xmath22 . however , so is @xmath95 , and one verifies that @xmath96 & -\tfrac{4}{91}\pa^3\la^{\s2,2,2}+\tfrac{1}{182}\pa^3\la^{\s2'',2}-\tfrac{43}{7920}\pa^5\la^{\s2,2 } -\tfrac{1}{1050}\pa^7 t \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & = -\tfrac{1}{4}\la^{\s2''',2,2}.\end{aligned}\ ] ] finally , a basis @xmath97 for @xmath98 is given by @xmath99 \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\pa^4\big[\tfrac{17}{546}\la^{\s2,2,2}+\tfrac{5}{364}\la^{\s2'',2}\big ] -\tfrac{1}{234}\pa^6\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{1}{1155}\pa^8 t , \label{ttttt } \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'',2,2,2}&=(\pa^2tttt)+\tfrac{7}{18}\pa\la^{\s2''',2,2}-\pa^2\big[\tfrac{5}{68}\la^{\s2,2,2,2 } -\tfrac{27}{272}\la^{\s2'',2,2}+\tfrac{13}{544}\la^{\s2'''',2}\big ] \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \pa^4\big[-\tfrac{1}{78}\la^{\s2,2,2}+\tfrac{1}{130}\la^{\s2'',2}\big ] -\tfrac{73}{51480}\pa^6\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{1}{4950}\pa^8 t , \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'''',2,2}&=(\pa^4ttt)-\tfrac{14}{9}\pa\la^{\s2''',2,2}+\pa^2\big[-\tfrac{63}{68}\la^{\s2'',2,2 } + \tfrac{39}{136}\la^{\s2'''',2}\big ] \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \pa^4\big[-\tfrac{1}{39}\la^{\s2,2,2}+\tfrac{2}{65}\la^{\s2'',2}\big ] -\tfrac{119}{25740}\pa^6\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{2}{5775}\pa^8 t , \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'''''',2}&=(\pa^6tt)-\tfrac{135}{34}\pa^2\la^{\s2'''',2}-\tfrac{18}{13}\pa^4\la^{\s2'',2 } -\tfrac{7}{143}\pa^6\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{3}{1540}\pa^8 t . \label{t6t}\end{aligned}\ ] ] as indicated , our notation for the quasi - primary fields , such as @xmath100 , reflects the form of the non - derivative normal - ordered product in its construction , in this example @xmath101 . when discussing @xmath0-algebras in subsequent sections , we shall extend this notation to indicate quasi - primary fields built from normal - ordered products of @xmath0-algebra generators and their derivatives . in @xmath7 , for example , @xmath102 is the quasi - primary field built from the normal - ordered product @xmath103 , where @xmath0 and @xmath104 are primary fields of conformal weight @xmath9 and @xmath105 , respectively . a particular generalisation of the quasi - primary field @xmath106 appears in most of the opas of our interest , namely the one built from the normal - ordered product @xmath107 , where @xmath21 is a primary field of conformal weight @xmath108 . the ensuing quasi - primary field is ^2,=(ta)-^2a . [ lta ] using this , we obtain the likewise frequently appearing quasi - primary field ^2,=(ta)-^2,-^3a , [ lt1a ] and subsequently @xmath109 \la^{\s2'',\delta}&=(\pa^2ta)-\tfrac{5}{3+\delta}\pa\la^{\s2',\delta } -\tfrac{10}{(2+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\la^{\s2,\delta } -\tfrac{5}{2(1+\delta)(1 + 2\delta)(3 + 2\delta)}\pa^4\!a , \label{lt2a}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath110 & -\tfrac{2(1 + 2\delta)}{(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\la^{\s2,\delta } -\tfrac{3}{4(1+\delta)(2+\delta)(3 + 2\delta)}\pa^5\!a , \label{lt1ta } \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,2',\delta}&=(t\pa ta ) -\tfrac{2}{4+\delta}\pa\la^{\s2,2,\delta } -\tfrac{3(1+\delta)}{2(3+\delta)(7 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\la^{\s2',\delta } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{7 + 4\delta}{(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\la^{\s2,\delta } -\tfrac{3}{2(2+\delta)(1 + 2\delta)(3 + 2\delta)}\pa^5\!a , \label{ltt1a } \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2''',\delta}&=(\pa^3ta ) -\tfrac{9}{4+\delta}\pa\la^{\s2'',\delta } -\tfrac{45}{(3+\delta)(7 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\la^{\s2',\delta } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{30}{(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\la^{\s2,\delta } -\tfrac{9}{2(1+\delta)(2+\delta)(1 + 2\delta)(3 + 2\delta)}\pa^5\!a . \label{lt3a}\end{aligned}\ ] ] decompositions similar to ( [ mmlm ] ) apply to vertex - operator algebras more generally , see @xcite . in a purely bosonic conformal opa @xmath33 , the ope contraction of @xmath111 of conformal weights @xmath20 and @xmath25 , respectively , thus only involves quasi - primary fields and their derivatives . this allows us to write a(z)b(w)~_q_c_a , b^q ( _ n=0^_a+_b-_q ) , [ abq ] where @xmath112 and @xmath113 are structure constants . associativity with the virasoro generator @xmath22 implies that _ _ a,_b^_q;n= , ( x)_n=_j=0^n-1(x+j ) , [ poch ] where the pochhammer symbols @xmath114 are meant to reduce to @xmath115 for @xmath116 . this means that we can encode the information stored in the ope contraction ( [ abq ] ) in the _ star relation _ ab_q_c_a , b^q\{q } , [ star ] where the _ conformal tail _ \{q}=_n=0^_a+_b-_q [ qtail ] of @xmath117 clearly depends on the ope contraction it appears in ( here ( [ abq ] ) ) . subleading terms in conformal tails are thus suppressed in a star relation ; this is indicated by the @xmath118 notation in ( [ star ] ) . note that a conformal tail of the identity @xmath29 only contains one term , simply because all derivatives of @xmath29 vanish . it is also noted that the star relation encapsulating the ope contraction of @xmath22 with a primary field @xmath21 of conformal weight @xmath108 is given by ta\{a}. although the structure constants @xmath112 satisfy c_a , b^q=(-1)^|a||b|(-1)^_a+_b-_qc_b , a^q , [ cabq ] the star relation ( [ star ] ) is in general only ( anti-)symmetric ` in appearance ' . the possible difference ( aside from a sign ) between the corresponding ope contractions , @xmath119 and @xmath120 , is ` hidden ' in the conformal tails @xmath121 ; this is indeed possible because the structure constants @xmath113 in ( [ qtail ] ) are not , in general , symmetric in their lower indices . of course , if @xmath122 , then @xmath113 _ is _ symmetric and the two ope contractions _ do _ agree ( up to signs , as in ( [ cabq ] ) ) . to illustrate , we consider the @xmath0-algebra @xmath8 ( see appendix [ sec : w5 ] ) , where the star products of the two even weight-@xmath105 quasi - primary fields @xmath106 and @xmath104 are given by ^2,2 u=\{u}+8\{^2,4}+6\{^2,4 } , u^2,2=\{u}+8\{^2,4}-6\{^2,4}. we can also use the structure constants to describe the quasi - primary fields constructed from the normal - ordered products of pairs of quasi - primary fields . for @xmath123 , we thus have that _ ( q_1q_2 ) -_q_3_c_q_1,q_2^q_3__1,_2^_3;_1+_2-_3 ^_1+_2-_3q_3 , [ qqq ] where @xmath124 , @xmath125 . for @xmath126 in @xmath53 , for example , the star relation is given by ^2,2 ^ 2,2\{}+\{t } + \{^2,2}+8\{^2,2,2}+(2+c)\{^2,2 } , from which we obtain the quasi - primary field ^(2,2),(2,2)=(^2,2 ^ 2,2)-(^6 t + ^4 ^ 2,2+^2 ^ 2,2,2 + ^2 ^ 2,2 ) . [ tt0tt0 ] decomposing this in terms of the elements of the basis @xmath88 given in ( [ tttt])-([t4 t ] ) yields ^(2,2),(2,2)=^2,2,2,2+^2,2,2+^2,2 . the expression in ( [ qqq ] ) can be generalised to involve more than two quasi - primary fields and to include derivatives of such fields , but a general discussion of such constructions of quasi - primary fields is beyond the scope of the present work . we recall that an opa has a unique identity and that it is closed under the computation of derivatives and under the formation of linear combinations and normal - ordered products . here , we wish to form the _ tensor product _ of two opas , requiring that it shares these properties . in fact , the following characterisation of such a tensor product matches the similar properties of the corresponding tensor product of vertex - operator algebras @xcite . from the two opas @xmath33 and @xmath127 with identities @xmath29 and @xmath128 , respectively , the opa @xmath129 is thus a @xmath34-graded vector space , where we set a|a,|b|b,| , and write @xmath130 for @xmath131 . as indicated , the identity of @xmath129 is simply written @xmath29 . for @xmath37 and @xmath132 , the @xmath38-products @xmath28_n$ ] and @xmath133_n$ ] are as in @xmath33 and @xmath127 , respectively . however , the @xmath38-product of @xmath134 and @xmath135 is defined by [ a|b]_n= 0 , & n>0 , + [ ^-na|b]_0 , & n0 . additional relations follow from requiring that @xmath129 is a commutative and associative opa . in particular , it follows that [ |ba]_n= 0 , & n>0 , + [ a^-n|b]_0 , & n0 . by construction , for all @xmath37 , the ope contraction of @xmath136 and @xmath137 in @xmath129 is zero : a(z)|b(w)~0 . [ abb0 ] that is , the corresponding full ope is nonsingular and is simply given by a(z)|b(w)=:a(z)|b(w ) : . [ abb02 ] moreover , for @xmath138 , we have a(z)(b|c)(w)~_n=1^_a , b , showing that @xmath129 is closed under ope contractions . we refer to @xmath129 as the _ opa tensor product _ of @xmath33 and @xmath127 . because the mode algebra associated with @xmath129 only depends on the ope _ contractions _ in @xmath129 , the mode algebra is a direct sum of the two mode algebras corresponding to @xmath33 and @xmath127 , respectively . as discussed in the following , new opas can be constructed as contractions of given opas , much in the same way as a lie algebra can arise as the result of an inn - wigner contraction @xcite of another lie algebra . our focus is on contractions of opas of the form @xmath129 , including pairs of the virasoro field algebra and its various extensions . in this work , the two algebras @xmath33 and @xmath127 are taken to be the same , up to their central parameters . in the case of two copies of the virasoro algebra , for example , the central charges @xmath139 and @xmath140 may thus differ . in the following , a bar over a field @xmath134 is used to indicate that the ensuing field @xmath141 is the ` same field ' as @xmath21 , but @xmath142 . the companion to @xmath28_n\in\ac$ ] is given by = [ |a|b]_n . [ abnbar ] now , let @xmath143 . for each field @xmath134 and its companion @xmath142 , we then introduce the linear combinations a_^+=a+ , a_^-=(a- ) . [ apam ] for @xmath144 , this yields an invertible map on the space of fields in @xmath129 , with inverse transformation given by a=(a_^++a_^- ) , = ( a_^+-a_^- ) . [ ainv ] for @xmath145 , on the other hand , the map is singular and gives rise to a new algebraic structure . the ensuing algebra is generated by the fields ( [ apam ] ) of @xmath129 , as @xmath146 . if the result is a well - defined opa , we shall denote it by @xmath147 . notationally , this is indicated by _ g , a_^a^. we refer to such a construction as a _ galilean contraction _ and @xmath147 as a _ galilean algebra_. it is stressed that @xmath129 and @xmath147 are in general _ non - isomorphic_. unsurprisingly , as indicated in section [ sec : gca ] , other contractions are also possible , but we shall focus on the galilean contraction " above . for @xmath37 , in @xmath129 , we have @xmath148_{n,\eps}^+(w)}{(z - w)^n}\,+:\!a_\eps^+(z)b_\eps^+(w)\ ! : , \label{apebpe } \\[.15 cm ] a_\eps^+(z)b_\eps^-(w ) & = \sum_{n=1}^{\delta_{a , b}}\frac{[ab]_{n,\eps}^-(w)}{(z - w)^n}\,+:\!a_\eps^+(z)b_\eps^-(w)\ ! : , \\[.15 cm ] a_\eps^-(z)b_\eps^+(w ) & = \sum_{n=1}^{\delta_{a , b}}\frac{[ab]_{n,\eps}^-(w)}{(z - w)^n}\,+:\!a_\eps^-(z)b_\eps^+(w)\ ! : , \\[.15 cm ] a_\eps^-(z)b_\eps^-(w ) & = \eps^2\sum_{n=1}^{\delta_{a , b}}\frac{[ab]_{n,\eps}^+(w)}{(z - w)^n}\,+:\!a_\eps^-(z)b_\eps^-(w)\ ! : , \label{amebme}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where , following ( [ apam ] ) , we have introduced [ ab]_n,^+=[ab]_n+[|b]_n,_n,^-=([ab]_n-[|b]_n ) . [ abnp ] it follows that ope contractions in @xmath147 are symmetric under exchange of the sign - index of the generators . that is , a^+(z)b^-(w ) ~a^-(z)b^+(w ) , [ a+b- ] allowing us to omit detailing ope contractions of the form @xmath149 . moreover , a_^-(z)b_^-(w)~^2a_^+(z)b_^+(w ) , so if @xmath150 is well - defined in the limit @xmath146 ( which is required for @xmath147 to be well - defined ) , then a^-(z)b^-(w)~0 . [ a - b- ] although this analysis , based on ( [ apebpe])-([amebme ] ) , allowed us to deduce the properties ( [ a+b- ] ) and ( [ a - b- ] ) of @xmath147 , it is , in a sense , deceptively simple . indeed , the field @xmath28_n\in\ac$ ] may contain composite fields , in which case the fields @xmath28_{n,\eps}^\pm\in\ac\otimes\acb$ ] contain composite fields , but as elements of @xmath147 , we should be able to express the corresponding fields @xmath28_n^\pm$ ] in terms of normal - ordered products of non - composite fields ( and their derivatives ) in @xmath147 . this is a highly nontrivial task which will we will return to in section [ sec : aag ] . the virasoro ( field ) algebra @xmath52 is generated by the field @xmath22 whose ope contraction with itself is t(z)t(w ) ~ + + , [ vir ] where @xmath139 is the central charge ( and where we have omitted the identity field @xmath29 ) . the corresponding star relation is tt\{}+2\{t}. [ virstar ] the companion algebra @xmath151 has central charge @xmath140 and is generated similarly by @xmath152 . we now apply the galilean contraction prescription to @xmath153 . we therefore introduce rll & t^+_=t+ , & c^+_=c+ , + & t^-_=(t - ) , & c^-_=(c - ) , whose star relations are worked out to be t^+_t^_\{}+2\{t^ _ } , t^-_t^-_^2t^+_t^+_0 . it then follows that the star relations defining the _ galilean conformal algebra _ @xmath154 are t^+t^\{}+2\{t^ } , t^-t^-0 . [ gvir ] in particular , @xmath155 is seen to generate a virasoro subalgebra @xmath53 with central charge @xmath156 . in terms of modes , where t^(z)=_nl^_nz^-2-n , the galilean conformal algebra is defined by [ l^+_n , l^_m]=(n - m)l^_n+m+n(n^2 - 1)_n+m,0 , [ l^-_n , l^-_m]=0 . [ lpm ] interest in this algebra has also been shown in the vertex - operator algebra literature , where it is referred to as @xmath157 @xcite . the role of @xmath158 is discussed at the end of section [ sec : simply ] . superconformal extensions of the virasoro algebra go back to @xcite . in particular , the @xmath1 superconformal ( field ) algebra @xmath159 of central charge @xmath139 is generated by the virasoro field @xmath22 and its super - partner @xmath160 , with star relations tt\{}+2\{t},tg\{g } , gg\{}+2\{t}. [ n1 ] the corresponding _ galilean @xmath1 sca _ @xmath161 is generated by @xmath162 and @xmath163 , whose nontrivial star relations are given by t^+t^\{}+2\{t^},t^+g^\{g^ } , g^+g^\{}+2\{t^}. [ gn1 ] as in the case of the galilean conformal algebra , the fields @xmath155 and @xmath164 are recognised as generating an @xmath1 superconformal subalgebra of central charge @xmath156 . the galilean @xmath1 sca ( [ gn1 ] ) also appeared in @xcite , for example . as it contains a pair of odd spin-@xmath165 fields , @xmath163 , it can be interpreted as encoding an @xmath166 supersymmetry . however , it is not the only possible superconformal extension of the galilean virasoro algebra @xmath167 . indeed , the ` asymmetric ' algebra of @xcite contains only _ one _ odd spin-@xmath165 field and thus corresponds to an @xmath168 supersymmetry . as the ` symmetric ' algebra above , it can be obtained @xcite by an inn - wigner contraction , but of the tensor product @xmath169 . another alternative is constructed @xcite as a contraction of the symmetric product @xmath170 , based on inhomogeneous scaling " . the objective here is to characterise a family of algebras @xmath33 for which the galilean contraction @xmath147 of @xmath129 is readily determined . we say that an opa @xmath33 is _ simply - extended _ if ( i ) all fields of the form @xmath28_n$ ] , where @xmath21 and @xmath24 are elementary generators , are non - composite , ( ii ) no other ope structure constants than the ones accompanying the identity field can depend on central parameters , and that ( iii ) this dependence is linear . for example , the virasoro field algebra and its @xmath1 superconformal extension are simply - extended . in fact , an opa is simply - extended precisely if its mode algebra is an infinite - dimensional lie ( super)algebra . this suggests that we , alternatively , could refer to such opas as _ lie algebraic _ or as being _ of lie type_. now , assuming that @xmath33 is simply - extended implies that the fields @xmath28_n$ ] in the ope ( [ ab ] ) are non - composite and independent of the central parameters , while the dependence of @xmath171 on the central parameters is linear . furthermore , with @xmath141 and @xmath172 denoting the @xmath127-companions to the @xmath33-fields on the lefthand side of ( [ ab ] ) , we have that @xmath173_n$ ] is the companion @xmath174_n}$ ] of @xmath28_n$ ] , see ( [ abnbar ] ) , while the structure constants @xmath175 and @xmath171 may differ . it follows that the opes in @xmath147 are of the form a^+(z)b^(w)= + _ n=-^_a+_b-1 , a^-(z)b^-(w)~0 , [ apbpm ] where , in @xmath129 , we have used ( [ abnp ] ) and introduced f_a , b,^+=f_a , b+|f_,|b , f_a , b,^-=(f_a , b-|f_,|b ) . the fields @xmath176 thus generate a subalgebra isomorphic to @xmath33 , but with the central parameters @xmath42 replaced by @xmath177 , @xmath178 . this generalises the similar observation for the galilean conformal algebra @xmath154 in ( [ gvir ] ) and its @xmath1 superconformal extension in ( [ gn1 ] ) . however , this is in general not true for @xmath33 non - simply - extended , as illustrated in section [ sec : w ] . due to the linear dependence of @xmath171 on the central parameters , we can write f_a , b=_ii__a , b^ic_i,_a , b^i . in @xmath129 , we thus have f_a , b,^-=_ii__a , b^i(c_i-|c_i)=_ii__a , b^ic_i,^- . in some cases , the fields @xmath179 can therefore be renormalised such that some or all of the parameters @xmath180 do not appear in any ope . for example , in the case of only _ one _ central parameter ( here denoted simply by @xmath139 ) in @xmath33 , we have f_a , b=_a , bcf_a , b^-=_a , bc^- . for @xmath181 in @xmath147 , we may thus rescale all fields @xmath179 different from @xmath29 as a^-^-= , [ hatted ] thereby obtaining the @xmath158-independent opes a^+(z)^-(w)= + _ n=-^_a+_b-1 . [ apbm ] it follows that , for each value of the parameter @xmath156 , there are exactly _ two _ possible galilean extensions of ( the simply - extended opa ) @xmath33 , namely the one for which @xmath182 and the one for which @xmath181 . for example , the nontrivial star relations of the corresponding galilean conformal algebras @xmath154 are thus given by t^+t^+\{}+2\{t^+ } , t^+^-\{}+2\{^- } , where @xmath183 . the galilean contraction procedure may ` intertwine ' a pair of maps of the form o : ,o_g : _ g_g . indeed , we are interested in scenarios where the composition diagram ( with gal denoting a galilean contraction ) is commutative . concrete examples include the situation where @xmath184 encodes the topological twist of an @xmath3 superconformal algebra ( sca ) and the situation where @xmath184 corresponds to an inn - wigner contraction of an @xmath4 sca . these examples will be discussed in section [ sec : top ] and [ sec : iw ] , respectively . another example is provided by the ( galilean ) sugawara construction discussed in section [ sec : aga ] . the @xmath3 sca @xmath33 of central charge @xmath139 , whose mode algebra was introduced in @xcite , is generated by a virasoro field @xmath22 , a pair of super - fields @xmath185 of conformal weight @xmath165 , with @xmath186 , and a spin - one field @xmath187 . it is a simply - extended opa , so the corresponding galilean algebra @xmath147 generated by @xmath162 , @xmath188 and @xmath189 is readily obtained . the nontrivial star relations are rlll & t^+t^\{}+2\{t^ } , & t^+j^\{j^ } , & t^+g_a^\{g_a^ } , + & g_0^+g_1^\{}+\{j^}+\{t^ } , & j^+j^\ { } , & j^+g_a^(-1)^a\{g_a^}. [ gn2 ] as discussed in section [ sec : simply ] , the parameter @xmath158 is either zero or can be absorbed in a rescaling of the generators @xmath190 . the topologically twisted @xmath3 sca @xmath191@xcite is generated by t_top:= t+j , q:= g_0,p:= g_1 , [ twist ] and the spin - one field @xmath192 . the nontrivial star relations are c t_topt_top2\{t_top } , t_topj-\{}+\{j } , t_topq\{q } , t_topp2\{p } , + qp\{}+\{j}+\{t_top } , jj\ { } , jq\{q } , jp-\{p}. it follows that the twist has the effect of turning the two spin-@xmath165 superfields into a spin - one and a spin - two field with respect to the virasoro generator @xmath193 . the spin - one field @xmath187 , on the other hand , retains its conformal weight , but is in general not a primary field with respect to @xmath193 ; in fact , it is not even quasi - primary , but the use of @xmath194 in the star relations still applies . the topologically twisted @xmath3 algebra @xmath191 also belongs to the family of simply - extended algebras . the nontrivial ope contractions of the corresponding galilean algebra @xmath195 are c t_top^+t_top^2\{t_top^ } , t_top^+j^-\{}+\{j^ } , t_top^+q^\{q^ } , t_top^+p^2\{p^ } , + q^+p^\{}+\{j^}+\{t_top^ } , j^+j^\ { } , j^+q^\{q^ } , j^+p^-\{p^}. [ gtopn2 ] in fact , applying the topological twist t_top^:= t^+j^ , q^:= g^_0 , p^:= g^_1 [ gtwist ] to the galilean @xmath3 sca ( [ gn2 ] ) yields the _ same _ galilean algebra ( [ gtopn2 ] ) as the galilean contraction of the topologically twisted @xmath3 sca . the diagram is thus commutative . with reference to the commutative diagram in the preamble to section [ sec : comp ] , the map @xmath184 is the upper twist ( indicated above by @xmath196 ) given in ( [ twist ] ) , while the map @xmath197 is the lower twist ( likewise indicated by @xmath196 ) given in ( [ gtwist ] ) . the galilean contraction procedure is not only compatible with the topological twisting discussed in section [ sec : top ] ; it is also compatible with certain inn - wigner contractions @xcite . we illustrate this by considering @xmath4 scas and refer to @xcite for a more general discussion . the known @xmath4 scas in two dimensions are characterised by their internal affine lie algebra . the small @xmath4 sca @xcite is based on @xmath198 ; the large one @xcite on @xmath199 ; the middle one @xcite on @xmath200 ; while the non - reductive one @xcite is based on @xmath201 where @xmath202 is a four - dimensional non - reductive lie algebra . the total number of generating fields in these scas is @xmath203 , @xmath204 , @xmath204 and @xmath204 , respectively . the non - reductive @xmath4 sca also contains an interesting @xmath4 superconformal subalgebra whose affine lie algebra is based on @xmath205 @xcite , while the total number of generating fields is @xmath206 . for each value of the central charge , there is a one - parameter family of large @xmath4 scas , usually labelled by a parameter @xmath207 . for fixed value of @xmath207 , the corresponding sca is simply - extended , as are all the other @xmath4 scas . their galilean contractions are therefore readily obtained , although not presented explicitly here . details can be found in @xcite . the middle and non - reductive @xmath4 scas can be obtained by inn - wigner contractions of the large @xmath4 sca by letting @xmath207 approach a singular value in particular bases . as already indicated , in both cases , the resulting algebra is simply - extended . we have verified that the inn - wigner contractions employed in their construction are compatible with the galilean contractions , thereby establishing the commutativity of the diagram to be clear , for this to hold in the case where @xmath33 is the large @xmath4 sca , the companion algebra @xmath127 must be defined for the _ same _ value of @xmath207 . in this section , we introduce _ galilean affine algebras _ @xmath208 as the galilean extensions of affine current ( super)algebras @xmath209 . we then examine their compatibility with the sugawara construction , analysing the commutativity of the diagram where @xmath210 refers to a sugawara construction . an affine current ( super)algebra @xmath209 is generated by a set of fields @xmath211 . with reference to the mode expansion j_a(z)=_nj_a , nz^-n-1 , [ jaz ] the set of zero modes @xmath212 thus generates the lie ( super)algebra @xmath202 . the ope contractions of the currents are given by j_a(z)j_b(w)~+ , [ jajb ] where @xmath213 are the structure constants and @xmath214 , with @xmath215 , the killing form of @xmath202 . the central parameter @xmath216 is known as the level of @xmath209 . note that the standard einstein summation convention , summing over appropriately repeated indices , has been employed . as is evident from ( [ jajb ] ) , the affine current ( super)algebra is simply - extended . with the structure constants and killing forms on @xmath209 and its companion @xmath217 the same , the galilean algebra @xmath208 is readily constructed and its nontrivial ope contractions are given by j_a^+(z)j_b^(w)~+ . [ japjbpm ] the currents @xmath218 thus generate an affine current algebra with level @xmath219 . as before , if @xmath220 , then we can renormalise the fields @xmath221 and thereby eliminate the parameter @xmath222 altogether . in the following , we will focus on affine current algebras based on lie algebras and only on those for which the killing form @xmath214 is non - degenerate . extending the considerations to superalgebras is straightforward but will not be discussed explicitly . it is well - known that the sugawara construction t=(j_aj_b ) [ sug ] provides a realisation of the virasoro ( field ) algebra with central charge c= , [ sugc ] where @xmath223 is the dual coxeter number of the lie algebra @xmath202 . the fields @xmath224 are all primary of conformal weight @xmath115 with respect to the sugawara construction , that is , t(z)j_a(w)~+ . [ tja ] with reference to the diagram just above ( [ jaz ] ) , we now examine the lower path from @xmath225 via @xmath208 to @xmath154 . the initial map , gal , is simply the galilean contraction producing the galilean affine algebra @xmath208 with ope contractions ( [ japjbpm ] ) . the second map , denoted by gal sug , is meant to mimic the usual sugawara construction ( [ sug ] ) , but applied to all the fields @xmath226 , not just to @xmath218 . it thus entails constructing a realisation @xmath162 of the galilean virasoro algebra @xmath154 in terms of the galilean affine generators @xmath226 . accordingly , we make the ansatz t^=_,\{+,-}_^^ab(j_a^j_b^ ) , _ ^. [ tpmjj ] aside from realising ( [ gvir ] ) for some central parameters @xmath227 ( to be determined below ) , it should satisfy t^+(z)j_a^(w)~+ , t^-(z)j_a^-(w)~0 , and , according to ( [ a+b- ] ) , t^-(z)j_a^+(w)~+ . using standard lie - algebraic relations such as ^bcf_ab^df_dc^e=2h^_a^e , ^bdf_ab^c+^cbf_ab^d=0 , we find that @xmath162 in ( [ tpmjj ] ) are given _ uniquely _ as @xmath228 -\frac{k^+\!+2h^\vee}{2(k^-)^2}\,\kappa^{ab}(j_a^-j_b^- ) , \label{tpjj } \\[.15 cm ] t^-&=\frac{\kappa^{ab}}{2k^-}(j_a^-j_b^- ) , \label{tmjj}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and that they generate the galilean virasoro algebra @xmath154 with c^+=2,c^-=0 . [ cpcm ] we now turn to the upper path in the diagram , the one from @xmath225 via @xmath153 to @xmath154 . the first map , sug@xmath229sug , yields the tensor product of two copies of the usual sugawara construction , generated by t(z)=(j_aj_b)(z ) , |t(z)=(|j_a|j_b)(z ) , respectively , with corresponding central charges given by c=,|c=. [ ccb ] the galilean contraction comprising the second map in the upper path follows from @xmath230 & = \frac{\kappa^{ab}}{2(\frac{1}{2}(k_\eps^++\frac{1}{\eps}k_\eps^-)+h^\vee ) } \big[\tfrac{1}{2}(j_{a,\eps}^++\tfrac{1}{\eps}j_{a,\eps}^-)\tfrac{1}{2}(j_{b,\eps}^++\tfrac{1}{\eps}j_{b,\eps}^-)\big ] \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \frac{\kappa^{ab}}{2(\frac{1}{2}(k_\eps^+-\frac{1}{\eps}k_\eps^-)+h^\vee ) } \big[\tfrac{1}{2}(j_{a,\eps}^+-\tfrac{1}{\eps}j_{a,\eps}^-)\tfrac{1}{2}(j_{b,\eps}^+-\tfrac{1}{\eps}j_{b,\eps}^-)\big ] \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & = \frac{\kappa^{ab}}{2k_\eps^-}[(j_{a,\eps}^+j_{b,\eps}^-)+(j_{a,\eps}^-j_{b,\eps}^+ ) ] -\frac{k_\eps^+\!+2h^\vee}{2(k_\eps^-)^2}\,\kappa^{ab}(j_{a,\eps}^-j_{b,\eps}^- ) + \oc(\eps ) \label{tpeps}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and c_^+=c+|c = + = 2+(^2 ) , and the similar expansions of @xmath231 and @xmath232 , all in @xmath129 . as @xmath146 , the expressions ( [ tpjj ] ) and ( [ tmjj ] ) for @xmath162 are recovered , as are the results ( [ cpcm ] ) for the central parameters @xmath227 . this demonstrates the commutativity of the diagram just above ( [ jaz ] ) . we note that the expressions ( [ tpjj ] ) and ( [ tmjj ] ) for @xmath162 are defined for @xmath220 only . however , rescaling @xmath233 and @xmath234 by @xmath222 , thereby introducing _ b^-=j_b^-,^-=t^- , allows us to eliminate @xmath222 altogether , as we then have t^+=^ab(j_a^+_b^-+_a^-j_b^+ ) -(k^++2h^)^ab(_a^-_b^- ) , ^-=^ab(_a^-_b^- ) . in fact , this corresponds to basing the lower path in the diagram just above ( [ jaz ] ) on the galilean affine algebra ( [ japjbpm ] ) in which @xmath222 has been scaled away . likewise , for @xmath235 in the original affine lie algebra , one merely constructs @xmath162 as in ( [ tpmjj ] ) using ( [ japjbpm ] ) with @xmath235 . in the computation of the series expansion ( [ tpeps ] ) of @xmath236 in powers of @xmath237 , one encounters a cancellation of contributions proportional to @xmath238 . without this cancellation , the limit @xmath155 of @xmath236 , as @xmath146 , would simply not exist . this points to a general and fundamental property : the existence of a galilean counterpart , @xmath147 , to the opa @xmath33 presupposes that the coefficients in @xmath33 conspire appropriately . a priori , there is no guarantee that a given opa @xmath33 admits a galilean contraction resulting in @xmath147 . here , we will explore the conditions on @xmath33 imposed by the requirement that @xmath147 exists . in the process , we find general expressions for the structure constants of @xmath147 in terms of those of @xmath33 . most of the conformal opas of our interest in section [ sec : w ] correspond to @xmath0-algebras generated by the virasoro field @xmath22 and a finite linearly independent set of primary fields @xmath239 of integer conformal weights greater than @xmath16 . we will assume ` non - degeneracy ' of this set of generators in the sense that the corresponding matrix @xmath240 , see ( [ ab ] ) , is non - degenerate for generic central parameters . this allows us to choose a canonical normalisation of the generators . in the series of @xmath241 algebras , for example , the matrix @xmath240 is diagonal and the central charge @xmath139 is the sole central parameter . in these models , it is thus standard to normalise the generators such that @xmath242 . for generic @xmath139 , this is equivalent to requiring that @xmath243_{2\delta_p-2}=2t$ ] ; in fact , this fixes the normalisation even for @xmath244 . let us now assume that @xmath28_n$ ] in the ope contraction ( [ abcont ] ) contains the normal - ordered product @xmath245 of the two non - composite fields @xmath46 and @xmath246 , that @xmath245 is linearly independent of all other terms in @xmath28_n$ ] , and that @xmath245 appears with coefficient @xmath247 : a function of the central charge . the fields @xmath46 and @xmath246 may involve linear combinations of derivatives of fields , as long as the ensuing expressions for @xmath46 and @xmath246 do not depend on @xmath139 . then , @xmath28_{n,\eps}^+$ ] and @xmath28_{n,\eps}^-$ ] will contain the corresponding terms @xmath248 & + \frac{1}{4\eps}\big\{\phi(\tfrac{1}{2}(c_\eps^++\tfrac{1}{\eps}c_\eps^- ) ) -\phi(\tfrac{1}{2}(c_\eps^+-\tfrac{1}{\eps}c_\eps^-))\big\ } \big\{(c_\eps^+d_\eps^-)+(c_\eps^-d_\eps^+)\big\ } \label{phicdp}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath249 & + \frac{1}{4}\big\{\phi(\tfrac{1}{2}(c_\eps^++\tfrac{1}{\eps}c_\eps^- ) ) + \phi(\tfrac{1}{2}(c_\eps^+-\tfrac{1}{\eps}c_\eps^-))\big\ } \big\{(c_\eps^+d_\eps^-)+(c_\eps^-d_\eps^+)\big\ } , \label{phicdm}\end{aligned}\ ] ] respectively . let us further assume that @xmath247 factorises as ( c)=_i=1^k(c-_i)^_i [ phic ] for some @xmath250 and @xmath251 , @xmath252 , where @xmath253 . this is indeed the case in all the @xmath0-algebras considered in section [ sec : w ] . using _ i=1^k(c-_i)^_i = ( ) ^_i=1^k_i ( 1+_i=1^k_i(c_^+-2_i)+(^2 ) ) and _ i=1^k(|c-_i)^_i = ( -)^_i=1^k_i ( 1-_i=1^k_i(c_^+-2_i)+(^2 ) ) , we then find that , for generic central charges , the limit @xmath146 is only well - defined if _ i=1^k_i=-1_i=1^k_i=-2 , [ sumalpha ] or if @xmath254 . however , in the latter case , the coefficients vanish . more generally , if @xmath28_n$ ] contains the term @xmath255 , which is linearly independent of the other terms in @xmath28_n$ ] and where @xmath256 are non - composite ( but may involve derivatives ) , then _ i=1^k_i=-(-1)_i=1^k_i=-[sumalphagen ] or @xmath257 for the limit @xmath146 to be well - defined . moreover , one of the conditions in ( [ sumalphagen ] ) must be satisfied for the limit to produce a non - vanishing term out of @xmath255 . if the contraction prescription is well - defined , then the limits of ( [ phicdp ] ) and ( [ phicdm ] ) will make contributions in the galilean opa @xmath147 to @xmath28_n^+$ ] and @xmath28_n^-$ ] , respectively . first , we describe the ensuing term in @xmath28_n^+$ ] . if @xmath258 , the term is given by c ( ( c_1^+c_2 ^ - c_^-)+(c_1 ^ -c_2^+c_3 ^ - c_^- ) + + ( c_1 ^ - c_-1 ^ -c_^+ ) ) + - , [ ell1 ] whereas , if @xmath259 , the term is simply given by ( c_1 ^ - c_^- ) . [ ell ] note that these expressions only make sense if c^-0 , a condition we shall therefore assume here and in section [ sec : w ] and appendix [ sec : walg ] . absorbing the @xmath158-dependence as in ( [ hatted ] ) , by introducing _ i^-=,i=1 , , , the terms ( [ ell1 ] ) and ( [ ell ] ) become ( ( c_1^+_2 ^ - _^-)+ +(_1 ^ - _-1 ^ -c_^+ ) ) -((-1)c^++2_i=1^k_i _ i)(_1 ^ - _^- ) [ c1a ] and 2(_1 ^ - _^- ) , respectively . in @xmath28_n^-$ ] , on the other hand , the only term generated from ( [ phicdm ] ) is c^-(_1 ^ - _^- ) , [ c1c ] and this only occurs if @xmath258 . if @xmath259 , the contribution simply vanishes . note that the factor of @xmath158 in ( [ c1c ] ) will be absorbed on the lefthand side of the ope contraction if we consider @xmath260 instead of @xmath261 . we conclude this section by observing that if the contraction prescription on the quasi - primary field @xmath117 with coefficient @xmath247 is well - defined , then it is well - defined on the entire conformal tail @xmath121 . this follows readily from the @xmath139-independent linearity of the terms in the definition ( [ qtail ] ) of @xmath121 , and the fact that the analysis above is unaffected by the inclusion of derivatives . in the following , we apply the galilean contraction prescription to a variety of known @xmath0-algebras . details on some of the ensuing galilean @xmath0-algebras are deferred to appendix [ sec : gw ] . as discussed in section [ sec : gca ] , the field @xmath262 generates a virasoro subalgebra of the galilean conformal algebra . a field @xmath263 is accordingly quasi - primary with respect to @xmath155 if [ t^+q]_3=0,_2=_qq,_1=q , where @xmath264 is the corresponding conformal weight . we denote by @xmath265 the set of quasi - primary fields in @xmath167 . examples of elements of @xmath265 are easily constructed : simply replace @xmath22 by @xmath155 in the explicit expressions @xmath266 in section [ sec : quasi ] . however , according to section [ sec : aag ] , as the result of a galilean contraction , we should only expect to encounter quasi - primary fields with at most one @xmath155 generator in each of their normal - ordered products , see ( [ c1a])-([c1c ] ) . before discussing these quasi - primary fields explicitly , let us extend some of the elements of the analysis in section [ sec : quasi ] to the galilean conformal algebra @xmath167 . we thus define the galilean virasoro verma module of highest weight @xmath30 as the module generated by the free action of @xmath167 on the highest - weight state @xmath55 satisfying l^_n|0=0,n0 . this module has a submodule generated from the vector @xmath267 . since l^-_-1|0=-[l^+_-1,l^-_0]|0=l^-_0l^+_-1|0 , we see that @xmath268 is an element of this submodule . the corresponding quotient module , @xmath269 , is @xmath59-graded , = _ n=0^_n , [ nsum ] and its conformal character is given by _ _ g(q)= _ _ q^l^+_0=[(q)]^2 = _ n=2^ = _ n=0^b_nq^n , b_n=_n . concretely , the character begins as _ _ g(q)=1 + 2q^2 + 2q^3 + 5q^4 + 6q^5 + 13q^6 + 16q^7 + 30q^8 + 40q^9 + 66q^10+(q^11 ) . the adaptation to @xmath167 of the decomposition ( [ mmlm ] ) is given by _ n=_nl^+_-1_n-1 , [ nnln ] where _ n=\{v_n|l^+_1v=0},_n=b_n - b_n-1 . [ nnp ] for small @xmath38 , these dimensions are given by c _ 1=0 , _ 2=2 , _ 3=0 , _ 4=3 , _ 5=1 , + _ 6=7 , _ 7=3 , _ 8=14 , _ 9=10 , _ 10=26 . in terms of fields , the decomposition ( [ nsum ] ) reads _ g=_n=0^(_g)_n , where @xmath270 consists of the descendant fields of the identity , of conformal weight @xmath38 . the field version of the decomposition ( [ nnln ] ) can then be expressed as ( _ g)_n=(__g)_n(_g)_n-1 , where @xmath271 denotes the set of quasi - primary fields of conformal weight @xmath38 . by construction , ( _ _ g)_n=_n. for ease of reference , we now list bases for the linear spans of the quasi - primary fields that contain at most one copy of @xmath155 in each of their terms and have conformal weight between @xmath105 and @xmath83 . in our notation @xmath272 for quasi - primary fields in @xmath265 , a @xmath273 indicates that @xmath155 appears in at least one of the terms , whereas a @xmath274 indicates that the quasi - primary field is built using @xmath275 only . of weight @xmath105 , we thus have _ + ^2,2=(t^+^-)-^2 ^ - , _ -^2,2=(^-^- ) . [ lapm22 ] of weight @xmath77 , we have _ + ^2,2=(t^+^- ) -_+^2,2 -^3 ^ - . of weight @xmath83 , we have @xmath276 \lh_+^{2'',2}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^2t^+\th^-)+(\pa^2\th^-t^+ ) ] -\tfrac{5}{18}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,2}-\tfrac{1}{42}\pa^4\th^- , \label{la2''2p}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and _ -^2,2,2=(^-^-^- ) , _ -^2,2=(^2 ^ -^-)-^2_-^2,2 . [ la6 m ] as an aside , we note that @xmath277 . as we have only listed four linearly independent quasi - primary fields of conformal weight @xmath83 , this suggests that there exists a unique ( up to normalisation ) weight-@xmath83 quasi - primary field involving @xmath275 and containing a term with more than one factor of @xmath155 . indeed , this field is given by _ + + ^2,2,2=(t^+t^+^- ) + _ + ^2,2 -^2_+^2,2 -^4 ^ - . for any @xmath21 in an opa @xmath33 , we note the field identity @xmath278 in @xmath147 . more generally , we have ( a^-a^+a^- a^-)=(a^+a^-a^- a^- ) . in any galilean conformal opa , we thus have the identities @xmath279 , @xmath280 and @xmath281 , for example , while @xmath282 . generalising the discussion at the end of section [ sec : quasi ] to a galilean conformal opa @xmath147 , we now consider quasi - primary fields built from normal - ordered products of @xmath162 and @xmath283 , where @xmath21 is a primary field of conformal weight @xmath108 in @xmath33 . in addition to the primary fields @xmath284 and @xmath285 of conformal weight @xmath108 , we thus find that the following fields are quasi - primary with respect to @xmath155 : @xmath286 -\tfrac{3}{2(1 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\ah^- , \label{lhtap } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',\delta}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa t^+\ah^-)+(\pa\th^-a^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2}{2+\delta}\pa\lh_+^{2,\delta } -\tfrac{1}{(1+\delta)(1 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\ah^- , \label{lht1ap } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,2,\delta}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(t^+\th^-\ah^-)+(\th^-t^+\ah^-)+(\th^-\th^-a^+ ) ] + \tfrac{1}{3+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2',\delta } -\tfrac{2(1+\delta)}{(2+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_-^{\s2,\delta } , \label{lhttap } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'',\delta}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^2t^+\ah^-)+(\pa^2\th^-a^+ ) ] -\tfrac{5}{3+\delta}\pa\lh_+^{2',\delta } -\tfrac{10}{(2+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,\delta } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{5}{2(1+\delta)(1 + 2\delta)(3 + 2\delta)}\pa^4\ah^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',2,\delta}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(\pa t^+\th^-\ah^-)+(\pa\th^-t^+\ah^-)+(\pa\th^-\th^-a^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_+^{2,2,\delta } + \tfrac{1}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2'',\delta } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{-4+\delta}{(3+\delta)(7 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_-^{2',\delta } -\tfrac{4(1 + 2\delta)}{3(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\lh_-^{2,\delta } , \label{lht1tap } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,2',\delta}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(t^+\pa\th^-\ah^-)+(\th^-\pa t^+\ah^-)+(\th^-\pa\th^-a^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_+^{2,2,\delta } -\tfrac{1+\delta}{(3+\delta)(7 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_-^{2',\delta } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{2(7 + 4\delta)}{3(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\lh_-^{2,\delta } , \label{lhtt1ap } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2''',\delta}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^3t^+\ah^-)+(\pa^3\th^-a^+ ) ] -\tfrac{9}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_+^{2'',\delta } -\tfrac{45}{(3+\delta)(7 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_+^{2',\delta } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{30}{(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\lh_+^{2,\delta } -\tfrac{9}{2(1+\delta)(2+\delta)(1 + 2\delta)(3 + 2\delta)}\pa^5\ah^- , \label{lht3ap}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath287 \lh_-^{2',\delta}&=(\pa\th^-\ah^- ) -\tfrac{2}{2+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2,\delta } , \label{lht1am } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2,2,\delta}&=(\th^-\th^-\ah^- ) , \label{lhttam } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2'',\delta}&=(\pa^2\th^-\ah^- ) -\tfrac{5}{3+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2',\delta } -\tfrac{10}{(2+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,\delta } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2',2,\delta}&=(\pa\th^-\th^-\ah^- ) -\tfrac{2}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2,2,\delta } , \label{lht1tam } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2,2',\delta}&=(\th^-\pa\th^-\ah^- ) -\tfrac{2}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2,2,\delta } , \label{lhtt1am } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2''',\delta}&=(\pa^3\th^-\ah^- ) -\tfrac{9}{4+\delta}\pa\lh_-^{2'',\delta } -\tfrac{45}{(3+\delta)(7 + 2\delta)}\pa^2\lh_-^{2',\delta } -\tfrac{30}{(2+\delta)(3+\delta)(5 + 2\delta)}\pa^3\lh_-^{2,\delta}. \label{lht3am}\end{aligned}\ ] ] the @xmath2 algebra is generated by a virasoro field @xmath22 and an even primary field @xmath0 of conformal weight @xmath9 . the corresponding star products are tt\{}+2\{t},tw3\{w } , ww\{}+2\{t}+\{^2,2 } , [ w3 ] where the quasi - primary field @xmath106 is given in ( [ la22 ] ) . the vacuum module is generated from the highest - weight vector @xmath55 subject to l_n|0=w_n|0=0,n-1,n-2 , and its virasoro character is given by ( q)=_=2,3_n=^ = 1+q^2 + 2q^3 + 3q^4 + 4q^5 + 8q^6 + 10q^7 + 17q^8+(q^9 ) . this conformal opa is readily seen to respect the conditions , outlined in section [ sec : aag ] , for admitting a galilean contraction . indeed , the only term preventing the opa from being simply - extended is the composite quasi - primary field @xmath288 , whose terms have @xmath289 and @xmath290 , respectively , multiplied by @xmath291 satisfying @xmath292 . we thus find that the _ galilean @xmath2 algebra _ is generated by the fields @xmath293 , and that their nontrivial star products are given by t^+t^+\{}+2\{t^+},t^+w^+3\{w^+ } , t^+^-\{}+2\{^-},t^+^-3\{^- } , [ gw3a ] and @xmath294 w^+\gast\wh^-&\simeq\tfrac{1}{3}\{\i\}+2\{\th^-\}+\tfrac{32}{5}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } , \label{gw3c}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath295 are given in ( [ lapm22 ] ) . we have verified that the star relations ( [ gw3a])-([gw3c ] ) indeed define an associative opa . we conclude this subsection by noting that the galilean @xmath2 algebra discussed above is not the only possible extension of the galilean virasoro algebra @xmath167 by a pair of primary fields of conformal weight @xmath9 . for example , letting the nonzero star products of the fields @xmath296 be defined by t^+t^+\{}+2\{t^+},t^+w^+3\{w^+ } , t^t^2\{t^-},t^w^3\{w^- } , and w^+w^+\{_-^2,2 } , , yields a well - defined opa , where @xmath297 generates a galilean virasoro subalgebra with @xmath182 . the @xmath5 algebra @xcite is generated by a virasoro field @xmath22 and an even primary field @xmath0 of conformal weight @xmath105 . the corresponding star relations are t t \ { } + 2\{t } , t w 4\{w } , and w w\{}+2\{t } + c_4,4 ^ 2,2\{^2,2 } + c_4,4 ^ 2,2,2\{^2,2,2 } + c_4,4 ^ 2,2\{^2,2 } + c_4,4 ^ 4\{w } + c_4,4 ^ 2,4\{^2,4 } , [ w24ww ] where the quasi - primary fields @xmath106 , @xmath86 and @xmath87 are given in ( [ la22 ] ) and ( [ la222])-([la22 ] ) , while @xmath298 follows from ( [ lta ] ) and is given by ^2,4=(tw)-^2w . the structure constants in ( [ w24ww ] ) are given by c_4,4 ^ 2,2= , c_4,4 ^ 2,2,2= , c_4,4 ^ 2,2= , and c c_4,4 ^ 4=3 , c_4,4 ^ 2,4=c_4,4 ^ 4 . the vacuum module is generated from the highest - weight vector @xmath55 subject to l_n|0=w_n|0=0,n-1,n-3 , and its virasoro character is given by ( q)=_=2,4_n=^ = 1+q^2+q^3 + 3q^4 + 3q^5 + 6q^6 + 7q^7 + 13q^8+(q^9 ) . as in the case of the @xmath2 algebra in section [ sec : gw3 ] , this conformal opa is seen to admit a galilean contraction . we thus find that the _ galilean @xmath5 algebra _ is generated by the fields @xmath293 , and that their nontrivial star products are given by t^+t^+\{}+2\{t^+},t^+w^+4\{w^+ } , t^+^-\{}+2\{^-},t^+^-4\{^- } , [ gw4a ] and @xmath299 & -\tfrac{42(44 + 5c^+)}{25}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } -\tfrac{24(33853 + 2520c^+)}{1225}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{3(73127 + 665c^+)}{4900}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } -\tfrac{33939\sqrt{3}}{70\sqrt{35}}\{\wh^-\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{2\sqrt{3}(14673 + 70c^+)}{5\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] w^+\gast\wh^-\!&\simeq \tfrac{1}{4}\{\i\}+2\{\th^-\ } + \tfrac{42}{5}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } + \tfrac{864}{35}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{57}{140}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } + \tfrac{3\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\wh^-\ } + \tfrac{4\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\},\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath295 , @xmath300 and @xmath301 are given in ( [ lapm22 ] ) and ( [ la222p])-([la6 m ] ) , while _ + ^2,4=[(t^+^-)+(^-w^+)]-^2 ^ - , _ -^2,4=(^-^- ) , follow from ( [ lhtap ] ) and ( [ lhtam ] ) . we have verified that these star relations indeed define an associative opa . we conclude this subsection by noting that the galilean @xmath5 algebra discussed above is not the only possible extension of the galilean virasoro algebra @xmath167 by a pair of primary fields of conformal weight @xmath105 . for example , letting the nonzero star products of the fields @xmath296 be defined by t^+t^+\{}+2\{t^+},t^+w^+4\{w^+ } , t^t^2\{t^-},t^w^4\{w^- } , and @xmath302 w^+\gast w^-\!&\simeq \sigma_1\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\},\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath303 , yields a well - defined opa , where @xmath297 generates a galilean virasoro subalgebra with @xmath182 . the @xmath0-algebras @xmath6 , @xmath7 and @xmath8 are reviewed in appendix [ sec : walg ] ; their galilean counterparts are given in appendix [ sec : gw ] . although these galilean @xmath0-algebras are straightforward to work out following section [ sec : galilean ] and section [ sec : aag ] , the computations are lengthy and the results rather involved . in all three cases , we have verified explicitly that the corresponding opa is indeed associative . one can also apply galilean contractions to _ infinitely _ generated @xmath0-algebras . for example , the algebra @xmath304 @xcite contains a field , @xmath305 , of each conformal weight @xmath306 , where @xmath307 . the field @xmath308 generates a virasoro subalgebra , and all other fields are primary fields with respect to @xmath309 . the following expressions for the mode algebra are taken from @xcite : = _ 0 g^ij_2(m , n)v^i+j-2_m+n + c_i(m)^ij_m+n , where the structure constants @xmath310 are independent of @xmath139 , while c_i(m)= m(m^2 - 1)(m^2 - 4) (m^2-(i+1)^2)c_i , c_i= c. the summation over @xmath311 is finite since @xmath312 if @xmath313 . the corresponding star relations are given by v^iv^j c_i_ij\ { } + _ 0^ij_2\{v^i+j-2 } , where the structure constants @xmath314 are the mode - label independent versions of @xmath310 . this algebra is readily seen to be simply - extended , and its galilean counterpart , @xmath315 , is generated by the fields @xmath316 , with nontrivial star relations given by v^i,+v^j , c^_i_ij\ { } + _ 0^ij_2\{v^i+j-2,}. this galilean algebra has also appeared in @xcite . other examples of infinitely generated @xmath0-algebras are the @xmath317 algebra @xcite and various supersymmetric extensions of @xmath304 , see @xcite . more recent examples , with applications to higher - spin theory , are discussed in @xcite . we have not explicitly calculated galilean contractions of these algebras . we have developed a general galilean contraction prescription of opas . it yields nontrivial extensions of known symmetry algebras , including @xmath0-algebras . the results generalise and , where possible , match the ones found in the literature , obtained using a similar contraction but in terms of mode algebras . in particular , several new galilean @xmath0-algebras have been constructed , providing evidence for the existence of a whole new class of such algebras . compatibility between galilean contractions and certain other operations on opas has also been demonstrated . we have explored what is required of an opa for it to admit a galilean contraction . thus , assuming that all opas _ do _ admit a galilean contraction , these results have significant implications for the possible structure constants a @xmath0-algebra can have . indeed , under certain simple and rather non - restrictive assumptions about the dependence of the structure constants on the central charge ( assumptions satisfied by all the @xmath0-algebras we have considered ) , we have determined very concrete conditions these structure constants must satisfy . expecting universal applicability of the galilean contraction prescription , we accordingly conjecture that these conditions must be respected by all @xmath0-algebras defined for generic central charge . the structure constants in the corresponding galilean @xmath0-algebras have been characterised explicitly , allowing us to construct subsequently the new galilean @xmath0-algebras mentioned above . we note that the takiff algebra @xcite , see also @xcite , associated to an affine lie ( super)algebra is equivalent to the corresponding galilean affine algebra discussed in section [ sec : aga ] . the generalised sugawara construction of the generator @xmath155 of the virasoro algebra of @xmath167 also appeared in @xcite , whereas the similar construction of the generator @xmath234 appears to be new . extensions of the takiff construction to @xmath0-algebras were not addressed in @xcite . due to their central role in a raft of applications , free - field realisations are ubiquitous in conformal field theory , see @xcite and references therein . it is therefore of great interest to determine to what extent free fields can be utilised when galilean conformal symmetries are present . work in this direction has recently been undertaken @xcite , constructing free - field realisations of the galilean virasoro algebra and some of its superconformal extensions . it would be very interesting to perform a systematic analysis of the various galilean algebras in terms of free fields , and we hope to return with a discussion of this elsewhere . as discussed in @xcite , the galilean contraction prescription can be generalised from tensor products of _ pairs _ of identical opas ( up to their central parameters ) to _ higher - order _ tensor products . for each opa ( or equivalently , each voa ) admitting a galilean contraction , this generalisation gives rise to an infinite hierarchy of higher - order galilean algebras , naturally termed higher - order galilean conformal algebras and , more specifically , higher - order galilean @xmath0-algebras . jr was supported by the australian research council under the future fellowship scheme , project number ft100100774 , and under the discovery project scheme , project number dp160101376 . cr was funded by an australian postgraduate award from the australian government and by a university of queensland research scholarship . this work is largely based on cr s thesis@xcite submitted in july 2015 for the degree of mphil at the university of queensland . jr thanks costas zoubos for stimulating discussions during the formative stages of the project , and the niels bohr institute for making them possible with their hospitality in july 2013 . the authors thank shashank kanade , thomas quella , eric ragoucy , david ridout , philippe ruelle , aiden suter , and simon wood for helpful discussions and comments . in this appendix , we present the defining star relations for the @xmath0-algebras @xmath6 , @xmath7 and @xmath8 . since all generators are even in these algebras , it must hold that @xmath318 for @xmath319 . the structure constants are related in various ways , for example by @xcite _ bc_a , b^q=_qc_a , q^b , but it is beyond the scope of the present work to discuss these relations more generally . the @xmath6 algebra @xcite is generated by a virasoro field @xmath22 and an even primary field @xmath0 of conformal weight @xmath83 . the corresponding star relations are tt \ { } + 2\{t } , t w 6\{w } , and @xmath320 & + c_{6,6}^{2'',2,2}\{\la^{\s2'',2,2}\ } + c_{6,6}^{2'''',2}\{\la^{\s2'''',2}\ } + c_{6,6}^{2,2,2,2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2,2,2,2}\ } + c_{6,6}^{2'',2,2,2}\{\la^{\s2'',2,2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{6,6}^{2'''',2,2}\{\la^{\s2'''',2,2}\ } + c_{6,6}^{2'''''',2}\{\la^{\s2'''''',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{6,6}^6\{w\ } + c_{6,6}^{2,6}\{\la^{\s2,6}\ } + c_{6,6}^{2,2,6}\{\la^{\s2,2,6}\ } + c_{6,6}^{2'',6}\{\la^{\s2'',6}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath106 , @xmath86 and @xmath87 are given in ( [ la22 ] ) and ( [ la222])-([la22 ] ) ; @xmath95 , @xmath321 and @xmath322 in ( [ tttt])-([t4 t ] ) ; @xmath323 , @xmath324 , @xmath325 and @xmath326 in ( [ ttttt])-([t6 t ] ) ; while @xmath327 \la^{\s2',6}&=(\pa tw)-\tfrac{1}{4}\pa\la^{\s2,6}-\tfrac{1}{91}\pa^3w , \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,2,6}&=(ttw)+\tfrac{1}{6}\pa\la^{\s2',6 } -\tfrac{21}{136}\pa^2\la^{\s2,6 } -\tfrac{1}{91}\pa^4w , \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'',6}&=(\pa^2tw)-\tfrac{5}{9}\pa\la^{\s2',6 } -\tfrac{5}{68}\pa^2\la^{\s2,6 } -\tfrac{1}{546}\pa^4w\end{aligned}\ ] ] follow from ( [ lta])-([lt2a ] ) . the structure constants are given by c c_6,6 ^ 6= , @xmath328 c_{6,6}^{2,2,2}&=\tfrac{80(35 + 139c)}{3(-1 + 2c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2,2,2,2}&=\tfrac{8(-2179 + 57652c+22992c^2)}{(-1 + 2c)(46 + 3c)(3 + 5c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2,2,2,2,2}&=\tfrac{32(15707 + 874936c+172800c^2)}{(-1 + 2c)(46 + 3c)(3 + 5c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)(232 + 11c)},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2'',2,2,2}&=\tfrac{20(-1165464 - 19972498c-1570617c^2 + 29188c^3)}{3(-1 + 2c)(46 + 3c)(3 + 5c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)(232 + 11c ) } , \end{split } \ \ \begin{split } c_{6,6}^{2'',2}&=\tfrac{(-740 + 17c)(-16840 - 5550c+85c^2)}{2(-1 + 2c)(68 + 7c)(-16280 - 3326c+85c^2)},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2'',2,2}&=\tfrac{436944 - 3525368c-483594c^2 + 8093c^3}{2(-1 + 2c)(46 + 3c)(3 + 5c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2,6}&=\tfrac{186}{516 + 13c}c_{6,6}^{6},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2,2,6}&=\tfrac{12(2089 + 572c)}{5(2+c)(47+c)(516 + 13c)}c_{6,6}^{6},\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2'',6}&=\tfrac{9(-28832 - 530c+13c^2)}{20(2+c)(47+c)(516 + 13c)}c_{6,6}^{6 } , \end{split } \nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath329 c_{6,6}^{2'''''',2 } & = \tfrac{-1049672832 - 233820912c+7931836c^2 + 478664c^3 - 28759c^4 + 265c^5}{144 ( -1 + 2c)(46 + 3c)(3 + 5c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)(232 + 11c ) } , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] c_{6,6}^{2'''',2,2 } & = \tfrac{10(28554672 + 39310136c-2532744c^2 - 142124c^3 + 2259c^4)}{24(-1 + 2c)(46 + 3c)(3 + 5c)(22 + 5c)(68 + 7c)(232 + 11c)}.\end{aligned}\ ] ] the vacuum module is generated from the highest - weight vector @xmath55 subject to l_n|0=w_n|0=0,n-1,n-5 , and its virasoro character is given by ( q)=_=2,6_n=^ = 1+q^2+q^3 + 2q^4 + 2q^5 + 5q^6 + 5q^7 + 9q^8+(q^9 ) . the @xmath330 algebra @xcite is generated by the following even fields : the virasoro field @xmath22 , a primary field @xmath0 of conformal weight @xmath9 , and a primary field @xmath104 of conformal weight @xmath105 . the nontrivial star relations are tt\{}+2\{t},tw3\{w},tu4\{u } , and @xmath331 w\ast u&\simeq c_{3,4}^3\{w\ } + c_{3,4}^{2,3}\{\la^{\s2,3}\ } + c_{3,4}^{2',3}\{\la^{\s2',3}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u\ast u&\simeq \tfrac{c}{4}\{\i\}+ 2\{t\ } + c_{4,4}^{2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2}\ } + c_{4,4}^{2,2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2,2}\ } + c_{4,4}^{2'',2}\{\la^{\s2'',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{4,4}^{3,3}\{\la^{\s3,3}\ } + c_{4,4}^{4}\{u\ } + c_{4,4}^{2,4}\{\la^{\s2,4}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath106 , @xmath86 and @xmath87 are given in ( [ la22 ] ) and ( [ la222])-([la22 ] ) ; @xmath332 \la^{\s2',3}&=(\pa tw)-\tfrac{2}{5}\pa\la^{\s2,3}-\tfrac{1}{28}\pa^3w , \\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,4}&=(tu)-\tfrac{1}{6}\pa^2u\end{aligned}\ ] ] follow from ( [ lta ] ) and ( [ lt1a ] ) ; while ^3,3=(ww)-^2-^4 t . the structure constants are given by rclrclrcl c_3,3 ^ 2,2&= & , & c_3,3 ^ 4&= & , & & & + c_3,4 ^ 3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_3,4 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_3,4 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , + c_4,4 ^ 2,2&= & , & c_4,4 ^ 2,2,2&= & , & c_4,4 ^ 2,2&= & , + c_4,4 ^ 3,3&= & , & c_4,4 ^ 4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_4,4 ^ 2,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 . the vacuum module is generated from the highest - weight vector @xmath55 subject to l_n|0=w_n|0=u_n|0=0,n-1,n-2,n-3 , and its virasoro character is given by ( q)=_=2 ^ 4_n=^ = 1+q^2 + 2q^3 + 4q^4 + 5q^5 + 10q^6 + 14q^7 + 25q^8+(q^9 ) . the @xmath8 algebra @xcite is generated by the virasoro field @xmath22 and the three even primary fields @xmath0 , @xmath104 and @xmath333 of conformal weight @xmath9 , @xmath105 and @xmath77 , respectively . the nontrivial star relations are tt\{}+2\{t } , tw3\{w } , tu4\{u } , tv5\{v } , and @xmath334 w\ast u&\simeq\ c_{3,4}^3\{w\ } + c_{3,4}^{2,3}\{\la^{\s2,3}\ } + c_{3,4}^{2',3}\{\la^{\s2',3}\ } + c_{3,4}^5\{v\ } , \\[.15 cm ] w\ast v&\simeq c_{3,5}^{2,2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2,2}\ } + c_{3,5}^{2'',2}\{\la^{\s2'',2}\ } + c_{3,5}^{3,3}\{\la^{\s3,3}\ } + c_{3,5}^4\{u\ } + c_{3,5}^{2,4}\ { \la^{\s2,4}\ } + c_{3,5}^{2',4}\{\la^{\s2',4}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u\ast u&\simeq \tfrac{c}{4}\{\i\ } + 2\{t\ } + c_{4,4}^{2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2}\ } + c_{4,4}^{2,2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2,2}\ } + c_{4,4}^{2'',2}\{\la^{\s2'',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{4,4}^{3,3}\{\la^{\s3,3}\ } + c_{4,4}^{4}\{u\ } + c_{4,4}^{2,4}\{\la^{\s2,4}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u\ast v&\simeq c_{4,5}^3\{w \ } + c_{4,5}^{2,3}\{\la^{\s2,3}\ } + c_{4,5}^{2',3}\{\la^{\s2',3}\ } + c_{4,5}^{2'',3}\{\la^{\s2'',3}\ } + c_{4,5}^{2''',3}\{\la^{\s2''',3}\ } + c_{4,5}^{2,2,3}\{\la^{\s2,2,3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{4,5}^{2',2,3}\{\la^{\s2',2,3}\ } + c_{4,5}^{5}\{v\ } + c_{4,5}^{2,5}\{\la^{\s2,5}\ } + c_{4,5}^{2',5}\{\la^{\s2',5}\ } + c_{4,5}^{3,4}\{\la^{\s3,4}\ } + c_{4,5}^{3',4}\{\la^{\s3',4}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] v\ast v&\simeq \tfrac{c}{5}\{\i\ } + 2\{t\ } + c_{5,5}^{2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2,2,2}\ { \la^{\s2,2,2}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2'',2}\{\la^{\s2'',2}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2,2,2,2}\{\la^{\s2,2,2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{5,5}^{2'',2,2}\{\la^{\s2'',2,2}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2'''',2}\{\la^{\s2'''',2}\ } + c_{5,5}^{3,3}\{\la^{\s3,3}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2,3,3}\{\la^{\s2,3,3}\ } + c_{5,5}^{3'',3}\{\la^{\s3'',3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + c_{5,5}^{4}\{u\ } + c_{5,5}^{2,4}\{\la^{\s2,4}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2,2,4}\{\la^{\s2,2,4}\ } + c_{5,5}^{2'',4}\{\la^{\s2'',4}\ } + c_{5,5}^{4,4}\{\la^{\s4,4}\ } + c_{5,5}^{3,5}\{\la^{\s3,5}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath106 , @xmath86 , @xmath87 , @xmath95 , @xmath321 and @xmath322 are given in ( [ la22 ] ) , ( [ la222])-([la22 ] ) and ( [ tttt])-([t4 t ] ) ; @xmath335 \la^{\s2',3}&=(\pa tw)-\tfrac{2}{5}\pa\la^{\s2,3}-\tfrac{1}{28}\pa^3w , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'',3}&=(\pa^2tw)-\tfrac{5}{6}\pa\la^{\s2',3}-\tfrac{2}{11}\pa^2\la^{\s2,3}-\tfrac{5}{504}\pa^4w , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2''',3}&=(\pa^3tw)-\tfrac{9}{7}\pa\la^{\s2'',3}-\tfrac{15}{26}\pa^2\la^{\s2',3 } -\tfrac{1}{11}\pa^3\la^{\s2,3}-\tfrac{1}{280}\pa^5w \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,2,3}&=(ttw)+\tfrac{1}{4}\pa\la^{\s2',3}-\tfrac{12}{55}\pa^2\la^{\s2,3}-\tfrac{11}{336}\pa^4w , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2',2,3}&=(\pa ttw)-\tfrac{2}{7}\pa\la^{\s2,2,3}+\tfrac{3}{14}\pa\la^{\s2'',3}+\tfrac{1}{52}\pa^2\la^{\s2',3 } -\tfrac{7}{165}\pa^3\la^{\s2,3}-\tfrac{1}{240}\pa^5w , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,4}&=(tu)-\tfrac{1}{6}\pa^2u , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2',4}&=(\pa tu)-\tfrac{1}{3}\pa\la^{\s2,4}-\tfrac{1}{45}\pa^3u , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,2,4}&=(ttu)+\tfrac{3}{14}\pa\la^{\s2',4}-\tfrac{5}{26}\pa^2\la^{\s2,4}-\tfrac{7}{330}\pa^4u , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2'',4}&=(\pa^2tu)-\tfrac{5}{7}\pa\la^{\s2',4}-\tfrac{5}{39}\pa^2\la^{\s2,4}-\tfrac{1}{198}\pa^4u , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,5}&=(tv)-\tfrac{3}{22}\pa^2v , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2',5}&=(\pa tv)-\tfrac{2}{7}\pa\la^{\s2,5}-\tfrac{1}{66}\pa^3v\end{aligned}\ ] ] follow from ( [ lta])-([lt3a ] ) ; while @xmath336-\tfrac{1}{84}\pa^4 t , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s2,3,3}&=(tww)+\tfrac{5}{28}c_{3,3}^4\pa\la^{\s2',4}-\tfrac{5}{78}c_{3,3}^4\pa^2\la^{\s2,4 } -\tfrac{3}{26}\pa^2\la^{\s3,3}-\tfrac{80}{39(22 + 5c)}\pa^2\la^{\s2,2,2}-\tfrac{5(-2+c)}{52(22 + 5c)}\pa^2\la^{\s2'',2 } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{5(94+c)}{25344}c_{3,3}^{2,2}\pa^4\la^{\s2,2}-\tfrac{7}{396}c_{3,3}^4\pa^4u-\tfrac{5}{3024}\pa^6 t , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s3'',3}&=(\pa^2ww)-\tfrac{7}{26}\pa^2\la^{\s3,3 } -\tfrac{7}{792}\pa^4\big[c_{3,3}^{2,2}\la^{\s2,2}+c_{3,3}^4u\big]-\tfrac{1}{2160}\pa^6 t , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s3,4}&=(wu)-\tfrac{5}{12}c_{3,4}^{2',3}\pa\la^{\s2',3 } -\tfrac{1}{11}\pa^2\big[c_{3,4}^{2,3}\la^{\s2,3}+c_{3,4}^5v\big ] -\tfrac{5}{3024}c_{3,4}^3\pa^4w , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s3',4}&=(\pa wu ) -\tfrac{3}{7}\pa\la^{\s3,4 } -\tfrac{5}{52}c_{3,4}^{2',3}\pa^2\la^{\s2',3 } -\tfrac{1}{66}\pa^3\big[c_{3,4}^{2,3}\la^{\s2,3}+c_{3,4}^5v\big ] -\tfrac{1}{5040}c_{3,4}^3\pa^5w , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s3,5}&=(wv ) -\tfrac{5}{14}c_{3,5}^{2',4}\pa\la^{\s2',4 } -\tfrac{5}{78}\pa^2\big[c_{3,5}^{2,2,2}\la^{\s2,2,2 } + c_{3,5}^{2'',2}\la^{\s2'',2}+c_{3,5}^{3,3}\la^{\s3,3}+c_{3,5}^{2,4}\la^{\s2,4}\big ] -\tfrac{1}{1584}c_{3,5}^4\pa^4u , \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] \la^{\s4,4}&=(uu ) -\tfrac{7}{52}\pa^2\big[c_{4,4}^{2,2,2}\la^{\s2,2,2}+c_{4,4}^{2'',2}\la^{\s2'',2 } + c_{4,4}^{3,3}\la^{\s3,3}+c_{4,4}^{2,4}\la^{\s2,4}\big ] -\tfrac{7}{1584}\pa^4\big[c_{4,4}^{2,2}\la^{\s2,2}+c_{4,4}^4u\big ] \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{1}{4320}\pa^6 t .\end{aligned}\ ] ] the structure constants are given by rclrclrcl c_3,3 ^ 2,2&= & , & c_3,3 ^ 4&= & , & c_3,4 ^ 5&=&5 , + c_3,4 ^ 3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_3,4 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_3,4 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , + c_3,5 ^ 4&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_3,5 ^ 2,4&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_3,5 ^ 2,4&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , rclrclrcl c_3,5 ^ 2,2,2&=&c_3,3 ^ 4c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_3,5 ^ 2,2&=&c_3,3 ^ 4c_3,4 ^ 5 , + c_3,5 ^ 3,3&=&c_3,3 ^ 4c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_4,4 ^ 2,2&= & , + c_4,4 ^ 2,2,2&= & , & c_4,4 ^ 2,2&= & , + c_4,4 ^ 3,3&= & , & c_4,4 ^ 4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , + c_4,4 ^ 2,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_4,5 ^ 3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , + c_4,5 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_4,5 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , + c_4,5 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_4,5 ^ 2,3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , + c_4,5 ^ 2,2,3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_4,5 ^ 2,2,3&=&c_3,4 ^ 5 , + c_4,5 ^ 5&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_4,5 ^ 2,5&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , + c_4,5 ^ 2,5&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_4,5 ^ 3,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4c_3,4 ^ 5 , + c_4,5 ^ 3,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4c_3,4 ^ 5 , & c_5,5 ^ 2,2&= & , rclrclrcl c_5,5 ^ 3,3&= & , & c_5,5 ^ 2,3,3&= & , + c_5,5 ^ 3,3&= & , & c_5,5 ^ 4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , + c_5,5 ^ 2,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , & c_5,5 ^ 2,2,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 , + c_5,5 ^ 4,4&= & , & c_5,5 ^ 3,5&=&c_3,3 ^ 4c_3,4 ^ 5 , and rclrclrcl c_5,5 ^ 2,2,2&= & , + c_5,5 ^ 2,2&= & , + c_5,5 ^ 2,2,2,2&= & , + c_5,5 ^ 2,2,2&= & , + c_5,5 ^ 2,2&= & , + c_5,5 ^ 2,4&=&c_3,3 ^ 4 . the vacuum module is generated from the highest - weight vector @xmath55 subject to l_n|0=w_n|0=u_n|0=v_n|0=0 , n-1,n-2,n-3,n-4 , and its virasoro character is given by ( q)=_=2 ^ 5_n=^ = 1+q^2 + 2q^3 + 4q^4 + 6q^5 + 11q^6 + 16q^7 + 29q^8+(q^9 ) . in this appendix , we present the galilean contracted algebras constructed from the @xmath0-algebras discussed in appendix [ sec : walg ] . the results are presented using star relations , and we have verified that the ensuing algebras are indeed associative opas . supplementing the discussion of the galilean virasoro algebra in section [ sec : gqp ] , the following quasi - primary fields are used in the decomposition of some of the star products : @xmath337 \lh_+^{2'',2,2}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(\pa^2t^+\th^-\th^-)+(\pa^2\th^-t^+\th^-)+(\pa^2\th^-\th^-t^+ ) ] -\tfrac{5}{39}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,2,2 } + \tfrac{4}{39}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'',2 } -\tfrac{4}{297}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'''',2}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^4t^+\th^-)+(\pa^4\th^-t^+ ) ] -\tfrac{21}{13}\pa^2\lh_+^{2'',2 } -\tfrac{7}{66}\pa^4\lh_+^{2,2 } -\tfrac{1}{180}\pa^6\th^- , \label{lh211112p } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2''',2,2}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(\pa^3t^+\th^-\th^-)+(\pa^3\th^-t^+\th^-)+(\pa^3\th^-\th^-t^+ ) ] -\tfrac{9}{8}\pa\lh_+^{2'',2,2 } + \tfrac{1}{8}\pa\lh_-^{2'''',2 } -\tfrac{5}{91}\pa^3\lh_+^{2,2,2 } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{9}{182}\pa^3\lh_-^{2'',2 } -\tfrac{1}{165}\pa^5\lh_-^{2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,2,2,2,2}&=(t^+\th^-\th^-\th^-\th^- ) -\tfrac{3}{34}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,2,2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'',2,2,2}&=\tfrac{1}{4}[(\pa^2t^+\th^-\th^-\th^-)+(\pa^2\th^-t^+\th^-\th^-)+(\pa^2\th^-\th^-t^+\th^- ) + ( \pa^2\th^-\th^-\th^-t^+ ) ] \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{7}{36}\pa\lh_-^{2''',2,2 } -\tfrac{5}{68}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,2,2,2 } + \tfrac{27}{544}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'',2,2 } -\tfrac{1}{156}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'''',2,2}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(\pa^4t^+\th^-\th^-)+(\pa^4\th^-t^+\th^-)+(\pa^4\th^-\th^-t^+ ) ] -\tfrac{14}{9}\pa\lh_+^{2''',2,2}-\tfrac{63}{68}\pa^2\lh_+^{2'',2,2}+\tfrac{13}{68}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'''',2 } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{1}{39}\pa^4\lh_+^{2,2,2 } + \tfrac{4}{195}\pa^4\lh_-^{2'',2}-\tfrac{119}{38610}\pa^6\lh_-^{2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'''''',2}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^6t^+\th^-)+(\pa^6\th^-t^+)]-\tfrac{135}{34}\pa^2\lh_+^{2'''',2 } -\tfrac{18}{13}\pa^4\lh_+^{2'',2}-\tfrac{7}{143}\pa^6\lh_+^{2,2}-\tfrac{3}{1540}\pa^8\th^-,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath338 \lh_-^{2'',2,2}&=(\pa^2\th^-\th^-\th^-)-\tfrac{5}{39}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2'''',2}&=(\pa^4\th^-\th^-)-\tfrac{21}{13}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'',2}-\tfrac{7}{66}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2 } , \label{lh211112 m } \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2''',2,2}&=(\pa^3\th^-\th^-\th^-)-\tfrac{9}{8}\pa\lh_-^{2'',2,2}-\tfrac{5}{91}\pa^3\lh_-^{2,2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2,2,2,2,2}&=(\th^-\th^-\th^-\th^-\th^- ) , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2'',2,2,2}&=(\pa^2\th^-\th^-\th^-\th^-)-\tfrac{5}{68}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,2,2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2'''',2,2}&=(\pa^4\th^-\th^-\th^-)-\tfrac{14}{9}\pa\lh_-^{2''',2,2}-\tfrac{63}{68}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'',2,2 } -\tfrac{1}{39}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_-^{2'''''',2}&=(\pa^6\th^-\th^-)-\tfrac{135}{34}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'''',2}-\tfrac{18}{13}\pa^4\lh_-^{2'',2 } -\tfrac{7}{143}\pa^6\lh_-^{2,2}. \label{lh21111112m}\end{aligned}\ ] ] the galilean @xmath6 algebra @xmath339 is generated by the fields @xmath340 . the fields @xmath341 generate a subalgebra isomorphic to @xmath167 , while @xmath342 are primary fields of conformal weight @xmath83 with respect to the virasoro generator @xmath155 . the nontrivial star products not involving @xmath155 nor @xmath275 are given by @xmath343 & + \tfrac{163}{6300}\{\lh_+^{2'''',2}\ } + \tfrac{184320}{77}\{\lh_+^{2,2,2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{233504}{3465}\{\lh_+^{2'',2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{753}{3080}\{\lh_+^{2'''',2,2}\ } + \tfrac{53}{166320}\{\lh_+^{2'''''',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{26\sqrt{2}}{3\sqrt{231}}\{w^+\ } + \tfrac{248\sqrt{2}}{\sqrt{231}}\{\lh_+^{2,6}\ } + \tfrac{416\sqrt{66}}{5\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_+^{2,2,6}\ } + \tfrac{13\sqrt{6}}{5\sqrt{77}}\{\lh_+^{2'',6}\ } -\tfrac{62(44 + 5c^+)}{25}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{8(130017 + 9730c^+)}{735}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{93901 + 595c^+}{980}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } -\tfrac{32(1087987 + 60354c^+)}{3675}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{30354361 + 339906c^+}{44100}\{\lh_-^{2'',2,2}\ } -\tfrac{709664 + 3423c^+}{264600}\{\lh_-^{2'''',2}\ } -\tfrac{256(75800741 + 3326400c^+)}{444675}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2,2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{4(704239157 + 10113642c^+)}{800415}\{\lh_-^{2'',2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{39503531 + 347886c^+}{2134440}\{\lh_-^{2'''',2,2}\ } -\tfrac{19486333 + 61215c^+}{384199200}\{\lh_-^{2'''''',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{2153675\sqrt{2}}{693\sqrt{231}}\{\wh^-\ } -\tfrac{62\sqrt{2}(202343 + 462c^+)}{231\sqrt{231}}\{\lh_-^{2,6}\ } -\tfrac{32\sqrt{2}(1587589 + 6006c^+)}{105\sqrt{231}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,6}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{3708767 + 6006c^+}{770\sqrt{462}}\{\lh_-^{2'',6}\}\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath344 & + \tfrac{163}{12600}\{\lh_-^{2'''',2}\ } + \tfrac{36864}{77}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{58376}{3465}\{\lh_-^{2'',2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{251}{3080}\{\lh_-^{2'''',2,2}\ } + \tfrac{53}{332640}\{\lh_-^{2'''''',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{26\sqrt{2}}{3\sqrt{231}}\{\wh^-\ } + \tfrac{124\sqrt{2}}{\sqrt{231}}\{\lh_-^{2,6}\ } + \tfrac{416\sqrt{22}}{5\sqrt{21}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,6}\ } + \tfrac{13\sqrt{3}}{5\sqrt{154}}\{\lh_-^{2'',6}\},\end{aligned}\ ] ] where the quasi - primary fields @xmath295 , @xmath300 and @xmath301 are given in ( [ lapm22 ] ) and ( [ la222p])-([la6 m ] ) ; @xmath345 , @xmath346 , @xmath347 , @xmath348 , @xmath349 , @xmath350 , and @xmath351 in ( [ lh2222p])-([lh21111112 m ] ) ; while @xmath352-\tfrac{3}{26}\pa^2\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',6}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa t^+\wh^-)+(\pa\th^-w^+)]-\tfrac{1}{4}\pa\lh_+^{2,6}-\tfrac{1}{91}\pa^3\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,2,6}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(t^+\th^-\wh^-)+(\th^-t^+\wh^-)+(\th^-\th^-w^+)]+\tfrac{1}{9}\pa\lh_-^{2',6 } -\tfrac{7}{68}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,6 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'',6}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^2t^+\wh^-)+(\pa^2\th^-w^+ ) ] -\tfrac{5}{9}\pa\lh_+^{2',6 } -\tfrac{5}{68}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,6 } -\tfrac{1}{546}\pa^4\wh^-,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and the galilean @xmath7 algebra @xmath353 is generated by the fields @xmath354 . the fields @xmath341 generate a subalgebra isomorphic to @xmath167 , while @xmath342 and @xmath355 are primary fields of conformal weight @xmath9 and @xmath105 with respect to the virasoro generator @xmath155 . the nontrivial star products not involving @xmath155 nor @xmath275 are given by @xmath356 w^+\gast u^+\!&\simeq \tfrac{\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{w^+\ } + \tfrac{104\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_+^{2,3}\ } + \tfrac{2\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2',3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{241\sqrt{3}}{5\sqrt{35}}\{\wh^-\ } -\tfrac{52\sqrt{3}(899 + 35c^+)}{35\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,3}\ } -\tfrac{\sqrt{3}(-101 + 35c^+)}{5\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2',3}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u^+\gast u^+\!&\simeq \tfrac{c^+}{4}\{\i\ } + 2\{t^+\ } + \tfrac{84}{5}\{\lh_+^{2,2}\ } + \tfrac{2592}{35}\{\lh_+^{2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{57}{70}\{\lh_+^{2'',2}\ } + \tfrac{225}{7}\{\lh_+^{3,3}\ } -\tfrac{3\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{u^+\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{8\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2,4}\ } -\tfrac{42(44 + 5c^+)}{25}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } -\tfrac{192(7216 + 315c^+)}{1225}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{3(89252 + 665c^+)}{4900}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{45(972 + 35c^+)}{98}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{2907\sqrt{3}}{35\sqrt{35}}\{\uh^-\ } + \tfrac{4\sqrt{3}(-101 + 35c^+)}{5\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath357 w^+\gast\uh^-\!&\simeq \tfrac{\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\wh^-\ } + \tfrac{52\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,3}\ } + \tfrac{\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2',3}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u^+\gast\uh^-\!&\simeq \tfrac{1}{4}\{\i\}+2\{\th^-\ } + \tfrac{42}{5}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } + \tfrac{864}{35}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } + \tfrac{57}{140}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } + \tfrac{225}{14}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{3\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\uh^-\ } -\tfrac{4\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] where the quasi - primary fields @xmath295 , @xmath300 and @xmath301 are given in ( [ lapm22 ] ) and ( [ la222p])-([la6 m ] ) ; @xmath358-\tfrac{3}{14}\pa^2\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',3}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa t^+\wh^-)+(\pa\th^-w^+)]-\tfrac{2}{5}\pa\lh_+^{2,3}-\tfrac{1}{28}\pa^3\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,4}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(t^+\uh^-)+(\th^-u^+)]-\tfrac{1}{6}\pa^2\uh^-,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and _ -^2,3=(^-^- ) , _ -^2,3=(^-^-)-_-^2,3 , _ -^2,4=(^-^- ) follow from ( [ lhtap])-([lht1ap ] ) and ( [ lhtam])-([lht1am ] ) ; while _ + ^3,3=(w^+^- ) -^2_-^2,2 -^2 ^ - -^4 ^ - , _ -^3,3=(^-^- ) . the galilean @xmath8 algebra @xmath359 is generated by the fields @xmath360 . the fields @xmath341 generate a subalgebra isomorphic to @xmath167 , while @xmath342 , @xmath355 and @xmath361 are primary fields of conformal weight @xmath9 , @xmath105 and @xmath77 with respect to the virasoro generator @xmath155 . the nontrivial star products not involving @xmath155 nor @xmath275 are given by @xmath362 w^+\gast u^+\!&\simeq \tfrac{8\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{w^+\ } + \tfrac{832\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_+^{2,3}\ } + \tfrac{16\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_+^{2',3}\ } + \tfrac{5\sqrt{15}}{7}\{v^+\ } + \tfrac{3048\sqrt{3}}{35\sqrt{35}}\{\wh^-\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{416\sqrt{3}(759 + 35c^+)}{245\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,3}\ } -\tfrac{8\sqrt{3}(-241 + 35c^+)}{35\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2',3}\ } + \tfrac{256\sqrt{5}}{7\sqrt{3}}\{\vh^-\ } , \\[.15 cm ] w^+\gast v^+\!&\simeq \tfrac{48}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_+^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{4\sqrt{15}}{7}\{u^+\ } + \tfrac{64\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\lh_+^{2,4}\ } + \tfrac{64\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2',4}\ } -\tfrac{24448}{35\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{516}{35\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{8(1700 + 21c^+)}{7\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{1024}{7\sqrt{15}}\{\uh^-\ } -\tfrac{32\sqrt{3}(272 + 5c^+)}{7\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } -\tfrac{32(-124 + 15c^+)}{35\sqrt{15}}\{\lh_-^{2',4}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath363 & + \tfrac{8\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2,4}\ } -\tfrac{42(44 + 5c^+)}{25}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } -\tfrac{144(11213 + 420c^+)}{1225}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{3(95702 + 133c^+)}{245}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{9(206 + 5c^+)}{2}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{10593\sqrt{3}}{35\sqrt{35}}\{\uh^-\ } -\tfrac{4\sqrt{3}(2549 + 35c^+)}{5\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u^+\gast v^+\!&\simeq \tfrac{3\sqrt{15}}{7}\{w^+\ } + \tfrac{396\sqrt{15}}{49}\{\lh_+^{2,3}\ } + \tfrac{8\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\lh_+^{2',3}\ } + \tfrac{99\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2'',3}\ } + \tfrac{12\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2''',3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{14688\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2,2,3}\ } + \tfrac{3888\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_+^{2',2,3}\ } + \tfrac{148}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_+^{3,4}\ } + \tfrac{36}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_+^{3',4}\ } -\tfrac{11\sqrt{15}}{14\sqrt{7}}\{v^+\ } -\tfrac{116\sqrt{15}}{7\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_+^{2,5}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{44\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_+^{2',5}\ } + \tfrac{256\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{5}}\{\wh^-\ } -\tfrac{66\sqrt{3}(1628 + 105c^+)}{343\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,3}\ } -\tfrac{4(-196 + 15c^+)}{7\sqrt{15}}\{\lh_-^{2',3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{8\sqrt{3}(2325173 + 42840c^+)}{1715\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,3}\ } -\tfrac{1982138 + 10395c^+}{3430\sqrt{15}}\{\lh_-^{2'',3}\ } -\tfrac{2\sqrt{3}(10952 + 105c^+)}{1715\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2''',3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{288\sqrt{3}(4528 + 315c^+)}{1715\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2',2,3}\ } -\tfrac{2(48095 + 777c^+)}{21\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3,4}\ } -\tfrac{6(55 + 21c^+)}{7\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3',4}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{13319\sqrt{3}}{98\sqrt{35}}\{\vh^-\ } + \tfrac{2\sqrt{3}(-10959 + 1015c^+)}{49\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,5}\ } + \tfrac{2\sqrt{3}(9259 + 385c^+)}{245\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2',5}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath364 & + \tfrac{34}{1575}\{\lh_+^{2'''',2}\ } + \tfrac{181}{7}\{\lh_+^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{44}{21}\{\lh_+^{3'',3}\ } + \tfrac{2976}{7}\{\lh_+^{2,3,3}\ } -\tfrac{22\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{35}}\{u^+\ } -\tfrac{1496}{7\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_+^{2,4}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{22016\sqrt{3}}{35\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_+^{2,2,4}\ } -\tfrac{116}{15\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_+^{2'',4}\ } + \tfrac{896}{15}\{\lh_+^{4,4}\ } -\tfrac{120}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_+^{3,5}\ } -\tfrac{52(44 + 5c^+)}{25}\{\lh_-^{2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{16(317033 + 17220c^+)}{3675}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2}\ } -\tfrac{371598 + 2485c^+}{4900}\{\lh_-^{2'',2}\ } -\tfrac{18432(4441 + 105c^+)}{6125}\{\lh_-^{2,2,2,2}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{8(5820569 + 37380c^+)}{55125}\{\lh_-^{2'',2,2}\ } -\tfrac{960196 + 1785c^+}{165375}\{\lh_-^{2'''',2}\ } -\tfrac{-17162 + 3801c^+}{294}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{2(39164 + 231c^+)}{441}\{\lh_-^{3'',3}\ } -\tfrac{32(80725 + 1302c^+)}{147}\{\lh_-^{2,3,3}\ } + \tfrac{26638\sqrt{3}}{245\sqrt{35}}\{\uh^-\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{4(506789 + 19635c^+)}{735\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } + \tfrac{512(210023 + 9030c^+)}{3675\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,4}\ } + \tfrac{2(-7343 + 435c^+)}{225\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_-^{2'',4}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{64(5624 + 105c^+)}{225}\{\lh_-^{4,4}\ } + \tfrac{20(55 + 21c^+)}{7\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3,5}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath365 w^+\gast \uh^-\!&\simeq \tfrac{8\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\wh^-\ } + \tfrac{416\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2,3}\ } + \tfrac{8\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2',3}\ } + \tfrac{5\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\vh^-\ } , \\[.15 cm ] w^+\gast\vh^-\!&\simeq \tfrac{24}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{4\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\uh^-\ } + \tfrac{32\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } + \tfrac{32\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2',4}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath366 & + \tfrac{45}{2}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{3\sqrt{3}}{\sqrt{35}}\{\uh^-\ } + \tfrac{4\sqrt{21}}{\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } , \\[.15 cm ] u^+\gast\vh^-\!&\simeq \tfrac{3\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\wh^-\ } + \tfrac{198\sqrt{15}}{49}\{\lh_-^{2,3}\ } + \tfrac{4\sqrt{15}}{7}\{\lh_-^{2',3}\ } + \tfrac{4896\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,3}\ } + \tfrac{99\sqrt{3}}{98\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2'',3}\ } + \tfrac{6\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2''',3}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{1296\sqrt{3}}{49\sqrt{5}}\{\lh_-^{2',2,3}\ } + \tfrac{74}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3,4}\ } + \tfrac{18}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3',4}\ } -\tfrac{11\sqrt{15}}{14\sqrt{7}}\{\vh^-\ } -\tfrac{58\sqrt{15}}{7\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{2,5}\ } -\tfrac{22\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{35}}\{\lh_-^{2',5}\},\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath367 & + \tfrac{17}{1575}\{\lh_-^{2'''',2}\ } + \tfrac{181}{14}\{\lh_-^{3,3}\ } + \tfrac{992}{7}\{\lh_-^{2,3,3}\ } + \tfrac{22}{21}\{\lh_-^{3'',3}\ } -\tfrac{22\sqrt{3}}{7\sqrt{35}}\{\uh^-\ } -\tfrac{748}{7\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_-^{2,4}\ } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{22016}{35\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_-^{2,2,4}\ } -\tfrac{58}{15\sqrt{105}}\{\lh_-^{2'',4}\ } + \tfrac{448}{15}\{\lh_-^{4,4}\ } -\tfrac{60}{\sqrt{7}}\{\lh_-^{3,5}\ } , \end{aligned}\ ] ] where the quasi - primary fields @xmath295 , @xmath300 and @xmath301 are given in ( [ lapm22 ] ) and ( [ la222p])-([la6 m ] ) ; @xmath345 , @xmath346 and @xmath347 in ( [ lh2222p])-([lh211112p ] ) and ( [ lh2222m])-([lh211112 m ] ) ; @xmath358 -\tfrac{3}{14}\pa^2\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',3}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa t^+\wh^-)+(\pa\th^-w^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2}{5}\pa\lh_+^{2,3 } -\tfrac{1}{28}\pa^3\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,2,3}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(t^+\th^-\wh^-)+(\th^-t^+\wh^-)+(\th^-\th^-w^+ ) ] + \tfrac{1}{6}\pa\lh_-^{2',3 } -\tfrac{8}{55}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,3 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'',3}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^2t^+\wh^-)+(\pa^2\th^-w^+ ) ] -\tfrac{5}{6}\pa\lh_+^{2',3 } -\tfrac{2}{11}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,3 } -\tfrac{5}{504}\pa^4\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',2,3}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(\pa t^+\th^-\wh^-)+(\pa\th^-t^+\wh^-)+(\pa\th^-\th^-w^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2}{7}\pa\lh_+^{2,2,3 } + \tfrac{1}{7}\pa\lh_-^{2'',3 } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & + \tfrac{1}{78}\pa^2\lh_-^{2',3 } -\tfrac{14}{495}\pa^3\lh_-^{2,3 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2''',3}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^3t^+\wh^-)+(\pa^3\th^-w^+ ) ] -\tfrac{9}{7}\pa\lh_+^{2'',3 } -\tfrac{15}{26}\pa^2\lh_+^{2',3 } -\tfrac{1}{11}\pa^3\lh_+^{2,3 } -\tfrac{1}{280}\pa^5\wh^-,\end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath368 -\tfrac{1}{6}\pa^2\uh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',4}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa t^+\uh^-)+(\pa\th^-u^+ ) ] -\tfrac{1}{3}\pa\lh_+^{2,4 } -\tfrac{1}{45}\pa^3\uh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,2,4}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(t^+\th^-\uh^-)+(\th^-t^+\uh^-)+(\th^-\th^-u^+ ) ] + \tfrac{1}{7}\pa\lh_-^{2',4 } -\tfrac{5}{39}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,4 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2'',4}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^2t^+\uh^-)+(\pa^2\th^-u^+ ) ] -\tfrac{5}{7}\pa\lh_+^{2',4 } -\tfrac{5}{39}\pa^2\lh_+^{2,4 } -\tfrac{1}{198}\pa^4\uh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2,5}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(t^+\vh^-)+(\th^-v^+ ) ] -\tfrac{3}{22}\pa^2\vh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{2',5}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa t^+\vh^-)+(\pa\th^-v^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2}{7}\pa\lh_+^{2,5 } -\tfrac{1}{66}\pa^3\vh^-,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and rclrclrcl _ -^2,3&=&(^-^- ) , & _ -^2,3&=&(^-^- ) -_-^2,3 , + _ -^2,2,3&=&(^-^-^- ) , & _ -^2,3&=&(^2 ^ -^- ) -_-^2,3 -^2_-^2,3 , + _ -^2,2,3&=&(^-^-^- ) -_-^2,2,3 , & _ -^2,3&=&(^3 ^ -^- ) -_-^2,3 -^2_-^2,3 -^3_-^2,3 , + _ -^2,4&=&(^-^- ) , & _ -^2,4&=&(^-^- ) -_-^2,4 , + _ -^2,2,4&=&(^-^-^- ) , & _ -^2,4&=&(^2 ^ -^- ) -_-^2,4 -^2_-^2,4 , + _ -^2,5&=&(^-^- ) , & _ -^2,5&=&(^-^- ) -_-^2,5 , follow from ( [ lhtap])-([lht3am ] ) ; while @xmath369 \lh_+^{2,3,3}&=\tfrac{1}{3}[(t^+\wh^-\wh^-)+(\th^-w^+\wh^-)+(\th^-\wh^-t^+ ) ] + \tfrac{16\sqrt{5}}{21\sqrt{21}}\pa\lh_-^{2',4 } -\tfrac{32\sqrt{5}}{117\sqrt{21}}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,4 } -\tfrac{1}{13}\pa^2\lh_-^{3,3 } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{32}{117}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,2,2 } -\tfrac{1}{78}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'',2 } -\tfrac{1}{1188}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2 } , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{3'',3}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa^2w^+\wh^-)+(\pa^2\wh^-w^+ ) ] -\tfrac{7}{26}\pa^2\lh_+^{3,3 } -\tfrac{28}{495}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2 } -\tfrac{4\sqrt{7}}{99\sqrt{15}}\pa^4\uh^- -\tfrac{1}{2160}\pa^6\th^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{3,4}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(w^+\uh^-)+(\wh^-u^+ ) ] -\tfrac{2\sqrt{5}}{\sqrt{21}}\pa\lh_-^{2',3 } -\tfrac{416\sqrt{3}}{77\sqrt{35}}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,3 } -\tfrac{5\sqrt{15}}{77}\pa^2\vh^- -\tfrac{\sqrt{5}}{126\sqrt{21}}\pa^4\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{3',4}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(\pa w^+\uh^-)+(\pa\wh^-u^+ ) ] -\tfrac{3}{7}\pa\lh_+^{3,4 } -\tfrac{2\sqrt{15}}{13\sqrt{7}}\pa^2\lh_-^{2',3 } -\tfrac{208}{77\sqrt{105}}\pa^3\lh_-^{2,3 } -\tfrac{5\sqrt{5}}{154\sqrt{3}}\pa^3\vh^- \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{1}{210\sqrt{105}}\pa^5\wh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{3,5}&=\tfrac{1}{2}[(w^+\vh^-)+(\wh^-v^+ ) ] -\tfrac{16\sqrt{15}}{49}\pa\lh_-^{2',4 } -\tfrac{20}{13\sqrt{7}}\pa^2\lh_-^{3,3 } -\tfrac{80\sqrt{5}}{91\sqrt{3}}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,4 } -\tfrac{\sqrt{5}}{924\sqrt{3}}\pa^4\uh^- , \\[.15 cm ] \lh_+^{4,4}&=(u^+\uh^- ) -\tfrac{216}{65}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,2,2 } -\tfrac{57}{1040}\pa^2\lh_-^{2'',2 } -\tfrac{315}{104}\pa^2\lh_-^{3,3 } -\tfrac{7\sqrt{21}}{13\sqrt{5}}\pa^2\lh_-^{2,4 } -\tfrac{49}{1320}\pa^4\lh_-^{2,2 } \nonumber\\[.15 cm ] & -\tfrac{\sqrt{7}}{176\sqrt{15}}\pa^4\uh^- -\tfrac{1}{4320}\pa^6\th^-,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and c. dong , z. lin , g. mason , _ on vertex operator algebras as @xmath377-modules _ , in _ groups , difference sets , and the monster _ , arasu , j.f . dillon , k. harada , s. sehgal , r. solomon ( eds . ) , de gruyter publishers ( 1996 ) , pp 349362 . m. ademollo , l. brink , a. dadda , r. dauria , e. napolitano , s. sciuto , e. del giudice , p. di vicchia , s. ferrara , f. gliozzi , r. musto , r. pettorino , _ supersymmetric strings and colour confinement _ , * b62 * ( 1976 ) 105110 . m. ademollo , l. brink , a. dadda , r. dauria , e. napolitano , s. sciuto , e. del giudice , p. di vicchia , s. ferrara , f. gliozzi , r. musto , r. pettorino , _ dual string models with non - abelian colour and flavour symmetries _ , nucl . phys . * b114 * ( 1976 ) 297316 . m. henkel , r. schott , s. stoimenov , j. unterberger , _ the poincar algebra in the context of ageing systems : lie structure , representations , appell systems and coherent states _ , confluentes math . * 4 * ( 2012 ) 1250006 , arxiv : math - ph/0601028 .

infinite - dimensional galilean conformal algebras can be constructed by contracting pairs of symmetry algebras in conformal field theory , such as @xmath0-algebras . known examples include contractions of pairs of the virasoro algebra , its @xmath1 superconformal extension , or the @xmath2 algebra . here , we introduce a contraction prescription of the corresponding operator - product algebras , or equivalently , a prescription for contracting tensor products of vertex algebras . with this , we work out the galilean conformal algebras arising from contractions of @xmath3 and @xmath4 superconformal algebras as well as of the @xmath0-algebras @xmath5 , @xmath6 , @xmath7 , and @xmath8 . the latter results provide evidence for the existence of a whole new class of @xmath0-algebras which we call galilean @xmath0-algebras . we also apply the contraction prescription to affine lie algebras and find that the ensuing galilean affine algebras admit a sugawara construction . the corresponding central charge is level - independent and given by twice the dimension of the underlying finite - dimensional lie algebra . finally , applications of our results to the characterisation of structure constants in @xmath0-algebras are proposed . -15 mm jrgen rasmussen , christopher raymond + _ school of mathematics and physics , university of queensland _ + _ st lucia , brisbane , queensland 4072 , australia _ + [email protected]

small cell carcinoma ( scc ) is defined as a neuroendocrine tumor originating from multipotential stem cells with the capability of divergent differentiation . it has rarely been found at extrapulmonary sites such as the trachea , larynx , thymus , esophagus , stomach , small intestine , colon , prostate , gallbladder , skin , breast , and uterine cervix . scc , involving primarily the liver , is extremely rare ; and only 11 cases have been reported in the literature . adenoid cystic carcinoma ( acc ) is relatively uncommon but highly malignant neoplasm with a remarkable capacity for recurrence . it is a slow growing malignant tumor , characterized by wide local infiltration , perineural spread with a propensity for local recurrence , and late distant metastases . it is a rare tumor which forms about 1% of all malignant tumors of the oral and maxillofacial region and constitutes about 21.9% of all salivary gland malignancies . fifty percent of cases of acc have been found in minor salivary glands , but are also reported in other areas such as nose , sinuses , upper airway , lacrimal glands , and breast . solid pattern is associated with increased local recurrence , high metastatic rate , and higher mortality . so far , there has been only one case presented as coexisting acc of breast with scc of the same region . we describe a case which is similar to the above mentioned rare entity , but in different anatomical locations ( acc of salivary glands coexisting with scc of the liver ) in a 28-year - old female patient , in relevance with pathological and immunohistochemical findings . a 28-year - old female was referred from the surgical department of our college with a swelling in the cheek for the duration of 1 month . her medical history revealed that she was diagnosed of scc of liver confirmed by radiographic , histopathologic , and immunohistochemical investigations ; 3 months earlier . patient presented a diffuse swelling of about 2 cm in the left cheek region extraorally below the zygomatic area [ figure 1 ] . extraoral photograph shows a diffuse swelling ( encircled yellow area ) below the zygomatic area in the left cheek region extraoral clinical examination showed that the swelling had indistinct limits and there were no surface alterations of the skin over the growth . palpation of the left side of the cheek identified a firm , nontender mass that was subcutaneously mobile ; but partly attached to the underlying structures . oral biopsy specimen showed islands with basaloid , medium cells with oval hyperchromatic nuclei , distinct nucleoli , and scanty eosinophilic cytoplasm . in addition to cribriform pattern [ figure 2 ] , there were also islands of basaloid , hyperchromatic cells were evident in tissue sections . hematoxylin and eosin stained section shows variable sized cribriform spaces formed by small deeply basophilic cells . cribriform spaces contain faintly eosinophilic material ( 100 magnification ) the histopathology of liver biopsy was in favor of scc [ figure 3 and 4 ] . since the oral biopsy showed areas of acc , to confirm the diagnosis , the tissue sections were subjected to immunohistochemistry . the markers used were cytokeratin ( ck)-5 - 6 , high molecular weight ck anitbody ( hmwa ) , vimentin , s-100 , smooth muscle actin ( sma ) , bcl2 , neuron specific enolase ( nse ) , synaptophysin , and c - kit ( cd 117 ) and cd 10 to differentiate acc from scc and other salivary gland tumors . immunohistochemically , tissue section from the cheek region reacted strongly with anticytokeratin antibodies such as ck5 - 6 [ figure 5 ] , including high molecular weight antibody ( hmwa ) , vimentin , s100 [ figure 6 ] , bcl2 , c - kit , cd 10 and anti sma whereas neuroendocrine markers such as synaptophysin , and nse did not show positivity . hematoxylin and eosin stained section shows liver tumor consisting of sheets of small uniform cells with eosinophilic cytoplasm representing hepatocytes and the inset shows hyperchromatic small round cells separated by fibrous septa ( 100 magnification ) immunohistochemical staining of adenoid cystic carcinoma shows positive expression for cytokeratin ( ck ) 5 - 6 ( 100 magnification ) photomicrograph of adenoid cystic carcinoma immunostained with bcl2 marker shows positive expression ( 100 magnification ) s-100 marker positivity is seen with immunohistochemical staining of tumor cells of salivary gland origin ( 100 ) oral biopsy specimen showed islands with basaloid , medium cells with oval hyperchromatic nuclei , distinct nucleoli , and scanty eosinophilic cytoplasm . in addition to cribriform pattern [ figure 2 ] , there were also islands of basaloid , hyperchromatic cells were evident in tissue sections . hematoxylin and eosin stained section shows variable sized cribriform spaces formed by small deeply basophilic cells . cribriform spaces contain faintly eosinophilic material ( 100 magnification ) the histopathology of liver biopsy was in favor of scc [ figure 3 and 4 ] . since the oral biopsy showed areas of acc , to confirm the diagnosis , the tissue sections were subjected to immunohistochemistry . the markers used were cytokeratin ( ck)-5 - 6 , high molecular weight ck anitbody ( hmwa ) , vimentin , s-100 , smooth muscle actin ( sma ) , bcl2 , neuron specific enolase ( nse ) , synaptophysin , and c - kit ( cd 117 ) and cd 10 to differentiate acc from scc and other salivary gland tumors . immunohistochemically , tissue section from the cheek region reacted strongly with anticytokeratin antibodies such as ck5 - 6 [ figure 5 ] , including high molecular weight antibody ( hmwa ) , vimentin , s100 [ figure 6 ] , bcl2 , c - kit , cd 10 and anti sma whereas neuroendocrine markers such as synaptophysin , and nse did not show positivity . hematoxylin and eosin stained section shows liver tumor consisting of sheets of small uniform cells with eosinophilic cytoplasm representing hepatocytes and the inset shows hyperchromatic small round cells separated by fibrous septa ( 100 magnification ) immunohistochemical staining of adenoid cystic carcinoma shows positive expression for cytokeratin ( ck ) 5 - 6 ( 100 magnification ) photomicrograph of adenoid cystic carcinoma immunostained with bcl2 marker shows positive expression ( 100 magnification ) s-100 marker positivity is seen with immunohistochemical staining of tumor cells of salivary gland origin ( 100 ) acc exhibits a unique malignant profile characterized by slow growth and high propensity to systemic metastases including liver . both acc and scc are prognostically different and therapeutic requirements of these two vary widely . hence , distinction between these two malignancies is essential . coexistence of acc with other tumors has not been frequently reported except for one case by cabibi et al . , described an acc coexisting with a scc in the same tumor . in our case , concurrent occurrence of two malignancies in different anatomical locations is evident which is to be reported first in the medical literature . histologically , the absence of glandular structures and of periodic acid schiff - positive globules are the more striking differences , suggesting a diagnosis of scc over solid acc . immunohistochemically , the two neoplasias show positive expression for markers such as ck5 - 6 , vimentin , and s100 . from the study of nine cases of acc with basaloid features , shin and rosen stated that , the immunohistochemical differential diagnosis between acc and scc is based only on neuroendocrine markers ( nse , synaptophysin , and chromogranin ) , and their positivity suggests a diagnosis of scc over acc . in our case , there were areas with hyperchromatic basaloid islands , resembling scc . on the contrary , in addition to solid pattern , cribriform islands were evident in deeper sections , conferring to the morphological features of acc . both the solid and cribriform islands were negative for neuroendocrine markers ; whereas those areas showed positivity for markers such as anti - sma , hmwa , c - kit , and bcl2 . in recent studies , the two markers bcl2 and the c - kit gene encodes a transmembrane tyrosine kinase receptor and signaling by c - kit plays a central role in cellular transformation and differentiation . uniform expression of c - kit in solid variant of acc was observed by penner et al . , suggesting a loss of cellular heterogeneity in the cells of solid acc . therefore , aberrant activation of c - kit leads to the development and progression of several human malignancies . high grade neuroendocrine carcinomas are more likely to coexpress c - kit and bcl2 . in our case , high frequency of coexpression of these two molecules in high grade neuroendocrine carcinomas suggest that they may be involved in the carcinogenic pathway , contributing to their important roles in carcinogenesis . therapeutic targeting on both c - kit and bcl2 molecules may be beneficial in the management of patients with high grade neuroendocrine carcinomas of the liver . other studies have reported that hmwa and sma are also useful , because they are positive in solid acc and are completely lacking in scc . histopathology of tumor from the liver showed features of scc , entirely devoid of ductular or pseudoglandular structures . on the contrary , both cribriform and solid patterns of acc were observed in the sections from oral mucosa , conferring to the neoplasia a morphological aspect compatible with acc . both acc and scc of liver were indifferently positive for ck5 - 6 , vimentin , s100 , bcl2 , cd-10 , and c - kit ( cd117 ) . by contrast , malignant cells from scc of liver were positive for neuroendocrine markers such as nse and synaptophysin , and were negative for hmwa and sma ; whereas tumor cells from acc were negative for nse and synaptophysin , and positive for hmwa and sma . to investigate the histogenesis of these two different neoplastic patterns in different regions , we assessed cd10 , markers of myoepithelial cells which has been proved by cabibi et al . the presence of morphological and immunohistochemical observations and cd 10 positivity of the two tumors justifies an identical myoepithelial origin . dedifferentiation takes place along neuroendocrine phenotype lines occurring in a multipotential neoplastic stem line which led to the formation of scc in the liver and along the myoepithelial phenotype leading to acc in the oral cavity . there had been reports by shin and rosen where the dedifferentiation had taken place with different tumors in the same region . but our case will go by an exception that it has occurred at two different sites . the concomitant presence of both the tumors probably attributes to the dedifferentiation along the neuroendocrine phenotype lines leading to scc in liver and salivary gland . in conclusion , our immunohistochemical findings were thus in keeping with most of the above mentioned criteria for a differential diagnosis between scc and acc , supporting the morphological observation of two different malignancies coexisting in the same patient .

adenoid cystic carcinoma ( acc ) is a clinically deceptive and histologically specific malignancy of salivary gland origin . it is the most common minor salivary gland malignancy . small cell carcinoma ( scc ) is a type of undifferentiated malignant neuroendocrine tumor reported rarely in the liver . though there are many reported cases of scc involving liver and acc of minor salivary glands , the review of literature does not show any reports of concomitant occurrence of these two tumors . we describe a rare case of acc of the oral cavity and its coexistence with a scc involving liver , identified and confirmed by histological , and immunohistochemical observations . to our knowledge , this is the first reported case of an acc of the oral cavity and scc of liver occurring concomitantly in the same patient .

let @xmath1 be a sequence of positive numbers and @xmath2 be a sequence of real numbers , @xmath3 be the canonical basis in the space @xmath4 ( i.e. , each vector @xmath5 has zero components except the @xmath6-th which is @xmath7 ) , let also @xmath8 be the linear set of sequences with finite number of non - zero components . one can define an operator @xmath9 in @xmath10 , which acts in @xmath8 by the rule @xmath11 the operator is first defined on @xmath8 and then the closure is considered . then @xmath9 is self - adjoint in @xmath10 provided @xmath12 @xcite ( carleman condition ) , and it has the following matrix representation with respect to the canonical basis : @xmath13 consider the spectral equation for @xmath9 : @xmath14 solution @xmath15 of such that @xmath16 , @xmath17 is a polynomial in @xmath18 of degree @xmath19 and is called the polynomial of the first kind . correspondingly the solution @xmath20 such that @xmath21 , @xmath22 is a polynomial of degree @xmath23 and is called the polynomial of the second kind . for two solutions of @xmath24 and @xmath25 , the expression @xmath26 is independent of @xmath6 and is called the ( discrete ) wronskian of @xmath27 and @xmath28 . one always has @xmath29the spectrum of every jacobi matrix is simple and the vector @xmath30 from the standard basis is the generating vector @xcite . let @xmath31 be the operator - valued spectral measure associated with @xmath9 . polynomials of the first kind are orthogonal with respect to the measure @xmath32 , which is also called the spectral measure @xcite . for non - real values of @xmath18 solutions of that belong to @xmath10 are proportional to @xmath33 @xcite , where @xmath34 is the weyl function . by fatou s theorem @xcite , @xmath35 for a.a . @xmath36 . in the present paper we consider small perturbations of the operator @xmath37 , which is defined by the sequences @xmath38 and @xmath39 : @xmath40 let us call @xmath37 the `` free '' hermite operator . we will call ( following @xcite ) @xmath9 the hermite operator , if it can be considered close to @xmath37 in some sense . let us call @xmath9 the `` small '' perturbation of @xmath37 , if @xmath9 is defined by sequences @xmath1 and @xmath2 such that ( let @xmath41 ) @xmath42 denote the following expression by @xmath43 : for any sequence @xmath44 , @xmath45 although @xmath43 is not a jacobi matrix , we will write @xmath46 . the spectrum of @xmath37 is purely absolutely continuous on @xmath47 with the spectral density @xmath48 as it will be shown , the spectrum of @xmath9 is also purely absolutely continuous under assumption . our goal in the present paper is to study the spectral density of @xmath9 using the asymptotic analysis of generalized eigenvectors of @xmath9 ( i.e. , solutions of the spectral equation ) . the method is based upon the comparison of solutions of to solutions of the spectral equation for the free hermite operator , @xmath49 this is analogous to the weyl - titchmarsh theory for the schrdinger operator on the half - line with the summable potential . the following results will be proven ( theorem [ thm result 1 ] in section [ section free ] and theorem [ thm result 2 ] in section [ section perturbed ] ) . let @xmath50 be the standard error function @xcite @xmath51 where the contours @xmath52 are shown on figure [ fig gamma pm z ] . function @xmath50 is entire . , title="fig : " ] + [ thm result 1 ] for every @xmath53 equation has a basis of solutions @xmath54 and @xmath55 which have the following asymptotics as @xmath56 : @xmath57 these asymptotics are uniform with respect to @xmath18 in every bounded set in @xmath58 . polynomials of the first kind for @xmath37 are related to @xmath59 in the following way : @xmath60 [ thm result 2 ] let the conditions hold for @xmath9 . then + 1 . for every @xmath61 there exists @xmath62 ( the jost function ) , which is analytic function in @xmath63 and continuous in @xmath64 . polynomials of the first kind have the following asymptotics as @xmath56 : * for @xmath65 , @xmath66 * for @xmath67 , @xmath68 \3 . the spectrum of @xmath9 is purely absolutely continuous , and for a.a . @xmath36 @xmath69 ( the weyl - titchmarsh type formula ) . the idea of the weyl - titchmarsh type formula is the relation between the spectral density and the behavior of @xmath15 for large values of @xmath6 . we can formulate this in the form of the corollary . [ cor result ] let the conditions hold for @xmath9 . then the spectrum of @xmath9 is purely absolutely continuous and the spectral density equals for a.a . @xmath36 @xmath70 the right - hand side being finite and non - zero for every @xmath67 . theorem [ thm result 2 ] can be proven by another method , based on the levinson - type analytical and smooth theorem , cf . @xcite and papers of bernzaid - lutz @xcite , janas - moszyski @xcite and silva @xcite , @xcite . none of their results is directly applicable here , and the approach of the present paper is different . the considered situation is parallel to the weyl - titchmarsh theory for schrdinger operator on the half - line with summable potential . let @xmath71 be a real - valued function on @xmath72 and @xmath73 . consider the schrdinger operator on @xmath72 @xmath74 with the dirichlet boundary condition . the purely absolutely continuous spectrum of @xmath75 coincides with @xmath76 @xcite . let @xmath77 be a solution of the spectral equation for @xmath75 , @xmath78 such that @xmath79 , @xmath80 ( satisfying the boundary condition ) . the following result holds @xcite . if @xmath73 , then for every @xmath81 there exist @xmath82 and @xmath83 such that @xmath84 and for a.a . @xmath86 ( the classical weyl - titchmarsh formula ) . solutions @xmath87 and @xmath88 are the direct analogues to the solutions @xmath89 and @xmath90 of the spectral equation for `` free '' schrdinger operator , @xmath91 the main technical difficulty of our problem is non - triviality of solutions @xmath92 compared to @xmath93 . the model of the hermite operator was studied in the paper of brown - naboko - weikard @xcite , but solutions @xmath92 were not introduced there . in this section we study asymptotic properties of generalized eigenvectors for @xmath94 and prove theorem [ thm result 1 ] . let us give its formulation again . for every @xmath53 equation has a basis of solutions @xmath95 and @xmath96 which have the following asymptotics as @xmath56 : @xmath97 these asymptotics are uniform with respect to @xmath18 in every bounded set in @xmath58 . polynomials of the first kind for @xmath37 are related to @xmath59 in the following way : @xmath98 the spectral equation for @xmath37 , @xmath99 can be transformed to the recurrence relation @xmath100 if one takes @xmath101 and @xmath102 . equation is satisfied by hermite polynomials @xcite , and this means ( together with initial values : @xmath103 and @xmath104 ) , that the polynomials of the first kind for @xmath94 equal @xmath105 equation has two other linearly independent solutions , @xmath106 and @xmath107 @xcite . this can be checked by substituting them into using the formula @xmath108 and integrating by parts . from the integral representation for hermite polynomials @xcite , @xmath109 where the contour @xmath110 is shown on figure [ fig gamma pm z ] . correspondingly , equation has two linearly independent solutions of the form and and relation holds . asymptotics of these solutions follow immediately from corollary [ cor asymptotics of w^(n-1)(z ) ] from the appendix . in what follows we will need to know the wronskian of the solutions . @xmath111 one has from and : @xmath112 using the following properties of the error function @xcite : @xmath113 in this section , we consider the hermite operator @xmath9 with `` small '' perturbation , i.e. , satisfying conditions , and prove theorem [ thm result 2 ] . we study asymptotics of polynomials of the first and second kind using the volterra - type equation and derive from these asymptotics a formula for the weyl function . the desired weyl - titchmarsh type formula follows from this . we start with proving a formula of variation of parameters . remind that @xmath15 are polynomials of the first kind for @xmath9 , @xmath114 are polynomials of the first kind for @xmath37 , @xmath43 is the expression given by , @xmath115 . let us denote @xmath116 [ lem variation of parameters formula ] for @xmath117 , @xmath118 let us omit the dependence on @xmath18 everywhere . first let us prove that @xmath119 where @xmath27 is the solution of such that @xmath120 and @xmath121 . let us denote @xmath122 i fact , one has to check that @xmath123 ( this non - homogeneous equation has only one solution with fixed two first values , so @xmath124 should coincide with @xmath125 ) . since @xmath27 , @xmath126 and @xmath127 are solutions to and @xmath128 the previous is equivalent to @xmath129 for @xmath130 . the latter is true , because @xmath131 . after shifting indices in different parts of the sum in one obtains : @xmath132 since @xmath133 one has : @xmath134 therefore @xmath135 equation is of volterra type . we need the following standard lemma to deal with it . consider the banach space @xmath136 with the norm @xmath137 ( we omit the dependence on @xmath18 in the notation for @xmath138 ) . let @xmath139 be the expression @xmath140 for any sequence @xmath141 . let @xmath142 [ lem bounds for abstract volterra operator ] if @xmath143 , then @xmath139 is a bounded operator in @xmath144 , @xmath145 exists and @xmath146 , @xmath147 . by definition of the operator norm we have to check the finiteness of the following : @xmath148 denoting @xmath149 , we have : @xmath150 hence @xmath139 is bounded . quite similarly , @xmath151 therefore @xmath152 and hence the operator @xmath145 exists , is bounded , and its norm is estimated by the same expression . now we can prove the uniform estimate on the growth of polynomials . [ lem estimates on growth of polunomials ] let the condition hold for @xmath9 . then @xmath153 uniformly with respect to @xmath18 on every bounded set in @xmath154 . let us rewrite as @xmath155 where @xmath156 what we need to prove is that @xmath157 and @xmath158 is bounded on every bounded set in @xmath154 . it will suffice to prove the same for @xmath159 and for @xmath160 related to @xmath161 by , due to lemma [ lem bounds for abstract volterra operator ] . first follows from the asymptotics given by theorem [ thm result 1 ] , so consider the second . the kernel of @xmath161 is @xmath162 fix a bounded set @xmath163 . it follows from that @xmath164 uniformly with respect to @xmath165 . hence there exists @xmath166 such that @xmath167 for every @xmath168 . therefore there exists @xmath169 such that @xmath170 and this estimate is uniform with respect to @xmath165 . this completes the proof . it is possible now to introduce the jost function and to find the asymptotics of the polynomials . [ lem asymptotics of polynomials ] let the condition hold for @xmath9 . then the function @xmath171 is analytic in @xmath63 and continuous in @xmath64 . polynomials of the first kind for @xmath9 , @xmath15 , have the following asymptotics as @xmath56 : * for @xmath65 , @xmath172 * for @xmath67 , @xmath173 let us rewrite as @xmath174 from the estimates on @xmath175 and @xmath176 and it follows that @xmath177 uniformly with respect to @xmath18 on every compact subset of @xmath64 . hence the expression @xmath178 converges as @xmath56 to the function @xmath179 analytic in @xmath63 and continuous in @xmath64 . consider @xmath65 . the first term in is relatively small . indeed , @xmath180 as @xmath56 . this means that @xmath181 as @xmath56 . consider @xmath67 . equation yields : @xmath182 due to asymptotics of @xmath92 and the convergence of @xmath183 . the proof is complete . the final step is the proof of the absolute continuity of the spectrum of @xmath9 and the formula for the spectral density . [ lem formula for the spectral density ] let the condition hold for @xmath9 . then the spectrum of @xmath9 is purely absolutely continuous and for a.a . @xmath184 the following formula holds : @xmath185 where @xmath186 defined by and does not vanish on @xmath187 . polynomials of the second kind have asymptotics of the same type as polynomials of the first kind . cropped jacobi matrix @xmath188 being the original one @xmath9 with the first row and the first column removed , @xmath189 satisfies conditions of lemma [ lem asymptotics of polynomials ] . and the polynomials @xmath190 are the polynomials of the first kind for @xmath191 , so there exists a function @xmath192 , analytic in @xmath63 and continuous in @xmath64 , such that * for @xmath65 , @xmath193 as @xmath56 , * for @xmath67 , @xmath194 as @xmath56 . the combination @xmath33 belongs to @xmath10 for @xmath65 , hence @xmath195 consider @xmath67 . one has : @xmath196 therefore @xmath197 for @xmath36 , and hence for every @xmath198 . it follows that @xmath186 and @xmath192 do not have zeros in @xmath64 . for every @xmath36 there exists the finite limit @xmath199 which is continuous in @xmath18 . it follows then @xcite that the spectrum of @xmath9 is purely absolutely continuous and the spectral density equals for a.a . @xmath36 @xmath200 which completes the proof . theorem [ thm result 2 ] follows directly from lemmas [ lem asymptotics of polynomials ] and [ lem formula for the spectral density ] . let us repeat its formulation . let the conditions hold for @xmath9 . then + 1 . for every @xmath61 there exists @xmath62 ( the jost function ) , which is analytic function in @xmath63 and continuous in @xmath64 . polynomials of the first kind have the following asymptotics as @xmath56 : * for @xmath65 , @xmath66 * for @xmath67 , @xmath68 \3 . the spectrum of @xmath9 is purely absolutely continuous , and for a.a . @xmath36 @xmath201 it remains to prove the following corollary . let the conditions hold for @xmath9 . then the spectrum of @xmath9 is purely absolutely continuous and the spectral density equals for a.a . @xmath36 @xmath202 the right - hand side being finite and non - zero for every @xmath67 . from the asymptotics and one has for @xmath36 : @xmath203 so @xmath204 substituting into gives the answer and completes the proof . this section is devoted to finding asymptotics of @xmath205 as @xmath56 . it is natural to prove a little wider result : asymptotics of @xmath206 as @xmath56 uniform with respect to the parameter @xmath207 in some neighbourhood of the point @xmath208 . such asymptotics ( with the scaled parameter ) are called asymptotics of plancherel - rotach type , after @xcite , where the authors proved such asymptotics for hermite polynomials . let @xmath209 be the inverse zoukowski function with the branch chosen such that @xmath210 . [ thm asymptotics of w^n-1musqrt2n ] there exist @xmath211 such that @xmath212 as @xmath56 uniformly with respect to @xmath213 . one has from : @xmath214 for the contour @xmath110 see figure [ fig gamma pm z ] . taking @xmath215 , one obtains : @xmath216 let us denote @xmath217 this function has a critical point @xmath218 ( the point where its derivative with respect to @xmath219 turns to zero ) . due to taylor s expansion , for every @xmath207 @xmath220 as @xmath221 . let us denote @xmath222 and change the variable in the integral . then one has to integrate over the contour @xmath223 , which can be transformed into the real line for values of @xmath207 small enough ( since @xmath224 and @xmath225 as @xmath226 , so the point @xmath227 corresponds to the point @xmath228 ) . one will have : @xmath229 it remains to prove the following lemma . [ lem steepest descent estimates ] there exists @xmath230 such that @xmath231 uniformly with respect to @xmath232 . we divide the proof into three parts . let us see that @xmath233 uniformly with respect to @xmath207 in some neighbourhood of @xmath208 . one has : @xmath234 note that @xmath235 hence for every @xmath236 @xmath237 the function @xmath238 is @xmath239 at @xmath240 , so @xmath241 ( i.e. , there exist @xmath242 such that if @xmath243 , then @xmath244 ) . this obviously in particular means that there exists @xmath245 such that if @xmath246 and @xmath247 , then @xmath248 one has : @xmath249 since for every @xmath250 , @xmath251 one has : @xmath252 let @xmath253 and @xmath247 . then @xmath254 and there exists @xmath255 such that @xmath256 hence we arrive at the following ( uniform for @xmath247 ) estimate : @xmath257 from . the following is an immediate consequence of and : for @xmath247 , @xmath258 uniformly with respect to @xmath207 . let us prove that @xmath259 uniformly with respect to @xmath207 in some neighbourhood of @xmath208 . consider the real part of the last term in @xmath260 one has @xmath261 , title="fig:",width=8 ] + where @xmath262 consider @xmath263 . there exists an angle @xmath264 ( small enough ) such that the domains shown on figure [ fig circle ] do not intersect . since @xmath265 as @xmath226 , there exists @xmath266 such that if @xmath232 , then @xmath267 and @xmath268 . then @xmath269 . let @xmath270 . by the choice of @xmath230 we can also ensure that if @xmath232 , then @xmath271>-\frac{\delta_0\theta}2 \\ \end{array } { \right}.\ ] ] and hence @xmath272 for every real @xmath273 such that @xmath274 . one has : @xmath275 e^{nh(s,\mu)}ds\right|<2\int_{\delta_0}^{+\infty}e^{-\frac n4(s^2 - 2s\delta_0\theta)}ds \\ = 2e^{\frac n4\delta_0 ^ 2\theta^2}\int_{\delta_0(1-\theta)}^{+\infty}e^{-\frac n4s^2}ds = o{\left}(e^{\frac n4\delta_0 ^ 2(2\theta-1)}{\right})=o{\left}(\frac1n{\right}){\text { as } } { n\rightarrow\infty}\end{gathered}\ ] ] uniformly with respect to @xmath207 . this completes the proof of the lemma . as a corollary we have asymptotics of @xmath276 as @xmath56 for fixed @xmath219 . [ cor asymptotics of w^(n-1)(z ) ] @xmath277 uniformly with respect to @xmath219 in every bounded set in @xmath58 . we just need to substitute @xmath278 into and go through tedious calculation , using that @xmath279 the author expresses his deep gratitude to dr . kiselev for valuable discussions of the problem and to prof . naboko for his constant attention to this work and for many fruitful discussions of the subject . the author also wishes to thank prof . buslaev for constructive criticism . the work was supported by grants rfbr-06 - 01 - 00249 and intas-05 - 1000008 - 7883 , and also by vladimir deich prize . 99 m. abramowitz , i.a . stegun , _ handbook of mathematical functions _ , dover , new york , 1964 . akhiezer , _ the classical moment problem and some related questions in analysis _ , oliver & boyd , 1965 . berezanskii , _ expansions in eigenfunctions of selfadjoint operators . ( russian ) _ , naukova dumka , kiev , 1965 . birman , m.z . solomyak , _ spectral theory of self - adjoint operators in hilbert space _ , reidel , 1987 . coddington , n. levinson , _ theory of ordinary differential equations _ , mcgraw - hill , new york , 1955 . p. koosis , _ introduction to @xmath280 spaces _ , cambridge university press , cambridge , 1980 . titchmarsh , _ eigenfunction expantions associated with second - order differential equations _ , 2 , clerandon press , oxford , 1958 . z. benzaid , d.a . lutz , _ asymptotic representation of solutions of perturbed systems of linear difference equations _ , studies appl . math . * 77 * , 1987 . b.m . brown , m.s.p . eastham , d.k.r . mccornack , _ spectral concentration and rapidly decaying potentials _ , j. comput . appl . math . * 81 * , 1997 . brown , m.s.p . eastham , d.k.r . mccornack , _ spectral concentration and perturbed discrete spectra _ , j. comput . math . * 86 * , 1997 . brown , s. naboko , r. weikard , _ the inverse resonance problem for hermite operators_(preprint ) . gilbert , d.b . pearson , _ on subordinacy and analysis of the spectrum of one dimensional schrdinger operators _ , j. math . * 128 * , 1987 . j. janas , m. moszyski , _ spectral properties of jacobi matrices by asymptotic analysis _ , j. approx . theory * 120 * , 2003 . s. khan , d.b . pearson , _ subordinacy and spectral theory for infinite matrices _ , helv . acta * 65 * , 1992 . m. plancherel , w. rotach , _ sur les valeurs asymptotiques des polynomes dhermite @xmath281_(french ) commentarii math . helvetici * 1 * , 1929 . silva , _ uniform levinson type theorems for discrete linear systems _ , oper . theory adv . appl . , birkhauser - verlag * 154 silva , _ uniform and smooth benzaid - lutz type theorems and applications to jacobi matrices _ theory adv . , birkhauser - verlag * 174 * , 2007 .

small perturbations of the jacobi matrix with weights @xmath0 and zero diagonal are considered . a formula relating the asymptotics of polynomials of the first kind to the spectral density is obtained , which is analogue of the classical weyl - titchmarsh formula for the schrdinger operator on the half - line with summable potential . additionally a base of generalized eigenvectors for `` free '' hermite operator is studied and asymptotics of plancherel - rotach type are obtained .

it is associated with decreased rates of pulmonary complications and decreased use of hospital resources . though many investigations have elucidated the value of early extubation after cardiac surgery , the optimal timing has not been determined . this propensity - matched study was designed to evaluate optimal timing of early extubation and correlate timing of extubation with early and late outcomes . the division of cardiothoracic surgery at carolinas heart and vascular institute computerized database was utilized to identify all patients who had coronary artery bypass ( cabg ) , isolated valve surgery , or valve / cabg combination at carolinas medical center between january 2002 to december 2006 ; 2735 patients were thus identified . of those , 1164 were extubated within six hours ( early extubation group ) and 1571 were extubated six hours or greater after surgery ( conventional extubation group ) . data including baseline demographics , procedural data , and perioperative outcomes were entered prospectively in a pre - specified database by a dedicated data - coordinating center . standard research approval was obtained via our institutional review board before data identification , analysis , and study approval was initiated . health insurance portability and accountability act of 1996 regulations were followed at all times to maintain personal patient information confidentiality . the society of thoracic surgeons ( sts ) national cardiac database definitions were used for the purposes of the study . early extubation is defined as removal of breathing tube < 6 hours after arrival to cardiovascular intensive care unit ( icu ) . pneumonia is defined as one of the following : positive cultures of sputum , blood , pleural fluid , empyema fluid , trans - tracheal fluid or transthoracic fluid ; consistent with the diagnosis and clinical findings of pneumonia ( may include chest x - ray diagnosis of pulmonary infiltrates ) . pulmonary embolism is defined as diagnosis by study as v / q scan or angiogram . prolonged hospital length of stay is defined as hospital stay more than the 75th percentile of hospital length of stay ( > 9 days ) . cerebrovascular accident is defined as a central neurological deficit persisting for greater than 72 hours . hemorrhage - related re - exploration is defined as operative re - intervention required for bleeding or tamponade . renal failure is defined as an increase in serum creatinine greater than 2.0 mg / dl , and a doubling of creatinine over baseline preoperative value , and/or a new requirement for dialysis / hemofiltration . monitoring included electrocardiography , pulse oximetry , and end - tidal co2 as well as routine use of pulmonary arterial and radial arterial catheters . anesthetic induction and maintenance routinely included intravenous fentanyl ( 10 - 20 micrograms / kg ) , midazolam ( 5 - 10 mg ) , propofol as necessary , and pavulon ( 10 - 20 mg ) . additionally , inhalational anesthesia was provided with isoflurane . anticoagulation with intravenous heparin was achieved and maintained with the aid of the hepcon hemostasis management system ( medtronic ) . patients were brought to the icu immediately after surgery and supported with mechanical ventilation , with goals of peak inspiratory pressures less than 30 cm h2o , ph 7.35 - 7.45 , po2 > 80 and pco2 < 50 . bispectral index sedation monitoring ( bis ) was utilized to assist the titration of propofol sedation ( typically 0 - 50 mcg / kg / minute intravenously ) as needed . inotropes , vasopressors , vasodilators , and volume were utilized as needed for goals of cardiac index > 2.2 , systemic venous oxygen saturations > 65% , and systolic blood pressures from 100 - 120 mmhg ( unless patient specific characteristics dictated otherwise ) . post - operative volume of chest tube drainage , hemodynamics , temperature , urine output , blood products transfusion , and analgesics / sedation were recorded hourly and discussed between team members with early extubation being continuously considered . patients were extubated when consistently hemodynamically stable , tolerating spontaneous breathing trial , hemostatic , and neurologically appropriate . contraindications to extubation , without physician approval , included cardiac index < 2.2 liters / min / m , systolic blood pressure < 90 or > 160 mm hg , heart rate > 130 , po2 < 80 or pco2 > 50 chest tube drainage > 100 ml / hour , urine output < 40 ml / hour , and a neurologic deficit . statistical analysis . univariate comparisons of preoperative , operative , and postoperative variables were performed between groups ( early extubation and conventional extubation group ) . dichotomous variables were compared using a fisher s exact test and nonparametric variables were assessed with the wilcoxon rank sum test . propensity score adjustment was used on the postoperative outcomes to correct for imbalances between groups at baseline . a logistic regression model was created with early extubation / conventional extubation as the outcome and significant baseline characteristics ( p<0.05 ) from the bivariate analysis as the covariates . propensity scores were generated and included as regression ( covariance ) adjustments in each of the logistic regression outcome models . the ability of the propensity score to effectively balance the compared groups at baseline was confirmed using separate logistic models with early - conventional extubation group type as the dependent variable and the covariate and propensity score as the independent variables . a multivariable , stepwise forward logistic regression analysis was used to determine independent predictors of 3 ) prolonged icu los , 4 ) prolonged hospital los , 5 ) readmission to the icu , 7 ) cerebrovascular accident , 9 ) hemorrhage - related re - exploration , 10 ) operative mortality . the criterion for variable entry and removal into the logistic models was a univariate probability level of p<0.05 . the quality of fit of the logistic models was tested with the hosmer and lemeshow goodness - of - fit test . survival analysis a proportional hazards cox regression model was used to evaluate the effect of early extubation on survival , while adjusting for the patients baseline characteristics . kaplan - meier curves were generated to show the survival patterns between the two study groups over 16 months after surgery . receiver operator characteristics ( roc ) curves were utilized to evaluate how the timing of extubation affects operative mortality , reintubation , and combined morbidity in cardiac surgery . the specificity and sensitivity of each hour of extubation to predict postoperative outcomes is reported . univariate comparisons of patients preoperative characteristics between the early extubation group ( n=1164 ) and the conventional extubation group ( n=1571 ) are presented in table 1 . patients ' baseline characteristics in patients with early ( < 6 hours ) and late ( > 6 hours ) extubation . early extubation patients were more likely to be males and have multi - vessel coronary artery disease compared to conventional extubation group patients . conventional extubation group patients were more likely to have hypertension , chronic renal failure , previous cerebrovascular accident , and reoperation . additional characteristics of this group include unstable angina , depressed left ventricular ejection fraction , advanced age ( greater than 75 years ) , be in class iii / iv by new york heart association ( nyha ) functional classification , and have urgent or emergent operation . in addition , the sts risk scores for mortality were significantly higher in the conventional extubation group . patients ' operative and postoperative characteristics in patients with early ( < 6 hours ) and late ( > 6 hours ) extubation . early extubation patients were more likely to have undergone isolated cabg compared to conventional extubation group patients . pump , cross clamp and operation times were longer on average for the conventional extubation group . conventional extubation group patients had a higher rate of operative mortality , history of cerebrovascular accident , sepsis , renal failure , atrial fibrillation , hemodialysis , cardiac arrest , hemorrhage - related re - exploration , cardiac tamponade , and blood transfusion . conventional extubation group patients were also more likely to be readmitted to the icu , had higher reintuba - tion rates , and had more prolonged icu and hospital length of stay . propensity score adjustment and multivariable modeling . propensity scores were calculated and shown to balance out the differences at baseline between the early extubation and the conventional extubation group patients ( online appendix 1 www.itacta.org ) with p < 0.05 being statistically significant . early extubation was associated with decreased rates of pneumonia ( p<0.001 ) , stroke ( p=0.007 ) , acute renal failure ( p<0.001 ) , hemorrhage - related re - exploration ( p<0.001 ) , icu length of stay ( p<0.001 ) and hospital length of stay ( p<0.001 ) , icu readmission ( p<0.001 ) , reintubation ( p=0.009 ) , and operative mortality ( p=0.043 ) . multivariable models were used as a supplementary analysis and confirmed these findings with the exception of sepsis ( online appendix 2 www.itacta.org ) . specifically , pneumonia ( or=0.35 ) , prolonged icu los ( or=0.43 ) , prolonged hospital los ( or=0.37 ) , readmission to icu ( or=0.50 ) , reintubation ( or=0.48 ) , cerebrovascular accident ( or=0.21 ) , renal failure ( or=0.24 ) , re - operation for bleeding ( or=0.13 ) , and mortality ( or=0.46 ) were all decreased within the early extubation group . late mortality was assessed out to 16 months after cardiac surgery ( figure 1 ) . risk factors for late mortality after cardiac surgery . with a hazard ratio ( hr ) of 0.45 , early extubation was associated with decreased late mortality ( p<0.001 ) when adjusting for other significant covariates . a sub - analysis was conducted to determine the optimal timing of extubation to predict improved postoperative outcomes . extubation within 9 hours emerged as the best predictor of improved postoperative outcomes including morbidity , mortality and reintubation ( table 5 ) . specificity , sensitivity and accuracy of extubation < 9 hours to predict postoperative outcomes detailed analysis is presented within online appendix 3 www.itacta.org . mechanical ventilation after cardiac surgery is used to improve oxygenation and ventilation as well as reduce cardiac workload in the hemodynamically unstable patient . early extubation has been correlated with decreased rates of mortality , morbidity , and resource utilization and may function as a predictor of an uncomplicated hospital course . with this study , we evaluated timing of early extubation and its relation to post - operative complications , death , and resource utilization . additionally , we examined late mortality in the early versus conventional extubation groups . despite the society of thoracic surgeons definition for early extubation being extubation within six hours after surgery , an important finding of our study is that extubation up to nine hours after surgery appears to be a better predictor of post - operative outcomes ( online appendix 3 www.itacta.org ) . operative mortality and cardiac cause of death were lower in the early extubation group ( p<0.001 ) as were rates of sepsis , cerebrovascular accident , renal failure , hemodialysis , atrial fibrillation , cardiac arrest , hemorrhage - related re - exploration , and blood transfusion ( p<0.001 ) , ( table 2 ) . prolonged intubation and continued hemodynamic instability after cardiac surgery leads to significantly increased morbidity and mortality . mechanical ventilatory support for 16 hours or more demonstrated a trend towards worse post - operative outcomes ( online appendix 3 www.itacta.org ) . this mirrors the findings from previous studies where poorer post - operative results occurred in those extubated in greater than 24 hours . early extubation was associated with improved survival up to 16 months after cardiac surgery ( p<0.001 ) while chronic renal failure , congestive heart failure , unstable angina , and advanced age diminished late survival ( table 4 ) . similar findings were demonstrated by cheng et al where there were no deaths in the one year follow - up in those patients extubated early . this study is among the first to demonstrate early extubation as a predictor of improved early and late outcomes after cardiac surgery . limitations . limitations of this study include all those inherent to any retrospective single - institution analysis . all data elements , however , were prospectively entered into a cardiac surgery research database with strict definitions , and the data analysis was performed using appropriately risk - adjusted statistical models to adjust for differences in preoperative risk factors . the accuracy of predicting improved outcomes in those patients extubated in < 9 hours is 65% . early extubation is among the earliest post - operative predictors for those patients who are more likely to have a smooth post - operative course and decreased complications after cardiac surgery . further studies are recom - mended to confirm the findings of this study and implement changes in clinical practice .

introductionearly tracheal extubation is a common goal after cardiac surgery . our study aims to examine whether timing of tracheal extubation predicts improved postoperative outcomes and late survival after cardiac surgery . we also evaluated the optimal timing of extubation and its association with better postoperative outcomes.methodsbetween 2002 and 2006 , 1164 patients underwent early tracheal extubation ( < 6 hours after surgery ) and 1571 had conventional extubation ( > 6 hours after surgery ) . propensity score adjustment and multivariable logistic regression analysis were used to adjust for imbalances in the patients preoperative characteristics . receiver operating characteristic curves ( roc ) were used to identify the best timing of extubation and improved postoperative outcomes . cox regression analysis was used to identify whether early extubation is a risk factor for decreased late mortality.resultsresults - early extubation was associated with lower propensity score - adjusted rate of operative mortality ( odds ratio = 0.55 , 95% confidence intervals = 0.31 - 0.98 , p=0.043 ) . extubation within 9 hours emerged as the best predictor of improved postoperative morbidity and mortality ( sensitivity = 85.5% , specificity = 52.7% , accuracy = 64.5% ) . early extubation also predicted decreased late mortality ( hazard ratio = 0.45 , 95% confidence intervals 0.31 - 0.67 , p<0.001).conclusionsearly extubation may predict improved outcomes after cardiac surgery . extubation within 9 hours after surgery was the best predictor of uncomplicated recovery after cardiac surgery . those patients intubated longer than 16 hours have a poorer postoperative prognosis . early extubation predicts prolonged survival up to 16 months after surgery .

group b streptococcus ( gbs ) was first recognized as a virulent pathogen responsible for most cases of neonatal sepsis in 1964 . since then , gbs has been associated with neonatal meningitis , pneumonia , septic abortions , and chorioamnionitis . it has also been implicated in puerperal sepsis , endometritis , and urinary tract infections [ 2 , 3 ] . showed that the vagina was the most likely source of gbs to the neonate as the antibiotic sensitivities of the neonatal organisms were similar to maternal vaginal cultures . intrapartum chemoprophylaxis has been shown to decrease early - onset neonatal gbs disease [ 4 , 5 ] . in 1996 the american college of obstetricians and gynecologists , the centers for disease control and prevention ( cdc ) , and the american academy of pediatrics ( aap ) made recommendations for intrapartum prophylaxis to prevent perinatal gbs disease based on risk factors [ 68 ] . the cdc published revised guidelines in 2002 recommending universal culture - based screening at 3537 weeks with intrapartum chemoprophylaxis for those who test positive . the risk factors considered included a prior affected infant , prematurity , prolonged rupture of membranes , and history of gbs bacteriuria during the current pregnancy , all of which are associated with increased risk of neonatal gbs disease . a number of studies have linked obesity to gbs colonization in both pregnant and nonpregnant women [ 911 ] . further , obesity has been linked to an increased risk of early - onset neonatal gbs disease . most of the prior studies were based on population - based data with intrinsic limitations and some did not adequately control for potential confounders . with the increasing rates of obesity , establishing an association with gbs colonization may inform risk - based intrapartum prophylaxis for women with unknown gbs status in labor . the objective of this study was to investigate the association between obesity and gbs colonization in a term cohort . we tested the hypothesis that maternal obesity is an independent risk factor for rectovaginal gbs colonization at term . this was a retrospective cohort study of all consecutive women with singleton term pregnancies admitted in labor at washington university in st . we obtained informed consent and the study was approved by the washington university school of medicine human research protection office . women with documented gbs culture results and body mass index ( bmi ) information were eligible . we excluded women without gbs and bmi information and women delivering preterm ( < 37 weeks ) . extensive data were extracted from the medical record including maternal sociodemographic factors , obstetric and gynecologic history , medical and surgical history , antenatal history , and obstetric outcomes . pregnancies were dated by a woman 's last menstrual period and confirmed with first or second trimester ultrasonography using standard criteria . the outcome of interest was gbs colonization , defined as positive culture from a rectovaginal swab . maternal bmi 30 kg / m ( obese ) or < 30 kg / m ( nonobese ) defined the comparison groups . continuous variables were compared using student 's t - test and categorical variables were analyzed using the chi - square or fisher 's exact test as appropriate . normality of distribution of the continuous variables was verified using the kolmogorov - smirnov test . the association between obesity and gbs colonization was assessed using adjusted and unadjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals . candidate variables for the logistic regression models were selected on the basis of biologic plausibility , risk factors that have been identified in the literature , and results of our univariable analysis . differences between hierarchical explanatory models were assessed using the likelihood ratio test or wald test . only factors contributing significantly to the explanatory model were included in the final model . model fit was assessed with the hosmer - lemeshow goodness - of - fit test . we included all consecutive subjects meeting inclusion criteria ; no a priori sample size estimation was performed . all statistical analyses were completed using stata software package , version 11 , special edition ( college station , tx ) . of the 10,564 women admitted in labor at term during the study period , 7,711 met inclusion criteria ( figure 1 ) . more than half of the cohort was obese ( n = 4 , 492 , 58.3% ) . majority of the women were african american ( n = 5 , 515 , 71.5% ) with a mean gestation age of 38.9 weeks . obese women were more likely to be older , africa american , and having diabetes ( table 1 ) . the prevalence of gbs colonization in the entire cohort was relatively high ( 25.8% ) . obese women were significantly more likely than nonobese women to be colonized by gbs ( 28.4% versus 22.2% , crude or 1.39 ( 95% ci 1.25 , 1.55 ) , p obese women were still 35% more likely to be colonized with gbs ( adjusted or 1.35 ( 95% ci 1.211.50 ) ) . to determine if there is a dose - response relationship between increasing bmi category and gbs colonization , we calculated the risk of gbs colonization for bmi < 30 kg / m , 3039.9 , and 40 kg / m . gbs colonization increased in a dose - response fashion with increasing bmi : 22.2% , 27.3% , and 31.7% , respectively ( figure 2 ) . widespread efforts , using a combination of screening and risk factor - based strategies , have resulted in a significant reduction in the incidence of early - onset neonatal sepsis due to gbs [ 15 , 16 ] . yet while obesity has not been considered one of the risk factors for which intrapartum prophylaxis should be offered to women with unknown gbs status , our results show that obesity is associated with a 35% higher risk of gbs colonization at term . the finding of an association between obesity and gbs colonization is consistent with prior studies [ 911 ] . using population - based data , stapleton et al . found a 20% increased risk of gbs colonization with obesity and 45% increase with severe obesity . the 25.8% overall rate of gbs colonization in our cohort is relatively high but still falls within the 1030% rates reported in the literature [ 1720 ] . first , our cohort is predominantly african american , a known risk factor for gbs colonization . given the observed association between obesity and gbs colonization , this may explain the overall higher colonization rate . reported a progressive increase in gbs prevalence from 1997 to 2002 , which was attributed to increased screening . however , it may be related to changes in the gastrointestinal microbial ecology with obesity . animal and human studies demonstrate a shift towards increased firmicutes ( the phylum to which gbs belongs ) and decreased bacteroides with obesity . these shifts reflect increased energy - reabsorbing potential of different ratios of firmicutes and bacteroides , especially in the digestion of fatty acids and dietary polysaccharides . further , a recent study showed that pregnancy itself is associated with changes in the gut microbiome similar to that seen in obesity . this is a large analysis dedicated to evaluating the association between obesity and gbs colonization at term . the comprehensive delivery data compiled by trained research nurses enabled us to perform detailed analysis controlling for confounders . further , by including only women at term , we focused on the subset of women in whom additional risk factors would influence clinical management if gbs status is unknown . the retrospective nature of our study makes it vulnerable to selection bias , confounders , and inaccuracies in data collection . we included all consecutive patients meeting inclusion criteria , reducing the risk of selection bias . in addition , our database has been well validated by ongoing quality control , increasing confidence in our findings . while we controlled for confounders , there is the potential for residual confounding by variables we did take into account . finally , our cohort is predominantly african american , raising the question of generalizability of our results . however , the persistent association after we controlled for confounders including race and the consistency of our results with other studies conducted among subjects of different demographics lend credence to the generalizability of our findings . one prior study found a higher risk of early - onset gbs sepsis in the neonates of obese women . the results of that study coupled with our findings suggest that obesity may be both an important risk factor for gbs colonization and neonatal gbs disease . if these findings are confirmed by other studies , obesity may be considered in risk - based management strategies in women at term . furthermore , a recent study reported a false negative antepartum culture rate of 9.8% , highlighting the potential role of risk factor based management strategies . in conclusion , this large cohort study showed a significantly increased risk of gbs colonization in obese women at term . if confirmed by other studies , this finding , together with the reported higher risk of early - onset gbs in neonates of obese women , suggests that maternal obesity is a factor that needs to be considered in strategies for reducing gbs disease in neonates .

objective . to test the hypothesis that maternal obesity is an independent risk factor for rectovaginal group b streptococcus ( gbs ) colonization at term . study design . retrospective cohort study of consecutive women with singleton term pregnancies admitted in labor at barnes - jewish hospital ( 20042008 ) . maternal bmi 30 kg / m2 ( obese ) or < 30 kg / m2 ( nonobese ) defined the two comparison groups . the outcome of interest was gbs colonization from a positive culture . baseline characteristics were compared using student 's t - test and chi - squared or fisher 's exact test . the association between obesity and gbs colonization was assessed using univariable and multivariable analyses . results . of the 10,564 women eligible , 7,711 met inclusion criteria . the prevalence of gbs colonization in the entire cohort was relatively high ( 25.8% ) . obese gravidas were significantly more likely to be colonized by gbs when compared with nonobese gravidas ( 28.4% versus 22.2% , p < 0.001 ) . obese gravidas were still 35% more likely than nonobese women to test positive for gbs after adjusting for race , parity , smoking , and diabetes ( adjusted or 1.35 [ 95% ci 1.211.50 ] ) . conclusion . maternal obesity is a significant risk factor for gbs colonization at term . further research is needed to evaluate the impact of this finding on risk - based management strategies .

When Fox News host Laura Ingraham taunted a Parkland shooting survivor in a Wednesday- ­morning tweet about his college applications being rejected, Twitter users hit back where it hurt most: among her advertisers. David Hogg, the 17-year-old high school senior who has become a gun-control activist, mustered the collective power of social media — and his more than 630,000 Twitter followers — and urged them to “tweet away” at her top sponsors to call on them to boycott her TV show, “The Ingraham Angle.” Soooo @IngrahamAngle what are your biggest advertisers ... Asking for a friend. #BoycottIngramAdverts — David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 29, 2018 Within 24 hours, several companies responded — among them the pet food brand Nutrish and the home goods retailer Wayfair — announcing over Twitter and in media interviews that they would pull their ads from Ingraham’s show. By Thursday afternoon, Ingraham apologized. “On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland,” she tweeted. Any student should be proud of a 4.2 GPA —incl. @DavidHogg111. On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland. For the record, I believe my show was the first to feature David...(1/2) — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 29, 2018 ... immediately after that horrific shooting and even noted how "poised" he was given the tragedy. As always, he’s welcome to return to the show anytime for a productive discussion. WATCH: https://t.co/5wcd00wWpd (2/2) — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 29, 2018 In the era of boycotts as a byproduct of outrage, with figures such as President Trump threatening the NFL over player protests and airline customers employing the tactic to force change, Hogg’s push for Ingraham’s advertisers to respond to her comments worked remarkably quickly. The swift results showcase the power that the Parkland survivors have, not just in organizing rallies but in spurring corporate America to act. Brands, too, have become quicker to distance themselves from controversy, whether by denouncing white supremacy after neo-Nazis praise their products or by pulling their sponsorship after another Fox News personality, Bill O’Reilly, was accused of sexual harassment. Since the 2016 election, calls to boycott retailers have become frequent: The #GrabYourWallet campaign began as a way to protest Trump, and it identified companies that carried merchandise bearing the Trump name. Those calls have been met with equally passionate responses by Trump supporters who say they are determined to use their buying power to stand with the president and his family. [What happens when neo-Nazis hijack your brand] On Thursday, #GrabYourWallet co-founder Shannon Coulter called Ingraham’s mocking of Hogg’s college rejections “really egregious violations of basic human decency.” “Corporate America has a really positive role to play in preventing that kind of targeted harassment,” Coulter said. “It’s not just that one tweet. It’s that [Ingraham is] signaling to her large audience that it’s okay to do that. Particularly when minors are concerned, I think there’s a line that corporations can draw that apparently Laura Ingraham’s parents didn’t draw.” Ingraham, in addition to apologizing, tried to curtail the damage by noting that Hogg had appeared on her show after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14. Hogg said he felt the apology was merely an effort to save her advertisers. “I will only accept your apology only if you denounce the way your network has treated my friends and I in this fight,” Hogg tweeted. “It’s time to love thy neighbor, not mudsling at children.” I 100% agree an apology in an effort just to save your advertisers is not enough. I will only accept your apology only if you denounce the way your network has treated my friends and I️ in this fight. It’s time to love thy neighbor, not mudsling at children. https://t.co/H0yWs4zMGk — David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 29, 2018 Ingraham had faced immediate backlash over her original tweet Wednesday from those shocked by her attack on a teenager who had survived the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. Some of them reminded Ingraham, simply, that she was a mother. Hogg’s 14-year-old sister accused the Fox News host of stooping to a “real low” to boost her ratings. The shooting in Florida — one of several school attacks in 2018 — left 17 students and staff members dead, and it galvanized a new generation of activists, including many teenagers from Parkland. Hogg has been one of the most vocal, speaking at the March for Our Lives rally against gun violence in Washington. Since the shooting, the teen has appeared frequently on television and rallied his growing number of Twitter followers to become civically engaged if they are frustrated with the status quo. [A Trump voter’s message to retailers: ‘Keep your mouths shut about our president’] In an interview with TMZ on Tuesday, Hogg spoke about receiving rejection letters from California colleges. Hogg, who has a 4.2 GPA and an SAT score of 1270, was accepted to Florida Atlantic University, California Polytechnic State University and California State University at San Marcos, TMZ reported. On Wednesday morning, Ingraham tweeted a story from a conservative news site that described Hogg as a “Gun Rights Provocateur” who had not gained acceptance to four University of California schools. “David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it,” Ingraham tweeted. “(Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA…totally predictable given acceptance rates.)” David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it. (Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA...totally predictable given acceptance rates.) https://t.co/wflA4hWHXY — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 28, 2018 Hours later, Hogg wondered, on Twitter, who Ingraham’s biggest advertisers were and soon compiled a list of 12 companies that his followers could contact. Before long, Hogg’s tweet was flooded with replies from his supporters, some of whom pasted images of their messages to the companies mentioned. Also responding were people accusing Hogg of “bullying” Ingraham. At least half a dozen companies have responded to the boycott call. “We are in the process of removing our ads from Laura Ingraham’s program,” Nutrish tweeted Thursday morning. TripAdvisor pointed to one of its company values — “We are better together” — in its decision to stop advertising on Ingraham’s show. “We do not . . . condone the inappropriate comments made by this broadcaster,” TripAdvisor said in a statement. “In our view, these statements focused on a high school student cross the line of decency.” Online home goods retailer Wayfair told CNBC that Ingraham’s personal criticism of Hogg was “not consistent with our values.” Nestlé told ThinkProgress it had no plans to buy future ads on the show. Johnson & Johnson, Stitch Fix and Hulu have also joined the boycott. [The extraordinary number of kids who have endured school shootings since Columbine] It was unclear whether any of the brands would change their minds after Ingraham apologized. “We’ve seen corporations years ago pull out from O’Reilly, only to go back and have to pull out again,” said Rashad Robinson, executive director of Color Of Change, a nonprofit advocacy group pushing corporations on issues of racial justice. “The question is, if the corporations do go back, what are they sponsoring? They are sponsoring someone who will use the next tragedy to attack the most vulnerable,” Robinson said. “Laura Ingraham would not exist without corporations enabling her to exist on the air.” Ingraham was previously criticized for telling professional basketball players to “shut up and dribble” after Cleveland Cavalier LeBron James criticized Trump in an interview. While Ingraham has been the most recent target of criticism, she is not the only prominent figure who has faced backlash for attacking the high school students. Just days ago, Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) and his campaign team were sharply criticized for posting a meme on Facebook about Emma González, another Parkland student and activist. The meme was decried as attacking González’s Cuban heritage. And CNN contributor and former U.S. senator Rick Santorum had to backtrack after saying students would be better off learning CPR than demonstrating for tighter gun laws. Read more: Family of 8 that’s feared dead after SUV plunged off cliff had troubled home life, neighbors say The Parkland shooting suspect has fans, and they’re sending him letters and money The vegans came to protest his restaurant. So this chef carved a deer leg in the window. ||||| Nutrish, a pet food brand owned by Rachael Ray, said it was “in the process of removing our ads from Laura Ingraham’s program.” “The comments she has made are not consistent with how we feel people should be treated,” the company said. Wayfair, an e-commerce company, said in a statement that it supports “open dialogue and debate on issues,” but that it would stop advertising on Ms. Ingraham’s show. “The decision of an adult to personally criticize a high school student who has lost his classmates in an unspeakable tragedy is not consistent with our values,” the company said. Nestle said it had “no plans to buy ads on the show in the future,” while Stitch Fix, a clothing box subscription service, said it had pulled its advertisements. Johnson & Johnson said it had done so as well, while Hulu said on Twitter, “We are no longer advertising on Laura Ingraham’s show and are monitoring all of our ad placements carefully.” Expedia said it had “recently pulled the advertising” from Ms. Ingraham’s show, but it did not elaborate on timing or whether the decision was related to her comments. Consumers have increasingly used social media to demand that advertisers respond to a series of controversies, particularly those involving Fox News hosts. Last year, more than 50 brands pulled ads from “The O’Reilly Factor” after The New York Times reported on settlements that the show’s host, Bill O’Reilly, had made with women who accused him of sexual harassment or other inappropriate behavior, which contributed to his ouster. ||||| Stitch Fix is the latest advertiser to pull support from Fox News host Laura Ingraham’s show. The online personal shopping service confirmed to The Hill that it would be pulling its ads from Ingraham’s show. HuffPost first reported the development. At least nine advertisers have pulled support from the show since Ingraham mocked Parkland, Fla., school shooting survivor David Hogg for being rejected by colleges. ADVERTISEMENT David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges To Which He Applied and whines about it. (Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA...totally predictable given acceptance rates.) https://t.co/wflA4hWHXY — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 28, 2018 Hogg fired back by targeting Ingraham’s advertisers. Companies and brands began to pull their support from the show on Thursday. The Fox News host apologized for her comments on Thursday. However, Hogg rejected the apology, noting that it came after Ingraham began to lose advertisers. Any student should be proud of a 4.2 GPA —incl. @DavidHogg111. On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland. For the record, I believe my show was the first to feature David...(1/2) — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 29, 2018 ... immediately after that horrific shooting and even noted how "poised" he was given the tragedy. As always, he’s welcome to return to the show anytime for a productive discussion. WATCH: https://t.co/5wcd00wWpd (2/2) — Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) March 29, 2018 ||||| Fred Guttenberg सत्यापित खाते @fred_guttenberg An apology to save your advertisers is not enough. What you did was disgusting. Our message for common sense gun reforms has won, and the those in opposition have gone negative. They need to pay a price for that. These kids have suffered enough. https://www. msn.com/en-us/news/us/ ingraham-apologizes-amid-backlash-over-parkland-student-criticism/ar-AAvfWU8?li=BBnb7Kz … ||||| Any student should be proud of a 4.2 GPA —incl. @ DavidHogg111. On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland. For the record, I believe my show was the first to feature David...(1/2)

– Laura Ingraham offered an apology to Parkland school shooting survivor David Hogg Thursday—after multiple major advertisers heeded his call to pull their ads from her Fox News show. Hogg, who has become a prominent gun-control advocate since the mass shooting, called for the boycott after Ingraham taunted him for "whining" about being rejected from colleges, the New York Times reports. "On reflection, in the spirit of Holy Week, I apologize for any upset or hurt my tweet caused him or any of the brave victims of Parkland," Ingraham tweeted Thursday, inviting the 17-year-old to appear on her show. At least nine advertisers have announced their intention to boycott Ingraham's show, including TripAdvisor, Nestle, Hulu, Wayfair, Nutrish, and Stitch Fix, reports the Hill. "In our view, these statements focused on a high school student cross the line of decency," TripAdvisor said. Hogg rejected Ingraham's apology, noting that it was only issued after advertisers started pulling out. "I will only accept your apology only if you denounce the way your network has treated my friends and I in this fight," he tweeted. "It's time to love thy neighbor, not mudsling at children." The Washington Post notes that the episode shows the Parkland survivors have power "not just in organizing rallies but in spurring corporate America to act."

"I am still shaken," he said. "I had to go to work yesterday, and it was hard to drive to work, for the fear of someone coming. I am looking out the window and I have things to do today, and I am still afraid to go outside." ||||| Paul Aker, arrested for student loan. Photo via Fox 26 (Screen capture) There are 94 U.S. Marshals that serve at the pleasure of the President and the Attorney General. They typically spend their days executing warrants on federal criminals, conducting domestic and international fugitive investigations, implementing extraditions and deportations of fugitives, protecting witnesses in federal cases or judges and are generally involved in the worst of the worst federal crimes. However, now it seems the U.S. Marshal Service is arresting people for not paying their student loans. According to Fox 26 in Houston, Paul Aker says 7 people in full combat gear showed up at his house and he was arrested for a $1,500 federal student loan that he took out in 1987. That year the average student loan debt was under $10,000. To put that in context, the average student loan debt in 2015 was $35,000. So, $1,500 seems like a joke to dispatch a federal Marshal much less a full team of combat-ready police. Still, Aker was taken to court and set up on a monthly payment plan to ensure the government got it’s $1500 back from the 29-year-old student loan. It is still unclear why federal time and money is being spent to go after loans like this but Texas Congressman Gene Green told the station that debt collectors are managing to get judgments in federal court for them. Aker wasn’t the first, nor the last. There have been 1200-1500 people in the Houston area alone who have been hauled into federal court for not making payments on their student loans. This while Fortune 500 companies would owe as much as $600 billion in taxes if they didn’t hide their money in offshore accounts. Check out the full report below:

– Seven armed US Marshals in combat gear showed up on the doorstep of 48-year-old Paul Aker's home Thursday in Houston, the New York Daily News reports. His crime? Failing to pay a $1,500 student loan he received in 1987. "I say, 'What is this all about?'" Aker recalls. "They say, 'Shut up, you know what this is all about.' I don't have a clue." Aker claims he never got a notice or warning about the student loan. "It's out of control," he says. "What if they had seen a gun on me? They would have shot me for 1,500 bucks." Aker says he was tossed on the ground, thrown in a cell, and "lectured" by a judge. He's been ordered to pay the student loan plus interest—totaling $5,700—as well as $1,300 to cover the cost of his own arrest. "There's bound to be a better way to collect on a student loan debt that is so old," Texas Rep. Gene Green tells Fox 26. Green says the federal government is now using private debt collectors to go after student loans, which means debt collectors have access to the US Marshals. Raw Story reports the country's 94 US Marshals are "generally involved in the worst of the worst federal crimes." But one source with the US Marshals in Houston says they currently have between 1,200 and 1,500 student loan-related warrants to serve. Aker says his treatment by the US Marshals over a $1,500 loan has left him "shaken" and "afraid to go outside." "You could have sent me a letter," he tells the Daily News. "You could have called me." (Some students are actually leaving the country to avoid their loan debt.)

the kek linac was constructed as an injector of the photon factory storage ring about 20 years ago @xcite . the first beam of 2.5-gev electrons was provided in 1982 . this linac now provides electron / positron beams to several rings @xcite : a ) 3.5-gev positrons to the kekb ler ( kek b - factory low - energy ring ) , b ) 8-gev electrons to the kekb her ( high - energy ring ) , c ) 2.5-gev electrons to the pf ring , and d ) 2.5-gev electrons to the pf - ar ring . the first control system , which consisted of mini - computers and camac interfaces @xcite , was replaced by the present control system in 1993 @xcite . the present system comprises unix workstations and vme computers . it has been upgraded occasionally @xcite and used over the past eight years . in this article , we discuss newly introduced subsystems in recent years . they were introduced in order to improve the control functionalities , and/or to enable better maintenance capabilities . three subsystems are described in detail in section [ subsystems ] . the experienced problems between the subsystems and the original control system , and their solutions are discussed in section [ discussion ] . the present control system comprises 46 unix workstations , 27 vme computers with the os-9 operating system , 140 plc ( programmable logic controller ) controllers , and 11 camac interfaces with a network port . a home - made rpc ( remote procedure call ) , based on tcp / udp protocols , are used for communication between them . a simplified view of the control system is shown in fig . [ overview ] . the total number of control signals is about 6000 ( in 2-byte unit ) . since 1998 , when the cp violation study started with the kekb rings , the operation of the linac exceeded 7000 hours per year . the number of control transactions handled by the control system increased every year , and reached 350 transactions per sec . in june , 2001 @xcite . since the end of the 1980es , we have had strong interest in using pcs . the pc - based operator s console system started with dos pcs @xcite , and later reinforced with windows pcs @xcite , has been successfully used for more than ten years . in the early phase , the following points were preferable for us : a ) enhanced capability of 2-byte code ( japanese characters ) handling , b ) good development environment of graphic applications , and c ) low cost . the present console system comprises about ten pcs ( windows nt and windows 2000 ) . the surveillance applications for accelerator devices were developed in visual basic , and have been used in daily operation . the operation log - book using ms - sql and access @xcite is extensively used everyday with this console system . communication with the control system , which runs at the unix workstations , is made by a gateway ( a windows pc ) . when the gateway receives a control request from a console pc by the ole , it communicates with the appropriate device server(s ) by using the rpc protocol ( see fig . [ overview ] ) . the gateway and the present console system have been successfully used over the past six years . the main part of the control system for the kek linac was renewed in 1993 @xcite . however , the local controllers ( shown as sbc in table [ frontend ] ) remained . in recent years the maintenance of these local controllers has become difficult . thus , we decided to replace them with new controllers . .replacement of local controllers . [ cols= " < , < , < , < " , ] [ architecture ] the present control system for the kek linac , which started in 1993 , can be expressed as a typical standard of the 1990es model . we conclude that our extensions ( introducing subsystems in the past eight years ) can be understood as an evolution toward the new standard of 2000es . the authors acknowledge prof . a. enomoto and prof . k. nakahara for kindly supervising our work . we thank i. abe for discussions on using windows pcs with unix workstations . the various improvements of plc - based local controllers have been carried out by a. shirakawa . we also thank the kek linac operators for cooperative and successful works to improve our control system . n.kamikubota , s.kusano and k.furukawa , `` archive databases as distributed corba objects '' , presentation at jps meeting , okinawa , sep.2001 k.furukawa _ et al . _ , `` beam switching and beam feedback systems at kekb linac '' , proc . linac2000 , monterey , ca , aug.2000 , p.633 - 635

as an accelerator control system survives over several years , it is often the case that new subsystems are introduced into the original control system . the control system for the kek electron / positron injector - linac has been using unix workstations and vme computers since 1993 . during the eight - year operation , we extended the system by introducing a ) windows pcs , b ) plc controllers with a network interface , and c ) web servers based on modern information technology . although such new subsystems are essential to improve control functionalities , they often cause communication problems with the original control system . we discuss the experienced problems , and present our solutions for them .

the pathology caused by schistosoma mansoni infections results from granulomatous inflammation surrounding parasite eggs in the liver that can lead to periportal fibrosis . many of the eggs released by adult female worms living in the mesenteric venules of infected hosts beginning 5 to 6 wk after infection are swept by the portal circulation to the liver where they become lodged in the presinusoidal capillaries and invoke an intense immunologic response . the acute phase of schistosomiasis occurs at 8 wk after infection when the magnitude of this granulomatous response peaks . the disease subsequently enters the chronic phase and the intensity of inflammation in response to newly deposited eggs gradually decreases ( 1 ) . current hypotheses suggest that failure to appropriately modulate the immune responses associated with granuloma formation after the acute phase of infection results in the increased fibrosis , portal hypertension , and spleen enlargement observed in humans with severe hepatosplenic schistosomiasis ( 2 , 3 ) . most investigations into the mechanics of immunomodulation in experimental schistosomiasis have focused on the cell subsets and cytokines involved in granuloma formation in the acute and chronic phases of infection ( 48 ) . however , we have also presented strong evidence suggesting that idiotypic interactions also play an important immunoregulatory role in experimental and human schistosomiasis , perhaps functioning through some of the aforementioned mechanisms , such as differential cytokine induction ( 913 ) . affinity purified , anti - schistosome soluble egg antigen ( sea ) antibodies prepared from sera of patients with the asymptomatic chronic ( intestinal ) form of schistosomiasis and 20 wk infected mice with the analogous moderate splenomegaly syndrome ( mss ) contain a population of idiotypes ( i d ) that stimulate proliferation of pbmcs and spleen cells from infected humans and mice , respectively ( 9 , 11 ) . studies on spleen cells from infected mice have also shown that i d prepared from the sera of mss mice ( mss i d ) stimulates production of ifn- , a cytokine that regulates granuloma formation ( 11 , 1719 ) . rabbit antibodies raised against i d prepared from the sera of patients with intestinal schistosomiasis cross reacts with mss i d , suggesting certain stimulatory idiotopes are shared across species ( 10 , 20 ) , i.e. , are cross - reactive i d ( cri ) . in contrast , patients with severe hepatosplenic disease and 20 wk infected mice with the analogous hypersplenomegaly syndrome ( hss ) fail to express cri and antibodies prepared from their sera do not stimulate cellular proliferation or cytokine production ( 911 ) . the association of cri with less severe pathology combined with the ability of cri to stimulate production of granuloma - inhibiting cytokines suggested that they may play an important role in regulating the pathology of chronic schistosomiasis . further support for this hypothesis came from studies in which neonatal mice were injected with cri , allowed to mature to adulthood , and infected with s. mansoni . mice exposed to preparations containing cri ( mss i d or i d prepared from sera of mice infected for 8 wk ) demonstrated prolonged survival , smaller granulomas , decreased fibrosis , and enhanced ifn- production compared with animals that were neonatally injected with cri - negative preparations ( affinity - purified anti - sea antibodies prepared from the sera of hss mice or commercially procured normal mouse immunoglobulin ; reference 12 ) . the immunologic effects of neonatal cri exposure were also investigated by evaluating sea - induced responses in mice neonatally injected with cri but that received no exposure to s. mansoni antigens or infection . as adults , these mice displayed significant sea - induced spleen cell proliferation , th1 cytokine responses , and serum igg while animals neonatally injected with hss i d or normal mouse immunoglobulin lacked these sea - related responses ( 13 ) . whether mice that were neonatally injected with cri were infected with s. mansoni or not , their sera as adults contained cri and anti - cri , suggesting that neonatal exposure led to the establishment of an idiotypic network with immunoregulatory properties ( 13 , and unpublished data ) . we have previously shown that serum cri begins to appear by 6 wk of s. mansoni infection ( 21 ) but those studies did not document their presence in relationship to eventual clinical outcomes at chronicity . because our previous findings suggested a link between serum cri and decreased schistosomiasis - associated pathology in both humans and mice , we more precisely identified the time points at which regulatory cris are first expressed during schistosome infections of mice . in addition , we examined whether the presence or absence of cri early in infection could predict the pathologic outcome of chronic schistosomiasis in a given mouse or group of mice before 20 wk of infection . we also investigated the relationship between cri levels and parameters associated with schistosomiasis morbidity , such as splenomegaly , hepatic hydroxyproline levels , and infection intensity . male cba / j mice were obtained from the jackson laboratory and housed in the association for assessment and accreditation of laboratory animal care approved facilities of the centers for disease control and prevention . the mice were infected by subcutaneous injection with 45 cercariae of a puerto rican strain of s. mansoni that had been maintained in biomphalaria glabrata snails . individual mice were tracked by the use of transponders ( bio medic data systems , inc . ) . blood ( 100 l ) was obtained by retroorbital puncture from anesthetized animals at designated weeks after infection . mice surviving until 20 wk of infection were weighed , killed by co2 inhalation , and exsanguinated by cardiac puncture . spleens and livers were removed and weighed portions ( 0.5 g ) of liver were frozen at 80c until analysis for egg and hydroxyproline content were performed . liver tissue that had been collected for egg enumeration was placed in 5 ml of 5% koh at 37c for 2 to 4 h until the digestion was complete ( 22 ) . duplicate 25-l aliquots of the digest were placed on a glass slide , and eggs were counted under a microscope . the protocol ( 23 , 24 ) was modified for microplate analysis and used as an estimate of liver fibrosis . briefly , weighed liver samples were hydrolyzed in 5 ml of 6 m hcl for 18 h at 110c in glass tubes , after which 40 mg dowex / norit mixture ( sigma - aldrich ) and 5 ml distilled water were added to each hydrolysate . the mixture was centrifuged for 15 min at 2,000 rpm at 25c , and the supernatant fluid filtered through filter paper into a clean tube . 2 ml of the filtrate was neutralized by adding one drop of 1% phenophthalein and then titrated against 10 m naoh until colorless . the final volume was adjusted to 4 ml . a small aliquot ( 12.5 l ) of neutralized liver hydrolysate was pipetted into each well of a microtiter plate and mixed with 25 l isopropanol . freshly prepared oxidant solution ( chloramine - t / citrate buffer , ph 6.0 ; sigma - aldrich ) was added ( 12.5 l ) into each well with mixing and then incubated at 25c for 4 min . freshly prepared ehrlich 's reagent solution ( 150 l ; sigma - aldrich ) was added , mixed , and incubated at 60c for an additional 25 min . the plate was allowed to cool and the absorbance read at 570 nm using a microplate reader ( molecular devices ) . hydroxyproline levels were calculated against standard curves of 4-hydroxy - l - proline ( calbiochem ) and expressed as g hydroxyproline / g tissue . briefly , eggs were isolated by differential centrifugation from homogenized liver tissue of cf-1 mice ( charles rivers laboratories ) infected with 300 cercariae for 7 to 8 wk . soluble material from purified eggs was obtained by homogenization in dulbecco 's pbs and subsequent ultracentrifugation . to prepare affinity - purified , polyclonal anti - sea abs that expressed cri ( mss i d ) , pooled sera from 20 wk infected mss ( 10 ) mice were passed over a column of sea coupled to cyanogen - bromide - activated sepharose 4b ( sigma - aldrich ) . bound anti - sea abs ( i d ) were eluted using 0.1 m glycine - hcl ( ph 2.8 ) and collected into 0.025 m borax . the eluates were concentrated and dialyzed against saline , and their protein concentrations were determined . rabbit anti - id was prepared by immunizing a rabbit ( myrtle 's rabbitry ) subcutaneously and intramuscularly with 200 g mss i d preparation mixed 1:1 in ribi adjuvant ( ribi immunochem research ) . ig was purified from the rabbit serum using a t - gel purification kit ( pierce chemical co. ) . id - specific antiserum was prepared by exhaustively absorbing the immunized rabbit serum with normal mouse immunoglobulin ( sigma - aldrich ) coupled to cyanogen bromide activated sepharose 4b ( 10 mg ig / g sepharose ) . repeated absorptions ( between 15 and 20 ) yielded reagent which did not react with normal mouse immunoglobulin while reactivity with the original immunizing mss i d preparation was maintained . the competitive elisa using this reagent to measure serum cri levels has been described previously ( 9 ) . male cba / j mice were obtained from the jackson laboratory and housed in the association for assessment and accreditation of laboratory animal care approved facilities of the centers for disease control and prevention . the mice were infected by subcutaneous injection with 45 cercariae of a puerto rican strain of s. mansoni that had been maintained in biomphalaria glabrata snails . individual mice were tracked by the use of transponders ( bio medic data systems , inc . ) . blood ( 100 l ) was obtained by retroorbital puncture from anesthetized animals at designated weeks after infection . mice surviving until 20 wk of infection were weighed , killed by co2 inhalation , and exsanguinated by cardiac puncture . spleens and livers were removed and weighed portions ( 0.5 g ) of liver were frozen at 80c until analysis for egg and hydroxyproline content were performed . liver tissue that had been collected for egg enumeration was placed in 5 ml of 5% koh at 37c for 2 to 4 h until the digestion was complete ( 22 ) . duplicate 25-l aliquots of the digest were placed on a glass slide , and eggs were counted under a microscope . the protocol ( 23 , 24 ) was modified for microplate analysis and used as an estimate of liver fibrosis . briefly , weighed liver samples were hydrolyzed in 5 ml of 6 m hcl for 18 h at 110c in glass tubes , after which 40 mg dowex / norit mixture ( sigma - aldrich ) and 5 ml distilled water were added to each hydrolysate . the mixture was centrifuged for 15 min at 2,000 rpm at 25c , and the supernatant fluid filtered through filter paper into a clean tube . 2 ml of the filtrate was neutralized by adding one drop of 1% phenophthalein and then titrated against 10 m naoh until colorless . the final volume was adjusted to 4 ml . a small aliquot ( 12.5 l ) of neutralized liver hydrolysate was pipetted into each well of a microtiter plate and mixed with 25 l isopropanol . freshly prepared oxidant solution ( chloramine - t / citrate buffer , ph 6.0 ; sigma - aldrich ) was added ( 12.5 l ) into each well with mixing and then incubated at 25c for 4 min . freshly prepared ehrlich 's reagent solution ( 150 l ; sigma - aldrich ) was added , mixed , and incubated at 60c for an additional 25 min . the plate was allowed to cool and the absorbance read at 570 nm using a microplate reader ( molecular devices ) . hydroxyproline levels were calculated against standard curves of 4-hydroxy - l - proline ( calbiochem ) and expressed as g hydroxyproline / g tissue . briefly , eggs were isolated by differential centrifugation from homogenized liver tissue of cf-1 mice ( charles rivers laboratories ) infected with 300 cercariae for 7 to 8 wk . soluble material from purified eggs was obtained by homogenization in dulbecco 's pbs and subsequent ultracentrifugation . to prepare affinity - purified , polyclonal anti - sea abs that expressed cri ( mss i d ) , pooled sera from 20 wk infected mss ( 10 ) mice were passed over a column of sea coupled to cyanogen - bromide - activated sepharose 4b ( sigma - aldrich ) . bound anti - sea abs ( i d ) were eluted using 0.1 m glycine - hcl ( ph 2.8 ) and collected into 0.025 m borax . the eluates were concentrated and dialyzed against saline , and their protein concentrations were determined . rabbit anti - id was prepared by immunizing a rabbit ( myrtle 's rabbitry ) subcutaneously and intramuscularly with 200 g mss i d preparation mixed 1:1 in ribi adjuvant ( ribi immunochem research ) . ig was purified from the rabbit serum using a t - gel purification kit ( pierce chemical co. ) . id - specific antiserum was prepared by exhaustively absorbing the immunized rabbit serum with normal mouse immunoglobulin ( sigma - aldrich ) coupled to cyanogen bromide activated sepharose 4b ( 10 mg ig / g sepharose ) . repeated absorptions ( between 15 and 20 ) yielded reagent which did not react with normal mouse immunoglobulin while reactivity with the original immunizing mss i d preparation was maintained . the competitive elisa using this reagent to measure serum cri levels has been described previously ( 9 ) . at 20 wk after infection with s. mansoni , sera from mice with mss contain cri but sera from mice with hss do not ( 10 , 11 ) . to determine when regulatory cri first appears in mice that eventually develop mss , individual infected mice were followed over 20 wk and bled at different times during their infections . animals that survived until 20 wk were killed and classified as mss or hss according to their spleen to body weight ratio and gross pathologic characteristics ( 10 ) . serum cri levels were determined by competitive elisa using anti - mss i d rabbit serum and an mss i d standard curve . 1 shows the results from three different longitudinal experimental infections . in mice that eventually developed mss by 20 wk of infection , serum cri serum cri levels in these mice rose rapidly by 8 to 10 wk after infection and continued to increase through 20 wk of infection . in contrast , mice that displayed hss at 20 wk after infection or mice that died before 20 wk expressed little to no detectable cri in their sera at any time during their infection . mice that died before 20 wk of infection and were autopsied had characteristics similar to those of mice with hss at 20 wk of infection : they were anemic , devoid of fat , and had obvious ascites . groups of 30 to 40 cba / j mice were infected with 45 cercariae of s. mansoni . mice were bled at the indicated weeks and serum cri levels were determined by competitive elisa . at 20 wk after infection , surviving animals were killed and classified as mss or hss according to the percentage of spleen to body weight ratios . sera from mice that died before 20 wk of infection were also tested for the weeks they were bled before their deaths . each panel represents an independent experiment . the status at 20 wk after infection is indicated in the key for each experiment , and the final number of mice is shown in parentheses . although we have reported that cri can be detected early in s. mansoni infections ( 21 ) , our previous longitudinal studies of mss and hss mice suggested that differences between pathologic groups occurred later in infection as significant differences between anemia and serum triglyceride levels in mice that develop these distinct pathologies are not detected until 10 and 14 wk after infection , respectively ( 26 ) . the current data indicate that the immunobiologic processes that determine whether or not experimental animals in this model develop severe pathology are in place very early in infection , concurrent with worm maturation and egg production . if this is true , it might be expected that the presence or absence of cri at 6 wk after infection should be predictive of whether mice will eventually develop mss or hss . regression analyses of individual mice confirmed this and demonstrated significant correlations between cri levels at 6 wk of infection and spleen percent body weight ratios at 20 wk of infection ( fig . correlation analysis between a mouse 's serum cri at 6 wk after infection and the same animal 's spleen percent body weight at 20 wk after infection . 1 . in addition to splenomegaly , in one experiment ( corresponding to the bottom panel from figs . 1 and 2 ) we also evaluated the relationship between early cri production and liver hydroxyproline levels later in infection ( fig . , high cri levels at 6 wk of infection correlated with low hepatic fibrosis and low cri was associated with increased pathology at 20 wk of infection . we also evaluated the relationship between early cri and measures of the intensity of infection . there was no significant relationship between 6 wk cri levels and the number of eggs in the liver ( r = 0.2765 , p = 0.4105 ) or circulating adult worm cathodic antigen levels ( r = 0.3325 , p = 0.3177 ) at 20 wk of infection ( data not shown ) . these findings corroborated our previous studies demonstrating that severe pathology is not merely a function of increased worm burden ( 10 , 12 , 26 ) . relationships between serum levels of cri at 6 wk of infection and hepatic hydroxyproline at 20 wk of infection . we believe that the strong correlation between early cri levels and chronic pathology represents a cause and effect of cri on pathology rather than a simple association of both measures with some other immunologic measure . this belief is bolstered by our previous findings that a single neonatal injection of mice with cri leads to high levels of cri and anti - cri in the sera of these mice when they become adults and confers humoral and cellular reactivity to schistosome antigens that they have never encountered ( 13 ) . if these mice are subsequently infected with schistosomes , the animals that received cri as neonates demonstrate increased ifn- production , decreased granuloma size and fibrosis , and increased survival compared with animals that received control immunoglobulin or an i d preparation lacking cri activity ( 12 ) . other studies have similarly demonstrated an important role for antibodies and their fc receptors in modulation of the granulomatous response ( 2730 ) . we hope to employ this tool to evaluate the dynamic changes that occur in the progression to severe or nonsevere chronic schistosomiasis , identify what immunologic manipulations ( in addition to neonatal i d injection ) we can employ before or during infection to shift mice toward less severe disease , and perhaps identify which schistosome antigen(s ) and/or epitope(s ) are important for generation of cri . it also has the potential for important public health applications . because mice and humans with low morbidity share idiotopes and display the same pattern of cri expression during chronic infections , absence of cri production in humans who have schistosomiasis those individuals could be followed more closely for infection and treated more aggressively than is currently indicated in general schistosomiasis control programs . we hope to verify whether the correlation of serum cri with low pathology in experimental animals is also true for humans by comparing patients ' serum cri levels with their pattern of hepatic fibrosis detected by ultrasound . we anticipate that schistosome - positive persons with even low levels of fibrosis will have decreased levels of serum cri compared with schistosomiasis patients with no detectable hepatic pathology . if this expectation is borne out by clinical studies , we may well be able to develop powerful tools for identifying and preventing severe disease in persons with s. mansoni infections .

in murine schistosoma mansoni infections , schistosome - specific cross - reactive idiotypes ( cri ) are present in the sera of mice with moderate splenomegaly syndrome ( mss ) at 20 wk after infection . in contrast , sera from animals that have the more severe hypersplenomegaly syndrome ( hss ) at 20 wk of infection do not express these cri in their sera . to examine when these regulatory cri first appear in mice that eventually develop mss , sera from infected animals were monitored for cri from 1.5 to 20 wk of infection . in mice that eventually developed mss , cri were detected by 5 to 6 wk after infection , plateaued by 8 to 10 wk , and persisted through 20 wk of infection . animals that developed hss pathology or that died before 20 wk of infection never expressed cri . moreover , cri levels present in the sera of mice at 6 wk of infection were inversely correlated with splenomegaly and hepatic fibrosis , but not with parasitologic measures , at 20 wk after infection . these results suggest that critical events occur very early in some schistosome infections that induce the production of regulatory idiotypes and that the presence or absence of these idiotypes predicts , and possibly determines , subsequent morbidity .

In a 2017 episode of BTS' 'Bon Voyage,' Jimin wore the controversial shirt celebrating South Korea's independence from Japan. TV Asahi ultimately decided to Music Station.' Just recently, Japanese media brought attention to the shirt Jimin wore in the past show. The headlines turned into a controversy in Japan. Some Japanese netizens fired criticism against the K-pop star and demanded BTS to be banned from Japanese broadcast. As the issue got heated,ultimately decided to postpone BTS' scheduled appearance on '.' The boy group was scheduled to perform two songs on the November 9 episode. There are some people who are showing great support and praising Jimin for his patriotism. The sales of the controversial shirt also saw a major boost. In fact, after the media picked up the story, the shirt immediately sold out on the official 'ourhistory' website After having the first batch of shirts sell out, 'ourhistory' is now working on producing a new batch. The new shipment will go out starting on November 19. It sells for 49,000 KRW (~ $44). Despite the controversy, the liberation shirt that Jimin wore last year has sold out. ||||| A TV network in Japan has cancelled an appearance by the popular K-pop band BTS, after a photo emerged of one of its members wearing a T-shirt that appeared to celebrate the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The seven-member boy band, who have built a huge international following since they formed in 2013, were due to appear on TV Asahi’s flagship Music Station show on Friday evening. But the broadcaster withdrew its invitation this week after a photo of Jimin wearing the T-shirt went viral. 髙橋裕司 (Yuji T) (@YuJett) I can never accept the act that #BTS member wore the atomic bomb T-shirts humanely. The problem is not the relation between Japan and Korea. It's just humanity. pic.twitter.com/x37nZs8pJG The back of the shirt features several lines repeating the words “Patriotism ourhistory (sic) Liberation Korea”, a reference to the end of Japan’s 35-year colonial rule of the Korean peninsula. It also carries images of what appears to be a mushroom cloud created by an exploding atomic bomb, and of Koreans celebrating their liberation from Japanese rule in August 1945, the month the US carried out nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Jimin, 23, was reportedly photographed wearing the shirt last year on 15 August, when Koreans mark the anniversary of the end of the Japanese occupation. “We have seen news that a T-shirt worn by one of the members has set off a furore. After asking their record company about this, we made the decision to postpone their appearance on our Nov 9 show,” TV Asahi said. BTS apologised for the cancellation but made no reference to the T-shirt. “We apologise for disappointing fans who were looking forward to this. BTS will continue their efforts to connect with fans on stage and also through music,” the group said. The row comes amid a sharp deterioration in ties between Seoul and Tokyo that began when South Korea suggested it would revisit a 2015 agreement over Japan’s prewar and wartime use of tens of thousands of sex slaves, most of whom were from the Korean peninsula. Japan then withdrew from an international naval review in South Korea after Seoul demanded that it remove the rising sun ensign from its warship. Many South Koreans regard the flag as a symbol of Japanese militarism and colonial rule. Last month, the South Korean supreme court ordered a Japanese company to compensate four South Koreans it had used as forced wartime labour – a decision the Japanese government has called “unacceptable”. The cancellation of the band’s TV appearance comes on the eve of their Japan tour, which begins in Tokyo next Tuesday, and five months after they became the first K-pop band to top the Billboard 200 album chart with Love Yourself: Tear. This week their ninth single in Japan, Fake Love/Airplane pt 2, topped the country’s Oricon daily singles chart. The band, who are also known as the Bangtan Boys, performed in Paris last month in front of the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, with whom they later posed for photos. They have also played to huge audiences in London and New York. ||||| Tokyo (CNN) One of Japan's biggest television stations has canceled a performance of the massively popular K-pop group BTS amid allegations that one of the band members wore a shirt that appears to show the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. The seven-member boy band was scheduled to appear on TV Asahi's flagship music program, Music Station, Friday night. The station said in a statement it chose not to feature BTS after speaking with the record company about why BTS band member Jimin had chosen to wear the shirt. "We deeply apologize the viewers who were looking forward their performance," the station said. CNN has reached out to representatives for BTS, Big Hit Entertainment, for comment. The furor was sparked after images surfaced on social media showing Jimin wearing a shirt emblazoned with the phrase "PATRIOTISM OUR HISTORY LIBERATION KOREA" repeated several times, alongside what appears to be an image of a mushroom cloud over the Japanese city of Nagasaki. It was not clear when the photo of Jimin allegedly wearing the shirt was taken, but local news outlets reported the image was from 2013. Read More ||||| Image copyright Getty Images Image caption BTS have seen huge success within and outside South Korea A Japanese TV show has cancelled an appearance by hugely popular K-pop group BTS, amid controversy over a shirt worn by one of the band members. A picture of Jimin wearing a T-shirt depicting the US atomic bombing of Japan, which killed hundreds of thousands of people, started being shared online. It stirred anger among some Japanese BTS fans, who called it an "insult". BTS later apologised to its fans for not being able to make an appearance. The "atomic bomb" T-shirt also featured Korean independence slogans. It was seen by some in Japan as celebrating the bomb which eventually led to the independence of the Korean peninsula from Japanese colonial rule. Japan and Korea's shared wartime history remains an extremely sensitive topic in both countries. The shirt and the A-bomb BTS, a seven-member Korean pop group, was originally scheduled to perform on TV Asahi's Music Station show on 9 November. "A t-shirt design worn by one of the members caused controversy... we had been discussing it with the record label. However, we decided to postpone their appearance this time," said TV Asahi in a statement published online. It is unclear when exactly Jimin wore the shirt in question, but pictures of him in it started circulating online in October. The shirt, which is still available for sale online, bears the slogan "Patriotism Our History Liberation Korea" and features an iconic photo of the atomic bomb dropped on a Japanese city. Image copyright Ourhistory/Screenshot During the Second World War in 1945, two atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki - the first and only time atomic bombs were used in a war. Hundreds of thousands of people were killed instantly and many more died in the years to come as a result of radiation sickness. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Atomic bomb mushroom clouds over Hiroshima (left) and Nagasaki (right) The bombings led to Japan's surrender and the end of World War Two in Asia- as well as the end of Japan's colonial rule of the Korean peninsula which began in 1910. There are conflicting reports as to when exactly Jimin wore the shirt. Some Korean media reports say it was worn last year while others say he wore it on 15 August this year to mark Korea's Liberation Day. 'I will not allow BTS to appear' Photos of Jimin in the shirt started to gain traction on social media in early November. It wasn't long before the Japanese words for #Unforgiveable and #AtomicBomb started trending on Twitter - and some Japanese social media users were furious. "I am a resident of Hiroshima, I will not allow BTS to appear on the Music Station. They made a joke of the atomic bomb," one Twitter user had said ahead of the cancelled performance. But other fans rallied around BTS. "Don't be sad, this is not your fault, the [tense relations] between both countries is beyond your control... Jimin don't blame yourself," said one Twitter user. "What's so wrong about Koreans commemorating National Liberation Day?" said another Korean user on Twitter. "You guys made the wrong move this time." The cancellation comes as ties between Japan and Korea have become increasingly strained in recent years. Earlier this week, a South Korean court ordered a Japanese company to compensate them for wartime labour during Japan's colonial rule of the Korean peninsula. However, Tokyo maintains the issue of compensation has been settled under an agreement attached to a treaty that was signed in 1965, calling the ruling "unbelievable".

– A popular South Korean boy band was set to appear on one of Japan's biggest TV stations this week, but that appearance has been canceled due to a clothing choice one of its members may have made. Per the Guardian and CNN, K-pop group BTS was scheduled to be on TV Asahi's Music Station program Friday night, in advance of the band's upcoming Japanese tour, but a pic emerged that seemed to show one of the bandmates, 23-year-old Jimin, sporting a long-sleeved tee with the words "Patriotism OurHistory [sic] Liberation Korea" repeated several times, as well as an image of a mushroom cloud over one of the Japanese cities hit by an atomic bomb during WWII (the Guardian says it's a pic of Hiroshima; CNN says Nagasaki). It also shows imagery of Koreans celebrating their liberation from Japan after the bombs were dropped. It's not clear when Jimin allegedly wore the shirt; the Guardian says it was in August 2017, CNN says local media reports it as happening in 2013, and the BBC says it may have been this past summer. Either way, many people weren't thrilled to see him wearing it in the now-viral photo, with Japanese fans calling it an "insult." "I can never accept the act that #BTS member wore the atomic bomb T-shirts," one commenter wrote on Twitter. TV Asahi made a statement on BTS' nixed appearance, noting, "We have seen news that a T-shirt worn by one of the members has set off a [furor]. After asking their record company about this, we made the decision to postpone their appearance on our Nov. 9 show." Meanwhile, per AllKPop.com, the controversial T-shirt itself has sold out on its vendor's site since the photo of it went viral. (Kim Jong Un apparently enjoys K-pop.)

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act of 2017''. SEC. 2. IMPROVING CARE PLANNING FOR MEDICARE HOME HEALTH SERVICES. (a) Part A Provisions.--Section 1814(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395f(a)) is amended-- (1) in paragraph (2)-- (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist who is working in collaboration with a physician in accordance with State law, a certified nurse-midwife (as defined in section 1861(gg)) as authorized by State law, or a physician assistant (as defined in section 1861(aa)(5)) under the supervision of a physician'' after ``1866(j)''; and (B) in subparagraph (C)-- (i) by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse- midwife, or a physician assistant (as the case may be)'' after ``physician'' the first 2 times it appears; and (ii) by striking ``, and, in the case of a certification made by a physician'' and all that follows through ``face-to-face encounter'' and inserting ``, and, in the case of a certification made by a physician after January 1, 2010, or by a nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant (as the case may be) after January 1, 2018, prior to making such certification the physician, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant must document that the physician, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant has had a face-to-face encounter''; (2) in the second sentence, by inserting ``certified nurse- midwife,'' after ``clinical nurse specialist,''; (3) in the third sentence-- (A) by striking ``physician certification'' and inserting ``certification''; (B) by inserting ``(or on January 1, 2018, in the case of regulations to implement the amendments made by section 2 of the Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act of 2017)'' after ``1981''; and (C) by striking ``a physician who'' and inserting ``a physician, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant who''; and (4) in the fourth sentence, by inserting ``, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse- midwife, or physician assistant'' after ``physician''. (b) Part B Provisions.--Section 1835(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395n(a)) is amended-- (1) in paragraph (2)-- (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist (as those terms are defined in 1861(aa)(5)) who is working in collaboration with a physician in accordance with State law, a certified nurse-midwife (as defined in section 1861(gg)) as authorized by State law, or a physician assistant (as defined in section 1861(aa)(5)) under the supervision of a physician'' after ``1866(j)''; and (B) in subparagraph (A)-- (i) in each of clauses (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse-midwife, or a physician assistant (as the case may be)'' after ``physician''; and (ii) in clause (iv), by striking ``after January 1, 2010'' and all that follows through ``face-to-face encounter'' and inserting ``made by a physician after January 1, 2010, or by a nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant (as the case may be) after January 1, 2018, prior to making such certification the physician, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant must document that the physician, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant has had a face-to-face encounter''; (2) in the third sentence, by inserting ``, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse- midwife, or physician assistant (as the case may be)'' after ``physician''; (3) in the fourth sentence-- (A) by striking ``physician certification'' and inserting ``certification''; (B) by inserting ``(or on January 1, 2018, in the case of regulations to implement the amendments made by section 2 of the Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act of 2017)'' after ``1981''; and (C) by striking ``a physician who'' and inserting ``a physician, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, or physician assistant who''; and (4) in the fifth sentence, by inserting ``, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse- midwife, or physician assistant'' after ``physician''. (c) Definition Provisions.-- (1) Home health services.--Section 1861(m) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(m)) is amended-- (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)-- (i) by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner or a clinical nurse specialist (as those terms are defined in subsection (aa)(5)), a certified nurse-midwife (as defined in section 1861(gg)), or a physician assistant (as defined in subsection (aa)(5))'' after ``physician'' the first place it appears; and (ii) by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse- midwife, or a physician assistant'' after ``physician'' the second place it appears; and (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse-midwife, or a physician assistant'' after ``physician''. (2) Home health agency.--Section 1861(o)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(o)(2)) is amended-- (A) by inserting ``, nurse practitioners or clinical nurse specialists (as those terms are defined in subsection (aa)(5)), certified nurse-midwives (as defined in section 1861(gg)), or physician assistants (as defined in subsection (aa)(5))'' after ``physicians''; and (B) by inserting ``, nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified nurse-midwife, physician assistant,'' after ``physician''. (d) Home Health Prospective Payment System Provisions.--Section 1895 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395fff) is amended-- (1) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ``, the nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist (as those terms are defined in section 1861(aa)(5)), the certified nurse-midwife (as defined in section 1861(gg)), or the physician assistant (as defined in section 1861(aa)(5)),'' after ``physician''; and (2) in subsection (e)-- (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting ``, a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist (as those terms are defined in section 1861(aa)(5)), a certified nurse-midwife (as defined in section 1861(gg)), or a physician assistant (as defined in section 1861(aa)(5))'' after ``physician''; and (B) in paragraph (2)-- (i) in the heading, by striking ``Physician certification'' and inserting ``Rule of construction regarding requirement for certification''; and (ii) by striking ``physician''. (e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall apply to items and services furnished on or after January 1, 2018.

Home Health Care Planning Improvement Act of 2017 This bill allows Medicare payment for home health services ordered&nbsp;by a nurse practitioner, a clinical nurse specialist, a certified nurse-midwife, or a physician assistant.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Cyber Security Enhancement Act''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress makes the following findings: (1) The ability of the Federal Government to obtain information on threats and risks to the critical infrastructure of the United States, whether operated by the public sector or private sector and whether domestic or foreign, is vital to the maintenance of United States security and the economic well- being of the United States. (2) Persons in the private sector and non-Federal governmental agencies have expressed a willingness to voluntarily provide sensitive information on critical infrastructure threats and vulnerabilities to the Federal Government contingent on the ability of the Federal Government to protect such information from unrestricted disclosure. (3) The Federal Government needs critical infrastructure information from persons in the private sector and non-Federal governmental agencies in order to protect critical infrastructure from intentional acts of significant harm. (4) The public interest is best served by preserving the confidentiality of critical infrastructure information that is submitted to the Federal Government to the extent necessary to encourage the submittal of such information to the Federal Government. (5) Current Federal law does not provide persons in the private sector and non-Federal governmental agencies with clear assurance that information submitted to the Federal Government on threats and risks to critical infrastructure will be protected from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Freedom of Information Act). (6) There are currently more than 100 exemptions from disclosure of information under the Freedom of Information Act that have been approved by law for other purposes. (7) President Clinton has acknowledged the national security issues that result from the cyber vulnerabilities of the United States in stating that ``[w]e must be ready . . . ready if our adversaries try to use computers to disable our power grids, banking, communications and transportation networks, police, fire and health services, or military assets''. (8) Information sharing among private sector organizations is critical to help identify vulnerabilities and threats to information networks. Many companies are wary of participating in cyber security information sharing activities with one another due to concerns about antitrust penalties. (9) Currently, the maximum penalties for Federal computer crimes are inadequate to punish and deter the most serious computer crimes. (10) In order to catch cyber criminals, a cyber attack must be swiftly traced to its source. (11) A lack of standardization among law enforcement agencies has hindered effective information gathering from industry during investigation of cyber crimes. (12) Many cyber attacks are complicated by the criminal's use of a false Internet protocol (IP) address, thus masking the origin of the attack. There is no legitimate use for a false IP address. SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN SENSITIVE INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT. (a) Limitation.--Critical infrastructure information, records relating to critical infrastructure information, and information on critical infrastructure protection derived from such information or records that is submitted voluntarily by a non-Federal source to a critical infrastructure protection office or program shall not be made available under section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Freedom of Information Act), if the person submitting such information or records expressly requests that such information or records, or information derived therefrom, not be made available under that section. (b) Designation of Office or Program.-- (1) Designation.--The President or the head of a Federal agency may designate an element in the agency as a critical infrastructure office or program for purposes of subsection (a). The head of an agency may not delegate the authority in the preceding sentence. (2) Publication of notice.--The head of the Federal agency concerned shall publish in the Federal Register a notice of intent to designate an element in the Federal agency as a critical infrastructure office or program not later than 30 days before the effective date of such designation. (c) Request for Protection.-- (1) In general.--A person seeking the protection of information or records under subsection (a) shall be treated as having made an express request for protection under that subsection if the person marks the information or records substantially as follows: ``____________ is submitted to a critical infrastructure protection office or program under the provisions of section 3(a) of the Cyber Security Enhancement Act.'' (the blank being filled in with information sufficient to identify the information or records concerned). (2) Limitation.--A request with respect to information or records under subsection (a) may be made only by the person submitting such information or records to the Federal Government. (d) Independently Obtained Information.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or otherwise affect the ability of the Federal Government to obtain and use under applicable law critical infrastructure information obtained by or submitted to the Federal Government in a manner not covered by subsection (a). (e) Operation of State and Local Law.-- (1) Control of united states.--Information or records protected from disclosure under subsection (a) shall be treated as under the control of the Federal Government even if made available to a State or local government. (2) Inapplicability of state or local disclosure law.--No State or local law requiring public disclosure of information or records shall apply to information or records obtained by the Federal Government that are protected from disclosure under subsection (a). (f) Treatment of Voluntary Submittal of Information.--The voluntary submission of information or records that are protected from disclosure by this section shall not be construed to constitute compliance with any requirement to submit such information to a Federal agency under any other provision of law. (g) Withdrawal of Request for Protection.-- (1) Withdrawal.--A request that information or records be protected from disclosure under subsection (a) may be withdrawn at any time by the person making the request. (2) Effect.--The withdrawal of a request under paragraph (1) shall take effect upon receipt of the withdrawal by the Federal agency concerned. (h) Time Limitations on Protection.-- (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the protection of information or records under subsection (a) shall expire at the end of the five-year period beginning on the date of submittal of such information or records to the Federal Government. (2) Extension.--Upon the expiration of the protection of information or records under this section, including any extension of such protection under this subsection, such protection may be extended by an additional period of 5 years. (3) Procedure after expiration.--After expiration under this subsection of the period of protection of information or records under this section, the Federal agency concerned shall, upon receipt of a request for such information or records under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, determine whether the person who originally requested the protection of such information or records under this section seeks to continue the protection of such information or records under this section. If such person does not seek continuation of the protection of such information or records under this section, the protection of such information or records under this section shall cease. (i) Penalties for Unauthorized Disclosure.-- (1) Investigation.--If a court finds that a Federal agency has violated this section, and finds that the circumstances of the violation raise questions whether or not an officer or employee of the agency acted willfully or intentionally with respect to the violation, the agency shall promptly investigate whether or not disciplinary action is warranted against the officer or employee. (2) Authority to act.--Appropriate disciplinary action may be imposed as a result of an investigation under paragraph (1). (j) Scope of Protection.--This section may not be construed to preclude a Federal agency from establishing procedures for sharing critical infrastructure protection information within and outside the Federal Government for purposes related to protecting critical infrastructure. SEC. 4. ANTITRUST MATTERS. (a) Antitrust Exemption.--Except as provided in subsection (b), the antitrust laws shall not apply to conduct engaged in, including making and implementing an agreement, solely for the purpose of and limited to-- (1) facilitating responses intended to correct or avoid a cyber security related problem; or (2) communicating or disclosing information to help correct or avoid the effects of a cyber security related problem. (b) Exception.--Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to conduct that involves or results in an agreement to boycott any person, to allocate a market, or to fix prices or output. (c) Rule of Construction.--The exemption granted by subsection (a) shall be construed narrowly. SEC. 5. FRAUD AND RELATED ACTIVITY IN CONNECTION WITH COMPUTERS. (a) Enhanced Penalties.--Subsection (c) of that section is amended-- (1) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``5 years'' and inserting ``10 years''; (2) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ``ten years'' and inserting ``20 years''; (3) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ``five years'' and inserting ``10 years''; and (4) in paragraph (3)(B), by striking ``ten years'' and inserting ``20 years''. SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE SUBPOENAS IN CASES INVOLVING CYBER CRIME. (a) In General.--Chapter 223 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 3486A the following new section: ``Sec. 3486B. Administrative subpoenas in cases involving cyber crime ``(a) Authorization.-- ``(1) In general.--In any investigation relating to any act or activity involving a violation of section 871, 879, 1029, 1030, 1362, 2511, 2701, 2702, or 2703 of this title, the Attorney General, or the designee of the Attorney General, may issue in writing and cause to be served a subpoena-- ``(A) requiring a provider of electronic communication service or remote computing service to disclose the name, address, Internet protocol address (IP address), local and long distance telephone toll billing records, telephone number or other subscriber number or identity, and length of service of a subscriber to or customer of such service and the types of services the subscriber or customer utilized, which may be relevant to an authorized law enforcement inquiry; or ``(B) requiring a custodian of records to give testimony concerning the production and authentication of such records or information. ``(2) Limitation on disclosure.--Information disclosed under paragraph (1) may not include content of an electronic communication. ``(3) Attendance of witnesses.--Witnesses summoned under this section shall be paid the same fees and mileage that are paid witnesses in the courts of the United States. ``(b) Procedures Applicable.--The same procedures for service and enforcement as are provided with respect to investigative demands under section 3486 of this title shall apply with respect to a subpoena issued under this section.''. (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 223 of such title is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 3486A the following new item: ``3486B. Administrative subpoenas in cases involving cyber crime.''. SEC. 7. STANDARDIZED REQUESTS FOR ELECTRONIC INFORMATION AND RECORDS. (a) Plan To Encourage Standardized Requests.--Not later than six months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit to the President and to the Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and House of Representatives a plan to encourage the standardization of requests of Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies to Internet service providers (ISPs) and other entities for electronic information and records used in the investigation of computer fraud and other computer-related crimes. (b) Consultation.--In preparing the plan, the Attorney General shall consult with the heads of other appropriate Federal agencies, appropriate representatives of State and local law enforcement agencies, and other interested persons. (c) Notice and Comment.--In preparing the plan, the Attorney General shall seek public notice and comment on the plan. SEC. 8. PREVENTION OF INTERNET PROTOCOL ADDRESS SPOOFING. (a) Plan To Encourage Prevention.--Not later than six months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Commerce shall jointly submit to Congress and the President a plan to encourage Internet service providers to take appropriate actions to prevent or impede the use of false Internet protocol addresses as a means of access to Internet servers (commonly referred to as ``IP spoofing''), including the installation and use of Internet servers and routers, and so-called ``firewall'' software, which prevent, impede, or otherwise provide protection against the use of such addresses for that purpose. (b) Consultation.--In preparing the plan, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Commerce shall jointly consult with the heads of other appropriate Federal agencies, appropriate representatives of State and governments, and other interested persons. (c) Notice and Comment.--In preparing the plan, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Commerce shall seek public notice and comment on the plan. SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: (1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meaning given that term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code. (2) Antitrust laws.--The term ``antitrust laws''-- (A) has the meaning given such term in subsection (a) of the first section of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)), except that such term includes section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent such section 5 applies to unfair methods of competition: and (B) includes any State law similar to the laws referred to in subparagraph (A). (3) Critical infrastructure.--The term ``critical infrastructure'' means physical and cyber-based systems, facilities, or services so essential to the United States or the United States economy that the disruption, incapacity, or destruction of such systems, facilities, or services would have a debilitating impact on the defense, security, economic prosperity, or health or safety of the United States. (4) Critical infrastructure information.--The term ``critical infrastructure information'' means information concerning threats, vulnerabilities, risks, and mitigation of same pertinent to critical infrastructure. (5) Critical infrastructure protection office or program.-- The term ``critical infrastructure protection office or program'' means an element of a Federal agency that is designated by the President or the head of the agency as having functions relating to the protection of critical infrastructure from intentional acts or significant harm. (6) Cyber security.--The term ``cyber security'' means the vulnerability of any computing system, software program, or critical infrastructure to, or their ability to resist, intentional interference, compromise, or incapacitation through the misuse of, or by unauthorized means of, the Internet, public or private telecommunications systems, or other similar conduct that violates Federal, State, or international law, that harms interstate commerce of the United States, or that threatens public health or safety. (7) Voluntary.--The term ``voluntary'', in the case of submittal of information or records to the Federal Government, means that the information or records were submitted-- (A) without mandate or compulsion; and (B) not as a condition of doing business with the Federal Government.

Makes the antitrust laws inapplicable to conduct: (1) facilitating responses intended to correct or avoid a cyber security related problem; or (2) communicating or disclosing information to help correct or avoid the effects of such a problem. Amends the Federal criminal code to: (1) increase the maximum terms of imprisonment for fraud and related activities in connection with the use of computers; and (2) authorize the use of subpoenas in cases involving cyber crime. Requires a plan to encourage: (1) the standardization of Federal, State, and local law enforcement requests to Internet service providers and other entities for electronic information and records used to investigate computer crimes; and (2) such providers to prevent or impede the use of false Internet protocol addresses as a means of access to Internet servers.

the method of separation of variables ( also known as the fourier method ) is one of the oldest and most widely used techniques for solving linear partial differential equations ( lpdes ) @xcite . moreover , variable separation solutions are trigonometric series in general . however , this method can not be used to deal with the lpdes which are not separable . in addition , variable separation solutions usually could not be expressed by power series and exponential series . for simplicity , we write @xmath0 some keys in solving many lpdes ( such as the wave equation ) by using the method of separation of variables are : \(a ) the functions in the boundary conditions of these lpdes can be expressed by trigonometric series ( fourier series ) . \(b ) stretching transformation ( eigenvalues and eigenvectors ) : @xmath1 our work s motivation partly comes from the following ideas : ( a ) there are some functions which can be expressed by power series or exponential series ( taylor series ) . for examples : @xmath2 ( b ) stretching transformation ( eigenvalues and eigenvectors ) : @xmath3 then base on ( a ) , ( b ) , ( a ) , ( b ) , the undetermined coefficient method and the superposition principle for the solution of lpdes , we introduce a new technique , by using which we can solve the cauchy problem for many lpdes even if they are not separable , such as some second order elliptic equation , stokes equations and so on . moreover , the solutions of them can be trigonometric series , power series or exponential series . let @xmath4 where @xmath5 . then for any @xmath6 , we have @xmath7 then by using an iterative method with respect to , we can solve many lpdes and nonlinear pdes ( npdes ) for the first time . notation @xmath8 let @xmath9 be an @xmath10 matrix differential operator , and let @xmath11 where @xmath12 , @xmath13 , @xmath14 , @xmath15 , @xmath16 , @xmath17,$ ] @xmath18 . in this section , we consider the cauchy problem for the following lpdes : u(x , t)=f(x , t ) , x , 0tt,[1b ] + _ t^hu_q|_t=0=_kr_qhk_kc ( ) , 1qn , 0hm_q-1 , [ 3b ] + f_j=_k_kz_kj(t)c ( ) , 1jn,[4b ] where @xmath19 @xmath20 , @xmath21 , @xmath22 , and @xmath23 . we say eq . - fulfils the fourier - taylor conditions , which we shall denote by @xmath24),\ \{\xi_k\}_{k\in \lambda},$ ] if for any @xmath25 , there exists a sequence @xmath26 such that @xmath27 next we solve eq . - when @xmath28 holds . we let @xmath29 where @xmath30 . suppose that the following conditions hold : @xmath31),\\ \\ \partial_{t}^{h}\partial _ { x}^{\alpha_{pqhj}}u = \sum\limits_{k\in \lambda}t_{k}^{(h)}(t)\partial _ { x}^{\alpha_{pqhj}}\xi_{k}\in c(\omega\oplus[0,t]),\ \ 1\leq p , q\leq n,\ 0\leq h\leq m_{pq},\ 1\leq j\leq w_{pqh}. \end{array } \right.\ ] ] then by substituting the series into eq . - we have @xmath32 for every @xmath33 , let @xmath34 this is a cauchy problem for an odes , so we may get @xmath35 . we call the series a formal solution of eq . - w.r.t . ( with respect to ) @xmath36 . if @xmath37),\ \{\xi_k\}_{k\in \lambda}$ ] , and if the solution of eq . exists and is unique for every @xmath33 , then the formal solution of eq . - w.r.t . @xmath36 exists and is unique . [ thm3.3 ] suppose that the series is a formal solution of eq . - w.r.t . if it satisfies the conditions , then it is a solution of eq . - . clearly if @xmath38 is a finite set , then the conditions hold . so we have : [ thm3.4 ] if @xmath38 is a finite set , then a formal solution of eq . - w.r.t . @xmath36 is a solution . next we solve a well known partial differential equation by using the above technique . the result we obtain is exactly the same as the variable separation solutions . however , our technique is more simple and intuitive . ( wave equation @xcite ) . u_tt - a^2u_xx=0 , 0xl , t0 , a\{0},[3.1a1 ] + u(x,0)=_k_+a_k , u_t(x,0)=_k_+b_k,[3.2a1 ] + u(0,t)=u(l , t)=0.[3.aaa ] if we delete the condition , then @xmath39\oplus [ 0,+\infty))$ ] , @xmath40 . next we set @xmath41 it satisfies . suppose that the series satisfies the following conditions : @xmath42\oplus [ 0,+\infty)),\\ u_{xx}=\sum\limits_{k\in \mathbb{n}_+}t_{k}(t)\left(\sin\frac{k\pi x}{l}\right)''\in c([0,l]\oplus [ 0,+\infty)),\\ u_{tt}=\sum\limits_{k\in \mathbb{n}_+}t''_{k}(t)\sin\frac{k\pi x}{l}\in c([0,l]\oplus [ 0,+\infty ) ) . \end{array } \right.\ ] ] then by substituting the series into eq . - we have @xmath43 next for any @xmath44 , we let @xmath45 then we have @xmath46 so the formal solution of eq . - w.r.t . @xmath40 is : @xmath47 [ thm3.7 ] if @xmath48 then the series is a solution of eq . - . the inequality implies that the series satisfies the conditions , so it is a solution of eq . - by theorem [ thm3.3 ] . the following pdes could not be dealt with by using the method of separation of variables , one reason is that they are not separable . however , we can get the exact solutions of them . ( second order hyperbolic equation ) @xmath49 we let @xmath50 then we have @xmath51 thus @xmath52 . so we let @xmath53 suppose that the series satisfies the following conditions : @xmath54 then by substituting the series into eq . we have @xmath55 for any @xmath56 , let @xmath57 where @xmath58 . then we get the formal solution of eq . w.r.t . @xmath59 : @xmath60 , \ ] ] where @xmath61 similar as theorem [ thm3.7 ] , we have if @xmath62 then the series is a solution of eq . . ( second order elliptic equation ) @xmath63 note that @xmath64 so we have @xmath65 . we can get the formal solution of eq . w.r.t . @xmath66 : @xmath67 it s easy to prove that the series is a solution of eq . . @xmath68 note that @xmath69 where @xmath70 so @xmath71 . we can get the formal solution of eq . w.r.t . @xmath72 : @xmath73 moreover , we can prove that @xmath74 so the series is a solution of eq . . ( stokes equations@xcite-@xcite ) . @xmath75 where @xmath76 , @xmath77 @xmath78 . obviously @xmath79 . so we let @xmath80 suppose that the series satisfy the following conditions : u_j=_k^3t_jk(t)_kc(^3[0,+ ) ) , j=1,2,3 , [ 11nb ] + p=_k^3t_4k(t)_kc(^3[0,+ ) ) , [ 22nb ] + u_jt=_k^3t_jk(t)_kc(^3[0,+ ) ) , j=1,2,3 , [ 33nb ] + u_jx_mx_m=_k^3 -(_mk_m)^2t_jk(t)_kc(^3[0,+ ) ) , m , j=1,2,3 , [ 55nb ] + p_x_j=_k^3i_jk_jt_4k(t)_kc(^3[0,+ ) ) , j=1,2,3 . [ 77nb ] by substituting the series - into eq . we get @xmath81\varphi_{k}=0,\ \ j=1,2,3,\\ \sum\limits_{k\in \mathbb{z}^3}(i\lambda_1k_1 t_{1k}+i\lambda_2k_2 t_{2k}+i\lambda_3k_3 t_{3k})\varphi_{k}=0,\\ u_j(x,0)=\sum\limits_{k\in \mathbb{z}^3}a_{jk}\varphi_{k}=\sum\limits_{k\in \mathbb{z}^3}t_{jk}(0)\varphi_k,\ \ j=1,2,3 . \end{array } \right.\ ] ] for any @xmath82 , we let @xmath83 for every @xmath84 , the first equation in eq . is multiplied by @xmath85 , then we can induce that @xmath86 hence we have @xmath87 clearly we have : [ thmst1 ] if @xmath88 then the series we obtain is a solution of eq . . if @xmath89 are the real - valued functions , then we have @xmath90 , @xmath91 , @xmath92 . so we can induce that : [ thmst1 ] if @xmath89 are the real - valued functions , then so do the functions we obtain . in this section , using an iterative method with respect to , we deal with several lpdes . this technique can solve many lpdes . [ exl ] @xmath93 clearly we have @xmath94 next we set @xmath95 suppose that the series satisfies the following conditions : u=_kt_k(y)e^-k(x+2)c(),[zb1 ] + u_t= _ kt_k(y)e^-k(x+2)c(),[zb2 ] + u_xt= _ k_+-kt_k(y)e^-k(x+2)c(),[zb4 ] + ( e^e^-(x+2)-1)u= _ k_+ _ m=0k-1e^-k(x+2 ) c ( ) . [ zb5 ] substituting the series into the equations we have @xmath96e^{-k(x+2)}=0,\\ u(x,0)=\sum\limits_{k\in \mathbb{n}}t_k(0)e^{-k(x+2)}=1+e^{-(x+2)}. \end{array } \right.\ ] ] let @xmath97 then we have @xmath98 next we prove that the formal solution is also a solution of . by the induction method , we can prove that @xmath99 so we have @xmath100 hence the series converges uniformly on @xmath101 . it means that the formal solution satisfies . moreover , we can prove that @xmath102 so the series we obtain satisfies - . therefore it is a solution of . @xmath103 similar as example [ exl ] , we can get a solution : @xmath104 where @xmath105 in this section , similar as section [ secl ] , using an iterative method with respect to , we deal with several nlpes . this technique also can solve many npdes . [ idl ] ( abel identities @xcite ) for every @xmath44 , we have @xmath106 where @xmath107 . [ exn1 ] ( inviscid burgers equation ) . @xmath108\},\\ u(x,0)=1+e^{x-12}. \end{array } \right.\ ] ] next we let @xmath109 suppose that the following conditions hold : u=_kt_k(t)e^k(x-12)c ( ) , [ ib2 ] + u_t=_kt_k(t)e^k(x-12)c ( ) , [ ib3 ] + u_x=_k_+k t_k(t)e^k(x-12)c(),[ib4 ] + uu_x=_k_+ _ r=1^kr t_r(t)t_k - r(t)e^k(x-12)c().[ib5 ] substituting the series into , we get @xmath110 note that the sequence @xmath111 is linearly independent , so we have @xmath112 then by lemma [ idl ] , we can get @xmath113 so we get @xmath114 next we prove that the series satisfies - . note that @xmath115 , so we have @xmath116 so the series converges uniformly on @xmath101 . it means that the formal solution satisfies . moreover , we can prove that @xmath117 thus the series is a solution of . @xmath118 similar as example [ exn1 ] , we let @xmath119 suppose that the following conditions hold : u=_k_+t_k(t)(x+1)^-kc([1,+)[0,+ ) ) , [ 1qq ] + u_x=_k_+-kt_k(t)(x+1)^-k-1c([1,+)[0,+ ) ) , [ 2qq ] + u_t=_k_+t_k(t)(x+1)^-kc([1,+)[0,+ ) ) , [ 3qq ] + u_xx=_k_+k(k+1)t_k(t)(x+1)^-k-2c([1,+)[0,+ ) ) , [ 4qq ] + u_xu=_k3 _ r=1^k-2-r t_r(t)t_k-1-r(t)(x+1)^-kc([1,+)[0,+)).[5qq ] substituting into , we get @xmath120 note that the sequence @xmath121 is linearly independent , so we have @xmath122 then we get @xmath123 next we prove that the formal solution satisfies - . by the induction method , we can prove that @xmath124 so the series @xmath125 converges uniformly on @xmath126 . it means that the formal solution satisfies . moreover , we can prove that @xmath127 so the formal solution satisfies - . thus it is a solution of . the paper is supported by the natural science foundation of china ( no . 11371185 ) and the natural science foundation of inner mongolia , china ( no . 2013zd01 ) .

the method of separation of variables can be used to solve many separable linear partial differential equations ( lpdes ) . moreover , variable separation solutions usually are some trigonometric series . in the paper , base on some ideas of this method , we introduce a new technique to solve the cauchy problem for some lpdes with the initial conditions consisting of some trigonometric series , power series and exponential series . then many lpdes which are not separable are solved , such as some second order elliptic equations , stokes equations and so on . in addition , the solutions of them can be expressed by trigonometric series , power series or exponential series . moreover , by using power amd exponential series and an iterative method , we can solve many lpdes and nonlinear pdes for the first time .

Want a short respite from Facebook? A clean break? Here's what to do. With more than half a billion members and 900 million community pages, Facebook offers a world of online distractions. Yet for all the social network's virtues – family photos, enthusiast groups, and an inexhaustible stream of friend updates – Facebook still exudes the faint odor of its potential ills – privacy concerns, replacing human interactions with digital small talk, and an incessant stream of I-don't-really-know-you updates. Many campaigns have called for users to outright delete their accounts. "For a lot of people, quitting Facebook revolves around privacy," says QuitFacebookDay.com. "This is a legitimate concern, but we also think the privacy issue is just the symptom of a larger set of issues." The website claims 37,700 members have committed to quit, though there's no way to confirm signatories actually bit the bullet. And the group's rallying page on Facebook reports 8,499 "like" this campaign, but everyone in that tally is still an active Facebook user. For most people, deleting a Facebook account is the nuclear option. The site is often more fun than it is troubling – more convenient than annoying. Still, if you're not totally happy, here are some ways to mitigate Facebook's frustrations – such as how to put your account on ice, how to block certain annoying users, and how to see exactly how much dirt Facebook has on you. Take a break: In late August, pastor Kerry Shook in Woodlands, Texas, lit up the blogosphere with his call for a "Facebook Fast." Take a 24-hour break from regular online life, he said, and reflect on what really matters. Mr. Shook's no technophobe. He has a healthy following on both Facebook and Twitter and updates those accounts regularly. But for one day, he said, "write a handwritten letter or card and mail it. Meet up with a friend for a face-to-face conversation." If you're looking for a longer-term vacation from Facebook, the social network offers a way to shelve your account without tossing all the hard work you've put in over the years. "Deactivating" an account saves your friends lists, photos, and profile information but keeps them completely hidden from other users. The process only takes a few clicks. From Facebook, cruise to your Account tab in the top right corner and click on Account Settings. Then, choose the bottom option, Deactivate Account. After a goofy appeal for you to stay, Facebook asks why you decided to leave and whether you want to message any friends that "will miss you." ||||| Want a short respite from Facebook? A clean break? Here's what to do. Hide from the hyper: Plenty of Facebook users have at least one "friend" who's a little too active: a college acquaintance who posts hourly pap or a distant cousin who thinks all of your updates deserve a response from her. You could remove these people from your friends list. Facebook will not notify them of your severed ties. You will no longer show up on their friends list, however, which might make for an awkward conversation once they realize you're gone. A cleaner option is to hide their status updates. When you roll the cursor over a message on Facebook, a little X appears in the top corner. Clicking on it gives you two options. First, you can "Hide" all messages from that person. You'll still be "friends" but their updates won't clutter up your home page. Or, you can "Mark as Spam," which removes that single message and alerts Facebook to keep an eye on that person. Again, Facebook will not notify the other person of either action. What if you want to hide your status updates from certain friends? Next time you type in a public message, check out the lock icon just left of the "Share" button. This feature lets you direct your broadcasts, either by targeting specific people or avoiding others. Clicking through the pop-up menu, you can also save lists, such as "family," "college buddies," or "everybody but you-know-who." Discover what Facebook knows: With continuing concern over its privacy standards, Facebook recently rolled out an easy way to learn everything that the social network has collected on you. Members can download every message, picture, profile item, friend list, and event – basically every meaningful action you've ever taken on Facebook. This personal encyclopedia entry comes as a single, giant Zip file. Critics have demanded such a feature for years, arguing that the company has made it too easy for advertisers to collect information on users while making it difficult for its own members to see what's available. To download this data dump, click on the Account tab at the top of each Facebook page, then choose Account Settings. From there, look for "Download Your Information." (Facebook is distributing this feature piecemeal, so if the option isn't available, check back in a few days.) Once you've asked for the download, Facebook will comb its site and alert you when the Zip file is ready. This process can take up to a few hours, depending on how prolific you've been online. Finally, the site will ask for your password again, to ensure someone else isn't intruding on your information. Theoretically, the feature would also make it easy for unhappy users to ditch Facebook and move all their information over to a new social network. Go nuclear: If these controls aren't enough, perhaps it's time to quit cold turkey. Facebook makes it pretty easy to walk away forever. Click on "Help" in the bottom right corner of any Facebook page. Look for "How do I permanently delete my account?" which is the top frequently asked question. Near the bottom of the explanation lies a link to formally request deletion. Fill out the form, and you're free. Page: 1 | 2

– Annoyed with Facebook or, more precisely, with everyone in your Facebook orbit? Chris Gaylord offers a primer on various ways to make the pain go away, up to and including the "nuclear option" of deleting your account. Gaylord offers step-by-step instructions in the Christian Science Monitor on how to: Deactivate temporarily: Your profile info, photos, etc., are all saved but hidden from users. You can sign back in at any time to restore the account. Think of it as a trial separation. Shield pests: Sure, you can delete annoying people from your friends list, but you can also take the less awkward steps of hiding their status updates so you never see them—or hiding yours from them. Privacy worries: If this is your beef, it's easy to request all the stuff Facebook has collected on you, and it arrives in a "single, giant Zip file." Go nuclear: It's also "pretty easy" to delete your account, and Gaylord explains how to find the link under the Help button. For more. click here.

in the following we perform a validity test of the formulae ( 40 ) and ( 41 ) when using microscopic model , describing superconducting properties of a system with two hybrydized electronic bands . the cooper - pairs attraction , responsible for the superconducting properties , we choose in the form of the intersite interaction restricted to only one band ( one superconducting order parameter ) . the hamiltonian of this model can be written in the form ( great canonical ensemble ) two electronic bands are characterized by the hopping intergrals @xmath117 ( @xmath118 ; @xmath119 , @xmath120 ) . the parameters @xmath121 and @xmath122 denote the hybridization and intersite cooper - pairs attraction , respectively . the electronic annihilation ( creation ) operators ( @xmath118 ; @xmath123 ) are denoted by @xmath124 @xmath125 , respectively , where @xmath126 is the lattice site index . for simplicity , we consider simple cubic ( sc ) lattice . similarly to ref . [ 26 ] we apply the mean field approximation ( see the third term in ( 55 ) ) where @xmath140 ( we assume @xmath141 ) is the amplitude of the superconducting order parameter ( @xmath142 - symmetry ) . looking at the expressions ( 61)-(63 ) and ( 65 ) we see that the only dispression in our system is generated by the formfactor ( 64 ) of the sc lattice . it means that we can convert @xmath143 where @xmath144 is the true density of states of the sc lattice given by the jelitto formula [ 27 ] . applying the standard green s function approach ( cf e.g. [ 28 ] ) we can find a set of transcendental equations of the type ( @xmath118 ; @xmath145 ) where @xmath149 is the average number of electrons per lattice site . the calculations of all necessary quantities to check the formulae ( 40 ) and ( 41 ) are very laborious and lead to very complicated expressions ( to long to present here ) . therefore we are forced to describe only the general calculation scheme and to present final , numerical results . the implicit equations ( 66)-(68 ) allow to calculate the temperature dependence of the square amplitude @xmath150 ( it is just the order parameter in the sense of the landau s theory ) and @xmath151 as function of temperature . the calculation of the specific heat per lattice site @xmath152 can be performed with the use of ( 58 ) when calculating and differentiating it with respect to @xmath154 . this differentiation is , however , very laborious because @xmath150 and @xmath151 fulfil the equations ( 66)-(68 ) and are also temperature dependent . in other words , we have to differentiate them with respect to @xmath154 to calculate the temeprature derivatives of @xmath150 and @xmath151 ( necessary to check the formulae ( 40 ) and ( 41 ) . the transition temperature @xmath0 ( phase transition from superconducting to normal state ) can be obtained from the equation ( 67 ) . it is easy to see that @xmath0 should fulfil the following equation the function @xmath156 in ( 70 ) is exactly the same as in the rhs of ( 67 ) but we have additionally assumed that the order parameter is equal to zero ( @xmath13 ) . we should also calculate the derivative @xmath157 . it can be performed by the differentiation of the equations ( 70 ) , ( 66 ) and ( 68 ) with respect to @xmath158 ( we put @xmath13 therein ( the order parameter is equal to zero ) ) . in such a way we have all necessary quantities to check the formulae ( 40 ) and ( 41 ) . these formulae we should first rewrite in the following way ( @xmath159 , @xmath160 @xmath161 ( the second landau s parameter per lattice site ) ) . thus , we obtain the results of our calculations are presented in fig . 1 . we see ( fig . 1a , c ) that @xmath165 and the temperature derivative of the chemical potential exhibit jumps at @xmath13 whereas the coefficient @xmath166 is a continuous function at the critical point ( fig . it results in the jump of the specific heat per lattice site @xmath152 ( fig . 1d ) at @xmath13 . it would be interseting to know whether the temperature behaviour of the coefficients ( fig.1a , b , c ) in ( 73 ) is a general property of all superconductors ( when write the specific heat in the form ( 73 ) ) or only a property of this particular model . this question needs a verification from the experimental ( nobody has proved it till now ) and also from the theoretical point of view ( when consider another microscopic models ) . from the other hand , the model we have applied here , should qualitatively reproduce all general properties of superconductors . therefore it is very probably that only coefficient @xmath167 and the temperature derivative of the chemical potential exibit jumps at the critical point whereas the coefficient @xmath168 is a continuous function for these materials . the plots of the derivatives @xmath169 and @xmath170 are given in fig . 1e and fig . 1f , respectively . calculating the lhs of ( 71 ) and ( 72 ) independently by means of the data displayed in the figs 1c - f we obtain almost the same value of the second landau s parameter per lattice site @xmath171 @xmath172 . it also means that the formula ( 46 ) is automatically fulfilled ( see fig . 1c , d , e ) . the general , phenomenological relations ( 16 ) , ( 22 ) and ( 25)-(28 ) together with their analogs ( 40)-(45 ) seem to be very important for superconducting systems in the practice because they connect different macroscopic thermodynamical quantities at the critical point . they also allowed to obtain interesting cross - relations ( 29)-(36 ) and ( 46)-(53 ) between different critical jumps and the critical temperature derivatives or between the separate jumps . due to a variety of relations we have a possibility to estimate in an indirect way many of the critical jumps without performing experiments . such a possibility can especially be interesting in many cases where experiments are difficult to perform and the information gained in this way can be decisive as e.g. the indication for the hole - type superconductivity in the high-@xmath173superconductor @xmath174 ( see refs [ 6 ] , [ 7 ] for details ) . the derived critical relations ( 29)-(36 ) and ( 46)-(53 ) are also valid for a more general case of superconducting , correlated systems with many order parameters ( multiband systems ) . as a consequence of electronic correlations the critical temperature @xmath0 is the same for all order parameters ( all of them vanish for @xmath175 ) . to make a proof of the statement that the relations ( 29)-(36 ) and ( 46)-(53 ) are valid in this case we consider the gibbs potential in the form @xmath176 as a generalization of the gibbs potential ( 4 ) after taylor expansion with respect to the order parameters @xmath177 ( @xmath178 ) . the parameters @xmath179 , @xmath180 ( @xmath181 ) have similar meaning as in the formula ( 4 ) . using the orthogonal transformation @xmath182 the bilinear form in ( n.1 ) can always be diagonalized ( @xmath180 ) and instead of the formulae ( n.1 ) we obtain the following expression ( similar to ( 4 ) ) @xmath183 where @xmath184 and @xmath185 ( @xmath178 ) are the eigenvalues of the matrix @xmath186 . the quantities @xmath187 ( @xmath178 ) can be treated as `` new '' order parameters because of the reciprocal relation @xmath188 and due to the fact ( see ( n.4 ) ) that @xmath189 ( @xmath190 ) vanish at the same critical temperature @xmath0 as the order parameters @xmath177 ( @xmath190 ) . from the minimum principle ( @xmath191 , @xmath190 ) we obtain @xmath192 and this equation can be used to eliminate @xmath185 ( @xmath190 ) from the expression ( n.3 ) . we obtain in this way very similar expression to ( 9 ) , it is @xmath193 to each @xmath194 and @xmath187 ( @xmath190 ) we apply analogous assumptions to ( 7 ) and ( 8) where the lower index @xmath126 should be added . repeating the calculations similar to the described above ( see ( 10)-(28 ) ) we obtain analogous expressions to ( 16 ) , ( 22 ) and ( 25)-(28 ) . these new expressions , however , can easily be obtained from ( 16 ) , ( 22 ) and ( 25)-(28 ) when replace @xmath195 ^ 2 $ ] on the rhs of them by a new quantity @xmath196 ^ 2 $ ] . this new quantity is irrelevant when forming the quotients ( see ( 29)-(33 ) ) because it cancels out . thus , the formulae ( 29)-(33 ) and the resulting cross relations ( 34)-(36 ) remain unchanged . exactly the same can be said about the formulae ( 46)-(53 ) which remain also the same when apply the procedure described in this section with respect to the helmholtz potential @xmath197 as a generalization of ( 39 ) for the case of superconducting systems with many order parameters .

we investigate superconducting systems with the use of the phenomenological landau s theory of second order phase transitions , including into the considerations the critical behaviour of the chemical potential . we derive in this way a variety of new thermodynamical relations at the critical point . twelve basic relations connect critical jumps of different thermodynamical quantites ( specific heat , chemical potential derivatives with respect to temperature , pressure ( volume ) and number of particles , volume ( pressure ) derivatives with respect to temperature and pressure ( volume ) ) with the critical temperature or its derivatives with respect to the number of particles or pressure ( volume ) . these relations allow to find plenty of cross - relations between different quantities at the critical point . the derived formulae can practically be used in many cases to find such thermodynamical quantities at the critical point which are extremely difficult to measure under the assumption that the other ones are already known . we additionally perform a test of the two derived relations by using two - band microscopic model , describing superconducting systems . we calculate the specific heat , order parameter and chemical potential as functions of temperature to show that the tested relations are very well fulfilled . subject classification : 05.70.fh ; 74.20.de ; 74.25.bt [ [ introduction ] ] introduction + + + + + + + + + + + + first observations of the chemical potential critical behaviour at second order phase transitions has been performed for superconductors ( see refs [ 1 - 10 ] ) . it has been found that at the critical temperature @xmath0 ( phase transition : superconductor - normal system ) the temperature dependence of the chemical potential exhibits a kink ( change in slope ) , manifesting in this way the appearance of the phase transition ( cf also refs [ 11 - 23 ] ) . for superconducting systems ( see ref . [ 6 ] ) , an interesting relation between the jump of the chemical potential temperature derivative and the jump of the specific heat at the critical point has been derived with the use of the phenomenological , landau s theory of second order phase transitions ( cf refs [ 24 , 25 ] ) . it is , however , possible to include in a more complete way the chemical potential critical behaviour into the general scheme of the landau s theory for superconducting systems to derive new relations between different thermodynamical quantities at the critical point . starting from the gibbs potential we derive six basic relations and further six ones are resulting from the helmholtz potential . there are two relations connecting the critical jump of the specific heat at constant pressure ( volume ) and the critical temperature . the next two relate the critical jump of the chemical potential temperature derivative and the critical temperature derivative with respect to the number of particles ( constant pressure ( volume ) ) . critical jumps of the volume ( pressure ) derivatives with respect to temperature and pressure ( volume ) can be connected with the critical temperature derivatives with respect to pressure ( volume ) , resulting in four relations . the next four relations connect critical jumps of the chemical potential derivatives with respect to pressure ( volume ) and the number of particles with the critical temperature derivatives with respect to the number of particles and pressure ( volume ) . these twelve basic relations can be combined together by forming ratios of different critical jumps . in this way we eliminate an unknown parameter of the landau s theory ( second landau s parameter ) and we connect directly the mentioned ratios with the critical temperature of the system and its derivatives . these relations can be very useful in the practice because they allow to find an unknown critical jump ( or unknown critical temperature derivative ) when the other quantities are already known from experimental data . one can additionally eliminate the critical temperature derivatives from these relations to obtain six independent cross - relations between different critical jumps and the critical temperature of the system . these formulae can also be practically used to find an uknown critical jump under the assumption that the other critical jumps are already known . we additionally perform a test of two basic relations , desribed above , when independently calculate the second landau s parameter from these two relations . to this purpose we applied two - band , microscopic model , describing superconducting systems . the numerical calculation of the specific heat jump and the jump of the order parameter at the critical point , as well as , the critical temperature derivative with respect to the number of particles ( electrons ) reveals almost the same value for the second landau s parameter when calculate it from these two independent relations . it seems to be very strange that the analytical derivation of the formulae , we have numerically tested , is extremely difficult to do for this particular , microscopic model ( we could not perform it ) because of its great complexity ( to many implicit equations to solve ) whereas the phenomenological derivation is not only general ( independent from the assumed microscopic model ) and straightforward but also true ( ! ) . [ [ phenomenological - relations ] ] phenomenological relations + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + within the phenomenological theory of second order phase transitions ( see refs [ 24 , 25 ] ) one assumes the existence of the order parameter @xmath1 . for simplicity , we assume that the system can be described by only one order parameter . for superconducting systems the order parameter @xmath2 where @xmath3 is the superconducting order parameter ( or its amplitude in the case of anisotropic superconductivity ) . the order parameter should fulfil a selfconsistent equation of the general form @xmath4 where the variables @xmath5 @xmath6 @xmath7 denote the absolute temperature , pressure and number of particles of the system . this equation can formally be resolved to give an equation @xmath8 of such a property that @xmath9 for @xmath10 where @xmath11 is the critical temperature of the transition from superconducting to normal phase . one assumes also that the thermodynamic properties of the system can be desribed by the gibbs potential @xmath12 in the vicinity of @xmath13 ( @xmath14 ) the order parameter @xmath1 is very small and therefore we can expand the gibbs potential ( 3 ) into the taylor series ( we retain quadratic terms ) @xmath15 where @xmath16 and @xmath17 are first and second derivatives of @xmath18 with respect to @xmath1 at the point @xmath9 . the minimum principle ( @xmath19 @xmath20 , aplied to ( 4 ) results in the expression @xmath21 to obtain a general form of the phenomenological parameter @xmath22 in the vicinity of the critical point we can apply again the taylor expansion with respect to a small quantity @xmath23 . we get @xmath24 however , at @xmath13 the order parameter @xmath25 it means also that @xmath26 ( see ( 6 ) and ( 5 ) ) . thus , we obtain @xmath27 and @xmath28 eliminating the phenomenological parameter @xmath17 from ( 4 ) by means of ( 5 ) we get @xmath29 and using the thermodynamic relations @xmath30 @xmath31 we can write @xmath32 the specific heat difference , produced by ( 12 ) is given by relation @xmath33 to obtain the jump of the specific heat @xmath34 at the critical point we have to insert @xmath13 into ( 13 ) taking also into accout that @xmath35 at @xmath13 ( see ( 7 ) , ( 8) ) . thus , we obtain @xmath36 however , when looking at ( 8) we can see that @xmath37 where @xmath38 is just the jump of the temperature derivative of the order parameter at @xmath13 because the order parameter @xmath1 vanishes for @xmath39 . thus , we can rewrite ( 14 ) with the use of ( 15 ) by eliminating @xmath40 . we obtain @xmath41 ^2.\ ] ] the chemical potential of the system can be introduced from the general expression for the gibbs potential using the relations @xmath42 these relations applied to ( 9 ) result @xmath43 thus , the jump of the chemical potential temperature derivative at @xmath13 @xmath44 @xmath45 for @xmath46 is equal to @xmath47 using ( 7 ) , ( 8) and ( 15 ) we find @xmath48@xmath49 & = & b\left ( \frac{\partial t_s}{\partial n}\right ) _ p\left [ \delta \left ( \frac{\partial x}{\partial t}\right ) _ { p , n , t = t_s}\right]\end{aligned}\ ] ] and @xmath50 & = & -\left ( \frac{\partial t_s}{\partial n}\right ) _ p\left [ \delta \left ( \frac{\partial x}{\partial t}\right ) _ { p , n , t = t_s}\right ] .\end{aligned}\ ] ] introducing ( 20 ) and ( 21 ) into ( 19 ) we get @xmath51 ^2.}\ ] ] it is also easy to find that @xmath52 @xmath53 we can perform similar calculations as above to find critical jumps of the following thermodynamical quantities : @xmath54 , @xmath55 , @xmath56 and @xmath57 . starting from the expression for the gibbs potential ( 9 ) with the use of the thermodynamical relations @xmath58 ( @xmath59 ) , @xmath60 ( @xmath61 ) and the above formulae ( 15 ) , ( 20 ) , ( 21 ) , ( 23 ) and ( 24 ) we obtain @xmath62 ^2},\ ] ] @xmath63 ^2},\ ] ] @xmath64 ^2{\left [ \delta \left ( \frac{\partial x}{\partial t}\right ) _ { p , n , t = t_s}\right ] ^2}\ ] ] and @xmath65 ^2{\left [ \delta \left ( \frac{\partial x}{\partial t}\right ) _ { p , n , t = t_s}\right ] ^2}.\ ] ] using the maxwell relations @xmath66 , @xmath67 and @xmath68 @xmath69 we can see that the other critical jumps @xmath70 , @xmath71 and @xmath72 can easily be obtained from ( 25 ) , ( 22 ) and ( 26 ) , respectively . in other words , there are only six independent expressions describing the critical jumps of the first derivatives ( ( 16 ) , ( 22 ) and ( 25)-(28 ) ) . these expressions are very important because with the use of them we can find many interesting cross - relations . dividing e.g. ( 22 ) and ( 25)-(28 ) by ( 16 ) we obtain five independent ratios ( the specific heat critical jump is finite for superconductors ) : @xmath73 @xmath74 @xmath75 @xmath76 and @xmath77 it is , however , possible to find also another ratios ( equivalent to the above relations ) . when eliminate the derivatives @xmath78 and @xmath79 from the above expressions we can obtain three independent cross - relations connecting different critical jumps : @xmath80 @xmath81 ^2\ ] ] and @xmath82 ^2.\ ] ] these relations allow to find some critical jumps which are difficult to measure , knowing the other from experiments , without necessity to know the derivatives of the critical temperature . we can also derive several additional relations , when using the thermodynamical relationship resulting from the gibbs potential ( 1 ) @xmath83 the equation ( 37 ) can formally be resolved to obtain the equation of state @xmath84 we can insert it into ( 1 ) to obtain @xmath85 which is nothing else but the helmholtz potential . we can further apply exactly the same procedure as described above starting again with the taylor expansion of the expression ( 39 ) with respect to the order parameter in the vicinity of the critical point . therefore there is no need to demonstrate here all the details of the performed calculations . we restrict ourselves to present only final results . the analogous formulae ( cf ( 16 ) , ( 22 ) and ( 25)-(28 ) ) for the critical jumps , resulting from ( 39 ) , have the form @xmath86 } ^2,\ ] ] @xmath87 ^2},\ ] ] @xmath88 ^2},\ ] ] @xmath89 ^2},\ ] ] @xmath90 ^2{\left [ \delta \left ( \frac{\partial x}{\partial t}\right ) _ { v , n , t = t_s}\right ] ^2}\ ] ] and @xmath91 ^2{\left [ \delta \left ( \frac{\partial x}{\partial t}\right ) _ { v , n , t = t_s}\right ] ^2}.\ ] ] the constant @xmath17 has the same meaning as before but actually @xmath92 . to derive ( 40)-(45 ) we have applied thermodynamical relations @xmath93 , @xmath94 and @xmath95 ( @xmath96 , @xmath97 and @xmath98 where @xmath99 in analogy to ( 4 ) ) . because of the maxwell relations @xmath100 , @xmath101 and @xmath102 the critical jumps @xmath103 @xmath104 and @xmath105 can easily be found from ( 42 ) , ( 43 ) and ( 41 ) , respectively , therefore there are again only six independent formulae ( 40)-(45 ) . when e.g. devide ( 41)-(45 ) by ( 40 ) we get : @xmath106 @xmath107 @xmath108 @xmath109 and @xmath110 there are , however , many other possilities to form the ratios , leading to equivalent relations . at last , when eliminate from ( 46)-(50 ) the critical temperature derivatives , we obtain ( cf ( 34)-(36 ) ) @xmath111 @xmath112 ^2\ ] ] and @xmath113 ^2.\ ] ] thus , the derived formulae ( 16 ) , ( 22 ) , ( 25)-(28 ) together with ( 40)-(45 ) allowed to find many useful thermodynamical cross - relations for superconducting systems at the critical point .

Plaintiffs’ attorneys say they have reached a $50 million settlement with the state in an Oso landslide lawsuit, subject to approval by a judge. The attorneys representing the plaintiffs in the liability lawsuit against the state over the deadly 2014 Oso landslide have announced a $50 million settlement on the eve of trial. The settlement will include an additional nearly $395,000 for attorneys’ fees and costs for sanction motions and does not include any penalties a King County Superior Court judge might impose against the state for the destruction by state experts of emails. The proposed settlement was reached Sunday, the day before a jury was set to convene in the trial, which was expected to last months. The settlement must be approved by Judge Roger Rogoff, who has presided over the litigation. The lawsuit was filed by survivors and family members of the 43 people who died in the March 22, 2014, landslide that raced across the North Fork of the Stillaguamish and into the Steelhead Haven community. The plaintiffs’ attorneys allege that a crib wall fence built on state property retained loose soils from earlier landslides and increased the ability of the leading edge of the massive 2014 landslide to move the way it did as it swept through the neighborhood. The state’s attorneys, in their court filings, have repeatedly rejected the plaintiffs’ allegations that actions on state lands increased the risk or aggravated the severity of the landslide. The state is expected to pay the first $10 million of the settlement, with insurers paying the other $40 million. The settlement comes in the aftermath of a tumultuous run-up for the state defense, which faces sanctions from Rogoff for failing to disclose that the expert witnesses hired to help make the state’s case improperly deleted email communications between one another. The settlement does not involve another defendant in the trial, Grandy Lake Forest Associates, a timber land owner accused of logging that increased the instability of the slide zone. The plaintiffs argue that logging on Grandy Lake land boosted the risks by increasing runoff and making the property more vulnerable to landslides. The plaintiffs’ attorney said they will continue to pursue claims against Grandy at the trial and will continue — on appeal — to press claims against Snohomish County, which Rogoff in an earlier ruling dismissed from the case. “The community was never given the chance to make a meaningful decision about landslide risks because the State and other defendants — who possessed critical information about the unstable and potentially devastating nature of those risks — refused to give them that information,” said a statement released by the plaintiffs’ attorneys on Sunday. A spokesman for the state Attorney General’s Office could not be reached for comment Sunday. ||||| SEATTLE (AP) — Attorneys representing the survivors and family members of people who died in a massive 2014 landslide north of Seattle have announced a proposed $50 million settlement with the state of Washington on the eve of a trial. The tentative pact was announced Sunday night. The state Attorney General's Office did not immediately return messages from The Associated Press. The lawsuit was filed following the devastating March 22, 2014, Oso landslide, which wiped out a rural neighborhood and killed 43 people. The victims or their families alleged that the state, Snohomish County or a company that logged above where the hillside collapsed have liability for worsening the damage or failing to warn about the danger. The proposed deal was first reported by the Seattle Times, which reported that it still must be approved by Judge Roger Rogoff, who has presided over the litigation. The attorneys for the victims said they would continue pressing their claims against Snohomish County and the logging company. A trial is scheduled to begin Monday. Last week Rogoff ordered the Washington Attorney General's Office to give him internal emails that might help explain when state lawyers handling the landslide liability case realized that their expert witnesses were improperly deleting emails. Rogoff ordered the office to produce the emails, saying it's critical for him to know what they show as he considers punishing the state for allowing the destruction of potential evidence in the case. Attorney General Bob Ferguson has already acknowledged that one of his lawyers knew for the past year and a half that experts hired by the state to determine the cause of the 2014 slide were deleting emails among themselves. But the office insists that its other lawyers were unaware, and that the lawyers and the experts believed the emails did not need to be turned over to the plaintiffs and thus could be deleted. Following the landslide the state imposed new rules on logging in landslide-prone areas. The slide struck after weeks of heavy rains. The neighborhood that was destroyed was a development of about 35 single-family homes, some dating to the 1960s, across the North Fork of the Stillaguamish River from a hillside in the Cascade Mountains. The river eroded the base of the hill, as it had been doing for decades, causing numerous smaller slides. The deadly 2014 slide produced enough sand and soil to cover 600 football fields, which rushed down and swept the river up with it. A highway was buried under as much as 20 feet of muck.

– Attorneys representing the survivors and family members of people who died in a massive 2014 landslide north of Seattle have announced a proposed $50 million settlement with the state of Washington on the eve of a trial, the AP reports. The lawsuit was filed following the devastating March 22, 2014, Oso landslide, which wiped out a rural neighborhood and killed 43 people. The victims or their families alleged that the state, Snohomish County, or a company that logged above where the hillside collapsed have liability for worsening the damage or failing to warn of the danger. The deal was first reported by the Seattle Times, which reported that it still must be approved by Judge Roger Rogoff. Victims' attorneys said they would continue pressing their claims against Snohomish County and the logging company. Last week, Rogoff ordered the Washington Attorney General's Office to give him internal emails that might help explain when state lawyers handling the landslide liability case realized that their expert witnesses were improperly deleting emails. Rogoff ordered the office to produce the emails, saying it's critical for him to know what they show as he considers punishing the state for allowing the destruction of potential evidence in the case. Attorney General Bob Ferguson has already acknowledged that one of his lawyers knew for the past year and a half that experts hired by the state to determine the cause of the 2014 slide were deleting emails among themselves. But the office insists that its other lawyers were unaware, and that the lawyers and the experts believed the emails did not need to be turned over to the plaintiffs and thus could be deleted.

Image copyright Steve Easton Image caption Steve Easton said he felt something come out of his nose and slowly unfurl itself A 51-year-old man been reunited with part of a toy dart that he played with as a child - after he sneezed it out. Steve Easton, from Surrey, was overcome by a sneezing fit and "a very uncomfortable sensation" before he felt something make its way into his left nostril and slowly unfurl itself. After he retrieved it, Mr Easton was unable to work out what it was until he phoned his mother, Pat. She knew instantly it was a rubber sucker lost more than 40 years ago. Mr Easton was at home in Camberley playing a game on the internet when it happened. "It was a very strange sensation so I retrieved it to examine it," he said. The rubber sucker became an object of curiosity that he carried around with him because people were so interested, but has since been thrown out. Mr Easton said he had grown up being able to smell and blow his nose and added: "It doesn't feel any different. Nothing has changed as far as I'm concerned." "It's the length of time," he said. "I'm not the first person this has happened to, but 43 years - it's quite out there isn't it?" Image copyright Steve Easton Image caption It was thought Mr Easton had swallowed the rubber part as a child - but X-rays could not find it Mrs Easton, 77, who lives in Buckinghamshire, had taken Steve to hospital at the age of seven or eight, suspecting he had swallowed the sucker from the dart. She said she had worried about it for years and was just glad it was out. "I don't know what he did - you know what children are - whether he put it in his mouth, but he swallowed it. "I was really worried so I took him to hospital and they X-rayed him and checked everything and they couldn't find it." She said she had never known whether he had got rid of it naturally or whether it was still inside him. "All these years later, it suddenly shot out," she said. ||||| Sorry, your browser is unable to play this video.Please install Adobe Flash ™ and try again. Alternatively upgrade to a modern browser. A man who regularly suffered a blocked nose can finally breathe easy after he sneezed out the cause – part of a toy dart that had been stuck up a nostril for more than 40 years. Steve Easton, 51, often had a case of the sniffles or a headache and put it down to hay fever. But his nasal passages are now clear for the first time since childhood after one big blow cleared the problem. As he sat at his computer he sneezed and out flew the sucker tip of a toy dart, about the size of a penny coin. Easton told his mother, Pat, and was amazed to find that at the age of seven his parents had taken him to hospital after they thought he had inhaled the dart. “I started a sneezing fit and it came out of my left nostril,” said Easton, of Camberley in Surrey. “I thought, ‘What’s this? Where the hell has this come from?’ and pulled out this rubber sucker. Facebook Twitter Pinterest A toy gun with plastic darts similar to the one which Steve Easton had stuck up his nose for 44 years Photograph: SWNS.com I spoke to my mum and she said, ‘Oh yes, we took you to hospital when you were seven because we thought you had inhaled one.’” His mother and father, Quentin, both 77, of Buckinghamshire, had found little Steve playing with his dart gun at their home in Camberley, and noticed one of the rubber tips was missing. Mrs Easton said: “There was just one of these darts without a tip. I took him to the hospital and they spent a lot of time looking for it but in the end they said perhaps it was a mistake. I knew it wasn’t and it’s always worried me and now it has suddenly shot out. We are all shocked.” Easton has suffered from the sniffles all his life but as far as he is aware the sucker has caused him no other health issues. “I brought it up with my doctor and he was amazed like everybody else but said there had been no harm done. It’s just one of those things,” he said. “It had been there in my nasal cavity for 44 years. I was completely unaware that it was in my nose for that long. I feel no different now. I wonder if there’s anything else up there.”

– When Steve Easton was about seven years old, his parents noticed that the suction cup was missing from one of his toy darts, and they were worried he had inhaled or swallowed it. So they took him to the hospital, but doctors couldn't find anything. Yet for decades, he's suffered from sniffles and headaches he thought were a result of allergies. Now, more than four decades later, it turns out his childhood doctors were wrong, the Guardian reports. In what must have been a powerful sneeze—accompanied by what he calls "a very uncomfortable sensation"—the suction cup emerged from a 51-year-old Easton's nose. "I started a sneezing fit and it came out of my left nostril,” the British man says. “I thought, 'What’s this? Where the hell has this come from?' and pulled out this rubber sucker." Easton called his mom, who told him about the hospital visit—which he had apparently forgotten. Doctors at the time said perhaps she was mistaken about her son inhaling the suction cup, she notes. "I knew it wasn’t [a mistake] and it’s always worried me, and now it has suddenly shot out. We are all shocked." Easton's current doctor doesn't think the dart caused any problems. It did, however, become a good conversation piece, and Easton toted it around for a while before he threw it away, the BBC reports. As for his nose, "it doesn't feel any different" now, he notes. (In more disturbing nasal news, a woman says a sneeze killed her sister.)

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Seniors from Health Care Fraud Act of 2013''. (b) Findings.--Congress finds the following: (1) Seniors are more vulnerable to fraud than the general population. (2) Because seniors require more health care services than the general population, they need more information on health care schemes so they can protect themselves. (3) The Department of Health and Human Services should provide more up-to-date information in order to educate seniors on health care scams. SEC. 2. DISTRIBUTION OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION TO SENIORS TO PREVENT HEALTH CARE FRAUD. Section 1804 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395b-2) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(d) Distribution of Additional Information on Health Care Fraud.-- ``(1) Annual reports on health care fraud schemes.-- ``(A) In general.--In connection with the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program established under section 1128C, the Secretary, acting through the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Attorney General, shall transmit to Congress, and make available to the public, an annual report on health care fraud schemes that are targeted to seniors and steps that are being taken to combat such schemes and to educate seniors concerning such schemes. The first such report shall be transmitted and made available not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this subsection. ``(B) Contents of reports.-- ``(i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), each annual report under subparagraph (A) shall include the following information: ``(I) Identification of most prevalent fraud schemes.--The identification of the 10 most prevalent health care fraud schemes that are targeted to seniors and the prevalence and trends in such schemes. ``(II) Protection of seniors.-- Actions that seniors and law enforcement and government agencies are taking and can take to combat such schemes and to protect seniors against health care fraud schemes. ``(III) Additional suggestions.-- Policy suggestions to improve protections for seniors, including whether the additional information provided under this subsection is helping seniors in protecting them against fraud. ``(ii) Limitations.--The Secretary may-- ``(I) omit information from an annual report on fraud schemes targeting seniors if public disclosure of the information would compromise an ongoing investigation; and ``(II) report information on fraud schemes by categories in an annual report if a more detailed disclosure of such a scheme would educate criminals rather than seniors. ``(iii) Private-public partnership.--The Secretary, acting through the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Attorney General, may enter into an arrangement between public and private partners to develop the report that identifies the top 10 most prevalent health care fraud schemes and the associated report information. ``(C) Quarterly updating.--The information described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (B) shall be updated quarterly to reflect changes in fraud schemes and methods to combat and educate seniors concerning such schemes. ``(D) Languages.--Such reports, as updated, shall be available in English and Spanish. ``(2) Dissemination of reports and top 10 list.-- ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall-- ``(i) disseminate the reports under paragraph (1) to Medicare beneficiaries through mechanisms that reach the most Medicare beneficiaries; and ``(ii) provide for the mailing to each Medicare beneficiary of a list of the top 10 most prevalent health care fraud schemes. ``(B) Quarterly updates of top 10 list included with medicare summary notices.--The Secretary shall include an updated list of the top 10 most prevalent health care fraud schemes under paragraph (1)(C) with the quarterly Medicare summary notices mailed to Medicare beneficiaries. ``(C) Posting of reports and quarterly updates on websites.--The annual reports, and quarterly updates, under this subsection shall be posted on the website of the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Program and on other websites maintained or supported by the Secretary relating to the Medicare program, the State Health Insurance Assistance Program, and Senior Medicare Patrol of the Administration on Aging. ``(3) Sources of information for reports.--Information for the reports and updates under paragraph (1) shall be gathered from at least the following sources: ``(A) Department of health and human services.--The following sources within the Department of Health and Human Services: ``(i) Medicare hotlines, including 1-800- MEDICARE, 1-800-HHSTIPS, and Medicare fraud toll-free hotlines and websites (such as www.stopmedicarefraud.gov) established by the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. ``(ii) State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIPs). ``(iii) The Administration on Community Living, including-- ``(I) the Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) of the Administration on Aging; and ``(II) Aging and Disability Resource Centers. ``(iv) Medicare administrative contractors, fiscal intermediaries, and other contractors with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services performing functions which may relate to fraud and abuse under the Medicare program. ``(v) The Indian Health Service. ``(B) Department of justice.--The Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation. ``(C) SSA.--The Social Security Administration. ``(D) FTC.--The Federal Trade Commission. ``(E) Optional additional sources.--At the option of the Secretary-- ``(i) State agencies that deal with elder abuse; and ``(ii) other governmental and nongovernmental entities with expertise in the protection of seniors from health care fraud as deemed appropriate.''.

Protecting Seniors from Health Care Fraud Act of 2013 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act (SSA) to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the HHS Office of Inspector General, and the Attorney General to report annually to Congress and the public on health care fraud schemes targeted to seniors and steps being taken to combat such schemes and to educate seniors about them. Directs the Secretary to: (1) disseminate such reports through mechanisms that reach the most Medicare beneficiaries, and (2) mail to each Medicare beneficiary a list of the top 10 most prevalent health care fraud schemes.

Police were poring over a journal they say a 17-year-old girl kept while she and her two younger sisters were imprisoned by their mother and stepfather for up to two years. This undated photo provided the Tucson Police Department shows Fernando Richter, 34. Richter and his wife Sophia Richter face multiple counts of kidnapping and child abuse. Tucson Police Chief Roberto... (Associated Press) This undated photo provided the Tucson Police Department shows Sophia Richter, 32. Richter and her husband Fernando Richter face multiple counts of kidnapping and child abuse. Tucson Police Chief Roberto... (Associated Press) Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villasenor said investigators were combing through the diary Wednesday for evidence as they build a criminal case against the 32-year-old mother and 34-year-old stepfather. He declined to reveal the diary's contents but said the teen kept one of her most prized possessions _ a photo of singer Enrique Iglesias _ in the journal, which was kept inside a satchel. "It did contain a lot of information that I feel will be useful in helping us to determine the method and length of the imprisonment," Villasenor said. Investigators said the two younger girls, ages 12 and 13, escaped through the window of the bedroom they shared and alerted a neighbor Tuesday after the stepfather tried to break down the room's door and was brandishing a knife. Police later discovered the 17-year-old was being held separately from her sisters in another room. The three girls were malnourished and dirty and told officers they hadn't taken a bath in up to six months. Investigators were trying to determine the last time the girls attended a school. No schools in the area had a record of them, Villasenor said, and police haven't been able to verify the mother's claims that the children were home-schooled. The girls' accounts of being held in captivity were consistent, Villasenor said. They are now together at a group home in the custody of a state child welfare agency. A judge set bail of $100,000 for the stepfather, Fernando Richter, and $75,000 for the mother, Sophia Richter, at their initial court appearances Wednesday. They face multiple counts of kidnapping and child abuse, and the Fernando Richter also faces one count of sexual abuse. The brief court appearances made by video did not include entering pleas, and it wasn't immediately clear whether the man and woman had lawyers. The girls' maternal aunt, Chame Bueno, said outside of the court hearing that the mother had said the family was living in San Diego when they actually were in Tucson and wouldn't let her speak with her nieces on the phone. Bueno, 34, said the stepfather was mentally abusive toward his wife. "She always talked him up, `Oh well he pays for all my kids' clothes and he takes them here and he takes them to eat and do this' _ and all that time being locked up in a room," Bueno, of Tucson, told The Associated Press. "And he hasn't done nothing she said. She has just been lying." Villasenor said there were motion sensors on the doors to the girls' bedrooms and video cameras trained on their bed. If the girls needed to use the bathroom, there was an unspecified signal for them to let the parents know they needed a bathroom break. There were locks on the girls' bedroom doors, the police chief said, but another method, which he declined to reveal, was used to keep the girls from escaping. Music blared loudly and constantly from the girls' bedrooms, and duct work was sealed and towels were forced against doors to prevent the sound from being heard outside, Villasenor said. Police were investigating whether the girls had also been imprisoned in a home in Catalina, about 20 miles north of Tucson, where the family lived previously. The mother agreed to speak with investigators but Villasenor declined to provide details of what she said. The stepfather declined to speak with investigators, according to the police chief. Villasenor said police made a few prior visits to the family's home, but none pertained to the children being held in captivity. A resident who has lived in the neighborhood for about five years told the Arizona Daily Star that she didn't know anyone was living in the home, which is set back from the street. The woman said there was no visible activity at the house, but other neighbors had told her that they had heard what sounded like children playing inside the house at night. ||||| The Arizona Republic-12 News Breaking News Team Mon Dec 2, 2013 10:27 PM A handwritten calendar kept by a 17-year-old girl may be the key to discovering how long three Tucson girls were held captive in their bedrooms, Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villaseñor said Monday. “On that calendar, there would be marks or notations of significant events that occurred,” Villaseñor said in an interview. “That’s what we’re looking at, and that’s what gives us a time line as to how long this imprisonment occurred.” Seven days after a Tucson couple were arrested on suspicion of imprisoning three daughters in a dungeonlike environment, Villaseñor discussed the status of the investigation and how police who visited the home recently saw no traces of the siblings. The oldest girl kept a satchel around her neck, and in it was her calendar and a photograph of singer Enrique Iglesias, Villaseñor said. He said she kept track of changes in routine, such as when new food was served. Police said the girls were held captive for up to two years in their bedrooms, where they slept, ate and at times went to the bathroom. Surveillance cameras were pointed at their beds, and the girls were subjected to the incessant blare of music focused on their beds 24 hours a day, police said. Villaseñor said Monday that there is no evidence the video was streamed outside the house or sold for profit. The family moved into the home in August and previously lived in other Tucson neighborhoods. Their parents were arrested last Tuesday after the two younger girls, ages 12 and 13, crawled through their bedroom window to escape their stepfather, who was allegedly wielding a knife, officials said. A neighbor responded to their knocks at 4 a.m. and called 911. The parents were arrested on suspicion of three counts each of kidnapping, child abuse/emotional and child abuse/physical. The stepfather also faces one count of sexual abuse of a minor under age 15. The Arizona Republic is not naming the parents to avoid identifying the children. The younger girls were held in one room and the oldest in another, yet they had not seen each other in months, possibly years, police said. Alarm systems were placed on doors and windows. The air vents and ductwork were covered and towels placed under the bedroom doors, making the girls’ bedrooms virtually soundproof, Villaseñor said. When police officers went to the house about 21/2 months ago in response to a robbery call, they saw no traces of three girls, Villaseñor said. “Even when our officers last week responded to the house, they went into the house and it wasn’t until they got right outside the bedroom door of the child’s room that they could hear the music,” Villaseñor said. The police chief said detectives were continuing to interview family members and others who came into contact with the family, investigating the conditions in which the girls were kept and the manners in which they were intimidated. The parents are being held in custody and face arraignment later this week or early next week, officials said.

– The mother and stepfather arrested and accused of holding their three daughters captive in Tucson soundproofed the girls' bedrooms so well that when police officers went to the house two and a half months ago on a robbery call, they saw no evidence of the girls. Among other things, the girls had to endure loud music being played constantly, but even when officers rescued the girls last week, "it wasn’t until they got right outside the bedroom door of the child’s room that they could hear the music," the police chief tells the Arizona Republic. The air vents and ducts were covered, and towels were shoved underneath the doors. Detectives are putting together a timeline of the girls' captivity based on a calendar the 17-year-old girl kept in a satchel around her neck, along with a picture of Enrique Iglesias. On the calendar, she kept track of "significant events" and any changes to routine, including new meals, the police chief says. The journal "did contain a lot of information that I feel will be useful in helping us to determine the method and length of the imprisonment," the police chief told the AP last week. The older girl had not seen her sisters, ages 12 and 13, possibly for years; they are all together now at a group home.

SEC. 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Land Recreational Visitor Protection Act of 2005''. SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: (1) Program.--The term ``program'' means the avalanche protection program established under section 3(a). (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Agriculture. SEC. 3. AVALANCHE PROTECTION PROGRAM. (a) Establishment.--The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall establish a coordinated avalanche protection program-- (1) to provide early identification of the potential for avalanches that could endanger the safety of recreational users of public land, including skiers, backpackers, snowboarders, and campers and visitors to units of the National Park System; and (2) to reduce the risks and mitigate the effects of avalanches on visitors, recreational users, neighboring communities, and transportation corridors. (b) Coordination.-- (1) In general.--In developing and implementing the program, the Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of the Interior, and coordinate the program, to ensure adequate levels of protection for recreational users of public land under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior, including units of the National Park System, National Recreation Areas, wilderness and backcountry areas, components of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, and other areas that are subject to the potential threat of avalanches. (2) Resources.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior-- (A) shall, to the maximum extent practicable, use the resources of the National Avalanche Center of the Forest Service; and (B) may use such other resources as the Secretary has available in the development and implementation of the program. (c) Advisory Committee.-- (1) In general.--The Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior shall jointly establish an advisory committee to assist in the development and implementation of the program. (2) Membership.-- (A) In general.--The Advisory Committee shall consist of 11 members, appointed by the Secretaries, who represent authorized users of artillery, other military weapons, or weapons alternatives used for avalanche control. (B) Representatives.--The membership of the Advisory Committee shall include representatives of-- (i) Federal land management agencies and concessionaires or permittees that are exposed to the threat of avalanches; (ii) State departments of transportation that have experience in dealing with the effects of avalanches; and (iii) Federal- or State-owned railroads that have experience in dealing with the effects of avalanches. (d) Central Depository.--The Secretary, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of the Army shall establish a central depository for weapons, ammunition, and parts for avalanche control purposes, including an inventory that can be made available to Federal and non-Federal entities for avalanche control purposes under the program. (e) Grants.-- (1) In general.--The Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior may make grants to carry out projects and activities under the program-- (A) to assist in the prevention, forecasting, detection, and mitigation of avalanches for the safety and protection of persons, property, and at-risk communities; (B) to maintain essential transportation and communications affected or potentially affected by avalanches; (C) to assist avalanche artillery users to ensure the availability of adequate supplies of artillery and other unique explosives required for avalanche control in or affecting-- (i) units of the National Park System; and (ii) other Federal land used for recreation purposes; and (iii) adjacent communities, and essential transportation corridors, that are at risk of avalanches; and (D) to assist public or private persons and entities in conducting research and development activities for cost-effective and reliable alternatives to minimize reliance on military weapons for avalanche control. (2) Priority.--For each fiscal year for which funds are made available under section 4, the Secretary shall give priority to projects and activities carried out in avalanche zones-- (A) with a high frequency or severity of avalanches; or (B) in which deaths or serious injuries to individuals, or loss or damage to public facilities and communities, have occurred or are likely to occur. (f) Surplus Ordnance.--Section 549(c)(3) of title 40, United States Code, is amended-- (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or'' after the semicolon at the end; (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; or''; and (3) by adding at the end the following: ``(C) in the case of surplus artillery ordnance that is suitable for avalanche control purposes, to a user of such ordnance.''. SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010. Passed the Senate July 26, 2005. Attest: EMILY J. REYNOLDS, Secretary.

Federal Land Recreational Visitor Protection Act of 2005 - Directs the Secretary of Agriculture to establish an avalanche protection program to: (1) provide early identification of the potential for avalanches that could endanger the safety of recreational users of public land and visitors to units of the National Park System (NPS); and (2) reduce the risks and mitigate the effects of avalanches on visitors, recreational users, neighboring communities, and transportation corridors. Requires the Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior to: (1) use the resources of the National Avalanche Center of the Forest Service to carry out this Act; and (2) establish an advisory committee to assist in the development and implementation of the program. Directs such Secretaries and the Secretary of the Army to establish a central depository for weapons, ammunition, and parts for avalanche control purposes, including an inventory that can be made available to federal and non-federal entities. Authorizes the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior to make grants to carry out projects and activities under the program to: (1) assist in the prevention, forecasting, detection, and mitigation of avalanches; (2) maintain essential transportation and communications; (3) assist avalanche artillery users to ensure the availability of adequate supplies of artillery and other explosives required for avalanche control in or affecting NPS units, other federal land used for recreation, and adjacent communities, and essential transportation corridors; and (4) assist research and development activities for alternatives to minimize reliance on military weapons for avalanche control. Authorizes appropriations.

gas damping of the motion of a macroscopic test body is a potentially sensitivity - limiting source of brownian noise in variety of experiments that are sensitive to very small forces . gas damping in the molecular flow regime is characterized by a viscous damping coefficient @xmath0 in translation or @xmath1 in rotation , and has been found in numerous torsion pendulum experiments to be proportional to the residual gas pressure @xmath2 @xcite . the power spectrum of brownian force noise associated with the molecular impacts is related to the damping coefficient via the fluctuation - dissipation theorem , which gives @xmath3 . a quantitative study of the gas damping and consequent force noise acting on small levitated spheres was performed by hinkle and kendall @xcite and experimentally verified the brownian character of residual gas force noise . the order of magnitude of the translational motion gas damping coefficient can be found easily as follows : a test body or test mass , referred to here as tm with section @xmath4 that is moving with velocity of magnitude @xmath5 in a gas with molecular number density @xmath6 ( related to pressure and temperature by @xmath7 ) will be struck , on average , by order @xmath8 more molecules per second on the `` upwind '' side than on the `` downwind '' side . each molecule imparts a momentum of order @xmath9 where @xmath10 is the mass of the molecule and @xmath11 is the characteristic thermal velocity . this gives a translational damping coefficient @xmath12 . this general dependence is found , albeit with different prefactors , in the analysis of gas damping force noise from damping of mirror vibrational modes for gravitational wave interferometers and other oscillators @xcite , and for the force noise on the cubic tm for a space gravitational wave interferometer @xcite . to get an exact number , we must consider not only the momentum exchange normal to the surface , but also the role of shear forces acting parallel to the tm surface . additionally , we must consider the test mass recoil from molecules leaving the surface , which is a process that is correlated , via the conservation of particles , with the incoming collisions . this article presents a calculation of the gas damping coefficient , with particular attention to the cubic tm geometry . this has been motivated by the need for an accurate modeling of gas damping noise on the cubic tm that serve as geodetic reference masses in the laser interferometry space antenna ( lisa @xcite ) and lisa pathfinder ( lpf @xcite ) missions , in which the tm must be free of spurious accelerations at the level of fm / s@xmath13/hz@xmath14 . the dissipation analysis for a cube is demonstrated first with a force noise evaluation and then confirmed with direct calculation of the damping coefficient . the force noise analysis is also extended to other simple geometries for both translation and rotation . the calculation presented is straightforward and based on the simple physics of diffuse scattering , used , for instance , in estimating molecular flow conductances in tubes . it is of current value , however , for several reasons . first , a quantitative calculation of gas damping is important for the design of gravitational wave experiments , and previous estimates appear to have underestimated this effect by roughly an order of magnitude in noise power @xcite . the model presented is also easily extended to , and can be tested by , torsion pendulum small force experiments . finally , and most importantly , the limitations of the applicability of this calculation namely the assumption of having a tm surrounded by an infinite gas volume , which is discussed in the conclusion indicate that the force noise from gas damping can be grossly underestimated in many experiments , including lisa , which is the subject of a more detailed experimental and numerical study @xcite . the accurate calculation of damping in an infinite gas volume is thus the necessary starting point for studying damping in tighter geometries . we can calculate the force noise spectrum per unit area which we define @xmath15 and @xmath16 for components normal and parallel to the surface from the mean square fluctuations of the time average force exerted in a time interval @xmath17 . for uncorrelated molecular impacts , which we treat as delta - functions in time , the time average force on a surface element @xmath18 can be written @xmath19 here , @xmath20 and @xmath21 are the incoming and outgoing velocities of the molecule involved in collision @xmath22 ( an analogous expression holds for the force components parallel to the surface ) . and subsequent reemission with outgoing velocity @xmath23 . random , diffuse scattering , reemission with a @xmath24 distribution is assumed in the calculation.,title="fig:",width=288 ] [ illustration ] for white force noise , as would be expected for momentum transfer from uncorrelated , delta - function collisions of single molecules against a surface in the regime of molecular flow , the single - side noise spectrum can be expressed @xmath25 with an analogous expression for @xmath16 , the force noise per unit area parallel to a surface element . the calculation can be simplified by considering a surface element small enough and time interval short enough such that the probability of more than one collision becomes negligible . in this limit @xmath26 the calculations of the expectation value of the average force and its mean square become simple integrals over the probability , @xmath27 , of a single collision occuring , in the interval @xmath17 , with incoming and outgoing velocities @xmath28 and @xmath29 , @xmath30 ^ 2 \label{expectation_mean_meansq}\end{aligned}\ ] ] the probability @xmath27 can be expressed @xmath31 where the velocities are expressed with magnitudes @xmath32 and solid angles @xmath33 ( angles @xmath34 and @xmath35 ) . the first term in eqn . [ joint_prob ] is the probability of having a molecule , assumed to obey a maxwell - boltzmann distribution with number density @xmath6 , in the tube of volume @xmath36 that will hit the wall element in the next time interval @xmath17 with velocity @xmath37 . the second term corresponds to the probability , given the arrival of a molecule , of reemission with speed @xmath38 into solid angle @xmath39 . the impacts are assumed to be completely inelastic and `` memory erasing , '' with the outgoing angle independent of the incoming angle , and reemission is assumed to occur immediately after the impact . weighting by the factor @xmath40 , which ensures that the incoming and outgoing distributions are identical , is the cosine law for diffuse scattering , which is used , with substantial experimental verification , for estimating knudsen diffusion in pipes and other geometries ( see , for instance , refs . we will discuss the impact of other assumptions of the molecule - tm interaction at the conclusion of the calculation . we can calculate the expected average force , with @xmath41 and restriction of the integral over the incoming and outgoing velocities to the positive hemisphere ( @xmath42 , @xmath43 in the range @xmath44 $ ] ) : @xmath45 with the final obvious result emerging with the ideal gas law , @xmath46 . in similar fashion we can integrate to obtain the mean square average force , @xmath47 inspection of eqns . [ expect_force ] and [ mean_square_force ] shows that @xmath48 in the studied single - collision regime , and so eqn . [ mean_square_spectrum ] simplifies to @xmath49 , and thus @xmath50 we note that the `` extra '' contribution @xmath51 comes from the cross term @xmath52 , which can be thought of as a correlation between the momentum imparted normal to the surface , which is always positive , by the arrival and subsequent reemission of a molecule . the remaining term unity in parentheses in eqn . [ force_normal ] comes from equal contributions of the incoming and outgoing molecules . if , in alternative , we were to consider the incoming and outgoing particle fluxes as uncorrelated processes , which would be true for molecules that stick to the surface for a long duration much longer than the reciprocal of the frequency where we consider the force noise before reemission , the contribution @xmath51 disappears . another interesting case is that of elastic collisions with specular reflection , which is equivalent to replacing the outgoing distribution with a delta function for the specular reflection of the incoming velocity , the factor @xmath53 is replaced by a factor 2 . we can perform a similar calculation for either of the force components parallel to the surface . for this we replace , in evaluating eqn . [ expectation_mean_meansq ] , the momentum exchange normal to the surface with one of the components parallel to the surface , @xmath54 for this parallel component , the expectation average force is zero . also , in the mean square of the average force , there is no effect of correlation between the incoming and outgoing molecules , as the azimuth angles are independent of one another and both have zero mean momentum exchange parallel to the surface . we thus obtain @xmath55 considering the alternative cases discussed above , there is no difference in the case of sticking molecules , as the incoming and outgoing processes are uncorrelated . in the case of specular reflection , the velocity parallel to the surface element is conserved and thus @xmath56 . finally , we note that in the diffuse scattering hypothesis there is no cross - correlation between the different components of the force noise , given the azimuthally random reemission of molecules . the force noise normal ( eqn . [ force_normal ] ) and parallel ( eqn . [ force_parallel ] ) to a unit surface element can be integrated over the surface of a test body to give the total force along a chosen axis . for a cubic test mass , this calculation is particularly simple , with the relevant force noise component per area ( @xmath57 for the @xmath58 axis ) uniform on each face , given by @xmath15 on the two faces ( @xmath59 ) normal to @xmath58 and by @xmath16 on the four faces ( @xmath60 and @xmath61 ) parallel to @xmath58 . for a cube of side length @xmath62 , we obtain a total force noise @xmath63 we can also evaluate the torque noise along a chosen axis , which is of relevance to torsion pendulum experiments . considering the torque along the @xmath58 axis , @xmath64 , we integrate the torque noise per area for every surface element , @xmath65 , over the faces of the cube . for the @xmath59 faces , only shear forces , in @xmath66 and @xmath67 contribute to the torque . the four lateral faces each have contributions from both shear , with armlength @xmath68 , and normal forces , with an armlength that varies across the cubic face . integrating , we obtain @xmath69 \nonumber \\ & & + 2 \int_{y } dx dz \left [ x^2 s_{\perp } + \left ( \frac{s}{2 } \right)^2 s_{\parallel } \right ] \nonumber \\ & & + 2 \int_{z } dx dy \left [ x^2 s_{\parallel } + y^2 s_{\parallel } \right ] \nonumber \\ & = & \frac{s^4}{3 } s_{\perp } + \frac{4 s^4}{3 } s_{\parallel } \nonumber \\ & = & p s^4 \left ( \frac{32 \ , m_0 k_b t}{\pi } \right)^{1/2 } \left ( 1 + \frac{\pi}{12 } \right ) \label{torque_noise}\end{aligned}\ ] ] the calculation of the total force and torque noise has also been performed for a sphere and a right cylinder , by straightforward integration of eqns . [ force_normal ] and [ force_parallel ] over the tm surface ( results in table 1 ) . we note that the rotational damping ( or , equivalently , the torque noise ) on a sphere or cylinder , the latter along its axis of symmetry , is due entirely to the shear forces and thus would be zero in a model with elastic molecular collisions . [ shapes ] m1inc m1inc m1inc + shape & @xmath70 $ ] & @xmath71 $ ] + + + [ 1ex ] & @xmath72 & @xmath73 + + & @xmath74 & @xmath75 + + & @xmath76 & @xmath77 + + & @xmath78 \:\:$ ] & @xmath79 + & & @xmath80 $ ] + [ 1ex ] we note that the results of table 1 have been confirmed to roughly the percent level , for these three geometries and in both translation and rotation , by a numerical simulation that traces the impulses of a single molecule as it impacts the test mass inside a much larger volume , with the reemission distribution governed by the diffuse scattering statistics of eqn . [ joint_prob ] @xcite . the simulation technique is described in ref . @xcite . as a simple crosscheck for the force noise calculated for a cube in the previous section , we can directly calculate the viscous damping coefficient @xmath81 by calculating the force on a cubic test body moving with velocity @xmath82 with respect to the surrounding gas . damping will occur both due to the molecules which hit the test mass on all faces with a velocity distribution that becomes asymmetric , in the test mass reference frame , due to @xmath83 and due to the reemitted molecules which , though emitted with the same velocity distribution on all sides of the test mass , still produce a net force , as more molecules will be emitted from the upwind side . the expectation average force on a surface element on the upwind or downwind faces the faces perpendicular to the test mass motion can be calculated , as in eqn . [ expectation_mean ] , by integrating the momentum exchange @xmath84 over the joint probability function , @xmath85 , which assumes an asymmetry in the reference frame of the moving test mass , @xmath86 the integrals can be simplified in the limit of @xmath87 and neglecting terms of order @xmath88 , to yield , respectively , for the downwind and upwind faces , @xmath89 \label{expect_force_v_perp}\ ] ] again , had we assumed elastic collisions , which essentially multiplies the force of the incoming molecules by two , the factor @xmath90 would become 2 , which would produce the same result obtained by christian @xcite for the difference in pressure on two sides of a membrane . we can similarly calculate the expected force component for a surface element on the faces parallel to the tm motion , following eqn . [ component_parallel ] , which yields @xmath91 equations [ expect_force_v_perp ] and [ expect_force_v_par ] can be integrated actually a simple multiplication by the surface area @xmath92 over the six faces of the cube . the leading term in eqn . [ expect_force_v_perp ] cancels out upon summing the upwind and downwind faces , to yield a pure velocity damping force , @xmath93 this agrees with the value of @xmath81 , given in table 1 and calculated from the force fluctuations and thus , as expected , agrees with the fluctuation - dissipation theorem . the expressions derived here for the gas damping on a cubic test mass are thus confirmed by two independent calculations . both calculations of course rest on the assumptions of diffuse scattering of molecules along the test mass surface . this would be fairly easy to test , for the cube ( or similar plate ) and cylinder geometries for the pressure dependence of the rotational damping coefficient in a torsion pendulum . we also note that measuring the rotational damping for a cylinder is a direct test of the diffuse scattering hypothesis , as elastic scattering would give no rotational damping . two points are important here . the first is the magnitude of this term , which , for a given pressure and test mass dimension , is roughly three times larger than that obtained in a previous analysis @xcite . given the slow scaling with pressure , @xmath95 , more ambitious gravitational wave missions , such as bbo @xcite and decigo @xcite , which require lower acceleration noise , will have to reach much lower pressures than the @xmath96 pa value quoted here , or employ much larger test masses , with a larger mass more than offsetting the larger surface area in eqn . [ lisa ] . in general , for given tm density , the resulting acceleration noise is given by @xmath97 for a tm of mass @xmath98 and dimension @xmath62 . the second consideration concerns the applicability of this calculation to frequently encountered experimental conditions in which the test mass is surrounded by an enclosure which is only slightly larger than the test mass itself , or more generally is very close to the surrounding apparatus . this is certainly true for lisa , where the 46 mm cubic test mass is enclosed , with a gap of several mm , by the walls of a surrounding electrostatic position sensor @xcite . this is also true for terrestrial gravitational wave observatories such as advanced ligo @xcite , where suspended tm are in close proximity to similar suspended masses used for actuation and thermal compensation . similar physics of gas damping in a restricted geometry is fundamental to recent studies of `` squeeze damping '' in mems resonators@xcite . for such cases , the assumption , used in the calculations presented here , of being able to calculate the force noise from the probability of a single impact which is reasonable only if that impact is uncorrelated with previous and future impacts of the same molecule collapses . in a tightly restricted geometry , a molecule emitted from a tm surface will , with high probability , strike the opposing enclosure wall only to then return to strike the same tm surface , imparting momentum with the same sign as the previous impact . random walking , by molecular diffusion , from one side of the test mass to the other , will require many collisions and create a grouping of correlated collisions with force impulses with the same sign . this increases force noise , as the momentum imparted does not average out as quickly as for uncorrelated collisions in an infinite gas volume . the random walk process down the narrow channels between test mass and enclosure is the same that determines the flow impedance in a tube . given that test mass motion , inside a tight enclosure , will require gas flow around the test mass , this impedance creates a pressure head , thus giving an alternate picture of the velocity - dependent force , or dissipation , that must accompany the increased force noise . these constrained volume effects are studied both experimentally and with numerical simulations , in a recently published parallel study @xcite , which , in addition to obtaining the force and torque noise formulas derived here in the limit of very large volume , demonstrates significantly increased damping in the case of gaps that are smaller than the tm itself . we note that our analytic results , and their confirmation by numerical simulation , present a slight discrepancy compared to the result of @xcite ( eqn . 6 in that article ) for the translational gas damping of a sphere , in the diffuse scattering hypothesis and apparently including the correlation between incoming and outgoing molecules . that result has a term @xmath100 in place of the @xmath101 given in table 1 here .

we present a simple analysis of the force noise associated with the mechanical damping of the motion of a test body surrounded by a large volume of rarefied gas . the calculation is performed considering the momentum imparted by inelastic collisions against the sides of a cubic test mass , and for other geometries for which the force noise could be an experimental limitation . in addition to arriving at an accurate estimate , by two alternative methods , we discuss the limits of the applicability of this analysis to realistic experimental configurations in which a test body is surrounded by residual gas inside an enclosure that is only slightly larger than the test body itself . gas damping , brownian noise , small forces

Former Sen. Pete Domenici of New Mexico fathered a son outside of his marriage more than 30 years ago with the then-24-year-old daughter of a Senate colleague, the retired Republican has acknowledged. FILE - In a Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2011 file photo, former Senate Budget Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, R-N.M., right, speaks before the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction during a hearing on Capitol... (Associated Press) The revelation stunned many who know the state's longest-serving senator as a family man who advocated honesty. Domenici and Michelle Laxalt sent statements to the Albuquerque Journal identifying their son as Nevada attorney Adam Paul Laxalt. They said they decided to go public with their decades-old secret because they believed someone was about to reveal the information in an attempt to smear Domenici. "I deeply regret this and am very sorry for my behavior," Domenici, 80, said in his statement, published in the Journal's Wednesday editions. "I hope New Mexicans will view that my accomplishments for my beloved state outweigh my personal transgression." Domenici and Michelle Laxalt agreed to keep his fatherhood secret because he and her father, Paul Laxalt of Nevada, were senators at the time she gave birth. Michelle Laxalt is a former Capitol Hill staffer who now works as a prominent lobbyist in the Washington, D.C. area. Public records show she is now 58 and her son is 34. Laxalt said in a statement that she chose to raise her son as a single parent. "One night's mistake led to pregnancy more than 30 years ago," she said. The Albuquerque Journal reports she worked for several senators, but never Domenici. During six terms in office In New Mexico, Domenici was known for his unflagging support of the state's national laboratories and military installations. In Washington, he became a power broker for his work on the federal budget and energy policy. He also was an advocate for insurance coverage for mental health. Domenici declined to seek a seventh Senate term in 2008, saying he had been diagnosed with an incurable brain disorder. Edward Lujan, former chairman of the Republican Party of New Mexico, said he had heard rumors about the child years ago, but "I didn't pay much attention. I didn't care. Those kinds of things honestly are between the families and has nothing to do with how he did his job." Domenici voted for the impeachment of former President Bill Clinton after his affair with Monica Lewinsky, but his floor statement focused on the fact that Clinton had lied under oath, noting that the trial "has never been about the President's private sex acts, as tawdry as they have been." But he did note that "truthfulness" is the first pillar of good character in a program he helped establish for school children in New Mexico. "I don't think there was anything hypocritical about anything," Lujan said. "... I admire him as much today as I did yesterday and the day before." In his statement, Domenici said he was sorry that he caused hurt and disappointment for his wife and other family members. Domenici is the father of eight children with his wife, Nancy. He said he disclosed the situation to his family several months ago. "I have apologized as best as I can to my wife, and we have worked together to strengthen our relationship," Domenici said. Domenici told the Journal his son participated in the drafting of his statement. But it was unclear if the two had a prior relationship. Reached at his home in Washington Wednesday morning, Domenici said he had nothing more to say. The Laxalts did not immediately respond to emails and phone calls seeking comment. Michelle Laxalt's statement said her interaction with Domenici "consisted of telling him my decision, asking that he avail himself for health-related purposes, and asking that he agree that this remain private between the two of us." The website for Adam Laxalt's law firm, Lewis and Roca, said he is a former U.S. Navy officer and lawyer who served in Iraq. He also worked for then-Sen. John Warner, R-Va., and as a special assistant to an undersecretary of state, according to the website. Former colleagues said they doubted the revelations would impact Domenici's strong legacy. "His contribution to our country, to our state, our community, cannot be diminished in my view by personal events," said former Gov. Garrey Carruthers. Carruthers, who is also Republican, said Domenici called him Tuesday night to tell him the story was coming out. "It's regrettable," he said. "I guess most of us were quite surprised." Domenici served New Mexico well and "deserves to be left alone, Democratic Party Chairman Javier Gonzales said. "People need to step away and allow the senator and his family to focus on this in the privacy of their own home." ___ Associated Press writer Russell Contreras contributed to this report. ||||| Former New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici told the Journal on Tuesday he fathered a son outside of his marriage over 30 years ago, revealing a secret kept for decades. Statements given to the Journal by Domenici and the son’s mother, Michelle Laxalt of Alexandria, Va., identified the son as Adam Paul Laxalt, a Nevada lawyer. Michelle Laxalt formerly was a prominent government relations consultant and television political commentator in Washington, D.C. She is a daughter of former U.S. senator and Nevada Gov. Paul Laxalt. “More than 30 years ago, I fathered a child outside of my marriage,” Domenici said in his statement. “The mother of that child made me pledge that we would never reveal that parenthood, and I have tried to honor that pledge and so has she,” Domenici said. The 80-year-old Republican, who decided not to seek election to a seventh term in 2008, citing health reasons, said he remains concerned about privacy for Michelle Laxalt, and their son. Domenici indicated he was disclosing the family matter to the Journal because he anticipated someone else was about to make the story public. “Rather than have others breach this privacy, I have decided to make this statement,” the former senator said. “These circumstances now compel me to reveal this situation.” Domenici said the story is painful to all involved. “My past action has caused hurt and disappointment to my wife, children, family and others,” he said. “For that I am solely responsible.” Domenici, who continues to live in Washington, D.C., with his wife, said his family “has been aware of these events for several months.” “I have apologized as best as I can to my wife, and we have worked together to strengthen our relationship,” Domenici said. “I deeply regret this and am very sorry for my behavior,” he said. “I hope New Mexicans will view that my accomplishments for my beloved state outweigh my personal transgression.” Domenici asked that “everyone respect the privacy of my family and the son’s mother” and said he alone “should bear the brunt of this matter.” Michelle Laxalt, who worked for several U.S. senators but never for Domenici, indicated in her statement that she believed others might soon reveal the relationship. “Recently information has come to me that this sacred situation might be twisted … and shopped to press outlets large and small in a vicious attempt to smear, hurt and diminish Pete Domenici, an honorable man, his extraordinary wife, Nancy, and other innocents.” Michelle Laxalt said in her prepared statement. “Why, after more than 30 years, would anyone insinuate pain and ugliness where joy and beauty have presided?” she asked. Michelle Laxalt said “one night’s mistake led to pregnancy” and she chose to raise the son as a single parent. “Given the fact that both my father and the father of my child were United States senators, I felt strongly that I would make this choice according to my values and would not seek advice, input or permission,” Michelle Laxalt said. She said she told Domenici of her decision and asked that “he agree that this remain private between the two of us.” She said her son “lived surrounded by love and joy and opportunity. I am proud of him, yet saddened that the circumstances of his birth might be used like a weapon to hurt many we love.” Adam Paul Laxalt is a former U.S. Navy officer who graduated with honors from Georgetown University in 2001 and from the Georgetown University Law Center in 2005, according to his law firm’s website. Domenici said his son participated in the drafting of the statement he issued. Laxalt declined by email to comment and asked that his privacy be respected. Before serving in the Navy, including general counsel duties in Iraq, Laxalt worked as a law clerk for the U.S. Air Force general counsel. He also worked as a special assistant to John Bolton, undersecretary of state for international security and arms control, and as a staff member for Sen. John Warner, R-Va. Michelle Laxalt formed her own consulting firm in Washington, D.C., and once was identified by Washingtonian magazine as one of the district’s top 50 lobbyists. She was active in the presidential campaigns of Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush. Domenici, the father of eight children with his wife, Nancy, is a lawyer and served on the former Albuquerque City Commission before winning the first of six terms in the U.S. Senate. He won national recognition as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee before his retirement in early 2009. He was on George H.W. Bush’s short list for vice president in 1988. Domenici remained highly popular in New Mexico throughout his political career and became the state’s longest-serving U.S. senator. Statement by Pete Domenici More than 30 years ago, I fathered a child outside my marriage. The mother of that child made me pledge that we would never reveal that parenthood, and I have tried to honor that pledge and so has she. I have been concerned about the burden of privacy on the son Adam Laxalt. I am also worried about the impact of these revelations on his mother, Michelle Laxalt. However, rather than have others breach this privacy, I have decided to make this statement today. These circumstances now compel me to reveal this situation. My past action has caused hurt and disappointment to my wife, children, family, and others. For that I am solely responsible. My family has been aware of these events for several months. I have apologized as best as I can to my wife, and we have worked together to strengthen our relationship. I deeply regret this and am very sorry for my behavior. I hope New Mexicans will view that my accomplishments for my beloved state outweigh my personal transgression. I only ask that everyone respect the privacy of my family and the son’s mother. None of them wanted this publicity, none of them deserve the hurt of this revelation, and only I should bear the brunt of this matter. Statement by Michelle Laxalt I come from a political family and learned early in life the value of privacy. I vowed that I would make personal decisions based not on politics, but on my values. This self-pledge was tested when one night’s mistake led to pregnancy more than 30 years ago. I chose to go through with that pregnancy, although other choices were available. I also chose to raise my child as a single parent.Given the fact that both my father and the father of my child were United States senators, I felt strongly that I would make this choice according to my values, and would not seek advice, input or permission. My interaction with my child’s father consisted of telling him my decision, asking that he avail himself for health-related purposes, and asking that he agree that this remain private between the two of us. I raised my son, Adam Paul, as a single parent. He lived surrounded by love and joy and opportunity. I am proud of him, yet saddened that the circumstances of his birth might be used like a weapon to hurt many we love. Recently information has come to me that this sacred situation might be twisted, re-written out of whole cloth, and shopped to press outlets large and small in a vicious attempt to smear, hurt and diminish Pete Domenici, an honorable man, his extraordinary wife, Nancy, and other innocents. Why after more than 30 years, would anyone insinuate pain and ugliness where joy and beauty have presided? — This article appeared on page A1 of the Albuquerque Journal

– Pete Domenici retired from the Senate five years ago, but the New Mexico Republican still has to deal with the messy consequences of being a public figure. The 80-year-old tells the Albuquerque Journal that he fathered a child 34 years ago with the daughter of a fellow senator. Domenici was married at the time of his liaison with 24-year-old Michelle Laxalt, daughter of former Nevada senator and governor Paul Laxalt, reports AP. Their son is now a Nevada attorney. “I have apologized as best as I can to my wife, and we have worked together to strengthen our relationship,” says Domenici's statement. He says he went public after all this time because political enemies were about to get the story published somewhere. Both he and Michelle Laxalt issued statements to the Journal. "Why after more than 30 years, would anyone insinuate pain and ugliness where joy and beauty have presided?" she asks in hers.

[ [ background . ] ] background . + + + + + + + + + + + a central rheological property characterizing the linear response of ( visco)elastic bodies is the shear relaxation modulus @xmath1 @xcite . assuming for simplicity an isotropic body , @xmath8 may be obtained from the stress increment @xmath9 after a small step strain @xmath10 has been imposed at time @xmath4 as sketched in panel ( a ) of fig . [ fig_sketch ] . the instantaneous shear stress @xmath6 may be determined in a numerical study , as shown in panel ( b ) for a sheared periodic simulation box , from the model hamiltonian and the particle positions and momenta @xcite . the long - time response yields the equilibrium shear modulus @xmath11 as shown in panel ( c ) . more readily , one may obtain @xmath12 by means of equilibrium simulations performed at constant volume @xmath13 and shear strain @xmath14 using the stress - fluctuation relation @xcite @xmath15 with @xmath16 being the affine shear - elasticity " @xcite , a simple average characterizing the second order energy change under a canonical - affine shear strain @xcite . the second contribution @xmath17 stands for the rescaled shear stress fluctuation with @xmath18 being the inverse temperature and where we have introduced for later convenience the two terms @xmath19 and @xmath20 . as shown in refs . @xcite eq . ( [ eq_sff ] ) can be derived using the general transformation relation for fluctuations between conjugated ensembles @xcite . using these transforms for the shear - stress autocorrelation function ( acf ) @xmath21 , eq . ( [ eq_sff ] ) can be extended into the time domain @xcite . this allows the determination of the shear relaxation modulus using @xmath22 as illustrated by the thin dash - dotted line in panel ( c ) . note that eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) is more general than the relation @xmath23 commonly used for liquids @xcite . one important consequence of eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) is that a _ finite _ shear modulus @xmath12 is only probed by @xmath1 on time scales where @xmath24 actually vanishes . while @xmath12 can be obtained from eq . ( [ eq_sff ] ) , this is not possible using _ only _ @xmath24 or @xmath25 @xcite . [ [ key - points - made . ] ] key points made . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + note that both eq . ( [ eq_sff ] ) and eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) assume that the sampling time @xmath26 is much larger than the longest , terminal relaxation time @xmath27 of the system and that , hence , time and ensemble averages are equivalent . since both relations are formulated in terms of fluctuating properties , not in terms of simple averages " @xcite , this suggests that they might converge slowly with increasing @xmath26 to their respective thermodynamic limits . the aim of the present study is to rewrite and generalize ( where necessary ) both relations in terms of simple averages allowing an accurate determination even for @xmath28 . as we shall demonstrate this can be achieved by rewriting eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) simply as @xmath29 with @xmath30 and @xmath31 being the shear - stress mean - square displacement ( msd ) . we have used in the second step of eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) the exact identity @xmath32 with @xmath33 and @xmath34 . both expressions given in eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) are numerically equivalent @xmath26-independent simple averages . [ [ outline . ] ] outline . + + + + + + + + we begin by presenting in sec . [ sec_algo ] the numerical model and remind some properties of the specific elastic network investigated already described elsewhere @xcite . our numerical results are then discussed in sec . [ sec_simu ] . carefully stating the subsequent time and ensemble averages performed we present in sec . [ simu_static ] the pertinent static properties as a function of the sampling time @xmath26 . we emphasize in sec . [ simu_msd ] that the msd @xmath5 is a simple average not explicitly depending on the sampling time and on the thermodynamic ensemble . it will be demonstrated that our key relation eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) is a direct consequence of this simple - average behavior . we shall then turn in sec . [ simu_acf ] to the scaling of the acf @xmath24 . we come back to the @xmath26-dependence of some static properties in sec . [ simu_compare ] where we compare several methods for the computation of @xmath12 . our work is summarized in sec . [ sec_conc ] where we discuss some consequences for the liquid limit and outline finally how eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) may be adapted for more general response functions . [ [ model - hamiltonian . ] ] model hamiltonian . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + as in previous work @xcite we illustrate the suggested general relations by molecular dynamics ( md ) simulations @xcite of a periodic two - dimensional network of ideal harmonic springs of interaction energy @xmath35 with @xmath36 being the spring constant , @xmath37 the reference length and @xmath38 the length of spring @xmath39 . ( the sum runs over all springs @xmath39 between topologically connected vertices @xmath40 and @xmath41 of the network at positions @xmath42 and @xmath43 . ) the mass @xmath44 of the ( monodisperse ) particles and boltzmann s constant @xmath45 are set to unity and lennard - jones ( lj ) units are assumed throughout this paper . [ [ specific - network . ] ] specific network . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + as explained elsewhere @xcite our network has been constructed using the dynamical matrix of a strongly polydisperse lj bead glass quenched down to @xmath46 using a constant quenching rate and imposing a relatively large average normal pressure @xmath47 . this yields systems of number density @xmath48 , i.e. linear length @xmath49 for the periodic square box . since the network topology is by construction _ permanently fixed _ , the shear response @xmath1 must approach a finite shear modulus @xmath12 for @xmath50 for all temperatures at variance to systems with plastic rearrangements . if not stated otherwise below , we use an @xmath51-ensemble with constant particle number @xmath52 , volume @xmath53 , shear strain @xmath54 @xcite and temperature @xmath55 . due to the low temperature the ideal contributions to the average shear stress @xmath56 or the affine shear - elasticity @xmath16 are negligible compared to the excess contributions . the static ( ensemble averaged ) thermodynamic properties of our finite - temperature network relevant for the present study are @xmath57 , @xmath58 , @xmath59 , @xmath60 and @xmath61 as already shown elsewhere @xcite . [ [ technicalities . ] ] technicalities . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + as in ref . @xcite the data have been obtained using a langevin thermostat of friction constant @xmath62 and a tiny velocity - verlet time step @xmath63 . the instantaneous shear stress @xmath64 and several other useful properties such as the instantaneous affine shear - elasticity @xmath65 @xcite are written down every @xmath66 over several trajectories of length @xmath67 . this is much larger than the longest stress relaxation time @xmath68 of the network properly defined in sec . [ simu_static ] . packages of various sampling times @xmath69 , as shown in fig . [ fig_static ] , are then analyzed in turn using first time ( gliding ) averages within each package @xcite . finally , we ensemble - average over different @xmath26-packages . [ [ notations . ] ] notations . + + + + + + + + + + a time average of a property @xmath70 within a @xmath26-package is denoted below by a horizontal bar , @xmath71 , and an ensemble average by @xmath72 . while simple averages " of form @xmath73 generally do not depend on the sampling time , this may be different for averages of type @xmath74 and similar non - linear fluctuations " . to mark this sampling time dependence we often note @xmath26 as an ( additional ) argument for the relevant property . obviously , ergodicity implies @xmath75 for large sampling times @xmath76 for all properties considered . hence , @xmath77 , i.e. all @xmath26-effects must ultimately become irrelevant and the argument @xmath26 is dropped again to emphasize the thermodynamic limit . [ [ simple - averages . ] ] simple averages . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + we begin by verifying the ( slightly trivial ) @xmath26-dependence of the simple averages @xmath78 as shown in fig . [ fig_static ] ( filled symbols ) . as expected , all three simple averages do indeed not depend on the sampling time and we shall drop below the argument @xmath26 . we remind that according to the stress - fluctuation formula eq . ( [ eq_sff ] ) @xmath16 gives an upper bound for the shear - modulus @xmath12 @xcite , while the rescaled second shear stress moment @xmath79 gives the leading term to the shear - stress fluctuation @xmath80 . consistently with other work @xcite @xmath16 is about twice as large as @xmath79 and @xmath81 is thus finite . as can be seen , @xmath81 is essentially identical ( for reasons given below ) to the shear modulus @xmath82 indicated by the bold solid line . [ [ fluctuations . ] ] fluctuations . + + + + + + + + + + + + + while the simple averages are @xmath26-independent , this is qualitatively different for the three fluctuations " @xmath83 presented in fig . [ fig_static ] which reveal three distinct sampling time regimes . for very small @xmath84 ( with @xmath85 being properly defined below in sec . [ simu_msd ] ) the shear - stress fluctuations @xmath80 do naturally vanish since the instantaneous shear - stress @xmath64 has no time to evolve and to explore the phase space . ( there is no fluctuation for just one data entry . ) since @xmath86 , this implies that @xmath87 must have a constant shoulder and the same applies to the generalized stress - fluctuation formula @xmath88 , eq . ( [ eq_gf_def ] ) . the second time regime of about two orders of magnitude between @xmath85 ( left vertical line ) and @xmath89 ( right vertical line ) is due to the monotonous decay of @xmath90 , i.e. the ensemble averaged _ squared _ time - averaged shear stress indicated by stars . as a consequence , @xmath80 increases montonously in this interval while @xmath88 decreases . the time scale @xmath27 is the longest ( terminal ) time scale in this problem . due to ergodicity time and ensemble averages become identical in the third sampling time regime for @xmath76 where @xmath91 , @xmath92 , @xmath93 and @xmath94 in agreement with the stress - fluctuation formula , eq . ( [ eq_sff ] ) . [ [ imposed - zero - average - shear - stress . ] ] imposed zero average shear stress . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + since for convenience we have chosen @xmath95 for our network , this implies that @xmath90 must vanish and in turn that @xmath96 and @xmath97 as observed . it is thus strictly speaking due to the choice @xmath98 , that the simple mean @xmath81 actually corresponds to the shear modulus @xmath99 . for a more general imposed mean shear stress @xmath56 one might , however , readily use the shifted simple average @xmath100 using the known / imposed ( not the sampled ) @xmath56 as a fast and reliable estimate of the shear modulus @xmath12 converging several orders of magnitude more rapidly than the classical ( albeit slightly generalized ) stress - fluctuation formula @xmath88 . we shall come back to the @xmath26-dependence of @xmath90 and @xmath88 in sec . [ simu_compare ] . [ [ delta - t - independence . ] ] @xmath26-independence . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the msd @xmath101 is presented in fig . [ fig_msd ] as a function of time @xmath7 for a broad range of sampling times @xmath26 . the data have been computed using @xmath102 where the horizontal bar stands for the gliding average over @xmath103 within a @xmath26-package @xcite and @xmath104 for the final ensemble average over the packages . the first remarkable point in fig . [ fig_msd ] is the perfect data collapse for all sampling times @xmath26 , i.e. the msd does not depend explicitly on @xmath26 . this scaling is not surprising since @xmath101 is a simple average measuring the _ difference _ of the shear stresses @xmath105 and @xmath106 along the trajectory and increasing @xmath107 only improves the statistics but does not change the expectation value . the second argument @xmath26 is dropped from now on . [ [ ensemble - independence - of - msd . ] ] ensemble - independence of msd . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the small filled circles in fig . [ fig_msd ] have been obtained for @xmath108 in the @xmath109-ensemble at an imposed average shear stress @xmath95 . an ensemble of @xmath110 configurations with quenched shear strains @xmath111 distributed according to the @xmath109-ensemble has been used @xcite . all other data presented have been obtained in the corresponding @xmath51-ensemble @xcite . as already emphasized elsewhere @xcite , it is inessential in which ensemble we sample the msd , i.e. @xmath112 the msd @xmath5 thus does not transform as a fluctuation , but as a simple average @xcite . interestingly , assuming this fundamental scaling property one may ( alternatively ) demonstrate eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) . to see this let us write down the exact identity eq . ( [ eq_htct ] ) in the @xmath109-ensemble @xmath113 using in the last step that @xmath114 @xcite as shown by integration by parts in eq . ( 15 ) of ref . @xcite . due to ( [ eq_ht_ensemble ] ) and @xmath115 @xcite , this directly demonstrates @xmath116 in agreement with eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) . ( for convenience @xmath117 is dropped elsewhere . ) [ [ time - dependence - of - msd . ] ] time - dependence of msd . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + as seen from the main panel of fig . [ fig_msd ] , the msd @xmath5 of our extremely simple elastic network shows only two dynamical regimes . for small times @xmath118 the msd increases quadratically as indicated by the thin solid line . this is to be expected if the msd and/or the acf are analytic around @xmath4 @xcite . ( strictly speaking , this argument requires time - reversal symmetry , i.e. begs for an asymptotically small langevin thermostat friction constant . ) for larger times @xmath5 becomes a constant given by @xmath119 ( bold solid line ) in agreement with eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) and @xmath120 for @xmath50 . as seen in the main panel , the crossover time @xmath85 is determined from the matching of both regimes . it marks the time where all forces created by an affine shear transformation have been relaxed by non - affine displacements @xcite . [ [ comparison - with - response - function . ] ] comparison with response function . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the key relation eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) is put to the test for all times @xmath7 in the inset of fig . [ fig_msd ] . we compare here @xmath121 obtained for different @xmath26 with the shear - stress response @xmath1 . the latter quantity has been computed from the shear - stress increment @xmath122 with @xmath123 measured after a step - strain @xmath124 has been applied at @xmath4 . this is done using a metric - change of the periodic simulation box as illustrated in panel ( b ) of fig . [ fig_sketch ] . as in ref . @xcite @xmath122 has been averaged over @xmath110 configurations . the perfect collapse of all data presented confirms the key relation and this for all sampling times @xmath26 . this is the main computational result of the present work . we present in fig . [ fig_acf ] the shear - stress acf @xmath125 as a function of @xmath7 comparing different @xmath26 for the @xmath51-ensemble ( open symbols ) and one example with @xmath108 for the @xmath109-ensemble ( filled spheres ) . since @xmath126 , this is essentially just a replot of the data already seen in fig . [ fig_msd ] using , however , a more common representation . as one expects the acf does depend neither on the sampling time nor on the ensemble , i.e. @xmath25 is a simple average just as @xmath5 . interestingly , by writing the identity eq . ( [ eq_htct ] ) for the @xmath51-ensemble @xmath127 and using again eq . ( [ eq_ht_ensemble ] ) and eq . ( [ eq_htct_tau ] ) one verifies directly that within the @xmath51-ensemble @xmath128 holds where for convenience @xmath117 has been dropped and the same notations @xmath129 are used as in sec . [ simu_static ] . since @xmath94 for @xmath76 , eq . ( [ eq_gtacf ] ) thus confirms eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) but generalizes it to finite sampling times @xmath26 . as seen in the inset the response function @xmath1 can be obtained by shifting @xmath130 confirming thus eq . ( [ eq_gtacf ] ) . we emphasize that while @xmath25 is a sampling - time independent simple average , the associated acf @xmath131 appearing in eq . ( [ eq_htct_gam ] ) and eq . ( [ eq_gtacf ] ) is a _ fluctuation_. it depends on the ensemble @xcite and on the sampling time due to the substracted reference @xmath90 . it is simply for this reason that for @xmath28 , @xmath132 is numerically less convenient than @xmath25 . however , for @xmath76 both acf become identical ( not shown ) since @xmath133 due to the zero average shear stress @xmath98 chosen . we return now to the sampling - time behavior of the fluctuations @xmath90 , @xmath80 and @xmath88 shown in fig . [ fig_static ] . as seen , e.g. , from eq . ( 20 ) of ref . @xcite , the @xmath26-effects can be understood by noticing that @xmath80 may be written as a weighted integral over the msd @xmath5 @xcite @xmath134 time translational invariance is assumed here and we have used that the msd does not explicitly depend @xmath26 . the sampling - time dependence of @xmath80 is thus reduced to the time dependence of @xmath5 . equation ( [ eq_muftsamp_ht ] ) and the corresponding relations for @xmath135 and @xmath136 are indicated by thin dashed lines in fig . [ fig_static ] . also given is the simple - average expression @xmath137 for @xmath138 ( diamonds ) using only the end - points of @xmath26-packages which are then in addition ensemble - averaged over @xmath139 independent packages . since this corresponds to the response modulus @xmath1 taken at @xmath140 , it converges to @xmath12 already for sampling times @xmath141 , i.e. two orders of magnitude earlier than the stress - fluctuation formula @xmath88 which only converges for @xmath142 . the reason for this stems simply from the inequality @xmath143 for a monotonously increasing function @xmath5 . unfortunately , assuming the same number of @xmath26-packages , @xmath144 fluctuates much more strongly than @xmath88 , just as the end - to - end distance of a polymer chain fluctuates much more strongly as its radius of gyration . equation ( [ eq_key ] ) is thus only of interest for the determination of @xmath12 if a large ensemble of short trajectories with @xmath145 has been computed . as already pointed out in sec . [ simu_static ] , the most efficient property for the computation of the modulus is the simple average @xmath146 . we note finally that since @xmath5 is characterized by only one characteristic time , the crossover time @xmath85 , eq . ( [ eq_muftsamp_ht ] ) implies that the terminal time @xmath27 must be a unique function of @xmath85 @xcite . our simple network is thus only characterized by _ one _ characteristic time . [ [ summary . ] ] summary . + + + + + + + + rewriting the central relation eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) of ref . @xcite it is shown that the shear - relaxation modulus @xmath1 of an isotropic elastic body may be computed as @xmath0 in terms of the difference of the two simple averages @xmath16 and @xmath5 characterizing , respectively , the canonical - affine strain response @xmath147 at @xmath4 and the subsequent stress relaxation process for @xmath148 . interestingly , eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) and eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) may be directly demonstrated from the fundamental scaling @xmath149 ( sec . [ simu_msd ] ) . note that @xmath0 and @xmath150 are equivalent simple - average expressions as shown , respectively in fig . [ fig_msd ] and fig . [ fig_acf ] . from the practical point of view it is important that @xmath5 or @xmath25 do not depend explicitly on the sampling time @xmath26 and the response function @xmath1 may thus be computed even if @xmath26 is much smaller than the terminal relaxation time @xmath27 of the system . ( for our simple networks @xmath151 with @xmath85 being the crossover time of the msd . ) as shown in sec . [ simu_acf ] , the relaxation modulus may be also obtained from the acf @xmath131 using @xmath152 with @xmath129 being the generalized , sampling - time dependent stress - fluctuation estimate for the shear modulus @xmath12 . for @xmath76 these relations reduce to eq . ( [ eq_keypre ] ) . finally , comparing @xmath153 with the stress - fluctuation formula @xmath88 it has been shown ( sec . [ simu_compare ] ) that the former expression converges about two orders of magnitude more rapid , albeit with lesser accuracy depending on the number of independent @xmath26-packages used . the fastest convergence has been obtained , however , using the simple average @xmath146 ( fig . [ fig_static ] ) . while the present paper has focused on solids , it should be emphasized that eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) , being derived using quite general arguments not relying on a well - defined particle displacement field , should apply also to systems with plastic rearrangements and to the liquid limit . due to its @xmath26-independence it should be useful especially for complex liquids and glass - forming systems @xcite with computationally non - accessible terminal relaxation times @xmath27 . we emphasize that the commonly used expression @xmath154 requires @xmath155 to hold @xcite . while this condition is justified for a liquid where @xmath156 , it is _ incorrect _ in general as shown by the example presented in this work ( fig . [ fig_static ] ) . hence , some care is needed when approximating @xmath1 by @xmath25 for systems below the glass transition @xcite . since eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) can be used in any case and since it is not much more difficult to compute , it provides a rigorous alternative without additional assumptions @xcite . naturally , one expects that eq . ( [ eq_key ] ) can be generalized for more general linear relaxation moduli @xmath157 of classical elastic bodies and fluids . with @xmath158 characterizing the initial canonical - affine response @xmath159 of the system to an infinitesimal change @xmath160 of an extensive variable @xmath161 and @xmath162 the subsequent change of an intensive system variable @xmath163 and @xmath164 being the generalized msd associated with the instantaneous intensive variables @xmath165 and @xmath166 , one expects @xmath5 to be a simple average , i.e. @xmath167 , and a generalized simple - average expression @xmath168 should thus hold again . the reformulation of the general stress - fluctuation formalism in terms of such simple averages and the test of its computational efficiency are currently under way .

focusing on isotropic elastic networks we propose a novel simple - average expression @xmath0 for the computational determination of the shear - stress relaxation modulus @xmath1 of a classical elastic solid or fluid and its equilibrium modulus @xmath2 . here , @xmath3 characterizes the shear transformation of the system at @xmath4 and @xmath5 the ( rescaled ) mean - square displacement of the instantaneous shear stress @xmath6 as a function of time @xmath7 . while investigating sampling time effects we also discuss the related expressions in terms of shear - stress autocorrelation functions . we argue finally that our key relation may be readily adapted for more general linear response functions .

the combined statistical analysis of the most recent measurements coming from jla ( joint light curve analysis ) type ia supernovae ( sne ia ) data @xcite , the growth rate of structure formation obtained from redshift space distortion ( rsd ) data @xcite , the different baryon acoustic oscillation ( bao ) detected in the galaxy clustering observations ( @xmath8dfgs , sdss dr @xmath9 , sdss dr @xmath10 , sdss dr @xmath11 , boss dr @xmath10 cmass , @xmath12dspcf , @xmath12dmps , boss dr @xmath11 cmass ) , @xcite , the observations of anisotropies in the power spectrum of the cosmic microwave background ( cmb : distance priors ) data from the planck @xmath13 data @xcite , and the hubble parameter ( h ) measurements obtained from galaxy surveys @xcite indicate that the present universe is undergoing a phase of accelerated expansion . from the theoretical point of view , this phenomenon can be explained introducing in the universe an unknown physical fluid with negative pressure so - called @xmath2 @xcite . many alternative models have been suggested to explain it ; in particular , the lambda cold dark matter ( @xmath14cdm ) model has a cosmological constant as @xmath2 with an eos parameter @xmath15 @xcite . however , other more structured models replace @xmath14 by a dynamical @xmath2 such as phantom model @xcite , quinton model @xcite , quintessence model @xcite , k - essence model @xcite , chaplyging gas model @xcite , massive scalar field model @xcite , etc . + in the same way , within the universe we also assume the existence of another dark component so - called @xmath1 , which acts exactly like the ordinary matter ( pressureless ) , and can interact with @xmath2 gravitationally . + on the other hand , the @xmath14cdm model presents two different problems such as the fine tuning and the cosmic coincidence . then , one way to solve the last problem within gr is to assume a coupling between @xmath2 fluid and @xmath1 fluid . currently , there are not neither physical arguments nor recent observations to exclude an energy exchange between these dark components because their natures are still unknown @xcite . + due to the absence of a fundamental theory to construct @xmath0 , different phenomenological parameterizations for @xmath0 have been proposed by mathematical simplicity @xcite ; for example , @xmath16 @xcite , @xmath17 @xcite , @xmath18 @xcite , @xmath19 @xcite and @xmath20 @xcite . then such models may be physically viable , if they are confronted with the observational data , and therefore , can be employed in order to look new physical properties on cosmological scales @xcite . + on the other hand , the properties of @xmath2 fluid are mainly characterized by the eos parameter @xmath3 . in this case , two possibilities are proposed to explain a varying @xmath3 . the first one is to parameterize @xmath3 in terms of some free - parameters @xcite . thus , among all the different ansatzes the chevallier - polarski - linder ( cpl ) parameterization @xcite @xmath21 $ ] ( where @xmath22 is the redshift , @xmath23 and @xmath24 are dimensionless parameters ) is considered as the most popular ansatz . this ansatz shows a divergence problem when redshift @xmath22 approaches to @xmath25 @xcite . the second one is to expand @xmath3 in terms of an appropriated local basis @xcite . consequently , we are interested in proposing a divergence - free reconstruction for @xmath3 and via a polynomial expansion , it will show new features . for example , we can expand @xmath3 , in function of the chebyshev polynomials @xmath26 , with @xmath27 . these polynomials are considered as a complete orthonormal basis on the finite interval @xmath28 $ ] , and belong to the hilbert space @xmath29 of real values @xcite . likewise , they have the property to be minimal approximately polynomials @xcite , and possess a better advantage in terms of stability . + if we compare the theoretical predictions with the observational measurements , we will show the different effects of including the numerical reconstructions of @xmath0 and @xmath3 on the energy densities ( @xmath30 and @xmath31 ) , on the evolution of the linear growth rate of @xmath1 density perturbation ( @xmath4 ) , on the effective hubble friction term ( @xmath5 ) and on the effective newton constant ( @xmath6 ) , respectively . this will be the main aim of the present work . + on the other hand , rsd data represent a compilation of measurements of the quantity @xmath32 at different redshifts , which were obtained in a model independent way . these data are apparent anisotropies ( effects ) of the galaxy distribution ( in redshift space ) , due to the differences of the estimates between the redshifts observed distances and true distances , and caused by the component along the line of sight ( los ) of the peculiar velocity of each of the galaxies ( recessional velocity ) @xcite . therefore , rsd data will provide tight constraints on the parameter space of the cosmic scenarios , and the necessary information to discriminate among all them @xcite . + furthermore , another interesting observable considered here are the measurements of the alcock - paczynski ( ap ) effect @xcite . this ap test describes a distortion along the observed tangential and radial dimensions of objects , which are assumed as isotropic @xcite . this signal depends on the value of the @xmath33 parameter , and will be very useful to constrain cosmological models . in this work , the linear growth rate @xmath4 is constrained by measuring the rsd signal , while the dilation scale ( @xmath34 ) @xcite and @xmath33 parameter @xcite evaluated at an effective redshift @xmath35 are constrained by measuring the bao and ap signals , respectively . + now then , two distinct coupled @xmath2 models such as xcpl and dr are studied here , and from which we have found a determined number of different effects such as a reduction or enhancement on the amplitudes of @xmath30 , @xmath31 , @xmath4 , @xmath5 and @xmath6 at large and small redshifts with respect to those found in the uncoupled models . however , these modifications should be small in order to do not have a significant impact on the matter density perturbations . furthermore , important features of the universe can be obtained from these changes , and therefore these variations depend of the chosen parameterizations for @xmath0 and @xmath3 , respectively . in this article , all our models are constrained using an analysis combined of jla ( sne ia ) @xcite , the growth rate of structure formation obtained from rsd data @xcite , bao data @xcite , cmb data @xcite and the h data set @xcite . + finally , we organize this paper as follows : the background equation of motions for the energy densities are presented in section ii . in section iii we describe the reconstruction schemes for @xmath0 and @xmath3 , respectively . in section iv we show the theoretical @xmath2 models . in section v we studied the conditions for the crossing of @xmath36 line , and define the redshift crossing points . the perturbed equation of motions and the equations of structure formations are described in section vi . the current observational data and the priors considered are presented in section vii . we discuss our results in section viii . in section ix , we conclude our main results . in a flat friedmann - robertson - walker ( frw ) universe its background dynamics is described by the following set of equations for their energy densities ( detailed calculations are found in @xcite , so we do not discuss them here . ) @xmath37 where @xmath38 , @xmath39 , @xmath40 and @xmath41 are the energy densities of the baryon , radiation , @xmath1 and @xmath2 , respectively . now , defined the hubble expansion rate as @xmath42 , and `` @xmath43 '' indicates differentiation with respect to the cosmic time @xmath44 . + in what follows , we shall assume that there is not energy transfer from @xmath2 ( @xmath1 ) to baryon or radiation , and among them only exist a gravitational coupling @xcite . for convenience , we defined the critical density @xmath45 and the critical density today @xmath46 ( in where @xmath47 is the current value of the hubble parameter ) . considering that @xmath48 , and then the normalized densities become @xmath49 the first friedmann equation is given by @xmath50\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and with the following relation for all time @xmath51 the scale factor @xmath52 is related to the redshift through @xmath53 , from which find @xmath54 . substituting this last relation into eqs.([eofb])-([eofde ] ) , and solving eqs.([eofb ] ) and ( [ eofr ] ) , we find @xmath55 these equations are fundamental to determine the results within our models . the chebyshev polynomials form a complete set of orthonormal functions on the interval @xmath57 $ ] , and have the property to be the minimal approximating polynomials . it is to say , they have the smallest maximum deviation from the true function at any given order @xcite . + because of the unknown of the origin and nature of the dark fluids , it is not possible to derive @xmath0 from fundamental principles , but we have the freedom of choosing any possible form of @xmath0 that satisfies eqs . ( [ edfdmomega ] ) and ( [ edfdeomega ] ) simultaneously . hence , we propose a phenomenological form for a varying @xmath58 , which could be definitely a function of @xmath40 multiplied both by a quantity with units of inverse of time ( for instance @xmath59 ) and by the coupling term , @xmath60 . since @xmath60 can be modelled as a varying function of @xmath22 and used to measure the strength of the interaction , it can be reconstructed conveniently in terms of chebyshev polynomials . accordingly , we can look new physical properties in spite of the fact that @xmath0 may be determined by the universal expansion rate @xmath59 . therefore , this scenario will simplify the analytic results , if we reconstruct @xmath60 from observational data . an energy exchange in the dark sector can be chosen as @xmath61 here , the strength of the coupling is characterized by @xmath62 where the coefficients of the polynomial expansion @xmath63 are free dimensionless parameters @xcite , and @xmath64 represent the first three chebyshev polynomials . + within the cpl model , the past evolution history may be successfully described by its eos parameter , @xmath3 , but the future evolution may not be explained , because @xmath3 grows increasingly , and then , encounters a divergence when @xmath65 . that is not a physical feature . consequently , to avoid such divergence problem we propose here a complete phenomenological reconstruction of a smoothly varying eos parameter , @xmath3 , which can also be expanded in terms of an expansion of the chebyshev polynomials such that @xmath66 where @xmath67 and @xmath68 are free dimensionless parameters . the polynomial @xmath69 and the parameter @xmath68 were included conveniently to simplify the calculations . however , this suitable generalization should be compatible with recent observational data . likewise , @xmath70 behaves nearly linear at low redshift @xmath71 and @xmath72 , whereas in the high redshift regime @xmath73 . + the chebyshev polynomials of order @xmath74 were defined by eq . ( [ chebyshev1 ] ) . thereafter , using numerical simulations we will compute the best fitted values for @xmath75 , @xmath76 , @xmath77 , @xmath23 , @xmath24 and @xmath68 , respectively . in this scenario , the function @xmath78 is defined fixing both @xmath79 , and @xmath80 into eqs . ( [ omegabs])-([edfdeomega ] ) @xmath81\;.\ ] ] within this model , @xmath78 is determined replacing both @xmath82 $ ] , where @xmath23 , @xmath24 are real parameters , and @xmath80 into eqs . ( [ omegabs])-([edfdeomega ] ) @xmath83\;.\end{aligned}\ ] ] firstly a coupled model can be defined putting both @xmath84 , where @xmath23 , @xmath24 are real free parameters , and @xmath85 given by eqs . ( [ interaction ] ) and ( [ couplingiq ] ) into eqs . ( [ omegabs])-([edfdeomega ] ) . the explicit form for @xmath86 and @xmath87 are reached by solving eqs . ( [ edfdmomega ] ) and ( [ edfdeomega ] ) , respectively . \label{de_xcpl}\omega^{\star}_{de}(z)=(1+z)^{3(1+{\omega}_{0}+{\omega}_{1})}\biggl[{\omega_{de,0}}{\rm exp}\left(\frac{-3\omega_{1}z}{1+z}\right)+\;\quad\qquad\nonumber\\ \frac{z_{max}}{2}\omega_{dm,0}{\rm exp}\left(\frac{3\omega_{1}}{1+z}\right)\sum_{n=0}^{2}\lambda_{n}s_{n}(z,\bar{\omega})\biggr]\;.\quad\qquad\end{aligned}\ ] ] the following average integrals are also defined @xmath89 where we also defined the following expressions for all @xmath90 $ ] ( see appendix [ integralin ] and @xcite ) @xmath91 with the quantities @xmath92 where @xmath93 is the maximum value for @xmath22 , and in which the observations are possible such that @xmath94 $ ] and @xmath95 , respectively . + therefore , the function @xmath78 can be constructed from eqs . ( [ hubble ] ) , ( [ omegabs ] ) , ( [ omegars ] ) , ( [ dm_xcpl ] ) and ( [ de_xcpl ] ) . secondly another coupled model can be modeled setting @xmath96 where @xmath23 , @xmath24 and @xmath68 are real parameters . moreover , @xmath97 is given by eqs . ( [ interaction ] ) and ( [ couplingiq ] ) . the analytic form for @xmath86 can be reached by solving eq . ( [ edfdmomega ] ) . for this model eq . ( [ dm_xcpl ] ) represents the solution of eq . ( [ edfdmomega ] ) . instead , the solution of eq . ( [ edfdeomega ] ) can be obtained by numerical integration , from using eq . ( [ a1 ] ) and appendix [ integralin ] , @xmath98 where the following relations are defined @xmath99^{a_1}\;,\nonumber\\ c_2(z)&=&{\rm exp}\biggl[a_{2}\sqrt{2}\left(\arctan\left[\frac{\sqrt{2}[2z - z_{max}]}{2z_{max}+4}\right]+\arctan\left[\frac{\sqrt2z_{max}}{2z_{max}+4}\right]\right)\biggr]\;,\nonumber\\ d_0(z)&=&0.5z_{max}\omega_{dm,0}(1+z)^{2\omega_{0}-2\omega_{1}+5\omega_{2}+3}(2+z^{2})^{\omega_{1}-\omega_{0}+5\omega_{2}}\;,\nonumber\\ d_1(z)&=&{\rm exp}\biggl[{\sqrt{2}}\biggl(\omega_{0}+2\omega_{1}-5\omega_{2}\biggr)\arctan\left(0.5{\sqrt{2}}z\right)\biggr]\;,\;\;\;d_2(z)={\rm exp}\biggl[\arctan\left(\frac{\sqrt{2}z_{max}}{4 + 2z_{max}}\right)j_{2}\biggr]\;,\nonumber\\ f_0(\tilde{x})&=&\frac{{\rm exp}\biggl[-\sqrt{2}\biggl(\omega_{0}+2\omega_{1}-5\omega_{2}\biggr)\arctan\biggl[0.25\sqrt{2}z_{max}(1+\tilde{x})\biggr]\biggr]}{\biggl[\left(\tilde{x}^{2}+2\right)(0.5z_{max})^{2}+2\left(1+z_{max}\right)\biggr]^{\omega_{1}-\omega_{0}+5\omega_{2}}}\;,\nonumber\\ f_1(\tilde{x})&=&\biggl[\frac{\tilde{x}^{2}+2 + 8[z_{max}^{-2}+z_{max}^{-1}]}{3 + 8[z_{max}^{-2}+z_{max}^{-1}]}\biggr]^{j_{1}}\;,\;\;\;f_2(\tilde{x})={\rm exp}\biggl[\arctan\left(\frac{\sqrt2z_{max}\tilde{x}}{2z_{max}+4}\right)j_{2}\biggr]\;,\nonumber\\ g(\tilde{x})&=&\biggl[1 + 0.5z_{max}(1+\tilde{x})\biggr]^{2(\omega_{0}-\omega_{1}+\omega_{2})-j_{0}}\;.\end{aligned}\ ] ] within this model , the function @xmath78 can be constructed from eqs . ( [ hubble ] ) , ( [ omegabs ] ) , ( [ omegars ] ) , ( [ dm_xcpl ] ) and ( [ de_dr ] ) . the basic analytical expressions for @xmath100 and @xmath101 ( when @xmath102 ) are shown in appendix [ integralin ] . let us now proceed with the calculation of the redshift crossing points , and analyze the behavior of @xmath60 and its derived . from eqs . ( [ interaction ] ) , ( [ couplingiq ] ) and ( [ chebyshev1 ] ) , we note that exist real values of @xmath22 that lead to @xmath104 @xmath105 in where the @xmath106 denotes the redshift crossing points of @xmath103 line . + then , the solution to eq . ( [ crossiq ] ) is given by @xmath107 from here , we note that these results depend of the choice for @xmath60 . however , we are interested in the case where @xmath108 ; in particular , this happens when @xmath103 . furthermore , the reverse situation is also possible . in this discussion , to guarantee the possibility of the crossing of @xmath103 line we must explore the function @xmath109 . now , we consider the possibility to have @xmath103 and @xmath110 could be zero or different of zero . then , from eqs . ( [ couplingiq ] ) and ( [ chebyshev1 ] ) , we obtain @xmath111 substituting eq . ( [ zcrossiq ] ) into eq . ( [ dcrossiqdz ] ) , we get the following @xmath112 now , if we consider the possibility to have @xmath104 and @xmath113 , it means that the impossibility for having @xmath114 over @xmath115 line . by contrast , the only possibility for a crossing corresponds to @xmath116 from eq . ( [ diqdznull2 ] ) , we impose the following restraint for the avoidance of imaginary values in @xmath117 @xmath118 which can be rewritten as @xmath119 similarly , from eq . ( [ diqdznull4 ] ) to guarantee real values with physical sense , we impose @xmath120 the values of @xmath106 for the coupled @xmath2 models are given in table [ crossing_state ] . let us make some commentaries about the signs of @xmath0 , @xmath60 and @xmath121 , respectively . in general , if the parameters @xmath122 , @xmath123 and @xmath124 hold positive or negative values , then @xmath60 and @xmath121 will be ambiguously positive , negative or zero , in any epoch of the universe . from eqs . ( [ dcrossiqdz ] ) , ( [ diqdznull4 ] ) , ( [ diqdznull6 ] ) and ( [ diqdznull7 ] ) , if @xmath122 and @xmath124 are both positive or are both negative , then @xmath121 could be positive or negative . moreover , @xmath121 may be zero when @xmath122 , @xmath123 , and @xmath124 are all zero ( i.e. uncoupled @xmath2 models ) or when @xmath125 . here we can describe the signs of @xmath0 and @xmath60 , choosing positive values for @xmath122 either with negative values of @xmath123 and positive values of @xmath124 or with positive values of @xmath123 and negative ( positive ) values of @xmath124 , in determined redshift ranges . let us consider a spatially flat universe with scalar perturbations about the background . in the absence of the anisotropic stress , the perturbed line element in the newtonian gauge is given by @xcite @xmath126 where @xmath127 is the gravitational potential , @xmath128 is the scale factor , @xmath129 is the background four velocity , @xmath130 or @xmath131 is the @xmath132 perfect - fluid four velocit , and @xmath133 is the @xmath132 fluid peculiar velocity potential . in addition , to avoid a momentum flux relative to @xmath134 , we define the total four velocity @xmath135 as @xcite @xmath136 where the total velocity potential @xmath137 is given by @xcite @xmath138 with @xmath139 , @xmath140 and @xmath141 . this is the choice of @xmath137 that we will use from now on . + thus , the @xmath132 fluid energy - momentum tensor is @xcite @xmath142 where @xmath143 and @xmath144 . the covariant form of energy - momentum transfer is satisfied for the whole system , while for each component we have @xcite @xmath145 where @xmath146 describe the interaction , @xmath147 for @xmath148 in the late universe , and @xmath149 . a general @xmath146 relative to the total four velocity can be split as @xcite @xmath150 where @xmath151 is the energy density transfer and @xmath152 is the momentum density transfer rate , relative to @xmath134 . here , we also choose @xmath153 , where @xmath154 is a momentum transfer potential . then , from eq . ( [ decomposef ] ) we find that @xcite @xmath155\,,\\ \label{componentfk } f^{a}_{k}&=&a^{2}\partial_{k}\left(f_{a}+\bar{q}_{a}v\right ) . \end{aligned}\ ] ] the perturbed energy transfer @xmath156 includes a metric perturbation term @xmath157 and a perturbation @xmath158 . in addition , we stress that the perturbed momentum transfer @xmath159 is made up of two parts : the momentum transfer potential @xmath160 that arises from energy transport along the total velocity and the intrinsic momentum transfer potential @xmath154 . hence , the total energy - momentum conservation implies that @xmath161 the general evolution equations for the dimensionless density perturbation @xmath162 is given by @xcite @xmath163v_{a } -3(1+{{w}}_{a}){\dot \phi}&=&\frac{{\delta q}_{a}}{{\bar{\rho}}_{a}}+\nonumber\\ \frac{{\bar{q}}_{a}}{{\bar{\rho}}_{a}}\left[\phi-\delta_{a}-3a{\bar{h}}(c^{2}_{sa}-{w}_{a})v_{a}\right ] , \end{aligned}\ ] ] also the velocity perturbation equation takes the form @xmath164\,,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and the relativistic poisson equation is @xmath165 where @xmath166 is newton s constant . + we now consider that @xmath2 does not cluster on sub - hubble scales @xmath167 , and therefore , we could ignore @xmath168 from eq . ( [ contrast1 ] ) . moreover , to avoid the nonphysical sound speed , we choose @xmath169 @xcite . + similarly , we also assume that the dynamical effects of the gravitational potential @xmath127 , its time derivative @xmath170 and the transfer of energy between baryons and radiation , may be neglected relative to @xmath1 perturbation , @xmath171 . here , we also consider the case where @xmath1 component behaves as dust with an eos parameter @xmath172 and with a @xmath1 sound speed @xmath173 . + in the linear approach eqs . ( [ contrast1 ] ) and ( [ euler1 ] ) describe the evolution of the @xmath1 perturbation @xmath174 , which can be rewritten as @xcite @xmath175 @xmath176\,.\ ] ] in this linear regime the poisson equation reduces to @xmath177 in order to satisfy the weak equivalence principle and ensure that the particles of the @xmath1 can follow geodesics , we need to impose the following condition @xmath178 here , eq . ( [ euler1 ] ) for @xmath1 component yields @xmath179 this expression means that the @xmath1 velocity perturbation is not affected by the interaction with @xmath2 . then , we provide a phenomenological covariant choice of the energy exchange four - vector @xmath180 in where one takes @xmath181 we impose the following conditions @xmath182 and @xmath183 to generate @xmath1 cosmic structure formation ( in a forthcoming article we will extend our study , by considering other relations between @xmath184 , @xmath185 and @xmath186 . it is beyond the scope of the present paper ) , so eq . ( [ parts2_exchange_energy ] ) becomes @xmath187 considering that @xmath1 is more concentrated than the baryon component in the universe , also that @xmath2 does not cluster on sub - hubble scales , using eq . ( [ hubble ] ) and the relation @xmath188 , we have @xmath189 and then , @xmath190 from eqs . ( [ eulerdm ] ) , ( [ poissondm ] ) , ( [ eulerdmfinal ] ) and deriveting eq . ( [ continuitydm ] ) with respect to @xmath44 , we find the evolution of matter density perturbations @xmath191 @xmath192 when @xmath103 , eq . ( [ growth_rate ] ) could be turner into the standard evolution of @xmath1 density perturbations . from this equation the quantity @xmath6 is an effective gravitational strength ( effective newton constant ) , defined as @xmath193.\ ] ] which can be understood as a self attractive force acting on the @xmath1 density perturbation and quantifies the modifications to gravity due to the effects of @xmath60 and @xmath3 functions . + here , we also define the effective hubble friction term as @xmath194 which acts as a frictional force that slows down ( reduces ) the growth of cosmic structure . + it is useful to rewrite eq . ( [ growth_rate ] ) in redshift space as @xmath195.\end{aligned}\ ] ] this equation can be solved numerically , considering that @xmath196 where @xmath7 is a some unknown function of @xmath22 so - called the growth index of the linear matter fluctuations . in the linear regime , it is convenient to define the quantity @xmath197 called the growth factor of @xmath1 density perturbations . then , eq . ( [ growth_ratez ] ) can be rewritten in function of @xmath198 as @xmath199 this previous equation can be solved numerically , taking into account the condition @xmath200 . + in full generality , we define the growth index of @xmath1 perturbations @xmath7 through the following ansatz @xmath201 from eq . ( [ f ] ) , we find that @xmath202\,.\ ] ] now , using eqs . ( [ eofb])-([eofde ] ) , we obtain @xmath203\,.\ ] ] substituting eq . ( [ fb ] ) into eq . ( [ fa ] ) , we get @xmath204\,.\ ] ] let us now to equal eqs . ( [ growth_factor ] ) and ( [ fc ] ) to obtain the general evolution equation for the growth index @xmath7 @xmath205\,.\end{aligned}\ ] ] this equation can be solved numerically by considering the condition that @xmath206 . + the parameterization given by eq . ( [ f ] ) is important to simplify rapidly the numerical calculations of eqs . ( [ growth_factor ] ) and ( [ newgrowth_index ] ) . therefore , the @xmath1 linear growth factor normalized to unity at the present epoch is given by @xmath207 where @xmath22 is the redshift of the universe in which the @xmath1 component dominates the universe ( in this work for convenience used @xmath208 ) . + let us stress that by solving numerically eqs . ( [ growth_ratez ] ) and ( [ growth_factor ] ) we can calculate @xmath209 and @xmath198 , respectively . + on the other hand , the root - mean - square amplitude of matter density perturbations within a sphere of radius @xmath210 ( being @xmath211 the dimensionless hubble parameter ) is denoted as @xmath212 and its evolution is represented by @xmath213 in where @xmath214 is the normalization of @xmath212 today . thus , the functions @xmath198 y @xmath215 can be combined to obtain @xmath4 at different redshifts . from here , we obtain @xmath216 the measurements of @xmath4 will be important to constrain different cosmological models . in this section , we describe how we use the cosmological data currently available to test and constrain the parameter space of our models proposed . the sne ia data sample used in this work is the join analysis luminous data set ( jla ) @xcite composed by @xmath217 sne with hight - quality light curves . here , jla data includes several low - redshift samples ( @xmath218 ) , three samples from the sloan digital sky survey sdss - ii at @xmath219 and data from supernova legacy survey ( snls ) in @xmath220 . + for the jla data , the observed distance modulus of each sne is modeled by @xmath221 in where @xmath222 and the parameters @xmath223 , @xmath224 and @xmath225 describe the intrinsic variability in the luminosity of the sne , which are derived from the fitting of the light curves . here , @xmath223 is the observed peak magnitude in the rest - frame @xmath226 band , @xmath224 is the stretch measure of the light - curve shape and @xmath225 is the color measure for each sne . + on the other hand , the nuisance parameters @xmath227 , @xmath228 , @xmath229 and @xmath230 characterize the global properties of the light - curves of the sne and are estimated simultaneously with the cosmological parameters of interest . the parameter @xmath227 describes the luminosity of the light - curve , @xmath226 represents the color - luminosity relationships , @xmath229 is the absolute magnitude of the sne in the rest - frame @xmath226 band and @xmath230 denotes the correction of the absolute magnitude @xmath229 with host galaxy properties . from here , we defined @xmath231 @xmath232 where @xmath233 is the host galaxy stellar mass , and @xmath234 is the solar mass . + the total covariance matrix for this test is denoted as @xmath235 , and can be written of the following manner @xmath236 where @xmath237 , @xmath238 and @xmath239 denote the diagonal part of the statistical covariance matrix , the statistical covariance matrix and the systematic covariance matrix , respectively . the details of building of the matrix @xmath235 can be found in @xcite . @xmath240\,,\qquad\qquad\qquad\qquad\qquad\qquad\qquad\qquad\end{aligned}\ ] ] where the quantities @xmath241 , @xmath242 and @xmath243 are the covariances of @xmath223 , @xmath224 and @xmath225 for the @xmath244-th sne , respectively , while @xmath245 , @xmath246 , and @xmath247 are the covariances between @xmath223 , @xmath224 and @xmath225 for each @xmath244-th sne . the terms @xmath248 , @xmath249 and @xmath250 account for the uncertainty in cosmological redshift due to the following quantities : the peculiar velocities , the variation of magnitudes caused by gravitational lensing and the intrinsic variation in sne magnitude , @xcite . we follow @xcite in using @xmath251 and the prescription suggested by jnsson for @xmath252 @xcite . the values of @xmath253 are compatible with a constant value of @xmath254 @xcite . furthermore , @xmath255 denotes the covariance due to a peculiar velocity residual @xcite . + on the other hand , the theoretical distance modulus is defined as @xmath256 + 25\;,\ ] ] where the superscript `` @xmath257 '' denotes the theoretical prediction for a sne at a redshift @xmath22 . likewise , @xmath258 is the luminosity distance , which in a frw cosmology becomes @xmath259 where @xmath260 is the heliocentric redshift , @xmath261 is the cmb rest - frame redshift , `` @xmath262 '' is the speed of the light and @xmath263 represents the cosmological parameters of the model . considering that @xmath264 , so we rewrite @xmath265 as @xmath266\nonumber\\ & & + 52.385606 - 5\log_{10}(h_{0})\,.\end{aligned}\ ] ] thus , the @xmath267 distribution function for the jla data is @xmath268 where @xmath269 is a column vector of @xmath217 entries of residuals between the theoretical and distance modulus . @xmath270 is the @xmath271 covariance matrix for all the observed distance modulus reported in @xcite , which contains information over both systematic and statistical errors . + rsd data represent a compilation of measurements of the quantity @xmath32 at different redshifts , which were obtained in a model independent way . these data are apparent anisotropies ( effects ) of the galaxy distribution in redshift space due to the differences of the estimates between the redshifts observed distances and true distances . they are caused by the component along the line of sight ( los ) of the peculiar velocity of each of the galaxies ( recessional speed ) . thus , on very small scales ( a few @xmath272 ) ; especially , in the cores of the clustering of galaxies , the peculiar velocities of galaxies are almost randomly oriented such that the structures of the clustering appear elonged along the los when they are viewed in the redshift space ( the " finger of god effect ) @xcite leading to a damping of the clustering of galaxies . by contrast , on large scale ( from a few tens of @xmath272 to @xmath273 ) the observations show that the gravitational growth the galaxies tend to fall towards high - density regions and flow away from low - density regions such that the galaxy clustering in redshift space is enhanced in the los direction in comparison to the transverse direction @xcite . + the rsd test is an important probe for distinguishing cosmological @xmath2 models from standard cosmological models such as @xmath14cdm model ; namely , different cosmological models might undergo similar background evolution behavior , but their growth histories of cosmic structures could be distinct in the coupled @xmath2 models . + in this work , we utilize the most recent growth rate data derived from redshift space distortions on the pscz , @xmath12df , vvds , @xmath8df , @xmath12mass , boss and wigglez galaxy surveys , and were collected by mehrabi et al . ( see table in @xcite ) . this sample is used to constrain the free parameters of our theoretical models . + the standard @xmath274 for this data set is defined as @xcite @xmath275^{2}}{{\sigma}^{2}(z_{i})}\;\;,\ ] ] where @xmath276 is the observed @xmath277 uncertainty , @xmath278 and @xmath279 represent the theoretical and observational growth rate , respectively . .summary of rsd data set @xcite . [ cols="^,^,^,^,^,^,^,^",options="header " , ] + + + + + we constructed a code to calculate numerically the theoretical evolutions of @xmath280 and @xmath198 , respectively , and therefore , the values of @xmath4 , setting functional forms on @xmath60 and @xmath3 such that they can be easily implemented in each of our models . then , via a markov chain monte carlo ( mcmc ) analysis , we can perform a global fitting in each of them ( listed in table [ bestfits ] ) , by using a combined statistical analysis of cosmic observations such as jla data , the rsd data , the bao data , the cmb given by the planck @xmath13 data and the h data ; from which , we could reduce the uncertainty and put tighter constraints on the values of the cosmological parameters . table [ priors ] describes the priors used in this work . for each of the models , the one - dimension probability contours , the best fitting parameters and their errors ( at @xmath277 and @xmath281 ) are shown in fig . [ contours ] . + the values of the functions @xmath4 , @xmath7 , @xmath60 , @xmath3 , @xmath31 , @xmath6 and @xmath5 evaluated in @xmath282 ( today ) are denoted as @xmath283 , @xmath284 , @xmath285 , @xmath23 , @xmath286 , @xmath287 and @xmath288 , respectively ( see table [ cosmological_state ] . + in the following figs . the constraints at @xmath277 and @xmath281 on @xmath31 , @xmath30 , @xmath60 , @xmath3 , @xmath4 , @xmath289 , @xmath290 and @xmath7 have been omitted to obtain a better visualization of the results . + let us now see fig . [ behaviours_iq ] , within the coupled models have considered that @xmath291 denotes an energy transfer from @xmath2 to @xmath1 ; on the contrary , @xmath292 denotes an energy transfer from @xmath1 to @xmath2 . in this regard , within the coupled models have found a change from @xmath291 to @xmath292 and vice versa . a change of sign on the best reconstructed @xmath60 is linked to the crossing of the non - coupling line , @xmath293 . table [ crossing_state ] shows the @xmath294 points that satisfy the condition @xmath293 , which were already predicted by eq . ( [ zcrossiq ] ) . moreover , the left below panel in fig . [ behaviours_iq ] , confirms the statement given by eq . ( [ diqdznull ] ) . we also verify that if the @xmath22 points satisfy the relation @xmath295 , then they will be different in comparison with the @xmath296 points . according to table [ cosmological_state ] and the upper panels in fig . [ behaviours_iq ] , note that a non - negligible value of @xmath297 at @xmath277 error is found in the coupled models , and whose order of magnitude is in agreement with the results obtained in @xcite . however , due to the two minimums obtained in the dr model ( see table [ bestfits ] ) , two different cases ( @xmath298 and @xmath12 ) to reconstruct @xmath299 are worked here . from table [ bestfits ] we focus on the case @xmath12 , which is in disagreement with the result obtained in eq . ( [ diqdznull7 ] ) ; in this way , the observational data are the fundamental tool to fix the constraints on the cosmological parameters , testing and choosing the possible theoretical models to be worked . on the other hand , from the results presented in fig . [ behaviours_w ] , we note that in the left and right above panels the universe evolves from the quintessence regime @xmath300 to the phantom regime @xmath301 , and in particular , crosses the phantom divide line @xmath302 @xcite . in the dr model , this crossing feature is more favored with two phantom crossing points in @xmath303 and @xmath304 , respectively , instead , the xcpl model shows only one phantom crossing point in @xmath305 . likewise , the cpl model also depicts one phantom crossing point in @xmath306 . from these above panels in fig . [ behaviours_w ] , we also see that in the xcpl model the evolution of @xmath3 is similar to that in the cpl model ; in contrast , the parameter @xmath3 defined in the dr model , starts to evolve from the value @xmath307 during the matter era and reaches the value @xmath308 in the present time . likewise , a finite value @xmath309 $ ] is obtained in the future . we stress that there is a significant difference for the evolution of @xmath3 in the xcpl and dr models , and depend on the epoch at which they are compared . from the right above panel in fig . [ behaviours_w ] , we find that in the dr model when @xmath310 , the amplitude of @xmath3 grows from @xmath311 to @xmath312 . by contrast , when @xmath313 , the amplitude of @xmath3 decreases from @xmath312 to @xmath314 , whereas in the xcpl model for @xmath315 , the amplitude of @xmath3 decreases more rapidly than that in the dr model . indeed , these characteristics are a consequence of the reconstructed eos parameters in the cpl , xcpl and dr models , respectively . in addition , in the dr model for the region @xmath316 , @xmath3 deviates significantly from @xmath317 , with a pronounced peak at around @xmath318 and with an average value of @xmath319 . this behavior is opposite with the evolution of @xmath3 in @xcite . + from the left below panel in fig . [ behaviours_w ] , we also verify that if the @xmath22 points satisfy the relation @xmath302 , then one finds the following condition @xmath320 . + the right below panels in figs . [ behaviours_iq ] and [ behaviours_w ] , show that @xmath60 could take positive or negative values during its evolution from @xmath321 to @xmath322 . therefore , the values for @xmath31 moves from @xmath323 to @xmath324 , and the values for @xmath30 moves from @xmath325 to @xmath326 , respectively . these final values for @xmath31 and @xmath30 are indicated in table [ bestfits ] . + from the upper panels in figs . [ behaviours_iq ] and [ behaviours_w ] , and from left above panel in fig . [ effects1 ] , we focus on the dr model at @xmath310 . here , @xmath3 grows and @xmath60 could take positive , negative ad null values , and therefore , they will force to the fact that the concentration of @xmath327(@xmath31 ) to grow ( decrease ) more rapidly than those in the @xmath14cdm , cpl and xcpl models , respectively . for @xmath328 , @xmath3 decreases and @xmath60 could take positive , negative and null values . thus , they will induce to the fact that the values obtained for @xmath329 in @xmath282 are closer to those values measured today , with @xmath2 is dominant . + considering the right above panel in fig . [ behaviours_iq ] , the right below panels in figs . [ behaviours_iq ] and [ behaviours_w ] , and the left above panel in fig . [ effects1 ] , we see that for @xmath330 the value of the amplitude of @xmath31 ( @xmath30 ) in the dr model is slightly modified by the values of @xmath60 ( @xmath291 and @xmath292 ) relative to the other model , it means that , @xmath60 changes from @xmath291 to @xmath292 , and vice versa . in this model the amplitude of @xmath31(@xmath30 ) is suppressed ( amplified ) in comparison with those found in the other models . this result coincides with that found in @xcite . here , we also confirm that the coincidence problem is alleviated in these coupled models , but they may not solve it . + from table [ cosmological_state ] and from the below panels in fig . [ effects2 ] , note that the values of @xmath290 deviate significantly from unity in all @xmath22 . it is in agreement with the resulted found in @xcite . accordingly , @xmath290 are growing or decreasing functions , and could cross the value @xmath331 at less one time or twice . furthermore , at @xmath282 , the values of @xmath290 can be roughly larger than @xmath298 ( xcpl model ) or smaller than @xmath298 ( dr model ) . these observations show the effects of the reconstructions of @xmath60 and @xmath3 on the evolution of @xmath290 in the linear regime . + similarly , considering table [ cosmological_state ] , the right above and below panels in fig . [ effects1 ] and the upper panels in fig . [ effects2 ] , find the effect of @xmath31 and @xmath60 on the evolution of @xmath289 function . at around @xmath282 , the values of @xmath289 in the coupled models are roughly different among them . moreover , for @xmath332 the best fitting of @xmath289 in the xcpl model deviates significantly with respect to that obtained in the dr ( cases @xmath298 and @xmath12 ) model . this is a consequence of the higher quantity of @xmath31 concentrated and of a lesser magnitude of @xmath289 in the xcpl model . therefore , in the region @xmath333 , the amplitude of @xmath4 is higher and more pronounced in the xcpl with respect to that in the dr model . at the end of the matter era ( at @xmath334 ) the value of @xmath289 in the xcpl model decreases to be approximately smaller than those in the dr and uncoupled models , respectively . in the regime @xmath335 , the values of @xmath289 in the dr model become closer to @xmath12 , and thus higher than those found in the xcpl model , reducing the cosmic structure formation ( see right above panel in fig . [ effects1 ] ) . likewise , according to eqs . ( [ geff ] ) and ( [ heff ] ) an increase on the magnitudes of @xmath60 and @xmath30 tend to amplify the gravitational strength ( @xmath290 ) , but they reduce the magnitude of the frictional force . in fact , an increase in @xmath6 would enhance the growth of structure even at later times . + in addition , the right above and right below panels in fig . [ effects2 ] , show that @xmath289 ( @xmath290 ) during its evolution could take values from @xmath336 to @xmath337 ( from @xmath338 to @xmath339 ) , and therefore the value of @xmath4 could move from @xmath340 to @xmath341 . this final value for @xmath4 is shown in the right upper panel of fig . [ effects1 ] , and indicated in table [ cosmological_state ] . + from figs . [ effects1 ] and [ effects2 ] , we consider the evolution of @xmath60 and @xmath30 , finding explicitly that in the xcpl model the functions @xmath290 follows a different behavior from that predicted in the dr model . for this reason , the deviations of @xmath290 from standard gravity are significant . it also explains why @xmath4 is larger in the xcpl model ( and uncoupled models ) than that in the dr model ; especially , when @xmath342 . more explicitly , for @xmath343 , the values of @xmath290 are close to @xmath298 in the dr model and larger than @xmath298 in the xcpl model , implying the existence of a non - standard gravity . therefore , in the coupled models the evolution of @xmath60 , @xmath344 , @xmath345 and @xmath3 are different such that their effects can not be ruled out . the modifications to gravity enhance the structure formation at late times in the xcpl models , but suppresses it in the dr model , when @xmath346 . in general , the deviation of @xmath290 from unity starts at early times ( @xmath347 ) in the coupled models . this indicates that the magnitude of @xmath60 is very large there . thus , for @xmath348 , the substantial difference in the values of @xmath290 is more pronounced . in other words , in the xcpl model the matter density is much higher than that in the dr model , and therefore affecting more the magnitude of @xmath4 in the xcpl model than that in the dr model . this explains why the results are very different in this regime , and the differences from uncoupled models are induced mainly by the effective hubble friction term , @xmath289 ( which acts as a frictional force that slows down the linear structure growth ) . + the left above panel in fig . [ effects3 ] , depicts the evolution of @xmath7 along @xmath22 for the coupled and uncoupled models . likewise , the right upper and right below panels in fig . [ behaviours_iq ] , show that @xmath60 could take positive or negative values during its evolution from @xmath349 to @xmath350 , and the values for @xmath31 moves from @xmath351 to @xmath324 . from here , and using the right upper and left below panels in fig . [ effects3 ] note that the amplitude for @xmath7 is progressively increased to become approximately @xmath352 . additionally , from the right below panel of this figure and considering the coupled models , note that the values for growth of cosmic structure are very different in the past , and hence the corresponding values for @xmath7 are very closed to zero . if the values for @xmath4 are progressively increased , then the values for @xmath7 also increase , and become much more stable , when @xmath353 . in table [ cosmological_state ] show the values of @xmath284 for each of the models studied . + let us analyze the right upper and left below panels in fig . [ effects3 ] . from here , we find that the magnitude of @xmath60 has imprinted new physical effects on the evolution of the parameter , @xmath7 . in the dr model the amplitude of @xmath7 is progressively reduced in the region @xmath354 , with respect to those found in the uncoupled models . therefore , this shows that the magnitude of @xmath60 is strongly related with the magnitudes of @xmath345 , @xmath4 and @xmath7 , respectively . + we now compare our results with those obtained by other researchers . in @xcite , the authors parameterized @xmath7 in terms of the legendre polynomials , and compared it with those obtained from other cosmological models . here power spectrum data and weak lensing power spectrum data were used . our results obtained for @xmath7 are very closed to that obtained in the @xmath355 model , at @xmath277 error . furthermore , in @xcite , the authors provided a convenient analytic formula for @xmath4 , which was applied to different @xmath2 models . they used rsd data to place observational constraints . the results obtained by them on @xmath4 are consistent at @xmath277 error with our results . likewise , pouri et al . in @xcite used the clustering properties of luminous red galaxies ( lrgs ) and the growth rate data to constrain @xmath7 . the results found by them on @xmath7 and @xmath4 are compatible with our results , at @xmath277 error . similarly , yang and xu in @xcite , studied a model composed by the cosmological constant , with a nonzero @xmath1 eos parameter . the result obtained by on @xmath4 is consistent with our result at @xmath277 error . also , the authors in @xcite , studied the impact of @xmath2 clustering on @xmath7 . they used two different eos parameters , and found a fitting evolution curve for @xmath4 , which at @xmath277 error is acceptable with our result . now we summarize our main results : + @xmath356 an analysis combined of data was performed to break the degeneracy among the different cosmological parameters of our models , obtaining constraints more stringent on them . in particular , for the xcpl and dr models , the allowed regions for their parameters are significantly reduced by the inclusion of the cmb and rsd data when are compared with studies of models without these data @xcite . this implies that higher redshift and dynamical probes may be able to discriminate between these models . + @xmath356 in the dr model , a novel reconstruction for @xmath3 is proposed here , and whose best fitted value is closed to @xmath25 . moreover , it has the property of avoiding divergences in a distant future @xmath65 . this result is consistent with the value predicted by the @xmath14cdm model at @xmath277 error . likewise , within this coupled scenario , a finite value for @xmath3 is obtained from the past to the future ; namely , the following asymptotic values are found : @xmath357 for @xmath358 , @xmath359 for @xmath360 and @xmath361 $ ] for @xmath65 ( see right above panel in fig . [ behaviours_w ] ) . therefore , a possible physical description performed by the dr model on the dynamical evolution of @xmath2 should be used to explore its properties . + @xmath356 in the coupled models the values of the amplitudes of @xmath30 ( see left upper panel in fig.[effects1 ] ) are slightly modified by the reconstructions of @xmath60 and @xmath3 when they are compared with those in the uncoupled models . nevertheless , they are definitely positive . this requirement implies that @xmath3 must be always negative in all the cosmic stages of the universe ( see upper panels in fig . [ behaviours_w ] ) . + @xmath356 if @xmath60 takes the values @xmath291 and @xmath292 ( see right upper panel in fig . [ behaviours_iq ] ) , then the amplitudes of @xmath31 ( @xmath30 ) ( see left upper panel in fig . [ effects1 ] ) for the two cases in the dr model are smaller ( larger ) in the past than their corresponding @xmath31 ( @xmath30 ) in the xcpl and uncoupled models . likewise , we also found in the dr model that the values of the amplitudes of @xmath30 ) are significantly affected by the values of both @xmath299 and @xmath3 . naturally , a smaller proportion of @xmath1 leads to a lesser cosmic structure formation . therefore , the magnitude of @xmath4 in the dr model is suppressed in comparison with those found in the xcpl and uncoupled models ( see right upper panel in fig . [ effects1 ] ) . + @xmath356 for different redshifts , we note that in the coupled models the evolution of @xmath289 and @xmath290 ( see fig . [ effects2 ] ) follow different behaviors from those found in the uncoupled models . therefore , they represent a deviation from the evolution predicted by the uncoupled models . consequently , the dr model predicts an enhancement ( suppression ) on the amplitude of @xmath30 ( @xmath31 ) with respect to that found in the xcpl model ( see left upper panel in fig.[effects1 ] ) . these effects are significantly sensible to the reconstructions of @xmath60 and @xmath3 , respectively , and decrease when @xmath22 tends to zero . + @xmath356 in the coupled @xmath2 models , the decisive role in modifying the cosmic structure formation relative to the uncoupled models is determined mainly by the evolution of @xmath60 , @xmath3 and @xmath31 , respectively . for @xmath282 , the values of @xmath4 are very closed to each other . + @xmath356 currently , an enhancement on the amplitude of @xmath4 is the situation revealed in xcpl model when it is compared with that in the dr model , and therefore these scenarios should be considered to study new physical properties of the universe ( see right upper panel in fig.[effects1 ] ) . + @xmath356 the behaviors qualitatively presented here show that the plot for @xmath7 has more possibility in discriminating the different coupled @xmath2 models , and therefore @xmath7 could be used to distinguish them ( see left upper panel in fig . [ effects3 ] ) . + @xmath364\;,\\ i_{1}(z)&=&\frac{2}{z_{max}}\biggl[\frac{2z}{z_{max}}-\frac{(2+z_{max})}{z_{max}}\ln\biggl(1+z\biggr)\biggr]\;,\\ i_{2}(z)&=&\frac{2}{z_{max}}\biggl[\frac{4 z}{z_{max}}\left(\frac{z}{z_{max}}-\frac{2}{z_{max}}-2\right)+ \left(1+\frac{6.8284}{z_{max}}\right)\left(1+\frac{1.1716}{z_{max}}\right)\ln\biggl(1+z\biggr)\biggr]\;,\\ \tilde{i_{0}}(\tilde{x})&=&\frac{2}{z_{max}}\biggl[\ln{\biggl(1 + 0.5\;z_{max}(1+\tilde{x})\biggr)}\biggr]\;,\\ \tilde{i_{1}}(\tilde{x})&=&{\frac{2}{z_{max}}}\biggl[\biggl(1+\tilde{x}\biggr)-\frac{(2+z_{max})}{z_{max}}\ln{\biggl(1 + 0.5\;z_{max}(1+\tilde{x})\biggr)}\biggr]\;,\\ \tilde{i_{2}}(\tilde{x})&=&{\frac{2}{z_{max}}}\biggl[\biggl(1+\tilde{x}\biggr)\biggl(\tilde{x}-\frac{4}{z_{max}}-3\biggr)+\biggl(1+\frac{6.8284}{z_{max}}\biggr ) \biggl(1+\frac{1.1716}{z_{max}}\biggr)\ln{\biggl(1 + 0.5\;z_{max}(1+\tilde{x})\biggr)}\biggr]\;.\end{aligned}\ ] ] @xmath367\;,\\ a_{1}&=&\frac{4}{(2+z_{max})^{2}}\biggl[\omega_{1}-\omega_{0}+5\omega_{2}+16\omega_{2}(z_{max}^{-2}+z_{max}^{-1})+2\omega_{1}z_{max}^{-1}\biggr]\;,\\ a_{2}&=&\frac{4}{(2+z_{max})^{2}}\biggl[\omega_{0}+2\omega_{1}-5\omega_{2}-16\omega_{2}(z_{max}^{-2}+z_{max}^{-1})+4\omega_{1}z_{max}^{-1}\biggr]\;,\\ j_{0}&=&\frac{-4}{3(2+z_{max})^{2}}\biggl[\lambda_{0}-\lambda_{1}-\lambda_{2}+2\lambda_{2}(1 + 2z_{max}^{-1})^{2}-2\lambda_{1}z_{max}^{-1}\biggr]\;,\\ j_{1}&=&\frac{-2}{3(2+z_{max})^{2}}\biggl[-\lambda_{0}+\lambda_{1}+\lambda_{2}+4\lambda_{2}(1 + 2z_{max}^{-1})^{2}+2\lambda_{1}z_{max}^{-1}\biggr]\;,\\ j_{2}&=&\frac{-2\sqrt2}{3(2+z_{max})^{2}}\biggl[\lambda_{0}+2\lambda_{1}-\lambda_{2}-4\lambda_{2}(1 + 2z_{max}^{-1})^{2}+4\lambda_{1}z_{max}^{-1}\biggr]\;.\end{aligned}\ ] ] the author is grateful to prof . f. astorga for his academic support and fruitful discussions in the early stages of this research , and also thank prof . o. sarbach for useful comments . this work was in beginning supported by the ifm - umsnh . conley a et al . , _ astrophys . j. suppl . _ * 192 * ( 2011 ) 1 . jnsson , j. , et al . 2010 , _ mon . not . * 405 * ( 2010 ) 535 . betoule m et al . , _ astron . and astrophys . _ * 568 * ( 2014 ) a22 . j. c. jackson , _ mon . not . * 156 * ( 1972 ) 1p . kaiser n. , _ mon . not . soc . _ * 227 * ( 1987 ) 1 . a. mehrabi , s. basilakos , f. pace , _ mon . not . * 452 * ( 2015 ) 2930 - 2939 . alcock c. and paczynski b. , _ nature . _ * 281 * ( 1979 ) 358 . seo , e. r. siegel , d. j. eisenstein , and m. white , _ astrophys . j. _ * 686 * ( 2008 ) 13y24 . r. a. battye , t. charnock and a. moss _ phys . * d 91 * ( 2015 ) 103508 . l. samushia , et al . , _ mon . not . * 439 * ( 2014 ) 3504 . hudson m. j. , turnbull s. j. , _ astrophys . j. _ * 751 * ( 2013 ) l30 . beutler f. , blake c. , colless m. , jones d. h. , staveley - smith l. , et al . , _ mon . not . * 423 * ( 2012 ) 3430 . feix m. , nusser a. , branchini e. , _ phys . * 115 * ( 2015 ) 011301 . percival w. j. , et al . , _ mon . not . * 353 * ( 2004 ) 1201 . song y .- s . , percival w. j. , _ j. cosmol . phys . _ * 0910 * ( 2009 ) 004 . tegmark m. et al . , _ phys . * d 74 * ( 2006 ) 123507 . guzzo l. et al . , _ * 451 * ( 2008 ) 541 . samushia l. , percival w. j. , raccanelli a. , _ mon . not . * 420 * ( 2012 ) 2102 . blake c. et al . , _ mon . not . * 415 * ( 2011 ) 2876 ; 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based on general relativity ( gr ) we consider two different cosmological scenarios in where reconstruct the energy exchange ( @xmath0 ) between cold dark matter ( @xmath1 ) fluid and dark energy ( @xmath2 ) fluid , which is modelled with a @xmath2 varying equation of state ( eos ) parameter @xmath3 . we here investigate the main cosmological effects on the growth rate of matter density perturbations ( @xmath4 ) , on the effective hubble friction term ( @xmath5 ) , on the effective newton constant ( @xmath6 ) and on the growth index of the linear matter fluctuations ( @xmath7 ) . our study demonstrates that in the coupled models the evolution of these quantities are modified with respect to the predictions in the uncoupled models , and therefore could be used to distinguish among coupled @xmath2 scenarios . finally , we also perform a combined statistical analysis using current observational data ( geometric and dynamical probes ) to put more stringent constraints on the parameters space of the cosmic scenarios studied .

Tweet with a location You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| On Thursday, notoriously social media-shy Apple revealed a new Twitter account, @AppleSupport, which responds to technical questions from users and tweets out tips and tutorials. 24 hours later, Apple Support has over 121,000 followers, and has tweeted over 2,200 times directly to Apple users with instructions for how to fix their problems. Turns out, there was quite a bit of pent-up demand for Apple support on social media. That works out to between 2 and 3 responses per minute, given that Apple Support only works for 15 hours per day. In addition, Apple's support representatives have to filter out joke tweets: @AppleSupport I think you guys should unlock that iPhone — Zac Hall (@apollozac) March 3, 2016 Apple already had a robust online support service with lots of customer service tutorials. Users could also schedule a phone call with Apple Support. Plus, Apple's network of retail stores serve as contact points for technical support as well. Apple retail boss Angela Ahrendts tweeted she was "thrilled to have another wonderful support option for customers." Among tech giants, Apple is late to embrace Twitter. For example, Microsoft's Xbox Support accounts have been on Twitter since 2009 and are famous for fast response times. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey welcomed Apple Support and used the account to make a point that he believes that Twitter is well-suited for real-time customer service. And more broadly, companies using Twitter for customer service see a +19% lift in customer satisfaction. — Jack (@jack) March 3, 2016 The Apple Support Twitter account appears to be managed with the help of Sprinklr, a social media software from a high-flying New York startup. Other Apple social media accounts tweet through Sprinklr, including iBooks. However, despite the new account, Apple continues to have a relatively light presence on social media in general. Although most of its top executives tweet, the @Apple handle on Twitter is dormant, and the company does not have an overall Facebook page.

– "We’re here to provide tips, tricks, and helpful information when you need it most," reads the bio for the @AppleSupport Twitter account, which launched Thursday. Many, many people needed it. Business Insider reports that within 24 hours Apple's new customer service account had more than 121,000 followers and had tweeted them more than 2,200 times. Since it's only operational 15 hours a day, that's two to three hopefully helpful tweets per minute. "Turns out, there was quite a bit of pent-up demand for Apple support on social media," Business Insider concludes. Apple's nascent Twitter account is already outpacing similar support accounts from Comcast and Dell, though it trails the 300,000 followers of @MicrosoftHelps, Network World reports. The existence of @AppleSupport is a bit of a surprise, as Apple as a company tends to avoid social media, lacking both a main Twitter account and Facebook page. But Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey claims companies who use Twitter for customer service show a 19% improvement in customer satisfaction. Plus it gives bored Twitter pranksters an outlet. "I need help unlocking an iPhone 5c running iOS 9 that I forgot the passcode to," @JamesComeyFBI tweeted @AppleSupport on Thursday.

inability to bear children may be one of the most difficult life experiences that a couple could encounter ( 1 ) . although the rate of infertility differs across studies , approximately 50 to 80 million people worldwide experience infertility ( 1 ) . generally , 10% to 15% of the world 's population suffer from infertility and male factors are suspected for half of these cases ( 2 ) . as a bio - psycho - social phenomenon , infertility can influence all aspects of life ( 1 ) . while paying special attention to its psychological complications in couples ( 35 ) , many studies have investigated the non - clinical aspects of infertility , and emphasized the relationship between gender and the infertility experience ( 6 ) . psychological studies have show infertility as a devastating experience , especially for women ( 3 ) . in recent years , interdisciplinary studies have also focused on infertility . in spite of several studies evaluating the interaction between psychological status and infertility , there are poor documents in regard to the influence of psychosocial development , on dealing with problems such as infertility . psychosocial development theory that has been described by erikson is one of the best - known theories of personality in psychology . erikson has laid a great deal of emphasis on the impact of social experience that occurs throughout the lifespan . according to the theory , successful completion of each stage results in a healthy personality and successful interactions with others . failure to successfully complete a stage can result in a reduced ability to complete further stages and therefore a more unhealthy personality and sense of self . considering erikson 's theory of psychosocial development that states all of our senses might influence our new conditions and new experiences ( 5 ) and that rate of infertility in iran is about 20.2% based on a national project conducted by avicenna research institute ( unpublished ) , we decided to study the effects of infertility on psychosocial development ( 7 ) , in fertile and infertile men attending avicenna fertility clinic in tehran , iran during the years 2009 - 2011 . totally , 80 infertile and 40 fertile men , respectively as cases and controls were included in the present study . the mean age of the case and control groups were 37.57.3 and 354.8 years , respectively . the study was approved by avicenna research institute 's ethics and human rights committee and an informed consent was obtained from all the volunteers . the questionnaire contained eight sections and each being scored on a five - point scale ( 1 = definitely similar to me to 5 = definitely not similar to me at all ) to convert the theoretical structure of erikson 's view into quantitative values . we also investigated the possible association of some external factors on psychosocial development , including age , education , age at marriage , infertility duration and body image in both groups . . statistical analysis was performed by spss ( version 13 ) using independent t - test , pearson 's correlation coefficient and covariance analysis of covariance . data analysis showed the mean durations of marriage in infertile and fertile groups to be 8.95.9 and 117 years , respectively . completion of high school and university educations respectively were 51.3% and 48.7% in the fertile group and 48.1% and 51.9% in the infertile group . no significant differences were demonstrated between the groups in regards to age , education or duration of marriage . scores of the positive stages of psychosocial development were higher in the fertile than the infertile group . the two groups showed significant differences in trust , autonomy , identity , generativity and integrity stages ( table 1 ) . positive stages of psychosocial development in fertile and infertile male groups infertile intergroup analysis demonstrated higher scores in the positive in contrast to the negative stages . guilt , mistrust , isolation and inferiority stages in infertile men were of higher prevalence than other stages ( table 2 ) . stages of psychosocial development in the infertile group regarding certain self - conceived indices , we compared some body image subscales and psychosocial development in both groups , and found that appearance evaluation and fitness evaluation related to body image subscales had a negative correlation with psychosocial development ( table 3 ) . comparison some of body image subscales with psychosocial development in both groups correlation is significant at 0.05 level ( 2-tailed ) . across the world and almost among all cultures , infertility is a growing problem , and it involves 10% to 15% of couples in reproductive age ( 10 ) . infertility , as a phenomenon has its own psychological effects ; therefore , we evaluated the psychosocial development of men with infertility in this study . women may become too sensitive , and reduce their social activities , but men react differently ( 10 ) . the present study showed that trust and autonomy decrease in infertile men , in contrast to guilt , mistrust , isolation or inferiority . mahlstedt also found that the stress of infertility resulted in feelings of loss , anger , and guilt ( 12 ) . because of guilt and mistrust , infertile men experience anxiety and lower levels of self - esteem . kedem et al . likewise found that infertile men have lower self - esteem ( 13 ) . . showed that infertility could affect the personality and social behavior of the male partner and cause anxiety ( 14 ) . as infertile men view infertility as a secret that nobody should be aware of , they attempt to overcome their inability by various means . as a result , they tend to focus on their work at places / situations where they feel they could be more successful ( 10 ) . their reaction towards this problem and keeping it a secret , has made them sensitive , not only to the behavior of others but also to their own . subsequently , self conception of infertile men differs , to the extent that they become sensitive to their physical appearance and they might spend a lot of money on their appearance and participate in sports and fitness training classes ( 8) . whirlwind of emotions that infertility breeds could be so high that the role of education , age and duration of marriage are attenuated . despite the confirmation of erikson 's theory in psychological development , snarey emphasizes the role of training in the management of undesirable conditions ( 15 ) . moreover , other researchers have suggested that good coping skill strategies and social support , could useful in protecting against grief storm attacks ( 16 , 17 ) . trust and autonomy are formed in early stages of life ; however significant differences in scores between two fertile and infertile groups of men in this study posed a challenge to this . psychological experiments show that all of our thoughts might be influenced by our new circumstance and experiences , and therefore , it is expected that infertility , as a more stressful experience in life , would have these consequences ( 5 ) .

backgroundinfertility is one of the most difficult life experiences that a couple might encounter . infertility as a bio - psycho - social phenomenon , could influence all aspects of life . while paying special attention to the psychological aspects of infertility in couples ; many studies have investigated the non - clinical aspects of infertility , however , they rarely have evaluated the psychosocial development of infertile versus fertile men . we aimed to study the effects of infertility on psychosocial development in men.methodsin fact , we designed the study based on erikson 's theory of psychosocial development . we focused on the relationship between psychosocial development and some self - conceived indices . for this purpose , we divided the participants volunteers into two groups of cases ( 80 infertile men ) and controls ( 40 fertile men ) and asked them to complete a 112 ( questions questionnaire based on self description ) . the statistical analysis was performed by spss ( version 13 ) using independent t - test , pearson correlation coefficient and analysis of covariance . a p - value < 0.05 was considered significant.resultsdata analysis showed significant inter and intra group differences . infertile and fertile groups showed significant differences in trust , autonomy , generativity and integrity stages ( p < 0.05 ) . infertile intergroup analysis represents us to higher scores in positive than negative stages.conclusioninfertility as a phenomenon had its own effects on the psychosocial development of infertile men . however , good coping skills are powerful tools to manage these myriad of feelings surrounding infertile men .

phosphorus ( p ) is one of the most important macronutrients in the plant lifecycle . it is involved in the synthesis of nucleic acids and phospholipids , in reactions of phosphorylation , and also in energy delivery ( atp ) . lack of phosphate ( inorganic phosphate , pi ) inhibits plant growth , whereas excessive phosphate levels are toxic to plants and stimulate algal bloom in water reservoirs ( reviewed by scott , 2008 ) . here we describe genes and their products involved in pi transport and maintenance of pi homeostasis ( figure 1a ) . figure 1b shows the effect of pi - deprivation on plant growth : the barley plants grown without pi in the absence ( pi ) or presence ( pi , myc ) of mycorrhizal fungi had shoot weights 35.2 and 33% lower , respectively , than the plant grown in pi replete soil ( + pi ) at 23 days post - sowing . ( a ) schematic representation of the relation between arabidopsis phr1 or its orthologs and examples of pi - responsive genes possessing phr1 binding sites in their promoters . ( 2009 ) and kuo and chiou ( 2011 ) ; sqd1 , sqd2 ( involved in sulfolipid biosynthesis ) by franco - zorrilla et al . ( 2004 ) ; pho1;h1 ( involved in pi loading to the root xylem ) by stefanovic et al . ( 2010 ) ; ( b ) barley grown without or with inorganic phosphate ( pi , + pi ) or without pi but in the presence of mycorrhizal fungi ( pi myc ) ; ( c ) barley hvpht1;1/1;2 expression in roots under different soil pi and mycorrhiza conditions ; ( d ) barley hvpht1;8 expression in roots under different soil pi and mycorrhiza conditions ; ( e ) arabidopsis pri - mir399a isoform expression under pi sufficient growing conditions ( n ) and during pi starvation ( pi ) . the short pri - microrna399a isoform is marked with an x ( see figure 2b ) . lanes / pictures 1 , 3 ( pi ) , lane / picture 2 ( + pi ) , lane / picture 3 depicts roots colonized by the mycorrhizal fungus glomus intraradices ( 28a ) . n , sufficient pi conditions ; pi , phosphate starvation ; nc , negative control ; g , genomic dna positive control . generuler 100 bp dna ladder , m2 generuler 100 bp plus dna ladder ( thermo scientific , formerly fermentas ) . presented data : ( b d ) pacak et al . , unpublished data , ( e ) sobkowiak , unpublished data . the mechanisms of pi acquisition include secretion of carbon dioxide , and plant enzymes , e.g. , acid phosphatases and organic acids ( citric and malic acids ) , which target organic and inorganic soil p species , respectively , and release pi from the soil particles ( scott , 2008 ; richardson et al . , 2011 ) . phosphate starvation induces expression of transcription factors ( tfs ) like phosphorus starvation response 1 ( psr1 ) , which shows at least 10-fold increase of expression during pi deficiency in chlamydomonas reinhardtii ( af174532 ; wykoff et al . , 1999 ) . in contrast , the related arabidopsis thaliana ortholog phosphate starvation response 1 ( atphr1 , at4g28610 ) is only weakly responsive to pi starvation ( rubio et al . , 2001 ) . the key regulatory functions of atphr1 and other tfs involved in pi response have been reviewed by nilsson et al . ( 2010 ) . signaling networks including tfs , pi - responsive micrornas , hormones , and sugars implicated in pi sensing have been recently extensively reviewed by chiou and lin ( 2011 ) . located in the nucleus atphr1 can bind as a dimer via its myb domain to the phr1 binding site ( p1bs , sequence gnatatnc ) , a motif present in the promoters of crucial pi - responsive genes ( rubio et al . , 2010 ; nilsson et al . , 2010 ; oropeza - aburto et al . , a set of pi - responsive genes with p1bs elements in their promoters is outlined in figure 1a . this motif is frequent and considerably enriched in the promoters of pi - responsive genes of arabidopsis compared with the entire genome ( mller et al . atphr1 also regulates genes not directly involved in phosphate metabolism but possessing the p1bs element : e.g. , p1bs occurs in the promoter of the arabidopsis sulfate transporter 1;3 gene ( atsultr1;3 , at1g22150 ) , which is up - regulated during pi - deficient conditions in wild - type plants but much less in phr1 mutant plants ( rouached et al . , bustos et al . ( 2010 ) showed that expression of pi - responsive genes in arabidopsis also requires the phr1-like1 tf ( atphl1 , at5g29000 ) , which also contains a myb domain . the double mutant phr1 phl1 exhibited lower expression levels of pi transporter atpht1;1 ( u62330 , at5g43350 , three p1bs elements ) compared with either of the single mutants phr1 and phl1 or wild - type plants ( franco - zorrilla et al . , 2004 ; bustos et al . , 2010 ) . since the expression of neither atphr1 nor atphl1 is strongly induced by pi starvation , it is still unclear how pi - limitation influences pi - responsive genes . it has been shown in arabidopsis that there are at least four myb - cc ( cc coiled coil domain ) proteins highly similar to both atphr1 and atphl1 , i.e. , at2g20400 , at3g04450 , at3g13040 , and at5g06800 ( bustos et al . , 2010 ) . it is possible that these proteins are also involved in regulating the pi - deprivation response . furthermore , the atphr1 protein is a target for sumoylation by the sumo e3 ligase , atsiz1 ( at5g60410 ) , which is also needed for pi starvation - dependent responses ( miura et al . , 2005 ) . the expression of atsiz1 is not strongly induced by pi starvation , however ( miura et al . , 2005 ) . there are four pi transporter classes , pht1 , pht2 , pht3 , and pht4 , which are responsible for phosphate transport across membranes of cells , chloroplasts , mitochondria , and golgi , respectively ( karandashov and bucher , 2005 ; rouached et al . , 2010 ) . analysis of six barley ( hordeum vulgare ) pht1 gene promoters revealed that all analyzed promoters possess p1bs elements ( schnmann et al . , 2004a ) . these genes encode proteins belonging to the pht1 family of phosphate transporters , which represents plasma membrane phosphate - h symporters , containing 12 trans - membrane helices connected by a hydrophilic loop ( reviewed by karandashov and bucher , 2005 ) . expression of the atpht1;1 , hvpht1;1 , hvpht1;2 ( almost identical cds to hvpht1;1 ) , triticum aestivum pht1;2 ( aj344241 ) gene members of the pht1 family , is largely restricted to roots ( muchhal et al . , 1996 ; davies et al . , 2002 ; schnmann et al . , 2004a ) . the hvpht1;1 ( af543197 ) and hvpht1;2 ( ay187019 ) promoters possess three and two p1bs - like motifs , respectively , and are pi - limitation induced genes ( schnmann et al . , 2004a , b ; glassop et al . , 2005 ; pacak et al . , unpublished data ; figure 1c ) . mutations in two out of three p1bs elements present in the hvpht1;1 rearranged promoter completely abolished promoter completely abolished low - pi induction ( schnmann et al . , 2004b ) . expression of the tapht1;2 gene is induced by pi starvation in the wheat cultivar dalcahue , although the full p1bs motif is not present in the promoter . instead , four other conserved motifs have been identified . three of them are also present in the promoter of hvpht1;1 , whereas the fourth one is similar to the p1bs element ( motif4 ; atatrca sequence ; tittarelli et al . , 2007 ) . some phosphate transporter genes are expressed only in the presence of mycorrhizal fungi ( reviewed by javot et al . mycorrhizal fungi do not colonize the roots of arabidopsis , and no mycorrhiza - specific pi transporter genes have been discovered in this species . they are , however , present in barley ( hvpht1;8 , ay187023 ; glassop et al . chen et al . ( 2011 ) described a set of mycorrhiza - activated phosphate transporters from eudicots . apart from a mycorrhiza transcription factor binding sequence ( mycs ) , p1bs motifs were also found in the promoters of these genes . mutation or deletion of either of these motifs resulted in a remarkable decrease or even the complete absence of gene expression ( chen et al . , among the pi - responsive micrornas which have been described in the latest review published by kuo and chiou ( 2011 ) , mir399 is especially interesting owing to its interaction with an rna molecule named induced by phosphate starvation 1 ( ips1 ) . the mir399 promoters possess the p1bs motif ( kuo and chiou , 2011 ) and expression of their primary transcripts ( pri - micrornas ) is activated by pi starvation ( pant et al . two p1bs elements were found in the promoter of the arabidopsis gene atips1 ( af236376 , at3g09922 ; martin et al . , 2000 ; rubio et al . , 2001 ; bustos et al . , 2010 ) . originally atips1 was described as a highly pi starvation inducible gene belonging to the mt4/tpsi1 family , which possesses a conserved nucleotide motif and encodes only short open reading frames ( martin et al . , 2000 ) . ( 2007 ) showed that atips1 sequesters mir399 , which is bound to the mentioned conserved region , thereby preventing complete degradation of mir399 targets such as the mrna for the phosphate2 protein ( pho2 , at2g33770 ) . atips1 itself is not cleaved by mir399 owing to the sequence mismatches ( figure 2a ) . as we showed in our previous report about mir gene structures and the processing of arabidopsis hyl1-dependent pri - micrornas , alternative splicing events and alternative polyadenylation of microrna precursors are often observed ( szarzynska et al . , 2009 ) . interestingly , the arabidopsis pri - microrna399a transcript undergoes alternative splicing , with 3 alternative splice site selection resulting in completely different sequences of the 3 exons in the two pri - mir399a isoforms as well as different polyadenylation sites ( figure 2b ; sobkowiak , unpublished data ) . ( a ) alignment of mature arabidopsis mir399a with mir399 binding site present in atips1 sequence and in 5 utr of atpho2 mrna ( binding site no . 2 according to lin et al . , 2008 ) ; ( b ) arabidopsis mir399a gene structure and its pri - mirna species . the position of primers used for amplification of both pri - mir399a isoforms is marked by arrows . ( x ) pri - microrna399a isoform marked in figure 1e with an x ( primers : pf and pr1 ) , ( y ) second pri - microrna399a isoform ( primers : pf and pr2 ) , after alternative 3 splice site recognition . the position of mature microrna is depicted by a vertical black line , the position of the microrna * is depicted by * symbol on a vertical black line ; ( c h ) stem - loop structures of arabidopsis microrna399 precursors with minimum folding free energy ( mfe ) ; mature microrna399 is marked by red fonts ; ( c ) pre - mir399a ( dg = 51.60 kcal / mol , one of two structures with the same energy , mi0001020 accession number in the mirbase , www.mirbase.org ) ; ( d ) pre - mir399b ( dg = 61.70 kcal / mol , mi0001021 ) ; ( e ) pre - mir399c ( dg = 57.89 kcal / mol , mi0001022 ) ; ( f ) pre - mir399d ( dg = 45.40 kcal / mol , mi0001023 ) ; ( g ) pre - mir399e ( dg = 48.70 , one of six structures with the same energy , mi0001024 ) ; ( h ) pre - mir399f ( dg = 49.60 , one of two structures with the same energy , mi0001025 ) ; structures were designed with folder v. 1.11 beta software , algorithm rnafold ( hansen , 2007 ) . the six microrna399 species ( a f ) in arabidopsis are considered as the immediate mediators of pho2 mrna silencing . they are derived from six pre - micrornas that differ in structure and sequence ( figures 2c h ) . mature mir399s can bind to five predicted target sites ( differing in sequence from each other ) present in the 5 utr of the pho2 mrna ( allen et al . , 2005 ; bari et al . , 2006 ) . only mir399a and mir399f have full complementarity ( including gu base pairings ) with target sequences sites 1 and 3 in the 5 utr of pho2 mrna , respectively ( lin et al . , 2008 ) . in arabidopsis , an overexpression of mir399f leads to overaccumulation of pi in shoots resembling the pho2 mutant phenotype ( chiou et al . , 2006 ) . suppression of pho2 by overexpressed mir399b / c is less efficient ( lin et al . , 2008 ) . the differences in microrna affinity for the pho2 mrna are probably owed to a nucleotide substitution at position 13 in the mir399b / c sequence , which reduces base pairing between microrna399b / c and the target sites ( lin et al . , 2008 ) . interestingly , the same nucleotide substitution improves base pairing of mir399b / c with the conserved region of the at4/ips1 family . a similar variation in mir399 sequences has been found in rice , medicago , and populus , where certain mir399 variants show reduced base pairing with target sequences in pho2 but improved base pairing with the ips1 homolog of the respective species ( lin et al . , 2008 ) . the arabidopsis pho2 protein is responsible for the pi level decrease in shoots and pi remobilization . pho2 mutants grown under pi replete conditions accumulate pi in shoots , but not in roots , and show induction of some phosphate starvation - induced genes , e.g. , acid phosphatase 5 ( atacp5 , at3g17790 ) and atpht1;4 at2g38940 ( delhaize and randall , 1995 ; bari et al . , 2006 ) . down - regulation of pho2 expression in barley produced a similar effect of increased pi levels in shoots and decreased pi levels in roots ( pacak et al . , 2010 ) . since other ubc domain - containing proteins are usually smaller , 20 vs. 100 kda ( bari et al . , 2006 ) , pho2 may contain unidentified additional domains . such domains may interact with phosphate - related proteins , e.g. , targeting them for degradation . bioinformatic analysis showed that , apart from pho2 mrna , other transcripts derived from the following genes , at3g11130 ( encoding clathrin , heavy chain ) , at3g25905 ( clavata3/esr - related27 protein ) , at3g54700 ( atpht1;7 ) , at4g00170 ( vesicle - associated membrane protein , vamp ) , and at4g09730 ( dead - box protein ) , are potential targets for mir399 ( pant et al . , 2009 ; kuo and chiou , 2011 ) . these complex connections between the mir399 family members and their targets can explain the fact that mir399b - overexpressing plants and a pho2 mutant exhibited not only pi - related changes , but also an early flowering phenotype observed only at normal temperature ( 23c ; kim et al . , 2011 ) . the data presented above show that the presence of one or more p1bs elements in a gene promoter is associated with low - pi induction . other factors , however , can modulate the response . in the promoter of the arabidopsis phospholipase dz2 gene ( pldz2 , at3g05630 ) , apart from five p1bs copies , elements such as sre ( sugar - repressive element ) have been found . a 65-bp promoter fragment spanning two of the p1bs motifs ( the ez2 region ) has been identified as particularly important for the pi - limitation response but strong induction also required sucrose and was negatively affected by cytokinins ( oropeza - aburto et al . , 2012 ) . exactly how the information carried by the p1bs elements and by the various sugar and hormone responsive promoter elements is integrated by the myb - cc tfs phr1 and phl1 and possibly others is still unknown . furthermore , additional studies are necessary to find out how pi - limitation directly affects the function and/or expression of pi - related tfs . finally , the influence of other factors which can modulate the pi response of genes containing p1bs elements should be further investigated . the authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest .

inorganic phosphate ( pi ) is an easily accessible form of phosphorus for plants . plant pi uptake is usually limited however by slow pi diffusion through the soil which strongly adsorps phosphate species . plants have developed mechanisms to increase pi availability . there are also abiotic ( phosphate level ) and biotic ( e.g. , mycorrhizal ) factors regulating the expression of pi - responsive genes . transcription factors binding to the promoters of pi - responsive genes activate different pathways of pi transport , distribution , and homeostasis maintenance . pi metabolism involves not only functional proteins but also micrornas and other non - coding rnas .

air conduction consists of external ear , tympanic membrane and ossicles of middle ear . as a matter of fact , three mechanisms have a noticeable role in this regard which include : air conduction ( ac ) , sound induction in skull bone and sound induction through the soft and hard tissue of body which is finally transmitted to the cochlea . five factors have been considered as effective parameters in bone conduction include : external auditory canal , inertia of middle ear ossicle , inertia of cochlear fluids , changing in the cochlear space and transmitted pressure via cerebrospinal fluid ( csf ) . the role of external auditory canal is more obvious in the frequency below than 1000 hz with occluded external auditory canal since bone conduction gets enhance in low frequency . inertia of middle ear ossicles probably is more effective in high frequency , because bone conduction in frequencies of 200 - 1500 hz is just 5 - 15 db lower than air conduction . cochlear fluids inertia plays as an important factor in bone conduction ( bc ) below 4000 hz . bone conduction thresholds have been used as a criteria for diagnosing of sensory - neural hearing loss . it means bc threshold depression is not only the sign of pathology of inner ear and cochlear nerve , but also the middle ear pathologies cause this changing in threshold ( i.e. carhart 's notch ) . in the previous studies bc threshold improvement was seen after stapedectomy . in other pathologies of middle ear consist of ossicular chain problems and chronic disease of middle ear , it was aimed to survey bc threshold improvement after ear surgeries ( stapedectomy , tympanomastoid surgery , ossiculoplasty , partial ossicular replacement prosthesis ( porp ) and total ossicular replacement prosthesis ( torp ) . this clinical trial study was approved by the ethics committee of isfahan university of medical sciences ( irct:387387 ) . in this study , the selected intervention was the same as the performance of the surgery as seen in flowchart 1 . this study was carried out in 2007 - 2008 at al - zahra hospital , isfahan , iran . 83 patients were selected as follows : 20 cases with stapedectomy , 27 cases with tympanoplasty or tymanoplasty mastoidectomy without ossicular problems and 14 cases with porp and 18 cases with torp surgery . there were 36 and have been diagnosed as otosclerosis , whom had been considered for stapedectomy and patients with the impression of chronic otitis media ( com ) have been candidate for tympanomastoid surgeries . the patients with ossicular problems had been selected for ossicular reconstruction surgery ( torp or porp ) with according to the condition of the ossicles . preoperative bc threshold in frequencies of 250 , 500 , 1000 , 2000 , 4000 hz had been assessed . three months after surgery , the second audiometry tests were performed and the differences of bc thresholds before and after operations were analyzed . the normal distribution of the parameter was evaluated by use of shapiro - wilk test . as the parameter had an abnormal distribution , wilcoxon test was used for final analysis . the mean ( sd ) age of participants in this study was 34.8 ( 2.8 ) years . in the stapedectomy group , bc threshold improvement was significant only at 2000 hz ( p value = 0.013 ) as seen in table 4 . the first group were the patients with stiffness and tympanosclerosis in ossicular chain and bc threshold improvement was significant at 500 and 1000 hz ( p value = 0.028 , p value = 0.007 , respectively ) as seen in tables 2 and 3 . however , in the second group ; no ossicular chain problems , no significant difference was seen in all frequencies as seen in all tables . in porp patients ( p value < 0.05 ) as seen in whole tables . in torp patients group , pre / post hearing threshold at 250 hz pre / post hearing threshold at 500 hz pre / post hearing threshold at 1000 hz pre / post hearing threshold at 2000 hz pre / post hearing threshold at 4000 hz in otosclerosis , the otospongize process occurs in the middle ear and causes ossicular fixation . audiological results shown a conductive hearing loss . maximum bc threshold depression was seen at 2000 hz . in this study the bc threshold improvement after ear surgeries were detected in all frequencies ( this improvement was significant at 2000 hz ) . in the awengen et al . study , changes in bc after the stapedectomy showed that the average improvement in the frequencies of 500 , 1000 and 2000 hz was 5 - 6 db and the best results were at 2000 hz which is the same as the results of the current study . in booncho study , in accordance with this study ; bc threshold improvement was significant except for 4000 hz . in moscillo study , bc threshold changes was significant in all frequencies in younger cases that conforms results of this study . in morshed et al . study ; bc threshold after stapedectomy surgery was improved 6 - 12 db , which showed no significant difference with our results . in tympanoplasty group , significant difference was seen only at 1000 hz ( p value = 0.015 ) . in abnormal ossicular chain group , bc threshold improvement was significant at 500 and 1000 hz but there is no statistically significant difference in intact ossicular chain group , which it might be due to tympanic membrane pathologies . in vartiainen et al . , bc threshold changes in chronic ear pathologies group was 11 - 25 db especially in tympanic membrane pathologies group as what seen in this study . study , bc threshold improvement after ossiculoplasty surgery was seen in accordance with this study , in porp and torp surgery groups , significant difference was found in all frequencies except 4000 and 2000 hz , respectively . in shrestha et al . , bc threshold changes were significant ( 500 and 1000 hz ) in chronic otitis media group as what found in this study . improvement of the abg in almost of 66% of cases was found in iiguez - cuadra et al . study particularly at frequency of 4000 hz , which is the same as the result of this study ( torp group ) . in choi , significant changes of abg , in the torp group was seen rather than in the long columella group ( 30.8 13.8 db vs. 7.9 9.4 db ) . in sazgar et al . , partial stapedectomy group was better than stapedotomy group and hearing improvement was in 3 frequencies and improvement average was 15.6 db . but in kim et al . , they found no preference of mastoid surgery procedures ; canal wall up mastoidectomy and canal wall down mastoidectomy ( cwum and cwdm ) on hearing improvement results ; 10.9 db vs. 13.5 db , respectively . nonetheless , researches with more cases and extended follow - up time are needed . bone conduction loss usually consider as a sign of sensory - neural hearing loss which is because of inner ear problem and cochlear nerve pathologies but sometimes it is an artifact because of middle ear problem and ossicles pathology which the commonest form is carhart 's notch in otosclerosis disease . in this study , bc threshold shift was found after ear surgeries such as stapedectomy , tympanoplasty and ossicular reconstruction surgery i.e. , porp , torp and so it must be considered other impressive factors might be addressed on bc depression and in this situation , hearing threshold of patients is improved by eliminating of middle ear and ossicles pathology

background : bone conduction ( bc ) threshold depression is not always by means of sensory neural hearing loss and sometimes it is an artifact caused by middle ear pathologies and ossicular chain problems . in this research , the influences of ear surgeries on bone conduction were evaluated.materials and methods : this study was conducted as a clinical trial study . the ear surgery performed on 83 patients classified in four categories : stapedectomy , tympanomastoid surgery and ossicular reconstruction partially or totally ; partial ossicular replacement prosthesis ( porp ) and total ossicular replacement prosthesis ( torp ) . bone conduction thresholds assessed in frequencies of 250 , 500 , 1000 , 2000 and 4000 hz pre and post the surgery.results:in stapedectomy group , the average of bc threshold in all frequencies improved approximately 6 db in frequency of 2000 hz . in tympanomastoid group , bc threshold in the frequency of 500 , 1000 and 2000 hz changed 4 db ( p - value < 0.05 ) . moreover , in the porp group , 5 db enhancement was seen in 1000 and 2000 hz . in torp group , the results confirmed that bc threshold improved in all frequencies especially at 4000 hz about 6.5 db.conclusion:in according to results of this study , bc threshold shift was seen after several ear surgeries such as stapedectomy , tympanoplasty , porp and torp . the average of bc improvement was approximately 5 db . it must be considered that bc depression might happen because of ossicular chain problems . therefore ; by resolving middle ear pathologies , the better bc threshold was obtained , the less hearing problems would be faced .

any quantum theory of gravity will have to propose a prescription to deal with the unavoidable @xcite nonlinearities that plague ctcs . this requires some sort of modification of the dynamical equations of motions of quantum mechanics that are always linear . deutsch in his seminal paper @xcite proposed one such prescription , based on a self - consistency condition referred to the state of the systems inside the ctc . deutsch s theory has recently been critiqued by several authors as exhibiting self - contradictory features @xcite . by contrast , although any quantum theory of time travel quantum mechanics is likely to yield strange and counter - intuitive results , p - ctcs appear to be less pathological @xcite . they are based on a different self - consistent condition that states that self - contradictory events do not happen ( novikov principle @xcite ) . pegg points out that this can arise because of destructive interference of self - contradictory histories @xcite . here we further compare deutsch s and post - selected closed timelike curves , and give an in - depth analysis of the latter , showing how they can be naturally obtained in the path - integral formulation of quantum theory and deriving the equations of motions that describe the interactions with ctcs . as noted , in addition to general - relativistic ctcs , our proposed theory can also be seen as a theoretical elaboration of wheeler s assertion to feynman that ` an electron is a positron moving backward in time ' @xcite . in particular , any quantum theory which allows the nonlinear process of postselection supports time travel even in the absence of general - relativistic closed timelike curves . the mechanism of p - ctcs @xcite can be summarized by saying that they behave exactly as if the initial state of the system in the p - ctc were in a maximal entangled state ( entangled with an external purification space ) and the final state were post - selected to be in the same entangled state . when the probability amplitude for the transition between these two states is null , we postulate that the related event does not happen ( so that the novikov principle @xcite is enforced ) . by contrast , deutsch s ctcs are based on imposing the consistency condition @xmath4 , \labell{conscon}\;\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath3 is the state of the system inside the closed timelike curve , @xmath5 is the state of the system outside ( i.e. of the chronology - respecting part of spacetime ) , @xmath6 is the unitary transformation that is responsible for eventual interactions among the two systems , and where the trace is performed over the chronology - respecting system . the existence of a state @xmath7 that satisfies is ensured by the fact that any completely - positive map of the form @xmath8=\mbox{tr}_a[u(\rho\otimes\rho_a)u^\dag]$ ] always has at least one fixed point @xmath7 ( or , equivalently , one eigenvector @xmath7 with eigenvalue one ) . if more than one state @xmath3 satisfies the consistency condition , deutsch separately postulates a `` maximum entropy rule '' , requesting that the maximum entropy one must be chosen . note that deutsch s formulation assumes that the state exiting the ctc in the past is completely uncorrelated with the chronology - preserving variables at that time : the time - traveler s ` memories ' of events in the future are no longer valid . = .55 the primary conceptual difference between deutsch s ctcs and p - ctcs lies in the self - consistency condition imposed . consider a measurement that can be made either on the state of the system as it enters the ctc , or on the state as it emerges from the ctc . deutsch demands that these two measurements yield the same statistics for the ctc state alone : that is , the density matrix of the system as it enters the ctc is the same as the density matrix of the system as it exits the ctc . by contrast , we demand that these two measurements yield the same statistics for the ctc state _ together with its correlations with any chronology preserving variables_. it is this demand that closed timelike curves respect both statistics for the time - traveling state together with its correlations with other variables that distinguishes p - ctcs from deutsch s ctcs . the fact that p - ctcs respect correlations effectively enforces the novikov principle @xcite , and , as will be seen below , makes p - ctcs consistent with path - integral approaches to ctcs . the connection between p - ctcs and teleportation @xcite is illustrated ( see fig . [ f : teleport ] ) with the following simple example that employs qubits ( extensions to higher dimensional systems are straightforward ) . suppose that the initial bell state is @xmath9 ( but any maximally entangled bell state will equivalently work ) , and suppose that the initial state of the system entering the ctc is @xmath10 . then the joint state of the three systems ( system 1 entering the ctc , system 2 emerging from the ctc , and system 3 , its purification ) is given by @xmath11 . these three systems are denoted by the three vertical lines of fig . [ f : teleport]b . it is immediate to see that this state can be also written as @xmath12 where @xmath13 and @xmath14 are the four states in a bell basis for qubit systems and @xmath15s are the three pauli matrices . is equivalent to eq . ( 5 ) of ref . @xcite , where the extension to higher dimensional systems is presented ( the extension to infinite dimensional systems is presented in @xcite ) . it is immediate to see that , if the system 1 entering the ctc together with the purification system 3 are post - selected to be in the same bell state @xmath16 as the initial one , then only the first term of eq . survives . apart from an inconsequential minus sign , this implies that the system 2 emerging from the ctc is in the state @xmath17 , which is exactly the same state of the system that has entered ( rather , will enter ) the ctc . it seems that , based on what is currently known on these two approaches , we can not conclusively choose p - ctcs over deutsch s , or _ vice versa_. both arise from reasonable physical assumptions and both are consistent with different approaches to reconciling quantum mechanics with closed timelike curves in general relativity . a final decision on which of the two is `` actually the case '' may have to be postponed to when a full quantum theory of gravity is derived ( which would allow to calculate from first principles what happens in a ctc ) or when a ctc is discovered that can be tested experimentally . however , because of the huge recent interest on ctcs in physics and in computer science ( e.g. see @xcite ) , it is important to point out that there are reasonable alternatives to the leading theory in the field . we also point out that our post - selection based description of ctcs seems to be less pathological than deutsch s : for example p - ctcs have less computational power and do not require to separately postulate a `` maximum entropy rule '' @xcite . therefore , they are in some sense preferable , at least from an occam s razor perspective . independent of such questions of aesthetic preference , as we will now show , p - ctcs are consistent with previous path integral formulations of closed timelike curves , whereas deutsch s ctcs are not . path integrals @xcite allow one to calculate the transition amplitude for going from an initial state @xmath18 to a final state @xmath19 as an integral over paths of the action , i.e. @xmath20,\mbox { where } s=\int_0^{\tau } dtl(x,\dot x ) \labell{feyn}\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and where @xmath21 is the lagrangian and @xmath22 is the action , @xmath23 and @xmath24 are the position representations of @xmath18 and @xmath19 respectively ( i.e. @xmath25 ) , and the paths in the integration over paths all start in @xmath0 and end in @xmath26 . of course in this form it is suited only to describing the dynamics of a particle in space ( or a collection of particles ) . it will be extended to other systems in the next section . in order to add a ctc , we first divide the spacetime into two parts , @xmath27 \labell{feyn2}\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] the `` conventional '' strategy to deal with ctcs using path integrals is to send the system @xmath28 to a prior time unchanged ( i.e. with the same values of @xmath29 ) , while the other system ( the chronology - respecting one ) evolves normally . this is enforced by imposing periodic boundary conditions on the ctc boundaries . namely , the probability amplitude for the chronology - respecting system is @xmath30 \labell{feyn3}\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] where the @xmath31-function ensures that the initial and final boundary conditions in the ctc system are the same . note that we have removed @xmath32 and @xmath33 , but we are coherently adding all possible initial and final conditions ( through the @xmath34 and @xmath35 integrals ) . this implies that it is not possible to assign a definite state to the system inside a ctc : all possible states of the system ( except possibly forbidden ones ) are compatible with such boundary conditions . note also that the boundary conditions of eq . have previously appeared in the literature ( e.g. see @xcite and , in the classical context , in the seminal paper @xcite ) . 1to show that eq . is the same formula that one obtains using post - selected teleportation , we have to calculate @xmath36 , where @xmath37 is a maximally entangled epr state @xcite and where the hamiltonian acts only on the system and on the first of the two hilbert spaces of @xmath38 . use eq . for the system and for the first hilbert space of @xmath38 to obtain @xmath39 = \int^{\infty}_{-\infty } dx dx^{\prime } dy dy^{\prime } i ( x ) f^{\ast } ( y)\ ; \delta(x'-y ' ) \int^{y , y^{\prime}}_{x , x^{\prime } } { \cal d } x(t ) \exp \left [ \frac{i}{\hbar } s \right ] \labell{tp}\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] where we have used the position representation @xmath40 . is clearly equal to eq . since @xmath41 . note that this result is independent of the particular form of the epr state @xmath38 as long as it is maximally entangled in position ( and hence in momentum ) . all the above discussion holds for initial and final pure states . however , the extension to mixed states in the path - integral formulation is straightforward : one only needs to employ appropriate purification spaces @xcite . the formulas then reduce to the previous ones . here we briefly comment on the two - state vector formalism of quantum mechanics @xcite . it is based on post - selection of the final state and on renormalizing the resulting transition amplitudes : it is a time - symmetrical formulation of quantum mechanics in which not only the initial state , but also the final state is specified . as such , it shares many properties with our post - selection based treatment of ctcs . in particular , in both theories it is impossible to assign a definite quantum state at each time : in the two - state formalism the unitary evolution forward in time from the initial state might give a different mid - time state with respect to the unitary evolution backward in time from the final state . analogously , in a p - ctc , it is impossible to assign a definite state to the ctc system at any time , given the cyclicity of time there . this is evident , for example , from eq . : in the ctc system no state is assigned , only periodic boundary conditions . another aspect that the two - state formalism and p - ctcs share is the nonlinear renormalization of the states and probabilities . in both cases this arises because of the post - selection . in addition to the two - state formalism , our approach can also be related to weak values @xcite , since we might be performing measurements between when the system emerges from the ctc and when it re - enters it . considerations analogous to the ones presented above apply . it would be a mistake , however , to think that the theory of post - selected closed timelike curves in some sense requires or even singles out the weak value theory . although the two are compatible with each other , the theory of p - ctcs is essentially a ` free - standing ' theory that does not give preference to one interpretation of quantum mechanics over another . the formula was derived in the path - integral formulation of quantum mechanics , but it can be easily extended to generic quantum evolution . we start by recalling the usual kraus decomposition of a generic quantum evolution ( that can describe the evolution of both isolated and open systems ) . it is given by @xmath42=\mbox{tr}_e[u(\rho\otimes|e\rangle\langle e|)u^\dag]= \sum_i\langle i|u|e\rangle\:\rho\:\langle e|u^\dag|i\rangle\nonumber\\ & & = \sum_ib_i\rho b_i^\dag \labell{cp}\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath43 is the initial state of the environment ( or , equivalently , of a putative abstract purification space ) , @xmath6 is the unitary operator governing the interaction between system initially in the state @xmath7 and environment , and @xmath44 is the kraus operator . in contrast , the nonlinear evolution of our post - selected teleportation scheme is given by @xmath45=\mbox{tr}_{ee ' } \big[(u\otimes\openone_{e ' } ) \left(\rho\otimes|\psi\rangle\langle\psi|\right ) \left(u^\dag\otimes\openone_{e'}\right)\nonumber\\&&\times \left(\openone\otimes|\psi\rangle\langle\psi|\right)\big]= \sum_{l , j}\langle l|u|l\rangle\:\rho\:\langle j|u^\dag|j\rangle= c\rho c^\dag \labell{nl},\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath46tr@xmath47 $ ] and @xmath48 ( or any other maximally entangled state , which would give the same result ) . obviously , the evolution in is nonlinear ( because of the post - selection ) , so one has to renormalize the final state : @xmath49\to { \cal n}[\rho]/$]tr@xmath50 $ ] . in other words , according to our approach , a chronology - respecting system in a state @xmath7 that interacts with a ctc using a unitary @xmath6 will undergo the transformation @xmath51=\frac{c\;\rho\;c^\dag } { \mbox{tr}[c\;\rho\;c^\dag ] } \labell{evol}\;,\end{aligned}\ ] ] where we suppose that the evolution does not happen if @xmath46tr@xmath47=0 $ ] . the comparison with is instructive : there the non - unitarity comes from the inaccessibility of the environment . analogously , in the non - unitarity comes from the fact that , after the ctc is closed , for the chronology - respecting system it will be forever inaccessible . the nonlinearity of is more difficult to interpret , but is connected with the periodic boundary conditions in the ctc . note that this general evolution equation is consistent with previous derivations based on path integrals . for example , it is equivalent to eq . ( 4.6 ) of ref . @xcite by hartle . however , in contrast to here , the actual form of the evolution operators @xmath28 is not provided there . as a further example , consider ref . @xcite , where politzer derives a path integral approach of ctcs for qubits , using grassmann fields . ( 5 ) is compatible with eq . . he also derives a nonunitary evolution that is consistent with eq . in the case in which the initial state is pure . in particular , this implies that , also in the general qudit case , our post - selected teleportation approach gives the same result one would obtain from a specific path - integral formulation . in addition , it has been pointed out many times before ( e.g. see @xcite ) that when quantum fields inside a ctc interact with external fields , linearity and unitarity is lost . it is also worth to notice that there have been various proposals to restore unitarity by modifying the structure of quantum mechanics itself or by postulating an inaccessible purification space that is added to uphold unitarity @xcite . the evolution coming from our approach is to be compared with deutsch s evolution , @xmath52=\mbox{tr}_{ctc}[u(\rho_{ctc}\otimes\rho)u^\dag],\mbox { where } \nonumber\\&&\rho_{ctc}=\mbox{tr}_a[u(\rho_{ctc}\otimes\rho)u^\dag ] \labell{consconds}\;\end{aligned}\ ] ] satisfies the consistency condition . the direct comparison of eqs . and highlights the differences in the general prescription for the dynamics of ctcs of these two approaches . even though the results presented in this section are directly applicable only to general finite - dimensional systems , the extension to systems living in infinite - dimensional separable hilbert spaces seems conceptually straightforward , although mathematically involved . in his path - integral formulation of ctcs , hartle notes that ctcs might necessitate abandoning not only unitarity and linearity , but even the familiar hilbert space formulation of quantum mechanics @xcite indeed , the fact that the state of a system at a given time can be written as the tensor product states of subsystems relies crucially on the fact that operators corresponding to spacelike separated regions of spacetime commute with each other . when ctcs are introduced , the notion of ` spacelike ' separation becomes muddied . the formulation of closed timelike curves in terms of p - ctcs shows , however , that the hilbert space structure of quantum mechanics can be retained . although the theory of p - ctcs was developed to address the question of quantum mechanics in general - relativistic closed timelike curves , it also allows us to address the possibility of time travel in other contexts . essentially , any quantum theory that allows the nonlinear process of projection onto some particular state , such as the entangled states of p - ctcs , allows time travel even when no spacetime closed timelike curve exists . indeed , the mechanism for such time travel closely follows wheeler s famous telephone call above . non - general - relativistic p - ctcs can be implemented by the creation of and projection onto entangled particle - antiparticle pairs . such a mechanism is just what is used in our experimental tests of p - ctcs @xcite : although projection is a non - linear process that can not be implemented deterministically in ordinary quantum mechanics , it can easily be implemented in a probabilistic fashion . consequently , the effect of p - ctcs can be tested simply by performing quantum teleportation experiments , and by post - selecting only the results that correspond to the desired entangled - state output . if it turns out that the linearity of quantum mechanics is only approximate , and that projection onto particular states does in fact occur for example , at the singularities of black holes @xcite then it might be possible to implement time travel even in the absence of a general - relativistic closed timelike curve . the formalism of p - ctcs shows that such quantum time travel can be thought of as a kind of quantum tunneling backwards in time , which can take place even in the absence of a classical path from future to past . it has been long known that nonlinear quantum mechanics potentially allows the rapid solution of hard problems such as np - complete problems @xcite . the nonlinearities in the quantum mechanics of closed timelike curves is no exception @xcite . aaronson and watrous have shown quantum computation with deutsch s closed timelike curves allows the solution of any problem in pspace , the set of problems that can be solved using polynomial space resources @xcite . similarly , aaronson has shown that quantum computation combined with post - selection allows the solution of any problem in the computational class pp , probabilistic polynomial time(where a probabilistic polynomial turing machine accepts with probability @xmath53 if and only if the answer is `` yes . '' ) . quantum computation with post - selection explicitly allows p - ctcs , and p - ctcs in turn allow the performance of any desired post - selected quantum computation . accordingly , quantum computation with p - ctcs can solve any problem in pp , including np - complete problems . since the class pp is thought to be strictly contained in pspace , quantum computation with p - ctcs is apparently strictly less powerful than quantum computation with deutsch s ctcs . in the case of quantum computating with deutschian ctcs , bennett _ et al . _ @xcite have questioned whether the notion of programming a quantum computer even makes sense . @xcite notes that in deutsch s closed timelike curves , the nonlinearity introduces ambiguities in the definition of state preparation : as is well - known in nonlinear quantum theories , the result of sending _ either _ the state @xmath10 through a closed - timelike curve _ or _ the state @xmath54 is no longer equivalent to sending the mixed state @xmath55 through the curve . the problem with computation arises because , as is clear from our grandfather - paradox circuit @xcite , deutsch s closed timelike curves typically break the correlation between chronology preserving variables and the components of a mixed state that enters the curve : the component that enters the ctc as @xmath56 can exit the curve as @xmath57 , even if the overall mixed state exiting the curve is the same as the one that enters . consequently , bennett _ et al . _ argue , the programmer who is using a deutschian closed timelike curve as part of her quantum computer typically finds the output of the curve is completely decorrelated from the problem she would like to solve : the curve emits random states . in contrast , because p - ctcs are formulated explicitly to retain correlations with chronology preserving curves , quantum computation using p - ctcs do not suffer from state - preparation ambiguity . that is not so say that p - ctcs are computationally innocuous : their nonlinear nature typically renormalizes the probability of states in an input superposition , yielding to strange and counter - intuitive effects . for example , any ctc can be used to compress any computation to depth one , as shown in fig . [ f : comput ] . indeed , it is exactly the ability of nonlinear quantum mechanics to renormalize probabilities from their conventional values that gives rise to the amplification of small components of quantum superpositions that allows the solution of hard problems . not least of the counter - intuitive effects of p - ctcs is that they could still solve hard computational problems with ease ! the ` excessive ' computational power of p - ctcs is effectively an argument for why the types of nonlinearities that give rise to p - ctcs , if they exist , should only be found under highly exceptional circumstances such as general - relativistic closed timelike curves or black - hole singularities . this paper reviewed quantum mechanical theories for time travel , focusing on the theory of p - ctcs @xcite . our purpose in presenting this work is to make precise the similarities and differences between varying quantum theories of time travel . we summarize our findings here . we have extensively argued that p - ctcs are physically inequivalent to deutsch s ctcs . in sec . [ s : pathint ] we showed that p - ctcs are compatible with the path - integral formulation of quantum mechanics . this formulation is at the basis of most of the previous analysis of quantum descriptions of closed time - like curves , since it is particularly suited to calculations of quantum mechanics in curved space time . p - ctcs are reminiscent of , and consistent with , the two - state - vector and weak - value formulation of quantum mechanics . it is important to note , however , that p - ctcs do not in any sense require such a formulation . then , in sec . [ s : general ] we extended our analysis to general systems where the path - integral formulation may not always be possible and derived a simple prescription for the calculation of the ctc dynamics , namely eq . . in this way we have performed a complete characterization of p - ctc in the most commonly employed frameworks for quantum mechanics , with the exception of algebraic methods ( e.g. see @xcite ) . in sec . 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this paper discusses the quantum mechanics of closed timelike curves ( ctcs ) and of other potential methods for time travel . we analyze a specific proposal for such quantum time travel , the quantum description of ctcs based on post - selected teleportation ( p - ctcs ) . we compare the theory of p - ctcs to previously proposed quantum theories of time travel : the theory is physically inequivalent to deutsch s theory of ctcs , but it is consistent with path - integral approaches ( which are the best suited for analyzing quantum field theory in curved spacetime ) . we derive the dynamical equations that a chronology - respecting system interacting with a ctc will experience . we discuss the possibility of time travel in the absence of general relativistic closed timelike curves , and investigate the implications of p - ctcs for enhancing the power of computation . einstein s theory of general relativity allows the existence of closed timelike curves , paths through spacetime that , if followed , allow a time traveler whether human being or elementary particle to interact with her former self . the possibility of such closed timelike curves ( ctcs ) was pointed out by kurt gdel @xcite , and a variety of spacetimes containing closed timelike curves have been proposed @xcite . reconciling closed timelike curves with quantum mechanics is a difficult problem that has been addressed repeatedly , for example , using path integral techniques @xcite . this paper explores a particular version of closed timelike curves based on combining quantum teleportation with post - selection . the resulting post - selected closed timelike curves ( p - ctcs ) provide a self - consistent picture of the quantum mechanics of time - travel . p - ctcs offer a theory of closed timelike curves that is physically inequivalent to other hilbert - space based theories , e.g. , that of deutsch @xcite . as in all versions of time travel , closed timelike curves embody apparent paradoxes , such as the grandfather paradox , in which the time traveller inadvertently or on purpose performs an action that causes her future self not to exist . einstein ( a good friend of gdel ) was himself seriously disturbed by the discovery of ctcs @xcite . because the theory of p - ctcs rely on post - selection , they provide self - consistent resolutions to such paradoxes : anything that happens in a p - ctc can also happen in conventional quantum mechanics with some probability . similarly , the post - selected nature of p - ctcs allows the predictions and retrodictions of the theory to be tested experimentally , even in the absence of an actual general - relativistic closed timelike curve . time travel is a subject that has fascinated human beings for thousands of years . in the hindu epic , the mahabarata , for example , king revaita accepts an invitation to visit brahma s palace . although he stays for only a few days , when he returns to earth he finds that many eons have passed . the japanese fisherman in the folk tale urashima taro , having saved a sea turtle , is invited to the palace of the sea - king ; upon returning home discovers on the beach a crumbling monument , centuries old , memorializing him . the gaelic hero finn mccool suffers a similar fate . these stories also dwell on the dangers of time travel . urashima taro is given a magic box and told not to open it . finn receives the gift of a magic horse and told not to dismount . when , inevitably , taro opens the box , and finn s toe touches the ground , they instantaneously age and crumble into dust . these tales involve time travel to the future . perhaps because of the various paradoxes to which it gives rise , the concept of travel to the past is a more recent invention . starting in the late eighteenth century , a few narratives take a stab at time travel to the past , the best known being charles dickens s _ a christmas carol , _ and mark twain s _ a connecticut yankee in king arthur s court . _ the contemporary notion of time travel , together with all its attendant paradoxes , did not come into being until h.g . wells masterpiece , _ the time machine _ , which is also the first book to propose an actual device that can be used to travel back and forth in time . as frequently happens , scientific theories of time travel lagged behind the fictional versions . although einstein s theory of general relativity implicitly allows travel to the past , it took several decades before gdel proposed an explicit space - time geometry containing closed timelike curves ( ctcs ) . the gdel universe consists of a cloud of swirling dust , of sufficient gravitational power to support closed timelike curves . later , it was realized that closed timelike curves are a generic feature of highly curved , rotating spacetimes : the kerr solution for a rotating black hole contains closed timelike curves within the black hole horizon ; and massive rapidly rotating cylinders typically are associated with closed timelike curves @xcite . the topic of closed timelike curves in general relativity continues to inspire debate : hawking s chronology protection postulate , for example , suggests that the conditions needed to create closed timelike curves can not arise in any physically realizable spacetime @xcite . for example , while gott showed that cosmic string geometries can contain closed timelike curves @xcite , deser _ et al . _ showed that physical cosmic strings can not create ctcs from scratch @xcite . at bottom , the behavior of matter is governed by the laws of quantum mechanics . considerable effort has gone into constructing quantum mechanical theories for closed timelike curves . the initial efforts to construct such theories involved path integral formulations of quantum mechanics . hartle and politzer pointed out that in the presence of closed timelike curves , the ordinary correspondence between the path - integral formulation of quantum mechanics and the formulation in terms of unitary evolution of states in hilbert space breaks down @xcite . morris _ et al . _ explored the quantum prescriptions needed to construct closed timelike curves in the presence of wormholes , bits of spacetime geometry that , like the handle of a coffee cup , ` break off ' from the main body of the universe and rejoin it in the the past @xcite . meanwhile , deutsch formulated a theory of closed timelike curves in the context of hilbert space , by postulating self - consistency conditions for the states that enter and exit the closed timelike curve @xcite . general relativistic closed timelike curves provide one potential mechanism for time travel , but they need not provide the only one . quantum mechanics supports a variety of counter - intuitive phenomena which might allow time travel even in the absence of a closed timelike curve in the geometry of spacetime . one of the best - known versions of non - general relativistic quantum versions of time travel comes from wheeler , as described by feynman in his nobel prize lecture @xcite : i received a telephone call one day at the graduate college at princeton from professor wheeler , in which he said , `` feynman , i know why all electrons have the same charge and the same mass . '' `` why ? '' `` because , they are all the same electron ! '' and , then he explained on the telephone , `` suppose that the world lines which we were ordinarily considering before in time and space - instead of only going up in time were a tremendous knot , and then , when we cut through the knot , by the plane corresponding to a fixed time , we would see many , many world lines and that would represent many electrons , except for one thing . if in one section this is an ordinary electron world line , in the section in which it reversed itself and is coming back from the future we have the wrong sign to the proper time - to the proper four velocities - and that s equivalent to changing the sign of the charge , and , therefore , that part of a path would act like a positron . '' as we will see , post - selected closed timelike curves make up a precise physical theory which instantiates wheeler s whimsical idea . the purpose of the current paper is to provide a unifying description of closed timelike curves in quantum mechanics . we start from the prescription that time travel effectively represents a communication channel from the future to the past . quantum time travel , then , should be described by a quantum communication channel to the past . a well - known quantum communication channel is given by quantum teleportation , in which shared entanglement combined with quantum measurement and classical communication allows quantum states to be transported between sender and receiver . we show that if quantum teleportation is combined with post - selection , then the result is a quantum channel to the past . the entanglement occurs between the forward- and backward- going parts of the curve , and post - selection replaces the quantum measurement and obviates the need for classical communication , allowing time travel to take place . the resulting theory allows a description both of the quantum mechanics of general relativistic closed timelike curves , and of wheeler - like quantum time travel in ordinary spacetime . as described in previous work @xcite , the notion that entanglement and projection can give rise to closed timelike curves to has arisen independently in a variety of contexts . this combination lies at the heart of the horowitz - maldacena model for information escape from black holes @xcite , and gottesmann and preskill note in passing that this mechanism might be used for time travel @xcite . pegg explored the use of a related mechanism for ` probabilistic time machines ' @xcite . bennett and schumacher have explored similar notions in unpublished work @xcite . ralph suggests using teleportation for time traveling , although in a different setting , namely , displacing the entangled resource in time @xcite . svetlichny describes experimental techniques for investigating quantum travel based on entanglement and projection @xcite . chiribella _ eet al . _ cosider this mechanism while analyzing extensions to the quantum computational model @xcite . brukner _ et al . _ have analyzed probabilistic teleportation ( where only the cases in which the bell measurement yields the desired result are retained ) as a computational resource in @xcite . the outline of the paper follows . in sec . [ s : pctcs ] we describe p - ctcs and deutsch s mechanism in detail , emphasizing the differences between the two approaches . then , in sec . [ s : pathint ] we relate p - ctcs to the path - integral formulation of quantum mechanics . this formulation is particularly suited for the description of quantum field theory in curved spacetime @xcite , and has been used before to provide quantum descriptions of closed timelike curves @xcite . our proposal is consistent with these path - integral approaches . in particular , the path - integral description of fermions using grassmann fields given by politzer @xcite yields a dynamical description which coincides with ours for systems of quantum bits . other descriptions , such as hartle s @xcite , are more difficult to compare as they do not provide an explicit prescription to calculate the details of the dynamics of the interaction with systems inside closed timelike curves . in any case , their general framework is consistent with our derivations . by contrast , deutsch s ctcs are not compatible with the politzer path - integral approach , and are analyzed by him on a different footing @xcite . indeed , suppose that the path integral is performed over classical paths which agree both at the entrance to and at the exit from the ctc , so that @xmath0-in , @xmath1-in are the same as @xmath0-out , @xmath1-out . similarly , in the grassmann case , suppose that spin - up along the @xmath2 axis at the entrance emerges as spin - up along the @xmath2 axis at the exit . then , the quantum version of the ctc must exhibit the same perfect correlation between input and output . but , as the grandfather paradox experiment @xcite shows , deutsch s ctcs need not exhibit such correlations : spin - up in is mapped to spin - down out ( although the overall quantum state remains the same ) . by contrast , p - ctcs exhibit perfect correlation between in- and out- versions of all variables . note that a quantum - field theoretical justification of deutsch s solution is proposed in @xcite and is based on introducing additional hilbert subspaces for particles and fields along the geodesic : observables at different points along the geodesic commute because they act on different hilbert spaces . the path - integral formulation also shows that using p - ctcs it is impossible to assign a well defined state to the system in the ctc . this is a natural requirement ( or , at least , a desirable property ) , given the cyclicity of time there . in contrast , deutsch s consistency condition is explicitly built to provide a prescription for a definite quantum state @xmath3 of the system in the ctc . in sec . [ s : general ] we go beyond the path - integral formulation and provide the dynamical evolution formulas in the context of generic quantum mechanics ( the hilbert - space formulation ) . namely , we treat the ctc as a generic quantum transformation , where the transformed system emerges at a previous time `` after '' eventually interacting with some chronology - respecting systems . in this framework we obtain the explicit prescription of how to calculate the nonlinear evolution of the state of the system in the chronology - respecting part of the spacetime . this nonlinearity is exactly of the form that previous investigations ( e.g. hartle s @xcite ) have predicted . in sec . [ s : generalrel ] we consider time travel situations that are independent from general - relativistic ctcs . we then conclude in sec . [ s : comp ] with considerations on the computational power of the different models of ctcs .

When this happens -- and it happens more often than I like -- I think about a Gloria Steinem quote a friend posted on Facebook. It read: "We've begun to raise daughters more like sons ... but few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters." The pants mock me. I usually keep this pair hidden -- underneath my 18-month-old son's jeans and sweats, under the hand-me-down khakis with the embroidered hearts on the butt. But today the pants, those pink pants with the flowers, lie exposed in an empty dresser drawer. The only clean pants. For my boy. Pink is the most loaded color, at least in a child's world. Once a fierce boy color, pink has for decades now been insidiously marketed and pushed as the epitome of a kind of frilly, marginalizing girlhood. Small-scale boycotts have popped up in England and elsewhere as people finally push back against what the former head of UK's National Consumer Council calls this "gender apartheid." And according to Slate, gender neutral clothes are making a high-end comeback, a possible way out of the pink prison. And now there is some buzz about a book by Cordelia Fine called "Delusions of Gender," a volley in the nature-versus-nurture wars firmly on the nurture side. Fine argues that men are not from Mars and women are not from Venus. In fact, she says, we are way more alike than different. All those supposedly entrenched gender differences, the ones we read about in popular literature and scientific journals alike? Just a product of oppressive "neurosexism," she says. This sounds like a great reason to get girls away from pink and all the socio-corporate limitations it imposes. But what about boys? What about the flip side of that gender apartheid, that boys are shunted into blue and trucks and trains? We do not perceive them as the victims -- likely because masculine traits are traditionally perceived as more active and positives -- but they are limited nonetheless. Why can't boys wear pink? For better or for worse, pink has come to stand for the feminine in the baby and toddler world. And let's not throw the baby out with the bath water, so to speak. The stereotypes run both ways -- feminine may be perceived as weak and passive, but it is also seen as gentle and sensitive. And if men are going to make it in post-industrial society -- and there is much fear that they will not -- they need these interpersonal and nurturing skills, both at work and at home. Could we raise gentle and sensitive boys without the feminine symbols, without pink? Probably. But what's wrong with a little pink, with a flower here and a butterfly there? So, Ms. Steinem, I'm on board. I get it. I can't just toughen up my girl. I also need to make my boy confident with his softer sides. I need to embrace a metaphorical pink. So during my recent nine months of paternity leave (thanks, Sweden, for helping me reverse gender stereotypes myself), I fostered my son's love of dolls, cuddling and kissing them when he reached them up to me with expectations in his eyes. And I regularly put him in the shiny pink dress at the local "open preschool" when he asked for it. And I still cuddle and kiss him until he can't take it -- no stoic, unreachable model of masculinity here. The dude looks good in pink, too, not the least bit effeminate. (Wait, that is bad, right? I should say that he looks effeminate, and I love it. I have a ways to go on this one, it seems). For even if he is a pretty boy, he is not a "pretty boy," if you know what I mean (D'oh! There I go again, getting all macho about my sweet son.) He wears plenty of pink, mostly in the details -- flowers on slippers, details on pants, collars on shirts -- all hand-me-downs from big sister. It would be financial insanity to just give all those clothes away. For while the Swedish state takes good care of families with small children, my paternity leave pay wasn't that good. Back at the dresser drawer, however, before the pink pants, I falter. There must be other pants in the dirty laundry that would work. What is a little dried oatmeal on the leg? At the park or at preschool when we pick up his older sister, if he has on pink, I see the looks, the glances. In the sandbox the smallest butterfly on his pants creates confusion. You can see the gears working in the other parent's head. Is this a boy or girl? Should I ask? Maybe I shouldn't. And this is in Sweden -- a country far more equal and less focused on gender than the United States. This is a place where men take more than 20 percent of the most generous parental leave in the world. This is a place where two 13-year-old boys took on Toys "R" Us for its sexist toy catalogs. There is no pink-blue tyranny here (babies are dressed in shockingly neutral colors, plus lots of stripes, which raises other fashion issues), and people usually know to ask, "What is your child's name?" instead of, "What is your son's name?" But the code of pink thrives here anyway, and I am slowly buckling under the pressure. My son's pink shirts get worn as pajamas at home or only on cold days when I know his black San Francisco sweatshirt will never come off. Standing at the dresser, I ponder that pink reflects my own masculinity -- all silly and sensitive at home but strong and silent in public. And then I remember the bag of extra clothes in the extra diaper bag -- the one that I no longer use. I rush over. The pants inside are too short and a little frilly. But they are orange. Nathan Hegedus writes the Big News column for The Faster Times and also blogs at Dispatches from Daddyland. He recently returned to work in Stockholm, Sweden after nine months of paid paternity leave. ||||| Masterfile / Radius Images / Corbis The fact that the average American working woman earns only about 8o% of what the average American working man earns has been something of a festering sore for at least half the population for several decades. And despite many programs and analyses and hand-wringing and badges and even some legislation, the figure hasn't budged much in the past five years. But now there's evidence that the ship may finally be turning around: according to a new analysis of 2,000 communities by a market research company, in 147 out of 150 of the biggest cities in the U.S., the median full-time salaries of young women are 8% higher than those of the guys in their peer group. In two cities, Atlanta and Memphis, those women are making about 20% more. This squares with earlier research from Queens College, New York, that had suggested that this was happening in major metropolises. But the new study suggests that the gap is bigger than previously thought, with young women in New York City, Los Angeles and San Diego making 17%, 12% and 15% more than their male peers, respectively. And it also holds true even in reasonably small areas like the Raleigh-Durham region and Charlotte in North Carolina (both 14% more), and Jacksonville, Fla. (6%). (See TIME's special report on the state of the American woman.) Here's the slightly deflating caveat: this reverse gender gap, as it's known, applies only to unmarried, childless women under 30 who live in cities. The rest of working women — even those of the same age, but who are married or don't live in a major metropolitan area — are still on the less scenic side of the wage divide. The figures come from James Chung of Reach Advisors, who has spent more than a year analyzing data from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. He attributes the earnings reversal overwhelmingly to one factor: education. For every two guys who graduate from college or get a higher degree, three women do. This is almost the exact opposite of the graduation ratio that existed when the baby boomers entered college. Studies have consistently shown that a college degree pays off in much higher wages over a lifetime, and even in many cases for entry-level positions. "These women haven't just caught up with the guys," says Chung. "In many cities, they're clocking them." Chung also claims that, as far as women's pay is concerned, not all cities are created equal. Having pulled data on 2,000 communities and cross-referenced the demographic information with the wage-gap figures, he found that the cities where women earned more than men had at least one of three characteristics. Some, like New York City or Los Angeles, had primary local industries that were knowledge-based. Others were manufacturing towns whose industries had shrunk, especially smaller ones like Erie, Pa., or Terre Haute, Ind. Still others, like Miami or Monroe, La., had a majority minority population. (Hispanic and black women are twice as likely to graduate from college as their male peers.) (See the top 10 female leaders.) Significantly, the conditions that are feeding the rise in female wages — a growing knowledge-based economy, the decline of a manufacturing base and an increasing minority population — are dominant trends throughout the U.S. "This generation [of women] has adapted to the fundamental restructuring of the American economy better than their older predecessors or male peers," says Chung. While the economic advantage of women sometimes evaporates as they age and have families, Chung believes that women now may have enough leverage that their financial gains may not be completely erased as they get older. The holdout cities — those where the earnings of single, college-educated young women still lag men's — tended to be built around industries that are heavily male-dominated, such as software development or military-technology contracting. In other words, Silicon Valley could also be called Gender Gap Gully. As for the somewhat depressing caveat that the findings held true only for women who were childless and single: it's not their marital status that puts the squeeze on their income. Rather, highly educated women tend to marry and have children later. Thus the women who earn the most in their 20s are usually single and childless. The rise of female economic power is by no means limited to the U.S., nor necessarily to the young. Late last year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that for the first time, women made up the majority of the workforce in highly paid managerial positions. The change in the status quo has been marked enough that several erstwhile women's advocates have started to voice concerns about how to get more men to go to college. Is there an equivalent to Title IX for men? See poll results on men, women and society.

– Finally, some good news for women when it comes to the gender gap. A new study shows that in many of the biggest US cities, women are out-earning men by a median of 8%. In Atlanta and Memphis, the difference shoots all the way up to 20%. One researcher attributes this reversal to education: Three women get a college degree for every two men. The bad news? This “reverse gender gap” holds true only for under-30, single, childless women, Time reports. Even so, that researcher says women are gaining enough leverage through this trend that they may not lose the gains as they get older and start families. But this news should be taken with a grain of salt, writes Tracy Clark-Flory on Salon. “When we talk about young women out-earning men, we are talking about averages,” she writes. As the researcher told her, “It does not mean that a woman holding the same job and the same degree out-earns men.” For more on that, click here.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Dual Degree Achievement Act''. SEC. 2. DUAL DEGREE ACHIEVEMENT. Title III of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1000 et seq.) is amended-- (1) by redesignating part F as part G; (2) by inserting immediately after part E a new Part F to read as follows: ``PART F--DUAL DEGREE ACHIEVEMENT ``SEC. 371. FINDINGS; PURPOSE. ``(a) Findings.--For the reasons set forth in sections 301, 321, 341, 350, and 501 of this Act, the Federal Government-- ``(1) has a unique relationship with, and a substantial investment in, the institutions that receive grants under this title and title V of this Act; and ``(2) should continue to seek new and even more effective ways to improve and strengthen those institutions. ``(b) Purpose.--It is the purpose of this part to-- ``(1) strengthen curricula and enhance student opportunities at minority-serving institutions; ``(2) increase postgraduate access and persistence for students who attend such institutions; and ``(3) increase diversity within scientific, technical, and other professions requiring baccalaureate and post- baccalaureate study. ``SEC. 372. PROGRAM AUTHORITY. ``(a) In General.-- (1) From funds appropriated under section 399(a)(6), the Secretary shall make grants to eligible partnerships under subsection (b) to carry out the activities described in section 373. ``(2) Each grant awarded under this part shall be for a five-year period. ``(b) Eligibility.-- (1) For purposes of this part, an eligible partnership shall include-- ``(A) one or more minority-serving institutions that award baccalaureate degrees; and ``(B) one or more partner institutions. ``(2) Other public and private entities, including minority-serving institutions that do not award baccalaureate degrees (such as community colleges), community based organizations, and businesses, may be included in partnerships under this section. ``(c) Definitions.--For purposes of this part-- ``(1) a `minority-serving institution' means an institution that is eligible to apply for assistance under sections 316 or 317, under part B of this title, or under title V of this Act; and ``(2) a `partner institution' means an institution of higher education that offers a baccalaureate or post- baccalaureate degree not awarded by the minority-serving institutions with which it is partnered. ``(d) Application Requirements.--In addition to the application requirements under section 391, an eligible partnership under subsection (b)(1) shall include in its application-- ``(1) the name of each partner and a description of its responsibilities as a member of the partnership; ``(2) a copy of the partnership agreement, including any articulation agreement between the partners; ``(3) a description of-- ``(A) the academic fields of study to be covered by the project and the degrees to be awarded by the partners; ``(B) how the project will operate, including a description of how the project will build on existing services and activities, if any, and be coordinated with other related Federal and non-Federal programs; ``(C) the need for the project, including, if the project is to cover academic fields of study that have not otherwise been published by the Secretary under subsection (f), a demonstration of how those fields of study are associated with professions in which students who attend minority serving institutions are underrepresented; ``(D) the resources that each member of the partnership will contribute to the partnership; and ``(E) how the partnership will support and continue its program under this part after the grant has expired; and ``(4) assurances that-- ``(A) each member of a partnership will designate an individual at that institution to serve as the primary point of contact for the partnership at that institution; ``(B) each participating student-- ``(i) is enrolled in an academic program that leads to a five year baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate degree not awarded by the minority-serving institution; ``(ii) who successfully completes the program will be awarded a baccalaureate degree from the minority-serving institution and a baccalaureate degree or a master's degree from the partner institution that the student attends; ``(iii) at each minority-serving institution will be informed of, and have access to, the instruction and rigorous academic courses necessary to obtain dual degrees and enter into their chosen field; and ``(iv) will maintain satisfactory academic progress while in the program; ``(C) a minority-serving institution under section 372(b)(1)(A) will be the fiscal agent for the partnership; and ``(D) each institution will use the funds made available under this part only to supplement, and not supplant, assistance that otherwise would be provided to participating students. ``(e) Publication of Study Fields.--Each year, the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register a list of baccalaureate and post- baccalaureate degree fields of study that are associated with professions in which students attending minority-serving institutions are underrepresented. ``SEC. 373. USES OF FUNDS. ``(a) In General.--Grants awarded under this part shall be used for-- ``(1) support services to students participating in the program, such as tutoring, mentoring, and academic and personal counseling, as well as any service which facilitates the transition of minority students from the minority-serving institution to the partner institution; ``(2) scholarships to students in their 4th and 5th years in the program; ``(3) reimbursement to minority-serving institutions for the amount of tuition that they would have received had participating students attended those institutions during their 4th year of the program instead of the partner institution; and ``(4) academic program enhancements at the minority-serving institution which result in increasing the quality of the program offered and the quantity of student participants in the dual degree program offered. ``(b) Scholarships.-- ``(1) Scholarships awarded under this section shall reflect any additional amount of tuition and fees charged the participating student by the partner institution compared to the amount of tuition and fees charged the student by the minority-serving institution during the student's 3rd year in the program. ``(2) Scholarships awarded under this section shall not be considered for the purposes of awarding Federal Pell Grants under subpart 1 of part A of title IV, except that in no case shall the total amount of student financial assistance awarded to a student under this section and title IV exceed the student's cost of attendance, as defined in section 472. ``(c) Special Rule.--A majority of the funds received under this program part shall be expended for scholarships to assist minority students in acquiring degrees from the minority-serving institution and the partner institution and reimbursement to minority-serving institutions pursuant to subsection (a)(3).''; and (3) in part G, as redesignated by paragraph (1)-- (A) in section 391(b)(1), by striking out ``part C, D, or E'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``part C, D, E, or F''; and (B) in section 399(a), by adding a new paragraph (6) to read as follows: ``(6) Part f.--There are authorized to be appropriated $40,000,000 to carry out part F for fiscal year 2001 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 2 succeeding fiscal years.''. SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act shall take effect on the date of its enactment.

Directs the Secretary of Education to make five-year grants to eligible partnerships to carry out the program activities. Requires such partnerships to include one or more MSIs that award baccalaureate degrees and one or more partner IHEs that offer baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate degrees not awarded by the MSIs with which they are partnered. Allows such partnerships also to include other public and private entities, including MSIs (such as community colleges) that do not award baccalaureate degrees, community-based organizations, and businesses. Sets forth application requirements, including assurances that each participating student: (1) is enrolled in an academic program that leads to a five-year baccalaureate or post-baccalaureate degree not awarded by the MSI; and (2) upon successful completion of the program, will be awarded a baccalaureate degree from the MSI and a baccalaureate degree or a master's degree from the partner IHE that the student attends. Directs the Secretary to publish an annual list of baccalaureate and post-baccalaureate degree fields of study associated with professions in which students attending MSIs are underrepresented. Requires grants to be used for: (1) support services for participating students, including tutoring, mentoring, academic and personal counseling, and transition services; (2) scholarships to students in their fourth and fifth years in the program; (3) reimbursement to MSIs for the amount of tuition that they would have received had participating students attended those MSIs during their fourth year of the program instead of the partner IHE; and (4) academic program enhancements at the MSI that increase program quality and the number of student participants in the dual degree program. Requires that such scholarships: (1) reflect any additional amount of tuition and fees charged the participating student by the partner IHE compared to that charged by the MSI during the student's third year in the program; and (2) not be considered for the purposes of awarding Federal Pell Grants. Requires a majority of funds received under this program to be expended for such scholarships to students and such reimbursement to MSIs. Authorizes appropriations.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; AMENDMENT OF 1986 CODE. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Economic Revitalization Tax Act of 2001''. (b) Amendment of 1986 Code.--Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. SEC. 2. CERTAIN INVESTMENTS IN UNITED STATES PROPERTY BY QUALIFIED CORPORATIONS. (a) In General.--Section 956 is amended by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f) and adding the following new subsection (e): ``(e) Separate Application of Section to Qualified Corporations.-- ``(1) In general.--In the case of a qualified corporation, this section shall be applied separately with respect to such corporation's qualified income. ``(2) Definitions.--For purposes of this section-- ``(A) Qualified corporation.--The term `qualified corporation' means any foreign corporation which is a controlled foreign corporation and is created or organized under the laws of, or engaged in the active conduct of a trade or business within, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or a possession of the United States. ``(B) Qualified income.--The term `qualified income' means income earned by a qualified corporation in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2001, from sources outside the United States, from-- ``(i) the active conduct of a trade or business within the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or a possession of the United States, or ``(ii) the sale or exchange of substantially all of the assets used in the active conduct of such a trade or business. ``(C) Possession.--The term `possession of the United States' includes the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. ``(3) Taxable years to which subsection is applicable.-- This subsection shall be applicable with respect to any taxable year of a qualified corporation beginning after December 31, 2001, for which an election under section 245(d) is not in effect.'' (b) Certain Investments in United States Property.--Section 951(a) is amended by adding the following new paragraph at the end thereof: ``(4) Certain investments in united states property.-- ``(A) In general.--The amount determined under paragraph (1)(B) of this subsection with respect to a qualified corporation (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(A)) shall be reduced (but not below zero) by the lesser of-- ``(i) 90 percent of the amount determined under section 956(e) with respect to such corporation for the taxable year, or ``(ii) 90 percent of such corporation's cumulative qualified income (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(B)), reduced by amounts (if any) previously allowed as a deduction under section 245(d). ``(B) Succeeding taxable years.--In applying this section and section 956 to any taxable year, any amount not included in the gross income of a United States shareholder of a qualified corporation in a prior taxable year solely by reason of the application of subparagraph (A) of this paragraph shall be treated as if it had been so included in the gross income of the United States shareholder in such prior taxable year.'' SEC. 3. DIVIDENDS RECEIVED DEDUCTION WITH RESPECT TO CERTAIN DISTRIBUTIONS BY QUALIFIED CORPORATIONS. Section 245 is amended by adding the following new subsection at the end thereof: ``(d) Dividends From Qualified Corporations.-- ``(1) General rule.--In the case of a dividend described in paragraph (2) received by a domestic corporation from an electing qualified corporation (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(A)), there shall be allowed as a deduction an amount equal to 85 percent of such dividend. ``(2) Eligible dividends.--Paragraph (1) shall apply only to dividends which are paid out of that portion of the earnings and profits of a qualified corporation which does not exceed such corporation's accumulated qualified income (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(B)). ``(3) Application of section 316 ordering rule.--For purposes of this subsection, a dividend shall be deemed to be made out of the most recently accumulated earnings and profits of the qualified corporation. ``(4) Elections.-- ``(A) In general.--An election under this subsection shall be made by the qualified corporation at such time and in such manner as the Secretary shall prescribe. ``(B) Years for which election is effective.--An election under this subsection shall be effective for the taxable year of the qualified corporation beginning after December 31, 2001, for which such election is made and for all succeeding taxable years of such corporation, unless-- ``(i) the corporation ceases to be a qualified corporation, or ``(ii) the corporation revokes the election. ``(C) New election by qualified corporation following termination.--If a qualified corporation has made an election under this subsection and if such election has been terminated under subparagraph (B), such corporation (and any successor qualified corporation) shall not be eligible to make an election under this subsection for any taxable year before the 5th taxable year which begins after the 1st taxable year for which such termination is effective, unless the Secretary consents to such election. ``(5) Coordination with foreign tax credit.--To the extent provided by the Secretary in regulations, the principles of sections 245(a)(8) and (9) shall apply to dividends described in paragraph (1) of this subsection.'' SEC. 4. SAFE HARBOR RULE FOR CERTAIN TRANSFERS OR LICENSES OF INTANGIBLE PROPERTY TO A QUALIFIED CORPORATION. Section 367 is amended by the following new subsection at the end thereof: ``(g) Safe Harbor for Certain Transfers or Licenses of Intangible Property.-- ``(1) General rule.--If subsection (d)(2)(A)(ii) or section 482 is otherwise applicable to the transfer or license of qualified intangible property to an electing qualified corporation (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(A)), the requirements of subsection (d)(2)(A)(ii) or section 482, as the case may be, shall be treated as satisfied for all purposes under this subtitle, with respect to the qualified income attributable to the qualified intangible property, for any taxable year for which the electing qualified corporation computes its qualified income (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(B)) with respect to its products or services involving the use of the qualified intangible property in accordance with the same method specified in section 936(h) (as in effect on the date of enactment of this subsection) which was used by the domestic corporation referred to in paragraph (2)(A) for its last taxable year beginning before the transfer or license to the qualified corporation. ``(2) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection-- ``(A) Qualified intangible property.--The term `qualified intangible property' means any intangible property owned by a domestic corporation on the date of enactment of this section, but only if such property was-- ``(i) developed or purchased by the domestic corporation, and ``(ii) used directly in the active conduct by the domestic corporation of a trade or business for which credits were allowed under either section 30A or section 936 for the taxable year within which the transfer or license occurs. ``(B) Intangible property.--The term `intangible property' means any intangible property (within the meaning of subsection (d)) but only if such property was used directly in connection with a manufacturing or similar process within the taxable year referred to in paragraph (2)(A)(ii). ``(3) Elections.-- ``(A) In general.--An election under this subsection shall be made by the qualified corporation, in such manner as the Secretary may prescribe by regulations, only before the 15th day of the 3d month following the close of the first taxable year of such corporation beginning after December 31, 2001. ``(B) Years for which effective.--An election under this subsection shall apply to the taxable year for which made and all subsequent years unless-- ``(i) the foreign corporation which is the transferee or licensee ceases to be a qualified corporation, or ``(ii) the Secretary consents to the revocation of the election.'' SEC. 5. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING CHANGES. (a) Imputed Interest.--Notwithstanding any provision of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, no interest shall be imputed, and no original issue discount shall be accrued, for any purpose under such Code with respect to any obligation issued to a qualified corporation (as defined in section 956(e)(2)(A) of such Code) as part of a transaction to which section 956(e) of such Code is applicable. (b) Constructive Dividends.--Notwithstanding any provision of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, no amount of United States property held by a qualified corporation (as defined in section 956(e) of such Code) pursuant to sections 951(a)(4) and 956(e) of such Code shall be treated as a dividend for any purpose under the Code. SEC. 6. REGULATIONS. The Secretary shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of this Act. SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE. The amendments made by this Act shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

Economic Revitalization Tax Act of 2001 - Amends Internal Revenue Code provisions concerning investment of earnings in U.S. property to set forth a separate rule governing any foreign corporation which is a controlled foreign corporation and is created or organized under the laws of, or engaged in the active conduct of a trade or business within, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or a possession of the United States.Provides that in the case of certain dividends received by a domestic corporation from such a corporation, there shall be allowed as a deduction an amount equal to 85 percent of such dividend.Establishes a safe harbor rule for certain transfers or licenses of intangible property to such a corporation.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``SEC Regulatory Accountability Act''. SEC. 2. CONSIDERATION BY THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION OF THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF ITS REGULATIONS AND CERTAIN OTHER AGENCY ACTIONS. Section 23 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78w) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(e) Consideration of Costs and Benefits.-- ``(1) In general.--Before issuing a regulation under the securities laws, as defined in section 3(a), the Commission shall-- ``(A) clearly identify the nature and source of the problem that the proposed regulation is designed to address, as well as assess the significance of that problem, to enable assessment of whether any new regulation is warranted; ``(B) utilize the Chief Economist to assess the costs and benefits, both qualitative and quantitative, of the intended regulation and propose or adopt a regulation only on a reasoned determination that the benefits of the intended regulation justify the costs of the regulation; ``(C) identify and assess available alternatives to the regulation that were considered, including modification of an existing regulation, together with an explanation of why the regulation meets the regulatory objectives more effectively than the alternatives; and ``(D) ensure that any regulation is accessible, consistent, written in plain language, and easy to understand and shall measure, and seek to improve, the actual results of regulatory requirements. ``(2) Considerations and actions.-- ``(A) Required actions.--In deciding whether and how to regulate, the Commission shall assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives, including the alternative of not regulating, and choose the approach that maximizes net benefits. Specifically, the Commission shall-- ``(i) consistent with the requirements of section 3(f) (15 U.S.C. 78c(f)), section 2(b) of the Securities Act of 1933 (15 U.S.C. 77b(b)), section 202(c) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80b-2(c)), and section 2(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-2(c)), consider whether the rulemaking, in addition to being in the interest of protecting investors, will promote efficiency, competition, and capital formation; ``(ii) evaluate whether, consistent with obtaining regulatory objectives, the regulation is tailored to impose the least burden on society, including market participants, individuals, businesses of differing sizes, and other entities (including State and local governmental entities), taking into account, to the extent practicable, the cumulative costs of regulations; and ``(iii) evaluate whether the regulation is inconsistent, incompatible, or duplicative of other Federal regulations. ``(B) Additional considerations.--In addition, in making a reasoned determination of the costs and benefits of a potential regulation, the Commission shall, to the extent that each is relevant to the particular proposed regulation, take into consideration the impact of the regulation on-- ``(i) investor choice; ``(ii) market liquidity in the securities markets; and ``(iii) small businesses. ``(3) Explanation and comments.--The Commission shall explain in its final rule the nature of comments that it received, including those from the industry or consumer groups concerning the potential costs or benefits of the proposed rule or proposed rule change, and shall provide a response to those comments in its final rule, including an explanation of any changes that were made in response to those comments and the reasons that the Commission did not incorporate those industry group concerns related to the potential costs or benefits in the final rule. ``(4) Review of existing regulations.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of the SEC Regulatory Accountability Act, and every 5 years thereafter, the Commission shall review its regulations to determine whether any such regulations are outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome, and shall modify, streamline, expand, or repeal them in accordance with such review. Whenever pursuant to this paragraph the Commission is engaged in a review, it shall consider whether an action is necessary or appropriate in the public interest, the protection of investors, and whether the action will promote efficiency, competition, and capital formation. In reviewing any regulation (including, notwithstanding paragraph (6), a regulation issued in accordance with formal rulemaking provisions) that subjects issuers with a public float of $250,000,000 or less to the attestation and reporting requirements of section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)), the Commission shall specifically take into account the large burden of such regulation when compared to the benefit of such regulation. ``(5) Post-adoption impact assessment.-- ``(A) In general.--Whenever the Commission adopts or amends a regulation designated as a `major rule' within the meaning of section 804(2) of title 5, United States Code, it shall state, in its adopting release, the following: ``(i) The purposes and intended consequences of the regulation. ``(ii) Appropriate post-implementation quantitative and qualitative metrics to measure the economic impact of the regulation and to measure the extent to which the regulation has accomplished the stated purposes. ``(iii) The assessment plan that will be used, consistent with the requirements of subparagraph (B) and under the supervision of the Chief Economist of the Commission, to assess whether the regulation has achieved the stated purposes. ``(iv) Any unintended or negative consequences that the Commission foresees may result from the regulation. ``(B) Requirements of assessment plan and report.-- ``(i) Requirements of plan.--The assessment plan required under this paragraph shall consider the costs, benefits, and intended and unintended consequences of the regulation. The plan shall specify the data to be collected, the methods for collection and analysis of the data and a date for completion of the assessment. The assessment plan shall include an analysis of any jobs added or lost as a result of the regulation, differentiating between public and private sector jobs. ``(ii) Submission and publication of report.--The Chief Economist shall submit the completed assessment report to the Commission no later than 2 years after the publication of the adopting release, unless the Commission, at the request of the Chief Economist, has published at least 90 days before such date a notice in the Federal Register extending the date and providing specific reasons why an extension is necessary. Within 7 days after submission to the Commission of the final assessment report, it shall be published in the Federal Register for notice and comment. Any material modification of the plan, as necessary to assess unforeseen aspects or consequences of the regulation, shall be promptly published in the Federal Register for notice and comment. ``(iii) Data collection not subject to notice and comment requirements.--If the Commission has published its assessment plan for notice and comment, specifying the data to be collected and method of collection, at least 30 days prior to adoption of a final regulation or amendment, such collection of data shall not be subject to the notice and comment requirements in section 3506(c) of title 44, United States Code (commonly referred to as the Paperwork Reduction Act). Any material modifications of the plan that require collection of data not previously published for notice and comment shall also be exempt from such requirements if the Commission has published notice for comment in the Federal Register of the additional data to be collected, at least 30 days prior to initiation of data collection. ``(iv) Final action.--Not later than 180 days after publication of the assessment report in the Federal Register, the Commission shall issue for notice and comment a proposal to amend or rescind the regulation, or publish a notice that the Commission has determined that no action will be taken on the regulation. Such a notice will be deemed a final agency action. ``(6) Covered regulations and other agency actions.--Solely as used in this subsection, the term `regulation'-- ``(A) means an agency statement of general applicability and future effect that is designed to implement, interpret, or prescribe law or policy or to describe the procedure or practice requirements of an agency, including rules, orders of general applicability, interpretive releases, and other statements of general applicability that the agency intends to have the force and effect of law; and ``(B) does not include-- ``(i) a regulation issued in accordance with the formal rulemaking provisions of section 556 or 557 of title 5, United States Code; ``(ii) a regulation that is limited to agency organization, management, or personnel matters; ``(iii) a regulation promulgated pursuant to statutory authority that expressly prohibits compliance with this provision; and ``(iv) a regulation that is certified by the agency to be an emergency action, if such certification is published in the Federal Register.''. SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS RELATING TO OTHER REGULATORY ENTITIES. It is the sense of the Congress that the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board should also follow the requirements of section 23(e) of such Act, as added by this title. SEC. 4. ACCOUNTABILITY PROVISION RELATING TO OTHER REGULATORY ENTITIES. A rule adopted by the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board or any national securities association registered under section 15A of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78o-3) shall not take effect unless the Securities and Exchange Commission determines that, in adopting such rule, the Board or association has complied with the requirements of section 23(e) of such Act, as added by section 2, in the same manner as is required by the Commission under such section 23(e). Passed the House of Representatives January 12, 2017. Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, Clerk.

SEC Regulatory Accountability Act (Sec. 2) This bill amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to direct the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to: before issuing a regulation under the securities laws, identify the nature and source of the problem that the proposed regulation is designed to address; adopt a regulation&nbsp;only upon a reasoned determination that its benefits justify its costs; identify and assess available alternatives to any regulation; and ensure that any regulation is accessible, consistent, written in plain language, and easy to understand. In determining the costs and benefits of a proposed regulation, the SEC shall consider its impact on investor choice, market liquidity, and small businesses. In addition, the SEC shall: (1) periodically review its existing regulations to determine if they are outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome; and (2) in accordance with such review, modify, streamline, expand, or repeal them. Whenever it adopts or amends a rule that is&nbsp;"major" (in terms of economic impact), the SEC shall state in its adopting release: (1)&nbsp;the regulation's purposes and intended consequences, (2)&nbsp;metrics for measuring the regulation's economic impact, (3) the assessment plan to be used to assess whether the regulation has achieved its stated&nbsp;purposes, and (4) any foreseeable unintended or negative consequences of the regulation.

In a crazy turn of events, the Dallas Mavericks erased a 15 point fourth quarter deficit to defeat the Miami Heat 95-93 in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. With the series tied up at 1-1, the teams now go to Dallas for the next three games of the series. Since the NBA adopted the 2-3-2 home court format in 1985, the NBA Finals have been tied at 1-1 11 times. Whoever won Game 3 went on to win the series all 11 times. Needless to say, Game 3 is critical for both teams. However, the Mavericks have the edge and should come out victorious. Here are five reasons why the Mavericks will win Game 3. ||||| Time for a confession: I'm rooting for the Miami Heat to win the NBA championship. So I'm surprisingly gutted after the Heat threw away a 15-point lead Thursday night, allowing Dirk Nowitzki and his Teutonic Threes to steal Game 2 of the NBA Finals 95-93, tying the best-of-seven series between the Heat and the Dallas Mavericks at a game apiece. Much to my alarm, I've found my heart beating faster during the final few moments of tight Heat games, and afterward my feelings are not unlike those when my traditional favorites win or lose. How the hell did this happen? I realize that being a fan of the Heat these days is about as populist as being a fan of Dominique Strauss-Kahn. And it should be noted that I am emphatically not dumping my longtime allegiance to the New York Knicks. When New York and Miami play, I'll still roll with the 'Bockers. Accuse me of front-runner-dom if you must, though I think my undying and increasingly idiotic loyalty to the Cincinnati Bengals inoculates me from such charges. Anyway, it was partly because the Heat disposed of the hated Celtics that I've come to admire them. Like everyone else, I winced at "The Decision," though more from a production-values standpoint than any anger at LeBron James deciding to ply his trade in a far more advantageous setting. The horror that James would dare abandon Cleveland in order to play with his pals in South Beach never registered with me. Isn't that why Jerry West and Oscar Robertson threatened a last-minute strike of the 1964 NBA All-Star Game, so that future players could exercise their right of free agency? LeBron put in his time in Cleveland, played out his contract, and chose to go elsewhere, just like millions of other careerists out there. End of story. James is frequently ripped for his arrogance, which seems to me to be pretty garden variety, the sort of necessary egocentrism possessed by most great athletes, and leavened by a playful sense of humor (which he has also been ripped for—only a Robert Parish-like level stare is OK with everyone, apparently). From afar, James doesn't appear to be infected by the truly virulent strain of arrogance that runs through the veins of so many entitled jocks who have been buttered up since middle school. Advertisement My burgeoning feelings for the Heat are more about their current level of play. I particularly admire the team's ability to adjust and cohere so quickly, within the framework of a single season. This makes them a perfect metaphor for our speeded-up world. The Heat have thrived in the postseason mainly due to their outstanding defensive play, which is partly desire and great athletic ability, but mainly about communication and team concepts. This is especially noteworthy with the Heat, who are more perimeter-based and not reliant on size and shot-blockers to bulwark their defense. The Heat have proved very adaptable on offense, of course. Remember the Sturm und Drang when James missed a few shots at the buzzer earlier this season? That led to the definitive declaration by Roundball Nation that Dwyane Wade should be the "closer," the one who takes the late-game shots, while James was more constitutionally suited to be Robin, not Batman. That meme sure has disappeared down the memory hole, huh? Even at the time it was ridiculous, of course, requiring moments such as James' "48 Special" against Detroit in 2007 or his buzzer-beating three-pointer against Orlando in 2009 to be scrubbed from official consciousness. Until last night, James has been a Kyra Sedgwick-level closer in the playoffs, his patented bullrushes to the hoop now paired with a reliable deep jump shot, which essentially makes him unstoppable, an offensive force unlike anything we've seen. Yet the most compelling Heat player for me remains Wade, whose end-to-end full-speed tilts to the hoop remain the game's most breathless moments. Wade willingly diminished his star this season by recruiting James and Chris Bosh to Miami. Unlike virtually every other star player who sublimated his ego and game for the sake of winning, Wade has received zero credit for it—his sacrifice swallowed up by the LeBron turmoil. The goal is to win, and as any hoops analyst would tell you before the playoffs, the Heat weren't the favorites coming in, despite the Big Three. James and Bosh have raised their games to astonishing levels, while Wade has been content to take over games as needed. It's been team-building on the fly, and a pleasure to watch unfold. Mainly, I reflexively recoil from the whole "Good Mavs vs. Evil Heat" media meme (which was preceded by similar storylines involving Chicago, Boston, and Philly). This isn't wrestling. It's hard for me to feel enmity for Mike Miller, Miami's shooting guard, while he soldiers through his newborn daughter's heart ailment that sent her to intensive care. (She was released from the hospital Saturday, but concerns linger.) Or sneer at Udonis Haslem, who in any other scenario we would all be lauding for racing back from serious injury. (He had Lisfranc surgery on his left foot in November.) Once Miami had disposed of the Bulls, the major current on Twitter and talk radio was, "Help us, Dirk Nowitzki—you're our only hope." I guess that puts me on the side of the Empire. That's cool—I also rooted for Darth Vader. And after Thursday night, I'm hoping LeBron slices off Dirk's shooting hand and encases Jason Terry in carbonite. Like Slate on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter. Like This Story

– LeBron James and the Miami Heat aren't evil. They're just committed to winning, like any professional sports team, and it's OK to like them. Take it from Robert Weintraub, who defends the honor of the NBA's concocted villain in Slate. "Time for a confession," Weintraub writes. "I'm rooting for the Miami Heat to win the NBA championship." His Heat fever is sprung from his admiration for "the team's ability to adjust and cohere so quickly, within the framework of a single season." Weintraub isn't bothered by James' arrogance or his "Decision" to go to Miami. James' egoticism is "garden variety" for professional athletes, and he "put in his time in Cleveland, played out his contract, and chose to go elsewhere, just like millions of other careerists out there." Weintraub also commends Dwayne Wade's willingness to share the spotlight with James and Chris Bosh. "It's been team-building on the fly, and a pleasure to watch unfold," he writes. "I guess that puts me on the side of the Empire." And after Dallas' huge comeback Thursday led by Dirk Nowitzki to tie the series at 1-1, "I'm hoping LeBron slices off Dirk's shooting hand and encases Jason Terry in carbonite." (Click for reasons why Miami might be in trouble for Game 3 tomorrow.)

dark matter was introduced to explain the stable dynamics of galaxies and galaxy clusters . general relativity ( gr ) with only ordinary baryon matter can not explain the present accumulation of astrophysical and cosmological data without dark matter . however , dark matter has not been observed in laboratory experiments @xcite . therefore , it is important to consider a modified gravitational theory . the observed acceleration of the universe has also complicated the situation by needing a dark energy , either in the form of the cosmological constant vacuum energy or as a modification of gr . the fully relativistic and covariant modified gravitational theory ( mog ) scalar - tensor - vector - gravity ( stvg ) @xcite has been successfully applied to explain the rotation curves of galaxies and the dynamics of galaxy clusters . in addition to the attractive gravitational force proportional to the gravitational constant @xmath0 , the theory also has a repulsive gravitational force generated by a massive proca vector field @xmath1 . a modified gravity theory based only on baryonic matter can not explain the growth of matter , before the onset of decoupling at the surface of last scattering about 380,000 years after the big bang . the baryons couple to the photons producing pressure that prevents the overdense instability needed for growth structure . the damping and the dissipative pressure behavior of baryons coupled to photons prevent a gr model without non - baryonic dark from fitting the angular acoustical power spectrum . the mog can not explain the growth of structure to form galaxies and galaxy clusters assuming only the dominance of baryonic matter before decoupling . in the following , we will extend the explanation for the growth of structure and the cmb data proposed originally in stvg @xcite . we will show that when the density of the neutral , pressureless vector particle called the phion particle , associated with the field @xmath1 , dominates in the early universe before the time of decoupling , mog can lead to a mechanism for the growth of perturbations faster than gr , solving the cosmological structure problem . the early time domination of the @xmath2 density and the later time domination of the baryon density @xmath3 , together with the later time enhancement of the gravitational constant @xmath0 , determine the acoustical power spectrum in agreement with the planck 2013 data @xcite . the theory also determines the matter power spectrum in agreement with current large scale galaxy redshift surveys . the mass of the phion is determined by a scalar field @xmath4 . the value of @xmath5 that fits the galaxy rotation curves and the cluster dynamics is @xmath6 @xcite , corresponding to a mass @xmath7 . the mass of the phion in the early universe , before decoupling ( surface of last scattering ) is heavier , @xmath8 , so the phion behaves like cold dark matter ( cdm ) , and its mass decreases as the universe expands becoming the ultra - light phion particle today . the mog theory has a fully covariant action composed of scalar , vector and tensor fields @xcite : @xmath9 the components of the action are the einstein gravity action ( @xmath10 : @xmath11,\ ] ] the massive vector field @xmath12 action : @xmath13,\end{aligned}\ ] ] and the action for the scalar fields @xmath0 and @xmath5 : @xmath14 . \label{scalar}\end{aligned}\ ] ] here , @xmath15 denotes the covariant derivative with respect to the metric @xmath16 , @xmath17 is a dimensionless coupling constant and @xmath18 and @xmath19 denote potentials for the fields @xmath20 and @xmath5 , respectively . in particular , we have @xmath21 where @xmath22 is a self - interaction potential . the energy - momentum tensor is defined as @xmath23 where @xmath24).\ ] ] we have @xmath25 a variation of the action with respect to @xmath26 yields the field equations : @xmath27 where @xmath28 and where @xmath29 . we base our cosmology on the homogeneous and isotropic friedmann - lemaitre - robertson - walker ( flrw ) background metric : @xmath30 where @xmath31 for open , flat and closed universes , respectively . we use the energy - momentum tensor of a perfect fluid : @xmath32 where @xmath33 and @xmath34 and @xmath35 are the density and pressure of matter . we have @xmath36 where @xmath37 and @xmath38 denote the density of matter , the ( neutral ) vector field @xmath12 ( phion particle ) and the scalar fields @xmath0 and @xmath5 , respectively . due to the symmetries of the flrw background spacetime , we have @xmath39 and @xmath40 . the mog friedmann equations are given by : @xmath41 @xmath42 in the following , we assume a spatially flat universe @xmath43 . furthermore , we assume that the time dependence of the gravitational field strength is negligible , @xmath44 , and we also assume that @xmath45 . we obtain the approximate friedmann equations : @xmath46 @xmath47 where @xmath48 . the energy conservation equation is @xmath49 for the matter dominated universe with @xmath50 we have @xmath51 . we introduce comoving coordinates : @xmath52 the fourier expanded density , pressure and gravitational potential in terms of plane waves with comoving wavenumber @xmath53 are given by @xmath54 @xmath55 @xmath56 where @xmath57 is the relative density perturbation contrast . we have for the gravitational potential : @xmath58 the modified newtonian acceleration law in mog for a point particle is given by @xmath59,\ ] ] where @xmath60 and @xmath61 is newton s constant . this in turn defines the value of @xmath62 : @xmath63 the point mass acceleration law ( [ mogacceleration ] ) has been extended to continuous distributions of matter using the mog poisson equation @xcite . the mog potential for a given density @xmath64 is @xmath65 . \label{potential}\ ] ] in the present scenario there are five components to the energy density : 1 . neutral pressureless phion particles ( @xmath12 field ) , 2 . baryonic matter , 3 . photons , 4 . neutrinos , 5 . dark energy thus , we have @xmath66 where @xmath67 and where @xmath68 and @xmath69 denote the radiation , dark energy , photon and neutrino densities , respectively . we assume that when @xmath2 dominates in the early universe before decoupling @xmath70 . from ( [ alphaeq ] ) we deduce that @xmath71 we anticipate that the parameter @xmath62 will increase as the density of matter grows significantly near the big bang at @xmath72 , so near @xmath72 , @xmath73 will grow and increase the strength of gravitational attraction . the particle ( field ) densities are expressed as the ratios @xmath74 . in particular , we have for the baryon , phion particle and the cosmological constant @xmath75 : @xmath76 at the time of big - bang nucleosynthesis ( bbn ) , we have @xmath77 , guaranteeing that the production of elements at the time of bbn agrees with observations . after decoupling @xmath78 until stellar and galaxy formation when @xmath79 and the mog non - relativistic acceleration law sets in to explain the rotation curves of galaxies and the dynamics of clusters @xcite . we assume that at horizon entry until some time after decoupling , @xmath80 , @xmath81 , @xmath82 and @xmath83 @xcite . the first friedmann equation now becomes @xmath84 where from ( [ vphi ] ) and ( [ tphi ] ) assuming that @xmath85 : @xmath86 the equation for the density perturbation for the non - relativistic single - component fluid is given by the jeans equation : @xmath87 where @xmath88 denotes the mean density . here , @xmath89 is the speed of sound : @xmath90 and perturbations with @xmath91 are called adiabatic perturbations and for these perturbations @xmath92 . the first term in the parenthesis of ( [ deltaeq ] ) is due to the adiabatic perturbation pressure contribution @xmath93 . the nature of the solutions to ( [ deltaeq ] ) depends on the sign of the factor in parenthesis . pressure attempts to resist compression , so when the pressure term dominates , we obtain an oscillatory solution comprising standing density ( sound ) waves . the second term is due to gravity and when this term dominates the perturbations grow . the jeans wavenumber when the pressure and gravity terms are equal is given by @xmath94 corresponding to the wavelength @xmath95 ( jeans length ) and for non - relativistic matter @xmath96 and @xmath97 where @xmath98 is the comoving hubble scale . the proca vector field @xmath12 is a neutral massive spin 1 particle ( massive photon ) . because it does not couple to massless photons _ it can be treated as almost pressureless _ , so the pressure gradient term in the jeans equation is absent and @xmath99 . the jeans length is approximately zero and we have @xmath100 where @xmath101 . for the radiation dominant era @xmath102 , but perturbations in radiation , @xmath103 , oscillate rapidly and are damped @xmath104 , so they can be ignored compared to the @xmath105 perturbations . the expansion law is that for a radiation dominated universe : @xmath106 dividing ( [ phipertequation ] ) by @xmath107 we get @xmath108 the right - hand - side can be dropped because @xmath109 . the solution to this equation is given by @xmath110 where @xmath111 and @xmath112 are constants . we find that the perturbations due to the phion particle grow at most logarithmically during the radiation dominated era of the universe . the increased expansion rate due to the presence of the smooth radiation component slows down the growth of perturbations . observations indicate that during the period between horizon entry , radiation - matter equality at a redshift @xmath113 and decoupling , @xmath114 . because the phion particles are almost pressureless and the speed of sound @xmath99 , the phion jeans length is approximately zero , so all scales are larger than the jeans scale , and there is no oscillatory behavior for the phion particles . instead , perturbations grow at all length scales . on the other hand , the @xmath115 perturbations oscillate before decoupling . the dark energy determined by the cosmological constant @xmath75 is a smooth component of energy and only becomes important at later times . the baryon jeans length is @xmath116 , where @xmath117 and where now @xmath89 is the speed of sound for baryons . the ratio of the comoving jeans length : @xmath118 to the comoving hubble length : @xmath119 is given by @xmath120 we see that @xmath0 has canceled in ( [ ratio ] ) , so that the size of the effective @xmath0 in mog can not influence the rate of growth structure in the absence of the density @xmath2 or dark matter . however , we have that at the time of horizon entry and radiation - matter equality @xmath77 . before decoupling the baryon jeans length is comparable to the hubble length , so adiabatic baryon perturbations will oscillate before decoupling . the baryon density perturbation begins to grow only after the decoupling time @xmath121 , because before decoupling the baryon - photon pressure prevents any growth . without the phion particle density @xmath2 the baryon perturbations grow as @xmath122 after decoupling . however , the cmb anisotropy due to baryon density perturbations observed at @xmath121 are too small @xmath123 to produce a growth factor of 1100 needed to generate the presently observed large - scale structure . as in the standard cdm model , the phion particle density perturbations solve the problem , for they begin to grow earlier at horizon entry and by @xmath121 they are significantly greater than the baryon density perturbations . after decoupling the baryon density perturbations @xmath124 catch up to the phion particle density perturbations @xmath105 . the evolution behavior of the baryon and phion density perturbations is shown in fig.1 . + + fig.1 . evolution of the phion matter and baryon density perturbations after horizon entry . the baryon perturbations oscillate ( solid black line ) while the phion density perturbations ( dashed line ) grow after horizon entry . the baryon perturbations catch up to the phion perturbations after decoupling . + as the universe expands beyond the time of decoupling , the gravitational attraction between the baryons becomes enhanced as the parameter @xmath62 increases in size and @xmath125 . the density @xmath2 and the increasing enhancement of the size of @xmath0 deepen the baryon gravitational potential well . eventually , as the large scale structures form @xmath126 and the baryon dominated mog dynamics takes over . for the predictions of galaxy rotation curves and the galaxy cluster dynamics the best - fit values of @xmath62 and @xmath5 are @xmath127 and @xmath128 @xcite . the phion mass parameter @xmath5 is a variable scalar field and can evolve in size as the universe expands . after horizon entry and during the era approaching decoupling , the phion mass is @xmath129 corresponding to cold dark matter . the phion mass could be as large as @xmath130 . when the earliest stars and galaxies form at about 400 million years after the big bang , @xmath5 undergoes a significant decrease , and from the best - fit values from galaxy rotation curves and cluster dynamics @xcite , @xmath6 , corresponding to @xmath7 . the compton wavelength , in natural units , @xmath131 , of this ultra - light phion is of the size of galaxies . in our mog scenario , the phion particle evolves in the early universe until the formation of large scale structure as moderately heavy cold dark matter . after the large scale structures have formed , the phion becomes ultra - light hot dark matter , which does not contribute to the dynamics of stars , galaxies and clusters of galaxies . future microwave cavity experiments could detect an utra - light hidden photon @xcite , although the mass @xmath7 may be too small to detect . the mass and temperature evolution of the phion massive photon is the opposite of the standard axion - like dark matter particle . in the latter scenario , the axion is a hot dark matter particle in the early universe contributing to the density of radiation before decoupling , and after decoupling becomes a non - relativistic cold dark matter particle that can form stable galaxy and cluster halos . the power spectrum as a function of wave number can be calculated from a transfer function @xmath132 . if the initial power spectrum and the transfer function are known , then the power spectrum at a later time can be calculated as @xmath133 where @xmath134 is a dimensioned quantity . a dimensionless form of the power spectrum is @xmath135 where @xmath136 is a normalization constant determined by observation . the initial power spectrum is believed to be almost scale invariant : @xmath137 where from the planck measurement @xmath138 @xcite . in our mog scenario the transfer function can be written as @xmath139 where @xmath140 and @xmath141 denote the baryon and phion particle contributions , respectively . the baryon sound wave oscillations due to the baryon - photon pressure prior to the decoupling time produce acoustical peaks in the angular power spectrum , @xmath142 . because the form of the mog friedmann equation ( [ friedmann3 ] ) is the same as in the @xmath143 model , we can match the @xmath75cdm calculation of the cmb angular power spectrum . in the present day universe @xmath3 has the same value as in the @xmath143 model , and @xmath144 matches its value in the @xmath143 model , using newton s constant ( non - gravitational effect ) . moreover , today @xmath145 and @xmath73 , so for a constant non - zero value of @xmath62 , we have @xmath146 , where @xmath147 ( plus small contributions from neutrino density ) and @xmath148 . now , redshifting towards the cmb and decoupling times , @xmath2 becomes smoothly bigger than @xmath3 and @xmath149 as @xmath150 and @xmath62 becomes less than unity . it follows that the calculation of the cmb power spectrum in the @xmath143 model can be duplicated in mog , using the planck 2013 best - fit values @xcite : @xmath151 , @xmath152 , @xmath153 , @xmath154 , together with the remaining parameters in the fitting process . the value of @xmath62 today is @xmath155 . + + fig . 2 . the tt power spectrum obtained from ref . @xcite , using the best - fit parameters of the planck+wp+highl fit listed in table 5 of the planck 2013 paper . the red line shows the best - fit mog spectrum . the lower panel shows the residuals with respect to the mog model ( and the @xmath75cdm model ) . + because for galaxies and clusters @xmath79 there is no significant halo of phion particles . once the combined @xmath3 and @xmath2 density perturbations have grown sufficiently to produce stars and galaxies , then the mog non - relativistic dynamics for baryons takes over to determine the final evolution and dynamics of galaxies . the transfer function @xmath140 for baryons has unit oscillations , which will show up in the calculation of the matter power spectrum . however , the finite size of galaxy survey samples and the associated window function used to produce presently available power spectra mask any such oscillations . applying a window function to the mog prediction for the matter power spectrum , smooths out the power spectrum curve . the enhanced size of @xmath73 with @xmath62 non - zero predicts the right shape for the power spectrum curve , resulting in a fit to the data . the gr prediction without dark matter and with @xmath156 can not produce the correct magnitude or shape for the matter power spectrum . in fig . 3 we show the predicted mog matter power spectrum @xcite . this result was developed without the benefit of an extended and continuous baryon matter distribution . in future galaxy surveys which utilize a large enough number of galaxies , with galaxies detected at sufficiently large redshift @xmath157 , and with the use of a sufficiently narrow enough window function , it should be possible to detect any significant oscillations in the matter power spectrum . + fig.3 . after applying the appropriate window function , mog ( thick red line ) shows agreement with the luminous red galaxy survey mass power spectrum data . the mog fit to the data is comparable to the cdm prediction ( thin blue line ) @xcite . by assuming that the density of phion particles associated with the massive and neutral vector field @xmath12 in mog theory is the dominant density in the early universe with a phion mass , @xmath129 , the perturbations @xmath105 satisfy the pressureless jeans equation , allowing for an enhanced growth from the time of horizon entry and radiation - matter equality to produce large scale stellar and galaxy structure after the time of decoupling . the baryons obey the jeans equation with baryon - photon pressure , so that the baryons oscillate between the time of horizon entry and decoupling , generating baryon - pressure acoustical waves detected in the angular power spectrum in the cmb . after the universe expands beyond the decoupling time , the pion particle density and baryon density are comparable until the time of stellar and galaxy formation when @xmath79 and the mass of the phion becomes ultra - relativistic with @xmath7 . then , the non - relativistic stvg newtonian acceleration law , including the repulsive phion particle yukawa interaction and the attractive gravitation due to the enhanced value of @xmath0 , determines the rotation curves of galaxies and the dynamics of galaxy clusters . the angular power spectrum describing the imprint of the baryon - photon acoustical waves on the cmb is determined starting with @xmath158 today and @xmath146 . then , redshift scaling the calculation of the transfer function to the time prior to decoupling and the surface of last scattering with @xmath159 , the angular power spectrum fit matches the @xmath75cdm model fit to the planck 2013 data . the matter power spectrum in mog can , with an appropriate window function , fit the galaxy matter distribution data . a critical test of mog is whether significant baryon oscillations in the power spectrum begin to show as the number of observed large red galaxies increases and the size of the window function decreases . if the smooth @xmath143 model fit to the matter power spectrum persists with a large enough increase in observed galaxies in galaxy redshift surveys , then this would rule out mog in favor of the existence of dark matter halos in galaxies . the ultra - light phion particle ( hidden light photon ) and its associated proca field @xmath12 are an integral part of the modified gravitational theory determined by the stvg action . because the mog predicts observations from the solar system to galaxy clusters and the large scale structure of the universe , it can provide a fundamental description of the universe at both small and large distance scales . i thank niayesh afshordi , gordan krnjaic and viktor toth for helpful discussions . this research was generously supported by the john templeton foundation . research at the perimeter institute for theoretical physics is supported by the government of canada through industry canada and by the province of ontario through the ministry of research and innovation ( mri ) .

an important piece of evidence for dark matter is the need to explain the growth of structure from the time of horizon entry and radiation - matter equality to the formation of stars and galaxies . this can not be explained by using general relativity without dark matter . so far , dark matter particles have not been detected in laboratory measurements or at the lhc . we demonstrate that enhanced structure growth can happen in a modified gravity theory ( mog ) . the vector field and particle introduced in the theory to explain galaxy and cluster dynamics plays an important role in generating the required structure growth . the particle called the phion ( a light hidden photon ) is neutral and is a dominant , pressureless component in the mog friedmann equations , before the time of decoupling . the dominant energy density of the phion particle in the early universe , generates an explanation for the growth of density perturbations . the angular acoustical power spectrum due to baryon - photon pressure waves is in agreement with the planck 2013 data . as the universe expands and large scale structures are formed , the density of baryons dominates and the rotation curves of galaxies and the dynamics of clusters are explained in mog , when the phion particle in the present universe is ultra - light . the matter power spectrum determined by the theory is in agreement with current galaxy redshift surveys .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Pilot's Bill of Rights''. SEC. 2. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION ENFORCEMENT PROCEEDINGS AND ELIMINATION OF DEFERENCE. (a) In General.--Any proceeding conducted under subpart C, D, or F of part 821 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, relating to denial, amendment, modification, suspension, or revocation of an airman certificate, shall be conducted, to the extent practicable, in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and the Federal Rules of Evidence. (b) Access to Information.-- (1) In general.--Except as provided under paragraph (3), the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (referred to in this section as the ``Administrator'') shall provide timely, written notification to an individual who is the subject of an investigation relating to the approval, denial, suspension, modification, or revocation of an airman certificate under chapter 447 of title 49, United States Code. (2) Information required.--The notification required under paragraph (1) shall inform the individual-- (A) of the nature of the investigation; (B) that an oral or written response to a Letter of Investigation from the Administrator is not required; (C) that no action or adverse inference can be taken against the individual for declining to respond to a Letter of Investigation from the Administrator; (D) that any response to a Letter of Investigation from the Administrator or to an inquiry made by a representative of the Administrator by the individual may be used as evidence against the individual; (E) that the releasable portions of the Administrator's investigative report will be available to the individual; and (F) that the individual is entitled to access or otherwise obtain air traffic data described in paragraph (4). (3) Exception.--The Administrator may delay timely notification under paragraph (1) if the Administrator determines that such notification may threaten the integrity of the investigation. (4) Access to air traffic data.-- (A) FAA air traffic data.--The Administrator shall provide an individual described in paragraph (1) with timely access to any air traffic data in the possession of the Federal Aviation Administration that would facilitate the individual's ability to productively participate in a proceeding relating to an investigation described in such paragraph. (B) Air traffic data defined.--As used in subparagraph (A), the term ``air traffic data'' includes-- (i) relevant air traffic communication tapes; (ii) radar information; (iii) air traffic controller statements; (iv) flight data; (v) investigative reports; and (vi) any other air traffic or flight data in the Federal Aviation Administration's possession that would facilitate the individual's ability to productively participate in the proceeding. (C) Government contractor air traffic data.-- (i) In general.--Any individual described in paragraph (1) is entitled to obtain any air traffic data that would facilitate the individual's ability to productively participate in a proceeding relating to an investigation described in such paragraph from a government contractor that provides operational services to the Federal Aviation Administration, including control towers and flight service stations. (ii) Required information from individual.--The individual may obtain the information described in clause (i) by submitting a request to the Administrator that-- (I) describes the facility at which such information is located; and (II) identifies the date on which such information was generated. (iii) Provision of information to individual.--If the Administrator receives a request under this subparagraph, the Administrator shall-- (I) request the contractor to provide the requested information; and (II) upon receiving such information, transmitting the information to the requesting individual in a timely manner. (5) Timing.--Except when the Administrator determines that an emergency exists under section 44709(c)(2) or 46105(c), the Administrator may not proceed against an individual that is the subject of an investigation described in paragraph (1) during the 30-day period beginning on the date on which the air traffic data required under paragraph (4) is made available to the individual. (c) Amendments to Title 49.-- (1) Airman certificates.--Section 44703(d)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking ``but is bound by all validly adopted interpretations of laws and regulations the Administrator carries out unless the Board finds an interpretation is arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise not according to law''. (2) Amendments, modifications, suspensions, and revocations of certificates.--Section 44709(d)(3) of such title is amended by striking ``but is bound by all validly adopted interpretations of laws and regulations the Administrator carries out and of written agency policy guidance available to the public related to sanctions to be imposed under this section unless the Board finds an interpretation is arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise not according to law''. (3) Revocation of airman certificates for controlled substance violations.--Section 44710(d)(1) of such title is amended by striking ``but shall be bound by all validly adopted interpretations of laws and regulations the Administrator carries out and of written agency policy guidance available to the public related to sanctions to be imposed under this section unless the Board finds an interpretation is arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise not according to law''. (d) Appeal From Certificate Actions.-- (1) In general.--Upon a decision by the National Transportation Safety Board upholding an order or a final decision by the Administrator denying an airman certificate under section 44703(d) of title 49, United States Code, or imposing a punitive civil action or an emergency order of revocation under subsections (d) and (e) of section 44709 of such title, an individual substantially affected by an order of the Board may, at the individual's election, file an appeal in the United States district court in which the individual resides or in which the action in question occurred, or in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. If the individual substantially affected by an order of the Board elects not to file an appeal in a United States district court, the individual may file an appeal in an appropriate United States court of appeals. (2) Emergency order pending judicial review.--Subsequent to a decision by the Board to uphold an Administrator's emergency order under section 44709(e)(2) of title 49, United States Code, and absent a stay of the enforcement of that order by the Board, the emergency order of amendment, modification, suspension, or revocation of a certificate shall remain in effect, pending the exhaustion of an appeal to a Federal district court as provided in this Act. (e) Standard of Review.-- (1) In general.--In an appeal filed under subsection (d) in a United States district court, the district court shall give full independent review of a denial, suspension, or revocation ordered by the Administrator, including substantive independent and expedited review of any decision by the Administrator to make such order effective immediately. (2) Evidence.--A United States district court's review under paragraph (1) shall include in evidence any record of the proceeding before the Administrator and any record of the proceeding before the National Transportation Safety Board, including hearing testimony, transcripts, exhibits, decisions, and briefs submitted by the parties. SEC. 3. NOTICES TO AIRMEN. (a) In General.-- (1) Definition.--In this section, the term ``NOTAM'' means Notices to Airmen. (2) Improvements.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall begin a Notice to Airmen Improvement Program (in this section referred to as the ``NOTAM Improvement Program'')-- (A) to improve the system of providing airmen with pertinent and timely information regarding the national airspace system; (B) to archive, in a public central location, all NOTAMs, including the original content and form of the notices, the original date of publication, and any amendments to such notices with the date of each amendment; and (C) to apply filters so that pilots can prioritize critical flight safety information from other airspace system information. (b) Goals of Program.--The goals of the NOTAM Improvement Program are-- (1) to decrease the overwhelming volume of NOTAMs an airman receives when retrieving airman information prior to a flight in the national airspace system; (2) make the NOTAMs more specific and relevant to the airman's route and in a format that is more useable to the airman; (3) to provide a full set of NOTAM results in addition to specific information requested by airmen; (4) to provide a document that is easily searchable; and (5) to provide a filtering mechanism similar to that provided by the Department of Defense Notices to Airmen. (c) Advice From Private Sector Groups.--The Administrator shall establish a NOTAM Improvement Panel, which shall be comprised of representatives of relevant nonprofit and not-for-profit general aviation pilot groups, to advise the Administrator in carrying out the goals of the NOTAM Improvement Program under this section. (d) Phase-in and Completion.--The improvements required by this section shall be phased in as quickly as practicable and shall be completed not later than the date that is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. SEC. 4. MEDICAL CERTIFICATION. (a) Assessment.-- (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall initiate an assessment of the Federal Aviation Administration's medical certification process and the associated medical standards and forms. (2) Report.--The Comptroller General shall submit a report to Congress based on the assessment required under paragraph (1) that examines-- (A) revisions to the medical application form that would provide greater clarity and guidance to applicants; (B) the alignment of medical qualification policies with present-day qualified medical judgment and practices, as applied to an individual's medically relevant circumstances; and (C) steps that could be taken to promote the public's understanding of the medical requirements that determine an airman's medical certificate eligibility. (b) Goals of the Federal Aviation Administration's Medical Certification Process.--The goals of the Federal Aviation Administration's medical certification process are-- (1) to provide questions in the medical application form that-- (A) are appropriate without being overly broad; (B) are subject to a minimum amount of misinterpretation and mistaken responses; (C) allow for consistent treatment and responses during the medical application process; and (D) avoid unnecessary allegations that an individual has intentionally falsified answers on the form; (2) to provide questions that elicit information that is relevant to making a determination of an individual's medical qualifications within the standards identified in the Administrator's regulations; (3) to give medical standards greater meaning by ensuring the information requested aligns with present-day medical judgment and practices; and (4) to ensure that-- (A) the application of such medical standards provides an appropriate and fair evaluation of an individual's qualifications; and (B) the individual understands the basis for determining medical qualifications. (c) Advice From Private Sector Groups.--The Administrator shall establish a panel, which shall be comprised of representatives of relevant nonprofit and not-for-profit general aviation pilot groups, aviation medical examiners, and other qualified medical experts, to advise the Administrator in carrying out the goals of the assessment required under this section. (d) Federal Aviation Administration Response.--Not later than 1 year after the issuance of the report by the Comptroller General pursuant to subsection (a)(2), the Administrator shall take appropriate actions to respond to such report. Speaker of the House of Representatives. Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.

Pilot's Bill of Rights - Requires National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) proceedings for the review of decisions of the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to deny, amend, modify, suspend, or revoke an airman's certificate to be conducted, to the extent practicable, in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and Federal Rules of Evidence. Requires the Administrator to: (1) provide timely, written notification to the subject of an investigation involving the approval, denial, suspension, modification, or revocation of an airman certificate of specified information pertinent to the investigation; and (2) provide him or her with access to relevant air traffic data. Authorizes the Administrator to delay such notification if it threatens the integrity of the investigation. Allows a substantially affected individual to elect to file an appeal of a certificate denial, a punitive civil action, or an emergency order of revocation in the U.S. district court in which individual resides, in which the action in question occurred, or the district court for the District of Columbia. Allows a substantially affected individual who elects not to file an appeal in a U.S. district court to file such appeal in the appropriate U.S. court of appeals. Directs the Administrator to begin a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) Improvement Program to improve the system of providing airmen with pertinent and timely information before a flight in the national airspace system. Requires the Administrator to establish a NOTAM Improvement Panel composed of representatives of relevant nonprofit and not-for-profit general aviation pilot groups to advise the Administrator in carrying out program goals. Requires the Comptroller General to: (1) assess the FAA process for the medical certification of airmen; and (2) report to Congress on revisions to the medical application form, the alignment of medical qualification policies with present-day qualified medical judgment and practices, and steps that could be taken to promote the public's understanding of the medical requirements determining an airman's medical certificate eligibility.

most solid tumors eventually establish colonies in distant anatomical locations ; when these colonies become clinically detectable , they are called macrometastasis . while often there is a large burden from primary tumors , it is in fact metastatic disease that is responsible for most cancer fatalities @xcite . the creation of macrometastasis requires the successful completion of a sequence of difficult steps . first , cancer cells must gain access to the general circulation system via the process of intravasation . next , the cells must survive in the inhospitable environment of the circulatory system . following this , the tumor cells must exit the circulatory system ( extravasation ) at a distant site and initiate micrometastsis ( clinically undetectable population of tumor cells at a distant anatomical site ) . lastly , the micrometastsis must develop the ability to successfully proliferate in the distant site and grow into clinically identifiable macrometastasis . the completion of these steps is very difficult and only a small fraction of tumor cells are able to achieve this @xcite . however , due to the vast number of cells in most primary tumors , metastasis commonly occurs in later stage solid tumors . there has been significant mathematical research in the design of optimal anti - cancer therapies . this has included studies on optimal chemotherapy , radiotherapy , and more recently targeted therapies and immunotherapy ( @xcite ) . since we are interested in radiotherapy we will focus on previous work in this field . the vast majority of modeling of radiotherapy response is based on the linear - quadratic model ( lq ) which says that tissue response is governed by the parameters @xmath1 and @xmath2 ( see e.g. , @xcite ) . specifically , following a single exposure to @xmath3 gray of radiation , the surviving fraction of viable cells is given by @xmath4 . an important question in this field is to decide on the optimal temporal distribution of a given amount of radiation , i.e. , how to kill the most tumor cells while inflicting the least amount of normal tissue damage . this is commonly referred to as the ` optimal fractionation problem . ' two possible solutions to this problem are hyper - fractionated and hypo - fractionated schedules . in hyper - fractionated schedules , small fraction sizes are delivered over a large number of treatment days , while in hypo - fractionated schedules , large fraction sizes are delivered over a small number of treatment days . if we minimize primary tumor cell population at the conclusion of treatment , it has been seen ( @xcite and @xcite ) that whether hyper or hypo - fractionation is preferable depends on the radiation sensitivity parameters of the normal and cancerous tissue . however we will observe in section 4 of this manuscript that when designing optimal treatments with the goal of minimizing metastatic production , hypo - fractionation is preferable for many parameter choices , and hyper - fractionation is only preferable sometimes when the @xmath0 value of the tumor is large . there have been a substantial number of works looking at optimal fractionation . the work @xcite considers dynamic design of fractionation schedules with incomplete repair , repopulation and reoxygenation . a more recent work @xcite considers the optimization problem associated with finding fractionation schedules under an lq model with incomplete repair and exponential repopulation . the authors theoretically establish the benefits of hypo - fractionation in the setting of a low @xmath0 value of the tumor . brenner and hall @xcite utilized the lq model in combination with the lea - catcheside function ( a generalization of the lq model that is useful at higher doses or prolonged doses ) to conclude that due to its slow response to radiation , prostate cancer can be treated equally effectively by either uniform radiation scheduling or hypo - fractionation ( which has fewer side effects ) . unkelbach et al . @xcite studied the interdependence between optimal spatial dose distribution and creation of fractionation schedules . another work @xcite utilized a dynamic programming approach to study the problem of optimal fractionation schedules in the presence of various repopulation curves . an important property common to all of these works is that they utilize an objective function that seeks to minimize final primary tumor population size in some sense . while this can be an important objective , in most cancers , it is ultimately metastatic disease that proves fatal . therefore , in this work , we study optimal fractionation schedules when using an objective function that seeks to minimize the total production of metastatic cells . the understanding of the metastatic process and how to respond to it has been greatly aided by the mathematical modeling community ( for an overview of this contribution see the recent review paper @xcite ) . in an interesting work @xcite , iwata et al . developed a set of differential equations governing the population dynamics of the metastatic population . a compelling work is the paper by thames et al . @xcite where they developed a mathematical model of the metastatic process to calculate risk from metastatic disease due to delay in surgery . hanin and korosteleva @xcite used a stochastic model to address questions such as : ( 1 ) how early do metastasis events occur , ( 2 ) how does extirpation of the primary affect evolution of the metastasis , and ( 3 ) how long are metastasis latent ? haeno and michor @xcite developed a multitype branching process model to study metastasis and in particular the probability of metastasis being present at diagnosis . in a follow up work @xcite , they used a mathematical model to study metastasis data in recently deceased pancreatic cancer patients . in a recent work @xcite , diego et al . used an ode model to study the relationship between primary and metastatic cancer sites , and in particular , makes predictions about the clinical course of the disease based on the parameter space of their ode model . the remainder of the paper is organized as follows . in section [ sec : metsprod ] , we discuss a model for metastasis production and how it can be used to develop a function that reflects metastatic risk . next , in section [ sec : opt ] , we describe the optimization model and solution approach . finally , in section [ sec : num ] , we present numerical results in the setting of breast cancer . we start by assuming that the total population of primary tumor cells at time @xmath5 is given by the function @xmath6 . note we will assume throughout this work that the population of cells is large enough that we can treat the population as a deterministic function . we then assume that each tumor cell initiates a successful macrometastasis at rate @xmath7 per unit of time . this is similar to the modeling approach taken in @xcite where they were able to fit their model to metastasis data from patients . if we are interested in the time horizon @xmath8 $ ] then our total rate of production of successful macrometastasis on that interval is @xmath9 in particular @xmath10 , the number of successful metastasis established in the time interval in @xmath8 $ ] , is a poisson random variable with mean @xmath11 and thus the probability of metastasis occurring is @xmath12 . therefore , in order to minimize @xmath13 , it suffices to minimize @xmath11 . in the rate @xmath11 , we assume that every cell is capable of metastasis . in the geometry of the actual tumor , it might be the case that only those cells on the surface of the tumor are capable of metastasis , or only those cells in close proximity to a blood vessel are capable . therefore , we consider the generalization @xmath14 for @xmath15 . this is similar to the model of metastasis creation in @xcite ; there they refer to the parameter @xmath16 as the fractal dimension of the blood vessels infiltrating the tumor , if we assume that the tumor is three dimensional with a two dimensional surface and that all cells on the surface are equally capable of metastasis then we can take @xmath17 . however if we assume that only a small fraction of cells on the surface are capable of metastasis we could take e.g. , @xmath18 . notice that in order to minimize @xmath19 , we do not need to know the parameter @xmath20 , which is difficult to measure . note that we are using a rather simplistic model for the metastasis production in that we assume at most only two rates of metastasis for the primary tumor cells . in reality , it is likely that the rate of metastasis for a given cell will be a complex function of its position , migratory potential , and its oxidative state . however , given the lack of data available , we found it preferable to work with this relatively simplistic model that does not require the knowledge of any intricate parameters . in addition , since the primary goal of this work is to introduce a novel objective function , we feel that adding further biological details can be saved for further exploration . lastly and importantly , variants of this relatively simplistic model have been matched to clinical metastasis data @xcite . our goal is to determine an optimal radiotherapy fractionation scheme that minimizes the probability that the primary tumor volume metastasizes . given the discussion from the previous section , this equates to minimizing @xmath19 ; however , for simplicity , we will use an approximate objective that uses a summation rather than an integral during therapy . let the time horizon @xmath21 consists of treatment days and a potentially long period of no treatment at the end of which metastatic risk is evaluated . suppose a radiation dose @xmath22 is delivered at time instant @xmath5 , for @xmath23 , then we choose to minimize @xmath24 where @xmath25 is the number of cells immediately before the delivery of dose @xmath26 . during the course of the treatment , we assume exponential tumor growth with a time lag . beyond that , we use the gomp - ex model for tumor growth because we are evaluating long - term metastatic risk and the exponential model will give unreasonably large values over such a long time period . the gomp - ex law of growth assumes that the cellular population expands through the exponential law @xcite initially , when there is no competition for resources . however , there is a critical size threshold @xmath27 such that for @xmath28 the growth follows the gompertz law . thus , we have @xmath29 for @xmath30 and @xmath31 for @xmath32 $ ] where @xmath33 and @xmath34 are tumor tissue sensitivity parameters , @xmath35 is the tumor doubling time in units of days , @xmath36 is the tumor kick - off time , @xmath37 is the tumor size at the starting of treatment , @xmath38 is the carrying capacity and @xmath39 is a constant related to the proliferative ability of the cells . the expression @xmath40 is defined as @xmath41 . @xmath42 is the time when the tumor population reaches size @xmath27 and can be computed using following equation @xmath43 we also use the concept of biological effective dose ( bed ) to constrain the side - effects in the oar around the tumor . we assume that a dose @xmath3 results in a homogeneous dose @xmath44 in the @xmath45th oar , where @xmath46 is the sparing factor ; for the heterogeneous case , it is possible to use the approach in @xcite . the bed in the @xmath45th oar is defined by @xmath47_i } } \right),\ ] ] where @xmath48_i}$ ] is an oar tissue sensitivity parameter . the bed can be derived from the lq model and is used to quantify fractionation effects in a clinical setting . note that we can also have multiple bed constraints on a single oar , e.g. , to model early and late effects . the optimization problem of interest is @xmath49 s.t . @xmath50_i}}\right ) \leq c_i,\ \ i=1,\dots , m\ ] ] where @xmath51 is a constant that specifies an upper bound to the @xmath45th bed in the oar and @xmath52 is the total number of oars in the vicinity of tumor . note that we do not work directly with the quantity @xmath53 during therapy but instead with its approximation @xmath54 . here , @xmath55 is an upper bound for @xmath53 and is a good approximation for @xmath53 if the impact of the exponential growth term in ( [ eq : linearquadraticexp ] ) is relatively small compared to the dose fraction terms , which is typically the case for most disease sites . formulation is a nonconvex quadratically constrained problem . such problems are computationally difficult to solve in general . however , we can use a dynamic programming ( dp ) approach with only two states to solve this deterministic problem , similar to the work in @xcite . the states of the system are @xmath56 , the cumulative dose , and @xmath57 , the cumulative dose squared , delivered to the tumor immediately after time @xmath5 . we have @xmath58 @xmath59 now we can write the dp algorithm ( forward recursion ) as @xmath60 , & t\le n_0 - 1\\ \min_{d_{t}\ge0}[x_0^\xi e^{-\xi\left ( \alpha_t ( u_{t-1}+d_{t } ) + \beta_t ( v_{t-1}+d_{t}^2)-\frac{\ln 2}{\tau_d}(t - t_k)^+\right)}+j_{t-1}(u_{t-1},v_{t-1})]+\int_{n_0}^{t}(x_t)^\xi , & t = n_0\end{cases}\ ] ] with @xmath61 , @xmath62 . we set the function @xmath63 to be @xmath64 if @xmath65_i } } v_t > c_i\ ] ] for any @xmath66 . since there are only two state variables , we can solve our optimization problem by discretizing the states and using this dp algorithm . we solve the optimization problem based on the radiobiological parameters for breast cancer . we consider two different normal tissues @xcite , heart and lung tissue . for each normal tissue , we define the maximal toxicity @xmath67_i}}\frac{d_i^2}{n_i}\ ] ] where @xmath68 and @xmath69 are tissue specific parameters and define the maximum total dose @xmath68 delivered in @xmath69 fractions for each oar . a standard fractionated treatment is to deliver @xmath70 gy to the tumor with @xmath71 gy fractions @xcite . the tolerance bed values ( @xmath51 ) for various normal tissues were computed based on the standard scheme . hence all bed in oar associated with optimal schedules obtained in this section are less than or equal to their corresponding bed in standard schedule , i.e. @xmath72 gy and @xmath73 for @xmath74 . all radiobiological parameter values used are listed in table [ tabledata ] along with their sources . .breast tumor and normal tissues parameters [ cols="<,<,<,<",options="header " , ] in this work , we have considered the classic problem of optimal fractionation schedules in the delivery of radiation . we have however done this with the non - traditional goal of minimizing the production of metastasis . this is motivated by the fact that the majority of cancer fatalities are driven by metastasis @xcite , and that this disseminated disease can be very difficult to treat . we addressed this goal by considering the optimal fractionation problem with a novel objective function based on minimizing the total rate of metastasis production , which we argue is equivalent to minimizing the time integrated tumor cell population . we were able to numerically solve this optimization problem with a dynamic programming approach . we computed radiotherapy fractionation schedules that minimized metastatic risk for a variety of parameter settings . the resulting optimal schedules had an interesting structure that was quite different from what is observed from the traditional optimal fractionation problem where one is interested in minimizing local tumor population at the end of treatment . in the traditional optimal fractionation problem it was observed in @xcite that if @xmath48_t}\le\min_i\{{[\alpha/\beta]_i}/\gamma_i\}$ ] then a hypo - fractionated schedule is optimal and if @xmath48_t}>\min_i\{{[\alpha/\beta]_i}/\gamma_i\}$ ] then a hyper - fractionated schedule is optimal . in contrast , in the current work we observed that if we are evaluating metastatic risk at the conclusion of therapy then independent of the relationship between @xmath48_t}$ ] and @xmath75_i}/\gamma_i\}$ ] , the resulting fractionation schedules for minimizing metastatic risk is a hypo - fractionated structure with large initial doses that taper off quickly . this is due to the structure of the objective function . in order to minimize the time integrated tumor cell population immediately after treatment , it is necessary to quickly reduce the tumor cell population since this is the high point of the tumor cell population over the course of the treatment . if we think of the tumor cell population as quite dangerous due to its metastasis potential , then it is natural to want to reduce their population as quickly as possible . we observed that the structure of the optimal schedule depends on the length of time for which we evaluated metastatic risk . in particular if we evaluate metastasis risk in a long time frame ( several years ) after therapy , and it holds that @xmath48_t}>\min_i\{{[\alpha/\beta]_i}/\gamma_i\}$ ] , then the optimal schedule will have either medium initial doses tapering off slowly ( that is , a schedule where @xmath76 ) or equal - dosage routine where we have @xmath77 . this is in contrast to when we evaluate metastatic risk over the course of the treatment period , in which case a hypo - fractionated schedule is nearly always optimal . note that if our evaluation time - frame of metastatic risk is several years after the conclusion of therapy , then we want to minimize the tumor cell population as soon as possible to reduce initial metastatic risk , but we also need to avoid a large tumor population in the long time period after the conclusion of treatment . in many of our results , we observed the optimality of hypo - fractionated schedules . interestingly , previous clinical trials , e.g. , the fast trial for breast cancer @xcite and the chhip trial for prostate cancer @xcite , show the benefit of hypo - fractionation . it should be noted that the motivation for these trials was the low @xmath48_t}$ ] value in prostate and breast tumors . our results indicate even when the @xmath48_t}$ ] ratio of the tumor is very large , it may still better to deliver a hypo - fractionated schedule when taking metastatic risk into account . the current work provides a possible new motivation for considering hypo - fractionated schedules , i.e. , metastasis risk reduction . in this paper , we have assumed the delivery of single daily fractions and have not considered alternate fractionation schemes such as chart @xcite that deliver multiple fractions a day . some of our results indicate optimal hypo - fractionation schedules ( as obtained for the t=0.07 case ) . one way to deliver a large amount of dose in a very short period of time is to use such schemes like chart . however , additional modeling is needed to incorporate incomplete sublethal damage repair due to short inter - fraction time periods . another possible interpretation of this work is to view the output @xmath53 as the risk of the tumor developing resistance to a chemotherapeutic treatment . this can be achieved by simply viewing the parameter @xmath20 as the rate at which tumor cells develop drug resistance . due to the severe consequences of drug resistance , this is also an interesting direction for further exploration . we feel that this type of work minimizing metastatic production opens the potential for a new line of research in the radiation optimization community as well as cancer biology . in particular , there are several important biological phenomena that we have not included . this includes oxygenation status ( and history ) of cells as well as the vascular structure of the tumor of interest . lastly , a potentially interesting extension of this work could be to validate our predictions in animal models of metastatic cancer . t. bortfeld , j. ramakrishnan , j. n tsitsiklis , and j. unkelbach . optimization of radiation therapy fractionation schedules in the presence of tumor repopulation . forthcoming in informs journal on computing . , 2013 . m. mizuta , s. takao , h. date , n. kishimoto , k. sutherland , r. onimaru , and h. shirato . a mathematical study to select fractionation regimen based on physical dose distribution and the linear - quadratic model . , 84:829833 , 2012 . g. tortorelli , et al . standard or hypofractionated radiotherapy in the postoperative treatment of breast cancer : a retrospective analysis of acute skin toxicity and dose inhomogeneities . , 13(1):230 , 2013 . j. owen , a. ashton , j. bliss , j. homewood and et al . . effect of radiotherapy fraction size on tumour control in patients with early - stage breast cancer after local tumour excision : long - term results of a randomised trial . , 7:467471 , 2006 . d. dearnaley , i. syndikus , g. sumo , m. bidmead , d. bloomfield , c. clark , ... & e. hall . conventional versus hypofractionated high - dose intensity - modulated radiotherapy for prostate cancer : preliminary safety results from the chhip randomised controlled trial . , 13:4354 , 2012 .

metastasis is the process by which cells from a primary tumor disperse and form new tumors at distant anatomical locations . the treatment and prevention of metastatic cancer remains an extremely challenging problem . this work introduces a novel biologically motivated objective function to the radiation optimization community that takes into account metastatic risk instead of the status of the primary tumor . in this work , we consider the problem of developing fractionated irradiation schedules that minimize production of metastatic cancer cells while keeping normal tissue damage below an acceptable level . a dynamic programming framework is utilized to determine the optimal fractionation scheme . we evaluated our approach on a breast cancer case using the heart and the lung as organs - at - risk ( oar ) . for small tumor @xmath0 values , hypo - fractionated schedules were optimal , which is consistent with standard models . however , for relatively larger @xmath0 values , we found the type of schedule depended on various parameters such as the time when metastatic risk was evaluated , the @xmath0 values of the oars , and the normal tissue sparing factors . interestingly , in contrast to standard models , hypo - fractionated and semi - hypo - fractionated schedules ( large initial doses with doses tapering off with time ) were suggested even with large tumor @xmath1/@xmath2 values . numerical results indicate potential for significant reduction in metastatic risk .

Abstract The origins of flora and fauna that are only found in Ireland and Iberia, but which are absent from intervening countries, is one of the enduring questions of biogeography. As Southern French, Iberian and Irish populations of the land snail Cepaea nemoralis sometimes have a similar shell character, we used mitochondrial phylogenies to begin to understand if there is a shared “Lusitanian” history. Although much of Europe contains snails with A and D lineages, by far the majority of Irish individuals have a lineage, C, that in mainland Europe was only found in a restricted region of the Eastern Pyrenees. A past extinction of lineage C in the rest of Europe cannot be ruled out, but as there is a more than 8000 year continuous record of Cepaea fossils in Ireland, the species has long been a food source in the Pyrenees, and the Garonne river that flanks the Pyrenees is an ancient human route to the Atlantic, then we suggest that the unusual distribution of the C lineage is most easily explained by the movements of Mesolithic humans. If other Irish species have a similarly cryptic Lusitanian element, then this raises the possibility of a more widespread and significant pattern. Citation: Grindon AJ, Davison A (2013) Irish Cepaea nemoralis Land Snails Have a Cryptic Franco-Iberian Origin That Is Most Easily Explained by the Movements of Mesolithic Humans. PLoS ONE 8(6): e65792. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0065792 Editor: Carles Lalueza-Fox, Institut de Biologia Evolutiva - Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain Received: March 5, 2013; Accepted: May 2, 2013; Published: June 19, 2013 Copyright: © 2013 Grindon, Davison. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Funding: The work was supported by the University of Nottingham, Genetics Society, the Carr Scholarship the Malacological Society of London, and the Conchological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist. Introduction The geographic origins of the flora and fauna of Ireland are mysterious because a number of species, including the strawberry tree, the Kerry slug, and the Pyrenean glass snail, are exclusive to Ireland and Iberia. In 1846 Forbes described this general pattern as ‘Lusitanian’, which subsequently was called, perhaps with some irony, ‘the Irish question’ [1]. To date, the origins of the Ireland-Iberia connection remain unclear, with no single theory able to explain every pattern. More recently, genetic studies have made great progress, because it has been possible to finely dissect past events on a case-by-case basis [2], [3]. Moreover, a few more detailed studies have begun to show that patterns of variation are not always concordant between different genetic markers, because of different histories and selection [4], [5], [6]. Of particular note, new inferences from small mammal phylogeography have led to the proposal that the characteristic signature seen in some Irish species and the “Celtic fringe” in general is as a result of insular isolation – a first wave of colonisation across Britain and Ireland was later followed by second wave that only reached mainland Britain, but not the western fringes and certainly not Ireland [4]. With a view to further understanding the intriguing affinities of the Irish fauna, we chose to study the widespread and common European land snail species, Cepaea nemoralis. Fossil material indicates that this species has been continuously present in Ireland for at least 8000 years (Newlands Cross, Co. Dublin: 7600+/−500 BP Cartronmacmanus, Co. Mayo: 8207+/−165) [7], [8]. On the West coast, the normally rare white-lipped shell form is common and populations are also much larger than average. As one of the few other regions known to contain populations with both white-lipped and large shelled individuals is in the Pyrenees and Cantabria, Cook & Peake [9] speculated that the some Irish C. nemoralis might originate from this region. Moore [1] went so far as to suggest that Irish snails might have been brought across the sea by Mesolithic humans. However, convergent evolution through natural selection might also explain the similarity, especially since some areas of Western Ireland and Northern Spain have a similar underlying geology. As a preliminary mitochondrial DNA study showed that two populations in Ireland were genetically distinct from those in Britain [10], we thought it conceivable that Irish C. nemoralis might originate, at least in part, from a Southern French or Iberian source. We therefore set out to establish the post-glacial geographic origin of Irish C. nemoralis, by sampling widely across the whole of Europe, with a particular concentration of sites in Ireland, Britain, and across Northern Spain and Southern France, including the Pyrenees. In order to achieve this, a fragment of the mitochondrial genes cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and 16S rRNA were used to construct phylogenies. The results may have implications for our understanding of the human colonisation of Ireland. Materials and Methods Ethics statement All animal work was conducted according to relevant national and international guidelines. No specific permissions are required to work with invertebrates in the UK. Similarly, no specific permissions were required for the collection of snails from sample sites, because they were not collected from protected areas of land. The land snail, C. nemoralis, is not an endangered or protected species. Samples Cepaea nemoralis is widespread across Western Europe, reaching its northern limit at roughly 60°N and stretching as far south as approximately 39°N [11]. In Iberia, it is only found along the Northern coast and on adjacent coastal mountain ranges, with some doubt as to whether Portuguese populations are a recent introduction. It is not found in the interior of Spain, nor the Mediterranean coast to the East of the Pyrenees. The shell is generally globular in appearance and slightly depressed, ranging in size from 12 by 18 mm to 26 by 28 mm, with the largest shelled individuals being found in the Pyrenees, Italy, and on the West coast of Ireland. In a few European locations, including sites in Cantabria in Spain, the Pyrenees, Denmark, Yorkshire and Cornwall in England, North Wales, Western Scotland; and the West coast of Ireland, the normally dark lip colour is instead polymorphic, being white/brown/black . Samples were obtained between 2005 and 2007 by volunteer-led collection and by field trips to the more remote or important locations in France, Spain and the Pyrenees. Populations were located by thorough inspection of suitable habitats, with care taken so as not to sample close to sites where recent introductions are likely, such as agricultural areas, parks, or private gardens. Where possible, between 10 and 30 individuals were collected at each site, from an area no larger than 10×10 metres. We were also able to make use of the British samples (36 sites, 423 individuals) and sequences reported in Davison [10]. DNA extraction, amplification, and sequencing Thin slices of foot muscle were removed using a scalpel and DNA was extracted using the protocol of Doyle and Doyle [12]. A ~600 base pair (b.p.) fragment of the mitochondrial gene COI was amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), using either the Folmer et al. [13] primers, those of Gittenberger et al. [14], or a combination of the two. PCR conditions for Folmer primers were as described, using an annealing temperature of 55°C, but for the Gittenberger primers, or a combination of both sets, the PCR conditions used an annealing temperature of 45°C. Additionally, a 420 bp fragment of the mitochondrial gene 16S rRNA was amplified using the primers 16sar (5′-CGCCTGTTTATCAAAAACAT-3′) and 16sbr (5′-CCGGTCTGAACTCTGATCAT-3′). A nuclear gene ITS was also amplified using the primers LSU-1 (5′-CTAGCTGCGAGAATTAATGTGA-3′) and LSU-3 (5′-ACTTTCCCTCACGGTACTTG-3′), but almost lacked variation and so was not used further. Subsequently, the PCR product was sequenced with forward primers (and reverse, if necessary) using BigDye™ Terminator version 3.0 Cycle Sequencing Kit Analyses Sequences were aligned by eye in Bioedit version 7.0.9 [15], and subsequently collapsed manually into individual haplotypes. To visually check for substitution saturation, the number of transitions and transversions was plotted against genetic distance (total sequence divergence for all pairwise comparisons of the data). In addition, an entropy-based statistical test was used which takes into account tree topology, sequence length, and the number of taxa [16]. In this test, if Iss (i.e. index of substitution saturation) is smaller than Iss.c (i.e. critical Iss), then it is concluded that the sequences have not experienced substitution saturation. Both tests were implemented in DAMBE version 5.0.19 [17]. Sequences were also tested for evidence of recombination, using Recco [18]. To infer the model of nucleotide substitution that best fits the dataset, the Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) and Bayesian methods (i.e. BIC) were used because they simultaneously compare multiple nested or non-nested models, assess the uncertainty of a model, as well as estimating phylogenies and model parameters using all the known models [19]. The model of DNA evolution was established using ModelTest version 3.7 [20], jModelTest 0.1.1 [21], and Kakusan3 [22], taking into consideration the AIC or BIC test results. Phylogenies with the appropriate model of evolution were then constructed using the following methods: neighbour-joining (NJ – PAUP* 4b10) [23], maximum likelihood (ML – Phyml v2.4.4) [24], approximate Likelihood Ratio Tests (aLRTs – Phylml v2.4.4) [25], and Bayesian analysis MrBayes v3.1 [26]. Note that as the rate of mitochondrial evolution is completely uncertain for Cepaea mtDNA, we did not attempt to use a molecular clock - inappropriate calibration may have misled substantial numbers of phylogeographic studies [27]. The criteria used for NJ trees were: rate matrix, base frequency, shape parameter of the gamma distribution (based on 16 rate categories), and proportion of invariant sites all estimated using maximum likelihood inferred from an initial NJ phylogeny. The parameters calculated from the initial tree were then used to construct a new NJ tree with the parameters being estimated again. This procedure was repeated until the likelihood value was stable. In addition, bootstrap values were calculated using 1000 replicates to determine the support for branches within the NJ tree. ML trees were constructed using PhyML, both the gamma shape parameter and proportion of invariant sites were estimated from the data. ML bootstrap values were also calculated using 1000 replicates. Finally, Bayesian inference was performed using MrBayes, by means of a 4 chain Markov Chain Monte Carlo algorithm for an initial 500000 generations, sampling every 100 generations, with a subsequent 500000 generations until the diagnostic value was <0.01, indicating that convergence had occurred. The heating parameter was set to 0.2 and a ‘burnin’ value of 1250, with the estimated variables being calculated using three distance states. The relationship between haplotypes of the same lineage was visualised using median-joining (MJ) networks, drawn in Network version 4.5.0.7 [28]. To ensure an accurate representation of the relationship between haplotypes, the MJ networks were calculated and cleaned up using the Maximum-Parsimony (MP) option, which removes any unnecessary median-vectors and links. The genetic structure between populations was estimated by calculating population pairwise estimates of F ST in Arlequin version 3.0 [29]. The haplotypes are permuted between populations in order to calculate the null distribution of pairwise F ST values under the hypothesis of no differentiation between populations. The P value is the proportion of permutations that lead to a F ST value which is larger or equal to the observed one. Regression plots of F ST values against ln [distance] were constructed to test for an association of geographical distance with genetic distance, and the significance determined by a Mantel test in Arlequin [29]. Also implemented in Arlequin, the nucleotide and haplotype diversities were calculated for populations with five or more individuals. Discussion The majority of C. nemoralis individuals from Ireland have a mitochondrial lineage, C, that is in common with Central (Andorran) and Eastern Pyrenean populations. This lineage was found nowhere else in mainland Europe, except one site near Toulouse (St. Sulpice) (Figure 2) and the Isle of Man, as well as previously being found in a single snail from Wales [10]. For a genetic marker that is highly variable, especially within snails [30], it is noteworthy that three shared Irish/Pyrenean haplotypes were found, with no evidence of genetic differentiation between several different sites in Ireland and the Pyrenees (Table 1). Except for the Threecastles location, all of these sites were on the West coast of Ireland, where the white lipped shell morph is most common. In accordance with the pygmy shrew and some other animals [5], the evidence indicates that some Irish C. nemoralis have a ‘Lusitanian’ element, previously speculated but never tested [9]. If other Irish species have a similarly cryptic Lusitanian element, then this raises the possibility of a more widespread and significant pattern. There is an ongoing debate as to the biogeographic history of Ireland, including a recent body of evidence that highlights the importance of Britain in the origin of Irish fauna [6], [31], [32], [33]. In the case of C. nemoralis snails, particular caution is required in the interpretation in relation to Britain, because the inferences only reveal the history of the mitochondrial DNA contained within the snails, a single genetic locus, and give no indication for the geographic origin of the rest of the genome [4], [6]. The diverse lineages found within Ireland certainly indicate that the colonisation history is complicated, such that the other lineages may have reached Ireland from similar or different sources, including Britain, at the same or different times (e.g. haplotype D11 is shared between Ireland and Southern France; Ireland A haplotypes are largely distinct from British A haplotypes, though there is some overlap; Supplementary Table S1; Supplementary Figure S1). Here we focus our discussion on the lineage with the clearest pattern, C. for which the simplest explanation for the disjunct distribution is a single historic long distance dispersal event between the Pyrenees and Ireland. ‘Gradualist’ explanations for the distribution of lineage C, involving a stepping stone colonisation from the Pyrenees, through France and into Britain, are not satisfactory, because it is difficult to reconcile how a much slower migration did not result in significant genetic structure, as observed in most other pairwise F ST comparisons (Figure 3). Moreover, the Pyrenean haplotypes dominate in most populations across Ireland (with the exception of the South-West corner), including near the sites where shells have been radiocarbon dated (Preece et al., 1986; Speller, 2007), indicating that they might be more common because they arrived first. One significant possibility is that lineage C might exist in other countries, but was not sampled, or else it has since gone extinct [34], perhaps due to climate induced replacement [4]. Even so, the lack of structure between Ireland and the Pyrenees is difficult to explain by anything but long distance migration, and, whichever the precise explanation, the differentiation between Ireland and Britain is consistent with the model put forward [4], [6] in which Ireland may retain a signal of founding colonization for longer than Britain, simply because subsequent waves of colonisation did not take place. In Ireland, anthropogenic disturbance implies that people colonised Ireland at least 9000 years B.P., more or less coincident with the earliest post-glacial C. nemoralis fossils (8207+/−165, Co. Mayo). Molecular genetic evidence indicates this resettlement of much of western and central Europe originated from the Franco-Cantabrian or Iberian region [35], [36]. Subsequently, trading links were established between Iberia and Ireland in the Mesolithic, providing ample opportunities for land snails to be transported in the cargo [37], [38]. Intriguingly, Pyrenean and Cantabrian humans have consumed C. nemoralis since at least the end of the Pleistocene (e.g. shells radiocarbon dated from 10,932±196 cal BP) [39] and they are commonly found as an item of food refuse in Mediterranean archaeological sites just prior to the onset of agricultural economies (though not in Ireland – Eva Laurie, pers. comm.). Specifically, deep middens of burnt shells have been found during Pyrenean cave excavations, indicating that humans have either been collecting or possibly “farming” land snails for thousands of years, with the majority of these shells being C. nemoralis [37], [40]. Archaeological evidence from a Bronze Age ship wreck in Turkey also indicates that people have transported land snails, either intentionally or accidentally, across oceans for at least 3000 years [41]. Another possibility is that individual snails could have also reached Ireland via other means, most likely rafting on floating debris in the ocean or accidental transport by birds. However, rafting seems unlikely, given that the C lineage is found in the Central Pyrenees and, so far, not on the Atlantic coast of Spain or France. Transport by birds is possible, but we are not aware of any large bird species that migrate between Ireland and the Pyrenees [42] and also, Cepaea does not have particularly ‘sticky’ mucus [43], although ingestion remains a possibility [44]. Finally, natural colonization after the last glacial maximum over land now covered by sea cannot be ruled out [3], but this pattern of colonization would in theory leave a stepping stone signature of population structure (unless very rapid) [45], at the same time as leaving remnant haplotypes of the same mitochondrial lineage in places such as the West coast of France – these may exist but we did not discover them. It has been carefully argued by Cunliffe [38] that the maritime communities of the Atlantic, and the rivers that drain into it, were well connected along the coast, but less so inland. Taking the evidence together, we therefore believe that while it is not possible to rule out other explanations, the most likely justification for the specific connection between Irish and Pyrenean C. nemoralis is human assisted movement of snails, a mode of transport that has been inferred for some other species [5], [46]. While the DNA evidence from these snails may therefore reveal an insight into the journeys taken by early humans, an intriguing question is why the Irish C lineage haplotype appears to have originated from an area that is approximately 100 km inland? In the present day, C. nemoralis is not found much further East than our sample sites, and certainly not on the coast near Perpignan and Girona. One explanation is that the Garonne river, into which the Ariège on the northern flanks of the Pyrenees drains, has long been a principal route between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic [38], perhaps implying that the present day presence of these snails in Ireland might be a long lasting consequence of this ancient transport route. Although beyond the scope of this study, further study would benefit from corroborating these results using recently developed nuclear markers [47], as well as detailed sampling along the course of the Garonne. Whether the same ‘Garonne trade’ explanation may apply to explain the distribution of other species may only be determined by further genetic work. Acknowledgments We are grateful to numerous persons with their help in collecting snails, including T. Backeljau, E. Bailes, B. Bourke, T. Burke, S. Cianfanelli, H. Collins, M. Cooper, V. Fiorentino, I. Fontanilla, U. Gärdenfors, F. Giusti, J. Grindon, Jirka, E. Kletecki, P. Lavgesen, F. Lorenz, G. & L. Manganelli, T. Martins, M. Ozgo, C. & E. Schwabe, J. Spelda, V. Stamol, F. Tognazzi, T. Tregenza, C. Yates, M.L. Zettler and F. Zoltán. Thanks to Allan McDevitt, Nicky Milner, Igor Gutiérrez and one anonymous referee for comments and advice on the manuscript. ||||| Image caption A common garden snail gives insight into human migration to Ireland A genetic similarity between snail fossils found in Ireland and the Eastern Pyrenees suggests humans migrated from southern Europe to Ireland 8,000 years ago. The slimy creatures in Ireland today are almost identical to snails in Southern France and Northern Spain. Whether an accidental visitor on a ship or brought along as a snack, the boat they were carried on did not appear to stop in Britain. The findings are published in PLOS One. As Britain emerged from the end of the last Ice Age about 10,000 years ago, sea levels rose and landslides are thought to have triggered a great tsunami. Britain was transformed into an island, separated from mainland Europe and Ireland. The intriguing implication is that the genetics of snails might shed light on a very old human migration event Dr Angus Davison, University of Nottingham Land-dwelling animals were therefore no longer able to migrate from Europe over the seas without a little help. It has long perplexed scientists that Ireland has plants and animals that are genetically different, and in some cases are even unique, to ones found in Britain. Now scientists have found that a common garden snail, Cepaea nemoralis, is almost genetically identical to one found in the Eastern Pyrenees, but seems to have missed Britain on its journey over. River highways Fossil analysis revealed a continuous record for these snails in Ireland for the past 8,000 years and well preserved shell remnants from France showed the creature was a snack thousands of years ago. The researchers said it was difficult to explain this "clear pattern" except by involving humans. "There are records of Mesolithic or Stone Age humans eating snails in the Pyrenees, and perhaps even farming them," said co-author of the study Angus Davison from the University of Nottingham. What our ancestors ate Evidence showed that snails were eaten in France 8,000 years ago but Dr Davison said there was no evidence they were eaten in Ireland The people who came to Britain and Ireland after the Ice Age were hunters and gatherers and it is thought they were constantly on the move in order to survive They had to search for wild foods such as nuts and berries and were known to eat red deer and fish They also tracked wild animals for meat and skins, such as the arctic hare and ptarmigan It is believed that since they were so mobile, they lived in temporary structures that were light, easily dismantled and portable Ice age survivors: Ptarmigan and arctic hares Explore Britain's Mesolithic past "If the snails naturally colonised Ireland, you would expect to find some of the same genetic type in other areas of Europe, especially Britain. We just don't find them. "The highways of the past were rivers and the ocean - as the river that flanks the Pyrenees was an ancient trade route to the Atlantic. What we're actually seeing might be the long lasting legacy of snails that hitched a ride as humans travelled from the South of France to Ireland 8,000 years ago. "The intriguing implication is that the genetics of snails might shed light on a very old human migration event," Dr Davison added. Human genetic link Population geneticist Dan Bradley from Trinity College Dublin said the study showed a recurring theme that some species in Ireland had similar genetic types to southern Europe, but not to those found in Britain. "It's consistent with the idea that almost everything we have in Ireland, that can't swim or fly, was brought here on a boat." Previous genetic studies on humans have also shown clear links between the population of Ireland and those in Southern Europe. "The genetic patterns in humans are there, but are much weaker. You see it in blood groups, in Y chromosomes and some diseases. "In order to really understand migration patterns we need more ancient DNA from different species such as small mammals," Prof Bradley told BBC News. Scientists, including Prof Bradley are now working on further studies on human remains, which over the next few years will "tell us exciting things about human migration". ||||| Listen close to the tale of the snail – it may tell us about the mysterious history of ancient Ireland. New research published Wednesday in the journal PLOS ONE found that the snails in Ireland and the Pyrenees share genes not found in British snails. Since it’s improbable that the Irish snails made a slow, slimy crawl thousands of miles long from France and Spain, scientists suggest that the simplest explanation is that snails arrived with snail-eating migrants from southern Europe some 8,000 years ago. That Ireland is genetically different from Britain and has genetic similarities to Iberia – with numerous species that are unique to it and Iberia, including the strawberry tree, the Kerry slug, and the Pyrenean glass snail – has long puzzled scientists. In tracing the snail’s genetic origins, this latest research joins a growing body of evidence that the first people of Ireland arrived from Iberia. “The results tie in with what we know from human genetics about the human colonisation of Ireland — the people may have come from somewhere in southern Europe,” said Angus Davison, of the University of Nottingham and the co-author of the study, in a statement. “What we’re actually seeing might be the long lasting legacy of snails that hitched a ride, accidentally or perhaps as food, as humans travelled from the South of France to Ireland 8,000 years ago.” Davison and Adele Grindon, also of the University of Nottingham, analyzed mitochondrial DNA found in muscle samples sliced from the feet of some 880 snails, from the species Cepaea nemoralis. Researchers and volunteers had spent two years collecting the little animals across Europe. Get the Monitor Stories you care about delivered to your inbox. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy The researchers found that snails in Ireland share a mitochondrial lineage with the Central and Eastern Pyrenean snail populations, but not with snails collected elsewhere in Europe. Researchers are unsure whether or not the snails travelled as stowaways or as snacks for the long-journeying migrants. Mesolithic or Stone Age humans in the Pyrenees are recorded to have eaten snails, or perhaps farmed them.

– The first migrants to Ireland some 8,000 years ago may have been Southern Europeans with a taste for escargot, according to new research published in PLoS One. It turns out that a lowly garden snail (Cepaea nemoralis) found in Ireland is genetically different from British ones—but incredibly similar to one species found in Southern France and Northern Spain today. But scientists don't believe snails made the long crawl from the Pyrenees some 8,000 years ago. Instead, "what we're actually seeing might be the long lasting legacy of snails that hitched a ride, accidentally or perhaps as food, as humans traveled from the South of France to Ireland," the study's co-author said. The Christian Science Monitor spells it out for us: "This latest research joins a growing body of evidence that the first people of Ireland arrived from Iberia." To get to their conclusion, researchers started with a snail hunt, spending two years amassing samples from across Europe with the help of volunteers. They then looked at the mitochondrial DNA via muscle samples taken from 880 of the creatures' feet, the Christian Science Monitor reports. It adds that the snail is among a number of Irish species (it names the strawberry tree and the Kerry slug) that are specific to it and Iberia, and the BBC speaks with a population geneticist who says hints of this similarity have been found in humans from the respective regions: "The genetic patterns are there, but are much weaker. You see it in blood groups, in Y chromosomes and some diseases."

Mitt Romney morphed into a traveling salesman here Thursday as he gave his best pitch for an energy plan that’s big on loosening environmental regulations and expanding domestic oil drilling and coal production. To those who might doubt Romney’s projection that his plan would make North America energy independent by 2020, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee had a simple message: “It is achievable.” “This is not some pie-in-the-sky kind of thing,” Romney told a modest crowd outside a truck warehouse in New Mexico. “This is a real, achievable objective, and I have a chart that’s still, despite the wind, still holding up up here.” While Romney stressed the idea of independence, the plan relies heavily on imports from Canada and Mexico, two of the world’s biggest oil producers. Hence the use of the phrase “North American” before energy independence. With storm clouds rolling in, Romney turned to a bar graph propped perilously next to him on a makeshift easel to make the sale. But first, this: “These guys have held it up with about every piece of weight you can think of,” Romney said. “You can’t read the writing, it’s too far back, but I can read it even from here so I’m going to tell you what it says.” The United States produces about two-thirds of the oil needed to meet its own demands, he said. He pointed to a gray bar showing “conventional sources,” meaning current domestic wells, then detailed where oil production would expand under his plan. Romney, gesturing at his chart, said his plan would result in 2 million additional barrels per day in offshore drilling, and 2 million additional barrels in “tight oil — that’s oil that comes from places where you have to use fracking technology to get it out.” He cited the Bakken range in North Dakota and sources in New Mexico. In both areas, oil companies are using a combination of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling to tap previously uneconomic resources. Looking to U.S. neighbors, Romney said, “Canada has oil sands, we’re going to take advantage of those and build the Keystone Pipeline,” adding, “that last little bar that I have there is Mexico. “Mexico, I’m not counting on any increase there,” he said. “They’ve actually been declining slightly.” But he added that he would work with the country’s new political leadership to develop technologies in Mexico to boost production. “The net-net of all this, as you can see, is by 2020, we’re able to produce somewhere between 23 million and 28 million barrels per day of oil, and we won’t need to buy any oil from the Middle East or Venezuela or anywhere else where we don’t want to,” Romney said. That figure would include output from Canada and Mexico, according to Energy Information Administration figures. To reach those totals, Romney also cited output of biofuels — ethanol or diesel, for instance — which would produce about 1 million barrels a day in additional capacity. While Romney has criticized subsidies and tax breaks for renewable energy sources, his white paper said he would preserve the government-mandated renewable fuels standard, which requires oil refiners to blend minimum amounts of biofuels into gasoline. That mandate has helped prop up demand for biofuels in recent years. His plan would also open new areas for offshore drilling, starting off the coasts of Virginia and the Carolinas, and empower the states to lease federal lands for oil, coal and natural gas development. Under the plan, the federal government would remove or loosen environmental statutes and regulations that Romney says have undermined coal production and slowed the expansion of oil and gas drilling. Romney said the plan would have an economic impact of $500 billion and result in 3 million new jobs, including more than 1 million in the manufacturing sector. “That’s more good wages; that’s an opportunity for more Americans to have a bright and prosperous future,” Romney said. The Obama campaign said Romney’s plan amounted to a “backward, drilling-focused energy policy” that prioritizes tax breaks for big oil and gas companies. Oil executives have been major contributors to Romney’s campaign. “This isn’t a recipe for energy independence,” Obama campaign spokeswoman Lis Smith said in a statement. “It’s just another irresponsible scheme to help line the pockets of big oil while allowing the U.S. to fall behind and cede the clean energy sector to China.” In a conference call with reporters, the Obama campaign criticized Romney’s energy proposal, casting it as an attempt to cater the oil industry. “One thing is clear that we should take away from today. Mitt Romney’s energy plan is simply doing the bidding of big oil,” said Obama deputy campaign manager Stephanie Cutter. “I find Mr. Romney’s plan to be not only unimaginative, but I believe it will be a failure in trying to get us to energy independence,” added Federico Pena, a former Energy and Transportation secretary and current Obama campaign co-chair. The Obama administration has prioritized homegrown renewable energies such as wind and solar, funneling federal dollars toward subsidies and loan guarantees for renewable energy projects and technology development. But the president has also endorsed the expansion of natural gas exploration and pledged to open up new — but still limited — offshore areas for oil drilling. Romney pledged to change course dramatically. “Sometimes I have the impression that the whole regulatory attitude of the administration is trying to stop oil and gas and coal — that they don’t want those sources, that instead they want to get those things so expensive and so rare that wind and solar become highly cost-effective and efficient,” Romney said. “Look,” he continued, “I like wind and solar like the next person. But I don’t want the law to be used to stop the production of oil and gas and coal.” ||||| Republican Mitt Romney, seeking to refocus his presidential campaign on the economy after days of distraction, is promoting energy proposals aimed at creating more than 3 million new jobs and opening up more areas for drilling off the coast of two politically critical states, Virginia and North Carolina. Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign stop at LeClaire Manufacturing, Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2012, in Bettendorf, Iowa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (Associated Press) President Barack Obama speaks at a campaign event at Canyon Springs High School, Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2012, in North Las Vegas, Nev. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) (Associated Press) Romney's pivot to energy, a key component of his jobs agenda, comes as the national debate has turned away from the GOP candidate's jobs message and toward issues like rape, abortion, welfare and Medicare 2 1/2 months before Election Day. President Barack Obama's campaign also began a new push on the economy Thursday with a television advertisement featuring former President Bill Clinton. In the ad, Clinton speaks directly to the camera and says voters face a "clear choice" over which candidate will return the nation to full employment. "We need to keep going with his plan," Clinton says of Obama in the ad, which will run in eight battleground states. The former president also draws a connection between Obama's policies for strengthening the middle class and the nation's economic prosperity during his time in office, when the U.S. economy was thriving. Obama's campaign has been seeking to use Clinton as a reminder to voters that the economy was strong the last time a Democrat held the White House. Romney will travel from Arkansas to New Mexico on Thursday to discuss what aides cast as a comprehensive energy plan that would result in more than $1 trillion in revenue for federal, state and local governments, plus millions of jobs. The most significant aspects of Romney's plans hinge on opening up more areas for offshore oil drilling, including in the mid-Atlantic, where it is currently banned. Romney also wants to give states the power to establish all forms of energy production on federal lands, a significant shift in current policy that could face strong opposition in Congress. In an effort to appease environmentalists, Romney says he would prevent energy production on federal lands that are designated as off-limits. Romney's plan focuses heavily on boosting domestic oil production, including approving the Keystone XL pipeline that would run from Canada to U.S. refineries in Texas. The presumptive GOP nominee has significant ties to big oil and raised at least $7 million from industry executives this week during fundraisers in Texas. Romney's campaign says his strategy would achieve energy independence by 2020. Locked in a tight election campaign with President Barack Obama, Romney is seeking to regain his economic focus after a week dominated by comments made by Missouri Republican Rep. Todd Akin, who is running for Senate. Akin has been rebuked by top Republicans, including Romney, for saying a woman's body is able to avoid pregnancy during what he called a "legitimate rape." Romney called for Akin to drop out of the Senate race, but the congressman so far has refused. Obama, seeking to boost his support among women, told donors Wednesday that Akin "somehow missed science class" and was representative of Republicans who want to "go backwards instead of forwards and fight fights that we thought were settled 20 or 30 years ago." On other issues, Romney's shift away from his core economic message has been of his own campaign's making. Earlier this month, Romney's team starting criticizing Obama on welfare reform, an issue that had barely registered in the campaign before the Republican ticket raised it. While Romney aides insist the issue is helping them gain ground with middle-class voters, independent fact-checkers have said Romney's charges that Obama ended a welfare work requirement are false. Romney also started aggressively tackling Medicare after picking Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate. A cornerstone of Ryan's budget proposals is an overhaul of Medicare, and Romney aides said he had to tackle the issue directly before Obama and Democrats tried to define Ryan's position for voters. Campaigning Wednesday in Iowa and Arkansas, Romney never mentioned Medicare, welfare or Akin's comments. He did preview his energy speech, promising donors at a fundraiser in Arkansas that "North America will be energy-independent by the last year of my second term." Romney's energy pledges revived a long-elusive goal of reducing America's dependence on foreign supplies. Nearly every U.S. president, including Obama, has made similar vows. Richard Nixon made the case for energy independence in 1973 after Arab oil producers cut off supplies in response to U.S. support of Israel in the Mideast war. Obama has called for a one-third reduction in U.S. oil imports by 2025. The president's proposal for boosting domestic oil production relies in part on offering incentives to companies that hold leases for offshore and onshore drilling to speed up recovery; increasing the use of biofuels and natural gas; and making vehicles more energy-efficient. Obama's campaign released a statement from former Energy Secretary Federico Pena, who served under President Bill Clinton, questioning how Romney planned to achieve his "lofty energy goals" and backing Obama as a champion of "an all-of-the-above approach to energy that responsibly develops America's great natural resources." The Obama campaign also announced Thursday that it will begin accepting small donations via text message. Starting this week, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular customers will be able to donate up to $50 per billing cycle; other carriers are expected to approve the service soon. ___ Associated Press writer Matthew Daly contributed to this report. ___ Follow Julie Pace at http://twitter.com/jpaceDC

– Mitt Romney will unveil an energy plan today that he says will make the US an "energy superpower," in what the AP sees as an attempt to shift the focus away from issues like rape, abortion, and welfare, and put it back on the economy. Romney's plan calls for opening much more US land to oil and gas exploration, allowing states to grant permits for federal lands themselves, and striking agreements with Canada and Mexico on projects like the Keystone XL pipeline, the Washington Post reports. Romney also wants to spend even more on researching new energy technologies than President Obama. "We have an unprecedented opportunity to make our natural resources a long-term source of competitive advantage," Romney argues in the report, promising North American energy independence by the end of his second term in 2020. The plan is very friendly to oil and coal companies, who have donated heavily to Romney. And environmental groups are concerned; one Utah activist said giving the state control of federal lands would "result in destroyed treasured landscapes, including those surrounding national parks."

the framework of natural computing tries to model architectures found in nature and to apply them to a diversity of computational tasks . its biological domain is represented among others by neural networks and evolutionary computation . in physics , novel algorithmic schemes have been investigated in the context of quantum computation . based on these ideas , we investigate how pattern recognition can be implemented using principles of quantum computing . artificial neural networks involve interacting units called neurons designed according to neural structures of a brain which cooperate in order to process information @xcite . similar to the brain , artificial neural networks are capable of performing cognitive tasks such as pattern recognition and associative memory . pattern recognition processes input data usually on the basis of _ a priori _ knowledge in the form of a set of memorized patterns . an input pattern is then classified to whichever one of the memory patterns it most closely resembles . typical applications for pattern recognition include automatic recognition of objects and patterns in digital image analysis as well as voice and speech recognition . an associative memory is a system that completes _ partially _ known input pattern based on the stored content . typical applications for associative memory include content - addressable memory as a special type of computer memory and database engines . a classic theoretical model to perform the described tasks is a hopfield network @xcite , a recurrent neural network with symmetric connections between individual neurons . full connectivity is provided with every neuron @xmath0 being able to interact with any other neuron @xmath1 by means of a response function @xmath2 aggregated as a weighted sum over the current states of all other bipolar neurons @xmath3 which correspond to biological states of not firing and firing electrical signals to its neighbor neurons . an activation function @xmath4 of the neuron @xmath0 then evaluates @xmath5 in order to define if the neuron remains in its currents state or a state flip is applied , e.g. , @xmath6 , where @xmath7 is the sign function . for a set of @xmath8 patterns @xmath9 with @xmath10 and bipolar @xmath11 different definitions for the synaptic connection strength @xmath12 between neurons @xmath0 and @xmath13 are possible , e.g. by the ( discrete ) hebbian matrix @xmath14,\ ] ] which stores the memory information in a distributed manner . the input binary vector @xmath15 is imposed on the hopfield network as its initial state . the dynamics of the system is designed such as to minimize a cost function @xmath16 by converting the state of the network to a stable configuration which represents the recognized pattern . thus , the physical background of the hopfield model offers an approach for quantization of the neural network . quantum computers utilize special characteristics of quantum systems such as superposition and entanglement @xcite . the corresponding algorithms provide computational effectiveness in comparison with classic routines for problems such as search @xcite and factorization @xcite . different hardware designs have been proposed for building a quantum computer , including liquid state nmr @xcite and ion traps @xcite . the extensive technological development of nmr spectroscopy in the last five decades made it possible for nmr quantum computing to become a suitable test ground for novel quantum algorithms . a systematization of quantum computing using adiabatic evolution leads to the concept of adiabatic quantum computation ( aqc ) @xcite that has been proven to be equivalent to the standard network model of quantum computation @xcite . compared to the abstract computational language of the quantum networks model , aqc often provides a more direct translation to experimental quantum computing . the protocol for aqc is represented by a controlled hamiltonian path @xmath17 with @xmath18 $ ] and running time @xmath19 . the computational problem is encoded in the final hamiltonian @xmath20 and the solution of the computational problem corresponds to finding the ground state of @xmath21 . on the other side , the initial state of the quantum system @xmath22 is chosen to be an easily preparable ground state of @xmath23 . if the hamiltonian is driven from @xmath24 to @xmath21 slowly enough , i.e. , if the total calculation time @xmath19 is chosen to be long enough , then in the adiabatic limit the final state of the quantum system comes arbitrarily close to the problem ground state . aqc can also be formulated in the framework of quantum annealing @xcite utilizing a hamiltonian trajectory @xmath25 with @xmath26 large enough to make @xmath24 the dominating term and @xmath27 which reduces the hamiltonian to the constantly present contribution by @xmath21 . the transverse hamiltonian @xmath24 represents the driver for the adiabatic evolution whereas the initial state @xmath22 of the annealing process is chosen so it corresponds approximately to an energy eigenstate of the initial hamiltonian @xmath28 . in classic terms , aqc represents minimization of an energy cost function . this offers a link from ( usually irreversible ) classic neural dynamics to quantum dynamics governed by unitary , reversible evolution . however , the classic hopfield network approach performs pattern recognition by _ local _ optimization . in the following , we utilize aqc which performs _ global _ optimization in form of ground state approximation we consider a quantum neural network with @xmath29 neurons consisting of bipolar neural states @xmath30 and @xmath31 to be represented by a quantum system with @xmath29 qubits in states @xmath32 and @xmath33 . whereas a classic artificial neuron can assume only a single `` fire '' or `` not fire '' state at once , quantum neurons allow superpositions of these two states in the form of @xmath34 with @xmath35 . in order to apply aqc to the computational task of ( associative ) pattern recognition , we encode the complete problem in the hamiltonian @xmath36 with @xmath37 representing the knowledge about stored patterns , @xmath38 representing the computational input and an appropriate weight factor @xmath39 ( see fig . [ fig : problem_hamiltonian ] ) . ( a ) , the weighted input hamiltonian @xmath40 ( b ) and the total problem hamiltonian @xmath21 ( c ) . dashed circles represent memory patterns stored as energy minima of @xmath37 ; crossed dashed circle represents the input pattern as energy minimum of @xmath38.,width=321 ] whereas the classic hopfield network utilizes dynamics defined by the memory patterns alone , the dynamics according to eq . ( [ eq : problem_hamiltonian ] ) depends on both memory and input information ( see fig . [ fig : dynamics ] ) . ( a ) via intermediate hamiltonian @xmath41 ( b ) towards the final hamiltonian equivalent to the problem hamiltonian @xmath21 ( c ) . the current state of the system remains the ground state of the instantaneous hamiltonian with the `` empty memory '' state @xmath42 ( [ eq : empty_memory_state ] ) for @xmath43 ( represented by the star in a ) and the final state of the system corresponding to the outcome memory pattern for @xmath44 ( represented by the solid circle in c).,width=321 ] furthermore , the encoding of the final adiabatic hamiltonian as a sum of two independent terms offers an advantage with respect to the practical implementation of the process . using appropriate approximations ( such as suzuki - trotter ) , the computational evolution of the system can be approximated by separate periods of unitary evolution each according to the individual terms building the total instantaneous hamiltonian . this implies that the memory precompilation , i.e. , the translation of dynamics according to @xmath37 into elementary physical interactions such as pulse sequences in nmr quantum computing systems has to be executed only _ once _ for an individual memory set . the generated low - level commands can then be reused for variable input information . the dynamics according to the input hamiltonian @xmath38 can be obtained and imposed independently . in direct analogy to energy function ( [ eq : cost_function ] ) , the memory hamiltonian can be defined by the coupling strengths between the qubits @xmath45 where @xmath46 is the pauli @xmath47 matrix on qubit @xmath0 and @xmath12 is the hebbian matrix ( [ eq : hebbian_matrix ] ) . a more general choice of the memory hamiltonian is discussed in appendix [ sec : projector_memory ] . for the retrieval hamiltonian @xmath38 we consider a single input pattern @xmath15 of length @xmath29 . for associative memory applications we can extend a noncomplete input vector @xmath48 of length @xmath49 by setting the values for @xmath50 unknown states to zero . in contrast to the classic neural network , we impose the input pattern @xmath15 on the dynamics of the system by an additional hamiltonian term @xmath38 which can be defined as @xmath51 for a given state @xmath52 representing a pattern @xmath53 , the energy corresponding to @xmath38 is given by @xmath54 and depends on the hamming distance @xmath55 between @xmath48 and @xmath56 $ ] , i.e. , the number of positions for which the corresponding entries are different . the external field defined by @xmath38 thus creates a scalar metric proportional to the hamming distance between @xmath15 and memory patterns . this permits a quantitative comparison between input and memory patterns by shifting the energy levels of the memory hamiltonian @xmath37 so the more similar memory patterns have lower energy compared to the alternative patterns . it can be shown that for the case of a single stored pattern ( @xmath57 ) , the upper bound for the weight factor in eq . ( [ eq : problem_hamiltonian ] ) is given by @xmath58 which ensures that the correct memory pattern is the ground state of the system ( cf . appendix [ sec : input_weight ] ) . finally , we define the initial conditions of the aqc protocol . in comparison with the classic hopfield network , the initial state of quantum pattern recognition systems does not correspond to the input pattern but is chosen as @xmath59 representing an `` empty memory '' with uniformly distributed probability for all possible state configurations . as corresponding initial hamiltonian , we choose an easily constructible sum over single qubit operators @xmath60 @xcite which can be implemented experimentally in a straightforward way . since the problem hamiltonian @xmath21 ( [ eq : problem_hamiltonian ] ) is diagonal , the transverse form of @xmath24 ensures the transformation of the initial state @xmath42 ( [ eq : empty_memory_state ] ) toward the outcome memory pattern . for the simulations and experiments , we considered a heteronuclear two spin system corresponding to the @xmath61h and @xmath62c nuclear spins @xmath63 of @xmath62c labeled sodium formate dissolved in d@xmath64o . the experiments were performed at a temperature of 27@xmath65c using a bruker ac 200 spectrometer operating at a larmor frequency of 200 mhz for @xmath61h and 50 mhz for @xmath62c . the heteronuclear @xmath61h-@xmath62c coupling constant is @xmath66 hz and the relaxation times are @xmath67 s , @xmath68 s , @xmath69 ms , and @xmath70 ms . in this section , we use normalized pauli operators as conventional in nmr @xcite . in order to provide an experimental demonstration for the concept of quantum pattern recognition , we implement a basic two - neurons hopfield network using a liquid state nmr quantum computer . the single connection @xmath71 between two qubits corresponds for @xmath72 to patterns @xmath73 $ ] and @xmath74 $ ] with different bit values whereas @xmath75 corresponds to patterns @xmath76 $ ] and @xmath77 $ ] with identical bit values . following eq . ( [ eq : problem_hamiltonian ] ) , the problem hamiltonian can be written as @xmath78 the nmr free evolution hamiltonian @xmath79 for the considered molecule shows a constant positive coupling . the variable memory weight @xmath80 according to eq . ( [ eq : twoqubit_hamiltonian ] ) can be implemented by changing the sign of the effective coupling hamiltonian using additional pulses @xcite . in the case of two qubits considered here an alternative approach which avoids the need for additional pulses is the following . we can map the problem by defining the offset frequencies @xmath81 and @xmath82 and redefining the initial hamiltonian as problem dependent @xmath83 . the initial quantum state @xmath42 of eq . ( [ eq : empty_memory_state ] ) corresponds to the ground state of @xmath24 for @xmath72 and to its highest excited energy eigenstate for @xmath75 . our choice of @xmath84 and @xmath85 consequently encodes the desired @xmath86 as the ground state , respectively , the corresponding highest excited state of the hamiltonian @xmath87 . in classic terms , the first case represents minimization of a cost function whereas the second involves its maximization . following eq . ( [ eq : empty_memory_state ] ) , the desired initial state for the considered heteronuclear two spin system is @xmath88 with corresponding density matrix @xmath89 . rewriting this density matrix in terms of spin operators , ignoring the identity term and proportionality constants , the initial state can be represented by the simplified and traceless operator @xmath90 . this state can be created starting from the thermal equilibrium using standard methods based on spatial averaging @xcite . the transverse form of the initial hamiltonian @xmath24 suggests that pulse sequences applied on the transverse direction @xmath91 can be used not only to generate but also to effectively control the initial hamiltonian . more specifically , @xmath24 is represented by a transverse radio frequency ( rf ) field in positive or negative ( depending on @xmath80 ) @xmath91 direction on both spins . the amplitude of the rf field @xmath92 is reduced linearly from @xmath93 to @xmath94 during the fixed evolution time @xmath95ms which is shorter than relaxation times @xmath96 and @xmath97 . the offsets @xmath84 and @xmath85 in eq . ( [ eq : nmr_hamiltonian ] ) were set to values @xmath98 hz and @xmath99 hz corresponding to values @xmath100 and @xmath101 , respectively . in the simulations and experiments of quantum annealing , the time evolution of the system was discretized into @xmath102 steps of length @xmath103 with constant hamiltonian @xmath41 for the time interval @xmath104 $ ] . the continuous evolution is approximated for @xmath105 and @xmath106 . our numerical results suggested that @xmath107 leads to sufficient accuracy . we chose @xmath108 for the weight parameter of the retrieval hamiltonian term . we set @xmath109 hz , where in simulations we get a reasonable value of @xmath110 for the overlap @xmath111 between final state of the system @xmath112 and expected outcome state @xmath113 . the result of the quantum annealing is read out by applying @xmath114 pulses followed by detection of the @xmath61h or @xmath62c signals . the @xmath61h signals were acquired as single scan while @xmath62c signals were acquired using 16 scans . the spectra recorded after the read out are shown in fig . [ fig : experiment ] . a reasonable match between the experimental results and simulations ( data not shown ) is found . h and @xmath62c spectra for five combinations of @xmath115 and @xmath116 and two possible values of @xmath80 , where @xmath72 and @xmath75 correspond to stored patterns with opposite and equal bit values , respectively . the spectral range in each spectrum is @xmath117 hz.,width=321 ] the first and third columns represent @xmath118h spectra which encode the computational results as presented in table [ table : results ] . the first four rows represent applications of associative pattern recognition with @xmath119 and @xmath120 where the algorithm evaluates the hamming distance between the input and the partial memory patterns . a single peak at frequency @xmath121 corresponds to a unique recognized pattern . the peak s position and sign direction identify the pattern recognition results , e.g. , left negative peak identifies the state @xmath122 corresponding to the output pattern [ -1,1 ] . for the case of the blank input pattern @xmath123 , the quantum neural network returns its memory content as consistent patterns [ -1,1 ] , [ 1,-1 ] for @xmath72 and [ -1,-1 ] , [ 1,1 ] for @xmath75 . the resulting quantum state represents a superposition of pattern states identified by corresponding spectral peaks . for completeness , we show in the second and fourth column of fig . [ fig : experiment ] corresponding @xmath62c spectra . peaks at @xmath124 provide redundant information for the identification of the patterns . .the results of the pattern recognition represented by the corresponding pure quantum states . [ cols="^,^,^,^",options="header " , ] in summary , we have developed a new theoretical approach for quantum pattern recognition and implemented it using liquid state nmr techniques in a simple example with two qubits . in the case of an associative memory , an incomplete input typically yields several memory patterns which are equally similar to this input . in contrast to classic neural networks , a quantum neural register can represent a superposition of recognized patterns . whereas linearly combined classic mixture states , e.g. , of the form @xmath125 @xcite do not provide direct information about corresponding memory patterns , the quantum superposition states allow _ unambiguous _ read - out of distinct patterns which form the superposition by means of an appropriate ( iterative ) measurement procedure . the projector memory hamiltonian enables the measurement of similarity between the input pattern and stored patterns as well as allows a differentiation between memory patterns and their reversed patterns @xmath126 in contrast to classic hopfield network ( cf . appendix [ sec : projector_memory ] ) . since the problem is directly encoded into the final hamiltonian @xmath21 , no ancilla qubits are required . furthermore , aqc dynamics rules out closed state cycles of the form @xmath127 with a period @xmath128 which are possible for classical neural networks @xcite . in the experiments , we realized the desired morphing between the hamiltonians using quantum annealing . this allowed us to exploit the experimentally available control terms and did not require an iterative synthesis of the effective hamiltonian trajectory @xcite . furthermore , we performed both ground and excited state aqc . several characteristics of the introduced concept remain open and require further research . the comparison of maximum storage capacity of the presented aqc based model and classic hopfield network is an open problem that motivates additional study . furthermore , time requirements for pattern retrieval can be investigated by studying the minimum energy gap during the course of the evolution @xcite as well as employing heuristics related to success probability @xcite . future investigations could also involve optimized annealing procedures which could provide significant improvements over alternative schemes @xcite . an interesting enhancement of the proposed scheme could be introduced by considering asymmetric synaptic weights in neural modeling @xcite . future directions of research also include the extensions to larger spin systems using liquid state nmr quantum computation with the control of individual couplings of the effective hamiltonian @xmath41 executed by means of pulse sequences and refocusing schemes @xcite . the developed techniques can be potentially applied to alternative hardware designs , such as ion traps with magnetic field gradients @xcite which have been already contextualized in quantum neural research @xcite and superconducting circuits @xcite . the authors thank professor wilhelm zwerger at tu mnchen for his support . r.n . and r.s . acknowledge support by thomas runkler and in particular professor bernd schrmann who initiated the project at siemens corporate technology . we thank manoj nimbalkar , dr . raimund marx , and dr . wolfgang eisenreich for their help in nmr experimentation . s.j.g . acknowledges support by the eu project qap as well as by the dfg through sfb 631 . r.n . acknowledges financial support from siemens ag . 99 s. haykin , _ neural networks : a comprehensive foundation _ , 2nd ed . 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( [ eq : memory_hamilt_coupl ] ) , we introduce an alternative encoding of memory information based on a generalization of quantum search projection operators @xcite . it can be defined as a memory hamiltonian @xmath129 which is diagonal in the computational basis . the definition represents the ideal case of memorized patterns encoded in the ( degenerate ) ground state energy of @xmath130 whereas not - memorized patterns correspond to excited states . in combination with the input hamiltonian @xmath38 ( [ eq : retrieval_hamiltonian ] ) , the bound for the input weight is given by @xmath131 for arbitrary values of @xmath8 ( cf . appendix [ sec : input_weight ] ) . alternatively , the memory hamiltonian can be specified as a projector on the memory state @xmath132 with memory state @xmath133 in the case of both projector memory hamiltonians , the initial hamiltonian can be chosen as a projector @xmath134 . using the definition @xmath135 ( [ eq : memory_hamilt_proj_b ] ) , we can solve the problem of quantifying the level of similarity between the input pattern @xmath15 and all memory patterns . for this , the probability for measuring the memory pattern @xmath136 is interpreted as a measurement of relevance . for comparison , the initial probabilities for the memory state ( [ eq : stored_memory_state ] ) are equally distributed with @xmath137 . in combination with the input hamiltonian @xmath38 ( [ eq : retrieval_hamiltonian ] ) , the ground state of the problem hamiltonian @xmath138 is @xmath139 { \ensuremath{|\xi^\mu\rangle } } + o(\gamma^2),\ ] ] where @xmath140 is the hamming distance between @xmath141 $ ] and the retrieval pattern , @xmath142 is the deviation of the hamming distance from the average relative hamming distance @xmath143 . thus , the input hamiltonian shifts equally distributed weights in the memory state ( [ eq : stored_memory_state ] ) according to the corresponding hamming distances . we outline this effect using perturbation theory @xcite for the problem hamiltonian @xmath144 in relation to the parameter @xmath145 . the ground state energy and the corresponding eigenstate can be represented by @xmath146 the first order approximation energy is given by @xmath147 . using the definition of the input hamiltonian , it follows for @xmath148 $ ] : @xmath149 where @xmath150 is the scalar product between vectors . since @xmath151 with the hamming distance @xmath140 for the first @xmath152 elements , it follows @xmath153 using @xmath154 , we obtain for the first order energy correction @xmath155 with average relative hamming distance @xmath156 . the first order approximation state is given by @xmath157 by definition of the hamiltonian @xmath135 ( [ eq : memory_hamilt_proj_b ] ) , the energy levels are @xmath158 and @xmath159 . since @xmath160 form an orthonormal basis , it follows using eq . ( [ eq : retriev_hamilt_on_stored_memstate ] ) @xmath161 with average relative scalar product @xmath162 . using state approximation ( [ eq : perturb_state ] ) , we obtain for the zero and first order @xmath163 we rewrite this expression in terms of the hamming distance , thus obtaining expression ( [ eq : measure_similarity ] ) , @xmath164 { \ensuremath{|\xi^\mu\rangle } } + o(\gamma^2).\ ] ] in case of all memory patterns @xmath165 being equidistant from the input pattern with regard to the first @xmath152 positions , the deviation @xmath166 equals zero so that corresponding measurement amplitudes are equally distributed . otherwise , the amplitudes are shifted according to whether the distance to the input pattern is above- or below - average . for completeness , we derive the second order approximation energy given by @xmath167 it follows @xmath168 where @xmath169 is the standard deviation for @xmath170 and @xmath171 . + in order to affirm the bias beyond the approximation to first order , we demonstrate the corresponding probability distribution for an exemplary memory set and input pattern @xmath172 with hamming distances between the input pattern and the memory set given by @xmath173 , @xmath174 , and @xmath175 . [ fig : similarity_measure ] shows for @xmath176 the distribution of measurement probabilities with @xmath177 , @xmath178 , and @xmath179 . ) and input pattern ( [ eq : similarity_measure_inp ] ) . the peaks correspond to memory patterns @xmath180 ( peak a ) , @xmath181 ( peak b ) and @xmath182 ( peak c ) in binary and decimal representation , respectively.,title="fig:",width=321 ] [ fig : similarity_measure ] for @xmath57 , we derive the bounds for the weight factor @xmath145 in combination with the coupling memory hamiltonian @xmath37 ( [ eq : memory_hamilt_coupl ] ) . since the hamming distance between two patterns is symmetric under flips of the same positions , the memory pattern of length @xmath29 and input pattern of length @xmath183 can be written in the form @xmath184,\\ \xi^{inp } & = & [ \overbrace{\underbrace{\ ; -1 \ ; -1 \ ; \ldots \ ; -1}_{n - m } \underbrace{+1 \ ; \ldots \ ; + 1}_m}^{n}],\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath185 is the hamming distance between the patterns for the first @xmath152 elements . an arbitrary vector @xmath53 of the length @xmath29 can thus be written in the form @xmath186\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath187 , @xmath188 , and @xmath189 represent the distances betweens @xmath53 and three respective segments of the memory pattern @xmath190 of the length @xmath191 , @xmath185 , and @xmath50 . using the definition of memory and input hamiltonians , we obtain @xmath192 ^ 2 + \frac{1}{2}\\ \nonumber & & -\gamma\left(n-2\left(m_1+(m - m_2)\right)\right),\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath193 if @xmath194 and @xmath195 , otherwise . since @xmath196 , for all valid values of @xmath145 the memory pattern closer to the input pattern also has lower energy level . in the following , we assume @xmath15 is closer to the original pattern @xmath190 with @xmath197 where @xmath198 . for the system to return a valid answer , @xmath190 must be the global ground state of the problem hamiltonian @xmath21 ( [ eq : problem_hamiltonian ] ) with @xmath199 from condition ( [ eq : hamilt_coupl_one_pattern_condition ] ) , it follows @xmath200 ^ 2}{4n}.\ ] ] in order to obtain the upper bound for the value of @xmath145 , we attempt to minimize the energy value corresponding to @xmath53 . first , we assume @xmath201 so that the overlap between first segments of @xmath190 resp . @xmath15 and the corresponding spins of @xmath53 is maximal . furthermore , we assume @xmath202 so that the overlap between the third segment of @xmath190 and @xmath53 is maximal as well . a similar bound can be defined in combination with the projector memory hamiltonian @xmath130 ( [ eq : memory_hamilt_proj_a ] ) for an arbitrary value of @xmath8 . we consider a subset of the memory set @xmath206 , the patterns of which show the minimal distance to the input pattern @xmath15 with @xmath207 . the condition for the weight factor @xmath145 can thus be given with @xmath208 since we are interested in a upper bound for @xmath145 , we assume @xmath209 , i.e. , @xmath53 completes the partial input vector . with @xmath210 , we obtain the corresponding condition @xmath211

a novel quantum pattern recognition scheme is presented , which combines the idea of a classic hopfield neural network with adiabatic quantum computation . both the input and the memorized patterns are represented by means of the problem hamiltonian . in contrast to classic neural networks , the algorithm can return a quantum superposition of multiple recognized patterns . a proof of principle for the algorithm for two qubits is provided using a liquid state nmr quantum computer .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Do-Not-Text Act of 2008''. SEC. 2. EXEMPTION OF CERTAIN QUALIFYING MESSAGES FROM THE DEFINITION OF MOBILE SERVICE COMMERCIAL MESSAGE. (a) In General.--Section 14(d) of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (15 U.S.C. 7712(d)) is amended to read as follows: ``(d) Mobile Service Commercial Message Defined.--In this section, the term `mobile service commercial message'-- ``(1) means a commercial electronic mail message that is transmitted directly to a wireless device that is utilized by a subscriber of commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section 332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332(d))) in connection with such service; and ``(2) does not include any such commercial electronic mail message, if the primary purpose of such message is to-- ``(A) facilitate, complete, or confirm a commercial transaction that the recipient of such message has previously agreed to enter into with the sender of such message; ``(B) provide warranty information, product recall information, or safety or security information with respect to a commercial product or service used or purchased by the recipient of such message; ``(C) provide, with respect to a subscription, membership, account, loan, or comparable ongoing commercial relationship involving the ongoing purchase or use by the recipient of such message of products or services offered by the sender of such message-- ``(i) notice concerning a change in the terms or features of such subscription, membership, account, loan, or comparable ongoing commercial relationship; ``(ii) notice of a change in the standing or status of the recipient with respect to such subscription, membership, account, loan, or comparable ongoing commercial relationship; or ``(iii) at regular periodic intervals, account balance information or other types of account statements with respect to such subscription, membership, account, loan, or comparable ongoing commercial relationship; ``(D) provide information directly related to an employment relationship or related benefit plan in which the recipient of such message is currently involved, participating, or enrolled; or ``(E) deliver goods or services, including product updates or upgrades, that the recipient of such message is entitled to receive under the terms of a transaction that the recipient has previously agreed to enter into with the sender of such message.''. (b) Rule of Construction.--Section 14 of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (15 U.S.C. 7712) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(e) Rule of Construction Regarding Short Messaging Services and Mobile Service Commercial Messages.--This provisions of this section shall not prohibit-- ``(1) the sending of phone-to-phone short messages; and ``(2) the sending of mobile service commercial messages by a provider of commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section 332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934) to its subscribers at no cost to its subscribers unless a subscriber has expressed his or her desire not to receive such messages from the provider.''. SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON UNAUTHORIZED MOBILE SERVICE COMMERCIAL MESSAGES CONTAINING UNSOLICITED ADVERTISEMENTS. (a) Prohibition.--Section 227(b)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 227(b)(1)) is amended-- (1) in subparagraph (C)(iii), by striking ``; or'' and inserting a semicolon; (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``; or''; and (3) by adding at the end the following: ``(E) to send a mobile service commercial message to any person who has not provided express prior authorization for the receipt of such message to the sender of such message.''. (b) Definitions.--Section 227(a) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 227(a)) is amended-- (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (5) as paragraphs (4) through (6), respectively; and (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following: ``(3) The term `mobile service commercial message' has the same meaning given such term in section 14(d) of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (15 U.S.C. 7712(d)).''. (c) Rule of Construction.--Section 227(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 227(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(4) Rule of construction regarding short messaging services and mobile service commercial messages.--The prohibition prescribed under subsection (b)(1)(E) shall not prohibit-- ``(A) the sending of phone-to-phone short messages; and ``(B) the sending of mobile service commercial messages by a provider of commercial mobile service (as such term is defined in section 332(d)) to its subscribers at no cost to its subscribers unless a subscriber has expressed his or her desire not to receive such messages from the provider.''. SEC. 4. MOBILE SERVICE COMMERCIAL MESSAGES CONTAINING UNSOLICITED ADVERTISEMENTS SENT TO CELLULAR TELEPHONES EXPLICITLY PROHIBITED. (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Trade Commission shall revise the do-not-call registry provisions of the Telemarketing Sales Rule (16 C.F.R. 310.4(b)(1)(iii))-- (1) to consider commercial mobile service messaging practices that are costly or a nuisance to consumers; and (2) to explicitly prohibit, as an abusive telemarketing act or practice, the sending of any mobile service commercial message to a telephone number that is-- (A) assigned to a commercial mobile service; and (B) listed on the do-not-call registry. (b) Definitions.--As used in this section-- (1) the term ``mobile service commercial message'' has the same meaning given such term in section 14(d) of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (15 U.S.C. 7712(d)); and (2) the term ``commercial mobile service'' has the same meaning given such term in section 332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332(d)).

Do-Not-Text Act of 2008 - Amends the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 to exclude from the definition of "mobile service commercial message" a commercial e-mail if the message's primary purpose is to: (1) facilitate, complete, or confirm a transaction between the message recipient and the sender; (2) provide warranty, recall, safety, or security information regarding the recipient's product or service; (3) provide notice of a change in terms or conditions, a change in the status of the recipient, or account statements regarding a subscription, membership, account, loan, or comparable ongoing commercial relationship; (4) provide information regarding an employment relationship or benefit plan in which the recipient is involved; or (5) deliver goods or services, including updates or upgrades, that the recipient is entitled to receive. Declares that provisions relating to the application of the Act to wireless do not prohibit: (1) phone-to-phone short messages; and (2) the sending of mobile service commercial messages by a mobile service provider to its subscribers at no cost to its subscribers unless a subscriber has expressed a desire not to receive such messages. Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to require express prior authorization to send a mobile service commercial message to any person in the United States.

arch - length - to - tooth - mass discrepancy patients require extraction of teeth and closure of those spaces to correct their malocclusion . there are different mechanical methods used in orthodontic practice to move teeth , such as using various types of elastic materials and coil springs . during the past few years , elastomeric power chains ( epcs ) have been used in preference to other retraction orthodontic materials because of their elastic properties , ease of application and requiring no patient co - operation , low cost , being relatively hygienic , and their irritation - free nature due to their smooth surface . although these epcs offer several advantages over other materials , in vitro tests ( which fail to simulate in vivo intraoral conditions , including the amount of force applied initially , the action of oral flora and their by - products , and the possible synergistic effects of these variables ) and some in vivo studies have reported decay of applied force over time . this force decay has been related to the period of use , as well as the amount of stretch given to the epcs . even though this force decay was found to be significant in vivo , only a few studies have cited the possibility of differences in force decay properties of epcs from two different manufacturers . moreover , polyurethanes , from which epcs are made by thermosetting polymer products of a step - chain reaction polymerization process , possessing a -(nh)-(c = o)-o- unit , are not inert materials ; they are strongly affected by heat , moisture , and prolonged contact with enzymes . the varied and patented formulations of these materials also suggest that there may be variations in the in vivo performance of epcs from different manufacturers , but the clinician has no way of predicting the performance of the epcs other than by comparative trials . at the end of a 6-week time period , it would be desirable for the orthodontist to know the remaining space compared with the amount that is considered desirable for ongoing tooth movement . however , there is no information available so far , comparing the effects of four brands of epcs on the rate of canine retraction during clinical use when they are usually left in place during tooth movement on using them for a period of 3 - 6 weeks . it was , therefore , felt to be of value to test the amount of space closure in vivo using four different brands of epcs . the sample size calculation was based on the repeated measures analysis of variance ( anova ) continuous data for force degradation , standard deviation of 24.9 g , and also from a pilot study , which totaled to around 17 patients with a mean age of 20 2 years . the inclusion criteria were subjects undergoing extraction of their premolar teeth and retraction of their canines to correct crowding or protrusion of incisor teeth by fixed orthodontic treatment at the orthodontic clinic of the faculty of dentistry , khon kaen university . four brands of closed loop epcs were tested as shown in figure 1a and 1b , since it has been observed that a more consistent force level is likely to be delivered by a closed loop chain . an initial load / deflection test of the four brands using the lloyd universal testing machine ( lr30k ; lloyd instruments ltd , hampshire , uk ) was carried out during the pilot test . ( a ) epcs employed in the study from left to right : a. highland ( clear color ) ; ( b ) ormco ( grey color ) ; c. 3 m unitek ( blue color ) ; d. rocky mountain ( clear color ) a correx gauge ( ispringen , germany ) was used for recording the force values . the accuracy of the correx gauge was checked by calibrating it with the help of a lloyd testing machine ( lr30k ; lloyd instruments ltdd ) . mitutoyo digital vernier caliper ( japan ) was used for measuring the distance between the first molar hook and the canine hook . the test was initiated after banding and bonding during the final stages of alignment with round 0.16 stainless steel arch wire insertion as the normal protocol for canine retraction . hooks on the canine bracket and first molar band were the attachment points for five closed loops of the epcs . the patients were asked to return at the end of the third week and sixth week for measurements considering that they are expected to cover the most common appointment recall periods used by orthodontists , but still it depends on the clinician preference . the epcs obtained from four different manufacturers were assigned to each of the four dental arch quadrants for the subjects participating in this study , by applying intraorally in a sequential clockwise direction . the principal investigator recorded the forces and distances at each visit of the subjects . to test measurement reliability , the principal investigator did repeated measures of stretching force and distance using fresh elastics for five patients as a pilot study . as the canine molar distance in the subjects oral cavity could not be made constant , there were small variations in the stretching forces and distances . the amount of the stretching force was recorded with a correx gauge [ figure 2 ] which is a standard instrument for measuring orthodontic force . distance between the first molar hook and the canine hook was also recorded at the same time with a mitutoyo vernier caliper [ figure 3 ] . recording the amount of stretching force with a correx gauge recording the distance between the first molar hook and the canine hook due to loss of data , only 17 subjects measurements were included in this analysis . the amount of retraction force depends on the amount of extension of the epc between canine and molar teeth , and as the canine is distalized , the retraction force of the epcs reduces . molar distance were measured at the start and end of the third and sixth week test periods . table 1 and figures 4 and 5 demonstrate the space closure achieved during 6 weeks of epc use , represented by the reduction in distance between hooks on canine and molar orthodontic attachments . the mean differences of space closure from the time of initial application of epc were 0.96 mm by the end of third week and 2.07 mm by the end of sixth week for ormco epc ; 1.12 mm by the end of the third week and 2.02 mm by the end of the sixth week for 3 m unitek epc ; 1.00 mm by the end of third week and 1.92 mm by the end of sixth week for rocky mountain epc ; and 0.76 mm by the end of third week and 1.47 mm by the end of sixth week for highland epc . mean reduction of distance measurements at 3 and 6 weeks use of epcs stretched between the canine and molar hooks ( n=17 ) graph showing the mean reduction of distance between canine and molar hook ( mm ) from start to end of three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs . ( n=17 ) bar graph showing the mean reductions of distance between canine and molar hook ( mm ) from start to end of three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs ( n=17 ) repeated measures anova [ table 1 ] showed no significant differences on comparing the mean reduction of distance measurement at 3 and 6 weeks after placement for the four different brands of epcs . multiple comparisons [ table 2 ] showed that no significant differences ( p > 0.05 ) existed after 3 and 6 weeks time intervals in the mean reduction of distance measurement for the four different brands of epcs . multiple comparisons for the mean reduction of distance measurements at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral use of epcs to standardize the data and compensate for the variability in the initial distance among different subjects , the percentage reduction of distance from the time of placement till the end of test period in the oral cavity was calculated at 3 and 6 weeks intervals for each brand . means and standard deviations of percentage reduction of distance during the 3 and 6 week test periods are presented in table 3 . there were not much notable variations between the different brands of epc , both at 3 and 6 weeks intervals . after 6 weeks , the mean percentage reduction of distance among the four brands of epcs ranged from 3.36 to 4.95% . comparison of the percentage reduction of distance between canine and molar hooks at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral application of epcs ( n=17 ) figure 6 depicts the distance reduction based on the percentage of initial distance measurements . graph showing the percentage reduction of distance between canine and molar hooks after three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs . ( n=17 ) repeated measures anova was employed to test for any significant differences in the distance changes between canine and molar hooks based on the percentage of initial distance measurement at 3 and 6 weeks after placement for the four different brands of epcs . repeated measures anova and multiple comparison analysis [ table 4 ] showed that no significant differences ( p < 0.001 ) existed after 3 and 6 weeks time intervals for the force degradation based on the percentage of initial force measurement . multiple comparisons for distance changes compared as the initial percentage reduction of distance at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral use of epcs due to loss of data , only 17 subjects measurements were included in this analysis . the amount of retraction force depends on the amount of extension of the epc between canine and molar teeth , and as the canine is distalized , the retraction force of the epcs reduces . molar distance were measured at the start and end of the third and sixth week test periods . table 1 and figures 4 and 5 demonstrate the space closure achieved during 6 weeks of epc use , represented by the reduction in distance between hooks on canine and molar orthodontic attachments . the mean differences of space closure from the time of initial application of epc were 0.96 mm by the end of third week and 2.07 mm by the end of sixth week for ormco epc ; 1.12 mm by the end of the third week and 2.02 mm by the end of the sixth week for 3 m unitek epc ; 1.00 mm by the end of third week and 1.92 mm by the end of sixth week for rocky mountain epc ; and 0.76 mm by the end of third week and 1.47 mm by the end of sixth week for highland epc . mean reduction of distance measurements at 3 and 6 weeks use of epcs stretched between the canine and molar hooks ( n=17 ) graph showing the mean reduction of distance between canine and molar hook ( mm ) from start to end of three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs . ( n=17 ) bar graph showing the mean reductions of distance between canine and molar hook ( mm ) from start to end of three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs ( n=17 ) repeated measures anova [ table 1 ] showed no significant differences on comparing the mean reduction of distance measurement at 3 and 6 weeks after placement for the four different brands of epcs . multiple comparisons [ table 2 ] showed that no significant differences ( p > 0.05 ) existed after 3 and 6 weeks time intervals in the mean reduction of distance measurement for the four different brands of epcs . multiple comparisons for the mean reduction of distance measurements at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral use of epcs table 1 and figures 4 and 5 demonstrate the space closure achieved during 6 weeks of epc use , represented by the reduction in distance between hooks on canine and molar orthodontic attachments . the mean differences of space closure from the time of initial application of epc were 0.96 mm by the end of third week and 2.07 mm by the end of sixth week for ormco epc ; 1.12 mm by the end of the third week and 2.02 mm by the end of the sixth week for 3 m unitek epc ; 1.00 mm by the end of third week and 1.92 mm by the end of sixth week for rocky mountain epc ; and 0.76 mm by the end of third week and 1.47 mm by the end of sixth week for highland epc . mean reduction of distance measurements at 3 and 6 weeks use of epcs stretched between the canine and molar hooks ( n=17 ) graph showing the mean reduction of distance between canine and molar hook ( mm ) from start to end of three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs . ( n=17 ) bar graph showing the mean reductions of distance between canine and molar hook ( mm ) from start to end of three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs ( n=17 ) repeated measures anova [ table 1 ] showed no significant differences on comparing the mean reduction of distance measurement at 3 and 6 weeks after placement for the four different brands of epcs . multiple comparisons [ table 2 ] showed that no significant differences ( p > 0.05 ) existed after 3 and 6 weeks time intervals in the mean reduction of distance measurement for the four different brands of epcs . multiple comparisons for the mean reduction of distance measurements at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral use of epcs to standardize the data and compensate for the variability in the initial distance among different subjects , the percentage reduction of distance from the time of placement till the end of test period in the oral cavity was calculated at 3 and 6 weeks intervals for each brand . means and standard deviations of percentage reduction of distance during the 3 and 6 week test periods are presented in table 3 . there were not much notable variations between the different brands of epc , both at 3 and 6 weeks intervals . after 6 weeks , the mean percentage reduction of distance among the four brands of epcs ranged from 3.36 to 4.95% . comparison of the percentage reduction of distance between canine and molar hooks at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral application of epcs ( n=17 ) figure 6 depicts the distance reduction based on the percentage of initial distance measurements . graph showing the percentage reduction of distance between canine and molar hooks after three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs . ( n=17 ) repeated measures anova was employed to test for any significant differences in the distance changes between canine and molar hooks based on the percentage of initial distance measurement at 3 and 6 weeks after placement for the four different brands of epcs . repeated measures anova and multiple comparison analysis [ table 4 ] showed that no significant differences ( p < 0.001 ) existed after 3 and 6 weeks time intervals for the force degradation based on the percentage of initial force measurement . multiple comparisons for distance changes compared as the initial percentage reduction of distance at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral use of epcs to standardize the data and compensate for the variability in the initial distance among different subjects , the percentage reduction of distance from the time of placement till the end of test period in the oral cavity was calculated at 3 and 6 weeks intervals for each brand . means and standard deviations of percentage reduction of distance during the 3 and 6 week test periods are presented in table 3 . there were not much notable variations between the different brands of epc , both at 3 and 6 weeks intervals . after 6 weeks , the mean percentage reduction of distance among the four brands of epcs ranged from 3.36 to 4.95% . comparison of the percentage reduction of distance between canine and molar hooks at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral application of epcs ( n=17 ) figure 6 depicts the distance reduction based on the percentage of initial distance measurements . graph showing the percentage reduction of distance between canine and molar hooks after three and six weeks of intra - oral application of epcs . repeated measures anova was employed to test for any significant differences in the distance changes between canine and molar hooks based on the percentage of initial distance measurement at 3 and 6 weeks after placement for the four different brands of epcs . repeated measures anova and multiple comparison analysis [ table 4 ] showed that no significant differences ( p < 0.001 ) existed after 3 and 6 weeks time intervals for the force degradation based on the percentage of initial force measurement . multiple comparisons for distance changes compared as the initial percentage reduction of distance at 3 and 6 weeks of intraoral use of epcs it should be emphasized that the term initial force was reserved for the force values recorded when the material was taken from the manufacturer 's spool and first stretched between the canine and molar hooks of the orthodontic appliance without pre - stretching before use . all types and sizes of polyurethane materials , regardless of the amount of stretch , showed a decrease in force with time when compared with the corresponding initial force , which is in agreement with the report of eliades et al . the present study confirms the previous findings that the force of epcs is lost progressively over the period of application . the most important property of epc use in orthodontics depends on its ability to exert a clinically acceptable force level over a set period of clinical use . the initial force used in this study ranged between 228.18 30.21 g and 202.27 43.82 g , depending on the canine molar distance and the particular epc used . high , but there is significant variation in the recommended force for canine distalization , from 100 to 150 g , up to 250 g , and from 100 to 200 g. decrease in force after a period of in vivo use results from the permanent extension of the epcs called hysteresis , as well as by the masticatory forces being applied to the material , tooth movement , and also from degradation of the epc material due to exposure to the oral environment . however , the orthodontic appliance used was the same for all test patients , as described in the methodology . the primary objective of the study was to measure the overall effectiveness of the different brands of epcs in the oral environment for 6 weeks . the other factor that can be considered during canine retraction is the friction between the arch wire and the bracket . the movement of the canine crown can be limited by the width of the periodontal ligament and the elastic capacity of the alveolar crest , which can also be a factor for canine retraction . rate of canine retraction can also be increased when forces are immediately applied after tooth extraction , since the regenerative bone tissue refills the extraction socket within 3 weeks and becomes resistant and solid within 3 months . the more resistant the bone tissue is , the slower becomes the rate of tooth movement . the orthodontic epcs with five loops were selected in this study because they clinically applied less than 250 g of initial force between the attachment points . it was noted in this study that different samples of epc from rocky mountain company when subjected to a load of 250 g on the universal testing machine showed different patterns of deflection [ figure 7 ] , suggesting that manufacturing variations may exist in the material tested from the same spool . illustartion indicating rocky mountain epc manufacturing defects other studies have found differences in the elastic ligature properties . therefore , if a strict quality control is not enforced during the manufacture of elastomeric chains , test results may be different . not much significant differences were found among the four brands of epcs usedregardless of the properties that epcs possess , they are still a suitable choice as tooth - moving elements with acceptable force levelsthe clinician might have more control when using epcs than while using elastic rings which depends on continuous reapplication by the patient . an accurate estimation of the force is more difficult with polyurethane elastomeric materials because of the inability to accurately predict the amount of decay in the force originally appliedepcs are fail - safe products since in the event of a patient missing the orthodontist 's appointment , their timeframe of progressive degradation would preclude them from continuing to act beyond their planned effect . not much significant differences were found among the four brands of epcs used regardless of the properties that epcs possess , they are still a suitable choice as tooth - moving elements with acceptable force levels the clinician might have more control when using epcs than while using elastic rings which depends on continuous reapplication by the patient . an accurate estimation of the force is more difficult with polyurethane elastomeric materials because of the inability to accurately predict the amount of decay in the force originally applied epcs are fail - safe products since in the event of a patient missing the orthodontist 's appointment , their timeframe of progressive degradation would preclude them from continuing to act beyond their planned effect .

objective : to investigate the amount of space closure by movement of canines into the extraction spaces using four brands of elastomeric power chains ( epcs ) by intraoral application with pre - adjusted appliance for 6 weeks.materials and methods : the sample size calculation was based on the studies of boester and johnston and also with repeated measures analysis of variance ( anova ) continuous data for force degradation , standard deviation of 24.9 g , and also from a pilot study , which totaled to around 17 patients with a mean age of 20 2 years and receiving fixed orthodontic treatment that required retraction of canines into the premolar extraction spaces in all four dental arch quadrants . four brands of epcs , namely the ormco , 3 m unitek , rocky mountain , and highland , which were closed - link with five loops delivering less than or equal to 250 g were used . the rates of canine retraction were measured between the attachment points on the canine bracket hook and first molar hook using a mitutoyo digital vernier caliper at the time of first application , after 3 weeks of use , and at the end of 6 weeks of use , and were subjected to statistical calculations.results:the distances recorded from canine retraction were similar with slight differences noticed in the four brands of epcs . however , no statistically significant difference was observed in relation to the epcs.conclusion:although all brands of the epcs produced space closure of canines , it was observed that not much of a significant difference existed among the products tested .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Montgomery GI Bill Second Chance Act of 2004''. SEC. 2. OPPORTUNITY FOR ACTIVE DUTY PERSONNEL TO WITHDRAW AN ELECTION NOT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE MONTGOMERY GI BILL EDUCATION PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Chapter 30 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 3018C the following new section: ``Sec. 3018D. Opportunity for certain active-duty personnel to enroll ``(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, during the month of October in any year, beginning with 2004, (hereinafter in this section referred to as the `open season') a qualified individual (described in subsection (b)) may make an irrevocable election under this section to become entitled to basic educational assistance under this chapter. ``(2) The Secretary of each military department shall provide for procedures for a qualified individual to make an irrevocable election under this section in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense for the purpose of carrying out this section or which the Secretary of Homeland Security shall provide for such purpose with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy. ``(b) A qualified individual referred to in subsection (a) is an individual who meets each of the following requirements: ``(1) The individual first became a member of the Armed Forces or first entered on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces before, on, or after July 1, 1985. ``(2) The individual has served on active duty without a break in service since the date the individual first became such a member or first entered on active duty as such a member. ``(3) The individual is serving on active duty during the open season of the year involved. ``(4) The individual, before applying for benefits under this section, has completed the requirements of a secondary school diploma (or equivalency certificate) or has successfully completed (or otherwise received academic credit for) the equivalent of 12 semester hours in a program of education leading to a standard college degree. ``(5) The individual, when discharged or released from active duty, is discharged or released therefrom with an honorable discharge. ``(c)(1) Subject to the succeeding provisions of this subsection, with respect to a qualified individual who makes an election under this section to become entitled to basic educational assistance under this chapter-- ``(A) the basic pay of the qualified individual shall be reduced (in a manner determined by the Secretary concerned) until the total amount by which such basic pay is reduced is $1,200; and ``(B) to the extent that basic pay is not so reduced before the qualified individual's discharge or release from active duty as specified in subsection (b)(5), at the election of the qualified individual-- ``(i) the Secretary concerned shall collect from the qualified individual; or ``(ii) the Secretary concerned shall reduce the retired or retainer pay of the qualified individual by, an amount equal to the difference between $1,200 and the total amount of reductions under subparagraph (A), which shall be paid into the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts. ``(2)(A) The Secretary concerned shall provide for an 18-month period, beginning on the date the qualified individual makes an election under this section, for the qualified individual to pay that Secretary the amount due under paragraph (1). ``(B) Nothing in subparagraph (A) shall be construed as modifying the period of eligibility for and entitlement to basic educational assistance under this chapter applicable under section 3031 of this title. ``(d) With respect to qualified individuals referred to in subsection (c)(1)(B), no amount of educational assistance allowance under this chapter shall be paid to the qualified individual until the earlier of the date on which-- ``(1) the Secretary concerned collects the applicable amount under clause (i) of such subsection; or ``(2) the retired or retainer pay of the qualified individual is first reduced under clause (ii) of such subsection. ``(e)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (3), a qualified individual who is enrolled in the educational benefits program provided by chapter 32 of this title and who makes the election described in subsection (a)(1) shall be disenrolled from such chapter 32 program as of the date of such election. ``(2) For each individual who is disenrolled from such program, the Secretary shall refund-- ``(A) to the individual, as provided in section 3223(b) of this title and subject to subsection (b)(2) of this section, the unused contributions made by the individual to the Post- Vietnam Era Veterans Education Account established pursuant to section 3222(a) of this title; and ``(B) to the Secretary of Defense the unused contributions (other than contributions made under section 3222(c) of this title) made by such Secretary to the Account on behalf of such individual. ``(3) Any contribution made by the Secretary of Defense to the Post-Vietnam Era Veterans Education Account pursuant to subsection (c) of section 3222 of this title on behalf of any individual referred to in paragraph (1) shall remain in such account to make payments of benefits to such individual under section 3015(f) of this title. ``(f) The Secretary concerned, in conjunction with the Secretary of Defense, shall provide for notice of the opportunity under this section to elect to become entitled to basic educational assistance under this chapter.''. (b) Conforming Amendments.--(1) Sections 3011(c)(1) and 3012(d)(1) of such title are each amended by striking ``Any individual'' in the third sentence and inserting ``Subject to section 3018D of this title, any individual''. (2) Section 3015(f) of such title is amended by striking ``or 3018C'' and inserting ``3018C, or 3018D''. (3) Section 3017(b)(1) of such title is amended-- (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or 3018C(e)'' and inserting ``3018C(e), or 3018D(d)''; (B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``or 3018D(d)'' after ``3018C(e)''; or (C) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``or 3018C(e)'' and inserting ``3018C(e), or 3018D(d)''. (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 3018C the following new item: ``3018D. Opportunity for certain active-duty personnel to enroll.''.

Montgomery GI Bill Second Chance Act of 2004 - Authorizes certain members of the Armed Forces to make an irrevocable election during October of any year beginning in 2004 to become entitled to basic educational assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill. Requires a reduction in basic pay of those members electing such educational assistance or, if the member is discharged or released from active duty prior to such reduction, the collection of specified amounts from the member or an equivalent reduction in retired or retainer pay. States that members who are enrolled in the post-Vietnam era veterans' educational assistance program shall be disenrolled from that program upon electing the educational assistance described in this Act. Requires the Secretary concerned, in conjunction with the Secretary of Defense, to provide notice of the opportunity created by this Act to elect educational assistance under the Montgomery GI Bill.

the electronic properties of single wall carbon nanotubes depend sensitively on the diameter and the chirality of the tubes . therefore , in order to use tubes as elements in nano - electronical devices , a controlled way to produce and separate a large quantity of tubes of specific radius and chirality has to be found . alternatively , doping of tubes by boron and nitrogen @xcite may lead to electronic properties that are more controlled by the chemistry ( i.e. , the amount of doping ) than the specific geometry of the tubes . indeed , theoretical investigations of bcn nanotube heterojunctions have predicted that the characteristics of these junctions are largely independent of geometrical parameters @xcite . it has been predicted that even stochastic doping may lead to useful electronic elements such as chains of random quantum dots and nanoscale diodes in series @xcite . the realization of p - type doping of pure carbon nanotubes by a substitution reaction with boron atoms @xcite offered the possibility to transform semiconducting tubes into metallic tubes by lowering the fermi level into the valence band . indeed , transport measurements @xcite have shown a clearly enhanced conductivity of b - doped tubes . the metallic behavior of b - doped multiwall carbon nanotubes was also confirmed by scanning tunneling spectroscopy @xcite . in bulk semiconductors , typical doping concentrations of impurity atoms are around @xmath1 % . at such low concentration , the presence of group iii atoms ( e.g. , b ) in a group iv semiconductor leads to the formation of an acceptor state ( non - dispersive band ) in the band gap at low energy above the valence band edge @xcite . for b doping in a c(8,0 ) tube , yi and bernholc @xcite have calculated ( using a b / c ratio of 1/80 ) that this acceptor state is located at 0.16 ev above the fermi energy . however no discussion has been made up - to - date on the evolution of this acceptor - like level with the degree of b - doping . since in recent experiments @xcite , boron substitution up to 15 % has been reported , we investigate in this paper the band structure of strongly b - doped single wall carbon nanotubes . in order to demonstrate the effect of b doping on a semiconducting tube , we have chosen a ( 16,0 ) tube with a diameter of 12.5 which is close to the average radius of commonly produced swnt samples . since the distribution of borons in b - doped tubes is still unknown , we have performed two sets of calculations . 1 . ) for regular periodic distributions that are commensurate with the unit - cell of the undoped tubes , we perform _ ab initio _ calculations @xcite of electronic band structure and density of states ( dos ) . 2 . ) in order to test the effect of disordered b doping , we employ a supercell comprising 6 unit - cells ( 384 atoms ) and distribute the boron atoms `` randomly '' with the only constraint that they can not occupy nearest neighbor positions on the hexagonal carbon grid . for this large system , we use a self - consistent tight - binding ( sctb ) method @xcite . 1 shows the band structure and dos of a c(16,0 ) tube without doping and with various concentrations of b - doping in a periodic manner ( see insets ) . for the undoped tube it can be noted , that the dos is symmetric around the band gap for the 1st and 2nd van - hove singularities ( vhss ) . however , beyond this small energy regime around the band gap , asymmetries arise due to the mixing of p and s orbitals . doping of the tubes leads to a lowering of the fermi level into the valence band of the undoped tube . clearly , the stronger the doping , the stronger is also the shift of the fermi level . above the highest occupied bands of the undoped tube new bands are formed . these bands correspond to the formation of an acceptor level in semiconductors with very low dopant concentration . due to the strong concentration in the present case , the boron levels hybridize with the carbon levels and form strongly dispersive `` acceptor - like bands '' . the band structure of the valence band is strongly distorted upon doping , because the levels of carbon atoms that are substituted by boron move upwards in energy . in addition , the lowering of the symmetry by doping leads to many clear avoided crossings between states that perform a real crossing in the case of the undoped tube where they posses a different symmetry . clearly , in all cases displayed in fig . 1 , the doping with b leads to a metallic character of the tube . however , the density of states at the fermi level strongly depends on the geometry of the structure and varies non - monotonously with the doping concentration . in fact , in bc@xmath2 tubes with a different geometry than in fig . 1 d ) , a gap between @xmath0-type orbitals and @xmath3 type orbitals opens up at the fermi level and renders the tubes semiconducting in this particular case @xcite . fig . 2 compares the dos of a c(16,0 ) tube with 12.5% boron substitution in three different geometries . the two regular structures both display a pattern with the familiar pronounced van hove singularities of a 1-dim . band structure . however , the different ordering of the boron atoms gives rise to a different hybridization of the bands and thereby to a pronounced difference in the peak structure of the dos . the dos at the fermi level strongly depends on the ordering of the b atoms . in the dos of the randomly doped tube , the pattern of the vhss is mostly smeared out @xcite . due to the missing translational geometry , the 1-dim . band structure of the regularly doped tubes is transformed into the dos of a 0-dimensional structure , i.e. of a large molecule or cluster without periodicity . the states between the fermi level and the original valence band edge of the undoped tubes are hybrids of acceptor levels and unoccupied carbon levels . the electronic excitations into these levels should explain the optical absorption spectra of b - doped carbon tubes @xcite : in addition to the pronounced absorption peaks that are commonly affiliated with the transitions @xmath4 ( @xmath5 ) from the first / second occupied vhs to the first / second unoccupied vhs of the pure semiconducting carbon tubes , the spectra of b - doped tubes display additional absorption at energies lower than @xmath6 . the calculations on the band structure of boron doped carbon nanotubes clearly confirm the expectation ( and experimental observation ) that these tubes are metallic with low resistance . for regularly doped structures , we have observed the formation of a dispersive `` acceptor '' band while the fermi level is shifted downwards into the valence band of the undoped tubes . electronic excitations into these hybrids of acceptor states and unoccupied carbon levels are expected to play an important role in optical absorption spectra . randomly doped tubes display the same downshift of the fermi edge but cease to display strongly dispersive bands . we hope that in the near future , spatially resolved tem / eels will help to elucidate the exact geometry of the boron dopants and scanning tunneling spectroscopy will probe the exact density of states . o. stphan et al . , science * 266 * , 1683 ( 1994 ) ; m. terrones et al . , * 257 * ( 1996 ) ; ph . redlich et al . , chem . . lett . * 260 * , 465 ( 1996 ) ; y. zhang et al . , . lett . * 279 * 264 ( 1997 ) ; r. sen , a. govindaraj , and c. n. r. rao , chem . lett . * 287 * , 671 ( 1998 ) ; d. golberg et al . , * 359 * , 220 ( 2002 ) ; d. golberg et al . , 360 * , 1 ( 2002 ) ; the _ ab initio _ calculations have been performed with the code abinit , using density - functional theory ( dft ) in the local density approximation ( lda ) . we use a plane wave expansion with an energy cutoff at 50 ry . core electrons are simulated by troullier - martins pseudopotentials . a supercell geometry is employed with a large inter - tube distance ( 10 a.u . ) . the density is calculated self - consistently using a sampling of 8 k - points for the ( quasi - one dimensional ) first brillouin zone of the tubes . a non - self consistent calculation yields the energies of occupied and unoccupied states on a grid of 50 k - points . since the tubes have large diameter , we have neglected the effect of local atomic distortion induced by doping which leads to a small outward movement of the boron atoms ( @xmath7 @xcite ) . in the sctb calculation ( following ref . @xcite ) we use a non - orthogonal tight - binding basis with s and p valence orbitals , fitted to lda calculations @xcite . the coulomb potential generated by the charge density is self - consistently included as a shift in the on - site potentials . we have checked for the systems displayed in fig . 1 that the sctb yields results in very close agreement with the _ ab initio _ calculations .

we present _ ab initio _ and self - consistent tight - binding calculations on the band structure of single wall semiconducting carbon nanotubes with high degrees ( up to 25 % ) of boron substitution . besides a lowering of the fermi energy into the valence band , a regular , periodic distribution of the p - dopants leads to the formation of a dispersive `` acceptor''-like band in the band gap of the undoped tube . this comes from the superposition of acceptor levels at the boron atoms with the delocalized carbon @xmath0-orbitals . irregular ( random ) boron - doping leads to a high concentration of hybrids of acceptor and unoccupied carbon states above the fermi edge . address = department of material physics , university of the basque country , centro mixto csic - upv , and donostia international physics center , po . manuel de lardizabal 4 , + 20018 donostia - san sebastin , spain address = department of material physics , university of the basque country , centro mixto csic - upv , and donostia international physics center , po . manuel de lardizabal 4 , + 20018 donostia - san sebastin , spain

Rick Gates, the former deputy chair of President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign and a member of Trump's inauguration planning committee, testified Tuesday in the criminal trial of his former boss Paul Manafort that it was "possible" Gates stole money from the inauguration. The revelation of that potential theft — Gates was asked if he had submitted personal expenses for reimbursement to the inauguration committee; he said it was "possible" — came as Gates was questioned Tuesday by Manafort's attorney. It was one of a series of crimes that Gates confessed to this week or said he may have committed. Gates's credibility is a central part of Manafort's defense. On Tuesday, Manafort's attorney Kevin Downing asked Gates about Gates's own admission that he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from Manafort, as well as the fact that he committed other crimes that special counsel Robert Mueller's office agreed not to charge with him in exchange for his cooperation. "After all the lies you've told, you expect this jury to believe you?" Downing asked. "Yes," Gates replied. Downing asked Gates if he used money he stole from Manafort to finance a "secret life." Gates said he had a relationship, but did not share any details. The implication was that it was an extramarital affair. Later in his testimony, Gates said his wife knew about what Downing repeatedly referred to as his "secret life." Asked if he had a flat in London, Gates said he did spend several months there, and would travel to London when he was en route to Ukraine, where he and Manafort did political consulting work. Gates denied funneling money from Manafort's overseas accounts to pay for his other relationship, saying the money went into an account that his wife knew about. Gates, who was Manafort's longtime right-hand man, is the government's star witness in the trial taking place in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia. He was originally charged as Manafort's codefendant, but pleaded guilty in February and agreed to cooperate with the government. Manafort is charged with filing false tax returns, failing to report foreign bank accounts, and bank fraud. Gates testified on Monday and Tuesday that he aided Manafort with all of those alleged crimes. Tuesday marked the first time that the Trump campaign and the role that Gates and Manafort played explicitly came up during testimony before the jury. Before the trial began, Ellis told the lawyers that he wanted to keep politics out of the trial as much as possible. There were earlier references to the fact that the two men worked on a presidential campaign, but the candidate was never named. That changed on Tuesday. During Gates's questioning earlier in the day by special counsel prosecutor Greg Andres, the jury saw emails from Manafort to Gates after the 2016 presidential election; Manafort had left the campaign in August 2016, amid scrutiny of his ties to Ukraine and Russia. In one email from late November 2016, Manafort emailed Gates to ask if they could discuss getting the administration to consider Stephen Calk for secretary of the Army. The jury did not hear any other testimony about Calk on Tuesday — he is the CEO of Federal Savings Bank, which reportedly loaned millions of dollars to Manafort. Prosecutors said during pretrial proceedings that they planned to introduce evidence that the unnamed bank chair — believed to be Calk, based on news reports and publicly available information — agreed to extend a loan to Manafort based on information Calk knew was false in order to get a job with Trump's campaign and in the administration; Calk did serve the campaign, but did not work in the administration. On Tuesday, the jury also saw an email from Manafort to Gates in December 2016 asking about getting inauguration tickets for a list of people, including Calk. On cross-examination, Downing asked Gates if the special counsel's office had asked him about his time with Trump's campaign. Gates began to answer, but Andres objected to the question. After the lawyers conferred with US District Judge T.S. Ellis III at the bench, out of earshot of the gallery and the jury, Ellis announced he would take a short recess. When the jury returned, there were no more questions about the campaign. Ellis did not address what they discussed at the bench. Gates said Tuesday that he was in court now to tell the truth and accept responsibility. Downing questioned if Gates was truly accepting responsibility if his lawyer planned to ask for no jail time at sentencing, and that as part of a plea deal prosecutors had agreed not to oppose that request. Gates said his sentence was ultimately up to a judge. Downing asked if Gates had returned the money he stole from Manafort. Gates said no. "I regret it, clearly" Gates first took the stand on Monday afternoon, and Andres picked up the questioning Tuesday morning. The jury saw examples of million-dollar consulting agreements executed between Cyprus-based entities — one would be controlled by Manafort, and the other by a Ukrainian businessman who was financing Manafort's political consulting work in Ukraine, Gates said. Manafort's name wasn't on the registration papers for these entities — they were established by a Cypriot law firm, whose members then served as directors and board members — but Manafort controlled them and they contained his money, Gates testified. Prosecutors have alleged Manafort underreported his income to the IRS by millions of dollars — money that they say he kept hidden through the Cyprus entities — and didn't report the existence of his interest in overseas accounts to the IRS or the Department of Treasury. Gates said there were never "overt" discussions with Manafort about hiding the accounts, but that was his understanding of what they were doing. Manafort would say that he didn't need to disclose the accounts because he didn't have signature authority over them, but Manafort controlled the accounts in reality, Gates testified. Gates said that after Manafort moved much of the money in the Cyprus accounts to accounts in the Grenadines, he would create phony invoices to submit to the banks there to initiate wire transfers from Manafort's accounts to US-based clothing retailers and home contractors who did work for Manafort. The Grenadines bank needed to see an invoice with the name of the corporate entity listed on the account — the real invoices in the US were under Manafort's name — so Gates said he would create them, at Manafort's direction. By 2014, when Manafort's former client Viktor Yanukovych — the former president of Ukraine — and Yanukovych's pro-Russia political party, the Party of Regions, had lost power, Manafort was having trouble paying his bills, Gates said. The jury saw one email Manafort wrote to Gates after learning what he might owe in taxes — "WTF?" Manafort wrote. Gates testified that to reduce Manafort's tax burden, Gates told Manafort's bookkeeper that money coming in from an account held by a Ukrainian businessman was from a loan, when in fact it was income. When they were asked for documentation of the loan, Gates said he fabricated it. Manafort is charged with submitting false information to banks in order to make it seem as though his finances were in better shape than they actually were and secure loans in 2015 and 2016. Gates said Tuesday that he helped Manafort commit fraud in a few ways. One way was by submitting an older version of an insurance policy to a bank indicating that Manafort owned a property that didn't have a mortgage on it — that was false, Gates said. Another way Gates said he helped Manafort commit fraud was by creating a phony letter indicating that a transaction recorded as a $1.5 million loan to Manafort's company had been forgiven, making it income. The supposed loan was in fact from a Cyprus-based entity that Manafort controlled, Gates said, and that money had always been income, not a loan. The jury also saw emails from Manafort to Gates asking Gates about converting a document prepared by Manafort's bookkeeper that detailed Manafort's finances from a PDF format into a Microsoft Word document — a PDF document being harder to edit than a Word document, Gates explained to the jury. Gates said Manafort then sent the document back to him with different numbers, and asked Gates to turn it back into a PDF. Gates testified that on another occasion he created a fake document listing Manafort's income as being higher than it really was. Downing's cross-examination of Gates kicked off with a tense exchange about what exactly Gates had told the special counsel's office about lying to investigators. Gates pleaded guilty to two counts — conspiring against the United States, and making false statements. Downing asked Gates when he had provided false and misleading information to prosecutors. Gates initially pushed back on the time frame Downing suggested for when he lied, and then Gates said that during interviews with the government he "struggled" to recall information. Downing asked if Gates was saying that he didn't lie, but rather had trouble recollecting facts. Gates said that was what he said. Ellis then jumped in, noting that Gates pleaded guilty to making false statements. The judge asked Gates if he provided false information to the government. Gates said he did. Gates admitted stealing from Manafort, but disputed some of Downing's version of when and how he did it. Downing asked Gates about a list of approximately 40 financial transactions that Downing said represented income that Gates was charged with failing to report; those charges were dismissed as part of his plea deal. The list totaled approximately $3 million. Gates said some of the transfers from Manafort's overseas accounts were authorized, and some weren't, but he said he coudn't recall which were which. Downing asked why Gates stole from Manafort, arranging for hundreds of thousands of dollars in reimbursements for what were in fact personal expenses. Gates said that at the time, he was "living beyond my means." "I regret it, clearly," Gates said. Downing and Gates went back and forth for a few minutes about whether Gates would characterize what he did as embezzling. Gates kept referring to the theft as "unauthorized" transfers, and said Downing could call it whatever he liked. After more pushing from Downing, though, Gates said it was embezzling. ||||| Under cross examination at the tax evasion and bank fraud trial of his ex-boss Paul Manafort, Gates struggled to give clear answers A former campaign aide to Donald Trump lived a “secret life” including an extramarital affair in London, a court heard on Tuesday. Rick Gates, under cross examination at the tax evasion and bank fraud trial of his former boss Paul Manafort, admitted that he had “another relationship” involving first-class flights and luxury hotels, but denied these were funded with money embezzled from Manafort. Manafort ex-business partner Rick Gates testifies they committed crimes together Read more Manafort, a former Trump campaign chairman, has pleaded not guilty to 18 counts of bank and tax fraud and failing to disclose foreign bank accounts. His defence team is seeking to pin the blame on Gates, who they say was responsible for day-to-day operations of the business. In a dramatic moment before the jury, Manafort’s defence counsel, Kevin Downing, put it to the government’s star witness: “There’s another life, right, the other Rick Gates? The secret Rick Gates?” Play Video 4:47 Russia inquiry: how Trump's inner circle could bring him down – video explainer Gates, who is 46 and married, admitted: “There was a period in my life, about 10 years ago, when I had a relationship, yes.” With a nod to linguistic differences for what Americans refer to as an apartment, Downing pressed: “As part of your secret life did you maintain a flat – is that what they call it? – in London?” Paul Manafort trial: prosecutors seek to paint picture of luxe lifestyle Read more Gates acknowledged that he did for two months and that he took first class flights and stayed in “fancy hotels” around Europe, but said the money came from bonuses rather than illicit gains. “I had a period of time when I had another relationship,” he added. As well as being a senior aide on Trump’s election campaign, Gates served as the deputy chairman of the US president’s inaugural committee. On Tuesday, he admitted it was possible he had sought to cheat the committee with false expenses claims. “Did you submit personal expenses to the inaugural committee for reimbursement?” Downing asked. Gates answered: “I don’t recall. It’s possible.” Gates appeared nervous on the witness stand at the court in Alexandria, Virginia, blinking frequently, his throat apparently dry as he spoke. He frequently used the phrases “It’s possible” and “I don’t recall” as Downing challenged him about inconsistencies in testimony he gave to the special counsel’s office. “When did you start providing false and misleading information to the special counsel’s office?” the defence counsel asked bluntly. Gates struggled so badly to give a straight answer that eventually Judge T S Ellis III was forced to intervene. “Did you provide false information or did you have a bad memory?” he asked. Gates finally admitted that he had provided false information prior to striking a plea agreement. “I did, to one count, your honour,” he said. He has already admitted embezzling some funds from Manafort. Downing pressed him on the specifics of their business relationship: which payments to Gates were authorised and which were not. Regarding a trading company Manafort had started with a partner in 2011, he asked with deep scepticism: “You’re asking the jury to believe Mr Manafort authorised another $250,000 as a bonus?” Why is Paul Manafort risking it all to face Mueller charges in court? Read more Downing wondered aloud why Gates had shown “perfect recollection” during examination by the government but was now much less precise under cross-examination by Manafort’s defence. He challenged the witness: “Have they [the special counsel’s office] confronted you with so many lies you can’t remember any of it?” Gates replied: “No.” Gates testified that he stole from Manafort because he was living beyond his means. Downing asked: “Was it for your secret life?” The witness replied defensively: “It’s not a secret life. It went to an account my wife knew about.” Though he has at times seemed evasive under cross-examination, Gates insisted that he now acknowledges his mistake and is taking responsibility for it, whereas Manafort is not. But Downing challenged again: “After all the lies you’ve told and fraud you’ve committed, you expect this jury to believe you?” Gates retorted: “Yes.” Earlier on Tuesday, the prosecution had continued to question Gates, who described how millions of dollars were allegedly funneled from entities controlled by Ukrainian businessmen into Manafort’s shell companies in Cyprus. Although the allegations of collusion between Donald Trump and Russia are not at issue in this trial, any significant blows to the government’s case are likely to be seized on by the president’s defenders, including conservative media, to support his contention that Mueller’s investigation is a “rigged witch-hunt”. Paul Manafort lawyers want mention of Trump banned in Virginia trial Read more Gates pleaded guilty in February and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors under a deal that could lead to a reduced sentence. On Monday, he testified that he helped Manafort file false tax returns and hide his foreign bank accounts. He was aware that Manafort was acting as an unregistered foreign agent in lobbying for Ukraine, he said. On Tuesday, the court was shown a series of emails, contracts and what prosecutor Greg Andres referred to as “fake invoices”, in which Gates altered the template to show the name of a shell company instead of Manafort’s. This was a way to decrease Manafort’s taxable income, added Gates, who did not report the money to Manafort’s bookkeeper or accountants. Manafort’s political work included advising Viktor Yanukovych on policy after he won the Ukrainian presidency, Gates said. “Mr Manafort worked with the local political officials and helped implement policy initiatives based on the campaign promises.” For this Manafort was paid $4m a year, in quarterly payments of $1m, Gates recalled, though at some point the currency switched from US dollars to Euros. His consultancy work also included “Engage Ukraine”, an effort to help Ukraine join the European Union. Government lawyers have previously referred to Yanukovych as Manafort’s “golden goose”. After Yanukovych lost power in 2014, “I would say it decreased the income stream”, Gates, wearing a blue suit, told the court matter-of-factly. He added Manafort worked for a time for the Opposition Bloc, the party that replaced Yanukovych’s Party of Regions, but it was out of power and so “income streams were more difficult to come by”. By July 2015, the court heard, Manafort was struggling financially. Andres asked: “Was he having trouble paying his bills?” Gates replied: “He was.” Gates said he and Manafort turned to a Cypriot lawyer, whom he referred to in court as “Dr K”, who set up bank accounts and shell companies on Manafort’s behalf and “handled everything”. FBI investigates Russian-linked Cyprus bank accused of money laundering Read more When an individual sets up an entity in Cyprus, Gates explained, their name does not appear on any of the paperwork. He said of Manafort: “I believe he understood his name would not be represented, nor would mine.” As Manafort came under pressure to pay his bills, he was forced to seek loans, the court heard. Gates said he was responsible for collecting all relevant documents for the loan applications. Andres asked him: “Did you provide false information to the banks?’ Without hesitating, Gates replied: “Yes.” Andres followed up: “Did Mr Manafort know?” Again the reply came: “Yes.” ||||| Gates returned to the witness stand Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Virginia to face a grilling from lawyers from his former boss. Gates began his second day in court under questioning from U.S. attorney Greg Andres, providing more details about how he and his ex-partner used Cypriot shell companies to move money made through their lobbying work for a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine. He was also reportedly presented with exhibits allegedly showing Manafort approving a money transfer from one of those accounts in an email conversation. Gates said "there were hundreds" of emails showing Manafort approving such payments. Gates testified that when the leader of that party, Viktor Yanukovych, was ousted in 2014, Manafort's cash flow dried up and he had difficulty paying his bills. Prosecutors showed the jury an email from Manafort complaining to Gates about his high taxes that year, calling it "a disaster." Gates described editing profit and loss statements for both himself and his boss. He told prosecutors that Manafort's income was lower in 2015 "because he had zero clients at the time." He said that in March 2016, he doctored a ledger from Manafort's accounting firm to inflate his boss' income by $6 million above its real figure in order to help him qualify for a loan. The beleaguered ex-assistant corroborated an earlier witness' testimony, saying he was involved in efforts to falsify financial documents to help lower Manafort's tax bill. That previous witness, accountant Cindy Laporta, testified under immunity that Gates asked Manafort's accounting firm to change a loan amount to benefit their client. The company, KWC, told CNBC that Laporta was put on leave in the wake of her testimony, which detailed misconduct the company said it was "unaware" of. "The entire KWC leadership team is shocked by Ma. Laporta's testimony, which clearly represents that she failed to meet the Firm's high standards for professional and ethical conduct in her work for Mr. Manafort," KWC said in a statement. Gates' testimony on Tuesday also shed light on a number of mysterious exhibits that had been presented to witnesses by Mueller's team throughout the trial. Prosecutors had asked a number of the vendors paid by Manafort through foreign wire transfers to look at certain invoices with errors on them. One invoice was ostensibly from Alan Couture, a high-end New York City men's store where Manafort had bought exotic items, such as a $15,000 ostrich jacket and an $18,500 python coat. But the document contained spelling errors and listed an incorrect zip code, according to testimony from the owner's son. Stephen Jacobson, a witness who had been paid millions by Manafort for home repairs, was shown an invoice with his company logo but said it was "not my invoice." On Tuesday, Gates told prosecutors that he was the one who had created those invoices. But he testified that while they were "modified" invoices, they were still "legitimate" payments.

– There were more bombshells as Rick Gates' testimony in Paul Manafort's trial continued Tuesday, with the former Trump campaign chairman's defense team attacking the credibility of his erstwhile right-hand man. Gates, who has already admitted embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from Manafort, confessed to an extra-marital affair under cross-examination from Manafort's lawyer, Kevin Downing, the Washington Post reports. "There was a period in my life, about 10 years ago, when I had a relationship, yes," the married 46-year-old said, though he denied that the first-class travel and luxury hotels involved were funded with money stolen from Manafort, reports the Guardian. Gates—who served as deputy campaign chairman and was on President Trump's inauguration planning committee—admitted that it was "possible" he had stolen money from the inauguration by submitting false expenses claims, BuzzFeed reports. Gates also testified that Manafort, who left the campaign in Aug. 2016, had written to him suggesting that Steven Calk, one of his bankers, be appointed Secretary of the Army, reports CNBC. As Manafort stared at him, Gates, the prosecution's star witness, provided more details about how he had helped Manafort allegedly funnel millions of dollars from Ukrainian business partners into shell companies. (There was a strange exchange during a break in testimony.)

it can be argued that the first official public health dietary guidance originated with the british merchant seaman s act in 1835 , which suggested lime or lemon juice for sailors to prevent what we now know as scurvy . since then , guidelines for healthy food patterns have been refined and are still important nutrition education tools for health professionals and consumers . every 5 years ( since 1980 ) in the united states , the food pattern - based dietary guidelines for americans ( dga ) are published . in 1941 , the national research council released the first set of recommended dietary allowances ( rdas ) for energy , protein , and eight vitamins and minerals . the rdas are quantitative values that are translated to food patterns for the dga and many federal food programs and thus began the nutrient - based guidelines in the united states . the 10th edition of the rdas was published in 1989 containing numerical recommendations for 27 essential nutrients ( out of 49 total nutrients ) . beginning in the mid-1990s , the dietary reference intakes ( dris ) were created by the food and nutrition board of the us national academies institute of medicine ( iom ) to broaden the concept of rdas beyond alleviation of nutrient deficiency diseases to embrace promotion of good health . the dris include rdas ( and recommended nutrient intakes ( rnis ) in canada ) , as well as estimated average requirements ( ears ) , adequate intakes ( ais ) , acceptable macronutrient distribution ranges ( amdrs ) , and tolerable upper intake levels ( uls ) . the amount of clinical evidence necessary for establishing rdas is substantial , and there are well - established procedures for deriving rdas . for example , a depletion / repletion trial with hospitalized human volunteers was the foundation for the establishment of the ear , rda , and ul for vitamin c . reference values like rdas and ais are used to ensure sufficient intakes of essential nutrients . estimation of the reference range is based , in many cases , on observational data linked to deficiency symptoms or intakes by healthy groups . by adding a safety range , it is argued that the intake will be sufficient and safe . macronutrients can be essential and/or be oxidized as fuels and provide carbon skeletons and amino groups for endogenous synthesis of body constituents . emerging evidence suggests that both the traditional essential and some non - essential portions of foods may provide specific health benefits . as in the case for essential nutrients , some of the non - essential food components can not be made by the body . but if they have health benefits and are considered to be part of a healthy diet , they could be considered as bioactive food components . in contrast to essential nutrients , non - essential bioactive food components may not have any clearly described clinical deficiency symptoms when their intake is inadequate . vitamins a and c must be obtained from the diet to prevent deficiency diseases , but what about non - provitamin a producing carotenoids such at lutein and lycopene or the functionally active long - chain derivatives of essential fatty acids , such as eicosapentaenoic acid ( epa ) and docosahexaenoic acid ( dha ) ? the weight of emerging experimental evidence suggests that these and other food bioactive substances , including dietary fibers and some polyphenols , may contribute to health . in contrast to essential nutrients , it may not be possible to carry out experiments to prove cause - effect relationships for non - essential food components . indeed , studies of vitamins during the last century resulted in the detection and identification of these essential compounds . in contrast , there are inherent difficulties with constructing human trials for non - essential food components , whether provided as pure substances , in foods or from food extracts . these include lack of validated biomarkers , blinding of test subjects , and availability of funding for the studies . a further limitation , especially for bulky ingredients such as dietary fiber , is the near impossibility of devising a placebo control . one could argue that more evidence should be necessary when it comes to making dietary recommendations for non - essential food components , but the amount of evidence that might be practically collected may be substantially less in comparison with that which is expected for essential nutrients . on the other hand , so - called non - essential food components may provide health benefits in ways not yet identified . epidemiological studies show some evidence that a diet rich in lutein may be protective against age - related macular degeneration ( amd ) . evidence also exists that indicate a number of dietary components may have protective effects on multi - factorial lifestyle diseases such as coronary heart disease ( chd ) and cancer , for example , the cardioprotective effects of a diet rich in marine - derived n-3 long - chain polyunsaturated fatty acids ( n-3 lcpufa ) or the protective effects against prostate cancer from a diet rich in tomato products or lycopene . however , this relationship should not be used to imply that prostate cancer is a symptom of lycopene deficiency . thus far , the decreased risks of amd , chd , and prostate cancer can only be said to be associated with diets rich in lutein , n-3 lcpufa or lycopene , respectively . thus , in the case of non - essential nutrients , there may be diet related , but not single nutrient related , deficiency disorders , and recommendations on how to prevent these accordingly , a new paradigm that establishes recommendations for non - essential bioactive food components may be necessary ; one that may differ from the traditional dri approach . some suggest that the totality of the evidence should be sufficient to drive public health messages about non - essential bioactive food components . in this report , we first review the dri framework that has been in place for over 15 years . second , we address potential mechanisms for accreditation of bioactive food components and discuss issues regarding design of studies , risk / benefit ratios , lack of biomarkers , genetic variability within the population , challenges in research funding , and the consequences of the possible negative effects of not taking any action . finally , we apply the concept to two examples : lutein and related compounds , and the n-3 lcpufas epa and dha . the long - term goal of developing a new nutrient paradigm is to provide consumers with appropriate public health guidance about healthy food choices for both traditional nutrients and bioactive food components . the codex committee on nutrition and foods for special dietary uses ( ccnfsdu ) is in the process of developing daily nutrient reference values ( nrvs ) for the purpose of nutrition labeling . the development and sanction of the nrv should provide protection and reassurance to both the consumer and the food industry , that is , protection of the consumer against claims that a product contains a specific ingredient even if the amount is trivial by any nutritional standard and protection of the food industry by defining a safe harbor for product composition that will allow effective , truthful , and non - misleading communication with the consumer . in line with this new concept , the european food safety authority ( efsa ) recently concluded that exposure to - carotene from its use as a food additive and as a food supplement at a level < 15 mg / day does not contribute to adverse health effects in the general population , including heavy smokers . emerging data ( from in vitro studies , in vivo studies in animals and some studies in humans ) have shown that non - essential food components may be beneficial to health . whether the data can be used to document any causality in health - related effects of bioactive components needs further investigation . the scientific data must demonstrate consistent results that show that the health impact can be attributed to the food component of interest . however , most of the available data are based on observational studies and consequently on food or dietary patterns containing high or low amounts of a particular bioactive component . furthermore , many bioactive components are biomarkers for a healthy dietary pattern . vitamin e is a good marker for edible plant - derived oils and seedlings , and zeaxanthin is a biomarker for orange - colored foods ( egg yolk , corn , orange , melon , paprika ) . as long as we do not have a clear clinical symptom of an inadequate intake of a non - essential nutrient , we need to refer to a food or dietary pattern for a reference value . the ai is a recommended average daily intake level based on observed or experimentally determined approximations or estimates of nutrient intake by a group ( or groups ) of apparently healthy people that are assumed to be adequate in nutrition status . there is nothing in the iom definition specifying that the nutrient must be essential to have an assigned ai value . so - called non - essential nutrients include those oxidized as fuels and those that provide carbon skeletons and amino groups for endogenous synthesis of body constituents . they can consist of some food components that may have health benefits and are considered as part of a healthy diet and may also have a significant impact on health . in the example of fiber ( the dri term total fiber means the combination of dietary fibers and functional fibers ) , there were enough data demonstrating the potential health benefits of fibers to establish an ai , but not enough to establish an ear , and from it a rda . a large body of experimental data acquired since the early 1990s has demonstrated blood cholesterol lowering effects of dietary fibers , which has been supported by epidemiological evidence showing correlation between increased intake of high fiber foods and reduction in risk of chd . prospective cohort studies have suggested that diets high in fiber - rich foods decrease the risk for hypertension , a risk factor for chd . an issue with observational studies examining the effects of dietary fiber is that it is not possible to distinguish between the effects of dietary fiber per se and fiber - rich foods that contain many other food components . moreover , foods high in fiber are generally low in fat , saturated fat and cholesterol , and high in phytochemicals , all of which are associated with reduced risks of certain chronic diseases . thus , isolating fiber as a single factor is difficult and must be evaluated in the context of the total dietary pattern . some investigators have specifically analyzed diets for dietary fiber , and others have used indicators of dietary fiber intake such as cereals , vegetables , fruits , whole grains , or legumes . despite these differences in assessing fiber intake , the preponderance of the evidence on dietary fiber and chd risk based on epidemiological , clinical , and mechanistic data was strong enough to set a recommended level of intake ( an ai ) . in the case of -carotene and other carotenoids , a dri was not established because potential diet - disease effects could be due to other substances found in carotenoid - rich foods or to behaviors associated with high fruit and vegetable consumption , for example , regular physical exercise . this potential for misattribution illustrates the importance of understanding the specific role of a nutrient ( essential or non - essential ) in a food matrix or dietary pattern . large prospective studies have shown beneficial effects of high carotenoid containing fruit and vegetable consumption with respect to chronic diseases . however , the nutrients / food components responsible for the effects are difficult to ascertain due to multiple nutrient interactions that would need to be isolated for study and to the possible substitution of nutrients known to increase risk for certain chronic diseases , for example , saturated fats . if a dietary pattern can be related to a single non - essential nutrient with respect to a disease risk or disease - related marker , this relationship may serve as a marker to establish a nrv . it can be difficult to test the effects of individual food components on chronic disease risk . challenges in obtaining valid , reproducible , and reliable data are numerous but they need to be overcome . biomarkers for health effects should be related to specific diseases as intermediary endpoints or validated surrogate endpoints of disease risk . the established disease - related surrogate endpoints recognized by the us food and drug administration ( fda ) are few . they are as follows : total / low - density lipoprotein ( ldl ) cholesterol , blood pressure for chd ; polyps for colon / rectal cancer ; blood sugar level and insulin resistance for diabetes ; bone mineral density for osteoporosis ; and mild cognitive impairment for dementia . large randomized controlled trials ( rcts ) play a critical role in establishing the relationship between intake of nutrients ( essential / non - essential ) and risk of chronic diseases ; however , is the rct design appropriate , and indeed the sole method , to understand the role of whole foods or food constituents in chronic disease prevention ? finally , what is the potential harm in making an evidence - based public health recommendation using data from large prospective cohort studies when there is a lack of large rcts versus the potential harm of not making any recommendation at all ? lutein is a non - provitamin a carotenoid found in green , leafy vegetables and brightly colored fruits . a third related carotenoid , meso - zeaxanthin , is not normally found in a conventional diet and is generated in the retina after lutein isomerization . challenges inherent in the separation and quantification of meso - zeaxanthin have resulted in a paucity of data on the content of this carotenoid in foodstuffs and have rendered the study of tissue concentrations of this compound problematic . as a consequence , the few studies that have investigated meso - zeaxanthin may have been disproportionately influential in the ongoing debate about its origin . lutein , zeaxanthin , and meso - zeaxanthin all accumulate in the central retina where they are collectively known as macular pigment ( mp ) . lutein and zeaxanthin are distributed ubiquitously in body tissues , but tend to be concentrated and the dominant carotenoids in central nervous tissues . along with meso - zeaxanthin , lutein and zeaxanthin are the sole mp carotenoids , where they exist in approximately 500-fold higher concentrations than in other body tissues . each of these three compounds exhibits a regional dominance , with meso - zeaxanthin , lutein , and zeaxanthin being the dominant carotenoids at the epicenter , mid - periphery , and periphery of the macula , respectively . the mp protects the eye from damage due to short wave length ( blue ) light and has a strong antioxidant activity . indeed , data from animal studies give strong evidence that the three carotenoids protect photoreceptors against oxidative injury . there is a growing and evidence - based consensus that mp is important for optimal visual performance , because of its blue light - filtering properties and consequential attenuation of chromatic aberration , veiling luminance , and blue haze . it has also been hypothesized that mp may protect against amd because of the same optical properties and the antioxidant capacity of the macular carotenoids . the promising data of the age - related eye disease study ( areds ) were confirmed by a recent cochrane analysis . the authors concluded that people with amd may experience less progression of the disease as a result of antioxidant vitamin and mineral supplementation . based on morphological and biochemical data , loughman and colleagues carried out numerous studies to elucidate which carotenoid is of greatest importance for the protective effect on amd . furthermore , they investigated the effect of carotenoids on visual performance . the observational study assessed whether macular pigment optical density ( mpod ) is associated with visual performance . mpod and visual performance were assessed by psychophysical tests including best - corrected visual acuity ( bcva ) , mesopic and photopic contrast sensitivity , glare sensitivity , and photostress recovery time ( prt ) . measures of central visual function , including bcva and contrast sensitivity , were found to be positively associated with mpod ( p < 0.05 , for all ) . rcts have shown that supplementation with carotenoids ( 10.6 mg meso - zeaxanthin , 5.9 mg lutein , 1.6 mg zeaxanthin ) results in an increase in their concentration in serum as well as in the macula without any adverse effects on either liver or renal function [ 11 , 12 ] . several studies were performed to elucidate whether one or more carotenoids detected within the macula are of importance for the mopd . supplementation with carotenoids has been shown to result in a typical central peak in the mp only in supplements that contain meso - zeaxanthin . in this rct , loughman and colleagues investigated changes in mpod and visual performance following supplementation with different macular carotenoid formulations : ( 1 ) 20 mg lutein and 2 mg zeaxanthin ; ( 2 ) 10 mg lutein , 2 mg zeaxanthin , and 10 mg meso - zeaxanthin ; and ( 3 ) placebo . at 3 and 6 months , a statistically significant increase in mpod was found at all eccentricities ( other than the most peripheral 3 location ) in the group that got all three carotenoids ( p < 0.05 for all ) , whereas no significant increase in mpod was demonstrable at any eccentricity for subjects that got only lutein + zeaxanthin or placebo . statistically significant improvements in visual performance measures , including visual acuity and contrast sensitivity with and without glare , were also observed only in those who got meso - zeaxanthin , whereas there was only significant improved mesopic contrast sensitivity at one spatial frequency by 6 months for the lutein + zeaxanthin group and no improvements in any parameters of visual performance for subjects supplemented with placebo . thus , these data show that all three carotenoids are needed to form the macular pigment . in addition the carotenoid intake in this recent study may serve as reference range with respect to safety and efficacy . lutein is also the dominant carotenoid in human brain tissue . while a variety of evidence supports a role for lutein in eye health , less is available on a relationship between lutein and cognitive function . from observational studies , there is evidence that older adults consuming the highest amounts of green leafy vegetables and cruciferous vegetables , which are both rich sources of lutein , had slower cognitive decline than those consuming the lowest amounts . several studies at tufts university also found that lutein status is related to better cognitive function in older adults . a significant relationship was found between serum levels of lutein and cognitive function in a population - based study which looked at biological , psychological , and social factors that play a role in longevity and survival of the oldest old . in the health , aging , and body composition study ( health abc ) , renzi and colleagues found a significant correlation between mp density and the mini mental state examination , a global measure of cognition . lutein and zeaxanthin in the eye of rhesus monkeys have been shown to be significantly related to lutein and zeaxanthin levels in the brain and mp and can therefore be used as a biomarker of lutein and zeaxanthin in primate brain tissue . this finding provides a great advantage as macular lutein and zeaxanthin can now be measured by a non - invasive technique . postmortem lutein levels in brain tissue have also been found to be significantly related to antemortem measures of global cognitive function , executive function , and dementia severity after adjusting for age , gender , education , hypertension , and diabetes . lastly , in a double - blinded rct in older adults supplemented with lutein , alone or in combination with dha , johnson and colleagues reported that verbal fluency scores improved significantly with the dha , with lutein , as well as with the combined treatment groups . memory scores and rate of learning improved significantly in the combined treatment group , whose subjects also displayed a trend toward more efficient learning . these exploratory findings suggest that lutein supplementation may have cognitive benefit for older adults . taking all of these observations into consideration , the n-3 lcpufas perform essential functions in the body in processes such as male reproduction and child development . most experts estimate that the n-3 lcpufa requirement is fulfilled at intakes of alpha - linolenic acid ( ala ) from vegetable oils of around 0.51 % of the energy intake . n-3 lcpufa intake has been shown to affect health , most notably , the risk of chd and symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis as well as infant visual acuity and atopic risk [ 1820 ] . in addition , n-3 lcpufa has also been described to have a potential beneficial impact on other degenerative diseases , for example , chronic renal diseases , neurological diseases , and diseases of the eye and the respiratory tract . the clinical effect of n-3 lcpufa on rheumatoid arthritis has been shown only at doses > 2.5 g / day , and the effect on visual maturation and atrophy seems to occur only in the perinatal period . current evidence indicates that n-3 lcpufa may also affect mood , behavior , and overall immune function , but the evidence does not allow recommendations regarding an exact dose . there is more convincing evidence on the quantitative needs in adults to prevent chd . with respect to the cardioprotective effects of n-3 lcpufa , evidence is available from laboratory and observational studies , as well as rcts , with various outcomes . n-3 lcpufa has been shown to affect a myriad of molecular pathways , including alteration of physical and chemical properties of cellular membranes , direct interaction with and modulation of membrane channels and proteins , regulation of gene expression , and conversion of n-3 lcpufa to bioactive metabolites and signalling molecules , which may all provide plausible biological explanations for the observed effects . rcts have shown that n-3 lcpufa supplementation in humans lowers plasma triacylglycerol ( tag ) , thrombosis , resting heart rate , and blood pressure and might also improve myocardial filling and efficiency . additional mechanisms include lowering inflammation and improving vascular function while experimental studies demonstrate direct and indirect antiarrhythmic effects . observational studies consistently suggest long - term dietary intake of n-3 lcpufa from fish has protective effects on cardiovascular disease when compared with no or very low intake . large - scale rcts in patients with previous myocardial infarction and heart failure also suggest a significant benefit on cardiac mortality . however , evidence produced by a recent rct of n-3 lcpufa supplementation to prevent atrial fibrillation onset or recurrence in patients with diabetes mellitus who have experienced a myocardial infarction was , however , disappointing . differences in experimental clinical settings and methodological limitations of recent studies make it difficult to interpret these recent findings . indeed , data from the recent alpha omega trial indicate that the effect of n-3 lcpufa is over - shadowed by the use of statins . overall , current data provide discordant evidence that n-3 lcpufas are bioactive compounds that reduce risk of cardiac death . on the other hand , sound evidence supports the health benefit of a regular dietary intake of n-3 lcpufa , and there is evidence from rcts to support the beneficial effects on the mentioned cardiovascular risk markers . a meta - analysis of data from 29 prospective cohort studies indicates that maximal chd prevention occurs at a fish intake of around 50 g / day . furthermore , a separate meta - analysis calculated that the incidence of chd decreases 6 % per 15 g / day increment in fish intake . the effect on plasma tag appears to be linear from 1 to 7 g / day n-3 lcpufa , whereas the anti - thrombotic effect requires doses > 4 g / day . the effects on blood pressure and heart rhythm have been shown to occur within the range of typical dietary intakes and to satiate at around 0.751 g / day . depending on the fish species , an intake of 1 g / day n-3 lcpufa is achievable at daily intakes of 50 g fish and thus fits well with the observational data . dha is the dominant n-3 lcpufa in tissues , and although it can be formed endogenously from ala , conversion is very low and requires double action of the key limiting enzyme . thus , it seems difficult to provide an ala - based diet that raises dha status as effectively as preformed dha via the diet , and studies indicate that high intake of ala may even lead to a decrease in dha status . the combined level of dha and epa in erythrocytes ( the omega-3 index , 3i ) has been proposed as a stable proxy measure of status and an optimal way to assess need . research indicates high chd risk at 3i of < 4 % , and the optimal level appears to be > 8 % . to reach an 3i of 8 % , us chd patients have been shown to require fish oil supplementation in addition to a fish intake of > 2 servings / week . tissue n-3 lcpufa levels are affected by polymorphism in fatty acid desaturase encoding genes and by gender , and it may also depend on other dietary aspects . an 3i of 8 % was found for moderate fish intakes ( around 0.6 g / day n-3 lcpufa ) in lactating women , but data also indicate that daily fish oil supplementation resulted in higher 3i than a similar habitual intake from fish , indicating that intake frequency may play a role . most observational studies and meta - analyses of data from prospective cohort studies have not been able to show a beneficial effect of n-3 lcpufa of vegetable origin . however , one prospective cohort study found that ala intake was associated with reduced chd risk and the correlation was most pronounced at n-3 lcpufa intakes < 0.1 g / day . furthermore , a recent meta - analysis of vegetable oil rcts showed ala - containing oils reduced risk , whereas pure linolenic acid ( la ) oils increased the risk of chd events . it has been suggested that the need for n-3 lcpufa is increased by high intake of la , but observational studies have not been able to show that the effect of n-3 lcpufa is modified by la intake [ 29 , 31 , 32 ] . there is consensus among numerous authoritative and regulatory bodies around the world that intake of epa and dha is associated with potential health benefits ; however , there is inconsistent or missing guidance on uls for these fatty acids . according to the codex guidelines on nutrition labelling , the establishment of general population nrvs should take into account uls established by recognized authoritative scientific bodies . evaluations from the last couple of years have all concluded that there is insufficient evidence to establish an ul for n-3 lcpufas . the following is a brief history on uls for epa and dha.based on a 1989 report , in 1997 , the us fda declared that intakes of epa and dha from menhaden oil up to 3 g / day are safe for the general population . the primary reason for the 3 g limit was concern about bleeding . the authors of the 1989 mitre corporation report wrote , an increase in bleeding time is the only prominent health effect observed in humans that has been firmly established as a consequence of fish oil ingestion . this effect has been reported anecdotally in the eskimo population and consistently observed in studies of healthy human subjects with a daily intake of 3 g of n-3 fatty acids . the magnitude of the effect at this low dose is not a cause for alarm , but a lack of systematic dose response data precludes prediction of the severity of the effect at higher daily intakes . note that more recent reports have indicated much higher levels of n-3 lcpufa intake without any bleeding issues.in its 2005 report on dris for dietary fats , the iom indicated that there were insufficient data to support establishing an ul for epa and dha .in 2009 , the german federal institute for risk assessment ( bfr ) evaluated epa and dha and recommended that no more than 1.5 g / day n-3 lcpufa from all sources should be consumed and that food not typically containing fat ( e.g. , water - based beverages ) should not be enriched with n-3 lcpufas . while selected studies evaluating several health - based endpoints were summarized in the opinion , the basis for the limit of 1.5 g / day was not elucidated .in 2011 , the norwegian scientific committee for food safety ( vkm ) evaluated epa and dha and indicated that it was not possible to identify clear adverse effects associated with epa and dha for the purpose of setting uls .in 2012 , efsa published its scientific opinion related to uls for n-3 lcpufas with the conclusion that the available data were insufficient to establish an ul for n-3 lcpufas .also in 2012 , spherix consulting completed its hazard characterization commissioned by the global organization for epa and dha omega-3s ( goed ) including a range of safety endpoints and adverse effects . no studies were identified that are appropriate to define specific intake levels or intake / response relationships that can be used to define an ul for the investigated effects . based on a 1989 report , in 1997 , the us fda declared that intakes of epa and dha from menhaden oil up to 3 g / day are safe for the general population . the primary reason for the 3 g limit was concern about bleeding . the authors of the 1989 mitre corporation report wrote , an increase in bleeding time is the only prominent health effect observed in humans that has been firmly established as a consequence of fish oil ingestion . this effect has been reported anecdotally in the eskimo population and consistently observed in studies of healthy human subjects with a daily intake of 3 g of n-3 fatty acids . the magnitude of the effect at this low dose is not a cause for alarm , but a lack of systematic dose response data precludes prediction of the severity of the effect at higher daily intakes . note that more recent reports have indicated much higher levels of n-3 lcpufa intake without any bleeding issues . in its 2005 report on dris for dietary fats , the iom indicated that there were insufficient data to support establishing an ul for epa and dha . in 2009 , the german federal institute for risk assessment ( bfr ) evaluated epa and dha and recommended that no more than 1.5 g / day n-3 lcpufa from all sources should be consumed and that food not typically containing fat ( e.g. , water - based beverages ) should not be enriched with n-3 lcpufas . while selected studies evaluating several health - based endpoints were summarized in the opinion , the basis for the limit of 1.5 g / day was not elucidated . in 2011 , the norwegian scientific committee for food safety ( vkm ) evaluated epa and dha and indicated that it was not possible to identify clear adverse effects associated with epa and dha for the purpose of setting uls . in 2012 , efsa published its scientific opinion related to uls for n-3 lcpufas with the conclusion that the available data were insufficient to establish an ul for n-3 lcpufas . also in 2012 , spherix consulting completed its hazard characterization commissioned by the global organization for epa and dha omega-3s ( goed ) including a range of safety endpoints and adverse effects . no studies were identified that are appropriate to define specific intake levels or intake / response relationships that can be used to define an ul for the investigated effects . originally applied by the iom to establish uls , nutrient risk assessment can be used to identify uls for bioactive substances . an important modification to the classic nutrient risk assessment model is needed , however . by definition , the establishment of an ul value depends on the selection of a no observed adverse effect level ( noael ) or a lowest observed adverse effect level . for many bioactive substances ( lutein , lycopene , coenzyme q10 ) and some essential nutrients ( vitamin b12 and the amino acids ) , no hazard has been identified and thus no noael . the absence of an ul ( or some kind of equivalent guidance level to prevent excessive intakes ) has been misinterpreted by some to mean that little or no safety data exist on these substances and has led to some overly restrictive and arbitrary policies in some countries . in 2006 , the food and agriculture organization / world health organization ( fao / who ) published the highest observed intake ( hoi ) approach to nutrient risk assessment . briefly , the hoi approach is used to establish guidance levels for those nutrients for which no toxicity has been observed . it involves selection of the highest dose tested that can be confidently concluded as safe . while the method has yet to be formally applied , a version of this approach has been applied and published repeatedly [ 4143 ] . some of the questions the ccnfsdu has been addressing during the eight - step process of establishing nrvs include : which nutrients should be assigned nrvs , whether nrvs should be assigned for macronutrients ( e.g. , protein ) , whether there should be more than one nrv per nutrient ( e.g. , for specific outcomes ) , and what data or criteria should serve as the basis for selection of nrvs . however , to date , the committee has not fully addressed the critical issue of the impact of the ul intake on the selection of nrvs . for most micronutrients and bioactive food components , recommended intake levels ( on which the daily nrv is based ) fall far below the ul by several - fold , up to and above an order of magnitude . however , there are examples from individual countries ( e.g. , the united states , canada ) in which the authoritative body , such as the iom , has established a rda that is perilously close to ( in the case of zinc for children ) or even exceeds ( in the case of magnesium in children ) the ul . if used as a basis for codex nrvs , whether for nutrients or bioactive substances , such policy has the potential to cause widespread confusion ( as it has in individual countries ) among nutrition policy makers and regulators charged with establishing regulatory maximums . it is therefore critical that uls ( or hois observed ) for essential micronutrients and bioactive food components be established based on risk assessment , and that these values be given due account when establishing nrvs , to avoid as much as possible the scenario of a nrv being too close or exceeding the ul . establishing the ul or hoi prior to the nrv can give policy makers added comfort that the chosen values for labeling are also safe for the general population , and it can also help facilitate necessary research on the benefits of higher intakes of these substances , since it provides practical guidance for both researchers and institutional review boards .

nutrients can be classified as either essential or non - essential , the latter are also termed bioactive substances . whereas the absence of essential nutrients from the diet results in overt deficiency often times with moderate to severe physiological decrements , the absence of bioactive substances from the diet results in suboptimal health . nutrient reference values are set by codex alimentarius and regulatory bodies in many countries , mostly for essential nutrients with recommended daily intakes . the iom in the united states has defined a set of four dris that , when data are appropriate , include an ear , a rda that is derived from the ear , an ai for nutrients without appropriate data to identify an ear , and an ul . from the rda , the united states derives a labeling value called the dv , which applies to older children and most adults . in codex , the equivalents of the dvs are the nrvs to be used in calculating percentage values on food labels . nothing in the iom documents specifies that labeling values can be set only for what have been defined to date as essential nutrients . indeed , the us food and drug administration sets a labeling value for dietary fiber based on the iom ai for this ingredient . this conference explores the definitions , concepts , and data on two of the best examples of bioactive substances that , perhaps , should have nrvs : lutein and zeaxanthin , and n-3 long - chain polyunsaturated fatty acids .

the growth of elderly populations is a global phenomenon , and these changes have been radical and accelerated in brazil . conservative projections indicate that brazil will have the sixth largest elderly population in the world by 2020 , with over 30 million people classified as elderly.1,2 recent studies have shown that chronic disease and incapacity are not inevitable consequences of the aging process . prevention is effective in all age groups , even in the latest stages of life.1 therefore , an emphasis on prevention is important in terms of changing the current framework of incapacity and comorbidity . loss of muscle quality and quantity and reduced muscle strength with advancing age contributes significantly to a decline in the performance of activities of daily living ( adl ) , resulting in reduced mobility , slower gait speed , and changes in balance as well as an increased risk of falls . thus , there is an increase in incapacity.2,3 the benefits of exercise in the elderly are well established , and include reduced fragility , increased gait speed , and increased performance of adl . exercise also provides independence and improves quality of life.3 elderly people who undertake a regular exercise program show better balance and have a reduced risk of falling.4,5 adherence is defined as the number of sessions attended divided by the number of sessions offered , and according to the literature , this relationship is frequently very low.6 the evidence suggests that 50% of people who begin a program of exercise discontinue within 6 months.79 an adherence level of at least 80%85% is recommended if the results of an intervention are to be satisfactory and if the intervention is to have therapeutic value.10 another important concept for exercise intervention is retention . this involves maintenance of the individual bond to a program of exercises as an experimental or clinical model . an individual may be linked to an exercise program throughout the period and without proper frequency , ie , without satisfactory adherence.7 kruger et al evaluated 6,000 elderly subjects and found that only 11% reported regular participation in a muscle strength training program.11 this study , which included a significant number of participants , showed the difficulties of adherence with exercise programs among the elderly . further , in a study investigating elderly subjects with chronic pain , sluijs et al12 showed that 70% of participants failed to adhere to a program of therapeutic exercise in the long - term . in addition , taylor et al13 found that rates of adherence with exercise among elderly individuals were approximately 14% to 17% . health professionals have made considerable effort to identify factors related to adherence with therapeutic exercise by elderly people , in view of the fact that it could allow for greater success of proposed treatments , maintain patient independence , increase muscle capacity and function , and minimize ongoing use of health care services.14 however , there is no consensus in the literature as to the factors that contribute to adherence with exercise programs in the elderly . in addition , there is a lack of standardized instruments for measurement of compliance.4,6,15 social , economic , and cultural factors may influence adherence , so surveys of adherence should be performed locally . we can not extrapolate the results of international studies to the brazilian population , which exists in a completely different context . further , there have been few studies in which adherence has been a primary outcome and in brazil there is no similar research . the objectives of the present study were to identify rates of adherence and retention in elderly women participating in aerobic exercise or muscle strength training programs and to identify the motivators , barriers , and clinical / functional factors associated with adherence of elderly women with therapeutic exercise programs . this study was approved by the ethical and research committee of the federal university of minas gerais ( etic 38/2010 , with approval of an addendum ) . details of the original project are in the registry of brazilian clinical trials ( rebec rbr9v9cwf ) . our study population comprised a convenience sample of women aged 65 years or older who lived in the community and were recruited by advertising among third - age groups and associations as well as in newspapers . the sample was not randomized , and the study design involved development of two exercise programs at different points in time . the first volunteers were allocated to a muscle strengthening group , and when enough participants had been enrolled in this group , subsequent volunteers were allocated to an aerobic exercise group . we excluded anyone who showed cognitive changes detectable on the brazilian version16 of the mini - mental state examination . we also excluded subjects who had undergone orthopedic leg surgery , those with a history of fracture in the previous 6 months , those with a neurological disorder , and those with clinical or sensory conditions that precluded their participation in an exercise program . we calculated the sample size using the following regression model formula : 10 ( k + 1 ) , in which k represents the number of explanatory variables in the model.16,17 for each intervention group , three models of regression were used to explain adherence or failure to adhere . the ten explanatory variables used for the model , chosen from the theoretical framework , were : the timed up and go test,18 the sit - to - stand test,19 habitual gait speed,20,21 history of falls , presence of pain , number of comorbidities , self - rated health,22,23 depressive symptoms,24 self - rated stress,25 and cognitive capability.16 the other two models were constructed to include 13 motivators and 12 barriers according to the adherence questionnaire developed by researchers . thus , 10 ( 13 + 1 ) = 140 elderly women were necessary for each group . for sample characterization , we obtained sociodemographic data and information relevant to the clinical status of our elderly female study participants using a questionnaire developed by the researchers . folstein et al26 recommended the mini - mental state examination as a useful screening tool for detection of cognitive impairment in both the clinical and research setting . in 1994 , bertolucci et al published a version of the mini - mental state examination adapted for the brazilian population.16 in the present study , we used this tool as a reference for cutoff points , with a score of 13 for illiterate elderly and a score of 24 for educated elderly , given that previous studies have demonstrated this scale to have good reliability.27,28 in the present study , the mini - mental state examination was used for subject exclusion and test scores were used as an explanatory variable in the regression model to evaluate the association between adherence and cognitive capacity in the study subjects.29,30 the geriatric depression scale ( gds ) was used to screen for the presence of depressive symptoms , and was administered by structured interview . the 15-item gds scale ( gds-15 ) is a short version of the original scale developed by sheikh and yesavage24 and contains items that are most strongly matched with a diagnosis of depression . previous studies have demonstrated that symptoms of depression can interfere with the undertaking of physical exercise and that elderly people experiencing mood changes and general depressive symptoms are less committed to the intervention and therefore the results are worse . a 14-item scale of perceived stress was used to evaluate the level of stress in our study participants . this scale evaluated three factors considered to be the main components in the experience of stress , ie , the extent to which individuals rate their lives as unpredictable , uncontrollable , and overloaded.31 henry et al32 found that patients who are asked to perform many exercises do not perform as well in terms of adherence . in addition , a prescription for excessive exercise can negatively affect adherence in elderly women.10,25 self - evaluation of health status was determined by a simple question , in a general way , how do you consider your health ? . the answer to this question is one of the most commonly used indices in gerontological research and is an important indicator of functional decline and consequent restriction of activity.22,23 the literature demonstrates that elderly women with greater adherence are the most likely to get involved in other programs for promoting health , and that this is directly linked to their behavior , perception of their health , motivation , and self - efficacy.30 we selected three tests to evaluate functional capacity , all of which can be carried out simply and rapidly in clinic practice ; these tests are also valid and reliable in the elderly population . we used these tests because elderly people with lower functional performance find it more difficult to develop regular exercise habits.14 we measured walking speed over 10 minutes to evaluate habitual gait speed . pace was registered only in the middle 6 m of a lane , identified by tape markings , to avoid acceleration and deceleration bias.20,21,33 we used the timed up and go test to evaluate mobility . this test records the time taken for a subject to stand up without using their arms from a sitting position in a standardized chair with a seat height of 45 cm , walk 3 m , turn around , and return to the seat and sit down again . this test has high interrater reliability ( intraclass correlation coefficient 0.99 ) and intrarater reliability ( intraclass correlation coefficient 0.99).18,34 to evaluate functional performance in terms of sitting and standing , which is an indirect measure of strength in the legs and is associated with decline of function and capability , we used the sit - to - stand test with a standardized chair of 45 cm and floor height as the reference.19,20 there are no previous examples of adherence questionnaires validated and adapted for an elderly population in brazil.35 therefore , we developed our own adherence questionnaire based on the literature and on the cultural , economic , and social context of brazil . this questionnaire contained questions on the following three components : reasons for lack of attendance at sessions , motivating factors , and barriers to adherence with the different therapeutic exercise programs . as part of the development of this instrument , we trialed the questionnaire in ten elderly subjects participating in a physical exercise program . the necessary adjustments were made until the final version of the questionnaire was ready for use . intraobserver and interobserver variability were assessed by the kappa coefficient and this resulted in excellent intraobserver reliability ( kappa coefficient 0.846 ) and interobserver reliability ( kappa coefficient 0.822 ) . first , the brazilian version26 of the mini - mental state examination was used to exclude elderly women with cognitive impairment . this was followed by a clinical sociodemographic questionnaire in the form of a structured interview for characterization of the sample.16 for the functional tests , all participants were given the same verbal instructions and the investigators demonstrated tests before the participants carried them out . after the initial evaluation , the elderly women were allocated to a therapeutic exercise group , ie , either muscle strength training or aerobic exercise . each program lasted 10 weeks and comprised three sessions weekly , each lasting approximately 50 minutes and guided by physiotherapists and members of the research team . the muscular strength training group carried out leg exercises involving concentric and eccentric contraction with resistance , with the load tailored to meet individual requirements and ability . the load appropriate for each participant was defined by calculation of maximum resistance.36 the aerobic exercise program was based on a protocol recommended by the american college of sport medicine ( 2009 ) for the elderly , and comprised 5 minutes of warming up , 40 minutes of aerobic activity , including exercises for the arms and legs while walking , orthostatic exercise , and a 5-minute recovery period . before and after each exercise session , blood pressure , and heart rate were measured . in addition , heart rate monitoring was undertaken in participants allocated to aerobic exercise to ensure that the program was safe for them and that their training range was appropriate.37 after completion of the 10-week training program , the volunteers were re - evaluated using the adherence questionnaire administered by an investigator who had not been involved in the intervention ( to avoid information bias in collection of the data ) . elderly women who had abandoned their allocated program and were otherwise lost to follow - up were also contacted by the team ; a number of these women subsequently visited the federal university of minas gerais to answer the adherence questionnaire . successful intervention programs require an adherence rate of more than 85% to have satisfactory results and ensure internal validity . therefore , in the present study , elderly women with a participation rate of 85% or more in the exercise program were considered to have been adherent.31 thus , for a total of 30 sessions , five absences were allowed . those lost to the program comprised elderly women who did not finish the program or those who missed six or more exercise sessions during the 10-week intervention . three logistic regression models were built for each of the groups to identify factors accounting for adherence of these elderly women with an exercise program . the statistical analysis was blinded , performed without input from the researchers who developed the questionnaire , and without involvement of the study volunteers . the first regression model aimed to identify the contribution of the following explanatory variables : presence of pain , a history of falls , number of comorbidities , self - perception of health , level of stress , cognitive capacity , depressive symptoms , and functional capacity ( measured by gait speed , timed up and go test , and sit - to - stand test ) . the other two regression models assessed the association between 13 motivational items and 12 items that acted as barriers to participation of elderly people in different therapeutic exercise programs . in the three models , the explanatory variables entered into the model were determined by theoretical reference . to define the variables in the model , the enter38 method was used and to define the model as significant was defined as p<0.20 and alpha 5% . interpretation of the logistic regression analysis was defined , by the odds ratio ( or ) , as a relative risk of nonadherence . the level of statistical significance was set at 5% for all analyses , which were done using statistical package for the social sciences for windows version 17.0 software ( spss inc , chicago , il , usa ) . our study population comprised a convenience sample of women aged 65 years or older who lived in the community and were recruited by advertising among third - age groups and associations as well as in newspapers . the sample was not randomized , and the study design involved development of two exercise programs at different points in time . the first volunteers were allocated to a muscle strengthening group , and when enough participants had been enrolled in this group , subsequent volunteers were allocated to an aerobic exercise group . we excluded anyone who showed cognitive changes detectable on the brazilian version16 of the mini - mental state examination . we also excluded subjects who had undergone orthopedic leg surgery , those with a history of fracture in the previous 6 months , those with a neurological disorder , and those with clinical or sensory conditions that precluded their participation in an exercise program . we calculated the sample size using the following regression model formula : 10 ( k + 1 ) , in which k represents the number of explanatory variables in the model.16,17 for each intervention group , three models of regression were used to explain adherence or failure to adhere . the ten explanatory variables used for the model , chosen from the theoretical framework , were : the timed up and go test,18 the sit - to - stand test,19 habitual gait speed,20,21 history of falls , presence of pain , number of comorbidities , self - rated health,22,23 depressive symptoms,24 self - rated stress,25 and cognitive capability.16 the other two models were constructed to include 13 motivators and 12 barriers according to the adherence questionnaire developed by researchers . thus , 10 ( 13 + 1 ) = 140 elderly women were necessary for each group . for sample characterization , we obtained sociodemographic data and information relevant to the clinical status of our elderly female study participants using a questionnaire developed by the researchers . folstein et al26 recommended the mini - mental state examination as a useful screening tool for detection of cognitive impairment in both the clinical and research setting . in 1994 , bertolucci et al published a version of the mini - mental state examination adapted for the brazilian population.16 in the present study , we used this tool as a reference for cutoff points , with a score of 13 for illiterate elderly and a score of 24 for educated elderly , given that previous studies have demonstrated this scale to have good reliability.27,28 in the present study , the mini - mental state examination was used for subject exclusion and test scores were used as an explanatory variable in the regression model to evaluate the association between adherence and cognitive capacity in the study subjects.29,30 the geriatric depression scale ( gds ) was used to screen for the presence of depressive symptoms , and was administered by structured interview . the 15-item gds scale ( gds-15 ) is a short version of the original scale developed by sheikh and yesavage24 and contains items that are most strongly matched with a diagnosis of depression . previous studies have demonstrated that symptoms of depression can interfere with the undertaking of physical exercise and that elderly people experiencing mood changes and general depressive symptoms are less committed to the intervention and therefore the results are worse . a 14-item scale of perceived stress was used to evaluate the level of stress in our study participants . this scale evaluated three factors considered to be the main components in the experience of stress , ie , the extent to which individuals rate their lives as unpredictable , uncontrollable , and overloaded.31 henry et al32 found that patients who are asked to perform many exercises do not perform as well in terms of adherence . in addition , a prescription for excessive exercise can negatively affect adherence in elderly women.10,25 self - evaluation of health status was determined by a simple question , in a general way , how do you consider your health ? . the answer to this question is one of the most commonly used indices in gerontological research and is an important indicator of functional decline and consequent restriction of activity.22,23 the literature demonstrates that elderly women with greater adherence are the most likely to get involved in other programs for promoting health , and that this is directly linked to their behavior , perception of their health , motivation , and self - efficacy.30 we selected three tests to evaluate functional capacity , all of which can be carried out simply and rapidly in clinic practice ; these tests are also valid and reliable in the elderly population . we used these tests because elderly people with lower functional performance find it more difficult to develop regular exercise habits.14 we measured walking speed over 10 minutes to evaluate habitual gait speed . pace was registered only in the middle 6 m of a lane , identified by tape markings , to avoid acceleration and deceleration bias.20,21,33 we used the timed up and go test to evaluate mobility . this test records the time taken for a subject to stand up without using their arms from a sitting position in a standardized chair with a seat height of 45 cm , walk 3 m , turn around , and return to the seat and sit down again . this test has high interrater reliability ( intraclass correlation coefficient 0.99 ) and intrarater reliability ( intraclass correlation coefficient 0.99).18,34 to evaluate functional performance in terms of sitting and standing , which is an indirect measure of strength in the legs and is associated with decline of function and capability , we used the sit - to - stand test with a standardized chair of 45 cm and floor height as the reference.19,20 there are no previous examples of adherence questionnaires validated and adapted for an elderly population in brazil.35 therefore , we developed our own adherence questionnaire based on the literature and on the cultural , economic , and social context of brazil . this questionnaire contained questions on the following three components : reasons for lack of attendance at sessions , motivating factors , and barriers to adherence with the different therapeutic exercise programs . as part of the development of this instrument , we trialed the questionnaire in ten elderly subjects participating in a physical exercise program . the necessary adjustments were made until the final version of the questionnaire was ready for use . intraobserver and interobserver variability were assessed by the kappa coefficient and this resulted in excellent intraobserver reliability ( kappa coefficient 0.846 ) and interobserver reliability ( kappa coefficient 0.822 ) . first , the brazilian version26 of the mini - mental state examination was used to exclude elderly women with cognitive impairment . this was followed by a clinical sociodemographic questionnaire in the form of a structured interview for characterization of the sample.16 for the functional tests , all participants were given the same verbal instructions and the investigators demonstrated tests before the participants carried them out . after the initial evaluation , the elderly women were allocated to a therapeutic exercise group , ie , either muscle strength training or aerobic exercise . each program lasted 10 weeks and comprised three sessions weekly , each lasting approximately 50 minutes and guided by physiotherapists and members of the research team . the muscular strength training group carried out leg exercises involving concentric and eccentric contraction with resistance , with the load tailored to meet individual requirements and ability . the load appropriate for each participant was defined by calculation of maximum resistance.36 the aerobic exercise program was based on a protocol recommended by the american college of sport medicine ( 2009 ) for the elderly , and comprised 5 minutes of warming up , 40 minutes of aerobic activity , including exercises for the arms and legs while walking , orthostatic exercise , and a 5-minute recovery period . before and after each exercise session , blood pressure , and heart rate were measured . in addition , heart rate monitoring was undertaken in participants allocated to aerobic exercise to ensure that the program was safe for them and that their training range was appropriate.37 after completion of the 10-week training program , the volunteers were re - evaluated using the adherence questionnaire administered by an investigator who had not been involved in the intervention ( to avoid information bias in collection of the data ) . elderly women who had abandoned their allocated program and were otherwise lost to follow - up were also contacted by the team ; a number of these women subsequently visited the federal university of minas gerais to answer the adherence questionnaire . successful intervention programs require an adherence rate of more than 85% to have satisfactory results and ensure internal validity . therefore , in the present study , elderly women with a participation rate of 85% or more in the exercise program were considered to have been adherent.31 thus , for a total of 30 sessions , five absences were allowed . those lost to the program comprised elderly women who did not finish the program or those who missed six or more exercise sessions during the 10-week intervention . three logistic regression models were built for each of the groups to identify factors accounting for adherence of these elderly women with an exercise program . the statistical analysis was blinded , performed without input from the researchers who developed the questionnaire , and without involvement of the study volunteers . the first regression model aimed to identify the contribution of the following explanatory variables : presence of pain , a history of falls , number of comorbidities , self - perception of health , level of stress , cognitive capacity , depressive symptoms , and functional capacity ( measured by gait speed , timed up and go test , and sit - to - stand test ) . the other two regression models assessed the association between 13 motivational items and 12 items that acted as barriers to participation of elderly people in different therapeutic exercise programs . in the three models , the explanatory variables entered into the model were determined by theoretical reference . to define the variables in the model , the enter38 method was used and to define the model as significant was defined as p<0.20 and alpha 5% . interpretation of the logistic regression analysis was defined , by the odds ratio ( or ) , as a relative risk of nonadherence . the level of statistical significance was set at 5% for all analyses , which were done using statistical package for the social sciences for windows version 17.0 software ( spss inc , chicago , il , usa ) . a total of 382 elderly community - dwelling women participated in this study , comprising 231 in the aerobic exercise group and 151 in the muscle strength training group . there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of clinical or demographic profile . the rate of adherence was 49.70% in the aerobic exercise group and 56.20% in the muscle strength training group . the rate of retention in the program was 71.40% for the aerobic exercise group and 66.80% for the muscle strength training group . the regression model comprising the ten explanatory variables selected from the theoretical framework did not find any statistically significant differences for the aerobic exercise group ( p=0.947 ) or the muscle strength training group ( p=0.104 ) . none of the variables included in the regression model were predictors of adherence in either of the exercise programs . the multiple logistic regression model comprising motivators for exercise was significant ( p=0.003 ) for the muscle strength training group ( r=0.310 ) . ( p=0.037 ; or 0.234 , 95% confidence interval [ ci ] 0.0124.523 ) ; i practice exercises even when i do nt feel like it ( p=0.004 ; or 0.062 , 95% ci 0.0090.416 ) ; and companions in the group help me to deal with my problems this multiple logistic regression model comprising motivators for exercise was also significant for the aerobic group ( p=0.008 ; r=0.154 ) . variables that predicted adherence were exercises increase my concentration ( p=0.003 ; or 0.598 , 95% ci 0.0645.622 ) and i practice exercise even when i do nt feel like it ( p=0.05 ; or 0.471 , 95% ci 0.1671.329 ) . the third regression model analyzed variables related to barriers to exercise reported by the elderly women . the result was significant only for the muscle strength training group ( p=0.003 ; r=0.236 ) . the variable that predicted adherence was the bad weather disrupts the accomplishment of the exercises although the models did not canvass many variables that were predictors of adherence , the results suggest that there are many barriers to adherence with exercise in the elderly . this was seen in the statement if my health was better i would be more active . the second most common barrier was difficulty performing exercise due to pain ; more than half of the elderly who did not adhere to their program agreed with this statement . the least important items for participants who did not adhere to their exercise program were the opportunity to have group companions and consideration of physical exercise as a leisure activity . the low rate of adherence compared with the rate of retention in the present study indicates that the number of absences among participants was very high . although the participants in our study did not abandon their exercise program , they found it difficult to attend often enough to reap the benefits of the proposed intervention . on investigating the reasons for nonattendance in each group , we noticed that changes in state of health was the most frequent reason given by adherent and nonadherent participants in both exercise groups . it is also important to highlight that family problems , lack of motivation , and pain were cited markedly more often by elderly women who did not adhere to the program than by those who did adhere . participants in the present study showed lower adherence rates than those previously recommended to ensure the effectiveness of therapeutic exercise programs . thus , completion of an exercise program , or rate of retention in the program , does not mean good adherence or good results . health services , community centers , and sports centers that implement exercise programs for the elderly should develop strategies to encourage these people to exercise and increase their frequency of exercise . brittle et al39 reported a high 82% retention rate in exercise programs for the elderly ; however , study participants attended an average of only 43% of the sessions offered , and only 18% of the sample participated in all of the sessions prescribed . thus , it is clear that while the elderly seem to enjoy this kind of physical activity , attendance at sessions offered is not guaranteed . in our study , the adherence rate was higher in the muscle strength group than in the aerobic exercise group . this finding is consistent with the results of a meta - analysis of 3,389 elderly subjects by hong et al showing that resistance exercise programs had higher rates of adherence than aerobic exercise programs.7 in elderly populations , the high prevalence of joint diseases , such as osteoarthritis , frequently hampers successful performance of aerobic exercises because many activities cause joint impact . muscle strength training exercises without weight - bearing provide more joint stability.7,10 elderly people tend to participate more effectively at the beginning of exercise programs ; however , adherence diminishes as time passes.10 if health professionals can identify patients at high risk of nonadherence with a proposed treatment , special attention can be given to them during the intervention , and may help to increase their adherence rate.6,10,40 in the present study , none of the explanatory variables selected from the theoretical framework were predictors of adherence in our regression models . heuvelen et al,6 a higher number of comorbidities and chronic diseases was correlated to lower adherence of subjects ( n=118 ) to a program of physical exercise . in that study , the participants were divided in two groups , ie , one that carried out physical exercises and another that received a psychological approach . those in the psychological group who recorded only moderate results for adl and habitual gait speed before intervention had the lowest program adherence . in the physical activity group , adherence was low for subjects with low adl scores and modest habitual walking gait scores . worse functional performance is therefore an impediment to adherence with physical exercise programs in the elderly.6 forkan et al5 also found that changes in health state were a frequent reason for low adherence with continuing exercise regimes among the elderly.5 in their study , one of the factors associated with lack of participation ( p<0.05 ) in an exercise program by the elderly was changes in the weather , especially the presence of cold weather . there is no severe winter in brazil ; however , the rainy season brings disruption and we found that this was an important barrier to exercise for participants in the muscle strength training group . this can be explained by the fact that the program was held in the first half of the year when there is a lot of rain , while the aerobic group program was conducted in the second half of the year . with the rain , use of public transport becomes even harder , there is a greater risk of falls , and elderly people struggle with the difficulty of having to walk while holding umbrellas and bags . understanding the benefits of an exercise program was an important motivator in both the muscle strength training group and the aerobic exercise group in this study . these elderly women mentioned that they practiced their exercises even when they were not in the mood , and realized that exercise was necessary regardless of their mood , indicating their belief in the benefits stemming from the practice . therefore , educational initiatives highlighting the importance of exercise need to be promoted.8,41 one important study found that improved concentration acted as a motivator and predicted adherence with exercise programs , and this could be due to increased circulation in the brain . concentration can be explained as intense brain activity and research suggests that physical exercise can increase cognitive control and the capacity to pay attention , resulting in better cognitive function.42 socialization , or the presence of other elderly people , was also a predictor of adherence in the muscle strength training group . exchange of experiences and encountering people with similar problems and similar difficulties , support , listening , and all the other components associated with a group activity are all very important to the benefit of physical exercise in groups . although individual exercise regimes may bring more directed physical benefits , the benefits of group exercise in terms of social and emotional health are critical and should be encouraged.30,43 our results reflect the difficulties associated with adherence . the present study did not show a direct correlation between low self - rated health and low adherence with exercise programs ; therefore , the influencing factors are multifactorial and should be investigated in terms of physical , emotional , and social health . although adherence to both programs was suboptimal in this study , some factors may have contributed to the increased adherence rate in relation to the population in general . the elderly women who participated in this study chose to do so and were active and healthy ; in other words , they were available for and interested in undertaking physical exercise . another limiting factor was the short duration of the study ; this is because it is difficult to maintain an ideal exercise frequency in long - term exercise programs and adherence rates in such programs are even smaller . in addition , a factor that could have contributed negatively to the programs developed for this study is the fact that they constituted general exercises and there was no specific individual objective . preventive exercises are less stimulating than exercises that aim to provide relief for a specific health problem . the scale developed to assess adherence may not have been sensitive enough to identify factors associated with adherence as dichotomous . the volunteer may have answered yes or no without thinking of any particular situation . although adherence to both programs was suboptimal in this study , some factors may have contributed to the increased adherence rate in relation to the population in general . the elderly women who participated in this study chose to do so and were active and healthy ; in other words , they were available for and interested in undertaking physical exercise . another limiting factor was the short duration of the study ; this is because it is difficult to maintain an ideal exercise frequency in long - term exercise programs and adherence rates in such programs are even smaller . in addition , a factor that could have contributed negatively to the programs developed for this study is the fact that they constituted general exercises and there was no specific individual objective . preventive exercises are less stimulating than exercises that aim to provide relief for a specific health problem . the scale developed to assess adherence may not have been sensitive enough to identify factors associated with adherence as dichotomous . future research on adherence with exercise programs for the elderly should incorporate specific strategies ; this will increase recruitment rates and boost adherence and retention of people of different cultures and ethnicities in exercise programs.30 future work in this area should focus on behavioral motivation . it is also important to look more broadly at social and environmental contexts and take into account direct variables , such as those related to commitment to exercise among older women , sedentary people , and patients with multiple diseases and functional deficits.44 we recommend that older people be asked more directly about what influences them , and qualitative studies should be encouraged in this regard .

backgroundparticipation of older people in a program of regular exercise is an effective strategy to minimize the physical decline associated with age . the purpose of this study was to assess adherence rates in older women enrolled in two different exercise programs ( one aerobic exercise and one strength training ) and identify any associated clinical or functional factors.methodsthis was an exploratory observational study in a sample of 231 elderly women of mean age 70.5 years . we used a structured questionnaire with standardized tests to evaluate the relevant clinical and functional measures . a specific adherence questionnaire was developed by the researchers to determine motivators and barriers to exercise adherence.resultsthe adherence rate was 49.70% in the aerobic exercise group and 56.20% in the strength training group . multiple logistic regression models for motivation were significant ( p=0.003 ) for the muscle strengthening group ( r2=0.310 ) and also significant ( p=0.008 ) for the aerobic exercise group ( r2=0.154 ) . a third regression model for barriers to exercise was significant ( p=0.003 ) only for the muscle strengthening group ( r2=0.236 ) . the present study shows no direct relationship between worsening health status and poor adherence.conclusionfactors related to adherence with exercise in the elderly are multifactorial .

A 21-year-old driver faces a felony charge after Austin police said he didn’t stop after hitting a woman with his SUV near downtown early Saturday. According to an arrest affidavit, the woman and her sister had left the Sixth Street bar Terminal 6 and were at the intersection of East Seventh Street and the southbound frontage road of Interstate 35 shortly before 2:30 a.m. Saturday. The woman was trying to prove “she could run fast in heels,” her sister told police, and she took off before her sister could stop her. The woman nearly made it across the road before she was struck by a maroon SUV and dragged about 15 yards, the affidavit said. According to the affidavit, a witness said the SUV “continued to drive east on Seventh Street until it was no longer in view.” The woman was taken to the hospital for a “brain bleed and needed immediate surgery,” police said. About 20 minutes after police responded to the scene, officers identified a nearby GMC Yukon as the suspect vehicle, the affidavit said. The SUV’s driver, identified by authorities as Felipe Hernandez, told police “he knew he had hit someone, and proceeded through the northbound service road light, made a U-turn, and sat in his vehicle crying before returning to the scene,” the court document said. Hernandez has been charged with failure to stop and render aid, according to court documents. He was not in Travis County Jail on Monday. ||||| An Austin man is facing charges for running over a woman as she attempted to sprint across a road to prove to she could "run fast in heels" and driving away, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Fox News. The woman was walking back from a local bar around 2:30 a.m. Saturday with her sister when an unidentified male asked if she could run in the shoes she was wearing. To prove her talents, the woman then started to run across the road. GOATS CAUGHT ROAMING NEW YORK CITY SUBWAY TRACKS A maroon SUV hit and dragged the woman roughly 15 yards during her attempt to get to the other side of an intersection along Interstate 35, the Austin Police Department said in the affidavit. A witness told police the driver of the vehicle didn't stop after hitting the woman, but rather "continued to drive east ... until it was no longer in view." Police responded to the scene nearly 20 minutes later. They spotted the suspect's vehicle nearby and identified the driver as Felipe Hernandez. Hernandez, 21, told police "he knew he had hit someone, and proceeded through the northbound service road light, made a U-turn, and sat in his vehicle crying before returning to the scene," the affidavit states. The woman was transported to a hospital for a "brain bleed and needed immediate surgery," according to police. Hernandez has been charged with failure to stop and render aid, a third-degree felony.

– A woman trying to prove she could run quickly in heels didn't run fast enough Saturday: The unidentified woman, who'd been asked if she could run in the shoes she was wearing, had nearly crossed Interstate 35 after leaving an Austin bar around 2:30am when she was hit by an SUV, reports the Austin American Statesman. She survived, but needed surgery to stop bleeding in her brain. Police say the SUV initially left the scene but was located nearby 20 minutes later. Charged with failure to stop and render aid, Felipe Hernandez, 21, told authorities he continued driving, then "sat in his vehicle crying before returning to the scene," according to an affidavit, per Fox News.

More than 30 people were burned while walking on hot coals at a Tony Robbins event this past week. The coal walk was part of Robbins' four-day "Unleash the Power Within" seminar in Dallas, and it has been a tradition at many of the motivational speaker's events for decades. Five people were transported to the hospital, while more than 20 were treated for burns to their feet and lower extremities by paramedics at the scene. Advertisement - Continue Reading Below One victim, Paul Gold, told the Associated Press that it felt like someone had "taken a hot iron and pressed it against my feet." It will take weeks for his injuries to heal. Gold's fiancé had minor burns, and he observed others crying in pain. Gold believed that staff were adding more coals to the fire before the other coals had a chance to cool. Another participant said that the reason some were injured was because they were taking selfies. Most Popular Unsurprisingly, this is not the first time this has happened. In June 2012, 21 people were treated for burns after walking on coals at a Tony Robbins event, the San Jose Mercury News reported. And, to add insult to injury—quite literally—Robbins had his followers so convinced that whether you get burned is about a "state of mind" and not simple physics, some openly blamed themselves for their injuries in the 2012 incident. "I did it before, didn't get into the right state and got burned," an injured Andrew Brenner told the said. "I knew I wasn't at my peak state. I didn't take it as serious." Robbins claims on his website that walking on fire will help his followers get "through any problem... in your life." Unless that problem is second- or third-degree burns, of course. ||||| Participants at a Dallas event where about 30 followers of motivational speaker Tony Robbins were burned while walking on hot coals defended Robbins on Sunday, saying the incident had been vastly overblown. Dallas Fire-Rescue responded to multiple calls about "burn victims" — some who needed to be hospitalized — about 11 p.m. Thursday (midnight ET Friday) following Robbins' Firewalk at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center. More than 30 people were treated at the scene, and five were taken to a hospital for evaluation, a Dallas Fire-Rescue spokeswoman said. Jennifer Connelly, a spokeswoman for Robbins' operations, thanked emergency personnel Sunday for their "quick and robust response" but said they weren't needed because the company always staffs its events with medical personnel. "Seven thousand attendees successfully participated in a fire walk which has been a celebrated part of this event for 35 years," Connelly said said in a statement. More than 30 people attending a Tony Robbins event in Dallas were treated for burns, most of them at the scene, after the motivational speaker encouraged them to walk on hot coals Thursday. NBC Dallas-Fort Worth While the goal is to "have no guests with any discomfort afterwards," it's "not uncommon to have fewer than 1 percent of participants experience 'hot spots,' which is similar to a sunburn, which can be treated with aloe," she said. Bo Luxman of Memphis, Tennessee, told NBC News that it was the sixth Unleash the Power event he'd attended in the last five years and that he'd never been burned during the Firewalk, which Robbins' company describes as "a symbolic experience that proves if you can make it through the fire, you can make it through anything." "It's just been an amazing, outstanding experience every time," Luxman said. "All of a sudden you had these ambulances showing up — sirens blaring, lights blaring — and we've still got people trying to walk," he said. "It really was distracting, and if anything that added to the problems in terms of whatever injuries there were. Motivational speaker Tony Robbins during a taping of Fox Business Network's 'Wall Street Week' in March in New York. Richard Drew / AP "But keep in mind there were 7,000 — over 7,000 — participants that walked successfully with no problems at all. I was one of them," he said, adding, "It was definitely blown out of proportion." Steve Boyd, also of Memphis, said he saw one woman on the back of a man afterward and assumed she was one of those who was burned. Otherwise, he said, few people even knew there was an issue. "It kept going it kept going," Boyd said. "The ambulances and everything were to the back side of the people walking, so people may or may not have seen it, and I'm not sure what affect it would have." Boyd called Robbins "awesome," saying he "really has a unique gift." "He somehow brings so much into one event," Boyd said. "It's not just about walking on fire — really, the Firewalk is minuscule compared to the power that carries on through out the rest of the event in terms of all categories of life." ||||| The seminar is called “Unleash the Power Within.” The multi-day event with world-renowned motivational speaker Tony Robbins is “designed to help you unlock and unleash the forces inside that can help you break through any limit and create the quality of life you desire,” according to promotional materials. “Overcome the unconscious fears that are holding you back,” Robbins’s site proclaims. “Storm across a bed of hot coals. “Once you start doing what you thought was impossible, you’ll conquer the other fires of your life with ease.” But Thursday night’s coal walk in Dallas didn’t go so well for dozens of seminar attendees: Five people were taken to the hospital and about 30 to 40 were evaluated after sustaining “burn injuries to their feet and lower extremities” after attempting to walk across hot coals in front of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, said Dallas Fire and Rescue spokesman Jason Evans said, Multiple rescue units were sent, and a Dallas Area Rapid Transit bus held the 30 to 40 patients who were being evaluated, according to officials. “The severity of the injuries were unknown, but most people elected not to be taken to the hospital,” Evans said. A total of 7,000 people participated in the fire walk “which has been a celebrated part of this event for 35 years,” Jennifer Connelly, a spokeswoman for Robbins, said in a statement. “Someone unfamiliar with the process of the fire walk called 911 reporting the need for emergency services vehicles to be dispatched,” she said. “While there was no need for emergency personnel we are grateful to the quick and robust response from Dallas emergency services, only 5 of 7,000 participants requested any examination beyond what was readily available on site. We are pleased to have completed another successful fire walk for 7,000 guests and look forward to the remainder of an outstanding weekend with them.” City officials knew in advance that there were plans for some kind of coal-walking event at the seminar, convention center director Ron King told the Dallas Morning News. “He did it two years ago without any incidents that we are aware of,” King told the newspaper. Event organizers had the necessary permits for the coal walk, including one for flammable and combustible liquids, and one for open burning/recreational fires, said Evans, the Dallas Fire and Rescue spokesman. Two fire prevention officers, two paramedics and one rescue unit were also a part of the organizers’ plans, Evans said. All of the circumstances surrounding the event will be considered before deciding whether to bring Robbins back for another seminar, King added. “We do take the safety of our attendees very seriously,” King said, according to the Dallas Morning News. “Safety will be the primary consideration before we consider moving forward with a future event.” One attendee told WFAA that some of those attempting the walk were distracted. “There was someone in front of us and someone behind us on their cellphone, taking selfies and taking pictures,” Jacqueline Luxemberg told the station. That person, Luxemberg said, asked others “to video record for her, so I think that that has a lot to do with it.” Connelly, the spokeswoman for Robbins, said: “It is always the goal to have no guests with any discomfort afterwards but it’s not uncommon to have fewer than 1 percent of participants experience ‘hot spots,’ which is similar to a sunburn which can be treated with aloe. As always there were trained medical and event staff at the fire walk specifically to offer quick and easy remedies for any soreness.” This isn’t the first time a Robbins coal walk has resulted in injuries. In 2012, nearly two dozen people were injured during a “Unleash the Power Within” seminar in San Jose, Calif. Thousands walked across the hot coals in the walk that included 24 lanes, each measuring eight feet long. “We have been safely providing this experience for more than three decades, and always under the supervision of medical personnel,” Robbins Research International said at the time. “A small number of our participants experienced pain or minor injuries and sought medical attention,” it said. “We continue to work with local fire and emergency personnel to ensure this event is always done in the safest way possible.” For thousands of years, people around the globe have practiced “fire walking.” Rituals developed independently in places such as India and Greece, where they were featured during religious ceremonies or as a rite of passage. A man prepares live coal for people to walk on during the traditional ‘step on the fire’ at San edro Manrique village in Soria, Spain, on June 24. (Wilfredo Garcia/EPA) The earliest known reference to fire walking dates to 1200 B.C., in India, according to now retired University of Pittsburgh professor David Willey. Willey, who once held the world record for longest fire walk, has written extensively on the science behind the walk, and why it is that humans can complete them unhurt. “Although it was, and still is by some, thought to be a paranormal phenomena, it has actually been fairly well understood, and has been explained using the principles of physics for at least the last half century,” Willey has written. It’s quite possible to walk across coals without landing in the hospital. First of all, “wood is a lousy conductor,” Willey told National Geographic in 2005, and so are human feet. Conduction is the main way heat transfers from coals to feet during walks. Coals that burn no hotter than 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit shouldn’t burn participants. But the trick is to make that walk snappy. Brief foot-to-coal contact is important. “It is neither necessary nor advisable to run, a brisk walk is reported to work best, with each step taking half a second or less,” Willey has written. For a 14-foot fire walk, “each foot will be in contact for a total time of a second or so.” The Guinness World Record for longest fire walk, set in 2007, clocked in at just under 600 feet. But while science explains why many people, for centuries, have walked fiery paths unscathed, there still is a mental component involved. “You’ve got to believe you’re going to be okay, otherwise you wouldn’t do it,” Willey, the physics professor, told National Geographic. “But what your mind-set is has got absolutely nothing to do with whether you’re going to burn or not.” Bates College anthropologist Loring Danforth wrote a book comparing Greek rituals with 20th-century New Age fire walking in the United States. He notes its use by Robbins and others. Danforth has referred to American fire walking as “a ritual therapy,” one that “asserts the power of the self, a self that is free from the limits and constraints imposed by social responsibilities and moral obligations.” “Firewalking offers people a liberating experience of self-realization … in a world where great value is placed on individual freedom of expression and self-determination,” Danforth said. [This post has been updated.] READ MORE: Being stressed makes you work harder for rewards, but you don’t feel greater pleasure Your relationships are just as important to your health as diet and exercise ||||| By CALEB DOWNS and CHRISTINE SCHMIDT Staff Writers Longtime followers of speaker Tony Robbins say those who were treated for burns after walking across coals Thursday night during a motivational exercise in downtown Dallas lacked the proper focus. But a burn expert at Parkland Memorial Hospital says it’s no wonder five people were hospitalized and dozens more were treated at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center after the fire-walking session. “Just don’t do it,” said Stephanie Campbell, the hospital’s burn program manager. “Coal-walking is not an activity that we would ever recommend. We don’t believe there is any safe way to do it.” About 7,000 people attended the “Unleash the Power Within” event, Robbins’ staff said, and the vast majority of them performed the fire-walk. Participants spent the entire first day of the four-day event preparing themselves to achieve their “peak state” before walking across the 15 feet of coals. But social media and smartphones are a powerful distraction that can shake that focus, said Tad Schinke, who has been a crew member at more than 100 Robbins events. “I’ve seen people halfway through the fire walk pulling their phones out to video themselves,” Schinke said. “It’s frustrating. My job is to prepare them for the walk, but once they’re out on the coals, they’re on their own.” Campbell, however, said feet are no match for burning coals, no matter how focused the participant might be. “The skin is our body’s major barrier against bacteria and fluid loss,” she said. “When it comes into contact with a heat source that is high enough to cause damage to the skin, it disrupts this barrier. … Full burns can actually require surgery with skin-grafting.” Schinke said the trouble began around 11 p.m. when a participant felt her husband wasn’t receiving enough attention from medical staff at the fire walk. He said the woman called 911 and reported that “hundreds” of people had burned their feet and that authorities should send as many ambulances as possible. Paramedics found a large number of the would-be fire-walkers with burns on their feet and lower extremities, Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesman Jason Evans said. In addition to multiple rescue units and EMS supervisors, a DART bus was requested to hold up to 40 patients who were treated onsite. Evans said two paramedics and a rescue unit were posted at the event beforehand, in addition to a private team of medics. All of the event’s permits were in order, and a “fire watch” team was onsite to make sure the event complied with regulations. “There will be no investigation by DFR into why so many people sustained burn injuries,” he said. Erin Clark, a participant from Dallas, said there were several lanes of burning coals set up in a parking lot outside the convention center, and it took five or six steps to clear them to the sod on the other side.Crew members at the end of each lane slowed down the fire-walkers and washed their feet. Clark said she got a “tiny” burn on her foot, but it was fine by morning. When she finished the fire-walk, Clark said, she did notice some people sitting on the curb looking at their feet, but only one seemed to be in serious pain. Paul Gold of West Palm Beach, Fla., told The Associated Press that he suffered second-degree burns on both feet. It was his second time fire-walking, he said, describing the first as a good experience. “In hindsight, jumping off would have been a fantastic idea,” he said. “But when you’re in the spirit of the moment, you’re kind of focused on one task.” Gold, 44, suspects the difference this time was that staff members didn’t allow the coals to cool enough before adding more. Bahareh Hosseini of Dallas has done two other fire walks at Robbins’ events, but Thursday night she burned her feet so badly she couldn’t walk afterward. She said that she was fine Friday and that her burns were her fault and had nothing to do with Robbins or his staff. She said she looked down at the coals rather than keeping her eyes up like Robbins instructed her to. “It was such a life-changing experience,” Hosseini said. “I would do it 10,000 more times if I could.” @TonyRobbins I WANT A PICTURE WITH YOU !!!! pic.twitter.com/n0cAZxC7jV — karla olivas (@karla_olivas) June 24, 2016 Schinke said people’s focus was likely disrupted by all the ambulances, which ultimately ended up “just sitting there.” He said it’s not uncommon for a few people to get minor blisters, but in his almost 24 years’ experience, he’s never heard of anyone seriously burning his or her feet. That sentiment was echoed by several veteran attendees. Rafael Moret of Florida has followed Robbins for more than 20 years. He said he’s done fire walks in New Jersey and Florida and had never heard of people injuring themselves. “They were probably on their phones not paying attention when Tony was giving us instructions,” Moret said. Hosseini said she heard other people complaining about their feet after the fire walk, but their injuries weren’t serious and they were just being “childish,” she said. Her brother, who was on the medical team Thursday night, rubbed aloe vera on people’s feet, and they were fine, she said. But Campbell, the Parkland burn expert, said anyone suffering from foot burns should see a doctor. “Minor burns can usually be treated with topical medication and dressed until they heal,” she said. “Since [the feet are] an area of your body you use a lot and our feet are on the ground and on areas that are not clean, you would want to get that checked out by a physician.” Ky and Zia Nix, self-professed fire-walk “experts” from New York, said the blame shouldn’t be placed on Robbins or his team, but on the people “who weren’t listening.” “From my perspective, it was great,” Zia said. “We talked all day about overcoming our fears and mental preparation. Out of the 8,000 people that were there, only like four or five burned their feet. That’s not bad odds.” Pujan Patel of Dallas said he felt great after the fire walk and was dancing with everyone afterward. The people who burned their feet should have done a better job of mentally preparing, he said. “It was very easy,” Patel said. “But there’s always going to be 1 percent of people who are idiots.” Staff writer Liz Farmer and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

– Tony Robbins has taken a lot of heat since dozens of people at one of his seminars were injured last week in Dallas while walking over hot coals. But not everyone is breathing fire on the motivational guru. First, and not surprisingly, Robbins' rep Jennifer Connelly defended the "Unleash the Power Within" exercise, per NBC News, in a statement: "Seven thousand attendees successfully participated in a fire walk [that] has been a celebrated part of this event for 35 years." And while she also expressed her gratitude to emergency responders who treated what the Washington Post reports were 30 to 40 "burn victims" (five had to be hospitalized), she noted outside assistance really wasn't necessary, since Robbins' events always have medical personnel to treat the small percentage ("fewer than 1%") of attendees who may get "hot spots" on their feet during the hot-coal stroll. Local officials appear to back up Connelly's assessment: A rep for the Dallas fire department tells the Post that Robbins' group had all necessary permits and that there were two fire-prevention officers, two paramedics, and a rescue unit on hand. And the director of the Dallas convention center where the seminar was held notes Robbins did the coal walk there two years ago "without any incidents that we are aware of." But perhaps Robbins' strongest defenders are those who actually attended the event, with fans praising him as "awesome" and insisting that attendees distracted by taking selfies and even the outside medical response may have exacerbated the problem. One gushes to NBC about Robbins' "unique gift," while a six-time attendee says, "All of a sudden you had these ambulances showing up—sirens blaring, lights blaring—and we've still got people trying to walk." He adds Robbins' past seminars have been "an amazing, outstanding experience every time."

A meeting of House Democrats flared up on Tuesday over the increasingly thorny issue of whether a pregnant member should be allowed to vote from afar in the party's leadership elections this week. Democratic leaders, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (Calif.), have denied a request from Rep. Tammy Duckworth Ladda (Tammy) Tammy DuckworthDems lambaste Trump’s ‘outrageous’ EPA chemical safety pick Fight erupts over training hours for pilots Senate to vote on Rand Paul's war proposal MORE (Ill.), who lost both of her legs in the Iraq War, to waive the Democratic rule barring proxy votes. Duckworth, 46, is in the last stages of a pregnancy and her doctor won't allow her to travel back to Washington to vote in person. ADVERTISEMENT The denial has angered a number of Democrats, who aired their discontent during Tuesday's caucus meeting in the Capitol, after members reelected Pelosi and her top lieutenants as leaders in the next Congress. “A lot of people felt that Tammy's patriotism and sacrifice to this country warrants special consideration. And I'm one of those people who think it's hard to make an argument that it does not require special consideration,” Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) said afterward. “She's given parts of her body for her country, and if it came to a vote, I would vote to give her a proxy.” Thompson said the debate was fueled by “strong feelings on both sides.” “When Democrats take a position, we're passionate about it,” he said. “This is one of those issues where there's a lot of passion on both sides.” Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), a civil rights icon who holds tremendous sway over the caucus on such issues, gave an impassioned speech in favor of allowing Duckworth a proxy vote, arguing it's a matter of simple justice, according to a number of lawmakers in the room. Democratic leaders, however, view the issue differently. On Monday, Pelosi argued that allowing Duckworth to vote by proxy could open the floodgates to other members requesting similar exceptions in the future. “The fact is that we don't know what's going on in the lives of many people,” Pelosi told reporters on Monday. “You're going to establish a situation where we're going to determine who has a note from the doctor that's valid or not. It's really a place we shouldn't go.” Behind closed doors, many Democrats suspect Pelosi's denial could be related to her support for Rep. Anna Eshoo (D), a close friend and fellow Californian, in her race against Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) for the ranking member position on the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee. That race is expected to be tight — both sides claim to have the numbers to win — and Duckworth had sided with Pallone. “That's the root of all of this,” Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.) said as he left Tuesday's meeting. Then there's the broader issue of the Democrats' messaging strategy. Party leaders, particularly Pelosi, have spent years trying to highlight the distinctions between the Democrats and Republicans when it comes to issues of women's empowerment. With that in mind, some fear Pelosi's move to deny a proxy vote for a pregnant member undercuts the message that Democrats are the party of working women, a charge Pelosi rejects. “It's not to be confused with not having family and medical leave,” Pelosi said Monday. A number of rank-and-file members say the Democrats would be wise to heed Pelosi's warning of a slippery slope. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) said that, during Tuesday's debate, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) had a funeral and “wanted that to be considered.” “And then someone else came up with surgery, and it became easier, I thought, for them to keep the rule rather than select which person deserved a waiver, if any,” Rangel said. “The other circumstances appear to be exceptional to them. A funeral's a funeral.” The Democratic Steering and Policy Committee meets Tuesday afternoon to vote on the Pallone-Eshoo race, with a deciding vote of the full caucus expected Wednesday. With time running short, many expect the issue — so radioactive this week — will simply fizzle out. “It's either this, or I don't think we'll deal with the proxy thing again,” Thompson said. ||||| WASHINGTON (AP) — A day after re-electing Rep. Nancy Pelosi to lead them in the next Congress, House Democrats rebuffed her effort Wednesday to elect a close ally to an important committee post. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of Calif., followed by House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Md., arrives for a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2014, to introduce the... (Associated Press) These various file photos shows Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., left, and Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif. A day after re-electing Rep. Nancy Pelosi to lead them in the next Congress, House Democrats have rebuffed... (Associated Press) In a closed-door meeting, Democrats voted 100-90 to make New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The loser was California Rep. Anna Eshoo, a Pelosi friend whose Silicon Valley district is near San Francisco, which Pelosi represents. The vote attracted interest because it came amid grousing over this month's elections, which saw House Democrats lose at least a dozen seats, and the job the party had done in reaching out to middle-class voters. Though Pelosi retained her post as House minority leader without opposition, Eshoo's defeat raised questions about whether rank-and-file Democrats were in a mood to award a plum assignment to one of Pelosi's close allies. Pallone was supported by Maryland Rep. Steny Hoyer, the No. 2 House Democratic leader and a long-time Pelosi rival. Pelosi had taken the unusual step for a leader of sending a letter to Democrats supporting Eshoo. "One can make the argument that she overdid it," Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., said of Pelosi's effort. He said Pallone's victory would be "very healthy for leadership" because it underscored the need for leaders to listen to lawmakers' concerns. The Energy and Commerce panel is coveted because of its jurisdiction over high-profile issues like health, environment and communications. The vote was conducted by secret ballot. Internal congressional contests can be buffeted by numerous factors, including regional loyalty, gender and race, personal relationships and the degree to which seniority is valued. Many leading members of the Congressional Black Caucus voiced support for Pallone. As the seniority of black lawmakers has grown, many have increasingly viewed seniority as a crucial factor in choosing top committee jobs. Pallone was elected to the House in 1988, Eshoo in 1992. After the vote, Pallone and Eshoo each downplayed the impact that Democrats' attitudes about Pelosi had on their race. Pelosi issued a statement congratulating Pallone for "a hard-fought campaign" and Eshoo for her work on technology issues. ||||| Democrats Fume in Caucus as Duckworth Denied Vote By Emma Dumain House Democrats are continuing to criticize Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s refusal to allow Rep. Tammy Duckworth — a double amputee Iraq War veteran whose pregnancy has made her unable to travel — to vote by proxy in leadership elections this week. Pelosi and her allies have been saying since Nov. 13, when the issue first came up, that House Democratic Caucus rules prohibit proxy votes, and that allowing exceptions for the Illinois Democrat would create a slippery-slope scenario. Members and aides are privately seething over what they see as Pelosi’s latest attempt to stack the deck against Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., who is running for ranking member on the Energy and Commerce Committee against Pelosi’s closest friend and fellow Californian, Rep. Anna G. Eshoo. And many members are concerned about the optics of not allowing Duckworth a proxy vote when Democrats are supposed to be the party that fights for women. Democrats have tried to make electoral gains by touting the “When Women Succeed, America Succeeds” economic agenda. Get breaking news alerts and more from Roll Call in your inbox or on your iPhone. “Our party should be the party that stands up for women,” Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida said in a caucus meeting Tuesday morning, according to a source in the room. A source also said that civil-rights icon and longtime Georgia Democratic Rep. John Lewis was fighting Pelosi’s refusal: “We will pay a price for not doing this,” he reportedly said. The Steering and Policy Committee will meet on Tuesday evening to make a recommendation for the position, with the full caucus expected to vote on the issue Wednesday morning. The Energy and Commerce race is expected to be incredibly close, where every vote will matter — and Duckworth was a public supporter of Pallone. Pelosi reiterated her decision at a news conference Monday, telling reporters: “The rules of the caucus are the same as the rules of the House. No proxy voting. … The fact is is that it’s really important to be here, to be in caucus. It’s more important to vote on the floor. If I were to make a fight, I’d vote to have a proxy vote on the floor than in whatever’s going on in the caucus.” Duckworth herself has not weighed in on the controversy, releasing an even-keeled statement on Thursday night, shortly after her request was denied. “I submitted a request to the Caucus to allow for a proxy vote due to my pregnancy. The Caucus chose not to allow me to vote via proxy. I respect the process and very much appreciated my colleagues who made sure my request was considered,” she said. Related: Cruz: Obama Is ‘No Monarch’ Gowdy: Benghazi Panel Will Meet During Lame Duck With New House Democratic Leadership Team, Pelosi Looks Out for Her Own Pelosi Downplays Seniority System in Endorsing Anna Eshoo for Committee Assignment Pelosi Seeks to Soothe Caucus in Post-Election Conference Call Power Plays: House Gavel and Ranking Member Battles Energy and Commerce Rivals Battle to the Wire In Ranking Member Race, Follow the Money … Spent on Others Roll Call Results Map: Results and District Profiles for Every Seat ||||| Just last Friday night, Bill O’Reilly of Fox News introduced interviewee Jon Stewart of “The Daily Show” as a “big-time liberal commentator.” Fair enough. Do not, however, call Stewart a “partisan commentator,” at least not after last night’s edition of Stewart’s Comedy Central program. That’s because he blew a new gasket in the reputation of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. In two separate segments. In a bit about Jonathan Gruber, the MIT economist whose recently surfaced remarks about the passage of Obamacare have created a fresh crisis for the Obama administration, he cited Pelosi’s apparent selective amnesia. “I don’t know who he is,” Pelosi responded when asked recently about Gruber’s comments — even though Pelosi had cited Gruber as an authority on health-care economics. “Can you ever not disappoint us?” asked Stewart. [posttv url="http://www.washingtonpost.com/posttv/politics/nancy-pelosi-on-jonathan-gruber-in-2009-and-now/2014/11/13/2642df8c-6b6b-11e4-bafd-6598192a448d_video.html" ] That jab was a caress compared with the treatment accorded to Pelosi in a separate segment, this time on her decision to deny a request from Rep. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) to vote by proxy in House leadership elections because she is pregnant. The minority leader defended the decision by saying, “You’re going to establish a situation where you’re going to determine who has a note from the doctor that’s valid … It’s really a place we shouldn’t go down.” Here, Stewart’s “big-time liberal” leanings put him at odds with the House’s leading Democrat, and he feasted. His takedown of Pelosi’s denial of a pregnant woman’s vote in House Democratic elections proceeds in merciless fashion. Availing himself of Pelosi’s trail of accomplishments over the years, he documented how she has established herself on key issues that bear on the Duckworth situation. For instance: The National Partnership for Women and Families, noted Stewart, celebrated Pelosi’s advocacy for “working women.” Also highlighted by Stewart: Pelosi said at an event for the Voting Rights Act, “The right to vote must be the cornerstone of our democracy.” Stewart: “You’re a recognized champion of working women and voting rights.” From there, the rip was easy: “You rejected, you’re suppressing the vote of a minority pregnant woman who is a wounded war veteran. She is everything you supposedly stand for stuffed into one individual. She is a Democratic demographic tur-Duckworth,” said the host. To explain why Pelosi would stiff Duckworth on this front, Stewart showed footage of pundits — including Washington Post reporter Ed O’Keefe — explaining the political backdrop: Duckworth and Pelosi are at odds over who should get the top Democratic seat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Which prompted Stewart to say, “And that’s how the precedent was set, that a woman leader can be every bit as politically craven as her male counterparts.”

– Democrats may have re-elected Nancy Pelosi as their House leader this week, but she's taking lots of criticism from within her own party and beyond over one controversial move, reports Roll Call. Pelosi refused to let Rep. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois vote by proxy in the party's leadership elections. It's not some humdrum procedural issue, however: Duckworth lost both legs in Iraq and now can't travel to DC because she's pregnant. Pelosi took a rules-are-rules position, which isn't sitting well. “A lot of people felt that Tammy's patriotism and sacrifice to this country warrants special consideration," says Rep. Bennie Thompson. But the bigger issue is that some critics see blatant politics at play. As the Hill explains, Pelosi had been pushing for her friend, Rep. Anna Eshoo, to take over as ranking Democrat on the mighty Energy and Commerce Committee. But with the vote tight, and with Duckworth in favor of Rep. Frank Pallone for the spot, critics think Pelosi refused to give Duckworth a break in order to help Eshoo. "You’re suppressing the vote of a minority pregnant woman who is a wounded war veteran," says Jon Stewart, accusing Pelosi of "craven" politics, reports the Washington Post. "She is everything you supposedly stand for." As it turns out, all that bad publicity was for naught anyway: Pallone won the committee post today in a closed-door vote of 100-90, reports AP.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia Recognition Act''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds the following: (1) The Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia are descendants of and political successors to those Indians known as the original Creek Indian Nation at the time of initial European contact with America. (2) The Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia are descendants and political successors to the signatories of the 1832 Treaty of Washington, which was a treaty made before removal while the Creeks were one nation. The Treaty involved all Creeks, including the Upper, Middle, and Lower Creeks, when the Creek Nation was whole and intact. (3) The Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia consists of over 2,500 eligible members, most of whom continue to reside close to their ancestral homeland within the State of Georgia. Pursuant to Article XII of the 1832 Treaty of Washington, the Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia declined to be removed and continued to operate as a sovereign Indian tribe comprising those Lower Creeks declining removal under that treaty. (4) The Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia continues its political and social existence with a viable tribal government carrying out many of its governmental functions through its traditional form of collective decisionmaking and social interaction. (5) In 1972, when the Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia (also known as the Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe East of the Mississippi River) petitioned the Bureau of Indian Affairs for Federal recognition, the tribal leaders were not well educated and the Tribe could not afford competent counsel adequately versed in Federal Indian law. The Tribe was unable to obtain technical assistance in its petition which consequently lacked critical and pertinent historical information necessary for recognition. Thus, due to technical omissions, the petition was denied on December 21, 1981. (6) Despite the denial of the petition, the Federal Government, the government of the State of Georgia, and local governments, have recognized the political leaders of the Lower Muscogee-Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia as leaders of a distinct political governmental entity. SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: (1) Member.--The term ``member'' means an enrolled member of the Tribe, as of the date of enactment of this Act, or an individual who has been placed on the membership rolls of the Tribe in accordance with this Act. (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the Interior. (3) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Lower Muscogee- Creek Indian Tribe of Georgia. SEC. 4. FEDERAL RECOGNITION. (a) In General.--Federal recognition is hereby extended to the Tribe. All laws and regulations of general application to Indians or nations, tribes, or bands of Indians that are not inconsistent with any specific provision of this Act shall be applicable to the Tribe and its members. (b) Federal Benefits and Services.--The Tribe and its members shall be eligible, on or after the date of enactment of this Act, for all Federal benefits and services furnished to federally recognized Indian tribes and their members because of their status as Indians without regard to the existence of a reservation for the Tribe or the residence of any member on or near an Indian reservation. (c) Indian Reorganization Act Applicability.--The Act of June 18, 1934 (25 U.S.C. 461 et seq.) shall be applicable to the Tribe and its members. SEC. 5. RESERVATION. (a) Lands Taken Into Trust.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if, not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Tribe transfers interest in land within the boundaries of the State of Georgia to the Secretary, the Secretary shall take such interests in land into trust for the benefit of the Tribe. (b) Reservation Established.--Land taken into trust pursuant to subsection (a) shall be the initial reservation land of the Tribe. (c) Limitation on Gaming.--Gaming as defined and regulated by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) is prohibited on the land taken into trust under subsection (a). SEC. 6. BASE MEMBERSHIP ROLL. (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Tribe shall submit to the Secretary a membership roll consisting of all individuals who are members of the Tribe. The qualifications for inclusion in the membership roll of the Tribe shall be developed and based upon the membership provisions as contained in the Tribe's Constitution and Bill of Rights. Upon completion of the membership roll, the Secretary shall publish notice of such in the Federal Register. The Tribe shall ensure that such roll is maintained and kept current. (b) Future Membership.--The Tribe shall have the right to determine future membership in the Tribe, however, in no event may an individual be enrolled as a member of the Tribe unless the individual is a lineal descendant of a person on the base membership roll, and has continued to maintain political relations with the Tribe. SEC. 7. JURISDICTION. The reservation established pursuant to this Act shall be Indian country under Federal and tribal jurisdiction. SEC. 8. TREATIES NOT AFFECTED. No provision of this Act shall be construed to constitute an amendment, modification, or interpretation of any treaty to which a tribe mentioned in this Act is a party nor to any right secured to such a tribe or to any other tribe by any treaty.

Makes the Tribe eligible for all Federal benefits and services furnished to federally recognized Indian tribes without regard to the existence of a reservation. Makes the provisions of the Indian Reorganization Act applicable to the Tribe and its members. Directs the Secretary, if the Tribe transfers interests in land within the boundaries of the State of Georgia to the Secretary, to take such interests in land into trust for the benefit of the Tribe. Makes such land the Tribe's initial reservation land. Prohibits gaming on such land. Requires the Tribe to submit a membership roll. Provides for no provision of this Act to be construed to constitute an amendment, modification, or interpretation of any treaty to which the Tribe is a party nor to any right secured to the Tribe or to any other tribe by any treaty.

to quantify the contributions of fundamental and composite degrees of freedom to the thermodynamics of strongly interacting matter is a very difficult task . on general grounds , one expects that at very low temperatures the light and relatively weakly interacting pions should dominate the partition function , whereas at high temperatures the relevant degrees of freedom are believed to be almost free quarks and gluons . unfortunately , when studying chiral symmetry breaking and restoration in qcd , where the non perturbative regime plays a major role , we are not able , at present , to describe in a quantitative way , starting from the fundamental lagrangian , what happens in going from low to high temperatures . quantitative results concerning the low - temperature behaviour of the fermion condensate and of the pion decay constant for massless quarks have been presented by gasser and leutwyler @xcite , who make use of an effective lagrangian for pions , assumed to dominate the thermodynamics in this regime . other studies , complementary to ref . @xcite and to lattice results , have been generally performed by means of models which encompass some properties of qcd , with the nice feature of starting directly from the fundamental degrees of freedom . nevertheless , they generally do not go beyond a mean field description , neglecting the role of bosonic fluctuations . this approximation is clearly unsatisfactory for low temperatures , and also it only gives a very rough description of the transition . it is important to go beyond , at least to understand what low " and high " temperature mean , i. e. the regions where in qcd only pions or only quarks and gluons would respectively dominate , and also to give an improved description of the region in between . recently , a certain number of studies have been devoted to this program , by means of large-@xmath1 expansions @xcite , @xmath1 being the number of fermion species , carried out directly at the level of the functional integral describing the partition function . this procedure allows to preserve the desired symmetries from the beginning @xcite . at finite temperature , this technique has been applied to the nambu - jona - lasinio model @xcite and to the 1 + 1 dimensional gross - neveu model @xcite . in spite of the approximations involved ( and mainly the fact that none of them starts from the fundamental qcd lagrangian ) , these studies are useful towards a better description of chiral symmetry breaking and restoration . here we present a calculation in the gross - neveu model in 2 + 1 dimensions . the model exhibits chiral symmetry breaking for couplings stronger than a critical value , and it is renormalizable in the @xmath0 expansion @xcite . the finite temperature extension of the model , in the mean field approximation , has been studied for instance in ref . @xcite . at order @xmath0 , the zero temperature effective potential has been calculated in ref . @xcite , whereas the finite temperature gap equation has been discussed , by using the ward - takahashi identities , in ref . @xcite . we have calculated the finite temperature propagator of composite states which enters a general formula valid for four - fermion theories @xcite to calculate the finite temperature equation of state . this procedure had already been followed in studying the gross - neveu model in 1 + 1 dimensions @xcite . here we perform , for gross - neveu in 2 + 1 dimensions , a full study of the equation of state and we quantify the role of the various contributions from low to high temperatures . we have studied both the version of the model with discrete chiral symmetry , which is spontaneously broken by mass generation , and the version with continuous chiral symmetry where , due to the effective 2-dimensionality at finite temperature , there is no true phase transition . thus we have included a bare mass which avoids i. r. divergencies in this case . it is worth noticing that the full pressure at order @xmath0 is real for any temperature . this apparently trivial feature is not so obvious , since in general the zero temperature effective potential is not always real for small values of the order parameter , thus indicating either some instability or ill - definiteness of the theory at this level @xcite . the fact that the value of the effective potential at the absolute minimum turns out to be real for any temperature allows for a safe @xmath1-expansion of the model . in conclusion , by exploring the @xmath0 approximation to the equation of state in the whole range of temperatures it comes out that the naive expectation that pions dominate the partition function at low temperatures is respected , as well as the free - fermion dominance far above the critical temperature . nevertheless the results show that the pion dominance is limited for temperature ranging from zero to about @xmath3 , for a reasonable value of the chiral symmetry breaking term . furthermore , in the critical region , where nonperturbative effects are crucial , the mean field pressure is strongly modified by the @xmath0 correction , even for large @xmath1 . the rest of the paper is organized as follows : in sect . [ sec : effpot ] we recall the results for the renormalized zero temperature effective potential , at order @xmath0 . in sect . [ sec : press ] we give the expression for the pressure at order @xmath0 according to ref . @xcite and briefly recall the solution of the mean field gap equation . in sect . [ sec : results ] we comment the results concerning the discrete symmetry ( subsect . a ) and the continuous symmetry ( subsect . b ) versions of the model . concluding remarks are in sect . [ sec : concl ] , whereas in appendix [ sec : propag ] we give the expressions for the inverse bosonic propagators entering in the total pressure . in this paper we consider the four fermion model , in @xmath5 dimensions , defined by the following lagrangian @xcite @xmath6 where @xmath7 is a multiplet of @xmath1 four - components fermion fields , and @xmath8 is a traceless matrix which anticommutes with all @xmath9 ( @xmath10 ) @xcite . notice that in dimensions @xmath5 , in order to allow for chiral symmetry , we can not consider the two - components spinorial representation of the lorentz group @xmath11 , since there is no @xmath12 matrix anticommuting with the @xmath9 . on the contrary , in the case of four - components fermion fields , there are two matrices , @xmath13 and @xmath8 , which anticommute with @xmath14 , @xmath15 and @xmath16 ( see _ e. g. _ ref . @xcite for details ) . in the lagrangian ( [ lagrangian ] ) we have introduced two couplings , @xmath17 and @xmath18 , for the scalar and pseudoscalar part of the interaction respectively . in the following we consider the cases @xmath19 and @xmath20 . since the expressions for the effective potential and for the pressure for @xmath19 can be easily reduced to those of the @xmath20 case by simply omitting the pseudoscalar contributions , in this section we derive all the formulas in the former case . for vanishing bare fermion masses , @xmath21 , the lagrangian ( [ lagrangian ] ) is invariant under the discrete chiral transformation @xmath22 for @xmath20 , and under the continuous chiral transformation @xmath23 for @xmath19 . in the following , when considering the finite temperature extension of the model with @xmath19 , the mass term @xmath24 will be always retained finite , in order to avoid i. r. divergencies , which would otherwise occur , according to well known no - go theorems @xcite furthermore , since we are interested in looking for hints for qcd , where the quarks are massive , the exclusion of the case @xmath21 is not a severe limitation . the expression for the effective potential at order @xmath0 is @xcite ( @xmath25 ) @xmath26 \label{poteff_nr}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath27 is the zero temperature inverse bosonic propagator given in appendix [ sec : propag ] . the previous expression is renormalizable , since four fermion theories are renormalizable in the @xmath0 expansion @xcite . at the leading order the u. v. divergent terms are proportional to @xmath28 , while at the next - to - leading order there are divergencies proportional to @xmath28 and @xmath29 . to renormalize the expression ( [ poteff_nr ] ) we introduce a three - momenta u. v. cutoff @xmath30 and write @xmath31 to fix the finite part of the counterterms we follow the prescription of ref . @xcite , from which one gets @xmath32 @xmath33 @xmath34\nonumber\\ & & \qquad\qquad + { 1\over 4\pi^2 } \left [ - 4\left(\lambda + { 4\over\pi}m_0\ln\lambda\right)\varphi^2 + { 32\over3\pi}|\varphi|^3\ln\lambda \right]+{2\over\pi}\varphi^2 \label{v1si } \\ { \cal v}_1^{\pi}(\varphi ) & = & { 1\over 4\pi^2}\left\ { \int_0^{\lambda}\!\ ! dy ~y^2\ln\left [ { \displaystyle{{y\over 2 } { \rm tan}^{-1 } \left(\displaystyle{y \over 2 |\varphi| } \right ) } \over \left|\pi y/4 - m_0\right| } \right ] - { 16\over3\pi}|\varphi|^3\ln\lambda \right\ } \label{v1pi}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath35 is the minimum of @xmath36 at @xmath37 . from this relation and from the study of the renormalization group @xmath38-function it follows that the leading order of the theory has a fixed point @xmath39 ( see ref . @xcite ) which separates the two phases in which the chiral symmetry is broken ( @xmath40 ) and unbroken ( @xmath41 ) @xcite . the order @xmath0 leads to a correction of the critical coupling of the form @xmath42 valid for the zero temperature effective potential ( [ zeroeffgen ] ) with only the scalar term ( [ v1si ] ) and also when the pseudoscalar ( [ v1pi ] ) is included @xcite . it is worth noticing that in studying the mean field approximation , it is not necessary to specify the value of @xmath43 or equivalently of the coupling @xmath17 ( supposed to be @xmath44 ) . it is in fact simple to verify that the effective potential can be rescaled by @xmath43 by a re - definition of the fields and of the mass parameter @xmath45 . this is no longer true at the order @xmath0 . thus , when studying the equation of state at order @xmath0 , although the gap equation needs to be solved only at the mean field level , attention must be payed to choose a value for the coupling @xmath46 , namely consistent with chiral symmetry breaking at zero temperature for @xmath37 . when presenting our results , it will be supposed that @xmath47 ( and thus @xmath48 ) which is greater than @xmath49 for @xmath50 . a potential difficulty of the expressions in eqs . ( [ v1si ] ) and ( [ v1pi ] ) is that they are not always real for small values of @xmath51 ( see also @xcite ) . anyway they are real around the mean field solution . this feature allows to evaluate the pressure in a @xmath0 scheme . notice that all the variables in the previous expressions are dimensionless . they have been rescaled by the ( arbitrary ) renormalization scale which serves as a subtraction point @xcite . according to the @xmath0 expansion derived in ref . @xcite the expression for the total pressure at order @xmath0 can be written as @xmath52 where @xmath53 is the fermionic mean field term @xmath54 + { 1\over\pi\beta } \int_0^{+\infty}\!\!\!\!\!\!dx\ln\left(1+e^{\displaystyle -\beta\sqrt{x + \bar{\varphi}^2_0(t ) } } \right ) \label{press0}\ ] ] the @xmath55 terms , which contain the contribution of the bosonic fluctuations , can be divided for later convenience into two terms @xmath56 where the subscripts @xmath57 and @xmath24 remind that the bosonic propagator is evaluated for euclidean and minkowski four - momenta respectively . their explicit forms are @xmath58 \nonumber\\ & & -{1\over ( 2\pi)^2}\int_{0}^{+\infty}\!\!\!\!\!\!p~dp \int_{0}^{+\infty}\!\!\!\!\!\!d\omega ~\ln\left[1 + { i{\cal d}_{\beta , j}^{-1}(i\omega,{\bf p};\bar{\varphi}_0(t),t ) \over i{\cal d}_{0,j}^{-1}(i\omega,{\bf p};\bar{\varphi}_0(t ) ) } \right ] \label{press1e}\end{aligned}\ ] ] with @xmath59 given in eqs . ( [ v1pi ] ) , ( [ v1si ] ) and @xmath60 \label{press1m}\ ] ] in the last expression , which is a pure temperature correction , @xmath61 is the bose - einstein distribution function @xmath62 and @xmath63 is the argument @xmath64 of the complex number @xmath65 . the expressions for the complete inverse bosonic propagators at finite temperature @xmath66 are given in appendix [ sec : propag ] . notice that for a correct @xmath0 expansion of the pressure , both @xmath53 and @xmath67 are evaluated at the mean field solution @xmath68 of the gap equation @xcite , and also that the bag constant @xmath69 has been subtracted from the beginning in order that @xmath70 at @xmath71 ( see eqs . ( [ press0 ] ) and ( [ press1e ] ) ) . let us first recall the results @xcite which are obtained by extremizing the finite temperature effective potential in the mean field approximation , whose expression is given by minus the pressure in eq . ( [ press0 ] ) and with @xmath72 taken , in this case , as a free variable . the gap equation , in @xmath5 , can be solved analytically . one obtains @xmath73 ~+~\alpha~=~0 \label{meangap}\ ] ] thus it is immediate to find that for @xmath37 , the zero temperature solution outside the origin @xmath74 merges continuously into the one located in the origin at the second order critical temperature @xmath75 of course , the @xmath0 correction spoils the validity of chiral symmetry breaking in the case of a continuous symmetry ( [ contsim ] ) . as already said , we have considered the latter only for @xmath76 . in eq . ( [ press1e ] ) we have separated the zero temperature effective potential ( which depends on temperature only through @xmath68 ) from the second term , which depends explicitly on temperature . apparently @xmath77 become ill defined above a certain value of the temperature , since @xmath78 decreases for increasing temperatures and , as already said , both @xmath79 and @xmath80 in ( [ v1si ] ) and ( [ v1pi ] ) exhibit an imaginary part for small arguments . furthermore , also the finite temperature corrections to them ( the logarithms in eq . ( [ press1e ] ) ) turn out to be complex . nevertheless we have verified that their sums , which can be written as follows @xmath81 + c. t.\ ] ] are always real when evaluated at the minimum @xmath68 of the mean field effective potential . this is a very important feature since it ensures that the total pressure is a well defined quantity even at order @xmath0 . finally , the @xmath82 terms in eq . ( [ press1 m ] ) are pure temperature terms , whose interpretation is more direct , at least in case of a free propagation , where they correspond to the pressure of a gas of free bosons . by handling the expressions for @xmath83 as shown in appendix [ sec : propag ] , the number of successive integrations necessary to calculate the pressure in eq . ( [ genpres ] ) is reduced , and thus the study can be better completed numerically by means of suitable routines of integration . the preliminary treatment of @xmath83 is important expecially to calculate @xmath77 , which are slowly convergent expressions for large momenta . figs . [ fig1]-[fig3 ] summarize the behaviour of the total pressure for the discrete symmetry model ( @xmath84 ) in the chiral limit @xmath21 ( @xmath37 ) . with only the scalar composite included , the total pressure in eq . ( [ genpres ] ) is composed of three terms @xmath85 the results are given for @xmath86 , thus @xmath48 and from eq . ( [ ticci ] ) the mean field critical temperature is @xmath87 . since @xmath88 sets the natural scale of low and high temperatures , all the temperature behaviours are plotted vs. @xmath89 . as usual , in figs . [ fig1]-[fig3 ] the pressure is divided by @xmath90 in order to make evident the stefan - boltzmann regime at high temperatures . in fig . [ fig1 ] the mean field term @xmath91 ( stars ) is compared with @xmath92 ( empty circles ) and @xmath93 ( full circles ) separately . notice that while @xmath93 remains smaller than the mean field term in the whole range of temperatures , @xmath92 is large for intermediate temperatures ( even if it has still to be divided by @xmath1 ) , and it is slightly negative for @xmath94 . in fig . [ fig2 ] the mean field term is compared to the total contribution of order @xmath0 for @xmath95 , @xmath96 , which comes out to be positive in the whole range of temperatures . in fig . [ fig3 ] we plot the total pressure of eq . ( [ genpressi ] ) divided by @xmath97 , for @xmath98 ( full triangles ) , @xmath99 ( full circles ) and @xmath100 ( stars ) . the curves show that in absence of pion - like excitations , the low - temperature behaviour is not much affected by the @xmath0 correction , as it was expected , whereas in the region of intermediate temperatures ( around @xmath88 ) this correction is still large with @xmath99 , suggesting the importance of higher orders in @xmath0 . finally , we notice that the contribution of the scalar composite starts to be negligible at about twice the mean field critical temperature . in figs . [ fig4]-[fig6 ] we plot the behaviour of the pressure divided by @xmath97 ( see eqs . ( [ genpres ] ) and ( [ press1 ] ) ) for the continuous symmetry model ( @xmath101 ) , for nonvanishing fermion masses ( @xmath102 in figs . [ fig4]-[fig6](a ) and @xmath103 in figs . [ fig4]-[fig6](b ) ) . all the curves are plotted vs. @xmath89 as done in the discrete symmetry case ( @xmath104 ) . in fig . [ fig4 ] we compare the mean field term @xmath91 ( stars ) with @xmath92 ( empty circles ) , @xmath93 ( full circles ) , @xmath105 ( empty triangles ) and @xmath106 ( full triangles ) . this figure show that , for very low temperatures and small values of @xmath45 , the pressure is dominated by the pion contribution . we will further comment on this point when referring to fig . [ lowpisi ] . notice also that @xmath106 and @xmath93 become almost degenerate for @xmath107 . in fact the inverse propagators @xmath108 and @xmath109 in eq . ( [ press1 m ] ) are equal for @xmath110 , and even if , after inserting a bare fermion mass , this condition is never realized , for small @xmath45 , @xmath111 , and therefore the difference between @xmath106 and @xmath93 is negligible on the scale of the figures . in fig . [ fig5 ] the mean field term is compared to the total contribution of @xmath96 and @xmath112 . in fig . [ fig6 ] we plot of the total pressure in eq . ( [ genpres ] ) for @xmath98 ( full triangles ) , @xmath99 ( full circles ) and @xmath100 ( stars ) . we remark that , although @xmath112 is negative in a finite range of temperatures below @xmath88 , the total pressure of order @xmath0 is always positive , and that its contribution is still large in the critical region , even for @xmath99 . as in the discrete symmetry version of the model the role of composites becomes negligible at @xmath113 as we have just pointed out , figs . [ fig4]-[fig6 ] show that , for very low temperatures , the pressure is dominated by the pion contribution ( at least for small values of @xmath45 ) . this is in agreement with what one expects on general grounds since the contribution of massive particles to the partition function is exponentially depressed as @xmath114 for @xmath115 , and therefore the pion , being the lightest particle in the spectrum , dominates the other terms @xcite . in fig . [ fig4 ] it is also evident that the dominant pion contribution comes in particular from the term @xmath116 given in eq . ( [ press1 m ] ) . it is easy to verify that this term reduces to the standard expression for the pressure of a free gas , in case of @xmath117 . thus it is interesting to compare our results with the free gas approximation in order to quantify , in the low temperatures region , the contribution of the pion and sigma poles to the total pressure . in the case of free particles the expression for the pressure density is @xmath118 where @xmath119 is a degeneration factor and @xmath120 refer to fermions and bosons respectively . in fig . [ lowpisi ] we compare , for various values of @xmath45 , the low temperature behaviour of @xmath53 , @xmath121 and @xmath116 ( divided by @xmath97 ) with that of a free particles gas of mass @xmath122 , @xmath123 and @xmath124 respectively ( all the masses are evaluated at @xmath71 ) . for the fermionic ( mean field ) term we have @xmath125 ( see eq . ( [ press0 ] ) ) and @xmath122 , whereas for the bosons the degeneration factor is @xmath126 and @xmath123 and @xmath124 are defined through the zeros of the inverse propagator in eq . ( [ dzero ] ) . the curves are plotted for @xmath127 . the pion pressure for @xmath37 is plotted as a reference level , even though in this model ( with continuous symmetry ) the zero mass limit is not allowed since the pion can not exist as goldstone particle in @xmath128 spatial dimensions at finite temperature . notice that , whereas the pion term changes dramatically when @xmath45 is turned on , the fermionic and sigma terms for @xmath102 and @xmath103 are , on this scale , almost undistinguishable from the case @xmath37 . from fig . [ lowpisi ] it is evident that , for very low temperatures ( @xmath129 ) , the data of our model are very well fitted by the free gas approximation . this implies that in this region , although the boson propagator has a complex structure ( see appendix [ sec : propag ] ) , the pole gives almost the whole contribution . for the fermions the approximation works even better due to the fact that the only deviation from a free gas behaviour relies on the temperature dependence of the condensate @xmath130 , which is almost constant for low @xmath2 . notice also that , when the exact curves of @xmath131 start deviating from the free gas behaviour , the contribution of @xmath132 and @xmath133 is already important ( see figs . [ fig4](a)-(b ) ) and the approximation is no longer reliable . in this model this happens for temperatures of the order of @xmath3 . the paradigm of chiral restoration beyond a critical temperature and the ensuing physical implications is a crucial aspect of chiral theories , engendering at this time intensive studies . the most relevant physical case in high energy is qcd , but its complexity makes its complete study still very difficult . for certain aspects , expecially concerning chirality , the gross - neveu model is believed to have features similar to qcd . we have here performed a calculation of the thermodynamics of the gross - neveu model in 2 + 1 dimensions ( both in its discrete symmetry and continuous symmetry versions ) , at order @xmath0 , for the whole range of temperatures below and after the chiral phase transition . the calculation is performed by specializing a general formula valid for four - fermion theories . renormalization is treated consistently . the possibility of a detailed calculation for this model allows for quantitative comparisons of the different contributions to the equation of state in the various temperature regions , below , near , and after the transition . in particular we find that the intuitive expectations on dominance of the pion - like excitations at low @xmath2 , and on free - component behaviour at large @xmath2 are satisfied . on the other hand we are able to quantitatively assess the limits for the validity of such behaviours . pion - like dominance holds only for @xmath2 much smaller than the critical temperature , and free - component behaviour only from at least twice the critical temperature . such limitations hold even for sufficiently large @xmath1 . within the intermediate region around the phase transition temperature , the role of composite states appears important , and near the critical temperature it might be unavoidable to go to higher @xmath0 orders . we also find quantitative differences between the cases of vanishing and non - vanishing fermion masses . in this appendix we discuss the structure of the inverse bosonic propagator , which can be written as the sum of the zero temperature term , @xmath134 , and a temperature dependent part , @xmath135 ( for convenience we omit the index @xmath136 ) @xmath137 the zero temperature inverse bosonic propagator @xmath134 is @xcite @xmath138 ( q_{\mu}q^{\mu } - \varphi^2)}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath120 refer to the scalar and pseudoscalar fields respectively , @xmath139 and @xmath140 is the counterterm needed for the renormalization of the one loop effective potential ( see sect . [ sec : effpot ] ) . the renormalized expression is @xmath141 where @xmath142 and @xmath143 . at finite temperature , the inverse propagator given in ref . @xcite , can be cast in a more compact form as @xmath144 where @xmath145 , and @xmath146 is the fermi - dirac distribution function @xmath147 to calculate the real and imaginary part of eq . ( [ dbeta ] ) we evaluate @xmath148 in the limit @xmath149 . therefore , by using the formula @xmath150\end{aligned}\ ] ] we get ( @xmath151 ) @xmath152\bigg\}\end{aligned}\ ] ] with @xmath153 by studying the sign of @xmath154 in eq . ( [ a2b2 ] ) , the @xmath64-functions can be implemented in the integration extrema as follows @xmath155 \\ \nonumber\\ & & \int_{|\varphi|}^{+\infty}\!\!dx \theta\left(b^2 - a^2\right ) = \theta\left({\bf p}^2 - \omega^2\right ) \int_{p\sqrt{\delta } - \xi_1\omega\over2}^{+\infty}\!\!dx + \theta\left ( \omega^2 - { \bf p}^2 - 4\varphi^2 \right ) \delta_{\xi_1,-1}\int_{\omega - p\sqrt{\delta}\over2 } ^ { \omega + p\sqrt{\delta}\over2 } \!\!dx\end{aligned}\ ] ] where we have defined @xmath156 the expression of the inverse propagator evaluated for imaginary values of the energy , @xmath157 , needed in eqs . ( [ poteff_nr ] ) and ( [ press1 m ] ) , follows from eqs . ( [ dzero ] ) and ( [ dbeta ] ) . at zero temperature , from eq . ( [ dzero ] ) , we easily get @xmath158 whereas at finite temperature , by performing the angular integration in eq . ( [ dbeta ] ) , we have @xmath159\ ] ] with @xmath160 for a discussion of the @xmath0 expansion see for instance s. coleman , _ aspects of symmetry _ , ( cambridge univ . press , cambridge 1988 ) , p. 351 ; j. zinn - justin , _ quantum field theory and critical phenomena _ , ( oxford univ . press , oxford 1989 ) , p. 635 . v. dmitrasinovi , h. j. schulze , r. tegen and r. h. lemmer , ann . of phys . * 238 * , 332 ( 1994 ) ; e. n. nikolov , w. broniowski , c. v. christov , g. ripka and k. goeke , nucl . * a608 * , 411 ( 1996 ) ; r. de mello kock and j. p. rodrigues , phys . rev . * d54 * , 7794 ( 1996 ) . a. okopiska , phys . rev . * d38 * , 2507 ( 1988 ) ; k. g. klimenko , z. phys . * c37 * , 457 ( 1988 ) ; z. phys . * c54 * , 323 ( 1992 ) ; k. g. klimenko , b. v. magnitskii and a. s. vshivtsev , nuovo cim . * 107a * , 439 ( 1994 ) ; t. inagaki , hep - ph/9511201 ( published in _ dalian thermal field _ , 121 ( 1995 ) ) .

we calculate the equation of state of the gross - neveu model in 2 + 1 dimensions at order @xmath0 , where @xmath1 is the number of fermion species . we make use of a general formula valid for four - fermion theories , previously applied to the model in 1 + 1 dimensions . we consider both the discrete and continuous symmetry versions of the model . we show that the pion - like excitations give the dominant contribution at low temperatures . the range of validity for such pion dominance is analyzed . the complete analysis from low to high temperatures also shows that in the critical region the role of composite states is relevant , even for quite large @xmath1 , and that the free - component behaviour at high @xmath2 starts at about twice the mean field critical temperature . ugva - dpt 1997/07/984

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Partnership for Productive Ports Act''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following: (1) A network of ports and harbors is essential to the United States economy, competitiveness in world trade, and national security. Approximately 95 percent of United States overseas trade moves on ships in and out of United States ports. (2) The Nation's coastal, ocean, and freshwater resources are critical assets which must be protected, conserved, and restored. These resources provide numerous economic and environmental benefits. (3) Port facilities serve as a key link in the intermodal transportation chain and can realize their full potential as magnets for shipping and commerce only if timely, cost- effective, and environmentally sound dredging and dredged material management occurs. (4) Approximately 400,000,000 cubic yards of sediment are dredged from our Nation's ports each year, 300,000,000 cubic yards of which is dredged from Federal channels. (5) Improved environmental responsibility requires that dredged material demonstrating a potential to unreasonably degrade human health or the environment be appropriately managed to minimize negative environmental interactions, yet suitable disposal sites are often not readily available. (6) All Federal navigation dredging projects are approved because they are in the national interest and therefore should not be blocked because of a lack of disposal capacity that meets the necessary Federal requirements. (7) The cost of disposal and management of sediments dredged in the course of constructing and maintaining a navigation project are integral to the total project costs and as such should be cost shared according to the allocations under existing law. (8) Inconsistent cost-sharing policies for the use of open water, upland, and confined disposal facilities create an economic incentive to use open water disposal sites even when more environmentally positive alternatives are preferable. (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide Federal-non- Federal cost sharing for the construction and operation of confined disposal facilities for contaminated dredged materials in order to make suitable alternatives to open water disposal available nationwide. SEC. 3. CREATION OF CONFINED DREDGED MATERIAL DISPOSAL FACILITIES. (a) Federal Share.--Section 101(b) of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2211(b)) is amended-- (1) by striking ``The Federal share'' and inserting the following: ``(1) General federal share.--The Federal share''; (2) by moving the text of paragraph (1), as so designated, 2 ems to the right; and (3) by adding at the end the following: ``(2) Federal share for confined disposal facilities.--The Federal share of the cost of project features that are necessary for creation of confined dredged material disposal facilities shall be determined in accordance with subsection (a)(1). The cost sharing requirements of this paragraph shall apply to projects authorized before, on, or after the the date of the enactment of this paragraph. ``(3) Confined disposal facility defined.--In this section and section 210, the term `confined disposal facility' means any alternative to ocean disposal or ocean disposal with capping, including subaqueous borrow pits, containment islands, and upland confined disposal facilities.''. (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 101 of such Act is further amended-- (1) in the second sentence of subsection (a)(2)-- (A) by inserting ``and'' after ``rights-of-way,''; and (B) by striking ``, and dredged material disposal areas''; (2) in subsection (a)(3)-- (A) by inserting ``and'' after ``rights-of-way,''; and (B) by striking ``, and dredged material disposal areas'' and inserting ``, including those required for confined dredged material disposal facilities,''; and (3) in subsection (e)(1) by striking ``, and to provide dredged material disposal areas''. SEC. 4. FUNDING FROM HARBOR MAINTENANCE TRUST FUND. Section 210 of the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 (33 U.S.C. 2238) is amended by adding at the end the following: ``(c) Inclusion of Disposal Costs as O&M Costs.--For purposes of this section, the term `operation and maintenance costs' includes costs related to disposal of dredged materials in a confined dredged material disposal facility. Operation and maintenance costs other than costs related to such disposal shall receive priority consideration for funding from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund.''. SEC. 5. CONFINED DISPOSAL FACILITY IN THE PORT OF NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY. (a) Creation and Operation.--Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Army, in cooperation with the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and State and local governmental agencies, shall create, operate, and maintain a confined dredged material disposal facility in the Port of New York and New Jersey. The facility shall be designed for the disposal of dredged materials that do not meet applicable criteria for open water disposal.

Partnership for Productive Ports Act - Amends the Water Resources Development Act of 1986 to: (1) require the Federal share of the cost of creation of confined dredged material disposal facilities to be determined in the same manner as such costs are determined for a harbor navigation project under such Act; (2) define "confined disposal facility" as any alternative to ocean disposal or ocean disposal with capping; and (3) include costs related to confined disposal facilities as operation and maintenance costs under such Act. Directs the Secretary of the Army to create, operate, and maintain a confined dredged material disposal facility in the Port of New York and New Jersey.

three retinoblastoma patients who were diagnosed and treated with chemotherapy and focal treatment in seoul national university children 's hospital and received pbrt at the proton therapy center , national cancer center ( ncc ) in korea between june 2007 and august 2009 were selected for this retrospective study . the eligibility criteria for inclusion were children with newly diagnosed intraocular retinoblastoma who were initially treated with chemotherapy and focal treatment but showed no response to these strategies from the beginning or who showed favorable response at first but developed recurrence of the tumor during or after the treatment . exclusion criteria included eyes considered to be dangerous without immediate enucleation and eyes that exhibited severe vitreal or subretinal seeding or displayed evidence of tumor invasion into the anterior segment , choroid , optic nerve or extraocular tissue following clinical examination , ultrasonography and neuroimaging methods . one consisted of cisplatin , etoposide , doxorubicin , cyclophosphamide and vincristine and the other was a combination of carboplatin , etoposide and vincristine . every cycle was repeated each month for one week for a total of 6 to 13 cycles , according to patient condition and tumor status . examination under anesthesia was done before every cycle of chemotherapy and fundus photos were taken using a retcam ii ( clarity medical system , pleasanton , ca , usa ) . thermotherapy was performed if possible when tumor volume was considerably reduced to allow focal treatment with the oculight slx diode laser ( iridex corp . if there was no response to chemotherapy initially or if recurrence developed after chemotherapy and focal treatment , then we referred the patient to ncc for pbrt . a plane computed tomography ( ct ) scan was taken with a 2-mm slice along the orbital space with or without an eye rotation using a suction cup , depending on the tumor locations . gross tumor volumes ( gtvs ) , clinical target volumes ( ctvs ) , and planning target volumes ( ptvs ) were delineated . ptv was ctv + 2 mm , and ctv was designed to cover any retina posterior to the equator with the intent to prevent the development of new foci . critical structures , such as the ipsilateral lens , orbital bone and soft tissues , optic nerve , lacrimal gland , contralateral eye , temporal and frontal lobes , and pituitary gland , were delineated as organs at risk ( oars ) . proton beam planning was performed using a three - dimensional treatment - planning system ( eclipse proton planning system ver . 8.1.2 ; varian medical system , palo alto , ca , usa ) and dose distributions were determined for each target volume and oars . three - dimensional proton plans were performed to give ptv 95% of the prescribed dose . the prescribed doses were 46 cobalt grey equivalents ( cge ; cge = proton gy x relative biological effectiveness 1.1 ) to ptv for two patients and 50 cge to ptv for the one patient who had a large tumor with subretinal tumor seeding . for proton beam planning , the proximal and distal margins for targets were 3 mm , respectively , and the border smoothing and smearing margins were set to 0.5 and 1.2 mm , respectively . a smearing margin of 1.2 mm was given to allow the margin for setup uncertainty . for all patients , a single beam was used in the gantry room to treat the macroscopic gtv and the microscopic ctv . to achieve maximum dose conformity , all beams were customized to the target , with brass apertures and lucite compensators fabricated by a computer - driven milling machine , to specifications from the planning program . during the principal treatment setup , daily eye setup and treatment field positioning were checked using the laser beams in relation to the suction cup centered on the cornea . the radiopaque wires built into the silicon suction cup served as an auxiliary marker to the patient 's bony anatomy . for every patient , anatomy - based clinical setup was performed and then double - checked using a comparison between the digitally reconstructed radiograph obtained from the plane ct scan and x - rays ( digital image positioning system ) taken in the treatment room . three retinoblastoma patients who were diagnosed and treated with chemotherapy and focal treatment in seoul national university children 's hospital and received pbrt at the proton therapy center , national cancer center ( ncc ) in korea between june 2007 and august 2009 were selected for this retrospective study . the eligibility criteria for inclusion were children with newly diagnosed intraocular retinoblastoma who were initially treated with chemotherapy and focal treatment but showed no response to these strategies from the beginning or who showed favorable response at first but developed recurrence of the tumor during or after the treatment . exclusion criteria included eyes considered to be dangerous without immediate enucleation and eyes that exhibited severe vitreal or subretinal seeding or displayed evidence of tumor invasion into the anterior segment , choroid , optic nerve or extraocular tissue following clinical examination , ultrasonography and neuroimaging methods . one consisted of cisplatin , etoposide , doxorubicin , cyclophosphamide and vincristine and the other was a combination of carboplatin , etoposide and vincristine . every cycle was repeated each month for one week for a total of 6 to 13 cycles , according to patient condition and tumor status . examination under anesthesia was done before every cycle of chemotherapy and fundus photos were taken using a retcam ii ( clarity medical system , pleasanton , ca , usa ) . thermotherapy was performed if possible when tumor volume was considerably reduced to allow focal treatment with the oculight slx diode laser ( iridex corp . if there was no response to chemotherapy initially or if recurrence developed after chemotherapy and focal treatment , then we referred the patient to ncc for pbrt . a plane computed tomography ( ct ) scan was taken with a 2-mm slice along the orbital space with or without an eye rotation using a suction cup , depending on the tumor locations . gross tumor volumes ( gtvs ) , clinical target volumes ( ctvs ) , and planning target volumes ( ptvs ) were delineated . ptv was ctv + 2 mm , and ctv was designed to cover any retina posterior to the equator with the intent to prevent the development of new foci . critical structures , such as the ipsilateral lens , orbital bone and soft tissues , optic nerve , lacrimal gland , contralateral eye , temporal and frontal lobes , and pituitary gland , were delineated as organs at risk ( oars ) . proton beam planning was performed using a three - dimensional treatment - planning system ( eclipse proton planning system ver . 8.1.2 ; varian medical system , palo alto , ca , usa ) and dose distributions were determined for each target volume and oars . three - dimensional proton plans were performed to give ptv 95% of the prescribed dose . the prescribed doses were 46 cobalt grey equivalents ( cge ; cge = proton gy x relative biological effectiveness 1.1 ) to ptv for two patients and 50 cge to ptv for the one patient who had a large tumor with subretinal tumor seeding . for proton beam planning , the proximal and distal margins for targets were 3 mm , respectively , and the border smoothing and smearing margins were set to 0.5 and 1.2 mm , respectively . a smearing margin of 1.2 mm was given to allow the margin for setup uncertainty . for all patients , a single beam was used in the gantry room to treat the macroscopic gtv and the microscopic ctv . to achieve maximum dose conformity , all beams were customized to the target , with brass apertures and lucite compensators fabricated by a computer - driven milling machine , to specifications from the planning program . during the principal treatment setup , the patient was in the supine position under propofol - based total intravenous anesthesia . for each patient , daily eye setup and treatment field positioning were checked using the laser beams in relation to the suction cup centered on the cornea . the radiopaque wires built into the silicon suction cup served as an auxiliary marker to the patient 's bony anatomy . for every patient , anatomy - based clinical setup was performed and then double - checked using a comparison between the digitally reconstructed radiograph obtained from the plane ct scan and x - rays ( digital image positioning system ) taken in the treatment room . a 4-year - old boy was referred with sporadic bilateral ocular retinoblastoma . in the right eye , we observed international classification of retinoblastoma ( icrb ) group e , reese - ellsworth classification ( r - e ) group v retinoblastoma , occupying the entire globe . in the left eye , icrb group b , r - e group iv , a retinoblastoma larger than 8 dd size mass was situated anterior to the equator without subretinal or vitreous seeding . after the immediate primary enucleation of the right eye , chemotherapy with cisplatin , etoposide , doxorubicin , cyclophosphamide and vincristine was initiated and the biopsy results showed choroid and optic nerve invasion over the lamina cribrosa but resection margin was clear . before the third cycle of chemotherapy , we observed an increase in size of the retinoblastoma in the left eye and topotecan was added to the original chemotherapy regimen . brachytherapy with i-125 was performed but there was no change in tumor size for six months then we decided to perform pbrt ( fig . pbrt with total dose of 46 gy delivered in 23 fractions was performed ( fig . one month after the end of pbrt , the tumor started to shrink , and two months later had decreased further , allowing us to perform thermotherapy with diode laser . after additional thermotherapy , six months after the end of pbrt , the tumor had regressed completely ( fig . 1c ) . a 1-year - old girl without any family history of retinoblastoma visited for evaluation of left leukocoria . there were multiple tumors around the optic disc and macula with subretinal seeding classified as icrb group d , r - e group ii in right eye and large peripapillary endophytic mass with total retinal detachment classified as icrb group b , r - e group v in left eye . chemotherapy with cisplatin , etoposide , doxorubicin , cyclophosphamide and vincristine was initiated , which led to the regression of multiple tumors , the reattachment of the retina and complete regression finally . despite the application of thermotherapy to the subretinal seeding area , the lesion grew and new lesions of subretinal seeding inferior to the macula developed . we had to consider ebrt in that case and decided to perform pbrt , considering her age . pbrt , with total dose of 46 gy delivered in 23 fractions , was performed ( fig . one month after completion of pbrt , the subretinal seeding had regressed completely ( fig . 2d and 2e ) . however , vitreous hemorrhage was observed at routine examination under anesthesia after eight months of pbrt . we closely observed the patient and found newly developed small mass developed at the area of previously regressed subretinal seeding . the mass have grown rapidly to near the optic nerve during three months , so we carefully decided to enucleate the eye . pathology result of the enucleated eye showed dysplastic retina with dystrophic calcification , consistent with near complete necrosis of tumor without invasion of choroid , anterior chamber , sclera and lamina cribrosa . there was sporadic unilateral icrb group e , r - e group v , massive retinoblastoma with diffuse subretinal seeding and total retinal detachment around huge mass in the left eye ( fig . chemotherapy with carboplatin , etoposide and vincristine was started and one cycle of chemotherapy led to reattachment of retina and significant shrinkage of tumor volume with reduced subretinal seeding . but before starting third cycle of chemotherapy there was recurrence of diffuse subretinal seeding especially around optic disc ( fig . pbrt , with total dose of 50.4 gy delivered in 28 fractions , was performed ( fig . , all subretinal seeding had disappeared around the optic disc and peripheral retina with further reduced volume of the original tumor ( fig . 3d ) . however , three weeks later , during the examination before the planned thermotherapy to treat the residual tumor , an increased volume of the retinoblastoma and multifocal recurrence at the area around the tumor and around almost the entire ora serrata were discovered ( fig . 3e ) . we decided to perform enucleation carefully after consultation with radiation oncologist and pediatric oncologist . pathology report described there were tumor involvement of about 40% of retina containing 5% necrosis without invasion of choroid , sclera and lamina cribrosa . a 4-year - old boy was referred with sporadic bilateral ocular retinoblastoma . in the right eye , we observed international classification of retinoblastoma ( icrb ) group e , reese - ellsworth classification ( r - e ) group v retinoblastoma , occupying the entire globe . in the left eye , icrb group b , r - e group iv , a retinoblastoma larger than 8 dd size mass was situated anterior to the equator without subretinal or vitreous seeding . after the immediate primary enucleation of the right eye , chemotherapy with cisplatin , etoposide , doxorubicin , cyclophosphamide and vincristine was initiated and the biopsy results showed choroid and optic nerve invasion over the lamina cribrosa but resection margin was clear . before the third cycle of chemotherapy , we observed an increase in size of the retinoblastoma in the left eye and topotecan was added to the original chemotherapy regimen . brachytherapy with i-125 was performed but there was no change in tumor size for six months then we decided to perform pbrt ( fig . pbrt with total dose of 46 gy delivered in 23 fractions was performed ( fig . one month after the end of pbrt , the tumor started to shrink , and two months later had decreased further , allowing us to perform thermotherapy with diode laser . after additional thermotherapy , six months after the end of pbrt , the tumor had regressed completely ( fig . a 1-year - old girl without any family history of retinoblastoma visited for evaluation of left leukocoria . there were multiple tumors around the optic disc and macula with subretinal seeding classified as icrb group d , r - e group ii in right eye and large peripapillary endophytic mass with total retinal detachment classified as icrb group b , r - e group v in left eye . chemotherapy with cisplatin , etoposide , doxorubicin , cyclophosphamide and vincristine was initiated , which led to the regression of multiple tumors , the reattachment of the retina and complete regression finally . despite the application of thermotherapy to the subretinal seeding area , the lesion grew and new lesions of subretinal seeding inferior to the macula developed . we had to consider ebrt in that case and decided to perform pbrt , considering her age . pbrt , with total dose of 46 gy delivered in 23 fractions , was performed ( fig . one month after completion of pbrt , the subretinal seeding had regressed completely ( fig . 2d and 2e ) . however , vitreous hemorrhage was observed at routine examination under anesthesia after eight months of pbrt . we closely observed the patient and found newly developed small mass developed at the area of previously regressed subretinal seeding . the mass have grown rapidly to near the optic nerve during three months , so we carefully decided to enucleate the eye . pathology result of the enucleated eye showed dysplastic retina with dystrophic calcification , consistent with near complete necrosis of tumor without invasion of choroid , anterior chamber , sclera and lamina cribrosa . there was sporadic unilateral icrb group e , r - e group v , massive retinoblastoma with diffuse subretinal seeding and total retinal detachment around huge mass in the left eye ( fig . chemotherapy with carboplatin , etoposide and vincristine was started and one cycle of chemotherapy led to reattachment of retina and significant shrinkage of tumor volume with reduced subretinal seeding . but before starting third cycle of chemotherapy there was recurrence of diffuse subretinal seeding especially around optic disc ( fig . pbrt , with total dose of 50.4 gy delivered in 28 fractions , was performed ( fig . all subretinal seeding had disappeared around the optic disc and peripheral retina with further reduced volume of the original tumor ( fig . however , three weeks later , during the examination before the planned thermotherapy to treat the residual tumor , an increased volume of the retinoblastoma and multifocal recurrence at the area around the tumor and around almost the entire ora serrata were discovered ( fig . 3e ) . we decided to perform enucleation carefully after consultation with radiation oncologist and pediatric oncologist . pathology report described there were tumor involvement of about 40% of retina containing 5% necrosis without invasion of choroid , sclera and lamina cribrosa . the proton is one of the components of atomic nuclei , as discovered by ernest rutherford in 1919 . later in 1946 , robert wilson was the first one who suggested its application for medical treatment . since then , several efforts have been made to treat tumors using pbrt [ 16 - 18 ] and in 1992 , croughs et al . the major benefits of the pbrt are 1 ) coverage of the target zone with a uniform dose , 2 ) a zero dose deep to that target for each beam path , 3 ) a lower dose proximal to the target . protons can penetrate tissue toward the target tumor with less energy loss , give uniform radiation to targeted tumor and finally distribute no energy beyond the target . these unique properties of protons can reduce the incidence of several side effects of radiation therapy in retinoblastoma including late occurrence of secondary malignant neoplasm , retardation of tissue growth and atrophic or degenerative changes to the tissue . the most important goal of treatment for pediatric retinoblastoma is to save the life of the child . the introduction of chemotherapy could have satisfied both purposes . since the time when kingston et al . established the current regimen of chemotherapy , it has been used to reduce tumor volume and make additional focal therapy possible . using these treatment modalities have not only much improved the ocular salvage rates but also have reduced the occurrence of secondary malignant tumors and intracranial neuroblastic tumors , such as pinealoblastoma . despite the effectiveness of chemotherapy , even in cases of initial total tumor regression with chemoreduction followed by focal treatment , subretinal and vitreous seeds recur . in one series , the incidence of recurrent vitreous seeds among those who initially presented was about 50% at five years ; the incidence of recurrent subretinal seeds at five years was about 62% . these conditions should be managed promptly and the treatment plans could be various focal treatments if seeding were localized . in fact , ebrt should be the only way to save the eye in that case . we presented undesirable circumstances that any ophthalmic oncologist may meet during the management of retinoblastoma . in case 1 , the patient presented with sporadic bilateral retinoblastoma and required enucleation of one eye due to the extensive size of the tumor . unfortunately , the tumor resisted not only various chemotherapy regimens but also brachytherapy using i-125 . ebrt had to be considered . instead of ebrt , we consider pbrt and it had successively controlled the tumor so that we could save the eye while trying to minimize patient suffering due to the occurrence of secondary malignant neoplasm or facial deformity , which may be induced by ebrt . in case 2 , also with sporadic bilateral retinoblastoma even though multifocal recurrence of the tumor developed during chemotherapy , those were treated well with thermotherapy . however , after completing the thirteen cycles of chemotherapy , a large area of subretinal seeding developed . pbrt made it disappear completely . in case 3 , the large sporadic unilateral retinoblastoma , which was presented later than in the other two children , was accompanied by peripheral extensive subretinal seeding . however , the parents stoutly refused this option , so we started chemotherapy as a second option . the tumor seemed to respond well to chemotherapy at first but during the early period of chemotherapy , diffuse subretinal seeding surrounding the optic disc developed . therefore , instead of enucleation , we proceeded with pbrt and the result was favorable ; complete resolution of subretinal seeding with quite reduced tumor volume was seen , allowing additional thermotherapy . but not only did the main tumor grow significantly , but multifocal recurrences also developed around the tumor and at the ora serrata . considering the differences between the two cases of favorable results and the last devastating case , the latter involved disseminated subretinal seeding at presentation , anterior to the equator , with massive tumor . even if seeding appeared to have disappeared after two cycles of chemotherapy , as wilson et al . suggested , tumor cells could exist in vitreous or avascular subretinal spaces that the chemotherapy could not reach . ebrt is the treatment of choice for diffuse subretinal and vitreous seeding when systemic chemotherapy has failed . although the ocular survival rate in advanced retinoblastoma ( r - e group vb ) is about 50% with ebrt , the results are not promising . similar to the case presented here , the original tumor mass grows and multiple tumor recurrences develop around the main mass despite pbrt . that means the tumor had characteristics of resistance not only to chemotherapy agents but also to radiation . another consideration in this case was the fact that multiple recurrent tumor foci located near the ora serrata might be related to the method of radiation distribution for sparing lenses . the more anterior part , from equator to ora serrata , was involved in the radiation field where higher cataracts developed . to avoid the development of cataracts , the posterior part of the ora serrata was excluded from the radiation field so there were higher recurrence rates at the anterior retina , especially the ora serrata , as observed in this case . in conclusion , pbrt was a effective initially in cases of late recurrence , such as diffuse subretinal seeding after completion of chemotherapy or no response to chemoreduction with additional focal treatment including brachytherapy . however , as the case 2 and 3 demonstrate , even when retinoblastoma seemed to respond to pbrt , it could recur after a few months . therefore , we need to observe patients who received pbrt and demonstrated favorable results for longer periods of time , because the tumor - free period of the patients in this study averaged about nine months . and the theoretically proposed advantages of pbrt , which were the lower occurrence of secondary malignant neoplasm or facial deformity , should be confirmed and bolstered by additional long - term follow - up studies .

purposeto evaluate the clinical results of proton beam radiation therapy ( pbrt ) for treatment of retinoblastoma.methodschildren with retinoblastoma who were treated with chemotherapy and focal treatment such as brachytherapy and thermotherapy but showed no response or developed recurrences later received pbrt . the pbrt strategy was designed to concentrate the radiation energy to the retinoblastoma and spare the surrounding healthy tissue or organs.resultsthere were three patients who received pbrt . the first patient received pbrt because of an initial lack of tumor regression with chemotherapy and brachytherapy . this patient showed regression after pbrt . the second patient who developed recurrence of retinoblastoma as diffuse infiltrating subretinal seeding was taken pbrt . after complete regression , there was recurrence of tumor and the eye was enucleated . the third patient had unilateral extensively advanced retinoblastoma . initial chemotherapy failed and tumor recurred . the tumor responded to pbrt and regressed significantly . however , the eye developed sudden multiple recurrences , so we had to perform enucleation.conclusionspbrt for retinoblastoma was effective in cases of showing no response to other treatment modalities . however , it should be carefully applied when there was recurrence of diffuse infiltrating subretinal seeding or extensively advanced retinoblastoma initially .

interference between quantum states has no equivalence in classical mechanics . the simplest way to generate it is by superposing identical copies of the same initial state , displaced in position or momentum , in eg . a generalized two slit experiment . one produces finer fringes , the larger the separation between the states , that is , large separation in momentum generates fine fringes in the position intensities and vice versa . both these cases give rise to oscillations of the wigner function @xcite , which represents the superposed state in phase space : if both copies have individual wigner functions that are well localized in phase space , the oscillations that lie between them are most pronounced when the individual states are sufficiently separated for the overlap between them to be very small . the fringes disappear as the copies are brought together . the phenomena studied here belong to an opposite regime , that is , though we still consider the displacement of identical copies , their individual extent is assumed to be much larger than their separation , i.e. their phase space areas are much larger than @xmath0 . rather than the intensity of probability in position or momentum , it is the overlap itself between the pair of states , such as produced in an interferometer , that oscilates as a function of the displacement . even though one generally expects large overlaps for small translations , one may even obtain complete orthogonality with the initial state . by increasing the extent of the state , one thus maximizes the effect of a very small translation . we refer to displacements for which the overlap is zero as _ quantum blind spots_. it is as if the state were oblivious to its translation , right beside it , ` stepping on its toes ' . a displacement may be generated continuously , by an interaction with a two - level quantum system , as in the example of alonso _ et . @xcite , where the blind spots are related with the complete decoherence . the action of a quantum hamiltonian , approximated as a linear function in position and momentum ( in the classically small ) region where the state is defined , also provides such a translation . the oscillations of the overlap of an intial state with its evolving translations can then be used to measure parameters of the driving hamiltonian . @xcite have shown that the standard quantum limit ( sql ) for the precision of quantum measurements @xcite can then be surpassed by choosing a specific initial state : a _ compass state _ , i.e. a particular superposition of separated coherent states . we here study the overlap structure of this and alternative extended states with all their possible translations . is the overlap specially sensitive to decoherence ? how delicate is the balance between the locations , the amplitudes and the phases of a superposition of coherent states for a blind spot to arise , or to disappear ? what is the effect of squeezing and rotating the component coherent states ? do other extended states , such as excited states of anharmonic oscillators exhibit blind spots ? it is found that blind spots resulting from the overlap of a translation are a general feature of any extended quantum state . it is only if the state has a generalized parity symmetry , i.e. if it is invariant with respect to the reflection through a phase space point , that overlap zeroes may occur along continuous displacement lines , rather than at isolated points . the ubiquitous _ schrdinger cat _ states , as well as the compass state , are then understood to be symmetric counter examples . regular , or irregular patterns of blind spots manifest delicate wavelike properties of quantum mechanics . the rich structures that emerge remind one of _ quantum carpets _ @xcite , though more akin to so called _ sub - planckian _ features of pure quantum states @xcite . a striking consequence of purity , the invariance of the correlations with respect to fourier transformation @xcite is a prime manifestation of the conjugacy of large and small scales and turns out to be essential to the following analysis . in principle , the zeroes featured here may be directly observable through manipulation and interference of simple quantum states , such as carried out in quantum optics @xcite . though generically isolated , blind spots are not constrained by analyticity , as are the zeroes of the bargman function and , hence , the husimi function @xcite . unlike those , which often lie in shallow evanescent regions @xcite , we here deal with sharp indentations on a background of maximal correlations . in section 2 we review the general theory for the wigner function and its fourier transform , the _ characteristic function _ , or the _ chord function_. these complete representations of quantum mechanics are fundamentally based on reflection and translation operators , as discovered by grossmann @xcite and royer @xcite . they thus provide the natural setting for the present theory . the overlap between translated pure states is then related to a phase space correlation function , which is also meaningful for the mixed states of open systems . in section 3 , the nodal lines of the real and imaginary part of the chord function are analyzed : their intersection determines isolated blind spots , in the absence of a reflection symmetry . a theory for the blind spots of superpositions of coherent states or squeezed states , i.e. schrdinger cat states and their generalizations , is developed in section 4 . such superpositions of several coherent states have recently become experimentally accessible @xcite . it turns out that the case of a triplet of coherent or squeezed states has the special property that its blind spots form a regular pattern of displacements on an hexagonal lattice , whatever the locations , amplitudes or phases of the three component states . this structure is described in section 5 . in contrast to the robustness of the blind spots of pure states with respect to any variation of parameters , they are remarkably sensitive to decoherence . indeed they will be shown in section 6 to be much more sensitive than the oscillations of the wigner function , whose disappearence is often taken as a sure indication of loss of quantum coherence . one should note that the washing out of fine oscillations of the wigner function correspond to the decay of large arguments of the characteristic function , whereas we here analyze phenomena for small arguments . thus , a density operator may still have negative regions in its wigner function , even though any trace of its blind spots has been wiped out . recall that , for systems with a single degree of freedom , the corresponding classical phase space is a plane , with coordinates @xmath1 , momenta and positions . the uniform translations of this space , @xmath2 , define the _ space of chords _ , @xmath3 . the corresponding quantum translation ( or displacement ) operators , @xmath4 , transform position states , @xmath5 ( within an overall phase ) and momentum states , @xmath6 . for a general state , @xmath7 , we have @xmath8 and , in the special case of the ground state of the harmonic oscillator , this is transported into a coherent state : @xmath9 . given the corresponding pure state density operators , @xmath10 and @xmath11 , the _ quantum phase space correlations _ , whose zeroes we seek , are defined as the expected value for the translated state . in terms of the operator trace this is @xmath12 the key point is that , for a pure quantum state , @xmath13 , so the blind spots lie at intersections of nodal lines for both the real and the imaginary parts of @xmath14 , which is generally a complex function of the chords . in the present context , it is best to let the translation operators themselves represent quantum operators . in the case of density operators , @xmath15 defines the ( complex ) chord function , also known as the weyl function , or as one of several quantum characteristic functions . note that the chord function has here been normalized so that @xmath16 . sometimes used as a theoretical tool , it is a full representation of the density operator @xmath17 and , in the case of a pure state , we have @xmath18 , i.e. the translation overlap itself @xcite . in terms of the position representation @xcite @xmath19 a double fourier transform then defines the celebrated wigner function @xcite , @xmath20 , which is real , though it can have negative values . the fact that the wigner function can also be written as @xmath21 , reflects the fourier relation of the translation operator itself to the reflection operator , @xmath22 @xcite . in terms of the position representation , we have @xmath23 the phase space correlation coincides with the correlation of the wigner function @xcite , that is , @xmath24 just as if the wigner function were an ordinary ( positive ) probability distribution and @xmath25 were its characteristic function . ( note that the two - dimensional vector product , or _ skew product _ in the exponent ; it is present in all double fourier transforms in this article . ) the structure of zeroes of @xmath26 is not obtained directly from those of the wigner function . generically , the zeroes of @xmath27 lie along nodal lines , because the wigner function is real . ( in the case of more than one degree of freedom , this becomes a codimension-1 nodal surface in the higher dimensional phase space . ) this is not the general case for the chord function : no constraint obliges the nodal lines of the real and the imaginary parts of @xmath25 to coincide , so , typically , they intersect at isolated zeroes . ( in the general case , these become codimension-2 surfaces . ) we show below how the real and the imaginary parts of the chord function are related respectively to the diagonal and the off - diagonal elements in a decomposition of the density operator , with respect to the eigen - subspaces of the parity operator , @xmath28 , or any other reflection operator , @xmath22 . reflection symmetry is not a precondition for the surprising property of fourier invariance of the phase space correlations for all pure states @xcite : @xmath29 . this is simply a consequence of the fact that , for pure states , we may combine @xmath30 with ( [ wcor ] ) . thus a conjugacy between large and small scales is generated , leading to tiny sub - planck structures @xcite for quantum pure states with sizeable correlations over an area that is appreciably larger than planck s constant , @xmath0 . in short , large structures imply large wave vectors for the oscillations of @xmath27 and for the oscillations of the real and the imaginary parts of @xmath25 . these real functions have nodal lines which must approximate the origin , as the overall extent of the state is increased . it remains to show that generally these nodal lines intersect transversally . these considerations are easily adapted to systems with several degrees of freedom : the origin of the higher dimensional phase space lies in the codimension-1 nodal surface of the imaginary part of the chord function and this generically intersects the nodal surfaces of the real part of the chord function along codimension-2 surfaces . therefore the overlap zeroes for translated copies of the state will generically give rise to isolated blind spots in arbitrary two - dimensional sections of the higher dimensional phase space . thus , the likelyhood that a continuous group of translations , evolving from the origin along a straight line in the space of chords , comes close to a point of zero overlap does not depend on the number of degrees of freedom and it is certain to occur for centro - symmetric systems . generically , blind spots lie close to the origin for all extended systems , because the invariance of the phase space correlations with respect to fourier transformation holds , regardless of the number of degrees of freedom . the reflection operators , @xmath31 , may be considered to be ` generalizations ' of the parity operator , @xmath32 , which corresponds classically to the phase space map : @xmath33 . because @xmath31 is hermitian ( as well as unitary ) and @xmath34 , there are only two eigenvalues , @xmath35 , which define a pair of orthogonal even and odd subspaces of the hilbert space , for each choice of the reflection centre , @xmath36 . hence , any pure state @xmath37 may be decomposed into a pair of parity - defined components , an odd @xmath38 and an even @xmath39 , i.e. @xmath39 and @xmath38 are eigenstates of @xmath32 , for @xmath40 and @xmath41 , respectively . the corresponding pure state density operator can then be decomposed into a pair of components , @xmath42 and @xmath43 , defined by : @xmath44 this decomposition is generalized to mixed states by just adding the diagonal , or nondiagonal contributions from each pure state in the mixture . it is well known that the value of the wigner function at each point , @xmath36 , is defined in terms of the diagonal component @xcite : @xmath45.\ ] ] furthermore , for @xmath46 , these ` diagonal ' terms making up @xmath42 have a definite parity , i.e. @xmath47=[\hat r _ { 0},|\psi_e\rangle\langle\psi_e|]=0 $ ] . since the chord representation of such a centro - symmetric density operator is a mere rescaling of its wigner function , it follows that the diagonal component of the chord function is entirely real . this does not necessarily imply that the chord representation of @xmath43 is purely imaginary , but this is indeed the case . to see this , recall that @xcite @xmath48 . hence , denoting @xmath49 , we obtain @xmath50 where asterisk indicates the complex conjugate . since @xmath51 , it follows that the real and the imaginary parts of the chord function are even and odd functions , respectively . unlike the value of the wigner function , that depends exclusively on the diagonal component , @xmath42 , the chord function depends also on the nondiagonal component , @xmath43 . indeed , the latter determines exclusively the imaginary part of the chord function , whereas @xmath42 accounts entirely for the real part . these are shown in figure [ f4 ] for the superposition of three coherent states . the imaginary part is zero at the origin , because @xmath52 , so it always lies on an imaginary nodal line . in contrast , the real part of the chord function attains there its maximum value , for @xmath53 . the generic scenario is then that an imaginary nodal line across the origin intersects transversally the real nodal lines , which avoid the origin . for a centro - symmetric state , the imaginary part is identically zero , leading to continuous lines of zero overlap , but any slight symmetry breaking isolates the zeroes into blind spots . nonetheless , for nearly centro - symmetric states , @xmath54 will remain very small along its real nodal lines . the case of the schrdinger cat state is specially pathological : breaking the symmetry of the coefficients of the pair of coherent states , generates straight nodal lines of the imaginary part of the chord function that are parallel to the real nodal lines . hence , the blind spots vanish entirely . it may be pondered that the parity decomposition into even and odd subspaces is entirely dependent on the choice of origin as a reflection centre . therefore , the real and imaginary parts of the chord function are not invariant with respect to a shift of origin . indeed , the effect of such a translation by @xmath55 is merely the multiplication of a phase factor : @xmath56 nonetheless , this phase factor does not alter the blind spots , because we can still decompose the chord function into the same pair of ( phase shifted ) components and their nodal lines still intersect at the same blind spots , resulting from the intersection of the nodal lines in figure [ f4 ] . centro - symmetric states , i.e. those for which the commutator @xmath57=0 $ ] , for some reflection centre , @xmath36 , are thus the important exceptions to nodal lines that intersect transversely . in these cases , the chord function is essentially a real rescaling of the wigner function @xcite , so that its zeroes also lie along nodal lines , rather than isolated points . general coherent states allow for further quantum unitary transformations , corresponding to linear classical transformations , beyond the translations which define them . leaving this possibility as implicit , we merely denote the superposition as @xmath58 superconducting resonators and nonlinear optical processes , among others techniques @xcite can generate these kind of states . a translation of this state is then @xmath59 within an overall phase . so , in the correlation , @xmath26 , we deal with @xmath60 terms of the form @xmath61 . one should note that each diagonal term , @xmath62 , determines the internal correlations for the single coherent state @xmath63 . the wave function for coherent states of the quantum harmonic oscillator of frequency @xmath64 is @xmath65,\ ] ] so that the chord function for a coherent state is @xmath66 \stackrel{\omega=1}{\longrightarrow}e^{i\eta\wedge\xi/\hbar}e^{-\xi^2/4\hbar},\ ] ] whereas its wigner function is @xmath67 \stackrel{\omega=1}{\longrightarrow}\frac{1}{\pi\hbar}e^{-(x-\eta)^2/\hbar}.\ ] ] both the wigner function and the chord function are transformed classically by linear canonical transformations , so generalized coherent states are also two - dimensional gaussians and the elliptic level curves for @xmath68 and for @xmath69 can be rotated as well as elongated . in the case of a multiplet of coherent states , both the wigner function and the chord function split up into diagonal and nondiagonal terms : the former , @xmath70 , are well known to have gaussian peaks at each coherent state centre @xmath71 , while @xmath72 is represented by interference fringes , localized halfway between @xmath71 and @xmath73 . this pattern is structurally stable with respect to variations of the coefficients of @xmath74 . note that this decomposition for the wigner and the chord function gives the false impression that individual pairs of coherent states are the fundamental building blocks for their full phase space picture and so for the blind spots . however , we shall show that the distribution of the blind spots changes drastically by adding a single coherent state to the initial multiplet . by focusing on very short ranges , one can dissect the simple skeleton that supports the pattern of blind spots . first , consider the diagonal terms of the full wigner function , i.e. the gaussian peaks @xmath70 . even if they are squeezed in different ways , all their widths will be @xmath75 , where we consider @xmath0 as a small parameter , that is , the widths are much smaller than the separations , @xmath76 , which are @xmath77 . altogether , this positive part of the full @xmath78 can be identified with the wigner function for the _ mixed quantum state _ obtained from the same set of generalized coherent states : @xmath79 . the corresponding mixed state chord function , resulting from a fourier transform , is then @xmath80 just as @xmath81 , each of the individual coherent state chord functions , @xmath82 , has a width @xmath75 , though it is centred on the origin . therefore , on a tiny scale @xmath83 , we may approximate these by infinite widths , leading to the approximate chord function : @xmath84 which is independent of the relative phases in the superposition @xmath85 . this expression is analogous to the amplitude of the ( far field ) diffraction pattern from point scatterers with weights @xmath86 , placed at @xmath71 ( except for a @xmath87 rotation , because of the vector product ) . squaring for the _ diffraction intensities _ , we obtain the _ small chord approximation _ , @xmath88 , so that the approximate zeroes can be read off directly from @xmath89 . we remark that a moment expression , such as adopted in @xcite , can not be extended to the calculation of blind spots , such as obtained here . note that each zero corresponds to a singularity of the phase of the chord function and , hence , a wave dislocation @xcite . the overall phase pattern for the chord function of a coherent state triplet ( @xmath90 ) with equal weights and vertices located at @xmath91 @xmath92 and @xmath93 is shown in figure [ f1]a . the singularities at the blind spots are shown as black points in the figure [ f1]a : their neighbourhood contains all possible phases . the corresponding logarithmic plot of the intensities is presented in figure [ f1]b . * logarithmic plot of the chord function for a coherent state triplet * : phase a ) and intensity b ) . large scale correlations show up as a hexagon of ( complex ) gaussians ( big blue disks in b ) ) , while the diagonal terms produce the pattern around of the origin . the black points ( phase singularities ) in a ) , or the maxima in b ) , are the blind spots , forming a ` honeycomb ' lattice near the origin . the arrows locate the states forming the triplet.,width=593 ] there would be nothing to wonder at , if really represents a diffraction pattern . it is the alternative interpretation as a field of correlations , for the same source , that assumes a paradoxical flavour : the zeroes of this simple pattern signal the neighbouring presence of blind spots in the overlap of the original multiplet of coherent states with its translations . the relevance of the ` diffraction pattern ' for the correlation lies in the latter s fourier invariance . for a true mixture of coherent states , the correlations would be exclusively the fourier transform of the chord intensity ( not equal to @xmath94 ) , with the result that the zeroes would be washed away . it is the outer part of the full pure state chord function , shown in figure 1 , which was neglected , that guarantees the fourier invariance for @xmath26 , notwithstanding its negligible direct effect on the diffraction pattern itself . indeed , each nondiagonal term , @xmath95 , contributing to the chord function is a ( complex ) gaussian , also of width @xmath75 , centred on @xmath96 . together they form the outer hexagon in figure [ f1]b , corresponding to the simple external oscillations in figure [ f1]a . the condition that the separation of all pairs of coherent states is @xmath77 , implies that these outer maxima account for only an exponentially small perturbation of the central diffraction pattern . we have seen that the commonly chosen case of @xmath97 is nongeneric , i.e. schrdinger cat states have either a continuum of blind spots , or none at all . generically , the correlation zeroes are isolated , but they are only disposed in a periodic pattern for @xmath98 . to see this , consider each term in equation ( [ dif ] ) as a vector of length @xmath86 in the complex plane . then the condition for a given chord , @xmath99 , to specify a blind spot is that the @xmath100 vectors form a closed polygon . however , a triangle is the only polygon that is completely determined ( within discrete symmetries ) by the lengths of its sides . for large @xmath101 , the statistical properties of the distribution of zeroes will be approximately those of random waves , but these are complex , so that the blind spots are the intersections of real and imaginary random nodal lines @xcite . for @xmath98 , a triplet of coherent states , the three intensities , @xmath86 , determine an unique triangle in the complex plane . since the first vector has been chosen with the direction @xmath102 , the other angles are given by the law of cosines , i.e. @xmath103 , \label{theta}\ ] ] for allowed values of arccos ( and likewise @xmath104 by an index permutation ) . for each choice of sign in equation , the solution of the pair of linear equations , @xmath105 determines two oblique sublattices of blind spots , @xmath106 : the green and the yellow points in figure [ f2]b . together these form the full hexagonal lattice , shown in figure [ f2 ] . since the vectors between the sublattices equal the vectors from the chord origin to either sublattice , any superposition of triplets located at the green spots " in the figure [ f2]b is quasi - orthogonal to @xmath107 and @xmath108 , @xmath90 and the amplitudes in the superposition are uniform.[f2],width=593 ] superpositions of triplets located at yellow spots " . the _ star of david _ inscribed in the hexagon of large scale peaks in figure [ f2]a defines , in its turn , an interior hexagon , which is just a rescaling of the blind spot hexagons of the lattice in figure [ f2]b . this a prime example of the conjugacy of large and small scales generated by fourier invariance of the correlations . for well separated coherent states , such that components of @xmath96 are @xmath77 , the deviations of @xmath26 from the lattice are minute , as shown in figure [ f2]b , that is , each small green or yellow ` spot ' contains a true zero . the small deviations can be easily calculated by newton s method . it is important to point out that the coefficients of a superposition of states remains invariant during an unitary evolution , while , for instance , the positions of generalized coherent states are moving . thus , an experimental measurement of a pair of correlation zeroes , @xmath109 , at any time , can in principle be fed into the pair of equations ( [ linear ] ) to solve the inverse problem , that is , to obtain the coherent state positions : @xmath110 . interaction with an uncontrolled external environment evolves a pure state into a mixed state . the wigner function of an extended state gradually looses its interference fringes and becomes everywhere positive in all cases @xcite , be it a multiplet of coherent states , or an excited eigenstate of an anharmonic oscillator . viewed in the chord representation , this effect is translated into the loss of amplitude of @xmath25 for all chords outside a neighbourhood of the origin of area @xmath0 . however , we are now focussing on structures that lie within this supposedly _ classical region_. so , even though blind spots and the oscillations that give rise to them are a delicate quantum effect , it is not a priory clear how they are affected by decoherence . the crucial point is that it is no longer possible to identify the square of the chord function with the phase space correlations , that is , we must use @xmath111 for mixed states . even though , the theory of open quantum systems is in no way as complete as the quantum description of unitary evolution , appropriate for closed systems , it will be here established that the observable correlations , @xmath26 , are exceptionally sensitive to decoherence , even though @xmath25 preserves its oscillatory structure and its multiple zeroes . the full evolution of any quantum system coupled to a larger system , in the role of environment , is still unitary and it can be resolved into the completely positive evolution of the reduced system , by tracing away the environment @xcite . in the limit of weak coupling , the reduced system evolution becomes memory independent ( _ markovian _ ) and is governed by the _ lindblad master equation _ @xcite , @xmath112-\frac{1}{2\hbar}\sum_j\left(2\hat l_j\hat\rho\hat l^\dag_j -\hat l^\dag_j\hat l_j\hat\rho-\hat\rho\hat l^\dag_j\hat l_j\right),\ ] ] where @xmath113 is a _ lindblad operator _ , which models the interaction between the system and the environment . assuming that each operator @xmath113 is a linear function of the momentum @xmath114 and position @xmath115 operators and that the hamiltonian , @xmath116 , is quadratic , leads to the chord phase space equation @xcite , @xmath117 \;\chi_t(\xi).\ ] ] here @xmath118 is the classical poisson bracket , @xmath119 and @xmath120 are the weyl representation of @xmath113 and @xmath116 and @xmath121 is the _ dissipation coefficient_. the solution for this equation is given by a product of two factors . one is the unitarily evolved chord function , @xmath122 , which propagates classically as a liouville distribution , just as the wigner function . this is multiplied by a gaussian function , @xmath123 , that depends only on the hamiltonian and the lindblad coefficients , but not on the initial chord function . the explicit general form , @xmath124 where @xmath125 is given in @xcite , but various special cases have been previously obtained @xcite . the possibility of deducing the complete local structure of the correlations , @xmath126 , directly from that of the chord function still exists for this special but important class of quantum markovian evolutions . the reason is that @xmath127 also factors , such that @xmath128 is multiplied by the squared gaussian . a fourier transform supplies the evolved correlation as merely the convolution , @xmath129,\ ] ] because @xmath130 still represents a pure state and , hence , @xmath131 . , @xmath132 and @xmath133 , along the line @xmath134 . in this case @xmath135 and the lindblad operators are @xmath114 and @xmath115 . in a ) the zeros are seen to be lifted with increasing time and even the local minima are distinguishable only until the lifting time @xmath136 . here , @xmath137 , so the area of the triplet is @xmath138 and @xmath90 . b ) shows the difference , @xmath139 , between the phase space correlation and its gaussian envelope as a function of time , at the first zero , for the same configuration of a ) , but varying the area , @xmath140 , of the triplet.,width=593 ] as a result of this coarsegraining of the positive function , @xmath128 , the correlation zeroes are lifted in time , as illustrated in figure [ f3 ] . nonetheless , they can still be detected as local minima , remaining up to a _ lifting time _ , @xmath136 , which depends on the disposition of the coherent states , as shown in figure [ f3]b . this time is reached when the correlation , @xmath126 , approaches its gaussian envelope . simple dimensional considerations lead to the definition @xmath141 where @xmath142 is the area of the triplet and @xmath143 is the _ positivity time _ of the wigner function @xcite . one should note that , though @xmath143 depends on the lindblad coefficients , the ratio @xmath144 is hardly affected by them . we have here chosen a very special example where @xmath145 does not evolve , so as to keep the correlation minima over the blind spots . nonetheless , the relation between the different decoherence times ( [ tauratio ] ) holds much more generally , even if the area , @xmath146 , for the evolving extended state is not constant . recalling that @xmath143 measures the survival time of the interference fringes in the wigner function , we find that the survival time for the correlation minima that would indicate ` nearly ' blind spots for open systems , is much smaller if @xmath147 . thus , the oscillatory structure that gives rise to blind spots for small displacements is much more sensitive to decoherence than the fringes of the wigner function . quasi - orthogonality between a state and its slight evolution is a remarkable quantum property with applications in the theory of decoherence @xcite and quantum metrology @xcite . however , the methods in previous studies did not settle the question of whether complete orthogonality is also accessible . we have shown how the interplay between the chord function , reflection symetries and the remarkable fourier invariance of the phase space correlations determine general srtuctures that are valid for any particular example . we have here given special attention to coherent state triplets . they lie in the generic class where the blind spots are isolated , but their ordering in the neighbourhood of an ordered lattice is unique . the decay of overlap for a translation is the simplest instance of the general loss of fidelity for a pair of quantum states , @xmath148 and @xmath149 , that evolve under the action of slightly different hamiltonians . most treatments of this process have been based on the unitary evolution of initial single coherent states @xcite . we have here supplied an example , where the addition of further structure to the initial state modulates the average overlap decay in an unanticipatedly rich manner . for a short time , we may even approximate such a more general evolution of a multiplet , through a local quadratic semiclassical theory @xcite , to continue to be a superposition of generalized coherent states . generally , the overlap @xmath150 will be a complex function for all time , so that zeroes ( for a pair of parameters 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the overlap of a large quantum state with its image , under tiny translations , oscillates swiftly . we here show that complete orthogonality occurs generically at isolated points . decoherence , in the markovian approximation , lifts the correlation minima from zero much more quickly than the wigner function is smoothed into a positive phase space distribution . in the case of a superposition of coherent states , blind spots depend strongly on positions and amplitudes of the components , but they are only weakly affected by relative phases and the various degrees and directions of squeezing . the blind spots for coherent state triplets are special in that they lie close to an hexagonal lattice : further superpositions of translated triplets , specified by nodes of one of the sublattices , are quasi - orthogonal to the original triplet and to any state , likewise constructed on the other sublattice .

Opponents and supporters of an abortion bill gather in a courtyard outside a hearing for the bill at the state capitol, Tuesday, July 2, 2013, in Austin, Texas. Gov. Rick Perry has called lawmakers back... (Associated Press) Texas Republicans voted early Wednesday to move forward with new abortion restrictions, after limiting testimony at a public hearing, refusing to consider Democratic amendments and imposing strict security precautions to prevent disruptions from protesting abortion-rights supporters. On a party-line vote, the Republican majority sent the bill to the full Texas House for a vote next week. Gov. Rick Perry is pushing his allies in the Legislature to move quickly after he called lawmakers back for a second special session to pass the bill, which would limit when, where and how women may obtain an abortion in the state. More than 3,500 people came to the Capitol and registered a position on the bill, and more than 1,100 signed up to testify. But fewer than 100 people had a chance to express their views because the top Republican on the committee limited testimony to eight hours and refused entreaties to extend it. "We took testimony in the regular session, in the first special. We've taken a lot of testimony," said House State Affairs Chairman Byron Cook, R-Corsicana, in explaining his decision. But Rep. Sylvester Turner, a Houston Democrat and among the state's more senior lawmakers, asked for more time for testimony. "The people have the right to come here, and they have the right to be heard," Turner said. Just before the committee's vote, Turner tried to offer amendments to the bill, but Cook refused to recognize him or any other Democrat. "You can bring it up on the (House) floor," Cook said. Turner replied angrily to Cook cutting him off, "You know that's just wrong!" When the hearing began, the corridors were filled with equal numbers of bill supporters, wearing blue, and opponents, wearing orange, but as the night wore on the orange T-shirts became the majority. In some cases, bill opponents marched in circles around anti-abortion activists. There were no arrests or violent incidents reported. Local pizza shops delivered hundreds of pizzas and drinks to the crowd, and organizers registered people to vote and collected email lists. The debate over the abortion restrictions has brought the public to the Capitol like no other issue in at least a decade. About 700 of the bill's opponents showed up for a hearing during the first special session, and thousands filled the Capitol on that session's final day to support Democratic Sen. Wendy Davis' filibuster. After that session ended and the bill failed, Perry called the Legislature back, forcing lawmakers to start again from scratch with committee hearings. House Bill 2 would ban abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, require that the procedure be performed at ambulatory surgical centers, mandate that doctors who perform abortions obtain admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles and that even nonsurgical abortions take place in a surgical center. Only five out of 42 clinics in Texas qualify as ambulatory surgical centers, and they are in major metropolitan areas. Many clinics would need to relocate to meet ventilation requirements and to have the space required for operating rooms and hallways. Similar measures have passed in other states, but many are tied up in court. Mississippi's only abortion clinic remains open pending a federal lawsuit over the requirement for doctors to have admitting privileges. Ellen Cooper, the top compliance officer for the Texas Department of State Health Services, was asked if there was any record of complications or deaths in abortion clinics that would suggest the regulations were needed. She replied no. The Texas Medical Association, the Texas Hospital Associations and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology all oppose the bill. Those who got the chance to testify offered frequently emotional or angry testimony. Some women shared how they felt their abortions were horrible mistakes, while others said their abortions gave them a second chance. Others cited the Bible in calling for a total ban on the procedure, and some told the lawmakers to stop interfering with their right to decide when or if they have children. "In this country, we've forgotten about a big law: `Thou shall not kill,'" said Dorothy Richardson, representing the Houston Coalition for Life, in supporting the bill. Gay Caldwell, who opposes the bill, said that protecting a woman's health meant making sure abortions are legal and safe. "This bill is about women's lives, and I don't think you want to play politics with women's lives," she said. ___ Follow Chris Tomlinson on Twitter: http://twitter.com/cltomlinson ||||| RALEIGH Sweeping new rules that could limit abortions in the state passed the state Senate along party lines Wednesday after a fiery debate that roused spectators and led the lieutenant governor to order onlookers removed from the gallery. The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 29-12 after a debate that invoked faith, constitutional rights and health statistics. The bill’s supporters say the proposal will increase safety, but opponents said the real intent is to restrict abortions. The bill now goes to the House for consideration. That chamber has already approved some of the provisions in the bill. It isn’t clear whether the House will approve the new restrictions, but Rep. Paul Stam, an Apex Republican, indicated some support Wednesday. “The prolife provisions of the bill are supported by a large majority of North Carolinians,” he said. “They don’t want their taxes used to pay for abortions for others.” After the Senate vote, people in the hall began chanting, “Shame, shame, shame.” A woman in the gallery who yelled “Shame on you” was arrested. “This is an atrocious, shameful bill,” said Sen. Earline Parmon, a Winston-Salem Democrat. “It’s about dictating to women about very personal medical decisions that should be left to a woman and her doctor. This is going to cause more back-alley abortions, whether you want to admit it or not.” Sen. Warren Daniel, a Morganton Republican, said the bill was about keeping women safe. “We’re not here today taking away the rights of women,” he said. “We’re taking away the rights of an industry to have substandard conditions.” Many of the women gathered outside said they were outraged by the surprise preliminary Senate vote Tuesday night to add more restrictions on surgical and medical abortions. The provisions, tacked onto an unrelated bill that says foreign laws can’t be recognized in family court, requires abortion clinics to meet standards similar to those for outpatient surgery clinics. It also requires doctors to be present when women take pills that induce abortions. The bill includes a raft of provisions advocated by abortion opponents – similar to those being debated and adopted by other states. “This bill is big,” said Elizabeth Nash, state issues manager at the Guttmacher Institute, a research and policy analysis group with offices in New York and Washington. The nonprofit supports abortion rights, but groups on both sides of the abortion debate cite its data. Critics of the bill say the provision requiring abortion clinics to meet standards similar to those for outpatient surgical centers would effectively close the majority of the state’s 16 licensed abortion clinics. Legislators and legislative staff know of only one clinic in Asheville that would meet new license requirements. Under the bill, the Department of Health and Human Services would come up with specific guidelines for North Carolina abortion clinics to meet. The agency could come up with its own rules or copy federal regulations. Standards typically include specifications for hallway widths, ventilation and parking spaces, and getting abortion clinics up to par could involve renovations or moving to new buildings. “It’s quite expensive, and the costs are quite enormous to comply with these things,” said Melissa Reed, vice president for public affairs for Planned Parenthood Health Systems. She described the legislation as “cost-prohibitive” for providers. Virginia passed a bill in 2011 calling for abortion clinics to follow ambulatory surgical center standards by 2014. Planned Parenthood estimated that it would cost each of its three Virginia abortion clinics hundreds of thousands of dollars to comply, according to rough estimates. Three provisions in the bill are similar to legislation that has already passed the House: • A ban on abortions based on the gender of the fetus. • A prohibition on abortion insurance coverage in any health care plan offered to state residents through the Affordable Care Act, except in cases of rape, incest or danger to the life of the mother. • An expansion of protection to health care workers to refuse to perform abortions on ethical or religious grounds. Other provisions in the bill would stop local governments from covering abortion in their employee benefit plans. Currently, each city and county can decide what benefits to offer its employees. “If this were to become law, … those (city or county) health plans could not have coverage on abortions that was different or greater than what the state health plan provides,” said Paul Meyer, director of governmental affairs for the League of Municipalities. The state plan pays for abortion only in cases of rape, incest or danger to the mother’s life. The league does not have a position on the bill, but the county commissioners’ association said the legislature should let commissioners make decisions about employee health insurance. “It’s really an issue of local autonomy, local decision-making,” said Todd McGee, communications director for the N.C. Association of County Commissioners. The bill also requires doctors to be present when a woman takes pills to induce abortion N&O; Staff writer Craig Jarvis contributed. ||||| 2 years ago Updated 7/3 at 2:30pm (CNN) – Joining other Republican-controlled states like Texas and Ohio in legislative efforts to restrict abortion, the North Carolina state Senate Tuesday amended a bill originally focused on preventing foreign laws from playing any role in state legal proceedings to include a number of restrictions on abortion. Amended and tentatively passed by the state Senate in one day in a 27-14 vote without any support from state Democrats, the bill would limit insurance coverage for abortions, require doctors to be present for the entire procedure, make gender-selective abortions illegal and require abortion clinics to meet the same licensing standards as surgical centers. The Senate gave it final approval Wednesday and sent it back to the North Carolina House for one last vote. The licensing requirement in particular has become a popular tactic among anti-abortion advocates, which they argue ensures the safety of the procedure. Opponents argue it is an onerous requirement aimed solely at forcing abortion clinics to close. Planned Parenthood's North Carolina branch is calling the amended bill a "sneak attack" on abortion rights and has vowed to fight the legislation, with supporters rallying in the state general assembly Wednesday morning. The bill was first introduced in early April and was aimed solely at keeping foreign laws, which would include Islamic Sharia law, out of state legal proceedings such as divorce and child custody. NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina said in a statement that the abortion amendment was passed without warning or public notice, arguing that it was meant to fly in under the radar. "In the final minutes of marking up an unrelated piece of legislation, the Senate Judiciary committee swiftly tacked on every anti-choice piece of legislation introduced since January," said Executive Director Suzanne Buckley. Opponents of the North Carolina bill have expressed an awareness of larger fights over abortion, with references in particular to the filibuster and temporary disruption of a Texas abortion bill last week. In a Facebook post Wednesday morning, the Planned Parenthood Health Systems Action Fund cautions North Carolina protesters: "FYI: As opposed to Texas, anyone who is disruptive in the Senate gallery will be arrested." Perry renews Texas abortion battle with special session Some protesters have even said they're "wearing their Wendy Davis shoes," in reference to the Texas state senator who staged a 13-hour filibuster last week that was buoyed by disruptive protesters who crowded into the state capitol. As the debate rages in North Carolina and Texas, Ohio has already managed to pass controversial abortion restrictions in its state budget. Signed into law Sunday by Republican Gov. John Kasich, the budget requires ultrasounds for anyone seeking an abortion and limits the ability of abortion patients to transfer to public hospitals. Ohio joins Texas in middle of abortion spotlight A CNN affiliate in North Carolina, WNCN, contacted a spokeswoman for Republican Gov. Pat McCrory Tuesday night, she had no comment. McCrory said in his campaign last fall that he wasn't interested in pursuing further abortion restrictions. A separate bill currently working its way through the North Carolina legislature would require schools to teach students that abortions cause risks of premature births for subsequent pregnancies. Opponents contest that conclusion. According to media reports, McCrory has said he would sign that bill into law, arguing that as an education bill, it is not a limit on abortion. The governor’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment Wednesday. The bill that the Senate passed Wednesday restricting abortions was shepherded by Sen. Warren Daniel, who referred to the "house of horrors" of the Philadelphia abortion doctor convicted of murdering live babies in defending the legislation. "This bill is about safety," the Republican said during the floor debate, according to WNCN. "If we require regulations that are burdensome on orthopedic (offices) and they can compete in the marketplace, than ... abortion providers can, too." Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List, applauded the legislation, specifically referencing the Philadelphia case. “Numerous states have rightfully taken steps to increase the health and safety standards of their own abortion facilities in an effort to protect women," she said in a statement. "North Carolina legislators, like those in Texas and elsewhere across the country, are acting on the will of the pro-life grassroots in advancing this much-needed, common ground legislation.”

– Democrats in Texas may have used creative parliamentary tactics to stall new abortion restrictions, but Republicans in North Carolina used a few of their own last night for the opposite cause. They amended an unrelated bill in the state Senate to include several new restrictions, including one that requires clinics to have the same licensing standards as surgical centers, reports CNN. The latter is a now-common tactic that effectively shuts down many existing clinics. The measure—called a "sneak attack" by Planned Parenthood—cleared the full Senate this morning and now heads toward expected passage in the House, reports the Charlotte Observer. The Democrats' stance: “It’s about dictating to women about very personal medical decisions that should be left to a woman and her doctor," says one lawmaker. "This is going to cause more back-alley abortions whether you want to admit it or not.” And the Republicans: “We’re not here today taking away the rights of women," counters a proponent. "We’re taking away the rights of an industry to have substandard conditions.” The bill's passage comes as Texas Republicans made progress on the second go-round of their legislation, reports the AP. Ohio also put new restrictions into effect last weekend.

dwarf galaxies are , apart from stellar clusters , the most fundamental stellar systems . they are believed to be the building blocks of larger galaxies in hierarchical galaxy formation theories ( e.g. , * ? ? ? * ) and can provide insight into galaxy formation and evolution on the smallest scales @xcite . the local volume ( lv , @xmath7 ) provides a diverse environment in which these systems can be studied . the observations of dwarf galaxies in the lv , however , remain challenging due to their characteristic low surface brightness ( @xmath15 ) . the availability of more sensitive detectors has led to the discovery of numerous dwarf galaxies in the lv . these stellar systems can now be studied in unprecedented detail to measure their physical properties ( e.g.,stellar , gas and dark matter content ) . overall , an understanding of the physical mechanisms driving the observational properties of dwarf galaxies can significantly impact our current views of galaxy formation and evolution , as well as the nature of dark matter . [ cols="<,^,^,^,^,^,^,^,^,^,^ " , ] the @xmath2-band stellar @xmath16 ratio of the galaxies was computed using the linear relation : @xmath17 the stellar @xmath16 ratio was calculated for each of the irsf dwarfs by substituting their individual @xmath14-@xmath2 colour into equation ( [ ml_eqn ] ) . to increase the statistics by using a larger galaxy sample , galaxies having absolute magnitudes in the range of @xmath18 in the @xcite sample were also used in calculating the @xmath16 ratio . these magnitudes span the range of @xmath2-band absolute magnitudes observed for the irsf dwarf galaxies ( see table [ 2mass_comp ] ) . a total of 33 dwarf galaxies were identified in this magnitude range . it should be noted that the dirr galaxy am 0521 - 343 in the @xcite sample was excluded as the photometry of this galaxy is compromised by a bright foreground star . the @xmath16 ratio of the dwarf galaxies was computed by taking the mean of the individual ratios obtained for both the irsf and @xcite galaxy samples . this gives an @xmath2-band stellar @xmath16 ratio of @xmath19 where the error in the @xmath16 ratio represents the standard deviation of the mean . this value overlaps with the @xmath16 ratio of @xmath20 obtained by @xcite for their full sample of 57 galaxies ( consisting mostly of irregulars ) . the @xmath16 ratio of @xmath19 was used to calculate the stellar mass of each of the irsf dwarfs . the extinction - corrected , absolute @xmath2-band magnitudes @xmath21 of the galaxies were converted into luminosity using the standard relation @xmath22 where @xmath23 is the @xmath2-band luminosity of the sun @xcite . the total stellar masses of the galaxies are listed in table [ ml_ratio1 ] . the two brightest dwarfs ( ngc 3115 dw01 and ngc 5206 ) in the sample ( @xmath24 ) , have the largest stellar masses which are of the order of @xmath25 . @xcite measure @xmath26 as the lower mass estimate of ngc 3115 dw01 . this mass estimate was obtained from the kinematics of seven gcs in the galaxy . we have derived an @xmath2-band stellar mass of @xmath27 for ngc 3115 dw01 which is @xmath28 times lower than the mass estimate imposed by the kinematics of the seven gcs . the dynamical mass of ngc 3115 dw01 is measured out to a projected radius of @xmath29 , making it almost twice as large as the radius in which the stellar mass of the galaxy was determined . this result suggests that ngc 3115 dw01 is a very dm dominated galaxy with no direct evidence of an extended dm halo ( e.g. , * ? ? ? on the other hand , it is also possible that the gc system of @xcite is not virialised around ngc 3115 dw01 giving the higher dynamical mass estimate for the galaxy . given the masses for the galaxies ngc 59 and eso 384 - 016 , we are able to derive the gas - to - star mass fractions for these systems ( see table [ ml_ratio1 ] ) . the mass of ngc 59 corresponds to @xmath303% of its total stellar mass . this galaxy contains the largest amount of gas compared to the other early - type dwarfs in the scl group @xcite . the relatively large content of ngc 59 together with the ionized gas in the galaxy center @xcite suggests that this galaxy can not be classified as a genuine ds0 galaxy . instead , this detection supports the claim of @xcite that this dwarf should rather be classified as a mixed - type ds0/im galaxy as it exhibits the characteristics of both early and late - type galaxies . the galaxy eso 384 - 016 shows a larger gas fraction to that detected for the star - forming galaxy ngc 59 . this correlates with the mass to @xmath14-band luminosity ratios measured by @xcite where the lower gas fraction was measured for ngc 59 . these were found to be @xmath31 for eso 384 - 016 while ngc 59 has @xmath32 . eso 384 - 016 represents one of four mixed - type dwarfs in the cen a group @xcite . only two of the mixed - type dwarfs ( including eso 384 - 016 ) have been detected in . these galaxies show @xmath33 ratios similar to that found for mixed - morphology dwarfs in the local group @xcite . in addition , the distribution of eso 384 - 016 shows an eastern extension of the gas ( see * ? ? ? @xcite suggest that the distribution of this galaxy is a result of mild ram pressure exerted by an intergalactic medium of density @xmath34 . the upper mass limit for ngc 5206 was used to estimate the gas fraction of this dwarf . the stellar mass is the main contributor to the baryonic mass of this galaxy . the gas content of ngc 5206 is found to be less than 0.1% of the total stellar mass . deep nir @xmath0- , @xmath2- and @xmath4-band imaging were obtained for a sample of six early - type dwarf galaxies in the lv ( @xmath7 ) . the galaxies are detected down to a sb limit of @xmath35 in the @xmath0- and @xmath2-bands , and @xmath36 in the @xmath4-band . the low sb galaxies leda 166099 and ugca 200 are detected in the nir for the first time . a detailed nir photometric study was conducted for each of the dwarf galaxies to explore the properties and various characteristics of the old stellar component of the galaxy . the deep nir observations allow for an accurate measure of the total magnitudes of even the faintest galaxies in our sample . the total magnitudes of the three brightest ( @xmath37 ) galaxies ngc 3115 dw01 , ngc 59 and ngc 5206 were compared to those obtained by 2mass . for these galaxies , we find that 2mass can underestimate the magnitudes by up to @xmath38 . the remaining galaxies in our sample were not detected by 2mass . these findings highlight the selection biases faced when using photometric data from the 2mass galaxy survey . the structure of the underlying stellar component was determined by fitting an analytical function to the one - dimensional light profile of the galaxy . an exponential law was fit to the stellar disk of those galaxies hosting a nucleus . the effective radius @xmath13 and corresponding sb @xmath12 associated with the disk component were derived for these galaxies . the light profiles of the non - nucleated galaxies were best modeled by a srsic law . the six dwarf galaxies are found to have similar nir structure to early - type dwarf systems in the virgo cluster . a first indication of the extension of the relations between the structural parameters ( @xmath12 and @xmath13 ) and @xmath2-band luminosity to low luminosities ( @xmath39 ) is given by the faintest galaxies in our sample . this parameter space remains largely unexplored due to the lack of nir data for low sb dwarf galaxies . the @xmath0-@xmath4 colour was derived for the individual dwarf galaxies to explore its variation with the @xmath4-band luminosity of the galaxy . we found that the six dwarfs exhibit almost constant @xmath0-@xmath4 which is independent of their luminosity . in addition , the nearly constant @xmath0-@xmath4 colours with luminosity are observed for early - type dwarf galaxies in the virgo cluster . these results suggest that the @xmath0-@xmath4 colour is not a strong tracer of the galaxy metallicity in early - type dwarf systems . the six dwarfs were also found to have typical @xmath14-@xmath4 colours to those seen in early - type dwarf galaxies which are independent of environment . the correlation between the @xmath14- and @xmath2-band luminosities implies that the dwarf galaxies are not strongly affected by dust attenuation so that similar galaxy morphologies are revealed at optical and nir wavelengths . finally , the stellar masses of the six galaxies were determined from the @xmath2-band observations . the dwarf galaxies are found to have stellar masses in the range of @xmath40@xmath41 . for the case of ngc 3115 dw01 , the stellar mass was compared to its dynamical mass estimate indicating that this galaxy is dm dominated and a possible candidate for hosting a dm halo . the gas - to - star mass fractions were determined for those galaxies in which neutral hydrogen gas has been detected . the galaxies ngc 59 and eso 384 - 016 show gas - to - star mass fractions of @xmath42% providing further support that these are mixed - type systems rather than pure dwarf elliptical ( de ) or lenticular ( ds0 ) galaxies . bds would like to acknowledge p. visnen and s. barway for their useful comments when writing this paper . support for the research presented in this paper was provided by the south african national research foundation . this publication makes use of data products from the two micron all sky survey ( 2mass ) , which is a joint project of the university of massachusetts and the infrared processing and analysis centre / california institute of technology , funded by the national aeronautics and space administration and the national science foundation . extensive use of the goldmine database was made in this paper . , 2002 , , 382 , 495 beaulieu , s. f. , freeman , k. c. , carignan , c. , lockman , f. j. , & jerjen , h. , 2006 , , 131 , 325 , 2001 , , 550 , 212 bouchard , a. , jerjen , h. , da costa , g. s. , & ott , j. , 2005 , , 130 , 2058 , 2006 , , 131 , 2913 , 2007 , , 133 , 261 , 2001 , apj , 548 , 33 buta , r. j. , & mccall , m. l. , 1999 , , 124 , 33 cairs , l. m. , caon , n. , papaderos , p. , noeske , k. , vlchez , j. m. , lorenzo , b. g. , & muoz - 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we have obtained deep near - infrared @xmath0- ( @xmath1 ) , @xmath2- ( @xmath3 ) and @xmath4-band ( @xmath5 ) imaging for a sample of six dwarf galaxies ( @xmath6 ) in the local volume ( lv , @xmath7 ) . the sample consists mainly of early - type dwarf galaxies found in various environments in the lv . two galaxies ( leda 166099 and ugca 200 ) in the sample are detected in the near - infrared for the first time . the deep near - infrared images allow for a detailed study of the photometric and structural properties of each galaxy . the surface brightness profiles of the galaxies are detected down to the @xmath8 isophote in the @xmath0- and @xmath2-bands , and @xmath9 in the @xmath4-band . the total magnitudes of the galaxies are derived in the three wavelength bands . for the brightest galaxies ( @xmath10 ) in the sample , we find that the two micron all sky survey ( 2mass ) underestimates the total magnitudes of these systems by up to @xmath11 . the radial surface brightness profiles of the galaxies are fitted with an exponential ( for those galaxies having a stellar disk ) or srsic law to derive the structure of the underlying stellar component . in particular , the effective surface brightness ( @xmath12 ) and effective radius ( @xmath13 ) are determined from the analytic fits to the surface brightness profile . the @xmath0-@xmath4 colours for the galaxies have been measured to explore the luminosity - metallicity relation for early - type dwarfs . in addition , the @xmath14-@xmath4 colours of the galaxies are used to assess their evolutionary state relative to other galaxy morphologies . the total stellar masses of the dwarf galaxies are derived from the @xmath2-band photometric measurements . these will later be compared to the dynamical mass estimates for the galaxies to determine their dark matter content . [ firstpage ] galaxies : dwarf galaxies : photometry galaxies : fundamental parameters galaxies : stellar content infrared : galaxies .

the observed baryon asymmetry of the universe is one of the most interesting problems of particle physics and cosmology . as was suggested by sakharov , the cosmological baryon excess can be generated through the baryon number violating decays of heavy particles @xcite . any microscopic theory able to reproduce the observed asymmetry must satisfy sakharov s three conditions : * baryon ( or baryon minus lepton ) number non - conservation ; * c and cp violation ; * deviation from thermal equilibrium . the condition of baryon number violation makes a strong appeal to physics beyond the standard model ( sm ) . it has been proven to be difficult to generate an excess of baryons through direct violation of the baryon number . a very attractive scenario of generating lepton number asymmetry through lepton number violating decays of heavy right handed neutrinos , which is later converted into the baryon number by sphalerons @xcite , has been suggested by fukugita and yanagida @xcite . this scenario requires any viable extension of the sm to contain heavy right handed neutrinos , which , furthermore , are the reason for small masses of conventional neutrinos . augmented with three right handed neutrinos , the sm itself fails to reproduce the observed baryon asymmetry of the universe @xmath3 due to the relatively small cp violation and too weak phase transition . electroweak baryogenesis in the minimal supersymmetric standard model ( mssm ) is not yet ruled out , but is close to being so @xcite . since a significant amount of asymmetry is generated during the electroweak ( ew ) phase transition , from the practical point of view it is of interest to consider simple ` low energy ' extensions of the sm ( i.e. , models with additional @xmath4 or @xmath5 gauge symmetry and extended particle content ) able to reproduce the observed @xmath3 @xcite . from the theoretical point of view , it is interesting to investigate lepto- and baryogenesis in grand unification theories ( gut ) . in this paper , an attempt to derive ` low energy ' extensions of the sm , compatible with the fukugita yanagida scenario , from a supersymmetric gut model is made . the choice of a supersymmetric model is motivated by two reasons . first , scalar superpartners of right handed neutrinos can be used to break down @xmath1 symmetry spontaneously by the higgs mechanism . second , supersymmetry ( if it is broken only softly , as is usually assumed ) provides cancellation of large quantum corrections associated with the presence of high scales in the theory . a minimal gauge group with right handed neutrino contained in the same representation as the 15 known fermions is @xmath6 . an additional representation is required to fit higgs fields responsible for breaking of the electroweak symmetry . following the ideas of grand unification , it seems more natural to choose a gauge group which at the unification scale treats all states on an equal footing , i.e. , which contains the known states along with right handed neutrino and higgs doublets in the fundamental representation . this is the case for the exceptional group @xmath0 , one of the most prominent candidates for a unified theory . its characteristic features are as follows . * it naturally follows from breaking of superstring @xmath7 with @xmath8 chiral superfields and * 78 * vector superfields as zero mode spectra . * it allows chiral representations and its fundamental representation fits the fifteen known fermions along with right handed neutrino and two higgs doublets . * gauge anomalies are automatically canceled . in , the particle content of the fundamental representation and possible charge assignments are discussed . there are six charge assignments , compatible with the sm . charge conservation in the processes involving states of different generations requires that the same charge assignment be used for all generations . some of the fields in the adjoint representation may lead to a rapid proton decay . constraints implied by a long - lived proton are considered in section . in addition to the intermediate gauge groups listed in @xcite the @xmath9 is allowed for two charge assignments . nevertheless , yukawa interactions implied by the residual @xmath10 symmetry make the rapid proton decay mediated by new down - type quarks unavoidable , unless those are very heavy . discusses @xmath1 symmetry breaking and masses of the right handed neutrinos . an interesting feature of the model under consideration is the presence of additional @xmath11 generations , scalar right handed neutrinos of which may be used to break @xmath1 symmetry spontaneously . introduced simple discrete symmetry ensures that @xmath1 is broken at the scale which is sufficiently high for generating large masses of the right handed neutrinos and that right handed scalar neutrinos of the three known generations do not acquire a vacuum expectation value ( vev ) . it also forbids yukawa couplings which , if present , would induce large masses of the conventional neutrinos . the supersymmetric structure of the theory ensures that large quantum corrections to masses of scalars , associated with the presence of heavy gauge fields , cancel out . after the @xmath1 breaking , the ` low energy ' gauge group is @xmath12 . finally , is devoted to some concluding remarks . the ten - dimensional @xmath13 heterotic superstring theory compactifies to the @xmath14 and yields a low energy theory with @xmath15 supersymmetry . @xmath16 is the calabi yau manifold with @xmath17 holonomy . if @xmath16 is simply connected , then @xmath13 gauge group breaks down to the @xmath18 subgroup . for a multiply connected manifold the initial gauge group breaks down to @xmath19 where g is a subgroup @xmath0 @xcite . in this scheme , chiral superfields @xmath20 and * 78 * vector superfields of @xmath0 emerge as the zero mode spectra . for a wide class of models states in @xmath22 are denoted by @xmath23 and @xmath24 respectively , whereas states in @xmath25 are denoted by @xmath26 . the fundamental representation of @xmath0 fits the 15 known states of the sm along with two higgs doublets ( @xmath27 and @xmath28 ) , a pair of down - type quarks ( @xmath29 and @xmath30 ) and two sm singlets @xmath31 and @xmath32 . llllllllllll & + & + @xmath1 & @xmath33 & @xmath34 & @xmath35 & @xmath36 & & @xmath1 & @xmath33 & @xmath34 & @xmath35 & @xmath36 & + 1/3 & 1/3 & 1/2 & 2/3 & @xmath37 & & 0 & 1 & 1/2 & 1 & @xmath38 & + 1/3 & 1/3 & -1/2 & -1/3 & @xmath39 & & 0 & 1 & -1/2 & 0 & @xmath40 & + -1 & -1 & 1/2 & 0 & @xmath41 & & 0 & -1 & 1/2 & 0 & @xmath42 & + -1 & -1 & -1/2 & -1 & @xmath43 & & 0 & -1 & -1/2 & -1 & @xmath44 & + -1/3 & -4/3 & 0 & -2/3 & @xmath45 & & -2/3 & -2/3 & 0 & -1/3 & @xmath29 & + -1/3 & 2/3 & 0 & 1/3 & @xmath46 & & 2/3 & 2/3 & 0 & 1/3 & @xmath30 & + 1 & 2 & 0 & 1 & @xmath47 & & 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 & @xmath31 & + & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & @xmath32 & + a systematic study of quantum numbers of states in the fundamental and adjoint representations is conveniently performed using the cartan weyl method @xcite . in the framework of this method , each state is represented by its weight . weights of * 27 * and * 78 * of @xmath0 are presented in tables [ weights_of_27 ] and [ weights_of_78 ] , respectively . the hypercharge of any state is given by a scalar product of the hypercharge operator @xmath33 and the weight of the state . one can easily check that the hypercharge assignment is not unique there are three assignments which reproduce the sm : @xmath48 there are also three @xmath1 operators , i.e. three assignments , which reproduce @xmath1 quantum numbers of the sm states : @xmath49 different assignments correspond to different embeddings of states into subgroups of @xmath0 . out of nine @xmath50 combinations six are compatible with the sm : @xmath51 since @xmath1 is gauged , the majorana mass of the right handed neutrino , which is an essential ingredient of leptogenesis , is forbidden unless @xmath1 symmetry is broken down . present data on neutrino masses as well as theoretical estimates of leptogenesis in other gut models favour the @xmath52 gev @xmath31 mass range @xcite . using weights , one can derive the form of trilinear interactions following the algorithm developed in @xcite . in the flavor basis @xmath53+[\lambda^{ijk}_9 d_i(q_j q_k)+ \lambda^{ijk}_{10 } d_i^{\rm c } u_j^{\rm c } d_k^{\rm c}]\\ \fl\qquad+\lambda^{ijk}_{11}\nu_i^{\rm c}(l_j h_k^{\rm u})\nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] using , one can check that the corresponding weights add up to zero at each vertex . the form of the superpotential is independent of the charge assignment in the sense that the change of assignment will only result in ` permutation ' of vertices . see assignments i , ii and iii , for example : llllllll & [ @xmath54 & [ @xmath55 & [ @xmath56 & & [ @xmath57 & [ @xmath58 & [ @xmath59 + i & @xmath31 & @xmath41 & @xmath40 & & @xmath32 & @xmath42 & @xmath40 + ii & @xmath32 & @xmath42 & @xmath40 & & @xmath31 & @xmath41 & @xmath40 + iii & @xmath47 & @xmath41 & @xmath44 & & @xmath32 & @xmath38 & @xmath44 + along with vertices with @xmath60 ( i.e. states of the same generation ) superpotential ( [ superpotential ] ) necessarily contains terms with the states of different generations in one vertex . if the charge assignment for one of the generations differs from that for other generations , then this results in nonzero sum of charges in a vertex . for instance , if in the example above assignment ii is used for the first weight and assignment i is used for the second and the third weights then @xmath61 if instead of assignment ii , assignment iii is used for the first weight , then it is a sum of electric charges , which is nonzero . this suggests that the same charge assignment should be used for all generations . since @xmath10 is a subgroup of @xmath0 , the gauge sector of the model contains @xmath62 and @xmath33 bosons , which are known to mediate proton decay . there are also new gauge fields leading to a rapid proton decay ( ) . lllllllllll @xmath1 & @xmath33 & @xmath34 & @xmath35 & @xmath36 & @xmath1 & @xmath33 & @xmath34 & @xmath35 & @xmath36 + & + 2/3 & 5/3 & 1/2 & 4/3 & @xmath62 & -2/3 & 1/3 & 1/2 & 2/3 & @xmath63 + 2/3 & 5/3 & -1/2 & 1/3 & @xmath33 & -2/3 & 1/3 & -1/2 & -1/3 & @xmath64 + to assure that the proton is long lived , these fields must be very heavy of order of @xmath65 gev or more . if the only source of masses of those particles is the vev of neutral scalars , then the masses of @xmath66 gauge bosons are determined by @xmath67 , @xmath33 boson mass is of the order of ew symmetry breaking scale and the @xmath62 bosons remain massless even after all neutral scalars develop a nonzero vev . consequently , the gauge superfields which mediate proton decay have to become massive at the first stage of symmetry breaking . if the manifold @xmath16 is multiply connected , then the effective higgs mechanism @xcite breaks symmetry at the compactification scale and induces large masses of the gauge fields . from the discussion above it follows that after @xmath13 breaking the gauge group of the model is not @xmath0 itself , but a subgroup @xmath68 of @xmath0 . a very elaborate analysis of many possible breaking chains has been performed in @xcite . it was argued there that a gauge field gets mass of the order of @xmath69 gev if @xmath70 . here @xmath71 is the zero root breaking @xmath72 preserving direction , and @xmath73 is the weight of the gauge field . scalar products @xmath74 for fundamental and adjoint representations of @xmath0 are listed , respectively , in tabels [ weights_of_27 ] and [ weights_of_78 ] . lllllllllll su(5 ) & @xmath75 @xmath76 & i & ii & iii & iv & v & vi & ( z,@xmath73 ) + * 24 * & ( * 3*,*2*)@xmath77 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath78 + * 24 * & ( * 3*,*2*)@xmath77 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath78 + the requirement of @xmath70 for the gauge fields which mediate proton decay does not allow @xmath79 . ( * 3*,*2*)@xmath80 states ( and their charge conjugate ) are the only states in the adjoint of @xmath10 which are not automatically massless . as seen from , the requirement that these fields be massless ( i.e. that @xmath10 is unbroken ) does not lead to a rapid gauge mediated proton decay for the charge assignments iv and vi . in other words , in addition to the intermediate gauge groups listed in @xcite as allowed , @xmath81 is allowed for the charge assignments iv and vi . nevertheless , in this case the residual @xmath10 symmetry implies that couplings in ( [ superpotential ] ) are related in the following way ; @xmath82 and the rapid proton decay mediated by heavy down - type quarks @xmath29 and @xmath83 is unavoidable . apart from scenarios with an extended color group there are only two options left : @xmath84 if the intermediate scale symmetry group is given by ( [ u1cube ] ) , then the gauge sector of the sm is supplemented by two neutral states ( the rest are superheavy ) , denoted by @xmath85 and @xmath86 ( see ) . if the intermediate scale symmetry group is given by ( [ su2lsu2r ] ) , then the gauge sector of the sm is supplemented by one @xmath87 singlet @xmath86 and one @xmath87 triplet @xmath88 . there are three possible @xmath89 projections which result in one left right symmetric ( @xmath90 ) and two skew left right symmetric ( @xmath91 and @xmath92 ) models . @xmath87 counterparts of @xmath85 for different choices of the projection and the charge assignment are given in . lllllll & + & i & ii & iii & iv & v & vi + @xmath90 & @xmath93,@xmath94 & @xmath47,@xmath95 & @xmath93,@xmath94 & @xmath47,@xmath95 & @xmath31,@xmath96 & @xmath31,@xmath96 + @xmath91 & @xmath47,@xmath95 & @xmath93,@xmath94 & @xmath31,@xmath96 & @xmath31,@xmath96 & @xmath93,@xmath94 & @xmath47,@xmath95 + @xmath92 & @xmath31,@xmath96 & @xmath31,@xmath96 & @xmath47,@xmath95 & @xmath93,@xmath94 & @xmath47,@xmath95 & @xmath93,@xmath94 + while @xmath97 in ( [ su2lsu2r ] ) coincide with that of the standard model , @xmath98 is not the sm @xmath99 . hypercharge @xmath33 , as well as @xmath1 , is a linear combination of @xmath100 , @xmath101 and @xmath102 . an explicit form of gauge interactions @xmath103 $ ] for the first charge assignment and left right symmetric model can be read off from : @xmath104\\ + \frac{g_{y_r}}2\ , y_r \left[-({\overline{d^c}d^c}+{\overline{u^c}u^c})+2{\overline{d^c}d^c}+({\overline{h^u}h^u}+ { \overline{h^d}h^d})\right.\nonumber\\ \left.-2{\overline{l}l}+({\overline{e^c}e^c}+{\overline{\nu^c}\nu^c})-2{\overline{s}s}\right ] + \frac{g_{w_r}}2\ , w^i_r \left[(d^c , u^c)^+\tau_i(d^c , u^c)\right.\nonumber\\ \left.+(h^u , h^d)^+\tau_i ( h^u , h^d)+(e^c,\nu^c)^+\tau_i ( e^c,\nu^c)\right]+\dots \nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] at the unification scale the relation among the gauge couplings is as follows : @xmath105 instead of @xmath106 , @xmath107 and @xmath108 one can use their linear combination . for instance , in the limit ( [ unification ] ) linear combination @xmath109 is a gauge field of @xmath110 . for the later purposes it is useful to choose the linear combinations @xmath111 , @xmath112 , @xmath113 in such a way , that only one of the new fields interacts with right handed neutrinos and one of the fields interacts with neither of the sm singlets . after the standard model singlets develop vevs , @xmath111 and @xmath112 acquire masses , while @xmath113 , which corresponds to @xmath114 , remains massless . rewritten in terms of these fields , ( [ gaugeint ] ) takes the form @xmath115\\ + g_{\phi^{'}_0}\ , \phi^{'}_0\ , \left[-{\overline{q}q}-{\overline{u^c}u^c}-2{\overline{d^c}d^c}+3{\overline{d^c}d^c}+ 2{\overline{d}d}+2{\overline{h^u}h^u}+3{\overline{h^d}h^d}\right.\nonumber\\ \left.-2{\overline{l}l}-{\overline{e^c}e^c}-5{\overline{s}s}\right ] + g_{\omega^{'}_0}\ , \omega^{'}_0\ , \left[{\overline{q}q}+{\overline{u^c}u^c}-2{\overline{d^c}d^c}+{\overline{d^c}d^c}- 2{\overline{d}d}\right.\nonumber\\ \left.-2{\overline{h^u}h^u}+{\overline{h^d}h^d}-2{\overline{l}l}+{\overline{e^c}e^c}+4{\overline{\nu^c}\nu^c}+{\overline{s}s}\right ] \nonumber+\dots\end{aligned}\ ] ] at the unification scale gauge couplings @xmath116 , @xmath117 , @xmath118 are given by @xmath119 reexpessed in terms of @xmath111 , @xmath112 , @xmath113 gauge interactions of neutral fields are obviously given by ( [ physgaugeint ] ) irrespectively of the intermediate scale symmetry group @xmath68 , charge assignment or particular choice of @xmath120 projection . there are two sm singlets whose scalar superpartners may be used to break symmetry down to the sm : @xmath32 and the right handed neutrino . the former has zero @xmath1 charge , while the later has @xmath121 . therefore , it is the vev of the scalar superpartner of the right handed neutrino that breaks @xmath1 symmetry . @xmath32 couples to higgs doublets and its vev @xmath122 is the origin of the @xmath123term : @xmath124 . if the right handed sneutrino which develops the vev couples to states of the three known generations , it induces huge dirac masses for components of @xmath125 and @xmath27 doublets via the last term in ( [ superpotential ] ) . neglecting the possibility that one of the @xmath31 superfields is decoupled from the other states of the three known generations , one comes to the conclusion that all @xmath126 , and the @xmath1 symmetry is broken spontaneously by nonzero @xmath127 and @xmath128 and , consequently , that @xmath129 and @xmath130 are zero modes . according to @xcite chiral superfields in @xmath131 can be massive through the yukawa coupling @xmath132 . if @xmath70 for a component of * 27 * or @xmath133 with weight @xmath73 , the corresponding chiral superfield gets compactification scale mass , while @xmath134 chiral superfields remain massless . shows , that for both discussed intermediate gauge groups @xmath135 and @xmath136 and any charge assignment , it is possible to have massless @xmath129 and @xmath130 . in the case of @xmath135 right handed neutrinos @xmath129 and @xmath130 are the only massless states in @xmath137 . in the case of @xmath136 the number of zero modes in @xmath138 depends on the charge assignment and the particular choice of @xmath139 projection ( ) . lllllll & + & i & ii & iii & iv & v & vi + @xmath90 & @xmath140 & @xmath31 , @xmath141 & @xmath140 & @xmath31 , @xmath141 & @xmath142 & @xmath142 + @xmath91 & @xmath31 , @xmath141 & @xmath140 & @xmath142 & @xmath142 & @xmath140 & @xmath31 , @xmath141 + @xmath92 & @xmath142 & @xmath142 & @xmath31 , @xmath141 & @xmath140 & @xmath31 , @xmath141 & @xmath140 + if supersymmetry is exact , there are no negative mass squared terms needed to break @xmath110 down spontaneously by higgs mechanism . @xmath143 these terms are assumed to come from the @xmath144 sector , where supersymmetry is considered to break down spontaneously . in the gravity - mediated supersymmetry breaking scenario the magnitude of the soft terms in the visible sector should be roughly of the order of @xmath145 . for the commonly accepted value @xmath146 gev the scale of supersymmetry breaking in the hidden sector @xmath147 is about @xmath148 gev . it is interesting to note that this value is of the same order as the desired mass scale of the right handed neutrinos . one can consider this as a hint that at the stage when right handed neutrinos acquire masses , the temperature is still high enough to produce them thermally . [ [ bf - su_c3times - su_l2times - u31-model . ] ] @xmath149 model . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + as is well known , the scalar potential consists of an @xmath150-term and @xmath29-term coming from the chiral superfield trilinear couplings and the gauge interactions respectively . the renormalizable superpotential ( [ superpotential ] ) does not contain terms relevant for the symmetry breaking . the scalar potential coming from gauge interactions ( [ physgaugeint ] ) and soft supersymmetry breaking is of the form @xmath151 ^ 2 - \left[m^2_{\chi}|\tilde{\chi}_{\nu^c}|^2 + m^2_{\overline{\chi}}|\tilde{\overline{\chi}}_{\nu^c}|^2\right ] + m^2_{\nu^c\,ij}\tilde{\nu}^{c*}_i\tilde{\nu}^c_j \label{dtermpot}\ ] ] on the one hand the vevs of right handed sneutrinos of @xmath138 are expected to be at least of the same order as masses of @xmath31 , i.e. @xmath152 gev ; on the other hand , such a huge vev should not generate large masses of scalar superpartners via the first term in ( [ dtermpot ] ) . consequently , symmetry breaking should occur in the @xmath29flat direction @xmath153 . combined with the requirement that all @xmath154 be zero , this means that contribution of the first term in ( [ dtermpot ] ) vanishes . to have symmetry breaking by the higgs mechanism in this direction , the sum of the mass parameters in the second term should be positive : @xmath155 non - renormalizable terms arise due to the interactions with exchange of superheavy fields , which correspond to excitations of internal degrees of freedom @xcite . the general form of the non renormalizable superpotential is @xmath156 \nonumber\\ & + m^{-3}_c\left[b_1\ , \chi_{\nu^c}\chi_{\nu^c}\chi_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c } \overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}+b^i_2\ , \nu_i^c\chi_{\nu^c}\chi_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c } \overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\right.\\ & \left.+b^{ij}_3\ , \nu_i^c\nu_j^c\chi_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}+b^{ijk}_4\ , \nu_i^c\nu_j^c\nu_k^c\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\overline{\chi}_{\nu^c}\ , \right]+\dots\nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] given that all @xmath157 are zero , only @xmath158 terms in ( [ nrsuppot ] ) are relevant for the analysis of symmetry breaking . these terms are invariant with respect to @xmath159 transformation , whereas soft supersymmetry breaking terms in ( [ dtermpot ] ) are not , unless @xmath160 . if this condition is not satisfied , then @xmath161 can not be equal to @xmath162 . nevertheless , since gauge coupling @xmath163 is of the order of unity , while @xmath164 is of many orders of magnitude smaller than unity , the deviation from the @xmath29flat direction @xmath165 is very small . considering @xmath166 as a small perturbation in ( [ classicalpot ] ) one finds @xmath167 this effect can be entirely neglected in the analysis of non renormalizable superpotential ( [ nrsuppot ] ) . as for gauge interactions , such a deviation from the @xmath29flat direction will result in the generation of masses of scalars @xmath168 via the first term in ( [ dtermpot ] ) which add to mass terms coming from the soft supersymmetry breaking . to simplify the analysis @xmath169 and @xmath170 are taken to be equal in what follows . if the first non - vanishing terms in ( [ nrsuppot ] ) are @xmath171 then generated vev and masses of right handed neutrinos @xmath31 are @xmath172 so that @xmath173 is of the order of @xmath174 gev for @xmath175 and is of the order of @xmath148 gev for @xmath176 . large masses of right handed neutrinos suggest that @xmath176 and , consequently , @xmath177 in ( [ nrsuppot ] ) . moreover , @xmath178 and @xmath179 , as well as coefficient @xmath180 of the ( not indicated ) next similar term in ( [ nrsuppot ] ) , are zero to avoid nonzero @xmath154 and dirac type mass for @xmath31 . the discrete symmetry of the compactified manifold possibly accomplishes these conditions @xcite as well as the absence of bare mass terms @xmath181 and @xmath182 in the superpotential ( [ superpotential ] ) . there is no reason to expect scale m to be below compactification scale @xmath183 so that the presence of the first term would make spontaneous breaking of @xmath1 by @xmath129 and @xmath130 impossible , while the presence of the second makes @xmath31 a component of the super heavy dirac neutrino . just as there are no @xmath181 and @xmath182 terms , there are no soft supersymmetry breaking terms @xmath184 and @xmath185 in ( [ dtermpot ] ) . if present , the contributions of @xmath186 and @xmath187 terms are small and neglected in the following discussion . then the classical potential is of the form @xmath188 + 9 b_1 b_1^{*}m_c^{-6}u^4 v^4\left[u^2+v^2\right]\\ & + 6 m_c^{-4}\left[b_1^{*}a_{ij}+b_1a^{*}_{ij}\right]\varrho_i\varrho_j v^3 u^3 + \frac{g^2 q_{\nu^c}^2}2 \left[\varrho_i\varrho_i+v^2-u^2\right]^2\nonumber\\ & -\left[m^2_{\chi}v^2+m^2_{\overline{\chi}}u^2\right]+ m^2_{\nu^c\,ij}\varrho_i\varrho_j\nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] with @xmath189 , @xmath190 , @xmath191 . for zero @xmath192 the d flat direction is defined by @xmath193 and the minimum of the potential ( [ classicalpot ] ) corresponds to @xmath194{m_c^6(m^2_{\chi}+m^2_{\overline{\chi}})/(90|b_1|^2)},\qquad m_{\nu_c}^{ij}=2a_1^{ij}v^2_0 m_c^{-1}\ ] ] for nonzero @xmath192 d flat direction is defined by @xmath195 . the set of products @xmath196 being considered as parameters , the minimizing of ( [ classicalpot ] ) with respect to @xmath197 gives @xmath197 as function of @xmath196 . true vacuum corresponds to the set @xmath196 which minimizes @xmath198 . expanding in powers of @xmath196 in the vicinity of @xmath199 and having in mind that partial derivative with respect to @xmath197 is zero : @xmath200\varrho_i\varrho_j\nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] since @xmath201 ratio is small while @xmath202 is large , the derivative ( [ expansion ] ) is dominated by the first term in square brackets which is a positive definite . therefore , @xmath203 is at least a local minimum of the potential ( [ classicalpot ] ) for a wide range of parameters . for large @xmath196 it is sufficient to keep only the first term in ( [ classicalpot ] ) , and an explicit calculation shows that @xmath198 grows with growing @xmath196 , i.e. @xmath199 is a global minimum of the classical potential : @xmath204 a discrete symmetry which allows nonzero @xmath205 , @xmath206 and forbids nonzero @xmath207 , @xmath208 , @xmath209 couplings is essential for having large majorana masses for right handed neutrinos after symmetry breaking . suppose that right handed neutrinos @xmath31 , @xmath129 , @xmath130 acquire additional phases under transformations of the discrete symmetry : @xmath210 then from the requirement that nonzero @xmath205 and @xmath206 are allowed while @xmath207 , @xmath208 , @xmath179 , @xmath180 are set to zero by the symmetry : @xmath211 conditions ( [ allowed&forbidden ] ) imply that @xmath212 is not integer and , consequently , that @xmath213 : @xmath214 in other words , @xmath31 and @xmath129 have different transformation properties under the discrete symmetry . if the last term in ( [ superpotential ] ) which is responsible for both small neutrino masses via the see - saw mechanism and leptogenesis is allowed by this symmetry , then the term @xmath215 is necessarily forbidden just as was assumed . bare mass term @xmath216 is not invariant under transformations of the discrete symmetry and therefore is not allowed . from equations ( [ allowed&forbidden ] ) it also follows that @xmath217 with @xmath218 odd , so that bare mass term @xmath219 is forbidden as well . finally , coefficients @xmath186 and @xmath187 of the last two terms in ( [ nrsuppot ] ) vanish for the same reasons . after @xmath220 and @xmath221 develop nonzero vevs , the @xmath4 symmetry , as well as the discrete symmetry ( [ transformations ] ) , is broken down . components of chiral ( super)fields @xmath129 , @xmath130 and gauge ( super)field become massive . as @xmath160 is assumed , vevs of @xmath220 and @xmath221 are equal and it is natural to introduce new fields @xmath222 and @xmath223 . the imaginary component of @xmath224 is ` eaten up ' by the vector gauge field @xmath225 , which acquires large mass @xmath226 gev . the real component @xmath227 of @xmath224 acquire the same mass @xmath228 . from the analysis of gauge interactions alone , it follows that two - component spinors @xmath229 ( superpartner of @xmath225 ) and @xmath230 ( superpartner of @xmath224 ) form a four component dirac spinor @xmath231 with mass @xmath232 . renormalizable interactions induce majorana type mass term @xmath233 . there is also majorana type mass term @xmath234 coming from the soft supersymmetry breaking , so that two linear combinations of @xmath230 and @xmath229 are majorana fermions with large ( @xmath235 ) and close masses . renormalizable interactions ( [ nrsuppot ] ) also induce masses @xmath236 for the real component of @xmath237 and its fermionic superpartner @xmath238 . the gauge boson @xmath225 , the fermion @xmath229 and the scalar @xmath227 interact with other states in the fundamental representation of @xmath0 ( in particular with higgses ) so that the self energy of scalars receives large contributions from diagrams with exchange of these heavy fields . for instance , see the case of one loop in . cccccc & & & & & + ( 60,60)(0,-10 ) ( 8,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 52,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 32,50)[bc]@xmath225 ( 30,20)2 ( 5,20)(30,20)2(30,20)(55,20)2(30,33)(13,0,360)214 & ( 60,60)(0,-10 ) ( 3,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 57,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 32,0)[tc]@xmath239 ( 32,40)[bc]@xmath225 ( 0,20)(15,20)2 ( 45,20)(60,20)2 ( 15,20)2 ( 45,20)2 ( 30,20)(15,0,180)27 ( 30,20)(15,180,0)4 & ( 60,60)(0,-10 ) ( 3,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 57,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 32,0)[tc]@xmath240 ( 32,40)[bc]@xmath229 ( 0,20)(15,20)2 ( 45,20)(60,20)2 ( 15,20)2 ( 45,20)2 ( 30,20)(15,0,180 ) ( 30,20)(15,0,180)27 ( 30,20)(15,180,0 ) & ( 60,60)(0,-10 ) ( 8,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 52,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 32,50)[bc]@xmath239 ( 30,20)2 ( 5,20)(30,20)2(30,20)(55,20)2(30,33)(13,0,360)4 & ( 60,60)(0,-10 ) ( 3,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 57,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 32,0)[t]@xmath239 ( 32,40)[b]@xmath227 ( 15,20)2 ( 45,20)2 ( 0,20)(15,20)2 ( 45,20)(60,20)2 ( 30,20)(15,0,180)4 ( 30,20)(15,180,0)4 & ( 60,60)(0,-10 ) ( 3,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 57,23)[bc]@xmath239 ( 32,0)[t]@xmath239 ( 30,45)[bc]@xmath239 ( 35,25)[b]@xmath227 ( 30,20)2 ( 30,35)2 ( 0,20)(60,20)2 ( 30,20)(30,35)2 ( 30,50)(15,0,180)4 ( 30,50)(15,180,0)4 + ( a ) & ( b ) & ( c ) & ( d ) & ( e ) & ( f ) + as has already been mentioned in the introduction , the supersymmetric structure of the lagrangian ensures that all large corrections , associated with the exchange of heavy fields , cancel out and only terms proportional to the soft supersymmetry breaking parameters remain : @xmath241[(k - p)^2-y]}\ ] ] [ [ bf - su_c3times - su_l2times - su_r2times - u21-models . ] ] @xmath242 models . + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + tables [ masslessadj ] and [ masslessfund ] show , that it is sufficient to consider only the case of the first charge assignment and three @xmath243 projections , the other cases being completely analogous . in the case of the left right symmetric ( @xmath90 ) model , the zero modes in @xmath244 are @xmath87 doublets @xmath245,@xmath129 ) and @xmath246,@xmath247 ) . the scalar potential coming from gauge interactions ( [ gaugeint ] ) and soft supersymmetry breaking is of the form @xmath248 ^ 2 + \frac{g^2_{w_r}}2\left[\left(\tilde{\chi}_r^{*}\frac{\tau_i}2\tilde{\chi}_r\right)+ \left(\tilde{\overline{\chi}}_r^{*}\frac{\tau_i}2\tilde{\overline{\chi}}_r\right)\right]^2\\ -\left[m^2_{\chi}\left(\tilde{\chi}_r^{*}\tilde{\chi}_r\right ) + m^2_{\overline{\chi}}\left(\tilde{\overline{\chi}}_r^ { * } \tilde{\overline{\chi}}_r\right)\right]\nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] let @xmath249 , @xmath250 and @xmath251 , @xmath252 . the corresponding classical potential is @xmath253\\ + \frac12\ , g^2_{w_r}|\left[v_2^{*}v_1+u_1^{*}u_2\right]|^2 + \frac18\ , g^2_{w_r}\left[\left(|v_2|^2-|v_1|^2\right)+ \left(|u_1|^2-|u_2|^2\right)\right]\nonumber\\- \left[m^2_{\chi}\left(|v_1|^2+|v_2|^2\right)+ m^2_{\overline{\chi}}\left(|u_1|^2+|u_2|^2\right)\right]\nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] there are symmetry breaking directions , which are @xmath29 flat . vanishing of the first and the third term in ( [ lrclasspot ] ) requires that @xmath254 and @xmath255 . with these conditions satisfied , the second term in ( [ lrclasspot ] ) vanishes if @xmath256 or @xmath257 or @xmath258 . the non - renormalizable superpotential , which bounds the classical potential from below , is similar to ( [ nrsuppot ] ) with @xmath31 , @xmath129 and @xmath130 replaced with @xmath87 doublets @xmath259 , @xmath260 and @xmath261 . its explicit form is @xmath262\\ + m_c^{-3}\left[(\chi_r\overline{\chi}_r)(\chi_r\overline{\chi}_r ) ( \chi_r\overline{\chi}_r)+b^i ( \psi_r^i\overline{\chi}_r ) ( \chi_r\overline{\chi}_r)(\chi_r\overline{\chi}_r)\right.\nonumber\\ \left . + b_3^{ij}(\psi_r^i\overline{\chi}_r)(h^j\overline{\chi}_r ) ( \chi_r\overline{\chi}_r)+b_4^{ijk}(\psi_r^i\overline{\chi}_r ) ( \psi_r^j\overline{\chi}_r)(\psi_r^k\overline{\chi}_r)\right]+\dots \nonumber\end{aligned}\ ] ] the freedom of @xmath87 gauge transformations allows to rotate away a possible vev for one of the isospin components of one of the scalar fields , so one can take @xmath263 at the minimum of the potential . since the classical potential under consideration reaches its minimum in one of the @xmath29 flat directions , @xmath264 is equal to zero as well . then the following analysis is the same as in the case of the @xmath265 model and furnishes the same result . the symmetry is broken down to @xmath266 . the second skew left right symmetric ( @xmath92 ) model differs from the one above in @xmath32 instead of @xmath47 being an @xmath267 counterpart of the right handed neutrino : @xmath268 ) and @xmath269 ) . the symmetry is broken down to @xmath12 as well . in the case of the first skew left right symmetric ( @xmath91 ) model , the right handed neutrino is an @xmath270 singlet . massless states in @xmath271 are @xmath129 , @xmath272,@xmath273 ) and @xmath130 , @xmath274,@xmath275 ) . the classical potential coming from renormalizable and nonrenormalizable interactions is similar to ( [ classicalpot ] ) and yields the same results . the symmetry is broken down to @xmath276 . since the higgs doublets @xmath277,@xmath273 ) and @xmath278,@xmath275 ) are contained in @xmath279 as zero modes , there are directions in which the @xmath29-term potential vanishes for whatever large vevs of these fields , i.e. , there is a risk of breaking electroweak symmetry at a very high scale . to avoid it , the part of the classical potential which comes from the soft supersymmetry breaking should be positive in those directions , as is the case in the mssm . the coexistence of all the terms in the second row of ( [ superpotential ] ) leads to the rapid proton decay , mediated by new @xmath29 and @xmath30 quarks , unless those are very heavy . vev of @xmath32 which gives masses @xmath280 to @xmath29 and @xmath30 is also the source of @xmath123term @xmath281 . although neither for @xmath135 nor for @xmath136 the couplings @xmath282 and @xmath282 are related by symmetry , it is not natural to expect @xmath29 and @xmath30 to be much heavier than 1 tev which is insufficient to suppress the proton decay . a solution to this problem may be provided by an appropriate discrete symmetry , which forbids some of the couplings in ( [ superpotential ] ) . lllllllllllllllllllll model & & & + & & & & & & & & & + & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath27 & @xmath28 & @xmath47 & @xmath31 & @xmath30 & @xmath45 & @xmath27 & @xmath125 & @xmath47 & @xmath32 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath28 & @xmath125 & @xmath31 & @xmath32 + 1 & + & + & + & + & - & - & - & + & + & - & - & + & - & + & + & - & - & + + 2 & + & + & + & + & - & - & + & + & + & - & - & + & + & + & + & - & - & + + if this is a @xmath283 symmetry , then there are only two models @xcite compatible with leptogenesis and nonzero neutrino masses . in the first model @xmath125 and @xmath47 , @xmath31 , @xmath29 , @xmath30 are odd , while the rest of the states are even , so that @xmath284 . the second model differs from the first in @xmath29 and @xmath30 being even , so that @xmath285 . transformations of the discrete symmetry should commute with transformations of the gauge symmetry . shows , that this condition is satisfied only in the case of the left right symmetric ( @xmath90 ) model , while in both skew left right symmetric models components of @xmath87 doublets transform differently . therefore , if proton stability is assured by such a discrete symmetry , the only allowed gauge group after breaking of @xmath68 is @xmath286 . in this paper , an attempt to derive ` low energy ' extensions of the sm , compatible with the fukugita yanagida scenario , from a superstring inspired @xmath0 model has been made . this model allows for six charge assignments compatible with the standard model . charge conservation in the processes involving states of different generations requires that the same charge assignment be used for all generations . as is discussed above , the gauge symmetry is broken in a sequence of stages . the first stage is due to calabi yau compactification and the effective higgs mechanism . the condition that the proton is long - lived requires that the symmetry is broken either to @xmath135 or @xmath136 . as the temperature goes down , supersymmetry breaks down spontaneously in the hidden sector . supersymmetry breaking is mediated to the visible sector by gravity and manifests itself in the soft terms . at the next stage right handed scalar neutrinos and right handed neutrinos of two additional generations @xmath287 develop nonzero vev , breaking the @xmath1 symmetry . the introduced simple discrete symmetry ensures that @xmath1 is broken at the scale which is sufficiently high for generating large masses of the right handed neutrinos and that right handed scalar neutrinos of the three known generations do not acquire vev . it also forbids yukawa couplings which , if present , would induce large masses of the conventional neutrinos . the supersymmetric structure of the theory ensures that large quantum corrections to masses of scalars , associated with the presence of heavy gauge fields , cancel out . provided that a rapid proton decay mediated by the new quarks is forbidden by a @xmath283 symmetry , the sought ` low energy ' gauge group is given by @xmath288 for both allowed intermediate scale gauge groups @xmath135 and @xmath136 . apart from the additional ( compared to the sm ) @xmath4 symmetry , the characteristic feature of this ` low energy ' model is the extended particle content . in addition to the known particles and right handed neutrinos it contains the sm singlets s , new heavy quarks and three generations of higgses , as well as their superpartners . since both new quarks and higgses couple to right handed neutrinos , there are more @xmath1 violating decay channels than in the sm or its supersymmetric extension . at the same time there are more processes which wash the generated @xmath1 asymmetry out . the interplay of these effects requires further investigation . i would like to thank professor e a paschos for inspiration and useful discussions . financial support from the graduiertenkolleg 841 physik der elementarteilchen an beschleunigern und i m universum at dortmund university is gratefully acknowledged . 20 g. t hooft , phys . rev . lett . * 37 * , 8 ( 1976 ) . v. a. kuzmin , v. a. rubakov and m. e. shaposhnikov , phys 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kaplunovsky , m. l. mangano , c. nappi and n. seiberg , nucl . b259 * , 549 ( 1985 ) . c. a. lutken and g. g. ross , phys b214 * , 357 ( 1988 ) . e. ma , phys . lett . * 60 * , 1363 ( 1988 ) . lllllllllllllll @xmath0 & & & & @xmath74 + & & & & + & @xmath289 & @xmath125 & @xmath90 & @xmath125 & @xmath90 & @xmath91 & @xmath92 & i & ii & iii & iv & v & vi & + & * 3 * & * 3 * & * 1 * & * 2 * & & & + [ @xmath290 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & u & u & u & u & u & u & @xmath295 + [ @xmath296 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & u & u & u & u & u & u & @xmath295 + [ @xmath298 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & u & u & u & u & u & u & @xmath295 + [ @xmath300 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & d & d & d & d & d & d & @xmath295 + [ @xmath302 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & d & d & d & d & d & d & @xmath295 + [ @xmath303 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & d & d & d & d & d & d & @xmath295 + & * 3 * & * 3 * & * 1 * & * 1 * & & & + & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & d & d & d & d & d & d & @xmath304 + [ @xmath305 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & d & d & d & d & d & d & @xmath304 + [ @xmath306 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath292 & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & d & d & d & d & d & d & @xmath304 + & @xmath307 & * 1 * & @xmath307 & * 1 * & & & & & + & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath309 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath310 + [ @xmath311 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath309 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath310 + [ @xmath313 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath309 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath310 + [ @xmath314 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath308 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath315 + [ @xmath316 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath308 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath315 + [ @xmath317 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath308 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath315 + [ @xmath318 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath312 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath319 + [ @xmath320 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath312 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath319 + [ @xmath321 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath312 & @xmath294,_{0}$ ] & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath46 & @xmath30 & @xmath45 & @xmath45 & @xmath30 & @xmath46 & @xmath319 + & * 1 * & @xmath307 & * 3 * & * 2 * & & & & & + & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath291 & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath38 & @xmath38 & n & @xmath41 & n & @xmath41 & @xmath322 + [ @xmath56 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath291 & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath40 & @xmath40 & e & e & e & e & @xmath322 + [ @xmath58 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath297 & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & n & @xmath41 & @xmath38 & @xmath38 & @xmath41 & n & @xmath323 + [ @xmath324 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath297 & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & e & e & @xmath40 & @xmath40 & e & e & @xmath323 + [ @xmath55 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath299 & @xmath293,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath41 & n & @xmath41 & n & @xmath38 & @xmath38 & @xmath325 + [ @xmath326 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath299 & @xmath301,_{\bar{1}}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & e & e & e & e & @xmath40 & @xmath40 & @xmath325 + & * 1 * & @xmath307 & * 3 * & * 1 * & & & & & + & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath291 & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath47 & @xmath47 & @xmath31 & s & @xmath31 & s & @xmath327 + [ @xmath54 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath297 & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath293,_{1}$ ] & @xmath31 & s & @xmath47 & @xmath47 & s & @xmath31 & @xmath328 + [ @xmath57 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath299 & @xmath294,_{2}$ ] & @xmath294,_{\bar{2}}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & @xmath301,_{1}$ ] & s & @xmath31 & s & @xmath31 & @xmath47 & @xmath47 & @xmath329 + lllllllllllllll @xmath0 & & & & @xmath74 + & & & + & @xmath289 & @xmath125 & @xmath90 & @xmath125 & @xmath90 & @xmath91 & @xmath92 & i & ii & iii & iv & v & vi & + & * 1 * & * 8 * & * 1 * + [ @xmath330 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath331 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath332,@xmath333 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath336 & @xmath336 & @xmath336 & @xmath336 & @xmath336 & @xmath336 & @xmath337 + [ @xmath338 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath339 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath340,@xmath333 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath341 & @xmath341 & @xmath341 & @xmath341 & @xmath341 & @xmath341 & @xmath337 + [ @xmath342 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath343 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath344,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & & & & & & & @xmath345 + [ @xmath346 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & & & & & & & @xmath345 + [ @xmath347 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath348 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath349,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & & & & & & & @xmath345 + [ @xmath350 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath351 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath332,@xmath352 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath41 & @xmath41 & @xmath41 & @xmath41 & @xmath41 & @xmath41 & @xmath353 + [ @xmath354 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath355 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath340,@xmath352 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath43 & @xmath43 & @xmath43 & @xmath43 & @xmath43 & @xmath43 & @xmath353 + [ @xmath346 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath356 & @xmath356 & @xmath356 & @xmath356 & @xmath356 & @xmath356 & @xmath345 + & * 1 * & * 1 * & * 8 * + & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath331 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath332,@xmath333 & [ @xmath344,@xmath335 & [ @xmath332,@xmath352 & @xmath47 & @xmath93 & @xmath31 & @xmath357 & @xmath358 & @xmath359 & @xmath360 + [ @xmath361 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath339 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath340,@xmath333 & [ @xmath332,@xmath352 & [ @xmath344,@xmath335 & @xmath31 & @xmath357 & @xmath47 & @xmath93 & @xmath359 & @xmath358 & @xmath362 + [ @xmath363 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath343 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath344,@xmath335 & [ @xmath332,@xmath333 & [ @xmath340,@xmath352 & @xmath93 & @xmath47 & @xmath358 & @xmath359 & @xmath31 & @xmath357 & @xmath364 + [ @xmath346 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath85 & @xmath85 & @xmath85 & @xmath85 & @xmath85 & @xmath85 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath365 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath348 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath349,@xmath335 & [ @xmath340,@xmath352 & [ @xmath332,@xmath333 & @xmath358 & @xmath359 & @xmath93 & @xmath47 & @xmath357 & @xmath31 & @xmath366 + [ @xmath367 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath351 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath332,@xmath352 & [ @xmath340,@xmath333 & [ @xmath349,@xmath335 & @xmath357 & @xmath31 & @xmath359 & @xmath358 & @xmath47 & @xmath93 & @xmath368 + [ @xmath369 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath355 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath340,@xmath352 & [ @xmath349,@xmath335 & [ @xmath340,@xmath333 & @xmath359 & @xmath358 & @xmath357 & @xmath31 & @xmath93 & @xmath47 & @xmath370 + [ @xmath346 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath86 & @xmath86 & @xmath86 & @xmath86 & @xmath86 & @xmath86 & @xmath345 + & * 8 * & * 1 * & * 1 * + [ @xmath371 & [ @xmath331 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath372 & [ @xmath339 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath373 & [ @xmath343 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath346 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath346 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath374 & [ @xmath351 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath375 & [ @xmath348 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + [ @xmath376 & [ @xmath355 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath292 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & [ @xmath334,@xmath335 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath163 & @xmath345 + & @xmath377 & * 3 * & * 3 * + [ @xmath378 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath384 + [ @xmath385 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath384 + [ @xmath386 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath384 + [ @xmath387 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath388 + [ @xmath389 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath388 + [ @xmath390 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath388 + [ @xmath391 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath392 + [ @xmath393 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath392 + [ @xmath394 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath383 & @xmath382 & @xmath381 & @xmath381 & @xmath392 + [ @xmath395 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath384 + lllllllllllllll & @xmath377 & * 3 * & * 3 * + [ @xmath399 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath384 + [ @xmath400 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath384 + [ @xmath401 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath388 + [ @xmath402 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath388 + [ @xmath403 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath388 + [ @xmath404 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath392 + [ @xmath405 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath392 + [ @xmath406 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath398 & @xmath397 & @xmath396 & @xmath396 & @xmath392 + [ @xmath407 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath409 + [ @xmath410 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath409 + [ @xmath411 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath409 + [ @xmath412 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath413 + [ @xmath414 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath413 + [ @xmath415 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath332,@xmath379 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath413 + [ @xmath416 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath417 + [ @xmath418 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath417 + [ @xmath419 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath334,@xmath380 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & [ @xmath340,@xmath379 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath408 & @xmath45 & @xmath46 & @xmath46 & @xmath417 + & * 3 * & @xmath377 & @xmath377 + [ @xmath420 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath426 + [ @xmath427 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath426 + [ @xmath428 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath426 + [ @xmath429 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath430 + [ @xmath431 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath430 + [ @xmath432 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath430 + [ @xmath433 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath434 + [ @xmath435 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath434 + [ @xmath436 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath425 & @xmath425 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath424 & @xmath423 & @xmath434 + [ @xmath437 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath438 + [ @xmath439 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath438 + [ @xmath440 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath438 + [ @xmath441 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath442 + [ @xmath443 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath442 + [ @xmath444 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath442 + [ @xmath445 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath78 + [ @xmath446 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath78 + [ @xmath447 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath33 & @xmath33 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath63 & @xmath37 & @xmath78 + [ @xmath448 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath438 + [ @xmath449 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath438 + [ @xmath450 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath308 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath438 + [ @xmath451 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath442 + [ @xmath452 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath442 + [ @xmath453 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath312 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath332,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath442 + [ @xmath454 & [ @xmath291 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath78 + [ @xmath455 & [ @xmath297 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath78 + [ @xmath456 & [ @xmath299 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath309 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath340,@xmath422 & [ @xmath334,@xmath421 & @xmath62 & @xmath62 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath64 & @xmath39 & @xmath78 +

in the framework of the superstring inspired @xmath0 model , ` low energy ' extensions of the standard model compatible with leptogenesis are considered and masses of right handed neutrinos in two scenarios allowed by long lived protons are discussed . the presence of two additional generations allows breaking of @xmath1 without generating nonzero vacuum expectation values of right handed sneutrinos of the three known generations . after the symmetry breaking , right handed neutrinos acquire majorana masses @xmath2 gev . within the framework of a simple discrete symmetry , assumptions made to provide a large mass of right handed neutrinos are shown to be self consistent . supersymmetric structure of the theory ensures that large corrections , associated with the presence of a ( super)heavy gauge field , cancel out .

ankylosing spondylitis ( as ) is a seronegative spondyloarthropathy primarily affecting the spine and sacroiliac joint . neurologic sequele of as is usually accompanied by an atlantoaxial subluxation with spinal cord compression or a pathologic fracture of the rigid spine at cervicothoracic or thoracolumbar junctions even after a minor traumatic event21 ) . the cauda equine syndrome ( ces ) , is a known , but rare neurologic manifestation in patients with long - standing as ( also called ces - as syndrome ) and was first described by bowie and glasgow5 ) and hauge9 ) in 1961 . a dural ectasia is a condition in which the spinal dural sac is enlarged usually involving the lumbosacral regions where the cerebrospinal fluid ( csf ) pressure is greatest19 ) . the association of ces with dural ectasia or arachnoid cysts in as was first recognized by matthews in 196813 ) . dural ectasia is occasionally seen in patients with marfan syndrome , neurofibromatosis type i , ehlers - danlos syndrome and longstanding as12 ) . however , the bony erosion in as predominantly involves the posterior elements rather than the posterior aspect of vertebral bodies seen in other conditions14 ) . no proven - effective medical or surgical treatment for dural ectasia has been reported yet , presumably an end result of the chronic inflammatory process2,12 ) . herein we report a 68-year - old male patient with a 30-year history of as who developed ces in the past 3 years . a 68-year - old male with a 30-year history of as presented with a 3-month history of aggravation of a progressive urinary incontinence and pain in the left buttock associated with paresthesia of the right buttock which radiated down the back of the leg to the level of the sole . he also presented a three - year history of insidious onset , slowly progressing , urinary incontinence and numbness along the heel and sole of the left foot . on physical examination , mild hypesthesia and paresthesia was found in his left posterior calf and sole along the s1 dermatome . the patient had experienced intermittent low back pain in the past , but was not currently asymptomatic regarding this for many years . on admission , laboratory values were as follows : erythrocyte sedimentation rate 22 ( 0 - 15 ) mm / hr / c - reactive protein 0.23 ( range 0.03 - 0.47 ) mg / l and negative anti - nuclear ab 2.5 . electromyography and nerve conduction study showed bilateral lumbosacral radiculopathies , clinically equivalent to a cauda equina syndrome , with a more severe involvement of the left side . an urodynamic study showed an evidence of a neurogenic bladder with detrusor hypoactivity and low compliance of the bladder . plain x - rays of the lumbosacral spine and subsequent 3d computed tomography ( ct ) showed the typical ' bamboo spine ' of as with fusion of both sacroiliac joints , squaring of the lumbar vertebral bodies , syndesmophyte formation along the lumbar spine , and also multiple erosions of the roof of an enlarged spinal canal ( fig . the magnetic resonance imaging ( mri ) demonstrated a widened thecal sac from l4 to s1 , with an extensive scalloping of the laminae and a spinous process caused by multiple thecal diverticula ( fig . axial t2-weighted images showed a clumping of the nerve roots of the cauda equina on the side of the ecstatic thecal sac suggesting an adhesion of nerve roots to the ararchnoid membrane . the conus medullaris terminated at the level of l1 body , however , the filum terminale seemed to be adherent to the posterior wall of the thecal sac at l1 level ( fig . considering the chronic progressive course of a ces and the radiologic findings of adherence of filum terminale to the posterior wall of the dural ectasia , dethetering of the filum terminale was performed after getting informed consent from the patient and his relatives . the filum terminale was identified under microscopic vision and tested with a low current bipolar stimulation ( fig . after identifying the filum , it was coagulated and sharply divided , and the dura and overlying wound were closed in layers . no adverse effect of the untethering procedure was observed and the postoperative course was uneventful as well . the left buttock pain was improved ; however , the dysesthetic pain and paresthesia in his left posterior calf and sole were not improved . as may be completely asymptomatic and diagnosed when a radiograph is performed for some unrelated reason . it may also re - present after a period of quiescence , or rarely present late with complications . first described by bowie and glasgow5 ) , it occurs in a longstanding disease , with usually more than 15 years duration when this disease is inactive and the patient typically has been symptom - free for many years20 ) . symptoms are usually sensory in nature , affecting lumbosacral roots and frequently include urinary and bowel symptoms that are usually mild , if present . despite its relative rarity , it is a condition which has been well described , particularly with imaging techniques of ct and mri1,18 ) . the exact pathogenesis of dural ectasis and dural diverticua in longstanding as is still unclear . under normal conditions , the meninges and the dural sac , the process of inflammation may extend to the adjacent dura mater from the paraspinal ligament , resulting in an adhesion of the dura mater to the surrounding structures that reduce the compliance and elasticity of the lower dural sac and its ability to dampen the fluctuation in csf pressure6,9,13 ) . thus , an inflamed dura may be weakened , further encouraging the development of dural ectasia and bony erosion12 ) . several hypothetical mechanisms have been proposed for ces associated with as ( ces - as syndrome ) , including small vessel angitis involving the vasa vasorum of the nerve roots , nerve root damage due to dural ectasia with decreased elasticity of the dural sac and increased arterial pulsatile forces transmitted through the csf , chronic inflammatory process , and previous spinal irradiation due to treatment of as6,12,13,17 ) . of the proposed mechanisms , a chronic inflammatory theory of ces - as syndrome seems to be most plausible considering the chronic progressive clinical course , the mri findings of tethering of the conus medullaris and the adhesions of the nerve roots to the dorsal aspect of the dural sac and the spinal canal , as well as the development of a ces - as syndrome between 17 and 53 years ( average , 35 years ) after the onset of as4,12,15 ) . there is no effective medical or surgical treatment for a dural ectasia , presumably an end result of the chronic inflammatory process2,12 ) . according to a meta - analysis on the treatment efficacy of ces - as syndrome by ahn et al.2 ) , steroids were not effective in the chronic stage , while non - steroidal anti - inflammatory drugs decreased the back pain but did not improve the neurological deficit , probably owing to a non - active inflammation in the chronic stage of a ces - as syndrome . cornec et al.7 ) reported a case of dramatic clinical improvement in the anal sphincter function and sensation at anus and buttock with infliximab , a monoclonal antibody to tumor necrosis factor as a major pro - inflammatory cytokine used in the treatment of active as . the effectiveness of surgical treatment for ces - as is still controversial . there were reports6,8,10,11,16 ) regarding surgical interventions , such as lumboperitoneal shunting or laminectomy that may improve or arrest the progress of pain , sensory , motor , bowel and bladder dysfunction in few patients based on the theory of attributing nerve root damage to excessive pulse pressure in csf and to nerve root compression from the dural diverticula . however , most reports2,12 ) , including our case , as an explanation for the absence of improvement after surgical treatment , arslanoglu and aygun3 ) proposed that an initial inflammatory process results in an adhesion of the nerve roots of the cauda equina to the dural sac , and the nerve roots are progressively stretched by the enlarging diverticula . therefore , liu et al.12 ) suggested that the effect of medical and surgical treatment may be determined on the timing of the treatment , whether there is active inflammation or irreversible nerve root damage has developed and the mri finding and csf findings showing the status of acute or chornic inflammation may provide valuable information in the treatment planning in a patient with ces - as syndrome . a ces associated with dural ectasia is a rare , but serious problem in the management of patients with longstanding as . although the effectiveness of various medical and surgical treatments is still not established , the prompt identification of this problem with a timely surgical intervention seems to be a reasonable approach in this condition .

cauda equina syndrome ( ces ) associated with dural ectasia is a rare neurologic complication in patients with longstanding ankylosing spondylitis ( as ) . we report a 68-year - old male with a 30-year history of as who presented a typical symptom and signs of progressive ces , urinary incontinence and neuropathic pain of the lumbosacral radiculopathy . computed tomography ( ct ) and magnetic resonance imaging ( mri ) findings showed the unique appearances of dural ectasia , multiple dural diverticula , erosion of posterior element of the lumbar spine , tethering of the conus medullaris and adhesion of the lumbosacral nerve roots to the posterior aspect of the dural ectasia . considering the progressive worsening of the clinical signs , detethering of the conus medullaris through resection of the filum terminale was performed through a limited laminectomy . however , the urinary incontinence did not improve and there was a partial relief of the neuropathic leg pain only . the possible pathogenetic mechanism of ces - as and the dural ectasia in this patient with longstanding as are discussed with a literature review .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Freedom and Self-Determination for the Former Soviet Union Act''. SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON FOREIGN ASSISTANCE TO RUSSIA. (a) In General.--Foreign assistance may not be obligated or expended for Russia for any fiscal year unless the President certifies to the Congress for such fiscal year the following: (1) The President has received satisfactory assurances from the Government of Russia, which have been confirmed by the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, that the intelligence activities of Russia in the United States are confined to what is considered routine, non-adversarial information gathering activities. (2) Russia is making continual progress toward the unconditional implementation of the Russian-Moldovan troop withdrawal agreement, signed by the prime ministers of Russia and Moldova on October 21, 1994. (3) Russia is not providing military assistance to any military forces in the Transdniestra region of Moldova. (4) Russian military forces in the Kaliningrad region of Russia are respecting the sovereign territory of Lithuania and other neighboring countries and such forces are not offensively postured against any other country. (5) The activities of Russia in the other independent states of the former Soviet Union do not represent an attempt by Russia to violate or otherwise diminish the sovereignty and independence of such states. (6) Russia is not providing military assistance to any Bosnian Serb military units or combatants or to the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. (7) Russia is not providing any intelligence information to Cuba and is not providing any assistance to Cuba with respect to the signal intelligence facility at Lourdes or the nuclear facility at Cienfuegos. (8)(A) Russia is not providing to the countries described in subparagraph (B) goods or technology, including conventional weapons, which could materially contribute to the acquisition by these countries of chemical, biological, nuclear, or advanced conventional weapons. (B) The countries described in this subparagraph are Iran, Iraq, Syria, the People's Republic of China, or any country, the government of which the Secretary of State has determined, for purposes of section 6(j)(1) of the Export Administration Act of 1979 (50 U.S.C. app. 2405(6)(j)(1)), has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism. (9) Russia is in strict compliance with all arms control agreements to which Russia and the United States are a party. (10) Russia has ceased all strategic nuclear weapons modernization. (11) Russia is in strict compliance with all trade and financial agreements between Russia and any United States business. (b) Report.--The President shall submit to the Congress for each fiscal year a report containing the certifications required by subsection (a). Such report shall be submitted in unclassified and classified versions. SEC. 3. ANNUAL REPORTS. At the beginning of each fiscal year, the President and the Comptroller General of the United States shall each submit to the Congress a report containing the following: (1) The amount of foreign assistance provided to Russia for the preceding fiscal year, including-- (A) the name of each organization or entity to which such assistance was provided; (B) the purpose of such assistance; and (C) an assessment of the effectiveness of such assistance. (2) A detailed accounting of the amount of foreign assistance appropriated for Russia which has not been expended and the status of such assistance. (3) An estimate of the total amount of capital exported from Russia during the previous fiscal year and an analysis of the reasons for the export of such capital. SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT TO OPPOSE ASSISTANCE TO RUSSIA FROM INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS. The President should instruct the United States executive director of each international financial institution to use the voice and vote of the United States to oppose any assistance from that financial institution to Russia unless Russia is in compliance with the requirements contained in section 2. SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. For purposes of this Act: (1) Foreign assistance.--The term ``foreign assistance'' means assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), the Freedom for Russia and Emerging Eurasian Democracies and Open Markets Support Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5801 et seq.), or the Cooperative Threat Reduction Act of 1993 (22 U.S.C 5951 et seq.), except that such term does not include-- (A) humanitarian assistance; (B) educational and cultural exchanges between the United States and Russia; (C) assistance provided for the promotion of democratic political reform and the rule of law; and (D) assistance for safety upgrades of civilian nuclear power plants. (2) Goods or technology.--The term ``goods or technology'' has the meaning given such term in section 1608(3) of the Iran- Iraq Arms Non-Proliferation Act of 1992 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note). (3) International financial institution.--The term ``international financial institution'' means the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Development Association, the International Financial Corporation, the Global Environmental Facility, the Multilateral Investment Guaranty Agency, or the International Monetary Fund. (4) Other independent states of the former soviet union.-- The term ``other independent states of the former Soviet Union'' means the following: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), this Act shall apply only with respect to fiscal years beginning on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. (b) Exceptions.--In the case of the fiscal year in which this Act is enacted-- (1) the prohibition contained in section 2 shall apply with respect to the obligation or expenditure of foreign assistance on or after the date of the enactment of this Act (including foreign assistance which has been obligated but not expended before the date of the enactment of this Act); and (2) the requirement contained in section 4 shall apply with respect to the provision of assistance by an international financial institution on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

Freedom and Self-Determination for the Former Soviet Union Act - Prohibits the obligation or expenditure of foreign assistance for Russia for any fiscal year unless the President certifies to the Congress for such fiscal year that: (1) the President has received satisfactory assurances from the Government of Russia, confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, that Russia's intelligence activities in the United States are confined to routine, non-adversarial information gathering; (2) Russia is making progress toward the unconditional implementation of the Russian-Moldovan troop withdrawal agreement and that the Russian Government is not providing military assistance to any military forces in the Transdniestra region of Moldova; (3) Russian forces in the Kaliningrad region of Russia are respecting the sovereign territory of Lithuania and neighboring countries and are not offensively postured against any other countries; (4) the activities of Russia in the independent states of the former Soviet Union do not represent an attempt by Russia to diminish the sovereignty and independence of such states; (5) Russia is not providing military assistance to any Bosnian Serb military units or combatants or to the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia; (6) Russia is not providing any intelligence information to Cuba or assistance to Cuba with respect to the signal intelligence facility at Lourdes or the nuclear facility at Cienfuegos; (7) Russia is not providing to Iran, Iraq, Syria, China, or other countries whose governments have provided support for international terrorism, any goods or technology which could contribute to the acquisition of chemical, biological, nuclear, or advanced conventional weapons; (8) Russia is in strict compliance with all arms control agreements, as well as with all trade and financial agreements, with the United States; and (9) Russia has ceased all strategic nuclear weapons modernization. Requires the President and the Comptroller General to report to the Congress for each fiscal year: (1) the amount of foreign assistance provided to Russia for the preceding fiscal year; (2) a detailed accounting of the amount of foreign assistance appropriated which has not been expended and its status; and (3) an estimate of the total amount of capital exported from Russia during the previous fiscal year, along with an analysis of reasons for such export. Urges the President to instruct the U.S. executive directors of the international financial institutions to oppose assistance to Russia unless Russia is in compliance with this Act's requirements.

Ben Affleck really didn’t want people to know that one of his distant ancestors owned slaves—going so far as to lobby celebrity genealogy TV show Finding Your Roots to suppress the segment in which that ancestor is discussed. But we got our hands on a copy of the script—and now you can read the mild interview that terrified the actor. In his episode of Finding Your Roots, shared with actor Khandi Alexander and former NAACP president Ben Jealous, Affleck learns a great deal about his family, including his mother and a great-great-great grandfather, Almon Bruce French, a spiritualist and occultist. But there was one family member that Affleck bafflingly wanted to keep hidden: great-great-great grandfather Benjamin Cole, a Savannah slave-owner in the mid-19th century. Sometime after the show was filmed, Affleck contacted host Henry Louis Gates to request that the short, gentle interview about Cole be cut from the show. In the episode, which aired on TV in October, Affleck and Gates discuss the spiritualist forebear before the show cuts directly to a new segment with Alexander. But a picture-locked copy of the script from June obtained by Gawker shows that the segment about his slave-owning predecessor would have appeared between. This is what Ben Affleck wanted no one to see: AT THE SAME TIME THAT ALMON WAS TRYING TO OFFER THE BEREAVED SOLACE... ANOTHER OF BEN’S ANCESTORS WAS LIVING 800 MILES DUE SOUTH. WE LEARNED THAT HIS LIFE HAD ALSO BEEN FUNDAMENTALLY AFFECTED BY THE CIVIL WAR—BUT FOR VERY DIFFERENT REASONS. THIS MAN WAS BEN’S THIRD GREAT GRANDFATHER, BENJAMIN COLE, AND HE WAS LIVING IN SAVANNAH, GEORGIA AT THE TIME. COLE WAS ONE OF SAVANNAH’S MOST PROMINENT CITIZENS—A WEATLHY LAND OWNER AND THE SHERIFF OF THE ENTIRE COUNTY. AFFLECK: That’s amazing. I got a…we have a house in Savannah. GATES: Really? AFFLECK: Yeah. GATES: Did it ever occur to you that you had deep roots there? AFFLECK: No, it didn’t. It didn’t at all. I had no idea I had any southern roots at all, so this is remarkable. COLE OWNED A LARGE FARM IN GEORGIA AT A TIME WHEN SLAVE LABOR HAD MADE THE STATE THE CENTER OF THE SOUTH’S COTTON KINGDOM. WE WANTED TO SEE IF WE COULD LEARN HOW BEN’S ANCESTOR FELT ABOUT THIS PECULIAR INSTITUTION. AND FOR THAT, WE STARTED WITH THE 1850 CENSUS. GATES: This is the slave schedule of the 1850 Census. In 1850, they would list the owner of slaves in a separate Census. AFFLECK: There’s Benjamin Cole, owned 25 slaves. GATES: Your third great-grandfather owned 25 slaves. He was a slave owner. THESE HOLDINGS PUT BENJAMIN COLE AMONG THE SOUTHERN ELITE. ONLY ABOUT 10% OF ALL SLAVE HOLDERS OWNED 20 SLAVES OR MORE. AFFLECK: God. It gives me kind of a sagging feeling to see, uh, a biological relationship to that. But, you know, there it is, part of our history. GATES: But consider the irony, uh, in your family line. Your mom went back fighting for the rights of black people in Mississippi, 100 years later. That’s amazing. AFFLECK: That’s pretty cool. GATES: That’s pretty cool. AFFLECK: Yeah, it is. One of the things that’s interesting about it is like we tend to separate ourselves from these things by going like, you know, oh, well, it’s just dry history, and it’s all over now, and this shows us that there’s still a living aspect to history, like a personal connection. By the same token, I think it’s important to recognize that, um, in looking at these histories, how much work has been done by people in this country, of all kinds, to make it a better place. GATES: People like your mother. AFFLECK: Indeed, people like my mother and many others who have made a much better America than the one that they were handed. The segment, in which Gates is careful to end on Affleck’s mother—a civil-rights worker—comes across as mild and non-confrontational, and Affleck comports himself well. So why was it cut? Last week, after leaked emails surfaced in which Gates describes Affleck’s desire to expurgate the segment, the Harvard professor denied removing the material at Affleck’s request—an apparent violation of PBS editorial standards—saying he had used his editorial judgment and found the material lacking. “Ultimately, I maintain editorial control on all of my projects and, with my producers, decide what will make for the most compelling program,” he said in a statement. But if Gates was making an independent editorial decision based on quality alone, it came extremely late in the process. The June version of the script excerpted here is picture-locked, meaning that it came at the end of the editing process, and no major cuts or additions would be made. Picture-lock must have been revoked sometime over the summer in order to make at least two major cuts, including to the opening segment. Here’s the voice-over introduction, as it appears in the June script: IN THIS EPISODE, WE PIECE TOGETHER THE LOST FAMILY HISTORIES OF ACTOR BEN AFFLECK, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST BEN JEALOUS, AND ACTOR KHANDI ALEXANDER. THEIR ROOTS HIGHLIGHT A UNIQUELY AMERICAN PARADOX: EACH DESCENDS FROM A PATRIOT WHO FOUGHT FOR OUR NATION’S INDEPENDENCE—BUT EACH ALSO DESCENDS FROM AN ANCESTOR WHO OWNED SLAVES. And here’s how it appears in the final script, submitted in August: GATES VO: IN THIS EPISODE, WE PIECE TOGETHER THE LOST FAMILY HISTORIES OF ACTOR BEN AFFLECK, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST BEN JEALOUS, AND ACTOR KHANDI ALEXANDER. THEIR ROOTS LEAD TO ANCESTORS WHOSE LIVES WERE SHAPED BY THE TWO DEFINING WARS IN OUR NATIONS HISTORY. THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION AND THE CIVIL WAR. Three Americans, two of whom are black, each of whom “descends from a patriot” but also “an ancestor who owned slaves” sounds like much more compelling television to me (relatively speaking, of course). Not so to Skip Gates: “In the case of Mr. Affleck — we focused on what we felt were the most interesting aspects of his ancestry — including a Revolutionary War ancestor, a 3rd great–grandfather who was an occult enthusiast, and his mother who marched for Civil Rights during the Freedom Summer of 1964,” Gates told PBS’s ombudsman. But “interesting” wasn’t the only thing on Gates’ mind. In a widely publicized July 22, 2014 email chain leaked during the Sony Hack and now available on Wikileaks, Gates asks Sony Entertainment CEO Lynton for his advice on a guest who “has asked us to edit something about one of his ancestors—the fact that he owned slaves,” openly admitting that editing the piece would be a “violation of PBS rules.” “And he wasn’t even a bad guy. We don’t demonize him at all,” Gates grumbles about Affleck’s ancestor. (Bolding throughout ours.) >>>>>>> On Jul 22, 2014, at 9:01 AM, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. wrote: >>>>>>> >>>>>>> As long as you stay on the board, you are free to say this is crazy! I hardly know Harvey; you are my friend. I really would be devastated if you left. By the way, I need your advice: I’m on a flight to L.A. for the TCA Press Tour. We launch season two of Finding Your Roots tomorrow at noon, and four celebrities, including Nas, are showing up. Here’s my dilemma: confidentially, for the first time, one of our guests has asked us to edit out something about one of his ancestors—the fact that he owned slaves. Now, four or five of our guests this season descend from slave owners, including Ken Burns. We’ve never had anyone ever try to censor or edit what we found. He’s a megastar. What do we do? >>>>>> On Jul 22, 2014, at 12:09 PM, “Lynton, Michael” <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>> Of course I will stay on the board if you want me to. On the doc the big question is who knows that the material is in the doc and is being taken out. I would take it out if no one knows, but if it gets out that you are editing the material based on this kind of sensitivity then it gets tricky. Again, all things being equal I would definitely take it out. >>>>> On Jul 22, 2014, at 9:11 AM, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. wrote: >>>>> >>>>> Good; relieved. As for the doc: all my producers would know; his PR agency the same as mine, and everyone there has been involved trying to resolve this; my agent at CAA knows. And PBS would know. To do this would be a violation of PBS rules, actually, even for Batman. >>>>> >>>>> Sent from my iPad >>>>> >>>> On Jul 22, 2014, at 11:28 AM, “Lynton, Michael” <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> >>>> then it is tricky because it may get out that you made the change and it comes down to editorial integrity. We can talk when you land. >>> On Jul 22, 2014, at 9:30 AM, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. wrote: >>> >>> Will call. It would embarrass him and compromise our integrity. I think he is getting very bad advice. I’ve offered to fly to Detroit, where he is filming, to talk it through. >>> >>> Sent from my iPad >> On Jul 22, 2014, at 12:28 PM, “Lynton, Michael” <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> yeah,, the past is the past….. On Jul 22, 2014, at 10:30 AM, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. wrote: > And he wasn’t even a bad guy. We don’t demonize him at all. Now Anderson Cooper’s ancestor was a real s.o.b.; one of his slaves actually murdered him. Of course, the slave was promptly hanged. And Anderson didn’t miss a beat about that. Once we open the door to censorship, we lose control of the brand. > > Sent from my iPad “Yes, bad idea,” Lynton replies. Bad idea indeed. [image via AP] ||||| One day after Ben Affleck wrote on Facebook that he had lobbied PBS’ Finding Your Roots producer to withhold revealing he has a slave-owning ancestor, the actor took the high road and tweeted information about the relative: Lots of people have been asking who the guy was. His name was Benjamin Cole – lived in Georgia on my Mom's side about six generations back. — Ben Affleck (@BenAffleck) April 22, 2015 In marked contrast, Finding Your Roots producer (and Harvard scholar) Henry Louis Gates, Jr., this afternoon took a stab at hanging onto his gig, as PBS and WNET continue to investigate what Gates did, when and why. Gates issued a second statement about the controversy – this time alternately apologizing for what he’d done to PBS, FYR producing station WNET, and PBS member stations while, at the same time, insisting his are the “most rigorous scholarly and production values.” “We regret not sharing Mr. Affleck’s request that we avoid mention of one of his ancestors with our co-production partner, WNET, and our broadcast partner, PBS,” Gates said in this new statement. He apologized for “putting PBS and its member stations in the position of having to defend the integrity of their programming.” “Moving forward,” he vowed, possibly too late, “we are committed to an increased level of transparency with our co-producing partners,” adding, “We respect PBS guidelines and understand our obligation to maintain editorial integrity at all times.” It’s a very different pose than that assumed by Gates in his first statement, in which he boasted, “The mission of Finding Your Roots is to find and share interesting stories from our celebrity guests’ ancestries and use those stories to unlock new ways to learn about our past,” while “never shying away from chapters of a family’s past that might be unpleasant.” Back then, Gates said he had determined Affleck’s occult-enthusiast third great-grandfather, among other relatives, was more interesting/relevant than his slave-owning ancestor. Gates’ second statement comes in response to PBS’s abrupt about-face from its initial statement last week on the subject, in which it said confidently that it was clear “how seriously Professor Gates takes editorial integrity.” Yesterday, PBS switched to a much sterner announcement that it had launched an investigation into Gates’ handling of the show. PBS’s about-face, in turn, had been triggered by a report from PBS ombudsman Mike Getler, blasting Gates’ actions and PBS’ initial reaction. Affleck found himself cast in the role of Collateral Damage in this elaborate soap opera about dysfunctional public broadcasting relationships and Gates’ too cozy alliance with a Sony exec. Other players are the “megastars” that Gate’s show profiles under the pretext that it is teaching viewers about “history.” Finding Your Roots is a public broadcasting series that purports to be educational. It uses celebrities to make the “history” part more attractive to as many viewers as possible – in much the same way Pawn Stars uses an old fighter-plane ejection seat to “teach” us about World War II, or a 2001 New England Patriots Super Bowl ring to teach us about the Super Bowl – or the New England Patriots? Yesterday, Affleck wrote on Facebook that he’d told Gates he did not want a TV show about his family to reference a relative who owned slaves because “I was embarrassed” and “the very thought left a bad taste in my mouth.” He insisted he’d lobbied Gates in exactly the same way he lobbies directors of his movies as to which of his “takes” he thinks the director should use, calling it “the collaborative creative process.” Of course, Finding Your Roots isn’t one of Affleck’s movies, though he was quick to note it also “isn’t a news program.” But it is, according to Gates, funded to some degree by the Public Broadcasting Service and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, who may not see eye to eye with Affleck on the whole “collaborative process” thing when it comes to this allegedly educational series and the various hats its celebrity subjects may, or may not, wear. PBS aired the episode of Finding Your Roots that included Affleck’s story last fall. The whole history of the episode never would have come to light had not WikiLeaks released a searchable archive of hacked Sony emails. Among the leaked documents was an email exchange between Gates and Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton from before the episode’s broadcast, in which Gates sought Lynton’s advice about the Affleck request. Gates acknowledged in one email that fulfilling the request “would be a violation of PBS rules, actually, even for Batman” and “would embarrass him and compromise our integrity” and that “once we open the door to censorship, we lose control of the brand.” He also wrote, “We’ve never had anyone ever try to censor or edit what we found” while noting this particular celebrity is a “megastar.” Affleck has noted on Facebook that he has seen this story being framed as “censorship” on some web sites; Gates’ emails are the reason why. “What do we do?” Gates asked Lynton, not PBS and/or WNET. He appears to have taken Lynton’s advice to take out the reference though, in fairness to Lynton, the Sony exec did also warn things would get tricky if word got out that Gates was letting celebrities edit their histories. Lynton forgot to mention things also would get tricky if word got out that Gates had sought advice from a Sony exec rather than one from PBS.

– Ben Affleck has named the slave-owning ancestor he was too "embarrassed" to have revealed by PBS' Finding Your Roots, and in an unfortunate coincidence, they share a name. "His name was Benjamin Cole—lived in Georgia on my Mom's side about six generations back," the actor tweeted yesterday. He didn't reveal any more about Cole, but Gawker has obtained a draft of the Finding Your Roots script where Affleck is informed that, according to the 1850 census, Cole, a prominent citizen of Savannah, owned 25 slaves, which put him in the top 10% of slaveholders. "God. It gives me kind of a sagging feeling to see, uh, a biological relationship to that. But, you know, there it is, part of our history," Affleck responds after learning about Cole, according to the script (which, Gawker notes, reveals that the episode needed a major reworking after Affleck decided he wanted all mention of Cole scrubbed). Finding Your Roots producer Henry Louis Gates Jr., meanwhile, has issued a statement apologizing for not informing PBS of Affleck's request and promising "an increased level of transparency with our co-producing partners," Deadline reports.

idiopathic nephrotic syndrome ( ins ) includes minimal change disease ( mcd ) , focal segmental glomerulosclerosis ( fsgs ) , and diffuse mesangial proliferation ( dmp ) . patients with mcd usually have excellent prognosis , but patients with fsgs and dmp often have hypertension , hematuria , and progress to renal failure [ 14 ] . steroid dependence or resistance seems to have increased over the last decades , but the treatment of difficult cases of ins , mostly due to fsgs , is still a challenge [ 57 ] . a number of medications such as ( mp ) , cyclophosphamide , vincristine , mmf , and cy a [ 10 , 11 ] have been used with varying result . recent reports have showed remission rates ranging from 20% to 70% using these drugs in srins [ 10 , 11 ] . but serious side effects of these medications such as nephrotoxicity , hypertension , hirsutism , arrhythmias , psychosis , growth retardation , and severe infections remain a major problem [ 710 ] . hence , the search for a rescue therapy in difficult cases of ins is needed in order to avoid unnecessary exposure to toxic drugs . an optimal combination of immunosuppresive agents to reverse resistance and to reduce the undesirable effects of high dose and prolonged administration of drugs is still a challenge ( 11 , 4 ) . moreover , there are some reports supporting the idea that mcd , dmp , and fsgs are separate diseases because of different response rate to corticosteroid and the histologic findings offer data of prognostic significance . therefore , in many centers , renal biopsy is recommended according to the rationale that the intensity of immunosuppression may have to be adapted to the underlying findings in renal biopsy for the patients who do not respond to steroids [ 1113 ] . in this study , patients with srns were treated in a first step protocol with a combination of cy a ( 5 mg / kg / day ) in association with prednisolone ( 1 mg / kg on alternate day ) for 6 months . in resistant cases , prednisolone was withdrawn and cy a ( 5 mg / kg / day ) in association with mmf ( 30 mg / kg / day ) was adapted as second step for 6 months . patients admitted to our hospital between october 2002 and april 2008 fulfilling the entering criteria of ins ( proteinuria > 50 mg / kg/24 hr , serum albumin <3 g / dl , total cholesterol > 250 g / dl , and edema ) were included in this study . children were treated with prednisolone 2 mg / kg / day for 4 weeks in case of remission , for 6 weeks in case of no remission . the following criteria were adopted for assessing the patient 's response to medication : complete remission : serum albumin 2.5 g% and absence of proteinuria or proteinuria < 4 mg / kg / day , partial remission : serum albumin 2.5 g% and 50% reduction of initial proteinuria ( < 50 mg / kg / day ) , no response : persistence of hypoalbuminemia ( < 2.5 g% ) and nephrotic proteinuria ( 50 patients with ins , older than 1 year and younger than 14 years old , without hypertension , macroscopic haematuria which went into remission with prednisolone ( 2 mg / kg / day ) by 6 weeks , considered as ssns and did not undergo kidney biopsy . patients who did not reach remission after 6 weeks of prednisolone ( ssns ) underwent kidney biopsy which was examined by light microscope alone , since immunofluorescence and electron microscope were not available . first - step protocol for srns was the following : cy a ( 5 mg / kg/24 hr ) and prednisolone ( 1 mg / kg / day ) every other day for 6 months . if remission was obtained 3 month after complete remission , prednisolone was discontinued . second - step protocol for patients who did not go into remission on the first step : treatment cy a 5 mg / kg / day and mmf 30 mg / kg / day were given for 6 months with withdrawing prednisolone . if complete remission was obtained , 3 month later cya was tapered . with any relapse during tapering phase patients were monitored every 2 weeks for first 2 months , monthly for the next 6 months and every 2 months thereafter . data analyzed by chi square test with using two methods ; likelihood ratio test and fisher 's exact test . the p value was estimated mont carlo and exact distribution and value < 0.05 was considered significant . in this study we used spss software version 16 . a few cases were lost from followup ( 3 cases ) , 2 had congenital nephrotic syndrome , one had nephrotic syndrome associated with systemic lupus erythematosus , and 4 with membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis were not included in the study protocol . thirty - one children ( 34.4% ) were female and 59 ( 65.6% ) male ( male to female ratio 1.9 : 1 ) . in this study , 53 children ( 58.9% ) responded well to steroid therapy , and thus did not undergo renal biopsy . thirty - seven cases ( 41.1% ) were resistant to steroid therapy and underwent renal biopsy and included dmp 11 cases ( 12.2% ) , fsgs 10 cases ( 11.1% ) , and mcd 16 cases ( 17.8% ) . in this group 15 ( 40.5% ) children were < 4 years old ( y.o ) , 12 ( 32.5% ) were between 410 ( y.o ) , and 10 ( 27% ) were > 10 ( y.o ) . the most common age group was < 4 years , and the mean age of the patients was 7.2 3.76 years ( table 1 ) . of 37 srns , 12 cases ( 32.4% ) completely responded to first - step protocol and 2 cases ( 5.4% ) partially responded to this regimen ( table 2 ) . steroid therapy was tapered in 12 children with complete remission and eventually discontinued in 8 children ( 7 mcd and 1 dmp ) 3 months after complete remission . other 23 children remained steroid and cya resistant and entered the second - step treatment . eleven cases ( 47.82% ) completely responded to cya in association with mmf ( second step ) , and 2 cases ( 8.7% ) partially responded to this regimen ( table 2 ) . we slowly tapered cya ( 1 mg / kg / month ) in 11 cases 3 months after the complete remission . all cases maintained remission with cya ( 3 mg / kg ) in association with mmf ( 30 mg / kg / day ) . when cya was decreased to 2 mg / kg , 7/11 cases ( 6 cases with dmp and 1 cases with fsgs ) completely and 2/11(mcd ) partially relapsed . the highest rate of response to steroid was in the age croup of 410 years ( 49% ) and the highest rate of steroid resistance was in the smaller children < 4 years old ( 41% ) . significant difference in complete response to combination therapy was found among the three groups ( mcd , fsgs , and dmp ) ( tables 3 and 4 ) . the highest response rate to cya and prednisolone was observed in patients with mcd ( 37.8% ) . the highest response rate to mmf and cya was seen in dmp cases ( 56.5% ) . side effects of treatment were striae in 11 , hypertrichosis in 9 and gingival hyperplasia in 5 , and cataract in 3 patients in the end of first - step protocol . in the second - step protocol side effects of treatment were diarrhea in 3 , abdominal pain in 4 , and mild anemia in 3 patients . children with srns have been treated with various medication , including cya , mmf , cyclophosphamide , and azathioprine . in recent studies , the rate of complete remission after using different immunosuppressive agents varies from 30% to 84% , depending on the treatment protocols [ 11 , 14 , 15 ] . in a study by jameela a. kari , twenty of children with srns ( 65% ) achieved partial ( 6 ) and complete ( 14 ) remission . in this report , 16 children was treated with cyclophosphamide either oral or intravenous , and only 4 of them ( 25% ) achieved remission . seven children received oral chlorambucil , and only 2 of them ( 28.5% ) got remission . mmf was used in 5 children , and 2 ( 40% ) of them attained complete remission . however because of unfavorable side effects , variable efficacy and high relapse rate in the literature , the alkylating agents are not recommended for primary therapy in srns [ 4 , 6 , 15 ] . in another report with using cya in association with prednisolone in srns for time , 75% of cases got remission . in our study the total remission was 73/1% ( sum of remission obtained within first and the second protocol steps ) . difference in complete response to combination therapy between three groups ( mcd , fsgs , and dmp ) was statically significant ( tables 3 and 4 ) . the highest response rate to cyclosporine a + prednisolone was seen in patients with mcd ( 37.8% ) , but the highest response rate to mmf + cyclosporine a was detected in dmp cases ( 56.5% ) ( tables 3 and 4 ) . seven cases which were resistant to all drugs had fsgs in biopsy and only 3 cases ( 30% ) with fsgs got remission ( by first and second step ) see tables 3 and 4 . it is possible that the response rates in srns to immunosuppressants may vary according to the type of glomerular lesion and unknown multiple factors . has supported the concept that the type of underlying glomerular lesion in idiopathic srns may influence the response to treatment . in the present study , the highest remission rate to steroid therapy was observed in the age of 410 years , and the highest resistance rate to steroid was seen in children < 4 years old ( table 2 ) . other studies indicate increasing frequency in srns especially in young children [ 2 , 11 ] . regarding irreversible side effects of long - term use of steroid especially in young children ( growth retardation , cataract , and striae ) , it is suggested to use other medication such as mmf . the use of mmf in glomerulonephritis is based in its anti - inflammatory , antifibrotic , antiproteinuric , and inhibitory effects to mesangial cell proliferation . recently , li et al . have reported that mmf is tolerated and significantly decrease urinary protein excretion in children less than 2 years old with srns . in a randomized controlled multicenter study the efficacy of mmf versus cya in children with relapsing mcd was investigated . in this study , mmf was given at maximum dose of 2 gr / day and cya at dose of 4 - 5 mg / kg / day ( for 12 months ) . although the relapsed rate of nephrotic syndrome was higher in the mmf group , but the renal function was better preserved and the side effects were less observed with mmf . in order to avoid high doses and long - term use of corticosteroid , some studies recommend the association of cya or mmf with low dose corticostroide . mmf seems to be effective at least in some steroid and cya resistant ins , but there are not reports about using of combination of mmf with cya in steroid and cya resistant ins . considering favorable experiences with mmf such as less adverse effects than other immunosuppressive drugs , benefit effects in the treatment of many immunologically mediated renal diseases , and the antifibrotic and antiproliferative effects of this medication [ 17 , 18 ] , it is suggested that mmf in association with low - dose cya ( after remission ) can be a promising treatment of difficult cases of steroid and cya resistant ins . in our series of cases , fsgs was the most common type of renal lesion in cases resistant to all therapy regimens . only 3/10 cases ( 30% ) with steroid resistant fsgs achieved remission the using first treatment ( 1 case ) and the second step ( 2 cases ) . in some of these cases , we can not exclude genetic mutations in podocyte - specific genes wich may influence the response to treatment [ 1921 ] . other important flaw of our study is loss of immunofluorescence and electron microscopic finding in kidney biopsy which was examined by light microscope alone , since immunofluorescence and electron microscope were not available . sensitivity rate of ins to steroid therapy was 58.9% in our study and 70%80% in other reports [ 2224 ] . it could be because of treating sensitive cases in provinces and not to referring them to our center . patients were monitored every 2 weeks for first 2 months , monthly for the next 4 months , and every 3 months thereafter . there was no significant side effect , and no change in dose of medication was made . in conclusion , mmf in associated with cya - induced remission in significant number of steroid and cyclosporine - resistant ns and kept them in remission with low - dose cya .

steroid - resistant nephrotic syndrome ( srns ) in children carries a significant risk of progression to end - stage renal failure ( esrf ) . we report a two - step protocol adapted in children with srns . thirty - seven srns were treated with cyclosporine a ( cya ) in association with prednisolone ( alternate day ) for 6 months ( first - step treatment ) . twelve patients ( 32.4% ) went into complete remission , and 2 ( 5.4% ) got partial remission . the other 23 cases who were steroid and cya resistant entered a second - step treatment with withdrawing steroids , with cya ( 5 mg / kg / day ) in association with mycophenolate mofetil ( mmf ) 30 mg / kg / day for 6 months . complete remission was observed in 11 cases ( 47.82% ) and partial remission in 2 cases ( 8.7% ) . after two steps of treatment , 27/37 children went into total remission . in steroid and cya - resistant ins , the association of mmf with cya was able to induce remission in about half cases without relevant side effects .

supernova ( sn ) 2002bu was discovered on 2002 march 28 by @xcite in the galaxy ngc 4242 , with a fairly low peak magnitude @xmath10 @xcite . the last pre - discovery observations on 2001 february 21 and march 14 placed a unfiltered magnitude limit at the location of the sn of 20.5 mag . a low resolution spectrum taken by @xcite on april 1 showed a flat continuum and strong , narrow balmer emission lines ( fwhm @xmath11 1100 km / s ) that led to a type iin classification of the sn . the early ( @xmath1280 days post peak ) light curve presented by @xcite and @xcite showed a plateau and a slower rise and decline as compared to other type ii sne , with the color becoming redder with time . @xcite proposed that sn 2002bu may be a member of a new class of stellar transients , with the prototypes being sn 2008s @xcite and the 2008 optical transient ( ot ) in ngc 300 @xcite . the class is characterized by a transient progenitor pair , where the transient is @xmath13 mag fainter than a regular core collapse sn ( ccsn ) , with narrow emission lines and evidence of internal extinction in the spectrum , while the progenitor is a dust enshrouded , low luminosity ( @xmath125@xmath14 ) star with little variability in the years before the outburst ( @xcite , @xcite ) . in mid magnitude diagrams ( cmd ) , the progenitors occupy the extreme end of the asymptotic giant branch ( agb ) sequence and the obscuring dust is graphitic rather than silicate ( @xcite , @xcite ) . @xcite further showed that these transients are relatively common among ccsne ( @xmath1220% ) , but their progenitors are extremely rare ( @xmath15 of massive evolved stars ) , which implies that many massive stars go through this dust obscured phase shortly ( @xmath16 yrs ) before the explosion . the rarity of the progenitor stars was further confirmed in the survey of additional galaxies by @xcite . since the main characteristic of the new class is a dust enshrouded progenitor , it is impossible to unambiguously classify sn 2002bu as a member , as there are no pre explosion ir observations of the region . however , @xcite found a bright , red mid - ir source at the location of sn 2002bu in spitzer space telescope ( sst ) data taken 2 years after the explosion , which indicates dust formation . this , together with the transient characteristics ( low luminosity , dust and narrow emission lines visible in the spectrum ) , make sn 2002bu a likely member of the new class . in addition , @xcite analyzed 5 spectra taken between 11 and 81 days after discovery , and they show that the spectrum of sn 2002bu becomes redder with time and evolves from a spectrum resembling an lbv in outburst at early times , to one more similar to the spectra of sn 2008s and the ngc 300 ot 81 days later . the evolution of the h@xmath17 line from a lorentzian profile to an asymmetric , blueshifted gaussian profile , is suggestive of newly formed dust . in @xcite we argued that the early light curve also indicates dust formation , albeit with some ambiguities . in @xcite we analyzed archival hubble space telescope ( hst ) and sst data from approximately two years after the transient peak . as previously reported by @xcite , sn 2002bu was a luminous mid - ir source in 2004 , but @xcite also found that it was invisible in archival hst data from 2005 in the bvri bands to limits of @xmath18 mag . the spectral energy distribution ( sed ) in 2004 was well fit by surrounding a @xmath19 k , @xmath20 source with an optically thick ( @xmath21 ) shell of dust located at a radius of approximately @xmath22 cm . broadly speaking , there are three possible explanations of the observations , as we discussed in our mid - ir survey of the `` supernova impostors''(@xcite ) . the first , `` traditional '' , view of these events is that a shell of material is ejected during the optical transient and forms dust once the ejected material becomes cool enough . as the shell expands , its optical depth drops as @xmath23 and the characteristic temperature drops as @xmath24 because the shell expands with the ejecta velocity @xmath25 . the dust radius at the time of the previous sst observations of sn 2002bu was consistent with a shell expanding at the velocity of @xmath26 km / s adopted by @xcite . the second possibility is that the optical transient is a signal that the star is entering a high mass loss phase with a dense wind that forms dust and obscures the source . while the wind is steady , the optical depth is roughly constant with a dust temperature close to the dust destruction temperature @xmath27 k unless the wind becomes optically thick in the mid - ir . when the high mass loss phase ends , the evolution quickly resembles the first scenario ( see @xcite ) . the third scenario is the one introduced by @xcite to explain sn 2008s and the ngc 300 ot . here the progenitors are already shrouded by a very dense wind when an explosive transient occurs that destroys most of the dust to leave the transient little obscured at peak . the wind is so dense , however , that the dust reforms and re - obscures the transient . the present day luminosity is a combination of a surviving star ( if any , nothing in the data requires one ) and the luminosity generated by the shock propagating through the wind . at later times , the optical depth outside the shock is dropping as @xmath28 and , once the optical depth is low enough , the x - rays produced in the shock should be observable . these scenarios make different predictions for the time evolution of the transient , so monitoring the evolution of sn 2002bu as a function of wavelength should reveal the nature of the event . here we report near - ir hst , mid - ir sst and swift x - ray observations of sn 2002bu taken roughly 10 years after the transient peak and 8 years after the the last hst and sst observations . section 2 presents the new observational data . we discuss the results in section 3 , and consider their broader implications in section 4 . we observed sn 2002bu with sst in june 2011 and january 2012 , in both the [ 3.6 ] and [ 4.5 ] @xmath29 m bands ( program i d 80015 ) with exposure times of 240 sec ( 8 dithered 30 sec exposures ) for both bands . we also observed it with hst in february 2012 using the wfc3/ir camera and the f110w ( @xmath30 ) and f160w ( @xmath31 ) filters ( proposal i d 12450 ) with exposure times of 2@xmath32700 s for each band . figure [ fig : ssthst ] shows the changes in the [ 3.6 ] and [ 4.5 ] images between 2004 and 2012 as well as a zoomed in view of the region in the @xmath30 and @xmath31-band hst images . the source has become significantly fainter in the mid - ir , more so at [ 3.6 ] than at [ 4.5 ] , but any near - ir counterpart must still be very faint . figure [ fig : closeup ] shows a close - up view of the region in the f160w image . we identified 12 reasonably isolated stars in the hst images that could be matched to the sst images using the iraf _ immatch _ package . using the 2004 @xmath33 m image as the reference frame , we obtain the estimated sn position in the hst data shown by the circle in figure [ fig : ssthst ] and a cross in figure [ fig : closeup ] . the uncertainty in the position is approximately 1.5 hst pixels or @xmath34 . the spitzer fluxes were measured with aperture photometry ( _ apphot _ package in iraf ) , following the procedure described in @xcite . we measure the flux of the source using a range of source and sky apertures ( with appropriate aperture corrections ) and then combine the individual results taking into account both the formal statistical and the systematic uncertainties implied by the scatter in the fluxes found for different aperture combinations . we analyzed the hst images using the dolphot @xcite photometry package with its standard wfc3 parameter files . dolphot identifies three sources within a radius three times larger than our estimated astrometric uncertainties . we label these sources a , b and c in order of their distance from the estimated position ( see figure [ fig : closeup ] ) . the photometric results are presented in table [ tab : mags ] together with the previous hst and sst flux measurements from @xcite . we adopt a distance to ngc 4242 of 5.8 mpc based on @xcite and a foreground galactic extinction of @xmath35 ( @xcite ) . we note , however , that the distance to ngc 4242 is uncertain . there is a second tully - fisher distance estimate of 10.4 mpc by @xcite ( erratum in @xcite ) , and if we associate ngc 4242 with the group containing ngc 4258 it lies at the intermediate distance of @xmath36 mpc ( @xcite ) . our qualitative conclusions are unaffected by these uncertainties . quantitatively , luminosities increase proportional to @xmath37 , dust radii increase as @xmath38 , and the velocities implied by the dust radii increase as @xmath38 . the actual photometric models are essentially distance independent other than these scalings . we comment on the effects of distance changes as necessary . figure [ fig : cmd ] shows near - ir h / j@xmath39h cmds constructed from the dolphot catalogs for a large ( 23@xmath3220 ) and a small 35 ( 100 pc ) radius region around the sn . we required the signal - to - noise ratio in both filters to be greater than 4 for a detection ( see @xcite ) , and a sharpness parameter @xmath40 to exclude non - stellar sources . the cmds are corrected for galactic extinction ( @xmath41 mag , @xcite ) and assume a distance of @xmath42 mpc @xcite . we mark the locations of sources a , b and c in both cmds . the right panel in figure [ fig : cmd ] also shows the padova ( @xcite ) isochrones for @xmath43 , @xmath44 and @xmath45 years , that have zams masses corresponding to their end points of @xmath46 , @xmath47 and @xmath48 , respectively . the isochrones are moderately bluer than the stars , which could be evidence for @xmath49 mag ( for 5.8 mpc , @xmath50 mag for @xmath51 mpc ) of local extinction . unfortunately , the optical detection limits are not strong enough to constrain these possibilities . for all these distances and extinctions , the local stellar population is only consistent with the older isochrones , ages closer to @xmath52 years and a maximum mass of @xmath53 than @xmath43 years and a maximum mass of @xmath54 . since adding these extinctions have little effect on our near / mid - ir models , we add no additional extinction beyond galactic to the models in 3 . we also observed sn2002bu with _ swift _ @xcite between april 2630 2011 , for a net exposure of 15 ks . we reprocessed the xrt data using the ` xrtpipeline ` tool provided by the swift team and reprojected the observations into a single image . we chose the source region to be a circle centered on the sn with a radius of 10 pixels ( 23@xmath556 ) and a nearby background region without any sources . we did not detect the source either in the full ( 0.210 kev ) or the 0.20.5 kev , 0.52 kev , and 210 kev bands . we obtained 1@xmath56 limits of @xmath57 , @xmath58 , @xmath59 , and @xmath60 cnt s@xmath61 , respectively , for these bands , where we corrected the small aperture used in the analysis based on the _ swift _ psf @xcite . assuming thermal bremsstrahlung emission with @xmath62 kev and galactic absorption of @xmath63 @xcite , we obtained a flux limit of @xmath64 in the 0.52 kev band that roughly corresponds to a luminosity limit of @xmath65 . more generally , we model the emission as thermal brehmsstrahlung emission at a temperature @xmath66 obscured by an additional column density @xmath67 associated with the source . we use the pimms model for the swift / xrt to estimate the absorbed soft , medium and hard - band count rates and constrain the unabsorbed total luminosity to be consistent with the observed upper limits for the three energy bands . we used dusty ( @xcite ; @xcite ) to fit the seds of the sources detected in hst near - ir data . figure [ fig : sed ] shows the probability averaged seds of sn 2002bu in may 2004 and january 2012 ( for sources a , b and c , treating near - ir hst measurements of source a either as detections or upper limits ) . the best fit model to the 2004/2005 data is taken from @xcite and corresponds to a @xmath19 k , @xmath20 star surrounded by an optically thick ( @xmath21 ) shell of dust expanding at @xmath12900 km / s . both graphitic and silicate models give similarly good fits to the data . we also embedded dusty in a markov chain monte carlo engine to model the seds , varying the dust temperature , @xmath68 , optical depth , @xmath69 , and stellar temperature , @xmath70 , with either a fixed 2:1 ratio between the inner and outer radii of the shell or allowing the ratio to vary between 1.1 and 10 . we included a weak prior on the stellar temperature , @xmath71 , ( and restricted its range to @xmath72 ) and on the expansion velocity implied by the inner radius of the shell , @xmath73 . for the 2012 epoch we ran models considering star a as either a detection or an upper limit . the results allowing for variations in the shell thickness were little different from those with a fixed thickness and no particular thickness was preferred , so we only report the results for the fixed thickness in table [ tab : results ] . the results for the 2004 epoch are the same as in our earlier models from @xcite . the source must be quite luminous , @xmath74 , but with an indeterminate source temperature because of the heavy obscuration . the optical depth in graphitic models is @xmath75 ( scattering plus absorption ) , and it is moderately higher in the silicate models because of the higher scattering opacities of silicate dusts ( see the discussion in @xcite ) . significantly higher optical depths begin to have significant opacity even for the shorter wavelength irac bands , inconsistent with the shape of the sed . the dust temperatures at the inner edge of @xmath76 k are roughly in the range expected for newly forming dust . the dust radius is estimated to be @xmath77 , implying a velocity of @xmath78 that is consistent with the velocity prior taken from the line widths cited by @xcite . note , however , the uncertainties are much smaller than those of the prior , so the data are in fact determining this radius and velocity rather than the prior . despite the reasonable coverage of the mid - ir sed , graphitic and silicate dusts fit the data equally well . as discussed earlier , the primary effect of distance uncertainties is simply to rescale the luminosities , velocities and distances . in particular , adopting the distance to ngc 4258 ( @xmath36 mpc ) raises the velocity from @xmath79 km / s to @xmath80 km / s , while using the @xcite distance of @xmath51 mpc raises it to @xmath81 km / s . one reason we adopted the smaller distance is that the larger distances begin to require significantly larger mean expansion velocities than implied by spectroscopic observations during the transient ( see @xcite ) . the interpretation of the sed in 2012 depends critically on whether any source in the hst images corresponds to sn 2002bu . if source a ( or b / c ) is a detection , then the present day source must be a relatively hot , @xmath82 k , star . for graphitic dust , the star is relatively low luminosity @xmath83 , with moderate @xmath84 obscuration , at a relatively large radius @xmath85 that corresponds to a lower average expansion velocity @xmath86 but is uncertain enough to be consistent with no change in velocity . the dust temperature at the inner edge is much cooler , @xmath87 k. in the silicate models the source is more luminous , @xmath88 with greater optical depth , @xmath89 , located at a smaller radius @xmath90 , that now requires a slower expansion rate @xmath91 . the dust temperature at the inner edge is moderately warmer , @xmath92 k. there is no basis for choosing between the two dust types . if the association with source a is simply a coincidence and we instead treat the hst fluxes as upper limits , then solutions with cool stars are allowed , but they require increasingly high optical depths for lower temperatures , @xmath93 for the coolest ( @xmath94 k ) models . this is essentially the limit of the fully obscured progenitors of sn 2008s and the ngc 300-ot ( @xcite , @xcite , @xcite , @xcite ) . the current position of the source in the mid - ir cmd ( see figure [ fig : midir_cmd ] ) , close to the tip of the agb sequence , is similar to that of the sn 2008s or ngc 300-ot progenitor stars ( @xcite , @xcite ) . this is simply a coincidence driven by the present luminosity and dust radius , because in steady state a surviving star could not support the necessary optical depths given the velocities needed to have new material at such large distances . the population studies by @xcite and @xcite imply a lifetime in the obscured phase of order @xmath95 years . the mass loss rate is related to the optical depth by @xmath96 for visual opacity @xmath97 @xmath98/g , mass loss rate @xmath99 and wind speed @xmath100 , which implies a total mass loss of @xmath101 while the star is in its obscured phase . no star could sustain this for @xmath102 km / s , so the current state can not represent a long lived period and must be a transient phase . the progenitors , under the super - agb star hypothesis of @xcite , can have the necessary lifetimes because dust driven wind velocities of @xmath103-@xmath104 km / s are so low ( e.g. @xcite ) . however , such a slow wind commencing after the transient would not even have started to form dust at this point in time . the second possibility is the traditional view of the supernova impostors as stars that briefly enter a high mass loss state during the transient to produce a shell of ejected material that then forms dust . as discussed in @xcite , sn 2002bu probably started forming dust too soon after the transient peak to have formed it in ejected material . the more serious problem is that between 2004 and 2012 an expanding , dense shell should have a radius growing as @xmath105 and an optical depth dropping as @xmath6 . if we take the elapsed time from discovery to the irac observations in 2004 ( 736 days ) and 2012 ( 3566 days ) , the radius should have increased by a factor of @xmath106 and the optical depth should have dropped by a factor of @xmath107 . fig . [ fig : params ] illustrates this by comparing the mean expansion velocities and optical depths for the two epochs and both grain types . if we scale the values in 2004 to their expected values in 2012 simply using the expected temporal scalings , we see that the observed properties in 2012 have a significantly higher optical depth and may require some deceleration of the expansion rate . this leaves the scenario developed by @xcite for sn 2008s and the ngc 300-ot , where the absorption is due to a dense pre - existing wind . in this scenario , the progenitors were obscured by a dense , dusty wind where the dust is destroyed by the shock breakout luminosity from the explosive transient so as to leave the transient with little obscuration at peak . the densities are so high , however , that the dust can then reform and re - obscure the system , consistent with the early dust formation suggested by the spectra and photometry . in the sn 2008s scenario , the material already exists at these distances and so dust can begin ( re-)forming very rapidly . if the luminosity is then powered by a combination of any surviving star and an expanding shock wave , the optical depth to the shock front is only dropping as @xmath108 . the resulting drop in the optical depth by only a factor of @xmath106 is far more compatible with the observations , as shown in fig . [ fig : params ] . arguably , the shock should also be slowing as it expands through the dense wind . self - similar solutions ( e.g. @xcite ) give expansion rates of @xmath109 and @xmath110 where @xmath111 for ejecta with an effective density profile @xmath112 expanding into a @xmath113 wind . the typical approximations for the structure of the ejecta are @xmath114 ( @xmath115 ) and @xmath116 ( @xmath117 ) , leading to a modest slowing with time . in fig . [ fig : params ] we show the scaling of the conditions in 2004 to 2012 for this shock scenario ( @xmath118 , @xmath119 , @xmath120 ) . if a significant part of the present day luminosity is driven by x - rays from an expanding shock , inferences about the temperature of the illuminating source and the exact value of the optical depth become somewhat problematic . in the shock scenario , the x - rays are absorbed by the dense gas and remitted as a complex , non - thermal ( mainly ) emission line spectrum , which is then absorbed and reradiated by the dust . while the shock emission models of @xcite do not extend to the regimes considered here , they generally have relatively low near - ir emission compared to optical / uv emission and so would resemble a hot star model . the estimates of the optical depth , which are driven by the near - ir detections , should also be viewed as being only logarithmically correct in this scenario . the overall luminosity , dust temperature and dust radius , which are largely determined by the mid - ir emissions from the dust , should still be accurate . if we fit the expansion of the dust radius as a power law , @xmath121 , we find @xmath122 ( @xmath123 , @xmath124 ) for the graphitic models and @xmath125 ( @xmath126 , @xmath124 ) for the silicate models . the silicate models are consistent with linear expansion only at @xmath7 . similarly , if we fit the evolution of the optical depth as a power law , @xmath127 , we find @xmath128 ( @xmath129 , @xmath124 ) and @xmath130 ( @xmath131 , @xmath124 ) for the graphitic and silicate models , respectively . the @xmath132 scaling of expanding shells is ruled out at roughly @xmath7 . we can also fit the evolution of the optical depth as a power law in radius , @xmath133 , finding @xmath134 ( @xmath135 ) and @xmath136 ( @xmath137 ) for the two models . while this appears to be consistent with the @xmath138 scaling for an expanding shell , there is a strong covariance between this exponent and the expansion rate of the shell a solution with @xmath138 must also roughly have @xmath139 . essentially , for the same change in optical depth there is considerable uncertainty in the radius because we lack a complete dust sed in 2012 for constraining the dust temperature . in the two - dimensional probability distribution of the @xmath140 and @xmath141 exponents , the expanding shell solution with @xmath142 and @xmath143 is still ruled out at roughly @xmath7 . the evolution is consistent with the @xmath144 and @xmath145 evolution of the expanding shock model . a shock moving through a wind at velocity @xmath146 has a characteristic x - ray energy of @xmath147 where the mean molecular weight is @xmath148 , and produces luminosity @xmath149 where @xmath150 is the efficiency with which the shock energy is radiated as x - rays ( e.g. @xcite , @xcite , @xcite , @xcite ) . the radius of the shock @xmath151 cm is simply related to its velocity , where @xmath152 days is the elapsed time from the transient to the x - ray observation . this means that the hydrogen column density outside the shock radius is @xmath153 combining these three equations with the pimms models for absorbed thermal bremsstrahlung , we can determine the range of shock velocities and wind density parameters ( @xmath154 ) that would violate the swift limits , as shown in fig . [ fig : params ] . if the shock velocity is as high as the @xmath155 km / s fwhm reported by @xcite , then there are allowed solutions for low wind densities ( where the x - ray luminosity is low but little absorbed ) , and high wind densities ( where the x - ray luminosity is high but heavily absorbed ) . if the shock velocity @xmath156 km / s , then the x - ray emission limits are satisfied for any wind density . the parameters derived from the photometric fits broadly satisfy these limits on the x - ray emission . half the graphitic solutions violate the limit in fig . [ fig : params ] , but the limit as drawn is for 100% conversion of the shock energy into soft x - rays and a @xmath124 detection threshold , which is a rather optimistic representation of the detection threshold . the basic picture of fig . [ fig : params ] is little changed if we use the larger distances to ngc 4242 , with all solutions and limits simply shifting to higher velocities . while this increases the shock luminosity , the net effect is limited because the x - ray luminosity limits from the observations become correspondingly weaker . combining spitzer , hubble and swift observations of sn 2002bu , we confirm the arguments in @xcite and @xcite that this source is a member of the sn 2008s class of transients . while we have no direct evidence that the progenitor was self - obscured , dust appears to have begun forming before any ejecta would be cool enough to do so and the optical depth of the dust is dropping significantly more slowly than the @xmath132 scaling of an expanding shell of material . the evolution is broadly consistent with the expanding shock model of @xcite for sn 2008s and the ngc 300-ot . it is not consistent with an expanding shell of ejected material or a reformed , slow wind around a surviving dusty star . unfortunately , our swift x - ray observations only constrain the allowed parameter space since we failed to detect x - ray emission from the shock . @xcite argued from an analysis of the stellar populations near the ngc 300-ot that the progenitor could be as massive as @xmath157 , while @xcite argued for @xmath158 because the progenitor appeared to be an extreme agb star based on its location in mid - ir cmds . the ambiguity is possible because the most luminous agb stars have luminosities comparable to evolved @xmath159 stars . formally , however , these population analyses only provide upper mass limits , so it is entirely possible to have a transient ( even a supernova ) from a @xmath160 star in a region containing @xmath161 stars . however , the local stellar environment of sn 2002bu , like that of sn 2008s ( @xcite ) , appears to contain no stars more massive than @xmath158 . in fact , the environment of sn 2002bu appears to favor still lower masses , closer to @xmath162 than @xmath163 . this strongly favors the interpretation of @xcite and @xcite that the sn 2008s class of transients is associated with agb stars . the very low mass scale implied by the environment of sn 2002bu does not , however , favor the possibility that the transients are electron capture supernovae ( @xcite , @xcite ) , as these are only expected for masses of @xmath164-@xmath163 ( e.g. @xcite ) . obtaining deep optical images of the sn 2008s and 2002bu fields to better constrain the extinction and temperatures of the nearby stars would greatly improve the characterization of the stellar populations over our present near - ir results . as with all the `` supernova impostors '' , the only way to determine their natures is to continue to track the evolution of their spectral energy distributions . it is clear from our survey in @xcite that there are at least two classes of sources and that no sources with adequate data were consistent with a brief period of high mass loss during the transient leading to the formation of a dusty expanding shell that obscured the source . the strength of this conclusion is strongly limited by the fragmentary nature of the data in both wavelength and time . here we see that the sn 2008s transient class can remain dust - obscured for long periods of time , primarily because the optical depth is not evolving like that of an expanding shell . however , if object a is the near - ir counterpart of sn 2002bu , the veil is beginning to thin . the authors are supported in part by nsf grant ast-0908816 . the authors would like to thank the swift team and its pi , n. gehrels , for approving the swift too observation of sn 2002bu , and j.a . beacom , j .- l . prieto , k.z . stanek and t.a . thompson for their comments . this work is based in part on observations made with the spitzer space telescope , which is operated by the jet propulsion laboratory , california institute of technology under a contract with nasa . support for this work was provided by nasa through award 1414623 issued by jpl / caltech . support for hst program go-12331 was provided by nasa through a grant from the space telescope science institute , which is operated by the association of universities for research in astronomy , inc . , under nasa contract nas5 - 26555 . allen , m. g. , groves , b. a. , dopita , m. a. , sutherland , r. s. , & kewley , l. j. 2008 , , 178 , 20 arbour , r. , & boles , t. 2008 , central bureau electronic telegrams , 1234 , 1 ayani , k. , kawabata , t. , & yamaoka , h. 2002 , , 7864 , 4 botticella , m. t. , pastorello , a. , smartt , s. j. , et al . 2009 , , 398 , 1041 chevalier , r. a. 1982 , , 258 , 790 chevalier , r. a. 1983 , , 272 , 765 chevalier , r. a. , & fransson , c. 1994 , , 420 , 268 chugai , n. n. 1992 , , 36 , 63 chugai , n. n. , & danziger , i. j. 1994 , , 268 , 173 dalcanton , j. j. , et al . 2012 , , 198 , 6 dickey , j. m. , & lockman , f. j. 1990 , , 28 , 215 dolphin , a. e. 2000 , , 112 , 1383 foley , r. j. , smith , n. , ganeshalingam , m. , li , w. , chornock , r. , & filippenko , a. v. 2007 , , 657 , l105 gehrels , n. , chincarini , g. , giommi , p. , et al . 2004 , , 611 , 1005 gogarten , s. m. , dalcanton , j. j. , murphy , j. w. , et al . 2009 , , 703 , 300 herrnstein , j. r. , moran , j. m. , greenhill , l. j. , et al . 1999 , , 400 , 539 hornoch , k. 2002 , , 7923 , 5 ivezic , z. , & elitzur , m. 1997 , , 287 , 799 ivezic , z. , nenkova , m. , & elitzur , m. 1999 , user manual for dusty , university of kentucky internal report http://www.pa.uky.edu/@xmath12moshe/dusty/ ivezi , . , & elitzur , m. 2010 , , 404 , 1415 khan , r. , stanek , k. z. , prieto , j. l. , et al . 2010 , , 715 , 1094 marigo , p. , girardi , l. , bressan , a. , et al . 2008 , , 482 , 883 monard , l. a. g. 2008 , , 8946 , 1 puckett , t. , & gauthier , s. 2002 , , 7863 , 1 kochanek , c. s. 2011 , , 741 , 37 kochanek , c. s. , szczygiel , d. m. , stanek , k. z. 2012 , arxiv1202.0281k moretti , a. , campana , s. , mineo , t. , et al . 2005 , , 5898 , 360 poelarends , a. j. t. , herwig , f. , langer , n. , & heger , a. 2008 , , 675 , 614 prieto , j. l. , kistler , m. d. , thompson , t. a. , et al . 2008 , , 681 , l9 prieto , j. l. 2008 , the astronomer s telegram , 1550 , 1 prieto , j. l. , sellgren , k. , thompson , t. a. , & kochanek , c. s. 2009 , , 705 , 1425 schlegel , d. j. , finkbeiner , d. p. , & davis , m. 1998 , , 500 , 525 smith , n. , li , w. , silverman , j. m. , ganeshalingam , m. , & filippenko , a. v. 2011 , , 415 , 773 springob , c. m. , masters , k. l. , haynes , m. p. , giovanelli , r. , & marinoni , c. 2007 , , 172 , 599 springob , c. m. , masters , k. l. , haynes , m. p. , giovanelli , r. , & marinoni , c. 2009 , , 182 , 474 szczygie , d. m. , prieto , j. l. , kochanek , c. s. , et al . 2012 , , 750 , 77 thompson , t. a. , prieto , j. l. , stanek , k. z. , kistler , m. d. , beacom , j. f. , & kochanek , c. s. 2009 , , 705 , 1364 tully , r. b. , rizzi , l. , shaya , e. j. , et al . 2009 , , 138 , 323 wesson , r. , barlow , m. j. , ercolano , b. , et al . 2010 , , 403 , 474 cccccccccccccccc date ( ut ) & mjd & pi / program & @xmath165 & @xmath166 & @xmath167 & @xmath168 & @xmath169 & @xmath170 & @xmath171 $ ] & @xmath172 $ ] & @xmath173 $ ] & @xmath174 $ ] & @xmath175 $ ] & @xmath176 $ ] & comments + & & & [ mag ] & [ mag ] & [ mag ] & [ mag ] & [ mag ] & [ mag ] & [ @xmath29jy]&[@xmath29jy]&[@xmath29jy]&[@xmath29jy]&[@xmath29jy ] & [ @xmath29jy ] & + 2004 - 04 - 25 & 53120 & fazio/69 & & & & & & & & & & & @xmath177 & @xmath178 & 1 + 2004 - 05 - 02 & 53128 & fazio/69 & & & & & & & @xmath179 & @xmath180&@xmath181&@xmath182 & & & 1 + 2005 - 03 - 20 & 53456 & filippenko/10272 & @xmath183 & @xmath184 & @xmath185 & @xmath186 & & & & & & & & & 1 + 2011 - 06 - 23 & 55735 & kochanek/80015 & & & & & & & @xmath187 & @xmath188 & & & & & + 2012 - 01 - 31 & 55958 & kochanek/80015 & & & & & & & @xmath189 & @xmath190 & & & & & + 2012 - 02 - 15 & 55972 & kochanek/12450 & & & & & @xmath191 & @xmath192 & & & & & & & a + & & & & & & & @xmath193 & @xmath194 & & & & & & & b + & & & & & & & @xmath195 & @xmath196 & & & & & & & c + lccccccl 53128 & @xmath197 & @xmath198 & @xmath199 & @xmath200 & @xmath201 & @xmath202 & graphitic + 53128 & @xmath203 & @xmath204 & @xmath205 & @xmath206 & @xmath207 & @xmath208 & silicate + 55972 & @xmath209 & @xmath210 & @xmath211 & @xmath212 & @xmath213 & @xmath214 & graphitic + 55972 & @xmath215 & @xmath216 & @xmath217 & @xmath218 & @xmath219 & @xmath220 & silicate +

we observed sn 2002bu in the near - ir with the hubble space telescope , the mid - ir with the spitzer space telescope and in x - rays with swift 10 years after the explosion . if the faint @xmath0 hst near - ir source at the transient position is the near - ir counterpart of sn 2002bu , then the source has dramatically faded between 2004 and 2012 , from @xmath1 to @xmath2 . it is still heavily obscured , @xmath3 in graphitic dust models , with almost all the energy radiated in the mid - ir . the radius of the dust emission is increasing as @xmath4 and the optical depth is dropping as @xmath5 . the evolution expected for an expanding shell of material , @xmath6 , is ruled out at approximately @xmath7 while the @xmath8 to @xmath9 optical depth scaling for a shock passing through a pre - existing wind is consistent with the data . if the near - ir source is a chance superposition , the present day source can be moderately more luminous , significantly more obscured and evolving more slowly . while we failed to detect x - ray emission , the x - ray flux limits are consistent with the present day emissions being powered by an expanding shock wave . sn 2002bu is clearly a member of the sn 2008s class of transients , but continued monitoring of the evolution of the spectral energy distribution is needed to conclusively determine the nature of the transient .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act''. SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress finds as follows: (1) In 2013, more than 33,000 Americans were killed by guns and almost 90 percent of the firearms used in these deaths were handguns. (2) Recently published research by top national experts, notably on Missouri and Connecticut handgun purchaser licensing laws, have estimated that Missouri's repeal of its handgun purchaser licensing law led to a 25-percent increase in firearm homicide rates while Connecticut's adoption of its handgun purchaser licensing law led to a 40-percent decrease in firearm homicide rates. (3) In States which have had effective handgun purchaser licensing laws for decades, such as Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York, the vast majority of guns traced to crimes originated in other States, which supports the need for handgun purchaser licensing laws in every State. SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. In this Act-- (1) the terms ``Attorney General'' and ``handgun'' have the meanings given those terms in section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code; and (2) the term ``Indian tribe'' has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b). SEC. 4. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED FOR HANDGUN LICENSING. (a) In General.--The Attorney General is authorized to award grants to States, units of local government, and Indian tribes for the development, implementation, and evaluation of handgun purchaser licensing requirements. (b) Program Authorized.--From the amounts appropriated to carry out this Act and not later than 90 days after such amounts are appropriated, the Attorney General shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible applicants whose applications are approved under subsection (c) to assist such applicants in implementing and improving handgun purchaser licensing programs. (c) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this Act, a State, unit of local government, or Indian tribe shall submit to the Attorney General an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Attorney General may require, including-- (1) a description of the law that the applicant has enacted to require a license for any purchase of a handgun including a description of any exemptions to such law; and (2) a description of how the applicant will use the grant to carry out or improve its handgun purchaser licensing program. (d) Eligibility Requirements.--To be eligible for a grant under this Act, an applicant shall have in effect handgun purchaser licensing laws that-- (1) require-- (A) an individual applying for a handgun license or permit to be at least 21 years old and be a national or lawful permanent resident of the United States; (B) an individual described in subparagraph (A) to apply for the handgun purchaser license or permit at a law enforcement agency in the State in which the individual resides; (C) an individual who is issued a handgun license or permit to reapply for the handgun purchaser license or permit after a period not longer than 5 years; (D) an individual described in subparagraph (A) to submit to a background investigation, and a criminal history check, in connection with the application, as established by the State; (E) an individual described in subparagraph (A) to submit fingerprints and photographs in connection with the application for the license or permit; and (F) an individual described in subparagraph (A) to provide-- (i) proof that the individual is legally present and lawfully resides in the United States, including a birth certificate, or valid passport; and (ii)(I) in the case of a lawful permanent resident, the alien registration number and 90- day proof of residency; or (II) in the case of a naturalized citizen, proof of citizenship; and (2) prohibit an individual who is prohibited from possessing a firearm under section 922(g) of title 18, United States Code, from receiving a license or permit. (e) Use of Funds.--A grantee under this Act shall use such grant to improve handgun purchaser licensing programs of that grantee. SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. There are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act Authorizes the Attorney General to award grants to states, units of local government, and Indian tribes for the development, implementation, and evaluation of handgun purchaser licensing requirements. Directs the Attorney General to award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible applicants whose applications are approved to assist them in implementing and improving handgun purchaser licensing programs. Directs a state, local government, or tribe, to be eligible to receive a grant, to submit to the Attorney General an application that meets specified requirements, including a description of: (1) the law that the applicant has enacted to require a license for any purchase of a handgun, including exemptions to such law; and (2) how the applicant will use the grant to carry out or improve its program. Requires an applicant, to be eligible for a grant, to have in effect handgun purchaser licensing laws that: require an applicant for a handgun license or permit to be at least 21 years old and to be a national or lawful permanent resident of the United States; require such an individual to apply for the license or permit at a law enforcement agency in the state in which he or she resides, to reapply for an issued license after a period not longer than five years, and to submit to a background investigation and a criminal history check; require such an individual to submit fingerprints and photographs in connection with the application and to provide proof that the individual is legally present and lawfully resides in the United States; and bar any individual who is prohibited from possessing a firearm under the federal criminal code from receiving a license or permit. Requires a grantee to use such grant to improve its handgun purchaser licensing programs.

the online version of this article ( doi:10.1007/s12032 - 014 - 0302 - 3 ) contains supplementary material , which is available to authorized users . anemia and iron deficiency are frequent complications in cancer patients , particularly in those undergoing chemotherapy . both correlate with poor performance status in cancer patients , and anemia has been shown to be associated with shorter survival [ 1 , 2 ] . inadequate iron supply is a major component in the pathogenesis of anemia in cancer patients .the estimated prevalence of insufficient iron availability in cancer patients ranges from 1963 % , and functional iron deficiency ( fid ) is much more common than absolute iron deficiency [ 1 , 3 ] . fid occurs when release of iron from internal stores is restricted ( e.g. , due to inflammation ) or too slow to keep pace with erythropoiesis [ e.g. , after treatment with erythropoiesis - stimulating agents ( esa ) ] . it is characterized by low transferrin saturation ( tsat 20 % ) in spite of adequate iron stores , while serum ferritin levels usually are elevated [ 3 , 4 ] . present management of cancer - related anemia often consists of red blood cell ( rbc ) transfusions or esa treatment . however , at least 30 % of anemic cancer patients do not respond to esa treatment alone , and over recent years , the evidence has accumulated that rbc transfusions , as well as esa use outside the current label and guidelines , can increase all - cause mortality [ 79 ] . current guidelines therefore recommend preventing rbc transfusions and using esas at the lowest effective dose . randomized , controlled trials using intravenous ( i.v . ) iron treatment in combination with esa showed increased hematological response , reduced rbc transfusion and esa dose requirements , and faster correction of cancer - related anemia compared with esa alone or with oral iron . iron alone could be an interesting therapeutic option for patients with cancer - related anemia . iron alone in three randomized controlled studies in patients with gynecological cancers [ 1214 ] and two observational studies [ 15 , 16 ] . in this study for the first time , a distinction was made between the two basic types of iron deficiency ( absolute or functional ) . here ferric carboxymaltose ( fcm ) without the addition of esa as treatment for chemotherapy - induced anemia in patients with lymphoid malignancies and functional iron deficiency receiving antineoplastic therapy . this randomized , controlled , open - label , prospective trial included 11 recruiting sites across four countries ( austria , germany , russia , and sweden ) . the study was registered ( clinicaltrials.gov identifier : nct01101399 ) and conducted in accordance with the declaration of helsinki and approved by independent ethics committees . included were adult patients with lymphoid malignancies ( indolent non - hodgkin s lymphoma , multiple myeloma , or chronic lymphocytic leukemia ) , anemia [ hemoglobin ( hb ) 8.510.5 g / dl ] , and fid [ tsat 20 % and serum ferritin > 30 ng / ml ( women ) or > 40 ng / ml ( men ) ] who had received antineoplastic therapy for 8 weeks ( or two cycles ) prior to inclusion ( see supplementary data for a comprehensive list of inclusion / exclusion criteria ) . based on a predefined , computer - generated randomization list , patients were randomized 1:1 to fcm ( ferinject , vifor pharma , switzerland ) or no anemia treatment ( controls ; symptomatic management according to local institutional practice ) . patients > 50 kg received a single infusion of 1,000 mg iron at day 1 of the next antineoplastic therapy cycle , and patients < 50 kg received two infusions of 500 mg iron each ( day 1 and week 2 ) . primary end point was the mean hb change from baseline to week 8 without use of transfusions or esa . secondary end points included safety , hb response ( increase 1.0 g / dl ) and correction ( hb 11.0 g / dl ) at any week , median time to hb response and changes in hematologic variables . the planned sample size of 40 patients ( 20 per group ) was calculated to detect an expected difference in hb of 1.0 g / dl ( standard deviation 1.5 g / dl ) at a 1-sided alpha of 0.05 and a power of 68 % . these data were derived from a large observational study in cancer patients who had received 5004,000 mg of fcm for the treatment of iron - restricted erythropoiesis and anemia , and achieved a 1.0 g / dl mean hb increase from baseline by week 4 . the primary efficacy variable was analyzed using a mixed effects model for repeated measures ( mmrm ) . comparisons at weeks 8 , 6 , and 4 were made using a hierarchical step - down procedure with the primary end point at week 8 . exact logistic regression , adjusted for baseline hb , was used for all tests based on proportions . time - to - event analyses were investigated using kaplan meier survival plots with log - rank tests for comparisons . difficulties with patient recruitment led to premature study termination , after randomization of only half of the planned patients . of 34 screened patients , 19 were randomized ( safety set : 8 fcm , 11 controls ) and 17 had post - baseline efficacy data available for primary endpoint analysis [ full analysis set ( fas ) : 8 fcm , 9 controls ; fig . 1 ] . the per - protocol set ( fas patients with no major protocol deviations ) included 12 patients ( 5 fcm , 7 controls ) . baseline patient characteristics were comparable between the fcm and the control group ( table 1).fig . 1patient flow diagramtable 1baseline patient characteristics ( safety set)fcm ( n = 8)controls ( n = 11)male , n ( % ) 5 ( 62.5)7 ( 63.6)age ( years , median [ range])69.5 [ 4179]71.0 [ 2688]weight ( kg , median [ range])67.8 [ 59.0103.7]66.4 [ 49.078.0]baseline hb and iron statushb ( g / dl , median [ range])9.5 [ 9.010.5]9.8 [ 8.410.6]ferritin ( ng / ml , median [ range ] ) 216 [ 65800]322 [ 8707]tsat ( % , median [ range ] ) 16 [ 335]18 [ 031]previous anti - anemic therapy , n ( % ) transfusion3 ( 37.5)1 ( 9.1)esa01 ( 9.1)iron01 ( 9.1)tumor type , n ( % ) multiple myeloma6 ( 75.0)5 ( 45.5)chronic lymphocytic leukemia1 ( 12.5)1 ( 9.1)non - hodgkin s lymphoma1 ( 12.5)5 ( 45.5)cancer therapy mono- or combined ( n ) antineoplastic agents810 bendamustine01 bortezomib33 chlorambucil12 cyclophosphamide32 doxorubicin01 fludarabine01 melphalan25 vincristine11 thalidomide11corticosteroids for systemic use76 dexamethasone43 prednisone34 patients with baseline tsat > 20 % and ferritin 30 ( women ) or 40 ng / ml ( men ) were excluded from the per - protocol population ( 3 fcm , 2 control ) > 4 weeks prior to baseline as per protocol , patients had to be receiving cancer treatment symptomatic management according to local institutional practice baseline patient characteristics ( safety set ) patients with baseline tsat > 20 % and ferritin 30 ( women ) or 40 ng / ml ( men ) were excluded from the per - protocol population ( 3 fcm , 2 control ) > 4 weeks prior to baseline as per protocol , patients had to be receiving cancer treatment symptomatic management according to local institutional practice in the fcm group , five patients received a single fcm administration ( 1,000 mg iron ) and three received two fcm administrations ( 500 mg iron per dose ) . no patient required blood transfusion or esa treatment during the study period . in the fas population , fcm - treated patients had a greater mean hb increase from baseline compared with control patients at all post - baseline visits , with a statistically significant difference at week 8 ( p = 0.021 vs. controls ; fig . median hb increase from baseline to week 8 was 2.1 g / dl [ range 0.23.5 g / dl ] in fcm - treated patients vs. 0.9 g / dl [ range 0.32.2 g / dl ] in the control group . in the per - protocol set , the primary endpoint analysis showed significantly higher hb increases in the fcm versus control group from week 4 onwards ( all p 0.005 ; fig . 2mean change from baseline in hb and iron status mean change from baseline in hb and iron status all ( 8/8 ) fcm - treated patients compared to 66.7 % ( 6/9 ) of control patients achieved an hb response ( p = 0.954 ) . median time to response was 2.3 [ range 0.67.3 ] weeks in fcm - treated versus 4.4 [ range 1.08.1 ] weeks in control patients ( p = 0.087 ) . hb was corrected in 87.5 % ( 7/8 ) of fcm - treated and 55.6 % ( 5/9 ) of control patients ( p = 0.105 ) . in the fcm group , a median hb of 11.8 g / dl [ range 9.413.1 g / dl ] was achieved at week 6 and remained stable until end of study ( 11.9 g / dl at week 8) . in the control group ferritin and tsat increased faster and to significantly higher levels in fcm - treated patients vs. controls ( fig . a median tsat of 28 % [ range 1938 % ] was reached at week 2 and remained stable until end of study , whereas in the control group , median tsat remained below 20 % at all time points . changes in other tested variables ( erythropoietin , hepcidin-25 , and interleukin-6 ) were statistically not significantly different between treatment groups ( supplementary table s1 ) . as expected for an open - label comparison of active treatment versus controls , more treatment - emergent adverse events ( teaes ) were reported in the fcm than in the control group ( fcm : 12 teaes in 5 patients ; controls : 2 teaes in 1 patient ; supplementary table s2 and s3 ) . however , none of the reported teaes were considered related to the study drug or led to discontinuation . data from randomized controlled studies on the effect of i.v . iron as sole anemia therapy in cancer patients are still scarce , and this is the first randomized controlled trial to investigate whether i.v . iron can overcome the iron sequestration which is a consequence of the inflammatory nature of malignant disease . a single dose of fcm without concomitant esa therapy resulted in significantly increased hb levels which were maintained for at least 8 weeks in this population of cancer patients with lymphoid malignancies , anemia , and functional iron deficiency receiving antineoplastic therapy . there was a large mean increase in hb from baseline to week 8 in the fcm group ( 2.1 g / dl ) and the primary end point was met despite the small number of evaluable patients . using the per - protocol population , the primary endpoint analysis showed statistically significantly higher hb increases in the fcm vs. control group from week 4 onwards . tsat and serum ferritin increased rapidly and remained high from the first post - treatment visit onwards . we observed a slight hb increase in the controls at week 68 ( fig . 2a , b ) , which may be related to fluctuations in hb levels and/or tumor regression . the latter would be in - line with the observed decrease in ferritin and concomitant tsat increase in the controls , possibly indicating reduced inflammation and consequently increased availability of iron for erythropoiesis . of note , since this study was prematurely terminated due to difficulties with patient recruitment , only half of the planned patients were randomized . thus , as a consequence , the power of the study is below the adequate power , and therefore , only limited interpretation of the data is possible . however , our results are in - line with those of a large observational study in fcm - treated anemic cancer patients ( n = 420 ; 233 patients received fcm alone ) , which showed improvement in median hb from 10.0 g / dl to above 11 g / dl within 5 weeks and a median hb increase of 1.4 g / dl . iron alone significantly reduced transfusion requirements in patients with gynecological cancers [ 1214 ] . a single - arm pilot study with i.v . iron sucrose in anemic , non - iron - deficient cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy therapy without esa use , showed a significant improvement in hb levels compared with baseline . however , in these studies no distinction was made between absolute iron deficiency ( low serum ferritin ) and fid , while in the present study , only patients with fid were included . current guidelines for cancer and chemotherapy - induced anemia recommend preventing blood transfusions and using esas with the lowest effective dose and in approved indications only , based on safety concerns associated with both treatments [ 10 , 17 ] . in line with these recommendations , the use of i.v . iron alone in anemia therapy may reduce or even prevent the need for esas and rbc . in conclusion mh has received consulting fees and/or speaker honoraria from vifor pharma , pharmacosmos as and takeda .

this randomized trial evaluated ferric carboxymaltose without erythropoiesis - stimulating agents ( esa ) for correction of anemia in cancer patients with functional iron deficiency . patients on treatment for indolent lymphoid malignancies , who had anemia [ hemoglobin ( hb ) 8.510.5 g / dl ] and functional iron deficiency [ transferrin saturation ( tsat ) 20 % , ferritin > 30 ng / ml ( women ) or > 40 ng / ml ( men ) ] , were randomized to ferric carboxymaltose ( 1,000 mg iron ) or control . primary end point was the mean change in hb from baseline to weeks 4 , 6 and 8 without transfusions or esa . difficulties with patient recruitment led to premature termination of the study . seventeen patients ( 8 ferric carboxymaltose and 9 control ) were included in the analysis . in the ferric carboxymaltose arm , mean hb increase was significantly higher versus control at week 8 ( p = 0.021 ) . all ferric carboxymaltose - treated patients achieved an hb increase > 1 g / dl ( control 6/9 ; p = 0.087 ) , and mean tsat was > 20 % from week 2 onwards . no treatment - related adverse events were reported . in conclusion , ferric carboxymaltose without esa effectively increased hb and iron status in this small patient population.electronic supplementary materialthe online version of this article ( doi:10.1007/s12032 - 014 - 0302 - 3 ) contains supplementary material , which is available to authorized users .

matr3 is an rna / dna binding protein that interacts with tdp-43 , a major disease protein linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ( als ) and fronto - temporal dementia . using exome sequencing , we identified mutations in matr3 in als kindreds . we also observed matr3 pathology in the spinal cords of als cases with and without matr3 mutations . our data provide additional evidence supporting the role of aberrant rna processing in motor neuron degeneration .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Governmentwide Mentor-Protege Program Act of 2001''. SEC. 2. MENTOR-PROTEGE PROGRAM. The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.) is amended-- (1) by redesignating section 36 as section 37; and (2) by inserting after section 35 the following: ``SEC. 36. MENTOR-PROTEGE PROGRAM. ``(a) Establishment of Program.--The Administrator shall establish a Program to be known as the `Governmentwide Mentor-Protege Program'. ``(b) Purposes.--The purposes of the Program are to provide-- ``(1) incentives for major Federal contractors to assist eligible small business concerns to enhance the capabilities of eligible small business concerns to perform as subcontractors and suppliers under Federal contracts in order to increase the participation of eligible small business concerns as subcontractors and suppliers under those contracts; and ``(2) Governmentwide criteria for partial reimbursement of certain agency costs incurred in the administration of the Program. ``(c) Program Participants.-- ``(1) Mentor firms.--A mentor firm may enter into agreements under subsection (e) and furnish assistance to eligible small business concerns upon making application to the head of the agency for which it is contracting and being approved for participation in the Program by the head of the agency. ``(2) Eligible small business concerns.-- ``(A) In general.--An eligible small business concern may obtain assistance from a mentor firm upon entering into an agreement with the mentor firm to become a protege firm, as provided in subsection (e). ``(B) Restriction.--A protege firm may not be a party to more than one agreement to receive assistance described in subparagraph (A) at any time. ``(3) Certification.-- ``(A) In general.--Before receiving assistance from a mentor firm under this section, a small business concern shall furnish to the mentor firm-- ``(i) if the Administration regularly issues certifications of qualification for the category of that small business concern listed in subsection (k)(1), that certification; and ``(ii) if the Administration does not regularly issue certifications of qualification for the category of that small business concern listed in subsection (k)(1), a statement indicating that it is an eligible small business concern. ``(B) Development of certification.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the Administration to develop a certification program for any category of small business concern listed in subsection (k)(1). ``(C) Assistance to non-eligible small business concern.--If at any time, a small business concern is determined by the Administration not to be an eligible small business concern in accordance with this section-- ``(i) the small business concern shall immediately notify the mentor firm of the determination; and ``(ii) assistance furnished to that small business concern by the mentor firm after the date of the determination may not be considered to be assistance furnished under the Program. ``(d) Mentor Firm Eligibility.-- ``(1) In general.--Subject to subsection (c)(1), a mentor firm that is eligible for award of Federal contracts may enter into an agreement with one or more protege firms under subsection (e) and provide assistance under the Program pursuant to that agreement, if the mentor firm demonstrates to the subject agency the capability to assist in the development of protege firms. ``(2) Presumption of capability.--A mentor firm shall be presumed to be capable under paragraph (1) if the total amount of contracts and subcontracts that the mentor firm has entered into with the subject agency exceeds an amount determined by the Administrator, in consultation with the head of the subject agency, to be significant relative to the contracting volume of the subject agency. ``(e) Mentor-Protege Agreement.-- ``(1) In general.--Before providing assistance to a protege firm under the Program, a mentor firm shall enter into a mentor-protege agreement with the protege firm regarding the assistance to be provided by the mentor firm. ``(2) Contents of agreement.--The agreement required by paragraph (1) shall include-- ``(A) a developmental program for the protege firm, in such detail as may be reasonable, including-- ``(i) factors to assess the developmental progress of the protege firm under the Program; and ``(ii) the anticipated number and type of subcontracts to be awarded to the protege firm; ``(B) a Program participation term of not longer than 3 years, except that the term may be for a period of not longer than 5 years if the Administrator determines, in writing, that unusual circumstances justify a Program participation term of longer than 3 years; and ``(C) procedures for the protege firm to terminate the agreement voluntarily and for the mentor firm to terminate the agreement for cause. ``(f) Forms of Assistance.--A mentor firm may provide to a protege firm-- ``(1) assistance using mentor firm personnel, in-- ``(A) general business management, including organizational management, financial management, and personnel management, marketing, business development, and overall business planning; ``(B) engineering and technical matters, including production, inventory control, and quality assurance; and ``(C) any other assistance designed to develop the capabilities of the protege firm under the developmental program referred to in subsection (e)(2)(A); ``(2) the award of subcontracts on a noncompetitive basis under Federal contracts; ``(3) progress payments for performance of the protege firm under a subcontract referred to in paragraph (2), in amounts as provided for in the subcontract, except that no such progress payment may exceed 100 percent of the costs incurred by the protege firm for the performance; ``(4) advance payments under subcontracts referred to in paragraph (2); ``(5) loans; ``(6) cash in exchange for an ownership interest in the protege firm, not to exceed 10 percent of the total ownership interest; ``(7) assistance obtained by the mentor firm for the protege firm from-- ``(A) small business development centers established pursuant to section 21; ``(B) entities providing procurement technical assistance pursuant to chapter 142 of title 10, United States Code; or ``(C) a historically Black college or university or a minority institution of higher education. ``(g) Incentives for Mentor Firms.-- ``(1) Reimbursement for progress or advance payment.--The head of the agency for which a mentor firm is contracting may provide to a mentor firm reimbursement for the total amount of any progress payment or advance payment made under the Program by the mentor firm to a protege firm in connection with a Federal contract awarded to the mentor firm. ``(2) Reimbursement for mentoring assistance.-- ``(A) Mentor firm.--The head of the agency for which a mentor firm is contracting may provide to a mentor firm reimbursement for the costs of the assistance furnished to a protege firm pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (7) of subsection (f), as provided for in a line item in a Federal contract under which the mentor firm is furnishing products or services to the agency, subject to a maximum amount of reimbursement specified in the contract, except that this subparagraph does not apply in a case in which the head of the agency determines in writing that unusual circumstances justify reimbursement using a separate contract. ``(B) Total amount of reimbursement.--The total amount reimbursed under subparagraph (A) to a mentor firm for costs of assistance furnished in a fiscal year to a protege firm may not exceed $1,000,000, except in a case in which the head of the subject agency determines in writing that unusual circumstances justify reimbursement of a higher amount. ``(C) Reimbursement to agency.--The head of an agency may submit documentation to the Administrator indicating the total amount of reimbursement that the agency paid to each mentor firm under this paragraph, and the agency shall be reimbursed by the Administration for not more than 50 percent of that total amount, as indicated in the documentation. ``(3) Costs not reimbursed.-- ``(A) In general.-- ``(i) Credit.--Costs incurred by a mentor firm in providing assistance to a protege firm that are not reimbursed pursuant to paragraph (2) shall be recognized as credit in lieu of subcontract awards for purposes of determining whether the mentor firm attains a subcontracting participation goal applicable to the mentor firm under a Federal contract or under a divisional or companywide subcontracting plan negotiated with an agency. ``(ii) Subject agency authority.--Clause (i) shall not be construed to authorize the negotiation of divisional or companywide subcontracting plans by an agency that did not have such authority before the date of enactment of the Governmentwide Mentor-Protege Program Act of 2001. ``(B) Amount of credit.--The amount of the credit given to a mentor firm for unreimbursed costs described in subparagraph (A) shall be equal to-- ``(i) 4 times the total amount of the unreimbursed costs attributable to assistance provided by entities described in subsection (f)(7); ``(ii) 3 times the total amount of the unreimbursed costs attributable to assistance furnished by the employees of the mentor firm; and ``(iii) 2 times the total amount of any other unreimbursed costs. ``(C) Adjustment of credit.--Under regulations issued by the Administrator pursuant to subsection (j), the head of the subject agency shall adjust the amount of credit given to a mentor firm pursuant to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph, if the head of the subject agency determines that the performance of the mentor firm regarding the award of subcontracts to eligible small business concerns has declined without justifiable cause. ``(h) Administrative Provisions.-- ``(1) Developmental assistance.--For purposes of this Act, no determination of affiliation or control (either direct or indirect) may be found between a protege firm and its mentor firm on the basis that the mentor firm has agreed to furnish (or has furnished) to the protege firm pursuant to a mentor- protege agreement under this section any form of developmental assistance described in subsection (f). ``(2) Participation in program.--Notwithstanding section 8, the Administration may not determine an eligible small business concern to be ineligible to receive any assistance authorized under this Act on the basis that the small business concern has participated in the Program, or has received assistance pursuant to any developmental assistance agreement authorized under the Program. ``(3) Administration review.-- ``(A) In general.--Upon determining that the mentor-protege program administered by the subject agency conforms to the standards set forth in the rules issued under subsection (j)(1), the Administrator may not require a small business concern that is entering into, or has entered into, an agreement under subsection (e) as a protege firm, or a firm that makes an application under subsection (c)(1), to submit the application, agreement, or any other document required by the agency in the administration of the Program to the Administration for review, approval, or any other purpose. ``(B) Exception.--The Administrator may require submission for review of an agreement entered into under subsection (e), or application submitted under subsection (c)(1), if the agreement or application relates to-- ``(i) a mentor-protege program administered by the agency that does not conform to the standards set forth in the rules issued under subsection (j)(1); or ``(ii) a claim for reimbursement of costs submitted by an agency to the Administration under subsection (g)(2)(C) that the Administrator has reason to believe is not authorized under this section. ``(i) Participation in Program Not To Be a Condition for Award of a Contract or Subcontract.--A mentor firm may not require a small business concern to enter into an agreement with the mentor firm pursuant to subsection (e) as a condition for being awarded a contract by the mentor firm, including a subcontract under a contract awarded to the mentor firm. ``(j) Regulations.-- ``(1) Proposed rules.--Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of the Governmentwide Mentor-Protege Program Act of 2001, the Administrator shall issue final rules to carry out this section. ``(2) Proposed rules from the federal acquisition regulatory council.--Not later than 180 days after the date of issuance of the final rules of the Administration under paragraph (1), the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council shall publish final rules that conform to the final rules issued by the Administration. ``(k) Definitions.--In this section-- ``(1) the term `eligible small business concern' means-- ``(A) any qualified HUBZone small business concern, as defined in section 3(p)(5); ``(B) any small business concern that is owned and controlled by women, as defined in section 3(n); ``(C) any small business concern that is owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, as defined in section 8(a)(4); and ``(D) any small business concern that is owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, as defined in section 3(q)(2); ``(2) the term `historically Black college and university' means any of the historically Black colleges and universities referred to in section 2323 of title 10, United States Code; ``(3) the term `mentor firm' means a business concern that-- ``(A) meets the requirements of subsection (d); and ``(B) is approved for participation in the Program under subsection (c)(1); ``(4) the term `minority institution of higher education' means an institution of higher education with a student body that reflects the composition specified in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) of section 312(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058(b)(3), (4), (5)); ``(5) the term `Program' means the Mentor-Protege Program established under this section; ``(6) the term `protege firm' means an eligible small business concern that receives assistance from a mentor firm under this section; and ``(7) the term `subcontracting participation goal', with respect to a Federal Government contract, means a goal for the extent of the participation by eligible small business concerns in the subcontracts awarded under such contract, as established by the Administrator and the subject agency head, in accordance with the goals established pursuant to section 15(g). ``(l) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 2004.''.

Governmentwide Mentor-Protege Program Act of 2001 - Amends the Small Business Act to direct the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to establish the Governmentwide Mentor-Protege Program under which major Federal contractors (mentor firms) assist eligible small businesses (protege firms) to perform as subcontractors and suppliers under Federal contracts. Requires a mentor-protege agreement regarding the assistance to be provided.Provides incentives for mentor firms to enter into such agreements, including reimbursement for progress or advance payments made to protege firms in connection with a Federal contract, as well as reimbursement for mentoring assistance (with a total reimbursement limit of $1 million per protege firm). Prohibits a mentor firm from requiring an eligible small business to enter into an agreement as a condition for the award of a contract or subcontract.Makes eligible for such Program: (1) any qualified HUBZone small business; and (2) any small business owned and controlled by women, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, or service-disabled veterans.

vogt - koyanagi - harada ( vkh ) disease has a unique natural history that comprises four phases : prodromal , acute uveitic , chronic , and chronic recurrent . of these phases , the acute phase requires intensive treatment.1 delayed or inadequate control of inflammation at this phase may lead to the recurrent phase , which is difficult to manage . although many physicians popularly use high - dose intravenous ( iv ) steroids for 3 days before switching to oral steroids , the optimal management for choroidal inflammation in the acute phase has not been established . the authors report two cases of rebound choroidal inflammation after transitioning from high - dose iv steroids to oral steroids that were managed successfully using adjuvant intravitreal steroid injection . a 43-year - old woman presented with headache , tinnitus , and decreased visual acuity . she had no history or evidence of penetrating ocular trauma , ocular surgery , or ocular or systemic diseases . her best - corrected visual acuity was 20/60 in the right eye and 20/40 in the left . the anterior segment had no signs of inflammation and fundus examination revealed bullous serous retinal detachments in both eyes . multiple pinpoint leakages and late pooling within subretinal fluid ( srf ) were detected using fluorescein angiography ( fa ) ( figure 1a and b ) . intra- and srf with septa was noted by spectral domain optical coherence tomography ( sd - oct ) using the cirrus hd - oct ( carl zeiss meditec ag , jena , germany ) ( figure 1c ) . a diagnosis of incomplete vkh disease was determined and treatment with high - dose iv methylprednisolone pulse therapy ( 1 g / day ) was administered for 3 days . during iv steroid treatment , the patient s srf decreased and her vision improved to 20/40 in both eyes ( figure 1d ) . methylprednisolone therapy was then switched to oral prednisolone ( 1 mg / kg / day ) . at 3 days after switching , the patient s srf increased and her vision worsened to 20/160 and 20/60 ( figure 1e ) . the patient s srf reduced and her visual acuity improved remarkably after 4 days ( figure 1f ) . systemic steroids were then changed again to an oral formulation . after restarting oral steroid treatment ( 1.3 mg / kg / day ) , the patient s vision decreased gradually as bullous retinal detachment developed ( figure 1 g ) . while maintaining her oral steroid dose , triamcinolone acetonide the srf resolved gradually with visual acuity improvement . during a follow - up period of 13 months , systemic steroids were tapered to discontinuation without a relapse of inflammation ( figure 1h ) . a 33-year - old man complained of tinnitus and visual disturbance involving the right eye for 2 days . evaluations for causes other than vkh disease were negative . the patient was treated for 3 days with high - dose iv methylprednisolone ( 1 g / day ) followed by 5 days with oral steroids ( 1 mg / kg / day ) . serous retinal detachment decreased and his vision improved to 20/50 in the right eye during the 3 days while on iv steroid treatment ( figure 2d ) . after 5 days of oral steroid treatment , the patient s srf increased and his vision worsened ( figure 2e ) . adjuvant triamcinolone acetonide 4 mg was injected into the vitreous of both eyes . visual acuity and serous detachment improved ( figure 2f ) . during a follow - up period of 22 months , an elevation of intraocular pressure did not develop and systemic steroids were successfully tapered without a relapse of inflammation . vkh disease is a disorder of t - cell - mediated autoimmunity directed against melanocytes in the eye , central nervous system , auditory system , and skin . the typical treatment for vkh disease is high - dose systemic steroids , followed by slow tapering over 36 months . although the route of administration of steroids has been reported to have no difference in visual acuity or on the development of visually significant complications,2 many physicians prefer an initial therapy of prompt and intensive high - dose iv methylprednisolone over 3 days . it is well known that most patients show a resolution of serous retinal detachment and an improvement of vision within days of receiving iv pulse steroid therapy.3 to the authors knowledge , rebound phenomenon in patients with vkh disease has not been reported before . it may be underestimated because the dosage of oral steroids after transitioning from the iv regimen is similar to the starting dosage in oral steroid monotherapy and the treating physicians do not expect a relapse of inflammation . however , these two cases presented with relapsing choroiditis after a change in the steroid administration route . it was considered that control of the inflammation was required , because delayed or inadequate control of inflammation may lead to the chronic recurrent phase , which is difficult to manage . in the first case of rebound phenomenon , as prolonged systemic treatment with high - dose steroids was expected , intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide was administered to avoid the side effects of systemic steroids.46 the second case of rebound phenomenon could be managed successfully with adjuvant intravitreal triamcinolone while maintaining the tapering schedule of oral steroids . the rebound phenomenon may have been secondary to either an insufficient oral steroid dose or the difference of the dose between iv and oral regimens when transitioning formulations . if rebound phenomenon develops , adjuvant intravitreal injection of triamcinolone acetonide is effective in controlling inflammation .

the authors report two cases of rebound phenomenon treated with intravitreal triamcinolone acetonide in vogt - koyanagi - harada ( vkh ) disease . patients in the acute phase of vkh disease were treated with high - dose intravenous ( iv ) methylprednisolone ( 1 g / day ) for 3 days . serous retinal detachment decreased and visual acuity improved during iv steroid treatment . after switching to oral steroid treatment , choroiditis and visual acuity worsened . an injection of triamcinolone acetonide ( 4 mg ) into the vitreous resulted in gradual resolution of subretinal fluid and improvement of visual acuity . systemic steroids were tapered to discontinuation without a relapse of inflammation . adjuvant intravitreal triamcinolone is useful in the management of the rebound phenomenon in vkh disease .

the physics of light mesons has received in the last years several inputs from fixed target experiments with hadrons or photons beams and from @xmath2 experiments . the main aim of the published analyses is to clarify and to understand the very rich low mass ( say below 2 gev ) mesons spectrum . in particular it is considered of primary importance to find signatures of physical states that can not be interpreted as bound states of a quark and an antiquark ( @xmath3 ) . in fact qcd and qcd inspired models predict the existence of bound states of gluons ( glueballs ) , of quark composites with more than 2 quarks ( 4-quark states @xmath4 ) and of bound states of quarks and gluons ( hybrid states @xmath3+gluon ) . all these states are generally called exotics . in this paper some recent results in this field are presented and discussed . the scalar meson spectrum is a place where the so - called exotics are particularly searched . in fact the number of experimentally found physical states with scalar quantum numbers ( namely @xmath5 ) is larger than expected . so , while it is easy to accommodate pseudo - scalar ( @xmath6 ) and vector ( @xmath7 ) mesons in @xmath3 su(3 ) nonets , this is not true for scalar mesons . the list of the presently known scalar states is given in tab.[scalars ] . the states of the lowest mass @xmath3 nonet according to the particle data group ( pdg in the following @xcite ) are indicated in the table . as we shall see in the following the scalar nonet identification is still controversial and the pdg choice is only one among the possible interpretations . new recent insight on light scalar mesons come from high statistics studies of three - body d - mesons and @xmath8 decays , and from @xmath0 radiative decays . three - body d - mesons and @xmath8 decays are analysed looking at two - dimensional dalitz plot distributions@xcite . this analysis has been applied to the following dalitz plots : * @xmath11 decays where any @xmath12 pair is sensitive to scalar isoscalar intermediate states ; * @xmath13 , @xmath14 and @xmath15 decays where any @xmath16 pair is sensitive to isospin 1/2 scalar intermediate states ; * @xmath17 also sensitive to @xmath16 isospin 1/2 states ; 0.1 in . _ list of scalar states with mass below 1.8 gev ordered in increasing mass . the states in parentheses are included in the @xmath3 lowest mass nonet by pdg . _ [ cols="^,^,^",options="header " , ] [ scalars ] in order to fit the dalitz plots two low mass broad states are introduced : a isoscalar @xmath9 and an isospin 1/2 @xmath10 . each experiment suggests values for masses and widths of these states . these values are summarised in fig.[sigmakappa ] . the values are in good agreement and the general indication is for an isoscalar state with a mass of 470 mev and a width of 340 mev and a isospin 1/2 state at 800 mev with a width of 410 mev . the broad @xmath9 state has been also introduced several times in the past , and its existence has always been considered controversial . and @xmath10 . [ sigmakappa ] _ , width=491 ] notice that the approach used by these experiments to extract the informations on the scalar states , has been recently criticised @xcite . the @xmath0(1020 ) is interpreted as an almost pure @xmath20 state . due to the ozi rule the decays in final states not containing the @xmath21-quark are suppressed . in this context the branching ratio of a @xmath0 going to a meson plus a photon depends on the @xmath21-quark content of the meson itself . at a @xmath0 factory ( @xmath2 collider at 1020 mev centre of mass energy ) the scalar states @xmath22(980 ) , @xmath23(980 ) and @xmath9 are accessible through the following final states : * @xmath24 and @xmath25 where the two pions are in a scalar isoscalar state ( ij@xmath26=00@xmath27 ) ; * @xmath28 where the @xmath29 system is a scalar isovector state ( ij@xmath26=10@xmath27 ) ; kloe at the @xmath0-factory dafne at frascati has analysed the decays @xmath25 @xcite and @xmath28 @xcite the observed branching ratios are both of the order @xmath30 : @xmath31 , @xmath32 and @xmath33 , where the @xmath34 for the @xmath35 decay , refer to 2 different @xmath36 final states ( namely @xmath37 and @xmath38 ) . the mass spectra of the @xmath39 and @xmath29 systems are shown in fig.[kloe ] . the spectra are fitted with a parametrisation based on the kaon - loop model @xcite and turn out to be dominated by the scalar particle production , any other contribution being negligible and @xmath23 are very close to the mass of the @xmath0 the typical breit - wigner shape is distorted . it is essentially multiplied by a @xmath40 factor , where @xmath41 is the momentum of the radiated photon . ] in the case of the @xmath39 spectrum a good fit is obtained only including a @xmath9 with the same parameter and mass shape found by e791 @xcite , negatively interfering with the @xmath22 signal . if the quoted branching ratios are completely attributed to @xmath42 scalar+@xmath43 decays , as it appears from the analysis of the spectra , the standard @xmath3 interpretation of @xmath22 and @xmath44 is in trouble . in fact the only possible quark compositions of @xmath22 and @xmath44 compatible with the observed mass degeneracy is : @xmath45 @xmath46 requiring branching ratios of the @xmath0 to @xmath47 or @xmath48 of the order of @xmath49 ( due to ozi suppression ) , that is 2 order of magnitude lower than the observed 10@xmath50 . on the other hand , this large branching ratio could be well explained in the context of @xmath4 model where the @xmath22 and @xmath44 quark structure should be : @xmath51 @xmath52 both with an explicit @xmath20 pair . in this case the branching ratios should be of the order of @xmath30 . kloe data on @xmath22 have been also analysed with an approach based on the k - matrix @xcite aiming to get a model - independent conclusion . the result is dependent on the details of k - matrix used , but indicates that , in contrast to kaon - loop model result , only a part of the spectrum should be attributes to the @xmath22 production . kloe has now collected about 500 pb@xmath53 while the results shown here corresponds to only 16 pb@xmath53 . higher accuracy results are expected soon , including also the decay @xmath24 . looking at the scalar meson spectrum , 2 possible scenarios emerge , indicated in fig.[scenarios ] . the first scenario assumes that @xmath9 and @xmath10 are real physical states . in this case there should be a lowest mass nonet where the states are `` mass inverted '' as expected for a 4 quark nonet @xcite , and a higher mass nonet with the pdg states . in this case only one state , the @xmath54 should remain out , and it could be of gluonium origin . the second scenario assumes that @xmath9 and @xmath10 are not real states and gives two standard nonets @xcite ( the second one could be the first radial excitation of the ground nonet ) . this scheme requires no @xmath21-quark content for @xmath18 and @xmath19 and so , it contradicts the current interpretation of @xmath0 radiative decays results . a second interesting subject is the recent claim of new states with an energy very close to twice the mass of the nucleon @xmath55 . the e687 experiment at fermilab has analysed the data on diffractive photo - production of 6 pions , @xmath56 @xcite . this analysis was motivated by statistically limited indications from @xmath2 experiments @xcite of a structure in the region of @xmath57 . in order to select final state with vector quantum numbers , as in @xmath2 collisions , diffractive events are selected . this is done requiring the square of the total transverse momentum @xmath58 to be below 0.040 gev@xmath59 . the invariant mass distribution of the 6 pion system for diffractive events shown in fig.[e687 ] has a clear dip at about 1910 mev ( that is 30 mev above @xmath57 ) while the distribution for non - diffractive events does nt show the dip . the fit shown is a coherent sum of a relativistic breit - wigner resonance with free mass and width and a diffractive continuum . a mass of @xmath60 mev and a width of @xmath61 mev are obtained . invariant mass distribution for diffractive events after correction for acceptance and unfolding of the resolution . the curve superimposed is the best fit . data and fit from e687 . [ e687 ] _ , width=302 ] a state of similar mass has been also searched in @xmath62 @xcite , and recently in @xmath63 annihilation in 6 pions by obelix at lear @xcite . no clear signal is found in this mass region . we notice that a signal in nucleon antinucleon annihilation could be interpreted as an indication for a baryonium state . very recently the bes collaboration at the @xmath2 collider bepc , bejing , has reported a study of the decay @xmath65 @xcite . the invariant mass spectrum of the @xmath66 system is shown in fig.[bes1 ] . it shows a clear enhancement very close to threshold . distribution near threshold for @xmath67 events with fit superimposed . ( b ) same distribution corrected for phase - space . data from bes . [ bes1 ] _ , width=264 ] @xmath67 final states could be due either to @xmath8 radiative decay ( in this case the @xmath66 system is expected to have scalar or pseudo - scalar quantum numbers ) or to radiative return on @xmath68 due to the time - like proton form factors ( vector quantum numbers ) . bes angular analysis of the events close to threshold suggests radiative decays rather than radiative return . bes has tried a fit in both scalar and pseudo - scalar state hypotheses . the values obtained for the masses are : @xmath69 mev ( pseudo - scalar hypothesis ) and @xmath70 mev ( scalar hypothesis ) . in both cases the state is very narrow : @xmath71 mev ( pseudo - scalar hypothesis ) and @xmath72 mev ( scalar hypothesis ) . the states observed by e687 and by bes are apparently of different quantum numbers and of significantly different mass . so they have a different origin . several experiments can search for these states : focus can statistically improve the e687 signal ; babar and belle can access to 6 pions and @xmath66 production through initial state radiation , and study exclusive @xmath73 decays with @xmath66 in the final state @xcite ; finally cleo - c will study @xmath8 decays . we notice that a mass value of 1.9 gev , other than close to the nucleon - antinucleon threshold , is also the typical predicted value of the mass of the hybrid states in the context of the tube - flux model @xcite . the pseudo - scalar meson @xmath74 is considered a possible glueball candidate , or at least a @xmath3 state strongly mixed with a glueball . the @xmath1 wave function can be written as : @xmath75 since the @xmath0 is an almost pure @xmath20 state , the decay @xmath76 selects the @xmath77 component of the @xmath1 wave function . -@xmath77 plane from experimental branching fractions and su(3 ) based calculations . [ gluetap ] _ , width=302 ] kloe has measured this decay with improved precision respect to previous measurements @xcite . if @xmath78 , one has @xmath79 . the last condition can be checked using together the @xmath77 value extracted by kloe and two other results on @xmath1 decays and for @xmath80 . ] and putting them in the graph shown in fig.[gluetap ] . the crossing of the three bands is compatible with the condition @xmath79 . this means that at this level of experimental accuracies , there is no indication of a gluonium content of the @xmath1 . from the directly measured ratio of @xmath81 and @xmath76 , assuming @xmath78 and @xmath82 kloe has determined the pseudo - scalar mixing angle in the flavour basis @xmath83 to be : @xmath84 i wish to thank the organisers of the conference , in particular w.lohmann and f.fabbri . among the people who helped me in putting together all what i presented , i wish to thank in particular g.adams , r.baldini , g.dunwoodie , a.dzierba , a.filippi , f.harris , s.malvezzi , j.napolitano , s.serednyakov , j.shan , e.p.solodov and a.zallo . 99 k. hagiwara _ et al . _ , phys.rev . * d66 * 010001 ( 2002 ) . aitala _ et al . _ , phys.rev.lett.*86 * 770 ( 2001 ) ; e.m . aitala _ et al _ , phys.rev.lett.*89 * 121801 ( 2002 ) . s. malvezzi , talk given at photon2003 ( see _ http://www.lnf.infn.it_ ) n. wu , talk given at 36th rencontres de moriond 2001 , hep - ex/0104050 ; j.z . bai _ et al . _ , submitted to phys.rev.lett . , hep - ex/0304001 . h. muramatsu _ et al . _ , phys.rev.lett.*89 * 251802 ( 2002 ) erratum - ibid * 90 * 059901 ( 2003 ) . anisovich , l.g . dakhno , v.a.nikonov , hep - ph/0302137 . a. aloisio _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b537 * 21 ( 2002 ) . a. aloisio _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b536 * 209 ( 2002 ) . m.n . achasov _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b485 * 349 ( 2000 ) ; m.n . achasov _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b479 * 53 ( 2000 ) . akhmetshin _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b462 * 380 ( 1999 ) ; n.n . achasov , v.n . ivanchenko , nucl.phys . * b315 * 465 ( 1989 ) . m. boglione , m.r . pennington , hep - ph/0303200 . jaffe , phys.rev . * d15 * 281 ( 1977 ) . e. klempt , talk given at psi zuoz summer school , 2000 , hep - ex/0101031 . frabetti _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b514 * 240 ( 2001 ) . r. baldini _ et al . _ , talk given at the fenice workshop , frascati 1988 . a. antonelli _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b365 * 427 ( 1996 ) . m. gaspero , talk given at workshop on hadron spectroscopy frascati march 1999 , frascati physics series vol.xv 455 ( 1999 ) . m.agnello _ et al . _ , phys.lett . * b529 * 39 ( 2002 ) . bai _ et al . _ , submitted to phys.rev.lett . hep - ex/0303006 . k abe _ et al . _ , phys.rev.lett . * 89 * 15182 ( 2002 ) ; k. abe _ et al . _ , phys.rev.lett . * 88 * 18183 ( 2002 ) . n. isgur , a. kokosky , j. paton , phys.rev.lett . * 54 * 869 ( 1985 ) . a.aloisio _ et al . _ phys.lett . * b538 * 21 ( 2002 ) .

some recent results on light meson physics are reviewed . the new evidence of low mass scalar mesons together with the improved measurement of the @xmath0 radiative decays in scalar mesons , give new insight into the nature and the structure of the scalar spectrum . the evidence of new states with a mass close to twice the proton mass , and a new analysis of the gluonium content of @xmath1 are also discussed . = 14.5pt

Slideshow: Tornadoes ravage Plains Sue Ogrocki / AP A monster tornado hit Moore, Okla., Monday afternoon, leaving scores dead as the threat for more storms continues. Launch slideshow About 9.5 million people remained under the threat of more "large and devastating" tornadoes Tuesday as the storm system that devastated the suburbs of Oklahoma City moved east, forecasters warned. Weather Channel meteorologist Kevin Roth said early Tuesday that the threat area appeared to be east and south of Oklahoma City. "Tornadoes, damaging wind gusts and large hail are possible throughout the threat area," Roth said. More from weather.com The greatest tornado threat will exist in northeast Texas, far southeast Oklahoma, southwest Arkansas and northwest Louisiana. A few strong tornadoes are possible in those states. On Tuesday afternoon The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Bowie County, Texas, which borders Arkansas in the northeast part of the state. Michael Welch captures dramatic video of twister from a KFC parking lot in Newcastle, Oklahoma. Roth said that cities including Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Shreveport, Texarkana and Little Rock were among the cities "close to the the larger tornado threat." A tornado watch was issued for Dallas-Fort Worth as well as all of north and central Texas until 8 p.m. ET. The Dallas zoo closed Tuesday afternoon due to the forecast. Strong wind gusts have been reported in the area but so far no tornadoes. Areas of Arkansas were under a tornado watch until 11 p.m. ET. "Another day of large and devastating tornadoes is possible this time from central/east Texas into central Arkansas," Roth said. "Severe threat continues farther to the east Wednesday, although the overall severity appears to be lower." Weather Channel forecaster Bill Karins told MSNBC that 9.5 million people lived in the area at most risk of more tornadoes. He said the likely pattern for twisters was the same as in recent days, with the biggest risk being in the late afternoon. The National Weather Service said storms were expected Tuesday "from the Great Lakes across the Mississippi River Valley and into central Texas." The agency issued a tornado watch late Monday for portions of east central Illinois, western and central Indiana, western Kentucky and southeast Missouri. The watch was in effect until 5 a.m. local time (6 a.m. ET). According to Roth, severe storms appeared possible from southeast New York to east Maryland on Thursday. He added: "An early look at Memorial Day Weekend shows that most of the country should be quiet. The stormiest weather appears to be across the Plains and Midwest with scattered showers and thunderstorms." Related: NBC's Andrew Rafferty contributed to this report This story was originally published on ||||| (CNN) -- The storm system behind Monday's Oklahoma twister brought strong rainstorms to parts of the South on Tuesday evening before heading toward the Great Lakes and the Tennessee Valley. Tornado watches continued for portions of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee. Those watches were set to expire by 10 p.m. CT Tuesday. What to know about tornadoes The threat of a few strong tornadoes, large hail and thunderstorm wind gusts remained in northeastern Texas, southwestern Arkansas, extreme southeastern Oklahoma and northwestern Louisiana, CNN Meteorologist Sean Morris said. "The threat for strong tornadoes will rapidly diminish in these areas after sunset, with the main threat becoming damaging straight line winds during the overnight hours," Morris said. "Isolated tornadoes will still be possible." Rainstorms pushed through the Dallas area on Tuesday afternoon. A ground stop at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport was later lifted. Storms are expected to move east on Wednesday and will extend from the Great Lakes south-southwestward into the Ohio River Valley and into the Deep South. Primary threats will be damaging winds and large hail, according to the National Weather Service. Isolated tornadoes also will be possible. Storms weren't restricted to the Great Plains and Midwest. The National Weather Service said weather spotters on Tuesday afternoon reported a possible tornado near Copake, New York, near the Massachusetts border. Track the severe weather Mobile tools to help you survive tornado season 10 deadliest U.S. tornadoes on record

– The tornado threat isn't over: "Large and devastating" storms could continue today, forecasters say. "We could have a Round 3," says a CNN meteorologist. "Hopefully, it won't be as bad." But "tornadoes, damaging wind gusts, and large hail" could hit areas east and south of Oklahoma City, with cities from Dallas to Little Rock also at risk, says a Weather Channel forecaster. Some 9.5 million people could face further major tornadoes, a forecaster tells MSNBC, while CNN says 53 million could see severe weather today. Areas from Dallas to Shreveport face the biggest danger "from mid-afternoon to late evening hours," says another CNN expert. Storms could also strike "from the Great Lakes across the Mississippi River Valley and into central Texas," according to the National Weather Service. The threat moves further eastward tomorrow, "although the overall severity appears to be lower," adds a Weather Channel expert. Click for more.

Before a preseason game on Friday, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” When he explained why, he only spoke about the present: “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color. … There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.” Twitter then went predictably nuts, with at least one 49ers fan burning Kaepernick’s jersey. Almost no one seems to be aware that even if the U.S. were a perfect country today, it would be bizarre to expect African-American players to stand for “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Why? Because it literally celebrates the murder of African-Americans. Few people know this because we only ever sing the first verse. But read the end of the third verse and you’ll see why “The Star-Spangled Banner” is not just a musical atrocity, it’s an intellectual and moral one, too: No refuge could save the hireling and slave From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave, And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave. “The Star-Spangled Banner,” Americans hazily remember, was written by Francis Scott Key about the Battle of Fort McHenry in Baltimore during the War of 1812. But we don’t ever talk about how the War of 1812 was a war of aggression that began with an attempt by the U.S. to grab Canada from the British Empire. However, we’d wildly overestimated the strength of the U.S. military. By the time of the Battle of Fort McHenry in 1814, the British had counterattacked and overrun Washington, D.C., setting fire to the White House. And one of the key tactics behind the British military’s success was its active recruitment of American slaves. As a detailed 2014 article in Harper’s explains, the orders given to the Royal Navy’s Admiral Sir George Cockburn read: Let the landings you make be more for the protection of the desertion of the Black Population than with a view to any other advantage. … The great point to be attained is the cordial Support of the Black population. With them properly armed & backed with 20,000 British Troops, Mr. Madison will be hurled from his throne. Whole families found their way to the ships of the British, who accepted everyone and pledged no one would be given back to their “owners.” Adult men were trained to create a regiment called the Colonial Marines, who participated in many of the most important battles, including the August 1814 raid on Washington. Then on the night of September 13, 1814, the British bombarded Fort McHenry. Key, seeing the fort’s flag the next morning, was inspired to write the lyrics for “The Star-Spangled Banner.” So when Key penned “No refuge could save the hireling and slave / From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave,” he was taking great satisfaction in the death of slaves who’d freed themselves. His perspective may have been affected by the fact he owned several slaves himself. With that in mind, think again about the next two lines: “And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave / O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” The reality is that there were human beings fighting for freedom with incredible bravery during the War of 1812. However, “The Star-Spangled Banner” glorifies America’s “triumph” over them — and then turns that reality completely upside down, transforming their killers into the courageous freedom fighters. After the U.S. and the British signed a peace treaty at the end of 1814, the U.S. government demanded the return of American “property,” which by that point numbered about 6,000 people. The British refused. Most of the 6,000 eventually settled in Canada, with some going to Trinidad, where their descendants are still known as “Merikins.” Furthermore, if those leading the backlash against Kaepernick need more inspiration, they can get it from Francis Scott Key’s later life. By 1833, Key was a district attorney for Washington, D.C. As described in a book called Snowstorm in August by former Washington Post reporter Jefferson Morley, the police were notorious thieves, frequently stealing free blacks’ possessions with impunity. One night, one of the constables tried to attack a woman who escaped and ran away — until she fell off a bridge across the Potomac and drowned. “There is neither mercy nor justice for colored people in this district,” an abolitionist paper wrote. “No fuss or stir was made about it. She was got out of the river, and was buried, and there the matter ended.” Key was furious and indicted the newspaper for intending “to injure, oppress, aggrieve & vilify the good name, fame, credit & reputation of the Magistrates & constables of Washington County.” You can decide for yourself whether there’s some connection between what happened 200 years ago and what Colin Kaepernick is angry about today. Maybe it’s all ancient, meaningless history. Or maybe it’s not, and Kaepernick is right, and we really need a new national anthem. ||||| Tweet with a location You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| For those defending the current anthem, do you really truly love that song? I don't and I'm very good at singing it. Like, one of the best

– John Legend is backing Colin Kaepernick in his national anthem protest: In fact, Legend says, the "Star-Spangled Banner" shouldn't even be our anthem. "For those defending the current anthem, do you really truly love that song? I don't and I'm very good at singing it. Like, one of the best," Legend tweeted this week, adding, "My vote is for America the Beautiful. Star spangled banner is a weak song anyway. And then you read this..." That's when things got more serious: Legend posted a link to a tweet from the Intercept reading, "No one seems to be aware that our national anthem literally celebrates the murder of African-Americans." In the accompanying Intercept article, Jon Schwarz makes the argument that the national anthem applauds the death of slaves. The third verse, which is not well-known since it's rarely sung, includes these lyrics: "No refuge could save the hireling and slave / From the terror of flight or the gloom of the grave, / And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave / O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave." As Schwarz explains, this is a reference to slaves who freed themselves to fight for the British, against America, during the War of 1812. Read his full explanation for why the song is an "atrocity" here.

the issue of polydispersity is crucial to understand the phase behaviour of colloidal suspensions of anisotropic particles , since shape and size polydispersities have a profound impact on the phase behavior of colloidal liquid - crystal suspensions . near monodisperse colloids made of rod or plate - shaped particles present the usual cascade of liquid - crystal phase transitions as the total volume fraction is increased : isotropic ( i)-nematic ( n)-smectic / columnar ( s / c)-crystal ( k ) . however , colloidal particles can never be made truly identical in size and shape . polydispersity gives rise to a complex phase behavior , with the presence of multiple phase coexistence between phases with different orientational and/or positional ordering @xcite . coexistence gaps are usually broadened and , for high polydispersities , strong demixing and fractionation are usually observed , with coexisting phases having dissimilar size / shape distributions . also new phenomena , such as density inversion , are exclusive of polydisperse systems . in this case the more disordered phase ( i ) becomes denser than the n phase @xcite . polydispersity has also a dramatic impact on the kinetic behavior of colloidal suspensions ; a most remarkable effect consists of the extremely long times necessary for the system to reach thermodynamic equilibrium @xcite . models for polydisperse fluids of anisotropic particles should produce as an output the size or shape density distribution function @xmath7 , where @xmath8 and @xmath9 denote the spatial and angular particle degrees of freedom , while @xmath10 refers to the set of polydisperse variables . the theoretical modelling of polydisperse fluids constitutes a complicated task due to the large number of degrees of freedom involved in the calculations . this in turn translates into a numerical implementation of the model which involves the evaluation of multiple integrals in a high - dimensional space . for this reason , theories of polydisperse systems are formulated in terms of simplified models which postulate that the excess part of the free - energy depends on a finite set of moments of the density distribution function @xcite . in this way the number of degrees of freedom are conveniently reduced and the problem becomes tractable . within these models , the i - n @xcite or n - n @xcite equilibria of length - polydisperse freely - rotating rods were calculated . also , within the restricted - orientation approximation , the effect of polydispersity on the stability of the biaxial nematic phase in a mixture of uniaxial rods and plates @xcite or in a one - component fluid of biaxial board - like particles was recently studied @xcite . the scarce mc simulation results on polydisperse anisotropic particles confirm the high fractionation between the coexisting i and n phases of polydisperse infinitely - thin platelets @xcite . they also reveal the existence of a terminal polydispersity beyond which the s phase of length - polydisperse hard rods becomes unstable with respect to the c phase @xcite . polydispersity in size crucially affects the formation of phases with spatial order , since it is difficult to accommodate the unit - cell dimension with the varying particle size . once stabilised , colloidal suspensions made of discs or platelets tend to form a n phase which changes to a c phase as the particle volume fraction is increased . in the c phase particles stack one on top of the other to form columns that in turn arrange in a two - dimensional lattice . an increasing polydispersity in lateral size ( disc diameter ) tends to destabilize the c phase with respect to the n or s phases . in fact , above a certain threshold value , the c phase turns into a s phase provided the polydispersity in thickness is not too large . a large value of the latter discourages the formation of the layered s phase . in the case of suspensions of zirconium - phosphate mineral plate - like particles @xcite , where the particle thickness is constant but the particle diameter is polydisperse , the s phase was found to be stable . the effect of polydispersity on the phase behavior of these suspensions was recently studied from experimental and theoretical points of view @xcite . it would be desirable to be able to rationalise the effect of the different particle polydispersity coefficients on the phase behaviour , and to know in advance the ranges of values of the polydispersities where one can expect to find a particular phase . in the present work we study the effect that the size polydispersity has on the relative stability between the liquid - crystal phases with partial positional ordering , in particular between the s and c phases . we use density - functional theory to analyse a suspension of colloidal platelets made from hard square cuboids , i.e. rectangular prisms of square cross section @xmath11 and thickness @xmath12 , fig . the normal axes of the cuboids are taken to point along a common direction and rotations about this direction are not allowed , the sides of the particles being always parallel . this approximation does not appear to be too unrealistic considering that the orientational order parameter will be high close to the transition from the n phase to either the s or c phases . this model can be analysed using a generalisation of the density - functional theory for hard cubes derived in ref . @xcite and used for the first time to calculate the phase diagram of the one - component and binary mixture fluids @xcite . in contrast to the latter work , where bidisperse cubes were considered , here we introduce a continuous distribution in both @xmath11 and @xmath12 , respectively characterized by the distribution variances @xmath2 and @xmath3 , with a view to obtaining phase diagrams involving the n , s and c phases as a function of the two polydispersities and the particle volume fraction . schematic of square cuboids used in this work , with particle size parameters @xmath11 ( side length ) and @xmath12 ( thickness ) indicated.,width=7 ] in section [ sm ] we review the density - functional theory used and give some details on the numerical methodology . results are presented in section [ results ] , and a short discussion and the conclusions are given in section [ conclusions ] . _ density functional_. the density - functional theory used is based on the fundamental - measure formalism for mixtures of parallel hard cubes . this formalism was derived by cuesta and martnez - ratn @xcite , and here we generalise it to general polydisperse fluids . the excess free - energy functional in units of thermal energy @xmath13 , is @xmath14= \int_v d{\bm r } \phi({\bm r})$ ] , where @xmath15 and where @xmath16 are average densities , @xmath17 the index @xmath18 takes the values @xmath19 . @xmath20 are the particle geometrical measures @xcite . @xmath21 is the local density of particles with lengths @xmath11 and @xmath12 at the point @xmath8 . we define @xmath22 and @xmath23 , with @xmath24 and @xmath25 the mean length and height , respectively . in the following we take @xmath26 as a unit of length , i.e. @xmath27 . due to the parallel particle approximation , the physics of the problem scales in the @xmath28 direction , so that we can also take @xmath29 . in fact , the following equivalence takes place : @xmath30v_0\equiv { \cal f}[\rho^*;1,1]$ ] , where @xmath31 ( with @xmath32 the mean volume of particle ) is the dimensionless density distribution function . the difference between both free - energies , coming from the ideal part , is proportional to the total number of particles and does not affect the phase behavior of the system . this scaling implies that the same functional can be used to describe a fluid of parallel platelets and a fluid of parallel rods . this equivalence will be used later to compare with different experimental results on polydisperse platelets and rods . the total free energy is then @xmath33= \int_0^{\infty } dl\int_0^{\infty } dh \int_v d{\bm r } \rho({\bm r};l , h)\left\{\log{\left[\rho({\bm r};l , h)\lambda^3(l , h)\right]}-1\right\ } + \beta { \cal f}_{\rm ex}[\rho ] , \label{free}\end{aligned}\ ] ] which has to be minimised with respect to @xmath34 for each phase . @xmath35 is the thermal wavelength for particles with size @xmath36 , which in principle can be adsorbed into the chemical potential of that species . here we consider the n phase , where @xmath37 , the s phase , with @xmath38 , and the c phase , where @xmath39 , and @xmath40 . the common particle axis is taken along @xmath41 . + an important aspect of the problem is the polydispersity of the parent solution . we can write @xmath42 , where @xmath43 is the total mean density , @xmath44 the total number of particles , @xmath45 the volume , and the function @xmath46 is the local fraction of particles of species @xmath36 . it satisfies : @xmath47 the global fraction is @xmath48 and obviously @xmath49 we assume that @xmath50 , the size distribution of the parent solution , is fixed and can be factorised ( i.e. length and thickness distributions may be assumed to be uncorrelated ; in the real world this may be correct or not in depending on the particle synthesis methodology ) . therefore we make the following assumption : @xmath51 where @xmath52 ; @xmath53 or @xmath1 depending on whether one refers to the length or thickness distribution . we take @xmath54 in terms of two parameters @xmath55 and @xmath56 . we impose the condition that the first two moments are equal to unity , which fix the normalisation and the mean value @xmath57 . then : @xmath58 ^ 2.\end{aligned}\ ] ] then the second moment can be related uniquely to the polydispersity coefficient : @xmath59 and the polydispersity coefficient @xmath60 is : @xmath61 from here , the @xmath55 parameter can be obtained given an input value for @xmath60 . the equation must be solved numerically . note that , once we fix the values of @xmath2 and @xmath3 , the values of @xmath62 and @xmath63 are in general different . using the free - energy functional ( [ free ] ) , the equilibrium condition reads : @xmath64}-c^{(1)}({\bm r};l , h ) , \nonumber\\\nonumber\\&\rightarrow&\rho({\bm r};l , h)=e^{\displaystyle\beta\mu^*(l , h)}e^{\displaystyle c^{(1)}({\bm r};l , h ) } , \label{4}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath65 is the chemical potential of the species @xmath36 , with @xmath66 and @xmath67 the one - body direct correlation function . integrating eqn . ( [ 4 ] ) and eliminating @xmath68 , the euler - lagrange equation to be solved is : @xmath69 we define the moments @xmath70 multiplying ( [ 7 ] ) by @xmath71 , where @xmath72 are integers , and integrating over all possible values of @xmath0 and @xmath1 : @xmath73 . \label{9}\end{aligned}\ ] ] if we can express @xmath74 in terms of the moments , eqns . ( [ 9 ] ) form a closed set of equations for the moments . since there is no dependence on spatial coordinates in the n phase , eqns . ( [ 1]),([2 ] ) and ( [ free ] ) can be used directly to evaluate the free energy . in the case of s and c phases , we will deal with the spatial dependence by using fourier representations . because of the particular mathematical structure of the density functional , the one - body direct correlation function can be expressed in terms of the average densities @xmath75 only . therefore it is possible to use fourier expansions for these local densities and reconstruct the local fraction of particles @xmath46 using ( [ 7 ] ) evaluated at the equilibrium average densities . in the s phase , the unknown coefficients will be @xmath76 , with @xmath77 and @xmath78 the wavevector associated with the s period @xmath79 . in the c phase , the unknown coefficients will be @xmath80 , with @xmath81 where @xmath82 and @xmath83 the lattice parameter of the square lattice . the fourier expansions in ( [ n1 ] ) and ( [ n2 ] ) were truncated so that the absolute value of the highest - order coefficient included was less that @xmath84 for all the densities explored . in each case the euler - lagrange equation is solved by iterations until convergence of the coefficients . appendix [ app2 ] provides more details on the numerical methodology . a first picture of the order in which the different phases appear is provided by a bifurcation analysis . here one perturbs the n phase with a small - amplitude density wave of given wavevector @xmath85 and searches for instability with respect to density and wavelength . instability is given by the curvature of the free - energy functional , expressed by the direct correlation functional @xmath86/\delta\rho({\bm r},l , h ) \delta\rho({\bm r}',l',h')$ ] . the bifurcation point ( density at which the n becomes unstable with respect to s- or c - like perturbations ) coincides with the transition point whenever the true phase transition is continuous ; otherwise the bifurcation point only provides the spinodal point and a full treatment based on equality of pressure and partial chemical potentials is needed . we provide details on the bifurcation analysis in appendix [ bifur ] . to explore the overall structure of phase behaviour , we have first computed the bifurcation densities , i.e. the densities at which the euler - lagrange equations have a spatially inhomogeneous solution ( bifurcation from the n to the s or c phases ) . in the following we will use the packing fraction @xmath87 , defined by @xmath88 , as the relevant density parameter . [ bif ] shows the bifurcation packing fractions @xmath87 for the s and c phases as a function of one of the polydispersities when the other polydispersity is set to zero . at which the n phase bifurcates to the ( a ) s , ( b ) c phases , as a function of one of the polydispersities @xmath89 ( @xmath90 ) when the other polydispersity is set to zero.,width=624 ] in the case of bifurcation to the s phase , panel ( a ) , we see that , when @xmath91 ( red curve ) and the thickness polydispersity @xmath3 increases , the packing fraction also does due to the increasing difficulty to create uniform layers in the system . the decrease in @xmath87 at large values of @xmath3 is a microsegregation effect . here the thickness distribution of particles is different in the layers and in between the layers ( interstitials ) ; in the former , the thickness distribution is peaked about a larger value of thickness than in the interstitials . we will comment on this effect later . the opposite case is when @xmath92 ( blue curve ) . here , as @xmath2 increases , the s bifurcates at lower packing fractions since platelets can better pack in the ( quasi two - dimensional ) layers when their side - length distribution is wider . the bifurcation to the c phase , fig . [ bif](b ) , is relatively similar to the s case , except that the roles of @xmath0 and @xmath1 are interchanged . the most notable difference is that the maximum in @xmath87 does not exist , although there could also be a microsegregation effect where small platelets are expelled from the nodes of the columns to the interstitial space , as discussed later . between the packing fractions of the bifurcated s and c phases as a function of polydispersity coefficients @xmath2 and @xmath3 , in false colour . the dashed line corresponds to the curve @xmath93 where the s and c phases bifurcate at the same value of packing fraction . the s ( c ) label indicates the region where the s ( c ) phase bifurcates from the n first . dotted line is the bisectrice @xmath94 . orange , blue and black filled circles correspond to experimental values of polydispersities where c , s and c+s were found . in the case of black circles and the orange circle with a down arrow , polydispersities correspond to those of the parent phase.,width=528 ] the overall effect of polydispersities can be visualised in the plot of fig . [ sabana ] , where the difference in bifurcation packing fractions @xmath95 for the s , @xmath96 , and c , @xmath97 , phases is shown as a function of the polydispersity coefficients @xmath2 and @xmath3 . the curve @xmath93 indicates a situation where both phases bifurcate at the same packing fraction ( projected black dashed curve in the figure ) . we see that , for large values of @xmath2 and @xmath3 , this curve does not correspond or is close to the bisectrice @xmath94 ( the dotted black curve ) . this means that the c phase stands a higher value for its associated polydispersity coefficient ( @xmath2 ) than does the s ( @xmath3 ) up to @xmath98 ; for higher values , the scenario is the opposite . a more detailed treatment of the problem requires a full analysis beyond linear bifurcation theory , i.e. a full solution to the euler - lagrange equation ( [ 7 ] ) . this allows to obtain the free energy and the local density distribution of the different phases . [ frees ] shows some representative cases . in this series of graphs we are following the line @xmath99 in the @xmath2@xmath3 plane the reference case is a completely monodisperse solution , @xmath100 , for which s and c phases bifurcate at the same density , but the c phase is always more stable . panel ( a ) refers to the case @xmath101 . here the c phase bifurcates before the s , and is much more stable than the s ; this is because the thickness polydispersity is relatively high and prevents the formation of regular layers . as @xmath2 increases and @xmath3 decreases , the stability gap between the two phases decreases , panels ( b ) and ( c ) , and for the case @xmath102 the s phase is already more stable and bifurcates before the c phase . all of these results corroborate the results of the bifurcation analysis presented before , in the sense that a high polydispersity in one parameter ( @xmath2 or @xmath3 ) inhibits the formation of the corresponding phase ( c or s , respectively ) . they also point to the fact that the @xmath2 and @xmath3 parameters do not play a symmetric role : the c phase stands a higher value of polydispersity in its associated polydispersity than the s , and when @xmath94 the c phase is more stable than the s. note that there are some cases where the s phases bifurcates before and remains more stable than the c phase but only below some density [ this occurs for values between those of panels ( c ) and ( d ) ] ; at higher densities the two branches should cross each other and the c phase becomes more stable ( the phase transition between the two phases is of first order although no attempt has been made to calculate the properties of the coexisting phases ) . the structure of the s and c phases is also interesting to investigate due to the fact that we expect strong microsegregation effects in these phases caused by the spatial ordering . by this we mean that the particle size distribution will depend on the location within the periodic unit cell . to better visualise the microsegregation effect occurring at the scale of the periodic unit cell in the s phase , we define the function @xmath103 which gives the particle thickness @xmath1 distribution at point @xmath28 irrespective of the side - length @xmath0 . [ struc1](a ) plots @xmath104 as a function of @xmath1 for the case @xmath105 , @xmath106 and at the points located at the s layers and at the interstitial point ( midway between two consecutive layers ) . we can see that the first is mostly populated by the thickest particles , while the interstitial mostly contains the thinner ones . note that , as usual , the moment @xmath107 is higher at the lattice sites that at the interstitials . as for the c phase , to quantify the microsegregation effect occurring at the scale of the periodic unit cell , we define the function @xmath108 which gives the particle size - length distribution at point @xmath109 irrespective of the thickness . in fig . [ struc1](b ) we illustrate the microsegregation effect by plotting the distribution @xmath110 at three points of the square - lattice unit cell : p , at the nodes ; r , at the interstitials ; and q , midway between two nodes . the curves indicate that big particles tend to occupy the nodes , while small particles are more probable in the interstitials . defined in eqn . ( [ hh ] ) for a c phase @xmath105 , @xmath106 at packing fraction @xmath111 . the function is evaluated at two points , l ( layer , @xmath112 ) and i ( interstitial , @xmath113 , i.e. half s period ) . ( b ) the function @xmath110 defined in eqn . ( [ hh ] ) for a c phase @xmath114 , @xmath115 at packing fraction @xmath116 . the function is evaluated at three points in the square - lattice unit cell , @xmath117 , @xmath118 and @xmath119 , which are indicated in the inset ( @xmath117 is a lattice site , @xmath118 the interstitial point , and @xmath119 a point midway between two neighboring lattice sites).,width=595 ] up to now there have appeared in the literature a number of well - controlled experiments on suspensions of colloidal platelets . there are two problems when comparing the theory with the experiment . one is that polydispersities are difficult to measure with precision , especially the polydispersity in thickness . normally one assumes that @xmath3 is some positive and constant value ( particle synthesis normally involves exfoliation and the thickness usually consists of one or a few sheets of the original layered material ) , subject to large error , while @xmath2 is measured much more accurately and can be finely tuned more easily . the other is that suspensions are subject to gravity and the effect of sedimentation and phase profile is crucial to understand the true phase behaviour of the suspension @xcite . usually this effect is not properly taken into account . a number of groups have obtained suspensions made of particles with interactions that can be approximated as hard interactions . the dutch group have been profusely investigating suspensions of gibbsite particles with different polydispersities @xmath2 . their @xmath3 is quite large and somewhat uncontrolled , so that their suspensions usually exhibit a n - to - c transition . on the other hand , the a&m texas group have been synthesising mineral platelets with @xmath92 ( although the interactions may not always be considered as hard ) ; in these systems the tendency to form s phases is quite strong . in a recent paper , the latter group have provided quantitative data on polydispersity in @xmath2 in their samples @xcite . in fig . [ sabana ] some of the above experimental results on colloidal suspensions of mineral particles have been added , specially those that are relevant to elucidate the relative stability of the c and s phases . whenever available , we plot the polydispersity coefficients @xmath120 as measured in the fractionated coexisting phases ; note that in some experiments the ( in general different ) polydispersities of the two coexisting phases are not measured , but only the parent or global polydispersities . in the figure , orange circles show the values of the coefficients corresponding to experiments on gibbsite platelet suspensions where stable c @xcite , hexatic c @xcite and hexagonal c @xcite phases were found . the arrow pointing down in one of the orange circles means that the values of @xmath120 correspond to the parent phase . we expect that , after fractionation , @xmath2 will decrease . black points correspond to polydispersities of the parent distribution for suspensions of goethite nanorods @xcite , which phase separate into c and s phases . finally , blue circles with @xmath121 represent values for which stable s @xcite or smectic b @xcite phases were found in suspensions of goethite nanorods @xcite or of charged colloidal gibbsite platelets @xcite . the blue circle with @xmath92 is a result from recent experiments on zirconium - phosphate mineral platelet suspensions of constant thickness but polydisperse in diameter @xcite . as can be seen , the values of @xmath120 corresponding to colloidal suspensions where the c ( orange ) or s ( blue ) phases were found to be stable are approximately located in their regions predicted by our stability calculations . in this paper we have investigated the effect of the thickness and width polydispersities on the relative stability between the s and c phases in a system of aligned board - like uniaxial particles , using a density - functional theory for hard cubes extended to a polydisperse mixture . an understanding on the effect of polydispersity begins with the phase behaviour of the corresponding one - component ( monodisperse ) system . at high densities , the system is in a k phase but the free - energy difference with the c phase is very small @xcite . the s phase is much less stable . all phases bifurcate from the same point ( the corresponding packing fraction being @xmath122 ) . on inclusion of polydispersity in both particle thickness and width , the k phase is expected to destabilise more strongly because the three - dimensional periodic arrangement of particles in the unit cell is very sensitive to the increase of polydispersity as compared to the higher - symmetry c and s phases . this is the reason why we have not included the k phase in the present study . we have modelled the polydispersities in a symmetric way : the mean thickness and side length are fixed to unity , and the global size distribution is a product of two independent functions which have the same functional form in their respective size variable . therefore the mean particle geometry is cubic and the addition of both polydispersities deforms the original geometry to be prolate or oblate as the side length and thickness polydispersity coefficients @xmath2 and @xmath3 become nonzero . we have made a bifurcation analysis to study the effect of polydispersity on the s and c bifurcation from the n phase . the difference @xmath123 between bifurcation packing fractions allowed us to conclude that , in a first approximation , for relatively low values of @xmath2 and @xmath3 and for @xmath4 the s phase destabilizes with respect to the n phase first , while the c phase destabilizes first when @xmath124 . the curve @xmath125 in the @xmath6 plane is located close to the bisectrice for @xmath126 ( but slightly favouring the stability of the c phase ) , a result due to the symmetric way in which particle polydispersities are included . however , for @xmath127 , the curve @xmath128 deviates from the bisectrice and favours the s phase . a possible explanation for this lies in the microfractionation mechanism : for large polydispersities larger particles tend to occupy the sites of the periodic lattice ( whether one dimensional in the case of the s phase or two - dimensional for the c phase ) and small particles tend to occupy the lattice interstitials ; this mechanism may be more effective in the s phase than in the c phase . in fact , experiments show @xcite that the c phase accepts a polydispersity of at least @xmath129 , but recent studies on length - polydisperse rods of goethite @xcite indicate that the s phase is stable for polydispersities as large as @xmath130 ( with due allowance for macrofractionation mechanisms which reduce the polydispersity of the parent sample ) . the bifurcation analysis does not give the final answer to the question of relative phase behavior . to have a more profound understanding of the phase diagram of the present system and investigate the microsegregation effects , we have performed numerical minimizations of the free - energy density functional of our polydisperse fluid , fixing the probability size distribution of the parent phase @xmath50 ( which coincides with the unit - cell distribution in a periodic phase ) . we have found that , in general , the bifurcation analysis gives the correct relative stability of the c and s phases . however , there are some values of polydispersities around the @xmath94 bisectrice for which the s phase bifurcates from the n before the c phase , but at some value of packing fraction the c and s free - energy branches cross , the c phase becoming energetically favoured at higher packing fractions . this behaviour is a clear indication that the system should exhibit a first order s - c transition . to correctly predict the particle composition of the coexisting phases , cloud - shadow coexistence calculations should be performed in which the coexistence size distributions @xmath131 are calculated from equations expressing the equality of chemical potentials of all species and the pressures , together with the level rule ( conservation of the number of particles ) @xcite . these calculations imply a heavy numerical task since the moments of the coexisting distributions involve the evaluation of multiple integrals and many non - linear integral equations have to be solved . therefore , in the present paper we restricted our effort to the calculation of free - energy branches . finally , to confirm the microsegregation scenario , we examined the actual structure of the phases and the spatial distribution of species with different sizes . in effect , the layers or sites are preferentially populated by big particles , while the interstitials have a higher proportion of small particles . particles with intermediate sizes have a similar composition in both locations , indicating their relatively high diffusivity . for high polydispersities , this extra degree of freedom conspires with the different dimensionality of ordering in the two phases ( one or two in the s and c phases , respectively ) to give a non - symmetric stability map in a fluid of our otherwise perfectly symmetric particles . financial support from comunidad autnoma de madrid ( spain ) under the r@xmath132d programme of activities modelico - cm / s2009esp-1691 , and from mineco ( spain ) under grants fis2010 - 22047-c01 and fis2010 - 22047-c04 is acknowledged . here we give more details about the way we performed the numerical calculations . + + _ smectic phase_. the euler - lagrange equation for the local fraction of particles is @xmath133 where @xmath79 is the s period , and @xmath134 , with @xmath135 the excess part of the chemical potential ( in thermal units @xmath136 ) or bulk one - body direct correlation function ( this is done to improve numerical accuracy ) . now we expand in fourier space : @xmath137 where @xmath78 and @xmath138 . multiplying ( [ a1 ] ) by a cosine function and integrating over one period , we obtain @xmath139 with @xmath140 . now using the definitions @xmath141 with @xmath142 , the corresponding projections of the euler - lagrange equations , given by ( [ el3 ] ) , can be rewritten solely in terms of the @xmath143 coefficients . this is because , as can be easily shown , the average functions @xmath16 depend on these coefficients only : @xmath144 where , for each value of @xmath140 , @xmath145 for @xmath146 respectively . this means that the @xmath74 correlation function can be uniquely expressed in terms of these coefficients and , consequently , eqns . ( [ el3 ] ) and ( [ coeffff ] ) form a closed set of equations in these coefficients . to solve these equations we use an iterative method with a mixing parameter of @xmath147 . the solution is obtained after typically 30 iterations , and starting values for the coefficients were chosen from the values obtained for a previous density . _ columnar phase_. in this case the euler - lagrange equation reads @xmath148 where @xmath149 is the area of the unit cell of the square lattice , and @xmath83 the lattice parameter , and @xmath150 . expanding in a fourier series , @xmath151 with @xmath152 , and @xmath82 . multiplying eqn . ( [ aqui ] ) by cosine functions in @xmath153 and @xmath154 and integrating over the unit cell , we obtain : @xmath155 using the definition @xmath156 with @xmath157 , @xmath158 , and @xmath159 , @xmath160 , eqn . ( [ a6 ] ) can be written as a transcendental set of equations in @xmath161 , which form a closed set of equations because the average densities can be written in terms of solely these coefficients , @xmath162 with @xmath163 for @xmath146 respectively , and for each value of @xmath164 . an iterative method was used to solve the equations with a mixing parameter of @xmath147 and typically @xmath165 iterations were necessary to reach convergence . starting values for a given density were obtained from the solution of a previous density . in this section we give details on the bifurcation analysis from the n phase with respect to the s or c phases of the polydisperse mixture . ( [ 4 ] ) can be rewritten as @xmath166 the nonuniform phase bifurcates from the parent phase and , near the bifurcation point , we can assume that @xmath167 where @xmath168 is an small perturbation . inserting this into eqn . ( [ bif1 ] ) and functionally expanding the exponential up to first order in @xmath168 , we arrive at @xmath169 with @xmath170 the direct correlation function : @xmath171 in fourier space , eqn . ( [ eps ] ) becomes @xmath172 where , as usual , @xmath173 . the fourier transform of the direct correlation function can be written as @xmath174 where the coefficients @xmath175 are evaluated at @xmath176 . therefore these coefficients are functions of @xmath177 and @xmath2 since , in the uniform limit , the weighted densities @xmath75 are @xmath178 and @xmath179 . @xmath180 are the fourier transforms of the weights @xmath181 . substitution of eqn . ( [ corre ] ) into eqn . ( [ epsilon ] ) gives @xmath182 where we have defined @xmath183 multiplying ( [ inter ] ) by @xmath184 and integrating over @xmath0 and @xmath1 , we find @xmath185{\bm s}({\bm q } ) , \label{find}\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath186 is a column vector of dimension eight with coordinates @xmath187 ( @xmath188 ) , @xmath189 is the matrix with elements @xmath190 , and @xmath191 is the @xmath192 matrix with elements @xmath193 defining the matrix @xmath194 with @xmath195 the @xmath192 identity matrix , eqn . ( [ find ] ) can be rewritten as @xmath196 thus , a nontrivial solution of ( [ nontrivial ] ) can be calculated from @xmath197 i.e. by searching for the equality to zero of the global minimum of @xmath198 $ ] . the bifurcation to the s or c phases can be obtained using @xmath199 or @xmath200 , respectively , and the solutions of ( [ final ] ) furnish the values of density and wavevector , @xmath201 and @xmath202 , at bifurcation . now taking into account the factorised form of the weighting functions , @xmath203 and of the parent size probability distribution @xmath204 , the coefficients ( [ last ] ) can be written as a product of two one - dimensional integrals : @xmath205 \times \left[\int_0^{\infty}dh\phi(h)\prod_{\tau=\alpha,\beta}\hat{\omega}^{(\tau)}_z(q_z;h)\right].\end{aligned}\ ] ] finally , substituting the values @xmath206 or @xmath207 in these integrals , we find that they can be expressed as a function of the following integrals : @xmath208 where @xmath209 . in turn , these integrals can efficiently be calculated as @xmath210,\nonumber\\\nonumber\\ c_n(q)&=&\langle\sigma^n\rangle \exp\left(-\frac{q^2}{4\lambda}\right ) m\left[-\frac{(\gamma+n)}{2},\frac{1}{2},\frac{q^2}{4\lambda}\right],\end{aligned}\ ] ] where @xmath211 $ ] is the confluent hypergeometric function of real arguments ( the so - called _ kummer function _ @xcite ) , while the general expression for the @xmath212-th moment of the distribution function @xmath52 is @xmath213 \gamma^{n-1}\left[\displaystyle{\frac{\gamma+1}{2}}\right ] } { \gamma^n\left[\displaystyle{\frac{\gamma+2}{2}}\right]}.\end{aligned}\ ] ] f. m. van der kooij , k. kassapidou , and h. n. w. lekkerkerker , nature * 406 * , 868 ( 2000 ) . f. m. van der kooij and h. n. w. lekkerkerker , phys . rev . lett . * 84 * , 781 ( 2000 ) . j. g. vroege , d. m. e. thies - weesie , a. v. petukhov , b. j. lemaire and p. davidson , advanced materials * 18 * , 2565 ( 2006 ) . a. a. verhoeff , h. h. wensink , m. vis , g. jackson and h. n. w. lekkerkerker , j. phys . b * 113 * , 13476 ( 2009 ) a. b. g. m. leferink op reinink , e. van den pol , d. v. byelov , a. v. petukhov and g. j. vroege , j. phys . : condens . matter * 24 * , 464127 ( 2012 ) . f. m. van der kooij , d. van der beek , and h. n. w. lekkerkerker , j. phys . b * 105 * , 1696 ( 2001 ) . p. b. warren , phys . lett . * 80 * , 1369 ( 1997 ) . p. sollich , j. phys . : condens . matter * 14 * , r79 ( 2002 ) . t. j. sluckin , liq . cryst . * 6 * , 111 ( 1989 ) . n. clarke , j. a. cuesta , r. sear , p. sollich and a. speranza , j. chem . phys . * 113 * , 5817 ( 2000 ) . a. speranza and p. sollich , j. chem . phys . * 117 * , 5421 ( 2002 ) . p. sollich , j. chem . phys . * 122 * , 214911 ( 2005 ) . y. martnez - ratn and j. a. cuesta , phys . * 89 * ( 2002 ) . y. martnez - ratn and j. a. cuesta , j. chem . 118 * , 10164 ( 2003 ) . s. belli , a. patti , m. dijkstra , and r. van roij , phys . lett . * 107 * , ( 2011 ) . m. a. bates and d. frenkel , j. chem . phys . * 110 * , 6553 ( 1999 ) . m. a. bates and d. frenkel , j. chem . * 109 * , 6193 ( 1998 ) . d. sun , h .- j . sue , z. cheng , y. martinez - raton , and e. velasco , phys . e 80 , 041704 ( 2009 ) . a. f. mejia , y .- w . chang , r. ng . m. shuai , m. s. mannan , and z. cheng , phys . rev . e * 85 * , 061708 ( 2012 ) . y. martnez - ratn and e. velasco , j. chem . * 134 * , 124904 ( 2011 ) . y. martnez - ratn and e. velasco , j. chem . phys . * 137 * , 134906 ( 2012 ) . j. a. cuesta and y. martnez - ratn , j. chem . phys . * 107 * , 6379 ( 1997 ) . y. martnez - ratn and j. a. cuesta , j. chem . phys . * 111 * , 317 ( 1999 ) . d. de las heras and m. schmidt , arxiv:1305.6454 ( 2013 ) . y. martnez - ratn , phys . e * 69 * , 061712 ( 2004 ) . s. belli , m. dijkstra and r. van roij , j. chem . phys . * 137 * , 124506 ( 2012 ) . e. van den pol , d. m. e. thies - weesie , a. v. petukhov , g. j. vroege , and k. kvashina , j. chem . phys . * 129 * , 164715 ( 2008 ) . petukhov , d. van der beek , r. p. a. dullens , i. p. dolbnya , g. j. vroege , and h. n.w . lekkerkerker , phys . lett . * 95 * , 077801 ( 2005 ) . d. van der beek , a.v . petukhov , s.m . oversteegen , g.j . vroege , and h.n.w . lekkerkerker , eur . j. e * 16 * , 253 ( 2005 ) . d. m. e. thies - weesie , j .- de hoog , m. h. hernandez - mendiola , a. v. petukhov , and g. j. vroege , chem . matter * 19 * , 5538 ( 2007 ) . d. kleshchanok , p. holmqvist , j .- m . meijer , and h. n. w. lekkerkerker , j. am . 134 * , 5985 ( 2012 ) . i. s. gradshteyn and l. m. ryzhik , _ table of integrals series and products _ , a. jeffrey and d. zwillinger eds . , academic press 7th edition ( 2007 ) .

the phase behavior of a model suspension of colloidal polydisperse platelets is studied using density - functional theory . platelets are modelled as parallel rectangular prisms of square section @xmath0 and height @xmath1 , with length and height distributions given by different polydispersities @xmath2 and @xmath3 . we obtain the phase behavior of the model , including nematic , smectic and columnar phases and its dependence with the two polydispersities @xmath2 and @xmath3 . when @xmath4 we observe that the smectic phase stabilises first with respect to the columnar . if @xmath5 we observe the opposite behavior . other more complicated cases occur , e.g. the smectic stabilises from the nematic first but then exists a first - order transition to the columnar phase . our model assumes plate - rod symmetry , but the regions of stability of smectic and columnar phases are non - symmetric in the @xmath6 plane due to the different dimensionality of ordering in the two phases . microsegregation effects , i.e. different spatial distribution for different sizes within the periodic cell , take place in both phases .

since 2009 , several studies with different methodologies and designs ( for example , stopwatch vs. questionnaire ) have investigated the relationship between genetic polymorphisms and premature ejaculation ( pe ) . in a stopwatch study , janssen et al . found that in men with lifelong pe , the 5-ht - transporter - gene - linked promoter region ( 5-httlpr ) polymorphism is associated with statistically significant effects on the latency to ejaculate . men with the ll genotype ejaculate 100% faster than do men with the ss genotype . in addition , men with lifelong pe and with the cc genotype of the c(1019)g polymorphism of the 5-ht1a receptor also ejaculate statistically significantly faster than do men with the gc and gg genotypes . . also showed that men with lifelong pe and with the cys / cys genotype of the cys23ser polymorphism of the 5-ht2c receptor ejaculate statistically significantly faster than do men with the ser / ser genotype . it is a well - established clinical fact that daily use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors ( ssris ) in men with lifelong pe clinically relevantly delays ejaculation . compared with other ssris , daily treatment with 20 mg paroxetine exerts the strongest ejaculation delay . however , this is not always the case . in some men , daily use of ssris only moderately delays ejaculation , whereas in others there is no ejaculation delay at all . animal studies have shown that pharmacodynamic factors , such as the amount of serotonin neurotransmission , 5-ht1a receptor sensitivity , and 5-ht2c receptor sensitivity are associated with the duration of the ejaculation latency time . in the current study in men with lifelong pe who responded to daily paroxetine 20-mg treatment , we investigated the role of the 5-httlpr polymorphism in paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay . included were men who were actively seeking drug treatment for lifelong pe at the outpatient department of neurosexology . none of them were using or had ever used drugs , such as ssris or clomipramine , for the treatment of lifelong pe . the intravaginal ejaculation latency time ( ielt ) was defined as the time between the start of vaginal penetration and the start of intravaginal ejaculation . lifelong pe was operationally defined according to the international society for sexual medicine definition as the lifelong presence of an ielt of 1 minute or less after vaginal penetration occurring on more than 90% of occasions of sexual intercourse with every sexual partner together with complaints of inability to delay ejaculation and feelings of frustration about it . so as not to exclude men with particular psychological difficulties related to pe , a stable relationship with a female partner was not required . however , it was required that during the ielt assesments in a 1-month baseline period and 10 weeks of paroxetine treatment , intercourse should have taken place with the same woman . patients were not permitted the use of condoms , topical local anesthetic creams or sprays , or excessive consumption of alcohol within 5 hours before intercourse . exclusion criteria included erectile dysfunction , alcohol or substance abuse , mental disorders , physical illnesses affecting ejaculatory functioning , concomitant medications , a history of sexual abuse reported by the patient or his partner , serious relationship problems , pregnancy of the partner , or the desire to become pregnant in the near future . patients attended the outpatient department of neurosexology approximately 1 month before the start of daily ssri treatment ( first baseline assessment ) , on the day before treatment ( second baseline assessment ) , and at the end of two consecutive series of 5 weeks of daily ssri treatment . at the first visit , patients were interviewed by the last author and were asked to independently estimate their ielt . the female partners measured the ielt and handled the stopwatch at home at every intercourse over the following 4 weeks . patients were instructed not to have interrupted intromission or to change their usual way or frequency of intercourse . if intercourse took place more than once at the time of ielt measurement , only the first occurrence was included . all laboratory testing , including blood sampling and genetic testing , was conducted by the first author . informed consent was obtained from all patients after the purpose of the study was explained to them . the study was approved by the hospital medical ethical committee and was conducted in accordance with the helsinki declaration of 1975 , as revised in 1983 . the control group consisted of 92 physically and mentally healthy male individuals recruited in another study conducted by the department of psychiatry of the utrecht medical center , utrecht , the netherlands . in addition , all male controls had at least 3 grandparents who were born in the netherlands . the control group was randomly sampled and is considered representative of the general dutch population . neither occurrence of complaints of pe nor stopwatch assessments of ielt has been investigated in the control group . a responder was operationally defined as an individual who with daily paroxetine 20-mg treatment had a fold increase of the geometric mean ielt of 2 or more , e.g. , a more than 100% increase of the baseline ielt value . a non - responder was defined as an individual who had a fold increase of the geometric mean ielt of less than 2 . the cutoff of 2 was based on the outcome data of a meta - analysis of daily ssri treatment for pe , in which placebo response was consistently lower than a twofold increase of the geometric mean ielt compared with baseline values . genomic dna was extracted from 10 ml of edta - anticoagulated whole blood by use of a standard salting - out protocol . the 44-bp insertion / deletion polymorphism within the promoter region of the sert ( slc6a4 ) gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction ( pcr ) . the insertion / deletion in the sert gene - linked polymorphic region ( 5-httlpr ) was amplified by using the following oligonucleotide primers : forward , 5'-ggcgttgccgctctgaatc-3 ' , and reverse , 5'-gag ggactgagctggacaaccac-3 ' . corresponding to the nucleotide positions ranging from -1416 to -1397 and from -910 to -889 of the 5-htt gene regulatory region , a reagents and conditions for the pcr were as follows : 1 ml of 10 polymerase buffer , 0.2 mmol / l mgcl2 , 0.4 mmmol / l of each primer ( biolegio bv , nijmegen , the netherlands ) , 0.5 u accuprime pfx dna polymerase ( invitrogen life technologies , strathclyde , uk ) , and 50 ng of genomic dna in a total reaction volume of 10 ml . the pcr program on a thermal cycler ( geneamp type 9700 ; perkin elmer , waltham , ma , usa ) was as follows : reactions were cycled with initial denaturation at 94 for 4 minutes , followed by 33 pcr cycles of 94 for 30 seconds , 61 for 60 seconds , 68 for 60 seconds , and a final extension step of 4 minutes at 72. the amplification products were electrophoresed on 2%-agarose gels at 100 v for 120 minutes . the gel and running buffers were 1 tbe ( 0.89 m tris - base , 0.89 m boric acid , 20 mm na2edta ) the mean , median , and geometric mean ielt were calculated for stopwatch - determined ielts . hardy - weinberg equilibrium was determined to check the laboratory efficacy of pcr analysis in the control group and the patient group by using a chi - square test . allele and genotype frequencies between patients and controls were compared by using ibm spss ver . 19.0 ( ibm co. , armonk , ny , usa ) . analysis of variance ( anova ) was performed to determine an association between the genotype in the patient group and the fold increases in the ielt . included were men who were actively seeking drug treatment for lifelong pe at the outpatient department of neurosexology . none of them were using or had ever used drugs , such as ssris or clomipramine , for the treatment of lifelong pe . the intravaginal ejaculation latency time ( ielt ) was defined as the time between the start of vaginal penetration and the start of intravaginal ejaculation . lifelong pe was operationally defined according to the international society for sexual medicine definition as the lifelong presence of an ielt of 1 minute or less after vaginal penetration occurring on more than 90% of occasions of sexual intercourse with every sexual partner together with complaints of inability to delay ejaculation and feelings of frustration about it . so as not to exclude men with particular psychological difficulties related to pe , a stable relationship with a female partner was not required . however , it was required that during the ielt assesments in a 1-month baseline period and 10 weeks of paroxetine treatment , intercourse should have taken place with the same woman . patients were not permitted the use of condoms , topical local anesthetic creams or sprays , or excessive consumption of alcohol within 5 hours before intercourse . exclusion criteria included erectile dysfunction , alcohol or substance abuse , mental disorders , physical illnesses affecting ejaculatory functioning , concomitant medications , a history of sexual abuse reported by the patient or his partner , serious relationship problems , pregnancy of the partner , or the desire to become pregnant in the near future . patients attended the outpatient department of neurosexology approximately 1 month before the start of daily ssri treatment ( first baseline assessment ) , on the day before treatment ( second baseline assessment ) , and at the end of two consecutive series of 5 weeks of daily ssri treatment . at the first visit , patients were interviewed by the last author and were asked to independently estimate their ielt . the female partners measured the ielt and handled the stopwatch at home at every intercourse over the following 4 weeks . patients were instructed not to have interrupted intromission or to change their usual way or frequency of intercourse . if intercourse took place more than once at the time of ielt measurement , only the first occurrence was included . all laboratory testing , including blood sampling and genetic testing , was conducted by the first author . informed consent was obtained from all patients after the purpose of the study was explained to them . the study was approved by the hospital medical ethical committee and was conducted in accordance with the helsinki declaration of 1975 , as revised in 1983 . the control group consisted of 92 physically and mentally healthy male individuals recruited in another study conducted by the department of psychiatry of the utrecht medical center , utrecht , the netherlands . in addition , all male controls had at least 3 grandparents who were born in the netherlands . the control group was randomly sampled and is considered representative of the general dutch population . neither occurrence of complaints of pe nor stopwatch assessments of ielt has been investigated in the control group . a responder was operationally defined as an individual who with daily paroxetine 20-mg treatment had a fold increase of the geometric mean ielt of 2 or more , e.g. , a more than 100% increase of the baseline ielt value . a non - responder was defined as an individual who had a fold increase of the geometric mean ielt of less than 2 . the cutoff of 2 was based on the outcome data of a meta - analysis of daily ssri treatment for pe , in which placebo response was consistently lower than a twofold increase of the geometric mean ielt compared with baseline values . genomic dna was extracted from 10 ml of edta - anticoagulated whole blood by use of a standard salting - out protocol . the 44-bp insertion / deletion polymorphism within the promoter region of the sert ( slc6a4 ) gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction ( pcr ) . the insertion / deletion in the sert gene - linked polymorphic region ( 5-httlpr ) was amplified by using the following oligonucleotide primers : forward , 5'-ggcgttgccgctctgaatc-3 ' , and reverse , 5'-gag ggactgagctggacaaccac-3 ' . corresponding to the nucleotide positions ranging from -1416 to -1397 and from -910 to -889 of the 5-htt gene regulatory region , a 484-bp or a 528-bp fragment was generated . reagents and conditions for the pcr were as follows : 1 ml of 10 polymerase buffer , 0.2 mmol / l deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates , 2.0 mmol / l mgcl2 , 0.4 mmmol / l of each primer ( biolegio bv , nijmegen , the netherlands ) , 0.5 u accuprime pfx dna polymerase ( invitrogen life technologies , strathclyde , uk ) , and 50 ng of genomic dna in a total reaction volume of 10 ml . the pcr program on a thermal cycler ( geneamp type 9700 ; perkin elmer , waltham , ma , usa ) was as follows : reactions were cycled with initial denaturation at 94 for 4 minutes , followed by 33 pcr cycles of 94 for 30 seconds , 61 for 60 seconds , 68 for 60 seconds , and a final extension step of 4 minutes at 72. the amplification products were electrophoresed on 2%-agarose gels at 100 v for 120 minutes . the gel and running buffers were 1 tbe ( 0.89 m tris - base , 0.89 m boric acid , 20 mm na2edta ) . genomic dna was extracted from 10 ml of edta - anticoagulated whole blood by use of a standard salting - out protocol . the 44-bp insertion / deletion polymorphism within the promoter region of the sert ( slc6a4 ) gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction ( pcr ) . the insertion / deletion in the sert gene - linked polymorphic region ( 5-httlpr ) was amplified by using the following oligonucleotide primers : forward , 5'-ggcgttgccgctctgaatc-3 ' , and reverse , 5'-gag ggactgagctggacaaccac-3 ' . corresponding to the nucleotide positions ranging from -1416 to -1397 and from -910 to -889 of the 5-htt gene regulatory region , a 484-bp or a 528-bp fragment was generated . reagents and conditions for the pcr were as follows : 1 ml of 10 polymerase buffer , 0.2 mmol / l deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates , 2.0 mmol / l mgcl2 , 0.4 mmmol / l of each primer ( biolegio bv , nijmegen , the netherlands ) , 0.5 u accuprime pfx dna polymerase ( invitrogen life technologies , strathclyde , uk ) , and 50 ng of genomic dna in a total reaction volume of 10 ml . the pcr program on a thermal cycler ( geneamp type 9700 ; perkin elmer , waltham , ma , usa ) was as follows : reactions were cycled with initial denaturation at 94 for 4 minutes , followed by 33 pcr cycles of 94 for 30 seconds , 61 for 60 seconds , 68 for 60 seconds , and a final extension step of 4 minutes at 72. the amplification products were electrophoresed on 2%-agarose gels at 100 v for 120 minutes . the gel and running buffers were 1 tbe ( 0.89 m tris - base , 0.89 m boric acid , 20 mm na2edta ) . the mean , median , and geometric mean ielt were calculated for stopwatch - determined ielts . hardy - weinberg equilibrium was determined to check the laboratory efficacy of pcr analysis in the control group and the patient group by using a chi - square test . allele and genotype frequencies between patients and controls were compared by using ibm spss ver . 19.0 ( ibm co. , armonk , ny , usa ) . analysis of variance ( anova ) was performed to determine an association between the genotype in the patient group and the fold increases in the ielt . the mean age of the controls was significantly higher than that of the patients . however , because lifelong pe affects all age categories , this difference did not affect the purpose of the study . the paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay , expressed as percentage fold increase of the geometric mean ielt compared with baseline , is shown in fig . notably , paroxetine was used only by the patients with lifelong pe and not by the controls . of the 54 patients , 43 ( 79.6% ) responded to paroxetine treatment with an ejaculation delay , whereas 11 patients ( 20.4% ) did not respond to paroxetine treatment ; 50% , 12% , and 18% had a fold increase of 2 - 10 , 10 - 20 , or more than 20 , respectively . a photograph of dna fragments on a gel under ultraviolet light is shown in fig . hardy - weinberg equilibrium was not rejected for genotype distributions of the polymorphisms investigated in patients ( p=0.83 ) and controls ( p=0.59 ) . of the 54 men with lifelong pe , 14 ( 25.9% ) had the ll genotype , 29 ( 53.7% ) had the sl genotype , and 11 ( 20.4% ) had the ss genotype . of the 92 controls , the ll , sl , and ss genotypes were present in 27 ( 29.3% ) , 41 ( 44.6% ) , and 24 ( 26.1% ) , respectively . treated with 20 mg paroxetine , including the 80% of men with ejaculation delay and the 20% who did not respond with an ejaculation delay , anova of the natural logarithm of the fold increase of the ielt showed no statistically significant difference in men with the ll , sl , and ss genotypes ( p=0.83 ) ( table 3 ) . owing to the lack of genome - wide studies in men with lifelong pe , we selectively chose to investigate the 5-httlpr polymorphism because the results of in vivo animal and clinical human research with ssris indiate that the serotonin content in the neuronal synapse is involved in ejaculation delay . moreover , daily use of 20 mg paroxetine , which inhibits the reuptake of 5-ht by inhibiting the activity of the 5-ht transporter , exerts the strongest ejaculation delay of the ssris . the difference in age between the patients and controls in the current study did not influence the comparison of men with lifelong pe and controls , because lifelong pe is present " lifelong , " that is , both at a young age and in older aged men . why the number of married men was higher in the control group is unclear but , speculatively , may be explained by the difference in age , as younger men may be more inclined to live together with a female partner instead of being married . in the current study of a cohort of 54 men with lifelong pe it was shown that with daily treatment with 20 mg paroxetine , 80% of men responded with ejaculation delay expressed in a fold increase of the ielt of more than 2 . about 18% of these men had a clinically very relevant ejaculation delay , as mirrored by a fold increase of 10 - 20 . another 18% of these men had a clinically very strong ejaculation delay ( fold increase>20 ) . however the patient and control groups were in hardy - weinberg equilibrium with regard to the 5-httlpr genotype polymorphism . in addition , with regard to the 5-httlpr polymorphism , the patient and control groups did not differ in their genotype frequencies . importantly , although most men responded with a clinically relevant ejaculation delay , in the current study it was found that the 5-httlpr genotype polymorphism was not associated with the paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay . interestingly , in a previous study in 89 men with lifelong pe ( who at the moment of investigation did not use medication ) , it was found that the 5-httlpr polymorphism is associated with the duration of the ielt . men with the ll genotype had a 100% shorter ielt than that in men with the ss or sl genotype . in the current study , which included some of the previous group of men , the paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay was not associated with the 5-httlpr polymorphism . it might be argued that this negative outcome was due to the low number of participants of the study . however , note that the data of the current study did not show any tendency toward a paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay that was associated with the 5-httlpr polymorphism , as mirrored by a p - value of 0.83 . for a definite answer , a stopwatch study in a much larger cohort of men with lifelong pe and treated by daily 20-mg paroxetine is required . notably , because various genetic polymorphisms may interact , future research of paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay in men with lifelong pe should also focus on the interaction of various genetic polymorphisms . in the current study of 54 men with lifelong pe , 80% of men reported a clinically relevant ejaculation delay and 20% did not report any paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay . in addition , the 5-httlpr polymorphism in these men was not associated with daily 20-mg paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay .

purposeto investigate the association between the 5-ht - transporter - gene - linked promoter region ( 5-httlpr ) polymorphism and 20-mg paroxetine - induced ejaculation delay in men with lifelong premature ejaculation ( lpe).materials and methodsthis was a prospective study of 10 weeks of paroxetine treatment in 54 men with lpe . intravaginal ejaculation latency time ( ielt ) was measured by stopwatch . controls consisted of 92 caucasian men . all men with lpe were genotyped for the 5-httlpr polymorphism . allele frequencies and genotypes of short ( s ) and long ( l ) variants of the polymorphism were compared between patients and controls . associations between the ll , sl , and ss genotypes and fold increase of mean ielt were investigated.resultsof the 54 patients , 43 ( 79.6% ) responded to 20-mg paroxetine treatment with an ejaculation delay , whereas 11 patients ( 20.4% ) did not respond ; 44% , 18% , and 18% of the patients showed a fold increase in mean ielt of 2 - 10 , 10 - 20 , and more than 20 , respectively . of the 54 men , 14 ( 25.9% ) had the ll genotype , 29 ( 53.7% ) had the sl genotype , and 11 ( 20.4% ) had the ss genotype . in the 92 controls , the ll , sl , and ss genotypes were present in 27 ( 29.3% ) , 41 ( 44.6% ) , and 24 ( 26.1% ) , respectively . no statistically significant differences were found in 5-httlpr allelic variations or in 5-httlpr gene variations . in all men treated with 20 mg paroxetine , analysis of variance of the natural logarithm of fold increase in the ielt showed no statistically significant difference according to genotype ( p=0.83).conclusionsthe 5-httlpr polymorphism is not associated with daily 20-mg paroxetine treatment - induced ejaculation delay in men with lpe .

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Opportunity Act of 2012''. (b) Table of Contents.-- Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. TITLE I--PROCUREMENT CENTER REPRESENTATIVES Sec. 101. Procurement center representatives. Sec. 102. Small Business Act contracting requirements training. TITLE II--ACQUISITION PLANNING Sec. 201. Acquisition planning. TITLE I--PROCUREMENT CENTER REPRESENTATIVES SEC. 101. PROCUREMENT CENTER REPRESENTATIVES. (a) In General.--Section 15(l) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)) is amended by striking the subsection enumerator and inserting the following: ``(l) Procurement Center Representatives.--''. (b) Assignment and Role.--Paragraph (1) of section 15(l) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)) is amended to read as follows: ``(1) Assignment and role.--The Administrator shall assign to each major procurement center a procurement center representative with such assistance as may be appropriate.''. (c) Activities.--Section 15(l)(2) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)(2)) is amended-- (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by striking ``(2) In addition to carrying out the responsibilities assigned by the Administration, a breakout'' and inserting the following: ``(2) Activities.--A''; (2) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the following: ``(A) attend any provisioning conference or similar evaluation session during which a determination may be made with respect to the procurement method to be used to satisfy a requirement, review any acquisition plan with respect to a requirement, and make recommendations regarding procurement method determinations and acquisition plans;''; (3) in subparagraph (B)-- (A) by striking ``(B) review, at any time, restrictions on competition'' and inserting the following: ``(B) review, at any time, barriers to small business participation in Federal contracting''; (B) by striking ``items'' and inserting ``goods and services''; and (C) by striking ``limitations'' and inserting ``barriers''; (4) in subparagraph (C) by striking ``(C) review restrictions on competition'' and inserting the following: ``(C) review barriers to small business participation in Federal contracting''; (5) by striking subparagraph (D) and inserting the following: ``(D) review any bundled or consolidated solicitation or contract in accordance with this Act;''; (6) in subparagraph (E) by striking ``(E) have access to'' and inserting the following: ``(E) have access to''; and (7) by striking subparagraphs (F) and (G) and inserting the following: ``(F) receive, from personnel responsible for reviewing unsolicited proposals, copies of unsolicited proposals from small business concerns and any information on outcomes relating to such proposals; ``(G) participate in any session or planning process and review any documents with respect to a decision to convert an activity performed by a small business concern to an activity performed by a Federal employee; ``(H) have electronic access to any acquisition plan developed or in development with respect to a procurement activity; ``(I) be an advocate for the maximum practicable utilization of small business concerns in Federal contracting, including by advocating against the bundling of contract requirements when not justified; and ``(J) carry out any other responsibility assigned by the Administrator.''. (d) Appeals.--Section 15(l)(3) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)(3)) is amended by striking ``(3) A breakout procurement center representative'' and inserting the following: ``(3) Appeals.--A procurement center representative''. (e) Notification and Inclusion.--Paragraph (4) of section 15(l) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)) is amended to read as follows: ``(4) Notification and inclusion.--A procurement center representative shall be notified of and included in all applicable acquisition planning processes.''. (f) Position Requirements.--Section 15(l)(5) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)(5)) is amended-- (1) by striking the paragraph enumerator and inserting the following: ``(5) Position requirements.--''; (2) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting the following: ``(A) In general.--A procurement center representative assigned under this subsection shall-- ``(i) be a full-time employee of the Administration; ``(ii) be fully qualified, technically trained, and familiar with the goods and services procured by the major procurement center to which that representative is assigned; and ``(iii) have a Level III Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (or any successor certification) or the equivalent Department of Defense certification, except that any person serving in such a position on the date of enactment of this clause may continue to serve in that position for a period of 5 years without the required certification.''; and (3) in subparagraph (C) by striking ``(C) The Administration shall establish personnel positions for breakout procurement representatives and advisers assigned pursuant to'' and inserting the following: ``(B) Compensation.--The Administrator shall establish personnel positions for procurement center representatives assigned under''. (g) Major Procurement Center Defined.--Section 15(l)(6) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)(6)) is amended-- (1) by striking ``(6) For purposes'' and inserting the following: ``(6) Major procurement center defined.--For purposes''; and (2) by striking ``other than commercial items and which has the potential to incur significant savings as the result of the placement of a breakout procurement center representative'' and inserting ``goods or services, including goods or services that are commercially available''. (h) Training.--Section 15(l)(7) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 644(l)(7)) is amended-- (1) by striking the paragraph enumerator and inserting the following: ``(7) Training.--''; (2) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the following: ``(A) Authorization.--At such times as the Administrator deems appropriate, a procurement center representative shall provide training for contracting officers, other appropriate personnel of the procurement center to which such representative is assigned, and small businesses groups seeking to do business with such procurement center. Such training shall acquaint the participants with the provisions of this subsection and shall instruct the participants in methods designed to further the purposes of this subsection. ``(B) Limitation.--A procurement center representative may provide training under subparagraph (A) only to the extent that the training does not interfere with the representative carrying out other activities under this subsection.''; and (3) in subparagraph (B)-- (A) by striking ``(B) The breakout procurement center representative'' and inserting the following: ``(8) Annual briefing and report.--A procurement center representative''; and (B) by striking ``sixty'' and inserting ``60''. SEC. 102. SMALL BUSINESS ACT CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS TRAINING. (a) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Defense Acquisition University and the Federal Acquisition Institute shall each provide a course on contracting requirements under the Small Business Act, including the requirements for small business concerns owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans, qualified HUBZone small business concerns, small business concerns owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, and small business concerns owned and controlled by women. (b) Course Required.--To have a Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (or any successor certification) or the equivalent Department of Defense certification an individual shall be required to complete the course established under subsection (a). (c) Requirement That Business Opportunity Specialists Be Certified.--Section 7(j)(10)(D)(i) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 636(j)(10)(D)(i)) is amended by inserting after ``to assist such Program Participant.'' the following: ``The Business Opportunity Specialist shall have a Level I Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (or any successor certification) or the equivalent Department of Defense certification, except that a Business Opportunity Specialist serving at the time of the date of enactment of the Small Business Opportunity Act of 2012 may continue to serve as a Business Opportunity Specialist for a period of 5 years beginning on that date of enactment without such a certification.''. (d) GAO Report.--Not later than 365 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study and submit a report to the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate on the relationship between the size and quality of the acquisition workforce and the Federal government's ability to maximize the utilization of small businesses in Federal procurement. The report shall specifcally address the following: (1) The extent to which training on small business contracting laws affects a contracting officer's determination to use one of the contracting authorities provided in the Small Business Act. (2) The relationship between a robust Federal acquisition workforce and small business success in obtaining Federal contracting opportunities. (3) The effect on economic growth if small businesses experienced a significant reduction in small business procurement activities. (4) The effect of the anticipated acceleration of retirements by the acquisition workforce on small business procurement opportunities. TITLE II--ACQUISITION PLANNING SEC. 201. ACQUISITION PLANNING. Section 15(e)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(e)(1)) is amended-- (1) by striking ``the various agencies'' and inserting ``a Federal department or agency''; and (2) by striking the period and inserting ``and each such Federal department or agency shall-- ``(A) enumerate opportunities for the participation of small business concerns during all acquisition planning processes and in all acquisition plans; ``(B) invite the participation of the appropriate Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization in all acquisition planning processes and provide that Director access to all acquisition plans in development; and ``(C) invite the participation of the appropriate procurement center representative in all acquisition planning processes and provide that representative access to all acquisition plans in development.''.

Small Business Opportunity Act of 2012 - Amends the Small Business Act to replace the position of breakout procurement representative within the Small Business Administration (SBA) with the position of procurement center representative. Requires such representatives to, among other things, review any acquisition plan with respect to a procurement requirement, and make recommendations regarding procurement method determinations and acquisition plans. Removes the requirement that such representatives review restrictions on competition, instead requiring them to review barriers to small business participation in federal contracting, as well as any bundled or consolidated solicitation or contract. Requires such representatives to: (1) have electronic access to any acquisition plan developed or in development with respect to a procurement activity, (2) be an advocate for the maximum practicable utilization of small businesses in federal contracting, and (3) be notified of and included in all applicable acquisition planning processes. Directs the Defense Acquisition University and the Federal Acquisition Institute to each provide a course on contracting requirements under the Small Business Act. Requires each federal department or agency having contracting authority to: (1) enumerate opportunities for participation by small businesses during all acquisition planning processes and in all acquisition plans, and (2) invite the participation of the appropriate Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization and procurement representative in such planning processes and provide Director and representative access to all acquisition plans in development.

biologically , the seed might bethe most critical stage of angiosperm development . indeed , the seed number per plant , their size and their ability to germinate are key components of plant fitness ( donohue et al . , . moreover , the seed structure helps plants to survive adverse environmental conditions but also helps to colonize new environments . concerning seed biology , our comprehension of fundamental biological processes such as dormancy or germination was greatly enhanced by the plant model arabidopsis thaliana used in combination with global omics thus , modern functional genomics allow the characterization of cellular responses , gene network activation , and metabolic adaptation among a wide range of seed physiological states ( nambara and nonogaki , 2012 ) . these novel technologies represent powerful tools to accelerate basic and translational seed research . yet , to our knowledge , there are no publically accessible websites dedicated to the arabidopsis seed proteome . seed proteome web portal to give free access to relevant data on the arabidopsis seed proteome . the spwp harbors a presentation of the founding laboratories , proteome data as well as detailed protocols and various links to bioinformatics resources or proteomic journals ( please see site map ) . the first main part of the spwp is focused on seed proteome data that can be accessed either from the protein maps or from the protein catalog ( figure 1a ) . as of today , information on the 475 protein spots identified during arabidopsis seed germination is available . in the protein map section , the user can retrieve a protein spot on a reference 2d gel obtained from arabidopsis seeds ( figure 1a ) . the protein spot can be selected directly on the 2d gel image to open a new page containing protein spot data ( figure 1b ) . on that new page , the essential table gives information on the protein spot class , spot number , protein name , description , gene number ( agi - id ) , and mascot peptide matches are given ( figure 1b ) . in the data and sequences table , the user can also find experimental proteomic facts such as the expected / observed molecular weight and isoelectric point together with the peptide sequences that allowed identification of the protein ( figure 1b ) . homepage ( a ) , 2d map of protein spots that increase during seed germination ( b ) and protocols for the detection of carbonylated proteins ( c ) and detection of de novo synthesized proteins ( d ) during seed germination . the second main part of the spwp offers a technical goldmine to scientists working on the seed proteome ( figure 1c ) . the user can find detailed protocols for a complete seed proteome experiment including seed germination , preparation of total protein extracts , 2d electrophoresis , gel staining , analysis of 2d gels , and protein identification by mass spectrometry are all explained in a detailed manner ( please also see rajjou et al . , 2011 ) . to our knowledge , there was no publically and freely available technical resource entirely dedicated to the study of the seed proteome . in addition , the spwp also gives some specific protocols to study seed sub - proteome such as the oxidized or de novo synthesized proteomes ( figure 1d ) . previous studies on the arabidopsis seed demonstrated the presence of a high number of long - lived mrna in the mature dry seed ( nakabayashi et al . , 2005 ) together with the absolute requirement for protein synthesis to germinate ( rajjou et al . , 2004 ) . during arabidopsis seed germination , we found a total of 475 protein spots corresponding unambiguously to 241 non - redundant proteins with a correspondence with a single agi i d . a total of 18 protein spots were matched to multiple agi - id ( table s1 in supplementary material ) . indeed , because of mrna processing , protein proteolysis and chemical protein modifications , one gene can produce many different protein isoforms resulting in a wide proteome diversity . each spot corresponds to a single protein isoform resulting from post - transcriptional or post - translational regulation of gene expression ( 1 mrna = x protein isoforms ) . a total of 250 protein spots showed an increasing abundance during germination sensu stricto ( 024 h ) or during radicle protrusion ( 2448 h ; figure 2 ) . otherwise , 143 protein spots displayed a decreasing abundance over the course of seed germination ( figure 2 ) . these results illustrate the major developmental switch that occurs during the germination phase in preparation for seedling establishment . indeed , while there are only three genes coding for 12s globulin seed storage protein in arabidopsis ( at1g03880 , at4g28250 , at5g44120 ) , a total of 104 protein spots corresponding to 12s globulin seed storage proteins can be retrieved on a 2d gel of seed proteins ( arc et al . , 2011 ) . spots corresponding to the precursor form of the globulin seed storage proteins can be processed by cleavage and transformed into their mature protein form ( gallardo et al . , 2001 ) . yet , at the seed proteome level , post - translational modifications by cleavage are not the most abundant modification as we found a good correlation between the theoretical and the observed protein molecular weight ( figure 3 ) . in contrast , we found a very poor correlation between the proteins theoretical and the observed isoelectric point ( figure 3 ; table s1 in supplementary material ) illustrating the major impact of post - translational modifications , e.g. , phosphorylation ( arc et al . , 2011 ) , glycosylation(vuylsteker et al . , 2000 ) , or oxidation ( job et al . , 2005 ) number of protein spots differentially accumulated during arabidopsis seed germination . for each time interval , the log2 ratio was calculated between 0 and 24 h as well as between 24 and 48 h. when the spot was not detected in one of the time point , a negligible spot abundance value was arbitrary assigned to calculate the log2ratio . ( a ) number of protein spots whose abundance is decreasing ( log2 ratio < 1 ) between germination sensu stricto ( 024 h ) , radicle protrusion ( 2448 h ) or at both time intervals of seed imbibition . ( b ) number of protein spots whose abundance is increasing ( log2 ratio > 1 ) between germination sensu stricto ( 024 h ) , radicle protrusion ( 2448 h ) or at both time intervals of seed imbibition . theoretical and observed molecular weight and isoelectric points . the theoretical and observed molecular weights ( a ) as well as the theoretical and observed isoelectric point ( b ) from 457 protein spots with a unique agi - id are plotted . for both linear regressions , we investigated the specificity of the arabidopsis seed proteome by comparison with the leaf proteome data from the plant proteomics database ( sun et al . , 2009 ) and by the comparison with the entire arabidopsis proteome ( tair10 gene annotation data ) . first , we extracted the unambiguously identified non - redundant agi - id from the 475 protein spots of the seed proteome and classified them using the funcat catalog ( ruepp et al . , 2004 ) . we also classified the leaf proteome and the whole genome with the funcat catalog ( baerenfaller et al . , 2008 ) . after classification , we could observe that the cell rescue , defense and virulence energy , protein fate , and storage protein categories were over represented in the seed proteome as compared to the leaf proteome or entire proteome datasets ( figure 4 , table s2 in supplementary material ) . category contains catalase , superoxide dismutase and peroxiredoxin proteins that detoxify reactive oxygen species produced very early during germination ( bailly , 2004 ) . category encompasses many proteins from glycolysis ( e.g. , glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase , pyruvate carboxylase ) as well as mitochondrial proteins from the tricarboxylic acid cycle ( e.g. , citrate synthase , succinyl - coa ligase ) or the glyoxylate cycle ( isocitrate lyase , malate synthase ) . thus , the seed proteome illustrates the high - energy demand in the seed upon metabolic resumption and it was recently shown that a majority of a 775 germination - specific gene subset was related to mitochondrial biogenesis ( narsai et al . , 2011 ) . the protein fate class of the seed proteome is composed of proteins involved in protein degradation ( e.g. , subunits of the 20s/26s proteasome ) , protein maturation ( e.g. , leucine aminopeptidase 1 ) or protein folding ( e.g. , heat shock proteins , peptidyl - prolyl cis - trans isomerase 1 , protein disulfide isomerase ) . finally , the storage protein category is overrepresented in the seed proteome due to its developmental specificity and serves both as an amino acid storage pool as well as supplemental roles , since the alpha - subunits are preferentially oxidized during seed germination ( job et al . altogether , contrasting the funcat classification of the seed proteome , the leaf proteome and the entire arabidopsis proteome highlights the specificity of the seed proteome particularly concerning the energy demand and the correct protein folding necessary for seed germination . funcat annotation of the non - redundant proteins detected in the arabidopsis seed proteome . from the 475 different proteins of the seed proteome , we identified unambiguously 241 non - redundant proteins with a correspondence with a single agi - id . a total of 18 protein spots were matched to multiple agi - id i.e. grouped under an unique agi . the funcat catalog was used to annotate the seed proteome , the leaf proteome ( from baerenfaller et al . , 2008 ) and the entire arabidopsis proteome tair10 gene annotation data ; whole genome for comparisons . the most highly regulated genes during arabidopsis seed development tended to be expressed preferentially in seeds compared with other plant organs ( ruuska et al . , 2002 ) . moreover , a recent paper on both transcriptome and proteome during arabidopsis seed development showed that 56% of 319 protein / transcript pairs had concordant expression patterns ( hajduch et al . , 2010 ) . in the arabidopsis seed dry seed , more than 12000 stored mrna species were detected ( nakabayashi et al . , 2005 ) . this transcriptome is characterized both by a great number of stored mrna and by the rapid extensive changes occurring a few hours after imbibition ( nakabayashi et al . thus , due to the availability of the seed proteome , it was interesting to correlate the transcript and protein abundance variation during germination . indeed , we wondered if we could expect similar correlations between protein and transcript accumulation profiles during seed development and germination . the 475 protein spots were matched to their corresponding agi - id and , we obtained a non - redundant seed proteome of 241 proteins . then , the normalized abundance of each protein isoform corresponding to the same agi - id was summed . employing the transcriptome data from nakabayashi et al . ( 2005 ) , we analyzed the mrna accumulation corresponding to the 241 genes found in the seed non - redundant proteome . we obtained a probe signal for 218 genes and built a correlation between the transcript change and the protein change between 0 and 24 h after imbibition of non - dormant arabidopsis seeds ( figure 5 , table s3 in supplementary material ) . it was obvious that , during seed germination , there is no correlation between the transcript and the protein level ( r = 0.02 ) . this is in accordance with the fact the long - lived stored mrna are present in the dry seed state and that protein synthesis is required for seed germination while transcription is not ( rajjou et al . , 2004 ; these observations suggest that there are no correlation between mrna and protein half - lives in arabidopsis seeds . therefore , both the transcriptome and the proteome analyses in the arabidopsis seed result in relevant information about the developmental switch occurring in the dry quiescent state to the metabolically active state . the transcript and protein abundance variation during seed germination are poorly correlated . from the 475 different proteins of the seed proteome , we identified 241 non - redundant proteins ( 241 agi ) . the transcript normalized abundance of 218 of these proteins was retrieved in the data from nakabayashi et al . for these 218 proteins , the log2 ratio between 0 and 24 h of seed germination was calculated for both transcript and protein . the corresponding values were then plotted and a correlation coefficient ( indicated on the graph ) was calculated from the linear regression . in a complementary approach , we took advantage of two independent studies designed to identify tissue - specific genes in arabidopsis by genome - wide transcriptome ( schmid et al . , 2005 ) or proteome ( baerenfaller et al . , 2008 ) approaches . to compare both transcriptome and proteome studies , we restricted our analysis to the flower , leaves , root , and seed tissues as they were common in the two studies . altogether , 151 tissue - specific genes could be identified in these four tissues by transcriptomics while 469 could be identified by proteomics ( figure 6a , table s4 in supplementary material ) . surprisingly , we found that only 29 tissue - specific genes were commonly identified by the two approaches ( figure 6a ) . on closer examination , we found that 20 seed - specific genes were identified by both approaches out of a total of 190 seed - specific genes , i.e. , 57 seed - specific genes identified by transcriptomics plus 133 seed - specific genes identified by proteomics ( figure 6b , table s4 in supplementary material ) . this is in accordance with the poor correlation between rna and protein levels that we found for the 241 non - redundant proteins of the seed proteome ( figure 5 ) . finally , in a study on 319 protein / transcript pairs during arabidopsis seed filling , the observed correlation was equal to 56% ( hajduch et al . , 2010 ) . it suggests that the correlation between rna and protein levels is strongly reduced during seed germination , a key transition in a plants life . altogether , these analyses show that the seed transcriptome and proteome are not redundant and that each technique yields complementary biological information that reflects the importance of post - transcriptional as well as post - translational modifications in the seed . ( a ) number of distinct and common tissue - specific genes defined by transcriptome ( 151 genes , schmid et al . , 2005 ) or by proteome ( 469 genes , baerenfaller et al . , 2008 ) studies in the leaf , root , flower , and seed samples . only samples commonly used in the two studies ( i.e. , flower , leaves , root , and seed ) ( b ) number of seed - specific genes identified by transcriptome ( schmid et al . , 2005 ) , proteome ( baerenfaller et al . , 2008 ) or both approaches . these data are complementary and non - redundant in comparison to seed transcriptome data in particular during arabidopsis seed germination . in addition , the great number of protein isoforms revealed by the 2d analysis highlights the seed proteome diversity currently underestimated due to the difficulty to detect low - abundant proteins . future developments of the spwp will first include proteins regulated by dormancy release in arabidopsis ( chibani et al . , 2006 ) as well as protein turnover ( l. rajjou , unpublished data ) . moreover , we will include proteomic studies on sugar beet ( beta vulgaris ) and rice ( oryza sativa ) germination . in addition , lc - ms / ms data on specific protein modifications such as carbonylation or phosphorylation during seed germination will be included to highlight the extent of post - translational modifications at this key development stage . finally , the recent progress in laser - assisted microdissection combined with shotgun proteomics by lc - ms / ms could be applied to describe the metabolic compartmentalization in the arabidopsis seed as it was done on other species ( gallardo et al . , 2007 ; the authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest .

the seed proteome web portal ( spwp ; http://www.seed-proteome.com/ ) gives access to information both on quantitative seed proteomic data and on seed - related protocols . firstly , the spwp provides access to the 475 different arabidopsis seed proteins annotated from two dimensional electrophoresis ( 2de ) maps . quantitative data are available for each protein according to their accumulation profile during the germination process . these proteins can be retrieved either in list format or directly on scanned 2de maps . these proteomic data reveal that 40% of seed proteins maintain a stable abundance over germination , up to radicle protrusion . during sensu stricto germination ( 24 h upon imbibition ) about 50% of the proteins display quantitative variations , exhibiting an increased abundance ( 35% ) or a decreasing abundance ( 15% ) . moreover , during radicle protrusion ( 2448 h upon imbibition ) , 41% proteins display quantitative variations with an increased ( 23% ) or a decreasing abundance ( 18% ) . in addition , an analysis of the seed proteome revealed the importance of protein post - translational modifications as demonstrated by the poor correlation ( r2 = 0.29 ) between the theoretical ( predicted from arabidopsis genome ) and the observed protein isoelectric points . secondly , the spwp is a relevant technical resource for protocols specifically dedicated to arabidopsis seed proteome studies . concerning 2d electrophoresis , the user can find efficient procedures for sample preparation , electrophoresis coupled with gel analysis , and protein identification by mass spectrometry , which we have routinely used during the last 12 years . particular applications such as the detection of oxidized proteins or de novo synthesized proteins radiolabeled by [ 35s]-methionine are also given in great details . future developments of this portal will include proteomic data from studies such as dormancy release and protein turnover through de novo protein synthesis analyses during germination .

the very successful european space agency ( esa ) gaia mission is in progress . in september 2016 the first gaia data were released based on the first 14 months of regular in - orbit operations @xcite . accurate mean observed positions for the 2015.0 epoch were provided for a total of over 1.1 billion stars down to about magnitude g = 20.7 with a median position error of about 1.8 and 1.6 mas for ra and dec respectively @xcite . a full 5-parameter ( position , proper motion , parallax ) astrometric solution was obtained for just over 2 millions of stars , a subset of about 80% of the hipparcos and tycho-2 stars , by using the hippacos satellite observations of mean epoch 1991.25 together with the gaia observations to resolve the proper motion and parallax degeneracy . the accuracy of these positions varies as function of magnitude and location on the sky with a median near 0.3 mas per coordinate and a median error in proper motion of 1.1 and 0.9 mas / yr for ra and dec , respectively @xcite . the u.s . naval observatory ( usno ) is engaged in producing astrometric star catalogs . the usno ccd astrograph catalog ( ucac ) project provided such all - sky data to 16th magnitude with its most recent 4th data release , the ucac4 @xcite . the tycho-2 catalog @xcite was used as reference star catalog for those wide - field ccd observations . comparisons between the tycho - gaia astrometric solution ( tgas ) and tycho-2 proper motions showed that the latter have large sky - correlated systematic errors of up to a few mas / yr @xcite due to previously undiscovered large systematic errors in the early epoch astrographic catalog data from around 1900 , which were used for tycho-2 proper motions . a re - reduction of the ucac data using tgas as described in this paper provides a significantly improved product , the ucac5 . although the ucac has positional accuracies not reaching those of the gaia data , the first gaia data release ( dr1 ) is lacking proper motion data for all stars fainter than the tycho-2 limit of about 11th magnitude . the upcoming dr2 release , currently scheduled for early 2018 @xcite will change that . new proper motions for about 50 times more stars than contained in tgas can now be obtained by combining ucac data at a mean epoch of 2001 with gaia position data at epoch 2015 . the accuracy of those proper motions is comparable to those of tgas up to about r = 15.0 and provide valuable additional observations of tgas stars themselves to noticably improve their proper motions . a summary of the relevant features of the ucac program and data is provided in table 1 . all applicable individual ucac exposures obtained from cerro tololo interamerican observatory ( ctio ) and the naval observatory flagstaff station ( nofs ) were matched with the gaia tgas data which served as reference star catalog . a new astrometric reduction was performed adopting the systematic corrections of the ucac @xmath0 data as function of magnitude which were previously established using the 2mass @xcite data covering the full ucac magnitude range . for more details please see the ucac4 paper @xcite . however , the systematic errors as a function of location in the focal plane ( the field distortion pattern ) as well as the systematic errors as function of the sub - pixel phase were re - evaluated and updated using the tgas residuals separately for the ctio and nofs ucac data set . the distortion pattern is mainly determined by the lens and dewar window but also depends on the actual tilt of the focal plane with respect to the optical axis which will change after disassemble and deployment at a new site . the pixel - phase errors strongly depend on the average width of the image profiles and thus also change from site to site . after applying the new corrections , mean residuals as a function of location in the field of view and sub - pixel phase were reduced to about 2 mas . for illustration the new field distortion pattern from the ctio data is shown in fig . 1 . as before a 6-parameter , linear plate model was adopted for the astrometric solution , split into orthogonal ( @xmath1 to @xmath2 ) and non - orthogonal parameters ( @xmath3 and @xmath4 ) : @xmath5 @xmath6 here @xmath7 are the standard coordinates ( scaled from radian to arcsec ) and @xmath0 the observed center coordinates of star images on the ccd ( scaled from pixel unit to arcsec ) . 2 shows the distribution of the number of reference stars used per individual ucac exposure . the mean is about 50 , corresponding to the average sky density of the tgas catalog and the ucac 1.0 square degree field of view . the astrometric solution errors are presented in fig . 3 separately for the short and long exposure . these errors include the @xmath0 center errors of the observed image profiles , the reference star catalog errors and the error contribution from the turbulent atmosphere . the latter scales inversely with the square - root of integration time and apparently is a significant contribution for the short exposures . the same is shown for ucac4 data in fig . the vast improvement using ( almost ) error free tgas reference stars is striking , showing the high precision of the ucac observations , which previously were overshadowed by the tycho-2 reference star errors . 5 shows residuals as a function of calibrated , ucac bandpass magnitude for ctio data . this is likely the largest remaining contribution to systematic errors in the ucac data , caused by the poor charge - transfer efficiency ( cte ) of that particular detector @xcite . no attempt to improve the model was made here because the tgas reference stars have a limiting magnitude of about 11.5 while the ucac data reaches beyond 16th magnitude . using the above described model , positions of all observed objects were obtained at their epoch of observation for all applicable ccd exposures . 6 shows the mean observed epoch as a function of declination . the ucac survey began in the south and ended at the north celestial pole . mean observed ucac5 positions were obtained from a weighted mean of the individual positions ( images ) . outliers were rejected as much as possible with the small number of observations available for this task . 7 shows the distribution of the number of observations used for the mean positions . in cases with a total of 2 images which display discrepant positions , the outlier can not be identified and an unweighted mean position is given with the number of used images set to zero . due to the small field of view and the desire to cover all - sky , the number of observations per star is small . a 2-fold ( center - in - corner ) overlap pattern was adopted , with a short and long exposure on each field to extend the dynamic range . thus stars in the 8 to 9.5 mag range typically have 2 images ( from the short exposures only ) , stars in the 9.5 to about 14.5 mag range usually have 4 images ( short and long exposure ) , while stars fainter than about r = 14.5 show up only on the long exposures . the errors on the ucac5 positions were obtained from the formal errors ( @xmath0 center errors plus astrometric solution error propagation ) of the individual images used for the mean position . a 10 mas term was added in quadrature to account for possible remaining systematic errors and to provide a more realistic error floor for the small number statistics of individual stars . this error floor is likely dominated by the remaining systematic errors as a function of magnitude and the same value as in the earlier ucac4 reductions was adopted here because no changes in the calibration model for those errors were made . the naval observatory merged astrometric dataset ( nomad ) catalog @xcite contains about a billion entries , covers all - sky , and the magnitude range from naked eye stars to about v = 20 mag . it contains positions , proper motions , optical and near ir magnitudes . nomad positions were updated to the 2015 epoch using its proper motions and then matched to the gaia dr1 data . over 638 million sources were matched within 1 arcsec based on position only . a new , internal catalog was created , which adds nomad data , if available , to all sources in gaia dr1 . these new proper motions are of value for stars not contained in the ucac data , thus mainly for stars fainter than about r = 16 mag . the new proper motion data for stars in common with ucac data are very helpful to correctly match ucac stars to the gaia data , particularly for stars with moderate to large proper motions ( see below ) . having results from largely different exposure times allows us to determine the individual error contributions of the ucac observations . the astrometric solution error , @xmath8 , has 3 components , the errors of the reference star catalog @xmath9 at epoch of observations , the @xmath0 data error @xmath10 , and the error introduced by the turbulence in the atmosphere , @xmath11 , @xmath12 the variance of the error contribution from the atmosphere scales inversely with exposure time , @xmath13 , @xmath14 while the other 2 error contributions are independent of exposure time . the reference star errors in the magnitude range used here ( mostly g = 9 to 11 ) are mainly a function of epoch ( see below ) , and the @xmath0 errors are nearly constant for these high s / n data . we define @xmath15 leading to @xmath16 for 2 different exposure times we thus have 2 linear equations with known @xmath8 to directly solve for @xmath17 , and @xmath18 . from fig . 3 we see the peaks of the ucac5 astrometric solution errors , @xmath8 at 29 mas for the short exposures ( on average 25 sec ) , and 19 mas for the long exposures ( on average 125 sec ) . the peak values of these distributions can be interpreted as typical good quality " observations . with these numbers we get @xmath18 = 122 mas sec@xmath19 , the error contribution from the atmosphere , and @xmath17 = 15.5 mas , the rms combined error of the reference stars and the @xmath0 centroiding error . the reference star errors at the mean ucac epoch of 2001 are dominated by proper motion errors . from @xcite we see that for tgas stars not in the hipparcos sample the median proper motion errors are about 1.1 and 0.9 mas / yr for the ra and dec component , respectively . assuming 1.0 mas / yr here and an average epoch difference of 14 years between the ucac and the tgas positions , we have an estimate of @xmath9 = 14 mas . this allows us to solve for the last remaining error contribution , @xmath10 = 6.7 mas . this error includes random centroiding errors as well as remaining , uncorrected systematic errors for example as a function of pixel phase , location in the field of view , and magnitude ( over the range of the reference star magnitudes ) . note , @xmath10 is the average position error of high s / n ucac observations per coordinate and per exposure ( which is 1/135 pixel ) . assuming the error contributions of the reference stars and those of the atmosphere are small , the obtained observational precision then is limited by @xmath10 . the former will soon be obtained with the 2nd gaia data release , and the latter can be achieved with long integration times . the image center algorithm used to derive the ucac @xmath0 data from the pixel data is a weighted least - square fit with a 2-dimensional gaussian model followed by extensive empirical modelling of the pixel - phase and other systematic errors . no elaborate psf fitting was performed , instead the high precision was obtained by analyzing and modeling the position residuals . details are described in @xcite . the gaia plus nomad data catalog positions were propagated to a mean epoch of 2001 and then matched with the ucac5 observational catalog . again , a match was assumed if the position difference is within 1 arcsec in each coordinate . this resulted in 107.7 million stars in common between the ucac and gaia data . new proper motions were calculated for all those stars based on the 2 epoch positions ( gaia at 2015 , ucac5 at about 2001 ) with a mean epoch difference of about 14 years . no nomad positional data were used for these proper motions . the nomad data only served to facilitate the proper match , thus providing also results for stars with large proper motion . errors of the proper motions were obtained from the formal position errors of gaia and ucac5 and the epoch difference of individual stars . 8 shows the distribution of the proper motion errors . this distribution peaks at about 1.2 mas / yr which is comparable to the tgas proper motion errors , but for many millions of more stars . 9 shows the strong dependence of our proper motion errors with brightness . errors in proper motion slowly increase to 2.5 mas / yr at about magnitude 15 and then rapidly increase to about 10 mas / yr at the limiting magnitude of 16.5 due to the low s / n of faint stars . table 2 lists the data items of our ucac5 catalog . positions are given at the mean ucac observed epoch for each star on the gaia reference frame . the ucac5 binary data file , sorted by declination is 4.3 gb large and will be available from the centre de donnes astronomiques de strasbourg ( cds ) . a match of ucac5 with itself was performed revealing some 52,000 multiple matches within 2 arcsec . spot checks indicate 2 types of cases . the first case are close pairs in gaia dr1 , i.e. 2 real stars which are matched to the same ucac observation i.e. the photocenter of the pair which is unresolved in the ucac data . the second case are close doubles seen as 2 stars in both , gaia and ucac data . no stars identified in this investigation were removed from the published catalog . the gaia dr1 source identifier remains unique within the ucac5 catalog , because the dr1 entries were used as initial input list . however , in a few cases the same ucac object is matched to 2 different dr1 entries . no duplicate entries , i.e. entries with positions identical to within a few mas were found in ucac5 . a separate , formatted data file is available for the 2,054,491 stars in common between tgas and ucac5 , which also lists the differences in proper motion ( ucac5 - tgas ) . the tgas proper motions use the gaia observations ( at epoch 2015 ) together with the hipparcos observations of these stars ( at epoch 1991 ) . the ucac5 proper motions are based on the astrograph observations at a mean epoch of about 2001 and the gaia 2015 observations . of course these proper motions are somewhat correlated , both use the same later epoch data but different early epoch observations . furthermore , the ucac5 data uses tgas stars as reference stars which include use of tgas proper motions . however , the ucac5 epoch observations are largely independent , new observations due to the fact that typically 20 to 200 such reference stars are used in the astrometric solutions of ucac observations with a simple , linear model of 6 parameters , which provide a large degree of overdetermination in the least - squares reductions . the distribution of ucac5 proper motions is shown in fig . the distribution of the differences in proper motions are small ( fig . the formal errors of proper motions for stars in common are shown in fig . 12 and 13 for the tgas and ucac5 data , respectively . both proper motions are similar in performance . tgas has more stars with about 1 mas / yr or less errors , while the ucac5 proper motions are somewhat better for stars with about 2 mas / yr tgas proper motion errors and above . as an example of astrophysical application and validation of the ucac5 proper motions , 2 cluster areas were picked with a box size of 30 arcmin . in fig . 14 ucac5 proper motions of all such stars in the open cluster ngc 3532 area are shown in comparison to the fourth release of the southern proper motion ( spm4 ) program @xcite proper motions , the previous gold standard " for absolute proper motions of faint stars . 15 shows the same for the area around the globular cluster ngc 6397 . a significant improvement in the ability to separate cluster member stars from non - cluster stars is seen with the ucac5 proper motions as compared to the spm4 proper motions . due to their extreme distance , extragalactic sources will have negligible proper motions . thus the observed proper motions show the limitations of the catalog data . a match of ucac5 with lqac3 @xcite was performed , which lists over 321,000 confirmed extragalactic sources , mostly qsos . a total of 2001 lqac3 sources are in common with the ucac5 within 1.5 arcsec . table 3 summarizes results for selected sub - sets , per coordinate and for the proper motions in mas / yr as well as for their normalized values ( proper motion divided by formal error of the proper motion of that object ) . subsets were selected by minimum number of ucac observations used for the mean ucac5 position ( nu ) , the lqac3 catalog object type ( r = astrometric radio source , q = qso , others include agn and bl - lac objects ) , the ucac5 bandpass mean observed magnitude ( mag ) , and the redshift @xmath20 . the total number of objects for each set is also given , while 80% of these are used to derive the mean and rms results , excluding the top and bottom 10% of the data after sorting ( to prevent outliers to affect this analysis ) . the entry all " in table 3 means no restriction has been applied for that particular column item . the last 2 lines in table 3 list results for sources in common with the 2nd version of the international celestial reference frame ( icrf2 ) . the icrf2 @xcite currently defines the inertial coordinate system on the sky , and is derived from highly accurate , radio , very long baseline interferometry ( vlbi ) , observations of compact , extragalactic sources . for most data sets a small , negative offset in the mean ucac5 proper motions of about @xmath210.5 mas / yr is seen , while the icrf sources do not show this . the rms scatter of the observed proper motions is larger than the formal errors for most data sets . however , when excluding low redshift sources the rms scatter is significantly reduced . high quality , ground - based observations to obtain positions up to now were impacted by relatively poor reference star data . the tgas catalog now shows the full potential of such observations . future gaia data with even more accurate positions and for many more , fainter stars will have a big impact on such ground - based observations for example in time - domain astronomy . the quality of the telescope and instrument will be more important than ever before . the limitation of the usno redlens astrograph data can be expected to be significantly below 1/100 of a pixel per coordinate for single , long exposure observations of high s / n stars . the ucac5 positions on the gaia coordinate system provide additional data of similar quality to the hipparcos mission tycho star observations and thus have the potential to improve the tgas proper motions . ucac5 provides new , accurate proper motions for millions of more stars fainter than tgas , which will allow astronomers to have a preview into research possible only with the next gaia data release . at the faint end ucac5 proper motion errors are relatively large due to the low s / n ratio of these observations . better proper motions for stars fainter than about 15th mag are available from proper motions obtained by combining nomad with gaia dr1 ( catalog of 503 million stars is available upon request ) , or the recently published ppmxl re - reduction , called the hsoy @xcite catalog . the biggest issue with the ucac5 data remains the problematic corrections of systematic errors as a function of magnitude due to the poor cte of the ccd used in the program . however , the remaining systematic positional errors are expected to not exceed 10 mas over the entire magnitude range of ucac data ( verified with tgas data for the 8 to 11 mag range ) , which can lead to systematic errors in the ucac5 proper motions up to 0.7 mas / yr . this is confirmed with comparisons to extragalactic sources . restricting the sample of extragalactic sources to redshift of 0.5 or higher results in a significant reduction in the ucac5 observed proper motion scatter . this is another indication for possible optical structure of nearby extragalactic source affecting the observed image centers . both epochs ( ucac and gaia ) used for these proper motions are based on optical data , however , the resolution of gaia is at least 10 times higher than that of the astrograph . it appears that both instruments see " a different photocenter at least for cosmological nearby sources , resulting in a larger scatter of the proper motions , despite the fact that they are typically brighter with smaller formal position errors than more distant sources . we used the postgresql q3c sky - indexing scheme for some of our external catalog comparisons @xcite , as well as the department of defense celestial database of the usno astrometry department , developed by v.makarov , c.berghea , and j.frouard . pgplot by california institute of technology was used to produce plots . the gfortran and g77 compilers were used for code development . altmann , m. , rser , s. , demleitner , d. , bastian , u. , & schilbach , e. , 2017 , letter to a&a , in press ( hsoy ) fey , a.l . , gordon , d. , & jacobs , s. ( eds . ) 2009 , iers technical note no . 35 , isbn 3 - 89888 - 918 - 6 ( print version ) girard , t.m . , van altena , w.f . , zacharias , n. , viera , k. , casetti - dinescu , d.i . , castillo , d. , herrera , d. , lee , y.s . , beers , t.c . , monet , d.g . , lopez , c.e . 2011 , aj 142 , 15 ( spm4 ) hg , e. fabricius , c. , makarov , v. , urban , s. , corbin , t. , wycoff , g. , bastian , u. , schwedendiek , p. , wicenec , a. 2000 , a&a , 355 , l27 ( tycho-2 ) koposov , s. , & bartunov , o. , 2006 , in asp conf . 351 , astronomical data analysis software and systems xv , ed . c. gabriel et al . ( san francisco ca : asp ) , 375 lindegren , l. et al . 2016 , a&a , 595 , a4 ( gaia ) prusti , t. et al . 2016 , a&a , 595 , a1 ( gaia ) souchay , j. , andrei , a.h . , barache , c. et al . 2015 , a&a 583 , a75 ( lqac3 ) skrutskie , m.f . , cutri , r.m . , stiening , r. et al . 2006 , aj , 131 , 1163 ( 2mass ) zacharias , n. , urban , s.e . , zacharias , m.i . , wycoff , g.l . , hall , d.m . , monet , d.g . , rafferty , t.j . 2004 , aj 127 , 3043 ( ucac2 ) zacharias , n. , monet , d.g . , levine , s.e . , urban , s.e . , gaume , r. , wycoff , g.l . , 2005 , nomad catalog , 2005ycat.1297 ... oz , vizier on - line data catalog : i/297 zacharias , n. finch , c.t . , girard , t.m . , 2013 , aj , 145 , 44 ( ucac4 ) number of pixels ccd = 4k by 4k ( kodak front illum . ) pixel size = 9.0 micrometer pixel scale = 0.905 arcsec / px field of view ccd = 1.02 by 1.02 deg typical fwhm images = 1.7 to 2.5 px observing at ctio = 1997 - 2001 ( dec = -90 to + 25 ) observing at nofs = 2001 - 2004 ( dec = + 25 to + 90 ) survey pattern = 2-fold , center - corner long exposures = 150 or 125 or 100 sec short exposures = 1/5 of long exposure rlcl column & name & unit & description + 1 & srcid & & gaia source i d + 2 & flg & & 1 = tgas , 2 = not tgas , in nomad , 3 = neither + 3 & nu & & number of images used for mean position + 4 & epoc & 1/1000 yr & mean ucac epoch ( after 1997.0 ) + 5 & ira & mas & mean ucac ra at epoch ( item 4 ) + 6 & idc & mas & mean ucac dec at epoch ( item 4 ) + 7 & pmra & 0.1 mas / yr & proper motion ra*cosdec + 8 & pmdc & 0.1 mas / yr & proper motion dec + 9 & pmer & 0.1 mas / yr & formal error of proper motion ra*cosdec + 10 & pmed & 0.1 mas / yr & formal error of proper motion dec + 11 & gmag & mmag & gaia dr1 g magnitude + 12 & umag & mmag & mean ucac model magnitude + 13 & rmag & mmag & photographic r magnitude from nomad + 14 & jmag & mmag & 2mass j magnitude + 15 & hmag & mmag & 2mass h magnitude + 16 & kmag & mmag & 2mass k magnitude + ccccrrrrrrrrr nu & obj . & mag & z & total & & & & + @xmath22 & type & @xmath23 & @xmath22 & n.obj . & @xmath24 & @xmath25 & @xmath24 & @xmath25 & @xmath24 & @xmath25 & @xmath24 & @xmath25 + 2 & all & all & all & 1108 & @xmath210.42 & @xmath210.70 & 4.59 & 4.53 & @xmath210.11 & @xmath210.20 & 1.14 & 1.11 + 2 & r , q & all & all & 461 & 0.05 & @xmath210.39 & 3.76 & 4.20 & 0.02 & @xmath210.12 & 0.87 & 0.99 + 2 & all & 15.8 & all & 541 & @xmath210.99 & @xmath210.99 & 4.88 & 4.34 & @xmath210.32 & @xmath210.33 & 1.58 & 1.48 + 2 & r , q & 15.8 & all & 167 & @xmath210.83 & @xmath210.31 & 3.74 & 3.87 & @xmath210.24 & @xmath210.13 & 1.36 & 1.42 + 2 & r , q & all & 0.5 & 180 & @xmath210.21 & @xmath210.08 & 4.06 & 4.50 & @xmath210.04 & @xmath210.06 & 0.94 & 1.00 + 2 & all & all & 0.5 & 184 & @xmath210.22 & @xmath210.09 & 4.14 & 4.50 & @xmath210.03 & @xmath210.07 & 0.96 & 1.00 + 1 & icrf & all & all & 184 & 0.17 & 0.37 & 4.64 & 4.45 & 0.05 & @xmath210.01 & 0.81 & 0.81 + 2 & icrf & all & all & 124 & 0.01 & 0.28 & 3.20 & 3.39 & 0.02 & @xmath210.03 & 0.86 & 0.86 +

new astrometric reductions of the us naval observatory ccd astrograph catalog ( ucac ) all - sky observations were performed from first principles using the tgas stars in the 8 to 11 magnitude range as reference star catalog . significant improvements in the astrometric solutions were obtained and the ucac5 catalog of mean positions at a mean epoch near 2001 was generated . by combining ucac5 with gaia dr1 data new proper motions on the gaia coordinate system for over 107 million stars were obtained with typical accuracies of 1 to 2 mas / yr ( r = 11 to 15 mag ) , and about 5 mas / yr at 16th mag . proper motions of most tgas stars are improved over their gaia data and the precision level of tgas proper motions is extended to many millions more , fainter stars . external comparisons were made using stellar cluster fields and extragalactic sources . the tgas data allow us to derive the limiting precision of the ucac @xmath0 data , which is significantly better than 1/100 pixel .

reconstruction of the plasma equilibrium shape is a key requirement for the operation of current and forthcoming tokamak experiments ( e.g. * ? ? ? * ; * ? ? ? * ; * ? ? ? * ; * ? ? ? the most commonly employed method numerically reconstructs the plasma equilibrium by iteratively solving the two - dimensional grad - shafranov equation @xcite for the poloidal flux function ( @xmath2 ) , and using diagnostic signals from the experiment as constraints @xcite . in short , the source term of the grad - shafranov equation is expanded into a linear combination of basis functions which allows formulating a linear regression problem for the expansion coefficients , using the actual diagnostic signals and their forward - modelling based on the numerical solution for @xmath2 . the problem can be tackled numerically by solving a number of independent grad - shafranov - type equations one for each basis function of the expansion and employing a picard - iteration procedure that allows evaluating the source term using the solution from the previous iteration step . a variety of equilibrium - reconstruction codes based on this strategy @xcite or similar approaches @xcite exist and have been routinely used for diagnostics and data analysis at the various tokamak experiments . the codes efit @xcite and cliste @xcite , for example , have been employed at diii - d , east and asdex upgrade ( aug ) , respectively , a class of medium - sized tokamaks which are characterized by a control cycle on the order of a millisecond . until recently , however , computing times in the millisecond range were inaccessible to such `` first - principles '' codes , and hence their applicability for real - time diagnostic analysis and plasma - control is very limited , unless the numerical resolution or the number of iteration steps is drastically reduced or other simplifying assumptions like function parametrization @xcite are adopted ( e.g. * ? ? ? lately , three codes based on fast grad - shafranov solvers have been able to demonstrate real - time capability : p - efit @xcite , a gpu - based variant of the efit equilibrium - reconstruction code @xcite , is able to compute one iteration within 0.22 ms on a @xmath3 grid with 3 basis functions . with a similar resolution the janet software @xcite has reached runtimes of about 0.5 ms per iteration on a few cpu cores within the labview - based system at aug . using a single cpu core overclocked at 5 ghz , the liuqe code @xcite which is deployed at the swiss tcv experiment , achieves a cycle time of about 0.2 ms with a spatial resolution of @xmath4 points . in all these cases , however , only a single iteration is performed and only a very small number of basis functions can be afforded for the parametrization of the source term of the grad - shafranov equation . while such restrictions may well be justifiable under specific circumstances @xcite the motivation for our work is to substantially push the limits of numerical accuracy in terms of spatial resolution , number of basis functions , and number of iterations and thus the quality of the equilibrium solution . this is expected to aid the generality and robustness of the application , in particular with respect to variations in the plasma conditions . in addition to the reliability and accuracy of real - time equilibrium reconstructions , the sustainability and maintainability of the codes is considered an important aspect . typical implementations of analysis tools in fusion science have a rather long life time which often exceeds life times of commercial hardware and software product cycles . the long usability required for analysis tools poses special requirements on the software chosen and the maintenance capabilities necessary to adapt to changing environments . open - source software together with off - the - shelf computer hardware is thought of being perfectly suited for these demands @xcite . this in particular applies to all non - standardized components like , e.g. , the implementation of complex , tailored , and evolving numerical algorithms for equilibrium reconstruction . commercial , closed - source software ( like , e.g. , compilers or numerical libraries ) and hardware components may well comply with such demands , provided that they can be modularly interchanged using standardized interfaces . to this end we have implemented a new , parallel equilibrium - reconstruction code , gpec ( garching parallel equilibrium code ) , which builds on the fast , shared - memory - parallel grad - shafranov solver we have developed previously @xcite and a two - level hybrid parallelization scheme which was pointed out in the same paper . the basic numerical model and functionality of the new code originate from the well - established and validated algorithms implemented by the equilibrium codes cliste @xcite and specifically its descendant ide @xcite , both of which are being used for comprehensive offline diagnostics and data analysis at the asdex upgrade experiment . gpec is based entirely on open - source software components , runs on standard server hardware and uses the same code base and computer architecture as employed for performing offline analyses with the ide code . such a strategy is considered a major advantage , in particular concerning verification and validation of the code @xcite and also its evolution : on the one hand , algorithmic and functional innovations in the offline physics modeling can gradually be taken over by the real - time version . on the other hand , high - resolution offline analysis can directly take advantage of optimizations achieved for the real - time variant . the new code enables computing the equilibrium flux distribution and the derived diagnostics and control parameters within 1 ms of runtime , given a grid size of @xmath5 zones with up to 15 spline basis functions for the discretization , and about 90 diagnostic signals . with a runtime of less than 0.2 ms for a single equilibrium iteration and about 0.2 ms required for computing a variety of more than 20 relevant control parameters , one can afford 4 iterations for converging the equilibrium solution . the latter was checked to be sufficient for reaching accuracies of better than a percent for the relevant quantities . as a proof of principle we shall demonstrate the real time capability of the new code by performing an offline analysis using data from an aug discharge . to our knowledge the new gpec code to date is one of the fastest ( at a given numerical accuracy ) and most accurate ( at a given runtime constraint ) of its kind . the paper is organized as follows : in section [ sect : algorithm ] we recall the basic equations and describe our new , hybrid - parallel implementation of the equilibrium solver and its verification and validation . its computational performance and in particular real - time capability is demonstrated in section [ sect : application ] on an example application using real aug data . section [ sect : conclusions ] provides a summary and conclusions . [ [ basic - equations ] ] basic equations + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the grad - shafranov equation @xcite describing ideal magneto - hydrodynamic equilibrium in two - dimensional tokamak geometry reads @xmath6 with cylindrical coordinates ( @xmath7 , @xmath8 ) , the elliptic differential operator @xmath9 and the poloidal flux function ( in units of vs ) , @xmath10 . the toroidal current density profile , @xmath11 consists of two terms , where @xmath12 is the plasma pressure ( isotropic case ) and @xmath13 is proportional to the total poloidal current , @xmath14 . [ [ numerical - solution ] ] numerical solution + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the classical strategy @xcite for numerically solving eq . ( [ gs ] ) is based on an expansion of the current density profile @xmath15 on the right - hand - side into a linear combination of a number @xmath16 of basis functions , @xmath17 in each cycle of a picard - iteration scheme , a number of @xmath18 poisson - type equations , @xmath19 and @xmath20 are solved individually , where the solution @xmath2 from the last iteration step is used for evaluating the right - hand side . the updated flux distribution is then given by @xmath21 which follows from eqs . ( [ gs],[rhsdecomp ] ) and the linearity of the operator @xmath22 . the unknown coefficients @xmath23 are determined by experimental data : using the @xmath18 distributions @xmath24 obtained from eqs . ( [ gsphi1],[gsphi2 ] ) the so - called response matrix @xmath25 , consisting of predictions for a set of @xmath26 diagnostic signals @xmath27 is calculated . the prediction @xmath28 is some ( linear ) function employing the flux distribution @xmath2 to produce the forward - modelled signal . all measurements are located within the poloidal flux grid such that the poloidal flux outside the grid is not needed . linear regression of the response matrix with the measured diagnostic signals finally yields the coefficients @xmath23 for eq . ( [ bfdecomp ] ) . this procedure is iterated until certain convergence criteria are fulfilled . the private flux region close to the divertor is treated differently , although the same poloidal flux as inside the plasma occurs . since there are no measurements of the current distribution in the private flux region and the chosen functional form for the current decay was proven to be of minor importance for the equilibrium reconstruction , the current is chosen to decay approximately exponentially with a decay length of about 5 mm , starting at the last closed flux surface . the algorithm can be summarized as follows : 1 . evaluate right - hand sides @xmath29 and @xmath30 of eqs . ( [ gsphi1],[gsphi2 ] ) , using the solution , @xmath31 , from the previous iteration step ( or initialization ) . 2 . solve the poisson - type equations @xmath32 individually for each @xmath33 . an additional poisson problem arises from a convergence - stabilization procedure which introduces the vertical plasma position as an auxiliary free parameter @xcite . 3 . evaluate @xmath34 to construct the response matrix @xmath35 . additional columns @xmath36 and @xmath37 arise from the abovementioned convergence - stabilization procedure and from deviations in the currents measured at a number of @xmath38 external field coils to account for wall shielding and plasma - induced wall currents , respectively . 4 . perform linear regression on @xmath39 to obtain the set of coefficients @xmath40 . evaluate new solution @xmath41 , adding contributions from the measured and fitted deviating currents in external coils , @xmath42 . go back to step 1 . until convergence is reached , e.g. in terms of the maximum norm evaluated over all grid points , @xmath43 . the response matrix @xmath35 is already prepared for additional measurements of the motional stark effect ( mse ) , the faraday rotation , the pressure profile ( electron , ion and fast particle pressure ) , the q - profile ( e.g. from mhd modes ) , the divertor tile currents constraining @xmath44 on open flux surfaces , the measurements of loop voltage and of iso - flux constraints @xcite . these additional measurements are used in the ide code in the off - line mode , but are not subject of the present work due to the lack of reliable on - line availability . the relatively large number of basis functions ( and hence fit parameters ) , which is motivated by the need to allow for equilibria sufficiently flexible to address all occurring plasma scenarios , requires application of regularization constraints . while in the ide code additional smoothness ( curvature and amplitude ) requirements are applied to the source profiles @xmath45 and @xmath46 ( which effectively adds additional columns to the response matrix ) , gpec currently adopts a simpler ridge - regression procedure@xcite . [ [ implementation - and - parallelization ] ] implementation and parallelization + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the implementation of gpec starts out from the serial offline - analysis code ide @xcite , thus closely following the concepts of the well - known cliste code @xcite . specifically , for each of the two sets of basis functions , @xmath47 and @xmath48 , gpec employs a basis of cubic spline polynomials which are defined by a number of @xmath49 and @xmath50 knots at positions @xmath51 , respectively , with @xmath52 , @xmath53 and natural boundary conditions . bicubic hermite interpolation is employed for evaluating the flux distribution @xmath24 and its gradients ( which are required for computing the magnetic field ) at the positions of the magnetic probes and the flux loops in order to calculate the corresponding forward - modelled signals for the response matrix . thus , besides achieving higher - order interpolation accuracy , smoothness of the magnetic field is guaranteed by construction @xcite . gpec utilizes the fast , thread - parallel poisson solver we have developed previously @xcite . it is based on the two - step scheme for solving the poisson equation with dirichlet boundary conditions @xcite and replaces the cyclic - reduction scheme which is traditionally employed in the codes gec and cliste @xcite by a parallelizable fourier - analysis method for decoupling the linear system into tridiagonal blocks @xcite . for details on the implementation and computational performance we refer to refs . @xcite . as briefly sketched in ref . @xcite the main idea of the new code is to exploit an additional level of parallelism by distributing the individual poisson problems for determining each of the @xmath24 to different mpi - processes . the algorithm , together with notes on the parallelization ( relevant mpi communication routines are noted in brackets ) is summarized as follows . each process @xmath54 is assigned to a single basis function poisson problems to a number of @xmath55 processes , provided @xmath55 divides @xmath56 . ] , and process @xmath57 is dedicated to the additional poisson problem that arises from the introduction of the vertical shift parameter @xcite . each process @xmath58 : 1 . computes @xmath59 using the solution @xmath10 from the previous iteration step ( or initialization ) + _ thread - parallelization over @xmath60-grid _ 2 . employs fast poisson solver @xcite to solve @xmath32 + _ thread - parallelization _ @xcite 3 . computes column @xmath61 of the response matrix + _ thread - parallelization over @xmath60-grid _ 4 . gathers columns @xmath62 computed by the other processes @xmath63 and assembles response matrix @xmath35 + _ collective communication _ ( mpi_allgather ) 5 . performs linear regression on @xmath64 + _ thread - parallelization of linear algebra routines _ 6 . gathers all @xmath65 computed by the other processes @xmath63 and computes @xmath66 + _ collective communication _ ( mpi_allreduce ) the distribution of the poisson problems to different processes comes at the price of collective communication ( steps 4 and 6 ) , in which all processes combine their data with all others , using mpi routines mpi_allgather and mpi_allreduce , respectively . given the solution for the poloidal flux function @xmath10 , gpec computes more than 20 derived quantities which are relevant for plasma control . two of them , the @xmath60-coordinates of the magnetic axis , @xmath67 and @xmath68 can be obtained immediately by searching the maximum of the equilibrium flux . for the rest of the quantities four major computational tasks ( labelled a d in the following compilation ) have to be carried out . their results allow evaluating the individual control parameters ( summarized under the bullet points ) in a numerically straightforward and inexpensive way . for details on the physical definition and derivation of these quantities , see , e.g. ref . implementation details are given further below . 1 . determination of grid points which are enclosed by the separatrix * coordinates @xmath69 of the geometric axis , defined as the area - weighted integral within the separatrix @xmath70 . * the horizontal and vertical minor plasma radius is given by @xmath71 and @xmath72 , respectively , which determines the elongation @xmath73 . 2 . identification of contour lines @xmath74 with @xmath75 for a number of particular values of the normalized flux @xmath76 * from the separatrix curve ( with @xmath76 taken as the value at the innermost x - point which defines also the last - closed flux surface lcfs ) a number of geometric properties can be derived straightforwardly such as the ( @xmath77)-coordinates of the uppermost and lowermost point ( in @xmath8-direction ) on the plasma surface , or @xmath78 ( @xmath79 ) as the @xmath80-coordinate of the innermost ( outermost ) point on the plasma surface . * the length of the poloidal perimeter @xmath81 of the plasma is computed by integration over the lcfs . * the safety factor @xmath1 is computed by integration over contours defined by levels @xmath82 $ ] . computation of the toroidal plasma current @xmath83 ( eq . [ gs_current ] ) * the indicators for the current - center are given by the following current - weighted integrals of the current density @xmath84 , @xmath85 . computation of the pressure distribution @xmath86 and the poloidal magnetic field * the total energy content of the plasma is given by @xmath87 . * the same integration can be used for computing the poloidal beta parameter , @xmath88 , employing the normalization constant @xmath89 ( as used in cliste ) with @xmath81 and @xmath90 as specified under ( b ) and ( c ) , respectively . * the plasma self - inductivity @xmath91 is given by an integral over the squared poloidal magnetic field @xmath92 . * @xmath93 , the difference of the poloidal flux at the two x - points divided by ( @xmath94 ) and by the poloidal magnetic field at ( @xmath95 ) : @xmath96 . [ [ implementation - and - parallelization-1 ] ] implementation and parallelization + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + the algorithms for computing the plasma - control parameters and their basic implementation are taken directly from the ide code . we emphasize that unlike other real - time codes @xcite gpec makes no algorithmic simplifications compared with the offline variant of the code . in particular , gpec uses the same spatial grid resolution as adopted for equilibrium reconstruction and employs the high - order interpolation schemes ( cubic splines , bicubic hermite interpolation ) of ide . in the following we briefly summarize the main concepts adopted for the computationally most expensive routines : 1 . for performing the integrations @xmath97 , grid points located outside the separatrix are masked out according to a comparison with the value of @xmath2 at the x - point . a custom contour - finding algorithm is used which employs quadratic interpolation to obtain the values at the intersections of the spatial grid with the contour curve . quantities on the lcfs , like @xmath98 , are determined by quadratic extrapolation from three equidistant contour levels close to the plasma surface . 3 . for the evaluation of the toroidal plasma current @xmath99 the current density @xmath100 is computed according to eq . ( [ rhsdecomp ] ) . the summands @xmath101 and @xmath102 in principle would be available from the last equilibrium iteration but are distributed among processors ( cf . [ sect : algorithm_equil ] ) . it turns out that locally recomputing @xmath103 and @xmath104 by using the converged equilibrium solution @xmath2 ( a copy of which is available on each processor ) is faster than collecting the individual summands by mpi communication . the computation of the pressure distribution @xmath86 is based on the identity @xmath105 ( cf . eq . [ rhsdecomp ] ) . for fast evaluation of @xmath86 on the poloidal mesh , an equidistant grid of @xmath106 points is constructed . for each @xmath107 the corresponding pressure contribution @xmath108 is computed by numerical integration starting at the plasma boundary . a cubic spline interpolation is used to evaluate @xmath109 on this grid . the gradients for computing the poloidal magnetic field are obtained using centered finite differences of the neighboring grid points ( consistent with the derivatives used to define the bicubic hermite interpolation polynomials for intra - grid interpolation , cf . [ sect : algorithm_equil ] ) . as shall be shown in sect . [ sect : performance ] the computing time is dominated by finding and integrating along contours as well as by evaluating the pressure distribution . accordingly , the computations are grouped into the following mutually independent tasks which can be assigned to different mpi tasks , with only a few scalar quantities to be communicated for evaluating the final results : * computation of the pressure distribution @xmath86 and the poloidal magnetic field * handling of 3 contour levels for extrapolation to the last closed flux surface * handling of 4 contour levels corresponding to the set of safety factors @xmath110 * determination of the x - point and handling of 1 contour level corresponding to the separatrix curve within each mpi task , openmp threads are used , e.g. for parallelizing the computation of the pressure over the individual points of the @xmath60-grid or for parallelizing over different contour levels . the codes cliste and ide have been extensively validated and verified by application to asdex upgrade data and by means of code comparisons . thus , only those parts of the new gpec code need to be verified which are treated differently from the ide code . the procedure is greatly facilitated by the fact that both codes implement the same algorithms and share the same code base . the only differences in the gpec implementation with respect to ide are 1 ) the prescription of a fixed number of equilibrium iterations and 2 ) the use of only 12 instead of 30 integration points for computing the pressure distribution @xmath86 from its gradient @xmath111 ( see item d above ) on every grid point @xmath60 . . for each quantity the relative deviation from its converged value is shown as a function of the number of iterations . note that the deviations for the geometric quantities , @xmath112 , @xmath113 , and the total volume of the plasma , @xmath114 are multiplied by a factor of 10 . data was taken from aug shot # 23221 at time @xmath115 ms . ] figure [ fig : sens_iter ] shows the sensitivity of a number of selected parameters to the number of equilibrium iterations for an arbitrarily chosen time point ( @xmath115 ms ) of aug discharge # 23221 . by using the solution @xmath2 from the last time point as an initial value , the plasma geometry ( parameters @xmath112 , @xmath113 , and the total volume of the plasma , @xmath114 ) is already very well determined . within only a few iteration steps accuracies of better than a percent compared with the converged solution ( obtained with 200 iterations ) are obtained also for the quantities which depend on the pressure distribution ( @xmath116 , @xmath117 ) , or on the toroidal current ( @xmath90 ) . for the real - time demonstration presented in the subsequent section we shall fix the number of iterations to four and show that the accuracy level of 1 % is maintained over a time sequence of 1 s with 1000 time points . figure [ fig : sens_npsi ] shows that a number of 12 integration points for the numerical integration of @xmath111 is more than sufficient in order to reach sub - percent accuracies for the control parameters @xmath116 and @xmath117 , both of which are proportional to @xmath118 ( see item d above ) . the time for computing @xmath86 is proportional to the number of integration points and scales almost ideally with the number of threads which motivates our specific choice of 12 points as a multiple of 6 threads that shall be employed for the majority of computations ( cf . [ sect : performance ] ) . and of the total energy content @xmath117 to the number of integration points , @xmath119 , spent for computing the pressure from its gradient on every grid point @xmath60 . the relative deviation from the converged value is shown as a function of the number of integration points , @xmath120 . data was taken from aug shot # 23221 at time @xmath115 ms . ] and @xmath121 . the time interval @xmath122 $ ] which is chosen for performance analysis is indicated by horizontal lines . the individual plots show the coordinates @xmath123 and @xmath124 of the magnetic axis , and of the x - point , respectively , the horizontal and vertical minor plasma radius , @xmath125 and @xmath126 , the plasma self - inductivity , @xmath127 , the poloidal beta parameter , @xmath128 , the total energy content of the plasma , @xmath129 , and the safety factor @xmath130 ( see sect . [ sect : postprocessing ] for the definition of the quantities ) . the solid , black lines correspond to a `` real - time '' application which is restricted to 4 equilibrium iterations . for comparison , values derived from converged equilibrium solutions ( convergence criterion @xmath131 ) are shown as dashed , blue lines . a standard spatial resolution of @xmath132 grid points and 7 basis functions were employed . ] $ ] ) of the quantities which were computed after 4 equilibrium iterations , from the values computed with converged equilibrium solutions ( convergence criterion @xmath133 ) during the time interval chosen for performance analysis ( as indicated by horizontal lines in fig . [ fig : shot_23221alltime ] ) . a standard spatial resolution of @xmath132 grid points and 7 basis functions were employed . ] in order to demonstrate the real - time capability of the new code a post - processing run is performed using data from a typical aug discharge . we chose aug shot number # 23221 , and focus on a time window between @xmath134 and @xmath135 with 1000 time points , corresponding to a time resolution of exactly 1 ms . as shall be shown below this simulation of 1000 time points can be performed on standard server hardware within less than a second of computing time . the gpec code computes a fixed number of four equilibrium iteration steps for every time point and uses the equilibrium solution @xmath136 at time point @xmath137 as the initial value for the next time point @xmath138 . a standard spatial resolution of @xmath139 grid points is employed , and @xmath140 basis functions are used . the response matrix @xmath35 contains signals from 61 magnetic probes and 18 flux loops and in addition takes into account 10 external coils . figure [ fig : shot_23221alltime ] provides an overview of the time evolution of a number of characteristic parameters , such as selected plasma - shape parameters , energy content and safety factor @xmath130 ( black , solid lines ) . for reference , the figure shows an extended time window between @xmath141 and @xmath121 , which includes the dynamic start - up phase of the discharge with significant variations in the plasma parameters , and also shows results from a run which converges the solution @xmath2 until the maximum changes on the grid , @xmath43 , are below @xmath142 ( blue , dashed lines ) . compared with the converged reference run one notices good overall agreement of the `` real - time '' simulation with a fixed number of 4 equilibrium iterations throughout the extended time interval , even during the initial start - up phase which lasts until approx . 1.5 s. it is hence justified to confine the analysis on the arbitrarily chosen time interval , @xmath143 $ ] in the `` plateau '' phase of the discharge . focusing on this time window , figure [ fig : shot_23221-accuracy ] shows that the relative errors for most quantities are at smaller than one percent . the comparably large variations of @xmath144 are due to its small absolute value . the absolute scatter of @xmath144 is in the order of mm . note that the cycle time of @xmath145 ms is much shorter than the timescale of the changes of plasma conditions ( cf . the increase of @xmath129 , @xmath128 at @xmath146 s ) . thus the equilibrium solution , even if not fully converged , can easily follow such secular trends , which is reflected by the fact that there is no visible change in the magnitudes of the relative error at @xmath146 s. the employed spatial resolution of @xmath139 grid points is a common choice for real - time analysis in medium - sized tokamaks @xcite . for the chosen aug discharge a comparison with a run using a twofold finer spatial grid spacing , @xmath147 , shows good agreement for the majority of quantities , with @xmath130 and @xmath148 exhibiting the largest sensitivity to the resolution . we conclude that by performing four iterations per time point and using @xmath139 spatial grid points , sufficiently accurate equilibrium solutions for deriving real - time control parameters are obtained , at least in the sense of a proof - of - principle using the chosen example data from aug shot # 23221 . a systematic analysis of the accuracy and a comprehensive validation of the code under various tokamak operational scenarios is beyond the scope of this paper . [ [ overview ] ] overview + + + + + + + + the computational performance of gpec is assessed on a standard compute cluster with x86_64 cpus and infiniband ( fdr 14 ) interconnect . the individual compute nodes are equipped with two intel xeon e5 - 2680v3 `` haswell '' cpus ( 2.5 ghz , 2x12 cores ) . we use a standard intel software stack ( fortran compiler v14.0 , mpi v5.0 ) on top of the linux operating system ( sles11 sp3 ) . for the required linear algebra functionality the openblas @xcite library ( version 0.2.13 ) is employed using the de - facto - standard interfaces from blas @xcite and lapack @xcite , and the fftw @xcite library ( version 3.3.4 ) is used for the discrete sine transforms in the poisson solver . both libraries are open - source software released under the bsd or the gpl license , respectively . if desired , open - source alternatives to the intel compilers ( e.g. gcc @xcite ) and mpi libraries ( e.g. openmpi @xcite , mvapich @xcite ) could be readily utilized , albeit possibly with a certain performance impact . .overview of the total runtime @xmath149 per time point ( @xmath150 column ) for different combinations of the numerical resolution ( @xmath151 column ) and compute resources . the latter are given in terms of the total number of cores ( nodes ) ( @xmath152 column ) , of mpi tasks ( @xmath153 column ) and of openmp threads per mpi task ( @xmath154 column ) . @xmath149 is the sum of the runtime @xmath155 ( @xmath156 column ) for computing the equilibrium distribution @xmath2 with 4 iteration steps ( cf . [ sect : algorithm_equil ] ) , and @xmath157 ( @xmath158 column ) for deriving plasma - control parameters ( cf . [ sect : postprocessing ] ) . the benchmarks were performed on xeon e5 - 2680v3 `` haswell '' cpus ( 2.5 ghz , 24 cores per node ) and used data from aug shot # 23221 . [ cols= " < , < , > , > , > , > , > , > " , ] [ [ equilibrium - reconstruction ] ] equilibrium reconstruction + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + table [ tab : psi_timing ] further shows that the runtime for the equilibrium iterations is dominated by computing the distributed sum , @xmath159 , which is also an implicit synchronization point for all processes , and by the poisson solver . due to the use of high - order interpolation schemes ( cf . sect.[sect : algorithm_equil ] ) a significant fraction of about 25% is spent on the evaluation of the right - hand sides of eqs . ( [ gsphi1],[gsphi2 ] ) ( `` rhs update '' ) and of the response matrix @xmath35 ( `` rm evaluation '' ) . in general , the chosen products of number of mpi tasks times openmp threads per task turned out as the most efficient ones for this hardware platform with 24 cores per node : using more than 6 threads ( or 8 threads in the case of @xmath147 ) results only in a modest speedup of the poisson solver @xcite but doubles the required number of cores and network resources . keeping those constant and reducing the number of mpi tasks instead by a factor of two would require each mpi task to handle two basis functions . although the collective mpi communications would be somewhat faster in this case the resultant doubling of the effective runtime for the poisson solver can not be compensated for . [ [ plasma - control - parameters ] ] plasma - control parameters + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + ) and their assignment to four mpi tasks which execute in parallel . within each task the individual parts of the algorithm ( indicated by different colours ) execute in the order from bottom to top . accordingly , the dashed horizontal line marks the effective runtime in the application . the data corresponds to aug shot # 23221 computed with a resolution of @xmath160 using in total 8 mpi tasks , each with 6 openmp threads ( cf . table [ tab : pide_timing ] ) . ] for the example of @xmath161 computed with 48 cpu cores , figure [ fig : pp_mpi ] shows how the runtime of @xmath162 ms ( cf . table [ tab : pide_timing ] ) is composed and illustrates the benefits of exploiting task parallelism . due to the final mpi_allreduce operation in the equilibrium construction algorithm , which comes at little extra effective runtime cost as compared to a single mpi_reduce , all mpi tasks hold a copy of the equilibrium flux distribution @xmath10 . hence , independent parts of the time - consuming computations for the plasma - control parameters like , e.g. evaluating the pressure distribution or determining the contours for the safety factor @xmath1 , can be handled in parallel by different mpi tasks and only scalar quantities need to be communicated ( within a few microseconds ) between the mpi tasks at the end . if necessary , the remaining load - imbalance indicated by figure [ fig : pp_mpi ] , namely task 0 and task 3 becoming idle after about 0.1 ms , and tasks @xmath163 not computing anything at all at this stage , could be exploited for computing additional quantities and/or for further reducing the effective runtime . without task - parallelization , on the contrary , the runtimes would add up to more than 0.4 ms despite the thorough openmp parallelization ( e.g. across different contour levels ) within the task . with the motivation of achieving sub - millisecond runtimes a new , parallel equilibrium - reconstruction code , gpec , was presented which is suitable for real - time applications in medium - sized tokamaks like asdex upgrade ( aug ) . gpec implements the classical concept of iteratively solving the grad - shafranov equation and feeding in diagnostic signals from the experiment @xcite . specifically , gpec is implemented as a variant of the ide code @xcite , which is a descendant of cliste @xcite . compared with these well - established and validated offline - analysis codes no algorithmic simplifications are necessary for achieving the desired cycle times of less than a millisecond , besides limiting the number of equilibrium iterations to four . in addition to real - time applications the new code enables fast and highly accurate offline analyses soon after the tokamak discharge : here , tolerable runtimes are in the range of 0.11 s per cycle which allows computing fully converged equilibria employing highly resolved spatial and basis functions grids . the parallelization of the new code builds on a fast shared - memory - parallel grad - shafranov solver @xcite together with the mpi - distributed solution of the individual poisson - type problems and a thorough parallelization of the post - processing algorithms for computing the relevant plasma - control parameters from the equilibrium flux distribution . using data from a typical aug discharge the real - time capability of the new code was demonstrated by the offline computation of a sequence of 1000 time points within less than a second of runtime . the relative accuracy was ascertained by comparing the relevant plasma parameters with a converged run . by allowing four iterations for computing the equilibrium solution the majority of control parameters can be computed with an accuracy of a percent or better . the adopted two - level , hybrid parallelization scheme allow efficient utilization available compute resources ( in terms of the numbers of nodes , of cpu sockets per node and of cores per socket ) for a given numerical resolution ( in terms of the spatial grid and number of basis functions ) . moreover , foreseeable advances in computer technology , in particular the increasing number of cpu cores per compute node , are expected to push the limits of real - time applications with gpec towards even higher numerical accuracies ( in terms of affordable resolution and number of equilibrium iterations ) . we note that the benchmarks figures reported in this work can be considered rather conservative as the computations were performed on a standard compute cluster which comprises hundreds of nodes . for energy - budget reasons such clusters are typically configured not with cpus of the highest clock - frequency . in our case , for example , cpus with 2.5 ghz and only 24 cores per node were available . for deployment in the control system of a tokamak experiment such as aug , by contrast , we envision dedicated server hardware with higher clock frequencies and at least four cpu sockets , both of which is expected to further boost the computational performance of the real - time application . thus it should be rather straightforward to save enough time for the communication of the code with the control system , which , depending of the specifics of the system , requires another few hundred microseconds per cycle . finally , it is worth mentioning that gpec is based entirely on open - source software components , relies on established industry ( fortran , mpi , openmp ) or de - facto software standards ( blas , lapack , fftw ) , runs on standard server hardware and software environments and hence can be released to the community and utilized without legal or commercial restrictions . we acknowledge stimulating discussions with k. lackner and w. treutterer . thanks to p. martin who has provided a subversion of the cliste code with which this study started and to s. gori who has developed an initial fortran 90-version . + this work has been carried out within the framework of the eurofusion consortium and has received funding from the euratom research and training programme 2014 - 2018 under grant agreement no 633053 . the views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the european commission .

* a new parallel equilibrium reconstruction code for tokamak plasmas is presented . gpec allows to compute equilibrium flux distributions sufficiently accurate to derive parameters for plasma control within 1 ms of runtime which enables real - time applications at the asdex upgrade experiment ( aug ) and other machines with a control cycle of at least this size . the underlying algorithms are based on the well - established offline - analysis code cliste , following the classical concept of iteratively solving the grad - shafranov equation and feeding in diagnostic signals from the experiment . the new code adopts a hybrid parallelization scheme for computing the equilibrium flux distribution and extends the fast , shared - memory - parallel poisson solver which we have described previously by a distributed computation of the individual poisson problems corresponding to different basis functions . the code is based entirely on open - source software components and runs on standard server hardware and software environments . the real - time capability of gpec is demonstrated by performing an offline - computation of a sequence of 1000 flux distributions which are taken from one second of operation of a typical aug discharge and deriving the relevant control parameters with a time resolution of a millisecond . on current server hardware the new code allows employing a grid size of @xmath0 zones for the spatial discretization and up to 15 basis functions . it takes into account about 90 diagnostic signals while using up to 4 equilibrium iterations and computing more than 20 plasma - control parameters , including the computationally expensive safety - factor @xmath1 on at least 4 different levels of the normalized flux . *