This paper describes the science motivation, measurement objectives, performance requirements, detailed design, approach and implementation, and calibration of the four Hot Plasma Composition ...Analyzers (HPCA) for the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission. The HPCA is based entirely on electrostatic optics combining an electrostatic energy analyzer with a carbon-foil based time-of-flight analyzer. In order to fulfill mission requirements, the HPCA incorporates three unique technologies that give it very wide dynamic range capabilities essential to measuring minor ion species in the presence of extremely high proton fluxes found in the region of magnetopause reconnection. Dynamic range is controlled primarily by a novel radio frequency system analogous to an RF mass spectrometer. The RF, in combination with capabilities for high TOF event processing rates and high current micro-channel plates, ensures the dynamic range and sensitivity needed for accurate measurements of ion fluxes between ∼1 eV and 40 keV that are expected in the region of reconnection events. A third technology enhances mass resolution in the presence of high proton flux.
In order to calibrate the four HPCA instruments we have developed a unique ion calibration system. The system delivers a multi-species beam resolved to
M
/Δ
M
∼100 and current densities between 0.05 and 200 pA/cm
2
with a stability of ±5 %. The entire system is controlled by a dedicated computer synchronized with the HPCA ground support equipment. This approach results not only in accurate calibration but also in a comprehensive set of coordinated instrument and auxiliary data that makes analysis straightforward and ensures archival of all relevant data.
Summary
Heart rate variability (HRV) can be used to assess changes in output of the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). Considering that patients with post‐traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) often ...experience disturbances in sleep, arousal, and autonomic functioning, we sought to explore the association of PNS activity during sleep with hyperarousal symptoms of PTSD. Because a broad literature supports the importance of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep in PTSD, REM‐sleep features were specifically examined as predictors of PTSD symptom severity. A total of 90 participants, primarily civilian and female, aged 18–40 years who had experienced a traumatic event in the last 2 years, underwent an ambulatory polysomnography (PSG) acclimation night followed by a second PSG night from which sleep physiological measures were computed. Participants underwent an ambulatory polysomnography (PSG) acclimation night followed by a second PSG night from which sleep physiological measures were computed. PTSD severity was measured using the PTSD Checklist for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (PCL‐5). Dependent variables were total PCL‐5 score as well as its hyperarousal symptom subscore. Predictors included REM latency, percentage, density, segment length, and an index of parasympathetic tone (root mean square of the successive differences in the R–R interval or RMSSD). Hierarchical regression models were conducted to analyse the association of REM features with PCL‐5 total and hyperarousal subscales. Using hierarchical regression, REM‐sleep RMSSD accounted for a significant proportion of the variation in outcome variables, even when accounting for other REM‐sleep features. The present findings support hypothesised relationships between PTSD symptomatology and REM‐sleep physiology and, specifically, that lowered parasympathetic tone in REM may be an important associate of the hyperarousal symptom cluster in PTSD.
The production of the strip sensors for the ATLAS Inner Tracker (ITk) will start in 2020. Nearly 22,000 large area sensors will be produced over a period of about five years by Hamamatsu Photonics ...K.K. (HPK). The institutes involved in the sensor development and production are committed to deliver and maintain the highest quality sensors for the experiment. A Quality Assurance (QA) strategy has been prepared to be carried out during the whole production period. Once the process has been characterized as providing the required pre-irradiation specifications and the proper radiation hardness, the onus is on the manufacturer to rigidly stick to that qualified process. Still, sample testing with specific device-element structures and irradiation of devices should be implemented by the ITk sensor collaboration.
A detailed irradiation and testing plan has been prepared by the ATLAS-ITk Collaboration, together with a newly designed test chip with specific structures to monitor different key technological and device parameters during the whole production. The tests and irradiations will be carried out on a sample basis. In order to have a practical methodology, samples from alternating batches will be sent for irradiations with protons, neutrons and gammas, and then tested in order to check that the characteristics remain within specifications. The detailed plan and the design and test methods for the structures in the test chip are presented here.
Millions of people in rural South Asia are exposed to high levels of arsenic through groundwater used for drinking. Many deployed arsenic remediation technologies quickly fail because they are not ...maintained, repaired, accepted, or affordable. It is therefore imperative that arsenic remediation technologies be evaluated for their ability to perform within a sustainable and scalable business model that addresses these challenges. We present field trial results of a 600L Electro-Chemical Arsenic Remediation (ECAR) reactor operating over 3.5months in West Bengal. These results are evaluated through the lens of a community scale micro-utility business model as a potential sustainable and scalable safe water solution for rural communities in South Asia. We demonstrate ECAR's ability to consistently reduce arsenic concentrations of ~266μg/L to <5μg/L in real groundwater, simultaneously meeting the international standards for iron and aluminum in drinking water. ECAR operating costs (amortized capital plus consumables) are estimated as $0.83–$1.04/m3 under realistic conditions. We discuss the implications of these results against the constraints of a sustainable and scalable business model to argue that ECAR is a promising technology to help provide a clean water solution in arsenic-affected areas of South Asia.
•Product water consistently<5μg/L arsenic during 3.5mo field trial of ECAR reactor.•Consumable and amortized capital at 5% (10years) is $0.83/m3 before optimization.•Iron and aluminum concentrations in product water are below WHO recommended levels.•ECAR supports a sustainable, scalable model addressing causes of previous failures.
The high luminosity upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider, foreseen for 2027, requires the replacement of the ATLAS Inner Detector with a new all-silicon Inner Tracker (ITk). The expected total ...integrated luminosity of 4000 fb−1 means that the strip part of the ITk detector will be exposed to a large radiation fluence of up to Φeq = 1.6 × 1015 1 MeV neq/cm and an ionizing dose of 0.66 MGy, including a safety factor of 1.5. Radiation-hard n+-in-p micro-strip sensors for use in the ITk have been developed by the ATLAS ITk Strip Sensor collaboration and produced by Hamamatsu Photonics K.K. In this paper, the results obtained from the electrical characterization of the latest barrel ATLAS17LS sensor prototype, before and after irradiation, are shown.
Surface properties of the long-strip barrel, full-sized and miniature sensors have been studied before and after proton, neutron and gamma irradiation up to the maximal fluences and radiation doses specified for the ITk Strip tracker. Sensors have been irradiated by protons at CYRIC, Tohoku University (Japan), the Proton Irradiation Facility at CERN, Karlsruhe Inst. Tech. (Germany) and at the University of Birmingham (UK), by neutrons from the Ljubljana TRIGA reactor (Slovenia) and by gamma rays from the 60Co source in UJP Praha (Czech Republic).
It has been verified that the surface radiation damage does not influence the sensor functionality. The breakdown voltage is well above the maximum operational voltage. All the tested surface parameters, such as the inter-strip resistance and capacitance, coupling capacitance and bias resistance satisfy the ATLAS ITk specifications for strip sensors.
Background
The combined effects of balanced transfusion ratios and use of procoagulant and antifibrinolytic therapies on trauma‐induced exsanguination are not known. The aim of this study was to ...investigate the combined effect of transfusion ratios, tranexamic acid and products containing fibrinogen on the outcome of injured patients with bleeding.
Methods
A prospective multicentre observational study was performed in six level 1 trauma centres. Injured patients who received at least 4 units of red blood cells (RBCs) were analysed and divided into groups receiving a low (less than 1 : 1) or high (1 or more : 1) ratio of plasma or platelets to RBCs, and in receipt or not of tranexamic acid or fibrinogen products (fibrinogen concentrates or cryoprecipitate). Logistic regression models were used to assess the effect of transfusion strategies on the outcomes ‘alive and free from massive transfusion’ (at least 10 units of RBCs in 24 h) and early ‘normalization of coagulopathy’ (defined as an international normalized ratio of 1·2 or less).
Results
A total of 385 injured patients with ongoing bleeding were included in the study. Strategies that were independently associated with an increased number of patients alive and without massive transfusion were a high platelet to RBC ratio (odds ratio (OR) 2·67, 95 per cent c.i. 1·24 to 5·77; P = 0·012), a high plasma to RBC ratio (OR 2·07, 1·03 to 4·13; P = 0·040) and treatment with tranexamic acid (OR 2·71, 1·29 to 5·71; P = 0·009). No strategies were associated with correction of coagulopathy.
Conclusion
A high platelet or plasma to RBC ratio, and use of tranexamic acid were associated with a decreased need for massive transfusion and increased survival in injured patients with bleeding. Early normalization of coagulopathy was not seen for any transfusion ratio, or for use of tranexamic acid or fibrinogen products.
Combined effect on outcome
The inner tracker of the ATLAS detector is scheduled to be replaced by a completely new silicon-based inner tracker (ITk) for the Phase-II of the CERN LHC (HL-LHC). The silicon strip detector covers ...the volume 40<R<100 cm in the radial and |z|<300 cm in the longitudinal directions. The silicon sensors for the detector will be fabricated using the n+-on-p 6-inch wafer technology, for a total of 22,000 wafers. Intensive studies were carried out on the final prototype sensors ATLAS17LS fabricated by Hamamatsu Photonics (HPK). The charge collection properties were examined using penetrating 90Sr β-rays and the ALIBAVA fast readout system for the miniature sensors of 1 cm ×1 cm in area. The samples were irradiated by protons in the 27 MeV Birmingham Cyclotron, the 70 MeV CYRIC at Tohoku University, and the 24 GeV CERN-PS, and by neutrons at Ljubljana TRIGA reactor for fluence values up to 2 × 1015 neq/cm2. The change in the charge collection with fluence was found to be similar to the previous prototype ATLAS12, and acceptable for the ITk. Sensors with two active thicknesses, 300μm (standard) and 240μm (thin), were compared and the difference in the charge collection was observed to be small for bias voltages up to 500 V. Some samples were also irradiated with gamma radiation up to 2 MGy, and the full depletion voltage was found to decrease with the dose. This was caused by the Compton electrons due to the 60Co gamma radiation. To summarize, the design of the ATLAS17LS and technology for its fabrication have been verified for implementation in the ITk. We are in the stage of sensor pre-production with the first sensors already delivered in January of 2020.
The hypothesis that oxygen free radicals are causally involved in the aging process was tested by a study of the effects of simultaneous overexpression of copper-zinc superoxide dismutase and ...catalase. As compared to diploid controls, transgenic flies carrying three copies of each of these genes exhibited as much as a one-third extension of life-span, a longer mortality rate doubling time, a lower amount of protein oxidative damage, and a delayed loss in physical performance. Results provide direct support for the free radical hypothesis of aging.
The purpose of the present study was to determine whether oxidation of various proteins during the aging process occurs selectively or randomly, and whether the same proteins are damaged in different ...species. Protein oxidative damage to the proteins, present in the matrix of mitochondria in the flight muscles of Drosophila melanogaster and manifested as carbonyl modifications, was detected immunochemically with anti-dinitrophenyl-group antibodies. Aconitase was found to be the only protein in the mitochondrial matrix that exhibited an age-associated increase in carbonylation. The accrual of oxidative damage was accompanied by an approx. 50% loss in aconitase activity. An increase in ambient temperature, which elevates the rate of metabolism and shortens the life span of flies, caused an elevation in the amount of aconitase carbonylation and an accelerated loss in its activity. Exposure to 100% ambient oxygen showed that aconitase was highly susceptible to undergo oxidative damage and loss of activity under oxidative stress. Administration of fluoroacetate, a competitive inhibitor of aconitase activity, resulted in a dose-dependent decrease in the life span of the flies. Results of the present study demonstrate that protein oxidative damage during aging is a selective phenomenon, and might constitute a mechanism by which oxidative stress causes age-associated losses in specific biochemical functions.
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