m-FISH analysis reveals complexity of chromosome aberrations in individuals occupationally exposed with internal plutonium: A pilot study to assess the relevance of complex aberrations as biomarkers of exposure to high-LET α particles

We recently demonstrated that a significant proportion of apparently stable insertions induced after exposure to a mean of 1 α particle/cell, detected using 3-colour FISH, were part of larger unstable complexes when visualised by 24-colour FISH. Interestingly, regardless of the long-term persistence capability of the cell, the complexity of each α particle-induced complex appeared to be specific to the nuclear traversal of a single -particle. To assess whether aberrations of a similar complexity are observed in vivo and also to examine the usefulness of detecting such aberrations as a biomarker of chronic exposure to α particles, we have carried out a limited pilot study of Russian workers with large body burdens of -particle emitting plutonium (Pu). We found unstable cells containing non-transmissible complex aberrations in all of the Pu exposed subjects analysed by m-FISH. In addition, all of the complexes seen were consistent with those previously observed in vitro. Non-transmissible complex aberrations were more common than transmissible-type complexes, consistent with on-going/chronic exposure and insertions were dominant features of both type of complex. Accordingly, this preliminary study supports the proposal that aberration complexity and non-transmissibility are the major cytogenetic features of α particle exposure that could potentially be exploited as a specific indicator of chronic exposures to high-LET α particles

On rational boundary conditions for higher-order long-wave models

Higher-order corrections to classical long-wave theories enable simple and efficient modelling of the onset of wave dispersion and size effects produced by underlying micro-structure. Since such models feature higher spatial derivatives, one needs to formulate additional boundary conditions when confined to bounded domains. There is a certain controversy associated with these boundary conditions, because it does not seem possible to justify their choice by purely physical considerations. In this paper an asymptotic model for onedimensional chain of particles is chosen as an exemplary higher-order theory. We demonstrate how the presence of higher-order derivative terms results in the existence of non-physical “extraneous” boundary layer-type solutions and argue that the additional boundary conditions should generally be formulated to eliminate the contribution of these boundary layers into the averaged solution. Several new methods of deriving additional boundary conditions are presented for essential boundary. The results are illustrated by numerical examples featuring comparisons with an exact solution for the finite chain

Accounting for Unobserved Country Heterogeneity in Happiness Research: Country Fixed Effects versus Region Fixed Effects

Many empirical studies are ambiguous about whether good formal institutions are conducive to subjective well-being or not. Possibly, this ambiguity is caused by cross-section models that do not account for unobserved cultural and institutional effects. Using the World Value Survey 1980-2005, this paper supports a positive relation in a country panel framework that accounts for unobserved, time-invariant country heterogeneity. This study also shows that using supra-national region dummies (by geography or language) in a country-random effects model appears to be a sufficient substitution for omitted country fixed effects.Happiness; life satisfaction; subjective well-being; quality of life; institutions; democracy; rule of law; political constraints; policy implications; panel econometrics

Competition and well-being: does market competition make people unhappy?

Empirical research on the role of economic institutions for subjective well-being is still widely lacking, while recent economic-experimental outcomes suggest that experienced utility may depend on the intensity of market competition. This paper is the first to empirically analyze the implication of market competition for subjective well-being using real-life survey data on 80,000 individuals in more than 60 countries from the World Values Survey 1997-2001. In support of our hypothesis, we find that market competition aggravates the impact of individual’s bargaining position in economic transactions on her subjective well-being – compared to the least powerful in society. Put differently, we find that market competition enlarges the happiness differences caused by cleavages in socio-economic position. Our results also suggest that competition induced welfare changes are not gender-specific, while a stronger rule of law appears to prevent the generation of such additional benefits or losses. Particularly the latter results call for further economic-experimental corroboration in the laboratory, but also bear important policy implications.Subjective well-being; happiness; utility; competition; rule of law; completeness of contract; laboratory experiment; World Values Survey

Multigrid for propagators of staggered fermions in four-dimensional SU(2)SU(2) gauge fields

Multigrid (MG) methods for the computation of propagators of staggered fermions in non-Abelian gauge fields are discussed. MG could work in principle in arbitrarily disordered systems. The practical variational MG methods tested so far with a ``Laplacian choice'' for the restriction operator are not competitive with the conjugate gradient algorithm on lattices up to $18^4$. Numerical results are presented for propagators in $SU(2)$ gauge fields.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures (one LaTeX-figure, two figures appended as encapsulated ps files); Contribution to LATTICE '92, requires espcrc2.st

Happiness and age cycles – return to start…

Previous happiness research has explicitly assumed that subjective well-being is U-shaped in age. This paper sheds new light on this issue testing several functional forms. Using micro data from the World Values Survey on 44’000 persons in 30 economically well-developed OECD countries with long life expectancies, we reveal that age follows a hyperbolic form. We find that life satisfaction reaches another local maximum around the age of 83, with a level identical to that of a 26-years old. This hyperbolic well-being-age relation is robust to the inclusion of cohort effects. We corroborate the functional form using a sample of non-OECD countries.Subjective Well-Being; cohorts; happiness; aging; life-course; OECD; WVS; cross-national; life satisfaction