Working Group Report: Heavy-Ion Physics and Quark-Gluon Plasma

This is the report of Heavy Ion Physics and Quark-Gluon Plasma at WHEPP-09 which was part of Working Group-4. Discussion and work on some aspects of Quark-Gluon Plasma believed to have created in heavy-ion collisions and in early universe are reported.Comment: 20 pages, 6 eps figures, Heavy-ion physics and QGP activity report in "IX Workshop on High Energy Physics Phenomenology (WHEPP-09)" held in Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar, India, during January 3-14, 2006. To be published in PRAMANA - Journal of Physics (Indian Academy of Science

Data-Driven Analysis of Engagement in Gamified Learning Environments: A Methodology for Real-Time Measurement of MOOCs

Welfare and economic development is directly dependent on the availability of highly skilled and educated individuals in society. In the UK, higher education is accessed by a large percentage of high school graduates (50% in 2017). Still, in Brazil, a limited number of pupils leaving high schools continue their education (up to 20%). Initial pioneering efforts of universities and companies to support pupils from underprivileged backgrounds, to be able to succeed in being accepted by universities include personalised learning solutions. However, initial findings show that typical distance learning problems occur with the pupil population: isolation, demotivation, and lack of engagement. Thus, researchers and companies proposed gamification. However, gamification design is traditionally exclusively based on theory-driven approaches and usually ignore the data itself. This paper takes a different approach, presenting a large-scale study that analysed, statistically and via machine learning (deep and shallow), the first batch of students trained with a Brazilian gamified intelligent learning software (called CamaleOn), to establish, via a grassroots method based on learning analytics, how gamification elements impact on student engagement. The exercise results in a novel proposal for real-time measurement on Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), potentially leading to iterative improvements of student support. It also specifically analyses the engagement patterns of an underserved community

Prevalence of dengue and diversity of cultivable bacteria in vector Aedes aegypti (L.) from two dengue endemic districts, Kanchanpur and Parsa of Nepal

Background: Dengue fever, an endemic arboviral disease, represents one of the major public health concerns in Nepal. It is transmitted by bites of infected Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus , the former being primary vector. The bacterial community plays a significant role in biology of mosquitoes; however, the bacterial communities of primary vector A. aegypti remain unstudied in Nepal. The study was designed to determine the rate of dengue seropositivity and to explore the bacterial diversity of A. aegypti from dengue endemic districts, Kanchanpur and Parsa of Nepal. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between June 2013 and November 2013 at two hospitals of Kanchanpur and Parsa. A total of 221 serum samples were collected from patients (inpatients and outpatients) suspected of suffering from dengue fever and attending Mahakali Zonal Hospital, Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur, and Narayani Zonal Hospital, Birgunj, Parsa. Detection of anti-dengue IgM was performed by using human dengue IgM capture ELISA. The larvae and pupae of mosquitoes (A. aegypti) were collected, reared, and emerged. Then, the bacteria were isolated and identified from the gut of identified mosquitoes by using standard methods. Results: Out of total 221 serum samples collected from patients suspected of suffering from dengue fever, 34 (15.38%) were positive for anti-dengue IgM. Gram-negative bacteria were isolated in largest proportion (63%) followed by gram-positive cocci (23.27%) and gram-positive rods (13.73%). The most common cultivable bacteria isolated were Staphylococcus spp., Pseudomonas spp., and Acinetobacter spp. The average bacterial load in the vectors was 3.91 7 104 cfu/ml. Conclusions: High rate of anti-dengue IgM seropositivity was reported in our study. The environmental bacteria were predominantly isolated and identified in A. aegypti. The paratransgenic approach to control vector might be possible by spreading the genetically modified bacteria in larval habitat or shelter of adult mosquitoes

Genetic determinants of risk in pulmonary arterial hypertension:international genome-wide association studies and meta-analysis

Background: Rare genetic variants cause pulmonary arterial hypertension, but the contribution of common genetic variation to disease risk and natural history is poorly characterised. We tested for genome-wide association for pulmonary arterial hypertension in large international cohorts and assessed the contribution of associated regions to outcomes. Methods: We did two separate genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and a meta-analysis of pulmonary arterial hypertension. These GWAS used data from four international case-control studies across 11 744 individuals with European ancestry (including 2085 patients). One GWAS used genotypes from 5895 whole-genome sequences and the other GWAS used genotyping array data from an additional 5849 individuals. Cross-validation of loci reaching genome-wide significance was sought by meta-analysis. Conditional analysis corrected for the most significant variants at each locus was used to resolve signals for multiple associations. We functionally annotated associated variants and tested associations with duration of survival. All-cause mortality was the primary endpoint in survival analyses. Findings: A locus near SOX17 (rs10103692, odds ratio 1·80 [95% CI 1·55–2·08], p=5·13 × 10 –15 ) and a second locus in HLA-DPA1 and HLA-DPB1 (collectively referred to as HLA-DPA1/DPB1 here; rs2856830, 1·56 [1·42–1·71], p=7·65 × 10 –20 ) within the class II MHC region were associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension. The SOX17 locus had two independent signals associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension (rs13266183, 1·36 [1·25–1·48], p=1·69 × 10 –12 ; and rs10103692). Functional and epigenomic data indicate that the risk variants near SOX17 alter gene regulation via an enhancer active in endothelial cells. Pulmonary arterial hypertension risk variants determined haplotype-specific enhancer activity, and CRISPR-mediated inhibition of the enhancer reduced SOX17 expression. The HLA-DPA1/DPB1 rs2856830 genotype was strongly associated with survival. Median survival from diagnosis in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension with the C/C homozygous genotype was double (13·50 years [95% CI 12·07 to &gt;13·50]) that of those with the T/T genotype (6·97 years [6·02–8·05]), despite similar baseline disease severity. Interpretation: This is the first study to report that common genetic variation at loci in an enhancer near SOX17 and in HLA-DPA1/DPB1 is associated with pulmonary arterial hypertension. Impairment of SOX17 function might be more common in pulmonary arterial hypertension than suggested by rare mutations in SOX17. Further studies are needed to confirm the association between HLA typing or rs2856830 genotyping and survival, and to determine whether HLA typing or rs2856830 genotyping improves risk stratification in clinical practice or trials. Funding: UK NIHR, BHF, UK MRC, Dinosaur Trust, NIH/NHLBI, ERS, EMBO, Wellcome Trust, EU, AHA, ACClinPharm, Netherlands CVRI, Dutch Heart Foundation, Dutch Federation of UMC, Netherlands OHRD and RNAS, German DFG, German BMBF, APH Paris, INSERM, Université Paris-Sud, and French ANR. </p

Search for a new scalar resonance decaying to a pair of Z bosons in proton-proton collisions at √s=13 TeV

A search for a new scalar resonance decaying to a pair of Z bosons is performed in the mass range from 130 GeV to 3 TeV, and for various width scenarios. The analysis is based on proton-proton collisions recorded by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2016, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb−1at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The Z boson pair decays are reconstructed using the 4ℓ, 2ℓ2q, and 2ℓ2ν final states, where ℓ = e or μ. Both gluon fusion and electroweak production of the scalar resonance are considered, with a free parameter describing their relative cross sections. A dedicated categorization of events, based on the kinematic properties of associated jets, and matrix element techniques are employed for an optimal signal and background separation. A description of the interference between signal and background amplitudes for a resonance of an arbitrary width is included. No significant excess of events with respect to the standard model expectation is observed and limits are set on the product of the cross section for a new scalar boson and the branching fraction for its decay to ZZ for a large range of masses and widths.[Figure not available: see fulltext.]

Serological and Entomological Study of Dengue in Dang and Chitwan Districts of Nepal.

A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out among 264 suspected dengue patients in two districts (Dang and Chitwan) of Nepal from June 2013 to November 2013. The anti-dengue IgM positivity was found to be (51/264)19.31% by capture ELISA, of which 21 (41.2%) were male and 30 (58.8%) were female. Symptoms of seropositive cases were fever, anorexia, nausea, headache, retro-orbital pain, skin rashes, and myalgia. Hematological features like thrombocytopenia and leucopenia were found to be significantly associated with the dengue fever (DF). Discarded tires were found as the commonest breeding habitats for the dengue vectors. Higher sero-positivity was recorded from the area having higher Breteau index (BI). The pH, chloride ion concentration and the salinity of the water from breeding habitats were found to be ranging from 6.9±0.82 to 8, 103.33±17.52 mg/L to 140.65 mg/L, and 0.19±0.032 ppt to 0.25 ppt respectively. This study may be helpful for the health authorities and public health workers for early diagnosis of DF and for the improved preventive measures to be adopted in the epidemic and possible epidemic areas

Physiochemical characteristic of water of breeding habitats of <i>Aedes</i> mosquito.

Physiochemical characteristic of water of breeding habitats of Aedes mosquito.</p