New Results from NA49

We present recent results of the SPS experiment NA49 on production of strange particles and event-by-event fluctuations of mean $p_t$ and of charged particle ratios in central Pb+Pb collisions at various beam energies (40, 80, 158 AGeV) as well as in different collisions at 158 AGeV, going from p+p over light-ion collisions to peripheral and central Pb+Pb.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures (in eps) talk given at XXXI International Symposium on Multiparticle Dynamics, Sep. 1-7, 2001, Datong China URL http://ismd31.ccnu.edu.cn

Spacecraft Formation Control: Managing Line-of-Sight Drift Based on the Dynamics of Relative Motion

In a quest to improve space-based observational capability, an increasing number of investigators are proposing missions with precision formation flying architectures. Typical missions include the Micro- Arcsecond X-ray Imaging Mission (MAXIM), Stellar Imager (SI), and the New Worlds Observer (NWO). Missions designed to explore targets in deep-space generally require holding a formation configuration fixed in inertial space during science observation. Analysis in this paper is specifically aimed at the NWO architecture, characterizing the natural drift of the line-of-sight and the separation range for two spacecraft operating in the vicinity of the Earth/Moon-Sun L(sub 2) libration point. Analysis employs a linear form of the relative dynamics associated with an n-body gravity field. The study is designed to identify favorable observation directions, characterized by minimal line-of-sight drift, along the mission timeline

Chronisches Schmerzsyndrom des Beckens: Neurostimulation, Neuromodulation und Akupunktur

Zusammenfassung: Das chronische Schmerzsyndrom des Beckens ("chronic pelvic pain syndrome", CPPS) ist gemäß den Richtlinien der "European Association of Urology" charakterisiert als ein nicht-maligner Schmerz, der in Bezug auf die Strukturen des weiblichen oder männlichen Beckens über einen Zeitraum von mindestens 6Monaten wahrgenommen wird, ohne dass eine Infektion oder offensichtliche anderweitige Pathologie vorliegt. Das CPPS beeinträchtigt die Lebensqualität von Millionen von Menschen weltweit und hat einen ähnlich großen Einfluss wie andere chronische Krankheiten, z.B. Diabetes mellitus, Morbus Crohn oder kongestive Herzinsuffizienz. Trotz mehrerer etablierter Erstlinientherapien stellt die Behandlung des CPPS eine große Herausforderung dar, da viele Patienten therapierefraktär bleiben. Unkonventionelle Behandlungsmethoden wie Neurostimulation, Neuromodulation und Akupunktur können beim CPPS eine ausgezeichnete Wirkung zeigen und haben ein vorteilhaftes Nebenwirkungsprofil. So sollten diese vielversprechenden Therapieverfahren im klinischen Alltag vermehrt eingesetzt werde

Asset Management in Volatile Markets

The 27th SUERF Colloquium in Munich in June 2008: New Trends in Asset Management: Exploring the Implications was already topical in the Summer of 2008. The subsequent dramatic events in the Autumn of 2008 made the presentations in Munich even more relevant to investors and bankers that want to understand what happens in their investment universe. In the present SUERF Study, we have collected a sample of outstanding colloquium contributions under the fitting headline: Asset Management in Volatile Markets.derivatives, financial innovation, asset management, finance-growth-nexus; Relative Value Strategy, Pair Trading, Slippage, Implementation Shortfall, Asset Management, Fin4Cast

Hemodynamic response pattern of spatial cueing is different for social and symbolic cues

Directional social gaze and symbolic arrow cues both serve as spatial cues, causing seemingly reflexive shifts of an observer’s attention. However, the underlying neural substrates remain a point at issue. The present study specifically addressed the differences in the activation patterns associated with non-predictive gaze and arrow cues, placing special emphasis on brain regions known to be involved in the processing of social information [superior temporal sulcus (STS), fusiform gyrus (FFG)]. Additionally, the functional connectivity of these brain regions with other areas involved in gaze processing and spatial attention was investigated. Results indicate that gaze and arrow cues recruit several brain regions differently, with gaze cues increasing activation in occipito-temporal regions and arrow cues increasing activation in occipito-parietal regions. Specifically, gaze cues in contrast to arrow cues enhanced activation in the FFG and the STS. Functional connectivity analysis revealed that during gaze cueing the STS was more strongly connected to the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and the frontal eye fields, whereas the FFG was more strongly connected to the IPS and the amygdala

Rate effects in high-resolution drift chambers

The impact of high counting rates on the spatial resolution of cylindrical drift tubes is investigated in detail and the results are compared with simulations. Electronics effects and space-charge effects are quantitatively analysed. A spatial resolution of $\sigma < 80\,\mu\mathrm{m}$ can be achieved even at rates as high as 1500\,Hz/cm wire length (300\,kHz per wire)