Browsing by Subject "HEAVY"
Now showing items 1-8 of 8
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(2018)The differential yields of charged particles having pseudorapidity within vertical bar eta vertical bar < 1 are measured using xenon-xenon (XeXe) collisions at root S-NN = 5.44 TeV. The data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 3.42 mu b(-1), were collected in 2017 by the CMS experiment at the LHC. The yields are reported as functions of collision centrality and transverse momentum, pT, from 0.5 to 100 GeV. A previously reported pT spectrum from proton-proton collisions at root S = 5.02 TeV is used for comparison after correcting for the difference in center-of-mass energy. The nuclear modification factors using this reference, R-AA*, are constructed and compared to previous measurements and theoretical predictions. In head-on collisions, the R-AA* has a value of 0.17 in the pT range of 6-8 GeV, but increases to approximately 0.7 at 100 GeV. Above approximate to 6 GeV, the XeXe data show a notably smaller suppression than previous results for lead-lead (PbPb) collisions at root S-NN = 5.02 TeV when compared at the same centrality (i.e., the same fraction of total cross section). However, the XeXe suppression is slightly greater than that for PbPb in events having a similar number of participating nucleons.
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(2022)A measurement of inclusive, prompt, and non-prompt J/psi production in p-Pb collisions at a nucleon-nucleon centre-of-mass energy root s(NN) = 5.02 TeV is presented. The inclusive J/psi mesons are reconstructed in the dielectron decay channel at midrapidity down to a transverse momentum p(T) = 0. The inclusive J/psi nuclear modification factor R-pPb is calculated by comparing the new results in p-Pb collisions to a recently measured proton-proton reference at the same centre-of-mass energy. Non-prompt J/psi mesons, which originate from the decay of beauty hadrons, are separated from promptly produced J/psi on a statistical basis for p(T) larger than 1.0 GeV/c. These results are based on the data sample collected by the ALICE detector during the 2016 LHC p-Pb run, corresponding to an integrated luminosity L-int = 292 +/- 11 mu b(-1), which is six times larger than the previous publications. The total uncertainty on the P-T-integrated inclusive J/psi and non-prompt J/psi cross section are reduced by a factor 1.7 and 2.2, respectively. The measured cross sections and R-pPb are compared with theoretical models that include various combinations of cold nuclear matter effects. From the non-prompt J/psi production cross section, the b (b) over bar production cross section at midrapidity, d sigma(b (b) over bar)/dy, and the total cross section extrapolated over full phase space sigma(b (b) over bar) are derived.
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(2022)Angular correlations of heavy-flavour and charged particles in high-energy proton-proton collisions are sensitive to the production mechanisms of heavy quarks and to their fragmentation as well as hadronisation processes. The measurement of the azimuthal-correlation function of prompt D mesons with charged particles in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of root s = 13 TeV with the ALICE detector is reported, considering D-0, D+, and D*(+) mesons in the transverse-momentum interval 3 < p(T) < 36 GeV/c at midrapidity (vertical bar y vertical bar < 0.5), and charged particles with p(T) > 0.3 GeV/c and pseudorapidity vertical bar eta vertical bar < 0.8. This measurement has an improved precision and provides an extended transverse-momentum coverage compared to previous ALICE measurements at lower energies. The study is also performed as a function of the charged-particle multiplicity, showing no modifications of the correlation function with multiplicity within uncertainties. The properties and the transverse-momentum evolution of the near- and awayside correlation peaks are studied and compared with predictions from various Monte Carlo event generators. Among those considered, PYTHIA8 and POWHEG+PYTHIA8 provide the best description of the measured observables. The obtained results can provide guidance on tuning the generators.
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(2021)Introduction: Heritability estimates of nicotine dependence (ND) range from 40% to 70%, but discovery GWAS of ND are underpowered and have limited predictive utility. In this work, we leverage genetically correlated traits and diseases to increase the accuracy of polygenic risk prediction. Methods: We employed a multi-trait model using summary statistic-based best linear unbiased predictors (SBLUP) of genetic correlates of DSM-IV diagnosis of ND in 6394 individuals of European Ancestry (prevalence = 45.3%, %female = 46.8%, mu(age) = 40.08 [s.d. = 10.43]) and 3061 individuals from a nationally-representative sample with Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence symptom count (FTND; 51.32% female, mean age = 28.9 [s.d. = 1.70]). Polygenic predictors were derived from GWASs known to be phenotypically and genetically correlated with ND (i.e., Cigarettes per Day [CPD], the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test [AUDIT-Consumption and AUDIT-Problems], Neuroticism, Depression, Schizophrenia, Educational Attainment, Body Mass Index [BMI], and Self-Perceived Risk-Taking); including Height as a negative control. Analyses controlled for age, gender, study site, and the first 10 ancestral principal components. Results: The multi-trait model accounted for 3.6% of the total trait variance in DSM-IV ND. Educational Attainment (beta = -0.125; 95% CI: [-0.149,-0.101]), CPD (0.071 [0.047,0.095]), and Self-Perceived Risk-Taking (0.051 [0.026,0.075]) were the most robust predictors. PGS effects on FTND were limited. Conclusions: Risk for ND is not only polygenic, but also pleiotropic. Polygenic effects on ND that are accessible by these traits are limited in size and act additively to explain risk.
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(2022)The production of J/psi is measured at midrapidity (vertical bar y vertical bar < 0.9) in proton-proton collisions at root s = 5.02 and 13 TeV, through the dielectron decay channel, using the ALICE detector at the Large Hadron Collider. The data sets used for the analyses correspond to integrated luminosities of L-int = 19.4 +/- 0.4 nb(-1 )and L-int = 32.2 +/- 0.5 nb(-1) at root s = 5.02 and 13 TeV, respectively. The fraction of non-prompt J/psi mesons, i.e. those originating from the decay of beauty hadrons, is measured down to a transverse momentum p(T) = 2 GeV/c (1GeV/c) at root s = 5.02 TeV (13 TeV). The p(T) and rapidity (y) differential cross sections, as well as the corresponding values integrated over p(T) and y, are carried out separately for prompt and non-prompt J/psi mesons. The results are compared with measurements from other experiments and theoretical calculations based on quantum chromodynamics (QCD). The shapes of the p(T) and y distributions of beauty quarks predicted by state-of-the-art perturbative QCD models are used to extrapolate an estimate of the b (b) over bar pair cross section at midrapidity and in the total phase space. The total b (b) over bar cross sections are found to be sigma(b (b) over bar) = 541 +/- 45 (stat.) +/- 69 (syst.)(-12)(+10) (extr.) mu b and sigma(b (b) over bar) = 218 +/- 37 (stat.)+/- 31 (syst.)(-9.1)(+8.2) (extr.) mu b at root s = 13 and 5.02 TeV, respectively. The value obtained from the combination of ALICE and LHCb measurements in pp collisions at root s = 13 TeV is also provided.
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(2017)Objectives Alcohol drinking is associated with ill health but less is known about its contribution to overall functioning. We aimed to examine whether alcohol drinking predicts self-reported mental and physical functioning 5-7 years later. Design A prospective cohort study. Setting Helsinki, Finland. Participants 40-year-old to 60-year-old employees of the City of Helsinki (5301 women and 1230 men) who participated in a postal survey in 2000-2002 and a follow-up survey in 2007. Primary and secondary outcome measures Mental and physical functioning measured by the Short Form 36 Health Survey. Results Alcohol drinking was differently associated with mental and physical functioning. Heavy average drinking, binge drinking and problem drinking were all associated with subsequent poor mental functioning except for heavy average drinking among men, whereas only problem drinking was associated with poor physical functioning. Also, non-drinking was associated with poor physical functioning. Problem drinking was the drinking habit showing most widespread and strongest associations with health functioning. The associations between problem drinking and poor mental functioning and with poor physical functioning among women remained after adjusting for baseline mental functioning, sociodemographic factors, working conditions and other health behaviours. Conclusions Alcohol drinking is associated especially with poor mental functioning. Problem drinking was the drinking habit strongest associated with poor health functioning. The results call for early recognition and prevention of alcohol problems in order to improve health functioning among employees.
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(2019)Objective: There is a need for brief methods to screen for at-risk drinking. The FAST is a two-stepped structured questionnaire. In the FAST-1, one question categorizes into three groups: low-risk drinking, potential at-risk drinking or at-risk drinking. In the FAST-2, those with potential at-risk drinking are asked three additional questions. The aim was to study its effectiveness in screening for at-risk drinking among women and to define an optimal cut-off score. Method: The FAST was validated against the Timeline Followback (TLFB) utilizing data from a health check of a group of 40-year old women (response rate 69.2%; n = 907/1311). The TLFB-based definition of at-risk drinking was consuming >= 140 grams of alcohol weekly (6.1% reported at-risk drinking). Results and conclusions: Of all women, 54.5% could be correctly classified either as having low-risk or at-risk drinking with the FAST-1. The optimal cut-off score was >= 2 (sensitivity 0.82, specificity 0.86) which is lower than has previously been reported. Only those with a FAST-1 score of one needed further evaluation with the FAST-2. A FAST-2 score of >= 1 resulted in a positive screen for at-risk drinking. The FAST seems to be a valid and feasible method in screening for at-risk drinking among middle-aged women.
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(2022)The main purposes of this research work were to realize the potential of sludge valorization by converting the sludge into adsorbents and to investigate the performance of sludge-based adsorbents for rare earth elements (REEs) recovery from dilute aqueous solutions. Hydrochloric acid and Fenton reagents were employed as pretreatment procedures to enhance the surface area and adsorption yield. Following this, sludge-based alginate beads were prepared by using HCl treated (HT) and Fenton treated (FT) sludge materials. The chemical composition and surface chemistry of sludge-based adsorbent beads were thoroughly analyzed by state-of-the-art analytical techniques, such as Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis. The prepared beads were then investigated for the recovery of REEs. The batch adsorption studies revealed that the FT sludge beads performed better in comparison to the HT sludge beads. Among REEs, the HT- and FT-sludge beads demonstrated higher affinity towards Sm3+ ions, displaying the maximum adsorption capacities of 2.83 mg/g and 4.16 mg/g, respectively, in a multi-component system (C o = 25 ppm of each REE; pH = 5, t = 24 h and dosage = 5 g/L). In conclusion, the results from this work showed that the prepared sludge-based alginate beads can be used for REEs recovery from diluted waste streams and the tested sludge treatment options were also found effective in converting the waste to resource i.e., sludge to adsorbent for REEs recovery.
