A bstractWe perform an analysis of Higgs portal models of dark matter (DM), where DM is light enough to contribute to invisible Higgs decays. Using effective field theory we show that DM can be a thermal relic only if there are additional light particles present with masses below a few 100 GeV. We give three concrete examples of viable Higgs portal models of light DM: (i) the SM extended by DM scalar along with an electroweak triplet and a singlet, (ii) a Two Higgs Doublet Model of type II with additional scalar DM, (iii) SM with DM and an extra scalar singlet that is lighter than DM. In all three examples the $ \mathcal{B} $(h → invisible) constraint is not too restrictive, because it is governed by different parameters than the relic abundance. Additional light particles can have implications for flavor violation and collider searches.

We consider the general non-vanishing, divergence-free vector fields defined on a domain in $3$-space and tangent to its boundary. Based on the theory of finite-type invariants, we define a family of invariants for such fields, in the style of Arnold’s asymptotic linking number. Our approach is based on the configuration space integrals due to Bott and Taubes.

Cervical auscultation (CA) is an affordable, non-invasive technique used to observe sounds occurring during swallowing. CA involves swallowing characterization via stethoscopes or microphones, while accelerometers can detect other vibratory signals. While the effects of fluid viscosity on swallowing accelerometry signals is well understood, there are still open questions about these effects on swallowing sounds. Therefore, this study investigated the influence of fluids with increasing thickness on swallowing sound characteristics. We collected swallowing sounds and swallowing accelerometry signals from 56 healthy participants. Each participant completed five water swallows, five swallows of nectar-thick apple juice, and five swallows of honey-thick apple juice. These swallows were completed in neutral head and chin-tuck head positions. After pre-processing of collected signals, a number of features in time, frequency and time-frequency domains were extracted. Our numerical analysis demonstrated that significant influence of viscosity was found in most of the features. In general, features extracted from swallows in the neutral head position were affected more than swallows from the chin-tuck position. Furthermore, most of the differences were found between water and fluids with higher viscosity. Almost no significant differences were found between swallows involving nectar-thick and honey-thick apple juices. Our results also showed that thicker fluids had higher acoustic regularity and predictability as demonstrated by the information-theoretic features, and a lower frequency content as demonstrated by features in the frequency domain. According to these results, we can conclude that viscosity of fluids should be considered in future investigations involving swallowing sounds.

BackgroundCervical auscultation (CA) is an affordable, non-invasive technique used to observe sounds occurring during swallowing. CA involves swallowing characterization via stethoscopes or microphones, while accelerometers can detect other vibratory signals. While the effects of fluid viscosity on swallowing accelerometry signals is well understood, there are still open questions about these effects on swallowing sounds. Therefore, this study investigated the influence of fluids with increasing thickness on swallowing sound characteristics.MethodWe collected swallowing sounds and swallowing accelerometry signals from 56 healthy participants. Each participant completed five water swallows, five swallows of nectar-thick apple juice, and five swallows of honey-thick apple juice. These swallows were completed in neutral head and chin-tuck head positions. After pre-processing of collected signals, a number of features in time, frequency and time-frequency domains were extracted.ResultsOur numerical analysis demonstrated that significant influence of viscosity was found in most of the features. In general, features extracted from swallows in the neutral head position were affected more than swallows from the chin-tuck position. Furthermore, most of the differences were found between water and fluids with higher viscosity. Almost no significant differences were found between swallows involving nectar-thick and honey-thick apple juices. Our results also showed that thicker fluids had higher acoustic regularity and predictability as demonstrated by the information-theoretic features, and a lower frequency content as demonstrated by features in the frequency domain.ConclusionsAccording to these results, we can conclude that viscosity of fluids should be considered in future investigations involving swallowing sounds.

Communication process gives to physician necessary information for establishing diagnosis and prescribing therapy, and helps to a patient to gain confidence in his doctor and the prescribed treatment. The communication between doctor and his patient is enhanced by the following: openness and conscientiousness of the physician, serious approach to the patient, participation of the patient in decision-making, advanced age and higher education of the patient. On the other hand, communication is less efficient if the doctor has longer employment status, if he/her avoids disclosure of all relevant information to the patient, if he/her is emotionally separated from the patient, if the time for an encounter is limited, if the patient is passive and with unrealistic expectations, and if the doctor is expressing himself/herself unclearly.   In order to improve communication with patients, doctors should follow these recommendations: keeping eye contact with a patient, releasing tension from his/her body language, taking detailed patient history with active listening and without interrupting of a patient, speaking clearly and slowly, using language understandable to a patient, treating patients with equality, disclosing all relevant information to the patient and sharing decision-making with the patient. Adequate communication between doctor and patient always brings better treatment outcomes.

Following Bell and Dourish's call for a "ubicomp of the present," we visited 14 households in Korea, where Weiser's dreams come true, to study their social dynamics and domestic technologies as a part of these dynamics. We used a participatory research approach in which participants, acting as collaborative ethnographers and co-designers, chose how to describe their homes to us and which existing technologies to discuss. A qualitative analysis of the conversations identified two main themes. The first finding is the highly gendered nature of roles in the Korean home, influenced by traditional Confucian values and reinforced by contemporary neo-liberal norms. The second finding is that domestic technologies are used, adopted, and imagined in the context of these gendered social dynamics rather than just according to functional needs. In conclusion, we emphasize the need to attend to the social dynamics of the home in the design of politically sensitive domestic technologies, which will enable the inclusion of marginalized voices, such as women, in design.

ABSTRACT For any square-free integer N such that the “moonshine group” Γ0(N)+ has genus zero, the Monstrous Moonshine Conjectures relate the Hauptmodul of Γ0(N)+ to certain McKay–Thompson series associated to the representation theory of the Fischer–Griess monster group. In particular, the Hauptmoduli admits a q-expansion which has integer coefficients. In this article, we study the holomorphic function theory associated to higher genus groups Γ0(N)+. For all such arithmetic groups of genus up to and including three, we prove that the corresponding function field admits two generators whose q-expansions have integer coefficients, has lead coefficient equal to one, and has minimal order of pole at infinity. As corollary, we derive a polynomial relation which defines the underlying projective curve, and we deduce whether i∞ is a Weierstrass point. Our method of proof is based on modular forms and includes extensive computer assistance, which, at times, applied Gauss elimination to matrices with thousands of entries, each one of which was a rational number whose numerator and denominator were thousands of digits in length.

There are great demands to develop explosives with higher performance accompanied by reduced sensitivities towards external stimuli, higher thermal stability and improved environmental acceptability. This contribution presents modified nitramines, which were investigated by nucleophilic substitution reactions of potassium salts of 5-amino-3-nitro-1,2,4-triazole, 3,5-dinitro-1,2,4-triazole, 3,5-dinitroimidazole, 2,4-dinitroimidazole, 4-amino-3,5-dinitropyrazole, 3,5-dinitropyrazole, 3,4-dinitropyrazole and 3,4,5-trinitropyrazole on 1,3-dichloro-2-nitrazapropane. The energetic compounds were comprehensively characterized and their detonation parameters were calculated by the EXPLO5 code. Heats of formation were calculated by the atomization method using CBS-4M electronic enthalpies. The presented compounds show detonation performances comparable to pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN). In addition, they possess high thermal stabilities and low sensitivities, which make them interesting for further investigations and possible applications as insensitive, high-energy dense materials.