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In this paper I’m concerned with the functional role of singular terms and how it can be used to construct a pragmatist theory of what it takes to understand reference. I argue that there are, at least, two distinct functions which singular terms fulfil, what I will call the talking-about and picking-out functions respectively. Both are, in one sense, ways that a term aids our understanding by spe
Background Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) represents a group of rare hereditary disorders characterised by deficient ciliary airway clearance that can be associated with laterality defects. We aimed to describe the underlying gene defects, geographical differences in genotypes and their relationship to diagnostic findings and clinical phenotypes. Methods Genetic variants and clinical findings (a
High-order harmonic generation (HHG) in gases has been studied for almost 40 years under many different conditions, varying the laser wavelength, intensity, focusing geometry, target design, gas species, etc. However, no systematic investigation of the effect of the pulse duration has been performed despite its expected impact on phase-matching of the high-order harmonics. Here, we develop a compa
The Gaia satellite revealed a remarkable spiral pattern (‘phase spiral’, PS) in the z–Vz phase–plane throughout the solar neighbourhood, where z and Vz are the displacement and velocity of a star perpendicular to the Galactic plane. As demonstrated by many groups, the kinematic signature reflects the Galactic stellar disc’s response to a dynamical disturbance some 0.3–3 Gyr ago. However, previous
The skin is the outermost organ that serves as the host's live, microbiota-inhabited physical border, evolved to cope with continuous confrontation by a wide variety of environmental elements. This dynamic borderline is prone to injury and damage. Therefore, to deliver on the critical demands for protection, skin is tightly associated with innate and adaptive defense mechanisms that ensure homeost
When electrically stimulated, electroactive polymers (EAPs) respond with mechanical deformation. The goal of this work is to design electrode and EAP layouts simultaneously in structures using density-based, multi-material topology optimization. In this novel approach the layout of electrodes and EAP material are not given a priori but is a result from the topology optimization. Material interpola
Recessive diseases arise when both copies of a gene are impacted by a damaging genetic variant. When a patient carries two potentially causal variants in a gene, accurate diagnosis requires determining that these variants occur on different copies of the chromosome (that is, are in trans) rather than on the same copy (that is, in cis). However, current approaches for determining phase, beyond pare
Breath-hold ECG-gated cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is challenging during exercise due to motion, ECG-problems, and lengthy scans. To facilitate time-resolved volumetric measures from exercise-CMR, we aimed to develop a method for constructing time-resolved ventricular cines from real-time free-breathing exercise-CMR. Time-resolved ventricular cines were semi-automatically constr
Background: Testicular germ cell cancer (TGCC) originates during fetal life. Fetal exposure to environmental chemicals may contribute to its development, but epidemiological data are lacking. We investigated per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which can act as endocrine disruptors during fetal development, and TGCC risk in adulthood. Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study of 549
This paper presents the exploration of GPU-accelerated block-wise decompositions for zero-forcing (ZF) based QR and Cholesky methods applied to massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) uplink detection algorithms. Three algorithms are evaluated: ZF with block Cholesky decomposition, ZF with block QR decomposition (QRD), and minimum mean square error (MMSE) with block Cholesky decomposition. T
The lifelong risk of stroke following adverse pregnancy outcomes, and potential causality, are unknown. This study examined five major adverse pregnancy outcomes and long-term risk of stroke in a large population-based cohort. Methods A national cohort study was conducted of all 2 201 393 women with a singleton delivery in Sweden during 1973–2015, followed up for stroke through 2018. Cox regressio
Effective governance and management of ecosystem functions to promote human well-being and social equity require a clear understanding of supply and demand dynamics. While this is widely acknowledged in assessments of ecosystem services, it remains largely neglected for ecosystem disservices, despite many ecosystem functions generating both services (benefits) and disservices (costs) depending on
Generalist parasites must adapt to diverse host environments to ensure their survival and transmission. These adaptations can involve fixed genetic responses, transcriptional plasticity, or epigenetic mechanisms. The avian malaria parasite Plasmodium homocircumflexum offers an ideal model for studying transcriptional variation across hosts. We experimentally inoculated P. homocircumflexum into dif
Policing roles require specific work-related characteristics (WRCs) critical for effective performance. This study identifies key WRCs for various roles within the Swedish Police—patrol officers, criminal investigators, Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Teams, police chiefs, and negotiators—by analyzing data from 425 active-duty officers (30% response rate). We use the Occupational Information Ne
Radiation dosimetry and cancer risk estimations are central to virtually all radiation safety applications, optimization, and research. These estimates relate to various exposure situations including planned, existing, and emergency situations. The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) has developed a new methodology to handle the dosimetry of an acute/single intake of radionu
A mobile gamma spectrometer's series of pulse height distributions (gamma spectra) acquired when passing a point source contains enough information to derive the distance to the source, its shielding and activity. Two Excel routines, SODAC and SSC, have been developed to determine these source parameters. SODAC determines the source-road distance by finding the best fit of the measured series of t
High energy prices recently have moved nuclear power back into the limelight. The biggest risk of nuclear industry has been large-scale accidents that give rise to ground deposition of long-lived fission products such as 137Cs, notably Chernobyl in 1986 (Ukraine) and Fukushima in 2011 (Japan). In Japan, extensive land remediation of residential areas was carried out at an estimated direct cost bet
Thyroid dose estimations after nuclear power plant (NPP) accidents are traditionally based on internal uptake of radioiodine, mainly 131I, either by instrumental measurements of thyroid uptake or by ecological estimations based on geographical dispersion of the radioiodine cloud, demographics, and food habits. However, it has been shown that 134Cs and 137Cs in some cases can be the dominant contri
This paper presents the observation of four-top-quark (tt¯ tt¯) production in proton-proton collisions at the LHC. The analysis is performed using an integrated luminosity of 140 fb - 1 at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV collected using the ATLAS detector. Events containing two leptons with the same electric charge or at least three leptons (electrons or muons) are selected. Event kinematics are
