Combination of Searches for Higgs Boson Pair Production in Proton-Proton Collisions at sqrt[s]=13 TeV

This Letter describes a search for Higgs boson pair production using the combined results from four final states: bbγγ, bbττ, bbbb, and bbVV, where V represents a W or Z boson. The search is performed using data collected in 2016 by the CMS experiment from LHC proton-proton collisions at sqrt[s]=13  TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9  fb^{-1}. Limits are set on the Higgs boson pair production cross section. A 95% confidence level observed (expected) upper limit on the nonresonant production cross section is set at 22.2 (12.8) times the standard model value. A search for narrow resonances decaying to Higgs boson pairs is also performed in the mass range 250-3000 GeV. No evidence for a signal is observed, and upper limits are set on the resonance production cross section.

Measurement of associated production of a W boson and a charm quark in proton-proton collisions at s = 13 Te

Measurements are presented of associated production of a W boson and a charm quark ( W + c ) in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13Te . The data correspond to an integrated luminosity of 35.7fb - 1 collected by the CMS experiment at the CERN LHC. The W bosons are identified by their decay into a muon and a neutrino. The charm quarks are tagged via the full reconstruction ofD ∗ ( 2010 ) ± mesons that decay viaD ∗ ( 2010 ) ± → D 0 + π ± → K ∓ + π ± + π ± . A cross section is measured in the fiducial region defined by the muon transverse momentump T μ > 26 Ge , muon pseudorapidity| η μ | < 2.4 , and charm quark transverse momentump T c > 5 Ge . The inclusive cross section for this kinematic range is σ ( W + c ) = 1026 ± 31 (stat) + 76 - 72 (syst) pb . The cross section is also measured differentially as a function of the pseudorapidity of the muon from the W boson decay. These measurements are compared with theoretical predictions and are used to probe the strange quark content of the proton.

Study of the underlying event in top quark pair production in p p collisions at 13 Te

Measurements of normalized differential cross sections as functions of the multiplicity and kinematic variables of charged-particle tracks from the underlying event in top quark and antiquark pair production are presented. The measurements are performed in proton-proton collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 13 Te , and are based on data collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2016 corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb - 1 . Events containing one electron, one muon, and two jets from the hadronization and fragmentation of b quarks are used. These measurements characterize, for the first time, properties of the underlying event in top quark pair production and show no deviation from the universality hypothesis at energy scales typically above twice the top quark mass.

Search for Leptoquarks Coupled to Third-Generation Quarks in Proton-Proton Collisions at sqrt[s]=13 TeV

Three of the most significant measured deviations from standard model predictions, the enhanced decay rate for B→D^{(*)}τν, hints of lepton universality violation in B→K^{(*)}ℓℓ decays, and the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon, can be explained by the existence of leptoquarks (LQs) with large couplings to third-generation quarks and masses at the TeV scale. The existence of these states can be probed at the LHC in high energy proton-proton collisions. A novel search is presented for pair production of LQs coupled to a top quark and a muon using data at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 35.9  fb^{-1}, recorded by the CMS experiment. No deviation from the standard model prediction has been observed and scalar LQs decaying exclusively into tμ are excluded up to masses of 1420 GeV. The results of this search are combined with those from previous searches for LQ decays into tτ and bν, which excluded scalar LQs below masses of 900 and 1080 GeV. Vector LQs are excluded up to masses of 1190 GeV for all possible combinations of branching fractions to tμ, tτ and bν. With this analysis, all relevant couplings of LQs with an electric charge of -1/3 to third-generation quarks are probed for the first time.

Attitudes and Knowledge of Healthcare Professionals Regarding Organ Donation. A Survey of the Saolta University Health Care Group

Organ donation saves lives and healthcare professionals (HCPs) play a vital role in that process. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the attitudes and level of knowledge of HCPs regarding organ donation. An online anonymous self-administered questionnaire containing 40 questions on organ donation using google forms was created. The survey was distributed to HCPs working in the Saolta University Health Care Group. A hundred and thirty-nine responses were received giving a response rate of 11.8%. HCPs willingness to donate their organs was at 93% compared to 97% willing to receive a transplant. More HCPs understood or had knowledge of the term donation after brain death (64%) than donation after circulatory death (49%). HCPs working in intensive care knew more about the management of brain dead donors than other specialties (p<0.0001). Over 60% of HCPs when asked either disagreed or strongly disagreed with the adequacy of training in organ donation and transplant. Overall, HCPs surveyed had positive attitudes towards organ donation but there was a lack of knowledge particularly among non-intensive care professionals. This study highlights the need to increase awareness along with implementation of educational programmes among HCPs regarding organ donation and transplant.

Measurement of differential cross sections for Z boson production in association with jets in proton-proton collisions at s = 13 TeV

The production of a Z boson, decaying to two charged leptons, in association with jets in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13TeV is measured. Data recorded with the CMS detector at the LHC are used that correspond to an integrated luminosity of 2.19fb -1 . The cross section is measured as a function of the jet multiplicity and its dependence on the transverse momentum of the Z boson, the jet kinematic variables (transverse momentum and rapidity), the scalar sum of the jet momenta, which quantifies the hadronic activity, and the balance in transverse momentum between the reconstructed jet recoil and the Z boson. The measurements are compared with predictions from four different calculations. The first two merge matrix elements with different parton multiplicities in the final state and parton showering, one of which includes one-loop corrections. The third is a fixed-order calculation with next-to-next-to-leading order accuracy for the process with a Z boson and one parton in the final state. The fourth combines the fully differential next-to-next-to-leading order calculation of the process with no parton in the final state with next-to-next-to-leading logarithm resummation and parton showering.

Avian-inspired energy-harvesting from atmospheric phenomena for small UAVs

Fixed-wing small, unmanned aerial vehicles usually fly in atmospheric boundary layers that are often under the influence of turbulent environments. Inspired by nature's flyers, an application of an energy-harvesting flight strategy for increasing the energy state of the aircraft is presented. This paper provides basic longitudinal flight dynamic model exposing the physics behind the process. It shows significant power savings in flight with a sinusoidal and stochastic wind profile with active control of energy-harvesting. The active control based on optimized proportional gains was implemented for energy extraction from realistic atmospheric conditions, leading to significant energy savings for a 'bird-sized' vehicle. The paper reveals the equipment and necessary preparations for the flight test campaign. Moreover, it describes the design of a custom controller and its calibration in the wind tunnel against roll movements during pitching maneuvers. Finally, it investigates the benefits and potential of the automated process of energy-harvesting with simple proportional control through flight tests in a turbulent environment, validating the concept through the increased energy state of the aircraft.

Studies of B s 2 ∗ ( 5840 ) 0 and B s 1 ( 5830 ) 0 mesons including the observation of the B s 2 ∗ ( 5840 ) 0 → B 0 K S 0 decay in proton-proton collisions at s = 8 TeV

Measurements ofB s 2 ∗ ( 5840 ) 0 andB s 1 ( 5830 ) 0 mesons are performed using a data sample of proton-proton collisions corresponding to an integrated luminosity of , collected with the CMS detector at the LHC at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV . The analysis studies P-waveB s 0 meson decays intoB ( ∗ ) + K - andB ( ∗ ) 0 K S 0 , where theB + andB 0 mesons are identified using the decaysB + → J / ψ K + andB 0 → J / ψ K ∗ ( 892 ) 0 . The masses of the P-waveB s 0 meson states are measured and the natural width of theB s 2 ∗ ( 5840 ) 0 state is determined. The first measurement of the mass difference between the charged and neutralB ∗ mesons is also presented. TheB s 2 ∗ ( 5840 ) 0 decay toB 0 K S 0 is observed, together with a measurement of its branching fraction relative to theB s 2 ∗ ( 5840 ) 0 → B + K - decay.

The Power of Storytelling As a Tool for Fundraising

Amount raised: 300,000 Emirati Dirhams (81,675 U.S. Dollars). Background and context: Friends of Cancer Patients came to learn about the case of a 3-year-old boy with leukemia, whose parents required financial support to be able to afford to continue his treatment. To accomplish this, we approached the employees of a company, with whom we had a prior relationship. 30 employees of the company agreed to climb the Mount Everest base camp, to drive their friends and families to donate. Aim: The aim of the event that took place was to fundraise to cover the child's entire treatment journey, as well as to make sure extra funds are in place, in case the child needs future support in treatment. Strategy/Tactics: To fund raise the amount of 300,000 which was needed by the child, we attempted to do so through storytelling, however, we decided to not only focus on the child´s medical condition, but we also tried to tell it in such a way that would make people get to know him, and his family better. Further, each climber from the company also told a story in their own way, they all explained how each and every one of us has been affected by cancer in one way or another, and they also specified how it affected them personally. Program process: The fundraising campaign took part over the period of three months, and as a result of the attention, and the reach that the climbers were able to achieve, we were receiving emails from places such as Saudi Arabia, U.S.A., and the U.K. from people who have heard about the story of the child and wished to help. Overall, by the time the climbers had returned from Mount Everest, we had fundraised 100,000 more than what we expected, all through the word of mouth, and storytelling. Costs and returns: Costs to Friends of Cancer Patients: 0 Returns: 300,000+ AED What was learned: By moving people emotionally, and by telling a good genuine story, we were able to carry out a campaign, that would not have been possible otherwise. Furthermore, after the conclusion of this event, we have started utilizing a similar model of fundraising, which has brought much greater returns to Friends of Cancer Patients.

Empowering Cancer Survivors to Become Mentors, and Leaders Through Various Workshops and Programs

Background and context: Friends of Cancer Patients UAE conducts various moral support programs for cancer patients, one of which is the “Color My World” program, which focuses on provide moral support to predominantly men and women, who have undergone, or are currently undergoing treatment of cancer. Aim: The aim is to empower cancer survivors to become leaders and mentors to other ladies/men currently undergoing treatment, and to establish a survivor led support program, as a result of these various programs and workshops. Strategy/Tactics: We believe that to for such a program to be a success, you need to understand your target group, their interests, as well as their backgrounds. A needs assessment needs to be conducted prior to the selection of workshops, whether through direct interviews with the patients, or internally by examining the different support programs available in the country, and what is available/not available. Program/Policy process: There are numerous workshops that take place throughout the year, and they are divided as follows: - There are workshops that focus on healthy living, and the importance of a healthy diet, which involves numerous cooking workshops, and educational sessions. - There are workshops that focus on skin care and make-up, where the ladies are taught how to take care of themselves by certified stylists and makeup artists. - Those who are interested in crochet and handicrafts, have the chance to take part in group workshops, or in focused 1 to 1 sessions. Outcomes: There are a number of positive outcomes that came about from our attempts to empower cancer survivors, the ones we believe are worth of being highlighted are: - A group of survivors are now leading, and running a cancer support program, that visits hospitals within the UAE, to visit those currently undergoing treatment, to provide support, and assist those still undergoing treatment in any way possible. - Many of the ladies, who attended previous workshops, will now start to lead similar workshops during hospital visits to children and women with cancer. What was learned: Cancer survivors must be the driving force in providing support to other cancer patients, and the existing model of the support groups can be linked with the educational workshops, to not only provide moral support, but also social support to the cancer patient.

The ASOS Surgical Risk Calculator: development and validation of a tool for identifying African surgical patients at risk of severe postoperative complications

BACKGROUND

The African Surgical Outcomes Study (ASOS) showed that surgical patients in Africa have a mortality twice the global average. Existing risk assessment tools are not valid for use in this population because the pattern of risk for poor outcomes differs from high-income countries. The objective of this study was to derive and validate a simple, preoperative risk stratification tool to identify African surgical patients at risk for in-hospital postoperative mortality and severe complications.

METHODS

ASOS was a 7-day prospective cohort study of adult patients undergoing surgery in Africa. The ASOS Surgical Risk Calculator was constructed with a multivariable logistic regression model for the outcome of in-hospital mortality and severe postoperative complications. The following preoperative risk factors were entered into the model; age, sex, smoking status, ASA physical status, preoperative chronic comorbid conditions, indication for surgery, urgency, severity, and type of surgery.

RESULTS

The model was derived from 8799 patients from 168 African hospitals. The composite outcome of severe postoperative complications and death occurred in 423/8799 (4.8%) patients. The ASOS Surgical Risk Calculator includes the following risk factors: age, ASA physical status, indication for surgery, urgency, severity, and type of surgery. The model showed good discrimination with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.805 and good calibration with c-statistic corrected for optimism of 0.784.

CONCLUSIONS

This simple preoperative risk calculator could be used to identify high-risk surgical patients in African hospitals and facilitate increased postoperative surveillance.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

NCT03044899.

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Rappoccio S, Roozbahani B, Alverson G, Barberis E, Freer C, Hortiangtham A, Morse DM, Orimoto T, De Lima RT, Wamorkar T, Wang B, Wisecarver A, Wood D, Bhattacharya S, Charaf O, Hahn KA, Mucia N, Odell N, Schmitt MH, Sung K, Trovato M, Velasco M, Bucci R, Dev N, Hildreth M, Hurtado Anampa K, Jessop C, Karmgard DJ, Kellams N, Lannon K, Li W, Loukas N, Marinelli N, Meng F, Mueller C, Musienko Y, Planer M, Reinsvold A, Ruchti R, Siddireddy P, Smith G, Taroni S, Wayne M, Wightman A, Wolf M, Woodard A, Alimena J, Antonelli L, Bylsma B, Durkin LS, Flowers S, Francis B, Hart A, Hill C, Ji W, Ling TY, Luo W, Winer BL, Wulsin HW, Cooperstein S, Elmer P, Hardenbrook J, Hebda P, Higginbotham S, Kalogeropoulos A, Lange D, Luo J, Marlow D, Mei K, Ojalvo I, Olsen J, Palmer C, Piroué P, Salfeld-Nebgen J, Stickland D, Tully C, Malik S, Norberg S, Barker A, Barnes VE, Das S, Gutay L, Jones M, Jung AW, Khatiwada A, Miller DH, Neumeister N, Peng CC, Qiu H, Schulte JF, Sun J, Wang F, Xiao R, Xie W, Cheng T, Dolen J, Parashar N, Chen Z, Ecklund KM, Freed S, Geurts FJM, Guilbaud M, Kilpatrick M, Li W, Michlin B, Padley BP, Roberts J, Rorie J, Shi W, Tu Z, Zabel J, Zhang A, Bodek A, de Barbaro P, Demina R, Duh YT, Dulemba JL, Fallon C, Ferbel T, Galanti M, Garcia-Bellido A, Han J, Hindrichs O, Khukhunaishvili A, Lo KH, Tan P, Taus R, Verzetti M, Agapitos A, Chou JP, Gershtein Y, Gómez Espinosa TA, Halkiadakis E, Heindl M, Hughes E, Kaplan S, KunnawalkamElayavalli R, Kyriacou S, Lath A, Montalvo R, Nash K, Osherson M, Saka H, Salur S, Schnetzer S, Sheffield D, Somalwar S, Stone R, Thomas S, Thomassen P, Walker M, Delannoy AG, Heideman J, Riley G, Rose K, Spanier S, Thapa K, Bouhali O, Hernandez AC, Celik A, Dalchenko M, De Mattia M, Delgado A, Dildick S, Eusebi R, Gilmore J, Huang T, Kamon T, Luo S, Mueller R, Pakhotin Y, Patel R, Perloff A, Perniè L, Rathjens D, Safonov A, Tatarinov A, Akchurin N, Damgov J, De Guio F, Dudero PR, Kunori S, Lamichhane K, Lee SW, Mengke T, Muthumuni S, Peltola T, Undleeb S, Volobouev I, Wang Z, Greene S, Gurrola A, Janjam R, Johns W, Maguire C, Melo A, Ni H, Padeken K, Alvarez JDR, Sheldon P, Tuo S, Velkovska J, Xu Q, Arenton MW, Barria P, Cox B, Hirosky R, Joyce M, Ledovskoy A, Li H, Neu C, Sinthuprasith T, Wang Y, Wolfe E, Xia F, Harr R, Karchin PE, Poudyal N, Sturdy J, Thapa P, Zaleski S, Brodski M, Buchanan J, Caillol C, Carlsmith D, Dasu S, Dodd L, Duric S, Gomber B, Grothe M, Herndon M, Hervé A, Hussain U, Klabbers P, Lanaro A, Levine A, Long K, Loveless R, Ruggles T, Savin A, Smith N, Smith WH, Woods N. Measurement of the weak mixing angle using the forward-backward asymmetry of Drell-Yan events in p p collisions at 8 TeV

A measurement is presented of the effective leptonic weak mixing angle ( sin 2 θ eff ℓ ) using the forward-backward asymmetry of Drell-Yan lepton pairs ( μ μ and e e ) produced in proton-proton collisions at s = 8 TeV at the CMS experiment of the LHC. The data correspond to integrated luminosities of 18.8 and 19.6 fb - 1 in the dimuon and dielectron channels, respectively, containing 8.2 million dimuon and 4.9 million dielectron events. With more events and new analysis techniques, including constraints obtained on the parton distribution functions from the measured forward-backward asymmetry, the statistical and systematic uncertainties are significantly reduced relative to previous CMS measurements. The extracted value of sin 2 θ eff ℓ from the combined dilepton data is sin 2 θ eff ℓ = 0.23101 ± 0.00036 (stat) ± 0.00018 (syst) ± 0.00016 (theo) ± 0.00031 (parton distributions in proton) = 0.23101 ± 0.00053 .

Long-term outcomes of endovenous laser ablation and conventional surgery for great saphenous varicose veins

BACKGROUND

Clinical guidelines recommend endovenous laser ablation (EVLA) over surgery based on short-term evidence, yet there are few studies reporting mid- to long-term outcomes. The aim of this study was to report the 5-year outcomes from an RCT of surgery versus EVLA for treatment of symptomatic great saphenous varicose veins.

METHODS

Patients with symptomatic varicose veins due to great saphenous vein (GSV) incompetence were followed up 5 years after enrolment in a randomized trial of either surgery (saphenofemoral junction ligation, GSV strip to the knee and multiple avulsions of varicosities) or EVLA plus multiple avulsions. Outcomes included: clinical recurrence, defined as new varicose veins greater than 3 mm in diameter; Venous Clinical Severity Score (VCSS); quality of life measured by means of Short Form 36, EuroQol Five Dimensions (EQ-5D™) and Aberdeen Varicose Vein Questionnaire (AVVQ); patient satisfaction; and duplex ultrasound examination (DUS) findings.

RESULTS

Some 218 of the 276 patients enrolled in the trial (79·0 per cent) were available for follow-up. Clinical recurrence was more frequent following surgery than EVLA at 5 years (34·3 versus 20·9 per cent; P = 0·010). Both groups demonstrated sustained significant improvements at 5 years over baseline in VCSS (surgery: median (i.q.r.) 1 (0-2) from 4 (3-5), P < 0·001; EVLA: 0 (0-1) from 4 (3-5), P < 0·001), AVVQ (surgery: 4·59 (0·56-9·78) from 13·69 (9·81-18·11), P < 0·001; EVLA: 3·35 (0·17 to 6·55) from 12·73 (9·41-17·32), P < 0·001) and EQ-5D™ (surgery: 1·000 (0·796-1·000) from 0·859 (0·796-1·000), P = 0·002; EVLA: 1·000 (0·796-1·000) from 0·808 (0·796-1·000), P = 0·002). VCSS was better for EVLA than surgery at 5 years (P = 0·031). Technical success assessed by DUS remained high at 5 years (85·4 per cent for surgery and 93·2 per cent for EVLA; P = 0·074). DUS-detected anatomical patterns of recurrence differed between the groups.

CONCLUSION

EVLA was more effective than surgery in preventing clinical recurrence 5 years after treatment of great saphenous varicose veins. Patient-reported outcome measures were similar. Registration number: NCT00759434 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov).

Observation of tt[over ¯]H Production

The observation of Higgs boson production in association with a top quark-antiquark pair is reported, based on a combined analysis of proton-proton collision data at center-of-mass energies of sqrt[s]=7, 8, and 13 TeV, corresponding to integrated luminosities of up to 5.1, 19.7, and 35.9  fb^{-1}, respectively. The data were collected with the CMS detector at the CERN LHC. The results of statistically independent searches for Higgs bosons produced in conjunction with a top quark-antiquark pair and decaying to pairs of W bosons, Z bosons, photons, τ leptons, or bottom quark jets are combined to maximize sensitivity. An excess of events is observed, with a significance of 5.2 standard deviations, over the expectation from the background-only hypothesis. The corresponding expected significance from the standard model for a Higgs boson mass of 125.09 GeV is 4.2 standard deviations. The combined best fit signal strength normalized to the standard model prediction is 1.26_{-0.26}^{+0.31}.

Structural Determinants and Children's Oral Health: A Cross-National Study

Much research on children's oral health has focused on proximal determinants at the expense of distal (upstream) factors. Yet, such upstream factors-the so-called structural determinants of health-play a crucial role. Children's lives, and in turn their health, are shaped by politics, economic forces, and social and public policies. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between children's clinical (number of decayed, missing, and filled teeth) and self-reported oral health (oral health-related quality of life) and 4 key structural determinants (governance, macroeconomic policy, public policy, and social policy) as outlined in the World Health Organization's Commission for Social Determinants of Health framework. Secondary data analyses were carried out using subnational epidemiological samples of 8- to 15-y-olds in 11 countries ( N = 6,648): Australia (372), New Zealand (three samples; 352, 202, 429), Brunei (423), Cambodia (423), Hong Kong (542), Malaysia (439), Thailand (261, 506), United Kingdom (88, 374), Germany (1498), Mexico (335), and Brazil (404). The results indicated that the type of political regime, amount of governance (e.g., rule of law, accountability), gross domestic product per capita, employment ratio, income inequality, type of welfare regime, human development index, government expenditure on health, and out-of-pocket (private) health expenditure by citizens were all associated with children's oral health. The structural determinants accounted for between 5% and 21% of the variance in children's oral health quality-of-life scores. These findings bring attention to the upstream or structural determinants as an understudied area but one that could reap huge rewards for public health dentistry research and the oral health inequalities policy agenda.