1,812 research outputs found

    Micro-Anthropic Principle for Quantum theory

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    Probabilistic models (developped by workers such as Boltzmann, on foundations due to pioneers such as Bayes) were commonly regarded merely as approximations to a deterministic reality before the roles were reversed by the quantum revolution (under the leadership of Heisenberg and Dirac) whereby it was the deterministic description that was reduced to the status of an approximation, while the role of the observer became particularly prominent. The concomitant problem of lack of objectivity in the original Copenhagen interpretation has not been satisfactorily resolved in newer approaches of the kind pioneered by Everett. The deficiency of such interpretations is attributable to failure to allow for the anthropic aspect of the problem, meaning {\it a priori} uncertainty about the identity of the observer. The required reconciliation of subjectivity with objectivity is achieved here by distinguishing the concept of an observer from that of a perceptor, whose chances of identification with a particular observer need to be prescribed by a suitable anthropic principle. It is proposed that this should be done by an entropy ansatz according to which the relevant micro-anthropic weighting is taken to be proportional to the logarithm of the relevant number of Everett type branch-channels.Comment: 29 pages Latex, 1 figure. Contribution to `Universe or Multiverse?' ed. B.J. Carr, for Cambridge U.

    Total rewards that retain : a study of demographic preferences

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    Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 104-110).Changing workplace demographics and a scarcity of skills have forced employers to understand which total reward factors influence the retention of talented employees, as undifferentiated retention strategies are no longer appropriate. The objectives of this study were to develop an understanding of the total reward factors and the ideal combination and quantum of total rewards that retain employees from various demographic groups including: knowledge workers, employees of different races, genders and age groups

    A Hamiltonian Driven Quantum-Like Model for Overdistribution in Episodic Memory Recollection

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    While people famously forget genuine memories over time, they also tend to mistakenly over-recall equivalent memories concerning a given event. The memory phenomenon is known by the name of episodic overdistribution and occurs both in memories of disjunctions and partitions of mutually exclusive events and has been tested, modeled and documented in the literature. The total classical probability of recalling exclusive sub-events most often exceeds the probability of recalling the composed event, i.e., a subadditive total. We present a Hamiltonian driven propagation for the Quantum Episodic Memory model developed by Brainerd et al. [1] for the episodic memory overdistribution in the experimental immediate item false memory paradigm [1–3]. Following the Hamiltonian method of Busemeyer and Bruza [4] our model adds time-evolution of the perceived memory state through the stages of the experimental process based on psychologically interpretable parameters—γc for recollection capability of cues, κp for bias or description-dependence by probes and β for the average gist component in the memory state at start. With seven parameters the Hamiltonian model shows good accuracy of predictions both in the EOD-disjunction and in the EOD-subadditivity paradigm. We noticed either an outspoken preponderance of the gist over verbatim trace, or the opposite, in the initial memory state when β is real. Only for complex β a mix of both traces is present in the initial state for the EOD-subadditivity paradigm

    Episodic Source Memory over Distribution by Quantum-Like Dynamics – A Model Exploration

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    In source memory studies, a decision-maker is concerned with identifying the context in which a given episodic experience occurred. A common paradigm for studying source memory is the ‘three-list’ experimental paradigm, where a subject studies three lists of words and is later asked whether a given word appeared on one or more of the studied lists. Surprisingly, the sum total of the acceptance probabilities generated by asking for the source of a word separately for each list (‘list 1?’, ‘list 2?’, ‘list 3?’) exceeds the acceptance probability generated by asking whether that word occurred on the union of the lists (‘list 1 or 2 or 3?’). The episodic memory for a given word therefore appears over distributed on the disjoint contexts of the lists. A quantum episodic memory model [QEM] was proposed by Brainerd, Wang and Reyna [8] to explain this type of result. In this paper, we apply a Hamiltonian dynamical extension of QEM for over distribution of source memory. The Hamiltonian operators are simultaneously driven by parameters for re-allocation of gist-based and verbatim-based acceptance support as subjects are exposed to the cue word in the first temporal stage, and are attenuated for description-dependence by the querying probe in the second temporal stage. Overall, the model predicts well the choice proportions in both separate list and union list queries and the over distribution effect, suggesting that a Hamiltonian dynamics for QEM can provide a good account of the acceptance processes involved in episodic memory tasks

    Generation of a Conjoint Surface Plasmon by an Infrared Nano‐antenna Array

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    Localized surface plasmons (LSP) excited by optical fields have many potential applications resulting from their ability in detecting ultra‐small, ambient refractive index change. Current methods using surface nano‐patterning by means of lithography have given rise to LSP of limited propagation and interaction lengths, meaning that practical applications remain challenging. This paper describes a new all‐optical method of generating LSP by means of a carefully fabricated low dimensional nano‐structured material by using a direct‐write photochemical lithography. It is shown that the resulting array of localized surface plasmons combine or “Conjoin” to have an unprecedented large interaction length, via coupled evanescent fields, giving rise to superior spectral sensitivities; several orders of magnitude better than those quoted elsewhere and reaching 6×103 nm/RIU in the aqueous regime and 104 nm/RIU in the gaseous regime. Numerical modeling was performed that showed this design of plasmonic platform is capable of producing sensitivities of 105‐106 nm/RIU. We believe the results achieved in this investigation show that a unique conjoint surface plasmon operational mode will significantly impact areas of interest, such as single molecular dynamics, drug delivery systems etc
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