1,202 research outputs found
CSF oligoclonal bands in multiple sclerosis
Objective: To study the significance of oligoclonal bands in neurological disorders, specifically in Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Methods: The study was designed to assess the sensitivity and specificity of the test methodology of CSF electrophoresis by performing the retrospective analysis of CSF samples sent for oligoclonal bands (OCB). A total of 603 samples were received by the Clinical Laboratories, Department of Pathology of The Aga Khan University, during a period of 54 months (January 1993-June 1997). All of these samples were analyzed by performing CSF protein electrophoresis. One hundred thirty three out of 603 samples showed evidence of OCB. Out of these, 24 patients were registered with Section of Neurology, Department of Medicine, The Aga Khan University Hospital. These 24 patients were finally selected for analysis. Relevant clinical details such as age, sex and clinical presentations were recorded. Results: Fifteen (62%) out of 24 patients with positive OCB were diagnosed as cases of MS. Four (17%) patients were diagnosed to have subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE). Five (21%) patients were having other inflammatory neurological disorders. Conclusion: The overall relative sensitivity and specificity for multiple sclerosis were found to be 100% and 62.5% respectively. Lack of specificity was attributed to the fact that OCB were positive in other neurological disorders as well
The Phases and Triviality of Scalar Quantum Electrodynamics
The phase diagram and critical behavior of scalar quantum electrodynamics are
investigated using lattice gauge theory techniques. The lattice action fixes
the length of the scalar (``Higgs'') field and treats the gauge field as
non-compact. The phase diagram is two dimensional. No fine tuning or
extrapolations are needed to study the theory's critical behovior. Two lines of
second order phase transitions are discovered and the scaling laws for each are
studied by finite size scaling methods on lattices ranging from through
. One line corresponds to monopole percolation and the other to a
transition between a ``Higgs'' and a ``Coulomb'' phase, labelled by divergent
specific heats. The lines of transitions cross in the interior of the phase
diagram and appear to be unrelated. The monopole percolation transition has
critical indices which are compatible with ordinary four dimensional
percolation uneffected by interactions. Finite size scaling and histogram
methods reveal that the specific heats on the ``Higgs-Coulomb'' transition line
are well-fit by the hypothesis that scalar quantum electrodynamics is
logarithmically trivial. The logarithms are measured in both finite size
scaling of the specific heat peaks as a function of volume as well as in the
coupling constant dependence of the specific heats measured on fixed but large
lattices. The theory is seen to be qualitatively similar to .
The standard CRAY random number generator RANF proved to be inadequateComment: 25pages,26figures;revtex;ILL-(TH)-94-#12; only hardcopy of figures
availabl
Monopole Percolation in the Compact Abelian Higgs Model
We have studied the monopole-percolation phenomenon in the four dimensional
Abelian theory that contains compact U(1) gauge fields coupled to unitary norm
Higgs fields. We have determined the location of the percolation transition
line in the plane . This line overlaps the confined-Coulomb
and the confined-Higgs phase transition lines, originated by a
monopole-condensation mechanism, but continues away from the end-point where
this phase transition line stops. In addition, we have determined the critical
exponents of the monopole percolation transition away from the phase transition
lines. We have performed the finite size scaling in terms of the monopole
density instead of the coupling, because the density seems to be the natural
parameter when dealing with percolation phenomena.Comment: 13 pages. REVTeX. 16 figs. included using eps
Moyamoya disease: an elusive diagnosis
Moyamoya disease is an idiopathic vasculopathy, affecting vessels of Circle of Willis.1 It usually manifests as stroke, but can also cause seizures and cognitive impairment.2 Ischemic strokes are common in children and hemorrhagic strokes in adults.1 We describe our experience with moyamoya disease in four patients who presented with ischemic strokes, at an academic tertiary care center and emphasize that this diagnosis should be considered in young patients, especially children, who present with stroke
DYNAMIC DETECTION OF DESIGN INCONSISTENCY DURING SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT USING DAID APPROACH
Evolution of software has lead to the fast growth of technology whose impact can be witnessed in all the domains of scientific and engineering applications. Hence engineering high quality software is one of the core challenges of all IT industries. The software models which are being used for the development of the software products may lead to inconsistencies. Nevertheless, theexistence of several methodologies during the development process in order to overcome inconsistencies operates at static mode leading towards expensive nature of rework on those inconsistencies. Therefore, this paper presents a dynamic model which resolves the aforementioned issue by capturing inconsistencies dynamically in an automated mode using Dynamic automated inconsistency detection (DAID) model. The implementation results of DAID capture the design inconsistencies dynamically at the time of their injection points in lieu of inconsistency detection during validation testing. This approach of dynamic design inconsistency detection reduces cost, time and its associated overheads. Further implementation of DAID in an automated mode increases productivity, quality and sustainability in IT industries
Banti\u27s syndrome: case report and review of literature.
In 1898 Banti described a disorder characterized by splenomegaly and hypersplenism, resulting in portal hypertension and anemia in the absence of hematological disease. 1 Banti\u27s syndrome is also known as non-cirrhotic portal hypertension (NCPH) in India and Idiopathic Portal Hypertension (IPH) in Japan. Hepatoportal sclerosis seems to be its counterpart in the United States. 2,3 Banti\u27s syndrome is a disorder of unknown etiology, clinically characterized by portal hypertension (varices and portosystemic collateral vessels), splenomegaly, and anemia (hypersplenism). 3 It has been reported from Indian subcontinent. 4-6 In a Pakistani case series of portal hypertension, 18 out of 37 patients were found to have IPH as the etiology. 6 We report a case of Banti\u27s syndrome in an 20-year old girl presenting to us with anemia and splenomegaly
On the Logarithmic Triviality of Scalar Quantum Electrodynamics
Using finite size scaling and histogram methods we obtain numerical results
from lattice simulations indicating the logarithmic triviality of scalar
quantum electrodynamics, even when the bare gauge coupling is chosen large.
Simulations of the non-compact formulation of the lattice abelian Higgs model
with fixed length scalar fields on lattices with ranging from
through indicate a line of second order critical points.
Fluctuation-induced first order transitions are ruled out. Runs of over ten
million sweeps for each produce specific heat peaks which grow
logarithmically with and whose critical couplings shift with picking
out a correlation length exponent of consistent with mean field
theory. This behavior is qualitatively similar to that found in pure
.Comment: 9 page
Communication of Spin Directions with Product States and Finite Measurements
Total spin eigenstates can be used to intrinsically encode a direction, which
can later be decoded by means of a quantum measurement. We study the optimal
strategy that can be adopted if, as is likely in practical applications, only
product states of -spins are available. We obtain the asymptotic behaviour
of the average fidelity which provides a proof that the optimal states must be
entangled. We also give a prescription for constructing finite measurements for
general encoding eigenstates.Comment: 4 pages, minor changes, version to appear in PR
Optimal strategies for sending information through a quantum channel
Quantum states can be used to encode the information contained in a
direction, i.e., in a unit vector. We present the best encoding procedure when
the quantum state is made up of spins (qubits). We find that the quality of
this optimal procedure, which we quantify in terms of the fidelity, depends
solely on the dimension of the encoding space. We also investigate the use of
spatial rotations on a quantum state, which provide a natural and less
demanding encoding. In this case we prove that the fidelity is directly related
to the largest zeros of the Legendre and Jacobi polynomials. We also discuss
our results in terms of the information gain.Comment: 4 pages, RevTex, final version to appear in Phys.Rev.Let
On gonihedric loops and quantum gravity
We present an analysis of the gonihedric loop model, a reformulation of the
two dimensional gonihedric spin model, using two different techniques. First,
the usual regular lattice statistical physics problem is mapped onto a height
model and studied analytically. Second, the gravitational version of this loop
model is studied via matrix models techniques. Both methods lead to the
conclusion that the model has for all values of the parameters
of the model. In this way it is possible to understand the absence of a
continuous transition
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