The Complexity of Finding Small Triangulations of Convex 3-Polytopes

The problem of finding a triangulation of a convex three-dimensional polytope with few tetrahedra is proved to be NP-hard. We discuss other related complexity results.Comment: 37 pages. An earlier version containing the sketch of the proof appeared at the proceedings of SODA 200

Evolutionary -Laplacian with convection and reaction under dynamic boundary condition

Möten med palliativa cancerpatienter utgör en del av allmänsjuksköterskans yrkesområde. Osäkerhet som leder till svårigheter att bemöta dessa patienter finns hos sjuksköterskor och sjuksköterskestudenter. Syftet var att undersöka vilka tankar, känslor och prioriteringar som var viktiga för den palliativa cancerpatienten samt vad som utmärkte en god relation till sjuksköterskan. En systematisk litteraturstudie enligt Goodmans sju steg genomfördes modifierat. I resultatet framkommer att patienter känner rädsla för att bli en börda och upplever osäkerhet samt ett kroppsligt förfall. Patienternas prioriteringar handlade om symtomkontroll, bevarandet av värdighet, det dagliga livet samt relationen till anhöriga. Att sjuksköterskan såg och tillgodosåg patientens behov samt hjälpte och skyddade patienten ingav tillit och hopp vilket stärkte relationen och kommunikationen.Encounters with palliative cancer patients are a part of the nursing profession. Uncertainty that leads to difficulties to respond to these patients exists in both nurses and nursing students. The aim was to explore which thoughts, feelings and priorities were important for the palliative cancer patient and features important for a good relationship with the nurse. A systematic literature review after Goodman´s seven steps was carried out with modifications. Emerging in the result was patient´s thoughts about fear of becoming a burden, feelings of insecurity and a bodily decay. Patient´s priorities concerned symptom control, preservation of dignity, daily life and the relationship with relatives. Nurses who saw and met patient´s needs and also helped and protected them gave trust and hope which strengthened the relationship and communication

A conic manifold perspective of elliptic operators on graphs

We give a simple, explicit, sufficient condition for the existence of a sector of minimal growth for second order regular singular differential operators on graphs. We specifically consider operators with a singular potential of Coulomb type and base our analysis on the theory of elliptic cone operators.Comment: 18 page

Quantum ergodicity for graphs related to interval maps

We prove quantum ergodicity for a family of graphs that are obtained from ergodic one-dimensional maps of an interval using a procedure introduced by Pakonski et al (J. Phys. A, v. 34, 9303-9317 (2001)). As observables we take the L^2 functions on the interval. The proof is based on the periodic orbit expansion of a majorant of the quantum variance. Specifically, given a one-dimensional, Lebesgue-measure-preserving map of an interval, we consider an increasingly refined sequence of partitions of the interval. To this sequence we associate a sequence of graphs, whose directed edges correspond to elements of the partitions and on which the classical dynamics approximates the Perron-Frobenius operator corresponding to the map. We show that, except possibly for subsequences of density 0, the eigenstates of the quantum graphs equidistribute in the limit of large graphs. For a smaller class of observables we also show that the Egorov property, a correspondence between classical and quantum evolution in the semiclassical limit, holds for the quantum graphs in question.Comment: 20 pages, 1 figur

Effect of lactoperoxidase on the antimicrobial effectiveness of the thiocyanate hydrogen peroxide combination in a quantitative suspension test

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The positive antimicrobial effects of increasing concentrations of thiocyanate (SCN-) and H₂O₂on the human peroxidase defence system are well known. However, little is known about the quantitative efficacy of the human peroxidase thiocyanate H₂O₂system regarding Streptococcus mutans and sanguinis, as well as Candida albicans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the enzyme lactoperoxidase on the bactericidal and fungicidal effectiveness of a thiocyanate-H₂O₂combination above the physiological saliva level. To evaluate the optimal effectiveness curve, the exposure times were restricted to 1, 3, 5, and 15 min.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The bactericidal and fungicidal effects of lactoperoxidase on Streptococcus mutans and sanguinis and Candida albicans were evaluated by using two test mixtures of a 2.0% (w/v; 0.34 M) thiocyanate and 0.4% (w/v; 0.12 M) hydrogen peroxide solution, one without and one with lactoperoxidase. Following the quantitative suspension tests (EN 1040 and EN 1275), the growth of surviving bacteria and fungi in a nutrient broth was measured. The reduction factor in the suspension test without lactoperoxidase enzyme was < 1 for all three tested organisms. Thus, the mixtures of 2.0% (w/v; 0.34 M) thiocyanate and 0.4% (w/v; 0.12 M) hydrogen peroxide had no in vitro antimicrobial effect on Streptococcus mutans and sanguinis or Candida albicans. However, the suspension test with lactoperoxidase showed a high bactericidal and fungicidal effectiveness in vitro.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The tested thiocyanate and H₂O₂mixtures showed no relevant antimicrobial effect. However, by adding lactoperoxidase enzyme, the mixtures became not only an effective bactericidal (Streptococcus mutans and sanguinis) but also a fungicidal (Candida albicans) agent.</p

Trekstock RENEW: evaluation of a 12-week exercise referral programme for young adult cancer survivors delivered by a cancer charity.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the uptake and effect of RENEW, a 12-week exercise referral programme for young adult cancer survivors delivered by Trekstock, a UK-based cancer charity. METHODS: The RENEW programme provides one-to-one individually tailored support from a level-4 cancer-rehabilitation-qualified gym instructor, free gym membership and access to information resources online. Objective and self-report data on cardiorespiratory function, strength, body composition, fatigue, sleep quality and general health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was collected from participants before the programme (week 0), immediately after (week 12) and 1 month later (week 16). RESULTS: Forty-eight young adults (83% female; mean age, 29 years) with a history of cancer took part within the 12-week programme and completed the evaluation measures. Physical activity (PA) levels significantly increased following the programme and remained raised at follow-up. Improvements in physical function were significant: peak expiratory flow (mean change, 30.96, p = 0.003), sit-and-reach test (mean change, 6.55 ± 4.54, p < 0.0001), and 6-mine-walk test (mean change, 0.12 ± 0.04, p < 0.0001). No significant changes in BMI, weight or muscle mass were observed. Improvements in fatigue, sleep and HRQoL were observed across the programme and at follow-up (mean change, weeks 0-16; 8.04 ± 1.49 p < 0.01; 1.05 ± 0.49 p < 0.05; and - 0.9 ± 0.46 p = 0.051, respectively). Changes in self-efficacy to exercise and motivations to exercise were not observed at 12 weeks or at follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that the RENEW exercise referral programme has a positive impact upon some domains of physical function and well-being among young adult cancer survivors. IMPLICATION FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: Exercise referral programmes delivered by charity organisations are one means by which PA behaviour change support may be widely disseminated to young adult cancer survivors. Health professionals and charitable bodies specialising in the care of young adults with cancer should look to address factors which prevent engagement and uptake of 'real-world' PA interventions such as the RENEW programme

Erratum: Sequence data and association statistics from 12,940 type 2 diabetes cases and controls.

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2017.179

Interaction of Genetic Mechanisms Regulating Methionine Concentration in Maize Grain

Methionine is a limiting amino acid in poultry diets, so methionine supplementation is typically required to meet nutritional demands. Maize (Zea mays L.) varieties with increased methionine levels have been developed using three different approaches: (i) increased levels of the methionine-rich 10-kDa zein, (ii) disruption of protein deposition using the floury-2 allele, and (iii) recurrent selection. The goal of this study was to characterize the interactions of these three mechanisms for increasing methionine to develop optimal breeding strategies for this limiting amino acid. A complete diallel mating design was used to produce all possible hybrid combinations, which were analyzed by Griffing’s experimental Method 3, Model 1. Grain samples were analyzed for methionine concentration using a microbial method. The significantly negative general combining ability (GCA) for inbred RS2 suggests it did not perform well in hybrid combination, while the significant specific combining abilities (SCAs) suggest that some specific combinations of mechanisms worked well together in this germplasm. Analysis of grain quality traits by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) revealed that the high-methionine hybrid combinations had starch and oil concentrations similar to all other hybrids but had elevated protein concentrations. In some hybrids in this study, dzr1 and recurrent selection were effective mechanisms to elevate methionine in hybrid combination and did not have an associated yield penalty relative to other hybrids produced in the study, which supports their use in a high-methionine maize breeding program