3,567 research outputs found
Biology helps you to win a game
We present a game of interacting agents which mimics the complex dynamics
found in many natural and social systems. These agents modify their strategies
periodically, depending on their performances using genetic crossover
mechanisms, inspired by biology. We study the performances of the agents under
different conditions, and how they adapt themselves. In addition the dynamics
of the game is investigated.Comment: 4 pages including 6 figures. Uses REVTeX4. Submitted for Conference
Proceedings of the "Unconventional Applications of Statistical Physics",
Kolkat
Faster all-pairs shortest paths via circuit complexity
We present a new randomized method for computing the min-plus product
(a.k.a., tropical product) of two matrices, yielding a faster
algorithm for solving the all-pairs shortest path problem (APSP) in dense
-node directed graphs with arbitrary edge weights. On the real RAM, where
additions and comparisons of reals are unit cost (but all other operations have
typical logarithmic cost), the algorithm runs in time
and is correct with high probability.
On the word RAM, the algorithm runs in time for edge weights in . Prior algorithms used either time for
various , or time for various
and .
The new algorithm applies a tool from circuit complexity, namely the
Razborov-Smolensky polynomials for approximately representing
circuits, to efficiently reduce a matrix product over the algebra to
a relatively small number of rectangular matrix products over ,
each of which are computable using a particularly efficient method due to
Coppersmith. We also give a deterministic version of the algorithm running in
time for some , which utilizes the
Yao-Beigel-Tarui translation of circuits into "nice" depth-two
circuits.Comment: 24 pages. Updated version now has slightly faster running time. To
appear in ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing (STOC), 201
Synthesizing Imperative Programs from Examples Guided by Static Analysis
We present a novel algorithm that synthesizes imperative programs for
introductory programming courses. Given a set of input-output examples and a
partial program, our algorithm generates a complete program that is consistent
with every example. Our key idea is to combine enumerative program synthesis
and static analysis, which aggressively prunes out a large search space while
guaranteeing to find, if any, a correct solution. We have implemented our
algorithm in a tool, called SIMPL, and evaluated it on 30 problems used in
introductory programming courses. The results show that SIMPL is able to solve
the benchmark problems in 6.6 seconds on average.Comment: The paper is accepted in Static Analysis Symposium (SAS) '17. The
submission version is somewhat different from the version in arxiv. The final
version will be uploaded after the camera-ready version is read
One Dimensional Kondo Lattice Model Studied by the Density Matrix Renormalization Group Method
Recent developments of the theoretical investigations on the one-dimensional
Kondo lattice model by using the density matrix renormalization group (DMRG)
method are discussed in this review. Short summaries are given for the
zero-temperature DMRG, the finite-temperature DMRG, and also its application to
dynamic quantities. Away from half-filling, the paramagnetic metallic state is
shown to be a Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid with the large Fermi surface. For the
large Fermi surface its size is determined by the sum of the densities of the
conduction electrons and the localized spins. The correlation exponent K_rho of
this metallic phase is smaller than 1/2. At half-filling the ground state is
insulating. Excitation gaps are different depending on channels, the spin gap,
the charge gap and the quasiparticle gap. Temperature dependence of the spin
and charge susceptibilities and specific heat are discussed. Particularly
interesting is the temperature dependence of various excitation spectra, which
show unusual properties of the Kondo insulators.Comment: 18 pages, 23 Postscript figures, REVTe
Dictionary matching in a stream
We consider the problem of dictionary matching in a stream. Given a set of
strings, known as a dictionary, and a stream of characters arriving one at a
time, the task is to report each time some string in our dictionary occurs in
the stream. We present a randomised algorithm which takes O(log log(k + m))
time per arriving character and uses O(k log m) words of space, where k is the
number of strings in the dictionary and m is the length of the longest string
in the dictionary
Normal extinction and reinstatement of morphine-induced conditioned place preference in the GluA1-KO mouse line
Extinction and reinstatement of morphine-induced conditioned place preference were studied in glutamate α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid-receptor GluA1 subunit-deficient mice (global GluA1-KO mice). In line with previous findings, both acquisition and expression of conditioned place preference to morphine (20 mg/kg, subcutaneously) were fully functional in GluA1 KO mice compared with wild-type littermate controls (GluA1-WT), thus enabling the study of extinction. With a 10-session extinction paradigm, the GluA1 KO mice showed complete extinction similar to that of the GluA1-WT mice. Morphine-induced reinstatement (10 mg/kg, subcutaneously) was detected in both mouse lines. GluA1 KO mice moved more during all the phases of the experiment, including the place conditioning trials, extinction sessions, and place preference tests. The results suggest that the GluA1 subunit may be dispensable or prone to compensation at the neural circuitries delineating extinction and reinstatement. The GluA1 KO mice show altered long-term between-session habituation, which extends longer than previously anticipated.Peer reviewe
Back Reflector with Diffractive Gratings for Light-Trapping in Thin-Film III-V Solar Cells
We report on the development of light-Trapping architectures applied to thin-film solar cells. In particular, we focus on enhancing the absorption at 1-eV spectral range for dilute nitride and quantum dot materials and report on the influence of planar back reflectors on the photovoltaic properties. Moreover, we discuss the properties of polymer diffraction gratings with enhanced light-Trapping capability pointing to advantageous properties of pyramidal gratings. In order to understand the suitability of these polymer grating architectures for space applications, we have performed an electron irradiation study (1 MeV) revealing the absence of reflectance changes up to doses of 1×1015 e-/cm
The Members of the Plakin Family of Proteins Recognized by Paraneoplastic Pemphigus Antibodies Include Periplakin
Sera of patients with paraneoplastic pemphigus (PNP) characteristically immunoprecipitate five proteins, observations confirmed with the sera examined in this study. The proteins characterized thus far as autoantigens in PNP all belong to the plakin family of proteins and include desmoplakin, the 230kDa bullous pemphigoid antigen, and envoplakin. The pattern of bands precipitated from metabolically labeled human keratinocyte extracts by each PNP serum was different, suggesting varying titers of antibodies against unique epitopes in various plakin family members. To further characterize this PNP antibody response, we produced fusion proteins of the homologous tail region of five plakin family members, including the recently cloned periplakin. Immunoblotting of equal amounts of each plakin tail-glutathione S-transferase fusion protein with PNP sera revealed a strong reaction with the envoplakin tail domain. Each sera also recognized periplakin, and certain sera recognized desmoplakin and plectin, and, weakly, bullous pemphigoid antigen 1. PNP sera were affinity purified with periplakin and envoplakin tail fusion proteins. Immunoprecipitation and immunoblotting with these affinity purified antibodies revealed shared as well as unique epitopes in the tail domains of these plakins. This study indicates that a homologous region in the carboxy-terminus of plakins, including the newly characterized periplakin, serves as an antigenic site in PNP
Thin-film InAs/GaAs quantum dot solar cell with planar and pyramidal back reflectors
Quantum dot solar cells are promising for next-generation photovoltaics owing to their potential for improved device efficiency related to bandgap tailoring and quantum confinement of charge carriers. Yet implementing effective photon management to increase the absorptivity of the quantum dots is instrumental. To this end, the performance of thin-film InAs/GaAs quantum dot solar cells with planar and structured back reflectors is reported. The experimental thin-film solar cells with planar reflectors exhibited a bandgap-voltage offset of 0.3 V with an open circuit voltage of 0.884 V, which is one of the highest values reported for quantum dot solar cells grown by molecular beam epitaxy to our knowledge. Using measured external quantum efficiency and current-voltage characteristics, we parametrize a simulation model that was used to design an advanced reflector with diffractive pyramidal gratings revealing a 12-fold increase of the photocurrent generation in the quantum dot layers
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