Grover's algorithm on a Feynman computer

We present an implementation of Grover's algorithm in the framework of Feynman's cursor model of a quantum computer. The cursor degrees of freedom act as a quantum clocking mechanism, and allow Grover's algorithm to be performed using a single, time-independent Hamiltonian. We examine issues of locality and resource usage in implementing such a Hamiltonian. In the familiar language of Heisenberg spin-spin coupling, the clocking mechanism appears as an excitation of a basically linear chain of spins, with occasional controlled jumps that allow for motion on a planar graph: in this sense our model implements the idea of "timing" a quantum algorithm using a continuous-time random walk. In this context we examine some consequences of the entanglement between the states of the input/output register and the states of the quantum clock

POROUS MEDIA MICROSTRUCTURE RECONSTRUCTION USING PIXEL-BASED AND OBJECT-BASED SIMULATED ANNEALING – COMPARISON WITH OTHER RECONSTRUCTION METHODS

In this contribution the issue of the stochastic reconstruction of particulatemedia from 2D photomicrographic images is addressed with particular reference to pore space connectivity. The reconstruction of porous bodies in 2D or 3D space was achieved by using simulated annealing techniques. Two methods were proposed to reconstruct a well connected pore space. The first, named PSA (Pixel-based Simulated Annealing), a pixel-movement based, three constraints were found to be necessary for  the successful reconstruction of well connected pore space: the two-pointcorrelation function, the d3-4 distance transform distribution and the  linealpath function for the pore phase. The second, named OSA (Object-based Simulated Annealing), only constrains the two-point correlation function. Following several researches which tried to reconstruct porous media using pixel-movement based simulated techniques, we propose a new parameter to add a microstructure descriptor, but we also propose a new technique, based in moving the microstructure grains (spheres) instead of the pixels. Both methods were applied to reconstruct reservoir rocks microstructures, and the 2D and 3D results were compared with microstructures reconstructed by truncated Gaussian methods. The PSA resulted in microstructures characterized by poor pore space connectivity, and by artificial patterns, while the OSA reconstructed microstructures with good pore space connectivity. These results indicate that the OSA method can reconstruct better microstructures than the present methods

The digital whomanities project. Best practices for digital pedagogy in the pandemic era

This paper aims to enter the ongoing debate about the critical issues of digital pedagogy through the presentation of Digital WHOmanities, a series of online conferences and workshops held at the University of Bologna. Distance learning has become one of the most discussed topics in educational institutions during the spread of Covid-19, revealing a discrepancy between the rapid development of technology and the ability of learning environments to adapt to this turn. In view of this ongoing debate, Digital WHOmanities tried to define the complex and multifaceted figure of the digital humanist and to provide a methodological framework that could foster further online academic initiatives. Specifically, the accurate organization of timing and contents and the adoption of synchronous and asynchronous approaches have highlighted the effectiveness of flexible digital didactics

The power of quantum systems on a line

We study the computational strength of quantum particles (each of finite dimensionality) arranged on a line. First, we prove that it is possible to perform universal adiabatic quantum computation using a one-dimensional quantum system (with 9 states per particle). This might have practical implications for experimentalists interested in constructing an adiabatic quantum computer. Building on the same construction, but with some additional technical effort and 12 states per particle, we show that the problem of approximating the ground state energy of a system composed of a line of quantum particles is QMA-complete; QMA is a quantum analogue of NP. This is in striking contrast to the fact that the analogous classical problem, namely, one-dimensional MAX-2-SAT with nearest neighbor constraints, is in P. The proof of the QMA-completeness result requires an additional idea beyond the usual techniques in the area: Not all illegal configurations can be ruled out by local checks, so instead we rule out such illegal configurations because they would, in the future, evolve into a state which can be seen locally to be illegal. Our construction implies (assuming the quantum Church-Turing thesis and that quantum computers cannot efficiently solve QMA-complete problems) that there are one-dimensional systems which take an exponential time to relax to their ground states at any temperature, making them candidates for being one-dimensional spin glasses.Comment: 21 pages. v2 has numerous corrections and clarifications, and most importantly a new author, merged from arXiv:0705.4067. v3 is the published version, with additional clarifications, publisher's version available at http://www.springerlink.co

Quantum Annealing and Analog Quantum Computation

We review here the recent success in quantum annealing, i.e., optimization of the cost or energy functions of complex systems utilizing quantum fluctuations. The concept is introduced in successive steps through the studies of mapping of such computationally hard problems to the classical spin glass problems. The quantum spin glass problems arise with the introduction of quantum fluctuations, and the annealing behavior of the systems as these fluctuations are reduced slowly to zero. This provides a general framework for realizing analog quantum computation.Comment: 22 pages, 7 figs (color online); new References Added. Reviews of Modern Physics (in press

Quantum Simulations of Classical Annealing Processes

We describe a quantum algorithm that solves combinatorial optimization problems by quantum simulation of a classical simulated annealing process. Our algorithm exploits quantum walks and the quantum Zeno effect induced by evolution randomization. It requires order $1/\sqrt{\delta}$ steps to find an optimal solution with bounded error probability, where $\delta$ is the minimum spectral gap of the stochastic matrices used in the classical annealing process. This is a quadratic improvement over the order $1/\delta$ steps required by the latter.Comment: 4 pages - 1 figure. This work differs from arXiv:0712.1008 in that the quantum Zeno effect is implemented via randomization in the evolutio

On the path integral representation for quantum spin models and its application to the quantum cavity method and to Monte Carlo simulations

The cavity method is a well established technique for solving classical spin models on sparse random graphs (mean-field models with finite connectivity). Laumann et al. [arXiv:0706.4391] proposed recently an extension of this method to quantum spin-1/2 models in a transverse field, using a discretized Suzuki-Trotter imaginary time formalism. Here we show how to take analytically the continuous imaginary time limit. Our main technical contribution is an explicit procedure to generate the spin trajectories in a path integral representation of the imaginary time dynamics. As a side result we also show how this procedure can be used in simple heat-bath like Monte Carlo simulations of generic quantum spin models. The replica symmetric continuous time quantum cavity method is formulated for a wide class of models, and applied as a simple example on the Bethe lattice ferromagnet in a transverse field. The results of the methods are confronted with various approximation schemes in this particular case. On this system we performed quantum Monte Carlo simulations that confirm the exactness of the cavity method in the thermodynamic limit.Comment: 25 pages, 15 figures, typos correcte

POROUS MEDIA MICROSTRUCTURE RECONSTRUCTION USING PIXEL-BASED AND OBJECT-BASED SIMULATED ANNEALING – COMPARISON WITH OTHER RECONSTRUCTION METHODS

In this contribution the issue of the stochastic reconstruction of particulatemedia from 2D photomicrographic images is addressed with particular reference to pore space connectivity. The reconstruction of porous bodies in 2D or 3D space was achieved by using simulated annealing techniques. Two methods were proposed to reconstruct a well connected pore space. The first, named PSA (Pixel-based Simulated Annealing), a pixel-movement based, three constraints were found to be necessary for  the successful reconstruction of well connected pore space: the two-pointcorrelation function, the d3-4 distance transform distribution and the  linealpath function for the pore phase. The second, named OSA (Object-based Simulated Annealing), only constrains the two-point correlation function. Following several researches which tried to reconstruct porous media using pixel-movement based simulated techniques, we propose a new parameter to add a microstructure descriptor, but we also propose a new technique, based in moving the microstructure grains (spheres) instead of the pixels. Both methods were applied to reconstruct reservoir rocks microstructures, and the 2D and 3D results were compared with microstructures reconstructed by truncated Gaussian methods. The PSA resulted in microstructures characterized by poor pore space connectivity, and by artificial patterns, while the OSA reconstructed microstructures with good pore space connectivity. These results indicate that the OSA method can reconstruct better microstructures than the present methods

Oleate but not stearate induces the regulatory phenotype of myeloid suppressor cells

Tumor infiltrating myeloid cells play contradictory roles in the tumor development. Dendritic cells and classical activated macrophages support anti- tumor immune activity via antigen presentation and induction of pro- inflammatory immune responses. Myeloid suppressor cells (MSCs), for instance myeloid derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) or tumor associated macrophages play a critical role in tumor growth. Here, treatment with sodium oleate, an unsaturated fatty acid, induced a regulatory phenotype in the myeloid suppressor cell line MSC-2 and resulted in an increased suppression of activated T cells, paralleled by increased intracellular lipid droplets formation. Furthermore, sodium oleate potentiated nitric oxide (NO) production in MSC-2, thereby increasing their suppressive capacity. In primary polarized bone marrow cells, sodium oleate (C18:1) and linoleate (C18:2), but not stearate (C18:0) were identified as potent FFA to induce a regulatory phenotype. This effect was abrogated in MSC-2 as well as primary cells by specific inhibition of droplets formation while the inhibition of de novo FFA synthesis proved ineffective, suggesting a critical role for exogenous FFA in the functional induction of MSCs. Taken together our data introduce a new unsaturated fatty acid-dependent pathway shaping the functional phenotype of MSCs, facilitating the tumor escape from the immune system

The diminishing role of hubs in dynamical processes on complex networks

It is notoriously difficult to predict the behaviour of a complex self-organizing system, where the interactions among dynamical units form a heterogeneous topology. Even if the dynamics of each microscopic unit is known, a real understanding of their contributions to the macroscopic system behaviour is still lacking. Here we develop information-theoretical methods to distinguish the contribution of each individual unit to the collective out-of-equilibrium dynamics. We show that for a system of units connected by a network of interaction potentials with an arbitrary degree distribution, highly connected units have less impact on the system dynamics as compared to intermediately connected units. In an equilibrium setting, the hubs are often found to dictate the long-term behaviour. However, we find both analytically and experimentally that the instantaneous states of these units have a short-lasting effect on the state trajectory of the entire system. We present qualitative evidence of this phenomenon from empirical findings about a social network of product recommendations, a protein-protein interaction network, and a neural network, suggesting that it might indeed be a widespread property in nature.Comment: Published versio