643 research outputs found
Scenario analysis for nutrient emission reduction in the European inland waters
International audienceDespite a large body of legislation, high nutrient loads are still emitted in European inland waters. In the present study we evaluate a set of alternative scenarios aiming at reducing nitrogen and phosphorus emissions from anthropogenic activities to all European Seas. In particular, we tested the full implementation of the European Urban Waste Water Directive, which controls emissions from point source. In addition, we associated the full implementation of this Directive with a ban of phosphorus-based laundry detergents. Then we tested two human diet scenarios and their impacts on nutrient emissions. We also developed a scenario based on an optimal use of organic manure. The impacts of all our scenarios were evaluated using a statistical model of nitrogen and phosphorus fate (GREEN) linked to an agro-economic model (CAPRI). We show that the ban of phosphorus-based laundry detergents coupled with the full implementation of the Urban Waste Water Directive is the most effective approach for reducing phosphorus emissions from human based activities. Concerning nitrogen, the highest reductions are obtained with the optimized use of organic manure
The flavor symmetry in the standard model and the triality symmetry
A Dirac fermion is expressed by a 4 component spinor which is a combination
of two quaternions and which can be treated as an octonion. The octonion
possesses the triality symmetry, which defines symmetry of fermion spinors and
bosonic vector fields.
The triality symmetry relates three sets of spinors and two sets of vectors,
which are transformed among themselves via transformations , and . If the electromagnetic (EM) interaction is
sensitive to the triality symmetry, i.e. EM probe selects one triality sector,
EM signals from the 5 transformed world would not be detected, and be treated
as the dark matter. According to an astrophysical measurement, the ratio of the
dark to ordinary matter in the universe as a whole is almost exactly 5. We
expect quarks are insensitive to the triality, and triality will appear as
three times larger flavor degrees of freedom in the lattice simulation.Comment: 16 pages 8 figures, To be published in International Journal of
Modern Physics
Physical properties of noncentrosymmetric superconductor LaIrSi3: A {\mu}SR study
The results of heat capacity C_p(T, H) and electrical resistivity \rho(T,H)
measurements down to 0.35 K as well as muon spin relaxation and rotation
(\muSR) measurements on a noncentrosymmetric superconductor LaIrSi3 are
presented. Powder neutron diffraction confirmed the reported noncentrosymmetric
body-centered tetragonal BaNiSn3-type structure (space group I4\,mm) of
LaIrSi3. The bulk superconductivity is observed below T_c = 0.72(1) K. The
intrinsic \Delta C_e/\gamma_n T_c = 1.09(3) is significantly smaller than the
BCS value of 1.43, and this reduction is accounted by the \alpha-model of BCS
superconductivity. The analysis of the superconducting state C_e(T) data by the
single-band \alpha-model indicates a moderately anisotropic order parameter
with the s-wave gap \Delta(0)/k_B T_c = 1.54(2) which is lower than the BCS
value of 1.764. Our estimates of various normal and superconducting state
parameters indicate a weakly coupled electron-phonon driven type-I s-wave
superconductivity in LaIrSi3. The \muSR results also confirm the conventional
type-I superconductivity in LaIrSi3 with a preserved time reversal symmetry and
hence a singlet pairing superconducting ground state.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, 2 table
On Binary Matroid Minors and Applications to Data Storage over Small Fields
Locally repairable codes for distributed storage systems have gained a lot of
interest recently, and various constructions can be found in the literature.
However, most of the constructions result in either large field sizes and hence
too high computational complexity for practical implementation, or in low rates
translating into waste of the available storage space. In this paper we address
this issue by developing theory towards code existence and design over a given
field. This is done via exploiting recently established connections between
linear locally repairable codes and matroids, and using matroid-theoretic
characterisations of linearity over small fields. In particular, nonexistence
can be shown by finding certain forbidden uniform minors within the lattice of
cyclic flats. It is shown that the lattice of cyclic flats of binary matroids
have additional structure that significantly restricts the possible locality
properties of -linear storage codes. Moreover, a collection of
criteria for detecting uniform minors from the lattice of cyclic flats of a
given matroid is given, which is interesting in its own right.Comment: 14 pages, 2 figure
Steady and Stable: Numerical Investigations of Nonlinear Partial Differential Equations
Excerpt: Mathematics is a language which can describe patterns in everyday life as well as abstract concepts existing only in our minds. Patterns exist in data, functions, and sets constructed around a common theme, but the most tangible patterns are visual. Visual demonstrations can help undergraduate students connect to abstract concepts in advanced mathematical courses. The study of partial differential equations, in particular, benefits from numerical analysis and simulation
A deep learning approach for complex microstructure inference
Automated, reliable, and objective microstructure inference from micrographs is essential for a comprehensive understanding of process-microstructure-property relations and tailored materials development. However, such inference, with the increasing complexity of microstructures, requires advanced segmentation methodologies. While deep learning offers new opportunities, an intuition about the required data quality/quantity and a methodological guideline for microstructure quantification is still missing. This, along with deep learning’s seemingly intransparent decision-making process, hampers its breakthrough in this field. We apply a multidisciplinary deep learning approach, devoting equal attention to specimen preparation and imaging, and train distinct U-Net architectures with 30–50 micrographs of different imaging modalities and electron backscatter diffraction-informed annotations. On the challenging task of lath-bainite segmentation in complex-phase steel, we achieve accuracies of 90% rivaling expert segmentations. Further, we discuss the impact of image context, pre-training with domain-extrinsic data, and data augmentation. Network visualization techniques demonstrate plausible model decisions based on grain boundary morphology
Information knowledge and technology for Development in Africa
Information, knowledge, and technology occupy significant space in the information and knowledge society and ongoing debates on development such as sustainable development goals (SDGs) agenda 2030 and the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). Disruptive technologies and cyber-physical systems, obscuring the lines between the physical, digital and biological, escalated by the COVID-19 pandemic, present a ‘new normal’ that profoundly affects the nature and magnitude of responses required to sustain and benefit from the new developments. Africa, known for late adoption of new technologies and innovations, is leapfrogging development stages in several enviable ways. This book, Information knowledge and technology for development in Africa’, written by eminent African scholars, comprises chapters that satisfactorily address information access, artificial intelligence, information ethics, e-learning, library and information science education (LISE) in the 4IR, data literacy and e-scholarship, and knowledge management, which are increasingly essential for information access, services, and LISE in Africa. We expect the book to support research, teaching and learning in African higher education and worldwide for comparative scholarship
Favourable outcomes for the first 10 years of kidney and pancreas transplantation at Wits Donald Gordon Medical Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa
Background. It is important for centres participating in transplantation in South Africa (SA) to audit their outcomes. Wits Donald Gordon Medical Centre (WDGMC), Johannesburg, SA, opened a transplant unit in 2004. The first 10 years of kidney and pancreas transplantation were reviewed to determine outcomes in respect of recipient and graft survival.Methods. A retrospective review was conducted of all kidney-alone and simultaneous kidney-pancreas (SKP) transplants performed at WDGMC from 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2013, with follow-up to 31 December 2014 to ensure at least 1 year of survival data. Information was accessed using the transplant registers and clinical records in the transplant clinic at WDGMC. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate 1-, 5- and 10-year recipient and graft survival rates for primary (first graft) kidney-alone and SKP transplants.Results. The overall 10-year recipient and graft survival rates were 80.4% and 66.8%, respectively, for kidney-alone transplantation. In the kidney-alone group, children tended towards better recipient and graft survival compared with adults, but this was not statistically significant. In adults, recipient survival was significantly better for living than deceased donor type. Recipient and graft survival were significantly lower in black Africans than in the white (largest proportion in the sample) reference group. For SKP transplants, the 10-year recipient survival rate was 84.7%, while kidney and pancreas graft survival rates were 73.1% and 43.2%, respectively.Conclusion. Outcomes of the first 10 years of kidney and pancreas transplantation at WDGMC compare favourably with local and international survival data
Information knowledge and technology for Development in Africa
Information, knowledge, and technology occupy significant space in the information and knowledge society and ongoing debates on development such as sustainable development goals (SDGs) agenda 2030 and the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). Disruptive technologies and cyber-physical systems, obscuring the lines between the physical, digital and biological, escalated by the COVID-19 pandemic, present a ‘new normal’ that profoundly affects the nature and magnitude of responses required to sustain and benefit from the new developments. Africa, known for late adoption of new technologies and innovations, is leapfrogging development stages in several enviable ways. This book, Information knowledge and technology for development in Africa’, written by eminent African scholars, comprises chapters that satisfactorily address information access, artificial intelligence, information ethics, e-learning, library and information science education (LISE) in the 4IR, data literacy and e-scholarship, and knowledge management, which are increasingly essential for information access, services, and LISE in Africa. We expect the book to support research, teaching and learning in African higher education and worldwide for comparative scholarship
Calculated corrections to superallowed Fermi beta decay: New evaluation of the nuclear-structure-dependent terms
The measured -values for superallowed nuclear
-decay can be used to obtain the value of the vector coupling constant
and thus to test the unitarity of the Cabibbo-Kobayashi-Maskawa matrix. An
essential requirement for this test is accurate calculations for the radiative
and isospin symmetry-breaking corrections that must be applied to the
experimental data. We present a new and consistent set of calculations for the
nuclear-structure-dependent components of these corrections. These new results
do not alter the current status of the unitarity test -- it still fails by more
than two standard deviations -- but they provide calculated corrections for
eleven new superallowed transitions that are likely to become accessible to
precise measurements in the future. The reliability of all calculated
corrections is explored and an experimental method indicated by which the
structure-dependent corrections can be tested and, if necessary, improved.Comment: Revtex4, one figur
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