748 research outputs found
Queues with delays in two-state strategies and Lévy input
We consider a reflected Lévy process without negative jumps, starting at the origin. When the reflected process first upcrosses level K, a timer is activated. After D time units, the timer expires and the Lévy exponent of the Lévy process is changed. As soon as the process hits zero again, the Lévy exponent reverses to the original function. If the process has reached the origin before the timer expires then the Lévy exponent does not change. Using martingale techniques, we analyze the steady-state distribution of the resulting process, reflected at the origin. We pay special attention to the cases of deterministic and exponential timers, and to the following three special Lévy processes: (i) a compound Poisson process plus negative drift (corresponding to an M/G/1 queue), (ii) Brownian motion, and (iii) a Lévy process that is a subordinator until the timer expires. © Applied Probability Trust 2008
Deep learning approach for breast cancer diagnosis
Breast cancer is one of the leading fatal disease worldwide with high risk
control if early discovered. Conventional method for breast screening is x-ray
mammography, which is known to be challenging for early detection of cancer
lesions. The dense breast structure produced due to the compression process
during imaging lead to difficulties to recognize small size abnormalities.
Also, inter- and intra-variations of breast tissues lead to significant
difficulties to achieve high diagnosis accuracy using hand-crafted features.
Deep learning is an emerging machine learning technology that requires a
relatively high computation power. Yet, it proved to be very effective in
several difficult tasks that requires decision making at the level of human
intelligence. In this paper, we develop a new network architecture inspired by
the U-net structure that can be used for effective and early detection of
breast cancer. Results indicate a high rate of sensitivity and specificity that
indicate potential usefulness of the proposed approach in clinical use
Anomalous negative excursion of carbon isotope in organic carbon after the last Paleoproterozoic glaciation in North America
Early Paleoproterozoic time (2.5–2.0 Ga) spanned a critical phase in Earth's history, characterized by repeated glaciations and an increase in atmospheric oxygen (the Great Oxidation Event (GOE)). Following the last and most intense glaciation of this period, marine carbonates record a large positive excursion of δ^(13)C value (termed the “Lomagundi event”) between about 2.2 and 2.1 Ga coinciding with the global appearances of red beds and sulfates, which suggest an accumulation of high levels of atmospheric oxygen. Here we report the discovery of large negative excursions of δ^(13)C in organic matter (down to −55‰) from quartzose sandstones (of the Marquette Range and the Huronian Supergroups, North America) intermediate in age between the last Paleoproterozoic glaciation and the possible onset of the Lomagundi event. The negative excursion is concomitant with the appearance of intensely weathered quartzose sandstones, which may represent hot and humid conditions. There are some interpretations that potentially explain the negative excursions: (1) redeposition of older ^(13)C-depleted kerogen, (2) later post-depositional infiltration of oil, (3) active methane productions by methanogens in shallow-marine environments, or (4) dissociation of methane hydrate. If the latter two were the case, they would provide clues for understanding the environmental change connecting the intense glaciation and an increase in oxygen
A L\'evy input fluid queue with input and workload regulation
We consider a queuing model with the workload evolving between consecutive
i.i.d.\ exponential timers according to a
spectrally positive L\'evy process that is reflected at zero, and
where the environment equals 0 or 1. When the exponential clock
ends, the workload, as well as the L\'evy input process, are modified; this
modification may depend on the current value of the workload, the maximum and
the minimum workload observed during the previous cycle, and the environment
of the L\'evy input process itself during the previous cycle. We analyse
the steady-state workload distribution for this model. The main theme of the
analysis is the systematic application of non-trivial functionals, derived
within the framework of fluctuation theory of L\'evy processes, to workload and
queuing models
Optical spectroscopy of complex open 4-shell ions Sn-Sn
We analyze the complex level structure of ions with many-valence-electron
open [Kr] 4 sub-shells (=7-4) with ab initio
calculations based on configuration-interaction many-body perturbation theory
(CI+MBPT). Charge-state-resolved optical and extreme ultraviolet (EUV) spectra
of Sn-Sn ions were obtained using an electron beam ion trap.
Semi-empirical spectral fits carried out with the orthogonal parameters
technique and Cowan code calculations lead to 90 identifications of
magnetic-dipole transitions and the determination of 79 energy
ground-configuration levels, questioning some earlier EUV-line assignments. Our
results, the most complete data set available to date for these ground
configurations, confirm the ab initio predictive power of CI+MBPT calculations
for the these complex electronic systems.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figure
Queues with Lévy input and hysteretic control
We consider a (doubly) reflected Lévy process where the Lévy exponent is controlled by a hysteretic policy consisting of two stages. In each stage there is typically a different service speed, drift parameter, or arrival rate. We determine the steady-state performance, both for systems with finite and infinite capacity. Thereby, we unify and extend many existing results in the literature, focusing on the special cases of M/G/1 queues and Brownian motion. © The Author(s) 2009
Thermal decontamination of sewage sludge
Every year a huge amount of sewage sludge is formed at municipal wastewater
treatment plants. Sewage sludge contains a sufficient amount of biogenic elements and organic
components, which characterizes them as possible raw materials for the production of organic
fertilizers. However, direct incorporation of these sediments into the soil is impossible due to the
fact that, in addition to useful organic and mineral components, they contain pathogens, viruses
and helminth eggs. The aim of the study was to optimise thermal disinfection conditions for
preparing of safety sewage sludge fertilizer. Laboratory studies were carried out using sediments
from wastewater treatment plants of some cities. During laboratory experiments, the conditions
for thermal disinfection of sediments – the thickness of the sediment layer, the air temperature in
the disinfection furnace, and the treatment time of the sediment – were determined. When
conducting industrial tests of a conveyor-type sediment decontamination furnace, the operating
conditions of the furnace were determined, i.e., the temperature regimes of the sludge heating
zone, the decontamination zone and the cooling zone, and the optimum parameters of the sludge
layer thickness on the conveyor and the conveyor speed were determined
First Test of Lorentz Invariance in the Weak Decay of Polarized Nuclei
A new test of Lorentz invariance in the weak interactions has been made by
searching for variations in the decay rate of spin-polarized 20Na nuclei. This
test is unique to Gamow-Teller transitions, as was shown in the framework of a
recently developed theory that assumes a Lorentz symmetry breaking background
field of tensor nature. The nuclear spins were polarized in the up and down
direction, putting a limit on the amplitude of sidereal variations of the form
|(\Gamma_{up} - \Gamma_{down})| / (\Gamma_{up} + \Gamma_{down}) < 3 * 10^{-3}.
This measurement shows a possible route toward a more detailed testing of
Lorentz symmetry in weak interactions.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure
- …