The Quantum Curriculum Transformation Framework for the development of Quantum Information Science and Technology Education

The field of Quantum Information Science and Technology (QIST) is booming. Due to this, many new educational courses and programs are needed in order to prepare a workforce for the developing industry. Owing to its specialist nature, teaching approaches in this field can suffer from being disconnected to the substantial degree of science education research which aims to support the best approaches to teaching in STEM fields. In order to connect these two communities with a pragmatic and repeatable methodology, we have generated an innovative approach, the Quantum Curriculum Transformation Framework (QCTF), intended to provide a didactical perspective on the creation and transformation of quantum technologies curricula. For this, we propose a decision tree consisting of four steps: 1. choose a topic, 2. choose one or more targeted skills, 3. choose a learning goal and 4. choose a teaching approach that achieves this goal. We show how this can be done using an example curriculum and more specifically quantum teleportation as a basic concept of quantum communication within this curriculum. By approaching curriculum creation and transformation in this way, educational goals and outcomes are more clearly defined which is in the interest of the individual and the industry alike. The framework is intended to structure the narrative of QIST teaching, and will form a basis for further research in the didactics of QIST, as the need for high quality education in this field continues to grow.Comment: 19+12 pages, 10 figures. S. Goorney and J. Bley contributed equally to this wor

Modelling assisted tunneling on the Bloch sphere using the Quantum Composer

The Bloch-sphere representation is a rather simple geometric model for all possible quantum states of a two-level system. In this article, we propose a simple geometric model for the time dynamics of a qubit based on the Bloch-sphere representation. The model can be applied both to time-independent and time-dependent Hamiltonians. As explicit application, we consider time dynamics of a particle in a double-well potential. In particular, we adopt a recent method for off-resonant excitations, the so-called SUPER principle (Swing-UP of the quantum emitter population) in the context of quantum tunneling. We show that the tunneling probability can be enhanced by orders of magnitude when an appropriate oscillation of the potential height is introduced. Driven by a collaborative approach we call educator-developer dialogue, an updated version of the software Quantum Composer is presented. Here it is used for educational purposes, to map the two lowest energy states of the 1D-Schr\"odinger equation to the Bloch sphere representation, leading to a rather clear and intuitive physical picture for the pertinent time dynamics.Comment: 18 pages, 10 figures, submitted to European Journal of Physic

Old name, new face: a systematic analysis of flexor digitorum superficialis muscle with "chiasma antebrachii"

he gross anatomy of the forearm flexors, particularly that of the flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS) muscle, has been described and graphically illustrated in several anatomical books and atlases starting in the middle of the century before last. However, in anatomical dissection studies as well as in clinical-anatomical courses training muscle-specific targeted injections due to movement disorders such as dystonia or spasticity, it has become apparent that there is a need for a closer investigation of the complex construction of the FDS muscle. To this end, we studied the structure of the muscle bellies and tendons of FDS on 46 human body donates that have been used either in our dissection or clinical-anatomical training courses. With this, we demonstrate here the topographical configuration of the individual muscle belly for each of digits 2 through 5 and the exact paths of their tendons until their passing through the carpal tunnel. Furthermore, we demonstrate the presence of a chiasm of the FDS tendons for the digits 2 and 3, approximately 3-4 cm proximal of the carpal tunnel. Thus, we introduce herewith the terminology “chiasma antebrachii”. These findings were confirmed in situ by imaging of fixed human body donates via MRI and corroborated by MRI and ultrasound imaging in two volunteers. Taken together, the present findings enable an updated understanding of the complex organization of the heads, bellies, and tendons of FDS that is relevant not only for anatomical teaching but also clinical interventions

Determination of culture design spaces in shaken disposable cultivation systems for CHO suspension cell cultures

Processes involving mammalian cell cultures - especially CHO suspension cells - dominate biopharmaceutical manufacturing. These processes are usually developed in small scale orbitally shaken cultivation systems, and thoroughly characterizing these cultivation systems is crucial to their application in research and the subsequent scale-up to production processes. With the knowledge of process engineering parameters such as oxygen transfer rate, mixing time, and power input, in combination with the demands set by the biological production system, biomass growth and product yields can be anticipated and even increased. However, the available data sources for orbitally shaken cultivation systems are often incomplete and thus not sufficient enough to generate suitable cultivation requirements. Furthermore, process engineering knowledge is inapplicable if it is not linked to the physiological demands of the cells. In the current study, a simple yet comprehensive approach for the characterization and design space prediction of orbitally shaken single-use cultivation systems is presented, including the “classical” Erlenmeyer shake flask, the cylindrical TubeSpin bioreactor and the alternately designed Optimum Growth flask. Cultivations were performed inside and outside the design space to validate the defined culture conditions, so that cultivation success (desired specific growth rates and viable cell densities) could be achieved for each cultivation system

Physics competitions in the time of a pandemic: 3D printing as a new approach to the quantitative investigation of Cartesian divers at home

Despite the difficult circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemics, physics students can tackle interesting questions that are part of physics competitions as the German Physicists’ Tournament (GPT) 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemics in 2020, many competitions such as the GPT are held online. Furthermore, the usual options of equipment offered by the supervising university institutions could not be used by the students. The problems of the GPT 2020 therefore had to be chosen in such a way that they could be examined at home using simple means. One of these supposedly simple but profound experiments—the Cartesian diver—is described in this article. The physics of the Cartesian diver has been discussed before Fakhruddin (2003 Phys. Teach. 41 53), Güémez et al (2002 Am. J. Phys. 70 710) and De Luca and Ganci (2011 Phys. Educ. 46 528), as well as various modifications (Ivanov and Nikolov 2019 Phys. Educ. 55 025006). We present a new way of investigating Cartesian divers quantitatively by using 3D printing and common household materials. The paper is addressed to undergraduate students and educators teaching physics at university

Visualizing Entanglement in multi-Qubit Systems

In the field of quantum information science and technology, the representation and visualization of quantum states and related processes are essential for both research and education. In this context, a focus especially lies on ensembles of few qubits. There exist many powerful representations for single-qubit and multi-qubit systems, such as the famous Bloch sphere and generalizations. Here, we utilize the dimensional circle notation as a representation of such ensembles, adapting the so-called circle notation of qubits and the idea of representing the n-particle system in an n-dimensional space. We show that the mathematical conditions for separability lead to symmetry conditions of the quantum state visualized, offering a new perspective on entanglement in few-qubit systems and therefore on various quantum algorithms. In this way, dimensional notations promise significant potential for conveying nontrivial quantum entanglement properties and processes in few-qubit systems to a broader audience, and could enhance understanding of these concepts as a bridge between intuitive quantum insight and formal mathematical descriptions.Comment: 22 pages, 20 figure

Performance of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) in comparison to conventional computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for the detection of bone invasion in oral squamous cell cancer (OSCC): a prospective study

Background Oral squamous carcinoma (OSCC) is often diagnosed at late stages and bone erosion or invasion of the jawbone is frequently present. Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are known to have high diagnostic sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies in detecting these bone affections in patients suffering from OSCC. To date, the existing data regarding the impact of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) have been weak. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate whether CBCT is a suitable tool to detect bone erosion or invasion in patients with OSCC. Methods We investigated in a prospective trial the impact of CBCT in the diagnosis of bone erosion or invasion in patients with OSCC who underwent surgery. Every participant received a CBCT, CT, and MRI scan during staging. Imaging modalities were evaluated by two specialists in oral and maxillofacial surgery (CBCT) and two specialists in radiology (CT and MRI) in a blinded way, to determine whether a bone affection was present or not. Reporting used the following 3-point system: no bony destruction (“0”), cortical bone erosion (“1”), or medullary bone invasion (“2”). Histological examination or a follow-up served to calculate the sensitivities, specificities, and accuracies of the imaging modalities. Results Our results revealed high diagnostic sensitivities (95.6%, 84.4%, and 88.9%), specificities (87.0%, 91.7%, and 91.7%), and accuracies (89.5%, 89.5%, and 90.8%) for CBCT, CT, and MRI. A pairwise comparison found no statistical difference between CBCT, CT, and MRI. Conclusion Our data support the routine use of CBCT in the diagnosis of bone erosion and invasion in patients with OSCC as diagnostic accuracy is equal to CT and MRI, the procedure is cost-effective, and it can be performed during initial contact with the patient

Optimization of Cities through Green Spaces

� reviewed paper REAL CORP 2023 Proceedings/Tagungsband 18-20 September 2023 – https://www.corp.at ISBN 978-3-9504945-2-5. Editors: M. SCHRENK, V. V: POPOVICH, P. ZEILE, P. ELISEI, C.BEYER, J. RYSER, H. R. KAUFMANN – Ljubljana, Slovenia 575 Optimization of Cities through Green Spaces Hans Rüdiger Kaufmann, Thomas Walch, Gamze Ünsal-Peter, Danny Westphal, Thomas Schäfer, Stefan Bley, Matthias Rädle (Hans Rüdiger Kaufmann, University of Applied Management Studies; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) (Thomas Walch, Factory Agency; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) (Gamze Ünsal-Peter, Hochschule Mannheim; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) (Danny Westphal, Hochschule Mannheim; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) (Thomas Schäfer, Hochschule Mannheim; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) (Stefan Bley, City of Mannheim; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) (Matthias Rädle, Hochschule Mannheim; Mannheim, DE; [email protected]) 1 ABSTRACT In general, the trend prevailed in recent years that the effects of civilization's interventions in environmental conditions have not been as prominent in publications as they were before the outbreak of the Corona pandemic. The Corona pandemic has focused attention on the most pressing problems in recent years, such as, in metrological terms, the dispersion of liquid aerosols. Although incidences due to Corona are still extremely high, and the number of days of illness has a massive impact on industrial and societal processes, Corona is no longer considered the No. 1 issue. This is due in particular to the lower mortality that has resulted from the immunization of the population and the attenuation of the dangerousness of the new generations of the pathogen. By pushing the topic of Corona off the front pages of journals, previously discussed priorities are increasingly resurfacing. Against this backdrop, the long ‘dead’ discussion about the occurrence and effects of particulate matter is gaining momentum again. This paper revisits a previous Real Corp conference paper (Westphal et al., 2022), in which the authors suggest and explain the contributions of an innovative measurement device (ProxiCube) developed by the City of Mannheim’s ecosystem addressing the key success factors for awarded Smart Cities and the various factors of an urban management model. This paper exemplifies the cube’s contribution by a specifically designed and conducted research experiment. In the research setting of the City of Mannheim, a city in the forefront of the Smart City movement in Germany, the empirical part of the paper comprises the parameters of liquid aerosol, dry particulate matter, CO2, humidity, temperature, pressure and light conditions which were measured by innovative and internationally awarded air quality measurement devices (ProxiCube) (see Westphal et al., 2022) simultaneously at five parallel measurement points of the city at a high data rate. With the measurement constellation, influences can be visualized such as the daily course of all these measured variables at a busy street juxtaposed to the backyard of adjacent buildings or to the building itself implying a crucial impact for the citizens’ life quality

Architecture of the fungal nuclear pore inner ring complex

The nuclear pore complex (NPC) constitutes the sole gateway for bidirectional nucleocytoplasmic transport. We present the reconstitution and interdisciplinary analyses of the ~425-kDa inner ring complex (IRC), which forms the central transport channel and diffusion barrier of the NPC, revealing its interaction network and equimolar stoichiometry. The Nsp1•Nup49•Nup57 channel nucleoporin hetero-trimer (CNT) attaches to the IRC solely through the adaptor nucleoporin Nic96. The CNT•Nic96 structure reveals that Nic96 functions as an assembly sensor that recognizes the three dimensional architecture of the CNT, thereby mediating the incorporation of a defined CNT state into the NPC. We propose that the IRC adopts a relatively rigid scaffold that recruits the CNT to primarily form the diffusion barrier of the NPC, rather than enabling channel dilation