423 research outputs found
Stochastic programming for multiple-leg network revenue management
Airline seat inventory control is a very profitable tool in the airline industry. Mathematical programming models provide booking limits or bid-prices for all itineraries and fare classes based on demand forecasts. But the actual revenue generated in the booking process fails to meet expectations. Simple deterministic models based on expected demand generate better revenue than more advanced probabilistic models. Recently suggested models put even more effort into demand forecasting. We will show that the dynamic booking process rather than the demand forecasts needs to be addressed. In particular the nesting strategies applied in booking control will counter-effect the profitability of advanced estimation of booking limits and bid-prices.simulation;revenue management;mathematical programming
Stochastic programming for multiple-leg network revenue management
Airline seat inventory control is a very profitable tool in the airline industry. Mathematical programming models provide booking limits or bid-prices for all itineraries and fare classes based on demand forecasts. But the actual revenue generated in the booking process fails to meet expectations. Simple deterministic models based on expected demand generate better revenue than more advanced probabilistic models. Recently suggested models put even more effort into demand forecasting. We will show that the dynamic booking process rather than the demand forecasts needs to be addressed. In particular the nesting strategies applied in booking control will counter-effect the profitability of advanced estimation of booking limits and bid-prices
Determinants of DNA yield and purity collected with buccal cell samples
Buccal cells are an important source of DNA in epidemiological studies, but little is known about factors that influence amount and purity of DNA. We assessed these factors in a self-administered buccal cell collection procedure, obtained with three cotton swabs. In 2,451 patients DNA yield and in 1,033 patients DNA purity was assessed. Total DNA yield ranged from 0.08 to 1078.0 μg (median 54.3 μg; mean 82.2 μg ± SD 92.6). The median UV 260:280 ratio, was 1.95. Samples from men yielded significantly more DNA (median 58.7 μg) than those from women (median 44.2 μg). Diuretic drug users had significantly lower purity (median 1.92) compared to other antihypertensive drug users (1.95). One technician obtained significantly lower DNA yields. Older age was associated with lower DNA purity. In conclusion, DNA yield from buccal swabs was higher in men and DNA purity was associated with age and the use of diuretics
Human CD1c+ DCs are critical cellular mediators of immune responses induced by immunogenic cell death
Chemotherapeutics, including the platinum compounds oxaliplatin (OXP) and cisplatin (CDDP), are standard care of treatment for cancer. Although chemotherapy has long been considered immunosuppressive, evidence now suggests that certain cytotoxic agents can efficiently stimulate antitumor responses, through the induction of a form of apoptosis, called immunogenic cell death (ICD). ICD is characterized by exposure of calreticulin and heat shock proteins (HSPs), secretion of ATP and release of high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1). Proper activation of the immune system relies on the integration of these signals by dendritic cells (DCs). Studies on the crucial role of DCs, in the context of ICD, have been performed using mouse models or human in vitro-generated monocyte-derived DCs (moDCs), which do not fully recapitulate the in vivo situation. Here, we explore the effect of platinum-induced ICD on phenotype and function of human blood circulating DCs. Tumor cells were treated with OXP or CDDP and induction of ICD was investigated. We show that both platinum drugs triggered translocation of calreticulin and HSP70, as well as the release of ATP and HMGB1. Platinum treatment increased phagocytosis of tumor fragments by human blood DCs and enhanced phenotypic maturation of blood myeloid and plasmacytoid DCs. Moreover, upon interaction with platinum-treated tumor cells, CD1c+ DCs efficiently stimulated allogeneic proliferation of T lymphocytes. Together, our observations indicate that platinum-treated tumor cells may exert an active stimulatory effect on human blood DCs. In particular, these data suggest that CD1c+ DCs are critical mediators of immune responses induced by ICD
Correlated electrons in the presence of disorder
Several new aspects of the subtle interplay between electronic correlations
and disorder are reviewed. First, the dynamical mean-field theory
(DMFT)together with the geometrically averaged ("typical") local density of
states is employed to compute the ground state phase diagram of the
Anderson-Hubbard model at half-filling. This non-perturbative approach is
sensitive to Anderson localization on the one-particle level and hence can
detect correlated metallic, Mott insulating and Anderson insulating phases and
can also describe the competition between Anderson localization and
antiferromagnetism. Second, we investigate the effect of binary alloy disorder
on ferromagnetism in materials with -electrons described by the periodic
Anderson model. A drastic enhancement of the Curie temperature caused by
an increase of the local -moments in the presence of disordered conduction
electrons is discovered and explained.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figures, final version, typos corrected, references
updated, submitted to Eur. Phys. J. for publication in the Special Topics
volume "Cooperative Phenomena in Solids: Metal-Insulator Transitions and
Ordering of Microscopic Degrees of Freedom
BP Piscium: its flaring disc imaged with SPHERE/ZIMPOL*
InstrumentationStars and planetary system
Avalanche Dynamics in Evolution, Growth, and Depinning Models
The dynamics of complex systems in nature often occurs in terms of
punctuations, or avalanches, rather than following a smooth, gradual path. A
comprehensive theory of avalanche dynamics in models of growth, interface
depinning, and evolution is presented. Specifically, we include the Bak-Sneppen
evolution model, the Sneppen interface depinning model, the Zaitsev flux creep
model, invasion percolation, and several other depinning models into a unified
treatment encompassing a large class of far from equilibrium processes. The
formation of fractal structures, the appearance of noise, diffusion with
anomalous Hurst exponents, Levy flights, and punctuated equilibria can all be
related to the same underlying avalanche dynamics. This dynamics can be
represented as a fractal in spatial plus one temporal dimension. We develop
a scaling theory that relates many of the critical exponents in this broad
category of extremal models, representing different universality classes, to
two basic exponents characterizing the fractal attractor. The exact equations
and the derived set of scaling relations are consistent with numerical
simulations of the above mentioned models.Comment: 27 pages in revtex, no figures included. Figures or hard copy of the
manuscript supplied on reques
Precise Measurements of Beam Spin Asymmetries in Semi-Inclusive production
We present studies of single-spin asymmetries for neutral pion
electroproduction in semi-inclusive deep-inelastic scattering of 5.776 GeV
polarized electrons from an unpolarized hydrogen target, using the CEBAF Large
Acceptance Spectrometer (CLAS) at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator
Facility. A substantial amplitude has been measured in the
distribution of the cross section asymmetry as a function of the azimuthal
angle of the produced neutral pion. The dependence of this amplitude
on Bjorken and on the pion transverse momentum is extracted with
significantly higher precision than previous data and is compared to model
calculations.Comment: to be submitted PL
Transversity in hard exclusive electroproduction of pseudoscalar mesons
Estimates for electroproduction of pseudoscalar mesons at small values of
skewness are presented. Cross sections and asymmetries for these processes are
calculated within the handbag approach which is based on factorization in hard
parton subprocesses and soft generalized parton distributions (GPDs). The
latter are constructed from double distributions. Transversity GPDs are taken
into account; they are accompanied by twist-3 meson wave functions. For most
pseudoscalar-meson channels a combination of H-tilde_T plays a
particularly prominent role. This combination of GPDs which we constrain by
moments obtained from lattice QCD, leads with the exception of the pi+ and eta'
channels, to large transverse cross sections.Comment: 36 pages and 27 figure
A new measurement of the Collins and Sivers asymmetries on a transversely polarised deuteron target
New high precision measurements of the Collins and Sivers asymmetries of
charged hadrons produced in deep-inelastic scattering of muons on a
transversely polarised 6LiD target are presented. The data were taken in 2003
and 2004 with the COMPASS spectrometer using the muon beam of the CERN SPS at
160 GeV/c. Both the Collins and Sivers asymmetries turn out to be compatible
with zero, within the present statistical errors, which are more than a factor
of 2 smaller than those of the published COMPASS results from the 2002 data.
The final results from the 2002, 2003 and 2004 runs are compared with naive
expectations and with existing model calculations.Comment: 40 pages, 28 figure
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