2,614 research outputs found
Synechococcus distribution and abundance in the San Juan Archipelago, Salish Sea
Synechococcus, a unicellular cyanobacterium of about one micron in size, is one of the most prolific and abundant primary producers worldwide and, hence, has an important role in the phytoplankton community. This study sought to determine 1) the distribution and abundance of Synechococcus in the eastern San Juan Archipelago; 2) the environmental variables related most closely to abundance; and 3) the key grazers of Synechococcus in this ecosystem. Two stations were chosen, East Sound near Orcas Island, WA and Rosario Strait near Lopez Pass, for their differing hydrographic conditions. Sampling was conducted from June to September 2012. Water samples were taken at three depths at both stations twice a month June through August, and then approximately every three days for three weeks in September. A CTD (Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth) was lowered at each station to obtain environmental data from the water column. Water samples were used for nutrient analysis, size-fractionated chlorophyll a analysis, and for the enumeration of Synechococcus and the protist grazer community. Synechococcus abundance rose as high as 1.5 x 104 cells ml-1 at both East Sound and Rosario Strait in August. Synechococcus abundance and depth distribution were nearly the same at both stations despite the well-mixed environment at Rosario and the more frequently stratified environment at East Sound. Both stations were abundant in nitrate+nitrite and phosphate throughout the sampling period. However, chlorophyll a concentrations were unusually low July through August, a season that usually exhibits variable and episodically high concentrations. Of all the environmental variables analyzed, only salinity was correlated with Synechococcus abundance at both stations, and that correlation was negative. The importance of salinity as a predictor of abundance may be due to a physiological effect of fresher water that allows for increased biomass production, or simply to the dominant effect of salinity on water column stratification, which may provide a preferable growth environment for Synechococcus. Ciliates, heterotrophic nanoflagellates, and dinoflagellates were observed with ingested Synechococcus. Surprisingly, nanoflagellates were rarely observed with ingested cells. Dinoflagellates seemed to be the key grazers of Synechococcus in the eastern San Juan Archipelago, but there was no clear temporal pattern to the level of Synechococcus ingestion by any of the aforementioned grazers
Layer by layer generation of cluster states
Cluster states can be used to perform measurement-based quantum computation.
The cluster state is a useful resource, because once it has been generated only
local operations and measurements are needed to perform universal quantum
computation. In this paper, we explore techniques for quickly and
deterministically building a cluster state. In particular we consider
generating cluster states on a qubus quantum computer, a computational
architecture which uses a continuous variable ancilla to generate interactions
between qubits. We explore several techniques for building the cluster, with
the number of operations required depending on whether we allow the ability to
destroy previously created controlled-phase links between qubits. In the case
where we can not destroy these links, we show how to create an n x m cluster
using just 3nm -2n -3m/2 + 3 operations. This gives more than a factor of 2
saving over a naive method. Further savings can be obtained if we include the
ability to destroy links, in which case we only need (8nm-4n-4m-8)/3
operations. Unfortunately the latter scheme is more complicated so choosing the
correct order to interact the qubits is considerably more difficult. A half way
scheme, that keeps a modular generation but saves additional operations over
never destroying links requires only 3nm-2n-2m+4 operations. The first scheme
and the last scheme are the most practical for building a cluster state because
they split up the generation into the repetition of simple sections.Comment: 16 pages, 11 figure
Using Quantum Computers for Quantum Simulation
Numerical simulation of quantum systems is crucial to further our
understanding of natural phenomena. Many systems of key interest and
importance, in areas such as superconducting materials and quantum chemistry,
are thought to be described by models which we cannot solve with sufficient
accuracy, neither analytically nor numerically with classical computers. Using
a quantum computer to simulate such quantum systems has been viewed as a key
application of quantum computation from the very beginning of the field in the
1980s. Moreover, useful results beyond the reach of classical computation are
expected to be accessible with fewer than a hundred qubits, making quantum
simulation potentially one of the earliest practical applications of quantum
computers. In this paper we survey the theoretical and experimental development
of quantum simulation using quantum computers, from the first ideas to the
intense research efforts currently underway.Comment: 43 pages, 136 references, review article, v2 major revisions in
response to referee comments, v3 significant revisions, identical to
published version apart from format, ArXiv version has table of contents and
references in alphabetical orde
Dynamical Decoupling in Optical Fibers: Preserving Polarization Qubits from Birefringent Dephasing
One of the major challenges in quantum computation has been to preserve the
coherence of a quantum system against dephasing effects of the environment. The
information stored in photon polarization, for example, is quickly lost due to
such dephasing, and it is crucial to preserve the input states when one tries
to transmit quantum information encoded in the photons through a communication
channel. We propose a dynamical decoupling sequence to protect photonic qubits
from dephasing by integrating wave plates into optical fiber at prescribed
locations. We simulate random birefringent noise along realistic lengths of
optical fiber and study preservation of polarization qubits through such fibers
enhanced with Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) dynamical decoupling. This
technique can maintain photonic qubit coherence at high fidelity, making a step
towards achieving scalable and useful quantum communication with photonic
qubits.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
Access to Medical Dermatologic Care In the United States
Dermatological complaints account for approximately 6% of all outpatient visits. Many dermatologic conditions necessitate timely and quality care to avert morbidity and mortality. Examples of conditions needing early and comprehensive dermatological treatment include melanoma, the 6th leading cause of cancer in the United States, and psoriasis, a significant cause of disability. Dermatologists provide special expertise in the care of patients with skin disorders. Unfortunately, despite projections of an oversupply of specialists, market demands suggest an undersupply as well as a geographic maldistribution of dermatologists in the United States. Access to efficient dermatological care of high quality is an increasingly important and challenging problem. In examining issues of access, it is important to establish some general definitions. According to the American Heritage Dictionary, 4th edition, accessibility is "the quality of being at hand when needed" or "the attribute of being easy to meet or deal with." For the purposes of this paper, access is defined as the ease with which one needing care can utilize existing, appropriate services. In this regard, good access to care means that appropriate services are readily available to the people who need them. Measures of access to care provide an important means for evaluating the quality of existing health care delivery systems and informing sound policy decisions. To date, most research regarding access to dermatologic care has focused on workforce characteristics. Unfortunately, limitations in access to care extend beyond issues like a shortage of health care providers or facilities, as many factors affect access to health care services. These include, but are not limited to, the balance between supply (i.e. the amount of available and appropriate services) and demand (i.e. the number of needed services), as well as the proximity of the supply relative to the demand (e.g. geographic distribution) and the resources required in utilizing the supply (e.g. insurance, money, time, transportation, etc.). Consequently, this paper will analyze the existing data regarding access to medical dermatologic care in the United States; the current measures used for quantifying and projecting supply and demand; and the feasibility of suggested policies for improving access to dermatological services.Master of Public Healt
Ancilla-based quantum simulation
We consider simulating the BCS Hamiltonian, a model of low temperature
superconductivity, on a quantum computer. In particular we consider conducting
the simulation on the qubus quantum computer, which uses a continuous variable
ancilla to generate interactions between qubits. We demonstrate an O(N^3)
improvement over previous work conducted on an NMR computer [PRL 89 057904
(2002) & PRL 97 050504 (2006)] for the nearest neighbour and completely general
cases. We then go on to show methods to minimise the number of operations
needed per time step using the qubus in three cases; a completely general case,
a case of exponentially decaying interactions and the case of fixed range
interactions. We make these results controlled on an ancilla qubit so that we
can apply the phase estimation algorithm, and hence show that when N \geq 5,
our qubus simulation requires significantly less operations that a similar
simulation conducted on an NMR computer.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figures: V2 added section on phase estimation and
performing controlled unitaries, V3 corrected minor typo
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