510 research outputs found
Wideband and on-chip excitation for dynamical spin injection into graphene
Graphene is an ideal material for spin transport as very long spin relaxation
times and lengths can be achieved even at room temperature. However, electrical
spin injection is challenging due to the conductivity mismatch problem. Spin
pumping driven by ferromagnetic resonance is a neat way to circumvent this
problem as it produces a pure spin current in the absence of a charge current.
Here, we show spin pumping into single layer graphene in micron scale devices.
A broadband on-chip RF current line is used to bring micron scale permalloy
(NiFe) pads to ferromagnetic resonance with a magnetic field
tunable resonance condition. At resonance, a spin current is emitted into
graphene, which is detected by the inverse spin hall voltage in a close-by
platinum electrode. Clear spin current signals are detected down to a power of
a few milliwatts over a frequency range of 2 GHz to 8 GHz. This compact device
scheme paves the way for more complex device structures and allows the
investigation of novel materials.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
Repeated testing improves achievement in a blended learning approach for risk competence training of medical students: results of a randomized controlled trial
Background: Adequate estimation and communication of risks is a critical competence of physicians. Due to an evident lack of these competences, effective training addressing risk competence during medical education is needed. Test-enhanced learning has been shown to produce marked effects on achievements. This study aimed to investigate the effect of repeated tests implemented on top of a blended learning program for risk competence.
Methods: We introduced a blended-learning curriculum for risk estimation and risk communication based on a set of operationalized learning objectives, which was integrated into a mandatory course “Evidence-based Medicine” for third-year students. A randomized controlled trial addressed the effect of repeated testing on achievement as measured by the students’ pre- and post-training score (nine multiple-choice items). Basic numeracy and statistical literacy were assessed at baseline. Analysis relied on descriptive statistics (histograms, box plots, scatter plots, and summary of descriptive measures), bootstrapped confidence intervals, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), and effect sizes (Cohen’s d, r) based on adjusted means and standard deviations.
Results: All of the 114 students enrolled in the course consented to take part in the study and were assigned to either the intervention or control group (both: n = 57) by balanced randomization. Five participants dropped out due to non-compliance (control: 4, intervention: 1). Both groups profited considerably from the program in general (Cohen’s d for overall pre vs. post scores: 2.61). Repeated testing yielded an additional positive effect: while the covariate (baseline score) exhibits no relation to the post-intervention score, F(1, 106) = 2.88, p > .05, there was a significant effect of the intervention (repeated tests scenario) on learning achievement, F(1106) = 12.72, p < .05, d = .94, r = .42 (95% CI: [.26, .57]). However, in the subgroup of participants with a high initial numeracy score no similar effect could be observed.
Conclusion: Dedicated training can improve relevant components of risk competence of medical students. An already promising overall effect of the blended learning approach can be improved significantly by implementing a test-enhanced learning design, namely repeated testing. As students with a high initial numeracy score did not profit equally from repeated testing, target-group specific opt-out may be offered
EAPC task force on education for psychologists in palliative care
It is argued that psychological aspects of care and psychosocial problems are essential components of palliative care. However, the provision of appropriate services remains somewhat arbitrary. Unlike medical and nursing care, which are clearly delivered by doctors and nurses respectively, psychological and psychosocial support in palliative care are not assigned exclusively to psychologists. It is generally expected that all professionals working in palliative care should have some knowledge of the psychological dynamics in terminal illness, as well as skills in communication and psychological risk assessment. On the one hand, palliative care education programmes for nurses and doctors comprise a considerable amount of psychological and psychosocial content. On the other hand, only a few palliative care associations provide explicit information on the role and tasks of psychologists in palliative care. Psychologists’ associations do not deal much with this issue either. If they refer to it at all, it is in the context of the care of the aged, end-of-life care or how to deal with grief
Ordered Level Planarity, Geodesic Planarity and Bi-Monotonicity
We introduce and study the problem Ordered Level Planarity which asks for a
planar drawing of a graph such that vertices are placed at prescribed positions
in the plane and such that every edge is realized as a y-monotone curve. This
can be interpreted as a variant of Level Planarity in which the vertices on
each level appear in a prescribed total order. We establish a complexity
dichotomy with respect to both the maximum degree and the level-width, that is,
the maximum number of vertices that share a level. Our study of Ordered Level
Planarity is motivated by connections to several other graph drawing problems.
Geodesic Planarity asks for a planar drawing of a graph such that vertices
are placed at prescribed positions in the plane and such that every edge is
realized as a polygonal path composed of line segments with two adjacent
directions from a given set of directions symmetric with respect to the
origin. Our results on Ordered Level Planarity imply -hardness for any
with even if the given graph is a matching. Katz, Krug, Rutter and
Wolff claimed that for matchings Manhattan Geodesic Planarity, the case where
contains precisely the horizontal and vertical directions, can be solved in
polynomial time [GD'09]. Our results imply that this is incorrect unless
. Our reduction extends to settle the complexity of the Bi-Monotonicity
problem, which was proposed by Fulek, Pelsmajer, Schaefer and
\v{S}tefankovi\v{c}.
Ordered Level Planarity turns out to be a special case of T-Level Planarity,
Clustered Level Planarity and Constrained Level Planarity. Thus, our results
strengthen previous hardness results. In particular, our reduction to Clustered
Level Planarity generates instances with only two non-trivial clusters. This
answers a question posed by Angelini, Da Lozzo, Di Battista, Frati and Roselli.Comment: Appears in the Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on
Graph Drawing and Network Visualization (GD 2017
Straight-line Drawability of a Planar Graph Plus an Edge
We investigate straight-line drawings of topological graphs that consist of a
planar graph plus one edge, also called almost-planar graphs. We present a
characterization of such graphs that admit a straight-line drawing. The
characterization enables a linear-time testing algorithm to determine whether
an almost-planar graph admits a straight-line drawing, and a linear-time
drawing algorithm that constructs such a drawing, if it exists. We also show
that some almost-planar graphs require exponential area for a straight-line
drawing
Universality-class dependence of energy distributions in spin glasses
We study the probability distribution function of the ground-state energies
of the disordered one-dimensional Ising spin chain with power-law interactions
using a combination of parallel tempering Monte Carlo and branch, cut, and
price algorithms. By tuning the exponent of the power-law interactions we are
able to scan several universality classes. Our results suggest that mean-field
models have a non-Gaussian limiting distribution of the ground-state energies,
whereas non-mean-field models have a Gaussian limiting distribution. We compare
the results of the disordered one-dimensional Ising chain to results for a
disordered two-leg ladder, for which large system sizes can be studied, and
find a qualitative agreement between the disordered one-dimensional Ising chain
in the short-range universality class and the disordered two-leg ladder. We
show that the mean and the standard deviation of the ground-state energy
distributions scale with a power of the system size. In the mean-field
universality class the skewness does not follow a power-law behavior and
converges to a nonzero constant value. The data for the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick
model seem to be acceptably well fitted by a modified Gumbel distribution.
Finally, we discuss the distribution of the internal energy of the
Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model at finite temperatures and show that it behaves
similar to the ground-state energy of the system if the temperature is smaller
than the critical temperature.Comment: 15 pages, 20 figures, 1 tabl
Intermediate states in Andreev bound state fusion
Hybridization is a very fundamental quantum mechanical phenomenon, with the
text book example of binding two hydrogen atoms in a hydrogen molecule. In
semiconductor physics, a quantum dot (QD) can be considered as an artificial
atom, with two coupled QDs forming a molecular state, and two electrons on a
single QD the equivalent of a helium atom. Here we report tunnel spectroscopy
experiments illustrating the hybridization of another type of discrete quantum
states, namely of superconducting subgap states that form in segments of a
semiconducting nanowire in contact with superconducting reservoirs. We show and
explain a collection of intermediate states found in the process of merging
individual bound states, hybridizing with a central QD and eventually
coherently linking the reservoirs. These results may serve as a guide in future
Majorana fusion experiments and explain a large variety of recent bound state
experiments
The critical exponents of the two-dimensional Ising spin glass revisited: Exact Ground State Calculations and Monte Carlo Simulations
The critical exponents for of the two-dimensional Ising spin glass
model with Gaussian couplings are determined with the help of exact ground
states for system sizes up to and by a Monte Carlo study of a
pseudo-ferromagnetic order parameter. We obtain: for the stiffness exponent
, for the magnetic exponent
and for the chaos exponent . From Monte Carlo simulations we
get the thermal exponent . The scaling prediction is
fulfilled within the error bars, whereas there is a disagreement with the
relation .Comment: 8 pages RevTeX, 7 eps-figures include
Recommended from our members
Assessing agreement between preclinical magnetic resonance imaging and histology: An evaluation of their image qualities and quantitative results
One consequence of demographic change is the increasing demand for biocompatible materials for use in implants and prostheses. This is accompanied by a growing number of experimental animals because the interactions between new biomaterials and its host tissue have to be investigated. To evaluate novel materials and engineered tissues the use of nondestructive imaging modalities have been identified as a strategic priority. This provides the opportunity for studying interactions repeatedly with individual animals, along with the advantages of reduced biological variability and decreased number of laboratory animals. However, histological techniques are still the golden standard in preclinical biomaterial research. The present article demonstrates a detailed method comparison between histology and magnetic resonance imaging. This includes the presentation of their image qualities as well as the detailed statistical analysis for assessing agreement between quantitative measures. Exemplarily, the bony ingrowth of tissue engineered bone substitutes for treatment of a cleft-like maxillary bone defect has been evaluated. By using a graphical concordance analysis the mean difference between MRI results and histomorphometrical measures has been examined. The analysis revealed a slightly but significant bias in the case of the bone volume ðbiasHisto MRI: Bonevolume = 2: 40 %, p < 0: 005) and a clearly significant deviation for the remaining defect width ðbiasHisto MRI: Defectwidth = 6: 73 %, p 0: 005Þ: But the study although showed a considerable effect of the analyzed section position to the quantitative result. It could be proven, that the bias of the data sets was less originated due to the imaging modalities, but mainly on the evaluation of different slice positions. The article demonstrated that method comparisons not always need the use of an independent animal study, additionally
- …