118 research outputs found
Duckietown: An Innovative Way to Teach Autonomy
Teaching robotics is challenging because it is a multidisciplinary, rapidly evolving and experimental discipline that integrates cutting-edge hardware and software. This paper describes the course design and first implementation of Duckietown, a vehicle autonomy class that experiments with teaching innovations in addition to leveraging modern educational theory for improving student learning. We provide a robot to every student, thanks to a minimalist platform design, to maximize active learning; and introduce a role-play aspect to increase team spirit, by modeling the entire class as a fictional start-up (Duckietown Engineering Co.). The course formulation leverages backward design by formalizing intended learning outcomes (ILOs) enabling students to appreciate the challenges of: (a) heterogeneous disciplines converging in the design of a minimal self-driving car, (b) integrating subsystems to create complex system behaviors, and (c) allocating constrained computational resources. Students learn how to assemble, program, test and operate a self-driving car (Duckiebot) in a model urban environment (Duckietown), as well as how to implement and document new features in the system. Traditional course assessment tools are complemented by a full scale demonstration to the general public. The “duckie” theme was chosen to give a gender-neutral, friendly identity to the robots so as to improve student involvement and outreach possibilities. All of the teaching materials and code is released online in the hope that other institutions will adopt the platform and continue to evolve and improve it, so to keep pace with the fast evolution of the field.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Award IIS #1318392)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Award #1405259
High-fidelity quantum driving
The ability to accurately control a quantum system is a fundamental
requirement in many areas of modern science such as quantum information
processing and the coherent manipulation of molecular systems. It is usually
necessary to realize these quantum manipulations in the shortest possible time
in order to minimize decoherence, and with a large stability against
fluctuations of the control parameters. While optimizing a protocol for speed
leads to a natural lower bound in the form of the quantum speed limit rooted in
the Heisenberg uncertainty principle, stability against parameter variations
typically requires adiabatic following of the system. The ultimate goal in
quantum control is to prepare a desired state with 100% fidelity. Here we
experimentally implement optimal control schemes that achieve nearly perfect
fidelity for a two-level quantum system realized with Bose-Einstein condensates
in optical lattices. By suitably tailoring the time-dependence of the system's
parameters, we transform an initial quantum state into a desired final state
through a short-cut protocol reaching the maximum speed compatible with the
laws of quantum mechanics. In the opposite limit we implement the recently
proposed transitionless superadiabatic protocols, in which the system perfectly
follows the instantaneous adiabatic ground state. We demonstrate that
superadiabatic protocols are extremely robust against parameter variations,
making them useful for practical applications.Comment: 17 pages, 4 figure
Laguerre-Gaussian wave propagation in parabolic media
We report a new set of Laguerre-Gaussian wave-packets that propagate with
periodical self-focusing and finite beam width in weakly guiding inhomogeneous
media. These wave-packets are solutions to the paraxial form of the wave
equation for a medium with parabolic refractive index. The beam width is
defined as a solution of the Ermakov equation associated to the harmonic
oscillator, so its amplitude is modulated by the strength of the medium
inhomogeneity. The conventional Laguerre-Gaussian modes, available for
homogenous media, are recovered as a particular case.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
Diabetic foot infections: a team-oriented review of medical and surgical management
As the domestic and international incidence of diabetes and metabolic syndrome continues to rise, health care providers need to continue improving management of the long-term complications of the disease. Emergency department visits and hospital admissions for diabetic foot infections are increasingly commonplace, and a like-minded multidisciplinary team approach is needed to optimize patient care. Early recognition of severe infections, medical stabilization, appropriate antibiotic selection, early surgical intervention, and strategic plans for delayed reconstruction are crucial components of managing diabetic foot infections. The authors review initial medical and surgical management and staged surgical reconstruction of diabetic foot infections in the inpatient setting
Major prospects for exploring canine vector borne diseases and novel intervention methods using 'omic technologies
Canine vector-borne diseases (CVBDs) are of major socioeconomic importance worldwide. Although many studies have provided insights into CVBDs, there has been limited exploration of fundamental molecular aspects of most pathogens, their vectors, pathogen-host relationships and disease and drug resistance using advanced, 'omic technologies. The aim of the present article is to take a prospective view of the impact that next-generation, 'omics technologies could have, with an emphasis on describing the principles of transcriptomic/genomic sequencing as well as bioinformatic technologies and their implications in both fundamental and applied areas of CVBD research. Tackling key biological questions employing these technologies will provide a 'systems biology' context and could lead to radically new intervention and management strategies against CVBDs
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