Entanglement in fermionic systems

The anticommuting properties of fermionic operators, together with the presence of parity conservation, affect the concept of entanglement in a composite fermionic system. Hence different points of view can give rise to different reasonable definitions of separable and entangled states. Here we analyze these possibilities and the relationship between the different classes of separable states. We illustrate the differences by providing a complete characterization of all the sets defined for systems of two fermionic modes. The results are applied to Gibbs states of infinite chains of fermions whose interaction corresponds to a XY-Hamiltonian with transverse magnetic field.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, 4 table

Sequentially generated states for the study of two dimensional systems

Matrix Product States can be defined as the family of quantum states that can be sequentially generated in a one-dimensional system. We introduce a new family of states which extends this definition to two dimensions. Like in Matrix Product States, expectation values of few body observables can be efficiently evaluated and, for the case of translationally invariant systems, the correlation functions decay exponentially with the distance. We show that such states are a subclass of Projected Entangled Pair States and investigate their suitability for approximating the ground states of local Hamiltonians.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Konzeption und Untersuchung eines technologiegestützten Selbstcoachings als Intervention zur Förderung von ergebnisorientierter Selbstreflexion bei Studierenden am Karlsruher Institut für Technologie (KIT)

In einer dynamischen Arbeitswelt voller Möglichkeiten und Herausforderungen wächst der Unterstützungsbedarf bei der Bewältigung komplexer Probleme und bei der Entscheidungsfindung. Es gibt viele Wege um mit Herausforderungen umzugehen, dennoch kann die Komplexität von Herausforderungen zur Überforderung führen. Zudem sind Entscheidungen oftmals unter Zeitdruck zu fällen. Diese in der Arbeitswelt verbreiteten Bedingungen finden sich in ähnlicher Weise bereits im Studium. So ist es ratsam, möglichst früh den geeigneten Umgang mit Herausforderungen zu erlernen. Selbstreflexion ‒ angeregt durch Selbstcoaching ‒ kann ein möglicher Weg sein, die Herausforderungen zu bewältigen. Technologiegestütztes Selbstcoaching bietet zudem besondere Möglichkeiten zur Einbeziehung der Zielgruppe „Studierende“. In der hiermit vorgelegten Arbeit geht es um die Frage ob und wie eine ergebnisorientierte Selbstreflexion bei Studierenden am KIT durch ein technologiegestütztes Selbstcoaching gefördert werden kann. Die Kernfrage der Untersuchung lautet dementsprechend: Kann ergebnisorientierte Selbstreflexion durch technologiegestütztes Selbstcoaching (mittels einer Selbstcoaching-App) gefördert werden? Die Konzeption des Selbstcoachings und der zu implementierenden App basiert auf aktuellen Studien zu technologiegestütztem Selbstcoaching, E-Coaching und Tools in diesem Bereich. Das verwendete Selbstcoaching-Konzept orientiert sich an dem Vorgehen der „Karlsruher Schule“ (vgl. Berninger-Schäfer 2011, S. 84). Der Untersuchungsaufbau für die Haupthypothese folgt einem Prä-Post-Warte-Kontrollgruppendesign, um die Wirkung des technologiegestützten Selbstcoachings auf die individuelle ergebnisorientierte Selbstreflexion zu erfassen. Die Probandengruppe bestand aus 70 Personen wovon 34 der Interventionsgruppe (IG) und 36 der Kontrollgruppe (KG) zugehörig waren. Die Auswertung zeigt signifikante Ergebnisse bezüglich der ergebnisorientierten Selbstreflexion der Studierenden. Insgesamt konnte die Haupthypothese der Untersuchung bestätigt und technologiegestütztes Selbstcoaching professionell konzipiert und wissenschaftlich fundiert werden. Damit leistet die vorliegende Arbeit einen Beitrag zur Professionalisierung im Coaching bezogen auf Selbstcoaching und technologiegestütztes Selbstcoaching

Melatonin improves memory acquisition under stress independent of stress hormone release

Rationale: Animal studies suggest that the pineal hormone melatonin influences basal stress hormone levels and dampens hormone reactivity to stress. Objectives: We investigated whether melatonin also has a suppressive effect on stress-induced catecholamine and cortisol release in humans. As stress hormones affect memory processing, we further examined a possible accompanying modulation of memory function. Materials and methods: Fifty healthy young men received a single oral dose of either 3mg melatonin (n = 27) or placebo medication (n = 23). One hour later, they were exposed to a standardized psychosocial laboratory stressor (Trier Social Stress Test). During stress, subjects encoded objects distributed in the test room, for which memory was assessed a day later ("memory encoding under stress”). Fifteen minutes following stress, memory retrieval for words learnt the day before was tested ("memory retrieval after stress”). Plasma epinephrine and norepinephrine levels, salivary free cortisol levels and psychological responses (attention, wakefulness) were repeatedly measured before and after stress exposure. Results: Melatonin specifically enhanced recognition memory accuracy of objects encoded under stress (p < 0.001). In contrast, 15min after stress, when cortisol levels were highest, retrieval of memories acquired the day before was not influenced by melatonin. Moreover, melatonin did not influence stress-induced elevation of catecholamine and cortisol levels which in turn did not correlate with the effects of melatonin on memory. Conclusions: The findings point to a primary action of melatonin on central nervous stimulus processing under conditions of stress and possibly on memory consolidation and exclude any substantial suppressive action of the substance on hormonal stress response

Up-regulation of the anti-inflammatory adipokine adiponectin in acute liver failure in mice

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Recent reports suggest that the adipose tissue and adipokines are potent modulators of inflammation. However, there is only scarce knowledge on the functional role and regulation of endogenous adiponectin in non-fat tissues such as the liver under conditions of acute inflammation. METHODS: In the present study, we investigated adiponectin expression in healthy murine liver tissue and under inflammatory conditions in vivo. RESULTS: Adiponectin mRNA was readily detectable in healthy liver tissue and further increased in ConA-mediated acute liver failure. Adiponectin protein expression was mainly found in hepatic endothelial cells. In vitro adiponectin mRNA expression was detectable in several cell types, including primary hepatic sinusoidal endothelial cells, stellate cells, and macrophages. Mice pretreated with adiponectin before ConA administration developed reduced hepatic injury as shown by decreased release of transaminases and reduced hepatocellular apoptotis. Of note, TNF-alpha levels were not affected by adiponectin, whereas IL-10 production was increased. Neutralisation of IL-10 diminished the protective effect of adiponectin. CONCLUSIONS: Adiponectin expression is up-regulated in ConA-mediated acute liver failure. Therefore, adiponectin might play a role in the control and limitation of inflammation in the liver. Moreover, our data suggest a role for IL-10 in adiponectin-mediated hepatoprotection

Prüfungsbestimmungen und Prüfungspraxis: ein Spannungsfeld im Fortbildungsprüfungswesen

Die Regelung des heterogenen Bildungs- und Prüfungsbereichs führt notwendigerweise zu einem Aufeinandertreffen und Zusammenarbeiten von Akteuren, die unterschiedliche Positionen vertreten und unterschiedlich handeln. In einem Forschungsprojekt, gefördert durch das Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF), wurde die "Umsetzung der Prüfungsbestimmungen von Fortbildungsprüfungen in der Prüfungspraxis" beispielhaft anhand von drei bundeseinheitlich geregelten Fortbildungsordnungen und -prüfungen "Industriemeister/in-Fachrichtung Metall"; "Technische(r) Fachwirt/in" und "Betriebswirt/in nach dem Berufsbildungsgesetz" untersucht. Die durch die Prüfungsbestimmungen vorgegebenen Anforderungen setzen die am Prüfungsprozess Beteiligten unter einen erheblichen Leistungsdruck und erfordern die Übernahme von Verantwortung. Das damit einhergehende Spannungsverhältnis zwischen Prüfungsbestimmungen, Prüfungspraxis und (subjektiven) Ansprüchen an Fortbildungsprüfungen wirkt sich auf alle Beteiligten aus und erfordert dauerhaft intensive Diskussionen. Spannung und Diskussionen wirken förderlich auf die anspruchsvolle Gestaltung der Prüfung. Dabei wird im Fall der untersuchten Fortbildungsprüfungen, innerhalb der eingeräumten Handlungsfreiheiten, eine angemessene Variabilität der Prüfungspraxis verwirklicht

Water security in times of climate change and intractability : Reconciling conflict by transforming security concerns into equity concerns

This paper considers how to achieve equitable water governance and the flow-on effects it has in terms of supporting sustainable development, drawing on case studies from the international climate change adaptation and governance project (CADWAGO). Water governance, like many other global issues, is becoming increasingly intractable (wicked) with climate change and is, by the international community, being linked to instances of threats to human security, thewar in the Sudanese Darfur and more recently the acts of terrorism perpetuated by ISIS. In this paper, we ask the question: how can situations characterized by water controversy (exacerbated by the uncertainties posed by climate change) be reconciled? The main argument is based on a critique of the way the water security discourse appropriates expert (normal) claims about human-biophysical relationships. When water challenges become increasingly securitized by the climate change discourse it becomes permissible to enact processes that legitimately transgress normative positions through post-normal actions. In contrast, the water equity discourse offers an alternative reading of wicked and post-normal water governance situations. We contend that by infusing norm critical considerations into the process of securitization, new sub-national constellations of agents will be empowered to enact changes; thereby bypassing vicious cycles of power brokering that characterize contemporary processes intended to address controversies

The application of a social cognition model in explaining fruit intake in Austrian, Norwegian and Spanish schoolchildren using structural equation modelling

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The aim of this paper was to test the goodness of fit of the Attitude – Social influence – self-Efficacy (ASE) model in explaining schoolchildren's intentions to eat fruit and their actual fruit intake in Austria, Norway and Spain; to assess how well the model could explain the observed variance in intention to eat fruit and in reported fruit intake and to investigate whether the same model would fit data from all three countries.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Samples consisted of schoolchildren from three of the countries participating in the cross-sectional part of the Pro Children project. Sample size varied from 991 in Austria to 1297 in Spain. Mean age ranged from 11.3 to 11.4 years. The initial model was designed using items and constructs from the Pro Children study. Factor analysis was conducted to test the structure of the measures in the model. The Norwegian sample was used to test the latent variable structure, to make a preliminary assessment of model fit, and to modify the model to increase goodness of fit with the data. The original and modified models were then applied to the Austrian and Spanish samples. All model analyses were carried out using structural equation modelling techniques.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The ASE-model fitted the Norwegian and Spanish data well. For Austria, a slightly more complex model was needed. For this reason multi-sample analysis to test equality in factor structure and loadings across countries could not be used. The models explained between 51% and 69% of the variance in intention to eat fruit, and 27% to 38% of the variance in reported fruit intake.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Structural equation modelling showed that a rather parsimonious model was useful in explaining the variation in fruit intake of 11-year-old schoolchildren in Norway and Spain. For Austria, more modifications were needed to fit the data.</p

Photodistributed telangiectasia following use of escitalopram.

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