Quantum-implemented selective reconstruction of high-resolution images

This paper proposes quantum image reconstruction. Input-triggered selection of an image among many stored ones, and its reconstruction if the input is occluded or noisy, has been simulated by a computer program implementable in a real quantum-physical system. It is based on the Hopfield associative net; the quantum-wave implementation bases on holography. The main limitations of the classical Hopfield net are much reduced with the new, original -- quantum-optical -- implementation. Image resolution can be almost arbitrarily increased.Comment: 4 pages, 15 figures, essential

Unconscious perception and communication

In the development of life and mind on earth, consciousness seems to have emerged rather late in the process. Some researchers believe animals as primitive as salamanders have some rudimentary consciousness. However, consciousness appears to be volitional. Humans can perform many functions unconsciously, while being conscious of very little of what is happening to them and in their world. An attention function brings information to our conscious process. We suggest that genuine communications with manmade artifacts, a technological feat not yet achieved, would need to go through a very similar attentional process

A systematic review of the characteristics and needs of older prisoners

The older prisoner population is growing faster than the older general population and placing a strain on prisons. Much of the existing literature focusses on the healthcare needs of, or in-prison initiatives for, older prisoners. Typically, these are responsive and lacking an evidence-based understanding of the characteristics and needs of this group. There is a need to review and understand what the existing evidence base concludes about the needs of this population. This paper presents a systematic review of the existing literature on the needs and characteristics of older people in contact with the criminal justice system. After a thorough search and selection process, 21 papers, from 2002 onwards, were included in the final analysis. The review process was structured through PICOs and reported using PRISMA. The contradictions within the existing evidence base make it difficult to reach firm conclusions about the needs and characteristics of older prisoners. What is clear from the existing research are the relatively high levels of need. There is also some consensus that where older people commit homicide the victim is likely to be an intimate partner. Overall, there a need for consistent recording and reporting of characteristics and demographics and more systematic study design. This paper has highlighted the key findings and limitations in the existing literature. Future research should make use of secondary official data sources to provide a clearer understanding of the characteristics of this group, their routes to prison, their needs, and challenges they present

Grizzly bears in Yellowstone National Park

AbstractThe problem we solved is based on the population of grizzly bears at Yellowstone National Park. Since this population is currently declining, our specific problem centered around a seed group of 52 grizzlies, transported from Yellowstone to another area in the Northwestern United States, similar in climate and availability of proper food. The total land area available for the bears is 1.5 million acres, enough land for 100 bears to thrive. Our problem was to find a harvesting policy to sustain the maximum number of grizzlies on this land.Using the matrix equation Lxi=xi+1 we determined tha this seed population would exceed the level the land area can maintain after 14 years. At this point we began to implement our harvesting procedures. Assuming the bears would be harvested at random, producing a uniform harvesting rate for each age group, we used the matrix equation Lx−HLx=x to solve for a total of 3 percent harvesting yearly after the fourteenth year. Test results confirmed the accuracy of our matrix values

A social network analysis of Irish language use in social media

Statistics show that the world wide web is dominated by a few widely spoken languages. However, in quieter corners of the web, clusters of minority language speakers can be found interacting and sharing content. This study is the first to compare three such clusters of Irish language social media users. Social network analysis of the most active public sites of interaction through Irish – the Irish language blogosphere, the Irish language Twittersphere and a popular Irish language Facebook group – reveals unique networks of individuals communicating through Irish in unique and innovative ways. Firstly, it describes the members and their activity, and the size and structure of the networks they share. Then through focused discourse analysis of the core prolific users in each network it describes how the language has been adapted to computer-mediated communication. This study found that the largest networks of Irish speakers comprised between 150-300 regular participants each. Most members were adults, male, and lived in towns and cities outside of the language’s traditional heartland. Moreover, each group shared one common trait: though scattered geographically, through regular online interaction between core members they behave like communities. They were found to have shared histories, norms and customs, and self-awareness that their groups were unique. Furthermore, core users had adapted the language in new and innovative ways through their online discourse. This study is the first comprehensive audit of who is using the Irish language socially on the web, where they are forming networks online, and how they are adapting the language to online discourse. It makes a unique contribution in re-imagining what constitutes an Irish language community in the context of the Network Society. In the process, it contributes to the growing body of sociolinguistic research into globalisation and local identity on the web

Shear-induced breaking of internal gravity waves

Motivated by observations of turbulence in the strongly stratified ocean thermocline, we use direct numerical simulations to investigate the interaction of a sinusoidal shear flow and a large-amplitude internal gravity wave. Despite strong nonlinearities in the flow and a lack of scale separation, we find that linear ray tracing theory is qualitatively useful in describing the early development of the flow as the wave is refracted by the shear. Consistent with the linear theory, the energy of the wave accumulates in regions of negative mean shear where we observe evidence of convective and shear instabilities. Streamwise-aligned convective rolls emerge the fastest, but their contribution to irreversible mixing is dwarfed by shear-driven billow structures that develop later. Although the wave strongly distorts the buoyancy field on which these billows develop, the mixing efficiency of the subsequent turbulence is similar to that arising from Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in a stratified shear layer. We run simulations at Reynolds numbers of 5000 and 8000, and vary the initial amplitude of the internal gravity wave. For high values of initial wave amplitude, the results are qualitatively independent of $Re$. Smaller initial wave amplitudes delay the onset of the instabilities, and allow for significant laminar diffusion of the internal wave, leading to reduced turbulent activity. We discuss the complex interaction between the mean flow, internal gravity wave and turbulence, and its implications for internal wave-driven mixing in the ocean.Comment: 27 pages, 12 figures, accepted to J. Fluid. Mec