13,093 research outputs found
Entanglement consumption of instantaneous nonlocal quantum measurements
Relativistic causality has dramatic consequences on the measurability of
nonlocal variables and poses the fundamental question of whether it is
physically meaningful to speak about the value of nonlocal variables at a
particular time. Recent work has shown that by weakening the role of the
measurement in preparing eigenstates of the variable it is in fact possible to
measure all nonlocal observables instantaneously by exploiting entanglement.
However, for these measurement schemes to succeed with certainty an infinite
amount of entanglement must be distributed initially and all this entanglement
is necessarily consumed. In this work we sharpen the characterisation of
instantaneous nonlocal measurements by explicitly devising schemes in which
only a finite amount of the initially distributed entanglement is ever
utilised. This enables us to determine an upper bound to the average
consumption for the most general cases of nonlocal measurements. This includes
the tasks of state verification, where the measurement verifies if the system
is in a given state, and verification measurements of a general set of
eigenstates of an observable. Despite its finiteness the growth of entanglement
consumption is found to display an extremely unfavourable exponential of an
exponential scaling with either the number of qubits needed to contain the
Schmidt rank of the target state or total number of qubits in the system for an
operator measurement. This scaling is seen to be a consequence of the
combination of the generic exponential scaling of unitary decompositions
combined with the highly recursive structure of our scheme required to overcome
the no-signalling constraint of relativistic causality.Comment: 32 pages and 14 figures. Updated to published versio
Evolving database systems : a persistent view
Submitted to POS7 This work was supported in St Andrews by EPSRC Grant GR/J67611 "Delivering the Benefits of Persistence"Orthogonal persistence ensures that information will exist for as long as it is useful, for which it must have the ability to evolve with the growing needs of the application systems that use it. This may involve evolution of the data, meta-data, programs and applications, as well as the users' perception of what the information models. The need for evolution has been well recognised in the traditional (data processing) database community and the cost of failing to evolve can be gauged by the resources being invested in interfacing with legacy systems. Zdonik has identified new classes of application, such as scientific, financial and hypermedia, that require new approaches to evolution. These applications are characterised by their need to store large amounts of data whose structure must evolve as it is discovered by the applications that use it. This requires that the data be mapped dynamically to an evolving schema. Here, we discuss the problems of evolution in these new classes of application within an orthogonally persistent environment and outline some approaches to these problems.Postprin
Institutional Change and Learning for Sustainable Development
This paper is an interim outcome of Land and Water Australia Project ANU-24 'Implications for Australian natural resource management of international experiences in institutional
change and reform arising from sustainable development' being undertaken through the Centre for Resource and Environmental Studies, The Australian National University.
In summary, the aim of the project is to explore operational institutional lessons of relevance to Australia, gleaned from institutional change in other countries driven by the post-WCED (1987) and UNCED (1992) policy agenda of sustainable development. The primary output of the project
is a brief (~20 page) report with a target audience of the NRM policy community, stakeholders and
NGOs, supplemented by explanatory material, background papers, case studies, data bases, etc. as
required. Clearly a review of institutional change around the world over the period 1987-2001
represents a mammoth task, and thus this study must scan widely and then scope more narrowly
Jost Function for Singular Potentials
An exact method for direct calculation of the Jost function and Jost
solutions for a repulsive singular potential is presented. Within this method
the Schrodinger equation is replaced by an equivalent system of linear
first-order differential equations, which after complex rotation, can easily be
solved numerically. The Jost function can be obtained to any desired accuracy
for all complex momenta of physical interest, including the spectral points
corresponding to bound and resonant states. The method can also be used in the
complex angular-momentum plane to calculate the Regge trajectories. The
effectiveness of the method is demonstrated using the Lennard-Jones (12,6)
potential. The spectral properties of the realistic inter-atomic He4-He4
potentials HFDHE2 and HFD-B of Aziz and collaborators are also investigated.Comment: 12 pages, latex, 2 eps-figures, submitted to Phys.Rev.
Companion planting to attract pollinators increases the yield and quality of strawberry fruit in gardens and allotments
1. Global pollinator declines have led to concern that crop yields might fall as a result of a pollination deficit. Companion planting is a traditional practice thought to increase yield of insect pollinated crops by planting a co-flowering species next to the crop.
2. Using a combination of conventional researcher-led experiments and observational citizen scientist data, we tested the effectiveness of bee-friendly borage (Borago officinalis) as a companion plant to strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa). Insect visitors to the ‘Test’ (strawberry + borage) versus ‘Control’ (strawberry only) plants were observed, and strawberry fruit collected. Strawberries collected during the researcher-led experiment were also subject to fruit measurements and assessments of market quality.
3. Companion plants were found to significantly increase both yield and market quality of strawberries, suggesting an increase in insect pollination per plant. Test strawberries companion planted with borage produced an average of 35% more fruits, and 32% increased yield by weight. Test strawberry plants produced significantly more fruit of higher aesthetic quality when assessed by Marketing Standards for Strawberries.
4. Although there was no significant difference in the overall insect visits, when broken down by broad insect group there were significantly more flies visiting the test strawberries than controls.
5. These results could have implications for both gardeners and commercial growers. As consumers prefer a cosmetically perfect fruit, the production of fruit with increased aesthetics aids food waste reduction
Improving Navy recruiting with data farming
Proceedings of the 2016 Winter Simulation Conference
T. M. K. Roeder, P. I. Frazier, R. Szechtman, E. Zhou, T. Huschka, and S. E. Chick, eds.Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus states that people provide “the Navy and Marine Corps’ greatest edge” (Mabus, 2015). To help recruit and manage this dynamic workforce of more than 300,000 active duty Sailors, the Navy uses mathematical models and simulation to assess the potential impacts and risks of changes to force structure, budgets, policies, and the economy. One important model is the Planned Re-source Optimization (PRO) model. PRO is currently being used to inform recruiting resourcing decisions. The decisions may involve, for example, advertising, enlistment bonuses, number of production recruiters, etc. A limitation of PRO is the lack of an interface to facilitate extensive experimentation. This paper summarizes an effort underway to enhance the analytic utility of the PRO model by embedding it in a data farming environment. This enhanced tool is called the “Planned Resource Optimization Model with Ex-perimental Design” (PROM-WED)
Measurement and physical interpretation of the mean motion of turbulent density patterns detected by the BES system on MAST
The mean motion of turbulent patterns detected by a two-dimensional (2D) beam
emission spectroscopy (BES) diagnostic on the Mega Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST)
is determined using a cross-correlation time delay (CCTD) method. Statistical
reliability of the method is studied by means of synthetic data analysis. The
experimental measurements on MAST indicate that the apparent mean poloidal
motion of the turbulent density patterns in the lab frame arises because the
longest correlation direction of the patterns (parallel to the local background
magnetic fields) is not parallel to the direction of the fastest mean plasma
flows (usually toroidal when strong neutral beam injection is present). The
experimental measurements are consistent with the mean motion of plasma being
toroidal. The sum of all other contributions (mean poloidal plasma flow, phase
velocity of the density patterns in the plasma frame, non-linear effects, etc.)
to the apparent mean poloidal velocity of the density patterns is found to be
negligible. These results hold in all investigated L-mode, H-mode and internal
transport barrier (ITB) discharges. The one exception is a high-poloidal-beta
(the ratio of the plasma pressure to the poloidal magnetic field energy
density) discharge, where a large magnetic island exists. In this case BES
detects very little motion. This effect is currently theoretically unexplained.Comment: 28 pages, 15 figures, submitted to PPC
The posterior epidural ligaments: a cadaveric and histological investigation in the lumbar region.
Purpose. Incidental durotomy is a relatively common complication for patients undergoing posterior spinal surgery. Delineating anatomical variants in the posterior lumbar spinal canal is crucial in reducing future rates of incidental durotomy. Materials and Methods. The ligamentous attachments between the dura mater and ligamentum flavum in the lumbar region of 17 soft-fixed cadavers were investigated. The lumbar vertebral columns were removed, and cross-sectional dissection was performed at levels L1-S1. Anterior retraction of the dorsal dura mater identified attachments between the dorsal surface of the dura mater and the ligamentum flavum. Histological staining of the ligamentous attachments was carried out with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and elastic van Gieson (EVG). Results. Posterior epidural ligaments were present in 9 (52.9%) cadavers. Nine (9) separate ligaments were identified in these cadavers, with 3 (33.3%) at L3/L4, 5 (55.5%) at L4/L5, and 1 (11.1%) at L5/S1. Histology confirmed the presence of poorly differentiated collagen-based connective tissue, distinct from the normal anatomy. Conclusions. This study confirms the presence of multiple dorsomedial posterior epidural ligaments at the main sites for posterior spinal surgery (L3-S1). An intraoperative awareness of the variability of such connections may be an important step in reducing static rates of incidental durotomy
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