A study of atmospheric neutrinos with the IMB detector

A sample of 401 contained neutrino interactions collected in the 3300 metric ton fiducial mass IMB detector was used to study neutrino oscillations, geomagnetic modulation of the flux and to search for point sources. The majority of these events are attributed to neutrino interactions. For the most part, these neutrinos are believed to originate as tertiary products of cosmic ray interactions in the atmosphere. The neutrinos are a mixture of v sub e and v sub micron

Fungos gasteroides no Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil: Arachnion e Disciseda (Lycoperdaceae)

 Fungos gasteroides no Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil:  Arachnion e Disciseda (Lycoperdaceae)  

Quantifying Model Complexity via Functional Decomposition for Better Post-Hoc Interpretability

Post-hoc model-agnostic interpretation methods such as partial dependence plots can be employed to interpret complex machine learning models. While these interpretation methods can be applied regardless of model complexity, they can produce misleading and verbose results if the model is too complex, especially w.r.t. feature interactions. To quantify the complexity of arbitrary machine learning models, we propose model-agnostic complexity measures based on functional decomposition: number of features used, interaction strength and main effect complexity. We show that post-hoc interpretation of models that minimize the three measures is more reliable and compact. Furthermore, we demonstrate the application of these measures in a multi-objective optimization approach which simultaneously minimizes loss and complexity

Effect of washing cycles on the quality of surimi-like material obtained from mechanically deboned chicken meat

The appropriate number of washing cycles for obtaining most of the surimi-like materials is not well defined in literature. The aim of this work was to investigate the influence of the number of washing cycles (one, two, or four) on the quality of surimi-like material obtained from mechanically deboned chicken meat (MDCM) using the bleaching method with sodium bicarbonate. The product was evaluated based on its chemical and physical characteristics. The chemical compositions of samples showed an increase in protein (45.7 to 89.9%, dry basis) and decrease in fat (49.1 to 7.0%, dry basis) contents, while the moisture content increased from 69.5 to 79.1% after four washing cycles. Washing diminished yield. Gel prepared with MDCM washed once showed the lowest gel strength (507.1 g.cm). It thereafter increased to 546.0 and 602.7 g.cm after double and quadruple washings, respectively. Higher content of myofibrillar proteins and higher whiteness were also obtained after successive washings. It was concluded that four washing cycles was the most appropriate method for producing surimi-like material from MDCM

Decoherence times of universal two-qubit gates in the presence of broad-band noise

The controlled generation of entangled states of two quantum bits is a fundamental step toward the implementation of a quantum information processor. In nano-devices this operation is counteracted by the solid-state environment, characterized by a broadband and non-monotonic power spectrum, often 1/f at low frequencies. For single-qubit gates, incoherent processes due to fluctuations acting on different time scales result in peculiar short- and long-time behavior. Markovian noise gives rise to exponential decay with relaxation and decoherence times, T1 and T2, simply related to the symmetry of the qubit-environment coupling Hamiltonian. Noise with the 1/f power spectrum at low frequencies is instead responsible for defocusing processes and algebraic short-time behavior. In this paper, we identify the relevant decoherence times of an entangling operation due to the different decoherence channels originating from solid-state noise. Entanglement is quantified by concurrence, which we evaluate in an analytic form employing a multi-stage approach. The 'optimal' operating conditions of reduced sensitivity to noise sources are identified. We apply this analysis to a superconducting \sqrt{i-SWAP} gate for experimental noise spectra.Comment: 35 pages, 11 figure

Depression and anxiety in systemic lupus erythematosus: The crosstalk between immunological, clinical, and psychosocial factors

Depression and anxiety cause severe loss of quality of life for patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. The causes and factors that contribute to these psychological manifestations in lupus are difficult to disentangle. This study compared clinical, psychological, and demographic factors between lupus patients, depressed patients, and rheumatoid arthritis patients to discover lupus-specific contributors to depression. Lupus-specific manifestations of depression were also investigated. Physiological, clinical, and psychosocial data were collected from 77 patients. ELISA was used to measure cytokine levels. Univariate and Multivariate analyses were used to compare the patient populations and identify correlations between key physical and psychological indicators. The prevalence of depression in the SLE cohort was 6 times greater than the healthy control subjects. Pain, IL-6, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality index values were all significantly higher in SLE patients compared with the healthy control group (P < .001, P = .038, and P = .005, respectively). Anxiety levels were significantly higher in SLE patients compared to healthy and RA control patients (P = .020 and .011, respectively). Serum IL-10 concentrations, relationship assessment scale, and fatigue severity scale values were found to be correlated with depression among the SLE patients (P = .036, P = .007, and P = .001, respectively). Relationship assessment and fatigue severity scale scores were found to be the best indicators of depression for the SLE patients (P = .042 and .028, respectively). Fatigue Severity, relationship satisfaction, and IL-10 concentrations are indicators of depression in lupus patients. Despite also suffering from the pain and disability that accompanies chronic autoimmune disease, the rheumatoid arthritis patients had less anxiety and better relationship scores.The authors thank the Portugal Fulbright Commission for funding Dr. Pool

Influence of Biological Therapeutics, Cytokines, and Disease Activity on Depression in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Purpose: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an often debilitating autoinflammatory disease. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis are often troubled by co-occurring depression or other psychological manifestations. RA patients have a variety of treatment options available, including biologicals that inhibit cytokines or immune cells. If these cytokines influence the psychological symptoms, then the use of cytokine inhibitors should modulate these symptoms.Methods: A cohort of 209 individuals was recruited. This group included 82 RA patients, 22 healthy subjects, 32 depressed control subjects, and 73 subjects with systemic lupus erythematosus. Of the RA patients, 51% were on a biological therapeutic. ELISA was used to measure cytokine levels. A variety of psychological assessments were used to evaluate depression, anxiety, sleep, fatigue, and relationship status. Clinical values were obtained from medical records.Results: IL-10 concentration was associated with depressive symptoms in the RA patients, healthy controls, and the lupus patients. In the patients with primary depression, depressive symptoms were associated with IL-6 and TNF-alpha. In RA patients, Tocilizumab use was associated with decreased depressive symptoms. 14 RA patients who were not using biologicals began using them by a one-month follow-up. In these patients, there was no significant change to any value except for fatigue.Conclusions: A variety of both biological and social factors influences depressive symptoms in RA. IL-10 and IL-6 are likely to be involved, since IL-10 concentration was associated with depression and Tocilizumab decreased depressive symptoms in the RA patients. The roles of these cytokines are different in RA and lupus, as high IL-10 in RA is associated with increased depressive symptoms, but high IL-10 in the lupus patients is associated with decreased depression. IL-6 was also associated with depressive symptoms in the patients with primary depression. These results strongly indicate that disease activity, including cytokine levels, has a strong impact on depressive symptoms.This study was supported by Portugal Fulbright Commission (Dr. Brian D. Poole)

Aspects of Plane Wave (Matrix) String Dynamics

We analyse two issues that arise in the context of (matrix) string theories in plane wave backgrounds, namely (1) the use of Brinkmann- versus Rosen-variables in the quantum theory for general plane waves (which we settle conclusively in favour of Brinkmann variables), and (2) the regularisation of the quantum dynamics for a certain class of singular plane waves (discussing the benefits and limitations of regularisations of the plane-wave metric itself).Comment: 29 page

Studies in homosexual patients with and without lymphadenopathy - Relationships to the acquired immune deficiency syndrome

We studied the immunologic function of 19 sexually active homosexual men, ten of whom had persistent lymphadenopathy. Analysis of mononuclear cell populations distinguished homosexuals from heterosexual controls since, as a group, homosexuals had increased percentages of natural killer cells (Leu 7+), decreased helper-inducer T lymphocytes (OKT-4+), increased suppressor/cytotoxic (OKT-8+) T lymphocytes, low OKT-4:OKT-8 ratios, and depressed mitogenic responses. Homosexuals without lymphadenopathy were distinguishable from controls by increased percentages of la+ cells, decreased OKT-4+ cells, and decreased OKT-4:OKT-8 ratios. Four had positive findings simultaneously for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and surface antibody, and five had positive findings for HBsAg alone. Homosexuals with lymphadenopathy were distinguishable from controls by increased percentages of Leu 7+ cells, increased total lymphocyte numbers per cubic millimeter, decreased percentages of both OKT-4+ and OKT-8+ cells, abnormal OKT-4:OKT-8 ratios, and depressed mitogenic responses. Only histories of larger numbers of sexually acquired diseases, higher numbers of OKT-8+ cells per cubic millimeter, and lower mitogenic responses in homosexuals with lymphadenopathy distinguished this group from homosexuals without lymphadenopathy. Furthermore, none of the nine patients tested in this group was HBsAg positive. We conclude that homosexuals without lymphadenopathy are distinguishable from those with lymphadenopathy by both immunologic and serologic abnormalities

Electron and Hole Spin Splitting and Photogalvanic Effect in Quantum Wells

A theory of the circular photogalvanic effect caused by spin splitting in quantum wells is developed. Direct interband transitions between the hole and electron size-quantized subbands are considered. It is shown that the photocurrent value and direction depend strongly on the form of the spin-orbit interaction. The currents induced by structure-, bulk-, and interface-inversion asymmetry are investigated. The photocurrent excitation spectra caused by spin splittings in both conduction and valence bands are calculated.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure