733 research outputs found
A New Approximate Min-Max Theorem with Applications in Cryptography
We propose a novel proof technique that can be applied to attack a broad
class of problems in computational complexity, when switching the order of
universal and existential quantifiers is helpful. Our approach combines the
standard min-max theorem and convex approximation techniques, offering
quantitative improvements over the standard way of using min-max theorems as
well as more concise and elegant proofs
Reliability and reproducibility of perfusion MRI in cognitively normal subjects
Arterial spin labeling (ASL) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is becoming a popular method for measuring perfusion due to its ability of generating perfusion maps noninvasively. This allows for frequent repeat scanning, which is especially useful for follow-up studies. However, limited information is available regarding the reliability and reproducibility of ASL perfusion measurements. Here, the reliability and reproducibility of pulsed ASL was investigated in an elderly population to determine the variation in perfusion among cognitively normal individuals in different brain structures. Intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) and within-subject variation coefficients (wsCV) were used to estimate reliability and reproducibility over a period of 1 year. Twelve cognitively normal subjects (75.5±5.3 years old, six male and six female) were scanned four times (at 0, 3, 6 and 12 months). No significant difference in cerebral blood flow (CBF) was found over this period. CBF values ranged from 46 to 53 ml/100 g per minute in the medial frontal gyrus (MFG) and from 40 to 44 ml/100 g per minute over all gray matter regions in the superior part of the brain. Data obtained from the first two scans were processed by two readers and showed high reliability (ICC >0.97) and reproducibility (wsCV <6%). However, over the total period of 1 year, reliability reduced to a moderate level (ICC=0.63-0.74) with wsCVs of gray matter, left MFG, right MFG of 13.5%, 12.3%, and 15.4%, respectively. In conclusion, measurement of CBF with pulsed ASL provided good agreement between inter-raters. A moderate level of reliability was obtained over a 1-year period, which was attributed to variance in slice positioning and coregistration. As such pulsed ASL has the potential to be used for CBF comparison in longitudinal studies. © 2010 Elsevier Inc.postprin
Field-driven femtosecond magnetization dynamics induced by ultrastrong coupling to THz transients
Controlling ultrafast magnetization dynamics by a femtosecond laser is
attracting interest both in fundamental science and industry because of the
potential to achieve magnetic domain switching at ever advanced speed. Here we
report experiments illustrating the ultrastrong and fully coherent light-matter
coupling of a high-field single-cycle THz transient to the magnetization vector
in a ferromagnetic thin film. We could visualize magnetization dynamics which
occur on a timescale of the THz laser cycle and two orders of magnitude faster
than the natural precession response of electrons to an external magnetic
field, given by the Larmor frequency. We show that for one particular
scattering geometry the strong coherent optical coupling can be described
within the framework of a renormalized Landau Lifshitz equation. In addition to
fundamentally new insights to ultrafast magnetization dynamics the coherent
interaction allows for retrieving the complex time-frequency magnetic
properties and points out new opportunities in data storage technology towards
significantly higher storage speed.Comment: 25 page
Risk factors for acquisition of hepatitis C virus infection: a case series and potential implications for disease surveillance
BACKGROUND: Transmission of hepatitis C vims (HCV) is strongly associated with use of contaminated blood products and injection drugs. Other "non-parental" modes of transmission including sexual activity have been increasingly recognized. We examined risk factors for acquiring HCV in patients who were referred to two tertiary care centers and enrolled in an antiviral therapy protocol. METHODS: Interviews of 148 patients were conducted apart from their physician evaluation using a structured questionnaire covering demographics and risk factors for HCV acquisition. RESULTS: Risk factors (blood products, injection/intranasal drugs, razor blades/ toothbrushes, body/ear piercing, occupational exposure, sexual activity) were identified in 141 (95.3%) of participants; 23 (15.5%) had one (most frequently blood or drug exposure), 41 (27.7%) had two, and 84 (53.4%) had more than two risk factors. No patient reported sexual activity as a sole risk factor. Body piercing accounted for a high number of exposures in women. Men were more likely to have exposure to street drugs but less exposure to blood products than women. Blood product exposure was less common in younger than older HCV patients. CONCLUSION: One and often multiple risk factors could be identified in nearly all HCV-infected patients seen in a referral practice. None named sexual transmission as the sole risk factor. The development of a more complete profile of factors contributing to transmission of HCV infection may assist in clinical and preventive efforts. The recognition of the potential presence of multiple risk factors may have important implications in the approach to HCV surveillance, and particularly the use of hierarchical algorithms in the study of risk factors
On passion and moral behavior in achievement settings: The mediating role of pride
The Dualistic Model of Passion (Vallerand et al., 2003) distinguishes two types of passion: harmonious passion (HP) and obsessive passion (OP) that predict adaptive and less adaptive outcomes, respectively. In the present research, we were interested in understanding the role of passion in the adoption of moral behavior in achievement settings. It was predicted that the two facets of pride (authentic and hubristic; Tracy & Robins, 2007) would mediate the passion-moral behavior relationship. Specifically, because people who are passionate about a given activity are highly involved in it, it was postulated that they should typically do well and thus experience high levels of pride when engaged in the activity. However, it was also hypothesized that while both types of passion should be conducive to authentic pride, only OP should lead to hubristic pride. Finally, in line with past research on pride (Carver, Sinclair, & Johnson, 2010; Tracy et al., 2009), only hubristic pride was expected to negatively predict moral behavior, while authentic pride was expected to positively predict moral behavior. Results of two studies conducted with paintball players (N=163, Study 1) and athletes (N=296, Study 2) supported the proposed model. Future research directions are discussed in light of the Dualistic Model of Passion
The Role of the Side Chain on the Performance of N-type Conjugated Polymers in Aqueous Electrolytes.
We report a design strategy that allows the preparation of solution processable n-type materials from low boiling point solvents for organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs). The polymer backbone is based on NDI-T2 copolymers where a branched alkyl side chain is gradually exchanged for a linear ethylene glycol-based side chain. A series of random copolymers was prepared with glycol side chain percentages of 0, 10, 25, 50, 75, 90, and 100 with respect to the alkyl side chains. These were characterized to study the influence of the polar side chains on interaction with aqueous electrolytes, their electrochemical redox reactions, and performance in OECTs when operated in aqueous electrolytes. We observed that glycol side chain percentages of >50% are required to achieve volumetric charging, while lower glycol chain percentages show a mixed operation with high required voltages to allow for bulk charging of the organic semiconductor. A strong dependence of the electron mobility on the fraction of glycol chains was found for copolymers based on NDI-T2, with a significant drop as alkyl side chains are replaced by glycol side chains
Timing of Favorable Conditions, Competition and Fertility Interact to Govern Recruitment of Invasive Chinese Tallow Tree in Stressful Environments
The rate of new exotic recruitment following removal of adult invaders (reinvasion pressure) influences restoration
outcomes and costs but is highly variable and poorly understood. We hypothesize that broad variation in average
reinvasion pressure of Triadica sebifera (Chinese tallow tree, a major invader) arises from differences among habitats in
spatiotemporal availability of realized recruitment windows. These windows are periods of variable duration long enough to
permit establishment given local environmental conditions. We tested this hypothesis via a greenhouse mesocosm
experiment that quantified how the duration of favorable moisture conditions prior to flood or drought stress (window
duration), competition and nutrient availability influenced Triadica success in high stress environments. Window duration
influenced pre-stress seedling abundance and size, growth during stress and final abundance; it interacted with other
factors to affect final biomass and germination during stress. Stress type and competition impacted final size and biomass,
plus germination, mortality and changes in size during stress. Final abundance also depended on competition and the
interaction of window duration, stress type and competition. Fertilization interacted with competition and stress to
influence biomass and changes in height, respectively, but did not affect Triadica abundance. Overall, longer window
durations promoted Triadica establishment, competition and drought (relative to flood) suppressed establishment, and
fertilization had weak effects. Interactions among factors frequently produced different effects in specific contexts. Results
support our ‘outgrow the stress’ hypothesis and show that temporal availability of abiotic windows and factors that
influence growth rates govern Triadica recruitment in stressful environments. These findings suggest that native seed
addition can effectively suppress superior competitors in stressful environments. We also describe environmental scenarios
where specific management methods may be more or less effective. Our results enable better niche-based estimates of
local reinvasion pressure, which can improve restoration efficacy and efficiency by informing site selection and optimal
Management
Molecular Analysis of Precursor Lesions in Familial Pancreatic Cancer
PMCID: PMC3553106This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
Room temperature chiral magnetic skyrmion in ultrathin magnetic nanostructures
Magnetic skyrmions are chiral spin structures with a whirling configuration.
Their topological properties, nanometer size and the fact that they can be
moved by small current densities have opened a new paradigm for the
manipulation of magnetisation at the nanoscale. To date, chiral skyrmion
structures have been experimentally demonstrated only in bulk materials and in
epitaxial ultrathin films and under external magnetic field or at low
temperature. Here, we report on the observation of stable skyrmions in
sputtered ultrathin Pt/Co/MgO nanostructures, at room temperature and zero
applied magnetic field. We use high lateral resolution X-ray magnetic circular
dichroism microscopy to image their chiral N\'eel internal structure which we
explain as due to the large strength of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction
as revealed by spin wave spectroscopy measurements. Our results are
substantiated by micromagnetic simulations and numerical models, which allow
the identification of the physical mechanisms governing the size and stability
of the skyrmions.Comment: Submitted version. Extended version to appear in Nature
Nanotechnolog
End points for sickle cell disease clinical trials: patient-reported outcomes, pain, and the brain
To address the global burden of sickle cell disease (SCD) and the need for novel therapies, the American Society of Hematology partnered with the US Food and Drug Administration to engage the work of 7 panels of clinicians, investigators, and patients to develop consensus recommendations for clinical trial end points. The panels conducted their work through literature reviews, assessment of available evidence, and expert judgment focusing on end points related to: patient-reported outcomes (PROs), pain (non-PROs), the brain, end-organ considerations, biomarkers, measurement of cure, and low-resource settings. This article presents the findings and recommendations of the PROs, pain, and brain panels, as well as relevant findings and recommendations from the biomarkers panel. The panels identify end points, where there were supporting data, to use in clinical trials of SCD. In addition, the panels discuss where further research is needed to support the development and validation of additional clinical trial end points
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