Leaf reflectance-nitrogen-chlorophyll relations among three south Texas woody rangeland plant species

Annual variations in the nitrogen-chlorophyll leaf reflectance of hackberry, honey mesquite and live oak in south Texas, were compared. In spring, leaf reflectance at the 0.55 m wavelength and nitrogen (N) concentration was high but leaf chlorophyll (chl) concentrations were low. In summer, leaf reflectance and N-concentration were low but lead chl concentrations were high. Linear correlations for both spring and summer of leaf reflectance with N and chl concentration or deviations from linear regression were not statistically significant

Guidance and Control in a Josephson Charge Qubit

In this paper we propose a control strategy based on a classical guidance law and consider its use for an example system: a Josephson charge qubit. We demonstrate how the guidance law can be used to attain a desired qubit state using the standard qubit control fields.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figure

Enhancing cognition by affecting memory reconsolidation

Fully consolidated associative memories can undergo a retrieval-dependent reconsolidation process, which allows for the updating and strengthening of the original association. Limiting, or so-called boundary, conditions determine whether a particular retrieval event triggers reconsolidation. Manipulating memories at reconsolidation may offer an opportunity to improve cognitive capacities in humans by increasing memory persistence, specificity and accuracy. Also, preventing the reconsolidation of maladaptive memories that characterize some neuropsychiatric disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder or drug addiction may offer a novel approach to treatment. Here we review recent advances in understanding and manipulating memory reconsolidation in both animals and humans, and discuss the potential of such interventions in cognitive enhancement.This work was supported by a UK Medical Research Council Programme Grant (G1002231) to B.J.E. and A.L.M. and was conducted in the Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, and the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute (BCNI), an initiative jointly funded by the MRC and the Wellcome Trust.This is the author accepted manuscript. It first appeared at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352154615000273#

Comparison of LANDSAT-2 and field spectrometer reflectance signatures of south Texas rangeland plant communities

The accuracy was assessed for an atmospheric correction method that depends on clear water bodies to infer solar and atmospheric parameters for radiative transfer equations by measuring the reflectance signature of four prominent south Texas rangeland plants with the LANDSAT satellite multispectral scanner (MSS) and a ground based spectroradiometer. The rangeland plant reflectances produced by the two sensors were correlated with no significant deviation of the slope from unity or of the intercept from zero. These results indicated that the atmospheric correction produced LANDSAT MSS estimates of rangeland plant reflectances that are as accurate as the ground based spectroradiometer

Gravity field information from Gravity Probe-B

The Gravity Probe-B Mission will carry the Stanford Gyroscope relativity experiment into orbit in the mid 1990's, as well as a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver whose tracking data will be used to study the earth gravity field. Estimates of the likely quality of a gravity field model to be derived from the GPS data are presented, and the significance of this experiment to geodesy and geophysics are discussed

Non-linear dynamics, entanglement and the quantum-classical crossover of two coupled SQUID rings

We explore the quantum-classical crossover of two coupled, identical, superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) rings. We note that the motivation for this work is based on a study of a similar system comprising two coupled Duffing oscillators. In that work we showed that the entanglement characteristics of chaotic and periodic (entrained) solutions differed significantly and that in the classical limit entanglement was preserved only in the chaotic-like solutions. However, Duffing oscillators are a highly idealised toy model. Motivated by a wish to explore more experimentally realisable systems we now extend our work to an analysis of two coupled SQUID rings. We observe some differences in behaviour between the system that is based on SQUID rings rather than on Duffing oscillators. However, we show that the two systems share a common feature. That is, even when the SQUID ring's trajectories appear to follow (semi) classical orbits entanglement persists.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures. Published as part of the proceedings of the 32nd International Workshop on Condensed Matter Theories (CMT32) Loughborough University, 2008 (invited paper

Fast algorithm for detecting community structure in networks

It has been found that many networks display community structure -- groups of vertices within which connections are dense but between which they are sparser -- and highly sensitive computer algorithms have in recent years been developed for detecting such structure. These algorithms however are computationally demanding, which limits their application to small networks. Here we describe a new algorithm which gives excellent results when tested on both computer-generated and real-world networks and is much faster, typically thousands of times faster than previous algorithms. We give several example applications, including one to a collaboration network of more than 50000 physicists.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Differential vulnerability to the punishment of cocaine related behaviours: effects of locus of punishment, cocaine taking history and alternative reinforcer availability.

BACKGROUND: The availability of alternative reinforcement has been shown to reduce drug use, but it remains unclear whether it facilitates a reduction or cessation of drug seeking or taking. OBJECTIVES: We compared the effects of punishment of cocaine seeking or taking behaviour after brief or extended cocaine-taking histories when behavioural reallocation was facilitated or not by making available an alternative ingestive reinforcer (sucrose). METHODS: In the first experiment, punishment of either seeking or taking responses was introduced immediately after training on the seeking-taking chained schedule. In the second experiment, punishment of cocaine seeking was introduced after 12 additional days of either 1 or 6 h daily access to cocaine self-administration. In both experiments, beginning 1 week before the introduction of punishment, a subset of rats had concurrent nose poke access to sucrose while seeking or taking cocaine. RESULTS: The presence of an alternative source of reinforcement markedly facilitated behavioural reallocation from punished cocaine taking after acquisition. It also facilitated punishment-induced suppression of cocaine seeking after an extensive cocaine self-administration history likely by prompting goal-directed motivational control over drug use. However, a significant proportion of rats were deemed compulsive-maintaining drug use after an extensive cocaine history despite the presence of abstinence-promoting positive and negative incentives. CONCLUSION: Making available an alternative reinforcer facilitates disengagement from punished cocaine use through at least two different processes but remains ineffective in a subpopulation of vulnerable animals, which continued to seek cocaine despite the aversive consequence of punishment and the presence of the alternative positive reinforcer.This work was supported by the United Kingdom Medical Research Council (MRC) Grant to BJE (G9536855) and was conducted within the MRC/Wellcome Trust Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute. The authors declare no conflicts of interest.This is the final published version, which can also be found on the publisher's website here: http://download.springer.com/static/pdf/914/art%253A10.1007%252Fs00213-014-3648-5.pdf?auth66=1404987650_ca63ac8614a2994c56b0f619563ee6af&ext=.pd

Is a single photon's wave front observable?

The ultimate goal and the theoretical limit of weak signal detection is the ability to detect a single photon against a noisy background. [...] In this paper we show, that a combination of a quantum metamaterial (QMM)-based sensor matrix and quantum non-demolition (QND) readout of its quantum state allows, in principle, to detect a single photon in several points, i.e., to observe its wave front. Actually, there are a few possible ways of doing this, with at least one within the reach of current experimental techniques for the microwave range. The ability to resolve the quantum-limited signal from a remote source against a much stronger local noise would bring significant advantages to such diverse fields of activity as, e.g., microwave astronomy and missile defence. The key components of the proposed method are 1) the entangling interaction of the incoming photon with the QMM sensor array, which produces the spatially correlated quantum state of the latter, and 2) the QND readout of the collective observable (e.g., total magnetic moment), which characterizes this quantum state. The effects of local noise (e.g., fluctuations affecting the elements of the matrix) will be suppressed relative to the signal from the spatially coherent field of (even) a single photon.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figure