Reference crop evapotranspiration estimate using high-resolution meteorological network's data

Water management authorities need detailed information about each component of the hydrological balance. This document presents a method to estimate the evapotranspiration rate, initialized in order to obtain the reference crop evapotranspiration rate (<i>ET</i><sub>0</sub>). By using an Optimal Interpolation (OI) scheme, the hourly observations of several meteorological variables, measured by a high-resolution local meteorological network, are interpolated over a regular grid. The analysed meteorological fields, containing detailed meteorological information, enter a model for turbulent heat fluxes estimation based on Monin-Obukhov surface layer similarity theory. The obtained <i>ET</i><sub>0</sub> fields are then post-processed and disseminated to the users

EFFECT OF PRASUGREL IN PATIENTS WITH ASTHMA: RESULTS OF PRINA, A RANDOMIZED, DOUBLE-BLIND, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED,CROSS-OVER STUDY

Introduction: Although experimental studies demonstrated that platelets are pro-inflammatory cells, no randomized studies tested the anti-inflammatory effect of antiplatelet agents in humans. The platelet P2Y12 receptors mediated bronchial inflammation in a mouse model of asthma, suggesting that P2Y12 represents a pharmacological target for asthma. Objectives: In this proof-of concept, placebo-controlled, randomized, cross-over study we tested the effects of the P2Y12 antagonist prasugrel on bronchial hyper-reactivity of asthmatic patients. Patients/Methods: Twenty-six asthmatic patients were randomly and blindly allocated to prasugrel (10mg o.d.) or placebo for 15 days. After 6515-day wash-out, patients were crossed-over to the alternative treatment. Before and after each treatment, patients underwent bronchial provocation test with mannitol and measurement of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO). Inhibition of P2Y12-dependent platelet reactivity (PRI) was measured by the VASP phosphorylation assay. Results: The provocative dose of mannitol causing a 15%-drop in FEV1 tended to increase from 142 mg (95%CI 82-202) to 187 mg (113-262) after prasugrel (p=0.09) and did not change after placebo (136 mg; 76-196 and 144 mg; 84-204 , p=0.65). FeNO did not change after either treatment. PRI decreased from 80%(77-83) to 23%(7-29) after prasugrel (p<0.001) and remained unchanged after placebo. Conclusions: Our proof-of-concept, randomized, controlled study is the first one to test in vivo the anti-inflammatory effects of platelet inhibition in human patients. Its results suggest that pharmacological inhibition of P2Y12 receptors may slightly reduce the bronchial inflammatory burden and lays the groundwork for further studies, with clinical end-points. \u200

Experiment Investigating the Connection between Weak Values and Contextuality

Weak value measurements have recently given rise to a large interest for both the possibility of measurement amplification and the chance of further quantum mechanics foundations investigation. In particular, a question emerged about weak values being proof of the incompatibility between Quantum Mechanics and Non-Contextual Hidden Variables Theories (NCHVT). A test to provide a conclusive answer to this question was given in [M. Pusey, Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 200401 (2014)], where a theorem was derived showing the NCHVT incompatibility with the observation of anomalous weak values under specific conditions. In this paper we realize this proposal, clearly pointing out the strict connection between weak values and the contextual nature of Quantum Mechanics.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Venous thrombosis at unusual sites and the role of thrombophilia

Thrombophilia includes multiple inherited and acquired risk factors that determine a shift in the balance of procoagulant and anticoagulant factors promoting hypercoagulability, which is associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). VTE is characterized by more common clinical manifestations, such as deep vein thrombosis of the lower limbs or pulmonary embolism, and less common clinical manifestations affecting cerebral, splanchnic, upper limbs, and retinal veins. The role of inherited thrombophilia in the pathogenesis of VTE at unusual sites is better established in cerebral vein thrombosis, but its role is less clear in splanchnic, upper limbs, and retinal vein thrombosis, in which acquired risk factors such as malignancy, central venous catheters, or systemic diseases also are frequently involved. The complex interactions between different inherited and acquired thrombophilic risk factors and their relationship with endothelium may be considered the pathophysiologic key of underlying phenotypic manifestations of thrombosis. The understanding of these mechanisms might facilitate diagnosis with appropriate investigations and improve therapeutic decision making

Novel time-resolved camera based on compressed sensing

Time-resolved cameras with high temporal resolution (down to ps) enable a huge set of novel applications ranging from biomedicine and environmental science to material and device characterization. In this work, we propose, and experimentally validate, a novel detection scheme for time-resolved imaging based on a compressed sampling approach. The proposed scheme unifies into a single element all the required operations, i.e. space modulation, space integration and time-resolved detection, paving the way to dramatic cost reduction, performance improvement and ease of use

Protective Measurement-A New Quantum Measurement Paradigm: Detailed Description of the First Realization

We present a detailed description of the experiment realizing for the first time a protective measurement, a novel measurement protocol which combines weak interactions with a "protection mechanism" preserving the measured state coherence during the whole measurement process. Furthermore, protective measurement allows finding the expectation value of an observable, i.e., an inherently statistical quantity, by measuring a single particle, without the need for any statistics. This peculiar property, in sharp contrast to the framework of traditional (projective) quantum measurement, might constitute a groundbreaking advance for several quantum technology related fields

ALART: A novel lidar system for vegetation height retrieval from space

We propose a multi-kHz Single-Photon Counting (SPC) space LIDAR, exploiting low energy pulses with high repetition frequency (PRF). The high PRF allows one to overcome the low signal limitations, as many return shots can be collected from nearly the same scattering area. The ALART space instrument exhibits a multi-beam design, providing height retrieval over a wide area and terrain slope measurements. This novel technique, working with low SNRs, allows multiple beam generation with a single laser, limiting mass and power consumption. As the receiver has a certain probability to detect multiple photons from different levels of canopy, a histogram is constructed and used to retrieve the properties of the target tree, by means of a modal decomposition of the reconstructed waveform. A field demonstrator of the ALART space instrument is currently being developed by a European consortium led by cosine | measurement systems and funded by ESA under the TRP program. The demonstrator requirements have been derived to be representative of the target instrument and it will be tested in an equipped tower in woodland areas in the Netherlands. The employed detectors are state-of-the-art CMOS Single-Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) matrices with 1024 pixels. Each pixel is independently equipped with an integrated Time-to-Digital Converter (TDC), achieving a timing accuracy that is much lower than the SPAD dead time, resulting in a distance resolution in the centimeter range. The instrument emits nanosecond laser pulses with energy on the order of several J, at a PRF of ~ 10 kHz, and projects on ground a three-beams pattern. An extensive field measurement campaign will validate the employed technologies and algorithms for vegetation height retrieval

Determining the Quantum Expectation Value by Measuring a Single Photon

Quantum mechanics, one of the keystones of modern physics, exhibits several peculiar properties, differentiating it from classical mechanics. One of the most intriguing is that variables might not have definite values. A complete quantum description provides only probabilities for obtaining various eigenvalues of a quantum variable. These and corresponding probabilities specify the expectation value of a physical observable, which is known to be a statistical property of an ensemble of quantum systems. In contrast to this paradigm, we demonstrate a unique method allowing to measure the expectation value of a physical variable on a single particle, namely, the polarisation of a single protected photon. This is the first realisation of quantum protective measurements.Comment: Nature Physics, in press (this version corresponds to the one initially submitted to Nature Physics