Deep Cover HCI

The growing popularity of methodologies that turn "to the wild" for real world data creates new ethical issues for the HCI community. For investigations questioning interactions in public or transient spaces, crowd interaction, or natural behaviour, uncontrolled and uninfluenced (by the experimenter) experiences represent the ideal evaluation environment. We argue that covert research can be completed rigorously and ethically to expand our knowledge of ubiquitous technologies. Our approach, which we call Deep Cover HCI, utilises technology-supported observation in public spaces to stage completely undisturbed experiences for evaluation. We complete studies without informed consent and without intervention from an experimenter in order to gain new insights into how people use technology in public settings. We argue there is clear value in this approach, reflect on the ethical issues of such investigations, and describe our ethical guidelines for completing Deep Cover HCI Research

Equilibrium entanglement vanishes at finite temperature

We show that the equilibrium entanglement of a bipartite system having a finite number of quantum states vanishes at finite temperature, for arbitrary interactions between its constituents and with the environment.Comment: 2 pages, no figures, first submitted on July 22, 200

Classical spin simulations with a quantum two-spin correction

Classical simulations of high-temperature nuclear spin dynamics in solids are known to accurately predict relaxation for spin 1/2 lattices with a large number of interacting neighbors. Once the number of interacting neighbors becomes four or smaller, classical simulations lead to noticeable discrepancies. Here we attempt to improve the performance of the classical simulations by adding a term representing two-spin quantum correlations. The method is tested for a spin-1/2 chain. It exhibits good performance at shorter times, but, at longer times, it is hampered by a singular behavior of the resulting equations of motion.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures accepted for publication in EPJT

The Impact of Right-to-Work Laws on Union Organizing

In contrast to previous studies which have examined the impact of Right-to-Work (RTW) laws on the level or stock of union membership, this paper examines their impact on the most updated flow into membership and the organizing of workers through certified elections. Since detailed annual data are available by state, we are able to estimate an accelerator model of the flow into unionism, and adjust for possible omitted variable and simultaneity bias. The results show dramatic falls in organizing immediately after the passage of a RTW law, with more moderate declines in later years, just as an accelerator model could predict. Overall, the results are consistent with a 5-10 percent reduction in unionism as a result of the passage of RTW laws.

Regression relation for pure quantum states and its implications for efficient computing

We obtain a modified version of the Onsager regression relation for the expectation values of quantum-mechanical operators in pure quantum states of isolated many-body quantum systems. We use the insights gained from this relation to show that high-temperature time correlation functions in many-body quantum systems can be controllably computed without complete diagonalization of the Hamiltonians, using instead the direct integration of the Schroedinger equation for randomly sampled pure states. This method is also applicable to quantum quenches and other situations describable by time-dependent many-body Hamiltonians. The method implies exponential reduction of the computer memory requirement in comparison with the complete diagonalization. We illustrate the method by numerically computing infinite-temperature correlation functions for translationally invariant Heisenberg chains of up to 29 spins 1/2. Thereby, we also test the spin diffusion hypothesis and find it in a satisfactory agreement with the numerical results. Both the derivation of the modified regression relation and the justification of the computational method are based on the notion of quantum typicality.Comment: 16 pages, 4 figures; minor textual corrections; parts rearrange

Ultrastructural Distribution of the 7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Subunit in Rat Hippocampus

Acetylcholine (ACh) is an important neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain; it is implicated in arousal, learning, and other cognitive functions. Recent studies indicate that nicotinic receptors contribute to these cholinergic effects, in addition to the established role of muscarinic receptors. In the hippocampus, where cholinergic involvement in learning and memory is particularly well documented, 7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits (7 nAChRs) are highly expressed, but their precise ultrastructural localization has not been determined. Here, we describe the results of immunogold labeling of serial ultrathin sections through stratum radiatum of area CA1 in the rat. Using both anti-7 nAChR immunolabeling and -bungarotoxin binding, we find that 7 nAChRs are present at nearly all synapses in CA1 stratum radiatum, with immunolabeling present at both presynaptic and postsynaptic elements. Morphological considerations and double immunolabeling indicate that GABAergic as well as glutamatergic synapses bear 7 nAChRs, at densities approaching those observed for glutamate receptors in CA1 stratum radiatum. Postsynaptically, 7 nAChRs often are distributed at dendritic spines in a perisynaptic annulus. In the postsynaptic cytoplasm, immunolabeling is associated with spine apparatus and other membranous structures, suggesting that 7 nAChRs may undergo dynamic regulation, with insertion into the synapse and subsequent internalization. The widespread and substantial expression of 7 nAChRs at synapses in the hippocampus is consistent with an important role in mediating and/or modulating synaptic transmission, plasticity, and neurodegeneration