1,408 research outputs found
Genetic risk for Huntington Disease and reproductive decision-making: A systematic review
Huntington Disease (HD) is an incurable autosomal dominant single gene neurodegenerative disorder. Typical onset is between 30 and 40 years and characterised by motor difficulties, cognitive impairment, and behavioural and personality changes. The availability of reproductive testing means that affected and at-risk individuals can make reproductive decisions with genetic risk in mind. We aimed to summarise the literature on reproductive decision-making in the context of HD risk in terms of outcomes and the subjective experiences of at-risk individuals. Five databases were searched. Findings were synthesised using Framework analysis to identify common factors across results of quantitative and qualitative studies. Twenty five studies met inclusion criteria. Framework analysis identified the following key areas: ‘The relationship between reproductive intentions and HD genetic risk’, ‘Views on assistive options’, ‘Complexity and challenges in reproductive decision-making’, ‘Actual reproductive outcomes’, and ‘Other factors influencing reproductive decision-making’. Quality of included studies was mixed. Reproductive decision making in the context of HD risk was found to be a complex and emotionally challenging process. Further research is required into reproductive decision-making and outcomes among those not utilising assistive options, and in developing a model of reproductive decision-making in HD
A discrete Hubbard-Stratonovich decomposition for general, fermionic two-body interactions
A scheme is presented to decompose the exponential of a two-body operator in
a discrete sum over exponentials of one-body operators. This discrete
decomposition can be used instead of the Hubbard-Stratonovich transformation in
auxiliary-field quantum Monte-Carlo methods. As an illustration, the
decomposition is applied to the Hubbard model, where it is equivalent to the
discrete Hubbard-Stratonovich transformation introduced by Hirsch, and to the
nuclear pairing Hamiltonian.Comment: 8 pages, includes 2 eps figures, to appear in Phys. Lett.
Adaptive Sampling Approach to the Negative Sign Problem in the Auxiliary Field Quantum Monte Carlo Method
We propose a new sampling method to calculate the ground state of interacting
quantum systems. This method, which we call the adaptive sampling quantum monte
carlo (ASQMC) method utilises information from the high temperature density
matrix derived from the monte carlo steps. With the ASQMC method, the negative
sign ratio is greatly reduced and it becomes zero in the limit
goes to zero even without imposing any constraint such like the constraint path
(CP) condition. Comparisons with numerical results obtained by using other
methods are made and we find the ASQMC method gives accurate results over wide
regions of physical parameters values.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure
Variational quantum Monte Carlo calculations for solid surfaces
Quantum Monte Carlo methods have proven to predict atomic and bulk properties
of light and non-light elements with high accuracy. Here we report on the first
variational quantum Monte Carlo (VMC) calculations for solid surfaces. Taking
the boundary condition for the simulation from a finite layer geometry, the
Hamiltonian, including a nonlocal pseudopotential, is cast in a layer resolved
form and evaluated with a two-dimensional Ewald summation technique. The exact
cancellation of all Jellium contributions to the Hamiltonian is ensured. The
many-body trial wave function consists of a Slater determinant with
parameterized localized orbitals and a Jastrow factor with a common two-body
term plus a new confinement term representing further variational freedom to
take into account the existence of the surface. We present results for the
ideal (110) surface of Galliumarsenide for different system sizes. With the
optimized trial wave function, we determine some properties related to a solid
surface to illustrate that VMC techniques provide standard results under full
inclusion of many-body effects at solid surfaces.Comment: 9 pages with 2 figures (eps) included, Latex 2.09, uses REVTEX style,
submitted to Phys. Rev.
How will Brexit affect health and health services in the UK? Evaluating three possible scenarios against the WHO health system building blocks
The process of leaving the European Union (EU) will have profound consequences for health and the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK. In this paper, we use the WHO health system building blocks framework to assess the likely effects of three scenarios we term soft Brexit, hard Brexit, and failed Brexit. We conclude that each scenario poses substantial threats. The workforce of the NHS is heavily reliant on EU staff. Financing of health care for UK citizens in the EU and vice versa is threatened, as is access to some capital funds, while Brexit threatens overall economic performance. Access to pharmaceuticals, technology, blood, and organs for transplant is jeopardised. Information used for international comparisons is threatened, as is service delivery, especially in Northern Ireland. Governance concerns relate to public health, competition and trade law, and research. However, we identified a few potential opportunities for improvement in areas such as competition law and flexibility of training, should the UK Government take them. Overall, a soft version of Brexit would minimise health threats whereas failed Brexit would be the riskiest outcome. Effective parliamentary scrutiny of policy and legal changes will be essential, but the scale of the task risks overwhelming parliament and the civil service
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