Real space mapping of topological invariants using artificial neural networks

Topological invariants allow to characterize Hamiltonians, predicting the existence of topologically protected in-gap modes. Those invariants can be computed by tracing the evolution of the occupied wavefunctions under twisted boundary conditions. However, those procedures do not allow to calculate a topological invariant by evaluating the system locally, and thus require information about the wavefunctions in the whole system. Here we show that artificial neural networks can be trained to identify the topological order by evaluating a local projection of the density matrix. We demonstrate this for two different models, a 1-D topological superconductor and a 2-D quantum anomalous Hall state, both with spatially modulated parameters. Our neural network correctly identifies the different topological domains in real space, predicting the location of in-gap states. By combining a neural network with a calculation of the electronic states that uses the Kernel Polynomial Method, we show that the local evaluation of the invariant can be carried out by evaluating a local quantity, in particular for systems without translational symmetry consisting of tens of thousands of atoms. Our results show that supervised learning is an efficient methodology to characterize the local topology of a system.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure

Modeling age and growth of the bigeye thresher (Alopias superciliosus) in the Atlantic Ocean

The bigeye thresher (Alopias superciliosus) is a pelagic shark captured as bycatch in pelagic longline fisheries. Important information on its biology is still missing, especially from the Atlantic Ocean. In all, 546 vertebrae collected by fishery observers between 2007 and 2009 were used to estimate age and growth parameters for this species in the Atlantic Ocean. The size composition was 102–265 cm fork length (FL) for females and 94–260 cm FL for males. The estimated ages ranged from 0 to 25 years for both sexes. From the 5 growth models used, the 3-parameter von Bertalanffy growth model, reparameterized to estimate length at birth (L0), produced the best results. The estimated parameters were asymptotic maximum length (Linf)=284 cm FL, growth coefficient (k)=0.06/year, and L0=109 cm FL for females and Linf=246 cm FL, k=0.09/year, and L0=108 cm FL for males. Although differences between hemispheres indicate slower growth rates in the South Atlantic Ocean, these differences may also have been caused by the lower sample size and larger specimen sizes for the Southern Hemisphere. The estimated growth coefficients are among the lowest found for the Alopiidae, highlighting the bigeye thresher’s slow growth and consequent low resilience to fishing pressure

An overview of the hooking mortality of elasmobranchs caught in a swordfish pelagic longline fishery in the Atlantic Ocean

Hooking (or “at-haulback”) fishing mortality was analysed in elasmobranchs captured by Portuguese longliners targeting swordfish in the Atlantic Ocean. Information was collected by on-board fishery observers who monitored 834 longline fishing sets between August 2008 and December 2011, and recorded information on 36,067 elasmobranch specimens from 21 different taxa. The hooking mortality proportions were species-specific, with some species having relatively high percentages of live specimens at time of haulback (e.g., blue shark, crocodile shark, pelagic stingray, manta, devil and eagle rays), while others had higher percentages of dead specimens (e.g., smooth hammerhead, silky shark, bigeye thresher). For the most captured species, logistic GLMs were carried out to compare the mortality rates between sexes, specimen sizes and the regions of operation of the fleet. The sex-specific proportions of hooking mortality were significantly different for blue and crocodile sharks, with the males of both species having higher proportions of hooking mortality than the females. Specimen size was significant for predicting the hooking mortality for blue and shortfin mako sharks: in both cases, the larger specimens had lower odds of dying due to the fishing process. There were differences in the hooking mortality depending on the region of operation of the fleet, but those differences were also species-specific. For blue and crocodile sharks, the hooking mortality was higher in the Equatorial and southern Atlantic areas (when compared to the NE Atlantic region), while the opposite was observed for the shortfin mako, with lower mortality rates in the NE tropical area compared with the other regions. The results presented in this paper can be integrated into future ecological risk assessment analysis for pelagic elasmobranchs. Furthermore, the new information can be used to evaluate the impact of recent recommendations prohibiting the retention of some vulnerable elasmobranch species

Effect of T2-T4 sympathicotomy in skin temperature of pediatric patients with hyperhidrosis: a thermographic follow-up.

[No abstract available

Population dynamics and fisheries assessment of the bigeye thresher (Alopias superciliosus) in the Atlantic: a comparison between North Atlantic and South Atlantic stocks

Tese de doutoramento, Ciências do Mar, da Terra e do Ambiente (Biologia Pesqueira), Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade do Algarve, 2015The bigeye thresher shark, Alopias supercilious is an oceanic pelagic shark, occasionally caught as bycatch in pelagic longline fisheries targeting tunas and swordfish in the Atlantic Ocean. It is particularly vulnerable to fishing pressure, with overexploitation occurring even at low levels of fishing, due to their slow growth, extremely low fecundity and migratory nature crossing both national and international waters. The present study focused on several aspects of the biology and fisheries of this species, including fisheries impact, gear modification for bycatch mitigation, life history, distribution patterns and habitat utilization. The bigeye thresher was amongst the shark species with the highest hooking mortality rates (around 50%) by the Portuguese pelagic longline fleet. When testing possible gear modification to reduce the bycatch, the use of circle hooks or mackerel bait (instead of J-style hook and squid bait) does not seem to be an effective mitigation measure. Life history parameters, specifically age, growth and size at maturity were estimated, with the observed growth coefficients (k values) being the lowest ever presented for the species and within the Alopiidae family. Three nursery areas were proposed along the Atlantic Ocean, specifically in the tropical northeast Atlantic and equatorial waters closer to the African continent, in the tropical northwestern Atlantic in areas closer to the Caribbean Sea and Florida, and in the southwest Atlantic closer to the Rio Grande Rise. Finally, satellite telemetry was used to study habitat use and vertical migrations of this species, and when compared to the depth of operation of the longline fishing gear resulted that most of the overlaps between habitat and gear deployment occur during the night and seem to affect more the juveniles. The results presented in this thesis are being integrated into demographic models and being used for stock assessment and ecological risk assessment analysis for pelagic elasmobranchs. Furthermore, the new information can be used to evaluate the impact of recent recommendations prohibiting the retention of some vulnerable elasmobranch species, and assist fishery managers to adopt more informed and efficient conservation measures for this species in the Atlantic.FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia: Project SELECT-PAL funded by PROMAR (Project Reference: PROMAR 31-03-05-FEP-1)FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia: SFRH / BD / 60624 / 200

Aplicação de técnicas de vídeo subaquático na caracterização de biocenoses marinhas

Dissertação mest., Biologia Marinha - Ecologia e Conservação Marinha, Universidade do Algarve, 2008Desenvolveu-se um trenó de vídeo subaquático para a caracterização das biocenoses marinhas da costa algarvia. Esta técnica foi usada pela primeira vez na região, pretendendo-se assim avaliar a sua aplicabilidade como técnica de amostragem. Filmaram-se um total de 19612m2, entre Junho e Novembro de 2005, no intervalo de profundidade dos 0 aos 30m. Dos vídeos, retirou-se tanto informação qualitativa e quantitativa relativa aos taxa, assim como referente ao habitat. Observou-se um total de 19401 especimens correspondentes a 64 taxa (23 de peixes e 41 de invertebrados). Verificou-se que a abundância foi significativamente diferente entre os três patamares de profundidade estudados ([0-10], [10-20] e [20-30]), tendo sido o intervalo mais profundo o que apresentou a maior abundância. Relativamente ao tipo de substrato arenoso, a abundância foi significativamente diferente entre a areia grosseira e fina, sendo esta a que apresentou uma maior abundância. Dados relativos à profundidade e características do substrato foram analisados e comparados com análise multivariada de forma a classificar e identificar os biótopos da zona de estudo. Desta análise distinguiram-se seis biótopos: Areias Grosseiras com povoamentos de Callionymus, Areias Grosseiras com povoamentos de Serpulidae e Sphaerechinus granularis, Areias finas com povoamentos de Infauna, Areias Finas e Vasa com bancos de ofiurídeos negros Ophiocomina nigra, Areias cascalhosas circalitorais com povoamentos de Phallusia mammillata e Serranus hepatus e Areias circalitorais com Bancos de Turritella. Os resultados do vídeo foram ainda comparados com os de outras duas técnicas de amostragem mais tradicionais, arrasto científico e censos visuais por mergulho. O mergulho apresentou a abundância total da zona de estudo e a diversidade mais elevada, enquanto que o vídeo apresentou os valores mais baixos em ambas categorias. O vídeo foi mais semelhante com o mergulho a nível qualitativo enquanto que quantitativamente esteve mais próximo do arrasto. Este trabalho avalia a aplicação do vídeo subaquático como técnica de amostragem, e demonstra a sua eficácia para a caracterização, classificação e mapeamento de habitats bentónicos marinhos e as suas comunidades

Major determinants of prolonged remission in systemic lupus erythematosus: retrospective study over a 41+year period

OBJECTIVES: To investigate predictors of sustained complete remission (CR) for 3 and 5 years, minimum. METHODS: Retrospective observational study from January 1978-december 2019, including Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) patients who attended the Lupus Clinic in a tertiary hospital, for at least 3 years. We used the British Isles Lupus Assessment Group (BILAG) score and serological profile to classify patients into CR, serologically active clinically quiescent (SACQ) and serological remission (SR). Multivariable cox regression analysis was performed to investigate predictors of CR and Kaplan-Meier curves were obtained. RESULTS: We included 564 patients; 15% achieved CR, 7% SACQ, 15% SR. 63% attained no remission. In the CR group, 73% sustained the remission for 5 or more years. Patients who did not reach any kind of sustained remission died significantly earlier (p32-years), HR 1.92 [1.24-2.97] p= 0.003; absence of renal involvement, HR 2.55 [1.39-4.67] p= 0.002; and of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), HR 4.92 [1.55-15.59] p= 0.007. CONCLUSION: Patients not achieving any kind of sustained remission have a higher risk of early mortality. White ethnicity, older age at diagnosis, absence of renal involvement and of APS were significantly associated with CR. Predictors for sustained CR do not change whether a 3-year or 5-year period is applied

The parallel lives of polysaccharides in food and pharmaceutical formulations

The present opinion article discusses how polysaccharide structures can be used in both food and pharmaceutical formulations. We distinguish two regions depending on moisture content where polysaccharides form structures with distinct functional properties. Some trends in key areas of active research are assessed and in particular edible films, encapsulation, polycrystalline polysaccharides, protein-polysaccharide coacervation and fluid gels. We unveil that the physicochemical principles that are shared across the food and pharmaceutical disciplines provide a great opportunity for cross-disciplinary collaboration. We finally argue that such co-operation will help tackling polysaccharide functionality issues that are encountered in both areas