On the Parameterized Intractability of Monadic Second-Order Logic

One of Courcelle's celebrated results states that if C is a class of graphs of bounded tree-width, then model-checking for monadic second order logic (MSO_2) is fixed-parameter tractable (fpt) on C by linear time parameterized algorithms, where the parameter is the tree-width plus the size of the formula. An immediate question is whether this is best possible or whether the result can be extended to classes of unbounded tree-width. In this paper we show that in terms of tree-width, the theorem cannot be extended much further. More specifically, we show that if C is a class of graphs which is closed under colourings and satisfies certain constructibility conditions and is such that the tree-width of C is not bounded by \log^{84} n then MSO_2-model checking is not fpt unless SAT can be solved in sub-exponential time. If the tree-width of C is not poly-logarithmically bounded, then MSO_2-model checking is not fpt unless all problems in the polynomial-time hierarchy can be solved in sub-exponential time

Opportunities for farming in alpine countries – pathways to truly grassland-based beef and milk production in Austria and Switzerland

Farming in the alpine countries of Austria and Switzerland fulfils important economic, socio-cultural and ecological functions for society. However, even though both Austria and Switzerland have increasingly focused their agricultural policy towards ecology, in both countries negative environmental impacts of agriculture still have to be reduced massively

Strain bursts in plastically deforming Molybdenum micro- and nanopillars

Plastic deformation of micron and sub-micron scale specimens is characterized by intermittent sequences of large strain bursts (dislocation avalanches) which are separated by regions of near-elastic loading. In the present investigation we perform a statistical characterization of strain bursts observed in stress-controlled compressive deformation of monocrystalline Molybdenum micropillars. We characterize the bursts in terms of the associated elongation increments and peak deformation rates, and demonstrate that these quantities follow power-law distributions that do not depend on specimen orientation or stress rate. We also investigate the statistics of stress increments in between the bursts, which are found to be Weibull distributed and exhibit a characteristic size effect. We discuss our findings in view of observations of deformation bursts in other materials, such as face-centered cubic and hexagonal metals.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, submitted to Phil Ma

Effects of action on children’s and adults’ mental imagery

The aim of this study was to investigate whether and which aspects of a concurrent motor activity can facilitate children’s and adults’ performance in a dynamic imagery task. Children (5-, 7-, and 9-year-olds) and adults were asked to tilt empty glasses, filled with varied amounts of imaginary water, so that the imagined water would reach the rim. Results showed that in a manual tilting task where glasses could be tilted actively with visual feedback, even 5-year-olds performed well. However, in a blind tilting task and in a static judgment task, all age groups showed markedly lower performance. This implies that visual movement information facilitates imagery. In a task where the tilting movement was visible but regulated by means of an on-and-off remote control, a clear age trend was found, indicating that active motor control and motor feedback are particularly important in imagery performance of younger children

Correlations in Hot Asymmetric Nuclear Matter

The single-particle spectral functions in asymmetric nuclear matter are computed using the ladder approximation within the theory of finite temperature Green's functions. The internal energy and the momentum distributions of protons and neutrons are studied as a function of the density and the asymmetry of the system. The proton states are more strongly depleted when the asymmetry increases while the occupation of the neutron states is enhanced as compared to the symmetric case. The self-consistent Green's function approach leads to slightly smaller energies as compared to the Brueckner Hartree Fock approach. This effect increases with density and thereby modifies the saturation density and leads to smaller symmetry energies.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure

Spectral function at high missing energies and momenta

The nuclear spectral function at high missing energies and momenta has been determined from a self-consistent calculation of the Green's function in nuclear matter using realistic nucleon-nucleon interactions. The results are compared with recent experimental data derived from ($e,e'p$) reactions on $^{12}C$. A rather good agreement is obtained if the Green's functions are calculated in a non-perturbative way.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figure

On limits of spacetimes -- a coordinate-free approach

A coordinate-free approach to limits of spacetimes is developed. The limits of the Schwarzschild metric as the mass parameter tends to 0 or $\infty$ are studied, extending previous results. Besides the known Petrov type D and 0 limits, three vacuum plane-wave solutions of Petrov type N are found to be limits of the Schwarzschild spacetime.Comment: 19 p

17β-Estradiol Potentiates the Reinstatement of Cocaine Seeking in Female Rats: Role of the Prelimbic Prefrontal Cortex and Cannabinoid Type-1 Receptors

Clinical observations imply that female cocaine addicts experience enhanced relapse vulnerability compared with males, an effect tied to elevated estrogen phases of the ovarian hormone cycle. Although estrogens can enhance drug-seeking behavior, they do not directly induce reinstatement on their own. To model this phenomenon, we tested whether an estrogen could augment drug-seeking behavior in response to an ordinarily subthreshold reinstatement trigger. Following cocaine self-administration and extinction, female rats were ovariectomized to isolate estrogen effects on reinstatement. Although neither peak proestrus levels of the primary estrogen 17β-estradiol (E2; 10 μg/kg, i.p., 1-h pretreatment) nor a subthreshold cocaine dose (1.25 mg/kg, i.p.) alone were sufficient to reinstate drug-seeking behavior, pretreatment with E2 potentiated reinstatement to the ordinarily subthreshold cocaine dose. Furthermore, E2 microinfusions revealed that E2 (5 μg/0.3 μl, 15-min pretreatment) acts directly within the prelimbic prefrontal cortex (PrL-PFC) to potentiate reinstatement. As E2 has been implicated in endocannabinoid mobilization, which can disinhibit PrL-PFC projection neurons, we investigated whether cannabinoid type-1 receptor (CB1R) activation is necessary for E2 to potentiate reinstatement. The CB1R antagonist AM251 (1 or 3 mg/kg, i.p., 30-min pretreatment) administered prior to E2 and cocaine suppressed reinstatement in a dose-dependent manner. Finally, PrL-PFC AM251 microinfusions (300 ng/side, 15-min pretreatment) also suppressed E2-potentiated reinstatement. Together, these results suggest that E2 can augment reactivity to an ordinarily subthreshold relapse trigger in a PrL-PFC CB1R activation-dependent manner

Self-consistent treatment of the self-energy in nuclear matter

The influence of hole-hole propagation in addition to the conventional particle-particle propagation, on the energy per nucleon and the momentum distribution is investigated. The results are compared to the Brueckner-Hartree-Fock (BHF) calculations with a continuous choice and conventional choice for the single-particle spectrum. The Bethe-Goldstone equation has been solved using realistic $NN$ interactions. Also, the structure of nucleon self-energy in nuclear matter is evaluated. All the self-energies are calculated self-consistently. Starting from the BHF approximation without the usual angle-average approximation, the effects of hole-hole contributions and a self-consistent treatment within the framework of the Green function approach are investigated. Using the self-consistent self-energy, the hole and particle self-consistent spectral functions including the particle-particle and hole-hole ladder contributions in nuclear matter are calculated using realistic $NN$ interactions. We found that, the difference in binding energy between both results, i.e. BHF and self-consistent Green function, is not large. This explains why is the BHF ignored the 2h1p contribution.Comment: Preprint 20 pages including 15 figures and one tabl