Asymptotic adaptive bipartite entanglement distillation protocol

We present a new asymptotic bipartite entanglement distillation protocol that outperforms all existing asymptotic schemes. This protocol is based on the breeding protocol with the incorporation of two-way classical communication. Like breeding, the protocol starts with an infinite number of copies of a Bell-diagonal mixed state. Breeding can be carried out as successive stages of partial information extraction, yielding the same result: one bit of information is gained at the cost (measurement) of one pure Bell state pair (ebit). The basic principle of our protocol is at every stage to replace measurements on ebits by measurements on a finite number of copies, whenever there are two equiprobable outcomes. In that case, the entropy of the global state is reduced by more than one bit. Therefore, every such replacement results in an improvement of the protocol. We explain how our protocol is organized as to have as many replacements as possible. The yield is then calculated for Werner states.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, RevTeX

Hashing protocol for distilling multipartite CSS states

We present a hashing protocol for distilling multipartite CSS states by means of local Clifford operations, Pauli measurements and classical communication. It is shown that this hashing protocol outperforms previous versions by exploiting information theory to a full extent an not only applying CNOTs as local Clifford operations. Using the information-theoretical notion of a strongly typical set, we calculate the asymptotic yield of the protocol as the solution of a linear programming problem.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, RevTeX

Stabilizer states and Clifford operations for systems of arbitrary dimensions, and modular arithmetic

We describe generalizations of the Pauli group, the Clifford group and stabilizer states for qudits in a Hilbert space of arbitrary dimension d. We examine a link with modular arithmetic, which yields an efficient way of representing the Pauli group and the Clifford group with matrices over the integers modulo d. We further show how a Clifford operation can be efficiently decomposed into one and two-qudit operations. We also focus in detail on standard basis expansions of stabilizer states.Comment: 10 pages, RevTe

Stabilizer state breeding

We present a breeding protocol that distills pure copies of any stabilizer state from noisy copies and a pool of predistilled pure copies of the same state, by means of local Clifford operations, Pauli measurements and classical communication.Comment: RevTeX4, 9 pages, 1 figur

Impact of respiratory disease, diarrhea, otitis and arthritis on mortality and carcass traits in white veal calves

Background: Little is known on the effects of common calf diseases on mortality and carcass traits in the white veal industry (special-fed veal), a highly integrated production system, currently criticized for the intensive pro-and metaphylactic use of antimicrobials. The objective of the present study was to determine the impact of bovine respiratory disease (BRD), diarrhea, arthritis and otitis on the economically important parameters of mortality, hot carcass weight (HCW), carcass quality, fat cover and meat color. For this purpose, a prospective study on 3519 white veal calves, housed in 10 commercial herds, was conducted. Case definitions were based on clinical observation by the producers and written treatment records were used. Results: Calves received oral antimicrobial group treatments in the milk during 25.2% of the production time on average. With an increasing percentage of the production cycle spent on oral antimicrobials, HCW reduced, whereas the odds for insufficient fat cover or an undesirable red meat color both decreased. Of the calves, 14.8%, 5.3%, 1.5% and 1.6% were individually diagnosed and treated for BRD, diarrhea, arthritis and otitis, respectively. Overall, 5.7% of the calves died and the mortality risk was higher in the first weeks after arrival. Calves that experienced one BRD episode showed a 8.2 kg reduction in HCW, a lower fat cover and an increased mortality risk (hazard ratio (HR) = 5.5), compared to calves which were not individually diagnosed and treated for BRD. With an increasing number of BRD episodes, these losses increased dramatically. Additionally, calves, which experienced multiple BRD episodes, were more likely to have poor carcass quality and an undesirable red meat color at slaughter. Arthritis increased the mortality risk (HR = 3.9), and reduced HCW only when associated with BRD. Otitis did only increase the mortality risk (HR = 7.0). Diarrhea severely increased the mortality risk (HR = 11.0), reduced HCW by 9.2 kg on average and decreased carcass quality. Conclusions: Despite the massive use of group and individual treatments to alleviate the most prevalent health issues at the fattening period, the effects of BRD, diarrhea, otitis and arthritis on survival and performance are still considerable, especially in cases of chronic pneumonia with or without arthritis. Controlling calf health by effective preventive and therapeutic strategies and in particular the prevention of chronic BRD is key for the profitability of veal operations

Longitudinal study on morbidity and mortality in white veal calves in Belgium

Background: Mortality and morbidity are hardly documented in the white veal industry, despite high levels of antimicrobial drug use and resistance. The objective of the present study was to determine the causes and epidemiology of morbidity and mortality in dairy, beef and crossbred white veal production. A total of 5853 calves, housed in 15 production cohorts, were followed during one production cycle. Causes of mortality were determined by necropsy. Morbidity was daily recorded by the producers. Results: The total mortality risk was 5,3% and was significantly higher in beef veal production compared to dairy or crossbreds. The main causes of mortality were pneumonia (1.3% of the calves at risk), ruminal disorders (0.7%), idiopathic peritonitis (0.5%), enterotoxaemia (0.5%) and enteritis (0.4%). Belgian Blue beef calves were more likely to die from pneumonia, enterotoxaemia and arthritis. Detection of bovine viral diarrhea virus at necropsy was associated with chronic pneumonia and pleuritis. Of the calves, 25.4% was treated individually and the morbidity rate was 1.66 cases per 1000 calf days at risk. The incidence rate of respiratory disease, diarrhea, arthritis and otitis was 0.95, 0.30, 0.11 and 0.07 cases per 1000 calf days at risk respectively. Morbidity peaked in the first three weeks after arrival and gradually declined towards the end of the production cycle. Conclusions: The present study provided insights into the causes and epidemiology of morbidity and mortality in white veal calves in Belgium, housed in the most frequent housing system in Europe. The necropsy findings, identified risk periods and differences between production systems can guide both veterinarians and producers towards the most profitable and ethical preventive and therapeutic protocols

Deliverable 1.1 review document on the management of marine areas with particular regard on concepts, objectives, frameworks and tools to implement, monitor, and evaluate spatially managed areas

The main objectives if this document were to review the existing information on spatial management of marine areas, identifying the relevant policy objectives, to identify parameters linked to the success or failure of the various Spatially Managed marine Areas (SMAs) regimes, to report on methods and tools used in monitoring and evaluation of the state of SMAs, and to identify gaps and weaknesses in the existing frameworks in relation to the implementation, monitoring, evaluation and management of SMAs. The document is naturally divided in two sections: Section 1 reviews the concepts, objectives, drivers, policy and management framework, and extraneous factors related to the design, implementation and evaluation of SMAs; Section 2 reviews the tools and methods to monitor and evaluate seabed habitats and marine populations.peer-reviewe