1,586 research outputs found
Logical operations with Localized Structures
We show how to exploit excitable regimes mediated by localized structures
(LS) to perform AND, OR, and NOT logical operations providing full logical
functionality. Our scheme is general and can be implemented in any physical
system displaying LS. In particular, LS in nonlinear photonic devices can be
used for all-optical computing applications where several reconfigurable logic
gates can be implemented in the transverse plane of a single device, allowing
for parallel computing.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure
Evaluation of Alternative Options for the Irrigation Aqueduct of the Cavallino Peninsula Using the MULINO Approach
In the present article we analyse the problem and the effects of changes in irrigation technology that affect a farmer community in the Cavallino Peninsula in the northeast of Italy. The obligation of closing and sealing the wells, which are currently used in the area for irrigation purposes, is due to a national law aimed at preserving the groundwater resources and preventing subsidence phenomena in the Venice area. The enforcement of this law implies that the regional administration is obliged to provide farmers with sufficient water supply for their agricultural activity. The methodology developed within the MULINO Project was used in this analysis, to test the potentials of a decision support system tool (mDSS) developed by the project. Firstly, the decision context was analysed and, as result, the problem was subdivided in two more specific sub problems: one related with water abstraction and the other related with water distribution. In order to build the decisional model, the opinions of experts and the preferences of the stakeholders were taken into account in different phases of the process. The results allowed the competent administration to identify the stakeholders' main concerns about the development of a new irrigation system and to develop strategies to cope with them. The quality of the water supplied and the economic effects of the change in the irrigation system were the main issues dealt with in this process. The application of the MULINO approach and DSS tool added efficiency and transparency to the decision making process, by allowing the elicitation of opinions and preferences of all the actors involved in the process, and demonstrating that, notwithstanding the different viewpoints and interests, a general consensus could be reaches on a single management option
Effects of a localized beam on the dynamics of excitable cavity solitons
We study the dynamical behavior of dissipative solitons in an optical cavity
filled with a Kerr medium when a localized beam is applied on top of the
homogeneous pumping. In particular, we report on the excitability regime that
cavity solitons exhibits which is emergent property since the system is not
locally excitable. The resulting scenario differs in an important way from the
case of a purely homogeneous pump and now two different excitable regimes, both
Class I, are shown. The whole scenario is presented and discussed, showing that
it is organized by three codimension-2 points. Moreover, the localized beam can
be used to control important features, such as the excitable threshold,
improving the possibilities for the experimental observation of this
phenomenon.Comment: 9 Pages, 12 figure
Effect of exercise on sleep quality and insomnia in middle-aged women: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
OBJECTIVE:
We assessed the effects of programmed exercise (PE) on sleep quality and insomnia in middle-aged women (MAW).
METHODS:
Searches were conducted in five databases from inception through December 15, 2016 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) evaluating the effects of PE versus a non-exercising control condition on sleep quality, sleep disturbance and/or insomnia in MAW. Interventions had to last at least 8 weeks. Sleep quality was assessed with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and insomnia with the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI). Random effects models were used for meta-analyses. The effects on outcomes were expressed as mean differences (MDs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI).
RESULTS:
Five publications reported data from four RCTs on PE effects during 12-16 weeks on sleep quality (n=4 studies reporting PSQI results) and/or insomnia (n=3 studies reporting ISI results), including 660 MAW. Low-moderate levels of exercise significantly lowered the PSQI score (MD=-1.34; 95% CI -2.67, 0.00; p=0.05) compared with controls. In a subgroup analysis, moderate PE (aerobic exercise) had a positive effect on sleep quality (PSQI score MD=-1.85; 95% CI -3.62, -0.07; p=0.04), while low levels of physical activity (yoga) did not have a significant effect (MD-0.46, 95% CI -1.79, 0.88, p=0.50). In three studies (two studies of yoga, one study of aerobic exercise), there was a non-significant reduction in the severity of insomnia measured with the ISI score (MD -1.44, 95% CI -3.28, 0. 44, p=0.13) compared with controls. Heterogeneity of effects among studies was moderate to high.
CONCLUSION:
In middle-aged women, programmed exercise improved sleep quality but had no significant effect on the severity of insomnia.Actividad Física y Deport
Phase-space structure of two-dimensional excitable localized structures
In this work we characterize in detail the bifurcation leading to an
excitable regime mediated by localized structures in a dissipative nonlinear
Kerr cavity with a homogeneous pump. Here we show how the route can be
understood through a planar dynamical system in which a limit cycle becomes the
homoclinic orbit of a saddle point (saddle-loop bifurcation). The whole picture
is unveiled, and the mechanism by which this reduction occurs from the full
infinite-dimensional dynamical system is studied. Finally, it is shown that the
bifurcation leads to an excitability regime, under the application of suitable
perturbations. Excitability is an emergent property for this system, as it
emerges from the spatial dependence since the system does not exhibit any
excitable behavior locally.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figure
Structure-guided engineering of a receptor-agonist pair for inducible activation of the ABA adaptive response to drought
Strategies to activate abscisic acid (ABA) receptors and boost ABA signaling by small molecules that act as ABA receptor agonists are promising biotechnological tools to enhance plant drought tolerance. Protein structures of crop ABA receptors might require modifications to improve recognition of chemical ligands, which in turn can be optimized by structural information. Through structure-based targeted design, we have combined chemical and genetic approaches to generate an ABA receptor agonist molecule (iSB09) and engineer a CsPYL1 ABA receptor, named CsPYL15m, which efficiently binds iSB09. This optimized receptor-agonist pair leads to activation of ABA signaling and marked drought tolerance. No constitutive activation of ABA signaling and hence growth penalty was observed in transformed Arabidopsis thaliana plants. Therefore, conditional and efficient activation of ABA signaling was achieved through a chemical-genetic orthogonal approach based on iterative cycles of ligand and receptor optimization driven by the structure of ternary receptor-ligand-phosphatase complexes
LivestockPlus: The sustainable intensification of forage-based agricultural systems to improve livelihoods and ecosystem services in the tropics
As global demand for livestock products (such as meat, milk, and eggs) is expected to double by 2050, necessary
increases to future production must be reconciled with negative environmental impacts that livestock cause. This
paper describes the LivestockPlus concept and demonstrates how the sowing of improved forages can lead to the
sustainable intensification of mixed crop–forage–livestock–tree systems in the tropics by producing multiple social,
economic, and environmental benefits. Sustainable intensification not only improves the productivity of tropical
forage-based systems but also reduces the ecological footprint of livestock production and generates a diversity of
ecosystem services (ES), such as improved soil quality and reduced erosion, sedimentation, and greenhouse gas
(GHG) emissions. Integrating improved grass and legume forages into mixed production systems (crop–livestock,
tree–livestock, crop–tree–livestock) can restore degraded lands and enhance system resilience to drought and
waterlogging associated with climate change. When properly managed tropical forages accumulate large amounts
of carbon in soil, fix atmospheric nitrogen (legumes), inhibit nitrification in soil and reduce nitrous oxide emissions
(grasses), and reduce GHG emissions per unit livestock product.
The LivestockPlus concept is defined as the sustainable intensification of forage-based systems, which is based
on three interrelated intensification processes: genetic intensification – the development and use of superior
grass and legume cultivars for increased livestock productivity; ecological intensification – the development and
application of improved farm and natural resource management practices; and socio-economic intensification
– the improvement of local and national institutions and policies, which enable refinements of technologies
and support their enduring use. Increases in livestock productivity will require coordinated efforts to develop
supportive government, non-government organization, and private sector policies that foster investments and
fair market compensation for both the products and ES provided. Effective research-for-development efforts that
promote agricultural and environmental benefits of forage-based systems can contribute towards implemention of
LivestockPlus across a variety of geographic, political, and socio-economic contexts
Higher COVID-19 pneumonia risk associated with anti-IFN-α than with anti-IFN-ω auto-Abs in children
We found that 19 (10.4%) of 183 unvaccinated children hospitalized for COVID-19 pneumonia had autoantibodies (auto-Abs) neutralizing type I IFNs (IFN-alpha 2 in 10 patients: IFN-alpha 2 only in three, IFN-alpha 2 plus IFN-omega in five, and IFN-alpha 2, IFN-omega plus IFN-beta in two; IFN-omega only in nine patients). Seven children (3.8%) had Abs neutralizing at least 10 ng/ml of one IFN, whereas the other 12 (6.6%) had Abs neutralizing only 100 pg/ml. The auto-Abs neutralized both unglycosylated and glycosylated IFNs. We also detected auto-Abs neutralizing 100 pg/ml IFN-alpha 2 in 4 of 2,267 uninfected children (0.2%) and auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-omega in 45 children (2%). The odds ratios (ORs) for life-threatening COVID-19 pneumonia were, therefore, higher for auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-alpha 2 only (OR [95% CI] = 67.6 [5.7-9,196.6]) than for auto-Abs neutralizing IFN-. only (OR [95% CI] = 2.6 [1.2-5.3]). ORs were also higher for auto-Abs neutralizing high concentrations (OR [95% CI] = 12.9 [4.6-35.9]) than for those neutralizing low concentrations (OR [95% CI] = 5.5 [3.1-9.6]) of IFN-omega and/or IFN-alpha 2
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