16,307 research outputs found
Half-Life of O
We have measured the half-life of O, a superallowed decay isotope. The O was produced by the
C(He,n)O reaction using a carbon aerogel target. A
low-energy ion beam of O was mass separated and implanted in a thin
beryllium foil. The beta particles were counted with plastic scintillator
detectors. We find s. This result is
higher than an average value from six earlier experiments, but agrees more
closely with the most recent previous measurement.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figure
Remarks on additivity of the Holevo channel capacity and of the entanglement of formation
The purpose of these notes is to discuss the relation between the additivity questions regarding the quantities (Holevo) capacity of a quantum channel T and entanglement of formation of a given bipartite state. In particular, using the Stinespring dilation theorem, we give a formula for the channel capacity involving entanglement of formation. This can be used to show that additivity of the latter for some states can be inferred from the additivity of capacity for certain channels. We demonstrate this connection for a family of group--covariant channels, allowing us to calculate the entanglement cost for many states, including some where a strictly smaller upper bound on the distillable entanglement is known. This is presented in a general framework, extending recent findings of Vidal, Dur and Cirac (e-print quant-ph/0112131). In an appendix we speculate on a general relation of superadditivity of the entanglement of formation, which would imply both the general additivity of this function under tensor products and of the Holevo capacity (with or without linear cost constraints)
Large gauge invariant non-standard neutrino interactions
Theories beyond the Standard Model must necessarily respect its gauge
symmetry. This implies strict constraints on the possible models of
non-standard neutrino interactions, which we analyze. The focus is set on the
effective low-energy dimension six and eight operators involving four leptons,
decomposing them according to all possible tree-level mediators, as a guide for
model building. The new couplings are required to have sizeable strength, while
processes involving four charged leptons are required to be suppressed. For
non-standard interactions in matter, only diagonal tau-neutrino interactions
can escape these requirements and can be allowed to result from dimension six
operators. Large non-standard neutrino interactions from dimension eight
operators alone are phenomenologically allowed in all flavour channels and
shown to require at least two new mediator particles. The new couplings must
obey general cancellation conditions both at the dimension six and eight
levels, which result from expressing the operators obtained from the mediator
analysis in terms of a complete basis of operators. We illustrate with one
example how to apply this information to model building.Comment: 34 pages, 4 figures, 5 tables. Final version in PR
Entanglement Cost of Antisymmetric States and Additivity of Capacity of Some Quantum Channel
We study the entanglement cost of the states in the contragredient space,
which consists of -dimensional systems. The cost is always ebits when the state is divided into bipartite \C^d \otimes
(\C^d)^{d-2}. Combined with the arguments in \cite{Matsumoto02}, additivity of
channel capacity of some quantum channels is also shown.Comment: revtex 4 pages, no figures, small changes in title and author's
affiliation and some typo are correcte
Fat transforms ascorbic acid from inhibiting to promoting acid-catalysed N-nitrosation
<b>Background</b>: The major potential site of acid nitrosation is the proximal stomach, an anatomical site prone to
a rising incidence of metaplasia and adenocarcinoma. Nitrite, a pre-carcinogen present in saliva, can be
converted to nitrosating species and N-nitroso compounds by acidification at low gastric pH in the presence
of thiocyanate.
<b>Aims</b>: To assess the effect of lipid and ascorbic acid on the nitrosative chemistry under conditions simulating
the human proximal stomach.
<b>Methods</b>: The nitrosative chemistry was modelled in vitro by measuring the nitrosation of four secondary
amines under conditions simulating the proximal stomach. The N-nitrosamines formed were measured by gas
chromatography–ion-trap tandem mass spectrometry, while nitric oxide and oxygen levels were measured
amperometrically.
<b>Results</b>: In absence of lipid, nitrosative stress was inhibited by ascorbic acid through conversion of nitrosating
species to nitric oxide. Addition of ascorbic acid reduced the amount of N-nitrosodimethylamine formed by
fivefold, N-nitrosomorpholine by .1000-fold, and totally prevented the formation of N-nitrosodiethylamine
and N-nitrosopiperidine. In contrast, when 10% lipid was present, ascorbic acid increased the amount of Nnitrosodimethylamine,
N-nitrosodiethylamine and N-nitrosopiperidine formed by approximately 8-, 60- and
140-fold, respectively, compared with absence of ascorbic acid.
<b>Conclusion</b>: The presence of lipid converts ascorbic acid from inhibiting to promoting acid nitrosation. This
may be explained by nitric oxide, formed by ascorbic acid in the aqueous phase, being able to regenerate
nitrosating species by reacting with oxygen in the lipid phase
Flight test evaluation of an RAF high altitude partial pressure protective assembly
A partial pressure suit was evaluated during tests in an F-104 and F-15 as a protective garment for emergency descents. The garment is an pressure jerkin and modified anti-g suit combined with an oronasal mask. The garment can be donned and doffed at the aircraft to minimize thermal buildup. The oronasal mask was favored by the pilots due to its immobility on the face during high g-loading. The garment was chosen to provide optimum dexterity for the pilot, which is not available in a full pressure suit, while protecting the pilot at altitudes up to 18,288 meters, during a cabin decompression, and subsequent aircraft descent. During cabin decompressions in the F-104 and F-15, cabin pressure altitude was measured at various aircraft angles of attack, Mach numbers, and altitudes to determine the effect of the aerodynamic slipstream on the cabin altitude
Multiwavelength Observations of Swift J1753.5-0127
We present contemporaneous X-ray, ultraviolet, optical and near-infrared
observations of the black hole binary system, Swift J1753.5-0127, acquired in
2012 October. The UV observations, obtained with the Cosmic Origins
Spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope, are the first UV spectra of this
system. The dereddened UV spectrum is characterized by a smooth, blue continuum
and broad emission lines of CIV and HeII. The system was stable in the UV to
<10% during our observations. We estimated the interstellar reddening by
fitting the 2175 A absorption feature and fit the interstellar absorption
profile of Ly to directly measure the neutral hydrogen column density
along the line of sight. By comparing the UV continuum flux to steady-state
thin accretion disk models, we determined upper limits on the distance to the
system as a function of black hole mass. The continuum is well fit with disk
models dominated by viscous heating rather than irradiation. The broadband
spectral energy distribution shows the system has declined at all wavelengths
since previous broadband observations in 2005 and 2007. If we assume that the
UV emission is dominated by the accretion disk the inner radius of the disk
must be truncated at radii above the ISCO to be consistent with the X-ray flux,
requiring significant mass loss from outflows and/or energy loss via advection
into the black hole to maintain energy balance.Comment: To appear in the Ap
What is the functional outcome for the upper limb after stroke?
The Motor Assessment Scale (MAS) and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) are commonly used in Australian rehabilitation centres but there have been few systematic studies using them to measure recovery after stroke, especially with regard to upper limb function. The aims of this study were to provide a profile of upper limb recovery in a non-surgical stroke population using measures of impairment and disability. The records of 153 subjects were audited for upper limb MAS sub-scores, the FIM sub-score for upper body dressing, and the total FIM score at admission and discharge from rehabilitation. Significant improvement occurred for all outcome measures. There was no relationship between the MAS scores and the functional task of upper body dressing. The results emphasize the importance of using outcome measures that assess both impairment and disability, and indicate that substantial improvements in upper limb function frequently occur after stroke. Although the MAS has limitations, it is a valuable tool for measuring upper limb outcome after stroke because it provides a more accurate profile of true upper limb recovery than the FIM
Analyzing confidentiality and privacy concerns: insights from Android issue logs
Context: Post-release user feedback plays an integral role in improving software quality and informing new features. Given its growing importance, feedback concerning security enhancements is particularly noteworthy. In considering the rapid uptake of Android we have examined the scale and severity of Android security threats as reported by its stakeholders.
Objective: We systematically mine Android issue logs to derive insights into stakeholder perceptions and experiences in relation to certain Android security issues.
Method: We employed contextual analysis techniques to study issues raised regarding confidentiality and privacy in the last three major Android releases, considering covariance of stakeholder comments, and the level of consistency in user preferences and priorities.
Results: Confidentiality and privacy concerns varied in severity, and were most prevalent over Jelly Bean releases. Issues raised in regard to confidentiality related mostly to access, user credentials and permission management, while privacy concerns were mainly expressed about phone locking. Community users also expressed divergent preferences for new security features, ranging from more relaxed to very strict.
Conclusions: Strategies that support continuous corrective measures for both old and new Android releases would likely maintain stakeholder confidence. An approach that provides users with basic default security settings, but with the power to configure additional security features if desired, would provide the best balance for Android's wide cohort of stakeholders
Security mechanisms for legacy code applications in GT3 environment
There are many legacy code applications that cannot be
run in Grid environment without significant modifications.
To avoid re-engineering of legacy code, we developed the
Grid Execution Management for Legacy Code Architecture
(GEMLCA) that enables deployment of legacy code
applications as Grid services. GEMLCA is an OGSI Grid
service layer that supports submitting jobs, getting their
results and status back. Security requirements are essential
to any Grid application to preserve the confidentiality and
integrity of data. To meet these requirements the GT3
security model was implemented in GEMLCA. The paper
introduces GEMLCA and how Grid Security Infrastructure
(GSI) components have been added to GEMLCA in order
to enable secure execution of jobs in Grid. The paper also
presents how a legacy code traffic simulator was transformed into a Grid service using GEMLCA and gives some simulation results
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