18,243 research outputs found
Blowup of Jang's equation at outermost marginally trapped surfaces
The aim of this paper is to collect some facts about the blowup of Jang's
equation. First, we discuss how to construct solutions that blow up at an
outermost MOTS. Second, we exclude the possibility that there are extra blowup
surfaces in data sets with non-positive mean curvature. Then we investigate the
rate of convergence of the blowup to a cylinder near a strictly stable MOTS and
show exponential convergence near a strictly stable MOTS.Comment: 15 pages. This revision corrects some typo
String splitting and strong coupling meson decay
We study the decay of high spin mesons using the gauge/string theory
correspondence. The rate of the process is calculated by studying the splitting
of a macroscopic string intersecting a D-brane. The result is applied to the
decay of mesons in N=4 SYM with a small number of flavors and in a gravity dual
of large N QCD. In QCD the decay of high spin mesons is found to be heavily
suppressed in the regime of validity of the supergravity description.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figures. V2: References added. V3: Minor correction
Bounds on area and charge for marginally trapped surfaces with cosmological constant
We sharpen the known inequalities and between the area and the electric charge of a stable marginally
outer trapped surface (MOTS) of genus g in the presence of a cosmological
constant . In particular, instead of requiring stability we include
the principal eigenvalue of the stability operator. For we obtain a lower and an upper bound for in terms of as well as the upper bound for the charge, which reduces to in the stable case . For
there remains only a lower bound on . In the spherically symmetric, static,
stable case one of the area inequalities is saturated iff the surface gravity
vanishes. We also discuss implications of our inequalities for "jumps" and
mergers of charged MOTS.Comment: minor corrections to previous version and to published versio
Ancilla-Driven Universal Quantum Computation
We propose a method of manipulating a quantum register remotely with the help
of a single ancilla that steers the evolution of the register. The fully
controlled ancilla qubit is coupled to the computational register solely via a
fixed unitary two-qubit interaction, E, and then measured in suitable bases. We
characterize all interactions E that induce a unitary, step-wise deterministic
measurement back-action on the register sufficient to implement any arbitrary
quantum channel. Our scheme offers significant experimental advantages for
implementing computations, preparing states and performing generalized
measurements as no direct control of the register is required.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Non-radial oscillation modes as a probe of density discontinuities in neutron stars
A phase transition occurring in the inner core of a neutron star could be
associated to a density discontinuity that would affect the frequency spectrum
of the non-radial oscillation modes in two ways. Firstly, it would produce a
softening of the equation of state, leading to more compact equilibrium
configurations and changing the frequency of the fundamental and pressure modes
of the neutron star. Secondly, a new non-zero frequency g-- mode would appear,
associated to each discontinuity. These discontinuity g--modes have typical
frequencies larger than those of g--modes previously studied in the literature
(thermal, core g-- modes, or g--modes due to chemical inhomogeneities in the
outer layers), and smaller than that of the fundamental mode; therefore they
should be distinguishable from the other modes of non radial oscillation. In
this paper we investigate how high density discontinuities change the frequency
spectrum of the non-radial oscillations, in the framework of the general
relativistic theory of stellar perturbations. Our purpose is to understand
whether a gravitational signal, emitted at the frequencies of the quasi normal
modes, may give some clear information on the equation of state of the neutron
star and, in particular, on the parameters that characterize the density
discontinuity. We discuss some astrophysical processes that may be associated
to the excitation of these modes, and estimate how much gravitational energy
should the modes convey to produce a signal detectable by high frequency
gravitational detectors.Comment: submitted to MNRA
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Beyond viral suppression: the quality of life of people living with HIV in Sweden
Sweden has one of the best HIV treatment outcomes in the world and an estimated 95% of all diagnosed people living with HIV are virally suppressed, but the quality of life (QoL) is understudied. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between variables within sociodemographic, behavioural, clinical, psychological, sexual life, social support and personal resource component and the QoL of people living with HIV in Sweden. Data were derived from a cross-sectional, nation-wide survey completed by 15% (n = 1096) of all people living with HIV and collected at 15 infectious disease clinics and 2 needle exchange sites during 2014. Ordinal univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to examine associations between potential contributors and QoL. Respondents reported high QoL: 63% rated their QoL 7 or higher on a scale ranging from 0 to 10. QoL was independent of gender, age, mode of HIV transmission and country of origin. Lower QoL was associated with recent homelessness, hazardous alcohol consumption, comorbidities, treatment side-effects, HIV-related physical symptoms, hopelessness, negative self-image, sexual dissatisfaction, and negative changes in sex life after HIV. The QoL of people living with HIV in Sweden was high overall, but still significantly influenced by HIV
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Discoba (Excavata) is an ancient group of eukaryotes with great morphological and ecological diversity. Unlike the other major divisions of Discoba (Jakobida and Euglenozoa), little is known about the mitochondrial DNAs(mtDNAs) of Heterolobosea. We have assembled a complete mtDNA genome from the aggregating heterolobosean amoeba, Acrasis kona, which consists of a single circular highly AT-rich (83.3%) molecule of 51.5 kb. Unexpectedly, A. kona mtDNA is missing roughly 40% of the protein-coding genes and nearly half of the transfer RNAs found in the only other sequenced heterolobosean mtDNAs, those of Naegleria spp. Instead, over a quarter of A. kona mtDNA consists of novel open reading frames. Eleven of the 16 protein-coding genes missing from A. kona mtDNA were identified in its nuclear DNA and polyA RNA, and phylogenetic analyses indicate that at least 10 of these 11 putative nuclear-encoded mitochondrial (NcMt) proteins arose by direct transfer from the mitochondrion. Acrasis kona mtDNA also employs C-to-U type RNA editing, and 12 homologs of DYW-type pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins implicated in plant organellar RNA editing are found in A. kona nuclear DNA. A mapping of mitochondrial gene content onto a consensus phylogeny reveals a sporadic pattern of relative stasis and rampant gene loss in Discoba. Rampant loss occurred independently in the unique common lineage leading to Heterolobosea + Tsukubamonadida and later in the unique lineage leading to Acrasis. Meanwhile, mtDNA gene content appears to be remarkably stable in the Acrasis sister lineage leading to Naegleria and in their distant relatives Jakobida
Non-adiabatic holonomic quantum computation
We develop a non-adiabatic generalization of holonomic quantum computation in
which high-speed universal quantum gates can be realized by using non-Abelian
geometric phases. We show how a set of non-adiabatic holonomic one- and
two-qubit gates can be implemented by utilizing optical transitions in a
generic three-level configuration. Our scheme opens up for universal
holonomic quantum computation on qubits characterized by short coherence times.Comment: Some changes, journal reference adde
Utilization of CT scanning associated with complex spine surgery.
BackgroundDue to the risk associated with exposure to ionizing radiation, there is an urgent need to identify areas of CT scanning overutilization. While increased use of diagnostic spinal imaging has been documented, no previous research has estimated the magnitude of follow-up imaging used to evaluate the postoperative spine.MethodsThis retrospective cohort study quantifies the association between spinal surgery and CT utilization. An insurance database (Humana, Inc.) with ≈ 19 million enrollees was employed, representing 8 consecutive years (2007-2014). Surgical and imaging procedures were captured by anatomic-specific CPT codes. Complex surgeries included all cervical, thoracic and lumbar instrumented spine fusions. Simple surgeries included discectomy and laminectomy. Imaging was restricted to CT and MRI. Postoperative imaging frequency extended to 5-years post-surgery.ResultsThere were 140,660 complex spinal procedures and 39,943 discectomies and 49,889 laminectomies. MRI was the predominate preoperative imaging modality for all surgical procedures (median: 80%; range: 73-82%). Postoperatively, CT prevalence following complex procedures increased more than two-fold from 6 months (18%) to 5 years (≥40%), and patients having a postoperative CT averaged two scans. For simple procedures, the prevalence of postoperative CT scanning never exceeded 30%.ConclusionsCT scanning is used frequently for follow-up imaging evaluation following complex spine surgery. There is emerging evidence of an increased cancer risk due to ionizing radiation exposure with CT. In the setting of complex spine surgery, actions to mitigate this risk should be considered and include reducing nonessential scans, using the lowest possible radiation dose protocols, exerting greater selectivity in monitoring the developing fusion construct, and adopting non-ferromagnetic implant biomaterials that facilitate MRI postoperatively
Stability of the r-modes in white dwarf stars
Stability of the r-modes in rapidly rotating white dwarf stars is
investigated. Improved estimates of the growth times of the
gravitational-radiation driven instability in the r-modes of the observed DQ
Her objects are found to be longer (probably considerably longer) than 6x10^9y.
This rules out the possibility that the r-modes in these objects are emitting
gravitational radiation at levels that could be detectable by LISA. More
generally it is shown that the r-mode instability can only be excited in a very
small subset of very hot (T>10^6K), rather massive (M>0.9M_sun) and very
rapidly rotating (P_min<P<1.2P_min) white dwarf stars. Further, the growth
times of this instability are so long that these conditions must persist for a
very long time (t>10^9y) to allow the amplitude to grow to a dynamically
significant level. This makes it extremely unlikely that the r-mode instability
plays a significant role in any real white dwarf stars.Comment: 5 Pages, 5 Figures, revte
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