Quantum Algorithms for Some Hidden Shift Problems

Almost all of the most successful quantum algorithms discovered to date exploit the ability of the Fourier transform to recover subgroup structures of functions, especially periodicity. The fact that Fourier transforms can also be used to capture shift structure has received far less attention in the context of quantum computation. In this paper, we present three examples of "unknown shift" problems that can be solved efficiently on a quantum computer using the quantum Fourier transform. For one of these problems, the shifted Legendre symbol problem, we give evidence that the problem is hard to solve classically, by showing a reduction from breaking algebraically homomorphic cryptosystems. We also define the hidden coset problem, which generalizes the hidden shift problem and the hidden subgroup problem. This framework provides a unified way of viewing the ability of the Fourier transform to capture subgroup and shift structure

Fear and the Other in Sir Thomas More

The collaborative play Sir Thomas More includes a scene written by Shakespeare in which the title character calms a xenophobic mob of Londoners, bent on attacking “strangers.” More’s appeal to the crowd inspires in them a fear for the strangers replacing their earlier fear of the strangers. Although it can be placed within More’s historical context, Shakespeare’s context, or ours, the speech opens a series of broader questions about the importance of the other and the nature of politics. It can be used to argue against Carl Schmitt’s view of the other as enemy, and of politics as proceeding from the possibility of war, in favour of Emmanuel Levinas’s view of the other as a call to responsibility, and of politics as inspired by a concern for others.Le drame Sir Thomas More, écrit à plusieurs mains, comprend une scène Shakespearienne dans laquelle le personnage éponyme apaise une foule xénophobe de Londoniens, qui s’en prend aux étrangers. L’appel de More inspire à la foule une crainte pour l’étranger, au lieu d’une crainte de l’étranger. Bien qu’il puisse se placer dans le context historique de More, celui de Shakespeare ou du nôtre, le discours de More pose une série de questions plus larges sur l’importance d’autrui et sur la politique. On peut utiliser ce discours pour contredire les vues de Carl Schmitt pour qui l’autre est ennemi et la politique résulte de la menace de guerre. De même, on peut utiliser ce discours pour défendre la philosophie d’Emmanuel Levinas selon laquelle l’autre appelle à la responsabilité, et la politique est inspirée par le souci de l’autre

A unified design of capsules

The process of reading, writing, and reasoning about concurrent programs benefits from better abstractions for concurrency than what many common languages, such as Java, offer. Capsule-oriented programming and the Panini language utilize the idea of combining state and control within a linguistic mechanism along with asynchronous message passing to provide sequentially trained programmers with an actor-like language that preserves the expected sequential semantics. The initial design of the Panini language splits the world into two distinct elements – capsules and systems. A capsule acts as the unit of both modularity and concurrency in the program. A system acts as the sole point of composition for capsule instances. The problem is that the dichotomy between systems and capsules leads to uncomposable and non-modular programs. The connections between capsule instances in a system declaration are fixed at exactly one point and all capsules instances in program must be declared and connected to each other at a single block of code. This thesis will explore the implications on modularity and reuse of systems when a basic design decision – separating capsules and systems – is relaxed to allow a capsule to declare an internal composition of other capsule instances

Autonomy versus futility? Barriers to good clinical practice in end-of-life care: a Queensland case

Findings from a Queensland coronial inquest highlight the complex clinical, ethical and legal issues that arise in end-of-life care when clinicians and family members disagree about a diagnosis of clinical futility. The tension between the law and best medical practice is highlighted in this case, as doctors are compelled to seek family consent to not commence a futile intervention. Good communication between doctors and families, as well as community and professional education, is essential to resolve tensions that can arise when there is disagreement about treatment at the end of life

Heating of the Atmosphere by the Sea

An important component of atmospheric heating is the the surface heat flux from the sea. We give expressions for the main components of this flux

Employment for Veterans: Trends and Programs

[Excerpt] Veterans’ employment outcomes in the civilian sector are an issue of ongoing congressional interest. A number of programs currently exist to assist veterans in obtaining or training for civilian employment. There is regular congressional debate about expanding or otherwise amending these programs to better serve veterans. This report discusses veterans’ employment trends and programs. The first section presents data on veterans’ employment outcomes, identifying recent trends, and discussing issues to consider when interpreting veterans’ employment data. The following sections present brief discussions of existing programs that provide employment-related services to veterans. These services are divided into (1) general programs that are broadly available to veterans, (2) programs that target veterans with service-connected disabilities, and (3) competitive grant programs that provide additional employment-related services to veterans but may be limited in scope or availability. Notably, this report does not attempt to provide an exhaustive list of all programs that may assist veterans in the labor market nor does it attempt to provide comprehensive information on the programs it discusses. Instead, it aims to provide a broad overview of the largest employment- related programs as well as other initiatives that may inform future policy. For detailed information on each program, readers are encouraged to refer to the CRS reports or other sources that are referenced in each section

Λ\Lambda-Enhanced Imaging of Molecules in an Optical Trap

We report non-destructive imaging of optically trapped calcium monofluoride (CaF) molecules using in-situ $\Lambda$-enhanced gray molasses cooling. $200$ times more fluorescence is obtained compared to destructive on-resonance imaging, and the trapped molecules remain at a temperature of $20\,\mu\text{K}$. The achieved number of scattered photons makes possible non-destructive single-shot detection of single molecules with high fidelity.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure