Quantum memories based on engineered dissipation

Storing quantum information for long times without disruptions is a major requirement for most quantum information technologies. A very appealing approach is to use self-correcting Hamiltonians, i.e. tailoring local interactions among the qubits such that when the system is weakly coupled to a cold bath the thermalization process takes a long time. Here we propose an alternative but more powerful approach in which the coupling to a bath is engineered, so that dissipation protects the encoded qubit against more general kinds of errors. We show that the method can be implemented locally in four dimensional lattice geometries by means of a toric code, and propose a simple 2D set-up for proof of principle experiments.Comment: 6 +8 pages, 4 figures, Includes minor corrections updated references and aknowledgement

Tetrazolium salts and formazan products in cell biology: viability assessment, fluorescence imaging, and labeling perspectives

For many years various tetrazolium salts and their formazan products have been employed in histochemistry and for assessing cell viability. For the latter application, the most widely used are 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT), and 5-cyano-2,3-di-(p-tolyl)-tetrazolium chloride (CTC) for viability assays of eukaryotic cells and bacteria, respectively. In these cases, the nicotinamide-adenine-dinucleotide (NAD(P)H) coenzyme and dehydrogenases from metabolically active cells reduce tetrazolium salts to strongly colored and lipophilic formazan products, which are then quantified by absorbance (MTT) or fluorescence (CTC). More recently, certain sulfonated tetrazolium, which give rise to water-soluble formazans, have also proved useful for cytotoxicity assays. We describe several aspects of the application of tetrazolium salts and formazans in biomedical cell biology research, mainly regarding formazan-based colorimetric assays, cellular reduction of MTT, and localization and fluorescence of the MTT formazan in lipidic cell structures. In addition, some pharmacological and labeling perspectives of these compounds are also described

NIR laser pointer for in vivo photothermal therapy of murine LM3 tumor using intratumoral China ink as a photothermal agent

The photothermal effect is one of the most promising photonic procedures currently under development to successfully treat several clinical disorders, none the least some kinds of cancer. At present, this field is undergoing a renewed interest due to advances in both photothermal materials and better-suited light sources. However, scientific studies in this area are sometimes hampered by the relative unavailability of state-of-art materials or the complexity of setting up a dedicated optical facility. Here, we present a simple and affordable approach to do research in the photothermal field that relies on a commercial NIR laser pointer and a readily available everyday pigment: China ink. A proof-of-concept study is presented in which mice bearing intradermal LM3 mammary adenocarcinoma tumors were successfully treated in vivo employing China ink and the laser pointer. TUNEL and Ki-67 post-treatment tissue assessment clearly indicates the deleterious action of the photothermal treatment on the tumor. Therefore, the feasibility of this simple approach has been demonstrated, which may inspire other groups to implement simple procedures to further explore the photothermal effec

Rendering Elimination: Early Discard of Redundant Tiles in the Graphics Pipeline

GPUs are one of the most energy-consuming components for real-time rendering applications, since a large number of fragment shading computations and memory accesses are involved. Main memory bandwidth is especially taxing battery-operated devices such as smartphones. Tile-Based Rendering GPUs divide the screen space into multiple tiles that are independently rendered in on-chip buffers, thus reducing memory bandwidth and energy consumption. We have observed that, in many animated graphics workloads, a large number of screen tiles have the same color across adjacent frames. In this paper, we propose Rendering Elimination (RE), a novel micro-architectural technique that accurately determines if a tile will be identical to the same tile in the preceding frame before rasterization by means of comparing signatures. Since RE identifies redundant tiles early in the graphics pipeline, it completely avoids the computation and memory accesses of the most power consuming stages of the pipeline, which substantially reduces the execution time and the energy consumption of the GPU. For widely used Android applications, we show that RE achieves an average speedup of 1.74x and energy reduction of 43% for the GPU/Memory system, surpassing by far the benefits of Transaction Elimination, a state-of-the-art memory bandwidth reduction technique available in some commercial Tile-Based Rendering GPUs

PRESENCIA DE Campylobacter spp EN CANALES Y CIEGOS DE POLLOS DE ENGORDE EN LIMA, PERÚ

The aim of this study was to determine the presence of Campylobacter spp in meat and cecum of broilers sold in three illegal abattoirs in Lima, Peru. For this purpose, 90 broilers were selected, collecting 60 samples of body carcasses by the rinse method and 30 samples of cecum. The samples were cultured in mCCDA agar at 42 °C for 48 h under microaerophilic atmosphere, and biochemical tests were used to identify thermotolerant Campylobacter species. The results showed that 16.7% of carcasses were positive, where 60% were C. jejuni and 40% C. coli. In cecum samples, 26.7% were positive to Campylobacter spp, where 72.7% were C. jejuni and 27.2% C. coli.El objetivo del trabajo fue determinar la presencia de Campylobacter spp en canales y ciegos de pollos de engorde comercializados en Lima Metropolitana a través de tres centros de beneficio clandestino. Se muestrearon 90 aves, obteniendo 30 muestras de ciego y 60 muestras de enjuagues de canales. Las muestras fueron sembradas directamente en medio selectivo mCCDA, a 42 °C por 48 h en atmósfera microaerofílica y se usaron pruebas bioquímicas para confirmar las especies termotolerantes. El 16.7% de las canales fueron positivas a Campylobacter spp, donde el 60% fue con C. jejuni y 40% con C. coli. Además, el 26.7% de muestras de ciego fueron positivas, siendo el 72.7% a C. jejuni y 27.2% a C. coli

Cambios en el perfil bioquímico hepático de alpacas positivas a huevos de Fasciola hepática

The aim of this study was to determine changes in the liver biochemical profile in alpacas with presence of F. hepatica eggs. We used serum and feces samples of 35 male alpaca between 2-5 years old, 18 were positives and 17 were negatives in coproparasitologic analysis for F. hepatica eggs. Differences are showed (p<0.05) in the values of ALT, GGT and direct bilirubin between positives y negatives animals. We concluded that there is relationship between presence of F. hepatica eggs and high levels in the liver biochemical profile, maybe due to alterations in the hepatic parenchyma by chronic infection in alpacas.El objetivo del presente estudio fue determinar cambios en el perfil bioquímico hepático en alpacas con presencia de huevos de F. hepatica en heces. Se utilizaron muestras de suero y heces de 35 alpacas machos de entre 2 y 5 años de edad, de los cuales 18 fueron positivos y 17 negativos al examen coproparasitológico (sedimentación) para identificación de huevos de F. hepática. Se observó diferencia significativa (p<0.05) entre los valores de ALT, GGT y bilirrubina directa entre los animales positivos y negativos. Concluimos que la presencia de huevos de Fasciola hepatica guarda relación con la elevación de algunos parámetros del perfil hepática posiblemente por alguna alteración en el parénquima producto de una infección crónica en alpacas

Tuberculosis due to Mycobacterium bovis and Mycobacterium caprae in sheep

Tuberculosis was diagnosed in three flocks of sheep in Galicia, Spain, in 2009 and 2010. Two flocks were infected with Mycobacterium bovis and one flock was infected with Mycobacterium caprae. Infection was confirmed by the comparative intradermal tuberculin test, bacteriology, molecular analysis and histopathology. Sheep have the potential to act as a reservoir for tuberculosis

An instrumental puzzle: the modular integration of AOLI

The Adaptive Optics Lucky Imager, AOLI, is an instrument developed to deliver the highest spatial resolution ever obtained in the visible, 20 mas, from ground-based telescopes. In AOLI a new philosophy of instrumental prototyping has been applied, based on the modularization of the subsystems. This modular concept offers maximum flexibility regarding the instrument, telescope or the addition of future developments.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, Proc. SPIE 9908, Ground-based and Airborne Instrumentation for Astronomy VI, 99082Z (August 9, 2016

Cambios en los parámetros fisiológicos por diarrea neonatal en crías de alpaca

Alpacas in the pre-weaning stage often present neonatal diarrhoea, usually of infectious type, causing high mortality. This study determined the physiological parameters and their changes in animals with diarrhoea. In total, 79 neonate alpacas less than 60 days of age from Pasco and Junín regions, Peru, were used. Of them, 60 had clinical diarrhoea lasting 1 to 3 days, and 19 were healthy (controls). Heart and respiratory rate, peripheral capillary oxygen saturation, body temperature, capillary refill time, and mucous color were determined. A significant increase in heart rate in crias with diarrhea compared to healthy ones was found (p<0.05). Besides, no differences in other physiological parameters between diseased and apparently healthy offspring was found.Las crías de alpaca en la etapa pre-destete cursan con frecuencia con cuadros diarreicos, por lo general de tipo infeccioso, causantes de alta mortalidad. El presente estudio determinó los parámetros fisiológicos y sus cambios en animales con diarrea. Se utilizaron 79 alpacas neonatas menores de 60 días de edad de las zonas de Pasco y Junín, Perú. De ellas, 60 cursaban con cuadros de diarrea entre 1 a 3 días y 19 estaban sanas (controles). Se determinó la frecuencia cardiaca y respiratoria, saturación de la sangre por la presión parcial de oxígeno, temperatura corporal, tiempo de llenado capilar y coloración de las mucosas. Se encontró un aumento significativo de la frecuencia cardiaca (p<0.05) en crías con diarrea en comparación a las sanas, no habiendo diferencias en los demás parámetros fisiológicos entre crías enfermas y aparentemente sanas