306 research outputs found
Topological Field Theories and Geometry of Batalin-Vilkovisky Algebras
The algebraic and geometric structures of deformations are analyzed
concerning topological field theories of Schwarz type by means of the
Batalin-Vilkovisky formalism. Deformations of the Chern-Simons-BF theory in
three dimensions induces the Courant algebroid structure on the target space as
a sigma model. Deformations of BF theories in dimensions are also analyzed.
Two dimensional deformed BF theory induces the Poisson structure and three
dimensional deformed BF theory induces the Courant algebroid structure on the
target space as a sigma model. The deformations of BF theories in
dimensions induce the structures of Batalin-Vilkovisky algebras on the target
space.Comment: 25 page
Physician Assessment and Feedback During Quality Circle to Reduce Low-Value Services in Outpatients: a Pre-Post Quality Improvement Study.
The impact of the Choosing Wisely (CW) campaign is debated as recommendations alone may not modify physician behavior.
The aim of this study was to assess whether behavioral interventions with physician assessment and feedback during quality circles (QCs) could reduce low-value services.
Pre-post quality improvement intervention with a parallel comparison group involving outpatients followed in a Swiss-managed care network, including 700 general physicians (GPs) and 150,000 adult patients.
Interventions included performance feedback about low-value activities and comparison with peers during QCs. We assessed individual physician behavior and healthcare use from laboratory and insurance claims files between August 1, 2016, and October 31, 2018.
Main outcomes were the change in prescription of three low-value services 6 months before and 6 months after each intervention: measurement of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and prescription rates of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and statins.
Among primary care practices, a QC intervention with physician feedback and peer comparison resulted in lower rates of PPI prescription (pre-post mean prescriptions per GP 25.5 ± 23.7 vs 22.9 ± 21.4, p value<0.01; coefficient of variation (Cov) 93.0% vs 91.0%, p=0.49), PSA measurement (6.5 ± 8.7 vs 5.3 ± 6.9 tests per GP, p<0.01; Cov 133.5% vs 130.7%, p=0.84), as well as statins (6.1 ± 6.8 vs 5.6 ± 5.4 prescriptions per GP, p<0.01; Cov 111.5% vs 96.4%, p=0.21). Changes in prescription of low-value services among GPs who did not attend QCs were not statistically significant over this time period.
Our results demonstrate a modest but statistically significant effect of QCs with educative feedback in reducing low-value services in outpatients with low impact on coefficient of variation. Limiting overuse in medicine is very challenging and dedicated discussion and real-time review of actionable data may help
Cell shape analysis of random tessellations based on Minkowski tensors
To which degree are shape indices of individual cells of a tessellation
characteristic for the stochastic process that generates them? Within the
context of stochastic geometry and the physics of disordered materials, this
corresponds to the question of relationships between different stochastic
models. In the context of image analysis of synthetic and biological materials,
this question is central to the problem of inferring information about
formation processes from spatial measurements of resulting random structures.
We address this question by a theory-based simulation study of shape indices
derived from Minkowski tensors for a variety of tessellation models. We focus
on the relationship between two indices: an isoperimetric ratio of the
empirical averages of cell volume and area and the cell elongation quantified
by eigenvalue ratios of interfacial Minkowski tensors. Simulation data for
these quantities, as well as for distributions thereof and for correlations of
cell shape and volume, are presented for Voronoi mosaics of the Poisson point
process, determinantal and permanental point processes, and Gibbs hard-core and
random sequential absorption processes as well as for Laguerre tessellations of
polydisperse spheres and STIT- and Poisson hyperplane tessellations. These data
are complemented by mechanically stable crystalline sphere and disordered
ellipsoid packings and area-minimising foam models. We find that shape indices
of individual cells are not sufficient to unambiguously identify the generating
process even amongst this limited set of processes. However, we identify
significant differences of the shape indices between many of these tessellation
models. Given a realization of a tessellation, these shape indices can narrow
the choice of possible generating processes, providing a powerful tool which
can be further strengthened by density-resolved volume-shape correlations.Comment: Chapter of the forthcoming book "Tensor Valuations and their
Applications in Stochastic Geometry and Imaging" in Lecture Notes in
Mathematics edited by Markus Kiderlen and Eva B. Vedel Jense
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Universal hidden order in amorphous cellular geometries
Partitioning space into cells with certain extreme geometrical properties is a central problem in many fields of science and technology. Here we investigate the Quantizer problem, defined as the optimisation of the moment of inertia of Voronoi cells, i.e., similarly-sized ‘sphere-like’ polyhedra that tile space are preferred. We employ Lloyd’s centroidal Voronoi diagram algorithm to solve this problem and find that it converges to disordered states associated with deep local minima. These states are universal in the sense that their structure factors are characterised by a complete independence of a wide class of initial conditions they evolved from. They moreover exhibit an anomalous suppression of long-wavelength density fluctuations and quickly become effectively hyperuniform. Our findings warrant the search for novel amorphous hyperuniform phases and cellular materials with unique physical properties
The future of social is personal: the potential of the personal data store
This chapter argues that technical architectures that facilitate the longitudinal, decentralised and individual-centric personal collection and curation of data will be an important, but partial, response to the pressing problem of the autonomy of the data subject, and the asymmetry of power between the subject and large scale service providers/data consumers. Towards framing the scope and role of such Personal Data Stores (PDSes), the legalistic notion of personal data is examined, and it is argued that a more inclusive, intuitive notion expresses more accurately what individuals require in order to preserve their autonomy in a data-driven world of large aggregators. Six challenges towards realising the PDS vision are set out: the requirement to store data for long periods; the difficulties of managing data for individuals; the need to reconsider the regulatory basis for third-party access to data; the need to comply with international data handling standards; the need to integrate privacy-enhancing technologies; and the need to future-proof data gathering against the evolution of social norms. The open experimental PDS platform INDX is introduced and described, as a means of beginning to address at least some of these six challenges
Consistent interactions of dual linearized gravity in D=5: couplings with a topological BF model
Under some plausible assumptions, we find that the dual formulation of
linearized gravity in D=5 can be nontrivially coupled to the topological BF
model in such a way that the interacting theory exhibits a deformed gauge
algebra and some deformed, on-shell reducibility relations. Moreover, the
tensor field with the mixed symmetry (2,1) gains some shift gauge
transformations with parameters from the BF sector.Comment: 63 pages, accepted for publication in Eur. Phys. J.
Number of particle creation and decoherence in the nonideal dynamical Casimir effect at finite temperature
In this work we investigate the dynamical Casimir effect in a nonideal cavity
by deriving an effective Hamiltonian. We first compute a general expression for
the average number of particle creation, applicable for any law of motion of
the cavity boundary. We also compute a general expression for the linear
entropy of an arbitrary state prepared in a selected mode, also applicable for
any law of motion of the cavity boundary. As an application of our results we
have analyzed both the average number of particle creation and linear entropy
within a particular oscillatory motion of the cavity boundary. On the basis of
these expressions we develop a comprehensive analysis of the resonances in the
number of particle creation in the nonideal dynamical Casimir effect. We also
demonstrate the occurrence of resonances in the loss of purity of the initial
state and estimate the decoherence times associated with these resonances.Comment: comments are welcom
Mammals of the Bodoquena Mountains, southwestern Brazil: an ecological and conservation analysis
Origin of the Local Bubble
We present a new unbiased search for OB associations in the Solar neighbourhood
which have hosted the progenitor stars of the core collapse supernovae responsible for the
Local Bubble in the interstellar gas. For this purpose we have analyzed a volume complete
set (with a diameter of 400 pc) of B stars drawn from the Hipparcos catalogue and the Arivel
data base, from which candidate members were selected by a kinematical criterion. After
careful dereddening the star colours we have constructed a colour-magnitude diagram and
confirmed that the Upper Scorpius, Upper Centaurus Lupus, and Lower Centaurus Crux
subgroups of the Sco OB2 association are the youngest nearby OB associations. We dated
their ages with theoretical isochrones in the range of 20–30 Myr, in agreement with previous
work. We have traced backwards in time the paths of the stars and found that they entered
the volume of the present bubble at 10 to 15 Myr ago. We argue that the Local Bubble began
to form then and estimate that 14 to 20 supernovae have exploded since. The implied energy
input into the ambient medium can be shown to be sufficient to excavate a bubble of the
presently observed size
Wind-Blown Bubbles around Evolved Stars
Most stars will experience episodes of substantial mass loss at some point in
their lives. For very massive stars, mass loss dominates their evolution,
although the mass loss rates are not known exactly, particularly once the star
has left the main sequence. Direct observations of the stellar winds of massive
stars can give information on the current mass-loss rates, while studies of the
ring nebulae and HI shells that surround many Wolf-Rayet (WR) and luminous blue
variable (LBV) stars provide information on the previous mass-loss history. The
evolution of the most massive stars, (M > 25 solar masses), essentially follows
the sequence O star to LBV or red supergiant (RSG) to WR star to supernova. For
stars of mass less than 25 solar masses there is no final WR stage. During the
main sequence and WR stages, the mass loss takes the form of highly supersonic
stellar winds, which blow bubbles in the interstellar and circumstellar medium.
In this way, the mechanical luminosity of the stellar wind is converted into
kinetic energy of the swept-up ambient material, which is important for the
dynamics of the interstellar medium. In this review article, analytic and
numerical models are used to describe the hydrodynamics and energetics of
wind-blown bubbles. A brief review of observations of bubbles is given, and the
degree to which theory is supported by observations is discussed.Comment: To be published as a chapter in 'Diffuse Matter from Star Forming
Regions to Active Galaxies' - A volume Honouring John Dyson. Eds. T. W.
Harquist, J. M. Pittard and S. A. E. G. Falle. 22 pages, 12 figure
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