2,279 research outputs found
Muting, not fragmentation, of functional brain networks under general anesthesia
© 2021 Changes in resting-state functional connectivity (rs-FC) under general anesthesia have been widely studied with the goal of identifying neural signatures of consciousness. This work has commonly revealed an apparent fragmentation of whole-brain network structure during unconsciousness, which has been interpreted as reflecting a break-down in connectivity and a disruption of the brain\u27s ability to integrate information. Here we show, by studying rs-FC under varying depths of isoflurane-induced anesthesia in nonhuman primates, that this apparent fragmentation, rather than reflecting an actual change in network structure, can be simply explained as the result of a global reduction in FC. Specifically, by comparing the actual FC data to surrogate data sets that we derived to test competing hypotheses of how FC changes as a function of dose, we found that increases in whole-brain modularity and the number of network communities – considered hallmarks of fragmentation – are artifacts of constructing FC networks by thresholding based on correlation magnitude. Taken together, our findings suggest that deepening levels of unconsciousness are instead associated with the increasingly muted expression of functional networks, an observation that constrains current interpretations as to how anesthesia-induced FC changes map onto existing neurobiological theories of consciousness
Theory of neutral and charged exciton scattering with electrons in semiconductor quantum wells
Electron scattering on both neutral () and charged () excitons in
quantum wells is studied theoretically. A microscopic model is presented,
taking into account both elastic and dissociating scattering. The model is
based on calculating the exciton-electron direct and exchange interaction
matrix elements, from which we derive the exciton scattering rates. We find
that for an electron density of in a GaAs QW at ,
the linewidth due to electron scattering is roughly twice as large as
that of the neutral exciton. This reflects both the larger interaction
matrix elements compared with those of , and their different dependence on
the transferred momentum. Calculated reflection spectra can then be obtained by
considering the three electronic excitations of the system, namely, the
heavy-hole and light-hole 1S neutral excitons, and the heavy-hole 1S charged
exciton, with the appropriate oscillator strengths.Comment: 18 pages, 12 figure
Isoperimetric Inequalities in Simplicial Complexes
In graph theory there are intimate connections between the expansion
properties of a graph and the spectrum of its Laplacian. In this paper we
define a notion of combinatorial expansion for simplicial complexes of general
dimension, and prove that similar connections exist between the combinatorial
expansion of a complex, and the spectrum of the high dimensional Laplacian
defined by Eckmann. In particular, we present a Cheeger-type inequality, and a
high-dimensional Expander Mixing Lemma. As a corollary, using the work of Pach,
we obtain a connection between spectral properties of complexes and Gromov's
notion of geometric overlap. Using the work of Gunder and Wagner, we give an
estimate for the combinatorial expansion and geometric overlap of random
Linial-Meshulam complexes
Electrical Control of Plasmon Resonance with Graphene
Surface plasmon, with its unique capability to concentrate light into
sub-wavelength volume, has enabled great advances in photon science, ranging
from nano-antenna and single-molecule Raman scattering to plasmonic waveguide
and metamaterials. In many applications it is desirable to control the surface
plasmon resonance in situ with electric field. Graphene, with its unique
tunable optical properties, provides an ideal material to integrate with
nanometallic structures for realizing such control. Here we demonstrate
effective modulation of the plasmon resonance in a model system composed of
hybrid graphene-gold nanorod structure. Upon electrical gating the strong
optical transitions in graphene can be switched on and off, which leads to
significant modulation of both the resonance frequency and quality factor of
plasmon resonance in gold nanorods. Hybrid graphene-nanometallic structures, as
exemplified by this combination of graphene and gold nanorod, provide a general
and powerful way for electrical control of plasmon resonances. It holds promise
for novel active optical devices and plasmonic circuits at the deep
subwavelength scale
A New Algorithm for Supernova Neutrino Transport and Some Applications
We have developed an implicit, multi-group, time-dependent, spherical
neutrino transport code based on the Feautrier variables, the tangent-ray
method, and accelerated iteration. The code achieves high
angular resolution, is good to O(), is equivalent to a Boltzmann solver
(without gravitational redshifts), and solves the transport equation at all
optical depths with precision. In this paper, we present our formulation of the
relevant numerics and microphysics and explore protoneutron star atmospheres
for snapshot post-bounce models. Our major focus is on spectra, neutrino-matter
heating rates, Eddington factors, angular distributions, and phase-space
occupancies. In addition, we investigate the influence on neutrino spectra and
heating of final-state electron blocking, stimulated absorption, velocity terms
in the transport equation, neutrino-nucleon scattering asymmetry, and weak
magnetism and recoil effects. Furthermore, we compare the emergent spectra and
heating rates obtained using full transport with those obtained using
representative flux-limited transport formulations to gauge their accuracy and
viability. Finally, we derive useful formulae for the neutrino source strength
due to nucleon-nucleon bremsstrahlung and determine bremsstrahlung's influence
on the emergent and neutrino spectra.Comment: 58 pages, single-spaced LaTeX, 23 figures, revised title, also
available at http://jupiter.as.arizona.edu/~burrows/papers, accepted for
publication in the Ap.
Thyroid cancer risk in Belarus among children and adolescents exposed to radioiodine after the Chornobyl accident
BACKGROUND: Previous studies showed an increased risk of thyroid cancer among children and adolescents exposed to radioactive iodines released after the Chornobyl (Chernobyl) accident, but the effects of screening, iodine deficiency, age at exposure and other factors on the dose-response are poorly understood.
METHODS: We screened 11 970 individuals in Belarus aged 18 years or younger at the time of the accident who had estimated (131)I thyroid doses based on individual thyroid activity measurements and dosimetric data from questionnaires. The excess odds ratio per gray (EOR/Gy) was modelled using linear and linear-exponential functions.
RESULTS: For thyroid doses \u3c5 \u3eGy, the dose-response was linear (n=85; EOR/Gy=2.15, 95% confidence interval: 0.81-5.47), but at higher doses the excess risk fell. The EOR/Gy was significantly increased among those with prior or screening-detected diffuse goiter, and larger for men than women, and for persons exposed before age 5 than those exposed between 5 and 18 years, although not statistically significant. A somewhat higher EOR/Gy was estimated for validated pre-screening cases.
CONCLUSION: 10-15 years after the Chornobyl accident, thyroid cancer risk was significantly increased among individuals exposed to fallout as children or adolescents, but the risk appeared to be lower than in other Chornobyl studies and studies of childhood external irradiation
Saturation of electrical resistivity
Resistivity saturation is observed in many metallic systems with a large
resistivity, i.e., when the resistivity has reached a critical value, its
further increase with temperature is substantially reduced. This typically
happens when the apparent mean free path is comparable to the interatomic
separations - the Ioffe-Regel condition. Recently, several exceptions to this
rule have been found. Here, we review experimental results and early theories
of resistivity saturation. We then describe more recent theoretical work,
addressing cases both where the Ioffe-Regel condition is satisfied and where it
is violated. In particular we show how the (semiclassical) Ioffe-Regel
condition can be derived quantum-mechanically under certain assumptions about
the system and why these assumptions are violated for high-Tc cuprates and
alkali-doped fullerides.Comment: 16 pages, RevTeX, 15 eps figures, additional material available at
http://www.mpi-stuttgart.mpg.de/andersen/saturation
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