10,302 research outputs found
Bounded Gaps Between Products of Distinct Primes
Let be an integer. We adapt the Maynard-Tao sieve to produce the
asymptotically best-known bounded gaps between products of distinct primes.
Our result applies to positive-density subsets of the primes that satisfy
certain equidistribution conditions. This improves on the work of Thorne and
Sono
Collaborative socially responsible practices for improving the position of Chinese workers in global supply chains
In this paper we evaluate three projects with the participation of 40 supplier firms in several Chinese coastal provinces representing multi-stakeholder efforts to provide alternative channels through which workers can voice their concerns. The supplier firms took on these projects to reduce worker dissatisfaction and employee turnover. The projects fill an institutional void in employer–employee relations within Chinese supplier firms as they provide alternative channels for workers to voice their concerns. The role of civil society organisations focusing on labour interests was a crucial feature of the projects, through capacity-building for workers and by providing independence. The supplier firms and their workers have benefitted as firms take measures to enhance worker satisfaction, while the reduced employee turnover positively impacted firm performance. We propose that these collaborative socially responsible practices are a potential way to strengthen the positions of workers and supplier firms in global supply chain
Hybrid quantum device based on NV centers in diamond nanomechanical resonators plus superconducting waveguide cavities
We propose and analyze a hybrid device by integrating a microscale diamond
beam with a single built-in nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center spin to a
superconducting coplanar waveguide (CPW) cavity. We find that under an ac
electric field the quantized motion of the diamond beam can strongly couple to
the single cavity photons via dielectric interaction. Together with the strong
spin-motion interaction via a large magnetic field gradient, it provides a
hybrid quantum device where the dia- mond resonator can strongly couple both to
the single microwave cavity photons and to the single NV center spin. This
enables coherent information transfer and effective coupling between the NV
spin and the CPW cavity via mechanically dark polaritons. This hybrid
spin-electromechanical de- vice, with tunable couplings by external fields,
offers a realistic platform for implementing quantum information with single NV
spins, diamond mechanical resonators, and single microwave photons.Comment: Accepted by Phys. Rev. Applie
Link and subgraph likelihoods in random undirected networks with fixed and partially fixed degree sequence
The simplest null models for networks, used to distinguish significant
features of a particular network from {\it a priori} expected features, are
random ensembles with the degree sequence fixed by the specific network of
interest. These "fixed degree sequence" (FDS) ensembles are, however, famously
resistant to analytic attack. In this paper we introduce ensembles with
partially-fixed degree sequences (PFDS) and compare analytic results obtained
for them with Monte Carlo results for the FDS ensemble. These results include
link likelihoods, subgraph likelihoods, and degree correlations. We find that
local structural features in the FDS ensemble can be reasonably well estimated
by simultaneously fixing only the degrees of few nodes, in addition to the
total number of nodes and links. As test cases we use a food web, two protein
interaction networks (\textit{E. coli, S. cerevisiae}), the internet on the
autonomous system (AS) level, and the World Wide Web. Fixing just the degrees
of two nodes gives the mean neighbor degree as a function of node degree,
, in agreement with results explicitly obtained from rewiring. For
power law degree distributions, we derive the disassortativity analytically. In
the PFDS ensemble the partition function can be expanded diagrammatically. We
obtain an explicit expression for the link likelihood to lowest order, which
reduces in the limit of large, sparse undirected networks with links and
with to the simple formula . In a
similar limit, the probability for three nodes to be linked into a triangle
reduces to the factorized expression .Comment: 17 pages, includes 11 figures; first revision: shortened to 14 pages
(7 figures), added discussion of subgraph counts, deleted discussion of
directed network
Consumer purchasing behaviour for fresh vegetables in Nanjing, China
With increasing income and growing concerns for food safety, consumer purchasing behaviour for fresh vegetables is changing in China. To gain a better understanding of consumer behaviour in Nanjing, 542 face-to-face interviews were conducted. Results show that most fresh vegetables are purchased from traditional wet markets several times per week. In evaluating the quality of the fresh vegetables respondents intended to purchase, the two key selection criteria were colour and freshness. Most respondents were aware of some recent food safety incident that had adversely affected the industry. Respondents were most concerned about the presence of pesticide residues. To reduce the possibilities of contamination, respondents chose to wash or soak the fresh vegetables they intended to eat and to buy from trusted suppliers. Consumers believed that farmers, vegetable processors and government should be responsible for the enhancing and maintaining the safety of the fresh vegetables offered for sale
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