342 research outputs found
Back to Bentham? Explorations of Experienced Utility
Two core meanings of “utility” are distinguished. “Decision utility” is the weight of an outcome in a decision. “Experienced utility” is hedonic quality, as in Bentham’s usage. Experienced utility can be reported in real time (instant utility), or in retrospective evaluations of past episodes (remembered utility). Psychological
research has documented systematic errors in retrospective evaluations, which can induce a preference for dominated options. We propose a formal normative theory of the total experienced utility of temporally extended outcomes. Measuring
the experienced utility of outcomes permits tests of utility maximization and opens other lines of empirical research
The Grover algorithm with large nuclear spins in semiconductors
We show a possible way to implement the Grover algorithm in large nuclear
spins 1/2<I<9/2 in semiconductors. The Grover sequence is performed by means of
multiphoton transitions that distribute the spin amplitude between the nuclear
spin states. They are distinguishable due to the quadrupolar splitting, which
makes the nuclear spin levels non-equidistant. We introduce a generalized
rotating frame for an effective Hamiltonian that governs the non-perturbative
time evolution of the nuclear spin states for arbitrary spin lengths I. The
larger the quadrupolar splitting, the better the agreement between our
approximative method using the generalized rotating frame and exact numerical
calculations.Comment: 11 pages, 18 EPS figures, REVTe
Vector boson production at hadron colliders: hard-collinear coefficients at the NNLO
We consider QCD radiative corrections to vector-boson production in hadron
collisions. We present the next-to-next-to-leading order (NNLO) result of the
hard-collinear coefficient function for the all-order resummation of
logarithmically-enhanced contributions at small transverse momenta. The
coefficient function controls NNLO contributions in resummed calculations at
full next-to-next-to-leading logarithmic accuracy. The same coefficient
function is used in applications of the subtraction method to perform
fully-exclusive perturbative calculations up to NNLO.Comment: 13, pages, no figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with
arXiv:1106.465
Genomic analysis of diet composition finds novel loci and associations with health and lifestyle
We conducted genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analyses of relative caloric intake from fat,
protein, carbohydrates and sugar in over 235,000 individuals. We identified 21 approximately
independent lead SNPs. Relative protein intake exhibits the strongest relationships with poor health,
including positive genetic associations with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease ( ≈ 0.15 −
0.5). Relative carbohydrate and sugar intake have negative genetic correlations with waist circumference,
waist-hip ratio, and neighborhood poverty (|| ≈ 0.1 − 0.3). Overall, our results show that the relative
intake of each macronutrient has a distinct genetic architecture and pattern of genetic correlations
suggestive of health implications beyond caloric content
Temporal, spatial, and structural patterns of adult trembling aspen and white spruce mortality in Quebec's boreal forest
Temporal, spatial, and structural patterns of adult trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) and white spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) mortality were studied in intact 150-year-old stands in the southwestern boreal forest of Quebec. For both species, mortality decreases (number of dead trees/total number of trees) with distance from the lake edge until 100-150 m, from which point it slightly increases. Strong peaks in mortality were found for 40- to 60-year-old aspen mainly between 1974 and 1992. Such mortality in relatively young aspen is likely related to competition for light from the dominant canopy trees. Also, the recruitment of this young aspen cohort is presumably the result of a stand breakup that occurred when the initial aspen-dominated stand was between 90 and 110 years old. For spruce, strong peaks in mortality were found in 110- to 150-year-old trees and they occurred mainly after 1980. No clear explanation could be found for these peaks, but we suggest that they may be related to senescence or weakening of the trees following the last spruce budworm outbreak. Suppressed and codominant aspen had a much higher mortality ratio than spruce in the same height class, while more surprisingly, no difference in mortality rate was found between dominant trees of the two species. Most spruce trees were found as standing dead, which leads us to reject the hypothesis that windthrow is an important cause of mortality for spruce in our forests
Growth Rate of Large Scale Structure as a Powerful Probe of Dark Energy
The redshift evolution of the growth rate of the gravitational potential,
d(D/a)/dz, is an excellent discriminator of dark energy parameters and, in
principle, more powerful than standard classical tests of cosmology. This
evolution is directly observable through the integrated Sachs-Wolfe effect in
cosmic microwave background (CMB) anisotropies. We consider the prospects of
measuring the growth rate via a novel method employed through measurements of
CMB polarization towards galaxy clusters. The potentially achievable errors on
dark energy parameters are comparable and fully complementary to those expected
from other upcoming tests of dark energy, making this test a highly promising
tool of precision cosmology.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Os sistemas agroflorestais como alternativa de sustentabilidade em ecossistemas de várzea no Amazonas.
Os sistemas agroflorestais (SAFs) representam uma alternativa agroecológica de produção, sob regime sustentável, para os agricultores familiares na várzea dos Rios Solimões/Amazonas, principalmente no que se refere ao manejo florestal, à diversidade de produtos e à geração de renda. Diante disso, o objetivo deste trabalho foi compreender as diferentes formas de apropriação e de manejo dos recursos naturais através dos SAFs, nos subsistemas roça, sítio e lagos, como componente para a sustentabilidade dos agricultores familiares da localidade Costa da Terra Nova, município do Careiro da Várzea, Amazonas. O método empregado foi o Estudo de Caso com aplicação de questionários, entrevistas e observação participante. A produção familiar na Costa da Terra Nova é representada pelos SAFs, constituído pelos os subsistemas: roça quintal e lago, que proporcionam produtos tanto para subsistência quanto para comercialização local, e estabelecendo a agricultura como fundamental atividade na localidade. O principal produto para comercialização é obtido das hortaliças cultivadas na época da vazante no subsistema roça nas comunidades São Francisco e Nossa Senhora da Conceição; e do extrativismo pesqueiro no subsistema lago, na época da cheia, principalmente na comunidade São José. A criação de animal se dá no subsistema sítio e é apenas para subsistência, sendo as aves e os suínos os principais animais domésticos criados nas três comunidades. Portanto os SAFs tradicionais, constituídos pelos subsistemas, roça, sitio e lago, são responsáveis pela sustentabilidade socioeconômica da localidade pesquisada, servindo, como alternativa agrícola melhor adaptada às condições locais das áreas de várzea na Amazônia
Predicting cardiovascular stent complications using self-reporting biosensors for noninvasive detection of disease
Self-reporting implantable medical devices are the future of cardiovascular healthcare. Cardiovascular complications such as blocked arteries that lead to the majority of heart attacks and strokes are frequently treated with inert metal stents that reopen affected vessels. Stents frequently re-block after deployment due to a wound response called in-stent restenosis (ISR). Herein, an implantable miniaturized sensor and telemetry system are developed that can detect this process, discern the different cell types associated with ISR, distinguish sub plaque components as demonstrated with ex vivo samples, and differentiate blood from blood clot, all on a silicon substrate making it suitable for integration onto a vascular stent. This work shows that microfabricated sensors can provide clinically relevant information in settings closer to physiological conditions than previous work with cultured cells
The PHENIX Experiment at RHIC
The physics emphases of the PHENIX collaboration and the design and current
status of the PHENIX detector are discussed. The plan of the collaboration for
making the most effective use of the available luminosity in the first years of
RHIC operation is also presented.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure. Further details of the PHENIX physics program
available at http://www.rhic.bnl.gov/phenix
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