922 research outputs found
Observation of anomalous decoherence effect in a quantum bath at room temperature
Decoherence of quantum objects is critical to modern quantum sciences and
technologies. It is generally believed that stronger noises cause faster
decoherence. Strikingly, recent theoretical research discovers the opposite
case for spins in quantum baths. Here we report experimental observation of the
anomalous decoherence effect for the electron spin-1 of a nitrogen-vacancy
centre in high-purity diamond at room temperature. We demonstrate that under
dynamical decoupling, the double-transition can have longer coherence time than
the single-transition, even though the former couples to the nuclear spin bath
as twice strongly as the latter does. The excellent agreement between the
experimental and the theoretical results confirms the controllability of the
weakly coupled nuclear spins in the bath, which is useful in quantum
information processing and quantum metrology.Comment: 22 pages, related paper at http://arxiv.org/abs/1102.557
30 years of collaboration
We highlight some of the most important cornerstones of the long standing and very fruitful collaboration of the Austrian Diophantine Number Theory research group and the Number Theory and Cryptography School of Debrecen. However, we do not plan to be complete in any sense but give some interesting data and selected results that we find particularly nice. At the end we focus on two topics in more details, namely a problem that origins from a conjecture of RΓ©nyi and ErdΕs (on the number of terms of the square of a polynomial) and another one that origins from a question of Zelinsky (on the unit sum number problem). This paper evolved from a plenary invited talk that the authors gaveat the Joint Austrian-Hungarian Mathematical Conference 2015, August 25-27, 2015 in GyΕr (Hungary)
Random-phase approximation and its applications in computational chemistry and materials science
The random-phase approximation (RPA) as an approach for computing the
electronic correlation energy is reviewed. After a brief account of its basic
concept and historical development, the paper is devoted to the theoretical
formulations of RPA, and its applications to realistic systems. With several
illustrating applications, we discuss the implications of RPA for computational
chemistry and materials science. The computational cost of RPA is also
addressed which is critical for its widespread use in future applications. In
addition, current correction schemes going beyond RPA and directions of further
development will be discussed.Comment: 25 pages, 11 figures, published online in J. Mater. Sci. (2012
Luminescence Dating in Fluvial Settings: Overcoming the Challenge of Partial Bleaching
Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating is a versatile technique that utilises the two most ubiquitous minerals on Earth (quartz or K-feldspar) for constraining the timing of sediment deposition. It has provided accurate ages in agreement with independent age control in many fluvial settings, but is often characterised by partial bleaching of individual grains. Partial bleaching can occur where sunlight exposure is limited and so only a portion of the grains in the sample was exposed to sunlight prior to burial, especially in sediment-laden, turbulent or deep water columns. OSL analysis on multiple grains can provide accurate ages for partially bleached sediments where the OSL signal intensity is dominated by a single brighter grain, but will overestimate the age where the OSL signal intensity is equally as bright (often typical of K-feldspar) or as dim (sometimes typical of quartz). In such settings, it is important to identify partial bleaching and the minimum dose population, preferably by analysing single grains, and applying the appropriate statistical age model to the dose population obtained for each sample. To determine accurate OSL ages using these age models, it is important to quantify the amount of scatter (or overdispersion) in the well-bleached part of the partially bleached dose distribution, which can vary between sediment samples depending upon the bedrock sources and transport histories of grains. Here, we discuss how the effects of partial bleaching can be easily identified and overcome to determine accurate ages. This discussion will therefore focus entirely on the burial dose determination for OSL dating, rather than the dose-rate, as only the burial doses are impacted by the effects of partial bleaching
Prevalence of sexual dimorphism in mammalian phenotypic traits
The role of sex in biomedical studies has often been overlooked, despite evidence of sexually dimorphic effects in some biological studies. Here, we used high-throughput phenotype data from 14,250 wildtype and 40,192 mutant mice (representing 2,186 knockout lines), analysed for up to 234 traits, and found a large proportion of mammalian traits both in wildtype and mutants are influenced by sex. This result has implications for interpreting disease phenotypes in animal models and humans
Observation of associated near-side and away-side long-range correlations in βsNN=5.02ββTeV proton-lead collisions with the ATLAS detector
Two-particle correlations in relative azimuthal angle (ΞΟ) and pseudorapidity (ΞΞ·) are measured in βsNN=5.02ββTeV p+Pb collisions using the ATLAS detector at the LHC. The measurements are performed using approximately 1ββΞΌb-1 of data as a function of transverse momentum (pT) and the transverse energy (Ξ£ETPb) summed over 3.1<Ξ·<4.9 in the direction of the Pb beam. The correlation function, constructed from charged particles, exhibits a long-range (2<|ΞΞ·|<5) βnear-sideβ (ΞΟβΌ0) correlation that grows rapidly with increasing Ξ£ETPb. A long-range βaway-sideβ (ΞΟβΌΟ) correlation, obtained by subtracting the expected contributions from recoiling dijets and other sources estimated using events with small Ξ£ETPb, is found to match the near-side correlation in magnitude, shape (in ΞΞ· and ΞΟ) and Ξ£ETPb dependence. The resultant ΞΟ correlation is approximately symmetric about Ο/2, and is consistent with a dominant cosβ‘2ΞΟ modulation for all Ξ£ETPb ranges and particle pT
Visual Information Alone Changes Behavior and Physiology during Social Interactions in a Cichlid Fish (Astatotilapia burtoni)
Social behavior can influence physiological systems dramatically yet the sensory
cues responsible are not well understood. Behavior of male African cichlid fish,
Astatotilapia burtoni, in their natural habitat suggests
that visual cues from conspecifics contribute significantly to regulation of
social behavior. Using a novel paradigm, we asked whether visual cues alone from
a larger conspecific male could influence behavior, reproductive physiology and
the physiological stress response of a smaller male. Here we show that just
seeing a larger, threatening male through a clear barrier can suppress dominant
behavior of a smaller male for up to 7 days. Smaller dominant males being
βattackedβ visually by larger dominant males through a clear barrier
also showed physiological changes for up to 3 days, including up-regulation of
reproductive- and stress-related gene expression levels and lowered plasma
11-ketotestesterone concentrations as compared to control animals. The smaller
males modified their appearance to match that of non-dominant males when exposed
to a larger male but they maintained a physiological phenotype similar to that
of a dominant male. After 7 days, reproductive- and stress- related gene
expression, circulating hormone levels, and gonad size in the smaller males
showed no difference from the control group suggesting that the smaller male
habituated to the visual intruder. However, the smaller male continued to
display subordinate behaviors and assumed the appearance of a subordinate male
for a full week despite his dominant male physiology. These data suggest that
seeing a larger male alone can regulate the behavior of a smaller male but that
ongoing reproductive inhibition depends on additional sensory cues. Perhaps,
while experiencing visual social stressors, the smaller male uses an
opportunistic strategy, acting like a subordinate male while maintaining the
physiology of a dominant male
Quantitative real-time RT-PCR validation of differential mRNA expression of SPARC, FADD, Fascin, COL7A1, CK4, TGM3, ECM1, PPL and EVPL in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
BACKGROUND: Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most malignant tumors and typically presents at an advanced and rapidly fatal stage. To better understand the role of genetics in the etiology and prevention of ESCC and to identify potential susceptibility genes as well as early detection markers, we previously compared tumor and matched normal tissues from ESCC patients from a high-risk area of China using cDNA expression microarrays and identified 41 differentially-expressed genes (13 over-expressed and 28 under-expressed). METHODS: In the current study, we validated and quantitated differential mRNA expression in a sample of nine of these 41 genes, including four that were over-expressed (SPARC, FADD, Fascin, COL7A1), and five that were under-expressed (CK4, TGM3, ECM1, PPL, EVPL), in 75 new ESCC patients using quantitative Real-time RT-PCR and the 2(-ΞΞCT )method to examine both tumor and matched normal tissue. In addition, we examined expression patterns for these genes by selected demographic and clinical characteristics. RESULTS: Four previously over-expressed (tumor β₯2-fold normal) genes were all increased in the majority of new ESCC patients: SPARC was increased in 71% of patients, Fascin in 70%, FADD in 63%, and COL7A1 in 57%. Five previously under-expressed (tumor β€0.5-fold normal) genes similarly showed decreased mRNA expression in two-thirds or more of patients: CK4 was decreased in 83% of patients, TGM3 in 77%, ECM1 in 73%, and PPL and EVPL in 67% each. In subset analyses, associations with age (for COL7A1), family history (for PPL and ECM1), and alcohol use (for SPARC and Fascin) were also noted. CONCLUSION: These data indicate that these nine genes have consistent differential mRNA expression, validating results of our previous cDNA array results, and affirming their potential role in the early detection of ESCC
Evidence for Habitual and Goal-Directed Behavior Following Devaluation of Cocaine: A Multifaceted Interpretation of Relapse
BACKGROUND:Cocaine addiction is characterized as a chronically relapsing disorder. It is believed that cues present during self-administration become learned and increase the probability that relapse will occur when they are confronted during abstinence. However, the way in which relapse-inducing cues are interpreted by the user has remained elusive. Recent theories of addiction posit that relapse-inducing cues cause relapse habitually or automatically, bypassing processing information related to the consequences of relapse. Alternatively, other theories hypothesize that relapse-inducing cues produce an expectation of the drug's consequences, designated as goal-directed relapse. Discrete discriminative stimuli signaling the availability of cocaine produce robust cue-induced responding after thirty days of abstinence. However, it is not known whether cue-induced responding is a goal-directed action or habit. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:We tested whether cue-induced responding is a goal-directed action or habit by explicitly pairing or unpairing cocaine with LiCl-induced sickness (n = 7/group), thereby decreasing or not altering the value of cocaine, respectively. Following thirty days of abstinence, no difference in responding between groups was found when animals were reintroduced to the self-administration environment alone, indicating habitual behavior. However, upon discriminative stimulus presentations, cocaine-sickness paired animals exhibited decreased cue-induced responding relative to unpaired controls, indicating goal-directed behavior. In spite of the difference between groups revealed during abstinent testing, no differences were found between groups when animals were under the influence of cocaine. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE:Unexpectedly, both habitual and goal-directed responding occurred during abstinent testing. Furthermore, habitual or goal-directed responding may have been induced by cues that differed in their correlation with the cocaine infusion. Non-discriminative stimulus cues were weak correlates of the infusion, which failed to evoke a representation of the value of cocaine and led to habitual behavior. However, the discriminative stimulus-nearly perfectly correlated with the infusion-likely evoked a representation of the value of the infusion and led to goal-directed behavior. These data indicate that abstinent cue-induced responding is multifaceted, dynamically engendering habitual or goal-directed behavior. Moreover, since goal-directed behavior terminated habitual behavior during testing, therapeutic approaches aimed at reducing the perceived value of cocaine in addicted individuals may reduce the capacity of cues to induce relapse
- β¦