Bounding CPT and Lorentz symmetry violations through ultra-high-energy cosmic rays

We review recent work on CPT and Lorentz violation in the context of the Standard-Model Extension. In particular, we show that, when CPT and Lorentz violation is present in the kinetic terms of any particle in the gauge boson or the lepton sector, this will generally lead to proton decay at sufficiently high energy. Using observational data from ultra-high energy cosmic rays, this has allowed to derive new bounds on the corresponding CPT and Lorentz-violation parameters.FCT: UID/FIS/0009972019info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Massive photons and Lorentz violation

All quadratic translation- and gauge-invariant photon operators for Lorentz breakdown are included into the Stueckelberg Lagrangian for massive photons in a generalized \xi-gauge. The corresponding dispersion relation and tree-level propagator are determined exactly, and some leading-order results are derived. The question of how to include such Lorentz-violating effects into a perturbative quantum-field expansion is addressed. Applications of these results within Lorentz-breaking quantum field theories include the regularization of infrared divergences as well as the free propagation of massive vector bosons.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figur

Mengembangkan Diri Pribadi untuk Melayani di Paroki St. Paulus Juanda Sidoarjo

Pengabdian masyarakat ini bertujuan untuk memenuhi kebutuhan umat Paroki Santo Paulus Juanda Sidoarjo khususnya Ibu-Ibu dalam peningkatankan kemampuan public speaking, personal branding, dan grooming dalam pelayanan. Peserta yang mendaftar dalam kegiatan abdimas sebanyak 34 orang, namun yang hadir pada pertemuan pertama sebanyak 24 orang dan pertemuan kedua sebanyak 20orang. Hasil evaluasi kegiatan ini menunjukkan nilai 4.30 yang berarti baik sekali dalam penyelenggaraan pelatihan, pemberi materi, dan fasilitas lainnya. Peserta nampak antusias, terlihat dari komen, masukan, dan keinginan pelatihan dengan topik lanjutan maupun lainnya

Sudden Death and Left Ventricular Involvement in Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy

BACKGROUND: Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM) is an inherited heart muscle disorder characterized by myocardial fibrofatty replacement and an increased risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD). Originally described as a right ventricular disease, ACM is increasingly recognized as a biventricular entity. We evaluated pathological, genetic, and clinical associations in a large SCD cohort. METHODS: We investigated 5205 consecutive cases of SCD referred to a national cardiac pathology center between 1994 and 2018. Hearts and tissue blocks were examined by expert cardiac pathologists. After comprehensive histological evaluation, 202 cases (4%) were diagnosed with ACM. Of these, 15 (7%) were diagnosed antemortem with dilated cardiomyopathy (n=8) or ACM (n=7). Previous symptoms, medical history, circumstances of death, and participation in competitive sport were recorded. Postmortem genetic testing was undertaken in 24 of 202 (12%). Rare genetic variants were classified according to American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics criteria. RESULTS: Of 202 ACM decedents (35.4±13.2 years; 82% male), no previous cardiac symptoms were reported in 157 (78%). Forty-one decedents (41/202; 20%) had been participants in competitive sport. The adjusted odds of dying during physical exertion were higher in men than in women (odds ratio, 4.58; 95% CI, 1.54-13.68; P=0.006) and in competitive athletes in comparison with nonathletes (odds ratio, 16.62; 95% CI, 5.39-51.24; P<0.001). None of the decedents with an antemortem diagnosis of dilated cardiomyopathy fulfilled definite 2010 Task Force criteria. The macroscopic appearance of the heart was normal in 40 of 202 (20%) cases. There was left ventricular histopathologic involvement in 176 of 202 (87%). Isolated right ventricular disease was seen in 13%, isolated left ventricular disease in 17%, and biventricular involvement in 70%. Among whole hearts, the most common areas of fibrofatty infiltration were the left ventricular posterobasal (68%) and anterolateral walls (58%). Postmortem genetic testing yielded pathogenic variants in ACM-related genes in 6 of 24 (25%) decedents. CONCLUSIONS: SCD attributable to ACM affects men predominantly, most commonly occurring during exertion in athletic individuals in the absence of previous reported cardiac symptoms. Left ventricular involvement is observed in the vast majority of SCD cases diagnosed with ACM at autopsy. Current Task Force criteria may fail to diagnose biventricular ACM before death

Kinetic analysis of the thermal isomerisation pathways in an asymmetric double azobenzene switch

Here we report a photochemical and kinetic study of the thermal relaxation reaction of a double azobenzene system, in which two azobenzene photochromic units are connected via a phenyl ring. Upon UV irradiation, three thermally unstable isomers are formed. Kinetic studies using arrayed H-1-NMR spectroscopy revealed four distinct barriers for the thermal reversion to the stable isomer. The double isomerised Z,Z-2 can revert thermally to the E,E-2 isomer via either of two isomerisation pathways. The thermal Z to E isomerisations are not significantly affected by the state of the neighbouring azo-switching unit in the meta position. These findings are supported by quantum chemical calculations on the thermal Z to E isomerisation

Efficient Parameter Optimisation for Quantum Kernel Alignment: A Sub-sampling Approach in Variational Training

Quantum machine learning with quantum kernels for classification problems is a growing area of research. Recently, quantum kernel alignment techniques that parameterise the kernel have been developed, allowing the kernel to be trained and therefore aligned with a specific dataset. While quantum kernel alignment is a promising technique, it has been hampered by considerable training costs because the full kernel matrix must be constructed at every training iteration. Addressing this challenge, we introduce a novel method that seeks to balance efficiency and performance. We present a sub-sampling training approach that uses a subset of the kernel matrix at each training step, thereby reducing the overall computational cost of the training. In this work, we apply the sub-sampling method to synthetic datasets and a real-world breast cancer dataset and demonstrate considerable reductions in the number of circuits required to train the quantum kernel while maintaining classification accuracy

Patient and practice level factors associated with seasonal influenza vaccine uptake among at-risk adults in England, 2011 to 2016:An age-stratified retrospective cohort study

We sought to gain insights into the determinants of seasonal influenza vaccine (SIV) uptake by conducting an age-stratified analysis (18-64 and 65+) of factors associated with SIV uptake among at-risk adults registered to English practices. Records for at-risk English adults between 2011 and 2016 were identified using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink database. SIV uptake was assessed annually. The associations of patient, practice, and seasonal characteristics with SIV uptake were assessed via cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses, using mixed-effects and general estimating equation logistic regression models. Overall SIV uptake was 35.3% and 74.0% for adults 18-64 and 65+, respectively. Relative to white patients, black patients were least likely to be vaccinated (OR18-64: 0.82 (95% CI: 0.80, 0.85); OR65+: 0.59 (95% CI: 0.56, 0.62)), while Asian patients among 18-64 year olds were most likely to be vaccinated (OR18-64: 1.10 (95% CI: 1.07, 1.13)). Females were more likely than males to be vaccinated among 18-64 year olds (OR18-64: 1.19 (95% CI: 1.18, 1.20)). Greater socioeconomic deprivation was associated with decreased odds of uptake among older patients (OR65+: 0.74 (95% CI: 0.71, 0.77)). For each additional at-risk condition, odds of uptake increased (OR18-64: 2.33 (95% CI: 2.31, 2.36); OR65+: 1.39 (95% CI: 1.38, 1.39)). Odds of uptake were highest among younger patients with diabetes (OR18-64: 4.25 (95% CI: 4.18, 4.32)) and older patients with chronic respiratory disease (OR65+: 1.60 (95% CI: 1.58, 1.63)), whereas they were lowest among morbidly obese patients of all ages (OR18-64: 0.68 (95% CI: 0.67, 0.70); OR65+: 0.97 (95% CI: 0.94, 0.99)). Prior influenza season severity and vaccine effectiveness were marginally predictive of uptake. Our age-stratified analysis uncovered SIV uptake disparities by ethnicity, sex, age, socioeconomic deprivation, and co-morbidities, warranting further attention by GPs and policymakers alike

Trapped radioactive isotopes for fundamental symmetry investigations:The TRIμP Facility

Discrete symmetries tested in high precision atomic physics experiments provide guidance to model building beyond the Standard Model (SM). Here experimental opportunities arise for searches for permanent electric dipole moments (EDMs) and measurements of atomic parity violation (APV). Heavy atoms are favorable for such experiments since symmetry violating effects in atoms increase faster than the third power of the nuclear charge Z. Of special interest are isotopes of the heavy alkaline earth element radium (Z=88) since they offer large enhancement factors for EDMs and provide a new experimental road towards high precision measurements of atomic parity violation. These opportunities are exploited at the TRIμP facility at KVI, Groningen

Synthesis, Structure and Reactivity of a Mononuclear N,N,O-Bound Fe(II) α-Keto-Acid Complex

A bulky, tridentate phenolate ligand (ImPh2NNOtBu) was used to synthesise the first example of a mononuclear, facial, N,N,O-bound iron(II) benzoylformate complex, [Fe(ImPh2NNOtBu)(BF)] (2). The X-ray crystal structure of 2 reveals that the iron centre is pentacoordinate (τ=0.5), with a vacant site located cis to the bidentate BF ligand. The Mössbauer parameters of 2 are consistent with high-spin iron(II), and are very close to those reported for α-ketoglutarate-bound non-heme iron enzyme active sites. According to NMR and UV-vis spectroscopies, the structural integrity of 2 is retained in both coordinating and non-coordinating solvents. Cyclic voltammetry studies show that the iron centre has a very low oxidation potential and is more prone to electrochemical oxidation than the redox-active phenolate ligand. Complex 2 reacts with NO to form a S=3/2 {FeNO}7 adduct in which NO binds directly to the iron centre, according to EPR, UV-vis, IR spectroscopies and DFT analysis. Upon O2 exposure, 2 undergoes oxidative decarboxylation to form a diiron(III) benzoate complex, [Fe2(ImPh2NNOtBu)2(μ2-OBz)(μ2-OH)2]+ (3). A small amount of hydroxylated ligand was also observed by ESI-MS, hinting at the formation of a high-valent iron(IV)-oxo intermediate. Initial reactivity studies show that 2 is capable of oxygen atom transfer reactivity with O2, converting methyl(p-tolyl)sulfide to sulfoxide