Efficient Quantum Photonic Phase Shift in a Low Q-Factor Regime

This work was funded by the Future Emerging Technologies (FET)-Open FP7-284743 [project Spin Photon Angular Momentum Transfer for Quantum Enabled Technologies (SPANGL4Q)] and the German Ministry of Education and research (BMBF) and Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) (EP/M024156/1, EP/N003381/1 and EP/M024458/1). J.J.H. was supported by the Bristol Quantum Engineering Centre for Doctoral Training, EPSRC grant EP/L015730/1. We acknowledge the GW4 network for funding of A.Y.Solid-state quantum emitters have long been recognised as the ideal platform to realize integrated quantum photonic technologies. We demonstrate that a self-assembled negatively charged quantum dot (QD) in a low Q-factor photonic micropillar is a suitable design for deterministic polarisation switching and spin-photon entanglement. We show this by measuring a shift in phase of an input single photon of at least 2π/3. As we explain in the text, this is strong experimental proof that input photons can interact with the emitter deterministically. A deterministic photon-emitter interaction is a viable and scalable means to achieve several vital functionalities such as single photon switches and entanglement gates. Our experimentally determined value is limited by mode mismatch between the input laser and the cavity, QD spectral fluctuations and spin relaxation. When on-resonance we estimate that up to ∼80% of the collected photons couple into the cavity mode and have interacted with the QD and undergone a phase shift of π.PostprintPeer reviewe

Cosmological Studies with Radio Galaxies and Supernovae

Physical sizes of extended radio galaxies can be employed as a cosmological "standard ruler", using a previously developed method. Eleven new radio galaxies are added to our previous sample of nineteen sources, forming a sample of thirty objects with redshifts between 0 and 1.8. This sample of radio galaxies are used to obtain the best fit cosmological parameters in a quintessence model in a spatially flat universe, a cosmological constant model that allows for non-zero space curvature, and a rolling scalar field model in a spatially flat universe. Results obtained with radio galaxies are compared with those obtained with different supernova samples, and with combined radio galaxy and supernova samples. Results obtained with different samples are consistent, suggesting that neither method is seriously affected by systematic errors. Best fit radio galaxy and supernovae model parameters determined in the different cosmological models are nearly identical, and are used to determine dimensionless coordinate distances to supernovae and radio galaxies, and distance moduli to the radio galaxies. The distance moduli to the radio galaxies can be combined with supernovae samples to increase the number of sources, particularly high-redshift sources, in the samples. The constraints obtained here with the combined radio galaxy plus supernovae data set in the rolling scalar field model are quite strong. The best fit parameter values suggest a value of omega is less than about 0.35, and the model parameter alpha is close to zero; that is, a cosmological constant provides a good description of the data. We also obtain new constraints on the physics of engines that power the large-scale radio emission.Comment: 32 pages. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

Association between Hypertension and Retinal Vascular Features in Ultra-Widefield Fundus Imaging

Objective: Changes to the retinal vasculature are known to be associated with hypertension independently of traditional risk factors. We investigated whether measurements of retinal vascular calibre from ultra-widefield fundus imaging were associated with hypertensive status.Methods: We retrospectively collected and semiautomatically measured ultra-widefield retinal fundus images from a subset of participants enrolled in an ongoing population study of ageing, categorised as normotensive or hypertensive according to thresholds on systolic/diastolic blood pressure (140/90 mm Hg) measured in a clinical setting. Vascular calibre in the peripheral retina was measured to calculate the nasal-annular arteriole:venule ratio (NA-AVR), a novel combined parameter.Results: Left and right eyes were analysed from 440 participants (aged 50-59 years, mean age of 54.6±2.9 years, 247, 56.1% women), including 151 (34.3%) categorised as hypertensive. Arterioles were thinner and the NA-AVR was smaller in people with hypertension. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of NA-AVR for hypertensive status was 0.73 (95% CI 0.68 to 0.78) using measurements from left eyes, while for right eyes, it was 0.64 (95% CI 0.59 to 0.70), representing evidence of a statistically significant difference between the eyes (p=0.020).Conclusions: Semiautomated measurements of NA-AVR in ultra-widefield fundus imaging were associated with hypertension. With further development, this may help screen people attending routine eye health check-ups for high blood pressure. These individuals may then follow a care pathway for suspected hypertension. Our results showed differences between left and right eyes, highlighting the importance of investigating both eyes of a patient.</p

Biological, clinical and population relevance of 95 loci for blood lipids.

Plasma concentrations of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides are among the most important risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD) and are targets for therapeutic intervention. We screened the genome for common variants associated with plasma lipids in &gt;100,000 individuals of European ancestry. Here we report 95 significantly associated loci (P &lt; 5 x 10(-8)), with 59 showing genome-wide significant association with lipid traits for the first time. The newly reported associations include single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) near known lipid regulators (for example, CYP7A1, NPC1L1 and SCARB1) as well as in scores of loci not previously implicated in lipoprotein metabolism. The 95 loci contribute not only to normal variation in lipid traits but also to extreme lipid phenotypes and have an impact on lipid traits in three non-European populations (East Asians, South Asians and African Americans). Our results identify several novel loci associated with plasma lipids that are also associated with CAD. Finally, we validated three of the novel genes-GALNT2, PPP1R3B and TTC39B-with experiments in mouse models. Taken together, our findings provide the foundation to develop a broader biological understanding of lipoprotein metabolism and to identify new therapeutic opportunities for the prevention of CAD

Data to Action: Using Formative Research to Develop Intervention Programs to Increase Physical Activity in Adolescent Girls

Formative research is used to inform intervention development, but the processes of transmitting results to intervention planners and incorporating information into intervention designs are not well documented. The authors describe how formative research results from the Trial of Activity for Adolescent Girls (TAAG) were transferred to planners to guide intervention development. Methods included providing oral and written reports, prioritizing recommendations, and cross-checking recommendations with intervention objectives and implementation strategies. Formative work influenced the intervention in many ways. For example, results indicated that middle schools offered only coeducational physical education and health education classes, so the TAAG intervention was designed to be appropriate for both sexes, and intervention strategies were developed to directly address girls’ stated preferences (e.g., enjoyable activities, opportunity to socialize) and barriers (e.g., lack of skills, fear of injury) for physical activity. The challenges of using formative research for intervention development are discussed

Discourses of antagonism and desire : marketing for international students in neighbourhood schools

This paper explores the consequences of these discourses for the ways that international students are identified and positioned within school communities. My argument is developed in four sections. The first describes my ongoing exploration into the impact of international student programmes in Australia. The second exemplifies my argument: exploring the day-to-day experiences of vice principals in two Victorian government state secondary schools as they market their schools, and examining the systemic and ontological discourses played out within those conversations. The third interrogates discourses of identity and difference, neo-liberalism and nave cosmopolitanism which I find shape teacher conversations about international student programmes. In the final section, I argue that the impact of the discourse formations implicit in teacher talk about international student programmes has been the objectification of international students and their ambivalent inclusion within the school community.<br /

Evolution and lineage dynamics of a transmissible cancer in Tasmanian devils.

Devil facial tumour 1 (DFT1) is a transmissible cancer clone endangering the Tasmanian devil. The expansion of DFT1 across Tasmania has been documented, but little is known of its evolutionary history. We analysed genomes of 648 DFT1 tumours collected throughout the disease range between 2003 and 2018. DFT1 diverged early into five clades, three spreading widely and two failing to persist. One clade has replaced others at several sites, and rates of DFT1 co-infection are high. DFT1 gradually accumulates copy number variants (CNVs) and its telomere lengths are short but constant. Recurrent CNVs reveal genes under positive selection, sites of genome instability and repeated loss of a small derived chromosome. Cultured DFT1 cell lines have increased CNV frequency and undergo highly reproducible convergent evolution. Overall, DFT1 is a remarkably stable lineage whose genome illustrates how cancer cells adapt to diverse environments and persist in a parasitic niche.This work was supported by grants from Wellcome (102942/Z/13/A), the National Science Foundation (DEB-1316549), the University of Tasmania Foundation (Eric Guiler Tasmanian Devil Research Grants), the Australian Research Council (DE 170101116) and a Philip Leverhulme Prize from the Leverhulme Trust. YMK was supported by a Herchel Smith Postgraduate Fellowship