7,385 research outputs found
Formal Verification of Zero-Knowledge Circuits
Zero-knowledge circuits are sets of equality constraints over arithmetic
expressions interpreted in a prime field; they are used to encode computations
in cryptographic zero-knowledge proofs. We make the following contributions to
the problem of ensuring that a circuit correctly encodes a computation: a
formal framework for circuit correctness; an ACL2 library for prime fields; an
ACL2 model of the existing R1CS (Rank-1 Constraint Systems) formalism to
represent circuits, along with ACL2 and Axe tools to verify circuits of this
form; a novel PFCS (Prime Field Constraint Systems) formalism to represent
hierarchically structured circuits, along with an ACL2 model of it and ACL2
tools to verify circuits of this form in a compositional and scalable way;
verification of circuits, ranging from simple to complex; and discovery of bugs
and optimizations in existing zero-knowledge systems.Comment: In Proceedings ACL2-2023, arXiv:2311.0837
Wealth transmission and inequality among hunter-gatherers
Journal ArticleWe report quantitative estimates of intergenerational transmission and population-wide inequality for wealth measures in a set of hunter-gatherer populations. Wealth is defined broadly as factors that contribute to individual or household well-being, ranging from embodied forms, such as weight and hunting success, to material forms, such as household goods, as well as relational wealth in exchange partners. Intergenerational wealth transmission is low to moderate in these populations but is still expected to have measurable influence on an individual's life chances. Wealth inequality (measured with Gini coefficients) is moderate for most wealth types, matching what qualitative ethnographic research has generally indicated (if not the stereotype of hunter-gatherers as extreme egalitarians). We discuss some plausible mechanisms for these patterns and suggest ways in which future research could resolve questions about the role of wealth in hunter-gatherer social and economic life
FAEIS – the Food and Agricultural Education Information System
The Food and Agricultural Education Information System (FAEIS) compiles nationwide higher education data for agriculture, forestry and natural resources and other related disciplines. Data include undergraduate and graduate student enrollment and degrees awarded, graduate placement, and faculty headcounts and salaries by rank and discipline. Recently FAEIS has partnered with the National Association of University Forest Resources Programs (NAUFRP) to meet reporting needs for the organization. FAEIS is used by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in responding to Congressional inquiries to support higher education and related USDA programs. Higher education administrators use FAEIS data in recruiting and benchmarking students and faculty, as well as institutional planning, and regional and national comparisons. Faculty use FAEIS for USDA - NIFA grant proposals. This session will provide faculty and administrators an opportunity to review the features of FAEIS and to discuss future directions to support the data requirements from their programs. The presentation will include a demonstration of the FAEIS Report Builder, a fast, convenient, clear, easy to learn and use tool for generating reports from FAEIS data. The live demonstration will focus on trends in enrollment and degrees awarded in forestry and natural resources
Dark Before Light: Testing the Cosmic Expansion History through the Cosmic Microwave Background
The cosmic expansion history proceeds in broad terms from a radiation
dominated epoch to matter domination to an accelerated, dark energy dominated
epoch. We investigate whether intermittent periods of acceleration are possible
in the early universe -- between Big Bang nucleosynthesis (BBN) and
recombination and beyond. We establish that the standard picture is remarkably
robust: observations of anisotropies in the cosmic microwave background exclude
any extra period of accelerated expansion between 1 \leq z \lesssim 10^5
(corresponding to 5\times10^{-4}\ {\rm eV} \leq T \lesssim 25\ {\rm eV}).Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure
Searching for the 3.5 keV Line in the Stacked Suzaku Observations of Galaxy Clusters
We perform a detailed study of the stacked Suzaku observations of 47 galaxy
clusters, spanning a redshift range of 0.01-0.45, to search for the
unidentified 3.5 keV line. This sample provides an independent test for the
previously detected line. We detect only a 2sigma-significant spectral feature
at 3.5 keV in the spectrum of the full sample. When the sample is divided into
two subsamples (cool-core and non-cool core clusters), cool-core subsample
shows no statistically significant positive residuals at the line energy. A
very weak (2sigma-confidence) spectral feature at 3.5 keV is permitted by the
data from the non-cool core clusters sample. The upper limit on a neutrino
decay mixing angle from the full Suzaku sample is consistent with the previous
detections in the stacked XMM-Newton sample of galaxy clusters (which had a
higher statistical sensitivity to faint lines), M31, and Galactic Center at a
90% confidence level. However, the constraint from the present sample, which
does not include the Perseus cluster, is in tension with previously reported
line flux observed in the core of the Perseus cluster with XMM-Newton and
Suzaku.Comment: ApJ in press, 9 pages, 3 figure
Crystal structure of Li3Ga(BO3)2
The crystal structure of trilithium gallium bis(orthoborate), Li3Ga(BO3)2, is isotypic with Li3Al(BO3)2 in a triclinic cell in space-group type P1. The three Li and the unique Ga atom are coordinated by four O atoms each in tetrahedra, and the two B atoms are coordinated by three O atoms in orthoborate triangles. Chains with composition [Ga2(BO3)4] 6 extend along the a axis. The Li atoms interleave these chains in tetrahedral interstices. A comparison is made between the structure model of the title compound and that of a previously reported model for a compound with the same composition [Abdullaev & Mamedov (1972). Zh. Strukt. Khim. 13, 943–946.
Aspects of the transdermal permeation and analysis of betamethasone 17-valerate
The current world-wide interest in transdermal drug delivery makes the prospect of valid in vitro diffusion cell methodology highly attractive. A new laboratory diffusion cell has been designed and constructed based on theoretical principles and practical permeation reports surveyed in recent literature, and has been applied to the monitoring of betamethasone 17-valerate permeation. The cell performance has been validated with respect to hydrodynamic mixing efficiency and temperature of the receptor phase. The steady-state permeation of this corticosteroid has been monitored through various synthetic and animal membranes in order to select the most appropriate media for in vitro study. The permeation of betamethasone 17-valerate has been monitored from various types of commercial and extemporaneously prepared semisolid topical formulation (cream, lotion, ointment and scalp application), through silicone membrane, human and weanling pig stratum corneum, and full thickness hairless mouse skin, and these in vitro results have been compared to data from in vivo blanching assays, using the same formulations, in an attempt to correlate the findings. This experimental methodology has necessitated the development of ancillary analytical techniques. A column-switching high-performance liquid chromatographic method has been developed for the rapid on-line clean-up and analysis of betamethasone 17-valerate contained in the various topical formulations, which minimizes sample handling and extraction procedures. The method has been modified for the analysis of this corticosteroid in the isopropyl myristate receptor phase used in the in vitro permeation experiments, and scintillation counting of tritium-labelled water has been used to verify the integrity of the animal membranes. The comparison of in vitro permeation and in vivo blanching results indicate good correlation of the data in certain instances. The closest correlations have been observed when the human stratum corneum has been used in vitro and these results are compared to data from the occluded mode of the blanching assay. The results of the porcine and murine media have also correlated with the human in vivo data, whereas the silicone membrane appears applicable only in certain in vitro experiments. The results indicate that valid, comparative percutaneous absorption data may be obtained in vitro by using a well designed, validated diffusion cell system
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