Counting, Fanout, and the Complexity of Quantum ACC

We propose definitions of \QAC^0, the quantum analog of the classical class \AC^0 of constant-depth circuits with AND and OR gates of arbitrary fan-in, and \QACC[q], the analog of the class \ACC[q] where \Mod_q gates are also allowed. We prove that parity or fanout allows us to construct quantum \MOD_q gates in constant depth for any $q$, so \QACC[2] = \QACC. More generally, we show that for any $q,p > 1$, \MOD_q is equivalent to \MOD_p (up to constant depth). This implies that \QAC^0 with unbounded fanout gates, denoted \QACwf^0, is the same as \QACC[q] and \QACC for all $q$. Since \ACC[p] \ne \ACC[q] whenever $p$ and $q$ are distinct primes, \QACC[q] is strictly more powerful than its classical counterpart, as is \QAC^0 when fanout is allowed. This adds to the growing list of quantum complexity classes which are provably more powerful than their classical counterparts. We also develop techniques for proving upper bounds for \QACC^0 in terms of related language classes. We define classes of languages \EQACC, \NQACC and \BQACC_{\rats}. We define a notion of $\log$-planar \QACC operators and show the appropriately restricted versions of \EQACC and \NQACC are contained in \P/\poly. We also define a notion of $\log$-gate restricted \QACC operators and show the appropriately restricted versions of \EQACC and \NQACC are contained in \TC^0

Amar Amores que Atan

I was surprised when Michael Dirda, book review editor at the Washington Post Book World, invited me to review Edith Grossman’s forthcoming translation of Loves That Bind in 1998, for the newspaper has a policy against reviewers reviewing authors they personally know. Dirda was aware that, as an editor at Dalkey Archive Press, I had overseen publication of the English versions of both Larva and Poundemonium, which I had prepared and indexed before I left Dalkey in 1996. He may not have been aware that, in addition, I had had the pleasure of meeting and hanging out with Julián in New York City in November 1990. I can’t remember why Dirda flaunted the rules, perhaps because he knew that I was more familiar with Rios’s work than most people, but I’m glad he did, for I loved the new novel and welcomed the chance to spread the love.Quedé sorprendido cuando Michael Dirda, editor de las reseñas de libros del Washington Post Book World, me invitó a realizar la de la nueva traducción de Edith Grossman de Amores que atan en 1998, ya que el periódico tiene una política según la cual los reseñistas no pueden reseñar autores que conocen personalmente. Dirda sabía que, como editor de Dalkey Archive Press, yo había supervisado la publicación de las versiones en inglés de Larva y Poundemonium, que había preparado e indexado antes de dejar Dalkey en 1996. Con todo, es posible que no supiera que tuve el placer de conocer y pasar un rato con Julián en Nueva York en noviembre de 1990. No recuerdo por qué Dirda decidió saltarse las reglas, tal vez porque sabía que yo estaba más familiarizado con el trabajo de Ríos que el resto de gente, pero me alegro de que lo hiciera, ya que me encantó la nueva novela y agradecí la oportunidad de difundir el amor

Effect of a Ketogenic Diet on Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetics

With the increasing rate of patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the serious complications associated with this disease, there continues to be controversy surrounding the most effective way to manage glycemic control in this population. The intention of this meta-analysis is to determine the effect of a ketogenic diet as a first-line treatment option on glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients. Effectiveness was determined by comparing the ketogenic diet to other popular diets recommended to diabetics by practitioners following guidelines set forth by the American Diabetes Association. Several high-quality studies were selected utilizing PubMed, Dynamed plus, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, and Clinical Key databases with keyword and MeSH terms to narrow search results. The studies in the analysis provides data on the effects of the diets on HbA1c along with other parameters such as body weight, lipids, fasting and postprandial blood glucose levels of which can increase the risk of complications and associated diseases in T2DM patients. According to several studies, initiation of a ketogenic diet as a first-line treatment plan does not improve health parameters more than the current recommended diets for T2DM patients. With multiple diet plans providing health benefits in a type 2 diabetics, the main component of success was diet adherence. The research does show promise, but the treatment plan will need to be individualized based on the patient’s readiness and willingness to implement lifestyle changes

Biostabilization of Lipid Bilayers: Dealing with Water Stress in Embryos of Artemia franciscana

The aim of this dissertation is to investigate stabilization of lipid bilayers during water stress by protectants found in embryos of Artemia franciscana. Two LEA proteins were used: AfrLEA2 and AfrLEA3m. AfrLEA3m was experimentally demonstrated to reside in the matrix. Two detergents were used to differentially solubilize the outer and inner membranes of mitochondria isolated from A. franciscana. Release of AfrLEA3m occurred simultaneously with the release of fumarase, a matrix-resident marker. As a second independent method to corroborate the above findings, I demonstrated that recombinant AfrLEA3m can be imported into mitochondria isolated from rat liver. Molecular modeling of AfrLEA2 and AfrLEA3m revealed structural features that are consistent with amphipathic proteins able to interact with and stabilize cell membranes. The abilities of trehalose and LEA proteins to protect liposomes of various compositions from desiccation-induced damage were evaluated by carboxyfluorescein leakage. AfrLEA2 (cytoplasmic) and AfrLEA3m (mitochondrial) were able to offset damage during drying of liposomes that mimicked the lipid compositions of the inner mitochondrial membrane, outer mitochondrial membrane, and the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane. LEA proteins were more effective than trehalose at preventing desiccation-induced damage when these protectants were confined to one side of the lipid bilayer. When LEA proteins were used in conjunction with trehalose, additive protection was measured in some cases. Little to no additional damage occurred to liposomes dried for one week compared to liposomes dried overnight. The capacity of trehalose and LEA proteins to protect liposomes from freeze-thaw damage was also assessed. Damage to liposomes was less severe after freezing than desiccation. Trehalose provided liposomes with greater protection than LEA proteins from freeze-thaw damage. The greatest stabilization during freezing occurred when trehalose was present on both sides of liposome membranes. Only liposomes mimicking the outer mitochondrial membrane were significantly protected from freeze-thaw damage by LEA proteins. Based on bioenergetic properties assessed by respirometry, the outer membrane of isolated mitochondria (rat liver) remained intact after freezing in 300 mM trehalose solution. Respiratory control ratios were depressed by approximately 30% compared to non-frozen mitochondria, which indicated a limited retention of at least some inner-membrane-dependent properties

The development and validation of the scale of interpersonal cynicism

In a recent study (Moore, 1997) evidence suggested that interpersonal cynical attitudes grow out of real experiences and accumulate over time. Existing scales do not attempt to measure cynicism in the broader interpersonal domain. Thepresent study describes the development and validation of the Scale of Interpersonal Cynicism (SIC), an instrument being developed to measure cynicism in that context. Thus,in addition to measuring cynical attitudes toward human nature as most measures have done in the past, the SIC also assesses cynicism toward relationships, and as a justification for negative behavior. The study also investigates the behavioral correlates of cynicism with a series of hypothesis tests

Measuring vocal performance in song sparrows (Melospiza melodia), and its relationship to age, morphology and song complexity.

Vocal performance in birds, measured as the ability to rapidly produce broadband trills, has been proposed to reflect male quality. However, little is known about whether performance is consistent across a male’s song repertoire, or whether better performers also have larger repertoires. I quantified vocal performance in 21 male song sparrows (Melospiza melodia). Performance varied among and within males, but was significantly repeatable when considering multiple exemplars of the same trill type within an individual’s repertoire. This suggests that within-individual variation in performance reflects trill types varying in complexity and performance difficulty. Performance was positively and significantly correlated to song repertoire size, but not with male age, bill or body size. While repeatability of performance between multiple exemplars of the same trill suggests vocal performance could potentially be a reliable signal in birds with multi-song repertoires, performance appears to overlap with song repertoire size in the information conveyed

The Evaluation of a Mid-Western Suburban School District\u27s Teacher Selection Model

The success of any organization is closely related to the quality of personnel employed to achieve the purposes of the organization. This is certainly true in a labor intensive organization such as the public schools. While available financial support, adequate facilities, community support, and a well defined organizational purpose are important to achieve quality education, the most crucial single element in the education process is the people engaged to help students learn (Castetter, 1986)

Generating Visual Arguments: a Media-independent Approach

... In this paper, we take the position that certain types of arguments that can be presented visually in information graphics (e.g., bar charts and scatter plots) can be generated from an underlying media-independent representation of a presentation. In support of this claim, first we briefly describe the architecture we are developing for the generation of integrated text and information graphics presentations. In this architecture, mediaindependent communicative acts are transformed into user task specifications which are the basis for the automatic design of the presentation's graphics. Then we present an example showing correspondences between the media-independent representation of an argument and the tasks that would be used to design a graphic expressing the argument