376 research outputs found
New linearization and reweighting for simulations of string sigma-model on the lattice
We study the discretized worldsheet of Type IIB strings in the Gubser-Klebanov-Polyakov background in a new setup, which eliminates a complex phase previously detected in the fermionic determinant. A sign ambiguity remains, which a study of the fermionic spectrum shows to be related to Yukawa-like terms, including those present in the original Lagrangian before the linearization standard in a lattice QFT approach. Monte Carlo simulations are performed in a large region of the parameter space, where the sign problem starts becoming severe and instabilities appear due to the zero eigenvalues of the fermionic operator. To face these problems, simulations are conducted using the absolute value of a fermionic Pfaffian obtained introducing a small twisted-mass term, acting as an infrared regulator, into the action. The sign of the Pfaffian and the low modes of the quadratic fermionic operator are then taken into account by a reweighting procedure of which we discuss the impact on the measurement of the observables. In this setup we study bosonic and fermionic correlators and observe a divergence in the latter, which we argue - also via a one-loop analysis in lattice perturbation theory - to originate from the U(1)-breaking of our Wilson-like discretization for the fermionic sector
Experimental quantum imaging distillation with undetected light
Imaging based on the induced coherence effect makes use of photon pairs to
obtain information of an object without detecting the light that probes it.
While one photon illuminates the object, only its partner is detected, so no
measurement of coincidence events are needed. The sought-after object's
information is revealed observing a certain interference pattern on the
detected photon. Here we demonstrate experimentally that this imaging technique
can be made resilient to noise. We introduce an imaging distillation approach
based on the interferometric modulation of the signal of interest. We show that
our scheme can generate a high-quality image of an object even against noise
levels up to 250 times the actual signal of interest. We also include a
detailed theoretical explanation of our findings.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figures, and 1 table + 11 pages, 3 figures, and 1 tabl
Inferring the Scale of OpenStreetMap Features
International audienceTraditionally, national mapping agencies produced datasets and map products for a low number of specified and internally consistent scales, i.e. at a common level of detail (LoD). With the advent of projects like OpenStreetMap, data users are increasingly confronted with the task of dealing with heterogeneously detailed and scaled geodata. Knowing the scale of geodata is very important for mapping processes such as for generalization of label placement or land-cover studies for instance. In the following chapter, we review and compare two concurrent approaches at automatically assigning scale to OSM objects. The first approach is based on a multi-criteria decision making model, with a rationalist approach for defining and parameterizing the respective criteria, yielding five broad LoD classes. The second approach attempts to identify a single metric from an analysis process, which is then used to interpolate a scale equivalence. Both approaches are combined and tested against well-known Corine data, resulting in an improvement of the scale inference process. The chapter closes with a presentation of the most pressing open problem
Quantum holography with undetected light
Holography exploits the interference of light fields to obtain a systematic
reconstruction of the light fields wavefronts. Classical holography techniques
have been very successful in diverse areas such as microscopy, manufacturing
technology, and basic science. Extending holographic methods to the level of
single photons has been proven challenging, since applying classical holography
techniques to this regime pose technical problems. Recently the retrieval of
the spatial structure of a single photon, using another photon under
experimental control with a well-characterized spatial shape as reference, was
demonstrated using the intrinsically non-classical Hong-Ou-Mandel interference
on a beam splitter. Here we present a method for recording a hologram of single
photons without detecting the photons themselves, and importantly, with no need
to use a well-characterized companion reference photon. Our approach is based
on quantum interference between two-photon probability amplitudes in a
nonlinear interferometer. As in classical holography, the hologram of a single
photon allows retrieving the complete information about the "shape" of the
photon (amplitude and phase) despite the fact that the photon is never
detected.Comment: 29 pages with 11 figures, submitted to Nature Communication
A view into American grapevine history: Vitis vinifera cv. 'Sémillon' is an ancestor of 'Catawba' and 'Concord'
The Vitis vinifera background of 'Catawba' and 'Concord' was investigated by using SSR analysis: 'Sémillon' was shown to be an ancestor of 'Catawba', while the wild parent remains unknown. 'Concord' was confirmed to be an offspring of 'Catawba' and another unknown wild parent. Since these two important American varieties most likely resulted from random natural crosses and successful selection, the original, wild growing wild donors remain unknown
Different Regulation of Interleukin-1 Production and Activity in Monocytes and Macrophages: Innate Memory as an Endogenous Mechanism of IL-1 Inhibition
Production and activity of interleukin (IL)-1β are kept under strict control in our body, because of its powerful inflammation-promoting capacity. Control of IL-1β production and activity allows IL-1 to exert its defensive activities without causing extensive tissue damage. Monocytes are the major producers of IL-1β during inflammation, but they are also able to produce significant amounts of IL-1 inhibitors such as IL-1Ra and the soluble form of the decoy receptor IL-1R2, in an auto-regulatory feedback loop. Here, we investigated how innate immune memory could modulate production and activity of IL-1β by human primary monocytes and monocyte-derived tissue-like/deactivated macrophages in vitro. Cells were exposed to Gram-negative (Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (Lactobacillus acidophilus) bacteria for 24 h, then allowed to rest, and then re-challenged with the same stimuli. The presence of biologically active IL-1β in cell supernatants was calculated as the ratio between free IL-1β (i.e., the cytokine that is not bound/inhibited by sIL-1R2) and its receptor antagonist IL-1Ra. As expected, we observed that the responsiveness of tissue-like/deactivated macrophages to bacterial stimuli was lower than that of monocytes. After resting and re-stimulation, a memory effect was evident for the production of inflammatory cytokines, whereas production of alarm signals (chemokines) was minimally affected. We observed a high variability in the innate memory response among individual donors. This is expected since innate memory largely depends on the previous history of exposure or infections, which is different in different subjects. Overall, innate memory appeared to limit the amount of active IL-1β produced by macrophages in response to a bacterial challenge, while enhancing the responsiveness of monocytes. The functional re-programming of mononuclear phagocytes through modulation of innate memory may provide innovative approaches in the management of inflammatory diseases, as well as in the design of new immunization strategies. In this respect, the interindividual variability in innate memory suggests the need of a personalized assessment
Zero Order Estimates for Analytic Functions
The primary goal of this paper is to provide a general multiplicity estimate.
Our main theorem allows to reduce a proof of multiplicity lemma to the study of
ideals stable under some appropriate transformation of a polynomial ring. In
particular, this result leads to a new link between the theory of polarized
algebraic dynamical systems and transcendental number theory. On the other
hand, it allows to establish an improvement of Nesterenko's conditional result
on solutions of systems of differential equations. We also deduce, under some
condition on stable varieties, the optimal multiplicity estimate in the case of
generalized Mahler's functional equations, previously studied by Mahler,
Nishioka, Topfer and others. Further, analyzing stable ideals we prove the
unconditional optimal result in the case of linear functional systems of
generalized Mahler's type. The latter result generalizes a famous theorem of
Nishioka (1986) previously conjectured by Mahler (1969), and simultaneously it
gives a counterpart in the case of functional systems for an important
unconditional result of Nesterenko (1977) concerning linear differential
systems. In summary, we provide a new universal tool for transcendental number
theory, applicable with fields of any characteristic. It opens the way to new
results on algebraic independence, as shown in Zorin (2010).Comment: 42 page
Utility of arsenic-treated bird skins for DNA extraction
Background: Natural history museums receive a rapidly growing number of requests for tissue samples from preserved specimens for DNA-based studies. Traditionally, dried vertebrate specimens were treated with arsenic because of its toxicity and insect-repellent effect. Arsenic has negative effects on in vivo DNA repair enzymes and consequently may inhibit PCR performance. In bird collections, foot pad samples are often requested since the feet were not regularly treated with arsenic and because they are assumed to provide substantial amounts of DNA. However, the actual influence of arsenic on DNA analyses has never been tested. Findings: PCR success of both foot pad and body skin samples was significantly lower in arsenic-treated samples. In general, foot pads performed better than body skin samples. Moreover, PCR success depends on collection date in which younger samples yielded better results. While the addition of arsenic solution to the PCR mixture had a clear negative effect on PCR performance after the threshold of 5.4 μg/μl, such high doses of arsenic are highly unlikely to occur in dried zoological specimens. Conclusions: While lower PCR success in older samples might be due to age effects and/or DNA damage through arsenic treatment, our results show no inhibiting effect on DNA polymerase. We assume that DNA degradation proceeds more rapidly in thin tissue layers with low cell numbers that are susceptible to external abiotic influences. In contrast, in thicker parts of a specimen, such as foot pads, the outermost horny skin may act as an additional barrier. Since foot pads often performed better than body skin samples, the intention to preserve morphologically important structures of a specimen still conflicts with the aim to obtain optimal PCR success. Thus, body skin samples from recently collected specimens should be considered as alternative sources of DNA
Nanosized Sodium-Doped Lanthanum Manganites: Role of the Synthetic Route on their Physical Properties
In this paper we present the results of the synthesis and characterisation of
nanocrystalline La1-xNaxMnO3+delta samples. Two synthetic routes were employed:
polyacrylamide-based sol-gel and propellant synthesis. Pure, single phase
materials were obtained with grain size around 35 nm for the sol-gel samples
and around 55 nm for the propellant ones, which moreover present a more broaden
grain size distribution. For both series a superparamagnetic behaviour was
evidenced by means of magnetisation and EPR measurements with peculiar features
ascribable to the different grain sizes and morphology. Preliminary
magnetoresistivity measurements show enhanced low-field (< 1 T)
magnetoresistance values which suggest an interesting applicative use of these
manganites.Comment: 31 Pages 10 Figures to appear in Chem. Mate
Quantitative trait loci affecting pathogen resistance and ripening of grapevines
Grapevines (Vitis vinifera L.) form the basis of
viticulture, and are susceptible to diseases such as downy
mildew (Plasmopara viticola) and powdery mildew (Erysiphe necator). Therefore, successful viticulture programs
require the use of pesticides. Breeding for resistance is the
only eco-friendly solution. Marker-assisted selection is currently widely used for grapevine breeding. Consequently,
traits of interest must be tagged with molecular markers
linked to quantitative trait loci (QTL). We herein present
our findings regarding genetic mapping and QTL analysis of resistance to downy and powdery mildew diseases
in the progenies of the GF.GA-47-42 (‘Bacchus’ × ‘Seyval’) × ‘Villard blanc’ cross. Simple sequence repeats and
single nucleotide polymorphisms of 151 individuals were
analyzed. A map consisting of 543 loci was screened for
QTL analyses based on phenotypic variations observed in
plants grown in the field or under controlled conditions. A
major QTL for downy mildew resistance was detected on
chromosome 18. For powdery mildew resistance, a QTL was identified on chromosome 15. This QTL was replaced
by a novel QTL on chromosome 18 in 2003 (abnormally
high temperatures) and 2004. Subsequently, both QTLs
functioned together. Additionally, variations in the timing of the onset of veraison, which is a crucial step during
grape ripening, were studied to identify genomic regions
affecting this trait. A major QTL was detected on linkage
group 16, which was supplemented by a minor QTL on
linkage group 18. This study provides useful information
regarding novel QTL-linked markers relevant for the breeding of disease-resistant grapevines adapted to current climatic conditions
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