302 research outputs found
How to mesh up Ewald sums (I): A theoretical and numerical comparison of various particle mesh routines
Standard Ewald sums, which calculate e.g. the electrostatic energy or the
force in periodically closed systems of charged particles, can be efficiently
speeded up by the use of the Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT). In this article
we investigate three algorithms for the FFT-accelerated Ewald sum, which
attracted a widespread attention, namely, the so-called
particle-particle-particle-mesh (P3M), particle mesh Ewald (PME) and smooth PME
method. We present a unified view of the underlying techniques and the various
ingredients which comprise those routines. Additionally, we offer detailed
accuracy measurements, which shed some light on the influence of several tuning
parameters and also show that the existing methods -- although similar in
spirit -- exhibit remarkable differences in accuracy. We propose combinations
of the individual components, mostly relying on the P3M approach, which we
regard as most flexible.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures included, revtex styl
Spinor representation of surfaces and complex stresses on membranes and interfaces
Variational principles are developed within the framework of a spinor
representation of the surface geometry to examine the equilibrium properties of
a membrane or interface. This is a far-reaching generalization of the
Weierstrass-Enneper representation for minimal surfaces, introduced by
mathematicians in the nineties, permitting the relaxation of the vanishing mean
curvature constraint. In this representation the surface geometry is described
by a spinor field, satisfying a two-dimensional Dirac equation, coupled through
a potential associated with the mean curvature. As an application, the
mesoscopic model for a fluid membrane as a surface described by the
Canham-Helfrich energy quadratic in the mean curvature is examined. An explicit
construction is provided of the conserved complex-valued stress tensor
characterizing this surface.Comment: 17 page
Connecting brain and behavior in clinical neuroscience: A network approach
In recent years, there has been an increase in applications of network science in many different fields. In clinical neuroscience and psychopathology, the developments and applications of network science have occurred mostly simultaneously, but without much collaboration between the two fields. The promise of integrating these network applications lies in a united framework to tackle one of the fundamental questions of our time: how to understand the link between brain and behavior. In the current overview, we bridge this gap by introducing conventions in both fields, highlighting similarities, and creating a common language that enables the exploitation of synergies. We provide research examples in autism research, as it accurately represents research lines in both network neuroscience and psychological networks. We integrate brain and behavior not only semantically, but also practically, by showcasing three methodological avenues that allow to combine networks of brain and behavioral data. As such, the current paper offers a stepping stone to further develop multi-modal networks and to integrate brain and behavior
Elastic deformation of a fluid membrane upon colloid binding
When a colloidal particle adheres to a fluid membrane, it induces elastic
deformations in the membrane which oppose its own binding. The structural and
energetic aspects of this balance are theoretically studied within the
framework of a Helfrich Hamiltonian. Based on the full nonlinear shape
equations for the membrane profile, a line of continuous binding transitions
and a second line of discontinuous envelopment transitions are found, which
meet at an unusual triple point. The regime of low tension is studied
analytically using a small gradient expansion, while in the limit of large
tension scaling arguments are derived which quantify the asymptotic behavior of
phase boundary, degree of wrapping, and energy barrier. The maturation of
animal viruses by budding is discussed as a biological example of such
colloid-membrane interaction events.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, REVTeX style, follow-up on cond-mat/021242
Modeling subjective relevance in schizophrenia and its relation to aberrant salience
In schizophrenia, increased aberrant salience to irrelevant events and reduced learning of relevant information may relate to an underlying deficit in relevance detection. So far, subjective estimates of relevance have not been probed in schizophrenia patients. The mechanisms underlying belief formation about relevance and their translation into decisions are unclear. Using novel computational methods, we investigated relevance detection during implicit learning in 42 schizophrenia patients and 42 healthy individuals. Participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while detecting the outcomes in a learning task. These were preceded by cues differing in color and shape, which were either relevant or irrelevant for outcome prediction. We provided a novel definition of relevance based on Bayesian precision and modeled reaction times as a function of relevance weighted unsigned prediction errors (UPE). For aberrant salience, we assessed responses to subjectively irrelevant cue manifestations. Participants learned the contingencies and slowed down their responses following unexpected events. Model selection revealed that individuals inferred the relevance of cue features and used it for behavioral adaption to the relevant cue feature. Relevance weighted UPEs correlated with dorsal anterior cingulate cortex activation and hippocampus deactivation. In patients, the aberrant salience bias to subjectively task-irrelevant information was increased and correlated with decreased striatal UPE activation and increased negative symptoms. This study shows that relevance estimates based on Bayesian precision can be inferred from observed behavior. This underscores the importance of relevance detection as an underlying mechanism for behavioral adaptation in complex environments and enhances the understanding of aberrant salience in schizophrenia
CASAD -- Computer-Aided Sonography of Abdominal Diseases - the concept of joint technique impact
Ultrasound image is the primary (input) information for every ultrasonic examination. Since being used in ultrasound images analysis the both knowledge-base decision support and content-based image retrieval techniques have their own restrictions, the combination of these techniques looks promissory for covering the restrictions of one by advances of another. In this work we have focused on implementation of the proposed combination in the frame of CASAD (Computer-Aided Sonography of Abdominal Diseases) system for supplying the ultrasound examiner with a diagnostic-assistant tool based on a data warehouse of standard referenced images. This warehouse serves:
to manifest the diagnosis when the ecographist specifies the pathology and then looks through corresponding images to verify his opinion;
to suggest a second opinion by automatic analysis of the annotation of relevant images that were assessed from the repository using content-based image retrieval
Lateral prefrontal model-based signatures are reduced in healthy individuals with high trait impulsivity
High impulsivity is an important risk factor for addiction with evidence from
endophenotype studies. In addiction, behavioral control is shifted toward the
habitual end. Habitual control can be described by retrospective updating of
reward expectations in ‘model-free’ temporal-difference algorithms. Goal-
directed control relies on the prospective consideration of actions and their
outcomes, which can be captured by forward-planning ‘model-based’ algorithms.
So far, no studies have examined behavioral and neural signatures of model-
free and model-based control in healthy high-impulsive individuals. Fifty
healthy participants were drawn from the upper and lower ends of 452
individuals, completing the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale. All participants
performed a sequential decision-making task during functional magnetic
resonance imaging (fMRI) and underwent structural MRI. Behavioral and fMRI
data were analyzed by means of computational algorithms reflecting model-free
and model-based control. Both groups did not differ regarding the balance of
model-free and model-based control, but high-impulsive individuals showed a
subtle but significant accentuation of model-free control alone. Right lateral
prefrontal model-based signatures were reduced in high-impulsive individuals.
Effects of smoking, drinking, general cognition or gray matter density did not
account for the findings. Irrespectively of impulsivity, gray matter density
in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex was positively associated with
model-based control. The present study supports the idea that high levels of
impulsivity are accompanied by behavioral and neural signatures in favor of
model-free behavioral control. Behavioral results in healthy high-impulsive
individuals were qualitatively different to findings in patients with the same
task. The predictive relevance of these results remains an important target
for future longitudinal studies
Structure of Polyelectrolytes in Poor Solvent
We present simulations on charged polymers in poor solvent. First we
investigate in detail the dilute concentration range with and without imposed
extension constraints. The resulting necklace polymer conformations are
analyzed in detail. We find strong fluctuations in the number of pearls and
their sizes leading only to small signatures in the form factor and the
force-extension relation. The scaling of the peak in the structure factor with
the monomer density shows a pertinent different behavior from good solvent
chains.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures. submitted to EP
Balancing torques in membrane-mediated interactions: Exact results and numerical illustrations
Torques on interfaces can be described by a divergence-free tensor which is
fully encoded in the geometry. This tensor consists of two terms, one
originating in the couple of the stress, the other capturing an intrinsic
contribution due to curvature. In analogy to the description of forces in terms
of a stress tensor, the torque on a particle can be expressed as a line
integral along any contour surrounding the particle. Interactions between
particles mediated by a fluid membrane are studied within this framework. In
particular, torque balance places a strong constraint on the shape of the
membrane. Symmetric two-particle configurations admit simple analytical
expressions which are valid in the fully nonlinear regime; in particular, the
problem may be solved exactly in the case of two membrane-bound parallel
cylinders. This apparently simple system provides some flavor of the remarkably
subtle nonlinear behavior associated with membrane-mediated interactions.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures, REVTeX4 style. The Gaussian curvature term was
included in the membrane Hamiltonian; section II.B was rephrased to smoothen
the flow of presentatio
- …