245 research outputs found
Morphine taste conditioning and analgesia: Assessing conditioned and novelty-induced analgesia.
Improved tensor-product expansions for the two-particle density matrix
We present a new density-matrix functional within the recently introduced
framework for tensor-product expansions of the two-particle density matrix. It
performs well both for the homogeneous electron gas as well as atoms. For the
homogeneous electron gas, it performs significantly better than all previous
density-matrix functionals, becoming very accurate for high densities and
outperforming Hartree-Fock at metallic valence electron densities. For isolated
atoms and ions, it is on a par with previous density-matrix functionals and
generalized gradient approximations to density-functional theory. We also
present analytic results for the correlation energy in the low density limit of
the free electron gas for a broad class of such functionals.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure
Long-term monitoring and experimentalmanipulation of a Chihuahuan Desert ecosystem near Portal, Arizona, USA
Desert ecosystems have long served as model systems in the study of ecological concepts (e.g., competition, resource pulses, top-down/bottom-up dynamics). However, the inherent variability of resource availability in deserts, and hence consumer dynamics, can also make them challenging ecosystems to understand. Study of a Chihuahuan desert ecosystem near Portal, Arizona, USA, began in 1977. At this site, 24 experimental plots were established in 1977 and divided among controls and experimental manipulations. Experimental manipulations over the years include removal of all or some rodent species, all or some ants, seed additions, and various alterations of the annual plant community. While some of these manipulations were discontinued early on, others (i.e., ant and rodent manipulations) have been maintained throughout the study. Monitoring of the composition and abundances of ants, plants, and rodents has occurred continuously on all 24 plots. From 1977 to 2002, individual-level data on rodents (i.e., species, sex, size, reproductive condition) were collected monthly for each plot. From 1983 to 2002, the species-level abundances of plants were sampled on permanent quadrats. From 1977 to 2002, the species-level abundance of ant colonies was recorded for each plot, and from 1988 to 2002 additional information on ant abundances were recorded. Finally, from 1980 to 2002 we recorded precipitation at the study site. These data have been used in a variety of publications documenting the effects of the experimental manipulations as well as the response of populations and communities to longterm changes in climate and habitat. Sampling is ongoing and this database will be periodically updated
An Empirical Charge Transfer Potential with Correct Dissociation Limits
The empirical valence bond (EVB) method [J. Chem. Phys. 52, 1262 (1970)] has
always embodied charge transfer processes. The mechanism of that behavior is
examined here and recast for use as a new empirical potential energy surface
for large-scale simulations. A two-state model is explored. The main features
of the model are: (1) Explicit decomposition of the total system electron
density is invoked; (2) The charge is defined through the density decomposition
into constituent contributions; (3) The charge transfer behavior is controlled
through the resonance energy matrix elements which cannot be ignored; and (4) A
reference-state approach, similar in spirit to the EVB method, is used to
define the resonance state energy contributions in terms of "knowable"
quantities. With equal validity, the new potential energy can be expressed as a
nonthermal ensemble average with a nonlinear but analytical charge dependence
in the occupation number. Dissociation to neutral species for a gas-phase
process is preserved. A variant of constrained search density functional theory
is advocated as the preferred way to define an energy for a given charge.Comment: Submitted to J. Chem. Phys. 11/12/03. 14 pages, 8 figure
Density-matrix functional theory of the Hubbard model: An exact numerical study
A density functional theory for many-body lattice models is considered in
which the single-particle density matrix is the basic variable. Eigenvalue
equations are derived for solving Levy's constrained search of the interaction
energy functional W, which is expressed as the sum of Hartree-Fock energy and
the correlation energy E_C. Exact results are obtained for E_C of the Hubbard
model on various periodic lattices. The functional dependence of E_C is
analyzed by varying the number of sites, band filling and lattice structure.
The infinite one-dimensional chain and one-, two-, or three-dimensional finite
clusters with periodic boundary conditions are considered. The properties of
E_C are discussed in the limits of weak and strong electronic correlations, as
well as in the crossover region. Using an appropriate scaling we observe a
pseudo-universal behavior which suggests that the correlation energy of
extended systems could be obtained quite accurately from finite cluster
calculations. Finally, the behavior of E_C for repulsive (U>0) and attractive
(U<0) interactions are contrasted.Comment: Phys. Rev. B (1999), in pres
Collective Animal Behavior from Bayesian Estimation and Probability Matching
Animals living in groups make movement decisions that depend, among other factors, on social interactions with other group members. Our present understanding of social rules in animal collectives is based on empirical fits to observations and we lack first-principles approaches that allow their derivation. Here we show that patterns of collective decisions can be derived from the basic ability of animals to make probabilistic estimations in the presence of uncertainty. We build a decision-making model with two stages: Bayesian estimation and probabilistic matching.
In the first stage, each animal makes a Bayesian estimation of which behavior is best to perform taking into account personal information about the environment and social information collected by observing the behaviors of other animals. In the probability matching stage, each animal chooses a behavior with a probability given by the Bayesian estimation that this behavior is the most appropriate one. This model derives very simple rules of interaction in animal collectives that depend only on two types of reliability parameters, one that each animal assigns to the other animals and another given by the quality of the non-social information. We test our model by obtaining theoretically a rich set of observed collective patterns of decisions in three-spined sticklebacks, Gasterosteus aculeatus, a shoaling fish species. The quantitative link shown between probabilistic estimation and collective rules of behavior allows a better contact with other fields such as foraging, mate selection, neurobiology and psychology, and gives predictions for experiments directly testing the relationship between estimation and collective behavior
Settling Decisions and Heterospecific Social Information Use in Shrikes
Animals often settle near competitors, a behavior known as social attraction, which belies standard habitat selection theory. Two hypotheses account for these observations: individuals obtain Allee benefits mediated by the physical presence of a competitor, or they use successfully settled individual as a source of information indicating the location of high quality habitat. We evaluated these hypotheses experimentally in two species of shrikes. These passerine birds with a raptor-like mode of life impale prey to create larders that serve as an indicator of male/habitat quality. Thus, two forms of indirect information are available in our system: a successfully settled shrike and its larder. Typically these two cues are associated with each other, however, our experimental treatment created an unnatural situation by disassociating them. We manipulated the presence of larders of great grey shrikes and examined the settling decisions of red-backed shrikes within and outside the great grey shrike territories. Male red-backed shrikes did not settle sooner on plots with great grey shrikes compared to plots that only contained artificial larders indicating that red-backed shrikes do not use the physical presence of a great grey shrike when making settling decisions which is inconsistent with the Allee effect hypothesis. In contrast, for all plots without great grey shrikes, red-backed shrikes settled, paired and laid clutches sooner on plots with larders compared to plots without larders. We conclude that red-backed shrikes use larders of great grey shrikes as a cue to rapidly assess habitat quality
Morphine taste conditioning and analgesia: Assessing conditioned and novelty-induced analgesia.
The influence of defects on magnetic properties of fcc-Pu
The influence of vacancies and interstitial atoms on magnetism in Pu has been
considered in frames of the Density Functional Theory (DFT). The relaxation of
crystal structure arising due to different types of defects was calculated
using the molecular dynamic method with modified embedded atom model (MEAM).
The LDA+U+SO (Local Density Approximation with explicit inclusion of Coulomb
and spin-orbital interactions) method in matrix invariant form was applied to
describe correlation effects in Pu with these types of defects. The
calculations show that both vacancies and interstitials give rise to local
moments in -shell of Pu in good agreement with experimental data for
annealed Pu. Magnetism appears due to destroying of delicate balance between
spin-orbital and exchange interactions.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figure
Analytic structure factors and pair-correlation functions for the unpolarized homogeneous electron gas
We propose a simple and accurate model for the electron static structure
factors (and corresponding pair-correlation functions) of the 3D unpolarized
homogeneous electron gas. Our spin-resolved pair-correlation function is built
up with a combination of analytic constraints and fitting procedures to quantum
Monte Carlo data, and, in comparison to previous attempts (i) fulfills more
known integral and differential properties of the exact pair-correlation
function, (ii) is analytic both in real and in reciprocal space, and (iii)
accurately interpolates the newest, extensive diffusion-Monte Carlo data of
Ortiz, Harris and Ballone [Phys. Rev. Lett. 82, 5317 (1999)]. This can be of
interest for the study of electron correlations of real materials and for the
construction of new exchange and correlation energy density functionals.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
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