The non dissipative damping of the Rabi oscillations as a "which-path" information

Rabi oscillations may be viewed as an interference phenomenon due to a coherent superposition of different quantum paths, like in the Young's two-slit experiment. The inclusion of the atomic external variables causes a non dissipative damping of the Rabi oscillations. More generally, the atomic translational dynamics induces damping in the correlation functions which describe non classical behaviors of the field and internal atomic variables, leading to the separability of these two subsystems. We discuss on the possibility of interpreting this intrinsic decoherence as a "which-way" information effect and we apply to this case a quantitative analysis of the complementarity relation as introduced by Englert [Phys. Rev. Lett. \textbf{77}, 2154 (1996)].Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure

Versatile surrogate models for IC buffers

In previous papers [1,2] the authors have investigated the use of Volterra series in the identification of IC buffer macro-models. While the approach benefited from some of the inherent qualities of Volterra series it preserved the two-state paradigm of earlier methods (see [3] and its references) and was thus limited in its versatility. In the current paper the authors tackle the challenge of going beyond an application or device-oriented approach and build versatile surrogate models that mimic the behavior of IC buffers over a wide frequency band and for a variety of loads thus achieving an unprecedented degree of generality. This requires the use of a more general system identification paradig

Particle displacements in the elastic deformation of amorphous materials: local fluctuations vs. non-affine field

We study the local disorder in the deformation of amorphous materials by decomposing the particle displacements into a continuous, inhomogeneous field and the corresponding fluctuations. We compare these fields to the commonly used non-affine displacements in an elastically deformed 2D Lennard-Jones glass. Unlike the non-affine field, the fluctuations are very localized, and exhibit a much smaller (and system size independent) correlation length, on the order of a particle diameter, supporting the applicability of the notion of local "defects" to such materials. We propose a scalar "noise" field to characterize the fluctuations, as an additional field for extended continuum models, e.g., to describe the localized irreversible events observed during plastic deformation.Comment: Minor corrections to match the published versio

Collective Behavior of Asperities in Dry Friction at Small Velocities

We investigate a simple model of dry friction based on extremal dynamics of asperities. At small velocities, correlations develop between the asperities, whose range becomes infinite in the limit of infinitely slow driving, where the system is self-organized critical. This collective phenomenon leads to effective aging of the asperities and results in velocity dependence of the friction force in the form $F\sim 1- \exp(-1/v)$.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figures, revtex, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Why latrines are not used : communities' perceptions and practices regarding latrines in a Taenia solium endemic rural area in Eastern Zambia

Taenia solium cysticercosis is a neglected parasitic zoonosis occurring in many developing countries. Socio-cultural determinants related to its control remain unclear. Studies in Africa have shown that the underuse of sanitary facilities and the widespread occurrence of free-roaming pigs are the major risk factors for porcine cysticercosis. The study objective was to assess the communities' perceptions, practices and knowledge regarding latrines in a T. solium endemic rural area in Eastern Zambia inhabited by the Nsenga ethno-linguistic group, and to identify possible barriers to their construction and use. A total of 21 focus group discussions on latrine use were organized separately with men, women and children, in seven villages of the Petauke district. The themes covered were related to perceived latrine availability (absence-presence, building obstacles) and perceived latrine use (defecation practices, latrine management, socio-cultural constraints). The findings reveal that latrines were not constructed in every household because of the convenient use of existing latrines in the neighborhood. Latrines were perceived to contribute to good hygiene mainly because they prevent pigs from eating human feces. Men expressed reluctance to abandon the open-air defecation practice mainly because of toilet-associated taboos with in-laws and grown-up children of the opposite gender. When reviewing conceptual frameworks of people's approach to sanitation, we found that seeking privacy and taboos hindering latrine use and construction were mainly explained in our study area by the fact that the Nsenga observe a traditionally matrilineal descent. These findings indicate that in this local context latrine promotion messages should not only focus on health benefits in general. Since only men were responsible for building latrines and mostly men preferred open defecation, sanitation programs should also be directed to men and address related sanitary taboos in order to be effective

Étude comparative tensiomètre automatique versus doppler à ultrasons dans la mesure de l’index de pression systolique à la cheville (Ipsc)

ObjectifL’évaluation de l’index de pression systolique à la cheville (IPSC) est la méthode non invasive la plus simple de dépistage de l’artériopathie des membres inférieurs (AOMI) mais reste peu usitée en pratique courante, car elle est chronophage, implique un équipement et une formation appropriés. Le but de notre étude est d’évaluer la validité et la fiabilité de la mesure de l’IPSC à l’aide d’un tensiomètre automatique par comparaison avec les résultats obtenus par doppler continu, méthode de référence. Méthodes Les patients de 65 ans et plus hospitalisés au CHU d’Angers de juillet 2008 à mars 2009 en médecine interne et n’ayant pas d’AOMI documentée au moment de l’inclusion ont participé à l’étude. Les critères d’exclusion étaient la présence d’une fibrillation auriculaire et une incompressibilité des artères distales des membres inférieurs. Pour chaque patient, l’IPSC a été évalué par tensiomètre automatique et par la méthode Doppler de référence ; ces mesures étant faites par le même examinateur. La concordance entre les deux mesures était appréciée par la méthode de Bland et Altman et le coefficient de corrélation intraclasse (ICC). Résultats Sur 287 patients participant à l’étude, 221 ont étés inclus. Cinquante-six (25 %) de ces patients avaient un IPSC < 0,90. La concordance entre les deux méthodes était médiocre : ICC à 0,35 ± 0,08 et moyenne à 0,08 ± 0,26 selon la méthode de Bland et Altman. Conclusion La méthode de dépistage de l’AOMI par mesure de l’IPSC par tensiomètre automatique ne peut être retenue comme une alternative à la méthode Doppler