384 research outputs found
Emergence of Synchronous Oscillations in Neural Networks Excited by Noise
The presence of noise in non linear dynamical systems can play a constructive
role, increasing the degree of order and coherence or evoking improvements in
the performance of the system. An example of this positive influence in a
biological system is the impulse transmission in neurons and the
synchronization of a neural network. Integrating numerically the Fokker-Planck
equation we show a self-induced synchronized oscillation. Such an oscillatory
state appears in a neural network coupled with a feedback term, when this
system is excited by noise and the noise strength is within a certain range.Comment: 12 pages, 18 figure
Model selection applied to reconstruction of the Primordial Power Spectrum
The preferred shape for the primordial spectrum of curvature perturbations is
determined by performing a Bayesian model selection analysis of cosmological
observations. We first reconstruct the spectrum modelled as piecewise linear in
\log k between nodes in k-space whose amplitudes and positions are allowed to
vary. The number of nodes together with their positions are chosen by the
Bayesian evidence, so that we can both determine the complexity supported by
the data and locate any features present in the spectrum. In addition to the
node-based reconstruction, we consider a set of parameterised models for the
primordial spectrum: the standard power-law parameterisation, the spectrum
produced from the Lasenby & Doran (LD) model and a simple variant
parameterisation. By comparing the Bayesian evidence for different classes of
spectra, we find the power-law parameterisation is significantly disfavoured by
current cosmological observations, which show a preference for the LD model.Comment: Minor changes to match version accepted by JCA
GuíaSalud, el organismo del Sistema Nacional de Salud para impulsar la práctica basada en la evidencia
VIII Congreso Iberoamericano de Nutrición. ¿Nutrición basada en la videncia o en la evidencia?
¿Qué es GuíaSalud?
GuíaSalud es un organismo del Sistema Nacional de Salud (SNS) creado en el 2002 por iniciativa de la Comunidad Autónoma de Aragón y la Fundación Salud Innovación y Sociedad, y adoptado en 2003 por el Consejo Interterritorial como instrumento para mejorar la calidad de la atención sanitaria en el SNS. A nivel organizativo, consta de un Consejo Ejecutivo en el que participan los Departamentos y Consejerías de Salud de las 17 Comunidades Autónomas y el Ministerio de Sanidad, un Comité Científico conformado por 13 profesionales de reconocido prestigio por su labor científicotécnica en relación con las Guías de Práctica Clínica, la Secretaría ostentada por el Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud, y una Red de Colaboradores/as que sirve de apoyo para llevar a cabo las diferentes líneas de actuación.
GuíaSalud tiene por misión general potenciar la oferta de recursos, servicios y productos basados en la evidencia científica para apoyar la toma de decisión de los profesionales y de los pacientes en el Sistema Nacional de Salud (SNS), así como impulsar la creación de redes de colaboradores y la cooperación entre entidades relacionadas con las GPC y la Medicina Basada en la Evidencia (MBE). ..
Comparative study of ornamental granite cleaning using femtosecond and nanosecond pulsed lasers
Granite has been widely used as a structural and ornamental element in public works and buildings. In damp climates it is almost permanently humid and its exterior surfaces are consequently biologically colonized and blackened We describe a comparative analysis of the performance of two different laser sources in removing biological crusts from granite surfaces: nanosecond Nd:YVO4 laser (355 nm) and femtosecond Ti:Sapphire laser at its fundamental wavelength (790 nm) and second harmonic (395 nm). The granite surface was analyzed using scanning electron microscopy, attenuated total reflection – Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and profilometry, in order to assess the degree of cleaning and to characterize possible morphological and chemical changes caused by the laser sources.This work is supported by the CTM2010-19584, FIS2009-09522 and CSD2007-00013 research projects (Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología, Spanish Government) and by SA086A12-2 project (Junta de Castilla y León, Spain). FTIR, profilometry and SEM analyses were conducted at the University of Vigo's research centre (CACTI)
Reconstruction of the Dark Energy equation of state
One of the main challenges of modern cosmology is to investigate the nature
of dark energy in our Universe. The properties of such a component are normally
summarised as a perfect fluid with a (potentially) time-dependent
equation-of-state parameter . We investigate the evolution of this
parameter with redshift by performing a Bayesian analysis of current
cosmological observations. We model the temporal evolution as piecewise linear
in redshift between `nodes', whose -values and redshifts are allowed to
vary. The optimal number of nodes is chosen by the Bayesian evidence. In this
way, we can both determine the complexity supported by current data and locate
any features present in . We compare this node-based reconstruction with
some previously well-studied parameterisations: the Chevallier-Polarski-Linder
(CPL), the Jassal-Bagla-Padmanabhan (JBP) and the Felice-Nesseris-Tsujikawa
(FNT). By comparing the Bayesian evidence for all of these models we find an
indication towards possible time-dependence in the dark energy
equation-of-state. It is also worth noting that the CPL and JBP models are
strongly disfavoured, whilst the FNT is just significantly disfavoured, when
compared to a simple cosmological constant . We find that our node-based
reconstruction model is slightly disfavoured with respect to the CDM
model.Comment: 17 pages, 5 figures, minor correction
Atoms interacting with intense, high-frequency laser pulses: Effect of the magnetic-field component on atomic stabilization
Published versio
Mutations in the mitochondrial complex I assembly factor NDUFAF6 cause isolated bilateral striatal necrosis and progressive dystonia in childhood
Aim: To perform a deep phenotype characterisation in a pedigree of 3 siblings with Leigh syndrome and compound heterozygous NDUFAF6 mutations. Method: A multi-gene panel of childhood-onset basal ganglia neurodegeneration inherited conditions was analysed followed by functional studies in fibroblasts. Results: Three siblings developed gait dystonia in infancy followed by rapid progression to generalised dystonia and psychomotor regression. Brain magnetic resonance showed symmetric and bilateral cytotoxic lesions in the putamen and proliferation of the lenticular-striate arteries, latter spreading to the caudate and progressing to cavitation and volume loss. We identified a frameshift novel change (c.554_558delTTCTT; p.Tyr187AsnfsTer65) and a pathogenic missense change (c.371T>C; p.Ile124Thr) in the NDUFAF6 gene, which segregated with an autosomal recessive inheritance within the family. Patient mutations were associated with the absence of the NDUFAF6 protein and reduced activity and assembly of mature complex I in fibroblasts. By functional complementation assay, the mutant phenotype was rescued by the canonical version of the NDUFAF6. A literature review of 14 NDUFAF6 patients showed a consistent phenotype of an early childhood insidious onset neurological regression with prominent dystonia associated with basal ganglia degeneration and long survival. Interpretation: NDUFAF6-related Leigh syndrome is a relevant cause of childhood onset dystonia and isolated bilateral striatal necrosis. By genetic complementation, we could demonstrate the pathogenicity of novel genetic variants in NDUFAF6
Observational constraints on conformal time symmetry, missing matter and double dark energy
The current concordance model of cosmology is dominated by two mysterious
ingredients: dark matter and dark energy. In this paper, we explore the
possibility that, in fact, there exist two dark-energy components: the
cosmological constant , with equation-of-state parameter
, and a `missing matter' component with , which we
introduce here to allow the evolution of the universal scale factor as a
function of conformal time to exhibit a symmetry that relates the big bang to
the future conformal singularity, such as in Penrose's conformal cyclic
cosmology. Using recent cosmological observations, we constrain the present-day
energy density of missing matter to be . This is
consistent with the standard CDM model, but constraints on the energy
densities of all the components are considerably broadened by the introduction
of missing matter; significant relative probability exists even for
, and so the presence of a missing matter component
cannot be ruled out. As a result, a Bayesian model selection analysis only
slightly disfavours its introduction by 1.1 log-units of evidence. Foregoing
our symmetry requirement on the conformal time evolution of the universe, we
extend our analysis by allowing to be a free parameter. For this more
generic `double dark energy' model, we find and
, which is again consistent with the standard
CDM model, although once more the posterior distributions are
sufficiently broad that the existence of a second dark-energy component cannot
be ruled out. The model including the second dark energy component also has an
equivalent Bayesian evidence to CDM, within the estimation error, and
is indistinguishable according to the Jeffreys guideline.Comment: Revised version emphasising a different version of the underlying
symmetry, as published in JCA
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