3,160 research outputs found
Differences in peripheral noradrenergic function among actively drinking and abstinent alcohol-dependent individuals.
We examined whether excessive alcohol consumption was related to changes in plasma levels of noradrenaline (NA) and whether these changes recover following abstinence. We also explored whether there were differences in NA levels between Type I and Type II alcoholics and controls during active drinking and abstinence. Plasma concentrations of NA were determined in (1) 27 Caucasian men with alcohol dependence who were regularly drinking (active drinkers) within 24 hours of hospitalization, (2) 29 Caucasian alcohol-dependent men who were in remission (abstinent for a minimum of three months), and (3) 28 race- and gender-matched healthy controls. NA concentrations were significantly higher in actively drinking alcohol-dependent subjects compared to those in remission and controls. While Type I and Type II alcoholic individuals differed across clinical measures, NA levels were similar in the two subtypes. Both subtypes showed an elevation in NA levels during active drinking compared to controls, but NA levels did not differ between the two subtypes and controls during remission. The findings indicate that chronic exposure to alcohol may lead to disturbances in NA activity that may manifest in early abstinence. However, the changes in NA activity appears to normalize after a longer period of abstinence. Alterations in NA activity do not seem to be specific for Type I or Type II subtypes of alcoholism
Quantum Process Tomography of the Quantum Fourier Transform
The results of quantum process tomography on a three-qubit nuclear magnetic
resonance quantum information processor are presented, and shown to be
consistent with a detailed model of the system-plus-apparatus used for the
experiments. The quantum operation studied was the quantum Fourier transform,
which is important in several quantum algorithms and poses a rigorous test for
the precision of our recently-developed strongly modulating control fields. The
results were analyzed in an attempt to decompose the implementation errors into
coherent (overall systematic), incoherent (microscopically deterministic), and
decoherent (microscopically random) components. This analysis yielded a
superoperator consisting of a unitary part that was strongly correlated with
the theoretically expected unitary superoperator of the quantum Fourier
transform, an overall attenuation consistent with decoherence, and a residual
portion that was not completely positive - although complete positivity is
required for any quantum operation. By comparison with the results of computer
simulations, the lack of complete positivity was shown to be largely a
consequence of the incoherent errors during the quantum process tomography
procedure. These simulations further showed that coherent, incoherent, and
decoherent errors can often be identified by their distinctive effects on the
spectrum of the overall superoperator. The gate fidelity of the experimentally
determined superoperator was 0.64, while the correlation coefficient between
experimentally determined superoperator and the simulated superoperator was
0.79; most of the discrepancies with the simulations could be explained by the
cummulative effect of small errors in the single qubit gates.Comment: 26 pages, 17 figures, four tables; in press, Journal of Chemical
Physic
Shaped nozzles for cryogenic buffer gas beam sources
Cryogenic buffer gas beams are important sources of cold molecules. In this
work we explore the use of a converging-diverging nozzle with a buffer-gas
beam. We find that, under appropriate circumstances, the use of a nozzle can
produce a beam with improved collimation, lower transverse temperatures, and
higher fluxes per solid angle
Experimental Implementation of the Quantum Baker's Map
This paper reports on the experimental implementation of the quantum baker's
map via a three bit nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) quantum information
processor. The experiments tested the sensitivity of the quantum chaotic map to
perturbations. In the first experiment, the map was iterated forward and then
backwards to provide benchmarks for intrinsic errors and decoherence. In the
second set of experiments, the least significant qubit was perturbed in between
the iterations to test the sensitivity of the quantum chaotic map to applied
perturbations. These experiments are used to investigate previous predicted
properties of quantum chaotic dynamics.Comment: submitted to PR
Integration of Dirac-Jacobi structures
We study precontact groupoids whose infinitesimal counterparts are
Dirac-Jacobi structures. These geometric objects generalize contact groupoids.
We also explain the relationship between precontact groupoids and homogeneous
presymplectic groupoids. Finally, we present some examples of precontact
groupoids.Comment: 10 pages. Brief changes in the introduction. References update
A Volumetric Method for Quantifying Atherosclerosis in Mice by Using MicroCT: Comparison to En Face
Precise quantification of atherosclerotic plaque in preclinical models of atherosclerosis requires the volumetric assessment of the lesion(s) while maintaining in situ architecture. Here we use micro-computed tomography (microCT) to detect ex vivo aortic plaque established in three dyslipidemic mouse models of atherosclerosis. All three models lack the low-density lipoprotein receptor (Ldlr−/−), each differing in plaque severity, allowing the evaluation of different plaque volumes using microCT technology. From clearly identified lesions in the thoracic aorta from each model, we were able to determine plaque volume (0.04–3.1 mm3), intimal surface area (0.5–30 mm2), and maximum plaque (intimal-medial) thickness (0.1–0.7 mm). Further, quantification of aortic volume allowed calculation of vessel occlusion by the plaque. To validate microCT for future preclinical studies, we compared microCT data to intimal surface area (by using en face methodology). Both plaque surface area and plaque volume were in excellent correlation between microCT assessment and en face surface area (r2 = 0.99, p<0.0001 and r2 = 0.95, p<0.0001, respectively). MicroCT also identified internal characteristics of the lipid core and fibrous cap, which were confirmed pathologically as Stary type III-V lesions. These data validate the use of microCT technology to provide a more exact empirical measure of ex vivo plaque volume throughout the entire intact aorta in situ for the quantification of atherosclerosis in preclinical models
Microscopic Selection of Fluid Fingering Pattern
We study the issue of the selection of viscous fingering patterns in the
limit of small surface tension. Through detailed simulations of anisotropic
fingering, we demonstrate conclusively that no selection independent of the
small-scale cutoff (macroscopic selection) occurs in this system. Rather, the
small-scale cutoff completely controls the pattern, even on short time scales,
in accord with the theory of microscopic solvability. We demonstrate that
ordered patterns are dynamically selected only for not too small surface
tensions. For extremely small surface tensions, the system exhibits chaotic
behavior and no regular pattern is realized.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
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