2,289 research outputs found
Video games as meaningful entertainment experiences
We conducted an experiment to examine individuals’ perceptions of enjoyable and meaningful video games and the game characteristics and dimensions of need satisfaction associated with enjoyment and appreciation. Participants (N = 512) were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups that asked them to recall a game that they found either particularly fun or particularly meaningful, and to then rate their perceptions of the game that they recalled. Enjoyment was high for both groups, though appreciation was higher in the meaningful- than fun-game condition. Further, enjoyment was most strongly associated with gameplay characteristics and satisfaction of needs related to competency and autonomy, whereas appreciation was most strongly associated with story characteristics and satisfaction of needs related to insight and relatedness
Spatial and temporal characterization of a Bessel beam produced using a conical mirror
We experimentally analyze a Bessel beam produced with a conical mirror,
paying particular attention to its superluminal and diffraction-free
properties. We spatially characterized the beam in the radial and on-axis
dimensions, and verified that the central peak does not spread over a
propagation distance of 73 cm. In addition, we measured the superluminal phase
and group velocities of the beam in free space. Both spatial and temporal
measurements show good agreement with the theoretical predictions.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figure
Half-metallic antiferromagnets in double perovskites: LaAVRuO (A=Ca, Sr, and Ba)
Based on the theoretical exploration of electronic structures, we propose
that the ordered double perovskites LaAVRuO and LaVO/ARuO (001)
superlattice (A = Ca, Sr and Ba) are strong candidates for half-metallic (HM)
antiferromagnets (AFMs). %LaAVRuO and LaVO/ARuO have the %100% spin
polarizations at the Fermi level but with zero %total magnetic moments. We have
shown that the HM-AFM nature in LaAVRuO is very robust regardless of (i)
divalent ion replacement at A-sites, (ii) oxygen site relaxation, (iii) the
inclusion of the Coulomb correlation, and (iv) cation disorder. A type of the
double exchange interaction is expected to be responsible for the
half-metallicity and the antiferromagnetism in these systems.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Appearance of Half-Metallicity in the Quaternary Heusler Alloys
I report systematic first-principle calculations of the quaternary Heusler
alloys like Co[CrMn]Al, CoMn[AlSn] and
[FeCo]MnAl. I show that when the two limiting cases (x=0 or 1)
correspond to a half-metallic compound, so do the intermediate cases. Moreover
the total spin moment in scales linearly with the total number of
valence electrons (and thus with the concentration ) following the
relation , independently of the origin of the extra valence
electrons, confirming the Slater-Pauling behavior of the normal Heusler alloys.
Finally I discuss in all cases the trends in the atomic projected DOSs and in
the atomic spin moments.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, 2 Table
Surface Properties of the Half- and Full-Heusler Alloys
Using a full-potential \textit{ab-initio} technique I study the electronic
and magnetic properties of the (001) surfaces of the half-Heusler alloys,
NiMnSb, CoMnSb and PtMnSb and of the full-Heusler alloys CoMnGe, CoMnSi
and CoCrAl. The MnSb terminated surfaces of the half-Heusler compounds
present properties similar to the bulk compounds and, although the
half-metallicity is lost, an important spin-polarisation at the Fermi level. In
contrast to this the Ni terminated surface shows an almost zero net
spin-polarisation. While the bulk CoMnGe and CoMnSi are almost
half-ferromagnetic, their surfaces lose the half-metallic character and the net
spin-polarisation at the Fermi level is close to zero. Contrary to these
compounds the CrAl terminated (001) surface of CoCrAl shows a spin
polarisation of about 84%.Comment: 14 pages, 6 figure
Itinerant ferromagnetism in half-metallic CoS_2
We have investigated electronic and magnetic properties of the pyrite-type
CoS_2 using the linearized muffin-tin orbital (LMTO) band method. We have
obtained the ferromagnetic ground state with nearly half-metallic nature. The
half-metallic stability is studied by using the fixed spin moment method. The
non-negligible orbital magnetic moment of Co 3d electrons is obtained as in the local spin density approximation (LSDA). The calculated
ratio of the orbital to spin angular momenta / = 0.15 is
consistent with experiment. The effect of the Coulomb correlation between Co 3d
electrons is also explored with the LSDA + U method. The Coulomb correlation at
Co sites is not so large, eV, and so CoS_2 is possibly
categorized as an itinerant ferromagnet. It is found that the observed
electronic and magnetic behaviors of CoS_2 can be described better by the LSDA
than by the LSDA + U.Comment: 4 pages, 3 postscript figure
CXCR2 deficient mice display macrophage-dependent exaggerated acute inflammatory responses
CXCR2 is an essential regulator of neutrophil recruitment to inflamed and damaged sites and plays prominent roles in inflammatory pathologies and cancer. It has therefore been highlighted as an important therapeutic target. However the success of the therapeutic targeting of CXCR2 is threatened by our relative lack of knowledge of its precise in vivo mode of action. Here we demonstrate that CXCR2-deficient mice display a counterintuitive transient exaggerated inflammatory response to cutaneous and peritoneal inflammatory stimuli. In both situations, this is associated with reduced expression of cytokines associated with the resolution of the inflammatory response and an increase in macrophage accumulation at inflamed sites. Analysis using neutrophil depletion strategies indicates that this is a consequence of impaired recruitment of a non-neutrophilic CXCR2 positive leukocyte population. We suggest that these cells may be myeloid derived suppressor cells. Our data therefore reveal novel and previously unanticipated roles for CXCR2 in the orchestration of the inflammatory response
A balanced homodyne detector for high-rate Gaussian-modulated coherent-state quantum key distribution
We discuss excess noise contributions of a practical balanced homodyne
detector in Gaussian-modulated coherent-state (GMCS) quantum key distribution
(QKD). We point out the key generated from the original realistic model of GMCS
QKD may not be secure. In our refined realistic model, we take into account
excess noise due to the finite bandwidth of the homodyne detector and the
fluctuation of the local oscillator. A high speed balanced homodyne detector
suitable for GMCS QKD in the telecommunication wavelength region is built and
experimentally tested. The 3dB bandwidth of the balanced homodyne detector is
found to be 104MHz and its electronic noise level is 13dB below the shot noise
at a local oscillator level of 8.5*10^8 photon per pulse. The secure key rate
of a GMCS QKD experiment with this homodyne detector is expected to reach
Mbits/s over a few kilometers.Comment: 22 pages, 11 figure
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