Short-time dynamics in the 1D long-range Potts model

We present numerical investigations of the short-time dynamics at criticality in the 1D Potts model with power-law decaying interactions of the form 1/r^{1+sigma}. The scaling properties of the magnetization, autocorrelation function and time correlations of the magnetization are studied. The dynamical critical exponents theta' and z are derived in the cases q=2 and q=3 for several values of the parameter $\sigma$ belonging to the nontrivial critical regime.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures, minor changes - several typos fixed, one reference change

Critical behaviour of the 1D q-state Potts model with long-range interactions

The critical behaviour of the one-dimensional q-state Potts model with long-range interactions decaying with distance r as $r^{-(1+\sigma)}$ has been studied in the wide range of parameters $0 < \sigma \le 1$ and $\frac{1}{16} \le q \le 64$. A transfer matrix has been constructed for a truncated range of interactions for integer and continuous q, and finite range scaling has been applied. Results for the phase diagram and the correlation length critical exponent are presented.Comment: 20 pages plus 4 figures, Late

Making SENSE--Sustained Effort Network for treatment of Status Epilepticus as a multicenter prospective registry.

BACKGROUND: Evidence regarding the different treatment options of status epilepticus (SE) in adults is scarce. Large randomized trials cover only one treatment at early stage and suggest the superiority of benzodiazepines over placebo, of intravenous lorazepam over intravenous diazepam or over intravenous phenytoin alone, and of intramuscular midazolam over intravenous lorazepam. However, many patients will not be treated successfully with the first treatment step. A large randomized trial covering the treatment of established status (ESETT) has just been funded recently by the NIH and will not start before 2015, with expected results in 2018; a trial on the treatment of refractory status with general anesthetics was terminated early due to insufficient recruitment. Therefore, a prospective multicenter observational registry was set up; this may help in clinical decision-making until results from randomized trials are available. METHODS/DESIGN: SENSE is a prospective, multicenter registry for patients treated for SE. The primary objective is to document patient characteristics, treatment modalities and in-house outcome of consecutive adults admitted for SE treatment in each of the participating centres and to identify predictors of outcome. Pre-treatment, treatment-related and outcome variables are documented systematically. To allow for meaningful multivariate analysis in the patient subgroups with refractory SE, a cohort size of 1000 patients is targeted. DISCUSSION: The results of the study will provide information about risks and benefits of specific treatment steps in different patient groups with SE at different points of time. Thus, it will support clinical decision-making and, furthermore, it will be helpful in the planning of treatment trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION: DRKS00000725

First-order transition in the one-dimensional three-state Potts model with long-range interactions

The first-order phase transition in the three-state Potts model with long-range interactions decaying as $1/r^{1+\sigma}$ has been examined by numerical simulations using recently proposed Luijten-Bl\"ote algorithm. By applying scaling arguments to the interface free energy, the Binder's fourth-order cumulant, and the specific heat maximum, the change in the character of the transition through variation of parameter $\sigma$ was studied.Comment: 6 pages (containing 5 figures), to appear in Phys. Rev.

Critical behavior of the long-range Ising chain from the largest-cluster probability distribution

Monte Carlo simulations of the 1D Ising model with ferromagnetic interactions decaying with distance $r$ as $1/r^{1+\sigma}$ are performed by applying the Swendsen-Wang cluster algorithm with cumulative probabilities. The critical behavior in the non-classical critical regime corresponding to $0.5 <\sigma < 1$ is derived from the finite-size scaling analysis of the largest cluster.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, in RevTeX, to appear in Phys. Rev. E (Feb 2001

Staged treatment response in status epilepticus: Lessons from the SENSE registry.

Although in epilepsy patients the likelihood of becoming seizure-free decreases substantially with each unsuccessful treatment, to our knowledge this has been poorly investigated in status epilepticus (SE). We aimed to evaluate the proportion of SE cessation and functional outcome after successive treatment steps. We conducted a post hoc analysis of a prospective, observational, multicenter cohort (Sustained Effort Network for treatment of Status Epilepticus [SENSE]), in which 1049 incident adult SE episodes were prospectively recorded at nine European centers. We analyzed 996 SE episodes without coma induction before the third treatment step. Rates of SE cessation, mortality (in ongoing SE or after SE control), and favorable functional outcome (assessed with modified Rankin scale) were evaluated after each step. SE was treated successfully in 838 patients (84.1%), 147 (14.8%) had a fatal outcome (36% of them died while still in SE), and 11 patients were transferred to palliative care while still in SE. Patients were treated with a median of three treatment steps (range 1-13), with 540 (54.2%) receiving more than two steps (refractory SE [RSE]) and 95 (9.5%) more than five steps. SE was controlled after the first two steps in 45%, with an additional 21% treated after the third, and 14% after the fourth step. Likelihood of SE cessation (p &lt; 0.001), survival (p = 0.003), and reaching good functional outcome (p &lt; 0.001) decreased significantly between the first two treatment lines and the third, especially in patients not experiencing generalized convulsive SE, but remained relatively stable afterwards. The significant worsening of SE prognosis after the second step clinically supports the concept of RSE. However, and differing from findings in human epilepsy, RSE remains treatable in about one third of patients, even after several failed treatment steps. Clinical judgment remains essential to determine the aggressiveness and duration of SE treatment, and to avoid premature treatment cessation in patients with SE

Reexamination of the long-range Potts model: a multicanonical approach

We investigate the critical behavior of the one-dimensional q-state Potts model with long-range (LR) interaction $1/r^{d+\sigma}$, using a multicanonical algorithm. The recursion scheme initially proposed by Berg is improved so as to make it suitable for a large class of LR models with unequally spaced energy levels. The choice of an efficient predictor and a reliable convergence criterion is discussed. We obtain transition temperatures in the first-order regime which are in far better agreement with mean-field predictions than in previous Monte Carlo studies. By relying on the location of spinodal points and resorting to scaling arguments, we determine the threshold value $\sigma_c(q)$ separating the first- and second-order regimes to two-digit precision within the range $3 \leq q \leq 9$. We offer convincing numerical evidence supporting $\sigma_c(q)Comment: 18 pages, 18 figure

Microencapsulation of Olive Leaf Extract by Spray Drying

The aim of this research was to obtain a high value powder of olive leaf extract (OLE) rich in polyphenols by spray drying. Since carrier, polyphenols/carrier ratio, and inlet temperature could have an impact on process yield and polyphenol retention, to define the most promising drying conditions for OLE experiment with gallic acid model solutions (GAS) was conducted. Influence of carrier type (maltodextrin, inulin, gum arabic, and their two-component blends), polyphenols/carrier ratio, and temperature on process yield of spray dried GAS was examined, and for each carrier the most promising temperature and ratio were selected. Optimal temperature for all GAS samples was 150°C, and optimal gallic acid/carrier ratio for samples with inulin or gum arabic was 3:1, while for all other combinations it was 5:1. In OLE powder produced under these conditions, polyphenol content and physical properties (rehydration, bulk density) were determined. Mixture of maltodextrin and gum arabic resulted in the highest OLE product yield (54.48%) and the highest polyphenol retention (56.50%) obtaining good physical properties (bulk density =0.31 g ml–1, rehydration time=98 s), while use of inulin resulted in the lowest yield (32.71%), polyphenol retention (28.24%), bulk density (0.25 g ml–1), and the highest rehydration time (140 s)