Unravelling the non-classicality role in Gaussian heat engines

At the heart of quantum thermodynamics lies a fundamental question about what is genuine "quantum" in quantum heat engines. With the help of the P-representability expression of classicality, the degree of non-classicality of a bosonic thermal engine - a quantum heat engine consisting of a single bosonic mode as a working substance coupled to a cold thermal and a hot squeezed thermal bath - is quantified. For two specific protocols, i.e., a quantum Otto and a generalized cycle, we show that the non-classicality is a fundamental resource for genuinely quantum heat engines.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

Índice de erosividade das chuvas na região de Conceição do Araguaia, Pará.

bitstream/item/42896/1/Boletim-Pesquisa-165-CPATU.pd

Fungal Growth Control by Chitosan and Derivatives

Chitin and chitosan are aminoglucopyranans composed of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc) and glucosamine (GlcN) residues and are renewable resources currently being studied by academic and industrial groups owing to their attractive properties and biological activities. Chitosans have been indicated for the preservation of foods, juices and other material from microbial deterioration due their action against different groups of microorganisms, such as bacteria, yeast and fungi. Studies on coating of fruits and vegetables and defensive plant mechanism studies have been described in the literature. There is a worldwide trend to explore new alternatives that can control postharvest pathogenic diseases, giving priority to methods that reduce disease incidence and avoid negative and side effects on human health as a result of the excessive application of synthetic fungicides. Thus, alternative approaches are necessary to maintain the marketable quality of fresh fruits. The antifungal activities of chitosan and its derivatives in vitro, preharvest and postharvest studies are reviewed in this chapter. The abilities of chitosan and its derivatives to elicit resistance reactions in plants and its action in the production and viability of fungal spores is reported. Finally, the chapter is concluded, with the possible mechanisms, suggested in the literature for the antifungal activity of chitosan

Identification and assessment of the economic outcomes of commercial aircraft decommissioning: a theoretical and mathematical approach to support decision-making regarding endof-life aircraft treatment issues

This work develops the literature review on the problem of the end-of-life treatment of aircraft used for public passenger and cargo air transport in the context of international commercial aviation. The final destination decisions of these aircraft are analyzed from the point of view of the technical and economic aspects that guide the decision-making of the owners and operators of these production assets. In addition to the developed theoretical framework, a mathematical model for financial cost-benefit analysis is also proposed to assist in this decision-making process. The main objective is to determine the appropriate moment to take end-of-life treatment decisions for these aircraft, in order to ensure the recovery of value to the stakeholders.Este trabalho desenvolve a revisão da literatura acerca do problema do tratamento de fim de vida econômica das aeronaves utilizadas no transporte aéreo público de passageiros e cargas, no âmbito da aviação comercial internacional. As decisões de destinação final dessas aeronaves são analisadas sob a ótica dos aspectos técnicos e econômicos que orientam a tomada de decisão dos proprietários e operadores desses bens de produção. Além do arcabouço teórico desenvolvido, propõe-se ainda um modelo matemático para análise de custo-benefício financeira para auxiliar tal processo de tomada de decisão. O principal objetivo é determinar o tempo apropriado para tomar decisões de tratamento de fim de vida econômica dessas aeronaves, visando assegurar a recuperação de valor às partes interessadas no referido problema

Termodinâmica e classicalidade

Orientador: Marcos César de OliveiraDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Física Gleb WataghinResumo: Máquinas térmicas que operam no regime quântico são dispositivos compostos por um ou mais sistemas quânticos que operam ciclicamente entre dois reservatórios cujo objetivo é produzir trabalho. Embora as leis da mecânica quântica governem esses dispositivos, isso não implica que essas máquinas funcionem de maneira quântica ou que exibam alguma vantagem. De fato, máquinas quânticas mostraram uma notável semelhança com os modelos clássicos, levantando assim à questão de \emph{o que é quântico em termodinâmica quântica}. Com a ajuda do conceito de P-representabilidade, apresentamos uma simples expressão, denominada função de classicalidade, que permite quantificar o grau de não-classicalidade de um sistema bosônico. Como ilustração, consideramos uma máquina quântica que consiste em um único modo bosônico, como substância de trabalho, acoplada a um reservatório térmico frio e um reservatório térmico comprimido quente. Para dois protocolos específicos, ou seja, um ciclo de Otto quântico e um ciclo generalizado, mostramos que a não-classicalidade é um recurso para executar tarefas termodinâmicas mais eficientes. Além disso, o presente estudo apresenta um arcabouço teórico para estudar como recursos quânticos, como emaranhamento ou coerência, afetam as formulações clássicas dos axiomas da termodinâmicaAbstract: Quantum heat engines are devices comprised of one or more quantum systems operating cyclically between two heat reservoirs to produce work. Although the laws of quantum mechanics rule these engines, this does not imply that these machines function in a quantum fashion, or exhibit a quantum advantage. Indeed, quantum heat engines have shown a remarkable similarity with classical models, thus raising the question of \emph{what is ''quantum'' in quantum thermodynamics}. With the help of the P-representability concept, an expression called classicality function is introduced - allowing us to quantify the degree of non-classicality of a bosonic system. As an illustration, we consider a quantum heat engine consisting of a single bosonic mode as a working substance coupled to a cold thermal and hot squeezed thermal bath. For two specific protocols, i.e., a quantum Otto and a generalized cycle, we show that the non-classicality is a resource that can be used to perform thermodynamical tasks more efficiently. Furthermore, we present a theoretical framework to study how quantum features, such as entanglement or coherence, affect the classical formulations of thermodynamic axiomsMestradoFísicaMestre em Física1765874/2018CAPE

A 1H NMR Network Approach for the Study of Specialized Metabolites: Development and Applications

The history of the World could not be told without mentioning specialized metabolites. Long before we had the notion of organic molecules, we were already sailing across the oceans in the pursue of their valuable sources, and raising whole empires based on the economy of spices, tobacco and coffee. Our own survival and adaptability as a species can be credited to discoveries of nature-sourced drugs through the centuries, such as penicillin, paclitaxel and artemisinin. As our awareness towards the environment evolved, so did our perspective on these molecules, which are now recognized as important products and intermediates of the interaction between organisms and their ecosystems. It is not an overstatement thus, to affirm that in the light of an imminent environmental crisis, the study of specialized metabolites will be of fundamental importance for the preservation and recovery of biodiversity. The development of untargeted analytical techniques has greatly advanced our ability to investigate these compounds in their natural contexts. Among those, the application of Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy for chemical profiling enabled the recognition of compound structural features and facilitated the identification of unknown compounds even prior to the laborious work of isolation. However, because multiple resonance signals arise from a single compound, a considerable amount of overlap is observed in biological samples which can limit our ability to detect those key structural markers. There are certain NMR pulse experiments that can aid in deconvoluting these signals, but a more practical approach resides in the statistical treatment of the 1H NMR spectrum, in which regular variations across the spectrum are directly mapped to variables pertinent to the system in study, such as biological activity, biogeographical data, or phylogenetic classification. This document presents an innovative strategy in which gene co-expression network analysis is adapted for the statistical treatment of 1H NMR spectral data, resulting in the deconvolution of metabolite signals and simplification of the spectrum into a few variables. These variables represent statistically measurable chemical patterns that in conjunction with other measurements can support addressing a multitude of topics in Chemical Ecology. In Chapter 1, we describe the method development and validation in a controlled experiment with prepared mixtures of known compounds and demonstrate how it recognizes metabolite identity at different structural levels. We then demonstrate its applicability in the study of natural mixtures with the investigation of ontogenetic changes of metabolism in Piper kelleyi. In Chapter 2, we applied the method to the identification of biologically active compounds from a chemically heterogeneous set of 29 Piper extracts. By quantifying the association between chemical patterns and measurements of antifungal activity, we accurately identified specific targets for the isolation of antifungal compounds, while also establishing a framework to evaluate the effect of specific structural features in modulating the toxicity of different plant species. Finally, in Chapter 3, we adopted an untargeted approach to investigate the phylogenetic signal of specialized metabolites in a broader collection of Piper species. Based upon measurements of chemical similarity, we identified the chemical traits most strongly associated with the clade Schilleria, ultimately leading us to the characterization of novel lignans. Altogether, this 1H NMR network approach represents a powerful tool for the study of specialized metabolites in a myriad of contexts relevant to the field of Chemical Ecology

Variability of venous hemodynamics detected by air plethysmography in CEAP clinical classes

BACKGROUND: The hemodynamic variability of air plethysmography is known in the literature, but the clinical significance of this event has not been investigated yet, and there may be some unexplored clinical meaning. There is known superpositioning of CEAP clinical classes (C0-C6) and even in lower limbs of the same clinical classes. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate hemodynamic variability of air plethysmography parameters in CEAP clinical classes. METHODS: This retrospective study compares lower limb varicose disease between C0 and C6 CEAP clinical classes with venous hemodynamic parameters obtained by air plethysmography. Data were tabled and analyzed according to their clinical classes by Kruskal-Wallys and Barllet variance tests. RESULTS: A total of 310 examinations were performed in 230 patients, aged between 19-81 years (mean = 46.2 years). Venous filling index and functional venous volume increased hemodynamic variability when compared with CEAP C0. This was demonstrated by the variability coefficient, which was 28.12% for venous filling index in C0 and higher than 57% between clinical classes C2 and C6. Ejection fraction and residual venous fraction had no increase in variability when compared with CEAP C0. CONCLUSION: Venous filling index is the best parameter for assessment and screening patients with chronic venous insufficiency, but has great variability in C2 to C6 CEAP clinical classes.CONTEXTO: A variabilidade hemodinâmica da pletismografia a ar é conhecida, mas o exato papel dessa variabilidade no cotidiano clínico não foi investigado, podendo ter algum significado clínico ainda não explorado. Sabe-se que há sobreposição entre as classes clínicas (C0 a C6) da classificação CEAP e mesmo entre membros inferiores de uma mesma classe clínica. OBJETIVO: Avaliar a variabilidade hemodinâmica dos parâmetros da pletismografia a ar nas classes clínicas da classificação CEAP. MÉTODO: Este estudo retrospectivo confronta a doença varicosa de membros inferiores classificada de C0 a C6 pela classificação CEAP com os parâmetros hemodinâmicos venosos obtidos pela pletismografia a ar. Os dados obtidos foram tabulados e analisados em suas classes clínicas pelos testes de variância de Kruskal-Wallys e Barllett. RESULTADOS: Foram realizados 310 exames em 230 pacientes cujas idades variaram entre 19 a 81 anos, com uma média de 46,2 anos. Os parâmetros índice de enchimento venoso e volume venoso funcional mostraram aumento da variabilidade hemodinâmica quando analisados na classe clínica C0 do CEAP, demonstrada por meio do coeficiente de variabilidade que, para o índice de enchimento venoso foi de 28,12% na classe clínica C0 e se manteve acima de 57% nas classes de C2 a C6. A fração de ejeção e a fração de volume residual não aumentaram a variabilidade quando comparados com a classe clínica C0 do CEAP. CONCLUSÃO: O índice de enchimento venoso foi o melhor parâmetro para avaliação e triagem de pacientes com insuficiência venosa crônica, mas tem grande variabilidade nas classes clínicas C2 a C6 do CEAP.UNIFESP-EPM Departamento de CirurgiaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de CirurgiaSciEL

A component-based product line architecture for workflow management systems

This paper presents a component-based product line for workflow management systems. The process followed to design the product line was based on the Catalysis method. Extensions were made to represent variability across the process. The domain of workflow management systems has been shown to be appropriate to the application of the product line approach as there are a standard architecture and models established by a regulatory board, the Workflow Management Coalition. In addition, there is a demand for similar workflow management systems but with some different features. The product line architecture was evaluated with Rapide simulation tools. The evaluation was based on selected scenarios, thus, avoiding implementation issues. The strategy that has been used to populate the architecture and experiment with the product line is shown. In particular, the design of the workflow execution manager component is described

"Tout autre est tout autre": direitos humanos e perspectivismo semântico-transcendental

A impossibilidade de se fundamentar os direitos humanos hoje de maneira satisfatória, sem recorrer a modelos essencialistas ou metafísicos, parece correlata à universalidade de sua defesa e promoção. Uma abordagem fenomenológica favorece uma leitura perspectivista da alteridade, tornando altamente defensável e razoável que se aplique uma semântica transcendental ao problema da fundamentação dos direitos humano