221,790 research outputs found
Quantum Parrondo's game with random strategies
We present a quantum implementation of Parrondo's game with randomly switched
strategies using 1) a quantum walk as a source of ``randomness'' and 2) a
completely positive (CP) map as a randomized evolution. The game exhibits the
same paradox as in the classical setting where a combination of two losing
strategies might result in a winning strategy. We show that the CP-map scheme
leads to significantly lower net gain than the quantum walk scheme
The potential negative impact of antibiotic pack on antibiotic stewardship in primary care in Switzerland: a modelling study.
BACKGROUND: In Switzerland, oral antibiotics are dispensed in packs rather than by exact pill-count. We investigated whether available packs support compliance with recommended primary care treatment regimens for common infections in children and adults. METHODS: Hospital-based guidelines for oral community -based treatment of acute otitis media, sinusitis, tonsillopharyngitis, community-acquired pneumonia and afebrile urinary tract infection were identified in 2017 in an iterative process by contacting hospital pharmacists and infectious diseases specialists. Furthermore, newly available national guidelines published in 2019 were reviewed. Available pack sizes for recommended solid, dispersible and liquid antibiotic formulations were retrieved from the Swiss pharmaceutical register and compared with recommended regimens to determine optimal (no leftovers) and adequate (optimal +/- one dose) matches. RESULTS: A large variety of recommended regimens were identified. For adults, optimal and adequate packs were available for 25/70 (36%) and 8/70 (11%) regimens, respectively. Pack-regimen matching was better for WHO Watch (optimal: 15/24, 63%) than Access antibiotics (optimal: 7/39, 18%). For the four paediatric weight-examples and 42 regimens involving child-appropriate formulations, optimal and adequate packs were available for only 14/168 (8%) and 27/168 (16%), respectively. Matching was better for older children with higher body and for longer treatment courses > 7 days. CONCLUSIONS: Fixed antibiotic packs often do not match recommended treatment regimens, especially for children, potentially resulting in longer than necessary treatments and leftover doses in the community. As part of national stewardship, a move to an exact pill-count system, including for child-appropriate solid formulations, should be considered
Intrarenal Resistance Index as a Prognostic Parameter in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis Compared with Other Hepatic Scoring Systems
Background and Aims: Patients with advanced liver cirrhosis who develop renal dysfunction have a poor prognosis. Elevated intrarenal resistance indices (RIs) due to renal vascular constriction have been described before in cirrhotic patients. In the current study, we prospectively investigated the course of intrarenal RIs and compared their prognostic impact with those of the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) and the Child-Pugh scores. Methods: Sixty-three patients with liver cirrhosis underwent a baseline visit which included a sonographic examination and laboratory tests. Forty-four patients were prospectively monitored. The end points were death or survival at the day of the follow-up visit. Results: In 28 patients, a follow-up visit was performed after 22 8 months (group 1). Sixteen patients died during follow-up after 12 8 months (group 2). Group 2 patients showed a significantly higher baseline RI (0.76 +/- 0.05) than group 1 patients (RI = 0.72 +/- 0.06; p < 0.05). As shown by receiver operating characteristic analysis, the RI and the MELD score achieved similar sensitivity and specificity {[}area under the curve (AUC): 0.722; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.575-0.873 vs. AUC: 0.724; 95% CI: 0.575-0.873, z = 0.029, n.s.] in predicting survival and were superior to the Child-Pugh score (AUC: 0.677; 96% Cl: 0.518-0.837). Conclusion: The RI is not inferior in sensitivity and specificity to the MELD score. Cirrhotic patients with elevated RIs have impaired short- and long-term survival. The RI may help identify high-risk patients that require special therapeutic care. Copyright (C) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base
Topics on n-ary algebras
We describe the basic properties of two n-ary algebras, the Generalized Lie
Algebras (GLAs) and, particularly, the Filippov (or n-Lie) algebras (FAs), and
comment on their n-ary Poisson counterparts, the Generalized Poisson (GP) and
Nambu-Poisson (N-P) structures. We describe the Filippov algebra cohomology
relevant for the central extensions and infinitesimal deformations of FAs. It
is seen that semisimple FAs do not admit central extensions and, moreover, that
they are rigid. This extends the familiar Whitehead's lemma to all
FAs, n=2 being the standard Lie algebra case. When the n-bracket of the FAs is
no longer required to be fully skewsymmetric one is led to the n-Leibniz (or
Loday's) algebra structure. Using that FAs are a particular case of n-Leibniz
algebras, those with an anticommutative n-bracket, we study the class of
n-Leibniz deformations of simple FAs that retain the skewsymmetry for the first
n-1 entires of the n-Leibniz bracket.Comment: 11 page
Power Spectrum of Velocity Fluctuations in the Universe
We investigate the power spectrum of velocity fluctuations in the universe,
, starting from four different measures of velocity: (1) the power
spectrum of velocity fluctuations from peculiar velocities of galaxies; (2) the
rms peculiar velocity of galaxy clusters; (3) the power spectrum of velocity
fluctuations from the power spectrum of density fluctuations in the galaxy
distribution; (4) and the bulk velocity from peculiar velocities of galaxies.
We show that measures (1) and (2) are not consistent with each other and either
the power spectrum from peculiar velocities of galaxies is overestimated or the
rms cluster peculiar velocity is underestimated. The amplitude of velocity
fluctuations derived from the galaxy distribution (measure 3) depends on the
parameter . We estimate the parameter on the basis of measures
(2) and (4). The power spectrum of velocity fluctuations from the galaxy
distribution in the Stromlo-APM redshift survey is consistent with the observed
rms cluster velocity and with the observed large-scale bulk flow when the
parameter is in the range 0.4-0.5. In this case the value of the
function at wavelength Mpc is km s
and the rms amplitude of the bulk flow at the radius Mpc is km s. The velocity dispersion of galaxy systems originates mostly
from the large-scale velocity fluctuations with wavelengths Mpc.Comment: Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 493, in press: 23 pages, uses AAS Latex,
and 14 separate postscript figure
Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine given shortly after birth stimulates effective antibody concentrations and primes immunological memory for sustained infant protection.
BACKGROUND: In developing countries, newborn immunization with pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) could protect young infants who are at high risk of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) but might lead to immune tolerance. METHODS: In a randomized trial, young infants received 7-valent PCV at 6, 10, and 14 weeks (Expanded Programme on Immunization [EPI] group) or 0, 10, and 14 weeks (newborn group). Safety was monitored actively at 2-7 days and then passively. Serum samples obtained at birth and 6, 10, 14, 18, 36, and 37 weeks were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for anticapsular immunoglobulin G concentration and avidity. Infants were boosted with either 7-valent PCV or one-fifth dose of pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine at 36 weeks. Nasopharyngeal swab samples were obtained at 18 and 36 weeks. RESULTS: Three-hundred neonates and young infants were enrolled. Newborn vaccination was well tolerated. Adverse events occurred equally in each group; none was related to immunization. One infant, immunized at birth, died of unrelated neonatal sepsis. At 18 weeks, protective concentrations (≥0.35 μg/mL) were achieved against each serotype by ≥87% of infants with no significant differences between groups. Geometric mean concentrations were higher in the EPI group for serotypes 4, 9V, 18C, and 19F at 18 weeks and for serotype 4 at 36 weeks. Avidity was greater in the newborn group for serotypes 4, 6B, and 19F at 18 weeks and for serotype 19F at 36 weeks. Booster responses and vaccine-type/nonvaccine-type carriage prevalence did not differ between groups. CONCLUSIONS: PCV was safe, immunogenic, and primed for memory when given at birth. There was no evidence of immune tolerance. Vaccination beginning at birth offers an alternative to control IPD in vulnerable young infants
Exceptional Indices
Recently a prescription to compute the superconformal index for all theories
of class S was proposed. In this paper we discuss some of the physical
information which can be extracted from this index. We derive a simple
criterion for the given theory of class S to have a decoupled free component
and for it to have enhanced flavor symmetry. Furthermore, we establish a
criterion for the "good", the "bad", and the "ugly" trichotomy of the theories.
After interpreting the prescription to compute the index with non-maximal
flavor symmetry as a residue calculus we address the computation of the index
of the bad theories. In particular we suggest explicit expressions for the
superconformal index of higher rank theories with E_n flavor symmetry, i.e. for
the Hilbert series of the multi-instanton moduli space of E_n.Comment: 33 pages, 11 figures, v2: minor correction
Walking as a meaningful leisure occupation: the implications for occupational therapy
Introduction: In response to growing interest in leisure in occupational therapy and the importance of understanding how occupations maintain, enhance and promote health and wellbeing, a qualitative phenomenological study was conducted to explore the experiences of walking for leisure. Method: Six healthy student participants, identified as regular walkers, were interviewed using a semi-structured format. Data were analysed following interpretative phenomenological analysis methodology. Findings: Participants expressed how and why walking was meaningful to them; the four main themes were social connectedness, wellbeing, connection to nature and achievement from a challenge. Findings suggest that occupational therapists could use walking and leisure occupations in intervention, and that there is scope for an occupational therapy perspective in health promotion. Conclusion: Determining the subjective meaning of engaging in walking as a leisure occupation has implications for occupational science and health promotion in helping to explain why people do what they do
Relating Spin Foams and Canonical Quantum Gravity: A Discrete Step Evolution Formulation of Spin Foams
This article has been replaced by gr-qc/0412011Comment: This article has been replaced by gr-qc/041201
Top quark tensor couplings
We compute the real and imaginary parts of the one-loop electroweak
contributions to the left and right tensorial anomalous couplings of the
vertex in the Standard Model (SM). For both tensorial couplings we find that
the real part of the electroweak SM correction is close to 10 of the leading
contribution given by the QCD gluon exchange. We also find that the electroweak
real and imaginary parts for the anomalous right coupling are almost of the
same order of magnitude. The one loop SM prediction for the real part of the
left coupling is close to the 3 discovery limit derived from
. Besides, taking into account that the predictions of
new physics interactions are also at the level of a few percents when compared
with the one loop QCD gluon exchange, these electroweak corrections should be
taken into account in order to disentangle new physics effects from the
standard ones. These anomalous tensorial couplings of the top quark will be
investigated at the LHC in the near future where sensitivity to these
contributions may be achieved.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figure
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