Correlation Inequalities for Quantum Spin Systems with Quenched Centered Disorder

It is shown that random quantum spin systems with centered disorder satisfy correlation inequalities previously proved (arXiv:cond-mat/0612371) in the classical case. Consequences include monotone approach of pressure and ground state energy to the thermodynamic limit. Signs and bounds on the surface pressures for different boundary conditions are also derived for finite range potentials.Comment: 4 page

Thermodynamic Limit for Finite Dimensional Classical and Quantum Disordered Systems

We provide a very simple proof for the existence of the thermodynamic limit for the quenched specific pressure for classical and quantum disordered systems on a $d$-dimensional lattice, including spin glasses. We develop a method which relies simply on Jensen's inequality and which works for any disorder distribution with the only condition (stability) that the quenched specific pressure is bounded.Comment: 14 pages. Final version, accepted for publication on Rev. Math. Phy

Fiber Bragg Grating sensors for deformation monitoring of GEM foils in HEP detectors

Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors have been so far mainly used in high energy physics (HEP) as high precision positioning and re-positioning sensors and as low cost, easy to mount, radiation hard and low space- consuming temperature and humidity devices. FBGs are also commonly used for very precise strain measurements. In this work we present a novel use of FBGs as flatness and mechanical tensioning sensors applied to the wide Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) foils of the GE1/1 chambers of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment at Large Hadron Collider (LHC) of CERN. A network of FBG sensors has been used to determine the optimal mechanical tension applied and to characterize the mechanical stress applied to the foils. The preliminary results of the test performed on a full size GE1/1 final prototype and possible future developments will be discussed.Comment: Four pages, seven figures. Presented by Michele Caponero at IWASI 2015, Gallipoli (Italy

Eco-friendly gas mixtures for Resistive Plate Chambers based on Tetrafluoropropene and Helium

Due to the recent restrictions deriving from the application of the Kyoto protocol, the main components of the gas mixtures presently used in the Resistive Plate Chambers systems of the LHC experiments will be most probably phased out of production in the coming years. Identifying possible replacements with the adequate characteristics requires an intense R&D, which was recently started, also in collaborations across the various experiments. Possible candidates have been proposed and are thoroughly investigated. Some tests on one of the most promising candidate - HFO-1234ze, an allotropic form of tetrafluoropropane- have already been reported. Here an innovative approach, based on the use of Helium, to solve the problems related to the too elevate operating voltage of HFO-1234ze based gas mixtures, is discussed and the relative first results are shown.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, 1 tabl

Interaction Flip Identities for non Centered Spin Glasses

We consider spin glass models with non-centered interactions and investigate the effect, on the random free energies, of flipping the interaction in a subregion of the entire volume. A fluctuation bound obtained by martingale methods produces, with the help of integration by parts technique, a family of polynomial identities involving overlaps and magnetizations

Body composition obtained from the body mass index

BACKGROUND: Since obesity and related diseases are now considered epidemic, new and more accurate formulas for epidemiological studies are of interest to the scientific community. Several equations have been proposed to estimate the body composition simply from anthropometric measurements. However, with time, the body composition of the populations studied changes in relation to their food habits and lifestyle, and, therefore, the equations must be regularly updated and corrected. AIM OF THE STUDY: The aim of the study was to develop new equations to determine the body composition among the Italian population using the body mass index and independently by variables such as age and body structure. METHODS: Bioelectrical impedance and anthropometric analysis of 764 Italian Caucasian subjects (342 females and 422 males), 11 to 80 years of age, were analysed. Females and males were analysed separately. Multiple regression analyses were performed in order to estimate the body composition of the subjects. The estimated masses were then compared with the measured masses using Bland and Altman plots. We also calculated the differences between the estimated and measured masses, reported as % of the body weight, for the 95, 85 and 75 degrees percentile of the female and male groups. Finally we compared our formulas with the Watson equations, which are used to estimate the total body water. RESULTS: All body masses estimated were positively correlated to the measured values. Moreover, at any percentile analysed, our formulas resulted more precise than the Watson formula. Equations: Females: FM = 1.9337 BMI - 26.422; FFM = BW - FM; BCM = 0.3655 FFM + 4.865; TBW = 0.5863 FFM + 7.1732; Males: FM = 1.407 BMI - 21.389; FFM = BW - FM; BCM = 0.4485 FFM + 3.3534; TBW = 0.6997 + 1.4567. CONCLUSIONS: Although an inevitable inaccuracy must be expected in epidemiological studies, our equations are adequate to analyze the body composition state and changes occurring among the Italian population by simply considering weight and height

Effects of Losartan and Irbesartan administration on brain angiotensinogen mRNA levels

Losartan, 2-n-butyl-4-chloro-5-hydroxymethyl-1-[(2'(1H-tetrazol-5-yl)-biphenil-4-yl)methyl] imidazole, and Irbesartan, 2-n-butyl-3-[(2'-(1H-tetrazol-5-yl)-biphenyl-4-yl)methyl]-1,3-diaza-spiro[4,4]non -1-en-4-one, are two angiotensin AT1 receptor antagonists largely used in human health care as antihypertensive agents. Their ability to cross the blood-brain barrier and to influence the central renin-angiotensin system are widely investigated, but how this brain system responds to the subchronic and chronic block of the angiotensin AT1 receptor is still unknown. Normotensive rats were intragastrically implanted for 7- and 30-day administration, with a dose of 3 and 30 mg/kg body weight. Treatments were shown to influence, in a dose-, time- and brain-area-dependent manner, angiotensinogen mRNA levels in scanned areas. This study showed a general up-regulation of angiotensinogen mRNA expression after 7 days and a widespread down-regulation or basal level of expression after a 30-day administration of two angiotensin AT1 receptor antagonists

Interannual variability of winter precipitation in the European Alps: relations with the North Atlantic Oscillation.

Abstract. The European Alps rely on winter precipitation for various needs in terms of hydropower and other water uses. Major European rivers originate from the Alps and depend on winter precipitation and the consequent spring snow melt for their summer base flows. Understanding the fluctuations in winter rainfall in this region is crucially important to the study of changes in hydrologic regime in river basins, as well as to the management of their water resources. Despite the recognized relevance of winter precipitation to the water resources of the Alps and surrounding regions, the magnitude and mechanistic explanation of interannual precipitation variability in the Alpine region remains unclear and poorly investigated. Here we use gridded precipitation data from the CRU TS 1.2 to study the interannual variability of winter alpine precipitation. We found that the Alps are the region with the highest interannual variability in winter precipitation in Europe. This variability cannot be explained by large scale climate patterns such as the Arctic Oscillation (AO), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) or the East Atlantic/West Russia (EA/WR), even though regions below and above the Alps demonstrate connections with these patterns. Significant trends were detected only in small regions located in the Eastern part of the Alps

Control of the TORA System through the IDA-PBC without Explicit Solution of Matching Equations

This paper presents the control of a translational oscillator with a rotational actuator (TORA) system, in full gravity, through the interconnection and damping assignment passivity-based control (IDA-PBC). The sought goal is to control the underactuated TORA system while reducing the complexity in solving the partial differential equations coming out from the so-called matching equations, which arise from the IDA-PBC. The performance of the designed controller is illustrated through numerical simulations

16x125 Gb/s Quasi-Nyquist DAC-Generated PM-16QAM Transmission Over 3590 km of PSCF

We report on a transmission experiment over high-performance pure silica core fiber (PSCF) of 16 Nyquist wavelength-division-multiplexed (Nyquist-WDM) channels at a symbol rate of 15.625 GBaud, using polarization-multiplexed (PM) 16 symbols quadrature amplitude modulation (16QAM), resulting in a per-channel raw bit rate of 125 Gb/s. The channel spacing is 16 GHz, corresponding to 1.024 times the symbol rate. The interchannel crosstalk penalty is drastically reduced through the confinement of the signal spectrum within a near-Nyquist bandwidth, achieved with digital filtering and digital-to-analog converters (DACs) operating at 1.5 samples/symbol. The optical line is a recirculating loop composed of two spans of high-performance PSCF with erbium-doped fiber amplifiers only. The transmission distance of 3590 km at a target line bit-error rate (BER) of 1.5 10^-2 is achieved at a raw spectral efficiency (SE) of 7.81 b/s/Hz. Assuming a commercial hard forward error correction with 20.5% redundancy, capable of handling the target BER, the net SE is 6.48 b/s/Hz, the highest so far reported for multithousand kilometer transmission of PM-16QAM at ≥ 100 Gb/s per channel. These results demonstrate the feasibility of very high SE DAC-enabled ultra-long-haul quasi-Nyquist-WDM transmission using PM-16QAM with current technologies and manageable digital signal processing complexit