3,337 research outputs found
New constructions of CSS codes obtained by moving to higher alphabets
We generalize a construction of non-binary quantum LDPC codes over \F_{2^m}
due to \cite{KHIS11a} and apply it in particular to toric codes. We obtain in
this way not only codes with better rates than toric codes but also improve
dramatically the performance of standard iterative decoding. Moreover, the new
codes obtained in this fashion inherit the distance properties of the
underlying toric codes and have therefore a minimum distance which grows as the
square root of the length of the code for fixed .Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, full version of a paper submitted to the IEEE
Symposium on Information Theor
The Role of Simple Rules in the Conduct of Canadian Monetary Policy
The third strategy employed by the Bank when dealing with uncertainty is the consideration of appropriate simple reaction functions or "rules" for the setting of the policy interest rate. Since John Taylor's presentation of his much-discussed rule, research on simple policy rules has exploded. Simple rules have several advantages. In particular, they are easy to construct and communicate and are believed by some to be robust, in the sense of generating good results in a variety of economic models. This article provides an overview of the recent research regarding the usefulness and robustness of simple monetary policy rules, particularly in models of the Canadian economy. It also describes and explains the role of simple rules in the conduct of monetary policy in Canada.
Lâapport de lâobservation in situ pour dĂ©crire les interventions infirmiĂšres dâhabilitation Ă lâautoprise en charge de sa santĂ© dans le secteur des soins Ă domicile
Lâutilisation de lâobservation in situ a servi Ă dĂ©crire les interventions infirmiĂšres dâhabilitation Ă lâautoprise en charge de sa santĂ©, dans le cadre dâune recherche doctorale ayant un devis ethnomĂ©thodologique. Cet article traite de lâutilisation de cette stratĂ©gie de recherche qui a permis de dĂ©crire pas moins de soixante interventions dâhabilitation grĂące Ă lâobservation de 30 visites Ă domicile dâinfirmiĂšres du Programme Extra-Mural du Nouveau-Brunswick. Les aspects mĂ©thodologiques liĂ©s Ă cette recherche sont dâabord prĂ©sentĂ©s. Ensuite, les rĂ©sultats saillants sont abordĂ©s et discutĂ©s Ă la lumiĂšre de la contribution de lâobservation pour dĂ©crire la nature multidimensionnelle de lâintervention, en plus de raffiner les connaissances sur les indicateurs et les fonctions de ces interventions. Enfin, il est suggĂ©rĂ© que lâobservation est une stratĂ©gie de recherche pertinente et non-intrusive ayant le potentiel de contribuer aux dĂ©veloppements des connaissances sur lâintervention dâhabilitation infirmiĂšre.An in situ observation technique was used to describe nursing interventions that enabled people to take greater responsibility for their own health as part of a doctoral research project with an ethnomethodological design. This article outlines the use of this research strategy that elicited the description of at least 60 enabling interventions through the observation of 30 home visits by nurses from the New Brunswick Extra-Mural Program. A review of the methodological aspects of this research is presented. Some of the salient results are also presented and discussed in light of the contributions of this observational technique to describe the multidimensional nature of enabling interventions and as a means to discover some of their indicators and functions. It is argued that an observational technique is a pertinent and a non-intrusive research strategy that can contribute to a growing body of knowledge of nursesâ enabling interventions
Le régime international pour le climat : vers la consolidation ou l'effondrement ?
Cette contribution traite des modalitĂ©s de gestion d'un problĂšme d'action collective dans le domaine de la nĂ©gociation sur le climat, en s'appuyant sur deux des concepts de l'Economie Politique Internationale (EPI), celui de rĂ©gime international (RI), et celui d'hĂ©gĂ©monie et/ou de leadership. Le cours suivi par la nĂ©gociation internationale entre 1992 (Convention de Rio) et mars 2001 (rejet par les Ătats-Unis du protocole de Kyoto de 1997), conduit Ă s'interroger sur les conditions d'existence et la viabilitĂ© d'un rĂ©gime international non hĂ©gĂ©monique (partie 1). On s'interroge ensuite sur les perspectives de "l'aprĂšs-Kyoto". L'examen des prĂ©fĂ©rences des trois acteurs les plus actifs dans la nĂ©gociation (Ătats-Unis, Europe, G77+ Chine) combinĂ© Ă celui des capacitĂ©s de leadership qu'ils possĂšdent permet de diffĂ©rencier trois scĂ©narios d'avenir : i) l'anarchie, ii) un rĂ©gime international sous hĂ©gĂ©monie amĂ©ricaine, iii) un rĂ©gime international sous leadership europĂ©en (partie 2). âââââ This article deals with the different modalities that exist to manage a problem of collective action in the field of climate negotiation. It uses two concepts of the International Political Economy (IPE) : the concept of International Regime (IR) and the concept of Hegemony and / or Leadership. The course the international negotiation has taken between 1992 (Rio Convention) and march 2001 (the US rejection of the Kyoto Protocol of 1997) leads us, first, to question the conditions of existence as well as the viability of a non-hegemonic International Regime (Part One). Then, we discuss the perspectives for the "post - Kyoto" era. After having examined the preferences of the three most active actors in the negotiation (USA, Europe, G77 + China) combined with the leadership capacities they possess, we identify three scenarios for the future: i) anarchy, ii) an international regime under the American hegemony, iii) an international regime under the European leadership (Part Two).Changement climatique; rĂ©gime international
Integration oder Separation von SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒlern mit Lern- und/oder VerhaltensauffĂ€lligkeiten: Welche KonseÂquenzen hat dies fĂŒr die Lehrpersonen?
Verschiedenste Forschungsprojekte haben gezeigt, dass die Integration von SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒlern mit besonderem Bildungsbedarf in eine Regeklasse mehr Vorteile bringt als deren Separation. Allerdings wehrt sich ein grosser Teil der Regelklassenlehrpersonen gegen eine solche Integration. Wie ist nun mit den gegensĂ€tzlichen Auffassungen von Forschenden und Lehrpersonen umzugehen? Der entscheidende Faktor scheint das Risiko des Ausgebranntseins oder des Burnouts der LehrkrĂ€fte zu sein. Unsere Studie, aus der wir in diesem Beitrag einige Resultate prĂ€sentieren, zeigt nĂ€mlich in der Tat, dass LehrkrĂ€fte, die ausschliesslich SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒler mit schulischen Schwierigkeiten unterrichten, im Vergleich zu Kolleginnen und Kollegen in Regelklassen vermehrt ein Risiko tragen, an einem Burnout zu erkranken, und ĂŒberdies negativere Einstellungen zur sozialen UnterstĂŒtzung haben, die ihnen laut ihrer EinschĂ€tzung zukommt. Auch zeigt sich, dass Regelklassenlehrpersonen, die der Integration von SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒlern mit besonderem Bildungsbedarf offen gegenĂŒberstehen, gefĂ€hrdeter sind, an einem Burnout zu erkranken, und mit den UnterstĂŒtzungsmassnahmen weniger zufrieden sind als diejenigen LehrkrĂ€fte, welche eine Separation bevorzugen. Die Betreuung von SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒlern mit besonderem Bildungsbedarf scheint deshalb ein Risikofaktor fĂŒr Erschöpfung der LehrkrĂ€fte zu sein und eine die Separation bevorzugende Einstellung kann demnach als Verteidigungsmechanismus gesehen werden, der es den LehrkrĂ€ften ermöglicht, sich gegen die berufliche Belastung, das Burnout, zu wehren. Dies ist aber mit dem Risiko verbunden, dass SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒler mit Schulschwierigkeiten benachteiligt werden. Die Herausforderung besteht demnach darin, Schutzfaktoren zu entwickeln, welche die ErschöpfungsgefĂ€hrdung der Lehrpersonen kompensieren. Die soziale UnterstĂŒtzung, d.h. die Hilfe, welche eine Lehrkraft in beruflich komplexen Situationen in Anspruch nehmen kann, ist dabei ein wesentlicher Schutzfaktor. Es ist jedoch notwendig, die soziale UnterstĂŒtzung im Hinblick auf Anwendungen und Herausforderungen genauer zu erforschen mit dem Ziel, den politischen Willen zur vermehrten schulischen Integration so zu gestalten, dass er den SchĂŒlerinnen und SchĂŒlern zugutekommt, ohne dabei die Lehrpersonen einer Krankheitsgefahr auszusetzen.De nombreuses recherches ont permis de dĂ©montrer que lâinclusion en classe rĂ©guliĂšre dâĂ©lĂšves prĂ©sentant des besoins particuliers offre plus dâavantages que leur exclusion. Cependant, une partie importante des enseignants de classe rĂ©guliĂšre sâoppose Ă lâinclusion. Comment prendre en compte cette opposition entre chercheurs et enseignants ? Le facteur dĂ©terminant semble ĂȘtre le risque dâĂ©puisement professionnel ou burnout des enseignants. Notre Ă©tude, dont nous prĂ©sentons ici certains rĂ©sultats, montre en effet que les enseignants intervenant exclusivement auprĂšs dâĂ©lĂšves en difficultĂ© comparĂ©s aux enseignants de classe rĂ©guliĂšre sont plus Ă risque dâĂ©puisement professionnel et sont plus nĂ©gatifs quant au soutien social dont ils pensent bĂ©nĂ©ficier. De mĂȘme les enseignants de classe rĂ©guliĂšre favorables Ă lâinclusion dâĂ©lĂšves ayant des besoins particuliers sont plus Ă risque dâĂ©puisement et sont moins satisfaits du soutien reçu que des enseignants qui sont favorables Ă leur exclusion. La prise en charge dâĂ©lĂšves ayant des besoins particuliers semble donc ĂȘtre un facteur de risque dâĂ©puisement et lâexclusion peut alors constituer un mĂ©canisme de dĂ©fense permettant Ă lâenseignante de se protĂ©ger mais avec le risque de prĂ©tĂ©riter les Ă©lĂšves en difficultĂ©. Lâenjeu est alors de dĂ©velopper des facteurs de protection compensant lâexposition des enseignants Ă lâĂ©puisement professionnel. Le soutien social, câest-Ă -dire lâaide que lâenseignante peut recevoir dans des situations professionnelles complexes est un facteur de protection essentiel. Cependant, il convient de mieux lâinvestiguer quant Ă ses applications et ses enjeux dans le but de viser une politique plus inclusive qui favorise les Ă©lĂšves sans pour autant mettre les enseignants en danger
Ăconomie politique internationale de l'environnement global : Kyoto est-il condamnĂ© ?
Ce texte s'interroge sur la stabilitĂ© du rĂ©gime climatique de Rio-Kyoto. Il vise Ă fournir une rĂ©ponse Ă la question de substance qui est posĂ©e : la dĂ©fection des USA n'ayant manifestement pas empĂȘchĂ© la crĂ©ation du rĂ©gime international, peut-elle nĂ©anmoins le dĂ©stabiliser Ă court ou moyen terme ? Mais il vise aussi, dans une perspective d'Economie Politique Internationale, Ă rĂ©pondre Ă la question suivante : la nĂ©gociation climat augure-t-elle de la fin de l'Ăąge rĂ©aliste dans les relations internationales ?changement climatique;protocole de Kyoto;rĂ©gime climatique; nĂ©gociation
Early visual evoked potentials are modulated by eye position in humans induced by whole body rotations
BACKGROUND: To reach and grasp an object in space on the basis of its image cast on the retina requires different coordinate transformations that take into account gaze and limb positioning. Eye position in the orbit influences the image's conversion from retinotopic (eye-centered) coordinates to an egocentric frame necessary for guiding action. Neuroimaging studies have revealed eye position-dependent activity in extrastriate visual, parietal and frontal areas that is along the visuo-motor pathway. At the earliest vision stage, the role of the primary visual area (V1) in this process remains unclear. We used an experimental design based on pattern-onset visual evoked potentials (VEP) recordings to study the effect of eye position on V1 activity in humans. RESULTS: We showed that the amplitude of the initial C1 component of VEP, acknowledged to originate in V1, was modulated by the eye position. We also established that putative spontaneous small saccades related to eccentric fixation, as well as retinal disparity cannot explain the effects of changing C1 amplitude of VEP in the present study. CONCLUSIONS: The present modulation of the early component of VEP suggests an eye position-dependent activity of the human primary visual area. Our findings also evidence that cortical processes combine information about the position of the stimulus on the retinae with information about the location of the eyes in their orbit as early as the stage of primary visual area
Eye eccentricity modifies the perception of whole-body rotation
International audienceIn order to explore the effect of gaze orientation on whole-body rotation perception, ten healthy participants were rotated in the dark while fixating on a visual target located either straight ahead or 15 degrees to the right. A vestibular-memory contingent saccade paradigm was used to estimate the rotation perception. The results attest to the participants' ability to accurately perceive their rotation, based solely on the intrinsic inputs (somesthetic and mainly vestibular), since the correlation between the imposed body rotation and the saccade amplitude was significant and positive. However, the rotation perception was less accurate and of lesser magnitude when the gaze was deviated in the opposite direction to the rotation than when it was either straight ahead or deviated in the direction of the rotation. This can be interpreted as the perceptual equivalent of Alexander's law
Sperm whale presence observed using passive acoustic monitoring from gliders of opportunity
Habitat use by the endangered Mediterranean sperm whale subpopulation remains poorly understood, especially in winter. The sustained presence of oceanographic autonomous underwater vehicles in the area presents an opportunity to improve observation effort, enabling collection of valuable sperm whale distribution data, which may be crucial to their conservation. Passive acoustic monitoring loggers were deployed on vertically profiling oceanographic gliders surveying the north-western Mediterranean Sea during winter 2012-2013 and June 2014. Sperm whale echolocation 'usual click' trains, characteristic of foraging activity, were detected and classified from the recordings, providing information about the presence of sperm whales along the glider tracks. Widespread presence of sperm whales in the north-western Mediterranean Sea was confirmed. Winter observations suggest different foraging strategies between the Ligurian Sea, where mobile and scattered individuals forage at all times of day, and the Gulf of Lion, where larger aggregations target intense oceanographic features in the open ocean such as fronts and mixing events, with reduced acoustic presence at dawn. This study demonstrates the ability to successfully observe sperm whale behaviour from passive acoustic monitoring gliders. We identified possible mission design changes to optimize data collected from passive acoustic monitoring glider surveys and significantly improve sperm whale population monitoring and habitat use
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