cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Investigating the genetic basis of adaptation in a climate change sensitive species : the American pika
Creators: name: Henry, Philippe O.
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2012

description: When faced with rapidly changing environmental onditions, wildlife species are left to adapt in situ, disperse or disappear. While it is commonly accepted that environmental changes are important drivers in shaping the evolutionary paths of organisms, the functional mechanisms of adaptations to changing environments are not fully understood. With the present thesis, I begin to investigate the relative importance of stochastic (genetic drift) versus deterministic (natural selection) processes in shaping genetic variation in the American pika (Ochotona princeps; Richardson, 1828). I begin by describing a novel and noninvasive sampling technique to collect hair from American pikas (Chapter 2). In that chapter, I test different DNA isolation techniques and identify the most promising approach, which was then used to extract DNA from a large number of samples distributed along three elevation gradients in the central Coast Mountains of British Columbia. In Chapter 3, I use a conservation genetic approach and microsatellite data to assess population genetic structure and gene flow among populations. In this chapter I found my populations to be genetically impoverished in comparison to populations from the centre of their range. The BC populations also exhibited limited gene flow, even among geographically proximate sites. Additionally, correlative analyses suggested that warm summer temperature limit pika dispersal across low elevation valley bottoms. In Chapter 4, I use Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (AFLP)-based genomic scans to shed light on the genetic basis of adaptation in this system. Based on a set of independent analyses including population genomic and landscape genomic approaches, I revealed that a small proportion (1.5%) of the genome displays evidence of natural selection. These outlier loci were found to differ among each elevation transect. Additionally, some loci that were under selection were also significantly associated with environmental variables such as mean annual precipitation and summer mean maximum temperature. This highlights the importance of these environmental variables in driving evolutionary adaptation in American pikas. Overall, the work presented here suggests that American pikas from the central Coast Mountains of BC will rely on local adaptations or plasticity in situ rather than range shifts to cope with changing climates.
An introduction to many worlds in quantum computation
Creators: name: Horsman, Dominic
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2008
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The interpretation of quantum mechanics is an area of increasing interest to many working physicists. In particular, interest has come from those involved in quantum computing and information theory, as there has always been a strong foundational element in this field. This paper introduces one interpretation of quantum mechanics, a modern `many-worlds' theory, from the perspective of quantum computation. Reasons for seeking to interpret quantum mechanics are discussed, then the specific `neo-Everettian' theory is introduced and its claim as the best available interpretation defended. The main objections to the interpretation, including the so-called ``problem of probability'' are shown to fail. The local nature of the interpretation is demonstrated, and the implications of this both for the interpretation and for quantum mechanics more generally are discussed. Finally, the consequences of the theory for quantum computation are investigated, and common objections to using many worlds to describe quantum computing are answered. We find that using this particular many-worlds theory as a physical foundation for quantum computation gives several distinct advantages over other interpretations, and over not interpreting quantum theory at all.
description: Published version. This supercedes quant-ph/0210204. Comments welcome
title: Malignant External Otitis:pearls and pitfalls
Creators: name: Soussi, Ines
Publisher: name: European Congress of Radiology
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Observational
subject: Retrospective
subject: Abscess
subject: Complications
subject: MR
subject: CT
subject: Ear / Nose / Throat
subject: Head and Neck
subject: Performed at one institution

description: Learning objectives Background Findings and procedure details Conclusion Personal information and conflict of interest References
description: Learning objectives: - Radiologic diagnosis CT/MRI of external necrotizing otitis before instauring treatment. - To assess the extension of inflamatory process to surrounding soft tissues. - To highlight the mainstey role of technical imaging CT+MRI in complications...
Understanding Theoretically The Impact of Reporting of Disease Cases in Epidemiology
Creators: name: Rao, Arni S. R. Srinivasa
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Quantitative Methods (q-bio.QM)
subject: Applications (stat.AP)
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences
subject: 92D30, 26.70

description: In conducting preliminary analysis during an epidemic, data on reported disease cases offer key information in guiding the direction to the in-depth analysis. Models for growth and transmission dynamics are heavily dependent on preliminary analysis results. When a particular disease case is reported more than once or alternatively is never reported or detected in the population, then in such a situation, there is a possibility of existence of multiple reporting or under reporting in the population. In this work, a theoretical approach for studying reporting error in epidemiology is explored. The upper bound for the error that arises due to multiple reporting is higher than that which arises due to under reporting. Numerical examples are provided to support the arguments. This article mainly treats reporting error as deterministic and one can explore a stochastic model for the same.
description: 21 pages, 2 figures. To appear in Journal of Theoretical Biology (Elsevier)
The analysis of factors, barriers and conditions that affect the attractiveness of mining investment in Poland - own research
Creators: name: Kulczycka, Joanna
name: Hałasik, Katarzyna
name: Nowaczek, Agnieszka
name: Wirth, Herbert
name: Szkop, Rafał
Publisher: name: Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Geoengineering, Mining and Geology
Year: 2017
Subjects: investment attractiveness, mining sector, mining investment

description: Mining Science
title: Imaging of the male breast: what a radiologist needs to know
Creators: name: Schiettecatte, Ann
Publisher: name: European Congress of Radiology
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Not applicable
subject: Not applicable
subject: Cancer
subject: Education
subject: Ultrasound
subject: Mammography
subject: Breast

description: Learning objectives Background Findings and procedure details Conclusion Personal information and conflict of interest References
description: Learning objectives: 1. To outline the normal anatomy of the male breast. 2. To give a description of benign and malignant...
A Bad Week for China and the U.S.
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2010
Subjects: International relations
Asians

description: This has been a very interesting week or so for U.S. China relations. During this time, internet censorship, the Dalai Lama, Iran, and arms sales to Taiwan have been at the center of the interaction between the two countries. It seems the relationship has come quite a distance since the fall when President Obama traveled to Asia and outlined the import of China to the U.S.
title: Thinking beyond tumor and metastases: tips and pitfalls to master unusual CT findings in cancer patients
Creators: name: Viteri Jusué, Ainhoa
Publisher: name: European Congress of Radiology
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Oncologic Imaging
subject: Oncology
subject: CT
subject: Diagnostic procedure
subject: Education
subject: Staging
subject: Cancer
subject: Drugs / Reactions
subject: Education and training
subject: Not applicable

description: Learning objectives Background Findings and procedure details Conclusion Personal information and conflict of interest References
description: Learning objectives: To review unusual CT findings in cancer patients that are not tumor-related. To provide tips that help to correctly interpret...
A Look at VoIP Vulnerabilities
Creators: name: Keromytis, Angelos D.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2010
Subjects: Computer science

description: Voice over IP (VoIP) and Internet Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) technologies offer higher flexibility than traditional telephony infrastructures and the potential for lower cost through equipment consolidation and new business models. In this article, I examine the current state of affairs on VoIP/IMS security through a survey of all the 221 known/disclosed security vulnerabilities in the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) database and in IETF RFCs/drafts. My key finding is that the higher complexity of VoIP/IMS systems leads to a variety of attack vectors, many of them caused by unforeseen and unexpected component interactions. A second finding is that what people seem to worry about in VoIP (traffic interception and impersonation) bears no resemblance to the distribution of vulnerabilities actually disclosed. The article concludes with some practical suggestions for securing VoIP systems.
Eastern Europe and the Obama Administration
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2009
Subjects: International relations
East Europeans

description: From Tallinn to Tbilisi, one of the most common criticisms of the Obama administration is that the U.S. is abandoning its new allies to Russia, and underestimating the threat Russia poses to these countries. This notion persists in spite of the efforts made by the current administration and Vice President Biden who has become, in the words of Nicholas Kulish, the “reassurer-in-chief,” to restate  American support for these countries.
A thermodynamically consistent quasi-particle model without temperature-dependent infinity of the vacuum zero point energy
Creators: name: Cao, Jing
name: Jiang, Yu
name: Sun, Wei-min
name: Zong, Hong-shi
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this paper, an improved quasi-particle model is presented. Unlike the previous approach of establishing quasi-particle model, we introduce a classical background field (it is allowed to depend on the temperature) to deal with the infinity of thermal vacuum energy which exists in previous quasi-particle models. After taking into account the effect of this classical background field, the partition function of quasi-particle system can be made well-defined. Based on this and following the standard ensemble theory, we construct a thermodynamically consistent quasi-particle model without the need of any reformulation of statistical mechanics or thermodynamical consistency relation. As an application of our model, we employ it to the case of (2+1) flavor QGP at zero chemical potential and finite temperature and obtain a good fit to the recent lattice simulation results of S. Borsanyi $et$ $al$. A comparison of the result of our model with early calculations using other models is also presented. It is shown that our method is general and can be generalized to the case where the effective mass depends not only on the temperature but also on the chemical potential.
description: 7 pages, 4 figures
Obama and the NRA's Waning Influence
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: Today, President Obama released a broad and multifaceted plan to address issues of gun safety. This proposal all but ensures that the fight for stronger gun safety regulations is likely to be one of the major political stories of 2013. Over the coming weeks and months, the president's proposals will be debated extensively in congress, the media and the blogosphere. Moreover, it is likely that the passage of any new gun laws will be met by legal challenges later.
Hybrid hypercomputing: towards a unification of quantum and classical computation
Creators: name: Horsman, Dominic
name: Munro, William J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2009
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We investigate the computational power and unified resource use of hybrid quantum-classical computations, such as teleportation and measurement-based computing. We introduce a physically causal and local graphical calculus for quantum information theory, which enables high-level intuitive reasoning about quantum information processes. The graphical calculus defines a local information flow in a computation which satisfies conditions for physical causality. We show how quantum and classical processing units can now be formally integrated, and give an analysis of the joint resources used in a typical measurement-based computation. Finally, we discuss how this picture may be used to give a high-level unified model for hybrid quantum computing.
description: To be presented at the 8th International Conference on Unconventional Computing, 2009
Reduce, reuse, recycle, for robust cluster state generation
Creators: name: Horsman, Dominic
name: Brown, Katherine L.
name: Munro, William J.
name: Kendon, Vivien M.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2010
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Efficient generation of cluster states is crucial for engineering large-scale measurement-based quantum computers. Hybrid matter-optical systems offer a robust, scalable path to this goal. Such systems have an ancilla which acts as a bus connecting the qubits. We show that by generating smaller cluster "Lego bricks", reusing one ancilla per brick, the cluster can be produced with maximal efficiency, requiring fewer than half the operations compared with no bus reuse. By reducing the time required to prepare sections of the cluster, bus reuse more than doubles the size of the computational workspace that can be used before decoherence effects dominate. A row of buses in parallel provides fully scalable cluster state generation requiring only 20 CPhase gates per bus use.
description: 4 pages, 3 figures; v2 significant update, results improved, typos and references fixed; v3 minor update in response to referee comments, figure added; v4 now 5.5 pages 3 figures, added section headings and more references; v5 minor corrections, updated references, close to publishers version; v6 correct formatting error and add journal reference
Halacaropsis hirsuta
Creators: name: Durucan, Furkan
name: Paz, Juan Carlos De La
name: Hernández-Teixidor, David
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2023
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Trombidiformes
Halacaridae
Halacaropsis
Halacaropsis hirsuta

description: Halacaropsis hirsuta (Trouessart, 1889)
 Material examined
 35 females, 7 males (FDHAL-21/8), 8 deutonymphs (FDHAL-21/9), 4 protonymphs (FDHAL-21/10), El Pris (Jania sp. and Amphiora sp., 2 m); 14 females, 5 males, one larva (FDHAL-21/11), La Barranquera (Corallina ferreyrae, Palisada perforata, mediolittoral zone).
 Diagnosis
The length of females was 650–740 µm, for males 620–660 µm, for deutonymphs 560–580 µm, for protonymphs 410–470 µm and for the larva 300–310 µm long. Dorsal and ventral plates large. AD and OC with pair of gland pores. AD has a frontal spine anteriorly. Idiosoma have 5 pairs of idiosomatic setae on adult females and males. This species has the ds-1 on AD. Enlarged setae from ds-2, ds-3 and ds-4 situated in striated integument. It has ds-5 on PD. Adanal setae on anal plate. PE with one dorsal and three ventral setae. Leg I thickened and armoured with heavy spiniform setae and wider than the following legs in all stages (Figs. 4A, C–E). GA with 21 pairs of pgs and 5 pairs of sgs. Spermatopositor large, extending to anterior margin of GA (Fig. 10D).
 Remarks
This species is very common in the Mediterranean Sea (Croatia, Egypt, France, Italy, Spain, Strait of Gibraltar and Türkiye) (Durucan 2020, 2021) and North Atlantic waters (Bartsch 2009). Specimens were found among macroalgae and sand habitats. At the two Tenerife localities, we found more than 70 individuals including all life-stages. The morphological characteristics, habitat preferences and body sizes of the specimens reported here fit with previous records by Viets (1940) and Durucan (2019a).
description: Published as part of Durucan, Furkan, Paz, Juan Carlos De La & Hernández-Teixidor, David, 2023, Halacaridae (Acari) from Tenerife (Canary Islands), pp. 1-19 in Persian Journal of Acarology 12 (1) on pages 10-11, DOI: 10.22073/pja.v12i1.76823, http://zenodo.org/record/10267938
Recursive quantum repeater networks
Creators: name: Van Meter, Rodney
name: Touch, Joe
name: Horsman, Dominic
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Internet-scale quantum repeater networks will be heterogeneous in physical technology, repeater functionality, and management. The classical control necessary to use the network will therefore face similar issues as Internet data transmission. Many scalability and management problems that arose during the development of the Internet might have been solved in a more uniform fashion, improving flexibility and reducing redundant engineering effort. Quantum repeater network development is currently at the stage where we risk similar duplication when separate systems are combined. We propose a unifying framework that can be used with all existing repeater designs. We introduce the notion of a Quantum Recursive Network Architecture, developed from the emerging classical concept of 'recursive networks', extending recursive mechanisms from a focus on data forwarding to a more general distributed computing request framework. Recursion abstracts independent transit networks as single relay nodes, unifies software layering, and virtualizes the addresses of resources to improve information hiding and resource management. Our architecture is useful for building arbitrary distributed states, including fundamental distributed states such as Bell pairs and GHZ, W, and cluster states.
description: 14 pages
First passages in bounded domains: When is the mean first passage time meaningful?
Creators: name: Mattos, Thiago G.
name: Mejía-Monasterio, Carlos
name: Metzler, Ralf
name: Oshanin, Gleb S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We study the first passage statistics to adsorbing boundaries of a Brownian motion in bounded two-dimensional domains of different shapes and configurations of the adsorbing and reflecting boundaries. From extensive numerical analysis we obtain the probability P(ω) distribution of the random variable ω=τ_1/(τ_1+τ_2), which is a measure for how similar the first passage times τ_1 and τ_2 are of two independent realisations of a Brownian walk starting at the same location. We construct a chart for each domain, determining whether P(ω) represents a unimodal, bell-shaped form, or a bimodal, M-shaped behaviour. While in the former case the mean first passage time (MFPT) is a valid characteristic of the first passage behaviour, in the latter case it is an insufficient measure for the process. Strikingly we find a distinct turnover between the two modes of P(ω), characteristic for the domain shape and the respective location of absorbing and reflective boundaries. Our results demonstrate that large fluctuations of the first passage times may occur frequently in two-dimensional domains, rendering quite vague the general use of the MFPT as a robust measure of the actual behaviour even in bounded domains, in which all moments of the first passage distribution exist.
description: 9 pages, 6 figures
Why Hillary Clinton Might Want to Run
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has not yet determined whether not she will run for president in 2016. Clinton has clearly wanted to be president for years, is well qualified for the position and is currently one of the most popular politicians in the country. However, she also may be ready for a change after spending the last 20 years in the public spotlight. Additionally, questions about her health could come up during the campaign. While it cannot yet be known if Clinton will seek her party's nomination in 2016, it is reasonably clear that if she runs, she will be the strong favorite for the Democratic nomination and have a good chance of beating any Republican opponent in the general election.
Photon production from the vacuum close to the super-radiant transition: When Casimir meets Kibble-Zurek
Creators: name: Vacanti, Giovanni
name: Pugnetti, Stefano
name: Didier, Nicolas
name: Paternostro, Mauro
name: Palma, G. Massimo
name: Fazio, Rosario
name: Vedral, Vlatko
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The dynamical Casimir effect (DCE) predicts the generation of photons from the vacuum due to the parametric amplification of the quantum fluctuation of an electromagnetic field\cite{casimir1,casimir2}. The verification of such effect is still elusive in optical systems due to the very demanding requirements of its experimental implementation. This typically requires very fast changes of the boundary conditions of the problem, such as the high-frequency driving of the positions of the mirrors of a cavity accommodating the field. Here, we show that an ensemble of two-level atoms collectively coupled to the electromagnetic field of a cavity (thus embodying the quantum Dicke model\cite{dicke}), driven at low frequencies and close to a quantum phase transition, stimulates the production of photons from the vacuum. This paves the way to an effective simulation of the DCE through a mechanism that has recently found an outstanding experimental demonstration\cite{esslinger}. The spectral properties of the emitted radiation reflect the critical nature of the system and allow us to link the detection of DCE to the Kibble-Zurek mechanism for the production of defects when crossing a continuous phase transition\cite{KZ1,KZ2}. We illustrate the features of our proposal by addressing a simple cavity quantum-electrodynamics (cQED) setting of immediate experimental realisation.
description: 4+1 pages, major changes in the second part of the paper. To appear in Physical Review Letters
Next to leading order non Fermi liquid corrections to the neutrino emissivity and cooling of the neutron star
Creators: name: Adhya, Souvik Priyam
name: Roy, Pradip K.
name: Dutt-Mazumder, Abhee K.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena (astro-ph.HE)
subject: Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this work we derive the expressions of the neutrino mean free path(MFP) and emissivity with non Fermi liquid corrections up to next to leading order(NLO) in degenerate quark matter. The calculation has been performed both for the absorption and scattering processes. Subsequently the role of these NLO corrections on the cooling of the neutron star has been demonstrated. The cooling curve shows moderate enhancement compared to the leading order(LO) non-Fermi liquid result. Although the overall correction to the MFP and emissivity are larger compared to the free Fermi gas, the cooling behavior does not alter significantly.
description: 8 pages, 8 figures, references added, matches published version
Fighting Over Blame in the Republican Party
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: In the last few weeks, the buzz about the internal battles inside the Republican Party has been growing. The Roveites hate the Libertarians, the Libertarians hate the mainstream Republicans, the mainstream Republicans hate the Tea Partiers and everybody hates President Obama. It feels more like a Tom Lehrer song than the plight of a serious political party facing a serious struggle.
title: Contrast induced nephropathy: To give or not to give?
Creators: name: Tapp, Martin
Publisher: name: European Congress of Radiology
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Emergency Imaging
subject: Contrast agents
subject: CT
subject: Contrast agent-intravenous
subject: Toxicity
subject: Not applicable

description: Learning objectives Background Findings and procedure details Conclusion Personal information and conflict of interest References
description: Learning objectives: This poster aims to give the reader an overview of the literature related to iodinated contrast media and the risk of contrast induced nephropathy. This poster gives the knowledge and confidence to know which patients can safety be administered...
The Filibuster and Electoral College Reform Game
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: In the week following President Obama's second inauguration, two issues which address institutional issues in U.S. politics have drawn a significant amount of attention as well as several proposals for reform. These two issues are, of course, the senate filibuster and the electoral college. At first glance these are clearly partisan, with Democrats seeking to change or abolish the senate filibuster to make it easier for President Obama to pass various bills, while Republicans are seeking to change the electoral college to overcome their perceived inability to win under the current rules.
Layer by layer generation of cluster states
Creators: name: Brown, Katherine L.
name: Horsman, Dominic
name: Kendon, Viv
name: Munro, William J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Cluster states can be used to perform measurement-based quantum computation. The cluster state is a useful resource, because once it has been generated only local operations and measurements are needed to perform universal quantum computation. In this paper, we explore techniques for quickly and deterministically building a cluster state. In particular we consider generating cluster states on a qubus quantum computer, a computational architecture which uses a continuous variable ancilla to generate interactions between qubits. We explore several techniques for building the cluster, with the number of operations required depending on whether we allow the ability to destroy previously created controlled-phase links between qubits. In the case where we can not destroy these links, we show how to create an n x m cluster using just 3nm -2n -3m/2 + 3 operations. This gives more than a factor of 2 saving over a naive method. Further savings can be obtained if we include the ability to destroy links, in which case we only need (8nm-4n-4m-8)/3 operations. Unfortunately the latter scheme is more complicated so choosing the correct order to interact the qubits is considerably more difficult. A half way scheme, that keeps a modular generation but saves additional operations over never destroying links requires only 3nm-2n-2m+4 operations. The first scheme and the last scheme are the most practical for building a cluster state because they split up the generation into the repetition of simple sections.
description: 16 pages, 11 figures
Requirements for Scalable Access Control and Security Management Architectures
Creators: name: Keromytis, Angelos D.
name: Smith, Jonathan M.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2007
Subjects: Computer science

description: Maximizing local autonomy by delegating functionality to end nodes when possible (the end-to-end design principle) has led to a scalable Internet. Scalability and the capacity for distributed control have unfortunately not extended well to resource access-control policies and mechanisms. Yet management of security is becoming an increasingly challenging problem in no small part due to scaling up of measures such as number of users, protocols, applications, network elements, topological constraints, and functionality expectations. In this article, we discuss scalability challenges for traditional access-control mechanisms at the architectural level and present a set of fundamental requirements for authorization services in large-scale networks. We show why existing mechanisms fail to meet these requirements and investigate the current design options for a scalable access-control architecture. We argue that the key design options to achieve scalability are the choice of the representation of access control policy, the distribution mechanism for policy, and the choice of the access-rights revocation scheme. Although these ideas have been considered in the past, current access-control systems in use continue to use simpler but restrictive architectural models. With this article, we hope to influence the design of future access-control systems towards more decentralized and scalable mechanisms.
Metal waveguides for multi-axial light guiding at nanometer scales
Creators: name: Maqsood, Muhammad Waqas
Publisher: name: University of British Columbia
Year: 2012

description: A basic component of most optical systems is an optical waveguide. There has been an increased interest in nanofabricated optical waveguides that incorporate metal layers due to their fabrication compatibility with existing complimentary-metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) processes and, their ability to sustain sub-wavelength confined electromagnetic modes. In this work, we have developed analytical techniques for designing metal waveguides that achieve tailored optical functionalities. The developed techniques are applied in two design examples which address contemporary problems related to waveguiding at sub-wavelength and nanometer scales.In the first example, we apply our analytical technique to optimize a bi-axial waveguide that can bend light at 90 degree, constructed from two uni-axial metal waveguides. The optimization procedure consists of mapping out wavevector values of the electromagnetic modes sustained by the two waveguides over the operational frequency range. The constituent materials and geometry of the waveguides are selected such that each waveguide sustains only one low-loss mode. The geometry of each of the waveguides is tailored in a way that the in-plane wavevector components for both waveguide modes are matched. The wavevector matching results in efficient coupling between the two modes, yielding predicted bending efficiencies over 90%. In the second example, we apply our analytical technique to optimize a bi-axial waveguide structure for coupling free-space light into surface plasmon polaritons (SPP), electromagnetic excitations bounded to the surface of a metal. We study the simple geometry consisting of a slit in a metal film, filled and covered with a dielectric. We break the configuration down into two uni-axial waveguide components. Using our approach, we optimize the materials and geometry of the slit so that wavevector matching is achieved between the light emanating from the slit and the adjacent SPP modes, yielding coupling efficiency over 68%.
Stochastic optimization by message passing
Creators: name: Altarelli, Fabrizio
name: Braunstein, Alfredo
name: Ramezanpour, Abolfazl
name: Zecchina, Riccardo
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Statistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)
subject: Distributed, Parallel, and Cluster Computing (cs.DC)
subject: Data Structures and Algorithms (cs.DS)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: Most optimization problems in applied sciences realistically involve uncertainty in the parameters defining the cost function, of which only statistical information is known beforehand. In a recent work we introduced a message passing algorithm based on the cavity method of statistical physics to solve the two-stage matching problem with independently distributed stochastic parameters. In this paper we provide an in-depth explanation of the general method and caveats, show the details of the derivation and resulting algorithm for the matching problem and apply it to a stochastic version of the independent set problem, which is a computationally hard and relevant problem in communication networks. We compare the results with some greedy algorithms and briefly discuss the extension to more complicated stochastic multi-stage problems.
description: 31 pages, 8 figures
Wearable technology approach to determining exercise fidelity in athletes during a neuromuscular training warm-up program
Creators: name: Chin, Mathieu
name: Pasanen, Kati
name: Emery, Carolyn A.
name: Benson, Lauren C.
Publisher: name: Human Performance Lab
Year: 2019
Subjects: Wearable Devices
Injury Prevention
Epidemiology
Biomechanics
Neuromuscular Training
Sports

description: Introduction: Basketball is one of the most popular sports in North America, but there is a high incidence of lower extremity injuries among youth basketball players. Participation in neuromuscular training (NMT) warm-up programs can reduce injury risk by 29% with lower injury rates reported for teams with high adherence to the NMT program. The use of wearable technology will allow us to more easily and efficiently quantify the movements of athletes during these warm-up programs to potential determine the effects of exercise fidelity. Thus, this study looks to quantify the movements of youth basketball players in an NMT warm-up program. Methods 27 male and female basketball players (ages 14-18) completed the NMT warm-up exercises prior to a practice. A Shimmer3 inertial measurement unit (Shimmer3 GSR+®, Shimmer Inc., Dublin, IE) was worn on the lower back, with concurrent video recording. Results Analysis of the “Side Plank” showed an 8.01% difference between Side 1 (88.15%) and Side 2 (96.16%) of Player 1, whereas Player 2 had a 32.42% difference between Side 1 (86.43%) and Side 2 (54.01%). The “One Legged Jump Over the Line” showed that Player 1 had a 17.12m/s2 difference between the forward and backward accelerations of Leg 1, with the difference being 0.80m/s2 in Leg 2. Player 2 had a difference of 0.08m/s2 and 2.62m/s2 for legs 1 and 2, respectively. Conclusions Preliminary results indicated that the acceleration of the Shimmer3 devices are sensitive enough to differentiate movements amongst players when performing exercises in the NMT warm-up program. Side-to-side differences were apparent amongst athletes during the “Side Plank” and the “Single Leg Jump Over the Line” exercise. Further analysis is currently in progress for other exercises in the warm-up program, as well as video analysis of the same sessions to determine exercise fidelity and its effects on injury prevention.
Surface code quantum computing by lattice surgery
Creators: name: Horsman, Dominic
name: Fowler, Austin G.
name: Devitt, Simon
name: Van Meter, Rodney
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In recent years, surface codes have become a leading method for quantum error correction in theoretical large scale computational and communications architecture designs. Their comparatively high fault-tolerant thresholds and their natural 2-dimensional nearest neighbour (2DNN) structure make them an obvious choice for large scale designs in experimentally realistic systems. While fundamentally based on the toric code of Kitaev, there are many variants, two of which are the planar- and defect- based codes. Planar codes require fewer qubits to implement (for the same strength of error correction), but are restricted to encoding a single qubit of information. Interactions between encoded qubits are achieved via transversal operations, thus destroying the inherent 2DNN nature of the code. In this paper we introduce a new technique enabling the coupling of two planar codes without transversal operations, maintaining the 2DNN of the encoded computer. Our lattice surgery technique comprises splitting and merging planar code surfaces, and enables us to perform universal quantum computation (including magic state injection) while removing the need for braided logic in a strictly 2DNN design, and hence reduces the overall qubit resources for logic operations. Those resources are further reduced by the use of a rotated lattice for the planar encoding. We show how lattice surgery allows us to distribute encoded GHZ states in a more direct (and overhead friendly) manner, and how a demonstration of an encoded CNOT between two distance 3 logical states is possible with 53 physical qubits, half of that required in any other known construction in 2D.
description: Published version. 29 pages, 18 figures
Use of slope failures inventory and climatic data for landslide susceptibility, vulnerability, and risk mapping in souk Ahras region
Creators: name: Abdelouahad, El Mekki
name: Hadji, Riheb
name: Fehdi, Chemseddine
Publisher: name: Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Geoengineering, Mining and Geology
Year: 2017
Subjects: risk, GIS, vulnerability, Landslide susceptibility, Slope failures

description: Mining Science
Experimental constraint on the $ρ-$ meson form factors in the time--like region
Creators: name: Dbeyssi, A.
name: Tomasi-Gustafsson, E.
name: Gakh, G. I.
name: Adamuscin, C.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: Nuclear Theory (nucl-th)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The annihilation reaction $e^++e^-\rightarrow \bar ρ+ρ$ is considered. The constraint on time-like $ρ$-meson form factors from the measurement done by the BaBar collaboration at $\sqrt{s}=10.5$ GeV is analyzed.
description: 10 pages 3 figures
title: Diagnostic approach in hepatic lymphoma: radiological imaging findings and literature review
Creators: name: Porta, Marco
Publisher: name: European Congress of Radiology
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Not applicable
subject: Not applicable
subject: Lymphoma
subject: Haematologic diseases
subject: Comparative studies
subject: PET-CT
subject: MR
subject: CT
subject: Liver
subject: Haematologic
subject: Gastrointestinal tract
subject: Abdominal Viscera

description: Learning objectives Background Findings and procedure details Conclusion Personal information and conflict of interest References
description: Learning objectives: Primary hepatic lymphoma (PHL) and secondary hepatic lymphoma (SHL) represent respectively 0.016% and up to 50% of all non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas, while Hodgkin disease is extremely rare as PHL. Through a PubMed search we found several reviews...
Environmental justice dialogues and the struggle for human dignity in the deciduous forest of Bangladesh
Creators: name: Ahmed, Farid
name: Low, Nicholas P.
Publisher: name: Mountain Scholar
Year: 2017
Subjects: sustainable development
environmental justice
capabilities and conflicts
human dignity
Eco-Park Movement
right to life
Madhupur

description: Presented at the Environmental justice in the Anthropocene symposium held on April 24-25, 2017 at the Lory Student Center, Colorado State University, Fort Collins Colorado. This symposium aims to bring together academics (faculty and graduate students), independent researchers, community and movement activists, and regulatory and policy practitioners from across disciplines, research areas, perspectives, and different countries. Our overarching goal is to build on several decades of EJ research and practice to address the seemingly intractable environmental and ecological problems of this unfolding era. How can we explore EJ amongst humans and between nature and humans, within and across generations, in an age when humans dominate the landscape? How can we better understand collective human dominance without obscuring continuing power differentials and inequities within and between human societies? What institutional and governance innovations can we adopt to address existing challenges and to promote just transitions and futures?
description: The paper presents environmental justice dialogues in the Madhupur Garo community in Bangladesh. The Garo community, which identifies itself as adivasi meaning 'indigenous', has occupied the deciduous forest of Madhupur in Bangladesh for centuries, developing a symbiotic relationship with nature. An environmental justice movement, called the "Eco-park Movement" has long been protesting a government development plan to establishing an "eco-park'' in the Madhupur deciduous forest. The eco-park plan has interfered with the Garo's right to life and livelihood as well as threatening them with possible eviction from their traditional land. From their protest movement, the concept of environmental justice has acquired a meaning with emphasis on human dignity. The Garo community not only defines environmental injustice as a lack of access to the decision-making process, information and judiciary but includes other elements: obstruction to fair access to environmental resources for livelihood, threat to the economy, health, trade, education, security, privacy and right to life. Finally, the Garo connect all these environmental human rights issues with rights to self-determination and human dignity.
Conservatives Can Learn From Rob Portman
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2013
Subjects: subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: Senator Rob Portman's (R-OH) decision to support marriage equality highlights the absurdity of his previous position. Portman, who was a social conservative but whose positions have evolved since learning a few years ago that his son is gay, clearly believes that his love for his son is more important than holding on to bigoted views. This is obviously a wise and laudable decision, but it also raises questions about his previously bigoted position.
Optimising the Solovay-Kitaev algorithm
Creators: name: Trung, Pham Tien
name: Van Meter, Rodney
name: Horsman, Dominic
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2012
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The Solovay-Kitaev algorithm is the standard method used for approximating arbitrary single-qubit gates for fault-tolerant quantum computation. In this paper we introduce a technique called "search space expansion", which modifies the initial stage of the Solovay-Kitaev algorithm, increasing the length of the possible approximating sequences but without requiring an exhaustive search over all possible sequences. We show that our technique, combined with a GNAT geometric tree search outputs gate sequences that are almost an order of magnitude smaller for the same level of accuracy. This therefore significantly reduces the error correction requirements for quantum algorithms on encoded fault-tolerant hardware.
description: 9 pages
title: Patterns of Infarction in diffuse anoxic injury
Creators: name: Doran, Simon
Publisher: name: European Congress of Radiology
Year: 2020
Subjects: subject: Performed at one institution
subject: Not applicable
subject: Ischaemia / Infarction
subject: Diagnostic procedure
subject: MR
subject: CT
subject: Neuroradiology brain
subject: Emergency
subject: Neuro

description: Learning objectives Background Findings and procedure details Conclusion Personal information and conflict of interest References
description: Learning objectives: Identify the patterns of infarction in diffuse anoxic brain injury Knowledge of the impact of MRI timing on the utility of various sequences Relationship between imaging pattern observed and the clinical outcome for patients who are diagnosed with...
Romney's Work Beginning to Pay Off
Creators: name: Mitchell, Lincoln A.
Publisher: name: Columbia University
Year: 2011
Subjects: subject: Political science
subject: FOS: Political science

description: Exploration of Mitt Romney’s progress to raise money and become a front-runner of the Republican party during the 2012 Presidential election. Compares Romney to other potential candidates: Gingrich, Huckabee, Bachmann, etc. and his better status as a presidential candidate while the others are just…unelectable.
Robo-Advisory and Decision Inertia - Experimental Studies of Human Behaviour in Economic Decision-Making
Creators: name: Jung, Dominik
Publisher: name: Karlsruhe
Year: 2019
Subjects: Robo-Advisors
Robo-Advisory
Decision-Inertia
Choice Architecture
Behavioral Economics

description: Investing in the stock market is a complicated and risky undertaking for private households. In particular, private investors face numerous decisions: for instance, whether to invest in stocks
or bonds, buy passively or actively managed investment products, or try something new like Bitcoin. They must decide where they can get independent financial advice, and whether this advice is trustworthy.

As a consequence, information systems researchers design and build financial decision support systems. Robo-advisors are such decision support systems aiming to provide independent advice, and support private households in investment decisions and wealth management. This thesis evaluates robo-advisors, their design and use and thus their ability to support financial decision-making. Addressing this research need, my thesis is organized in three parts (part I-III ) consisting of four quantitative experimental studies, two qualitative friendly-user-studies, and one qualitative interview study.

In Part I, Chapter 3 examines how robo-advisors can be designed for inexperienced investors. In particular, I derive design recommendations for the development of robo-advisor solutions and evaluate them in a three-cycle design sciences process. Requirements related to the clusters ease of interaction, work efficiency, information processing and cognitive load are identified as key elements for robo-advisory design.

In Part II, Chapter 4 focuses on an important bias in economic decision-making - decision inertia, the tendency to repeat a decision regardless of the consequences. As a result, a decision-maker can make repeated suboptimal investments. To understand this bias more deeply, I investigate decision inertia in a general experimental setting and identify motivational and cognitive drivers of this phenomenon. Thus, I relied on behavioural, on self-reported, and on bio-physiological measures in three laboratory studies.

In Part III, Chapter 5 specifies the findings from Part II to find and evaluate strategies to reduce decision inertia in financial decision support systems. For that purpose, I investigate two nudges (design features) to reduce inertia in investment decisions. My results suggest that defaults and warning messages can help participants to overcome decision inertia. Furthermore, the results illustrate that designers have to be careful not to push decision-makers into the decision inertia bias by accident.

In summary, this thesis gives design recommendations for practitioners and scholars building robo-advisors. The insights can help to develop robo-advisors, and to increase advisor quality by considering decision inertia in the system design phase and consequently, it illustrates how to counteract this malicious decision bias for private investors.