Sample records for channel capacity limitations

  1. Capacities of quantum amplifier channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qi, Haoyu; Wilde, Mark M.

    2017-01-01

    Quantum amplifier channels are at the core of several physical processes. Not only do they model the optical process of spontaneous parametric down-conversion, but the transformation corresponding to an amplifier channel also describes the physics of the dynamical Casimir effect in superconducting circuits, the Unruh effect, and Hawking radiation. Here we study the communication capabilities of quantum amplifier channels. Invoking a recently established minimum output-entropy theorem for single-mode phase-insensitive Gaussian channels, we determine capacities of quantum-limited amplifier channels in three different scenarios. First, we establish the capacities of quantum-limited amplifier channels for one of the most general communication tasks, characterized by the trade-off between classical communication, quantum communication, and entanglement generation or consumption. Second, we establish capacities of quantum-limited amplifier channels for the trade-off between public classical communication, private classical communication, and secret key generation. Third, we determine the capacity region for a broadcast channel induced by the quantum-limited amplifier channel, and we also show that a fully quantum strategy outperforms those achieved by classical coherent-detection strategies. In all three scenarios, we find that the capacities significantly outperform communication rates achieved with a naive time-sharing strategy.

  2. Single- and multi-channel underwater acoustic communication channel capacity: a computational study.

    PubMed

    Hayward, Thomas J; Yang, T C

    2007-09-01

    Acoustic communication channel capacity determines the maximum data rate that can be supported by an acoustic channel for a given source power and source/receiver configuration. In this paper, broadband acoustic propagation modeling is applied to estimate the channel capacity for a time-invariant shallow-water waveguide for a single source-receiver pair and for vertical source and receiver arrays. Without bandwidth constraints, estimated single-input, single-output (SISO) capacities approach 10 megabitss at 1 km range, but beyond 2 km range they decay at a rate consistent with previous estimates by Peloquin and Leinhos (unpublished, 1997), which were based on a sonar equation calculation. Channel capacities subject to source bandwidth constraints are approximately 30-90% lower than for the unconstrained case, and exhibit a significant wind speed dependence. Channel capacity is investigated for single-input, multi-output (SIMO) and multi-input, multi-output (MIMO) systems, both for finite arrays and in the limit of a dense array spanning the entire water column. The limiting values of the SIMO and MIMO channel capacities for the modeled environment are found to be about four times higher and up to 200-400 times higher, respectively, than for the SISO case. Implications for underwater acoustic communication systems are discussed.

  3. Quantum-capacity-approaching codes for the detected-jump channel

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Grassl, Markus; Wei Zhaohui; Ji Zhengfeng

    2010-12-15

    The quantum-channel capacity gives the ultimate limit for the rate at which quantum data can be reliably transmitted through a noisy quantum channel. Degradable quantum channels are among the few channels whose quantum capacities are known. Given the quantum capacity of a degradable channel, it remains challenging to find a practical coding scheme which approaches capacity. Here we discuss code designs for the detected-jump channel, a degradable channel with practical relevance describing the physics of spontaneous decay of atoms with detected photon emission. We show that this channel can be used to simulate a binary classical channel with both erasuresmore » and bit flips. The capacity of the simulated classical channel gives a lower bound on the quantum capacity of the detected-jump channel. When the jump probability is small, it almost equals the quantum capacity. Hence using a classical capacity-approaching code for the simulated classical channel yields a quantum code which approaches the quantum capacity of the detected-jump channel.« less

  4. Classical capacity of Gaussian thermal memory channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    De Palma, G.; Mari, A.; Giovannetti, V.

    2014-10-01

    The classical capacity of phase-invariant Gaussian channels has been recently determined under the assumption that such channels are memoryless. In this work we generalize this result by deriving the classical capacity of a model of quantum memory channel, in which the output states depend on the previous input states. In particular we extend the analysis of Lupo et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 030501 (2010), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.030501 and Phys. Rev. A 82, 032312 (2010), 10.1103/PhysRevA.82.032312] from quantum limited channels to thermal attenuators and thermal amplifiers. Our result applies in many situations in which the physical communication channel is affected by nonzero memory and by thermal noise.

  5. Capacity of Pulse-Position Modulation (PPM) on Gaussian and Webb Channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dolinar, S.; Divsalar, D.; Hamkins, J.; Pollara, F.

    2000-01-01

    This article computes the capacity of various idealized soft-decision channels modeling an optical channel using an avalanche photodiode detector (APD) and pulse-position modulation (PPM). The capacity of this optical channel depends in a complicated way on the physical parameters of the APD and the constraints imposed by the PPM orthogonal signaling set. This article attempts to identify and separate the effects of several fundamental parameters on the capacity of the APD-detected optical PPM channel. First, an overall signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) parameter is de ned such that the capacity as a function of a bit-normalized version of this SNR drops precipitously toward zero at quasi-brick-wall limits on bit SNR that are numerically the same as the well-understood brick-wall limits for the standard additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel. A second parameter is used to quantify the effects on capacity of one unique facet of the optical PPM channel (as compared with the standard AWGN channel) that causes the noise variance to be higher in signal slots than in nonsignal slots. This nonuniform noise variance yields interesting capacity effects even when the channel model is AWGN. A third parameter is used to measure the effects on capacity of the difference between an AWGN model and a non-Gaussian model proposed by Webb (see reference in [2]) for approximating the statistics of the APD-detected optical channel. Finally, a fourth parameter is used to quantify the blending of a Webb model with a pure AWGN model to account for thermal noise. Numerical results show that the capacity of M-ary orthogonal signaling on the Webb channel exhibits the same brick-wall Shannon limit, (M ln 2)=(M 1), as on the AWGN channel ( 1:59 dB for large M). Results also compare the capacity obtained by hard- and soft-output channels and indicate that soft-output channels o er a 3-dB advantage.

  6. Additive Classical Capacity of Quantum Channels Assisted by Noisy Entanglement.

    PubMed

    Zhuang, Quntao; Zhu, Elton Yechao; Shor, Peter W

    2017-05-19

    We give a capacity formula for the classical information transmission over a noisy quantum channel, with separable encoding by the sender and limited resources provided by the receiver's preshared ancilla. Instead of a pure state, we consider the signal-ancilla pair in a mixed state, purified by a "witness." Thus, the signal-witness correlation limits the resource available from the signal-ancilla correlation. Our formula characterizes the utility of different forms of resources, including noisy or limited entanglement assistance, for classical communication. With separable encoding, the sender's signals across multiple channel uses are still allowed to be entangled, yet our capacity formula is additive. In particular, for generalized covariant channels, our capacity formula has a simple closed form. Moreover, our additive capacity formula upper bounds the general coherent attack's information gain in various two-way quantum key distribution protocols. For Gaussian protocols, the additivity of the formula indicates that the collective Gaussian attack is the most powerful.

  7. Capacity of noncoherent MFSK channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bar-David, I.; Butman, S. A.; Klass, M. J.; Levitt, B. K.; Lyon, R. F.

    1974-01-01

    Performance limits theoretically achievable over noncoherent channels perturbed by additive Gaussian noise in hard decision, optimal, and soft decision receivers are computed as functions of the number of orthogonal signals and the predetection signal-to-noise ratio. Equations are derived for orthogonal signal capacity, the ultimate MFSK capacity, and the convolutional coding and decoding limit. It is shown that performance improves as the signal-to-noise ratio increases, provided the bandwidth can be increased, that the optimum number of signals is not infinite (except for the optimal receiver), and that the optimum number decreases as the signal-to-noise ratio decreases, but is never less than 7 for even the hard decision receiver.

  8. Second-Order Asymptotics for the Classical Capacity of Image-Additive Quantum Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tomamichel, Marco; Tan, Vincent Y. F.

    2015-08-01

    We study non-asymptotic fundamental limits for transmitting classical information over memoryless quantum channels, i.e. we investigate the amount of classical information that can be transmitted when a quantum channel is used a finite number of times and a fixed, non-vanishing average error is permissible. In this work we consider the classical capacity of quantum channels that are image-additive, including all classical to quantum channels, as well as the product state capacity of arbitrary quantum channels. In both cases we show that the non-asymptotic fundamental limit admits a second-order approximation that illustrates the speed at which the rate of optimal codes converges to the Holevo capacity as the blocklength tends to infinity. The behavior is governed by a new channel parameter, called channel dispersion, for which we provide a geometrical interpretation.

  9. Determination of optimal lot size and production rate for multi-production channels with limited capacity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huang, Yeu-Shiang; Wang, Ruei-Pei; Ho, Jyh-Wen

    2015-07-01

    Due to the constantly changing business environment, producers often have to deal with customers by adopting different procurement policies. That is, manufacturers confront not only predictable and regular orders, but also unpredictable and irregular orders. In this study, from the perspective of upstream manufacturers, both regular and irregular orders are considered in coping with the situation in which an uncertain demand is faced by the manufacturer, and a capacity confirming mechanism is used to examine such demand. If the demand is less than or equal to the capacity of the ordinary production channel, the general supply channel is utilised to fully account for the manufacturing process, but if the demand is greater than the capacity of the ordinary production channel, the contingency production channel would be activated along with the ordinary channel to satisfy the upcoming high demand. Besides, the reproductive property of the probability distribution is employed to represent the order quantity of the two types of demand. Accordingly, the optimal production rates and lot sizes for both channels are derived to provide managers with insights for further production planning.

  10. Capacity of a direct detection optical communication channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tan, H. H.

    1980-01-01

    The capacity of a free space optical channel using a direct detection receiver is derived under both peak and average signal power constraints and without a signal bandwidth constraint. The addition of instantaneous noiseless feedback from the receiver to the transmitter does not increase the channel capacity. In the absence of received background noise, an optimally coded PPM system is shown to achieve capacity in the limit as signal bandwidth approaches infinity. In the case of large peak to average signal power ratios, an interleaved coding scheme with PPM modulation is shown to have a computational cutoff rate far greater than ordinary coding schemes.

  11. Shannon Meets Fick on the Microfluidic Channel: Diffusion Limit to Sum Broadcast Capacity for Molecular Communication.

    PubMed

    Bicen, A Ozan; Lehtomaki, Janne J; Akyildiz, Ian F

    2018-03-01

    Molecular communication (MC) over a microfluidic channel with flow is investigated based on Shannon's channel capacity theorem and Fick's laws of diffusion. Specifically, the sum capacity for MC between a single transmitter and multiple receivers (broadcast MC) is studied. The transmitter communicates by using different types of signaling molecules with each receiver over the microfluidic channel. The transmitted molecules propagate through microfluidic channel until reaching the corresponding receiver. Although the use of different types of molecules provides orthogonal signaling, the sum broadcast capacity may not scale with the number of the receivers due to physics of the propagation (interplay between convection and diffusion based on distance). In this paper, the performance of broadcast MC on a microfluidic chip is characterized by studying the physical geometry of the microfluidic channel and leveraging the information theory. The convergence of the sum capacity for microfluidic broadcast channel is analytically investigated based on the physical system parameters with respect to the increasing number of molecular receivers. The analysis presented here can be useful to predict the achievable information rate in microfluidic interconnects for the biochemical computation and microfluidic multi-sample assays.

  12. Quantum and Private Capacities of Low-Noise Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Leditzky, Felix; Leung, Debbie; Smith, Graeme

    2018-04-01

    We determine both the quantum and the private capacities of low-noise quantum channels to leading orders in the channel's distance to the perfect channel. It has been an open problem for more than 20 yr to determine the capacities of some of these low-noise channels such as the depolarizing channel. We also show that both capacities are equal to the single-letter coherent information of the channel, again to leading orders. We thus find that, in the low-noise regime, superadditivity and degenerate codes have a negligible benefit for the quantum capacity, and shielding does not improve the private capacity beyond the quantum capacity, in stark contrast to the situation when noisier channels are considered.

  13. Capacity, cutoff rate, and coding for a direct-detection optical channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Massey, J. L.

    1980-01-01

    It is shown that Pierce's pulse position modulation scheme with 2 to the L pulse positions used on a self-noise-limited direct detection optical communication channel results in a 2 to the L-ary erasure channel that is equivalent to the parallel combination of L completely correlated binary erasure channels. The capacity of the full channel is the sum of the capacities of the component channels, but the cutoff rate of the full channel is shown to be much smaller than the sum of the cutoff rates. An interpretation of the cutoff rate is given that suggests a complexity advantage in coding separately on the component channels. It is shown that if short-constraint-length convolutional codes with Viterbi decoders are used on the component channels, then the performance and complexity compare favorably with the Reed-Solomon coding system proposed by McEliece for the full channel. The reasons for this unexpectedly fine performance by the convolutional code system are explored in detail, as are various facets of the channel structure.

  14. Quantum biological channel modeling and capacity calculation.

    PubMed

    Djordjevic, Ivan B

    2012-12-10

    Quantum mechanics has an important role in photosynthesis, magnetoreception, and evolution. There were many attempts in an effort to explain the structure of genetic code and transfer of information from DNA to protein by using the concepts of quantum mechanics. The existing biological quantum channel models are not sufficiently general to incorporate all relevant contributions responsible for imperfect protein synthesis. Moreover, the problem of determination of quantum biological channel capacity is still an open problem. To solve these problems, we construct the operator-sum representation of biological channel based on codon basekets (basis vectors), and determine the quantum channel model suitable for study of the quantum biological channel capacity and beyond. The transcription process, DNA point mutations, insertions, deletions, and translation are interpreted as the quantum noise processes. The various types of quantum errors are classified into several broad categories: (i) storage errors that occur in DNA itself as it represents an imperfect storage of genetic information, (ii) replication errors introduced during DNA replication process, (iii) transcription errors introduced during DNA to mRNA transcription, and (iv) translation errors introduced during the translation process. By using this model, we determine the biological quantum channel capacity and compare it against corresponding classical biological channel capacity. We demonstrate that the quantum biological channel capacity is higher than the classical one, for a coherent quantum channel model, suggesting that quantum effects have an important role in biological systems. The proposed model is of crucial importance towards future study of quantum DNA error correction, developing quantum mechanical model of aging, developing the quantum mechanical models for tumors/cancer, and study of intracellular dynamics in general.

  15. Experimental Detection of Quantum Channel Capacities.

    PubMed

    Cuevas, Álvaro; Proietti, Massimiliano; Ciampini, Mario Arnolfo; Duranti, Stefano; Mataloni, Paolo; Sacchi, Massimiliano F; Macchiavello, Chiara

    2017-09-08

    We present an efficient experimental procedure that certifies nonvanishing quantum capacities for qubit noisy channels. Our method is based on the use of a fixed bipartite entangled state, where the system qubit is sent to the channel input. A particular set of local measurements is performed at the channel output and the ancilla qubit mode, obtaining lower bounds to the quantum capacities for any unknown channel with no need of quantum process tomography. The entangled qubits have a Bell state configuration and are encoded in photon polarization. The lower bounds are found by estimating the Shannon and von Neumann entropies at the output using an optimized basis, whose statistics is obtained by measuring only the three observables σ_{x}⊗σ_{x}, σ_{y}⊗σ_{y}, and σ_{z}⊗σ_{z}.

  16. On the delay analysis of a TDMA channel with finite buffer capacity

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Yan, T.-Y.

    1982-01-01

    The throughput performance of a TDMA channel with finite buffer capacity for transmitting data messages is considered. Each station has limited message buffer capacity and has Poisson message arrivals. Message arrivals will be blocked if the buffers are congested. Using the embedded Markov chain model, the solution procedure for the limiting system-size probabilities is presented in a recursive fashion. Numerical examples are given to demonstrate the tradeoffs between the blocking probabilities and the buffer sizing strategy.

  17. Channel capacity of an array system for Gaussian channels with applications to combining and noise cancellation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cheung, K. M.; Vilnrotter, V.

    1996-01-01

    A closed-form expression for the capacity of an array of correlated Gaussian channels is derived. It is shown that when signal and noise are independent, the array of observables can be replaced with a single observable without diminishing the capacity of the array channel. Examples are provided to illustrate the dependence of channel capacity on noise correlation for two- and three-channel arrays.

  18. Channel Capacity of an Array System for Gaussian Channels With Applications to Combining and Noise Cancellation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Cheung, K.-M.; Vilnrotter, V.

    1996-01-01

    A closed-form expression for the capacity of an array of correlated Gaussian channels is derived. It is shown that when signal and noise are independent, the array of observables can be replaced with a single observable without diminishing the capacity of the array channel. Examples are provided to illustrate the dependence of channel capacity on noise correlation for two- and three-channel arrays.

  19. Quantum Capacity under Adversarial Quantum Noise: Arbitrarily Varying Quantum Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ahlswede, Rudolf; Bjelaković, Igor; Boche, Holger; Nötzel, Janis

    2013-01-01

    We investigate entanglement transmission over an unknown channel in the presence of a third party (called the adversary), which is enabled to choose the channel from a given set of memoryless but non-stationary channels without informing the legitimate sender and receiver about the particular choice that he made. This channel model is called an arbitrarily varying quantum channel (AVQC). We derive a quantum version of Ahlswede's dichotomy for classical arbitrarily varying channels. This includes a regularized formula for the common randomness-assisted capacity for entanglement transmission of an AVQC. Quite surprisingly and in contrast to the classical analog of the problem involving the maximal and average error probability, we find that the capacity for entanglement transmission of an AVQC always equals its strong subspace transmission capacity. These results are accompanied by different notions of symmetrizability (zero-capacity conditions) as well as by conditions for an AVQC to have a capacity described by a single-letter formula. In the final part of the paper the capacity of the erasure-AVQC is computed and some light shed on the connection between AVQCs and zero-error capacities. Additionally, we show by entirely elementary and operational arguments motivated by the theory of AVQCs that the quantum, classical, and entanglement-assisted zero-error capacities of quantum channels are generically zero and are discontinuous at every positivity point.

  20. Detecting Lower Bounds to Quantum Channel Capacities.

    PubMed

    Macchiavello, Chiara; Sacchi, Massimiliano F

    2016-04-08

    We propose a method to detect lower bounds to quantum capacities of a noisy quantum communication channel by means of a few measurements. The method is easily implementable and does not require any knowledge about the channel. We test its efficiency by studying its performance for most well-known single-qubit noisy channels and for the generalized Pauli channel in an arbitrary finite dimension.

  1. Capacity of PPM on Gaussian and Webb Channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Divsalar, D.; Dolinar, S.; Pollara, F.; Hamkins, J.

    2000-01-01

    This paper computes and compares the capacities of M-ary PPM on various idealized channels that approximate the optical communication channel: (1) the standard additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel;(2) a more general AWGN channel (AWGN2) allowing different variances in signal and noise slots;(3) a Webb-distributed channel (Webb2);(4) a Webb+Gaussian channel, modeling Gaussian thermal noise added to Webb-distributed channel outputs.

  2. Capacity of a quantum memory channel correlated by matrix product states

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mulherkar, Jaideep; Sunitha, V.

    2018-04-01

    We study the capacity of a quantum channel where channel acts like controlled phase gate with the control being provided by a one-dimensional quantum spin chain environment. Due to the correlations in the spin chain, we get a quantum channel with memory. We derive formulas for the quantum capacity of this channel when the spin state is a matrix product state. Particularly, we derive exact formulas for the capacity of the quantum memory channel when the environment state is the ground state of the AKLT model and the Majumdar-Ghosh model. We find that the behavior of the capacity for the range of the parameters is analytic.

  3. The least channel capacity for chaos synchronization.

    PubMed

    Wang, Mogei; Wang, Xingyuan; Liu, Zhenzhen; Zhang, Huaguang

    2011-03-01

    Recently researchers have found that a channel with capacity exceeding the Kolmogorov-Sinai entropy of the drive system (h(KS)) is theoretically necessary and sufficient to sustain the unidirectional synchronization to arbitrarily high precision. In this study, we use symbolic dynamics and the automaton reset sequence to distinguish the information that is required in identifying the current drive word and obtaining the synchronization. Then, we show that the least channel capacity that is sufficient to transmit the distinguished information and attain the synchronization of arbitrarily high precision is h(KS). Numerical simulations provide support for our conclusions.

  4. Interference and memory capacity limitations.

    PubMed

    Endress, Ansgar D; Szabó, Szilárd

    2017-10-01

    Working memory (WM) is thought to have a fixed and limited capacity. However, the origins of these capacity limitations are debated, and generally attributed to active, attentional processes. Here, we show that the existence of interference among items in memory mathematically guarantees fixed and limited capacity limits under very general conditions, irrespective of any processing assumptions. Assuming that interference (a) increases with the number of interfering items and (b) brings memory performance to chance levels for large numbers of interfering items, capacity limits are a simple function of the relative influence of memorization and interference. In contrast, we show that time-based memory limitations do not lead to fixed memory capacity limitations that are independent of the timing properties of an experiment. We show that interference can mimic both slot-like and continuous resource-like memory limitations, suggesting that these types of memory performance might not be as different as commonly believed. We speculate that slot-like WM limitations might arise from crowding-like phenomena in memory when participants have to retrieve items. Further, based on earlier research on parallel attention and enumeration, we suggest that crowding-like phenomena might be a common reason for the 3 major cognitive capacity limitations. As suggested by Miller (1956) and Cowan (2001), these capacity limitations might arise because of a common reason, even though they likely rely on distinct processes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  5. Capacity of the generalized PPM channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hamkins, Jon; Klimesh, Matt; McEliece, Bob; Moision, Bruce

    2004-01-01

    We show the capacity of a generalized pulse-position-modulation (PPM) channel, where the input vectors may be any set that allows a transitive group of coordinate permutations, is achieved by a uniform input distribution.

  6. Capacity of the Generalized Pulse-Position Modulation Channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hamkins, J.; Klimesh, M.; McElience, R.; Moision, B.

    2005-01-01

    We show the capacity of a generalized pulse-position modulation (PPM) channel, where the input vectors may be any set that allows a transitive group of coordinate permutations, is achieved by a uniform input distribution. We derive a simple expression in terms of the Kullback Leibler distance for the binary case, and the asymptote in the PPM order. We prove a sub-additivity result for the PPM channel and use it to show PPM capacity is monotonic in the order.

  7. Polar codes for achieving the classical capacity of a quantum channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Guha, Saikat; Wilde, Mark

    2012-02-01

    We construct the first near-explicit, linear, polar codes that achieve the capacity for classical communication over quantum channels. The codes exploit the channel polarization phenomenon observed by Arikan for classical channels. Channel polarization is an effect in which one can synthesize a set of channels, by ``channel combining'' and ``channel splitting,'' in which a fraction of the synthesized channels is perfect for data transmission while the other fraction is completely useless for data transmission, with the good fraction equal to the capacity of the channel. Our main technical contributions are threefold. First, we demonstrate that the channel polarization effect occurs for channels with classical inputs and quantum outputs. We then construct linear polar codes based on this effect, and the encoding complexity is O(N log N), where N is the blocklength of the code. We also demonstrate that a quantum successive cancellation decoder works well, i.e., the word error rate decays exponentially with the blocklength of the code. For a quantum channel with binary pure-state outputs, such as a binary-phase-shift-keyed coherent-state optical communication alphabet, the symmetric Holevo information rate is in fact the ultimate channel capacity, which is achieved by our polar code.

  8. Unbounded number of channel uses may be required to detect quantum capacity.

    PubMed

    Cubitt, Toby; Elkouss, David; Matthews, William; Ozols, Maris; Pérez-García, David; Strelchuk, Sergii

    2015-03-31

    Transmitting data reliably over noisy communication channels is one of the most important applications of information theory, and is well understood for channels modelled by classical physics. However, when quantum effects are involved, we do not know how to compute channel capacities. This is because the formula for the quantum capacity involves maximizing the coherent information over an unbounded number of channel uses. In fact, entanglement across channel uses can even increase the coherent information from zero to non-zero. Here we study the number of channel uses necessary to detect positive coherent information. In all previous known examples, two channel uses already sufficed. It might be that only a finite number of channel uses is always sufficient. We show that this is not the case: for any number of uses, there are channels for which the coherent information is zero, but which nonetheless have capacity.

  9. Direct and reverse secret-key capacities of a quantum channel.

    PubMed

    Pirandola, Stefano; García-Patrón, Raul; Braunstein, Samuel L; Lloyd, Seth

    2009-02-06

    We define the direct and reverse secret-key capacities of a memoryless quantum channel as the optimal rates that entanglement-based quantum-key-distribution protocols can reach by using a single forward classical communication (direct reconciliation) or a single feedback classical communication (reverse reconciliation). In particular, the reverse secret-key capacity can be positive for antidegradable channels, where no forward strategy is known to be secure. This property is explicitly shown in the continuous variable framework by considering arbitrary one-mode Gaussian channels.

  10. Prediction of sand transport over immobile gravel from supply limited to capacity conditions

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Prediction of the transport of sand in channels armored with gravel downstream of dams is difficult but necessary for the range of bed conditions from supply limited to capacity transport. Previous work has shown that information on the mean elevation of the sand relative to the gravel and on the s...

  11. Channel Capacity Calculation at Large SNR and Small Dispersion within Path-Integral Approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reznichenko, A. V.; Terekhov, I. S.

    2018-04-01

    We consider the optical fiber channel modelled by the nonlinear Shrödinger equation with additive white Gaussian noise. Using Feynman path-integral approach for the model with small dispersion we find the first nonzero corrections to the conditional probability density function and the channel capacity estimations at large signal-to-noise ratio. We demonstrate that the correction to the channel capacity in small dimensionless dispersion parameter is quadratic and positive therefore increasing the earlier calculated capacity for a nondispersive nonlinear optical fiber channel in the intermediate power region. Also for small dispersion case we find the analytical expressions for simple correlators of the output signals in our noisy channel.

  12. Coherent state coding approaches the capacity of non-Gaussian bosonic channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Huber, Stefan; König, Robert

    2018-05-01

    The additivity problem asks if the use of entanglement can boost the information-carrying capacity of a given channel beyond what is achievable by coding with simple product states only. This has recently been shown not to be the case for phase-insensitive one-mode Gaussian channels, but remains unresolved in general. Here we consider two general classes of bosonic noise channels, which include phase-insensitive Gaussian channels as special cases: these are attenuators with general, potentially non-Gaussian environment states and classical noise channels with general probabilistic noise. We show that additivity violations, if existent, are rather minor for all these channels: the maximal gain in classical capacity is bounded by a constant independent of the input energy. Our proof shows that coding by simple classical modulation of coherent states is close to optimal.

  13. Unconstrained Capacities of Quantum Key Distribution and Entanglement Distillation for Pure-Loss Bosonic Broadcast Channels.

    PubMed

    Takeoka, Masahiro; Seshadreesan, Kaushik P; Wilde, Mark M

    2017-10-13

    We consider quantum key distribution (QKD) and entanglement distribution using a single-sender multiple-receiver pure-loss bosonic broadcast channel. We determine the unconstrained capacity region for the distillation of bipartite entanglement and secret key between the sender and each receiver, whenever they are allowed arbitrary public classical communication. A practical implication of our result is that the capacity region demonstrated drastically improves upon rates achievable using a naive time-sharing strategy, which has been employed in previously demonstrated network QKD systems. We show a simple example of a broadcast QKD protocol overcoming the limit of the point-to-point strategy. Our result is thus an important step toward opening a new framework of network channel-based quantum communication technology.

  14. Analysis of Optical CDMA Signal Transmission: Capacity Limits and Simulation Results

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Garba, Aminata A.; Yim, Raymond M. H.; Bajcsy, Jan; Chen, Lawrence R.

    2005-12-01

    We present performance limits of the optical code-division multiple-access (OCDMA) networks. In particular, we evaluate the information-theoretical capacity of the OCDMA transmission when single-user detection (SUD) is used by the receiver. First, we model the OCDMA transmission as a discrete memoryless channel, evaluate its capacity when binary modulation is used in the interference-limited (noiseless) case, and extend this analysis to the case when additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) is corrupting the received signals. Next, we analyze the benefits of using nonbinary signaling for increasing the throughput of optical CDMA transmission. It turns out that up to a fourfold increase in the network throughput can be achieved with practical numbers of modulation levels in comparison to the traditionally considered binary case. Finally, we present BER simulation results for channel coded binary and[InlineEquation not available: see fulltext.]-ary OCDMA transmission systems. In particular, we apply turbo codes concatenated with Reed-Solomon codes so that up to several hundred concurrent optical CDMA users can be supported at low target bit error rates. We observe that unlike conventional OCDMA systems, turbo-empowered OCDMA can allow overloading (more active users than is the length of the spreading sequences) with good bit error rate system performance.

  15. Capacity estimation and verification of quantum channels with arbitrarily correlated errors.

    PubMed

    Pfister, Corsin; Rol, M Adriaan; Mantri, Atul; Tomamichel, Marco; Wehner, Stephanie

    2018-01-02

    The central figure of merit for quantum memories and quantum communication devices is their capacity to store and transmit quantum information. Here, we present a protocol that estimates a lower bound on a channel's quantum capacity, even when there are arbitrarily correlated errors. One application of these protocols is to test the performance of quantum repeaters for transmitting quantum information. Our protocol is easy to implement and comes in two versions. The first estimates the one-shot quantum capacity by preparing and measuring in two different bases, where all involved qubits are used as test qubits. The second verifies on-the-fly that a channel's one-shot quantum capacity exceeds a minimal tolerated value while storing or communicating data. We discuss the performance using simple examples, such as the dephasing channel for which our method is asymptotically optimal. Finally, we apply our method to a superconducting qubit in experiment.

  16. Energy-constrained two-way assisted private and quantum capacities of quantum channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Davis, Noah; Shirokov, Maksim E.; Wilde, Mark M.

    2018-06-01

    With the rapid growth of quantum technologies, knowing the fundamental characteristics of quantum systems and protocols is essential for their effective implementation. A particular communication setting that has received increased focus is related to quantum key distribution and distributed quantum computation. In this setting, a quantum channel connects a sender to a receiver, and their goal is to distill either a secret key or entanglement, along with the help of arbitrary local operations and classical communication (LOCC). In this work, we establish a general theory of energy-constrained, LOCC-assisted private and quantum capacities of quantum channels, which are the maximum rates at which an LOCC-assisted quantum channel can reliably establish a secret key or entanglement, respectively, subject to an energy constraint on the channel input states. We prove that the energy-constrained squashed entanglement of a channel is an upper bound on these capacities. We also explicitly prove that a thermal state maximizes a relaxation of the squashed entanglement of all phase-insensitive, single-mode input bosonic Gaussian channels, generalizing results from prior work. After doing so, we prove that a variation of the method introduced by Goodenough et al. [New J. Phys. 18, 063005 (2016), 10.1088/1367-2630/18/6/063005] leads to improved upper bounds on the energy-constrained secret-key-agreement capacity of a bosonic thermal channel. We then consider a multipartite setting and prove that two known multipartite generalizations of the squashed entanglement are in fact equal. We finally show that the energy-constrained, multipartite squashed entanglement plays a role in bounding the energy-constrained LOCC-assisted private and quantum capacity regions of quantum broadcast channels.

  17. On the constrained classical capacity of infinite-dimensional covariant quantum channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Holevo, A. S.

    The additivity of the minimal output entropy and that of the χ-capacity are known to be equivalent for finite-dimensional irreducibly covariant quantum channels. In this paper, we formulate a list of conditions allowing to establish similar equivalence for infinite-dimensional covariant channels with constrained input. This is then applied to bosonic Gaussian channels with quadratic input constraint to extend the classical capacity results of the recent paper [Giovannetti et al., Commun. Math. Phys. 334(3), 1553-1571 (2015)] to the case where the complex structures associated with the channel and with the constraint operator need not commute. In particular, this implies a multimodemore » generalization of the “threshold condition,” obtained for single mode in Schäfer et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 111, 030503 (2013)], and the proof of the fact that under this condition the classical “Gaussian capacity” resulting from optimization over only Gaussian inputs is equal to the full classical capacity. Complex structures correspond to different squeezings, each with its own normal modes, vacuum and coherent states, and the gauge. Thus our results apply, e.g., to multimode channels with a squeezed Gaussian noise under the standard input energy constraint, provided the squeezing is not too large as to violate the generalized threshold condition. We also investigate the restrictiveness of the gauge-covariance condition for single- and multimode bosonic Gaussian channels.« less

  18. Channel capacity of OAM based FSO communication systems with partially coherent Bessel-Gaussian beams in anisotropic turbulence

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Peng, Juan; Zhang, Li; Zhang, Kecheng; Ma, Junxian

    2018-07-01

    Based on the Rytov approximation theory, the transmission model of an orbital angular momentum (OAM)-carrying partially coherent Bessel-Gaussian (BG) beams propagating in weak anisotropic turbulence is established. The corresponding analytical expression of channel capacity is presented. Influences of anisotropic turbulence parameters and beam parameters on channel capacity of OAM-based free-space optical (FSO) communication systems are discussed in detail. The results indicate channel capacity increases with increasing of almost all of the parameters except for transmission distance. Raising the values of some parameters such as wavelength, propagation altitude and non-Kolmogorov power spectrum index, would markedly improve the channel capacity. In addition, we evaluate the channel capacity of Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) beams and partially coherent BG beams in anisotropic turbulence. It indicates that partially coherent BG beams are better light sources candidates for mitigating the influences of anisotropic turbulence on channel capacity of OAM-based FSO communication systems.

  19. On Gaussian feedback capacity

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Dembo, Amir

    1989-01-01

    Pinsker and Ebert (1970) proved that in channels with additive Gaussian noise, feedback at most doubles the capacity. Cover and Pombra (1989) proved that feedback at most adds half a bit per transmission. Following their approach, the author proves that in the limit as signal power approaches either zero (very low SNR) or infinity (very high SNR), feedback does not increase the finite block-length capacity (which for nonstationary Gaussian channels replaces the standard notion of capacity that may not exist). Tighter upper bounds on the capacity are obtained in the process. Specializing these results to stationary channels, the author recovers some of the bounds recently obtained by Ozarow.

  20. Asymmetric information capacities of reciprocal pairs of quantum channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rosati, Matteo; Giovannetti, Vittorio

    2018-05-01

    Reciprocal pairs of quantum channels are defined as completely positive transformations which admit a rigid, distance-preserving, yet not completely positive transformation that allows one to reproduce the outcome of one from the corresponding outcome of the other. From a classical perspective these transmission lines should exhibit the same communication efficiency. This is no longer the case in the quantum setting: explicit asymmetric behaviors are reported studying the classical communication capacities of reciprocal pairs of depolarizing and Weyl-covariant channels.

  1. Ergodic channel capacity of spatial correlated multiple-input multiple-output free space optical links using multipulse pulse-position modulation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Huiqin; Wang, Xue; Cao, Minghua

    2017-02-01

    The spatial correlation extensively exists in the multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) free space optical (FSO) communication systems due to the channel fading and the antenna space limitation. Wilkinson's method was utilized to investigate the impact of spatial correlation on the MIMO FSO communication system employing multipulse pulse-position modulation. Simulation results show that the existence of spatial correlation reduces the ergodic channel capacity, and the reception diversity is more competent to resist this kind of performance degradation.

  2. Channel characterization and empirical model for ergodic capacity of free-space optical communication link

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alimi, Isiaka; Shahpari, Ali; Ribeiro, Vítor; Sousa, Artur; Monteiro, Paulo; Teixeira, António

    2017-05-01

    In this paper, we present experimental results on channel characterization of single input single output (SISO) free-space optical (FSO) communication link that is based on channel measurements. The histograms of the FSO channel samples and the log-normal distribution fittings are presented along with the measured scintillation index. Furthermore, we extend our studies to diversity schemes and propose a closed-form expression for determining ergodic channel capacity of multiple input multiple output (MIMO) FSO communication systems over atmospheric turbulence fading channels. The proposed empirical model is based on SISO FSO channel characterization. Also, the scintillation effects on the system performance are analyzed and results for different turbulence conditions are presented. Moreover, we observed that the histograms of the FSO channel samples that we collected from a 1548.51 nm link have good fits with log-normal distributions and the proposed model for MIMO FSO channel capacity is in conformity with the simulation results in terms of normalized mean-square error (NMSE).

  3. Secret-key-assisted private classical communication capacity over quantum channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hsieh, Min-Hsiu; Luo, Zhicheng; Brun, Todd

    2008-10-01

    We prove a regularized formula for the secret-key-assisted capacity region of a quantum channel for transmitting private classical information. This result parallels the work of Devetak (e-print arXiv:quant-ph/0512015) on entanglement-assisted quantum communication capacity . This formula provides a family protocol, the private father protocol, under the resource inequality framework that includes private classical communication without secret-key assistance as a child protocol.

  4. Channel interaction limits melodic pitch perception in simulated cochlear implants

    PubMed Central

    Crew, Joseph D.; Galvin, John J.; Fu, Qian-Jie

    2012-01-01

    In cochlear implants (CIs), melodic pitch perception is limited by the spectral resolution, which in turn is limited by the number of spectral channels as well as interactions between adjacent channels. This study investigated the effect of channel interaction on melodic contour identification (MCI) in normal-hearing subjects listening to novel 16-channel sinewave vocoders that simulated channel interaction in CI signal processing. MCI performance worsened as the degree of channel interaction increased. Although greater numbers of spectral channels may be beneficial to melodic pitch perception, the present data suggest that it is also important to improve independence among spectral channels. PMID:23145706

  5. Capacity and Delay Spread in Multilayer Diffusion-Based Molecular Communication (DBMC) Channel.

    PubMed

    Md Mustam, Saizalmursidi; Syed-Yusof, Sharifah K; Zubair, Suleiman

    2016-10-01

    In nanoscale communication, diffusion-based molecular communication (DBMC) in which information is encoded into molecule patterns by a transmitter nanomachine, has emerged as a promising communication system, particularly for biomedical and healthcare applications. Although, numerous studies have been conducted to evaluate and analyze DBMC systems, investigation on DBMC system through a multilayer channel has received less attention. The aims of this paper are to formulate channel characteristics and to evaluate the performance of multilayer DBMC channel in terms of delay spread and capacity. In this paper, the propagation of molecules over an n- layer channel is assumed to follow the Brownian motion and subjected to Fick's law of diffusion. Fourier transform is used to convert time to frequency domain functions. Besides, the multilayer channel is considered as a linear and deterministic channel. For the performance evaluation, the air-water-blood plasma medium representing the simplified multilayer diffusion model in the respiratory system was chosen. It was found that a high channel capacity can be achieved with wide transmission bandwidth, short transmission distance, and high averaged transmitted power. In addition, the findings showed that channel delay spread increases as both the transmission distance, and the pulse duration increased. By setting the symbol duration greater than the pulse duration or delay spread, an inter-symbol interference problem due to previous molecules transmission can be mitigated. These findings can be used as a guide in the development and fabrication of future artificial nanocommunication and nanonetworks systems involving multilayer transmission medium.

  6. Maximizing the optical network capacity

    PubMed Central

    Bayvel, Polina; Maher, Robert; Liga, Gabriele; Shevchenko, Nikita A.; Lavery, Domaniç; Killey, Robert I.

    2016-01-01

    Most of the digital data transmitted are carried by optical fibres, forming the great part of the national and international communication infrastructure. The information-carrying capacity of these networks has increased vastly over the past decades through the introduction of wavelength division multiplexing, advanced modulation formats, digital signal processing and improved optical fibre and amplifier technology. These developments sparked the communication revolution and the growth of the Internet, and have created an illusion of infinite capacity being available. But as the volume of data continues to increase, is there a limit to the capacity of an optical fibre communication channel? The optical fibre channel is nonlinear, and the intensity-dependent Kerr nonlinearity limit has been suggested as a fundamental limit to optical fibre capacity. Current research is focused on whether this is the case, and on linear and nonlinear techniques, both optical and electronic, to understand, unlock and maximize the capacity of optical communications in the nonlinear regime. This paper describes some of them and discusses future prospects for success in the quest for capacity. PMID:26809572

  7. Maximizing the optical network capacity.

    PubMed

    Bayvel, Polina; Maher, Robert; Xu, Tianhua; Liga, Gabriele; Shevchenko, Nikita A; Lavery, Domaniç; Alvarado, Alex; Killey, Robert I

    2016-03-06

    Most of the digital data transmitted are carried by optical fibres, forming the great part of the national and international communication infrastructure. The information-carrying capacity of these networks has increased vastly over the past decades through the introduction of wavelength division multiplexing, advanced modulation formats, digital signal processing and improved optical fibre and amplifier technology. These developments sparked the communication revolution and the growth of the Internet, and have created an illusion of infinite capacity being available. But as the volume of data continues to increase, is there a limit to the capacity of an optical fibre communication channel? The optical fibre channel is nonlinear, and the intensity-dependent Kerr nonlinearity limit has been suggested as a fundamental limit to optical fibre capacity. Current research is focused on whether this is the case, and on linear and nonlinear techniques, both optical and electronic, to understand, unlock and maximize the capacity of optical communications in the nonlinear regime. This paper describes some of them and discusses future prospects for success in the quest for capacity. © 2016 The Authors.

  8. Near-limit propagation of gaseous detonations in narrow annular channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gao, Y.; Ng, H. D.; Lee, J. H. S.

    2017-03-01

    New results on the near-limit behaviors of gaseous detonations in narrow annular channels are reported in this paper. Annular channels of widths 3.2 and 5.9 mm were made using circular inserts in a 50.8 mm-diameter external tube. The length of each annular channel was 1.8 m. Detonations were initiated in a steel driver tube where a small volume of a sensitive C2H2+ 2.5O2 mixture was injected to facilitate detonation initiation. A 2 m length of circular tube with a 50.8 mm diameter preceded the annular channel so that a steady Chapman-Jouguet (CJ) detonation was established prior to entering the annular channel. Four detonable mixtures of C2H2 {+} 2.5O2 {+} 85 % Ar, C2H2 {+} 2.5O2 {+} 70 % Ar, C3H8 {+} 5O2, and CH4 {+} 2O2 were used in the present study. Photodiodes spaced 10 cm throughout the length of both the annular channel and circular tube were used to measure the detonation velocity. In addition, smoked foils were inserted into the annular channel to monitor the cellular structure of the detonation wave. The results show that, well within the detonability limits, the detonation wave propagates along the channel with a small local velocity fluctuation and an average global velocity can be deduced. The average detonation velocity has a small deficit of 5-15 % far from the limits and the velocity rapidly decreases to 0.7V_{CJ}-0.8V_{CJ} when the detonation propagates near the limit. Subsequently, the fluctuation of local velocity also increases as the decreasing initial pressure approaches the limit. In the two annular channels used in this work, no galloping detonations were observed for both the stable and unstable mixtures tested. The present study also confirms that single-headed spinning detonation occurs at the limit, as in a circular tube, rather than the up and down "zig zag" mode in a two-dimensional, rectangular channel.

  9. Algorithmic complexity of quantum capacity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Oskouei, Samad Khabbazi; Mancini, Stefano

    2018-04-01

    We analyze the notion of quantum capacity from the perspective of algorithmic (descriptive) complexity. To this end, we resort to the concept of semi-computability in order to describe quantum states and quantum channel maps. We introduce algorithmic entropies (like algorithmic quantum coherent information) and derive relevant properties for them. Then we show that quantum capacity based on semi-computable concept equals the entropy rate of algorithmic coherent information, which in turn equals the standard quantum capacity. Thanks to this, we finally prove that the quantum capacity, for a given semi-computable channel, is limit computable.

  10. Cooperation in scale-free networks with limited associative capacities

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Poncela, Julia; Gómez-Gardeñes, Jesús; Moreno, Yamir

    2011-05-01

    In this work we study the effect of limiting the number of interactions (the associative capacity) that a node can establish per round of a prisoner’s dilemma game. We focus on the way this limitation influences the level of cooperation sustained by scale-free networks. We show that when the game includes cooperation costs, limiting the associative capacity of nodes to a fixed quantity renders in some cases larger values of cooperation than in the unrestricted scenario. This allows one to define an optimum capacity for which cooperation is maximally enhanced. Finally, for the case without cooperation costs, we find that even a tight limitation of the associative capacity of nodes yields the same levels of cooperation as in the original network.

  11. Channel-conveyance capacity, channel change, and sediment transport in the lower Puyallup, White, and Carbon Rivers, western Washington

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Czuba, Jonathan A.; Czuba, Christiana R.; Magirl, Chistopher S.; Voss, Frank D.

    2010-01-01

    -conveyance capacity was the White River between R Street Bridge and the Lake Tapps return, a reach affected by recent flooding. Conveyance capacity also decreased in sections of the Puyallup River. Conveyance capacity was mostly unchanged along other study reaches. Bedload transport was simulated throughout the entire river network and consistent with other observations and analyses, the hydraulic model showed that the upper Puyallup and White Rivers tended to accumulate sediment. Accuracy of the bedload-transport modeling, however, was limited due to a scarcity of sediment-transport data sets from the Puyallup system, mantling of sand over cobbles in the lower Puyallup and White Rivers, and overall uncertainty in modeling sediment transport in gravel-bedded rivers. Consequently, the output results from the model were treated as more qualitative in value, useful in comparing geomorphic trends within different river reaches, but not accurate in producing precise predictions of mass of sediment moved or deposited. The hydraulic model and the bedload-transport component were useful for analyzing proposed river-management options, if surveyed cross sections adequately represented the river-management site and proposed management options. The hydraulic model showed that setback levees would provide greater flood protection than gravel-bar scalping after the initial project construction and for some time thereafter, although the model was not accurate enough to quantify the length of time of the flood protection. The greatest hydraulic benefit from setback levees would be a substantial increase in the effective channel-conveyance area. By widening the distance between levees, the new floodplain would accommodate larger increases in discharge with relatively small incremental increases in stage. Model simulation results indicate that the hydraulic benefit from a setback levee also would be long-lived and would effectively compensate for increased deposition within the setback reach

  12. Quantum capacity of quantum black holes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adami, Chris; Bradler, Kamil

    2014-03-01

    The fate of quantum entanglement interacting with a black hole has been an enduring mystery, not the least because standard curved space field theory does not address the interaction of black holes with matter. We discuss an effective Hamiltonian of matter interacting with a black hole that has a precise analogue in quantum optics and correctly reproduces both spontaneous and stimulated Hawking radiation with grey-body factors. We calculate the quantum capacity of this channel in the limit of perfect absorption, as well as in the limit of a perfectly reflecting black hole (a white hole). We find that the white hole is an optimal quantum cloner, and is isomorphic to the Unruh channel with positive quantum capacity. The complementary channel (across the horizon) is entanglement-breaking with zero capacity, avoiding a violation of the quantum no-cloning theorem. The black hole channel on the contrary has vanishing capacity, while its complement has positive capacity instead. Thus, quantum states can be reconstructed faithfully behind the black hole horizon, but not outside. This work sheds new light on black hole complementarity because it shows that black holes can both reflect and absorb quantum states without violating the no-cloning theorem, and makes quantum firewalls obsolete.

  13. The capacity limitations of orientation summary statistics

    PubMed Central

    Attarha, Mouna; Moore, Cathleen M.

    2015-01-01

    The simultaneous–sequential method was used to test the processing capacity of establishing mean orientation summaries. Four clusters of oriented Gabor patches were presented in the peripheral visual field. One of the clusters had a mean orientation that was tilted either left or right while the mean orientations of the other three clusters were roughly vertical. All four clusters were presented at the same time in the simultaneous condition whereas the clusters appeared in temporal subsets of two in the sequential condition. Performance was lower when the means of all four clusters had to be processed concurrently than when only two had to be processed in the same amount of time. The advantage for establishing fewer summaries at a given time indicates that the processing of mean orientation engages limited-capacity processes (Experiment 1). This limitation cannot be attributed to crowding, low target-distractor discriminability, or a limited-capacity comparison process (Experiments 2 and 3). In contrast to the limitations of establishing multiple summary representations, establishing a single summary representation unfolds without interference (Experiment 4). When interpreted in the context of recent work on the capacity of summary statistics, these findings encourage reevaluation of the view that early visual perception consists of summary statistic representations that unfold independently across multiple areas of the visual field. PMID:25810160

  14. Limited static and dynamic delivering capacity allocations in scale-free networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Haddou, N. Ben; Ez-Zahraouy, H.; Rachadi, A.

    In traffic networks, it is quite important to assign proper packet delivering capacities to the routers with minimum cost. In this respect, many allocation models based on static and dynamic properties have been proposed. In this paper, we are interested in the impact of limiting the packet delivering capacities already allocated to the routers; each node is assigned a packet delivering capacity limited by the maximal capacity Cmax of the routers. To study the limitation effect, we use two basic delivering capacity allocation models; static delivering capacity allocation (SDCA) and dynamic delivering capacity allocation (DDCA). In the SDCA, the capacity allocated is proportional to the node degree, and for DDCA, it is proportional to its queue length. We have studied and compared the limitation of both allocation models under the shortest path (SP) routing strategy as well as the efficient path (EP) routing protocol. In the SP case, we noted a similarity in the results; the network capacity increases with increasing Cmax. For the EP scheme, the network capacity stops increasing for relatively small packet delivering capability limit Cmax for both allocation strategies. However, it reaches high values under the limited DDCA before the saturation. We also find that in the DDCA case, the network capacity remains constant when the traffic information available to each router was updated after long period times τ.

  15. Signal detection evidence for limited capacity in visual search

    PubMed Central

    Fencsik, David E.; Flusberg, Stephen J.; Horowitz, Todd S.; Wolfe, Jeremy M.

    2014-01-01

    The nature of capacity limits (if any) in visual search has been a topic of controversy for decades. In 30 years of work, researchers have attempted to distinguish between two broad classes of visual search models. Attention-limited models have proposed two stages of perceptual processing: an unlimited-capacity preattentive stage, and a limited-capacity selective attention stage. Conversely, noise-limited models have proposed a single, unlimited-capacity perceptual processing stage, with decision processes influenced only by stochastic noise. Here, we use signal detection methods to test a strong prediction of attention-limited models. In standard attention-limited models, performance of some searches (feature searches) should only be limited by a preattentive stage. Other search tasks (e.g., spatial configuration search for a “2” among “5”s) should be additionally limited by an attentional bottleneck. We equated average accuracies for a feature and a spatial configuration search over set sizes of 1–8 for briefly presented stimuli. The strong prediction of attention-limited models is that, given overall equivalence in performance, accuracy should be better on the spatial configuration search than on the feature search for set size 1, and worse for set size 8. We confirm this crossover interaction and show that it is problematic for at least one class of one-stage decision models. PMID:21901574

  16. Closed form expressions for ABER and capacity over EGK fading channel in presence of CCI

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, S. Pratap; Kumar, Sanjay

    2017-03-01

    Goal of next generation wireless communication system is to achieve very high data rate. Femto-cell is one of the possibilities to achieve the above target. However, co-channel interference (CCI) is the important concern in femto-cell. This paper presents closed form expressions for average bit error rate (ABER) and capacity for different adaptive schemes under extended generalised-K (EGK) fading channel in the presence of CCI. A novel conditional unified expression (CUE) is derived, which results different conditional error probability and normalised average capacity. Using CUE, a generic expression for ABER is obtained. In addition, closed form expressions for ABER for different modulation schemes under EGK fading channel in presence of CCI are also derived. Further, it is shown that generic ABER expression results into ABER of different modulation schemes. Besides, the closed form expressions of capacity for different adaptive schemes under EGK in presence of CCI are derived. Finally, analytical and simulated results are obtained with excellent agreement.

  17. Limited capacity for contour curvature in iconic memory.

    PubMed

    Sakai, Koji

    2006-06-01

    We measured the difference threshold for contour curvature in iconic memory by using the cued discrimination method. The study stimulus consisting of 2 to 6 curved contours was briefly presented in the fovea, followed by two lines as cues. Subjects discriminated the curvature of two cued curves. The cue delays were 0 msec. and 300 msec. in Exps. 1 and 2, respectively, and 50 msec. before the study offset in Exp. 3. Analysis of data from Exps. 1 and 2 showed that the Weber fraction rose monotonically with the increase in set size. Clear set-size effects indicate that iconic memory has a limited capacity. Moreover, clear set-size effect in Exp. 3 indicates that perception itself has a limited capacity. Larger set-size effects in Exp. 1 than in Exp. 3 suggest that iconic memory after perceptual process has limited capacity. These properties of iconic memory at threshold level are contradictory to the traditional view that iconic memory has a high capacity both at suprathreshold and categorical levels.

  18. Infinite capacity multi-server queue with second optional service channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ke, Jau-Chuan; Wu, Chia-Huang; Pearn, Wen Lea

    2013-02-01

    This paper deals with an infinite-capacity multi-server queueing system with a second optional service (SOS) channel. The inter-arrival times of arriving customers, the service times of the first essential service (FES) and the SOS channel are all exponentially distributed. A customer may leave the system after the FES channel with probability (1-θ), or at the completion of the FES may immediately require a SOS with probability θ (0 <= θ <= 1). The formulae for computing the rate matrix and stationary probabilities are derived by means of a matrix analytical approach. A cost model is developed to determine the optimal values of the number of servers and the two service rates, simultaneously, at the minimal total expected cost per unit time. Quasi-Newton method are employed to deal with the optimization problem. Under optimal operating conditions, numerical results are provided in which several system performance measures are calculated based on assumed numerical values of the system parameters.

  19. Dynamics of social contagions with limited contact capacity.

    PubMed

    Wang, Wei; Shu, Panpan; Zhu, Yu-Xiao; Tang, Ming; Zhang, Yi-Cheng

    2015-10-01

    Individuals are always limited by some inelastic resources, such as time and energy, which restrict them to dedicate to social interaction and limit their contact capacities. Contact capacity plays an important role in dynamics of social contagions, which so far has eluded theoretical analysis. In this paper, we first propose a non-Markovian model to understand the effects of contact capacity on social contagions, in which each adopted individual can only contact and transmit the information to a finite number of neighbors. We then develop a heterogeneous edge-based compartmental theory for this model, and a remarkable agreement with simulations is obtained. Through theory and simulations, we find that enlarging the contact capacity makes the network more fragile to behavior spreading. Interestingly, we find that both the continuous and discontinuous dependence of the final adoption size on the information transmission probability can arise. There is a crossover phenomenon between the two types of dependence. More specifically, the crossover phenomenon can be induced by enlarging the contact capacity only when the degree exponent is above a critical degree exponent, while the final behavior adoption size always grows continuously for any contact capacity when degree exponent is below the critical degree exponent.

  20. Shared filtering processes link attentional and visual short-term memory capacity limits.

    PubMed

    Bettencourt, Katherine C; Michalka, Samantha W; Somers, David C

    2011-09-30

    Both visual attention and visual short-term memory (VSTM) have been shown to have capacity limits of 4 ± 1 objects, driving the hypothesis that they share a visual processing buffer. However, these capacity limitations also show strong individual differences, making the degree to which these capacities are related unclear. Moreover, other research has suggested a distinction between attention and VSTM buffers. To explore the degree to which capacity limitations reflect the use of a shared visual processing buffer, we compared individual subject's capacities on attentional and VSTM tasks completed in the same testing session. We used a multiple object tracking (MOT) and a VSTM change detection task, with varying levels of distractors, to measure capacity. Significant correlations in capacity were not observed between the MOT and VSTM tasks when distractor filtering demands differed between the tasks. Instead, significant correlations were seen when the tasks shared spatial filtering demands. Moreover, these filtering demands impacted capacity similarly in both attention and VSTM tasks. These observations fail to support the view that visual attention and VSTM capacity limits result from a shared buffer but instead highlight the role of the resource demands of underlying processes in limiting capacity.

  1. Capacity limits in list item recognition: evidence from proactive interference.

    PubMed

    Cowan, Nelson; Johnson, Troy D; Saults, J Scott

    2005-01-01

    Capacity limits in short-term recall were investigated using proactive interference (PI) from previous lists in a speeded-recognition task. PI was taken to indicate that the target list length surpassed working memory capacity. Unlike previous studies, words were presented either concurrently or sequentially and a new method was introduced to increase the amount of PI. On average, participants retrieved about four items without PI. We suggest an activation-based account of capacity limits.

  2. The Mobility and Dispersal of Augmented Gravel in Upland Channels: a Knowledge-limited Practise in Supply-limited Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Downs, P. W.; Gilvear, D. J.

    2017-12-01

    Most river restoration research has been directed at rivers in the highly populated alluvial lowlands: significantly less is known about effectively rehabilitating upland channels, in part because the dynamics of sediment transfer are less well understood. Upland gravel augmentation is thus both a somewhat unproven method for rehabilitating degraded aquatic habitats in sediment-poor reaches, but also a natural experiment in better understanding sediment dynamics in steep, hydraulically-complex river channels. Monitoring on the River Avon in SW England since Water Year (WY) 2015 uses seismic impact plates, RFID-tagged particles and detailed channel bed mapping to establish the mobility rates of augmented particles, their dispersal distances and settling locations relative to flows received. Particles are highly, and equally, mobile: in WY2015, 17 sub-bankfull flows moved at least 60% of augmented particles with volumetric movement non-linearly correlated to flow energy but not to particle size. Waning rates of transport over the year suggest supply limitations. This relationship breaks down early in WY2017 where a two-year flow event moved 40% of the particles in just two months - confounding factors may include particle mass differences and particle supplies from upstream. Median particle travel distances correlate well to energy applied and suggest a long-tailed fan of dispersal with supplemental controls including channel curvature, boulder presence and stream power. Locally, particles are deposited preferentially around boulders and in sheltered river margins but also perched in clusters above the low-flow channel. High tracer mobility makes median transport distances highly dependent on the survey length - in WY2017 some particles travelled 300 m in a 3-month period that included the two-year flood event. Further, in WY2017 median transport distance as a function of volumetric transport suggested significant transport beyond the target reach. The observed

  3. Conditional cooling limit for a quantum channel going through an incoherent environment.

    PubMed

    Straka, Ivo; Miková, Martina; Mičuda, Michal; Dušek, Miloslav; Ježek, Miroslav; Filip, Radim

    2015-11-16

    We propose and experimentally verify a cooling limit for a quantum channel going through an incoherent environment. The environment consists of a large number of independent non-interacting and non-interfering elementary quantum systems--qubits. The qubits travelling through the channel can only be randomly replaced by environmental qubits. We investigate a conditional cooling limit that exploits an additional probing output. The limit specifies when the single-qubit channel is quantum, i.e. it preserves entanglement. It is a fundamental condition for entanglement-based quantum technology.

  4. Conditional cooling limit for a quantum channel going through an incoherent environment

    PubMed Central

    Straka, Ivo; Miková, Martina; Mičuda, Michal; Dušek, Miloslav; Ježek, Miroslav; Filip, Radim

    2015-01-01

    We propose and experimentally verify a cooling limit for a quantum channel going through an incoherent environment. The environment consists of a large number of independent non-interacting and non-interfering elementary quantum systems – qubits. The qubits travelling through the channel can only be randomly replaced by environmental qubits. We investigate a conditional cooling limit that exploits an additional probing output. The limit specifies when the single-qubit channel is quantum, i.e. it preserves entanglement. It is a fundamental condition for entanglement-based quantum technology. PMID:26568362

  5. Stability limits of unsteady open capillary channel flow

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grah, Aleksander; Haake, Dennis; Rosendahl, Uwe; Klatte, J.?Rg; Dreyer, Michael E.

    This paper is concerned with steady and unsteady flow rate limitations in open capillary channels under low-gravity conditions. Capillary channels are widely used in Space technology for liquid transportation and positioning, e.g. in fuel tanks and life support systems. The channel observed in this work consists of two parallel plates bounded by free liquid surfaces along the open sides. The capillary forces of the free surfaces prevent leaking of the liquid and gas ingestion into the flow.In the case of steady stable flow the capillary pressure balances the differential pressure between the liquid and the surrounding constant-pressure gas phase. Increasing the flow rate in small steps causes a decrease of the liquid pressure. A maximum steady flow rate is achieved when the flow rate exceeds a certain limit leading to a collapse of the free surfaces due to the choking effect. In the case of unsteady flow additional dynamic effects take place due to flow rate transition and liquid acceleration. The maximum flow rate is smaller than in the case of steady flow. On the other hand, the choking effect does not necessarily cause surface collapse and stable temporarily choked flow is possible under certain circumstances.To determine the limiting volumetric flow rate and stable flow dynamic properties, a new stability theory for both steady and unsteady flow is introduced. Subcritical and supercritical (choked) flow regimes are defined. Stability criteria are formulated for each flow type. The steady (subcritical) criterion corresponds to the speed index defined by the limiting longitudinal small-amplitude wave speed, similar to the Mach number. The unsteady (supercritical) criterion for choked flow is defined by a new characteristic number, the dynamic index. It is based on pressure balances and reaches unity at the stability limit.The unsteady model based on the Bernoulli equation and the mass balance equation is solved numerically for perfectly wetting incompressible

  6. Vegetative impacts upon bedload transport capacity and channel stability for differing alluvial planforms in the Yellow River source zone

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Zhi Wei; Yu, Guo An; Brierley, Gary; Wang, Zhao Yin

    2016-07-01

    The influence of vegetation upon bedload transport and channel morphodynamics is examined along a channel stability gradient ranging from meandering to anabranching to anabranching-braided to fully braided planform conditions along trunk and tributary reaches of the Upper Yellow River in western China. Although the regional geology and climate are relatively consistent across the study area, there is a distinct gradient in the presence and abundance of riparian vegetation for these reaches atop the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (elevations in the study area range from 2800 to 3400 m a.s.l.). To date, the influence of vegetative impacts upon channel planform and bedload transport capacity of alluvial reaches of the Upper Yellow River remains unclear because of a lack of hydrological and field data. In this region, the types and pattern of riparian vegetation vary with planform type as follows: trees exert the strongest influence in the anabranching reach, the meandering reach flows through meadow vegetation, the anabranching-braided reach has a grass, herb, and sparse shrub cover, and the braided reach has no riparian vegetation. A non-linear relation between vegetative cover on the valley floor and bedload transport capacity is evident, wherein bedload transport capacity is the highest for the anabranching reach, roughly followed by the anabranching-braided, braided, and meandering reaches. The relationship between the bedload transport capacity of a reach and sediment supply from upstream exerts a significant influence upon channel stability. Bedload transport capacity during the flood season (June-September) in the braided reach is much less than the rate of sediment supply, inducing bed aggradation and dynamic channel adjustments. Rates of channel adjustment are less pronounced for the anabranching-braided and anabranching reaches, while the meandering reach is relatively stable (i.e., this is a passive meandering reach).

  7. Adaptive limited feedback for interference alignment in MIMO interference channels.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yang; Zhao, Chenglin; Meng, Juan; Li, Shibao; Li, Li

    2016-01-01

    It is very important that the radar sensor network has autonomous capabilities such as self-managing, etc. Quite often, MIMO interference channels are applied to radar sensor networks, and for self-managing purpose, interference management in MIMO interference channels is critical. Interference alignment (IA) has the potential to dramatically improve system throughput by effectively mitigating interference in multi-user networks at high signal-to-noise (SNR). However, the implementation of IA predominantly relays on perfect and global channel state information (CSI) at all transceivers. A large amount of CSI has to be fed back to all transmitters, resulting in a proliferation of feedback bits. Thus, IA with limited feedback has been introduced to reduce the sum feedback overhead. In this paper, by exploiting the advantage of heterogeneous path loss, we first investigate the throughput of IA with limited feedback in interference channels while each user transmits multi-streams simultaneously, then we get the upper bound of sum rate in terms of the transmit power and feedback bits. Moreover, we propose a dynamic feedback scheme via bit allocation to reduce the throughput loss due to limited feedback. Simulation results demonstrate that the dynamic feedback scheme achieves better performance in terms of sum rate.

  8. Non-Markovianity and reservoir memory of quantum channels: a quantum information theory perspective

    PubMed Central

    Bylicka, B.; Chruściński, D.; Maniscalco, S.

    2014-01-01

    Quantum technologies rely on the ability to coherently transfer information encoded in quantum states along quantum channels. Decoherence induced by the environment sets limits on the efficiency of any quantum-enhanced protocol. Generally, the longer a quantum channel is the worse its capacity is. We show that for non-Markovian quantum channels this is not always true: surprisingly the capacity of a longer channel can be greater than of a shorter one. We introduce a general theoretical framework linking non-Markovianity to the capacities of quantum channels and demonstrate how harnessing non-Markovianity may improve the efficiency of quantum information processing and communication. PMID:25043763

  9. Capacity of optical communications over a lossy bosonic channel with a receiver employing the most general coherent electro-optic feedback control

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chung, Hye Won; Guha, Saikat; Zheng, Lizhong

    2017-07-01

    We study the problem of designing optical receivers to discriminate between multiple coherent states using coherent processing receivers—i.e., one that uses arbitrary coherent feedback control and quantum-noise-limited direct detection—which was shown by Dolinar to achieve the minimum error probability in discriminating any two coherent states. We first derive and reinterpret Dolinar's binary-hypothesis minimum-probability-of-error receiver as the one that optimizes the information efficiency at each time instant, based on recursive Bayesian updates within the receiver. Using this viewpoint, we propose a natural generalization of Dolinar's receiver design to discriminate M coherent states, each of which could now be a codeword, i.e., a sequence of N coherent states, each drawn from a modulation alphabet. We analyze the channel capacity of the pure-loss optical channel with a general coherent-processing receiver in the low-photon number regime and compare it with the capacity achievable with direct detection and the Holevo limit (achieving the latter would require a quantum joint-detection receiver). We show compelling evidence that despite the optimal performance of Dolinar's receiver for the binary coherent-state hypothesis test (either in error probability or mutual information), the asymptotic communication rate achievable by such a coherent-processing receiver is only as good as direct detection. This suggests that in the infinitely long codeword limit, all potential benefits of coherent processing at the receiver can be obtained by designing a good code and direct detection, with no feedback within the receiver.

  10. 49 CFR 179.13 - Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. 179... FOR TANK CARS General Design Requirements § 179.13 Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. Except as provided in this section, tank cars, built after November 30, 1970, or any existing tank cars...

  11. 49 CFR 179.13 - Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. 179... FOR TANK CARS General Design Requirements § 179.13 Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. Except as provided in this section, tank cars, built after November 30, 1970, or any existing tank cars...

  12. 49 CFR 179.13 - Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 2 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. 179... FOR TANK CARS General Design Requirements § 179.13 Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. Except as provided in this section, tank cars, built after November 30, 1970, or any existing tank cars...

  13. 49 CFR 179.13 - Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. 179... FOR TANK CARS General Design Requirements § 179.13 Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. Except as provided in this section, tank cars, built after November 30, 1970, or any existing tank cars...

  14. 49 CFR 179.13 - Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 49 Transportation 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. 179... FOR TANK CARS General Design Requirements § 179.13 Tank car capacity and gross weight limitation. Except as provided in this section, tank cars, built after November 30, 1970, or any existing tank cars...

  15. A mobile communication system providing integrated voice/data services over power limited satellite channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bose, Sanjay K.; Gordon, J. J.

    The modeling and analysis of a system providing integrated voice/data services to mobile terminals over a power-limited satellite channel are discussed. The mobiles use slotted Aloha random access to send requests for channel assignments to a central station. For successful requests, the actual transmission of voice/data within a call is done using the channel assigned for this purpose by the central station. The satellite channel is assumed to be power limited. Taking into account the known burstiness of voice sources (which use a voice-activated switch), the central station overassigns channels so that the average total power is below the power limit of the satellite transponder. The performance of this model is analyzed. Certain simple, static control strategies for improving performance are also proposed.

  16. Coherent-state constellations and polar codes for thermal Gaussian channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lacerda, Felipe; Renes, Joseph M.; Scholz, Volkher B.

    2017-06-01

    Optical communication channels are ultimately quantum mechanical in nature, and we must therefore look beyond classical information theory to determine their communication capacity as well as to find efficient encoding and decoding schemes of the highest rates. Thermal channels, which arise from linear coupling of the field to a thermal environment, are of particular practical relevance; their classical capacity has been recently established, but their quantum capacity remains unknown. While the capacity sets the ultimate limit on reliable communication rates, it does not promise that such rates are achievable by practical means. Here we construct efficiently encodable codes for thermal channels which achieve the classical capacity and the so-called Gaussian coherent information for transmission of classical and quantum information, respectively. Our codes are based on combining polar codes with a discretization of the channel input into a finite "constellation" of coherent states. Encoding of classical information can be done using linear optics.

  17. Error Rates and Channel Capacities in Multipulse PPM

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hamkins, Jon; Moision, Bruce

    2007-01-01

    A method of computing channel capacities and error rates in multipulse pulse-position modulation (multipulse PPM) has been developed. The method makes it possible, when designing an optical PPM communication system, to determine whether and under what conditions a given multipulse PPM scheme would be more or less advantageous, relative to other candidate modulation schemes. In conventional M-ary PPM, each symbol is transmitted in a time frame that is divided into M time slots (where M is an integer >1), defining an M-symbol alphabet. A symbol is represented by transmitting a pulse (representing 1) during one of the time slots and no pulse (representing 0 ) during the other M 1 time slots. Multipulse PPM is a generalization of PPM in which pulses are transmitted during two or more of the M time slots.

  18. Fundamental limits of repeaterless quantum communications

    PubMed Central

    Pirandola, Stefano; Laurenza, Riccardo; Ottaviani, Carlo; Banchi, Leonardo

    2017-01-01

    Quantum communications promises reliable transmission of quantum information, efficient distribution of entanglement and generation of completely secure keys. For all these tasks, we need to determine the optimal point-to-point rates that are achievable by two remote parties at the ends of a quantum channel, without restrictions on their local operations and classical communication, which can be unlimited and two-way. These two-way assisted capacities represent the ultimate rates that are reachable without quantum repeaters. Here, by constructing an upper bound based on the relative entropy of entanglement and devising a dimension-independent technique dubbed ‘teleportation stretching', we establish these capacities for many fundamental channels, namely bosonic lossy channels, quantum-limited amplifiers, dephasing and erasure channels in arbitrary dimension. In particular, we exactly determine the fundamental rate-loss tradeoff affecting any protocol of quantum key distribution. Our findings set the limits of point-to-point quantum communications and provide precise and general benchmarks for quantum repeaters. PMID:28443624

  19. Fundamental limits of repeaterless quantum communications.

    PubMed

    Pirandola, Stefano; Laurenza, Riccardo; Ottaviani, Carlo; Banchi, Leonardo

    2017-04-26

    Quantum communications promises reliable transmission of quantum information, efficient distribution of entanglement and generation of completely secure keys. For all these tasks, we need to determine the optimal point-to-point rates that are achievable by two remote parties at the ends of a quantum channel, without restrictions on their local operations and classical communication, which can be unlimited and two-way. These two-way assisted capacities represent the ultimate rates that are reachable without quantum repeaters. Here, by constructing an upper bound based on the relative entropy of entanglement and devising a dimension-independent technique dubbed 'teleportation stretching', we establish these capacities for many fundamental channels, namely bosonic lossy channels, quantum-limited amplifiers, dephasing and erasure channels in arbitrary dimension. In particular, we exactly determine the fundamental rate-loss tradeoff affecting any protocol of quantum key distribution. Our findings set the limits of point-to-point quantum communications and provide precise and general benchmarks for quantum repeaters.

  20. On the quantum-channel capacity for orbital angular momentum-based free-space optical communications.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yequn; Djordjevic, Ivan B; Gao, Xin

    2012-08-01

    Inspired by recent demonstrations of orbital angular momentum-(OAM)-based single-photon communications, we propose two quantum-channel models: (i) the multidimensional quantum-key distribution model and (ii) the quantum teleportation model. Both models employ operator-sum representation for Kraus operators derived from OAM eigenkets transition probabilities. These models are highly important for future development of quantum-error correction schemes to extend the transmission distance and improve date rates of OAM quantum communications. By using these models, we calculate corresponding quantum-channel capacities in the presence of atmospheric turbulence.

  1. Quantum limit of heat flow across a single electronic channel.

    PubMed

    Jezouin, S; Parmentier, F D; Anthore, A; Gennser, U; Cavanna, A; Jin, Y; Pierre, F

    2013-11-01

    Quantum physics predicts that there is a fundamental maximum heat conductance across a single transport channel and that this thermal conductance quantum, G(Q), is universal, independent of the type of particles carrying the heat. Such universality, combined with the relationship between heat and information, signals a general limit on information transfer. We report on the quantitative measurement of the quantum-limited heat flow for Fermi particles across a single electronic channel, using noise thermometry. The demonstrated agreement with the predicted G(Q) establishes experimentally this basic building block of quantum thermal transport. The achieved accuracy of below 10% opens access to many experiments involving the quantum manipulation of heat.

  2. An Isomorphism between Lyapunov Exponents and Shannon's Channel Capacity

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Friedland, Gerald; Metere, Alfredo

    We demonstrate that discrete Lyapunov exponents are isomorphic to numeric overflows of the capacity of an arbitrary noiseless and memoryless channel in a Shannon communication model with feedback. The isomorphism allows the understanding of Lyapunov exponents in terms of Information Theory, rather than the traditional definitions in chaos theory. The result also implies alternative approaches to the calculation of related quantities, such as the Kolmogorov Sinai entropy which has been linked to thermodynamic entropy. This work provides a bridge between fundamental physics and information theory. It suggests, among other things, that machine learning and other information theory methods can bemore » employed at the core of physics simulations.« less

  3. Limited communication capacity unveils strategies for human interaction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Miritello, Giovanna; Lara, Rubén; Cebrian, Manuel; Moro, Esteban

    2013-06-01

    Connectivity is the key process that characterizes the structural and functional properties of social networks. However, the bursty activity of dyadic interactions may hinder the discrimination of inactive ties from large interevent times in active ones. We develop a principled method to detect tie de-activation and apply it to a large longitudinal, cross-sectional communication dataset (~19 months, ~20 million people). Contrary to the perception of ever-growing connectivity, we observe that individuals exhibit a finite communication capacity, which limits the number of ties they can maintain active in time. On average men display higher capacity than women, and this capacity decreases for both genders over their lifespan. Separating communication capacity from activity reveals a diverse range of tie activation strategies, from stable to exploratory. This allows us to draw novel relationships between individual strategies for human interaction and the evolution of social networks at global scale.

  4. An information capacity limitation of visual short-term memory.

    PubMed

    Sewell, David K; Lilburn, Simon D; Smith, Philip L

    2014-12-01

    Research suggests that visual short-term memory (VSTM) has both an item capacity, of around 4 items, and an information capacity. We characterize the information capacity limits of VSTM using a task in which observers discriminated the orientation of a single probed item in displays consisting of 1, 2, 3, or 4 orthogonally oriented Gabor patch stimuli that were presented in noise for 50 ms, 100 ms, 150 ms, or 200 ms. The observed capacity limitations are well described by a sample-size model, which predicts invariance of ∑(i)(d'(i))² for displays of different sizes and linearity of (d'(i))² for displays of different durations. Performance was the same for simultaneous and sequentially presented displays, which implicates VSTM as the locus of the observed invariance and rules out explanations that ascribe it to divided attention or stimulus encoding. The invariance of ∑(i)(d'(i))² is predicted by the competitive interaction theory of Smith and Sewell (2013), which attributes it to the normalization of VSTM traces strengths arising from competition among stimuli entering VSTM. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

  5. 49 CFR 192.201 - Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... Design of Pipeline Components § 192.201 Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations. (a) Each pressure relief station or pressure limiting station or group of those stations installed to... 49 Transportation 3 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Required capacity of pressure relieving and...

  6. 49 CFR 192.201 - Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... Design of Pipeline Components § 192.201 Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations. (a) Each pressure relief station or pressure limiting station or group of those stations installed to... 49 Transportation 3 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Required capacity of pressure relieving and...

  7. 49 CFR 192.201 - Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... Design of Pipeline Components § 192.201 Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations. (a) Each pressure relief station or pressure limiting station or group of those stations installed to... 49 Transportation 3 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Required capacity of pressure relieving and...

  8. 49 CFR 192.201 - Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... Design of Pipeline Components § 192.201 Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations. (a) Each pressure relief station or pressure limiting station or group of those stations installed to... 49 Transportation 3 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Required capacity of pressure relieving and...

  9. Limited communication capacity unveils strategies for human interaction

    PubMed Central

    Miritello, Giovanna; Lara, Rubén; Cebrian, Manuel; Moro, Esteban

    2013-01-01

    Connectivity is the key process that characterizes the structural and functional properties of social networks. However, the bursty activity of dyadic interactions may hinder the discrimination of inactive ties from large interevent times in active ones. We develop a principled method to detect tie de-activation and apply it to a large longitudinal, cross-sectional communication dataset (≈19 months, ≈20 million people). Contrary to the perception of ever-growing connectivity, we observe that individuals exhibit a finite communication capacity, which limits the number of ties they can maintain active in time. On average men display higher capacity than women, and this capacity decreases for both genders over their lifespan. Separating communication capacity from activity reveals a diverse range of tie activation strategies, from stable to exploratory. This allows us to draw novel relationships between individual strategies for human interaction and the evolution of social networks at global scale. PMID:23739519

  10. Short-Term Memory Limitations in Children: Capacity or Processing Deficits?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Chi, Michelene T. H.

    1976-01-01

    Evaluates the assertion that short-term memory (STM) capacity increases with age and concludes that the STM capacity limitation in children is due to the deficits in the processing strategies and speeds, which presumably improve with age through cumulative learning. (JM) Available from: Memory and Cognition, Psychonomic Society, 1018 West 34…

  11. Flow rate limitation in open wedge channel under microgravity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wei, YueXing; Chen, XiaoQian; Huang, YiYong

    2013-08-01

    A study of flow rate limitation in an open wedge channel is reported in this paper. Under microgravity condition, the flow is controlled by the convection and the viscosity in the channel as well as the curvature of the liquid free surface. A maximum flow rate is achieved when the curvature cannot balance the pressure difference leading to a collapse of the free surface. A 1-dimensional theoretical model is used to predict the critical flow rate and calculate the shape of the free surface. Computational Fluid Dynamics tool is also used to simulate the phenomenon. Results show that the 1-dimensional model overestimates the critical flow rate because extra pressure loss is not included in the governing equation. Good agreement is found in 3-dimensional simulation results. Parametric study with different wedge angles and channel lengths show that the critical flow rate increases with increasing the cross section area; and decreases with increasing the channel length. The work in this paper can help understand the surface collapsing without gravity and for the design in propellant management devices in satellite tanks.

  12. Average capacity optimization in free-space optical communication system over atmospheric turbulence channels with pointing errors.

    PubMed

    Liu, Chao; Yao, Yong; Sun, Yun Xu; Xiao, Jun Jun; Zhao, Xin Hui

    2010-10-01

    A model is proposed to study the average capacity optimization in free-space optical (FSO) channels, accounting for effects of atmospheric turbulence and pointing errors. For a given transmitter laser power, it is shown that both transmitter beam divergence angle and beam waist can be tuned to maximize the average capacity. Meanwhile, their optimum values strongly depend on the jitter and operation wavelength. These results can be helpful for designing FSO communication systems.

  13. Channel-capacity gain in entanglement-assisted communication protocols based exclusively on linear optics, single-photon inputs, and coincidence photon counting

    DOE PAGES

    Lougovski, P.; Uskov, D. B.

    2015-08-04

    Entanglement can effectively increase communication channel capacity as evidenced by dense coding that predicts a capacity gain of 1 bit when compared to entanglement-free protocols. However, dense coding relies on Bell states and when implemented using photons the capacity gain is bounded by 0.585 bits due to one's inability to discriminate between the four optically encoded Bell states. In this research we study the following question: Are there alternative entanglement-assisted protocols that rely only on linear optics, coincidence photon counting, and separable single-photon input states and at the same time provide a greater capacity gain than 0.585 bits? In thismore » study, we show that besides the Bell states there is a class of bipartite four-mode two-photon entangled states that facilitate an increase in channel capacity. We also discuss how the proposed scheme can be generalized to the case of two-photon N-mode entangled states for N=6,8.« less

  14. LDPC-coded MIMO optical communication over the atmospheric turbulence channel using Q-ary pulse-position modulation.

    PubMed

    Djordjevic, Ivan B

    2007-08-06

    We describe a coded power-efficient transmission scheme based on repetition MIMO principle suitable for communication over the atmospheric turbulence channel, and determine its channel capacity. The proposed scheme employs the Q-ary pulse-position modulation. We further study how to approach the channel capacity limits using low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes. Component LDPC codes are designed using the concept of pairwise-balanced designs. Contrary to the several recent publications, bit-error rates and channel capacities are reported assuming non-ideal photodetection. The atmospheric turbulence channel is modeled using the Gamma-Gamma distribution function due to Al-Habash et al. Excellent bit-error rate performance improvement, over uncoded case, is found.

  15. Functional connectivity among multi-channel EEGs when working memory load reaches the capacity.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Dan; Zhao, Huipo; Bai, Wenwen; Tian, Xin

    2016-01-15

    Evidence from behavioral studies has suggested a capacity existed in working memory. As the concept of functional connectivity has been introduced into neuroscience research in the recent years, the aim of this study is to investigate the functional connectivity in the brain when working memory load reaches the capacity. 32-channel electroencephalographs (EEGs) were recorded for 16 healthy subjects, while they performed a visual working memory task with load 1-6. Individual working memory capacity was calculated according to behavioral results. Short-time Fourier transform was used to determine the principal frequency band (theta band) related to working memory. The functional connectivity among EEGs was measured by the directed transform function (DTF) via spectral Granger causal analysis. The capacity was 4 calculated from the behavioral results. The power was focused in the frontal midline region. The strongest connectivity strengths of EEG theta components from load 1 to 6 distributed in the frontal midline region. The curve of DTF values vs load numbers showed that DTF increased from load 1 to 4, peaked at load 4, then decreased after load 4. This study finds that the functional connectivity between EEGs, described quantitatively by DTF, became less strong when working memory load exceeded the capacity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Capacity and optimal collusion attack channels for Gaussian fingerprinting games

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Ying; Moulin, Pierre

    2007-02-01

    constraints. Under those constraints on the fingerprint embedder and the colluders, fingerprinting capacity is obtained as the solution of a mutual-information game involving probability density functions (pdf's) designed by the embedder and the colluders. We show that the optimal fingerprinting strategy is a Gaussian test channel where the fingerprinted signal is the sum of an attenuated version of the cover signal plus a Gaussian information-bearing noise, and the optimal collusion strategy is to average fingerprinted signals possessed by all the colluders and pass the averaged copy through a Gaussian test channel. The capacity result and the optimal strategies are the same for both the private and public games. In the former scenario, the original covertext is available to the decoder, while in the latter setup, the original covertext is available to the encoder but not to the decoder.

  17. Proton channel models

    PubMed Central

    Pupo, Amaury; Baez-Nieto, David; Martínez, Agustín; Latorre, Ramón; González, Carlos

    2014-01-01

    Voltage-gated proton channels are integral membrane proteins with the capacity to permeate elementary particles in a voltage and pH dependent manner. These proteins have been found in several species and are involved in various physiological processes. Although their primary topology is known, lack of details regarding their structures in the open conformation has limited analyses toward a deeper understanding of the molecular determinants of their function and regulation. Consequently, the function-structure relationships have been inferred based on homology models. In the present work, we review the existing proton channel models, their assumptions, predictions and the experimental facts that support them. Modeling proton channels is not a trivial task due to the lack of a close homolog template. Hence, there are important differences between published models. This work attempts to critically review existing proton channel models toward the aim of contributing to a better understanding of the structural features of these proteins. PMID:24755912

  18. Locus and persistence of capacity limitations in visual information processing.

    PubMed

    Kleiss, J A; Lane, D M

    1986-05-01

    Although there is considerable evidence that stimuli such as digits and letters are extensively processed in parallel and without capacity limitations, recent data suggest that only the features of stimuli are processed in parallel. In an attempt to reconcile this discrepancy, we used the simultaneous/successive detection paradigm with stimuli from experiments indicating parallel processing and with stimuli from experiments indicating that only features can be processed in parallel. In Experiment 1, large differences between simultaneous and successive presentations were obtained with an R target among P and Q distractors and among P and B distractors, but not with digit targets among letter distractors. As predicted by the feature integration theory of attention, false-alarm rates in the simultaneous condition were much higher than in the successive condition with the R/PQ stimuli. In Experiment 2, the possibility that attention is required for any difficult discrimination was ruled out as an explanation of the discrepancy between the digit/letter results and the R/PQ and R/PB results. Experiment 3A replicated the R/PQ and R/PB results of Experiment 1, and Experiment 3B extended these findings to a new set of stimuli. In Experiment 4, we found that large amounts of consistent practice did not generally eliminate capacity limitations. From this series of experiments we strongly conclude that the notion of capacity-free letter perception has limited generality.

  19. Electromagnetic limits to radiofrequency (RF) neuronal telemetry.

    PubMed

    Diaz, R E; Sebastian, T

    2013-12-18

    The viability of a radiofrequency (RF) telemetry channel for reporting individual neuron activity wirelessly from an embedded antenna to an external receiver is determined. Comparing the power at the transmitting antenna required for the desired Channel Capacity, to the maximum power that this antenna can dissipate in the body without altering or damaging surrounding tissue reveals the severe penalty incurred by miniaturization of the antenna. Using both Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) and thermal damage limits as constraints, and 300 Kbps as the required capacity for telemetry streams 100 ms in duration, the model shows that conventional antennas smaller than 0.1 mm could not support human neuronal telemetry to a remote receiver (1 m away.) Reducing the antenna to 10 microns in size to enable the monitoring of single human neuron signals to a receiver at the surface of the head would require operating with a channel capacity of only 0.3 bps.

  20. Closed-form Capacity Expressions for the α-μ Fading Channel with SC Diversity under Different Adaptive Transmission Strategies

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mohamed, Refaat; Ismail, Mahmoud H.; Newagy, Fatma; Mourad, Heba M.

    2013-03-01

    Stemming from the fact that the α-μ fading distribution is one of the very general fading models used in the literature to describe the small scale fading phenomenon, in this paper, closed-form expressions for the Shannon capacity of the α-μ fading channel operating under four main adaptive transmission strategies are derived assuming integer values for μ. These expressions are derived for the case of no diversity as well as for selection combining diversity with independent and identically distributed branches. The obtained expressions reduce to those previously derived in the literature for the Weibull as well as the Rayleigh fading cases, which are both special cases of the α-μ channel. Numerical results are presented for the capacity under the four adaptive transmission strategies and the effect of the fading parameter as well as the number of diversity branches is studied.

  1. Effects of capacity limits, memory loss, and sound type in change deafness.

    PubMed

    Gregg, Melissa K; Irsik, Vanessa C; Snyder, Joel S

    2017-11-01

    Change deafness, the inability to notice changes to auditory scenes, has the potential to provide insights about sound perception in busy situations typical of everyday life. We determined the extent to which change deafness to sounds is due to the capacity of processing multiple sounds and the loss of memory for sounds over time. We also determined whether these processing limitations work differently for varying types of sounds within a scene. Auditory scenes composed of naturalistic sounds, spectrally dynamic unrecognizable sounds, tones, and noise rhythms were presented in a change-detection task. On each trial, two scenes were presented that were same or different. We manipulated the number of sounds within each scene to measure memory capacity and the silent interval between scenes to measure memory loss. For all sounds, change detection was worse as scene size increased, demonstrating the importance of capacity limits. Change detection to the natural sounds did not deteriorate much as the interval between scenes increased up to 2,000 ms, but it did deteriorate substantially with longer intervals. For artificial sounds, in contrast, change-detection performance suffered even for very short intervals. The results suggest that change detection is generally limited by capacity, regardless of sound type, but that auditory memory is more enduring for sounds with naturalistic acoustic structures.

  2. Optimal superdense coding over memory channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Shadman, Z.; Kampermann, H.; Bruss, D.

    2011-10-15

    We study the superdense coding capacity in the presence of quantum channels with correlated noise. We investigate both the cases of unitary and nonunitary encoding. Pauli channels for arbitrary dimensions are treated explicitly. The superdense coding capacity for some special channels and resource states is derived for unitary encoding. We also provide an example of a memory channel where nonunitary encoding leads to an improvement in the superdense coding capacity.

  3. A Formal Model of Capacity Limits in Working Memory

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Oberauer, Klaus; Kliegl, Reinhold

    2006-01-01

    A mathematical model of working-memory capacity limits is proposed on the key assumption of mutual interference between items in working memory. Interference is assumed to arise from overwriting of features shared by these items. The model was fit to time-accuracy data of memory-updating tasks from four experiments using nonlinear mixed effect…

  4. Congestion patterns of electric vehicles with limited battery capacity.

    PubMed

    Jing, Wentao; Ramezani, Mohsen; An, Kun; Kim, Inhi

    2018-01-01

    The path choice behavior of battery electric vehicle (BEV) drivers is influenced by the lack of public charging stations, limited battery capacity, range anxiety and long battery charging time. This paper investigates the congestion/flow pattern captured by stochastic user equilibrium (SUE) traffic assignment problem in transportation networks with BEVs, where the BEV paths are restricted by their battery capacities. The BEV energy consumption is assumed to be a linear function of path length and path travel time, which addresses both path distance limit problem and road congestion effect. A mathematical programming model is proposed for the path-based SUE traffic assignment where the path cost is the sum of the corresponding link costs and a path specific out-of-energy penalty. We then apply the convergent Lagrangian dual method to transform the original problem into a concave maximization problem and develop a customized gradient projection algorithm to solve it. A column generation procedure is incorporated to generate the path set. Finally, two numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed model and the solution algorithm.

  5. Congestion patterns of electric vehicles with limited battery capacity

    PubMed Central

    2018-01-01

    The path choice behavior of battery electric vehicle (BEV) drivers is influenced by the lack of public charging stations, limited battery capacity, range anxiety and long battery charging time. This paper investigates the congestion/flow pattern captured by stochastic user equilibrium (SUE) traffic assignment problem in transportation networks with BEVs, where the BEV paths are restricted by their battery capacities. The BEV energy consumption is assumed to be a linear function of path length and path travel time, which addresses both path distance limit problem and road congestion effect. A mathematical programming model is proposed for the path-based SUE traffic assignment where the path cost is the sum of the corresponding link costs and a path specific out-of-energy penalty. We then apply the convergent Lagrangian dual method to transform the original problem into a concave maximization problem and develop a customized gradient projection algorithm to solve it. A column generation procedure is incorporated to generate the path set. Finally, two numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed model and the solution algorithm. PMID:29543875

  6. Activation of zero-error classical capacity in low-dimensional quantum systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Park, Jeonghoon; Heo, Jun

    2018-06-01

    Channel capacities of quantum channels can be nonadditive even if one of two quantum channels has no channel capacity. We call this phenomenon activation of the channel capacity. In this paper, we show that when we use a quantum channel on a qubit system, only a noiseless qubit channel can generate the activation of the zero-error classical capacity. In particular, we show that the zero-error classical capacity of two quantum channels on qubit systems cannot be activated. Furthermore, we present a class of examples showing the activation of the zero-error classical capacity in low-dimensional systems.

  7. Impact of limited solvent capacity on metabolic rate, enzyme activities, and metabolite concentrations of S. cerevisiae glycolysis.

    PubMed

    Vazquez, Alexei; de Menezes, Marcio A; Barabási, Albert-László; Oltvai, Zoltan N

    2008-10-01

    The cell's cytoplasm is crowded by its various molecular components, resulting in a limited solvent capacity for the allocation of new proteins, thus constraining various cellular processes such as metabolism. Here we study the impact of the limited solvent capacity constraint on the metabolic rate, enzyme activities, and metabolite concentrations using a computational model of Saccharomyces cerevisiae glycolysis as a case study. We show that given the limited solvent capacity constraint, the optimal enzyme activities and the metabolite concentrations necessary to achieve a maximum rate of glycolysis are in agreement with their experimentally measured values. Furthermore, the predicted maximum glycolytic rate determined by the solvent capacity constraint is close to that measured in vivo. These results indicate that the limited solvent capacity is a relevant constraint acting on S. cerevisiae at physiological growth conditions, and that a full kinetic model together with the limited solvent capacity constraint can be used to predict both metabolite concentrations and enzyme activities in vivo.

  8. Impact of Limited Solvent Capacity on Metabolic Rate, Enzyme Activities, and Metabolite Concentrations of S. cerevisiae Glycolysis

    PubMed Central

    Vazquez, Alexei; de Menezes, Marcio A.; Barabási, Albert-László; Oltvai, Zoltan N.

    2008-01-01

    The cell's cytoplasm is crowded by its various molecular components, resulting in a limited solvent capacity for the allocation of new proteins, thus constraining various cellular processes such as metabolism. Here we study the impact of the limited solvent capacity constraint on the metabolic rate, enzyme activities, and metabolite concentrations using a computational model of Saccharomyces cerevisiae glycolysis as a case study. We show that given the limited solvent capacity constraint, the optimal enzyme activities and the metabolite concentrations necessary to achieve a maximum rate of glycolysis are in agreement with their experimentally measured values. Furthermore, the predicted maximum glycolytic rate determined by the solvent capacity constraint is close to that measured in vivo. These results indicate that the limited solvent capacity is a relevant constraint acting on S. cerevisiae at physiological growth conditions, and that a full kinetic model together with the limited solvent capacity constraint can be used to predict both metabolite concentrations and enzyme activities in vivo. PMID:18846199

  9. Alveolar-Membrane Diffusing Capacity Limits Performance in Boston Marathon Qualifiers

    PubMed Central

    Lavin, Kaleen M.; Straub, Allison M.; Uhranowsky, Kathleen A.; Smoliga, James M.; Zavorsky, Gerald S.

    2012-01-01

    Purpose (1) to examine the relation between pulmonary diffusing capacity and marathon finishing time, and (2), to evaluate the accuracy of pulmonary diffusing capacity for nitric oxide (DLNO) in predicting marathon finishing time relative to that of pulmonary diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DLCO). Methods 28 runners [18 males, age = 37 (SD 9) years, body mass = 70 (13) kg, height = 173 (9) cm, percent body fat = 17 (7) %] completed a test battery consisting of measurement of DLNO and DLCO at rest, and a graded exercise test to determine running economy and aerobic capacity prior to the 2011 Steamtown Marathon (Scranton, PA). One to three weeks later, all runners completed the marathon (range: 2∶22:38 to 4∶48:55). Linear regressions determined the relation between finishing time and a variety of anthropometric characteristics, resting lung function variables, and exercise parameters. Results In runners meeting Boston Marathon qualification standards, 74% of the variance in marathon finishing time was accounted for by differences in DLNO relative to body surface area (BSA) (SEE = 11.8 min, p<0.01); however, the relation between DLNO or DLCO to finishing time was non-significant in the non-qualifiers (p = 0.14 to 0.46). Whereas both DLCO and DLNO were predictive of finishing time for all finishers, DLNO showed a stronger relation (r2 = 0.30, SEE = 33.4 min, p<0.01) compared to DLCO when considering BSA. Conclusion DLNO is a performance-limiting factor in only Boston qualifiers. This suggests that alveolar-capillary membrane conductance is a limitation to performance in faster marathoners. Additionally, DLNO/BSA predicts marathon finishing time and aerobic capacity more accurately than DLCO. PMID:22984520

  10. The effect of working memory capacity limitations on the intuitive assessment of correlation: amplification, attenuation, or both?

    PubMed

    Cahan, Sorel; Mor, Yaniv

    2007-03-01

    This article challenges Yaakov Kareev's (1995a, 2000) argument regarding the positive bias of intuitive correlation estimates due to working memory capacity limitations and its adaptive value. The authors show that, under narrow window theory's primacy effect assumption, there is a considerable between-individual variability of the effects of capacity limitations on the intuitive assessment of correlation, in terms of both sign and magnitude: Limited capacity acts as an amplifier for some individuals and as a silencer for others. Furthermore, the average amount of attenuation exceeds the average amount of amplification, and the more so, the smaller the capacity. Implications regarding the applicability and contribution of the bias notion in this context and the evaluation of the adaptive value of capacity limitations are discussed.

  11. Frequency bandwidth limitation of external pulse electric fields in cylindrical micro-channel electrophoresis with analyte velocity modulation.

    PubMed

    Wang, Shau-Chun; Chen, Hsiao-Ping; Lee, Chia-Yu; Yeo, Leslie Y

    2005-04-15

    In capillary electrophoresis, effective optical signal quality improvement is obtained when high frequency (>100 Hz) external pulse fields modulate analyte velocities with synchronous lock-in detection. However, the pulse frequency is constrained under a critical value corresponding to the time required for the bulk viscous flow, which arises due to viscous momentum diffusion from the electro-osmotic slip in the Debye layer, to reach steady-state. By solving the momentum diffusion equation for transient bulk flow in the micro-channel, we show that this set-in time to steady-state and hence, the upper limit for the pulse frequency is dependent on the characteristic diffusion length scale and therefore the channel geometry; for cylindrical capillaries, the set-in time is approximately one half of that for rectangular slot channels. From our estimation of the set-in time and hence the upper frequency modulation limit, we propose that the half width of planar channels does not exceed 100 microm and that the radii of cylindrical channels be limited to 140 microm such that there is a finite working bandwidth range above 100 Hz and below the upper limit in order for flicker noise to be effectively suppressed.

  12. Limiting solubilizing capacity of some nonionic surfactants

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wan, L.S.C.

    1980-12-01

    This report gives an account of the attempts to solubilize corn oil. A fixed quantity of corn oil or oily dispersion containing corn oil and a sorbitan ester was added to a series of 25 ml of polysorbate solutions of increasing concentration. This investigation showed that corn oil is not solubilized by either aqueous solutions of polyoxyethylene sorbitan esters or by a combination of these surfactants with sorbitan esters. The findings suggest that nonionic surfactants of the polyoxyethylene sorbitan ester type as well as the sorbitan esters have limiting capacities to solubilize extremely hydrophobic substances such as corn oil. 19more » references.« less

  13. High Performance Asynchronous Limited Sensing Algorithms for CSMA and CSMA-CD Channels.

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1985-03-01

    for CSM and CSMA-CD Channels" M. Geargiopoulos L. Merakos P. Papantoni-Kazakos- Technical Report UCT/ DEECS /TR-85-2 Mrh1985 iDISTRIBUTION STAEmEN 2j C...Perforance Asynchronous Limited Sensing Algoit~5 forCSMAandCSMA-CD Channels" M1. Georgiop0 ul 0 5 L. Merakos P. PaPantoni-.Kazakos Technical Report UCT/ DEECS ...SCHEDULE unlimited. 4 PERFORMING ORGANiZATION REPORT NUMBERIS) 5. MONITORING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBERIS" UCT/ DEECS /TR-85-2 SR-TR. 85-0 398 6& NAME OF

  14. Super-channel oriented routing, spectrum and core assignment under crosstalk limit in spatial division multiplexing elastic optical networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, Yongli; Zhu, Ye; Wang, Chunhui; Yu, Xiaosong; Liu, Chuan; Liu, Binglin; Zhang, Jie

    2017-07-01

    With the capacity increasing in optical networks enabled by spatial division multiplexing (SDM) technology, spatial division multiplexing elastic optical networks (SDM-EONs) attract much attention from both academic and industry. Super-channel is an important type of service provisioning in SDM-EONs. This paper focuses on the issue of super-channel construction in SDM-EONs. Mixed super-channel oriented routing, spectrum and core assignment (MS-RSCA) algorithm is proposed in SDM-EONs considering inter-core crosstalk. Simulation results show that MS-RSCA can improve spectrum resource utilization and reduce blocking probability significantly compared with the baseline RSCA algorithms.

  15. 49 CFR 192.201 - Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... Design of Pipeline Components § 192.201 Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations. (a) Each pressure relief station or pressure limiting station or group of those stations installed to... part of the pipeline or distribution system in excess of those for which it was designed, or against...

  16. Managing fleet capacity effectively under second-hand market redistribution.

    PubMed

    Quillérou, Emmanuelle; Roudaut, Nolwenn; Guyader, Olivier

    2013-09-01

    Fishing capacity management policies have been traditionally implemented at national level with national targets for capacity reduction. More recently, capacity management policies have increasingly targeted specific fisheries. French fisheries spatially vary along the French coastline and are associated to specific regions. Capacity management policies, however, ignore the capital mobility associated with second-hand vessel trade between regions. This is not an issue for national policies but could limit the effectiveness of regional capacity management policies. A gravity model and a random-effect Poisson regression model are used to analyze the determinants and spatial extent of the second-hand market in France. This study is based on panel data from the French Atlantic Ocean between 1992 and 2009. The trade flows between trading partners is found to increase with their sizes and to be spatially concentrated. Despite the low trade flows between regions, a net impact analysis shows that fishing capacity is redistributed by the second-hand market to regions on the Channel and Aquitaine from central regions. National capacity management policies (constructions/destructions) have induced a net decrease in regional fleet capacity with varying magnitude across regions. Unless there is a change of policy instruments or their scale of implementation, the operation of the second-hand market decreases the effectiveness of regional capacity management policies in regions on the Channel and Aquitaine.

  17. Thermodynamic limitations on the temperature sensitivity of cell-membrane ion channels: Trouble with enthalpy uncertainty

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zheltikov, A. M.

    2018-06-01

    Energy exchange between a thermodynamic ensemble of heat- and cold-activated cell-membrane ion channels and the surrounding heat reservoir is shown to impose fundamental limitations on the performance of such channels as temperature-controlled gates for thermal cell activation. Analysis of unavoidable thermodynamic internal-energy fluctuations caused by energy exchange between the ion channels and the heat bath suggests that the resulting enthalpy uncertainty is too high for a robust ion-current gating by a single ion channel, implying that large ensembles of ion channels are needed for thermal cell activation. We argue, based on this thermodynamic analysis, that, had thermosensitive cell-membrane ion channels operated individually, rather than as large ensembles, robust thermal cell activation would have been impossible because of thermodynamic fluctuations.

  18. Some characteristics of the international space channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Noack, T. L.; Poland, W. B., Jr.

    1975-01-01

    Some physical characteristics of radio transmission links and the technology of PCM modulation combine with the Radio Regulations of the International Telecommunications Union to define a communications channel having a determinable channel capacity, error rate, and sensitivity to interference. These characteristics and the corresponding limitations on EIRP, power flux density, and power spectral density for space service applications are described. The ITU regulations create a critical height of 1027 km where some parameters of the limitation rules change. The nature of restraints on power spectral density are discussed and an approach to a standardized representation of Necessary Bandwidth for the Space Services is described. It is shown that, given the PFD (power flux density) and PSD (power spectral density) limitations of radio regulations, the channel performance is determined by the ratio of effective receiving antenna aperture to system noise temperature. Based on this approach, the method for a quantitative trade-off between spectrum spreading and system performance is presented. Finally, the effects of radio frequency interference between standard systems is analyzed.

  19. APPLIED OPTICS. Overcoming Kerr-induced capacity limit in optical fiber transmission.

    PubMed

    Temprana, E; Myslivets, E; Kuo, B P-P; Liu, L; Ataie, V; Alic, N; Radic, S

    2015-06-26

    Nonlinear optical response of silica imposes a fundamental limit on the information transfer capacity in optical fibers. Communication beyond this limit requires higher signal power and suppression of nonlinear distortions to prevent irreversible information loss. The nonlinear interaction in silica is a deterministic phenomenon that can, in principle, be completely reversed. However, attempts to remove the effects of nonlinear propagation have led to only modest improvements, and the precise physical mechanism preventing nonlinear cancellation remains unknown. We demonstrate that optical carrier stability plays a critical role in canceling Kerr-induced distortions and that nonlinear wave interaction in silica can be substantially reverted if optical carriers possess a sufficient degree of mutual coherence. These measurements indicate that fiber information capacity can be notably increased over previous estimates. Copyright © 2015, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  20. Discrete capacity limits and neuroanatomical correlates of visual short-term memory for objects and spatial locations.

    PubMed

    Konstantinou, Nikos; Constantinidou, Fofi; Kanai, Ryota

    2017-02-01

    Working memory is responsible for keeping information in mind when it is no longer in view, linking perception with higher cognitive functions. Despite such crucial role, short-term maintenance of visual information is severely limited. Research suggests that capacity limits in visual short-term memory (VSTM) are correlated with sustained activity in distinct brain areas. Here, we investigated whether variability in the structure of the brain is reflected in individual differences of behavioral capacity estimates for spatial and object VSTM. Behavioral capacity estimates were calculated separately for spatial and object information using a novel adaptive staircase procedure and were found to be unrelated, supporting domain-specific VSTM capacity limits. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analyses revealed dissociable neuroanatomical correlates of spatial versus object VSTM. Interindividual variability in spatial VSTM was reflected in the gray matter density of the inferior parietal lobule. In contrast, object VSTM was reflected in the gray matter density of the left insula. These dissociable findings highlight the importance of considering domain-specific estimates of VSTM capacity and point to the crucial brain regions that limit VSTM capacity for different types of visual information. Hum Brain Mapp 38:767-778, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  1. Resonantly pumped single-mode channel waveguide Er:YAG laser with nearly quantum defect limited efficiency.

    PubMed

    Ter-Gabrielyan, N; Fromzel, V; Mu, X; Meissner, H; Dubinskii, M

    2013-07-15

    We demonstrated the continuous-wave operation of a resonantly pumped Er:YAG single-mode channel waveguide laser with diffraction-limited output and nearly quantum defect limited efficiency. Using a longitudinally core-pumped, nearly square (61.2 μm×61.6 μm) Er3+:YAG waveguide embedded in an undoped YAG cladding, an output power of 9.1 W with a slope efficiency of 92.8% (versus absorbed pump power) has been obtained. To the best of our knowledge, this optical-to-optical efficiency is the highest ever demonstrated for a channel waveguide laser.

  2. Quantum Limits of Space-to-Ground Optical Communications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hemmati, H.; Dolinar, S.

    2012-01-01

    For a pure loss channel, the ultimate capacity can be achieved with classical coherent states (i.e., ideal laser light): (1) Capacity-achieving receiver (measurement) is yet to be determined. (2) Heterodyne detection approaches the ultimate capacity at high mean photon numbers. (3) Photon-counting approaches the ultimate capacity at low mean photon numbers. A number of current technology limits drive the achievable performance of free-space communication links. Approaching fundamental limits in the bandwidth-limited regime: (1) Heterodyne detection with high-order coherent-state modulation approaches ultimate limits. SOA improvements to laser phase noise, adaptive optics systems for atmospheric transmission would help. (2) High-order intensity modulation and photon-counting can approach heterodyne detection within approximately a factor of 2. This may have advantages over coherent detection in the presence of turbulence. Approaching fundamental limits in the photon-limited regime (1) Low-duty cycle binary coherent-state modulation (OOK, PPM) approaches ultimate limits. SOA improvements to laser extinction ratio, receiver dark noise, jitter, and blocking would help. (2) In some link geometries (near field links) number-state transmission could improve over coherent-state transmission

  3. An efficient protocol for providing integrated voice/data services to mobiles over power-limited satellite channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bose, Sanjay K.

    1991-02-01

    Various mobile satellite communication systems are being developed for providing integrated voice/data services over a shared satellite transponder which is power-limited in nature. A common strategy is to use slotted ALOHA request channels to request channel assignments for voice/data calls from a network management station. To maximize efficiency in a system with a power-limited satellite transponder, it is proposed that the bursty nature of voice sources be exploited by the NMS to 'over-assign' channels. This may cause problems of inefficiency and potential instability, as well as a degradation in the quality of service. Augmenting this with the introduction of simple state-dependent control procedures provides systems which exhibit more desirable operational features.

  4. Nonadditivity of quantum and classical capacities for entanglement breaking multiple-access channels and the butterfly network

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Grudka, Andrzej; National Quantum Information Centre of Gdansk, PL-81-824 Sopot; Horodecki, Pawel

    2010-06-15

    We analyze quantum network primitives which are entanglement breaking. We show superadditivity of quantum and classical capacity regions for quantum multiple-access channels and the quantum butterfly network. Since the effects are especially visible at high noise they suggest that quantum information effects may be particularly helpful in the case of the networks with occasional high noise rates. The present effects provide a qualitative borderline between superadditivities of bipartite and multipartite systems.

  5. Flow reversal and thermal limit in a heated rectangular channel

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cheng, L.Y.; Tichler, P.R.; Yang, B.W.

    The thermal limit in a vertical rectangular channel was determined in a series of experiments whereby the internal coolant underwent a change in flow direction from forced downflow to upward natural circulation. The tests were designed to simulate the flow reversal transient in the High Flux Beam Reactor. A number of parameters were varied in the flow reversal experiments to examine their effects on the thermal limit. Among the parameters varied were the rate of flow coastdown, inlet subcooling, water level in the upper plenum, bypass ratio (ratio of initial flow through the heated section to initial flow through themore » bypass orifice), and single- verses double-sided heating.« less

  6. Frequency Reuse, Cell Separation, and Capacity Analysis of VHF Digital Link Mode 3 TDMA

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Shamma, Mohammed A.; Nguyen, Thanh C.; Apaza, Rafael D.

    2003-01-01

    The most recent studies by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the aviation industry have indicated that it has become increasingly difficult to make new VHF frequency or channel assignments to meet the aviation needs for air-ground communications. FAA has planned for several aggressive improvement measures to the existing systems, but these measures would not meet the projected voice communications needs beyond 2009. FAA found that since 1974 there has been, on the average, a 4 percent annual increase in the number of channel assignments needed to satisfy the air-ground communication traffic (approximately 300 new channel assignments per year). With the planned improvement measures, the channel assignments are expected to reach a maximum number of 16615 channels by about 2010. Hence, the FAA proposed the use of VDL Mode 3 as a new integrated digital voice and data communications systems to meet the future air traffic demand. This paper presents analytical results of frequency reuse; cell separation and capacity estimation of VDL Mode 3 TDMA systems that FAA has planned to implement the future VHF air-ground communications system by the year 2010. For TDMA, it is well understood that the frequency reuse factor is a crucial parameter for capacity estimation. Formulation of this frequency reuse factor is shown, taking into account the limitation imposed by the requirement to have a sufficient Signal to Co-Channel Interference Ratio. Several different values for the Signal to Co-Channel Interference Ratio were utilized corresponding to the current analog VHF DSB-AM systems, and the future digital VDL Mode 3. The required separation of Co-Channel cells is computed for most of the Frequency Protected Service Volumes (FPSV's) currently in use by the FAA. Additionally, the ideal cell capacity for each FPSV is presented. Also, using actual traffic for the Detroit air space, a FPSV traffic distribution model is used to generate a typical cell for channel capacity

  7. Common capacity-limited neural mechanisms of selective attention and spatial working memory encoding

    PubMed Central

    Fusser, Fabian; Linden, David E J; Rahm, Benjamin; Hampel, Harald; Haenschel, Corinna; Mayer, Jutta S

    2011-01-01

    One characteristic feature of visual working memory (WM) is its limited capacity, and selective attention has been implicated as limiting factor. A possible reason why attention constrains the number of items that can be encoded into WM is that the two processes share limited neural resources. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have indeed demonstrated commonalities between the neural substrates of WM and attention. Here we investigated whether such overlapping activations reflect interacting neural mechanisms that could result in capacity limitations. To independently manipulate the demands on attention and WM encoding within one single task, we combined visual search and delayed discrimination of spatial locations. Participants were presented with a search array and performed easy or difficult visual search in order to encode one, three or five positions of target items into WM. Our fMRI data revealed colocalised activation for attention-demanding visual search and WM encoding in distributed posterior and frontal regions. However, further analysis yielded two patterns of results. Activity in prefrontal regions increased additively with increased demands on WM and attention, indicating regional overlap without functional interaction. Conversely, the WM load-dependent activation in visual, parietal and premotor regions was severely reduced during high attentional demand. We interpret this interaction as indicating the sites of shared capacity-limited neural resources. Our findings point to differential contributions of prefrontal and posterior regions to the common neural mechanisms that support spatial WM encoding and attention, providing new imaging evidence for attention-based models of WM encoding. PMID:21781193

  8. 77 FR 33972 - Channel Spacing and Bandwidth Limitations for Certain Economic Area (EA)-based 800 MHz...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-06-08

    ... Nextel reports it will incorporate its 800 MHz SMR spectrum into its CDMA network and forthcoming LTE... LTE because of the channel spacing and bandwidth limitation in Sec. 90.209 of the Commission's rules... other wireless carriers are deploying LTE using 10 megahertz or 20 megahertz channel pairs. Specifically...

  9. Channel sialic acids limit hERG channel activity during the ventricular action potential.

    PubMed

    Norring, Sarah A; Ednie, Andrew R; Schwetz, Tara A; Du, Dongping; Yang, Hui; Bennett, Eric S

    2013-02-01

    Activity of human ether-a-go-go-related gene (hERG) 1 voltage-gated K(+) channels is responsible for portions of phase 2 and phase 3 repolarization of the human ventricular action potential. Here, we questioned whether and how physiologically and pathophysiologically relevant changes in surface N-glycosylation modified hERG channel function. Voltage-dependent hERG channel gating and activity were evaluated as expressed in a set of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell lines under conditions of full glycosylation, no sialylation, no complex N-glycans, and following enzymatic deglycosylation of surface N-glycans. For each condition of reduced glycosylation, hERG channel steady-state activation and inactivation relationships were shifted linearly by significant depolarizing ∼9 and ∼18 mV, respectively. The hERG window current increased significantly by 50-150%, and the peak shifted by a depolarizing ∼10 mV. There was no significant change in maximum hERG current density. Deglycosylated channels were significantly more active (20-80%) than glycosylated controls during phases 2 and 3 of action potential clamp protocols. Simulations of hERG current and ventricular action potentials corroborated experimental data and predicted reduced sialylation leads to a 50-70-ms decrease in action potential duration. The data describe a novel mechanism by which hERG channel gating is modulated through physiologically and pathophysiologically relevant changes in N-glycosylation; reduced channel sialylation increases hERG channel activity during the action potential, thereby increasing the rate of action potential repolarization.

  10. Acoustic MIMO communications in a very shallow water channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, Yuehai; Cao, Xiuling; Tong, Feng

    2015-12-01

    Underwater acoustic channels pose significant difficulty for the development of high speed communication due to highly limited band-width as well as hostile multipath interference. Enlightened by rapid progress of multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technologies in wireless communication scenarios, MIMO systems offer a potential solution by enabling multiple spatially parallel communication channels to improve communication performance as well as capacity. For MIMO acoustic communications, deep sea channels offer substantial spatial diversity among multiple channels that can be exploited to address simultaneous multipath and co-channel interference. At the same time, there are increasing requirements for high speed underwater communication in very shallow water area (for example, a depth less than 10 m). In this paper, a space-time multichannel adaptive receiver consisting of multiple decision feedback equalizers (DFE) is adopted as the receiver for a very shallow water MIMO acoustic communication system. The performance of multichannel DFE receivers with relatively small number of receiving elements are analyzed and compared with that of the multichannel time reversal receiver to evaluate the impact of limited spatial diversity on multi-channel equalization and time reversal processing. The results of sea trials in a very shallow water channel are presented to demonstrate the feasibility of very shallow water MIMO acoustic communication.

  11. Capacity Maximizing Constellations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged; Jones, Christopher

    2010-01-01

    Some non-traditional signal constellations have been proposed for transmission of data over the Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN) channel using such channel-capacity-approaching codes as low-density parity-check (LDPC) or turbo codes. Computational simulations have shown performance gains of more than 1 dB over traditional constellations. These gains could be translated to bandwidth- efficient communications, variously, over longer distances, using less power, or using smaller antennas. The proposed constellations have been used in a bit-interleaved coded modulation system employing state-ofthe-art LDPC codes. In computational simulations, these constellations were shown to afford performance gains over traditional constellations as predicted by the gap between the parallel decoding capacity of the constellations and the Gaussian capacity

  12. A shared, flexible neural map architecture reflects capacity limits in both visual short-term memory and enumeration.

    PubMed

    Knops, André; Piazza, Manuela; Sengupta, Rakesh; Eger, Evelyn; Melcher, David

    2014-07-23

    Human cognition is characterized by severe capacity limits: we can accurately track, enumerate, or hold in mind only a small number of items at a time. It remains debated whether capacity limitations across tasks are determined by a common system. Here we measure brain activation of adult subjects performing either a visual short-term memory (vSTM) task consisting of holding in mind precise information about the orientation and position of a variable number of items, or an enumeration task consisting of assessing the number of items in those sets. We show that task-specific capacity limits (three to four items in enumeration and two to three in vSTM) are neurally reflected in the activity of the posterior parietal cortex (PPC): an identical set of voxels in this region, commonly activated during the two tasks, changed its overall response profile reflecting task-specific capacity limitations. These results, replicated in a second experiment, were further supported by multivariate pattern analysis in which we could decode the number of items presented over a larger range during enumeration than during vSTM. Finally, we simulated our results with a computational model of PPC using a saliency map architecture in which the level of mutual inhibition between nodes gives rise to capacity limitations and reflects the task-dependent precision with which objects need to be encoded (high precision for vSTM, lower precision for enumeration). Together, our work supports the existence of a common, flexible system underlying capacity limits across tasks in PPC that may take the form of a saliency map. Copyright © 2014 the authors 0270-6474/14/349857-10$15.00/0.

  13. The frontal eye fields limit the capacity of visual short-term memory in rhesus monkeys.

    PubMed

    Lee, Kyoung-Min; Ahn, Kyung-Ha

    2013-01-01

    The frontal eye fields (FEF) in rhesus monkeys have been implicated in visual short-term memory (VSTM) as well as control of visual attention. Here we examined the importance of the area in the VSTM capacity and the relationship between VSTM and attention, using the chemical inactivation technique and multi-target saccade tasks with or without the need of target-location memory. During FEF inactivation, serial saccades to targets defined by color contrast were unaffected, but saccades relying on short-term memory were impaired when the target count was at the capacity limit of VSTM. The memory impairment was specific to the FEF-coded retinotopic locations, and subject to competition among targets distributed across visual fields. These results together suggest that the FEF plays a crucial role during the entry of information into VSTM, by enabling attention deployment on targets to be remembered. In this view, the memory capacity results from the limited availability of attentional resources provided by FEF: The FEF can concurrently maintain only a limited number of activations to register the targets into memory. When lesions render part of the area unavailable for activation, the number would decrease, further reducing the capacity of VSTM.

  14. Open area 2 × 2 MIMO channel model for 2 GHz low-elevation links with diversity and capacity applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zelený, J.; Pérez-Fontán, F.; Pechac, P.; Mariño-Espiñeira, P.

    2017-05-01

    In civil surveillance applications, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) are being increasingly used in floods, fires, and law enforcement scenarios. In order to transfer large amounts of information from UAV-mounted cameras, relays, or sensors, large bandwidths are needed in comparison to those required for remotely commanding the UAV. This demands the use of higher-frequency bands, in all probability in the vicinity of 2 or 5 GHz. Novel hardware developments need propagation channel models for the ample range of operational scenarios envisaged, including multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) deployments. These configurations may enable a more robust transmission by increasing either the carrier-to-noise ratio statistics or the achievable capacity. In this paper, a 2 × 2 MIMO propagation channel model for an open-field environment capable of synthesizing a narrowband time series at 2 GHz is described. Maximal ratio combining diversity and capacity improvements are also evaluated through synthetic series and compared with measurement results. A simple flat, open scenario was evaluated based on which other, more complex environments can be modeled.

  15. Modem Characterization Through a Wideband, Hard-Limited Ka-Band Satellite Channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Reinhart, Richard C.; Ivancic, William; Tanger, Tom; Cronon, Chris; Lee, Donald; Kifer, David R.

    1999-01-01

    NASA is using a commercial customized TDMA/FDMA bandwidth on demand modem for use with the Advanced Communications Technology Satellite (ACTS) to highlight the numerous services and experiments that can be performed using small Ka-Band terminals. Characterizing the modems proved challenging due to the characteristics of the satellite transponder. The ACTS channel is hard-limited and up to 900 MHz wide. The channel has some unusual dynamic properties due to the satellite and antenna system, which make modem testing through the satellite challenging and the test requirements stringent. The satellite Multi-Beam Antenna (MBA) has a 1 hertz oscillation induced by the momentum wheel, which causes the transmit antenna pattern to move slightly. This results in a 1 hertz oscillation in the ground station receive power, with amplitude changes up to 1 dB depending on terminal location within a spot beam and associated gain slope. In addition, ACTS experiences a solar induced "thermal event" each day. This "thermal event" occurs when the sun heats the antenna support structure causing the transmit and receive reflectors to mispoint. This results in a slowly decreasing or increasing power density at the ground station receiver as the antenna pattern moves off bore-site. This paper describes the method used to fully characterize the TDMA/FDMA modem through the ACTS wideband, hard-limited transponder. In particular, techniques are discussed for conducting RF measurements on such a channel, the affect that the thermal characteristics and 1 hertz variations have on the accuracy of the results, and suggested means to minimize the error and provide useful and valuable data.

  16. Methods and Apparatuses for Signaling with Geometric Constellations in a Raleigh Fading Channel

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged F. (Inventor); Jones, Christopher R. (Inventor)

    2017-01-01

    Communication systems are described that use signal constellations, which have unequally spaced (i.e. `geometrically` shaped) points. In many embodiments, the communication systems use specific geometric constellations that are capacity optimized at a specific SNR, over the Raleigh fading channel. In addition, ranges within which the constellation points of a capacity optimized constellation can be perturbed and are still likely to achieve a given percentage of the optimal capacity increase compared to a constellation that maximizes d.sub.min, are also described. Capacity measures that are used in the selection of the location of constellation points include, but are not limited to, parallel decode (PD) capacity and joint capacity.

  17. Amortized entanglement of a quantum channel and approximately teleportation-simulable channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kaur, Eneet; Wilde, Mark M.

    2018-01-01

    This paper defines the amortized entanglement of a quantum channel as the largest difference in entanglement between the output and the input of the channel, where entanglement is quantified by an arbitrary entanglement measure. We prove that the amortized entanglement of a channel obeys several desirable properties, and we also consider special cases such as the amortized relative entropy of entanglement and the amortized Rains relative entropy. These latter quantities are shown to be single-letter upper bounds on the secret-key-agreement and PPT-assisted quantum capacities of a quantum channel, respectively. Of especial interest is a uniform continuity bound for these latter two special cases of amortized entanglement, in which the deviation between the amortized entanglement of two channels is bounded from above by a simple function of the diamond norm of their difference and the output dimension of the channels. We then define approximately teleportation- and positive-partial-transpose-simulable (PPT-simulable) channels as those that are close in diamond norm to a channel which is either exactly teleportation- or PPT-simulable, respectively. These results then lead to single-letter upper bounds on the secret-key-agreement and PPT-assisted quantum capacities of channels that are approximately teleportation- or PPT-simulable, respectively. Finally, we generalize many of the concepts in the paper to the setting of general resource theories, defining the amortized resourcefulness of a channel and the notion of ν-freely-simulable channels, connecting these concepts in an operational way as well.

  18. Development of slew-rate-limited time-over-threshold (ToT) ASIC for a multi-channel silicon-based ion detector

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Uenomachi, M.; Orita, T.; Shimazoe, K.; Takahashi, H.; Ikeda, H.; Tsujita, K.; Sekiba, D.

    2018-01-01

    High-resolution Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis (HERDA), which consists of a 90o sector magnetic spectrometer and a position-sensitive detector (PSD), is a method of quantitative hydrogen analysis. In order to increase sensitivity, a HERDA system using a multi-channel silicon-based ion detector has been developed. Here, as a parallel and fast readout circuit from a multi-channel silicon-based ion detector, a slew-rate-limited time-over-threshold (ToT) application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) was designed, and a new slew-rate-limited ToT method is proposed. The designed ASIC has 48 channels and each channel consists of a preamplifier, a slew-rate-limited shaping amplifier, which makes ToT response linear, and a comparator. The measured equivalent noise charges (ENCs) of the preamplifier, the shaper, and the ToT on no detector capacitance were 253±21, 343±46, and 560±56 electrons RMS, respectively. The spectra from a 241Am source measured using a slew-rate-limited ToT ASIC are also reported.

  19. Monte Carlo simulation of a noisy quantum channel with memory.

    PubMed

    Akhalwaya, Ismail; Moodley, Mervlyn; Petruccione, Francesco

    2015-10-01

    The classical capacity of quantum channels is well understood for channels with uncorrelated noise. For the case of correlated noise, however, there are still open questions. We calculate the classical capacity of a forgetful channel constructed by Markov switching between two depolarizing channels. Techniques have previously been applied to approximate the output entropy of this channel and thus its capacity. In this paper, we use a Metropolis-Hastings Monte Carlo approach to numerically calculate the entropy. The algorithm is implemented in parallel and its performance is studied and optimized. The effects of memory on the capacity are explored and previous results are confirmed to higher precision.

  20. Information Processing in the Cerebral Hemispheres: Selective Hemispheric Activation and Capacity Limitations.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Hellige, Joseph B.; And Others

    1979-01-01

    Five experiments are reported concerning the effect on visual information processing of concurrently maintaining verbal information. The results suggest that the left cerebral hemisphere functions as a typical limited-capacity information processing system that can be influenced somewhat separately from the right hemisphere system. (Author/CTM)

  1. On ways to overcome the magical capacity limit of working memory.

    PubMed

    Turi, Zsolt; Alekseichuk, Ivan; Paulus, Walter

    2018-04-01

    The ability to simultaneously process and maintain multiple pieces of information is limited. Over the past 50 years, observational methods have provided a large amount of insight regarding the neural mechanisms that underpin the mental capacity that we refer to as "working memory." More than 20 years ago, a neural coding scheme was proposed for working memory. As a result of technological developments, we can now not only observe but can also influence brain rhythms in humans. Building on these novel developments, we have begun to externally control brain oscillations in order to extend the limits of working memory.

  2. The Magical Mystery Four: How is Working Memory Capacity Limited, and Why?

    PubMed Central

    Cowan, Nelson

    2009-01-01

    Working memory storage capacity is important because cognitive tasks can be completed only with sufficient ability to hold information as it is processed. The ability to repeat information depends on task demands but can be distinguished from a more constant, underlying mechanism: a central memory store limited to 3 to 5 meaningful items in young adults. I will discuss why this central limit is important, how it can be observed, how it differs among individuals, and why it may occur. PMID:20445769

  3. Monte Carlo study on pulse response of underwater optical channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Jing; Ma, Yong; Zhou, Qunqun; Zhou, Bo; Wang, Hongyuan

    2012-06-01

    Pulse response of the underwater wireless optical channel is significant for the analysis of channel capacity and error probability. Traditional vector radiative transfer theory (VRT) is not able to deal with the effect of receiving aperture. On the other hand, general water tank experiments cannot acquire an accurate pulse response due to the limited time resolution of the photo-electronic detector. We present a Monte Carlo simulation model to extract the time-domain pulse response undersea. In comparison with the VRT model, a more accurate pulse response for practical ocean communications could be achieved through statistical analysis of the received photons. The proposed model is more reasonable for the study of the underwater optical channel.

  4. High levels of time contraction in young children in dual tasks are related to their limited attention capacities.

    PubMed

    Hallez, Quentin; Droit-Volet, Sylvie

    2017-09-01

    Numerous studies have shown that durations are judged shorter in a dual-task condition than in a simple-task condition. The resource-based theory of time perception suggests that this is due to the processing of temporal information, which is a demanding cognitive task that consumes limited attention resources. Our study investigated whether this time contraction in a dual-task condition is greater in younger children and, if so, whether this is specifically related to their limited attention capacities. Children aged 5-7years were given a temporal reproduction task in a simple-task condition and a dual-task condition. In addition, different neuropsychological tests were used to assess not only their attention capacities but also their capacities in terms of working memory and information processing speed. The results showed a shortening of perceived time in the dual task compared with the simple task, and this increased as age decreased. The extent of this shortening effect was directly linked to younger children's limited attentional capacities; the lower their attentional capacities, the greater the time contraction. This study demonstrated that children's errors in time judgments are linked to their cognitive capacities rather than to capacities that are specific to time. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Potential and limitations of inferring ecosystem photosynthetic capacity from leaf functional traits

    Treesearch

    Talie Musavi; Mirco Migliavacca; Martine Janet van de Weg; Jens Kattge; Georg Wohlfahrt; Peter M. van Bodegom; Markus Reichstein; Michael Bahn; Arnaud Carrara; Tomas F. Domingues; Michael Gavazzi; Damiano Gianelle; Cristina Gimeno; André Granier; Carsten Gruening; Kateřina Havránková; Mathias Herbst; Charmaine Hrynkiw; Aram Kalhori; Thomas Kaminski; Katja Klumpp; Pasi Kolari; Bernard Longdoz; Stefano Minerbi; Leonardo Montagnani; Eddy Moors; Walter C. Oechel; Peter B. Reich; Shani Rohatyn; Alessandra Rossi; Eyal Rotenberg; Andrej Varlagin; Matthew Wilkinson; Christian Wirth; Miguel D. Mahecha

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to systematically analyze the potential and limitations of using plant functional trait observations from global databases versus in situ data to improve our understanding of vegetation impacts on ecosystem functional properties (EFPs). Using ecosystem photosynthetic capacity as an example, we first provide an objective approach to derive...

  6. Large memory capacity in chaotic artificial neural networks: a view of the anti-integrable limit.

    PubMed

    Lin, Wei; Chen, Guanrong

    2009-08-01

    In the literature, it was reported that the chaotic artificial neural network model with sinusoidal activation functions possesses a large memory capacity as well as a remarkable ability of retrieving the stored patterns, better than the conventional chaotic model with only monotonic activation functions such as sigmoidal functions. This paper, from the viewpoint of the anti-integrable limit, elucidates the mechanism inducing the superiority of the model with periodic activation functions that includes sinusoidal functions. Particularly, by virtue of the anti-integrable limit technique, this paper shows that any finite-dimensional neural network model with periodic activation functions and properly selected parameters has much more abundant chaotic dynamics that truly determine the model's memory capacity and pattern-retrieval ability. To some extent, this paper mathematically and numerically demonstrates that an appropriate choice of the activation functions and control scheme can lead to a large memory capacity and better pattern-retrieval ability of the artificial neural network models.

  7. Depressive thoughts limit working memory capacity in dysphoria.

    PubMed

    Hubbard, Nicholas A; Hutchison, Joanna L; Turner, Monroe; Montroy, Janelle; Bowles, Ryan P; Rypma, Bart

    2016-01-01

    Dysphoria is associated with persistence of attention on mood-congruent information. Longer time attending to mood-congruent information for dysphoric individuals (DIs) detracts from goal-relevant information processing and should reduce working memory (WM) capacity. Study 1 showed that DIs and non-DIs have similar WM capacities. Study 2 embedded depressive information into a WM task. Compared to non-DIs, DIs showed significantly reduced WM capacity for goal-relevant information in this task. Study 3 replicated results from Studies 1 and 2, and further showed that DIs had a significantly greater association between processing speed and recall on the depressively modified WM task compared to non-DIs. The presence of inter-task depressive information leads to DI-related decreased WM capacity. Results suggest dysphoria-related WM capacity deficits when depressive thoughts are present. WM capacity deficits in the presence of depressive thoughts are a plausible mechanism to explain day-to-day memory and concentration difficulties associated with depressed mood.

  8. The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Miller, George A.

    1994-01-01

    Capacity limitations in absolute judgment tasks are discussed in relation to information theory. Information theory can provide a quantitative way of resolving questions about limitations on the amount of information we can receive and the process of recoding. (SLD)

  9. Gaussian States Minimize the Output Entropy of One-Mode Quantum Gaussian Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    De Palma, Giacomo; Trevisan, Dario; Giovannetti, Vittorio

    2017-04-01

    We prove the long-standing conjecture stating that Gaussian thermal input states minimize the output von Neumann entropy of one-mode phase-covariant quantum Gaussian channels among all the input states with a given entropy. Phase-covariant quantum Gaussian channels model the attenuation and the noise that affect any electromagnetic signal in the quantum regime. Our result is crucial to prove the converse theorems for both the triple trade-off region and the capacity region for broadcast communication of the Gaussian quantum-limited amplifier. Our result extends to the quantum regime the entropy power inequality that plays a key role in classical information theory. Our proof exploits a completely new technique based on the recent determination of the p →q norms of the quantum-limited amplifier [De Palma et al., arXiv:1610.09967]. This technique can be applied to any quantum channel.

  10. Gaussian States Minimize the Output Entropy of One-Mode Quantum Gaussian Channels.

    PubMed

    De Palma, Giacomo; Trevisan, Dario; Giovannetti, Vittorio

    2017-04-21

    We prove the long-standing conjecture stating that Gaussian thermal input states minimize the output von Neumann entropy of one-mode phase-covariant quantum Gaussian channels among all the input states with a given entropy. Phase-covariant quantum Gaussian channels model the attenuation and the noise that affect any electromagnetic signal in the quantum regime. Our result is crucial to prove the converse theorems for both the triple trade-off region and the capacity region for broadcast communication of the Gaussian quantum-limited amplifier. Our result extends to the quantum regime the entropy power inequality that plays a key role in classical information theory. Our proof exploits a completely new technique based on the recent determination of the p→q norms of the quantum-limited amplifier [De Palma et al., arXiv:1610.09967]. This technique can be applied to any quantum channel.

  11. Low-mobility channel tracking for MIMO-OFDM communication systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pagadarai, Srikanth; Wyglinski, Alexander M.; Anderson, Christopher R.

    2013-12-01

    It is now well understood that by exploiting the available additional spatial dimensions, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication systems provide capacity gains, compared to a single-input single-output systems without increasing the overall transmit power or requiring additional bandwidth. However, these large capacity gains are feasible only when the perfect knowledge of the channel is available to the receiver. Consequently, when the channel knowledge is imperfect, as is common in practical settings, the impact of the achievable capacity needs to be evaluated. In this study, we begin with a general MIMO framework at the outset and specialize it to the case of orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems by decoupling channel estimation from data detection. Cyclic-prefixed OFDM systems have attracted widespread interest due to several appealing characteristics not least of which is the fact that a single-tap frequency-domain equalizer per subcarrier is sufficient due to the circulant structure of the resulting channel matrix. We consider a low-mobility wireless channel which exhibits inter-block channel variations and apply Kalman tracking when MIMO-OFDM communication is performed. Furthermore, we consider the signal transmission to contain a stream of training and information symbols followed by information symbols alone. By relying on predicted channel states when training symbols are absent, we aim to understand how the improvements in channel capacity are affected by imperfect channel knowledge. We show that the Kalman recursion procedure can be simplified by the optimal minimum mean square error training design. Using the simplified recursion, we derive capacity upper and lower bounds to evaluate the performance of the system.

  12. 76 FR 283 - International Fisheries; Pacific Tuna Fisheries; Vessel Capacity Limit in the Purse Seine Fishery...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-04

    ... vessel capacity limit of 158,000 cubic meters for all vessels authorized by the IATTC to fish for tuna... EPO of 31,775 cubic meters. When Resolution C-02-03 was adopted, the United States was authorized to have a total of 39,228 cubic meters of total well volume capacity in the purse seine fishery, as well...

  13. Sediment Transport Capacity and Channel Processes in a Humid Tropical Montane River - Rio Pacuare, Costa Rica

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lind, P.; McDowell, P. F.

    2017-12-01

    Investigating sediment transport capacity as well as the spatial and temporal variations of sediment flux are critical component of river research, especially for applications in resource management and conservation, hazards assessment and planning, and riverine ecology. The bedload fraction of sediment transported through montane rivers often defines channel and bed form processes. It is understood that humid tropical montane rivers are capable of producing some of the largest quantities of sediment per unit drainage area. Bedload flux reported on a few Southeast Asian humid tropical montane rivers show that bedload constituted 16-75% of the total sediment load - this is notably higher than the generally accepted 10% of a channel's sediment load. However, to date almost all of the research done on sediment transport in humid tropical systems has focused on suspended load. This study presents annual bedload transport rate estimates for six field sites distributed within 45 river kilometers (Rkm) of the montane portion of the Rio Pacuare, located in the Talamanca Mountains of Costa Rica. This research reveals that flows capable of mobilizing the D84 occur on average at least once but often multiple times a year in this river system. The Rio Pacuare has a sufficient supply of sediment to meet its high transport capacity needs. As a result, large active bars composed of imbricated boulders define channel form at moderate and low flows throughout the study area. Differences in the magnitude, as well as the spatial and temporal variations of sediment flux at each field site are discussed in relation to stream power, and annual/inter-annual precipitation patterns. A unique mix of field and remote sensing techniques were applied to address these questions and to overcome some of the challenges of tropical river research. For example, due to the large grain size and high stream energy, grain mobilization and validation of modeled shear stress requirements for transport

  14. Spectrally Shaped DP-16QAM Super-Channel Transmission with Multi-Channel Digital Back-Propagation

    PubMed Central

    Maher, Robert; Xu, Tianhua; Galdino, Lidia; Sato, Masaki; Alvarado, Alex; Shi, Kai; Savory, Seb J.; Thomsen, Benn C.; Killey, Robert I.; Bayvel, Polina

    2015-01-01

    The achievable transmission capacity of conventional optical fibre communication systems is limited by nonlinear distortions due to the Kerr effect and the difficulty in modulating the optical field to effectively use the available fibre bandwidth. In order to achieve a high information spectral density (ISD), while simultaneously maintaining transmission reach, multi-channel fibre nonlinearity compensation and spectrally efficient data encoding must be utilised. In this work, we use a single coherent super-receiver to simultaneously receive a DP-16QAM super-channel, consisting of seven spectrally shaped 10GBd sub-carriers spaced at the Nyquist frequency. Effective nonlinearity mitigation is achieved using multi-channel digital back-propagation (MC-DBP) and this technique is combined with an optimised forward error correction implementation to demonstrate a record gain in transmission reach of 85%; increasing the maximum transmission distance from 3190 km to 5890 km, with an ISD of 6.60 b/s/Hz. In addition, this report outlines for the first time, the sensitivity of MC-DBP gain to linear transmission line impairments and defines a trade-off between performance and complexity. PMID:25645457

  15. Interleaved concatenated codes: new perspectives on approaching the Shannon limit.

    PubMed

    Viterbi, A J; Viterbi, A M; Sindhushayana, N T

    1997-09-02

    The last few years have witnessed a significant decrease in the gap between the Shannon channel capacity limit and what is practically achievable. Progress has resulted from novel extensions of previously known coding techniques involving interleaved concatenated codes. A considerable body of simulation results is now available, supported by an important but limited theoretical basis. This paper presents a computational technique which further ties simulation results to the known theory and reveals a considerable reduction in the complexity required to approach the Shannon limit.

  16. Interleaved concatenated codes: New perspectives on approaching the Shannon limit

    PubMed Central

    Viterbi, A. J.; Viterbi, A. M.; Sindhushayana, N. T.

    1997-01-01

    The last few years have witnessed a significant decrease in the gap between the Shannon channel capacity limit and what is practically achievable. Progress has resulted from novel extensions of previously known coding techniques involving interleaved concatenated codes. A considerable body of simulation results is now available, supported by an important but limited theoretical basis. This paper presents a computational technique which further ties simulation results to the known theory and reveals a considerable reduction in the complexity required to approach the Shannon limit. PMID:11038568

  17. Liquid heat capacity lasers

    DOEpatents

    Comaskey, Brian J [Walnut Creek, CA; Scheibner, Karl F [Tracy, CA; Ault, Earl R [Livermore, CA

    2007-05-01

    The heat capacity laser concept is extended to systems in which the heat capacity lasing media is a liquid. The laser active liquid is circulated from a reservoir (where the bulk of the media and hence waste heat resides) through a channel so configured for both optical pumping of the media for gain and for light amplification from the resulting gain.

  18. 47 CFR 76.977 - Minority and educational programming used in lieu of designated commercial leased access capacity.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... commercial leased access capacity. (a) A cable operator required by this section to designate channel capacity for commercial use pursuant to 47 U.S.C. 532, may use any such channel capacity for the provision... programming sources, whether or not such source is affiliated with cable operator. The channel capacity used...

  19. High energy bursts from a solid state laser operated in the heat capacity limited regime

    DOEpatents

    Albrecht, G.; George, E.V.; Krupke, W.F.; Sooy, W.; Sutton, S.B.

    1996-06-11

    High energy bursts are produced from a solid state laser operated in a heat capacity limited regime. Instead of cooling the laser, the active medium is thermally well isolated. As a result, the active medium will heat up until it reaches some maximum acceptable temperature. The waste heat is stored in the active medium itself. Therefore, the amount of energy the laser can put out during operation is proportional to its mass, the heat capacity of the active medium, and the temperature difference over which it is being operated. The high energy burst capacity of a heat capacity operated solid state laser, together with the absence of a heavy, power consuming steady state cooling system for the active medium, will make a variety of applications possible. Alternately, cooling takes place during a separate sequence when the laser is not operating. Industrial applications include new material working processes. 5 figs.

  20. High energy bursts from a solid state laser operated in the heat capacity limited regime

    DOEpatents

    Albrecht, Georg; George, E. Victor; Krupke, William F.; Sooy, Walter; Sutton, Steven B.

    1996-01-01

    High energy bursts are produced from a solid state laser operated in a heat capacity limited regime. Instead of cooling the laser, the active medium is thermally well isolated. As a result, the active medium will heat up until it reaches some maximum acceptable temperature. The waste heat is stored in the active medium itself. Therefore, the amount of energy the laser can put out during operation is proportional to its mass, the heat capacity of the active medium, and the temperature difference over which it is being operated. The high energy burst capacity of a heat capacity operated solid state laser, together with the absence of a heavy, power consuming steady state cooling system for the active medium, will make a variety of applications possible. Alternately, cooling takes place during a separate sequence when the laser is not operating. Industrial applications include new material working processes.

  1. Case study - Dynamic pressure-limited capacity and costs of CO2 storage in the Mount Simon sandstone

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Anderson, Steven T.; Jahediesfanjani, Hossein

    2017-01-01

    Widespread deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) is likely necessary to be able to satisfy baseload electricity demand, to maintain diversity in the energy mix, and to achieve climate and other objectives at the lowest cost. If all of the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from stationary sources (such as fossil-fuel burning power plants, and other industrial plants) in the United States needed to be captured and stored, it could be possible to store only a small fraction of this CO2 in oil and natural gas reservoirs, including as a result of CO2 utilization for enhanced oil recovery. The vast majority would have to be stored in saline-filled reservoirs (Dahowski et al., 2005). Given a lack of long-term commercial-scale CCS projects, there is considerable uncertainty in the risks, dynamic capacity, and their cost implications for geologic storage of CO2. Pressure buildup in the storage reservoir is expected to be a primary source of risk associated with CO2 storage, and could severely limit CO2 injection rates (dynamic storage capacities). Most cost estimates for commercial-scale deployment of CCS estimate CO2 storage costs under assumed availability of a theoretical capacity to store tens, hundreds, or even thousands of gigatons of CO2, without considering geologic heterogeneities, pressure limitations, or the time dimension. This could lead to underestimation of the costs of CO2 storage (Anderson, 2017). This paper considers the impacts of pressure limitations and geologic heterogeneity on the dynamic CO2 storage capacity and storage (injection) costs. In the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)’s National Assessment of Geologic CO2 Storage Resources (USGS, 2013), the mean estimate of the theoretical storage capacity in the Mount Simon Sandstone was about 94 billion metric tons of CO2. However, our results suggest that the pressure-limited capacity after 50 years of injection could be only about 4% of the theoretical geologic storage capacity in this formation

  2. Modeling Paragenesis: Erosion Opposite to Gravity in Cave Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cooper, M. P.; Covington, M. D.

    2017-12-01

    Sediment plays an important role in bedrock channels, providing both tools and cover that influence patterns of bed erosion. It has also been shown that sediment load influences bedrock channel width, with increased sediment leading to wider channels. A variety of models have been developed to explore these effects. In caves, it is hypothesized that sediments covering the floors of fully flooded channels that are forming beneath the water table (phreatic zone) can force dissolution upwards towards the water table, leading to upward erosion balanced by gradual deposition of sediment within the channel bottom. This strange process is termed paragenesis, and while there are conceptual and experimental models of the process, no prior mathematical models of cave passage evolution has captured these effects. Consequently, there is little quantitative understanding of the processes that drive paragenesis and how they link to the morphology of the cave channels that develop. We adapt a previously developed algorithm for estimating boundary shear stress within channels with free-surface flows to enable calculation of boundary shear stress in pipe-full conditions. This model successfully duplicates scaling relationships in surface channels, and geometries of caves formed in the phreatic zone such as phreatic tubes. Once sediment flux is incorporated the model successfully duplicates the hypothesized processes of paragenetic gallery formation: the cover effect prevents dissolution in the direction of gravity; passages are enlarged upwards reducing the sediment transport capacity; sediment is deposited and the process drives a continuing feedback loop. Simulations reveal that equilibrium paragenetic channel widths scale with both sediment flux and discharge. Unlike in open channel settings, increased sediment load actually narrows paragenetic channels. The cross section evolution model also reveals that the existence of equilibrium widths in such galleries requires erosion to

  3. Some Fundamental Limits on SAW RFID Tag Information Capacity and Collision Resolution

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barton, Richard J.

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, we apply results from multi-user information theory to study the limits of information capacity and collision resolution for SAW RFID tags. In particular, we derive bounds on the achievable data rate per tag as a function of fundamental parameters such as tag time-bandwidth product, tag signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and number of tags in the environment. We also discuss the implications of these bounds for tag waveform design and tag interrogation efficiency

  4. A proof of the log-concavity conjecture related to the computation of the ergodic capacity of MIMO channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gurvitis, Leonid

    2009-01-01

    An upper bound on the ergodic capacity of MIMO channels was introduced recently in [1]. This upper bound amounts to the maximization on the simplex of some multilinear polynomial p({lambda}{sub 1}, ..., {lambda}{sub n}) with non-negative coefficients. In general, such maximizations problems are NP-HARD. But if say, the functional log(p) is concave on the simplex and can be efficiently evaluated, then the maximization can also be done efficiently. Such log-concavity was conjectured in [1]. We give in this paper self-contained proof of the conjecture, based on the theory of H-Stable polynomials.

  5. Naive-like Conversion Overcomes the Limited Differentiation Capacity of Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells*

    PubMed Central

    Honda, Arata; Hatori, Masanori; Hirose, Michiko; Honda, Chizumi; Izu, Haruna; Inoue, Kimiko; Hirasawa, Ryutaro; Matoba, Shogo; Togayachi, Sumie; Miyoshi, Hiroyuki; Ogura, Atsuo

    2013-01-01

    Although induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells are indistinguishable from ES cells in their expression of pluripotent markers, their differentiation into targeted cells is often limited. Here, we examined whether the limited capacity of iPS cells to differentiate into neural lineage cells could be mitigated by improving their base-line level of pluripotency, i.e. by converting them into the so-called “naive” state. In this study, we used rabbit iPS and ES cells because of the easy availability of both cell types and their typical primed state characters. Repeated passages of the iPS cells permitted their differentiation into early neural cell types (neural stem cells, neurons, and glial astrocytes) with efficiencies similar to ES cells. However, unlike ES cells, their ability to differentiate later into neural cells (oligodendrocytes) was severely compromised. In contrast, after these iPS cells had been converted to a naive-like state, they readily differentiated into mature oligodendrocytes developing characteristic ramified branches, which could not be attained even with ES cells. These results suggest that the naive-like conversion of iPS cells might endow them with a higher differentiation capacity. PMID:23880763

  6. Worrying Thoughts Limit Working Memory Capacity in Math Anxiety.

    PubMed

    Shi, Zhan; Liu, Peiru

    2016-01-01

    Sixty-one high-math-anxious persons and sixty-one low-math-anxious persons completed a modified working memory capacity task, designed to measure working memory capacity under a dysfunctional math-related context and working memory capacity under a valence-neutral context. Participants were required to perform simple tasks with emotionally benign material (i.e., lists of letters) over short intervals while simultaneously reading and making judgments about sentences describing dysfunctional math-related thoughts or sentences describing emotionally-neutral facts about the world. Working memory capacity for letters under the dysfunctional math-related context, relative to working memory capacity performance under the valence-neutral context, was poorer overall in the high-math-anxious group compared with the low-math-anxious group. The findings show a particular difficulty employing working memory in math-related contexts in high-math-anxious participants. Theories that can provide reasonable interpretations for these findings and interventions that can reduce anxiety-induced worrying intrusive thoughts or improve working memory capacity for math anxiety are discussed.

  7. Probing the early development of visual working memory capacity with functional near-infrared spectroscopy

    PubMed Central

    Buss, Aaron T.; Fox, Nicholas; Boas, David A.; Spencer, John P.

    2013-01-01

    Visual working memory (VWM) is a core cognitive system with a highly limited capacity. The present study is the first to examine VWM capacity limits in early development using functional neuroimaging. We recorded optical neuroimaging data while 3- and 4-year-olds completed a change detection task where they detected changes in the shapes of objects after a brief delay. Near-infrared sources and detectors were placed over the following 10–20 positions: F3 and F5 in left frontal cortex, F4 and F6 in right frontal cortex, P3 and P5 in left parietal cortex, and P4 and P6 in right parietal cortex. The first question was whether we would see robust task-specific activation of the frontal-parietal network identified in the adult fMRI literature. This was indeed the case: three left frontal channels and 11 of 12 parietal channels showed a statistically robust difference between the concentration of oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin following the presentation of the sample array. Moreover, four channels in the left hemisphere near P3, P5, and F5 showed a robust increase as the working memory load increased from 1–3 items. Notably, the hemodynamic response did not asymptote at 1–2 items as expected from previous fMRI studies with adults. Finally, 4-year-olds showed a more robust parietal response relative to 3-year-olds, and an increasing sensitivity to the memory load manipulation. These results demonstrate that fNIRS is an effective tool to study the neural processes that underlie the early development of VWM capacity. PMID:23707803

  8. Probing the early development of visual working memory capacity with functional near-infrared spectroscopy.

    PubMed

    Buss, Aaron T; Fox, Nicholas; Boas, David A; Spencer, John P

    2014-01-15

    Visual working memory (VWM) is a core cognitive system with a highly limited capacity. The present study is the first to examine VWM capacity limits in early development using functional neuroimaging. We recorded optical neuroimaging data while 3- and 4-year-olds completed a change detection task where they detected changes in the shapes of objects after a brief delay. Near-infrared sources and detectors were placed over the following 10-20 positions: F3 and F5 in left frontal cortex, F4 and F6 in right frontal cortex, P3 and P5 in left parietal cortex, and P4 and P6 in right parietal cortex. The first question was whether we would see robust task-specific activation of the frontal-parietal network identified in the adult fMRI literature. This was indeed the case: three left frontal channels and 11 of 12 parietal channels showed a statistically robust difference between the concentration of oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin following the presentation of the sample array. Moreover, four channels in the left hemisphere near P3, P5, and F5 showed a robust increase as the working memory load increased from 1 to 3 items. Notably, the hemodynamic response did not asymptote at 1-2 items as expected from previous fMRI studies with adults. Finally, 4-year-olds showed a more robust parietal response relative to 3-year-olds, and an increasing sensitivity to the memory load manipulation. These results demonstrate that fNIRS is an effective tool to study the neural processes that underlie the early development of VWM capacity. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Photosynthetic capacity regulation is uncoupled from nutrient limitation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Smith, N. G.; Keenan, T. F.; Prentice, I. C.; Wang, H.

    2017-12-01

    Ecosystem and Earth system models need information on leaf-level photosynthetic capacity, but to date typically rely on empirical estimates and an assumed dependence on nitrogen supply. Recent evidence suggests that leaf nitrogen is actively controlled though plant responses to photosynthetic demand. Here, we propose and test a theory of demand-driven coordination of photosynthetic processes, and use it to assess the relative roles of nutrient supply and photosynthetic demand. The theory captured 63% of observed variability in a global dataset of Rubisco carboxylation capacity (Vcmax; 3,939 values at 219 sites), suggesting that environmentally regulated biophysical costs and light availability are the first-order drivers of photosynthetic capacity. Leaf nitrogen, on the other hand, was a weak secondary driver of Vcmax, explaining less than 6% of additional observed variability. We conclude that leaf nutrient allocation is primarily driven by demand. Our theory offers a simple, robust strategy for dynamically predicting leaf-level photosynthetic capacity in global models.

  10. There is no capacity limited buffer in the Murdock (1962) free recall data

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Theories of short term memory often include a limited capacity “buffer”. Such a buffer contains items which do not decay at all but are overwritten by new data. I show that one of the experiments that fueled the buffer concept, the free recall experiments by Murdock (J Exp Psychol 64(5):482–488, 1962), does not contain such a buffer. PMID:22132047

  11. Modeling the capacity of riverscapes to support beaver dams

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Macfarlane, William W.; Wheaton, Joseph M.; Bouwes, Nicolaas; Jensen, Martha L.; Gilbert, Jordan T.; Hough-Snee, Nate; Shivik, John A.

    2017-01-01

    The construction of beaver dams facilitates a suite of hydrologic, hydraulic, geomorphic, and ecological feedbacks that increase stream complexity and channel-floodplain connectivity that benefit aquatic and terrestrial biota. Depending on where beaver build dams within a drainage network, they impact lateral and longitudinal connectivity by introducing roughness elements that fundamentally change the timing, delivery, and storage of water, sediment, nutrients, and organic matter. While the local effects of beaver dams on streams are well understood, broader coverage network models that predict where beaver dams can be built and highlight their impacts on connectivity across diverse drainage networks are lacking. Here we present a capacity model to assess the limits of riverscapes to support dam-building activities by beaver across physiographically diverse landscapes. We estimated dam capacity with freely and nationally-available inputs to evaluate seven lines of evidence: (1) reliable water source, (2) riparian vegetation conducive to foraging and dam building, (3) vegetation within 100 m of edge of stream to support expansion of dam complexes and maintain large colonies, (4) likelihood that channel-spanning dams could be built during low flows, (5) the likelihood that a beaver dam is likely to withstand typical floods, (6) a suitable stream gradient that is neither too low to limit dam density nor too high to preclude the building or persistence of dams, and (7) a suitable river that is not too large to restrict dam building or persistence. Fuzzy inference systems were used to combine these controlling factors in a framework that explicitly also accounts for model uncertainty. The model was run for 40,561 km of streams in Utah, USA, and portions of surrounding states, predicting an overall network capacity of 356,294 dams at an average capacity of 8.8 dams/km. We validated model performance using 2852 observed dams across 1947 km of streams. The model showed

  12. Multi-carrier Communications over Time-varying Acoustic Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aval, Yashar M.

    Acoustic communication is an enabling technology for many autonomous undersea systems, such as those used for ocean monitoring, offshore oil and gas industry, aquaculture, or port security. There are three main challenges in achieving reliable high-rate underwater communication: the bandwidth of acoustic channels is extremely limited, the propagation delays are long, and the Doppler distortions are more pronounced than those found in wireless radio channels. In this dissertation we focus on assessing the fundamental limitations of acoustic communication, and designing efficient signal processing methods that cam overcome these limitations. We address the fundamental question of acoustic channel capacity (achievable rate) for single-input-multi-output (SIMO) acoustic channels using a per-path Rician fading model, and focusing on two scenarios: narrowband channels where the channel statistics can be approximated as frequency- independent, and wideband channels where the nominal path loss is frequency-dependent. In each scenario, we compare several candidate power allocation techniques, and show that assigning uniform power across all frequencies for the first scenario, and assigning uniform power across a selected frequency-band for the second scenario, are the best practical choices in most cases, because the long propagation delay renders the feedback information outdated for power allocation based on the estimated channel response. We quantify our results using the channel information extracted form the 2010 Mobile Acoustic Communications Experiment (MACE'10). Next, we focus on achieving reliable high-rate communication over underwater acoustic channels. Specifically, we investigate orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) as the state-of-the-art technique for dealing with frequency-selective multipath channels, and propose a class of methods that compensate for the time-variation of the underwater acoustic channel. These methods are based on multiple

  13. Emerging ferroelectric transistors with nanoscale channel materials: the possibilities, the limitations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hong, Xia

    2016-03-01

    Combining the nonvolatile, locally switchable polarization field of a ferroelectric thin film with a nanoscale electronic material in a field effect transistor structure offers the opportunity to examine and control a rich variety of mesoscopic phenomena and interface coupling. It is also possible to introduce new phases and functionalities into these hybrid systems through rational design. This paper reviews two rapidly progressing branches in the field of ferroelectric transistors, which employ two distinct classes of nanoscale electronic materials as the conducting channel, the two-dimensional (2D) electron gas graphene and the strongly correlated transition metal oxide thin films. The topics covered include the basic device physics, novel phenomena emerging in the hybrid systems, critical mechanisms that control the magnitude and stability of the field effect modulation and the mobility of the channel material, potential device applications, and the performance limitations of these devices due to the complex interface interactions and challenges in achieving controlled materials properties. Possible future directions for this field are also outlined, including local ferroelectric gate control via nanoscale domain patterning and incorporating other emergent materials in this device concept, such as the simple binary ferroelectrics, layered 2D transition metal dichalcogenides, and the 4d and 5d heavy metal compounds with strong spin-orbit coupling.

  14. Estimating changes in riparian and channel features along the Trinity River downstream of Lewiston Dam, California, 1980 to 2011

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Curtis, Jennifer A.

    2015-01-01

    Dam construction, flow diversion, and legacy landuse effects reduced the transport capacity, sediment supply, channel complexity and floodplain-connectivity along the Trinity River, CA below Lewiston Dam. This study documents the geomorphic evolution of the Trinity River Restoration Program’s intensively managed 65-km long restoration reach from 1980 to 2011. The nature and extent of riparian and channel changes were assessed using a series of geomorphic feature maps constructed from ortho-rectified photography acquired at low flow conditions in 1980, 1997, 2001, 2006, 2009, and 2011. Since 1980 there has been a general conversion of riparian to channel features and expansion of the active channel area. The primary mechanism for expansion of the active channel was bank erosion from 1980 to 1997 and channel widening was well distributed longitudinally throughout the study reach. Subsequent net bar accretion from 1997 to 2001, followed by slightly higher net bar scour from 2001 to 2006, occurred primarily in the central and lower reaches of the study area. In comparison, post-2006 bank and bar changes were spatially-limited to reaches with sufficient local transport capacity or sediment supply supported by gravel augmentation, mechanical channel rehabilitation, and tributary contributions to flow and sediment supply. A series of tributary floods in 1997, 1998 and 2006 were the primary factors leading to documented increases in channel complexity and floodplain connectivity. During the post-2006 period managed flow releases, in the absence of large magnitude tributary flooding, combined with gravel augmentation and mechanical restoration caused localized increases in sediment supply and transport capacity leading to smaller but measurable increases in channel complexity and floodplain connectivity primarily in the upper river below Lewiston Dam.

  15. The role of hERG1 ion channels in epithelial-mesenchymal transition and the capacity of riluzole to reduce cisplatin resistance in colorectal cancer cells.

    PubMed

    Fortunato, Angelo

    2017-08-01

    The transition of cells from the epithelial to the mesenchymal state (EMT) plays an important role in tumor progression. EMT allows cells to acquire mobility, stem-like behavior and resistance to apoptosis and drug treatment. These features turn EMT into a central process in tumor biology. Ion channels are attractive targets for the treatment of cancer since they play critical roles in controlling a wide range of physiological processes that are frequently deregulated in cancer. Here, we investigated the role of ether-a-go-go-related 1 (hERG1) ion channels in the EMT of colorectal cancer cells. We studied the epithelial-mesenchymal profile of different colorectal cancer-derived cell lines and the expression of hERG1 potassium channels in these cell lines using real-time PCR. Next, we knocked down hERG1 expression in HCT116 cells using lentivirus mediated RNA interference and characterized the hERG1 silenced cells in vitro and in vivo. Finally, we investigated the capacity of riluzole, an ion channel-modulating drug used in humans to treat amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, to reduce the resistance of the respective colorectal cancer cells to the chemotherapeutic drug cisplatin. We found that of the colorectal cancer-derived cell lines tested, HCT116 showed the highest mesenchymal profile and a high hERG1 expression. Subsequent hERG1 expression knockdown induced a change in cell morphology, which was accompanied by a reduction in the proliferative and tumorigenic capacities of the cells. Notably, we found that hERG1expression knockdown elicited a reversion of the EMT profile in HCT116 cells with a reacquisition of the epithelial-like profile. We also found that riluzole increased the sensitivity of HCT116 cisplatin-resistant cells to cisplatin. Our data indicate that hERG1 plays a role in the EMT of colorectal cancer cells and that its knockdown reduces the proliferative and tumorigenic capacities of these cells. In addition, we conclude that riluzole may be used in

  16. Worrying Thoughts Limit Working Memory Capacity in Math Anxiety

    PubMed Central

    Shi, Zhan; Liu, Peiru

    2016-01-01

    Sixty-one high-math-anxious persons and sixty-one low-math-anxious persons completed a modified working memory capacity task, designed to measure working memory capacity under a dysfunctional math-related context and working memory capacity under a valence-neutral context. Participants were required to perform simple tasks with emotionally benign material (i.e., lists of letters) over short intervals while simultaneously reading and making judgments about sentences describing dysfunctional math-related thoughts or sentences describing emotionally-neutral facts about the world. Working memory capacity for letters under the dysfunctional math-related context, relative to working memory capacity performance under the valence-neutral context, was poorer overall in the high-math-anxious group compared with the low-math-anxious group. The findings show a particular difficulty employing working memory in math-related contexts in high-math-anxious participants. Theories that can provide reasonable interpretations for these findings and interventions that can reduce anxiety-induced worrying intrusive thoughts or improve working memory capacity for math anxiety are discussed. PMID:27788235

  17. Methodology and method and appartus for signaling with capacity optimized constellations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged F. (Inventor); Jones, Christopher R. (Inventor)

    2012-01-01

    Communication systems are described that use geometrically shaped constellations that have increased capacity compared to conventional constellations operating within a similar SNR band. In several embodiments, the geometrically shaped is optimized based upon a capacity measure such as parallel decoding capacity or joint capacity. In many embodiments, a capacity optimized geometrically shaped constellation can be used to replace a conventional constellation as part of a firmware upgrade to transmitters and receivers within a communication system. In a number of embodiments, the geometrically shaped constellation is optimized for an Additive White Gaussian Noise channel or a fading channel.

  18. Methodology and Method and Apparatus for Signaling with Capacity Optimized Constellations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged F. (Inventor); Jones, Christopher R. (Inventor)

    2017-01-01

    Communication systems are described that use geometrically shaped constellations that have increased capacity compared to conventional constellations operating within a similar SNR band. In several embodiments, the geometrically shaped is optimized based upon a capacity measure such as parallel decoding capacity or joint capacity. In many embodiments, a capacity optimized geometrically shaped constellation can be used to replace a conventional constellation as part of a firmware upgrade to transmitters and receivers within a communication system. In a number of embodiments, the geometrically shaped constellation is optimized for an Additive White Gaussian Noise channel or a fading channel.

  19. Dynamic range of frontoparietal functional modulation is associated with working memory capacity limitations in older adults.

    PubMed

    Hakun, Jonathan G; Johnson, Nathan F

    2017-11-01

    Older adults tend to over-activate regions throughout frontoparietal cortices and exhibit a reduced range of functional modulation during WM task performance compared to younger adults. While recent evidence suggests that reduced functional modulation is associated with poorer task performance, it remains unclear whether reduced range of modulation is indicative of general WM capacity-limitations. In the current study, we examined whether the range of functional modulation observed over multiple levels of WM task difficulty (N-Back) predicts in-scanner task performance and out-of-scanner psychometric estimates of WM capacity. Within our sample (60-77years of age), age was negatively associated with frontoparietal modulation range. Individuals with greater modulation range exhibited more accurate N-Back performance. In addition, despite a lack of significant relationships between N-Back and complex span task performance, range of frontoparietal modulation during the N-Back significantly predicted domain-general estimates of WM capacity. Consistent with previous cross-sectional findings, older individuals with less modulation range exhibited greater activation at the lowest level of task difficulty but less activation at the highest levels of task difficulty. Our results are largely consistent with existing theories of neurocognitive aging (e.g. CRUNCH) but focus attention on dynamic range of functional modulation asa novel marker of WM capacity-limitations in older adults. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  20. Hydrologic considerations for estimation of storage-capacity requirements of impounding and side-channel reservoirs for water supply in Ohio

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Koltun, G.F.

    2001-01-01

    This report provides data and methods to aid in the hydrologic design or evaluation of impounding reservoirs and side-channel reservoirs used for water supply in Ohio. Data from 117 streamflow-gaging stations throughout Ohio were analyzed by means of nonsequential-mass-curve-analysis techniques to develop relations between storage requirements, water demand, duration, and frequency. Information also is provided on minimum runoff for selected durations and frequencies. Systematic record lengths for the streamflow-gaging stations ranged from about 10 to 75 years; however, in many cases, additional streamflow record was synthesized. For impounding reservoirs, families of curves are provided to facilitate the estimation of storage requirements as a function of demand and the ratio of the 7-day, 2-year low flow to the mean annual flow. Information is provided with which to evaluate separately the effects of evaporation on storage requirements. Comparisons of storage requirements for impounding reservoirs determined by nonsequential-mass-curve-analysis techniques with storage requirements determined by annual-mass-curve techniques that employ probability routing to account for carryover-storage requirements indicate that large differences in computed required storages can result from the two methods, particularly for conditions where demand cannot be met from within-year storage. For side-channel reservoirs, tables of demand-storage-frequency information are provided for a primary pump relation consisting of one variable-speed pump with a pumping capacity that ranges from 0.1 to 20 times demand. Tables of adjustment ratios are provided to facilitate determination of storage requirements for 19 other pump sets consisting of assorted combinations of fixed-speed pumps or variable-speed pumps with aggregate pumping capacities smaller than or equal to the primary pump relation. The effects of evaporation on side-channel reservoir storage requirements are incorporated into the

  1. Modelling Drug Abuse Epidemics in the Presence of Limited Rehabilitation Capacity.

    PubMed

    Mushanyu, J; Nyabadza, F; Muchatibaya, G; Stewart, A G R

    2016-12-01

    The abuse of drugs is now an epidemic globally whose control has been mainly through rehabilitation. The demand for drug abuse rehabilitation has not been matched with the available capacity resulting in limited placement of addicts into rehabilitation. In this paper, we model limited rehabilitation through the Hill function incorporated into a system of nonlinear ordinary differential equations. Not every member of the community is equally likely to embark on drug use, risk structure is included to help differentiate those more likely (high risk) to abuse drugs and those less likely (low risk) to abuse drugs. It is shown that the model has multiple equilibria, and using the centre manifold theory, the model exhibits the phenomenon of backward bifurcation whose implications to rehabilitation are discussed. Sensitivity analysis and numerical simulations are performed. The results show that saturation in rehabilitation will in the long run lead to the escalation of drug abuse. This means that limited access to rehabilitation has negative implications in the fight against drug abuse where rehabilitation is the main form of control. This suggests that increased access to rehabilitation is likely to lower the drug abuse epidemic.

  2. Channel CAT: A Tactical Link Analysis Tool

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1997-09-01

    NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL Monterey, California THESIS CHANNEL CAT : A TACTICAL LINK ANALYSIS TOOL by Michael Glenn Coleman September 1997 Thesis...REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED September 1997 Master’s Thesis 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE CHANNEL CAT : A TACTICAL LINK ANALYSIS TOOL 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6...tool, the Channel Capacity Analysis Tool (Channel CAT ), designed to provide an automated tool for the anlysis of design decisions in developing client

  3. Information transmission over an amplitude damping channel with an arbitrary degree of memory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    D'Arrigo, Antonio; Benenti, Giuliano; Falci, Giuseppe; Macchiavello, Chiara

    2015-12-01

    We study the performance of a partially correlated amplitude damping channel acting on two qubits. We derive lower bounds for the single-shot classical capacity by studying two kinds of quantum ensembles, one which allows us to maximize the Holevo quantity for the memoryless channel and the other allowing the same task but for the full-memory channel. In these two cases we also show the amount of entanglement which is involved in achieving the maximum of the Holevo quantity. For the single-shot quantum capacity we discuss both a lower and an upper bound, achieving a good estimate for high values of the channel transmissivity. We finally compute the entanglement-assisted classical channel capacity.

  4. Topics in quantum cryptography, quantum error correction, and channel simulation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Luo, Zhicheng

    In this thesis, we mainly investigate four different topics: efficiently implementable codes for quantum key expansion [51], quantum error-correcting codes based on privacy amplification [48], private classical capacity of quantum channels [44], and classical channel simulation with quantum side information [49, 50]. For the first topic, we propose an efficiently implementable quantum key expansion protocol, capable of increasing the size of a pre-shared secret key by a constant factor. Previously, the Shor-Preskill proof [64] of the security of the Bennett-Brassard 1984 (BB84) [6] quantum key distribution protocol relied on the theoretical existence of good classical error-correcting codes with the "dual-containing" property. But the explicit and efficiently decodable construction of such codes is unknown. We show that we can lift the dual-containing constraint by employing the non-dual-containing codes with excellent performance and efficient decoding algorithms. For the second topic, we propose a construction of Calderbank-Shor-Steane (CSS) [19, 68] quantum error-correcting codes, which are originally based on pairs of mutually dual-containing classical codes, by combining a classical code with a two-universal hash function. We show, using the results of Renner and Koenig [57], that the communication rates of such codes approach the hashing bound on tensor powers of Pauli channels in the limit of large block-length. For the third topic, we prove a regularized formula for the secret key assisted capacity region of a quantum channel for transmitting private classical information. This result parallels the work of Devetak on entanglement assisted quantum communication capacity. This formula provides a new family protocol, the private father protocol, under the resource inequality framework that includes the private classical communication without the assisted secret keys as a child protocol. For the fourth topic, we study and solve the problem of classical channel

  5. Suppression of the sonic heat transfer limit in high-temperature heat pipes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dobran, Flavio

    1989-08-01

    The design of high-performance heat pipes requires optimization of heat transfer surfaces and liquid and vapor flow channels to suppress the heat transfer operating limits. In the paper an analytical model of the vapor flow in high-temperature heat pipes is presented, showing that the axial heat transport capacity limited by the sonic heat transfer limit depends on the working fluid, vapor flow area, manner of liquid evaporation into the vapor core of the evaporator, and lengths of the evaporator and adiabatic regions. Limited comparisons of the model predictions with data of the sonic heat transfer limits are shown to be very reasonable, giving credibility to the proposed analytical approach to determine the effect of various parameters on the axial heat transport capacity. Large axial heat transfer rates can be achieved with large vapor flow cross-sectional areas, small lengths of evaporator and adiabatic regions or a vapor flow area increase in these regions, and liquid evaporation in the evaporator normal to the main flow.

  6. Postsynaptic ERG potassium channels limit muscle excitability to allow distinct egg-laying behavior states in C. elegans

    PubMed Central

    Collins, Kevin M.; Koelle, Michael R.

    2013-01-01

    C. elegans regulates egg laying by alternating between an inactive phase and a serotonin-triggered active phase. We found that the conserved ERG potassium channel UNC-103 enables this two-state behavior by limiting excitability of the egg-laying muscles. Using both high-speed video recording and calcium imaging of egg-laying muscles in behaving animals, we found that the muscles appear to be excited at a particular phase of each locomotor body bend. During the inactive phase, this rhythmic excitation infrequently evokes calcium transients or contraction of the egg-laying muscles. During the serotonin-triggered active phase, however, these muscles are more excitable and each body bend is accompanied by a calcium transient that drives twitching or full contraction of the egg-laying muscles. We found that ERG null mutants lay eggs too frequently, and that ERG function is necessary and sufficient in the egg-laying muscles to limit egg laying. ERG K+ channels localize to postsynaptic sites in the egg-laying muscle, and mutants lacking ERG have more frequent calcium transients and contractions of the egg-laying muscles even during the inactive phase. Thus ERG channels set postsynaptic excitability at a threshold so that further adjustments of excitability by serotonin generate two distinct behavioral states. PMID:23303953

  7. Upper bounds on secret-key agreement over lossy thermal bosonic channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kaur, Eneet; Wilde, Mark M.

    2017-12-01

    Upper bounds on the secret-key-agreement capacity of a quantum channel serve as a way to assess the performance of practical quantum-key-distribution protocols conducted over that channel. In particular, if a protocol employs a quantum repeater, achieving secret-key rates exceeding these upper bounds is evidence of having a working quantum repeater. In this paper, we extend a recent advance [Liuzzo-Scorpo et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 120503 (2017), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.119.120503] in the theory of the teleportation simulation of single-mode phase-insensitive Gaussian channels such that it now applies to the relative entropy of entanglement measure. As a consequence of this extension, we find tighter upper bounds on the nonasymptotic secret-key-agreement capacity of the lossy thermal bosonic channel than were previously known. The lossy thermal bosonic channel serves as a more realistic model of communication than the pure-loss bosonic channel, because it can model the effects of eavesdropper tampering and imperfect detectors. An implication of our result is that the previously known upper bounds on the secret-key-agreement capacity of the thermal channel are too pessimistic for the practical finite-size regime in which the channel is used a finite number of times, and so it should now be somewhat easier to witness a working quantum repeater when using secret-key-agreement capacity upper bounds as a benchmark.

  8. Performance and capacity analysis of Poisson photon-counting based Iter-PIC OCDMA systems.

    PubMed

    Li, Lingbin; Zhou, Xiaolin; Zhang, Rong; Zhang, Dingchen; Hanzo, Lajos

    2013-11-04

    In this paper, an iterative parallel interference cancellation (Iter-PIC) technique is developed for optical code-division multiple-access (OCDMA) systems relying on shot-noise limited Poisson photon-counting reception. The novel semi-analytical tool of extrinsic information transfer (EXIT) charts is used for analysing both the bit error rate (BER) performance as well as the channel capacity of these systems and the results are verified by Monte Carlo simulations. The proposed Iter-PIC OCDMA system is capable of achieving two orders of magnitude BER improvements and a 0.1 nats of capacity improvement over the conventional chip-level OCDMA systems at a coding rate of 1/10.

  9. Impaired left ventricular systolic function reserve limits cardiac output and exercise capacity in HFpEF patients due to systemic hypertension.

    PubMed

    Henein, Michael; Mörner, Stellan; Lindmark, Krister; Lindqvist, Per

    2013-09-30

    Heart failure (HF) patients with preserved left ventricular (LV) ejection fraction (EF) (HFpEF) due to systemic hypertension (SHT) are known to have limited exercise tolerance. Despite having normal EF at rest, we hypothesize that these patients have abnormal systolic function reserve limiting their exercise capacity. Seventeen patients with SHT (mean age 68 ± 9 years) but no valve disease and 14 healthy individuals (mean age of 65 ± 10 years) underwent resting and peak exercise echocardiography using conventional, tissue Doppler and speckle tracking techniques. The differences between resting and peak exercise values were also analyzed (Δ). Exercise capacity was determined as the workload divided by body surface area. Resting values for left atrial (LA) volume/BSA (r=-0.66, p<0.001) and global longitudinal strain rate (GLSR) in early (e) and late (a) diastole (r=0.47 and 0.46, p<0.05 for both) correlated with exercise capacity. LVEF increased during exercise in normals (mean Δ EF=10 ± 8%) but failed to do so in patients (mean Δ EF=0.6 ± 9%, p<0.001 between groups). LV GLSR during systole (s) also failed to increase with exercise in patients, to the same extent as it did in normals (0.2 ± 0.2 vs. 0.6 ± 0.3 1/s, p<0.001). The difference between rest and exercise (Δ) in LV lateral wall systolic velocity from tissue Doppler (s') (0.71, p<0.001), Δ in cardiac output (r=0.60, p<0.001) and Δ GLSRs (r=0.48, p<0.05) all correlated with exercise capacity independent of changes in heart rate. HFpEF patients with hypertensive LV disease have significantly limited exercise capacity which is related to left atrial enlargement as well as compromised LV systolic function at the time of the symptoms. The limited myocardial systolic function reserve seems to be underlying important explanation for their limited exercise capacity. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Moderate Deviation Analysis for Classical Communication over Quantum Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chubb, Christopher T.; Tan, Vincent Y. F.; Tomamichel, Marco

    2017-11-01

    We analyse families of codes for classical data transmission over quantum channels that have both a vanishing probability of error and a code rate approaching capacity as the code length increases. To characterise the fundamental tradeoff between decoding error, code rate and code length for such codes we introduce a quantum generalisation of the moderate deviation analysis proposed by Altŭg and Wagner as well as Polyanskiy and Verdú. We derive such a tradeoff for classical-quantum (as well as image-additive) channels in terms of the channel capacity and the channel dispersion, giving further evidence that the latter quantity characterises the necessary backoff from capacity when transmitting finite blocks of classical data. To derive these results we also study asymmetric binary quantum hypothesis testing in the moderate deviations regime. Due to the central importance of the latter task, we expect that our techniques will find further applications in the analysis of other quantum information processing tasks.

  11. Research on channel characteristics of differential multi pulse position modulation without background noise

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gao, Zhuo; Zhan, Weida; Sun, Quan; Hao, Ziqiang

    2018-04-01

    Differential multi-pulse position modulation (DMPPM) is a new type of modulation technology. There is a fast transmission rate, high bandwidth utilization, high modulation rate characteristics. The study of DMPPM modulation has important scientific value and practical significance. Channel capacity is one of the important indexes to measure the communication capability of communication system, and studying the channel capacity of DMPPM without background noise is the key to analyze the characteristics of DMPPM. The DMPPM theoretical model is established. The symbol structure of DMPPM with guard time slot is analyzed, and the channel capacity expression of DMPPM is deduced. Simulation analysis by MATLAB. The curves of unit channel capacity and capacity efficiency at different pulse and photon counting rates are analyzed. The results show that DMPPM is more advantageous than multi-pulse position modulation (MPPM), and is more suitable for future wireless optical communication system.

  12. Information Transfer Capacity of Articulators in American Sign Language.

    PubMed

    Malaia, Evie; Borneman, Joshua D; Wilbur, Ronnie B

    2018-03-01

    The ability to convey information is a fundamental property of communicative signals. For sign languages, which are overtly produced with multiple, completely visible articulators, the question arises as to how the various channels co-ordinate and interact with each other. We analyze motion capture data of American Sign Language (ASL) narratives, and show that the capacity of information throughput, mathematically defined, is highest on the dominant hand (DH). We further demonstrate that information transfer capacity is also significant for the non-dominant hand (NDH), and the head channel too, as compared to control channels (ankles). We discuss both redundancy and independence in articulator motion in sign language, and argue that the NDH and the head articulators contribute to the overall information transfer capacity, indicating that they are neither completely redundant to, nor completely independent of, the DH.

  13. Optimal Performance Monitoring of Hybrid Mid-Infrared Wavelength MIMO Free Space Optical and RF Wireless Networks in Fading Channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmidt, Barnet Michael

    An optimal performance monitoring metric for a hybrid free space optical and radio-frequency (RF) wireless network, the Outage Capacity Objective Function, is analytically developed and studied. Current and traditional methods of performance monitoring of both optical and RF wireless networks are centered on measurement of physical layer parameters, the most common being signal-to-noise ratio, error rate, Q factor, and eye diagrams, occasionally combined with link-layer measurements such as data throughput, retransmission rate, and/or lost packet rate. Network management systems frequently attempt to predict or forestall network failures by observing degradations of these parameters and to attempt mitigation (such as offloading traffic, increasing transmitter power, reducing the data rate, or combinations thereof) prior to the failure. These methods are limited by the frequent low sensitivity of the physical layer parameters to the atmospheric optical conditions (measured by optical signal-to-noise ratio) and the radio frequency fading channel conditions (measured by signal-to-interference ratio). As a result of low sensitivity, measurements of this type frequently are unable to predict impending failures sufficiently in advance for the network management system to take corrective action prior to the failure. We derive and apply an optimal measure of hybrid network performance based on the outage capacity of the hybrid optical and RF channel, the outage capacity objective function. The objective function provides high sensitivity and reliable failure prediction, and considers both the effects of atmospheric optical impairments on the performance of the free space optical segment as well as the effect of RF channel impairments on the radio frequency segment. The radio frequency segment analysis considers the three most common RF channel fading statistics: Rayleigh, Ricean, and Nakagami-m. The novel application of information theory to the underlying physics of the

  14. Quantification of Oxygen Consumption in Retina Ex Vivo Demonstrates Limited Reserve Capacity of Photoreceptor Mitochondria

    PubMed Central

    Kooragayala, Keshav; Gotoh, Norimoto; Cogliati, Tiziana; Nellissery, Jacob; Kaden, Talia R.; French, Stephanie; Balaban, Robert; Li, Wei; Covian, Raul; Swaroop, Anand

    2015-01-01

    Purpose Cell death in neurodegeneration occurs at the convergence of diverse metabolic pathways. In the retina, a common underlying mechanism involves mitochondrial dysfunction since photoreceptor homeostasis and survival are highly susceptible to altered aerobic energy metabolism. We sought to develop an assay to directly measure oxygen consumption in intact retina with the goal of identifying alterations in respiration during photoreceptor dysfunction and degeneration. Methods Circular punches of freshly isolated mouse retina, adjacent to the optic nerve head, were used in the microplate-based Seahorse Extracellular Flux Analyzer to measure oxygen consumption. Tissue integrity was evaluated by propidium iodide staining and live imaging. Different substrates were tested for mitochondrial respiration. Basal and maximal respiration were expressed as oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and respectively measured in Ames' medium before and after the addition of mitochondrial uncoupler, BAM15. Results We show that glucose is an essential substrate for retinal mitochondria. At baseline, mitochondria respiration in the intact wild-type retina was close to maximal, with limited reserve capacity. Similar OCR and limited mitochondrial reserve capacity was also observed in cone-only Nrl−/− retina. However, the retina of Pde6brd1/rd1, Cep290rd16/rd16 and Rpgrip1−/− mice, all with dysfunctional or no photoreceptors, had reduced OCR and higher mitochondrial reserve capacity. Conclusions We have optimized a method to directly measure oxygen consumption in acutely isolated, ex vivo mouse retina and demonstrate that photoreceptors have low mitochondrial reserve capacity. Our data provide a plausible explanation for the high vulnerability of photoreceptors to altered energy homeostasis caused by mutations or metabolic challenges. PMID:26747773

  15. Low-intensity, stocker-based channel catfish culture

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Low-intensity Channel Catfish production is characterized by low stocking rates, low installed aeration capacity, and no automated dissolved oxygen monitoring. Two studies conducted in nine 0.25-acre ponds quantified production characteristics of stocker Channel Catfish stocked for low-intensity foo...

  16. Dual-task interference in visual working memory: A limitation in storage capacity but not in encoding or retrieval

    PubMed Central

    Fougnie, Daryl; Marois, René

    2009-01-01

    The concurrent maintenance of two visual working memory (VWM) arrays can lead to profound interference. It is unclear, however, whether these costs arise from limitations in VWM storage capacity (Fougnie & Marois, 2006), or from interference between the storage of one visual array and encoding or retrieval of another visual array (Cowan & Morey, 2007). Here, we show that encoding a VWM array does not interfere with maintenance of another VWM array unless the two displays exceed maintenance capacity (Experiments 1 and 2). Moreover, manipulating the extent to which encoding and maintenance can interfere with one another had no discernable effect on dual-task performance (Experiment 2). Finally, maintenance of a VWM array was not affected by retrieval of information from another VWM array (Experiment 3). Taken together, these findings demonstrate that dual-task interference between two concurrent VWM tasks is due to a capacity-limited store that is independent from encoding and retrieval processes. PMID:19933566

  17. Capacity Improvement of a Free Space Optical Satellite Uplink using Transmitter Power and Rate Adaptation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gopal, Pooja; Jain, V. K.; Kar, Subrat

    2017-12-01

    Degradation due to atmospheric turbulence leads to significant outage in a free space optical satellite uplink with fixed transmitter parameters. If the channel state is known at the transmitter, then its parameters can be suitably changed, and there could be a considerable improvement in channel capacity. However, the extremely long link length of an Earth-to-Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite link would render feedback of channel state from the receiver infeasible, before the channel changes. In this paper, a channel pre-estimation method at the transmitter is proposed, and the expression for capacity with transmitter power and rate adaptation is derived. The results are compared with that of the capacity with outage. It is observed that there can be an improvement by a factor of 1.66 in achievable average capacity per Hertz with the adaptive transmitter. Also, the outage probability is reduced from 18.02 % to almost 0.

  18. Channel microband electrode arrays for mechanistic electrochemistry. Two-dimensional voltammetry:  transport-limited currents.

    PubMed

    Alden, J A; Feldman, M A; Hill, E; Prieto, F; Oyama, M; Coles, B A; Compton, R G; Dobson, P J; Leigh, P A

    1998-05-01

    A channel electrode array, with electrodes ranging in size from the millimeter to the submicrometer scale, is used for the amperometric interrogation of mechanistically complex electrode processes. In this way, the transport-limited current, measured as a function of both electrode size and electrolyte flow rate (convection), is shown to provide a highly sensitive probe of mechanism and kinetics. The application of "two-dimensional voltammetry" to diverse electrode processes, including E, ECE, ECEE, EC', and DISP2 reactions, is reported.

  19. Stochastic modelling of a single ion channel: an alternating renewal approach with application to limited time resolution.

    PubMed

    Milne, R K; Yeo, G F; Edeson, R O; Madsen, B W

    1988-04-22

    Stochastic models of ion channels have been based largely on Markov theory where individual states and transition rates must be specified, and sojourn-time densities for each state are constrained to be exponential. This study presents an approach based on random-sum methods and alternating-renewal theory, allowing individual states to be grouped into classes provided the successive sojourn times in a given class are independent and identically distributed. Under these conditions Markov models form a special case. The utility of the approach is illustrated by considering the effects of limited time resolution (modelled by using a discrete detection limit, xi) on the properties of observable events, with emphasis on the observed open-time (xi-open-time). The cumulants and Laplace transform for a xi-open-time are derived for a range of Markov and non-Markov models; several useful approximations to the xi-open-time density function are presented. Numerical studies show that the effects of limited time resolution can be extreme, and also highlight the relative importance of the various model parameters. The theory could form a basis for future inferential studies in which parameter estimation takes account of limited time resolution in single channel records. Appendixes include relevant results concerning random sums and a discussion of the role of exponential distributions in Markov models.

  20. Limited capacity in US pediatric drug trials: qualitative analysis of expert interviews.

    PubMed

    Wasserman, Richard; Bocian, Alison; Harris, Donna; Slora, Eric

    2011-04-01

    clinician investigators trained in FDA Good Clinical Practice; and (iv) poor PDT protocol design resulting in operational and enrollment difficulties in the pediatric population. Suggested potential solutions for insufficient PDT capacity included (i) consensus-building among stakeholders to create PDT systems; (ii) initiatives to train more pediatric pharmacologists and educate clinicians in Good Clinical Practice; (iii) advocacy for PDT protocols designed by individuals sensitive to pediatric issues; and (iv) physician and public education on the importance of PDTs. Insufficient US PDT capacity may hinder the development of new drugs for children and limit studies on the safety and efficacy of drugs presently used to treat pediatric conditions. Further public policy initiatives may be needed to achieve the full promise of BPCA/PREA.

  1. Sediment Transport Capacity of Turbidity Currents: from Microscale to Geological Scale.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eggenhuisen, J. T.; Tilston, M.; Cartigny, M.; Pohl, F.; de Leeuw, J.; van der Grind, G. J.

    2016-12-01

    A big question in sedimentology concerns the magnitude of fluxes of sediment particles, solute matter and dissolved gasses from shallow marine waters to deep basins by turbidity current flow. Here we establish sediment transport capacity of turbidity current flow on three levels. The most elementary level is set by the maximum amount of sediment that can be contained at the base of turbidity currents without causing complete extinction of boundary layer turbulence. The second level concerns the capacity in a vertical column within turbidity currents. The third level involves the amount of sediment that can be transported in turbidite systems on geological timescales. The capacity parameter Γ compares turbulent forces near the boundary of a turbulent suspension to gravity and buoyancy forces acting on suspended particles. The condition of Γ>1 coincides with complete suppression of coherent boundary layer turbulence in Direct Numerical Simulations of sediment-laden turbulent flow. Γ=1 coincides with the upper limit of observed suspended particle concentrations in flume and field measurements. Γ is grainsize independent, yet capacity of the full vertical structure of turbidity currents becomes grainsize dependent. This is due to the appearance of grainsize dependent vertical motions within turbulence as a primary control on the shape of the vertical concentration profile. We illustrate this dependence with experiments and theory and conclude that capacity depends on the competence of prevailing turbulence to suspend particle sizes. The concepts of capacity and competence are thus tangled. Finally, the capacity of turbidity current flow structure is coupled to geological constraints on recurrence times, channel and lobe life cycles, and allogenic forcing on system activity to arrive at system scale sediment transport capacity. We demonstrate a simple model that uses the fundamental process insight described above to estimate geological sediment budgets from

  2. Detecting gravitational decoherence with clocks: Limits on temporal resolution from a classical-channel model of gravity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khosla, Kiran E.; Altamirano, Natacha

    2017-05-01

    The notion of time is given a different footing in quantum mechanics and general relativity, treated as a parameter in the former and being an observer-dependent property in the latter. From an operational point of view time is simply the correlation between a system and a clock, where an idealized clock can be modeled as a two-level system. We investigate the dynamics of clocks interacting gravitationally by treating the gravitational interaction as a classical information channel. This model, known as the classical-channel gravity (CCG), postulates that gravity is mediated by a fundamentally classical force carrier and is therefore unable to entangle particles gravitationally. In particular, we focus on the decoherence rates and temporal resolution of arrays of N clocks, showing how the minimum dephasing rate scales with N , and the spatial configuration. Furthermore, we consider the gravitational redshift between a clock and a massive particle and show that a classical-channel model of gravity predicts a finite-dephasing rate from the nonlocal interaction. In our model we obtain a fundamental limitation in time accuracy that is intrinsic to each clock.

  3. Dividing Attention within and between Hemispheres: Testing a Multiple Resources Approach to Limited-Capacity Information Processing.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Friedman, Alinda; And Others

    1982-01-01

    Two experiments tested the limiting case of a multiple resources approach to resource allocation in information processing. Results contradict a single-capacity model, supporting the idea that the hemispheres' resource supplies are independent and have implications for both cerebral specialization and divided attention issues. (Author/PN)

  4. Exercise-induced oxyhaemoglobin desaturation, ventilatory limitation and lung diffusing capacity in women during and after exercise.

    PubMed

    Walls, Justin; Maskrey, Michael; Wood-Baker, Richard; Stedman, Wade

    2002-06-01

    Arterial haemoglobin saturation during exercise in healthy young women [eight subjects mean (SEM) age 20.8 (1.8) years] was measured to confirm the theory that young women experience exercise-induced arterial hypoxaemia (EIAH) at a lower relative percentage of maximal oxygen uptake (VO(2max)) than has been documented in their male counterparts. To determine if flow limitation [the percentage of the tidal volume ( V(T)) that met or exceeded the boundary established by multiple maximal expiratory manoeuvres] and/or post-exercise lung diffusing capacity are linked to EIAH in women, and to investigate the influence of exercise intensity and duration on post-exercise carbon monoxide lung diffusing capacity ( D(L, CO)), these parameters were measured during and after three exercise tests (incremental test until exhaustion, 5 km run and 5 km run with sprint). All subjects experienced physiologically significant EIAH (a fall of more than 3% in oxygen saturation of arterial blood from levels at rest) and seven subjects experienced flow limitation during the VO(2max) protocol [mean (SD) 12.2 (8.8)% of V(T)]. Even though there was no significant relationship between aerobic capacity and the degree of flow limitation ( r=0.33, P>0.05), the flow limitation was related to absolute ventilation in the subjects studied ( r=0.82, P<0.05). There was no significant relationship between decrements in post exercise D(L, CO) and EIAH ( r=0.05, P>0.05), however there was a strong correlation between the extent of flow limitation (% of V(T)) and EIAH ( r=0.71). Significant decreases in D(L, CO) lasted for up to 16 h after each of the exercise tests ( P<0.05) and lasted for a further 8 h after the maximal test ( P<0.05). Exercise intensity was the main contributing factor to the observed decreases in post-exercise D(L, CO) with the percentage of VO(2max) attained during the various tests being significantly related to the fall in D(L, CO) for 1, 2, 3, 16 and 24 h after exercise ( P<0

  5. Methodology and Method and Apparatus for Signaling With Capacity Optimized Constellations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged F. (Inventor); Jones, Christopher R. (Inventor)

    2014-01-01

    Communication systems are described that use geometrically shaped constellations that have increased capacity compared to conventional constellations operating within a similar SNR band. In several embodiments, the geometrically shaped is optimized based upon a capacity measure such as parallel decoding capacity or joint capacity. In many embodiments, a capacity optimized geometrically shaped constellation can be used to replace a conventional constellation as part of a firmware upgrade to transmitters and receivers within a communication system. In a number of embodiments, the geometrically shaped constellation is optimized for an Additive White Gaussian Noise channel or a fading channel. In numerous embodiments, the communication uses adaptive rate encoding and the location of points within the geometrically shaped constellation changes as the code rate changes.

  6. Working Memory Capacity Limits Motor Learning When Implementing Multiple Instructions

    PubMed Central

    Buszard, Tim; Farrow, Damian; Verswijveren, Simone J. J. M.; Reid, Machar; Williams, Jacqueline; Polman, Remco; Ling, Fiona Chun Man; Masters, Rich S. W.

    2017-01-01

    Although it is generally accepted that certain practice conditions can place large demands on working memory (WM) when performing and learning a motor skill, the influence that WM capacity has on the acquisition of motor skills remains unsubstantiated. This study examined the role of WM capacity in a motor skill practice context that promoted WM involvement through the provision of explicit instructions. A cohort of 90 children aged 8 to 10 years were assessed on measures of WM capacity and attention. Children who scored in the lowest and highest thirds on the WM tasks were allocated to lower WM capacity (n = 24) and higher WM capacity (n = 24) groups, respectively. The remaining 42 participants did not participate in the motor task. The motor task required children to practice basketball shooting for 240 trials in blocks of 20 shots, with pre- and post-tests occurring before and after the intervention. A retention test was administered 1 week after the post-test. Prior to every practice block, children were provided with five explicit instructions that were specific to the technique of shooting a basketball. Results revealed that the higher WM capacity group displayed consistent improvements from pre- to post-test and through to the retention test, while the opposite effect occurred in the lower WM capacity group. This implies that the explicit instructions had a negative influence on learning by the lower WM capacity children. Results are discussed in relation to strategy selection for dealing with instructions and the role of attention control. PMID:28878701

  7. Capacity of Heterogeneous Mobile Wireless Networks with D-Delay Transmission Strategy.

    PubMed

    Wu, Feng; Zhu, Jiang; Xi, Zhipeng; Gao, Kai

    2016-03-25

    This paper investigates the capacity problem of heterogeneous wireless networks in mobility scenarios. A heterogeneous network model which consists of n normal nodes and m helping nodes is proposed. Moreover, we propose a D-delay transmission strategy to ensure that every packet can be delivered to its destination nodes with limited delay. Different from most existing network schemes, our network model has a novel two-tier architecture. The existence of helping nodes greatly improves the network capacity. Four types of mobile networks are studied in this paper: i.i.d. fast mobility model and slow mobility model in two-dimensional space, i.i.d. fast mobility model and slow mobility model in three-dimensional space. Using the virtual channel model, we present an intuitive analysis of the capacity of two-dimensional mobile networks and three-dimensional mobile networks, respectively. Given a delay constraint D, we derive the asymptotic expressions for the capacity of the four types of mobile networks. Furthermore, the impact of D and m to the capacity of the whole network is analyzed. Our findings provide great guidance for the future design of the next generation of networks.

  8. [Carbon monoxide tests in a steady state. Uptake and transfer capacity, normal values and lower limits].

    PubMed

    Ramonatxo, M; Préfaut, C; Guerrero, H; Moutou, H; Bansard, X; Chardon, G

    1982-01-01

    The aim of this study was to establish data which would best demonstrate the variations of different tests using Carbon Monoxide as a tracer gas (total and partial functional uptake coefficient and transfer capacity) to establish mean values and lower limits of normal of these tests. Multivariate statistical analysis was used; in the first stage a connection was sought between the fractional uptake coefficient (partial and total) to other parameters, comparing subjects and data. In the second stage the comparison was refined by eliminating the least useful data, trying, despite a small loss of material, to reveal the most important connections, linear or otherwise. The fractional uptake coefficients varied according to sex, also the variation of the partial alveolar-expired fractional uptake equivalent (DuACO) was largely a function of respiratory rate and tidal volume. The alveolar-arterial partial fractional uptake equivalent (DuaCO) depended more on respiratory frequency and age. Finally the total fractional uptake coefficient (DuCO) and the transfer capacity corrected per liter of ventilation (TLCO/V) were functions of these parameters. The last stage of this work, after taking account of the statistical observations consistent with the facts of these physiological hypotheses led to a search for a better way of approaching the laws linking the collected data to the fractional uptake coefficient. The lower limits of normal were arbitrarily defined, separating those 5% of subjects deviating most strongly from the mean. As a result, the relationship between the lower limit of normal and the theoretical mean value was 90% for the partial and total fractional uptake coefficient and 70% for the transfer capacity corrected per liter of ventilation.

  9. Combination of exercise training and diet restriction normalizes limited exercise capacity and impaired skeletal muscle function in diet-induced diabetic mice.

    PubMed

    Suga, Tadashi; Kinugawa, Shintaro; Takada, Shingo; Kadoguchi, Tomoyasu; Fukushima, Arata; Homma, Tsuneaki; Masaki, Yoshihiro; Furihata, Takaaki; Takahashi, Masashige; Sobirin, Mochamad A; Ono, Taisuke; Hirabayashi, Kagami; Yokota, Takashi; Tanaka, Shinya; Okita, Koichi; Tsutsui, Hiroyuki

    2014-01-01

    Exercise training (EX) and diet restriction (DR) are essential for effective management of obesity and insulin resistance in diabetes mellitus. However, whether these interventions ameliorate the limited exercise capacity and impaired skeletal muscle function in diabetes patients remains unexplored. Therefore, we investigated the effects of EX and/or DR on exercise capacity and skeletal muscle function in diet-induced diabetic mice. Male C57BL/6J mice that were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 8 weeks were randomly assigned for an additional 4 weeks to 4 groups: control, EX, DR, and EX+DR. A lean group fed with a normal diet was also studied. Obesity and insulin resistance induced by a HFD were significantly but partially improved by EX or DR and completely reversed by EX+DR. Although exercise capacity decreased significantly with HFD compared with normal diet, it partially improved with EX and DR and completely reversed with EX+DR. In parallel, the impaired mitochondrial function and enhanced oxidative stress in the skeletal muscle caused by the HFD were normalized only by EX+DR. Although obesity and insulin resistance were completely reversed by DR with an insulin-sensitizing drug or a long-term intervention, the exercise capacity and skeletal muscle function could not be normalized. Therefore, improvement in impaired skeletal muscle function, rather than obesity and insulin resistance, may be an important therapeutic target for normalization of the limited exercise capacity in diabetes. In conclusion, a comprehensive lifestyle therapy of exercise and diet normalizes the limited exercise capacity and impaired muscle function in diabetes mellitus.

  10. [K+ channels and lung epithelial physiology].

    PubMed

    Bardou, Olivier; Trinh, Nguyen Thu Ngan; Brochiero, Emmanuelle

    2009-04-01

    Transcripts of more than 30 different K(+) channels have been detected in the respiratory epithelium lining airways and alveoli. These channels belong to the 3 main classes of K(+) channels, i.e. i) voltage-dependent or calcium-activated, 6 transmembrane segments (TM), ii) 2-pores 4-TM and iii) inward-rectified 2-TM channels. The physiological and functional significance of this high molecular diversity of lung epithelial K(+) channels is not well understood. Surprisingly, relatively few studies are focused on K(+) channel function in lung epithelial physiology. Nevertheless, several studies have shown that KvLQT1, KCa and K(ATP) K(+) channels play a crucial role in ion and fluid transport, contributing to the control of airway and alveolar surface liquid composition and volume. K(+) channels are involved in other key functions, such as O(2) sensing or the capacity of the respiratory epithelia to repair after injury. This mini-review aims to discuss potential functions of lung K(+) channels.

  11. Remembering Complex Objects in Visual Working Memory: Do Capacity Limits Restrict Objects or Features?

    PubMed Central

    Hardman, Kyle; Cowan, Nelson

    2014-01-01

    Visual working memory stores stimuli from our environment as representations that can be accessed by high-level control processes. This study addresses a longstanding debate in the literature about whether storage limits in visual working memory include a limit to the complexity of discrete items. We examined the issue with a number of change-detection experiments that used complex stimuli which possessed multiple features per stimulus item. We manipulated the number of relevant features of the stimulus objects in order to vary feature load. In all of our experiments, we found that increased feature load led to a reduction in change-detection accuracy. However, we found that feature load alone could not account for the results, but that a consideration of the number of relevant objects was also required. This study supports capacity limits for both feature and object storage in visual working memory. PMID:25089739

  12. Communication Limits Due to Photon-Detector Jitter

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Moision, Bruce E.; Farr, William H.

    2008-01-01

    A theoretical and experimental study was conducted of the limit imposed by photon-detector jitter on the capacity of a pulse-position-modulated optical communication system in which the receiver operates in a photon-counting (weak-signal) regime. Photon-detector jitter is a random delay between impingement of a photon and generation of an electrical pulse by the detector. In the study, jitter statistics were computed from jitter measurements made on several photon detectors. The probability density of jitter was mathematically modeled by use of a weighted sum of Gaussian functions. Parameters of the model were adjusted to fit histograms representing the measured-jitter statistics. Likelihoods of assigning detector-output pulses to correct pulse time slots in the presence of jitter were derived and used to compute channel capacities and corresponding losses due to jitter. It was found that the loss, expressed as the ratio between the signal power needed to achieve a specified capacity in the presence of jitter and that needed to obtain the same capacity in the absence of jitter, is well approximated as a quadratic function of the standard deviation of the jitter in units of pulse-time-slot duration.

  13. Positivity, discontinuity, finite resources, and nonzero error for arbitrarily varying quantum channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Boche, H., E-mail: boche@tum.de, E-mail: janis.noetzel@tum.de; Nötzel, J., E-mail: boche@tum.de, E-mail: janis.noetzel@tum.de

    2014-12-15

    This work is motivated by a quite general question: Under which circumstances are the capacities of information transmission systems continuous? The research is explicitly carried out on finite arbitrarily varying quantum channels (AVQCs). We give an explicit example that answers the recent question whether the transmission of messages over AVQCs can benefit from assistance by distribution of randomness between the legitimate sender and receiver in the affirmative. The specific class of channels introduced in that example is then extended to show that the unassisted capacity does have discontinuity points, while it is known that the randomness-assisted capacity is always continuousmore » in the channel. We characterize the discontinuity points and prove that the unassisted capacity is always continuous around its positivity points. After having established shared randomness as an important resource, we quantify the interplay between the distribution of finite amounts of randomness between the legitimate sender and receiver, the (nonzero) probability of a decoding error with respect to the average error criterion and the number of messages that can be sent over a finite number of channel uses. We relate our results to the entanglement transmission capacities of finite AVQCs, where the role of shared randomness is not yet well understood, and give a new sufficient criterion for the entanglement transmission capacity with randomness assistance to vanish.« less

  14. Spare capacity and phenotypic flexibility in the digestive system of a migratory bird: defining the limits of animal design

    PubMed Central

    McWilliams, Scott R.; Karasov, William H.

    2014-01-01

    Flexible phenotypes enable animals to live in environments that change over space and time, and knowing the limits to and the required time scale for this flexibility provides insights into constraints on energy and nutrient intake, diet diversity and niche width. We quantified the level of immediate and ultimate spare capacity, and thus the extent of phenotypic flexibility, in the digestive system of a migratory bird in response to increased energy demand, and identified the digestive constraints responsible for the limits on sustained energy intake. Immediate spare capacity decreased from approximately 50% for birds acclimated to relatively benign temperatures to less than 20% as birds approached their maximum sustainable energy intake. Ultimate spare capacity enabled an increase in feeding rate of approximately 126% as measured in birds acclimated for weeks at −29°C compared with +21°C. Increased gut size and not tissue-specific differences in nutrient uptake or changes in digestive efficiency or retention time were primarily responsible for this increase in capacity with energy demand, and this change required more than 1–2 days. Thus, the pace of change in digestive organ size may often constrain energy intake and, for birds, retard the pace of their migration. PMID:24718764

  15. Spare capacity and phenotypic flexibility in the digestive system of a migratory bird: defining the limits of animal design.

    PubMed

    McWilliams, Scott R; Karasov, William H

    2014-05-22

    Flexible phenotypes enable animals to live in environments that change over space and time, and knowing the limits to and the required time scale for this flexibility provides insights into constraints on energy and nutrient intake, diet diversity and niche width. We quantified the level of immediate and ultimate spare capacity, and thus the extent of phenotypic flexibility, in the digestive system of a migratory bird in response to increased energy demand, and identified the digestive constraints responsible for the limits on sustained energy intake. Immediate spare capacity decreased from approximately 50% for birds acclimated to relatively benign temperatures to less than 20% as birds approached their maximum sustainable energy intake. Ultimate spare capacity enabled an increase in feeding rate of approximately 126% as measured in birds acclimated for weeks at -29°C compared with +21°C. Increased gut size and not tissue-specific differences in nutrient uptake or changes in digestive efficiency or retention time were primarily responsible for this increase in capacity with energy demand, and this change required more than 1-2 days. Thus, the pace of change in digestive organ size may often constrain energy intake and, for birds, retard the pace of their migration.

  16. Remembering complex objects in visual working memory: do capacity limits restrict objects or features?

    PubMed

    Hardman, Kyle O; Cowan, Nelson

    2015-03-01

    Visual working memory stores stimuli from our environment as representations that can be accessed by high-level control processes. This study addresses a longstanding debate in the literature about whether storage limits in visual working memory include a limit to the complexity of discrete items. We examined the issue with a number of change-detection experiments that used complex stimuli that possessed multiple features per stimulus item. We manipulated the number of relevant features of the stimulus objects in order to vary feature load. In all of our experiments, we found that increased feature load led to a reduction in change-detection accuracy. However, we found that feature load alone could not account for the results but that a consideration of the number of relevant objects was also required. This study supports capacity limits for both feature and object storage in visual working memory. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved.

  17. Effect of ceramic membrane channel geometry and uniform transmembrane pressure on limiting flux and serum protein removal during skim milk microfiltration.

    PubMed

    Adams, Michael C; Hurt, Emily E; Barbano, David M

    2015-11-01

    Our objectives were to determine the effects of a ceramic microfiltration (MF) membrane's retentate flow channel geometry (round or diamond-shaped) and uniform transmembrane pressure (UTP) on limiting flux (LF) and serum protein (SP) removal during skim milk MF at a temperature of 50°C, a retentate protein concentration of 8.5%, and an average cross-flow velocity of 7 m·s(-1). Performance of membranes with round and diamond flow channels was compared in UTP mode. Performance of the membrane with round flow channels was compared with and without UTP. Using UTP with round flow channel MF membranes increased the LF by 5% when compared with not using UTP, but SP removal was not affected by the use of UTP. Using membranes with round channels instead of diamond-shaped channels in UTP mode increased the LF by 24%. This increase was associated with a 25% increase in Reynolds number and can be explained by lower shear at the vertices of the diamond-shaped channel's surface. The SP removal factor of the diamond channel system was higher than the SP removal factor of the round channel system below the LF. However, the diamond channel system passed more casein into the MF permeate than the round channel system. Because only one batch of each membrane was tested in our study, it was not possible to determine if the differences in protein rejection between channel geometries were due to the membrane design or random manufacturing variation. Despite the lower LF of the diamond channel system, the 47% increase in membrane module surface area of the diamond channel system produced a modular permeate removal rate that was at least 19% higher than the round channel system. Consequently, using diamond channel membranes instead of round channel membranes could reduce some of the costs associated with ceramic MF of skim milk if fewer membrane modules could be used to attain the required membrane area. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All

  18. Efficient universal quantum channel simulation in IBM's cloud quantum computer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wei, Shi-Jie; Xin, Tao; Long, Gui-Lu

    2018-07-01

    The study of quantum channels is an important field and promises a wide range of applications, because any physical process can be represented as a quantum channel that transforms an initial state into a final state. Inspired by the method of performing non-unitary operators by the linear combination of unitary operations, we proposed a quantum algorithm for the simulation of the universal single-qubit channel, described by a convex combination of "quasi-extreme" channels corresponding to four Kraus operators, and is scalable to arbitrary higher dimension. We demonstrated the whole algorithm experimentally using the universal IBM cloud-based quantum computer and studied the properties of different qubit quantum channels. We illustrated the quantum capacity of the general qubit quantum channels, which quantifies the amount of quantum information that can be protected. The behavior of quantum capacity in different channels revealed which types of noise processes can support information transmission, and which types are too destructive to protect information. There was a general agreement between the theoretical predictions and the experiments, which strongly supports our method. By realizing the arbitrary qubit channel, this work provides a universally- accepted way to explore various properties of quantum channels and novel prospect for quantum communication.

  19. Slick (Kcnt2) Sodium-Activated Potassium Channels Limit Peptidergic Nociceptor Excitability and Hyperalgesia.

    PubMed

    Tomasello, Danielle L; Hurley, Edward; Wrabetz, Lawrence; Bhattacharjee, Arin

    2017-01-01

    The Slick (Kcnt2) sodium-activated potassium (K Na ) channel is a rapidly gating and weakly voltage-dependent and sodium-dependent potassium channel with no clearly defined physiological function. Within the dorsal root ganglia (DRGs), we show Slick channels are exclusively expressed in small-sized and medium-sized calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP)-containing DRG neurons, and a pool of channels are localized to large dense-core vesicles (LDCV)-containing CGRP. We stimulated DRG neurons for CGRP release and found Slick channels contained within CGRP-positive LDCV translocated to the neuronal membrane. Behavioral studies in Slick knockout (KO) mice indicated increased basal heat detection and exacerbated thermal hyperalgesia compared with wild-type littermate controls during neuropathic and chronic inflammatory pain. Electrophysiologic recordings of DRG neurons from Slick KO mice revealed that Slick channels contribute to outward current, propensity to fire action potentials (APs), and to AP properties. Our data suggest that Slick channels restrain the excitability of CGRP-containing neurons, diminishing pain behavior after inflammation and injury.

  20. Channel Simulation in Quantum Metrology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Laurenza, Riccardo; Lupo, Cosmo; Spedalieri, Gaetana; Braunstein, Samuel L.; Pirandola, Stefano

    2018-04-01

    In this review we discuss how channel simulation can be used to simplify the most general protocols of quantum parameter estimation, where unlimited entanglement and adaptive joint operations may be employed. Whenever the unknown parameter encoded in a quantum channel is completely transferred in an environmental program state simulating the channel, the optimal adaptive estimation cannot beat the standard quantum limit. In this setting, we elucidate the crucial role of quantum teleportation as a primitive operation which allows one to completely reduce adaptive protocols over suitable teleportation-covariant channels and derive matching upper and lower bounds for parameter estimation. For these channels,wemay express the quantum Cramér Rao bound directly in terms of their Choi matrices. Our review considers both discrete- and continuous-variable systems, also presenting some new results for bosonic Gaussian channels using an alternative sub-optimal simulation. It is an open problem to design simulations for quantum channels that achieve the Heisenberg limit.

  1. The Effect of Working Memory Capacity Limitations on the Intuitive Assessment of Correlation: Amplification, Attenuation, or Both?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Cahan, Sorel; Mor, Yaniv

    2007-01-01

    This article challenges Yaakov Kareev's (1995a, 2000) argument regarding the positive bias of intuitive correlation estimates due to working memory capacity limitations and its adaptive value. The authors show that, under narrow window theory's primacy effect assumption, there is a considerable between-individual variability of the effects of…

  2. Domain IV voltage-sensor movement is both sufficient and rate limiting for fast inactivation in sodium channels.

    PubMed

    Capes, Deborah L; Goldschen-Ohm, Marcel P; Arcisio-Miranda, Manoel; Bezanilla, Francisco; Chanda, Baron

    2013-08-01

    Voltage-gated sodium channels are critical for the generation and propagation of electrical signals in most excitable cells. Activation of Na(+) channels initiates an action potential, and fast inactivation facilitates repolarization of the membrane by the outward K(+) current. Fast inactivation is also the main determinant of the refractory period between successive electrical impulses. Although the voltage sensor of domain IV (DIV) has been implicated in fast inactivation, it remains unclear whether the activation of DIV alone is sufficient for fast inactivation to occur. Here, we functionally neutralize each specific voltage sensor by mutating several critical arginines in the S4 segment to glutamines. We assess the individual role of each voltage-sensing domain in the voltage dependence and kinetics of fast inactivation upon its specific inhibition. We show that movement of the DIV voltage sensor is the rate-limiting step for both development and recovery from fast inactivation. Our data suggest that activation of the DIV voltage sensor alone is sufficient for fast inactivation to occur, and that activation of DIV before channel opening is the molecular mechanism for closed-state inactivation. We propose a kinetic model of sodium channel gating that can account for our major findings over a wide voltage range by postulating that DIV movement is both necessary and sufficient for fast inactivation.

  3. The temporal evolution of electromagnetic markers sensitive to the capacity limits of visual short-term memory.

    PubMed

    Mitchell, Daniel J; Cusack, Rhodri

    2011-01-01

    An electroencephalographic (EEG) marker of the limited contents of human visual short-term memory (VSTM) has previously been described. Termed contralateral delay activity, this consists of a sustained, posterior, negative potential that correlates with memory load and is greatest contralateral to the remembered hemifield. The current investigation replicates this finding and uses magnetoencephalography (MEG) to characterize its magnetic counterparts and their neural generators as they evolve throughout the memory delay. A parametric manipulation of memory load, within and beyond capacity limits, allows separation of signals that asymptote with behavioral VSTM performance from additional responses that contribute to a linear increase with set-size. Both EEG and MEG yielded bilateral signals that track the number of objects held in memory, and contralateral signals that are independent of memory load. In MEG, unlike EEG, the contralateral interaction between hemisphere and item load is much weaker, suggesting that bilateral and contralateral markers of memory load reflect distinct sources to which EEG and MEG are differentially sensitive. Nonetheless, source estimation allowed both the bilateral and the weaker contralateral capacity-limited responses to be localized, along with a load-independent contralateral signal. Sources of global and hemisphere-specific signals all localized to the posterior intraparietal sulcus during the early delay. However the bilateral load response peaked earlier and its generators shifted later in the delay. Therefore the hemifield-specific response may be more closely tied to memory maintenance while the global load response may be involved in initial processing of a limited number of attended objects, such as their individuation or consolidation into memory.

  4. Belief propagation decoding of quantum channels by passing quantum messages

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Renes, Joseph M.

    2017-07-01

    The belief propagation (BP) algorithm is a powerful tool in a wide range of disciplines from statistical physics to machine learning to computational biology, and is ubiquitous in decoding classical error-correcting codes. The algorithm works by passing messages between nodes of the factor graph associated with the code and enables efficient decoding of the channel, in some cases even up to the Shannon capacity. Here we construct the first BP algorithm which passes quantum messages on the factor graph and is capable of decoding the classical-quantum channel with pure state outputs. This gives explicit decoding circuits whose number of gates is quadratic in the code length. We also show that this decoder can be modified to work with polar codes for the pure state channel and as part of a decoder for transmitting quantum information over the amplitude damping channel. These represent the first explicit capacity-achieving decoders for non-Pauli channels.

  5. Experimental demonstration of entanglement-enhanced classical communication over a quantum channel with correlated noise.

    PubMed

    Banaszek, Konrad; Dragan, Andrzej; Wasilewski, Wojciech; Radzewicz, Czesław

    2004-06-25

    We present an experiment demonstrating the entanglement enhanced capacity of a quantum channel with correlated noise, modeled by a fiber optic link exhibiting fluctuating birefringence. In this setting, introducing entanglement between two photons is required to maximize the amount of information that can be encoded into their joint polarization degree of freedom. We demonstrated this effect using a fiber-coupled source of entangled photon pairs based on spontaneous parametric down-conversion, and a linear-optics Bell state measurement. The obtained experimental classical capacity with entangled states is equal to 0.82+/-0.04 per a photon pair, and it exceeds approximately 2.5 times the theoretical upper limit when no quantum correlations are allowed.

  6. Interactive full channel teletext system for cable television nets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vandenboom, H. P. A.

    1984-08-01

    A demonstration set-up of an interactive full channel teletext (FCT) system for cable TV networks with two-way data communication possibilities was designed and realized. In FCT all image lines are used for teletext data lines. The FCT decoder was placed in the mini-star, and the FCT encoder which provides the FCT signal was placed in the local center. From the FCT signal a number of data lines are selected using an extra FCT decoder. They are placed on the image lines reserved for teletext so that a normal TV receiver equipped with a teletext decoder, can process the selected data lines. For texts not on hand in the FCT signal, a command can be sent to the local center via the data communication path. A cheap and simple system is offered in which the number of commanded pages or books is in principle unlimited, while the used waiting time and channel capacity is limited.

  7. Multiplexing technique for computer communications via satellite channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Binder, R.

    1975-01-01

    Multiplexing scheme combines technique of dynamic allocation with conventional time-division multiplexing. Scheme is designed to expedite short-duration interactive or priority traffic and to delay large data transfers; as result, each node has effective capacity of almost total channel capacity when other nodes have light traffic loads.

  8. Methodology and Method and Apparatus for Signaling with Capacity Optimized Constellations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged F. (Inventor); Jones, Christopher R. (Inventor)

    2016-01-01

    Design Methodology and Method and Apparatus for Signaling with Capacity Optimized Constellation Abstract Communication systems are described that use geometrically PSK shaped constellations that have increased capacity compared to conventional PSK constellations operating within a similar SNR band. The geometrically shaped PSK constellation is optimized based upon parallel decoding capacity. In many embodiments, a capacity optimized geometrically shaped constellation can be used to replace a conventional constellation as part of a firmware upgrade to transmitters and receivers within a communication system. In a number of embodiments, the geometrically shaped constellation is optimized for an Additive White Gaussian Noise channel or a fading channel. In numerous embodiments, the communication uses adaptive rate encoding and the location of points within the geometrically shaped constellation changes as the code rate changes.

  9. Dementia, Decision Making, and Capacity.

    PubMed

    Darby, R Ryan; Dickerson, Bradford C

    After participating in this activity, learners should be better able to:• Assess the neuropsychological literature on decision making and the medical and legal assessment of capacity in patients with dementia• Identify the limitations of integrating findings from decision-making research into capacity assessments for patients with dementia ABSTRACT: Medical and legal professionals face the challenge of assessing capacity and competency to make medical, legal, and financial decisions in dementia patients with impaired decision making. While such assessments have classically focused on the capacity for complex reasoning and executive functions, research in decision making has revealed that motivational and metacognitive processes are also important. We first briefly review the neuropsychological literature on decision making and on the medical and legal assessment of capacity. Next, we discuss the limitations of integrating findings from decision-making research into capacity assessments, including the group-to-individual inference problem, the unclear role of neuroimaging in capacity assessments, and the lack of capacity measures that integrate important facets of decision making. Finally, we present several case examples where we attempt to demonstrate the potential benefits and important limitations of using decision-making research to aid in capacity determinations.

  10. Simple Predictions Fueled by Capacity Limitations: When Are They Successful?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gaissmaier, Wolfgang; Schooler, Lael J.; Rieskamp, Jorg

    2006-01-01

    Counterintuitively, Y. Kareev, I. Lieberman, and M. Lev (1997) found that a lower short-term memory capacity benefits performance on a correlation detection task. They assumed that people with low short-term memory capacity (low spans) perceived the correlations as more extreme because they relied on smaller samples, which are known to exaggerate…

  11. SPH modelling of depth-limited turbulent open channel flows over rough boundaries.

    PubMed

    Kazemi, Ehsan; Nichols, Andrew; Tait, Simon; Shao, Songdong

    2017-01-10

    A numerical model based on the smoothed particle hydrodynamics method is developed to simulate depth-limited turbulent open channel flows over hydraulically rough beds. The 2D Lagrangian form of the Navier-Stokes equations is solved, in which a drag-based formulation is used based on an effective roughness zone near the bed to account for the roughness effect of bed spheres and an improved sub-particle-scale model is applied to account for the effect of turbulence. The sub-particle-scale model is constructed based on the mixing-length assumption rather than the standard Smagorinsky approach to compute the eddy-viscosity. A robust in/out-flow boundary technique is also proposed to achieve stable uniform flow conditions at the inlet and outlet boundaries where the flow characteristics are unknown. The model is applied to simulate uniform open channel flows over a rough bed composed of regular spheres and validated by experimental velocity data. To investigate the influence of the bed roughness on different flow conditions, data from 12 experimental tests with different bed slopes and uniform water depths are simulated, and a good agreement has been observed between the model and experimental results of the streamwise velocity and turbulent shear stress. This shows that both the roughness effect and flow turbulence should be addressed in order to simulate the correct mechanisms of turbulent flow over a rough bed boundary and that the presented smoothed particle hydrodynamics model accomplishes this successfully. © 2016 The Authors International Journal for Numerical Methods in Fluids Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  12. On base station cooperation using statistical CSI in jointly correlated MIMO downlink channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Jun; Jiang, Bin; Jin, Shi; Gao, Xiqi; Wong, Kai-Kit

    2012-12-01

    This article studies the transmission of a single cell-edge user's signal using statistical channel state information at cooperative base stations (BSs) with a general jointly correlated multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) channel model. We first present an optimal scheme to maximize the ergodic sum capacity with per-BS power constraints, revealing that the transmitted signals of all BSs are mutually independent and the optimum transmit directions for each BS align with the eigenvectors of the BS's own transmit correlation matrix of the channel. Then, we employ matrix permanents to derive a closed-form tight upper bound for the ergodic sum capacity. Based on these results, we develop a low-complexity power allocation solution using convex optimization techniques and a simple iterative water-filling algorithm (IWFA) for power allocation. Finally, we derive a necessary and sufficient condition for which a beamforming approach achieves capacity for all BSs. Simulation results demonstrate that the upper bound of ergodic sum capacity is tight and the proposed cooperative transmission scheme increases the downlink system sum capacity considerably.

  13. Channel estimation in few mode fiber mode division multiplexing transmission system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hei, Yongqiang; Li, Li; Li, Wentao; Li, Xiaohui; Shi, Guangming

    2018-03-01

    It is abundantly clear that obtaining the channel state information (CSI) is of great importance for the equalization and detection in coherence receivers. However, to the best of the authors' knowledge, in most of the existing literatures, CSI is assumed to be perfectly known at the receiver. So far, few literature discusses the effects of imperfect CSI on MDM system performance caused by channel estimation. Motivated by that, in this paper, the channel estimation in few mode fiber (FMF) mode division multiplexing (MDM) system is investigated, in which two classical channel estimation methods, i.e., least square (LS) method and minimum mean square error (MMSE) method, are discussed with the assumption of the spatially white noise lumped at the receiver side of MDM system. Both the capacity and BER performance of MDM system affected by mode-dependent gain or loss (MDL) with different channel estimation errors have been studied. Simulation results show that the capacity and BER performance can be further deteriorated in MDM system by the channel estimation, and an 1e-3 variance of channel estimation error is acceptable in MDM system with 0-6 dB MDL values.

  14. Microfiltration: Effect of channel diameter on limiting flux and serum protein removal.

    PubMed

    Hurt, E E; Adams, M C; Barbano, D M

    2015-06-01

    Our objective was to determine the limiting flux and serum protein (SP) removal at 8, 9 and 10% true protein (TP) in the retentate recirculation loop using 0.1-µm ceramic graded permeability (GP) microfiltration (MF) membranes with 3mm channel diameters (CD). An additional objective was to compare the limiting flux and SP removal between 0.1-µm ceramic GP membranes with 3mm CD and previous research using 4-mm CD membranes. The MF system was operated at 50°C, using a diluted milk protein concentrate with 85% protein on a total solids basis (MPC85) as the MF feed. The limiting flux for the MF of diluted MPC85 was determined at 8, 9, and 10% TP concentration in the recirculation loop. The experiment using the 3-mm CD membranes was replicated 3 times for a total of 9 runs. On the morning of each run MPC85 was diluted with reverse osmosis water to a MF feed TP concentration of 5.4%. In all runs the starting flux was 55 kg/m2 per hour, the flux was then increased in steps until the limiting flux was reached. For the 3-mm CD membranes, the limiting flux was 128±0.3, 109±4, and 97±0.5 kg/m2 per hour at recirculation loop TP concentrations of 8.1±0.07, 9.2±0.04, and 10.2±0.03%, respectively. For the 3-mm CD membranes, increasing the flux from the starting to the limiting flux decreased the SP removal factor from 0.72±0.02 to 0.67±0.01; however, no difference in SP removal factor among the target recirculation loop TP concentrations was detected. The limiting flux at each recirculation loop target TP concentration was lower for the 3- compared with the 4-mm CD membranes. The differences in limiting fluxes between the 3- and 4-mm CD membranes were explained in part by the difference in cross-flow velocity (5.5±0.03 and 7.0±0.03 m/s for the 3- and 4-mm CD membranes, respectively). The SP removal factor was also lower for the 3- compared with the 4-mm CD membranes, indicating that more membrane fouling may have occurred in the 3- versus 4-mm CD membranes. Copyright

  15. Operator-sum representation for bosonic Gaussian channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ivan, J. Solomon; Sabapathy, Krishna Kumar; Simon, R.

    2011-10-15

    Operator-sum or Kraus representations for single-mode bosonic Gaussian channels are developed, and several of their consequences explored. The fact that the two-mode metaplectic operators acting as unitary purification of these channels do not, in their canonical form, mix the position and momentum variables is exploited to present a procedure which applies uniformly to all families in the Holevo classification. In this procedure the Kraus operators of every quantum-limited Gaussian channel can be simply read off from the matrix elements of a corresponding metaplectic operator. Kraus operators are employed to bring out, in the Fock basis, the manner in which themore » antilinear, unphysical matrix transposition map when accompanied by injection of a threshold classical noise becomes a physical channel, denoted D({kappa}) in the Holevo classification. The matrix transposition channels D({kappa}), D({kappa}{sup -1}) turn out to be a dual pair in the sense that their Kraus operators are related by the adjoint operation. The amplifier channel with amplification factor {kappa} and the beam-splitter channel with attenuation factor {kappa}{sup -1} turn out to be mutually dual in the same sense. The action of the quantum-limited attenuator and amplifier channels as simply scaling maps on suitable quasiprobabilities in phase space is examined in the Kraus picture. Consideration of cumulants is used to examine the issue of fixed points. The semigroup property of the amplifier and attenuator families leads in both cases to a Zeno-like effect arising as a consequence of interrupted evolution. In the cases of entanglement-breaking channels a description in terms of rank 1 Kraus operators is shown to emerge quite simply. In contradistinction, it is shown that there is not even one finite rank operator in the entire linear span of Kraus operators of the quantum-limited amplifier or attenuator families, an assertion far stronger than the statement that these are not entanglement

  16. High capacity low delay packet broadcasting multiaccess schemes for satellite repeater systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bose, S. K.

    1980-12-01

    Demand assigned packet radio schemes using satellite repeaters can achieve high capacities but often exhibit relatively large delays under low traffic conditions when compared to random access. Several schemes which improve delay performance at low traffic but which have high capacity are presented and analyzed. These schemes allow random acess attempts by users, who are waiting for channel assignments. The performance of these are considered in the context of a multiple point communication system carrying fixed length messages between geographically distributed (ground) user terminals which are linked via a satellite repeater. Channel assignments are done following a BCC queueing discipline by a (ground) central controller on the basis of requests correctly received over a collision type access channel. In TBACR Scheme A, some of the forward message channels are set aside for random access transmissions; the rest are used in a demand assigned mode. Schemes B and C operate all their forward message channels in a demand assignment mode but, by means of appropriate algorithms for trailer channel selection, allow random access attempts on unassigned channels. The latter scheme also introduces framing and slotting of the time axis to implement a more efficient algorithm for trailer channel selection than the former.

  17. Performance analysis of OOK-based FSO systems in Gamma-Gamma turbulence with imprecise channel models

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Jianfeng; Zhao, Xiaohui

    2017-11-01

    For an FSO communication system with imprecise channel model, we investigate its system performance based on outage probability, average BEP and ergodic capacity. The exact FSO links are modeled as Gamma-Gamma fading channel in consideration of both atmospheric turbulence and pointing errors, and the imprecise channel model is treated as the superposition of exact channel gain and a Gaussian random variable. After we derive the PDF, CDF and nth moment of the imprecise channel gain, and based on these statistics the expressions for the outage probability, the average BEP and the ergodic capacity in terms of the Meijer's G functions are obtained. Both numerical and analytical results are presented. The simulation results show that the communication performance deteriorates in the imprecise channel model, and approaches to the exact performance curves as the channel model becomes accurate.

  18. Impacts of large dams on downstream flow conditions of rivers: Aggradation and reduction of the Medjerda channel capacity downstream of the Sidi Salem dam (Tunisia)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zahar, Yadh; Ghorbel, Abdelmajid; Albergel, Jean

    2008-04-01

    SummarySince the opening of the Sidi Salem dam on the watercourse of the Medjerda, in 1981, an alarming narrowing of the riverbed in the lower valley has been observed. This geo-morphological change is attributed to different factors ranking from the reduction in the discharge flows, which used to clean out the riverbed to the periodic releases of turbid water undertaken to remove the silt deposition inside the reservoir, which increased the sediment deposition in the downstream channel. Other smaller hydraulic projects are also held responsible for the loss of the water velocity including a series of concrete sills meant to raise water levels, numerous cross bridges and the management of the downstream Laroussia dam regulating the discharge from the Cap Bon canal. The above anthropogenic factors, in conjunction with natural topographical conditions characterized by a generally shallow slope and a very sinuous watercourse, led to an extremely rapid aggradation of the downstream channel-bed. This paper proposes an analysis of this process and argues that the resulting reduction in channel capacity is one of the major causes of the large floods experienced in the country since 1996.

  19. A method for simultaneously delineating multiple targets in 3D-FISH using limited channels, lasers, and fluorochromes.

    PubMed

    Zhao, F Y; Yang, X; Chen, D Y; Ma, W Y; Zheng, J G; Zhang, X M

    2014-01-01

    Many studies have suggested a link between the spatial organization of genomes and fundamental biological processes such as genome reprogramming, gene expression, and differentiation. Multicolor fluorescence in situ hybridization on three-dimensionally preserved nuclei (3D-FISH), in combination with confocal microscopy, has become an effective technique for analyzing 3D genome structure and spatial patterns of defined nucleus targets including entire chromosome territories and single gene loci. This technique usually requires the simultaneous visualization of numerous targets labeled with different colored fluorochromes. Thus, the number of channels and lasers must be sufficient for the commonly used labeling scheme of 3D-FISH, "one probe-one target". However, these channels and lasers are usually restricted by a given microscope system. This paper presents a method for simultaneously delineating multiple targets in 3D-FISH using limited channels, lasers, and fluorochromes. In contrast to other labeling schemes, this method is convenient and simple for multicolor 3D-FISH studies, which may result in widespread adoption of the technique. Lastly, as an application of the method, the nucleus locations of chromosome territory 18/21 and centromere 18/21/13 in normal human lymphocytes were analyzed, which might present evidence of a radial higher order chromatin arrangement.

  20. Results From a Channel Restoration Project: Hydraulic Design Considerations

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Karle, K.F.; Densmore, R.V.; ,

    2001-01-01

    Techniques for the hydraulic restoration of placer-mined streams and floodplains were developed in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. The two-year study at Glen Creek focused on a design of stream and floodplain geometry using hydraulic capacity and shear stress equations. Slope and sinuosity values were based on regional relationships. Design requirements included a channel capacity for a bankfull discharge and a floodplain capacity for a 1.5- to 100-year discharge. Several bio-engineering techniques using alder and willow, including anchored brush bars, streambank hedge layering, seedlings, and cuttings, were tested to dissipate floodwater energy and encourage sediment deposition until natural revegetation stabilized the new floodplains. Permanently monumented cross-sections installed throughout the project site were surveyed every one to three years. Nine years after the project began, a summer flood caused substantial damage to the channel form, including a change in width/depth ratio, slope, and thalweg location. Many of the alder brush bars were heavily damaged or destroyed, resulting in significant bank erosion. This paper reviews the original hydraulic design process, and describes changes to the channel and floodplain geometry over time, based on nine years of cross-section surveys.

  1. Engineered channel controls limiting spawning habitat rehabilitation success on regulated gravel-bed rivers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brown, Rocko A.; Pasternack, Gregory B.

    2008-05-01

    In efforts to rehabilitate regulated rivers for ecological benefits, the flow regime has been one of the primary focal points of management strategies. However, channel engineering can impact channel geometry such that hydraulic and geomorphic responses to flow reregulation do not yield the sought for benefits. To illustrate and assess the impacts of structural channel controls and flow reregulation on channel processes and fish habitat quality in multiple life stages, a highly detailed digital elevation model was collected and analyzed for a river reach right below a dam using a suite of hydrologic, hydraulic, geomorphic, and ecological methods. Results showed that, despite flow reregulation to produce a scaled-down natural hydrograph, anthropogenic boundary controls have severely altered geomorphic processes associated with geomorphic self-sustainability and instream habitat availability in the case study. Given the similarity of this stream to many others, we concluded that the potential utility of natural flow regime reinstatement in regulated gravel-bed rivers is conditional on concomitant channel rehabilitation.

  2. Therapeutic targeting of two-pore-domain potassium (K(2P)) channels in the cardiovascular system.

    PubMed

    Wiedmann, Felix; Schmidt, Constanze; Lugenbiel, Patrick; Staudacher, Ingo; Rahm, Ann-Kathrin; Seyler, Claudia; Schweizer, Patrick A; Katus, Hugo A; Thomas, Dierk

    2016-05-01

    The improvement of treatment strategies in cardiovascular medicine is an ongoing process that requires constant optimization. The ability of a therapeutic intervention to prevent cardiovascular pathology largely depends on its capacity to suppress the underlying mechanisms. Attenuation or reversal of disease-specific pathways has emerged as a promising paradigm, providing a mechanistic rationale for patient-tailored therapy. Two-pore-domain K(+) (K(2P)) channels conduct outward K(+) currents that stabilize the resting membrane potential and facilitate action potential repolarization. K(2P) expression in the cardiovascular system and polymodal K2P current regulation suggest functional significance and potential therapeutic roles of the channels. Recent work has focused primarily on K(2P)1.1 [tandem of pore domains in a weak inwardly rectifying K(+) channel (TWIK)-1], K(2P)2.1 [TWIK-related K(+) channel (TREK)-1], and K(2P)3.1 [TWIK-related acid-sensitive K(+) channel (TASK)-1] channels and their role in heart and vessels. K(2P) currents have been implicated in atrial and ventricular arrhythmogenesis and in setting the vascular tone. Furthermore, the association of genetic alterations in K(2P)3.1 channels with atrial fibrillation, cardiac conduction disorders and pulmonary arterial hypertension demonstrates the relevance of the channels in cardiovascular disease. The function, regulation and clinical significance of cardiovascular K(2P) channels are summarized in the present review, and therapeutic options are emphasized. © 2016 Authors; published by Portland Press Limited.

  3. Mitochondrial acclimation capacities to ocean warming and acidification are limited in the antarctic Nototheniid Fish, Notothenia rossii and Lepidonotothen squamifrons.

    PubMed

    Strobel, Anneli; Graeve, Martin; Poertner, Hans O; Mark, Felix C

    2013-01-01

    Antarctic notothenioid fish are characterized by their evolutionary adaptation to the cold, thermostable Southern Ocean, which is associated with unique physiological adaptations to withstand the cold and reduce energetic requirements but also entails limited compensation capacities to environmental change. This study compares the capacities of mitochondrial acclimation to ocean warming and acidification between the Antarctic nototheniid Notothenia rossii and the sub-Antarctic Lepidonotothen squamifrons, which share a similar ecology, but different habitat temperatures. After acclimation of L. squamifrons to 9°C and N. rossii to 7°C (normocapnic/hypercapnic, 0.2 kPa CO2/2000 ppm CO2) for 4-6 weeks, we compared the capacities of their mitochondrial respiratory complexes I (CI) and II (CII), their P/O ratios (phosphorylation efficiency), proton leak capacities and mitochondrial membrane fatty acid compositions. Our results reveal reduced CII respiration rates in warm-acclimated L. squamifrons and cold hypercapnia-acclimated N. rossii. Generally, L. squamifrons displayed a greater ability to increase CI contribution during acute warming and after warm-acclimation than N. rossii. Membrane unsaturation was not altered by warm or hypercapnia-acclimation in both species, but membrane fatty acids of warm-acclimated L. squamifrons were less saturated than in warm normocapnia-/hypercapnia-acclimated N. rossii. Proton leak capacities were not affected by warm or hypercapnia-acclimation of N. rossii. We conclude that an acclimatory response of mitochondrial capacities may include higher thermal plasticity of CI supported by enhanced utilization of anaplerotic substrates (via oxidative decarboxylation reactions) feeding into the citrate cycle. L. squamifrons possesses higher relative CI plasticities than N. rossii, which may facilitate the usage of energy efficient NADH-related substrates under conditions of elevated energy demand, possibly induced by ocean warming and

  4. An RFID-Based Smart Structure for the Supply Chain: Resilient Scanning Proofs and Ownership Transfer with Positive Secrecy Capacity Channels.

    PubMed

    Burmester, Mike; Munilla, Jorge; Ortiz, Andrés; Caballero-Gil, Pino

    2017-07-04

    The National Strategy for Global Supply Chain Security published in 2012 by the White House identifies two primary goals for strengthening global supply chains: first, to promote the efficient and secure movement of goods, and second to foster a resilient supply chain. The Internet of Things (IoT), and in particular Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, can be used to realize these goals. For product identification, tracking and real-time awareness, RFID tags are attached to goods. As tagged goods move along the supply chain from the suppliers to the manufacturers, and then on to the retailers until eventually they reach the customers, two major security challenges can be identified: (I) to protect the shipment of goods that are controlled by potentially untrusted carriers; and (II) to secure the transfer of ownership at each stage of the chain. For the former, grouping proofs in which the tags of the scanned goods generate a proof of "simulatenous" presence can be employed, while for the latter, ownership transfer protocols (OTP) are used. This paper describes enhanced security solutions for both challenges. We first extend earlier work on grouping proofs and group codes to capture resilient group scanning with untrusted readers; then, we describe a modified version of a recently published OTP based on channels with positive secrecy capacity adapted to be implemented on common RFID systems in the supply chain. The proposed solutions take into account the limitations of low cost tags employed in the supply chain, which are only required to generate pseudorandom numbers and compute one-way hash functions.

  5. Sediment transport-storage relations for degrading, gravel bed channels

    Treesearch

    Thomas E. Lisle; Michael Church

    2002-01-01

    In a drainage network,sediment is transferred through a series of channel/valley segments (natural sediment storage reservoirs) that are distinguished from their neighbors by their particular capacity to store and transport sediment. We propose that the sediment transport capacity of each reservoir is a unique positive function of storage volume, which influences...

  6. Online Program Capacity: Limited, Static, Elastic, or Infinite?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Meyer, Katrina A.

    2008-01-01

    What is the capacity of online programs? Can these types of programs enroll more students than their face-to-face counterparts or not? This article looks at research on achieving cost-efficiencies through online learning, identifies the parts of an online program that can be changed to increase enrollments, and discusses whether a program's…

  7. Strong and uniform convergence in the teleportation simulation of bosonic Gaussian channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wilde, Mark M.

    2018-06-01

    In the literature on the continuous-variable bosonic teleportation protocol due to Braunstein and Kimble [Phys. Rev. Lett. 80, 869 (1998), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.80.869], it is often loosely stated that this protocol converges to a perfect teleportation of an input state in the limit of ideal squeezing and ideal detection, but the exact form of this convergence is typically not clarified. In this paper, I explicitly clarify that the convergence is in the strong sense, and not the uniform sense, and furthermore that the convergence occurs for any input state to the protocol, including the infinite-energy Basel states defined and discussed here. I also prove, in contrast to the above result, that the teleportation simulations of pure-loss, thermal, pure-amplifier, amplifier, and additive-noise channels converge both strongly and uniformly to the original channels, in the limit of ideal squeezing and detection for the simulations. For these channels, I give explicit uniform bounds on the accuracy of their teleportation simulations. I then extend these uniform convergence results to particular multimode bosonic Gaussian channels. These convergence statements have important implications for mathematical proofs that make use of the teleportation simulation of bosonic Gaussian channels, some of which have to do with bounding their nonasymptotic secret-key-agreement capacities. As a by-product of the discussion given here, I confirm the correctness of the proof of such bounds from my joint work with Berta and Tomamichel from [Wilde, Tomamichel, and Berta, IEEE Trans. Inf. Theory 63, 1792 (2017), 10.1109/TIT.2017.2648825]. Furthermore, I show that it is not necessary to invoke the energy-constrained diamond distance in order to confirm the correctness of this proof.

  8. Effect of ceramic membrane channel diameter on limiting retentate protein concentration during skim milk microfiltration.

    PubMed

    Adams, Michael C; Barbano, David M

    2016-01-01

    Our objective was to determine the effect of retentate flow channel diameter (4 or 6mm) of nongraded permeability 100-nm pore size ceramic membranes operated in nonuniform transmembrane pressure mode on the limiting retentate protein concentration (LRPC) while microfiltering (MF) skim milk at a temperature of 50°C, a flux of 55 kg · m(-2) · h(-1), and an average cross-flow velocity of 7 m · s(-1). At the above conditions, the retentate true protein concentration was incrementally increased from 7 to 11.5%. When temperature, flux, and average cross-flow velocity were controlled, ceramic membrane retentate flow channel diameter did not affect the LRPC. This indicates that LRPC is not a function of the Reynolds number. Computational fluid dynamics data, which indicated that both membranes had similar radial velocity profiles within their retentate flow channels, supported this finding. Membranes with 6-mm flow channels can be operated at a lower pressure decrease from membrane inlet to membrane outlet (ΔP) or at a higher cross-flow velocity, depending on which is controlled, than membranes with 4-mm flow channels. This implies that 6-mm membranes could achieve a higher LRPC than 4-mm membranes at the same ΔP due to an increase in cross-flow velocity. In theory, the higher LRPC of the 6-mm membranes could facilitate 95% serum protein removal in 2 MF stages with diafiltration between stages if no serum protein were rejected by the membrane. At the same flux, retentate protein concentration, and average cross-flow velocity, 4-mm membranes require 21% more energy to remove a given amount of permeate than 6-mm membranes, despite the lower surface area of the 6-mm membranes. Equations to predict skim milk MF retentate viscosity as a function of protein concentration and temperature are provided. Retentate viscosity, retentate recirculation pump frequency required to maintain a given cross-flow velocity at a given retentate viscosity, and retentate protein

  9. 50 CFR Table 3 to Part 660, Subpart C - Vessel Capacity Ratings for West Coast Groundfish Limited Entry Permits

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 13 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Vessel Capacity Ratings for West Coast Groundfish Limited Entry Permits 3 Table 3 to Part 660, Subpart C Wildlife and Fisheries FISHERY CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT, NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE (CONTINUED...

  10. Alluvial cover controlling the width, slope and sinuosity of bedrock channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Turowski, Jens Martin

    2018-02-01

    Bedrock channel slope and width are important parameters for setting bedload transport capacity and for stream-profile inversion to obtain tectonics information. Channel width and slope development are closely related to the problem of bedrock channel sinuosity. It is therefore likely that observations on bedrock channel meandering yields insights into the development of channel width and slope. Active meandering occurs when the bedrock channel walls are eroded, which also drives channel widening. Further, for a given drop in elevation, the more sinuous a channel is, the lower is its channel bed slope in comparison to a straight channel. It can thus be expected that studies of bedrock channel meandering give insights into width and slope adjustment and vice versa. The mechanisms by which bedrock channels actively meander have been debated since the beginning of modern geomorphic research in the 19th century, but a final consensus has not been reached. It has long been argued that whether a bedrock channel meanders actively or not is determined by the availability of sediment relative to transport capacity, a notion that has also been demonstrated in laboratory experiments. Here, this idea is taken up by postulating that the rate of change of both width and sinuosity over time is dependent on bed cover only. Based on the physics of erosion by bedload impacts, a scaling argument is developed to link bedrock channel width, slope and sinuosity to sediment supply, discharge and erodibility. This simple model built on sediment-flux-driven bedrock erosion concepts yields the observed scaling relationships of channel width and slope with discharge and erosion rate. Further, it explains why sinuosity evolves to a steady-state value and predicts the observed relations between sinuosity, erodibility and storm frequency, as has been observed for meandering bedrock rivers on Pacific Arc islands.

  11. Calcium channel dynamics limit synaptic release in response to prosthetic stimulation with sinusoidal waveforms

    PubMed Central

    Freeman, Daniel K.; Jeng, Jed S.; Kelly, Shawn K.; Hartveit, Espen; Fried, Shelley I.

    2011-01-01

    Extracellular electric stimulation with sinusoidal waveforms has been shown to allow preferential activation of individual types of retinal neurons by varying stimulus frequency. It is important to understand the mechanisms underlying this frequency dependence as a step towards improving methods of preferential activation. In order to elucidate these mechanisms, we implemented a morphologically realistic model of a retinal bipolar cell and measured the response to extracellular stimulation with sinusoidal waveforms. We compared the frequency response of a passive membrane model to the kinetics of voltage-gated calcium channels that mediate synaptic release. The passive electrical properties of the membrane exhibited lowpass filtering with a relatively high cutoff frequency (nominal value = 717 Hz). This cutoff frequency was dependent on intra-axonal resistance, with shorter and wider axons yielding higher cutoff frequencies. However, we found that the cutoff frequency of bipolar cell synaptic release was primarily limited by the relatively slow opening kinetics of Land T-type calcium channels. The cutoff frequency of calcium currents depended nonlinearly on stimulus amplitude, but remained lower than the cutoff frequency of the passive membrane model for a large range of membrane potential fluctuations. These results suggest that while it may be possible to modulate the membrane potential of bipolar cells over a wide range of stimulus frequencies, synaptic release will only be initiated at the lower end of this range. PMID:21628768

  12. A Risk Based Approach to Limit the Effects of Covert Channels for Internet Sensor Data Aggregators for Sensor Privacy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Viecco, Camilo H.; Camp, L. Jean

    Effective defense against Internet threats requires data on global real time network status. Internet sensor networks provide such real time network data. However, an organization that participates in a sensor network risks providing a covert channel to attackers if that organization’s sensor can be identified. While there is benefit for every party when any individual participates in such sensor deployments, there are perverse incentives against individual participation. As a result, Internet sensor networks currently provide limited data. Ensuring anonymity of individual sensors can decrease the risk of participating in a sensor network without limiting data provision.

  13. Amortization does not enhance the max-Rains information of a quantum channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Berta, Mario; Wilde, Mark M.

    2018-05-01

    Given an entanglement measure E, the entanglement of a quantum channel is defined as the largest amount of entanglement E that can be generated from the channel, if the sender and receiver are not allowed to share a quantum state before using the channel. The amortized entanglement of a quantum channel is defined as the largest net amount of entanglement E that can be generated from the channel, if the sender and receiver are allowed to share an arbitrary state before using the channel. Our main technical result is that amortization does not enhance the entanglement of an arbitrary quantum channel, when entanglement is quantified by the max-Rains relative entropy. We prove this statement by employing semi-definite programming (SDP) duality and SDP formulations for the max-Rains relative entropy and a channel’s max-Rains information, found recently in Wang et al (arXiv:1709.00200). The main application of our result is a single-letter, strong converse, and efficiently computable upper bound on the capacity of a quantum channel for transmitting qubits when assisted by positive-partial-transpose preserving (PPT-P) channels between every use of the channel. As the class of local operations and classical communication (LOCC) is contained in PPT-P, our result establishes a benchmark for the LOCC-assisted quantum capacity of an arbitrary quantum channel, which is relevant in the context of distributed quantum computation and quantum key distribution.

  14. Modeling the evolution of channel shape: Balancing computational efficiency with hydraulic fidelity

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wobus, C.W.; Kean, J.W.; Tucker, G.E.; Anderson, R. Scott

    2008-01-01

    The cross-sectional shape of a natural river channel controls the capacity of the system to carry water off a landscape, to convey sediment derived from hillslopes, and to erode its bed and banks. Numerical models that describe the response of a landscape to changes in climate or tectonics therefore require formulations that can accommodate evolution of channel cross-sectional geometry. However, fully two-dimensional (2-D) flow models are too computationally expensive to implement in large-scale landscape evolution models, while available simple empirical relationships between width and discharge do not adequately capture the dynamics of channel adjustment. We have developed a simplified 2-D numerical model of channel evolution in a cohesive, detachment-limited substrate subject to steady, unidirectional flow. Erosion is assumed to be proportional to boundary shear stress, which is calculated using an approximation of the flow field in which log-velocity profiles are assumed to apply along vectors that are perpendicular to the local channel bed. Model predictions of the velocity structure, peak boundary shear stress, and equilibrium channel shape compare well with predictions of a more sophisticated but more computationally demanding ray-isovel model. For example, the mean velocities computed by the two models are consistent to within ???3%, and the predicted peak shear stress is consistent to within ???7%. Furthermore, the shear stress distributions predicted by our model compare favorably with available laboratory measurements for prescribed channel shapes. A modification to our simplified code in which the flow includes a high-velocity core allows the model to be extended to estimate shear stress distributions in channels with large width-to-depth ratios. Our model is efficient enough to incorporate into large-scale landscape evolution codes and can be used to examine how channels adjust both cross-sectional shape and slope in response to tectonic and climatic

  15. Figure of merit for direct-detection optical channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Chen, C.-C.

    1992-01-01

    The capacity and sensitivity of a direct-detection optical channel are calculated and compared to those of a white Gaussian noise channel. Unlike Gaussian channels in which the receiver performance can be characterized using the noise temperature, the performance of the direct-detection channel depends on both signal and background noise, as well as the ratio of peak to average signal power. Because of the signal-power dependence of the optical channel, actual performance of the channel can be evaluated only by considering both transmit and receive ends of the systems. Given the background noise power and the modulation bandwidth, however, the theoretically optimum receiver sensitivity can be calculated. This optimum receiver sensitivity can be used to define the equivalent receiver noise temperature and calculate the corresponding G/T product. It should be pointed out, however, that the receiver sensitivity is a function of signal power, and care must be taken to avoid deriving erroneous projections of the direct-detection channel performance.

  16. Regularized maximum pure-state input-output fidelity of a quantum channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ernst, Moritz F.; Klesse, Rochus

    2017-12-01

    As a toy model for the capacity problem in quantum information theory we investigate finite and asymptotic regularizations of the maximum pure-state input-output fidelity F (N ) of a general quantum channel N . We show that the asymptotic regularization F ˜(N ) is lower bounded by the maximum output ∞ -norm ν∞(N ) of the channel. For N being a Pauli channel, we find that both quantities are equal.

  17. Modelling the flooding capacity of a Polish Carpathian river: A comparison of constrained and free channel conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Czech, Wiktoria; Radecki-Pawlik, Artur; Wyżga, Bartłomiej; Hajdukiewicz, Hanna

    2016-11-01

    The gravel-bed Biała River, Polish Carpathians, was heavily affected by channelization and channel incision in the twentieth century. Not only were these impacts detrimental to the ecological state of the river, but they also adversely modified the conditions of floodwater retention and flood wave passage. Therefore, a few years ago an erodible corridor was delimited in two sections of the Biała to enable restoration of the river. In these sections, short, channelized reaches located in the vicinity of bridges alternate with longer, unmanaged channel reaches, which either avoided channelization or in which the channel has widened after the channelization scheme ceased to be maintained. Effects of these alternating channel morphologies on the conditions for flood flows were investigated in a study of 10 pairs of neighbouring river cross sections with constrained and freely developed morphology. Discharges of particular recurrence intervals were determined for each cross section using an empirical formula. The morphology of the cross sections together with data about channel slope and roughness of particular parts of the cross sections were used as input data to the hydraulic modelling performed with the one-dimensional steady-flow HEC-RAS software. The results indicated that freely developed cross sections, usually with multithread morphology, are typified by significantly lower water depth but larger width and cross-sectional flow area at particular discharges than single-thread, channelized cross sections. They also exhibit significantly lower average flow velocity, unit stream power, and bed shear stress. The pattern of differences in the hydraulic parameters of flood flows apparent between the two types of river cross sections varies with the discharges of different frequency, and the contrasts in hydraulic parameters between unmanaged and channelized cross sections are most pronounced at low-frequency, high-magnitude floods. However, because of the deep

  18. 80-Channel Multiplexer-Demultiplexer Module for DWDM Communications using Hybrid AWG -- Interleaver Technology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rablau, Corneliu; Bredthauer, Lance

    2007-10-01

    Aside from the more traditional data, voice and e-mail communications, new bandwidth intensive applications in the larger consumer markets, such as music, digital pictures and movies, have led to an explosive increase in the demand for transmission capacity for optical communications networks. This has resulted in a widespread deployment of Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) as a means of increasing the communications capacity by multiplexing and transmitting signals of different wavelengths (establishing multiple communication channels) through a single strand of fiber. We report on the design, assembly and characterization of a 50-GHz, 80-channel Mux-Demux module for DWDM systems. The module has been assembled from two commercially available 100 GHz, 40-channel Array Waveguide Grating (AWG) modules and a 50-GHz to 100-GHz interleaver. Relevant performance parameters such as insertion loss, channel uniformity, next-channel isolation (crosstalk) and integrated cross-talk are presented and discussed in contrast with the performance of other competing technologies such as Thin-Film-Filter-based Mux-Demux devices.

  19. An RFID-Based Smart Structure for the Supply Chain: Resilient Scanning Proofs and Ownership Transfer with Positive Secrecy Capacity Channels

    PubMed Central

    Ortiz, Andrés

    2017-01-01

    The National Strategy for Global Supply Chain Security published in 2012 by the White House identifies two primary goals for strengthening global supply chains: first, to promote the efficient and secure movement of goods, and second to foster a resilient supply chain. The Internet of Things (IoT), and in particular Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, can be used to realize these goals. For product identification, tracking and real-time awareness, RFID tags are attached to goods. As tagged goods move along the supply chain from the suppliers to the manufacturers, and then on to the retailers until eventually they reach the customers, two major security challenges can be identified: (I) to protect the shipment of goods that are controlled by potentially untrusted carriers; and (II) to secure the transfer of ownership at each stage of the chain. For the former, grouping proofs in which the tags of the scanned goods generate a proof of “simulatenous” presence can be employed, while for the latter, ownership transfer protocols (OTP) are used. This paper describes enhanced security solutions for both challenges. We first extend earlier work on grouping proofs and group codes to capture resilient group scanning with untrusted readers; then, we describe a modified version of a recently published OTP based on channels with positive secrecy capacity adapted to be implemented on common RFID systems in the supply chain. The proposed solutions take into account the limitations of low cost tags employed in the supply chain, which are only required to generate pseudorandom numbers and compute one-way hash functions. PMID:28677637

  20. Testing of a high capacity research heat pipe

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1982-01-01

    Tests were performed on a high-capacity channel-wick heat pipe to assess the transport limitations of v-grooves and the effects of boiling. The results showed that transport can vary significantly (less than 50 W) under similar conditions and the continuous boiling was observed at power levels as low as 40 W. In addition, some evidence was found to support the predictions using a groove transport model which shows that transport increases with lower groove densities and longer evaporators. However, due to transport variations, these results were not consistent throughout the program. When a glass fiber wick was installed over the grooves, a relatively low transport level was achieved (80 to 140 W). Based on these results and the identification of some potential causes for them, several design suggestions were recommended for reducing the possibility of boiling and improving groove transport.

  1. Load-adaptive practical multi-channel communications in wireless sensor networks.

    PubMed

    Islam, Md Shariful; Alam, Muhammad Mahbub; Hong, Choong Seon; Lee, Sungwon

    2010-01-01

    In recent years, a significant number of sensor node prototypes have been designed that provide communications in multiple channels. This multi-channel feature can be effectively exploited to increase the overall capacity and performance of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). In this paper, we present a multi-channel communications system for WSNs that is referred to as load-adaptive practical multi-channel communications (LPMC). LPMC estimates the active load of a channel at the sink since it has a more comprehensive view of the network behavior, and dynamically adds or removes channels based on the estimated load. LPMC updates the routing path to balance the loads of the channels. The nodes in a path use the same channel; therefore, they do not need to switch channels to receive or forward packets. LPMC has been evaluated through extensive simulations, and the results demonstrate that it can effectively increase the delivery ratio, network throughput, and channel utilization, and that it can decrease the end-to-end delay and energy consumption.

  2. Are restored side channels sustainable aquatic habitat features? Predicting the potential persistence of side channels as aquatic habitats based on their fine sedimentation dynamics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Riquier, Jérémie; Piégay, Hervé; Lamouroux, Nicolas; Vaudor, Lise

    2017-10-01

    The restoration of side channels (also referred to as abandoned channels, former channels, floodplain channels, or side arms) is increasingly implemented to improve the ecological integrity of river-floodplain systems. However, the design of side channel restoration projects remains poorly informed by theory or empirical observations despite the increasing number of projects. Moreover, feedback regarding the hydromorphological adjustment of restored channels is rarely documented, making it difficult to predict channel persistence as aquatic habitats. In this study, we analyze the spatial and temporal patterns of fine sediment deposition (< 2 mm) in 16 side channels of the Rhône River, France, restored in 1999-2006 by a combination of dredging and/or partial to full reconnection of their extremities and as a by-product of an increase in minimum flow through the bypassed main channels. We develop prediction tools to assess the persistence of restored channels as aquatic habitats, using between five and seven monitoring surveys per channel (spanning 7-15 years after restoration). Observed channel-averaged sedimentation rates ranged from 0 to 40.3 cm·y- 1 and reached 90.3 cm·y- 1 locally. Some channels exhibited a significant decline of sedimentation rates through time, whereas others maintained rather constant rates. Scouring processes (i.e., self-rejuvenation capacity) were occasionally documented in 15 channels. Six of the 16 studied channels appeared to be self-sustaining. The 10 others accumulated more and more fine sediment deposits after restoration. Parametric modeling of sedimentation rates suggested that among these 10 channels, four have long life-durations (i.e., more than a century), three have intermediate life-durations (i.e., likely between three and nine decades), and three others have short life-durations (i.e., likely between two and five decades). Observed channel-averaged sedimentation rates can be predicted from the frequency and magnitude (i

  3. Turbulence-induced channel crosstalk in an orbital angular momentum-multiplexed free-space optical link

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anguita, Jaime A.; Neifeld, Mark A.; Vasic, Bane V.

    2008-05-01

    A multichannel free-space optical (FSO) communication system based on orbital angular momentum (OAM)-carrying beams is studied. We numerically analyze the effects of atmospheric turbulence on the system and find that turbulence induces attenuation and crosstalk among channels. Based on a model in which the constituent channels are binary symmetric and crosstalk is a Gaussian noise source, we find optimal sets of OAM states at each turbulence condition studied and determine the aggregate capacity of the multichannel system at those conditions. OAM-multiplexed FSO systems that operate in the weak turbulence regime are found to offer good performance. We verify that the aggregate capacity decreases as the turbulence increases. A per-channel bit-error rate evaluation is presented to show the uneven effects of crosstalk on the constituent channels.

  4. Bilayer Protograph Codes for Half-Duplex Relay Channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Divsalar, Dariush; VanNguyen, Thuy; Nosratinia, Aria

    2013-01-01

    Direct to Earth return links are limited by the size and power of lander devices. A standard alternative is provided by a two-hops return link: a proximity link (from lander to orbiter relay) and a deep-space link (from orbiter relay to Earth). Although direct to Earth return links are limited by the size and power of lander devices, using an additional link and a proposed coding for relay channels, one can obtain a more reliable signal. Although significant progress has been made in the relay coding problem, existing codes must be painstakingly optimized to match to a single set of channel conditions, many of them do not offer easy encoding, and most of them do not have structured design. A high-performing LDPC (low-density parity-check) code for the relay channel addresses simultaneously two important issues: a code structure that allows low encoding complexity, and a flexible rate-compatible code that allows matching to various channel conditions. Most of the previous high-performance LDPC codes for the relay channel are tightly optimized for a given channel quality, and are not easily adapted without extensive re-optimization for various channel conditions. This code for the relay channel combines structured design and easy encoding with rate compatibility to allow adaptation to the three links involved in the relay channel, and furthermore offers very good performance. The proposed code is constructed by synthesizing a bilayer structure with a pro to graph. In addition to the contribution to relay encoding, an improved family of protograph codes was produced for the point-to-point AWGN (additive white Gaussian noise) channel whose high-rate members enjoy thresholds that are within 0.07 dB of capacity. These LDPC relay codes address three important issues in an integrative manner: low encoding complexity, modular structure allowing for easy design, and rate compatibility so that the code can be easily matched to a variety of channel conditions without extensive

  5. Contingent capture of visual-spatial attention depends on capacity-limited central mechanisms: evidence from human electrophysiology and the psychological refractory period.

    PubMed

    Brisson, Benoit; Leblanc, Emilie; Jolicoeur, Pierre

    2009-02-01

    It has recently been demonstrated that a lateralized distractor that matches the individual's top-down control settings elicits an N2pc wave, an electrophysiological index of the focus of visual-spatial attention, indicating that contingent capture has a visual-spatial locus. Here, we investigated whether contingent capture required capacity-limited central resources by incorporating a contingent capture task as the second task of a psychological refractory period (PRP) dual-task paradigm. The N2pc was used to monitor where observers were attending while they performed concurrent central processing known to cause the PRP effect. The N2pc elicited by the lateralized distractor that matched the top-down control settings was attenuated in high concurrent central load conditions, indicating that although involuntary, the deployment of visual-spatial attention occurring during contingent capture depends on capacity-limited central resources.

  6. Fine bed material in pools of natural gravel bed channels

    Treesearch

    Thomas E. Lisle; Sue Hilton

    1999-01-01

    Abstract - Natural gravel bed channels commonly contain a fine mode of sand and fine gravel that fills voids of the bed framework of coarser gravel. If the supply of fine bed material exceeds the storage capacity of framework voids, excess fine material forms surficial patches, which can be voluminous in pools during low flow. Data collected in 34 natural channels in...

  7. An Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) Mode Reconfigurable Antenna for Channel Capacity Improvement and Digital Data Encoding.

    PubMed

    Liu, Baiyang; Lin, Guoying; Cui, Yuehui; Li, RongLin

    2017-08-29

    For purpose of utilizing orbital angular momentum (OAM) mode diversity, multiple OAM beams should be generated preferably by a single antenna. In this paper, an OAM mode reconfigurable antenna is proposed. Different from the existed OAM antennas with multiple ports for multiple OAM modes transmitting, the proposed antenna with only a single port, but it can be used to transmit mode 1 or mode -1 OAM beams arbitrary by controlling the PIN diodes on the feeding network through a programmable microcontroller which control by a remote controller. Simulation and measurement results such as return loss, near-field and far-field radiation patterns of two operating states for mode 1 and mode -1, and OAM mode orthogonality are given. The proposed antenna can serve as a candidate for utilizing OAM diversity, namely phase diversity to increase channel capacity at 2.4 GHz. Moreover, an OAM-mode based encoding method is experimentally carried out by the proposed OAM mode reconfigurable antenna, the digital data are encoded and decoded by different OAM modes. At the transmitter, the proposed OAM mode reconfigurable antenna is used to encode the digital data, data symbol 0 and 1 are mapped to OAM mode 1 and mode -1, respectively. At the receiver, the data symbols are decoded by phase gradient method.

  8. The dynamics of bedrock channel adjustment: Modeling the influence of sediment supply, weathering, and lithology on channel cross-sectional and longitudinal shape

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wobus, C.; Tucker, G.; Anderson, R.; Kean, J.; Small, E.; Hancock, G.

    2007-12-01

    The cross-sectional form of a natural river channel controls the capacity of the system to carry water off a landscape, to convey sediment derived from hillslopes, and to erode its bed and banks. Numerical models that describe the response of a landscape to changes in climate or tectonics therefore require formulations that can accommodate changes in channel cross-sectional geometry through time. We have developed a 2D numerical model that computes the formation of a channel in a cohesive, detachment-limited substrate subject to steady, unidirectional flow. Boundary shear stress is calculated using a simple approximation of the flow field in which log-velocity profiles are assumed to apply along vectors that are perpendicular to the local boundary surface. The resulting model predictions for the velocity structure, peak boundary shear stress, and equilibrium channel shape compare well with the predictions of a more sophisticated but more computationally demanding ray-isovel model. For example, the mean velocities computed by the two models are consistent to within ~3%, and the predicted peak shear stress is consistent to within ~7%. The efficiency of our model makes it suitable for calculations of long-term morphologic change both in single cross-sections and in series of cross-sections arrayed downstream. For a uniform substrate, the model predicts a strong tendency toward a fixed width-to-depth ratio, regardless of gradient or discharge. The model predicts power-law relationships between width and discharge with an exponent near 2/5, and between width and gradient with an exponent near -1/5. Recent enhancements to the model include the addition of sediment, which increases the width-to-depth ratio at steady state by favoring erosion of the channel walls relative to the channel bed (the "cover effect"). Inclusion of a probability density function of discharges with a simple parameterization of weathering along channel banks leads to the formation of model strath

  9. Cardiorespiratory responses in an Antarctic fish suggest limited capacity for thermal acclimation.

    PubMed

    Egginton, Stuart; Campbell, Hamish A

    2016-05-01

    Polar fishes are at high risk from increasing seawater temperatures. Characterising the physiological responses to such changes may both clarify mechanisms that permit life under extreme conditions and identify limitations in the response to continued global warming. We hypothesised that Notothenia coriiceps would show physiological compensation after an acute exposure to 5°C, and following 6 weeks warm acclimation, compared with ambient temperature (0°C). However, initial tachycardia (22.4±2.8 versus 12.8±1.1 min(-1); P<0.01) was not reversed by acclimation (21.0±1.9 min(-1)). Hyperventilation (45.5±3.1 versus 21.4±2.4 breaths min(-1); P<0.001) showed a modest reduction following acclimation (38.0±2.9 min(-1); P<0.05), while resting oxygen consumption (0.52±0.08 mmol kg(-1) h(-1)) was acutely increased at 5°C (1.07±0.10 mmol kg(-1) h(-1); P<0.001) but unchanged with acclimation. Autonomic blockade showed initial responses were mainly of vagal origin, with little subsequent withdrawal or recovery in long-term heart rate variability after 6 weeks. Given the limited cardiorespiratory capacity to withstand sustained warming, effective physiological compensation probably requires a more prolonged acclimation period. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  10. High-capacity mixed fiber-wireless backhaul networks using MMW radio-over-MCF and MIMO

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pham, Thu A.; Pham, Hien T. T.; Le, Hai-Chau; Dang, Ngoc T.

    2017-10-01

    In this paper, we have proposed a high-capacity backhaul network, which is based on mixed fiber-wireless systems using millimeter-wave radio-over-multi-core fiber (MMW RoMCF) and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, for next generation mobile access networks. In addition, we also investigate the use of avalanche photodiode (APD) to improve capacity of the proposed backhaul downlink. We then theoretically analyze the system capacity comprehensively while considering various physical impairments including noise, MCF crosstalk, and fading modeled by Rician MIMO channel. The feasibility of the proposed backhaul architecture is verified via the numerical simulation experiments. The research results demonstrate that our developed backhaul solution can significantly enhance the backhaul capacity; the system capacity of 24 bps/Hz can be achieved with 20-km 8-core MCF and 8 × 8 MIMO transmitted over 100-m Rician fading link. It is also shown that the system performance, in term of channel capacity, strongly depend on the MCF inter-core crosstalk, which is governed by the mode coupling coefficient, the core pitch, and the bending radius.

  11. Simultaneous estimation of vitamin K1 and heparin with low limit of detection using cascaded channels fiber optic surface plasmon resonance.

    PubMed

    Tabassum, Rana; Gupta, Banshi D

    2016-12-15

    We report an approach for the simultaneous estimation of vitamin K1 (VK1) and heparin via cascaded channel multianalyte sensing probe employing fiber optic surface plasmon resonance technique. Cladding from two well separated portions of the fiber is removed and are respectively coated with thin films of silver (channel-1) and copper (channel-2). The nanohybrid of multiwalled carbon nanotube in chitosan is fabricated over silver layer for the sensing of VK1 whereas core shell nanostructure of polybrene@ZnO is coated over copper layer for the sensing of heparin. Spectral interrogation method is used for the characterization of the sensor. Analyte selectivity of both the channels is performed by carrying out experiments using independent solutions of VK1 and heparin. Experiments performed on the solution of the mixture of VK1 and heparin show red shifts in both the channels on changing the concentration of both the analytes in the mixture. The operating range of both VK1 and heparin is from 0 to 10(-3)g/l. The limit of detection of the sensor is 2.66×10(-4)µg/l and 2.88×10(-4)µg/l for VK1 and heparin respectively which are lower than the reported ones. The additional advantages of the present sensor are low cost, possibility of online monitoring and remote sensing. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Preliminary assessment of channel stability and bed-material transport in the Rogue River basin, southwestern Oregon

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Jones, Krista L.; O'Connor, Jim E.; Keith, Mackenzie K.; Mangano, Joseph F.; Wallick, J. Rose

    2012-01-01

    mainstem Rogue River, the median diameter of surface particles varied from 21 mm at the Wedderburn Bar in the Tidal Reach to more than 100 millimeters (mm) at some of the coarsest bars in the Galice Reach. Low armoring ratios tentatively indicated that sediment supply likely exceeds transport capacity at Orchard (Lobster Creek Reach) and Wedderburn (Tidal Reach) Bars. Conversely, relatively higher armoring ratios indicated that transport capacity likely is in balance with sediment supply at Roberston Bridge Bar (Merlin Reach) and exceeds sediment supply at Rogue River City (Grants Pass Reach), Solitude Riffle (Galice Reach), and Hooks Gulch (Galice Reach) Bars. * Limited particle data were collected in the study areas on the Applegate and Illinois Rivers. Particle size measurements and armoring ratios tentatively show that sediment supply likely exceeds transport capacity at Bakery Bar in the Lower Applegate Reach. Also, the bed material exiting the Applegate River is likely finer than the bed material in the Rogue River, whereas bed material exiting the Illinois River is likely coarser than the bed material in the Rogue River. * Together, these observations and findings indicate that (1) the size, area, and overall position of bars in the Rogue River study area are determined largely by valley physiography, such that unconfined alluvial sections have large channel-flanking bars, whereas confined sections have fewer and smaller bars, (2) segments within the Grants Pass, Merlin, Tidal, Upper Applegate River, and Lower Applegate River Reaches are prone to vertical and/or lateral channel adjustments, and (3) the balance between transport capacity and sediment supply varies throughout the study area. * High winter flows and the steep, confined character of much of the Rogue River within the study area result in a river corridor with a high capacity to transport bed material. In the Grants Pass and Galice Reaches, the extensive in-channel bedrock as well as the sparse number

  13. Working Memory Capacity as a Dynamic Process

    PubMed Central

    Simmering, Vanessa R.; Perone, Sammy

    2013-01-01

    A well-known characteristic of working memory (WM) is its limited capacity. The source of such limitations, however, is a continued point of debate. Developmental research is positioned to address this debate by jointly identifying the source(s) of limitations and the mechanism(s) underlying capacity increases. Here we provide a cross-domain survey of studies and theories of WM capacity development, which reveals a complex picture: dozens of studies from 50 papers show nearly universal increases in capacity estimates with age, but marked variation across studies, tasks, and domains. We argue that the full pattern of performance cannot be captured through traditional approaches emphasizing single causes, or even multiple separable causes, underlying capacity development. Rather, we consider WM capacity as a dynamic process that emerges from a unified cognitive system flexibly adapting to the context and demands of each task. We conclude by enumerating specific challenges for researchers and theorists that will need to be met in order to move our understanding forward. PMID:23335902

  14. Testing the Predictions of the Central Capacity Sharing Model

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Tombu, Michael; Jolicoeur, Pierre

    2005-01-01

    The divergent predictions of 2 models of dual-task performance are investigated. The central bottleneck and central capacity sharing models argue that a central stage of information processing is capacity limited, whereas stages before and after are capacity free. The models disagree about the nature of this central capacity limitation. The…

  15. A complexity theory model in science education problem solving: random walks for working memory and mental capacity.

    PubMed

    Stamovlasis, Dimitrios; Tsaparlis, Georgios

    2003-07-01

    The present study examines the role of limited human channel capacity from a science education perspective. A model of science problem solving has been previously validated by applying concepts and tools of complexity theory (the working memory, random walk method). The method correlated the subjects' rank-order achievement scores in organic-synthesis chemistry problems with the subjects' working memory capacity. In this work, we apply the same nonlinear approach to a different data set, taken from chemical-equilibrium problem solving. In contrast to the organic-synthesis problems, these problems are algorithmic, require numerical calculations, and have a complex logical structure. As a result, these problems cause deviations from the model, and affect the pattern observed with the nonlinear method. In addition to Baddeley's working memory capacity, the Pascual-Leone's mental (M-) capacity is examined by the same random-walk method. As the complexity of the problem increases, the fractal dimension of the working memory random walk demonstrates a sudden drop, while the fractal dimension of the M-capacity random walk decreases in a linear fashion. A review of the basic features of the two capacities and their relation is included. The method and findings have consequences for problem solving not only in chemistry and science education, but also in other disciplines.

  16. Characteristic analysis on UAV-MIMO channel based on normalized correlation matrix.

    PubMed

    Gao, Xi jun; Chen, Zi li; Hu, Yong Jiang

    2014-01-01

    Based on the three-dimensional GBSBCM (geometrically based double bounce cylinder model) channel model of MIMO for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the simple form of UAV space-time-frequency channel correlation function which includes the LOS, SPE, and DIF components is presented. By the methods of channel matrix decomposition and coefficient normalization, the analytic formula of UAV-MIMO normalized correlation matrix is deduced. This formula can be used directly to analyze the condition number of UAV-MIMO channel matrix, the channel capacity, and other characteristic parameters. The simulation results show that this channel correlation matrix can be applied to describe the changes of UAV-MIMO channel characteristics under different parameter settings comprehensively. This analysis method provides a theoretical basis for improving the transmission performance of UAV-MIMO channel. The development of MIMO technology shows practical application value in the field of UAV communication.

  17. Effects of Voice Coding and Speech Rate on a Synthetic Speech Display in a Telephone Information System

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1988-05-01

    Seeciv Limited- System for varying Senses term filter capacity output until some Figure 2. Original limited-capacity channel model (Frim Broadbent, 1958) S...2 Figure 2. Original limited-capacity channel model (From Broadbent, 1958) .... 10 Figure 3. Experimental...unlimited variety of human voices for digital recording sources. Synthesis by Analysis Analysis-synthesis methods electronically model the human voice

  18. The discovery of slowness: low-capacity transport and slow anion channel gating by the glutamate transporter EAAT5.

    PubMed

    Gameiro, Armanda; Braams, Simona; Rauen, Thomas; Grewer, Christof

    2011-06-08

    Excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) control the glutamate concentration in the synaptic cleft by glial and neuronal glutamate uptake. Uphill glutamate transport is achieved by the co-/countertransport of Na(+) and other ions down their concentration gradients. Glutamate transporters also display an anion conductance that is activated by the binding of Na(+) and glutamate but is not thermodynamically coupled to the transport process. Of the five known glutamate transporter subtypes, the retina-specific subtype EAAT5 has the largest conductance relative to glutamate uptake activity. Our results suggest that EAAT5 behaves as a slow-gated anion channel with little glutamate transport activity. At steady state, EAAT5 was activated by glutamate, with a K(m)= 61 ± 11 μM. Binding of Na(+) to the empty transporter is associated with a K(m) = 229 ± 37 mM, and binding to the glutamate-bound form is associated with a K(m) = 76 ± 40 mM. Using laser-pulse photolysis of caged glutamate, we determined the pre-steady-state kinetics of the glutamate-induced anion current of EAAT5. This was characterized by two exponential components with time constants of 30 ± 1 ms and 200 ± 15 ms, which is an order of magnitude slower than those observed in other glutamate transporters. A voltage-jump analysis of the anion currents indicates that the slow activation behavior is caused by two slow, rate-limiting steps in the transport cycle, Na(+) binding to the empty transporter, and translocation of the fully loaded transporter. We propose a kinetic transport scheme that includes these two slow steps and can account for the experimentally observed data. Overall, our results suggest that EAAT5 may not act as a classical high-capacity glutamate transporter in the retina; rather, it may function as a slow-gated glutamate receptor and/or glutamate buffering system. Copyright © 2011 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Assessment of the footprint and carrying capacity of oil and gas well sites: the implications for limiting hydrocarbon resources.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Clancy, Sarah; Worrall, Fred; Davies, Richard; Gluyas, Jon

    2017-04-01

    The rapid growth of shale gas developments within the United States and the possibility of developments within Europe have raised concerns about the impact and potential environmental cost. In this study we estimated the likely physical footprint of well pads if shale gas or oil developments were to go forward in Europe and used these estimates to understand the impact upon existing infrastructure; the carrying capacity of the environment and how this may limit the proportion of resources that are accessible estimates. Conventional well pads in UK, The Netherlands and Poland were examined. For the existing UK conventional well pads the current minimum setback from a building for a currently producing well was measured. To assess the carrying capacity of the land surface, well pads, of the average well pad footprint, with recommended setbacks, were randomly placed into the licensed blocks covering the Bowland Shale, UK, and the extent to which they would interact or disrupt existing infrastructure assessed. The average conventional well site footprints were: 10800 m2 (1.08 ha) in the UK; 44600 m2 (4.46 ha) in The Netherlands; and 3000 m2 (0.30 ha) in Poland. The average area per well was: 541 m^2/well (0.05 ha/well) for the UK; 2870 m^2/well (0.29 ha/well) for Poland; and 6370 m^2/well (0.64 ha/well) for The Netherlands. Average access road lengths were: 230 m in the UK; 250 m in Poland; and 310 m in The Netherlands. The minimum setback from a building for a currently producing well was 21 m and 46 m from a house, though the mean setback was 329 and 447 m, respectively. When the surface and sub-surface footprints were considered our approach found that the carrying capacity of the sites and the restrictions from infrastructure over the currently licensed blocks covering the Bowland Shale (UK) was between 5 and 42%, with a mean of 26%. Using Cuadrilla's predicted recoverable reserves estimate of 8.5 x 10^11 m3 for the Bowland Basin, the carrying capacity of the

  20. Bandwidth variable transceivers with artificial neural network-aided provisioning and capacity improvement capabilities in meshed optical networks with cascaded ROADM filtering

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, Xingyu; Zhuge, Qunbi; Qiu, Meng; Xiang, Meng; Zhang, Fangyuan; Wu, Baojian; Qiu, Kun; Plant, David V.

    2018-02-01

    We investigate the capacity improvement achieved by bandwidth variable transceivers (BVT) in meshed optical networks with cascaded ROADM filtering at fixed channel spacing, and then propose an artificial neural network (ANN)-aided provisioning scheme to select optimal symbol rate and modulation format for the BVTs in this scenario. Compared with a fixed symbol rate transceiver with standard QAMs, it is shown by both experiments and simulations that BVTs can increase the average capacity by more than 17%. The ANN-aided BVT provisioning method uses parameters monitored from a coherent receiver and then employs a trained ANN to transform these parameters into the desired configuration. It is verified by simulation that the BVT with the proposed provisioning method can approach the upper limit of the system capacity obtained by brute-force search under various degrees of flexibilities.

  1. Electrical conductivity in Li2O2 and its role in determining capacity limitations in non-aqueous Li-O2 batteries

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Viswanathan, V.; Thygesen, K. S.; Hummelshøj, J. S.; Nørskov, J. K.; Girishkumar, G.; McCloskey, B. D.; Luntz, A. C.

    2011-12-01

    Non-aqueous Li-air or Li-O2 cells show considerable promise as a very high energy density battery couple. Such cells, however, show sudden death at capacities far below their theoretical capacity and this, among other problems, limits their practicality. In this paper, we show that this sudden death arises from limited charge transport through the growing Li2O2 film to the Li2O2-electrolyte interface, and this limitation defines a critical film thickness, above which it is not possible to support electrochemistry at the Li2O2-electrolyte interface. We report both electrochemical experiments using a reversible internal redox couple and a first principles metal-insulator-metal charge transport model to probe the electrical conductivity through Li2O2 films produced during Li-O2 discharge. Both experiment and theory show a "sudden death" in charge transport when film thickness is ˜5 to 10 nm. The theoretical model shows that this occurs when the tunneling current through the film can no longer support the electrochemical current. Thus, engineering charge transport through Li2O2 is a serious challenge if Li-O2 batteries are ever to reach their potential.

  2. Scaling Trends and Tradeoffs between Short Channel Effect and Channel Boosting Characteristics in Sub-20 nm Bulk/Silicon-on-Insulator NAND Flash Memory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Miyaji, Kousuke; Hung, Chinglin; Takeuchi, Ken

    2012-04-01

    The scaling trends and limitation in sub-20 nm a bulk and silicon-on-insulator (SOI) NAND flash memory is studied by the three-dimensional (3D) device simulation focusing on short channel effects (SCE), channel boost leakage and channel voltage boosting characteristics during the program-inhibit operation. Although increasing punch-through stopper doping concentration is effective for suppressing SCE in bulk NAND cells, the generation of junction leakage becomes serious. On the other hand, SCE can be suppressed by thinning the buried oxide (BOX) in SOI NAND cells. However, the boosted channel voltage decreases by the higher BOX capacitance. It is concluded that the scaling limitation is dominated by the junction leakage and channel boosting capability for bulk and SOI NAND flash cells, respectively, and the scaling limit is decreased to 9 nm using SOI NAND flash memory cells from 13 nm in bulk NAND flash memory cells.

  3. Geometric pumping in autophoretic channels.

    PubMed

    Michelin, Sébastien; Montenegro-Johnson, Thomas D; De Canio, Gabriele; Lobato-Dauzier, Nicolas; Lauga, Eric

    2015-08-07

    Many microfluidic devices use macroscopic pressure differentials to overcome viscous friction and generate flows in microchannels. In this work, we investigate how the chemical and geometric properties of the channel walls can drive a net flow by exploiting the autophoretic slip flows induced along active walls by local concentration gradients of a solute species. We show that chemical patterning of the wall is not required to generate and control a net flux within the channel, rather channel geometry alone is sufficient. Using numerical simulations, we determine how geometric characteristics of the wall influence channel flow rate, and confirm our results analytically in the asymptotic limit of lubrication theory.

  4. Detecting incapacity of a quantum channel.

    PubMed

    Smith, Graeme; Smolin, John A

    2012-06-08

    Using unreliable or noisy components for reliable communication requires error correction. But which noise processes can support information transmission, and which are too destructive? For classical systems any channel whose output depends on its input has the capacity for communication, but the situation is substantially more complicated in the quantum setting. We find a generic test for incapacity based on any suitable forbidden transformation--a protocol for communication with a channel passing our test would also allow one to implement the associated forbidden transformation. Our approach includes both known quantum incapacity tests--positive partial transposition and antidegradability (no cloning)--as special cases, putting them both on the same footing.

  5. Total Charge Movement per Channel

    PubMed Central

    Sigg, Daniel; Bezanilla, Francisco

    1997-01-01

    One measure of the voltage dependence of ion channel conductance is the amount of gating charge that moves during activation and vice versa. The limiting slope method, introduced by Almers (Almers, W. 1978. Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol. 82:96–190), exploits the relationship of charge movement and voltage sensitivity, yielding a lower limit to the range of single channel gating charge displacement. In practice, the technique is plagued by low experimental resolution due to the requirement that the logarithmic voltage sensitivity of activation be measured at very low probabilities of opening. In addition, the linear sequential models to which the original theory was restricted needed to be expanded to accommodate the complexity of mechanisms available for the activation of channels. In this communication, we refine the theory by developing a relationship between the mean activation charge displacement (a measure of the voltage sensitivity of activation) and the gating charge displacement (the integral of gating current). We demonstrate that recording the equilibrium gating charge displacement as an adjunct to the limiting slope technique greatly improves accuracy under conditions where the plots of mean activation charge displacement and gross gating charge displacement versus voltage can be superimposed. We explore this relationship for a wide variety of channel models, which include those having a continuous density of states, nonsequential activation pathways, and subconductance states. We introduce new criteria for the appropriate use of the limiting slope procedure and provide a practical example of the theory applied to low resolution simulation data. PMID:8997663

  6. Characteristic Analysis on UAV-MIMO Channel Based on Normalized Correlation Matrix

    PubMed Central

    Xi jun, Gao; Zi li, Chen; Yong Jiang, Hu

    2014-01-01

    Based on the three-dimensional GBSBCM (geometrically based double bounce cylinder model) channel model of MIMO for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the simple form of UAV space-time-frequency channel correlation function which includes the LOS, SPE, and DIF components is presented. By the methods of channel matrix decomposition and coefficient normalization, the analytic formula of UAV-MIMO normalized correlation matrix is deduced. This formula can be used directly to analyze the condition number of UAV-MIMO channel matrix, the channel capacity, and other characteristic parameters. The simulation results show that this channel correlation matrix can be applied to describe the changes of UAV-MIMO channel characteristics under different parameter settings comprehensively. This analysis method provides a theoretical basis for improving the transmission performance of UAV-MIMO channel. The development of MIMO technology shows practical application value in the field of UAV communication. PMID:24977185

  7. Understanding collaboration in a multi-national research capacity-building partnership: a qualitative study.

    PubMed

    Varshney, Dinansha; Atkins, Salla; Das, Arindam; Diwan, Vishal

    2016-08-18

    Research capacity building and its impact on policy and international research partnership is increasingly seen as important. High income and low- and middle-income countries frequently engage in research collaborations. These can have a positive impact on research capacity building, provided such partnerships are long-term collaborations with a unified aim, but they can also have challenges. What are these challenges, which often result in a short term/ non viable collaboration? Does such collaboration results in capacity building? What are the requirements to make any collaboration sustainable? This study aimed to answer these and other research questions through examining an international collaboration in one multi-country research capacity building project ARCADE RSDH (Asian Regional Capacity Development for Research on Social Determinants of Health). A qualitative study was conducted that focused on the reasons for the collaboration, collaboration patterns involved, processes of exchanging information, barriers faced and perceived growth in research capacity. In-depth interviews were conducted with the principal investigators (n = 12), research assistants (n = 2) and a scientific coordinator (n = 1) of the collaborating institutes. Data were analysed using thematic framework analysis. The initial contact between institutes was through previous collaborations. The collaboration was affected by the organisational structure of the partner institutes, political influences and the collaboration design. Communication was usually conducted online, which was affected by differences in time and language and inefficient infrastructure. Limited funding resulted in restricted engagement by some partners. This study explored work in a large, North-South collaboration project focusing on building research capacity in partner institutes. The project helped strengthen research capacity, though differences in organization types, existing research capacity, culture, time, and

  8. Physical-layer security analysis of a quantum-noise randomized cipher based on the wire-tap channel model.

    PubMed

    Jiao, Haisong; Pu, Tao; Zheng, Jilin; Xiang, Peng; Fang, Tao

    2017-05-15

    The physical-layer security of a quantum-noise randomized cipher (QNRC) system is, for the first time, quantitatively evaluated with secrecy capacity employed as the performance metric. Considering quantum noise as a channel advantage for legitimate parties over eavesdroppers, the specific wire-tap models for both channels of the key and data are built with channel outputs yielded by quantum heterodyne measurement; the general expressions of secrecy capacities for both channels are derived, where the matching codes are proved to be uniformly distributed. The maximal achievable secrecy rate of the system is proposed, under which secrecy of both the key and data is guaranteed. The influences of various system parameters on secrecy capacities are assessed in detail. The results indicate that QNRC combined with proper channel codes is a promising framework of secure communication for long distance with high speed, which can be orders of magnitude higher than the perfect secrecy rates of other encryption systems. Even if the eavesdropper intercepts more signal power than the legitimate receiver, secure communication (up to Gb/s) can still be achievable. Moreover, the secrecy of running key is found to be the main constraint to the systemic maximal secrecy rate.

  9. A severe capacity limit in the consolidation of orientation information into visual short-term memory.

    PubMed

    Becker, Mark W; Miller, James R; Liu, Taosheng

    2013-04-01

    Previous research has suggested that two color patches can be consolidated into visual short-term memory (VSTM) via an unlimited parallel process. Here we examined whether the same unlimited-capacity parallel process occurs for two oriented grating patches. Participants viewed two gratings that were presented briefly and masked. In blocks of trials, the gratings were presented either simultaneously or sequentially. In Experiments 1 and 2, the presentation of the stimuli was followed by a location cue that indicated the grating on which to base one's response. In Experiment 1, participants responded whether the target grating was oriented clockwise or counterclockwise with respect to vertical. In Experiment 2, participants indicated whether the target grating was oriented along one of the cardinal directions (vertical or horizontal) or was obliquely oriented. Finally, in Experiment 3, the location cue was replaced with a third grating that appeared at fixation, and participants indicated whether either of the two test gratings matched this probe. Despite the fact that these responses required fairly coarse coding of the orientation information, across all methods of responding we found superior performance for sequential over simultaneous presentations. These findings suggest that the consolidation of oriented gratings into VSTM is severely limited in capacity and differs from the consolidation of color information.

  10. Impaired chronotropic and vasodilator reserves limit exercise capacity in patients with heart failure and a preserved ejection fraction.

    PubMed

    Borlaug, Barry A; Melenovsky, Vojtech; Russell, Stuart D; Kessler, Kristy; Pacak, Karel; Becker, Lewis C; Kass, David A

    2006-11-14

    Nearly half of patients with heart failure have a preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Symptoms of exercise intolerance and dyspnea are most often attributed to diastolic dysfunction; however, impaired systolic and/or arterial vasodilator reserve under stress could also play an important role. Patients with HFpEF (n=17) and control subjects without heart failure (n=19) generally matched for age, gender, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, obesity, and the presence of left ventricular hypertrophy underwent maximal-effort upright cycle ergometry with radionuclide ventriculography to determine rest and exercise cardiovascular function. Resting cardiovascular function was similar between the 2 groups. Both had limited exercise capacity, but this was more profoundly reduced in HFpEF patients (exercise duration 180+/-71 versus 455+/-184 seconds; peak oxygen consumption 9.0+/-3.4 versus 14.4+/-3.4 mL x kg(-1) x min(-1); both P<0.001). At matched low-level workload, HFpEF subjects displayed approximately 40% less of an increase in heart rate and cardiac output and less systemic vasodilation (all P<0.05) despite a similar rise in end-diastolic volume, stroke volume, and contractility. Heart rate recovery after exercise was also significantly delayed in HFpEF patients. Exercise capacity correlated with the change in cardiac output, heart rate, and vascular resistance but not end-diastolic volume or stroke volume. Lung blood volume and plasma norepinephrine levels rose similarly with exercise in both groups. HFpEF patients have reduced chronotropic, vasodilator, and cardiac output reserve during exercise compared with matched subjects with hypertensive cardiac hypertrophy. These limitations cannot be ascribed to diastolic abnormalities per se and may provide novel therapeutic targets for interventions to improve exercise capacity in this disorder.

  11. The Capacity Gain of Orbital Angular Momentum Based Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output System

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Zhuofan; Zheng, Shilie; Chen, Yiling; Jin, Xiaofeng; Chi, Hao; Zhang, Xianmin

    2016-01-01

    Wireless communication using electromagnetic wave carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM) has attracted increasing interest in recent years, and its potential to increase channel capacity has been explored widely. In this paper, we compare the technique of using uniform linear array consist of circular traveling-wave OAM antennas for multiplexing with the conventional multiple-in-multiple-out (MIMO) communication method, and numerical results show that the OAM based MIMO system can increase channel capacity while communication distance is long enough. An equivalent model is proposed to illustrate that the OAM multiplexing system is equivalent to a conventional MIMO system with a larger element spacing, which means OAM waves could decrease the spatial correlation of MIMO channel. In addition, the effects of some system parameters, such as OAM state interval and element spacing, on the capacity advantage of OAM based MIMO are also investigated. Our results reveal that OAM waves are complementary with MIMO method. OAM waves multiplexing is suitable for long-distance line-of-sight (LoS) communications or communications in open area where the multi-path effect is weak and can be used in massive MIMO systems as well. PMID:27146453

  12. On Channel Sharing in Discrete-Time, Multi-Access Broadcast Communications,

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1980-09-01

    towards a physical intepretation . of the solutions. 1.4.3 THE PROBLEM OF CAPACITY Our discussion of capacity has two objectives. First, to explore...8021 (DARPA). Yemnii, Y., "On Channel Sharing in Discrete-Time, Multi-Access Broadcast Communication," Sep- tember 1980, UCLA-ENG-8061. (DARPA). 280 FILMED 9-83 DTIC 𔃾’W 9111 ’K4VFClMlP-- Om mFoca 1,00,

  13. The magical number 4 in short-term memory: a reconsideration of mental storage capacity.

    PubMed

    Cowan, N

    2001-02-01

    Miller (1956) summarized evidence that people can remember about seven chunks in short-term memory (STM) tasks. However, that number was meant more as a rough estimate and a rhetorical device than as a real capacity limit. Others have since suggested that there is a more precise capacity limit, but that it is only three to five chunks. The present target article brings together a wide variety of data on capacity limits suggesting that the smaller capacity limit is real. Capacity limits will be useful in analyses of information processing only if the boundary conditions for observing them can be carefully described. Four basic conditions in which chunks can be identified and capacity limits can accordingly be observed are: (1) when information overload limits chunks to individual stimulus items, (2) when other steps are taken specifically to block the recording of stimulus items into larger chunks, (3) in performance discontinuities caused by the capacity limit, and (4) in various indirect effects of the capacity limit. Under these conditions, rehearsal and long-term memory cannot be used to combine stimulus items into chunks of an unknown size; nor can storage mechanisms that are not capacity-limited, such as sensory memory, allow the capacity-limited storage mechanism to be refilled during recall. A single, central capacity limit averaging about four chunks is implicated along with other, noncapacity-limited sources. The pure STM capacity limit expressed in chunks is distinguished from compound STM limits obtained when the number of separately held chunks is unclear. Reasons why pure capacity estimates fall within a narrow range are discussed and a capacity limit for the focus of attention is proposed.

  14. The Development of an Instrument to Measure the Work Capability of People with Limited Work Capacity (LWC).

    PubMed

    van Ruitenbeek, Gemma M C; Zijlstra, Fred R H; Hülsheger, Ute R

    2018-06-04

    Purpose Participation in regular paid jobs positively affects mental and physical health of all people, including people with limited work capacities (LWC), people that are limited in their work capacity as a consequence of their disability, such as chronic mental illness, psychological or developmental disorder. For successful participation, a good fit between on one hand persons' capacities and on the other hand well-suited individual support and a suitable work environment is necessary in order to meet the demands of work. However, to date there is a striking paucity of validated measures that indicate the capability to work of people with LWC and that outline directions for support that facilitate the fit. Goal of the present study was therefore to develop such an instrument. Specifically, we adjusted measures of mental ability, conscientiousness, self-efficacy, and coping by simplifying the language level of these measures to make the scales accessible for people with low literacy. In order to validate these adjusted self-report and observer measures we conducted two studies, using multi-source, longitudinal data. Method Study 1 was a longitudinal multi-source study in which the newly developed instrument was administered twice to people with LWC and their significant other. We statistically tested the psychometric properties with respect to dimensionality and reliability. In Study 2, we collected new multi-source data and conducted a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results Studies yielded a congruous factor structure in both samples, internally consistent measures with adequate content validity of scales and subscales, and high test-retest reliability. The CFA confirmed the factorial validity of the scales. Conclusion The adjusted self-report and the observer scales of mental ability, conscientiousness, self-efficacy, and coping are reliable measures that are well-suited to assess the work capability of people with LWC. Further research is needed to

  15. Visual working memory capacity and proactive interference.

    PubMed

    Hartshorne, Joshua K

    2008-07-23

    Visual working memory capacity is extremely limited and appears to be relatively immune to practice effects or the use of explicit strategies. The recent discovery that visual working memory tasks, like verbal working memory tasks, are subject to proactive interference, coupled with the fact that typical visual working memory tasks are particularly conducive to proactive interference, suggests that visual working memory capacity may be systematically under-estimated. Working memory capacity was probed behaviorally in adult humans both in laboratory settings and via the Internet. Several experiments show that although the effect of proactive interference on visual working memory is significant and can last over several trials, it only changes the capacity estimate by about 15%. This study further confirms the sharp limitations on visual working memory capacity, both in absolute terms and relative to verbal working memory. It is suggested that future research take these limitations into account in understanding differences across a variety of tasks between human adults, prelinguistic infants and nonlinguistic animals.

  16. Effects of cochlear-implant pulse rate and inter-channel timing on channel interactions and thresholds

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Middlebrooks, John C.

    2004-07-01

    Interactions among the multiple channels of a cochlear prosthesis limit the number of channels of information that can be transmitted to the brain. This study explored the influence on channel interactions of electrical pulse rates and temporal offsets between channels. Anesthetized guinea pigs were implanted with 2-channel scala-tympani electrode arrays, and spike activity was recorded from the auditory cortex. Channel interactions were quantified as the reduction of the threshold for pulse-train stimulation of the apical channel by sub-threshold stimulation of the basal channel. Pulse rates were 254 or 4069 pulses per second (pps) per channel. Maximum threshold reductions averaged 9.6 dB when channels were stimulated simultaneously. Among nonsimultaneous conditions, threshold reductions at the 254-pps rate were entirely eliminated by a 1966-μs inter-channel offset. When offsets were only 41 to 123 μs, however, maximum threshold shifts averaged 3.1 dB, which was comparable to the dynamic ranges of cortical neurons in this experimental preparation. Threshold reductions at 4069 pps averaged up to 1.3 dB greater than at 254 pps, which raises some concern in regard to high-pulse-rate speech processors. Thresholds for various paired-pulse stimuli, pulse rates, and pulse-train durations were measured to test possible mechanisms of temporal integration.

  17. Controls on the extent of sediment cover in bedrock-alluvial channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hodge, Rebecca; Johnson, Joel; Tranmer, Andy; Yager, Elowyn

    2017-04-01

    The amount and location of sediment cover in a bedrock-alluvial channel is a key factor that controls the morphological evolution of the channel, sediment transport pathways and channel roughness. The amount of sediment cover is often predicted as a function of relative sediment supply (sediment supply over transport capacity). However, several different forms of this relationship have been produced using a range of different approaches, and there is not yet agreement as to the controlling factors that need to be included. Part of this lack of agreement is because of the need for a more processed-based understanding of the way in which sediment cover is formed and eroded in bedrock-alluvial channels. We start to address this knowledge gap by assessing the factors that control the location of sediment cover in a field setting. We present field data from two channels in the Henry Mountains, USA. The field data includes measurement of channel geometry, slope, sediment cover location, bedrock roughness, grain size and boulder occurrence. Relative sediment supply is estimated by assuming that downstream changes are primarily accounted for by changes in transport capacity, rather than sediment supply. Preliminary results suggest that there is a relationship between local sediment cover extent and relative sediment supply, but that this relationship is altered as a function of local bedrock roughness. We consider the implications of our findings for the form of sediment cover relationships.

  18. Semi-preparative asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation: A closer look at channel dimensions and separation performance.

    PubMed

    Bria, Carmen R M; Skelly, Patrick W; Morse, James R; Schaak, Raymond E; Williams, S Kim Ratanathanawongs

    2017-05-26

    The design and performance of a semi-preparative asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation (SP-AF4) channel are investigated with the objective of better understanding and exploiting the relationship between channel dimensions, sample loading, and resolution. Most size-based separations of nanometer and submicrometer particles are currently limited to analytical scale quantities (<100μg). However, there is a strong need to fractionate and collect larger quantities so that fundamental properties of the more narrowly dispersed fractions can be studied using additional characterization methods and for subsequent applications. In this work, dimensions of the spacer that defines the form of SP-AF4 channels are varied and their performances are assessed with respect to sample focusing position and loading. Separations are performed in aqueous and organic carrier fluids. A critical evaluation of channel dimensions showed that increasing the channel breadth is a practical and effective route to maintaining separation resolution while increasing sample loads to milligram quantities. Good size resolution (∼1.0) is achieved for separations of 10mg of 50 and 100nm silica nanoparticles suspended in water and up to 0.6mg of ∼10 to 35nm inorganic hybrid nanoparticles suspended in tetrahydrofuran. This work represents important advances in the understanding of SP-AF4 separations and extends sample loading capacities in both aqueous and organic solvents. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. The optimal retailer's ordering policies with trade credit financing and limited storage capacity in the supply chain system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yen, Ghi-Feng; Chung, Kun-Jen; Chen, Tzung-Ching

    2012-11-01

    The traditional economic order quantity model assumes that the retailer's storage capacity is unlimited. However, as we all know, the capacity of any warehouse is limited. In practice, there usually exist various factors that induce the decision-maker of the inventory system to order more items than can be held in his/her own warehouse. Therefore, for the decision-maker, it is very practical to determine whether or not to rent other warehouses. In this article, we try to incorporate two levels of trade credit and two separate warehouses (own warehouse and rented warehouse) to establish a new inventory model to help the decision-maker to make the decision. Four theorems are provided to determine the optimal cycle time to generalise some existing articles. Finally, the sensitivity analysis is executed to investigate the effects of the various parameters on ordering policies and annual costs of the inventory system.

  20. A large capacity time division multiplexed (TDM) laser beam combining technique enabled by nanosecond speed KTN deflector

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yin, Stuart (Shizhuo); Chao, Ju-Hung; Zhu, Wenbin; Chen, Chang-Jiang; Campbell, Adrian; Henry, Michael; Dubinskiy, Mark; Hoffman, Robert C.

    2017-08-01

    In this paper, we present a novel large capacity (a 1000+ channel) time division multiplexing (TDM) laser beam combining technique by harnessing a state-of-the-art nanosecond speed potassium tantalate niobate (KTN) electro-optic (EO) beam deflector as the time division multiplexer. The major advantages of TDM approach are: (1) large multiplexing capability (over 1000 channels), (2) high spatial beam quality (the combined beam has the same spatial profile as the individual beam), (3) high spectral beam quality (the combined beam has the same spectral width as the individual beam, and (4) insensitive to the phase fluctuation of individual laser because of the nature of the incoherent beam combining. The quantitative analyses show that it is possible to achieve over one hundred kW average power, single aperture, single transverse mode solid state and/or fiber laser by pursuing this innovative beam combining method, which represents a major technical advance in the field of high energy lasers. Such kind of 100+ kW average power diffraction limited beam quality lasers can play an important role in a variety of applications such as laser directed energy weapons (DEW) and large-capacity high-speed laser manufacturing, including cutting, welding, and printing.

  1. Sand Waves in Tidal Channels

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2007-01-01

    sincerely thank Steven Borgeld, from Humboldt State University, for providing the grain size data for the Humboldt Entrance Channel. iv SAND...Wave Characteristics at Moriches Inlet... 182 APPENDIX VII – Sediment Data , Humboldt Entrance Channel, CA ........................... 186 References...waves may be limited by wave action, sand supply, and dredging activity. Bathymetric data collected at Humboldt Inlet, California, show sand waves

  2. Symmetric reconfigurable capacity assignment in a bidirectional DWDM access network.

    PubMed

    Ortega, Beatriz; Mora, José; Puerto, Gustavo; Capmany, José

    2007-12-10

    This paper presents a novel architecture for DWDM bidirectional access networks providing symmetric dynamic capacity allocation for both downlink and uplink signals. A foldback arrayed waveguide grating incorporating an optical switch enables the experimental demonstration of flexible assignment of multiservice capacity. Different analog and digital services, such as CATV, 10 GHz-tone, 155Mb/s PRBS and UMTS signals have been transmitted in order to successfully test the system performance under different scenarios of total capacity distribution from the Central Station to different Base Stations with two reconfigurable extra channels for each down and upstream direction.

  3. Characterization of the Body-to-Body Propagation Channel for Subjects during Sports Activities.

    PubMed

    Mohamed, Marshed; Cheffena, Michael; Moldsvor, Arild

    2018-02-18

    Body-to-body wireless networks (BBWNs) have great potential to find applications in team sports activities among others. However, successful design of such systems requires great understanding of the communication channel as the movement of the body components causes time-varying shadowing and fading effects. In this study, we present results of the measurement campaign of BBWN during running and cycling activities. Among others, the results indicated the presence of good and bad states with each state following a specific distribution for the considered propagation scenarios. This motivated the development of two-state semi-Markov model, for simulation of the communication channels. The simulation model was validated using the available measurement data in terms of first and second order statistics and have shown good agreement. The first order statistics obtained from the simulation model as well as the measured results were then used to analyze the performance of the BBWNs channels under running and cycling activities in terms of capacity and outage probability. Cycling channels showed better performance than running, having higher channel capacity and lower outage probability, regardless of the speed of the subjects involved in the measurement campaign.

  4. A theory of local learning, the learning channel, and the optimality of backpropagation.

    PubMed

    Baldi, Pierre; Sadowski, Peter

    2016-11-01

    In a physical neural system, where storage and processing are intimately intertwined, the rules for adjusting the synaptic weights can only depend on variables that are available locally, such as the activity of the pre- and post-synaptic neurons, resulting in local learning rules. A systematic framework for studying the space of local learning rules is obtained by first specifying the nature of the local variables, and then the functional form that ties them together into each learning rule. Such a framework enables also the systematic discovery of new learning rules and exploration of relationships between learning rules and group symmetries. We study polynomial local learning rules stratified by their degree and analyze their behavior and capabilities in both linear and non-linear units and networks. Stacking local learning rules in deep feedforward networks leads to deep local learning. While deep local learning can learn interesting representations, it cannot learn complex input-output functions, even when targets are available for the top layer. Learning complex input-output functions requires local deep learning where target information is communicated to the deep layers through a backward learning channel. The nature of the communicated information about the targets and the structure of the learning channel partition the space of learning algorithms. For any learning algorithm, the capacity of the learning channel can be defined as the number of bits provided about the error gradient per weight, divided by the number of required operations per weight. We estimate the capacity associated with several learning algorithms and show that backpropagation outperforms them by simultaneously maximizing the information rate and minimizing the computational cost. This result is also shown to be true for recurrent networks, by unfolding them in time. The theory clarifies the concept of Hebbian learning, establishes the power and limitations of local learning rules

  5. Workability Limits of Magnesium Alloy AZ31B Subjected to Equal Channel Angular Pressing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arun, M. S.; Chakkingal, Uday

    2018-03-01

    Equal channel angular pressing (ECAP) is an important severe plastic deformation process to produce ultrafine grained microstructures in metals and alloys. Magnesium and its alloys generally possess poor workability at temperatures below 250 °C. This investigation examines the influence of different passes and processing routes of ECAP on improving the workability of Mg alloy AZ31B. ECAP was carried out for three passes using a die of angle 120° using processing routes Bc and C. The operating temperature was 523 K for the first pass and 423 K for the subsequent two passes. The resultant microstructure and mechanical properties were determined. Workability of the alloy at 423 K (150 °C) was determined using upsetting experiments on cylindrical specimens machined from the annealed and ECAPed samples. Workability limit diagrams have been constructed for the various processed conditions. The workability data generated were also analyzed using five different workability criteria (also referred to as ductile fracture models) and the material constants for these five models were evaluated. Specimens processed by two passes through route C (pass 2C) exhibits better workability compared to other passes since the workability limit line after this pass shows maximum safe working area and lies above the other workability lines. Among the five different workability criteria investigated, the Freudenthal workability criterion is more suitable for prediction of failure in this alloy.

  6. Approaching the Ultimate Limits of Communication Efficiency with a Photon-Counting Detector

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Erkmen, Baris; Moision, Bruce; Dolinar, Samuel J.; Birnbaum, Kevin M.; Divsalar, Dariush

    2012-01-01

    Coherent states achieve the Holevo capacity of a pure-loss channel when paired with an optimal measurement, but a physical realization of this measurement is as of yet unknown, and it is also likely to be of high complexity. In this paper, we focus on the photon-counting measurement and study the photon and dimensional efficiencies attainable with modulations over classical- and nonclassical-state alphabets. We first review the state-of-the-art coherent on-off-keying (OOK) with a photoncounting measurement, illustrating its asymptotic inefficiency relative to the Holevo limit. We show that a commonly made Poisson approximation in thermal noise leads to unbounded photon information efficiencies, violating the conjectured Holevo limit. We analyze two binary-modulation architectures that improve upon the dimensional versus photon efficiency tradeoff achievable with conventional OOK. We show that at high photon efficiency these architectures achieve an efficiency tradeoff that differs from the best possible tradeoff--determined by the Holevo capacity--by only a constant factor. The first architecture we analyze is a coherent-state transmitter that relies on feedback from the receiver to control the transmitted energy. The second architecture uses a single-photon number-state source.

  7. Position-based coding and convex splitting for private communication over quantum channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wilde, Mark M.

    2017-10-01

    The classical-input quantum-output (cq) wiretap channel is a communication model involving a classical sender X, a legitimate quantum receiver B, and a quantum eavesdropper E. The goal of a private communication protocol that uses such a channel is for the sender X to transmit a message in such a way that the legitimate receiver B can decode it reliably, while the eavesdropper E learns essentially nothing about which message was transmitted. The ɛ -one-shot private capacity of a cq wiretap channel is equal to the maximum number of bits that can be transmitted over the channel, such that the privacy error is no larger than ɛ \\in (0,1). The present paper provides a lower bound on the ɛ -one-shot private classical capacity, by exploiting the recently developed techniques of Anshu, Devabathini, Jain, and Warsi, called position-based coding and convex splitting. The lower bound is equal to a difference of the hypothesis testing mutual information between X and B and the "alternate" smooth max-information between X and E. The one-shot lower bound then leads to a non-trivial lower bound on the second-order coding rate for private classical communication over a memoryless cq wiretap channel.

  8. Electrical conductivity in Li2O2 and its role in determining capacity limitations in non-aqueous Li-O2 batteries.

    PubMed

    Viswanathan, V; Thygesen, K S; Hummelshøj, J S; Nørskov, J K; Girishkumar, G; McCloskey, B D; Luntz, A C

    2011-12-07

    Non-aqueous Li-air or Li-O(2) cells show considerable promise as a very high energy density battery couple. Such cells, however, show sudden death at capacities far below their theoretical capacity and this, among other problems, limits their practicality. In this paper, we show that this sudden death arises from limited charge transport through the growing Li(2)O(2) film to the Li(2)O(2)-electrolyte interface, and this limitation defines a critical film thickness, above which it is not possible to support electrochemistry at the Li(2)O(2)-electrolyte interface. We report both electrochemical experiments using a reversible internal redox couple and a first principles metal-insulator-metal charge transport model to probe the electrical conductivity through Li(2)O(2) films produced during Li-O(2) discharge. Both experiment and theory show a "sudden death" in charge transport when film thickness is ~5 to 10 nm. The theoretical model shows that this occurs when the tunneling current through the film can no longer support the electrochemical current. Thus, engineering charge transport through Li(2)O(2) is a serious challenge if Li-O(2) batteries are ever to reach their potential. © 2011 American Institute of Physics

  9. Methodology and method and apparatus for signaling with capacity optimized constellations

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barsoum, Maged F. (Inventor); Jones, Christopher R. (Inventor)

    2011-01-01

    Communication systems having transmitter, includes a coder configured to receive user bits and output encoded bits at an expanded output encoded bit rate, a mapper configured to map encoded bits to symbols in a symbol constellation, a modulator configured to generate a signal for transmission via the communication channel using symbols generated by the mapper. In addition, the receiver includes a demodulator configured to demodulate the received signal via the communication channel, a demapper configured to estimate likelihoods from the demodulated signal, a decoder that is configured to estimate decoded bits from the likelihoods generated by the demapper. Furthermore, the symbol constellation is a capacity optimized geometrically spaced symbol constellation that provides a given capacity at a reduced signal-to-noise ratio compared to a signal constellation that maximizes d.sub.min.

  10. Hypoxia limits antioxidant capacity in red blood cells by altering glycolytic pathway dominance

    PubMed Central

    Rogers, Stephen C.; Said, Ahmed; Corcuera, Daniella; McLaughlin, Dylan; Kell, Pamela; Doctor, Allan

    2009-01-01

    The erythrocyte membrane is a newly appreciated platform for thiol-based circulatory signaling, and it requires robust free thiol maintenance. We sought to define physiological constraints on erythrocyte antioxidant defense. Hemoglobin (Hb) conformation gates glycolytic flux through the hexose monophosphate pathway (HMP), the sole source of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) in erythrocytes. We hypothesized elevated intraerythrocytic deoxyHb would limit resilience to oxidative stress. Human erythrocytes were subjected to controlled oxidant (superoxide) loading following independent manipulation of oxygen tension, Hb conformation, and glycolytic pathway dominance. Sufficiency of antioxidant defense was determined by serial quantification of GSH, NADPH, NADH redox couples. Hypoxic erythrocytes demonstrated greater loss of reduction potential [Δ GSH Ehc (mV): 123.4±9.7 vs. 57.2±11.1] and reduced membrane thiol (47.7±5.7 vs. 20.1±4.3%) (hypoxia vs. normoxia, respectively; P<0.01), a finding mimicked in normoxic erythrocytes after HMP blockade. Rebalancing HMP flux during hypoxia restored resilience to oxidative stress at all stages of the system. Cell-free studies assured oxidative loading was not altered by oxygen tension, heme ligation, or the inhibitors employed. These data indicate that Hb conformation controls coupled glucose and thiol metabolism in erythrocytes, and implicate hypoxemia in the pathobiology of erythrocyte-based vascular signaling.—Rogers, S. C., Said, A., Corcuera, D., McLaughlin, D., Kell, P., Doctor, A. Hypoxia limits antioxidant capacity in red blood cells by altering glycolytic pathway dominance. PMID:19417084

  11. A self-limiting regulation of vasoconstrictor-activated TRPC3/C6/C7 channels coupled to PI(4,5)P2-diacylglycerol signalling

    PubMed Central

    Imai, Yuko; Itsuki, Kyohei; Okamura, Yasushi; Inoue, Ryuji; Mori, Masayuki X

    2012-01-01

    Activation of transient receptor potential (TRP) canonical TRPC3/C6/C7 channels by diacylglycerol (DAG) upon stimulation of phospholipase C (PLC)-coupled receptors results in the breakdown of phosphoinositides (PIPs). The critical importance of PIPs to various ion-transporting molecules is well documented, but their function in relation to TRPC3/C6/C7 channels remains controversial. By using an ectopic voltage-sensing PIP phosphatase (DrVSP), we found that dephosphorylation of PIPs robustly inhibits currents induced by carbachol (CCh), 1-oleolyl-2-acetyl-sn-glycerol (OAG) or RHC80267 in TRPC3, TRPC6 and TRPC7 channels, though the strength of the DrVSP-mediated inhibition (VMI) varied among the channels with a rank order of C7 > C6 > C3. Pharmacological and molecular interventions suggest that depletion of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P2) is most likely the critical event for VMI in all three channels. When the PLC catalytic signal was vigorously activated through overexpression of the muscarinic type-I receptor (M1R), the inactivation of macroscopic TRPC currents was greatly accelerated in the same rank order as the VMI, and VMI of these currents was attenuated or lost. VMI was also rarely detected in vasopressin-induced TRPC6-like currents in A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cells, indicating that the inactivation by PI(4,5)P2 depletion underlies the physiological condition. Simultaneous fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET)-based measurement of PI(4,5)P2 levels and TRPC6 currents confirmed that VMI magnitude reflects the degree of PI(4,5)P2 depletion. These results demonstrate that TRPC3/C6/C7 channels are differentially regulated by depletion of PI(4,5)P2, and that the bimodal signal produced by PLC activation controls these channels in a self-limiting manner. PMID:22183723

  12. Tuning energy relaxation along quantum Hall channels.

    PubMed

    Altimiras, C; le Sueur, H; Gennser, U; Cavanna, A; Mailly, D; Pierre, F

    2010-11-26

    The chiral edge channels in the quantum Hall regime are considered ideal ballistic quantum channels, and have quantum information processing potentialities. Here, we demonstrate experimentally, at a filling factor of ν(L)=2, the efficient tuning of the energy relaxation that limits quantum coherence and permits the return toward equilibrium. Energy relaxation along an edge channel is controllably enhanced by increasing its transmission toward a floating Ohmic contact, in quantitative agreement with predictions. Moreover, by forming a closed inner edge channel loop, we freeze energy exchanges in the outer channel. This result also elucidates the inelastic mechanisms at work at ν(L)=2, informing us, in particular, that those within the outer edge channel are negligible.

  13. Bandwidth efficient coding: Theoretical limits and real achievements. Error control techniques for satellite and space communications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Costello, Daniel J., Jr.; Courturier, Servanne; Levy, Yannick; Mills, Diane G.; Perez, Lance C.; Wang, Fu-Quan

    1993-01-01

    In his seminal 1948 paper 'The Mathematical Theory of Communication,' Claude E. Shannon derived the 'channel coding theorem' which has an explicit upper bound, called the channel capacity, on the rate at which 'information' could be transmitted reliably on a given communication channel. Shannon's result was an existence theorem and did not give specific codes to achieve the bound. Some skeptics have claimed that the dramatic performance improvements predicted by Shannon are not achievable in practice. The advances made in the area of coded modulation in the past decade have made communications engineers optimistic about the possibility of achieving or at least coming close to channel capacity. Here we consider the possibility in the light of current research results.

  14. Performance, Capacity and Limitations of AMSS Communications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ripamonti, Claudio; Konangi, Vijay K.; Kerczewski, robert J.

    2002-01-01

    This paper reports on the performance of Aeronautical Mobile Satellite Service (AMSS), based on simulation results, when incorporated into the Aeronautical Telecommunications Network (ATN). A comparison between its performance under current data traffic load and under future ATN traffic load was used to determine the reliability of AMSS in providing continuous communications between the ground and the aircraft over remote regions of the globe. The simulation involved modeling AMSS through the use of the published standards to ensure the accuracy of the results. Although the results indicated that there is indeed a reduced capacity (to about one-fourth) and efficiency of the system at the increased traffic load, the reduction in performance does not lead to the conclusion that an alternative to AMSS must be found. On the contrary, some modifications to the protocols controlling the operation of AMSS and updating the system with new technologies, would make it as valid a solution to the problem as it is today.

  15. Spatial distribution of limited resources and local density regulation in juvenile Atlantic salmon.

    PubMed

    Finstad, Anders G; Einum, Sigurd; Ugedal, Ola; Forseth, Torbjørn

    2009-01-01

    1. Spatial heterogeneity of resources may influence competition among individuals and thus have a fundamental role in shaping population dynamics and carrying capacity. In the present study, we identify shelter opportunities as a limiting resource for juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.). Experimental and field studies are combined in order to demonstrate how the spatial distribution of shelters may influence population dynamics on both within and among population scales. 2. In closed experimental streams, fish performance scaled negatively with decreasing shelter availability and increasing densities. In contrast, the fish in open stream channels dispersed according to shelter availability and performance of fish remaining in the streams did not depend on initial density or shelters. 3. The field study confirmed that spatial variation in densities of 1-year-old juveniles was governed both by initial recruit density and shelter availability. Strength of density-dependent population regulation, measured as carrying capacity, increased with decreasing number of shelters. 4. Nine rivers were surveyed for spatial variation in shelter availability and increased shelter heterogeneity tended to decrease maximum observed population size (measured using catch statistics of adult salmon as a proxy). 5. Our studies highlight the importance of small-scale within-population spatial structure in population dynamics and demonstrate that not only the absolute amount of limiting resources but also their spatial arrangement can be an important factor influencing population carrying capacity.

  16. Visual Working Memory Capacity and Proactive Interference

    PubMed Central

    Hartshorne, Joshua K.

    2008-01-01

    Background Visual working memory capacity is extremely limited and appears to be relatively immune to practice effects or the use of explicit strategies. The recent discovery that visual working memory tasks, like verbal working memory tasks, are subject to proactive interference, coupled with the fact that typical visual working memory tasks are particularly conducive to proactive interference, suggests that visual working memory capacity may be systematically under-estimated. Methodology/Principal Findings Working memory capacity was probed behaviorally in adult humans both in laboratory settings and via the Internet. Several experiments show that although the effect of proactive interference on visual working memory is significant and can last over several trials, it only changes the capacity estimate by about 15%. Conclusions/Significance This study further confirms the sharp limitations on visual working memory capacity, both in absolute terms and relative to verbal working memory. It is suggested that future research take these limitations into account in understanding differences across a variety of tasks between human adults, prelinguistic infants and nonlinguistic animals. PMID:18648493

  17. Assessing the performance of multi-purpose channel management measures at increasing scales

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wilkinson, Mark; Addy, Steve

    2016-04-01

    In addition to hydroclimatic drivers, sediment deposition from high energy river systems can reduce channel conveyance capacity and lead to significant increases in flood risk. There is an increasing recognition that we need to work with the interplay of natural hydrological and morphological processes in order to attenuate flood flows and manage sediment (both coarse and fine). This typically includes both catchment (e.g. woodland planting, wetlands) and river (e.g. wood placement, floodplain reconnection) restoration approaches. The aim of this work was to assess at which scales channel management measures (notably wood placement and flood embankment removal) are most appropriate for flood and sediment management in high energy upland river systems. We present research findings from two densely instrumented research sites in Scotland which regularly experience flood events and have associated coarse sediment problems. We assessed the performance of a range of novel trial measures for three different scales: wooded flow restrictors and gully tree planting at the small scale (<1 km2), floodplain tree planting and engineered log jams at the intermediate scale (5-60 km2), and flood embankment lowering at the large scale (350 km2). Our results suggest that at the smallest scale, care is needed in the installation of flow restrictors. It was found for some restrictors that vertical erosion can occur if the tributary channel bed is disturbed. Preliminary model evidence suggested they have a very limited impact on channel discharge and flood peak delay owing to the small storage areas behind the structures. At intermediate scales, the ability to trap sediment by engineered log jams was limited. Of the 45 engineered log jams installed, around half created a small geomorphic response and only 5 captured a significant amount of coarse material (during one large flood event). As scale increases, the chance of damage or loss of wood placement is greatest. Monitoring

  18. Protograph LDPC Codes Over Burst Erasure Channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Divsalar, Dariush; Dolinar, Sam; Jones, Christopher

    2006-01-01

    In this paper we design high rate protograph based LDPC codes suitable for binary erasure channels. To simplify the encoder and decoder implementation for high data rate transmission, the structure of codes are based on protographs and circulants. These LDPC codes can improve data link and network layer protocols in support of communication networks. Two classes of codes were designed. One class is designed for large block sizes with an iterative decoding threshold that approaches capacity of binary erasure channels. The other class is designed for short block sizes based on maximizing minimum stopping set size. For high code rates and short blocks the second class outperforms the first class.

  19. Optical Vector Receiver Operating Near the Quantum Limit

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vilnrotter, V. A.; Lau, C.-W.

    2005-05-01

    An optical receiver concept for binary signals with performance approaching the quantum limit at low average-signal energies is developed and analyzed. A conditionally nulling receiver that reaches the quantum limit in the absence of background photons has been devised by Dolinar. However, this receiver requires ideal optical combining and complicated real-time shaping of the local field; hence, it tends to be difficult to implement at high data rates. A simpler nulling receiver that approaches the quantum limit without complex optical processing, suitable for high-rate operation, had been suggested earlier by Kennedy. Here we formulate a vector receiver concept that incorporates the Kennedy receiver with a physical beamsplitter, but it also utilizes the reflected signal component to improve signal detection. It is found that augmenting the Kennedy receiver with classical coherent detection at the auxiliary beamsplitter output, and optimally processing the vector observations, always improves on the performance of the Kennedy receiver alone, significantly so at low average-photon rates. This is precisely the region of operation where modern codes approach channel capacity. It is also shown that the addition of background radiation has little effect on the performance of the coherent receiver component, suggesting a viable approach for near-quantum-limited performance in high background environments.

  20. Transmission over EHF mobile satellite channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Zhuang, W.; Chouinard, J.-Y.; Yongacoglu, A.

    1993-01-01

    Land mobile satellite communications at Ka-band (30/20 GHz) are attracting an increasing interest among researchers because of the frequency band availability and the possibility of small earth station designs. However, communications at the Ka-band pose significant challenges in the system designs due to severe channel impairments. Because only very limited experimental data for mobile applications at Ka-band is available, this paper studies the channel characteristics based on experimental data at L-band (1.6/1.5 GHz) and the use of frequency scaling. The land mobile satellite communication channel at Ka-band is modelled as log-normal Rayleigh fading channel. The first and second-order statistics of the fading channel are studied. The performance of a coherent BPSK system over the fading channel at L-band and K-band is evaluated theoretically and validated by computer simulations. Conclusions on the communication channel characteristics and system performance at L-band and Ka-band are presented.

  1. Expected number of quantum channels in quantum networks.

    PubMed

    Chen, Xi; Wang, He-Ming; Ji, Dan-Tong; Mu, Liang-Zhu; Fan, Heng

    2015-07-15

    Quantum communication between nodes in quantum networks plays an important role in quantum information processing. Here, we proposed the use of the expected number of quantum channels as a measure of the efficiency of quantum communication for quantum networks. This measure quantified the amount of quantum information that can be teleported between nodes in a quantum network, which differs from classical case in that the quantum channels will be consumed if teleportation is performed. We further demonstrated that the expected number of quantum channels represents local correlations depicted by effective circles. Significantly, capacity of quantum communication of quantum networks quantified by ENQC is independent of distance for the communicating nodes, if the effective circles of communication nodes are not overlapped. The expected number of quantum channels can be enhanced through transformations of the lattice configurations of quantum networks via entanglement swapping. Our results can shed lights on the study of quantum communication in quantum networks.

  2. Expected number of quantum channels in quantum networks

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Xi; Wang, He-Ming; Ji, Dan-Tong; Mu, Liang-Zhu; Fan, Heng

    2015-01-01

    Quantum communication between nodes in quantum networks plays an important role in quantum information processing. Here, we proposed the use of the expected number of quantum channels as a measure of the efficiency of quantum communication for quantum networks. This measure quantified the amount of quantum information that can be teleported between nodes in a quantum network, which differs from classical case in that the quantum channels will be consumed if teleportation is performed. We further demonstrated that the expected number of quantum channels represents local correlations depicted by effective circles. Significantly, capacity of quantum communication of quantum networks quantified by ENQC is independent of distance for the communicating nodes, if the effective circles of communication nodes are not overlapped. The expected number of quantum channels can be enhanced through transformations of the lattice configurations of quantum networks via entanglement swapping. Our results can shed lights on the study of quantum communication in quantum networks. PMID:26173556

  3. Experimental study on behavior of steel channel strengthened with CFRP

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Hongyuan; Deng, Xuezhi; Zhou, Xiaojun

    2017-11-01

    This paper describes the behaviour of axially loaded long and eccentrically loaded short thin-walled steel channels, strengthened with transversely bonded carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) sheets. Seven long members, each 1400 mm long, and seven short members, each 750mmlong, were tested. The main parameters were the number of CFRP plies (one or two) and the clear spacing between the CFRP strips (50, 100 or 150 mm). The effect of CFRP sheet layer and clear spacing was studied. All the ultimate load capacity of the reinforced members was improved in different extent. A maximum strength gain of 9.13% was achieved for long members with two CFRP layers and 50 mm spacing of CFRP strips. The experimental results show that the global buckling happens to all the long specimens. For short members, the maximum strength gain of 12.1% was achieved with two CFRP layers and 50 mm spacing of CFRP strips. With the exception of the most heavily reinforced (2 plies at 50 and 100 mm), local buckling was observed prior to global buckling for short members, which was completely opposite of the control specimens. Meanwhile, when the clear spacing of CFRP strips is greater than theweb height of steel channel, the transversely bonded CFRP does not have a significant improvement in buckling load capacity of the short- and long-channel components. While the clear spacing is less than the web height, the more number of CFRP layer, the more enhancement of buckling load capacity.

  4. An assessment of the footprint and carrying capacity of oil and gas well sites: The implications for limiting hydrocarbon reserves.

    PubMed

    Clancy, S A; Worrall, F; Davies, R J; Gluyas, J G

    2018-03-15

    We estimate the likely physical footprint of well pads if shale gas or oil developments were to go forward in Europe and used these estimates to understand their impact upon existing infrastructure (e.g. roads, buildings), the carrying capacity of the environment, and how the proportion of extractable resources maybe limited. Using visual imagery, we calculate the average conventional well site footprints to be 10,800m 2 in the UK, 44,600m 2 in The Netherlands and 3000m 2 in Poland. The average area per well is 541m 2 /well in the UK, 6370m 2 /well in The Netherlands, and 2870m 2 /well in Poland. Average access road lengths are 230m in the UK, 310m in The Netherlands and 250m in Poland. To assess the carrying capacity of the land surface, well pads of the average footprint, with recommended setbacks, were placed randomly into the licensed blocks covering the Bowland Shale, UK. The extent to which they interacted or disrupted existing infrastructure was then assessed. For the UK, the direct footprint would have a 33% probability of interacting with immovable infrastructure, but this would rise to 73% if a 152m setback was used, and 91% for a 609m setback. The minimum setbacks from a currently producing well in the UK were calculated to be 21m and 46m from a non-residential and residential property respectively, with mean setbacks of 329m and 447m, respectively. When the surface and sub-surface footprints were considered, the carrying capacity within the licensed blocks was between 5 and 42%, with a mean of 26%. Using previously predicted technically recoverable reserves of 8.5×10 11 m 3 for the Bowland Basin and a recovery factor of 26%, the likely maximum accessible gas reserves would be limited by the surface carrying capacity to 2.21×10 11 m 3 . Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Characterizing quantum channels with non-separable states of classical light

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ndagano, Bienvenu; Perez-Garcia, Benjamin; Roux, Filippus S.; McLaren, Melanie; Rosales-Guzman, Carmelo; Zhang, Yingwen; Mouane, Othmane; Hernandez-Aranda, Raul I.; Konrad, Thomas; Forbes, Andrew

    2017-04-01

    High-dimensional entanglement with spatial modes of light promises increased security and information capacity over quantum channels. Unfortunately, entanglement decays due to perturbations, corrupting quantum links that cannot be repaired without performing quantum tomography on the channel. Paradoxically, the channel tomography itself is not possible without a working link. Here we overcome this problem with a robust approach to characterize quantum channels by means of classical light. Using free-space communication in a turbulent atmosphere as an example, we show that the state evolution of classically entangled degrees of freedom is equivalent to that of quantum entangled photons, thus providing new physical insights into the notion of classical entanglement. The analysis of quantum channels by means of classical light in real time unravels stochastic dynamics in terms of pure state trajectories, and thus enables precise quantum error correction in short- and long-haul optical communication, in both free space and fibre.

  6. Reconfigurable virtual electrowetting channels.

    PubMed

    Banerjee, Ananda; Kreit, Eric; Liu, Yuguang; Heikenfeld, Jason; Papautsky, Ian

    2012-02-21

    Lab-on-a-chip systems rely on several microfluidic paradigms. The first uses a fixed layout of continuous microfluidic channels. Such lab-on-a-chip systems are almost always application specific and far from a true "laboratory." The second involves electrowetting droplet movement (digital microfluidics), and allows two-dimensional computer control of fluidic transport and mixing. The merging of the two paradigms in the form of programmable electrowetting channels takes advantage of both the "continuous" functionality of rigid channels based on which a large number of applications have been developed to date and the "programmable" functionality of digital microfluidics that permits electrical control of on-chip functions. In this work, we demonstrate for the first time programmable formation of virtual microfluidic channels and their continuous operation with pressure driven flows using an electrowetting platform. Experimental, theoretical, and numerical analyses of virtual channel formation with biologically relevant electrolyte solutions and electrically-programmable reconfiguration are presented. We demonstrate that the "wall-less" virtual channels can be formed reliably and rapidly, with propagation rates of 3.5-3.8 mm s(-1). Pressure driven transport in these virtual channels at flow rates up to 100 μL min(-1) is achievable without distortion of the channel shape. We further demonstrate that these virtual channels can be switched on-demand between multiple inputs and outputs. Ultimately, we envision a platform that would provide rapid prototyping of microfluidic concepts and would be capable of a vast library of functions and benefitting applications from clinical diagnostics in resource-limited environments to rapid system prototyping to high throughput pharmaceutical applications.

  7. Hot LO-phonon limited electron transport in ZnO/MgZnO channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Šermukšnis, E.; Liberis, J.; Matulionis, A.; Avrutin, V.; Toporkov, M.; Özgür, Ü.; Morkoç, H.

    2018-05-01

    High-field electron transport in two-dimensional channels at ZnO/MgZnO heterointerfaces has been investigated experimentally. Pulsed current-voltage (I-V) and microwave noise measurements used voltage pulse widths down to 30 ns and electric fields up to 100 kV/cm. The samples investigated featured electron densities in the range of 4.2-6.5 × 1012 cm-2, and room temperature mobilities of 142-185 cm2/V s. The pulsed nature of the applied field ensured negligible, if any, change in the electron density, thereby allowing velocity extraction from current with confidence. The highest extracted electron drift velocity of ˜0.5 × 107 cm/s is somewhat smaller than that estimated for bulk ZnO; this difference is explained in the framework of longitudinal optical phonon accumulation (hot-phonon effect). The microwave noise data allowed us to rule out the effect of excess acoustic phonon temperature caused by Joule heating. Real-space transfer of hot electrons into the wider bandgap MgZnO layer was observed to be a limiting factor in samples with a high Mg content (48%), due to phase segregation and the associated local lowering of the potential barrier.

  8. Investigation of different classifiers and channel configurations of a mobile P300-based brain-computer interface.

    PubMed

    Ludwig, Simone A; Kong, Jun

    2017-12-01

    Innovative methods and new technologies have significantly improved the quality of our daily life. However, disabled people, for example those that cannot use their arms and legs anymore, often cannot benefit from these developments, since they cannot use their hands to interact with traditional interaction methods (such as mouse or keyboard) to communicate with a computer system. A brain-computer interface (BCI) system allows such a disabled person to control an external device via brain waves. Past research mostly dealt with static interfaces, which limit users to a stationary location. However, since we are living in a world that is highly mobile, this paper evaluates a speller interface on a mobile phone used in a moving condition. The spelling experiments were conducted with 14 able-bodied subjects using visual flashes as the stimulus to spell 47 alphanumeric characters (38 letters and 9 numbers). This data was then used for the classification experiments. In par- ticular, two research directions are pursued. The first investigates the impact of different classification algorithms, and the second direction looks at the channel configuration, i.e., which channels are most beneficial in terms of achieving the highest classification accuracy. The evaluation results indicate that the Bayesian Linear Discriminant Analysis algorithm achieves the best accuracy. Also, the findings of the investigation on the channel configuration, which can potentially reduce the amount of data processing on a mobile device with limited computing capacity, is especially useful in mobile BCIs.

  9. Large capacity temporary visual memory.

    PubMed

    Endress, Ansgar D; Potter, Mary C

    2014-04-01

    Visual working memory (WM) capacity is thought to be limited to 3 or 4 items. However, many cognitive activities seem to require larger temporary memory stores. Here, we provide evidence for a temporary memory store with much larger capacity than past WM capacity estimates. Further, based on previous WM research, we show that a single factor--proactive interference--is sufficient to bring capacity estimates down to the range of previous WM capacity estimates. Participants saw a rapid serial visual presentation of 5-21 pictures of familiar objects or words presented at rates of 4/s or 8/s, respectively, and thus too fast for strategies such as rehearsal. Recognition memory was tested with a single probe item. When new items were used on all trials, no fixed memory capacities were observed, with estimates of up to 9.1 retained pictures for 21-item lists, and up to 30.0 retained pictures for 100-item lists, and no clear upper bound to how many items could be retained. Further, memory items were not stored in a temporally stable form of memory but decayed almost completely after a few minutes. In contrast, when, as in most WM experiments, a small set of items was reused across all trials, thus creating proactive interference among items, capacity remained in the range reported in previous WM experiments. These results show that humans have a large-capacity temporary memory store in the absence of proactive interference, and raise the question of whether temporary memory in everyday cognitive processing is severely limited, as in WM experiments, or has the much larger capacity found in the present experiments.

  10. Large capacity temporary visual memory

    PubMed Central

    Endress, Ansgar D.; Potter, Mary C.

    2014-01-01

    Visual working memory (WM) capacity is thought to be limited to three or four items. However, many cognitive activities seem to require larger temporary memory stores. Here, we provide evidence for a temporary memory store with much larger capacity than past WM capacity estimates. Further, based on previous WM research, we show that a single factor — proactive interference — is sufficient to bring capacity estimates down to the range of previous WM capacity estimates. Participants saw a rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) of 5 to 21 pictures of familiar objects or words presented at rates of 4/s or 8/s, respectively, and thus too fast for strategies such as rehearsal. Recognition memory was tested with a single probe item. When new items were used on all trials, no fixed memory capacities were observed, with estimates of up to 9.1 retained pictures for 21-item lists, and up to 30.0 retained pictures for 100-item lists, and no clear upper bound to how many items could be retained. Further, memory items were not stored in a temporally stable form of memory, but decayed almost completely after a few minutes. In contrast, when, as in most WM experiments, a small set of items was reused across all trials, thus creating proactive interference among items, capacity remained in the range reported in previous WM experiments. These results show that humans have a large-capacity temporary memory store in the absence of proactive interference, and raise the question of whether temporary memory in everyday cognitive processing is severely limited as in WM experiments, or has the much larger capacity found in the present experiments. PMID:23937181

  11. Channel erosion in a rapidly urbanizing region of Tijuana, Mexico: Enlargement downstream of channel hardpoints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Taniguchi, Kristine; Biggs, Trent; Langendoen, Eddy; Castillo, Carlos; Gudiño, Napoleon; Yuan, Yongping; Liden, Douglas

    2016-04-01

    Urban-induced erosion in Tijuana, Mexico, has led to excessive sediment deposition in the Tijuana Estuary in the United States. Urban areas in developing countries, in contrast to developed countries, are characterized by much lower proportions of vegetation and impervious surfaces due to limited access to urban services such as road paving and landscaping, and larger proportions of exposed soils. In developing countries, traditional watershed scale variables such as impervious surfaces may not be good predictors of channel enlargement. In this research, we surveyed the stream channel network of an erodible tributary of the Tijuana River Watershed, Los Laureles Canyon, at 125 locations, including repeat surveys from 2008. Structure from Motion (SfM) and 3D photo-reconstruction techniques were used to create digital terrain models of stream reaches upstream and downstream of channel hardpoints. Channels are unstable downstream of hardpoints, with incision up to 2 meters and widening up to 12 meters. Coordinated channelization is essential to avoid piece-meal approaches that lead to channel degradation. Watershed impervious area is not a good predictor of channel erosion due to the overriding importance of hardpoints and likely to the high sediment supply from the unpaved roads which prevents channel erosion throughout the stream network.

  12. Classical-quantum arbitrarily varying wiretap channel: Secret message transmission under jamming attacks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boche, Holger; Cai, Minglai; Deppe, Christian; Nötzel, Janis

    2017-10-01

    We analyze arbitrarily varying classical-quantum wiretap channels. These channels are subject to two attacks at the same time: one passive (eavesdropping) and one active (jamming). We elaborate on our previous studies [H. Boche et al., Quantum Inf. Process. 15(11), 4853-4895 (2016) and H. Boche et al., Quantum Inf. Process. 16(1), 1-48 (2016)] by introducing a reduced class of allowable codes that fulfills a more stringent secrecy requirement than earlier definitions. In addition, we prove that non-symmetrizability of the legal link is sufficient for equality of the deterministic and the common randomness assisted secrecy capacities. Finally, we focus on analytic properties of both secrecy capacities: We completely characterize their discontinuity points and their super-activation properties.

  13. Voltage-gated Proton Channels

    PubMed Central

    DeCoursey, Thomas E.

    2014-01-01

    Voltage-gated proton channels, HV1, have vaulted from the realm of the esoteric into the forefront of a central question facing ion channel biophysicists, namely the mechanism by which voltage-dependent gating occurs. This transformation is the result of several factors. Identification of the gene in 2006 revealed that proton channels are homologues of the voltage-sensing domain of most other voltage-gated ion channels. Unique, or at least eccentric, properties of proton channels include dimeric architecture with dual conduction pathways, perfect proton selectivity, a single-channel conductance ~103 smaller than most ion channels, voltage-dependent gating that is strongly modulated by the pH gradient, ΔpH, and potent inhibition by Zn2+ (in many species) but an absence of other potent inhibitors. The recent identification of HV1 in three unicellular marine plankton species has dramatically expanded the phylogenetic family tree. Interest in proton channels in their own right has increased as important physiological roles have been identified in many cells. Proton channels trigger the bioluminescent flash of dinoflagellates, facilitate calcification by coccolithophores, regulate pH-dependent processes in eggs and sperm during fertilization, secrete acid to control the pH of airway fluids, facilitate histamine secretion by basophils, and play a signaling role in facilitating B-cell receptor mediated responses in B lymphocytes. The most elaborate and best-established functions occur in phagocytes, where proton channels optimize the activity of NADPH oxidase, an important producer of reactive oxygen species. Proton efflux mediated by HV1 balances the charge translocated across the membrane by electrons through NADPH oxidase, minimizes changes in cytoplasmic and phagosomal pH, limits osmotic swelling of the phagosome, and provides substrate H+ for the production of H2O2 and HOCl, reactive oxygen species crucial to killing pathogens. PMID:23798303

  14. Distributed Joint Source-Channel Coding in Wireless Sensor Networks

    PubMed Central

    Zhu, Xuqi; Liu, Yu; Zhang, Lin

    2009-01-01

    Considering the fact that sensors are energy-limited and the wireless channel conditions in wireless sensor networks, there is an urgent need for a low-complexity coding method with high compression ratio and noise-resisted features. This paper reviews the progress made in distributed joint source-channel coding which can address this issue. The main existing deployments, from the theory to practice, of distributed joint source-channel coding over the independent channels, the multiple access channels and the broadcast channels are introduced, respectively. To this end, we also present a practical scheme for compressing multiple correlated sources over the independent channels. The simulation results demonstrate the desired efficiency. PMID:22408560

  15. Experimental Study of Axially Tension Cold Formed Steel Channel Members

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Apriani, Widya; Lubis, Fadrizal; Angraini, Muthia

    2017-12-01

    Experimental testing is commonly used as one of the steps to determine the cause of the collapse of a building structure. The collapse of structures can be due to low quality materials. Although material samples have passed laboratory tests and the existing technical specifications have been met but there may be undetected defects and known material after failure. In this paper will be presented Experimental Testing of Axially Tension Cold Formed Steel Channel Members to determine the cause of the collapse of a building roof truss x in Pekanbaru. Test of tensile strength material cold formed channel sections was performed to obtain the main characteristics of Cold Formed steel material, namely ultimate tensile strength loads that can be held by members and the yield stress possessed by channel sections used in construction. Analysis of axially tension cold formed steel channel section presents in this paper was conducted through experimental study based on specificationsAnnualBook of ASTM Standards: Metal Test methods and Analitical Procedures, Section 3 (1991). The result of capacity loads experimental test was compared with design based on SNI 03-7971-2013standard of Indonesia for the design of cold formed steel structural members. The results of the yield stress of the material will be seen against the minimum allowable allowable stress range. After the test, the percentace of ultimate axial tension capacity theory has a result that is 16.46% larger than the ultimate axial tension capacity experimental. When compared with the load that must be borne 5.673 kN/m it can be concluded that 2 specimens do not meet. Yield stress of member has fulfilled requirement that wass bigger than 550 MPa. Based on the curve obtained ultimate axial tension capacity theory, results greater than experimental. The greatest voltage value (fu) is achieved under the same conditions as its yield stress. For this specimen with a melting voltage value fy = 571.5068 MPa has fulfilled the

  16. Experimental Study of Axially Tension Cold Formed Steel Channel Members

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Apriani, Widya; Lubis, Fadrizal; Angraini, Muthia

    2017-12-01

    Experimental testing is commonly used as one of the steps to determine the cause of the collapse of a building structure. The collapse of structures can be due to low quality materials. Although material samples have passed laboratory tests and the existing technical specifications have been met but there may be undetected defects and known material after failure. In this paper will be presented Experimental Testing of Axially Tension Cold Formed Steel Channel Members to determine the cause of the collapse of a building roof truss x in Pekanbaru. Test of tensile strength material cold formed channel sections was performed to obtain the main characteristics of Cold Formed steel material, namely ultimate tensile strength loads that can be held by members and the yield stress possessed by channel sections used in construction. Analysis of axially tension cold formed steel channel section presents in this paper was conducted through experimental study based on specificationsAnnualBook of ASTM Standards: Metal Test methods and Analitical Procedures, Section 3 (1991). The result of capacity loads experimental test was compared with design based on SNI 03-7971- 2013standard of Indonesia for the design of cold formed steel structural members. The results of the yield stress of the material will be seen against the minimum allowable allowable stress range. After the test, the percentace of ultimate axial tension capacity theory has a result that is 16.46% larger than the ultimate axial tension capacity experimental. When compared with the load that must be borne 5.673 kN/m it can be concluded that 2 specimens do not meet. Yield stress of member has fulfilled requirement that wass bigger than 550 MPa. Based on the curve obtained ultimate axial tension capacity theory, results greater than experimental. The greatest voltage value (fu) is achieved under the same conditions as its yield stress. For this specimen with a melting voltage value fy = 571.5068 MPa has fulfilled the

  17. Enhancing the Damping Behavior of Dilute Zn-0.3Al Alloy by Equal Channel Angular Pressing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Demirtas, M.; Atli, K. C.; Yanar, H.; Purcek, G.

    2017-06-01

    The effect of grain size on the damping capacity of a dilute Zn-0.3Al alloy was investigated. It was found that there was a critical strain value (≈1 × 10-4) below and above which damping of Zn-0.3Al showed dynamic and static/dynamic hysteresis behavior, respectively. In the dynamic hysteresis region, damping resulted from viscous sliding of phase/grain boundaries, and decreasing grain size increased the damping capacity. While the quenched sample with 100 to 250 µm grain size showed very limited damping capacity with a loss factor tanδ of less than 0.007, decreasing grain size down to 2 µm by equal channel angular pressing (ECAP) increased tanδ to 0.100 in this region. Dynamic recrystallization due to microplasticity at the sample surface was proposed as the damping mechanism for the first time in the region where the alloy showed the combined aspects of dynamic and static hysteresis damping. In this region, tanδ increased with increasing strain amplitude, and ECAPed sample showed a tanδ value of 0.256 at a strain amplitude of 2 × 10-3, the highest recorded so far in the damping capacity-related studies on ZA alloys.

  18. Quantum channels and memory effects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Caruso, Filippo; Giovannetti, Vittorio; Lupo, Cosmo; Mancini, Stefano

    2014-10-01

    Any physical process can be represented as a quantum channel mapping an initial state to a final state. Hence it can be characterized from the point of view of communication theory, i.e., in terms of its ability to transfer information. Quantum information provides a theoretical framework and the proper mathematical tools to accomplish this. In this context the notion of codes and communication capacities have been introduced by generalizing them from the classical Shannon theory of information transmission and error correction. The underlying assumption of this approach is to consider the channel not as acting on a single system, but on sequences of systems, which, when properly initialized allow one to overcome the noisy effects induced by the physical process under consideration. While most of the work produced so far has been focused on the case in which a given channel transformation acts identically and independently on the various elements of the sequence (memoryless configuration in jargon), correlated error models appear to be a more realistic way to approach the problem. A slightly different, yet conceptually related, notion of correlated errors applies to a single quantum system which evolves continuously in time under the influence of an external disturbance which acts on it in a non-Markovian fashion. This leads to the study of memory effects in quantum channels: a fertile ground where interesting novel phenomena emerge at the intersection of quantum information theory and other branches of physics. A survey is taken of the field of quantum channels theory while also embracing these specific and complex settings.

  19. Dark matter annihilation with s-channel internal Higgsstrahlung

    DOE PAGES

    Kumar, Jason; Liao, Jiajun; Marfatia, Danny

    2016-05-31

    We study the scenario of fermionic dark matter that annihilates to standard model fermions through an s-channel axial vector mediator. We point out that the well-known chirality suppression of the annihilation cross section can be alleviated by s-channel internal Higgsstrahlung. The shapes of the cosmic ray spectra are identical to that of t-channel internal Higgsstrahlung in the limit of a heavy mediating particle. Unlike the general case of t-channel bremsstrahlung, s-channel Higgsstrahlung can be the dominant annihilation process even for Dirac dark matter. Finally, since the s-channel mediator can be a standard model singlet, collider searches for the mediator aremore » easily circumvented.« less

  20. Dark matter annihilation with s-channel internal Higgsstrahlung

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kumar, Jason; Liao, Jiajun; Marfatia, Danny

    We study the scenario of fermionic dark matter that annihilates to standard model fermions through an s-channel axial vector mediator. We point out that the well-known chirality suppression of the annihilation cross section can be alleviated by s-channel internal Higgsstrahlung. The shapes of the cosmic ray spectra are identical to that of t-channel internal Higgsstrahlung in the limit of a heavy mediating particle. Unlike the general case of t-channel bremsstrahlung, s-channel Higgsstrahlung can be the dominant annihilation process even for Dirac dark matter. Finally, since the s-channel mediator can be a standard model singlet, collider searches for the mediator aremore » easily circumvented.« less

  1. Set-specific capture can be reduced by preemptively occupying a limited-capacity focus of attention.

    PubMed

    Moore, Katherine Sledge; Weissman, Daniel H

    2011-01-01

    Recent work has shown that contingent attentional capture effects can be especially large when multiple attentional sets for color guide visual search (Moore & Weissman, 2010). In particular, this research suggests that detecting a target-colored (e.g., orange) distractor leads the corresponding attentional set (e.g., identify orange letters) to enter a limited-capacity focus of attention in working memory, where it remains briefly while the distractor is being attended. Consequently, the ability to identify a differently-colored (e.g., green) target 100-300 ms later is impaired because the appropriate set (e.g., identify green letters) cannot also enter the focus of attention. In two experiments, we investigated whether such set-specific capture can be reduced by preemptively occupying the focus of attention. As predicted, a target-colored central distractor presented 233 ms before a target-colored peripheral distractor eliminated set-specific capture arising from the peripheral distractor. Moreover, this effect was observed only when the central distractor's color (e.g., orange) (a) matched a different set than the upcoming peripheral distractor's color (e.g., green) and (b) matched the same set as the upcoming central target's color (e.g., orange). We conclude that the same working memory limitations that give rise to set-specific capture can be preemptively exploited to reduce it.

  2. Current-limiting challenges for all-spin logic devices

    PubMed Central

    Su, Li; Zhang, Youguang; Klein, Jacques-Olivier; Zhang, Yue; Bournel, Arnaud; Fert, Albert; Zhao, Weisheng

    2015-01-01

    All-spin logic device (ASLD) has attracted increasing interests as one of the most promising post-CMOS device candidates, thanks to its low power, non-volatility and logic-in-memory structure. Here we investigate the key current-limiting factors and develop a physics-based model of ASLD through nano-magnet switching, the spin transport properties and the breakdown characteristic of channel. First, ASLD with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) nano-magnet is proposed to reduce the critical current (Ic0). Most important, the spin transport efficiency can be enhanced by analyzing the device structure, dimension, contact resistance as well as material parameters. Furthermore, breakdown current density (JBR) of spin channel is studied for the upper current limitation. As a result, we can deduce current-limiting conditions and estimate energy dissipation. Based on the model, we demonstrate ASLD with different structures and channel materials (graphene and copper). Asymmetric structure is found to be the optimal option for current limitations. Copper channel outperforms graphene in term of energy but seriously suffers from breakdown current limit. By exploring the current limit and performance tradeoffs, the optimization of ASLD is also discussed. This benchmarking model of ASLD opens up new prospects for design and implementation of future spintronics applications. PMID:26449410

  3. The broadcast classical-quantum capacity region of a two-phase bidirectional relaying channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Boche, Holger; Cai, Minglai; Deppe, Christian

    2015-10-01

    We studied a three-node quantum network that enables bidirectional communication between two nodes with a half-duplex relay node for transmitting classical messages. A decode-and-forward protocol is used to perform the communication in two phases. In the first phase, the messages of two nodes are transmitted to the relay node. The capacity of the first phase is well known by previous works. In the second phase, the relay node broadcasts a re-encoded composition to the two nodes. We determine the capacity region of the broadcast phase. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper analyzing quantum bidirectional relay networks.

  4. Spatial channel interactions in cochlear implants

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Qing; Benítez, Raul; Zeng, Fan-Gang

    2011-08-01

    The modern multi-channel cochlear implant is widely considered to be the most successful neural prosthesis owing to its ability to restore partial hearing to post-lingually deafened adults and to allow essentially normal language development in pre-lingually deafened children. However, the implant performance varies greatly in individuals and is still limited in background noise, tonal language understanding, and music perception. One main cause for the individual variability and the limited performance in cochlear implants is spatial channel interaction from the stimulating electrodes to the auditory nerve and brain. Here we systematically examined spatial channel interactions at the physical, physiological, and perceptual levels in the same five modern cochlear implant subjects. The physical interaction was examined using an electric field imaging technique, which measured the voltage distribution as a function of the electrode position in the cochlea in response to the stimulation of a single electrode. The physiological interaction was examined by recording electrically evoked compound action potentials as a function of the electrode position in response to the stimulation of the same single electrode position. The perceptual interactions were characterized by changes in detection threshold as well as loudness summation in response to in-phase or out-of-phase dual-electrode stimulation. To minimize potentially confounding effects of temporal factors on spatial channel interactions, stimulus rates were limited to 100 Hz or less in all measurements. Several quantitative channel interaction indexes were developed to define and compare the width, slope and symmetry of the spatial excitation patterns derived from these physical, physiological and perceptual measures. The electric field imaging data revealed a broad but uniformly asymmetrical intracochlear electric field pattern, with the apical side producing a wider half-width and shallower slope than the basal

  5. Sulfate passivation in the lead-acid system as a capacity limiting process

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kappus, W.; Winsel, A.

    1982-10-01

    Calculations of the discharge capacity of Pb and PbO 2 electrodes as a function of various parameters are presented. They are based on the solution-precipitation mechanism for the discharge reaction and its formulation by Winsel et al. A logarithmic pore size distribution is used to fit experimental porosigrams of Pb and PbO 2 electrodes. Based on this pore size distribution the capacity is calculated as a function of current, BET surface, and porosity of the PbSO 4 diaphragm. The PbSO 4 supersaturation as the driving force of the diffusive transport is chosen as a free parameter.

  6. [Environment capacity of eco-tourism resort].

    PubMed

    Sun, Y; Wang, R

    2000-08-01

    The results of quantitative analysis on the amount of tourist, service-environment capacity, eco-environment capacity, and their relations in Five-finger Mountain eco-tourism resort indicate that the amount of tourist in common situation and in its extreme was 1918 and 2301 visitor-hour per day, and the service-environment capacity and eco-environment capacity were 6000 and 2400 visitor-hour per day, respectively. The eco-environment capacity was smaller than its service-environment capacity, and would become the first limiting factor to the increase of tourist amount, which was mainly due to the ecological fragility of resort, the lower resistance of biological communities to the disturbance, and the slower speed of ecosystem restoration after its being destroyed.

  7. Pore size matters for potassium channel conductance

    PubMed Central

    Moldenhauer, Hans; Pincuntureo, Matías

    2016-01-01

    Ion channels are membrane proteins that mediate efficient ion transport across the hydrophobic core of cell membranes, an unlikely process in their absence. K+ channels discriminate K+ over cations with similar radii with extraordinary selectivity and display a wide diversity of ion transport rates, covering differences of two orders of magnitude in unitary conductance. The pore domains of large- and small-conductance K+ channels share a general architectural design comprising a conserved narrow selectivity filter, which forms intimate interactions with permeant ions, flanked by two wider vestibules toward the internal and external openings. In large-conductance K+ channels, the inner vestibule is wide, whereas in small-conductance channels it is narrow. Here we raise the idea that the physical dimensions of the hydrophobic internal vestibule limit ion transport in K+ channels, accounting for their diversity in unitary conductance. PMID:27619418

  8. The fundamental downscaling limit of field effect transistors

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mamaluy, Denis, E-mail: mamaluy@sandia.gov; Gao, Xujiao

    2015-05-11

    We predict that within next 15 years a fundamental down-scaling limit for CMOS technology and other Field-Effect Transistors (FETs) will be reached. Specifically, we show that at room temperatures all FETs, irrespective of their channel material, will start experiencing unacceptable level of thermally induced errors around 5-nm gate lengths. These findings were confirmed by performing quantum mechanical transport simulations for a variety of 6-, 5-, and 4-nm gate length Si devices, optimized to satisfy high-performance logic specifications by ITRS. Different channel materials and wafer/channel orientations have also been studied; it is found that altering channel-source-drain materials achieves only insignificant increasemore » in switching energy, which overall cannot sufficiently delay the approaching downscaling limit. Alternative possibilities are discussed to continue the increase of logic element densities for room temperature operation below the said limit.« less

  9. The fundamental downscaling limit of field effect transistors

    DOE PAGES

    Mamaluy, Denis; Gao, Xujiao

    2015-05-12

    We predict that within next 15 years a fundamental down-scaling limit for CMOS technology and other Field-Effect Transistors (FETs) will be reached. Specifically, we show that at room temperatures all FETs, irrespective of their channel material, will start experiencing unacceptable level of thermally induced errors around 5-nm gate lengths. These findings were confirmed by performing quantum mechanical transport simulations for a variety of 6-, 5-, and 4-nm gate length Si devices, optimized to satisfy high-performance logic specifications by ITRS. Different channel materials and wafer/channel orientations have also been studied; it is found that altering channel-source-drain materials achieves only insignificant increasemore » in switching energy, which overall cannot sufficiently delay the approaching downscaling limit. Alternative possibilities are discussed to continue the increase of logic element densities for room temperature operation below the said limit.« less

  10. The developing shoulder has a limited capacity to recover after a short duration of neonatal paralysis

    PubMed Central

    Potter, Ryan; Havlioglu, Necat; Thomopoulos, Stavros

    2014-01-01

    Mechanical stimuli are required for the proper development of the musculoskeletal system. Removal of muscle forces during fetal or early post-natal timepoints impairs the formation of bone, tendon, and their attachment (the enthesis). The goal of the current study was to examine the capacity of the shoulder to recover after a short duration of neonatal rotator cuff paralysis, a condition mimicking the clinical condition neonatal brachial plexus palsy. We asked if reapplication of muscle load to a transiently paralyzed muscle would allow for full recovery of tissue properties. CD-1 mice were injected with botulinum toxin A to paralyze the supraspinatus muscle from birth through 2 weeks and subsequently allowed to recover. The biomechanics of the enthesis was determined using tensile testing and the morphology of the shoulder joint was determined using micro computed tomography and histology. A recovery period of at least 10 weeks was required to achieve control properties, demonstrating a limited capacity of the shoulder to recover after only two weeks of muscle paralysis. Although care must be taken when extrapolating results from an animal model to the human condition, the results of the current study imply that treatment of neonatal brachial plexus palsy should be aggressive, as even short periods of paralysis could lead to long-term deficiencies in enthesis biomechanics and shoulder morphology. PMID:24831237

  11. Velocity-based analysis of sediment incipient deposition in rigid boundary open channels.

    PubMed

    Aksoy, Hafzullah; Safari, Mir Jafar Sadegh; Unal, Necati Erdem; Mohammadi, Mirali

    2017-11-01

    Drainage systems must be designed in a way to minimize undesired problems such as decrease in hydraulic capacity of the channel, blockage and transport of pollutants due to deposition of sediment. Channel design considering self-cleansing criteria are used to solve the sedimentation problem. Incipient deposition is one of the non-deposition self-cleansing design criteria that can be used as a conservative method for channel design. Experimental studies have been carried out in five different cross-section channels, namely trapezoidal, rectangular, circular, U-shape and V-bottom. Experiments were performed in a tilting flume using four different sizes of sands as sediment in nine different channel bed slopes. Two well-known methods, namely the Novak & Nalluri and Yang methods are considered for the analysis of sediment motion. Equations developed using experimental data are found to be in agreement with the literature. It is concluded that the design velocity depends on the shape of the channel cross-section. Rectangular and V-bottom channels need lower and higher incipient deposition velocities, respectively, in comparison with other channels.

  12. Detection of Stimulus Displacements Across Saccades is Capacity-Limited and Biased in Favor of the Saccade Target

    PubMed Central

    Irwin, David E.; Robinson, Maria M.

    2015-01-01

    Retinal image displacements caused by saccadic eye movements are generally unnoticed. Recent theories have proposed that perceptual stability across saccades depends on a local evaluation process centered on the saccade target object rather than on remapping and evaluating the positions of all objects in a display. In three experiments, we examined whether objects other than the saccade target also influence perceptual stability by measuring displacement detection thresholds across saccades for saccade targets and a variable number of non-saccade objects. We found that the positions of multiple objects are maintained across saccades, but with variable precision, with the saccade target object having priority in the perception of displacement, most likely because it is the focus of attention before the saccade and resides near the fovea after the saccade. The perception of displacement of objects that are not the saccade target is affected by acuity limitations, attentional limitations, and limitations on memory capacity. Unlike previous studies that have found that a postsaccadic blank improves the detection of displacement direction across saccades, we found that postsaccadic blanking hurt the detection of displacement per se by increasing false alarms. Overall, our results are consistent with the hypothesis that visual working memory underlies the perception of stability across saccades. PMID:26640430

  13. Oxidative Damage to RPA Limits the Nucleotide Excision Repair Capacity of Human Cells.

    PubMed

    Guven, Melisa; Brem, Reto; Macpherson, Peter; Peacock, Matthew; Karran, Peter

    2015-11-01

    Nucleotide excision repair (NER) protects against sunlight-induced skin cancer. Defective NER is associated with photosensitivity and a high skin cancer incidence. Some clinical treatments that cause photosensitivity can also increase skin cancer risk. Among these, the immunosuppressant azathioprine and the fluoroquinolone antibiotics ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin interact with UVA radiation to generate reactive oxygen species that diminish NER capacity by causing protein damage. The replication protein A (RPA) DNA-binding protein has a pivotal role in DNA metabolism and is an essential component of NER. The relationship between protein oxidation and NER inhibition was investigated in cultured human cells expressing different levels of RPA. We show here that RPA is limiting for NER and that oxidative damage to RPA compromises NER capability. Our findings reveal that cellular RPA is surprisingly vulnerable to oxidation, and we identify oxidized forms of RPA that are associated with impaired NER. The vulnerability of NER to inhibition by oxidation provides a connection between cutaneous photosensitivity, protein damage, and increased skin cancer risk. Our findings emphasize that damage to DNA repair proteins, as well as to DNA itself, is likely to be an important contributor to skin cancer risk.

  14. A high capacity data recording device based on a digital audio processor and a video cassette recorder.

    PubMed

    Bezanilla, F

    1985-03-01

    A modified digital audio processor, a video cassette recorder, and some simple added circuitry are assembled into a recording device of high capacity. The unit converts two analog channels into digital form at 44-kHz sampling rate and stores the information in digital form in a common video cassette. Bandwidth of each channel is from direct current to approximately 20 kHz and the dynamic range is close to 90 dB. The total storage capacity in a 3-h video cassette is 2 Gbytes. The information can be retrieved in analog or digital form.

  15. A high capacity data recording device based on a digital audio processor and a video cassette recorder.

    PubMed Central

    Bezanilla, F

    1985-01-01

    A modified digital audio processor, a video cassette recorder, and some simple added circuitry are assembled into a recording device of high capacity. The unit converts two analog channels into digital form at 44-kHz sampling rate and stores the information in digital form in a common video cassette. Bandwidth of each channel is from direct current to approximately 20 kHz and the dynamic range is close to 90 dB. The total storage capacity in a 3-h video cassette is 2 Gbytes. The information can be retrieved in analog or digital form. PMID:3978213

  16. Avoiding The Inevitable? Capacity Loss From Reservoir Sedimentation

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Gray, John R.; Randle, Timothy J.; Collins, Kent L.

    2013-01-01

    The inexorable loss of capacity of the nation's reservoirs—sooner or later threatening water supplies for municipal, agricultural, and industrial uses—is but one of a number of deleterious effects wrought by sediment deposition. Trapped sediments can also damage or bury dam outlets, water intakes, and related infrastructure. Downstream effects of sediment capture and retention by reservoirs can include channel and habitat degradation and biotic alterations.

  17. Exercise Ventilatory Limitation: The Role Of Expiratory Flow Limitation

    PubMed Central

    Babb, Tony G.

    2012-01-01

    Ventilatory limitation to exercise remains an important unresolved clinical issue; as a result, many individuals misinterpret the effects of expiratory flow limitation as an all-or-nothing phenomenon. Expiratory flow limitation is not all-or-none; approaching maximal expiratory flow can have important effects not only on ventilatory capacity but also on breathing mechanics, ventilatory control, and possibly exertional dyspnea and exercise intolerance. PMID:23038244

  18. Thermally tolerant corals have limited capacity to acclimatize to future warming.

    PubMed

    Rodolfo-Metalpa, Riccardo; Hoogenboom, Mia O; Rottier, Cécile; Ramos-Esplá, Alfonso; Baker, Andrew C; Fine, Maoz; Ferrier-Pagès, Christine

    2014-10-01

    Thermal stress affects organism performance differently depending on the ambient temperature to which they are acclimatized, which varies along latitudinal gradients. This study investigated whether differences in physiological responses to temperature are consistent with regional differences in temperature regimes for the stony coral Oculina patagonica. To resolve this question, we experimentally assessed how colonies originating from four different locations characterized by >3 °C variation in mean maximum annual temperature responded to warming from 20 to 32 °C. We assessed plasticity in symbiont identity, density, and photosynthetic properties, together with changes in host tissue biomass. Results show that, without changes in the type of symbiont hosted by coral colonies, O. patagonica has limited capacity to acclimatize to future warming. We found little evidence of variation in overall thermal tolerance, or in thermal optima, in response to spatial variation in ambient temperature. Given that the invader O. patagonica is a relatively new member of the Mediterranean coral fauna, our results also suggest that coral populations may need to remain isolated for a long period of time for thermal adaptation to potentially take place. Our study indicates that for O. patagonica, mortality associated with thermal stress manifests primarily through tissue breakdown under moderate but prolonged warming (which does not impair symbiont photosynthesis and, therefore, does not lead to bleaching). Consequently, projected global warming is likely to cause repeat incidents of partial and whole colony mortality and might drive a gradual range contraction of Mediterranean corals. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Analog and digital transport of RF channels over converged 5G wireless-optical networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Binh, Le Nguyen

    2016-02-01

    Under the exponential increase demand by the emerging 5G wireless access networking and thus data-center based Internet, novel and economical transport of RF channels to and from wireless access systems. This paper presents the transport technologies of RF channels over the analog and digital domain so as to meet the demands of the transport capacity reaching multi-Tbps, in the followings: (i) The convergence of 5G broadband wireless and optical networks and its demands on capacity delivery and network structures; (ii) Analog optical technologies for delivery of both the information and RF carriers to and from multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna sites so as to control the beam steering of MIMO antenna in the mmW at either 28.6 GHz and 56.8 GHz RF carrier and delivery of channels of aggregate capacity reaching several Tbps; (ii) Transceiver employing advanced digital modulation formats and digital signal processing (DSP) so as to provide 100G and beyond transmission rate to meet the ultra-high capacity demands with flexible spectral grids, hence pay-on-demand services. The interplay between DSP-based and analog transport techniques is examined; (iii) Transport technologies for 5G cloud access networks and associate modulation and digital processing techniques for capacity efficiency; and (iv) Finally the integrated optic technologies with novel lasers, comb generators and simultaneous dual function photonic devices for both demultiplexing/multiplexing and modulation are proposed, hence a system on chip structure can be structured. Quantum dot lasers and matrixes of micro ring resonators are integrated on the same Si-on-Silica substrate are proposed and described.

  20. Working memory is not fixed-capacity: More active storage capacity for real-world objects than for simple stimuli

    PubMed Central

    Brady, Timothy F.; Störmer, Viola S.; Alvarez, George A.

    2016-01-01

    Visual working memory is the cognitive system that holds visual information active to make it resistant to interference from new perceptual input. Information about simple stimuli—colors and orientations—is encoded into working memory rapidly: In under 100 ms, working memory ‟fills up,” revealing a stark capacity limit. However, for real-world objects, the same behavioral limits do not hold: With increasing encoding time, people store more real-world objects and do so with more detail. This boost in performance for real-world objects is generally assumed to reflect the use of a separate episodic long-term memory system, rather than working memory. Here we show that this behavioral increase in capacity with real-world objects is not solely due to the use of separate episodic long-term memory systems. In particular, we show that this increase is a result of active storage in working memory, as shown by directly measuring neural activity during the delay period of a working memory task using EEG. These data challenge fixed-capacity working memory models and demonstrate that working memory and its capacity limitations are dependent upon our existing knowledge. PMID:27325767

  1. Working memory is not fixed-capacity: More active storage capacity for real-world objects than for simple stimuli.

    PubMed

    Brady, Timothy F; Störmer, Viola S; Alvarez, George A

    2016-07-05

    Visual working memory is the cognitive system that holds visual information active to make it resistant to interference from new perceptual input. Information about simple stimuli-colors and orientations-is encoded into working memory rapidly: In under 100 ms, working memory ‟fills up," revealing a stark capacity limit. However, for real-world objects, the same behavioral limits do not hold: With increasing encoding time, people store more real-world objects and do so with more detail. This boost in performance for real-world objects is generally assumed to reflect the use of a separate episodic long-term memory system, rather than working memory. Here we show that this behavioral increase in capacity with real-world objects is not solely due to the use of separate episodic long-term memory systems. In particular, we show that this increase is a result of active storage in working memory, as shown by directly measuring neural activity during the delay period of a working memory task using EEG. These data challenge fixed-capacity working memory models and demonstrate that working memory and its capacity limitations are dependent upon our existing knowledge.

  2. Physical Hydraulic Model of Side-Channel Spillway of Lambuk DAM, Bali

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Harifa, A. C.; Sholichin, M.; Othman, F. B.

    2013-12-01

    The spillway is among the most important structures of a dam project. A spillway is designed to prevent overtopping of a dam at a place that is not designed for overtopping. Side-channel spillways are commonly used to release water flow from a reservoir in places where the sides are steep and have a considerable height above the dam. Experimental results were collected with a hydraulic model of the side-channel spillway for releasing the peak overflow of Lambuk Dam. This dam is, located on the Lambuk River, which is a tributary of the Yeh Hoo River ~ 34.6 km north of Denpasar on the island of Bali. The bituminous geomembrane faced dam is 24 m in height, with a 35-m wide spillway. The length of the side channel is 35 m long, with 58 m of transition channel, 67.37 m of chuteway channel and 22.71 m of stilling basin. The capacity of the spillway is 231.91 m3/s and the outlet works capacity is 165.28 m3/s. The reservoir is designed for irrigation and water supply. The purpose of this study was to optimize the designed of the structure and to ensure its safe operation. In hydraulic model may help the decision-makers to visualize the flow field before selecting a ';suitable' design. The hydraulic model study was performed to ensure passage of the maximum discharge at maximum reservoir capacity; to study the spillway approach conditions, water surface profiles, and flow patterns in the chuteway; and to reveal potential demerits of the proposed hydraulic design of various structures and explore solutions. The model was constructed at 1 : 40 scale, Reservoir topography was modeled using concrete, the river bed using sand and some gravel, the river berm using concrete, and the spillway and channel using Plexiglas. Water was measured using Rectangular contracted weir. Design floods (with return period in year) were Q2 = 111.40 m3/s, Q5 = 136.84 m3/s, Q10 = 159.32 m3/s, Q25 = 174.61 m3/s, Q50 = 185.13 m3/s, Q100 = 198.08 m3/s, Q200 = 210.55 m3/s, Q1000 = 231.91 m3/s and the

  3. Progressive transmission of images over fading channels using rate-compatible LDPC codes.

    PubMed

    Pan, Xiang; Banihashemi, Amir H; Cuhadar, Aysegul

    2006-12-01

    In this paper, we propose a combined source/channel coding scheme for transmission of images over fading channels. The proposed scheme employs rate-compatible low-density parity-check codes along with embedded image coders such as JPEG2000 and set partitioning in hierarchical trees (SPIHT). The assignment of channel coding rates to source packets is performed by a fast trellis-based algorithm. We examine the performance of the proposed scheme over correlated and uncorrelated Rayleigh flat-fading channels with and without side information. Simulation results for the expected peak signal-to-noise ratio of reconstructed images, which are within 1 dB of the capacity upper bound over a wide range of channel signal-to-noise ratios, show considerable improvement compared to existing results under similar conditions. We also study the sensitivity of the proposed scheme in the presence of channel estimation error at the transmitter and demonstrate that under most conditions our scheme is more robust compared to existing schemes.

  4. Defining Audio/Video Redundancy from a Limited Capacity Information Processing Perspective.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lang, Annie

    1995-01-01

    Investigates whether audio/video redundancy improves memory for television messages. Suggests a theoretical framework for classifying previous work and reinterpreting the results. Suggests general support for the notion that redundancy levels affect the capacity requirements of the message, which impact differentially on audio or visual…

  5. An improved approximate network blocking probability model for all-optical WDM Networks with heterogeneous link capacities

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Khan, Akhtar Nawaz

    2017-11-01

    Currently, analytical models are used to compute approximate blocking probabilities in opaque and all-optical WDM networks with the homogeneous link capacities. Existing analytical models can also be extended to opaque WDM networking with heterogeneous link capacities due to the wavelength conversion at each switch node. However, existing analytical models cannot be utilized for all-optical WDM networking with heterogeneous structure of link capacities due to the wavelength continuity constraint and unequal numbers of wavelength channels on different links. In this work, a mathematical model is extended for computing approximate network blocking probabilities in heterogeneous all-optical WDM networks in which the path blocking is dominated by the link along the path with fewer number of wavelength channels. A wavelength assignment scheme is also proposed for dynamic traffic, termed as last-fit-first wavelength assignment, in which a wavelength channel with maximum index is assigned first to a lightpath request. Due to heterogeneous structure of link capacities and the wavelength continuity constraint, the wavelength channels with maximum indexes are utilized for minimum hop routes. Similarly, the wavelength channels with minimum indexes are utilized for multi-hop routes between source and destination pairs. The proposed scheme has lower blocking probability values compared to the existing heuristic for wavelength assignments. Finally, numerical results are computed in different network scenarios which are approximately equal to values obtained from simulations. Since January 2016, he is serving as Head of Department and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at UET, Peshawar-Jalozai Campus, Pakistan. From May 2013 to June 2015, he served Department of Telecommunication Engineering as an Assistant Professor at UET, Peshawar-Mardan Campus, Pakistan. He also worked as an International Internship scholar in the Fukuda Laboratory, National

  6. Creativity and working memory capacity in sports: working memory capacity is not a limiting factor in creative decision making amongst skilled performers.

    PubMed

    Furley, Philip; Memmert, Daniel

    2015-01-01

    The goal of the study was to investigate the relationship between domain-general working memory capacity and domain-specific creativity amongst experienced soccer players. We administered the automated operation span task in combination with a domain-specific soccer creativity task to a group of 61 experienced soccer players to address the question whether an athlete's domain-specific creativity is restricted by their domain-general cognitive abilities (i.e., working memory capacity). Given that previous studies have either found a positive correlation, a negative correlation, or no correlation between working memory capacity and creativity, we analyzed the data in an exploratory manner by following recent recommendations to report effect-size estimations and their precision in form of 95% confidence intervals. The pattern of results provided evidence that domain-general working memory capacity is not associated with creativity in a soccer-specific creativity task. This pattern of results suggests that future research and theorizing on the role of working memory in everyday creative performance needs to distinguish between different types of creative performance while also taking the role of domain-specific experience into account.

  7. Long-term Culture and Cloning of Primary Human Bronchial Basal Cells that Maintain Multipotent Differentiation Capacity and CFTR Channel Function.

    PubMed

    Peters-Hall, Jennifer Ruth; Coquelin, Melissa L; Torres, Michael J; LaRanger, Ryan; Alabi, Busola Ruth; Sho, Sei; Calva-Moreno, Jose Francisco; Thomas, Philip J; Shay, Jerry William

    2018-05-03

    While primary cystic fibrosis (CF) and non-CF human bronchial epithelial basal cells (HBECs) accurately represent in vivo phenotypes, one barrier to their wider use has been a limited ability to clone and expand cells in sufficient numbers to produce rare genotypes using genome editing tools. Recently, conditional reprogramming of cells (CRC) with a ROCK inhibitor and culture on an irradiated fibroblast feeder layer resulted in extension of the lifespan of HBECs, but differentiation capacity and CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) function decreased as a function of passage. This report details modifications to the standard HBEC CRC protocol (Mod CRC), including the use of bronchial epithelial growth medium instead of F-medium and 2% oxygen instead of 21% oxygen, that extend HBEC lifespan while preserving multipotent differentiation capacity and CFTR function. Critically, Mod CRC conditions support clonal growth of primary HBECs from a single cell and the resulting clonal HBEC population maintains multipotent differentiation capacity, including CFTR function, permitting gene editing of these cells. As a proof of concept, CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing and cloning was used to introduce insertions/deletions in CFTR exon 11. Mod CRC conditions overcome many barriers to the expanded use of HBECs for basic research and drug screens. Importantly, Mod CRC conditions support the creation of isogenic cell lines in which CFTR is mutant or wild-type in the same genetic background with no history of CF to enable determination of the primary defects of mutant CFTR.

  8. Core verbal working-memory capacity: the limit in words retained without covert articulation.

    PubMed

    Chen, Zhijian; Cowan, Nelson

    2009-07-01

    Verbal working memory may combine phonological and conceptual units. We disentangle their contributions by extending a prior procedure (Chen & Cowan, 2005) in which items recalled from lists of previously seen word singletons and of previously learned word pairs depended on the list length in chunks. Here we show that a constant capacity of about 3 chunks holds across list lengths and list types, provided that covert phonological rehearsal is prevented. What remains is a core verbal working-memory capacity.

  9. Design criteria for noncoherent Gaussian channels with MFSK signaling and coding

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Butman, S. A.; Levitt, B. K.; Bar-David, I.; Lyon, R. F.; Klass, M. J.

    1976-01-01

    This paper presents data and criteria to assess and guide the design of modems for coded noncoherent communication systems subject to practical system constraints of power, bandwidth, noise spectral density, coherence time, and number of orthogonal signals M. Three basic receiver types are analyzed for the noncoherent multifrequency-shift keying (MFSK) additive white Gaussian noise channel: hard decision, unquantized (optimum), and quantized (soft decision). Channel capacity and computational cutoff rate are computed for each type and presented as functions of the predetection signal-to-noise ratio and the number of orthogonal signals. This relates the channel constraints of power, bandwidth, coherence time, and noise power to the optimum choice of signal duration and signal number.

  10. Prediction of axial limit capacity of stone columns using dimensional analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nazaruddin A., T.; Mohamed, Zainab; Mohd Azizul, L.; Hafez M., A.

    2017-08-01

    Stone column is the most favorable method used by engineers in designing work for stabilization of soft ground for road embankment, and foundation for liquid structure. Easy installation and cheaper cost are among the factors that make stone column more preferable than other method. Furthermore, stone column also can acts as vertical drain to increase the rate of consolidation during preloading stage before construction work started. According to previous studied there are several parameters that influence the capacity of stone column. Among of them are angle friction of among the stones, arrangement of column (two pattern arrangement most applied triangular and square), spacing center to center between columns, shear strength of soil, and physical size of column (diameter and length). Dimensional analysis method (Buckingham-Pi Theorem) has used to carry out the new formula for prediction of load capacity stone columns. Experimental data from two previous studies was used for analysis of study.

  11. Scaling relationships of channel networks at large scales: Examples from two large-magnitude watersheds in Brittany, France

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Crave, A.; Davy, P.

    1997-01-01

    We present a statistical analysis on two watersheds in French Brittany whose drainage areas are about 10,000 and 2000 km2. The channel system was analysed from the digitised blue lines of the 1:100,000 map and from a 250-m DEM. Link lengths follow an exponential distribution, consistent with the Markovian model of channel branching proposed by Smart (1968). The departure from the exponential distribution for small lengths, that has been extensively discussed before, results from a statistical effect due to the finite number of channels and junctions. The Strahler topology applied on channels defines a self-similar organisation whose similarity dimension is about 1.7, that is clearly smaller than the value of 2 expected for a random organisation. The similarity dimension is consistent with an independent measurement of the Horton ratios of stream numbers and lengths. The variables defined by an upstream integral (drainage area, mainstream length, upstream length) follow power-law distributions limited at large scales by a finite size effect, due to the finite area of the watersheds. A special emphasis is given to the exponent of the drainage area, aA, that has been previously discussed in the context of different aggregation models relevant to channel network growth. We show that aA is consistent with 4/3, a value that was obtained and analytically demonstrated from directed random walk aggregating models, inspired by the model of Scheidegger (1967). The drainage density and mainstream length present no simple scaling with area, except at large areas where they tend to trivial values: constant density and square root of drainage area, respectively. These asymptotic limits necessarily imply that the space dimension of channel networks is 2, equal to the embedding space. The limits are reached for drainage areas larger than 100 km2. For smaller areas, the asymptotic limit represents either a lower bound (drainage density) or an upper bound (mainstream length) of the

  12. Set-specific capture can be reduced by preemptively occupying a limited-capacity focus of attention

    PubMed Central

    Moore, Katherine Sledge; Weissman, Daniel H.

    2011-01-01

    Recent work has shown that contingent attentional capture effects can be especially large when multiple attentional sets for color guide visual search (Moore & Weissman, 2010). In particular, this research suggests that detecting a target-colored (e.g., orange) distractor leads the corresponding attentional set (e.g., identify orange letters) to enter a limited-capacity focus of attention in working memory, where it remains briefly while the distractor is being attended. Consequently, the ability to identify a differently-colored (e.g., green) target 100–300 ms later is impaired because the appropriate set (e.g., identify green letters) cannot also enter the focus of attention. In two experiments, we investigated whether such set-specific capture can be reduced by preemptively occupying the focus of attention. As predicted, a target-colored central distractor presented 233 ms before a target-colored peripheral distractor eliminated set-specific capture arising from the peripheral distractor. Moreover, this effect was observed only when the central distractor’s color (e.g., orange) (a) matched a different set than the upcoming peripheral distractor’s color (e.g., green) and (b) matched the same set as the upcoming central target’s color (e.g., orange). We conclude that the same working memory limitations that give rise to set-specific capture can be preemptively exploited to reduce it. PMID:21779149

  13. Segmentized Clear Channel Assessment for IEEE 802.15.4 Networks.

    PubMed

    Son, Kyou Jung; Hong, Sung Hyeuck; Moon, Seong-Pil; Chang, Tae Gyu; Cho, Hanjin

    2016-06-03

    This paper proposed segmentized clear channel assessment (CCA) which increases the performance of IEEE 802.15.4 networks by improving carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA). Improving CSMA/CA is important because the low-power consumption feature and throughput performance of IEEE 802.15.4 are greatly affected by CSMA/CA behavior. To improve the performance of CSMA/CA, this paper focused on increasing the chance to transmit a packet by assessing precise channel status. The previous method used in CCA, which is employed by CSMA/CA, assesses the channel by measuring the energy level of the channel. However, this method shows limited channel assessing behavior, which comes from simple threshold dependent channel busy evaluation. The proposed method solves this limited channel decision problem by dividing CCA into two groups. Two groups of CCA compare their energy levels to get precise channel status. To evaluate the performance of the segmentized CCA method, a Markov chain model has been developed. The validation of analytic results is confirmed by comparing them with simulation results. Additionally, simulation results show the proposed method is improving a maximum 8.76% of throughput and decreasing a maximum 3.9% of the average number of CCAs per packet transmission than the IEEE 802.15.4 CCA method.

  14. Segmentized Clear Channel Assessment for IEEE 802.15.4 Networks

    PubMed Central

    Son, Kyou Jung; Hong, Sung Hyeuck; Moon, Seong-Pil; Chang, Tae Gyu; Cho, Hanjin

    2016-01-01

    This paper proposed segmentized clear channel assessment (CCA) which increases the performance of IEEE 802.15.4 networks by improving carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA). Improving CSMA/CA is important because the low-power consumption feature and throughput performance of IEEE 802.15.4 are greatly affected by CSMA/CA behavior. To improve the performance of CSMA/CA, this paper focused on increasing the chance to transmit a packet by assessing precise channel status. The previous method used in CCA, which is employed by CSMA/CA, assesses the channel by measuring the energy level of the channel. However, this method shows limited channel assessing behavior, which comes from simple threshold dependent channel busy evaluation. The proposed method solves this limited channel decision problem by dividing CCA into two groups. Two groups of CCA compare their energy levels to get precise channel status. To evaluate the performance of the segmentized CCA method, a Markov chain model has been developed. The validation of analytic results is confirmed by comparing them with simulation results. Additionally, simulation results show the proposed method is improving a maximum 8.76% of throughput and decreasing a maximum 3.9% of the average number of CCAs per packet transmission than the IEEE 802.15.4 CCA method. PMID:27271626

  15. Case Studies of Navigation Channel and Port Sedimentation

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-01-14

    Engineering Supplement to Limited Reevaluation Report, Vol. II (1995) 1/14/2011 18 MCNP  Hypotheses Why is channel shoaling more than anticipated? (1...activities have modified shoaling patterns and magnitudes (trawling, dredging and disposal, subsidence/fluid withdrawal). MCNP Hypotheses Why is channel

  16. Design, modeling, and analysis of multi-channel demultiplexer/demodulator

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lee, David D.; Woo, K. T.

    1991-01-01

    Traditionally, satellites have performed the function of a simple repeater. Newer data distribution satellite architectures, however, require demodulation of many frequency division multiplexed uplink channels by a single demultiplexer/demodulator unit, baseband processing and routing of individual voice/data circuits, and remodulation into time division multiplexed (TDM) downlink carriers. The TRW MCDD (Multichannel Demultiplexer/Multirate Demodulator) operates on a 37.4 MHz composite input signal. Individual channel data rates are either 64 Kbps or 2.048 Mbps. The wideband demultiplexer divides the input signal into 1.44 MHz segments containing either a single 2.048 Mbps channel or thirty two 64 Kbps channels. In the latter case, the narrowband demultiplexer further divides the single 1.44 MHz wideband channel into thirty two 45 KHz narrowband channels. With this approach the time domain Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) channelizer processing capacity is matched well to the bandwidth and number of channels to be demultiplexed. By using a multirate demodulator fewer demodulators are required while achieving greater flexibility. Each demodulator can process a wideband channel or thirty two narrowband channels. Either all wideband channels, a mixture of wideband and narrowband channels, or all narrowband channels can be demodulated. The multirate demodulator approach also has lower nonrecurring costs since only one design and development effort is needed. TRW has developed a proof of concept (POC) model which fully demonstrates the signal processing fuctions of MCDD. It is capable of processing either three 2.048 Mbps channels or two 2.048 Mbps channels and thirty two 64 Kbps channels. An overview of important MCDD system engineering issues is presented as well as discussion on some of the Block Oriented System Simulation analyses performed for design verification and selection of operational parameters of the POC model. Systems engineering analysis of the POC

  17. The contribution of TWIK-1 channels to astrocyte K+ current is limited by retention in intracellular compartments

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Wei; Putra, Adhytia; Schools, Gary P.; Ma, Baofeng; Chen, Haijun; Kaczmarek, Leonard K.; Barhanin, Jacques; Lesage, Florian; Zhou, Min

    2013-01-01

    TWIK-1 two-pore domain K+ channels are expressed abundantly in astrocytes. In the present study, we examined the extent to which TWIK-1 contributes to the linear current-voltage (I–V) relationship (passive) K+ membrane conductance, a dominant electrophysiological feature of mature hippocampal astrocytes. Astrocytes from TWIK-1 knockout mice have a more negative resting potential than those from wild type animals and a reduction in both inward rectification and Cs+ permeability. Nevertheless, the overall whole-cell passive conductance is not altered significantly in TWIK-1 knockout astrocytes. The expression of Kir4.1 and TREK-1, two other major astrocytic K+ channels, or of other two-pore K+ channels is not altered in TWIK-1 knockout mice, suggesting that the mild effect of TWIK-1 knockout does not result from compensation by these channels. Fractionation experiments showed that TWIK-1 is primarily localized in intracellular cytoplasmic fractions (55%) and mildly hydrophobic internal compartment fractions (41%), with only 5% in fractions containing plasma membranes. Our study revealed that TWIK-1 proteins are mainly located in the intracellular compartments of hippocampal astrocyte under physiological condition, therefore a minimal contribution of TWIK-1 channels to whole-cell currents is likely attributable to a relatively low level presence of channels in the plasma membrane. PMID:24368895

  18. Practical gigahertz quantum key distribution robust against channel disturbance.

    PubMed

    Wang, Shuang; Chen, Wei; Yin, Zhen-Qiang; He, De-Yong; Hui, Cong; Hao, Peng-Lei; Fan-Yuan, Guan-Jie; Wang, Chao; Zhang, Li-Jun; Kuang, Jie; Liu, Shu-Feng; Zhou, Zheng; Wang, Yong-Gang; Guo, Guang-Can; Han, Zheng-Fu

    2018-05-01

    Quantum key distribution (QKD) provides an attractive solution for secure communication. However, channel disturbance severely limits its application when a QKD system is transferred from the laboratory to the field. Here a high-speed Faraday-Sagnac-Michelson QKD system is proposed that can automatically compensate for the channel polarization disturbance, which largely avoids the intermittency limitations of environment mutation. Over a 50 km fiber channel with 30 Hz polarization scrambling, the practicality of this phase-coding QKD system was characterized with an interference fringe visibility of 99.35% over 24 h and a stable secure key rate of 306 k bits/s over seven days without active polarization alignment.

  19. Reduced-rank technique for joint channel estimation in TD-SCDMA systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamil Marzook, Ali; Ismail, Alyani; Mohd Ali, Borhanuddin; Sali, Adawati; Khatun, Sabira

    2013-02-01

    In time division-synchronous code division multiple access systems, increasing the system capacity by exploiting the inserting of the largest number of users in one time slot (TS) requires adding more estimation processes to estimate the joint channel matrix for the whole system. The increase in the number of channel parameters due the increase in the number of users in one TS directly affects the precision of the estimator's performance. This article presents a novel channel estimation with low complexity, which relies on reducing the rank order of the total channel matrix H. The proposed method exploits the rank deficiency of H to reduce the number of parameters that characterise this matrix. The adopted reduced-rank technique is based on truncated singular value decomposition algorithm. The algorithms for reduced-rank joint channel estimation (JCE) are derived and compared against traditional full-rank JCEs: least squares (LS) or Steiner and enhanced (LS or MMSE) algorithms. Simulation results of the normalised mean square error showed the superiority of reduced-rank estimators. In addition, the channel impulse responses founded by reduced-rank estimator for all active users offers considerable performance improvement over the conventional estimator along the channel window length.

  20. Ketones Prevent Oxidative Impairment of Hippocampal Synaptic Integrity through KATP Channels

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Do Young; Abdelwahab, Mohammed G.; Lee, Soo Han; O’Neill, Derek; Thompson, Roger J.; Duff, Henry J.; Sullivan, Patrick G.; Rho, Jong M.

    2015-01-01

    Dietary and metabolic therapies are increasingly being considered for a variety of neurological disorders, based in part on growing evidence for the neuroprotective properties of the ketogenic diet (KD) and ketones. Earlier, we demonstrated that ketones afford hippocampal synaptic protection against exogenous oxidative stress, but the mechanisms underlying these actions remain unclear. Recent studies have shown that ketones may modulate neuronal firing through interactions with ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels. Here, we used a combination of electrophysiological, pharmacological, and biochemical assays to determine whether hippocampal synaptic protection by ketones is a consequence of KATP channel activation. Ketones dose-dependently reversed oxidative impairment of hippocampal synaptic integrity, neuronal viability, and bioenergetic capacity, and this action was mirrored by the KATP channel activator diazoxide. Inhibition of KATP channels reversed ketone-evoked hippocampal protection, and genetic ablation of the inwardly rectifying K+ channel subunit Kir6.2, a critical component of KATP channels, partially negated the synaptic protection afforded by ketones. This partial protection was completely reversed by co-application of the KATP blocker, 5-hydoxydecanoate (5HD). We conclude that, under conditions of oxidative injury, ketones induce synaptic protection in part through activation of KATP channels. PMID:25848768

  1. A communication channel model of the software process

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tausworthe, R. C.

    1988-01-01

    Reported here is beginning research into a noisy communication channel analogy of software development process productivity, in order to establish quantifiable behavior and theoretical bounds. The analogy leads to a fundamental mathematical relationship between human productivity and the amount of information supplied by the developers, the capacity of the human channel for processing and transmitting information, the software product yield (object size), the work effort, requirements efficiency, tool and process efficiency, and programming environment advantage. Also derived is an upper bound to productivity that shows that software reuse is the only means than can lead to unbounded productivity growth; practical considerations of size and cost of reusable components may reduce this to a finite bound.

  2. A communication channel model of the software process

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tausworthe, Robert C.

    1988-01-01

    Beginning research into a noisy communication channel analogy of software development process productivity, in order to establish quantifiable behavior and theoretical bounds is discussed. The analogy leads to a fundamental mathematical relationship between human productivity and the amount of information supplied by the developers, the capacity of the human channel for processing and transmitting information, the software product yield (object size) the work effort, requirements efficiency, tool and process efficiency, and programming environment advantage. An upper bound to productivity is derived that shows that software reuse is the only means that can lead to unbounded productivity growth; practical considerations of size and cost of reusable components may reduce this to a finite bound.

  3. Non-Gaussian operations on bosonic modes of light: Photon-added Gaussian channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sabapathy, Krishna Kumar; Winter, Andreas

    2017-06-01

    We present a framework for studying bosonic non-Gaussian channels of continuous-variable systems. Our emphasis is on a class of channels that we call photon-added Gaussian channels, which are experimentally viable with current quantum-optical technologies. A strong motivation for considering these channels is the fact that it is compulsory to go beyond the Gaussian domain for numerous tasks in continuous-variable quantum information processing such as entanglement distillation from Gaussian states and universal quantum computation. The single-mode photon-added channels we consider are obtained by using two-mode beam splitters and squeezing operators with photon addition applied to the ancilla ports giving rise to families of non-Gaussian channels. For each such channel, we derive its operator-sum representation, indispensable in the present context. We observe that these channels are Fock preserving (coherence nongenerating). We then report two examples of activation using our scheme of photon addition, that of quantum-optical nonclassicality at outputs of channels that would otherwise output only classical states and of both the quantum and private communication capacities, hinting at far-reaching applications for quantum-optical communication. Further, we see that noisy Gaussian channels can be expressed as a convex mixture of these non-Gaussian channels. We also present other physical and information-theoretic properties of these channels.

  4. Quantum-locked key distribution at nearly the classical capacity rate.

    PubMed

    Lupo, Cosmo; Lloyd, Seth

    2014-10-17

    Quantum data locking is a protocol that allows for a small secret key to (un)lock an exponentially larger amount of information, hence yielding the strongest violation of the classical one-time pad encryption in the quantum setting. This violation mirrors a large gap existing between two security criteria for quantum cryptography quantified by two entropic quantities: the Holevo information and the accessible information. We show that the latter becomes a sensible security criterion if an upper bound on the coherence time of the eavesdropper's quantum memory is known. Under this condition, we introduce a protocol for secret key generation through a memoryless qudit channel. For channels with enough symmetry, such as the d-dimensional erasure and depolarizing channels, this protocol allows secret key generation at an asymptotic rate as high as the classical capacity minus one bit.

  5. Creativity and working memory capacity in sports: working memory capacity is not a limiting factor in creative decision making amongst skilled performers

    PubMed Central

    Furley, Philip; Memmert, Daniel

    2015-01-01

    The goal of the study was to investigate the relationship between domain-general working memory capacity and domain-specific creativity amongst experienced soccer players. We administered the automated operation span task in combination with a domain-specific soccer creativity task to a group of 61 experienced soccer players to address the question whether an athlete’s domain-specific creativity is restricted by their domain-general cognitive abilities (i.e., working memory capacity). Given that previous studies have either found a positive correlation, a negative correlation, or no correlation between working memory capacity and creativity, we analyzed the data in an exploratory manner by following recent recommendations to report effect-size estimations and their precision in form of 95% confidence intervals. The pattern of results provided evidence that domain-general working memory capacity is not associated with creativity in a soccer-specific creativity task. This pattern of results suggests that future research and theorizing on the role of working memory in everyday creative performance needs to distinguish between different types of creative performance while also taking the role of domain-specific experience into account. PMID:25713552

  6. Arbitrarily small amounts of correlation for arbitrarily varying quantum channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Boche, H., E-mail: boche@tum.de, E-mail: janis.noetzel@tum.de; Nötzel, J., E-mail: boche@tum.de, E-mail: janis.noetzel@tum.de

    2013-11-15

    As our main result show that in order to achieve the randomness assisted message and entanglement transmission capacities of a finite arbitrarily varying quantum channel it is not necessary that sender and receiver share (asymptotically perfect) common randomness. Rather, it is sufficient that they each have access to an unlimited amount of uses of one part of a correlated bipartite source. This access might be restricted to an arbitrary small (nonzero) fraction per channel use, without changing the main result. We investigate the notion of common randomness. It turns out that this is a very costly resource – generically, itmore » cannot be obtained just by local processing of a bipartite source. This result underlines the importance of our main result. Also, the asymptotic equivalence of the maximal- and average error criterion for classical message transmission over finite arbitrarily varying quantum channels is proven. At last, we prove a simplified symmetrizability condition for finite arbitrarily varying quantum channels.« less

  7. Experimental study of an optimized PSP-OSTBC scheme with m-PPM in ultraviolet scattering channel for optical MIMO system.

    PubMed

    Han, Dahai; Gu, Yanjie; Zhang, Min

    2017-08-10

    An optimized scheme of pulse symmetrical position-orthogonal space-time block codes (PSP-OSTBC) is proposed and applied with m-pulse positions modulation (m-PPM) without the use of a complex decoding algorithm in an optical multi-input multi-output (MIMO) ultraviolet (UV) communication system. The proposed scheme breaks through the limitation of the traditional Alamouti code and is suitable for high-order m-PPM in a UV scattering channel, verified by both simulation experiments and field tests with specific parameters. The performances of 1×1, 2×1, and 2×2 PSP-OSTBC systems with 4-PPM are compared experimentally as the optimal tradeoff between modification and coding in practical application. Meanwhile, the feasibility of the proposed scheme for 8-PPM is examined by a simulation experiment as well. The results suggest that the proposed scheme makes the system insensitive to the influence of path loss with a larger channel capacity, and a higher diversity gain and coding gain with a simple decoding algorithm will be achieved by employing the orthogonality of m-PPM in an optical-MIMO-based ultraviolet scattering channel.

  8. Working memory capacity and retrieval limitations from long-term memory: an examination of differences in accessibility.

    PubMed

    Unsworth, Nash; Spillers, Gregory J; Brewer, Gene A

    2012-01-01

    In two experiments, the locus of individual differences in working memory capacity and long-term memory recall was examined. Participants performed categorical cued and free recall tasks, and individual differences in the dynamics of recall were interpreted in terms of a hierarchical-search framework. The results from this study are in accordance with recent theorizing suggesting a strong relation between working memory capacity and retrieval from long-term memory. Furthermore, the results also indicate that individual differences in categorical recall are partially due to differences in accessibility. In terms of accessibility of target information, two important factors drive the difference between high- and low-working-memory-capacity participants. Low-working-memory-capacity participants fail to utilize appropriate retrieval strategies to access cues, and they also have difficulty resolving cue overload. Thus, when low-working-memory-capacity participants were given specific cues that activated a smaller set of potential targets, their recall performance was the same as that of high-working-memory-capacity participants.

  9. Active Urbanization and Channel Adjustment in Apple Creek, Appleton, WI

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Clark, J. J.

    2002-12-01

    Headwaters of the Apple Creek watershed have been and continue to be rapidly developed as part of the City of Appleton's long-term growth plan. Concurrent with early development, and prior to development over the past 4 years, two regional stormwater management facilities were constructed. Cross-sectional surveys and core transects were used to determine channel response to urbanization mitigated by stormwater management. The reach immediately downstream of the first pond complex has a narrow, but well established, wooded riparian zone and has not changed in size or shape over the past two years. An engineered reach approximately one mile downstream, however has exhibited widespread bed aggradation. Cross-sectional area decreased an average of 51% over the past four years. Despite the use of sediment and erosion control BMPs, sediment concentrations exceeding 1000 mg/L during base flow are not uncommon downstream of construction sites adjacent to the stream. The artificially widened channel, a reduction in stream gradient, and the backwater effect from downstream ponds caused much of this sediment to remain within the engineered reach. It is estimated that approximately 21,000 Mg of sediment is stored in this mile-long reach. As this sediment migrates downstream, the forebay of the second set of stormwater ponds will begin to fill, reducing storage capacity and thereby limiting its effectiveness in mitigating peak discharges and sequestering nutrients.

  10. The capacity to transmit classical information via black holes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adami, Christoph; Ver Steeg, Greg

    2013-03-01

    One of the most vexing problems in theoretical physics is the relationship between quantum mechanics and gravity. According to an argument originally by Hawking, a black hole must destroy any information that is incident on it because the only radiation that a black hole releases during its evaporation (the Hawking radiation) is precisely thermal. Surprisingly, this claim has never been investigated within a quantum information-theoretic framework, where the black hole is treated as a quantum channel to transmit classical information. We calculate the capacity of the quantum black hole channel to transmit classical information (the Holevo capacity) within curved-space quantum field theory, and show that the information carried by late-time particles sent into a black hole can be recovered with arbitrary accuracy, from the signature left behind by the stimulated emission of radiation that must accompany any absorption event. We also show that this stimulated emission turns the black hole into an almost-optimal quantum cloning machine, where the violation of the no-cloning theorem is ensured by the noise provided by the Hawking radiation. Thus, rather than threatening the consistency of theoretical physics, Hawking radiation manages to save it instead.

  11. Equalization enhanced phase noise in Nyquist-spaced superchannel transmission systems using multi-channel digital back-propagation

    PubMed Central

    Xu, Tianhua; Liga, Gabriele; Lavery, Domaniç; Thomsen, Benn C.; Savory, Seb J.; Killey, Robert I.; Bayvel, Polina

    2015-01-01

    Superchannel transmission spaced at the symbol rate, known as Nyquist spacing, has been demonstrated for effectively maximizing the optical communication channel capacity and spectral efficiency. However, the achievable capacity and reach of transmission systems using advanced modulation formats are affected by fibre nonlinearities and equalization enhanced phase noise (EEPN). Fibre nonlinearities can be effectively compensated using digital back-propagation (DBP). However EEPN which arises from the interaction between laser phase noise and dispersion cannot be efficiently mitigated, and can significantly degrade the performance of transmission systems. Here we report the first investigation of the origin and the impact of EEPN in Nyquist-spaced superchannel system, employing electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) and multi-channel DBP (MC-DBP). Analysis was carried out in a Nyquist-spaced 9-channel 32-Gbaud DP-64QAM transmission system. Results confirm that EEPN significantly degrades the performance of all sub-channels of the superchannel system and that the distortions are more severe for the outer sub-channels, both using EDC and MC-DBP. It is also found that the origin of EEPN depends on the relative position between the carrier phase recovery module and the EDC (or MC-DBP) module. Considering EEPN, diverse coding techniques and modulation formats have to be applied for optimizing different sub-channels in superchannel systems. PMID:26365422

  12. Two-Dimensional Covalent Organic Frameworks for Carbon Dioxide Capture through Channel-Wall Functionalization

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Ning; Chen, Xiong; Krishna, Rajamani; Jiang, Donglin

    2015-01-01

    Ordered open channels found in two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (2D COFs) could enable them to adsorb carbon dioxide. However, the frameworks’ dense layer architecture results in low porosity that has thus far restricted their potential for carbon dioxide adsorption. Here we report a strategy for converting a conventional 2D COF into an outstanding platform for carbon dioxide capture through channel-wall functionalization. The dense layer structure enables the dense integration of functional groups on the channel walls, creating a new version of COFs with high capacity, reusability, selectivity, and separation productivity for flue gas. These results suggest that channel-wall functional engineering could be a facile and powerful strategy to develop 2D COFs for high-performance gas storage and separation. PMID:25613010

  13. Scanning electron microscopy imaging of dislocations in bulk materials, using electron channeling contrast.

    PubMed

    Crimp, Martin A

    2006-05-01

    The imaging and characterization of dislocations is commonly carried out by thin foil transmission electron microscopy (TEM) using diffraction contrast imaging. However, the thin foil approach is limited by difficult sample preparation, thin foil artifacts, relatively small viewable areas, and constraints on carrying out in situ studies. Electron channeling imaging of electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI) offers an alternative approach for imaging crystalline defects, including dislocations. Because ECCI is carried out with field emission gun scanning electron microscope (FEG-SEM) using bulk specimens, many of the limitations of TEM thin foil analysis are overcome. This paper outlines the development of electron channeling patterns and channeling imaging to the current state of the art. The experimental parameters and set up necessary to carry out routine channeling imaging are reviewed. A number of examples that illustrate some of the advantages of ECCI over thin foil TEM are presented along with a discussion of some of the limitations on carrying out channeling contrast analysis of defect structures. Copyright (c) 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  14. Molecular origins of conduction channels observed in shot-noise measurements.

    PubMed

    Solomon, Gemma C; Gagliardi, Alessio; Pecchia, Alessandro; Frauenheim, Thomas; Di Carlo, Aldo; Reimers, Jeffrey R; Hush, Noel S

    2006-11-01

    Measurements of shot noise from single molecules have indicated the presence of various conduction channels. We present three descriptions of these channels in molecular terms showing that the number of conduction channels is limited by bottlenecks in the molecule and that the channels can be linked to transmission through different junction states. We introduce molecular-conductance orbitals, which allow the transmission to be separated into contributions from individual orbitals and contributions from interference between pairs of orbitals.

  15. Effect of channel width variation on sediment transport in mixed alluvial-bedrock rivers - from case study to concept

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cook, Kristen; Turowski, Jens; Hovius, Niels

    2017-04-01

    In mixed bedrock-alluvial rivers, the response of the system to a flood event can be affected by a number of factors, including coarse sediment availability in the channel, sediment supply from the hillslopes, bedrock-controlled changes in channel width, and the shape of the hydrograph. Local hydraulics and therefore bedload transport capacity depend on discharge and channel geometry, typically quantified by channel width and bed slope. However, the influence of channel width on total bedload transport capacity depends on discharge. For a given slope, narrow channels are more efficient than wide ones at low discharges, while wider channels are more efficient at higher discharges. Therefore, abrupt changes in downstream channel width may affect bedload flux through a channel and have important influences on channel behavior. We use the model sedFlow (Heimann et al., 2014) to explore this effect. We ran the model in a 4.5 km long channel, the center of which contains a 1 km gorge section with a width of 15 m, bounded upstream and downstream by sections with widths of 50 m. We imposed a discharge time series with a random sequence of floods of different size. The channel responds to the imposed floods in complex ways. At high discharges, the gorge reach transports less total sediment than the wide reaches, leading to aggradation in the upper part of the gorge and upstream and erosion in the lower part of the gorge and downstream. At lower discharges, the gorge becomes more efficient at transporting sediment and the trends reverse. The channel may experience both of these regimes during the peak and recession periods of a single flood, leading to a highly dynamic channel bed. This is consistent with observations from the Daan River gorge in western Taiwan, where we observe substantial intra-flood variations in channel bed elevation. Our modeling suggests that width differences alone can drive substantial variations in sediment flux and bed response, without the need

  16. Embedded system of image storage based on fiber channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Xiaodong; Su, Wanxin; Xing, Zhongbao; Wang, Hualong

    2008-03-01

    In domains of aerospace, aviation, aiming, and optic measure etc., the embedded system of imaging, processing and recording is absolutely necessary, which has small volume, high processing speed and high resolution. But the embedded storage technology becomes system bottleneck because of developing slowly. It is used to use RAID to promote storage speed, but it is unsuitable for the embedded system because of its big volume. Fiber channel (FC) technology offers a new method to develop the high-speed, portable storage system. In order to make storage subsystem meet the needs of high storage rate, make use of powerful Virtex-4 FPGA and high speed fiber channel, advance a project of embedded system of digital image storage based on Xilinx Fiber Channel Arbitrated Loop LogiCORE. This project utilizes Virtex- 4 RocketIO MGT transceivers to transmit the data serially, and connects many Fiber Channel hard drivers by using of Arbitrated Loop optionally. It can achieve 400MBps storage rate, breaks through the bottleneck of PCI interface, and has excellences of high-speed, real-time, portable and massive capacity.

  17. Out-of-band and adjacent-channel interference reduction by analog nonlinear filters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nikitin, Alexei V.; Davidchack, Ruslan L.; Smith, Jeffrey E.

    2015-12-01

    In a perfect world, we would have `brick wall' filters, no-distortion amplifiers and mixers, and well-coordinated spectrum operations. The real world, however, is prone to various types of unintentional and intentional interference of technogenic (man-made) origin that can disrupt critical communication systems. In this paper, we introduce a methodology for mitigating technogenic interference in communication channels by analog nonlinear filters, with an emphasis on the mitigation of out-of-band and adjacent-channel interference. Interference induced in a communications receiver by external transmitters can be viewed as wide-band non-Gaussian noise affecting a narrower-band signal of interest. This noise may contain a strong component within the receiver passband, which may dominate over the thermal noise. While the total wide-band interference seen by the receiver may or may not be impulsive, we demonstrate that the interfering component due to power emitted by the transmitter into the receiver channel is likely to appear impulsive under a wide range of conditions. We give an example of mechanisms of impulsive interference in digital communication systems resulting from the nonsmooth nature of any physically realizable modulation scheme for transmission of a digital (discontinuous) message. We show that impulsive interference can be effectively mitigated by nonlinear differential limiters (NDLs). An NDL can be configured to behave linearly when the input signal does not contain outliers. When outliers are encountered, the nonlinear response of the NDL limits the magnitude of the respective outliers in the output signal. The signal quality is improved in excess of that achievable by the respective linear filter, increasing the capacity of a communications channel. The behavior of an NDL, and its degree of nonlinearity, is controlled by a single parameter in a manner that enables significantly better overall suppression of the noise-containing impulsive components

  18. Information geometry of Gaussian channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Monras, Alex; CNR-INFM Coherentia, Napoli; CNISM Unita di Salerno

    2010-06-15

    We define a local Riemannian metric tensor in the manifold of Gaussian channels and the distance that it induces. We adopt an information-geometric approach and define a metric derived from the Bures-Fisher metric for quantum states. The resulting metric inherits several desirable properties from the Bures-Fisher metric and is operationally motivated by distinguishability considerations: It serves as an upper bound to the attainable quantum Fisher information for the channel parameters using Gaussian states, under generic constraints on the physically available resources. Our approach naturally includes the use of entangled Gaussian probe states. We prove that the metric enjoys some desirablemore » properties like stability and covariance. As a by-product, we also obtain some general results in Gaussian channel estimation that are the continuous-variable analogs of previously known results in finite dimensions. We prove that optimal probe states are always pure and bounded in the number of ancillary modes, even in the presence of constraints on the reduced state input in the channel. This has experimental and computational implications. It limits the complexity of optimal experimental setups for channel estimation and reduces the computational requirements for the evaluation of the metric: Indeed, we construct a converging algorithm for its computation. We provide explicit formulas for computing the multiparametric quantum Fisher information for dissipative channels probed with arbitrary Gaussian states and provide the optimal observables for the estimation of the channel parameters (e.g., bath couplings, squeezing, and temperature).« less

  19. Factors Affecting Nickel-oxide Electrode Capacity in Nickel-hydrogen Cells

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ritterman, P. F.

    1984-01-01

    The nickel-oxide electrode common to the nickel hydrogen and nickel cadmium cell is by design the limiting or capacity determining electrode on both charge and discharge. The useable discharge capacity from this electrode, and since it is the limiting electrode, the useable discharge capacity of the cell as well, can and is optimized by rate of charge, charge temperature and additives to electrode and electrolyte. Recent tests with nickel hydrogen cells and tests performed almost 25 years ago with nickel cadmium cells indicate an improvement of capacity as a result of using increased electrolyte concentration.

  20. Association of nutritional status and functional capacity in gastrointestinal cancer patients.

    PubMed

    Pérez-Cruz, Elizabeth; Camacho-Limas, Christian Patricio

    To determine the nutritional status and its association with functional capacity in patients with digestive tract cancer. We retrospectively studied all adult patients hospitalized who were diagnosed as having a cancer of the digestive tract. Nutritional status and functional capacity were assessed. Descriptive statistic and odds ratio were used to determine the association in SPSS 14.0. 57 patients were included, 96% had weight loss. Using subjective global assessment (SGA) as a method of screening, 82.5% of the patients were found malnutrition and by biochemical and immunological test 82% and 65% respectively. Functional capacity was assessed by Karnofsky index, finding that 75.5% of the patients have some activity limitation. Results show an association between malnutrition by SGA and limitation in functional capacity (c2 = 1.56; p = 0.212; OR: 2.46; 95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 0.581-10.465). In addition, we observe an association between the total lymphocyte count and limitation in functional capacity (χ2 = 6.94; p = 0.008; OR: 5.23; 95% CI: 1.441-19.025). Malnutrition in patients with digestive tract cancer was associated with limitation in functional capacity. Copyright: © 2017 SecretarÍa de Salud

  1. A multi-channel gel electrophoresis and continuous fraction collection apparatus for high throughput protein separation and characterization

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Choi, Megan; Nordmeyer, Robert A.; Cornell, Earl

    2009-10-02

    To facilitate a direct interface between protein separation by PAGE and protein identification by mass spectrometry, we developed a multichannel system that continuously collects fractions as protein bands migrate off the bottom of gel electrophoresis columns. The device was constructed using several short linear gel columns, each of a different percent acrylamide, to achieve a separation power similar to that of a long gradient gel. A Counter Free-Flow elution technique then allows continuous and simultaneous fraction collection from multiple channels at low cost. We demonstrate that rapid, high-resolution separation of a complex protein mixture can be achieved on this systemmore » using SDS-PAGE. In a 2.5 h electrophoresis run, for example, each sample was separated and eluted into 48-96 fractions over a mass range of 10-150 kDa; sample recovery rates were 50percent or higher; each channel was loaded with up to 0.3 mg of protein in 0.4 mL; and a purified band was eluted in two to three fractions (200 L/fraction). Similar results were obtained when running native gel electrophoresis, but protein aggregation limited the loading capacity to about 50 g per channel and reduced resolution.« less

  2. Controls on sediment cover in bedrock-alluvial channels of the Henry Mountains, Utah

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hodge, R. A.; Yager, E.; Johnson, J. P.; Tranmer, A.

    2017-12-01

    The location and extent of sediment cover in bedrock-alluvial channels influences sediment transport rates, channel incision and instream ecology. However, factors affecting sediment cover and how it responds to changes in relative sediment supply have rarely been quantitatively evaluated in field settings. Using field surveys and SFM analysis of channel reach topography, we quantified sediment cover and channel properties including slope, width, grain size distributions, and bedrock and alluvial roughness in North Wash and Chelada Creek in the Henry Mountains, Utah. Along reaches where upstream sediment supply does not appear to be restricted, we find that the fraction of local bedrock exposure increases as a function of local relative transport capacity . In a downstream section of Chelada Creek, decadal-scale sediment supply has been restricted by an upstream culvert that has caused a backwater effect and corresponding upstream deposition. In this section, alluvial cover is uncorrelated with local stream power. To test the impact of relative sediment supply on sediment cover, a 1D sediment transport model was used to predict the equilibrium sediment cover in Chelada Creek under varying flow and sediment supply conditions. Sediment transport in each model section was predicted using the partial cover model of Johnson (2015), which accounts for differences in bedrock and alluvial roughness on critical shear stress and flow resistance. Model runs in which sediment supply was approximately equal to mean transport capacity produced a pattern of sediment cover which best matched the field observations upstream of the culvert. However, runs where sediment supply was under-capacity produced the pattern most similar to field observations downstream of the culvert, consistent with our field-based interpretations. Model results were insensitive to initial sediment cover, and equilibrium was relatively quickly reached, suggesting that the channel is responsive to changes in

  3. Visual Working Memory Capacity: From Psychophysics and Neurobiology to Individual Differences

    PubMed Central

    Luck, Steven J.; Vogel, Edward K.

    2013-01-01

    Visual working memory capacity is of great interest because it is strongly correlated with overall cognitive ability, can be understood at the level of neural circuits, and is easily measured. Recent studies have shown that capacity influences tasks ranging from saccade targeting to analogical reasoning. A debate has arisen over whether capacity is constrained by a limited number of discrete representations or by an infinitely divisible resource, but the empirical evidence and neural network models currently favor a discrete item limit. Capacity differs markedly across individuals and groups, and recent research indicates that some of these differences reflect true differences in storage capacity whereas others reflect variations in the ability to use memory capacity efficiently. PMID:23850263

  4. Distribution of small channels on the Martian surface

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Pieri, D.

    1976-01-01

    The distribution of small channels on Mars has been mapped from Mariner 9 images at the 1:5,000,000 scale. The small channels referred to here are small valleys ranging in width from the resolution limit of the Mariner 9 wide-angle images (about 1 km) to about 10 km. The greatest density of small channels occurs in dark cratered terrain. This dark zone forms a broad subequatorial band around the planet. The observed distribution may be the result of decreased small-channel visibility in bright areas due to obscuration by a high albedo dust or sediment mantle. Crater densities within two small-channel segments show crater size-frequency distributions consistent with those of the oldest of the heavily cratered plains units. Such crater densities coupled with the almost exclusive occurrence of small channels in old cratered terrain and the generally degraded appearance of small channels in the high-resolution images (about 100 m) imply a major episode of small-channel formation early in Martian geologic history.

  5. Channel Modeling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schmitz, Arne; Schinnenburg, Marc; Gross, James; Aguiar, Ana

    For any communication system the Signal-to-Interference-plus-Noise-Ratio of the link is a fundamental metric. Recall (cf. Chapter 9) that the SINR is defined as the ratio between the received power of the signal of interest and the sum of all "disturbing" power sources (i.e. interference and noise). From information theory it is known that a higher SINR increases the maximum possible error-free transmission rate (referred to as Shannon capacity [417] of any communication system and vice versa). Conversely, the higher the SINR, the lower will be the bit error rate in practical systems. While one aspect of the SINR is the sum of all distracting power sources, another issue is the received power. This depends on the transmitted power, the used antennas, possibly on signal processing techniques and ultimately on the channel gain between transmitter and receiver.

  6. Revegetation of medusahead-invaded rangelands in the channeled scablands of eastern Washington

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Vegetation on the Channeled Scablands of eastern Washington has been altered to a community dominated by medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae [L.] Nevski). Medusahead is unpalatable and seldom utilized by livestock thus, decreasing carrying capacity. The objective of this study was to determine if...

  7. The use of Minilabs to improve the testing capacity of regulatory authorities in resource limited settings: Tanzanian experience.

    PubMed

    Risha, Peter Gasper; Msuya, Zera; Clark, Malcolm; Johnson, Keith; Ndomondo-Sigonda, Margareth; Layloff, Thomas

    2008-08-01

    The Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority piloted the use of Minilab kits, a thin-layer-chromatographic based drug quality testing technique, in a two-tier quality assurance program. The program is intended to improve testing capacity with timely screening of the quality of medicines as they enter the market. After 1 week training of inspectors on Minilab screening techniques, they were stationed at key Ports-of-Entry (POE) to screen the quality of imported medicines. In addition, three non-Ports-of-Entry centres were established to screen samples collected during Post-Marketing-Surveillance. Standard operating procedures (SOPs) were developed to structure and standardize the implementation process. Over 1200 samples were tested using the Minilab outside the central quality control laboratory (QCL), almost doubling the previous testing capacity. The program contributed to increased regulatory reach and visibility of the Authority throughout the country, serving as a deterrent against entry of substandard medicines into market. The use of Minilab for quality screening was inexpensive and provided a high sample throughput. However, it suffers from the limitation that it can reliably detect only grossly substandard or wrong drug samples and therefore, it should not be used as an independent testing resource but in conjunction with a full-service quality control laboratory capable of auditing reported substandard results.

  8. Optical Communications Channel Combiner

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Quirk, Kevin J.; Quirk, Kevin J.; Nguyen, Danh H.; Nguyen, Huy

    2012-01-01

    NASA has identified deep-space optical communications links as an integral part of a unified space communication network in order to provide data rates in excess of 100 Mb/s. The distances and limited power inherent in a deep-space optical downlink necessitate the use of photon-counting detectors and a power-efficient modulation such as pulse position modulation (PPM). For the output of each photodetector, whether from a separate telescope or a portion of the detection area, a communication receiver estimates a log-likelihood ratio for each PPM slot. To realize the full effective aperture of these receivers, their outputs must be combined prior to information decoding. A channel combiner was developed to synchronize the log-likelihood ratio (LLR) sequences of multiple receivers, and then combines these into a single LLR sequence for information decoding. The channel combiner synchronizes the LLR sequences of up to three receivers and then combines these into a single LLR sequence for output. The channel combiner has three channel inputs, each of which takes as input a sequence of four-bit LLRs for each PPM slot in a codeword via a XAUI 10 Gb/s quad optical fiber interface. The cross-correlation between the channels LLR time series are calculated and used to synchronize the sequences prior to combining. The output of the channel combiner is a sequence of four-bit LLRs for each PPM slot in a codeword via a XAUI 10 Gb/s quad optical fiber interface. The unit is controlled through a 1 Gb/s Ethernet UDP/IP interface. A deep-space optical communication link has not yet been demonstrated. This ground-station channel combiner was developed to demonstrate this capability and is unique in its ability to process such a signal.

  9. Accounting for stimulus-specific variation in precision reveals a discrete capacity limit in visual working memory

    PubMed Central

    Pratte, Michael S.; Park, Young Eun; Rademaker, Rosanne L.; Tong, Frank

    2016-01-01

    If we view a visual scene that contains many objects, then momentarily close our eyes, some details persist while others seem to fade. Discrete models of visual working memory (VWM) assume that only a few items can be actively maintained in memory, beyond which pure guessing will emerge. Alternatively, continuous resource models assume that all items in a visual scene can be stored with some precision. Distinguishing between these competing models is challenging, however, as resource models that allow for stochastically variable precision (across items and trials) can produce error distributions that resemble random guessing behavior. Here, we evaluated the hypothesis that a major source of variability in VWM performance arises from systematic variation in precision across the stimuli themselves; such stimulus-specific variability can be incorporated into both discrete-capacity and variable-precision resource models. Participants viewed multiple oriented gratings, and then reported the orientation of a cued grating from memory. When modeling the overall distribution of VWM errors, we found that the variable-precision resource model outperformed the discrete model. However, VWM errors revealed a pronounced “oblique effect”, with larger errors for oblique than cardinal orientations. After this source of variability was incorporated into both models, we found that the discrete model provided a better account of VWM errors. Our results demonstrate that variable precision across the stimulus space can lead to an unwarranted advantage for resource models that assume stochastically variable precision. When these deterministic sources are adequately modeled, human working memory performance reveals evidence of a discrete capacity limit. PMID:28004957

  10. Accounting for stimulus-specific variation in precision reveals a discrete capacity limit in visual working memory.

    PubMed

    Pratte, Michael S; Park, Young Eun; Rademaker, Rosanne L; Tong, Frank

    2017-01-01

    If we view a visual scene that contains many objects, then momentarily close our eyes, some details persist while others seem to fade. Discrete models of visual working memory (VWM) assume that only a few items can be actively maintained in memory, beyond which pure guessing will emerge. Alternatively, continuous resource models assume that all items in a visual scene can be stored with some precision. Distinguishing between these competing models is challenging, however, as resource models that allow for stochastically variable precision (across items and trials) can produce error distributions that resemble random guessing behavior. Here, we evaluated the hypothesis that a major source of variability in VWM performance arises from systematic variation in precision across the stimuli themselves; such stimulus-specific variability can be incorporated into both discrete-capacity and variable-precision resource models. Participants viewed multiple oriented gratings, and then reported the orientation of a cued grating from memory. When modeling the overall distribution of VWM errors, we found that the variable-precision resource model outperformed the discrete model. However, VWM errors revealed a pronounced "oblique effect," with larger errors for oblique than cardinal orientations. After this source of variability was incorporated into both models, we found that the discrete model provided a better account of VWM errors. Our results demonstrate that variable precision across the stimulus space can lead to an unwarranted advantage for resource models that assume stochastically variable precision. When these deterministic sources are adequately modeled, human working memory performance reveals evidence of a discrete capacity limit. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  11. Voltage-Dependent Gating of hERG Potassium Channels

    PubMed Central

    Cheng, Yen May; Claydon, Tom W.

    2012-01-01

    The mechanisms by which voltage-gated channels sense changes in membrane voltage and energetically couple this with opening of the ion conducting pore has been the source of significant interest. In voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels, much of our knowledge in this area comes from Shaker-type channels, for which voltage-dependent gating is quite rapid. In these channels, activation and deactivation are associated with rapid reconfiguration of the voltage-sensing domain unit that is electromechanically coupled, via the S4–S5 linker helix, to the rate-limiting opening of an intracellular pore gate. However, fast voltage-dependent gating kinetics are not typical of all Kv channels, such as Kv11.1 (human ether-à-go-go related gene, hERG), which activates and deactivates very slowly. Compared to Shaker channels, our understanding of the mechanisms underlying slow hERG gating is much poorer. Here, we present a comparative review of the structure–function relationships underlying activation and deactivation gating in Shaker and hERG channels, with a focus on the roles of the voltage-sensing domain and the S4–S5 linker that couples voltage sensor movements to the pore. Measurements of gating current kinetics and fluorimetric analysis of voltage sensor movement are consistent with models suggesting that the hERG activation pathway contains a voltage independent step, which limits voltage sensor transitions. Constraints upon hERG voltage sensor movement may result from loose packing of the S4 helices and additional intra-voltage sensor counter-charge interactions. More recent data suggest that key amino acid differences in the hERG voltage-sensing unit and S4–S5 linker, relative to fast activating Shaker-type Kv channels, may also contribute to the increased stability of the resting state of the voltage sensor. PMID:22586397

  12. On Fully Developed Channel Flows: Some Solutions and Limitations, and Effects of Compressibility, Variable Properties, and Body Forces

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Maslen, Stephen H.

    1959-01-01

    An examination of the effects of compressibility, variable properties, and body forces on fully developed laminar flow has indicated several limitations on such streams. In the absence of a pressure gradient, but presence of a body force (e.g., gravity), an exact fully developed gas flow results. For a liquid this follows also for the case of a constant streamwise pressure gradient. These motions are exact in the sense of a Couette flow. In the liquid case two solutions (not a new result) can occur for the same boundary conditions. An approximate analytic solution was found which agrees closely with machine calculations.In the case of approximately exact flows, it turns out that for large temperature variations across the channel the effects of convection (due to, say, a wall temperature gradient) and frictional heating must be negligible. In such a case the energy and momentum equations are separated, and the solutions are readily obtained. If the temperature variations are small, then both convection effects and frictional heating can consistently be considered. This case becomes the constant-property incompressible case (or quasi-incompressible case for free-convection flows) considered by many authors. Finally there is a brief discussion of cases wherein streamwise variations of all quantities are allowed but only a such form that independent variables are separable. For the case where the streamwise velocity varies inversely as the square root distance along the channel a solution is given.

  13. Limitations of navigation through Nubaria canal, Egypt.

    PubMed

    Samuel, Magdy G

    2014-03-01

    Alexandria port is the main Egyptian port at the Mediterranean Sea. It is connected to the Nile River through Nubaria canal, which is a main irrigation canal. The canal was designed to irrigate eight hundred thousand acres of agricultural lands, along its course which extends 100 km. The canal has three barrages and four locks to control the flow and allow light navigation by some small barges. Recently, it was decided to improve the locks located on the canal. More than 40 million US$ was invested in these projects. This decision was taken to allow larger barges and increase the transported capacity through the canal. On the other hand, navigation through canals and restricted shallow waterways is affected by several parameters related to both the channel and the vessel. Navigation lane width as well as vessel speed and maneuverability are affected by both the channel and vessel dimensions. Moreover, vessel dimensions and speed will affect the canal stability. In Egypt, there are no guide rules for navigation through narrow and shallow canals such Nubaria. This situation threatens the canal stability and safety of navigation through it. This paper discussed the characteristics of Nubaria canal and the guide rules for navigation in shallow restricted water ways. Dimensions limitation for barges navigating through Nubaria canal is presented. New safe operation rules for navigation in Nubaria canal are also presented. Moreover, the implication of navigation through locks on canal discharge is estimated.

  14. 47 CFR 73.1725 - Limited time.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Limited time. 73.1725 Section 73.1725... Rules Applicable to All Broadcast Stations § 73.1725 Limited time. (a) Operation is applicable only to... stations on the channel. (b) No authorization will be granted for: (1) A new limited time station; (2) A...

  15. 47 CFR 73.1725 - Limited time.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 4 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Limited time. 73.1725 Section 73.1725... Rules Applicable to All Broadcast Stations § 73.1725 Limited time. (a) Operation is applicable only to... stations on the channel. (b) No authorization will be granted for: (1) A new limited time station; (2) A...

  16. 47 CFR 73.1725 - Limited time.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 4 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Limited time. 73.1725 Section 73.1725... Rules Applicable to All Broadcast Stations § 73.1725 Limited time. (a) Operation is applicable only to... stations on the channel. (b) No authorization will be granted for: (1) A new limited time station; (2) A...

  17. 47 CFR 73.1725 - Limited time.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 4 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Limited time. 73.1725 Section 73.1725... Rules Applicable to All Broadcast Stations § 73.1725 Limited time. (a) Operation is applicable only to... stations on the channel. (b) No authorization will be granted for: (1) A new limited time station; (2) A...

  18. Relating saturation capacity to charge density in strong cation exchangers.

    PubMed

    Steinebach, Fabian; Coquebert de Neuville, Bertrand; Morbidelli, Massimo

    2017-07-21

    In this work the relation between physical and chemical resin characteristics and the total amount of adsorbed protein (saturation capacity) for ion-exchange resins is discussed. Eleven different packing materials with a sulfo-functionalization and one multimodal resin were analyzed in terms of their porosity, pore size distribution, ligand density and binding capacity. By specifying the ligand density and binding capacity by the total and accessible surface area, two different groups of resins were identified: Below a ligand density of approx. 2.5μmol/m 2 area the ligand density controls the saturation capacity, while above this limit the accessible surface area becomes the limiting factor. This results in a maximum protein uptake of around 2.5mg/m 2 of accessible surface area. The obtained results allow estimating the saturation capacity from independent resin characteristics like the saturation capacity mainly depends on "library data" such as the accessible and total surface area and the charge density. Hence these results give an insight into the fundamentals of protein adsorption and help to find suitable resins, thus limiting the experimental effort in early process development stages. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Evaluate interference in digital channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Davarian, F.; Sumida, J.

    1985-01-01

    Any future mobile satellite service (MSS) which is to provide simultaneous mobile communications for a large number of users will have to make very efficient use of the spectrum. As the spectrum available for an MSS is limited, the system's channels should be packed as closely together as possible, with minimum-width guard bands. In addition the employment of frequency reuse schemes is an important factor. Difficulties regarding these solutions are related to the introduction of interference in the link. A balance must be achieved between the competing aims of spectrum conservation and low interference. While the interference phenomenon in narrowband FM voice channels is reasonably well understood, very little effort, however, has been devoted to the problem in digital radios. Attention is given to work, which illuminates the effects of cochannel and adjacent channel interference on digital FM (FSK) radios.

  20. Study of wavelength division multiplexing as a means of increasing the number of channels in multimode fiber optic communication links

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bates, Harry

    1990-01-01

    A number of optical communication lines are now in use at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) for the transmission of voice, computer data, and video signals. Presently, all of these channels utilize a single carrier wavelength centered near 1300 nm. The theoretical bandwidth of the fiber far exceeds the utilized capacity. Yet, practical considerations limit the usable bandwidth. The fibers have the capability of transmitting a multiplicity of signals simultaneously in each of two separate bands (1300 and 1550 nm). Thus, in principle, the number of transmission channels can be increased without installing new cable if some means of wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) can be utilized. The main goal of these experiments was to demonstrate that a factor of 2 increase in bandwidth utilization can share the same fiber in both a unidirectional configuration and a bidirectional mode of operation. Both signal and multimode fiber are installed at KSC. The great majority is multimode; therefore, this effort concentrated on multimode systems.

  1. Mobility of Protozoa through Narrow Channels

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Wei; Shor, Leslie M.; LeBoeuf, Eugene J.; Wikswo, John P.; Kosson, David S.

    2005-01-01

    Microbes in the environment are profoundly affected by chemical and physical heterogeneities occurring on a spatial scale of millimeters to micrometers. Physical refuges are critical for maintaining stable bacterial populations in the presence of high predation pressure by protozoa. The effects of microscale heterogeneity, however, are difficult to replicate and observe using conventional experimental techniques. The objective of this research was to investigate the effect of spatial constraints on the mobility of six species of marine protozoa. Microfluidic devices were created with small channels similar in size to pore spaces in soil or sediment systems. Individuals from each species of protozoa tested were able to rapidly discover and move within these channels. The time required for locating the channel entrance from the source well increased with protozoan size and decreased with channel height. Protozoa of every species were able to pass constrictions with dimensions equal to or smaller than the individual's unconstrained cross-sectional area. Channel geometry was also an important factor affecting protozoan mobility. Linear rates of motion for various species of protozoa varied by channel size. In relatively wide channels, typical rates of motion were 300 to 500 μm s−1 (or about 1 m per hour). As the channel dimensions decreased, however, motilities slowed more than an order of magnitude to 20 μm s−1. Protozoa were consistently observed to exhibit several strategies for successfully traversing channel reductions. The empirical results and qualitative observations resulting from this research help define the physical limitations on protozoan grazing, a critical process affecting microbes in the environment. PMID:16085857

  2. Channel Responses and Hydromodification in Southern California

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hawley, R. J.; Dust, D. W.; Bledsoe, B. P.

    2007-12-01

    Hydromodification (changes in watershed hydrologic characteristics, and the resulting hydraulics and channel forms due to urbanization) is ubiquitous in Southern California. In this region, the effects of hydromodification are driven and compounded by the arid/semiarid climate, high relief, erodible soils, high urbanization rates, and relatively low frequency of retention/detention. We conducted a preliminary survey of over 50 stream reaches along a gradient from least disturbed to fully urbanized. All stages of the Channel Evolution Model (CEM) of Schumm et al. (1984) were observed, from stable to degrading, widening, aggrading, and quasi-equilibrium channels. Several sites have CEM stages II through V in close proximity due to headcutting, hardpoints, and infrastructure. We also observed channels in undeveloped watersheds impacted by downstream urbanization via headcutting. A range of intervention measures was observed, with the frequent evolutionary endpoint as a concrete engineered flood control channel. We also observed multiple channel evolution sequences that deviate from the CEM for single-thread, incising channels. An alternative channel response, particularly on smaller urbanized streams is a stabilized, vegetation encroached low-flow channel with regular baseflow supplied by residential irrigation runoff. The limited cases of unimpacted streams that remain tend to be high gradient, high energy systems that are naturally proximate to the transition between braided and meandering form for a given sediment size.

  3. Coupling MAST-1D, a sediment routing model for channel-floodplain complexes, with channel migration relationships to predict reach-averaged river morphodynamics. Preliminary results

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Viparelli, E.; Eke, E. C.; Lauer, J. W.

    2017-12-01

    Sediment exchange between the channel and floodplain can occur via meander migration, overbank deposition or erosion, and changes in channel geometry. Depending on channel and floodplain history, floodplains can act either as sources or sinks of bed material and/or wash load. Here we present preliminary modeling results that explicitly account for the feedbacks between the changes in floodplain geometry and sediment size distribution and the changes in channel geometry and migration. These results are obtained by coupling the Morphodynamics And Sediment Tracers in 1D (MAST-1D) program with the results of meander migration studies linking the bankfull flow depth and mean velocity to channel migration, sinuosity and channel geometry. MAST-1D is a numerical model built to describe grain size specific transport of sediment and tracers and the long-term - i.e. decadal and longer - evolution of channel floodplain complexes. MAST-1D differs from other 1D numerical models because it allows for 1) uneven exchange of sediment and tracers between the river channel and the floodplain, 2) temporal changes in channel geometry, bed elevation and floodplain thickness, which result in changes in the channel hydraulic capacity, and 3) temporal changes of size distribution and tracer content in the floodplain, in the load and in the underlying substrate. Under conditions of constant base level, water and sediment supply, the system evolves toward a steady state wherein the amount of sediment deposited through point bar deposition and overbank sedimentation is balanced by the erosion of sediment from the floodplain through lateral migration. The current formulation couples MAST-1D with empirical channel migration relationships that link bankfull flow depth and mean velocity to channel migration, sinuosity and channel geometry. Future development of this preliminary work will involve a fully coupled MAST-1D model with a standard meander migration model that will allow for the building

  4. Channel Bottom Morphology in the Deltaic Reach of the Song Hau (mekong) River Channel in Vietnam

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Allison, M. A.; Weathers, H. D., III; Meselhe, E. A.

    2016-02-01

    Boat-based, channel bathymetry and bankline elevation studies were conducted in the tidal and estuarine Mekong River channel using multibeam bathymetry and LIDAR corrected for elevation by RTK satellite positioning. Two mapping campaigns, one at high discharge in October 2014 and one at low discharge in March 2015, were conducted in the lower 100 km reach of the Song Hau distributary channel to (1) examine bottom morphology and its relationship to sediment transport, and (2) to provide information to setup the grid for a multi-dimensional and reduced complexity models of channel hydrodynamics and sediment dynamics. Sand fields were identified in multibeam data by the presence of dunes that were as large as 2-4 m high and 40-80 m wavelength and by clean sands in bottom grabs. Extensive areas of sand at the head and toe of mid-channel islands displayed 10-25 m diameter circular pits that could be correlated with bucket dredge, sand mining activities observed at some of the sites. Large areas of the channel floor were relict (containing little or no modern sediment) in the high discharge campaign, identifiable by the presence of along channel erosional furrows and terraced outcrops along the channel floor and margins. Laterally extensive flat areas were also observed in the channel thalweg. Both these and the relict areas were sampled by bottom grab as stiff silty clays. Complex cross-channel combinations of these morphologies were observed in some transects, suggesting strong bottom steering of tidal and riverine currents. Relative to high discharge, transects above and below the salt penetration limit showed evidence of shallowing in the thalweg and adjacent sloping areas at low discharge in March 2015. This shallowing, combined with the reduced extent of sand fields and furrowed areas, and soft muds in grabs, suggests seasonal trapping of fine grained sediment is occurring by estuarine and tidal circulation.

  5. Average capacity of the ground to train communication link of a curved track in the turbulence of gamma-gamma distribution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Yanqiu; Yu, Lin; Zhang, Yixin

    2017-04-01

    A model of the average capacity of optical wireless communication link with pointing errors for the ground-to-train of the curved track is established based on the non-Kolmogorov. By adopting the gamma-gamma distribution model, we derive the average capacity expression for this channel. The numerical analysis reveals that heavier fog reduces the average capacity of link. The strength of atmospheric turbulence, the variance of pointing errors, and the covered track length need to be reduced for the larger average capacity of link. The normalized beamwidth and the average signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the turbulence-free link need to be increased. We can increase the transmit aperture to expand the beamwidth and enhance the signal intensity, thereby decreasing the impact of the beam wander accordingly. As the system adopting the automatic tracking of beam at the receiver positioned on the roof of the train, for eliminating the pointing errors caused by beam wander and train vibration, the equivalent average capacity of the channel will achieve a maximum value. The impact of the non-Kolmogorov spectral index's variation on the average capacity of link can be ignored.

  6. Torque limited drive for manual valves

    DOEpatents

    Elliott, Philip G.; Underwood, Daniel E.

    1989-06-06

    The present invention is directed to a torque-limiting handwheel device for preventing manual valves from being damaged due to the application of excessive torque during the opening or closing operation of the valves. Torque can only be applied when ridges in the handwheel assembly engage in channels machined in the face of the baseplate. The amount of torque required for disengagement of the ridges from the channels is determined by the force exerted by various Bellville springs and the inclination of the side faces of the channels.

  7. Torque limited drive for manual valves

    DOEpatents

    Elliott, Philip G.; Underwood, Daniel E.

    1989-01-01

    The present invention is directed to a torque-limiting handwheel device for preventing manual valves from being damaged due to the application of excessive torque during the opening or closing operation of the valves. Torque can only be applied when ridges in the handwheel assembly engage in channels machined in the face of the baseplate. The amount of torque required for disengagement of the ridges from the channels is determined by the force exerted by various Bellville springs and the inclination of the side faces of the channels.

  8. Critical heat flux for free convection boiling in thin rectangular channels

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Cheng, Lap Y.; Tichler, P.R.

    A review of the experimental data on free convection boiling critical heat flux (CHF) in vertical rectangular channels reveals three mechanisms of burnout. They are the pool boiling limit, the circulation limit, and the flooding limit associated with a transition in flow regime from churn to annular flow. The dominance of a particular mechanism depends on the dimensions of the channel. Analytical models were developed for each free convection boiling limit. Limited agreement with data is observed. A CHF correlation, which is valid for a wide range of gap sizes, was constructed from the CHFs calculated according to the threemore » mechanisms of burnout. 17 refs., 7 figs.« less

  9. Channel change and bed-material transport in the Umpqua River basin, Oregon

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wallick, J. Rose; O'Connor, Jim E.; Anderson, Scott; Keith, Mackenzie K.; Cannon, Charles; Risley, John C.

    2011-01-01

    The Umpqua River drains 12,103 square kilometers of western Oregon; with headwaters in the Cascade Range, the river flows through portions of the Klamath Mountains and Oregon Coast Range before entering the Pacific Ocean. Above the head of tide, the Umpqua River, along with its major tributaries, the North and South Umpqua Rivers, flows on a mixed bedrock and alluvium bed, alternating between bedrock rapids and intermittent, shallow gravel bars composed of gravel to cobble-sized clasts. These bars have been a source of commercial aggregate since the mid-twentieth century. Below the head of tide, the Umpqua River contains large bars composed of mud and sand. Motivated by ongoing permitting and aquatic habitat concerns related to in-stream gravel mining on the fluvial reaches, this study evaluated spatial and temporal trends in channel change and bed-material transport for 350 kilometers of river channel along the Umpqua, North Umpqua, and South Umpqua Rivers. The assessment produced (1) detailed mapping of the active channel, using aerial photographs and repeat surveys, and (2) a quantitative estimation of bed-material flux that drew upon detailed measurements of particle size and lithology, equations of transport capacity, and a sediment yield analysis. Bed-material transport capacity estimates at 45 sites throughout the South Umpqua and main stem Umpqua Rivers for the period 1951-2008 result in wide-ranging transport capacity estimates, reflecting the difficulty of applying equations of bed-material transport to a supply-limited river. Median transport capacity values calculated from surface-based equations of bedload transport for each of the study reaches provide indications of maximum possible transport rates and range from 8,000 to 27,000 metric tons per year (tons/yr) for the South Umpqua River and 20,000 to 82,000 metric tons/yr for the main stem Umpqua River upstream of the head of tide; the North Umpqua River probably contributes little bed material. A

  10. The role of transient receptor potential channels in joint diseases.

    PubMed

    Krupkova, O; Zvick, J; Wuertz-Kozak, K

    2017-10-10

    Transient receptor potential channels (TRP channels) are cation selective transmembrane receptors with diverse structures, activation mechanisms and physiological functions. TRP channels act as cellular sensors for a plethora of stimuli, including temperature, membrane voltage, oxidative stress, mechanical stimuli, pH and endogenous, as well as, exogenous ligands, thereby illustrating their versatility. As such, TRP channels regulate various functions in both excitable and non-excitable cells, mainly by mediating Ca2+ homeostasis. Dysregulation of TRP channels is implicated in many pathologies, including cardiovascular diseases, muscular dystrophies and hyperalgesia. However, the importance of TRP channel expression, physiological function and regulation in chondrocytes and intervertebral disc (IVD) cells is largely unexplored. Osteoarthritis (OA) and degenerative disc disease (DDD) are chronic age-related disorders that significantly affect the quality of life by causing pain, activity limitation and disability. Furthermore, currently available therapies cannot effectively slow-down or stop progression of these diseases. Both OA and DDD are characterised by reduced tissue cellularity, enhanced inflammatory responses and molecular, structural and mechanical alterations of the extracellular matrix, hence affecting load distribution and reducing joint flexibility. However, knowledge on how chondrocytes and IVD cells sense their microenvironment and respond to its changes is still limited. In this review, we introduced six families of mammalian TRP channels, their mechanisms of activation, as well as, activation-driven cellular consequences. We summarised the current knowledge on TRP channel expression and activity in chondrocytes and IVD cells, as well as, the significance of TRP channels as therapeutic targets for the treatment of OA and DDD.

  11. Optimal design of mixed-media packet-switching networks - Routing and capacity assignment

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Huynh, D.; Kuo, F. F.; Kobayashi, H.

    1977-01-01

    This paper considers a mixed-media packet-switched computer communication network which consists of a low-delay terrestrial store-and-forward subnet combined with a low-cost high-bandwidth satellite subnet. We show how to route traffic via ground and/or satellite links by means of static, deterministic procedures and assign capacities to channels subject to a given linear cost such that the network average delay is minimized. Two operational schemes for this network model are investigated: one is a scheme in which the satellite channel is used as a slotted ALOHA channel; the other is a new multiaccess scheme we propose in which whenever a channel collision occurs, retransmission of the involved packets will route through ground links to their destinations. The performance of both schemes is evaluated and compared in terms of cost and average packet delay tradeoffs for some examples. The results offer guidelines for the design and optimal utilization of mixed-media networks.

  12. Sexual Consent Capacity Assessment with Older Adults.

    PubMed

    Syme, Maggie L; Steele, Debora

    2016-09-01

    Many healthcare providers have a limited knowledge of sexual and intimate expression in later life, often due to attitudinal and informational limitations. Further, the likelihood of an older adult experiencing cognitive decline increases in a long-term care (LTC) setting, complicating the ability of the providers to know if the older adult can make his or her own sexual decisions, or has sexual consent capacity. Thus, the team is left to question if and how to support intimacy and/or sexuality among residents with intimacy needs. Psychologists working with LTC need to be aware and knowledgeable about sexual consent capacity in older adulthood to be prepared to conduct evaluations and participate in planning care. Limited research is available to consult for best practices in sexual consent capacity assessment; however, models of assessment have been developed based on the best available evidence, clinical judgment, and practice. Existing models will be discussed and an integrated model will be illustrated via a case study. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  13. GIS technology for spatiotemporal measurements of gully channel width evolution

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Field observations of gully evolution in active croplands have often revealed the presence of a less erodible soil layer that is typically associated with tillage practices (i.e. plowpan). This more erosion-resistant layer limits channel incision forcing the gully channel to expand laterally through...

  14. Visual communications with side information via distributed printing channels: extended multimedia and security perspectives

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Voloshynovskiy, Sviatoslav V.; Koval, Oleksiy; Deguillaume, Frederic; Pun, Thierry

    2004-06-01

    In this paper we address visual communications via printing channels from an information-theoretic point of view as communications with side information. The solution to this problem addresses important aspects of multimedia data processing, security and management, since printed documents are still the most common form of visual information representation. Two practical approaches to side information communications for printed documents are analyzed in the paper. The first approach represents a layered joint source-channel coding for printed documents. This approach is based on a self-embedding concept where information is first encoded assuming a Wyner-Ziv set-up and then embedded into the original data using a Gel'fand-Pinsker construction and taking into account properties of printing channels. The second approach is based on Wyner-Ziv and Berger-Flynn-Gray set-ups and assumes two separated communications channels where an appropriate distributed coding should be elaborated. The first printing channel is considered to be a direct visual channel for images ("analog" channel with degradations). The second "digital channel" with constrained capacity is considered to be an appropriate auxiliary channel. We demonstrate both theoretically and practically how one can benefit from this sort of "distributed paper communications".

  15. Distribution of small channels on the Martian surface

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Pieri, D.

    1976-01-01

    The distribution of small channels on Mars has been mapped from Mariner 9 images, at the 1:5 000 000 scale, by the author. The small channels referred to here are small valleys ranging in width from the resolution limit of the Mariner 9 wide-angle images (???1 km) to about 10 km. The greatest density of small band occurs in dark cratered terrain. This dark zone forms a broad subequatorial band around the planet. The observed distribution may be the result of decreased small-channel visibility in bright areas due to obscuration by a high albedo dust or sediment mantle. Crater densities within two small-channel segments show crater size-frequency distributions consistent with those of the oldest of the heavily cratered plains units. Such crater densities coupled with the almost exclusive occurrence of small channels in old cratered terrain and the generally degraded appearance of small channels in the high-resolution images (???100 m) imply a major episode of small-channel formation early in Martian geologic history. ?? 1976.

  16. Vibration limiting of rotors by feedback control

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lewis, D. W.; Moore, J. W.; Bradley, P. L.; Allaire, P. E.

    1982-01-01

    Experimental findings of a three mass rotor with four channels of feedback control are reported. The channels are independently controllable with force being proportional to the velocity and/or instantaneous displacement from equilibrium of the shaft at the noncontacting probe locations (arranged in the vertical and horizontal attitudes near the support bearings). The findings suggest that automatic feedback control of rotors is feasible for limiting certain vibration levels. Control of one end of a rotor does afford some predictable vibration limiting of the rotor at the other end.

  17. Venusian channels and valleys - Distribution and volcanological implications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Komatsu, Goro; Baker, Victor R.; Gulick, Virginia C.; Parker, Timothy J.

    1993-01-01

    An updated map is presented which shows the distribution of more than 200 channels and valleys on Venus. A large number of channels are concentrated in equatorial regions characterized by highlands, rift and fracture zones, an associated volcanic features. Many channels associated with flow deposits are similar to typical terrestrial lava drainage channels. They are associated with a wide range of volcanic edifices. More than half of the sinuous rilles are associated with coronae, coronalike features, or arachnoids. Corona volcanism driven by mantle plume events may explain this association. Many valley network are observed in highlands and in association with coronae, coronalike features, or arachnoids. This indicates that highlands and coronae provided fractures and flow-viscosity lavas, both of which seem to be required for network formation by lava sapping processes. Canali-type channels have a unique distribution limited to some plains regions.

  18. Distributed reservation control protocols for random access broadcasting channels

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Greene, E. P.; Ephremides, A.

    1981-01-01

    Attention is given to a communication network consisting of an arbitrary number of nodes which can communicate with each other via a time-division multiple access (TDMA) broadcast channel. The reported investigation is concerned with the development of efficient distributed multiple access protocols for traffic consisting primarily of single packet messages in a datagram mode of operation. The motivation for the design of the protocols came from the consideration of efficient multiple access utilization of moderate to high bandwidth (4-40 Mbit/s capacity) communication satellite channels used for the transmission of short (1000-10,000 bits) fixed length packets. Under these circumstances, the ratio of roundtrip propagation time to packet transmission time is between 100 to 10,000. It is shown how a TDMA channel can be adaptively shared by datagram traffic and constant bandwidth users such as in digital voice applications. The distributed reservation control protocols described are a hybrid between contention and reservation protocols.

  19. Measurement and Modeling of Narrowband Channels for Ultrasonic Underwater Communications

    PubMed Central

    Cañete, Francisco J.; López-Fernández, Jesús; García-Corrales, Celia; Sánchez, Antonio; Robles, Encarnación; Rodrigo, Francisco J.; Paris, José F.

    2016-01-01

    Underwater acoustic sensor networks are a promising technology that allow real-time data collection in seas and oceans for a wide variety of applications. Smaller size and weight sensors can be achieved with working frequencies shifted from audio to the ultrasonic band. At these frequencies, the fading phenomena has a significant presence in the channel behavior, and the design of a reliable communication link between the network sensors will require a precise characterization of it. Fading in underwater channels has been previously measured and modeled in the audio band. However, there have been few attempts to study it at ultrasonic frequencies. In this paper, a campaign of measurements of ultrasonic underwater acoustic channels in Mediterranean shallow waters conducted by the authors is presented. These measurements are used to determine the parameters of the so-called κ-μ shadowed distribution, a fading model with a direct connection to the underlying physical mechanisms. The model is then used to evaluate the capacity of the measured channels with a closed-form expression. PMID:26907281

  20. Information transmission in bosonic memory channels using Gaussian matrix-product states as near-optimal symbols

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Schäfer, Joachim; Karpov, Evgueni; Cerf, Nicolas J.

    2014-12-04

    We seek for a realistic implementation of multimode Gaussian entangled states that can realize the optimal encoding for quantum bosonic Gaussian channels with memory. For a Gaussian channel with classical additive Markovian correlated noise and a lossy channel with non-Markovian correlated noise, we demonstrate the usefulness using Gaussian matrix-product states (GMPS). These states can be generated sequentially, and may, in principle, approximate well any Gaussian state. We show that we can achieve up to 99.9% of the classical Gaussian capacity with GMPS requiring squeezing parameters that are reachable with current technology. This may offer a way towards an experimental realization.

  1. Rapidly prototyped three-dimensional nanofluidic channel networks in glass substrates.

    PubMed

    Ke, Kevin; Hasselbrink, Ernest F; Hunt, Alan J

    2005-08-15

    Microfluidic and nanofluidic technologies have long sought a fast, reliable method to overcome the creative limitations of planar fabrication methods, the resolution limits of lithography, and the materials limitations for fast prototyping. In the present work, we demonstrate direct 3D machining of submicrometer diameter, subsurface fluidic channels in glass, via optical breakdown near critical intensity, using a femtosecond pulsed laser. No postexposure etching or bonding is required; the channel network (or almost any arbitrary-shaped cavity below the surface) is produced directly from "art-to-part". The key to this approach is to use very low energy, highly focused, pulses in the presence of liquid. Microbubbles that result from laser energy deposition gently expand and extrude machining debris from the channels. These bubbles are in a highly damped, low Reynolds number regime, implying that surface spalling due to bubble collapse is unimportant. We demonstrate rapid prototyping of three-dimensional "jumpers", mixers, and other key components of complex 3D microscale analysis systems in glass substrates.

  2. Integrative genomic analysis implicates limited peripheral adipose storage capacity in the pathogenesis of human insulin resistance.

    PubMed

    Lotta, Luca A; Gulati, Pawan; Day, Felix R; Payne, Felicity; Ongen, Halit; van de Bunt, Martijn; Gaulton, Kyle J; Eicher, John D; Sharp, Stephen J; Luan, Jian'an; De Lucia Rolfe, Emanuella; Stewart, Isobel D; Wheeler, Eleanor; Willems, Sara M; Adams, Claire; Yaghootkar, Hanieh; Forouhi, Nita G; Khaw, Kay-Tee; Johnson, Andrew D; Semple, Robert K; Frayling, Timothy; Perry, John R B; Dermitzakis, Emmanouil; McCarthy, Mark I; Barroso, Inês; Wareham, Nicholas J; Savage, David B; Langenberg, Claudia; O'Rahilly, Stephen; Scott, Robert A

    2017-01-01

    Insulin resistance is a key mediator of obesity-related cardiometabolic disease, yet the mechanisms underlying this link remain obscure. Using an integrative genomic approach, we identify 53 genomic regions associated with insulin resistance phenotypes (higher fasting insulin levels adjusted for BMI, lower HDL cholesterol levels and higher triglyceride levels) and provide evidence that their link with higher cardiometabolic risk is underpinned by an association with lower adipose mass in peripheral compartments. Using these 53 loci, we show a polygenic contribution to familial partial lipodystrophy type 1, a severe form of insulin resistance, and highlight shared molecular mechanisms in common/mild and rare/severe insulin resistance. Population-level genetic analyses combined with experiments in cellular models implicate CCDC92, DNAH10 and L3MBTL3 as previously unrecognized molecules influencing adipocyte differentiation. Our findings support the notion that limited storage capacity of peripheral adipose tissue is an important etiological component in insulin-resistant cardiometabolic disease and highlight genes and mechanisms underpinning this link.

  3. Design of joint source/channel coders

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1991-01-01

    The need to transmit large amounts of data over a band limited channel has led to the development of various data compression schemes. Many of these schemes function by attempting to remove redundancy from the data stream. An unwanted side effect of this approach is to make the information transfer process more vulnerable to channel noise. Efforts at protecting against errors involve the reinsertion of redundancy and an increase in bandwidth requirements. The papers presented within this document attempt to deal with these problems from a number of different approaches.

  4. Bathymetric map and area/capacity table for Castle Lake, Washington

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Mosbrucker, Adam R.; Spicer, Kurt R.

    2017-11-14

    The May 18, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens produced a 2.5-cubic-kilometer debris avalanche that dammed South Fork Castle Creek, causing Castle Lake to form behind a 20-meter-tall blockage. Risk of a catastrophic breach of the newly impounded lake led to outlet channel stabilization work, aggressive monitoring programs, mapping efforts, and blockage stability studies. Despite relatively large uncertainty, early mapping efforts adequately supported several lake breakout models, but have limited applicability to current lake monitoring and hazard assessment. Here, we present the results of a bathymetric survey conducted in August 2012 with the purpose of (1) verifying previous volume estimates, (2) computing an area/capacity table, and (3) producing a bathymetric map. Our survey found seasonal lake volume ranges between 21.0 and 22.6 million cubic meters with a fundamental vertical accuracy representing 0.88 million cubic meters. Lake surface area ranges between 1.13 and 1.16 square kilometers. Relationships developed by our results allow the computation of lake volume from near real-time lake elevation measurements or from remotely sensed imagery.

  5. Enhanced laboratory capacity development: a boost for effective tuberculosis control in resource-limited settings.

    PubMed

    Alabi, Abraham Sunday; Traoré, Afsatou Ndama; Loembe, Marguerite Massinga; Ateba-Ngoa, Ulysse; Frank, Matthias; Adegnika, Ayola Akim; Lell, Bertrand; Mahoumbou, Jocelyn; Köhler, Carsten; Kremsner, Peter Gottfried; Grobusch, Martin Peter

    2017-03-01

    Both routine and research tuberculosis (TB) laboratory capacity urgently need to be expanded in large parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2009, the Centre de Recherches Médicales de Lambaréné (CERMEL) took a strategic decision to expand its activities by building TB laboratory capacity to address research questions and to improve routine diagnostic and treatment capacity. Over the past 7 years, a standard laboratory has been developed that is contributing significantly to TB diagnosis, treatment, and control in Gabon; training has also been provided for TB research staff in Central Africa. CERMEL has a cordial relationship with the Gabon National TB Control Programme (PNLT), which has culminated in a successful Global Fund joint application. This endeavour is considered a model for similar developments needed in areas of high TB prevalence and where TB control remains poor to date. Copyright © 2016 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  6. Memory loss and decreased executive function are associated with limited functional capacity in patients with heart failure compared to patients with other medical conditions.

    PubMed

    Kim, JinShil; Shin, Mi-Seung; Hwang, Seon Young; Park, Eunok; Lim, Young-Hyo; Shim, Jae Lan; Kim, Sun Hwa; Kim, Yeon Hee; An, Minjeong

    There is limited evidence on the degree of cognitive impairment and its association with physical functional capacity among patients with heart failure (HF) in Korea. In this study, we compared cognitive impairment between patients with HF and community-dwelling participants with non-HF medical conditions (medical participants) and its association with physical functional capacity. We conducted a cross-sectional comparative study and assessed the neuropsychological cognitive status (Seoul Neuropsychological Screening Battery) and physical functional capacity (Duke Activity Status Index) of patients with HF and medical participants using face-to-face interviews. One hundred and eighteen patients with HF (age, 65.45 ± 9.38 years; men, 57.6%; left ventricular ejection fraction, 34.93 ± 8.72%) and 83 medical participants (age, 66.02 ± 8.28 years; men, 47.0%) were included. Using seventh-percentile medical participant Z-scores as cutoffs, memory and executive function were worse in patients with HF than in medical participants: immediate (35.0% vs. 6.0%) and delayed recall memory (34.5% vs. 8.4%), and executive function (28.6% vs. 6.0%). Independent of age, sex, education, comorbidity, and HF status, executive function was a significant predictor of physical functional capacity (b = 1.82, p = .021). More patients with HF had impaired memory and executive function, which were associated with their physical functional capacities. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. BK Channels in the Vascular System.

    PubMed

    Krishnamoorthy-Natarajan, G; Koide, M

    2016-01-01

    Autoregulation of blood flow is essential for the preservation of organ function to ensure continuous supply of oxygen and essential nutrients and removal of metabolic waste. This is achieved by controlling the diameter of muscular arteries and arterioles that exhibit a myogenic response to changes in arterial blood pressure, nerve activity and tissue metabolism. Large-conductance voltage and Ca(2+)-dependent K(+) channels (BK channels), expressed exclusively in smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in the vascular wall of healthy arteries, play a critical role in regulating the myogenic response. Activation of BK channels by intracellular, local, and transient ryanodine receptor-mediated "Ca(2+) sparks," provides a hyperpolarizing influence on the SMC membrane potential thereby decreasing the activity of voltage-dependent Ca(2+) channels and limiting Ca(2+) influx to promote SMC relaxation and vasodilation. The BK channel α subunit, a large tetrameric protein with each monomer consisting of seven-transmembrane domains, a long intracellular C-terminal tail and an extracellular N-terminus, associates with the β1 and γ subunits in vascular SMCs. The BK channel is regulated by factors originating within the SMC or from the endothelium, perivascular nerves and circulating blood, that significantly alter channel gating properties, Ca(2+) sensitivity and expression of the α and/or β1 subunit. The BK channel thus serves as a central receiving dock that relays the effects of the changes in several such concomitant autocrine and paracrine factors and influences cardiovascular health. This chapter describes the primary mechanism of regulation of myogenic response by BK channels and the alterations to this mechanism wrought by different vasoactive mediators. © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Phloem-limited reoviruses universally induce sieve element hyperplasia and more flexible gateways, providing more channels for their movement in plants.

    PubMed

    Lv, Ming-Fang; Xie, Li; Song, Xi-Jiao; Hong, Jian; Mao, Qian-Zhuo; Wei, Tai-Yun; Chen, Jian-Ping; Zhang, Heng-Mu

    2017-11-28

    Virion distribution and ultrastructural changes induced by the infection of maize or rice with four different reoviruses were examined. Rice black streaked dwarf virus (RBSDV, genus Fijivirus), Rice ragged stunt virus (RRSV, genus Oryzavirus), and Rice gall dwarf virus (RGDV, genus Phytoreovirus) were all phloem-limited and caused cellular hyperplasia in the phloem resulting in tumors or vein swelling and modifying the cellular arrangement of sieve elements (SEs). In contrast, virions of Rice dwarf virus (RDV, genus Phytoreovirus) were observed in both phloem and mesophyll and the virus did not cause hyperplasia of SEs. The three phloem-limited reoviruses (but not RDV) all induced more flexible gateways at the SE-SE interfaces, especially the non-sieve plate interfaces. These flexible gateways were also observed for the first time at the cellular interfaces between SE and phloem parenchyma (PP). In plants infected with any of the reoviruses, virus-like particles could be seen within the flexible gateways, suggesting that these gateways may serve as channels for the movement of plant reoviruses with their large virions between SEs or between SEs and PP. SE hyperplasia and the increase in flexible gateways may be a universal strategy for the movement of phloem-limited reoviruses.

  9. Performance analysis of MIMO wireless optical communication system with Q-ary PPM over correlated log-normal fading channel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Huiqin; Wang, Xue; Lynette, Kibe; Cao, Minghua

    2018-06-01

    The performance of multiple-input multiple-output wireless optical communication systems that adopt Q-ary pulse position modulation over spatial correlated log-normal fading channel is analyzed in terms of its un-coded bit error rate and ergodic channel capacity. The analysis is based on the Wilkinson's method which approximates the distribution of a sum of correlated log-normal random variables to a log-normal random variable. The analytical and simulation results corroborate the increment of correlation coefficients among sub-channels lead to system performance degradation. Moreover, the receiver diversity has better performance in resistance of spatial correlation caused channel fading.

  10. Walking Capacity of Bariatric Surgery Candidates

    PubMed Central

    King, WC; Engel, SG; Elder, KA; Chapman, WH; Eid, GM; Wolfe, BM; Belle, SH

    2011-01-01

    Background This study characterizes the walking limitations of bariatric surgery candidates by age and body mass index (BMI) and determines factors independently associated with walking capacity. Setting Multi-institutional at research university hospitals in the United States. Methods 2458 participants of the Longitudinal Assessment of Bariatric Surgery study (age: 18-78 y, BMI: 33-94 kg/m2) attended a pre-operative research visit. Walking capacity was measured via self-report and the 400 meter Long Distance Corridor Walk (LDCW). Results Almost two-thirds (64%) of subjects reported limitations walking several blocks, 48% had an objectively-defined mobility deficit, and 16% reported at least some walking aid use. In multivariable analysis, BMI, older age, lower income and greater bodily pain were independently associated (p<.05) with walking aid use, physical discomfort during the LDCW, inability to complete the LDCW, and slower time to complete the LDCW. Female sex, Hispanic ethnicity (but not race), higher resting heart rate, history of smoking, several comoribidities (history of stroke, ischemic heart disease, diabetes, asthma, sleep apnea, venous edema with ulcerations), and depressive symptoms were also independently related (p<.05) to at least one measure of reduced walking capacity. Conclusions Walking limitations are common in bariatric surgery candidates, even among the least severely obese and youngest patients. Physical activity counseling must be tailored to individuals' abilities. While several factors identified in this study (e.g., BMI, age, pain, comorbidities) should be considered, directly assessing walking capacity will facilitate appropriate goal-setting. PMID:21937285

  11. Sodium channel blockers for cystic fibrosis.

    PubMed

    Burrows, E; Southern, K W; Noone, P

    2006-07-19

    People with cystic fibrosis (CF) have increased transport of the salt, sodium across their airway lining. Over-absorption of sodium results in the dehydration of the liquid that lines the airway surface and is a primary defect in people with CF. To determine whether the topical administration of drugs that block sodium transport improves the respiratory condition of people with CF. We searched the Cochrane Cystic Fibrosis and Genetic Disorders Group Trials Register comprising references identified from comprehensive electronic database searches, handsearching relevant journals and abstract books of conference proceedings. We contacted principal investigators known to work in the field, previous authors and pharmaceutical companies who manufacture ion transport agents for unpublished or follow-up data. Most recent search of the Group's register: March 2006 Published or unpublished randomised controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-randomised controlled trials of sodium channel blockers compared to placebo or another sodium channel blocker or the same sodium channel blocker at a different dosing regimen. Two authors independently extracted data. Meta-analysis was limited due to differing study designs. Four RCTs, with a total of 205 participants, examining the topical administration of the short-acting sodium channel blocker, amiloride, compared to placebo were identified as eligible for inclusion in the review. For three studies, interventions for six months were completed and it was possible to calculate relative change in respiratory function (FVC). There was a significant difference found in relative change in FVC in favour of placebo (GIV analysis of weighted mean difference for FVC; 1.51% (95% confidence interval -2.77 to -0.25). There were no significant differences identified in other clinically relevant outcomes. We found no evidence that the topical administration of a short-acting sodium channel blocker improves respiratory condition in people with cystic

  12. High-capacity 'gutless' adenoviral vectors.

    PubMed

    Kochanek, S; Schiedner, G; Volpers, C

    2001-10-01

    Adenoviral vectors are promising gene transfer vehicles for different gene therapy applications. High-capacity adenoviral (HC-Ad) vectors address some of the problems that have been observed with replication-defective, E1-deleted first-generation adenoviral vectors: toxicity and immunogenicity due to viral gene expression and 7 to 8 kb capacity limit for the transport of therapeutic DNA. This review summarizes HC-Ad vector-related publications from the past 18 months that are mainly concerned with vector design/production and in vivo applications in different murine models.

  13. Voltage gated sodium channels as drug discovery targets

    PubMed Central

    Bagal, Sharan K; Marron, Brian E; Owen, Robert M; Storer, R Ian; Swain, Nigel A

    2015-01-01

    Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels are a family of transmembrane ion channel proteins. They function by forming a gated, water-filled pore to help establish and control cell membrane potential via control of the flow of ions between the intracellular and the extracellular environments. Blockade of NaVs has been successfully accomplished in the clinic to enable control of pathological firing patterns that occur in a diverse range of conditions such as chronic pain, epilepsy, and cardiac arrhythmias. First generation sodium channel modulator drugs, despite low inherent subtype selectivity, preferentially act on over-excited cells which reduces undesirable side effects in the clinic. However, the limited therapeutic indices observed with the first generation demanded a new generation of sodium channel inhibitors. The structure, function and the state of the art in sodium channel modulator drug discovery are discussed in this chapter. PMID:26646477

  14. The role of varying flow on channel morphology: a flume experiment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hempel, L. A.; Grant, G.; Eaton, B. C.; Hassan, M. A.; Lewis, S.

    2017-12-01

    Numerous studies have explored how alluvial channels develop under different sediment and flow conditions, yet we still know very little about how channels adjust and respond to changing flow conditions. One reason for this oversight is the long-held idea that channels with complex flow regimes are adjusted to a single, channel-forming discharge. But growing evidence shows that channel form reflects time-dependent processes occuring over multiple flows. To better understand how stream channels adjust to a range of flows, and identify the timescales associated with those adjustments, we conducted a series of hydrograph experiments in a freely-adjustable flume that developed a self-formed, meander pattern with pool-riffle morphology. Hydrographs had different shapes, magnitudes, and durations, but the total sediment volume fed under equilibrium conditions was kept constant among experiments. We found that hydrograph shape controlled channel morphology, the rate of channel development, and degree of regularity in the pool-riffle pattern. Hydrographs with slowly rising rates of rise and fall produced channels that were equivalent in size to channels generated from constant flow experiments, and had regularly spaced pool-riffle and meander patterns, while hydrographs with fast rates of rise and fall produced undersized channels with a chaotic bed structure and pool-riffle pattern. The latter suggests that during quickly rising hydrographs, the flow rate increases faster than the channel capacity and planform pattern adjusts. We confirmed these observations by comparing the timescales associated with pool-riffle and planform curvature development, which were identified under simple, constant flow conditions, to the total duration of the hydrograph. Hydrographs with step durations equal to or longer than the channel adjustment time produced channels with a more regular pool-riffle patterns compared to channels with step durations shorter than the adjustment time. This

  15. HYDRAULICS OF THE ATCHAFALAYA BASIN MAIN CHANNEL SYSTEM: CONSIDERATIONS FROM A MULTIUSE MANAGEMENT STANDPOINT

    EPA Science Inventory

    The report examines the relationships among hydraulic elements in the Atchafalaya Basin floodway system in terms of discharge regime, sediment load, channel form and size, flood control, water surface slope, bank elevation, overbank capacity, dredging requirements, and spoil disp...

  16. Lightning energetics: Estimates of energy dissipation in channels, channel radii, and channel-heating risetimes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Borovsky, J.E.

    1998-05-01

    In this report, several lightning-channel parameters are calculated with the aid of an electrodynamic model of lightning. The electrodynamic model describes dart leaders and return strokes as electromagnetic waves that are guided along conducting lightning channels. According to the model, electrostatic energy is delivered to the channel by a leader, where it is stored around the outside of the channel; subsequently, the return stroke dissipates this locally stored energy. In this report this lightning-energy-flow scenario is developed further. Then the energy dissipated per unit length in lightning channels is calculated, where this quantity is now related to the linear chargemore » density on the channel, not to the cloud-to-ground electrostatic potential difference. Energy conservation is then used to calculate the radii of lightning channels: their initial radii at the onset of return strokes and their final radii after the channels have pressure expanded. Finally, the risetimes for channel heating during return strokes are calculated by defining an energy-storage radius around the channel and by estimating the radial velocity of energy flow toward the channel during a return stroke. In three appendices, values for the linear charge densities on lightning channels are calculated, estimates of the total length of branch channels are obtained, and values for the cloud-to-ground electrostatic potential difference are estimated. {copyright} 1998 American Geophysical Union« less

  17. New Quantum Key Distribution Scheme Based on Random Hybrid Quantum Channel with EPR Pairs and GHZ States

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yan, Xing-Yu; Gong, Li-Hua; Chen, Hua-Ying; Zhou, Nan-Run

    2018-05-01

    A theoretical quantum key distribution scheme based on random hybrid quantum channel with EPR pairs and GHZ states is devised. In this scheme, EPR pairs and tripartite GHZ states are exploited to set up random hybrid quantum channel. Only one photon in each entangled state is necessary to run forth and back in the channel. The security of the quantum key distribution scheme is guaranteed by more than one round of eavesdropping check procedures. It is of high capacity since one particle could carry more than two bits of information via quantum dense coding.

  18. Interplay between spatially explicit sediment sourcing, hierarchical river-network structure, and in-channel bed material sediment transport and storage dynamics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Czuba, Jonathan A.; Foufoula-Georgiou, Efi; Gran, Karen B.; Belmont, Patrick; Wilcock, Peter R.

    2017-05-01

    Understanding how sediment moves along source to sink pathways through watersheds—from hillslopes to channels and in and out of floodplains—is a fundamental problem in geomorphology. We contribute to advancing this understanding by modeling the transport and in-channel storage dynamics of bed material sediment on a river network over a 600 year time period. Specifically, we present spatiotemporal changes in bed sediment thickness along an entire river network to elucidate how river networks organize and process sediment supply. We apply our model to sand transport in the agricultural Greater Blue Earth River Basin in Minnesota. By casting the arrival of sediment to links of the network as a Poisson process, we derive analytically (under supply-limited conditions) the time-averaged probability distribution function of bed sediment thickness for each link of the river network for any spatial distribution of inputs. Under transport-limited conditions, the analytical assumptions of the Poisson arrival process are violated (due to in-channel storage dynamics) where we find large fluctuations and periodicity in the time series of bed sediment thickness. The time series of bed sediment thickness is the result of dynamics on a network in propagating, altering, and amalgamating sediment inputs in sometimes unexpected ways. One key insight gleaned from the model is that there can be a small fraction of reaches with relatively low-transport capacity within a nonequilibrium river network acting as "bottlenecks" that control sediment to downstream reaches, whereby fluctuations in bed elevation can dissociate from signals in sediment supply.

  19. Group-focused morality is associated with limited conflict detection and resolution capacity: Neuroanatomical evidence.

    PubMed

    Nash, Kyle; Baumgartner, Thomas; Knoch, Daria

    2017-02-01

    Group-focused moral foundations (GMFs) - moral values that help protect the group's welfare - sharply divide conservatives from liberals and religiously devout from non-believers. However, there is little evidence about what drives this divide. Moral foundations theory and the model of motivated social cognition both associate group-focused moral foundations with differences in conflict detection and resolution capacity, but in opposing directions. Individual differences in conflict detection and resolution implicate specific neuroanatomical differences. Examining neuroanatomy thus affords an objective and non-biased opportunity to contrast these influential theories. Here, we report that increased adherence to group-focused moral foundations was strongly associated (whole-brain corrected) with reduced gray matter volume in key regions of the conflict detection and resolution system (anterior cingulate cortex and lateral prefrontal cortex). Because reduced gray matter is reliably associated with reduced neural and cognitive capacity, these findings support the idea outlined in the model of motivated social cognition that belief in group-focused moral values is associated with reduced conflict detection and resolution capacity. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  20. Models of verbal working memory capacity: what does it take to make them work?

    PubMed

    Cowan, Nelson; Rouder, Jeffrey N; Blume, Christopher L; Saults, J Scott

    2012-07-01

    Theories of working memory (WM) capacity limits will be more useful when we know what aspects of performance are governed by the limits and what aspects are governed by other memory mechanisms. Whereas considerable progress has been made on models of WM capacity limits for visual arrays of separate objects, less progress has been made in understanding verbal materials, especially when words are mentally combined to form multiword units or chunks. Toward a more comprehensive theory of capacity limits, we examined models of forced-choice recognition of words within printed lists, using materials designed to produce multiword chunks in memory (e.g., leather brief case). Several simple models were tested against data from a variety of list lengths and potential chunk sizes, with test conditions that only imperfectly elicited the interword associations. According to the most successful model, participants retained about 3 chunks on average in a capacity-limited region of WM, with some chunks being only subsets of the presented associative information (e.g., leather brief case retained with leather as one chunk and brief case as another). The addition to the model of an activated long-term memory component unlimited in capacity was needed. A fixed-capacity limit appears critical to account for immediate verbal recognition and other forms of WM. We advance a model-based approach that allows capacity to be assessed despite other important processing contributions. Starting with a psychological-process model of WM capacity developed to understand visual arrays, we arrive at a more unified and complete model. Copyright 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

  1. Models of Verbal Working Memory Capacity: What Does It Take to Make Them Work?

    PubMed Central

    Cowan, Nelson; Rouder, Jeffrey N.; Blume, Christopher L.; Saults, J. Scott

    2013-01-01

    Theories of working memory (WM) capacity limits will be more useful when we know what aspects of performance are governed by the limits and what aspects are governed by other memory mechanisms. Whereas considerable progress has been made on models of WM capacity limits for visual arrays of separate objects, less progress has been made in understanding verbal materials, especially when words are mentally combined to form multi-word units or chunks. Toward a more comprehensive theory of capacity limits, we examine models of forced-choice recognition of words within printed lists, using materials designed to produce multi-word chunks in memory (e.g., leather brief case). Several simple models were tested against data from a variety of list lengths and potential chunk sizes, with test conditions that only imperfectly elicited the inter-word associations. According to the most successful model, participants retained about 3 chunks on average in a capacity-limited region of WM, with some chunks being only subsets of the presented associative information (e.g., leather brief case retained with leather as one chunk and brief case as another). The addition to the model of an activated long-term memory (LTM) component unlimited in capacity was needed. A fixed capacity limit appears critical to account for immediate verbal recognition and other forms of WM. We advance a model-based approach that allows capacity to be assessed despite other important processing contributions. Starting with a psychological-process model of WM capacity developed to understand visual arrays, we arrive at a more unified and complete model. PMID:22486726

  2. Synaptic Correlates of Working Memory Capacity.

    PubMed

    Mi, Yuanyuan; Katkov, Mikhail; Tsodyks, Misha

    2017-01-18

    Psychological studies indicate that human ability to keep information in readily accessible working memory is limited to four items for most people. This extremely low capacity severely limits execution of many cognitive tasks, but its neuronal underpinnings remain unclear. Here we show that in the framework of synaptic theory of working memory, capacity can be analytically estimated to scale with characteristic time of short-term synaptic depression relative to synaptic current time constant. The number of items in working memory can be regulated by external excitation, enabling the system to be tuned to the desired load and to clear the working memory of currently held items to make room for new ones. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Effects of channel blocking on information transmission and energy efficiency in squid giant axons.

    PubMed

    Liu, Yujiang; Yue, Yuan; Yu, Yuguo; Liu, Liwei; Yu, Lianchun

    2018-04-01

    Action potentials are the information carriers of neural systems. The generation of action potentials involves the cooperative opening and closing of sodium and potassium channels. This process is metabolically expensive because the ions flowing through open channels need to be restored to maintain concentration gradients of these ions. Toxins like tetraethylammonium can block working ion channels, thus affecting the function and energy cost of neurons. In this paper, by computer simulation of the Hodgkin-Huxley neuron model, we studied the effects of channel blocking with toxins on the information transmission and energy efficiency in squid giant axons. We found that gradually blocking sodium channels will sequentially maximize the information transmission and energy efficiency of the axons, whereas moderate blocking of potassium channels will have little impact on the information transmission and will decrease the energy efficiency. Heavy blocking of potassium channels will cause self-sustained oscillation of membrane potentials. Simultaneously blocking sodium and potassium channels with the same ratio increases both information transmission and energy efficiency. Our results are in line with previous studies suggesting that information processing capacity and energy efficiency can be maximized by regulating the number of active ion channels, and this indicates a viable avenue for future experimentation.

  4. Quantum Limits of Space-to-Ground Optical Communications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hemmati, H.; Dolinar, S.

    2012-01-01

    Quantum limiting factors contributed by the transmitter, the optical channel, and the receiver of a space-to-ground optical communications link are described. Approaches to move toward the ultimate quantum limit are discussed.

  5. Microfiltration: Effect of retentate protein concentration on limiting flux and serum protein removal with 4-mm-channel ceramic microfiltration membranes.

    PubMed

    Hurt, E E; Adams, M C; Barbano, D M

    2015-04-01

    The objective of our study was to determine if the limiting flux and serum protein (SP) removal were different at 8, 9, or 10% true protein (TP) in the microfiltration (MF) retentate recirculation loop using 0.1-µm ceramic graded permeability membranes with 4-mm-channel diameters operated at 50 °C using a diluted milk protein concentrate with 85% protein on a total solids basis (MPC85) as the MF feed. The limiting flux for the MF of diluted MPC85 was determined at 3 TP concentrations in the recirculation loop (8, 9, and 10%). The experiment was replicated 3 times for a total of 9 runs. On the morning of each run, MPC85 was diluted with reverse osmosis water to an MF feed TP concentration of 5.4%. In all runs, the starting flux was 55 kg/m(2) per hour, the flux was increased in steps until the limiting flux was reached. The minimum flux increase was 10 kg/m(2) per hour. The limiting flux decreased as TP concentration in the recirculation loop increased. The limiting flux was 154 ± 0.3, 133 ± 0.7, and 117 ± 3.3 kg/m(2) per hour at recirculation loop TP concentrations of 8.2 ± 0.07, 9.2 ± 0.04, and 10.2 ± 0.09%, respectively. No effect of recirculation loop TP concentration on the SP removal factor was detected. However, the SP removal factor decreased from 0.80 ± 0.02 to 0.75 ± 0.02 as flux was increased from the starting flux of 55 kg/m(2) per hour to the limiting flux, with a similar decrease seen at all recirculation loop TP concentrations. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. Performance of Improved Channel Allocation for Multicarrier CDMA with Adaptive Frequency Hopping and Multiuser Detection

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2008-08-29

    resulting in much larger system capacity than for a non-adaptive MC direct-sequence ( DS )- CDMA system. This conclusion is confirmed for realistic fading...system capacity than for a non-adaptive MC direct-sequence ( DS )- CDMA system. This conclusion is confirmed for realistic fading channels with correlated...transmission method exploits both frequency and multiuser diversity and improves on non-adaptive MC DS - CDMA sys- tems in [6]. In this paper, we focus on the

  7. Why are small and large numbers enumerated differently? A limited-capacity preattentive stage in vision.

    PubMed

    Trick, L M; Pylyshyn, Z W

    1994-01-01

    "Subitizing," the process of enumeration when there are fewer than 4 items, is rapid (40-100 ms/item), effortless, and accurate. "Counting," the process of enumeration when there are more than 4 items, is slow (250-350 ms/item), effortful, and error-prone. Why is there a difference in the way the small and large numbers of items are enumerated? A theory of enumeration is proposed that emerges from a general theory of vision, yet explains the numeric abilities of preverbal infants, children, and adults. We argue that subitizing exploits a limited-capacity parallel mechanism for item individuation, the FINST mechanism, associated with the multiple target tracking task (Pylyshyn, 1989; Pylyshyn & Storm, 1988). Two kinds of evidence support the claim that subitizing relies on preattentive information, whereas counting requires spatial attention. First, whenever spatial attention is needed to compute a spatial relation (cf. Ullman, 1984) or to perform feature integration (cf. Treisman & Gelade, 1980), subitizing does not occur (Trick & Pylyshyn, 1993a). Second, the position of the attentional focus, as manipulated by cue validity, has a greater effect on counting than subitizing latencies (Trick & Pylyshyn, 1993b).

  8. Stream Channel Stability. Appendix J. Numerical Model for Routing Graded Sediments in Alluvial Channels,

    DTIC Science & Technology

    1981-04-01

    expressed as volume of dry sediment per unit length of channel. RHB Hydraulic radius. ft SCAP(IF) Potential transport capacity of ft 3/ft material...GO) TO iSO I6=0 DO 104 IC=i,INL IA=IC+ICST-IS IF(KI(I)EQOORI(ICI).E.Q(IC2))GO TO 105 L PROPAGATION OF SHOCK WAVE AA=(QI(IC,i)/KIN)**BET AAF=AA+QL*DTS...KSI(IC).GT.0) GO Tn £09 IF(IA.EQ.i) GO TO 140 IF(XC(IA).L.E.XC(IA-i)) GO TO 11.0 C NO SHOCK IS FORMED 140 KSC(IA)=0 CO TO 104 C SHOCK IS FORMED 110

  9. A Computational Model of Spatial Visualization Capacity

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Lyon, Don R.; Gunzelmann, Glenn; Gluck, Kevin A.

    2008-01-01

    Visualizing spatial material is a cornerstone of human problem solving, but human visualization capacity is sharply limited. To investigate the sources of this limit, we developed a new task to measure visualization accuracy for verbally-described spatial paths (similar to street directions), and implemented a computational process model to…

  10. Understanding adaptive capacity and capacity to innovate in social-ecological systems: Applying a gender lens.

    PubMed

    Cohen, Philippa J; Lawless, Sarah; Dyer, Michelle; Morgan, Miranda; Saeni, Enly; Teioli, Helen; Kantor, Paula

    2016-12-01

    Development policy increasingly focuses on building capacities to respond to change (adaptation), and to drive change (innovation). Few studies, however, focus specifically on the social and gender differentiation of capacities to adapt and innovate. We address this gap using a qualitative study in three communities in Solomon Islands; a developing country, where rural livelihoods and well-being are tightly tied to agriculture and fisheries. We find the five dimensions of capacity to adapt and to innovate (i.e. assets, flexibility, learning, social organisation, agency) to be mutually dependant. For example, limits to education, physical mobility and agency meant that women and youth, particularly, felt it was difficult to establish relations with external agencies to access technical support or new information important for innovating or adapting. Willingness to bear risk and to challenge social norms hindered both women's and men's capacity to innovate, albeit to differing degrees. Our findings are of value to those aspiring for equitable improvements to well-being within dynamic and diverse social-ecological systems.

  11. Seeding medusahead-invaded rangeland following mechanical disturbance on the channeled scablands of eastern Washington

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Vegetation on the Channeled Scablands of eastern Washington has been altered to a medusahead-lupine dominated landscape. Medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae [L.] Nevski) is seldom utilized by livestock, decreases carrying capacity, and can lead to the consumption of poisonous plants. Velvet lupin...

  12. Optical signal processing for enabling high-speed, highly spectrally efficient and high capacity optical systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fazal, Muhammad Irfan

    The unabated demand for more capacity due to the ever-increasing internet traffic dictates that the boundaries of the state of the art maybe pushed to send more data through the network. Traditionally, this need has been satisfied by multiple wavelengths (wavelength division multiplexing), higher order modulation formats and coherent communication (either individually or combined together). WDM has the ability to reduce cost by using multiple channels within the same physical fiber, and with EDFA amplifiers, the need for O-E-O regenerators is eliminated. Moreover the availability of multiple colors allows for wavelength-based routing and network planning. Higher order modulation formats increases the capacity of the link by their ability to encode data in both the phase and amplitude of light, thereby increasing the bits/sec/Hz as compared to simple on-off keyed format. Coherent communications has also emerged as a primary means of transmitting and receiving optical data due to its support of formats that utilize both phase and amplitude to further increase the spectral efficiency of the optical channel, including quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) and quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK). Polarization multiplexing of channels can double capacity by allowing two channels to share the same wavelength by propagating on orthogonal polarization axis and is easily supported in coherent systems where the polarization tracking can be performed in the digital domain. Furthermore, the forthcoming IEEE 100 Gbit/s Ethernet Standard, 802.3ba, provides greater bandwidth, higher data rates, and supports a mixture of modulation formats. In particular, Pol-MUX QPSK is increasingly becoming the industry's format of choice as the high spectral efficiency allows for 100 Gbit/s transmission while still occupying the current 50 GHz/channel allocation of current 10 Gbit/s OOK fiber systems. In this manner, 100 Gbit/s transfer speeds using current fiber links, amplifiers, and filters

  13. [Assessment of Functioning when Conducting Occupational Capacity Evaluations--What is "Evidence-Based"?].

    PubMed

    Canela, Carlos; Schleifer, Roman; Dube, Anish; Hengartner, Michael P; Ebner, Gerhard; Seifritz, Erich; Liebrenz, Michael

    2016-03-01

    Occupational capacity evaluations have previously been subject to criticism for lacking in quality and consistency. To the authors' knowledge, there is no clear consensus on the best way to formally assess functioning within capacity evaluations. In this review we investigated different instruments that are used to assess functioning in occupational capacity evaluations. Systematic review of the literature. Though several instruments that assess functional capacity were found in our search, a specific validated instrument assessing occupational capacity as part of a larger psychiatric evaluation was not found. The limitations of the existing instruments on assessing functional capacity are discussed. Medical experts relying on instruments to conduct functional capacity evaluations should be cognizant of their limitations. The findings call for the development and use of an instrument specifically designed to assess the functional and occupational capacity of psychiatric patients, which is also likely to improve the quality of these reports. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

  14. Fast activation of dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels of skeletal muscle. Multiple pathways of channel gating

    PubMed Central

    1996-01-01

    proposed for the DHP-sensitive Ca channel, which pictures the normal pathway of activation of the calcium channel as two voltage-dependent steps in sequence, plus a voltage-independent step which is rate limiting. The model reproduced well the fast and slow gating models of the calcium channel, and the effects of conditioning pulses. It is possible that the voltage-sensitive gating transitions of the DHP receptor, which occur early in the calcium channel activation sequence, could underlie the role of the voltage sensor and yield the rapid excitation-contraction coupling in skeletal muscle, through either electrostatic or allosteric linkage to the ryanodine receptors/calcium release channels. PMID:8882865

  15. Equalization filters for multiple-channel electromyogram arrays

    PubMed Central

    Clancy, Edward A.; Xia, Hongfang; Christie, Anita; Kamen, Gary

    2007-01-01

    Multiple channels of electromyogram activity are frequently transduced via electrodes, then combined electronically to form one electrophysiologic recording, e.g. bipolar, linear double difference and Laplacian montages. For high quality recordings, precise gain and frequency response matching of the individual electrode potentials is achieved in hardware (e.g., an instrumentation amplifier for bipolar recordings). This technique works well when the number of derived signals is small and the montages are pre-determined. However, for array electrodes employing a variety of montages, hardware channel matching can be expensive and tedious, and limits the number of derived signals monitored. This report describes a method for channel matching based on the concept of equalization filters. Monopolar potentials are recorded from each site without precise hardware matching. During a calibration phase, a time-varying linear chirp voltage is applied simultaneously to each site and recorded. Based on the calibration recording, each monopolar channel is digitally filtered to “correct” for (equalize) differences in the individual channels, and then any derived montages subsequently created. In a hardware demonstration system, the common mode rejection ratio (at 60 Hz) of bipolar montages improved from 35.2 ± 5.0 dB (prior to channel equalization) to 69.0 ± 5.0 dB (after equalization). PMID:17614134

  16. Cognitive capacity limitations and Need for Cognition differentially predict reward-induced cognitive effort expenditure.

    PubMed

    Sandra, Dasha A; Otto, A Ross

    2018-03-01

    While psychological, economic, and neuroscientific accounts of behavior broadly maintain that people minimize expenditure of cognitive effort, empirical work reveals how reward incentives can mobilize increased cognitive effort expenditure. Recent theories posit that the decision to expend effort is governed, in part, by a cost-benefit tradeoff whereby the potential benefits of mental effort can offset the perceived costs of effort exertion. Taking an individual differences approach, the present study examined whether one's executive function capacity, as measured by Stroop interference, predicts the extent to which reward incentives reduce switch costs in a task-switching paradigm, which indexes additional expenditure of cognitive effort. In accordance with the predictions of a cost-benefit account of effort, we found that a low executive function capacity-and, relatedly, a low intrinsic motivation to expend effort (measured by Need for Cognition)-predicted larger increase in cognitive effort expenditure in response to monetary reward incentives, while individuals with greater executive function capacity-and greater intrinsic motivation to expend effort-were less responsive to reward incentives. These findings suggest that an individual's cost-benefit tradeoff is constrained by the perceived costs of exerting cognitive effort. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Overcoming the rate-distance limit of quantum key distribution without quantum repeaters.

    PubMed

    Lucamarini, M; Yuan, Z L; Dynes, J F; Shields, A J

    2018-05-01

    Quantum key distribution (QKD) 1,2 allows two distant parties to share encryption keys with security based on physical laws. Experimentally, QKD has been implemented via optical means, achieving key rates of 1.26 megabits per second over 50 kilometres of standard optical fibre 3 and of 1.16 bits per hour over 404 kilometres of ultralow-loss fibre in a measurement-device-independent configuration 4 . Increasing the bit rate and range of QKD is a formidable, but important, challenge. A related target, which is currently considered to be unfeasible without quantum repeaters 5-7 , is overcoming the fundamental rate-distance limit of QKD 8 . This limit defines the maximum possible secret key rate that two parties can distil at a given distance using QKD and is quantified by the secret-key capacity of the quantum channel 9 that connects the parties. Here we introduce an alternative scheme for QKD whereby pairs of phase-randomized optical fields are first generated at two distant locations and then combined at a central measuring station. Fields imparted with the same random phase are 'twins' and can be used to distil a quantum key. The key rate of this twin-field QKD exhibits the same dependence on distance as does a quantum repeater, scaling with the square-root of the channel transmittance, irrespective of who (malicious or otherwise) is in control of the measuring station. However, unlike schemes that involve quantum repeaters, ours is feasible with current technology and presents manageable levels of noise even on 550 kilometres of standard optical fibre. This scheme is a promising step towards overcoming the rate-distance limit of QKD and greatly extending the range of secure quantum communications.

  18. Does visual short-term memory have a high-capacity stage?

    PubMed

    Matsukura, Michi; Hollingworth, Andrew

    2011-12-01

    Visual short-term memory (VSTM) has long been considered a durable, limited-capacity system for the brief retention of visual information. However, a recent work by Sligte et al. (Plos One 3:e1699, 2008) reported that, relatively early after the removal of a memory array, a cue allowed participants to access a fragile, high-capacity stage of VSTM that is distinct from iconic memory. In the present study, we examined whether this stage division is warranted by attempting to corroborate the existence of an early, high-capacity form of VSTM. The results of four experiments did not support Sligte et al.'s claim, since we did not obtain evidence for VSTM retention that exceeded traditional estimates of capacity. However, performance approaching that observed in Sligte et al. can be achieved through extensive practice, providing a clear explanation for their findings. Our evidence favors the standard view of VSTM as a limited-capacity system that maintains a few object representations in a relatively durable form.

  19. Generic theory for channel sinuosity.

    PubMed

    Lazarus, Eli D; Constantine, José Antonio

    2013-05-21

    Sinuous patterns traced by fluid flows are a ubiquitous feature of physical landscapes on Earth, Mars, the volcanic floodplains of the Moon and Venus, and other planetary bodies. Typically discussed as a consequence of migration processes in meandering rivers, sinuosity is also expressed in channel types that show little or no indication of meandering. Sinuosity is sometimes described as "inherited" from a preexisting morphology, which still does not explain where the inherited sinuosity came from. For a phenomenon so universal as sinuosity, existing models of channelized flows do not explain the occurrence of sinuosity in the full variety of settings in which it manifests, or how sinuosity may originate. Here we present a generic theory for sinuous flow patterns in landscapes. Using observations from nature and a numerical model of flow routing, we propose that flow resistance (representing landscape roughness attributable to topography or vegetation density) relative to surface slope exerts a fundamental control on channel sinuosity that is effectively independent of internal flow dynamics. Resistance-dominated surfaces produce channels with higher sinuosity than those of slope-dominated surfaces because increased resistance impedes downslope flow. Not limited to rivers, the hypothesis we explore pertains to sinuosity as a geomorphic pattern. The explanation we propose is inclusive enough to account for a wide variety of sinuous channel types in nature, and can serve as an analytical tool for determining the sinuosity a landscape might support.

  20. The influence of working memory capacity on experimental heat pain.

    PubMed

    Nakae, Aya; Endo, Kaori; Adachi, Tomonori; Ikeda, Takashi; Hagihira, Satoshi; Mashimo, Takashi; Osaka, Mariko

    2013-10-01

    Pain processing and attention have a bidirectional interaction that depends upon one's relative ability to use limited-capacity resources. However, correlations between the size of limited-capacity resources and pain have not been evaluated. Working memory capacity, which is a cognitive resource, can be measured using the reading span task (RST). In this study, we hypothesized that an individual's potential working memory capacity and subjective pain intensity are related. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated 31 healthy participants' potential working memory capacity using the RST, and then applied continuous experimental heat stimulation using the listening span test (LST), which is a modified version of the RST. Subjective pain intensities were significantly lower during the challenging parts of the RST. The pain intensity under conditions where memorizing tasks were performed was compared with that under the control condition, and it showed a correlation with potential working memory capacity. These results indicate that working memory capacity reflects the ability to process information, including precise evaluations of changes in pain perception. In this work, we present data suggesting that changes in subjective pain intensity are related, depending upon individual potential working memory capacities. Individual working memory capacity may be a phenotype that reflects sensitivity to changes in pain perception. Copyright © 2013 American Pain Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. GPS Integrity Channel RTCA Working Group recommendations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalafus, Rudolph M.

    Recommendations made by a working group established by the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics are presented for the design of a wide-area broadcast service to provide indications on the status of GPS satellites. The integrity channel requirements and operational goals are outlined. Six integrity channel system concepts are considered and system design and time-to-alarm considerations are examined. The recommended system includes the broadcast of a coarse range measurement for each satellite which will enable the on-board GPS receiver to determine whether or not the navigation accuracy is within prescribed limits.

  2. Impaired verbal short-term memory in Down syndrome reflects a capacity limitation rather than atypically rapid forgetting.

    PubMed

    M Purser, Harry R; Jarrold, Christopher

    2005-05-01

    Individuals with Down syndrome suffer from relatively poor verbal short-term memory. Recent work has indicated that this deficit is not caused by problems of audition, speech, or articulatory rehearsal within the phonological loop component of Baddeley and Hitch's working memory model. Given this, two experiments were conducted to investigate whether abnormally rapid decay underlies the deficit. In a first experiment, we attempted to vary the time available for decay using a modified serial recall procedure that had both verbal and visuospatial conditions. No evidence was found to suggest that forgetting is abnormally rapid in phonological memory in Down syndrome, but a selective phonological memory deficit was indicated. A second experiment further investigated possible problems of decay in phonological memory, restricted to item information. The results indicated that individuals with Down syndrome do not show atypically rapid item forgetting from phonological memory but may have a limited-capacity verbal short-term memory system.

  3. Assessing geomorphic sensitivity in relation to river capacity for adjustment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reid, H. E.; Brierley, G. J.

    2015-12-01

    River sensitivity describes the nature and rate of channel adjustments. An approach to analysis of geomorphic river sensitivity outlined in this paper relates potential sensitivity based on the expected capacity of adjustment for a river type to the recent history of channel adjustment. This approach was trialled to assess low, moderate and high geomorphic sensitivity for four different types of river (10 reaches in total) along the Lower Tongariro River, North Island, New Zealand. Building upon the River Styles framework, river types were differentiated based upon valley setting (width and confinement), channel planform, geomorphic unit assemblages and bed material size. From this, the behavioural regime and potential for adjustment (type and extent) were determined. Historical maps and aerial photographs were geo-rectified and the channel planform digitised to assess channel adjustments for each reach from 1928 to 2007. Floodplain width controlled by terraces, exerted a strong influence upon reach scale sensitivity for the partly-confined, wandering, cobble-bed river. Although forced boundaries occur infrequently, the width of the active channel zone is constrained. An unconfined braided river reach directly downstream of the terrace-confined section was the most geomorphically sensitive reach. The channel in this reach adjusted recurrently to sediment inputs that were flushed through more confined, better connected upstream reaches. A meandering, sand-bed river in downstream reaches has exhibited negligible rates of channel migration. However, channel narrowing in this reach and the associated delta indicate that the system is approaching a threshold condition, beyond which channel avulsion is likely to occur. As this would trigger more rapid migration, this reach is considered to be more geomorphically sensitive than analysis of its low migration rate alone would indicate. This demonstrates how sensitivity is fashioned both by the behavioural regime of a reach

  4. Visual working memory capacity and the medial temporal lobe.

    PubMed

    Jeneson, Annette; Wixted, John T; Hopkins, Ramona O; Squire, Larry R

    2012-03-07

    Patients with medial temporal lobe (MTL) damage are sometimes impaired at remembering visual information across delays as short as a few seconds. Such impairments could reflect either impaired visual working memory capacity or impaired long-term memory (because attention has been diverted or because working memory capacity has been exceeded). Using a standard change-detection task, we asked whether visual working memory capacity is intact or impaired after MTL damage. Five patients with hippocampal lesions and one patient with large MTL lesions saw an array of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 6 colored squares, followed after 3, 4, or 8 s by a second array where one of the colored squares was cued. The task was to decide whether the cued square had the same color as the corresponding square in the first array or a different color. At the 1 s delay typically used to assess working memory capacity, patients performed as well as controls at all array sizes. At the longer delays, patients performed as well as controls at small array sizes, thought to be within the capacity limit, and worse than controls at large array sizes, thought to exceed the capacity limit. The findings suggest that visual working memory capacity in humans is intact after damage to the MTL structures and that damage to these structures impairs performance only when visual working memory is insufficient to support performance.

  5. W-band radio-over-fiber propagation of two optically encoded wavelength channels

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Eghbal, Morad Khosravi; Shadaram, Mehdi

    2018-01-01

    We propose a W-band wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM)-over-optical code-division multiple access radio-over-fiber system. This system offers capacity expansion by increasing the working frequency to millimeter wave region and by introducing optical encoding and multiwavelength multiplexing. The system's functionality is investigated by software modeling, and the results are presented. The generated signals are data modulated at 10 Gb/s and optically encoded for two wavelength channels and transmitted with a 20-km length of fiber. The received signals are optically decoded and detected. Also, encoding has improved the bit error rate (BER) versus the received optical power margin for the WDM setting by about 4 dB. In addition, the eye-diagram shows that the difference between received optical power levels at the BER of 10-12 to 10-3 is about 1.3% between two encoded channels. This method of capacity improvement is significantly important for the next generation of mobile communication, where millimeter wave signals will be widely used to deliver data to small cells.

  6. The influence of flood frequency, riparian vegetation and threshold on long-term river transport capacity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Croissant, Thomas; Lague, Dimitri; Davy, Philippe

    2016-04-01

    Climate fluctuations at geological timescales control the capacity of rivers to transport sediment with consequences on geochemical cycles, sedimentary basins dynamics and sedimentation/tectonics interactions. While the impact of differential friction generated by riparian vegetation has been studied for individual flood events, its impact on the long-term sediment transport capacity of rivers, modulated by the frequency of floods remains unknown. Here, we investigate this effect on a simplified river-floodplain configuration obeying observed hydraulic scaling laws. We numerically integrate the full-frequency magnitude distribution of discharge events and its impact on the transport capacity of bedload and suspended material for various level of vegetation-linked differential friction. We demonstrate that riparian vegetation by acting as a virtual confinement of the flow i) increases significantly the instantaneous transport capacity of the river independently of the transport mode and ii) increases the long term bedload transport rates as a function of discharge variability. Our results expose the dominance of flood frequency rather than riparian vegetation on the long term sediment transport capacity. Therefore, flood frequency has to be considered when evaluating long-term bedload transport capacity while floodplain vegetation is important only in high discharge variability regimes. By comparing the transport capacity of unconfined alluvial rivers and confined bedrock gorges, we demonstrate that the latter always presents the highest long term transport capacity at equivalent width and slope. The loss of confinement at the transition between bedrock and alluvial river must be compensated by a widening or a steepening of the alluvial channel to avoid infinite storage. Because steepening is never observed in natural system, we compute the alluvial widening factor value that varies between 3 to 11 times the width of the bedrock channel depending on riparian

  7. Self-organization of river channels as a critical filter on climate signals.

    PubMed

    Phillips, Colin B; Jerolmack, Douglas J

    2016-05-06

    Spatial and temporal variations in rainfall are hypothesized to influence landscape evolution through erosion and sediment transport by rivers. However, determining the relation between rainfall and river dynamics requires a greater understanding of the feedbacks between flooding and a river's capacity to transport sediment. We analyzed channel geometry and stream-flow records from 186 coarse-grained rivers across the United States. We found that channels adjust their shape so that floods slightly exceed the critical shear velocity needed to transport bed sediment, independently of climatic, tectonic, and bedrock controls. The distribution of fluid shear velocity associated with floods is universal, indicating that self-organization of near-critical channels filters the climate signal evident in discharge. This effect blunts the impact of extreme rainfall events on landscape evolution. Copyright © 2016, American Association for the Advancement of Science.

  8. Seasonal Change in Nearshore and Channel Morphology at Packery Channel, A New Inlet Serving Corpus Christi, Texas

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-01-01

    position defined by limiting features such as the dune toe or seawall. Individual transects are spaced at 1 to 30 m apart. These surveys usually require...associated nominal depths (MSL) are: 1) a wading survey conducted from the landward limiting feature, such as dune or seawall, to offshore depth of...Hall Pier. The surge forced water up to the dune line adjacent to the channel. The water was funneled toward and into the inlet, introducing sand from

  9. Limitless capacity: a dynamic object-oriented approach to short-term memory.

    PubMed

    Macken, Bill; Taylor, John; Jones, Dylan

    2015-01-01

    The notion of capacity-limited processing systems is a core element of cognitive accounts of limited and variable performance, enshrined within the short-term memory construct. We begin with a detailed critical analysis of the conceptual bases of this view and argue that there are fundamental problems - ones that go to the heart of cognitivism more generally - that render it untenable. In place of limited capacity systems, we propose a framework for explaining performance that focuses on the dynamic interplay of three aspects of any given setting: the particular task that must be accomplished, the nature and form of the material upon which the task must be performed, and the repertoire of skills and perceptual-motor functions possessed by the participant. We provide empirical examples of the applications of this framework in areas of performance typically accounted for by reference to capacity-limited short-term memory processes.

  10. Channel MAC Protocol for Opportunistic Communication in Ad Hoc Wireless Networks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ashraf, Manzur; Jayasuriya, Aruna; Perreau, Sylvie

    2008-12-01

    Despite significant research effort, the performance of distributed medium access control methods has failed to meet theoretical expectations. This paper proposes a protocol named "Channel MAC" performing a fully distributed medium access control based on opportunistic communication principles. In this protocol, nodes access the channel when the channel quality increases beyond a threshold, while neighbouring nodes are deemed to be silent. Once a node starts transmitting, it will keep transmitting until the channel becomes "bad." We derive an analytical throughput limit for Channel MAC in a shared multiple access environment. Furthermore, three performance metrics of Channel MAC—throughput, fairness, and delay—are analysed in single hop and multihop scenarios using NS2 simulations. The simulation results show throughput performance improvement of up to 130% with Channel MAC over IEEE 802.11. We also show that the severe resource starvation problem (unfairness) of IEEE 802.11 in some network scenarios is reduced by the Channel MAC mechanism.

  11. Brain oscillatory substrates of visual short-term memory capacity.

    PubMed

    Sauseng, Paul; Klimesch, Wolfgang; Heise, Kirstin F; Gruber, Walter R; Holz, Elisa; Karim, Ahmed A; Glennon, Mark; Gerloff, Christian; Birbaumer, Niels; Hummel, Friedhelm C

    2009-11-17

    The amount of information that can be stored in visual short-term memory is strictly limited to about four items. Therefore, memory capacity relies not only on the successful retention of relevant information but also on efficient suppression of distracting information, visual attention, and executive functions. However, completely separable neural signatures for these memory capacity-limiting factors remain to be identified. Because of its functional diversity, oscillatory brain activity may offer a utile solution. In the present study, we show that capacity-determining mechanisms, namely retention of relevant information and suppression of distracting information, are based on neural substrates independent of each other: the successful maintenance of relevant material in short-term memory is associated with cross-frequency phase synchronization between theta (rhythmical neural activity around 5 Hz) and gamma (> 50 Hz) oscillations at posterior parietal recording sites. On the other hand, electroencephalographic alpha activity (around 10 Hz) predicts memory capacity based on efficient suppression of irrelevant information in short-term memory. Moreover, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation at alpha frequency can modulate short-term memory capacity by influencing the ability to suppress distracting information. Taken together, the current study provides evidence for a double dissociation of brain oscillatory correlates of visual short-term memory capacity.

  12. A computational model of spatial visualization capacity.

    PubMed

    Lyon, Don R; Gunzelmann, Glenn; Gluck, Kevin A

    2008-09-01

    Visualizing spatial material is a cornerstone of human problem solving, but human visualization capacity is sharply limited. To investigate the sources of this limit, we developed a new task to measure visualization accuracy for verbally-described spatial paths (similar to street directions), and implemented a computational process model to perform it. In this model, developed within the Adaptive Control of Thought-Rational (ACT-R) architecture, visualization capacity is limited by three mechanisms. Two of these (associative interference and decay) are longstanding characteristics of ACT-R's declarative memory. A third (spatial interference) is a new mechanism motivated by spatial proximity effects in our data. We tested the model in two experiments, one with parameter-value fitting, and a replication without further fitting. Correspondence between model and data was close in both experiments, suggesting that the model may be useful for understanding why visualizing new, complex spatial material is so difficult.

  13. In-channel amperometric detection for microchip electrophoresis using a wireless isolated potentiostat

    PubMed Central

    Gunasekara, Dulan B.; Hulvey, Matthew K.; Lunte, Susan M.

    2012-01-01

    The combination of microchip electrophoresis (ME) with amperometric detection leads to a number of analytical challenges that are associated with isolating the detector from the high voltages used for the separation. While methods such as end-channel alignment and the use of decouplers have been employed, they have limitations. A less common method has been to utilize an electrically isolated potentiostat. This approach allows placement of the working electrode directly in the separation channel without using a decoupler. This paper explores the use of microchip electrophoresis and electrochemical detection (ME-EC) with an electrically isolated potentiostat for the separation and in-channel detection of several biologically important anions. The separation employed negative polarity voltages and tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide (TTAB, as a buffer modifier) for the separation of nitrite (NO2-), glutathione (GSH), ascorbic acid (AA), and tyrosine (Tyr). A half-wave potential (E½) shift of approximately negative 500 mV was observed for NO2- and H2O2 standards in the in-channel configuration compared to end channel. Higher separation efficiencies were observed for both NO2- and H2O2 with the in-channel detection configuration. The limits of detection were approximately two-fold lower and the sensitivity was approximately two-fold higher for in-channel detection of nitrite when compared to end-channel. The application of this microfluidic device for the separation and detection of biomarkers related to oxidative stress is described. PMID:21437918

  14. Sodium channel blockers for cystic fibrosis.

    PubMed

    Burrows, Elinor F; Southern, Kevin W; Noone, Peadar G

    2014-04-09

    People with cystic fibrosis (CF) have increased transport of the salt, sodium across their airway lining. Over-absorption of sodium results in the dehydration of the liquid that lines the airway surface and (along with defective chloride secretion) is a primary defect in people with CF. To determine whether the topical administration of drugs that block sodium transport improves the respiratory condition of people with CF. We searched the Cochrane Cystic Fibrosis and Genetic Disorders Group Trials Register comprising references identified from comprehensive electronic database searches, handsearching relevant journals and abstract books of conference proceedings. We contacted principal investigators known to work in the field, previous authors and pharmaceutical companies who manufacture ion transport agents for unpublished or follow-up data.Most recent search of the Group's register: 19 December 2013. Published or unpublished randomised controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-randomised controlled trials of sodium channel blockers compared to placebo or another sodium channel blocker or the same sodium channel blocker at a different dosing regimen. Two authors independently extracted data. Meta-analysis was limited due to differing study designs. Five RCTs, with a total of 226 participants, examining the topical administration of the short-acting sodium channel blocker, amiloride, compared to placebo were identified as eligible for inclusion in the review. In three studies over six months, there was a significant difference found in the difference in relative change in FVC in favour of placebo (weighted mean difference 1.51% (95% confidence interval -2.77 to -0.25), although heterogeneity was evident. A two-week study demonstrated that hypertonic saline with amiloride pre-treatment did not result in a significant improvement in respiratory function or mucus clearance, in contrast to pre-treatment with placebo. There were no significant differences identified in other

  15. Sodium channel blockers for cystic fibrosis.

    PubMed

    Burrows, Elinor F; Southern, Kevin W; Noone, Peadar G

    2012-03-14

    People with cystic fibrosis (CF) have increased transport of the salt, sodium across their airway lining. Over-absorption of sodium results in the dehydration of the liquid that lines the airway surface and is a primary defect in people with CF. To determine whether the topical administration of drugs that block sodium transport improves the respiratory condition of people with CF. We searched the Cochrane Cystic Fibrosis and Genetic Disorders Group Trials Register comprising references identified from comprehensive electronic database searches, handsearching relevant journals and abstract books of conference proceedings. We contacted principal investigators known to work in the field, previous authors and pharmaceutical companies who manufacture ion transport agents for unpublished or follow-up data.Most recent search of the Group's register: 22nd August 2011. Published or unpublished randomised controlled trials (RCTs) or quasi-randomised controlled trials of sodium channel blockers compared to placebo or another sodium channel blocker or the same sodium channel blocker at a different dosing regimen. Two authors independently extracted data. Meta-analysis was limited due to differing study designs. Five RCTs, with a total of 226 participants, examining the topical administration of the short-acting sodium channel blocker, amiloride, compared to placebo were identified as eligible for inclusion in the review. In three studies over six months, there was a significant difference found in the difference in relative change in FVC in favour of placebo (weighted mean difference 1.51% (95% confidence interval -2.77 to -0.25), although heterogeneity was evident. A two-week study demonstrated that hypertonic saline with amiloride pre-treatment did not result in a significant improvement in respiratory function or mucus clearance, in contrast to pre-treatment with placebo. There were no significant differences identified in other clinically relevant outcomes. We found no

  16. The B3 Subunit of the Cone Cyclic Nucleotide-gated Channel Regulates the Light Responses of Cones and Contributes to the Channel Structural Flexibility*

    PubMed Central

    Ding, Xi-Qin; Thapa, Arjun; Ma, Hongwei; Xu, Jianhua; Elliott, Michael H.; Rodgers, Karla K.; Smith, Marci L.; Wang, Jin-Shan; Pittler, Steven J.; Kefalov, Vladimir J.

    2016-01-01

    Cone photoreceptor cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channels play a pivotal role in cone phototransduction, which is a process essential for daylight vision, color vision, and visual acuity. Mutations in the cone channel subunits CNGA3 and CNGB3 are associated with human cone diseases, including achromatopsia, cone dystrophies, and early onset macular degeneration. Mutations in CNGB3 alone account for 50% of reported cases of achromatopsia. This work investigated the role of CNGB3 in cone light response and cone channel structural stability. As cones comprise only 2–3% of the total photoreceptor population in the wild-type mouse retina, we used Cngb3−/−/Nrl−/− mice with CNGB3 deficiency on a cone-dominant background in our study. We found that, in the absence of CNGB3, CNGA3 was able to travel to the outer segments, co-localize with cone opsin, and form tetrameric complexes. Electroretinogram analyses revealed reduced cone light response amplitude/sensitivity and slower response recovery in Cngb3−/−/Nrl−/− mice compared with Nrl−/− mice. Absence of CNGB3 expression altered the adaptation capacity of cones and severely compromised function in bright light. Biochemical analysis demonstrated that CNGA3 channels lacking CNGB3 were more resilient to proteolysis than CNGA3/CNGB3 channels, suggesting a hindered structural flexibility. Thus, CNGB3 regulates cone light response kinetics and the channel structural flexibility. This work advances our understanding of the biochemical and functional role of CNGB3 in cone photoreceptors. PMID:26893377

  17. 47 CFR 76.504 - Limits on carriage of vertically integrated programming.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... RADIO SERVICES MULTICHANNEL VIDEO AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE Ownership of Cable Systems § 76.504... national video programming services owned by the cable operator or in which the cable operator has an... up to 45 percent of its channel capacity, whichever is greater, to the carriage of video programming...

  18. 47 CFR 76.504 - Limits on carriage of vertically integrated programming.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... RADIO SERVICES MULTICHANNEL VIDEO AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE Ownership of Cable Systems § 76.504... national video programming services owned by the cable operator or in which the cable operator has an... up to 45 percent of its channel capacity, whichever is greater, to the carriage of video programming...

  19. 47 CFR 76.504 - Limits on carriage of vertically integrated programming.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... RADIO SERVICES MULTICHANNEL VIDEO AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE Ownership of Cable Systems § 76.504... national video programming services owned by the cable operator or in which the cable operator has an... up to 45 percent of its channel capacity, whichever is greater, to the carriage of video programming...

  20. 47 CFR 22.535 - Effective radiated power limits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... limits. The effective radiated power (ERP) of transmitters operating on the channels listed in § 22.531 must not exceed the limits in this section. (a) Maximum ERP. The ERP must not exceed the applicable limits in this paragraph under any circumstances. Frequency range (MHz) Maximum ERP (Watts) 35-36 600 43...