Demonstration of PDC-E1 subunits as major antigens in the complement-fixing fraction M4 and re-evaluation of PDC-E1-specific antibodies in PBC patients.

PubMed

Berg, Christoph P; Stein, Gerburg M; Klein, Reinhild; Pascu, Maria; Berg, Thomas; Kammer, Winfried; Priemer, Martin; Nordheim, Alfred; Schulze-Osthoff, Klaus; Gregor, Michael; Wesselborg, Sebastian; Berg, Peter A

2006-09-01

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is characterized by the presence of antimitochondrial antibodies (AMA). Autoantibodies specific for the mitochondrial M4 antigen can be detected by a complement fixation test (CFT) but not by immunoblotting. The aim of this study was to elucidate the identity of the M4 antigen. M4 proteins were purified by affinity chromatography using IgG fractions of PBC marker sera being CFT positive (n=5) or negative (n=5) and identified by Western blotting, silver staining and sequence analysis. Further, a cohort of 57 PBC patients was tested for the reactivity to M4 and pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC). Two AMA patterns of the marker sera were visualized: CFT-positive sera were defined as PDC-E2(+)/E1(+) and the CFT-negative sera as PDC-E2(+)/E1(-). The major proteins in the M4 fraction could be related to the PDC-E1 subunits. A clear-cut association between anti-M4 reactivity in the CFT and the reactivity to both PDC subunits could also be documented in the cohort of 57 PBC patients showing anti-PDC-E1alpha and E1beta antibodies at a frequency of 74% and 67%. CFT reactivity against M4 antigens could be preferentially identified as a reaction against PDC-E1. As PDC-E1 subunits as compared with PDC-E2 lack lipoyl-binding sites, they probably have to be considered as an independent and important target.

Agreement between the caudal fold test and serological tests for the detection of Mycobacterium bovis infection in bison.

PubMed

Chapinal, Núria; Elkin, Brett T; Joly, Damien O; Schumaker, Brant A; Stephen, Craig

2012-08-01

The objective of this study was to estimate agreement between the caudal fold test (CFT) and different serological tests for the detection of Mycobacterium bovis infection in bison by using prevalence-adjusted bias-adjusted kappa (PABAK). A total of 212 of wild wood bison from Wood Buffalo National Park were tested with the CFT as well as several serological tests: fluorescent polarization assay (FPA), multiantigen print immunoassay (MAPIA), rapid lateral-flow test (RT) and dual path platform test (DPP). For RT, 3 variations were conducted using 30μl of serum (RT 30), 20μl of serum (RT 20) and 20μl of serum considering only a strong reaction as positive (RT 20 ST). The McNemar's χ(2) test was conducted to assess whether the proportion of positive test results to 2 different tests differed. Two measures of agreement between pair of tests were estimated: the Cohen's kappa statistic and PABAK. The apparent prevalence of tuberculosis in the sampled animals varied depending on the diagnostic test from 6.1% (FPA and DPP) to 47.2% (CFT). The prevalence estimated by CFT differed from the prevalence estimated by the other tests, whereas the prevalence estimated by FPA, MAPIA, RT 20 ST and DPP were not significantly different. The kappa and PABAK estimates calculated between CFT and the rest of the tests suggested poor to slight agreement between tests (k and PABAK<0.25 in all cases). The PABAK estimates for the pairwise combinations among serological tests were numerically greater than the kappa estimates (and significantly greater when FPA was compared to the rest of serological tests), and suggested substantial to almost perfect agreement (PABAK>0.75 in all cases). The disagreement between the skin and serological tests for the detection of M. bovis infection could be partly because the tests measure different immunological responses (cell-mediated vs. humoral) that are predominant at different stages of the infection, and partly due to inaccuracy of the tests. Further research is needed to evaluate the accuracy of diagnostic tests in order to establish a reliable case definition, combining different tests, to be used in the surveillance and control of tuberculosis in free-ranging bison populations. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Performance evaluation of two serological tests for contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP) detection in an enzootic area using a Bayesian framework.

PubMed

Sidibé, Cheick Abou Kounta; Grosbois, Vladimir; Thiaucourt, François; Niang, Mamadou; Lesnoff, Matthieu; Roger, François

2012-08-01

A Bayesian approach, allowing for conditional dependence between two tests was used to estimate without gold standard the sensitivities of complement fixation test (CFT) and competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test (cELISA) and the serological prevalence of CBPP in a cattle population of the Central Delta of the Niger River in Mali, where CBPP is enzootic and the true prevalence and animals serological state were unknown. A significant difference (P = 0.99) was observed between the sensitivities of the two tests, estimated at 73.7% (95% probability interval [PI], 63.4-82.7) for cELISA and 42.3% (95% PI, 33.3-53.7) for CFT. Individual-level serological prevalence in the study population was estimated at 14.1% (95% PI, 10.8-16.9). Our results indicate that in enzootic areas, cELISA performs better in terms of sensitivity than CFT. However, negative conditional sensitivity dependence between the two tests was detected, implying that to achieve maximum sensitivity, the two tests should be applied in parallel.

Spectral analysis for GNSS coordinate time series using chirp Fourier transform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feng, Shengtao; Bo, Wanju; Ma, Qingzun; Wang, Zifan

2017-12-01

Spectral analysis for global navigation satellite system (GNSS) coordinate time series provides a principal tool to understand the intrinsic mechanism that affects tectonic movements. Spectral analysis methods such as the fast Fourier transform, Lomb-Scargle spectrum, evolutionary power spectrum, wavelet power spectrum, etc. are used to find periodic characteristics in time series. Among spectral analysis methods, the chirp Fourier transform (CFT) with less stringent requirements is tested with synthetic and actual GNSS coordinate time series, which proves the accuracy and efficiency of the method. With the length of series only limited to even numbers, CFT provides a convenient tool for windowed spectral analysis. The results of ideal synthetic data prove CFT accurate and efficient, while the results of actual data show that CFT is usable to derive periodic information from GNSS coordinate time series.

Genetic and Environmental Influences on Language Ability in Older Adults: Findings from the Older Australian Twins Study.

PubMed

Lee, T; Thalamuthu, A; Henry, J D; Trollor, J N; Ames, D; Wright, M J; Sachdev, P S

2018-05-01

We used a sub-sample from the Older Australian Twins Study to estimate the heritability of performance on three tests of language ability: Boston Naming Test (BNT), Letter/Phonemic Fluency (FAS) and Category/Semantic Fluency (CFT) Tests. After adjusting for age, sex, education, mood, and global cognition (GC), heritability estimates obtained for the three tests were 0.35, 0.59, and 0.20, respectively. Multivariate analyses showed that the genetic correlation were high for BNT and CFT (0.61), but low for BNT and FAS (0.17), and for FAS and CFT (0.28). Genetic modelling with Cholesky decomposition indicated that the covariation between the three measures could be explained by a common genetic factor. Environmental correlations between the language ability measures were low, and there were considerable specific environmental influences for each measure. Future longitudinal studies with language performance and neuroimaging data can further our understanding of genetic and environmental factors involved in the process of cognitive aging.

Old and new diagnostic approaches for Q fever diagnosis: correlation among serological (CFT, ELISA) and molecular analyses.

PubMed

Natale, A; Bucci, G; Capello, K; Barberio, A; Tavella, A; Nardelli, S; Marangon, S; Ceglie, L

2012-07-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of the complement fixation test (CFT) with respect to ELISA for the serological diagnosis of Q fever and to assess the role of serology as a tool for the identification of the shedder status. During 2009-2010, sera from 9635 bovines and 3872 small ruminants (3057 goats and 815 sheep) were collected and analyzed with CFT and ELISA. In addition, 2256 bovine, 139 caprine and 72 ovine samples (individual and bulk tank milk samples, fetuses, vaginal swabs and placentae) were analyzed with a real-time PCR kit. The relative sensitivity (Se) and specificity (Sp) of CFT with respect to ELISA were Se 26.56% and Sp 99.71% for cattle and Se 9.96% and Sp 99.94% for small ruminants. To evaluate the correlation between serum-positive status and shedder status, the ELISA, CFT and real-time PCR results were compared. Due to the sampling method and the data storage system, the analysis of individual associations between the serological and molecular tests was possible only for some of the bovine samples. From a statistical point of view, no agreement was observed between the serological and molecular results obtained for fetus and vaginal swab samples. Slightly better agreement was observed between the serological and molecular results obtained for the individual milk samples and between the serological (at least one positive in the examined group) and molecular results for the bulk tank milk (BTM) samples. The CFT results exhibited a better correlation with the shedder status than did the ELISA results. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Serological profile of buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) female calves vaccinated with standard Brucella abortus strain 19 vaccine using rose bengal, 2-mercaptoethanol and complement fixation tests.

PubMed

Nardi, G Júnior; Ribeiro, M G; Jorge, A M; Megid, J; Silva, L M P

2012-03-01

The serological profiles of 21 female buffaloes vaccinated between 3 and 8 months of age using Brucella abortus strain 19 (S19) were evaluated by rose bengal (RBT), 2-mercaptoethanol (2ME) and complement fixation (CFT) tests. The serum strains were collected in day zero, 15, 30, 45, 60th days and subsequently to each 30 months, until 720th day after vaccination. No animal showed reaction in day zero. In 15th day above 95% of animals revealed reaction in all tests. All the animals presented absence of reactions in CFT, RBT and 2ME tests at 270, 300 and 360 days after vaccination, respectively. Our finding highlighted early response in CFT compared than other conventional agglutination tests. None of animals presented oscillation of titers or reactions in any test after 360 day of study, which enables the use of these tests after this period without interference of antibodies from S19 vaccine origin between 3 and 8 months in buffalo heifers. Copyright © 2011 The International Alliance for Biological Standardization. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Therapist competencies necessary for the delivery of compassion-focused therapy: A Delphi study.

PubMed

Liddell, Alice E; Allan, Steven; Goss, Ken

2017-06-01

Compassion-focused therapy (CFT) has shown promising results for a range of clinical presentations. This study explored the therapeutic competencies required to deliver CFT and organized these into a coherent framework. The Delphi method was used to explore and refine competencies for delivering CFT in three rounds of data collection. The first round involved interviews with 12 experts in CFT. Data were analysed using template analysis to generate a draft competency framework. The main competencies were used to create a survey for rounds two and three involving CFT experts and practitioners. Data collected from the surveys were used to refine the competencies. The CFT competency framework (CFT-CF) that was produced comprised 25 main competencies within six key areas of competence. The areas were as follows: competencies in creating safeness, meta-skills, non-phase-specific skills, phase-specific skills, knowledge and understanding and use of supervision. The main competencies included several subcompetencies specifying knowledge, skills and attributes needed to demonstrate the main competence. Overall, there was consensus on 14 competencies and 20 competencies exceeded an 80% agreement level. Some of the CFT competencies overlapped with existing therapies, whilst others were specific to CFT. The CFT-CF provides useful guidance for clinicians, supervisors and training programmes. Further research could develop the CFT-CF into a therapist rating scale in order to measure the outcome of training and to assess treatment fidelity in clinical trials. The compassion-focused therapy competency framework (CFT-CF) identifies therapeutic competencies that overlap with existing treatments as well as those specific to compassion-focused therapy (CFT). The CFT-CF builds guidance for the competencies required to deliver CFT in a range of clinical settings. The CFT-CF provides guidance for those training CFT therapists. The CFT-CF could be used as a basis to develop a therapist rating scale. © 2016 The British Psychological Society.

Effects of CFT Legumine (5% Rotenone) on tadpole survival and metamorphosis of Chiricahua leopard frogs Lithobates chiricahuensis, Northern leopard frogs L. pipiens, and American bullfrogs L. catesbeianus

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alvarez, Guillermo; Caldwell, Colleen A.; Kruse, Carter G.

2017-01-01

Amphibians may experience collateral effects if exposed to CFT Legumine (5% rotenone), a piscicide that is used to remove invasive fish. A series of 48-h static toxicity tests assessed the acute effects of CFT Legumine on multi-aged tadpoles of the federally listed Chiricahua leopard frog Lithobates chiricahuensis, the widespread northern leopard frog L. pipiens, and the increasingly invasive American bullfrog L. catesbeianus. At the earliest Gosner stages (GS 21–25), Chiricahua leopard frogs were more sensitive to CFT Legumine (median lethal concentration [LC50] = 0.41–0.58 mg/L) than American bullfrogs (LC50 = 0.63–0.69 mg/L) and northern leopard frogs (LC50 = 0.91 and 1.17 mg/L). As tadpoles developed (i.e., increase in GS), their sensitivity to rotenone decreased. In a separate series of 48-h static nonrenewal toxicity tests, tadpoles (GS 21–25 and GS 31–36) of all three species were exposed to piscicidal concentrations of CFT Legumine (0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mg/L) to assess postexposure effects on metamorphosis. In survivors of all three species at both life stages, the time to tail resorption was nearly doubled in comparison with that of controls. For example, mid-age (GS 31–36) Chiricahua leopard frog tadpoles required 210.7 h to complete tail resorption, whereas controls required 108.5 h. However, because tail resorption is a relatively short period in metamorphosis, the total duration of development (days from posthatch to complete metamorphosis) and the final weight did not differ in either age-group surviving nominal concentrations of 0.5-, 1.0-, and 2.0-mg/L CFT Legumine relative to controls. This research demonstrates that the CFT Legumine concentrations commonly used in field applications to remove unwanted fish could result in considerable mortality of the earliest stages of Lithobates species. In addition to acute lethality, piscicide treatments may result in delayed tail resorption, which places the tadpoles at risk by increasing their vulnerability to predation and pathogens.

A comparison of standard serological tests for the diagnosis of bovine brucellosis in Canada.

PubMed Central

Stemshorn, B W; Forbes, L B; Eaglesome, M D; Nielsen, K H; Robertson, F J; Samagh, B S

1985-01-01

Six agglutination and two complement fixation tests were compared with respect to specificity, sensitivity and relative sensitivity for the serodiagnosis of bovine brucellosis. Based on 1051 sera from brucellosis free herds, the specificity of the tests was 98.9% for the buffered plate antigen test (BPAT), 99.2% and 99.3% for the standard tube and plate agglutination tests (STAT and SPAT), respectively, and 99.8% for the 2-mercaptoethanol test (2MET). On this small sample, the rose bengal plate test (RBPT), card test (CARD) and the complement fixation test (CFT) correctly classed all sera as negative. On a sample of 167 culture positive cattle, the sensitivities of the tests were CFT: 79.0%, BPAT: 75.4, RBPT: 74.9%, CARD: 74.3%, SPAT: 73.1%, STAT: 68.9%, and 2MET: 59.9%. All tests combined detected only 82% of these infected cattle. Analysis of the relative sensitivity of the six agglutination tests gave the following ranking: BPAT greater than RBPT greater than CARD greater than SPAT greater than STAT. The 2MET ranked between the BPAT and RBPT or between the RBPT and CARD depending on the analysis used. The use of the BPAT as a screening test is recommended provided that a test of high specificity and sensitivity such as the CFT is used to confirm screening test reactions. PMID:4075239

Craniofacial trauma as a clinical marker of seizures in a baboon colony.

PubMed

Szabó, C Akos; Knape, Koyle D; Leland, M Michelle; Bauer, Cassondra; Williams, Jeff T

2014-04-01

Baboons provide a natural model of epilepsy. However, spontaneous seizures are usually sporadic, brief, and may not be observed. We hypothesized that various types of craniofacial trauma (CFT) may serve as reliable markers for epilepsy. We evaluated the type, demographics, and clinical significance of CFT in a large baboon colony. CFT was categorized according to somatotopic location, propensity to recur, and association with witnessed seizures or abnormal EEG findings. We divided the baboons with CFT into 2 groups: those with known histories of seizures (CFT+Sz, n = 176) and those without seizure histories (CFTonly; n = 515). In CFT+Sz baboons, the 568 injuries identified included periorbital (57%), scalp (27%), muzzle (12%), and facial (4%) injuries; multiple somatotopic locations or body parts were affected in 21 baboons. The most common CFT injuries associated with seizures were periorbital and scalp lesions (43% for each region). Compared with those in CFTonly animals, EEG abnormalities, including interictal epileptic discharges (IED) and photosensitivity were more prevalent in the CFT+Sz group, particularly among baboons with periorbital or scalp injuries. Compared with CFT+Sz animals, CFTonly baboons tended to have later onset and less frequent recurrence of CFT but higher prevalence of muzzle and tooth injuries. IED and photosensitivity were less prevalent in the CFTonly than the CFT+Sz group, with periorbital injuries carrying the highest and muzzle injuries the lowest association with IED or photosensitivity in both groups. Therefore, CFT in general and periorbital injuries in particular may be markers for seizures in baboons.

Craniofacial Trauma as a Clinical Marker of Seizures in a Baboon Colony

PubMed Central

Szabó, C Ákos; Knape, Koyle D; Leland, M Michelle; Bauer, Cassondra; Williams, Jeff T

2014-01-01

Baboons provide a natural model of epilepsy. However, spontaneous seizures are usually sporadic, brief, and may not be observed. We hypothesized that various types of craniofacial trauma (CFT) may serve as reliable markers for epilepsy. We evaluated the type, demographics, and clinical significance of CFT in a large baboon colony. CFT was categorized according to somatotopic location, propensity to recur, and association with witnessed seizures or abnormal EEG findings. We divided the baboons with CFT into 2 groups: those with known histories of seizures (CFT+Sz, n = 176) and those without seizure histories (CFTonly; n = 515). In CFT+Sz baboons, the 568 injuries identified included periorbital (57%), scalp (27%), muzzle (12%), and facial (4%) injuries; multiple somatotopic locations or body parts were affected in 21 baboons. The most common CFT injuries associated with seizures were periorbital and scalp lesions (43% for each region). Compared with those in CFTonly animals, EEG abnormalities, including interictal epileptic discharges (IED) and photosensitivity were more prevalent in the CFT+Sz group, particularly among baboons with periorbital or scalp injuries. Compared with CFT+Sz animals, CFTonly baboons tended to have later onset and less frequent recurrence of CFT but higher prevalence of muzzle and tooth injuries. IED and photosensitivity were less prevalent in the CFTonly than the CFT+Sz group, with periorbital injuries carrying the highest and muzzle injuries the lowest association with IED or photosensitivity in both groups. Therefore, CFT in general and periorbital injuries in particular may be markers for seizures in baboons. PMID:24674589

Serodiagnosis of Human Cysticercosis by Using Antigens from Vesicular Fluid of Taenia crassiceps Cysticerci

PubMed Central

Bueno, Ednéia C.; Snege, Miriam; Vaz, Adelaide J.; Leser, Paulo G.

2001-01-01

Neurocysticercosis (NC), caused by the presence of Taenia solium metacestodes in tissues, is a severe parasitic infection of the central nervous system with universal distribution. To determine the efficiency of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblot with antigens of T. crassiceps vesicular fluid (Tcra) compared to standard techniques (indirect immunofluorescence test [IFT] and complement fixation test [CFT]) using T. solium cysticerci (Tso) for the serodiagnosis of NC, we studied serum samples from 24 patients with NC, 30 supposedly healthy individuals, 76 blood bank donors, 45 individuals with other non-NC parasitoses, and 97 samples from individuals screened for cysticercosis serology (SC). The sensitivity observed was 100% for ELISA-Tso and ELISA-Tcra, 91.7% for the IFT, and 87.5% for the CFT. The specificity was 90% for ELISA-Tso, 96.7% for ELISA-Tcra, 50% for IFT, and 63.3% for CFT. The efficiency was highest for ELISA-Tcra, followed by ELISA-Tso, IFT, and CFT. Of the 23 samples from SC group, which were reactive to ELISA-Tso and/or ELISA-Tcra, only 3 were positive to immunblot-Tcra (specific peptides of 14- and 18-kDa) and to glycoprotein peptides purified from Tcra antigen (gp-Tcra), showing the low predictive value of ELISA for screening. None of the samples from the remaining groups showed specific reactivity in immunoblot-Tcra. These results demonstrate that ELISA-Tcra can be used as a screening method for the serodiagnosis of NC and support the need for specific tests for confirmation of the results. The immunoblot can be used as a confirmatory test both with Tcra and gp-Tcra, with the latter having an advantage in terms of visualization of the results. PMID:11687454

Unsteady steady-states: Central causes of unintentional force drift

PubMed Central

Ambike, Satyajit; Mattos, Daniela; Zatsiorsky, Vladimir M.; Latash, Mark L.

2016-01-01

We applied the theory of synergies to analyze the processes that lead to unintentional decline in isometric fingertip force when visual feedback of the produced force is removed. We tracked the changes in hypothetical control variables involved in single fingertip force production based on the equilibrium-point hypothesis, namely, the fingertip referent coordinate (RFT) and its apparent stiffness (CFT). The system's state is defined by a point in the {RFT; CFT} space. We tested the hypothesis that, after visual feedback removal, this point (1) moves along directions leading to drop in the output fingertip force, and (2) has even greater motion along directions that leaves the force unchanged. Subjects produced a prescribed fingertip force using visual feedback, and attempted to maintain this force for 15 s after the feedback was removed. We used the “inverse piano” apparatus to apply small and smooth positional perturbations to fingers at various times after visual feedback removal. The time courses of RFT and CFT showed that force drop was mostly due to a drift in RFT towards the actual fingertip position. Three analysis techniques, namely, hyperbolic regression, surrogate data analysis, and computation of motor-equivalent and non-motor-equivalent motions, suggested strong co-variation in RFT and CFT stabilizing the force magnitude. Finally, the changes in the two hypothetical control variables {RFT; CFT} relative to their average trends also displayed covariation. On the whole the findings suggest that unintentional force drop is associated with (a) a slow drift of the referent coordinate that pulls the system towards a low-energy state, and (b) a faster synergic motion of RFT and CFT that tends to stabilize the output fingertip force about the slowly-drifting equilibrium point. PMID:27540726

Seroprevalence and risk factors for brucellosis in cattle in selected districts of Jimma zone, Ethiopia.

PubMed

Dirar, Bashahun Gebremichael; Nasinyama, George William; Gelalcha, Benti Deresa

2015-12-01

A cross-sectional study was carried out in Jimma town and Chora Botor district of Jimma zone from February 2014 to May 2014 to determine seroprevalence and risk factors of brucellosis in cattle. A total of 348 blood samples (174 each from zebu and crossbreed) were collected. The sera were separated and screened by Rose Bengal plate test (RBPT), and positive sera were retested by complement fixation test (CFT) for confirmation. The overall seroprevalence of bovine brucellosis was 1.4 and 0.3 % as tested by RBPT and CFT, respectively. The seroprevalence of bovine brucellosis in indigenous and crossbreed cattle was 1.1 and 0.6 % and 1.7 and 0 % using RBPT and CFT, respectively. Retained fetal membrane was the only risk factor found to be significantly associated with seropositivity of brucellosis in this study (p = 0.019). The overall seroprevalence of brucellosis was very low. However, due to the zoonotic and economic importance of the disease, prevention and control measures are required to stop further spread of the disease. To effectively implement this, the One Health (OH) is the most constructive approach we recommend.

Use of a recombinant burkholderia intracellular motility a protein for immunodiagnosis of glanders.

PubMed

Kumar, Subodh; Malik, Praveen; Verma, Shailendra Kumar; Pal, Vijai; Gautam, Vandana; Mukhopadhyay, Chiranjay; Rai, Ganga Prasad

2011-09-01

Glanders, caused by the Gram-negative, nonmotile bacterium Burkholderia mallei, is a contagious and highly fatal disease of equines. During the last decade, the number of glanders outbreaks has increased steadily. The disease also has high zoonotic significance and B. mallei is listed biological warfare agent. The complement fixation test (CFT) is a routinely used and internationally recognized test to screen equine sera for the glanders. However, discrepant results have been observed using the CFT. The low sensitivity and specificity of the CFT and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) have been linked to the use of crude test antigens. We expressed a novel recombinant Burkholderia intracellular motility A (rBimA) protein in Escherichia coli for the diagnosis of equine glanders. Purified rBimA was used in an indirect ELISA format. All of the 21 true-positive serum samples used in the study tested positive, whereas only 17 of the 1,524 potentially negative sera tested positive by indirect ELISA, thus exhibiting 100% sensitivity and 98.88% specificity. Also, rBimA protein did not react with melioidosis patient and normal healthy human serum samples, showing its high specificity. The developed assay can be used as a simple and rapid tool for diagnosis of glanders in equine serum samples. An Indian patent (1328/DEL/2010) has been filed for the reagent.

Neural activity associated with repetitive simulation of episodic counterfactual thoughts.

PubMed

De Brigard, Felipe; Parikh, Natasha; Stewart, Gregory W; Szpunar, Karl K; Schacter, Daniel L

2017-11-01

When people revisit past autobiographical events they often imagine alternative ways in which such events could have occurred. Often these episodic counterfactual thoughts (eCFT) are momentary and fleeting, but sometimes they are simulated frequently and repeatedly. However, little is known about the neural differences between frequently versus infrequently repeated eCFT. The current study explores this issue. In a three-session study, participants were asked to simulate alternative ways positive, negative, and neutral autobiographical memories could have occurred. Half of these eCFT were repeatedly re-simulated while the other half were not. Immediately after, participants were asked to simulate all these eCFT again while undergoing fMRI. A partial least squares analysis on the resultant fMRI data revealed that eCFT that were not frequently repeated preferentially engaged brain regions including middle (BA 21) and superior temporal gyri (BA 38/39), middle (BA 11) and superior frontal gyri (BA 9), and hippocampus. By contrast, frequently repeated eCFT preferentially engaged regions including medial frontal gyri (BA 10), anterior cingulate cortex, insula, and inferior parietal lobule (BA 40). Direct contrasts for each type of eCFT were also conducted. The results of these analyses suggest differential contributions of regions traditionally associated with eCFT, such as BA 10, anterior cingulate cortex, and hippocampus, as a function of kind of eCFT and frequency of repetition. Consequences for future research on eCFT and rumination are considered. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Does Affirmative Training Matter? Assessing CFT Students' Beliefs about Sexual Orientation and Their Level of Affirmative Training

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rock, Monica; Carlson, Thomas Stone; McGeorge, Christi R.

2010-01-01

This study examined couple and family therapy (CFT) students' beliefs about sexual orientation, their self-reported competency working with lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) clients, and the level of affirmative training students received in their CFT programs. One hundred and ninety students from accredited CFT programs completed the study. While…

Bayesian Validation of the Indirect Immunofluorescence Assay and Its Superiority to the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay and the Complement Fixation Test for Detecting Antibodies against Coxiella burnetii in Goat Serum.

PubMed

Muleme, Michael; Stenos, John; Vincent, Gemma; Campbell, Angus; Graves, Stephen; Warner, Simone; Devlin, Joanne M; Nguyen, Chelsea; Stevenson, Mark A; Wilks, Colin R; Firestone, Simon M

2016-06-01

Although many studies have reported the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) to be more sensitive in detection of antibodies to Coxiella burnetii than the complement fixation test (CFT), the diagnostic sensitivity (DSe) and diagnostic specificity (DSp) of the assay have not been previously established for use in ruminants. This study aimed to validate the IFA by describing the optimization, selection of cutoff titers, repeatability, and reliability as well as the DSe and DSp of the assay. Bayesian latent class analysis was used to estimate diagnostic specifications in comparison with the CFT and the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The optimal cutoff dilution for screening for IgG and IgM antibodies in goat serum using the IFA was estimated to be 1:160. The IFA had good repeatability (>96.9% for IgG, >78.0% for IgM), and there was almost perfect agreement (Cohen's kappa > 0.80 for IgG) between the readings reported by two technicians for samples tested for IgG antibodies. The IFA had a higher DSe (94.8%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 80.3, 99.6) for the detection of IgG antibodies against C. burnetii than the ELISA (70.1%; 95% CI, 52.7, 91.0) and the CFT (29.8%; 95% CI, 17.0, 44.8). All three tests were highly specific for goat IgG antibodies. The IFA also had a higher DSe (88.8%; 95% CI, 58.2, 99.5) for detection of IgM antibodies than the ELISA (71.7%; 95% CI, 46.3, 92.8). These results underscore the better suitability of the IFA than of the CFT and ELISA for detection of IgG and IgM antibodies in goat serum and possibly in serum from other ruminants. Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Bayesian Validation of the Indirect Immunofluorescence Assay and Its Superiority to the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay and the Complement Fixation Test for Detecting Antibodies against Coxiella burnetii in Goat Serum

PubMed Central

Stenos, John; Vincent, Gemma; Campbell, Angus; Graves, Stephen; Warner, Simone; Devlin, Joanne M.; Nguyen, Chelsea; Stevenson, Mark A.; Wilks, Colin R.; Firestone, Simon M.

2016-01-01

Although many studies have reported the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) to be more sensitive in detection of antibodies to Coxiella burnetii than the complement fixation test (CFT), the diagnostic sensitivity (DSe) and diagnostic specificity (DSp) of the assay have not been previously established for use in ruminants. This study aimed to validate the IFA by describing the optimization, selection of cutoff titers, repeatability, and reliability as well as the DSe and DSp of the assay. Bayesian latent class analysis was used to estimate diagnostic specifications in comparison with the CFT and the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The optimal cutoff dilution for screening for IgG and IgM antibodies in goat serum using the IFA was estimated to be 1:160. The IFA had good repeatability (>96.9% for IgG, >78.0% for IgM), and there was almost perfect agreement (Cohen's kappa > 0.80 for IgG) between the readings reported by two technicians for samples tested for IgG antibodies. The IFA had a higher DSe (94.8%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 80.3, 99.6) for the detection of IgG antibodies against C. burnetii than the ELISA (70.1%; 95% CI, 52.7, 91.0) and the CFT (29.8%; 95% CI, 17.0, 44.8). All three tests were highly specific for goat IgG antibodies. The IFA also had a higher DSe (88.8%; 95% CI, 58.2, 99.5) for detection of IgM antibodies than the ELISA (71.7%; 95% CI, 46.3, 92.8). These results underscore the better suitability of the IFA than of the CFT and ELISA for detection of IgG and IgM antibodies in goat serum and possibly in serum from other ruminants. PMID:27122484

Warm-ups for military fitness testing: rapid evidence assessment of the literature.

PubMed

Zeno, Stacey A; Purvis, Dianna; Crawford, Cindy; Lee, Courtney; Lisman, Peter; Deuster, Patricia A

2013-07-01

Warm-up exercises are commonly used before exercise as a method to physiologically prepare for strenuous physical activity. Various warm-up exercises are often implemented but without scientific merit and, at times, may be detrimental to performance. To date, no systematic reviews have examined the effectiveness of warm-up exercises for military physical fitness test (PFT) or combat fitness test (CFT). The purpose of this rapid evidence assessment of the literature was to examine the quantity, quality, and effectiveness of warm-up exercises for PFT and identify those that might increase PFT and/or CFT scores, as reported in the literature. Literature searches of randomized controlled trials were performed across various databases from database inception to May 2011. Methodological quality of included studies was assessed using the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) 50 criteria for randomized controlled trial designs, and studies were individually described. Subject matter experts summarized the results applicable or generalizable to military testing. The search yielded a total of 1177 citations, with 37 fitting our inclusion criteria. Cardiovascular warm-ups increased sprint/running time, but dynamic stretching and dynamic warm-ups had the most positive outcome for the various exercise tests examined. Systematically, static stretching had no beneficial or detrimental effect on exercise performance but did improve range of movement exercises. Selected warm-up exercise may increase PFT and possibly CFT scores. Further research is needed to investigate the efficacy of dynamic stretching and dynamic warm-ups.

Counterfactual Reasoning in Non-psychotic First-Degree Relatives of People with Schizophrenia

PubMed Central

Albacete, Auria; Contreras, Fernando; Bosque, Clara; Gilabert, Ester; Albiach, Ángela; Menchón, José M.; Crespo-Facorro, Benedicto; Ayesa-Arriola, Rosa

2016-01-01

Counterfactual thinking (CFT) is a type of conditional reasoning that enables the generation of mental simulations of alternatives to past factual events. Previous research has found this cognitive feature to be disrupted in schizophrenia (Hooker et al., 2000; Contreras et al., 2016). At the same time, the study of cognitive deficits in unaffected relatives of people with schizophrenia has significantly increased, supporting its potential endophenotypic role in this disorder. Using an exploratory approach, the current study examined CFT for the first time in a sample of non-psychotic first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients (N = 43), in comparison with schizophrenia patients (N = 54) and healthy controls (N = 44). A series of tests that assessed the “causal order effect” in CFT and the ability to generate counterfactual thoughts and counterfactually derive inferences using the Counterfactual Inference Test was completed. Associations with variables of basic and social cognition, levels of schizotypy and psychotic-like experiences in addition to clinical and socio-demographic characteristics were also explored. Findings showed that first-degree relatives generated a lower number of counterfactual thoughts than controls, and were more adept at counterfactually deriving inferences, specifically in the scenarios related to regret and to judgments of avoidance in an unusual situation. No other significant results were found. These preliminary findings suggest that non-psychotic first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients show a subtle disruption of global counterfactual thinking compared with what is normally expected in the general population. Due to the potential impact of such deficits, new treatments targeting CFT improvement might be considered in future management strategies. PMID:27242583

Counterfactual Reasoning in Non-psychotic First-Degree Relatives of People with Schizophrenia.

PubMed

Albacete, Auria; Contreras, Fernando; Bosque, Clara; Gilabert, Ester; Albiach, Ángela; Menchón, José M; Crespo-Facorro, Benedicto; Ayesa-Arriola, Rosa

2016-01-01

Counterfactual thinking (CFT) is a type of conditional reasoning that enables the generation of mental simulations of alternatives to past factual events. Previous research has found this cognitive feature to be disrupted in schizophrenia (Hooker et al., 2000; Contreras et al., 2016). At the same time, the study of cognitive deficits in unaffected relatives of people with schizophrenia has significantly increased, supporting its potential endophenotypic role in this disorder. Using an exploratory approach, the current study examined CFT for the first time in a sample of non-psychotic first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients (N = 43), in comparison with schizophrenia patients (N = 54) and healthy controls (N = 44). A series of tests that assessed the "causal order effect" in CFT and the ability to generate counterfactual thoughts and counterfactually derive inferences using the Counterfactual Inference Test was completed. Associations with variables of basic and social cognition, levels of schizotypy and psychotic-like experiences in addition to clinical and socio-demographic characteristics were also explored. Findings showed that first-degree relatives generated a lower number of counterfactual thoughts than controls, and were more adept at counterfactually deriving inferences, specifically in the scenarios related to regret and to judgments of avoidance in an unusual situation. No other significant results were found. These preliminary findings suggest that non-psychotic first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients show a subtle disruption of global counterfactual thinking compared with what is normally expected in the general population. Due to the potential impact of such deficits, new treatments targeting CFT improvement might be considered in future management strategies.

32 CFR 901.6 - Candidate fitness test requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Candidate fitness test requirement. 901.6... Requirements § 901.6 Candidate fitness test requirement. Before being offered an appointment, candidates must take a Candidate Fitness Test (CFT) which consists of exercises designed to measure muscular strength...

32 CFR 901.6 - Candidate fitness test requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Candidate fitness test requirement. 901.6... Requirements § 901.6 Candidate fitness test requirement. Before being offered an appointment, candidates must take a Candidate Fitness Test (CFT) which consists of exercises designed to measure muscular strength...

32 CFR 901.6 - Candidate fitness test requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Candidate fitness test requirement. 901.6... Requirements § 901.6 Candidate fitness test requirement. Before being offered an appointment, candidates must take a Candidate Fitness Test (CFT) which consists of exercises designed to measure muscular strength...

32 CFR 901.6 - Candidate fitness test requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Candidate fitness test requirement. 901.6... Requirements § 901.6 Candidate fitness test requirement. Before being offered an appointment, candidates must take a Candidate Fitness Test (CFT) which consists of exercises designed to measure muscular strength...

32 CFR 901.6 - Candidate fitness test requirement.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... 32 National Defense 6 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Candidate fitness test requirement. 901.6... Requirements § 901.6 Candidate fitness test requirement. Before being offered an appointment, candidates must take a Candidate Fitness Test (CFT) which consists of exercises designed to measure muscular strength...

Evaluation of serological tests for diagnosis of Brucella melitensis infection of goats.

PubMed Central

Díaz-Aparicio, E; Marín, C; Alonso-Urmeneta, B; Aragón, V; Pérez-Ortiz, S; Pardo, M; Blasco, J M; Díaz, R; Moriyón, I

1994-01-01

Five serological assays were evaluated for the diagnosis of brucellosis in goats: the rose bengal test (RBT), complement fixation test (CFT), radial immunodiffusion (RID) with Brucella and Yersinia enterocolitica O:9 polysaccharides, counterimmunoelectrophoresis (CIEP) with cytosol, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with polyclonal and protein G conjugates and smooth lipopolysaccharide (S-LPS), native hapten polysaccharide (NH), or cytosol antigens. For optimal sensitivity, RBT had to be used with sera-antigen at a 3:1 dilution. In the RID test, Brucella melitensis biotype 1 NH could not be replaced by Brucella abortus biotype 1 or Y. enterocolitica 0:9 polysaccharides. In the ELISA, S-LPS and NH gave similar results and the protein G conjugate increased the specificity. With the sera from 55 B. melitensis culture-positive goats, the sensitivity was 100% for RBT, CFT (titer > or = 4), and ELISA with S-LPS or NH; 94% for RID; and 93% for CIEP. All tests were negative (100% specific) when testing the sera from 127 brucella-free goats. Larger discrepancies among the results of the serological tests were obtained with sera from goats of areas where brucellosis is endemic. When the sera of 20 young goats vaccinated subcutaneously (10(9) CFU of B. melitensis Rev 1) and bled 6 months later were examined, the specificities were as follows: NH ELISA, 60%; CFT and S-LPS ELISA, 75%; RBT, 80%; CIEP, 90%; and RID, 94%. With the sera from 10 young goats vaccinated conjunctivally (10(9) CFU of B. melitensis Rev 1) all tests were 100% specific 4 months after vaccination. The proportion of goats giving a positive reaction after vaccination decreased faster in RID than in other tests. PMID:8051240

Disrupting Threat Finances: Utilization of Financial Information to Disrupt Terrorist Organization in the Twenty-First Century

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-04-01

with the FATF for conducting comprehensive Anti-Money Laundering/Counter-Financing of Terrorism ( AML / CFT ) assessments of countries’ compliance with... AML / CFT ) (September 2002) • http://www.imf.org/external/np/mae/am/2002/eng/092523.htm (Comprehensive Methodology on AML / CFT ) International...of Rwanda AML : Anti-Money Laundering AML / CFT : Anti-Money Laundering/Counter-Financing of Terrorism ANO: Abu Nidal Organization AOR: Area of

M-theory superstrata and the MSW string

DOE PAGES

Bena, Iosif; Martinec, Emil; Turton, David; ...

2017-06-26

The low-energy description of wrapped M5 branes in compactifications of M-theory on a Calabi-Yau threefold times a circle is given by a conformal field theory studied by Maldacena, Strominger and Witten and known as the MSW CFT. Taking the threefold to be T 6 or K3×T 2, we construct a map between a sub-sector of this CFT and a sub-sector of the D1-D5 CFT. We demonstrate this map by considering a set of D1-D5 CFT states that have smooth horizonless bulk duals, and explicitly constructing the supergravity solutions dual to the corresponding states of the MSW CFT. We thus obtainmore » the largest known class of solutions dual to MSW CFT microstates, and demonstrate that five-dimensional ungauged supergravity admits much larger families of smooth horizonless solutions than previously known.« less

Thermal analysis of the cryostat feed through for the ITER Tokamak TF feeder

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Shanwen; Song, Yuntao; Lu, Kun; Wang, Zhongwei; Zhang, Jianfeng; Qin, Yongfa

2017-04-01

In Tokamaks, the toroidal field (TF) coil feeder is an important component that is used to supply the cryogens and electrical power for the TF coils. As a part of the TF feeder, the cryostat-feed through (CFT) is subject to low temperatures of 9 and 80 K inside and room temperature of 300 K outside. Based on the features of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor TF feeder, the thermal performance of the CFT under the nominal conditions is studied. Taking into account the conductive, convective and radiation heat transfer, the finite element model of the CFT is built. Transient thermal analysis is performed to determine the temperatures of the CFT on the 9th day of cooldown. The model is assessed by comparing the cooling curves of the CFT after 9 days. If the simulation and experimental results are the same, the finite element model can be considered as calibrated. The model predicts that the cooling time will be approximately 26 days and the temperature distribution and heat load of the main components are obtained when the CFT reaches thermal equilibrium. This study provides a valid quantitative characterization of the CFT design.

Comparison of four diagnostic tests for the identification of serum antibodies in small ruminants infected with Mycoplasma agalactiae.

PubMed

Kittelberger, R; O'Keefe, J S; Meynell, R; Sewell, M; Rosati, S; Lambert, M; Dufour, P; Pépin, M

2006-02-01

To determine the diagnostic capability of a newly developed Western blot (WB) assay for the detection of serum antibodies against Mycoplasma agalactiae compared with conventional serological tests, and to identify the best test for routine diagnostic use. The serological test methods used were: two commercial indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), viz ELISA-1, using a bacterial antigen preparation, and ELISA-2, using a recombinant protein (lipoprotein p48) antigen; the complement fixation test (CFT); and a newly developed WB assay, the latter both using a bacterial antigen preparation. Thirty sera from goats infected with M. agalactiae and 97 sera from non-infected sheep were tested using all four methods. Staining patterns in the WB were quite variable. An immuno-dominant band of 41 kDa was detected in 63% of sera from infected animals. The same band also appeared, although mostly very weakly, in 10% of sera from non-infected animals. When suspicious or very weak reactors were omitted, the diagnostic sensitivity (DSE) and diagnostic specificity (DSP), respectively, for the four assays were: WB=56.7%, 97.9%; ELISA-1=76.7%, 99.0%; ELISA-2=56.7%, 100%; and CFT=40.0%, 94.8%. ELISA-1 performed best in this comparison. While the WB can be used, it did not have a technical advantage over the ELISA. The CFT should be discouraged as the primary screening method for contagious agalactia and should be replaced by ELISA-1. Results from this study confirm that serological test methods for contagious agalactia are useful for the detection of infected flocks but will not detect every individual infected animal.

Higher spin realization of the DS/CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anninos, Dionysios; Hartman, Thomas; Strominger, Andrew

2017-01-01

We conjecture that Vasiliev’s theory of higher spin gravity in four-dimensional de Sitter space (dS4) is holographically dual to a three-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT3) living on the spacelike boundary of dS4 at future timelike infinity. The CFT3 is the Euclidean Sp(N) vector model with anticommuting scalars. The free CFT3 flows under a double-trace deformation to an interacting CFT3 in the IR. We argue that both CFTs are dual to Vasiliev dS4 gravity but with different future boundary conditions on the bulk scalar field. Our analysis rests heavily on analytic continuations of bulk and boundary correlators in the proposed duality relating the O(N) model with Vasiliev gravity in AdS4.

Limitations of holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chowdhury, Borun D.

2015-11-01

By studying global AdS using different foliations, global and Rindler-AdS, we show that there are two different asymptotic Fefferman-Graham expansions possible and thus two different definitions of "boundaries". We demonstrate that imposing boundary conditions on the two boundaries is not mutually compatible even when these boundaries are pushed to infinity. Thus, these two procedures define two genuinely distinct theories that we call global-CFT and Rindler-CFT. We show that the Rindler-CFT is not the same as the theory one gets by "Rindlerizing the global-CFT" described in hep-th/9804085. We conjecture that the Rindler theory is incapable of capturing the dynamics inside the horizon and discuss its implications for the BTZ-CFT duality proposed in hep-th/0106112.

Analysis of a bio-electrochemical reactor containing carbon fiber textiles for the anaerobic digestion of tomato plant residues.

PubMed

Hirano, Shin-Ichi; Matsumoto, Norio

2018-02-01

A bio-electrochemical system packed with supporting material can promote anaerobic digestion for several types of organic waste. To expand the target organic matters of a BES, tomato plant residues (TPRs), generated year-round as agricultural and cellulosic waste, were treated using three methanogenic reactors: a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR), a carbon fiber textile (CFT) reactor, and a bio-electrochemical reactor (BER) including CFT with electrochemical regulation (BER + CFT). CFT had positive effects on methane fermentation and methanogen abundance. The microbial population stimulated by electrochemical regulation, including hydrogenotrophic methanogens, cellulose-degrading bacteria, and acetate-degrading bacteria, suppressed acetate accumulation, as evidenced by the low acetate concentration in the suspended fraction in the BER + CFT. These results indicated that the microbial community in the BER + CFT facilitated the efficient decomposition of TPR and its intermediates such as acetate to methane. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

[18F]CFT [(18F)WIN 35,428], a radioligand to study the dopamine transporter with PET: characterization in human subjects.

PubMed

Laakso, A; Bergman, J; Haaparanta, M; Vilkman, H; Solin, O; Hietala, J

1998-03-01

We have characterized the usage of [18F]CFT (also known as [18F]WIN 35,428) as a radioligand for in vivo studies of human dopamine transporter by PET. CFT was labeled with 18F to a high specific activity, and dynamic PET scans were conducted in healthy volunteers at various time points up to 5 h from [18F]CFT injection. The regional distribution of [18F]CFT uptake correlated well with the known distribution of dopaminergic nerve terminals in the human brain and also with that of other dopamine transporter radioligands. Striatal binding peaked at 225 min after injection and declined thereafter, demonstrating the reversible nature of the binding to the dopamine transporter. Therefore, due to the relatively long half-life of 18F (109.8 min), PET scans with [18F]CFT could easily be conducted during the binding equilibrium, allowing estimation of Bmax/Kd values (i.e., binding potential). Binding potentials for putamen and caudate measured at equilibrium were 4.79+/-0.11 and 4.50+/-0.23, respectively. We were able to also visualize midbrain dopaminergic neurons (substantia nigra) with [18F]CFT in some subjects. In conclusion, the labeling of CFT with 18F allows PET scans to be conducted at binding equilibrium, and therefore a high signal-to-noise ratio and reliable quantification of binding potential can be achieved. With a high resolution 3D PET scanner, the quantification of extrastriatal dopamine transporters should become possible.

What if? Neural activity underlying semantic and episodic counterfactual thinking.

PubMed

Parikh, Natasha; Ruzic, Luka; Stewart, Gregory W; Spreng, R Nathan; De Brigard, Felipe

2018-05-25

Counterfactual thinking (CFT) is the process of mentally simulating alternative versions of known facts. In the past decade, cognitive neuroscientists have begun to uncover the neural underpinnings of CFT, particularly episodic CFT (eCFT), which activates regions in the default network (DN) also activated by episodic memory (eM) recall. However, the engagement of DN regions is different for distinct kinds of eCFT. More plausible counterfactuals and counterfactuals about oneself show stronger activity in DN regions compared to implausible and other- or object-focused counterfactuals. The current study sought to identify a source for this difference in DN activity. Specifically, self-focused counterfactuals may also be more plausible, suggesting that DN core regions are sensitive to the plausibility of a simulation. On the other hand, plausible and self-focused counterfactuals may involve more episodic information than implausible and other-focused counterfactuals, which would imply DN sensitivity to episodic information. In the current study, we compared episodic and semantic counterfactuals generated to be plausible or implausible against episodic and semantic memory reactivation using fMRI. Taking multivariate and univariate approaches, we found that the DN is engaged more during episodic simulations, including eM and all eCFT, than during semantic simulations. Semantic simulations engaged more inferior temporal and lateral occipital regions. The only region that showed strong plausibility effects was the hippocampus, which was significantly engaged for implausible CFT but not for plausible CFT, suggestive of binding more disparate information. Consequences of these findings for the cognitive neuroscience of mental simulation are discussed. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Comparative evaluation of positive tests to Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis in clinically healthy sheep and goats in south-west Greece using molecular techniques, serology, and culture.

PubMed

Ikonomopoulos, John; Balaskas, Christos; Kantzoura, Bagia; Fragiadaki, Eirini; Pavlik, Ivo; Bartos, Milan; Lukas, John C; Gazouli, Maria

2007-09-01

Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) is the cause of paratuberculosis, which affects mainly ruminants although there is a growing concern about its possible implication in Crohn's disease in humans especially in connection with environmental spread and risks to the food chain. Retail cheese may represent a significant source of human exposure to MAP and the aim of this study was to assess MAP status in clinically healthy sheep and goats in Greece, comparing techniques routinely used in the positive diagnosis of the disease. From a total of 30 flocks, 632 sheep and goats had faecal, serum, and whole-blood samples examined by culture, complement fixation test (CFT), and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeted at IS900, IS1245, and IS6110. PCR produced positive results in 21% of the animals tested, with 5.6%, 3.9%, and 11.5% being identified as MAP, Mycobacterium avium subsp. avium, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, respectively. CFT produced positive and suspicious results in 4.4% and 14.4% of the cases. Faecal cultures were negative in all but a single case that was identified as restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP)-type BC1. Agreement between results obtained by PCR and CFT was poor with isolated cases although an assessment of the MAP positive tests produced similar results for both methods. The findings indicate the need for additional measures of control, although the costs may be substantial if public health protection justifies elimination of MAP from livestock.

Charge-flow structures as polymeric early-warning fire alarm devices. M.S. Thesis; [metal oxide semiconductors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sechen, C. M.; Senturia, S. D.

1977-01-01

The charge-flow transistor (CFT) and its applications for fire detection and gas sensing were investigated. The utility of various thin film polymers as possible sensing materials was determined. One polymer, PAPA, showed promise as a relative humidity sensor; two others, PFI and PSB, were found to be particularly suitable for fire detection. The behavior of the charge-flow capacitor, which is basically a parallel-plate capacitor with a polymer-filled gap in the metallic tip electrode, was successfully modeled as an RC transmission line. Prototype charge-flow transistors were fabricated and tested. The effective threshold voltage of this metal oxide semiconductor was found to be dependent on whether surface or bulk conduction in the thin film was dominant. Fire tests with a PFI-coated CFT indicate good sensitivity to smouldering fires.

Assessment of coagulation in the obstetric population using ROTEM® thromboelastometry.

PubMed

Armstrong, S; Fernando, R; Ashpole, K; Simons, R; Columb, M

2011-10-01

Assessment of maternal coagulation to determine suitability for neuraxial anaesthesia and management of obstetric haemorrhage remains a challenge. Thromboelastography provides point of care patient assessment of the viscoelastic properties of whole blood clotting and can assist the clinician in haemostatic decision-making. The study aim was to determine the ROTEM® thromboelastometer 95% reference limits for third trimester parturients and to compare these with non-pregnant female controls. Following ethics committee approval and informed consent, citrated blood was sampled from 120 age-matched healthy pregnant and non-pregnant women. Thromboelastometry, using a ROTEM® point of care monitor, was performed with specific activators to measure the coagulation time (CT), clot formation time (CFT) and the maximal clot firmness (MCF) in order to evaluate the extrinsic (EXTEM® test) and intrinsic (INTEM® test) coagulation systems, as well as the fibrinogen contribution to coagulation (FIBTEM® test). After exclusions, data from 54 subjects in each group were analysed. Parturients had significantly lower haemoglobin values and platelet counts (P<0.01). Despite this, thromboelastometry exhibited significantly lower INTEM® CT (7.3%), INTEM® CFT (11.1%) and EXTEM® CFT (18.0%) in the pregnant group (P<0.001). MCF values were significantly higher (INTEM® (10.9%), EXTEM® (10.6%) and FIBTEM® (47.1%)) in the pregnant group compared to the non-pregnant group (P<0.0001). ROTEM® thromboelastometry clearly demonstrates the hypercoagulability of pregnancy. Formal reference ranges for ROTEM® that may be potentially useful in the haemostatic management of the parturient are presented. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Wave functions of symmetry-protected topological phases from conformal field theories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scaffidi, Thomas; Ringel, Zohar

2016-03-01

We propose a method for analyzing two-dimensional symmetry-protected topological (SPT) wave functions using a correspondence with conformal field theories (CFTs) and integrable lattice models. This method generalizes the CFT approach for the fractional quantum Hall effect wherein the wave-function amplitude is written as a many-operator correlator in the CFT. Adopting a bottom-up approach, we start from various known microscopic wave functions of SPTs with discrete symmetries and show how the CFT description emerges at large scale, thereby revealing a deep connection between group cocycles and critical, sometimes integrable, models. We show that the CFT describing the bulk wave function is often also the one describing the entanglement spectrum, but not always. Using a plasma analogy, we also prove the existence of hidden quasi-long-range order for a large class of SPTs. Finally, we show how response to symmetry fluxes is easily described in terms of the CFT.

United Information Services, Inc. , CRAY 1-s/2000, FORTRAN CFT 1. 10. Validation summary report

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

Not Available

1983-12-13

This Validation Summary Report (VSR) for the United Information Services, Inc., FORTRAN CFT 1.10 running under the COS Level C12 1.11 provides a consolidated summary of the results obtained from the validation of the subject compiler against the 1978 FORTRAN Standard (X3.9-1978/FIPS PUB 69). The compiler was validated against the Full Level FORTRAN level of FIPS PUB 69. The VSR is made up of several sections showing all the discrepancies found -if any. These include an overview of the validation which lists all categories of discrepancies within X3.9-1978, and a detailed listing of discrepancies together with the tests which failed.

Cray Research, Inc. Cray 1-s, Cray FORTRAN translator CFT) version 1. 11 Bugfix 1. Validation summary report

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

Not Available

1983-09-09

This Validation Summary Report (VSR) for the Cray Research, Inc., CRAY FORTRAN Translator (CFT) Version 1.11 Bugfix 1 running under the CRAY Operating System (COS) Version 1.12 provides a consolidated summary of the results obtained from the validation of the subject compiler against the 1978 FORTRAN Standard (X3.9-1978/FIPS PUB 69). The compiler was validated against the Full Level FORTRAN level of FIPS PUB 69. The VSR is made up of several sections showing all the discrepancies found -if any. These include an overview of the validation which lists all categories of discrepancies together with the tests which failed.

Entanglement, holography and causal diamonds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Boer, Jan; Haehl, Felix M.; Heller, Michal P.; Myers, Robert C.

2016-08-01

We argue that the degrees of freedom in a d-dimensional CFT can be reorganized in an insightful way by studying observables on the moduli space of causal diamonds (or equivalently, the space of pairs of timelike separated points). This 2 d-dimensional space naturally captures some of the fundamental nonlocality and causal structure inherent in the entanglement of CFT states. For any primary CFT operator, we construct an observable on this space, which is defined by smearing the associated one-point function over causal diamonds. Known examples of such quantities are the entanglement entropy of vacuum excitations and its higher spin generalizations. We show that in holographic CFTs, these observables are given by suitably defined integrals of dual bulk fields over the corresponding Ryu-Takayanagi minimal surfaces. Furthermore, we explain connections to the operator product expansion and the first law of entanglemententropy from this unifying point of view. We demonstrate that for small perturbations of the vacuum, our observables obey linear two-derivative equations of motion on the space of causal diamonds. In two dimensions, the latter is given by a product of two copies of a two-dimensional de Sitter space. For a class of universal states, we show that the entanglement entropy and its spin-three generalization obey nonlinear equations of motion with local interactions on this moduli space, which can be identified with Liouville and Toda equations, respectively. This suggests the possibility of extending the definition of our new observables beyond the linear level more generally and in such a way that they give rise to new dynamically interacting theories on the moduli space of causal diamonds. Various challenges one has to face in order to implement this idea are discussed.

How thinking about what could have been affects how we feel about what was.

PubMed

De Brigard, Felipe; Hanna, Eleanor; St Jacques, Peggy L; Schacter, Daniel L

2018-06-01

Episodic counterfactual thoughts (CFT) and autobiographical memories (AM) involve the reactivation and recombination of episodic memory components into mental simulations. Upon reactivation, memories become labile and prone to modification. Thus, reactivating AM in the context of mentally generating CFT may provide an opportunity for editing processes to modify the content of the original memory. To examine this idea, this paper reports the results of two studies that investigated the effect of reactivating negative and positive AM in the context of either imagining a better (i.e. upward CFT) or a worse (i.e. downward CFT) alternative to an experienced event, as opposed to attentively retrieving the memory without mental modification (i.e. remembering) or no reactivation. Our results suggest that attentive remembering was the best strategy to both reduce the negative affect associated with negative AM, and to prevent the decay of positive affect associated with positive AM. In addition, reactivating positive, but not negative, AM with or without CFT modification reduces the perceived arousal of the original memory over time. Finally, reactivating negative AM in a downward CFT or an attentive remembering condition increases the perceived detail of the original memory over time.

Effectiveness of two commercial rotenone formulations in the eradication of virile crayfish Orconectes virillis

USGS Publications Warehouse

Recsetar, Matthew S.; Bonar, Scott A.

2015-01-01

The virile or northern crayfish Orconectes virilis is an invasive species throughout much of the USA, damaging aquatic communities where it is introduced. Therefore, identification of effective methods for its eradication from areas in which it is unwanted is important. We studied the effectiveness of two commercial formulations of rotenone, Chem Fish Regular and CFT Legumine, for virile crayfish control. Although both formulations were effective for fish eradication, earlier observations by fisheries managers suggested that the relative effectiveness of the two formulations differs for crayfish. The only noteworthy difference between the formulations is that the former contains a synergist. In our first experiment, we tested each toxicant at the maximum labeled dosage (5 ppm) and found CFT Legumine to be 100% ineffective (0% mortality), while the Chem Fish Regular treatment resulted in 12.5% mortality. After we deemed Chem Fish Regular to be the only toxicant with any effectiveness against virile crayfish, we tested concentrations from 5 to 50 ppm and found 10 times the maximum labeled dosage (50 ppm rotenone) was needed to kill all virile crayfish. Because crayfish burrow and can leave water, and because 100% eradication is usually desired, rotenone applied at the labeled rates will not be effective for crayfish control. However, treating a body of water with CFT Legumine to eradicate invasive fish while leaving desirable crayfish unharmed is possible.

Holographic Rényi entropy in AdS3/LCFT2 correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Bin; Song, Feng-yan; Zhang, Jia-ju

2014-03-01

The recent study in AdS3/CFT2 correspondence shows that the tree level contribution and 1-loop correction of holographic Rényi entanglement entropy (HRE) exactly match the direct CFT computation in the large central charge limit. This allows the Rényi entanglement entropy to be a new window to study the AdS/CFT correspondence. In this paper we generalize the study of Rényi entanglement entropy in pure AdS3 gravity to the massive gravity theories at the critical points. For the cosmological topological massive gravity (CTMG), the dual conformal field theory (CFT) could be a chiral conformal field theory or a logarithmic conformal field theory (LCFT), depending on the asymptotic boundary conditions imposed. In both cases, by studying the short interval expansion of the Rényi entanglement entropy of two disjoint intervals with small cross ratio x, we find that the classical and 1-loop HRE are in exact match with the CFT results, up to order x 6. To this order, the difference between the massless graviton and logarithmic mode can be seen clearly. Moreover, for the cosmological new massive gravity (CNMG) at critical point, which could be dual to a logarithmic CFT as well, we find the similar agreement in the CNMG/LCFT correspondence. Furthermore we read the 2-loop correction of graviton and logarithmic mode to HRE from CFT computation. It has distinct feature from the one in pure AdS3 gravity.

Homeland Security Lessons for the United States

DTIC Science & Technology

2004-06-01

international standard for AML / CFT practices is set by the forty Recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force, or FATF, an inter-governmental...to foster sound AML / CFT practices. Singapore has a strong tradition for rigorous supervision of financial institutions. The two aspects of this...supervisory process with regards to AML / CFT are: issuing detailed guidelines to financial institutions, setting out their obligations with respect to

Equiosmolar Solutions of Hypertonic Saline and Mannitol Do Not Impair Blood Coagulation During Elective Intracranial Surgery.

PubMed

Hernández-Palazón, Joaquín; Fuentes-García, Diego; Doménech-Asensi, Paloma; Piqueras-Pérez, Claudio; Falcón-Araña, Luis; Burguillos-López, Sebastián

2017-01-01

The authors investigated the effect of equiosmolar, equivolemic solutions of 3% hypertonic saline (HS) and 20% mannitol on blood coagulation assessed by rotational thromboelastometry (ROTEM) and standard coagulation tests during elective craniotomy. In a prospective, randomized, double-blind trial, 40 patients undergoing elective craniotomy were randomized to receive 5 mL/kg of either 20% mannitol or 3% HS for intraoperative brain relaxation. Fibrinogen, activated partial thromboplastin time, prothrombin time, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and platelet count were simultaneously measured intraoperatively with ROTEM for EXTEM, INTEM, and FIBTEM analysis. ROTEM parameters were: clotting time (CT), clot formation time (CFT), maximum clot firmness (MCF), and α-angle. No significant differences between groups were found in ROTEM variables CT, CFT, MCF, α-angle (EXTEM and INTEM), and MCF (FIBTEM) nor standard coagulation tests. ROTEM parameters did not show changes after administration of hyperosmolar solutions relating to basal values, except for an increase of CFT EXTEM (118±28 vs. 128±26 s) and decrease of CT INTEM (160±18 vs. 148±15 s) with values within normal range. Significant decreases from baseline levels were observed for hematocrit (-7%), platelet count (-10%), and fibrinogen (-13%) after HS infusion, and hematocrit (-9%), platelet count (-13%), and fibrinogen (-9%) after mannitol infusion, but remaining normal. The use of 5 mL/kg of equiosmolar solutions of 3% HS and 20% mannitol applied to reach a brain relaxation during elective craniotomy does not induce coagulation impairment as evidenced by ROTEM and standard coagulation tests.

Effect of Water on Axial Flow Compressors. Part I. Analysis and Predictions.

DTIC Science & Technology

1981-06-01

MAIN 21 REAL NDNUKAM,MMASSMMASSl MAIN 22 REAL MMASSO MAIN 23 COMMON TD(7),IUMIT MAIM 24 COMMON CFL, CFT , CFP, CFD, CFM, CFU, CFA MAIN 25 COMMON JPERFM...MAIN 155 1519 FORMAT(6F5.2) MAIM 156 READ(5,1520) (BET2SS(I)vlIN51) MAIN 157 1520 FORMAT(7F5.2) MAIN 158 CFL=2. 54 MAIM 159 CFT =1.0𔃻.8 MAIM 160 CFP=47...SC( I)*CFL MAIN 183 SRTIP( I )SRTIP( I)*CFL MAIM 184 SAREAS( I )SAREAS( I)*CFA MAIN 185 1570 CONTINUE MAIM 186 T0C=TOG’CFT MAIN 187 TOW=TOW* CFT MAIM

Competitive Enzyme Immunoassay for Diagnosis of Human Brucellosis

PubMed Central

Lucero, Nidia E.; Foglia, Luis; Ayala, Sandra M.; Gall, David; Nielsen, Klaus

1999-01-01

The methods commonly used for human brucellosis serological testing are agglutination tests and the complement fixation test (CFT). Among the newer serological tests, primary binding assays were developed to improve sensitivity and specificity. The competitive enzyme immunoassay (CELISA) for the detection of serum antibody to Brucella is a multispecies assay which appears to be capable of differentiating vaccinal and cross-reacting antibodies from antibodies elicited by field infection in cattle. The competing monoclonal antibody used in this assay is specific for a common epitope of smooth lipopolysaccharide (S-LPS). In this study, we compared the CELISA to the classical tests for the diagnosis of human brucellosis. The CELISA cutoff value was determined to calculate its diagnostic specificity and sensitivity. A survey was performed with 911 sera. Of the sera, 341 were from an asymptomatic population that tested negative with conventional serological tests (screening and confirmatory). Based on these samples, the CELISA specificities were determined to be 99.7 and 100% with cutoff values of 28 and 30% inhibition (%I), respectively. In a further study with 393 additional sera from an asymptomatic population found negative by the conventional screening tests, the CELISA specificities were calculated to be 96.5 and 98.8% with cutoff values of 28 and 30%I. The CELISA sensitivities were determined to be 98.3 and 94.8% with cutoff values of 28 and 30%I, respectively, for sera from 116 individuals found positive by the classical tests. For the 51 culture-positive patients, CELISA was positive for 100%, the CFT was positive for 92%, and the standard tube agglutination test (TAT) was positive for 100%. The CELISA specificity was 100% for 31 sera from patients found negative by conventional serological tests but with brucellosis-like symptoms. The CELISA is fairly rapid to perform, somewhat faster than TAT, and cross-reacts less with other antigens (or antibodies) than the conventional tests. Further, the CELISA is simpler to perform that the CFT and may readily be standardized by the use of purified S-LPS antigen and monoclonal antibody for competition. PMID:10488186

Bulk locality and quantum error correction in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almheiri, Ahmed; Dong, Xi; Harlow, Daniel

2015-04-01

We point out a connection between the emergence of bulk locality in AdS/CFT and the theory of quantum error correction. Bulk notions such as Bogoliubov transformations, location in the radial direction, and the holographic entropy bound all have natural CFT interpretations in the language of quantum error correction. We also show that the question of whether bulk operator reconstruction works only in the causal wedge or all the way to the extremal surface is related to the question of whether or not the quantum error correcting code realized by AdS/CFT is also a "quantum secret sharing scheme", and suggest a tensor network calculation that may settle the issue. Interestingly, the version of quantum error correction which is best suited to our analysis is the somewhat nonstandard "operator algebra quantum error correction" of Beny, Kempf, and Kribs. Our proposal gives a precise formulation of the idea of "subregion-subregion" duality in AdS/CFT, and clarifies the limits of its validity.

Holographic space and time: Emergent in what sense?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vistarini, Tiziana

2017-08-01

This paper proposes a metaphysics for holographic duality. In addition to the AdS/CFT correspondence I also consider the dS/CFT conjecture of duality. Both involve non-perturbative string theory and both are exact dualities. But while the AdS/CFT keeps time at the margins of the story, the dS/CFT conjecture gives to time the "space" it deserves by presenting an interesting holographic model of it. My goals in this paper can be summarized in the following way. First, I argue that the formal structure and physical content of the duality do not support the standard philosophical reading of the relation in terms of grounding. Second, I put forward a philosophical scheme mainly extrapolated from the double aspect monism theory. I read holographic duality in this framework as it seems to fit the mathematical and physical structure of the duality smoothly. Inside this framework I propose a notion of spacetime emergence alternative to those ones commonly debated in the AdS/CFT physics and philosophy circles.

Gravity and large black holes in Randall-Sundrum II braneworlds.

PubMed

Figueras, Pau; Wiseman, Toby

2011-08-19

We show how to construct low energy solutions to the Randall-Sundrum II (RSII) model by using an associated five-dimensional anti-de Sitter space (AdS(5)) and/or four-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT(4)) problem. The RSII solution is given as a perturbation of the AdS(5)-CFT(4) solution, with the perturbation parameter being the radius of curvature of the brane metric compared to the AdS length ℓ. The brane metric is then a specific perturbation of the AdS(5)-CFT(4) boundary metric. For low curvatures the RSII solution reproduces 4D general relativity on the brane. Recently, AdS(5)-CFT(4) solutions with a 4D Schwarzschild boundary metric were numerically constructed. We modify the boundary conditions to numerically construct large RSII static black holes with radius up to ~20ℓ. For a large radius, the RSII solutions are indeed close to the associated AdS(5)-CFT(4) solution. © 2011 American Physical Society

Indicators of Informal Funds Transfer Systems: A Comparison of Traditional and Modern Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

2008-12-01

comply with anti-money laundering ( AML ) and combating the financing of terrorism ( CFT ) laws. However, coordination at the international, federal...recognized inter-governmental agency to develop national and international standards for AML and CFT . FATF’s approach to IFTS has predominantly been to...Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and enact AML and CFT procedures.123 Furthermore, the states are inconsistent with their licensing requirements and do

An evaluation of the impact of introducing compassion focused therapy to a standard treatment programme for people with eating disorders.

PubMed

Gale, Corinne; Gilbert, Paul; Read, Natalie; Goss, Ken

2014-01-01

This study explored the outcome of introducing Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) into a standard treatment programme for people with eating disorders. In particular, the aim was to evaluate the principle that CFT can be used with people with eating disorders and improve eating disorder symptomatology. Routinely collected questionnaire data were used to assess cognitive and behavioural aspects of eating disorders and social functioning/well being (n = 99). There were significant improvements on all questionnaire measures during the programme. An analysis by diagnosis found that people with bulimia nervosa improved significantly more than people with anorexia nervosa on most of the subscales. Also, in terms of clinical significance, 73% of those with bulimia nervosa were considered to have made clinically reliable and significant improvements at the end of treatment (compared with 21% of people with anorexia nervosa and 30% of people with atypical eating disorders). This study demonstrates the potential benefits of using CFT with people with eating disorders and highlights the need for further research on this new approach. CFT offers new ways to conceptualize and formulate some of the self-critical and shame-based difficulties associated with eating disorders. CFT offers a framework that can enable people with eating disorders to conceptualize their difficulties in different ways. CFT can be combined with standard therapies especially cognitive behavioural therapy. CFT can be especially useful in a group context where the relationships between members can become increasingly compassionate, validating, supportive and encouraging. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Brick walls and AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kay, Bernard S.; Ortíz, L.

2014-05-01

We discuss the relationship between the bulk-boundary correspondence in Rehren's algebraic holography (and in other `fixed-background', QFT-based, approaches to holography) and in mainstream string-theoretic `Maldacena AdS/CFT'. Especially, we contrast the understanding of black-hole entropy from the point of view of QFT in curved spacetime—in the framework of 't Hooft's `brick wall' model—with the understanding based on Maldacena AdS/CFT. We show that the brick-wall modification of a Klein-Gordon field in the Hartle-Hawking-Israel state on dimensional Schwarzschild AdS has a well-defined boundary limit with the same temperature and entropy as the brick-wall-modified bulk theory. One of our main purposes is to point out a close connection, for general AdS/CFT situations, between the puzzle raised by Arnsdorf and Smolin regarding the relationship between Rehren's algebraic holography and mainstream AdS/CFT and the puzzle embodied in the `complementarity principle' proposed by Mukohyama and Israel in their work on the brick-wall approach to black hole entropy. Working on the assumption that similar results will hold for bulk QFT other than the Klein-Gordon field and for Schwarzschild AdS in other dimensions, and recalling the first author's proposed resolution to the Mukohyama-Israel puzzle based on his `matter-gravity entanglement hypothesis', we argue that, in Maldacena AdS/CFT, the algebra of the boundary CFT is isomorphic only to a proper subalgebra of the bulk algebra, albeit (at non-zero temperature) the (GNS) Hilbert spaces of bulk and boundary theories are still the `same'—the total bulk state being pure, while the boundary state is mixed (thermal). We also argue from the finiteness of its boundary (and hence, on our assumptions, also bulk) entropy at finite temperature, that the Rehren dual of the Maldacena boundary CFT cannot itself be a QFT and must, instead, presumably be something like a string theory.

Brucellae through the food chain: the role of sheep, goats and springbok (Antidorcus marsupialis) as sources of human infections in Namibia.

PubMed

Magwedere, K; Bishi, A; Tjipura-Zaire, G; Eberle, G; Hemberger, Y; Hoffman, L C; Dziva, F

2011-12-01

A confirmed case of human brucellosis motivated an investigation into the potential source of infection in Namibia. Since domestic animals are principal sources of Brucella infection in humans, 1692 serum samples were screened from sheep, goats and cattle from 4 presumably at-risk farms and 900 springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) serum samples from 29 mixed farming units for Brucella antibodies by the Rose-Bengal test (RBT) and positive cases confirmed by complement fixation test (CFT). To assess the prevalence of human brucellosis, 137 abattoir employees were tested for Brucella antibodies using the standard tube agglutination test (STAT) and by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Cattle and sheep from all 4 farms were negative by RBT and CFT but 2 of the 4 farms (Ba and C) had 26/42 and 12/285 seropositive goats, respectively. Post mortem examination of seropositive goats revealed no gross pathological lesions typical of brucellosis except enlarged mesenteric and iliac lymph nodes seen in a single buck. Culture for brucellae from organs of seropositive animals was negative. None of the wildlife sera tested positive by either RBT or CFT. Interviews revealed that besides the case that prompted the investigation, a family and another person from other farms with confirmed brucellosis shared a common history of consumption of unpasteurised goat milk, home-made goat cheese and coffee with raw milk and prior contact with goats, suggesting goats as the likely source of infection. All 137 abattoir employees tested negative by STAT, but 3 were positive by ELISA. The 3 abattoir workers were clinically normal and lacked historical connections with clinical cases. Although goats are often associated with B. melitensis, these studies could not explicitly implicate this species owing to cross-reactivity with B. abortus, which can also infect goats. Nevertheless, these data reinforce the need for a better National Control Programme for brucellosis in Namibia.

RpoS contributes to phagocyte oxidase-mediated stress resistance during urinary tract infection by Escherichia coli CFT073.

PubMed

Hryckowian, Andrew J; Welch, Rodney A

2013-02-12

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) is the most common causative agent of community-acquired urinary tract infection (UTI). In order to cause UTI, UPEC must endure stresses ranging from nutrient limitation to host immune components. RpoS (σ(S)), the general stress response sigma factor, directs gene expression under a variety of inhibitory conditions. Our study of rpoS in UPEC strain CFT073 began after we discovered an rpoS-frameshift mutation in one of our laboratory stocks of "wild-type" CFT073. We demonstrate that an rpoS-deletion mutation in CFT073 leads to a colonization defect during UTI of CBA/J mice at 48 hours postinfection (hpi). There is no difference between the growth rates of CFT073 and CFT073 rpoS in urine. This indicates that rpoS is needed for replication and survival in the host rather than being needed to address limitations imposed by urine nutrients. Consistent with previous observations in E. coli K-12, CFT073 rpoS is more sensitive to oxidative stress than the wild type. We demonstrate that peroxide levels are elevated in voided urine from CFT073-infected mice compared to urine from mock-infected mice, which supports the notion that oxidative stress is generated by the host in response to UPEC. In mice that lack phagocyte oxidase, the enzyme complex expressed by phagocytes that produces superoxide, the competitive defect of CFT073 rpoS in bladder colonization is lost. These results demonstrate that σ(S) is important for UPEC survival under conditions of phagocyte oxidase-generated stress during UTI. Though σ(S) affects the pathogenesis of other bacterial species, this is the first work that directly implicates σ(S) as important for UPEC pathogenesis. UPEC must cope with a variety of stressful conditions in the urinary tract during infection. RpoS (σ(S)), the general stress response sigma factor, is known to direct the expression of many genes under a variety of stressful conditions in laboratory-adapted E. coli K-12. Here, we show that σ(S) is needed by the model UPEC strain CFT073 to cope with oxidative stress provided by phagocytes during infection. These findings represent the first report that implicates σ(S) in the fitness of UPEC during infection and support the idea of the need for a better understanding of the effects of this global regulator of gene expression during UTI.

Uniaxial Compressive Constitutive Relationship of Concrete Confined by Special-Shaped Steel Tube Coupled with Multiple Cavities

PubMed Central

Wu, Haipeng; Cao, Wanlin; Qiao, Qiyun; Dong, Hongying

2016-01-01

A method is presented to predict the complete stress-strain curves of concrete subjected to triaxial stresses, which were caused by axial load and lateral force. The stress can be induced due to the confinement action inside a special-shaped steel tube having multiple cavities. The existing reinforced confined concrete formulas have been improved to determine the confinement action. The influence of cross-sectional shape, of cavity construction, of stiffening ribs and of reinforcement in cavities has been considered in the model. The parameters of the model are determined on the basis of experimental results of an axial compression test for two different kinds of special-shaped concrete filled steel tube (CFT) columns with multiple cavities. The complete load-strain curves of the special-shaped CFT columns are estimated. The predicted concrete strength and the post-peak behavior are found to show good agreement within the accepted limits, compared with the experimental results. In addition, the parameters of proposed model are taken from two kinds of totally different CFT columns, so that it can be concluded that this model is also applicable to concrete confined by other special-shaped steel tubes. PMID:28787886

Uniaxial Compressive Constitutive Relationship of Concrete Confined by Special-Shaped Steel Tube Coupled with Multiple Cavities.

PubMed

Wu, Haipeng; Cao, Wanlin; Qiao, Qiyun; Dong, Hongying

2016-01-29

A method is presented to predict the complete stress-strain curves of concrete subjected to triaxial stresses, which were caused by axial load and lateral force. The stress can be induced due to the confinement action inside a special-shaped steel tube having multiple cavities. The existing reinforced confined concrete formulas have been improved to determine the confinement action. The influence of cross-sectional shape, of cavity construction, of stiffening ribs and of reinforcement in cavities has been considered in the model. The parameters of the model are determined on the basis of experimental results of an axial compression test for two different kinds of special-shaped concrete filled steel tube (CFT) columns with multiple cavities. The complete load-strain curves of the special-shaped CFT columns are estimated. The predicted concrete strength and the post-peak behavior are found to show good agreement within the accepted limits, compared with the experimental results. In addition, the parameters of proposed model are taken from two kinds of totally different CFT columns, so that it can be concluded that this model is also applicable to concrete confined by other special-shaped steel tubes.

Environmental Testing and Thermal Analysis of the NPS Solar Cell Array Tester (NPS-SCAT) CubeSat

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-06-01

BCR Battery Charge Regulator C&DH Command and Data Handling CAD Computer Aided Design CDR Critical Design Review CFT Comprehensive Functional Test ...CPT Comprehensive Performance Test CoM Center of Mass COTS Commercial Off-the-Shelf CTB Cargo Transfer Bag EDU Engineering Design Unit EPS...and inexpensive solution. 2 C. ENVIRONMENTAL TESTING Environmental testing is an important element of the design and testing of a satellite. By

The Madrid Train Bombings: A Decision-Making Model Analysis

DTIC Science & Technology

2009-12-11

train bombing terrorist attack AML Anti Money Laundering CFT Combating the Financing of Terrorism ETA Euzkadi Ta Azkatasuna otherwise known as the...Fund board of executives have ―adopted action plans to enhance efforts for AML / CFT [anti money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism...Anti-Money Laundering ( AML ) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism ( CFT ), X-2, http://www1.worldbank.org/finance/html/amlcft /docs/Ref_Guide_EN/v2/10

Acquisition Management System and Data Requirements Control List

DTIC Science & Technology

1998-04-01

o m Moio^Lnun o in ID r-or-r-r-vD -J (*) (N ^^jt^sJt^CN HÖH HHHHHH COCOCOLDCOCOCOCOCOCO r« o PH o PH pii PH 0- 0. PH r>l t...y^ w H W H H J Cfl W W W CO W CU ffi IX) P* CO Cft o CO CO CO CO Cft Cft o H oj rn o o o o HHHHHH OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHH (N

High Energy Scattering in the AdS/CFT Correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Penedones, Joao

2007-12-01

This work explores the celebrated AdS/CFT correspondence in the regime of high energy scattering in Anti--de Sitter (AdS) spacetime. In particular, we develop the eikonal approximation to high energy scattering in AdS and explore its consequences for the dual Conformal Field Theory (CFT). Using position space Feynman rules, we rederive the eikonal approximation for high energy scattering in flat space. Following this intuitive position space perspective, we then generalize the eikonal approximation for high energy scattering in AdS and other spacetimes. Remarkably, we are able to resum, in terms of a generalized phase shift, ladder and cross ladder Witten diagrams associated to the exchange of an AdS spin j field, to all orders in the coupling constant. By the AdS/CFT correspondence, the eikonal amplitude in AdS is related to the four point function of CFT primary operators in the regime of large 't Hooft coupling, including all terms of the 1/N expansion. We then show that the eikonal amplitude determines the behavior of the CFT four point function for small values of the cross ratios in a Lorentzian regime and that this controls its high spin and dimension conformal partial wave decomposition. These results allow us to determine the anomalous dimension of high spin and dimension double trace primary operators, by relating it to the AdS eikonal phase shift. Finally we find that, at large energies and large impact parameters in AdS, the gravitational interaction dominates all other interactions, as in flat space. Therefore, the anomalous dimension of double trace operators, associated to graviton exchange in AdS, yields a universal prediction for CFT's with AdS gravitational duals.

Integrated Strategy for Sustainable Cattle Fever Tick Eradication in USA is Required to Mitigate the Impact of Global Change

PubMed Central

Pérez de León, Adalberto A.; Teel, Pete D.; Auclair, Allan N.; Messenger, Matthew T.; Guerrero, Felix D.; Schuster, Greta; Miller, Robert J.

2012-01-01

The ticks Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) annulatus and R. (B.) microplus, commonly known as cattle and southern cattle tick, respectively, impede the development and sustainability of livestock industries throughout tropical and other world regions. They affect animal productivity and wellbeing directly through their obligate blood-feeding habit and indirectly by serving as vectors of the infectious agents causing bovine babesiosis and anaplasmosis. The monumental scientific discovery of certain arthropod species as vectors of infectious agents is associated with the history of research on bovine babesiosis and R. annulatus. Together, R. microplus and R. annulatus are referred to as cattle fever ticks (CFT). Bovine babesiosis became a regulated foreign animal disease in the United States of America (U.S.) through efforts of the Cattle Fever Tick Eradication Program (CFTEP) established in 1906. The U.S. was declared free of CFT in 1943, with the exception of a permanent quarantine zone in south Texas along the border with Mexico. This achievement contributed greatly to the development and productivity of animal agriculture in the U.S. The permanent quarantine zone buffers CFT incursions from Mexico where both ticks and babesiosis are endemic. Until recently, the elimination of CFT outbreaks relied solely on the use of coumaphos, an organophosphate acaricide, in dipping vats or as a spray to treat livestock, or the vacation of pastures. However, ecological, societal, and economical changes are shifting the paradigm of systematically treating livestock to eradicate CFT. Keeping the U.S. CFT-free is a critical animal health issue affecting the economic stability of livestock and wildlife enterprises. Here, we describe vulnerabilities associated with global change forces challenging the CFTEP. The concept of integrated CFT eradication is discussed in reference to global change. PMID:22712018

Radial quantization of the 3d CFT and the higher spin/vector model duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Shan; Li, Tianjun

2014-10-01

We study the radial quantization of the 3dO(N) vector model. We calculate the higher spin charges whose commutation relations give the higher spin algebra. The Fock states of higher spin gravity in AdS4 are realized as the states in the 3d CFT. The dynamical information is encoded in their inner products. This serves as the simplest explicit demonstration of the CFT definition for the quantum gravity.

$$ \\mathcal{N} $$ = 4 superconformal bootstrap of the K 3 CFT

DOE PAGES

Lin, Ying-Hsuan; Shao, Shu-Heng; Simmons-Duffin, David; ...

2017-05-23

We study two-dimensional (4; 4) superconformal eld theories of central charge c = 6, corresponding to nonlinear sigma models on K3 surfaces, using the superconformal bootstrap. This is made possible through a surprising relation between the BPS N = 4 superconformal blocks with c = 6 and bosonic Virasoro conformal blocks with c = 28, and an exact result on the moduli dependence of a certain integrated BPS 4-point function. Nontrivial bounds on the non-BPS spectrum in the K3 CFT are obtained as functions of the CFT moduli, that interpolate between the free orbifold points and singular CFT points. Wemore » observe directly from the CFT perspective the signature of a continuous spectrum above a gap at the singular moduli, and fi nd numerically an upper bound on this gap that is saturated by the A1 N = 4 cigar CFT. We also derive an analytic upper bound on the fi rst nonzero eigenvalue of the scalar Laplacian on K3 in the large volume regime, that depends on the K3 moduli data. As two byproducts, we find an exact equivalence between a class of BPS N = 2 superconformal blocks and Virasoro conformal blocks in two dimensions, and an upper bound on the four-point functions of operators of sufficiently low scaling dimension in three and four dimensional CFTs.« less

A coarse-grained generalized second law for holographic conformal field theories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bunting, William; Fu, Zicao; Marolf, Donald

2016-03-01

We consider the universal sector of a d\\gt 2 dimensional large-N strongly interacting holographic CFT on a black hole spacetime background B. When our CFT d is coupled to dynamical Einstein-Hilbert gravity with Newton constant G d , the combined system can be shown to satisfy a version of the thermodynamic generalized second law (GSL) at leading order in G d . The quantity {S}{CFT}+\\frac{A({H}B,{perturbed})}{4{G}d} is non-decreasing, where A({H}B,{perturbed}) is the (time-dependent) area of the new event horizon in the coupled theory. Our S CFT is the notion of (coarse-grained) CFT entropy outside the black hole given by causal holographic information—a quantity in turn defined in the AdS{}d+1 dual by the renormalized area {A}{ren}({H}{{bulk}}) of a corresponding bulk causal horizon. A corollary is that the fine-grained GSL must hold for finite processes taken as a whole, though local decreases of the fine-grained generalized entropy are not obviously forbidden. Another corollary, given by setting {G}d=0, states that no finite process taken as a whole can increase the renormalized free energy F={E}{out}-{{TS}}{CFT}-{{Ω }}J, with T,{{Ω }} constants set by {H}B. This latter corollary constitutes a 2nd law for appropriate non-compact AdS event horizons.

Unique relations between counterfactual thinking and DSM-5 PTSD symptom clusters.

PubMed

Mitchell, Melissa A; Contractor, Ateka A; Dranger, Paula; Shea, M Tracie

2016-05-01

Cognitive models of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) propose that rumination about a trauma may increase particular symptom clusters. One type of rumination, termed counterfactual thinking (CFT), refers to thinking of alternative outcomes for an event. CFT centered on a trauma is thought to increase intrusions, negative alterations in mood and cognitions (NAMC), and marked alterations in arousal and reactivity (AAR). The theorized relations between CFT and specific symptom clusters have not been thoroughly investigated. Also, past work has not evaluated whether the relation is confounded by depressive symptoms, age, gender, or number of traumatic events experienced. The current study examined the unique associations between CFT and PTSD symptom clusters according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 2013) in 51 trauma-exposed treatment-seeking individuals. As predicted, CFT was associated with all PTSD symptom clusters. After controlling for common predictors of PTSD symptom severity (i.e., age, depressive symptoms, and number of traumatic life events endorsed), we found CFT to be significantly associated with the intrusion and avoidance symptom clusters but not the AAR or NAMC symptom clusters. Results from the present study provide further support for the role of rumination in specific PTSD symptom clusters above and beyond symptoms of depression, age, and number of traumatic life events endorsed. Future work may consider investigating interventions to reduce rumination in PTSD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

$$ \\mathcal{N} $$ = 4 superconformal bootstrap of the K 3 CFT

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

Lin, Ying-Hsuan; Shao, Shu-Heng; Simmons-Duffin, David

We study two-dimensional (4; 4) superconformal eld theories of central charge c = 6, corresponding to nonlinear sigma models on K3 surfaces, using the superconformal bootstrap. This is made possible through a surprising relation between the BPS N = 4 superconformal blocks with c = 6 and bosonic Virasoro conformal blocks with c = 28, and an exact result on the moduli dependence of a certain integrated BPS 4-point function. Nontrivial bounds on the non-BPS spectrum in the K3 CFT are obtained as functions of the CFT moduli, that interpolate between the free orbifold points and singular CFT points. Wemore » observe directly from the CFT perspective the signature of a continuous spectrum above a gap at the singular moduli, and fi nd numerically an upper bound on this gap that is saturated by the A1 N = 4 cigar CFT. We also derive an analytic upper bound on the fi rst nonzero eigenvalue of the scalar Laplacian on K3 in the large volume regime, that depends on the K3 moduli data. As two byproducts, we find an exact equivalence between a class of BPS N = 2 superconformal blocks and Virasoro conformal blocks in two dimensions, and an upper bound on the four-point functions of operators of sufficiently low scaling dimension in three and four dimensional CFTs.« less

A conformal truncation framework for infinite-volume dynamics

DOE PAGES

Katz, Emanuel; Khandker, Zuhair U.; Walters, Matthew T.

2016-07-28

Here, we present a new framework for studying conformal field theories deformed by one or more relevant operators. The original CFT is described in infinite volume using a basis of states with definite momentum, P, and conformal Casimir, C. The relevant deformation is then considered using lightcone quantization, with the resulting Hamiltonian expressed in terms of this CFT basis. Truncating to states with C ≤ C max, one can numerically find the resulting spectrum, as well as other dynamical quantities, such as spectral densities of operators. This method requires the introduction of an appropriate regulator, which can be chosen tomore » preserve the conformal structure of the basis. We check this framework in three dimensions for various perturbative deformations of a free scalar CFT, and for the case of a free O(N) CFT deformed by a mass term and a non-perturbative quartic interaction at large- N. In all cases, the truncation scheme correctly reproduces known analytic results. As a result, we also discuss a general procedure for generating a basis of Casimir eigenstates for a free CFT in any number of dimensions.« less

Antibacterial activity of peritoneal exudate in patients treated with 2 g cefotiam for surgical anti-microbial prophylaxis.

PubMed

Miglioli, P A; Schoeffel, U; Gabroska, E; Allerberger, F

1998-01-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of antibacterial activity in peritoneal exudate (PE) of patients treated with cefotiam (CFT). CFT (2 g) was administered as a 'single-shot' antimicrobial prophylaxis to 6 patients at the beginning of colorectal resection. Samples of PE were collected from each patient on days 1, 2 and 3 after surgery. CFT was detectable in the samples of day 1 for 5 of the 6 patients. The influence of PE on antibacterial activity of the antimicrobial drug was evaluated carrying out the MICs of CFT against Escherichia coli K-12, E. coli (ATCC 10798), Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 1003), Proteus rettgeri (Sanelli) and Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 29213) with and without the addition of PE. The presence of PE enhanced the antimicrobial activity of CFT against gram-negative strains, but not against S. aureus (ATCC 29213). These results suggest the presence of substances in PE that possess endogenous antibacterial activity. Thus, antimicrobial activity in PE cannot be predicted by evaluating pathogen sensitivity in vitro only.

Holograms of Flat Space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bagchi, Arjun; Grumiller, Daniel

2013-07-01

The holographic principle has a concrete realization in the Anti-de Sitter/Conformal Field Theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence. If this principle is a true fact about quantum gravity then it must also hold beyond AdS/CFT. In this paper, we address specifically holographic field theory duals of gravitational theories in asymptotically flat spacetimes. We present some evidence of our recent conjecture that three-dimensional (3d) conformal Chern-Simons gravity (CSG) with flat space boundary conditions is dual to an extremal CFT.

Prevalence of Coxiella burnetii Infection in Humans Occupationally Exposed to Animals in Poland

PubMed Central

Galińska, Elżbieta Monika; Niemczuk, Krzysztof; Knap, Józef Piotr

2015-01-01

Abstract Coxiella burnetii is the etiological agent of Q fever, and outbreaks of Q fever have been reported in different parts of Europe both in animals and humans. Human infections are mostly associated with infections in ruminants, e.g., sheep, goats, and cows. Various professional groups are occupationally exposed to infection with C. burnetii. The aim of this study was investigate the prevalence of C. burnetii in farm workers. Serum samples were collected from 151 persons from six different regions of Poland. The serum samples were tested using three serological methods—complement fixation test (CFT), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA). A total of 71 samples of blood were also tested by real-time PCR. The results showed that antibodies against C. burnetii were present in the tested sera. Average percentages of seropositive samples in IFA, ELISA, and CFT were 31.12%, 39.07%, and 15.23%, respectively. Positive results were noted in each testing center. Of the three test types, IFA results were considered the most sensitive. Real-time PCR confirmed the presence of DNA specific for C. burnetii in 10 patients. The farming workforce constitutes an occupational risk group with an increased risk for C. burnetii infection, presumably because of their contact with infected livestock. PMID:25897813

What's the point? Hole-ography in Poincaré AdS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espíndola, Ricardo; Güijosa, Alberto; Landetta, Alberto; Pedraza, Juan F.

2018-01-01

In the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence, we study bulk reconstruction of the Poincaré wedge of AdS_3 via hole-ography, i.e., in terms of differential entropy of the dual CFT_2. Previous work had considered the reconstruction of closed or open spacelike curves in global AdS, and of infinitely extended spacelike curves in Poincaré AdS that are subject to a periodicity condition at infinity. Working first at constant time, we find that a closed curve in Poincaré is described in the CFT by a family of intervals that covers the spatial axis at least twice. We also show how to reconstruct open curves, points and distances, and obtain a CFT action whose extremization leads to bulk points. We then generalize all of these results to the case of curves that vary in time, and discover that generic curves have segments that cannot be reconstructed using the standard hole-ographic construction. This happens because, for the nonreconstructible segments, the tangent geodesics fail to be fully contained within the Poincaré wedge. We show that a previously discovered variant of the hole-ographic method allows us to overcome this challenge, by reorienting the geodesics touching the bulk curve to ensure that they all remain within the wedge. Our conclusion is that all spacelike curves in Poincaré AdS can be completely reconstructed with CFT data, and each curve has in fact an infinite number of representations within the CFT.

Countermeasures and Functional Testing in Head-Down Tilt Bed Rest (CFT 70)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cromwell, Ronita L.

2013-01-01

This 70-day bed rest campaign was comprised of 6 integrated studies and conducted at the NASA Flight Analogs Research Unit (FARU). The FARU is located at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas and is a satellite unit of the Institute for Translational Sciences - Clinical Research Center. This presentation will describe the FARU, discuss the utility of the bed rest platform for use in these studies, and introduce the studies that participated in the CFT 70 bed rest campaign. Information in this presentation will serve as the background for subsequent talks from each individual study. Individual study presentations will discuss preliminary results from completed subjects. Studies included in CFT70 were: ? Physiological Factors Contributing to Post Flight Changes in Functional Performance. J. Bloomberg, NASA ? Integrated Resistance and Aerobic Training Study. L. Ploutz-Snyder, USRA ? Testosterone Supplementation as a Countermeasure Against Musculoskeletal losses during Space Exploration. R. Urban, University of Texas Medical Branch ? Effects of Retronasal Smelling, Variety and Choice on Appetite & Satiety. J. Hunter, Cornell University ? AD ASTRA: Automated Detection of Attitudes and States through Transaction Recordings Analysis. C. Miller, Smart Information Flow Technologies, LLC ? Bed Rest as a Spaceflight Analog to Study Neuro-cognitive Changes: Extent, Longevity, and Neural Bases. R. Seidler, University of Michigan

A New Aging Treatment for Improving Cryogenic Toughness of the Main Structural Alloy of the Super Lightweight Tank

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, P. S.; Stanton, W. P.

1996-01-01

Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) has developed a new technique that can enhance cryogenic fracture toughness and reduce the statistical spread of toughness values in alloy 2195. This aging treatment can control the location and size of strengthening precipitate T1, making improvements possible in cryogenic fracture toughness (CFT) and fracture toughness ratio (FTR). At the start of this program, design of experiments (DOE) ingot No. 10 was used as a baseline for aging process development and optimization. The new aging treatment was found to be very effective, improving CFT by approximately 15 to 20 percent for DOE ingot No. 10. To further evaluate the repeatability and effectiveness of this new treatment, the investigators selected and tested three more lots of alloy 2195, using 1.75-in-thick gauge plates with FTR values ranging from 0.85 to 1.07. The new aging treatment effectively enhanced CFT and FTR values for all three lots. In one instance, the material was considered rejectable because it did not meet the minimum FTR value (1.0) of the super lightweight tank (SLWT). The new aging treatment improved its FTR from 0.85 to 1.01, making this material acceptable for use in the SLWT.

Greybody factors and charges in Kerr/CFT

DOE PAGES

Cvetič, Mirjam; Larsen, Finn

2009-09-01

We compute greybody factors for near extreme Kerr black holes in D = 4 and D = 5. In D = 4 we include four charges so that our solutions can be continuously deformed to the BPS limit. In D = 5 we include two independent angular momenta so Left-Right symmetry is incorporated. We discuss the CFT interpretation of our emission amplitudes, including the overall frequency dependence and the dependence on all black hole parameters. We find that all additional parameters can be incorporated Kerr/CFT, with central charge independent of U(1) charges.

Discrete gravity on random tensor network and holographic Rényi entropy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, Muxin; Huang, Shilin

2017-11-01

In this paper we apply the discrete gravity and Regge calculus to tensor networks and Anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence. We construct the boundary many-body quantum state |Ψ〉 using random tensor networks as the holographic mapping, applied to the Wheeler-deWitt wave function of bulk Euclidean discrete gravity in 3 dimensions. The entanglement Rényi entropy of |Ψ〉 is shown to holographically relate to the on-shell action of Einstein gravity on a branch cover bulk manifold. The resulting Rényi entropy S n of |Ψ〉 approximates with high precision the Rényi entropy of ground state in 2-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT). In particular it reproduces the correct n dependence. Our results develop the framework of realizing the AdS3/CFT2 correspondence on random tensor networks, and provide a new proposal to approximate the CFT ground state.

Holographic framework for eternal inflation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Freivogel, Ben; Sekino, Yasuhiro; Susskind, Leonard; Yeh, Chen-Pin

2006-10-01

In this paper we provide some circumstantial evidence for a holographic duality between bubble nucleation in an eternally inflating universe and a Euclidean conformal field theory (CFT). The holographic correspondence (which is different than Strominger’s de Sitter (dS)/CFT duality) relates the decay of (3+1)-dimensional de Sitter space to a two-dimensional CFT. It is not associated with pure de Sitter space, but rather with Coleman-De Luccia bubble nucleation. Alternatively, it can be thought of as a holographic description of the open, infinite, Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) cosmology that results from such a bubble. The conjectured holographic representation is of a new type that combines holography with the Wheeler-DeWitt formalism to produce a Wheeler-DeWitt theory that lives on the spatial boundary of a k=-1 FRW cosmology. We also argue for a more ambitious interpretation of the Wheeler-DeWitt CFT as a holographic dual of the entire Landscape.

Activity of fosfomycin alone or combined with cefoxitin in vitro and in vivo in a murine model of urinary tract infection due to Escherichia coli harbouring CTX-M-15-type extended-spectrum β-lactamase.

PubMed

Lefort, Agnès; Chau, Françoise; Lepeule, Raphaël; Dubée, Vincent; Kitzis, Marie-Dominique; Dion, Sara; Fantin, Bruno

2014-04-01

The efficacy of fosfomycin alone or combined with cefoxitin was investigated in vitro and in a murine model of urinary tract infection due to susceptible Escherichia coli CFT073-RR and its transconjugant CFT073-RR Tc (pblaCTX-M-15) harbouring a plasmid carrying the blaCTX-M-15 gene. In vitro, the combination of cefoxitin and fosfomycin was synergistic and bactericidal and prevented the emergence of fosfomycin-resistant mutants of CFT073-RR and CFT073-RR Tc (pblaCTX-M-15) that were selected with fosfomycin alone. In vivo, the combination conferred an advantage in terms of kidney sterilisation of mice infected with either strain compared with fosfomycin monotherapy. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. and the International Society of Chemotherapy. All rights reserved.

AGT/ℤ2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Floch, Bruno; Turiaci, Gustavo J.

2017-12-01

We relate Liouville/Toda CFT correlators on Riemann surfaces with boundaries and cross-cap states to supersymmetric observables in four-dimensional N=2 gauge theories. Our construction naturally involves four-dimensional theories with fields defined on different ℤ2 quotients of the sphere (hemisphere and projective space) but nevertheless interacting with each other. The six-dimensional origin is a ℤ2 quotient of the setup giving rise to the usual AGT correspondence. To test the correspondence, we work out the ℝℙ4 partition function of four-dimensional N=2 theories by combining a 3d lens space and a 4d hemisphere partition functions. The same technique reproduces known ℝℙ2 partition functions in a form that lets us easily check two-dimensional Seiberg-like dualities on this nonorientable space. As a bonus we work out boundary and cross-cap wavefunctions in Toda CFT.

Full action of two deformation operators in the D1D5 CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carson, Zaq; Hampton, Shaun; Mathur, Samir D.

2017-11-01

We are interested in thermalization in the D1D5 CFT, since this process is expected to be dual to black hole formation. We expect that the lowest order process where thermalization occurs will be at second order in the perturbation that moves us away from the orbifold point. The operator governing the deformation off of the orbifold point consists of a twist operator combined with a supercharge operator acting on this twist. In a previous paper we computed the action of two twist operators on an arbitrary state of the CFT. In the present work we compute the action of the supercharges on these twist operators, thereby obtaining the full action of two deformation operators on an arbitrary state of the CFT. We show that the full amplitude can be related to the amplitude with just the twists through an action of the supercharge operators on the initial and final states. The essential part of this computation consists of moving the contours from the twist operators to the initial and final states; to do this one must first map the amplitude to a covering space where the twists are removed, and then map back to the original space on which the CFT is defined.

Topologically massive gravity and the AdS/CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skenderis, Kostas; Taylor, Marika; van Rees, Balt C.

2009-09-01

We set up the AdS/CFT correspondence for topologically massive gravity (TMG) in three dimensions. The first step in this procedure is to determine the appropriate fall off conditions at infinity. These cannot be fixed a priori as they depend on the bulk theory under consideration and are derived by solving asymptotically the non-linear field equations. We discuss in detail the asymptotic structure of the field equations for TMG, showing that it contains leading and subleading logarithms, determine the map between bulk fields and CFT operators, obtain the appropriate counterterms needed for holographic renormalization and compute holographically one- and two-point functions at and away from the ``chiral point'' (μ = 1). The 2-point functions at the chiral point are those of a logarithmic CFT (LCFT) with cL = 0,cR = 3l/GN and b = -3l/GN, where b is a parameter characterizing different c = 0 LCFTs. The bulk correlators away from the chiral point (μ ≠ 1) smoothly limit to the LCFT ones as μ → 1. Away from the chiral point, the CFT contains a state of negative norm and the expectation value of the energy momentum tensor in that state is also negative, reflecting a corresponding bulk instability due to negative energy modes.

Introduction to the AdS/CFT Correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nąstase, Horaǧiu

2015-09-01

Preface; Introduction; Part I. Background: 1. Elements of quantum field theory and gauge theory; 2. Basics of general relativity. Anti-de Sitter space; 3. Basics of supersymmetry; 4. Basics of supergravity; 5. Kaluza-Klein dimensional reduction; 6. Black holes and p-branes; 7. String theory actions and spectra; 8. Elements of conformal field theory; 9. D-branes; Part II. Basics of AdS/CFT for N = 4 SYM vs AdS5 × S5: 10. The AdS/CFT correspondence: motivation, definition and spectra; 11. Witten prescription and 3-point correlator calculations; 12. Holography in Lorentzian signature: Poincaré and global; 13. Solitonic objects in AdS/CFT; 14. Quarks and the Wilson loop; 15. Finite temperature and N = 4 SYM plasmas; 16. Scattering processes and gravitational shockwave limit; 17. The pp-wave correspondence; 18. Spin chains; Part III. AdS/CFT Developments and Gauge-Gravity Dualities: 19. Other conformal cases; 20. The 3 dimensional ABJM model vs. AdS4 × CP3; 21. Gravity duals; 22. Holographic renormalization; 23. RG flow between fixed points; 24. Phenomenological gauge-gravity duality I: AdS/QCD; 25. Phenomenological gauge-gravity duality II: AdS/CMT; 26. Gluon scattering: the Alday-Maldacena prescription; 27. Holographic entanglement entropy: the Ryu-Takayanagi prescription.

Comparing calculated free testosterone with total testosterone for screening and diagnosing late-onset hypogonadism in aged males: A cross-sectional study.

PubMed

Liu, Zhangshun; Liu, Jie; Shi, Xiaohong; Wang, Lihong; Yang, Yan; Tao, Minfang; Fu, Qiang

2017-09-01

The aim of this study is to compare calculated free testosterone (cFT) and total testosterone (T) in predicting late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) in middle-aged and elderly males. We surveyed a random sample of 608 males between the ages of 45 and 87 years from Shanghai, China. The Aging Male Symptoms (AMS) questionnaire and the Androgen Deficiency in Aging Male (ADAM) questionnaire were completed by the subjects. Testosterone (T), sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), albumin, and other blood biochemical indexes were measured in 332 males. The corresponding cFT was obtained using the Vermeulen formula and the correlations between T and cFT were analyzed by SPSS statistical software. Among the 332 males who underwent biochemical evaluation, 289 males (87.0%) was positively screened by the ADAM questionnaire and 232 males (69.9%) by the AMS questionnaire. As suggested by linear regression, cFT exhibited a negative correlation with age in both ADAM+ and AMS+ group, whereas T did not appear to have significant correlation with age. Besides, there were statistically significant differences in cFT (P<.001) in the AMS questionnaire. Calculated free testosterone levels are more reliable than T levels for diagnosing LOH in middle-aged and elderly males. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Group-Based Compassion-Focused Therapy as an Adjunct to Outpatient Treatment for Eating Disorders: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

PubMed

Kelly, Allison Catherine; Wisniewski, Lucene; Martin-Wagar, Caitlin; Hoffman, Ellen

2017-03-01

The current study sought to assess the acceptability and feasibility of a compassion-focused therapy (CFT) group as an adjunct to evidence-based outpatient treatment for eating disorders, and to examine its preliminary efficacy relative to treatment as usual (TAU). Twenty-two outpatients with various types of eating disorders were randomly assigned to 12 weeks of TAU (n = 11) or TAU plus weekly CFT groups adapted for an eating disorder population (CFT + TAU; n = 11). Participants in both conditions completed measures of self-compassion, fears of compassion, shame and eating disorder pathology at baseline, week 4, week 8 and week 12. Additionally, participants receiving the CFT group completed measures assessing acceptability and feasibility of the group. Results indicated that the CFT group demonstrated strong acceptability; attendance was high and the group retained over 80% of participants. Participants rated the group positively and indicated they would be very likely to recommend it to peers with similar symptoms. Intention-to-treat analyses revealed that compared to the TAU condition, the CFT + TAU condition yielded greater improvements in self-compassion, fears of self-compassion, fears of receiving compassion, shame and eating disorder pathology over the 12 weeks. Results suggest that group-based CFT, offered in conjunction with evidence-based outpatient TAU for eating disorders, may be an acceptable, feasible and efficacious intervention. Furthermore, eating disorder patients appear to see benefit in, and observe gains from, working on the CFT goals of overcoming fears of compassion, developing more self-compassion and accessing more compassion from others. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Cefotaxime and Amoxicillin-Clavulanate Synergism against Extended-Spectrum-β-Lactamase-Producing Escherichia coli in a Murine Model of Urinary Tract Infection

PubMed Central

Rossi, B.; Soubirou, J. F.; Chau, F.; Massias, L.; Dion, S.; Lepeule, R.; Fantin, B.

2015-01-01

We investigated the efficacies of cefotaxime (CTX) and amoxicillin (AMX)-clavulanate (CLA) (AMC) against extended-spectrum-β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli in vitro and in a murine model of urinary tract infection (UTI). MICs, the checkerboard dilution method, and time-kill curves were used to explore the in vitro synergism between cefotaxime and amoxicillin-clavulanate against two isogenic E. coli strains—CFT073-RR and its transconjugant, CFT073-RR Tc blaCTX-M-15—harboring a blaCTX-M-15 plasmid and a blaOXA-1 plasmid. For in vivo experiments, mice were separately infected with each strain and treated with cefotaxime, amoxicillin, and clavulanate, alone or in combination, or imipenem, using therapeutic regimens reproducing time of free-drug concentrations above the MIC (fT≥MIC) values close to that obtained in humans. MICs of amoxicillin, cefotaxime, and imipenem were 4/>1,024, 0.125/1,024, and 0.5/0.5 mg/liter, for CFT073-RR and CFT073-RR Tc blaCTX-M-15, respectively. The addition of 2 mg/liter of clavulanate (CLA) restored the susceptibility of CFT073-RR Tc blaCTX-M-15 to CTX (MICs of the CTX-CLA combination, 0.125 mg/liter). The checkerboard dilution method and time-kill curves confirmed an in vitro synergy between amoxicillin-clavulanate and cefotaxime against CFT073-RR Tc blaCTX-M-15. In vivo, this antibiotic combination was similarly active against both strains and as effective as imipenem. In conclusion, the cefotaxime and amoxicillin-clavulanate combination appear to be an effective, easy, and already available alternative to carbapenems for the treatment of UTI due to CTX-M-producing E. coli strains. PMID:26525800

Cefotaxime and Amoxicillin-Clavulanate Synergism against Extended-Spectrum-β-Lactamase-Producing Escherichia coli in a Murine Model of Urinary Tract Infection.

PubMed

Rossi, B; Soubirou, J F; Chau, F; Massias, L; Dion, S; Lepeule, R; Fantin, B; Lefort, A

2016-01-01

We investigated the efficacies of cefotaxime (CTX) and amoxicillin (AMX)-clavulanate (CLA) (AMC) against extended-spectrum-β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli in vitro and in a murine model of urinary tract infection (UTI). MICs, the checkerboard dilution method, and time-kill curves were used to explore the in vitro synergism between cefotaxime and amoxicillin-clavulanate against two isogenic E. coli strains-CFT073-RR and its transconjugant, CFT073-RR Tc bla(CTX-M-15)-harboring a bla(CTX-M-15) plasmid and a bla(OXA-1) plasmid. For in vivo experiments, mice were separately infected with each strain and treated with cefotaxime, amoxicillin, and clavulanate, alone or in combination, or imipenem, using therapeutic regimens reproducing time of free-drug concentrations above the MIC (fT≥MIC) values close to that obtained in humans. MICs of amoxicillin, cefotaxime, and imipenem were 4/>1,024, 0.125/1,024, and 0.5/0.5 mg/liter, for CFT073-RR and CFT073-RR Tc bla(CTX-M-15), respectively. The addition of 2 mg/liter of clavulanate (CLA) restored the susceptibility of CFT073-RR Tc bla(CTX-M-15) to CTX (MICs of the CTX-CLA combination, 0.125 mg/liter). The checkerboard dilution method and time-kill curves confirmed an in vitro synergy between amoxicillin-clavulanate and cefotaxime against CFT073-RR Tc bla(CTX-M-15). In vivo, this antibiotic combination was similarly active against both strains and as effective as imipenem. In conclusion, the cefotaxime and amoxicillin-clavulanate combination appear to be an effective, easy, and already available alternative to carbapenems for the treatment of UTI due to CTX-M-producing E. coli strains. Copyright © 2015, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Census taking in the hat: FRW/CFT duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sekino, Yasuhiro; Susskind, Leonard

2009-10-01

In this paper a holographic description of eternal inflation is developed. We focus on the description of an open Friedmann-Robertson-Walker (FRW) universe that results from a tunneling event in which a false vacuum with positive vacuum energy decays to a supersymmetric vacuum with vanishing cosmological constant. The observations of a “census taker” in the final vacuum can be organized into a holographic dual conformal field theory that lives on the asymptotic boundary of space. We refer to this bulk-boundary correspondence as FRW/CFT duality. The dual conformal field theory (CFT) is a Euclidean two-dimensional theory that includes a Liouville 2D gravity sector describing geometric fluctuations of the boundary. The renormalization-group flow of the theory is richer than in the AdS/CFT correspondence, and generates two space-time dimensions—one spacelike and one timelike. We discuss a number of phenomena such as bubble collisions, and the Garriga, Guth Vilenkin “persistence of memory,” from the dual viewpoint.

Momentum fractionation on superstrata

DOE PAGES

Bena, Iosif; Martinec, Emil; Turton, David; ...

2016-05-11

Superstrata are bound states in string theory that carry D1, D5, and momentum charges, and whose supergravity descriptions are parameterized by arbitrary functions of (at least) two variables. In the D1-D5 CFT, typical three-charge states reside in highdegree twisted sectors, and their momentum charge is carried by modes that individually have fractional momentum. Understanding this momentum fractionation holographically is crucial for understanding typical black-hole microstates in this system. We use solution-generating techniques to add momentum to a multi-wound supertube and thereby construct the first examples of asymptotically-flat superstrata. The resulting supergravity solutions are horizonless and smooth up to well-understood orbifoldmore » singularities. Upon taking the AdS3 decoupling limit, our solutions are dual to CFT states with momentum fractionation. We give a precise proposal for these dual CFT states. Lastly, our construction establishes the very nontrivial fact that large classes of CFT states with momentum fractionation can be realized in the bulk as smooth horizonless supergravity solutions.« less

Vibration analysis of the Second Saikai Bridge—a concrete filled tubular (CFT) arch bridge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yoshimura, Mistuhiro; Wu, Qingxiong; Takahashi, Kazuo; Nakamura, Shozo; Furukawa, Kazuyoshi

2006-02-01

Concrete-filled steel tubular (CFT) arch bridges have been rapidly developing in China since 1990. Research has focused on the static behavior, thermal stress and erection technique, however, and there has been very little research of natural vibrations and dynamic responses of these bridges. Japan's first CFT arch bridge in highway bridges, the Second Saikai Bridge, is now under construction in Nagasaki Prefecture. Furthermore, this bridge has a pedestrian bridge that is suspended under the girder, which is rare. Therefore, the natural vibration properties are examined, and the influence of pedestrian bridge structure on the natural vibration of main bridge is discussed first. Response analysis under a moving vehicle and pedestrian is carried out, and the response characteristics and response level are clarified. The natural vibrations and responses are compared to those of CFT arch bridges that have been constructed in China. Results show the fine performance of both main bridge and pedestrian bridge of the Second Saikai Bridge.

Towards causal patch physics in dS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neiman, Yasha

2018-01-01

This contribution is a status report on a research program aimed at obtaining quantum-gravitational physics inside a cosmological horizon through dS/CFT, i.e. through a holographic description at past/future infinity of de Sitter space. The program aims to bring together two main elements. The first is the observation by Anninos, Hartman and Strominger that Vasiliev's higher-spin gravity provides a working model for dS/CFT in 3+1 dimensions. The second is the proposal by Parikh, Savonije and Verlinde that dS/CFT may prove more tractable if one works in so-called "elliptic" de Sitter space - a folded-in-half version of global de Sitter where antipodal points have been identified. We review some relevant progress concerning quantum field theory on elliptic de Sitter space, higher-spin gravity and its holographic duality with a free vector model. We present our reasons for optimism that the approach outlined here will lead to a full holographic description of quantum (higher-spin) gravity in the causal patch of a de Sitter observer.

Black-hole/near-horizon-CFT duality and 4 dimensional classical spacetimes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodriguez, Leo L.

2011-09-01

In this thesis we accomplish two goals: We construct a two dimensional conformal field theory (CFT), in the form of a Liouville theory, in the near horizon limit for three and four dimensions black holes. The near horizon CFT assumes the two dimensional black hole solutions that were first introduced by Christensen and Fulling (1977 Phys. Rev. D 15 2088-104) and later expanded to a greater class of black holes via Robinson and Wilczek (2005 Phys. Rev. Lett. 95 011303). The two dimensions black holes admit a Diff( S1) or Witt subalgebra, which upon quantization in the horizon limit becomes Virasoro with calculable central charge. These charges and lowest Virasoro eigen-modes reproduce the correct Bekenstein-Hawking entropy of the four and three dimensions black holes via the Cardy formula (Blote et al 1986 Phys. Rev. Lett. 56 742; Cardy 1986 Nucl. Phys. B 270 186). Furthermore, the two dimensions CFT's energy momentum tensor is anomalous, i.e. its trace is nonzero. However, In the horizon limit the energy momentum tensor becomes holomorphic equaling the Hawking flux of the four and three dimensions black holes. This encoding of both entropy and temperature provides a uniformity in the calculation of black hole thermodynamics and statistical quantities for the non local effective action approach. We also show that the near horizon regime of a Kerr-Newman-AdS (KNAdS) black hole, given by its two dimensional analogue a la Robinson and Wilczek, is asymptotically AdS 2 and dual to a one dimensional quantum conformal field theory (CFT). The s-wave contribution of the resulting CFT's energy-momentum-tensor together with the asymptotic symmetries, generate a centrally extended Virasoro algebra, whose central charge reproduces the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy via Cardy's Formula. Our derived central charge also agrees with the near extremal Kerr/CFT Correspondence in the appropriate limits. We also compute the Hawking temperature of the KNAdS black hole by coupling its Robinson and Wilczek two dimensional analogue (RW2DA) to conformal matter.

Movement patterns of nilgai antelope in South Texas: Implications for cattle fever tick management.

PubMed

Foley, Aaron M; Goolsby, John A; Ortega-S, Alfonso; Ortega-S, J Alfonso; Pérez de León, A; Singh, Nirbhay K; Schwartz, Andy; Ellis, Dee; Hewitt, David G; Campbell, Tyler A

2017-10-01

Wildlife, both native and introduced, can harbor and spread diseases of importance to the livestock industry. Describing movement patterns of such wildlife is essential to formulate effective disease management strategies. Nilgai antelope (Boselaphus tragocamelus) are a free-ranging, introduced ungulate in southern Texas known to carry cattle fever ticks (CFT, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, R. (B.) annulatus). CFT are the vector for the etiological agent of bovine babesiosis, a lethal disease causing high mortality in susceptible Bos taurus populations and severely affecting the beef cattle industry. Efforts to eradicate CFT from the United States have been successful. However, a permanent quarantine area is maintained between Texas and Mexico to check its entry from infested areas of neighboring Mexico states on wildlife and stray cattle. In recent years, there has been an increase in CFT infestations outside of the permanent quarantine area in Texas. Nilgai are of interest in understanding how CFT may be spread through the landscape. Thirty nilgai of both sexes were captured and fitted with satellite radio collars in South Texas to gain information about movement patterns, response to disturbances, and movement barriers. Median annual home range sizes were highly variable in males (4665ha, range=571-20,809) and females (1606ha, range=848-29,909). Female movement patterns appeared to be seasonal with peaks during June-August; these peaks appeared to be a function of break-ups in female social groups rather than environmental conditions. Nilgai, which reportedly are sensitive to disturbance, were more likely to relocate into new areas immediately after being captured versus four other types of helicopter activities. Nilgai did not cross 1.25m high cattle fences parallel to paved highways but did cross other fence types. Results indicate that females have a higher chance of spreading CFT through the landscape than males, but spread of CFT may be mitigated via maintenance of cattle fences running parallel with paved highways. Our results highlight the importance of documenting species-specific behavior in wildlife-livestock interfaces that can be used to develop effective disease management strategies in the United States and worldwide. Published by Elsevier B.V.

'Do You Practice What You Preach?' A Qualitative Exploration of Therapists' Personal Practice of Compassion Focused Therapy.

PubMed

Gale, Corinne; Schröder, Thomas; Gilbert, Paul

2017-01-01

Therapists' personal practice of therapy techniques can impact on a range of areas, including: empathy for the client, therapeutic understanding, therapist skills and self-awareness. Compassion Focused Therapy (CFT) draws extensively on personal practice during training, and on-going personal practice is encouraged. However, the impact of this has not been examined. To explore therapists' experiences of personal practice in relation to CFT, and the impact this has upon them and their therapeutic work. A qualitative approach was adopted, using inductive thematic analysis. Ten therapists, who had trained in CFT, took part in a semi-structured interview to explore their experiences of personal practice. Five main themes were identified. These highlighted that: (1) experiences of personal practice often felt strange to start with but were surprisingly powerful; (2) with practice, the exercises became more automatic and could be adopted as a 'way of life'; (3) personal practice was felt to increase both self-compassion and compassion for others; (4) personal practice often helped participants to feel more present for their clients; and (5) participants were more aware of what they were bringing to therapy. This exploratory study demonstrated that personal practice is an important part of CFT training and can have a positive impact upon therapists both personally and professionally. It is concluded that the results justify further research in order to establish the applicability of these findings with a larger sample. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Personal practice facilitates experiential learning and is an important element of CFT training, which impacts on both personal and professional development. CFT trainers need to ensure that sufficient time is provided for both personal practice and reflection. CFT trainees should be aware that initial reactions to personal practice can be powerful and sometimes unsettling. As for therapy itself, working through fears, blocks and resistances is important. Personal practice is a valuable self-care strategy, and therapists are encouraged to engage in personal practice after training. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A Solution Space for a System of Null-State Partial Differential Equations: Part 1

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flores, Steven M.; Kleban, Peter

2015-01-01

This article is the first of four that completely and rigorously characterize a solution space for a homogeneous system of 2 N + 3 linear partial differential equations (PDEs) in 2 N variables that arises in conformal field theory (CFT) and multiple Schramm-Löwner evolution (SLE). In CFT, these are null-state equations and conformal Ward identities. They govern partition functions for the continuum limit of a statistical cluster or loop-gas model, such as percolation, or more generally the Potts models and O( n) models, at the statistical mechanical critical point. (SLE partition functions also satisfy these equations.) For such a lattice model in a polygon with its 2 N sides exhibiting a free/fixed side-alternating boundary condition , this partition function is proportional to the CFT correlation function where the w i are the vertices of and where is a one-leg corner operator. (Partition functions for "crossing events" in which clusters join the fixed sides of in some specified connectivity are linear combinations of such correlation functions.) When conformally mapped onto the upper half-plane, methods of CFT show that this correlation function satisfies the system of PDEs that we consider. In this first article, we use methods of analysis to prove that the dimension of this solution space is no more than C N , the Nth Catalan number. While our motivations are based in CFT, our proofs are completely rigorous. This proof is contained entirely within this article, except for the proof of Lemma 14, which constitutes the second article (Flores and Kleban, in Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1404.0035, 2014). In the third article (Flores and Kleban, in Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1303.7182, 2013), we use the results of this article to prove that the solution space of this system of PDEs has dimension C N and is spanned by solutions constructed with the CFT Coulomb gas (contour integral) formalism. In the fourth article (Flores and Kleban, in Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1405.2747, 2014), we prove further CFT-related properties about these solutions, some useful for calculating cluster-crossing probabilities of critical lattice models in polygons.

Reconstruction of Bulk Operators within the Entanglement Wedge in Gauge-Gravity Duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Xi; Harlow, Daniel; Wall, Aron C.

2016-07-01

In this Letter we prove a simple theorem in quantum information theory, which implies that bulk operators in the anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence can be reconstructed as CFT operators in a spatial subregion A , provided that they lie in its entanglement wedge. This is an improvement on existing reconstruction methods, which have at most succeeded in the smaller causal wedge. The proof is a combination of the recent work of Jafferis, Lewkowycz, Maldacena, and Suh on the quantum relative entropy of a CFT subregion with earlier ideas interpreting the correspondence as a quantum error correcting code.

Reconstruction of Bulk Operators within the Entanglement Wedge in Gauge-Gravity Duality.

PubMed

Dong, Xi; Harlow, Daniel; Wall, Aron C

2016-07-08

In this Letter we prove a simple theorem in quantum information theory, which implies that bulk operators in the anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence can be reconstructed as CFT operators in a spatial subregion A, provided that they lie in its entanglement wedge. This is an improvement on existing reconstruction methods, which have at most succeeded in the smaller causal wedge. The proof is a combination of the recent work of Jafferis, Lewkowycz, Maldacena, and Suh on the quantum relative entropy of a CFT subregion with earlier ideas interpreting the correspondence as a quantum error correcting code.

Analog geometry in an expanding fluid from AdS/CFT perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bilić, Neven; Domazet, Silvije; Tolić, Dijana

2015-04-01

The dynamics of an expanding hadron fluid at temperatures below the chiral transition is studied in the framework of AdS/CFT correspondence. We establish a correspondence between the asymptotic AdS geometry in the 4 + 1 dimensional bulk with the analog spacetime geometry on its 3 + 1 dimensional boundary with the background fluid undergoing a spherical Bjorken type expansion. The analog metric tensor on the boundary depends locally on the soft pion dispersion relation and the four-velocity of the fluid. The AdS/CFT correspondence provides a relation between the pion velocity and the critical temperature of the chiral phase transition.

Battleship tank firing test of H-II launch vehicle - First stage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watanabe, Atsutaro; Endo, Mamoru; Yamazaki, Isao; Maemura, Takashi; Namikawa, Tatsuo

1991-06-01

The H-II launch vehicle capable of placing 2-ton-class payloads on geostationary orbits is outlined, and focus is placed on its propulsion system. The development status of the project, including component development, preliminary battleship tank firing test (BFT-1), battleship tank firing test (BFT-2), and flight-type tank firing test (CFT) is discussed. The configuration and schematic diagram of BFT-2 are presented, and the firing test results of BFT-2 first series are analyzed, including engine performance, interface compatibility, and pressurization of subsystems.

Dodging Bullets: The Threat of Space Debris to U.S. National Security

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-06-11

compliance with any additional national level anti-money laundering and counter-financing of terrorism ( AML / CFT ) legislation. Three different member...jurisdictions volunteer to provide an AML / CFT specialist in one of the three on-site evaluation categories: law enforcement, regulatory and legal.25...

Positive gravitational subsystem energies from CFT cone relative entropies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neuenfeld, Dominik; Saraswat, Krishan; Van Raamsdonk, Mark

2018-06-01

The positivity of relative entropy for spatial subsystems in a holographic CFT implies the positivity of certain quantities in the dual gravitational theory. In this note, we consider CFT subsystems whose boundaries lie on the lightcone of a point p. We show that the positive gravitational quantity which corresponds to the relative entropy for such a subsystem A is a novel notion of energy associated with a gravitational subsystem bounded by the minimal area extremal surface à associated with A and by the AdS boundary region  corresponding to the part of the lightcone from p bounded by ∂ A. This generalizes the results of arXiv:1605.01075 for ball-shaped regions by making use of the recent results in arXiv:1703.10656 for the vacuum modular Hamiltonian of regions bounded on lightcones. As part of our analysis, we give an analytic expression for the extremal surface in pure AdS associated with any such region A. We note that its form immediately implies the Markov property of the CFT vacuum (saturation of strong subadditivity) for regions bounded on the same lightcone. This gives a holographic proof of the result proven for general CFTs in arXiv:1703.10656. A similar holographic proof shows the Markov property for regions bounded on a lightsheet for non-conformal holographic theories defined by relevant perturbations of a CFT.

Sex differences in the association of physical function and cognitive function with life satisfaction in older age: The Rancho Bernardo Study.

PubMed

Ratigan, Amanda; Kritz-Silverstein, Donna; Barrett-Connor, Elizabeth

2016-07-01

This study examines the cross-sectional associations of cognitive and physical function with life satisfaction in middle-class, community-dwelling adults aged 60 and older. Participants were 632 women and 410 men who had cognitive function tests (CFT) and physical function tasks (PFT) assessed at a clinic visit between 1988 and 1992, and who responded in 1992 to a mailed survey that included life satisfaction measures. Cognitive impairment was defined as ≤24 on MMSE, ≥132 on Trails B, ≤12 on Category Fluency, ≤13 on Buschke long-term recall, and ≤7 on Heaton immediate recall. Physical impairment was defined as participants' self-reported difficulty (yes/no) in performing 10 physical functions. Multiple linear regression examined associations between life satisfaction and impairment on ≥1 CFT or difficulty with ≥1 PFT. The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS; range:0-26) and Life Satisfaction Index-Z (LSI-Z; range:5-35). Participants' average age was 73.4 years (range=60-94). Categorically defined cognitive impairment was present in 40% of men and 47% of women. Additionally, 30% of men and 43% of women reported difficulty performing any PFT. Adjusting for age and impairment on ≥1 CFT, difficulty performing ≥1 PFT was associated with lower LSI-Z and SWLS scores in men (β=-1.73, -1.26, respectively, p<0.05) and women (β=-1.79, -1.93, respectively, p<0.01). However, impairment on ≥ 1 CFT was not associated with LSI-Z or SWLS score after adjusting for age and difficulty with ≥1 PFT. Limited cognitive function was more common than limited physical function; however, limited physical function was more predictive of lower life satisfaction. Interventions to increase or maintain mobility among older adults may improve overall life satisfaction. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

Effects of Vegetation Microclimate on Larval Cattle Fever Tick Survival

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cattle Fever Ticks (CFT), Rhipicephalus annulatus and R. microplus, have been a threat to the livestock industry for many years. These ticks are vectors of cattle fever, a disease produced by the hemoparasite Babesia bovis and B. bigemina. Laboratory research on CFT larval survival has shown that co...

The complexity of identifying Ryu-Takayanagi surfaces in AdS 3/CFT 2

DOE PAGES

Bao, Ning; Chatwin-Davies, A.

2016-11-07

Here, we present a constructive algorithm for the determination of Ryu-Takayanagi surfaces in AdS 3/CFT 2 which exploits previously noted connections between holographic entanglement entropy and max-flow/min-cut. We then characterize its complexity as a polynomial time algorithm.

Prevalence of equine Piroplasmosis and its association with tick infestation in the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Serum samples were collected from 582 horses from 40 stud farms in the State of São Paulo and tick (Acari: Ixodidae) infestations were evaluated on them. Serum samples were subjected to the complement fixation test (CFT) and a competitive inhibition ELISA (cELISA) for Babesia caballi and Theileria e...

Shedding light on thirteen years of darkness: content analysis of articles pertaining to transgender issues in marriage/couple and family therapy journals.

PubMed

Blumer, Markie L C; Green, Mary S; Knowles, Sarah J; Williams, April

2012-06-01

What is the extent to which marriage/couple and family therapy (M/CFT) journals address transgender issues and how many of them say they are inclusive of transgender persons when they are not? To answer these queries, a content analysis was conducted on articles published in M/CFT literature from 1997 through 2009. Of the 10,739 articles examined in 17 journals, only nine (0.0008%) focused on transgender issues or used gender variance as a variable. Findings support the assertion that transgender issues are ignored and marginalized by M/CFT scholars and researchers alike. © 2012 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

Stiffening of short small-size circular composite steel–concrete columns with shear connectors

PubMed Central

Younes, Sherif M.; Ramadan, Hazem M.; Mourad, Sherif A.

2015-01-01

An experimental program was conducted to investigate the effect of shear connectors’ distribution and method of load application on load–displacement relationship and behavior of thin-walled short concrete-filled steel tube (CFT) columns when subjected to axial load. The study focused on the compressive strength of the CFT columns and the efficiency of the shear stud in distribution of the load between the concrete core and steel tube. The study showed that the use of shear connectors enhanced slightly the axial capacity of CFT columns. It is also shown that shear connectors have a great effect on load distribution between the concrete and steel tubes. PMID:27222757

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

Alcaraz, Francisco Castilho; Ibanez Berganza, Miguel; Sierra, German

In a quantum critical chain, the scaling regime of the energy and momentum of the ground state and low-lying excitations are described by conformal field theory (CFT). The same holds true for the von Neumann and Renyi entropies of the ground state, which display a universal logarithmic behavior depending on the central charge. In this Letter we generalize this result to those excited states of the chain that correspond to primary fields in CFT. It is shown that the nth Renyi entropy is related to a 2n-point correlator of primary fields. We verify this statement for the critical XX andmore » XXZ chains. This result uncovers a new link between quantum information theory and CFT.« less

Efficacy of brief telephone psychotherapy with callers to a suicide hotline.

PubMed

Rhee, Wayne K; Merbaum, Michael; Strube, Michael J; Self, Susan M

2005-06-01

The efficacy of two types of theapy conducted exclusively over the telephone was studied. Clients (N=55) were recruited from a pool of callers to a suicide hotline and were randomly assigned to a waiting list control (WC) or Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) or Common Factors Therapy (CFT). It was hypothesized that improvements would be significantly higher in the two therapy conditions compared to the waitlist control and SFBT would be significantly more efficacious than CFT. Results confirmed that improvement was significantly higher in the two treatment conditions compared to the waitlist control, but no difference in improvement was found between SFBT and CFT. The implications of these findings for suicide hotlines are discussed.

Adapting Compassion Focused Therapy for an Adult with a Learning Disability--A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooper, Rosalind; Frearson, Julia

2017-01-01

Background: Joe was referred to the Community Learning Disabilities Team (CLDT) for support around low mood and overeating. Initial formulation suggested compassion focused therapy (CFT) as an intervention. The evidence base for using CFT with people with learning disabilities is currently limited. Materials and Methods: Adaptations were made to…

A bound on holographic entanglement entropy from inverse mean curvature flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fischetti, Sebastian; Wiseman, Toby

2017-06-01

Entanglement entropies are notoriously difficult to compute. Large-N strongly-coupled holographic CFTs are an important exception, where the AdS/CFT dictionary gives the entanglement entropy of a CFT region in terms of the area of an extremal bulk surface anchored to the AdS boundary. Using this prescription, we show—for quite general states of (2  +  1)-dimensional such CFTs—that the renormalized entanglement entropy of any region of the CFT is bounded from above by a weighted local energy density. The key ingredient in this construction is the inverse mean curvature (IMC) flow, which we suitably generalize to flows of surfaces anchored to the AdS boundary. Our bound can then be thought of as a ‘subregion’ Penrose inequality in asymptotically locally AdS spacetimes, similar to the Penrose inequalities obtained from IMC flows in asymptotically flat spacetimes. Combining the result with positivity of relative entropy, we argue that our bound is valid perturbatively in 1/N, and conjecture that a restricted version of it holds in any CFT.

Stationary holographic plasma quenches and numerical methods for non-killing horizons.

PubMed

Figueras, Pau; Wiseman, Toby

2013-04-26

We explore use of the harmonic Einstein equations to numerically find stationary black holes where the problem is posed on an ingoing slice that extends into the interior of the black hole. Requiring no boundary conditions at the horizon beyond smoothness of the metric, this method may be applied for horizons that are not Killing. As a nontrivial illustration we find black holes which, via AdS-CFT, describe a time-independent CFT plasma flowing through a static spacetime which asymptotes to Minkowski in the flow's past and future, with a varying spatial geometry in between. These are the first nonperturbative examples of stationary black holes which do not have Killing horizons. When the CFT spacetime slowly varies, the CFT stress tensor derived from gravity is well described by viscous hydrodynamics. For fast variation it is not, and the solutions are stationary analogs of dynamical quenches, with the plasma being suddenly driven out of equilibrium. We find evidence these flows become unstable for sufficiently strong quenches, and speculate the instability may be turbulent.

Does boundary quantum mechanics imply quantum mechanics in the bulk?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kabat, Daniel; Lifschytz, Gilad

2018-03-01

Perturbative bulk reconstruction in AdS/CFT starts by representing a free bulk field ϕ (0) as a smeared operator in the CFT. A series of 1 /N corrections must be added to ϕ (0) to represent an interacting bulk field ϕ. These corrections have been determined in the literature from several points of view. Here we develop a new perspective. We show that correlation functions involving ϕ (0) suffer from ambiguities due to analytic continuation. As a result ϕ (0) fails to be a well-defined linear operator in the CFT. This means bulk reconstruction can be understood as a procedure for building up well-defined operators in the CFT which thereby singles out the interacting field ϕ. We further propose that the difficulty with defining ϕ (0) as a linear operator can be re-interpreted as a breakdown of associativity. Presumably ϕ (0) can only be corrected to become an associative operator in perturbation theory. This suggests that quantum mechanics in the bulk is only valid in perturbation theory around a semiclassical bulk geometry.

Development of a cylindrical tracking detector with multichannel scintillation fibers and pixelated photon detector readout

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akazawa, Y.; Miwa, K.; Honda, R.; Shiozaki, T.; Chiga, N.

2015-07-01

We are developing a cylindrical tracking detector for a Σp scattering experiment in J-PARC with scintillation fibers and the Pixelated Photon Detector (PPD) readout, which is called as cylindrical fiber tracker (CFT), in order to reconstruct trajectories of charged particles emitted inside CFT. CFT works not only as a tracking detector but also a particle identification detector from energy deposits. A prototype CFT consisting of two straight layers and one spiral layer was constructed. About 1100 scintillation fibers with a diameter of 0.75 mm (Kuraray SCSF-78 M) were used. Each fiber signal was read by Multi-Pixel Photon Counter (MPPC, HPK S10362-11-050P, 1×1 mm2, 400 pixels) fiber by fiber. MPPCs were handled with Extended Analogue Silicon Photomultipliers Integrated ReadOut Chip (EASIROC) boards, which were developed for the readout of a large number of MPPCs. The energy resolution of one layer was 28% for a 70 MeV proton where the energy deposit in fibers was 0.7 MeV.

Effect of freezing conditions on β-Tricalcium Phosphate /Camphene scaffold with micro sized particles fabricated by freeze casting.

PubMed

Singh, Gurdev; Soundarapandian, S

2018-03-01

The long standing need of the implant manufacturing industries is to fabricate multi-matrix, customized porous scaffold as cost-effectively. In recent years, freeze casting has shown greater opportunity in the fabrication of porous scaffolds (tricalcium phosphate, hydroxyapatite, bioglass, alumina, etc.) such as at ease and good control over pore size, porosity, a range of materials and economic feasibility. In particular, tricalcium phosphate (TCP) has proved as it possesses good biocompatible (osteoinduction, osteoconduction, etc.) and biodegradability hence beta-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP, particle size of 10µm) was used as base material and camphene was used as a freezing vehicle in this study. Both freezing conditions such as constant freezing temperature (CFT) and constant freezing rate (CFR) were used for six different conditional samples (CFT: 30, 35 and 40vol% solid loading; similarly CFR: 30, 35 and 40vol% solid loading) to study and understand the effect of various properties (pore size, porosity and compressive strength) of the freeze-cast porous scaffold. It was observed that the average size of the pore was varying linearly as from lower to higher when the solid loading was varying higher to lower. With the help of scanning electron micrographs (SEM), it was observed that the average size of pore during CFR (9.7/ 6.5/ 4.9µm) was comparatively higher than the process of CFT (6.0/ 4.8/ 2.6µm) with respect to the same solid loading (30/ 35/ 40vol%) conditions. From the Gas pycnometer analysis, it was found that the porosity in both freezing conditions (CFT, CFR) were almost near values such as 32.8% and 28.5%. Further to be observed that with the increase in solid loading, the total porosity value has decreased due to the reduction in the concentration of the freezing vehicle. Hence, the freezing vehicle was found as responsible for the formation of appropriate size and orientation of pores during freeze casting. The compressive strength (CS) testing was clearly indicated that the CS was majorly depending on the size of pore which was depending on solid loading. The CS of CFT-based samples (smaller pore sizes and higher resistance to the propagation of crack) were higher due to the higher solid content (pore size) in compared with CFR-based samples on the similar solid loading conditions. As evidently, it was noted that the CFT-based sample with 40% solid loading has given the compressive strength which has come in the range of cancellous bone. The positive note was that the ratio of Ca/P has come as 1.68 (natural bone) after sintering and that was the required value recommended by the food and drug administration (FDI) for manufacturing of bone implants. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effect of dairy farming system, herd, season, parity, and days in milk on modeling of the coagulation, curd firming, and syneresis of bovine milk.

PubMed

Bittante, G; Cipolat-Gotet, C; Malchiodi, F; Sturaro, E; Tagliapietra, F; Schiavon, S; Cecchinato, A

2015-04-01

The objectives of this study were to characterize the variation in curd firmness model parameters obtained from coagulating bovine milk samples, and to investigate the effects of the dairy system, season, individual farm, and factors related to individual cows (days in milk and parity). Individual milk samples (n = 1,264) were collected during the evening milking of 85 farms representing different environments and farming systems in the northeastern Italian Alps. The dairy herds were classified into 4 farming system categories: traditional system with tied animals (29 herds), modern dairy systems with traditional feeding based on hay and compound feed (30 herds), modern dairy system with total mixed ration (TMR) that included silage as a large proportion of the diet (9 herds), and modern dairy system with silage-free TMR (17 herds). Milk samples were analyzed for milk composition and coagulation properties, and parameters were modeled using curd firmness measures (CFt) collected every 15 s from a lacto-dynamographic analysis of 90 min. When compared with traditional milk coagulation properties (MCP), the curd firming measures showed greater variability and yielded a more accurate description of the milk coagulation process: the model converged for 93.1% of the milk samples, allowing estimation of 4 CFt parameters and 2 derived traits [maximum CF (CF(max)) and time from rennet addition to CF(max) (t(max))] for each sample. The milk samples whose CFt equations did not converge showed longer rennet coagulation times obtained from the model (RCT(eq)) and higher somatic cell score, and came from less-productive cows. Among the sources of variation tested for the CFt parameters, dairy herd system yielded the greatest differences for the contrast between the traditional farm and the 3 modern farms, with the latter showing earlier coagulation and greater instant syneresis rate constant (k(SR)). The use of TMR yielded a greater tmax because of a higher instant curd-firming rate constant (k(CF)). Season of sampling was found to be very important, yielding higher values during winter for all traits except k(CF) and k(SR). All CFt traits were affected by individual cow factors. For parity, milk produced by first-lactation cows showed higher k(CF) and k(SR), but delays in achieving CF(max). With respect to stage of lactation, RCT(eq) and potential asymptotic CF increased during the middle of lactation and stabilized thereafter, whereas the 2 instant rate constants presented the opposite pattern, with the lowest (k(CF)) and highest (k(SR)) values occurring in mid lactation. The new challenge offered by prolonging the test interval and individual modeling of milk technological properties allowed us to study the effects of parameters related to the environment and to individual cows. This novel strategy may be useful for investigating the genetic variability of these new coagulation traits. Copyright © 2015 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Efficient production of methane from artificial garbage waste by a cylindrical bioelectrochemical reactor containing carbon fiber textiles

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

A cylindrical bioelectrochemical reactor (BER) containing carbon fiber textiles (CFT; BER + CFT) has characteristics of bioelectrochemical and packed-bed systems. In this study, utility of a cylindrical BER + CFT for degradation of a garbage slurry and recovery of biogas was investigated by applying 10% dog food slurry. The working electrode potential was electrochemically regulated at −0.8 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). Stable methane production of 9.37 L-CH4 · L−1 · day−1 and dichromate chemical oxygen demand (CODcr) removal of 62.5% were observed, even at a high organic loading rate (OLR) of 89.3 g-CODcr · L−1 · day−1. Given energy as methane (372.6 kJ · L−1 · day−1) was much higher than input electric energy to the working electrode (0.6 kJ · L−1 · day−1) at this OLR. Methanogens were highly retained in CFT by direct attachment to the cathodic working electrodes (52.3%; ratio of methanogens to prokaryotes), compared with the suspended fraction (31.2%), probably contributing to the acceleration of organic material degradation and removal of organic acids. These results provide insight into the application of cylindrical BER + CFT in efficient methane production from garbage waste including a high percentage of solid fraction. PMID:23497472

The Holographic Principle and the Emergence of Spacetime

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosenhaus, Vladimir

Results within string theory and quantum gravity suggest that spacetime is not fundamental but rather emergent, with the fundamental degrees of freedom living on a boundary surface of one lower dimension than the bulk. This thesis is devoted to studying the holographic principle and its realization for spacetimes with both negative and positive cosmological constant. The holographic principle is most explicitly realized in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence. We examine the extent to which AdS/CFT realizes the holographic principle and study the UV/IR relation. We study aspects of how bulk locality emerges within AdS/CFT. To this effect, we study how to reconstruct the bulk from boundary data. We study how such a reconstruction procedure is sensitive to large changes in the bulk geometry. We study if it is possible to reconstruct a subset of the bulk from a subset of the boundary data. We explore both local and nonlocal CFT quantities as probes of the bulk. One nonlocal quantity is entanglement entropy, and to this effect we construct a framework for computing entanglement entropy within the field theory. The most ambitious application of the holographic principle would be finding the holographic dual to the multiverse. We investigate properties of this putative duality. We extend the UV/IR relation of AdS/CFT to the multiverse, with the UV cutoff of the theory on future infinity being dual to a late time cutoff (measure) in the bulk. We compare various measure proposals and examine their predictions.

Curcumin-Free Turmeric Exhibits Activity against Human HCT-116 Colon Tumor Xenograft: Comparison with Curcumin and Whole Turmeric

PubMed Central

Prasad, Sahdeo; Tyagi, Amit K.; Siddik, Zahid H.; Aggarwal, Bharat B.

2017-01-01

Extensive research within last two decades has indicated that curcumin extracted from turmeric (Curcuma longa), exhibits anticancer potential, in part through the modulation of inflammatory pathways. However, the residual antitumor activity of curcumin-free turmeric (CFT) relative to curcumin or turmeric is not well-understood. In the present study, therefore, we determined activities of these agents in both in vitro and in vivo models of human HCT-116 colorectal cancer (CRC). When examined in an in vitro antiproliferative, clonogenic or anti-inflammatory assay system, we found that curcumin was highly active whereas turmeric and CFT had relatively poor activity against CRC cells. However, when examined in vivo at an oral dose of either 100 or 500 mg/kg given to nude mice bearing CRC xenografts, all three preparations of curcumin, turmeric, and CFT similarly suppressed the growth of the xenograft. The effect of CFT on suppression of tumor growth was dose-dependent, with 500 mg/kg tending to be more effective than 100 mg/kg. Interestingly, 100 mg/kg curcumin or turmeric was found to be more effective than 500 mg/kg. When examined in vivo for the expression of biomarkers associated with cell survival (cIAP-1, Bcl-2, and survivin), proliferation (Ki-67 and cyclin D1) and metastasis (ICAM-1 and VEGF), all were down-modulated. These agents also suppressed inflammatory transcription factors (NF-κB and STAT3) in tumor cells. Overall, our results with CFT provide evidence that turmeric must contain additional bioactive compounds other than curcumin that, in contrast to curcumin, exhibit greater anticancer potential in vivo than in vitro against human CRC. Moreover, our study highlights the fact that the beneficial effects of turmeric and curcumin in humans may be more effectively realized at lower doses, whereas CFT could be given at higher doses without loss in favorable activity. PMID:29311914

Aspects of AdS/CFT: Conformal Deformations and the Goldstone Equivalence Theorem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cantrell, Sean Andrew

The AdS/CFT correspondence provides a map from the states of theories situated in AdSd+1 to those in dual conformal theories in a d-dimensional space. The correspondence can be used to establish certain universal properties of some theories in one space by examining the behave of general objects in the other. In this thesis, we develop various formal aspects of AdS/CFT. Conformal deformations manifest in the AdS/CFT correspondence as boundary conditions on the AdS field. Heretofore, double-trace deformations have been the primary focus in this context. To better understand multitrace deformations, we revisit the relationship between the generating AdS partition function for a free bulk theory and the boundary CFT partition function subject to arbitrary conformal deformations. The procedure leads us to a formalism that constructs bulk fields from boundary operators. We independently replicate the holographic RG flow narrative to go on to interpret the brane used to regulate the AdS theory as a renormalization scale. The scale-dependence of the dilatation spectrum of a boundary theory in the presence of general deformations can be thus understood on the AdS side using this formalism. The Goldstone equivalence theorem allows one to relate scattering amplitudes of massive gauge fields to those of scalar fields in the limit of large scattering energies. We generalize this theorem under the framework of the AdS/CFT correspondence. First, we obtain an expression of the equivalence theorem in terms of correlation functions of creation and annihilation operators by using an AdS wave function approach to the AdS/CFT dictionary. It is shown that the divergence of the non-conserved conformal current dual to the bulk gauge field is approximately primary when computing correlators for theories in which the masses of all the exchanged particles are sufficiently large. The results are then generalized to higher spin fields. We then go on to generalize the theorem using conformal blocks in two and four-dimensional CFTs. We show that when the scaling dimensions of the exchanged operators are large compared to both their spins and the dimension of the current, the conformal blocks satisfy an equivalence theorem.

Holography in Rindler Space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samantray, Prasant

This thesis addresses certain quantum aspects of the event horizon using the AdS/CFT correspondence. This correspondence is profound since it describes a quantum theory of gravity in d + 1 dimensions from the perspective of a dual quantum field theory living in d dimensions. We begin by considering Rindler space which is the part of Minkowski space seen by an observer with a constant proper acceleration. Because it has an event horizon, Rindler space has been studied in great detail within the context of quantum field theory. However, a quantum gravitational treatment of Rindler space is handicapped by the fact that quantum gravity in flat space is poorly understood. By contrast, quantum gravity in anti-de Sitter space (AdS), is relatively well understood via the AdS/CFT correspondence. Taking this cue, we construct Rindler coordinates for AdS (Rindler-AdS space) in d + 1 spacetime dimensions. In three spacetime dimensions, we find novel one-parameter families of stationary vacua labeled by a rotation parameter β. The interesting thing about these rotating Rindler-AdS spaces is that they possess an observer-dependent ergoregion in addition to having an event horizon. Turning next to the application of AdS/CFT correspondence to Rindler-AdS space, we posit that the two Rindler wedges in AdSd +1 are dual to an entangled conformal field theory (CFT) that lives on two boundaries with geometry R × Hd-1. Specializing to three spacetime dimensions, we derive the thermodynamics of Rindler-AdS space using the boundary CFT. We then probe the causal structure of the spacetime by sending in a time-like source and observe that the CFT “knows” when the source has fallen past the Rindler horizon. We conclude by proposing an alternate foliation of Rindler-AdS which is dual to a CFT living in de Sitter space. Towards the end, we consider the concept of weak measurements in quantum mechanics, wherein the measuring instrument is weakly coupled to the system being measured. We consider such measurements in the context of two examples, viz. the decay of an excited atom, and the tunneling of a particle trapped in a well, and discuss the salient features of such measurements.

An alternative path to the boundary: The CFT as the Fourier space of AdS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tolfree, Ian M.

2009-12-01

In this thesis we shed new light on the conjectured duality between an n + 1 dimensional theory of gravity in anti de Sitter space (AdS) and an n dimensional conformal field theory (CFT) by showing that the CFT can be interpreted as the Fourier space of AdS. We then make use of this to gain insight into the nature of black hole entropy. In the first part of this thesis, we give an introduction to the ideas of and review the basics of the AdS/CFT. In the next section we make use of well known integral geometry techniques to derive the Fourier transformation of a function on AdS and see it is a function with compact support on the boundary. Comparing this to the literature, we find that the Green's functions from the literature are actually the Fourier weights of the transformation and that the boundary values of fields appearing in the correspondence are the Fourier coefficients of the transformation. One is thus left to interpret the CFT as the quantized version of a classical theory in AdS and the dual operator as the Fourier coefficients. Group theoretic considerations are discussed in relation to the transformation and its potential use in constructing QCD like theories. In the last section, we then build upon this to study the BTZ black hole. Named after its authors, Banados, Teitelboim and Zanelli, the BTZ black hole is a three dimensional (two space plus one time dimension) black hole in anti de Sitter space. Following standard procedures for modifying Fourier Transformations to accommodate quotient spaces we arrive at a mapping in a black hole background consistent with known results that yields the exact micro-states of a scalar field in a black hole background. We find that the micro-states are the Fourier coefficients on the boundary, which transform under the principal series representation of SL(2, R). Using the knowledge of how to represent a bulk scalar field in the CFT, and knowing how a black hole interacts with a scalar field, we deduce the possible representations of a black hole in the CFT. We find that the black hole micro-states live on the boundary, not on the horizon, and correspond to the possible emission modes of the black hole.

Compilation of Abstracts of Theses Submitted by Candidates for Degrees.

DTIC Science & Technology

1982-05-01

which either ti- tanium or aluminum tubes are used in the heat exchanges . Master of Science in Advisor: R. H. Nunn Mechanical Engineering Department... Testing in an Inert Environment Holihan, R. G., Jr. Investigation of Heat Transfer in 208 LCDR, USN Straight and Curved Rectangular Ducts for Laminar...for c-ft materials fatigue testing . The system uses an HP-9835 Desktop . .tnr, an HP-2240A Measurement and Control Processor and a Materials P System

Post-mortem diagnosis of chronic Chagas's disease comparative evaluation of three serological tests on pericardial fluid.

PubMed

Lopes, E R; Chapadeiro, E; Batista, S M; Cunha, J G; Rocha, A; Miziara, L; Ribeiro, J U; Patto, R J

1978-01-01

In an attempt to improve the post-mortem diagnosis of Chagas's disease the authors performed haemagglutination tests (HAT), fluorescent Trypanosoma cruzi antibody tests (FAT), and complement fixation tests (CFT) on the pericardial fluid obtained at autopsy of 50 individuals with Chagas's heart disease, and 93 patients in whom this disease was not thought to be present. The results demonstrate that all three tests are efficient for the post-mortem diagnosis of Chagas's disease but suggest that their combined use would detect more cases than would one isolated reaction only.

Effect of training with and without a load on military fitness tests and marksmanship.

PubMed

Swain, David P; Ringleb, Stacie I; Naik, Dayanand N; Butowicz, Courtney M

2011-07-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether military-style training performed while carrying a weighted vest and backpack (Load condition) resulted in superior training adaptations (specifically, changes in military fitness and marksmanship) than did more conventional training (No-Load condition). A total of 33 college-aged men and women (16 Load, 17 No-Load) completed all testing and 9 weeks of training (1 h·d, 4 d·wk). No-Load training consisted of military calisthenics, sprints, agility drills, and running. Load training was similar except that running was replaced with stair climbing, and Load increased across the 9 weeks to 20 kg for women and 30 kg for men. Pretraining and posttraining, all subjects performed an uphill treadmill test with full load to determine peak oxygen consumption (VO(2)peak), the marine physical fitness test (PFT) and combat fitness test (CFT) without load, other fitness tests, and an indoor marksmanship test using a laser-fitted carbine. The marksmanship test was performed with full load and done before and immediately after a 200-m shuttle run performed in 60 seconds. Both groups significantly improved their VO(2)peak, PFT, and CFT scores by similar amounts. Pretraining, shooting score decreased significantly after the 200-m run and then rapidly recovered, with no difference between groups. A similar, but nonsignificant, pattern in shooting scores was seen in both groups posttraining. In conclusion, loaded training did not produce measurable advantages compared with unloaded training in this population. A strenuous anaerobic challenge caused a temporary reduction in marksmanship.

The Dutch Brucella abortus monitoring programme for cattle: the impact of false-positive serological reactions and comparison of serological tests.

PubMed

Emmerzaal, A; de Wit, J J; Dijkstra, Th; Bakker, D; van Zijderveld, F G

2002-02-01

The Dutch national Brucella abortus eradication programme for cattle started in 1959. Sporadic cases occurred yearly until 1995; the last infected herd was culled in 1996. In August 1999 the Netherlands was declared officially free of bovine brucellosis by the European Union. Before 1999, the programme to monitor the official Brucella-free status of bovine herds was primarily based on periodical testing of dairy herds with the milk ring test (MRT) and serological testing of all animals older than 1 year of age from non-dairy herds, using the micro-agglutination test (MAT) as screening test. In addition, serum samples of cattle that aborted were tested with the MAT. The high number of false positive reactions in both tests and the serum agglutination test (SAT) and complement fixation test (CFT) used for confirmation seemed to result in unnecessary blockade of herds, subsequent testing and slaughter of animals. For this reason, a validation study was performed in which three indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs), the CFT and the SAT were compared using a panel of sera from brucellosis-free cattle, sera from experimentally infected cattle, and sera from cattle experimentally infected with bacteria which are known to induce cross-reactive antibodies (Pasteurella, Salmonella, Yersinia, and Escherichia). Moreover, four ELISAs and the MRT were compared using a panel of 1000 bulk milk samples from Brucella-free herds and 12 milk samples from Brucella abortus- infected cattle. It is concluded that the ELISA obtained from ID-Lelystad is the most suitable test to monitor the brucelosis free status of herds because it gives rise to fewer false-positive reactions than the SAT.

Heavy quark propagation in an AdS/CFT plasma

DOE PAGES

Casalderrey-Solana, J.

2008-12-01

We compute the momentum broadening of a heavy probe in N = 4 super-symmetric Yang-Mills in the large number of colors limit and strong coupling. The mean momentum transferred squared per unit length, k, is expressed in terms of derivatives of a Wilson line. This definition is used to compute κ via the AdS/CFT correspondence.

AdS/CFT in Fractional Dimension and Higher-Spins at One Loop

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skvortsov, Evgeny; Tran, Tung

2017-08-01

Large-$N$, $\\epsilon$-expansion or the conformal bootstrap allow one to make sense of some of conformal field theories in non-integer dimension, which suggests that AdS/CFT may also extend to fractional dimensions. It was shown recently that the sphere free energy and the $a$-anomaly coefficient of the free scalar field can be reproduced as a one-loop effect in the dual higher-spin theory in a number of integer dimensions. We extend this result to all integer and also to fractional dimensions. Upon changing the boundary conditions in the higher-spin theory the sphere free energy of the large-$N$ Wilson-Fisher CFT can also be reproduced from the higher-spin side.

Framework for Assessing the ICT Competency in Teachers up to the Requirements of "Teacher" Occupational Standard

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Avdeeva, Svetlana; Zaichkina, Olga; Nikulicheva, Nataliya; Khapaeva, Svetlana

2016-01-01

The paper deals with problems of working out a test framework for the assessment of teachers' ICT competency in line with the requirements of "Teacher" occupational standard. The authors have analyzed the known approaches to assessing teachers' ICT competency--ISTE Standards and UNESCO ICT CFT and have suggested their own approach to…

Hypothermic general cold adaptation induced by local cold acclimation.

PubMed

Savourey, G; Barnavol, B; Caravel, J P; Feuerstein, C; Bittel, J H

1996-01-01

To study relationships between local cold adaptation of the lower limbs and general cold adaptation, eight subjects were submitted both to a cold foot test (CFT, 5 degrees C water immersion, 5 min) and to a whole-body standard cold air test (SCAT, 1 degree C, 2 h, nude at rest) before and after a local cold acclimation (LCA) of the lower limbs effected by repeated cold water immersions. The LCA induced a local cold adaptation confirmed by higher skin temperatures of the lower limbs during CFT and a hypothermic insulative general cold adaptation (decreased rectal temperature and mean skin temperature P < 0.05) without a change either in metabolic heat production or in lower limb skin temperatures during SCAT after LCA. It was concluded that local cold adaptation was related to the habituation process confirmed by decreased plasma concentrations of noradrenaline (NA) during LCA (P < 0.05). However, the hypothermic insulative general cold adaptation was unrelated either to local cold adaptation or to the habituation process, because an increased NA during SCAT after LCA (P < 0.05) was observed but was rather related to a "T3 polar syndrome" occurring during LCA.

A Deconstruction Lattice Description of the D1/D5 Brane World-Volume Gauge Theory

DOE PAGES

Giedt, Joel

2011-01-01

I genermore » alize the deconstruction lattice formulation of Endres and Kaplan to two-dimensional super-QCD with eight supercharges, denoted by (4,4), and bifundamental matter. I specialize to a particularly interesting (4,4) gauge theory, with gauge group U ( N c ) × U ( N f ) , and U ( N f ) being weakly gauged. It describes the infrared limit of the D1/D5 brane system, which has been studied extensively as an example of the AdS 3 /CFT 2 correspondence. The construction here preserves two supercharges exactly and has a lattice structure quite similar to that which has previously appeared in the deconstruction approach, that is, site, link, and diagonal fields with both the Bose and Fermi statistics. I remark on possible applications of the lattice theory that would test the AdS 3 /CFT 2 correspondence, particularly one that would exploit the recent worldsheet instanton analysis of Chen and Tong.« less

Effects of kallidinogenase in patients undergoing vitrectomy for diabetic macular edema.

PubMed

Yoshizumi, Yuki; Ohara, Zaigen; Tabuchi, Hitoshi; Sumino, Hitomi; Maeda, Yukiko; Mochizuki, Hideki; Yamane, Ken; Kiuchi, Yoshiaki

2018-05-12

To evaluate the effectiveness of the combination of vitrectomy with kallidinogenase for diabetic macular edema (DME). This study was designed as a prospective, randomized, multicenter study comparing 19 eyes of 19 patients who received 150 units of kallidinogenase administered a day for 52 weeks from the day after vitrectomy (study group) with 20 eyes of 20 patients who received no kallidinogenase (control group). The main outcome measurements included logMAR visual acuity and central foveal thickness (CFT) before surgery and at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after vitrectomy. During follow-up, 11 patients dropped out (six in the study group and five in the control group), leaving 28 eyes in 28 patients for analysis (13 in the study group and 15 in the control group). Visual acuity improved significantly at 12 months in both groups compared with before surgery. The degree of improvement did not differ significantly between the groups. At 12 months, the mean CFT decreased significantly in both groups, with no significant difference in the rate of change between the two groups. In the study group, the visual acuity and CFT significantly improved from 3 to 12 months and from 6 to 12 months, whereas these parameters did not continue to improve in the control group after 6 months (for visual acuity) or 3 months (for CFT). After vitrectomy for DME, visual acuity and CFT improved significantly in both groups, but only patients treated with kallidinogenase continued to have significant improvement throughout the study period.

Thermofield duality for higher spin Rindler Gravity

DOE PAGES

Jevicki, Antal; Suzuki, Kenta

2016-02-15

In this paper, we study the Thermo-field realization of the duality between the Rindler-AdS higher spin theory and O(N) vector theory. The CFT represents a decoupled pair of free O(N) vector field theories. It is shown how this decoupled domain CFT is capable of generating the connected Rindler-AdS background with the full set of Higher Spin fields.

A stereoscopic look into the bulk

DOE PAGES

Czech, Bartlomiej; Lamprou, Lampros; McCandlish, Samuel; ...

2016-07-26

Here, we present the foundation for a holographic dictionary with depth perception. The dictionary consists of natural CFT operators whose duals are simple, diffeomorphism-invariant bulk operators. The CFT operators of interest are the “OPE blocks,” contributions to the OPE from a single conformal family. In holographic theories, we show that the OPE blocks are dual at leading order in 1/N to integrals of effective bulk fields along geodesics or homogeneous minimal surfaces in anti-de Sitter space. One widely studied example of an OPE block is the modular Hamiltonian, which is dual to the fluctuation in the area of a minimalmore » surface. Thus, our operators pave the way for generalizing the Ryu-Takayanagi relation to other bulk fields. Although the OPE blocks are non-local operators in the CFT, they admit a simple geometric description as fields in kinematic space — the space of pairs of CFT points. We develop the tools for constructing local bulk operators in terms of these non-local objects. The OPE blocks also allow for conceptually clean and technically simple derivations of many results known in the literature, including linearized Einstein’s equations and the relation between conformal blocks and geodesic Witten diagrams.« less

One-loop transition amplitudes in the D1D5 CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carson, Zaq; Hampton, Shaun; Mathur, Samir D.

2017-01-01

We consider the issue of thermalization in the D1D5 CFT. Thermalization is expected to correspond to the formation of a black hole in the dual gravity theory. We start from the orbifold point, where the theory is essentially free, and does not thermalize. In earlier work it was noted that there was no clear thermalization effect when the theory was deformed off the orbifold point to first order in the relevant twist perturbation. In this paper we consider the deformation to second order in the twist, where we do find effects that can cause thermalization of an initial perturbation. We consider a 1-loop process where two untwisted copies of the CFT are twisted to one copy and then again untwisted to two copies. We start with a single oscillator excitation on the initial CFT, and compute the effect of the two twists on this state. We find simple approximate expressions for the Bogoliubov coefficients and the behavior of the single oscillator excitation in the continuum limit, where the mode numbers involved are taken to be much larger than unity. We also prove a number of useful relationships valid for processes with an arbitrary number of twist insertions.

A study of non-local holography in the AdS/CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamilton, Alex

This thesis is broadly composed of three topics. After giving a brief overview of the origins of the AdS/CFT duality, we describe a way of representing local bulk fields as quasi-local CFT operators. We show how these smeared boundary operators encode the holographic radial-scale duality, and how this can lead to degrees of freedom consistent with Bekenstein's entropy. We also gain insight into the BTZ black hole, with the horizon, singularity, and thermality arising naturally via these operators. As another aspect of AdS/CFT, we will be interested in the fate of giant gravitons under a marginal deformation. We review the construction and fluctuation spectrum of giants, and then proceed to evaluate them in two different Penrose limits of Lunin and Maldacena's gamma deformed geometry. We find only one to be stable, and describe how the degeneracy of the spectrum is partially broken. Finally, we make a first step towards cosmological particle production in string theory by introducing a first quantized alternative approach to the standard method of calculation. We show how the same calculation can be done with Green's Functions---objects which are well defined in a first quantized setting (such as string theory).

The quantitative measurements of foveal avascular zone using optical coherence tomography angiography in normal volunteers.

PubMed

Ghassemi, Fariba; Mirshahi, Reza; Bazvand, Fatemeh; Fadakar, Kaveh; Faghihi, Houshang; Sabour, Siamak

2017-12-01

To provide normative data of foveal avascular zone (FAZ) and thickness. In this cross-sectional study both eyes of each normal subject were scanned with optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) for foveal superficial and deep avascular zone (FAZ) and central foveal thickness (CFT) and parafoveal thickness (PFT). Out of a total of 224 eyes of 112 volunteers with a mean age of 37.03 (12-67) years, the mean superficial FAZ area was 0.27 mm 2 , and deep FAZ area was 0.35 mm 2 ( P  < 0.001), with no difference between both eyes. Females had a larger superficial (0.32 ± 0.11 mm 2 versus 0.23 ± 0.09 mm 2 ) and deep FAZ (0.40 ± 0.14 mm 2 versus 0.31 ± 0.10 mm 2 ) ( P  < 0.001) than males. By multivariate linear regression analysis, in normal eyes, superficial FAZ area varied significantly with the gender, CFT, and deep FAZ. Deep FAZ varied with the gender and CFT. The gender and CFT influence the size of normal superficial and deep FAZ of capillary network.

Entropy and temperature from black-hole/near-horizon-CFT duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodriguez, Leo; Yildirim, Tuna

2010-08-01

We construct a two-dimensional CFT, in the form of a Liouville theory, in the near-horizon limit of four- and three-dimensional black holes. The near-horizon CFT assumes two-dimensional black hole solutions first introduced by Christensen and Fulling (1977 Phys. Rev. D 15 2088-104) and expanded to a greater class of black holes via Robinson and Wilczek (2005 Phys. Rev. Lett. 95 011303). The two-dimensional black holes admit a Diff(S1) subalgebra, which upon quantization in the horizon limit becomes Virasoro with calculable central charge. This charge and the lowest Virasoro eigen-mode reproduce the correct Bekenstein-Hawking entropy of the four- and three-dimensional black holes via the known Cardy formula (Blöte et al 1986 Phys. Rev. Lett. 56 742; Cardy 1986 Nucl. Phys. B 270 186). Furthermore, the two-dimensional CFT's energy-momentum tensor is anomalous. However, in the horizon limit the energy-momentum tensor becomes holomorphic equaling the Hawking flux of the four- and three-dimensional black holes. This encoding of both entropy and temperature provides a uniformity in the calculation of black hole thermodynamic and statistical quantities for the non-local effective action approach.

Holographic studies of Einsteinian cubic gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bueno, Pablo; Cano, Pablo A.; Ruipérez, Alejandro

2018-03-01

Einsteinian cubic gravity provides a holographic toy model of a nonsupersymmetric CFT in three dimensions, analogous to the one defined by Quasi-topological gravity in four. The theory admits explicit non-hairy AdS4 black holes and allows for numerous exact calculations, fully nonperturbative in the new coupling. We identify several entries of the AdS/CFT dictionary for this theory, and study its thermodynamic phase space, finding interesting new phenomena. We also analyze the dependence of Rényi entropies for disk regions on universal quantities characterizing the CFT. In addition, we show that η/ s is given by a non-analytic function of the ECG coupling, and that the existence of positive-energy black holes strictly forbids violations of the KSS bound. Along the way, we introduce a new method for evaluating Euclidean on-shell actions for general higher-order gravities possessing second-order linearized equations on AdS( d+1). Our generalized action involves the very same Gibbons-Hawking boundary term and counterterms valid for Einstein gravity, which now appear weighted by the universal charge a * controlling the entanglement entropy across a spherical region in the CFT dual to the corresponding higher-order theory.

A shape dynamical approach to holographic renormalization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomes, Henrique; Gryb, Sean; Koslowski, Tim; Mercati, Flavio; Smolin, Lee

2015-01-01

We provide a bottom-up argument to derive some known results from holographic renormalization using the classical bulk-bulk equivalence of General Relativity and Shape Dynamics, a theory with spatial conformal (Weyl) invariance. The purpose of this paper is twofold: (1) to advertise the simple classical mechanism, trading off gauge symmetries, that underlies the bulk-bulk equivalence of General Relativity and Shape Dynamics to readers interested in dualities of the type of AdS/conformal field theory (CFT); and (2) to highlight that this mechanism can be used to explain certain results of holographic renormalization, providing an alternative to the AdS/CFT conjecture for these cases. To make contact with the usual semiclassical AdS/CFT correspondence, we provide, in addition, a heuristic argument that makes it plausible that the classical equivalence between General Relativity and Shape Dynamics turns into a duality between radial evolution in gravity and the renormalization group flow of a CFT. We believe that Shape Dynamics provides a new perspective on gravity by giving conformal structure a primary role within the theory. It is hoped that this work provides the first steps toward understanding what this new perspective may be able to teach us about holographic dualities.

Entanglement asymmetry for boosted black branes and the bound

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Rohit; Singh, Harvendra

2017-06-01

We study the effects of asymmetry in the entanglement thermodynamics of CFT subsystems. It is found that “boosted” Dp-brane backgrounds give rise to the first law of the entanglement thermodynamics where the CFT pressure asymmetry plays a decisive role in the entanglement. Two different strip like subsystems, one parallel to the boost and the other perpendicular, are studied in the perturbative regime Tthermal ≪ TE. We mainly seek to quantify this entanglement asymmetry as a ratio of the first-order entanglement entropies of the excitations. We discuss the AdS-wave backgrounds at zero temperature having maximum asymmetry from where a bound on entanglement asymmetry is obtained. The entanglement asymmetry reduces as we switch on finite temperature in the CFT while it is maximum at zero temperature.

Singularity resolution in string theory and new quantum condensed matter phases

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fidkowski, Lukasz

2007-12-01

In the first part of this thesis (chapters 1 through 4) we study singularity resolution in string theory. We employ an array of techniques, including the AdS-CFT correspondence, exact solvability of low dimensional models, and supersymmetry. We are able to detect a signature of the black hole singularity by analytically continuing certain AdS-CFT correlators. Also in AdS-CFT, we are able to study a D-brane snapping transition on both sides of the correspondence. In the second part (chapters 5 through 7) we study topological phases in condensed matter systems. We investigate theoretical lattice models realizing such phases, use these to derive nontrivial mathematical physics results, and study an idealized quantum interferometer designed to detect such a phase in quantum Hall systems.

Evaluating the piscicide rotenone as an option for eradication of invasive Mozambique tilapia in a Hawaiian brackish-water wetland complex

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nico, Leo; Englund, Ronald A.; Jelks, Howard L.

2015-01-01

Mozambique tilapia Oreochromis mossambicus were recently discovered in ‘Aimakapā Fishpond, a 12-hectare brackish-water wetland complex in Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park, on the Island of Hawai’i. As a possible eradication method, we evaluated rotenone, a natural piscicide used in fish management and the active ingredient in plants traditionally used by indigenous Hawaiians for capturing fish. To assess rotenone’s efficacy in killing tilapia and effects on non-target species, laboratory toxicity tests involved exposing organisms to various concentrations of liquid CFT Legumine (5% rotenone) in static trials of 48-h to 72-h duration. Test organisms included: Mozambique tilapia, non-native guppy Poecilia reticulata, the non-native odonate Rambur’s forktail Ischnura ramburii, native feeble shrimp Palaemon debilis, and native ‘ōpae’ula shrimp Halocaridina rubra. All organisms and water used in tests were obtained from ‘Aimakapā (12.6–12.7 ppt salinity), or, for H. rubra, an anchialine pool (15.0–15.2 ppt salinity). Survival analyses indicated CFT Legumine concentrations >3 ppm (>0.15 mg/L rotenone) achieved 100% mortality of tilapia and 93% of guppies within 24 h, with most tilapia killed by 6 h and most guppies by 2 h. Little or no mortality was observed among invertebrate exposed to 1 to 5 mg/L CFT Legumine: 0% mortality for ‘ōpae’ula shrimp, 4% for feeble shrimp; and 16% for odonate larvae. The 48 h LC50 values for Mozambique tilapia and guppy were 0.06 and 0.11 mg/L rotenone, respectively. Results demonstrate rotenone’s potential for non-native fish eradication in brackish-water habitats, with benefit of low mortality to certain macro-invertebrates. High rotenone tolerance displayed by ‘ōpae’ula shrimp is noteworthy. Invasive fish are common in anchialine pools, threatening existence of shrimp and other invertebrate fauna. Although rotenone’s effects on freshwater organisms have been well studied, our research represents one of only a few controlled laboratory experiments quantitatively assessing rotenone tolerance of brackish or marine fauna.

Comment on “On the Crooks fluctuation theorem and the Jarzynski equality” [J. Chem. Phys. 129, 091101 (2008)

PubMed Central

Adib, Artur B.

2009-01-01

It has recently been argued that a self-consistency condition involving the Jarzynski equality (JE) and the Crooks fluctuation theorem (CFT) is violated for a simple Brownian process [L. Y. Chen, J. Chem. Phys.129, 091101 (2008)]. This note adopts the definitions in the original formulation of the JE and CFT and demonstrates the contrary. PMID:19566186

Comment on ``On the Crooks fluctuation theorem and the Jarzynski equality'' [J. Chem. Phys. 129, 091101 (2008)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adib, Artur B.

2009-06-01

It has recently been argued that a self-consistency condition involving the Jarzynski equality (JE) and the Crooks fluctuation theorem (CFT) is violated for a simple Brownian process [L. Y. Chen, J. Chem. Phys.129, 091101 (2008)]. This note adopts the definitions in the original formulation of the JE and CFT and demonstrates the contrary.

Deformed D1D5 CFT: A Holographic Probe of Quantum Gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jardine, Ian Theodore

One of the big unsolved questions in gravity research is the black hole information problem. This problem, which pits the unitarity of quantum field theory against smooth classical spacetime, must have a solution in a complete theory of quantum gravity. This thesis will explore aspects of one approach to this problem in the context of string theory. The approach imagines black hole microstates as string theoretic objects. We look at a prototype system, the D1D5 system, and exploit holography to examine the dual conformal field theory (CFT). Specifically, we examine the CFT deformed from the free orbifold point, dual to a very stringy bulk, using a twisted operator that will take us towards the point with the supergravity description. The effects of twisted operators in the CFT are key to understanding physical processes such as emission and thermalization in black hole microstates. We will propose a component twist method for examining the effects of bare twist operators for higher twists in the continuum limit. Our method builds higher twists from simple 2-cycle twists, whose effects are known. We will find that, in this limit, the coefficients describing general states will follow a conjectured general functional form. We then explore the deformed CFT directly by examining operator mixing for untwisted operators. We will exploit the operator product expansion on the covering space, where twist operators of the orbifold are resolved. We use this to examine the mixing of a general supergravity operator, specifically examine the dilaton, and finish with the mixing of a non-supersymmetric candidate operator. We conjecture that this method could be extended to include twisted operators. We will also examine the mixing of the non-supersymmetric candidate operator by examining three point functions. To automate the lengthy and repetitive computations, we wrote a Mathematica package to compute correlation functions and OPEs in the D1D5 CFT. We will explain some of the main functions of this package and how it can be applied to computations. Finally, we will end with a short discussion on future directions.

Individualised cognitive functional therapy compared with a combined exercise and pain education class for patients with non-specific chronic low back pain: study protocol for a multicentre randomised controlled trial

PubMed Central

O'Keeffe, Mary; Purtill, Helen; Kennedy, Norelee; O'Sullivan, Peter; Dankaerts, Wim; Tighe, Aidan; Allworthy, Lars; Dolan, Louise; Bargary, Norma; O'Sullivan, Kieran

2015-01-01

Introduction Non-specific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP) is a very common and costly musculoskeletal disorder associated with a complex interplay of biopsychosocial factors. Cognitive functional therapy (CFT) represents a novel, patient-centred intervention which directly challenges pain-related behaviours in a cognitively integrated, functionally specific and graduated manner. CFT aims to target all biopsychosocial factors that are deemed to be barriers to recovery for an individual patient with NSCLBP. A recent randomised controlled trial (RCT) demonstrated the superiority of individualised CFT for NSCLBP compared to manual therapy combined with exercise. However, several previous RCTs have suggested that class-based interventions are as effective as individualised interventions. Therefore, it is important to examine whether an individualised intervention, such as CFT, demonstrates clinical effectiveness compared to a relatively cheaper exercise and education class. The current study will compare the clinical effectiveness of individualised CFT with a combined exercise and pain education class in people with NSCLBP. Methods and analysis This study is a multicentre RCT. 214 participants, aged 18–75 years, with NSCLBP for at least 6 months will be randomised to one of two interventions across three sites. The experimental group will receive individualised CFT and the length of the intervention will be varied in a pragmatic manner based on the clinical progression of participants. The control group will attend six classes which will be provided over a period of 6–8 weeks. Participants will be assessed preintervention, postintervention and after 6 and12 months. The primary outcomes will be functional disability and pain intensity. Non-specific predictors, moderators and mediators of outcome will also be analysed. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval has been obtained from the Mayo General Hospital Research Ethics Committee (MGH-14-UL). Outcomes will be disseminated through publication according to the SPIRIT statement and will be presented at scientific conferences. Trial registration number (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02145728). PMID:26033941

Physiotherapists report improved understanding of and attitude toward the cognitive, psychological and social dimensions of chronic low back pain after Cognitive Functional Therapy training: a qualitative study.

PubMed

Synnott, Aoife; O'Keeffe, Mary; Bunzli, Samantha; Dankaerts, Wim; O'Sullivan, Peter; Robinson, Katie; O'Sullivan, Kieran

2016-10-01

What are physiotherapists' perspectives on managing the cognitive, psychological and social dimensions of chronic low back pain after intensive biopsychosocial training? Qualitative study design using semi-structured interviews to explore physiotherapists' perceptions of their identification and treatment of the biopsychosocial dimensions of chronic low back pain after intensive Cognitive Functional Therapy (CFT) training. Thirteen qualified physiotherapists from four countries who had received specific CFT training. The training involved supervised implementation of CFT in clinical practice with patients. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. An interpretive descriptive analysis was performed using a qualitative software package. Four main themes emerged from the data: self-reported changes in understanding and attitudes; self-reported changes in professional practice; altered scope of practice; and increased confidence and satisfaction. Participants described increased understanding of the nature of pain, the role of patient beliefs, and a new appreciation of the therapeutic alliance. Changes in practice included use of new assessments, changes in communication, and adoption of a functional approach. Since undertaking CFT training, participants described a greater awareness of their role and scope of practice as clinicians in identifying and addressing these factors. Physiotherapists expressed confidence in their capacity and skill set to manage the biopsychosocial dimensions of chronic low back pain after CFT training, and identified a clear role for including these skills within the physiotherapy profession. Despite this, further clinical trials are needed to justify the time and cost of training, so that intensive CFT training may be made more readily accessible to clinicians, which to date has not been the case. [Synnott A, O'Keeffe M, Bunzli S, Dankaerts W, O'Sullivan P, Robinson K, O'Sullivan K (2016) Physiotherapists report improved understanding of and attitude toward the cognitive, psychological and social dimensions of chronic low back pain after Cognitive Functional Therapy training: a qualitative study.Journal of Physiotherapy62: 215-221]. Copyright © 2016 Australian Physiotherapy Association. All rights reserved.

Identification of late-onset hypogonadism in middle-aged and elderly men from a community of China

PubMed Central

Liu, Zhi-Yong; Zhou, Ren-Yuan; Lu, Xin; Zeng, Qin-Song; Wang, Hui-Qing; Li, Zheng; Sun, Ying-Hao

2016-01-01

In this study, we investigated the essential criteria for late-onset hypogonadism (LOH) syndrome based on the presence of symptoms associated with low testosterone levels in Han Chinese men. Blood tests for total testosterone (TT) and sex hormone–binding globulin (SHBG) were performed, and the aging male symptoms (AMS) questionnaire was conducted in a randomly selected cohort composed of 944 Chinese men aged 40 to 79 years from nine urban communities. Three sexual symptoms (decreased ability/frequency of sexual activity, decreased number of morning erections, and decreased libido) were confirmed to be related to the total and free testosterone levels. The thresholds for TT were approximately 12.55 nmol l−1 for a decreased ability/frequency to perform sex, 12.55 nmol l−1 for decreased frequency of morning erections, and 14.35 nmol l−1 for decreased sexual desire. The calculated free testosterone (CFT) thresholds for these three sexual symptoms were 281.14, 264.90, and 287.21 pmol l−1, respectively. TT <13.21 nmol l−1 (OR = 1.4, 95%CI: 1.0–1.9, P = 0.037) or CFT <268.89 pmol l−1 (OR = 1.5, 95%CI: 1.1–20, P = 0.020) was associated with an increase in the aforementioned three sexual symptoms. The prevalence of LOH was 9.1% under the criteria, including all three sexual symptoms with TT levels <13.21 nmol l−1 and CFT levels <268.89 pmol l−1. Our results may improve the diagnostic accuracy of LOH in older men. PMID:26354142

Fundus autofluorescence findings in central serous chorioretinopathy using two different confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopes: correlation with functional and structural status.

PubMed

Shin, Joo Youn; Choi, Hun Jin; Lee, Jonghyun; Choi, Moonjung; Chung, Byunghoon; Byeon, Suk Ho

2016-08-01

To compare autofluorescence (AF) findings using wide-field (Optomap) and conventional (HRA-AF) confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscopy (cSLO) systems in patients with central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC), and to investigate the correlations between AF findings and functional and anatomical status. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and AF images were compared in 73 eyes with serous retinal detachment (SRD) (group A) and 30 eyes without SRD (group B). We evaluated AF findings from the SRD region, atrophic area, and foveola. Correlations between AF findings and outer retinal abnormalities in OCT and visual acuity (VA) were analyzed. Optomap-AF was more effective than HRA-AF in identifying the margins of a detached area (P = 0.001) in group A, and for monitoring mild outer retinal damage (P = 0.041) in group B. The foveolar AF grades in both instruments were significantly correlated with VA and central foveal thickness (CFT) in both group A (Optomap, VA r s = 0.33, P = 0.012; CFT r s = -0.38, P = 0.002; HRA, VA r s = 0.62, P < 0.001; CFT r s = -0.70, P < 0.001) and group B (Optomap, VA r s = 0.71, P < 0.001, CFT r s = -0.78, P < 0.001; HRA, VA r s = 0.40, P = 0.026, CFT r s = -0.40, P = 0.030). Optomap-AF was found to be advantageous for monitoring subretinal status in eyes with SRD, and more accurately reflected mild outer retinal changes in eyes without SRD. Foveolar AF grades of both imaging modalities were significantly correlated with functional and anatomical status.

Multiple Genes Repress Motility in Uropathogenic Escherichia coli Constitutively Expressing Type 1 Fimbriae▿ †

PubMed Central

Simms, Amy N.; Mobley, Harry L. T.

2008-01-01

Two surface organelles of uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), flagella and type 1 fimbriae, are critical for colonization of the urinary tract but mediate opposite actions. Flagella propel bacteria through urine and along mucus layers, while type 1 fimbriae allow bacteria to adhere to specific receptors present on uroepithelial cells. Constitutive expression of type 1 fimbriae leads to repression of motility and chemotaxis in UPEC strain CFT073, suggesting that UPEC may coordinately regulate motility and adherence. To identify genes involved in this regulation of motility by type 1 fimbriae, transposon mutagenesis was performed on a phase-locked type 1 fimbrial ON variant of strain CFT073 (CFT073 fim L-ON), followed by a screen for restoration of motility in soft agar. Functions of the genes identified included attachment, metabolism, transport, DNA mismatch repair, and transcriptional regulation, and a number of genes had hypothetical function. Isogenic deletion mutants of these genes were also constructed in CFT073 fim L-ON. Motility was partially restored in six of these mutants, including complementable mutations in four genes encoding known transcriptional regulators, lrhA, lrp, slyA, and papX; a mismatch repair gene, mutS; and one hypothetical gene, ydiV. Type 1 fimbrial expression in these mutants was unaltered, and the majority of these mutants expressed larger amounts of flagellin than the fim L-ON parental strain. Our results indicate that repression of motility in CFT073 fim L-ON is not solely due to the constitutive expression of type 1 fimbriae on the surfaces of the bacteria and that multiple genes may contribute to this repression. PMID:18359812

4D scattering amplitudes and asymptotic symmetries from 2D CFT

DOE PAGES

Cheung, Clifford; de la Fuente, Anton; Sundrum, Raman

2017-01-25

We reformulate the scattering amplitudes of 4D at space gauge theory and gravity in the language of a 2D CFT on the celestial sphere. The resulting CFT structure exhibits an OPE constructed from 4D collinear singularities, as well as infinite-dimensional Kac-Moody and Virasoro algebras encoding the asymptotic symmetries of 4D at space. We derive these results by recasting 4D dynamics in terms of a convenient foliation of flat space into 3D Euclidean AdS and Lorentzian dS geometries. Tree-level scattering amplitudes take the form of Witten diagrams for a continuum of (A)dS modes, which are in turn equivalent to CFT correlatorsmore » via the (A)dS/CFT dictionary. The Ward identities for the 2D conserved currents are dual to 4D soft theorems, while the bulk-boundary propagators of massless (A)dS modes are superpositions of the leading and subleading Weinberg soft factors of gauge theory and gravity. In general, the massless (A)dS modes are 3D Chern-Simons gauge fields describing the soft, single helicity sectors of 4D gauge theory and gravity. Consistent with the topological nature of Chern-Simons theory, Aharonov-Bohm effects record the \\tracks" of hard particles in the soft radiation, leading to a simple characterization of gauge and gravitational memories. Soft particle exchanges between hard processes define the Kac-Moody level and Virasoro central charge, which are thereby related to the 4D gauge coupling and gravitational strength in units of an infrared cutoff. Lastly, we discuss a toy model for black hole horizons via a restriction to the Rindler region.« less

4D scattering amplitudes and asymptotic symmetries from 2D CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cheung, Clifford; de la Fuente, Anton; Sundrum, Raman

2017-01-01

We reformulate the scattering amplitudes of 4D flat space gauge theory and gravity in the language of a 2D CFT on the celestial sphere. The resulting CFT structure exhibits an OPE constructed from 4D collinear singularities, as well as infinite-dimensional Kac-Moody and Virasoro algebras encoding the asymptotic symmetries of 4D flat space. We derive these results by recasting 4D dynamics in terms of a convenient foliation of flat space into 3D Euclidean AdS and Lorentzian dS geometries. Tree-level scattering amplitudes take the form of Witten diagrams for a continuum of (A)dS modes, which are in turn equivalent to CFT correlators via the (A)dS/CFT dictionary. The Ward identities for the 2D conserved currents are dual to 4D soft theorems, while the bulk-boundary propagators of massless (A)dS modes are superpositions of the leading and subleading Weinberg soft factors of gauge theory and gravity. In general, the massless (A)dS modes are 3D Chern-Simons gauge fields describing the soft, single helicity sectors of 4D gauge theory and gravity. Consistent with the topological nature of Chern-Simons theory, Aharonov-Bohm effects record the "tracks" of hard particles in the soft radiation, leading to a simple characterization of gauge and gravitational memories. Soft particle exchanges between hard processes define the Kac-Moody level and Virasoro central charge, which are thereby related to the 4D gauge coupling and gravitational strength in units of an infrared cutoff. Finally, we discuss a toy model for black hole horizons via a restriction to the Rindler region.

M2-brane surface operators and gauge theory dualities in Toda

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomis, Jaume; Le Floch, Bruno

2016-04-01

We give a microscopic two dimensional {N} = (2, 2) gauge theory description of arbitrary M2-branes ending on N f M5-branes wrapping a punctured Riemann surface. These realize surface operators in four dimensional {N} = 2 field theories. We show that the expectation value of these surface operators on the sphere is captured by a Toda CFT correlation function in the presence of an additional degenerate vertex operator labelled by a representation {R} of SU( N f ), which also labels M2-branes ending on M5-branes. We prove that symmetries of Toda CFT correlators provide a geometric realization of dualities between two dimensional gauge theories, including {N} = (2, 2) analogues of Seiberg and Kutasov-Schwimmer dualities. As a bonus, we find new explicit conformal blocks, braiding matrices, and fusion rules in Toda CFT.

Holographic bulk reconstruction with α' corrections

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roy, Shubho R.; Sarkar, Debajyoti

2017-10-01

We outline a holographic recipe to reconstruct α' corrections to anti-de Sitter (AdS) (quantum) gravity from an underlying CFT in the strictly planar limit (N →∞ ). Assuming that the boundary CFT can be solved in principle to all orders of the 't Hooft coupling λ , for scalar primary operators, the λ-1 expansion of the conformal dimensions can be mapped to higher curvature corrections of the dual bulk scalar field action. Furthermore, for the metric perturbations in the bulk, the AdS /CFT operator-field isomorphism forces these corrections to be of the Lovelock type. We demonstrate this by reconstructing the coefficient of the leading Lovelock correction, also known as the Gauss-Bonnet term in a bulk AdS gravity action using the expression of stress-tensor two-point function up to subleading order in λ-1.

Use of whole-genome sequencing and evaluation of the apparent sensitivity and specificity of antemortem tuberculosis tests in the investigation of an unusual outbreak of Mycobacterium bovis infection in a Michigan dairy herd.

PubMed

Bruning-Fann, Colleen S; Robbe-Austerman, Suelee; Kaneene, John B; Thomsen, Bruce V; Tilden, John D; Ray, Jean S; Smith, Richard W; Fitzgerald, Scott D; Bolin, Steven R; O'Brien, Daniel J; Mullaney, Thomas P; Stuber, Tod P; Averill, James J; Marks, David

2017-07-15

OBJECTIVE To describe use of whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and evaluate the apparent sensitivity and specificity of antemortem tuberculosis tests during investigation of an unusual outbreak of Mycobacterium bovis infection in a Michigan dairy herd. DESIGN Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) outbreak investigation. ANIMALS Cattle, cats, dog, and wildlife. PROCEDURES All cattle in the index dairy herd were screened for bTB with the caudal fold test (CFT), and cattle ≥ 6 months old were also screened with a γ-interferon (γIFN) assay. The index herd was depopulated along with all barn cats and a dog that were fed unpasteurized milk from the herd. Select isolates from M bovis-infected animals from the index herd and other bTB-affected herds underwent WGS. Wildlife around all affected premises was examined for bTB. RESULTS No evidence of bTB was found in any wildlife examined. Within the index herd, 53 of 451 (11.8%) cattle and 12 of 21 (57%) cats were confirmed to be infected with M bovis. Prevalence of M bovis-infected cattle was greatest among 4- to 7-month-old calves (16/49 [33%]) followed by adult cows (36/203 [18%]). The apparent sensitivity and specificity were 86.8% and 92.7% for the CFT and 80.4% and 96.5% for the γIFN assay when results for those tests were interpreted separately and 96.1% and 91.7% when results were interpreted in parallel. Results of WGS revealed that M bovis-infected barn cats and cattle from the index herd and 6 beef operations were infected with the same strain of M bovis. Of the 6 bTB-affected beef operations identified during the investigation, 3 were linked to the index herd only by WGS results; there was no record of movement of livestock or waste milk from the index herd to those operations. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Whole-genome sequencing enhanced the epidemiological investigation and should be used in all disease investigations. Performing the CFT and γIFN assay in parallel improved the antemortem ability to detect M bovis-infected animals. Contact with M bovis-infected cattle and contaminated milk were major risk factors for transmission of bTB within and between herds of this outbreak.

Coming out of the Dark: Content Analysis of Articles Pertaining to Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Issues in Couple and Family Therapy Journals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hartwell, Erica E.; Serovich, Julianne M.; Grafsky, Erika L.; Kerr, Zachary Y.

2012-01-01

The present study seeks to extend previous research regarding literature related to gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) issues published in couple and family therapy (CFT)-related journals by presenting the results from a content analysis of GLB studies in CFT-related journals from 1996 to 2010. Results of the analysis revealed a 238.8% increase in…

The Kerr/CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guica, Monica; Hartman, Thomas; Song, Wei; Strominger, Andrew

2009-12-01

Quantum gravity in the region very near the horizon of an extreme Kerr black hole (whose angular momentum and mass are related by J=GM2) is considered. It is shown that consistent boundary conditions exist, for which the asymptotic symmetry generators form one copy of the Virasoro algebra with central charge cL=(12J)/(ℏ). This implies that the near-horizon quantum states can be identified with those of (a chiral half of) a two-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT). Moreover, in the extreme limit, the Frolov-Thorne vacuum state reduces to a thermal density matrix with dimensionless temperature TL=(1)/(2π) and conjugate energy given by the zero mode generator, L0, of the Virasoro algebra. Assuming unitarity, the Cardy formula then gives a microscopic entropy Smicro=(2πJ)/(ℏ) for the CFT, which reproduces the macroscopic Bekenstein-Hawking entropy Smacro=(Area)/(4ℏG). The results apply to any consistent unitary quantum theory of gravity with a Kerr solution. We accordingly conjecture that extreme Kerr black holes are holographically dual to a chiral two-dimensional conformal field theory with central charge cL=(12J)/(ℏ), and, in particular, that the near-extreme black hole GRS 1915+105 is approximately dual to a CFT with cL˜2×1079.

One-loop transition amplitudes in the D1D5 CFT

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

Carson, Zaq; Hampton, Shaun; Mathur, Samir D.

We consider the issue of thermalization in the D1D5 CFT. Thermalization is expected to correspond to the formation of a black hole in the dual gravity theory. We start from the orbifold point, where the theory is essentially free, and does not thermalize. In earlier work it was noted that there was no clear thermalization effect when the theory was deformed of the orbifold point to first order in the relevant twist perturbation. In this paper we consider the deformation to second order in the twist, where we do find effects that can cause thermalization of an initial perturbation. Wemore » consider a 1-loop process where two untwisted copies of the CFT are twisted to one copy and then again untwisted to two copies. We start with a single oscillator excitation on the initial CFT, and compute the effect of the two twists on this state. We find simple approximate expressions for the Bogoliubov coeffcients and the behavior of the single oscillator excitation in the continuum limit, where the mode numbers involved are taken to be much larger than unity. We also prove a number of useful relationships valid for processes with an arbitrary number of twist insertions.« less

One-loop transition amplitudes in the D1D5 CFT

DOE PAGES

Carson, Zaq; Hampton, Shaun; Mathur, Samir D.

2017-01-02

We consider the issue of thermalization in the D1D5 CFT. Thermalization is expected to correspond to the formation of a black hole in the dual gravity theory. We start from the orbifold point, where the theory is essentially free, and does not thermalize. In earlier work it was noted that there was no clear thermalization effect when the theory was deformed of the orbifold point to first order in the relevant twist perturbation. In this paper we consider the deformation to second order in the twist, where we do find effects that can cause thermalization of an initial perturbation. Wemore » consider a 1-loop process where two untwisted copies of the CFT are twisted to one copy and then again untwisted to two copies. We start with a single oscillator excitation on the initial CFT, and compute the effect of the two twists on this state. We find simple approximate expressions for the Bogoliubov coeffcients and the behavior of the single oscillator excitation in the continuum limit, where the mode numbers involved are taken to be much larger than unity. We also prove a number of useful relationships valid for processes with an arbitrary number of twist insertions.« less

Cognitive skills and academic achievement of deaf children with cochlear implants.

PubMed

Huber, Maria; Kipman, Ulrike

2012-10-01

To compare cognitive performance between children with cochlear implants (CI) and normal-hearing peers; provide information about correlations between cognitive performance, basic academic achievement, and medical/audiological and social background variables; and assess the predictor quality of these variables for cognition. Cross-sectional study with comparison group, diagnostic test assessment. Data were collected in the authors' clinic (children with CI) and in Austrian schools (normal-hearing children). Forty children with CI (of the initial 65 children eligible for this study), aged 7 to 11 years, and 40 normal-hearing children, matched by age and sex, were tested with (a) the Culture Fair Intelligence Test (CFIT); (b) the Number Sequences subtest of the Heidelberger Rechentest 1-4 (HRT); (c) Comprehension, (d) Coding, (e) Digit Span, and (f) Vocabulary subtests of HAWIK III (German WISC III); (g) the Corsi Block Tapping Test; (h) the Arithmetic Operations subtests of the HRT; and (i) Salzburger Lese-Screening (SLS, reading). In addition, medical, audiological, social, and educational data from children with CI were collected. The children with CI equaled normal-hearing children in (a), (d), (e), (g), (h), and (i) and performed significantly worse in (b), (c) and (f). Background variables correlate significantly with cognitive skills and academic achievement. Medical/audiological variables explain 44.3% of the variance in CFT1 (CFIT, younger children). Social variables explain 55% of CFT1 and 24.5% of the Corsi test. This study augments the knowledge about cognitive skills and academic skills of children with CI. Cognitive performance is dependent on the early feasibility to hear and the social/educational background of the family.

Assessment of rotation thromboelastometry parameters in patients with essential thrombocythemia at diagnosis and after hydroxyurea therapy.

PubMed

Treliński, Jacek; Okońska, Marta; Robak, Marta; Chojnowski, Krzysztof

2016-03-01

Patients with essential thrombocythemia suffer from thrombotic complications that are the main source of mortality. Due to its complex pathogenesis, no existing single laboratory method is able to identify the patients at highest risk for developing thrombosis. Twenty patients with essential thrombocythemia at diagnosis, 15 healthy volunteers and 20 patients treated with hydroxyurea were compared with regard to certain rotation thromboelastometry parameters. Clotting time (CT), clot formation time (CFT), α-angle, and maximum clot firmness (MCF) were assessed by using the INTEM, EXTEM, FIBTEM, and NATEM tests. Patients with essential thrombocythemia at diagnosis demonstrated significantly higher mean platelet count and markedly lower mean red blood count than controls. CT and CFT readings were found to be markedly lower in essential thrombocythemia patients at diagnosis than in the control group according to the EXTEM test. Patients at diagnosis had markedly lower CT values (EXTEM, FIBTEM) than patients on hydroxyurea therapy. Alpha angle values were markedly higher in essential thrombocythemia patients at diagnosis than in controls, according to the EXTEM, FIBTEM and NATEM tests. MCF readings were significantly higher in essential thrombocythemia patients at diagnosis than in controls according to EXTEM, INTEM, FIBTEM, and NATEM tests. Patients on hydroxyurea therapy had markedly lower MCF values according to EXTEM test than patients at diagnosis. Patients with essential thrombocythemia demonstrate a prothrombotic state at the time of diagnosis, which is reflected in changes by certain rotation thromboelastometry parameters. The hydroxyurea therapy induces downregulation of the prothrombotic features seen in essential thrombocythemia patients at diagnosis.

Serological inflammatory factors as biomarkers for anatomic response in diabetic macular edema treated with anti-VEGF.

PubMed

Brito, Pedro; Costa, Jorge; Gomes, Nuno; Costa, Sandra; Correia-Pinto, Jorge; Silva, Rufino

2018-05-11

To study the relationship between systemic pro-inflammatory factors and macular structural response to intravitreal bevacizumab for diabetic macular edema (DME). Prospective study including 30 cases with DME, treated with bevacizumab and a minimum follow-up of 6 months. All cases underwent baseline laboratory testing for cardiovascular risk (high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), homocystein), dyslipidemia, renal dysfunction and glucose control. Serum levels of VEGF, soluble ICAM-1, MCP-1 and TNF-α were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Significant associations between systemic factors and quantitative and qualitative spectral-domain optical coherence macular features were analyzed. A mean of 4.82 ± 0.56 intravitreal injections was performed, resulting in significant improvement of central foveal thickness (CFT) (p < 0.001). A significant association with third month CFT decrease <10% was found for hsCRP (3.33 ± 2.01 vs 1.39 ± 1.15 mg/l, p = 0.007) and ICAM1 (975.54 ± 265.49 vs 727.07 ± 336.09 pg/ml, p = 0.012). ROC curve analysis indicated hsCRP and ICAM1 as significant biomarkers for 3rd month reduced anatomic response (area under the curve (AUC) = 0.807, p = 0.009 for hsCRP; AUC = 0.788, p = 0.014 for ICAM1). ROC curve analysis revealed hsCRP as a significant biomarker for 6th month CFT decrease <10% (AUC = 0.903, p < 0.001, cutoff value = 1.81 mg/l). A significant association with 6th month CFT decrease ≥25% was found for serum MCP1 (244.69 ± 49.34 pg/ml vs 319.24 ± 94.88 pg/ml, p = 0.017) and serum VEGF (90.84 ± 37.33 vs 58.28 ± 25.19 pg/ml, p = 0.027). The combined model of serum VEGF and LDL-cholesterol was found to be predictive of 6th month hard exudate severity (p = 0.001, r2 = 0.463). Increased levels of hsCRP and ICAM1 were found to be significant biomarkers for early reduced anatomic response to anti-VEGF treatment. Cases with higher serum levels of such factors had increased CFT values, despite treatment, suggesting inner blood-retinal barrier breakdown that is not adequately responsive to anti-VEGF monotherapy. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Performance Assessment Register. Working Group 12 Preliminary Report

DTIC Science & Technology

1988-08-01

Psychology in the DOD conference. -Amell, J.A. (1986). A comparison of two chord keyboards coding systems for alphanumeric data entry. Masters Thesis . Wright...psycho-motor performance); also, various paper-pencil tests (IST-70, CFT -3, LGT, WFT, KBT, labyrinth) for pilot preselection, ATC selection...reproditction o~f a)"trsct geometrical fig,- tires (GEMAT): ability to perceive aml ] estimate the spiced of nmovitng objects (DEST): non-verbal intelligence (M30

Shedding Light on Thirteen Years of Darkness: Content Analysis of Articles Pertaining to Transgender Issues in Marriage/Couple and Family Therapy Journals

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blumer, Markie L. C.; Green, Mary S.; Knowles, Sarah J.; Williams, April

2012-01-01

What is the extent to which marriage/couple and family therapy (M/CFT) journals address transgender issues and how many of them say they are inclusive of transgender persons when they are not? To answer these queries, a content analysis was conducted on articles published in M/CFT literature from 1997 through 2009. Of the 10,739 articles examined…

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

Faulkner, Thomas; Leigh, Robert G.; Parrikar, Onkar

Here, we study universal features in the shape dependence of entanglement entropy in the vacuum state of a conformal field theory (CFT) on R 1,d--1. We consider the entanglement entropy across a deformed planar or spherical entangling surface in terms of a perturbative expansion in the infinitesimal shape deformation. In particular, we focus on the second order term in this expansion, known as the entanglement density. This quantity is known to be non-positive by the strong-subadditivity property. We also show from a purely field theory calculation that the non-local part of the entanglement density in any CFT is universal, andmore » proportional to the coefficient C T appearing in the two-point function of stress tensors in that CFT. As applications of our result, we prove the conjectured universality of the corner term coefficient σ/CT=π 2/24 in d = 3 CFTs, and the holographic Mezei formula for entanglement entropy across deformed spheres.« less

Aspects of warped AdS3/CFT2 correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Bin; Zhang, Jia-Ju; Zhang, Jian-Dong; Zhong, De-Liang

2013-04-01

In this paper we apply the thermodynamics method to investigate the holographic pictures for the BTZ black hole, the spacelike and the null warped black holes in three-dimensional topologically massive gravity (TMG) and new massive gravity (NMG). Even though there are higher derivative terms in these theories, the thermodynamics method is still effective. It gives consistent results with the ones obtained by using asymptotical symmetry group (ASG) analysis. In doing the ASG analysis we develop a brute-force realization of the Barnich-Brandt-Compere formalism with Mathematica code, which also allows us to calculate the masses and the angular momenta of the black holes. In particular, we propose the warped AdS3/CFT2 correspondence in the new massive gravity, which states that quantum gravity in the warped spacetime could holographically dual to a two-dimensional CFT with {c_R}={c_L}=24 /{Gm{β^2√{{2( {21-4{β^2}} )}}}}.

Boudot's Range-Bounded Commitment Scheme Revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Zhengjun; Liu, Lihua

Checking whether a committed integer lies in a specific interval has many cryptographic applications. In Eurocrypt'98, Chan et al. proposed an instantiation (CFT Proof). Based on CFT, Boudot presented a popular range-bounded commitment scheme in Eurocrypt'2000. Both CFT Proof and Boudot Proof are based on the encryption E(x, r)=g^xh^r mod n, where n is an RSA modulus whose factorization is unknown by the prover. They did not use a single base as usual. Thus an increase in cost occurs. In this paper, we show that it suffices to adopt a single base. The cost of the modified Boudot Proof is about half of that of the original scheme. Moreover, the key restriction in the original scheme, i.e., both the discrete logarithm of g in base h and the discrete logarithm of h in base g are unknown by the prover, which is a potential menace to the Boudot Proof, is definitely removed.

Semiclassics, Goldstone bosons and CFT data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monin, A.; Pirtskhalava, D.; Rattazzi, R.; Seibold, F. K.

2017-06-01

Hellerman et al. (arXiv:1505.01537) have shown that in a generic CFT the spectrum of operators carrying a large U(1) charge can be analyzed semiclassically in an expansion in inverse powers of the charge. The key is the operator state correspondence by which such operators are associated with a finite density superfluid phase for the theory quantized on the cylinder. The dynamics is dominated by the corresponding Goldstone hydrodynamic mode and the derivative expansion coincides with the inverse charge expansion. We illustrate and further clarify this situation by first considering simple quantum mechanical analogues. We then systematize the approach by employing the coset construction for non-linearly realized space-time symmetries. Focussing on CFT3 we illustrate the case of higher rank and non-abelian groups and the computation of higher point functions. Three point function coefficients turn out to satisfy universal scaling laws and correlations as the charge and spin are varied.

AdS/CFT correspondence, quasinormal modes, and thermal correlators in N=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Núñez, Alvaro; Starinets, Andrei O.

2003-06-01

We use the Lorentzian AdS/CFT prescription to find the poles of the retarded thermal Green’s functions of N=4 SU(N) supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory in the limit of large N and large ’t Hooft coupling. In the process, we propose a natural definition for quasinormal modes in an asymptotically AdS spacetime, with boundary conditions dictated by the AdS/CFT correspondence. The corresponding frequencies determine the dispersion laws for the quasiparticle excitations in the dual finite-temperature gauge theory. Correlation functions of operators dual to massive scalar, vector and gravitational perturbations in a five-dimensional AdS-Schwarzschild background are considered. We find asymptotic formulas for quasinormal frequencies in the massive scalar and tensor cases, and an exact expression for vector perturbations. In the long-distance, low-frequency limit we recover results of the hydrodynamic approximation to thermal Yang-Mills theory.

Establishing the cut off values of androgen markers in the assessment of polycystic ovarian syndrome.

PubMed

Nadaraja, R N D; Sthaneshwar, P; Razali, N

2018-04-01

Hyperandrogenism remains as one of the key features in Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) and can be assessed clinically or determined by biochemical assays. Hirsutism is the most common clinical manifestation of hyperandrogenism. The clinical assessment is subjected to wide variability due to poor interobserver agreement and multiple population factors such as ethnic variation, cosmetic procedures and genetic trait. The difficulty in resolving the androgen excess biochemically is due to a lack of consensus as to which serum androgen should be measured for the diagnosis of PCOS. The aim of the study was to compare and establish the diagnostic cut off value for different androgen biomarker for the diagnosis of PCOS. A total of 312 patients classified to PCOS (n = 164) and non PCOS (n = 148) cohorts were selected from the Laboratory Information System (LIS) based on serum total testosterone (TT) and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) from the period of 1st April 2015 to 31st March 2016. PCOS was diagnosed based on Rotterdam criteria. Clinical hyperandrogenism and ultrasound polycystic ovarian morphology were obtained from the clinical records. The other relevant biochemical results such as serum luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and albumin were also obtained from LIS. Free androgen index (FAI), calculated free testosterone (cFT) and calculated bioavailable testosterone (cBT) were calculated for these patients. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis were performed for serum TT, SHBG, FAI, cFT, cBT and LH: FSH ratio to determine the best marker to diagnose PCOS. All the androgen parameters (except SHBG) were significantly higher in PCOS patients than in control (p<0.0001). The highest area under curve (AUC) curve was found for cBT followed by cFT and FAI. TT and LH: FSH ratio recorded a lower AUC and the lowest AUC was seen for SHBG. cBT at a cut off value of 0.86 nmol/L had the highest specificity, 83% and positive likelihood ratio (LR) at 3.79. This is followed by FAI at a cut off value of 7.1% with specificity at 82% and cFT at a cut off value of 0.8 pmol/L with specificity at 80%. All three calculated androgen indices (FAI, cFT and cBT) showed good correlation with each other. Furthermore, cFT, FAI and calculated BT were shown to be more specific with higher positive likelihood ratio than measured androgen markers. Based on our study, the calculated testosterone indices such as FAI, cBT and cFT are useful markers to distinguish PCOS from non-PCOS. Owing to ease of calculation, FAI can be incorporated in LIS and can be reported with TT and SHBG. This will be helpful for clinician to diagnose hyperandrogenism in PCOS.

Taub-NUT Spacetime in the (A)dS/CFT and M-Theory [electronic resource

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Clarkson, Richard

In the following thesis, I will conduct a thermodynamic analysis of the Taub-NUT spacetime in various dimensions, as well as show uses for Taub-NUT and other Hyper-Kahler spacetimes. Thermodynamic analysis (by which I mean the calculation of the entropy and other thermodynamic quantities, and the analysis of these quantities) has in the past been done by use of background subtraction. The recent derivation of the (A)dS/CFT correspondences from String theory has allowed for easier and quicker analysis. I will use Taub-NUT space as a template to test these correspondences against the standard thermodynamic calculations (via the N?ether method), with (in the Taub-NUT-dS case especially) some very interesting results. There is also interest in obtaining metrics in eleven dimensions that can be reduced down to ten dimensional string theory metrics. Taub-NUT and other Hyper-Kahler metrics already possess the form to easily facilitate the Kaluza-Klein reduction, and embedding such metricsinto eleven dimensional metrics containing M2 or M5 branes produces metrics with interesting Dp-brane results.

Holography and quantum states in elliptic de Sitter space

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Halpern, Illan F.; Neiman, Yasha

2015-12-01

We outline a program for interpreting the higher-spin dS/CFT model in terms of physics in the causal patch of a dS observer. The proposal is formulated in "elliptic" de Sitter space d{S}_4/{Z}_2 , obtained by identifying antipodal points in dS 4. We discuss recent evidence that the higher-spin model is especially well-suited for this, since the antipodal symmetry of bulk solutions has a simple encoding on the boundary. For context, we test some other (free and interacting) theories for the same property. Next, we analyze the notion of quantum field states in the non-time-orientable d{S}_4/{Z}_2 . We compare the physics seen by different observers, with the outcome depending on whether they share an arrow of time. Finally, we implement the marriage between higher-spin holography and observers in d{S}_4/{Z}_2 , in the limit of free bulk fields. We succeed in deriving an observer's operator algebra and Hamiltonian from the CFT, but not her S-matrix. We speculate on the extension of this to interacting higher-spin theory.

Asymptotic symmetries, holography and topological hair

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mishra, Rashmish K.; Sundrum, Raman

2018-01-01

Asymptotic symmetries of AdS4 quantum gravity and gauge theory are derived by coupling the holographically dual CFT3 to Chern-Simons gauge theory and 3D gravity in a "probe" (large-level) limit. Despite the fact that the three-dimensional AdS4 boundary as a whole is consistent with only finite-dimensional asymptotic symmetries, given by AdS isometries, infinite-dimensional symmetries are shown to arise in circumstances where one is restricted to boundary subspaces with effectively two-dimensional geometry. A canonical example of such a restriction occurs within the 4D subregion described by a Wheeler-DeWitt wavefunctional of AdS4 quantum gravity. An AdS4 analog of Minkowski "super-rotation" asymptotic symmetry is probed by 3D Einstein gravity, yielding CFT2 structure (in a large central charge limit), via AdS3 foliation of AdS4 and the AdS3/CFT2 correspondence. The maximal asymptotic symmetry is however probed by 3D conformal gravity. Both 3D gravities have Chern-Simons formulation, manifesting their topological character. Chern-Simons structure is also shown to be emergent in the Poincare patch of AdS4, as soft/boundary limits of 4D gauge theory, rather than "put in by hand" as an external probe. This results in a finite effective Chern-Simons level. Several of the considerations of asymptotic symmetry structure are found to be simpler for AdS4 than for Mink4, such as non-zero 4D particle masses, 4D non-perturbative "hard" effects, and consistency with unitarity. The last of these in particular is greatly simplified because in some set-ups the time dimension is explicitly shared by each level of description: Lorentzian AdS4, CFT3 and CFT2. Relatedly, the CFT2 structure clarifies the sense in which the infinite asymptotic charges constitute a useful form of "hair" for black holes and other complex 4D states. An AdS4 analog of Minkowski "memory" effects is derived, but with late-time memory of earlier events being replaced by (holographic) "shadow" effects. Lessons from AdS4 provide hints for better understanding Minkowski asymptotic symmetries, the 3D structure of its soft limits, and Minkowski holography.

Genome-wide association of coagulation properties, curd firmness modeling, protein percentage, and acidity in milk from Brown Swiss cows.

PubMed

Dadousis, C; Biffani, S; Cipolat-Gotet, C; Nicolazzi, E L; Rossoni, A; Santus, E; Bittante, G; Cecchinato, A

2016-05-01

Cheese production is increasing in many countries, and a desire toward genetic selection for milk coagulation properties in dairy cattle breeding exists. However, measurements of individual cheesemaking properties are hampered by high costs and labor, whereas traditional single-point milk coagulation properties (MCP) are sometimes criticized. Nevertheless, new modeling of the entire curd firmness and syneresis process (CFt equation) offers new insight into the cheesemaking process. Moreover, identification of genomic regions regulating milk cheesemaking properties might enhance direct selection of individuals in breeding programs based on cheese ability rather than related milk components. Therefore, the objective of this study was to perform genome-wide association studies to identify genomic regions linked to traditional MCP and new CFt parameters, milk acidity (pH), and milk protein percentage. Milk and DNA samples from 1,043 Italian Brown Swiss cows were used. Milk pH and 3 MCP traits were grouped together to represent the MCP set. Four CFt equation parameters, 2 derived traits, and protein percentage were considered as the second group of traits (CFt set). Animals were genotyped with the Illumina SNP50 BeadChip v.2 (Illumina Inc., San Diego, CA). Multitrait animal models were used to estimate variance components. For genome-wide association studies, the genome-wide association using mixed model and regression-genomic control approach was used. In total, 106 significant marker traits associations and 66 single nucleotide polymorphisms were identified on 12 chromosomes (1, 6, 9, 11, 13, 15, 16, 19, 20, 23, 26, and 28). Sharp peaks were detected at 84 to 88 Mbp on Bos taurus autosome (BTA) 6, with a peak at 87.4 Mbp in the region harboring the casein genes. Evidence of quantitative trait loci at 82.6 and 88.4 Mbp on the same chromosome was found. All chromosomes but BTA6, BTA11, and BTA28 were associated with only one trait. Only BTA6 was in common between MCP and CFt sets. The new CFt traits reinforced the support of MCP signals and provided with additional information on genomic regions that might be involved in regulation of the coagulation process of bovine milk. Copyright © 2016 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Finite Inflation, Holography, and Dark Matter Annihilation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scacco, Andrew Joseph

This thesis covers work on theoretical cosmology relating to inflation, de Sitter space, dark matter annihilation, and holography. A unifying feature of all these topics is that all of them occur in de Sitter space or focus on epochs of the Universe when the spacetime was close to de Sitter and that all of them have some connection to holography. Chapter 1 provides a pedagogical introduction to the fundamentals of cosmology, inflation, de Sitter space, dark matter annihilation and entanglement entropy. Chapter 2 covers the impact on the causal entropic principle of dark matter annihilation that we find to have the greatest relevance at late times in the future when the dark energy has driven the universe to be asymptotically de Sitter. In this chapter we estimate holographically preferred dark matter properties for a range of assumptions. Chapter 3 covers holographic bounds in models of finite inflation, specifically the Banks-Fischler bound and de Sitter equilibrium. The assumptions in each of these models are explored in detail and some interesting new connections are presented. Chapter 4 tests models of inflation with a fast-roll start that happen to satisfy the holographic bounds in Chapter 3 against cosmic microwave background data from Planck. We find a slight preference for a feature at the scale predicted by the Banks-Fischler bound though this preference is not found to be statistically significant. Chapter 5 contains a numerical computation of the holographic mutual information for an annular configuration of regions on a conformal field theory in de Sitter space using the AdS/CFT correspondence. This computation shows that the de Sitter space CFT entanglement entropy matches what would be expected from a Minkowski CFT and shows that the HRT conjecture works for this case.

Full speed ahead for software

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

Wolfe, A.

1986-03-10

Supercomputing software is moving into high gear, spurred by the rapid spread of supercomputers into new applications. The critical challenge is how to develop tools that will make it easier for programmers to write applications that take advantage of vectorizing in the classical supercomputer and the parallelism that is emerging in supercomputers and minisupercomputers. Writing parallel software is a challenge that every programmer must face because parallel architectures are springing up across the range of computing. Cray is developing a host of tools for programmers. Tools to support multitasking (in supercomputer parlance, multitasking means dividing up a single program tomore » run on multiple processors) are high on Cray's agenda. On tap for multitasking is Premult, dubbed a microtasking tool. As a preprocessor for Cray's CFT77 FORTRAN compiler, Premult will provide fine-grain multitasking.« less

Equivalent equations of motion for gravity and entropy

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

Czech, Bartlomiej; Lamprou, Lampros; McCandlish, Samuel

We demonstrate an equivalence between the wave equation obeyed by the entanglement entropy of CFT subregions and the linearized bulk Einstein equation in Anti-de Sitter space. In doing so, we make use of the formalism of kinematic space and fields on this space. We show that the gravitational dynamics are equivalent to a gauge invariant wave-equation on kinematic space and that this equation arises in natural correspondence to the conformal Casimir equation in the CFT.

Reliability Advancement for Electronic Engine Controllers. Volume 1

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-06-01

natural frequency increases. Hence, the natural frequency is dependent upon pressure in the nonlinear rela- tionship: Pressure = A + Bft + Cft 2 + Dft 3...Hence, the natural frequency is dependent upon pressure in the nonlinear re- I ationship: Pressure = A + Bft + Cft 2 + Dft 3 + Eft 4 where A, B, C, D...BIT STTE TO’, AML ’’E ICONVERTER ICOUNTER BUFFE CPUT IBUS TOAMPLIFIER________IBUS PROGRAM-COKRSE -TT PER:OO INPUTS ENABLE M MR- - L

Equivalent equations of motion for gravity and entropy

DOE PAGES

Czech, Bartlomiej; Lamprou, Lampros; McCandlish, Samuel; ...

2017-02-01

We demonstrate an equivalence between the wave equation obeyed by the entanglement entropy of CFT subregions and the linearized bulk Einstein equation in Anti-de Sitter space. In doing so, we make use of the formalism of kinematic space and fields on this space. We show that the gravitational dynamics are equivalent to a gauge invariant wave-equation on kinematic space and that this equation arises in natural correspondence to the conformal Casimir equation in the CFT.

The Fatigue in Aircraft Corrosion Testing (FACT) Programme

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-02-01

I L𔃿 "I K Fo. III Fill Q - g -Ill c F’ .,.f 1 ’ 291 . . .. .. "-’I ..I ____- IV F/I): to __ S __2_,* I _ Owig t eqal amle izeIhueFopi on c- nas emd...4 1-~ 2 a. CA (C 2 3 4 4 0 NOEFCTDT CFT EPRGAM PRMR AIU RIISFTGEFTGU LFE0AA U FIHR EXACT TEST A AS CORIGINS A D STESLVL AN.2IlREN NIC TESTING...FATIGUE INHSALT SPRAY WITH OR WITHOUT AML GUARD[1 S~=RPCOATING AND PE-EXPOSURE 100++ 0 %PRIMARY FATIGUE O RIOGINS 40- 20 C -- l - L Fig. 7.7 Ecfects of

Intravitreal bevacizumab and dexamethasone implant for treatment of chronic diabetic macular edema.

PubMed

Güler, Emre; Totan, Yüksel; Betül Güragaç, Fatma

2017-06-01

To evaluate anatomical and functional outcomes of intraviteal bevacizumab (IVB) in patients with chronic diabetic macular edema (DME), and the effectivity and safety of dexamethasone implant in those unresponsive to regular IVB treatment. Thirty-five eyes of 35 patients (16 male and 19 female) with chronic DME (central foveal thickness (CFT)  > 275 μm, duration  > 6 months) received three injections of 2.5 mg IVB with six-week intervals. At 18 weeks, dexamethasone implant was applied to patients unresponsive to IVB. Main outcomes were the change in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA), CFT and ocular and systemic adverse effects for both drugs. The patients responsive to IVB were followed up for 36 weeks and those patients receiving dexamethasone implant were followed up for 24 weeks postoperatively. At 18 weeks, the mean BCVA (0.68 ± 0.40 logMAR, p = 0.45) and CFT (453 ± 169 μm, p = 0.58) did not show any significant change compared to baseline (0.74 ± 0.42 logMAR and 521 ± 151 μm, respectively). In 20 patients (%57.1) responsive to IVB, the CFT was significantly improved from 12 to 36 weeks with the mean value of 295 ± 42 μ (p = 0.01). However, no significant difference was observed for BCVA during this period (p = 0.17). Dexamethasone was implanted in 15 eyes (42.8%) unresponsive to IVB at 18 weeks. Statistically significant improvements were observed in BCVA (at postoperative 4 and 12 weeks) and CFT (at postoperative 4, 12 and 24 weeks). In addition, both parameters significantly worsened at 24 weeks compared to 12 weeks (p < 0.001 and p = 0.01, respectively). Patients with chronic DME should be followed in accordance with a fixed treatment protocol combining anti-VEGF and steroid treatments.

Bounds for OPE coefficients on the Regge trajectory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costa, Miguel S.; Hansen, Tobias; Penedones, João

2017-10-01

We consider the Regge limit of the CFT correlation functions < JJOO> and < TTOO>, where J is a vector current, T is the stress tensor and O is some scalar operator. These correlation functions are related by a type of Fourier transform to the AdS phase shift of the dual 2-to-2 scattering process. AdS unitarity was conjectured some time ago to be positivity of the imaginary part of this bulk phase shift. This condition was recently proved using purely CFT arguments. For large N CFTs we further expand on these ideas, by considering the phase shift in the Regge limit, which is dominated by the leading Regge pole with spin j( ν), where ν is a spectral parameter. We compute the phase shift as a function of the bulk impact parameter, and then use AdS unitarity to impose bounds on the analytically continued OPE coefficients {C}_JJ}j(ν )} and C TTj(ν) that describe the coupling to the leading Regge trajectory of the current J and stress tensor T. AdS unitarity implies that the OPE coefficients associated to non-minimal couplings of the bulk theory vanish at the intercept value ν = 0, for any CFT. Focusing on the case of large gap theories, this result can be used to show that the physical OPE coefficients {C}_{JJT and C TTT , associated to non-minimal bulk couplings, scale with the gap Δ g as Δ g - 2 or Δ g - 4 . Also, looking directly at the unitarity condition imposed at the OPE coefficients {C_JJT and C TTT results precisely in the known conformal collider bounds, giving a new CFT derivation of these bounds. We finish with remarks on finite N theories and show directly in the CFT that the spin function j( ν) is convex, extending this property to the continuation to complex spin.

Logarithmic corrections to black hole entropy from Kerr/CFT

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

Pathak, Abhishek; Porfyriadis, Achilleas P.; Strominger, Andrew

It has been shown by A. Sen that logarithmic corrections to the black hole area-entropy law are entirely determined macroscopically from the massless particle spectrum. They therefore serve as powerful consistency checks on any proposed enumeration of quantum black hole microstates. Furthermore, Sen’s results include a macroscopic computation of the logarithmic corrections for a five-dimensional near extremal Kerr-Newman black hole. We compute these corrections microscopically using a stringy embedding of the Kerr/CFT correspondence and find perfect agreement.

Logarithmic corrections to black hole entropy from Kerr/CFT

DOE PAGES

Pathak, Abhishek; Porfyriadis, Achilleas P.; Strominger, Andrew; ...

2017-04-14

It has been shown by A. Sen that logarithmic corrections to the black hole area-entropy law are entirely determined macroscopically from the massless particle spectrum. They therefore serve as powerful consistency checks on any proposed enumeration of quantum black hole microstates. Furthermore, Sen’s results include a macroscopic computation of the logarithmic corrections for a five-dimensional near extremal Kerr-Newman black hole. We compute these corrections microscopically using a stringy embedding of the Kerr/CFT correspondence and find perfect agreement.

Thermodynamic Volume in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Kyung Kiu; Ahn, Byoungjoon

2018-01-01

In this note, we study on extended thermodynamics of AdS black holes by varying cosmological constant. We found and discussed pressure and volume of both bulk and boundary physics through AdS/CFT correspondence. In particular, we derive the relation between thermodynamic volume and a chemical potential for M2 brane dual to four dimensional AdS space. In addition, we show that thermodynamic volume of hyperbolic black hole is related to `entanglement pressure' coming from a generalized first law of entanglement entropy.

Causal hydrodynamics of gauge theory plasmas from AdS/CFT duality

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

Natsuume, Makoto; Okamura, Takashi; Department of Physics, Kwansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Hyogo, 669-1337

2008-03-15

We study causal hydrodynamics (Israel-Stewart theory) of gauge theory plasmas from the AdS/CFT duality. Causal hydrodynamics requires new transport coefficients (relaxation times) and we compute them for a number of supersymmetric gauge theories including the N=4 super Yang-Mills theory. However, the relaxation times obtained from the 'shear mode' do not agree with the ones from the 'sound mode', which implies that the Israel-Stewart theory is not a sufficient framework to describe the gauge theory plasmas.

Clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of presumptive cases of Chlamydia pecorum-associated arthritis in Australian sheep flocks.

PubMed

Walker, Evelyn; Moore, Cecily; Shearer, Patrick; Jelocnik, Martina; Bommana, Sankhya; Timms, Peter; Polkinghorne, Adam

2016-09-08

Arthritis is an economically significant disease in lambs and is usually the result of a bacterial infection. One of the known agents of this disease is Chlamydia pecorum, a globally recognised livestock pathogen associated with several diseases in sheep, cattle and other hosts. Relatively little published information is available on the clinical, diagnostic and pathologic features of C. pecorum arthritis in sheep, hindering efforts to enhance our understanding of this economically significant disease. In this case series, a combination of standard diagnostic testing used routinely by veterinarians, such as the Chlamydia complement fixation text (CFT), veterinary clinical examinations, and additional screening via C. pecorum specific qPCR was used to describe putative chlamydial infections in five sheep flocks with suspected ovine arthritis. Five separate cases involving multiple lambs (aged six to ten months) of different breeds with suspected C. pecorum arthritis are presented. In two of the five cases, arthritic lambs exhibited marked depression and lethargy. Arthritis with concurrent conjunctivitis was present in four out of five lamb flocks examined. Chlamydia CFT demonstrated medium to high positive antibody titres in all flocks examined. C. pecorum shedding was evident at multiple sites including the conjunctiva, rectum and vagina, as determined via qPCR. Two of the five flocks received antimicrobials and all flocks recovered uneventfully regardless of treatment. This case series highlights the features a field veterinarian may encounter in cases of suspected ovine chlamydial arthritis. Our analysis suggests a presumptive diagnosis of chlamydial arthritis in lambs can be made when there is evidence of joint stiffness with or without synovial effusion and elevated chlamydia antibody titres. C. pecorum-specific qPCR was found to be a useful ancillary diagnostic tool, detecting Chlamydia positivity in low or negative CFT titre animals. Variables such as symptom duration relative to sampling, sheep breed and farm management practices were all factors recorded that paint a complex epidemiological and diagnostic picture for this disease. These case studies serve to provide a platform for further research to improve diagnostic testing and new treatment and control strategies for C. pecorum infections in sheep.

Characterizing Spatial Ability: Different Mental Processes Reflected in Accuracy and Latency Scores.

DTIC Science & Technology

1978-08-01

Prince- ton, New Jersey: Educational Testing Service, March, 1969. 6. Guilford, J. P., The Nature of Human Intelligence . New York: McGraw- Hill, 1969. 7...of visual- figural systems (CFS-V) , cognition of figural transformations (CFT), and cogni- tion of kinesthetic -figural systems (CFS-K) , represents...position and direction that has occurred from the top to the bottom drawing of a motorboat heading toward a coastline. The time limit on the 60-item GZO is

Shape dependence of entanglement entropy in conformal field theories

DOE PAGES

Faulkner, Thomas; Leigh, Robert G.; Parrikar, Onkar

2016-04-14

Here, we study universal features in the shape dependence of entanglement entropy in the vacuum state of a conformal field theory (CFT) on R 1,d--1. We consider the entanglement entropy across a deformed planar or spherical entangling surface in terms of a perturbative expansion in the infinitesimal shape deformation. In particular, we focus on the second order term in this expansion, known as the entanglement density. This quantity is known to be non-positive by the strong-subadditivity property. We also show from a purely field theory calculation that the non-local part of the entanglement density in any CFT is universal, andmore » proportional to the coefficient C T appearing in the two-point function of stress tensors in that CFT. As applications of our result, we prove the conjectured universality of the corner term coefficient σ/CT=π 2/24 in d = 3 CFTs, and the holographic Mezei formula for entanglement entropy across deformed spheres.« less

Modifications to holographic entanglement entropy in warped CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Wei; Wen, Qiang; Xu, Jianfei

2017-02-01

In [1] it was observed that asymptotic boundary conditions play an important role in the study of holographic entanglement beyond AdS/CFT. In particular, the Ryu-Takayanagi proposal must be modified for warped AdS3 (WAdS3) with Dirichlet boundary conditions. In this paper, we consider AdS3 and WAdS3 with Dirichlet-Neumann boundary conditions. The conjectured holographic duals are warped conformal field theories (WCFTs), featuring a Virasoro-Kac-Moody algebra. We provide a holographic calculation of the entanglement entropy and Rényi entropy using AdS3/WCFT and WAdS3/WCFT dualities. Our bulk results are consistent with the WCFT results derived by Castro-Hofman-Iqbal using the Rindler method. Comparing with [1], we explicitly show that the holographic entanglement entropy is indeed affected by boundary conditions. Both results differ from the Ryu-Takayanagi proposal, indicating new relations between spacetime geometry and quantum entanglement for holographic dualities beyond AdS/CFT.

Remarks on the necessity and implications of state-dependence in the black hole interior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Raju, Suvrat

2016-04-01

We revisit the "state-dependence" of the map that we proposed recently between bulk operators in the interior of a large anti-de Sitter black hole and operators in the boundary CFT. By refining recent versions of the information paradox, we show that this feature is necessary for the CFT to successfully describe local physics behind the horizon—not only for single-sided black holes but even in the eternal black hole. We show that state-dependence is invisible to an infalling observer who cannot differentiate these operators from those of ordinary quantum effective field theory. Therefore the infalling observer does not observe any violations of quantum mechanics. We successfully resolve a large class of potential ambiguities in our construction. We analyze states where the CFT is entangled with another system and show that the ER =EPR conjecture emerges from our construction in a natural and precise form. We comment on the possible semiclassical origins of state-dependence.

Black hole collapse in the 1 /c expansion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anous, Tarek; Hartman, Thomas; Rovai, Antonin; Sonner, Julian

2016-07-01

We present a first-principles CFT calculation corresponding to the spherical collapse of a shell of matter in three dimensional quantum gravity. In field theory terms, we describe the equilibration process, from early times to thermalization, of a CFT following a sudden injection of energy at time t = 0. By formulating a continuum version of Zamolodchikov's monodromy method to calculate conformal blocks at large central charge c, we give a framework to compute a general class of probe observables in the collapse state, incorporating the full backreaction of matter fields on the dual geometry. This is illustrated by calculating a scalar field two-point function at time-like separation and the time-dependent entanglement entropy of an interval, both showing thermalization at late times. The results are in perfect agreement with previous gravity calculations in the AdS3-Vaidya geometry. Information loss appears in the CFT as an explicit violation of unitarity in the 1 /c expansion, restored by nonperturbative corrections.

Evaporation of large black holes in AdS: coupling to the evaporon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rocha, Jorge V.

2008-08-01

Large black holes in an asymptotically AdS spacetime have a dual description in terms of approximately thermal states in the boundary CFT. The reflecting boundary conditions of AdS prevent such black holes from evaporating completely. On the other hand, the formulation of the information paradox becomes more stringent when a black hole is allowed to evaporate. In order to address the information loss problem from the AdS/CFT perspective we then need the boundary to become partially absorptive. We present a simple model that produces the necessary changes on the boundary by coupling a bulk scalar field to the evaporon, an external field propagating in one extra spatial dimension. The interaction is localized at the boundary of AdS and leads to partial transmission into the additional space. The transmission coefficient is computed in the planar limit and perturbatively in the coupling constant. Evaporation of the large black hole corresponds to cooling down the CFT by transferring energy to an external sector.

Black hole collapse in the 1/c expansion

DOE PAGES

Anous, Tarek; Hartman, Thomas; Rovai, Antonin; ...

2016-07-25

We present a first-principles CFT calculation corresponding to the spherical collapse of a shell of matter in three dimensional quantum gravity. In field theory terms, we describe the equilibration process, from early times to thermalization, of a CFT following a sudden injection of energy at time t = 0. By formulating a continuum version of Zamolodchikov’s monodromy method to calculate conformal blocks at large central charge c, we give a framework to compute a general class of probe observables in the collapse state, incorporating the full backreaction of matter fields on the dual geometry. This is illustrated by calculating amore » scalar field two-point function at time-like separation and the time-dependent entanglement entropy of an interval, both showing thermalization at late times. Furthermore, the results are in perfect agreement with previous gravity calculations in the AdS 3-Vaidya geometry. Information loss appears in the CFT as an explicit violation of unitarity in the 1/c expansion, restored by nonperturbative corrections.« less

[Preparation and characterization of follwing the national standard anti-Brucella abortus serum, bovine].

PubMed

Li, Cui; Guan, Fushi; Dai, Zhihong; Jiang, Hui; Wen, Fang; Lu, Lianshou; Wang, Zaishi

2011-05-01

To prepare anti-Brucella abortus serum used for calibrate the agglutination test follwing the national standard, 4 anti-Brucella abortus sera were obtained from 4 cows infected with Brucella abortus naturally. By potency testing, the third serum was selected. Sterility, vaccum degree, residual moisture, uniformity and stability of this standard material were tested and proved to meet the national standard. Referring to the international standard, RBT (Rose-Bengal plate agglutination test), SAT (standard tube agglutination) and CFT (complement fixation test) titers of this standard material were measured to be 1:160 "+" 1:2 400 "++" and 1:800 "++", which are identical with the collaborative assay results. International unit of the standard material is 4 000 IU/mL.

Macular pigment optical density and its relationship with refractive status and foveal thickness in Chinese school-aged children.

PubMed

Zheng, Wenjing; Zhang, Zhengwei; Jiang, Kelimu; Zhu, Jianfeng; He, Guixian; Ke, Bilian

2013-01-01

To investigate macular pigment optical density (MPOD) and its relationship with refractive status and foveal thickness in Chinese school-aged children. Ninety-four healthy Chinese children, 6 to 12 years old, were recruited to the study. MPOD was measured with a heterochromatic flicker photometer (HFP), and foveal thickness, including both minimum and central foveal thicknesses (MFT and CFT, respectively), were measured by optical coherence tomography (OCT) with fast macular map scan. A noncontact tonometer was used to measure intraocular pressure (IOP) followed by determination of the refraction using an autorefractor after cycloplegia. Information on body mass index (BMI) was obtained. The correlation between MPOD values and foveal thickness, spherical equivalent (SE) refraction, IOP, BMI, sex, and age was statistically analyzed using SAS 8.2 statistical software. The MPOD in examined school-aged children was 0.56 ± 0.25, without any significant difference between boys and girls (p = 0.12). MPOD showed no significant association with age, BMI, IOP, SE, MFT, or CFT. In the myopia group, however, there was an inverse relationship between MPOD and MFT (R =-0.66, p = 0.028) and a positive relationship between MPOD and CFT (R = 0.67, p = 0.025). MPOD was inversely related to MFT and positively related to CFT in Chinese school-age children with low-to-moderate myopia. MPOD showed no significant association with age, BMI, IOP, SE or foveal thickness.

Boundary conditions and unitarity in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrade, Tomas

This thesis investigates various issues regarding unitarity in the context of Anti-de Sitter/Conformal Field theory (AdS/CFT) dualities. When the boundary duals are conformal, unitarity implies that there are lower bounds on the dimension of primary operators. Now, the AdS/CFT dictionary relates insertions of boundary operators to different choices of boundary conditions on the gravity side. Therefore, we expect the possible choices of boundary conditions in AdS to be restricted accordingly. Our first main goal will be to identify what are the pathologies that occur in the gravitational side of the duality when the boundary operators violate the pertinent unitarity bounds. In all the studied cases, we find that such bulk theories are ill-defined as expected, although unitarity is not nec- essarily violated. As our first example we consider a Klein-Gordon field in AdS, and extend the analysis to bosonic fields of spin 1 and 2 later on, with analogous results. Interestingly, it turns our that the bulk settings are pathological even in the absence of strict conformal invariance. Secondly, we argue that introducing a geometrical cut-off in spacetime along with the appropriate modifications of the boundary conditions yields the resulting (IR) theories well-defined. By study- ing in detail a Klein-Gordon field with boundary conditions that correspond to double-trace deformations, we are able to explicitly verify this claim. Finally, we discuss future research directions which include generalizations of AdS/CFT-like dualities and potential applications for condensed matter theory.

Minimal unitary representation of 5d superconformal algebra F(4) and AdS 6/CFT 5 higher spin (super)-algebras

DOE PAGES

Fernando, Sudarshan; Günaydin, Murat

2014-11-28

We study the minimal unitary representation (minrep) of SO(5, 2), obtained by quantization of its geometric quasiconformal action, its deformations and supersymmetric extensions. The minrep of SO(5, 2) describes a massless conformal scalar field in five dimensions and admits a unique “deformation” which describes a massless conformal spinor. Scalar and spinor minreps of SO(5, 2) are the 5d analogs of Dirac’s singletons of SO(3, 2). We then construct the minimal unitary representation of the unique 5d supercon-formal algebra F(4) with the even subalgebra SO(5, 2) ×SU(2). The minrep of F(4) describes a massless conformal supermultiplet consisting of two scalar andmore » one spinor fields. We then extend our results to the construction of higher spin AdS 6/CFT 5 (super)-algebras. The Joseph ideal of the minrep of SO(5, 2) vanishes identically as operators and hence its enveloping algebra yields the AdS 6/CFT 5 bosonic higher spin algebra directly. The enveloping algebra of the spinor minrep defines a “deformed” higher spin algebra for which a deformed Joseph ideal vanishes identically as operators. These results are then extended to the construction of the unique higher spin AdS 6/CFT 5 superalgebra as the enveloping algebra of the minimal unitary realization of F(4) obtained by the quasiconformal methods.« less

Aflibercept in refractory wet AMD treated with ranibizumab: Anatomical and visual outcome.

PubMed

Abou-Ltaif, Sleiman

2016-01-01

To assess the anatomical outcome of patients with exudative age-related macular degeneration resistant to ranibizumab treated with aflibercept. Prospective, interventional, case series, where we treated a group of patients deemed resistant to Ranibizumab after 6 months of persistence of intra- or subretinal fluid despite continuous treatment. The study included 17 patients, 3 males and 14 females. The average males age was 85 (range 83-87), and that of females was 79.64 (range 68-88). At the start of the study, the central foveal thickness CFT average was 534.76 μm (range 252-999). At 1 month and after 1 injection of Aflibercept, the CFT average was 324.82 μm (range 222-585). At 4 months and after 3 consecutive injections of Aflibercept the CFT average was 294.76 μm (range 184-640). At 6 months the CFT average was 356 μm (range 206-609). At the 5th visit only 8 out 17 (47%) patients required repeated injection either for persistent fluids or for recurrence. At the 6th and final visit only 4 out of 17 (23.5%) needed repeated injections, of them only one was treated on the visit before and treatment was given as very little response was observed from last injection, and all other 3 were not treated on the visit before. Our results showed that aflibercept was able to dry the macula even in advanced case of wet AMD resistant to Ranibizumab.

A survey of Western Australian sheep, cattle and kangaroos to determine the prevalence of Coxiella burnetii.

PubMed

Banazis, Michael Janis; Bestall, Abbey Simone; Reid, Simon Andrew; Fenwick, Stan Gordon

2010-07-14

The objective of this study was to investigate the prevalence of Coxiella burnetii in two domestic ruminant species (cattle and sheep) and the western grey kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus) in Western Australia (WA). The IDEXX CHEKiT Q Fever ELISA and CFT were used to test sera from 50 sheep and 329 head of cattle for anti-C. burnetii antibodies and 343 kangaroo sera were tested using an indirect ELISA developed specifically for this study. Faecal or urine samples collected from the same animals were tested with two PCR assays to identify active shedding of C. burnetii in excreta. Only two of the 379 ruminant sera had detectable levels of anti-C. burnetii antibodies according to the ELISA while the CFT did not detect any positive samples. In contrast 115 of the 343 western grey kangaroo serum samples were positive when tested with the antibody-ELISA. The first qPCR assay, targeting the IS1111a element, identified 41 of 379 ruminant and 42 of 343 kangaroo DNA samples as positive for C. burnetii DNA. The second qPCR, targeting the JB153-3 gene, identified nine C. burnetii DNA-positive ruminant samples and six positive kangaroo samples. Sequence comparisons showed high degrees of identity with C. burnetii. Isolation of C. burnetii from faeces was also attempted but was not successful. From the results presented here it appears that domestic ruminants may not be the most significant reservoir of C. burnetii in WA and that kangaroos may pose a significant threat for zoonotic transfer of this pathogen. (c) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hagedorn Temperature of AdS5/CFT4 via Integrability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harmark, Troels; Wilhelm, Matthias

2018-02-01

We establish a framework for calculating the Hagedorn temperature of AdS5/CFT4 via integrability. Concretely, we derive the thermodynamic Bethe ansatz equations that yield the Hagedorn temperature of planar N =4 super Yang-Mills theory at any value of the 't Hooft coupling. We solve these equations perturbatively at weak coupling via the associated Y system, confirming the known results at tree level and one-loop order as well as deriving the previously unknown two-loop Hagedorn temperature. Finally, we comment on solving the equations at finite coupling.

Yangians, S-matrices and AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Torrielli, Alessandro

2011-07-01

This review is meant to be an account of the properties of the infinite-dimensional quantum group (specifically, Yangian) symmetry lying behind the integrability of the AdS/CFT spectral problem. In passing, the chance is taken to give a concise anthology of basic facts concerning Yangians and integrable systems, and to store a series of remarks, observations and proofs the author has collected in a 5 year span of research on the subject. We hope this exercise will be useful for future attempts to study Yangians in field and string theories, with or without supersymmetry.

VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration) Design Tools, Reference Manual, Release 3.0.

DTIC Science & Technology

1985-08-01

generators/mult prior to running mult. The generated layout is output in directory 1ca in caesar cells with names of the form "caesarame*oca. Mut is a cft ...vlsa) spice(1.vlsi), User’s Guide to AML VLSI Dodgen Tools Reference Manual, UW/NW VLSI Consortium, University of Washington, (Christopher Terman, MIT...of the form ’caesarname..ca. Muls is a cft -based program and therefore also produces *.bd fiIls ’Caesaramew may not begin with the string mule. The

Digital Quantum Simulation of Minimal AdS/CFT.

PubMed

García-Álvarez, L; Egusquiza, I L; Lamata, L; Del Campo, A; Sonner, J; Solano, E

2017-07-28

We propose the digital quantum simulation of a minimal AdS/CFT model in controllable quantum platforms. We consider the Sachdev-Ye-Kitaev model describing interacting Majorana fermions with randomly distributed all-to-all couplings, encoding nonlocal fermionic operators onto qubits to efficiently implement their dynamics via digital techniques. Moreover, we also give a method for probing nonequilibrium dynamics and the scrambling of information. Finally, our approach serves as a protocol for reproducing a simplified low-dimensional model of quantum gravity in advanced quantum platforms as trapped ions and superconducting circuits.

Digital Quantum Simulation of Minimal AdS /CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

García-Álvarez, L.; Egusquiza, I. L.; Lamata, L.; del Campo, A.; Sonner, J.; Solano, E.

2017-07-01

We propose the digital quantum simulation of a minimal AdS /CFT model in controllable quantum platforms. We consider the Sachdev-Ye-Kitaev model describing interacting Majorana fermions with randomly distributed all-to-all couplings, encoding nonlocal fermionic operators onto qubits to efficiently implement their dynamics via digital techniques. Moreover, we also give a method for probing nonequilibrium dynamics and the scrambling of information. Finally, our approach serves as a protocol for reproducing a simplified low-dimensional model of quantum gravity in advanced quantum platforms as trapped ions and superconducting circuits.

Chlamydophila psittaci in free-living Blue-fronted Amazon parrots (Amazona aestiva) and Hyacinth macaws (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.

PubMed

de Freitas Raso, Tânia; Seixas, Gláucia Helena Fernandes; Guedes, Neiva Maria Robaldo; Pinto, Aramis Augusto

2006-10-31

Chlamydophila psittaci (C. psittaci) infection was evaluated in 77 free-living nestlings of Blue-fronted Amazon parrots (Amazona aestiva) and Hyacinth macaws (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Tracheal and cloacal swab samples from 32 wild parrot and 45 macaw nestlings were submitted to semi-nested PCR, while serum samples were submitted to complement fixation test (CFT). Although all 32 Amazon parrot serum samples were negative by CFT, cloacal swabs from two birds were positive for Chlamydophila DNA by semi-nested PCR (6.3%); these positive birds were 32 and 45 days old. In macaws, tracheal and cloacal swabs were positive in 8.9% and 26.7% of the samples, respectively. Complement-fixing antibodies were detected in 4.8% of the macaw nestlings; macaw nestlings with positive findings were between 33 and 88 days old. These results indicate widespread dissemination of this pathogen in the two evaluated psittacine populations. No birds had clinical signs suggestive of chlamydiosis. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on C. psittaci in free-living Blue-fronted Amazon parrots and Hyacinth macaws in Brazil.

Holographic duals of 3d S-fold CFTs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Assel, Benjamin; Tomasiello, Alessandro

2018-06-01

We construct non-geometric AdS4 solutions of IIB string theory where the fields in overlapping patches are glued by elements of the S-duality group. We obtain them by suitable quotients of compact and non-compact geometric solutions. The quotient procedure suggests CFT duals as quiver theories with links involving the so-called T [U( N)] theory. We test the validity of the non-geometric solutions (and of our proposed holographic duality) by computing the three-sphere partition function Z of the CFTs. A first class of solutions is obtained by an S-duality quotient of Janus-type non-compact solutions and is dual to 3d N=4 SCFTs; for these we manage to compute Z of the dual CFT at finite N, and it agrees perfectly with the supergravity result in the large N limit. A second class has five-branes, it is obtained by a Möbius-like S-quotient of ordinary compact solutions and is dual to 3d N=3 SCFTs. For these, Z agrees with the supergravity result if one chooses the limit carefully so that the effect of the fivebranes does not backreact on the entire geometry. Other limits suggest the existence of IIA duals.

Applications of conformal field theory to problems in 2D percolation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simmons, Jacob Joseph Harris

This thesis explores critical two-dimensional percolation in bounded regions in the continuum limit. The main method which we employ is conformal field theory (CFT). Our specific results follow from the null-vector structure of the c = 0 CFT that applies to critical two-dimensional percolation. We also make use of the duality symmetry obeyed at the percolation point, and the fact that percolation may be understood as the q-state Potts model in the limit q → 1. Our first results describe the correlations between points in the bulk and boundary intervals or points, i.e. the probability that the various points or intervals are in the same percolation cluster. These quantities correspond to order-parameter profiles under the given conditions, or cluster connection probabilities. We consider two specific cases: an anchoring interval, and two anchoring points. We derive results for these and related geometries using the CFT null-vectors for the corresponding boundary condition changing (bcc) operators. In addition, we exhibit several exact relationships between these probabilities. These relations between the various bulk-boundary connection probabilities involve parameters of the CFT called operator product expansion (OPE) coefficients. We then compute several of these OPE coefficients, including those arising in our new probability relations. Beginning with the familiar CFT operator φ1,2, which corresponds to a free-fixed spin boundary change in the q-state Potts model, we then develop physical interpretations of the bcc operators. We argue that, when properly normalized, higher-order bcc operators correspond to successive fusions of multiple φ1,2, operators. Finally, by identifying the derivative of φ1,2 with the operator φ1,4, we derive several new quantities called first crossing densities. These new results are then combined and integrated to obtain the three previously known crossing quantities in a rectangle: the probability of a horizontal crossing cluster, the probability of a cluster crossing both horizontally and vertically, and the expected number of horizontal crossing clusters. These three results were known to be solutions to a certain fifth-order differential equation, but until now no physically meaningful explanation had appeared. This differential equation arises naturally in our derivation.

A Solution Space for a System of Null-State Partial Differential Equations: Part 4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flores, Steven M.; Kleban, Peter

2015-01-01

This article is the last of four that completely and rigorously characterize a solution space for a homogeneous system of 2 N + 3 linear partial differential equations in 2 N variables that arises in conformal field theory (CFT) and multiple Schramm-Löwner evolution (SLE). The system comprises 2 N null-state equations and three conformal Ward identities that govern CFT correlation functions of 2 N one-leg boundary operators. In the first two articles (Flores and Kleban in Commun Math Phys, 2012; Flores and Kleban, in Commun Math Phys, 2014), we use methods of analysis and linear algebra to prove that dim , with C N the Nth Catalan number. Using these results in the third article (Flores and Kleban, in Commun Math Phys, 2013), we prove that dim and is spanned by (real-valued) solutions constructed with the Coulomb gas (contour integral) formalism of CFT. In this article, we use these results to prove some facts concerning the solution space . First, we show that each of its elements equals a sum of at most two distinct Frobenius series in powers of the difference between two adjacent points (unless is odd, in which case a logarithmic term may appear). This establishes an important element in the operator product expansion for one-leg boundary operators, assumed in CFT. We also identify particular elements of , which we call connectivity weights, and exploit their special properties to conjecture a formula for the probability that the curves of a multiple-SLE process join in a particular connectivity. This leads to new formulas for crossing probabilities of critical lattice models inside polygons with a free/fixed side-alternating boundary condition, which we derive in Flores et al. (Partition functions and crossing probabilities for critical systems inside polygons, in preparation). Finally, we propose a reason for why the exceptional speeds [certain values that appeared in the analysis of the Coulomb gas solutions in Flores and Kleban (Commun Math Phys, 2013)] and the minimal models of CFT are connected.

A Solution Space for a System of Null-State Partial Differential Equations: Part 3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flores, Steven M.; Kleban, Peter

2015-01-01

This article is the third of four that completely and rigorously characterize a solution space for a homogeneous system of 2 N + 3 linear partial differential equations (PDEs) in 2 N variables that arises in conformal field theory (CFT) and multiple Schramm-Löwner evolution (SLE κ ). The system comprises 2 N null-state equations and three conformal Ward identities that govern CFT correlation functions of 2 N one-leg boundary operators. In the first two articles (Flores and Kleban, in Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1212.2301, 2012; Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1404.0035, 2014), we use methods of analysis and linear algebra to prove that dim , with C N the Nth Catalan number. Extending these results, we prove in this article that dim and entirely consists of (real-valued) solutions constructed with the CFT Coulomb gas (contour integral) formalism. In order to prove this claim, we show that a certain set of C N such solutions is linearly independent. Because the formulas for these solutions are complicated, we prove linear independence indirectly. We use the linear injective map of Lemma 15 in Flores and Kleban (Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1212.2301, 2012) to send each solution of the mentioned set to a vector in , whose components we find as inner products of elements in a Temperley-Lieb algebra. We gather these vectors together as columns of a symmetric matrix, with the form of a meander matrix. If the determinant of this matrix does not vanish, then the set of C N Coulomb gas solutions is linearly independent. And if this determinant does vanish, then we construct an alternative set of C N Coulomb gas solutions and follow a similar procedure to show that this set is linearly independent. The latter situation is closely related to CFT minimal models. We emphasize that, although the system of PDEs arises in CFT in away that is typically non-rigorous, our treatment of this system here and in Flores and Kleban (Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1212.2301, 2012; Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1404.0035, 2014; Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1405.2747, 2014) is completely rigorous.

Macular thickness measurements using Copernicus Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography.

PubMed

Gella, Laxmi; Raman, Rajiv; Sharma, Tarun

2015-01-01

To provide normal macular thickness measurements using Spectral Domain Optical Coherence Tomography (SDOCT, Copernicus, Optopol Technologies, Zawierci, Poland). Fifty-eight eyes of 58 healthy subjects were included in this prospective study. All subjects had comprehensive ophthalmic examination including best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA). All the subjects underwent Copernicus SDOCT. Central foveal thickness (CFT) and photoreceptor layer (PRL) thickness were measured and expressed as mean and standard deviation. Mean retinal thickness for each of the 9 regions defined in the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study was reported. The data were compared with published literature in Indians using Stratus and Spectralis OCTs to assess variation in instrument measurements. The mean CFT in the study sample was 173.8 ± 18.16 microns (131-215 microns) and the mean PRL thickness was 65.48 ± 4.23 microns (56-74 microns). No significant difference (p = 0.148) was found between CFT measured automated (179.28 ± 22 microns) and manually (173.83 ± 18.1 microns). CFT was significantly lower in women (167.62 ± 16.36 microns) compared to men (180.03 ± 18 microns) (p = 0.008). Mean retinal thickness reported in this study was significantly different from published literature using Stratus OCT and Spectralis OCT. We report the normal mean retinal thickness in central 1 mm area to be between 138 and 242 microns in Indian population using Copernicus SDOCT. We suggest that different OCT instruments cannot be used interchangeably for the measurement of macular thickness as they vary in segmentation algorithms.

Homologous Recombination between Genetically Divergent Campylobacter fetus Lineages Supports Host-Associated Speciation

PubMed Central

Duim, Birgitta; van der Graaf-van Bloois, Linda; Wagenaar, Jaap A; Zomer, Aldert L

2018-01-01

Abstract Homologous recombination is a major driver of bacterial speciation. Genetic divergence and host association are important factors influencing homologous recombination. Here, we study these factors for Campylobacter fetus, which shows a distinct intraspecific host dichotomy. Campylobacter fetus subspecies fetus (Cff) and venerealis are associated with mammals, whereas C. fetus subsp. testudinum (Cft) is associated with reptiles. Recombination between these genetically divergent C. fetus lineages is extremely rare. Previously it was impossible to show whether this barrier to recombination was determined by the differential host preferences, by the genetic divergence between both lineages or by other factors influencing recombination, such as restriction-modification, CRISPR/Cas, and transformation systems. Fortuitously, a distinct C. fetus lineage (ST69) was found, which was highly related to mammal-associated C. fetus, yet isolated from a chelonian. The whole genome sequences of two C. fetus ST69 isolates were compared with those of mammal- and reptile-associated C. fetus strains for phylogenetic and recombination analysis. In total, 5.1–5.5% of the core genome of both ST69 isolates showed signs of recombination. Of the predicted recombination regions, 80.4% were most closely related to Cft, 14.3% to Cff, and 5.6% to C. iguaniorum. Recombination from C. fetus ST69 to Cft was also detected, but to a lesser extent and only in chelonian-associated Cft strains. This study shows that despite substantial genetic divergence no absolute barrier to homologous recombination exists between two distinct C. fetus lineages when occurring in the same host type, which provides valuable insights in bacterial speciation and evolution. PMID:29608720

{{SO(d,1)}}-Invariant Yang-Baxter Operators and the dS/CFT Correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hollands, Stefan; Lechner, Gandalf

2018-01-01

We propose a model for the dS/CFT correspondence. The model is constructed in terms of a "Yang-Baxter operator" R for unitary representations of the de Sitter group {SO(d,1)}. This R-operator is shown to satisfy the Yang-Baxter equation, unitarity, as well as certain analyticity relations, including in particular a crossing symmetry. With the aid of this operator we construct: (a) a chiral (light-ray) conformal quantum field theory whose internal degrees of freedom transform under the given unitary representation of {SO(d,1)}. By analogy with the O( N) non-linear sigma model, this chiral CFT can be viewed as propagating in a de Sitter spacetime. (b) A (non-unitary) Euclidean conformal quantum field theory on R}^{d-1, where SO( d, 1) now acts by conformal transformations in (Euclidean) spacetime. These two theories can be viewed as dual to each other if we interpret R}^{d-1 as conformal infinity of de Sitter spacetime. Our constructions use semi-local generator fields defined in terms of R and abstract methods from operator algebras.

Linearity of holographic entanglement entropy

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

Almheiri, Ahmed; Dong, Xi; Swingle, Brian

Here, we consider the question of whether the leading contribution to the entanglement entropy in holographic CFTs is truly given by the expectation value of a linear operator as is suggested by the Ryu-Takayanagi formula. We investigate this property by computing the entanglement entropy, via the replica trick, in states dual to superpositions of macroscopically distinct geometries and find it consistent with evaluating the expectation value of the area operator within such states. However, we find that this fails once the number of semi-classical states in the superposition grows exponentially in the central charge of the CFT. Moreover, in certainmore » such scenarios we find that the choice of surface on which to evaluate the area operator depends on the density matrix of the entire CFT. This nonlinearity is enforced in the bulk via the homology prescription of Ryu-Takayanagi. We thus conclude that the homology constraint is not a linear property in the CFT. We also discuss the existence of entropy operators in general systems with a large number of degrees of freedom.« less

Integral geometry and holography

DOE PAGES

Czech, Bartlomiej; Lamprou, Lampros; McCandlish, Samuel; ...

2015-10-27

We present a mathematical framework which underlies the connection between information theory and the bulk spacetime in the AdS 3/CFT 2 correspondence. A key concept is kinematic space: an auxiliary Lorentzian geometry whose metric is defined in terms of conditional mutual informations and which organizes the entanglement pattern of a CFT state. When the field theory has a holographic dual obeying the Ryu-Takayanagi proposal, kinematic space has a direct geometric meaning: it is the space of bulk geodesics studied in integral geometry. Lengths of bulk curves are computed by kinematic volumes, giving a precise entropic interpretation of the length ofmore » any bulk curve. We explain how basic geometric concepts -- points, distances and angles -- are reflected in kinematic space, allowing one to reconstruct a large class of spatial bulk geometries from boundary entanglement entropies. In this way, kinematic space translates between information theoretic and geometric descriptions of a CFT state. As an example, we discuss in detail the static slice of AdS 3 whose kinematic space is two-dimensional de Sitter space.« less

Hepcidin as a Major Component of Renal Antibacterial Defenses against Uropathogenic Escherichia coli

PubMed Central

Houamel, Dounia; Ducrot, Nicolas; Lefebvre, Thibaud; Daher, Raed; Moulouel, Boualem; Sari, Marie-Agnes; Letteron, Philippe; Lyoumi, Said; Millot, Sarah; Tourret, Jerome; Bouvet, Odile; Vaulont, Sophie; Vandewalle, Alain; Denamur, Erick; Puy, Hervé; Beaumont, Carole; Gouya, Laurent

2016-01-01

The iron-regulatory peptide hepcidin exhibits antimicrobial activity. Having previously shown hepcidin expression in the kidney, we addressed its role in urinary tract infection (UTI), which remains largely unknown. Experimental UTI was induced in wild-type (WT) and hepcidin-knockout (Hepc−/−) mice using the uropathogenic Escherichia coli CFT073 strain. Compared with infected WT mice, infected Hepc−/− mice showed a dramatic increase in renal bacterial load. Moreover, bacterial invasion was significantly dampened by the pretreatment of WT mice with hepcidin. Infected Hepc−/− mice exhibited decreased iron accumulation in the renal medulla and significant attenuation of the renal inflammatory response. Notably, we demonstrated in vitro bacteriostatic activity of hepcidin against CFT073. Furthermore, CFT073 repressed renal hepcidin, both in vivo and in cultured renal cells, and reduced phosphorylation of SMAD kinase in vivo, suggesting a bacterial strategy to escape the antimicrobial activities of hepcidin. In conclusion, we provide new mechanisms by which hepcidin contributes to renal host defense and suggest that targeting hepcidin offers a strategy to prevent bacterial invasion. PMID:26293821

Double relaxation via AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amiri-Sharifi, S.; Ali-Akbari, M.; Kishani-Farahani, A.; Shafie, N.

2016-08-01

We exploit the AdS/CFT correspondence to investigate thermalization in an N = 2 strongly coupled gauge theory including massless fundamental matter (quark). More precisely, we consider the response of a zero temperature state of the gauge theory under influence of an external electric field which leads to a time-dependent current. The holographic dual of the above set-up is given by introducing a time-dependent electric field on the probe D7-brane embedded in an AdS5 ×S5 background. In the dual gravity theory an apparent horizon forms on the brane which, according to AdS/CFT dictionary, is the counterpart of the thermalization process in the gauge theory side. We classify different functions for time-dependent electric field and study their effect on the apparent horizon formation. In the case of pulse functions, where the electric field varies from zero to zero, apart from non-equilibrium phase, we observe the formation of two separate apparent horizons on the brane. This means that the state of the gauge theory experiences two different temperature regimes during its time evolution.

AdS/CFT in string theory and M-theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gulotta, Daniel R.

The AdS/CFT correspondence is a powerful tool that can help shed light on the relationship between geometry and field theory. The first part of this thesis will focus on the construction of theories dual to Type IIB string theory on AdS5 × Y5, where Y5 is a toric Sasaki-Einstein manifold. This thesis will introduce a consistency condition called ``proper ordering'' and demonstrate that it is equivalent to several other previously known consistency conditions. It will then give an efficient algorithm that produces a consistent field theory for any toric Sasaki-Einstein Y5. The second part of this thesis will examine the large-N limit of the Kapustin-Willett-Yaakov matrix model. This model computes the S3 partition function for a CFT dual to M-theory on AdS4 × Y7. One of the main results will be a formula that relates the distribution of eigenvalues in the matrix model to the distribution of holomorphic operators on the cone over Y7. A variety of examples are given to support this formula.

Fermionic halos at finite temperature in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Argüelles, Carlos R.; Grandi, Nicolás E.

2018-05-01

We explore the gravitational backreaction of a system consisting in a very large number of elementary fermions at finite temperature, in asymptotically AdS space. We work in the hydrodynamic approximation, and solve the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equations with a perfect fluid whose equation of state takes into account both the relativistic effects of the fermionic constituents, as well as its finite temperature effects. We find a novel dense core-diluted halo structure for the density profiles in the AdS bulk, similarly as recently reported in flat space, for the case of astrophysical dark matter halos in galaxies. We further study the critical equilibrium configurations above which the core undergoes gravitational collapse towards a massive black hole, and calculate the corresponding critical central temperatures, for two qualitatively different central regimes of the fermions: the diluted-Fermi case, and the degenerate case. As a probe for the dual CFT, we construct the holographic two-point correlator of a scalar operator with large conformal dimension in the worldline limit, and briefly discuss on the boundary CFT effects at the critical points.

Linearity of holographic entanglement entropy

DOE PAGES

Almheiri, Ahmed; Dong, Xi; Swingle, Brian

2017-02-14

Here, we consider the question of whether the leading contribution to the entanglement entropy in holographic CFTs is truly given by the expectation value of a linear operator as is suggested by the Ryu-Takayanagi formula. We investigate this property by computing the entanglement entropy, via the replica trick, in states dual to superpositions of macroscopically distinct geometries and find it consistent with evaluating the expectation value of the area operator within such states. However, we find that this fails once the number of semi-classical states in the superposition grows exponentially in the central charge of the CFT. Moreover, in certainmore » such scenarios we find that the choice of surface on which to evaluate the area operator depends on the density matrix of the entire CFT. This nonlinearity is enforced in the bulk via the homology prescription of Ryu-Takayanagi. We thus conclude that the homology constraint is not a linear property in the CFT. We also discuss the existence of entropy operators in general systems with a large number of degrees of freedom.« less

Liouville action as path-integral complexity: from continuous tensor networks to AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Caputa, Pawel; Kundu, Nilay; Miyaji, Masamichi; Takayanagi, Tadashi; Watanabe, Kento

2017-11-01

We propose an optimization procedure for Euclidean path-integrals that evaluate CFT wave functionals in arbitrary dimensions. The optimization is performed by minimizing certain functional, which can be interpreted as a measure of computational complexity, with respect to background metrics for the path-integrals. In two dimensional CFTs, this functional is given by the Liouville action. We also formulate the optimization for higher dimensional CFTs and, in various examples, find that the optimized hyperbolic metrics coincide with the time slices of expected gravity duals. Moreover, if we optimize a reduced density matrix, the geometry becomes two copies of the entanglement wedge and reproduces the holographic entanglement entropy. Our approach resembles a continuous tensor network renormalization and provides a concrete realization of the proposed interpretation of AdS/CFT as tensor networks. The present paper is an extended version of our earlier report arXiv:1703.00456 and includes many new results such as evaluations of complexity functionals, energy stress tensor, higher dimensional extensions and time evolutions of thermofield double states.

Black holes in higher spin supergravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Datta, Shouvik; David, Justin R.

2013-07-01

We study black hole solutions in Chern-Simons higher spin supergravity based on the superalgebra sl(3|2). These black hole solutions have a U(1) gauge field and a spin 2 hair in addition to the spin 3 hair. These additional fields correspond to the R-symmetry charges of the supergroup sl(3|2). Using the relation between the bulk field equations and the Ward identities of a CFT with {N} = 2 super- {{{W}}_3} symmetry, we identify the bulk charges and chemical potentials with those of the boundary CFT. From these identifications we see that a suitable set of variables to study this black hole is in terms of the charges present in three decoupled bosonic sub-algebras of the {N} = 2 super- {{{W}}_3} algebra. The entropy and the partition function of these R-charged black holes are then evaluated in terms of the charges of the bulk theory as well as in terms of its chemical potentials. We then compute the partition function in the dual CFT and find exact agreement with the bulk partition function.

Baby de Sitter black holes and dS3/CFT2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Buyl, Sophie; Detournay, Stéphane; Giribet, Gaston; Ng, Gim Seng

2014-02-01

Unlike three-dimensional Einstein gravity, three-dimensional massive gravity admits asymptotically de Sitter space (dS) black hole solutions. These black holes present interesting features and provide us with toy models to study the dS/CFT correspondence. A remarkable property of these black holes is that they are always in thermal equilibrium with the cosmological horizon of the space that hosts them. This invites us to study the thermodynamics of these solutions within the context of dS/CFT. We study the asymptotic symmetry group of the theory and find that it indeed coincides with the local two-dimensional conformal algebra. The charge algebra associated to the asymptotic Killing vectors consists of two copies of the Virasoro algebra with non-vanishing central extension. We compute the mass and angular momentum of the dS black holes and verify that a naive application of Cardy's formula exactly reproduces the entropy of both the black hole and the cosmological horizon. By adapting the holographic renormalization techniques to the case of dS space, we define the boundary stress tensor of the dual Euclidean conformal field theory.

Hormonal determinants of the severity of andropausal and depressive symptoms in middle-aged and elderly men with prediabetes.

PubMed

Rabijewski, Michał; Papierska, Lucyna; Kuczerowski, Roman; Piątkiewicz, Paweł

2015-01-01

Andropausal and depressive symptoms are common in aging males and may be associated with hormone deficiency. We investigated the severity of andropausal and depressive symptoms, as well as their hormonal determinants, in 196 middle-aged and elderly men (age range: 40-80 years) with prediabetes (PD) and in 184 healthy peers. PD was diagnosed according to the definition of the American Diabetes Association. The severity of andropausal and depressive symptoms was assessed using the Aging Males' Symptoms Rating Scale and the Self-Rating Depression Scale. Total testosterone (TT), calculated free testosterone (cFT), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) were measured. The prevalence of andropausal syndrome in men with PD was significantly higher than that in healthy men (35% vs 11%, respectively). In men with PD aged 40-59 years, the severity of sexual, psychological, and all andropausal symptoms was greater than in healthy peers, while in elderly men (60-80 years), only the severity of psychological symptoms was greater than in healthy peers. The severity of depressive symptoms in the middle-aged men with PD was greater than in healthy peers, while the severity of depressive symptoms in elderly men with PD and healthy peers was similar. The higher prevalence of andropausal symptoms was independently associated with cFT and IGF-1 in middle-aged men and with TT and DHEAS in elderly men with PD. The more severe depression symptoms were associated with low TT and DHEAS in middle-aged men and with low cFT and DHEAS in elderly men with PD. In conclusion, the prevalence of andropausal symptoms, especially psychological, was higher in prediabetic patients as compared to healthy men, while the severity of depressive symptoms was higher only in middle-aged men with PD. Hormonal determinants of andropausal and depressive symptoms are different in middle-aged and elderly patients, but endocrine tests are necessary in all men with PD.

A two-site filtration model for silica nanoaggregate mobility in porous media under high salinity conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Taghavy, Amir; Kim, Ijung; Huh, Chun; DiCarlo, David A.

2018-06-01

A variable-viscosity colloid transport simulator is developed to model the mobility behavior of surface-engineered nanosilica aggregates (nSiO2) under high salinity conditions. A two-site (2S) filtration approach was incorporated to account for heterogeneous particle-collector surface interactions. 2S model was then implemented along with the conventional clean bed filtration (CFT) and maximum retention capacity (MRC) particle filtration models to simulate the results of a series of column tests conducted in brine (8% wt. NaCl and 2% wt. CaCl2)-saturated Ottawa sand columns at various pore velocities (7 to 71 m/day). Simulation results reveal the superiority of the MRC and 2S model classes over CFT model with respect to numerical performance criteria; a general decrease of normalized sum of squared residuals (ca. 20-90% reduction) and an enhanced degree of normality of model residuals were detected for 2S and MRC over CFT in all simulated experiments. Based on our findings, conformance with theories underpinning colloid deposition in porous media was the ultimate factor that set 2S and MRC model classes apart in terms of explaining the observed mobility trends. MRC and 2S models were evaluated based on the scaling of the fitted maximum retention capacity parameter with variation of experimental conditions. Two subclasses of 2S that consider a mix of favorable and unfavorable attachment sites with irreversible attachment to favorable sites (with and without physical straining effects) were found most consistent with filtration theory and shadow zone predictions, yielding theoretical conformity indices of 0.6 and higher, the highest among all implemented models. An explanation for such irreversible favorable deposition sites on the surface of silica nanoaggregates might be a partial depletion of stabilizing steric forces that had led to the formation of these aggregates.

Genetic analysis of the role of yfiR in the ability of Escherichia coli CFT073 to control cellular cyclic dimeric GMP levels and to persist in the urinary tract.

PubMed

Raterman, Erica L; Shapiro, Daniel D; Stevens, Daniel J; Schwartz, Kevin J; Welch, Rodney A

2013-09-01

During urinary tract infections (UTIs), uropathogenic Escherichia coli must maintain a delicate balance between sessility and motility to achieve successful infection of both the bladder and kidneys. Previous studies showed that cyclic dimeric GMP (c-di-GMP) levels aid in the control of the transition between motile and nonmotile states in E. coli. The yfiRNB locus in E. coli CFT073 contains genes for YfiN, a diguanylate cyclase, and its activity regulators, YfiR and YfiB. Deletion of yfiR yielded a mutant that was attenuated in both the bladder and the kidneys when tested in competition with the wild-type strain in the murine model of UTI. A double yfiRN mutant was not attenuated in the mouse model, suggesting that unregulated YfiN activity and likely increased cytoplasmic c-di-GMP levels cause a survival defect. Curli fimbriae and cellulose production were increased in the yfiR mutant. Expression of yhjH, a gene encoding a proven phosphodiesterase, in CFT073 ΔyfiR suppressed the overproduction of curli fimbriae and cellulose and further verified that deletion of yfiR results in c-di-GMP accumulation. Additional deletion of csgD and bcsA, genes necessary for curli fimbriae and cellulose production, respectively, returned colonization levels of the yfiR deletion mutant to wild-type levels. Peroxide sensitivity assays and iron acquisition assays displayed no significant differences between the yfiR mutant and the wild-type strain. These results indicate that dysregulation of c-di-GMP production results in pleiotropic effects that disable E. coli in the urinary tract and implicate the c-di-GMP regulatory system as an important factor in the persistence of uropathogenic E. coli in vivo.

Can Black Hole Relax Unitarily?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Solodukhin, S. N.

2005-03-01

We review the way the BTZ black hole relaxes back to thermal equilibrium after a small perturbation and how it is seen in the boundary (finite volume) CFT. The unitarity requires the relaxation to be quasi-periodic. It is preserved in the CFT but is not obvious in the case of the semiclassical black hole the relaxation of which is driven by complex quasi-normal modes. We discuss two ways of modifying the semiclassical black hole geometry to maintain unitarity: the (fractal) brick wall and the worm-hole modification. In the latter case the entropy comes out correctly as well.

AdS/CFT duality at strong coupling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beccaria, M.; Ortix, C.

2007-08-01

We study the strong-coupling limit of the AdS/CFT correspondence in the framework of a recently proposed fermionic formulation of the Bethe ansatz equations governing the gauge theory anomalous dimensions. We give examples of states that do not follow the Gubser-Klebanov-Polyakov law at a large ’t Hooft coupling λ, in contrast to recent results on the quantum string Bethe equations that are valid in that regime. This result indicates that the fermionic construction cannot be trusted at large λ, although it remains an efficient tool for computing the weak-coupling expansion of anomalous dimensions.

Scattering Amplitudes, the AdS/CFT Correspondence, Minimal Surfaces, and Integrability

DOE PAGES

Alday, Luis F.

2010-01-01

We focus on the computation of scattering amplitudes of planar maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mill in four dimensions at strong coupling by means of the AdS/CFT correspondence and explain how the problem boils down to the computation of minimal surfaces in AdS in the first part of this paper. In the second part of this review we explain how integrability allows to give a solution to the problem in terms of a set of integral equations. The intention of the review is to give a pedagogical, rather than very detailed, exposition.

Cusp anomalous dimension and rotating open strings in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espíndola, R.; García, J. Antonio

2018-03-01

In the context of AdS/CFT we provide analytical support for the proposed duality between a Wilson loop with a cusp, the cusp anomalous dimension, and the meson model constructed from a rotating open string with high angular momentum. This duality was previously studied using numerical tools in [1]. Our result implies that the minimum of the profile function of the minimal area surface dual to the Wilson loop, is related to the inverse of the bulk penetration of the dual string that hangs from the quark-anti-quark pair (meson) in the gauge theory.

Evolution of complexity following a global quench

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moosa, Mudassir

2018-03-01

The rate of complexification of a quantum state is conjectured to be bounded from above by the average energy of the state. A different conjecture relates the complexity of a holographic CFT state to the on-shell gravitational action of a certain bulk region. We use `complexity equals action' conjecture to study the time evolution of the complexity of the CFT state after a global quench. We find that the rate of growth of complexity is not only consistent with the conjectured bound, but it also saturates the bound soon after the system has achieved local equilibrium.

String Theory Methods for Condensed Matter Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nastase, Horatiu

2017-09-01

Preface; Acknowledgments; Introduction; Part I. Condensed Matter Models and Problems: 1. Lightning review of statistical mechanics, thermodynamics, phases and phase transitions; 2. Magnetism in solids; 3. Electrons in solids: Fermi gas vs. Fermi liquid; 4. Bosonic quasi-particles: phonons and plasmons; 5. Spin-charge separation in 1+1 dimensional solids: spinons and holons; 6. The Ising model and the Heisenberg spin chain; 7. Spin chains and integrable systems; 8. The thermodynamic Bethe ansatz; 9. Conformal field theories and quantum phase transitions; 10. Classical vs. quantum Hall effect; 11. Superconductivity: Landau-Ginzburg, London and BCS; 12. Topology and statistics: Berry and Chern-Simons, anyons and nonabelions; 13. Insulators; 14. The Kondo effect and the Kondo problem; 15. Hydrodynamics and transport properties: from Boltzmann to Navier-Stokes; Part II. Elements of General Relativity and String Theory: 16. The Einstein equation and the Schwarzschild solution; 17. The Reissner-Nordstrom and Kerr-Newman solutions and thermodynamic properties of black holes; 18. Extra dimensions and Kaluza-Klein; 19. Electromagnetism and gravity in various dimensions. Consistent truncations; 20. Gravity plus matter: black holes and p-branes in various dimensions; 21. Weak/strong coupling dualities in 1+1, 2+1, 3+1 and d+1 dimensions; 22. The relativistic point particle and the relativistic string; 23. Lightcone strings and quantization; 24. D-branes and gauge fields; 25. Electromagnetic fields on D-branes. Supersymmetry and N = 4 SYM. T-duality of closed strings; 26. Dualities and M theory; 27. The AdS/CFT correspondence: definition and motivation; Part III. Applying String Theory to Condensed Matter Problems: 28. The pp wave correspondence: string Hamiltonian from N = 4 SYM; 29. Spin chains from N = 4 SYM; 30. The Bethe ansatz: Bethe strings from classical strings in AdS; 31. Integrability and AdS/CFT; 32. AdS/CFT phenomenology: Lifshitz, Galilean and Schrodinger symmetries and their gravity duals; 33. Finite temperature and black holes; 34. Hot plasma equilibrium thermodynamics: entropy, charge density and chemical potential of strongly coupled theories; 35. Spectral functions and transport properties; 36. Dynamic and nonequilibrium properties of plasmas: electric transport, Langevin diffusion and thermalization via black hole quasi-normal modes; 37. The holographic superconductor; 38. The fluid-gravity correspondence: conformal relativistic fluids from black hole horizons; 39. Nonrelativistic fluids: from Einstein to Navier-Stokes and back; Part IV. Advanced Applications: 40. Fermi gas and liquid in AdS/CFT; 41. Quantum Hall effect from string theory; 42. Quantum critical systems and AdS/CFT; 43. Particle-vortex duality and ABJM vs. AdS4 X CP3 duality; 44. Topology and non-standard statistics from AdS/CFT; 45. DBI scalar model for QGP/black hole hydro- and thermo-dynamics; 46. Holographic entanglement entropy in condensed matter; 47. Holographic insulators; 48. Holographic strange metals and the Kondo problem; References; Index.

Evaluation of a commercial IgE ELISA in comparison with IgA and IgM ELISAs, IgG avidity assay and complement fixation for the diagnosis of acute toxoplasmosis.

PubMed

Kodym, P; Machala, L; Rohácová, H; Sirocká, B; Malý, M

2007-01-01

A panel of sera from patients with known case histories representative of acute toxoplasmosis (primarily lymphadenopathy, n = 106), latent toxoplasmosis (asymptomatic, n = 368) and negative samples (n = 54) was used to evaluate the capacity of five serological tests to differentiate among patients with acute or latent toxoplasmosis and non-infected individuals. Positive IgA, IgE and IgM ELISA results and low IgG avidity and complement fixation test (CFT) titres of >or=256 were considered to be indicative of acute toxoplasmosis. The most sensitive methods were IgM ELISA (98.1%) and CFT (97.1%), albeit with low specificity (65.0% and 64.5%, respectively) and positive predictive values (43.3% and 42.7%, respectively). IgG avidity assay and IgE ELISA had the highest specificity (97.7% and 91.7%, respectively) and the highest positive predictive values (89.4% and 75.6%, respectively). The best association between serological results and clinical findings was obtained with IgE ELISA (86%, as expressed via Youden's index). In a subset of 259 samples categorised by the period between the onset of clinical symptoms and sampling, >50% of patients had enlarged lymph nodes for <4 months, despite a broad range of differences. However, IgM remained positive for 12-18 months, IgA for 6-9 months and IgE for 4-6 months. IgG avidity remained low for a maximum of 4 months, after which avidity increased despite the persistence of enlarged lymph nodes and a positive IgE assay. Detection of IgE appears to be a highly specific test for confirming the acute nature of Toxoplasma infections that have been detected by other sensitive methods.

Does Bacopa monnieri improve memory performance in older persons? Results of a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind trial.

PubMed

Morgan, Annette; Stevens, John

2010-07-01

The objective of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of Bacopa monnieri Linn. for improvement of memory performance in healthy older persons. This was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The trial took place in Lismore, NSW, Australia between February and July 2005. Ninety-eight (98) healthy participants over 55 years of age were recruited from the general population. Participants were randomized to receive an extract of Bacopa monnieri called BacoMind(TM) (Natural Remedies Pvt. Ltd.), 300 mg/day, or an identical placebo. Following screening, neuropsychologic and subjective memory assessments were performed at baseline and at 12 weeks. Audioverbal and visual memory performance were measured by the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (AVLT), the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (CFT), and the Reitan Trail Making Test (TMT). Subjective memory performance was measured by the Memory Complaint Questionnaire (MAC-Q). One hundred and thirty-six (136) subjects volunteered; 103 met entry criteria, 98 commenced, and 81 completed the trial. Bacopa significantly improved verbal learning, memory acquisition, and delayed recall as measured by the AVLT: trial a4 (p = 0.000), trial a5 (p = 0.016); trial a6 (p = 0.000); trial a7 (delayed recall) (p = 0.001); total learning (p = 0.011); and retroactive interference (p = 0.048). CFT, MAC-Q, and TMT scores improved but group differences were not significant. Bacopa versus placebo caused gastrointestinal tract (GIT) side-effects. Bacopa significantly improved memory acquisition and retention in healthy older Australians. This concurs with previous findings and traditional use. Bacopa caused GIT side-effects of increased stool frequency, abdominal cramps, and nausea.

Preoperative Thromboelastometry as a Predictor of Transfusion Requirements during Adult Living Donor Liver Transplantation.

PubMed

Fayed, Nirmeen; Mourad, Wessam; Yassen, Khaled; Görlinger, Klaus

2015-03-01

The ability to predict transfusion requirements may improve perioperative bleeding management as an integral part of a patient blood management program. Therefore, the aim of our study was to evaluate preoperative thromboelastometry as a predictor of transfusion requirements for adult living donor liver transplant recipients. The correlation between preoperative thromboelastometry variables in 100 adult living donor liver transplant recipients and intraoperative blood transfusion requirements was examined by univariate and multivariate linear regression analysis. Thresholds of thromboelastometric parameters for prediction of packed red blood cells (PRBCs), fresh frozen plasma (FFP), platelets, and cryoprecipitate transfusion requirements were determined with receiver operating characteristics analysis. The attending anesthetists were blinded to the preoperative thromboelastometric analysis. However, a thromboelastometry-guided transfusion algorithm with predefined trigger values was used intraoperatively. The transfusion triggers in this algorithm did not change during the study period. Univariate analysis confirmed significant correlations between PRBCs, FFP, platelets or cryoprecipitate transfusion requirements and most thromboelastometric variables. Backward stepwise logistic regression indicated that EXTEM coagulation time (CT), maximum clot firmness (MCF) and INTEM CT, clot formation time (CFT) and MCF are independent predictors for PRBC transfusion. EXTEM CT, CFT and FIBTEM MCF are independent predictors for FFP transfusion. Only EXTEM and INTEM MCF were independent predictors of platelet transfusion. EXTEM CFT and MCF, INTEM CT, CFT and MCF as well as FIBTEM MCF are independent predictors for cryoprecipitate transfusion. Thromboelastometry-based regression equation accounted for 63% of PRBC, 83% of FFP, 61% of cryoprecipitate, and 44% of platelet transfusion requirements. Preoperative thromboelastometric analysis is helpful to predict transfusion requirements in adult living donor liver transplant recipients. This may allow for better preparation and less cross-matching prior to surgery. The findings of our study need to be re-validated in a second prospective patient population.

Patients with schizophrenia activate behavioural intentions facilitated by counterfactual reasoning

PubMed Central

Tebé, Cristian; Benejam, Bessy; Caño, Agnes; Menchón, José Manuel

2017-01-01

Previous research has associated schizophrenia with an inability to activate behavioural intentions facilitated by counterfactual thinking (CFT) as a step to improving performance. Consequently, these findings suggest that rehabilitation strategies will be entirely ineffective. To extend previous research, we evaluated the influence of CFT in the activation of behavioural intentions using a novel sequential priming paradigm in the largest sample of subjects explored to date. Method The main variables assessed were: answer to complete a target task (wrong or correctly), and percentage gain in the reaction time (RT) to complete a target task correctly depending on whether the prime was a counterfactual or a neutral-control cue. These variables were assessed in 37 patients with schizophrenia and 37 healthy controls. Potential associations with clinical status and socio-demographic characteristics were also explored. Results When a counterfactual prime was presented, the probability of giving an incorrect answer was lower for the entire sample than when a neutral prime was presented (OR 0.58; CI 95% 0.42 to 0.79), but the schizophrenia patients showed a higher probability than the controls of giving an incorrect answer (OR 3.89; CI 95% 2.0 to 7.6). Both the schizophrenia patients and the controls showed a similar percentage gain in RT to a correct answer of 8%. Conclusions Challenging the results of previous research, our findings suggest a normal activation of behavioural intentions facilitated by CFT in schizophrenia. Nevertheless, the patients showed more difficulty than the controls with the task, adding support to the concept of CFT as a potential new target for consideration in future therapeutic approaches for this illness. PMID:28586400

Efficacy of non-fovea-sparing ILM peeling for symptomatic myopic foveoschisis with and without macular hole.

PubMed

Al-Badawi, Amer Hamad; Abdelhakim, Mohamad Amr Salah Eddin; Macky, Tamer Ahmed; Mortada, Hassan Aly

2018-04-30

To study anatomical and visual outcomes of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) with non-fovea-sparing (entire) internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling in eyes with myopic foveoschisis (MF). Prospective interventional case series of eyes undergoing PPV with entire ILM peeling for symptomatic MF. Preoperative spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD - OCT) epiretinal membrane, anomalous posterior vitreous detachment, vitreoschisis and postoperative changes in SD-OCT central foveal thickness (CFT), ellipsoid zone defect, foveal detachment (FD), macular hole (MH) diameter (if present) and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) in logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR). This study included 21 eyes (21 patients) with mean age 60.4±13.1, 15 females (71.4%). All patients achieved complete postoperative reattachment by SD-OCT (no FD) 6 months post vitrectomy, with no iatrogenic intraoperative or postoperative MH, and with significant improvement in final BCVA from 1.6±0.30 to1.0±0.2 logMAR, and in CFT from 918.2±311.4 to182.3±33.1 µm. Patients were subdivided into subgroup A: 11 eyes without MH; and subgroup B: 10 eyes with MH, the latter had significant improvement in MH diameter (p=0.005). Preoperative BCVA was a significant risk factor for visual gain, while preoperative FD and CFT were significant for CFT change. Vitrectomy with non-fovea-sparing (entire) ILM peeling resulted in a significant functional and anatomical improvement in eyes with MF with/without MH with no reported complications. Results are comparable to fovea-sparing ILM peeling. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

A Phyletically Rare Gene Promotes the Niche-specific Fitness of an E. coli Pathogen during Bacteremia

PubMed Central

Wiles, Travis J.; Lewis, Adam J.; Mobley, Harry L. T.; Casjens, Sherwood R.; Mulvey, Matthew A.

2013-01-01

In bacteria, laterally acquired genes are often concentrated within chromosomal regions known as genomic islands. Using a recently developed zebrafish infection model, we set out to identify unique factors encoded within genomic islands that contribute to the fitness and virulence of a reference urosepsis isolate—extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli strain CFT073. By screening a series of deletion mutants, we discovered a previously uncharacterized gene, neaT, that is conditionally required by the pathogen during systemic infections. In vitro assays indicate that neaT can limit bacterial interactions with host phagocytes and alter the aggregative properties of CFT073. The neaT gene is localized within an integrated P2-like bacteriophage in CFT073, but was rarely found within other proteobacterial genomes. Sequence-based analyses revealed that neaT homologues are present, but discordantly conserved, within a phyletically diverse set of bacterial species. In CFT073, neaT appears to be unameliorated, having an exceptionally A+T-rich composition along with a notably altered codon bias. These data suggest that neaT was recently brought into the proteobacterial pan-genome from an extra-phyletic source. Interestingly, even in G+C-poor genomes, as found within the Firmicutes lineage, neaT-like genes are often unameliorated. Sequence-level features of neaT homologues challenge the common supposition that the A+T-rich nature of many recently acquired genes reflects the nucleotide composition of their genomes of origin. In total, these findings highlight the complexity of the evolutionary forces that can affect the acquisition, utilization, and assimilation of rare genes that promote the niche-dependent fitness and virulence of a bacterial pathogen. PMID:23459509

The Incidence of Hypogonadotropic Hypogonadism in Type 2 Diabetic Men in Polish Population

PubMed Central

Rabijewski, Michał; Zgliczyński, Wojciech; Piątkiewicz, Paweł

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (HH) in type 2 diabetic men (T2DM) in population of Polish men and examine the possible influence of estradiol levels and glycemic control. We evaluated TT, cfT, estradiol, and glycemic control (HbA1c) in 184 diabetic men and in 149 nondiabetic control group. The mean HbA1c was 8.6 ± 0.2% and 6.1 ± 0.3% and cfT concentration was 0.315 ± 0.08 nmol/L and 0.382 ± 0.07 nmol/L, respectively. T2DM had higher E2 concentration than nonobese control men (29.4 ± 3.7 pg/mL versus 24.5 ± 2.9 pg/mL). Forty-six percent of T2DM were hypogonadal and 93% had HH. We observed inverse relationship between BMI and cfT (r = −0.341, P < 0.01) and positive between BMI and E2 (r = 0.329, P < 0.01). E2 concentration was higher in T2DM with HH versus T2DM with normal TT/cfT concentration (34.5 ± 5.2 versus 27.4 ± 3.4 pg/mL). We observed negative correlation between HbA1c and cfT (r = −0.336, P < 0.005) but positive between HbA1c and E2 levels (r = 0.337, P < 0.002). The prevalence of obesity, hypertension, and CVD was higher in men with hypogonadism. High incidence of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism in type 2 diabetic men in Polish population is associated with poor glycemic control and can be secondary to an increase in estradiol concentrations. PMID:24222915

Supersymmetric Localization and Probe Branes in the AdS/CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Robinson, Brandon

In this thesis, a precise, rigorous test of probe brane holography will be constructed. Since its discovery, the AdS/CFT correspondence has provided a window into the strongly coupled dynamics of supersymmetric gauge theories. The ability to include degrees of freedom that provide analogs for the physics of heavy quarks via the probe brane paradigm has further expanded the utility of the duality. The deformation away from a strictly conformal theory by the addition of flavor degrees of freedom induces a Landau pole outside of the 't Hooft limit where Nc → infinity and Nf/Nc " 1, which invites questions about the utility of the probe brane paradigm. Following from the recent application equivariant localization to massive supersymmetric gauge theories on curved backgrounds, a precise question can be formulated to compare, e.g., the free energy of a supersymmetric probe brane embedding and that of the localized dual field theory. This thesis will apply those concepts to the D3/D7 probe brane system dual to Nf N = 2 fundamental hypermultiplets on an S4 and the D3/D5 probe brane system dual to Nf N = 2 fundamental hypermultiplets living on a co-dimension one defect- an equatorial S3 ⊂ S4. In that framework, exact matching to the localization results are found.

A field-validated model for in situ transport of polymer-stabilized nZVI and implications for subsurface injection.

PubMed

Krol, Magdalena M; Oleniuk, Andrew J; Kocur, Chris M; Sleep, Brent E; Bennett, Peter; Xiong, Zhong; O'Carroll, Denis M

2013-07-02

Nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) particles have significant potential to remediate contaminated source zones. However, the transport of these particles through porous media is not well understood, especially at the field scale. This paper describes the simulation of a field injection of carboxylmethyl cellulose (CMC) stabilized nZVI using a 3D compositional simulator, modified to include colloidal filtration theory (CFT). The model includes composition dependent viscosity and spatially and temporally variable velocity, appropriate for the simulation of push-pull tests (PPTs) with CMC stabilized nZVI. Using only attachment efficiency as a fitting parameter, model results were in good agreement with field observations when spatially variable viscosity effects on collision efficiency were included in the transport modeling. This implies that CFT-modified transport equations can be used to simulate stabilized nZVI field transport. Model results show that an increase in solution viscosity, resulting from injection of CMC stabilized nZVI suspension, affects nZVI mobility by decreasing attachment as well as changing the hydraulics of the system. This effect is especially noticeable with intermittent pumping during PPTs. Results from this study suggest that careful consideration of nZVI suspension formulation is important for optimal delivery of nZVI which can be facilitated with the use of a compositional simulator.

The effect of blade pitch in the rotor hydrodynamics of a cross-flow turbine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Somoano, Miguel; Huera-Huarte, Francisco

2016-11-01

In this work we will show how the hydrodynamics of the rotor of a straight-bladed Cross-Flow Turbine (CFT) are affected by the Tip Speed Ratio (TSR), and the blade pitch angle imposed to the rotor. The CFT model used in experiments consists of a three-bladed (NACA-0015) vertical axis turbine with a chord (c) to rotor diameter (D) ratio of 0.16. Planar Digital Particle Image Velocimetry (DPIV) was used, with the laser sheet aiming at the mid-span of the blades, illuminating the inner part of the rotor and the near wake of the turbine. Tests were made by forcing the rotation of the turbine with a DC motor, which provided precise control of the TSR, while being towed in a still-water tank at a constant Reynolds number of 61000. A range of TSRs from 0.7 to 2.3 were covered for different blade pitches, ranging from 8° toe-in to 16° toe-out. The interaction between the blades in the rotor will be discussed by examining dimensionless phase-averaged vorticity fields in the inner part of the rotor and mean velocity fields in the near wake of the turbine. Supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Grant BES-2013-065366 and project DPI2015-71645-P.

EXACT S-MATRICES FOR AdS3/CFT2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahn, Changrim; Bombardelli, Diego

2013-12-01

We propose exact S-matrices for the AdS3/CFT2 duality between type IIB strings on AdS3×S3×M4 with M4 = S3×S1 or T4 and the corresponding two-dimensional conformal field theories. We fix the two-particle S-matrices on the basis of the symmetries su(1|1) and su(1|1)×su(1|1). A crucial justification comes from the derivation of the all-loop Bethe ansatz matching exactly the recent conjecture proposed by Babichenko et al. [J. High Energy Phys.1003, 058 (2010), arXiv:0912.1723 [hep-th

Hybrid Fluorosilicones for Aircraft Fuel Tank Sealants. Part 4. Synthesis of Fluorocarbon and Fluorocarbon Ether Hybrid Fluorosilicone Polymers.

DTIC Science & Technology

1974-05-01

onine n oviro id i ncesay (Coidntiu d onac evesesie fluoroether SECURITY CLASIICAIO OFstuei THISer wAGE sythsie,and uRred) research~~~~~~~~ amle wer...i I. ." r;. . - 7 7 7 SECTION Table of Contents (Continued)Page b. Preparation of CHa-CH(CFa)aO(CFa),O( CFt )CH-CH* ............ 27 c. Preparation of...Photolysis of I(CFg)aO(CPs)nO(CFm)aI/Hg/ CFt .................. 32 6. Reaction of I(CFR)&O(CF,).O(CFa)s1 with Hg ..................... 33 a. 280 0C

Installation Restoration Program. Phase II. Confirmation/Quantification. Stage 1. Volume 2. Appendices A-M. Cannon AFB, New Mexico.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-09-01

0’ - N tT qT -0 t" C-r C-, M z a <CLW 4 0 a. o.CL- C= un z LJJIIr-= r -I CiA c= cot ’ rcli LAJI LUU CLCL LLI- IOUa a. IF LLJLm I-l - ( Cft - 4 CL...Depth Graphic Core Sample Sample Cft ) Log Interval/ID Taken* Lithologic Description 0- .. ~.G TOPSOIL; with some wood and other debris. 5-.~J SB-lA-1 ST...Date Recev 7 T ime~ L Transported By La- aml No. 0,; 0 Comments_____________________ ________ ___ Inclusive Dates of Possession

Archaeological Survey of Cooper Lake, Number 7. 1989. Cultural Resource Studies for Cooper Lake, Hopkins and Delta Counties, Texas

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-01-01

cable) U.S. Army Corps of E~ngineers Southern Methodist Universa~y IFort Worth District 6CADORfSS Cft ,,1TgWnd ZIP Co`*) 7 b ADDRESS (City. $tote, and...34, ili t i, l ,, -loam . :: 𔃻lt loe’ S N111, G Ca ( al, Ii l ;A lh oll cft wli I S 1rhl1ltor•t ort cfml |’ct terroris k’lont’l cnon1 Geomorphic In...survey. No visible remains were century ’to the present. noted during th~t current survey, and thesi .-~ could not be relocated. In all, three person

Conference Proceedings on Low Temperature Environment Operations of Turboengines (Design and User’s Problems) Presented at the Propulsion and Energetics Panel 76th Symposium Held in Brussels, Belgium on 8-12 October 1990

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-05-01

operations with cold soaked A/C, You have spoken at some length on the CFT stall problem. avoiding the problems of expansion and contraction Have you...Egalement de faire la assure dii degri hygrom~trique dui carburant en d~but d’ hiver. 3-4 On cft qui concerne le problbme de la batterie, il avait...conditions. has ger tally been integrated into the duct, such as an The Columbia experience however, has proved more S-duct, a vortex generator bank , or an

Naval Hydrodynamics Symposium (12th) on Boundary Layer Stability and Transition Ship Boundary Layers and Propeller Hull Interaction Cavitation Geophysical Fluid Dynamics.

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-01-01

Reshotko (1974 ,[ rL12 --o-Wazzan, Okamura & D =cq wdx + dLc (6)1 Snith 11970) F a f XJftW 10 u o-0 where g is the dynamic pressure, cfk and cft are co dx...cdx = 1.328 tr (13) xtr f L tr 106 xtr cft dx = 0.074 / )tr: 0 10 20 30 40 e R WALL OVERHEAT,.IT.° Cx FIGURE 2. Variation of transition Reynolds...change in the anqe , is varied. wavenumber vector in addition to the dispersion relation. Even though no aml itude calculations are included in this paper

Constructing an explicit AdS/CFT correspondence with Cartan geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hazboun, Jeffrey S.

2018-04-01

An explicit AdS/CFT correspondence is shown for the Lie group SO (4 , 2). The Lie symmetry structures allow for the construction of two physical theories through the tools of Cartan geometry. One is a gravitational theory that has anti-de Sitter symmetry. The other is also a gravitational theory but is conformally symmetric and lives on 8-dimensional biconformal space. These "extra" four dimensions have the degrees of freedom used to construct a Yang-Mills theory. The two theories, based on AdS or conformal symmetry, have a natural correspondence in the context of their Lie algebras alone where neither SUSY, nor holography, is necessary.

A quantum Rosetta Stone for the information paradox

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pando Zayas, Leopoldo A.

2014-11-01

The black hole information loss paradox epitomizes the contradictions between general relativity and quantum field theory. The AdS/conformal field theory (CFT) correspondence provides an implicit answer for the information loss paradox in black hole physics by equating a gravity theory with an explicitly unitary field theory. Gravitational collapse in asymptotically AdS spacetimes is generically turbulent. Given that the mechanism to read out the information about correlations functions in the field theory side is plagued by deterministic classical chaos, we argue that quantum chaos might provide the true Rosetta Stone for answering the information paradox in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence.

The Black Hole Information Problem

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Polchinski, Joseph

The black hole information problem has been a challenge since Hawking's original 1975 paper. It led to the discovery of AdS/CFT, which gave a partial resolution of the paradox. However, recent developments, in particular the firewall puzzle, show that there is much that we do not understand. I review the black hole, Hawking radiation, and the Page curve, and the classic form of the paradox. I discuss AdS/CFT as a partial resolution. I then discuss black hole complementarity and its limitations, leading to many proposals for different kinds of `drama.' I conclude with some recent ideas. Presented at the 2014-15 Jerusalem Winter School and the 2015 TASI.

Counterfactual thinking in Tourette's syndrome: a study using three measures.

PubMed

Zago, Stefano; Delli Ponti, Adriana; Mastroianni, Silvia; Solca, Federica; Tomasini, Emanuele; Poletti, Barbara; Inglese, Silvia; Sartori, Giuseppe; Porta, Mauro

2014-01-01

Pathophysiological evidence suggests an involvement of frontostriatal circuits in Tourette syndrome (TS) and cognitive abnormalities have been detected in tasks sensitive to cognitive deficits associated with prefrontal damage (verbal fluency, planning, attention shifting, working memory, cognitive flexibility, and social reasoning). A disorder in counterfactual thinking (CFT), a behavioural executive process linked to the prefrontal cortex functioning, has not been investigated in TS. CFT refers to the generation of a mental simulation of alternatives to past factual events, actions, and outcomes. It is a pervasive cognitive feature in everyday life and it is closely related to decision-making, planning, problem-solving, and experience-driven learning-cognitive processes that involve wide neuronal networks in which prefrontal lobes play a fundamental role. Clinical observations in patients with focal prefrontal lobe damage or with neurological and psychiatric diseases related to frontal lobe dysfunction (e.g., Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, and schizophrenia) show counterfactual thinking impairments. In this work, we evaluate the performance of CFT in a group of patients with Tourette's syndrome compared with a group of healthy participants. Overall results showed no statistical differences in counterfactual thinking between TS patients and controls in the three counterfactual measures proposed. The possible explanations of this unexpected result are discussed below.

Half-BPS Wilson loop and AdS 2/CFT 1

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

Giombi, Simone; Roiban, Radu; Tseytlin, Arkady A.

Here, we study correlation functions of local operator insertions on the 1/2-BPS Wilson line in N=4 super Yang–Mills theory. These correlation functions are constrained by the 1d superconformal symmetry pre-served by the 1/2-BPS Wilson line and define a defect CFT 1 living on the line. At strong coupling, a set of elementary operator insertions with protected scaling dimensions correspond to fluctuations of the dual fundamental string in AdS 5×S 5 ending on the line at the boundary and can be thought of as light fields propagating on the AdS 2 worldsheet. We use AdS/CFT techniques to compute the tree-level AdSmore » 2 Witten diagrams describing the strong coupling limit of the four-point functions of the dual operator insertions. Using the OPE, we also extract the leading strong coupling corrections to the anomalous dimensions of the “two-particle” operators built out of elementary excitations. In the case of the circular Wilson loop, we match our results for the 4-point functions of a special type of scalar insertions to the prediction of localization to 2d Yang–Mills theory.« less

Half-BPS Wilson loop and AdS 2/CFT 1

DOE PAGES

Giombi, Simone; Roiban, Radu; Tseytlin, Arkady A.

2017-09-01

Here, we study correlation functions of local operator insertions on the 1/2-BPS Wilson line in N=4 super Yang–Mills theory. These correlation functions are constrained by the 1d superconformal symmetry pre-served by the 1/2-BPS Wilson line and define a defect CFT 1 living on the line. At strong coupling, a set of elementary operator insertions with protected scaling dimensions correspond to fluctuations of the dual fundamental string in AdS 5×S 5 ending on the line at the boundary and can be thought of as light fields propagating on the AdS 2 worldsheet. We use AdS/CFT techniques to compute the tree-level AdSmore » 2 Witten diagrams describing the strong coupling limit of the four-point functions of the dual operator insertions. Using the OPE, we also extract the leading strong coupling corrections to the anomalous dimensions of the “two-particle” operators built out of elementary excitations. In the case of the circular Wilson loop, we match our results for the 4-point functions of a special type of scalar insertions to the prediction of localization to 2d Yang–Mills theory.« less

Exact correlators on the Wilson loop in N=4 SYM: localization, defect CFT, and integrability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giombi, Simone; Komatsu, Shota

2018-05-01

We compute a set of correlation functions of operator insertions on the 1 /8 BPS Wilson loop in N=4 SYM by employing supersymmetric localization, OPE and the Gram-Schmidt orthogonalization. These correlators exhibit a simple determinant structure, are position-independent and form a topological subsector, but depend nontrivially on the 't Hooft coupling and the rank of the gauge group. When applied to the 1 /2 BPS circular (or straight) Wilson loop, our results provide an infinite family of exact defect CFT data, including the structure constants of protected defect primaries of arbitrary length inserted on the loop. At strong coupling, we show precise agreement with a direct calculation using perturbation theory around the AdS2 string worldsheet. We also explain the connection of our results to the "generalized Bremsstrahlung functions" previously computed from integrability techniques, reproducing the known results in the planar limit as well as obtaining their finite N generalization. Furthermore, we show that the correlators at large N can be recast as simple integrals of products of polynomials (known as Q-functions) that appear in the Quantum Spectral Curve approach. This suggests an interesting interplay between localization, defect CFT and integrability.

Entanglement entropy with a time-dependent Hamiltonian

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sivaramakrishnan, Allic

2018-03-01

The time evolution of entanglement tracks how information propagates in interacting quantum systems. We study entanglement entropy in CFT2 with a time-dependent Hamiltonian. We perturb by operators with time-dependent source functions and use the replica trick to calculate higher-order corrections to entanglement entropy. At first order, we compute the correction due to a metric perturbation in AdS3/CFT2 and find agreement on both sides of the duality. Past first order, we find evidence of a universal structure of entanglement propagation to all orders. The central feature is that interactions entangle unentangled excitations. Entanglement propagates according to "entanglement diagrams," proposed structures that are motivated by accessory spacetime diagrams for real-time perturbation theory. To illustrate the mechanisms involved, we compute higher-order corrections to free fermion entanglement entropy. We identify an unentangled operator, one which does not change the entanglement entropy to any order. Then, we introduce an interaction and find it changes entanglement entropy by entangling the unentangled excitations. The entanglement propagates in line with our conjecture. We compute several entanglement diagrams. We provide tools to simplify the computation of loop entanglement diagrams, which probe UV effects in entanglement propagation in CFT and holography.

Can one hear the Riemann zeros in black hole ringing?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aros, Rodrigo; Bugini, Fabrizzio; Diaz, Danilo E.

2016-05-01

We elaborate on an entry of the AdS/CFT dictionary relating functional determinants: the determinant of the one-loop contribution to the effective gravitational action by bulk scalars in an asymptotically locally AdS background X, and the determinant of the two-point function of the dual operator (a.k.a. scattering matrix) at the conformal boundary M. The formula originates from AdS/CFT heuristics that map a quantum contribution in the bulk gravitational partition function to a subleading large-N contribution in the boundary CFT partition function: The formula applies to quotients of AdS as well [1]. In the particular case of the BTZ black hole, a closed expression can be worked out in terms of an associated Patterson-Selberg zeta function ZBTZ (λ) [2]. The determinants can then be thought of as regularized products of either zeta zeros, scattering resonances or quasinormal frequencies [3]. In this sense, one could say that the zeros of ZBTZ (λ) can be heard in the spectrum of quasinormal modes of the BTZ black hole. The question we want to pose is whether a similar situation might exist for the celebrated zeros of the Riemann zeta function.

Effectiveness of various cover scenarios on the rate of sulfide oxidation of mine tailings

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romano, Connie G.; Ulrich Mayer, K.; Jones, David R.; Ellerbroek, David A.; Blowes, David W.

2003-02-01

Long term environmentally sound disposal of the millions of tons of mining residue is a serious challenge to the international mining industry. This paper evaluates, through a numerical investigation, the potential performance of desulfurized tailings as a cover material for the reduction of acidic drainage from sulfidic tailings. This evaluation is facilitated through a comparison of various cover types as decommissioning options. The cover types considered consist of a desulfurized tailings material cover exposed to ambient climate conditions, a water cover (flooded tailings), and a combination cover type. As part of the evaluation of cover performances, the effect of climatic variability on the potential rate of sulfide oxidation in tailings with an open ground surface, was also assessed. The numerical analysis was conducted using the model PYROX, which was modified to allow for variably-saturated conditions, time varying moisture contents, and to account for the temperature dependence of Henry's law and gas diffusion. In the case study presented here, the benign cover material consists of a low sulfide waste stream (cassiterite float tails, CFT), a by-product of the production of tin concentrate (cassiterite, SnO 2). Modelling results after a simulation period of 100 years indicate that a water cover alone or an exposed CFT cover alone are both less effective options than the combined cover type. A water cover alone leads to a reduction of approximately 99.1%, in the oxidation rate relative to uncovered tailings while the combined cover type results in the lowest potential extent of sulfide oxidation after mine closure-an approximately 99.8% reduction. Importantly, a CFT cover exposed to ambient environmental conditions can still substantially reduce the sulfide oxidation rate, by approximately 75-82% over a 100-year time period, relative to uncovered tailings. Variability in precipitation (and hence percent saturation of the surface layer) had less of an effect on the potential sulfide oxidation rate than did the cover type. The performance of the exposed CFT cover varied by less than 10%, within the range of climatic conditions expected at the Renison Bell mine site in southwest Tasmania, Australia. Although the modelling results indicate that the combined water and CFT cover is the best option, this approach achieves only a minor improvement over the water cover alone.

AdS/CFT, Black Holes, And Fuzzballs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zadeh, Ida G.

In this thesis we investigate two different aspects of the AdS/CFT correspondence. We first investigate the holographic AdS/CMT correspondence. Gravitational backgrounds in d + 2 dimensions have been proposed as holographic duals to Lifshitz-like theories describing critical phenomena in d + 1 dimensions with critical exponent z ≥ 1. We numerically explore a dilaton-Einstein-Maxwell model admitting such backgrounds as solutions. We show how to embed these solutions into AdS space for a range of values of z and d. We next investigate the AdS3/CFT2 correspondence and focus on the microscopic CFT description of the D1--D5 system on T4 x S1. In the context of the fuzzball programme, we investigate deforming the CFT away from the orbifold point and study lifting of the low-lying string states. We start by considering general 2D orbifold CFTs of the form M N/SN, with M a target space manifold and SN the symmetric group. The Lunin-Mathur covering space technique provides a way to compute correlators in these orbifold theories, and we generalize this technique in two ways. First, we consider excitations of twist operators by modes of fields that are not twisted by that operator, and show how to account for these excitations when computing correlation functions in the covering space. Second, we consider non-twist sector operators and show how to include the effects of these insertions in the covering space. Using the generalization of the Lunin-Mathur symmetric orbifold technology and conformal perturbation theory, we initiate a program to compute the anomalous dimensions of low-lying string states in the D1--D5 superconformal field theory. Our method entails finding four-point functions involving a string operator O of interest and the deformation operator, taking coincidence limits to identify which other operators mix with O, subtracting conformal families of these operators, and computing their mixing coefficients. We find evidence of operator mixing at first order in the deformation parameter, which means that the string state acquires an anomalous dimension. After diagonalization this will mean that anomalous dimensions of some string states in the D1--D5 SCFT must decrease away from the orbifold point while others increase. Finally, we summarize our results and discuss some future directions of research.

Performance differences between male and female marines on standardized physical fitness tests and combat proxy tasks: identifying the gap.

PubMed

Jameson, Jason; Pappa, Leon; McGuire, Brian; Kelly, Karen R

2015-01-01

For decades women have been restricted from direct assignment to certain military occupational specialties such as infantry. These restrictions can limit the advancement of women through the ranks of military leadership. Thus, the purpose of this effort was to identify those physical requirements most likely to serve as barriers for women wanting to enter closed combat arms positions, and to evaluate the quality of existing physical fitness tests as potential measures of assessment of combat readiness. Data were collected from 3 different sites within the US Marine Corps Training and Education Command. All participants (409 male, 379 femaile) were active-duty Marines who recently completed the Physical Fitness Test (PFT) and Combat Fitness Test (CFT). Participants completed 6 physical tasks: 120-mm tank loading drill, 155-mm artillery round carry, negotiating an obstacle course wall while wearing a fighting load (≈30 lb), pull-ups, deadlift, and clean and press. Overall, there was a high rate of successful completion on the combat proxy tasks (men, ≈80% to 100%; women, ≈70% to 100%), with the notable exception being the clean and press (men, 80%; women, 9%) and pull-ups (men, 16±4; women, 4±2). The PFT and CFT components tasks were also related, strongly in some cases, with performance on combat-related proxy tasks (Spearman's ρ typically ranged from 0.60 to 0.80). Estimates of fat-free mass and VO2max were also strongly related to an overall measure of combat readiness (Spearman's ρ=0.77 and ρ=0.56, respectively). The primary physical obstacle for women is upper body strength. However, some women could successfully complete all of the proxy tasks and thus are physically capable of meeting the demands of closed combat occupations. The fact that some female Marines could complete the most challenging upper body strength tasks suggests that these barriers are not inherent but may be due to a lack of training specificity.

Holographic derivation of entanglement entropy from the anti-de Sitter space/conformal field theory correspondence.

PubMed

Ryu, Shinsei; Takayanagi, Tadashi

2006-05-12

A holographic derivation of the entanglement entropy in quantum (conformal) field theories is proposed from anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence. We argue that the entanglement entropy in d + 1 dimensional conformal field theories can be obtained from the area of d dimensional minimal surfaces in AdS(d+2), analogous to the Bekenstein-Hawking formula for black hole entropy. We show that our proposal agrees perfectly with the entanglement entropy in 2D CFT when applied to AdS(3). We also compare the entropy computed in AdS(5)XS(5) with that of the free N=4 super Yang-Mills theory.

Dualities in CHL-models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Persson, Daniel; Volpato, Roberto

2018-04-01

We define a very general class of CHL-models associated with any string theory S (bosonic or supersymmetric) compactified on an internal CFT C× Td . We take the orbifold by a pair (g, δ) , where g is a (possibly non-geometric) symmetry of C and δ is a translation along T n . We analyze the T-dualities of these models and show that in general they contain Atkin–Lehner type symmetries. This generalizes our previous work on N=4 CHL-models based on heterotic string theory on T 6 or type II on K3× T2 , as well as the ‘monstrous’ CHL-models based on a compactification of heterotic string theory on the Frenkel–Lepowsky–Meurman CFT V\

System and Force Structure Cost Analysis Model (SAFSCAM) User’s Guide.

DTIC Science & Technology

1979-09-01

columns 1-20 of card type 6 must begin with an open parenthesis and end with a closed paren- thesis . Blanks are allowed before and after the element number...ILLAti4Ct21+l, ICER4CE .+I I, CFT t 11rLMPT24 I II SLLCF 1(4. C.................... 4.0 . ..... ..... #... SLCCM ItS, NCER - NCEK. - 3 SL.CCN 1(1 45 CONTINLt...211 O CSTAELtMK SLCCP 21.2 02 -C:TAOEL.6BY3) SLCCM 21.3 K -K 4 3 S LCI 2’.’ KOYS Ki3 S (( CFt 2𔃾S DO 475 I-1.NWBSMI 51.1CM 246 IF (SFH.EC.2) GOU TU ’.74

Extensive numerical study of a D-brane, anti-D-brane system in AdS 5 /CFT 4

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hegedűs, Árpád

2015-04-01

In this paper the hybrid-NLIE approach of [38] is extended to the ground state of a D-brane anti-D-brane system in AdS/CFT. The hybrid-NLIE equations presented in the paper are finite component alternatives of the previously proposed TBA equations and they admit an appropriate framework for the numerical investigation of the ground state of the problem. Straightforward numerical iterative methods fail to converge, thus new numerical methods are worked out to solve the equations. Our numerical data confirm the previous TBA data. In view of the numerical results the mysterious L = 1 case is also commented in the paper.

Giant magnons and spiky strings in the Schrödinger/dipole-deformed CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Georgiou, George; Zoakos, Dimitrios

2018-02-01

We construct semi-classical string solutions of the Schrödinger Sch 5 × S 5 spacetime, which is conjectured to be the gravity dual of a non-local dipole-deformed CFT. They are the counterparts of the giant magnon and spiky string solutions of the undeformed AdS 5 × S 5 to which they flow when the deformation parameter is turned off. They live in an S 3 subspace of the five-sphere along the directions of which the B-field has non-zero components, having also extent in the Sch 5 part of the metric. Finally, we speculate on the form of the dual field theory operators.

Integrable flows between exact CFTs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Georgiou, George; Sfetsos, Konstantinos

2017-11-01

We explicitly construct families of integrable σ-model actions smoothly inter-polating between exact CFTs. In the ultraviolet the theory is the direct product of two current algebras at levels k 1 and k 2. In the infrared and for the case of two deformation matrices the CFT involves a coset CFT, whereas for a single matrix deformation it is given by the ultraviolet direct product theories but at levels k 1 and k 2 - k 1. For isotropic deformations we demonstrate integrability. In this case we also compute the exact beta-function for the deformation parameters using gravitational methods. This is shown to coincide with previous results obtained using perturbation theory and non-perturbative symmetries.

Hair-brane ideas on the horizon

DOE PAGES

Martinec, Emil J.; Niehoff, Ben E.

2015-11-27

We continue an examination of the microstate geometries program begun in arXiv:1409.6017, focussing on the role of branes that wrap the cycles which degenerate when a throat in the geometry deepens and a horizon forms. An associated quiver quantum mechanical model of minimally wrapped branes exhibits a non-negligible fraction of the gravitational entropy, which scales correctly as a function of the charges. The results suggest a picture of AdS3/CFT2 duality wherein the long string that accounts for BTZ black hole entropy in the CFT description, can also be seen to inhabit the horizon of BPS black holes on the gravitymore » side.« less

The impact of macular surgery in different grades of epiretinal membrane.

PubMed

Batman, Cosar; Citirik, Mehmet

2017-01-01

To assess the impact of macular surgery on the functional and anatomic outcomes of the patients in different grades of epiretinal membrane (ERM). Seventy-one eyes of 71 patients who underwent 23-gauge transconjunctival sutureless pars plana vitrectomy for primary isolated ERM were evaluated in this study. There were 38 females (53.5%) and 33 males (46.5%). The average age of the patients was 68.1y (range 42-89y). Mean follow up period was 14mo (range 6-26mo). The cases were divided into two subgroups of cellophane maculopathy (CM) and macular pucker (MP). An improvement was observed in the postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), as well as a decrement in central foveal thickness (CFT) in both groups (both of these being statistically significant; P =0.001). In comparison between two groups, it was found that there was a significant improvement on BCVA and CFT in CM group than MP group ( P =0.01). Furthermore, the postoperative fundus findings regarding RPE alterations and macular edema were significantly higher in MP group when compared to the CM group ( P =0.01). ERM and internal limiting membrane peeling surgery can lead to a significant reduction of CFT and visual improvements in idiopathic ERM. A long-term ERM persistence will cause unrecoverable retinal damage and visual loss.

Equivalence of emergent de Sitter spaces from conformal field theory

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

Asplund, Curtis T.; Callebaut, Nele; Zukowski, Claire

Recently, two groups have made distinct proposals for a de Sitter space that is emergent from conformal field theory (CFT). The first proposal is that, for two-dimensional holographic CFTs, the kinematic space of geodesics on a space-like slice of the asymptotically anti-de Sitter bulk is two-dimensional de Sitter space (dS 2), with a metric that can be derived from the entanglement entropy of intervals in the CFT. In the second proposal, de Sitter dynamics emerges naturally from the first law of entanglement entropy for perturbations around the vacuum state of CFTs. We provide support for the equivalence of these twomore » emergent spacetimes in the vacuum case and beyond. In particular, we study the kinematic spaces of nontrivial solutions of 3d gravity, including the BTZ black string, BTZ black hole, and conical singularities. We argue that the resulting spaces are generically globally hyperbolic spacetimes that support dynamics given boundary conditions at future infinity. For the BTZ black string, corresponding to a thermal state of the CFT, we show that both prescriptions lead to an emergent hyperbolic patch of dS 2. As a result, we offer a general method for relating kinematic space and the auxiliary de Sitter space that is valid in the vacuum and thermal cases.« less

A holographic model of the Kondo effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erdmenger, Johanna; Hoyos, Carlos; O'Bannon, Andy; Wu, Jackson

2013-12-01

We propose a model of the Kondo effect based on the Anti-de Sitter/Conformal Field Theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence, also known as holography. The Kondo effect is the screening of a magnetic impurity coupled anti-ferromagnetically to a bath of conduction electrons at low temperatures. In a (1+1)-dimensional CFT description, the Kondo effect is a renormalization group flow triggered by a marginally relevant (0+1)-dimensional operator between two fixed points with the same Kac-Moody current algebra. In the large- N limit, with spin SU( N) and charge U(1) symmetries, the Kondo effect appears as a (0+1)-dimensional second-order mean-field transition in which the U(1) charge symmetry is spontaneously broken. Our holographic model, which combines the CFT and large- N descriptions, is a Chern-Simons gauge field in (2+1)-dimensional AdS space, AdS 3, dual to the Kac-Moody current, coupled to a holographic superconductor along an AdS 2 sub-space. Our model exhibits several characteristic features of the Kondo effect, including a dynamically generated scale, a resistivity with power-law behavior in temperature at low temperatures, and a spectral flow producing a phase shift. Our holographic Kondo model may be useful for studying many open problems involving impurities, including for example the Kondo lattice problem.

A Natural Language for AdS/CFT Correlators

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

Fitzpatrick, A.Liam; /Boston U.; Kaplan, Jared

2012-02-14

We provide dramatic evidence that 'Mellin space' is the natural home for correlation functions in CFTs with weakly coupled bulk duals. In Mellin space, CFT correlators have poles corresponding to an OPE decomposition into 'left' and 'right' sub-correlators, in direct analogy with the factorization channels of scattering amplitudes. In the regime where these correlators can be computed by tree level Witten diagrams in AdS, we derive an explicit formula for the residues of Mellin amplitudes at the corresponding factorization poles, and we use the conformal Casimir to show that these amplitudes obey algebraic finite difference equations. By analyzing the recursivemore » structure of our factorization formula we obtain simple diagrammatic rules for the construction of Mellin amplitudes corresponding to tree-level Witten diagrams in any bulk scalar theory. We prove the diagrammatic rules using our finite difference equations. Finally, we show that our factorization formula and our diagrammatic rules morph into the flat space S-Matrix of the bulk theory, reproducing the usual Feynman rules, when we take the flat space limit of AdS/CFT. Throughout we emphasize a deep analogy with the properties of flat space scattering amplitudes in momentum space, which suggests that the Mellin amplitude may provide a holographic definition of the flat space S-Matrix.« less

Marginally trapped surfaces and AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grado-White, Brianna; Marolf, Donald

2018-02-01

It has been proposed that the areas of marginally trapped or anti-trapped surfaces (also known as leaves of holographic screens) may encode some notion of entropy. To connect this to AdS/CFT, we study the case of marginally trapped surfaces anchored to an AdS boundary. We establish that such boundary-anchored leaves lie between the causal and extremal surfaces defined by the anchor and that they have area bounded below by that of the minimal extremal surface. This suggests that the area of any leaf represents a coarse-grained von Neumann entropy for the associated region of the dual CFT. We further demonstrate that the leading area-divergence of a boundary-anchored marginally trapped surface agrees with that for the associated extremal surface, though subleading divergences generally differ. Finally, we generalize an argument of Bousso and Engelhardt to show that holographic screens with all leaves anchored to the same boundary set have leaf-areas that increase monotonically along the screen, and we describe a construction through which this monotonicity can take the more standard form of requiring entropy to increase with boundary time. This construction is related to what one might call future causal holographic information, which in such cases also provides an upper bound on the area of the associated leaves.

Equivalence of emergent de Sitter spaces from conformal field theory

DOE PAGES

Asplund, Curtis T.; Callebaut, Nele; Zukowski, Claire

2016-09-27

Recently, two groups have made distinct proposals for a de Sitter space that is emergent from conformal field theory (CFT). The first proposal is that, for two-dimensional holographic CFTs, the kinematic space of geodesics on a space-like slice of the asymptotically anti-de Sitter bulk is two-dimensional de Sitter space (dS 2), with a metric that can be derived from the entanglement entropy of intervals in the CFT. In the second proposal, de Sitter dynamics emerges naturally from the first law of entanglement entropy for perturbations around the vacuum state of CFTs. We provide support for the equivalence of these twomore » emergent spacetimes in the vacuum case and beyond. In particular, we study the kinematic spaces of nontrivial solutions of 3d gravity, including the BTZ black string, BTZ black hole, and conical singularities. We argue that the resulting spaces are generically globally hyperbolic spacetimes that support dynamics given boundary conditions at future infinity. For the BTZ black string, corresponding to a thermal state of the CFT, we show that both prescriptions lead to an emergent hyperbolic patch of dS 2. As a result, we offer a general method for relating kinematic space and the auxiliary de Sitter space that is valid in the vacuum and thermal cases.« less

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

Fernando, Sudarshan; Günaydin, Murat

We study the minimal unitary representation (minrep) of SO(5, 2), obtained by quantization of its geometric quasiconformal action, its deformations and supersymmetric extensions. The minrep of SO(5, 2) describes a massless conformal scalar field in five dimensions and admits a unique “deformation” which describes a massless conformal spinor. Scalar and spinor minreps of SO(5, 2) are the 5d analogs of Dirac’s singletons of SO(3, 2). We then construct the minimal unitary representation of the unique 5d supercon-formal algebra F(4) with the even subalgebra SO(5, 2) ×SU(2). The minrep of F(4) describes a massless conformal supermultiplet consisting of two scalar andmore » one spinor fields. We then extend our results to the construction of higher spin AdS 6/CFT 5 (super)-algebras. The Joseph ideal of the minrep of SO(5, 2) vanishes identically as operators and hence its enveloping algebra yields the AdS 6/CFT 5 bosonic higher spin algebra directly. The enveloping algebra of the spinor minrep defines a “deformed” higher spin algebra for which a deformed Joseph ideal vanishes identically as operators. These results are then extended to the construction of the unique higher spin AdS 6/CFT 5 superalgebra as the enveloping algebra of the minimal unitary realization of F(4) obtained by the quasiconformal methods.« less

The origins and nature of compassion focused therapy.

PubMed

Gilbert, Paul

2014-03-01

Compassion focused therapy (CFT) is rooted in an evolutionary, functional analysis of basic social motivational systems (e.g., to live in groups, form hierarchies and ranks, seek out sexual, partners help and share with alliances, and care for kin) and different functional emotional systems (e.g., to respond to threats, seek out resources, and for states of contentment/safeness). In addition, about 2 million years ago, (pre-)humans began to evolve a range of cognitive competencies for reasoning, reflection, anticipating, imagining, mentalizing, and creating a socially contextualized sense of self. These new competencies can cause major difficulties in the organization of (older) motivation and emotional systems. CFT suggests that our evolved brain is therefore potentially problematic because of its basic 'design,' being easily triggered into destructive behaviours and mental health problems (called 'tricky brain'). However, mammals and especially humans have also evolved motives and emotions for affiliative, caring and altruistic behaviour that can organize our brain in such a way as to significantly offset our destructive potentials. CFT therefore highlights the importance of developing people's capacity to (mindfully) access, tolerate, and direct affiliative motives and emotions, for themselves and others, and cultivate inner compassion as a way for organizing our human 'tricky brain' in prosocial and mentally healthy ways. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Self-compassion training for binge eating disorder: a pilot randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Kelly, Allison C; Carter, Jacqueline C

2015-09-01

The present pilot study sought to compare a compassion-focused therapy (CFT)-based self-help intervention for binge eating disorder (BED) to a behaviourally based intervention. Forty-one individuals with BED were randomly assigned to 3 weeks of food planning plus self-compassion exercises; food planning plus behavioural strategies; or a wait-list control condition. Participants completed weekly measures of binge eating and self-compassion; pre- and post-intervention measures of eating disorder pathology and depressive symptoms; and a baseline measure assessing fear of self-compassion. Results showed that: (1) perceived credibility, expectancy, and compliance did not differ between the two interventions; (2) both interventions reduced weekly binge days more than the control condition; (3) the self-compassion intervention reduced global eating disorder pathology, eating concerns, and weight concerns more than the other conditions; (4) the self-compassion intervention increased self-compassion more than the other conditions; and (5) participants low in fear of self-compassion derived significantly more benefits from the self-compassion intervention than those high in fear of self-compassion. Findings offer preliminary support for the usefulness of CFT-based interventions for BED sufferers. Results also suggest that for individuals to benefit from self-compassion training, assessing and lowering fear of self-compassion will be crucial. Individuals with BED perceive self-compassion training self-help interventions, derived from CFT, to be as credible and as likely to help as behaviourally based interventions. The cultivation of self-compassion may be an effective approach for reducing binge eating, and eating, and weight concerns in individuals with BED. Teaching individuals with BED CFT-based self-help exercises may increase their self-compassion levels over a short period of time. It may be important for clinicians to assess and target clients' fear of self-compassion for clients to benefit from self-compassion training interventions. © 2014 The British Psychological Society.

Characterization of Escherichia coli d-Cycloserine Transport and Resistant Mutants

PubMed Central

Baisa, Gary; Stabo, Nicholas J.

2013-01-01

d-Cycloserine (DCS) is a broad-spectrum antibiotic that inhibits d-alanine ligase and alanine racemase activity. When Escherichia coli K-12 or CFT073 is grown in minimal glucose or glycerol medium, CycA transports DCS into the cell. E. coli K-12 cycA and CFT073 cycA mutant strains display increased DCS resistance when grown in minimal medium. However, the cycA mutants exhibit no change in DCS sensitivity compared to their parental strains when grown in LB (CFT073 and K-12) or human urine (CFT073 only). These data suggest that cycA does not participate in DCS sensitivity when strains are grown in a non-minimal medium. The small RNA GvcB acts as a negative regulator of E. coli K-12 cycA expression when grown in LB. Three E. coli K-12 gcvB mutant strains failed to demonstrate a change in DCS sensitivity when grown in LB. This further suggests a limited role for cycA in DCS sensitivity. To aid in the identification of E. coli genes involved in DCS sensitivity when grown on complex media, the Keio K-12 mutant collection was screened for DCS-resistant strains. dadA, pnp, ubiE, ubiF, ubiG, ubiH, and ubiX mutant strains showed elevated DCS resistance. The phenotypes associated with these mutants were used to further define three previously characterized E. coli DCS-resistant strains (χ316, χ444, and χ453) isolated by Curtiss and colleagues (R. Curtiss, III, L. J. Charamella, C. M. Berg, and P. E. Harris, J. Bacteriol. 90:1238–1250, 1965). A dadA mutation was identified in both χ444 and χ453. In addition, results are presented that indicate for the first time that DCS can antagonize d-amino acid dehydrogenase (DadA) activity. PMID:23316042

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli Metabolite-Dependent Quiescence and Persistence May Explain Antibiotic Tolerance during Urinary Tract Infection

PubMed Central

Leatham-Jensen, Mary P.; Mokszycki, Matthew E.; Rowley, David C.; Deering, Robert; Camberg, Jodi L.; Sokurenko, Evgeni V.; Tchesnokova, Veronika L.; Frimodt-Møller, Jakob; Leth Nielsen, Karen; Sun, Gongqin

2016-01-01

ABSTRACT In the present study, it is shown that although Escherichia coli CFT073, a human uropathogenic (UPEC) strain, grows in liquid glucose M9 minimal medium, it fails to grow on glucose M9 minimal medium agar plates seeded with ≤106 CFU. The cells on glucose plates appear to be in a “quiescent” state that can be prevented by various combinations of lysine, methionine, and tyrosine. Moreover, the quiescent state is characteristic of ~80% of E. coli phylogenetic group B2 multilocus sequence type 73 strains, as well as 22.5% of randomly selected UPEC strains isolated from community-acquired urinary tract infections in Denmark. In addition, E. coli CFT073 quiescence is not limited to glucose but occurs on agar plates containing a number of other sugars and acetate as sole carbon sources. It is also shown that a number of E. coli CFT073 mini-Tn5 metabolic mutants (gnd, gdhA, pykF, sdhA, and zwf) are nonquiescent on glucose M9 minimal agar plates and that quiescence requires a complete oxidative tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. In addition, evidence is presented that, although E. coli CFT073 quiescence and persistence in the presence of ampicillin are alike in that both require a complete oxidative TCA cycle and each can be prevented by amino acids, E. coli CFT073 quiescence occurs in the presence or absence of a functional rpoS gene, whereas maximal persistence requires a nonfunctional rpoS. Our results suggest that interventions targeting specific central metabolic pathways may mitigate UPEC infections by interfering with quiescence and persistence. IMPORTANCE Recurrent urinary tract infections (UTIs) affect 10 to 40% of women. In up to 77% of those cases, the recurrent infections are caused by the same uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) strain that caused the initial infection. Upon infection of urothelial transitional cells in the bladder, UPEC appear to enter a nongrowing quiescent intracellular state that is thought to serve as a reservoir responsible for recurrent UTIs. Here, we report that many UPEC strains enter a quiescent state when ≤106 CFU are seeded on glucose M9 minimal medium agar plates and show that mutations in several genes involved in central carbon metabolism prevent quiescence, as well as persistence, possibly identifying metabolic pathways involved in UPEC quiescence and persistence in vivo. PMID:27303698

Bulk locality and boundary creating operators

DOE PAGES

Nakayama, Yu; Ooguri, Hirosi

2015-10-19

Here, we formulate a minimum requirement for CFT operators to be localized in the dual AdS. In any spacetime dimensions, we show that a general solution to the requirement is a linear superposition of operators creating spherical boundaries in CFT, with the dilatation by the imaginary unit from their centers. This generalizes the recent proposal by Miyaji et al. for bulk local operators in the three dimensional AdS. We show that Ishibashi states for the global conformal symmetry in any dimensions and with the imaginary di-latation obey free field equations in AdS and that incorporating bulk interactions require their superpositions.more » We also comment on the recent proposals by Kabat et al., and by H. Verlinde.« less

Transactions of the Conference of Army Mathematicians (25th).

DTIC Science & Technology

1980-01-01

pothesis (see description of H in Theorem 1). It follows from (4.16) and (4.17) that CT v Hv(4.18) CFT < MCT V V and, since the greatest eigenvalue of H is...0 (3.15)’ 𔃺 2 (ar) = 0 -138- Tr1W 𔃾A WlO (0,T) = a + 2 t1 W ( , T) = - - 2 r H* f* (3.16)� 2 W12 ( CfT ) = f 2 O T at + (a212) Hi - 2 If* 12 3 W2...Theorem 8.10 and Theorem 8.11. For these tables, use of (8.36) to get bounds for I aml is not possible. It will be noted that Theorems 8.10 and 8.11 give

Applications of AdS-CFT to problems in black hole physics and hydrodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hansen, James Michael

The work contained in this thesis is divided naturally into two parts. In the first part we present a systematic treatment of angular momentum charges in asymptotically AdS spacetimes. This treatment, motivated by AdS-CFT, explains the puzzle of charges generated by coordinate transformations in a manifestly diffeomorphism invariant theory. In the second part we explore a promising connection between the dynamics of dyonic black holes and 2+1 dimensional conformal fluids in the presence of a strong magnetic field. We explicitly demonstrate that long-wavelength perturbations of the dyonic black hole satisfy the equations of motion of a conformal fluid and derive the stress tensor, currents, and transport properties of this fluid.

(2 + 1)-dimensional interacting model of two massless spin-2 fields as a bi-gravity model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hoseinzadeh, S.; Rezaei-Aghdam, A.

2018-06-01

We propose a new group-theoretical (Chern-Simons) formulation for the bi-metric theory of gravity in (2 + 1)-dimensional spacetime which describe two interacting massless spin-2 fields. Our model has been formulated in terms of two dreibeins rather than two metrics. We obtain our Chern-Simons gravity model by gauging mixed AdS-AdS Lie algebra and show that it has a two dimensional conformal field theory (CFT) at the boundary of the anti de Sitter (AdS) solution. We show that the central charge of the dual CFT is proportional to the mass of the AdS solution. We also study cosmological implications of our massless bi-gravity model.

Supersymmetric dS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hertog, Thomas; Tartaglino-Mazzucchelli, Gabriele; Van Riet, Thomas; Venken, Gerben

2018-02-01

We put forward new explicit realisations of dS/CFT that relate N = 2 supersymmetric Euclidean vector models with reversed spin-statistics in three dimensions to specific supersymmetric Vasiliev theories in four-dimensional de Sitter space. The partition function of the free supersymmetric vector model deformed by a range of low spin deformations that preserve supersymmetry appears to specify a well-defined wave function with asymptotic de Sitter boundary conditions in the bulk. In particular we find the wave function is globally peaked at undeformed de Sitter space, with a low amplitude for strong deformations. This suggests that supersymmetric de Sitter space is stable in higher-spin gravity and in particular free from ghosts. We speculate this is a limiting case of the de Sitter realizations in exotic string theories.

Scalar one-point functions and matrix product states of AdS/dCFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Leeuw, Marius; Kristjansen, Charlotte; Linardopoulos, Georgios

2018-06-01

We determine in a closed form all scalar one-point functions of the defect CFT dual to the D3-D5 probe brane system with k units of flux which amounts to calculating the overlap between a Bethe eigenstate of the integrable SO(6) spin chain and a certain matrix product state of bond dimension k. In particular, we show that the matrix product state is annihilated by all the parity odd charges of the spin chain which has recently been suggested as the criterion for such a state to correspond to an integrable initial state. Finally, we discuss the properties of the analogous matrix product state for the SO(5) symmetric D3-D7 probe brane set-up.

Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus B-30892 can inhibit cytotoxic effects and adhesion of pathogenic Clostridium difficile to Caco-2 cells

PubMed Central

Banerjee, Pratik; Merkel, Glenn J; Bhunia, Arun K

2009-01-01

Background Probiotic microorganisms are receiving increasing interest for use in the prevention, treatment, or dietary management of certain diseases, including antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). Clostridium difficile is the most common cause of AAD and the resulting C. difficile – mediated infection (CDI), is potentially deadly. C. difficile associated diarrhea (CDAD) is manifested by severe inflammation and colitis, mostly due to the release of two exotoxins by C. difficile causing destruction of epithelial cells in the intestine. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of probiotic bacteria Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus B-30892 (LDB B-30892) on C. difficile-mediated cytotoxicity using Caco-2 cells as a model. Methods Experiments were carried out to test if the cytotoxicity induced by C. difficile-conditioned-medium on Caco-2 cells can be altered by cell-free supernatant (CFS) from LDB B-30892 in different dilutions (1:2 to 1:2048). In a similar experimental setup, comparative evaluations of other probiotic strains were made by contrasting the results from these strains with the results from LDB B-30892, specifically the ability to affect C. difficile induced cytotoxicity on Caco-2 monolayers. Adhesion assays followed by quantitative analysis by Giemsa staining were conducted to test if the CFSs from LDB B-30892 and other probiotic test strains have the capability to alter the adhesion of C. difficile to the Caco-2 monolayer. Experiments were also performed to evaluate if LDB B-30892 or its released components have any bactericidal effect on C. difficile. Results and discussion Co-culturing of LDB B-30892 with C. difficile inhibited the C. difficile-mediated cytotoxicity on Caco-2 cells. When CFS from LDB B-30892-C. difficile co-culture was administered (up to a dilution of 1:16) on Caco-2 monolayer, there were no signs of cytotoxicity. When CFS from separately grown LDB B-30892 was mixed with the cell-free toxin preparation (CFT) of separately cultured C. difficile, the LDB B-30892 CFS was inhibitory to C. difficile CFT-mediated cytotoxicity at a ratio of 1:8 (LDB B-30892 CFS:C. difficile CFT). We failed to find any similar inhibition of C. difficile-mediated cytotoxicity when other probiotic organisms were tested in parallel to LDB B-30892. Our data of cytotoxicity experiments suggest that LDB B-30892 releases one or more bioactive component(s) into the CFS, which neutralizes the cytotoxicity induced by C. difficile, probably by inactivating its toxin(s). Our data also indicate that CFS from LDB B-30892 reduced the adhesion of C. difficile by 81%, which is significantly (P <0.01) higher than all other probiotic organisms tested in this study. Conclusion This study reveals the very first findings that Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus B-30892 (LDB B-30892) can eliminate C. difficile-mediated cytotoxicity, using Caco-2 cells as a model. The study also demonstrates that LDB B-30892 can reduce the colonization of C. difficile cells in colorectal cells. More study is warranted to elucidate the specific mechanism of action of such reduction of cytotoxicity and colonization. PMID:19397787

Anti-inflammatory Effect of Astaxanthin on the Sickness Behavior Induced by Diabetes Mellitus.

PubMed

Ying, Chang-jiang; Zhang, Fang; Zhou, Xiao-yan; Hu, Xiao-tong; Chen, Jing; Wen, Xiang-ru; Sun, Ying; Zheng, Kui-yang; Tang, Ren-xian; Song, Yuan-jian

2015-10-01

Chronic inflammation appears to play a critical role in sickness behavior caused by diabetes mellitus. Astaxanthin has been used in treating diabetes mellitus and diabetic complications because of its neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory actions. However, whether astaxanthin can improve sickness behavior induced by diabetes and its potential mechanisms are still unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of astaxanthin on diabetes-elicited abnormal behavior in mice and its corresponding mechanisms. An experimental diabetic model was induced by streptozotocin (150 mg/kg) and astaxanthin (25 mg/kg/day) was provided orally for 10 weeks. Body weight and water consumption were measured, and the sickness behavior was evaluated by the open field test (OFT) and closed field test (CFT). The expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) was measured, and the frontal cortical cleaved caspase-3 positive cells, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) expression levels were also investigated. Furthermore, cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) in the frontal cortex was detected to determine whether the protective effect of astaxanthin on sickness behavior in diabetic mice is closely related to CBS. As expected, we observed that astaxanthin improved general symptoms and significantly increase horizontal distance and the number of crossings in the OFT and CFT. Furthermore, data showed that astaxanthin could decrease GFAP-positive cells in the brain and down-regulate the cleaved caspase-3, IL-6, and IL-1β, and up-regulate CBS in the frontal cortex. These results suggest that astaxanthin provides neuroprotection against diabetes-induced sickness behavior through inhibiting inflammation, and the protective effects may involve CBS expression in the brain.

The impact of macular surgery in different grades of epiretinal membrane

PubMed Central

Batman, Cosar; Citirik, Mehmet

2017-01-01

AIM To assess the impact of macular surgery on the functional and anatomic outcomes of the patients in different grades of epiretinal membrane (ERM). METHODS Seventy-one eyes of 71 patients who underwent 23-gauge transconjunctival sutureless pars plana vitrectomy for primary isolated ERM were evaluated in this study. RESULTS There were 38 females (53.5%) and 33 males (46.5%). The average age of the patients was 68.1y (range 42-89y). Mean follow up period was 14mo (range 6-26mo). The cases were divided into two subgroups of cellophane maculopathy (CM) and macular pucker (MP). An improvement was observed in the postoperative best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA), as well as a decrement in central foveal thickness (CFT) in both groups (both of these being statistically significant; P=0.001). In comparison between two groups, it was found that there was a significant improvement on BCVA and CFT in CM group than MP group (P=0.01). Furthermore, the postoperative fundus findings regarding RPE alterations and macular edema were significantly higher in MP group when compared to the CM group (P=0.01). CONCLUSION ERM and internal limiting membrane peeling surgery can lead to a significant reduction of CFT and visual improvements in idiopathic ERM. A long-term ERM persistence will cause unrecoverable retinal damage and visual loss. PMID:29259907

Dissimilarities of reduced density matrices and eigenstate thermalization hypothesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Song; Lin, Feng-Li; Zhang, Jia-ju

2017-12-01

We calculate various quantities that characterize the dissimilarity of reduced density matrices for a short interval of length ℓ in a two-dimensional (2D) large central charge conformal field theory (CFT). These quantities include the Rényi entropy, entanglement entropy, relative entropy, Jensen-Shannon divergence, as well as the Schatten 2-norm and 4-norm. We adopt the method of operator product expansion of twist operators, and calculate the short interval expansion of these quantities up to order of ℓ9 for the contributions from the vacuum conformal family. The formal forms of these dissimilarity measures and the derived Fisher information metric from contributions of general operators are also given. As an application of the results, we use these dissimilarity measures to compare the excited and thermal states, and examine the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis (ETH) by showing how they behave in high temperature limit. This would help to understand how ETH in 2D CFT can be defined more precisely. We discuss the possibility that all the dissimilarity measures considered here vanish when comparing the reduced density matrices of an excited state and a generalized Gibbs ensemble thermal state. We also discuss ETH for a microcanonical ensemble thermal state in a 2D large central charge CFT, and find that it is approximately satisfied for a small subsystem and violated for a large subsystem.

Thermalization and revivals after a quantum quench in conformal field theory.

PubMed

Cardy, John

2014-06-06

We consider a quantum quench in a finite system of length L described by a 1+1-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT), of central charge c, from a state with finite energy density corresponding to an inverse temperature β≪L. For times t such that ℓ/2

New collector efficiency equation for colloid filtration in both natural and engineered flow conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, Kirk E.; Ginn, Timothy R.

2011-05-01

A new equation for the collector efficiency (η) of the colloid filtration theory (CFT) is developed via nonlinear regression on the numerical data generated by a large number of Lagrangian simulations conducted in Happel's sphere-in-cell porous media model over a wide range of environmentally relevant conditions. The new equation expands the range of CFT's applicability in the natural subsurface primarily by accommodating departures from power law dependence of η on the Peclet and gravity numbers, a necessary but as of yet unavailable feature for applying CFT to large-scale field transport (e.g., of nanoparticles, radionuclides, or genetically modified organisms) under low groundwater velocity conditions. The new equation also departs from prior equations for colloids in the nanoparticle size range at all fluid velocities. These departures are particularly relevant to subsurface colloid and colloid-facilitated transport where low permeabilities and/or hydraulic gradients lead to low groundwater velocities and/or to nanoparticle fate and transport in porous media in general. We also note the importance of consistency in the conceptualization of particle flux through the single collector model on which most η equations are based for the purpose of attaining a mechanistic understanding of the transport and attachment steps of deposition. A lack of sufficient data for small particles and low velocities warrants further experiments to draw more definitive and comprehensive conclusions regarding the most significant discrepancies between the available equations.

A test of the AdS/CFT duality on the Coulomb branch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costa, M. S.

2000-06-01

We consider the /N=4 /SU(N) Super Yang Mills theory on the Coulomb branch with gauge symmetry broken to S(U(N1)×U(N2)). By integrating the W particles, the effective action near the IR SU(Ni) conformal fixed points is seen to be a deformation of the Super Yang Mills theory by a non-renormalized, irrelevant, dimension 8 operator. The correction to the two-point function of the dilaton field dual operator near the IR is related to a three-point function of chiral primary operators at the conformal fixed points and agrees with the classical gravity prediction, including the numerical factor.

Consistency condition for inflation from (broken) conformal symmetry

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

Schalm, Koenraad; Aalst, Ted van der; Shiu, Gary, E-mail: kschalm@lorentz.leidenuniv.nl, E-mail: shiu@physics.wisc.edu, E-mail: vdaalst@lorentz.leidenuniv.nl

2013-03-01

We investigate the symmetry constraints on the bispectrum, i.e. the three-point correlation function of primordial density fluctuations, in slow-roll inflation. It follows from the defining property of slow-roll inflation that primordial correlation functions inherit most of their structure from weakly broken de Sitter symmetries. Using holographic techniques borrowed from the AdS/CFT correspondence, the symmetry constraints on the bispectrum can be mapped to a set of stress-tensor Ward identities in a weakly broken 2+1-dimensional Euclidean CFT. We construct the consistency condition from these Ward identities using conformal perturbation theory. This requires a second order Ward identity and the use of themore » evolution equation. Our result also illustrates a subtle difference between conformal perturbation theory and the slow-roll expansion.« less

Deformed Calogero-Sutherland model and fractional quantum Hall effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atai, Farrokh; Langmann, Edwin

2017-01-01

The deformed Calogero-Sutherland (CS) model is a quantum integrable system with arbitrary numbers of two types of particles and reducing to the standard CS model in special cases. We show that a known collective field description of the CS model, which is based on conformal field theory (CFT), is actually a collective field description of the deformed CS model. This provides a natural application of the deformed CS model in Wen's effective field theory of the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE), with the two kinds of particles corresponding to electrons and quasi-hole excitations. In particular, we use known mathematical results about super-Jack polynomials to obtain simple explicit formulas for the orthonormal CFT basis proposed by van Elburg and Schoutens in the context of the FQHE.

Higher Spin Fields in Three-Dimensional Gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lepage-Jutier, Arnaud

In this thesis, we study the effects of massless higher spin fields in three-dimensional gravity with a negative cosmological constant. First, we introduce gravity in Anti-de Sitter (AdS) space without the higher spin gauge symmetry. We recapitulate the semi-classical analysis that outlines the duality between quantum gravity in three dimensions with a negative cosmological constant and a conformal field theory on the asymptotic boundary of AdS 3. We review the statistical interpretation of the black hole entropy via the AdS/CFT correspondence and the modular invariance of the partition function of a CFT on a torus. For the case of higher spin theories in AdS 3 we use those modular properties to bound the amount of gauge symmetry present. We then discuss briefly cases that can evade this bound.

Hawking from Catalan

DOE PAGES

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared; Walters, Matthew T.; ...

2016-05-12

The Virasoro algebra determines all ‘graviton’ matrix elements in AdS 3/CFT 2. We study the explicit exchange of any number of Virasoro gravitons between heavy and light CFT 2 operators at large central charge. These graviton exchanges can be written in terms of new on-shell tree diagrams, organized in a perturbative expansion in h H/c, the heavy operator dimension divided by the central charge. The Virasoro vacuum conformal block, which is the sum of all the tree diagrams, obeys a differential recursion relation generalizing that of the Catalan numbers. Here, we use this recursion relation to sum the on-shell diagramsmore » to all orders, computing the Virasoro vacuum block. Extrapolating to large h H/c determines the Hawking temperature of a BTZ black hole in dual AdS 3 theories.« less

Hawking from Catalan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared; Walters, Matthew T.; Wang, Junpu

2016-05-01

The Virasoro algebra determines all `graviton' matrix elements in AdS3/CFT2. We study the explicit exchange of any number of Virasoro gravitons between heavy and light CFT2 operators at large central charge. These graviton exchanges can be written in terms of new on-shell tree diagrams, organized in a perturbative expansion in h H /c, the heavy operator dimension divided by the central charge. The Virasoro vacuum conformal block, which is the sum of all the tree diagrams, obeys a differential recursion relation generalizing that of the Catalan numbers. We use this recursion relation to sum the on-shell diagrams to all orders, computing the Virasoro vacuum block. Extrapolating to large h H /c determines the Hawking temperature of a BTZ black hole in dual AdS3 theories.

Little string origin of surface defects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haouzi, Nathan; Schmid, Christian

2017-05-01

We derive a large class of codimension-two defects of 4d \\mathcal{N}=4 Super Yang-Mills (SYM) theory from the (2, 0) little string. The origin of the little string is type IIB theory compactified on an ADE singularity. The defects are D-branes wrapping the 2-cycles of the singularity. We use this construction to make contact with the description of SYM defects due to Gukov and Witten [1]. Furthermore, we provide a geometric perspective on the nilpotent orbit classification of codimension-two defects, and the connection to ADE-type Toda CFT. The only data needed to specify the defects is a set of weights of the algebra obeying certain constraints, which we give explicitly. We highlight the differences between the defect classification in the little string theory and its (2 , 0) CFT limit.

Are improvements in shame and self-compassion early in eating disorders treatment associated with better patient outcomes?

PubMed

Kelly, Allison C; Carter, Jacqueline C; Borairi, Sahar

2014-01-01

Compassion-focused therapy (CFT; Gilbert, 2005, 2009) is a transdiagnostic treatment approach focused on building self-compassion and reducing shame. It is based on the theory that feelings of shame contribute to the maintenance of psychopathology, whereas self-compassion contributes to the alleviation of shame and psychopathology. We sought to test this theory in a transdiagnostic sample of eating disorder patients by examining whether larger improvements in shame and self-compassion early in treatment would facilitate faster eating disorder symptom remission over 12 weeks. Participants were 97 patients with an eating disorder admitted to specialized day hospital or inpatient treatment. They completed the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire, Experiences of Shame Scale, and Self-Compassion Scale at intake, and again after weeks 3, 6, 9, and 12. Multilevel modeling revealed that patients who experienced greater decreases in their level of shame in the first 4 weeks of treatment had faster decreases in their eating disorder symptoms over 12 weeks of treatment. In addition, patients who had greater increases in their level of self-compassion early in treatment had faster decreases in their feelings of shame over 12 weeks, even when controlling for their early change in eating disorder symptoms. These results suggest that CFT theory may help to explain the maintenance of eating disorders. Clinically, findings suggest that intervening with shame early in treatment, perhaps by building patients' self-compassion, may promote better eating disorders treatment response. Copyright © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Incidence of Burkholderia mallei infection among indigenous equines in India.

PubMed

Malik, Praveen; Singha, Harisankar; Goyal, Sachin K; Khurana, Sandip K; Tripathi, Badri Naryan; Dutt, Abha; Singh, Dabal; Sharma, Neeraj; Jain, Sanjay

2015-01-01

Burkholderia mallei is the causative agent of glanders which is a highly contagious and fatal disease of equines. Considering the nature and severity of the disease in equines, and potential of transmission to human beings, glanders is recognised as a 'notifiable' disease in many countries. An increasing number of glanders outbreaks throughout the Asian continents, including India, have been noticed recently. In view of the recent re-emergence of the disease, the present study was undertaken to estimate the prevalence of glanders among indigenous equines from different parts of India. Serum samples were analysed by complement fixation test (CFT) and ELISA for the detection of B mallei specific antibodies. A total of 7794 equines, which included 4720 horses, 1881 donkeys and 1193 mules were sampled from April 2011 to December 2014 from 10 states of India. Serologically, 36 equines (pony=7, mules=10, horses=19) were found to be positive for glanders by CFT and indirect-ELISA. The highest number of cases were detected in Uttar Pradesh (n=31) followed by Himachal Pradesh (n=4) and Chhattisgarh (n=1). Isolation of B mallei was attempted from nasal and abscess swabs collected from seropositive equines. Four isolates of B mallei were cultured from nasal swabs of two mules and two ponies. Identity of the isolates was confirmed by PCR and sequencing of fliP gene fragment. The study revealed circulation of B mallei in northern India and the need for continued surveillance to support the eradication.

Incidence of Burkholderia mallei infection among indigenous equines in India

PubMed Central

Malik, Praveen; Singha, Harisankar; Goyal, Sachin K; Khurana, Sandip K; Tripathi, Badri Naryan; Dutt, Abha; Singh, Dabal; Sharma, Neeraj; Jain, Sanjay

2015-01-01

Burkholderia mallei is the causative agent of glanders which is a highly contagious and fatal disease of equines. Considering the nature and severity of the disease in equines, and potential of transmission to human beings, glanders is recognised as a ‘notifiable’ disease in many countries. An increasing number of glanders outbreaks throughout the Asian continents, including India, have been noticed recently. In view of the recent re-emergence of the disease, the present study was undertaken to estimate the prevalence of glanders among indigenous equines from different parts of India. Serum samples were analysed by complement fixation test (CFT) and ELISA for the detection of B mallei specific antibodies. A total of 7794 equines, which included 4720 horses, 1881 donkeys and 1193 mules were sampled from April 2011 to December 2014 from 10 states of India. Serologically, 36 equines (pony=7, mules=10, horses=19) were found to be positive for glanders by CFT and indirect-ELISA. The highest number of cases were detected in Uttar Pradesh (n=31) followed by Himachal Pradesh (n=4) and Chhattisgarh (n=1). Isolation of B mallei was attempted from nasal and abscess swabs collected from seropositive equines. Four isolates of B mallei were cultured from nasal swabs of two mules and two ponies. Identity of the isolates was confirmed by PCR and sequencing of fliP gene fragment. The study revealed circulation of B mallei in northern India and the need for continued surveillance to support the eradication. PMID:26457190

Large Black Holes in the Randall-Sundrum II Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yaghoobpour Tari, Shima

The Einstein equation with a negative cosmological constant ! in the five dimensions for the Randall-Sundrum II model, which includes a black hole, has been solved numerically. We have constructed an AdS5-CFT 4 solution numerically, using a spectral method to minimize the integral of the square of the error of the Einstein equation, with 210 parameters to be determined by optimization. This metric is conformal to the Schwarzschild metric at an AdS5 boundary with an infinite scale factor. So, we consider this solution as an infinite-mass black hole solution. We have rewritten the infinite-mass black hole in the Fefferman-Graham form and obtained the numerical components of the CFT energy-momentum tensor. Using them, we have perturbed the metric to relocate the brane from infinity and obtained a large static black hole solution for the Randall- Sundrum II model. The changes of mass, entropy, temperature and area of the large black hole from the Schwarzschild metric are studied up to the first order for the perturbation parameter 1/(-Λ5M 2). The Hawking temperature and entropy for our large black hole have the same values as the Schwarzschild metric with the same mass, but the horizon area is increased by about 4.7/(-Λ5). Figueras, Lucietti, and Wiseman found an AdS5-CFT4 solution using an independent and different method from us, called the Ricci-DeTurck-flow method. Then, Figueras and Wiseman perturbed this solution in a same way as we have done and obtained the solution for the large black hole in the Randall-Sundrum II model. These two numerical solutions are the first mathematical proofs for having a large black hole in the Randall-Sundrum II. We have compared their results with ours for the CFT energy-momentum tensor components and the perturbed metric. We have shown that the results are closely in agreement, which can be considered as evidence that the solution for the large black hole in the Randall-Sundrum II model exists.

Connecting Archimedean and Non-Archimedean AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Parikh, Sarthak

This thesis develops a non-Archimedean analog of the usual Archimedean anti-de Sitter (AdS)/conformal field theory (CFT) correspondence. AdS space gets replaced by a Bruhat-Tits tree, which is a regular graph with no cycles. The boundary of the Bruhat-Tits tree is described by an unramified extension of the p-adic numbers, which replaces the real valued Euclidean vector space on which the CFT lives. Conformal transformations on the boundary act as linear fractional transformations. In the first part of the thesis, correlation functions are computed in the simple case of massive, interacting scalars in the bulk. They are found to be surprisingly similar to standard holographic correlation functions down to precise numerical coefficients, when expressed in terms of local zeta functions. Along the way, we show that like in the Archimedean case, CFT conformal blocks are dual to geodesic bulk diagrams, which are bulk exchange diagrams with the bulk points of integration restricted to certain geodesics. Other than these intriguing similarities, significant simplifications also arise. Notably, all derivatives disappear from the operator product expansion, and the conformal block decomposition of the four-point function. Finally, a minimal bulk action is constructed on the Bruhat-Tits tree for a single scalar field with nearest neighbor interactions, which reproduces the two-, three-, and four-point functions of the free O(N) model. In the second part, the p-adic O(N) model is studied at the interacting fixed point. Leading order results for the anomalous dimensions of low dimension operators are obtained in two separate regimes: the epsilon-expansion and the large N limit. Remarkably, formulae for anomalous dimensions in the large N limit are valid equally for Archimedean and non-Archimedean field theories, when expressed in terms of local zeta functions. Finally, higher derivative versions of the O(N) model in the Archimedean case are considered, where the general formula for anomalous dimensions obtained earlier is still valid. Analogies with two-derivative theories hint at the existence of some interesting new field theories in four real Euclidean dimensions.

Supersymmetric attractors, topological strings, and the M5-brane CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guica, Monica M.

One of the purposes of this thesis is to present the consistent and unifying picture that emerges in string and M-theory with eight supercharges. On one hand, this involves classifying and relating supersymmetric objects that occur in N = 2 compactifications of string and M-theory on a Calabi-Yau manifold. These come in a surprisingly wide variety of four and five-dimensional black holes, black rings and their sometimes very complicated bound states. On the other hand, the topological string also makes its appearance in theories with eight supercharges, and turns out to compute certain black hole degeneracies. We dedicate the introduction and the first chapter to summarizing and reviewing the beautiful relationships between black holes, black rings, their dual conformal field theory and the topological string, and we also outline the remaining puzzles and issues. Some of the black holes in question can be obtained by multiply-wrapping an M-theory M5-brane on a self-intersecting four-cycle in the Calabi-Yau manifold. Their dual microscopic description is known, and consists of a two-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT) which is the low-energy limit of the gauge theory that resides on the worldvolume of the M5 brane. We show that in a certain limit the M5-brane CFT is - perhaps surprisingly - able to reproduce the entropy of a completely different type of black holes, those obtained from wrapped M2-branes, whose microscopic description has not yet been understood. We also argue that certain black hole bound states should also be described by the same CFT, which suggests a unifying description of the various black objects in eight-supercharge supergravity theories. Finally, we describe and present a proof of the so-called OSV conjecture, which states that the mixed partition function of N = 2 four-dimensional BPS black holes equals the modulus square of the type A topological string partition function. We also attempt to use this relationship to better understand corrections to the entropy of supersymmetric black holes and rings in five dimensions.

Ependymal cells variations in the central canal of the rat spinal cord filum terminale: an ultrastructural investigation.

PubMed

Mitro, A; Gallatz, K; Palkovits, M; Kiss, A

2013-04-01

The ependymal cells, considered today as an active participant in neuroendocrine functions, were investigated by electron microscopy in the central canal of the lowest spinal cord, the filum terminale (FT), in adult rats. In this area of the spinal cord, the central canal is covered by a heterogeneous population of ependymal cells. The aim of the present work was to compare the regional features of the ependymal cells in two different parts of the FT with a special regard to their ultrastructure. Two parts of the FT were selected for the ultrastructural observations: the rostral (rFT) and the caudal (cFT) ones. The rTF was removed at the level of the immediate continuation of the conus medullaris, while the cFT 30 mm further caudally. After formaldehyde fixation, the spinal cord was removed and cut into small blocks for electron microscopic processing. The material was embedded into durcupan, contrasted with uranyl acetate, lead citrate as well as osmium tetroxide, and investigated under JEOL 1200 EX electron microscope. In the rFT, the ependymal lining is pseudostratified and one-layered in the cFT, whereas the shape of the ependymal cells may vary from cuboidal to flatten in the rostro-caudal direction. The basal membrane of many ependymal cells possesses deep invaginations, so called "filum terminale labyrinths". Many neuronal processes occur in the pericanalicular neuropil. In contrast to the rFT, the cFT is less rich in the neuropil particles. Some of the ependymal cells concurrently reach both the intracanalicular and extracanalicular cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), thus they may represent a new variant of the ependymal cells designated as "bridge cells of the FT". The present data indicate that the FT ependymal cells exhibit clear differences in anatomy as well as ultrastructure that may reflect their distinct functional activity. Therefore, observations presented here may serve for the better understanding of the physiological role of the individual ependymal areas in this special portion of the rat spinal cord.

Activity of temocillin in a murine model of urinary tract infection due to Escherichia coli producing or not producing the ESBL CTX-M-15.

PubMed

Soubirou, J F; Rossi, B; Couffignal, C; Ruppé, E; Chau, F; Massias, L; Lepeule, R; Mentre, F; Fantin, B

2015-05-01

Temocillin is a 6α-methoxy derivative of ticarcillin that is resilient to ESBLs. Prospective data about its in vivo activity remain scarce. Our aims were: (i) to evaluate the activity of temocillin in a urinary tract infection (UTI) model due to ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and compare it with that of imipenem; and (ii) to define in vivo susceptibility breakpoints. Mice were infected with a susceptible E. coli CFT073-RR or its transconjugant (CFT073-RR Tc) harbouring a blaCTX-M-15-carrying plasmid, using an ascending UTI model. Therapeutic regimens were chosen in order to reproduce percentage of time of free drug concentrations above MIC (fT>MIC) obtained in humans with standard regimens of temocillin (200 mg/kg every 2 h for 2 g every 12 h) or imipenem (100 mg/kg every 2 h for 1 g every 8 h). Additional regimens of temocillin (200 mg/kg every 4 and 6 h) with reduced fT>MIC were studied. MICs of temocillin and imipenem were 4/8 and 0.5/0.5 mg/L, for CFT073-RR and CFT073-RR Tc, respectively. In vivo, when given every 2 h (fT>MIC = 82% and 70%), temocillin was bactericidal and as effective as imipenem in kidneys against both strains without selecting resistant mutants. Temocillin remained active even when given every 4 h, generating an fT>MIC of 41% and 35%, which corresponded to a breakpoint of 16 mg/L in humans with the standard regimen. Our observations support the consideration of a standard regimen of temocillin as an alternative to carbapenems for the treatment of UTI due to CTX-M-producing E. coli strains with an MIC of 16 mg/L or less. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Edge length dynamics on graphs with applications to p-adic AdS/CFT

DOE PAGES

Gubser, Steven S.; Heydeman, Matthew; Jepsen, Christian; ...

2017-06-30

We formulate a Euclidean theory of edge length dynamics based on a notion of Ricci curvature on graphs with variable edge lengths. In order to write an explicit form for the discrete analog of the Einstein-Hilbert action, we require that the graph should either be a tree or that all its cycles should be sufficiently long. The infinite regular tree with all edge lengths equal is an example of a graph with constant negative curvature, providing a connection with p-adic AdS/CFT, where such a tree takes the place of anti-de Sitter space. Here, we compute simple correlators of the operatormore » holographically dual to edge length fluctuations. This operator has dimension equal to the dimension of the boundary, and it has some features in common with the stress tensor.« less

Edge length dynamics on graphs with applications to p-adic AdS/CFT

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

Gubser, Steven S.; Heydeman, Matthew; Jepsen, Christian

We formulate a Euclidean theory of edge length dynamics based on a notion of Ricci curvature on graphs with variable edge lengths. In order to write an explicit form for the discrete analog of the Einstein-Hilbert action, we require that the graph should either be a tree or that all its cycles should be sufficiently long. The infinite regular tree with all edge lengths equal is an example of a graph with constant negative curvature, providing a connection with p-adic AdS/CFT, where such a tree takes the place of anti-de Sitter space. Here, we compute simple correlators of the operatormore » holographically dual to edge length fluctuations. This operator has dimension equal to the dimension of the boundary, and it has some features in common with the stress tensor.« less

Universal RCFT correlators from the holomorphic bootstrap

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukhi, Sunil; Muralidhara, Girish

2018-02-01

We elaborate and extend the method of Wronskian differential equations for conformal blocks to compute four-point correlation functions on the plane for classes of primary fields in rational (and possibly more general) conformal field theories. This approach leads to universal differential equations for families of CFT's and provides a very simple re-derivation of the BPZ results for the degenerate fields ϕ 1,2 and ϕ 2,1 in the c < 1 minimal models. We apply this technique to compute correlators for the WZW models corresponding to the Deligne-Cvitanović exceptional series of Lie algebras. The application turns out to be subtle in certain cases where there are multiple decoupled primaries. The power of this approach is demonstrated by applying it to compute four-point functions for the Baby Monster CFT, which does not belong to any minimal series.

Five-Dimensional Gauged Supergravity with Higher Derivatives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hanaki, Kentaro

This thesis summarizes the recent developments on the study of five-dimensional gauged supergravity with higher derivative terms, emphasizing in particular the application to understanding the hydrodynamic properties of gauge theory plasma via the AdS/CFT correspondence. We first review how the ungauged and gauged five-dimensional supergravity actions with higher derivative terms can be constructed using the off-shell superconformal formalism. Then we relate the gauged supergravity to four-dimensional gauge theory using the AdS/CFT correspondence and extract the physical quantities associated with gauge theory plasma from the dual classical supergravity computations. We put a particular emphasis on the discussion of the conjectured lower bound for the shear viscosity over entropy density ratio proposed by Kovtun, Son and Starinets, and discuss how higher derivative terms in supergravity and the introduction of chemical potential for the R-charge affect this bound.

Modular constraints on conformal field theories with currents

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bae, Jin-Beom; Lee, Sungjay; Song, Jaewon

2017-12-01

We study constraints coming from the modular invariance of the partition function of two-dimensional conformal field theories. We constrain the spectrum of CFTs in the presence of holomorphic and anti-holomorphic currents using the semi-definite programming. In particular, we find the bounds on the twist gap for the non-current primaries depend dramatically on the presence of holomorphic currents, showing numerous kinks and peaks. Various rational CFTs are realized at the numerical boundary of the twist gap, saturating the upper limits on the degeneracies. Such theories include Wess-Zumino-Witten models for the Deligne's exceptional series, the Monster CFT and the Baby Monster CFT. We also study modular constraints imposed by W -algebras of various type and observe that the bounds on the gap depend on the choice of W -algebra in the small central charge region.

Virasoro conformal blocks and thermality from classical background fields

DOE PAGES

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared; Walters, Matthew T.

2015-11-30

We show that in 2d CFTs at large central charge, the coupling of the stress tensor to heavy operators can be re-absorbed by placing the CFT in a non-trivial background metric. This leads to a more precise computation of the Virasoro conformal blocks between heavy and light operators, which are shown to be equivalent to global conformal blocks evaluated in the new background. We also generalize to the case where the operators carry U(1) charges. The refined Virasoro blocks can be used as the seed for a new Virasoro block recursion relation expanded in the heavy-light limit. Furthermore, we commentmore » on the implications of our results for the universality of black hole thermality in AdS 3 , or equivalently, the eigenstate thermalization hypothesis for CFT 2 at large central charge.« less

Smooth Horizonless Geometries Deep Inside the Black-Hole Regime.

PubMed

Bena, Iosif; Giusto, Stefano; Martinec, Emil J; Russo, Rodolfo; Shigemori, Masaki; Turton, David; Warner, Nicholas P

2016-11-11

We construct the first family of horizonless supergravity solutions that have the same mass, charges, and angular momenta as general supersymmetric rotating D1-D5-P black holes in five dimensions. This family includes solutions with arbitrarily small angular momenta, deep within the regime of quantum numbers and couplings for which a large classical black hole exists. These geometries are well approximated by the black-hole solution, and in particular exhibit the same near-horizon throat. Deep in this throat, the black-hole singularity is resolved into a smooth cap. We also identify the holographically dual states in the N=(4,4) D1-D5 orbifold conformal field theory (CFT). Our solutions are among the states counted by the CFT elliptic genus, and provide examples of smooth microstate geometries within the ensemble of supersymmetric black-hole microstates.

Effect of Reduced Meal Frequency during Ramadan Fasting on Retinal and Choroidal Thickness.

PubMed

Ersan, Ismail; Tufan, Hasan Ali; Arikan, Sedat; Kara, Selcuk; Gencer, Baran; Hondur, Ahmet Murat

2017-01-01

To evaluate the effects of Ramadan fasting on central foveal thickness (CFT) and subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) in healthy individuals using enhanced depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT). The EDI-OCT scans of 42 healthy individuals obtained after about 12 hours of fasting on at least the twenty-first consecutive day of fasting were compared to scans of the same patients taken one month after the last day they had fasted. CFT values were similar for both time periods (p > 0.05). The SFCT was significantly higher after consecutive fasting days towards the end of Ramadan, compared to the SFCT after one month of no fasting (one month after Ramadan ended) (p < 0.001). Ramadan fasting may lead to a significant increase in subfoveal choroidal thickness without affecting the central foveal thickness.

Phosphorylation of Dopamine Transporter Serine 7 Modulates Cocaine Analog Binding*

PubMed Central

Moritz, Amy E.; Foster, James D.; Gorentla, Balachandra K.; Mazei-Robison, Michelle S.; Yang, Jae-Won; Sitte, Harald H.; Blakely, Randy D.; Vaughan, Roxanne A.

2013-01-01

As an approach to elucidating dopamine transporter (DAT) phosphorylation characteristics, we examined in vitro phosphorylation of a recombinant rat DAT N-terminal peptide (NDAT) using purified protein kinases. We found that NDAT becomes phosphorylated at single distinct sites by protein kinase A (Ser-7) and calcium-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (Ser-13) and at multiple sites (Ser-4, Ser-7, and Ser-13) by protein kinase C (PKC), implicating these residues as potential sites of DAT phosphorylation by these kinases. Mapping of rat striatal DAT phosphopeptides by two-dimensional thin layer chromatography revealed basal and PKC-stimulated phosphorylation of the same peptide fragments and comigration of PKC-stimulated phosphopeptide fragments with NDAT Ser-7 phosphopeptide markers. We further confirmed by site-directed mutagenesis and mass spectrometry that Ser-7 is a site for PKC-stimulated phosphorylation in heterologously expressed rat and human DATs. Mutation of Ser-7 and nearby residues strongly reduced the affinity of rat DAT for the cocaine analog (−)-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-fluorophenyl) tropane (CFT), whereas in rat striatal tissue, conditions that promote DAT phosphorylation caused increased CFT affinity. Ser-7 mutation also affected zinc modulation of CFT binding, with Ala and Asp substitutions inducing opposing effects. These results identify Ser-7 as a major site for basal and PKC-stimulated phosphorylation of native and expressed DAT and suggest that Ser-7 phosphorylation modulates transporter conformational equilibria, shifting the transporter between high and low affinity cocaine binding states. PMID:23161550

Loops in AdS from conformal field theory

DOE PAGES

Aharony, Ofer; Alday, Luis F.; Bissi, Agnese; ...

2017-07-10

We propose and demonstrate a new use for conformal field theory (CFT) crossing equations in the context of AdS/CFT: the computation of loop amplitudes in AdS, dual to non-planar correlators in holographic CFTs. Loops in AdS are largely unexplored, mostly due to technical difficulties in direct calculations. We revisit this problem, and the dual 1=N expansion of CFTs, in two independent ways. The first is to show how to explicitly solve the crossing equations to the first subleading order in 1=N 2, given a leading order solution. This is done as a systematic expansion in inverse powers of the spin, to all orders. These expansions can be resummed, leading to the CFT data for nite values of the spin. Our second approach involves Mellin space. We show how the polar part of the four-point, loop-level Mellin amplitudes can be fully reconstructed from the leading-order data. The anomalous dimensions computed with both methods agree. In the case ofmore » $$\\phi$$ 4 theory in AdS, our crossing solution reproduces a previous computation of the one-loop bubble diagram. We can go further, deriving the four-point scalar triangle diagram in AdS, which had never been computed. In the process, we show how to analytically derive anomalous dimensions from Mellin amplitudes with an in nite series of poles, and discuss applications to more complicated cases such as the N = 4 super-Yang-Mills theory.« less

Loops in AdS from conformal field theory

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

Aharony, Ofer; Alday, Luis F.; Bissi, Agnese

We propose and demonstrate a new use for conformal field theory (CFT) crossing equations in the context of AdS/CFT: the computation of loop amplitudes in AdS, dual to non-planar correlators in holographic CFTs. Loops in AdS are largely unexplored, mostly due to technical difficulties in direct calculations. We revisit this problem, and the dual 1=N expansion of CFTs, in two independent ways. The first is to show how to explicitly solve the crossing equations to the first subleading order in 1=N 2, given a leading order solution. This is done as a systematic expansion in inverse powers of the spin, to all orders. These expansions can be resummed, leading to the CFT data for nite values of the spin. Our second approach involves Mellin space. We show how the polar part of the four-point, loop-level Mellin amplitudes can be fully reconstructed from the leading-order data. The anomalous dimensions computed with both methods agree. In the case ofmore » $$\\phi$$ 4 theory in AdS, our crossing solution reproduces a previous computation of the one-loop bubble diagram. We can go further, deriving the four-point scalar triangle diagram in AdS, which had never been computed. In the process, we show how to analytically derive anomalous dimensions from Mellin amplitudes with an in nite series of poles, and discuss applications to more complicated cases such as the N = 4 super-Yang-Mills theory.« less

Loops in AdS from conformal field theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aharony, Ofer; Alday, Luis F.; Bissi, Agnese; Perlmutter, Eric

2017-07-01

We propose and demonstrate a new use for conformal field theory (CFT) crossing equations in the context of AdS/CFT: the computation of loop amplitudes in AdS, dual to non-planar correlators in holographic CFTs. Loops in AdS are largely unexplored, mostly due to technical difficulties in direct calculations. We revisit this problem, and the dual 1 /N expansion of CFTs, in two independent ways. The first is to show how to explicitly solve the crossing equations to the first subleading order in 1 /N 2, given a leading order solution. This is done as a systematic expansion in inverse powers of the spin, to all orders. These expansions can be resummed, leading to the CFT data for finite values of the spin. Our second approach involves Mellin space. We show how the polar part of the four-point, loop-level Mellin amplitudes can be fully reconstructed from the leading-order data. The anomalous dimensions computed with both methods agree. In the case of ϕ 4 theory in AdS, our crossing solution reproduces a previous computation of the one-loop bubble diagram. We can go further, deriving the four-point scalar triangle diagram in AdS, which had never been computed. In the process, we show how to analytically derive anomalous dimensions from Mellin amplitudes with an infinite series of poles, and discuss applications to more complicated cases such as the N = 4 super-Yang-Mills theory.

Enterobactin-Mediated Delivery of β-Lactam Antibiotics Enhances Antibacterial Activity against Pathogenic Escherichia coli

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

The design, synthesis, and characterization of enterobactin–antibiotic conjugates, hereafter Ent-Amp/Amx, where the β-lactam antibiotics ampicillin (Amp) and amoxicillin (Amx) are linked to a monofunctionalized enterobactin scaffold via a stable poly(ethylene glycol) linker are reported. Under conditions of iron limitation, these siderophore-modified antibiotics provide enhanced antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli strains, including uropathogenic E. coli CFT073 and UTI89, enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157:H7, and enterotoxigenic E. coli O78:H11, compared to the parent β-lactams. Studies with E. coli K-12 derivatives defective in ferric enterobactin transport reveal that the enhanced antibacterial activity observed for this strain requires the outer membrane ferric enterobactin transporter FepA. A remarkable 1000-fold decrease in minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) value is observed for uropathogenic E. coli CFT073 relative to Amp/Amx, and time-kill kinetic studies demonstrate that Ent-Amp/Amx kill this strain more rapidly at 10-fold lower concentrations than the parent antibiotics. Moreover, Ent-Amp and Ent-Amx selectively kill E. coli CFT073 co-cultured with other bacterial species such as Staphylococcus aureus, and Ent-Amp exhibits low cytotoxicity against human T84 intestinal cells in both the apo and iron-bound forms. These studies demonstrate that the native enterobactin platform provides a means to effectively deliver antibacterial cargo across the outer membrane permeability barrier of Gram-negative pathogens utilizing enterobactin for iron acquisition. PMID:24927110

Complete genome sequence of uropathogenic Escherichia coli isolate UPEC 26-1.

PubMed

Subhadra, Bindu; Kim, Dong Ho; Kim, Jaeseok; Woo, Kyungho; Sohn, Kyung Mok; Kim, Hwa-Jung; Han, Kyudong; Oh, Man Hwan; Choi, Chul Hee

2018-06-01

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common infections in humans, predominantly caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). The diverse genomes of UPEC strains mostly impede disease prevention and control measures. In this study, we comparatively analyzed the whole genome sequence of a highly virulent UPEC strain, namely UPEC 26-1, which was isolated from urine sample of a patient suffering from UTI in Korea. Whole genome analysis showed that the genome consists of one circular chromosome of 5,329,753 bp, comprising 5064 protein-coding genes, 122 RNA genes (94 tRNA, 22 rRNA and 6 ncRNA genes), and 100 pseudogenes, with an average G+C content of 50.56%. In addition, we identified 8 prophage regions comprising 5 intact, 2 incomplete and 1 questionable ones and 63 genomic islands, suggesting the possibility of horizontal gene transfer in this strain. Comparative genome analysis of UPEC 26-1 with the UPEC strain CFT073 revealed an average nucleotide identity of 99.7%. The genome comparison with CFT073 provides major differences in the genome of UPEC 26-1 that would explain its increased virulence and biofilm formation. Nineteen of the total GIs were unique to UPEC 26-1 compared to CFT073 and nine of them harbored unique genes that are involved in virulence, multidrug resistance, biofilm formation and bacterial pathogenesis. The data from this study will assist in future studies of UPEC strains to develop effective control measures.

BarA-UvrY two-component system regulates virulence of uropathogenic E. coli CFT073.

PubMed

Palaniyandi, Senthilkumar; Mitra, Arindam; Herren, Christopher D; Lockatell, C Virginia; Johnson, David E; Zhu, Xiaoping; Mukhopadhyay, Suman

2012-01-01

Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC), a member of extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli, cause ∼80% of community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTI) in humans. UPEC initiates its colonization in epithelial cells lining the urinary tract with a complicated life cycle, replicating and persisting in intracellular and extracellular niches. Consequently, UPEC causes cystitis and more severe form of pyelonephritis. To further understand the virulence characteristics of UPEC, we investigated the roles of BarA-UvrY two-component system (TCS) in regulating UPEC virulence. Our results showed that mutation of BarA-UvrY TCS significantly decreased the virulence of UPEC CFT073, as assessed by mouse urinary tract infection, chicken embryo killing assay, and cytotoxicity assay on human kidney and uroepithelial cell lines. Furthermore, mutation of either barA or uvrY gene reduced the production of hemolysin, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-6) and chemokine (IL-8). The virulence phenotype was restored similar to that of wild-type by complementation of either barA or uvrY gene in trans. In addition, we discussed a possible link between the BarA-UvrY TCS and CsrA in positively and negatively controlling virulence in UPEC. Overall, this study provides the evidences for BarA-UvrY TCS regulates the virulence of UPEC CFT073 and may point to mechanisms by which virulence regulations are observed in different ways may control the long-term survival of UPEC in the urinary tract.

The impact of system of care support in adherence to wraparound principles in Child and Family Teams in child welfare in North Carolina.

PubMed

Snyder, Elizabeth H; Lawrence, C Nicole; Dodge, Kenneth A

2012-04-01

North Carolina is one of a growing number of states to implement family meeting models in child welfare as a way to engage families, while simultaneously addressing complex familial needs and child safety issues. However, much is still unknown regarding how family meetings actually operate in child welfare, underscoring a clear need for further evaluation of this process. Utilizing direct observational data of Child and Family Team (CFT) meetings, collected as part of two separate evaluations of the North Carolina Division of Social Service's Multiple Response System (MRS) and System of Care (SOC) initiatives, the purpose of the current study was to examine whether the support provided by SOC improved fidelity to the CFT model in child welfare. The observations were conducted using the Team Observation Measure consisting of 78 indicators that measure adherence to ten domains associated with high quality family team meetings (e.g., collaborative, individualized, natural supports, outcomes based, strengths-based). Findings indicate that receiving SOC support in child welfare leads to a more collaborative and individualized decision-making process with families. Meeting facilitators in SOC counties were better prepared for CFTs, and had greater ability to lead a more robust and creative brainstorming process to develop a family-driven case plan. The current study also provides a much needed description of the CFT meeting process within child welfare using a direct observational measure.

Magnetism in Chemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brookes, R. W.; McFadyen, W. D.

1975-01-01

Discusses the technical aspects of paramagnetism and an electrostatic model called Crystal Field Theory (CFT), very often used in the case of transition metal compounds. Suggests that this discussion be included as an option for college chemistry courses. (MLH)

Correlation functions in the D1-D5 orbifold CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

i Tormo, Joan Garcia; Taylor, Marika

2018-06-01

The D1-D5 system has an orbifold point in its moduli space, at which it may be described by an N = (4,4) supersymmetric sigma model with target space M N /S( N) where M is T^4 or K3. In this paper we consider correlation functions involving chiral operators constructed from twist fields: we find explicit expressions for processes involving a twist n operator joining n twist operators of arbitrary twist. These expressions are universal, in that they are independent of the choice of M , and the final results can be expressed in a compact form. We explain how these results are relevant to the black hole microstate programme: one point functions of chiral operators can be used to reconstruct AdS3 near horizon regions of D1-D5 microstates and to match microstates constructed in supergravity with the CFT.

Inverse bootstrapping conformal field theories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Wenliang

2018-01-01

We propose a novel approach to study conformal field theories (CFTs) in general dimensions. In the conformal bootstrap program, one usually searches for consistent CFT data that satisfy crossing symmetry. In the new method, we reverse the logic and interpret manifestly crossing-symmetric functions as generating functions of conformal data. Physical CFTs can be obtained by scanning the space of crossing-symmetric functions. By truncating the fusion rules, we are able to concentrate on the low-lying operators and derive some approximate relations for their conformal data. It turns out that the free scalar theory, the 2d minimal model CFTs, the ϕ 4 Wilson-Fisher CFT, the Lee-Yang CFTs and the Ising CFTs are consistent with the universal relations from the minimal fusion rule ϕ 1 × ϕ 1 = I + ϕ 2 + T , where ϕ 1 , ϕ 2 are scalar operators, I is the identity operator and T is the stress tensor.

Conformal manifolds: ODEs from OPEs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Behan, Connor

2018-03-01

The existence of an exactly marginal deformation in a conformal field theory is very special, but it is not well understood how this is reflected in the allowed dimensions and OPE coefficients of local operators. To shed light on this question, we compute perturbative corrections to several observables in an abstract CFT, starting with the beta function. This yields a sum rule that the theory must obey in order to be part of a conformal manifold. The set of constraints relating CFT data at different values of the coupling can in principle be written as a dynamical system that allows one to flow arbitrarily far. We begin the analysis of it by finding a simple form for the differential equations when the spacetime and theory space are both one-dimensional. A useful feature we can immediately observe is that our system makes it very difficult for level crossing to occur.

Coming out of the dark: content analysis of articles pertaining to gay, lesbian, and bisexual issues in couple and family therapy journals.

PubMed

Hartwell, Erica E; Serovich, Julianne M; Grafsky, Erika L; Kerr, Zachary Y

2012-06-01

The present study seeks to extend previous research regarding literature related to gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) issues published in couple and family therapy (CFT)-related journals by presenting the results from a content analysis of GLB studies in CFT-related journals from 1996 to 2010. Results of the analysis revealed a 238.8% increase in total GLB content published since the original review. Articles pertaining to therapy with GLB clients continue to represent the largest area of publication. With one exception, all surveyed journals showed an increase in the percentage of GLB content since the first study. Emerging areas of research include studies related to supervision and training, GLB mental health and substance use, and sexual minority adolescents. A movement away from deficit-based perspectives could open a new lens on family life. © 2012 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

Worldsheet scattering in AdS3/CFT2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sundin, Per; Wulff, Linus

2013-07-01

We confront the recently proposed exact S-matrices for AdS 3/ CFT 2 with direct worldsheet calculations. Utilizing the BMN and Near Flat Space (NFS) expansions for strings on AdS 3 × S 3 × S 3 × S 1 and AdS 3 × S 3 × T 4 we compute both tree-level and one-loop scattering amplitudes. Up to some minor issues we find nice agreement in the tree-level sector. At the one-loop level however we find that certain non-zero tree-level processes, which are not visible in the exact solution, contribute, via the optical theorem, and give an apparent mismatch for certain amplitudes. Furthermore we find that a proposed one-loop modification of the dressing phase correctly reproduces the worldsheet calculation while the standard Hernandez-Lopez phase does not. We also compute several massless to massless processes.

Towards a bootstrap approach to higher orders of epsilon expansion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dey, Parijat; Kaviraj, Apratim

2018-02-01

We employ a hybrid approach in determining the anomalous dimension and OPE coefficient of higher spin operators in the Wilson-Fisher theory. First we do a large spin analysis for CFT data where we use results obtained from the usual and the Mellin bootstrap and also from Feynman diagram literature. This gives new predictions at O( ɛ 4) and O( ɛ 5) for anomalous dimensions and OPE coefficients, and also provides a cross-check for the results from Mellin bootstrap. These higher orders get contributions from all higher spin operators in the crossed channel. We also use the bootstrap in Mellin space method for ϕ 3 in d = 6 - ɛ CFT where we calculate general higher spin OPE data. We demonstrate a higher loop order calculation in this approach by summing over contributions from higher spin operators of the crossed channel in the same spirit as before.

Hydrodynamics of strongly coupled non-conformal fluids from gauge/gravity duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Springer, Todd

2009-08-01

The subject of relativistic hydrodynamics is explored using the tools of gauge/gravity duality. A brief literature review of AdS/CFT and gauge/gravity duality is presented first. This is followed by a pedagogical introduction to the use of these methods in determining hydrodynamic dispersion relations, w(q), of perturbations in a strongly coupled fluid. Shear and sound mode perturbations are examined in a special class of gravity duals: those where the matter supporting the metric is scalar in nature. Analytical solutions (to order q^4 and q^3 respectively) for the shear and sound mode dispersion relations are presented for a subset of these backgrounds. The work presented here is based on previous publications by the same author, though some previously unpublished results are also included. In particular, the subleading term in the shear mode dispersion relation is analyzed using the AdS/CFT correspondence without any reference to the black hole membrane paradigm.

Quantum integrability and functional equations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Volin, Dmytro

2010-03-01

In this thesis a general procedure to represent the integral Bethe Ansatz equations in the form of the Reimann-Hilbert problem is given. This allows us to study in simple way integrable spin chains in the thermodynamic limit. Based on the functional equations we give the procedure that allows finding the subleading orders in the solution of various integral equations solved to the leading order by the Wiener-Hopf technics. The integral equations are studied in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence, where their solution allows verification of the integrability conjecture up to two loops of the strong coupling expansion. In the context of the two-dimensional sigma models we analyze the large-order behavior of the asymptotic perturbative expansion. Obtained experience with the functional representation of the integral equations allowed us also to solve explicitly the crossing equations that appear in the AdS/CFT spectral problem.

Degenerate stars and gravitational collapse in AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arsiwalla, Xerxes; de Boer, Jan; Papadodimas, Kyriakos; Verlinde, Erik

2011-01-01

We construct composite CFT operators from a large number of fermionic primary fields corresponding to states that are holographically dual to a zero temperature Fermi gas in AdS space. We identify a large N regime in which the fermions behave as free particles. In the hydrodynamic limit the Fermi gas forms a degenerate star with a radius determined by the Fermi level, and a mass and angular momentum that exactly matches the boundary calculations. Next we consider an interacting regime, and calculate the effect of the gravitational back-reaction on the radius and the mass of the star using the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkoff equations. Ignoring other interactions, we determine the "Chandrasekhar limit" beyond which the degenerate star (presumably) undergoes gravitational collapse towards a black hole. This is interpreted on the boundary as a high density phase transition from a cold baryonic phase to a hot deconfined phase.

Logarithmic conformal field theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gainutdinov, Azat; Ridout, David; Runkel, Ingo

2013-12-01

Conformal field theory (CFT) has proven to be one of the richest and deepest subjects of modern theoretical and mathematical physics research, especially as regards statistical mechanics and string theory. It has also stimulated an enormous amount of activity in mathematics, shaping and building bridges between seemingly disparate fields through the study of vertex operator algebras, a (partial) axiomatisation of a chiral CFT. One can add to this that the successes of CFT, particularly when applied to statistical lattice models, have also served as an inspiration for mathematicians to develop entirely new fields: the Schramm-Loewner evolution and Smirnov's discrete complex analysis being notable examples. When the energy operator fails to be diagonalisable on the quantum state space, the CFT is said to be logarithmic. Consequently, a logarithmic CFT is one whose quantum space of states is constructed from a collection of representations which includes reducible but indecomposable ones. This qualifier arises because of the consequence that certain correlation functions will possess logarithmic singularities, something that contrasts with the familiar case of power law singularities. While such logarithmic singularities and reducible representations were noted by Rozansky and Saleur in their study of the U (1|1) Wess-Zumino-Witten model in 1992, the link between the non-diagonalisability of the energy operator and logarithmic singularities in correlators is usually ascribed to Gurarie's 1993 article (his paper also contains the first usage of the term 'logarithmic conformal field theory'). The class of CFTs that were under control at this time was quite small. In particular, an enormous amount of work from the statistical mechanics and string theory communities had produced a fairly detailed understanding of the (so-called) rational CFTs. However, physicists from both camps were well aware that applications from many diverse fields required significantly more complicated non-rational theories. Examples include critical percolation, supersymmetric string backgrounds, disordered electronic systems, sandpile models describing avalanche processes, and so on. In each case, the non-rationality and non-unitarity of the CFT suggested that a more general theoretical framework was needed. Driven by the desire to better understand these applications, the mid-1990s saw significant theoretical advances aiming to generalise the constructs of rational CFT to a more general class. In 1994, Nahm introduced an algorithm for computing the fusion product of representations which was significantly generalised two years later by Gaberdiel and Kausch who applied it to explicitly construct (chiral) representations upon which the energy operator acts non-diagonalisably. Their work made it clear that underlying the physically relevant correlation functions are classes of reducible but indecomposable representations that can be investigated mathematically to the benefit of applications. In another direction, Flohr had meanwhile initiated the study of modular properties of the characters of logarithmic CFTs, a topic which had already evoked much mathematical interest in the rational case. Since these seminal theoretical papers appeared, the field has undergone rapid development, both theoretically and with regard to applications. Logarithmic CFTs are now known to describe non-local observables in the scaling limit of critical lattice models, for example percolation and polymers, and are an integral part of our understanding of quantum strings propagating on supermanifolds. They are also believed to arise as duals of three-dimensional chiral gravity models, fill out hidden sectors in non-rational theories with non-compact target spaces, and describe certain transitions in various incarnations of the quantum Hall effect. Other physical applications range from two-dimensional turbulence and non-equilibrium systems to aspects of the AdS/CFT correspondence and describing supersymmetric sigma models beyond the topological sector. We refer the reader to the reviews in this collection for further applications and details. More recently, our understanding of logarithmic CFT has improved dramatically thanks largely to a better understanding of the underlying mathematical structures. This includes those associated to the vertex operator algebras themselves (representations, characters, modular transformations, fusion, braiding) as well as structures associated with applications to two-dimensional statistical models (diagram algebras, eg. Temperley-Lieb quantum groups). Not only are we getting to the point where we understand how these structures differ from standard (rational) theories, but we are starting to tackle applications both in the boundary and bulk settings. It is now clear that the logarithmic case is generic, so it is this case that one should expect to encounter in applications. We therefore feel that it is timely to review what has been accomplished in order to disseminate this improved understanding and motivate further applications. We now give a quick overview of the articles that constitute this special issue. Adamović and Milas provide a detailed summary of their rigorous results pertaining to logarithmic vertex operator (super)algebras constructed from lattices. This survey discusses the C2-cofiniteness of the (p, p') triplet models (this is the generalisation of rationality to the logarithmic setting), describes Zhu's algebra for (some of) these theories and outlines the difficulties involved in explicitly constructing the modules responsible for their logarithmic nature. Cardy gives an account of a popular approach to logarithmic theories that regards them, heuristically at least, as limits of ordinary (but non-rational) CFTs. More precisely, it seems that any given correlator may be computed as a limit of standard (non-logarithmic) correlators, any logarithmic singularities that arise do so because of a degeneration when taking the limit. He then illustrates this phenomenon in several theories describing statistical lattice models including the n → 0 limit of the O(n ) model and the Q → 1 limit of the Q-state Potts model. Creutzig and Ridout review the continuum approach to logarithmic CFT, using the percolation (boundary) CFT to detail the connection between module structure and logarithmic singularities in correlators before describing their proposed solution to the thorny issue of generalising modular data and Verlinde formulae to the logarithmic setting. They illustrate this proposal using the three best-understood examples of logarithmic CFTs: the (1, 2) models, related to symplectic fermions; the fractional level WZW model on , related to the beta gamma ghosts; and the WZW model on GL(1|1). The analysis in each case requires that the spectrum be continuous; C2-cofinite models are only recovered as orbifolds. Flohr and Koehn consider the characters of the irreducible modules in the spectrum of a CFT and discuss why these only span a proper subspace of the space of torus vacuum amplitudes in the logarithmic case. This is illustrated explicitly for the (1, 2) triplet model and conclusions are drawn for the action of the modular group. They then note that the irreducible characters of this model also admit fermionic sum forms which seem to fit well into Nahmrsquo;s well-known conjecture for rational theories. Quasi-particle interpretations are also introduced, leading to the conclusion that logarithmic C2-cofinite theories are not so terribly different to rational theories, at least in some respects. Fuchs, Schweigert and Stigner address the problem of constructing local logarithmic CFTs starting from the chiral theory. They first review the construction of the local theory in the non-logarithmic setting from an angle that will then generalise to logarithmic theories. In particular, they observe that the bulk space can be understood as a certain coend. The authors then show how to carry out the construction of the bulk space in the category of modules over a factorisable ribbon Hopf algebra, which shares many properties with the braided categories arising from logarithmic chiral theories. The authors proceed to construct the analogue of all-genus correlators in their setting and establish invariance under the mapping class group, i.e. locality of the correlators. Gainutdinov, Jacobsen, Read, Saleur and Vasseur review their approach based on the assumption that certain classes of logarithmic CFTs admit lattice regularisations with local degrees of freedom, for example quantum spin chains (with local interactions). They therefore study the finite-dimensional algebras generated by the hamiltonian densities (typically the Temperley-Lieb algebras and their extensions) that describe the dynamics of these lattice models. The authors then argue that the lattice algebras exhibit, in finite size, mathematical properties that are in correspondence with those of their continuum limits, allowing one to predict continuum structures directly from the lattice. Moreover, the lattice models considered admit quantum group symmetries that play a central role in the algebraic analysis (representation structure and fusion). Grumiller, Riedler, Rosseel and Zojer review the role that logarithmic CFTs may play in certain versions of the AdS/CFT correspondence, particularly for what is known as topologically massive gravity (TMG). This has been a very active subject over the last five years and the article takes great care to disentangle the contributions from the many groups that have participated. They begin with some general remarks on logarithmic behaviour, much in the spirit of Cardyrsquo;s review, before detailing the distinction between the chiral (no logs) and logarithmic proposals for critical TMG. The latter is then subjected to various consistency checks before discussing evidence for logarithmic behaviour in more general classes of gravity theories including those with boundaries, supersymmetry and galilean relativity. Gurarie has written an historical overview of his seminal contributions to this field, putting his results (and those of his collaborators) in the context of understanding applications to condensed matter physics. This includes the link between the non-diagonalisability of L0 and logarithmic singularities, a study of the c → 0 catastrophe, and a proposed resolution involving supersymmetric partners for the stress-energy tensor and its logarithmic partner field. Henkel and Rouhani describe a direction in which logarithmic singularities are observed in correlators of non-relativistic field theories. Their review covers the appropriate modifications of conformal invariance that are appropriate to non-equilibrium statistical mechanics, strongly anisotropic critical points and certain variants of TMG. The main variation away from the standard relativistic idea of conformal invariance is that time is explicitly distinguished from space when considering dilations and this leads to a variety of algebraic structures to explore. In this review, the link between non-diagonalisable representations and logarithmic singularities in correlators is generalised to these algebras, before two applications of the theory are discussed. Huang and Lepowsky give a non-technical overview of their work on braided tensor structures on suitable categories of representations of vertex operator algebras. They also place their work in historic context and compare it to related approaches. The authors sketch their construction of the so-called P(z)-tensor product of modules of a vertex operator algebra, and the construction of the associativity isomorphisms for this tensor product. They proceed to give a guide to their works leading to the first authorrsquo;s proof of modularity for a class of vertex operator algebras, and to their works, joint with Zhang, on logarithmic intertwining operators and the resulting tensor product theory. Morin-Duchesne and Saint-Aubin have contributed a research article describing their recent characterisation of when the transfer matrix of a periodic loop model fails to be diagonalisable. This generalises their recent result for non-periodic loop models and provides rigorous methods to justify what has often been assumed in the lattice approach to logarithmic CFT. The philosophy here is one of analysing lattice models with finite size, aiming to demonstrate that non-diagonalisability survives the scaling limit. This is extremely difficult in general (see also the review by Gainutdinov et al ), so it is remarkable that it is even possible to demonstrate this at any level of generality. Quella and Schomerus have prepared an extensive review covering their longstanding collaboration on the logarithmic nature of conformal sigma models on Lie supergroups and their cosets with applications to string theory and AdS/CFT. Beginning with a very welcome overview of Lie superalgebras and their representations, harmonic analysis and cohomological reduction, they then apply these mathematical tools to WZW models on type I Lie supergroups and their homogeneous subspaces. Along the way, deformations are discussed and potential dualities in the corresponding string theories are described. Ruelle provides an exhaustive account of his substantial contributions to the study of the abelian sandpile model. This is a statistical model which has the surprising feature that many correlation functions can be computed exactly, in the bulk and on the boundary, even though the spectrum of conformal weights is largely unknown. Nevertheless, there is much evidence suggesting that its scaling limit is described by an, as yet unknown, c = -2 logarithmic CFT. Semikhatov and Tipunin present their very recent results regarding the construction of logarithmic chiral W-algebra extensions of a fractional level algebra. The idea is that these algebras are the centralisers of a rank-two Nichols algebra which possesses at least one fermionic generator. In turn, these Nichols algebra generators are represented by screening operators which naturally appear in CFT bosonisation. The major advantage of using these generators is that they give strong hints about the representation theory and fusion rules of the chiral algebra. Simmons has contributed an article describing the calculation of various correlation functions in the logarithmic CFT that describes critical percolation. These calculations are interpreted geometrically in a manner that should be familiar to mathematicians studying Schramm-Loewner evolutions and point towards a (largely unexplored) bridge connecting logarithmic CFT with this branch of mathematics. Of course, the field of logarithmic CFT has benefited greatly from the work of many of researchers who are not represented in this special issue. The interested reader will find many links to their work in the bibliographies of the special issue articles and reviews. In summary, logarithmic CFT describes an extension of the incredibly successful methods of rational CFT to a more general setting. This extension is necessary to properly describe many different fundamental phenomena of physical interest. The formalism is moreover highly non-trivial from a mathematical point of view and so logarithmic theories are of significant interest to both physicists and mathematicians. We hope that the collection of articles that follows will serve as an inspiration, and a valuable resource, for both of these communities.

Quality-by-design III: application of near-infrared spectroscopy to monitor roller compaction in-process and product quality attributes of immediate release tablets.

PubMed

Kona, Ravikanth; Fahmy, Raafat M; Claycamp, Gregg; Polli, James E; Martinez, Marilyn; Hoag, Stephen W

2015-02-01

The objective of this study is to use near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) coupled with multivariate chemometric models to monitor granule and tablet quality attributes in the formulation development and manufacturing of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (CIP) immediate release tablets. Critical roller compaction process parameters, compression force (CFt), and formulation variables identified from our earlier studies were evaluated in more detail. Multivariate principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least square (PLS) models were developed during the development stage and used as a control tool to predict the quality of granules and tablets. Validated models were used to monitor and control batches manufactured at different sites to assess their robustness to change. The results showed that roll pressure (RP) and CFt played a critical role in the quality of the granules and the finished product within the range tested. Replacing binder source did not statistically influence the quality attributes of the granules and tablets. However, lubricant type has significantly impacted the granule size. Blend uniformity, crushing force, disintegration time during the manufacturing was predicted using validated PLS regression models with acceptable standard error of prediction (SEP) values, whereas the models resulted in higher SEP for batches obtained from different manufacturing site. From this study, we were able to identify critical factors which could impact the quality attributes of the CIP IR tablets. In summary, we demonstrated the ability of near-infrared spectroscopy coupled with chemometrics as a powerful tool to monitor critical quality attributes (CQA) identified during formulation development.

Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial on the efficacy of 0.5% indomethacin eye drops in uveitic macular edema.

PubMed

Allegri, Pia; Murialdo, Ugo; Peri, Simona; Carniglia, Rosanna; Crivelli, Maria Grazia; Compiano, Silvia; Autuori, Silvia; Mastromarino, Antonio; Zurria, Monia; Marrazzo, Giuseppina

2014-03-10

The aim of the present randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was to assess the efficacy and tolerability of 0.5% indomethacin (INDOM) eye drops in adult patients suffering from macular edema (ME) related to different etiology uveitis. Forty-six eyes of 31 adult patients (20 females and 11 males) mean age 39 years, affected by inflammatory ME, were randomized to receive a dose of commercial 0.5% INDOM eye-drops four times per day (16 subjects = 23 eyes) or placebo (the vehicle of INDOM, 15 subjects = 23 eyes) during a 6-month active therapy follow-up. Study assessment at each visit included visual acuity testing (VA), slit-lamp examination, IOP evaluation, and Heidelberg Spectralis optical coherence tomography (OCT) central foveal thickness (CFT) measurement. Any variation in subjective symptoms and tolerability was also detected. Statistical analysis showed, from baseline to the 6-month visit, a significant reduction in CFT (P < 0.0001) and a significant improvement in VA only in the 0.5% INDOM-treated group; a global reduction of discomfort symptoms was present in both groups (P < 0.001). The four times per day administration of 0.5% INDOM eye drops in eyes affected with uveitic ME from different etiologies, compared with placebo, is associated with a significant reduction in ME at the 6-month follow-up visit, as measured by spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT). However, not all eyes showed a complete resolution of ME because of vitreoretinal traction. (https://eudract.ema.europa.eu/index.html number, EUDRACT 2011-001522-20.).

Retinal toxicity related to hydroxychloroquine in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis.

PubMed

Telek, Hande Husniye; Yesilirmak, Nilufer; Sungur, Gulten; Ozdemir, Yaprak; Yesil, Nesibe Karahan; Ornek, Firdevs

2017-12-01

To compare the retinal toxicity due to hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) use in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using multifocal electroretinography (mfERG), fundus autofluorescence (FAF) and optical coherence tomography (OCT). Patients who were using HCQ due to SLE and RA, and healthy subjects evaluated in this study. Central foveal thickness (CFT), inner-outer segment (IS-OS) junction irregularity, retinal nerve fiber layer thickness, mfERG and FAF measurements were performed to evaluate retinal toxicity. Study included 35 eyes of 35 SLE patients, 40 eyes of 40 RA patients and 20 eyes of 20 healthy subjects. In SLE group, retinal abnormality was found in three eyes with mfERG, in one eye with FAF and in four eyes with OCT. In RA group, retinal abnormality was found in 10 eyes with mfERG, in five eyes with FAF and in nine eyes with OCT. A statistically significant difference was found with respect to mfERG between "eyes with abnormal responses and without abnormal responses" and "eyes with abnormal responses and controls" (p < 0.05). A statistically significant difference was found with respect to CFT between "eyes with IS-OS junction irregularities and without IS-OS junction irregularities" and "eyes with/without IS-OS junction irregularities and controls" (p < 0.05). The use of HCQ seems to cause retinal toxicity more often in RA patients compared to SLE patients. For the early detection of retinal changes, OCT and mfERG can be used as screening tools due to their higher sensitivity rates compared to other tests.

The heterozygous A53T mutation in the alpha-synuclein gene in a Chinese Han patient with Parkinson disease: case report and literature review.

PubMed

Xiong, Wei-Xi; Sun, Yi-Min; Guan, Rong-Yuan; Luo, Su-Shan; Chen, Chen; An, Yu; Wang, Jian; Wu, Jian-Jun

2016-10-01

The missense mutation A53T of alpha-synuclein gene (SNCA) was reported to be a rare but definite cause of sporadic and familial Parkinson disease (PD). It seemed to be restricted geographically in Greece and Italy. We aimed to identify the SNCA mutations in a Chinese PD cohort. Ninety-one early onset PD patients or familial PD probands were collected consecutively for the screening of PD-related genes. The genetic analysis was carried out by target sequencing of the exons and the corresponding flanking regions of the PD-related genes using Illumina HiSeq 2000 sequencer and further confirmed by Sanger sequencing or restriction fragment length polymorphism. Dosage mutations of exons in these genes were carried out by multiple ligation-dependent probe amplification. Among the 91 patients, we found only one heterozygous mutation of SNCA A53T, in a 23-year-old male patient with negative family history. The [(11)C]-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-fluorophenyl) tropan (CFT) PET and PD-related spatial covariance pattern (PDRP) via [(18)F]-fluorodeoxyglucos (FDG) PET confirmed a typical pattern of PD. After examining his parents, we found his mother was an asymptomatic carrier, with declined hand dexterity detected by quantitative motor tests. Reduced dopamine transporter uptake of his mother was identified by CFT PET, and abnormal PDRP pattern was found by FDG PET. Our investigation expanded the clinical and genetic spectrum of Chinese PD patients, and we suggested SNCA mutations to be screened in familial and early onset Chinese PD patients.

Individual and co-operative roles of lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide in the killing activity of enteric strain Lactobacillus johnsonii NCC933 and vaginal strain Lactobacillus gasseri KS120.1 against enteric, uropathogenic and vaginosis-associated pathogens.

PubMed

Atassi, Fabrice; Servin, Alain L

2010-03-01

The mechanism underlying the killing activity of Lactobacillus strains against bacterial pathogens appears to be multifactorial. Here, we investigate the respective contributions of hydrogen peroxide and lactic acid in killing bacterial pathogens associated with the human vagina, urinary tract or intestine by two hydrogen peroxide-producing strains. In co-culture, the human intestinal strain Lactobacillus johnsonii NCC933 and human vaginal strain Lactobacillus gasseri KS120.1 strains killed enteric Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium SL1344, vaginal Gardnerella vaginalis DSM 4944 and urinary tract Escherichia coli CFT073 pathogens. The cell-free culture supernatants (CFCSs) produced the same reduction in SL1344, DSM 4944 and CFT073 viability, whereas isolated bacteria had no effect. The killing activity of CFCSs was heat-stable. In the presence of Dulbecco's modified Eagle's minimum essential medium inhibiting the lactic acid-dependent killing activity, CFCSs were less effective at killing of the pathogens. Catalase-treated CFCSs displayed a strong decreased activity. Tested alone, hydrogen peroxide triggered a concentration-dependent killing activity against all three pathogens. Lactic acid alone developed a killing activity only at concentrations higher than that present in CFCSs. In the presence of lactic acid at a concentration present in Lactobacillus CFCSs, hydrogen peroxide displayed enhanced killing activity. Collectively, these results demonstrate that for hydrogen peroxide-producing Lactobacillus strains, the main metabolites of Lactobacillus, lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide, act co-operatively to kill enteric, vaginosis-associated and uropathogenic pathogens.

Pegaptanib: choroidal neovascularization in patients with age-related macular degeneration and previous arterial thromboembolic events.

PubMed

Battaglia Parodi, Maurizio; Di Bartolo, Emanuele; Brue, Claudia; Cappello, Ezio; Furino, Claudio; Giuffrida, Sebastiano; Imparato, Manuela; Reibaldi, Michele

2018-01-01

To evaluate the efficacy and the rate of side effects of the pegylated aptamer pegaptanib in the treatment of patients with choroidal neovascularization (CNV) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and a history of previous arterial thromboembolic events (ATEs). Twenty-three eyes of 23 patients with subfoveal CNV due to AMD and cerebrovascular accidents (n = 12) and myocardial infarction (n = 11) in the previous 6 months received intravitreal pegaptanib 0.3 mg according to a pro re nata regimen and were followed for 12 months. The paired Student t test was used to evaluate mean changes in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA; primary outcome measure) and central foveal thickness (CFT). The mean patient age was 71.5 ± 4.6 years; there were 14 women and 9 men. The CNV was type 1, 2, and 3 in 18, 3, and 2 eyes, respectively. The mean BCVA improved from 0.67 ± 0.23 logMAR at baseline to 0.52 ± 0.31 logMAR at the end of 12-month follow-up (p = 0.044). Thirty-five percent of patients achieved ≥3 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study lines improvement at 12 months. Mean CFT at baseline (381 ± 111 µm) decreased to 304 ± 82 µm at 12 months (p = 0.008). Patients received a mean of 4.3 ± 1.3 (range 3-7) injections. No systemic or ocular side effects occurred; no patient experienced further ATEs. Intravitreal pegaptanib can be considered a viable treatment option for patients with AMD-related CNV who are at high risk of ATEs.

Frequency band adjustment match filtering based on variable frequency GPR antennas pairing scheme for shallow subsurface investigations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shaikh, Shahid Ali; Tian, Gang; Shi, Zhanjie; Zhao, Wenke; Junejo, S. A.

2018-02-01

Ground penetrating Radar (GPR) is an efficient tool for subsurface geophysical investigations, particularly at shallow depths. The non-destructiveness, cost efficiency, and data reliability are the important factors that make it an ideal tool for the shallow subsurface investigations. Present study encompasses; variations in central frequency of transmitting and receiving GPR antennas (Tx-Rx) have been analyzed and frequency band adjustment match filters are fabricated and tested accordingly. Normally, the frequency of both the antennas remains similar to each other whereas in this study we have experimentally changed the frequencies of Tx-Rx and deduce the response. Instead of normally adopted three pairs, a total of nine Tx-Rx pairs were made from 50 MHz, 100 MHz, and 200 MHz antennas. The experimental data was acquired at the designated near surface geophysics test site of the Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China. After the impulse response analysis of acquired data through conventional as well as varied Tx-Rx pairs, different swap effects were observed. The frequency band and exploration depth are influenced by transmitting frequencies rather than the receiving frequencies. The impact of receiving frequencies was noticed on the resolution; the more noises were observed using the combination of high frequency transmitting with respect to low frequency receiving. On the basis of above said variable results we have fabricated two frequency band adjustment match filters, the constant frequency transmitting (CFT) and the variable frequency transmitting (VFT) frequency band adjustment match filters. By the principle, the lower and higher frequency components were matched and then incorporated with intermediate one. Therefore, this study reveals that a Tx-Rx combination of low frequency transmitting with high frequency receiving is a better choice. Moreover, both the filters provide better radargram than raw one, the result of VFT frequency band adjustment filter is much better than CFT frequency band adjustment filter.

Extremal Correlators in the Ads/cft Correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

D'Hoker, Eric; Freedman, Daniel Z.; Mathur, Samir D.; Matusis, Alec; Rastelli, Leonardo

The non-renormalization of the 3-point functions

Spacetime Symmetries and Conformal Data in the Continuous Multiscale Entanglement Renormalization Ansatz

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Q.; Vidal, G.

2017-07-01

The generalization of the multiscale entanglement renormalization ansatz (MERA) to continuous systems, or cMERA [Haegeman et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 100402 (2013), 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.100402], is expected to become a powerful variational ansatz for the ground state of strongly interacting quantum field theories. In this Letter, we investigate, in the simpler context of Gaussian cMERA for free theories, the extent to which the cMERA state |ΨΛ⟩ with finite UV cutoff Λ can capture the spacetime symmetries of the ground state |Ψ ⟩. For a free boson conformal field theory (CFT) in 1 +1 dimensions, as a concrete example, we build a quasilocal unitary transformation V that maps |Ψ ⟩ into |ΨΛ⟩ and show two main results. (i) Any spacetime symmetry of the ground state |Ψ ⟩ is also mapped by V into a spacetime symmetry of the cMERA |ΨΛ⟩. However, while in the CFT, the stress-energy tensor Tμ ν(x ) (in terms of which all the spacetime symmetry generators are expressed) is local, and the corresponding cMERA stress-energy tensor Tμν Λ(x )=V Tμ ν(x )V† is quasilocal. (ii) From the cMERA, we can extract quasilocal scaling operators OαΛ(x ) characterized by the exact same scaling dimensions Δα, conformal spins sα, operator product expansion coefficients Cα β γ, and central charge c as the original CFT. Finally, we argue that these results should also apply to interacting theories.

Alternating Bi-Weekly Intravitreal Ranibizumab and Bevacizumab for Refractory Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration with Pigment Epithelial Detachment.

PubMed

Witkin, Andre J; Rayess, Nadim; Garg, Sunir J; Maguire, Joseph I; Storey, Philip; Kaiser, Richard S; Hsu, Jason; Vander, James F; Ho, Allen C

2017-01-01

To describe visual and anatomical outcomes following bi-weekly intravitreal ranibizumab/bevacizumab injections in eyes with refractory neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and pigment epithelial detachment (PED). Retrospective, consecutive, interventional case series. Eighteen patients diagnosed with neovascular AMD that were refractory to anti-VEGF therapy and received alternating biweekly ranibizumab/bevacizumab injections were included. Patients with neovascular AMD and PED that were refractory to at least 11 monthly ranibizumab or bevacizumab injections were included in this study at a large, single retina practice. Following inclusion, patients received four bi-weekly alternating ranibizumab/bevacizumab intravitreal injections. After completing a course of four bi-weekly injections, patients were treated with variable regimens of intravitreal anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy. The primary outcomes of the study included change in visual acuity (VA) and central foveal thickness (CFT) at eight weeks follow-up. Study eyes had previously received a mean of 22 intravitreal anti-VEGF injections. At enrollment, mean VA was 20/95 and mean CFT was 455 µm. After four bi-weekly anti-VEGF injections, mean VA improved to 20/65 (p < 0.001), and mean CFT decreased to 387 µm (p = 0.029). In patients with PED, there was a mean 27.9% reduction in height (p = 0.046) at eight weeks' follow-up. Four injections of bi-weekly alternating ranibizumab/bevacizumab improved visual acuity and reduced macular thickness in a number of patients with refractory neovascular AMD and PED.

Biological control of cattle fever ticks

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cattle fever ticks (CFT) Rhipicephalus microplus and Rhipicephalus annulatus are invasive livestock pests that are endemic to Mexico and invasive along the Texas – Mexico border. Acaricide resistance, alternate wildlife hosts, and pathogenic landscape forming weeds present challenges for sustainable...

Comparison of the in vitro effects of saline, hypertonic hydroxyethyl starch, hypertonic saline, and two forms of hydroxyethyl starch on whole blood coagulation and platelet function in dogs.

PubMed

Wurlod, Virginie A; Howard, Judith; Francey, Thierry; Schweighauser, Ariane; Adamik, Katja N

2015-01-01

To compare the in vitro effects of hypertonic solutions and colloids to saline on coagulation in dogs. In vitro experimental study. Veterinary teaching hospital. Twenty-one adult dogs. Blood samples were diluted with saline, 7.2% hypertonic saline solution with 6% hydroxyethylstarch with an average molecular weight of 200 kDa and a molar substitution of 0.4 (HH), 7.2% hypertonic saline (HTS), hydroxyethyl starch (HES) 130/0.4 or hydroxyethyl starch 600/0.75 at ratios of 1:22 and 1:9, and with saline and HES at a ratio of 1:3. Whole blood coagulation was analyzed using rotational thromboelastometry (extrinsic thromboelastometry-cloting time (ExTEM-CT), maximal clot firmness (MCF) and clot formation time (CFT) and fibrinogen function TEM-CT (FibTEM-CT) and MCF) and platelet function was analyzed using a platelet function analyzer (closure time, CTPFA ). All parameters measured were impaired by saline dilution. The CTPFA was prolonged by 7.2% hypertonic saline solution with 6% hydroxyethylstarch with an average molecular weight of 200 kDa and a molar substitution of 0.4 (HH) and HTS but not by HES solutions. At clinical dilutions equivalent to those generally administered for shock (saline 1:3, HES 1:9, and hypertonic solutions 1:22), CTPFA was more prolonged by HH and HTS than other solutions but more by saline than HES. No difference was found between the HES solutions or the hypertonic solutions. ExTEM-CFT and MCF were impaired by HH and HTS but only mildly by HES solutions. At clinically relevant dilutions, no difference was found in ExTEM-CFT between HTS and saline or in ExTEM-MCF between HH and saline. No consistent difference was found between the 2 HES solutions but HH impaired ExTEM-CFT and MCF more than HTS. At high dilutions, FibTEM-CT and -MCF and ExTEM-CT were impaired by HES. Hypertonic solutions affect platelet function and whole blood coagulation to a greater extent than saline and HES. At clinically relevant dilutions, only CTPFA was markedly more affected by hypertonic solutions than by saline. At high dilutions, HES significantly affects coagulation but to no greater extent than saline at clinically relevant dilutions. © Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society 2015.

Beyond AdS Space-times, New Holographic Correspondences and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghodrati, Mahdis

The AdS/CFT correspondence conjectures a mathematical equivalence between string theories and gauge theories. In a particular limit it allows a description of strongly coupled conformal field theory via weakly coupled gravity. This feature has been used to gain insight into many condensed matter (CM) systems. However, to apply the duality in more physical scenarios, one needs to go beyond the usual AdS/CFT framework and extend the duality to non-AdS situations. To describe Lifshitz and hyperscaling violating (HSV) phenomena in CM one uses gauge fields on the gravity side which naturally realize the breaking of Lorentz invariance. These gravity constructions often contain naked singularities. In this thesis, we construct a resolution of the infra-red (IR) singularity of the HSV background. The idea is to add squared curvature terms to the Einstein-Maxwell dilaton action to build a flow from AdS4 in the ultra violate (UV) to an intermediating HSV region and then to an AdS2 x R 2 region in the IR. This general solution is free from the naked singularities and would be more appropriate for applications of HSV in physical systems. We also study the Schwinger effect by using the AdS/CFT duality. We present the phase diagrams of the Schwinger effect and also the "butterfly shaped-phase diagrams" of the entanglement entropy for four different confining supergravity backgrounds. Comparing different features of all of these diagrams could point out to a potential relation between the Schwinger effect and the entanglement entropy which could lead to a method of measuring entanglement entropy in the laboratory. Finally, we study the "new massive gravity" theory and the different black hole solutions it admits. We first present three different methods of calculating the conserved charges. Then, by calculating the on-shell Gibbs free energy we construct the Hawking-Page phase diagrams for different solutions in two thermodynamical ensembles. As the massive gravity models are dual to dissipating systems, studying the Hawking-Page diagrams could point out to interesting results for the confinement-deconfinement phase transitions of the dual boundary theories. So this thesis discusses various generalizations of the AdS/CFT correspondence of relevance for cases which violate Lorentz symmetry.

Clinical relevance of retinal structure in children with laser-treated retinopathy of prematurity versus controls - using optical coherence tomography.

PubMed

Stoica, Florina; Chirita-Emandi, Adela; Andreescu, Nicoleta; Stanciu, Alina; Zimbru, Cristian G; Puiu, Maria

2018-03-01

We aimed to assess the macular anatomy using spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT), in children born preterm who had laser-treated retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), and to investigate the relationship between structural changes in macula and visual function. Thirty-seven 3-8 years old children were included in the study in two groups: 20 children born preterm [(<34 weeks of gestation, birthweight (BW) <2000 g)] who had laser-treated ROP in the Neonatology Department, Municipal Clinical Emergency Hospital of Timisoara, Romania; and 17 controls (children born at term, without eye disease, matched for age and gender). Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) imaging (Spectralis OCT) was performed at central fovea and 1 mm nasally. In the ROP group (total 34 eyes), we included both eyes in 14 children, and on one eye in six other children. In the control group, both eyes for all 17 children were included. Central fovea thickness (CFT) was significantly higher in children born preterm and with laser-treated ROP as compared to controls (275 ± 34.8 μm versus 224 ± 27.2 μm; p < 0.001). The laser-treated eyes with ROP had mean best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) = 0.19 logMAR (20/31 Snellen); 35% had BCVA ≥0.3 logMAR (20/40 Snellen). In receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis, with BCVA as static variable (category 0 = BCVA ≤0.3 logMAR), the CFT cut-off was 257 μm (sensitivity: 0.917; specificity: 0.661; area under the curve: 0.810, p = 0.001). Years after the laser intervention, central fovea was significantly thicker in ROP laser-treated children born preterm when compared to controls. Central fovea thickness (CFT) correlated strongly and inversely with BW and gestational age (GA) at birth, while a CFT value above 257 μm was suggestive for suboptimal visual acuity. The proposed cut-off value needs to be validated in future larger studies. © 2017 Acta Ophthalmologica Scandinavica Foundation. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

A Solution Space for a System of Null-State Partial Differential Equations: Part 2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Flores, Steven M.; Kleban, Peter

2015-01-01

This article is the second of four that completely and rigorously characterize a solution space for a homogeneous system of 2 N + 3 linear partial differential equations in 2 N variables that arises in conformal field theory (CFT) and multiple Schramm-Löwner evolution (SLE). The system comprises 2 N null-state equations and three conformal Ward identities which govern CFT correlation functions of 2 N one-leg boundary operators. In the first article (Flores and Kleban, Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1212.2301, 2012), we use methods of analysis and linear algebra to prove that dim , with C N the Nth Catalan number. The analysis of that article is complete except for the proof of a lemma that it invokes. The purpose of this article is to provide that proof. The lemma states that if every interval among ( x 2, x 3), ( x 3, x 4),…,( x 2 N-1, x 2 N ) is a two-leg interval of (defined in Flores and Kleban, Commun Math Phys, arXiv:1212.2301, 2012), then F vanishes. Proving this lemma by contradiction, we show that the existence of such a nonzero function implies the existence of a non-vanishing CFT two-point function involving primary operators with different conformal weights, an impossibility. This proof (which is rigorous in spite of our occasional reference to CFT) involves two different types of estimates, those that give the asymptotic behavior of F as the length of one interval vanishes, and those that give this behavior as the lengths of two intervals vanish simultaneously. We derive these estimates by using Green functions to rewrite certain null-state PDEs as integral equations, combining other null-state PDEs to obtain Schauder interior estimates, and then repeatedly integrating the integral equations with these estimates until we obtain optimal bounds. Estimates in which two interval lengths vanish simultaneously divide into two cases: two adjacent intervals and two non-adjacent intervals. The analysis of the latter case is similar to that for one vanishing interval length. In contrast, the analysis of the former case is more complicated, involving a Green function that contains the Jacobi heat kernel as its essential ingredient.

Effect of a synesthete's photisms on name recall.

PubMed

Mills, Carol Bergfeld; Innis, Joanne; Westendorf, Taryn; Owsianiecki, Lauren; McDonald, Angela

2006-02-01

A multilingual, colored-letter synesthete professor (MLS), 9 nonsynesthete multilingual professors and 4 nonsynesthete art professors learned 30 names of individuals (first and last name pairs) in three trials. They recalled the names after each trial and six months later, as well as performed cued recall trials initially and after six months. As hypothesized, MLS recalled significantly more names than control groups on all free recall tests (except after the first trial) and on cued recall tests. In addition, MLS gave qualitatively different reasons for remembering names than any individual control participant. MLS gave mostly color reasons for remembering the names, whereas nonsynesthetes gave reasons based on familiarity or language or art knowledge. Results on standardized memory tests showed that MLS had average performance on non-language visual memory tests (the Benton Visual Retention Test-Revised--BURT-R, and the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test--CFT), but had superior memory performance on a verbal test consisting of lists of nouns (Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test--RAVLT). MLS's synesthesia seems to aid memory for visually or auditorily presented language stimuli (names and nouns), but not for non-language visual stimuli (simple and complex figures).

Investigations on brucellosis in Egyptian Baladi Does with emphasis on evaluation of diagnostic techniques.

PubMed

el-Razik, K A Abd; Desouky, H M; Ahmed, W M

2007-01-15

Investigations were carried out on caprine brucellosis in a costal area in Egypt. A total number of 577 Baladi Does was examined for Brucella infection using different serological tests. Specimens were taken from seropositive obligatory slaughtered Does (No = 33) for Brucella isolation, histopathological examination, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) assay and determination of serum copper (Cu), zinc(Zn) and iron (Fe) concentrations. Results indicated that the incidence of brucellosis was 3.0-5.0%, by using the different serological tests. Buffered Acidified Plate Antigen Test (BAPAT) is of the highest sensitivity followed by Rose Bengal Plate Test (RBPT), L-ELISA, Complement Fixation Test (CFT), P-ELISA, Rivanol test (RVT) and Tube Agglutination Test (TAT). In seropostive Does, Brucella melitensis biovar 3 was isolated from 78.78% and PCR yielded expected products in 81.81%. Moreover, granulomatous endometritis, lymphocytic mastitis and lymphoid depletion in both lymph nodes and spleen were evident together with significant (p<0.001) decreases in serum Cu, Zn and Fe concentrations. In conclusion, more attention should be paid to goat in brucellosis epidemiology in the application of national program of brucella control and eradication.

The Caledonian face test: A new test of face discrimination.

PubMed

Logan, Andrew J; Wilkinson, Frances; Wilson, Hugh R; Gordon, Gael E; Loffler, Gunter

2016-02-01

This study aimed to develop a clinical test of face perception which is applicable to a wide range of patients and can capture normal variability. The Caledonian face test utilises synthetic faces which combine simplicity with sufficient realism to permit individual identification. Face discrimination thresholds (i.e. minimum difference between faces required for accurate discrimination) were determined in an "odd-one-out" task. The difference between faces was controlled by an adaptive QUEST procedure. A broad range of face discrimination sensitivity was determined from a group (N=52) of young adults (mean 5.75%; SD 1.18; range 3.33-8.84%). The test is fast (3-4 min), repeatable (test-re-test r(2)=0.795) and demonstrates a significant inversion effect. The potential to identify impairments of face discrimination was evaluated by testing LM who reported a lifelong difficulty with face perception. While LM's impairment for two established face tests was close to the criterion for significance (Z-scores of -2.20 and -2.27) for the Caledonian face test, her Z-score was -7.26, implying a more than threefold higher sensitivity. The new face test provides a quantifiable and repeatable assessment of face discrimination ability. The enhanced sensitivity suggests that the Caledonian face test may be capable of detecting more subtle impairments of face perception than available tests. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chlamydia prevalence in Polish pig herds.

PubMed

Rypuła, K; Kumala, A; Płoneczka-Janeczko, K; Karuga-Kuźniewska, E; Dudek, K; Chorbiński, P

2016-09-01

Chlamydiae are frequently encountered intracellular Gram-negative bacteria. In pigs, these bacteria in combination with other pathogens contribute to the induction of a multi-aetiological syndrome. One of the major characteristics of Chlamydia spp. is their ability to cause prolonged, often subclinical infections. While the economic consequences of Chlamydia spp. infections in pig farms are not fully established, we know that reproductive disorders and other syndromes correlated with Chlamydia infection can lead to financial loss as a result of a reduction in pork production. Additionally, Chlamydia spp. presents a potential zoonotic hazard, therefore determining the prevalence of Chlamydia in pig populations is critical. In the present study 97 pig herds from Poland were involved. To determine the prevalence of Chlamydia PCR and CFT tests were used. In total 797 vaginal samples, 797 conjunctival samples, and 235 serum samples were collected and tested. The study took place from 2011 to 2014. We found Chlamydia spp. present in 71·2% of all tested farms. The percentage of animals testing positive on any given farm varied from 20% to 100%.

Ocular Toxocariasis: Clinical Features and Long-term Visual Outcomes in Adult Patients.

PubMed

Despreaux, Raphaelle; Fardeau, Christine; Touhami, Sara; Brasnu, Emmanuelle; Champion, Emmanuelle; Paris, Luc; Touitou, Valérie; Bodaghi, Bahram; Lehoang, Phuc

2016-06-01

To investigate clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of proven ocular toxocariasis (OT) in adult patients. Retrospective, consecutive, interventional case series. setting: Institutional. Consecutive OT patients with positive serum serology and positive western blot (WB) on ocular sample. Clinical features, optical coherence tomography (OCT), and treatment outcomes. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and OCT central foveal thickness (CFT). Fourteen patients were included between 2011 and 2013. Mean age at diagnosis was 45.6 years. Mean duration between the first symptoms and diagnosis was 15.1 months. Uveitis was unilateral in all cases and all patients displayed vitreous inflammation. The main baseline findings were presence of ≥1 peripheral granulomas (57.1%), vasculitis (57.1%), vitreoretinal traction (57.1%), and chronic macular edema (ME) (71.4%). Delayed diagnosis (>8 months) seemed to be associated with higher rate of ME. All patients received albendazole. Systemic (n = 5) and/or local corticosteroids (CS) (n = 7) were administered in case of ME and/or posterior segment inflammation. Vitrectomy was performed when vitreous inflammation was severe and persistent despite CS or in case of threatening traction or visually significant epimacular membrane (28.6%). Overall, this regimen allowed significant decrease of CFT (P = .01). In the vitrectomy subgroup, mean BCVA increased (P = .01) and CFT decreased (P = .017). While some features such as granuloma are typical signs of OT, atypical features can delay the diagnosis. In doubtful situations, WB on ocular samples seems to be more specific than serum antibodies alone. ME seems to be a common complication of longstanding OT in the adult. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gravitational Waves From the Kerr/CFT Correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Porfyriadis, Achilleas

Astronomical observation suggests the existence of near-extreme Kerr black holes in the sky. Properties of diffeomorphisms imply that dynamics of the near-horizon region of near-extreme Kerr are governed by an infinite-dimensional conformal symmetry. This symmetry may be exploited to analytically, rather than numerically, compute a variety of potentially observable processes. In this thesis we compute the gravitational radiation emitted by a small compact object that orbits in the near-horizon region and plunges into the horizon of a large rapidly rotating black hole. We study the holographically dual processes in the context of the Kerr/CFT correspondence and find our conformal field theory (CFT) computations in perfect agreement with the gravity results. We compute the radiation emitted by a particle on the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO) of a rapidly spinning black hole. We confirm previous estimates of the overall scaling of the power radiated, but show that there are also small oscillations all the way to extremality. Furthermore, we reveal an intricate mode-by-mode structure in the flux to infinity, with only certain modes having the dominant scaling. The scaling of each mode is controlled by its conformal weight. Massive objects in adiabatic quasi-circular inspiral towards a near-extreme Kerr black hole quickly plunge into the horizon after passing the ISCO. The post-ISCO plunge trajectory is shown to be related by a conformal map to a circular orbit. Conformal symmetry of the near-horizon region is then used to compute analytically the gravitational radiation produced during the plunge phase. Most extreme-mass-ratio-inspirals of small compact objects into supermassive black holes end with a fast plunge from an eccentric last stable orbit. We use conformal transformations to analytically solve for the radiation emitted from various fast plunges into extreme and near-extreme Kerr black holes.

Functional abnormalities in the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex during a semantic fluency task, and their association with thought disorder in patients with schizophrenia.

PubMed

Marumo, Kohei; Takizawa, Ryu; Kinou, Masaru; Kawasaki, Shingo; Kawakubo, Yuki; Fukuda, Masato; Kasai, Kiyoto

2014-01-15

Thought disorder is one of the primary symptoms in schizophrenia, yet the neural correlates and related semantic processing abnormalities remain unclear. We aimed to investigate the relationship between functional prefrontal abnormalities and thought disorder in schizophrenia using 2 types of verbal fluency tasks: the letter fluency task (LFT) and the category fluency task (CFT). Fifty-six adult patients with schizophrenia and 56 healthy controls matched for age, gender, and IQ participated in the study. During completion of the 2 types of verbal fluency tasks, we measured oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin concentration ([oxy-Hb] and [deoxy-Hb]) signal changes over a wide area of the bilateral prefrontal cortex, using a 52-channel near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) system. Thought disorder scores were evaluated using the positive and negative syndrome scale. CFT performance was significantly higher than LFT performance in both groups, while there was no significant difference in any prefrontal NIRS signal changes between the 2 tasks in either group. In both versions of verbal fluency task, healthy controls exhibited a significantly greater NIRS signal change than did patients with schizophrenia. On the CFT only, left ventrolateral prefrontal NIRS [deoxy-Hb] signals were significantly associated with thought disorder scores in patients with schizophrenia. Our results suggest that left ventrolateral prefrontal abnormalities in category fluency might be related to thought disorder in schizophrenia. This could lead to an improved understanding of the neural mechanisms within the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex involved in mediating semantic processing, as well as the relationship between semantic processing abnormalities and thought disorder in schizophrenia. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effects of testosterone treatment on bone mineral density in men with testosterone deficiency syndrome.

PubMed

Rodriguez-Tolrà, J; Torremadé, J; di Gregorio, S; Del Rio, L; Franco, E

2013-07-01

The decline in testosterone levels found in men with testosterone deficiency syndrome (TDS) is associated with a decrease in bone mineral density (BMD). To study the safety profile and efficacy of testosterone treatment on BMD in patients with TDS. In this 2-year prospective open-label study, patients were administered 50 mg of testosterone gel daily (adjustable after 3 months up to 75-100 mg or down to 25 mg) for 12 months, followed by treatment with 1000 mg of testosterone undecanoate every 2-3 months from months 12-24. Outcome measures were as follows: (i) Changes in clinical chemistry safety parameters and total testosterone, sex hormone binding globulin and calculated free testosterone (cFT) levels; (ii) Changes in Aging Males' Symptoms Scale (AMS) and International Prostate Symptom Score scores; and (iii) Changes in lumbar spine and hip BMD. A total of 50 men aged 50-65 years with TDS (AMS >26 and cFT <0.250 nmol/mL) took part in the study. There was no significant impact of testosterone on safety. Prostate-specific antigen and haematopoietic parameters increased significantly, although the changes were not clinically significant. Total and cFT increased significantly after 3 months (p < 0.001) and there were significant improvements after 3 months in AMS scores (p < 0.001). BMD improved significantly in L2-L4 (2.90 and 4.5%), total femur (0.74 and 3%) and trochanter (1.09 and 3.2%) at 12 and 24 months respectively. Testosterone treatment in men with TDS has a good safety profile, leads to significant improvement in lumbar spine and hip BMD, and improves symptoms, as assessed by the AMS questionnaire. © 2013 American Society of Andrology and European Academy of Andrology.

Time-Temperature-Precipitation Behavior in Al-Li Alloy 2195

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, P. S.; Bhat, B. N.

2002-01-01

Transmission electron microscopy was used to study time-temperature-precipitation (TTP) behavior in aluminum-lithium (Al-Li) 2195 alloy. Al-Li 2195 (nominally Al + 4 percent Cu + 1 percent Li + 0.3 percent Ag + 0.3 percent Mg + 0.1 percent Zr) was initially solutionized for 1 hr at 950 F and then stretched 3 percent. Heat treatments were conducted for up to 100 hr at temperatures ranging from 200 to 1,000 F. TTP diagrams were determined for both matrix and subgrain boundaries. Depending upon heat treatment conditions, precipitate phases (such as GP zone, theta'', theta', theta, delta', T1, TB, and T2) were found in the alloy. The TTP diagrams were applied as a guide to avoid T1 precipitation at subgrain boundaries, as part of an effort to improve the alloy's cryogenic fracture toughness (CFT). New understanding of TTP behavior was instrumental in the development of a two-step artificial aging treatment that significantly enhanced CFT in Al-Li 2195.

A soft-wall dilaton

DOE PAGES

Cox, Peter; Gherghetta, Tony

2015-02-02

Here, we study the properties of the dilaton in a soft-wall background using two solutions of the Einstein equations. These solutions contain an asymptotically AdS metric with a nontrivial scalar profile that causes both the spontaneous breaking of conformal invariance and the generation of a mass gap in the particle spectrum. We first present an analytic solution, using the superpotential method, that describes a CFT spontaneously broken by a finite dimensional operator in which a light dilaton mode appears in the spectrum. This represents a tuning in the vanishing of the quartic coupling in the effective potential that could bemore » naturally realised from an underlying supersymmetry. Instead, by considering a generalised analytic scalar bulk potential that quickly transitions at the condensate scale from a walking coupling in the UV to an order-one β-function in the IR, we obtain a naturally light dilaton. This provides a simple example for obtaining a naturally light dilaton from nearly-marginal CFT deformations in the more realistic case of a soft-wall background.« less

FRW Solutions and Holography from Uplifted AdS/CFT

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

Dong, Xi; Horn, Bart; /Stanford U., ITP /Stanford U., Phys. Dept. /SLAC

2012-02-15

Starting from concrete AdS/CFT dual pairs, one can introduce ingredients which produce cosmological solutions, including metastable de Sitter and its decay to non-accelerating FRW. We present simple FRW solutions sourced by magnetic flavor branes and analyze correlation functions and particle and brane dynamics. To obtain a holographic description, we exhibit a time-dependent warped metric on the solution and interpret the resulting redshifted region as a Lorentzian low energy effective field theory in one fewer dimension. At finite times, this theory has a finite cutoff, a propagating lower dimensional graviton and a finite covariant entropy bound, but at late times themore » lower dimensional Planck mass and entropy go off to infinity in a way that is dominated by contributions from the low energy effective theory. This opens up the possibility of a precise dual at late times. We reproduce the time-dependent growth of the number of degrees of freedom in the system via a count of available microscopic states in the corresponding magnetic brane construction.« less

Spontaneous symmetry breaking, conformal anomaly and incompressible fluid turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oz, Yaron

2017-11-01

We propose an effective conformal field theory (CFT) description of steady state incompressible fluid turbulence at the inertial range of scales in any number of spatial dimensions. We derive a KPZ-type equation for the anomalous scaling of the longitudinal velocity structure functions and relate the intermittency parameter to the boundary Euler (A-type) conformal anomaly coefficient. The proposed theory consists of a mean field CFT that exhibits Kolmogorov linear scaling (K41 theory) coupled to a dilaton. The dilaton is a Nambu-Goldstone gapless mode that arises from a spontaneous breaking due to the energy flux of the separate scale and time symmetries of the inviscid Navier-Stokes equations to a K41 scaling with a dynamical exponent z=2/3 . The dilaton acts as a random measure that dresses the K41 theory and introduces intermittency. We discuss the two, three and large number of space dimensions cases and how entanglement entropy can be used to characterize the intermittency strength.

Entanglement in Nonunitary Quantum Critical Spin Chains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Couvreur, Romain; Jacobsen, Jesper Lykke; Saleur, Hubert

2017-07-01

Entanglement entropy has proven invaluable to our understanding of quantum criticality. It is natural to try to extend the concept to "nonunitary quantum mechanics," which has seen growing interest from areas as diverse as open quantum systems, noninteracting electronic disordered systems, or nonunitary conformal field theory (CFT). We propose and investigate such an extension here, by focusing on the case of one-dimensional quantum group symmetric or supergroup symmetric spin chains. We show that the consideration of left and right eigenstates combined with appropriate definitions of the trace leads to a natural definition of Rényi entropies in a large variety of models. We interpret this definition geometrically in terms of related loop models and calculate the corresponding scaling in the conformal case. This allows us to distinguish the role of the central charge and effective central charge in rational minimal models of CFT, and to define an effective central charge in other, less well-understood cases. The example of the s l (2 |1 ) alternating spin chain for percolation is discussed in detail.

Microbial risk assessment in heterogeneous aquifers: 2. Infection risk sensitivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molin, S.; Cvetkovic, V.; StenströM, T. A.

2010-05-01

The entire chain of events of human disease transmitted through contaminated water, from pathogen introduction into the source (E. coli, rotavirus, and Hepatitis A), pathogen migration through the aquifer pathway, to ingestion via a supply well, and finally, the potential infection in the human host, is investigated. The health risk calculations are based on a relevant hazardous event with safe setback distances estimated by considering the infection risk from peak exposure in compliance with an acceptable level defined by a regulatory agency. A site-specific hypothetical scenario is illustrated for an aquifer with similar characteristics as the Cape Cod site, Massachusetts (United States). Relatively large variation of safe distances for the three index pathogens is found; individually, none of the index pathogens could predict the safe distance under the wide range of conditions investigated. It is shown that colloid filtration theory (CFT) with spatially variable attachment-detachment rates yields significantly different results from the effective CFT model (i.e., assuming spatially constant parameters).

S -duality for holographic p -wave superconductors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gorsky, Alexander; Gubankova, Elena; Meyer, René; Zayakin, Andrey

2017-11-01

We consider the generalization of the S -duality transformation previously investigated in the context of the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) and s -wave superconductivity to p -wave superconductivity in 2 +1 dimensions in the framework of the AdS /CFT correspondence. The vector Cooper condensate transforms under the S -duality action to the pseudovector condensate at the dual side. The 3 +1 -dimensional Einstein-Yang-Mills theory, the holographic dual to p -wave superconductivity, is used to investigate the S -duality action via the AdS /CFT correspondence. It is shown that, in order to implement the duality transformation, chemical potentials on both the electric and magnetic sides of the duality have to be introduced. A relation for the product of the non-Abelian conductivities in the dual models is derived. We also conjecture a flavor S -duality transformation in the holographic dual to 3 +1 -dimensional QCD low-energy QCD with non-Abelian flavor gauge groups. The conjectured S -duality interchanges isospin and baryonic chemical potentials.

On the late-time behavior of Virasoro blocks and a classification of semiclassical saddles

DOE PAGES

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared

2017-04-12

Recent work has demonstrated that black hole thermodynamics and information loss/restoration in AdS 3/CFT 2 can be derived almost entirely from the behavior of the Virasoro conformal blocks at large central charge, with relatively little dependence on the precise details of the CFT spectrum or OPE coefficients. Here, we elaborate on the non-perturbative behavior of Virasoro blocks by classifying all ‘saddles’ that can contribute for arbitrary values of external and internal operator dimensions in the semiclassical large central charge limit. The leading saddles, which determine the naive semiclassical behavior of the Virasoro blocks, all decay exponentially at late times, andmore » at a rate that is independent of internal operator dimensions. Consequently, the semiclassical contribution of a finite number of high-energy states cannot resolve a well-known version of the information loss problem in AdS 3. Furthermore, we identify two infinite classes of sub-leading saddles, and one of these classes does not decay at late times.« less

Thermalization of Wightman functions in AdS/CFT and quasinormal modes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keränen, Ville; Kleinert, Philipp

2016-07-01

We study the time evolution of Wightman two-point functions of scalar fields in AdS3 -Vaidya, a spacetime undergoing gravitational collapse. In the boundary field theory, the collapse corresponds to a quench process where the dual 1 +1 -dimensional CFT is taken out of equilibrium and subsequently thermalizes. From the two-point function, we extract an effective occupation number in the boundary theory and study how it approaches the thermal Bose-Einstein distribution. We find that the Wightman functions, as well as the effective occupation numbers, thermalize with a rate set by the lowest quasinormal mode of the scalar field in the BTZ black hole background. We give a heuristic argument for the quasinormal decay, which is expected to apply to more general Vaidya spacetimes also in higher dimensions. This suggests a unified picture in which thermalization times of one- and two-point functions are determined by the lowest quasinormal mode. Finally, we study how these results compare to previous calculations of two-point functions based on the geodesic approximation.

On the late-time behavior of Virasoro blocks and a classification of semiclassical saddles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared

2017-04-01

Recent work has demonstrated that black hole thermodynamics and information loss/restoration in AdS3/CFT2 can be derived almost entirely from the behavior of the Virasoro conformal blocks at large central charge, with relatively little dependence on the precise details of the CFT spectrum or OPE coefficients. Here, we elaborate on the non-perturbative behavior of Virasoro blocks by classifying all `saddles' that can contribute for arbitrary values of external and internal operator dimensions in the semiclassical large central charge limit. The leading saddles, which determine the naive semiclassical behavior of the Virasoro blocks, all decay exponentially at late times, and at a rate that is independent of internal operator dimensions. Consequently, the semiclassical contribution of a finite number of high-energy states cannot resolve a well-known version of the information loss problem in AdS3. However, we identify two infinite classes of sub-leading saddles, and one of these classes does not decay at late times.

N = 2* Yang-Mills on the Lattice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Joseph, Anosh

2018-03-01

The N = 2* Yang-Mills theory in four dimensions is a non-conformal theory that appears as a mass deformation of maximally supersymmetric N = 4 Yang-Mills theory. This theory also takes part in the AdS/CFT correspondence and its gravity dual is type IIB supergravity on the Pilch-Warner background. The finite temperature properties of this theory have been studied recently in the literature. It has been argued that at large N and strong coupling this theory exhibits no thermal phase transition at any nonzero temperature. The low temperature N = 2* plasma can be compared to the QCD plasma. We provide a lattice construction of N = 2* Yang-Mills on a hypercubic lattice starting from the N = 4 gauge theory. The lattice construction is local, gauge-invariant, free from fermion doubling problem and preserves a part of the supersymmetry. This nonperturbative formulation of the theory can be used to provide a highly nontrivial check of the AdS/CFT correspondence in a non-conformal theory.

XIII Modave Summer School in Mathematical Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

2017-09-01

The Modave Summer School on Mathematical Physics is a yearly summer school in topics of theoretical physics. Various topics ranging from quantum gravity and cosmology to theoretical particle physics and string theory. The school takes place in Modave, a charming village in the Belgian Ardennes close to Huy. Modave School is organised by PhD students for PhD students, and this makes it rather unique. The courses are taught by Post-Docs or late PhD students, and they are all made of pedagogical, basic blackboard lectures about recent topics in theoretical physics. Participants and lecturers eat and sleep in the same place where the lectures are given. The absence of senior members, and the fact of spending day and night together in an isolated, peaceful place contribute to creating an informal atmosphere and facilitating interactions. Lectures of the thirteenth edition are centered around the following subjects: bulk reconstruction in AdS/CFT, twistor theory, AdS_2/CFT_1 and SYK, geometry and topology, and asymptotic charges.

Perturbation of Large Anti-deSitter Black Holes and AdS/CFT Correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahmadzadegan, Aida

As the main goal of this thesis, the canonical form of the perturbation metric of anti-de Sitter black holes in four dimensions is derived by choosing the Regge-Wheeler gauge in the standard Schwarzschild coordinates (t, r, theta, ϕ). By assuming the perturbations to be small, the differential equations governing the perturbations are obtained from the equations deltaRmunu(h ) = 0. Then, by taking the limit of m > > R where R is the radius of AdS space, the perturbation metric and field equations of large AdS black holes are found. Finally, under the shadow of AdS/CFT correspondence, these perturbations can be compared to their corresponding three-dimensional theory of fluid dynamics on the dual space, R x S2. Furthermore, by using the definitions of stress-energy tensor and its perturbation, we can find energy density, pressure and shear viscosity which are the quantities we need to describe the behavior of the fluid on the boundary of the AdS space.

From conformal blocks to path integrals in the Vaidya geometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anous, Tarek; Hartman, Thomas; Rovai, Antonin; Sonner, Julian

2017-09-01

Correlators in conformal field theory are naturally organized as a sum over conformal blocks. In holographic theories, this sum must reorganize into a path integral over bulk fields and geometries. We explore how these two sums are related in the case of a point particle moving in the background of a 3d collapsing black hole. The conformal block expansion is recast as a sum over paths of the first-quantized particle moving in the bulk geometry. Off-shell worldlines of the particle correspond to subdominant contributions in the Euclidean conformal block expansion, but these same operators must be included in order to correctly reproduce complex saddles in the Lorentzian theory. During thermalization, a complex saddle dominates under certain circumstances; in this case, the CFT correlator is not given by the Virasoro identity block in any channel, but can be recovered by summing heavy operators. This effectively converts the conformal block expansion in CFT from a sum over intermediate states to a sum over channels that mimics the bulk path integral.

Numerical estimation of structure constants in the three-dimensional Ising conformal field theory through Markov chain uv sampler

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herdeiro, Victor

2017-09-01

Herdeiro and Doyon [Phys. Rev. E 94, 043322 (2016), 10.1103/PhysRevE.94.043322] introduced a numerical recipe, dubbed uv sampler, offering precise estimations of the conformal field theory (CFT) data of the planar two-dimensional (2D) critical Ising model. It made use of scale invariance emerging at the critical point in order to sample finite sublattice marginals of the infinite plane Gibbs measure of the model by producing holographic boundary distributions. The main ingredient of the Markov chain Monte Carlo sampler is the invariance under dilation. This paper presents a generalization to higher dimensions with the critical 3D Ising model. This leads to numerical estimations of a subset of the CFT data—scaling weights and structure constants—through fitting of measured correlation functions. The results are shown to agree with the recent most precise estimations from numerical bootstrap methods [Kos, Poland, Simmons-Duffin, and Vichi, J. High Energy Phys. 08 (2016) 036, 10.1007/JHEP08(2016)036].

Gapless edges of 2d topological orders and enriched monoidal categories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Liang; Zheng, Hao

2018-02-01

In this work, we give a mathematical description of a chiral gapless edge of a 2d topological order (without symmetry). We show that the observables on the 1+1D world sheet of such an edge consist of a family of topological edge excitations, boundary CFT's and walls between boundary CFT's. These observables can be described by a chiral algebra and an enriched monoidal category. This mathematical description automatically includes that of gapped edges as special cases. Therefore, it gives a unified framework to study both gapped and gapless edges. Moreover, the boundary-bulk duality also holds for gapless edges. More precisely, the unitary modular tensor category that describes the 2d bulk phase is exactly the Drinfeld center of the enriched monoidal category that describes the gapless/gapped edge. We propose a classification of all gapped and chiral gapless edges of a given bulk phase. In the end, we explain how modular-invariant bulk rational conformal field theories naturally emerge on certain gapless walls between two trivial phases.

BPS/CFT Correspondence III: Gauge Origami Partition Function and qq-Characters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nekrasov, Nikita

2018-03-01

We study generalized gauge theories engineered by taking the low energy limit of the Dp branes wrapping {X × {T}^{p-3}}, with X a possibly singular surface in a Calabi-Yau fourfold Z. For toric Z and X the partition function can be computed by localization, making it a statistical mechanical model, called the gauge origami. The random variables are the ensembles of Young diagrams. The building block of the gauge origami is associated with a tetrahedron, whose edges are colored by vector spaces. We show the properly normalized partition function is an entire function of the Coulomb moduli, for generic values of the {Ω} -background parameters. The orbifold version of the theory defines the qq-character operators, with and without the surface defects. The analytic properties are the consequence of a relative compactness of the moduli spaces M({ěc n}, k) of crossed and spiked instantons, demonstrated in "BPS/CFT correspondence II: instantons at crossroads, moduli and compactness theorem".

FRW solutions and holography from uplifted AdS/CFT systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Xi; Horn, Bart; Matsuura, Shunji; Silverstein, Eva; Torroba, Gonzalo

2012-05-01

Starting from concrete AdS/CFT dual pairs, one can introduce ingredients which produce cosmological solutions, including metastable de Sitter and its decay to nonaccelerating Friedmann-Robertson-Walker. We present simple Friedmann-Robertson-Walker solutions sourced by magnetic flavor branes and analyze correlation functions and particle and brane dynamics. To obtain a holographic description, we exhibit a time-dependent warped metric on the solution and interpret the resulting redshifted region as a Lorentzian low energy effective field theory in one fewer dimension. At finite times, this theory has a finite cutoff, a propagating lower-dimensional graviton, and a finite covariant entropy bound, but at late times the lower-dimensional Planck mass and entropy go off to infinity in a way that is dominated by contributions from the low energy effective theory. This opens up the possibility of a precise dual at late times. We reproduce the time-dependent growth of the number of degrees of freedom in the system via a count of available microscopic states in the corresponding magnetic brane construction.

Kinematic space for conical defects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cresswell, Jesse C.; Peet, Amanda W.

2017-11-01

Kinematic space can be used as an intermediate step in the AdS/CFT dictionary and lends itself naturally to the description of diffeomorphism invariant quantities. From the bulk it has been defined as the space of boundary anchored geodesics, and from the boundary as the space of pairs of CFT points. When the bulk is not globally AdS3 the appearance of non-minimal geodesics leads to ambiguities in these definitions. In this work conical defect spacetimes are considered as an example where non-minimal geodesics are common. From the bulk it is found that the conical defect kinematic space can be obtained from the AdS3 kinematic space by the same quotient under which one obtains the defect from AdS3. The resulting kinematic space is one of many equivalent fundamental regions. From the boundary the conical defect kinematic space can be determined by breaking up OPE blocks into contributions from individual bulk geodesics. A duality is established between partial OPE blocks and bulk fields integrated over individual geodesics, minimal or non-minimal.

Biotransformation of ferulic acid to vanillin in the packed bed-stirred fermentors

PubMed Central

Yan, Lei; Chen, Peng; Zhang, Shuang; Li, Suyue; Yan, Xiaojuan; Wang, Ningbo; Liang, Ning; Li, Hongyu

2016-01-01

We performed the biotransformation of ferulic acid to vanillin using Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) in the stirring packed-bed reactors filled with carbon fiber textiles (CFT). Scanning electron microscope (SEM), HPLC, qRT-PCR and ATP assay indicated that vanillin biotransformation is tightly related to cell growth, cellar activity and the extent of biofilm formation. The biotransformation was affected by hydraulic retention time (HRT), temperature, initial pH, stirring speed and ferulic acid concentration, and the maximum vanillin production was obtained at 20 h, 35 °C, 9.0, 200 rpm, 1.5 g/L, respectively. Repeated batch biotransformation performed under this optimized condition showed that the maximum productivity (0.047 g/L/h) and molar yield (60.43%) achieved in immobilized cell system were 1.84 and 3.61 folds higher than those achieved in free cell system. Therefore, the stirring reactor packed with CFT carrier biofilm formed by B. subtilis represented a valid biocatalytic system for the production of vanillin. PMID:27708366

Remarks on thermalization in 2D CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Boer, Jan; Engelhardt, Dalit

2016-12-01

We revisit certain aspects of thermalization in 2D conformal field theory (CFT). In particular, we consider similarities and differences between the time dependence of correlation functions in various states in rational and non-rational CFTs. We also consider the distinction between global and local thermalization and explain how states obtained by acting with a diffeomorphism on the ground state can appear locally thermal, and we review why the time-dependent expectation value of the energy-momentum tensor is generally a poor diagnostic of global thermalization. Since all 2D CFTs have an infinite set of commuting conserved charges, generic initial states might be expected to give rise to a generalized Gibbs ensemble rather than a pure thermal ensemble at late times. We construct the holographic dual of the generalized Gibbs ensemble and show that, to leading order, it is still described by a Banados-Teitelboim-Zanelli black hole. The extra conserved charges, while rendering c <1 theories essentially integrable, therefore seem to have little effect on large-c conformal field theories.

T\\overline{T} -deformations, AdS/CFT and correlation functions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giribet, Gaston

2018-02-01

A solvable irrelevant deformation of AdS3/CFT2 correspondence leading to a theory with Hagedorn spectrum at high energy has been recently proposed. It consists of a single trace deformation of the boundary theory, which is inspired by the recent work on solvable T\\overline{T} deformations of two-dimensional CFTs. Thought of as a worldsheet σ-model, the interpretation of the deformed theory from the bulk viewpoint is that of string theory on a background that interpolates between AdS3 in the IR and a linear dilaton vacuum of little string theory in the UV. The insertion of the operator that realizes the deformation in the correlation functions produces a logarithmic divergence, leading to the renormalization of the primary operators, which thus acquire an anomalous dimension. We compute this anomalous dimension explicitly, and this provides us with a direct way of determining the spectrum of the theory. We discuss this and other features of the correlation functions in presence of the deformation.

Generalized Entanglement Entropy and Holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Obregón, O.

2018-04-01

A nonextensive statistical mechanics entropy that depends only on the probability distribution is proposed in the framework of superstatistics. It is based on a Γ(χ 2) distribution that depends on β and also on pl . The corresponding modified von Neumann entropy is constructed; it is shown that it can also be obtained from a generalized Replica trick. We address the question whether the generalized entanglement entropy can play a role in the gauge/gravity duality. We pay attention to 2dCFT and their gravity duals. The correction terms to the von Neumann entropy result more relevant than the usual UV (for c = 1) ones and also than those due to the area dependent AdS 3 entropy which result comparable to the UV ones. Then the correction terms due to the new entropy would modify the Ryu-Takayanagi identification between the CFT entanglement entropy and the AdS entropy in a different manner than the UV ones or than the corrections to the AdS 3 area dependent entropy.

Intersecting surface defects and two-dimensional CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gomis, Jaume; Le Floch, Bruno; Pan, Yiwen; Peelaers, Wolfger

2017-08-01

We initiate the study of intersecting surface operators/defects in 4D quantum field theories (QFTs). We characterize these defects by coupled 4D/2D/0D theories constructed by coupling the degrees of freedom localized at a point and on intersecting surfaces in spacetime to each other and to the 4D QFT. We construct supersymmetric intersecting surface defects preserving just two supercharges in N =2 gauge theories. These defects are amenable to exact analysis by localization of the partition function of the underlying 4D/2D/0D QFT. We identify the 4D/2D/0D QFTs that describe intersecting surface operators in N =2 gauge theories realized by intersecting M2 branes ending on N M5 branes wrapping a Riemann surface. We conjecture and provide evidence for an explicit equivalence between the squashed four-sphere partition function of these intersecting defects and correlation functions in Liouville/Toda CFT with the insertion of arbitrary degenerate vertex operators, which are labeled by two representations of S U (N ).

Age, Body Mass Index, and Frequency of Sexual Activity are Independent Predictors of Testosterone Deficiency in Men With Erectile Dysfunction.

PubMed

Pagano, Matthew J; De Fazio, Adam; Levy, Alison; RoyChoudhury, Arindam; Stahl, Peter J

2016-04-01

To identify clinical predictors of testosterone deficiency (TD) in men with erectile dysfunction (ED), thereby identifying subgroups that are most likely to benefit from targeted testosterone screening. Retrospective review was conducted on 498 men evaluated for ED between January 2013 and July 2014. Testing for TD by early morning serum measurement was offered to all eligible men. Patients with history of prostate cancer or testosterone replacement were excluded. Univariable linear regression was conducted to analyze 19 clinical variables for associations with serum total testosterone (TT), calculated free testosterone (cFT), and TD (T <300 ng/dL or cFT <6.5 ng/dL). Variables significant on univariable analysis were included in multiple regression models. A total of 225 men met inclusion criteria. Lower TT levels were associated with greater body mass index (BMI), less frequent sexual activity, and absence of clinical depression on multiple regression analysis. TT decreased by 49.5 ng/dL for each 5-point increase in BMI. BMI and age were the only independent predictors of cFT levels on multivariable analysis. Overall, 62 subjects (27.6%) met criteria for TD. Older age, greater BMI, and less frequent sexual activity were the only independent predictors of TD on multiple regression. We observed a 2.2-fold increase in the odds of TD for every 5-point increase in BMI, and a 1.8-fold increase for every 10 year increase in age. Men with ED and elevated BMI, advanced age, or infrequent sexual activity appear to be at high risk of TD, and such patients represent excellent potential candidates for targeted testosterone screening. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Humoral immune response against two surface antigens of Chlamydia pecorum in vaccinated and naturally infected sheep.

PubMed

Bommana, Sankhya; Walker, Evelyn; Desclozeaux, Marion; Timms, Peter; Polkinghorne, Adam

2017-01-01

Chlamydia pecorum is a globally recognised livestock pathogen due to the significant clinical and economic impact it poses to livestock producers. Routine serological diagnosis is through a complement fixation test (CFT), which is often criticised for cross-reactivity, poor sensitivity and specificity. Although serology remains the preferred method in veterinary diagnostic laboratories, serological assays based on surface antigens of C. pecorum have not been established until now. In this study, we evaluated the use of two chlamydial recombinant protein antigens (PmpG and MOMP-G) by a direct IgG ELISA method for detection of ovine anti-chlamydial antibodies. Using the Pepscan method we then identified B cell epitopes across PmpG and MOMP-G proteins, in lambs with (a) naturally occurring asymptomatic C. pecorum infections (b) C. pecorum-associated polyarthritis and (c) recombinant PmpG and MOMP-G vaccine. Plasma IgG antibodies to PmpG in natural infection of lambs were detected earlier in infection than CFT and served as an acute phase marker. Antibodies to MOMP-G IgG were significantly heightened in lambs with C. pecorum-associated polyarthritis. PmpG and MOMP-G specific B-cell epitope mapping revealed epitope responses in immunised lambs cluster with some of the epitope responses in naturally infected lambs. B-cell epitope mapping further revealed that lambs with polyarthritis recognised several unique PmpG (50% frequency, peptide 8, 25, 40, 41 and 50) and MOMP (50% frequency, peptide 50) epitopes in comparison to asymptomatic infections. The findings of this study will have implications towards improved serodiagnosis of C. pecorum infections in livestock and inform the downstream development of alternative peptide-based antigens for future C. pecorum vaccine studies.

Q fever in Ireland. A seroprevalence study of exposure to Coxiella burnettii among Department of Agriculture workers.

PubMed

Reid, A; Malone, J

2004-12-01

To estimate the risk of exposure to Coxiella burnettii among 'at risk' workers in Ireland. A cross-sectional seroprevalence study, using the complement fixation technique (CFT), was carried out among technical and support staff of the Department of Agriculture in Ireland (n = 375). Participants were divided into low- (n = 34), moderate- (n = 158) and high-risk (n = 83) groups according to the likelihood of occupational exposure. A result of <1:8 on CFT was accepted as normal, i.e. no evidence of past exposure to the causative organism, C. burnettii. Participants with titres of 1:16 were clinically assessed for evidence of past or present infection and interviewed regarding the possibility of non-occupational exposure. The participation rate was 75% (n = 281). Overall, 24 of the 281 participants (8.5%, 95% confidence interval = 5.6-12.4%) tested positive (titres = 1:8). No statistically significant difference existed between the three groups (low, 8.8%; moderate, 9.5%; high, 7.2%). Of those reviewed (n = 10), no evidence of either past or present clinically significant illness was detected. Possible non-occupational exposure was identified in two cases. Laboratory evidence of past exposure to Q fever is common amongst readily identifiable 'at risk' occupational groups in Ireland, and appropriate preventative steps are warranted. Employees who do not have direct exposure to animals or animal products, but who work in a high risk environment appear to have a similar risk of exposure C. burnettii. Although clinical illness appears to be rare, health care workers should consider the possibility of Q fever in cases of unexplained illness arising in those working in 'high risk' environments.

Marginal deformations of gauge theories and their dual description

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulaxizi, Manuela

Holography and its realization in string theory as the AdS/CFT correspondence, offers an equivalence between gauge theories and gravity that provides a means to explore the otherwise inaccessible large N and strong coupling region of SU(N) gauge theories. While considerable progress has been made in this area, a concrete method for specifying the gravitational background dual to a given gauge theory is still lacking. This is the question addressed in this thesis in the context of exactly marginal deformations of N = 4 SYM. First, a precise relation between the deformation of the superpotential and transverse space noncommutativity is established. In particular, the appropriate noncommutativity matrix theta is determined, relying solely on data from the gauge theory lagrangian and basic notions of the AdS/CFT correspondence. The set ( G , theta) of open string parameters, with G the metric of the transverse space, is then understood as a way to encode information pertaining to the moduli space of the gauge theory. It seems thus natural to expect that it may be possible to obtain the corresponding gravitational solution by mapping the open string fields ( G , theta) to the closed string ones (g, B). This hints at a purely algebraic method for constructing gravity duals to given conformal gauge theories. The idea is tested within the context of the beta-deformed theory where the dual gravity description is known and then used to construct the background for the rho-deformed theory up to third order in the deformation parameter rho. Discrepancy of the higher order in rho terms in the latter case is traced to the nonassociativity of the noncommutative matrix theta.

Higher dimensional Taub-NUT spaces and applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stelea, Cristian Ionut

In the first part of this thesis we discuss classes of new exact NUT-charged solutions in four dimensions and higher, while in the remainder of the thesis we make a study of their properties and their possible applications. Specifically, in four dimensions we construct new families of axisymmetric vacuum solutions using a solution-generating technique based on the hidden SL(2,R) symmetry of the effective action. In particular, using the Schwarzschild solution as a seed we obtain the Zipoy-Voorhees generalisation of the Taub-NUT solution and of the Eguchi-Hanson soliton. Using the C-metric as a seed, we obtain and study the accelerating versions of all the above solutions. In higher dimensions we present new classes of NUT-charged spaces, generalising the previously known even-dimensional solutions to odd and even dimensions, as well as to spaces with multiple NUT-parameters. We also find the most general form of the odd-dimensional Eguchi-Hanson solitons. We use such solutions to investigate the thermodynamic properties of NUT-charged spaces in (A)dS backgrounds. These have been shown to yield counter-examples to some of the conjectures advanced in the still elusive dS/CFT paradigm (such as the maximal mass conjecture and Bousso's entropic N-bound). One important application of NUT-charged spaces is to construct higher dimensional generalisations of Kaluza-Klein magnetic monopoles, generalising the known 5-dimensional Kaluza-Klein soliton. Another interesting application involves a study of time-dependent higher-dimensional bubbles-of-nothing generated from NUT-charged solutions. We use them to test the AdS/CFT conjecture as well as to generate, by using stringy Hopf-dualities, new interesting time-dependent solutions in string theory. Finally, we construct and study new NUT-charged solutions in higher-dimensional Einstein-Maxwell theories, generalising the known Reissner-Nordstrom solutions.

Dental development in Megaladapis edwardsi (Primates, Lemuriformes): implications for understanding life history variation in subfossil lemurs.

PubMed

Schwartz, Gary T; Mahoney, Patrick; Godfrey, Laurie R; Cuozzo, Frank P; Jungers, William L; Randria, Gisèle F N

2005-12-01

Teeth grow incrementally and preserve within them a record of that incremental growth in the form of microscopic growth lines. Studying dental development in extinct and extant primates, and its relationship to adult brain and body size as well as other life history and ecological parameters (e.g., diet, somatic growth rates, gestation length, age at weaning), holds the potential to yield unparalleled insights into the life history profiles of fossil primates. Here, we address the absolute pace of dental development in Megaladapis edwardsi, a giant extinct lemur of Madagascar. By examining the microstructure of the first and developing second molars in a juvenile individual, we establish a chronology of molar crown development for this specimen (M1 CFT = 1.04 years; M2 CFT = 1.42 years) and determine its age at death (1.39 years). Microstructural data on prenatal M1 crown formation time allow us to calculate a minimum gestation length of 0.54 years for this species. Postnatal crown and root formation data allow us to estimate its age at M1 emergence (approximately 0.9 years) and to establish a minimum age for M2 emergence (>1.39 years). Finally, using reconstructions or estimates (drawn elsewhere) of adult body mass, brain size, and diet in Megaladapis, as well as the eruption sequence of its permanent teeth, we explore the efficacy of these variables in predicting the absolute pace of dental development in this fossil species. We test competing explanations of variation in crown formation timing across the order Primates. Brain size is the best single predictor of crown formation time in primates, but other variables help to explain the variation.

Effects of latent toxoplasmosis on autoimmune thyroid diseases in pregnancy.

PubMed

Kaňková, Šárka; Procházková, Lucie; Flegr, Jaroslav; Calda, Pavel; Springer, Drahomíra; Potluková, Eliška

2014-01-01

Toxoplasmosis, one of the most common zoonotic diseases worldwide, can induce various hormonal and behavioural alterations in infected hosts, and its most common form, latent toxoplasmosis, influences the course of pregnancy. Autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD) belong to the well-defined risk factors for adverse pregnancy outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is a link between latent toxoplasmosis and maternal AITD in pregnancy. Cross-sectional study in 1248 consecutive pregnant women in the 9-12th gestational weeks. Serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroperoxidase antibodies (TPOAb), and free thyroxine (FT4) were assessed by chemiluminescence; the Toxoplasma status was detected by the complement fixation test (CFT) and anti-Toxoplasma IgG enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Overall, 22.5% of the women were positive for latent toxoplasmosis and 14.7% were screened positive for AITD. Women with latent toxoplasmosis had more often highly elevated TPOAb than the Toxoplasma-negative ones (p = 0.004), and latent toxoplasmosis was associated with decrease in serum TSH levels (p = 0.049). Moreover, we found a positive correlation between FT4 and the index of positivity for anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies (p = 0.033), which was even stronger in the TPOAb-positive Toxoplasma-positive women, (p = 0.014), as well as a positive correlation between FT4 and log2 CFT (p = 0.009). Latent toxoplasmosis was associated with a mild increase in thyroid hormone production in pregnancy. The observed Toxoplasma-associated changes in the parameters of AITD are mild and do not seem to be clinically relevant; however, they could provide new clues to the complex pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroid diseases.

Effects of Latent Toxoplasmosis on Autoimmune Thyroid Diseases in Pregnancy

PubMed Central

Kaňková, Šárka; Procházková, Lucie; Flegr, Jaroslav; Calda, Pavel; Springer, Drahomíra; Potluková, Eliška

2014-01-01

Background Toxoplasmosis, one of the most common zoonotic diseases worldwide, can induce various hormonal and behavioural alterations in infected hosts, and its most common form, latent toxoplasmosis, influences the course of pregnancy. Autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITD) belong to the well-defined risk factors for adverse pregnancy outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate whether there is a link between latent toxoplasmosis and maternal AITD in pregnancy. Methods Cross-sectional study in 1248 consecutive pregnant women in the 9–12th gestational weeks. Serum thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroperoxidase antibodies (TPOAb), and free thyroxine (FT4) were assessed by chemiluminescence; the Toxoplasma status was detected by the complement fixation test (CFT) and anti-Toxoplasma IgG enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results Overall, 22.5% of the women were positive for latent toxoplasmosis and 14.7% were screened positive for AITD. Women with latent toxoplasmosis had more often highly elevated TPOAb than the Toxoplasma-negative ones (p = 0.004), and latent toxoplasmosis was associated with decrease in serum TSH levels (p = 0.049). Moreover, we found a positive correlation between FT4 and the index of positivity for anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies (p = 0.033), which was even stronger in the TPOAb-positive Toxoplasma-positive women, (p = 0.014), as well as a positive correlation between FT4 and log2 CFT (p = 0.009). Conclusions Latent toxoplasmosis was associated with a mild increase in thyroid hormone production in pregnancy. The observed Toxoplasma-associated changes in the parameters of AITD are mild and do not seem to be clinically relevant; however, they could provide new clues to the complex pathogenesis of autoimmune thyroid diseases. PMID:25350671

Classical probes of string/gauge theory duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ishizeki, Riei

The AdS/CFT correspondence has played an important role in the recent development of string theory. The reason is that it proposes a description of certain gauge theories in terms of string theory. It is such that simple string theory computations give information about the strong coupling regime of the gauge theory. Vice versa, gauge theory computations give information about string theory and quantum gravity. Although much is known about AdS/CFT, the precise map between the two sides of the correspondence is not completely understood. In the unraveling of such map classical string solutions play a vital role. In this thesis, several classical string solutions are proposed to help understand the AdS/CFT duality. First, rigidly rotating strings on a two-sphere are studied. Taking special limits of such solutions leads to two cases: the already known giant magnon solution, and a new solution which we call the single spike solution. Next, we compute the scattering phase shift of the single spike solutions and compare the result with the giant magnon solutions. Intriguingly, the results are the same up to non-logarithmic terms, indicating that the single spike solution should have the same rich spin chain structure as the giant magnon solution. Afterward, we consider open string solutions ending on the boundary of AdS5. The lines traced by the ends of such open strings can be viewed as Wilson loops in N = 4 SYM theory. After applying an inversion transformation, the open Wilson loops become closed Wilson loops whose expectation value is consistent with previously conjectured results. Next, several Wilson loops for N = 4 SYM in an AdS5 pp-wave background are considered and translated to the pure AdS 5 background and their interpretation as forward quark-gluon scattering is suggested. In the last part of this thesis, a class of classical solutions for closed strings moving in AdS3 x S 1 ⊂ AdS5 x S5 with energy E and spin S in AdS3 and angular momentum J and winding m in S1 is explained. The relation between different limits of the spiky string solution with the Landau-Lifshitz model is of particular interest. The presented solutions provide new classes of string motion that are used to better understand the AdS/CFT correspondence, including the single spike solution and previously unknown examples of supersymmetric Wilson loops.

Five dimensional microstate geometries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Chih-Wei

In this thesis, we discuss the possibility of exploring the statistical mechanics description of a black hole from the point view of supergravity. Specifically, we study five dimensional microstate geometries of a black hole or black ring. At first, we review the method to find the general three-charge BPS supergravity solutions proposed by Bena and Warner. By applying this method, we show the classical merger of a black ring and black hole on [Special characters omitted.] base space in general are irreversible. On the other hand, we review the solutions on ambi-polar Gibbons-Hawking (GH) base which are bubbled geometries. There are many possible microstate geometries among the bubbled geometries. Particularly, we show that a generic blob of GH points that satisfy certain conditions can be either microstate geometry of a black hole or black ring without horizon. Furthermore, using the result of the entropy analysis in classical merger as a guide, we show that one can have a merger of a black-hole blob and a black-ring blob or two black-ring blobs that corresponds to a classical irreversible merger. From the irreversible mergers, we find the scaling solutions and deep microstates which are microstate geometries of a black hole/ring with macroscopic horizon. These solutions have the same AdS throats as classical black holes/rings but instead of having infinite throats, the throat is smoothly capped off at a very large depth with some local structure at the bottom. For solutions that produced from U (1) × U (1) invariant merger, the depth of the throat is limited by flux quantization. The mass gap is related with the depth of this throat and we show the mass gap of these solutions roughly match with the mass gap of the typical conformal-field-theory (CFT) states. Therefore, based on AdS/CFT correspondence, they can be dual geometries of the typical CFT states that contribute to the entropy of a black hole/ring. On the other hand, we show that for the solutions produced from more general merger (without U (1) × U (1) invariance), the throat can be arbitrarily deep. This presents a puzzle from the point view of AdS/CFT correspondence. We propose that this puzzle may be solved by some quantization of the angle or promoting the flux vectors to quantum spins. Finally, we suggest some future directions of further study including the puzzle of arbitrary long AdS throat and a general coarse-graining picture of microstate geometries.

Random local temporal structure of category fluency responses.

PubMed

Meyer, David J; Messer, Jason; Singh, Tanya; Thomas, Peter J; Woyczynski, Wojbor A; Kaye, Jeffrey; Lerner, Alan J

2012-04-01

The Category Fluency Test (CFT) provides a sensitive measurement of cognitive capabilities in humans related to retrieval from semantic memory. In particular, it is widely used to assess progress of cognitive impairment in patients with dementia. Previous research shows that, in the first approximation, the intensity of tested individuals' responses within a standard 60-s test period decays exponentially with time, with faster decay rates for more cognitively impaired patients. Such decay rate can then be viewed as a global (macro) diagnostic parameter of each test. In the present paper we focus on the statistical properties of the properly de-trended time intervals between consecutive responses (inter-call times) in the Category Fluency Test. In a sense, those properties reflect the local (micro) structure of the response generation process. We find that a good approximation for the distribution of the de-trended inter-call times is provided by the Weibull Distribution, a probability distribution that appears naturally in this context as a distribution of a minimum of independent random quantities and is the standard tool in industrial reliability theory. This insight leads us to a new interpretation of the concept of "navigating a semantic space" via patient responses.

Real-time detection of antibiotic activity by measuring nanometer-scale bacterial deformation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iriya, Rafael; Syal, Karan; Jing, Wenwen; Mo, Manni; Yu, Hui; Haydel, Shelley E.; Wang, Shaopeng; Tao, Nongjian

2017-12-01

Diagnosing antibiotic-resistant bacteria currently requires sensitive detection of phenotypic changes associated with antibiotic action on bacteria. Here, we present an optical imaging-based approach to quantify bacterial membrane deformation as a phenotypic feature in real-time with a nanometer scale (˜9 nm) detection limit. Using this approach, we found two types of antibiotic-induced membrane deformations in different bacterial strains: polymyxin B induced relatively uniform spatial deformation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 cells leading to change in cellular volume and ampicillin-induced localized spatial deformation leading to the formation of bulges or protrusions on uropathogenic E. coli CFT073 cells. We anticipate that the approach will contribute to understanding of antibiotic phenotypic effects on bacteria with a potential for applications in rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing.

Eventful horizons: String theory in de Sitter and anti-de Sitter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kleban, Matthew Benjamin

String theory purports to be a theory of quantum gravity. As such, it should have much to say about the deep mysteries surrounding the very early stages of our universe. For this reason, although the theory is notoriously difficult to directly test, data from experimental cosmology may provide a way to probe the high energy physics of string theory. In the first part of this thesis, I will address the important issue of the testability of string theory using observations of the cosmic microwave background radiation. In the second part, I will study some formal difficulties that arise in attempting to understand string theory in de Sitter spacetime. In the third part, I will study the singularity of an eternal anti de Sitter Schwarzschild black hole, using the AdS/CFT correspondence.

Prevalence of face recognition deficits in middle childhood.

PubMed

Bennetts, Rachel J; Murray, Ebony; Boyce, Tian; Bate, Sarah

2017-02-01

Approximately 2-2.5% of the adult population is believed to show severe difficulties with face recognition, in the absence of any neurological injury-a condition known as developmental prosopagnosia (DP). However, to date no research has attempted to estimate the prevalence of face recognition deficits in children, possibly because there are very few child-friendly, well-validated tests of face recognition. In the current study, we examined face and object recognition in a group of primary school children (aged 5-11 years), to establish whether our tests were suitable for children and to provide an estimate of face recognition difficulties in children. In Experiment 1 (n = 184), children completed a pre-existing test of child face memory, the Cambridge Face Memory Test-Kids (CFMT-K), and a bicycle test with the same format. In Experiment 2 (n = 413), children completed three-alternative forced-choice matching tasks with faces and bicycles. All tests showed good psychometric properties. The face and bicycle tests were well matched for difficulty and showed a similar developmental trajectory. Neither the memory nor the matching tests were suitable to detect impairments in the youngest groups of children, but both tests appear suitable to screen for face recognition problems in middle childhood. In the current sample, 1.2-5.2% of children showed difficulties with face recognition; 1.2-4% showed face-specific difficulties-that is, poor face recognition with typical object recognition abilities. This is somewhat higher than previous adult estimates: It is possible that face matching tests overestimate the prevalence of face recognition difficulties in children; alternatively, some children may "outgrow" face recognition difficulties.

The Oxytocin Receptor Gene ( OXTR) and Face Recognition.

PubMed

Verhallen, Roeland J; Bosten, Jenny M; Goodbourn, Patrick T; Lawrance-Owen, Adam J; Bargary, Gary; Mollon, J D

2017-01-01

A recent study has linked individual differences in face recognition to rs237887, a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the oxytocin receptor gene ( OXTR; Skuse et al., 2014). In that study, participants were assessed using the Warrington Recognition Memory Test for Faces, but performance on Warrington's test has been shown not to rely purely on face recognition processes. We administered the widely used Cambridge Face Memory Test-a purer test of face recognition-to 370 participants. Performance was not significantly associated with rs237887, with 16 other SNPs of OXTR that we genotyped, or with a further 75 imputed SNPs. We also administered three other tests of face processing (the Mooney Face Test, the Glasgow Face Matching Test, and the Composite Face Test), but performance was never significantly associated with rs237887 or with any of the other genotyped or imputed SNPs, after corrections for multiple testing. In addition, we found no associations between OXTR and Autism-Spectrum Quotient scores.

Measuring and Improving the Climate for Teaching: A Multi-Year Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lyon, Julie S.; Gettman, Hilary J.; Roberts, Scott P.; Shaw, Cynthia E.

2015-01-01

All organizations have "climates" that significantly affect their employees' performance and satisfaction. The authors posit that an academic department's "climate for teaching" (CFT)--or the the extent to which excellent teaching is rewarded, supported, and expected--has a profound impact on the experience of its instructors…

Mellin transforming the minimal model CFTs: AdS/CFT at strong curvature

DOE PAGES

Lowe, David A.

2016-07-14

Mack has conjectured that all conformal field theories are equivalent to string theories. Here, we explore the example of the two-dimensional minimal model CFTs and confirm that the Mellin transformed amplitudes have the desired properties of string theory in three-dimensional anti-de Sitter spacetime.

Human Capital Reform in Cincinnati Public Schools. Executive Summary

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New Teacher Project, 2009

2009-01-01

In late 2008, Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) participated in The New Teacher Project's (TNTP's) research for a national study, "The Widget Effect," published in June 2009. In summer 2009, CPS, the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers (CFT) and the Cincinnati Association of Administrators and Supervisors (CAAS) asked TNTP to explore a…

A geometrical approach to two-dimensional Conformal Field Theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dijkgraaf, Robertus Henricus

1989-09-01

This thesis is organized in the following way. In Chapter 2 we will give a brief introduction to conformal field theory along the lines of standard quantum field theory, without any claims to originality. We introduce the important concepts of the stress-energy tensor, the Virasoro algebra, and primary fields. The general principles are demonstrated by fermionic and bosonic free field theories. This also allows us to discuss some general aspects of moduli spaces of CFT's. In particular, we describe in some detail the space of iiiequivalent toroidal comi)actificalions, giving examples of the quantum equivalences that we already mentioned. In Chapter 3 we will reconsider general quantum field theory from a more geometrical point of view, along the lines of the so-called operator formalism. Crucial to this approach will be the consideration of topology changing amplitudes. After a simple application to 2d topological theories, we proceed to give our second introduction to CFT, stressing the geometry behind it. In Chapter 4 the so-called rational conformal field theories are our object of study. These special CFT's have extended symmetries with only a finite number of representations. If an interpretation as non-linear sigma model exists, this extra symmetry can be seen as a kind of resonance effect due to the commensurability of the size of the string and the target space-time. The structure of rational CFT's is extremely rigid, and one of our results will be that the operator content of these models is—up to some discrete choices—completely determined by the symmetry algebra. The study of rational models is in its rigidity very analogous to finite group theory. In Chapter 5 this analogy is further pursued and substantiated. We will show how one can construct from general grounds rational conformal field theories from finite groups. These models are abstract versions of non-linear o-models describing string propagation on 'orbifoids.' An orbifold is a singular manifold obtained as the quotient of a smooth manifold by a discrete group. In Chapter 6 our considerations will be of a somewhat complementary nature. We will investigate models with central charge c = 1 by deformation techniques. The central charge is a fundamental parameter in any conformal invariant model, and the value c = 1 is of considerable interest, since it forms in many ways a threshold value. For c < 1 a complete classification of all unitary models has been obtained, but c > 1 is still very much terra incognita. Our results give a partial classification for the intermediate case of c = 1 models. The formulation of these c = 1 CFT's on surfaces of arbitrary topology is central in Chapter 7. Here we will provide many explicit results that provide illustrations for our more abstract discussions of higher genus quantities in Chapters 3 and 1. Unfortunately, our calculations will become at this point rather technical, since we have to make extensive use of the mathematics of Riemann surfaces and their coverings. Finally, in Chapter 8 we leave the two-dimensional point of view that we have been so loyal to up to then , and ascend to threedimensions where we meet topological gauge theories. These so-called Chern-Simons theories encode in a very economic way much of the structure of two-dimensional (rational) conformal field theories, and this direction is generally seen to be very promising. We will show in particular how many of our results of Chapter 5 have a natural interpretation in three dimensions.

PREFACE: Gauge-string duality and integrability: progress and outlook Gauge-string duality and integrability: progress and outlook

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kristjansen, C.; Staudacher, M.; Tseytlin, A.

2009-06-01

The AdS/CFT correspondence, proposed a little more than a decade ago, has become a major subject of contemporary theoretical physics. One reason is that it suggests the exact identity of a certain ten-dimensional superstring theory, and a specific supersymmetric four-dimensional gauge field theory. This indicates that string theory, often thought of as a generalization of quantum field theory, can also lead to an alternative and computationally advantageous reformulation of gauge theory. This establishes the direct, down-to-earth relevance of string theory beyond loftier ideas of finding a theory of everything. Put differently, strings definitely lead to a theory of something highly relevant: a non-abelian gauge theory in a physical number of dimensions! A second reason for recent excitement around AdS/CFT is that it uncovers surprising novel connections between otherwise increasingly separate subdisciplines of theoretical physics, such as high energy physics and condensed matter theory. This collection of review articles concerns precisely such a link. About six years ago evidence was discovered showing that the AdS/CFT string/gauge system might actually be an exactly integrable model, at least in the so-called planar limit. Its spectrum appears to be described by (a generalization of) a Bethe ansatz, first proposed as an exact solution for certain one-dimensional magnetic spin chains in the early days of quantum mechanics. The field has been developing very rapidly, and a collection of fine review articles is needed. This special issue is striving to provide precisely that. The first article of the present collection, by Nick Dorey, is a pedagogical introduction to the subject. The second article, by Adam Rej, based on the translation of the author's PhD thesis, describes important techniques for analysing and interpreting the integrable structure of AdS/CFT, mostly from the point of view of the gauge theory. The third contribution, by Gleb Arutyunov and Sergey Frolov, explains in great detail the state-of-the-art of quantizing the AdS5 × S5 string theory's sigma model, gathering evidence for the conjectured integrability from the string side of the correspondence. The ensuing article by Nikolay Gromov starts with the full set of conjectured asymptotic Bethe equations of the model, and indicates how they relate to the firmly established classical integrabiliity of the string sigma model. The article by Benjamin Basso and Gregory Korchemsky discusses the issue of non-perturbative corrections in strong-coupling expansion and connections to the O(6) sigma model. The final article, by Fernando Alday, provides a link between the main topic of this special issue—the integrability of the spectrum of AdS/CFT—and other important observables of the model, such as the set of gluon scattering amplitudes, which may also lead to an exactly solvable problem. We feel that the whole subject of AdS/CFT integrability is still in its infancy, and that much remains to be understood, proved, and extended. It is furthermore quite possible that the underlying structures will prove important for progress on cutting-edge problems in condensed matter theory. This collection of articles by experts in the field should serve as an important assessment of the incomplete status quo of the subject. As such, we hope it will inspire further research activity by ambitious theorists!

The Cambridge Face Memory Test: results for neurologically intact individuals and an investigation of its validity using inverted face stimuli and prosopagnosic participants.

PubMed

Duchaine, Brad; Nakayama, Ken

2006-01-01

The two standardized tests of face recognition that are widely used suffer from serious shortcomings [Duchaine, B. & Weidenfeld, A. (2003). An evaluation of two commonly used tests of unfamiliar face recognition. Neuropsychologia, 41, 713-720; Duchaine, B. & Nakayama, K. (2004). Developmental prosopagnosia and the Benton Facial Recognition Test. Neurology, 62, 1219-1220]. Images in the Warrington Recognition Memory for Faces test include substantial non-facial information, and the simultaneous presentation of faces in the Benton Facial Recognition Test allows feature matching. Here, we present results from a new test, the Cambridge Face Memory Test, which builds on the strengths of the previous tests. In the test, participants are introduced to six target faces, and then they are tested with forced choice items consisting of three faces, one of which is a target. For each target face, three test items contain views identical to those studied in the introduction, five present novel views, and four present novel views with noise. There are a total of 72 items, and 50 controls averaged 58. To determine whether the test requires the special mechanisms used to recognize upright faces, we conducted two experiments. We predicted that controls would perform much more poorly when the face images are inverted, and as predicted, inverted performance was much worse with a mean of 42. Next we assessed whether eight prosopagnosics would perform poorly on the upright version. The prosopagnosic mean was 37, and six prosopagnosics scored outside the normal range. In contrast, the Warrington test and the Benton test failed to classify a majority of the prosopagnosics as impaired. These results indicate that the new test effectively assesses face recognition across a wide range of abilities.

Genetic variation and effects of candidate-gene polymorphisms on coagulation properties, curd firmness modeling and acidity in milk from Brown Swiss cows.

PubMed

Cecchinato, A; Chessa, S; Ribeca, C; Cipolat-Gotet, C; Bobbo, T; Casellas, J; Bittante, G

2015-07-01

The aims of this study were to estimate the genetic variation of traditional milk coagulation properties (MCPs), milk acidity, curd firmness (CF) modeled on time t (CF(t) ; comprising: RCT(eq), rennet coagulation time estimated from the equation; CF(P), the asymptotic potential curd firmness; k(CF), the curd firming instant rate constant; and k(SR), the syneresis instant rate constant) and maximum CF traits (MCF; comprising CF(max), the maximum CF value; and tmax, the time of attainment). Furthermore, we investigated 96 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from 54 candidate genes, testing their associations with the above-listed traits. Milk and blood samples were collected from 1271 cows (each sampled once) from 85 herds. Genotyping was performed using a custom Illumina VeraCode GoldenGate approach. A Bayesian linear animal model (including the effects of herd, days in milk, parity and additive polygenic effects) was used to estimate the genetic parameters of the studied traits. The same model with the addition of the SNP genotype effect was used for our association analysis. The heritability estimates of CF t and the MCF traits (RCT(eq)=0.258; k(CF)=0.230; CF(max)=0.191; t(max)=0.278) were similar to those obtained using traditional MCPs (0.187 to 0.267), except for the lower estimates for CF(P) (0.064) and k(SR) (0.077). A total of 13 of the 51 tested SNPs had relevant additive effects on at least one trait. We observed associations between MCPs and SNPs in the genes encoding ATP-binding cassette sub-family G member 2 (ABCG2), chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), growth hormone 1 (GH1), prolactin (PRL) and toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2). Whereas, CF(t) and the MCF traits were associated with polymorphisms in the α-s1-casein (CSN1S1), β-casein (CSN2), GH1, oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor 1 (OLR1), phospholipase C β1 (PLCB1), PRL and signal transducer and activator of transcription 5A (STAT5A) genes.

Face Perception and Test Reliabilities in Congenital Prosopagnosia in Seven Tests

PubMed Central

Esins, Janina; Schultz, Johannes; Stemper, Claudia; Kennerknecht, Ingo

2016-01-01

Congenital prosopagnosia, the innate impairment in recognizing faces, is a very heterogeneous disorder with different phenotypical manifestations. To investigate the nature of prosopagnosia in more detail, we tested 16 prosopagnosics and 21 controls with an extended test battery addressing various aspects of face recognition. Our results show that prosopagnosics exhibited significant impairments in several face recognition tasks: impaired holistic processing (they were tested amongst others with the Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT)) as well as reduced processing of configural information of faces. This test battery also revealed some new findings. While controls recognized moving faces better than static faces, prosopagnosics did not exhibit this effect. Furthermore, prosopagnosics had significantly impaired gender recognition—which is shown on a groupwise level for the first time in our study. There was no difference between groups in the automatic extraction of face identity information or in object recognition as tested with the Cambridge Car Memory Test. In addition, a methodological analysis of the tests revealed reduced reliability for holistic face processing tests in prosopagnosics. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show that prosopagnosics showed a significantly reduced reliability coefficient (Cronbach’s alpha) in the CFMT compared to the controls. We suggest that compensatory strategies employed by the prosopagnosics might be the cause for the vast variety of response patterns revealed by the reduced test reliability. This finding raises the question whether classical face tests measure the same perceptual processes in controls and prosopagnosics. PMID:27482369

Modular Hamiltonians for deformed half-spaces and the averaged null energy condition

DOE PAGES

Faulkner, Thomas; Leigh, Robert G.; Parrikar, Onkar; ...

2016-09-08

We study modular Hamiltonians corresponding to the vacuum state for deformed half-spaces in relativistic quantum field theories on R 1,d-1. We show that in addition to the usual boost generator, there is a contribution to the modular Hamiltonian at first order in the shape deformation, proportional to the integral of the null components of the stress tensor along the Rindler horizon. We use this fact along with monotonicity of relative entropy to prove the averaged null energy condition in Minkowski space-time. This subsequently gives a new proof of the Hofman-Maldacena bounds on the parameters appearing in CFT three-point functions. Ourmore » main technical advance involves adapting newly developed perturbative methods for calculating entanglement entropy to the problem at hand. Our methods were recently used to prove certain results on the shape dependence of entanglement in CFTs and here we generalize these results to excited states and real time dynamics. Finally, we discuss the AdS/CFT counterpart of this result, making connection with the recently proposed gravitational dual for modular Hamiltonians in holographic theories.« less

Topological terms, AdS2 n gravity, and renormalized entanglement entropy of holographic CFTs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anastasiou, Giorgos; Araya, Ignacio J.; Olea, Rodrigo

2018-05-01

We extend our topological renormalization scheme for entanglement entropy to holographic CFTs of arbitrary odd dimensions in the context of the AdS /CFT correspondence. The procedure consists in adding the Chern form as a boundary term to the area functional of the Ryu-Takayanagi minimal surface. The renormalized entanglement entropy thus obtained can be rewritten in terms of the Euler characteristic and the AdS curvature of the minimal surface. This prescription considers the use of the replica trick to express the renormalized entanglement entropy in terms of the renormalized gravitational action evaluated on the conically singular replica manifold extended to the bulk. This renormalized action is obtained in turn by adding the Chern form as the counterterm at the boundary of the 2 n -dimensional asymptotically AdS bulk manifold. We explicitly show that, up to next-to-leading order in the holographic radial coordinate, the addition of this boundary term cancels the divergent part of the entanglement entropy. We discuss possible applications of the method for studying CFT parameters like central charges.

A Neumann boundary term for gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krishnan, Chethan; Raju, Avinash

2017-05-01

The Gibbons-Hawking-York (GHY) boundary term makes the Dirichlet problem for gravity well-defined, but no such general term seems to be known for Neumann boundary conditions. In this paper, we view Neumann not as fixing the normal derivative of the metric (“velocity”) at the boundary, but as fixing the functional derivative of the action with respect to the boundary metric (“momentum”). This leads directly to a new boundary term for gravity: the trace of the extrinsic curvature with a specific dimension-dependent coefficient. In three dimensions, this boundary term reduces to a “one-half” GHY term noted in the literature previously, and we observe that our action translates precisely to the Chern-Simons action with no extra boundary terms. In four dimensions, the boundary term vanishes, giving a natural Neumann interpretation to the standard Einstein-Hilbert action without boundary terms. We argue that in light of AdS/CFT, ours is a natural approach for defining a “microcanonical” path integral for gravity in the spirit of the (pre-AdS/CFT) work of Brown and York.

String Theory Origin of Dyonic N=8 Supergravity and Its Chern-Simons Duals.

PubMed

Guarino, Adolfo; Jafferis, Daniel L; Varela, Oscar

2015-08-28

We clarify the higher-dimensional origin of a class of dyonic gaugings of D=4  N=8 supergravity recently discovered, when the gauge group is chosen to be ISO(7). This dyonically gauged maximal supergravity arises from consistent truncation of massive IIA supergravity on S^6, and its magnetic coupling constant descends directly from the Romans mass. The critical points of the supergravity uplift to new four-dimensional anti-de Sitter space (AdS4) massive type IIA vacua. We identify the corresponding three-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT3) duals as super-Chern-Simons-matter theories with simple gauge group SU(N) and level k given by the Romans mass. In particular, we find a critical point that uplifts to the first explicit N=2 AdS4 massive IIA background. We compute its free energy and that of the candidate dual Chern-Simons theory by localization to a solvable matrix model, and find perfect agreement. This provides the first AdS4/CFT3 precision match in massive type IIA string theory.

On information loss in AdS 3/CFT 2

DOE PAGES

Fitzpatrick, A. Liam; Kaplan, Jared; Li, Daliang; ...

2016-05-18

We discuss information loss from black hole physics in AdS 3, focusing on two sharp signatures infecting CFT 2 correlators at large central charge c: ‘forbidden singularities’ arising from Euclidean-time periodicity due to the effective Hawking temperature, and late-time exponential decay in the Lorentzian region. We study an infinite class of examples where forbidden singularities can be resolved by non-perturbative effects at finite c, and we show that the resolution has certain universal features that also apply in the general case. Analytically continuing to the Lorentzian regime, we find that the non-perturbative effects that resolve forbidden singularities qualitatively change themore » behavior of correlators at times t ~S BH, the black hole entropy. This may resolve the exponential decay of correlators at late times in black hole backgrounds. By Borel resumming the 1/c expansion of exact examples, we explicitly identify ‘information-restoring’ effects from heavy states that should correspond to classical solutions in AdS 3. Lastly, our results suggest a line of inquiry towards a more precise formulation of the gravitational path integral in AdS 3.« less

Spectral methods in general relativity and large Randall-Sundrum II black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdolrahimi, Shohreh; Cattoën, Céline; Page, Don N.; \\\\; Yaghoobpour-Tari, Shima

2013-06-01

Using a novel numerical spectral method, we have found solutions for large static Randall-Sundrum II (RSII) black holes by perturbing a numerical AdS5-CFT4 solution to the Einstein equation with a negative cosmological constant Λ that is asymptotically conformal to the Schwarzschild metric. We used a numerical spectral method independent of the Ricci-DeTurck-flow method used by Figueras, Lucietti, and Wiseman for a similar numerical solution. We have compared our black-hole solution to the one Figueras and Wiseman have derived by perturbing their numerical AdS5-CFT4 solution, showing that our solution agrees closely with theirs. We have obtained a closed-form approximation to the metric of the black hole on the brane. We have also deduced the new results that to first order in 1/(-ΛM2), the Hawking temperature and entropy of an RSII static black hole have the same values as the Schwarzschild metric with the same mass, but the horizon area is increased by about 4.7/(-Λ).

Scattering and sequestering of blow-up moduli in local string models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Conlon, Joseph P.; Witkowski, Lukas T.

2011-12-01

We study the scattering and sequestering of blow-up fields - either local to or distant from a visible matter sector - through a CFT computation of the dependence of physical Yukawa couplings on the blow-up moduli. For a visible sector of D3-branes on orbifold singularities we compute the disk correlator left< {tau_s^{{(1)}}tau_s^{{(2)}}...tau_s^{{(n)}}ψ ψ φ } rightrangle between orbifold blow-up moduli and matter Yukawa couplings. For n = 1 we determine the full quantum and classical correlator. This result has the correct factorisation onto lower 3-point functions and also passes numerous other consistency checks. For n > 1 we show that the structure of picture-changing applied to the twist operators establishes the sequestering of distant blow-up moduli at disk level to all orders in α'. We explain how these results are relevant to suppressing soft terms to scales parametrically below the gravitino mass. By giving vevs to the blow-up fields we can move into the smooth limit and thereby derive CFT results for the smooth Swiss-cheese Calabi-Yaus that appear in the Large Volume Scenario.

Modular Hamiltonians for deformed half-spaces and the averaged null energy condition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Faulkner, Thomas; Leigh, Robert G.; Parrikar, Onkar; Wang, Huajia

2016-09-01

We study modular Hamiltonians corresponding to the vacuum state for deformed half-spaces in relativistic quantum field theories on {{R}}^{1,d-1} . We show that in addition to the usual boost generator, there is a contribution to the modular Hamiltonian at first order in the shape deformation, proportional to the integral of the null components of the stress tensor along the Rindler horizon. We use this fact along with monotonicity of relative entropy to prove the averaged null energy condition in Minkowski space-time. This subsequently gives a new proof of the Hofman-Maldacena bounds on the parameters appearing in CFT three-point functions. Our main technical advance involves adapting newly developed perturbative methods for calculating entanglement entropy to the problem at hand. These methods were recently used to prove certain results on the shape dependence of entanglement in CFTs and here we generalize these results to excited states and real time dynamics. We also discuss the AdS/CFT counterpart of this result, making connection with the recently proposed gravitational dual for modular Hamiltonians in holographic theories.

Entanglement properties of boundary state and thermalization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Wu-zhong

2018-06-01

We discuss the regularized boundary state {e}^{-{τ}_0H}\\Big|{.B>}_a on two aspects in both 2D CFT and higher dimensional free field theory. One is its entanglement and correlation properties, which exhibit exponential decay in 2D CFT, the parameter 1 /τ 0 works as a mass scale. The other concerns with its time evolution, i.e., {e}^{-itH}{e}^{-{τ}_0H}\\Big|{.B>}_a . We investigate the Kubo-Martin-Schwinger (KMS) condition on correlation function of local operators to detect the thermal properties. Interestingly we find the correlation functions in the initial state {e}^{-{τ}_0H}\\Big|{.B>}_a also partially satisfy the KMS condition. In the limit t → ∞, the correlators will exactly satisfy the KMS condition. We generally analyse quantum quench by a pure state and obtain some constraints on the possible form of 2-point correlation function in the initial state if assuming they satisfies KMS condition in the final state. As a byproduct we find in an large τ 0 limit the thermal property of 2-point function in {e}^{-{τ}_0H}\\Big|{.B>}_a also appears.

From conformal blocks to path integrals in the Vaidya geometry

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

Anous, Tarek; Hartman, Thomas; Rovai, Antonin

Correlators in conformal field theory are naturally organized as a sum over conformal blocks. In holographic theories, this sum must reorganize into a path integral over bulk fields and geometries. We explore how these two sums are related in the case of a point particle moving in the background of a 3d collapsing black hole. The conformal block expansion is recast as a sum over paths of the first-quantized particle moving in the bulk geometry. Off-shell worldlines of the particle correspond to subdominant contributions in the Euclidean conformal block expansion, but these same operators must be included in order tomore » correctly reproduce complex saddles in the Lorentzian theory. During thermalization, a complex saddle dominates under certain circumstances; in this case, the CFT correlator is not given by the Virasoro identity block in any channel, but can be recovered by summing heavy operators. This effectively converts the conformal block expansion in CFT from a sum over intermediate states to a sum over channels that mimics the bulk path integral.« less

Thermality and excited state Rényi entropy in two-dimensional CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, Feng-Li; Wang, Huajia; Zhang, Jia-ju

2016-11-01

We evaluate one-interval Rényi entropy and entanglement entropy for the excited states of two-dimensional conformal field theory (CFT) on a cylinder, and examine their differences from the ones for the thermal state. We assume the interval to be short so that we can use operator product expansion (OPE) of twist operators to calculate Rényi entropy in terms of sum of one-point functions of OPE blocks. We find that the entanglement entropy for highly excited state and thermal state behave the same way after appropriate identification of the conformal weight of the state with the temperature. However, there exists no such universal identification for the Rényi entropy in the short-interval expansion. Therefore, the highly excited state does not look thermal when comparing its Rényi entropy to the thermal state one. As the Rényi entropy captures the higher moments of the reduced density matrix but the entanglement entropy only the average, our results imply that the emergence of thermality depends on how refined we look into the entanglement structure of the underlying pure excited state.

An /N=2 gauge theory and its supergravity dual

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandhuber, A.; Sfetsos, K.

2000-09-01

We study flows on the scalar manifold of /N=8 gauged supergravity in five dimensions which are dual to certain mass deformations of /N=4 super Yang-Mills theory. In particular, we consider a perturbation of the gauge theory by a mass term for the adjoint hyper-multiplet, giving rise to an /N=2 theory. The exact solution of the 5-dim gauged supergravity equations of motion is found and the metric is uplifted to a ten-dimensional background of type-IIB supergravity. Using these geometric data and the AdS/CFT correspondence we analyze the spectra of certain operators as well as Wilson loops on the dual gauge theory side. The physical flows are parametrized by a single non-positive constant and describe part of the Coulomb branch of the /N=2 theory at strong coupling. We also propose a general criterion to distinguish between `physical' and `unphysical' curvature singularities. Applying it in many backgrounds arising within the AdS/CFT correspondence we find results that are in complete agreement with field theory expectations.

Intersecting flavor branes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pomoni, Elli; Rastelli, Leonardo

2012-10-01

We consider an instance of the AdS/CFT duality where the bulk theory contains an open string tachyon, and study the instability from the viewpoint of the boundary field theory. We focus on the specific example of the AdS5 × S 5 background with two probe D7 branes intersecting at general angles. For generic angles supersymmetry is completely broken and there is an open string tachyon between the branes. The field theory action for this system is obtained by coupling to {N}=4 super Yang-Mills two {N}=2 hyper multiplets in the fundamental representation of the SU( N) gauge group, but with different choices of embedding of the two {N}=2 subalgebras into {N}=4 . On the field theory side we find a one-loop Coleman-Weinberg instability in the effective potential for the fundamental scalars. We identify a mesonic operator as the dual of the open string tachyon. By AdS/CFT, we predict the tachyon mass for small 't Hooft coupling (large bulk curvature) and confirm that it violates the AdS stability bound.

Free energy of a heavy quark-antiquark pair in a thermal medium from AdS/CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ewerz, Carlo; Kaczmarek, Olaf; Samberg, Andreas

2018-03-01

We study the free energy of a heavy quark-antiquark pair in a thermal medium using the AdS/CFT correspondence. We point out that a commonly used prescription for calculating this quantity leads to a temperature dependence in conflict with general properties of the free energy. The problem originates from a particular way of subtracting divergences. We argue that the commonly used prescription gives rise to the binding energy rather than the free energy. We consider a different subtraction procedure and show that the resulting free energy is well-behaved and in qualitative agreement with results from lattice QCD. The free energy and the binding energy of the quark pair are computed for N=4 supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory and several non-conformal theories. We also calculate the entropy and the internal energy of the pair in these theories. Using the consistent subtraction, we further study the free energy, entropy, and internal energy of a single heavy quark in the thermal medium for various theories. Also here the results are found to be in qualitative agreement with lattice QCD results.

Double-trace flows and the swampland

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giombi, Simone; Perlmutter, Eric

2018-03-01

We explore the idea that large N, non-supersymmetric conformal field theories with a parametrically large gap to higher spin single-trace operators may be obtained as infrared fixed points of relevant double-trace deformations of superconformal field theories. After recalling the AdS interpretation and some potential pathologies of such flows, we introduce a concrete example that appears to avoid them: the ABJM theory at finite k, deformed by \\int O^2, where O is the superconformal primary in the stress-tensor multiplet. We address its relation to recent conjectures based on weak gravity bounds, and discuss the prospects for a wider class of similarly viable flows. Next, we proceed to analyze the spectrum and correlation functions of the putative IR CFT, to leading non-trivial order in 1 /N. This includes analytic computations of the change under double-trace flow of connected four-point functions of ABJM superconformal primaries; and of the IR anomalous dimensions of infinite classes of double-trace composite operators. These would be the first analytic results for anomalous dimensions of finite-spin composite operators in any large N CFT3 with an Einstein gravity dual.

From conformal blocks to path integrals in the Vaidya geometry

DOE PAGES

Anous, Tarek; Hartman, Thomas; Rovai, Antonin; ...

2017-09-04

Correlators in conformal field theory are naturally organized as a sum over conformal blocks. In holographic theories, this sum must reorganize into a path integral over bulk fields and geometries. We explore how these two sums are related in the case of a point particle moving in the background of a 3d collapsing black hole. The conformal block expansion is recast as a sum over paths of the first-quantized particle moving in the bulk geometry. Off-shell worldlines of the particle correspond to subdominant contributions in the Euclidean conformal block expansion, but these same operators must be included in order tomore » correctly reproduce complex saddles in the Lorentzian theory. During thermalization, a complex saddle dominates under certain circumstances; in this case, the CFT correlator is not given by the Virasoro identity block in any channel, but can be recovered by summing heavy operators. This effectively converts the conformal block expansion in CFT from a sum over intermediate states to a sum over channels that mimics the bulk path integral.« less

The holographic dual of the Penrose transform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neiman, Yasha

2018-01-01

We consider the holographic duality between type-A higher-spin gravity in AdS4 and the free U( N) vector model. In the bulk, linearized solutions can be translated into twistor functions via the Penrose transform. We propose a holographic dual to this transform, which translates between twistor functions and CFT sources and operators. We present a twistorial expression for the partition function, which makes global higher-spin symmetry manifest, and appears to automatically include all necessary contact terms. In this picture, twistor space provides a fully nonlocal, gauge-invariant description underlying both bulk and boundary spacetime pictures. While the bulk theory is handled at the linear level, our formula for the partition function includes the effects of bulk interactions. Thus, the CFT is used to solve the bulk, with twistors as a language common to both. A key ingredient in our result is the study of ordinary spacetime symmetries within the fundamental representation of higher-spin algebra. The object that makes these "square root" spacetime symmetries manifest becomes the kernel of our boundary/twistor transform, while the original Penrose transform is identified as a "square root" of CPT.

Observables and microscopic entropy of higher spin black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Compère, Geoffrey; Jottar, Juan I.; Song, Wei

2013-11-01

In the context of recently proposed holographic dualities between higher spin theories in AdS3 and (1 + 1)-dimensional CFTs with symmetry algebras, we revisit the definition of higher spin black hole thermodynamics and the dictionary between bulk fields and dual CFT operators. We build a canonical formalism based on three ingredients: a gauge-invariant definition of conserved charges and chemical potentials in the presence of higher spin black holes, a canonical definition of entropy in the bulk, and a bulk-to-boundary dictionary aligned with the asymptotic symmetry algebra. We show that our canonical formalism shares the same formal structure as the so-called holomorphic formalism, but differs in the definition of charges and chemical potentials and in the bulk-to-boundary dictionary. Most importantly, we show that it admits a consistent CFT interpretation. We discuss the spin-2 and spin-3 cases in detail and generalize our construction to theories based on the hs[ λ] algebra, and on the sl( N,[InlineMediaObject not available: see fulltext.]) algebra for any choice of sl(2 ,[InlineMediaObject not available: see fulltext.]) embedding.

String in AdS black hole: A thermo field dynamic approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cantcheff, M. Botta; Gadelha, Alexandre L.; Marchioro, Dáfni F. Z.; Nedel, Daniel Luiz

2012-10-01

Based on Maldacena’s description of an eternal anti-de Sitter (AdS) black hole, we reassess the thermo field dynamics (TFD) formalism in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence. The model studied here involves the maximally extended AdS-Schwarschild solution and two (noninteracting) copies of the conformal field theory (CFT) associated to the global AdS spacetime, along with an extension of the string by imposing natural gluing conditions in the horizon. We show that the gluing conditions in the horizon define a string boundary state which is identified with the TFD thermal vacuum, globally defined in the Kruskal extension of the AdS black hole. We emphasize the connection of this picture with unitary SU(1,1) TFD formulation, and we show that information about the bulk and the conformal boundary is present in the SU(1,1) parameters. Using the unitary SU(1,1) TFD formulation, a canonical prescription for calculating the world sheet real time thermal Green’s function is made, and the entropy associated with the entanglement of the two CFT’s is calculated.

Wilson loops and chiral correlators on squashed spheres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fucito, F.; Morales, J. F.; Poghossian, R.

2015-11-01

We study chiral deformations of N=2 and N=4 supersymmetric gauge theories obtained by turning on τ J tr Φ J interactions with Φ the N=2 superfield. Using localization, we compute the deformed gauge theory partition function Z(overrightarrow{τ}|q) and the expectation value of circular Wilson loops W on a squashed four-sphere. In the case of the deformed {N}=4 theory, exact formulas for Z and W are derived in terms of an underlying U( N) interacting matrix model replacing the free Gaussian model describing the {N}=4 theory. Using the AGT correspondence, the τ J -deformations are related to the insertions of commuting integrals of motion in the four-point CFT correlator and chiral correlators are expressed as τ-derivatives of the gauge theory partition function on a finite Ω-background. In the so called Nekrasov-Shatashvili limit, the entire ring of chiral relations is extracted from the ɛ-deformed Seiberg-Witten curve. As a byproduct of our analysis we show that SU(2) gauge theories on rational Ω-backgrounds are dual to CFT minimal models.

Thermodynamic properties of Kehagias-Sfetsos black hole and KS/CFT correspondence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pradhan, Parthapratim

2017-11-01

We speculate on various thermodynamic features of the inner horizon ({\\mathcal H}-) and outer horizons ({\\mathcal H}+) of Kehagias-Sfetsos (KS) black hole (BH) in the background of the Hořava-Lifshitz gravity. We compute particularly the area product, area sum, area minus and area division of the BH horizons. We find that they all are not showing universal behavior whereas the product is a universal quantity (PRADHAN P., Phys. Lett. B, 747 (2015) 64). Based on these relations, we derive the area bound of all horizons. From the area bound we derive the entropy bound and irreducible mass bound for all the horizons ({\\mathcal H}+/-) . We also observe that the first law of BH thermodynamics and Smarr-Gibbs-Duhem relations do not hold for this BH. The underlying reason behind this failure is due to the scale invariance of the coupling constant. Moreover, we compute the Cosmic-Censorship-Inequality for this BH which gives the lower bound for the total mass of the spacetime and it is supported by the cosmic cencorship conjecture. Finally, we discuss the KS/CFT correspondence via a thermodynamic procedure.

Modular Hamiltonians for deformed half-spaces and the averaged null energy condition

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

Faulkner, Thomas; Leigh, Robert G.; Parrikar, Onkar

We study modular Hamiltonians corresponding to the vacuum state for deformed half-spaces in relativistic quantum field theories on R 1,d-1. We show that in addition to the usual boost generator, there is a contribution to the modular Hamiltonian at first order in the shape deformation, proportional to the integral of the null components of the stress tensor along the Rindler horizon. We use this fact along with monotonicity of relative entropy to prove the averaged null energy condition in Minkowski space-time. This subsequently gives a new proof of the Hofman-Maldacena bounds on the parameters appearing in CFT three-point functions. Ourmore » main technical advance involves adapting newly developed perturbative methods for calculating entanglement entropy to the problem at hand. Our methods were recently used to prove certain results on the shape dependence of entanglement in CFTs and here we generalize these results to excited states and real time dynamics. Finally, we discuss the AdS/CFT counterpart of this result, making connection with the recently proposed gravitational dual for modular Hamiltonians in holographic theories.« less

Tensor networks from kinematic space

DOE PAGES

Czech, Bartlomiej; Lamprou, Lampros; McCandlish, Samuel; ...

2016-07-20

We point out that the MERA network for the ground state of a 1+1-dimensional conformal field theory has the same structural features as kinematic space — the geometry of CFT intervals. In holographic theories kinematic space becomes identified with the space of bulk geodesics studied in integral geometry. We argue that in these settings MERA is best viewed as a discretization of the space of bulk geodesics rather than of the bulk geometry itself. As a test of this kinematic proposal, we compare the MERA representation of the thermofield-double state with the space of geodesics in the two-sided BTZ geometry,more » obtaining a detailed agreement which includes the entwinement sector. In conclusion, we discuss how the kinematic proposal can be extended to excited states by generalizing MERA to a broader class of compression networks.« less

Structural and dielectric properties of A(Fe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2})O{sub 3} [A = Ba, Sr, Ca

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

Dutta, Alo; Sinha, T.P., E-mail: sinha_tp@yahoo.com

2011-04-15

Graphical abstract: FTIR spectra of BFT, SFT and CFT at room temperature. Research highlights: {yields} The structural and dielectric properties of BaFe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2}O{sub 3}, SrFe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2}O{sub 3} and CaFe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2}O{sub 3}. {yields} Fourier transform infrared spectra show two primary phonon modes of the samples at around 450 cm{sup -1} and 620 cm{sup -1}. {yields} The compounds show significant frequency dispersion in its dielectric properties. {yields} The relaxation mechanism of the samples is modelled by Cole-Cole equation. -- Abstract: The complex perovskite oxide barium iron tantalate (BFT), BaFe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2}O{sub 3}, strontium iron tantalate (SFT), SrFe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2}O{submore » 3} and calcium iron tantalate (CFT), CaFe{sub 1/2}Ta{sub 1/2}O{sub 3} are synthesized by a solid-state reaction technique. Rietveld refinement of the X-ray diffraction data of the samples shows that BFT and SFT crystallize in cubic structure, with lattice parameter a = 4.06 A for BFT and 3.959 A for SFT, whereas CFT crystallizes in orthorhombic structure having lattice parameters a = 5.443 A, b = 5.542 A and c = 7.757 A. Fourier transform infrared spectra show two primary phonon modes of the samples at around 450 cm{sup -1} and 620 cm{sup -1}. The compounds show significant frequency dispersion in its dielectric properties. The complex impedance plane plots of the samples show that the relaxation (conduction) mechanism in these materials is purely a bulk effect arising from the semiconductive grains. The relaxation mechanism of the samples is modelled by Cole-Cole equation. The frequency dependent conductivity spectra are found to follow the power law.« less

Field Level RNAi-Mediated Resistance to Cassava Brown Streak Disease across Multiple Cropping Cycles and Diverse East African Agro-Ecological Locations

PubMed Central

Wagaba, Henry; Beyene, Getu; Aleu, Jude; Odipio, John; Okao-Okuja, Geoffrey; Chauhan, Raj Deepika; Munga, Theresia; Obiero, Hannington; Halsey, Mark E.; Ilyas, Muhammad; Raymond, Peter; Bua, Anton; Taylor, Nigel J.; Miano, Douglas; Alicai, Titus

2017-01-01

Cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) presents a serious threat to cassava production in East and Central Africa. Currently, no cultivars with high levels of resistance to CBSD are available to farmers. Transgenic RNAi technology was employed to combat CBSD by fusing coat protein (CP) sequences from Ugandan cassava brown streak virus (UCBSV) and Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) to create an inverted repeat construct (p5001) driven by the constitutive Cassava vein mosaic virus promoter. Twenty-five plant lines of cultivar TME 204 expressing varying levels of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) were established in confined field trials (CFTs) in Uganda and Kenya. Within an initial CFT at Namulonge, Uganda, non-transgenic TME 204 plants developed foliar and storage root CBSD incidences at 96–100% by 12 months after planting. In contrast, 16 of the 25 p5001 transgenic lines showed no foliar symptoms and had less than 8% of their storage roots symptomatic for CBSD. A direct positive correlation was seen between levels of resistance to CBSD and expression of transgenic CP-derived siRNAs. A subsequent CFT was established at Namulonge using stem cuttings from the initial trial. All transgenic lines established remained asymptomatic for CBSD, while 98% of the non-transgenic TME 204 stake-derived plants developed storage roots symptomatic for CBSD. Similarly, very high levels of resistance to CBSD were demonstrated by TME 204 p5001 RNAi lines grown within a CFT over a full cropping cycle at Mtwapa, coastal Kenya. Sequence analysis of CBSD causal viruses present at the trial sites showed that the transgenic lines were exposed to both CBSV and UCBSV, and that the sequenced isolates shared >90% CP identity with transgenic CP sequences expressed by the p5001 inverted repeat expression cassette. These results demonstrate very high levels of field resistance to CBSD conferred by the p5001 RNAi construct at diverse agro-ecological locations, and across the vegetative cropping cycle. PMID:28127301

Aspects of some dualities in string theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kim, Bom Soo

AdS/CFT correspondence in string theory has changed landscape of the theoretical physics. Through this celebrated duality between gravity theory and field theory, one can investigate analytically strongly coupled gauge theories such as Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) in terms of weakly coupled string theory such as supergravity theory and vice versa. In the first part of this thesis we used this duality to construct a new type of nonlocal field theory, called Puff Field Theory, in terms of D3 branes in type IIB string theory with a geometric twist. In addition to the strong-weak duality of AdS/CFT, there also exists a weak-weak duality, called Twistor String Theory. Twistor technique is successfully used to calculate the SYM scattering amplitude in an elegant fashion. Yet, the progress in the string theory side was hindered by a non-unitary conformal gravity. We extend the Twistor string theory by introducing mass terms, in the second part of the thesis. A chiral mass term is identified as a vacuum expectation value of a conformal supergravity field and is tied with the breaking of the conformal symmetry of gravity. As a prime candidate for a quantum theory of gravity, string theory revealed many promising successes such as counting the number of microstates in supersymmetric Black Holes thermodynamics and resolution of timelike and null singularities, to name a few. Yet, the fundamental string and M-theroy formulations are not yet available. Various string theories without gravity, such as Non-Commutative Open String (NCOS) and Open Membrane (OM) theories, are very nice playground to investigate the fundamental structure of string and M-theory without the complication of gravity. In the last part of the thesis, simpler Non-Relativistic String Theories are constructed and investigated. One important motivation for those theories is related to the connection between Non-Relativistic String Theories and Non-critical String Theories through the bosonization of betagamma CFT.

Dualities and emergent gravity: Gauge/gravity duality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Haro, Sebastian

2017-08-01

In this paper I develop a framework for relating dualities and emergence: two notions that are close to each other but also exclude one another. I adopt the conception of duality as 'isomorphism', from the physics literature, cashing it out in terms of three conditions. These three conditions prompt two conceptually different ways in which a duality can be modified to make room for emergence; and I argue that this exhausts the possibilities for combining dualities and emergence (via coarse-graining). I apply this framework to gauge/gravity dualities, considering in detail three examples: AdS/CFT, Verlinde's scheme, and black holes. My main point about gauge/gravity dualities is that the theories involved, qua theories of gravity, must be background-independent. I distinguish two senses of background-independence: (i) minimalistic and (ii) extended. I argue that the former is sufficiently strong to allow for a consistent theory of quantum gravity; and that AdS/CFT is background-independent on this account; while Verlinde's scheme best fits the extended sense of background-independence. I argue that this extended sense should be applied with some caution: on pain of throwing the baby (general relativity) out with the bath-water (extended background-independence). Nevertheless, it is an interesting and potentially fruitful heuristic principle for quantum gravity theory construction. It suggests some directions for possible generalisations of gauge/gravity dualities. The interpretation of dualities is discussed; and the so-called 'internal' vs. 'external' viewpoints are articulated in terms of: (i) epistemic and metaphysical commitments; (ii) parts vs. wholes. I then analyse the emergence of gravity in gauge/gravity dualities in terms of the two available conceptualisations of emergence; and I show how emergence in AdS/CFT and in Verlinde's scenario differ from each other. Finally, I give a novel derivation of the Bekenstein-Hawking black hole entropy formula based on Verlinde's scheme; the derivation sheds light on several aspects of Verlinde's scheme and how it compares to Bekenstein's original calculation.

How Helpful Are Error Management and Counterfactual Thinking Instructions to Inexperienced Spreadsheet Users' Training Task Performance?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Caputi, Peter; Chan, Amy; Jayasuriya, Rohan

2011-01-01

This paper examined the impact of training strategies on the types of errors that novice users make when learning a commonly used spreadsheet application. Fifty participants were assigned to a counterfactual thinking training (CFT) strategy, an error management training strategy, or a combination of both strategies, and completed an easy task…

Strings on AdS_3 x S^3 and the Plane-Wave Limit. Issues on PP-Wave/CFT Holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zapata, Oswaldo

2005-10-01

In this thesis we give explicit results for bosonic string amplitudes on AdS_3 x S^3 and the corresponding plane-wave limit. We also analyze the consequences of our approach for understanding holography in this set up, as well as its possible generalization to other models.

Increased Anti-Money Laundering Banking Regulations and Terrorism Prosecutions

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-03-01

the United States maintains one of the strongest and most effective anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing ( AML / CFT ) regimes in the...NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited INCREASED ANTI...MONEY LAUNDERING BANKING REGULATIONS AND TERRORISM PROSECUTIONS by Albert L. Kao March 2013 Thesis Advisor: Lauren Fernandez Second Reader

The Development and Recognition of Homeland Security Law

DTIC Science & Technology

2007-03-01

Facilitation” (CTPAT)90; “ AML / CFT compliance91”; Bioshield92; two votes for Legislative and/or Government relations; “Implications for Intellectual...NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited THE DEVELOPMENT AND...RECOGNITION OF HOMELAND SECURITY LAW by Michael C. McDaniel March 2007 Thesis Advisor: Chris Bellavita Second Reader

Aspects of String Dualities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orgera, Jacopo

In this thesis we investigate some aspects of String Dualities. In particular, in the context of Twistor-String/Field Theories duality, we present some partial results toward the understanding of Conformal Supergravity amplitudes. Also, in the context of AdS/CFT duality, we investigate: the role of Euclidean Wormholes in quantum de-coherence and the semiclassical decay of certain non-supersimmetric vacua.

Cattle fever tick, Rhipicephalus annulatus (Acari: Ixodidae), and the quest for discovery of its natural enemies in the Balkan Region

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cattle fever tick, Rhipicephalus annulatus (CFT), is a hard tick native to the Mediterranean region that is invasive in the southwestern USA. The tick is known to develop on cattle and white tailed deer, and it transmits two lethal diseases, piroplasmosis and babesiosis. Extensive use of acaricides...

Efficacy of Brief Telephone Psychotherapy with Callers to a Suicide Hotline

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rhee, Wayne K.; Merbaum, Michael; Strube, Michael J.; Self, Susan M.

2005-01-01

The efficacy of two types of therapy conducted exclusively over the telephone was studied. Clients (N = 55) were recruited from a pool of callers to a suicide hotline and were randomly assigned to a waiting list control (WC) or Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) or Common Factors Therapy (CFT). It was hypothesized that improvements would be…

W 4 toda example as hidden Liouville CFT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furlan, P.; Petkova, V. B.

2017-03-01

We construct correlators in the W 4 Toda 2d conformal field theory for a particular class of representations and demonstrate a relation to a W 2 (Virasoro) theory with different central charge. The relevance of the classical limits of the constructed 3-point functions and braiding matrices to problems in 4d conformal theories is discussed.

A Robust Method of Measuring Other-Race and Other-Ethnicity Effects: The Cambridge Face Memory Test Format

PubMed Central

McKone, Elinor; Stokes, Sacha; Liu, Jia; Cohan, Sarah; Fiorentini, Chiara; Pidcock, Madeleine; Yovel, Galit; Broughton, Mary; Pelleg, Michel

2012-01-01

Other-race and other-ethnicity effects on face memory have remained a topic of consistent research interest over several decades, across fields including face perception, social psychology, and forensic psychology (eyewitness testimony). Here we demonstrate that the Cambridge Face Memory Test format provides a robust method for measuring these effects. Testing the Cambridge Face Memory Test original version (CFMT-original; European-ancestry faces from Boston USA) and a new Cambridge Face Memory Test Chinese (CFMT-Chinese), with European and Asian observers, we report a race-of-face by race-of-observer interaction that was highly significant despite modest sample size and despite observers who had quite high exposure to the other race. We attribute this to high statistical power arising from the very high internal reliability of the tasks. This power also allows us to demonstrate a much smaller within-race other ethnicity effect, based on differences in European physiognomy between Boston faces/observers and Australian faces/observers (using the CFMT-Australian). PMID:23118912

Advanced Face Gear Surface Durability Evaluations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lewicki, David G.; Heath, Gregory F.

2016-01-01

The surface durability life of helical face gears and isotropic super-finished (ISF) face gears was investigated. Experimental fatigue tests were performed at the NASA Glenn Research Center. Endurance tests were performed on 10 sets of helical face gears in mesh with tapered involute helical pinions, and 10 sets of ISF-enhanced straight face gears in mesh with tapered involute spur pinions. The results were compared to previous tests on straight face gears. The life of the ISF configuration was slightly less than that of previous tests on straight face gears. The life of the ISF configuration was slightly greater than that of the helical configuration.

Do people have insight into their face recognition abilities?

PubMed

Palermo, Romina; Rossion, Bruno; Rhodes, Gillian; Laguesse, Renaud; Tez, Tolga; Hall, Bronwyn; Albonico, Andrea; Malaspina, Manuela; Daini, Roberta; Irons, Jessica; Al-Janabi, Shahd; Taylor, Libby C; Rivolta, Davide; McKone, Elinor

2017-02-01

Diagnosis of developmental or congenital prosopagnosia (CP) involves self-report of everyday face recognition difficulties, which are corroborated with poor performance on behavioural tests. This approach requires accurate self-evaluation. We examine the extent to which typical adults have insight into their face recognition abilities across four experiments involving nearly 300 participants. The experiments used five tests of face recognition ability: two that tap into the ability to learn and recognize previously unfamiliar faces [the Cambridge Face Memory Test, CFMT; Duchaine, B., & Nakayama, K. (2006). The Cambridge Face Memory Test: Results for neurologically intact individuals and an investigation of its validity using inverted face stimuli and prosopagnosic participants. Neuropsychologia, 44(4), 576-585. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2005.07.001; and a newly devised test based on the CFMT but where the study phases involve watching short movies rather than viewing static faces-the CFMT-Films] and three that tap face matching [Benton Facial Recognition Test, BFRT; Benton, A., Sivan, A., Hamsher, K., Varney, N., & Spreen, O. (1983). Contribution to neuropsychological assessment. New York: Oxford University Press; and two recently devised sequential face matching tests]. Self-reported ability was measured with the 15-item Kennerknecht et al. questionnaire [Kennerknecht, I., Ho, N. Y., & Wong, V. C. (2008). Prevalence of hereditary prosopagnosia (HPA) in Hong Kong Chinese population. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A, 146A(22), 2863-2870. doi:10.1002/ajmg.a.32552]; two single-item questions assessing face recognition ability; and a new 77-item meta-cognition questionnaire. Overall, we find that adults with typical face recognition abilities have only modest insight into their ability to recognize faces on behavioural tests. In a fifth experiment, we assess self-reported face recognition ability in people with CP and find that some people who expect to perform poorly on behavioural tests of face recognition do indeed perform poorly. However, it is not yet clear whether individuals within this group of poor performers have greater levels of insight (i.e., into their degree of impairment) than those with more typical levels of performance.

Face distinctiveness and delayed testing: differential effects on performance and confidence.

PubMed

Metzger, Mitchell M

2006-04-01

The author investigated the effect of delayed testing on participants' memory for distinctive and typical faces. Participants viewed distinctive and typical faces and were then tested for recognition immediately or after a delay of 3, 6, or 12 weeks. Consistent with prior research, analysis of measure of sensitivity (d') showed that participants performed better on distinctive rather than typical faces, and memory performance declined with longer retention intervals between study and testing. Furthermore, the superior performance on distinctive faces had vanished by the 12-week test. Contrary to d' data, however, an analysis of confidence scores indicated that participants were still significantly more confident on trials depicting distinctive faces, even with a 12-week delay between study and recognition testing.

Experimental Comparison of Face-Milled and Face-Hobbed Spiral Bevel Gears

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Handschuh, Robert F.; Nanlawala, Michael; Hawkins, John M.; Mahan, Danny

2001-01-01

An experimental comparison of face-milled and face-hobbed spiral bevel gears was accomplished. The two differently manufactured spiral bevel gear types were tested in a closed-loop facility at NASA Glenn Research Center. Strain, vibration, and noise testing were completed at various levels of rotational speed and load. Tests were conducted from static (slow-roll) to 12600 rpm and up to 269 N-m (2380 in.-lb) pinion speed and load conditions. The tests indicated that the maximum stress recorded at the root locations had nearly the same values, however the stress distribution was different from the toe to the heel. Also, the alternating stress measured was higher for the face-milled pinion than that attained for the face-hobbed pinion (larger minimum stress). The noise and vibration results indicated that the levels measured for the face-hobbed components were less than those attained for the face-milled gears tested.

APPLICATION OF FLOW SIMULATION FOR EVALUATION OF FILLING-ABILITY OF SELF-COMPACTING CONCRETE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Urano, Shinji; Nemoto, Hiroshi; Sakihara, Kohei

In this paper, MPS method was applied to fluid an alysis of self-compacting concrete. MPS method is one of the particle method, and it is suitable for the simulation of moving boundary or free surface problems and large deformation problems. The constitutive equation of self-compacting concrete is assumed as bingham model. In order to investigate flow Stoppage and flow speed of self-compacting concrete, numerical analysis examples of slump flow and L-flow test were performed. In addition, to evaluate verification of compactability of self-compacting concrete, numerical analys is examples of compaction at the part of CFT diaphragm were performed. As a result, it was found that the MPS method was suitable for the simulation of compaction of self-compacting concrete, and a just appraisal was obtained by setting shear strain rate of flow-limit πc and limitation point of segregation.

Entanglement entropy of ABJM theory and entropy of topological black hole

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nian, Jun; Zhang, Xinyu

2017-07-01

In this paper we discuss the supersymmetric localization of the 4D N = 2 offshell gauged supergravity on the background of the AdS4 neutral topological black hole, which is the gravity dual of the ABJM theory defined on the boundary {S}^1× H^2 . We compute the large- N expansion of the supergravity partition function. The result gives the black hole entropy with the logarithmic correction, which matches the previous result of the entanglement entropy of the ABJM theory up to some stringy effects. Our result is consistent with the previous on-shell one-loop computation of the logarithmic correction to black hole entropy. It provides an explicit example of the identification of the entanglement entropy of the boundary conformal field theory with the bulk black hole entropy beyond the leading order given by the classical Bekenstein-Hawking formula, which consequently tests the AdS/CFT correspondence at the subleading order.

Real-time detection of antibiotic activity by measuring nanometer-scale bacterial deformation.

PubMed

Iriya, Rafael; Syal, Karan; Jing, Wenwen; Mo, Manni; Yu, Hui; Haydel, Shelley E; Wang, Shaopeng; Tao, Nongjian

2017-12-01

Diagnosing antibiotic-resistant bacteria currently requires sensitive detection of phenotypic changes associated with antibiotic action on bacteria. Here, we present an optical imaging-based approach to quantify bacterial membrane deformation as a phenotypic feature in real-time with a nanometer scale (∼9  nm) detection limit. Using this approach, we found two types of antibiotic-induced membrane deformations in different bacterial strains: polymyxin B induced relatively uniform spatial deformation of Escherichia coli O157:H7 cells leading to change in cellular volume and ampicillin-induced localized spatial deformation leading to the formation of bulges or protrusions on uropathogenic E. coli CFT073 cells. We anticipate that the approach will contribute to understanding of antibiotic phenotypic effects on bacteria with a potential for applications in rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing. (2017) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

Agreement between Peralta Federation of Teachers (AFT/CFT, AFL-CIO) and Peralta Community College District, July 1, 1988-June 30, 1991.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peralta Community Coll. System, Oakland, CA.

The collective bargaining agreement between the Peralta Community College District and the Peralta Community College Federation of Teachers (PCCFT) is presented. This contract, which applies to College of Alameda, and Feather River, Laney, Merritt, and Vista Colleges, covers the period from July 1, 1988 through June 30, 1991. Contract provisions…

Comparison of natural and artificial odor lures for nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in South Texas: developing treatment for cattle fever tick eradication

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Cattle fever ticks (CFT), vectors of bovine babesiosis and anaplasmosis, were eradicated from the United States by 1943, but are frequently reintroduced from neighboring border states of Mexico via stray cattle and wildlife hosts including white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) (WTD) and nilgai ...

Imprints of spinning particles on primordial cosmological perturbations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franciolini, Gabriele; Kehagias, Alex; Riotto, Antonio

2018-02-01

If there exist higher-spin particles during inflation which are light compared to the Hubble rate, they may leave distinct statistical anisotropic imprints on the correlators involving scalar and graviton fluctuations. We characterise such signatures using the dS/CFT3 correspondence and the operator product expansion techniques. In particular, we obtain generic results for the case of partially massless higher-spin states.

46 CFR Table I to Part 150 - Alphabetical List of Cargoes

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-10-01

... (C17+) alkanoic acid 34 CUS CFT Corn syrup 43 CSY Cottonseed oil, fatty acid 34 CFY Creosote 21 2 CCT... tar 33 COR OCT Coal tar distillate 33 CDL Coal tar, high temperature 33 CHH Coal tar pitch 33 CTP... MTM Formaldehyde solution 19 2 FMS Formamide 10 FAM Formic acid 4 2 FMA Fructose solution 43 Fumaric...

46 CFR Table I to Part 150 - Alphabetical List of Cargoes

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-10-01

... (C17+) alkanoic acid 34 CUS CFT Corn syrup 43 CSY Cottonseed oil, fatty acid 34 CFY Creosote 21 2 CCT... tar 33 COR OCT Coal tar distillate 33 CDL Coal tar, high temperature 33 CHH Coal tar pitch 33 CTP... MTM Formaldehyde solution 19 2 FMS Formamide 10 FAM Formic acid 4 2 FMA Fructose solution 43 Fumaric...

46 CFR Table I to Part 150 - Alphabetical List of Cargoes

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-10-01

... (C17+) alkanoic acid 34 CUS CFT Corn syrup 43 CSY Cottonseed oil, fatty acid 34 CFY Creosote 21 2 CCT... tar 33 COR OCT Coal tar distillate 33 CDL Coal tar, high temperature 33 CHH Coal tar pitch 33 CTP... MTM Formaldehyde solution 19 2 FMS Formamide 10 FAM Formic acid 4 2 FMA Fructose solution 43 Fumaric...

46 CFR Table I to Part 150 - Alphabetical List of Cargoes

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-10-01

... (C17+) alkanoic acid 34 CUS CFT Corn syrup 43 CSY Cottonseed oil, fatty acid 34 CFY Creosote 21 2 CCT... tar 33 COR OCT Coal tar distillate 33 CDL Coal tar, high temperature 33 CHH Coal tar pitch 33 CTP... MTM Formaldehyde solution 19 2 FMS Formamide 10 FAM Formic acid 4 2 FMA Fructose solution 43 Fumaric...

46 CFR Table I to Part 150 - Alphabetical List of Cargoes

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-10-01

... (C17+) alkanoic acid 34 CUS CFT Corn syrup 43 CSY Cottonseed oil, fatty acid 34 CFY Creosote 21 2 CCT... tar 33 COR OCT Coal tar distillate 33 CDL Coal tar, high temperature 33 CHH Coal tar pitch 33 CTP... MTM Formaldehyde solution 19 2 FMS Formamide 10 FAM Formic acid 4 2 FMA Fructose solution 43 Fumaric...

Jerusalem lectures on black holes and quantum information

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harlow, D.

2016-01-01

These lectures give an introduction to the quantum physics of black holes, including recent developments based on quantum information theory such as the firewall paradox and its various cousins. An introduction is also given to holography and the anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory (AdS/CFT) correspondence, focusing on those aspects which are relevant for the black hole information problem.

Equivalence of the AdS-metric and the QCD running coupling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pirner, H. J.; Galow, B.

2009-08-01

We use the functional form of the QCD running coupling to modify the conformal metric in AdS/CFT mapping the fifth-dimensional z-coordinate to the energy scale in the four-dimensional QCD. The resulting type-0 string theory in five dimensions is solved with the Nambu-Goto action giving good agreement with the Coulombic and confinement QQbar potential.

Artificial Aging Effects on Cryogenic Fracture Toughness of the Main Structural Alloy for the Super Lightweight Tank

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chen, P. S.; Stanton, W. P.

2002-01-01

In 1996, Marshall Space Flight Center developed a multistep heating rate-controlled (MSRC) aging technique that significantly enhanced cryogenic fracture toughness (CFT) and reduced the statistical spread of fracture toughness values in alloy 2195 by controlling the location and size of strengthening precipitate T1. However, it could not be readily applied to flight-related hardware production, primarily because large-scale production furnaces are unable to maintain a heating rate of 0.6 C (1 F)/hr. In August 1996, a new program was initiated to determine whether the MSRC aging treatment could be further modified to facilitate its implementation to flight hardware production. It was successfully redesigned into a simplified two-step aging treatment consisting of 132 C (270 F)/20 hr + 138 C (280 F)/40 hr. Results indicated that two-step aging can achieve the same yield strength levels as those produced by conventional aging while providing greatly improved ductility. Two-step aging proved to be very effective at enhancing CFT, enabling previously rejected materials to meet simulated service requirements. Cryogenic properties are improved by controlling T1 nucleation and growth so that they are promoted in the matrix and suppressed in the subgrain boundaries.

Topology and Edge Modes in Quantum Critical Chains

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verresen, Ruben; Jones, Nick G.; Pollmann, Frank

2018-02-01

We show that topology can protect exponentially localized, zero energy edge modes at critical points between one-dimensional symmetry-protected topological phases. This is possible even without gapped degrees of freedom in the bulk—in contrast to recent work on edge modes in gapless chains. We present an intuitive picture for the existence of these edge modes in the case of noninteracting spinless fermions with time-reversal symmetry (BDI class of the tenfold way). The stability of this phenomenon relies on a topological invariant defined in terms of a complex function, counting its zeros and poles inside the unit circle. This invariant can prevent two models described by the same conformal field theory (CFT) from being smoothly connected. A full classification of critical phases in the noninteracting BDI class is obtained: Each phase is labeled by the central charge of the CFT, c ∈1/2 N , and the topological invariant, ω ∈Z . Moreover, c is determined by the difference in the number of edge modes between the phases neighboring the transition. Numerical simulations show that the topological edge modes of critical chains can be stable in the presence of interactions and disorder.

AdS/CFT and local renormalization group with gauge fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kikuchi, Ken; Sakai, Tadakatsu

2016-03-01

We revisit a study of local renormalization group (RG) with background gauge fields incorporated using the AdS/CFT correspondence. Starting with a (d+1)-dimensional bulk gravity coupled to scalars and gauge fields, we derive a local RG equation from a flow equation by working in the Hamilton-Jacobi formulation of the bulk theory. The Gauss's law constraint associated with gauge symmetry plays an important role. RG flows of the background gauge fields are governed by vector β-functions, and some of their interesting properties are known to follow. We give a systematic rederivation of them on the basis of the flow equation. Fixing an ambiguity of local counterterms in such a manner that is natural from the viewpoint of the flow equation, we determine all the coefficients uniquely appearing in the trace of the stress tensor for d=4. A relation between a choice of schemes and a virial current is discussed. As a consistency check, these are found to satisfy the integrability conditions of local RG transformations. From these results, we are led to a proof of a holographic c-theorem by determining a full family of schemes where a trace anomaly coefficient is related with a holographic c-function.

Hydrodynamics with conserved current via AdS/CFT correspondence in the Maxwell-Gauss-Bonnet gravity

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

Hu Yapeng; Sun Peng; Zhang Jianhui

2011-06-15

Using the AdS/CFT correspondence, we study the hydrodynamics with conserved current from the dual Maxwell-Gauss-Bonnet gravity. After constructing the perturbative solution to the first order based on the boosted black brane solution in the bulk Maxwell-Gauss-Bonnet gravity, we extract the stress tensor and conserved current of the dual conformal fluid on its boundary, and also find the effect of the Gauss-Bonnet term on the dual conformal fluid. Our results show that the Gauss-Bonnet term can affect the parameters such as the shear viscosity {eta}, entropy density s, thermal conductivity {kappa} and electrical conductivity {sigma}. However, it does not affect themore » so-called Wiedemann-Franz law which relates {kappa} to {sigma}, while it affects the ratio {eta}/s. In addition, another interesting result is that {eta}/s can also be affected by the bulk Maxwell field in our case, which is consistent with some previous results predicted through the Kubo formula. Moreover, the anomalous magnetic and vortical effects by adding the Chern-Simons term are also considered in our case in the Maxwell-Gauss-Bonnet gravity.« less

Explicitly broken supersymmetry with exactly massless moduli

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Xi; Freedman, Daniel Z.; Zhao, Yue

2016-06-01

The AdS/CFT correspondence is applied to an analogue of the little hierarchy problem in three-dimensional supersymmetric theories. The bulk is governed by a super-gravity theory in which a U(1) × U(1) R-symmetry is gauged by Chern-Simons fields. The bulk theory is deformed by a boundary term quadratic in the gauge fields. It breaks SUSY completely and sources an exactly marginal operator in the dual CFT. SUSY breaking is communicated by gauge interactions to bulk scalar fields and their spinor superpartners. The bulk-to-boundary propagator of the Chern-Simons fields is a total derivative with respect to the bulk coordinates. Integration by parts and the Ward identity permit evaluation of SUSY breaking effects to all orders in the strength of the deformation. The R-charges of scalars and spinors differ so large SUSY breaking mass shifts are generated. Masses of R-neutral particles such as scalar moduli are not shifted to any order in the deformation strength, despite the fact that they may couple to R-charged fields running in loops. We also obtain a universal deformation formula for correlation functions under an exactly marginal deformation by a product of holomorphic and anti-holomorphic U(1) currents.

Chern-Simons gauge theory on orbifolds: Open strings from three dimensions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hořava, Petr

1996-12-01

Chern-Simons gauge theory is formulated on three-dimensional Z2 orbifolds. The locus of singular points on a given orbifold is equivalent to a link of Wilson lines. This allows one to reduce any correlation function on orbifolds to a sum of more complicated correlation functions in the simpler theory on manifolds. Chern-Simons theory on manifolds is known to be related to two-dimensional (2D) conformal field theory (CFT) on closed-string surfaces; here it is shown that the theory on orbifolds is related to 2D CFT of unoriented closed- and open-string models, i.e. to worldsheet orbifold models. In particular, the boundary components of the worldsheet correspond to the components of the singular locus in the 3D orbifold. This correspondence leads to a simple identification of the open-string spectra, including their Chan-Paton degeneration, in terms of fusing Wilson lines in the corresponding Chern-Simons theory. The correspondence is studied in detail, and some exactly solvable examples are presented. Some of these examples indicate that it is natural to think of the orbifold group Z2 as a part of the gauge group of the Chern-Simons theory, thus generalizing the standard definition of gauge theories.

Geostationary payload concepts for personal satellite communications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Benedicto, J.; Rinous, P.; Roberts, I.; Roederer, A.; Stojkovic, I.

1993-01-01

This paper reviews candidate satellite payload architectures for systems providing world-wide communication services to mobile users equipped with hand-held terminals based on large geostationary satellites. There are a number of problems related to the payload architecture, on-board routing and beamforming, and the design of the S-band Tx and L-band Rx antenna and front ends. A number of solutions are outlined, based on trade-offs with respect to the most significant performance parameters such as capacity, G/T, flexibility of routing traffic to beams and re-configuration of the spot-beam coverage, and payload mass and power. Candidate antenna and front-end configurations were studied, in particular direct radiating arrays, arrays magnified by a reflector and active focused reflectors with overlapping feed clusters for both transmit (multimax) and receive (beam synthesis). Regarding the on-board routing and beamforming sub-systems, analog techniques based on banks of SAW filters, FET or CMOS switches and cross-bar fixed and variable beamforming are compared with a hybrid analog/digital approach based on Chirp Fourier Transform (CFT) demultiplexer combined with digital beamforming or a fully digital processor implementation, also based on CFT demultiplexing.

Supersymmetry on the Lattice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schaich, David

2016-03-01

Lattice field theory provides a non-perturbative regularization of strongly interacting systems, which has proven crucial to the study of quantum chromodynamics among many other theories. Supersymmetry plays prominent roles in the study of physics beyond the standard model, both as an ingredient in model building and as a tool to improve our understanding of quantum field theory. Attempts to apply lattice techniques to supersymmetric field theories have a long history, but until recently these efforts have generally encountered insurmountable difficulties related to the interplay of supersymmetry with the lattice discretization of spacetime. In recent years these difficulties have been overcome for a class of theories that includes the particularly interesting case of maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills (N = 4 SYM) in four dimensions, which is a cornerstone of AdS/CFT duality. In combination with computational advances this progress enables practical numerical investigations of N = 4 SYM on the lattice, which can address questions that are difficult or impossible to handle through perturbation theory, AdS/CFT duality, or the conformal bootstrap program. I will briefly review some of the new ideas underlying this recent progress, and present some results from ongoing large-scale numerical calculations, including comparisons with analytic predictions.

Patients with schizophrenia activate behavioural intentions facilitated by counterfactual reasoning.

PubMed

Contreras, Fernando; Albacete, Auria; Tebé, Cristian; Benejam, Bessy; Caño, Agnes; Menchón, José Manuel

2017-01-01

The main variables assessed were: answer to complete a target task (wrong or correctly), and percentage gain in the reaction time (RT) to complete a target task correctly depending on whether the prime was a counterfactual or a neutral-control cue. These variables were assessed in 37 patients with schizophrenia and 37 healthy controls. Potential associations with clinical status and socio-demographic characteristics were also explored. When a counterfactual prime was presented, the probability of giving an incorrect answer was lower for the entire sample than when a neutral prime was presented (OR 0.58; CI 95% 0.42 to 0.79), but the schizophrenia patients showed a higher probability than the controls of giving an incorrect answer (OR 3.89; CI 95% 2.0 to 7.6). Both the schizophrenia patients and the controls showed a similar percentage gain in RT to a correct answer of 8%. Challenging the results of previous research, our findings suggest a normal activation of behavioural intentions facilitated by CFT in schizophrenia. Nevertheless, the patients showed more difficulty than the controls with the task, adding support to the concept of CFT as a potential new target for consideration in future therapeutic approaches for this illness.

Holography and eternal inflation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeh, Chen-Pin

The holographic principle states that the number of fundamental degrees of freedom in a specific region of spacetime is bounded by the area of its boundary. In the content of string theory, the AdS/CFT duality demonstrates the holographic principle in the background anti-de Sitter space. However for the more physically relevant background, it is hard to find such duality. The background that is particularly interesting is the eternal inflation. In this thesis we study the holographic dual of the eternal inflation. In the same spirit as AdS/CFT, the holographic theory is a conformal field theory on the boundary of the geometry. We study the scalar and graviton two point functions in a simplified eternal inflation background, which describes a flat pocket universe tunnels from a de Sitter background. The two point functions extrapolated to the boundary are shown to have the properties required by the conformal symmetry. We go on to study the possible collision between different pocket universes. We showed that after collisions, the resulting pocket universe with nontrivial boundary topology is possible. This implies that the boundary theory will not only have fluctuation in geometry but also in topology. It will also have potential observation consequences on the cosmological observation.

Extraction of conformal data in critical quantum spin chains using the Koo-Saleur formula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Milsted, Ashley; Vidal, Guifre

2017-12-01

We study the emergence of two-dimensional conformal symmetry in critical quantum spin chains on the finite circle. Our goal is to characterize the conformal field theory (CFT) describing the universality class of the corresponding quantum phase transition. As a means to this end, we propose and demonstrate automated procedures which, using only the lattice Hamiltonian H =∑jhj as an input, systematically identify the low-energy eigenstates corresponding to Virasoro primary and quasiprimary operators, and assign the remaining low-energy eigenstates to conformal towers. The energies and momenta of the primary operator states are needed to determine the primary operator scaling dimensions and conformal spins, an essential part of the conformal data that specifies the CFT. Our techniques use the action, on the low-energy eigenstates of H , of the Fourier modes Hn of the Hamiltonian density hj. The Hn were introduced as lattice representations of the Virasoro generators by Koo and Saleur [Nucl. Phys. B 426, 459 (1994), 10.1016/0550-3213(94)90018-3]. In this paper, we demonstrate that these operators can be used to extract conformal data in a nonintegrable quantum spin chain.

Habemus superstratum! A constructive proof of the existence of superstrata

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bena, Iosif; Giusto, Stefano; Russo, Rodolfo; Shigemori, Masaki; Warner, Nicholas P.

2015-05-01

We construct the first example of a superstratum: a class of smooth horizonless supergravity solutions that are parameterized by arbitrary continuous functions of (at least) two variables and have the same charges as the supersymmetric D1-D5-P black hole. We work in Type IIB string theory on T 4 or K3 and our solutions involve a subset of fields that can be described by a six-dimensional supergravity with two tensor multiplets. The solutions can thus be constructed using a linear structure, and we give an explicit recipe to start from a superposition of modes specified by an arbitrary function of two variables and impose regularity to obtain the full horizonless solutions in closed form. We also give the precise CFT description of these solutions and show that they are not dual to descendants of chiral primaries. They are thus much more general than all the known solutions whose CFT dual is precisely understood. Hence our construction represents a substantial step toward the ultimate goal of constructing the fully generic superstratum that can account for a finite fraction of the entropy of the three-charge black hole in the regime of parameters where the classical black hole solution exists.

The full spectrum of AdS5/CFT4 I: representation theory and one-loop Q-system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marboe, Christian; Volin, Dmytro

2018-04-01

With the formulation of the quantum spectral curve for the AdS5/CFT4 integrable system, it became potentially possible to compute its full spectrum with high efficiency. This is the first paper in a series devoted to the explicit design of such computations, with no restrictions to particular subsectors being imposed. We revisit the representation theoretical classification of possible states in the spectrum and map the symmetry multiplets to solutions of the quantum spectral curve at zero coupling. To this end it is practical to introduce a generalisation of Young diagrams to the case of non-compact representations and define algebraic Q-systems directly on these diagrams. Furthermore, we propose an algorithm to explicitly solve such Q-systems that circumvents the traditional usage of Bethe equations and simplifies the computation effort. For example, our algorithm quickly obtains explicit analytic results for all 495 multiplets that accommodate single-trace operators in N=4 SYM with classical conformal dimension up to \\frac{13}{2} . We plan to use these results as the seed for solving the quantum spectral curve perturbatively to high loop orders in the next paper of the series.

Conformal field theory out of equilibrium: a review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bernard, Denis; Doyon, Benjamin

2016-06-01

We provide a pedagogical review of the main ideas and results in non-equilibrium conformal field theory and connected subjects. These concern the understanding of quantum transport and its statistics at and near critical points. Starting with phenomenological considerations, we explain the general framework, illustrated by the example of the Heisenberg quantum chain. We then introduce the main concepts underlying conformal field theory (CFT), the emergence of critical ballistic transport, and the CFT scattering construction of non-equilibrium steady states. Using this we review the theory for energy transport in homogeneous one-dimensional critical systems, including the complete description of its large deviations and the resulting (extended) fluctuation relations. We generalize some of these ideas to one-dimensional critical charge transport and to the presence of defects, as well as beyond one-dimensional criticality. We describe non-equilibrium transport in free-particle models, where connections are made with generalized Gibbs ensembles, and in higher-dimensional and non-integrable quantum field theories, where the use of the powerful hydrodynamic ideas for non-equilibrium steady states is explained. We finish with a list of open questions. The review does not assume any advanced prior knowledge of conformal field theory, large-deviation theory or hydrodynamics.

Massless conformal fields, AdS (d+1)/CFT d higher spin algebras and their deformations

DOE PAGES

Fernando, Sudarshan; Gunaydin, Murat

2016-02-04

Here, we extend our earlier work on the minimal unitary representation of SO(d, 2)and its deformations for d=4, 5and 6to arbitrary dimensions d. We show that there is a one-to-one correspondence between the minrep of SO(d, 2)and its deformations and massless conformal fields in Minkowskian spacetimes in ddimensions. The minrep describes a massless conformal scalar field, and its deformations describe massless conformal fields of higher spin. The generators of Joseph ideal vanish identically as operators for the quasiconformal realization of the minrep, and its enveloping algebra yields directly the standard bosonic AdS (d+1)/CFT d higher spin algebra. For deformed minrepsmore » the generators of certain deformations of Joseph ideal vanish as operators and their enveloping algebras lead to deformations of the standard bosonic higher spin algebra. In odd dimensions there is a unique deformation of the higher spin algebra corresponding to the spinor singleton. In even dimensions one finds infinitely many deformations of the higher spin algebra labelled by the eigenvalues of Casimir operator of the little group SO(d–2)for massless representations.« less

Standardization of the face-hand test in a Brazilian multicultural population: prevalence of sensory extinction and implications for neurological diagnosis.

PubMed

Luvizutto, Gustavo José; Fogaroli, Marcelo Ortolani; Theotonio, Rodolfo Mazeto; Nunes, Hélio Rubens de Carvalho; Resende, Luiz Antônio de Lima; Bazan, Rodrigo

2016-12-01

The face-hand test is a simple, practical, and rapid test to detect neurological syndromes. However, it has not previously been assessed in a Brazilian sample; therefore, the objective of the present study was to standardize the face-hand test for use in the multi-cultural population of Brazil and identify the sociodemographic factors affecting the results. This was a cross sectional study of 150 individuals. The sociodemographic variables that were collected included age, gender, race, body mass index and years of education. Standardization of the face-hand test occurred in 2 rounds of 10 sensory stimuli, with the participant seated to support the trunk and their vision obstructed in a sound-controlled environment. The face-hand test was conducted by applying 2 rounds of 10 sensory stimuli that were applied to the face and hand simultaneously. The associations between the face-hand test and sociodemographic variables were analyzed using Mann-Whitney tests and Spearman correlations. Binomial models were adjusted for the number of face-hand test variations, and ROC curves evaluated sensitivity and specificity of sensory extinction. There was no significant relationship between the sociodemographic variables and the number of stimuli perceived for the face-hand test. There was a high relative frequency of detection, 8 out of 10 stimuli, in this population. Sensory extinction was 25.3%, which increased with increasing age (OR=1.4[1:01-1:07]; p=0.006) and decreased significantly with increasing education (OR=0.82[0.71-0.94]; p=0.005). In the Brazilian population, a normal face-hand test score ranges between 8-10 stimuli, and the results indicate that sensory extinction is associated with increased age and lower levels of education.

Development and validation of a method for purification of mallein for the diagnosis of glanders in equines

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background The allergic test of mallein is one of the most frequently used tests, together with the Complement Fixation Test (CFT), for the diagnosis of glanders in endemic areas. Mallein, a purified protein derivative (PPD), is produced similarly to PPD tuberculin and the end product is a primarily proteic antigen, which is only poorly purified. The immuno-allergic activity of mallein is believed to be due to a high molecular weight group of proteins present in the antigen. To improve the quality of the antigen, in terms of sensitivity and specificity, a new method of mallein production was developed, in which purification was accomplished by ultrafiltration in a Tangential Flow Filtration system (TFF). Results The TFF methodology efficiently separated the high and low molecular weight protein groups of mallein. The five TFF-purified malleins, produced from Burkholderia mallei strains isolated from clinical cases of glanders in Brazil, proved to be more potent than standard mallein in the induction of an allergic reaction in sensitized animals. Regarding specificity, two of the purified malleins were equivalent to the standard and three were less specific. Conclusion Some of the TFF-purified malleins showed considerable potential to be used as an auxiliary test in the diagnosis of glanders. PMID:22937975

Development and validation of a method for purification of mallein for the diagnosis of glanders in equines.

PubMed

de Carvalho Filho, Maurício Baltazar; Ramos, Rodrigo Mauro; Fonseca, Antônio Augusto; de Lima Orzil, Lívia; Sales, Mariana Lázaro; de Assis Santana, Vania Lucia; de Souza, Marcilia Maria Alves; Dos Reis Machado, Evandro; Filho, Paulo Rodrigues Lopes; Leite, Rômulo Cerqueira; Dos Reis, Jenner Karlisson Pimenta

2012-09-02

The allergic test of mallein is one of the most frequently used tests, together with the Complement Fixation Test (CFT), for the diagnosis of glanders in endemic areas. Mallein, a purified protein derivative (PPD), is produced similarly to PPD tuberculin and the end product is a primarily proteic antigen, which is only poorly purified. The immuno-allergic activity of mallein is believed to be due to a high molecular weight group of proteins present in the antigen. To improve the quality of the antigen, in terms of sensitivity and specificity, a new method of mallein production was developed, in which purification was accomplished by ultrafiltration in a Tangential Flow Filtration system (TFF). The TFF methodology efficiently separated the high and low molecular weight protein groups of mallein. The five TFF-purified malleins, produced from Burkholderia mallei strains isolated from clinical cases of glanders in Brazil, proved to be more potent than standard mallein in the induction of an allergic reaction in sensitized animals. Regarding specificity, two of the purified malleins were equivalent to the standard and three were less specific. Some of the TFF-purified malleins showed considerable potential to be used as an auxiliary test in the diagnosis of glanders.

Face matching impairment in developmental prosopagnosia.

PubMed

White, David; Rivolta, Davide; Burton, A Mike; Al-Janabi, Shahd; Palermo, Romina

2017-02-01

Developmental prosopagnosia (DP) is commonly referred to as 'face blindness', a term that implies a perceptual basis to the condition. However, DP presents as a deficit in face recognition and is diagnosed using memory-based tasks. Here, we test face identification ability in six people with DP, who are severely impaired on face memory tasks, using tasks that do not rely on memory. First, we compared DP to control participants on a standardized test of unfamiliar face matching using facial images taken on the same day and under standardized studio conditions (Glasgow Face Matching Test; GFMT). Scores for DP participants did not differ from normative accuracy scores on the GFMT. Second, we tested face matching performance on a test created using images that were sourced from the Internet and so varied substantially due to changes in viewing conditions and in a person's appearance (Local Heroes Test; LHT). DP participants showed significantly poorer matching accuracy on the LHT than control participants, for both unfamiliar and familiar face matching. Interestingly, this deficit is specific to 'match' trials, suggesting that people with DP may have particular difficulty in matching images of the same person that contain natural day-to-day variations in appearance. We discuss these results in the broader context of individual differences in face matching ability.

Learning the moves: the effect of familiarity and facial motion on person recognition across large changes in viewing format.

PubMed

Roark, Dana A; O'Toole, Alice J; Abdi, Hervé; Barrett, Susan E

2006-01-01

Familiarity with a face or person can support recognition in tasks that require generalization to novel viewing contexts. Using naturalistic viewing conditions requiring recognition of people from face or whole body gait stimuli, we investigated the effects of familiarity, facial motion, and direction of learning/test transfer on person recognition. Participants were familiarized with previously unknown people from gait videos and were tested on faces (experiment 1a) or were familiarized with faces and were tested with gait videos (experiment 1b). Recognition was more accurate when learning from the face and testing with the gait videos, than when learning from the gait videos and testing with the face. The repetition of a single stimulus, either the face or gait, produced strong recognition gains across transfer conditions. Also, the presentation of moving faces resulted in better performance than that of static faces. In experiment 2, we investigated the role of facial motion further by testing recognition with static profile images. Motion provided no benefit for recognition, indicating that structure-from-motion is an unlikely source of the motion advantage found in the first set of experiments.