The quantum Bell-Ziv-Zakai bounds and Heisenberg limits for waveform estimation

We propose quantum versions of the Bell-Ziv-Zakai lower bounds on the error in multiparameter estimation. As an application we consider measurement of a time-varying optical phase signal with stationary Gaussian prior statistics and a power law spectrum $\sim 1/|\omega|^p$, with $p>1$. With no other assumptions, we show that the mean-square error has a lower bound scaling as $1/{\cal N}^{2(p-1)/(p+1)}$, where ${\cal N}$ is the time-averaged mean photon flux. Moreover, we show that this accuracy is achievable by sampling and interpolation, for any $p>1$. This bound is thus a rigorous generalization of the Heisenberg limit, for measurement of a single unknown optical phase, to a stochastically varying optical phase.Comment: 18 pages, 6 figures, comments welcom

Assessment in Paradise: Using Data to Drive Undergraduate Geoscience Initiatives and Programmatic Changes

At the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM), the undergraduate geoscience programs are housed within the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST). In this poster trends in student and programmatic data from the undergraduate Global Environmental Science (GES) Program in SOEST were analyzed. It was determined that additional support was needed for the following: (1) students in their first year of the GES program; (2) a geoscience pathway from the local UHCCs to UHM; and (3) a process to increase recruitment, retention, and graduation rates of geoscience majors in general and Native Hawaiians in particular. Initial results from a multifaceted approach are presented in order to address these issues including curricular changes, geoscience pathways from UHCCs to UHM, summer geoscience research program, and an early warning student performance monitoring system

High Resolution Imaging of Vascular Function in Zebrafish

Rationale: The role of the endothelium in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease is an emerging field of study, necessitating the development of appropriate model systems and methodologies to investigate the multifaceted nature of endothelial dysfunction including disturbed barrier function and impaired vascular reactivity. Objective: We aimed to develop and test an optimized high-speed imaging platform to obtain quantitative real-time measures of blood flow, vessel diameter and endothelial barrier function in order to assess vascular function in live vertebrate models. Methods and Results: We used a combination of cutting-edge optical imaging techniques, including high-speed, camera-based imaging (up to 1000 frames/second), and 3D confocal methods to collect real time metrics of vascular performance and assess the dynamic response to the thromboxane A2 (TXA2) analogue, U-46619 (1 μM), in transgenic zebrafish larvae. Data obtained in 3 and 5 day post-fertilization larvae show that these methods are capable of imaging blood flow in a large (1 mm) segment of the vessel of interest over many cardiac cycles, with sufficient speed and sensitivity such that the trajectories of individual erythrocytes can be resolved in real time. Further, we are able to map changes in the three dimensional sizes of vessels and assess barrier function by visualizing the continuity of the endothelial layer combined with measurements of extravasation of fluorescent microspheres. Conclusions: We propose that this system-based microscopic approach can be used to combine measures of physiologic function with molecular behavior in zebrafish models of human vascular disease. © 2012 Watkins et al

Relationship between threshold and suprathreshold perception of position and stereoscopic depth.

We seek to determine the relationship between threshold and suprathreshold perception for position offset and stereoscopic depth perception under conditions that elevate their respective thresholds. Two threshold-elevating conditions were used: (1) increasing the interline gap and (2) dioptric blur. Although increasing the interline gap increases position (Vernier) offset and stereoscopic disparity thresholds substantially, the perception of suprathreshold position offset and stereoscopic depth remains unchanged. Perception of suprathreshold position offset also remains unchanged when the Vernier threshold is elevated by dioptric blur. We show that such normalization of suprathreshold position offset can be attributed to the topographical-map-based encoding of position. On the other hand, dioptric blur increases the stereoscopic disparity thresholds and reduces the perceived suprathreshold stereoscopic depth, which can be accounted for by a disparity-computation model in which the activities of absolute disparity encoders are multiplied by a Gaussian weighting function that is centered on the horopter. Overall, the statement equal suprathreshold perception occurs in threshold-elevated and unelevated conditions when the stimuli are equally above their corresponding thresholds describes the results better than the statement suprathreshold stimuli are perceived as equal when they are equal multiples of their respective threshold values

Index matching between passive and active tellurite glasses for use in microstructured fiber lasers: Erbium doped lanthanum-tellurite glass

Active and passive variants of La-containing tellurite glasses have been developed with matched refractive indices. The consequences of adding lanthanum to the glass was studied through measurements of the crystallization stability, glass viscosity and the loss of unstructured fibers. Doping the glass with erbium allowed for any spectroscopic changes to be observed through measurements of the absorption and energy level lifetimes. The fluorescence emission spectra were measured at 1.5 microm and, to the best of our knowledge, for the first time in tellurite glass at 2.7 microm.Michael R. Oermann, Heike Ebendorff-Heidepriem, Yahua Li, Tze-Cheung Foo, and Tanya M. Monrohttp://www.opticsinfobase.org/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-17-18-1557

Hypoxic conditions alter developing branchial arch-derived structures in zebrafish

Background: Previous epidemiological findings have implicated hypoxia as a risk factor for craniofacial defects including cleft lip, microtia and branchial arch anomalies. This study tests the hypothesis that hypoxic exposure results in craniofacial shape variation in a zebrafish model. Methods: Three sets of zebrafish embryos were raised in uniform conditions with the exception of dissolved oxygen level.  At 24 hours past fertilization (hpf) embryos were placed in hypoxic conditions (70% or 50% dissolved oxygen tank water) and compared to unexposed control embryos.  After 24 hours of exposure to hypoxia, the embryos were incubated under normoxia.  Larvae were collected at 5 days post fertilization (dpf) and stained for cartilage. Images were taken of each specimen and subsequently landmarked to capture viscerocranial morphology.  A geometric morphometric analysis was performed to compare shape variation across groups. Results: The mean branchial arch shape of each exposure group was significantly different from controls (p&lt;0.001).  Principal components analysis revealed a clear separation of the three groups, with controls at one end of the shape spectrum, the 50% hypoxia group at the other end, and the 70% hypoxia group spanning the variation in between. Conclusions: This experiment shows that hypoxia exposure at 24hpf is capable of affecting craniofacial shape in a dose-dependent manner.  These results may have implications not only for high altitude fetal health, but other environments, behaviors and genes that affect fetal oxygen delivery. </jats:p

Parameterized tests of the strong-field dynamics of general relativity using gravitational wave signals from coalescing binary black holes: Fast likelihood calculations and sensitivity of the method

Thanks to the recent discoveries of gravitational wave signals from binary black hole mergers by Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory and Advanced Virgo, the genuinely strong-field dynamics of spacetime can now be probed, allowing for stringent tests of general relativity (GR). One set of tests consists of allowing for parametrized deformations away from GR in the template waveform models and then constraining the size of the deviations, as was done for the detected signals in previous work. In this paper, we construct reduced-order quadratures so as to speed up likelihood calculations for parameter estimation on future events. Next, we explicitly demonstrate the robustness of the parametrized tests by showing that they will correctly indicate consistency with GR if the theory is valid. We also check to what extent deviations from GR can be constrained as information from an increasing number of detections is combined. Finally, we evaluate the sensitivity of the method to possible violations of GR.Comment: 19 pages, many figures. Matches PRD versio

Hong Kong as a Test Case for World Literature

This article posits Hong Kong as a test case for several theoretical perspectives currently developed in the rising field of world literature. Focusing on three main areas—namely, Hong Kong’s semi-peripheral neocoloniality, its language politics, and the proliferation of the poetry genre—the article aims to examine how world literature and Hong Kong can strike a dialogue with each other, exploring each other’s limits. For Hong Kong to make meaningful contributions to world literature, it desperately needs to build a name for itself as a literature of its own concerns

Flood Vulnerability and Risk Maps in Taipei City, Taiwan

This paper presents the process of constructing a flood risk map in Taipei City. The study calculates the social vulnerability index (SVI) for flooding at a district level, based on five factors including (1) female population (2) alone living elderly (3) low-income households (4) household income and (5) house-hold possessions. The index is determined according to the factor ratios in a district comparing to the statistical average across Taipei City. By combining the SVI with spatial varied flood potential information simulated by a hydraulic model, the flood risk index is obtained for district level that has an area of about 0.2 km2. Results show that the flood risk in Taipei City changed from 2002 to 2010 due to changes in the demographic structure. During the period from 2002 to 2004, the most obvious change of flood risk occurred in the Wanhua district due to the increase in the ratio of household possessions, which escalated the vulnerability to flooding. Between 2005 and 2007, the ratio of household possessions dropped in the Nankang district such that the flood risk reduced mostly in the region