Time of Flight Analysis Using Cosmic Ray Muons in the ATLAS Tile Calorimeter

Using cosmic ray muon data recorded during the summer of 2007, we have studied the time-of-flight distributions between back-to-back modules of the ATLAS Tile Calorimeter. The results are in good agreement with the distributions expected from calorimeter geometry, and allow for cross-checks of timing corrections obtained in laser runs. Calorimeter timing is a useful tool to remove non-physics backgrounds, and we introduce new cuts at the cell level which improve the signal-to-noise ratio

A Comparative Study of Reservoir Computing for Temporal Signal Processing

Reservoir computing (RC) is a novel approach to time series prediction using recurrent neural networks. In RC, an input signal perturbs the intrinsic dynamics of a medium called a reservoir. A readout layer is then trained to reconstruct a target output from the reservoir's state. The multitude of RC architectures and evaluation metrics poses a challenge to both practitioners and theorists who study the task-solving performance and computational power of RC. In addition, in contrast to traditional computation models, the reservoir is a dynamical system in which computation and memory are inseparable, and therefore hard to analyze. Here, we compare echo state networks (ESN), a popular RC architecture, with tapped-delay lines (DL) and nonlinear autoregressive exogenous (NARX) networks, which we use to model systems with limited computation and limited memory respectively. We compare the performance of the three systems while computing three common benchmark time series: H{\'e}non Map, NARMA10, and NARMA20. We find that the role of the reservoir in the reservoir computing paradigm goes beyond providing a memory of the past inputs. The DL and the NARX network have higher memorization capability, but fall short of the generalization power of the ESN

Nature-Inspired Interconnects for Self-Assembled Large-Scale Network-on-Chip Designs

Future nano-scale electronics built up from an Avogadro number of components needs efficient, highly scalable, and robust means of communication in order to be competitive with traditional silicon approaches. In recent years, the Networks-on-Chip (NoC) paradigm emerged as a promising solution to interconnect challenges in silicon-based electronics. Current NoC architectures are either highly regular or fully customized, both of which represent implausible assumptions for emerging bottom-up self-assembled molecular electronics that are generally assumed to have a high degree of irregularity and imperfection. Here, we pragmatically and experimentally investigate important design trade-offs and properties of an irregular, abstract, yet physically plausible 3D small-world interconnect fabric that is inspired by modern network-on-chip paradigms. We vary the framework's key parameters, such as the connectivity, the number of switch nodes, the distribution of long- versus short-range connections, and measure the network's relevant communication characteristics. We further explore the robustness against link failures and the ability and efficiency to solve a simple toy problem, the synchronization task. The results confirm that (1) computation in irregular assemblies is a promising and disruptive computing paradigm for self-assembled nano-scale electronics and (2) that 3D small-world interconnect fabrics with a power-law decaying distribution of shortcut lengths are physically plausible and have major advantages over local 2D and 3D regular topologies

Effects of alcohol consumption on mortality in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus

Aims/hypothesis: Moderate alcohol intake has been associated with increased life expectancy due to reduced mortality from cardiovascular disease. We prospectively examined the effects of alcohol consumption on mortality in Type 2 diabetic patients in Switzerland. Methods: A total of 287 patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (125 women, 162 men), recruited in Switzerland for the WHO Multinational Study of Vascular Disease in Diabetes, were included in this study. After a follow-up period of 12.6±0.6 years (means ± SD), mortality from CHD and from all causes was assessed. Results: During the follow-up, 70 deaths occurred (21 from CHD, 49 from other causes). Compared with non-drinkers, alcohol consumers who drank alcohol 1 to 15g, 16 to 30g and 30g or more per day had the following risk rates of death from CHD: 0.87 (95% CI: 0.25 to 2.51, NS), 0.00 (95% CI: 0.00 to 0.92, p less than 0.05) and 0.37 (95% CI, 0.01 to 2.42, NS), respectively. The corresponding risk rates of death from all causes were 1.27 (95% CI: 0.68 to 2.28, NS), 0.36 (95% CI: 0.09 to 0.99, p less than 0.05) and 1.66 (95% CI: 0.76 to 3.33, NS). Conclusions/interpretation: In Swiss Type 2 diabetic patients moderate alcohol consumption of 16 to 30g per day was associated with reduced mortality from CHD and from all causes. Alcohol intake above 30g per day was associated with a tendency towards increased all-cause mortalit

A mobile data acquisition system

A mobile data aquisition (MobiDAQ) was developed for the ATLAS central hadronic calorimeter (TileCal). MobiDAQ has been designed in order to test the functionalities of the TileCal front-end electronics and to acquire calibration data before the final back-end electronics were built and tested. MobiDAQ was also used to record the first cosmic ray events acquired by an ATLAS subdetector in the underground experimental area

Pretraživanje tradicionalnih europskih ljekovitih biljaka na inhibiciju acetilkolinesteraze i butirilkolinesteraze

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors are widely used for the symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) to enhance central cholinergic transmission. On the other hand, butyrylcholinesterase (BuChE) inhibitors were reported to produce significant increases in brain extracellular AChE without triggering severe peripheral or central side-effects. In the present study, we selected twelve plants used in traditional European medicine to treat different central nervous system (CNS) disorders or to improve memory. Methanolic and hexane extracts of these plants were tested for the AChE and BuChE inhibitory activity using Ellman’s colorimetric method. The most potent AChE and BuChE inhibition was observed in the hexane extracts of the flowers of Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa and Ruta graveolens L. herb at a concentration of 400 μg mL1. However, methanolic extracts of the flowers of Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa and the Hypericum perforatum L. herb demonstrated at the same concentration, selective inhibition only against AChE but not against BuChE. The other extracts did not show any significant AChE or BuChE inhibitory activity. Our results show that further investigations of the extracts of arnica, rue and St. John’s Wort are needed to identify the compounds responsible for the AChE and BuChE inhibitory activityInhibitori acetilkolinesteraze (AChE) povećavaju kolinergičku transmisiju u mozgu, pa se koriste za simptomatsko liječenje Alzheimerove bolesti (AD). S druge strane, inhibitori butirilkolinesteraze (BuChE) značajno povećavaju ekstracelularnu količinu AChE u mozgu, a da pri tome ne uzrokuju snažne nuspojave ni u središnjem ni i perifernom živčanom sustavu. Galantamin, jedan od odobrenih AChE inhibitora, alkaloid iz lukovica narcisa, pokazuje da su biljke značajni izvor novih potencijalnih AChE- i BuChE- inhibitora. U ovom radu, ispitivali smo učinak dvanaest biljaka koje se koriste u tradicionalnoj europskoj medicini na različite poremećaje središnjeg živčanog sustava i na poboljšanje pamćenja. Pomoću Ellmanove kolorimetrijske metode praćen je inhibitorni učinak metanolnih i heksanskih ekstrakata tih biljaka na AChE i BuChE. Najjači inhibitorni učinak pokazali su heksanski ekstrakti cvjetova Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa i nadzemnih dijelova Ruta graveolens L. u koncentraciji od 400 μg mL1. Međutim, metanolni ekstrakti cvjetova Arnica chamissonis Less. susb. foliosa i nadzemnih dijelova Hypericum perforatum L. u istim koncentracijama pokazuju selektivnu inhibiciju samo na AChE. Ostali ekstrakti bili su nedjelotvorni. Rezultati ukazuju na potrebu daljnjih ispitivanja ekstrakata arnike, rute i gospine trave da se utvrdi koji su sastojci ekstrakata odgovorni za inhibiciju AChE i BuChE

Effects of beta-alanine supplementation on brain homocarnosine/carnosine signal and cognitive function: an exploratory study

Objectives: Two independent studies were conducted to examine the effects of 28 d of beta-alanine supplementation at 6.4 g d-1 on brain homocarnosine/carnosine signal in omnivores and vegetarians (Study 1) and on cognitive function before and after exercise in trained cyclists (Study 2). Methods: In Study 1, seven healthy vegetarians (3 women and 4 men) and seven age- and sex-matched omnivores undertook a brain 1H-MRS exam at baseline and after beta-alanine supplementation. In study 2, nineteen trained male cyclists completed four 20-Km cycling time trials (two pre supplementation and two post supplementation), with a battery of cognitive function tests (Stroop test, Sternberg paradigm, Rapid Visual Information Processing task) being performed before and after exercise on each occasion. Results: In Study 1, there were no within-group effects of beta-alanine supplementation on brain homocarnosine/carnosine signal in either vegetarians (p = 0.99) or omnivores (p = 0.27); nor was there any effect when data from both groups were pooled (p = 0.19). Similarly, there was no group by time interaction for brain homocarnosine/carnosine signal (p = 0.27). In study 2, exercise improved cognitive function across all tests (P0.05) of beta-alanine supplementation on response times or accuracy for the Stroop test, Sternberg paradigm or RVIP task at rest or after exercise. Conclusion: 28 d of beta-alanine supplementation at 6.4g d-1 appeared not to influence brain homocarnosine/ carnosine signal in either omnivores or vegetarians; nor did it influence cognitive function before or after exercise in trained cyclists

W+W- production and triple gauge boson couplings at LEP energies up to 183 GeV

A study of W-pair production in e+e- annihilations at Lep2 is presented, based on 877 W+W- candidates corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 57 pb-1 at sqrt(s) = 183 GeV. Assuming that the angular distributions of the W-pair production and decay, as well as their branching fractions, are described by the Standard Model, the W-pair production cross-section is measured to be 15.43 +- 0.61 (stat.) +- 0.26 (syst.) pb. Assuming lepton universality and combining with our results from lower centre-of-mass energies, the W branching fraction to hadrons is determined to be 67.9 +- 1.2 (stat.) +- 0.5 (syst.)%. The number of W-pair candidates and the angular distributions for each final state (qqlnu,qqqq,lnulnu) are used to determine the triple gauge boson couplings. After combining these values with our results from lower centre-of-mass energies we obtain D(kappa_g)=0.11+0.52-0.37, D(g^z_1)=0.01+0.13-0.12 and lambda=-0.10+0.13-0.12, where the errors include both statistical and systematic uncertainties and each coupling is determined setting the other two couplings to the Standard Model value. The fraction of W bosons produced with a longitudinal polarisation is measured to be 0.242+-0.091(stat.)+-0.023(syst.). All these measurements are consistent with the Standard Model expectations.Comment: 48 pages, LaTeX, including 13 eps or ps figures, submitted to European Physical Journal