Cesium adsorption/desorption experiments for various clay minerals, considering actual contamination conditions in Fukushima, were conducted using the (137)Cs radioisotope and an autoradiography ...using imaging plates (IPs). A 50 μl solution containing 0.185 ~ 1.85 Bq of (137)Cs (10(-11) ~ 10(-9 )molL(-1) of (137)Cs) was dropped onto a substrate where various mineral particles were arranged. It was found that partially-vermiculitized biotite, which is termed "weathered biotite" (WB) in this study, from Fukushima sorbed (137)Cs far more than the other clay minerals (fresh biotite, illite, smectite, kaolinite, halloysite, allophane, imogolite) on the same substrate. When WB was absent on the substrate, the amount of (137)Cs sorbed to the other clay minerals was considerably increased, implying that selective sorption to WB caused depletion of radiocesium in the solution and less sorption to the coexisting minerals. Cs-sorption to WB continued for about one day, whereas that to ferruginous smectite was completed within one hour. The sorbed (137)Cs in WB was hardly leached with hydrochloric acid at pH 1, particularly in samples with a longer sorption time. The presence/absence of WB sorbing radiocesium is a key factor affecting the dynamics and fate of radiocesium in Fukushima.
The variational quantum eigensolver (VQE), a variational algorithm to obtain an approximated ground state of a given Hamiltonian, is an appealing application of near-term quantum computers. To extend ...the framework to excited states, we here propose an algorithm, the subspace-search variational quantum eigensolver (SSVQE). This algorithm searches a low-energy subspace by supplying orthogonal input states to the variational ansatz and relies on the unitarity of transformations to ensure the orthogonality of the output states. The kth excited state is obtained as the highest-energy state in the low-energy subspace. The proposed algorithm consists only of two parameter optimization procedures and does not employ any ancilla qubits. The avoidance of the estimation of the inner product and the small number of procedures required are considerable improvements from the existing proposals for excited states, making our proposal an improved near-term quantum algorithm. We further generalize the SSVQE to obtain all excited states up to the kth by only a single optimization procedure. From numerical simulations, we verify the proposed algorithms. This work extends the applicable domain of the VQE to excited states and their related properties as a transition amplitude without sacrificing any of its feasibility. Moreover, the proposed variational subspace search, which generalizes the state search problem to the search of a unitary mapping to a specific subspace, itself would be useful for various quantum information processing methods such as finding a protected subspace or a good variational quantum error correction code.
We propose a sequential minimal optimization method for quantum-classical hybrid algorithms, which converges faster, robust against statistical error, and hyperparameter-free. Specifically, the ...optimization problem of the parameterized quantum circuits is divided into solvable subproblems by considering only a subset of the parameters. In fact, if we choose a single parameter, the cost function becomes a simple sine curve with period 2π, and hence we can exactly minimize with respect to the chosen parameter. Furthermore, even in general cases, the cost function is given by a simple sum of trigonometric functions with certain periods and hence can be minimized by using a classical computer. By repeatedly performing this procedure, we can optimize the parameterized quantum circuits so that the cost function becomes as small as possible. We perform numerical simulations and compare the proposed method with existing gradient-free and gradient-based optimization algorithms. We find that the proposed method substantially outperforms the existing optimization algorithms and converges to a solution almost independent of the initial choice of the parameters. This accelerates almost all quantum-classical hybrid algorithms readily and would be a key tool for harnessing near-term quantum devices.
Summary
Background In previous studies, etanercept significantly improved plaque psoriasis and was well tolerated.
Objectives To examine further the efficacy and safety of etanercept and to assess ...maintenance of treatment effect after dose reduction of etanercept.
Methods In this multicentre 24‐week study in the U.S.A., Canada and Western Europe, patients were at least 18 years old; had active, clinically stable plaque psoriasis involving at least 10% of body surface area; had a minimum Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) of 10 at screening; and had received or were a candidate to receive systemic psoriasis therapy or phototherapy. During the first 12 weeks of the study, patients were randomly assigned to receive by subcutaneous injection etanercept twice weekly (BIW) at a dose of 50 mg or 25 mg, or placebo BIW in a double‐blind fashion. During the second 12 weeks, all patients received etanercept 25 mg BIW. The primary endpoint was a 75% or greater improvement from baseline in PASI (PASI 75) at 12 weeks.
Results Five hundred and eighty‐three subjects were randomized and received at least one dose of study drug. At week 12, a PASI 75 was achieved by 49% of patients in the etanercept 50 mg BIW group, 34% in the 25 mg BIW group, and 3% in the placebo group (P < 0·0001 for each etanercept group compared with placebo). At week 24 (after 12 weeks of open‐label 25 mg etanercept BIW), a PASI 75 was achieved by 54% of patients whose dose was reduced from 50 mg BIW to 25 mg BIW, by 45% of patients in the continuous 25 mg BIW group, and by 28% in the group that received placebo followed by etanercept 25 mg BIW. Etanercept was well tolerated throughout the study.
Conclusions Etanercept provided clinically meaningful benefit to patients with chronic plaque psoriasis, with no apparent decrease in efficacy after dose reduction.
Immediately after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident, a team of 40–50 researchers at the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences at the University of Tokyo began to analyze the ...behavior of radioactive materials in the fallout regions. The fallout has remained in situ and become strongly adsorbed within the soil over time. 137Cs was found to bind strongly to the fine clay, weathered biotite, and organic matter in the soil; therefore, it has not mobilized from mountainous regions, even after heavy rainfall. In farmland, the quantity of 137Cs in the soil absorbed by crop plants was small. The downward migration of 137Cs in soil is now estimated at 1–2 mm/year. The intake of 137Cs by trees occurred through the bark and not from the roots. This report summarizes the findings of research across a wide variety of agricultural specialties.
This open access book presents the findings from on-site research into radioactive cesium contamination in various agricultural systems affected by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident ...in March 2011. This fourth volume in the series reports on studies undertaken at contaminated sites such as farmland and forests, focusing on soil, water, mountain, agricultural products, and animals. It also provides additional data collected in the subsequent years to show how the radioactivity levels in agricultural products and their growing environments have changed with time and the route by which radioactive materials entered agricultural products as well as their movement between different components (e.g., soil, water, and trees) within an environmental system (e.g., forests). The book covers various topics, including radioactivity testing of food products; decontamination trials for rice and livestock production; the state of contamination in, trees, mushrooms, and timber; the dynamics of radioactivity distribution in paddy fields and upland forests; damage incurred by the forestry and fishery industries; and the change in consumers’ attitudes. In the series of this book, a real-time radioisotope imaging system has been introduced, a pioneering technique to visualize the movement of cesium in soil and in plants. This is the only book to provide systematic data on the actual change of radioactivity, which is of great value to all researchers who wish to understand the effect of radioactive fallout on agriculture. In addition, it helps the general public better understand radio-contamination issues in the environment. The project is ongoing; the research groups from the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences of The University of Tokyo continue their work in the field further to evaluate the long-term effects of the Fukushima accident.
BACKGROUND: The Japan Geriatrics Society published a guideline on the decision-making process for health care for the elderly in June 2012, noting that withholding or withdrawing feeding tubes are ...treatment options that should be discussed during the decision-making process. Arguments against the guideline posit that the insertion of a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube feeding may improve quality of life (QOL) for elderly adults and their relatives. OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to explore (a) expected outcomes with PEG tube placement and (b) outcomes from PEG tube feeding in long-term care settings among elderly adults with advanced dementia in Japan. DESIGN: This study was conducted using a cross-sectional study design. SETTING: A total of 381 hospitals and 985 long-term care facilities provided sets of completed questionnaires. PARTICIPANTS: There were 1 199 hospital patients and 2 160 long-term care patients aged 65 years or older with PEG tube placement included in the analysis. MEASUREMENTS: The nurses or physicians at each hospital provided information on the level of dementia at the time of PEG tube placement and on the expected outcomes of PEG tube feeding for elderly hospital patients. The nurses or other direct care workers at each facility provided information on the level of dementia and outcomes from PEG tube feeding for the long-term care patients. RESULTS: In the hospital patient group, 62.9% of patients had advanced dementia. PEG tube feeding was expected to prolong survival for 51.1% of hospital patients with advanced dementia. Improved QOL was expected for 39.1% of them. In the long-term care patient group, 61.7% of patients had advanced dementia. The rate of patients enjoying their own lives was lower in long-term care patients who had advanced dementia (4.2%) than in the other patients (16.4%). Approximately 60% of relatives reported satisfaction with the QOL of the patients, both in the long-term care patients with advanced dementia and the other patients. CONCLUSION: Our results question the assumption that PEG tube feeding may improve QOL among elderly adults with advanced dementia. The national health policy should explore an approach to help patients, relatives, and practitioners make decisions about feeding options.
We summarize the inspections of radiocesium concentration levels in rice produced in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan, for 3 years from the nuclear accident in 2011. In 2011, three types of verifications, ...preliminary survey, main inspection, and emergency survey, revealed that rice with radiocesium concentration levels over 500 Bq/kg (the provisional regulation level until March 2012 in Japan) was identified in the areas north and west of the Fukushima nuclear power plant. The internal exposure of an average adult eating rice grown in the area north of the nuclear plant was estimated as 0.05 mSv/year. In 2012, Fukushima Prefecture authorities decided to investigate the radiocesium concentration levels in all rice using custom-made belt conveyor testers. Notably, rice with radiocesium concentration levels over 100 Bq/kg (the new standard since April 2012 in Japan) were detected in only 71 and 28 bags out of the total 10,338,000 in 2012 and 11,001,000 in 2013, respectively. We considered that there were almost no rice exceeding 100 Bq/kg produced in Fukushima Prefecture after 3 years from the nuclear accident, and the safety of Fukushima's rice were ensured because of the investigation of all rice.
Antisense transcription (transcription from the opposite strand to a protein-coding or sense strand) has been ascribed roles in gene regulation involving degradation of the corresponding sense ...transcripts (RNA interference), as well as gene silencing at the chromatin level. Global transcriptome analysis provides evidence that a large proportion of the genome can produce transcripts from both strands, and that antisense transcripts commonly link neighboring "genes" in complex loci into chains of linked transcriptional units. Expression profiling reveals frequent concordant regulation of sense/antisense pairs. We present experimental evidence that perturbation of an antisense RNA can alter the expression of sense messenger RNAs, suggesting that antisense transcription contributes to control of transcriptional outputs in mammals.
The formation of the Ontong Java Nui super oceanic plateau (OJN), which is based on the model that the submarine Ontong Java Plateau (OJP), Manihiki Plateau (MP), and Hikurangi Plateau (HP) were once ...its contiguous fragments, could have been the largest globally consequential volcanic event in Earth's history. This OJN hypothesis has been debated given the paucity of evidence, for example, the differences in crustal thickness, the compositional gap between MP and OJP basalts and the apparent older age of both plateaus relative to HP remain unresolved. Here we investigate the geochemical and
Ar-
Ar ages of dredged rocks recovered from the OJP's eastern margin. Volcanic rocks having compositions that match the low-Ti MP basalts are reported for the first time on the OJP and new ~ 96-116 Ma and 67-68 Ma
Ar-
Ar age data bridge the temporal gap between OJP and HP. These results provide new evidence for the Ontong Java Nui hypothesis and a framework for an integrated tectonomagmatic evolution of the OJP, MP, and HP. The isotopic data imply four mantle components in the source of OJN that are also expressed in present-day Pacific hotspots sources, indicating origin from (and longevity of) the Pacific Large Low Shear-wave Velocity Province.
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