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The goal of future quantum networks is to enable new internet applications that are impossible to achieve using only classical communication 1 , 2 – 3 . Up to now, demonstrations of quantum network applications 4 , 5 – 6 and functionalities 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 – 12 on quantum processors have been performed in ad hoc software that was specific to the experimental setup, programmed to perform one single task (the application experiment) directly into low-level control devices using expertise in experimental physics. Here we report on the design and implementation of an architecture capable of executing quantum network applications on quantum processors in platform-independent high-level software. We demonstrate the capability of the architecture to execute applications in high-level software by implementing it as a quantum network operating system—QNodeOS—and executing test programs, including a delegated computation from a client to a server 13 on two quantum network nodes based on nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centres in diamond 14 , 15 . We show how our architecture allows us to maximize the use of quantum network hardware by multitasking different applications. Our architecture can be used to execute programs on any quantum processor platform corresponding to our system model, which we illustrate by demonstrating an extra driver for QNodeOS for a trapped-ion quantum network node based on a single 40 Ca + atom 16 . Our architecture lays the groundwork for computer science research in quantum network programming and paves the way for the development of software that can bring quantum network technology to society. A new quantum operating system architecture is described that is capable of executing applications on quantum networks in high-level software, which is a step towards bringing quantum network technology to society.

Following the EUROfusion PPPT-programme action for an advanced modeling approach of deuteron-induced reaction cross sections, as well as specific data evaluations in addition of the TENDL files, an assessment of the details and corresponding outcome for the latter option of TALYS for the breakup model has been carried out. The breakup enhancement obtained in the meantime within computer code TALYS, by using the evaluated nucleon-induced reaction data of TENDL-2019, is particularly concerned. Discussion of the corresponding results, for deuteron-induced reactions on 58 Ni, 96 Zr, and 231 Pa target nuclei up to 200 MeV incident energy, includes limitations still existing with reference to the direct-reaction account.

ITER is of key importance in the European fusion roadmap as it aims to prove the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion as a future energy source. The EUROfusion consortium of labs within Europe is contributing to the preparation of ITER scientific exploitation and operation and aspires to exploit ITER outcomes in view of DEMO. The paper provides an overview of the major progress obtained recently, carried out in the frame of the new (initiated in 2021) EUROfusion work-package called ‘Preparation of ITER Operation’ (PrIO). The overview paper is directly supported by the eleven EUROfusion PrIO contributions given at the 29th Fusion Energy Conference (16–21 October 2023) London, UK [www.iaea.org/events/fec2023]. The paper covers the following topics: (i) development and validation of tools in support to ITER operation (plasma breakdown/burn-through with evolving plasma volume, new infra-red synthetic diagnostic for off-line analysis and wall monitoring using Artificial Intelligence techniques, synthetic diagnostics development, development and exploitation of multi-machine databases); (ii) R&D for the radio-frequency ITER neutral beam sources leading to long duration of negative deuterium/hydrogen ions current extraction at ELISE and participation in the neutral beam test facility with progress on the ITER source SPIDER, and, the commissioning of the 1 MV high voltage accelerator (MITICA) with lessons learned for ITER; (iii) validation of neutronic tools for ITER nuclear operation following the second JET deuterium–tritium experimental campaigns carried out in 2021 and in 2023 (neutron streaming and shutdown dose rate calculation, water activation and activated corrosion products with advanced fluid dynamic simulation; irradiation of several materials under 14.1 MeV neutron flux etc).

In the present study, we wanted to (1) evaluate whether high-sensitive troponin T levels correlate with the grade of renal insufficiency and (2) test the accuracy of high-sensitive troponin T determination in patients with renal insufficiency for diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). In this cross-sectional analysis, all patients who received serial measurements of high-sensitive troponin T from August 1, 2010, to October 31, 2012, at the Department of Emergency Medicine were included. We analyzed data on baseline characteristics, reason for referral, medication, cardiovascular risk factors, and outcome in terms of presence of AMI along with laboratory data (high-sensitive troponin T, creatinine). A total of 1,514 patients (67% male, aged 65 ± 16 years) were included, of which 382 patients (25%) had moderate to severe renal insufficiency and significantly higher levels of high-sensitive troponin T on admission (0.028 vs 0.009, p <0.0001). In patients without AMI, high-sensitive troponin T correlated inversely with the estimated glomerular filtration rate (R = −0.12, p <0.0001). Overall, sensitivity of an elevated high-sensitive troponin for diagnosis of AMI was 0.64 (0.56 to 0.71) and the specificity was 0.48 (0.45 to 0.51). The area under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic for all patients was 0.613 (standard error [SE] 0.023), whereas it was 0.741 (SE 0.029) for patients with a Modification of Diet in Renal Disease estimated glomerular filtration rate >60 ml/min presenting with acute chest pain or dyspnea and 0.535 (SE 0.056) for patients with moderate to severe renal insufficiency presenting with acute chest pain or dyspnea. In conclusion, the diagnostic accuracy for presence of AMI of a baseline measurement of high-sensitive troponin in patients with renal insufficiency was poor and resembles tossing a coin.

The point-of-care ultrasound exam has become an essential tool for hemodynamic monitoring and resuscitation in the trauma bay as well as the intensive care unit. Transthoracic ultrasound provides a dynamic assessment of cardiac function, volume status, and fluid responsiveness that offers potential advantage over traditional methods of hemodynamic monitoring. More recently, a focused transthoracic echocardiography exam was described to improve immediate resuscitation of severely injured patients in the trauma bay. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) for trauma could expand upon the role of focused echocardiography. TEE offers improved visualization of cardiac anatomy and physiology, improved diagnostic accuracy, and real-time assessment of intraoperative resuscitation progress, particularly in the operating room. This review discusses the fundamental principles of echocardiography as well as different ultrasound modes with their respective strengths and limitations. It reviews the current literature on the use of TEE in trauma, and suggests views for a trauma resuscitation transesophageal echocardiography exam (TREE), including sample images and videos. •Focused echocardiography provides dynamic assessment of cardiac function and volume status in critically ill patients•TEE provides assessment of cardiac function during surgery and allows for intraoperative monitoring of resuscitation•This review suggests a Trauma Resuscitation Transesophageal Echocardiography Exam (TREE) and provides sample images/videos

We report the first hybrid matter-photon implementation of verifiable blind quantum computing. We use a trapped-ion quantum server and a client-side photonic detection system networked via a fibre-optic quantum link. The availability of memory qubits and deterministic entangling gates enables interactive protocols without post-selection - key requirements for any scalable blind server, which previous realisations could not provide. We quantify the privacy at <~0.03 leaked classical bits per qubit. This experiment demonstrates a path to fully verified quantum computing in the cloud.

The aim of the study was to describe the prevalence, demographic, and clinical characteristics and etiologies of hypercalcemia in emergency department patients. In this retrospective cross-sectional descriptive study, all patients admitted between April 1, 2008, and March 31, 2011, to the emergency department of Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, were screened for the presence of hypercalcemia, defined as a serum calcium exceeding 2.55 mmol/L after correction for serum albumin. Demographic, laboratory, and outcome data were gathered. A detailed medical record review was performed to identify causes of hypercalcemia. During the study period, 14 984 patients (19% of all admitted patients) received a measurement of serum calcium. Of these, 116 patients (0.7%) presented with hypercalcemia. Median serum calcium was 2.72 mmol/L (first quartile, 2.64; third quartile, 2.88), with 4.3 mmol/L being the maximum serum calcium value observed. Underlying malignancy in 44% of patients and hyperparathyroidism in 20% (12% secondary and 8% primary) were the leading causes of hypercalcemia. Twenty-six percent of patients presented with symptomatic hypercalcemia. Weakness was the most common symptom of hypercalcemia, followed by nausea and disorientation. Hypercalcemia is a rare but harmful electrolyte disorder in emergency department patients. Unspecific symptoms such as a change in mental state, weakness, or gastrointestinal symptoms should prompt physicians to order serum calcium measurements, at least in patients with known malignancy or renal insufficiency.

The liver plays an important role in glucose metabolism, in terms of glucolysis and gluconeogenesis. Several studies have shown that hyperglycemia in patients with liver cirrhosis is associated with progression of the liver disease and increased mortality. However, no study has ever targeted the influence of hypoglycemia. The aim of this study was to assess the association of glucose disturbances with outcome in patients presenting to the emergency department with acute decompensated liver cirrhosis. Our retrospective data analysis comprised adult (≥16 years) patients admitted to our emergency department between January 1, 2002, and December 31, 2012, with the primary diagnosis of decompensated liver cirrhosis. A total of 312 patients were eligible for study inclusion. Two hundred thirty-one (74.0%) patients were male; 81 (26.0%) were female. The median age was 57 years (range, 51-65 years). Overall, 89 (28.5%) of our patients had acute glucose disturbances; 49 (15.7%) of our patients were hypoglycemic and 40 (12.8%) were hyperglycemic. Patients with hypoglycemia were significantly more often admitted to the intensive care unit than hyperglycemic patients (20.4% vs 10.8%, P < .015) or than normoglycemic patients (20.4% vs 10.3%, P < .011), and they significantly more often died in the hospital (28.6% hypoglycemic vs 7.5% hyperglycemic, P < .024; 28.6% hypoglycemic vs 10.3% normoglycemic P < .049). Survival analysis showed a significantly lower estimated survival for hypoglycemic patients (36 days) than for normoglycemic patients (54 days) or hyperglycemic patients (45 days; hypoglycemic vs hyperglycemic, P < .019; hypoglycemic vs normoglycemic, P < .007; hyperglycemic vs normoglycemic, P < .477). Hypoglycemia is associated with increased mortality in patients with acute decompensated liver cirrhosis. It is not yet clear whether hypoglycemia is jointly responsible for the increased short-term mortality of patients with acute decompensated liver cirrhosis or is only a consequence of the severity of the disease or the complications.

Peripheral tissue oxygen saturation (Sto2) has shown promise as an early indicator of tissue hypoperfusion and as a risk stratification tool in various forms of shock. The purpose of this study was to determine if Sto2 would predict admission to an intensive (ICU) or progressive care unit in patients with early signs of sepsis. In this prospective observational study, a rapid response team measured Sto2 levels in patients screening positive for sepsis. Using a logistic regression model, the value of Sto2 as a predictor for ICU admission within 72 hours of the initial assessment was determined. The 31 (47%) of 66 patients who required ICU admission within 72 hours of evaluation had a significantly lower Sto2 value (median, 78% vs 81%; P = .05). All patients with Sto2 less than 70% required ICU admission. A 1-point increase in Sto2 was associated with a 7% decrease in the odds of requiring ICU admission, and the area under the curve for Sto2 was 0.64 (0.51-0.77, P = .01). Low Sto2 levels in patients screening positive for sepsis are associated with an increased risk of ICU admission, but their reliability as a predictor is rather low. An Sto2 below 70% might be an interesting cutoff value for further study.

The Fusion Evaluated Nuclear Data Library (FENDL) is a comprehensive and validated collection of nuclear cross section data coordinated by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Nuclear Data Section (NDS). FENDL assembles the best nuclear data for fusion applications selected from available nuclear data libraries and has been under development for decades. FENDL contains sub-libraries for incident neutron, proton, and deuteron cross sections including general purpose and activation files used for particle transport and nuclide inventory calculations. We describe the history, selection of evaluations for the various sub-libraries (neutron, proton, deuteron) with the focus on transport and reactor dosimetry applications, the processing of the nuclear data for application codes, and the development of the TENDL-2017 library which is the currently recommended activation library for FENDL. We briefly describe the IAEA IRDFF library as the recommended library for dosimetry fusion applications. We also present work on validation of the neutron sub-library using a variety of fusion relevant computational and experimental benchmarks. A variety of cross section libraries are used for the validation work including FENDL-2.1, FENDL-3.1d, FENDL-3.2, ENDF/B-VIII.0, and JEFF-3.2 with the emphasis on the FENDL libraries. The results of the experimental validation showed that the performance of FENDL-3.2b is at least as good and in most cases better than FENDL-2.1. Future work will consider improved evaluations developed by the International Nuclear Data Evaluation Network (INDEN). Additional work will be needed to investigate differences in gas production in structural materials. Covariance matrices need to be updated to support the development of fusion technology. Additional validation work for high-energy neutrons, protons and deuterons, and the activation library will be needed.