Dysmenorrhea.

A quantum computer (QC) can operate in parallel on all its possible inputs at once, but the amount of information that can be extracted from the result is limited by the phenomenon of wave function collapse. We present a new computational model, which differs from a QC only in that the result of a measurement is the expectation value of the observable, rather than a random eigenvalue thereof. Such an expectation value QC can solve nondeterministic polynomial-time complete problems in polynomial time. This observation is significant precisely because the computational model can be realized, to a certain extent, by NMR spectroscopy on macroscopic ensembles of quantum spins, namely molecules in a test tube. This is made possible by identifying a manifold of statistical spin states, called pseudo-pure states, the mathematical description of which is isomorphic to that of an isolated spin system. The result is a novel NMR computer that can be programmed much like a QC, but in other respects more closely resembles a DNA computer. Most notably, when applied to intractable combinatorial problems, an NMR computer can use an amount of sample, rather than time, which grows exponentially with the size of the problem. Although NMR computers will be limited by current technology to exhaustive searches over only 15 to 20 bits, searches over as much as 50 bits are in principle possible, and more advanced algorithms could greatly extend the range of applicability of such machines.

Chemical Phenomena↗

PubMed1997

Solid-phase microextraction of organophosphorus pesticides from water.

Frequent occurrences of pollution in natural drainage by industrial chemicals, especially pesticides, have triggered interest in the development of fast and unambiguous analytical techniques to verify these pollutants in order to facilitate rapid remedial actions. In this work, we report the development of a solid-phase microextraction (SPME) method to analyse two common industrial pesticides in water, i.e. malathion and parathion. SPME analysis facilitates direct analysis of chemical species in aqueous systems and avoids lengthy sample preparation procedures. In this study, we compare five commercially available fibres: 7 microns polydimethylsiloxane, 30 microns polydimethylsiloxane. 85 microns polyacrylate, 65 microns Carbowax-divinylbenzene and 65 microns polydimethylsiloxane-divinylbenzene fibres. Profiles of uptake by the fibres against adsorption times were established. The results obtained indicated that the polarity of the fibres is not the main factor affecting the uptake. The structures of the fibres also affected the permeation of the analytes onto the fibres. The limits of detection were determined to be in the low ppb level with a flame ionization detector. These methods have great potential for use in rapid on-site analytical work which is highly demanded in environmental studies.

Chemical Phenomena↗