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NIH-funded study finds overall rate of drug use among 10-14 year-olds remained stable during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic

Adolescents experiencing stress, mental health issues, and hardship most likely to use substances

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NIH/NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE

Repeated surveys of more than 7,800 people ages 10 to 14 conducted between September 2019 and August 2020 showed that the overall rate of drug use among these young adolescents remained relatively stable before and during the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, researchers detected shifts in the drugs used, with alcohol use declining and use of nicotine products and misuse of prescription medications increasing. Adolescents who experienced pandemic-related severe stress, depression, or anxiety, or whose families experienced material hardship during the pandemic, were most likely to use substances.

The study, which published today in the Journal of Adolescent Health, was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and nine other institutes, centers, and offices that are part of the National Institutes of Health. The analysis used data from the ongoing Adolescent Brain Cognitive DevelopmentSM (ABCD) Study, the largest long-term study of brain development and child health ever conducted in the United States. 

“The past year has been difficult, and adolescents have experienced a year of turmoil and stress in precarious space between childhood and adulthood. Recognizing how the stress of the past year translates into substance use has profound implications into adulthood, because drinking and drug use at these ages are associated with a substantially higher risk of long-term alcohol and drug use disorders and related harms,” said NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, M.D. “Because the ABCD Study had already been following this diverse, young population, researchers were able to make direct comparisons between trends in substance use before and during the pandemic, emphasizing the value of investing in long-term, collaborative research projects.”

Several studies previously determined that older adolescents’ substance use held steady or even declined during the pandemic. However, most of these analyses were done earlier in the pandemic, and no data existed on the pandemic’s influence on younger adolescents, particularly after an extended period of COVID-19–related disruptions of daily lives.

To fill this gap, the research team conducted three surveys in the six months following the initiation of stay-at-home orders—in May, June, and August 2020—with more than 7,800 ABCD Study participants ages 10 to 14 and their families participating in at least one survey. They assessed the adolescents’ use of alcohol, nicotine products, cannabis, and other drugs, misuse of prescription drugs, as well as numerous general and pandemic-related factors that could influence substance use.

The study found that overall substance use in this age group remained relatively stable across the three surveys and occurred infrequently. Across all three surveys, 8% of the adolescents reported any substance use in the past 30 days. Alcohol and nicotine use were most common (3.4% and 3.6% of the adolescents, respectively), whereas rates of misuse of prescription drugs and use of cannabis, inhalants, or other drugs were low (1.1% of adolescents or less). Most youth reported using only one substance and only on one to two days per month.

The researchers also found that youth stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms were all positively associated with the use of any substance, and that several pandemic-related factors increased adolescents’ likelihood of substance use. For example, youth who reported feeling “extreme” stress from the uncertainty associated with the pandemic were 2.4 times more likely to use any substance than youth who reported “very slight” stress.

For a subset of 1,079 participants, researchers were able to link assessments taken after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic to assessments that had been completed during the months immediately before the pandemic. Importantly, for this subsample of youth, the overall rate of drug use did not increase significantly after the beginning of the pandemic compared to before the pandemic.

However, shifts occurred in the types of substances used. Alcohol use decreased, shifting from 1.9% of youth reporting alcohol use in the past 30 days in the surveys taken before the pandemic, to only 0.7% in the first survey during the pandemic. Conversely, nicotine use and prescription drug misuse increased, with 0% of youth reporting use of nicotine or misuse of prescription drugs in the past 30 days in the surveys taken before the pandemic, compared to 1.5% and 0.7% respectively in the first survey during the pandemic.

“These data suggest substance use during the pandemic was concentrated among youth from the most vulnerable families, underscoring the need to provide support to those young people and their families,” said William E. Pelham, Ph.D., of the University of California, San Diego, who led the study. “But we should also look forward, beyond the 2020 data, to understand how alcohol and drug use will continue to evolve as people return to school and work. By continuing to follow these young people for five or six more years through the ABCD Study, we can help determine the pandemic’s full impact on America’s youth and care for their health and wellbeing.”

The authors note that the study does not directly test or explain why the changes in the drugs used occurred, and additional analyses are needed to determine the mechanisms underlying these trends. Earlier findings from a different study reported steady rates of substance use in older adolescents. Continued research to understand substance use trends during and following the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic are needed for all age groups and across demographics.

Reference: WE Pelham III, SF Tapert, MR Gonzalez, et al. Early adolescent substance use before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal survey in the ABCD Study cohort. Journal of Adolescent Health. DOI: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.06.015 (2021).

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About the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA): NIDA is a component of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA supports most of the world’s research on the health aspects of drug use and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to inform policy, improve practice, and advance addiction science. For more information about NIDA and its programs, visit www.nida.nih.gov.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

NIH…Turning Discovery Into Health®

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JOURNAL

Journal of Adolescent Health

DOI

10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.06.015 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Early adolescent substance use before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: A longitudinal survey in the ABCD Study cohort

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

24-Aug-2021

How adolescents used drugs during the COVID-19 pandemic

Alcohol use declined, (LESS SOCIALIZING) but use of nicotine and misuse of prescription drugs rose

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA - SAN DIEGO

The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in earnest in the United States in early 2020, affected different demographic groups in different ways. According to a new study, among adolescents ages 10 to 14 in the United State, the overall rate of drug use remained relatively stable in the first six months of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, one change was a decreased use of alcohol, but an increased use of nicotine and misuse of prescription drugs. 

The findings, publishing in the August 24, 2021 issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health, are derived from the ongoing Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study, the largest long-term study of brain development and child health ever conducted in the United States. 

“The COVID-19 pandemic has produced sustained disruptions to several domains of adolescents’ lives, including alcohol and drug use,” said first author William Pelham III, PhD, a postdoctoral scholar in the Center for Human Development at UC San Diego. “Thus, surveillance of adolescent substance use is an important public health priority.”

The ABCD study, which began in 2015 with central components and leadership from UC San Diego, is following almost 12,000 children for at least 10 years, starting at ages 9 to 10. Researchers will track the children’s biological and behavioral development through adolescence into young adulthood.

In the current paper, researchers monitored 7,842 adolescents and their families at 21 sites across the United States for six months following the first issuing of stay-at-home orders. In multiple surveys, the participants were asked to describe their substance use, including alcohol, tobacco and un-prescribed drugs.

Surveys also assessed youth’s intensity of worry about COVID-19 and measured related stressors, such as educational disruptions, loss of jobs or hardships within their families.

Survey responses were adjusted so that ABCD participants reflected the demographics of same-age youth across the United States. Substance use among surveyed adolescents was stable during the first six months of the pandemic: 8 percent reported using a substance in the past 30 days; 3.4 percent reported using alcohol; 3.6 percent reported using nicotine. 

Compared to pre-pandemic behavior, use of alcohol declined, but use of nicotine or misuse of prescription drugs increased, perhaps, suggested researchers, because the latter are easier to hide when families were locked down together. 

In families that experienced loss of income or material hardship during the pandemic, substance use among youth was higher. Heightened stress, depression and anxiety were all robustly associated with youth substance abuse.

“Taken together, these findings underscore the disproportionate burden of the pandemic on youth and families with pre-existing disadvantages,” said Pelham. “Providing material support to distressed families and linking emotionally distressed youth to support may serve as important risk-mitigation strategies, both today and during similar events in the future.” 

“Continued surveillance of adolescents’ alcohol and drug use as many adolescents return to their pre-pandemic routines will comprise an important public health priority and goal of the ABCD Study.”

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Co-authors of this study include: Susan F. Tapert, Marybel R. Gonzalez, Connor J. McCabe, Wesley K. Thompson, Natasha Wade and Sandra A. Brown, UC San Diego; Krista M. Lisdahl, University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee; Elisabet R. Alzueta and Fiona C. Baker, SRI International; Forence J. Breslin, Laureate Institute for Brain Research; Anthony Steven Dick, Florida International University; Gayathri J. Dowling and Elizabeth A. Hoffman, National Institute on Drug Abuse; Mathieu Guillaume, Bruce D. McCandliss and Amandine M. Van Rinsveld, Stanford University; Andrew T. Marshall and Elizabeth R. Sowell, University of Southern California; Chandni S. Sheth, University of Utah.

 

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JOURNAL

Journal of Adolescent Health

DOI

10.1016/j.jadohealth.2021.06.015 (2021) 

Stress from rising population numbers may cause a decline in human fertility

Peer-Reviewed Publication

THE ENDOCRINE SOCIETY

WASHINGTON—A predicted population drop at the end of the century could be explained by stress from meaningless social interactions, according to a review article published in the Endocrine Society’s journal, Endocrinology.

Researchers predict a peak in population numbers in 2064 followed by a 50% drop by the end of the century from changes in human reproductive behavior and function. There has been a 50% decrease in sperm counts over the last 50 years. People are stressed out from more frequent but less quality social interactions, and stress can supress sperm count, ovulation and sexual activity.

"Rising population numbers contribute to less meaningful social interactions, social withdrawal and chronic stress, which subsequently supresses reproduction,” said the manuscript’s author Alexander Suvorov, Ph.D., of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in Amherst, Mass. “Changes in reproductive behavior that contribute to the population drop include more young couples choosing to be ‘child-free,’ people having fewer children and couples waiting longer to start families.”

Suvorov found a connection between population numbers, stress and reproduction by reviewing several studies and asking the following questions:  

• Why do people refuse to have children when access to all vital resources is becoming better than humankind ever had?

• Why has there been a 50% decrease in sperm counts over the last 50 years?  

• Why are different forms of social withdrawal on rise?  

He hypothesized declining reproduction may be due to stress from less quality social interactions and changes in reproductive behavior such an increase in “child-free” couples and delayed parenthood.

“Numerous wildlife and laboratory studies demonstrated that population peaks are always followed by increased stress and suppressed reproduction,” said Suvorov. “This review provides evidence from multiple disciplines that the same mechanisms previously observed in wildlife species may work in humans as well.”

The manuscript received no external funding.

The manuscript, “Population Numbers and Reproductive Health,” was published online, ahead of print.

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Endocrinologists are at the core of solving the most pressing health problems of our time, from diabetes and obesity to infertility, bone health, and hormone-related cancers. The Endocrine Society is the world’s oldest and largest organization of scientists devoted to hormone research and physicians who care for people with hormone-related conditions.

The Society has more than 18,000 members, including scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in 122 countries. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at www.endocrine.org. Follow us on Twitter at @TheEndoSociety and @EndoMedia. 

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JOURNAL

Endocrinology

 

Research sheds new light on decreased performance under pressure

Peer-Reviewed Publication

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY

We’ve seen it play out in the sports world time and time again: a single action from a single player can make or break the outcome of the game. For decades, this idea of being unable to perform when it matters most, or choking under pressure, has earned notorious status among top athletes and others. New research from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh shows for the first time that this propensity is not unique to humans.

As part of the behavioral study recently published in PNAS, three Rhesus monkeys were trained to perform a challenging reaching task. Occasionally, a jackpot reward was offered, and when it was, performance declined, with up to 25% more failures. Subjects were also offered a drop of juice as a payoff. A closer analysis of reaching kinematics indicated that subjects decreased their performance, or choked, under pressure in part because they reached too cautiously on jackpot trials.

“Once the right parameters were dialed in and behavior stabilized, I was impressed by how robust the effect was,” explains Adam Smoulder, a graduate student at Carnegie Mellon and co-first author of the paper. “It didn’t seem to matter when that jackpot trial occurred, subjects’ performance ebbed and flowed according to the size of the potential payoff.”

Investigating the neural underpinnings of these findings is where the group is headed next. “In the recordings we captured from the subjects’ cerebral cortex, we’re seeing large changes in activity that come about as the reward changes,” explains Steve Chase, professor of biomedical engineering at Carnegie Mellon and the Neuroscience Institute. “This is fascinating, because the changes in the movement that differentiate between success and failure are really subtle. Now, we’re wrestling with how is that possible? How can there be massive changes in neural activity and really minimal changes in kinematics?”

The group’s research also demonstrates an important connection between sensory motor processing and emotional processing, historically believed to be unrelated systems.

“Our work opens the door for further exploration into the neuroscience of this phenomenon,” says Aaron Batista, professor of bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh. “The fact that nonhuman animals also choke under pressure suggests that this behavioral quirk is something our biological systems are just wired to do. We shouldn’t be beating ourselves up over it or blaming professional athletes because they choke under pressure. It's just something all brains do.”

The group’s work is ongoing and done in collaboration with the Center for Neural Basis of Cognition, a cross-university research and educational program between Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh that leverages each institution’s strengths to investigate the cognitive and neural mechanisms that give rise to biological intelligence and behavior. The PNAS paper was co-authored by Chase and Batista’s current and former graduate students, including co-first authors Adam Smoulder, Nick Pavlovsky and Patrick Marino, along with contributors Alan Degenhart and Nicole McClain.

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JOURNAL

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DOI

10.1073/pnas.2109643118 

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Monkeys exhibit a paradoxical decrease in performance in high-stakes scenarios

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

31-Aug-2021

Unveiling a century-old mystery: Where the Milky Way's cosmic rays come from

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NAGOYA UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: FIGURE 1. SCHEMATIC IMAGES OF GAMMA-RAY PRODUCTION FROM COSMIC-RAY PROTONS AND ELECTRONS. COSMIC-RAY PROTONS INTERACT WITH INTERSTELLAR PROTONS SUCH AS MOLECULAR AND ATOMIC HYDROGEN GAS. THE INTERACTION CREATES NEUTRAL PION THAT QUICKLY DECAYS INTO TWO GAMMA-RAY PHOTONS (HADRONIC PROCESS). COSMIC-RAY ELECTRONS ENERGIZE INTERSTELLAR PHOTONS (MAINLY COSMIC MICROWAVE BACKGROUND; CMB) INTO GAMMA-RAY ENERGY VIA INVERSE COMPTON SCATTERING (LEPTONIC PROCESS). view more 

CREDIT: ASTROPHYSICS LABORATORY, NAGOYA UNIVERSITY

Astronomers have succeeded for the first time in quantifying the proton and electron components of cosmic rays in a supernova remnant. At least 70% of the very-high-energy gamma rays emitted from cosmic rays are due to relativistic protons, according to the novel imaging analysis of radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray radiation. The acceleration site of protons, the main components of cosmic rays, has been a 100-year mystery in modern astrophysics, this is the first time that the amount of cosmic rays being produced in a supernova remnant has been quantitatively shown and is an epoch-making step in the elucidation of the origin of cosmic rays.

 

The origin of cosmic rays, the particles with the highest energy in the universe, has been a great mystery since their discovery in 1912. Because cosmic rays promote the chemical evolution of interstellar matter, understanding their origin is critical in understanding the evolution of our Galaxy. The cosmic rays are thought to be accelerated by supernova remnants (the after-effects of supernova explostions) in our Galaxy and traveled to the Earth at almost the speed of light. Recent progress in gamma-ray observations has revealed that many supernova remnants emit gamma-rays at teraelectronvolts (TeV) energies. If gamma rays are produced by protons, which are the main component of cosmic rays, then the supernova remnant origin of cosmic rays can be verified. However, gamma rays are also produced by electrons, it is necessary to determine whether the proton or electron origin is dominant, and to measure the ratio of the two contributions (see also Figure 1). The results of this study provide compelling evidence of gamma rays originating from the proton component, which is the main component of cosmic rays, and clarify that Galactic cosmic rays are produced by supernova remnants.

  

CAPTION

Figure 2. Maps of gamma-ray intensity Ng, interstellar gas density Np, and X-ray intensity Nx

CREDIT

Astrophysics Laboratory, Nagoya University

The originality of this research is that gamma-ray radiation is represented by a linear combination of proton and electron components. Astronomers knew a relation that the intensity of gamma-ray from protons is proportional to the interstellar gas density obtained by radio-line imaging observations. On the other hand, gamma-rays from electrons are also expected to be proportional to X-ray intensity from electrons. Therefore, they expressed the total gamma-ray intensity as the sum of two gamma-ray components, one from the proton origin and the other from the electron origin. This led to a unified understanding of three independent observables (Figure 2). This method was first proposed in this study. As a result, it was shown that gamma rays from protons and electrons account for 70% and 30% of the total gamma-rays, respectively. This is the first time that the two origins have been quantified. The results also demonstrate that gamma rays from protons are dominated in interstellar gas-rich regions, whereas gamma rays from electrons are enhanced in the gas-poor region. This confirms that the two mechanisms work together and supporting the predictions of previous theoretical studies.

  

CAPTION

Figure 3. Three-dimensional fitting of a flat plane expressed by an equation of Ng = a Np + b Nx, where a and b are constants. The data points are colored by the code in the figure according to Ng and are shown by filled and open symbols for those above and below the plane. The blue, green, yellow, and red represent Ng is less than 1.2 counts arcmin−2, 1.2–1.7 counts arcmin−2, 1.7–2.2 counts arcmin−2, and greater than 2.2 counts arcmin−2, respectively. The blue, green, orange, red, and purple dashed lines on the best-fit plane indicate 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, and 3.0 counts arcmin−2, respectively.

CREDIT

Astrophysics Laboratory, Nagoya University

“This novel method could not have been accomplished without international collaborations,” says Emeritus Professor Yasuo Fukui at Nagoya University. He led this project and has accurately quantified interstellar gas density distribution using the NANTEN radio telescope and Australia Telescope Compact Array since 2003. Although the gamma ray resolution was insufficient to perform a full analysis at that time, Professor Gavin Rowell and Dr. Sabrina Einecke of the University of Adelaide and the H.E.S.S. team dramatically improved the spatial resolution and sensitivity of gamma rays over the years, making it possible to compare them precisely with interstellar gas. Dr. Hidetoshi Sano of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan led the X-ray imaging analysis of archival datasets from the European X-ray satellite XMM-Newton. Dr. Einecke and Prof. Rowell worked closely with Prof. Fukui and Dr. Sano on making the detailed studies that examined the correlations across the gamma-ray, X-ray and radio emission. “This novel method will be applied to more supernova remnants using the next-generation gamma-ray telescope CTA (Cherenkov Telescope Array) in addition to the existing observatories, which will greatly advance the study of the origin of cosmic rays.”

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DOI

10.3847/1538-4357/abff4a 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Pursuing the Origin of the Gamma Rays in RX J1713.7−3946 Quantifying the Hadronic and Leptonic Components

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

8-Jul-2021

Cosmic rays may be key to understanding galactic dynamics

Speedy cosmic rays, originating from supernova remnants and pulsars, likely impact galactic dynamics and star formation far more than previously known

Peer-Reviewed Publication

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS

 

IMAGE: THIS ILLUSTRATION SHOWS HOW WAVES AND PARTICLES INTERACT -- WAVE AMPLITUDE IS GROWING WHILE PARTICLE DRIFT SPEED IS DROPPING DUE TO SCATTERING. view more 

CREDIT: A. MARCOWITH, A.J. VAN MARLE, AND I. PLOTNIKOV

WASHINGTON, August 24, 2021 -- Cosmic rays are charged subnuclear particles that move close to the speed of light, constantly raining down on the Earth. These particles are relativistic, as defined by Albert Einstein's special relativity, and manage to generate a magnetic field that controls the way they move within the galaxy.

Gas within the interstellar medium is composed of atoms, mostly hydrogen and mostly ionized, meaning its protons and electrons are separated. While moving around within this gas, cosmic rays kickstart the background protons, which causes a collective plasma wave movement akin to the ripples on a lake when you toss in a stone.

The big question is how cosmic rays deposit their momentum into the background plasma that composes the interstellar medium. In Physics of Plasmas, from AIP Publishing, plasma astrophysicists in France review recent developments within the field of studying the streaming instability triggered by cosmic rays within astrophysical and space plasma.

"Cosmic rays may help explain aspects of our galaxy from its smallest scales, such as protoplanetary disks and planets, to its largest scales, such as galactic winds," said Alexandre Marcowith, from the University of Montpellier.

Until now, cosmic rays were viewed as being a bit apart within galaxy "ecology." But because instability works well and is stronger than expected around cosmic ray sources, such as supernova remnants and pulsars, these particles likely have far more impacts on galactic dynamics and the star formation cycle than previously known.

"This is not really a surprise, but more of a paradigm shift," Marcowith said. "In science and astrophysics, everything is connected."

Supernova shock waves expanding the interstellar/intergalactic medium "are known to accelerate cosmic rays, and because cosmic rays are streaming away, they may have contributed to generating the magnetic field seeds necessary to explain the actual magnetic field strengths we observe around us," said Marcowith.

After the amplitude of a plasma wave is reduced or damped over time, much like those generated by a stone thrown into a lake, it heats the gas of the plasma. Meanwhile, it helps scatter cosmic rays.

For this to occur, the waves need wavelengths of the same order as the cosmic ray gyro radius. Cosmic rays possess a helical (spiral) motion around the magnetic field, and its radius is called the Larmor radius.

"Say you are driving a car on a winding road. If the wavelength is of the same order as your wheel size, it will be difficult to drive," said Marcowith.

Cosmic rays are strongly scattered by these waves, and the main instability at the origin of these perturbations (waves) is the streaming instability associated with the collective streaming motion of cosmic rays.

"There are several fields of research in astrophysics using similar numerical techniques to investigate the impact of this streaming instability within different astrophysical contexts such as supernova remnants and jets," said Marcowith. "This instability and turbulence it creates may be the source of many astrophysical phenomena, and it shows how cosmic rays play a role in the big circus of our Milky Way."

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The article "The cosmic-ray-driven streaming instability in astrophysical and space plasmas" is authored by A. Marcowith, A.J. van Marle, and I. Plotnikov. It will appear in Physics of Plasmas on Aug. 24, 2021 (DOI: 10.1063/5.0013662). After that date, it can be accessed at https://aip.scitation.org/doi/full/10.1063/5.0013662.

ABOUT THE JOURNAL

Physics of Plasmas is devoted to the publication of original experimental and theoretical research that significantly advances the field of plasma physics. The journal also features comprehensive reviews, advanced tutorials, and forward-looking perspectives. See https://aip.scitation.org/journal/php.

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JOURNAL

Physics of Plasmas

DOI

10.1063/5.0013662 

ARTICLE TITLE

The cosmic-ray-driven streaming instability in astrophysical and space plasmas

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

24-Aug-2021

Experiments Prove Quantum Computing Errors Correlated, Tied to Cosmic Rays

By LAWRENCE LIVERMORE NATIONAL LABORATORY AUGUST 23, 2021

In experiments performed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, researchers found that fluctuations in the electrical charge of multiple quantum bits, or “qubits,” can be highly correlated, as opposed to completely random and independent. The team also linked tiny error-causing perturbations in the qubits’ charge state to the absorption of cosmic rays. Credit: Illustration courtesy of UW-Madison

Research by a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) physicist and a host of collaborators is shedding new light on one of the major challenges to realizing the promise and potential of quantum computing — error correction.

In a new paper published in Nature and co-authored by LLNL physicist Jonathan DuBois, scientists examined quantum computing stability, particularly what causes errors and how quantum circuits react to them. This must be understood in order to build a functioning quantum system. Other co-authors included researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Google, Stanford University and international universities.

In experiments performed at UW-Madison, the research team characterized a quantum testbed device, finding that fluctuations in the electrical charge of multiple quantum bits, or “qubits” — the basic unit of a quantum computer — can be highly correlated, as opposed to completely random and independent. When a disruptive event occurs, such as a burst of energy coming from outside the system, it can affect every qubit in the vicinity of the event simultaneously, resulting in correlated errors that can span the entire system, the researchers found. Additionally, the team linked tiny error-causing perturbations in the qubits’ charge state to the absorption of cosmic rays, a finding that already is impacting how quantum computers are designed.

“For the most part, schemes designed to correct errors in quantum computers assume that the errors across qubits are uncorrelated — they’re random. Correlated errors are very difficult to correct,” said co-author DuBois, who heads LLNL’s Quantum Coherent Device Physics (QCDP) Group. “Essentially, what this paper is showing is that if a high-energy cosmic ray hits the device somewhere, it has the potential to affect everything in the device at once. Unless you can prevent that from happening you can’t perform error correction efficiently, and you’ll never be able to build a working system without that.”

Unlike bits found in classical computers, which can exist only in binary states — zeroes or ones — the qubits that make up a quantum computer can exist in superpositions. For a few hundred microseconds, data in a qubit can be either a one or zero before being projected into a classical binary state. Whereas bits are only susceptible to one type of error, under their temporary excited charge state, the delicate qubits are susceptible to two types of error, stemming from changes that can occur in the environment.

Charged impulses, even minute ones like those from cosmic rays absorbed by the system, can create a blast of (relatively) high-energy electrons that can heat up the quantum device’s substrate just long enough to disrupt the qubits and disturb their quantum states, the researchers found. When a particle impact occurs, it produces a wake of electrons in the device. These charged particles zoom through the materials in the device, scattering off atoms and producing high-energy vibrations and heat. This alters the electric field as well as the thermal and vibrational environment around the qubits, resulting in errors, DuBois explained.

“We’ve always known this was possible and a potential effect — one of many that can influence the behavior of a qubit,” DuBois added. “We even joked when we saw bad performance that maybe it’s because of cosmic rays. The significance of this research is that, given that sort of architecture, it puts some quantitative bounds on what you can expect in terms of performance for current device designs in the presence of environmental radiation.”

To view the disruptions, researchers sent radio frequency signals into a four qubit system and, by measuring their excitation spectrum and performing spectroscopy on them, were able to see the qubits “flip” from one quantum state to another, observing that they all shift in energy at the same time, in response to changes in the charge environment.

“If our model about particle impacts is correct, then we would expect that most of the energy is converted into vibrations in the chip that propagate over long distances,” said UW-Madison graduate student Chris Wilen, the paper’s lead author. “As the energy spreads, the disturbance would lead to qubit flips that are correlated across the entire chip.”

Using the method, researchers also examined the lifetimes of qubits — the length of time that qubits can remain in their superposition of both one and zero — and correlated changes in the charge state with a reduction in lifetime of all the qubits in the system.

The team concluded that quantum error correction will require development of mitigation strategies to protect quantum systems from correlated errors due to cosmic rays and other particle impacts.

“I think people have been approaching the problem of error correction in an overly optimistic way, blindly making the assumption that errors are not correlated,” said UW-Madison physics professor Robert McDermott, senior author on the study. “Our experiments show absolutely that errors are correlated, but as we identify problems and develop a deep physical understanding, we’re going to find ways to work around them.”

Though long theorized, DuBois said the team’s findings had never been experimentally proven in a multi-qubit device before. The results will likely impact future quantum system architecture, such as putting quantum computers behind lead shielding or underground, introducing heatsinks or dampers to quickly absorb energy and isolate qubits, and alter the types of materials used in quantum systems.

LLNL currently has a quantum computing testbed system, designed and built with funding from a Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Strategic Initiative that began in 2016. It is being developed with continued support by the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Advanced Simulation & Computing program and its Beyond Moore’s Law project.

In related follow-on work, DuBois and his team in the QCDP group are studying a quantum device that is significantly less sensitive to the charge environment. At the extreme cold temperatures required by quantum computers (systems are kept at temperatures colder than outer space), DuBois said researchers observe that thermal and coherent energy transport is qualitatively different from room temperature. For example, instead of diffusing, thermal energy can bounce around in the system like sound waves.

DuBois said he and his team are focused on understanding the dynamics of the “microscopic explosion” that occurs inside quantum computing devices when they interact with high energy particles and developing ways to absorb the energy before it can disrupt the delicate quantum states stored in the device.

“There are potentially ways to design the system so it’s as insensitive as possible to these kinds of events, and in order to do that you need to have a really good understanding of how it heats up, how it cools down and what exactly is happening through the whole process when exposed to background radiation,” DuBois said. “The physics of what’s going on is quite interesting. It’s a frontier, even aside from the quantum applications, because of the oddities of how energy is transported at those low temperatures. It makes it a physics challenge.”

DuBois has been working with the paper’s principal investigator McDermott (UW-Madison) and his group to develop ways to use qubits as detectors to measure charge bias, the method the team used in the paper to conduct their experiments.

Reference: “Correlated charge noise and relaxation errors in superconducting qubits” by C. D. Wilen, S. Abdullah, N. A. Kurinsky, C. Stanford, L. Cardani, G. D’Imperio, C. Tomei, L. Faoro, L. B. Ioffe, C. H. Liu, A. Opremcak, B. G. Christensen, J. L. DuBois and R. McDermott, 16 June 2021, Nature.
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03557-5

The featured work, including DuBois’ contribution, was funded by a collaborative grant between LLNL and UW-Madison from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.

The paper included co-authors from UW-Madison, the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics at the University of Chicago, Stanford University, INFN Sezione di Roma, Sorbonne Universite’s Laboratoire de Physique Theorique et Hautes Energies and Google.

PULLING A PUTIN

Philippines' Duterte to run for vice president, says party

Rodrigo Duterte is barred under the constitution from seeking another term as president 

LISA MARIE DAVID POOL/AFP

Issued on: 24/08/2021 - 

Manila (AFP)

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will run for vice president in next year's elections, his party said Tuesday, after months of speculation about whether he would seek to stay in power.

Duterte, who was elected to the top job in 2016 and is barred under the constitution from seeking another term, has previously flagged the possibility of contesting the country's second-highest office.

"President Rodrigo Roa Duterte agreed to make the sacrifice and heed the clamour of the people, and accepted the endorsement of the PDP Laban Party for him to run as vice president in the 2022 national elections," the party said in a statement.

The party is also expected to endorse Duterte's top aide, Senator Christopher Lawrence "Bong" Go, to be their presidential candidate.

Duterte has not said publicly yet that he will run, but PDP-Laban president Alfonso Cusi told AFP: "He confirmed he is running for VP in 2022."

The vice president and president are elected separately in the Philippines, with the former assuming the top job if the latter dies, becomes incapacitated, or resigns while in office.

During his term Duterte has waged a brutal war against drug users and dealers that rights groups say has killed tens of thousands of people.

International Criminal Court prosecutors are seeking to launch a full-blown investigation into the anti-narcotics crackdown, raising the stakes for next year's elections.

Duterte's daughter, Sara, is widely expected to contest the presidency and, if she were to win, could help protect her father from criminal charges.

Recent polls show the Davao city mayor -- the same position her father held before he took power -- with the most voter support.

Duterte told a meeting of party officials last month that he was "seriously thinking of running for vice president".

But he expressed concern that a political foe could win the presidency, rendering him useless for the next six years.

"The president that will win must be a friend of mine (with) whom I can work with," Duterte said.

The deadline for registering as a candidate for next year's elections is October 8. A sitting president has never before made a bid for the vice presidency in the Philippines.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque told reporters that Duterte would make a televised address later Tuesday where he is expected to discuss the PDP-Laban announcement.

© 2021 AFP

Japan and disability: will the Tokyo Paralympics bring change?



Issued on: 24/08/2021 -

Masaaki Suwa, a Japanese para-canoeist who missed the cut for the Tokyo Games, will be cheering for Japan's team on television Philip FONG AFP

Tokyo (AFP)

As the Paralympic Games begin, Japan's efforts to improve accessibility and inclusion are in the spotlight, with many arguing there is still plenty of work to do.

Some 4,400 athletes with impairments will compete in Tokyo at the world's biggest parasports tournament.

It's a place for sporting history, but also an event organisers say can change attitudes towards people with disabilities.

"It's a precious event," said Masaaki Suwa, a Japanese para-canoeist who missed the cut for the Tokyo Games but will be cheering for Japan's team on television.

"They are doing great things but they are not superhumans. I want people to know that they are human beings just like you," the 35-year-old told AFP.

It's a bittersweet moment for Suwa, who had hoped to compete in his hometown, but he's counting on other Paralympians to make an impact on Japanese society.

"I hope (the Paralympics) will be a springboard that allows people to live more closely alongside disabled people," said Suwa, who uses a wheelchair.

Disability rights experts and activists paint a mixed picture of the situation in Japan.

The Paralympics will feature 4,400 athletes from 162 teams Charly TRIBALLEAU AFP/File

There has been progress on barrier-free infrastructure, with officials calling accessibility important both for people with disabilities but also the country's large elderly population.

A barrier-free enforcement law has been revised twice in recent years to promote accessibility at public facilities.

- 'Marginal' change -

Particular efforts have been made in Tokyo's mammoth train system, with elevators operating at around 96 percent of stations as of 2019, the city government says.

By 2019, 82 percent of Tokyo subway stations also had platform gates to keep visually impaired passengers and others safe -- up from 56 percent in 2013.

New hotels with more than 50 rooms are also required to make at least one of every 100 barrier-free.

"In terms of the number of barrier-free facilities, Japan appears advanced," said Miki Matheson, deputy chief of Japan's Paralympic delegation.

But the three-time Paralympic gold medallist, who lives in Canada and is in Tokyo for the Games, says accessibility is not the same as inclusion.

Former Paralympian Miki Matheson says she is treated as a disabled person when in Japan, unlike at home in Canada 

Behrouz MEHRI AFP/File

"I'm often treated as a disabled person when I'm back in Japan," said Matheson, who uses a wheelchair.

"In Canada, I live without noticing my disability at all."

Activists say the workplace is an example of the barriers that remain.

Under government rules, workers with disabilities must make up at least 2.3 percent of staff at all companies. Larger firms face fines for non-compliance.

In 2018, the government was forced to apologise for routinely overstating the number of disabled people on its staff to meet quotas.

Motoaki Fujita, a sports sociology professor at Nihon Fukushi University and a parasports expert, says Japan has become more inclusive, "but the change is still marginal."

Some 57 percent of people surveyed by Fujita's team last year said they "certainly or somewhat" believe people with disabilities are weak and have difficulty living with non-disabled people.

That's only slightly less than the 61 percent who felt the same in a 2014 poll.

- Paralympic 'catalyst' -

Tokyo's Paralympics will take place with almost no spectators because of virus rules, which some fear could blunt its impact on Japanese society.

"The Paralympics is a very good chance to change people's thinking," said Shigeo Toda, head of a Tokyo-based research institute studying the lifestyles of people with disabilities.

"But we can't help but think that momentum could sag if people can't watch them in person," Toda said.

Saki Takakuwa, a Paralympic runner who competes with a prosthetic blade, worries about the spectator ban's effect.

"I know people will watch the Games on TV, but I wonder how they will respond," she told the Mainichi Shimbun daily.

Activists and experts say Japan has work to do on disability access and inclusion

 Charly TRIBALLEAU AFP

"Compared to past Games, it's difficult for me to have hope that people will feel something", added the 29-year-old, who is contesting her third Paralympics.

International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons admits the spectator ban is "a challenge," but argues broadcasts will reach billions around the world.

"The Games themselves are a catalyst," he told AFP.

"It's the moment when people see athletes in action, and that's when this change really occurs."

In Japan, he added, there is "still a lot of progress to be made."

"But we believe that we have started to see a change."

© 2021 AFP

Delta variant sends deaths soaring in remote French Polynesia

Issued on: 24/08/2021 - 

Extra beds set up in a hall to accommodate patients at the French Polynesia Taaone Hospital in Papeete

 Mike LEYRAL AFP

Papeete (AFP)

Covid infections are soaring in the sparsely populated Pacific territory of French Polynesia, with health authorities reporting 54 deaths from the virus over the weekend as the Delta variant spreads among a largely unvaccinated population.

More than 300 people have died from Covid-19 since the pandemic hit the remote archipelago -- home to 280,000 inhabitants. Over half of those deaths have come in the last three weeks.

The territory has so far recorded 7,591 infections, though the true figure is likely higher as most asymptomatic people are not being tested.

High rates of diabetes and obesity have made the population more vulnerable.

The territory's limited health care system has struggled to cope, with one major hospital setting up beds in hallways to handle the rising number of patients. Bodies have been loaded onto refrigerator trucks to relieve pressure on the overwhelmed morgue.

The Polynesian archipelago is now under a curfew and the Society Islands -- which include the largest island of Tahiti and other more densely populated areas -- are under lockdown.

But the rules, which allow for a modicum of economic activity, have been difficult to enforce.

The territory's president Edouard Fritch was forced to apologise after being spotted playing guitar at a wedding party attended by hundreds of maskless people in defiance of the regulations.

Schools have been closed for at least two weeks and efforts are being made to teach online but many underprivileged students do not have access to the internet.

The French government has voiced alarm about Covid-19 infection rates in its overseas territories.

© 2021 AFP

Road-trip surgeon brings hope of health to rural Cameroon

Issued on: 24/08/2021 - 

Mobile hospital: Georges Bwelle operates on an inmate with hernia at Nkongsamba prison in remote Cameroon 

Adrien MAROTTE AFP

Nkongsamba (Cameroon) (AFP)

"Are you feeling OK?" surgeon Georges Bwelle asks the prisoner lying on a makeshift bed.

He picks up his scissors and forceps and returns to operating on a small hernia.

The music playing in the room next door in the rural jail grows louder, and the doctor sings along.

During the week, Bwelle, 49, is a top doctor specialising in intestinal surgery at the main hospital in Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon.

At the weekend, though, he takes to the road.

He heads a lively team of volunteers who cram into a minibus and head out into remote areas -- a tiny mobile clinic that provides basic healthcare to those in need.

Today, his NGO, called ASCOVIME, has gone to the prison at Nkongsamba, a town lying in green hills about 350 kilometres (215 miles) northwest of Yaounde.

The team is welcomed by the prison administrator and an NGO called Agriculture for Africa, which is hosting the trip.

Every weekend, the ASCOVIME minibus heads out to a distant part of Cameroon, laden with medical gear and crammed with young doctors 

Adrien MAROTTE AFP

Today, almost 500 prisoners and their families will be examined.

A clean room is provided near the cells.

"It's perfect," says Bwelle.

Immediately, a chain of volunteers forms to bring in the equipment, transforming the room into a small field hospital, complete with departments for general medicine, ophthalmology, dentistry and even minor surgery.

The inmate, 35, emerges from the operating room, his hernia now fixed.

"Thank God I have been freed from this ailment -- the doctors looked after me," he says, clearly moved.

- Huge needs -

Bwelle's drive to help others can be traced to his childhood.

Born into a family of modest means, the young Bwelle saw his father's health deteriorate because of the lack of access to a specialist doctor following a road accident.

After his studies, Bwelle began to travel throughout his country.

"With the little money I had, I bought medicines and treated three or four people, then 10, then 100," he told AFP.

Little by little, a team of doctors with a panoply of skills gathered around him.

In 2008 he set up ASCOVIME, an acronym in French meaning Association of Skills for a Better Life.

Today, the NGO carries out about 40 missions a year, provides medical consultations to 40,000 people, carries out around 1,400 operations and gives school equipment to 20,000 children.

In Cameroon, a central African country of about 25 million people ruled for more than 38 years by Paul Biya, almost four people in 10 live below the poverty line and life expectancy is around 60.

Most of the time, ASCOVIME visits rural areas where health care is scarce and difficult to access, including two English-speaking regions plagued by separatist conflict, and the far north, affected by jihadist incursions by the Boko Haram group.

"In every village, there is at least one medical hut run by a nurse, often a Cameroonian government employee," he explains.

But the needs are almost limitless -- "the main problem is poverty and lack of equipment."

The most frequent medical complaints are malaria, joint pain and hernias -- diseases linked to working the land, says Bwelle.

- Volunteers' joy -

In a summer camp atmosphere, the bus -- its sides emblazoned with the English words "Local initiative to reduce people suffering" -- traces its route to the rhythm of traditional Cameroonian music.

Dressed in shorts and a navy blue sweatshirt, Bwelle, who also teaches at the University of Yaounde, adds his voice and claps his hands.

Consultation: ASCOVIME doctors talk to patients in Nkongsamba. Health services are sketchy and life expectancy is low in many parts of Cameroon

 Adrien MAROTTE AFP

He grabs his young proteges by the shoulder, tells jokes, and beams.

"It's a bit silly, but I love making people smile. And for me, that means treating those who need it," Bwelle says.

Emmanuella Mounjid, a sixth-year medical student, is one of the weekend volunteers.

"I am learning a lot about medicine. Specialist doctors come with us and answer our questions," she says.

"But the experience is the richest at the human level. There is nothing more beautiful than receiving a smile."

© 2021 AFP