  Specific Emitter Identification is the association of a received signal to a
unique emitter, and is made possible by the naturally occurring and
unintentional characteristics an emitter imparts onto each transmission, known
as its radio frequency fingerprint. This work presents an approach for
identifying emitters using Convolutional Neural Networks to estimate the IQ
imbalance parameters of each emitter, using only raw IQ data as input. Because
an emitter's IQ imbalance parameters will not change as it changes modulation
schemes, the proposed approach has the ability to track emitters, even as they
change modulation scheme. The performance of the developed approach is
evaluated using simulated quadrature amplitude modulation and phase-shift
keying signals, and the impact of signal-to-noise ratio, imbalance value, and
modulation scheme are considered. Further, the developed approach is shown to
outperform a comparable feature-based approach, while making fewer assumptions
and using less data.


  Entropy regularization is commonly used to improve policy optimization in
reinforcement learning. It is believed to help with \emph{exploration} by
encouraging the selection of more stochastic policies. In this work, we analyze
this claim using new visualizations of the optimization landscape based on
randomly perturbing the loss function. We first show that even with access to
the exact gradient, policy optimization is difficult due to the geometry of the
objective function. Then, we qualitatively show that in some environments, a
policy with higher entropy can make the optimization landscape smoother,
thereby connecting local optima and enabling the use of larger learning rates.
This paper presents new tools for understanding the optimization landscape,
shows that policy entropy serves as a regularizer, and highlights the challenge
of designing general-purpose policy optimization algorithms.


  The fragmentation dynamics of 2,6- and 3,5-difluoroiodobenzene after iodine
4$d$ inner-shell photoionization with soft X-rays are studied using coincident
electron and ion momentum imaging. By analyzing the momentum correlation
between iodine and fluorine cations in three-fold ion coincidence events, we
can distinguish the two isomers experimentally. Classical Coulomb explosion
simulations are in overall agreement with the experimentally determined
fragment ion kinetic energies and momentum correlations and point toward
different fragmentation mechanisms and time scales. While most three-body
fragmentation channels show clear evidence for sequential fragmentation on a
time scale larger than the rotational period of the fragments, the breakup into
iodine and fluorine cations and a third charged co-fragment appears to occur
within a few hundred femtoseconds -- a time scale larger than the rotational
period of the fragments, the breakup in other channels appears to occur within
a few hundred femtoseconds.


  An extended version of the non linear Walecka model, with rho mesons and
eletromagnetic field is used to investigate the possibility of phase
transitions in hot (warm) nuclear matter, giving rise to droplet formation.
Surface properties of asymmetric nuclear matter as the droplet surface energy
and its thickness are also examined.


  We present software that, in only a few hours, transcribes forty hours of
recorded speech in a surprise language, using only a few tens of megabytes of
noisy text in that language, and a zero-resource grapheme to phoneme (G2P)
table. A pretrained acoustic model maps acoustic features to phonemes; a
reversed G2P maps these to graphemes; then a language model maps these to a
most-likely grapheme sequence, i.e., a transcription. This software has worked
successfully with corpora in Arabic, Assam, Kinyarwanda, Russian, Sinhalese,
Swahili, Tagalog, and Tamil.


  A major challenge in the investigation of all 2D materials is the development
of synthesis protocols and tools which would enable their large-scale
production and effective manipulation. The same holds for borophene, where
experiments are still largely limited to in situ characterizations of
small-area samples. In contrast, our work is based on millimeter-sized
borophene sheets, synthesized on an Ir(111) surface in ultrahigh vacuum.
Besides high-quality macroscopic synthesis, as confirmed by low-energy electron
diffraction (LEED) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), we also demonstrate a
successful transfer of borophene from Ir to a Si wafer via electrochemical
delamination process. Comparative Raman spectroscopy, in combination with the
density functional theory (DFT) calculations, proved that borophene's crystal
structure has been preserved in the transfer. Our results demonstrate
successful growth and manipulation of large-scale, single-layer borophene
sheets with minor defects and ambient stability, thus expediting borophene
implementation into more complex systems and devices.


  We show that the property of being rationally $K$-stable passes from the
fibers of a continuous $C(X)$-algebra to the ambient algebra, under the
assumption that the underlying space $X$ is compact, metrizable, and of finite
covering dimension. As an application, we show that a crossed product
C*-algebra is (rationally) $K$-stable provided the underlying C*-algebra is
(rationally) $K$-stable, and the action has finite Rokhlin dimension with
commuting towers.


  By investigating the benefits and shortcomings of the existing form of
continuous defect theory (CDT) and using recent advancements in size-dependent
continuum mechanics, we develop a fully coherent theoretical framework, denoted
as Consistent Continuous Defect Theory (C-CDT). Among several important
potential applications, C-CDT may provide a proper foundation to study the
continuum theory of crystal plasticity. The development presented here includes
an examination of the character of the bend-twist tensor, Weingarten's theorem,
Burgers and Frank vectors, continuous dislocation and disclination density
tensors, and the dualism between geometry and statics of CDT based on couple
stress theory (CST). Then, by using Consistent Couple Stress Theory (C-CST),
the new C-CDT is derived in a totally systematic manner. In this development,
the geometry of C-CDT is dual to the statics formulation in C-CST. Previously,
the fundamental step in the creation of C-CST was recognizing the
skew-symmetric character of the couple-stress tensor, which requires the
skew-symmetrical part of the bend-twist tensor to be the additional measure of
deformation in size-dependent continuum mechanics. Via Weingarten's theorem and
arguments from C-CST, we establish that in defect theory the dislocation
density tensor must be skew-symmetric and thus can be represented by an
equivalent dislocation density vector. In addition, we investigate the
character of a classical version of C-CDT with unexpected consequences. For
full consistency, there can be no continuous dislocation density tensor within
classical continuum mechanics, and the continuous disclination density tensor
becomes symmetric. This clearly is analogous to the absence of couple-stresses
and the symmetry of force-stresses in classical continuum mechanics.


  A set of key properties for an ideal dissipation scheme in gyrokinetic
simulations is proposed, and implementation of a model collision operator
satisfying these properties is described. This operator is based on the exact
linearized test-particle collision operator, with approximations to the
field-particle terms that preserve conservation laws and an H-Theorem. It
includes energy diffusion, pitch-angle scattering, and finite Larmor radius
effects corresponding to classical (real-space) diffusion. The numerical
implementation in the continuum gyrokinetic code GS2 is fully implicit and
guarantees exact satisfaction of conservation properties. Numerical results are
presented showing that the correct physics is captured over the entire range of
collisionalities, from the collisionless to the strongly collisional regimes,
without recourse to artificial dissipation.


  Human disease diagnosis is a complicated process and requires high level of
expertise. Any attempt of developing a web-based expert system dealing with
human disease diagnosis has to overcome various difficulties. This paper
describes a project work aiming to develop a web-based fuzzy expert system for
diagnosing human diseases. Now a days fuzzy systems are being used successfully
in an increasing number of application areas; they use linguistic rules to
describe systems. This research project focuses on the research and development
of a web-based clinical tool designed to improve the quality of the exchange of
health information between health care professionals and patients.
Practitioners can also use this web-based tool to corroborate diagnosis. The
proposed system is experimented on various scenarios in order to evaluate it's
performance. In all the cases, proposed system exhibits satisfactory results.


  We consider barotropic motions described by the compressible Navier-Stokes
equations in a box with periodic boundary conditions. We are looking for
density $\varrho$ in the form $\varrho=a+\eta$, where $a$ is a constant and
$\eta|_{t=0}$ is sufficiently small in $H^2$-norm. We assume existence of
potentials $\varphi$ and $\psi$ such that $v=\nabla\varphi+\mathrm{rot}\psi$.
Next we assume that $\nabla\varphi|_{t=0}$ is sufficiently small in $H^2$-norm
too. Finally, we assume that the second viscosity coefficient $\nu$ is
sufficiently large. Then we prove long time existence of solutions such that
$v\in L_\infty(0,T;H^2(\Omega))\cap L_2(0,T;H^3(\Omega))$, $v_{,t}\in
L_\infty(0,T;H^1(\Omega))\cap L_2(0,T;H^2(\Omega))$, where the existence time
$T$ is proportional to $\nu$. Next for $T$ sufficiently large we obtain that
$v(T)$ is correspondingly small so global existence is proved using the methods
appropriate for problems with small data.


  We derive the asymptotic expansions of the wave function of three particles
having equal mass with finite-range interactions and infinite or zero
two-dimensional scattering length colliding at zero energy and zero orbital
angular momentum, from which a three-body parameter $D$ is defined. The
dimension of $D$ is length squared, and we call $D$ three-body scattering area.
We find that the ground state energy per particle of a zero-temperature dilute
Bose gas with these interactions is approximately $\frac{\hbar^2 D
}{6m}\rho^2$, where $\rho$ is the number density of the bosons, $m$ is the mass
of each boson, and $\hbar$ is Planck's constant over $2\pi$. Such a Bose gas is
stable at $D\geq 0$ in the thermodynamic limit, and metastable at $D<0$ in the
harmonic trap if the number of bosons is less than $N_{cr}\approx 3.6413
\sqrt{\frac{\hbar}{m\omega |D|}}$, where $\omega$ is the angular frequency of
the harmonic trap. If the two-body interaction supports bound states, $D$
typically acquires a negative imaginary part, and we find the relation between
this imaginary part and the amplitudes of the pair-boson production processes.
We derive a formula for the three-body recombination rate constant of the
many-boson system in terms of the imaginary part of $D$.


  Objective: To determine if a realistic, but computationally efficient model
of the electrocardiogram can be used to pre-train a deep neural network (DNN)
with a wide range of morphologies and abnormalities specific to a given
condition - T-wave Alternans (TWA) as a result of Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder, or PTSD - and significantly boost performance on a small database of
rare individuals.
  Approach: Using a previously validated artificial ECG model, we generated
180,000 artificial ECGs with or without significant TWA, with varying heart
rate, breathing rate, TWA amplitude, and ECG morphology. A DNN, trained on over
70,000 patients to classify 25 different rhythms, was modified the output layer
to a binary class (TWA or no-TWA, or equivalently, PTSD or no-PTSD), and
transfer learning was performed on the artificial ECG. In a final transfer
learning step, the DNN was trained and cross-validated on ECG from 12 PTSD and
24 controls for all combinations of using the three databases.
  Main results: The best performing approach (AUROC = 0.77, Accuracy = 0.72,
F1-score = 0.64) was found by performing both transfer learning steps, using
the pre-trained arrhythmia DNN, the artificial data and the real PTSD-related
ECG data. Removing the artificial data from training led to the largest drop in
performance. Removing the arrhythmia data from training provided a modest, but
significant, drop in performance. The final model showed no significant drop in
performance on the artificial data, indicating no overfitting.
  Significance: In healthcare, it is common to only have a small collection of
high-quality data and labels, or a larger database with much lower quality (and
less relevant) labels. The paradigm presented here, involving model-based
performance boosting, provides a solution through transfer learning on a large
realistic artificial database, and a partially relevant real database.


  The spectrum of the infinite dimensional Neumann matrices M^{11}, M^{12} and
M^{21} in the oscillator construction of the three-string vertex determines key
properties of the star product and of wedge and sliver states. We study the
spectrum of eigenvalues and eigenvectors of these matrices using the derivation
K_1 = L_1 + L_{-1} of the star algebra, which defines a simple infinite matrix
commuting with the Neumann matrices. By an exact calculation of the spectrum of
K_1, and by consideration of an operator generating wedge states, we are able
to find analytic expressions for the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the
Neumann matrices and for the spectral density. The spectrum of M^{11} is
continuous in the range [-1/3, 0) with degenerate twist even and twist odd
eigenvectors for every eigenvalue except for -1/3.


  Rings are a model system for studying phase coherence in one dimension.
Superconducting rings have states with uniform phase windings that are integer
multiples of 2$\pi$ called fluxoid states. When the energy difference between
these fluxoid states is of order the temperature so that phase slips are
energetically accessible, several states contribute to the ring's magnetic
response to a flux threading the ring in thermal equilibrium and cause a
suppression or downturn in the ring's magnetic susceptibility as a function of
temperature. We review the theoretical framework for superconducting
fluctuations in rings including a model developed by Koshnick$^1$ which
includes only fluctuations in the ring's phase winding number called fluxoid
fluctuations and a complete model by von Oppen and Riedel$^2$ that includes all
thermal fluctuations in the Ginzburg-Landau framework. We show that for
sufficiently narrow and dirty rings the two models predict a similar
susceptibility response with a slightly shifted Tc indicating that fluxoid
fluctuations are dominant. Finally we present magnetic susceptibility data for
rings with different physical parameters which demonstrate the applicability of
our models. The susceptibility data spans a region in temperature where the
ring transitions from a hysteretic to a non hysteretic response to a periodic
applied magnetic field. The magnetic susceptibility data, taken where
transitions between fluxoid states are slow compared to the measurement time
scale and the ring response was hysteretic, decreases linearly with increasing
temperature resembling a mean field response with no fluctuations. At higher
temperatures where fluctuations begin to play a larger role a crossover occurs
and the non-hysteretic data shows a fluxoid fluctuation induced suppression of
diamagnetism below the mean field response that agrees well with the models.


  We study the survival probability of moving relativistic unstable particles
with definite momentum $\vec{p} \neq 0$. The amplitude of the survival
probability of these particles is calculated using its integral representation.
We found decay curves of such particles for the quantum mechanical models
considered. These model studies show that late time deviations of the survival
probability of these particles from the exponential form of the decay law, that
is the transition times region between exponential and non-expo\-nen\-tial form
of the survival probability, should occur much earlier than it follows from the
classical standard approach resolving itself into replacing time $t$ by
$t/\gamma$ (where $\gamma$ is the relativistic Lorentz factor) in the formula
for the survival probability and that the survival probabilities should tend to
zero as $t\rightarrow \infty$ much slower than one would expect using classical
time dilation relation. Here we show also that for some physically admissible
models of unstable states the computed decay curves of the moving particles
have fluctuating form at relatively short times including times of order of the
lifetime.


  The structural properties of LaCu$_{6-x}$Au$_x$ have been studied using
neutron diffraction, x-ray diffraction, and heat capacity measurements. The
continuous orthorhombic-monoclinic structural phase transition in LaCu$_{6}$ is
suppressed linearly with Au substitution until a complete suppression of the
structural phase transition occurs at the critical composition, $x_{c}$ = 0.3.
Heat capacity measurements at low temperatures indicate residual structural
instability at $x_c$ that extends well into the orthorhombic phase. The
instability is ferroelastic in nature, with density functional theory (DFT)
calculations showing negligible coupling to electronic states near the Fermi
level. The data and calculations presented here are consistent with the zero
temperature termination of a continuous structural phase transition suggesting
that the LaCu$_{6-x}$Au$_x$ series hosts an elastic quantum critical point.


  We theoretically examine the finite-temperature spectral function of Fermi
polarons in three dimensions, by using a self-consistent many-body $T$-matrix
theory in real frequency. In comparison with the previous results from a
non-self-consistent many-body $T$-matrix approach, we show that the treatment
of self-consistency in the impurity Green function leads to notable changes in
almost all the dynamical quantities, including the vertex function, impurity
self-energy and spectral function. Eventually, it gives rise to quantitatively
different predictions for the measurable radio-frequency spectrum and Raman
spectrum at finite temperature. Using the recent spectroscopic measurements as
a benchmark, we find that the self-consistent many-body $T$-matrix theory
somehow provides a better explanation for the experimental data. The notable
difference in the predictions from the non-self-consistent and self-consistent
theories suggests that more accurate theoretical descriptions are needed, in
order to fully account for the current spectroscopic observations on Fermi
polarons.


  The field of edge computing has witnessed remarkable growth owing to the
increasing demand for real-time processing of data in applications. However,
challenges persist due to limitations in performance and power consumption. To
overcome these challenges, heterogeneous architectures have emerged that
combine host processors with specialized accelerators tailored to specific
applications, leading to improved performance and reduced power consumption.
However, most of the existing platforms lack the necessary configurability and
extendability options for integrating custom accelerators. To overcome these
limitations, we introduce in this paper the eXtendible Heterogeneous
Energy-Efficient Platform (X-HEEP). X-HEEP is an open-source platform designed
to natively support the integration of ultra-low-power edge accelerators. It
provides customization options to match specific application requirements by
exploring various core types, bus topologies, addressing modes, memory sizes,
and peripherals. Moreover, the platform prioritizes energy efficiency by
implementing low-power strategies, such as clock-gating and power-gating. We
demonstrate the real-world applicability of X-HEEP by providing an integration
example tailored for healthcare applications that includes a coarse-grained
reconfigurable array (CGRA) and in-memory computing (IMC) accelerators. The
resulting design, called HEEPocrates, has been implemented both in field
programmable gate array (FPGA) on the Xilinx Zynq-7020 chip and in silicon with
TSMC 65nm low-power CMOS technology. We run a set of healthcare applications
and measure their energy consumption to demonstrate the alignment of our chip
with other state-of-the-art microcontrollers commonly adopted in this domain.
Moreover, we present the energy benefits of 4.9x and 4.8x gained by exploiting
the integrated CGRA and IMC accelerators compared to running on the host CPU.


  We discuss some systematic methods for implementing state manipulations in
systems formally similar to chains of a few spins with nearest-neighbor
interactions, arranged such that there are strong and weak scales of coupling
links. States are permuted by means of bias potentials applied to a few
selected sites. This generic structure is then related to an atoms-in-a-cavity
model that has been proposed in the literature as a way of achieving a
decoherence free subspace. A new method using adiabatically varying laser
detuning to implement a CNOT gate in this model is proposed.


  Multidimensional integration by parts formulas are valid under the standard
assumption that one of the functions is continuous and the other has bounded
Hardy-Krause variation. Motivated by several recently developed results in the
probabilistic context of price and risk bounds, we provide a version of an
integration by parts formula for Lebesgue integrals on a possibly unbounded
domain where a componentwise left-/right-continuous and measure inducing
function is integrated with respect to the signed measure induced by a measure
inducing, componentwise right-/left-continuous, bounded, and grounded function.
For this purpose, we extensively analyze measure inducing functions and
characterize them in terms of Delta-monotone functions. We provide, as a
consequence of the integration by parts formula, several convergence results
which allow an extension of the Lebesgue integral of a measure inducing
function to the case that one integrates with respect to a Lipschitz-continuous
semi-copula.


  We present spectroscopic X-ray data of two candidate ultra-compact X-ray
binaries: 4U~0614+091 and 4U~1543$-$624. We confirm the presence of a broad O
VIII Ly$\alpha$ reflection line (at $\approx18\ \AA$) using {\it XMM-Newton}
and {\it Chandra} observations obtained in 2012 and 2013. The donor star in
these sources is carbon-oxygen or oxygen-neon-magnesium white dwarf. Hence, the
accretion disc is enriched with oxygen which makes the O VIII Ly$\alpha$ line
particularly strong. We also confirm the presence of a strong absorption edge
at $\approx14$ \AA\ so far interpreted in the literature as due to absorption
by neutral neon in the circumstellar and interstellar medium. However, the
abundance required to obtain a good fit to this edge is $\approx3-4$ times
solar, posing a problem for this interpretation. Furthermore, modeling the
X-ray reflection off a carbon and oxygen enriched, hydrogen and helium poor
disc with models assuming solar composition likely biases several of the
best-fit parameters. In order to describe the X-ray reflection spectra
self-consistently we modify the currently available {\sc xillver} reflection
model. We present initial grids that can be used to model X-ray reflection
spectra in UCXBs with carbon-oxygen-rich accretion disc. We find that the new
reflection model provides a better overall description of the reflection
spectra of 4U~0614+091 and 4U~1543$-$624 than the reflection models that assume
solar abundances. Besides a strong O VIII Ly$\alpha$ line the new reflection
model also shows a strong O VIII K-edge (at $14.23$ \AA). We find that the
absorption edge at $\approx 14$ \AA\ present in the data can be described by a
O VIII K-edge formed due to reflection in the accretion disc and a Ne I K-edge
originating mostly in the interstellar medium, mitigating the problem of the
apparent very high neon abundance.


  In this paper, we determine the homotopy type of the Morse complex of certain
collections of simplicial complexes by studying dominating vertices or strong
collapses. We show that if $K$ contains two leaves that share a common vertex,
then the Morse complex is strongly collapsible and hence has the homotopy type
of a point. We also show that the pure Morse complex of a tree is strongly
collapsible, thereby recovering as a corollary a result of Ayala et al. In
addition, we prove that the Morse complex of a disjoint union $K\sqcup L$ is
the Morse complex of the join $K*L$. This result is used to compute the
homotopy type of the Morse complex of some families of graphs, including
Caterpillar graphs, as well as the automorphism group of a disjoint union for a
large collection of disjoint complexes.


  We document the ground state phase diagram of the one-dimensional Kitaev
chain with quasi-periodic disorder in the presence of two-body interactions.
Our data was obtained for systems of $L=1000$ sites using large-scale density
matrix renormalization group numerics and is benchmarked against known results
for the clean system. We demonstrate that moderate quasi-periodic disorder
stabilizes the topological phase both for repulsive and attractive
interactions. For larger disorder strengths, the system features re-entrance
behavior and multiple phase transitions.


  (abridged) Accretion from disks onto young stars is thought to follow
magnetic field lines from the inner disk edge to the stellar surface. The
accretion flow thus depends on the geometry of the magnetic field. This paper
extends previous work by constructing a collection of orthogonal coordinate
systems, including the corresponding differential operators, where one
coordinate traces the magnetic field lines. This formalism allows for an
(essentially) analytic description of the geometry and the conditions required
for the flow to pass through sonic points. Using this approach, we revisit the
problem of magnetically controlled accretion flow in a dipole geometry, and
then generalize the treatment to consider magnetic fields with multiple
components, including dipole, octupole, and split monopole contributions. This
approach can be generalized further to consider more complex magnetic field
configurations. Observations indicate that accreting young stars have
substantial dipole and octupole components, and that accretion flow is
transonic. If the effective equation of state for the fluid is too stiff, the
flow cannot pass smoothly through the sonic points in steady state. For a
multipole field of order \ell, we derive a constraint on the polytropic index,
n>\ell+3/2, required for steady transonic flow to reach free-fall velocities.
For octupole fields, inferred on surfaces of T Tauri stars, n>9/2, so that the
flow must be close to isothermal. The inclusion of octupole field components
produces higher densities at the stellar surface and smaller hot spots, which
occur at higher latitudes; the magnetic truncation radius is also modified.
This contribution thus increases our understanding of magnetically controlled
accretion for young stellar objects and can be applied to a variety of
additional astrophysical problems.


  The goal of this paper is to review the theoretical basis for achieving a
faithful quantum information transmission and processing in the presence of
noise. Initially encoding and decoding, implementing gates and quantum error
correction will be considered error free. Finally we will relax this non
realistic assumption, introducing the quantum fault-tolerant concept. The
existence of an error threshold permits to conclude that there is no physical
law preventing a quantum computer from being built. An error model based on the
depolarizing channel will be able to provide a simple estimation of the storage
or memory computation error threshold: < 5.2 10-5. The encoding is made by
means of the [[7,1,3]] Calderbank-Shor-Steane quantum code and the Shor's
fault-tolerant method to measure the stabilizer's generators is used.


  The radiative decay $\Sigma_Q^* \rightarrow \Lambda_Q\gamma$ can have both
magnetic dipole (M1) and electric quadrupole (E2) components. In the heavy
quark limit $M_Q\rightarrow\infty$ the transition arises from the spin of the
light degrees of freedom changing from $s_l=1$ to $s_l=0$ and hence the E2
contribution vanishes. We compute the leading contribution to the E2 strength
in chiral perturbation theory and find that the amplitude is enhanced by a
small energy denominator in the chiral limit. This enhancement essentially
compensates for the $1/M_c$ suppression that is present in the charm system. We
find a mixing ratio of order a few percent dependent upon the
$\Sigma_c^*--\Sigma_c$ spin symmetry breaking mass difference. The analogous
quantity in the b-baryon sector is smaller by a factor of $\sim M_c/M_b$.


  The relationship between sea ice thickness and microwave brightness
temperature is explored. Parameterized ice profiles are fed to a
radiative-transfer-based sea ice emissivity model (Microwave Emmission of
Layered Snowpack, MEMLS). Complex permittivities, required as input for the
simulation, are determined using a semi-empirical mixture model. Since the
thickness-radiance relation is not fixed but can vary significantly depending
upon past and current weather conditions, we determine a range of brightness
temperature values for each thickness. This is done using a bootstrap model in
which the salinities are varied based on variances supplied with the
thickness-salinity curve and the complex permittivities are varied based on
variance supplied by the mixture model. The results suggest that scattering is
one of the most important parameters determining sea ice brightness
temperature, especially for new and forming ice. Further work must be done to
accurately model both scattering and complex permittivities in sea ice.


  The transverse momentum spectra, elliptic flow and interferometry radii for
Pb-Pb collisions at the LHC are calculated in relativistic viscous
hydrodynamics. For Glauber model initial conditions, we find that the data can
be described using a small value of shear viscosity eta/s=0.08. The viscosities
and the equation of state are the same as used for RHIC energies.


  A recent report by astronomers about Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) in
Ukraine (arXiv:2208.11215) suggests dark phantom objects of size 3-12 meters,
moving at speeds of up to 15 km/s at a distance of up to 10-12 km with no
optical emission. I show that the friction of such objects with the surrounding
air would have generated a bright optical fireball. Reducing their inferred
distance by a factor of ten is fully consistent with the size and speed of
artillery shells.


  This work presents a comprehensive investigation of the elastic and fracture
behavior of ply-to-ply angle interlock three-dimensional woven composites. The
research investigated novel splitting and wedge-driven out-of-plane fracture
tests to shed light on the tensile fracture behavior in the thickness direction
and to provide estimates of the out-of-plane tensile strength and fracture
energy. In addition, size effect tests on geometrically-scaled Single Edge
Notch Tension (SENT) specimens were performed to fully characterize the
intra-laminar fracture energy of the material and to study the scaling of
structural strength in this type of three-dimensional composites. The results
confirmed that size effect in the structural strength of these materials is
significant. In fact, even if the range of sizes investigated was broader than
in any previous size effect study on traditional laminated composites and
two-dimensional textile composites, all the experimental data fell in the
transition zone between quasi-ductile and brittle behavior. This implies strong
damage tolerance of the investigated three-dimensional composites. The analysis
of the data via Bazant's Type II Size Effect Law (SEL) enabled the objective
characterization of the intra-laminar fracture energy of three-dimensional
composites for the first time. Finally, Arcan rig tests combined with X-ray
micro-computed tomography allowed unprecedented insights on the different
damage mechanisms under multi-axial nominal loading conditions, particularly
tension-dominated and shear-dominated conditions.


  We investigate logarithmically enhanced electromagnetic corrections of all
angular observables in inclusive B -> X_s l^+ l^-. We present analytical
results, which are supplemented by a dedicated Monte Carlo study on the
treatment of collinear photons in order to determine the size of the
electromagnetic logarithms. We then give the Standard Model predictions of all
observables, considering all available NNLO QCD, NLO QED and power corrections,
and investigate their sensitivity to New Physics. Since the structure of the
double differential decay rate is modified in the presence of QED corrections,
we also propose new observables which vanish if only QCD corrections are taken
into account. Moreover, we study the experimental sensitivity to these new
observables at Belle II.


  We consider three-loop radiative-recoil corrections to hyperfine splitting in
muonium generated by the gauge invariant set of diagrams with virtual
light-by-light scattering block. These corrections are enhanced by the large
logarithms of the electron-muon mass ratio. We present the results of an
analytic calculation of the single-logarithmic radiative-recoil corrections of
order $\alpha^2(Z\alpha)(m/M)E_F$ to hyperfine splitting in muonium generated
by these diagrams.


  Extending black-hole entropy to ordinary objects, we propose kinetic entropy
tensor, based on which a quantum gravity tensor equation is established. Our
investigation results indicate that if N=1, the quantum gravity tensor equation
returns to Schrodinger integral equation. When N becomes sufficiently large, it
is equivalent to Einstein field equation. This illustrates formal unification
and intrinsic compatibility of general relativity with quantum mechanics. The
quantum gravity equation may be utilized to deduce general relativity, special
relativity, Newtonian mechanics and quantum mechanics, which has paved the way
for unification of theoretical physics.


  We extend the notion of $\mu^*$-sequence and Tjurina number of functions to
the framework of Bruce-Roberts numbers, that is, to pairs formed by the germ at
$0$ of a complex analytic variety $X\subseteq \mathbb C^n$ and a finitely
$\mathcal R(X)$-determined analytic function germ $f:(\mathbb C^n,0)\to
(\mathbb C,0)$. We analyze some fundamental properties of these numbers.


  In the paper, we make a detailed study on the generalized Crewther Relation
(GCR) between the Adler function ($D$) and the Gross-Llewellyn Smith sum rules
coefficient ($C^{\rm GLS}$) by using the newly suggested single-scale approach
of the principle of maximum conformality (PMC). The resultant GCR is
scheme-independent, whose residual scale dependence due to unknown higher-order
terms are highly suppressed. Thus a precise test of QCD theory without
renormalization scheme and scale ambiguities can be achieved by comparing with
the data. Moreover, a demonstration of the scheme independence of commensurate
scale relation up to all orders has been presented. And as the first time, the
Pade approximation approach has been adopted for estimating the unknown $5_{\rm
th}$-loop contributions from the known four-loop perturbative series.


  We provide an introduction to the concepts of holoraumy tensors, Lorentz
covariant four-dimensional "Gadgets", and Gadget angles within the context of
4D N = 2 supermultiplets. This is followed by the calculation of the holoraumy
tensors, Gadgets, and Gadget angles for minimal off-shell supermultiplets. Four
tetrahedrons in four 3D subspaces of the Holoraumy lattice space are found.


  We present a multiwavelength analysis of the prominent active galaxy NGC1365,
in particular looking at the radio and X-ray properties of the central regions
of the galaxy.
  We analyse ROSAT observations of NGC1365, and discuss recent ASCA results. In
addition to a number of point sources in the vicinity of NGC1365, we find a
region of X-ray emission extending along the central bar of the galaxy,
combined with an emission peak near the centre of the galaxy. This X-ray
emission is centred on the optical/radio nucleus, but is spatially extended.
The X-ray spectrum can be well fitted by a thermal plasma model, with
kT=0.6-0.8keV and a low local absorbing column. The thermal spectrum is
suggestive of starburst emission rather than emission from a central
black-hole.
  The ATCA radio observations show a number of hotspots, located in a ring
around a weak radio nucleus. Synchrotron emission from electrons accelerated by
supernovae and supernova remnants (SNRs) is the likely origin of these
hotspots. The radio nucleus has a steep spectrum, indicative perhaps of an AGN
or SNRs. The evidence for a jet emanating from the nucleus is at best marginal.
The extent of the radio ring is comparable to the extended central X-ray
source.


  We consider the nonlinear Dirac equations in one dimension and review various
results on global existence of solutions in H1. Depending on the character of
the nonlinear terms, existence of the large-norm solutions can be extended for
all times. Global existence of the small-norm solutions is proved for the most
general nonlinear Dirac equations with cubic and higher-order nonlinear terms.
Integrability of the massive Thirring model is used to find conditions that no
solitons occur in the Cauchy problem with small initial data in a subspace of
L2.


  We present approximate formulas for the tensor BB, EE, TT, and TE multipole
coefficients for large multipole order l. The error in using the approximate
formula for the BB multipole coefficients is less than cosmic variance for
l>10. These approximate formulas make various qualitative properties of the
calculated multipole coefficients transparent: specifically, they show that,
whatever values are chosen for cosmological parameters, the tensor EE multipole
coefficients will always be larger than the BB coefficients for all l>15, and
that these coefficients will approach each other for l<<100. These
approximations also make clear how these multipole coefficients depend on
cosmological parameters.


  Let $A$ be a H\"older continuous cocycle over a hyperbolic dynamical system
with values in the group of diffeomorphisms of a compact manifold $M$. We
consider the periodic data of $A$, i.e., the set of its return values along the
periodic orbits in the base. We show that if the periodic data of $A$ is
bounded in Diff$^{\,q}(M)$, $q>1$, then the set of values of the cocycle is
bounded in Diff$^{\,r}(M)$ for each $r<q$. Moreover, such a cocycle is
isometric with respect to a H\"older continuous family of Riemannian metrics on
$M$.


  In the paper, we calculate the fragmentation functions for $g \to B_c$ and $g
\to B_c^*$. The ultraviolet divergences in the calculation are removed through
the renormalization of the operator definition of the fragmentation functions
under the modified minimal subtraction scheme. We then obtain the fragmentation
functions $D_{g \to B_c}(z,\mu_F)$ and $D_{g \to B_c^*}(z,\mu_F)$, which are
presented as figures and fitting functions. The obtained fragmentation
functions are complementary to the previous work on the next-to-leading order
fragmentation functions for $\bar{b}\to B_c(B_c^*)$ and $c\to B_c(B_c^*)$.


  We investigate the stability of the steady convective flow in a plane tilted
layer with ideal thermal conductivity of solid boundaries in the presence of
uniform longitudinal temperature gradient. Analytically found the stability
boundary with respect to the long-wave perturbations, find the critical Grashof
number for the most dangerous among them of even spiral perturbation.


  Variational inference is a powerful concept that underlies many iterative
approximation algorithms; expectation propagation, mean-field methods and
belief propagations were all central themes at the school that can be perceived
from this unifying framework. The lectures of Manfred Opper introduce the
archetypal example of Expectation Propagation, before establishing the
connection with the other approximation methods. Corrections by expansion about
the expectation propagation are then explained. Finally some advanced inference
topics and applications are explored in the final sections.


  Turbulent flows in three dimensions are characterized by the transport of
energy from large to small scales through the energy cascade. Since the small
scales are the result of the nonlinear dynamics across the scales, they are
often thought of as universal and independent of the large scales. However, as
famously remarked by Landau, sufficiently slow variations of the large scales
should nonetheless be expected to impact small-scale statistics. Such
variations, often termed large-scale intermittency, are pervasive in
experiments and even in simulations, while differing from flow to flow. Here we
evaluate the impact of temporal large-scale fluctuations on velocity,
vorticity, and acceleration statistics by introducing controlled sinusoidal
variations of the energy injection rate into direct numerical simulations of
turbulence. We find that slow variations can have a strong impact on flow
statistics, raising the flatness of the considered quantities. We discern three
contributions to the increased flatness, which we model by superpositions of
statistically stationary flows. Overall, our work demonstrates how large-scale
intermittency needs to be taken into account in order to ensure comparability
of statistical results in turbulence.


  We study delay tolerant networking (DTN) and in particular, its capacity to
store, carry and forward messages so that the messages eventually reach their
final destinations. We approach this broad question in the framework of
percolation theory. To this end, we assume an elementary mobility model, where
nodes arrive to an infinite plane according to a Poisson point process, move a
certain distance L, and then depart. In this setting, we characterize the mean
density of nodes required to support DTN style networking. In particular, under
the given assumptions, we show that DTN is feasible when the mean node degree
is greater than 4 e(g), where parameter g=L/d is the ratio of the distance L to
the transmission range d, and e(g) is the critical reduced number density of
tilted cylinders in a directed continuum percolation model. By means of Monte
Carlo simulations, we give numerical values for e(g). The asymptotic behavior
of e(g) when g tends to infinity is also derived from a fluid flow analysis.


  This paper establishes the equivalence between robust safety and the
existence of a barrier function certificate for differential inclusions. More
precisely, for a robustly-safe differential inclusion, a barrier function is
constructed as the time-to-impact function with respect to a
specifically-constructed reachable set. Using techniques from set-valued and
nonsmooth analysis, we show that such a function, although being possibly
discontinuous, certifies robust safety by verifying a condition involving the
system's solutions. Furthermore, we refine this construction, using smoothing
techniques from the literature of converse Lyapunov theory, to provide a smooth
barrier certificate that certifies robust safety by verifying a condition
involving only the barrier function and the system's dynamics. In comparison
with existing converse robust-safety theorems, our results are more general as
they allow the safety region to be unbounded, the dynamics to be a general
continuous set-valued map, and the solutions to be non-unique.


  In this paper, we study the thermodynamics of quantum harmonic oscillator in
the Tsallis framework and in the presence of a minimal length uncertainty. The
existence of the minimal length is motivated by various theories such as string
theory, loop quantum gravity, and black-hole physics. We analytically obtain
the partition function, probability function, internal energy, and the specific
heat capacity of the vibrational quantum system for $1<q<\frac{3}{2}$ and
compare the results with those of Tsallis and Boltzmann-Gibbs statistics
without the minimal length scale.


  The bright ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX), M33 X-8, has been observed
several times by XMM-Newton, providing us with a rare opportunity to `flux bin'
the spectral data and search for changes in the average X-ray spectrum with
flux level. The aggregated X-ray spectra appear unlike standard sub-Eddington
accretion state spectra which, alongside the lack of discernible variability at
any energy, argues strongly against conventional two-component, sub-Eddington
models. Although the lack of variability could be consistent with
disc-dominated spectra, sub-Eddington disc models are not sufficiently broad to
explain the observed spectra. Fits with a ~ Eddington accretion rate slim disc
model are acceptable, but the fits show that the temperature decreases with
flux, contrary to expectations, and this is accompanied by the appearance of a
harder tail to the spectrum. Applying a suitable two-component model reveals
that the disc becomes cooler and less advection dominated as the X-ray flux
increases, and this is allied to the emergence of an optically-thick
Comptonisation medium. We present a scenario in which this is explained by the
onset of a radiatively-driven wind from the innermost regions of the accretion
disc, as M33 X-8 exceeds the Eddington limit. Furthermore, we argue that the
direct evolution of this spectrum with increasing luminosity (and hence
radiation pressure) leads naturally to the two-component spectra seen in more
luminous ULXs.


  We reformulate the calculation of the dark matter-nucleon scattering cross
sections based on the method of effective field theories. We assume that the
scatterings are induced by the exchange of colored mediators, and construct the
effective theories by integrating out the colored particles. All of the leading
order matching conditions as well as the renormalization group equations are
presented. We consider a Majorana fermion, and real scalar and vector bosons
for the dark matter and show the results for each case. The treatment for the
twist-2 operators is discussed in detail, and it is shown that the scale of
evaluating their nucleon matrix elements does not have to be the hadronic
scale. The effects of the QCD corrections are evaluated on the assumption that
the masses of the colored mediators are much heavier than the electroweak
scale. Our formulation is systematic and model-independent, and thus suitable
to be implemented in numerical packages, such as micrOMEGAs and DarkSUSY.


  The internal degrees of freedom provided by ultracold atoms give a route for
realizing higher dimensional physics in systems with limited spatial
dimensions. Non-spatial degrees of freedom in these systems are dubbed
"synthetic dimensions". This connection is useful from an experimental
standpoint but complicated by the fact that interactions alter the condensate
ground state. Here we use the Gross-Pitaevskii equation to study ground state
properties of a spin-1 Bose gas under the combined influence of an optical
lattice, spin-orbit coupling, and interactions at the mean field level. The
associated phases depend on the sign of the spin-dependent interaction
parameter and the strength of the optical lattice potential. We find "charge"
and spin density wave phases which are directly related to helical spin order
in real space and affect the behavior of edge currents in the synthetic
dimension. We determine the resulting phase diagram as a function of the
spin-orbit coupling and spin-dependent interaction strength, considering both
attractive (ferromagnetic) and repulsive (polar) spin-dependent interactions.
Our results are applicable to current and future experiments, specifically with
$^{87}$Rb, $^{7}$Li, $^{41}$K, and $^{23}$Na.


  The so-called conformal affine Toda theory coupled to the matter fields
(CATM), associated to the $\hat{sl}(2)$ affine Lie algebra, is studied. The
conformal symmetry is fixed by setting a connection to zero, then one defines
an off-critical model, the affine Toda model coupled to the matter (ATM). The
quantum version of this reduction process is discussed by means of the
perturbative Lagrangian viewpoint, showing that the ATM theory is a
spontaneously broken and reduced version of the CATM model. We show, using
bosonization techniques that the off-critical theory decouples into a
sine-Gordon model and a free scalar. Using the "dressing" transformation method
we construct the explicit forms of the one and two-soliton classical solutions,
and show that a physical bound soliton-antisoliton pair (breather) does not
exist. Moreover, we verify that these solutions share some features of the
sine- Gordon (massive Thirring) solitons, and satisfy the classical equivalence
of topological and Noether currents in the ATM model. Imposing the Noether and
topological currents equivalence as a constraint, one can show that the ATM
model leads to a bag model like mechanism for the confinement of the U(1)
"color" charge inside the sine-Gordon solitons (baryons).


  In this paper we continue the investigation of Loday's Leibniz cohomology as
a new invariant for differentiable manifolds. In particular the Leibniz
coboundary of a k-tensor (in the sense of differential geometry) is computed in
a local coordinate chart and then interpreted in terms of the calculus of
variations. For example, the Leibniz coboundary of the metric two-tensor
reduces to the first variation of arc length.


  In this paper we construct resolutions of finite dimensional irreducible
gl(m|n)-modules in terms of generalized Verma modules. The resolutions are
determined by the Kostant cohomology groups and extend the strong
(Lepowsky-)Bernstein-Gelfand-Gelfand resolutions to the setting of Lie
superalgebras. It is known that such resolutions for finite dimensional
representations of Lie superalgebras do not exist in general. Thus far they
have only been discovered for gl(m|n) in case the parabolic subalgebra has
reductive part equal to gl(m)+gl(n) and for tensor modules. In the current
paper we prove the existence of the resolutions for tensor modules of gl(m|n)
or sl(m|n) and their duals for an extensive class of parabolic subalgebras
including the ones already considered in the literature.


  With Monte Carlo simulations, we study the creep motion of a domain wall in
the two-dimensional random-field Ising model with a driving field. We observe
the nonlinear fieldvelocity relation, and determine the creep exponent {\mu}.
To further investigate the universality class of the creep motion, we also
measure the roughness exponent {\zeta} and energy barrier exponent {\psi} from
the zero-field relaxation process. We find that all the exponents depend on the
strength of disorder.


  When sending quantum information over a channel, we want to ensure that the
message remains intact. Quantum error correction and quantum authentication
both aim to protect (quantum) information, but approach this task from two very
different directions: error-correcting codes protect against probabilistic
channel noise and are meant to be very robust against small errors, while
authentication codes prevent adversarial attacks and are designed to be very
sensitive against any error, including small ones.
  In practice, when sending an authenticated state over a noisy channel, one
would have to wrap it in an error-correcting code to counterbalance the
sensitivity of the underlying authentication scheme. We study the question of
whether this can be done more efficiently by combining the two functionalities
in a single code. To illustrate the potential of such a combination, we design
the threshold code, a modification of the trap authentication code which
preserves that code's authentication properties, but which is naturally robust
against depolarizing channel noise. We show that the threshold code needs
polylogarithmically fewer qubits to achieve the same level of security and
robustness, compared to the naive composition of the trap code with any
concatenated CSS code. We believe our analysis opens the door to combining more
general error-correction and authentication codes, which could improve the
practicality of the resulting scheme.


  Using first-principles calculations, we identify "magic-zero" optical
wavelengths, \lambda_zero, for which the ground-state frequency-dependent
polarizabilities of alkali-metal atoms vanish. Our approach uses
high-precision, relativistic all-order methods in which all single, double, and
partial triple excitations of the Dirac-Fock wave functions are included to all
orders of perturbation theory. We discuss the use of magic-zero wavelengths for
sympathetic cooling in two-species mixtures of alkalis with group-II and other
elements of interest. Special cases in which these wavelengths coincide with
strong resonance transitions in a target system are identified.


  The black-box nature of end-to-end speech translation (E2E ST) systems makes
it difficult to understand how source language inputs are being mapped to the
target language. To solve this problem, we would like to simultaneously
generate automatic speech recognition (ASR) and ST predictions such that each
source language word is explicitly mapped to a target language word. A major
challenge arises from the fact that translation is a non-monotonic sequence
transduction task due to word ordering differences between languages -- this
clashes with the monotonic nature of ASR. Therefore, we propose to generate ST
tokens out-of-order while remembering how to re-order them later. We achieve
this by predicting a sequence of tuples consisting of a source word, the
corresponding target words, and post-editing operations dictating the correct
insertion points for the target word. We examine two variants of such operation
sequences which enable generation of monotonic transcriptions and non-monotonic
translations from the same speech input simultaneously. We apply our approach
to offline and real-time streaming models, demonstrating that we can provide
explainable translations without sacrificing quality or latency. In fact, the
delayed re-ordering ability of our approach improves performance during
streaming. As an added benefit, our method performs ASR and ST simultaneously,
making it faster than using two separate systems to perform these tasks.


  We consider scenarios for non-thermal particle acceleration and
re-acceleration in the central cores of compact massive star clusters, aided by
insights from high resolution hydrodynamic simulations. We show that i)
particles are unlikely to interact with many shocks during their lifetimes in
the core; ii) colliding flows do not produce hard spectra; iii) turbulent
re-acceleration in the core is suppressed. Inefficient re-acceleration
mechanisms are not expected to produce hard components nor to increase the
maximum energy within the cores of massive star clusters. Models in which the
observed ultra-high energy gamma rays originate in the core of massive stellar
clusters are thus disfavoured.


  Let G be the unramified unitary group in three variables defined over a
p-adic field F of odd residual characteristic. In this paper, we investigate
local newforms for irreducible admissible representations of G. We introduce a
family of open compact subgroups {K_n} of G to define the local newforms for
representations of G as the K_n-fixed vectors. We prove the existence of local
newforms for generic representations and the multiplicity one property of the
local newforms for admissible representations.


  We conjecture that the "nilpotent points" of Calogero-Moser space for
reflection groups are parametrised naturally by the two-sided cells of the
group with unequal parameters. The nilpotent points correspond to blocks of
restricted Cherednik algebras and we describe these blocks in the case G(m,1,n)
and show that in type B our description produces an existing conjectural
description of two-sided cells.


  We give a necessary and sufficient condition for $k$-step nilmanifolds
associated with graphs $(k \geq 3)$ to admit Anosov automorphisms. We also
prove nonexistence of Anosov automorphisms on certain classes of 2-step and
3-step nilmanifolds.


  The problem of finding locally dense components of a graph is an important
primitive in data analysis, with wide-ranging applications from community
mining to spam detection and the discovery of biological network modules. In
this paper we present new algorithms for finding the densest subgraph in the
streaming model. For any epsilon>0, our algorithms make O((log n)/log
(1+epsilon)) passes over the input and find a subgraph whose density is
guaranteed to be within a factor 2(1+epsilon) of the optimum. Our algorithms
are also easily parallelizable and we illustrate this by realizing them in the
MapReduce model. In addition we perform extensive experimental evaluation on
massive real-world graphs showing the performance and scalability of our
algorithms in practice.


  Can pretrained language models (PLMs) generate derivationally complex words?
We present the first study investigating this question, taking BERT as the
example PLM. We examine BERT's derivational capabilities in different settings,
ranging from using the unmodified pretrained model to full finetuning. Our best
model, DagoBERT (Derivationally and generatively optimized BERT), clearly
outperforms the previous state of the art in derivation generation (DG).
Furthermore, our experiments show that the input segmentation crucially impacts
BERT's derivational knowledge, suggesting that the performance of PLMs could be
further improved if a morphologically informed vocabulary of units were used.


  Observers experience a series of limitations when measuring galaxy
kinematics, such as variable seeing conditions and aperture size. These effects
can be reduced using empirical corrections, but these equations are usually
applicable within a restrictive set of boundary conditions (e.g. S\'ersic
indices within a given range) which can lead to biases when trying to compare
measurements made across a full kinematic survey. In this work, we present new
corrections for two widely used kinematic parameters, $\lambda_R$ and
$V/\sigma$, that are applicable across a broad range of galaxy shapes,
measurement radii and ellipticities. We take a series of mock observations of
N-body galaxy models and use these to quantify the relationship between the
observed kinematic parameters, structural properties and different seeing
conditions. Derived corrections are then tested using the full catalogue of
galaxies, including hydro-dynamic models from the EAGLE simulation. Our
correction is most effective for regularly-rotating systems, yet the kinematic
parameters of all galaxies -- fast, slow and irregularly rotating systems --
are recovered successfully. We find that $\lambda_R$ is more easily corrected
than $V/\sigma$, with relative deviations of 0.02 and 0.06 dex respectively.
The relationship between $\lambda_R$ and $V/\sigma$, as described by the
parameter $\kappa$, also has a minor dependence on seeing conditions. These
corrections will be particularly useful for stellar kinematic measurements in
current and future integral field spectroscopic (IFS) surveys of galaxies.


  In 1975, P. Erd\H{o}s proposed the problem of determining the maximum number
$f(n)$ of edges in a graph on $n$ vertices in which any two cycles are of
different lengths. Let $f^{\ast}(n)$ be the maximum number of edges in a simple
graph on $n$ vertices in which any two cycles are of different lengths. Let
$M_n$ be the set of simple graphs on $n$ vertices in which any two cycles are
of different lengths and with the edges of $f^{\ast}(n)$. Let $mc(n)$ be the
maximum cycle length for all $G \in M_n$. In this paper, it is proved that for
$n$ sufficiently large, $mc(n)\leq \frac{15}{16}n$. We make the following
conjecture:
  $$\lim_{n \rightarrow \infty} {mc(n)\over n}= 0.$$


  It has long been assumed in physics that for information to travel between
two parties in empty space, "Alice" and "Bob", physical particles have to
travel between them. Here, using the "chained" quantum Zeno effect, we show
how, in the ideal asymptotic limit, information can be transferred between
Alice and Bob without any physical particles traveling between them.


  The recently discovered AV$_{3}$Sb$_{5}$ (A = K, Rb, Cs) compounds have
garnered intense attention in the scientific community due to their unique
characteristics as kagome superconductors coexisting with a charge density wave
(CDW) order. To comprehend the electronic properties of this system, it is
essential to understand the lattice distortions associated with the CDW order
and the ground state electronic behavior. Here, we comprehensively examine the
Fermi surface by a combination of angle-dependent torque magnetometry and
density functional theory calculations. We observe magnetic breakdown in the de
Haas-van Alphen oscillations under high magnetic fields. Additionally, by
examining the angular and temperature variations in quantum oscillation
frequencies, we gain insight into the evolution of the three-dimensional like
Fermi surfaces and the cyclotron masses of the orbits, which are consistent
with weak electron-phonon coupling. Notably, further comparisons indicate that
the 2$\times$2$\times$2 Star-of-David (SoD) distortion is more compatible with
both high frequency data above 1000\,T and low frequency data below 500\,T,
while the 2$\times$2$\times$2 Tri-Hexagonal (TrH) distortion aligns well with
experimental data at mid frequencies. This finding implies the inherent
coexistence of both TrH and SoD 2$\times$2$\times$2 patterns within the CDW
order. These observations provide key insights into the interplay among
effective electronic dimensionality, CDW state, and superconductivity.


  It is well known that gas in galaxy discs is highly turbulent, but there is
much debate on which mechanism can energetically maintain this turbulence.
Among the possible candidates, supernova (SN) explosions are likely the primary
drivers but doubts remain on whether they can be sufficient in regions of
moderate star formation activity, in particular in the outer parts of discs. In
this paper, we measure the SN efficiency $\eta$, namely the fraction of the
total SN energy needed to sustain turbulence in galaxies, and verify that SNe
can indeed be the sole driving mechanism. The key novelty of our approach is
that we take into account the increased turbulence dissipation timescale
associated to the flaring in outer regions of gaseous discs. We analyse the
distribution and kinematics of HI and CO in 10 nearby star-forming galaxies to
obtain the radial profiles of the kinetic energy per unit area, for both the
atomic gas and the molecular gas. We use a theoretical model to reproduce the
observed energy with the sum of turbulent energy from SNe, as inferred from the
observed star formation rate (SFR) surface density, and the gas thermal energy.
We find that the observed kinetic energy is remarkably well reproduced by our
model across the whole extent of the galactic discs, assuming $\eta$ constant
with the galactocentric radius. Taking into account the uncertainties on the
SFR surface density and on the atomic gas phase, we obtain that the median SN
efficiencies for our sample of galaxies are $\langle \eta_\mathrm{atom}
\rangle=0.015_{-0.008}^{+0.018}$ for the atomic gas and $\langle
\eta_\mathrm{mol} \rangle = 0.003_{-0.002}^{+0.006}$ for the molecular gas. We
conclude that SNe alone can sustain gas turbulence in nearby galaxies with only
few percent of their energy and that there is essentially no need for any
further source of energy.


  Simultaneous localization and mapping, as a fundamental task in computer
vision, has gained higher demands for performance in recent years due to the
rapid development of autonomous driving and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Traditional SLAM algorithms highly rely on basic geometry features such as
points and lines, which are susceptible to environment. Conversely,
higher-level object features offer richer information that is crucial for
enhancing the overall performance of the framework. However, the effective
utilization of object features necessitates careful consideration of various
challenges, including complexity and process velocity. Given the advantages and
disadvantages of both high-level object feature and low-level geometry
features, it becomes essential to make informed choices within the SLAM
framework. Taking these factors into account, this paper provides a thorough
comparison between geometry features and object features, analyzes the current
mainstream application methods of object features in SLAM frameworks, and
presents a comprehensive overview of the main challenges involved in
object-based SLAM.


  We compare and contrast the two approaches of holography in asymptotically
flat spacetimes, viz. the co-dimension two Celestial approach based on the
Mellin transformation and the co-dimension one Carrollian approach based on the
modified Mellin and elucidate how some of the problems of the Celestial
approach can be rectified by the Carrollian one. Considering flat holography as
a limit from AdS/CFT makes a co-dimension one dual more plausible, and our
previous construction of Carrollian correlations from AdS Witten diagrams is
testimony to this. In this paper, we show how to generalize our earlier
analysis for operators with spin. We work out a large number of explicit
non-trivial examples (twelve) and show matching between the limit of AdS$_4$
Witten diagrams and 3d boundary symmetry considerations, thus making the case
for the Carrollian dual even stronger.


  Another way to measure electron beam polarization by inverse Compton
scattering


  This paper describes LFRic: the new weather and climate modelling system
being developed by the UK Met Office to replace the existing Unified Model in
preparation for exascale computing in the 2020s. LFRic uses the GungHo
dynamical core and runs on a semi-structured cubed-sphere mesh. The design of
the supporting infrastructure follows object orientated principles to
facilitate modularity and the use of external libraries where possible. In
particular, a `separation of concerns' between the science code and parallel
code is imposed to promote performance portability. An application called
PSyclone, developed at the STFC Hartree centre, can generate the parallel code
enabling deployment of a single source science code onto different machine
architectures. This paper provides an overview of the scientific requirement,
the design of the software infrastructure, and examples of PSyclone usage.
Preliminary performance results show strong scaling and an indication that
hybrid MPI/OpenMP performs better than pure MPI.


  Quantum heat engines are modeled by thermodynamic cycles with
quantum-mechanical working media. Since high engine efficiencies require
adiabaticity, a major challenge is to yield a nonvanishing power output at
finite cycle times. Shortcuts to adiabaticity using counter-diabatic (CD)
driving may serve as a means to speed up such, otherwise infinitely long,
cycles. We introduce local approximate CD protocols for many-body spin quantum
heat engines and show that this method improves the efficiency and power for
finite cycle times considerably. The protocol does not require a priori
knowledge of the system eigenstates and is thus realistic in experiments.


  Using symmetry arguments and a tight-binding model, we show that for layered
collinear anti- ferromagnets, magneto-optic effects can be generated and
manipulated by controlling crystal symmetries through a gate voltage. This
provides a promising route for electric field manipulation of the magneto-optic
effects without modifying the underlying magnetic structure. We further
demonstrate the gate control of magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE) in bilayer
MnPSe3 using first-principles calculations. The field-induced inversion
symmetry breaking effect leads to gate-controllable MOKE whose direction of
rotation can be switched by the reversal of the gate voltage.


  In the present work, we discuss how the functional form of thermodynamic
observables can be deduced from the geometric properties of subsets of phase
space. The geometric quantities taken into account are mainly extrinsic
curvatures of the energy level sets of the Hamiltonian of a system under
investigation. In particular, it turns out that peculiar behaviours of
thermodynamic observables at a phase transition point are rooted in more
fundamental changes of the geometry of the energy level sets in phase space.
More specifically, we discuss how microcanonical and geometrical descriptions
of phase-transitions are shaped in the special case of $\phi^4$ models with
either nearest-neighbours and mean-field interactions.


  We suggest a new version of the notion of $\rho$-dilation ($\rho>0$) of an
$N$-tuple $\mathbf{A}=(A_1,...,A_N)$ of bounded linear operators on a common
Hilbert space. We say that $\mathbf{A}$ belongs to the class $C_{\rho,N}$ if
$\mathbf{A}$ admits a $\rho$-dilation
$\widetilde{\mathbf{A}}=(\widetilde{A}_1,...,\widetilde{A}_N)$ for which
$\zeta\widetilde{\mathbf{A}}:=\zeta_1\widetilde{A}_1+...
+\zeta_N\widetilde{A}_N$ is a unitary operator for each
$\zeta:=(\zeta_1,...,\zeta_N)$ in the unit torus $\mathbb{T}^N$. For N=1 this
class coincides with the class $C_\rho$ of B. Sz.-Nagy and C. Foia\c{s}. We
generalize the known descriptions of $C_{\rho,1}=C_\rho$ to the case of
$C_{\rho,N}, N>1$, using so-called Agler kernels. Also, the notion of operator
radii $w_\rho, \rho>0$, is generalized to the case of $N$-tuples of operators,
and to the case of bounded (in a certain strong sense) holomorphic
operator-valued functions in the open unit polydisk $\mathbb{D}^N$, with
preservation of all the most important their properties. Finally, we show that
for each $\rho>1$ and $N>1$ there exists an $\mathbf{A}=(A_1,...,A_N)\in
C_{\rho,N}$ which is not simultaneously similar to any
$\mathbf{T}=(T_1,...,T_N)\in C_{1,N}$, however if $\mathbf{A}\in C_{\rho,N}$
admits a uniform unitary $\rho$-dilation then $\mathbf{A}$ is simultaneously
similar to some $\mathbf{T}\in C_{1,N}$.


  Simulations of dark matter show a discrepancy between the expected number of
Galactic dark matter sub-halos and how many have been optically observed. Some
of these unseen satellites may exist as dark dwarf galaxies: sub-halos like
dwarf galaxies with no luminous counterpart. Assuming WIMP dark matter, it may
be possible to detect these unseen sub-halos from gamma-ray signals originating
from dark matter annihilation. The High Altitude Water Cherenkov Observatory
(HAWC) is a very high energy (500 GeV to 100 TeV) gamma ray detector with a
wide field-of-view and near continuous duty cycle, making HAWC ideal for
unbiased sky surveys. We perform such a search for gamma ray signals from dark
dwarfs in the Milky Way halo. We perform a targeted search of HAWC gamma-ray
sources which have no known association with lower-energy counterparts, based
on an unbiased search of the entire sky. With no sources found to strongly
prefer dark matter models, we calculate the ability of HAWC to observe dark
dwarfs. We also compute the HAWC sensitivity to potential future detections for
a given model of dark matter substructure.


  Water scarcity is a dilemma facing much of the global population. Cation
intercalation desalination (CID) cells, which use intercalation host compounds
(IHCs) in combination with ion-exchange membranes (IEMs), could aid in
addressing this challenge by treating saline water sources. Originally, the
performance of such cells was predicted utilizing continuous flow of saline
water through porous IHC electrodes. Here, we use two-dimensional
porous-electrode theory with concentrated solution transport to evaluate the
performance of various cell architectures where flow occurs through open flow
channels (OFCs) when two IHC electrodes comprised of nickel hexacyanoferrate
(NiHCF) are used to store Na+ ions. We show that, when two OFCs are used,
cation exchange membranes (CEMs) are adjoined at flow-channel/electrode
interfaces, and an anion exchange membrane (AEM) is arranged between flow
channels, salt removal increases relative to the original design with
flow-through (FT) electrodes. The IEM stacking sequence within such a membrane
flow-by (MFB) cell is the fundamental repeat unit for electrodialysis (ED)
stacks using many IEMs (CEM/AEM/.../CEM/AEM/CEM) with many diluate streams.
Accordingly, we simulate the performance of such ED stacks using NiHCF IHCs,
and we predict that salt adsorption capacity (per unit NiHCF mass) is amplified
by twenty-fold relative to MFB and FT cells, while simultaneously decreasing
0.7 M NaCl feed water to 0.2-0.3 M within diluate streams. The generality of
these findings is further supported by simulations using Na0.44MnO2 IHC instead
of NiHCF. Thus, we propose the use of cation IHCs as alternatives to the
gas-evolution reactions used in conventional ED.


  Code intelligence plays a key role in transforming modern software
engineering. Recently, deep learning-based models, especially Transformer-based
large language models (LLMs), have demonstrated remarkable potential in
tackling these tasks by leveraging massive open-source code data and
programming language features. However, the development and deployment of such
models often require expertise in both machine learning and software
engineering, creating a barrier for the model adoption. In this paper, we
present CodeTF, an open-source Transformer-based library for state-of-the-art
Code LLMs and code intelligence. Following the principles of modular design and
extensible framework, we design CodeTF with a unified interface to enable rapid
access and development across different types of models, datasets and tasks.
Our library supports a collection of pretrained Code LLM models and popular
code benchmarks, including a standardized interface to train and serve code
LLMs efficiently, and data features such as language-specific parsers and
utility functions for extracting code attributes. In this paper, we describe
the design principles, the architecture, key modules and components, and
compare with other related library tools. Finally, we hope CodeTF is able to
bridge the gap between machine learning/generative AI and software engineering,
providing a comprehensive open-source solution for developers, researchers, and
practitioners.


  We apply a recently developed wavelet based approach to characterize the
correlation and scaling properties of non-stationary financial time series.
This approach is local in nature and it makes use of wavelets from the
Daubechies family for detrending purpose. The built-in variable windows in
wavelet transform makes this procedure well suited for the non-stationary data.
We analyze daily price of NASDAQ composite index for a period of 20 years, and
BSE sensex index, over a period of 15 years. It is found that the long-range
correlation, as well as fractal behavior for both the stock index values differ
from each other significantly. Strong non-statistical long-range correlation is
observed in BSE index, whose removal revealed a Gaussian random noise character
for the corresponding fluctuation. The NASDAQ index, on the other hand, showed
a multifractal behavior with long-range statistical correlation.


  We compute modular forms known to arise from the order 5 generators of the
5-local Adams-Novikov spectral sequence 2-line, generalizing and
contextualizing previous computations of M. Behrens and G. Laures. We exhibit
analogous computations at other primes and conjecture formulas for some of the
modular forms arising in this way at arbitrary primes greater than or equal to
5.


  Particle filtering methods are well developed for continuous state-space
models. When dealing with discrete spaces on bounded domains, particle
filtering methods can still be applied to sample from and marginalise over the
unknown hidden states. Nevertheless, problems such as particle degradation can
arise in this context and be even more severe than they are within the
continuous-state domain: proposed particles can easily be incompatible with the
data and the discrete system could often result in all particles having weights
of zero. However, if the boundaries of the discrete hidden space are known,
then these could be used to prevent particle collapse. In this paper we
introduce the Lifebelt Particle Filter (LBPF), a novel method for robust
likelihood estimation when low-valued count data arise. The LBPF combines a
standard particle filter with one (or more) \textit{lifebelt particles} which,
by construction, will tend not to be incompatible with the data. A mixture of
resampled and non-resampled particles allows for the preservation of the
lifebelt particle, which, together with the remaining particle swarm, provides
samples from the filtering distribution, and can be used to generate estimates
of the likelihood. The LBPF can be used within a pseudo-marginal scheme to draw
inference on static parameters, $ \boldsymbol{\theta} $, governing a discrete
state-space model with low-valued counts. We present here the applied case
estimating a parameter governing probabilities and timings of deaths and
recoveries of hospitalised patients during an epidemic.


  A new method of T_eff determination for CP stars is proposed. The method is
based on the fact that the slope of the energy distribution in the Balmer
continuum near the Balmer jump is identical for "normal" main sequence stars
and for CP stars with the same T_eff. It is shown that the T_eff of CP stars
derived by this method are in good agreement with those derived by other
methods.


  We study ${\cal N}=2$ SU(2) supersymmetric QCD with massive hypermultiplets
deformed in the Nekrasov-Shatashvili limit of the Omega-background. The
prepotential of the low-energy effective theory is determined by the WKB
solution of the quantum Seiberg-Witten curve. We calculate the deformed
Seiberg-Witten periods around the massless monoplole point explicitly up to the
fourth order in the deformation parameter.


  It is shown that the 33 complex rays in three dimensions used by Penrose to
prove the Bell-Kochen-Specker theorem have the same orthogonality relations as
the 33 real rays of Peres, and therefore provide an isomorphic proof of the
theorem. It is further shown that the Peres and Penrose rays are just two
members of a continuous three-parameter family of unitarily inequivalent rays
that prove the theorem.


  This paper asks how much we can gain in terms of bandwidth and user
satisfaction, if recommender systems became bandwidth aware and took into
account not only the user preferences, but also the fact that they may need to
serve these users under bandwidth constraints, as is the case over wireless
networks. We formulate this as a new problem in the context of index coding: we
relax the index coding requirements to capture scenarios where each client has
preferences associated with messages. The client is satisfied to receive any
message she does not already have, with a satisfaction proportional to her
preference for that message. We consistently find, over a number of scenarios
we sample, that although the optimization problems are in general NP-hard,
significant bandwidth savings are possible even when restricted to polynomial
time algorithms.


  Let $G/H$ be a homogeneous variety, and let $X$ be a $G$-equivariant
embedding of $G/H$such that the number of $G$-orbits in $X$ is finite. We show
that the equivariant Borel-Moore homology of $X$ has a filtration with
associated graded module the direct sum of the equivariant Borel-Moore
homologies of the $G$-orbits. If $T$ is a maximal torus of $G$ such that each
$G$-orbit has a $T$-fixed point, then the equivariant filtration descends to
give a filtration on the ordinary Borel-Moore homology of $X$. We apply our
findings to certain wonderful compactifications as well as to double flag
varieties.


  Healthcare data are inherently multimodal, including electronic health
records (EHR), medical images, and multi-omics data. Combining these multimodal
data sources contributes to a better understanding of human health and provides
optimal personalized healthcare. Advances in artificial intelligence (AI)
technologies, particularly machine learning (ML), enable the fusion of these
different data modalities to provide multimodal insights. To this end, in this
scoping review, we focus on synthesizing and analyzing the literature that uses
AI techniques to fuse multimodal medical data for different clinical
applications. More specifically, we focus on studies that only fused EHR with
medical imaging data to develop various AI methods for clinical applications.
We present a comprehensive analysis of the various fusion strategies, the
diseases and clinical outcomes for which multimodal fusion was used, the ML
algorithms used to perform multimodal fusion for each clinical application, and
the available multimodal medical datasets. We followed the PRISMA-ScR
guidelines. We searched Embase, PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar to retrieve
relevant studies. We extracted data from 34 studies that fulfilled the
inclusion criteria. In our analysis, a typical workflow was observed: feeding
raw data, fusing different data modalities by applying conventional machine
learning (ML) or deep learning (DL) algorithms, and finally, evaluating the
multimodal fusion through clinical outcome predictions. Specifically, early
fusion was the most used technique in most applications for multimodal learning
(22 out of 34 studies). We found that multimodality fusion models outperformed
traditional single-modality models for the same task. Disease diagnosis and
prediction were the most common clinical outcomes (reported in 20 and 10
studies, respectively) from a clinical outcome perspective.


  If the discrepancy between the theoretical and newly measured values of the
muon's anomalous magnetic moment is ascribed to muon substructure, there
results an improved model--independent limit on its energy scale, 1.2 TeV <
Lambda_mu < 3.2 TeV at 95% C.L.


  Modularity is designed to measure the strength of division of a network into
clusters (known also as communities). Networks with high modularity have dense
connections between the vertices within clusters but sparse connections between
vertices of different clusters. As a result, modularity is often used in
optimization methods for detecting community structure in networks, and so it
is an important graph parameter from a practical point of view. Unfortunately,
many existing non-spatial models of complex networks do not generate graphs
with high modularity; on the other hand, spatial models naturally create
clusters. We investigate this phenomenon by considering a few examples from
both sub-classes. We prove precise theoretical results for the classical model
of random d-regular graphs as well as the preferential attachment model, and
contrast these results with the ones for the spatial preferential attachment
(SPA) model that is a model for complex networks in which vertices are embedded
in a metric space, and each vertex has a sphere of influence whose size
increases if the vertex gains an in-link, and otherwise decreases with time.
The results obtained in this paper can be used for developing statistical tests
for models selection and to measure statistical significance of clusters
observed in complex networks.


  The 3D ternary Li$_2$GeO$_3$ compound, which could serve as the electrolyte
material in Li+-based batteries, exhibits an unusual lattice symmetry
(orthorhombic crystal), band structure, charge density distribution and density
of states. The essential properties are fully explored through the
first-principles method. In the delicate calculations and analyses, the main
features of atom-dominated electronic energy spectrum, space-charge
distribution, and atom-/orbital-projected density of states are suffi$cient to
identify the critical multi-orbital hybridizations of the chemical bonds:
2s-(2p$_x, 2p$_y$, 2p$_z$) and (4s, 4p$_x$, 4p$_y$, 4p$_z$)-(2s, 2p$_x$,
2p$_y$, 2p$_z$), respectively, for Li-O and Ge-O. This system possesses a large
indirect gap of Eg = 3.77 eV. There exist a lot of significant covalent bonds,
with an obvious non-uniformity and anisotropy. In addition, spin-dependent
magnetic configurations are completely absent. The theoretical framework could
be developed to investigate the important features of anode and cathode
materials related to lithium oxide compounds.


  This paper is concerned with weak solutions (e,h) in L^2 x L^2 of the Maxwell
equations with nonlinear Ohm law and under perfect conductor boundary
conditions. These solutions are defined in terms of integral identities with
appropriate test functions. The main result of our paper is an energy equality
that holds for any weak solution (e,h).


  Monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) offer a novel
two-dimensional platform for semiconductor devices. One such application,
whereby the added low dimensional crystal physics (i.e. optical spin selection
rules) may prove TMDs a competitive candidate, are quantum dots as qubits. The
band structure of TMD monolayers offers a number of different degrees of
freedom and combinations thereof as potential qubit bases, primarily electron
spin, valley isospin and the combination of the two due to the strong spin
orbit coupling known as a Kramers qubit. Pure spin qubits in monolayer MoX$_2$
(where X=S or Se) can be achieved by energetically isolating a single valley
and tuning to a spin degenerate regime within that valley by a combination of a
sufficiently small quantum dot radius and large perpendicular magnetic field.
Within such a TMD spin qubit, we theoretically analyse single qubit rotations
induced by electric dipole spin resonance. We employ a rotating wave
approximation within a second order time dependent Schrieffer-Wolf effective
Hamiltonian to derive analytic expressions for the Rabi frequency of single
qubit oscilations, and optimise the mechanism or the parameters to show
oscilations up to $250\,{\rm MHz}$.


  The purpose of this note is to summarize the arguments required to derive the
results appearing in robust minmax control of linear dynamical systems using a
quadratic stage cost. The main results required in robust minmax control are
Corollary 19 and Proposition 20. Moreover, the solution to the trust-region
problem given in Proposition 15 and Lemma 16 may be of more general interest.


  We consider a two-dimensional complex plasma layer containing charged dust
particles in a perpendicular magnetic field. Computer simulations of both
one-component and binary systems are used to explore the equilibrium particle
dynamics in the fluid state. The mobility is found to scale with the inverse of
the magnetic field strength (Bohm diffusion) for strong fields. For bidisperse
mixtures, the magnetic field dependence of the long-time mobility depends on
the particle species providing an external control of their mobility ratio. For
large magnetic fields, even a two-dimensional model porous matrix can be
realized composed by the almost immobilized high-charge particles which act as
obstacles for the mobile low-charge particles.


  Though not so widely appreciated in the literature, supersymmetric quantum
mechanics provides an ideal playground for studying non-Abelian geometric
phase, because supersymmetry always guarantees degeneracies in energy levels.
In this paper we first present a simple supersymmetric model for a free
particle on a circle with point-like interactions that exhibits $\mathscr{N} =
2$ supersymmetry and doubly degenerate energy levels. We then show that Berry's
connection in this model is given by the Wu-Yang-like magnetic monopole in
SU(2) Yang-Mills gauge theory. This article is largely based on our recent work
[arXiv:1406.4857].


  Novel Class Discovery (NCD) aims to discover unknown and novel classes in an
unlabeled set by leveraging knowledge already learned about known classes.
Existing works focus on instance-level or class-level knowledge representation
and build a shared representation space to achieve performance improvements.
However, a long-neglected issue is the potential imbalanced number of samples
from known and novel classes, pushing the model towards dominant classes.
Therefore, these methods suffer from a challenging trade-off between reviewing
known classes and discovering novel classes. Based on this observation, we
propose a Self-Cooperation Knowledge Distillation (SCKD) method to utilize each
training sample (whether known or novel, labeled or unlabeled) for both review
and discovery. Specifically, the model's feature representations of known and
novel classes are used to construct two disjoint representation spaces. Through
spatial mutual information, we design a self-cooperation learning to encourage
model learning from the two feature representation spaces from itself.
Extensive experiments on six datasets demonstrate that our method can achieve
significant performance improvements, achieving state-of-the-art performance.


  Motivated by the notorious difficulties in determining the first quantum
corrections to the spectrum of short strings in AdS_5xS^5 from first
principles, we study closed bosonic strings in this background employing a
static gauge. In this gauge the world-sheet Hamiltonian density is constant
along the extension of the string and directly proportional to the square of
the spacetime energy. We quantize this system in a minisuperspace approach, in
which we consider only a single AdS_5 string mode excitation next to an
arbitrary particle like zero-mode contribution in the full AdS_5xS^5
background. We determine the quantum spectrum using this method to the
next-to-next-to-leading order in the large 't Hooft coupling expansion. We
argue for an ordering prescription which should arise from supersymmetrization
and indeed recover the integrability based predictions for the spectrum of the
lightest excitation, dual to the Konishi field scaling dimensions. The higher
excitations fail to agree, but this is shown to be a consequence of the string
mode truncation employed. Despite this simple setup, our system reveals
intriguing features, such as a close connection to particles in AdS_6,
classical integrability and preservation of the isometries of AdS_5xS^5 at the
quantum level.


  An objective operational theory of probabilistic parametric inference is
formulated without invoking the so-called non-informative prior probability
distributions.


  Polynitrogen molecules represent the ultimate high energy-density materials
as they have a huge potential chemical energy originating from their high
enthalpy. However, synthesis and storage of such compounds remain a big
challenge because of difficulties to find energy efficient synthetic routes and
stabilization mechanisms. Compounds of metals with nitrogen represent promising
candidates for realization of energetic polynitrogen compounds, which are also
environmentally benign. Here we report the synthesis of polynitrogen planar N6
hexazine rings, stabilized in K2N6 compound, which was formed from K azide upon
laser heating in a diamond anvil cell at high pressures in excess of 45 GPa and
remains metastable down to 20 GPa. Synchrotron X-ray diffraction and Raman
spectroscopy are used to identify this material, also exhibiting metallic
luster, being all consistent with theoretically predicted structural,
vibrational and electronic properties. The documented here N6 hexazine rings
represent new highly energetic polynitrogens, which have a potential for future
recovery and utilization.


  We show that three natural decision problems about links and 3-manifolds are
computationally hard, assuming some conjectures in complexity theory. The first
problem is determining whether a link in the 3-sphere bounds a Seifert surface
with Thurston norm at most a given integer; this is shown to be NP-complete.
The second problem is the homeomorphism problem for closed 3-manifolds; this is
shown to be at least as hard as the graph isomorphism problem. The third
problem is determining whether a given link in the 3-sphere is a sublink of
another given link; this is shown to be NP-hard.


  The radiolysis of a nitrogen-acetone mixture, condensed at 11 K, by 40 MeV
$^{58}$Ni$^{11+}$ ions is studied. These results are representative of studies
concerning solar system objects exposed to cosmic rays. In the Kuiper Belt,
region of Trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs), acetone, molecular nitrogen and other
small molecules were detected and may be present on icy surfaces. Bombardment
by cosmic rays triggers chemical reactions leading to synthesis of larger
molecules. In this work, destruction cross sections of acetone and nitrogen in
solid phase are determined from a sequence of infrared spectra obtained at
increasing ion beam fluence. The results are analyzed and compared with those
of previous experiments performed with pure acetone. It is observed that the
molecular nitrogen column density decrease very fast, suggesting that nitrogen
quickly leaves a porous sample under irradiation. The behavior of acetone in
the mixture confirms that the ice formed by deposition of vapor mixture is more
porous than that of pure acetone ice. The most abundant molecular species
formed from the mixture during irradiation are: C$_3$H$_6$, C$_2$H$_6$, N$_3$,
CO, CH$_4$ and CO$_2$. Some N-bearing species are also formed, but with low
production yield. Comparing with pure acetone results, it is seen that
dissolving acetone in nitrogen affects the formation cross sections of the new
species: CH$_4$, CO$_2$ and H$_2$CO, for example, have formation cross section
smaller than the respective values for irradiated pure acetone, while those for
CO and C$_2$H$_6$ species are higher. This fact can explain the presence of
C$_2$H$_6$ even in regions on Pluto where CH$_4$ is not pure, but diluted in a
N$_2$ matrix together with less abundant species. These results also show the
formation of more complex molecules, such as HNCO, acetic acid and,
possibility, glycine.


  Static source code analysis is a powerful tool for finding and fixing bugs
when deployed properly; it is, however, all too easy to deploy it in a way that
looks good superficially, but which misses important defects, shows many false
positives, and brings the tool into disrepute. This article is a guide to the
process of deploying a static analysis tool in a large organization while
avoiding the worst organizational and technical pitfalls. My main point is the
importance of concentrating on the main goal of getting bugs fixed, against all
the competing lesser goals which will arise during the process.


  This paper introduces a Monte Carlo method for maximum likelihood inference
in the context of discretely observed diffusion processes. The method gives
unbiased and a.s.\@ continuous estimators of the likelihood function for a
family of diffusion models and its performance in numerical examples is
computationally efficient. It uses a recently developed technique for the exact
simulation of diffusions, and involves no discretization error. We show that,
under regularity conditions, the Monte Carlo MLE converges a.s. to the true
MLE. For datasize $n\to\infty$, we show that the number of Monte Carlo
iterations should be tuned as $\mathcal{O}(n^{1/2})$ and we demonstrate the
consistency properties of the Monte Carlo MLE as an estimator of the true
parameter value.


  We develop a new Monte-Carlo-based method to convert the SDSS (Sloan Digital
Sky Survey) $u$-band magnitude to the SCUSS (South Galactic Cap of $u$-band Sky
Survey) $u$-band magnitude. Due to more accuracy of SCUSS $u$-band
measurements, the converted $u$-band magnitude becomes more accurate comparing
with the original SDSS $u$-band magnitude, in particular at the faint end. The
average $u$ (both SDSS and SCUSS) magnitude error of numerous main-sequence
stars with $0.2<g-r<0.8$ increase as $g$-band magnitude becomes fainter. When
$g=19.5$, the average magnitude error of SDSS $u$ is 0.11. When $g=20.5$, the
average SDSS $u$ error is up to 0.22. However, at this magnitude, the average
magnitude error of SCUSS $u$ is just half as much as that of SDSS $u$. The SDSS
$u$-band magnitudes of main-sequence stars with $0.2<g-r<0.8$ and $18.5<g<20.5$
are converted, therefore the maximum average error of converted $u$-band
magnitudes is 0.11. The potential application of this conversion is to derive
more accurate photometric metallicity calibration from SDSS observation,
especially for those distant stars. Thus, we can explore stellar metallicity
distributions either in the Galactic halo or some stream stars.


  While deep reinforcement learning has proven to be successful in solving
control tasks, the "black-box" nature of an agent has received increasing
concerns. We propose a prototype-based post-hoc policy explainer, ProtoX, that
explains a blackbox agent by prototyping the agent's behaviors into scenarios,
each represented by a prototypical state. When learning prototypes, ProtoX
considers both visual similarity and scenario similarity. The latter is unique
to the reinforcement learning context, since it explains why the same action is
taken in visually different states. To teach ProtoX about visual similarity, we
pre-train an encoder using contrastive learning via self-supervised learning to
recognize states as similar if they occur close together in time and receive
the same action from the black-box agent. We then add an isometry layer to
allow ProtoX to adapt scenario similarity to the downstream task. ProtoX is
trained via imitation learning using behavior cloning, and thus requires no
access to the environment or agent. In addition to explanation fidelity, we
design different prototype shaping terms in the objective function to encourage
better interpretability. We conduct various experiments to test ProtoX. Results
show that ProtoX achieved high fidelity to the original black-box agent while
providing meaningful and understandable explanations.