  We propose PowerAlert, an efficient external integrity checker for untrusted
hosts. Current attestation systems suffer from shortcomings in requiring
complete checksum of the code segment, being static, use of timing information
sourced from the untrusted machine, or use of timing information with high
error (network round trip time). We address those shortcomings by (1) using
power measurements from the host to ensure that the checking code is executed
and (2) checking a subset of the kernel space over a long period of time. We
compare the power measurement against a learned power model of the execution of
the machine and validate that the execution was not tampered. Finally, power
diversifies the integrity checking program to prevent the attacker from
adapting. We implement a prototype of PowerAlert using Raspberry pi and
evaluate the performance of the integrity checking program generation. We model
the interaction between PowerAlert and an attacker as a game. We study the
effectiveness of the random initiation strategy in deterring the attacker. The
study shows that \power forces the attacker to trade-off stealthiness for the
risk of detection, while still maintaining an acceptable probability of
detection given the long lifespan of stealthy attacks.


  We introduce the Whitehead complex, a one-complex associated to a finite
regular cover of the rose and show that it is connected if and only if the
fundamental group of the associated cover is generated by its intersection with
the set of elements in proper free factors of $\mathbf{F}_n$. The Whitehead
complex admits an action of $\mathrm{Out}(\mathbf{F}_n)$ by isometries if the
associated cover corresponds to a characteristic subgroup of $\mathbf{F}_n$. We
prove that the Whitehead complex of the rose has infinite diameter and is
nonhyperbolic, implying it is not quasi-isometric to the free splitting complex
or the free factor complex.


  We prove that the generalised Fibonacci group F(r,n) is infinite for (r,n) in
{(7 + 5k,5), (8 + 5k,5)} where k is greater than or equal to 0. This together
with previously known results yields a complete classification of the finite
F(r,n), a problem that has its origins in a question by J H Conway in 1965. The
method is to show that a related relative presentation is aspherical from which
it can be deduced that the groups are infinite.


  We present time-series spectroscopy and multi-band photometry of the sdBV PG
1605+072 carried out simultaneously at the Calar Alto 2.2m and 3.5m telescopes.
The periodogram analysis of the radial velocity curves reveals three
frequencies at 2.078, 2.756, and 1.985 mHz for Hbeta and at 2.076, 2.753, and
1.978 mHz for Hgamma. The corresponding radial velocity amplitudes are 12.7,
8.0, and 7.9 km/s for Hbeta and 14.3, 6.5, and 7.2 km/s for Hgamma.
Furthermore, we found five frequencies that are present in all wavelength bands
of the BUSCA photometer. The frequencies detected in the radial velocity curves
are recovered by the photometric measurements. Moreover, additional frequencies
were present in the periodograms which could not be identified in all four
bands simultaneously. The comparison of the amplitudes presented here with
previous results from radial velocity and photometric observations of PG
1605+072 shows a significant change or even switch in the power of the modes
within short time scales, i. e. about one year. No changes in frequency were
registered and the phases of the modes show no wavelength dependency within our
multi-band photometry.


  Random forests are a statistical learning method widely used in many areas of
scientific research because of its ability to learn complex relationships
between input and output variables and also its capacity to handle
high-dimensional data. However, current random forest approaches are not
flexible enough to handle heterogeneous data such as curves, images and shapes.
In this paper, we introduce Fr\'echet trees and Fr\'echet random forests, which
allow to handle data for which input and output variables take values in
general metric spaces. To this end, a new way of splitting the nodes of trees
is introduced and the prediction procedures of trees and forests are
generalized. Then, random forests out-of-bag error and variable importance
score are naturally adapted. A consistency theorem for Fr\'echet regressogram
predictor using data-driven partitions is given and applied to Fr\'echet purely
uniformly random trees. The method is studied through several simulation
scenarios on heterogeneous data combining longitudinal, image and scalar data.
Finally, one real dataset about air quality is used to illustrate the use of
the proposed method in practice.


  Consumer 3D scanners and depth cameras are increasingly being used to
generate content and avatars for Virtual Reality (VR) environments and avoid
the inconveniences of hand modeling; however, it is sometimes difficult to
evaluate quantitatively the mesh quality at which 3D scans should be exported,
and whether the object perception might be affected by its shading. We propose
using a paired-comparisons test based on psychophysics of perception to do that
evaluation. As psychophysics is not subject to opinion, skill level, mental
state, or economic situation it can be considered a quantitative way to measure
how people perceive the mesh quality. In particular, we propose using the
psychophysical measure for the comparison of four different levels of mesh
quality (1K, 5K, 10K and 20K triangles). We present two studies within
subjects: in one we investigate the quality perception variations of seeing an
object in a regular screen monitor against an stereoscopic Head Mounted Display
(HMD); while in the second experiment we aim at detecting the effects of
shading into quality perception. At each iteration of the pair-test comparisons
participants pick the mesh that they think had higher quality; by the end of
the experiment we compile a preference matrix. The matrix evidences the
correlation between real quality and assessed quality. Regarding the shading
mode, we find an interaction with quality and shading when the model has high
definition. Furthermore, we assess the subjective realism of the most/least
preferred scans using an Immersive Augmented Reality (IAR) video-see-through
setup. Results show higher levels of realism were perceived through the HMD
than when using a monitor, although the quality was similarly perceived in both
systems.


  From a 2 x 2 degree survey of NGC 6822 we have previously established that
this Local Group dwarf irregular galaxy possesses a huge spheroid having more
than one degree in length. This spheroid is in rotation but its rotation curve
is known only within ~15' from the center. It is therefore critical to identify
bright stars belonging to the spheroid to characterize, as far as possible, its
outer kinematics. We use the new wide field near infrared imager CPAPIR,
operated by the SMARTS consortium, to acquire J, Ks images of two 34.8' x 34.8'
areas in the outer spheroid to search for C stars. The colour diagram of the
fields allows the identification of 192 C stars candidates but a study of the
FWHM of the images permits the rejection of numerous non-stellar objects with
colours similar to C stars. We are left with 75 new C stars, their mean Ks
magnitude and mean colour are similar to the bulk of known NGC 6822 C stars.
This outer spheroid survey confirms that the intermediate-age AGB stars are a
major contributor to the stellar populations of the spheroid. The discovery of
some 50 C stars well beyond the limit of the previously known rotation curve
calls for a promising spectroscopic follow-up to a major axis distance of 40'.


  We present our full analysis of the two flavor Nambu--Jona-Lasinio model with
$SU(2) \times SU(2)$ chiral symmetry on the four--dimensional hypercubic
lattice with naive and Wilson fermions. We find that this model is an excellent
toy field theory to investigate issues related to lattice QCD. We use the large
$N$ approximation to leading order in $1/N$ to obtain non perturbative
analytical results over almost the whole parameter range. By using numerical
simulations we estimate that the size of the $1/N$ corrections for most of the
quantities we consider are small and in this way we strengthen the validity of
the leading order large $N$ calculations. We obtain results regarding the
approach to the continuum chiral limit, the effects of the zero momentum
fermionic modes on finite lattices and the scalar and pseudoscalar spectrum.
Note: The full ps file of this preprint is also available via anonymous ftp to
ftp.scri.fsu.edu. To get the ps file, ftp to this address and use for username
"anonymous" and for password your complete E-mail address. The file is in the
directory pub/vranas (to go to that directory type: cd pub/vranas) and is
called NJL_long.ps (to get it type: get NJL_long.ps)


  Neutron stars in mass-transferring binaries are accreting the hydrogen and
helium rich matter from the surfaces of their companions. This article simply
explains the physics associated with how that material eventually fuses to form
heavier nuclei and the observations of the time dependent phenomena (such as
Type I X-ray bursts) associated with the thermally unstable thermonuclear
reactions. We explain how the outcome depends on the composition of the
accreting matter, the accretion rate and the mass, radius and thermal state of
the neutron star. We also introduce many new analytic relations that are
convenient for comparisons to both observations and computational results.
After explaining nuclear burning for spherically symmetric accretion onto
neutron stars, we discuss the possibility of asymmetric burning. In particular,
we discuss some of the mysteries from EXOSAT observations of Type I X-Ray
bursts and how the solution to these puzzles may lie in considering the lateral
propagation of nuclear burning fronts around the star. Fully understanding this
problem requires knowledge of parameters previously neglected such as the
distribution of fresh fuel on the star, the magnetic field strength, and the
stellar rotation. Recent RXTE observations of bursters may finally tell us some
of these parameters.


  The conventional approach to circuit quantization is based on node fluxes and
traces the motion of node charges on the islands of the circuit. However, for
some devices, the relevant physics can be best described by the motion of
polarization charges over the branches of the circuit that are in general
related to the node charges in a highly nonlocal way. Here, we present a
method, dual to the conventional approach, for quantizing planar circuits in
terms of loop charges. In this way, the polarization charges are directly
obtained as the differences of the two loop charges on the neighboring loops.
The loop charges trace the motion of fluxes through the circuit loops. We show
that loop charges yield a simple description of the flux transport across
phase-slip junctions. We outline a concrete construction of circuits based on
phase-slip junctions that are electromagnetically dual to arbitrary planar
Josephson junction circuits. We argue that loop charges also yield a simple
description of the flux transport in conventional Josephson junctions shunted
by large impedances. We show that a mixed circuit description in terms of node
fluxes and loop charges yields an insight into the flux decompactification of a
Josephson junction shunted by an inductor. As an application, we show that the
fluxonium qubit is well approximated as a phase-slip junction for the
experimentally relevant parameters. Moreover, we argue that the $0$-$\pi$ qubit
is effectively the dual of a Majorana Josephson junction.


  In order to recognize environmental effects on the evolution of dwarf
galaxies in clusters of galaxies, it is first necessary to quantify the
properties of objects which have evolved in relative isolation. With oxygen
abundance as the gauge of metallicity, two key diagnostics of the evolution of
dwarf irregular galaxies in the field are re-examined: the
metallicity-luminosity relationship and the metallicity-gas fraction
relationship. Gas fractions are evaluated from the masses of luminous
components only, i.e., constituents of the nucleogenetic pool. Results from new
optical spectroscopy obtained for H II regions in five dwarf irregular galaxies
in the Local Volume are incorporated into a new analysis of field dwarfs with
[O III]4363 detections and good distances. The updated fit to the
metallicity-luminosity relationship is consistent with results reported in the
literature. The fit to the metallicity-gas fraction relation shows an excellent
correlation consistent with expectations of the simple "closed box" model of
chemical evolution. The simplest explanation consistent with the data is that
flow rates are zero, although the observations allow for the possibility of
modest flows. The derived oxygen yield is one-quarter of the value for the
solar neighbourhood.


  Man-made artificial graphene has attracted significant attention in the past
few years due to the possibilities to construct designer Dirac fermions with
unexpected topological properties and applications in nanoelectronics. Here we
use a first-principles approach within density-functional theory to study
molecular graphene similar to the experiment by Gomes~{\em et al.}, Nature {\bf
483}, 306 (2012). The system comprises carbon monoxide molecules arranged on a
copper (111) surface in such a way that a hexagonal lattice is obtained with
the characteristic electronic properties of graphene. Our results show in
detail how carbon monoxide molecules modify the copper surface (and regions
beneath) and create a hexagonal lattice of accumulated electrons between the
adsorbate molecules. We also demonstrate how the properties of the formed Dirac
fermions change as the CO density is tuned, and provide a direct comparison
with experimental scanning tunneling microscope images.


  We investigate chiral graphene nanoribbons using projective quantum Monte
Carlo simulations within the local Hubbard model description and study the
effects of electron-electron interactions on the electronic and magnetic
properties at the ribbon edges. Static and dynamical properties are analyzed
for nanoribbons of varying width and edge chirality, and compared to a
self-consistent Hartee-Fock mean-field approximation. Our results show that for
chiral ribbons of sufficient width, the spin correlations exhibit exceedingly
long correlation lengths, even between zigzag segments that are well separated
by periodic armchair regions. Characteristic enhancements in the magnetic
correlations for distinct ribbon widths and chiralities are associated with
energy gaps in the tight-binding limit of such ribbons. We identify specific
signatures in the local density of states and low- energy modes in the local
spectral function which directly relate to enhanced electronic correlations
along graphene nanoribbons and which can be accessed scanning tunneling
spectroscopy.


  We consider a queueing system consisting of two non-identical exponential
servers, where each server has its own dedicated queue and serves the customers
in that queue FCFS. Customers arrive according to a Poisson process and join
the queue promising the shortest expected delay, which is a natural and
near-optimal policy for systems with non-identical servers. This system can be
modeled as an inhomogeneous random walk in the quadrant. By stretching the
boundaries of the compensation approach we prove that the equilibrium
distribution of this random walk can be expressed as a series of product-forms
that can be determined recursively. The resulting series expression is directly
amenable for numerical calculations and it also provides insight in the
asymptotic behavior of the equilibrium probabilities as one of the state
coordinates tends to infinity.


  We give necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of weak
solutions to the model equation $$-\Delta_p u=\sigma \, u^q \quad \text{on} \,
\, \, \R^n,$$ in the case $0<q<p-1$, where $\sigma\ge 0$ is an arbitrary
locally integrable function, or measure, and $\Delta_pu={\rm div}(\nabla
u|\nabla u|^{p-2})$ is the $p$-Laplacian. Sharp global pointwise estimates and
regularity properties of solutions are obtained as well. As a consequence, we
characterize the solvability of the equation $$-\Delta_p v \, = {b} \, \frac
{|\nabla v|^{p}}{v} + \sigma \quad \text{on} \, \, \, \R^n,$$ where ${b}>0$.
These results are new even in the classical case $p=2$.
  Our approach is based on the use of special nonlinear potentials of Wolff
type adapted for "sublinear" problems, and related integral inequalities. It
allows us to treat simultaneously several problems of this type, such as
equations with general quasilinear operators $\text{div} \, \mathcal{A}(x,
\nabla u)$, fractional Laplacians $(-\Delta)^{\alpha}$, or fully nonlinear
$k$-Hessian operators.


  We consider the evolution of a family of 2D dispersive turbulence models. The
members of this family involve the nonlinear advection of a dynamically active
scalar field, the locality of the streamfunction-scalar relation is denoted by
$\alpha$, with smaller $\alpha$ implying increased locality. The dispersive
nature arises via a linear term whose strength is characterized by a parameter
$\epsilon$. Setting $0 < \epsilon \le 1$, we investigate the interplay of
advection and dispersion for differing degrees of locality. Specifically, we
study the forward (inverse) transfer of enstrophy (energy) under large-scale
(small-scale) random forcing. Straightforward arguments suggest that for small
$\alpha$ the scalar field should consist of progressively larger eddies, while
for large $\alpha$ the scalar field is expected to have a filamentary structure
resulting from a stretch and fold mechanism. Confirming this, we proceed to
forced/dissipative dispersive numerical experiments under weakly non-local to
local conditions. For $\epsilon \sim 1$, there is quantitative agreement
between non-dispersive estimates and observed slopes in the inverse energy
transfer regime. On the other hand, forward enstrophy transfer regime always
yields slopes that are significantly steeper than the corresponding
non-dispersive estimate. Additional simulations show the scaling in the inverse
regime to be sensitive to the strength of the dispersive term : specifically,
as $\epsilon$ decreases, the inertial-range shortens and we also observe that
the slope of the power-law decreases. On the other hand, for the same range of
$\epsilon$ values, the forward regime scaling is fairly universal.


  Electromagnetic Navigation Systems (eMNS) can be used to control a variety of
multiscale devices within the human body for remote surgery. Accurate modeling
of the magnetic fields generated by the electromagnets of an eMNS is crucial
for the precise control of these devices. Existing methods assume a linear
behavior of these systems, leading to significant modeling errors within
nonlinear regions exhibited at higher magnetic fields. In this paper, we use a
random forest (RF) and an artificial neural network (ANN) to model the
nonlinear behavior of the magnetic fields generated by an eMNS. Both machine
learning methods outperformed the state-of-the-art linear multipole
electromagnet method (LMEM). The RF and the ANN model reduced the root mean
squared error of the LMEM when predicting the field magnitude by around 40% and
80%, respectively, over the entire current range of the eMNS. At high current
regions, especially between 30 and 35 A, the field-magnitude RMSE improvement
of the ANN model over the LMEM was over 35 mT. This study demonstrates the
feasibility of using machine learning methods to model an eMNS for medical
applications, and its ability to account for complex nonlinear behavior at high
currents. The use of machine learning thus shows promise for improving surgical
procedures that use magnetic navigation.


  In this paper, we study octahedral norms in free Banach lattices $FBL[E]$
generated by a Banach space $E$. We prove that if $E$ is an $L_1(\mu)$-space, a
predual of von Neumann algebra, a predual of a JBW$^*$-triple, the dual of an
$M$-embedded Banach space, the disc algebra or the projective tensor product
under some hypothesis, then the norm of $FBL[E]$ is octahedral. We get the
analogous result when the topological dual $E^*$ of $E$ is almost square. We
finish the paper by proving that the norm of the free Banach lattice generated
by a Banach space of dimension $ \geq 2$ is nowhere Fr\'echet differentiable.
Moreover, we discuss some open problems on this topic.


  Dense suspensions that exhibit discontinuous shear thickening (DST) undergo
complex stress relaxation when the flow abruptly stops. Using rotational
rheometry, we study the two-step relaxation of aqueous cornstarch suspensions
out of the DST state upon flow cessation and show that the DST fluid retains
the memory of its shear-thickening state until the shear stress reaches a
constant value at late times. We find that this residual stress at the end of
the relaxation increases with the steady-state viscosity before the cessation.
Furthermore, the timescales that characterize the two-step exponential decay of
the shear stress exhibit near linear dependence on the steady-state viscosity.
Within the current framework that ascribes DST to the breakdown of hydrodynamic
lubrication layers leading to interparticle frictional contacts, the lasting
effects of the steady-state viscosity suggest that the memory of frictional
contacts persists until the end of the relaxation, despite the presence of
repulsive forces between the particles. These results indicate that complete,
spontaneous relaxation of the system out of DST is stalled by the partial
retention of the frictional force chains, which may be caused by the stationary
boundaries and the adhesion between cornstarch particles.


  The non-equilibrium properties of quark-gluon plasma (QGP) have been a topic
of intensive research. In this contribution, we explore the nature of heavy
quarkonia immersed in a QGP with bulk viscosity. We incorporate the bulk
viscous effect through the deformation of the distribution functions of thermal
quarks and gluons, with which the color dielectric permittivity can be
computed. We use the color dielectric permittivity to compute the heavy quark
potential inside a bulk viscous plasma and solve the Schr\"odinger equation
using the potential to obtain the physical properties such as binding energies
and decay widths. We discuss the effect of the bulk viscous correction on the
quarkonium properties and the melting temperatures.


  It has recently been argued that quantization can be established within
classical theory as a consequence of lost information. In this view, classical
mechanics is regarded as a union of quantum mechanics and what are called
'hidden variables'. Hidden variable theories were first considered some years
ago and abandoned because they did not produce new physics. They have now been
revived however, because they appear to provide a logically sound means of
relating classical and quantum theories. It is argued here that the Heisenberg
uncertainty relations constitute a necessary condition for gauge invariance in
the 5-dimensional Kaluza-Klein theory, where the fifth dimension of 5-spacetime
is hidden as a 5-dimensional theory of general relativity is projected onto
4-spacetime.


  We study resonances for Jacobi operators on the half lattice with matrix
valued coefficient and finitely supported perturbations. We describe a
forbidden domain, the geometry of resonances and their asymptotics when the
main coefficient of the perturbation (determining its length of support) goes
to zero. Moreover, we show that\\ 1) Any sequence of points on the complex
plane can be resonances for some Jacobi operators. In particular, the
multiplicity of a resonance can be any number.\\ 2) The Jost determinant
coincides with the Fredholm determinant up to the constant.\\ 3) The S-matrix
on the a.c spectrum determines the perturbation uniquely.\\ 5) The value of the
Jost matrix at any finite sequence of points on the a.c spectrum determine the
Jacobi matrix uniquely. The length of this sequence is equals to the upper
point of the support perturbation.


  We prove analyticity of solutions in $\mathbb{R}^{n}$, $n\ge1$, to certain
nonlocal linear Schr\"odinger equations with analytic potentials.


  A recent conjecture of Chudnovsky and Nevo asserts that flag triangulations
of spheres always have linear-sized independent sets, with a precisely
conjectured proportion depending on the dimension. For dimensions one and two,
the lower bound of their conjecture basically follow from constant bounds on
the chromatic number of flag triangulations of $S^1$ and $S^2$. This raises a
natural question that does not appear to have been considered: For each $d$ is
there a constant upper bound for the chromatic number of flag triangulations of
$S^d$? Here we show that the answer to this question is no, and use results
from Ramsey theory to construct flag triangulations of 3-spheres on $n$
vertices with chromatic number at least $\widetilde{\Omega}(n^{1/4})$.


  Implicit neural representations (INRs) have emerged as a powerful tool for
compressing large-scale volume data. This opens up new possibilities for in
situ visualization. However, the efficient application of INRs to distributed
data remains an underexplored area. In this work, we develop a distributed
volumetric neural representation and optimize it for in situ visualization. Our
technique eliminates data exchanges between processes, achieving
state-of-the-art compression speed, quality and ratios. Our technique also
enables the implementation of an efficient strategy for caching large-scale
simulation data in high temporal frequencies, further facilitating the use of
reactive in situ visualization in a wider range of scientific problems. We
integrate this system with the Ascent infrastructure and evaluate its
performance and usability using real-world simulations.


  Several computer codes based on phenomenological models are being developed
with the aim of obtaining fission observables, such as neutron and gamma
multiplicities and product yields. Key points in these calculations, which are
handled differently by the various codes, are the sharing of the total
excitation energy between the fragments and the generation of angular momenta.
After the initial states of the fragments is set, the de-excitation through the
emission of neutrons and photons can be model. However, many models also
include tunable parameters that are used to make the calculations conform with
literature data. As a result, it could be possible to obtain good agreement
with experimental results even with questionable assumptions on the initial
conditions. To test the assumptions made by different fission models the code
DE$\ell$FIN has been developed. DE$\ell$FIN starts with the fission fragments
as generated by the models and calculates the average neutron emission as a
function of mass in a transparent and coherent way using the nuclear reaction
code TALYS. Hence, the probabilities of neutron emission in competition with
$\gamma$ de-excitation comes from parameters of the TALYS code that have not
been optimised. The results are then compared looking at general trends and at
the difference to what is obtained with the stand-alone versions of the codes.
In this study, the output of DE$\ell$FIN for five of the most commonly used
fission codes is compared to the results of the stand-alone versions, and to
experimental data, for the reactions $^{235}$U(n$_{\mathrm{th}}$,f),
$^{239}$Pu(n$_{\mathrm{th}}$,f) and $^{252}$Cf(sf).


  We report on multi-epoch optical and near-infrared spectroscopy around the
first overtone ro-vibrational band of CO in the pulsating yellow hypergiant Rho
Cas, one of the most massive stars in the Galaxy and a candidate SN II
progenitor. We argue that the double cores of the CO absorption lines, that
have previously been attributed to separate circumstellar shells expelled
during its recurrent outbursts, result in fact from a superposition of a wide
absorption line and a narrow central emission line. The CO line doubling
returns over subsequent pulsation cycles, where the superposed line emission
assumes its largest intensity near phases of maximum light. We find that the
morphology and behavior of the CO band closely resemble the remarkable
"line-splitting phenomenon" also observed in optical low-excitation atomic
lines. Based on radiative transport calculations we present a simplified model
of the near-IR CO emission emerging from cooler atmospheric layers in the
immediate vicinity of the photosphere. We speculate that the kinetic
temperature minimum in our model results from a periodical pulsation-driven
shock wave. We further discuss a number of alternative explanations for the
origin of the ubiquitous emission line spectrum, possibly due to a
quasi-chromosphere or a steady shock wave at the interface of a fast expanding
wind and the ISM. We present a number of interesting spectroscopic similarities
between Rho Cas and other types of cool variable supergiants such as the RV Tau
and R CrB stars. We further propose a possibly common mechanism for the
enigmatic outburst behavior of these luminous pulsating cool stars.


  This paper presents an overview of the "Applied Parallel Computing" course
taught to final year Software Engineering undergraduate students in Spring 2014
at NUST, Pakistan. The main objective of the course was to introduce practical
parallel programming tools and techniques for shared and distributed memory
concurrent systems. A unique aspect of the course was that Java was used as the
principle programming language. The course was divided into three sections. The
first section covered parallel programming techniques for shared memory systems
that include multicore and Symmetric Multi-Processor (SMP) systems. In this
section, Java threads was taught as a viable programming API for such systems.
The second section was dedicated to parallel programming tools meant for
distributed memory systems including clusters and network of computers. We used
MPJ Express-a Java MPI library-for conducting programming assignments and lab
work for this section. The third and the final section covered advanced topics
including the MapReduce programming model using Hadoop and the General Purpose
Computing on Graphics Processing Units (GPGPU).


  We review on the theoretical status of intense laser orientation and
alignment. The evolution of the rotational wave packet and its dynamics leading
to orientation and alignment is the topic of the present discussion. The major
part of the article basically presents an overview on recent theoretical
progress in controlling the orientation and alignment dynamics of a molecule by
means of shaped laser pulses. The various theoretical approaches that lead to
orientation and alignment ranging from static electrostatic field in
combination with laser field(s), combination of orienting and aligning field,
combination of aligning fields, combination of orienting fields, application of
train of pulses etc. are discussed. The orientation and alignment both can
occur in adiabatic and non-adiabatic conditions with the rotational period of
the molecule into consideration. The discussion is mostly limited to
non-adiabatic rotational excitation (NAREX). A particular focus is put on the
so called half-cycle pulse (HCP) and square pulse (SQP). The effect of ramped
pulses is also under focus. The effect of collision on the various laser
parameters is also given concern. We summarize the current discussion by
presenting a consistent theoretical approach for describing the action of such
pulses on movement of molecules. The impact of a particular pulse shapes on the
post-pulse dynamics is calculated and analysed. The concept of alignment is
extended from one-dimensional alignment to three-dimensional alignment with the
proper choice of molecule and the polarised light. We conclude the article by
discussing the potential applications of intense laser orientation and
alignment.


  The extended-BMS algebra of asymptotically flat spacetime contains an SO(3,1)
subgroup that acts by conformal transformations on the celestial sphere. It is
of interest to study the representations of this subgroup associated with
gravitons. To reduce the equation of motion to a Schrodinger-like equation it
is necessary to impose a non-covariant gauge condition. Using these solutions,
leading-order gauge invariant Weyl scalars are then computed and decomposed
into families of unitary principal series representations. An invertible
holographic mapping is constructed between these unitary principal series
operators and massless spin-2 perturbations of flat spacetime.


  We investigate the reconstruction of pulsar magnetospheres close to the light
cylinder surface to study the curvature drift instability (CDI) responsible for
the twisting of magnetic field lines in the mentioned zone. The influence of
plasma dynamics on the saturation process of the CDI is studied. On the basis
of the Euler, continuity, and induction equations, we derive the increment of
the CDI and analyze parametrically excited drift modes. The dynamics of the
reconstruction of the pulsar magnetosphere is studied analytically. We show
that there is a possibility of a parametrically excited rotational-energy
pumping-process in the drift modes. It is indicated by the generation of a
toroidal component of the magnetic field that transforms the field lines into
such a configuration, in which plasma particles do not experience any forces.
At this stage, the instability process saturates and the further amplification
of the toroidal component to the magnetic field lines is suspended.


  The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) will each year obtain millions of
spectra in the optical to near-infrared, at low (R~3000) to high (R~40000)
spectral resolution by observing >3000 spectra per pointing via a highly
multiplexed fiber-fed system. Key science programs for MSE include black hole
reverberation mapping, stellar population analysis of faint galaxies at high
redshift, and sub-km/s velocity accuracy for stellar astrophysics. The
architecture of MSE is an assembly of subsystems designed to meet the science
requirements and describes what MSE will look like. In this paper we focus on
the operations concept of MSE, which describes how to operate a fiber fed,
highly multiplexed, dedicated observatory given its architecture and the
science requirements. The operations concept details the phases of operations,
from selecting proposals within the science community to distributing back
millions of spectra to this community. For each phase, the operations concept
describes the tools required to support the science community in their analyses
and the operations staff in their work. It also highlights the specific needs
related to the complexity of MSE with millions of targets to observe, thousands
of fibers to position, and different spectral resolution to use. Finally, the
operations concept shows how the science requirements on calibration and
observing efficiency can be met.


  Integral formulae for the correlation functions of the XYZ model with a
boundary are calculated by mapping the model to the bosonized boundary SOS
model. The boundary K-matrix considered here coincides with the known general
solution of the boundary Yang-Baxter equation. For the case of diagonal
K-matrix, our formulae reproduce the one-point function previously obtained by
solving boundary version of quantum Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov equation.


  The paper is concerned with the interpretation of many experiments that have
been reported recently on the production of quantum turbulence by oscillating
spheres, wires and grids in both 4He and 3He-B at temperatures so low that
there is a negligible fraction of normal fluid. The experimental results are
compared with those obtained in analogous experiments with classical fluids and
with preliminary simulations of the quantum turbulence. Particular attention is
paid to observed values of drag coefficients and to the very different critical
velocities observed in 4He and 3He. It is tentatively concluded that in the
case of 4He behaviour may well be similar to that observed in the classical
analogues, with relatively small changes when the characteristic size of the
oscillating structure is not large compared with the quantized vortex spacing,
but that in the case of 3He behaviour is very different and due perhaps to very
rapid intrinsic nucleation of the quantized vortices.


  An infinite sheet of graphene lying above a perturbed ground plane is
studied. The perturbation is a two dimensional ridge, and a bias voltage is
applied between the graphene and the ground plane, resulting in a graphene
nanoribbonlike structure with a soft-boundary (SB) The spatial distribution of
the graphene conductivity forming the soft-boundary is studied as a function of
the ridge parameters and the bias voltage. The current distribution of the
fundamental TM surface plasmon polariton (SPP) is considered. The effect of the
ridge parameters and shape of the soft boundary on the current distributions
are investigated, and the conditions are studied under which the mode remains
confined to the vicinity of the ridge region.


  The analysis of phonon anomalies provides valuable information about the
cooperative dynamics of lattice, spin and charge degrees of freedom.
Significant is the anomalous temperature dependence of the external modes
observed in La$_{2/3}$Sr$_{1/3}$MnO$_{3}$ (LSMO) films. The two external modes
merge close to the ferromagnetic to paramagnetic transition at $T_C$ and,
moreover, two new modes evolve in this temperature range with strong resonances
at slightly higher frequencies. We propose that this observed phonon
metamorphosis probes the inhomogeneous Jahn-Teller distortion, manifest on the
temperature scale $T_C$. The analysis is based on the first observation of all
eight phonon modes in the metallic phase of LSMO and on susceptibility
measurements which identify a Griffiths-like phase.


  Social capital may help individuals maintain their mental health. Most
empirical work based on small-scale surveys finds that bonding social capital
and cohesive social networks are critical for mental well-being, while bridging
social capital and diverse networks are considered less important. Here, we
link data on antidepressant use of 277,344 small-town residents to a
nation-wide online social network. The data enable us to examine how
individuals' mental healthcare is related to the spatial characteristics of
their social networks including their strong and weak ties. We find that,
besides the cohesion of social networks around home, the diversity of
connections to distant places is negatively correlated with the probability of
antidepressant use. Spatial diversity of social networks is also associated
with decreasing dosage in subsequent years. This relationship is independent
from the local access to antidepressants and is more prevalent for young
individuals. Structural features of spatial social networks are prospectively
associated with depression treatment.


  Progressive reduction of the effective diameter of a nanowire is applied to
trace evolution of the shape of superconducting transition $R(T)$ in
quasi-one-dimensional aluminum structures. In nanowires with effective diameter
$\leq$ 15 nm the $R(T)$ dependences are much wider than predicted by the model
of thermally activated phase slips. The effect can be explained by quantum
fluctuations of the order parameter. Negative magnetoresistance is observed in
the thinest samples. Experimental results are in reasonable agreement with
existing theoretical models. The effect should have a universal validity
indicating a breakdown of zero resistance state in a superconductor below a
certain scale.


  We report 3D-printed acoustic holographic lenses for the formation of
ultrasonic fields of complex spatial distribution inside the skull. Using
holographic lenses, we experimentally, numerically and theoretically produce
acoustic beams whose spatial distribution matches target structures of the
central nervous system. In particular, we produce three types of targets of
increasing complexity. First, a set of points are selected at the center of
both right and left human hippocampi. Experiments using a skull phantom and 3D
printed acoustic holographic lenses show that the corresponding bifocal lens
simultaneously focuses acoustic energy at the target foci, with good agreement
between theory and simulations. Second, an arbitrary curve is set as the target
inside the skull phantom. Using time-reversal methods the holographic beam
bends following the target path, in a similar way as self-bending beams do in
free space. Finally, the right human hippocampus is selected as a target
volume. The focus of the corresponding holographic lens overlaps with the
target volume in excellent agreement between theory in free-media, and
experiments and simulations including the skull phantom. The precise control of
focused ultrasound into the central nervous system is mainly limited due to the
strong phase aberrations produced by refraction and attenuation of the skull.
Using the present method, the ultrasonic beam can be focused not only at a
single point but overlapping one or various target structures simultaneously
using low-cost 3D-printed acoustic holographic lens. The results open new paths
to spread incoming biomedical ultrasound applications including blood-brain
barrier opening or neuromodulation.


  We have studied the dielectric screening of electric field which is induced
by a gate voltage in twisted double bilayer graphene by using a sample with a
mismatch angle of about 5 degrees. In low temperature magnetotransport
measurements, quantum oscillations of magnetoresistance originating from two
bands with different carrier density were observed. The behavior of the carrier
densities with respect to the total carrier density were distinct from that of
the AB-stacked tetralayer graphene. The carrier density ratio was theoretically
analyzed in terms of the model that the induced charge decays exponentially
with distance with a screening length {\lambda}. The estimated {\lambda} was
slightly larger than that of AB-stacked graphene, which would possibly reflect
the difference in the inter-plane distribution of probability of the wave
function.


  To each rail knotoid we associate two unoriented knots along with their
oriented counterparts, thus deriving invariants for rail knotoids based on
these associations. We then translate them to invariants of rail isotopy for
rail arcs.


  According to string/fivebrane duality, the Green-Schwarz factorization of the
$D=10$ spacetime anomaly polynomial $I_{12}$ into $X_4\, X_8$ means that just
as $X_4$ is the anomaly polynomial of the $d=2$ string worldsheet so $X_8$
should be the anomaly polynomial of the $d=6$ fivebrane worldvolume. To test
this idea we perform a fivebrane calculation of $X_8$ and find perfect
agreement with the string one--loop result.


  Ultra-cold atoms in optical lattices realize simple, fundamental models in
condensed matter physics. Our 87Rb Bose-Einstein condensate is confined in a
harmonic trapping potential to which we add an optical lattice potential. Here
we realize the 2D Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonian and focus on the effects of the
harmonic trap, not present in bulk condensed matter systems. By measuring
condensate fraction we identify the transition from superfluid to Mott
insulator as a function of atom density and lattice depth. Our results are in
excellent agreement with the quantum Monte Carlo universal state diagram,
suitable for trapped systems, introduced by Rigol et al. (Phys. Rev. A 79,
053605 (2009)).


  Let $C^*_{\epsilon,S^2}$ denote the cover time of the two dimensional sphere
by a Wiener sausage of radius $\epsilon$. We prove that
$$\sqrt{C^{*}_{\epsilon,S^2} } -\sqrt{\frac{2A_{S^2}}{\pi}}(\log
\epsilon^{-1}-\frac14\log\log \epsilon^{-1})$$ is tight, where $A_{S^2}=4\pi$
denotes the Riemannian area of $S^2$.


  Semiconductor double-layers in the quantum Hall regime tend to have
superfluid exciton condensate ground states when the total filling factor is an
odd integer, provided that the Landau orbitals at the Fermi level in the two
layers have the same orbital character. Since the $N=0$ Landau level of bilayer
graphene contains states with both $n=0$ and $n=1$ orbital character, the
physics of double bilayers falls outside previously studied cases. We show that
the superfluid phase stiffness vanishes in double bilayer graphene when $n=0$
and $n=1$ orbitals states are degenerate in one of the layers, even though the
gap for charged excitations remain large, and speculate that this property is
behind the recent discovery of strong anomalous drag near a $n=0/1$ degeneracy
point.


  Glaucoma is one of the primary causes of vision loss around the world,
necessitating accurate and efficient detection methods. Traditional manual
detection approaches have limitations in terms of cost, time, and subjectivity.
Recent developments in deep learning approaches demonstrate potential in
automating glaucoma detection by detecting relevant features from retinal
fundus images. This article provides a comprehensive overview of cutting-edge
deep learning methods used for the segmentation, classification, and detection
of glaucoma. By analyzing recent studies, the effectiveness and limitations of
these techniques are evaluated, key findings are highlighted, and potential
areas for further research are identified. The use of deep learning algorithms
may significantly improve the efficacy, usefulness, and accuracy of glaucoma
detection. The findings from this research contribute to the ongoing
advancements in automated glaucoma detection and have implications for
improving patient outcomes and reducing the global burden of glaucoma.


  We consider 1-forms on, so called, essentially isolated determinantal
singularities (a natural generalization of isolated ones), show how to define
analogues of the Poincar\'e--Hopf index for them, and describe relations
between these indices and the radial index. For isolated determinantal
singularities, we discuss properties of the homological index of a holomorphic
1-form and its relation with the Poincar\'e--Hopf index.


  Stanene was proposed to be a quantum spin hall insulator containing
topological edges states and a time reversal invariant topological
superconductor hosting helical Majorana edge mode. Recently, experimental
evidences of existence of topological edge states have been found in monolayer
stanene films and superconductivity has been observed in few-layer stanene
films excluding single layer. An integrated system with both topological edge
states and superconductivity are higly pursued as a possible platform to
realize topological superconductivity. Few-layer stanene show great potential
to meet this requirement and is highly desired in experiment. Here we
successfully grow few-layer stanene on bismuth (111) substrate. Both
topological edge states and superconducting gaps are observed by in-situ
scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS). Our results take a
further step towards topological superconductivity by stanene films.


  We study nonequilibrium transport through a charge Kondo device realizing the
two-channel Kondo critical point in a recent experiment by Iftikhar et al. By
computing the current and shot noise at low voltages near the critical point,
we obtain a universal Fano factor $e^*/e=1/2$. We identify elementary transport
processes as weak scattering of emergent fermions carrying half-integer charge
quantum numbers. This forms an experimental fingerprint for fractionalization
in a non-Fermi liquid, which, compared to spin-Kondo devices, could be observed
at elevated temperatures.


  Jammed systems all have a yield stress. Among these materials some have been
shown to shear-band but it is as yet unclear why some materials develop
shear-band and some others do not. In order to rationalize existing data
concerning the flow characteristics of jammed systems and in particular
understand the physical origin of such a difference we propose a simple
approach for describing the steady flow behaviour of yield stress fluids, which
retains only basic physical ingredients. Within this frame we show that in the
liquid regime the behaviour of jammed systems turns from that of a simple yield
stress fluid (exhibiting homogeneous flows) to a shear-banding material when
the ratio of a characteristic relaxation time of the system to a restructuring
time becomes smaller than 1, thus suggesting a possible physical origin of
these trends.


  A cost effective, gesture based modelling technique called Virtual
Interactive Prototyping (VIP) is described in this paper. Prototyping is
implemented by projecting a virtual model of the equipment to be prototyped.
Users can interact with the virtual model like the original working equipment.
For capturing and tracking the user interactions with the model image and sound
processing techniques are used. VIP is a flexible and interactive prototyping
method that has much application in ubiquitous computing environments.
Different commercial as well as socio-economic applications and extension to
interactive advertising of VIP are also discussed.


  We experimentally investigate a superconducting qubit coupled to the end of
an open transmission line, in a regime where the qubit decay rates to the
transmission line and to its own environment are comparable. We perform
measurements of coherent and incoherent scattering, on- and off-resonant
fluorescence, and time-resolved dynamics to determine the decay and decoherence
rates of the qubit. In particular, these measurements let us discriminate
between non-radiative decay and pure dephasing. We combine and contrast results
across all methods and find consistent values for the extracted rates. The
results show that the pure dephasing rate is one order of magnitude smaller
than the non-radiative decay rate for our qubit. Our results indicate a pathway
to benchmark decoherence rates of superconducting qubits in a resonator-free
setting.


  In 2008, Klemm-Pandharipande defined Gopakumar-Vafa type invariants of a
Calabi-Yau 4-fold $X$ using Gromov-Witten theory. Recently, Cao-Maulik-Toda
proposed a conjectural description of these invariants in terms of stable pair
theory. When $X$ is the total space of the sum of two line bundles over a
surface $S$, and all stable pairs are scheme theoretically supported on the
zero section, we express stable pair invariants in terms of intersection
numbers on Hilbert schemes of points on $S$. As an application, we obtain new
verifications of the Cao-Maulik-Toda conjectures for low degree curve classes
and find connections to Carlsson-Okounkov numbers. Some of our verifications
involve genus zero Gopakumar-Vafa type invariants recently determined in the
context of the log-local principle by Bousseau-Brini-van Garrel. Finally, using
the vertex formalism, we provide a few more verifications of the
Cao-Maulik-Toda conjectures when thickened curves contribute and also for the
case of local $\mathbb{P}^3$.


  This paper investigates the principles of embedding learning to tackle the
challenging semi-supervised video object segmentation. Different from previous
practices that only explore the embedding learning using pixels from foreground
object (s), we consider background should be equally treated and thus propose
Collaborative video object segmentation by Foreground-Background Integration
(CFBI) approach. Our CFBI implicitly imposes the feature embedding from the
target foreground object and its corresponding background to be contrastive,
promoting the segmentation results accordingly. With the feature embedding from
both foreground and background, our CFBI performs the matching process between
the reference and the predicted sequence from both pixel and instance levels,
making the CFBI be robust to various object scales. We conduct extensive
experiments on three popular benchmarks, i.e., DAVIS 2016, DAVIS 2017, and
YouTube-VOS. Our CFBI achieves the performance (J$F) of 89.4%, 81.9%, and
81.4%, respectively, outperforming all the other state-of-the-art methods.
Code: https://github.com/z-x-yang/CFBI.


  Over the last two decades a plethora of new thermoelectric materials, their
alloys, and their nanostructures were synthesized. The ZT figure of merit,
which quantifies the thermoelectric efficiency of these materials increased
from values of unity to values consistently beyond two across material
families. At the same time, the ability to identify and optimize such
materials, has stressed the need for advanced numerical tools for computing
electronic transport in materials with arbitrary bandstructure complexity,
multiple scattering mechanisms, and a large degree of nanostructuring. Many
computational methods have been developed, the majority of which utilize the
Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) formalism, spanning from fully ab initio to
empirical treatment, with varying degree of computational expense and accuracy.
In this paper we describe a suitable computational process that we have
recently developed specifically for thermoelectric materials. The method
consists of three independent software packages that we have developed and: 1)
begins from ab initio calculation of the electron-phonon scattering rates, 2)
to then be used within a Boltzmann transport simulator, and 3) calculated
quantities from BTE are then passed on to a Monte Carlo simulator to examine
electronic transport in highly nanostructured material configurations. The
method we describe is computationally significantly advantageous compared to
current fully ab initio and existing Monte Carlo methods, but with a similar
degree of accuracy, thus making it truly enabling in understanding and
assessing thermoelectric transport in complex band, nanostructured materials.


  Graph edit distance (GED) is an important similarity measure adopted in a
similarity-based analysis between two graphs, and computing GED is a primitive
operator in graph database analysis. Partially due to the NP-hardness, the
existing techniques for computing GED are only able to process very small
graphs with less than 30 vertices. Motivated by this, in this paper we
systematically study the problems of both GED computation, and GED verification
(i.e., verify whether the GED between two graphs is no larger than a user-given
threshold). Firstly, we develop a unified framework that can be instantiated
into either a best-first search approach AStar+ or a depth-first search
approach DFS+. Secondly, we design anchor-aware lower bound estimation
techniques to compute tighter lower bounds for intermediate search states,
which significantly reduce the search spaces of both AStar+ and DFS+. We also
propose efficient techniques to compute the lower bounds. Thirdly, based on our
unified framework, we contrast AStar+ with DFS+ regarding their time and space
complexities, and recommend that AStar+ is better than DFS+ by having a much
smaller search space. Extensive empirical studies validate that AStar+ performs
better than DFS+, and show that our AStar+-BMa approach outperforms the
state-of-the-art technique by more than four orders of magnitude.


  The identification of local modules in dynamic networks with known topology
has recently been addressed by formulating conditions for arriving at
consistent estimates of the module dynamics, under the assumption of having
disturbances that are uncorrelated over the different nodes. The conditions
typically reflect the selection of a set of node signals that are taken as
predictor inputs in a MISO identification setup. In this paper an extension is
made to arrive at an identification setup for the situation that process noises
on the different node signals can be correlated with each other. In this
situation the local module may need to be embedded in a MIMO identification
setup for arriving at a consistent estimate with maximum likelihood properties.
This requires the proper treatment of confounding variables. The result is a
set of algorithms that, based on the given network topology and disturbance
correlation structure, selects an appropriate set of node signals as predictor
inputs and outputs in a MISO or MIMO identification setup. Three algorithms are
presented that differ in their approach of selecting measured node signals.
Either a maximum or a minimum number of measured node signals can be
considered, as well as a preselected set of measured nodes.


  The braid group dynamics captures the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE)
as a manifestation of puncture phase. When the dynamics is generalized for
particles on a multi-sheeted surface, we obtain new tools which determine the
fractional charges, the quantum statistics, and the filling factors of the
multi-layered FQHE. A many-quasi-hole wavefunction is proposed for the
bilayered samples. We also predict a $\nu = 5/7$ FQHE for triple-layered
samples. The viability of {\em 3-dimensional} FQHE and the application of the
concept of generalized duality to anyonic superconductivity are discussed.


  This study presents an automated lameness detection system that uses
deep-learning image processing techniques to extract multiple locomotion traits
associated with lameness. Using the T-LEAP pose estimation model, the motion of
nine keypoints was extracted from videos of walking cows. The videos were
recorded outdoors, with varying illumination conditions, and T-LEAP extracted
99.6% of correct keypoints. The trajectories of the keypoints were then used to
compute six locomotion traits: back posture measurement, head bobbing, tracking
distance, stride length, stance duration, and swing duration. The three most
important traits were back posture measurement, head bobbing, and tracking
distance. For the ground truth, we showed that a thoughtful merging of the
scores of the observers could improve intra-observer reliability and agreement.
We showed that including multiple locomotion traits improves the classification
accuracy from 76.6% with only one trait to 79.9% with the three most important
traits and to 80.1% with all six locomotion traits.


  In the existing language for tensor calculus on RCD spaces, tensor fields are
only defined m-a.e.. In this paper we introduce the concept of tensor field
defined `2-capacity-a.e.' and discuss in which sense Sobolev vector fields have
a 2-capacity-a.e. uniquely defined quasi-continuous representative.


  In this paper we investigate the non-linear and ill-posed inverse problem of
simultaneously identifying the conductivity and the reaction in diffuse optical
tomography with noisy measurement data available on an accessible part of the
boundary. We propose an energy functional method and the total variational
regularization combining with the quadratic stabilizing term to formulate the
identification problem to a PDEs constrained optimization problem. We show the
stability of the proposed regularization method and the convergence of the
finite element regularized solutions to the identification in the Lebesgue
norms and in the sense of the Bregman distance with respect to the total
variation semi-norm. To illustrate the theoretical results, a numerical case
study is presented which supports our analytical findings.


  For $0<\alpha<1$, we study the zeros of the sequence of polynomials $\left\{
P_{m}(z)\right\} _{m=0}^{\infty}$ generated by the reciprocal of
$(1-t)^{\alpha}(1-2zt+t^{2})$, expanded as a power series in $t$. Equivalently,
this sequence is obtained from a linear combination of Chebyshev polynomials
whose coefficients have a binomial form. We show that the number of zeros of
$P_{m}(z)$ outside the interval $(-1,1)$ is bounded by a constant independent
of $m$.


  Allocation of molecules of para-dichlorbenzol in equimolar single crystals of
para-dichlorbenzol with p-dibromobenzene solid solutions grown by the
Bridgmen's method is studied. It is shown, that the mutual concentration of
builders longwise an exemplar depends on requirements of selection. Probably as
a uniform modification of concentration of builders along an exemplar, and a
wavy modification of concentration. Critical speed at a modification of
character of allocation made 15.0 $\cdot $10-6 cm/s at a lapse rate of
temperature dT/dl=7.7 grad/cm.


  This document was created by the Solar Simulations for the Atacama Large
Millimeter Observatory Network (SSALMON) in preparation of the first regular
observations of the Sun with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array
(ALMA), which are anticipated to start in ALMA Cycle 4 in October 2016. The
science cases presented here demonstrate that a large number of scientifically
highly interesting observations could be made already with the still limited
solar observing modes foreseen for Cycle 4 and that ALMA has the potential to
make important contributions to answering long-standing scientific questions in
solar physics. With the proposal deadline for ALMA Cycle 4 in April 2016 and
the Commissioning and Science Verification campaign in December 2015 in sight,
several of the SSALMON Expert Teams composed strategic documents in which they
outlined potential solar observations that could be feasible given the
anticipated technical capabilities in Cycle 4. These documents have been
combined and supplemented with an analysis, resulting in recommendations for
solar observing with ALMA in Cycle 4. In addition, the detailed science cases
also demonstrate the scientific priorities of the solar physics community and
which capabilities are wanted for the next observing cycles. The work on this
White Paper effort was coordinated in close cooperation with the two
international solar ALMA development studies led by T. Bastian (NRAO, USA) and
R. Brajsa, (ESO). This document will be further updated until the beginning of
Cycle 4 in October 2016. In particular, we plan to adjust the technical
capabilities of the solar observing modes once finally decided and to further
demonstrate the feasibility and scientific potential of the included science
cases by means of numerical simulations of the solar atmosphere and
corresponding simulated ALMA observations.


  The space of Gaussian measures on a Euclidean space is geodesically convex in
the $L^2$-Wasserstein space. This space is a finite dimensional manifold since
Gaussian measures are parameterized by means and covariance matrices. By
restricting to the space of Gaussian measures inside the $L^2$-Wasserstein
space, we manage to provide detailed descriptions of the $L^2$-Wasserstein
geometry from a Riemannian geometric viewpoint. We first construct a Riemannian
metric which induces the $L^2$-Wasserstein distance. Then we obtain a formula
for the sectional curvatures of the space of Gaussian measures, which is
written out in terms of the eigenvalues of the covariance matrix.


  In this paper, we study long paths and Hamiltonian paths in inhomogenous
random graphs. In the first part of the paper, we consider an inhomogenous
Erd\H{o}s-R\'enyi random graph $G_E$ with average edge density $p_n.$ We prove
that if $np_n^2 \longrightarrow \infty$ as $n \rightarrow \infty,$ then the
longest path contains at least $n-ne^{-\delta_1 np_n^2}$ nodes with high
probability (i.e., with probability converging to one as $n \rightarrow
\infty$), for some constant $\delta_1> 0 .$ In particular, if $np_n^2 =
M\log{n}$ for some constant $M > 0$ large, then $G_E$ is Hamiltonian with high
probability; i.e., the longest path contains all the nodes of $G_E.$
  In the second part of the paper, we consider a random geometric graph $G_R$
consisting of $n$ nodes, each independently distributed according to a (not
necessarily uniform) density $f.$ If $r_n$ is the connectivity radius and
$nr_n^2 \longrightarrow \infty,$ then with high probability, the longest cycle
contains at least $n-ne^{-\delta_2 nr_n^2}$ nodes for some constant $\delta_2 >
0.$ As a consequence of our proof, we obtain that if $nr_n^2 = \log{n} +
7\log{\log{n}} + \omega_n$ and $\omega_n \longrightarrow \infty$ as $n
\rightarrow \infty,$ then with high probability $G_R$ contains a Hamiltonian
cycle.


  In this paper we show a polar coding scheme for the deletion channel with a
probability of error that decays roughly like $2^{-\sqrt{\Lambda}}$, where
$\Lambda$ is the length of the codeword. That is, the same decay rate as that
of seminal polar codes for memoryless channels. This is stronger than prior art
in which the square root is replaced by a cube root. Our coding scheme is
similar yet distinct from prior art. The main differences are: 1) Guard-bands
are placed in almost all polarization levels; 2) Trellis decoding is applied to
the whole received word, and not to segments of it. As before, the scheme is
capacity-achieving. The price we pay for this improvement is a higher decoding
complexity, which is nonetheless still polynomial, $O(\Lambda^4)$.


  Open-vocabulary models like CLIP achieve high accuracy across many image
classification tasks. However, there are still settings where their zero-shot
performance is far from optimal. We study model patching, where the goal is to
improve accuracy on specific tasks without degrading accuracy on tasks where
performance is already adequate. Towards this goal, we introduce PAINT, a
patching method that uses interpolations between the weights of a model before
fine-tuning and the weights after fine-tuning on a task to be patched. On nine
tasks where zero-shot CLIP performs poorly, PAINT increases accuracy by 15 to
60 percentage points while preserving accuracy on ImageNet within one
percentage point of the zero-shot model. PAINT also allows a single model to be
patched on multiple tasks and improves with model scale. Furthermore, we
identify cases of broad transfer, where patching on one task increases accuracy
on other tasks even when the tasks have disjoint classes. Finally, we
investigate applications beyond common benchmarks such as counting or reducing
the impact of typographic attacks on CLIP. Our findings demonstrate that it is
possible to expand the set of tasks on which open-vocabulary models achieve
high accuracy without re-training them from scratch.


  We consider the long-standing problem of Rayleigh-Taylor instability with
variable acceleration, and focus on the early-time dynamics of an interface
separating incompressible ideal fluids of different densities subject to an
acceleration being a power-law function of time for a spatially extended
threedimensional flow periodic in the plane normal to the acceleration with
symmetry group p6mm. By employing group theory and scaling analysis, we
discover two distinct sub-regimes of the early time dynamics depending on the
exponent of the acceleration power-law. The time-scale and the early-time
dynamics are set by the acceleration for exponents greater than -2, and by the
initial growth-rate (due to, e.g., initial conditions) for exponents smaller
than -2. At the exponent value (-2) a transition occurs from one regime to the
other with varying acceleration strength. For a broad range of the acceleration
parameters, the instability growth-rate is explicitly found, the dependence of
the dynamics on the initial conditions is investigated, and theory benchmarks
are elaborated.


  Many finite symmetric integral non-representable relation algebras, including
almost all Monk algebras, can be embedded in the completion of an atomic
symmetric integral representable relation algebra whose finitely-generated
subalgebras are finite.


  To construct an algorithm that can provide robust person detection, we
present a dataset with over 8 million images that was produced in a weakly
supervised manner. Through labor-intensive human annotation, the person
detection research community has produced relatively small datasets containing
on the order of 100,000 images, such as the EuroCity Persons dataset, which
includes 240,000 bounding boxes. Therefore, we have collected 8.7 million
images of persons based on a two-step collection process, namely person
detection with an existing detector and data refinement for false positive
suppression. According to the experimental results, the Weakly Supervised
Person Dataset (WSPD) is simple yet effective for person detection
pre-training. In the context of pre-trained person detection algorithms, our
WSPD pre-trained model has 13.38 and 6.38% better accuracy than the same model
trained on the fully supervised ImageNet and EuroCity Persons datasets,
respectively, when verified with the Caltech Pedestrian.


  Previous studies have discovered a population of small granules with
diameters less than 800 km showing differing physical properties. High
resolution simulations and observations of the solar granulation, in
combination with automated segmentation and tracking algorithms, allow us to
study the evolution of the structural and physical properties of these granules
and surrounding vortex motions with high temporal and spatial accuracy. We
focus on the dynamics of granules (lifetime, fragmentation, size, position,
intensity, vertical velocity) over time and the influence of strong vortex
motions. Of special interest are the dynamics of small granules compared to
regular-sized granules. We developed a temporal tracking algorithm based on our
developed segmentation algorithm for solar granulation. This was applied to
radiation hydrodynamics simulations and high resolution observations of the
quiet Sun by SUNRISE/IMaX. The dynamics of small granules differ in regard to
their diameter, intensity and depth evolution compared to regular granules. The
tracked granules in the simulation and observations reveal similar dynamics
(lifetime, evolution of size, vertical velocity and intensity). The
fragmentation analysis shows that the majority of granules in simulations do
not fragment, while the opposite was found in observations. Strong vortex
motions were detected at the location of small granules. Regions of strong
vertical vorticity show high intensities and downflow velocities, and live up
to several minutes. The analysis of granules separated according to their
diameter in different groups reveals strongly differing behaviors. The largest
discrepancies can be found within the groups of small, medium-sized and large
granules and have to be analyzed independently. The predominant location of
vortex motions on and close to small granules indicates a strong influence on
the dynamics of granules.


  Bosonic Integer Quantum Hall (IQH) phases are a class of symmetry protected
topological (SPT) phases that, similar to the fermionic IQH states, support a
quantized Hall conductance. They, however, require interactions for their
realization. Here we study quantum Hall plateau transitions between a trivial
insulator and a bosonic IQH phase, in a clean system. Generically, we find an
intervening superfluid phase. The presence of additional symmetries, however,
can potentially lead to a direct transition between these phases. We employ a
fermionic parton description that captures both the insulating phases as well
as the transition between them. The critical theory is massless QED-3 with Nf =
2 fermion flavors. The fermions have a surprisingly simple interpretation -
they are vortices of the superfluid. Therefore the universal conductivity at
the transition, assuming it is continuous, equals the universal resistivity of
Dirac fermions in QED-3. We also briefly comment on sigma model descriptions of
the transition and the surface states of related 3D SPT phases.


  The study of the manganese oxides, widely known as manganites, that exhibit
the ``Colossal'' Magnetoresistance (CMR) effect is among the main areas of
research within the area of Strongly Correlated Electrons. After considerable
theoretical effort in recent years, mainly guided by computational and
mean-field studies of realistic models, considerable progress has been achieved
in understanding the curious properties of these compounds. These recent
studies suggest that the ground states of manganite models tend to be
intrinsically inhomogeneous due to the presence of strong tendencies toward
phase separation, typically involving ferromagnetic metallic and
antiferromagnetic charge and orbital ordered insulating domains. Calculations
of the resistivity versus temperature using mixed states lead to a good
agreement with experiments. The mixed-phase tendencies have two origins: (i)
electronic phase separation between phases with different densities that lead
to nanometer scale coexisting clusters, and (ii) disorder-induced phase
separation with percolative characteristics between equal-density phases,
driven by disorder near first-order metal-insulator transitions. The coexisting
clusters in the latter can be as large as a micrometer in size. It is argued
that a large variety of experiments reviewed in detail here contain results
compatible with the theoretical predictions. It is concluded that manganites
reveal such a wide variety of interesting physical phenomena that their
detailed study is quite important for progress in the field of Correlated
Electrons.


  We show that the problem of counting the number of $n$-variable unate
functions reduces to the problem of counting the number of $n$-variable
monotone functions. Using recently obtained results on $n$-variable monotone
functions, we obtain counts of $n$-variable unate functions up to $n=9$. We use
an enumeration strategy to obtain the number of $n$-variable balanced monotone
functions up to $n=7$. We show that the problem of counting the number of
$n$-variable balanced unate functions reduces to the problem of counting the
number of $n$-variable balanced monotone functions, and consequently, we obtain
the number of $n$-variable balanced unate functions up to $n=7$. Using
enumeration, we obtain the numbers of equivalence classes of $n$-variable
balanced monotone functions, unate functions and balanced unate functions up to
$n=6$. Further, for each of the considered sub-class of $n$-variable monotone
and unate functions, we also obtain the corresponding numbers of $n$-variable
non-degenerate functions.


  We consider the problem of welfare maximization in two-sided markets using
simple mechanisms that are prior-independent. The Myerson-Satterthwaite
impossibility theorem shows that even for bilateral trade, there is no feasible
(IR, truthful, budget balanced) mechanism that has welfare as high as the
optimal-yet-infeasible VCG mechanism, which attains maximal welfare but runs a
deficit. On the other hand, the optimal feasible mechanism needs to be
carefully tailored to the Bayesian prior, and is extremely complex, eluding a
precise description.
  We present Bulow-Klemperer-style results to circumvent these hurdles in
double-auction markets. We suggest using the Buyer Trade Reduction (BTR)
mechanism, a variant of McAfee's mechanism, which is feasible and simple (in
particular, deterministic, truthful, prior-independent, anonymous). First, in
the setting where buyers' and sellers' values are sampled i.i.d. from the same
distribution, we show that for any such market of any size, BTR with one
additional buyer whose value is sampled from the same distribution has expected
welfare at least as high as the optimal in the original market.
  We then move to a more general setting where buyers' values are sampled from
one distribution and sellers' from another, focusing on the case where the
buyers' distribution first-order stochastically dominates the sellers'. We
present bounds on the number of buyers that, when added, guarantees that BTR in
the augmented market have welfare at least as high as the optimal in the
original market. Our lower bounds extend to a large class of mechanisms, and
all of our results extend to adding sellers instead of buyers. In addition, we
present positive results about the usefulness of pricing at a sample for
welfare maximization in two-sided markets under the above two settings, which
to the best of our knowledge are the first sampling results in this context.


  This paper addresses the uniform random generation of words from a
context-free language (over an alphabet of size $k$), while constraining every
letter to a targeted frequency of occurrence. Our approach consists in a
multidimensional extension of Boltzmann samplers \cite{Duchon2004}. We show
that, under mostly \emph{strong-connectivity} hypotheses, our samplers return a
word of size in $[(1-\varepsilon)n, (1+\varepsilon)n]$ and exact frequency in
$\mathcal{O}(n^{1+k/2})$ expected time. Moreover, if we accept tolerance
intervals of width in $\Omega(\sqrt{n})$ for the number of occurrences of each
letters, our samplers perform an approximate-size generation of words in
expected $\mathcal{O}(n)$ time. We illustrate these techniques on the
generation of Tetris tessellations with uniform statistics in the different
types of tetraminoes.


  In an effort to overcome the limitations of random spin-glass benchmarks for
quantum annealers, focus has shifted to carefully-crafted gadget-based problems
whose logical structure has typically a planar topology. Recent experiments on
these gadget problems using a commercially-available quantum annealer have
demonstrated an impressive performance over a selection of commonly-used
classical optimization heuristics. Here we show that efficient classical
optimization techniques, such as minimum-weight perfect matching, can solve
these gadget problems exactly and in polynomial time. We present approaches on
how to mitigate this shortcoming of commonly-used benchmark problems based on
planar logical topologies.


  Emergence of latest technologies has diverted the focus of people form
Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) to mobile supported
collaborative learning. MCL is highly demanded in educational organizations to
substantiate the pedagogical activities. Some of the MCL supportive
architectures including applications are introduced in several fields to
improve the activities of those organizations, but they need more concise
paradigm to support both types of collaboration: synchronous and asynchronous.
This paper introduces the new preusability testing method that provides
educational support and gives complete picture for developing new pedagogical
group application for MCL. The feature of application includes asynchronous and
synchronous collaboration support. To validate the features of application, we
conduct the post usability testing and heuristic evaluation, which helps in
collecting the empirical data to prove the effectiveness and suitability of
Group application. Further, application aims to improve learning impact and
educate people at anytime and anywhere.


  Ghost fields in quantum field theory have been a long-standing problem.
Specifically, theories with higher derivatives involve ghosts that appear in
the Hamiltonian in the form of linear momenta term, which is commonly known as
the Ostrogradski ghost. Higher derivative theories may involve both types of
constraints i.e. first class and second class. Interestingly, these higher
derivative theories may have non-Hermitian Hamiltonian respecting
$\mathcal{PT}-$symmetries. In this paper, we have considered the
$\mathcal{PT}-$symmetric nature of the extended Maxwell-Chern-Simon's theory
and employed the second class constraints to remove the linear momenta terms
causing the instabilities. We found that the removal is not complete rather
conditions arise among the coefficients of the operator ${Q}$.


  Previous theoretical, along with early simulation and experimental, studies
have indicated that particles with a short-ranged attraction exhibit a range of
new dynamical arrest phenomena. These include very pronounced reentrance in the
dynamical arrest curve, a logarithmic singularity in the density correlation
functions, and the existence of `attractive' and `repulsive' glasses. Here we
carry out extensive molecular dynamics calculations on dense systems
interacting via a square-well potential. This is one of the simplest systems
with the required properties, and may be regarded as canonical for interpreting
the phase diagram, and now also the dynamical arrest. We confirm the
theoretical predictions for re-entrance, logarithmic singularity, and give the
first direct evidence of the coexistence, independent of theory, of the two
coexisting glasses. We now regard the previous predictions of these phenomena
as having been established.


  Empirical results show that PSO performance may be different if using either
chaotic or random sequences to drive the algorithm's search dynamics. We
analyze the phenomenon by evaluating the performance based on a benchmark of
test functions and comparing random and chaotic sequences according to equality
or difference in underlying distribution or density. Our results show that the
underlying distribution is the main influential factor in performance and thus
the assumption of general and systematic performance differences between chaos
and random appears not plausible.


  Clear identification of bone structures is crucial for ultrasound-guided
lumbar interventions, but it can be challenging due to the complex shapes of
the self-shadowing vertebra anatomy and the extensive background speckle noise
from the surrounding soft tissue structures. Therefore, we propose to use a
patch-like wearable ultrasound solution to capture the reflective bone surfaces
from multiple imaging angles and create 3D bone representations for
interventional guidance. In this work, we will present our method for
estimating the vertebra bone surfaces by using a spatiotemporal U-Net
architecture learning from the B-Mode image and aggregated feature maps of
hand-crafted filters. The methods are evaluated on spine phantom image data
collected by our proposed miniaturized wearable "patch" ultrasound device, and
the results show that a significant improvement on baseline method can be
achieved with promising accuracy. Equipped with this surface estimation
framework, our wearable ultrasound system can potentially provide intuitive and
accurate interventional guidance for clinicians in augmented reality setting.


  In the current paper, first we give the correct version of the formula for
mean Berwald curvature of a spherically symmetric Finsler metric given in paper
\cite{YCheWSon2015}. Further, we establish differential equations
characterizing projectively as well as dually flat spherically symmetric
Finsler metrics. Finally, we obtain a rigidity result on spherically symmetric
Finsler metrics with isotropic $E$-Curvature.


  Photometric constraint is indispensable for self-supervised monocular depth
estimation. It involves warping a source image onto a target view using
estimated depth&pose, and then minimizing the difference between the warped and
target images. However, the endoscopic built-in light causes significant
brightness fluctuations, and thus makes the photometric constraint unreliable.
Previous efforts only mitigate this relying on extra models to calibrate image
brightness. In this paper, we propose MonoPCC to address the brightness
inconsistency radically by reshaping the photometric constraint into a cycle
form. Instead of only warping the source image, MonoPCC constructs a closed
loop consisting of two opposite forward-backward warping paths: from target to
source and then back to target. Thus, the target image finally receives an
image cycle-warped from itself, which naturally makes the constraint invariant
to brightness changes. Moreover, MonoPCC transplants the source image's
phase-frequency into the intermediate warped image to avoid structure lost, and
also stabilizes the training via an exponential moving average (EMA) strategy
to avoid frequent changes in the forward warping. The comprehensive and
extensive experimental results on four endoscopic datasets demonstrate that our
proposed MonoPCC shows a great robustness to the brightness inconsistency, and
exceeds other state-of-the-arts by reducing the absolute relative error by at
least 7.27%, 9.38%, 9.90% and 3.17%, respectively.


  We derive a quantum master equation which describes the dynamics of the
ensemble-averaged state of homogeneous disorder models at short times, and
mediates a transition from coherent superpositions into classical mixtures.
While each single realization follows unitary dynamics, this decoherencelike
behavior arises as a consequence of the ensemble average. The master equation
manifestly reflects the translational invariance of the disorder correlations
and allows us to relate the disorder-induced dynamics to a collisional
decoherence process, where the disorder correlations determine the spatial
decay of coherences. We apply our theory to the (one-dimensional) Anderson
model.


  This review on weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) dark matter direct
detection focuses on experimental approaches and the corresponding physics
basics. The presentation is intended to provide a quick and concise
introduction for non-specialists to this fast evolving topic of astroparticle
physics.


  We prove an equidistribution theorem a la Bader-Muchnik for operator-valued
measures associated with boundary representations in the context of discrete
groups of isometries of CAT(-1) spaces thanks to an equidistribution theorem of
T. Roblin. This result can be viewed as a generalization of Birkhoff's ergodic
theorem for quasi invariant measures. In particular, this approach gives a
dynamical proof of the fact that boundary representations are irreducible.
Moreover, we prove some equidistribution results for conformal densities using
elementary techniques from harmonic analysis.


  We summarize the description of the open-closed TFT datum for B-type
Landau-Ginzburg models with Stein manifold targets and discuss various
constructions which lead to large classes of examples of such models.


  Although there exist very accurate hardware systems for measuring traffic on
the internet, their widespread use for analysis tasks is limited by their high
cost. On the other hand, less expensive, software-based systems exist that are
widely available and can be used to perform a number of simple analysis tasks.
The caveat with using such software systems is that application of standard
analysis methods cannot proceed blindly because inherent distortions exist in
the measurements obtained from software systems. The goal of this paper is to
analyze common Internet measurement systems to discover the effect of these
distortions on common analysis tasks. Then by selecting one specific task,
periodic signal detection, a more in-depth analysis is conducted which derives
a signal representation to capture the salient features of the measurement and
develops a periodic detection mechanism designed for the measurement system
which outperforms an existing detection method not optimized for the
measurement system. Finally, through experiments the importance of
understanding the relationship between the input traffic, measurement system
configuration and detection method performance is emphasized.


  We apply Mie scattering theory to study the interaction of magnetic spheres
with microwaves in cavities beyond the magnetostatic and rotating wave
approximations. We demonstrate that both strong and ultra-strong coupling can
be realized for a stand alone magnetic spheres made from yttrium iron garnet
(YIG), acting as an efficient microwave antenna. The eigenmodes of YIG spheres
with radii of the order mm's display distinct higher angular momentum character
that has been observed in experiments.


  We present the first halo model based description of the Cosmic Infrared
Background (CIB) non-Gaussianity (NG) that is fully parametric. To this end, we
introduce, for the first time, a diagrammatic method to compute high order
polyspectra of the 3D galaxy density field. It allows an easy derivation and
visualisation of the different terms of the polyspectrum. We apply this
framework to the power spectrum and bispectrum, and we show how to project them
on the celestial sphere in the purpose of the application to the CIB angular
anisotropies. Furthermore, we show how to take into account the particular case
of the shot noise terms in that framework. Eventually, we compute the CIB
angular bispectrum at 857 GHz and study its scale and configuration
dependencies, as well as its variations with the halo occupation distribution
parameters. Compared to a previously proposed empirical prescription, such
physically motivated model is required to describe fully the CIB anisotropies
bispectrum. Finally, we compare the CIB bispectrum with the bispectra of other
signals potentially present at microwave frequencies, which hints that
detection of CIB NG should be possible above 220 GHz.


  Music history, referring to the records of users' listening or downloading
history in online music services, is the primary source for music service
providers to analyze users' preferences on music and thus to provide
personalized recommendations to users. In order to engage users into the
service and to improve user experience, it would be beneficial to provide
visual analyses of one user's music history as well as visualized
recommendations to that user. In this paper, we take a user-centric approach to
the design of such visual analyses. We start by investigating user needs on
such visual analyses and recommendations, then propose several different
visualization schemes, and perform a pilot study to collect user feedback on
the designed schemes. We further conduct user studies to verify the utility of
the proposed schemes, and the results not only demonstrate the effectiveness of
our proposed visualization, but also provide important insights to guide the
visualization design in the future.


  We study the tunability of the spin-orbit interaction in a two-dimensional
electron gas with a front and a back gate electrode by monitoring the spin
precession frequency of drifting electrons using time-resolved Kerr rotation.
The Rashba spin splitting can be tuned by the gate biases, while we find a
small Dresselhaus splitting that depends only weakly on the gating. We
determine the absolute values and signs of the two components and show that for
zero Rashba spin splitting the anisotropy of the spin-dephasing rate vanishes.


  An algorithm based on quantum phase estimation, which discriminates quantum
states nondestructively within a set of arbitrary orthogonal states, is
described and experimentally verified by a NMR quantum information processor.
The procedure is scalable and can be applied to any set of orthogonal states.
Scalability is demonstrated through Matlab simulation.


  Effective masses of $\rho$ and $\omega$ mesons in nuclear medium are studied
in a hadronic effective theory. Both the pole position and the screening mass
decrease in nuclear matter due to the polarization of the nucleon Dirac sea.
The physical origin of the decrease is a reduction of the wave function
renormalization constant induced by the tensor (vector) interaction of the
$\rho$ ($\omega$) with the nucleon. Relation to the results of the QCD sum
rules is also discussed.


  The rms (root mean square) variability is the parameter for understanding the
emission temporal properties of X-ray binaries (XRBs) and active galactic
nuclei (AGN).
  The rms-flux relation with Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) data for the
dips and nondip of black hole Cyg X-1 has been investigated in this paper. Our
results show that there exist the linear rms-flux relations in the frequency
range 0.1-10 Hz for the dipping light curve. Moreover, this linear relation
still remains during the nondip regime, but with the steeper slope than that of
the dipping case in the low energy band. For the high energy band, the slopes
of the dipping and nondipping cases are hardly constant within errors. The
explanations of the results have been made by means of the ``Propagating
Perturbation'' model of Lyubarskii (1997).


  We present a study of spectral properties of galaxies in underdense
large-scale structures, voids. Our void galaxy sample (75,939 galaxies) is
selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 7 (DR7) with
$\rm z < 0.107$. We find that there are no significant differences in the
luminosities, stellar masses, stellar populations, and specific star formation
rates between void galaxies of specific spectral types and their wall
counterparts. However, the fraction of star-forming galaxies in voids is
significantly higher ($\ge 9\%$) than that in walls. Void galaxies, when
considering all spectral types, are slightly fainter, less massive, have
younger stellar populations and of higher specific star formation rates than
wall galaxies. These minor differences are totally caused by the higher
fraction of star-forming galaxies in voids. We confirm that AGNs exist in
voids, already found by \cite{co08}, with similar abundance as in walls. Type I
AGNs contribute $\sim$ 1\%-2\% of void galaxies, similar to their fraction in
walls. The intrinsic [O III] luminosities , spanning over $10^6\ L_{\sun} \sim
10^9\ L_{\sun}$, and Eddington ratios are similar comparing our void AGNs
versus wall AGNs. Small scale statistics show that all spectral types of void
galaxies are less clustered than their counterparts in walls. Major merger may
not be the dominant trigger of black hole accretion in the luminosity range we
probe. Our study implies that the growth of black holes relies weakly on large
scale structures.


  We present evidence of a novel form of group hunting. Individual sailfish
(Istiophorus platypterus) alternate attacks with other group members on their
schooling prey (Sardinella aurita). While only 24% of attacks result in prey
capture, multiple prey are injured in 95% of attacks, resulting in an increase
of injured fish in the school with the number of attacks. How quickly prey are
captured is positively correlated with the level of injury of the school,
suggesting that hunters can benefit from other conspecifics' attacks on the
prey. To explore this, we built a mathematical model capturing the dynamics of
the hunt. We show that group hunting provides major efficiency gains (prey
caught per unit time) for individuals in groups of up to 70 members. We also
demonstrate that a free riding strategy, where some individuals wait until the
prey are sufficiently injured before attacking, is only beneficial if the cost
of attacking is high, and only then when waiting times are short. Our findings
provide evidence that cooperative benefits can be realised through the
facilitative effects of individuals' hunting actions without spatial
coordination of attacks. Such "proto-cooperation" may be the pre-cursor to more
complex group-hunting strategies.


  We broaden the framework of metric abstract elementary classes (mAECs) in
several essential ways, chiefly by allowing the metric to take values in a
well-behaved quantale. As a proof of concept we show that the result of Boney
and Zambrano on (metric) tameness under a large cardinal assumption holds in
this more general context. We briefly consider a further generalization to
partial metric spaces, and hint at connections to classes of fuzzy structures,
and structures on sheaves.


  Noncommutative Maxwell-Chern-Simons theory in 3-dimensions is defined in
terms of star product and noncommutative fields. Seiberg-Witten map is employed
to write it in terms of ordinary fields. A parent action is introduced and the
dual action is derived. For spatial noncommutativity it is studied up to second
order in the noncommutativity parameter \theta. A new noncommutative
Chern-Simons action is defined in terms of ordinary fields, inspired by the
dual action. Moreover, a transformation between noncommuting and ordinary
fields is proposed.


  Upper bounds of the Hausdorff volume of scalar gradient field graphs are
derived by means of geometric measure theory. The approach reproduces that
scalar gradient fields along a mean imposed scalar gradient become space
filling for sufficiently high values of Schmidt numbers Sc. The bounds are
consistent with findings from recent high-resolution numerical experiments for
1<= Sc <= 64, but too rough when compared with numerical simulations. A
Reynolds number dependence of the bounds is found due to the additional scalar
gradient stretching term in the equation of motion.


  Deep convolutional neural networks for image segmentation do not learn the
label structure explicitly and may produce segmentations with an incorrect
structure, e.g., with disconnected cylindrical structures in the segmentation
of tree-like structures such as airways or blood vessels. In this paper, we
propose a novel label refinement method to correct such errors from an initial
segmentation, implicitly incorporating information about label structure. This
method features two novel parts: 1) a model that generates synthetic structural
errors, and 2) a label appearance simulation network that produces synthetic
segmentations (with errors) that are similar in appearance to the real initial
segmentations. Using these synthetic segmentations and the original images, the
label refinement network is trained to correct errors and improve the initial
segmentations. The proposed method is validated on two segmentation tasks:
airway segmentation from chest computed tomography (CT) scans and brain vessel
segmentation from 3D CT angiography (CTA) images of the brain. In both
applications, our method significantly outperformed a standard 3D U-Net and
other previous refinement approaches. Improvements are even larger when
additional unlabeled data is used for model training. In an ablation study, we
demonstrate the value of the different components of the proposed method.


  Recent numerical results for a model describing dispersive transport in rice
piles are explained by mapping the model to the depinning transition of an
interface that is dragged at one end through a random medium. The average
velocity of transport vanishes with system size $L$ as $<v> \sim L^{2-D}\sim
L^{-0.23}$, and the avalanche size distribution exponent $\tau= 2 - 1/D \simeq
1.55$, where $D\simeq 2.23$ from interface depinning. We conjecture that the
purely deterministic Burridge-Knopoff ``train'' model for earthquakes is in the
same universality class.


  Using X-ray diffraction, DSC and magnetization measurements, a
magnoestructural map of the (Mn,Fe)3(Si,P) system was assembled and reported in
the current paper. Besides the already known cubic phase for Mn3-xFexSi system
and the tetragonal and orthorhombic phases for the Mn3-xFexP system, a novel
hexagonal phase has been observed for Mn3 xFexSi1-yPy, within the approximate
range of 0.2<x<2.0 and 0.2<y<0.9. Magnetization measurements both confirm and
further detail the already known properties of the Mn3-xFexSi and Mn3-xFexP
systems.