  Binary Cepheids with giant companions are crucial for studying the physical
properties of Cepheid variables, providing the best means to measure their
masses. Systems composed of two Cepheids are even more important but to date,
only one such system in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) was known. Our current
aim is to increase the number of these systems tenfold and provide their basic
characteristics. The final goal is to obtain the physical properties of the
component Cepheids, including their masses and radii, and to learn about their
evolution in the multiple systems, also revealing their origin. We started a
spectroscopic monitoring of nine unresolved pairs of Cepheids from the OGLE
catalog, to check if they are gravitationally bound. Two of these so-called
double Cepheids are located in the LMC, five in the Small Magellanic Cloud
(SMC), and two in the Milky Way (MW). We report the spectroscopic detection of
binarity of all 9 of these double Cepheids with orbital periods from 2 to 18
years. This increases the number of known binary double (BIND) Cepheids from 1
to 10 and triples the number of all confirmed double-lined binary (SB2)
Cepheids. For five BIND Cepheids disentangled pulsational light curves of the
components show anti-correlated phase shifts due to orbital motion. We show the
first empirical evidence that typical period-luminosity relations (PLRs) are
rather binary Cepheid PLRs that include the companion's light. The statistics
of pulsation period ratios of BIND Cepheids do not agree with those expected
for pairs of the same-age Cepheids. These ratios together with the mass ratios
far from unity suggest merger-origin of at least one component for about half
of the systems. The SMC and MW objects are the first found in SB2 systems
composed of giants in their host galaxies. The Milky Way BIND Cepheids are also
the closest such systems, being located at about 11 and 26 kpc.


  We examine how to distinguish between unitary operators, when the exact form
of the possible operators is not known. Instead we are supplied with "programs"
in the form of unitary transforms, which can be used as references for
identifying the unknown unitary transform. All unitary transforms should be
used as few times as possible. This situation is analoguous to programmable
state discrimination. One difference, however, is that the quantum state to
which we apply the unitary transforms may be entangled, leading to a richer
variety of possible strategies. By suitable selection of an input state and
generalized measurement of the output state, both unambiguous and minimum-error
discrimination can be achieved. Pairwise comparison of operators, comparing
each transform to be identified with a program transform, is often a useful
strategy. There are, however, situations in which more complicated strategies
perform better. This is the case especially when the number of allowed
applications of program operations is different from the number of the
transforms to be identified.


  We consider a real manifold of dimension 3 or 4 with Minkovsky metric, and
with a connection for a trivial GL(n,C) bundle over that manifold. To each
light ray on the manifold we assign the data of paralel transport along that
light ray. It turns out that these data are not enough to reconstruct the
connection, but we can add more data, which depend now not from lines but from
2-planes, and which in some sence are the data of parallel transport in the
complex light-like directions, then we can reconstruct the connection up to a
gauge transformation. There are some interesting applications of the
construction: 1) in 4 dimensions, the self-dual Yang Mills equations can be
written as the zero curvature condition for a pair of certain first order
differential operators; one of the operators in the pair is the covariant
derivative in complex light-like direction we studied. 2) there is a relation
of this Radon transform with the supersymmetry. 3)using our Radon transform, we
can get a measure on the space of 2 dimensional planes in 4 dimensional real
space. Any such measure give rise to a Crofton 2-density. The integrals of this
2-density over surfaces in R^4 give rise to the Lagrangian for maps of real
surfaces into R^4, and therefore to some string theory. 4) there are relations
with the representation theory. In particular, a closely related transform in 3
dimensions can be used to get the Plancerel formula for representations of
SL(2,R).


  We generalize the degree-organizational view of real-world networks with
broad degree-distributions in a landscape analogue with mountains (high-degree
nodes) and valleys (low-degree nodes). For example, correlated degrees between
adjacent nodes corresponds to smooth landscapes (social networks), hierarchical
networks to one-mountain landscapes (the Internet), and degree-disassortative
networks without hierarchical features to rough landscapes with several
mountains. We also generate ridge landscapes to model networks organized under
constraints imposed by the space the networks are embedded in, associated to
spatial or, in molecular networks, to functional localization. To quantify the
topology, we here measure the widths of the mountains and the separation
between different mountains.


  In this work, we are dedicated to multi-target active object tracking (AOT),
where there are multiple targets as well as multiple cameras in the
environment. The goal is maximize the overall target coverage of all cameras.
Previous work makes a strong assumption that each camera is fixed in a location
and only allowed to rotate, which limits its application. In this work, we
relax the setting by allowing all cameras to both move along the boundary lines
and rotate. In our setting, the action space becomes much larger, which leads
to much higher computational complexity to identify the optimal action. To this
end, we propose to leverage the action selection from multi-agent reinforcement
learning (MARL) network to prune the search tree of Monte Carlo Tree Search
(MCTS) method, so as to find the optimal action more efficiently. Besides, we
model the motion of the targets to predict the future position of the targets,
which makes a better estimation of the future environment state in the MCTS
process. We establish a multi-target 2D environment to simulate the sports
games, and experimental results demonstrate that our method can effectively
improve the target coverage.


  Bayesian Neural Networks (BNNs) have been proposed to address the problem of
model uncertainty in training and inference. By introducing weights associated
with conditioned probability distributions, BNNs are capable of resolving the
overfitting issue commonly seen in conventional neural networks and allow for
small-data training, through the variational inference process. Frequent usage
of Gaussian random variables in this process requires a properly optimized
Gaussian Random Number Generator (GRNG). The high hardware cost of conventional
GRNG makes the hardware implementation of BNNs challenging.
  In this paper, we propose VIBNN, an FPGA-based hardware accelerator design
for variational inference on BNNs. We explore the design space for massive
amount of Gaussian variable sampling tasks in BNNs. Specifically, we introduce
two high performance Gaussian (pseudo) random number generators: the RAM-based
Linear Feedback Gaussian Random Number Generator (RLF-GRNG), which is inspired
by the properties of binomial distribution and linear feedback logics; and the
Bayesian Neural Network-oriented Wallace Gaussian Random Number Generator. To
achieve high scalability and efficient memory access, we propose a deep
pipelined accelerator architecture with fast execution and good hardware
utilization. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed VIBNN
implementations on an FPGA can achieve throughput of 321,543.4 Images/s and
energy efficiency upto 52,694.8 Images/J while maintaining similar accuracy as
its software counterpart.


  We present a novel framework for addressing the nonlinear Landau collision
integral in terms of finite element and other subspace projection methods. We
employ the underlying metriplectic structure of the Landau collision integral
and, using a Galerkin discretization for the velocity space, we transform the
infinite-dimensional system into a finite-dimensional, time-continuous
metriplectic system. Temporal discretization is accomplished using the concept
of discrete gradients. The conservation of energy, momentum, and particle
densities, as well as the production of entropy is demonstrated algebraically
for the fully discrete system. Due to the generality of our approach, the
conservation properties and the monotonic behavior of entropy are guaranteed
for finite element discretizations in general, independently of the mesh
configuration.


  Recent state-of-the-art methods in imbalanced semi-supervised learning (SSL)
rely on confidence-based pseudo-labeling with consistency regularization. To
obtain high-quality pseudo-labels, a high confidence threshold is typically
adopted. However, it has been shown that softmax-based confidence scores in
deep networks can be arbitrarily high for samples far from the training data,
and thus, the pseudo-labels for even high-confidence unlabeled samples may
still be unreliable. In this work, we present a new perspective of
pseudo-labeling for imbalanced SSL. Without relying on model confidence, we
propose to measure whether an unlabeled sample is likely to be
``in-distribution''; i.e., close to the current training data. To decide
whether an unlabeled sample is ``in-distribution'' or ``out-of-distribution'',
we adopt the energy score from out-of-distribution detection literature. As
training progresses and more unlabeled samples become in-distribution and
contribute to training, the combined labeled and pseudo-labeled data can better
approximate the true class distribution to improve the model. Experiments
demonstrate that our energy-based pseudo-labeling method, \textbf{InPL}, albeit
conceptually simple, significantly outperforms confidence-based methods on
imbalanced SSL benchmarks. For example, it produces around 3\% absolute
accuracy improvement on CIFAR10-LT. When combined with state-of-the-art
long-tailed SSL methods, further improvements are attained. In particular, in
one of the most challenging scenarios, InPL achieves a 6.9\% accuracy
improvement over the best competitor.


  We consider the process $e^+e^-\to\ti\chi^+_i\ti\chi^-_j$ at a linear
collider with transverse $e^{\pm}$ beam polarization. We investigate the
influence of the CP phases on azimuthal asymmetries in
$e^+e^-\to\ti\chi^+_i\ti\chi^-_j$ with subsequent two-body decays
$\ti\chi^-_j\to \ti\nu_{\ell}\ell^-$ and $\ti\chi^-_j\to W^-\ti\chi^0_1$. We
show that triple product correlations involving the transverse $e^{\pm}$ beam
polarization vanish if at least one subsequent chargino decay is not observed.
We derive this result within the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM)
with complex parameters, however, it holds also in the general MSSM with SUSY
flavour violation.


  We prove existence of the scaling limit of the invasion percolation cluster
(IPC) on a regular tree. The limit is a random real tree with a single end. The
contour and height functions of the limit are described as certain diffusive
stochastic processes. This convergence allows us to recover and make precise
certain asymptotic results for the IPC. In particular, we relate the limit of
the rescaled level sets of the IPC to the local time of the scaled height
function.


  Databases play a crucial role in storing and managing vast amounts of data in
various organizations and industries. Yet the risk of database leakage poses a
significant threat to data privacy and security. To trace the source of
database leakage, researchers have proposed many database watermarking schemes.
Among them, fake-tuples-based database watermarking shows great potential as it
does not modify the original data of the database, ensuring the seamless
usability of the watermarked database. However, the existing fake-tuple-based
database watermarking schemes need to insert a large number of fake tuples for
the embedding of each watermark bit, resulting in low watermark transparency.
Therefore, we propose a novel database watermarking scheme based on fake tuples
and sparse priority strategy, named SPSW, which achieves the same watermark
capacity with a lower number of inserted fake tuples compared to the existing
embedding strategy. Specifically, for a database about to be watermarked, we
prioritize embedding the sparsest watermark sequence, i.e., the sequence
containing the most `0' bits among the currently available watermark sequences.
For each bit in the sparse watermark sequence, when it is set to `1', SPSW will
embed the corresponding set of fake tuples into the database. Otherwise, no
modifications will be made to the database. Through theoretical analysis, the
proposed sparse priority strategy not only improves transparency but also
enhances the robustness of the watermark. The comparative experimental results
with other database watermarking schemes further validate the superior
performance of the proposed SPSW, aligning with the theoretical analysis.


  Many well-known and well-studied four by four universal quantum logic gates
in the literature are of a specific form, the so called eight-vertex form
\eqref{8vertexform} \cite{kaufman etal 05-1,kaufman etal 05-2}, or {\it
similar} to it.
  We present a formalism for universal quantum logic gates of such a form.
First, we provide explicit formulas in terms of matrix entries, which are the
necessary and sufficient conditions for such a matrix to be a solution to the
Yang-Baxter equation \eqref{byb}. Then, combining this with the conditions
needed for being unitary \eqref{unitarycond} and being entangling
\eqref{entanglingcond}, we give a full description of entangling unitary
solutions to the Yang-Baxter equation (hence, universal quantum logic gates) of
such a specific form. We investigate in detail all the possible cases where
some of the eight main entries might or might not be zero.


  Grubbs and Weaver (JASA 42 (1947) 224--241) suggest a minimum-variance
unbiased estimator for the population standard deviation of a normal random
variable, where a random sample is drawn and a weighted sum of the ranges of
subsamples is calculated. The optimal choice involves using as many subsamples
of size eight as possible. They verified their results numerically for samples
of size up to 100, and conjectured that their "rule of eights" is valid for all
sample sizes. Here we examine the analogous problem where the underlying
distribution is exponential and find that a "rule of fours" yields optimality
and prove the result rigorously.


  We present UBVI CCD photometry of two open clusters NGC 1798 and NGC 2192
which were little studied before. Color-magnitude diagrams of these clusters
show several features typical for old open clusters: a well-defined
main-sequence, a red giant clump, and a small number of red giants. The main
sequence of NGC 1798 shows a distinct gap at V ~ 16.2 mag. From the surface
number density distribution we have measured the size of the clusters,
obtaining 8'.3 (= 10.2 pc) for NGC 1798 and 7'.3 (= 7.5 pc) for NGC 2192. Then
we have determined the reddening, metallicity, and distance of these clusters
using the color-color diagrams and color-magnitude diagrams: E(B-V)=0.
51\pm0.04, [Fe/H] = -0.47\pm0.15 dex and (m-M)_0=13.1\pm0.2 (d=4.2\pm 0.3 kpc)
for NGC 1798, and E(B-V)=0.20\pm0.03, [Fe/H] = -0.31\pm0.15 dex and
(m-M)_0=12.7\pm0.2 (d=3.5\pm 0.3 kpc) for NGC 2192. The ages of these clusters
have been estimated using the morphological age indicators and the isochrone
fitting with the Padova isochrones: 1.4 \pm 0.2 Gyrs for NGC 1798 and 1.1 \pm
0.1 Gyrs for NGC 2192. The luminosity functions of the main sequence stars in
these clusters are found to be similar to other old open clusters. The
metallicity and distance of these clusters are consistent with the relation
between the metallicity and galactocentric distance of other old open clusters.


  Previously, a series of tidally-excited oscillations were discovered in the
eccentric eclipsing binary KIC 3230227. The pulsation amplitudes and phases
suggest the observed oscillations are prograde quadruple modes. In this paper,
we refine the analysis and extract more oscillation frequencies. We also study
the temporal variations of amplitudes and phases and show that almost all modes
have stable phases and amplitudes. We then focus on the non-orbital-harmonic
oscillations. We consider two formation mechanisms: 1) nonlinear response of
the surface convective layer, and 2) nonlinear three/multi-mode coupling.
Although the former can explain some of the observed features, we find the
latter mechanism is more probable. Assuming that these are coupled modes, the
constant amplitude/phase over four years can be explained by either an
equilibrium state in the mode coupling or modes undergoing limit cycles with
very long periods. The observed frequency detuning and the calculated damping
rates of the daughter modes favor the equilibrium-state interpretation. This is
verified by integrating the amplitude equations of three-mode coupling. We find
that the steady-state relation derived in Weinberg et al., which relates the
observed frequency detuning, phase detuning, and mode damping rates, is
approximately satisfied for one mode triplet. We also try to identify the
azimuthal number of the modes based on the observed mode amplitude ratios and
the selection rules in nonlinear three-mode coupling. We discuss further
implications of these observations on nonlinear tidal asteroseismology.


  First-principles calculations within the weighted density approximation (WDA)
were performed for ground state properties of ferroelectric perovskites
PbTiO$_3$, BaTiO$_3$, SrTiO$_3$, KNbO$_3$ and KTaO$_3$. We used the plane-wave
pseudopotential method, a pair distribution function $G$ based on the uniform
electron gas, and shell partitioning. Comparing with the local density
approximation (LDA) and the general gradient approximation (GGA), we found that
the WDA significantly improves the equilibrium volume of these materials in
cubic symmetry over both the LDA and GGA; Ferroelectric instabilities
calculated by the WDA agree with the LDA and GGA very well; At the experimental
ferroelectric lattice, optimized atom positions by the WDA are in good
agreement with measured data; However the WDA overestimates the strain of
tetragonal PbTiO$_3$ at experimental volume; The WDA overestimates the volume
of fully relaxed structures, but the GGA results are even worse. Some
calculations were also done with other models for $G$. It is found that a $G$
with longer range behavior yields improved relaxed structures. Possible avenues
for improving the WDA are discussed.


  We describe two types of Poisson pencils generated by a linear bracket and a
quadratic one arising from a classical R-matrix. A quantization scheme is
discussed for each. The quantum algebras are represented as the enveloping
algebras of ``generalized Lie algebras''.


  We show that a parametrized $\diamondsuit$ principle, corresponding to the
uniformity of the meager ideal, implies that the minimum cardinality of an
infinite maximal almost disjoint family of block subspaces in a countable
vector space is $\aleph_1$. Consequently, this cardinal invariant is $\aleph_1$
in the Miller model.


  Lattice cryptography schemes based on the learning with errors (LWE) hardness
assumption have been standardized by NIST for use as post-quantum
cryptosystems, and by HomomorphicEncryption.org for encrypted compute on
sensitive data. Thus, understanding their concrete security is critical. Most
work on LWE security focuses on theoretical estimates of attack performance,
which is important but may overlook attack nuances arising in real-world
implementations. The sole existing concrete benchmarking effort, the Darmstadt
Lattice Challenge, does not include benchmarks relevant to the standardized LWE
parameter choices - such as small secret and small error distributions, and
Ring-LWE (RLWE) and Module-LWE (MLWE) variants. To improve our understanding of
concrete LWE security, we provide the first benchmarks for LWE secret recovery
on standardized parameters, for small and low-weight (sparse) secrets. We
evaluate four LWE attacks in these settings to serve as a baseline: the
Search-LWE attacks uSVP, SALSA, and Cool & Cruel, and the Decision-LWE attack:
Dual Hybrid Meet-in-the-Middle (MitM). We extend the SALSA and Cool & Cruel
attacks in significant ways, and implement and scale up MitM attacks for the
first time. For example, we recover hamming weight $9-11$ binomial secrets for
KYBER ($\kappa=2$) parameters in $28-36$ hours with SALSA and Cool\&Cruel,
while we find that MitM can solve Decision-LWE instances for hamming weights up
to $4$ in under an hour for Kyber parameters, while uSVP attacks do not recover
any secrets after running for more than $1100$ hours. We also compare concrete
performance against theoretical estimates. Finally, we open source the code to
enable future research.


  Hideki Yukawa, Sin-itiro Tomonaga and Shoichi Sakata pioneered nuclear and
particle physics and left enduring legacies. Their friendly collaboration and
severe competition laid the foundation to bring up the active postwar
generation of nuclear and particle physicists in Japan. In this presentation we
illustrate milestones of nuclear and particle physics in Japan from 1930's to
mid-1940's which have been clarified in Yukawa Hall Archival Library, Tomonaga
Memorial Room and Sakata Memorial Archival Library.


  Underwater surveys conducted using divers or robots equipped with customized
camera payloads can generate a large number of images. Manual review of these
images to extract ecological data is prohibitive in terms of time and cost,
thus providing strong incentive to automate this process using machine learning
solutions. In this paper, we introduce a multi-species detector and classifier
for seagrasses based on a deep convolutional neural network (achieved an
overall accuracy of 92.4%). We also introduce a simple method to
semi-automatically label image patches and therefore minimize manual labelling
requirement. We describe and release publicly the dataset collected in this
study as well as the code and pre-trained models to replicate our experiments
at: https://github.com/csiro-robotics/deepseagrass


  Nonlocal unitary operations can create quantum entanglement between
distributed particles, and the quantification of created entanglement is a hard
problem. It corresponds to the concepts of entangling and assisted entangling
power when the input states are, respectively, product and arbitrary pure
states. We analytically derive them for Schmidt-rank-two bipartite unitary and
some complex bipartite permutation unitaries. In particular, the entangling
power of permutation unitary of Schmidt rank three can take only one of two
values: $\log_2 9 - 16/9$ or $\log_2 3$ ebits. The entangling power, assisted
entangling power and disentangling power of $2\times d_B$ permutation unitaries
of Schmidt rank four are all $2$ ebits. These quantities are also derived for
generalized Clifford operators. We further show that any bipartite permutation
unitary of Schmidt rank greater than two has entangling power greater than
$1.223$ ebits. We construct the generalized controlled-NOT (CNOT) gates whose
assisted entangling power reaches the maximum. We quantitatively compare the
entangling power and assisted entangling power for general bipartite unitaries,
and study their connection to the disentangling power. We also propose a
probabilistic protocol for implementing bipartite unitaries.


  We present a model to generate power spectrum noise with intensity
proportional to 1/f as a function of frequency f. The model arises from a
broken-symmetry variable which corresponds to absolute pitch, where
fluctuations occur in an attempt to restore that symmetry, influenced by
interactions in the creation of musical melodies.


  We give certain properties which are satisfied by the descendant set of a
vertex in an infinite, primitive, distance transitive digraph of finite
out-valency and provide a strong structure theory for digraphs satisfying these
properties. In particular, we show that there are only countably many
possibilities for the isomorphism type of such a descendant set, thereby
confirming a conjecture of the first Author. As a partial converse, we show
that certain related conditions on a countable digraph are sufficient for it to
occur as the descendant set of a primitive, distance transitive digraph.


  We present near-infrared K- (1.9-2.5 micrometer) and L- (2.8-4.2 micrometer)
band spectroscopy of 22 Seyfert nuclei. We use two methods to investigate the
presence of nuclear starbursts: (1) the Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH)
emission feature at lambda_rest = 3.3 micrometer in the rest frame of L-band
spectrum (a starburst indicator) and (2) the CO absorption feature at
lambda_rest = 2.3-2.4 micrometer in the rest frame of the K-band spectrum,
originating in the CO molecule. We clearly detected the 3.3 micrometer PAH
emission features in five objects and the CO absorption features in 17 objects.
Seyfert 2 galaxies tend to show bluer K-L colors compared with Seyfert 1
galaxies. We interpret the discrepancy as resulting from relative strength of
stellar emission because AGN emission is affected by dust extinction. The 3.3
micrometer PAH emission luminosity (L_3.3PAH) distributions for the Seyfert 1s
and Seyfert 2s are very similar when normalized to the AGN power.
Star-formation rates estimated from L_3.3PAH could be large enough to inflate
the dusty torus by supernova explosion. We find that L_3.3PAH positively
correlates with N-band luminosity with small aperture over a wide AGN
luminosity range, and is independent of physical area we probed. The results
suggest that nuclear region has a concentration of star formation and the star
formation would control AGN activity.


  Coreference resolution and semantic role labeling are NLP tasks that capture
different aspects of semantics, indicating respectively, which expressions
refer to the same entity, and what semantic roles expressions serve in the
sentence. However, they are often closely interdependent, and both generally
necessitate natural language understanding. Do they form a coherent abstract
representation of documents? We present a neural network architecture for joint
coreference resolution and semantic role labeling for English, and train graph
neural networks to model the 'coherence' of the combined shallow semantic
graph. Using the resulting coherence score as a reward for our joint semantic
analyzer, we use reinforcement learning to encourage global coherence over the
document and between semantic annotations. This leads to improvements on both
tasks in multiple datasets from different domains, and across a range of
encoders of different expressivity, calling, we believe, for a more holistic
approach to semantics in NLP.


  Observations suggest that the interstellar medium (ISM) might have been
highly enriched in carbon at very early times. We explore nucleosynthesis in
massive carbon-enhanced metal-poor (CEMP) stars of $12$--$40\,\mathrm{M}_\odot$
formed from such an ISM with ${\rm [Fe]}\leq-2$. We find substantial production
of elements heavier than Fe, mostly up to Sr, by the weak \textsl{s}-process in
stars with initial abundances of ${\rm [CNO]}\gtrsim-1.5$. Even heavier
elements, up to Ba, can be produced for ${\rm [CNO]}\gtrsim-0.5$. The
efficiency of this \textsl{s}-process is sensitive to the initial enhancement
of C (or more generally, CNO) and mass of the star, with the yield increasing
approximately linearly with the initial Fe abundance. The \textsl{s}-process in
CEMP stars of $\gtrsim 20 \,\mathrm{M}_\odot$ with ${\rm [CNO]}\gtrsim -1.5$
can be an important source for heavy elements in the Early Galaxy.


  Stellar evolution models predict the existence of a gap in the black hole
mass spectrum from $\sim55 M_\odot - 120 M_\odot$ due to pair-instability
supernovae (PISNe). We investigate the possible existence of such an "upper"
mass gap in the second gravitational wave transient catalog (GWTC-2) by
hierarchically modeling the astrophysical distribution of black hole masses. We
extend the Truncated and Powerlaw+Peak mass distribution families to allow for
an explicit gap in the mass distribution, and apply the extended models to
GWTC-2. We find that with the Truncated model there is mild evidence favoring
an upper mass gap with log Bayes Factor $\ln \mathcal{B} = 2.79$, inferring the
lower and upper bounds at $56.12_{-4.38}^{+7.54} M_\odot$, and
$103.74_{-6.32}^{+17.01} M_\odot$ respectively. When using the Powerlaw+Peak
model, we find no preference for the gap. When imposing tighter priors on the
gap bounds centered on the expected PISN gap bounds, the log Bayes factors in
favor of a gap mildly increase. These results are however contingent on the
parameter inference for the most massive binary, GW190521, for which follow up
analyses showed the source may be an intermediate mass ratio merger that has
component masses straddling the gap. Using the GW190521 posterior samples from
the analysis in Nitz & Capano (2021), we find an increase in Bayes factors in
favor of the gap. However, the overall conclusions are unchanged: There is no
preference for a gap when using the Powerlaw+Peak model. This work paves the
way for constraining the physics of pair-instability and pulsational
pair-instability supernovae and high-mass black hole formation.


  We improvise a novel approach to carry out first-principles simulations of
graphene-based vertical field effect tunneling transistors that consist of a
graphene$|${\it h}-BN$|$graphene multilayer structure. Within the density
functional theory framework, we exploit the effective screening medium (ESM)
method to properly treat boundary conditions for electrostatic potentials and
investigate the effect of gate voltage. The distribution of free carriers and
the band structure of both top and bottom graphene layers are calculated
self-consistently. The dielectric properties of {\it h}-BN thin films
sandwiched between graphene layers are computed layer-by-layer following the
theory of microscopic permittivity. We find that the permittivities of BN
layers are very close to that of crystalline {\it h}-BN. The effect of
interface with graphene on the dielectric properties of {\it h}-BN is weak,
according to an analysis on the interface charge redistribution.


  The out-of-equilibrium mean-field dynamics of a model for wave-particle
interaction is investigated. Such a model can be regarded as a general
formulation for all those applications where the complex interplay between
particles and fields is known to be central, e.g., electrostatic instabilities
in plasma physics, particle acceleration and free-electron lasers (FELs). The
latter case is here assumed as a paradigmatic example. A transition separating
different macroscopic regimes is numerically identified and interpreted by
making use of the so-called violent relaxation theory. In the context of
free-electron lasers, such a theory is showed to be effective in predicting the
saturated regime for energies below the transition. The transition is explained
as a dynamical switch between two metastable regimes, and is related to the
properties of a stationary point of an entropic functional.


  In this work we introduce the dynamic $\Lambda$-random graph and the
associated multiplicative $\Lambda$-coalescent. The dynamic $\Lambda$-random
graph is an exchangeable and consistent random graph process, inspired by the
classical $\Lambda$-coalescent studied in mathematical population genetics. Our
main concern is the multiplicative $\Lambda$-coalescent, which accounts for the
connected components (blocks) of the graph. This process is exchangeable but
not consistent. We focus on the case where $\Lambda$ is the beta measure and
prove a dynamic law of large numbers for the block size spectrum, which tracks
the numbers of blocks containing $1,...,d$ elements. On top of that, we provide
a functional limit theorem for the fluctuations around its deterministic
trajectory. The limit process satisfies a stochastic differential equation of
Ornstein-Uhlenbeck type.


  The dimensional reduction, in a form of transition from four to two
dimensions, was used in the 90s in a context of HE Regge scattering. Recently,
it got a new impetus in quantum gravity where it opens the way to
renormalizability and finite short-distance behavior. We consider a QFT model
$g\,\varphi^4\,$ with running coupling defined in both the two domains of
different dimensionality; the $\gbar(Q^2)\,$ evolutions being duly conjugated
at the reduction scale $\,Q\sim M.$ Beyond this scale, in the deep UV 2-dim
region, the running coupling does not increase any more. Instead, it {\it
slightly decreases} and tends to a finite value $\gbar_2(\infty) \,< \,
\gbar_2(M^2)\,$ from above. As a result, the global evolution picture looks
quite peculiar and can propose a base for the modified scenario of gauge
couplings behavior with UV fixed points provided by dimensional reduction
instead of leptoquarks.


  Resource-based competition between microorganisms species in continuous
culture has been studied extensively both experimentally and theoretically,
mostly for bacteria through Monod and and Contois "constant yield" models, or
for phytoplankton through the Droop "variable yield" models. For homogeneous
populations of N bacterial species (Monod) or N phytoplanktonic species
(Droop), with one limiting substrate and under constant controls, the
theoretical studies indicated that competitive exclusion occurs: only one
species wins the competition and displaces all the others. On the contrary for
attached bacterial species described by a Contois model, theory predicts
coexistence between several species. In this paper we present a generalization
of these results by studying a competition between these three different types
of microorganisms. We prove that the outcome of the competition is a
coexistence between several attached bacterial species with a free species of
bacteria or phytoplankton, all the other free species being washed out. This
demonstration is based mainly on the study of the substrate concentration's
evolution.


  The aim of the current work is a detailed time-series analysis of the data
from Dark Matter direct detection experiments as well as related datasets. We
examine recent claims that the cosmic ray muon flux can be responsible for
generating the modulation signals seen by DAMA and, more recently, by the
CoGeNT collaboration. We find no evidence for such a strong correlation and
show that the two phenomena differ in their power spectrum, phase, and possibly
in amplitude. In addition, we investigate in more detail, the time dependence
of Dark Matter scattering. Since the signal is periodic with period of a year
(due to the Earth's motion around the Sun), the presence of higher harmonics
can be expected. We show that the higher harmonics generically have similar
phase to the annual modulation and the biannual mode in particular could
provide another handle in searching for Dark Matter in the laboratory.


  We consider entire solutions to $\mathcal{L}u=f(u)$ in $\mathbb R^2$, where
$\mathcal L$ is a nonlocal operator with translation invariant, even and
compactly supported kernel $K$. Under different assumptions on the operator
$\mathcal L$, we show that monotone solutions are necessarily one-dimensional.
The proof is based on a Liouville type approach. A variational characterization
of the stability notion is also given, extending our results in some cases to
stable solutions.


  This study explores the use of large language models (LLMs) to predict
emotion intensity in Polish political texts, a resource-poor language context.
The research compares the performance of several LLMs against a supervised
model trained on an annotated corpus of 10,000 social media texts, evaluated
for the intensity of emotions by expert judges. The findings indicate that
while the supervised model generally outperforms LLMs, offering higher accuracy
and lower variance, LLMs present a viable alternative, especially given the
high costs associated with data annotation. The study highlights the potential
of LLMs in low-resource language settings and underscores the need for further
research on emotion intensity prediction and its application across different
languages and continuous features. The implications suggest a nuanced
decision-making process to choose the right approach to emotion prediction for
researchers and practitioners based on resource availability and the specific
requirements of their tasks.


  A Rydberg and a ground-state atom can form ultralong range diatomic molecules
provided the interaction between the ground-state atom and the Rydberg electron
is attractive [C. H. Greene, et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 85, 2458 (2000)]. A
repulsive interaction does not support bound states. However, as we will show,
adding a second ground-state atom, a bound triatomic molecule becomes possible
constituting a Borromean Rydberg system.


  Let $S_k(N)$ denote the space of cusp forms of even integer weight $k$ and
level $N$. We prove an asymptotic for the Petersson trace formula for $S_k(N)$
under an appropriate condition. Using the non-vanishing of a Kloosterman sum
involved in the asymptotic, we give a lower bound for discrepancy in the
Sato-Tate distribution for levels not divisible by $8$. This generalizes a
result of Jung and Sardari for squarefree levels. An analogue of the Sato-Tate
distribution was obtained by Omar and Mazhouda for the distribution of
eigenvalues $\lambda_{p^2}(f)$ where $f$ is a Hecke eigenform and $p$ is a
prime number. As an application of the above-mentioned asymptotic, we obtain a
sequence of weights $k_n$ such that discrepancy in the analogue distribution
obtained by Omar and Mazhouda has a lower bound.


  We investigate imaginary gap-closed (IGC) points and their associated
dynamics in dissipative systems. In a general non-Hermitian model, we derive
the equation governing the IGC points of the energy spectrum, establishing that
these points are only determined by the Hermitian part of the Hamiltonian.
Focusing on a class of one-dimensional dissipative chains, we explore quantum
walks across different scenarios and various parameters, showing that IGC
points induce a power-law decay scaling in bulk loss probability and trigger a
boundary phenomenon referred to as "edge burst". This observation underscores
the crucial role of IGC points under periodic boundary conditions (PBCs) in
shaping quantum walk dynamics. Finally, we demonstrate that the damping
matrices of these dissipative chains under PBCs possess Liouvillian gapless
points, implying an algebraic convergence towards the steady state in long-time
dynamics.


  The properties of one-dimensional liquids are studied for several interaction
potentials for which, under certain assumptions, the properties of the system
admit an analytical solution. The studied potentials are the triangle-well and
the ramp potential, and then we use the knowledge of these ones to study the
hard-rod and the sticky-hard-rod potentials. For each one of these potentials,
we study its equation of state and other thermodynamic quantities such as the
compressibility factor and the internal energy. Then, we study its correlation
functions, such as the radial distribution function, the structure factor and
the direct correlation function. For the latter one, the approximations known
as Percus--Yevick and hypernetted-chain have been compared to the analytical
result. Finally, the asymptotic behaviour of the radial distribution function
is studied and the Fisher--Widom line computed for the triangle-well potential.


  The fall of the Annama meteorite occurred early morning (local time) on April
19, 2014 on the Kola Peninsula (Russia). Based on mineralogy and physical
properties, Annama is a typical H chondrite. It has a high Ar-Ar age of 4.4 Ga.
Its cosmic ray exposure history is atypical as it is not part of the large
group of H chondrites with a prominent 7 - 8 Ma peak in the exposure age
histograms. Instead, its exposure age is within uncertainty of a smaller peak
at 30 \pm 4 Ma. The results from short-lived radionuclides are compatible with
an atmosperic pre-entry radius of 30 - 40 cm. However, based on noble gas and
cosmogenic radionuclide data, Annama must have been part of a larger body
(radius >65 cm) for a large part of its cosmic ray exposure history. The 10Be
concentration indicates a recent (3 - 5 Ma) breakup which may be responsible
for the Annama parent body size reduction to 30 - 35 cm pre-entry radius.


  This thesis investigates how the metric and tetrad formulations of three
gravitational field theories in manifolds with timelike boundaries within the
covariant phase space program. With the recently developed relative bicomplex
framework, we explore the space of solutions and presymplectic structures
associated with each action principle and analyse their equivalence. In this
way, the relative bicomplex surpasses traditional covariant phase space
methods, which are only suited for boundary-free field theories.


  Statistical physics approaches can be used to derive accurate predictions for
the performance of inference methods learning from potentially noisy data, as
quantified by the learning curve defined as the average error versus number of
training examples. We analyse a challenging problem in the area of
non-parametric inference where an effectively infinite number of parameters has
to be learned, specifically Gaussian process regression. When the inputs are
vertices on a random graph and the outputs noisy function values, we show that
replica techniques can be used to obtain exact performance predictions in the
limit of large graphs. The covariance of the Gaussian process prior is defined
by a random walk kernel, the discrete analogue of squared exponential kernels
on continuous spaces. Conventionally this kernel is normalised only globally,
so that the prior variance can differ between vertices; as a more principled
alternative we consider local normalisation, where the prior variance is
uniform.


  In this paper, we construct a kind of infinite-dimensional Novikov algebras
and give its realization by hyperbolic sine functions and hyperbolic cosine
functions.


  Vector spaces of (framed) BPS states of Lagrangian four-dimensional N=2 field
theories can be defined in semiclassical chambers in terms of the
$L^2$-cohomology of Dirac-like operators on monopole moduli spaces. This was
spelled out previously for theories with only vectormultiplets, taking into
account only a subset of the possible half-supersymmetric 't Hooft-Wilson line
defects. This note completes the discussion by describing the modifications
needed when including matter hypermultiplets together with arbitrary 't
Hooft-Wilson line defects. Two applications of this extended discussion are
given.


  Recently Shor proved equivalence of several open (sub)additivity problems
related to the Holevo capacity and the entanglement of formation [15]. In our
previous note [6] equivalence of these to the additivity of the Holevo capacity
for channels with arbitrary linear constraints was shown. This note is the
development of the previous one in the direction of channels with general
constraints. Introducing input constraints provides greater flexibility in the
treatment of the additivity conjecture. The Holevo capacity of arbitrarily
constrained channel is considered and the characteristic property of an optimal
ensemble for such channel is derived, generalizing the maximal distance
property of Schumacher and Westmoreland (proposition 1). It is shown that the
additivity conjecture for two channels with single linear constraints is
equivalent to the similar conjecture for two arbitrarily constrained channels
and, hence, to an interesting subadditivity property of the $\chi$-function for
the tensor product of these channels (theorem 1). We also propose an
alternative way of proving that the additivity conjecture for any two
unconstrained channels implies strong superadditivity of the entanglement of
formation. The arguments from the convex analysis provide another
characterization of channels for which subadditivity of the $\chi $-function
holds (theorem 3). This characterization and some modification of Shor's
channel extension provide a simple way of proving that global additivity of the
minimum output entropy for unconstrained channels implies global subadditivity
of the $\chi $-function and strong superadditivity of the entanglement of
formation.


  Two-loop $\beta$-function and anomalous dimension are calculated for N=1
supersymmetric quantum electrodynamics, regularized by higher derivatives in
the minimal subtraction scheme. The result for two-loop contribution to the
$\beta$-function appears to be equal to 0, does not depend on the form of
regularizing term and does not lead to anomaly puzzle. Two-loop anomalous
dimension can be also made independent on parameters of higher derivative
regularization by a special choice of subtraction scheme.


  The theory of massive gravity possesses ambiguities when the spacetime metric
evolves far from the non-dynamical fiducial metric used to define it. We
explicitly construct a spherically symmetric example case where the metric
evolves to a coordinate-independent determinant singularity which does not
exist in the initial conditions. Both the metric and the vierbein formulation
of the theory are ill-defined at this point. In unitary gauge, the chart of the
spacetime ends at this point and does not cover the full spacetime whereas the
spherically symmetric vierbeins, or zweibeins, of the fiducial metric become
non-invertible and do not describe a valid metric. Nonetheless it is possible
to continuously join a zweibein solution on the other side of the singularity
which picks one of the degenerate solutions of the metric square root. This
continuous solution is not the choice conventionally made in the previous
literature. We also show that the Stueckelberg equations of motion on the
self-accelerating branch prevent solutions from evolving to a more pathological
situation in which the spacetime vierbeins lack a crucial symmetry with the
fiducial vierbeins and real square roots fail to exist.


  We provide convergence in the quantum Gromov-Hausdorff propinquity of
Latr\'emoli\`ere of some sequences of infinite-dimensional Leibniz compact
quantum metric spaces of Rieffel given by AF algebras and Christensen-Ivan
spectral spaces. The main examples are convergence of Effros-Shen algebras and
UHF algebras.


  Modern online platforms offer users an opportunity to participate in a
variety of content-creation, social networking, and shopping activities. With
the rapid proliferation of such online services, learning data-driven user
behavior models is indispensable to enable personalized user experiences.
Recently, representation learning has emerged as an effective strategy for user
modeling, powered by neural networks trained over large volumes of interaction
data. Despite their enormous potential, we encounter the unique challenge of
data sparsity for a vast majority of entities, e.g., sparsity in ground-truth
labels for entities and in entity-level interactions (cold-start users, items
in the long-tail, and ephemeral groups).
  In this dissertation, we develop generalizable neural representation learning
frameworks for user behavior modeling designed to address different sparsity
challenges across applications. Our problem settings span transductive and
inductive learning scenarios, where transductive learning models entities seen
during training and inductive learning targets entities that are only observed
during inference. We leverage different facets of information reflecting user
behavior (e.g., interconnectivity in social networks, temporal and attributed
interaction information) to enable personalized inference at scale. Our
proposed models are complementary to concurrent advances in neural
architectural choices and are adaptive to the rapid addition of new
applications in online platforms.


  In rendezvous, two agents traverse network edges in synchronous rounds and
have to meet at some node. In treasure hunt, a single agent has to find a
stationary target situated at an unknown node of the network. We study
tradeoffs between the amount of information ($\mathit{advice}$) available
$\mathit{a\ priori}$ to the agents and the cost (number of edge traversals) of
rendezvous and treasure hunt. Our goal is to find the smallest size of advice
which enables the agents to solve these tasks at some cost $C$ in a network
with $e$ edges. This size turns out to depend on the initial distance $D$ and
on the ratio $\frac{e}{C}$, which is the $\mathit{relative\ cost\ gain}$ due to
advice. For arbitrary graphs, we give upper and lower bounds of $O(D\log(D\cdot
\frac{e}{C}) +\log\log e)$ and $\Omega(D\log \frac{e}{C})$, respectively, on
the optimal size of advice. For the class of trees, we give nearly tight upper
and lower bounds of $O(D\log \frac{e}{C} + \log\log e)$ and $\Omega (D\log
\frac{e}{C})$, respectively.


  The modulation of propagating spin-wave amplitude in Ni81Fe19 (Py) films,
resulting from constructive and destructive interference of spin wave, has been
demonstrated. Spin waves were excited and detected inductively using pulse
inductive time domain measurements. Two electrical impulses were used for
launching two interfering Gaussian spin wave packets in Py films. The applied
bias magnetic field or the separation between two pulses was used for tuning
the amplitude of the resulting spin wave packets. This may thus be useful for
spin wave based low-power information transfer and processing.


  We study the one-loop effective action for a generic two-dimensional dilaton
gravity theory conformally coupled to $N$ matter fields. We obtain an explicit
expression for the effective action in the weak-coupling limit under a suitable
restriction of the dilaton potential asymptotics. Our result applies to the
CGHS model as well as to the spherically symmetric general relativity. The
effective action is obtained by using the background-field method, and we take
into account the loop contributions from all the fields in the classical action
and from the ghosts. In the large-$N$ limit, and after an appropriate field
redefinition, the one-loop correction takes the form of the Polyakov-Liouville
action.


  In this paper, the bending and the free flexural vibration behaviour of
sandwich functionally graded material (FGM) plates are investigated using
QUAD-8 shear flexible element developed based on higher order structural
theory. This theory accounts for the realistic variation of the displacements
through the thickness. The governing equations obtained here are solved for
static analysis considering two types of sandwich FGM plates, viz., homogeneous
face sheets with FGM core and FGM face sheets with homogeneous hard core. The
in-plane and rotary inertia terms are considered for vibration studies. The
accuracy of the present formulation is tested considering the problems for
which three-dimensional elasticity solutions are available. A detailed
numerical study is carried out based on various higher-order models to examine
the influence of the gradient index and the plate aspect ratio on the
global/local response of different sandwich FGM plates.


  In this work, we study the generalized Klein-Gordon oscillator with
interactions on a curved background within the Kaluza-Klein theory. We solve
the generalized Klein-Gordon oscillator in the cosmic string space-time with a
linear scalar potential and obtain the energy eigenvalue and corresponding
eigenfunction. We show that the energy spectrum depends on the global
parameters characterizing the space-time and the confining potential parameter.
We also solve the generalized Klein-Gordon oscillator in a magnetic cosmic
string background in the Kaluza-Klein theory with a linear scalar potential and
analyze the analogue effect to the Aharonov-Bohm effect for bound states.


  We quantitatively compute the rate and spectrum of spontaneous photon
emissions, caused by the vacuum decaying when an external magnetic field is
introduced. The spectrum of spontaneous photon emissions shows the
energy-momentum-dependency in the low-energy region and in the high energy
region, is respectively similar to the Rayleigh-Jeans part and the Wien part of
the spectrum of the black-body radiation. However, the energy-momentum of
spontaneous photon emissions is quantized, analogous to the Wigner spectrum.
This provides quantitative results for experimental testes.


  Let $k$ be a perfect field of characteristic $p > 0$, $W_n = W_n(k)$. For
separated $k$-schemes of finite type, we explain how rigid cohomology with
compact supports can be computed as the cohomology of certain de Rham-Witt
complexes with coefficients. This result generalizes the classical comparison
theorem of Bloch-Illusie for proper and smooth schemes. In the proof, the key
step is an extension of the Bloch-Illusie theorem to the case of cohomologies
relative to $W_n$ with coefficients in a crystal that is only supposed to be
flat over $W_n$.


  A theorem of A. and C. R\'enyi on periodic entire functions states that an
entire function $f(z) $ must be periodic if $ P(f(z)) $ is periodic, where $
P(z) $ is a non-constant polynomial. By extending this theorem, we can answer
some open questions related to the conjecture of C. C. Yang concerning
periodicity of entire functions. Moreover, we give more general forms for this
conjecture and we prove, in particular, that $ f(z) $ is periodic if either $
P(f(z)) f^{(k)}(z) $ or $ P(f(z))/f^{(k)}(z) $ is periodic, provided that $
f(z) $ has a finite Picard exceptional value. We also investigate the
periodicity of $ f(z) $ when $ f(z)^{n}+a_{1} f^{\prime}(z)+\cdots+a_{k}
f^{(k)}(z) $ is periodic. In all our results, the possibilities for the period
of $ f(z) $ are determined precisely.


  We outline a proposal for a method of preparing an encoded two-state system
(logical qubit) that is immune to collective noise acting on the Hilbert space
of the states supporting it. The logical qubit is comprised of three photonic
three-state systems (qutrits) and is generated by the process of spontaneous
parametric down conversion. The states are constructed using linear optical
elements along with three down-conversion sources, and are deemed successful by
the simultaneous detection of six events. We also show how to select a
maximally entangled state of two qutrits by similar methods. For this maximally
entangled state we describe conditions for the state to be decoherence-free
which do not correspond to collective errors.


  In this paper we examine Phi-derivable approximations in QED. General
theorems tell us that the gauge dependence of the n-loop Phi-derivable
approximation shows up at order g^(2n) where g is the coupling constant. We
consider the gauge dependence of the two-loop Phi-derivable approximation to
the Debye mass and show that it is of order e^4 as expected. We solve the
three-loop Phi-derivable approximation in QED by expanding sum-integrals in
powers of e^2 and m/T, where m is the Debye mass which satisfies a variational
gap equation. The results for the pressure and the Debye mass are accurate to
order e^5.


  In a spectroscopic follow-up to the VLA FIRST survey, the FIRST Bright Quasar
Survey (FBQS) has found 29 radio-selected broad absorption line (BAL) quasars.
This sample provides the first opportunity to study the properties of
radio-selected BAL quasars. Contrary to most previous studies, we establish
that a significant population of radio-loud BAL quasars exists. Radio-selected
BAL quasars display compact radio morphologies and possess both steep and flat
radio spectra. Quasars with low-ionization BALs have a color distribution
redder than that of the FBQS sample as a whole. The frequency of BAL quasars in
the FBQS is significantly greater, perhaps by as much as a factor of two, than
that inferred from optically selected samples. The frequency of BAL quasars
appears to have a complex dependence on radio-loudness. The properties of this
sample appear inconsistent with simple unified models in which BAL quasars
constitute a subset of quasars seen edge-on.


  We give an overview of the different rendering methods and we demonstrate
that the use of a Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) for Global Illumination
(GI) gives a superior quality rendered image to that of a rasterisations image.
We utilise the Pix2Pix architecture and specify the hyper-parameters and
methodology used to mimic ray-traced images from a set of input features. We
also demonstrate that the GANs quality is comparable to the quality of the
ray-traced images, but is able to produce the image, at a fraction of the time.


  In recent years, the power system research community has seen an explosion of
novel methods for formulating and solving power network optimization problems.
These emerging methods range from new power flow approximations, which go
beyond the traditional DC power flow by capturing reactive power, to convex
relaxations, which provide solution quality and runtime performance guarantees.
Unfortunately, the sophistication of these emerging methods often presents a
significant barrier to evaluating them on a wide variety of power system
optimization applications. To address this issue, this work proposes
PowerModels, an open-source platform for comparing power flow formulations.
From its inception, PowerModels was designed to streamline the process of
evaluating different power flow formulations on shared optimization problem
specifications. This work provides a brief introduction to the design of
PowerModels, validates its implementation, and demonstrates its effectiveness
with a proof-of-concept study analyzing five different formulations of the
Optimal Power Flow problem.


  A long slit spectrum from the barred galaxy NGC 1415 has been obtained with
the 2.1m Guillermo Haro telescope in Cananea, Mexico at position angle 155d
(EofN) and shows the kinematics of Na I D lines (in absorption) and Halpha,
6562.8 A, [NII] 6548 A, [NII] 6584 A, [SII] 6716 A, and [SII] 6731 A lines in
emission from the central regions and the disk. Our previous Halpha
continuum-free imaging of the central region showed mainly two central bright
Halpha knots straddling the nucleus, and Halpha emission regions along the
south-east and north-west inner spiral arms. Velocities of the Na I D
absorption lines are taken as representative of the rotation curve of NGC 1415.
Our kinematical data indicates that the central bright Halpha straddling the
nucleus have velocities in excess of the Na I D velocities. We interpret these
velocity excesses of the central bright Halpha knots as due to a geyser
(nuclear bipolar outflow) with V_outflow 140 km/s at a P.A.+165d (EofN). The
axis of this outflow, is not along the rotation axis of the disk of NGC 1415
(if it were, it would be at P.A.+238d (EofN)). Additionally we have determined
Omega_{gas}, (radial resonances) kappa(R) and estimated the value of the
pattern angular speed of an inner boxy stellar bar in NGC 1415, Omega_{bar},
from the Na I D rotation curve assuming Ratio of CR/a_{bar} = 1, Omega_{bar} =
134 km/s.


  The detection of electromagnetic counterparts to gravitational waves has
great promise for the investigation of many scientific questions. It has long
been hoped that in addition to providing extra, non-gravitational information
about the sources of these signals, the detection of an electromagnetic signal
in conjunction with a gravitational wave could aid in the analysis of the
gravitational signal itself. That is, knowledge of the sky location,
inclination, and redshift of a binary could break degeneracies between these
extrinsic, coordinate-dependent parameters and the physical parameters, such as
mass and spin, that are intrinsic to the binary. In this paper, we investigate
this issue by assuming a perfect knowledge of extrinsic parameters, and
assessing the maximal impact of this knowledge on our ability to extract
intrinsic parameters. However, we find only modest improvements in a few
parameters --- namely the primary component's spin --- and conclude that, even
in the best case, the use of additional information from electromagnetic
observations does not improve the measurement of the intrinsic parameters
significantly.


  This paper concerns the validity of the Prandtl boundary layer theory for
steady, incompressible Navier-Stokes flows over a rotating disk. We prove that
the Navier Stokes flows can be decomposed into Euler and Prandtl flows in the
inviscid limit. In so doing, we develop a new set of function spaces and prove
several embedding theorems which capture the interaction between the Prandtl
scaling and the geometry of our domain.


  The impact of new stellar evolution models with rotation on the predictions
of population synthesis models is discussed. Massive rotating stars have larger
convective cores than their non-rotating counterparts, and their outer layers
are chemically enriched due to increased mixing. Together, these two effects
lead to hotter and more luminous stars, in particular during later evolutionary
phases. As a result, stellar populations containing massive stars are predicted
to become more luminous for a given mass and to emit more ionizing photons.
Depending on the assumed rotation velocity, rotation causes profound changes in
the properties of young stellar populations. These changes are most noticeable
at later evolutionary phases and at shorter wavelengths of the spectral energy
distribution. Most strikingly, the Lyman continuum luminosity increases by up
to a factor of five in O- and Wolf-Rayet stars. Care is required when comparing
these models to observations, and some fine-tuning of the models is still
required before recalibrations of star-formation indicators should be
attempted.


  Bound states in the continuum (BICs) in gratings composed of infinitely long
silicon rods of rectangular cross-section are considered. We reveal merging
off-$\Gamma$ Friedrich-Wintgen BIC with symmetry protected BIC. We present CMT
and multipole decomposition theory complementary each other to analyze the
merging phenomenon. The theories show a crossover of the behavior of $Q$-factor
from standard inverse square law $k_{x,z}^{-2}$ towards to extremely fast
boosting law $k_{x,z}^{-6}$ in momentum space. In turn that crossover gives
rise to another crossover from $Q\sim N^2$ to $Q\sim N^3$ for symmetry
protected quasi BIC in finite grating of $N$ rods owing to suppression of
radiation leakage of quasi BIC mode from surface of grating. As a result the
$Q$-factor of quasi BIC is determined by residual leakage from ends of grating.
We show numerically that this leakage also can be suppressed considerably if to
stretch grating from the ends.


  We prove stability of the spectral gap for gapped, frustration-free
Hamiltonians under general, quasi-local perturbations. We present a necessary
and sufficient condition for stability, which we call "Local Topological
Quantum Order" and show that this condition implies an area law for the
entanglement entropy of the groundstate subspace. This result extends previous
work by Bravyi et al., on the stability of topological quantum order for
Hamiltonians composed of commuting projections with a common zero-energy
subspace. We conclude with a list of open problems relevant to spectral gaps
and topological quantum order.


  Recent investigations have shown that inflation can be driven by
four-dimensional strongly interacting theories non-minimally coupled to
gravity. We explore this paradigm further by considering composite inflation
driven by orientifold field theories. The advantage of using these theories
resides in the fact that at large number of colors they feature certain super
Yang-Mills properties. In particular we can use for inflation the bosonic part
of the Veneziano-Yankielowicz effective theory. Furthermore, we include the 1/N
as well as fermion mass corrections at the effective Lagrangian level allowing
us to explore the effects of these corrections on the inflationary slow-roll
parameters. Additionally the orientifold field theory with fermionic matter
transforming according to the two-index antisymmetric representation for three
colors is QCD. Therefore this model can be interpreted as a new non-minimally
coupled QCD theory of inflation. The scale of composite inflation, for all the
models presented here, is of the order of $10^{16}$ GeV. Unitarity studies of
the inflaton scattering suggest that the cutoff of the model is at the Planck
scale.


  We consider a relativistic charged particle in a background scalar field
depending on both space and time. Poincar\'e, dilation and special conformal
symmetries of the field generate conserved quantities in the charge motion, and
we exploit this to generate examples of superintegrable relativistic systems.
We also show that the corresponding single-particle wavefunctions needed for
the quantum scattering problem can be found exactly, by solving the
Klein-Gordon equation.


  An ultimate goal of artificial intelligence is to build computer systems that
can understand human languages. Understanding commonsense knowledge about the
world expressed in text is one of the foundational and challenging problems to
create such intelligent systems. As a step towards this goal, we present in
this paper ALMEn, an Autoencoding Language Model based Ensemble learning method
for commonsense validation and explanation. By ensembling several advanced
pre-trained language models including RoBERTa, DeBERTa, and ELECTRA with
Siamese neural networks, our method can distinguish natural language statements
that are against commonsense (validation subtask) and correctly identify the
reason for making against commonsense (explanation selection subtask).
Experimental results on the benchmark dataset of SemEval-2020 Task 4 show that
our method outperforms state-of-the-art models, reaching 97.9% and 95.4%
accuracies on the validation and explanation selection subtasks, respectively.


  In this survey we report on some recent results related to various singular
phenomena arising in the study of some classes of nonlinear elliptic equations.
We establish qualitative results on the existence, nonexistence or the
uniqueness of solutions and we focus on the following types of problems: (i)
blow-up boundary solutions of logistic equations; (ii) Lane-Emden-Fowler
equations with singular nonlinearities and subquadratic convection term. We
study the combined effects of various terms involved in these problems:
sublinear or superlinear nonlinearities, singular nonlinear terms, convection
nonlinearities, as well as sign-changing potentials. We also take into account
bifurcation nonlinear problems and we establish the precise rate decay of the
solution in some concrete situations. Our approach combines standard techniques
based on the maximum principle with non-standard arguments, such as the
Karamata regular variation theory.


  We develop a new statistical model to analyse time-varying ranking data. The
model can be used with a large number of ranked items, accommodates exogenous
time-varying covariates and partial rankings, and is estimated via the maximum
likelihood in a straightforward manner. Rankings are modelled using the
Plackett-Luce distribution with time-varying worth parameters that follow a
mean-reverting time series process. To capture the dependence of the worth
parameters on past rankings, we utilise the conditional score in the fashion of
the generalised autoregressive score (GAS) models. Simulation experiments show
that the small-sample properties of the maximum-likelihood estimator improve
rapidly with the length of the time series and suggest that statistical
inference relying on conventional Hessian-based standard errors is usable even
for medium-sized samples. In an empirical study, we apply the model to the
results of the Ice Hockey World Championships. We also discuss applications to
rankings based on underlying indices, repeated surveys, and non-parametric
efficiency analysis.


  In this talk, an overview of the status of the light scalar mesons in the
context of the non linear chiral Lagrangian of references [1-3] is presented.
The evidence for the existence of a scalar nonet below 1 GeV is reviewed, and
it is shown that by introducing a scalar nonet an indirect way of probing the
quark substructure of these scalars through the scalar mixing angle can be
obtained. It is then reviewed that consistency of this non-linear chiral
Lagrangian framework with the experimental data on pi pi and pi K scattering,
as well as the decay eta' to eta pi pi, results in a range for the mixing angle
which indicates that the quark substructure of these light scalars are closer
to a four quark picture.


  Sophisticated high-energy and large momentum-transfer scattering experiments
combined with ab-initio calculations can reveal the short-distance behavior of
nucleon pairs in nuclei. On an opposite energy and resolution scale, elastic
electron scattering experiments are used to extract the charge density and
charge radius of different nuclei. We show that even though the charge density
has no obvious connection with nuclear short-range correlations, it can be used
to extract properties of such correlations. This is accomplished by using the
nuclear contact formalism to derive a relation between the charge density and
the proton-proton nuclear contacts that describe the probability of two protons
being at close proximity. With this relation, the values of the proton-proton
contacts are extracted for various nuclei using only the nuclear charge density
and a solution of the two-nucleon Schroedinger equation as inputs. For
symmetric nuclei, the proton-neutron contacts can also be extracted from the
charge density. Good agreement is obtained with previous extractions of the
nuclear contacts. These results imply that one can predict (with reasonably
good accuracy) the results of high-energy and large momentum-transfer
electron-scattering experiments and ab-initio calculations of high momentum
tails using only experimental data of elastic scattering experiments.


  We discuss observations of the linearly polarized component of the diffuse
galactic radio background. These observations, with an angular resolution of
4', were made with the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT) in 5
frequency bands in the range 341-375 MHz. The linearly polarized intensity P
(with polarized brightness temperature going up to 10K) shows a `cloudy'
structure, with characteristic scales of 15'-30', which contains relatively
long, but very narrow `canals' (essentially unresolved) in which P is only a
small fraction of that in the neighbouring beams.
  These `canals' are generally seen in more than one frequency band, although
their appearance changes between bands. They are probably due to depolarization
within the synthesized beam, because the change in polarization angle across
the deepest `canals' is in general close to 90 degrees (or 270 etc.). These
very abrupt changes in polarization angle, which are seen only across the
`canals', seem to be accompanied by abrupt changes in the Rotation Measure
(RM), which may have the right magnitude to create the difference of close to
90 degrees in polarization angle, and thereby the `canals'.
  The structure in the polarization maps is most likely due to Faraday rotation
modulation of the probably smooth polarized radiation emitted in the halo of
our Galaxy by the fairly local ISM (up to 500 pc). Therefore, the abrupt
changes of RM across the `canals' provide evidence for very thin (about 1 pc),
and relatively long transition regions in the ISM, across which the RM changes
by as much as 100%. Such drastic RM changes may well be due primarily to abrupt
changes in the magnetic field.


  Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has been recently
recognized as inadequate to meet the increased requirements of the next
generation of communication systems. A number of alternative modulation
solutions, based on the use of filter banks, have thus been proposed and are
currently being considered as candidate waveforms for the envisaged air
interface of the future networks. A unified view of these schemes would largely
facilitate a systematic comparison of their pros and cons as well as the study
of methods for related signal processing problems. To this end, a generic
modulator is developed in this paper, following a structured matrix
formulation. With appropriate parameter settings, existing modulation schemes
can result as special cases. Three such popular examples are presented in
detail.


  Point-to-point vacuum correlation functions for spatially separated hadron
currents are calculated in quenched lattice QCD on a $16^3\times 24$ lattice
with $6/g^2=5.7$. The lattice data are analyzed in terms of dispersion
relations, which enable us to extract physical information from small distances
where asymptotic freedom is apparent to large distances where the hadronic
resonances dominate. In the pseudoscalar, vector, and axial vector channels
where experimental data or phenomenological information are available,
semi-quantitative agreement is obtained. In the nucleon and delta channels,
where no experimental data exist, our lattice data complement experiments.
Comparison with approximations based on sum rules and interacting instantons
are made, and technical details of the lattice calculation are described.


  We present a near-infrared extinction study of the dark globule B335, a
protostellar collapse candidate, using data from HST/NICMOS and the W.M. Keck
Observatory. These data allow a new quantitative test of the "inside-out"
collapse model previously proposed to explain molecular line profiles observed
toward this region. We find that the shape of the density profile is well
matched by the collapse model, but that the amount of extinction corresponds to
larger column densities than predicted. An unstable Bonnor-Ebert sphere with
dimensionless outer radius xi_max=12.5+/-2.6 provides an equally good
description of the density profile, and is indistinguishable from the collapse
model over the range in radius sampled by the data. The bipolar outflow driven
by the embedded YSO has an important effect on the extinction through the core,
and modeling the outflow as a hollowed-out bipolar cone of constant opening
angle provides a good match to theobservations. The complete exinction map is
well reproduced by a model that includes both infall and outflow, and an extra
20% dispersion that likely results from residual turbulent motions. This fitted
model has an infall radius of R_inf=26"+/-3"(0.031pc for 250pc distance), and
an outflow cone semi-opening angle of alpha=41+/-2 degrees. The fitted infall
radius is consistent with those derived from molecular line observations and
supports the inside-out collapse interpretation of the density structure. The
fitted opening angle of the outflow is slightly larger than observed in CO
emission, perhaps because the full extent of the outflow cone in CO becomes
confused with ambient core emission at low velocities.


  Channel estimation poses significant challenges in millimeter-wave massive
multiple-input multiple-output systems, especially when the base station has
fewer radio-frequency chains than antennas. To address this challenge, one
promising solution exploits the beamspace channel sparsity to reconstruct
full-dimensional channels from incomplete measurements. This paper presents a
model-based deep learning method to reconstruct sparse, as well as
approximately sparse, vectors fast and accurately. To implement this method, we
propose a trimmed-ridge regression that transforms the sparse-reconstruction
problem into a least-squares problem regularized by a nonconvex penalty term,
and then derive an iterative solution. We then unfold the iterations into a
deep network that can be implemented in online applications to realize
real-time computations. To this end, an unfolded trimmed-ridge regression model
is constructed using a structural configuration to reduce computational
complexity and a model ensemble strategy to improve accuracy. Compared with
other state-of-the-art deep learning models, the proposed learning scheme
achieves better accuracy and supports higher downlink sum rates.


  The determination of a dynamic law of cut is complex and often very difficult
to develop. Several formulations were developed, in very complex ways being
given that 3 AD crosses from there, the number of variables is much higher than
out of orthogonal cut. The existence of the plan of displacements and the
correlations with the elastic characteristics of the machining system thus make
it possible to simplify the dynamic model 3D. A dynamic model on the basis of
experimental approach is proposed. Simulation is in concord with the
experimental results.


  We present Prompt Diffusion, a framework for enabling in-context learning in
diffusion-based generative models. Given a pair of task-specific example
images, such as depth from/to image and scribble from/to image, and a text
guidance, our model automatically understands the underlying task and performs
the same task on a new query image following the text guidance. To achieve
this, we propose a vision-language prompt that can model a wide range of
vision-language tasks and a diffusion model that takes it as input. The
diffusion model is trained jointly over six different tasks using these
prompts. The resulting Prompt Diffusion model is the first diffusion-based
vision-language foundation model capable of in-context learning. It
demonstrates high-quality in-context generation on the trained tasks and
generalizes effectively to new, unseen vision tasks with their respective
prompts. Our model also shows compelling text-guided image editing results. Our
framework aims to facilitate research into in-context learning for computer
vision. We share our code and pre-trained models at
https://github.com/Zhendong-Wang/Prompt-Diffusion.


  We prove that Ramanujan-type congruences for integral weight modular forms
away from the level and the congruence prime are equivalent to specific
congruences for Hecke eigenvalues. In particular, we show that Ramanujan-type
congruences are preserved by the action of the shallow Hecke algebra. More
generally, we show for weakly holomorphic modular forms of integral weight,
that Ramanujan-type congruences naturally occur for shifts in the union of two
square-classes as opposed to single square-classes that appear in the
literature on the partition function. We also rule out the possibility of
square-free periods, whose scarcity in the case of the partition function was
investigated recently. We complement our obstructions on maximal Ramanujan-type
congruences with several existence statements. Our results are based on a
framework that leverages classical results on integral models of modular curves
via modular representation theory, and applies to congruences of all weakly
holomorphic modular forms. Steinberg representations govern all maximal
Ramanujan-type congruences for integral weights. We discern the scope of our
framework in the case of half-integral weights through example calculations.


  We propose the family universal $U(1)_X$ models with three right-handed
neutrinos by choosing the $U(1)_X$ gauge symmetry as a linear combination of
$U(1)_Y\times U(1)_{\chi}$ of $SO(10)$. To be consistent with the quantum
gravity effects, we introduced a Dirac fermion $\chi$ as a dark matter
candidate, which is odd under the gauged $Z_2$ symmetry after $U(1)_X$
breaking. The isospin violation dark matter with $f_n/f_p = -0.7$ can be
realized naturally, and thus the LUX, PANDAX, and XENON1T experimental
constraints can be evaded. Moreover, we study the masses and mixings for Higgs
and gauge bosons, consider the LHC constraints on the $Z'$ mass, simulate
various constraints from dark matter direct and indirect detection experiments,
and then present the viable parameter spaces. To study the LHC $Z'$ mass bounds
on the generic $U(1)_X$ models, we considered four kinds of scenarios, where
scenario II with zero $U(1)_X$ charge for right-handed up-type quarks can relax
the LHC $Z'$ mass bound a little bit.


  In this small note we introduce a notion of self-stresses on the set
functions in two variables with generic critical points. The notion naturally
comes from a rather exotic representation of classical Maxwell frameworks in
terms of differential forms. For the sake of clarity we work in the
two-dimensional case only. However all the definitions for the higher
dimensional case are straightforward.


  We study the role of quantum fluctuations of atomic nuclei in the real-time
dynamics of non-equilibrium macro-molecular transitions. To this goal we
introduce an extension of the Dominant Reaction Pathways (DRP) formalism, in
which the quantum corrections to the classical overdamped Langevin dynamics are
rigorously taken into account to order h^2 . We first illustrate our approach
in simple cases, and compare with the results of the instanton theory. Then we
apply our method to study the C7_eq to C7_ax transition of alanine dipeptide.
We find that the inclusion of quantum fluctuations can significantly modify the
reaction mechanism for peptides. For example, the energy difference which is
overcome along the most probable pathway is reduced by as much as 50%.


  Measurement of the parity-violating electron scattering asymmetry is an
established technique at Jefferson Lab and provides a new opportunity to
measure the weak charge distribution and hence pin down the neutron radius in
nuclei in a relatively clean and model-independent way. This is because the Z
boson of the weak interaction couples primarily to neutrons. We will describe
the PREX and CREX experiments on ${}^{208}$Pb and ${}^{48}$Ca respectively;
these are both doubly-magic nuclei whose first excited state can be
discriminated by the high resolution spectrometers at JLab. The heavier lead
nucleus, with a neutron excess, provides an interpretation of the neutron skin
thickness in terms of properties of bulk neutron matter. For the lighter
${}^{48}$Ca nucleus, which is also rich in neutrons, microscopic nuclear theory
calculations are feasible and are sensitive to poorly constrained 3-neutron
forces.


  In this paper, we investigate the stabilization of a linear Bresse system
with one discontinuous local internal viscoelastic damping of Kelvin-Voigt type
acting on the axial force, under fully Dirichlet boundary conditions. First,
using a general criteria of Arendt-Batty, we prove the strong stability of our
system. Finally, using a frequency domain approach combined with the multiplier
method, we prove that the energy of our system decays polynomially with
different rates.


  Echoes of quantum phase transitions (QPTs) at finite temperatures are
theoretically and experimentally challenging and unexplored topics.
Particularly in metallic quantum ferromagnets the experimental investigations
are hampered by an intricate preparation of sufficiently pure samples and the
access to the proper coordinates in parameter space. The present study shows
that it is possible to tune a specific system at easily accessible conditions
to the vicinity of its quantum phase transition. The physics is demonstrated on
Ru-doped UCoAl, driven by pressure or substitution to and across the
tricritical point and follows the first-order transition line to the
theoretically presumed QPT. These findings open the possibilities for further
in-depth studies of classical and quantum critical phenomena at easily
reachable conditions.


  We prove a duality theorem applicable to a a wide range of specialisations,
as well as to some generalisations, of tangles in graphs. It generalises the
classical tangle duality theorem of Robertson and Seymour, which says that
every graph either has a large-order tangle or a certain low-width
tree-decomposition witnessing that it cannot have such a tangle.
  Our result also yields duality theorems for profiles and for $k$-blocks. This
solves a problem studied, but not solved, by Diestel and Oum and answers an
earlier question of Carmesin, Diestel, Hamann and Hundertmark.


  A new routine is proposed to relate Loop Quant Cosmology (LQC) to Loop
Quantum Gravity (LQG) from the perspective of effective dynamics. We derive the
big-bang singularity resolution and big bounce from the first principle of full
canonical LQG. Our results are obtained in the framework of the reduced phase
space quantization of LQG. As a key step in our work, we derive with coherent
states a new discrete path integral formula of the transition amplitude
generated by the physical Hamiltonian. The semiclassical approximation of the
path integral formula gives an interesting set of effective equations of motion
(EOMs) for full LQG. When solving the EOMs with homogeneous and isotropic
ansatz, we reproduce the LQC effective dynamics in $\mu_0$-scheme. The solution
replaces the big-bang singularity by a big bounce. In the end, we comment on
the possible relation between the $\bar{\mu}$-scheme of effective dynamics and
the continuum limit of the path integral formula.


  Manin associated to a quadratic algebra (quantum space) the quantum matrix
group of its automorphisms. This Talk aims to demonstrate that Manin's
construction can be extended for quantum spaces which are non-quadratic
homogeneous algebras. Here given a regular Artin-Schelter algebra of dimension
3 we construct the quantum group of its symmetries, i.e., the Hopf algebra of
its automorphisms. For quadratic Artin-Schelter algebras these quantum groups
are contained in the the classification of the GL(3) quantum matrix groups due
to Ewen and Ogievetsky. For cubic Artin-Schelter algebras we obtain new quantum
groups which are automorphisms of cubic quantum spaces.


  Inspired by the work of Chen-Zhang \cite{Chen-Zhang}, we derive an evolution
formula for the Wang-Yau quasi-local energy in reference to a static space,
introduced by Chen-Wang-Wang-Yau \cite{CWWY}. If the reference static space
represents a mass minimizing, static extension of the initial surface $\Sigma$,
we observe that the derivative of the Wang-Yau quasi-local energy is equal to
the derivative of the Bartnik quasi-local mass at $\Sigma$.
  Combining the evolution formula for the quasi-local energy with a localized
Penrose inequality proved in \cite{Lu-Miao}, we prove a rigidity theorem for
compact $3$-manifolds with nonnegative scalar curvature, with boundary. This
rigidity theorem in turn gives a characterization of the equality case of the
localized Penrose inequality in $3$-dimension.


  Radar sensors provide a unique method for executing environmental perception
tasks towards autonomous driving. Especially their capability to perform well
in adverse weather conditions often makes them superior to other sensors such
as cameras or lidar. Nevertheless, the high sparsity and low dimensionality of
the commonly used detection data level is a major challenge for subsequent
signal processing. Therefore, the data points are often merged in order to form
larger entities from which more information can be gathered. The merging
process is often implemented in form of a clustering algorithm. This article
describes a novel approach for first filtering out static background data
before applying a twostage clustering approach. The two-stage clustering
follows the same paradigm as the idea for data association itself: First,
clustering what is ought to belong together in a low dimensional parameter
space, then, extracting additional features from the newly created clusters in
order to perform a final clustering step. Parameters are optimized for
filtering and both clustering steps. All techniques are assessed both
individually and as a whole in order to demonstrate their effectiveness. Final
results indicate clear benefits of the first two methods and also the cluster
merging process under specific circumstances.


  The chiral symmetry at finite lattice spacing of Ginsparg-Wilson fermionic
actions constrains the renormalization of the lattice operators; in particular,
the topological susceptibility does not require any renormalization, when using
a fermionic estimator to define the topological charge. Therefore, the overlap
formalism appears as an appealing candidate to study the continuum limit of the
topological susceptibility while keeping the systematic errors under
theoretical control. We present results for the SU(3) pure gauge theory using
the index of the overlap Dirac operator to study the topology of the gauge
configurations. The topological charge is obtained from the zero modes of the
overlap and using a new algorithm for the spectral flow analysis. A detailed
comparison with cooling techniques is presented. Particular care is taken in
assessing the systematic errors. Relatively high statistics (500 to 1000
independent configurations) yield an extrapolated continuum limit with errors
that are comparable with other methods. Our current value from the overlap is
$\chi^{1/4} = 188 \pm 12 \pm 5 \MeV$.


  The recent detections of microquasars at energies above a few hundred keV up
to the TeV in one case has stimulated a strong interest and raised several
questions. How are the MeV, GeV, and even TeV emissions, produced? What are the
emission processes and in-fine the physics and media at the origin of the broad
band spectra? What is the content of these media, and how are they powered?
These sources are machines accelerating particles and matter to very high speed
in collimated jets. While these are now known for more than twenty years
(mainly with radio observations) and their behavior known to be tied to the
accretion processes onto the compact object (studied via X-ray observations),
their potential influence at high energy is just being recognized. In this
review I will present a selection of recent results obtained with XMM-Newton,
INTEGRAL, Fermi on 4U 1630$-$40, Cygnus X-1, and V404 Cygni and will discuss
the possible interpretations of these results.


  Streaming is a model where an input graph is provided one edge at a time,
instead of being able to inspect it at will. In this work, we take a
parameterized approach by assuming a vertex cover of the graph is given,
building on work of Bishnu et al. [COCOON 2020]. We show the further potency of
combining this parameter with the Adjacency List streaming model to obtain
results for vertex deletion problems. This includes kernels, parameterized
algorithms, and lower bounds for the problems of Pi-free Deletion, H-free
Deletion, and the more specific forms of Cluster Vertex Deletion and Odd Cycle
Transversal. We focus on the complexity in terms of the number of passes over
the input stream, and the memory used. This leads to a pass/memory trade-off,
where a different algorithm might be favourable depending on the context and
instance. We also discuss implications for parameterized complexity in the
non-streaming setting.


  Consider a multimodal interval map $f$ of $C^3$ with non-flat critical
points. We establish several characterizations of the map $f$ is
quasi-symmetrically conjugated to a piecewise affine map in the case $f$ is
topologically exact and all of its periodic points are hyperbolic repelling. In
particular, we give a negative answer to a question posted by Henk Bruin in
\cite{Bru96}.


  We propose the theory of the plasmon excited in ultra-narrow plasmonic gap
formed by a metal cylinder on a metal surface, that generates a huge resonant
local electromagnetic field in optical frequencies. Resonance conditions are
found. The maximum possible enhancement of the electric field in the nanogap is
estimated as $\left|E_{max} \right|/ \left| E_{0} \right| \propto \left|
\varepsilon_m \right|^{3} \varepsilon_{d}^{-1} \left( \Im
\varepsilon_{m}\right) ^{-2}$ A simple ultranarrow-gaped resonator can be used
for SERS sensing and infrared spectroscopy of adsorbed molecules. We assume
that a plasmonic nanogap is simplest and most straightforward way to increase
flexibility as well as sensitivity of the plasmon-enhanced spectroscopes.


  In this work, we apply an attention-gated network to real-time automated scan
plane detection for fetal ultrasound screening. Scan plane detection in fetal
ultrasound is a challenging problem due the poor image quality resulting in low
interpretability for both clinicians and automated algorithms. To solve this,
we propose incorporating self-gated soft-attention mechanisms. A soft-attention
mechanism generates a gating signal that is end-to-end trainable, which allows
the network to contextualise local information useful for prediction. The
proposed attention mechanism is generic and it can be easily incorporated into
any existing classification architectures, while only requiring a few
additional parameters. We show that, when the base network has a high capacity,
the incorporated attention mechanism can provide efficient object localisation
while improving the overall performance. When the base network has a low
capacity, the method greatly outperforms the baseline approach and
significantly reduces false positives. Lastly, the generated attention maps
allow us to understand the model's reasoning process, which can also be used
for weakly supervised object localisation.


  We consider the numerical evolution of dynamic black hole initial data sets
with a full 3D, nonlinear evolution code. These data sets consist of single
black holes distorted by strong gravitational waves, and mimic the late stages
of coalescing black holes. Through comparison with results from well
established axisymmetric codes, we show that these dynamic black holes can be
accurately evolved. In particular, we show that with present computational
resources and techniques, the process of excitation and ringdown of the black
hole can be evolved, and one can now extract accurately the gravitational waves
emitted from the 3D Cartesian metric functions, even though they may be buried
in the metric at levels on the order of $10^{-3}$ and below. Waveforms for both
the $\ell=2$ and the much more difficult $\ell=4$ modes are computed and
compared with axisymmetric calculations. In addition to exploring the physics
of distorted black hole data sets, and showing the extent to which the waves
can be accurately extracted, these results also provide important testbeds for
all fully nonlinear numerical codes designed to evolve black hole spacetimes in
3D, whether they use singularity avoiding slicings, apparent horizon boundary
conditions, or other evolution methods.


  In the previous report, we have demonstrated cascade branching channels of
the multipolar E3 transition of rhodium Mossbauer gamma via the time- and
energy-resolved spectroscopy. Moreover, superradiance in the Borrmann channel
from inverted nuclei gives gamma entanglement. In this letter, we report
further four observations of superradiance and its associated gamma
entanglement at the liquid-nitrogen temperature, i.e. (i) speed-up decay, (ii)
immediate recovery of the speed-up decay after quenching, (iii) simultaneous
suppression of gamma and K lines, and (iv) enhanced multiple ionizations.
Anisotropic superradiant channels open by quenching and recover back
immediately after quenching. Enhanced K satellites and K hypersatellites
induced by cooling are attributed to the inelastic scattering of more than
three entangled gammas.


  For any space X with the homotopy type of simply-connected, finite-type
CW-complex, we construct an associative cochain algebra fls(X) whose cohomology
algebra is isomorphic to that of LX, the free loop space on X. For certain X,
we define a cochain map from fls(X) to itself that is a good model of the
pth-power operation on LX.
  Under additional conditions on X, e.g., when X is a wedge of spheres, we
define a cochain complex hos(X) by twisting together fls(X) and H*(BS^1) and
prove that the cohomology of hos(X) is isomorphic to the Borel cohomology of
LX.
  Finally, we define tc(X) to be the mapping cone of the composite of the
projection map from hos(X) to fls(X) with the model of the pth-power map (for
p=2), so that the mod 2 spectrum cohomology of TC(X;2), the topological cyclic
homology of X at 2, is isomorphic to the mod 2 cohomology of tc(X).
  We conclude by calculating the mod 2 spectrum homology of TC(S^{2n+1}; 2).


  We compare the structure of star-forming molecular clouds in different
regions of Orion A to determine how the column density probability distribution
function (N-PDF) varies with environmental conditions such as the fraction of
young protostars. A correlation between the N-PDF slope and Class 0 protostar
fraction has been previously observed in a low-mass star-formation region
(Perseus) by Sadavoy; here we test if a similar correlation is observed in a
high-mass star-forming region. We use Herschel data to derive a column density
map of Orion A. We use the Herschel Orion Protostar Survey catalog for accurate
identification and classification of the Orion A young stellar object (YSO)
content, including the short-lived Class 0 protostars (with a $\sim$ 0.14 Myr
lifetime). We divide Orion A into eight independent 13.5 pc$^2$ regions; in
each region we fit the N-PDF distribution with a power-law, and we measure the
fraction of Class 0 protostars. We use a maximum likelihood method to measure
the N-PDF power-law index without binning. We find that the Class 0 fraction is
higher in regions with flatter column density distributions. We test the
effects of incompleteness, YSO misclassification, resolution, and pixel-scale.
We show that these effects cannot account for the observed trend. Our
observations demonstrate an association between the slope of the power-law
N-PDF and the Class 0 fractions within Orion A. Various interpretations are
discussed including timescales based on the Class 0 protostar fraction assuming
a constant star-formation rate. The observed relation suggests that the N-PDF
can be related to an "evolutionary state" of the gas. If universal, such a
relation permits an evaluation of the evolutionary state from the N-PDF
power-law index at much greater distances than those accesible with protostar
counts. (abridged)


  This paper has been withdrawn by the authors, due to issues concerning the
use of unpublished experimental data.