title:
Theory of thermostatted inhomogeneous granular fluids: a self-consistent
  density functional description

abstract:
  The authors present a study of the non equilibrium statistical properties of
a one dimensional hard-rod fluid dissipating energy via inelastic collisions
and subject to the action of a Gaussian heat bath, simulating an external
driving mechanism. They show that the description of the fluid based on the
one-particle phase-space reduced distribution function, in principle necessary
because of the presence of velocity dependent collisional dissipation, can be
contracted to a simpler description in configurational space. Indeed, by means
of a multiple-time scale method the authors derive a self-consistent governing
equation for the particle density distribution function. This equation is
similar to the dynamic density functional equation employed in the study of
colloids, but contains additional terms taking into account the inelastic
nature of the fluid. Such terms cannot be derived from a Liapunov generating
functional and contribute not only to the relaxational properties, but also to
the non equilibrium steady state properties. A validation of the theory against
molecular dynamics simulations is presented in a series of cases, and good
agreement is found.


title:
Landau (\Gamma,\chi)-automorphic functions on \mathbb{C}^n of magnitude
  \nu

abstract:
  We investigate the spectral theory of the invariant Landau Hamiltonian
$\La^\nu$ acting on the space ${\mathcal{F}}^\nu_{\Gamma,\chi}$ of
$(\Gamma,\chi)$-automotphic functions on $\C^n$, for given real number $\nu>0$,
lattice $\Gamma$ of $\C^n$ and a map $\chi:\Gamma\to U(1)$ such that the
triplet $(\nu,\Gamma,\chi)$ satisfies a Riemann-Dirac quantization type
condition. More precisely, we show that the eigenspace $
{\mathcal{E}}^\nu_{\Gamma,\chi}(\lambda)=\set{f\in
{\mathcal{F}}^\nu_{\Gamma,\chi}; \La^\nu f = \nu(2\lambda+n) f}$;
$\lambda\in\C,$ is non trivial if and only if $\lambda=l=0,1,2, ...$. In such
case, ${\mathcal{E}}^\nu_{\Gamma,\chi}(l)$ is a finite dimensional vector space
whose the dimension is given explicitly. We show also that the eigenspace
${\mathcal{E}}^\nu_{\Gamma,\chi}(0)$ associated to the lowest Landau level of
$\La^\nu$ is isomorphic to the space, ${\mathcal{O}}^\nu_{\Gamma,\chi}(\C^n)$,
of holomorphic functions on $\C^n$ satisfying $$ g(z+\gamma) = \chi(\gamma)
e^{\frac \nu 2 |\gamma|^2+\nu\scal{z,\gamma}}g(z), \eqno{(*)} $$ that we can
realize also as the null space of the differential operator
$\sum\limits_{j=1}\limits^n(\frac{-\partial^2}{\partial z_j\partial \bar z_j} +
\nu \bar z_j \frac{\partial}{\partial \bar z_j})$ acting on $\mathcal C^\infty$
functions on $\C^n$ satisfying $(*)$.


title: Is the Pentaquark the Only Justification for Research on KN Physics ?

abstract:
  The talk is intended to motivate the use of DA$\Phi$NE--2 running at the
$\phi$ peak as an intense, clean source of low--momentum charged and neutral
kaons. It covers a few open problems still unsolved after more than
twenty--five years and the physics (some of it still novel) that could be
learned only in this way. And, of course, the answer to the above question is
{\sl NO}.


title:
A New Class of String Cosmological Models in Cylindrically Symmetric
  Inhomogeneous Universe

abstract:
  A new class of cylindrically symmetric inhomogeneous string cosmological
models is investigated. To get the deterministic solution, it has been assumed
that the expansion ($\theta$) in the model is proportional to the eigen value
$\sigma^{1}_{1}$ of the shear tensor $\sigma^{i}_{j}$. The physical and
geometric aspects of the model are also discussed.


title: Recursive Parameter Estimation: Convergence

abstract:
  We consider estimation procedures which are recursive in the sense that each
successive estimator is obtained from the previous one by a simple adjustment.
We propose a wide class of recursive estimation procedures for the general
statistical model and study convergence.


title: Rate of Convergence in Recursive Parameter Estimation procedures

abstract:
  We consider estimation procedures which are recursive in the sense that each
successive estimator is obtained from the previous one by a simple adjustment.
We study rate of convergence of recursive estimation procedures for the general
statistical model.


title:
Pseudo-Rabi oscillations in superconducting flux qubits in the classical
  regime

abstract:
  Nonlinear effects in mesoscopic devices can have both quantum and classical
origins. We show that a three-Josephson-junction (3JJ) flux qubit in the
_classical_ regime can produce low-frequency oscillations in the presence of an
external field in resonance with the (high-frequency) harmonic mode of the
system, $\omega$. Like in the case of_quantum_ Rabi oscillations, the frequency
of these pseudo-Rabi oscillations is much smaller than $\omega$ and scales
approximately linearly with the amplitude of the external field. This classical
effect can be reliably distinguished from its quantum counterpart because it
can be produced by the external perturbation not only at the resonance
frequency $\omega$ and its subharmonics ($\omega/n$), but also at its
overtones, $n\omega$.


title: Ultraviolet properties of f(R)-Gravity

abstract:
  We discuss the existence and properties of a nontrivial fixed point in
f(R)-gravity, where f is a polynomial of order up to six. Within this
seven-parameter class of theories, the fixed point has three
ultraviolet-attractive and four ultraviolet-repulsive directions; this brings
further support to the hypothesis that gravity is nonperturbatively
renormalizabile.


title:
Hadron multiplicities, pT-spectra and net-baryon number in central Pb+Pb
  collisions at the LHC

abstract:
  We compute the initial energy density and net baryon number density in 5%
most central Pb+Pb collisions at $\sqrt s=5.5$ TeV from pQCD + (final state)
saturation, and describe the evolution of the produced system with
boost-invariant transversely expanding hydrodynamics. In addition to the total
multiplicity at midrapidity, we give predictions for the multiplicity of
charged hadrons, pions, kaons and (anti)protons, for the total transverse
energy and net-baryon number, as well as for the $p_T$-spectrum of charged
hadrons, pions and kaons. We also predict the region of applicability of
hydrodynamics by comparing these results with high-$p_T$ hadron spectra
computed from pQCD and energy losses.


title: Performance of the Charge Injection Capability of Suzaku XIS

abstract:
  A charge injection technique is applied to the X-ray CCD camera, XIS (X-ray
Imaging Spectrometer) onboard Suzaku. The charge transfer inefficiency (CTI) in
each CCD column (vertical transfer channel) is measured by the injection of
charge packets into a transfer channel and subsequent readout. This paper
reports the performances of the charge injection capability based on the ground
experiments using a radiation damaged device, and in-orbit measurements of the
XIS. The ground experiments show that charges are stably injected with the
dispersion of 91eV in FWHM in a specific column for the charges equivalent to
the X-ray energy of 5.1keV. This dispersion width is significantly smaller than
that of the X-ray events of 113eV (FWHM) at approximately the same energy. The
amount of charge loss during transfer in a specific column, which is measured
with the charge injection capability, is consistent with that measured with the
calibration source. These results indicate that the charge injection technique
can accurately measure column-dependent charge losses rather than the
calibration sources. The column-to-column CTI correction to the calibration
source spectra significantly reduces the line widths compared to those with a
column-averaged CTI correction (from 193eV to 173eV in FWHM on an average at
the time of one year after the launch). In addition, this method significantly
reduces the low energy tail in the line profile of the calibration source
spectrum.


title: Acceleration of the Universe driven by the Casimir force

abstract:
  We investigate an evolutional scenario of the FRW universe with the Casimir
energy scaling like $(-)(1+z)^4$. The Casimir effect is used to explain the
vacuum energy differences (its value measured from astrophysics is so small
compared to value obtained from quantum field theory calculations). The
dynamics of the FRW model is represented in terms of a two-dimensional
dynamical system to show all evolutional paths of this model in the phase space
for all admissible initial conditions. We find also an exact solution for non
flat evolutional paths of Universe driven by the Casimir effect. The main
difference between the FRW model with the Casimir force and the $\Lambda$CDM
model is that their generic solutions are a set of evolutional paths with a
bounce solution and an initial singularity, respectively. The evolutional
scenario are tested by using the SNIa data, FRIIb radiogalaxies, baryon
oscillation peak and CMB observation. We compare the power of explanation of
the model considered and the $\Lambda$CDM model using the Bayesian information
criterion and Bayesian factor. Our investigation of the information criteria of
model selection showed the preference of the $\Lambda$CDM model over the model
considered. However the presence of negative like the radiation term can remove
a tension between the theoretical and observed primordial ${}^4$He and D
abundance.


title:
The rate of convergence of Euler approximations for solutions of
  stochastic differential equations driven by fractional Brownian motion

abstract:
  The paper focuses on discrete-type approximations of solutions to
non-homogeneous stochastic differential equations (SDEs) involving fractional
Brownian motion (fBm). We prove that the rate of convergence for Euler
approximations of solutions of pathwise SDEs driven by fBm with Hurst index
$H>1/2$ can be estimated by $O(\delta^{2H-1})$ ($\delta$ is the diameter of
partition). For discrete-time approximations of Skorohod-type quasilinear
equation driven by fBm we prove that the rate of convergence is $O(\delta^H)$.


title:
Integrable equations of the dispersionless Hirota type and hypersurfaces
  in the Lagrangian Grassmannian

abstract:
  We investigate integrable second order equations of the form
  F(u_{xx}, u_{xy}, u_{yy}, u_{xt}, u_{yt}, u_{tt})=0.
  Familiar examples include the Boyer-Finley equation, the potential form of
the dispersionless Kadomtsev-Petviashvili equation, the dispersionless Hirota
equation, etc. The integrability is understood as the existence of infinitely
many hydrodynamic reductions. We demonstrate that the natural equivalence group
of the problem is isomorphic to Sp(6), revealing a remarkable correspondence
between differential equations of the above type and hypersurfaces of the
Lagrangian Grassmannian. We prove that the moduli space of integrable equations
of the dispersionless Hirota type is 21-dimensional, and the action of the
equivalence group Sp(6) on the moduli space has an open orbit.


title:
Effects of electromagnetic waves on the electrical properties of
  contacts between grains

abstract:
  A DC electrical current is injected through a chain of metallic beads. The
electrical resistances of each bead-bead contacts are measured. At low current,
the distribution of these resistances is large and log-normal. At high enough
current, the resistance distribution becomes sharp and Gaussian due to the
creation of microweldings between some beads. The action of nearby
electromagnetic waves (sparks) on the electrical conductivity of the chain is
also studied. The spark effect is to lower the resistance values of the more
resistive contacts, the best conductive ones remaining unaffected by the spark
production. The spark is able to induce through the chain a current enough to
create microweldings between some beads. This explains why the electrical
resistance of a granular medium is so sensitive to the electromagnetic waves
produced in its vicinity.


title: Saltation transport on Mars

abstract:
  We present the first calculation of saltation transport and dune formation on
Mars and compare it to real dunes. We find that the rate at which grains are
entrained into saltation on Mars is one order of magnitude higher than on
Earth. With this fundamental novel ingredient, we reproduce the size and
different shapes of Mars dunes, and give an estimate for the wind velocity on
Mars.


title:
A case for variational geomagnetic data assimilation: insights from a
  one-dimensional, nonlinear, and sparsely observed MHD system

abstract:
  Secular variations of the geomagnetic field have been measured with a
continuously improving accuracy during the last few hundred years, culminating
nowadays with satellite data. It is however well known that the dynamics of the
magnetic field is linked to that of the velocity field in the core and any
attempt to model secular variations will involve a coupled dynamical system for
magnetic field and core velocity. Unfortunately, there is no direct observation
of the velocity. Independently of the exact nature of the above-mentioned
coupled system -- some version being currently under construction -- the
question is debated in this paper whether good knowledge of the magnetic field
can be translated into good knowledge of core dynamics. Furthermore, what will
be the impact of the most recent and precise geomagnetic data on our knowledge
of the geomagnetic field of the past and future? These questions are cast into
the language of variational data assimilation, while the dynamical system
considered in this paper consists in a set of two oversimplified
one-dimensional equations for magnetic and velocity fields. This toy model
retains important features inherited from the induction and Navier-Stokes
equations: non-linear magnetic and momentum terms are present and its linear
response to small disturbances contains Alfv\'en waves. It is concluded that
variational data assimilation is indeed appropriate in principle, even though
the velocity field remains hidden at all times; it allows us to recover the
entire evolution of both fields from partial and irregularly distributed
information on the magnetic field. This work constitutes a first step on the
way toward the reassimilation of historical geomagnetic data and geomagnetic
forecast.


title: Minimal size of a barchan dune

abstract:
  Barchans are dunes of high mobility which have a crescent shape and propagate
under conditions of unidirectional wind. However, sand dunes only appear above
a critical size, which scales with the saturation distance of the sand flux [P.
Hersen, S. Douady, and B. Andreotti, Phys. Rev. Lett. {\bf{89,}} 264301 (2002);
B. Andreotti, P. Claudin, and S. Douady, Eur. Phys. J. B {\bf{28,}} 321 (2002);
G. Sauermann, K. Kroy, and H. J. Herrmann, Phys. Rev. E {\bf{64,}} 31305
(2001)]. It has been suggested by P. Hersen, S. Douady, and B. Andreotti, Phys.
Rev. Lett. {\bf{89,}} 264301 (2002) that this flux fetch distance is itself
constant. Indeed, this could not explain the proto size of barchan dunes, which
often occur in coastal areas of high litoral drift, and the scale of dunes on
Mars. In the present work, we show from three dimensional calculations of sand
transport that the size and the shape of the minimal barchan dune depend on the
wind friction speed and the sand flux on the area between dunes in a field. Our
results explain the common appearance of barchans a few tens of centimeter high
which are observed along coasts. Furthermore, we find that the rate at which
grains enter saltation on Mars is one order of magnitude higher than on Earth,
and is relevant to correctly obtain the minimal dune size on Mars.


title: Hill's Equation with Random Forcing Terms

abstract:
  Motivated by a class of orbit problems in astrophysics, this paper considers
solutions to Hill's equation with forcing strength parameters that vary from
cycle to cycle. The results are generalized to include period variations from
cycle to cycle. The development of the solutions to the differential equation
is governed by a discrete map. For the general case of Hill's equation in the
unstable limit, we consider separately the case of purely positive matrix
elements and those with mixed signs; we then find exact expressions, bounds,
and working estimates for the growth rates. We also find exact expressions,
estimates, and bounds for the infinite products of several $2 \times 2$
matrices with random variables in the matrix elements. In the limit of sharply
spiked forcing terms (the delta function limit), we find analytic solutions for
each cycle and for the discrete map that matches solutions from cycle to cycle;
for this case we find the growth rates and the condition for instability in the
limit of large forcing strength, as well as the widths of the stable/unstable
zones.


title: Modelling magnetically deformed neutron stars

abstract:
  Rotating deformed neutron stars are important potential sources for
groundbased gravitational-wave interferometers such as LIGO, GE0600 and VIRGO.
One mechanism that may lead to significant non-asymmetries is the internal
magnetic field. It is well known that a magnetic star will not be spherical
and, if the magnetic axis is not aligned with the spin axis, the deformation
will lead to the emission of gravitational waves. The aim of this paper is to
develop a formalism that would allow us to model magnetically deformed stars,
using both realistic equations of state and field configurations. As a first
step, we consider a set of simplified model problems. Focusing on dipolar
fields, we determine the internal magnetic field which is consistent with a
given neutron star model. We then calculate the associated deformation. We
conclude by discussing the relevance of our results for current
gravitational-wave detectors and future prospects.


title:
Detection of Atmospheric Muon Neutrinos with the IceCube 9-String
  Detector

abstract:
  The IceCube neutrino detector is a cubic kilometer TeV to PeV neutrino
detector under construction at the geographic South Pole. The dominant
population of neutrinos detected in IceCube is due to meson decay in cosmic-ray
air showers. These atmospheric neutrinos are relatively well-understood and
serve as a calibration and verification tool for the new detector. In 2006, the
detector was approximately 10% completed, and we report on data acquired from
the detector in this configuration. We observe an atmospheric neutrino signal
consistent with expectations, demonstrating that the IceCube detector is
capable of identifying neutrino events. In the first 137.4 days of livetime,
234 neutrino candidates were selected with an expectation of 211 +/-
76.1(syst.) +/- 14.5(stat.) events from atmospheric neutrinos.


title: The study of charmless hadronic $B_s$ decays

abstract:
  The perturbative QCD approach has achieved great success in the study of
hadronic B decays. Utilizing the constrained parameters in these well measured
decay channels, we study most of the possible charmless $B_s \to PP$, $PV$ and
$VV$ decay channels in the perturbative QCD approach. In addition to the
branching ratios and CP asymmetries, we also give predictions to the
polarization fractions of the vector meson final states. The size of SU(3)
breaking effect is also discussed. All of these predictions can be tested by
the future LHCb experiment.


title: Recursive Parameter Estimation: Asymptotic expansion

abstract:
  We consider estimation procedures which are recursive in the sense that each
successive estimator is obtained from the previous one by a simple adjustment.
The model considered in the paper is very general as we do not impose any
preliminary restrictions on the probabilistic nature of the observation process
and cover a wide class of nonlinear recursive procedures. In this paper we
study asymptotic behaviour of the recursive estimators. The results of the
paper can be used to determine the form of a recursive procedure which is
expected to have the same asymptotic properties as the corresponding
non-recursive one defined as a solution of the corresponding estimating
equation.


title: Single-step controlled-NOT logic from any exchange interaction

abstract:
  A self-contained approach to studying the unitary evolution of coupled qubits
is introduced, capable of addressing a variety of physical systems described by
exchange Hamiltonians containing Rabi terms. The method automatically
determines both the Weyl chamber steering trajectory and the accompanying local
rotations. Particular attention is paid to the case of anisotropic exchange
with tracking controls, which is solved analytically. It is shown that, if
computational subspace is well isolated, any exchange interaction can always
generate high-fidelity, single-step controlled-NOT (CNOT) logic, provided that
both qubits can be individually manipulated. The results are then applied to
superconducting qubit architectures, for which several CNOT gate
implementations are identified. The paper concludes with consideration of two
CNOT gate designs having high efficiency and operating with no significant
leakage to higher-lying non-computational states.


title: Gauge Theory of the Star Product

abstract:
  The choice of a star product realization for noncommutative field theory can
be regarded as a gauge choice in the space of all equivalent star products.
With the goal of having a gauge invariant treatment, we develop tools, such as
integration measures and covariant derivatives on this space. The covariant
derivative can be expressed in terms of connections in the usual way giving
rise to new degrees of freedom for noncommutative theories.


title:
Quantum Gravity Boundary Terms from Spectral Action of Noncommutative
  Space

abstract:
  We study the boundary terms of the spectral action of the noncommutative
space, defined by the spectral triple dictated by the physical spectrum of the
standard model, unifying gravity with all other fundamental interactions. We
prove that the spectral action predicts uniquely the gravitational boundary
term required for consistency of quantum gravity with the correct sign and
coefficient. This is a remarkable result given the lack of freedom in the
spectral action to tune this term.


title:
Energy-Efficient Resource Allocation in Wireless Networks: An Overview
  of Game-Theoretic Approaches

abstract:
  An overview of game-theoretic approaches to energy-efficient resource
allocation in wireless networks is presented. Focusing on multiple-access
networks, it is demonstrated that game theory can be used as an effective tool
to study resource allocation in wireless networks with quality-of-service (QoS)
constraints. A family of non-cooperative (distributed) games is presented in
which each user seeks to choose a strategy that maximizes its own utility while
satisfying its QoS requirements. The utility function considered here measures
the number of reliable bits that are transmitted per joule of energy consumed
and, hence, is particulary suitable for energy-constrained networks. The
actions available to each user in trying to maximize its own utility are at
least the choice of the transmit power and, depending on the situation, the
user may also be able to choose its transmission rate, modulation, packet size,
multiuser receiver, multi-antenna processing algorithm, or carrier allocation
strategy. The best-response strategy and Nash equilibrium for each game is
presented. Using this game-theoretic framework, the effects of power control,
rate control, modulation, temporal and spatial signal processing, carrier
allocation strategy and delay QoS constraints on energy efficiency and network
capacity are quantified.


title:
A Game-Theoretic Approach to Energy-Efficient Modulation in CDMA
  Networks with Delay QoS Constraints

abstract:
  A game-theoretic framework is used to study the effect of constellation size
on the energy efficiency of wireless networks for M-QAM modulation. A
non-cooperative game is proposed in which each user seeks to choose its
transmit power (and possibly transmit symbol rate) as well as the constellation
size in order to maximize its own utility while satisfying its delay
quality-of-service (QoS) constraint. The utility function used here measures
the number of reliable bits transmitted per joule of energy consumed, and is
particularly suitable for energy-constrained networks. The best-response
strategies and Nash equilibrium solution for the proposed game are derived. It
is shown that in order to maximize its utility (in bits per joule), a user must
choose the lowest constellation size that can accommodate the user's delay
constraint. This strategy is different from one that would maximize spectral
efficiency. Using this framework, the tradeoffs among energy efficiency, delay,
throughput and constellation size are also studied and quantified. In addition,
the effect of trellis-coded modulation on energy efficiency is discussed.


title: Random Linear Network Coding: A free cipher?

abstract:
  We consider the level of information security provided by random linear
network coding in network scenarios in which all nodes comply with the
communication protocols yet are assumed to be potential eavesdroppers (i.e.
"nice but curious"). For this setup, which differs from wiretapping scenarios
considered previously, we develop a natural algebraic security criterion, and
prove several of its key properties. A preliminary analysis of the impact of
network topology on the overall network coding security, in particular for
complete directed acyclic graphs, is also included.


title:
Nonequilibrium transport and optical properties of model
  metal--Mott-insulator--metal heterostructures

abstract:
  Electronic properties of heterostructures in which a finite number of
Mott-insulator layers are sandwiched by semi-infinite metallic leads are
investigated by using the dynamical-mean-field method combined with the Keldysh
Green's function technique to account for the finite bias voltage between the
leads. Current across the junction is computed as a function of bias voltage.
Electron spectral functions in the interacting region are shown to evolve by an
applied bias voltage. This effect is measurable by photoemission spectroscopy
and scanning tunneling microscopy. Further predictions are made for the optical
conductivity under a bias voltage as a possible tool to detect a deformed
density of states. A general discussion of correlated-electron based
heterostructures and future prospect is given.


title: Gravity dual of 1+1 dimensional Bjorken expansion

abstract:
  We study the application of AdS/CFT duality to longitudinal boost invariant
Bjorken expansion of QCD matter produced in ultrarelativistic heavy ion
collisions. As the exact (1+4)-dimensional bulk solutions for the
(1+3)-dimensional boundary theory are not known, we investigate in detail the
(1+1)-dimensional boundary theory, where the bulk is AdS_3 gravity. We find an
exact bulk solution, show that this solution describes part of the spinless
Banados-Teitelboim-Zanelli (BTZ) black hole with the angular dimension
unwrapped, and use the thermodynamics of the BTZ hole to recover the
time-dependent temperature and entropy density on the boundary. After
separating from the holographic energy-momentum tensor a vacuum contribution,
given by the extremal black hole limit in the bulk, we find that the boundary
fluid is an ideal gas in local thermal equilibrium. Including angular momentum
in the bulk gives a boundary flow that is boost invariant but has a nonzero
longitudinal velocity with respect to the Bjorken expansion.


title: Riemann surfaces, ribbon graphs and combinatorial classes

abstract:
  This survey paper begins with the description of the duality between arc
systems and ribbon graphs embedded in a punctured surface. Then we explain how
to cellularize the moduli space of curves in two different ways: using
Jenkins-Strebel differentials and using hyperbolic geometry. We also briefly
discuss how these two methods are related. Next, we recall the definition of
Witten cycles and we illustrate their connection with tautological classes and
Weil-Petersson geometry. Finally, we exhibit a simple direct argument to prove
that Witten classes are stable.


title:
Higher Order Statistsics of Stokes Parameters in a Random Birefringent
  Medium

abstract:
  We present a new model for the propagation of polarized light in a random
birefringent medium. This model is based on a decomposition of the higher order
statistics of the reduced Stokes parameters along the irreducible
representations of the rotation group. We show how this model allows a detailed
description of the propagation, giving analytical expressions for the
probability densities of the Mueller matrix and the Stokes vector throughout
the propagation. It also allows an exact description of the evolution of
averaged quantities, such as the degree of polarization. We will also discuss
how this model allows a generalization of the concepts of reduced Stokes
parameters and degree of polarization to higher order statistics. We give some
notes on how it can be extended to more general random media.


title:
Semimartingale Stochastic Approximation Procedures and Recursive
  Estimation

abstract:
  The semimartingale stochastic approximation procedure, namely, the
Robbins-Monro type SDE is introduced which naturally includes both generalized
stochastic approximation algorithms with martingale noises and recursive
parameter estimation procedures for statistical models associated with
semimartingales. General results concerning the asymptotic behaviour of the
solution are presented. In particular, the conditions ensuring the convergence,
rate of convergence and asymptotic expansion are established. The results
concerning the Polyak weighted averaging procedure are also presented.


title: TrES Exoplanets and False Positives: Finding the Needle in the Haystack

abstract:
  Our incomplete understanding of the formation of gas giants and of their
mass-radius relationship has motivated ground-based, wide-field surveys for new
transiting extrasolar giant planets. Yet, astrophysical false positives have
dominated the yield from these campaigns. Astronomical systems where the light
from a faint eclipsing binary and a bright star is blended, producing a
transit-like light curve, are particularly difficult to eliminate. As part of
the Trans-atlantic Exoplanet Survey, we have encountered numerous false
positives and have developed a procedure to reject them. We present examples of
these false positives, including the blended system GSC 03885-00829 which we
showed to be a K dwarf binary system superimposed on a late F dwarf star. This
transit candidate in particular demonstrates the careful analysis required to
identify astrophysical false positives in a transit survey. From amongst these
impostors, we have found two transiting planets. We discuss our follow-up
observations of TrES-2, the first transiting planet in the Kepler field.


title:
Iron line profiles and self-shadowing from relativistic thick accretion
  discs

abstract:
  We present Fe Kalpha line profiles from and images of relativistic discs with
finite thickness around a rotating black hole using a novel code. The line is
thought to be produced by iron fluorescence of a relatively cold X-ray
illuminated material in the innermost parts of the accretion disc and provides
an excellent diagnostic of accretion flows in the vicinity of black holes.
Previous studies have concentrated on the case of a thin, Keplerian accretion
disc. This disc must become thicker and sub-Keplerian with increasing accretion
rates. These can affect the line profiles and in turn can influence the
estimation of the accretion disc and black hole parameters from the observed
line profiles. We here embark on, for the first time, a fully relativistic
computation which offers key insights into the effects of geometrical thickness
and the sub-Keplerian orbital velocity on the line profiles. We include all
relativistic effects such as frame-dragging, Doppler boost, time dilation,
gravitational redshift and light bending. We find that the separation and the
relative height between the blue and red peaks of the line profile diminish as
the thickness of the disc increases. This code is also well-suited to produce
accretion disc images. We calculate the redshift and flux images of the
accretion disc and find that the observed image of the disc strongly depends on
the inclination angle. The self-shadowing effect appears remarkable for a high
inclination angle, and leads to the black hole shadow being completely hidden
by the disc itself.


title:
National Scientific Facilities and Their Science Impact on
  Non-Biomedical Research

abstract:
  H-index, proposed by Hirsch is a good indicator of the impact of a
scientist's research. When evaluating departments, institutions or labs, the
importance of h-index can be further enhanced when properly calibrated for
size. Particularly acute is the issue of federally funded facilities whose
number of actively publishing scientists frequently dwarfs that of academic
departments. Recently Molinari and Molinari developed a methodology that shows
the h-index has a universal growth rate for large numbers of papers, allowing
for meaningful comparisons between institutions.
  An additional challenge when comparing large institutions is that fields have
distinct internal cultures, with different typical rates of publication and
citation; biology is more highly cited than physics, which is more highly cited
than engineering. For this reason, this study has focused on the physical
sciences, engineering, and technology, and has excluded bio-medical research.
Comparisons between individual disciplines are reported here to provide
contextual framework. Generally, it was found that the universal growth rate of
Molinari and Molinari holds well across all the categories considered,
testifying to the robustness of both their growth law and our results.
  The overall goal here is to set the highest standard of comparison for
federal investment in science; comparisons are made with the nations preeminent
private and public institutions. We find that many among the national
facilities compare favorably in research impact with the nations leading
universities.


title: Amplitude Analysis of the B+- ->phi K*(892)+- Decay

abstract:
  We perform an amplitude analysis of B+- -> phi(1020) K*(892)+- decay with a
sample of about 384 million BBbar pairs recorded with the BABAR detector.
Overall, twelve parameters are measured, including the fractions of
longitudinal f_L and parity-odd transverse f_perp amplitudes, branching
fraction, strong phases, and six parameters sensitive to CP-violation. We use
the dependence on the Kpi invariant mass of the interference between the JP=1-
and 0+ Kpi components to resolve the discrete ambiguity in the determination of
the strong and weak phases. Our measurements of f_L=0.49+-0.05+-0.03,
f_perp=0.21+-0.05+-0.02, and the strong phases point to the presence of a
substantial helicity-plus amplitude from a presently unknown source.


title:
Subjective Questions and Answers for a Mathematics Instructor of Higher
  Education

abstract:
  This article of mathematical education reflects author's experience with job
applications and teaching methods and procedures to employ in the American
Higher Education. It is organized as a standard questionnaire.


title: Kinematics of Black Hole X-ray Binary GRS 1915+105

abstract:
  The space velocity of a stellar black hole encodes the history of its
formation and evolution. Here we measure the 3-dimensional motion of the
microquasar GRS 1915+105, using a decade of astrometry with the NRAO Very Long
Baseline Array, together with the published radial velocity. The velocity in
the Galactic Plane deviates from circular rotation by 53-80 +_ 8 km/s, where
the range covers any specific distance from 6-12 kpc. Perpendicular to the
plane, the velocity is only 10 +_ 4 km/s. The peculiar velocity is minimized at
a distance 9-10 kpc, and is then nearly in the radial direction towards the
Galactic Center. We discuss mechanisms for the origin of the peculiar velocity,
and conclude that it is most likely a consequence of Galactic velocity
diffusion on this old binary, rather than the result of a supernova kick during
the formation of the 14 Mo black hole. Finally, a brief comparison is made with
4 other BH binaries whose kinematics are well determined.


title:
Transport through quantum dots: A combined DMRG and cluster-embedding
  study

abstract:
  The numerical analysis of strongly interacting nanostructures requires
powerful techniques. Recently developed methods, such as the time-dependent
density matrix renormalization group (tDMRG) approach or the embedded-cluster
approximation (ECA), rely on the numerical solution of clusters of finite size.
For the interpretation of numerical results, it is therefore crucial to
understand finite-size effects in detail. In this work, we present a careful
finite-size analysis for the examples of one quantum dot, as well as three
serially connected quantum dots. Depending on odd-even effects, physically
quite different results may emerge from clusters that do not differ much in
their size. We provide a solution to a recent controversy over results obtained
with ECA for three quantum dots. In particular, using the optimum clusters
discussed in this paper, the parameter range in which ECA can reliably be
applied is increased, as we show for the case of three quantum dots. As a
practical procedure, we propose that a comparison of results for static
quantities against those of quasi-exact methods, such as the ground-state
density matrix renormalization group (DMRG) method or exact diagonalization,
serves to identify the optimum cluster type. In the examples studied here, we
find that to observe signatures of the Kondo effect in finite systems, the best
clusters involving dots and leads must have a total z-component of the spin
equal to zero.


title:
On-top fragmentation stabilizes atom-rich attractive Bose-Einstein
  condensates

abstract:
  It is well known that attractive condensates do not posses a stable ground
state in three dimensions. The widely used Gross-Pitaevskii theory predicts the
existence of metastable states up to some critical number
$N_{\mathrm{cr}}^{\mathrm{GP}}$ of atoms. It is demonstrated here that
fragmented metastable states exist for atom numbers well above
$N_{\mathrm{cr}}^{\mathrm{GP}}$. The fragments are strongly overlapping in
space. The results are obtained and analyzed analytically as well as
numerically. The implications are discussed.


Comment on six papers published by M.A. El-Hakiem and his co-workers in
  International Communications in Heat and Mass Transfer, Journal of Magnetism
  and Magnetic Materials and Heat and Mass Transfer


title: Heat Capacity of PbS: Isotope Effects

abstract:
  In recent years, the availability of highly pure stable isotopes has made
possible the investigation of the dependence of the physical properties of
crystals, in particular semiconductors, on their isotopic composition.
Following the investigation of the specific heat ($C_p$, $C_v$) of monatomic
crystals such as diamond, silicon, and germanium, similar investigations have
been undertaken for the tetrahedral diatomic systems ZnO and GaN (wurtzite
structure), for which the effect of the mass of the cation differs from that of
the anion. In this article we present measurements for a semiconductor with
rock salt structure, namely lead sulfide. Because of the large difference in
the atomic mass of both constituents ($M_{\rm Pb}$= 207.21 and ($M_{\rm
S}$=32.06 a.m.u., for the natural isotopic abundance) the effects of varying
the cation and that of the anion mass are very different for this canonical
semiconductor. We compare the measured temperature dependence of $C_p \approx
C_v$, and the corresponding derivatives with respect to ($M_{\rm Pb}$ and
$M_{\rm S}$), with \textit{\textit{ab initio}} calculations based on the
lattice dynamics obtained from the local density approximation (LDA) electronic
band structure. Quantitative deviations between theory and experiment are
attributed to the absence of spin-orbit interaction in the ABINIT program used
for the electronic band structure calculations.


title: Asteroid Deflection: How, where and when?

abstract:
  To deflect impact-trajectory of massive km^3 and spinning asteroid by a few
terrestrial radius one need a large momentum exchange. The dragging of huge
spinning bodies in space by external engine seems difficult or impossible. Our
solution is based on the landing of multi screw-rockets, powered by
mini-nuclear engines, on the body, that dig a small fraction of the soil
surface, to use as an exhaust propeller, ejecting it vertically in phase among
themselves. Such a mass ejection increases the momentum exchange, their number
redundancy guarantees the stability of the system. The slow landing (below 40
cm s^-1) of each engine-unity at those lowest gravity field, may be achieved by
save rolling and bouncing along the surface. The engine array tuned activity,
overcomes the asteroid angular velocity. Coherent turning of the jet heads
increases the deflection efficiency. A procession along its surface may
compensate at best the asteroid spin. A small skin-mass (about 2 10^4 tons) may
be ejected by mini nuclear engines. Such prototypes may also build first save
galleries for humans on the Moon. Conclusive deflecting tests might be
performed on remote asteroids. The incoming asteroid 99942 Apophis (just 2% of
km^3) may be deflected safely a few Earth radius. How to tag its trajectory is
described. Its encounter maybe not just a hazard but an opportunity, learning
how to land, dig, build and also to nest save human station inside. Asteroids
amplified deflections by gravity swing maybe driven into longest planetary
journeys. Mars journey may benefict by Phobos natural asteroid parking and
fueling role.


title: Transversals in trees

abstract:
  A transversal in a rooted tree is any set of nodes that meets every path from
the root to a leaf. We let c(T,k) denote the number of transversals of size k
in a rooted tree T. We define a partial order on the set of all rooted trees
with n nodes by saying that a tree T succeeds a tree T' if c(T,k) is at least
c(T',k) for all k and strictly greater than c(T',k) for at least one k. We
prove that, for every choice of positive integers d and n, the set of all
rooted trees on n nodes where each node has at most d children has a unique
minimal element with respect to this partial order and we describe this tree.


title: Properties of Zero-Lag Long-Range Synchronization via Dynamical Relaying

abstract:
  In a recent letter, Fisher et al. reported the phenomenon of zero-lag long
range isochronous synchronization via dynamical relaying in systems with delay
[Phys. Rev. Lett. bf 97, 123902 (2006)]. They reported that when one has two
coupled systems A and C, with delay between them, then the introduction of a
third element B between A and C will allow them to synchronize even in regions
of the parameter space where this was not possible without the presence of B.
Here we study in detail the phenomenon and verify that in all the cases studied
(including the ones reported by Fisher et al.) this occurs due to the tendency
of A and B and B and C to be in antiphase synchronization and if A is in
antiphase with B and B is in antiphase with C, it will imply that A and C are
inphase. We show this in coupled quadratic maps, Kuramoto and R\"ossler
oscillators. We also report that there is a simpler configuration where the
same phenomenon occurs and has nearly the same features of the cases studied by
Fisher et al.


title: Computing the core of ideals in arbitrary characteristic

abstract:
  Let $R$ be a local Gorenstein ring with infinite residue field of arbitrary
characteristic. Let $I$ be an $R$--ideal with $g=\height I >0$, analytic spread
$\ell$, and let $J$ be a minimal reduction of $I$. We further assume that $I$
satisfies $G_{\ell}$ and ${\depth}
  R/I^j \geq \dim R/I -j+1$ for $1 \leq j \leq \ell-g$. The question we are
interested in is whether $\core{I}=J^{n+1}:\ds \sum_{b \in I} (J,b)^n$ for $n
\gg 0$. In the case of analytic spread one Polini and Ulrich show that this is
true with even weaker assumptions (\cite[Theorem 3.4]{PU}). We give a negative
answer to this question for higher analytic spreads and suggest a formula for
the core of such ideals.


title:
Non-perturbative renormalization of the chromo-magnetic operator in
  Heavy Quark Effective Theory and the B* - B mass splitting

abstract:
  We carry out the non-perturbative renormalization of the chromo-magnetic
operator in Heavy Quark Effective Theory. At order 1/m of the expansion, the
operator is responsible for the mass splitting between the pseudoscalar and
vector B mesons. We obtain its two-loop anomalous dimension in a Schr"odinger
functional scheme by successive one-loop conversions to the lattice MS scheme
and the MS-bar scheme. We then compute the scale evolution of the operator
non-perturbatively in the N_f=0 theory between $\mu \approx 0.3$ GeV and $\mu
\approx 100$ GeV, where contact is made with perturbation theory. The overall
renormalization factor that converts the bare lattice operator to its
renormalization group invariant form is given for the Wilson gauge action and
two standard discretizations of the heavy-quark action. As an application, we
find that this factor brings the previous quenched predictions of the B* - B
mass splitting closer to the experimental value than found with a perturbative
renormalization. The same renormalization factor is applicable to the
spin-dependent potentials of Eichten and Feinberg.


title: Absolute properties of the binary system BB Pegasi

abstract:
  We present a ground based photometry of the low-temperature contact binary BB
Peg. We collected all times of mid-eclipses available in literature and
combined them with those obtained in this study. Analyses of the data indicate
a period increase of 3.0(1) x 10^{-8} days/yr. This period increase of BB Peg
can be interpreted in terms of the mass transfer 2.4 x 10^{-8} Ms yr^{-1} from
the less massive to the more massive component. The physical parameters have
been determined as Mc = 1.42 Ms, Mh = 0.53 Ms, Rc = 1.29 Rs, Rh = 0.83 Rs, Lc =
1.86 Ls, and Lh = 0.94 Ls through simultaneous solution of light and of the
radial velocity curves. The orbital parameters of the third body, that orbits
the contact system in an eccentric orbit, were obtained from the period
variation analysis. The system is compared to the similar binaries in the
Hertzsprung-Russell and Mass-Radius diagram.


title:
Index theory for linear self-adjoint operator equations and nontrivial
  solutions for asymptotically linear operator equations

abstract:
  We will first establish an index theory for linear self-adjoint operator
equations. And then with the help of this index theory we will discuss
existence and multiplicity of solutions for asymptotically linear operator
equations by making use of the dual variational methods and Morse theory.
Finally, some interesting examples concerning second order Hamiltonian systems,
first order Hamiltonian systems and elliptical partial differential equations
will be presented to illustrate our results.


title: The Cauchy Operator for Basic Hypergeometric Series

abstract:
  We introduce the Cauchy augmentation operator for basic hypergeometric
series. Heine's ${}_2\phi_1$ transformation formula and Sears' ${}_3\phi_2$
transformation formula can be easily obtained by the symmetric property of some
parameters in operator identities. The Cauchy operator involves two parameters,
and it can be considered as a generalization of the operator $T(bD_q)$. Using
this operator, we obtain extensions of the Askey-Wilson integral, the Askey-Roy
integral, Sears' two-term summation formula, as well as the $q$-analogues of
Barnes' lemmas. Finally, we find that the Cauchy operator is also suitable for
the study of the bivariate Rogers-Szeg\"o polynomials, or the continuous big
$q$-Hermite polynomials.


title: Entropy exchange, coherent information and concurrence

abstract:
  For a simple model we derive analytic expressions of entropy exchange and
coherent information, from which relations between them and the concurrence are
drawn. We find that in the quantum evolution the entropy exchange exhibits
behavior \textsl{opposite} to that of the concurrence, whereas the coherent
information shows features very similar to those of the concurrence. The
meaning of this result for general systems is discussed.


title: Unitary transformations can be identified locally

abstract:
  We show that in principle, $N$-partite unitary transformations can be
perfectly discriminated under local measurement and classical communication
(LOCC) despite of their nonlocal properties. Based on this result, some related
topics, including the construction of the appropriate quantum circuit together
with the extension to general completely positive trace preserving operations,
are discussed.


title:
Comment on "Experimental Demonstration of the Time Reversal
  Aharonov-Casher Effect"

abstract:
  In a recent Letter, Bergsten and co-authors have studied the resistance
oscillations with gate voltage and magnetic field in arrays of semiconductor
rings and interpreted the oscillatory magnetic field dependence as
Altshuler-Aronov-Spivak (AAS) oscillations and oscillatory dependence on gate
voltage as the Aharonov-Casher (AC) effect. This Comment shows that Bergsten
and co-authors incorrectly identified AAS effect as a source of resistance
oscillations in magnetic field, that spin relaxation in their experimental
setting is strong enough to destroy oscillatory effects of spin origin, and
that the oscillations are caused by changes in carrier density and the Fermi
energy by gate, and are unrelated to spin.


title: Gravitational effects in ultrahigh-energy string scattering

abstract:
  Ultrahigh-energy string scattering is investigated to clarify the relative
role of string and gravitational effects, and their possible contributions to
nonlocal behavior. Different regimes can be characterized by varying the impact
parameter at fixed energy. In the regime where momentum transfers reach the
string scale, string effects appear subdominant to higher-loop gravitational
processes, approximated via the eikonal. At smaller impact parameters,
"diffractive" or "tidal" string excitation leads to processes dominated by
highly excited strings. However, new evidence is presented that these
excitation effects do not play a direct role in black hole formation, which
corresponds to breakdown of gravitational perturbation theory and appears to
dominate at sufficiently small impact parameters. The estimated amplitudes
violate expected bounds on high-energy behavior for local theories.


title: Nonlinear optics and light localization in periodic photonic lattices

abstract:
  We review the recent developments in the field of photonic lattices
emphasizing their unique properties for controlling linear and nonlinear
propagation of light. We draw some important links between optical lattices and
photonic crystals pointing towards practical applications in optical
communications and computing, beam shaping, and bio-sensing.


title:
Periodic Orbits of Twisted Geodesic Flows and The Weinstein-Moser
  Theorem

abstract:
  In this paper, we establish the existence of periodic orbits of a twisted
geodesic flow on all low energy levels and in all dimensions whenever the
magnetic field form is symplectic and spherically rational. This is a
consequence of a more general theorem concerning periodic orbits of autonomous
Hamiltonian flows near Morse-Bott non-degenerate, symplectic extrema. Namely,
we show that all energy levels near such extrema carry periodic orbits,
provided that the ambient manifold meets certain topological requirements. This
result is a partial generalization of the Weinstein-Moser theorem. The proof of
the generalized Weinstein-Moser theorem is a combination of a Sturm-theoretic
argument and a Floer homology calculation.


title:
Effect of Surface Andreev Bound States on the Bean-Livingston Barrier in
  d-Wave Superconductors

abstract:
  We study the influence of surface Andreev bound states in d-wave
superconductors on the Bean-Livingston surface barrier for entry of a vortex
line into a strongly type-II superconductor. Starting from Eilenberger theory
we derive a generalization of London theory to incorporate the anomalous
surface currents arising from the Andreev bound states. This allows us to find
an analytical expression for the modification of the Bean-Livingston barrier in
terms of a single parameter describing the influence of the Andreev bound
states. We find that the field of first vortex entry is significantly enhanced.
Also, the depinning field for vortices near the surface is renormalized. Both
effects are temperature dependent and depend on the orientation of the surface
relative to the d-wave gap function.


title: A Search for B+ -> tau+ nu

abstract:
  We present a search for the decay B+ -> tau+ nu using 383x10^6 BBbar pairs
collected at the Y(4S) resonance with the BABAR detector at the SLAC PEP-II
B-Factory. A sample of events with one reconstructed semileptonic B decay (B-
-> D0 l nu X)) is selected, and in the recoil a search for B+ -> tau+ nu is
performed. The tau is identified in the following channels: tau+ -> e nu nubar,
tau+ -> mu nu nubar, tau+ -> pi+ nu, and tau+ -> pi+ pi0 nu. We measure a
branching fraction of B(B+ -> tau+ nu)=(0.9 +- 0.6(stat.) +- 0.1(syst.)) x
10^-4. In the absence of a significant signal, we calculate an upper limit at
the 90% confidence level of B(B+ -> tau+ nu) < 1.7 x 10^-4. We calculate the
product of the B meson decay constant f_B and |V_ub| to be f_B x |V_ub| =
(7.2^{+2.0}_{-2.8}(stat.) +- 0.2 (syst.)) x 10^-4 GeV.


title: Unparticle Physics Effects on D0-anti-D0 Mixing

abstract:
  The mixing of $K^0-\bar{K^0}$, $D^0-\bar{D^0}$ and
$B_{(s)}^0-\bar{B^0_{(s)}}$ provides a sensitive probe to explore new physics
beyond the Standard Model. The scale invariant unparticle physics recently
proposed by Georgi can induce flavor-changing neutral current and contribute to
the mixing at tree level. We investigate the unparticle effects on
$B^0-\bar{B^0}$ and $D^0-\bar{D^0}$ mixing. Especially, the newly observed
$D^0-\bar{D^0}$ mixing sets the most stringent constraints on the coupling of
the unparticle to quarks.


title: Anticipated backward stochastic differential equations

abstract:
  In this paper we discuss new types of differential equations which we call
anticipated backward stochastic differential equations (anticipated BSDEs). In
these equations the generator includes not only the values of solutions of the
present but also the future. We show that these anticipated BSDEs have unique
solutions, a comparison theorem for their solutions, and a duality between them
and stochastic differential delay equations.


title: Bounds to unitary evolution

abstract:
  Upper and lower bounds are established for the survival probability
$|<\psi(0)|\psi(t)>|^{2}$ of a quantum state, in terms of the energy moments
$<\psi(0)|H^{n}|\psi(0)>$. Introducing a cut-off in the energy generally
enables considerable improvement in these bounds and allows the method to be
used where the exact energy moments do not exist.


title: Free Boolean algebras over unions of two well orderings

abstract:
  Given a partially ordered set $P$ there exists the most general Boolean
algebra $F(P)$ which contains $P$ as a generating set, called the {\it free
Boolean algebra} over $P$. We study free Boolean algebras over posets of the
form $P=P_0\cup P_1$, where $P_0,P_1$ are well orderings. We call them {\it
nearly ordinal algebras}.
  Answering a question of Maurice Pouzet, we show that for every uncountable
cardinal $\kappa$ there are $2^\kappa$ pairwise non-isomorphic nearly ordinal
algebras of cardinality $\kappa$.
  Topologically, free Boolean algebras over posets correspond to compact
0-dimensional distributive lattices. In this context, we classify all closed
sublattices of the product $(\omega_1+1)\times(\omega_1+1)$, thus showing that
there are only $\aleph_1$ many of them. In contrast with the last result, we
show that there are $2^{\aleph_1}$ topological types of closed subsets of the
Tikhonov plank $(\omega_1+1)\times(\omega+1)$.


title:
The Correlation Between Star Formation and 21cm Emission During the
  Reionization Epoch

abstract:
  Reionization is thought to be dominated by low mass galaxies, while direct
observations of resolved galaxies probe only the most massive, rarest objects.
The cross-correlation between fluctuations in the surface brightness of the
cumulative Ly-alpha emission (which serves as a proxy for the star formation
rate) and the redshifted 21cm signal from neutral hydrogen in the intergalactic
medium (IGM), will directly probe the causal link between the production of
ionizing photons in galaxies and the reionization of the IGM. We discuss the
prospects for detecting this cross-correlation for unresolved galaxies. We find
that on angular scales <10 arc-minutes, detection will be practical using
widefield near-IR imaging from space in combination with the forthcoming
Mileura Widefield Array - Low Frequency Demonstrator. When redshifted 21cm
observations of the neutral IGM are combined with space-based near-IR imaging
of Ly-alpha emission, the detection on angular scales <3 arc-minutes will be
limited by the sensitivity of the 21cm signal, even when a small aperture
optical telescope (~2m) and a moderate field of view (~10 square degrees) are
used. On scales >3 arc-minutes, the measurement of cross-correlation will be
limited by the accuracy of the foreground sky subtraction.


title: Dynamical non-axisymmetric instabilities in rotating relativistic stars

abstract:
  We present new results on dynamical instabilities in rapidly rotating
neutron-stars. In particular, using numerical simulations in full General
Relativity, we analyse the effects that the stellar compactness has on the
threshold for the onset of the dynamical bar-mode instability, as well as on
the appearance of other dynamical instabilities. By using an extrapolation
technique developed and tested in our previous study [1], we explicitly
determine the threshold for a wide range of compactnesses using four sequences
of models of constant baryonic mass comprising a total of 59 stellar models.
Our calculation of the threshold is in good agreement with the Newtonian
prediction and improves the previous post-Newtonian estimates. In addition, we
find that for stars with sufficiently large mass and compactness, the m=3
deformation is the fastest growing one. For all of the models considered, the
non-axisymmetric instability is suppressed on a dynamical timescale with an m=1
deformation dominating the final stages of the instability. These results,
together with those presented in [1], suggest that an m=1 deformation
represents a general and late-time feature of non-axisymmetric dynamical
instabilities both in full General Relativity and in Newtonian gravity.


title: Radon transform on real symmetric varieties: kernel and cokernel

abstract:
  We define and study the (minimal) Radon transform on a real symmetric
variety.


title:
Some Blow-Up Problems for a Semilinear Parabolic Equation with a
  Potential

abstract:
  The blow-up rate estimate for the solution to a semilinear parabolic equation
$u_t=\Delta u+V(x) |u|^{p-1}u$ in $\Omega \times (0,T)$ with 0-Dirichlet
boundary condition is obtained. As an application, it is shown that the
asymptotic behavior of blow-up time and blow-up set of the problem with
nonnegative initial data $u(x,0)=M\vf (x)$ as $M$ goes to infinity, which have
been found in \cite{cer}, are improved under some reasonable and weaker
conditions compared with \cite{cer}.


title:
The Field Perturbation Theory of the Double Correlated Phase in High
  Temperature Superconductors

abstract:
  The Double-Correlated phase in HTSC, and its treatment by field perturbation
theory, is established. In particular, we define the ground state, the
quasi-particle excitations, and construct an appropriate field. We also derive
the unperturbed Hamiltonian, and the propagators for the unperturbed state.
Then we discuss the perturbation Hamiltonian, and show that the Hartree diagram
is significant for both the pseudogap and the superconductive order parameter,
and suggest that it yields the major contribution to these parameters.


title: Self-induced spectral splits in supernova neutrino fluxes

abstract:
  In the dense-neutrino region above the neutrino sphere of a supernova (r >
400 km), neutrino-neutrino refraction causes collective flavor transformations.
They can lead to "spectral splits" where an energy E_split splits the
transformed spectrum sharply into parts of almost pure but different flavors.
Unless there is an ordinary MSW resonance in the dense-neutrino region, E_split
is determined by flavor-lepton number conservation alone. Spectral splits are
created by an adiabatic transition between regions of large and small neutrino
density. We solve the equations of motion in the adiabatic limit explicitly and
provide analytic expressions for a generic example.


title:
Continuous Magnetophoretic Separation of Blood Cells from Plasma at the
  Microscale

abstract:
  We present a method for the direct and continuous separation of red and white
blood cells from plasma at the microscale. The method is implemented in a
microfluidic system with magnetic functionality. The fluidic structure within
the microsystem consists of an inlet and a single microfluidic channel with
multiple outlets. The magnetic functionality is provided by an array of
integrated soft-magnetic elements that are embedded transverse and adjacent to
the microchannel. The elements are magnetized using an external field, and once
magnetized they produce a magnetic force on blood cells as they flow through
the microchannel. In whole blood, white blood cells (WBCs) behave as
diamagnetic microparticles, while red blood cells (RBCs) exhibit diamagnetic or
paramagnetic behavior depending on the oxygenation of their hemoglobin. We
study the motion of blood cells through the microchannel using a mathematical
model that takes into account the magnetic, fluidic and gravitational forces on
the cells. We use the model to study blood cell separation, and our analysis
indicates that the microsystem is capable of separating WBC-rich plasma,
deoxygenated RBC-rich plasma and cell-depleted plasma into respective outlets.


title: Optimal entanglement witnesses based on local orthogonal observables

abstract:
  We show that the entanglement witnesses based on local orthogonal observables
which are introduced in [S. Yu and N.-L. Liu, Phys. Rev. Lett. 95, 150504
(2005)] and [O. G\"uhne, M. Mechler, G. T\'oth and P. Adam, Phys. Rev. A 74,
010301 (2006)] in linear and nonlinear forms can be optimized, respectively. As
applications, we calculate the optimal nonlinear witnesses of pure bipartite
states and show a lower bound on the I-concurrence of bipartite higher
dimensional systems with our method.


title: Remark on the Garnier system in two variables

abstract: We remark on the Garnier system in two variables.


title: Mechanical Properties of Glass Forming Systems

abstract:
  We address the interesting temperature range of a glass forming system where
the mechanical properties are intermediate between those of a liquid and a
solid. We employ an efficient Monte-Carlo method to calculate the elastic
moduli, and show that in this range of temperatures the moduli are finite for
short times and vanish for long times, where `short' and `long' depend on the
temperature. By invoking some exact results from statistical mechanics we offer
an alternative method to compute shear moduli using Molecular Dynamics
simulations, and compare those to the Monte-Carlo method. The final conclusion
is that these systems are not "viscous fluids" in the usual sense, as their
actual time-dependence concatenates solid-like materials with varying local
shear moduli.


title: Decomposition and Enumeration of Triangulated Surfaces

abstract:
  We describe some theoretical results on triangulations of surfaces and we
develop a theory on roots, decompositions and genus-surfaces. We apply this
theory to describe an algorithm to list all triangulations of closed surfaces
with at most a fixed number of vertices. We specialize the theory for the case
where the number of vertices is at most 11 and we get theoretical restrictions
on genus-surfaces allowing us to get the list of triangulations of closed
surfaces with at most 11 vertices.


title: Large Number Hypothesis: A Review

abstract:
  Large dimensionless numbers, arising out of ratios of various physical
constants, intrigued many scientists, especially Dirac. Relying on the
coincidence of large numbers, Dirac arrived at the revolutionary hypothesis
that the gravitational constant $G$ should vary inversely as the cosmic time
$t$. This hypothesis of Dirac, known as Large Number Hypothesis (LNH), sparked
off many speculations, arguments and new ideas in terms of applications. Works
done by several authors with LNH as their basic platform are reviewed in this
work. Relationship between some of those works are pointed out here.
Possibility of time-variations of physical constants other than $G$ are also
discussed.


title:
A rigidity theorem for the mapping class group action on the space of
  unmeasured foliations on a surface

abstract:
  Let $S$ be a surface of finite type which is not a sphere with at most four
punctures, a torus with at most two punctures, or a closed surface of genus
two. Let $\mathcal{MF}$ be the space of equivalence classes of measured
foliations of compact support on $S$ and let $\mathcal{UMF}$ be the quotient
space of $\mathcal{MF}$ obtained by identifying two equivalence classes
whenever they can be represented by topologically equivalent foliations, that
is, forgetting the transverse measure. The extended mapping class group
$\Gamma^*$ of $S$ acts as by homeomorphisms of $\mathcal{UMF}$. We show that
the restriction of the action of the whole homeomorphism group of
$\mathcal{UMF}$ on some dense subset of $\mathcal{UMF}$ coincides with the
action of $\Gamma^*$ on that subset. More precisely, let $\mathcal{D}$ be the
natural image in $\mathcal{UMF}$ of the set of homotopy classes of not
necessarily connected essential disjoint and pairwise nonhomotopic simple
closed curves on $S$. The set $\mathcal{D}$ is dense in $\mathcal{UMF}$, it is
invariant by the action of $\Gamma^*$ on $\mathcal{UMF}$ and the restriction of
the action of $\Gamma^*$ on $\mathcal{D}$ is faithful. We prove that the
restriction of the action on $\mathcal{D}$ of the group
$\mathrm{Homeo}(\mathcal{UMF})$ coincides with the action of $\Gamma^*(S)$ on
that subspace.


title:
Physics of randomness and regularities for cities, languages, and their
  lifetimes and family trees

abstract:
  Time evolution of the cities and of the languages is considered in terms of
multiplicative noise and fragmentation processes; where power law (Pareto-Zipf
law) and slightly asymmetric log-normal (Gauss) distribution result for the
size distribution of the cities and for that of the languages, respectively.
The cities and the languages are treated differently (and as connected; for
example, the languages split in terms of splitting the cities, etc.) and thus
two distributions are obtained in the same computation at the same time.
Evolutions of lifetimes and families for the cities and the languages are also
studied. We suggest that the regularities may be evolving out of randomness, in
terms of the relevant processes.


title: Cohen-Macaulay multigraded modules

abstract:
  Let S be a standard N^r-graded algebra over a local ring A, and let M be a
finitely generated Z^r-graded S-module. We characterize the Cohen-Macaulayness
of M in terms of the vanishing of certain sheaf cohomology modules. As a
consequence, we apply our result to study the Cohen-Macaulayness of multi-Rees
modules (also called Rees modification). Our work extends previous studies on
the Cohen-Macaulayness of multi-Rees algebras.


title: Black Saturn with dipole ring

abstract:
  We present a new stationary, asymptotically flat solution of 5D
Einstein-Maxwell gravity describing a Saturn-like black object: a rotating
black hole surrounded by a rotating dipole black ring. The solution is
generated by combining the vacuum black Saturn solution and the vacuum black
ring solution with appropriately chosen parameters. Some basic properties of
the solution are analyzed and the basic quantities are calculated.


title: The Orientation of the Local Interstellar Magnetic Field

abstract:
  The orientation of the local interstellar magnetic field introduces
asymmetries in the heliosphere that affect the location of heliospheric radio
emissions and the streaming direction of ions from the termination shock of the
solar wind. We combine observations of radio emissions and energetic particle
streaming with extensive 3D MHD computer simulations of magnetic field draping
over the heliopause to show that the plane of the local interstellar field is ~
60-90 degrees from the galactic plane. This suggests that the field orientation
in the Local Interstellar Cloud differs from that of a larger scale
interstellar magnetic field thought to parallel the galactic plane.


title: Gluon saturation and the Froissart bound: a simple approach

abstract:
  At very high energies we expect that the hadronic cross sections satisfy the
Froissart bound, which is a well-established property of the strong
interactions. In this energy regime we also expect the formation of the Color
Glass Condensate, characterized by gluon saturation and a typical momentum
scale: the saturation scale $Q_s$. In this paper we show that if a saturation
window exists between the nonperturbative and perturbative regimes of Quantum
Chromodynamics (QCD), the total cross sections satisfy the Froissart bound.
Furthermore, we show that our approach allows us to describe the high energy
experimental data on $pp/p\bar{p}$ total cross sections.


title:
Power spectrum of the maxBCG cluster sample: new evidence for the
  acoustic features

abstract:
  We use the direct Fourier method to calculate the redshift-space power
spectrum of the maxBCG cluster catalog (Koester et al. 2007) -- currently by
far the largest existing galaxy cluster sample. The total number of clusters
used in our analysis is 12,616. After accounting for the radial smearing effect
caused by photometric redshift errors and also introducing a simple treatment
for the nonlinear effects, we show that currently favored low matter density
``concordance'' LambdaCDM cosmology provides a very good fit to the estimated
power. Thanks to the large volume (~ 0.4 h^{-3} Gpc^3), high clustering
amplitude (linear effective bias parameter b_{eff} ~ 3x(0.85/sigma_8)), and
sufficiently high sampling density (~ 3x10^{-5} h^{3} Mpc^{-3}) the recovered
power spectrum has high enough signal to noise to allow us to find weak
evidence (~ 2sigma CL) for the acoustic features. These results are encouraging
in light of the several proposed large cluster surveys. In case we use the
photometric redshift errors as suggested in Koester et al. (2007) we are left
with the excess large-scale power which has previously been noticed by several
other authors.


title: Design of quasi-symplectic propagators for Langevin dynamics

abstract:
  A vector field splitting approach is discussed for the systematic derivation
of numerical propagators for deterministic dynamics. Based on the formalism, a
class of numerical integrators for Langevin dynamics are presented for single
and multiple timestep algorithms.


title: Introduction to protein folding for physicists

abstract:
  The prediction of the three-dimensional native structure of proteins from the
knowledge of their amino acid sequence, known as the protein folding problem,
is one of the most important yet unsolved issues of modern science. Since the
conformational behaviour of flexible molecules is nothing more than a complex
physical problem, increasingly more physicists are moving into the study of
protein systems, bringing with them powerful mathematical and computational
tools, as well as the sharp intuition and deep images inherent to the physics
discipline. This work attempts to facilitate the first steps of such a
transition. In order to achieve this goal, we provide an exhaustive account of
the reasons underlying the protein folding problem enormous relevance and
summarize the present-day status of the methods aimed to solving it. We also
provide an introduction to the particular structure of these biological
heteropolymers, and we physically define the problem stating the assumptions
behind this (commonly implicit) definition. Finally, we review the 'special
flavor' of statistical mechanics that is typically used to study the
astronomically large phase spaces of macromolecules. Throughout the whole work,
much material that is found scattered in the literature has been put together
here to improve comprehension and to serve as a handy reference.

categories: physics.bio-ph cond-mat.soft physics.chem-ph q-bio.BM


title:
The Angular-Diameter-Distance-Maximum and Its Redshift as Constraints on
  $\Lambda \neq 0$ FLRW Models

abstract:
  The plethora of recent cosmologically relevant data has indicated that our
universe is very well fit by a standard Friedmann-Lema\^{i}tre-Robertson-Walker
(FLRW) model, with $\Omega_{M} \approx 0.27$ and $\Omega_{\Lambda} \approx
0.73$ -- or, more generally, by nearly flat FLRW models with parameters close
to these values. Additional independent cosmological information, particularly
the maximum of the angular-diameter (observer-area) distance and the redshift
at which it occurs, would improve and confirm these results, once sufficient
precise Supernovae Ia data in the range $1.5 < z < 1.8$ become available. We
obtain characteristic FLRW closed functional forms for $C = C(z)$ and
$\hat{M}_0 = \hat{M}_0(z)$, the angular-diameter distance and the density per
source counted, respectively, when $\Lambda \neq 0$, analogous to those we have
for $\Lambda = 0$. More importantly, we verify that for flat FLRW models
$z_{max}$ -- as is already known but rarely recognized -- the redshift of
$C_{max}$, the maximum of the angular-diameter-distance, uniquely gives
$\Omega_{\Lambda}$, the amount of vacuum energy in the universe, independently
of $H_0$, the Hubble parameter. For non-flat models determination of both
$z_{max}$ and $C_{max}$ gives both $\Omega_{\Lambda}$ and $\Omega_M$, the
amount of matter in the universe, as long as we know $H_0$ independently.
Finally, determination of $C_{max}$ automatically gives a very simple
observational criterion for whether or not the universe is flat -- presuming
that it is FLRW.


title: Precision Entropy of Spinning Black Holes

abstract:
  We construct spinning black hole solutions in five dimensions that take into
account the mixed gauge-gravitational Chern-Simons term and its supersymmetric
completion. The resulting entropy formula is discussed from several points of
view. We include a Taub-NUT base space in order to test recent conjectures
relating 5D black holes to 4D black holes and the topological string. Our
explicit results show that certain charge shifts have to be taken into account
for these relations to hold. We also compute corrections to the entropy of
black rings in terms of near horizon data.


title: Recent progresses in the simulation of small-scale magnetic fields

abstract:
  New high-resolution observations reveal that small-scale magnetic flux
concentrations have a delicate substructure on a spatial scale of 0.1''. Its
basic structure can be interpreted in terms of a magnetic flux sheet or tube
that vertically extends through the ambient weak-field or field-free atmosphere
with which it is in mechanical equilibrium. A more refined interpretation comes
from new three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic simulations that are capable of
reproducing the corrugated shape of magnetic flux concentrations and their
signature in the visible continuum. Furthermore it is shown that the
characteristic asymmetric shape of the contrast profile of facular granules is
an effect of radiative transfer across the rarefied atmosphere of the magnetic
flux concentration. I also discuss three-dimensional radiation
magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the integral layers from the top of the
convection zone to the mid-chromosphere. They show a highly dynamic
chromospheric magnetic field, marked by rapidly moving filaments of stronger
than average magnetic field that form in the compression zone downstream and
along propagating shock fronts. The simulations confirm the picture of flux
concentrations that strongly expand through the photosphere into a more
homogeneous, space filling chromospheric field. Future directions in the
simulation of small-scale magnetic fields are indicated by a few examples of
very recent work.


title: When does elementary bi-embeddability imply isomorphism?

abstract:
  A first-order theory has the Schroder-Bernstein property if any two of its
models that are elementarily bi-embeddable are isomorphic. We prove that if a
countable theory T has the Schroder-Bernstein property then it is classifiable
(it is superstable and has NDOP and NOTOP) and satisfies a slightly stronger
condition than nonmultidimensionality, namely: there cannot be a model M of T,
a type p over M, and an automorphism f of M such that for every two distinct
natural numbers i and j, f^i(p) is orthogonal to f^j(p). We also make some
conjectures about how the class of theories with the Schroder-Bernstein
property can be characterized.


title: The Schroder-Bernstein property for theories of abelian groups

abstract:
  A first-order theory has the Schroder-Bernstein property if any two of its
models that are elementarily bi-embeddable are isomorphic. We prove that if G
is an abelian group, then the follwing are equivalent:
  1. Th(G, +) has the Schroder-Bernstein property;
  2. Th(G, +) is omega-stable;
  3. G is the direct sum of a divisible group and a torsion group of bounded
exponent;
  4. Th(G, +) is superstable, and if (H, +) is a saturated elementary extension
of (G,+), every map in Aut(H/H^0) is unipotent.


title: The Riemann Mapping Theorem for semianalytic domains and o-minimality

abstract:
  We consider the Riemann Mapping Theorem in the case of a bounded simply
connected and semianalytic domain. We show that the germ at 0 of the Riemann
map (i.e. biholomorphic map) from the upper half plane to such a domain can be
realized in a certain quasianalytic class if the angle of the boundary at the
point to which 0 is mapped, is greater than 0. This quasianalytic class was
introduced and used by Ilyashenko in his work on Hilbert's 16th problem. With
this result we can prove that the Riemann map from a bounded simply connected
semianalytic domain onto the unit ball is definable in an o-minimal structure,
provided that at singular boundary points the angles of the boundary are
irrational multiples of $\pi$.


title: Revesibility of chordal SLE

abstract:
  We prove that the chordal SLE$_\kappa$ trace is reversible for
$\kappa\in(0,4]$.


title:
2-Frame flow dynamics and hyperbolic rank rigidity in nonpositive
  curvature

abstract:
  This paper presents hyperbolic rank rigidity results for rank 1,
nonpositively curved spaces. Let $M$ be a compact, rank 1 manifold with
nonpositive sectional curvature and suppose that along every geodesic in $M$
there is a parallel vector field making curvature $-a^2$ with the geodesic
direction. We prove that $M$ has constant curvature equal to $-a^2$ if $M$ is
odd dimensional, or if $M$ is even dimensional and has sectional curvature
pinched as follows: $-\Lambda^2 < K < -\lambda^2$ where $\lambda/\Lambda >
>.93$. When $-a^2$ is the upper curvature bound this gives a shorter proof of
the hyperbolic rank rigidity theorem of Hamenst\"{a}dt, subject to the pinching
condition in even dimension; in all other cases it is a new result. We also
present a rigidity result using only an assumption on maximal Lyapunov
exponents in direct analogy with work done by Connell. The proof of the main
theorem is simplified considerably by assuming strict negative curvature; in
fact, in all dimensions but 7 and 8 it is then an immediate consequence of
ergodicity of the $(dim(M)-1)$-frame flow. In these exceptional dimensions,
recourse to the dynamics of the 2-frame flow must be made and the scheme of
proof developed there can be generalized to deal with rank 1, nonpositively
curved spaces.


title: On the Riemann zeta-function, Part I: Outline

abstract:
  Results of a multipart work are outlined. Use is made therein of the
conjunction of the Riemann hypothesis, RH, and hypotheses advanced by the
author. Let z(n) be the nth nonreal zero of the Riemann zeta-function with
positive imaginary part in order of magnitude thereof. A relation is obtained,
of the pair z(n) and the first derivative thereat of the zeta-function, to the
preceding such pairs and the values of zeta at the points one-half plus a
nonnegative multiple of four. That relation is derived from two forms of the
density of the Laplace representation, on a certain vertical strip, of a
meromorphic function constructed from zeta. Specific functions which play a
central role therein are proven to have analytic extensions to the entire
complex plane. It is established that the Laplace density is positive. That
positivity implies RH and that each nonreal zero of zeta is simple. A metric
geometry expression of the positivity of the density is derived. An analogous
context is delineated relative to Dirichlet L-functions and the Ramanujan tau
Dirichlet function.


title: On the Green's matrices of strongly parabolic systems of second order

abstract:
  We establish existence and various estimates of fundamental matrices and
Green's matrices for divergence form, second order strongly parabolic systems
in arbitrary cylindrical domains under the assumption that solutions of the
systems satisfy an interior H\"{o}lder continuity estimate. We present a
unified approach valid for both the scalar and the vectorial cases.


title:
A model for the time uncertainty measurements in the Auger surface
  detector array

abstract:
  The precise determination of the arrival direction of cosmic rays is a
fundamental prerequisite for the search for sources or the study of their
anisotropies on the sky. One of the most important aspects to achieve an
optimal measurement of these directions is to properly take into account the
measurement uncertainties in the estimation procedure. In this article we
present a model for the uncertainties associated with the time measurements in
the Auger surface detector array. We show that this model represents well the
measurement uncertainties and therefore provides the basis for an optimal
determination of the arrival direction. With this model and a description of
the shower front geometry it is possible to estimate, on an event by event
basis, the uncertainty associated with the determination of the arrival
directions of the cosmic rays.


title:
Linear square-mass trajectories of radially and orbitally excited
  hadrons in holographic QCD

abstract:
  We consider a new approach towards constructing approximate holographic duals
of QCD from experimental hadron properties. This framework allows us to derive
a gravity dual which reproduces the empirically found linear square-mass
trajectories of universal slope for radially and orbitally excited hadrons.
Conformal symmetry breaking in the bulk is exclusively due to infrared
deformations of the anti-de Sitter metric and governed by one free mass scale
proportional to Lambda_QCD. The resulting background geometry exhibits dual
signatures of confinement and provides the first examples of holographically
generated linear trajectories in the baryon sector. The predictions for the
light hadron spectrum include new relations between trajectory slopes and
ground state masses and are in good overall agreement with experiment.


title: A dynamical analysis of the 14 Her planetary system

abstract:
  Precision radial velocity (RV) measurements of the Sun-like dwarf
  14 Herculis published by Naef et. al (2004), Butler et. al (2006) and
  Wittenmyer et al (2007) reveal a Jovian planet in a 1760 day orbit and a
trend indicating the second distant object. On the grounds of dynamical
considerations, we test a hypothesis that the trend can be explained by the
presence of an additional giant planet. We derive dynamical limits to th
orbital parameters of the putative outer Jovian companion in an orbit within
~13 AU. In this case, the mutual interactions between the Jovian planets are
important for the long-term stability of the system. The best self-consistent
and stable Newtonian fit to an edge-on configuration of Jovian planets has the
outer planet in 9 AU orbit with a moderate eccentricity ~0.2 and confined to a
zone spanned by the low-order mean motion resonances 5:1 and 6:1. This solution
lies in a shallow minimum of \Chi and persists over a wide range of the system
inclination. Other stable configurations within 1\sigma confidence interval of
the best fit are possible for the semi-major axis of the outer planet in the
range of (6,13) AU and the eccentricity in the range of (0,0.3). The orbital
inclination cannot yet be determined but when it decreases, both planetary
masses approach ~10 Jupiter masses and for ~30 deg the hierarchy of the masses
is reversed.


title: X-ray emission from magnetic dissipation in the magnetar magnetosphere

abstract:
  Magnetic dissipation through decay of Alfven waves in the magnetar
magnetosphere is discussed. Transport of magnetic fields in the star leads to
dissipation of the magnetic energy through either direct internal heating or
transferring of the energy in waves that decay in the magnetar magnetosphere.
In the latter case, the Alfven waves are excited by crust dislocations or
elastic waves underneath the star's surface. It is suggested that these Alfven
waves can decay into ion sound waves which can be effectively damped leading to
strong plasma heating. Hot plasmas expand producing transient X-rays.


title: Galaxy Colours in the AKARI Deep SEP Survey

abstract:
  We investigate the segregation of the extragalactic population via colour
criteria to produce an efficient and inexpensive methodology to select specific
source populations as a function of far-infrared flux. Combining galaxy
evolution scenarios and a detailed spectral library of galaxies, we produce
simulated catalogues incorporating segregation of the extragalactic population
into component types (Normal, star-forming, AGN) via color cuts. As a practical
application we apply our criteria to the deepest survey to be undertaken in the
far-infrared with the AKARI (formerly ASTRO-F) satellite. Using the
far-infrared wavebands of the Far-Infrared Surveyor (FIS, one of the
focal-plane instruments on AKARI) we successfully segregate the normal,
starburst and ULIRG populations. We also show that with additional MIR imaging
from AKARI's Infrared Camera (IRC), significant contamination and/or degeneracy
can be further decreased and show a particular example of the separation of
cool normal galaxies and cold ULIRG sources. We conclude that our criteria
provide an efficient means of selecting source populations (including rare
luminous objects) and produce colour-segregated source counts without the
requirement of time intensive ground-based follow up to differentiate between
the general galaxy population.


title:
The Mass of the Candidate Exoplanet Companion to HD 33636 from Hubble
  Space Telescope Astrometry and High-Precision Radial Velocities

abstract:
  We have determined a dynamical mass for the companion to HD 33636 which
indicates it is a low-mass star instead of an exoplanet. Our result is based on
an analysis of Hubble Space Telescope (HST) astrometry and ground-based radial
velocity data. We have obtained high-cadence radial velocity measurements
spanning 1.3 years of HD 33636 with the Hobby-Eberly Telescope at McDonald
Observatory. We combined these data with previously published velocities to
create a data set that spans nine years. We used this data set to search for,
and place mass limits on, the existence of additional companions in the HD
33636 system. Our high-precision astrometric observations of the system with
the HST Fine Guidance Sensor 1r span 1.2 years. We simultaneously modeled the
radial velocity and astrometry data to determine the parallax, proper motion,
and perturbation orbit parameters of HD 33636. Our derived parallax, pi = 35.6
+/- 0.2 mas, agrees within the uncertainties with the Hipparcos value. We find
a perturbation period P = 2117.3 +/- 0.8 days, semimajor axis a_A = 14.2 +/-
0.2 mas, and system inclination i = 4.1 +/- 0.1 deg. Assuming the mass of the
primary star M_A = 1.02 +/- 0.03 M_sun, we obtain a companion mass M_B = 142
+/- 11 M_jup = 0.14 +/- 0.01 M_sun. The much larger true mass of the companion
relative to its minimum mass estimated from the spectroscopic orbit parameters
(M sin i = 9.3 M_jup) is due to the near face-on orbit orientation. This result
demonstrates the value of follow-up astrometric observations to determine the
true masses of exoplanet candidates detected with the radial velocity method.


title: Detection of CFIRB with AKARI/FIS Deep Observations

abstract:
  The Cosmic Far-Infrared Background (CFIRB) contains information about the
number and distribution of contributing sources and thus gives us an important
key to understand the evolution of galaxies. Using a confusion study to set a
fundamental limit to the observations, we investigate the potential to explore
the CFIRB with AKARI/FIS deep observations. The Far-Infrared Surveyor (FIS) is
one of the focal-plane instruments on the AKARI (formerly known as ASTRO-F)
satellite, which was launched in early 2006. Based upon source distribution
models assuming three different cosmological evolutionary scenarios (no
evolution, weak evolution, and strong evolution), an extensive model for
diffuse emission from infrared cirrus, and instrumental noise estimates, we
present a comprehensive analysis for the determination of the confusion levels
for deep far-infrared observations. We use our derived sensitivities to suggest
the best observational strategy for the AKARI/FIS mission to detect the CFIRB
fluctuations. If the source distribution follows the evolutionary models,
observations will be mostly limited by source confusion. We find that we will
be able to detect the CFIRB fluctuations and that these will in turn provide
information to discriminate between the evolutionary scenarios of galaxies in
most low-to-medium cirrus regions.


title:
On level crossings for a general class of piecewise-deterministic Markov
  processes

abstract:
  We consider a piecewise-deterministic Markov process governed by a jump
intensity function, a rate function that determines the behaviour between
jumps, and a stochastic kernel describing the conditional distribution of jump
sizes. We study the point process of upcrossings of a level $b$ by the Markov
process. Our main result shows that, under a suitable scaling $\nu(b)$, the
point process converges, as $b$ tends to infinity, weakly to a geometrically
compound Poisson process. We also prove a version of Rice's formula relating
the stationary density of the process to level crossing intensities. This
formula provides an interpretation of the scaling factor $\nu(b)$. While our
proof of the limit theorem requires additional assumptions, Rice's formula
holds whenever the (stationary) overall intensity of jumps is finite.


title: Maximally Supersymmetric Planar Yang-Mills Amplitudes at Five Loops

abstract:
  We present an ansatz for the planar five-loop four-point amplitude in
maximally supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory in terms of loop integrals. This
ansatz exploits the recently observed correspondence between integrals with
simple conformal properties and those found in the four-point amplitudes of the
theory through four loops. We explain how to identify all such integrals
systematically. We make use of generalized unitarity in both four and D
dimensions to determine the coefficients of each of these integrals in the
amplitude. Maximal cuts, in which we cut all propagators of a given integral,
are an especially effective means for determining these coefficients. The set
of integrals and coefficients determined here will be useful for computing the
five-loop cusp anomalous dimension of the theory which is of interest for
non-trivial checks of the AdS/CFT duality conjecture. It will also be useful
for checking a conjecture that the amplitudes have an iterative structure
allowing for their all-loop resummation, whose link to a recent string-side
computation by Alday and Maldacena opens a new venue for quantitative AdS/CFT
comparisons.


title: Effects of dissipation on a quantum critical point with disorder

abstract:
  We study the effects of dissipation on a disordered quantum phase transition
with O$(N)$ order parameter symmetry by applying a strong-disorder
renormalization group to the Landau-Ginzburg-Wilson field theory of the
problem. We find that Ohmic dissipation results in a non-perturbative
infinite-randomness critical point with unconventional activated dynamical
scaling while superohmic damping leads to conventional behavior. We discuss
applications to the superconductor-metal transition in nanowires and to Hertz'
theory of the itinerant antiferromagnetic transition.


title: Large-scale solar cycle features of solar photospheric magnetic field

abstract:
  It is well accepted that the solar cycle originates from a
magnetohydrodynamics dynamo deep inside the Sun. Many dynamo models have long
been proposed based on a lot of observational constraints. In this paper, using
342 NSO/Kitt Peak solar synoptic charts we study the solar cycle phases in
different solar latitudinal zones to set further constraints. Our results can
be summarized as follows. (1) The variability of solar polar regions' area has
a correlation with total unsigned magnetic flux in advance of 5 years. (2) The
high-latitude region mainly appears unipolar in the whole solar cycle and its
flux peak time lags sunspot cycle for 3 years. (3) For the activity belt, it is
not surprised that its phase be the same as sunspot's. (4) The flux peak time
of the low-latitude region shifts forward with an average gradient of 32.2
$day/deg$. These typical characteristics may provide some hints for
constructing an actual solar dynamo.


title:
On the degree of Polar Transformations -- An approach through
  Logarithmic Foliations

abstract:
  We investigate the degree of the polar transformations associated to a
certain class of multi-valued homogeneous functions. In particular we prove
that the degree of the pre-image of generic linear spaces by a polar
transformation associated to a homogeneous polynomial $F$ is determined by the
zero locus of $F$. For zero dimensional-dimensional linear spaces this was
conjecture by Dolgachev and proved by Dimca-Papadima using topological
arguments. Our methods are algebro-geometric and rely on the study of the Gauss
map of naturally associated logarithmic foliations.


title:
Nonlinear optical response of wave packets on quantized potential energy
  surfaces

abstract:
  We calculated the dynamics of nuclear wave packets in coupled
electron-vibration systems and their nonlinear optical responses. We found that
the quantized nature of the vibrational modes is observed in pump-probe spectra
particularly in weakly interacting electron-vibration systems such as cyanine
dye molecules. Calculated results based on a harmonic potential model and
molecular orbital calculations are compared with experimental results, and we
also found that the materials parameters regarding with the geometrical
structure of potential energy surfaces are directly determined by accurate
measurement of time-resolved spectra.


title: The Magnetic Field of the Solar Corona from Pulsar Observations

abstract:
  We present a novel experiment with the capacity to independently measure both
the electron density and the magnetic field of the solar corona. We achieve
this through measurement of the excess Faraday rotation due to propagation of
the polarised emission from a number of pulsars through the magnetic field of
the solar corona. This method yields independent measures of the integrated
electron density, via dispersion of the pulsed signal and the magnetic field,
via the amount of Faraday rotation. In principle this allows the determination
of the integrated magnetic field through the solar corona along many lines of
sight without any assumptions regarding the electron density distribution. We
present a detection of an increase in the rotation measure of the pulsar
J1801$-$2304 of approximately 160 \rad at an elongation of 0.95$^\circ$ from
the centre of the solar disk. This corresponds to a lower limit of the magnetic
field strength along this line of sight of $> 393\mu\mathrm{G}$. The lack of
precision in the integrated electron density measurement restricts this result
to a limit, but application of coronal plasma models can further constrain this
to approximately 20mG, along a path passing 2.5 solar radii from the solar
limb. Which is consistent with predictions obtained using extensions to the
Source Surface models published by Wilcox Solar Observatory


title:
High-fidelity, adaptive qubit measurements through repetitive
  information transfer

abstract:
  Using two trapped ion species ($\rm{^{27}Al^+}$ and $\rm{^9Be^+}$) as primary
and ancillary systems, we implement qubit measurements based on the repetitive
transfer of information and quantum nondemolition detection. The repetition
provides a natural mechanism for an adaptive measurement strategy, which leads
to exponentially lower error rates compared to using a fixed number of
detection cycles. For a single qubit we demonstrate 99.94 % measurement
fidelity. We also demonstrate a technique for adaptively measuring multiple
qubit states using a single ancilla, and apply the technique to spectroscopy of
an optical clock transition.


title: Quantization of Donaldson-Uhlenbeck-Yau theory

abstract:
  A covariant path-integral quantization is proposed for the non-Lagrangian
gauge theory described by the Donaldson-Uhlenbeck-Yau equation. The
corresponding partition function is shown to admit a nice path-integral
representation in terms of the gauged G/G K\"ahler WZW model. A relationship
with the $J$-formulation of the anti-self-dual Yang-Mills theory is explored.