title: Computer Art in the Former Soviet Bloc

abstract:
  Documents early computer art in the Soviet bloc and describes Marxist art
theory.


title:
Influence of elastic deformation of porous materials in
  adsorption-desorption process. A thermodynamic approach

abstract:
  It has been known for a long time that the adsorption and condensation of gas
cause elastic deformation of the porous matrix. The reversible formation of an
adsorbed film, which precedes capillary condensation, results in an extension
of the porous material while, in the hysteresis region, the negative liquid
pressures under the concave menisci contract the porous matrix. The elastic
deformation exhibits an hysteresis loop in the same pressure region as the
adsorption phenomenon. These deformations have been neglected in practically
all the theoretical treatments of adsorption. We develop a thermodynamic
approach which includes the elastic energy of the solid. This approach is
generic to all porous materials. Thermodynamics of adsorption is directly
connected to the elastic properties of the porous solid. We find that the
variation of the surface free energy related to the elastic deformation is an
important component of the total free energy. It is shown that the condensation
branch represents the more stable states and that an energy barrier exists to
evaporation which depends essentially on the elastic deformation. The pores
interact through the deformation of the walls. Based on this interaction
mechanism and on the shape of the scanning curves which are common to materials
with interconnected pores such as porous glass or noninterconnected pores such
as p+-type porous silicon and SBA-15, we propose a scenario for the filling and
emptying of these porous materials.


title:
Neutrino mass spectrum from gravitational waves generated by double
  neutrino spin-flip in supernovae

abstract:
  The supernova (SN) neutronization phase produces mainly electron ($\nu_e$)
neutrinos, the oscillations of which must take place within a few
mean-free-paths of their resonance surface located nearby their neutrinosphere.
The state-of-the-art on the SN dynamics suggests that a significant part of
these $\nu_e$ can convert into right-handed neutrinos in virtue of the
interaction of the electrons and the protons flowing with the SN outgoing
plasma, whenever the Dirac neutrino magnetic moment be of strength $\mu_\nu <
10^{-11} \mu_{\rm B}$, with $\mu_{\rm B}$ being the Bohr magneton. In the
supernova envelope, part of these neutrinos can flip back to the left-handed
flavors due to the interaction of the neutrino magnetic moment with the
magnetic field in the SN expanding plasma (Kuznetsov & Mikheev 2007; Kuznetsov,
Mikheev & Okrugin 2008), a region where the field strength is currently
accepted to be $B \gtrsim 10^{13}$ ~G. This type of $\nu$ oscillations were
shown to generate powerful gravitational wave (GW) bursts (Mosquera Cuesta
2000, Mosquera Cuesta 2002, Mosquera Cuesta & Fiuza 2004, Loveridge 2004). If
such double spin-flip mechanism does run into action inside the SN core, then
the release of both the oscillation-produced $\nu_\mu$s, $\nu_\tau$s and the GW
pulse generated by the coherent $\nu$ spin-flips provides a unique emission
offset $\Delta T^{emission}_{\rm GW} \leftrightarrow \nu = 0$ for measuring the
$\nu$ travel time to Earth. As massive $\nu$s get noticeably delayed on its
journey to Earth with respect to the Einstein GW they generated during the
reconversion transient, then the accurate measurement of this time-of-flight
delay by SNEWS + LIGO, VIRGO, BBO, DECIGO, etc., might readily assess the
absolute $\nu$ mass spectrum.


title:
A quantitative comparison of sRNA-based and protein-based gene
  regulation

abstract:
  Small, non-coding RNAs (sRNAs) play important roles as genetic regulators in
prokaryotes. sRNAs act post-transcriptionally via complementary pairing with
target mRNAs to regulate protein expression. We use a quantitative approach to
compare and contrast sRNAs with conventional transcription factors (TFs) to
better understand the advantages of each form of regulation. In particular, we
calculate the steady-state behavior, noise properties, frequency-dependent gain
(amplification), and dynamical response to large input signals of both forms of
regulation. While the mean steady-state behavior of sRNA-regulated proteins
exhibits a distinctive tunable threshold-linear behavior, our analysis shows
that transcriptional bursting leads to significantly higher intrinsic noise in
sRNA-based regulation than in TF-based regulation in a large range of
expression levels and limits the ability of sRNAs to perform quantitative
signaling. Nonetheless, we find that sRNAs are better than TFs at filtering
noise in input signals. Additionally, we find that sRNAs allow cells to respond
rapidly to large changes in input signals. These features suggest a niche for
sRNAs in allowing cells to transition quickly yet reliably between distinct
states. This functional niche is consistent with the widespread appearance of
sRNAs in stress-response and quasi-developmental networks in prokaryotes.


title: Monopole Flux State on the Pyrochlore Lattice

abstract:
  The ground state of a spin 1/2 nearest neighbor quantum Heisenberg
antiferromagnet on the pyrochlore lattice is investigated using a large $N$
SU(N) fermionic mean field theory. We find several mean field states, of which
the state of lowest energy upon Gutzwiller projection, is a parity and time
reversal breaking chiral phase with a unit monopole flux exiting each
tetrahedron. This "monopole flux" state has a Fermi surface consisting of 4
lines intersecting at a point. At mean field the low-energy excitations about
the Fermi surface are gapless spinons. An analysis using the projective
symmetry group of this state suggests that the state is stable to small
fluctuations which neither induce a gap, nor alter the unusual Fermi surface.


title: Diffeomorphisms Holder conjugate to Anosov diffeomorphisms

abstract:
  We show by means of a counterexample that a $C^{1+Lip}$ diffeomorphism Holder
conjugate to an Anosov diffeomorphism is not necessarily Anosov. The
counterexample can bear higher smoothness up to $C^3$. Also we include a result
from the 2006 Ph.D. thesis of T. Fisher: a $C^{1+Lip}$ diffeomorphism Holder
conjugate to an Anosov diffeomorphism is Anosov itself provided that Holder
exponents of the conjugacy and its inverse are sufficiently large.


title: Proposal For Testing Bell's Conjecture

abstract:
  A simple nonlocal mechanism for Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) correlations
inspired by Bell's conjecture (according to which "behind the scenes something
is going faster than light") is suggested, and an experimental test is
proposed.


title: Searches beyond the standard model at high-energy colliders

abstract:
  Recent searches for physics beyond the standard model at high-energy
colliders are reviewed, with emphasis on supersymmetry, additional space
dimensions, extra gauge bosons, leptoquarks, and model-independent searches.
The results reported are based on data samples of up to 0.5 and 2.5 fb-1
collected at HERA and at the Tevatron, respectively.


title: B Physics Theory for Hadron Colliders

abstract:
  A short overview of theoretical methods for B physics at hadron colliders is
presented. The main emphasis is on the theory of two-body hadronic B decays,
which provide a rich field of investigation in particular for the Tevatron and
the LHC. The subject holds both interesting theoretical challenges as well as
many opportunities for flavor studies and new physics tests. A brief review of
the current status and recent developments is given. A few additional topics in
B physics are also mentioned.


title:
Power Control in Cognitive Radio Networks: How to Cross a Multi-Lane
  Highway

abstract:
  We consider power control in cognitive radio networks where secondary users
identify and exploit instantaneous and local spectrum opportunities without
causing unacceptable interference to primary users. We qualitatively
characterize the impact of the transmission power of secondary users on the
occurrence of spectrum opportunities and the reliability of opportunity
detection. Based on a Poisson model of the primary network, we quantify these
impacts by showing that (i) the probability of spectrum opportunity decreases
exponentially with respect to the transmission power of secondary users, where
the exponential decay constant is given by the traffic load of primary users;
(ii) reliable opportunity detection is achieved in the two extreme regimes in
terms of the ratio between the transmission power of secondary users and that
of primary users. Such analytical characterizations allow us to study power
control for optimal transport throughput under constraints on the interference
to primary users. Furthermore, we reveal the difference between detecting
primary signals and detecting spectrum opportunities, and demonstrate the
complex relationship between physical layer spectrum sensing and MAC layer
throughput. The dependency of this PHY-MAC interaction on the application type
and the use of handshake signaling such as RTS/CTS is illustrated.


title: Non-Gatherable Triples for Non-Affine Root Systems

abstract:
  This paper contains a complete description of minimal non-gatherable triangle
triples in the lambda-sequences for the classical root systems, $F_4$ and
$E_6$. Such sequences are associated with reduced decompositions (words) in
affine and non-affine Weyl groups. The existence of the non-gatherable triples
is a combinatorial obstacle for using the technique of intertwiners for an
explicit description of the irreducible representations of the (double) affine
Hecke algebras, complementary to their algebraic-geometric theory.


title: Some Stably Tame Polynomial Automorphisms

abstract:
  We study the structure of length three polynomial automorphisms of $R[X,Y]$
when $R$ is a UFD. These results are used to prove that if
$\text{SL}_m(R[X_1,X_2,..., X_n]) = \text{E}_m(R[X_1,X_2,..., X_n])$ for all
$n,\ge 0$ and for all $m \ge 3$ then all length three polynomial automorphisms
of $R[X,Y]$ are stably tame.


title:
How to Fully Exploit the Degrees of Freedom in the Downlink of MISO
  Systems With Opportunistic Beamforming

abstract:
  The opportunistic beamforming in the downlink of multiple-input single-output
(MISO) systems forms $N$ transmit beams, usually, no more than the number of
transmit antennas $N_t$. However, the degrees of freedom in this downlink is as
large as $N_t^2$. That is, at most $N_t^2$ rather than only $N_t$ users can be
simultaneously transmitted and thus the scheduling latency can be significantly
reduced. In this paper, we focus on the opportunistic beamforming schemes with
$N_t<N\le N_t^2$ transmit beams in the downlink of MISO systems over Rayleigh
fading channels. We first show how to design the beamforming matrices with
maximum number of transmit beams as well as least correlation between any pair
of them as possible, through Fourier, Grassmannian, and mutually unbiased bases
(MUB) based constructions in practice. Then, we analyze their system throughput
by exploiting the asymptotic theory of extreme order statistics. Finally, our
simulation results show the Grassmannian-based beamforming achieves the maximum
throughput in all cases with $N_t=2$, 3, 4. However, if we want to exploit
overall $N_t^2$ degrees of freedom, we shall resort to the Fourier and
MUB-based constructions in the cases with $N_t=3$, 4, respectively.


title: Cosmographic Hubble fits to the supernova data

abstract:
  The Hubble relation between distance and redshift is a purely cosmographic
relation that depends only on the symmetries of a FLRW spacetime, but does not
intrinsically make any dynamical assumptions. This suggests that it should be
possible to estimate the parameters defining the Hubble relation without making
any dynamical assumptions. To test this idea, we perform a number of
inter-related cosmographic fits to the legacy05 and gold06 supernova datasets.
Based on this supernova data, the "preponderance of evidence" certainly
suggests an accelerating universe. However we would argue that (unless one uses
additional dynamical and observational information) this conclusion is not
currently supported "beyond reasonable doubt". As part of the analysis we
develop two particularly transparent graphical representations of the
redshift-distance relation -- representations in which acceleration versus
deceleration reduces to the question of whether the relevant graph slopes up or
down. Turning to the details of the cosmographic fits, three issues in
particular concern us: First, the fitted value for the deceleration parameter
changes significantly depending on whether one performs a chi^2 fit to the
luminosity distance, proper motion distance or other suitable distance
surrogate. Second, the fitted value for the deceleration parameter changes
significantly depending on whether one uses the traditional redshift variable
z, or what we shall argue is on theoretical grounds an improved
parameterization y=z/(1+z). Third, the published estimates for systematic
uncertainties are sufficiently large that they certainly impact on, and to a
large extent undermine, the usual purely statistical tests of significance. We
conclude that the supernova data should be treated with some caution.


title: Boolean Algebras and Logic

abstract:
  In this article we investigate the notion and basic properties of Boolean
algebras and prove the Stone's representation theorem. The relations of Boolean
algebras to logic and to set theory will be studied and, in particular, a neat
proof of completeness theorem in propositional logic will be given using
Stone's theorem from Boolean algebra.


title: Signature Quantization in Fading CDMA With Limited Feedback

abstract:
  In this work, we analyze the performance of a signature quantization scheme
for reverse-link Direct Sequence (DS)- Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA).
Assuming perfect estimates of the channel and interference covariance, the
receiver selects the signature that minimizes interference power or maximizes
signal-to-interference plus noise ratio (SINR) for a desired user from a
signature codebook. The codebook index corresponding to the optimal signature
is then relayed to the user with a finite number of bits via a feedback
channel. Here we are interested in the performance of a Random Vector
Quantization (RVQ) codebook, which contains independent isotropically
distributed vectors. Assuming arbitrary transmit power allocation, we consider
additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel first with no fading and
subsequently, with multipath fading. We derive the corresponding SINR in a
large system limit at the output of matched filter and linear minimum mean
squared error (MMSE) receiver. Numerical examples show that the derived large
system results give a good approximation to the performance of finite-size
system and that the MMSE receiver achieves close to a single-user performance
with only one feedback bit per signature element.


title: The nonmeasurability of Bernstein sets and related topics

abstract:
  In this article, we shall explore the constructions of Bernstein sets, and
prove that every Bernstein set is nonmeasurable and doesn't have the property
of Baire. We shall also prove that Bernstein sets don't have the perfect set
property.


title:
Observation of vortices and hidden pseudogap from scanning tunneling
  spectroscopic studies of electron-doped cuprate superconductor
  $Sr_{0.9}La_{0.1}CuO_2$

abstract:
  We present the first demonstration of vortices in an electron-type cuprate
superconductor, the highest $T_c$ (= 43 K) electron-type cuprate
$Sr_{0.9}La_{0.1}CuO_2$. Our spatially resolved quasiparticle tunneling spectra
reveal a hidden low-energy pseudogap inside the vortex core and unconventional
spectral evolution with temperature and magnetic field. These results cannot be
easily explained by the scenario of pure superconductivity in the ground state
of high-$T_c$ superconductivity.


title: Alpha-Particle Condensation in Nuclear Systems

abstract:
  The onset of quartetting, i.e. alpha-particle condensation, in symmetric
nuclear matter is studied with the help of an in-medium modified four nucleon
equation. It is found that at very low density quartetting wins over pairing,
because of the strong binding of the alpha-particles. The critical temperature
can reach values up to around 6 MeV. Also the disappearance of alpha-particles
with increasing density, i.e. the Mott transition, is investigated. In finite
nuclei the Hoyle state, that is the 0_2^+ of 12C, is identified as an
"alpha-particle condensate" state. It is conjectured that such states also
exist in heavier n alpha-nuclei, like 16O, 20Ne, etc. For instance the 6-th 0^+
state of 16O at 15.1 MeV is identified from a theoretical analysis as being a
strong candidate for an alpha condensate state. Exploratory calculations are
performed for the density dependence of the alpha condensate fraction at zero
temperature to address the suppression of the four-particle condensate below
nuclear-matter density. Possible quartet condensation in other systems is
discussed briefly


title: The PRO1 ASIC for Fast Wilkinson Encoding

abstract:
  Wilkinson conversion of stored samples in large Switch Capacitor Array (SCA)
ASICs, such as used for high speed waveform sampling, has many benefits in
terms of compactness, no missing output codes, low power requirements and
robustness. However such Analog-to-Digital conversions are relatively slow,
limited by the encoder clock speed. By repeating the same fast sampling
technique used by the SCA, combined with a fast priority encoder, significantly
faster conversion is demonstrated for a prototype ASIC designated PRO1. For
8-10 bits of resolution, this technique is compact and requires far fewer
system resources.


title:
Stable de Sitter Vacua in 4 Dimensional Supergravity Originating from 5
  Dimensions

abstract:
  The five dimensional stable de Sitter ground states in N=2 supergravity
obtained by gauging SO(1,1) symmetry of the real symmetric scalar manifold (in
particular a generic Jordan family manifold of the vector multiplets)
simultaneously with a subgroup R_s of the R-symmetry group descend to four
dimensional de Sitter ground states under certain conditions. First, the
holomorphic section in four dimensions has to be chosen carefully by using the
symplectic freedom in four dimensions; and second, a group contraction is
necessary to bring the potential into a desired form. Under these conditions,
stable de Sitter vacua can be obtained in dimensionally reduced theories (from
5D to 4D) if the semi-direct product of SO(1,1) with R^(1,1) together with a
simultaneous R_s is gauged. We review the stable de Sitter vacua in four
dimensions found in earlier literature for N=2 Yang-Mills Einstein supergravity
with SO(2,1) x R_s gauge group in a symplectic basis that comes naturally after
dimensional reduction. Although this particular gauge group does not descend
directly from five dimensions, we show that, its contraction does. Hence, two
different theories overlap in certain limits. Examples of stable de Sitter
vacua are given for the cases: (i) R_s=U(1)_R, (ii) R_s=SU(2)_R, (iii) N=2
Yang-Mills/Einstein Supergravity theory coupled to a universal hypermultiplet.
We conclude with a discussion regarding the extension of our results to
supergravity theories with more general homogeneous scalar manifolds.


title: Frequency Locking of an Optical Cavity using LQG Integral Control

abstract:
  This paper considers the application of integral Linear Quadratic Gaussian
(LQG) optimal control theory to a problem of cavity locking in quantum optics.
The cavity locking problem involves controlling the error between the laser
frequency and the resonant frequency of the cavity. A model for the cavity
system, which comprises a piezo-electric actuator and an optical cavity is
experimentally determined using a subspace identification method. An LQG
controller which includes integral action is synthesized to stabilize the
frequency of the cavity to the laser frequency and to reject low frequency
noise. The controller is successfully implemented in the laboratory using a
dSpace DSP board.


title:
Role of Chaplygin gas as geometrical dark energy in anisotropic brane
  gravity

abstract:
  We consider an anisotropic brane-world model with Bianchi type I and V
geometry, without mirror symmetry or any form of junction conditions. The
generalized Chaplygin gas, which interpolates between a high density
relativistic era and a non-relativistic matter phase, is a popular candidate
for the present accelerated expansion of the universe. Considering the
generalized Chaplygin gas as a geometrical dark energy, we obtain the general
solutions in an exact parametric form for both Bianchi type I and V
space-times. Finally, we study the behavior of the observationally important
parameters such as the shear, anisotropic and deceleration parameter in this
model.


title:
Use of neural networks for the identification of new z>=3.6 QSOs from
  FIRST-SDSS DR5

abstract:
  We aim to obtain a complete sample of redshift > 3.6 radio QSOs from FIRST
sources having star-like counterparts in the SDSS DR5 photometric survey
(r<=20.2). We found that simple supervised neural networks, trained on sources
with SDSS spectra, and using optical photometry and radio data, are very
effective for identifying high-z QSOs without spectra. The technique yields a
completeness of 96 per cent and an efficiency of 62 per cent. Applying the
trained networks to 4415 sources without DR5 spectra we found 58 z>=3.6 QSO
candidates. We obtained spectra of 27 of them, and 17 are confirmed as high-z
QSOs. Spectra of 13 additional candidates from the literature and from SDSS DR6
revealed 7 more z>=3.6 QSOs, giving and overall efficiency of 60 per cent. None
of the non-candidates with spectra from NED or DR6 is a z>=3.6 QSO,
consistently with a high completeness. The initial sample of z>=3.6 QSOs is
increased from 52 to 76, i.e. by a factor 1.46. From the new identifications
and candidates we estimate an incompleteness of SDSS for the spectroscopic
classification of FIRST 3.6<=z<=4.6 QSOs of 15 percent for r<=20.2.


title:
Elliptic flow of thermal photons and formation time of quark gluon
  plasma at RHIC

abstract:
  We calculate the elliptic flow of thermal photons from Au+Au collisions at
RHIC energies for a range of values for the formation time $\tau_0$ but fixed
entropy (or particle rapidity density). The results are found to be quite
sensitive to $\tau_0$. The $v_2$ for photons decreases as $\tau_0$ decreases
and admits a larger contribution from the QGP phase which has a smaller $v_2$.
The elliptic flow coefficient for hadrons, on the other hand, is only
marginally dependent on $\tau_0$.


title: What HERA may provide ?

abstract:
  More than 100 people participated in a discussion session at the DIS08
workshop on the topic What HERA may provide. A summary of the discussion with a
structured outlook and list of desirable measurements and theory calculations
is given.


title: Hurwitz's Freeness Property

abstract:
  The groupoid attached to the action of PSL(2,Z) on the irrational reals by
linear fractional transformations is free.


title: Smooth words and Chebyshev polynomials

abstract:
  A word $\sigma=\sigma_1...\sigma_n$ over the alphabet $[k]=\{1,2,...,k\}$ is
said to be {\em smooth} if there are no two adjacent letters with difference
greater than 1. A word $\sigma$ is said to be {\em smooth cyclic} if it is a
smooth word and in addition satisfies $|\sigma_n-\sigma_1|\le 1$. We find the
explicit generating functions for the number of smooth words and cyclic smooth
words in $[k]^n$, in terms of {\it Chebyshev polynomials of the second kind}.
Additionally, we find explicit formula for the numbers themselves, as
trigonometric sums. These lead to immediate asymptotic corollaries. We also
enumerate smooth necklaces, which are cyclic smooth words that are not
equivalent up to rotation.


title:
Far-Infrared Properties of Blue Compact Dwarf Galaxies Observed with
  AKARI/Far-Infrared Surveyor (FIS)

abstract:
  We report basic far-infrared (FIR) properties of eight blue compact dwarf
galaxies (BCDs) observed by AKARI. We measure the fluxes at the four FIS bands
(wavelengths of 65 um, 90 um, 140 um, and 160 um). Based on these fluxes, we
estimate basic quantities about dust: dust temperature, dust mass, and total
FIR luminosity. We find that the typical dust temperature of the BCD sample is
systematically higher than that of normal spiral galaxies, although there is a
large variety. The interstellar radiation field estimated from the dust
temperature ranges up to 100 times of the Galactic value. This confirms the
concentrated star-forming activity in BCDs. The star formation rate can be
evaluated from the FIR luminosity as 0.01--0.5 $M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$. Combining
this quantity with gas mass taken from the literature, we estimate the gas
consumption timescales (gas mass divided by the star formation rate), which
prove to span a wide range from 1 Gyr to 100 Gyr. A natural interpretation of
this large variety can be provided by intermittent star formation activity. We
finally show the relation between dust-to-gas ratio and metallicity (we utilize
our estimate of dust mass, and take other necessary quantities from the
literature). There is a positive correlation between dust-to-gas ratio and
metallicity as expected from chemical evolution models.


title:
On a Scattered-Disk Origin for the 2003 El61 Collisional Family - an
  Example of the Importance of Collisions on the Dynamics of Small Bodies

abstract:
  The recent discovery of the 2003EL61 collisional family in the Kuiper belt
(Brown et al., 2007) is surprising because the formation of such a family is a
highly improbable event in today's belt. Assuming Brown et al.'s estimate of
the size of progenitors, we find that the probability that a Kuiper belt object
was involved in such a collision since primordial times is less than roughly
0.001. In addition, it is not possible for the collision to have occurred in a
massive primordial Kuiper belt because the dynamical coherence of the family
would not have survived whatever event produced the currently observed orbital
excitation. Here we suggest that the family is the result of a collision
between two scattered disk objects. We show that the probability that a
collision occurred between two such objects with sizes similar to those
advocated in Brown et al. (2007) and that the center of mass of the resulting
family is on an orbit typical of the Kuiper belt can be as large as 47%. Given
the large uncertainties involved in this estimate, this result is consistent
with the existence of one such family. If true, this result has implications
far beyond the origin of a single collisional family, because it shows that
collisions played an important role in shaping the dynamical structure of the
small body populations that we see today.


title: Exact convergence times for generation of random bipartite entanglement

abstract:
  We calculate exact convergence times to reach random bipartite entanglement
for various random protocols. The eigenproblem of a Markovian chain governing
the process is mapped to a spin chain, thereby obtaining exact expression for
the gap of the Markov chain for any number of qubits. For protocols coupling
nearest neighbor qubits and CNOT gate the mapping goes to XYZ model while for
U(4) gate it goes to an integrable XY model. For coupling between a random pair
of qubits the mapping is to an integrable Lipkin-Meshkov-Glick model. In all
cases the gap scales inversely with the number of qubits, thereby improving on
a recent bound in [Phys.Rev.Lett. 98, 130502 (2007)].


title: Topological Black Holes in Brans-Dicke-Maxwell Theory

abstract:
  We derive a new analytic solution of $(n+1)$-dimensional Brans-Dikce-Maxwell
theory in the presence of a potential for the scalar field, by applying a
conformal transformation to the dilaton gravity theory. These solutions
describe topological charged black holes with unusual asymptotics. We obtain
the conserved and thermodynamic quantities through the use of the Euclidean
action method. We also study the thermodynamics of the solutions and verify
that the conserved and thermodynamic quantities of the solutions satisfy the
first law of black hole thermodynamics.


title: SAXS/WAXS/DSC Study of Temperature Evolution in Nanopolymer Electrolyte

abstract:
  Electrolytes as nanostructured materials are very attractive for batteries or
other types of electronic devices. (PEO)8ZnCl2 polymer electrolytes and
nanocomposites (PEO)8ZnCl2/TiO2 were prepared from PEO and ZnCl2 and with
addition of TiO2 nanograins. The influence of TiO2 nanograins was studied by
small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) simultaneously recorded with wide-angle
X-ray scattering (WAXS) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) at the
synchrotron ELETTRA. It was shown by previous impedance spectroscopy (IS) that
the room temperature conductivity of nanocomposite polymer electrolyte
increased more than two times above 65oC, relative to pure composites of PEO
and salts. The SAXS/DSC measurements yielded insight into the
temperature-dependent changes of the grains of the electrolyte as well as to
differences due to different heating and cooling rates. The crystal structure
and temperatures of melting and crystallization of the nanosize grains was
revealed by the simultaneous WAXS measurements.


title: Homogeneous Representations of Khovanov-Lauda Algebras

abstract:
  We construct irreducible graded representations of simply laced
Khovanov-Lauda algebras which are concentrated in one degree. The underlying
combinatorics of skew shapes and standard tableaux corresponding to arbitrary
simply laced types has been developed previously by Peterson, Proctor and
Stembridge. In particular, the Peterson-Proctor hook formula gives dimensions
of the homogeneous irreducible modules corresponding to straight shapes.


title: Hydrodynamics of a perturbation in the jet of 3C111

abstract:
  We present results on the modelling of the ejection of a superluminal
component in the jet of 3C111. We propose that the component is generated by an
injection of dense material followed by a decrease in the injection rate of
bulk particles in the jet. Our model is supported by 1D relativistic
hydrodynamics and emission simulations, and is capable of reproducing the
brightness evolution of two features, as revealed by 15 GHz VLBA observations.
We show that other scenarios, such as an increase of the Lorentz factor in the
material of the perturbation, fails to reproduce the observed evolution of this
flare.


title:
The influence of microwave radiation on the state of chromatin in human
  cells

abstract:
  Isolated human buccal epithelium cell were irradiated by microwaves at
frequency f=35 GHz and surface power density E=30 mcW/cm2. The state of
chromatin in human cells was determined by methodsof light and electron
microscopy. The state of cell membranes was evaluated by the method of vital
indigo carmine staining. The microwave-induced condensation of chromatin in
human cells was revealed. Left side circulary polarized waves induced less
effect than linearly polarized radiation. The linearly polarized
electromagnetic waves induced cell membrane damage revealed by the increase of
cell stainability. The data obtained are discussed in connection with the
mechanisms of biologica effect of electromagnetic waves.


title:
Phase transition and anomalous electronic behavior in layered
  dichalcogenide CuS (covellite) probed by NQR

abstract:
  Nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) on copper nuclei has been applied for
studies of the electronic properties of quasi-two-dimensional low-temperature
superconductor CuS (covellite) in the temperature region between 1.47 and 290
K. Two NQR signals corresponding to two non-equivalent sites of copper in the
structure, Cu(1) and Cu(2), has been found. The temperature dependences of
copper quadrupole frequencies, line-widths and spin-lattice relaxation rates,
which so far had never been investigated so precisely for this material,
altogether demonstrate the structural phase transition near 55 K, which
accompanies transformations of electronic spectrum not typical for simple
metals. The analysis of NQR results and their comparison with literature data
show that the valence of copper ions at both sites is intermediate in character
between monovalent and divalent states with the dominant of the former. It has
been found that there is a strong hybridization of Cu(1) and Cu(2) conduction
bands at low temperatures, indicating that the charge delocalization between
these ions takes place even in 2D regime. Based on our data, the occurrence of
energy gap, charge fluctuations and charge-density waves, as well as the nature
of phase transition in CuS are discussed. It is concluded that some physical
properties of CuS are similar to those of high-temperature superconductors
(HTSC) in normal state.


title:
On the Hermitian projective line as a home for the geometry of Quantum
  Theory

abstract:
  In the paper "Is there a Jordan geometry underlying quantum physics?" (Int.
J. Theor. Phys., to appear; arXiv:0801.3069 [math-ph]), generalized projective
geometries have been proposed as a framework for a geometric formulation of
Quantum Theory. In the present note, we refine this proposition by discussing
further structural features of Quantum Theory: the link with associative
involutive algebras, and with Jordan-Lie and Lie-Jordan algebas. The associated
geometries are (Hermitian) projective lines over an associative algebra; their
axiomatic definition and theory will be given in subsequent work with M.
Kinyon.


title: Evolution of the D3-brane for dynamical embeddings

abstract:
  The Dirac-Born-Infeld (DBI) action of the 3-dimensional brane for its
dynamical embeddings and the gauge fields has been studied. The evolution of
both the D3-brane and the ambient space has been obtained. For the special
constraint put on the transverse coordinates a family of the contracting and
expanding spaces has been found.


title: Global first passage times on fractal lattices

abstract:
  The global first passage time density of a network is the probability that a
random walker released at a random site arrives at an absorbing trap at time T.
We find simple expressions for the mean global first passage time <T> for five
fractals. We also find an exact expression for the second moment <T^2> and show
that the variance of the first passage time, Var(T), scales with the number of
nodes within the fractal N such that Var(T) ~ N^(4/\bar{d}), where \bar{d} is
the spectral dimension.


title: Inflation conditions for non-BPS D-branes

abstract:
  We investigate the effective action for a non-BPS brane in a time-depending
embedding. This action is considered as the action for tachyon and embedding
coupled to the brane gravity. We derive the slow roll parameters from this
model.


title:
Necessary conditions for accurate computations of three-body partial
  decay widths

abstract:
  The partial width for decay of a resonance into three fragments is largely
determined at distances where the energy is smaller than the effective
potential producing the corresponding wave function. At short distances the
many-body properties are accounted for by preformation or spectroscopic
factors. We use the adiabatic expansion method combined with the WKB
approximation to obtain the indispensable cluster model wave functions at
intermediate and larger distances. We test the concept by deriving conditions
for the minimal basis expressed in terms of partial waves and radial nodes. We
compare results for different effective interactions and methods. Agreement is
found with experimental values for a sufficiently large basis. We illustrate
the ideas with realistic examples from $\alpha$-emission of $^{12}$C and
two-proton emission of $^{17}$Ne. Basis requirements for accurate momentum
distributions are briefly discussed.


title: The EUV Sun as the superposition of elementary Suns

abstract:
  Many studies assume that the solar irradiance in the EUV can be decomposed
into different contributions, which makes the modelling of the spectral
variability considerably easier. We consider a different approach, in which
these contributions are not imposed a priori but are effectively and robustly
inferred from spectral irradiance measurements. This is a source separation
problem with a positivity constraint, for which we use a Bayesian solution.
Using five years of daily EUV spectra recorded by the TIMED/SEE satellite, we
show that the spectral irradiance can be decomposed into three elementary
spectra. Our results suggest that they describe different layers of the solar
atmosphere rather than specific regions. The temporal variability of these
spectra is discussed.


title: Wheeler-De Witt equation for brane gravity

abstract:
  We consider the gravity in the system consisting of the
Bogomol'nyi-Prasad-Sommerfield (BPS) D3-brane embedded in the flat background
geometry, produced by the solutions of the supergravity. The effective action
for this system is represented by the sum of the Hilbert-Einstein and DBI
actions. We derive the Wheeler-De Witt equation for this system and obtain
analytical solutions in some special cases. We also calculate tunneling
probability from Planckian size of D3-brane to the classical regime.


title: The Extragalactic Distance Scale without Cepheids

abstract:
  Distances of galaxies in the Hubble Space Telescope Key Project are based on
the Cepheid period-luminosity relation. An alternative basis is the tip of the
red giant branch. Using archival HST data, we calibrate the infrared
Tully-Fisher relation using 14 galaxies with tip of the red giant branch
measurements. Compared with the Key Project, a higher value of the Hubble
Constant by 10% +/- 7% is inferred. Within the errors the two distance scales
are therefore consistent. We describe the additional data required for a
conclusive tip of the red giant branch measurement of H_0.


title:
Diffusion's induced transport in periodic channels and an inverse
  problem

abstract:
  A diffusion's induced transport is defined for a linear model of a
Fokker-Plank equation under periodic boundary conditions in one-dimensional
geometry. The flow is generated by a diffusion and a periodic deriving force
induced by a velocity potential. An inverse problem is suggested for evaluating
the deriving force in terms of the response function associated with the flow.
It is also shown that the inverse problem can be partially solved under some
simplifying assumption.


title:
On sharp embeddings of Besov and Triebel-Lizorkin spaces in the
  subcritical case

abstract:
  We discuss the growth envelopes of Fourier-analytically defined Besov and
Triebel-Lizorkin spaces $B^s_{p,q}(\R^n)$ and $F^s_{p,q}(\R^n)$ for
$s=\sigma_p=n\max(\frac 1p-1,0)$. These results may be also reformulated as
optimal embeddings into the scale of Lorentz spaces $L_{p,q}(\R^n)$. We close
several open problems outlined already by H. Triebel in [H. Triebel, The
structure of functions, Birkh\"auser, Basel, 2001.] and explicitly formulated
by D. D. Haroske in [D. D. Haroske, Envelopes and sharp embeddings of function
spaces, Chapman & Hall / CRC, Boca Raton, 2007.].


title:
Make life simple: unleash the full power of the parallel tempering
  algorithm

abstract:
  We introduce a new update scheme to systematically improve the efficiency of
parallel tempering simulations. We show that by adapting the number of sweeps
between replica exchanges to the canonical autocorrelation time, the average
round-trip time of a replica in temperature space can be significantly
decreased. The temperatures are not dynamically adjusted as in previous
attempts but chosen to yield a 50% exchange rate of adjacent replicas. We
illustrate the new algorithm with results for the Ising model in two and the
Edwards-Anderson Ising spin glass in three dimensions


title: Observation of nonadditive mixed state phases with polarized neutrons

abstract:
  In a neutron polarimetry experiment the mixed state relative phases between
spin eigenstates are determined from the maxima and minima of measured
intensity oscillations. We consider evolutions leading to purely geometric,
purely dynamical and combined phases. It is experimentally demonstrated that
the sum of the individually determined geometric and dynamical phases is not
equal to the associated total phase which is obtained from a single
measurement, unless the system is in a pure state.


title: Kinetic description of quantum Brownian motion

abstract:
  We stress the relevance of the two features of translational invariance and
atomic nature of the gas in the quantum description of the motion of a massive
test particle in a gas, corresponding to the original picture of Einstein used
in the characterization of Brownian motion. The master equation describing the
reduced dynamics of the test particle is of Lindblad form and complies with the
requirement of covariance under translations.


title:
Spectral asymptotics for large skew-symmetric perturbations of the
  harmonic oscillator

abstract:
  Originally motivated by a stability problem in Fluid Mechanics, we study the
spectral and pseudospectral properties of the differential operator $H_\epsilon
= -\partial_x^2 + x^2 + i\epsilon^{-1}f(x)$ on $L^2(R)$, where $f$ is a
real-valued function and $\epsilon > 0$ a small parameter. We define
$\Sigma(\epsilon)$ as the infimum of the real part of the spectrum of
$H_\epsilon$, and $\Psi(\epsilon)^{-1}$ as the supremum of the norm of the
resolvent of $H_\epsilon$ along the imaginary axis. Under appropriate
conditions on $f$, we show that both quantities $\Sigma(\epsilon)$,
$\Psi(\epsilon)$ go to infinity as $\epsilon \to 0$, and we give precise
estimates of the growth rate of $\Psi(\epsilon)$. We also provide an example
where $\Sigma(\epsilon)$ is much larger than $\Psi(\epsilon)$ if $\epsilon$ is
small. Our main results are established using variational "hypocoercive"
methods, localization techniques and semiclassical subelliptic estimates.


title: Speckle Interferometry of Metal-Poor Stars in the Solar Neighborhood.II

abstract:
  The results of speckle interferometric observations of 115 metal-poor stars
[m/H]<-1 within 250 pc from the Sun and with proper motions mu <= 0.2"/yr, made
with the 6-m telescope of the Special Astrophysical Observatory of the Russian
Academy of Sciences, are reported. Close companions with separations ranging
from 0.034" to 1" were observed for 12 objects - G76-21, G59-1, G63-46,
G135-16, G168-42, G141-47, G142-44, G190-10, G28-43, G217-8, G130-7, and G89-14
- eight of them are astrometrically resolved for the first time. The newly
resolved systems include one triple star - G190-10. If combined with
spectroscopic and visual data, our results imply a
single:binary:triple:quadruple star ratio of 147:64:9:1 for a sample of 221
primary components of halo and thick-disk stars.


title:
Higgs bundles and surface group representations in the real symplectic
  group

abstract:
  In this paper we study the moduli space of representations of a surface group
(i.e., the fundamental group of a closed oriented surface) in the real
symplectic group Sp(2n,R). The moduli space is partitioned by an integer
invariant, called the Toledo invariant. This invariant is bounded by a
Milnor-Wood type inequality. Our main result is a count of the number of
connected components of the moduli space of maximal representations, i.e.
representations with maximal Toledo invariant. Our approach uses the
non-abelian Hodge theory correspondence proved in a companion paper
arXiv:0909.4487 [math.DG] to identify the space of representations with the
moduli space of polystable Sp(2n,R)-Higgs bundles. A key step is provided by
the discovery of new discrete invariants of maximal representations. These new
invariants arise from an identification, in the maximal case, of the moduli
space of Sp(2n,R)-Higgs bundles with a moduli space of twisted Higgs bundles
for the group GL(n,R).


title:
Boundary field induced first-order transition in the 2D Ising model:
  numerical study

abstract:
  In a recent paper, Clusel and Fortin [J. Phys. A.: Math. Gen. 39 (2006) 995]
presented an analytical study of a first-order transition induced by an
inhomogeneous boundary magnetic field in the two-dimensional Ising model. They
identified the transition that separates the regime where the interface is
localized near the boundary from the one where it is propagating inside the
bulk. Inspired by these results, we measured the interface tension by using
multimagnetic simulations combined with parallel tempering to determine the
phase transition and the location of the interface. Our results are in very
good agreement with the theoretical predictions. Furthermore, we studied the
spin-spin correlation function for which no analytical results are available.


title: Band bending and quasi-2DEG in the metallized $\beta$-SiC(001) surface

abstract:
  We study the mechanism leading to the metallization of the $\beta$-SiC(001)
Si-rich surface induced by hydrogen adsorption. We analyze the effects of band
bending and demonstrate the existence of a quasi-2D electron gas, which
originates from the donation of electrons from adsorbed hydrogen to bulk
conduction states. We also provide a simple model that captures the main
features of the results of first-principles calculations, and uncovers the
basic physics of the process.


title: Teleportation of geometric structures in 3D

abstract:
  Simplest quantum teleportation algorithms can be represented in geometric
terms in spaces of dimensions 3 (for real state-vectors) and 4 (for complex
state-vectors). The geometric representation is based on geometric-algebra
coding, a geometric alternative to the tensor-product coding typical of quantum
mechanics. We discuss all the elementary ingredients of the geometric version
of the algorithm: Geometric analogs of states and controlled Pauli gates. Fully
geometric presentation is possible if one employs a nonstandard representation
of directed magnitudes, formulated in terms of colors defined via stereographic
projection of a color wheel, and not by means of directed volumes.


title: The singular continuous diffraction measure of the Thue-Morse chain

abstract:
  The paradigm for singular continuous spectra in symbolic dynamics and in
mathematical diffraction is provided by the Thue-Morse chain, in its
realisation as a binary sequence with values in $\{\pm 1\}$. We revisit this
example and derive a functional equation together with an explicit form of the
corresponding singular continuous diffraction measure, which is related to the
known representation as a Riesz product.


title: Limits on CO2 Climate Forcing from Recent Temperature Data of Earth

abstract:
  The global atmospheric temperature anomalies of Earth reached a maximum in
1998 which has not been exceeded during the subsequent 10 years. The global
anomalies are calculated from the average of climate effects occurring in the
tropical and the extratropical latitude bands. El Nino/La Nina effects in the
tropical band are shown to explain the 1998 maximum while variations in the
background of the global anomalies largely come from climate effects in the
northern extratropics. These effects do not have the signature associated with
CO2 climate forcing. However, the data show a small underlying positive trend
that is consistent with CO2 climate forcing with no-feedback.


title: Dark consequences from light neutrino condensations

abstract:
  In this paper we discuss light neutrino dipole moments, computed in the
neutrino-mass extended standard model (SM), as a possible source for neutrino
condensates which may cause cosmological constant observed today.


title:
Imaging the impact on cuprate superconductivity of varying the
  inter-atomic distances within individual crystal unit-cells

abstract:
  Many theoretical models of high temperature superconductivity focus only on
the doping dependence of the CuO2 plane electronic structure. But such models
are manifestly insufficient to explain the strong variations in superconducting
critical temperature Tc among cuprates which have identical hole-density but
are crystallographically different outside the CuO2 plane. A key challenge,
therefore, has been to identify a predominant out-of-plane influence
controlling the superconductivity - with much attention focusing on the
distance $d_A$ between the apical oxygen and the planar copper atom. Here we
report direct determination of how variations of inter-atomic distances within
individual crystalline unit cells, affect the superconducting energy-gap
maximum $\Delta$ of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8. In this material, quasi-periodic variations
of unit cell geometry occur in the form of a bulk crystalline
'supermodulation'. Within each supermodulation period, we find a $\sim 9\pm1%$
co-sinusoidal variation in local $\Delta$ that is anti-correlated with the
associated $d_A$ variations. Furthermore, we show that phenomenological
consistency would exist between these effects and the random $\Delta$
variations found near dopant atoms if the primary effect of the interstitial
dopant atom is to displace the apical oxygen so as to diminish $d_A$ or tilt
the CuO5 pyramid. Thus we reveal a strong non-random out-of-plane effect on
cuprate superconductivity at atomic scale.


title: HESS J0632+057 : A new gamma-ray binary?

abstract:
  The High Energy Stereoscopic System (HESS) survey of the Galactic plane has
established the existence of a substantial number (~40) of Galactic TeV
gamma-ray sources, a large fraction of which remain unidentified. HESS
J0632+057 is one of a small fraction of these objects which is point-like in
nature(<2' rms), and is one of only two point-like sources that remain
unidentified. Follow-up observations of this object with XMM-Newton have
revealed an X-ray source coincident with the TeV source and with the massive
star MWC 148, of the spectral type B0pe. This source exhibits a hard spectrum,
consistent with an absorbed power law with Gamma = 1.26 +/- 0.04, and shows
significant variability on hour timescales. We discuss this spatial coincidence
and the implied spectral energy distribution of this object and argue that it
is likely a new gamma-ray binary system with a close resemblance to the three
known members of this class, and in particular to LS I +61 303. Further X-ray,
radio and optical observations of this system are needed to firmly establish
HESS J0632+057 as a new member of this rare class of Galactic objects.


title: Orion Outlying Clouds

abstract:
  In this chapter we review the properties of the Orion outlying clouds at b <
-21 degrees. These clouds are located far off the Orion giant molecular cloud
complex and are in most cases small cometary-shaped clouds, with their head
pointing back towards the main Orion clouds. A wealth of data indicate that
star formation is ongoing in many of these clouds. The star formation in these
regions might have been triggered due to the strong impact of the massive stars
in the Orion OB association. Some of the clouds discussed here may be part of
the Orion-Eridanus bubble. An overview on each individual cloud is given. A
synthesis of the Pre-Main Sequence stars discovered in these clouds is
presented. We also discuss the millimeter and centimeter data and present a
review of the outflows and Herbig-Haro objects so far discovered in these
clouds.


title:
Reverse engineering in many-body quantum physics: What many-body system
  corresponds to an effective single-particle equation?

abstract:
  The mapping, exact or approximate, of a many-body problem onto an effective
single-body problem is one of the most widely used conceptual and computational
tools of physics. Here, we propose and investigate the inverse map of effective
approximate single-particle equations onto the corresponding many-particle
system. This approach allows us to understand which interacting system a given
single-particle approximation is actually describing, and how far this is from
the original physical many-body system. We illustrate the resulting reverse
engineering process by means of the Kohn-Sham equations of density-functional
theory. In this application, our procedure sheds light on the non-locality of
the density-potential mapping of DFT, and on the self-interaction error
inherent in approximate density functionals.


title: Modelling Time

abstract:
  We briefly review two concepts of time - the usual time associated with
"being" and more recent ideas, answering to the description of "becoming". The
approximation involved in the former is examined. Finally we argue that it is
(unpredictable) fluctuations that underlie time.


title: Future e+ e- Flavor Factories: accelerator challenges

abstract:
  Operation of the B-Factories (PEP-II and KEKB) has been very successful, both
having exceeded their design peak and integrated luminosity and provided a huge
amount of good data to the experiments. Proposal for upgrades, in order to
achieve about two order of magnitude larger luminosity, are in progress in
Japan, with Super-KEKB, and in Europe, with SuperB. Very high beam intensity,
very short bunch length and low Interaction Point beta-functions are the key
points of the Japanese design, very challenging for the hardware components
(RF, vacuum). On the other hand SuperB exploits a new collision scheme, namely
large Piwinski angle and "crab waist", which will allow to reach a luminosity
two order of magnitude larger without increasing beam currents and decreasing
bunch lengths. In this talk the present status of the two projects will be
reviewed.


title:
Quantum simulation of a system with competing two- and three-body
  interactions

abstract:
  Quantum phase transitions occur at zero temperature, when the ground state of
a Hamiltonian undergoes a qualitative change as a function of a control
parameter. We consider a particularly interesting system with competing one-,
two- and three-body interactions. Depending on the relative strength of these
interactions, the ground state of the system can be a product state, or it can
exhibit genuine tripartite entanglement. We experimentally simulate such a
system in an NMR quantum simulator and observe the different ground states. By
adiabatically changing the strength of one coupling constant, we push the
system from one ground state to a qualitatively different ground state. We show
that these ground states can be distinguished and the transitions between them
observed by measuring correlations between the spins or the expectation values
of suitable entanglement witnesses.


title: Driven quantum coarsening

abstract:
  We study the driven dynamics of quantum coarsening. We analyze models of
M-component rotors coupled to two electronic reservoirs at different chemical
potentials that generate a current threading through the system. In the large M
limit we derive the dynamical phase diagram as a function of temperature,
strength of quantum fluctuations, voltage and coupling to the leads. We show
that the slow relaxation in the ordering phase is universal. On large time and
length scales the dynamics are analogous to stochastic classical ones, even for
the quantum system driven out of equilibrium at zero temperature. We argue that
our results apply to generic driven quantum coarsening.


title:
Numerical calculation of the lowest eigenmodes of the Laplacian in
  compact orientable 3-dimensional hyperbolic spaces

abstract:
  A simple method to compute numerically the lowest eigenmodes of the Laplacian
in compact orientable hyperbolic spaces of dimension 3 is presented. It is
applied to the Thurston manifold, the Weber-Seifert manifold, and to the spaces
whose fundamental domain is a regular icosahedron.


title: Maximum size of drops levitated by an air cushion

abstract:
  Liquid drops can be kept from touching a plane solid surface by a gas stream
entering from underneath, as it is observed for water drops on a heated plate,
kept aloft by a stream of water vapor. We investigate the limit of small flow
rates, for which the size of the gap between the drop and the substrate becomes
very small. Above a critical drop radius no stationary drops can exist, below
the critical radius two solutions coexist. However, only the solution with the
smaller gap width is stable, the other is unstable. We compare to experimental
data and use boundary integral simulations to show that unstable drops develop
a gas "chimney" which breaks the drop in its middle.


title:
Low dimensional strongly perfect lattices. III: Dual strongly perfect
  lattices of dimension 14

abstract:
  The extremal 3-modular lattice $[\pm G_2(3)]_{14}$ with automorphism group
$C_2 \times G_2(\F_3) $ is the unique dual strongly perfect lattice of
dimension 14.


title:
The Plasma Structure of the Southwestern Region of the Cygnus Loop with
  the XMM-Newton Observatory

abstract:
  We observed the southwestern region of the Cygnus Loop in two pointings with
\textit{XMM-Newton}. The region observed is called the "blow-out" region that
is extended further in the south. The origin of the "blow-out" is not well
understood while it is suggested that there is another supernova remnant here
in radio observation. To investigate the detail structure of this region in
X-ray, we divided our fields of view into 33 box regions. The spectra are well
fitted by a two-component nonequilibrium ionization model. The emission measure
distributions of heavy elements decrease from the inner region to the outer
region of the Loop. Then, we also divided our fields of view into 26 annular
sectors to examine the radial plasma structure. Judging from metal abundances
obtained, it is consistent with that the X-ray emission is the Cygnus Loop
origin and we concluded that high-$kT_{e}$ component ($\sim$0.4 keV) originates
from the ejecta while low-$kT_{e}$ component ($\sim$0.2 keV) is derived from
the swept-up interstellar medium. The flux of low-$kT_{e}$ component is much
less than that of high-$kT_{e}$ component, suggesting the ISM component is very
thin. Also, the relative abundances in the ejecta component shows similar
values to those obtained from previous observations of the Cygnus Loop. We find
no evidence in X-ray that the nature of the "blow-out" region originated from
the extra supernova remnant. From the ejecta component, we calculated the
masses for various metals and estimated the origin of the Cygnus Loop as the
core-collapse explosion rather than the Type Ia supernova.


title:
Probability for chance coincidence of a gamma-ray burst with a galaxy on
  the sky

abstract:
  The nearby long GRB 060614 was not accompanied by a supernova, challenging
the collapsar model for long-duration GRBs and the traditional classification
scheme for GRBs. However, Cobb et al. have argued that the association of GRB
060614 and its host galaxy could be chance coincidence. In this work we
calculate the probability for a GRB to be randomly coincident with a galaxy on
the sky, using a galaxy luminosity function obtained from current galaxy
surveys. We find that, with a magnitude limit that current telescopes can reach
and an evolving galaxy luminosity function obtained from VVDS, the probability
for chance coincidence of a GRB with a galaxy of redshift <1.5 is about several
percent. These results agree with previous estimates based on observed
galaxies. For the case of GRB 060614, the probability for it to be coincident
with a z<0.125 galaxy by angular separation <0.5" is ~0.02%, indicating that
the association of GRB 060614 and its host galaxy is secure. If the telescope
magnitude limit is significantly improved in future, the probability for
GRB-galaxy association will be considerably large, making it very problematic
to identify a GRB host based only on the superposition of a GRB and a galaxy on
the sky.


title: Tokyo Axion Helioscope

abstract:
  A new search result of the Tokyo axion helioscope is presented. The axion
helioscope consists of a dedicated cryogen-free 4T superconducting magnet with
an effective length of 2.3 m and PIN photodiodes as x-ray detectors. Solar
axions, if exist, would be converted into X-ray photons through the inverse
Primakoff process in the magnetic field. Conversion is coherently enhanced even
for massive axions by filling the conversion region with helium gas. The
present third phase measurement sets a new limit of
g_{a\gamma\gamma}<(5.6--13.4)\times10^{-10} GeV^{-1} for the axion mass of
0.84<m_a<1.0 eV at 95% confidence level.


title: Equation of state for hard sphere fluids with and without Kac tails

abstract:
  In this note, we propose a simple derivation of the one dimensional hard rod
equation of state, with and without a Kac tail (appended long range and weak
potential). The case of hard spheres in higher dimension is also addressed and
it is shown there that our arguments --which avoid any mathematical
complication-- allow to recover the virial form of the equation of state in a
direct way.


title: Aharonov-Casher Effect in Wigner Crystal Exchange Interactions

abstract:
  We theoretically study the effects of spin-orbit coupling on spin exchange in
a low-density Wigner crystal. In addition to the familiar antiferromagnetic
Heisenberg exchange, we find general anisotropic interactions in spin space if
the exchange paths allowed by the crystal structure form loops in real space.
In particular, it is shown that the two-electron exchange interaction can
acquire ferromagnetic character.


title: Parton energy loss due to synchrotron-like gluon emission

abstract:
  We develop a quasiclassical theory of the synchrotron-like gluon radiation.
Our calculations show that the parton energy loss due to the synchrotron gluon
emission may be important in the jet quenching phenomenon if the plasma
instabilities generate a sufficiently strong chromomagnetic field. Our gluon
spectrum disagrees with that obtained by Shuryak and Zahed within the
Schwinger's proper time method.


title: No-signaling, intractability and entanglement

abstract:
  We consider the problem of deriving the no-signaling condition from the
assumption that, as seen from a complexity theoretic perspective, the universe
is not an exponential place. A fact that disallows such a derivation is the
existence of {\em polynomial superluminal} gates, hypothetical primitive
operations that enable superluminal signaling but not the efficient solution of
intractable problems. It therefore follows, if this assumption is a basic
principle of physics, either that it must be supplemented with additional
assumptions to prohibit such gates, or, improbably, that no-signaling is not a
universal condition. Yet, a gate of this kind is possibly implicit, though not
recognized as such, in a decade-old quantum optical experiment involving
position-momentum entangled photons. Here we describe a feasible modified
version experiment that appears to explicitly demonstrate the action of this
gate. Some obvious counter-claims are shown to be invalid. We believe that the
unexpected possibility of polynomial superluminal operations arises because
some practically measured quantum optical quantities are not describable as
standard quantum mechanical observables.


title: The Chemical Abundances of Tycho G in Supernova Remnant 1572

abstract:
  We present an analysis of the chemical abundances of the star Tycho G in the
direction of the remnant of supernova (SN) 1572, based on Keck high-resolution
optical spectra. The stellar parameters of this star are found to be those of a
G-type subgiant with $T_{\mathrm{eff}} = 5900 \pm 100$ K, \loggl $ = 3.85 \pm
0.30$ dex, and $\mathrm{[Fe/H]} = -0.05 \pm 0.09$. This determination agrees
with the stellar parameters derived for the star in a previous survey for the
possible companion star of SN 1572 (Ruiz-Lapuente et al. 2004). The chemical
abundances follow the Galactic trends, except for Ni, which is overabundant
relative to Fe, $[{\rm Ni/Fe}] $ $=$ 0.16 $\pm$ 0.04. Co is slightly
overabundant (at a low significance level). These enhancements in Fe-peak
elements could have originated from pollution by the supernova ejecta. We find
a surprisingly high Li abundance for a star that has evolved away from the main
sequence. We discuss these findings in the context of companion stars of
supernovae.


title:
Almost commuting unitaries with spectral gap are near commuting
  unitaries

abstract:
  Let M_n be the collection of n x n complex matrices equipped with operator
norm. Suppose U, V \in M_n are two unitary matrices, each possessing a gap
larger than \Delta in their spectrum, which satisfy ||UV-VU|| \le \epsilon.
Then it is shown that there are two unitary operators X and Y satisfying XY-YX
= 0 and ||U-X|| + ||V-Y|| \le E(\Delta^2/\epsilon) (\epsilon/\Delta^2)^(1/6),
where E(x) is a function growing slower than x^(1/k) for any positive integer
k.


title:
Relation between powers of factors and recurrence function
  characterizing Sturmian words

abstract:
  In this paper we use the relation of the index of an infinite aperiodic word
and its recurrence function to give another characterization of Sturmian words.
As a byproduct, we give a new proof of theorem describing the index of a
Sturmian word in terms of the continued fraction expansion of its slope. This
theorem was independently proved by Carpi and de Luca, and Damanik and Lenz.


title: On the Fourier transform of the symmetric decreasing rearrangements

abstract:
  Inspired by work of Montgomery on Fourier series and Donoho-Strak in signal
processing, we investigate two families of rearrangement inequalities for the
Fourier transform. More precisely, we show that the $L^2$ behavior of a Fourier
transform of a function over a small set is controlled by the $L^2$ behavior of
the Fourier transform of its symmetric decreasing rearrangement. In the $L^1$
case, the same is true if we further assume that the function has a support of
finite measure. As a byproduct, we also give a simple proof and an extension of
a result of Lieb about the smoothness of a rearrangement. Finally, a
straightforward application to solutions of the free Shr\"odinger equation is
given.


title:
Microstructure and kinematics of H2O masers in the massive star forming
  region IRAS 06061+2151

abstract:
  We have made multi-epoch VLBI observations of H2O maser emission in the
massive star forming region IRAS 06061+2151 with the Japanese VLBI network
(JVN) from 2005 May to 2007 October. The detected maser features are
distributed within an 1\arcsec$\times$1\arcsec (2000 au$\times$2000 au at the
source position) around the ultra-compact H {\small\bf II} region seen in radio
continuum emission. Their bipolar morphology and expanding motion traced
through their relative proper motions indicate that they are excited by an
energetic bipolar outflow. Our three-dimensional model fitting has shown that
the maser kinematical structure in IRAS 06061+2151 is able to be explained by a
biconical outflow with a large opening angle ($>$ 50\degr). The position angle
of the flow major axis coincides very well with that of the large scale jet
seen in 2.1$\:\mu\rmn{m}$ hydrogen emission. This maser geometry indicates the
existence of dual structures composed of a collimated jet and a less collimated
massive molecular flow. We have also detected a large velocity gradient in the
southern maser group. This can be explained by a very small (on a scale of
several tens of au) and clumpy (the density contrast by an order of magnitude
or more) structure of the parental cloud. Such a structure may be formed by
strong instability of shock front or splitting of high density core.


title:
Effective field theory for models defined over small-world networks.
  First and second order phase transitions

abstract:
  We present an effective field theory method to analyze, in a very general
way, models defined over small-world networks. Even if the exactness of the
method is limited to the paramagnetic regions and to some special limits, it
provides, yielding a clear and immediate (also in terms of calculation)
physical insight, the exact critical behavior and the exact critical surfaces
and percolation thresholds. The underlying structure of the non random part of
the model, i.e., the set of spins filling up a given lattice L_0 of dimension
d_0 and interacting through a fixed coupling J_0, is exactly taken into
account. When J_0\geq 0, the small-world effect gives rise, as is known, to a
second-order phase transition that takes place independently of the dimension
d_0 and of the added random connectivity c. When J_0<0, a different and novel
scenario emerges in which, besides a spin glass transition, multiple first- and
second-order phase transitions may take place. As immediate analytical
applications we analyze the Viana-Bray model (d_0=0), the one dimensional chain
(d_0=1), and the spherical model for arbitrary d_0.


title:
Reply to the Comment on 'Pygmy dipole response of proton-rich argon
  nuclei in random-phase approximation and no-core shell model'

abstract:
  We respond to a Comment on our recent paper (Phys.Rev.C77:024304,2008) by
Paar (arXiv:0803.0274).


title: Theoretical constraints on the rare tau decays in the MSSM

abstract:
  The Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model contains in general sources of tau
lepton flavour violation which induce the rare decays tau --> mu gamma and tau
--> e gamma. We argue in this paper that the observation of both rare processes
would imply a lower bound on the radiative muon decay of the form BR(mu --> e
gamma) > C BR(tau --> mu gamma) BR(tau --> e gamma). We estimate the size of
the constant C without specifying the origin of the tau flavour violation in
the supersymmetric model and we discuss the implications of our bound for
future searches of rare lepton decays. In particular, we show that, for a wide
class of models, present B-factories could discover either tau --> mu gamma or
tau --> e gamma, but not both. We also derive for completeness the constant C
in the most general setup, pursuing an effective theory approach.


title:
Can a chaotic solution in the QCD evolution equation restrain
  high-energy collider physics?

abstract:
  We indicate that the random aperiodic oscillation of the gluon distributions
in a modified Balisky--Fadin--Kuraev--Lipatov (BFKL) equation has positive
Lyapunov exponents. This first example of chaos in QCD evolution equations,
raises the sudden disappearance of the gluon distributions at a critical small
value of the Bjorken variable $x$ and may stop the increase of the new particle
events in an ultra high energy hadron collider.


title:
A framework for the interactive resolution of multi-objective vehicle
  routing problems

abstract:
  The article presents a framework for the resolution of rich vehicle routing
problems which are difficult to address with standard optimization techniques.
We use local search on the basis on variable neighborhood search for the
construction of the solutions, but embed the techniques in a flexible framework
that allows the consideration of complex side constraints of the problem such
as time windows, multiple depots, heterogeneous fleets, and, in particular,
multiple optimization criteria. In order to identify a compromise alternative
that meets the requirements of the decision maker, an interactive procedure is
integrated in the resolution of the problem, allowing the modification of the
preference information articulated by the decision maker. The framework is
prototypically implemented in a computer system. First results of test runs on
multiple depot vehicle routing problems with time windows are reported.


title: Probabilistic solution of the American options

abstract:
  The existence and uniqueness of probabilistic solutions of variational
inequalities for the general American options are proved under the hypothesis
of hypoellipticity of the infinitesimal generator of the underlying diffusion
process which represents the risky assets of the stock market with which the
option is created. The main tool is an extension of the It\^o formula which is
valid for the tempered distributions on $\R^d$ and for nondegenerate It\^o
processes in the sense of the Malliavin calculus.


title: Polarization mesurements of gamma ray bursts and axion like particles

abstract:
  A polarized gamma ray emission spread over a sufficiently wide energy band
from a strongly magnetized astrophysical object like gamma ray bursts (GRBs)
offers an opportunity to test the hypothesis of axion like particles (ALPs).
Based on evidences of polarized gamma ray emission detected in several gamma
ray bursts we estimated the level of ALPs induced dichroism, which could take
place in the magnetized fireball environment of a GRB. This allows to estimate
the sensitivity of polarization measurements of GRBs to the ALP-photon
coupling. This sensitivity $\gag\le 2.2\cdot 10^{-11} {\rm GeV^{-1}}$
calculated for the ALP mass $m_a=10^{-3}~{\rm eV}$ and MeV energy spread of
gamma ray emission is competitive with the sensitivity of CAST and becomes even
stronger for lower ALPs masses.


title: Analysis and synthesis of attractive quantum Markovian dynamics

abstract:
  We propose a general framework for investigating a large class of
stabilization problems in Markovian quantum systems. Building on the notions of
invariant and attractive quantum subsystem, we characterize attractive
subspaces by exploring the structure of the invariant sets for the dynamics.
Our general analysis results are exploited to assess the ability of open-loop
Hamiltonian and output-feedback control strategies to synthesize Markovian
generators which stabilize a target subsystem, subspace, or pure-state. In
particular, we provide an algebraic characterization of the manifold of
stabilizable pure states in arbitrary finite-dimensional Markovian systems,
that leads to a constructive strategy for designing the relevant controllers.
Implications for stabilization of entangled pure states are addressed by
example.


title:
Quantum deformations of Schwarzschild and Schwarzschild-de Sitter
  spacetimes

abstract:
  A quantum Schwarzschild spacetime and a quantum Schwarzschild-de Sitter
spacetime with cosmological constant $\Lambda$ are constructed within the
framework of a noncommutative Riemannian geometry developed in an earlier
publication. The metrics and curvatures of the quantum Schwarzschild spacetime
and the quantum Schwarzschild-de Sitter spacetime are computed. It is shown
that up to the second order in the deformation parameter, the quantum
spacetimes are solutions of a noncommutative Einstein equation which is
proposed in this paper.


title:
Estimation of the Tilt of the Stellar Velocity Ellipsoid from RAVE and
  Implications for Mass Models

abstract:
  We present a measure of the inclination of the velocity ellipsoid at 1 kpc
below the Galactic plane using a sample of red clump giants from the RAVE DR2
release. We find that the velocity ellipsoid is tilted towards the Galactic
plane with an inclination of 7.3 +/-1.8 degree. We compare this value to
computed inclinations for two mass models of the Milky Way. We find that our
measurement is consistent with a short scale length of the stellar disc (Rd ~2
kpc) if the dark halo is oblate or with a long scale length (Rd~3 kpc) if the
dark halo is prolate. Once combined with independent constraints on the
flattening of the halo, our measurement suggests that the scale length is
approximately halfway between these two extreme values, with a preferred range
[2.5-2.7] kpc for a nearly spherical halo. Nevertheless, no model can be
clearly ruled out. With the continuation of the RAVE survey, it will be
possible to provide a strong constraint on the mass distribution of the Milky
Way using refined measurements of the orientation of the velocity ellipsoid.


title: Event-by-event simulation of double-slit experiments with single photons

abstract:
  We present a computer simulation model that reproduces, event-by-event, the
wave mechanical results of double-slit and two-beam interference experiments.
The same model also simulates a one-to-one copy of a single-photon interference
experiment with a Fresnel biprism (Jacques V. et al., Eur. Phys. J. D, 35
(2005) 561). The model satisfies Einstein's criterion of local causality and is
solely based on experimental facts, comprising the apparatuses used in the
experiment and the observation of individual detector clicks. Our results prove
that it is possible to give a particle-only description of single-photon
double-slit experiments.


title: Dynamical Evolution of Interacting Modified Chaplygin Gas

abstract:
  The cosmological model of the modified Chaplygin gas interacting with cold
dark matter is studied. Our attention is focused on the final state of universe
in the model. It turns out that there exists a stable scaling solution, which
provides the possibility to alleviate the coincidence problem. In addition, we
investigate the effect of the coupling constants $c_{1}$ and $c_{2}$ on the
dynamical evolution of this model from the statefinder viewpoint. It is found
that the coupling constants play a significant role during the dynamical
evolution of the interacting MCG model. Furthermore, we can distinguish this
interacting model from other dark energy models in the $s-r$ plane.


title: How cells tiptoe on adhesive surfaces before sticking

abstract:
  Cell membranes are studded with protrusions that were thoroughly analyzed
with electron microscopy. However, the nanometer-scale three-dimensional
motions generated by cell membranes to fit the topography of foreign surfaces
and initiate adhesion remain poorly understood. Here, we describe the dynamics
of surface deformations displayed by monocytic cells bumping against
fibronectin-coated surfaces. We observed membrane undulations with typically 5
nm amplitude and 5-10 second lifetime. Cell membranes behaved as independent
units of micrometer size. Cells detected the presence of foreign surfaces at 50
nm separation, resulting in time-dependent amplification of membrane
undulations. Molecular contact then ensued with apparent cell-membrane
separation of 30-40 nm, and this distance steadily decreased during the
following tens of seconds. Contact maturation was associated with in-plane
egress of bulky molecules and robust membrane fluctuations. Thus, membrane
undulations may be the major determinant of cell sensitivity to substrate
topography, outcome of interaction and initial kinetics of contact extension


title: Chain Formation by Spin Pentamers in eta-Na9V14O35

abstract:
  The nature of the gapped ground state in the quasi-one-dimensional compound
eta-Na9V14O35 cannot easily be understood, if one takes into account the odd
number of spins on each structural element. Combining the results of specific
heat, susceptibility and electron spin resonance measurements we show that
eta-Na9V14O35 exhibits a novel ground state where multi-spin objects build up a
linear chain. These objects - pentamers - consist of five antiferromagnetically
arranged spins with effective spin 1/2. Their spatial extent results in an
exchange constant along the chain direction comparable to the one in the
high-temperature state.


title:
Imaging the antiparallel magnetic alignment of adjacent Fe and MnAs thin
  films

abstract:
  The magnetic coupling between iron and alpha - MnAs in the epitaxial system
Fe/MnAs/GaAs(001) has been studied at the sub-micron scale, using element
selective x-ray photoemission electron microscopy. At room temperature, MnAs
layers display ridges and grooves, alternating alpha (magnetic) and beta
(non-magnetic) phases. The self-organised microstructure of MnAs and the stray
fields that it generates govern the local alignment between the Fe and alpha -
MnAs magnetization directions, which is mostly antiparallel with a marked
dependence upon the magnetic domain size.


title: Torque determination on DNA with magnetic tweezers

abstract:
  We deduced the torque applied on a single stretched and twisted DNA by
integrating with respect to force the change in the molecule's extension as it
is coiled. While consistent with previous direct measurements of the torque at
high forces (F>1 pN) this method, which is simple and does not require a
sophisticated set-up, allows for lower force estimates. We used this approach
to deduce the effective torsional modulus of DNA, which decreases with force
and to estimate the buckling torque of DNA as a function of force in various
salt conditions.


title: Two applications of twisted Floer homology

abstract:
  Given an irreducible closed 3--manifold $Y$, we show that its twisted
Heegaard Floer homology determines whether $Y$ is a torus bundle over the
circle. Another result we will prove is, if $K$ is a genus 1 null-homologous
knot in an $L$--space, and the 0--surgery on $K$ is fibered, then $K$ itself is
fibered. These two results are the missing cases of earlier results due to the
second author.


title:
Quantum slow-roll and quantum fast-roll inflationary initial conditions:
  CMB quadrupole suppression and further effects on the low CMB multipoles

abstract:
  Quantum fast-roll initial conditions for the inflaton which are different
from the classical fast-roll conditions and from the quantum slow-roll
conditions can lead to inflation that last long enough. These quantum fast-roll
initial conditions for the inflaton allow for kinetic energies of the same
order of the potential energies and nonperturbative inflaton modes with nonzero
wavenumbers. Their evolution starts with a transitory epoch where the redshift
due to the expansion succeeds to assemble the quantum excited modes of the
inflaton in a homogeneous (zero mode) condensate, and the large value of the
Hubble parameter succeeds to overdamp the fast-roll of the redshifted inflaton
modes. After this transitory stage the effective classical slow-roll epoch is
reached. Most of the efolds are produced during the slow-roll epoch and we
recover the classical slow-roll results for the scalar and tensor metric
perturbations plus corrections. These corrections are important, both for
scalar and for tensor perturbations, if scales which are horizon-size today
exited the horizon by the end of the transitory stage and as a consequence the
lower CMB multipoles get suppressed (fast-roll) or enhanced (precondensate).
These two types of corrections can compete and combine in a scale dependent
manner. They arise as natural consequences of the quantum nonperturbative
inflaton dynamics, and provide a consistent and contrastable model for the
origin of the suppression of the quadrupole and for other departures of the low
CMB multipoles from the slow-roll inflation-LambdaCMB model which are to be
contrasted to the TE and EE multipoles and to the forthcoming and future CMB
data.


title:
Gravitational Contributions to the Running Yang-Mills Coupling in Large
  Extra-Dimensional Brane Worlds

abstract:
  We study the question of a modification of the running gauge coupling of
Yang-Mills theories due to quantum gravitational effects in a compact large
extra dimensional brane world scenario with a low energy quantum gravity scale.
The ADD scenario is applied for a D=d+\delta dimensional space-time in which
gravitons freely propagate, whereas the non-abelian gauge fields are confined
to a d-dimensional brane. The extra dimensions are taken to be toroidal and the
transverse fluctuation modes (branons) of the brane are taken into account. On
this basis we have calculated the one-loop corrections due to virtual
Kaluza-Klein graviton and branon modes for the gluon two- and three-point
functions in an effective field theory treatment. Applying momentum cut-off
regularization we find that for a d=4 brane the leading gravitational
divergencies cancel irrespective of the number of extra dimensions \delta,
generalizing previous results in the absence of extra-dimensions. Hence, again
the Yang-Mills \beta-function receives no gravitational corrections at
one-loop. This is no longer true in a `universal' extra dimensional scenario
with a d>4 dimensional brane. Moreover, the subleading power-law gravitational
divergencies induce higher-dimensional counterterms, which we establish in our
scheme. Interestingly, for d=4 these gravitationally induced counterterms are
of the form recently considered in non-abelian Lee-Wick extensions of the
standard model -- now with a possible mass scale in the TeV range due to the
presence of large extra dimensions.


title: Anisotropic flows from initial state of a fast nucleus

abstract:
  We analyze azimuthal anisotropy in heavy ion collisions related to the
reaction plane in terms of standard reggeon approach and find that it is
nonzero even when the final state interaction is switched off. This effect can
be interpreted in terms of partonic structure of colliding nuclei. We use
Feynman diagram analysis to describe details of this mechanism. Main
qualitative features of the appropriate azimuthal correlations are discussed.


title:
Gate control of the tunneling magnetoresistance in double-barrier
  junctions

abstract:
  We calculate the conductances and the tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) of
double magnetic tunnel junctions, taking as a model example junctions composed
of Fe/ZnSe/Fe/ZnSe/Fe (001). The calculations are done as a function of the
gate voltage applied to the in-between Fe layer slab. We find that the
application of a gate voltage to the in-between Fe slab strongly affects the
junctions' TMR due to the tuning or untuning of conductance resonances mediated
by quantum well states. The gate voltage allows a significant enhancement of
the TMR, in a more controllable way than by changing the thickness of the
in-between Fe slab. This effect may be useful in the design of future
spintronic devices based on the TMR effect, requiring large and controllable
TMR values.


title:
The use of the Long Baseline Array in Australia for precise geodesy and
  absolute astrometry

abstract:
  We report the results of a successful 12 hour 22 GHz VLBI experiment using a
heterogeneous network that includes radio telescopes of the Long Baseline Array
(LBA) in Australia and several VLBI stations that regularly observe in geodetic
VLBI campaigns. We have determined positions of three VLBI stations, ATCA-104,
CEDUNA and MOPRA, with an accuracy of 4-30mm using a novel technique of data
analysis. These stations have never before participated in geodetic
experiments. We observed 105 radio sources, and amongst them 5 objects which
have not previously been observed with VLBI. We have determined positions of
these new sources with the accuracy of 2-5 mas. We make conclusion that the LBA
network is capable of conducting absolute astrometry VLBI surveys with accuracy
better than 5 mas.


title: Enhanced tunneling magnetoresistance in Fe$\mid$ZnSe double junctions

abstract:
  We calculate the tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) of
Fe$\mid$ZnSe$\mid$Fe$\mid$ZnSe$\mid$Fe (001) double magnetic tunnel junctions
as a function of the in-between Fe layer's thickness, and compare these results
with those of Fe$\mid$ZnSe$\mid$Fe simple junctions. The electronic band
structures are modeled by a parametrized tight-binding Hamiltonian fitted to
{\it ab initio} calculations, and the conductance is calculated within the
Landauer formalism expressed in terms of Green's functions. We find that the
conductances for each spin channel and the TMR strongly depend on the
in-between Fe layer's thickness, and that in some cases they are enhanced with
respect to simple junctions, in qualitative agreement with recent experimental
studies performed on similar systems. By using a 2D double junction as a
simplified system, we show that the conductance enhancement can be explained in
terms of the junctions energy spectrum. These results are relevant for
spintronics because they demonstrate that the TMR in double junctions can be
tuned and enhanced by varying the in-between metallic layer's thickness.


title: Oscillations of rapidly rotating relativistic stars

abstract:
  Non-axisymmetric oscillations of rapidly rotating relativistic stars are
studied using the Cowling approximation. The oscillation spectra have been
estimated by Fourier transforming the evolution equations describing the
perturbations. This is the first study of its kind and provides information on
the effect of fast rotation on the oscillation spectra while it offers the
possibility in studying the complete problem by including spacetime
perturbations. Our study includes both axisymmetric and non-axisymmetric
perturbations and provides limits for the onset of the secular bar mode
rotational instability. We also present approximate formulae for the dependence
of the oscillation spectrum from rotation. The results suggest that it is
possible to extract the relativistic star's parameters from the observed
gravitational wave spectrum.


title:
Interaction of a CO molecule with a Pt monoatomic chain: the top
  geometry

abstract:
  Recent experiments showed that the conductance of Pt nanocontacts and
nanowires is measurably reduced by adsorption of CO. We present DFT
calculations of the electronic structure and ballistic conductance of a Pt
monoatomic chain and a CO molecule adsorbed in an on-top position. We find that
the main electronic molecule-chain interaction occurs via the $5\sigma$ and
$2\pi^{\star}$ orbitals of the molecule, involved in a donation/back-donation
process similar to that of CO on transition-metal surfaces. The ideal ballistic
conductance of the monoatomic chain undergoes a moderate reduction by about 1.0
G_0 (from 4 G_0 to 3.1 G_0) upon adsorption of CO. By repeating all
calculations with and without spin-orbit coupling, no substantial spin-orbit
induced change emerges either in the chain-molecule interaction mechanism or in
the conductance.


title:
Primordial Nucleosynthesis: from precision cosmology to fundamental
  physics

abstract:
  We present an up-to-date review of Big Bang Nucleosynthesis (BBN). We discuss
the main improvements which have been achieved in the past two decades on the
overall theoretical framework, summarize the impact of new experimental results
on nuclear reaction rates, and critically re-examine the astrophysical
determinations of light nuclei abundances. We report then on how BBN can be
used as a powerful test of new physics, constraining a wide range of ideas and
theoretical models of fundamental interactions beyond the standard model of
strong and electroweak forces and Einstein's general relativity.


title: How to cope with climate's complexity

abstract:
  Climate exhibits a vast range of dissipative structures. Some have
characteristic times of a few days; others evolve on thousands of years. All
these structures are interdependent; in other words, they communicate. It is
often considered that the only way to cope with climate complexity is to
integrate the equations of atmospheric and oceanic motion with the finer
possible mesh. Is this the sole strategy? Aren't we missing another
characteristic of the climate system: its ability to destroy and generate
information at the macroscopic scale? Paleoclimatologists consider that much of
this information is present in palaeoclimate archives. It is therefore natural
to build climate models such as to get the most of these archives. The strategy
proposed here is based on Bayesian statistics and low-order non-linear
dynamical systems, in a modelling approach that explicitly includes the effects
of uncertainties. Its practical interest is illustrated through the problem of
the timing of the next great glaciation. Is glacial inception overdue, or do we
need to wait for another 50,000 years before ice caps grow again? Our results
indicate a glaciation inception in 50,000 years.


title: Aggregation of self-propelled colloidal rods near confining walls

abstract:
  Non-equilibrium collective behavior of self-propelled colloidal rods in a
confining channel is studied using Brownian dynamics simulations and dynamical
density functional theory. We observe an aggregation process in which rods
self-organize into transiently jammed clusters at the channel walls. In the
early stage of the process, fast-growing hedgehog-like clusters are formed
which are largely immobile. At later stages, most of these clusters dissolve
and mobilize into nematized aggregates sliding past the walls.


title:
Optical-mechanical operation of the F2T2 Filter: a tunable filter
  designed to search for First Light

abstract:
  The Flamingos-2 Tandem Tunable filter is a tunable, narrow-band filter,
consisting of two Fabry-Perot etalons in series, capable of scanning to any
wavelength from 0.95 to 1.35 microns with a spectral resolution of R~800. It is
an accessory mode instrument for the near-IR Flamingos-2 imaging-spectrograph
designed for the Gemini South 8m Observatory and will be fed through the
upcoming Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics feed. The primary science goal of the
F2T2 filter is to perform a ground-based search for the first star forming
regions in the universe at redshifts of 7 < z < 11. The construction of the
F2T2 filter is complete and it is currently in its calibration and
commissioning phases. In this proceeding, we describe the calibration and
performance of the instrument.


title:
Low ML-Decoding Complexity, Large Coding Gain, Full-Rate, Full-Diversity
  STBCs for 2 X 2 and 4 X 2 MIMO Systems

abstract:
  This paper (Part of the content of this manuscript has been accepted for
presentation in IEEE Globecom 2008, to be held in New Orleans) deals with low
maximum likelihood (ML) decoding complexity, full-rate and full-diversity
space-time block codes (STBCs), which also offer large coding gain, for the 2
transmit antenna, 2 receive antenna ($2\times 2$) and the 4 transmit antenna, 2
receive antenna ($4\times 2$) MIMO systems. Presently, the best known STBC for
the $2\times2$ system is the Golden code and that for the $4\times2$ system is
the DjABBA code. Following the approach by Biglieri, Hong and Viterbo, a new
STBC is presented in this paper for the $2\times 2$ system. This code matches
the Golden code in performance and ML-decoding complexity for square QAM
constellations while it has lower ML-decoding complexity with the same
performance for non-rectangular QAM constellations. This code is also shown to
be \emph{information-lossless} and \emph{diversity-multiplexing gain} (DMG)
tradeoff optimal. This design procedure is then extended to the $4\times 2$
system and a code, which outperforms the DjABBA code for QAM constellations
with lower ML-decoding complexity, is presented. So far, the Golden code has
been reported to have an ML-decoding complexity of the order of $M^4$ for
square QAM of size $M$. In this paper, a scheme that reduces its ML-decoding
complexity to $M^2\sqrt{M}$ is presented.


title: Mean Curvature Motion of Triple Junctions of Graphs in Two Dimensions

abstract:
  We consider a system of three surfaces, graphs over a bounded domain in
${\mathbb R}^2$, intersecting along a time-dependent curve and moving by mean
curvature while preserving the pairwise angles at the curve of intersection
(equal to $2\pi/3$.) For the corresponding two-dimensional parabolic free
boundary problem we prove short-time existence of classical solutions (in
parabolic H\"{o}lder spaces), for sufficiently regular initial data satisfying
a compatibility condition.


title:
Selected-fit versus induced-fit protein binding: Kinetic differences and
  mutational analysis

abstract:
  The binding of a ligand molecule to a protein is often accompanied by
conformational changes of the protein. A central question is whether the ligand
induces the conformational change (induced-fit), or rather selects and
stabilizes a complementary conformation from a pre-existing equilibrium of
ground and excited states of the protein (selected-fit). We consider here the
binding kinetics in a simple four-state model of ligand-protein binding. In
this model, the protein has two conformations, which can both bind the ligand.
The first conformation is the ground state of the protein when the ligand is
off, and the second conformation is the ground state when the ligand is bound.
The induced-fit mechanism corresponds to ligand binding in the unbound ground
state, and the selected-fit mechanism to ligand binding in the excited state.
We find a simple, characteristic difference between the on- and off-rates in
the two mechanisms if the conformational relaxation into the ground states is
fast. In the case of selected-fit binding, the on-rate depends on the
conformational equilibrium constant, while the off-rate is independent. In the
case of induced-fit binding, in contrast, the off-rate depends on the
conformational equilibrium, while the on-rate is independent. Whether a protein
binds a ligand via selected-fit or induced-fit thus may be revealed by
mutations far from the protein's binding pocket, or other "perturbations" that
only affect the conformational equilibrium. In the case of selected-fit, such
mutations will only change the on-rate, and in the case of induced-fit, only
the off-rate.


title: Generic Hopf Galois extensions

abstract:
  In previous joint work with Eli Aljadeff we attached a generic Hopf Galois
extension A(H,c) to each twisted algebra H(c) obtained from a Hopf algebra H by
twisting its product with the help of a cocycle c. The algebra A(H,c) is a flat
deformation of H(c) over a "big" central subalgebra B(H,c) and can be viewed as
the noncommutative analogue of a versal torsor in the sense of Serre. After
surveying the results on A(H,c) obtained with Aljadeff, we establish three new
results: we present a systematic method to construct elements of the
commutative algebra B(H,c), we show that a certain important integrality
condition is satisfied by all finite-dimensional Hopf algebras generated by
grouplike and skew-primitive elements, and we compute B(H,c) in the case where
H is the Hopf algebra of a cyclic group.


title: The Flavor Group Delta(6n^2)

abstract:
  Many non-Abelian finite subgroups of SU (3) have been used to explain the
flavor structure of the Standard Model. In order to systematize and classify
successful models, a detailed knowledge of their mathematical structure is
necessary. In this paper we shall therefore look closely at the series of
finite non-Abelian groups known as Delta(6n^2), its smallest members being S3
(n = 1) and S4 (n = 2). For arbitrary n, we determine the conjugacy classes,
the irreducible representations, the Kronecker products as well as the
Clebsch-Gordan coefficients.