title:
ALMA Observations of the Coldest Place in the Universe: The Boomerang
  Nebula

abstract:
  The Boomerang Nebula is the coldest known object in the Universe, and an
extreme member of the class of Pre-Planetary Nebulae, objects which represent a
short-lived transitional phase between the AGB and Planetary Nebula
evolutionary stages. Previous single-dish CO (J=1-0) observations (with a 45
arcsec beam) showed that the high-speed outflow in this object has cooled to a
temperature significantly below the temperature of the cosmic background
radiation. Here we report the first observations of the Boomerang with ALMA in
the CO J=2-1 and J=1-0 lines to resolve the structure of this ultra-cold
nebula. We find a central hourglass-shaped nebula surrounded by a patchy, but
roughly round, cold high-velocity outflow. We compare the ALMA data with
visible-light images obtained with HST and confirm that the limb-brightened
bipolar lobes seen in these data represent hollow cavities with dense walls of
molecular gas and dust producing both the molecular-emission-line and
scattered-light structures seen at millimeter and visible wavelengths. The
large diffuse biconical shape of the nebula seen in the visible is likely due
to preferential illumination of the cold high-velocity outflow. We find a
compact source of millimeter-wave continuum in the nebular waist -- these data,
together with sensitive upper limits on the radio continuum using observations
with ATCA, indicate the presence of a substantial mass of very large (mm-sized)
grains in the waist of the nebula. Another unanticipated result is the
detection of CO emission regions beyond the ultracold region which indicate the
re-warming of the cold gas, most likely due to photoelectric grain heating.


title: Inequalities with angular integrability and applications

abstract:
  We prove an extension of the Stein-Weiss weighted estimates for fractional
integrals, in the context of Lp spaces with different integrability properties
in the radial and the angular direction. In this way, the classical estimates
can be unified with their improved radial versions. A number of consequences
are obtained: in particular we deduce precised versions of weighted Sobolev
embeddings, Caffarelli-Kohn-Nirenberg estimates, and Strichartz estimates for
the wave equation, which extend the radial improvements to the case of
arbitrary functions. Then we apply this technology in order to give new a
priori assumptions on weak solutions of the Navier-Stokes equation so as to be
able to conclude that they are smooth. The regularity criteria are given in
terms of mixed radial-angular weighted Lebesgue space norms.


title: Floquet chiral edge states in graphene

abstract:
  We report on the emergence of laser-induced chiral edge states in graphene
ribbons. Insights on the nature of these Floquet states is provided by an
analytical solution which is complemented with numerical simulations of the
transport properties. Guided by these results we show that graphene can be used
for realizing non-equilibrium topological states with striking tunability:
While the laser intensity can be used to control their velocity and decay
length, changing the laser polarization switches their propagation direction.


title: Optimal robust bounds for variance options

abstract:
  Robust, or model-independent properties of the variance swap are well-known,
and date back to Dupire and Neuberger, who showed that, given the price of
co-terminal call options, the price of a variance swap was exactly specified
under the assumption that the price process is continuous. In Cox and Wang we
showed that a lower bound on the price of a variance call could be established
using a solution to the Skorokhod embedding problem due to Root. In this paper,
we provide a construction, and a proof of optimality of the upper bound, using
results of Rost and Chacon, and show how this proof can be used to determine a
super-hedging strategy which is model-independent. In addition, we outline how
the hedging strategy may be computed numerically. Using these methods, we also
show that the Heston-Nandi model is 'asymptotically extreme' in the sense that,
for large maturities, the Heston-Nandi model gives prices for variance call
options which are approximately the lowest values consistent with the same call
price data.


title:
A note on the Geronimus transformation and Sobolev orthogonal
  polynomials

abstract:
  In this note we recast the Geronimus transformation in the framework of
polynomials orthogonal with respect to symmetric bilinear forms. We also show
that the double Geronimus transformations lead to non-diagonal Sobolev type
inner products.


title: Integrated Testlets and the Immediate Feedback Assessment Technique

abstract:
  The increased use of multiple-choice (MC) questions in introductory-level
physics final exams is largely hindered by reservations about its ability to
test the broad cognitive domain that is routinely accessed with typical
constructed-response (CR) questions. Thus, there is a need to explore ways in
which MC questions can be utilized pedagogically more like CR questions while
maintaining their attendant procedural advantages. we describe how an
answer-until-correct MC response format allows for the construction of
multiple-choice examinations designed to operate much as a hybrid between
standard MC and CR testing. With this tool - the immediate feedback assessment
technique (IF-AT) - students gain complete knowledge of the correct answer for
each question during the examination, and can use such information for solving
subsequent test items. This feature allows for the creation of a new type of
context-dependent item sets; the "integrated testlet". In an integrated testlet
certain items are purposefully inter-dependent and are thus presented in a
particular order. Such integrated testlets represent a proxy of typical CR
questions, but with a straightforward and uniform marking scheme that also
allows for granting partial credit for proximal knowledge. We present a case
study of an IF-AT-scored midterm and final examination for an introductory
physics course, and discuss specific testlets with varying degrees of
integration. In total, the items are found to allow for excellent
discrimination, with a mean item-total correlation measure for the combined 45
items of the two examinations of $\bar{r}'=0.41\pm 0.13$ (mean $\pm$ standard
deviation) and a final examination test reliability of $\alpha=0.82$ ($n=25$
items). Furthermore, partial credit is shown to be allocated in a
discriminating and valid manner in these examinations.


title: Extended-Lorentz Quantum-Cosmology Symmetry Group

abstract:
  Unitarily representable by transformations of Milne quantum-universe (MQU)
Hilbert-space vectors is a 9-parameter 'extended-Lorentz' Lie group whose
algebra comprises 9 conserved MQU-constituent ('quc') attributes: electric
charge, energy, spirality, 3-vector momentum and 3-vector angular momentum.
Commutation with the full symmetry algebra by the 3-element Lorentz-extending
sub-algebra identifies any quc by its (permanent) trio of charge, spirality and
energy integers. Milne's redshift-specifying 'universe age' is invariant under
the MQU symmetry group. Also invariant is the (elsewhere specified) universe
hamiltonian--a self-adjoint age-dependent Hilbert-space operator (not a
symmetry-algebra member) that generates universe evolution with increasing age
through a 'Schrodinger' (first-order) differential equation.


title:
Challenging the utility of third-order azimuth harmonics in the
  description of ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions

abstract:
  In recent years it has become conventional practice to include higher-order
cylindrical harmonics in the phenomenological description of two-particle
angular correlations from ultra-relativistic heavy-ion collisions. These model
elements, whose dependence on relative azimuth angle has the form
$\cos[m(\phi_1-\phi_2)]$ where $m > 2$, were introduced to support a
hydrodynamic flow interpretation of the same-side ($|\phi_1-\phi_2| < \pi/2$)
2D peak in the correlations. Previous studies have shown that the $m > 2$
harmonics are not required by the data, that they destabilize the fitting
models, and that their net effect is to decompose the same-side peak into two
components, one being dependent on and the other being independent of relative
pseudorapidity. Thus we are lead to question whether descriptions of angular
correlation data including higher-order harmonics inform our understanding of
the same-side peak or heavy-ion collisions in general. Results from analysis of
two-dimensional angular correlation data from the Relativistic Heavy-Ion
Collider (RHIC) and the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) show that the RHIC data do
not exclude a single-Gaussian hypothesis for the same-side peak. We find that
the net effect of including the $m = 3$ harmonic or azimuth sextupole in the
fitting model is the inclusion of small non-Gaussian dependence in the
mathematical description of the same-side peak. Those non-Gaussian effects are
systematically insignificant and can be accommodated by minor perturbations to
the same-side 2D Gaussian peak model, which act locally at small relative
azimuth. We also demonstrate that the 0-1% 2D angular correlation data for 2.76
TeV Pb+Pb collisions from ATLAS, which display an away-side double peak on
azimuth, do not require a sextupole and exclude a positive same-side sextupole.


title: Maximally Atomic Languages

abstract:
  The atoms of a regular language are non-empty intersections of complemented
and uncomplemented quotients of the language. Tight upper bounds on the number
of atoms of a language and on the quotient complexities of atoms are known. We
introduce a new class of regular languages, called the maximally atomic
languages, consisting of all languages meeting these bounds. We prove the
following result: If L is a regular language of quotient complexity n and G is
the subgroup of permutations in the transition semigroup T of the minimal DFA
of L, then L is maximally atomic if and only if G is transitive on k-subsets of
1,...,n for 0 <= k <= n and T contains a transformation of rank n-1.


title:
Super-intense highly anisotropic optical transitions in anisotropic
  quantum dots

abstract:
  Coulomb interaction among electrons is found to have profound effects on the
electronic properties of anisotropic quantum dots in a perpendicular external
magnetic field, and in the presence of the Rashba spin-orbit interaction. This
is more evident in optical transitions, which we find in this system to be
highly anisotropic and super-intense, in particular, for large values of the
anisotropy parameter.


title: The gravitational drag force on an extended object moving in a gas

abstract:
  Using axisymmetrical numerical simulations, we revisit the gravitational drag
felt by a gravitational Plummer sphere with mass M and core radius Rs, moving
at constant velocity V0 through a background homogeneous medium of adiabatic
gas. Since the potential is non-diverging, there is no gas removal due to
accretion. When Rs is larger than the Bondi radius RB, the perturbation is
linear at every point and the drag force is well fitted by the time-dependent
Ostriker's formula with r_{min}= 2.25Rs, where r_{min} is the minimum impact
parameter in the Coulomb logarithm. In the deep nonlinear supersonic regime
(Rs<< RB), the minimum radius is no longer related with Rs but with RB. We find
r_min=3.3mach^{-2.5}RB, for Mach numbers of the perturber between $1.5$ and
$4$, although r_{min} = 2\mach^{-2}RB=2GM/V0^{2} also provides a good fit at
mach>2. As a consequence, the drag force does not depend sensitively on the
nonlinearity parameter RB/Rs, for RB/Rs-values larger than a certain critical
value. We show that our generalized Ostriker's formula for the drag force is
more accurate than the formula suggested by Kim & Kim (2009).


title: A New Key Establishment Protocol and its Application in Pay-TV Systems

abstract:
  A pay-TV consumer uses a decoder to access encrypted digital content. To this
end, the decoder contains a chip capable of decrypting the content if
provisioned with the appropriate content decryption keys. A key establishment
protocol is used to secure the delivery of the content decryption keys to the
chip. This paper presents a new protocol and shows how the protocol can be
applied in a pay-TV system. Compared to existing protocols, the presented
solution reduces the risk that decoders need to be replaced in order to correct
a security breach. The new protocol has recently been incorporated in an ETSI
standard.


title: A wind-shell interaction model for multipolar planetary nebulae

abstract:
  We explore the formation of multipolar structures in planetary and
pre-planetary nebulae from the interaction of a fast post-AGB wind with a
highly inhomogeneous and filamentary shell structure assumed to form during the
final phase of the high density wind. The simulations were performed with a new
hydrodynamics code integrated in the interactive framework of the astrophysical
modeling package SHAPE. In contrast to conventional astrophysical hydrodynamics
software, the new code does not require any programming intervention by the
user for setting up or controlling the code. Visualization and analysis of the
simulation data has been done in SHAPE without external software. The key
conclusion from the simulations is that secondary lobes in planetary nebulae,
such as Hubble 5 and K3-17, can be formed through the interaction of a fast
low-density wind with a complex high density environment, such as a filamentary
circumstellar shell. The more complicated alternative explanation of
intermittent collimated outflows that change direction, in many cases may
therefore not be necessary. We consider that the wind-shell interaction
scenario is more likely since the bow-shock shape expected from a strongly
cooling bow-shock from jets is different from that of the observed bubbles.
Furthermore, the timescales of the wind-wind interaction suggest that the
progenitor star was rather massive.


title:
Toward quantum processing in molecules: A THz-bandwidth coherent memory
  for light

abstract:
  The unusual features of quantum mechanics are enabling the development of
technologies not possible with classical physics. These devices utilize
nonclassical phenomena in the states of atoms, ions, and solid-state media as
the basis for many prototypes. Here we investigate molecular states as a
distinct alternative. We demonstrate a memory for light based on storing
photons in the vibrations of hydrogen molecules. The THz-bandwidth molecular
memory is used to store 100-fs pulses for durations up to 1ns, enabling 10,000
operational time bins. The results demonstrate the promise of molecules for
constructing compact ultrafast quantum photonic technologies.


title: Ion mediated cross-shield driven mucous swelling kinetics

abstract:
  We present an experimentally guided, bi-phasic, multi-species ionic gel model
to compare and make quantitative predictions on the viscoelastic properties of
healthy mucus versus Cystic-Fibrosis infected mucus. The mixture theory
consists of the mucus (polymer phase) and water (solvent phase) as well as
several different ions: H$^+$, Na$^+$, Cl$^-$ and Ca$^{2+}$. The model is
calibrated with the experimental data of mucus diffusivities. Numerical studies
reveal that the Donnan forces are the dominating mechanism driving the mucus
swelling/deswelling transition. However, these transitions could be continuous
or discontinuous, depending on the complex interplay between ionic bath
concentrations, pH, polymer mass in the solvent and the average charge per
monomer.


title: Comment on Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 168702 (2013): Causal Entropic Forces

abstract:
  The recent Letter by Wissner-Gross and Freer [1] proposes a relationship
between intelligence and entropy maximization based on a causal generalization
of entropic forces over configuration space paths, which may beautifully induce
sophisticated behaviors associated with competitive adaptation on time scales
faster than natural evolution. These authors suggest a potentially general
thermodynamic model of adaptive behavior as a non-equilibrium process in open
systems. On the basis of the force-entropy correlations published by us a
decade ago [2], we point out that their main relations have been previously
reported within a simpler statistical thermodynamic model where non-interacting
moving particles are assumed to form an elastic body.
  [1] A.D. Wissner-Gross and C.E. Free, Phys. Rev. Lett. 110 (2013) 168702
  [2] E. Canessa, Physica A 341 (2004) 165 -also at arXiv:cond-mat/0403724


title: Stratified-algebraic vector bundles

abstract:
  We investigate stratified-algebraic vector bundles on a real algebraic
variety X. A stratification of X is a finite collection of pairwise disjoint,
Zariski locally closed subvarieties whose union is X. A topological vector
bundle on X is called a stratified-algebraic vector bundle if, roughly
speaking, there exists a stratification of X such that the restriction of the
bundle to each stratum is an algebraic vector bundle. In particular, every
algebraic vector bundle on X is stratified-algebraic. It turns out that
stratified-algebraic vector bundles have many surprising properties, which
distinguish them from algebraic and topological vector bundles.


title: Stable Pairs and Coercive Estimates for The Mabuchi Functional

abstract:
  We show that a projective manifold is stable if and only if the Mabuchi
energy is proper on the space of algebraic metrics. We show that stability
implies finite automorphism group.


title: Poisson ratio and excess low-frequency vibrational states in glasses

abstract:
  In glass, starting from a dependence of the Angell's fragility on the Poisson
ratio [V. N. Novikov and A. P. Sokolov, Nature 431, 961 (2004)], and a
dependence of the Poisson ratio on the atomic packing density [G. N. Greaves et
al., Nat. Mater. 10, 823 (2011)], we propose that the heterogeneities are
predominantly density fluctuations in strong glasses (lower Poisson ratio) and
shear elasticity fluctuations in fragile glasses (higher Poisson ratio).
Because the excess of low-frequency vibration modes in comparison with the
Debye regime (boson peak) is strongly connected to these fluctuations, we
propose that they are breathing-like (with change of volume) in strong glasses
and shear-like (without change of volume) in fragile glasses. As a
verification, it is confirmed that the excess modes in the strong silica glass
are predominantly breathing-like. Moreover, it is shown that the excess
breathing-like modes in a strong polymeric glass are replaced by shear-like
modes under hydrostatic pressure as the glass becomes more compact.


title: B -> K^* Form Factors from Flavor Data to QCD and Back

abstract:
  Sufficient control of transition form factors is a vital ingredient for the
precision flavor programs including the nearer term searches at the Large
Hadron Collider (LHC) and the forthcoming Belle II experiment. We improve on
existing methods to extract B -> K^* form factor ratios at low hadronic recoil
from B -> K^* l^+ l^- data on the angular observables F_L, A_T^(2) and P'_4 by
adding heavy quark symmetry-based constraints and by investigating the cross
talk between low and large recoil. The data-extracted form factor ratios i)
provide benchmarks for the lattice and light cone sum rule predictions, the
latter of which have been updated including improved uncertainty estimations
and ii) allow to improve the predictions for benchmark observables. We find
that present data on the forward-backward asymmetry A_FB and the angular
observable P'_5 at low recoil are in good agreement with the Standard Model.


title: The CN/C15 N isotopic ratio towards dark clouds

abstract:
  Understanding the origin of the composition of solar system cosmomaterials is
a central question, not only in the cosmochemistry and astrochemistry fields,
and requires various approaches to be combined. Measurements of isotopic ratios
in cometary materials provide strong constraints on the content of the
protosolar nebula. Their relation with the composition of the parental dark
clouds is, however, still very elusive. In this paper, we bring new constraints
based on the isotopic composition of nitrogen in dark clouds, with the aim of
understanding the chemical processes that are responsible for the observed
isotopic ratios. We have observed and detected the fundamental rotational
transition of C$^{15}$N towards two starless dark clouds, L1544 and L1498. We
were able to derive the column density ratio of C$^{15}$N over $^{13}$CN
towards the same clouds, and obtain the CN/C$^{15}$N isotopic ratios, which
were found to be $500\pm75$ for both L1544 and L1498. These values are
therefore marginally consistent with the protosolar value of 441. Moreover,
this ratio is larger than the isotopic ratio of nitrogen measured in HCN. In
addition, we present model calculations of the chemical fractionation of
nitrogen in dark clouds, which make it possible to understand how CN can be
deprived of $^{15}$N and HCN can simultaneously be enriched in heavy nitrogen.
The non-fractionation of N2H+, however, remains an open issue and we propose
some chemical way of alleviating the discrepancy between model predictions and
the observed ratios.


title: Lower Bounds in Real Schubert Calculus

abstract:
  We describe a large-scale computational experiment to study structure in the
numbers of real solutions to osculating instances of Schubert problems. This
investigation uncovered Schubert problems whose computed numbers of real
solutions variously exhibit nontrivial upper bounds, lower bounds, gaps, and a
congruence modulo four. We present a family of Schubert problems, one in each
Grassmannian, and prove their osculating instances have the observed lower
bounds and gaps.


title:
Three-dimensional dynamics of a fermionic Mott wedding-cake in clean and
  disordered optical lattices

abstract:
  Non-equilibrium quantum phenomena are ubiquitous in nature. Yet, theoretical
predictions on the real-time dynamics of many-body quantum systems remain
formidably challenging, especially for high dimensions, strong interactions or
disordered samples. Here we consider a notable paradigm of strongly correlated
Fermi systems, the Mott phase of the Hubbard model, in a setup resembling
ultracold-gases experiments. We study the three-dimensional expansion of a
cloud into an optical lattice after removing the confining potential. We use
time-dependent density-functional theory combined with dynamical mean-field
theory, considering interactions below and above the Mott threshold, as well as
disorder effects. At strong coupling, we observe multiple timescales in the
melting of the Mott wedding-cake structure, as the Mott plateau persist orders
of magnitude longer than the band insulating core. We also show that disorder
destabilises the Mott plateau and that, compared to a clean setup, localisation
can decrease, creating an interesting dynamic crossover during the expansion.


title:
Can the observed CP asymmetry in tau --> K pi nu_tau be due to
  Non-Standard Tensor interactions?

abstract:
  An intriguing opposite sign of the CP violating asymmetry was recently
measured in the tau decay modes tau -> Ks pi nutau by the BaBar collaboration,
than that expected within the Standard Model. If this result is confirmed with
higher precision, the observed decay rate asymmetry ACP, can only arise from
some Non-Standard Interactions(NSI) occurring possibly in both the hadronic as
well as in the leptonic sectors. We illustrate that while a simple charged
scalar interaction cannot yield this rate asymmetry, it will be possible to
generate this in the presence of a tensor interaction. Parameterizing the
strength and weak phase of this NSI contribution, the observed branching ratio
and the decay rate CP asymmetry for the particular mode tau -> Ks pi nutau, are
used to determine the CP violating weak phase and the coupling of a tensorial
interaction that can give a consistent sign and magnitude of the asymmetry.


title:
Measurement of associated production of Z bosons with charm quark jets
  in ppbar collisions at sqrt(s)=1.96 TeV

abstract:
  We present the first measurements of the ratios of cross sections,
\sigma(ppbar -> Z+c jet)/\sigma(ppbar -> Z+jet) and \sigma(ppbar -> Z+c
jet)/\sigma(ppbar -> Z+b jet) for the associated production of a Z boson with
at least one charm or bottom quark jet. Jets have transverse momentum p_{T}>20
GeV and pseudorapidity |\eta|<2.5. These cross section ratios are measured
differentially as a function of jet and $Z$ boson transverse momenta, based on
9.7 fb^{-1} of ppbar collisions collected with the D0 detector at the Fermilab
Tevatron Collider at sqrt(s) = 1.96 TeV. The measurements show significant
deviations from perturbative QCD calculations and predictions from various
event generators.


title:
Scale-Free and Multifractal Time Dynamics of fMRI Signals during Rest
  and Task

abstract:
  Scaling temporal dynamics in functional MRI (fMRI) signals have been
evidenced for a decade as intrinsic characteristics of ongoing brain activity
(Zarahn et al., 1997). Recently, scaling properties were shown to fluctuate
across brain networks and to be modulated between rest and task (He, 2011):
notably, Hurst exponent, quantifying long memory, decreases under task in
activating and deactivating brain regions. In most cases, such results were
obtained: First, from univariate (voxelwise or regionwise) analysis, hence
focusing on specific cognitive systems such as Resting-State Networks (RSNs)
and raising the issue of the specificity of this scale-free dynamics modulation
in RSNs. Second, using analysis tools designed to measure a single scaling
exponent related to the second order statistics of the data, thus relying on
models that either implicitly or explicitly assume Gaussianity and (asymptotic)
self-similarity, while fMRI signals may significantly depart from those either
of those two assumptions (Ciuciu et al., 2008; Wink et al., 2008). To address
these issues, the present contribution elaborates on the analysis of the
scaling properties of fMRI temporal dynamics by proposing two significant
variations. First, scaling properties are technically investigated using the
recently introduced Wavelet Leader-based Multifractal formalism (WLMF; Wendt et
al., 2007). This measures a collection of scaling exponents, thus enables a
richer and more versatile description of scale invariance (beyond correlation
and Gaussianity), referred to as multifractality. Also, it benefits from
improved estimation performance compared to tools previously used in the
literature. Second, scaling properties are investigated in both RSN and non-RSN
structures (e.g., artifacts), at a broader spatial scale than the voxel one,
using a multivariate approach, namely the Multi-Subject Dictionary Learning
(MSDL) algorithm (Varoquaux et al., 2011) that produces a set of spatial
components that appear more sparse than their Independent Component Analysis
(ICA) counterpart. These tools are combined and applied to a fMRI dataset
comprising 12 subjects with resting-state and activation runs (Sadaghiani et
al., 2009). Results stemming from those analysis confirm the already reported
task-related decrease of long memory in functional networks, but also show that
it occurs in artifacts, thus making this feature not specific to functional
networks. Further, results indicate that most fMRI signals appear multifractal
at rest except in non-cortical regions. Task-related modulation of
multifractality appears only significant in functional networks and thus can be
considered as the key property disentangling functional networks from
artifacts. These finding are discussed in the light of the recent literature
reporting scaling dynamics of EEG microstate sequences at rest and addressing
non-stationarity issues in temporally independent fMRI modes.


title: The necessity of wheels in universal quantization formulas

abstract:
  In the context of formal deformation quantization, we provide an elementary
argument showing that any universal quantization formula necessarily involves
graphs with wheels.


title: Validating Simple Dynamical Simulations of the Unitary Fermi Gas

abstract:
  We present a comparison between simulated dynamics of the unitary fermion gas
using the superfluid local density approximation (SLDA) and a simplified
bosonic model, the extended Thomas Fermi (ETF) with a unitary equation of
state. Small amplitude fluctuations have similar dynamics in both theories for
frequencies far below the pair breaking threshold and wave vectors much smaller
than the Fermi momentum, and the low frequency linear responses match well for
surprisingly large wave vectors, even up to the Fermi momentum. For non-linear
dynamics such as vortex generation, the ETF provides a semi-quantitative
description of SLDA dynamics as long as the fluctuations do not have
significant power near the pair breaking threshold, otherwise the dynamics of
the ETF cannot be trusted. Nonlinearities in the ETF tends to generate
high-frequency fluctuations, and with no normal component to remove this energy
from the superfluid, features like vortex lattices cannot relax and crystallize
as they do in the SLDA. We present a heuristic diagnostic for validating the
reliability of ETF dynamics by considering the approximate conservation of
square of the gap: $\int|\Delta|^2$.


title:
Complex group algebras of the double covers of the symmetric and
  alternating groups

abstract:
  We prove that the double covers of the alternating and symmetric groups are
determined by their complex group algebras. To be more precise, let $n\geq 5$
be an integer, $G$ a finite group, and let $\AAA$ and $\SSS^\pm$ denote the
double covers of $\Al_n$ and $\Sy_n$, respectively. We prove that $\CC G\cong
\CC \AAA$ if and only if $G\cong \AAA$, and $\CC G\cong \CC
\SSS^+\cong\CC\SSS^-$ if and only if $G\cong \SSS^+$ or $\SSS^-$. This in
particular completes the proof of a conjecture proposed by the second and
fourth authors that every finite quasi-simple group is determined uniquely up
to isomorphism by the structure of its complex group algebra. The known results
on prime power degrees and relatively small degrees of irreducible (linear and
projective) representations of the symmetric and alternating groups together
with the classification of finite simple groups play an essential role in the
proofs.


title: Quantum Dynamics of a Dissipative and Confined Cyclotron Motion

abstract:
  We study the dissipative dynamics of a charged oscillator in a magnetic field
by coupling (a la Caldeira and Leggett) it to a heat bath consisting of
non-interacting harmonic oscillators. We derive here the auto-correlation
functions of the position and momentum and study its behavior at various
limiting situations. The equilibrium (steady state) dispersions of position and
momentum are obtained from their respective autocorrelation functions. We
analyse the equilibrium position and momentum dispersions at low and high
temperatures for both low and high magnetic field strengths. We obtain the
classical diffusive behavior (at long times) as well as the equilibrium
momentum dispersion of the free quantum charged particle in a magnetic field,
in the limit of vanishing oscillator potential {\omega}_0 . We establish the
relations between the reduced partition function and the equilibrium
dispersions of the dissipative and confined cyclotron problem.


title: On the conservation of Superenergy and its applications

abstract:
  In this work we present a geometric identity involving the Bel-Robinson
tensor which is formally similar to the Sparling identity (which involves the
Einstein tensor through the Einstein 3-form). In our identity the Bel-Robinson
tensor enters through the {\em Bel-Robinson 3-form} which, we believe, is
introduced in the literature for the first time. The meaning of this identity
is that it is possible to formulate a {\em generic} conservation law for the
quantity represented by the Bel-Robinson tensor (superenergy). We also show how
one can use the Bel-Robinson 3-form to estimate the components of the
Bel-Robinson tensor which are computed with respect to the causal elements of a
frame. This estimate could be useful in a global existence proof of the
solutions of a theory of gravitation in dimension four.


title: On Optimal and Fair Service Allocation in Mobile Cloud Computing

abstract:
  This paper studies the optimal and fair service allocation for a variety of
mobile applications (single or group and collaborative mobile applications) in
mobile cloud computing. We exploit the observation that using tiered clouds,
i.e. clouds at multiple levels (local and public) can increase the performance
and scalability of mobile applications. We proposed a novel framework to model
mobile applications as a location-time workflows (LTW) of tasks; here users
mobility patterns are translated to mobile service usage patterns. We show that
an optimal mapping of LTWs to tiered cloud resources considering multiple QoS
goals such application delay, device power consumption and user cost/price is
an NP-hard problem for both single and group-based applications. We propose an
efficient heuristic algorithm called MuSIC that is able to perform well (73% of
optimal, 30% better than simple strategies), and scale well to a large number
of users while ensuring high mobile application QoS. We evaluate MuSIC and the
2-tier mobile cloud approach via implementation (on real world clouds) and
extensive simulations using rich mobile applications like intensive signal
processing, video streaming and multimedia file sharing applications. Our
experimental and simulation results indicate that MuSIC supports scalable
operation (100+ concurrent users executing complex workflows) while improving
QoS. We observe about 25% lower delays and power (under fixed price
constraints) and about 35% decrease in price (considering fixed delay) in
comparison to only using the public cloud. Our studies also show that MuSIC
performs quite well under different mobility patterns, e.g. random waypoint and
Manhattan models.


title: Conformal mappings of stretched polyominoes onto half-plane

abstract:
  We give an algorithm for finding conformal mappings onto the upper half-plane
and conformal modules of some types of polygons. The polygons are obtained by
stretching along the real axis polyominoes i.e., polygons which are connected
unions of unit squares with vertices from the integer lattice. We consider the
polyominoes of two types, so-called the $P$-pentomino and the $L$-tetromino.
The proofs are based on the Riemann-Schwarz reflection principle and
uniformization of compact simply-connected Riemann surfaces by rational
functions.


title: A new precise mass for the progenitor of the Type IIP SN 2008bk

abstract:
  The progenitor of the Type IIP SN 2008bk was discovered in pre-explosion
g'r'i'IYJHKs images, acquired with European Southern Observatory Very Large
Telescope FORS, HAWK-I and ISAAC instruments and the Gemini GMOS-S instrument.
The wealth of pre-explosion observations makes the progenitor of this SN one of
the best studied, since the detection of the progenitor of SN1987A. Previous
analyses of the properties of the progenitor were hampered by the limited
quality of the photometric calibration of the pre-explosion images and the
crowded nature of the field containing the SN. We present new late-time
observations of the site of SN2008bk acquired with identical instrument and
filter configurations as the pre-explosion observations, and confirm that the
previously identified red supergiant star was the progenitor of this SN and has
now disappeared. Image subtraction techniques were used to conduct precise
photometry of the now missing progenitor, independently of blending from any
nearby stars. The nature of the surrounding stellar population and their
contribution to the flux attributed to the progenitor in the pre-explosion
images are probed using HST WFC3 UVIS/IR observations. In comparison with MARCS
synthetic spectra, we find the progenitor was a highly reddened RSG with
luminosity log (L/Lsun)=4.84+/-0.11, corresponding to an initial mass of
Minit=12.9+/-1.7Msun. The temperature of the progenitor was hotter than
previously expected for RSGs (T ~ 4330K), but consistent with new temperatures
derived for RSGs using SED fitting techniques. We show that there is evidence
for significant extinction of the progenitor, possibly arising in the CSM; but
that this dust yields a similar reddening law to dust found in the ISM
(E(B-V)=0.77 with Rv=3.1). [Abridged]


title: Fate of $Z_2$ Symmetric Scalar Field

abstract:
  The evolution of a coherently oscillating scalar field with $Z_2$ symmetry is
studied in detail. We calculate the dissipation rate of the scalar field based
on the closed time path formalism. Consequently, it is shown that the energy
density of the coherent oscillation can be efficiently dissipated if the
coupling constant is larger than the critical value, even though the scalar
particle is stable due to the $Z_2$ symmetry.


title:
Quantum-classical phase transition of the escape rate of two-sublattice
  antiferromagnetic large spins

abstract:
  The Hamiltonian of a two-sublattice antiferromagnetic spins, with single
(hard-axis) and double ion anisotropies described by $H=J
\bold{\hat{S}}_{1}\cdot\bold{\hat{S}}_{2} -
2J_{z}\hat{S}_{1z}\hat{S}_{2z}+K(\hat{S}_{1z}^2 +\hat{S}_{2z}^2)$ is
investigated using the method of effective potential. The problem is mapped to
a single particle quantum-mechanical Hamiltonian in terms of the relative
coordinate and reduced mass. We study the quantum-classical phase transition of
the escape rate of this model. We show that the first-order phase transition
for this model sets in at the critical value $J_c=\frac{K+J_z}{2}$ while for
the anisotropic Heisenberg coupling $H = J(S_{1x}S_{2x} +S_{1y}S_{2y}) +
J_zS_{1z}S_{2z} + K(S_{1z}^2+ S_{2z}^2)$ we obtain $J_c=\frac{2K-J_z}{3}$ . The
phase diagrams of the transition are also studied.


title: Clumpy Disc and Bulge Formation

abstract:
  We present a set of hydrodynamical/Nbody controlled simulations of isolated
gas rich galaxies that self-consistently include SN feedback and a detailed
chemical evolution model, both tested in cosmological simulations. The initial
conditions are motivated by the observed star forming galaxies at z ~ 2-3. We
find that the presence of a multiphase interstellar media in our models
promotes the growth of disc instability favouring the formation of clumps which
in general, are not easily disrupted on timescales compared to the migration
time. We show that stellar clumps migrate towards the central region and
contribute to form a classical-like bulge with a Sersic index, n > 2. Our
physically-motivated Supernova feedback has a mild influence on clump survival
and evolution, partially limiting the mass growth of clumps as the energy
released per Supernova event is increased, with the consequent flattening of
the bulge profile. This regulation does not prevent the building of a
classical-like bulge even for the most energetic feedback tested. Our Supernova
feedback model is able to establish a self-regulated star formation, producing
mass-loaded outflows and stellar age spreads comparable to observations. We
find that the bulge formation by clumps may coexit with other channels of bulge
assembly such as bar and mergers. Our results suggest that galactic bulges
could be interpreted as composite systems with structural components and
stellar populations storing archaeological information of the dynamical history
of their galaxy.


title: Twisted homological stability for configuration spaces

abstract:
  Let M be an open, connected manifold. A classical theorem of McDuff and Segal
states that the sequence of configuration spaces of n unordered, distinct
points in M is homologically stable with coefficients in Z: in each degree, the
integral homology is eventually independent of n. The purpose of this note is
to prove that this phenomenon also holds for homology with twisted
coefficients. We first define an appropriate notion of finite-degree twisted
coefficient system for configuration spaces and then use a spectral sequence
argument to deduce the result from the untwisted homological stability result
of McDuff and Segal. The result and the methods are generalisations of those of
Betley for the symmetric groups.


title: Understanding recurrent crime as system-immanent collective behavior

abstract:
  Containing the spreading of crime is a major challenge for society. Yet,
since thousands of years, no effective strategy has been found to overcome
crime. To the contrary, empirical evidence shows that crime is recurrent, a
fact that is not captured well by rational choice theories of crime. According
to these, strong enough punishment should prevent crime from happening. To gain
a better understanding of the relationship between crime and punishment, we
consider that the latter requires prior discovery of illicit behavior and study
a spatial version of the inspection game. Simulations reveal the spontaneous
emergence of cyclic dominance between ''criminals'', ''inspectors'', and
''ordinary people'' as a consequence of spatial interactions. Such cycles
dominate the evolutionary process, in particular when the temptation to commit
crime or the cost of inspection are low or moderate. Yet, there are also
critical parameter values beyond which cycles cease to exist and the population
is dominated either by a stable mixture of criminals and inspectors or one of
these two strategies alone. Both continuous and discontinuous phase transitions
to different final states are possible, indicating that successful strategies
to contain crime can be very much counter-intuitive and complex. Our results
demonstrate that spatial interactions are crucial for the evolutionary outcome
of the inspection game, and they also reveal why criminal behavior is likely to
be recurrent rather than evolving towards an equilibrium with monotonous
parameter dependencies.


title: The Herschel Stripe 82 Survey (HerS): Maps and Early Catalog

abstract:
  We present the first set of maps and band-merged catalog from the Herschel
Stripe 82 Survey (HerS). Observations at 250, 350, and 500 micron were taken
with the Spectral and Photometric Imaging Receiver (SPIRE) instrument aboard
the Herschel Space Observatory. HerS covers 79 deg$^2$ along the SDSS Stripe 82
to a depth of 13.0, 12.9, and 14.8 mJy beam$^{-1}$ (including confusion) at
250, 350, and 500 micron, respectively. HerS was designed to measure
correlations with external tracers of the dark matter density field --- either
point-like (i.e., galaxies selected from radio to X-ray) or extended (i.e.,
clusters and gravitational lensing) --- in order to measure the bias and
redshift distribution of intensities of infrared-emitting dusty star-forming
galaxies and AGN. By locating HeRS in Stripe 82, we maximize the overlap with
available and upcoming cosmological surveys. The band-merged catalog contains
3.3x10$^4$ sources detected at a significance of >3 $\sigma$ (including
confusion noise). The maps and catalog are available at
http://www.astro.caltech.edu/hers/


title:
Analytic Solution for Tachyon Condensation in Berkovits' Open
  Superstring Field Theory

abstract:
  We present an analytic solution for tachyon condensation on a non-BPS D-brane
in Berkovits' open superstring field theory. The solution is presented as a
product of $2\times 2$ matrices in two distinct $GL_2$ subgroups of the open
string star algebra. All string fields needed for computation of the
nonpolynomial action can be derived in closed form, and the action produces the
expected non-BPS D-brane tension in accordance with Sen's conjecture. We also
comment on how D-brane charges may be encoded in the topology of the tachyon
vacuum gauge orbit.


title: Artificial graphene with tunable interactions

abstract:
  We create an artificial graphene system with tunable interactions and study
the crossover from metallic to Mott insulating regimes, both in isolated and
coupled two-dimensional honeycomb layers. The artificial graphene consists of a
two-component spin mixture of an ultracold atomic Fermi gas loaded into a
hexagonal optical lattice. For strong repulsive interactions we observe a
suppression of double occupancy and measure a gapped excitation spectrum. We
present a quantitative comparison between our measurements and theory, making
use of a novel numerical method to obtain Wannier functions for complex lattice
structures. Extending our studies to time-resolved measurements, we investigate
the equilibration of the double occupancy as a function of lattice loading
time.


title: Stability of Satellites in Closely Packed Planetary Systems

abstract:
  We perform numerical integrations of four-body (star, planet, planet,
satellite) systems to investigate the stability of satellites in planetary
Systems with Tightly-packed Inner Planets (STIPs). We find that the majority of
closely-spaced stable two-planet systems can stably support satellites across a
range of parameter-space which is only slightly decreased compared to that seen
for the single-planet case. In particular, circular prograde satellites remain
stable out to $\sim 0.4 R_H$ (where $R_H$ is the Hill Radius) as opposed to
$\sim 0.5 R_H$ in the single-planet case. A similarly small restriction in the
stable parameter-space for retrograde satellites is observed, where planetary
close approaches in the range 2.5 to 4.5 mutual Hill radii destabilize most
satellites orbits only if $a\sim 0.65 R_H$. In very close planetary pairs (e.g.
the 12:11 resonance) the addition of a satellite frequently destabilizes the
entire system, causing extreme close-approaches and the loss of satellites over
a range of circumplanetary semi-major axes. The majority of systems
investigated stably harbored satellites over a wide parameter-space, suggesting
that STIPs can generally offer a dynamically stable home for satellites, albeit
with a slightly smaller stable parameter-space than the single-planet case. As
we demonstrate that multi-planet systems are not a priori poor candidates for
hosting satellites, future measurements of satellite occurrence rates in
multi-planet systems versus single-planet systems could be used to constrain
either satellite formation or past periods of strong dynamical interaction
between planets.


title:
Far-infrared spectroscopy of a lensed starburst: a blind redshift from
  Herschel

abstract:
  We report the redshift of HATLAS J132427.0+284452 (hereafter HATLAS J132427),
a gravitationally lensed starburst galaxy, the first determined 'blind' by the
Herschel Space Observatory. This is achieved via the detection of [C II]
consistent with z = 1.68 in a far-infrared spectrum taken with the SPIRE
Fourier Transform Spectrometer. We demonstrate that the [C II] redshift is
secure via detections of CO J = 2 - 1 and 3 - 2 using the Combined Array for
Research in Millimeter-wave Astronomy and the Institut de Radioastronomie
Millimetrique's Plateau de Bure Interferometer. The intrinsic properties appear
typical of high-redshift starbursts despite the high lensing-amplified fluxes,
proving the ability of the FTS to probe this population with the aid of
lensing. The blind detection of [C II] demonstrates the potential of the SAFARI
imaging spectrometer, proposed for the much more sensitive SPICA mission, to
determine redshifts of multiple dusty galaxies simultaneously without the
benefit of lensing.


title: Narrow-K-Band Observations of the GJ 1214 System

abstract:
  GJ 1214 is a nearby M dwarf star that hosts a transiting super-Earth-size
planet, making this system an excellent target for atmospheric studies. Most
studies find that the transmission spectrum of GJ 1214b is flat, which favors
either a high mean molecular weight or cloudy/hazy hydrogen (H) rich atmosphere
model. Photometry at short wavelengths (< 0.7 micron) and in the K-band can
discriminate the most between these different atmosphere models for GJ 1214b,
but current observations do not have sufficiently high precision. We present
photometry of seven transits of GJ 1214b through a narrow K-band (2.141 micron)
filter with the Wide Field Camera on the 3.8 m United Kingdom Infrared
Telescope. Our photometric precision is typically 1.7x10^-3 (for a single
transit), comparable with other ground-based observations of GJ 1214b. We
measure a planet-star radius ratio of 0.1158+/-0.0013, which, along with other
studies, also supports a flat transmission spectrum for GJ 1214b. Since this
does not exclude a scenario where GJ 1214b has a H-rich envelope with heavy
elements that are sequestered below a cloud/haze layer, we compare K-band
observations with models of H_2 collision-induced absorption in an atmosphere
for a range of temperatures. While we find no evidence for deviation from a
flat spectrum (slope s = 0.0016+/-0.0038), an H_2 dominated upper atmosphere (<
60 mbar) cannot be excluded. More precise observations at < 0.7 micron and in
the K-band as well as a uniform analysis of all published data would be useful
for establishing more robust limits on atmosphere models for GJ 1214b.


title:
CANDELS Multi-wavelength Catalogs: Source Detection and Photometry in
  the GOODS-South Field

abstract:
  We present a UV-to-mid infrared multi-wavelength catalog in the
CANDELS/GOODS-S field, combining the newly obtained CANDELS HST/WFC3 F105W,
F125W, and F160W data with existing public data. The catalog is based on source
detection in the WFC3 F160W band. The F160W mosaic includes the data from
CANDELS deep and wide observations as well as previous ERS and HUDF09 programs.
The mosaic reaches a 5$\sigma$ limiting depth (within an aperture of radius
0.17 arcsec) of 27.4, 28.2, and 29.7 AB for CANDELS wide, deep, and HUDF
regions, respectively. The catalog contains 34930 sources with the
representative 50% completeness reaching 25.9, 26.6, and 28.1 AB in the F160W
band for the three regions. In addition to WFC3 bands, the catalog also
includes data from UV (U-band from both CTIO/MOSAIC and VLT/VIMOS), optical
(HST/ACS F435W, F606W, F775W, F814W, and F850LP), and infrared (HST/WFC3 F098M,
VLT/ISAAC Ks, VLT/HAWK-I Ks, and Spitzer/IRAC 3.6, 4.5, 5.8, 8.0 $\mu$m)
observations. The catalog is validated via stellar colors, comparison with
other published catalogs, zeropoint offsets determined from the best-fit
templates of the spectral energy distribution of spectroscopically observed
objects, and the accuracy of photometric redshifts. The catalog is able to
detect unreddened star-forming (passive) galaxies with stellar mass of
10^{10}M_\odot at a 50% completeness level to z$\sim$3.4 (2.8), 4.6 (3.2), and
7.0 (4.2) in the three regions. As an example of application, the catalog is
used to select both star-forming and passive galaxies at z$\sim$2--4 via the
Balmer break. It is also used to study the color--magnitude diagram of galaxies
at 0<z<4.


title:
Herschel-ATLAS: Correlations between Dust and Gas in Local
  Submm-Selected Galaxies

abstract:
  We present an analysis of CO molecular gas tracers in a sample of
500{\mu}m-selected Herschel-ATLAS galaxies at z<0.05 (cz<14990km/s). Using
22-500{\mu}m photometry from WISE, IRAS and Herschel, with HI data from the
literature, we investigate correlations between warm and cold dust, and tracers
of the gas in different phases. The correlation between global CO(3-2) line
fluxes and FIR-submillimetre fluxes weakens with increasing IR wavelength
({\lambda}>60{\mu}m), as a result of colder dust being less strongly associated
with dense gas. Conversely, CO(2-1) and HI line fluxes both appear to be better
correlated with longer wavelengths, suggesting that cold dust is more strongly
associated with diffuse atomic and molecular gas phases, consistent with it
being at least partially heated by radiation from old stellar populations. The
increased scatter at long wavelengths implies that submillimetre fluxes are a
poorer tracer of SFR. Fluxes at 22 and 60{\mu}m are also better correlated with
diffuse gas tracers than dense CO(3-2), probably due to very-small-grain
emission in the diffuse interstellar medium, which is not correlated with SFR.
The FIR/CO luminosity ratio and the dust mass/CO luminosity ratio both decrease
with increasing luminosity, as a result of either correlations between mass and
metallicity (changing CO/H2) or between CO luminosity and excitation [changing
CO(3-2)/CO(1-0)].


title: Angular Distributions of Higher Order Splitting Functions

abstract:
  We study the angular distributions of the splitting functions for processes
for which a parton splits into three partons. Unlike the case of coherent
branching, we find that both in vacuum and in the presence of the dense QCD
matter, such collinear splitting functions are neither ordered, nor
anti-ordered. In the medium-induced splitting functions the angular
distributions are broader compared to the similar vacuum distribution, a
feature previously noticed from the lowest order medium-induced splitting
functions.


title:
Multi-messenger approaches to binary supermassive black holes in the
  "continuous-wave" regime

abstract:
  Pulsar timing arrays are sensitive to gravitational waves from supermassive
black hole (SMBH) binaries at orbital separations of << 1pc. There is currently
an observational paucity of such systems, although they are central figures in
studies of galaxy evolution, merger dynamics, and active nucleus formation. We
review the prospects of detecting SMBH binaries through electromagnetic
radiative processes thought to be associated with galaxy mergers and late-stage
binary evolution. We then discuss the scientific goals of joint pulsar timing
and electromagnetic studies of these systems, including the facilitation of
binary parameter estimation, identifying galactic hosts of gravitational wave
emitters, and relevant studies of merger dynamics and cosmology. The use of
upcoming high-precision timing arrays with the International Pulsar Timing
Array and the Square Kilometre Array, combined with ongoing electromagnetic
observing campaigns to identify active SMBH binaries, provide generous
possibilities for multi-messenger astrophysics in the near future.


title: Effective Models for Dark Matter at the International Linear Collider

abstract:
  Weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs) form a promising solution to the
dark matter problem and many experiments are now searching for these particles.
Using effective field theories to describe the interaction of the WIMP with the
Standard Model has proven successful in providing an easy way to compare the
different experimental results. In this work, we show how effective operators
can be formally derived from a UV-complete underlying theory, and we analyse
these operators in different experimental contexts. We put our main focus on
the expected sensitivity of the International Linear Collider (ILC) in
searching for WIMPs by looking at events with single photons in the final
state. Furthermore, we show explicit evaluations of the relic density
measurements from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe and the XENON Dark
Matter Project direct detection measurements to compare to the expected ILC
results. We find that the ILC serves as a unique tool to probe possible WIMP
interactions with the Standard Model for dark matter masses below 10 GeV. This
extends to masses up to 490 GeV in cases where the interaction is
spin-dependent or leptophilic.


title:
Stringent constraints on the H I spin temperature in two z > 3 Damped
  Lyman-alpha systems from redshifted 21 cm absorption studies

abstract:
  Physical properties of Damped Lyman-alpha absorbers and their evolution are
closely related to galaxy formation and evolution theories, and have important
cosmological implications. H I 21 cm absorption study is one useful way of
measuring the temperature of these systems. In this work, very strong
constraints on the temperature of two Damped Lyman-alpha absorbers at z > 3 are
derived from low radio frequency observations. The H I spin temperature is
found to be greater than 2000 K for both the absorbers. The high spin
temperature of these high-redshift systems is in agreement with the trend found
in a compilation of temperatures for other Damped Lyman-alpha absorbers. We
also argue that the temperature - metallicity relation, reported earlier in the
literature, is unlikely to be a spurious line of sight effect, and that the
redshift evolution of the spin temperature does not arises due to a selection
effect. All of these are consistent with a redshift evolution of the warm gas
fraction in Damped Lyman-alpha systems.


title:
A consistent determination of the temperature of the intergalactic
  medium at redshift z=2.4

abstract:
  We present new measurements of the thermal state of the intergalactic medium
(IGM) at $z\sim2.4$ derived from absorption line profiles in the Ly$\alpha$
forest. We use a large set of high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations to
calibrate the relationship between the temperature-density ($T$--$\Delta$)
relation in the IGM and the distribution of HI column densities, $N_{\rm HI}$,
and velocity widths, $b_{\rm HI}$, of discrete Ly$\alpha$ forest absorbers.
This calibration is then applied to the measurement of the lower cut-off of the
$b_{\rm HI}$--$N_{\rm HI}$ distribution recently presented by Rudie et al.
(2012). We infer a power-law $T$--$\Delta$ relation,
$T=T_{0}\Delta^{\gamma-1}$, with a temperature at mean density,
$T_{0}=[1.00^{+0.32}_{-0.21}]\times10^{4}\rm\,K$ and slope
$(\gamma-1)=0.54\pm0.11$. The slope is fully consistent with that advocated by
the analysis of Rudie et al (2012); however, the temperature at mean density is
lower by almost a factor of two, primarily due to an adjustment in the
relationship between column density and physical density assumed by these
authors. These new results are in excellent agreement with the recent
temperature measurements of Becker et al. (2011), based on the curvature of the
transmitted flux in the Ly$\alpha$ forest. This suggests that the thermal state
of the IGM at this redshift is reasonably well characterised over the range of
densities probed by these methods.


title:
Numerical and analytical tests of quasi-integrability in modified
  Sine-Gordon models

abstract:
  Following our attempts to define quasi-integrability in which we related this
concept to a particular symmetry of the two-soliton function we check this
condition in three classes of modified Sine-Gordon models in (1+1) dimensions.
We find that the numerical results seen in various scatterings of two solitons
and in the time evolution of breather-like structures support our ideas about
the symmetry of the field configurations and its effects on the anomalies of
the conservation laws of the charges.


title:
Sign inversion in the superconducting order parameter of LiFeAs inferred
  from Bogoliubov quasiparticle interference

abstract:
  Quasiparticle interference (QPI) by means of scanning tunneling
microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS), angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy
(ARPES), and multi-orbital tight bind- ing calculations are used to investigate
the band structure and superconducting order parameter of LiFeAs. Using this
combination we identify intra- and interband scattering vectors between the
hole (h) and electron (e) bands in the QPI maps. Discrepancies in the band
dispersions inferred from previous ARPES and STM/STS are reconciled by
recognizing a difference in the $k_z$ sensitivity for the two probes. The
observation of both h-h and e-h scattering is exploited using phase-sensitive
scattering selection rules for Bogoliubov quasiparticles. From this we infer an
s$_\pm$ gap structure, where a sign change occurs in the superconducting order
parameter between the e and h bands.


title:
ALMA Detection of the Vibrationally Excited HCN J=4-3 Emission Line in
  the AGN-Hosting Luminous Infrared Galaxy IRAS 20551-4250

abstract:
  We present results from our ALMA Cycle 0 observations, at the frequencies
around the HCN, HCO+, and HNC J=4-3 transition lines, of the luminous infrared
galaxy IRAS 20551-4250 at z=0.043, which is known to host an energetically
important obscured AGN. In addition to the targeted HCN, HCO+, and HNC J=4-3
emission lines, two additional strong emission lines are seen, which we
attribute to H2S and CH3CN(+CCH). The HCN-to-HCO+ J=4-3 flux ratio (~0.7) is
higher than in the other starburst-dominated galaxy (~0.2) observed in our ALMA
Cycle 0 program. We tentatively (~5 sigma) detected the vibrationally excited
(v2=1) HCN J=4-3 (l=1f) emission line, which is important for testing an
infrared radiative pumping scenario for HCN. This is the second detection of
this molecular transition in external galaxies. The most likely reason for this
detection is not only the high flux of this emission line, but also the small
molecular line widths observed in this galaxy, suggesting that vibrational
excitation of HCN may be relatively common in AGN-hosting galaxies.


title:
The Role of Merger Stage on Galaxy Radio Spectra in Local
  Infrared-Bright Starburst Galaxies

abstract:
  An investigation of the steep, high-frequency (i.e., ~12 GHz) radio spectra
among a sample of 31 local infrared-bright starburst galaxies is carried out in
light of their HST-based merger classifications. Radio data covering as many as
10 individual bands allows for spectral indices to be measured over three
frequency bins between 0.15-32.5 GHz. Sources having the flattest spectral
indices measured at ~2 and 4 GHz, arising from large free-free optical depths
among the densest starbursts, appear to be in ongoing through post-stage
mergers. The spectral indices measured at higher frequencies (i.e., ~12 GHz)
are steepest for sources associated with ongoing mergers in which their nuclei
are distinct, but either share a common stellar envelope and/or exhibit tidal
tails. These results hold after excluding potential AGN based on their low
6.2um PAH EQWs. Consequently, the low-, mid-, and high-frequency spectral
indices each appear to be sensitive to the exact merger stage. It is
additionally shown that ongoing mergers, whose progenitors are still separated
and share a common envelope and/or exhibit tidal tails, also exhibit excess
radio emission relative to what is expected given the far-infrared/radio
correlation, suggesting that there may be a significant amount of radio
emission that is not associated with ongoing star formation. The combination of
these observations, along with high-resolution radio morphologies, leads to a
picture in which the steep high-frequency radio spectral indices and excess
radio emission arises from radio continuum bridges and tidal tails that are not
associated with star formation, similar to what is observed for so-called
"taffy" galaxies. This scenario may also explain the seemingly low
far-infrared/radio ratios measured for many high-z submillimeter galaxies, a
number of which are merger-driven starbursts.


title: Supersymmetric Defect Models and Mirror Symmetry

abstract:
  We study supersymmetric field theories in three space-time dimensions doped
by various configurations of electric charges or magnetic fluxes. These are
supersymmetric avatars of impurity models. In the presence of additional
sources such configurations are shown to preserve half of the supersymmetries.
Mirror symmetry relates the two sets of configurations. We discuss the
implications for impurity models in 3d N=4 QED with a single charged
hypermultiplet (and its mirror, the theory of a free hypermultiplet) as well as
3d N=2 QED with one flavor and its dual, a supersymmetric Wilson-Fisher fixed
point. Mirror symmetry allows us to find backreacted solutions for arbitrary
arrays of defects in the IR limit of N=4 QED. Our analysis, complemented with
appropriate string theory brane constructions, sheds light on various aspects
of mirror symmetry, the map between particles and vortices and the emergence of
ground state entropy in QED at finite density.


title:
HST/WFC3 Observations of Low-Mass Globular Clusters AM 4 and Palomar 13:
  Physical Properties and Implications for Mass Loss

abstract:
  We investigate the loss of low-mass stars in two of the faintest globular
clusters known, AM 4 and Palomar 13 (Pal 13), using HST/WFC3 F606W and F814W
photometry. To determine the physical properties of each cluster --- age, mass,
metallicity, extinction, present day mass function (MF) --- we use the maximum
likelihood color-magnitude diagram (CMD) fitting program MATCH and the
Dartmouth, Padova and BaSTI stellar evolution models. For AM 4, the Dartmouth
models provide the best match to the CMD and yield an age of >13 Gyr,
metallicity log Z/Z_solar = -1.68 +/- 0.08, a distance modulus (m-M)_V = 17.47
+/- 0.03 and reddening A_V = 0.19 +/- 0.02. For Pal 13 the Dartmouth models
give an age of 13.4 +/- 0.5 Gyr, log Z/Z_solar = -1.55 +/- 0.06, (m-M)_V =
17.17 +/- 0.02 and A_V = 0.43 +/- 0.01. We find that the systematic
uncertainties due to choice in assumed stellar model greatly exceed the random
uncertainties, highlighting the importance of using multiple stellar models
when analyzing stellar populations. Assuming a single-sloped power law MF, we
find that AM 4 and Pal 13 have spectral indices alpha = +0.68 +/- 0.34 and
alpha = -1.67 +/- 0.25 (where a Salpeter MF has alpha = +1.35), respectively.
Comparing our derived slopes with literature measurements of cluster integrated
magnitude (M_V) and MF slope indicates that AM 4 is an outlier. Its MF slope is
substantially steeper than clusters of comparable luminosity, while Pal 13 has
a MF in line with the general trend. We discuss both primordial and dynamical
origins for the unusual MF slope of AM 4 and tentatively favor the dynamical
scenario. However, MF slopes of more low luminosity clusters are needed to
verify this hypothesis.


title: Renormalization of a Lorentz invariant doubled worldsheet theory

abstract:
  Manifestly T-duality covariant worldsheet string models can be constructed by
doubling the coordinate fields. We describe the underlying gauge symmetry of a
recently proposed Lorentz invariant doubled worldsheet theory that makes half
of the worldsheet degrees of freedom redundant. By shifting the Lagrange
multiplier, that enforces the gauge fixing condition, the worldsheet action can
be cast into various guises. We investigate the renormalization of this theory
using a non-linear background / quantum split by employing a normal coordinate
expansion adapted to the gauge-fixed theory. The propagator of the doubled
coordinates contains a projection operator encoding that half of them do not
propagate. We determine the doubled target space equations of motion by
requiring one-loop Weyl invariance. Some of them are generalizations of the
conventional sigma model beta-functions, while others seem to be novel to the
doubled theory: In particular, a dilaton equation seems related to the strong
constraint of double field theory. However, the other target space field
equations are not identical to those of double field theory.


title:
Lebesgue-type inequalities for de la Vallee Poussin sums and their
  interpolation analogues on the sets $(\psi,\bar{\beta})$-differentiable
  functions

abstract:
  We obtain the estimates of steady rates of deviations of the de Vall\'{e}e
Poussin sums and interpolation analogues of sums of Vall\'{e}e Poussin from the
functions that belong to the space $C_{\bar{\beta}}^\psi L_s, \ 1\leq
s\leq\infty$ and are represented through the best approximations of
$(\psi,\bar{\beta})$-differentiable functions of this sort by trigonometric
polynomials in the metric $L_s$


title: Non-conformality of gamma_i-deformed N=4 SYM theory

abstract:
  We show that the gamma_i-deformation, which was proposed as candidate gauge
theory for a non-supersymmetric three-parameter deformation of the AdS/CFT
correspondence, is not conformally invariant due to a running double-trace
coupling - not even in the 't Hooft limit. Moreover, this non-conformality
cannot be cured when we extend the theory by adding at tree-level arbitrary
multi-trace couplings that obey certain minimal consistency requirements. Our
findings suggest a possible connection between this breakdown of conformal
invariance and a puzzling divergence recently encountered in the
integrability-based descriptions of two-loop finite-size corrections for the
single-trace operator of two identical chiral fields. We propose a test to
clarify this.


title:
Determining equilibrium osmolarity in Poly(ethylene glycol) / Chondrotin
  sulfate gels mimicking articular cartilage

abstract:
  We present an experimentally guided, multi-phase, multi-species
polyelectrolyte gel model to make quantitative predictions on the
electro-chemical properties of articular cartilage. The mixture theory consists
of two different types of polymers: Poly(ethylene gylcol) (PEG), Chondrotin
sulfate (ChS), water (acting as solvent) and several different ions: H$^+$,
Na$^+$, Cl$^-$. The polymer chains have covalent cross-links modeled using Doi
rubber elasticity theory. Numerical studies on polymer volume fraction and net
osmolarity (difference in the solute concentration across the gel) show the
interplay between ionic bath concentrations, pH, polymer mass in the solvent
and the average charge per monomer; governing the equilibrium swelled /
de-swelled state of the gel. We conclude that swelling is aided due to a higher
average charge per monomer (or a higher percentage of charged ChS component of
the polymer), low solute concentration in the bath, a high pH or a low
cross-link fraction. However, the swelling-deswelling transitions could be
continuous or discontinuous depending upon the relative influence of the
various competing forces.


title: On Pleijel's nodal domain theorem

abstract:
  A slight improvement of Pleijel's estimate on the number of nodal domains is
obtained, exploiting a refinement of the Faber-Krahn inequality and packing
density of discs.


title: A magnetic white dwarf in a detached eclipsing binary

abstract:
  SDSS J030308.35+005444.1 is a close, detached, eclipsing white dwarf plus M
dwarf binary which shows a large infrared excess which has been interpreted in
terms of a circumbinary dust disk. In this paper we present optical and
near-infrared photometric and spectroscopic data for this system. At optical
wavelengths we observe heated pole caps from the white dwarf caused by
accretion of wind material from the main-sequence star on to the white dwarf.
At near-infrared wavelengths we see the eclipse of two poles on the surface of
the white dwarf by the main-sequence star, indicating that the white dwarf is
magnetic. Our spectroscopic observations reveal Zeeman split emission lines in
the hydrogen Balmer series, which we use to measure the magnetic field strength
as 8MG. This measurement indicates that the cyclotron lines are located in the
infrared, naturally explaining the infrared excess without the need for a
circumbinary dust disk. We also detect magnetically-confined material located
roughly midway between the two stars. Using measurements of the radial velocity
amplitude and rotational broadening of the M star we constrain the physical
parameters of the system, a first for a magnetic white dwarf, and the location
of the poles on the surface of the white dwarf. SDSS J030308.35+005444.1 is a
pre-cataclysmic variable that will likely evolve into an intermediate polar in
~1Gyr.


title: Weak links in proximity superconducting two dimensional electron systems

abstract:
  We report a giant inverse proximity effect that arises in the low-dimensional
devices and is crucially different from proximity in the standard
superconductor-normal-superconductor (S/N/S) junctions. The normal conductors
induce a giant back-action on the proximity superconducting regions even when
the dimensions of the normal parts are smaller than the proximity coherence
length. This essentially suppresses the superconducting characteristics of the
entire system, including the critical current, well below those for the usual
S/N/S structures.


title: The Chern classes of the Verlinde bundles

abstract:
  A formula for the first Chern class of the Verlinde bundle over the moduli
space of smooth genus g curves is given. A finite-dimensional argument is
presented in rank 2 using geometric symmetries obtained from strange duality,
relative Serre duality, and Wirtinger duality together with the projective
flatness of the Hitchin connection. A derivation using conformal-block methods
is presented in higher rank. An expression for the first Chern class over the
compact moduli space of curves is obtained.


title:
A Comparison of the Galactic Cosmic Ray H, He and C/O Nuclei Spectra
  Measured Between ~5 and 500 MeV/nuc Beyond 122 AU at Voyager 1 with the
  Predictions of a Diffusion Model for Propagation in the Galaxy

abstract:
  After the disappearance of lower energy heliospheric particles at Voyager 1
starting on August 25th, 2012, spectra of H, He and C/O nuclei were revealed
that resembled those to be expected for galactic cosmic rays. These spectra had
intensity peaks in the range of 30-60 MeV, decreasing at both lower energies
down to a few MeV and at higher energies up to several hundred MeV. We have
modeled the propagation of these particles in the galaxy using an updated Leaky
Box Diffusion model which determines the spectra of these components from ~2
MeV to >200 GeV. The key parameters used in the model are a galactic input
spectrum ~P^-2.24, the same for all components and independent of rigidity, and
a diffusion coefficient that is ~P^0.5 above a lower rigidity and increases
~beta^-1.0 below a lower rigidity ~0.56 GV. These same parameters also fit the
high energy H and He data from ~10-200 GeV/nuc from the PAMELA and BESS
experiments. The new Voyager spectra for all three nuclei are thus consistent
with rigidity spectra ~P^-2.24 from the lowest energies to at least 100 GeV.
Deviations from this spectrum can reasonably be attributed to propagation
effects. Some deviations between the calculated and newly observed spectra are
noted, however, below ~30 MeV/nuc, particularly for C/O nuclei, that could be
significant regarding the propagation and sources of these particles.


title: Two-parameter analogs of the Heisenberg enveloping algebra

abstract:
  One-parameter analogs of the Heisenberg enveloping algebra were studied
previously by Kirkman and Small. In particular, they demonstrated how one may
obtain Hayashi's analog of the Weyl algebra as a primitive factor of this
algebra. We consider various two-parameter versions of this problem. Of
particular interest is the case when the parameters are dependent. Our study
allows us to consider the representation theory of a two-parameter version of
the Virasoro enveloping algebra.


title: Higgs Mechanism in Scale-Invariant Gravity

abstract:
  We consider a Higgs mechanism in scale-invariant theories of gravitation. It
is shown that in spontaneous symmetry breakdown of scale invariance, gauge
symmetries are also broken spontaneously even without the Higgs potential if
the corresponding charged scalar fields couple to a scalar curvature in a
non-minimal way. In this gravity-inspired new Higgs mechanism, the non-minimal
coupling term, which is scale-invariant, plays a critical role. Various
generalizations of this mechanism are possible and particularly the
generalizations to non-abelian gauge groups and a scalar field with
multi-components are presented in some detail. Moreover, we apply our finding
to a scale-invariant extension of the standard model (SM) and calculate
radiative corrections. In particular, we elucidate the coupling between the
dilaton and the Higgs particle and show that the dilaton mass takes a value
around the GeV scale owing to quantum effects even if the dilaton is massless
at the classical level.


title: On explicit constructions of auerbach bases in separable Banach spaces

abstract:
  This paper considers explicit constructions of Auerbach bases in separable
Banach spaces. Answering the question of A. Pe{\l}czy{\'n}ski, we prove by
construction the existence of Auerbach basis in arbitrary subspace of $c_0$ of
finite codimension and in the space $C(K)$ for $K$ compact countable metric
space.


title: Evolution by the vortex filament equation of curves with a corner

abstract:
  In this proceedings article we shall survey a series of results on the
stability of self-similar solutions of the vortex filament equation. This
equation is a geometric flow for curves in $\mathbb R^3$ and it is used as a
model for the evolution of a vortex filament in fluid mechanics. The main
theorem gives, under suitable assumptions, the existence and description of
solutions generated by curves with a corner, for positive and negative times.
Its companion theorem describes the evolution of perturbations of self-similar
solutions up to a singularity formation infinite time, and beyond this time. We
shall give a sketch of the proof. These results were obtained in collaboration
with Luis Vega.


title: Interval edge-colorings of K_{1,m,n}

abstract:
  In this note we prove that K_{1,m,n} is interval edge-colorable if and only
if gcd(m+1,n+1)=1. It settles in the affirmative a conjecture of Petrosyan.


title:
Light scattering in disordered honeycomb photonic lattices near the
  Dirac points

abstract:
  We address Anderson localization in disordered honeycomb photonic lattices
and show that the localization process is strongly affected by the spectral
position of the input wavepacket within the first Brillouin zone of the
lattice. In spite of the fact that in regular lattice the expansion of the beam
is much stronger for the excitation near the Dirac points, where light exhibits
conical diffraction, than for the excitation at the center of the Brillouin
zone, where the beam exhibits normal diffraction, we found that disorder leads
to pronounced Anderson localization even around the Dirac points. We found that
for the same disorder level the width of the averaged output intensity
distribution for excitations around the Dirac points may be substantially
larger than that for excitations at the center of the Brillouin zone.


title:
Predicting non-neutral missense mutations and their biochemical
  consequences using genome-scale homology modeling of human protein complexes

abstract:
  Computational methods are needed to differentiate the small fraction of
missense mutations that contribute to disease by disrupting protein function
from neutral variants. We describe several complementary methods using
large-scale homology modeling of human protein complexes to detect non-neutral
mutations. Importantly, unlike sequence conservation-based methods, this
structure-based approach provides experimentally testable biochemical
mechanisms for mutations in disease. Specifically, we infer metal ion, small
molecule, protein-protein, and nucleic acid binding sites by homology and find
that disease-associated missense mutations are more prevalent in each class of
binding site than are neutral mutations. Importantly, our approach identifies
considerably more binding sites than those annotated in the RefSeq database.
Furthermore, an analysis of metal ion and protein-protein binding sites
predicted by machine learning shows a similar preponderance of
disease-associated mutations in these sites. We also derive a statistical score
for predicting how mutations affect metal ion binding and find many dbSNP
mutations that likely disrupt ion binding but were not previously considered
deleterious. We also cluster mutations in the protein structure to discover
putative functional regions. Finally, we develop a machine learning predictor
for detecting disease-associated missense mutations and show that it
outperforms two other prediction methods on an independent test set.


title: Simple and Robust Boolean Operations for Triangulated Surfaces

abstract:
  Boolean operations of geometric models is an essential issue in computational
geometry. In this paper, we develop a simple and robust approach to perform
Boolean operations on closed and open triangulated surfaces. Our method mainly
has two stages: (1) We firstly find out candidate intersected-triangles pairs
based on Octree and then compute the inter-section lines for all pairs of
triangles with parallel algorithm; (2) We form closed or open
intersection-loops, sub-surfaces and sub-blocks quite robustly only according
to the cleared and updated topology of meshes while without coordinate
computations for geometric enti-ties. A novel technique instead of
inside/outside classification is also proposed to distinguish the resulting
union, subtraction and intersection. Several examples have been given to
illus-trate the effectiveness of our approach.


title:
Spinning massive test particles in cosmological and general static
  spherically symmetric spacetimes

abstract:
  A Lagrangian formalism is used to study the motion of a spinning massive
particle in Friedmann--Robertson--Walker and G\"odel spacetimes, as well as in
a general Schwarzschild-like spacetime and in static spherically symmetric
conformally flat spacetimes. Exact solutions for the motion of the particle and
general exact expressions for the momenta and velocities are displayed for
different cases. In particular, the solution for the motion in spherically
symmetric metrics is presented in the equatorial plane. The exact solutions are
found using constants of motion of the particle, namely its mass, its spin, its
angular momentum, and a fourth constant, which is its energy when the metric is
time independent, and a different constant otherwise. These constants are
associated to Killing vectors. In the case of the motion on the
Friedmann--Robertson--Walker metric, a new constant of motion is found. This is
the fourth constant which generalizes previously known results obtained for
spinless particles. In the case of general Schwarzschild-like spacetimes, our
results allow for the exploration of the case of the
Reissner-Nordstrom-(Anti)de Sitter metric. Finally, for the case of the
conformally flat spacetimes, the solution is explicitly evaluated for different
metric tensors associated to a universe filled with static perfect fluids and
electromagnetic radiation. For some combination of the values of the constants
of motion the particle trajectories may exhibit spacelike velocity vectors in
portions of the trajectories.


title:
Majorana Excitations, Spin- and Mass Currents on the Surface of
  Topological Superfluid $^3$He-B

abstract:
  The B-phase of superfluid $^3$He is a 3D time-reversal invariant (TRI)
topological superfluid with an isotropic energy gap separating the ground-state
and bulk continuum states. We report calculations of surface spectrum, spin-
and mass current densities originating from the Andreev surface states for
confined $^3$He-B. The surface states are Majorana Fermions with their spins
polarized transverse to their direction of propagation along the surface. The
negative energy states give rise to a ground-state helical spin current
confined on the surface. The spectral functions reveal the subtle role of the
spin-polarized surface states in relation to the ground-state spin current. By
contrast, these states do not contribute to the $T=0$ mass current. Superfluid
flow through a channel of confined $^3$He-B is characterized by the flow field,
$p_s$. The flow field breaks 2D rotational symmetry and time reversal (T).
However, the Bogoliubov-Nambu Hamiltonian remains invariant under $T$ combined
with a 180 degree rotation about the normal to the film. As a result the
B-phase in the presence of a superflow remains a topological phase with a
gapless spectrum of Majorana modes on the surface. Thermal excitation of the
Doppler shifted Majorana branches leads to a power law suppression of the
superfluid mass current, providing a direct signature of the Majorana branches
of surface excitations in the fully gapped 3D topological superfluid, $^3$He-B.
Results are reported for the superfluid fraction (mass current) and helical
spin current for confined $^3$He-B, including the temperature dependences, as
well as dependences on confinement, interactions between quasiparticles and
pressure.


title: On digit frequencies in {\beta}-expansions

abstract:
  We study the sets DF({\beta}) of digit frequencies of {\beta}-expansions of
numbers in [0,1]. We show that DF({\beta}) is a compact convex set with
countably many extreme points which varies continuously with {\beta}; that
there is a full measure collection of non-trivial closed intervals on each of
which DF({\beta}) mode locks to a constant polytope with rational vertices; and
that the generic digit frequency set has infinitely many extreme points,
accumulating on a single non-rational extreme point whose components are
rationally independent.


title: On varieties of commuting nilpotent matrices

abstract:
  Let $N(d,n)$ be the variety of all $d$-tuples of commuting nilpotent $n\times
n$ matrices. It is well-known that $N(d,n)$ is irreducible if $d=2$, if $n\le
3$ or if $d=3$ and $n=4$. On the other hand $N(3,n)$ is known to be reducible
for $n\ge 13$. We study in this paper the reducibility of $N(d,n)$ for various
values of $d$ and $n$. In particular, we prove that $N(d,n)$ is reducible for
all $d,n\ge 4$. In the case $d=3$, we show that it is irreducible for $n\le 6$.


title:
$A$-hypergeometric series associated to a lattice polytope with a unique
  interior lattice point

abstract:
  We associate to lattice points a_0,a_1,...,a_N in Z^n an A-hypergeometric
series \Phi(\lambda) with integer coefficients. If a_0 is the unique interior
lattice point of the convex hull of a_1,...,a_N, then for every prime p\neq 2
the ratio \Phi(\lambda)/\Phi(\lambda^p) has a p-adic analytic continuation to a
closed unit polydisk minus a neighborhood of a hypersurface.


title: Influences Combination of Multi-Sensor Images on Classification Accuracy

abstract:
  This paper focuses on two main issues; first one is the impact of combination
of multi-sensor images on the supervised learning classification accuracy using
segment Fusion (SF). The second issue attempts to undertake the study of
supervised machine learning classification technique of remote sensing images
by using four classifiers like Parallelepiped (Pp), Mahalanobis Distance (MD),
Maximum-Likelihood (ML) and Euclidean Distance(ED) classifiers, and their
accuracies have been evaluated on their respected classification to choose the
best technique for classification of remote sensing images. QuickBird
multispectral data (MS) and panchromatic data (PAN) have been used in this
study to demonstrate the enhancement and accuracy assessment of fused image
over the original images using ALwassaiProcess software. According to
experimental result of this study, is that the test results indicate the
supervised classification results of fusion image, which generated better than
the MS did. As well as the result with Euclidean classifier is robust and
provides better results than the other classifiers do, despite of the popular
belief that the maximum-likelihood classifier is the most accurate classifier.


title:
The Whitehead Conjecture, the Tower of S^1 Conjecture, and Hecke
  algebras of type A

abstract:
  In the early 1980's the author proved G.W. Whitehead's conjecture about
stable homotopy groups and symmetric products. In the mid 1990's, Arone and
Mahowald showed that the Goodwillie tower of the identity had remarkably good
properties when specialized to odd dimensional spheres.
  In this paper we prove that these results are linked, as has been long
suspected. We give a state-of-the-art proof of the Whitehead conjecture valid
for all primes, and simultaneously show that the identity tower specialized to
the circle collapses in the expected sense.
  Key to our work is that Steenrod algebra module maps between the primitives
in the mod p homology of certain infinite loopspaces are determined by elements
in the mod p Hecke algebras of type A. Certain maps between spaces are shown to
be chain homotopy contractions by using identities in these Hecke algebras.


title: Measuring Galaxy Velocity Dispersions with Hectospec

abstract:
  We describe a robust technique based on the ULySS IDL code for measuring
velocity dispersions of galaxies observed with the MMT's fiber-fed
spectrograph, Hectospec. This procedure is applicable to all Hectospec spectra
having a signal-to-noise >5 and weak emission lines. We estimate the internal
error in the Hectospec velocity dispersion measurements by comparing duplicate
measurements of 171 galaxies. For a sample of 984 galaxies with a median
z=0.10, we compare velocity dispersions measured by Hectospec through a 1.5
arcsec diameter optical fiber with those measured by the Sloan Digital Sky
Survey (SDSS) and Baryon Oscillation Spectral Survey (BOSS) through 3 arcsec
and 2 arcsec diameter optical fibers, respectively. The systematic differences
between the Hectospec and the SDSS/BOSS measurements are <7% for velocity
dispersions between 100 and 300 km/s, the differences are no larger than the
differences among the three BOSS velocity dispersion reductions. We analyze the
scatter about the fundamental plane and find no significant redshift dependent
systematics in our velocity dispersion measurements to z~0.6. This analysis
also confirms our estimation of the measurement errors. In one hour in good
conditions, we demonstrate that we achieve 30 km/s velocity dispersion errors
for galaxies with an SDSS r fiber magnitude of 21.


title:
The SCUBA-2 Cosmology Legacy Survey: demographics of the 450 \mu
  m-population

abstract:
  We investigate the multi-wavelength properties of a sample of 450-\mu m
selected sources from the SCUBA-2 Cosmology Legacy Survey (S2CLS). A total of
69 sources were identified above 4\sigma\ in deep SCUBA-2 450-\mu m
observations overlapping the UDS and COSMOS fields and covering 210 sq. arcmin
to a typical depth of \sigma 450=1.5 mJy. Reliable cross identification are
found for 58 sources (84 per cent) in Spitzer and Hubble Space Telescope
WFC3/IR data. The photometric redshift distribution (dN/dz) of 450\mu
m-selected sources is presented, showing a broad peak in the redshift range
1<z<3, and a median of z=1.4. Combining the SCUBA-2 photometry with Herschel
SPIRE data from HerMES, the submm spectral energy distribution (SED) is
examined via the use of modified blackbody fits, yielding aggregate values for
the IR luminosity, dust temperature and emissivity of <LIR>=10^12 +/- 0.8
L_sol, <T_D>=42 +/- 11 K and <\beta_D>=1.6 +/- 0.5, respectively. The
relationship between these SED parameters and the physical properties of
galaxies is investigated, revealing correlations between T_D and LIR and
between \beta_D and both stellar mass and effective radius. The connection
between star formation rate and stellar mass is explored, with 24 per cent of
450 \mu m sources found to be ``star-bursts'', i.e. displaying anomalously high
specific SFRs. However, both the number density and observed properties of
these ``star-burst'' galaxies are found consistent with the population of
normal star-forming galaxies.


title:
Surface roughness analysis of the hydrophilic SiO_2/TiO_2 nano bi-layers
  by Level crossing approach

abstract:
  The effect of etching time on the statistical properties of the hydrophilic
surface of SiO_2/TiO_2/Glass nano bi-layer has been studied using Atomic Force
Microscopy (AFM) and stochastic approach based on the level crossing analysis.
We have created a rough surface of the hydrophilic SiO_2/TiO_2 nano bi-layer
system by using 26% Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) solution. Measuring the average
apparent contact angle assessed the degree of hydrophilicity and the optimum
condition was determined at 10 min etching time. Level crossing analysis based
on AF images provided deeper insight into the microscopic details of the
surface topography. For different etching time, it has been shown that the
average frequency of visiting a height with positive slope behaves Gaussian for
heights near the mean value and obeys power law for the heights far away from
the mean value. Finally, by applying the generalized total number of crossings
with positive slope, it was found that the both high heights and deep valleys
of the surface are extremely effective in hydrophilic degree of the
SiO_2/TiO_2/Glass nano bi-layer investigated system.


title: Non-existence of Taylor expansion in time due to cusps

abstract:
  In the usual treatment of electronic structure, all matter has cusps in the
electronic density at nuclei. Cusps can produce non-analytic behavior in time,
even in response to perturbations that are time-analytic. We analyze these
non-analyticities in a simple case from many perspectives. We describe a
method, the s-expansion, that can be used in several such cases, and illustrate
it with a variety of examples. These include both the sudden appearance of
electric fields and disappearance of nuclei, in both one and three dimensions.
When successful, the s-expansion yields the dominant short-time behavior, no
matter how strong the external electric field, but agrees with linear response
theory in the weak limit. We discuss the relevance of these results to
time-dependent density functional theory.

categories: physics.atom-ph cond-mat.mtrl-sci cond-mat.other quant-ph


title:
Algebraic Bethe ansatz for the six vertex model with upper triangular
  $K$-matrices

abstract:
  We consider a formulation of the algebraic Bethe ansatz for the six vertex
model with non-diagonal open boundaries. Specifically, we study the case where
both left and right $K$-matrices have an upper triangular form. We show that
the main difficulty entailed by those form of the $K$-matrices is the
construction of the excited states. However, it is possible to treat this
problem with aid of an auxiliary transfer matrix and by means of a generalized
creation operator.


abstract:
  We study the Higgs phenomenology in the Peccei-Quinn invariant NMSSM
(PQ-NMSSM) where the low energy mass parameters of the singlet superfield are
induced by a spontaneous breakdown of the Peccei-Quinn symmetry. In the generic
NMSSM, scalar mixing among CP-even Higgs bosons is constrained by the observed
properties of the SM-like Higgs boson, as well as by the LEP bound on the
chargino mass and the perturbativity bound on the singlet Yukawa coupling. In
the minimal PQ-NMSSM, scalar mixing is further constrained due to the presence
of a light singlino-like neutralino. It is noticed that the $2\sigma$ excess of
the LEP $Zb\bar b$ events at $m_{b\bar b}\simeq$ 98 GeV can be explained by a
singlet-like 98 GeV Higgs boson in the minimal PQ-NMSSM with low $\tan\beta$,
stops around or below 1 TeV, and light doublet-higgsinos around the weak scale.


title: Principal Physical Effects in Collapsing Stellar Cores

abstract:
  Principally important for the description the physical processes in the
collapsing stellar cores topics are surveyed. They are: the neutrino heat
conduction theory, equation of state under the conditions of nuclear
statistical equilibrium and possible phase transitions in dense, subnuclear and
nuclear environment.


title:
Formation and decay of Bose-Einstein condensates in an excited band of a
  double-well optical lattice

abstract:
  We study the formation and collision-aided decay of an ultra-cold atomic
Bose-Einstein condensate in the first excited band of a double-well 2D-optical
lattice with weak harmonic confinement in the perpendicular $z$ direction. This
lattice geometry is based on an experiment by Wirth et al. The double well is
asymmetric, with the local ground state in the shallow well nearly degenerate
with the first excited state of the adjacent deep well. We compare the band
structure obtained from a tight-binding (TB) model with that obtained
numerically using a plane wave basis. We find the TB model to be in
quantitative agreement for the lowest two bands, qualitative for next two
bands, and inadequate for even higher bands. The band widths of the excited
bands are much larger than the harmonic oscillator energy spacing in the $z$
direction. We then study the thermodynamics of a non-interacting Bose gas in
the first excited band. We estimate the condensate fraction and critical
temperature, $T_c$, as functions of lattice parameters. For typical atom
numbers, the critical energy $k_BT_c$, with $k_B$ the Boltzmann constant, is
larger than the excited band widths and harmonic oscillator energy. Using
conservation of total energy and atom number, we show that the temperature
increases after the lattice transformation. Finally, we estimate the time scale
for a two-body collision-aided decay of the condensate as a function of lattice
parameters. The decay involves two processes, the dominant one in which both
colliding atoms decay to the ground band, and the second involving excitation
of one atom to a higher band. For this estimate, we have used TB wave functions
for the lowest four bands, and numerical estimates for higher bands. The decay
rate rapidly increases with lattice depth, but stays smaller than the tunneling
rate between the $s$ and $p$ orbitals in adjacent wells.


title:
Global Solutions to Large-Scale Spherical Constrained Quadratic
  Minimization via Canonical Dual Approach

abstract:
  This paper presents global optimal solutions to a nonconvex quadratic
minimization problem over a sphere constraint. The problem is well-known as a
trust region subproblem and has been studied extensively for decades. The main
challenge is the so called 'hard case', i.e., the problem has multiple
solutions on the boundary of the sphere. By canonical duality theory, this
challenging problem is able to reformed as an one-dimensional canonical dual
problem without duality gap. Sufficient and necessary conditions are obtained
by the triality theory, which can be used to identify whether the problem is
hard case or not. A perturbation method and the associated algorithms are
proposed to solve this hard case problem. Theoretical results and methods are
verified by large-size examples.


title: Thermal power spectrum in the CFT driven cosmology

abstract:
  We present an overview of the recently suggested cosmological model driven by
conformal field theory (CFT) with the initial conditions in the form of the
microcanonical density matrix. In particular, we discuss the origin of
inflationary stage in this model and a novel feature -- the thermal nature of
the primordial power spectrum of the CMB anisotropy. The relevant effect of
"temperature of the relic temperature anisotropy" can be responsible for a
thermal contribution to the red tilt of this spectrum, additional to its
conventional vacuum component. The amplification of this effect due to recently
established $a$-theorem in CFT is briefly discussed.