title: Note on fast spinning neutron stars with unified equations of states

abstract:
  For the propose of confronting updated pulsar observations with developed
neutron star equation of states (EoSs), we employ four unified EoSs for both
the core and the crust, namely BCPM, BSk20, BSk21, Shen-TM1, as well as two
non-unified EoSs widely used in the literature, i.e. APR and GM1 EoS, which are
commonly matched with the Negele-Vautherin and the Baym-Pethick-Sutherland
crust EoS. All the core EoSs satisfy the recent observational constraints of
the two massive pulsars whose masses are precisely measured. We show that the
NS mass-equatorial radius relations are slightly affected by the smoothness at
the core-crust matching interface. Moreover, the uncertainties in the crust EoS
and the matching interface bring insignificant changes, even at maximally
rotating (Keplerian) configurations. We also find that for all four unified
EoSs, rotation can increase the star's gravitational mass up to $18\%-19\%$ and
the equatorial radius by $29\%-36\%$, which are consistent with the previous
calculations using non-unified EoSs. For stars as heavy as 1.4 M$_{\odot}$, the
radius increase is more pronounced, reaching $41\%-43\%$, i.e. $5-6$ km.
Moreover, by confronting the results using unified EoSs, which give the correct
empirical values at saturation density, with two controversial determinations
of the radius for the fast rotator 4U 1608-52, we address that a small radius
may be better justified for this source.


title:
Special relativity with a preferred frame and the relativity principle:
  cosmological implications

abstract:
  The modern view, that there exists a preferred frame of reference related to
the cosmic microwave background (CMB), is in apparent contradiction with the
principles of special relativity. The purpose of the present study is to
develop a counterpart of the special relativity theory that is consistent with
the existence of a preferred frame but, like the standard relativity theory, is
based on the relativity principle and universality of the (\textit{two-way})
speed of light. In the framework developed, a degree of anisotropy of the
one-way velocity acquires meaning of a characteristic of the really existing
anisotropy caused by motion of an inertial frame relative to the preferred
frame. The anisotropic special relativity kinematics is developed based on the
first principles: (1) Space-time transformations between inertial frames leave
the equation of anisotropic light propagation invariant and (2) A set of the
transformations possesses a group structure. The Lie group theory apparatus is
applied to define groups of space-time transformations between inertial frames.
Applying the consequences of the transformations to the problem of calculating
the CMB temperature distribution yields an equation in which the angular
dependence coincides with that obtained on the basis of the standard relativity
theory but the mean temperature is corrected by the terms second order in the
observer velocity. From conceptual point of view, it eliminates the
inconsistency of the usual approach when formulas of the standard special
relativity are applied to define effects caused by motion with respect to the
preferred frame.


title:
On linear rewriting systems for Boolean logic and some applications to
  proof theory

abstract:
  Linear rules have played an increasing role in structural proof theory in
recent years. It has been observed that the set of all sound linear inference
rules in Boolean logic is already coNP-complete, i.e. that every Boolean
tautology can be written as a (left- and right-)linear rewrite rule. In this
paper we study properties of systems consisting only of linear inferences. Our
main result is that the length of any 'nontrivial' derivation in such a system
is bound by a polynomial. As a consequence there is no polynomial-time
decidable sound and complete system of linear inferences, unless coNP=NP. We
draw tools and concepts from term rewriting, Boolean function theory and graph
theory in order to access some required intermediate results. At the same time
we make several connections between these areas that, to our knowledge, have
not yet been presented and constitute a rich theoretical framework for
reasoning about linear TRSs for Boolean logic.


title:
Identifying suitable substrates for high-quality graphene-based
  heterostructures

abstract:
  We report on a scanning confocal Raman spectroscopy study investigating the
strain-uniformity and the overall strain and doping of high-quality chemical
vapour deposited (CVD) graphene-based heterostuctures on a large number of
different substrate materials, including hexagonal boron nitride (hBN),
transition metal dichalcogenides, silicon, different oxides and nitrides, as
well as polymers. By applying a hBN-assisted, contamination free, dry transfer
process for CVD graphene, high-quality heterostructures with low doping
densities and low strain variations are assembled. The Raman spectra of these
pristine heterostructures are sensitive to substrate-induced doping and strain
variations and are thus used to probe the suitability of the substrate material
for potential high-quality graphene devices. We find that the flatness of the
substrate material is a key figure for gaining, or preserving high-quality
graphene.


title: Connections in Tangent Categories

abstract:
  Connections are an important tool of differential geometry. This paper
investigates their definition and structure in the abstract setting of tangent
categories. At this level of abstraction we derive several classically
important results about connections, including the Bianchi identities,
identities for curvature and torsion, almost complex structure, and parallel
transport.


title: Exclusive pi+ pi- production at 7TeV

abstract:
  We report a measurement of the exclusive production of pairs of charged pions
in proton-proton collisions, dominated by the process $pp \rightarrow p^{(*)}
\pi^{+}\pi^{-} p^{(*)}$, where $\rm p^{(*)}$ stands for a diffractively
dissociated proton, the $\pi^{+} \pi^{-}$ pair is emitted at central rapidities
$y$, and the incident protons stay intact or dissociate without detection ${\rm
p^{(*)}}$. The measurement is performed with the CMS detector at the LHC, using
a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 450~$\mu$b$^{-1}$
collected at a center-of-mass energy of $\sqrt{s}$ = 7 TeV in 2010. The cross
section measured in the phase space defined by pion transverse momentum $p_{\rm
T}>0.2$~GeV/c and rapidity $|y|< 2 $ is found to be $20.5~\pm~0.3~(\rm
{stat})~(\pm~3.1~\rm {syst})~\pm$~0.8~(lumi)~$\mu$b. The differential cross
sections for $\pi^{+}\pi^{-}$ pairs as a function of the pion pair invariant
mass, $p_{\rm T}$, and $y$, as well as a single-pion differential cross section
as a function of pion $p_{\rm T}$ are also measured and compared to several
phenomenological predictions.


title:
A Data-driven Approach to Robust Control of Multivariable Systems by
  Convex Optimization

abstract:
  The frequency-domain data of a multivariable system in different operating
points is used to design a robust controller with respect to the measurement
noise and multimodel uncertainty. The controller is fully parametrized in terms
of matrix polynomial functions and can be formulated as a centralized,
decentralized or distributed controller. All standard performance
specifications like $H_2$, $H_\infty$ and loop shaping are considered in a
unified framework for continuous- and discrete-time systems. The control
problem is formulated as a convex-concave optimization problem and then
convexified by linearization of the concave part around an initial controller.
The performance criterion converges monotonically to a local optimal solution
in an iterative algorithm. The effectiveness of the method is compared with
fixed-structure controllers using non-smooth optimization and with full-order
optimal controllers via simulation examples. Finally, the experimental data of
a gyroscope is used to design a data-driven controller that is successfully
applied on the real system.


title: A Multiobjective MPC Approach for Autonomously Driven Electric Vehicles

abstract:
  We present a new algorithm for model predictive control of non-linear systems
with respect to multiple, conflicting objectives. The idea is to provide a
possibility to change the objective in real-time, e.g.~as a reaction to changes
in the environment or the system state itself. The algorithm utilises elements
from various well-established concepts, namely multiobjective optimal control,
economic as well as explicit model predictive control and motion planning with
motion primitives. In order to realise real-time applicability, we split the
computation into an online and an offline phase and we utilise symmetries in
the open-loop optimal control problem to reduce the number of multiobjective
optimal control problems that need to be solved in the offline phase. The
results are illustrated using the example of an electric vehicle where the
longitudinal dynamics are controlled with respect to the concurrent objectives
arrival time and energy consumption.


title: Extinction threshold of a population in spatial and stochastic model

abstract:
  In this study, spatial stochastic and logistic model (SSLM) describing
dynamics of a population of a certain species was analysed. The behaviour of
the extinction threshold as a function of model parameters was studied. More
specifically, we studied how the critical values for the model parameters that
separate the cases of extinction and persistence depend on the spatial scales
of the competition and dispersal kernels. We compared the simulations and
analytical results to examine if and how the mathematical approximations break
down at the vicinity of the extinction threshold, and found a functional form
of the naive approximation for which higher-order term of analytical
approximation converges.


title: Prior Distributions for Ranking Problems

abstract:
  The ranking problem is to order a collection of units by some unobserved
parameter, based on observations from the associated distribution. This problem
arises naturally in a number of contexts, such as business, where we may want
to rank potential projects by profitability; or science, where we may want to
rank variables potentially associated with some trait by the strength of the
association. Most approaches to this problem are empirical Bayesian, where we
use the data to estimate the hyperparameters of the prior distribution, then
use that distribution to estimate the unobserved parameter values. There are a
number of different approaches to this problem, based on different loss
functions for mis-ranking units. However, little has been done on the choice of
prior distribution. Typical approaches involve choosing a conjugate prior for
convenience, and estimating the hyperparameters by MLE from the whole dataset.
In this paper, we look in more detail at the effect of choice of prior
distribution on Bayesian ranking. We focus on the use of posterior mean for
ranking, but many of our conclusions should apply to other ranking criteria,
and it is not too difficult to adapt our methods to other choices of prior
distributions.


title:
Higher-order interactions in quantum optomechanics: Revisiting
  theoretical foundations

abstract:
  The theory of quantum optomechanics is reconstructed from first principles by
finding a Lagrangian from light's equation of motion and then proceeding to the
Hamiltonian. The nonlinear terms, including the quadratic and higher-order
interactions, do not vanish under any possible choice of canonical parameters,
and lead to coupling of momentum and field. The existence of quadratic
mechanical parametric interaction is then demonstrated rigorously, which has
been so far assumed phenomenologically in previous studies. Corrections to the
quadratic terms are particularly significant when the mechanical frequency is
of the same order or larger than the electromagnetic frequency. Further
discussions on the squeezing as well as relativistic corrections are presented.


title: Increasing positive monoids of ordered fields are FF-monoids

abstract:
  Given an ambient ordered field $K$, a positive monoid is a countably
generated additive submonoid of the nonnegative cone of $K$. In this paper, we
first generalize several atomic features exhibited by Puiseux monoids of the
field of rational numbers to the more general setting of positive monoids of
Archimedean fields, accordingly arguing that such generalizations may fail if
the ambient field is not Archimedean. In particular, we show that a positive
monoid $P$ of an Archimedean field is a BF-monoid provided that $P \! \setminus
\! \{0\}$ does not have $0$ as a limit point. Then, we prove our main result:
every increasing positive monoid of an ordered field is an FF-monoid. Finally,
we deduce that every increasing positive monoid is hereditarily atomic.


title: Intrinsic risk measures

abstract:
  Monetary risk measures are usually interpreted as the smallest amount of
external capital that must be added to a financial position to make it
acceptable. We propose a new concept: intrinsic risk measures and argue that
this approach provides a direct path from unacceptable positions towards the
acceptance set. Intrinsic risk measures use only internal resources and return
the smallest percentage of the currently held financial position which has to
be sold and reinvested into an eligible asset such that the resulting position
becomes acceptable. While avoiding the problem of infinite values, intrinsic
risk measures allow a free choice of the eligible asset and they preserve
desired properties such as monotonicity and quasi-convexity. A dual
representation on convex acceptance sets is derived and the link of intrinsic
risk measures to their monetary counterparts on cones is detailed.


title: A comparison of Newton-Okounkov polytopes of Schubert varieties

abstract:
  A Newton-Okounkov body is a convex body constructed from a polarized variety
with a valuation on its function field. Kaveh (resp., the first author and
Naito) proved that the Newton-Okounkov body of a Schubert variety associated
with a specific valuation is identical to the Littelmann string polytope
(resp., the Nakashima-Zelevinsky polyhedral realization) of a Demazure crystal.
These specific valuations are defined algebraically to be the highest term
valuations with respect to certain local coordinate systems on a Bott-Samelson
variety. Another class of valuations, which is geometrically natural, arises
from some sequence of subvarieties of a polarized variety. In this paper, we
show that the highest term valuation used by Kaveh (resp., by the first author
and Naito) and the valuation coming from a sequence of specific subvarieties of
the Schubert variety are identical on a perfect basis with some positivity
properties. The existence of such a perfect basis follows from a
categorification of the negative part of the quantized enveloping algebra. As a
corollary, we prove that the associated Newton-Okounkov bodies coincide through
an explicit affine transformation.


title:
Semigroups of composition operators and integral operators on mixed norm
  spaces

abstract:
  We characterize the semigroups of composition operators that are strongly
continuous on the mixed norm spaces $H(p,q,\alpha)$. First, we study the
separable spaces $H(p,q,\alpha)$ with $q<\infty,$ that behave as the Hardy and
Bergman spaces. In the second part we deal with the spaces
$H(p,\infty,\alpha),$ where polynomials are not dense. To undertake this study,
we introduce the integral operators, characterize its boundedness and
compactness, and use its properties to find the maximal closed linear subspace
of $H(p,\infty,\alpha)$ in which the semigroups are strongly continuous. In
particular, we obtain that this maximal space is either $H(p,0,\alpha)$ or
non-separable, being this result the deepest one in the paper.


title: Warm Ionized Medium Throughout the Sagittarius-Carina Arm

abstract:
  Wisconsin H-Alpha Mapper (WHAM) observations of H-Alpha and [S
II]$\lambda6716$ emission are used to trace the vertical distribution and
physical conditions of the warm ionized medium (WIM) along the
Sagittarius-Carina arm. CO emission, tracing cold molecular gas in the plane of
the Galaxy, is used as a guide to isolate H-Alpha and [S II] emission along
individual spiral arms. Exponential scale heights of electron density squared
(or emission measure) are determined using H-Alpha emission above (below) the
midplane to be $330 \pm 80$ pc ( $550 \pm 230$ pc) along the near Sagittarius
arm, $300 \pm 100$ pc ($250 \pm 30$ pc) along the near Carina arm, and $>1000$
pc along the far Carina arm. The emission measure scale height tends to
increase as a function of Galactocentric radius along the Sagittarius-Carina
arm for $R_G > 8$ kpc. Physical conditions of the ionized gas are analyzed
using the [S II]/H-Alpha line ratio, which more closely traces H-Alpha
Intensity than height above the plane, z, suggesting a stronger relationship
with the in-situ electron density. We interpret this result as further evidence
for the majority of the observed diffuse emission originating from in-situ
ionized gas as opposed to scattered light from classical H II regions in the
plane.


title: Parking on a random tree

abstract:
  Consider a uniform random rooted tree on vertices labelled by $[n] =
\{1,2,\ldots,n\}$, with edges directed towards the root. We imagine that each
node of the tree has space for a single car to park. A number $m \le n$ of cars
arrive one by one, each at a node chosen independently and uniformly at random.
If a car arrives at a space which is already occupied, it follows the unique
path oriented towards the root until it encounters an empty space, in which
case it parks there; if there is no empty space, it leaves the tree. Consider
$m =[\alpha n]$ and let $A_{n,\alpha}$ denote the event that all $[\alpha n]$
cars find spaces in the tree. Lackner and Panholzer proved (via analytic
combinatorics methods) that there is a phase transition in this model. Then if
$\alpha \le 1/2$, we have $\mathbb{P}(A_{n,\alpha}) \to
\frac{\sqrt{1-2\alpha}}{1-\alpha}$, whereas if $\alpha > 1/2$ we have
$\mathbb{P}(A_{n,\alpha}) \to 0$. We give a probabilistic explanation for this
phenomenon, and an alternative proof via the objective method. Along the way,
we are led to consider the following variant of the problem: take the tree to
be the family tree of a Galton-Watson branching process with Poisson(1)
offspring distribution, and let an independent Poisson($\alpha$) number of cars
arrive at each vertex. Let $X$ be the number of cars which visit the root of
the tree. Then for $\alpha \le 1/2$, we have $\mathbb{E}[X] \leq 1$, whereas
for $\alpha > 1/2$, we have $\mathbb{E}[X] = \infty$. This discontinuous phase
transition turns out to be a generic phenomenon in settings with an arbitrary
offspring distribution of mean at least 1 for the tree and arbitrary arrival
distribution.


title: Partition-DFT on the Water Dimer

abstract:
  As is well known, the ground-state symmetry group of the water dimer switches
from its equilibrium $C_{s}$-character to $C_{2h}$-character as the distance
between the two oxygen atoms of the dimer decreases below $R_{\rm O-O}\sim 2.5$
\AA{}. For a range of $R_{\rm O-O}$ between 1 and 5 \AA{}, and for both
symmetries, we apply Partition Density Functional Theory (PDFT) to find the
unique monomer densities that sum to the correct dimer densities while
minimizing the sum of the monomer energies. We calculate the work involved in
deforming the isolated monomer densities and find that it is slightly larger
for the $C_s$ geometry for all $R_{\rm O-O}$. We discuss how the PDFT densities
and the corresponding partition potentials support the orbital-interaction
picture of hydrogen-bond formation.


title: $\gamma^\ast N \to N^\ast(1520)$ form factors in the timelike regime

abstract:
  The covariant spectator quark model, tested before in a variety of
electromagnetic baryon excitations, is applied here to the $\gamma^\ast N \to
N^\ast(1520)$ reaction in the timelike regime. The transition form factors are
first parametrized in the spacelike region in terms of a valence quark core
model together with a parametrization of the meson cloud contribution. The form
factor behavior in the timelike region is then predicted, as well as the
$N^\ast(1520) \to \gamma N$ decay width and the $N^\ast (1520)$ Dalitz decay,
$N^\ast (1520) \to e^+ e^- N$. Our results may help in the interpretation of
dielectron production from elementary $pp$ collisions and from the new
generation of HADES results using a pion beam. In the $q^2=0$--1 GeV$^2$ range
we conclude that the {\it QED approximation} (a $q^2$ independent form factor
model) underestimates the electromagnetic coupling of the $N^\ast(1520)$ from 1
up to 2 orders of magnitude. We conclude also that the $N^\ast (1520)$ and the
$\Delta(1232)$ Dalitz decay widths are comparable.


title:
Recent progress in understanding deconfinement and chiral restoration
  phase transitions

abstract:
  Paradigme shift in gauge topology, from instantons to their constituents --
instanton-dyons -- has recently lead to very significant advances. Like
instantons, they have fermionic zero modes, and their collectivization at
sufficiently high density explains the chiral symmetry breaking. Unlike
instantons, these objects have electric and magnetic charges. Their back
reaction on the mean value of the Polyakov line (holonomy) allows to explain
the deconfinement transition. The talk summarizes recent works on the dyon
ensemble, done in the mean field approximation (MFA), and also by direct
numerical statistical simulation. Introduction of non-trivial quark periodicity
conditions leads to drastic changes in both deconfinement and chiral
transitions. In particulaly, in the so called Z(N_c)-QCD model the former gets
much stronger, while the latter does not seem to occur at all.


title:
Dual jet geometrical objects of momenta in the time-dependent Hamilton
  geometry

abstract:
  The aim of this paper is to obtain on the dual 1-jet space J^{1*}(R;M) the
main geometrical objects used in the dual jet geometry of time-dependent
Hamiltonians. We talk about distinguished (d-) tensors, time-dependent
semisprays, nonlinear connections and their mathematical connections.


title: Constraining the Kerr parameters via X-ray reflection spectroscopy

abstract:
  In a recent paper [Ghasemi-Nodehi & Bambi, EPJC 76 (2016) 290], we have
proposed a new parametrization for testing the Kerr nature of astrophysical
black hole candidates. In the present work, we study the possibility of
constraining the "Kerr parameters" of our proposal using X-ray reflection
spectroscopy, the so-called iron line method. We simulate observations with the
LAD instrument on board of the future eXTP mission assuming an exposure time of
200~ks. We fit the simulated data to see if the Kerr parameters can be
constrained. If we have the correct astrophysical model, 200~ks observations
with LAD/eXTP can constrain all the Kerr parameters with the exception of
$b_{11}$, whose impact on the iron line profile is extremely weak and its
measurement looks very challenging.


title: Harnack inequalities and Bounds for Densities of Stochastic Processes

abstract:
  We consider possibly degenerate parabolic operators in the form $$
  \sum_{k=1}^{m}X_{k}^{2}+X_{0}-\partial_{t}, $$ that are naturally associated
to a suitable family of stochastic differential equations, and satisfying the
H\"ormander condition. Note that, under this assumption, the operators in the
form $\L$ has a smooth fundamental solution that agrees with the density of the
corresponding stochastic process. We describe a method based on Harnack
inequalities and on the construction of Harnack chains to prove lower bounds
for the fundamental solution. We also briefly discuss PDE and SDE methods to
prove analogous upper bounds. We eventually give a list of meaningful examples
of operators to which the method applies.


title: Collapse and bounce of null fluids

abstract:
  Exact solutions describing the spherical collapse of null fluids can contain
regions which violate the energy conditions. Physically the violations occur
when the infalling matter continues to move inwards even when non-gravitational
repulsive forces become stronger than gravity. In 1991 Ori proposed a
resolution for these violations: spacetime surgery should be used to replace
the energy condition violating region with an outgoing solution. The matter
bounces. We revisit and implement this proposal for the more general Husain
null fluids including a careful study of potential discontinuities and
associated matter shells between the regions. Along the way we highlight an
error in the standard classification of energy condition violations for Type II
stress-energy tensors.


title: Model spin-orbit coupling Hamiltonians for graphene systems

abstract:
  We present a detailed theoretical study of effective spin-orbit coupling
(SOC) Hamiltonians for graphene based systems, covering global effects such as
proximity to substrates and local SOC effects resulting, for example, from
dilute adsorbate functionalization. Our approach combines group theory and
tight-binding descriptions. We consider structures with global point group
symmetries $D_{6h}$, $D_{3d}$, $D_{3h}$, $C_{6v}$, and $C_{3v}$ that represent,
for example, pristine graphene, graphene mini-ripple, planar boron-nitride,
graphene on a substrate and free standing graphone, respectively. The presence
of certain spin-orbit coupling parameters is correlated with the absence of the
specific point group symmetries. Especially in the case of $C_{6v}$---graphene
on a substrate, or transverse electric field---we point out the presence of a
third SOC parameter, besides the conventional intrinsic and Rashba
contributions, thus far neglected in literature. For all global structures we
provide effective SOC Hamiltonians both in the local atomic and Bloch forms.
Dilute adsorbate coverage results in the local point group symmetries $C_{6v}$,
$C_{3v}$, and $C_{2v}$ which represent the stable adsorption at hollow, top and
bridge positions, respectively. For each configuration we provide effective SOC
Hamiltonians in the atomic orbital basis that respect local symmetries. In
addition to giving specific analytic expressions for model SOC Hamiltonians, we
also present general (no-go) arguments about the absence of certain SOC terms.


title:
Using model distances to investigate the simplifying assumption, model
  selection and truncation levels for vine copulas

abstract:
  Vine copulas are a useful statistical tool to describe the dependence
structure between several random variables, especially when the number of
variables is very large. When modeling data with vine copulas, one often is
confronted with a set of candidate models out of which the best one is supposed
to be selected. For example, this may arise in the context of non-simplified
vine copulas, truncations of vines and other simplifications regarding
pair-copula families or the vine structure. With the help of distance measures
we develop a parametric bootstrap based testing procedure to decide between
copulas from nested model classes. In addition we use distance measures to
select among different candidate models. All commonly used distance measures,
e.g. the Kullback-Leibler distance, suffer from the curse of dimensionality due
to high-dimensional integrals. As a remedy for this problem, Killiches, Kraus
and Czado (2017) propose several modifications of the Kullback-Leibler
distance. We apply these distance measures to the above mentioned model
selection problems and substantiate their usefulness.


title:
Laboratory measurements of super-resolving Toraldo pupils for radio
  astronomical applications

abstract:
  The concept of super-resolution refers to various methods for improving the
angular resolution of an optical imaging system beyond the classical
diffraction limit. Although several techniques to narrow the central lobe of
the illumination Point Spread Function have been developed in optical
microscopy, most of these methods cannot be implemented on astronomical
telescopes. A possible exception is represented by the variable transmittance
filters, also known as "Toraldo Pupils" (TPs) since they were introduced for
the first time by G. Toraldo di Francia in 1952. In the microwave range, the
first successful laboratory test of TPs was performed in 2003. These first
results suggested that TPs could represent a viable approach to achieve
super-resolution in Radio Astronomy. We have therefore started a project
devoted to a more exhaustive analysis of TPs and how they could be implemented
on a radio telescope. In the present work we report on the results of extensive
microwave measurements, using TPs with different geometrical shapes, which
confirm the correctness of the first experiments in 2003. We have also extended
the original investigation to carry out full-wave electromagnetic numerical
simulations and also to perform planar scanning of the near-field and transform
the results into the far-field.


title:
The large $N$ limit of the topological susceptibility of Yang-Mills
  gauge theory

abstract:
  We present a precise computation of the topological susceptibility
$\chi_{_\mathrm{YM}}$ of SU$(N)$ Yang-Mills theory in the large $N$ limit. The
computation is done on the lattice, using high-statistics Monte Carlo
simulations with $N=3, 4, 5, 6$ and three different lattice spacings. Two major
improvements make it possible to go to finer lattice spacing and larger $N$
compared to previous works. First, the topological charge is implemented
through the gradient flow definition; and second, open boundary conditions in
the time direction are employed in order to avoid the freezing of the
topological charge. The results allow us to extrapolate the dimensionless
quantity $t_0^2\chi_{_\mathrm{YM}}$ to the continuum and large $N$ limits with
confidence. The accuracy of the final result represents a new quality in the
verification of large $N$ scaling.


title: 2D dynamics of the radiative core of low mass stars

abstract:
  Understanding the internal rotation of low mass stars all along their
evolution is of primary interest when studying their rotational dynamics,
internal mixing and magnetic field generation. In this context, helio- and
asteroseismology probe angular velocity gradients deep within solar type stars
at different evolutionary stages. Still the rotation close to the center of
such stars on the main sequence is hardly detectable and the dynamical
interaction of the radiative core with the surface convective envelope is not
well understood. For instance, the influence of the differential rotation
profile sustained by convection and applied as a boundary condition to the
radiation zone is very important in the formation of tachoclines. In this work,
we study a 2D hydrodynamical model of a radiative core when an imposed, solar
or anti-solar, differential rotation is applied at the upper boundary. This
model uses the Boussinesq approximation and we find that the shear induces a
cylindrical differential rotation associated with a unique cell of meridional
circulation in each hemisphere (counterclockwise when the shear is solar-like
and clockwise when it is anti-solar). The results are discussed in the
framework of seismic observables (internal rotation rate, core-to-surface
rotation ratio) while perspectives to improve our modeling by including
magnetic field or transport by internal gravity waves will be discussed.


title:
Metal Insulator transition in tin doped indium oxide (ITO) thin films
  Quantum Correction to the electrical Conductivity

abstract:
  Tin doped indium oxide (ITO) thin films are being used extensively as
transparent conductors in several applications. In the present communication,
we report the electrical transport in DC magnetron sputtered ITO thin films in
low temperatures (25-300 K). The low temperature Hall effect and resistivity
measurements reveal that the ITO thin films are moderately dis-ordered (kfl~1)
and degenerate semiconductor. The transport of charge carriers in these
disordered ITO thin films takes place via the de-localized states. The disorder
effects lead to the well- known metal-insulator transition; this transition is
observed at 110 K in ITO thin films. The metal-insulator behaviour is explained
by the quantum correction to the conductivity (QCC); this approach is based on
the quantum-mechanical interference effects in the disordered systems. The
insulating behaviour is attributed to the combined effect of the weak
localization and the electron-electron interactions.


title: D = 3 Unification of Curious Supergravities

abstract:
  We consider the dimensional reduction to D = 3 of four maximal-rank
supergravities which preserve minimal supersymmetry in D = 11, 7, 5 and 4. Such
"curious" theories were investigated some time ago, and the four-dimensional
one corresponds to an N = 1 supergravity with 7 chiral multiplets spanning the
seven-disk manifold. Recently, this latter theory provided cosmological models
for alpha-attractors, which are based on the disk geometry with possible
restrictions on the parameter alpha. A unified picture emerges in D = 3, where
the Ehlers group of General Relativity merges with the S-, T- and U- dualities
of the D = 4 parent theories.


title: Simplification Rules for Birdtrack Operators

abstract:
  This paper derives a set of easy-to-use tools designed to simplify
calculations with birdtrack op- erators comprised of symmetrizers and
antisymmetrizers. In particular, we present cancellation rules allowing one to
shorten the birdtrack expressions of operators, and propagation rules
identifying the circumstances under which it is possible to propagate
symmetrizers past antisymmetrizers and vice versa. We exhibit the power of
these simplification rules by means of a short example in which we apply the
tools derived in this paper on a typical operator that can be encountered in
the representation theory of SU(N) over the product space $V^{\otimes m}$ .
These rules form the basis for the construction of compact Hermitian Young
projection operators and their transition operators addressed in companion
papers.


title: Transition Operators

abstract:
  In this paper, we give a generic algorithm of the transition operators
between Hermitian Young projection operators corresponding to equivalent
irreducible representations of SU(N), using the compact expressions of
Hermitian Young projection operators derived in a companion paper. We show that
the Hermitian Young projection operators together with their transition
operators constitute a fully orthogonal basis for the algebra of invariants of
$V^{\otimes m}$ that exhibits a systematically simplified multiplication table.
We discuss the full algebra of invariants over $V^{\otimes 3}$ and $V^{\otimes
4}$ as explicit examples. In our presentation we make use of various standard
concepts such as Young projection operators, Clebsch-Gordan operators, and
invariants (in birdtrack notation). We tie these perspectives together and use
them to shed light on each other.


title: A brief history of gravitational wave research

abstract:
  For the benefit of the readers of this journal, the editors requested that we
prepare a brief review of the history of the development of the theory, the
experimental attempts to detect them, and the recent direct observations of
gravitational waves (GWs). The theoretical ideas and disputes beginning with
Einstein in 1916 regarding the existence and nature of GWs and the extent to
which one can rely on the electromagnetic analogy, especially the controversies
regarding the quadrupole formula and whether GWs carry energy, are discussed.
The theoretical conclusions eventually received strong observational support
from the binary pulsar. This provided compelling, although indirect, evidence
for GWs carrying away energy--as predicted by the quadrupole formula. On the
direct detection experimental side, Weber started more than 50 years ago. In
1966, his bar for GW detection reached a strain sensitivity of a few times
10^-16. His announcement of coincident signals (now considered spurious)
stimulated many experimental efforts from room temperature resonant masses to
cryogenic detectors and laser-interferometers. Now there are km-sized
interferometric detectors (LIGO Hanford, LIGO Livingston, Virgo and KAGRA).
Advanced LIGO first reached a strain sensitivity of the order of 10^-22. During
their first 130 days of observation (O1 run), with the aid of templates
generated by numerical relativity, they did make the first detections: two
5-sigma GW events and one likely event. Besides earth-based GW detectors, the
drag-free sensitivity of the LISA Pathfinder has already reached to the LISA
goal level, paving the road for space GW detectors. Over the whole GW spectrum
(from aHz to THz) there are efforts for detection, notably the
very-low-frequency band (pulsar timing array [PTA], 300 pHz-100 nHz) and the
extremely-low (Hubble)-frequency (cosmic microwave background [CMB] experiment,
1 aHz-10 fHz).


title:
The Composition and Formation of Effective Teams. Computer Science meets
  Psychology

abstract:
  Nowadays the composition and formation of effective teams is highly important
for both companies to assure their competitiveness and for a wide range of
emerging applications exploiting multiagent collaboration (e.g. crowdsourcing,
human-agent collaborations). The aim of this article is to provide an
integrative perspective on team composition, team formation and their
relationship with team performance. Thus, we review the contributions in both
the computer science literature and the organisational psychology literature
dealing with these topics. Our purpose is twofold. First, we aim at identifying
the strengths and weaknesses of the contributions made by these two diverse
bodies of research. Second, we pursue to identify cross-fertilisation
opportunities that help both disciplines benefit from one another. Given the
volume of existing literature, our review is not intended to be exhaustive.
Instead, we have preferred to focus on the most significant contributions in
both fields together with recent contributions that break new ground to spur
innovative research.


title:
Estimation of the Volume Under the ROC Surface in Presence of
  Nonignorable Verification Bias

abstract:
  The volume under the receiver operating characteristic surface (VUS) is
useful for measuring the overall accuracy of a diagnostic test when the
possible disease status belongs to one of three ordered categories. In medical
studies, the VUS of a new test is typically estimated through a sample of
measurements obtained by some suitable sample of patients. However, in many
cases, only a subset of such patients has the true disease status assessed by a
gold standard test. In this paper, for a continuous-scale diagnostic test, we
propose four estimators of the VUS which accommodate for nonignorable
missingness of the disease status. The estimators are based on a parametric
model which jointly describes both the disease and the verification process.
Identifiability of the model is discussed. Consistency and asymptotic normality
of the proposed estimators are shown, and variance estimation is discussed. The
finite-sample behavior is investigated by means of simulation experiments. An
illustration is provided.


title:
Closedness of convex sets in Orlicz spaces with applications to dual
  representation of risk measures

abstract:
  Let $(\Phi,\Psi)$ be a conjugate pair of Orlicz functions. A set in the
Orlicz space $L^\Phi$ is said to be order closed if it is closed with respect
to dominated convergence of sequences of functions. A well known problem
arising from the theory of risk measures in financial mathematics asks whether
order closedness of a convex set in $L^\Phi$ characterizes closedness with
respect to the topology $\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$. (See [26, p.3585].) In this
paper, we show that for a norm bounded convex set in $L^\Phi$, order closedness
and $\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$-closedness are indeed equivalent. In general,
however, coincidence of order closedness and $\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$-closedness
of convex sets in $L^\Phi$ is equivalent to the validity of the Krein-Smulian
Theorem for the topology $\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$; that is, a convex set is
$\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$-closed if and only if it is closed with respect to the
bounded-$\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$ topology. As a result, we show that order
closedness and $\sigma(L^\Phi,L^\Psi)$-closedness of convex sets in $L^\Phi$
are equivalent if and only if either $\Phi$ or $\Psi$ satisfies the
$\Delta_2$-condition. Using this, we prove the surprising result that: \emph{If
(and only if) $\Phi$ and $\Psi$ both fail the $\Delta_2$-condition, then there
exists a coherent risk measure on $L^\Phi$ that has the Fatou property but
fails the Fenchel-Moreau dual representation with respect to the dual pair
$(L^\Phi, L^\Psi)$}. A similar analysis is carried out for the dual pair of
Orlicz hearts $(H^\Phi,H^\Psi)$.


title:
Hybrid electrochromic device with Tungsten oxide (WO3-x) and nafion
  membrane: performance with varying tungsten oxide thickness

abstract:
  Electrochromic devices, which dynamically change color under the applied
potential, are widely studied because of its wide range of applications such as
energy-efficient smart windows, rear view mirrors and display devices etc. In
this study we are reporting four layer electrochromic device based on tungsten
oxide as a electrochromic layer and nafion membrane as a ionic conducting
layer. Nafion membranes are generally used in fuel cell applications because of
its high ionic conductivity and high optical transparency which is suitable for
electrochromic device to attain higher efficiencies. We have prepared an
electrochromic device by sandwiching ITO coated glass and WO3 coated ITO thin
film between nafion membrane. The overall structure of the device is
Glass/ITO/WO3/Nafion/ITO/Glass. We deposited tungsten oxide thin films with
different thickness on ITO coated glass substrate at room temperature by using
reactive DC Magnetron sputtering and we studied the performance of the
electrochromic device with the function of thickness. We have observed that
electrochromic efficiency is increasing with increase in the tungsten oxide
layer thickness. The efficiency of the device increased from 24.8 cm2/C to
184.3 cm2/C.


title:
Automated Management of Pothole related Disasters Using Image Processing
  and Geotagging

abstract:
  Potholes though seem inconsequential, may cause accidents resulting in loss
of human life. In this paper, we present an automated system to efficiently
manage the potholes in a ward by deploying geotagging and image processing
techniques that overcomes the drawbacks associated with the existing
survey-oriented systems. Image processing is used for identification of target
pothole regions in the 2D images using edge detection and morphological image
processing operations. A method is developed to accurately estimate the
dimensions of the potholes from their images, analyze their area and depth,
estimate the quantity of filling material required and therefore enabling
pothole attendance on a priority basis. This will further enable the government
official to have a fully automated system for effectively managing pothole
related disasters.


title: Aligning coding sequences with frameshift extension penalties

abstract:
  Frameshift translation is an important phenomenon that contributes to the
appearance of novel Coding DNA Sequences (CDS) and functions in gene evolution,
by allowing alternative amino acid translations of genes coding regions.
Frameshift translations can be identified by aligning two CDS, from a same gene
or from homologous genes, while accounting for their codon structure. Two main
classes of algorithms have been proposed to solve the problem of aligning CDS,
either by amino acid sequence alignment back-translation, or by simultaneously
accounting for the nucleotide and amino acid levels. The former does not allow
to account for frameshift translations and up to now, the latter exclusively
accounts for frameshift translation initiation, not accounting for the length
of the translation disruption caused by a frameshift.
  Here, we introduce a new scoring scheme with an algorithm for the pairwise
alignment of CDS accounting for frameshift translation initiation and length,
while simultaneously accounting for nucleotide and amino acid sequences. We
compare the method to other CDS alignment methods based on an application to
the comparison of pairs of CDS from homologous \emph{human}, \emph{mouse} and
\emph{cow} genes of ten mammalian gene families from the Ensembl-Compara
database. The results show that our method is particularly robust to parameter
changes as compared to existing methods. It also appears to be a good
compromise, performing well both in the presence and absence of frameshift
translations between the CDS. An implementation of the method is available at
https://github.com/UdeS-CoBIUS/FsePSA.


title: LHC vector resonance searches in the $t\bar{t} Z$ final state

abstract:
  LHC searches for BSM resonances in $l^+ l^-, \, jj, \, t\bar{t}, \gamma
\gamma$ and $VV$ final states have so far not resulted in discovery of new
physics. Current results set lower limits on mass scales of new physics
resonances well into the $\mathcal{O}(1)$ TeV range, assuming that the new
resonance decays dominantly to a pair of Standard Model particles. While the SM
pair searches are a vital probe of possible new physics, it is important to
re-examine the scope of new physics scenarios probed with such final states.
Scenarios where new resonances decay dominantly to final states other than SM
pairs, even though well theoretically motivated, lie beyond the scope of SM
pair searches. In this paper we argue that LHC searches for (vector) resonances
beyond two particle final states would be useful complementary probes of new
physics scenarios. As an example, we consider a class of composite Higgs
models, and identify specific model parameter points where the color singlet,
electrically neutral vector resonance $\rho_0$ decays dominantly not to a pair
of SM particles, but to a fermionic top partner $T_{f1}$ and a top quark, with
$T_{f1} \rightarrow tZ$. We show that dominant decays of $\rho_0 \rightarrow
T_{f1} t$ in the context of Composite Higgs models are possible even when the
decay channel to a pair of $T_{f1}$ is kinematically open. Our analysis deals
with scenarios where both $m_\rho$ and $m_{T_{f1}}$ are of $\mathcal{O}(1)$
TeV, leading to highly boosted $t\bar{t}Z$ final state topologies. We show that
the particular composite Higgs scenario we consider is discoverable at the
LHC13 with as little as 30 fb$^{-1}$, while being allowed by other existing
experimental constraints.


title:
CSI 2264: Investigating rotation and its connection with disk accretion
  in the young open cluster NGC 2264

abstract:
  The low spin rates measured for solar-type stars at an age of a few Myr (~10%
of the break-up velocity) indicate that some mechanism of angular momentum
regulation must be at play in the early pre-main sequence. We characterize the
rotation properties for members of the region NGC 2264 (~3 Myr), and
investigate the accretion-rotation connection at an age where about 50% of the
stars have already lost their disks. We examined a sample of 500 cluster
members whose photometric variations were monitored in the optical for 38
consecutive days with CoRoT. Light curves were analyzed for periodicity using
the Lomb-Scargle periodogram, the autocorrelation function and the
string-length method. The period distribution obtained for the cluster consists
of a smooth distribution centered around P=5.2 d with two peaks at P=1-2 d and
3-4 d. A separate analysis of CTTS and WTTS indicates that the P=1-2 d peak is
associated with the latter, while both groups contribute to the P=3-4 d peak.
The comparison between CTTS and WTTS supports the idea of a rotation-accretion
connection: their respective rotational properties are statistically different,
and CTTS rotate on average more slowly than WTTS. We also observe a clear
dearth of fast rotators with strong accretion signatures (large UV flux
excess). This is consistent with earlier findings that fast rotators in young
star clusters are typically devoid of dusty disks. Our sample shows some
evidence of a mass dependence in the rotation properties of NGC 2264 members,
lower-mass stars spinning on average faster. This study confirms that disks
influence the rotational evolution of young stars. The idea of disk-locking may
be consistent with the picture of rotation and rotation-accretion connection
that we observe for the NGC 2264 cluster. However, the origin of the several
substructures that we observe in the period distribution deserves further
investigation.


title: Optical beam shifts in graphene and single-layer boron-nitride

abstract:
  Optical beam shifts from a free-standing two-dimensional atomic crystal are
investigated. In contrast to a three-dimensional crystal the magnitude of the
Goos-H$\rm \ddot{a}$nchen shift depends on the surface susceptibility of the
crystal and not on the wavelength of the incident light beam. The surface
conductivity of the atomically thin crystal is less important in this context
because it enters in the expression of the shifts only as a second order
parameter. In analogy to a three-dimensional crystal the magnitudes of the
Imbert-Fedorov shift and of the angular shifts depend respectively on the
wavelength and on the square of the beam angular aperture.


title:
Sparse Signal Subspace Decomposition Based on Adaptive Over-complete
  Dictionary

abstract:
  This paper proposes a subspace decomposition method based on an over-complete
dictionary in sparse representation, called "Sparse Signal Subspace
Decomposition" (or 3SD) method. This method makes use of a novel criterion
based on the occurrence frequency of atoms of the dictionary over the data set.
This criterion, well adapted to subspace-decomposition over a dependent basis
set, adequately re ects the intrinsic characteristic of regularity of the
signal. The 3SD method combines variance, sparsity and component frequency
criteria into an unified framework. It takes benefits from using an
over-complete dictionary which preserves details and from subspace
decomposition which rejects strong noise. The 3SD method is very simple with a
linear retrieval operation. It does not require any prior knowledge on
distributions or parameters. When applied to image denoising, it demonstrates
high performances both at preserving fine details and suppressing strong noise.


title:
Relation between state-distinction power and disturbance in quantum
  measurements

abstract:
  The measurement of an informative observable strongly disturbs a quantum
state. We examine the so-called information-disturbance relation by introducing
order relations based on the state distinction power of an observable and a
variety of non-disturbed observables with respect to a channel, and obtain
qualitative and quantitative representations.


title:
A Deeper Look into Sarcastic Tweets Using Deep Convolutional Neural
  Networks

abstract:
  Sarcasm detection is a key task for many natural language processing tasks.
In sentiment analysis, for example, sarcasm can flip the polarity of an
"apparently positive" sentence and, hence, negatively affect polarity detection
performance. To date, most approaches to sarcasm detection have treated the
task primarily as a text categorization problem. Sarcasm, however, can be
expressed in very subtle ways and requires a deeper understanding of natural
language that standard text categorization techniques cannot grasp. In this
work, we develop models based on a pre-trained convolutional neural network for
extracting sentiment, emotion and personality features for sarcasm detection.
Such features, along with the network's baseline features, allow the proposed
models to outperform the state of the art on benchmark datasets. We also
address the often ignored generalizability issue of classifying data that have
not been seen by the models at learning phase.


title: On the normalized spectrum of threshold graphs

abstract:
  In this article we investigate normalized adjacency eigenvalues (simply
normalized eigenvalues) and normalized adjacency energy of connected threshold
graphs. A threshold graph can always be represented as a unique binary string.
Certain eigenvalues are obtained directly from its binary representation and
the rest of the eigenvalues are evaluated from its normalized equitable
partition matrix. Finally, we characterize threshold graphs with at most five
distinct eigenvalues.


title:
Meson cloud effects on the pion quark distribution function in the
  chiral constituent quark model

abstract:
  We investigate the valence quark distribution function of the pion
$v^{\pi}(x,Q^2)$ in the framework of the chiral constituent quark model and
evaluate the meson cloud effects on $v^{\pi}(x,Q^2)$. We explicitly demonstrate
how the meson cloud effects affect $v^{\pi}(x,Q^2)$ in detail. We find that the
meson cloud correction causes an overall 32\% reduction of the valence quark
distribution and an enhancement at the small Bjorken $x$ regime. Besides, we
also find that the dressing effect of the meson cloud will make the valence
quark distribution to be softer in the large $x$ region.


title: Agnostic Risk Parity: Taming Known and Unknown-Unknowns

abstract:
  Markowitz' celebrated optimal portfolio theory generally fails to deliver
out-of-sample diversification. In this note, we propose a new portfolio
construction strategy based on symmetry arguments only, leading to "Eigenrisk
Parity" portfolios that achieve equal realized risk on all the principal
components of the covariance matrix. This holds true for any other definition
of uncorrelated factors. We then specialize our general formula to the most
agnostic case where the indicators of future returns are assumed to be
uncorrelated and of equal variance. This "Agnostic Risk Parity" (AGP) portfolio
minimizes unknown-unknown risks generated by over-optimistic hedging of the
different bets. AGP is shown to fare quite well when applied to standard
technical strategies such as trend following.


title:
Finite covers of graphs, their primitive homology, and representation
  theory

abstract:
  Consider a finite, regular cover $Y\to X$ of finite graphs, with associated
deck group $G$. We relate the topology of the cover to the structure of
$H_1(Y;\mathbb{C})$ as a $G$-representation. A central object in this study is
the {\em primitive homology} group $H_1^{\mathrm{prim}}(Y;\mathbb{C})\subseteq
H_1(Y;\mathbb{C})$, which is the span of homology classes represented by
components of lifts of primitive elements of $\pi_1(X)$. This circle of ideas
relates combinatorial group theory, surface topology, and representation
theory.


title: Bin Packing Problem: A Linear Constant-Space 3/2-Approximation Algorithm

abstract:
  Since the Bin Packing Problem (BPP) is one of the main NP-hard problems, a
lot of approximation algorithms have been suggested for it. It has been proven
that the best algorithm for BPP has the approximation ratio of 3/2 and the time
order of O(n), unless P=NP. In the current paper, a linear 3/2-approximation
algorithm is presented. The suggested algorithm not only has the best possible
theoretical factors, approximation ratio, space order, and time order, but also
outperforms the other approximation algorithms according to the experimental
results, therefore, we are able to draw the conclusion that the algorithms is
the best approximation algorithm which has been presented for the problem until
now. Key words: Approximation Algorithm, Bin Packing Problem, Approximation
Ratio, NP-hard.


title: Field-quadrature and photon-number variances for Gaussian states

abstract:
  We calculate exactly the quantum mechanical, temporal characteristic function
$\chi(\eta)$ for a single-mode, degenerate parametric amplifier for a system in
the Gaussian state, viz., a displaced-squeezed thermal state. Knowledge of
$\chi(\eta)$ allows only the determination of the time development of arbitrary
functions of equal-time products of creation and annihilation photon operators.
We calculate, in particular, the fluctuations in photon number, quadrature
operators, and quadrature variance. We contrast the very important difference
between the nonclassicality criteria based on the one-time characteristic
function $\chi(\eta)$ versus nonclassicality criteria based on the two-time,
second-order coherence function $g^{(2)}(\tau)$ and show numerically that the
nonclassicality criteria based on $\chi(\eta)$ does not determine the
classical/nonclassical behavior of $g^{(2)}(\tau)$.


title:
Uniqueness problem of meromorphic mappings from a complete K\"{a}hler
  manifold into a projective variety

abstract:
  The purpose of this paper has twofold. The first is to prove a unicity
theorem for meromorphic mappings of a complete K\"{a}hler manifold M in P^n(C)
sharing few hypersurfaces. The second is to give a unicity theorem for the case
of differential nondegenerate meromorphic mappings sharing 2N-n+3+2\rho(2N-n+1)
hyperplanes in N subgeneral position.


title: Power Law of Shear Viscosity in Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton-Axion model

abstract:
  We construct charged black hole solutions with hyperscaling violation in the
infrared(IR) region in Einstein-Maxwell-Dilaton-Axion theory and investigate
the temperature behavior of the ratio of holographic shear viscosity to the
entropy density. When translational symmetry breaking is relevant in the IR,
the power law of the ratio is testified numerically at low temperature $T$,
namely, $\eta/s\sim T^\kappa$, where the values of exponent $\kappa$ coincide
with the analytical results. We also find that the exponent $\kappa$ is not
affected by irrelevant current, but is reduced by the relevant current.


title: Numerical methods for changing type systems

abstract:
  In this note we develop a numerical method for partial differential equations
with changing type. Our method is based on a unified solution theory found by
Rainer Picard for several linear equations from mathematical physics. Parallel
to the solution theory already developed, we frame our numerical method in a
discontinuous Galerkin approach in space-time with certain exponentially
weighted spaces.


title:
High efficiency, hybrid electrochromic device on polycarbonate
  substrates with neon sputtered WO3-x thin films

abstract:
  Electrochromic materials change color reversibly by applying an external DC
voltage. One among the many emerging application of electro-chromics is the
smart windows. The coloration efficiency, the optical colour modulation and the
cyclability are the factors that bench mark the device. Tungsten oxide (WO3-x)
is versatile material and reactive DC magnetron sputtering (with argon as
sputter gas) technique is common for electro-chromics. In the present
communication we have prepared tungsten oxide thin films by reactive DC
magnetron sputtering technique (at room temperature 300 K) using Neon as the
sputter gas. The thickness of the WO3 thin films are varied from 190 nm to 712
nm. These WO3 thin films are subjected for electrochemical measurements with
three electrode electrochemical cell in presence of 1M HCl, 1M Li2SO4 aqueous
electrolyte and we have prepared a solid state electrochromic device with
nafion thin film. The highest coloration efficiency of the neon sputtered WO3
is observed as 187.9 cm2/C by lithium intercalation.


title: The $\mathbb{C}$P(2) Model at Non-Zero Chemical Potential

abstract:
  Recently the simulation of quantum field theories using man-made physical
systems has become realistic. In this publication we present numerical results
which support the use of quantum simulation experiments to study quantum field
theories at non-zero chemical potential. We have numerically simulated the
(1+1)-d $\mathbb{C}$P(2) model, which shares several interesting features with
QCD, namely asymptotic freedom, a dynamically generated mass gap and
topological sectors, via dimensional reduction of a (2+1)-d microscopic theory
of SU(3) quantum spins. Numerical results for the particle number density as a
function of chemical potential are presented.


title:
A hybrid particle-continuum resolution method and its application to a
  homopolymer solution

abstract:
  We discuss in detail a recently proposed hybrid particle-continuum scheme for
complex fluids and evaluate it at the example of a confined homopolymer
solution in slit geometry. The hybrid scheme treats polymer chains near the
impenetrable walls as particles keeping the configuration details, and chains
in the bulk region as continuous density fields. Polymers can switch
resolutions on the fly, controlled by an inhomogeneous tuning function. By
properly choosing the tuning function, the representation of the system can be
adjusted to reach an optimal balance between physical accuracy and
computational efficiency. The hybrid simulation reproduces the results of a
reference particle simulation and is significantly faster (about a factor of
3.5 in our application example).


title: A study of the Lyman-$\alpha$ line profile in DBA white dwarfs

abstract:
  The hydrogen abundances in DBA white dwarfs determined from optical or UV
spectra have been reported to differ significantly in some studies. We revisit
this problem using our own model atmospheres and synthetic spectra, and present
a theoretical investigation of the Lyman-$\alpha$ line profile as a function of
effective temperature and hydrogen abundance. We identify one possible solution
to this discrepancy and show considerable improvement from a detailed analysis
of optical and UV spectra of DBA stars.


title:
Nonclassicality criteria: Quasiprobability distributions and correlation
  functions

abstract:
  We use the exact calculation of the quantum mechanical, temporal
characteristic function $\chi(\eta)$ and the degree of second-order coherence
$g^{(2)}(\tau)$ for a single-mode, degenerate parametric amplifier for a system
in the Gaussian state, viz., a displaced-squeezed thermal state, to study the
different criteria for nonclassicality. In particular, we contrast criteria
that involve only one-time functions of the dynamical system, for instance, the
quasiprobability distribution $P(\beta)$ of the Glauber-Sudarshan coherent or
P-representation of the density of state and the Mandel $Q_{M}(\tau)$
parameter, versus the criteria associated with the two-time correlation
function $g^{(2)}(\tau)$.


title:
Impact of neutrino properties on the estimation of inflationary
  parameters from current and future observations

abstract:
  We study the impact of assumptions about neutrino properties on the
estimation of inflationary parameters from cosmological data, with a specific
focus on the allowed contours in the $n_s/r$ plane. We study the following
neutrino properties: (i) the total neutrino mass $ M_\nu =\sum_i m_i$; (ii) the
number of relativistic degrees of freedom $N_{eff}$; and (iii) the neutrino
hierarchy: whereas previous literature assumed 3 degenerate neutrino masses or
two massless neutrino species (that do not match neutrino oscillation data), we
study the cases of normal and inverted hierarchy. Our basic result is that
these three neutrino properties induce $< 1 \sigma$ shift of the probability
contours in the $n_s/r$ plane with both current or upcoming data. We find that
the choice of neutrino hierarchy has a negligible impact. However, the minimal
cutoff on the total neutrino mass $M_{\nu,{min}}=0 $ that accompanies previous
works using the degenerate hierarchy does introduce biases in the $n_s/r$ plane
and should be replaced by $M_{\nu,min}= 0.059$ eV as required by oscillation
data. Using current CMB data from Planck and Bicep/Keck, marginalizing over $
M_\nu$ and over $r$ can lead to a shift in the mean value of $n_s$ of
$\sim0.3\sigma$ towards lower values. However, once BAO measurements are
included, the standard contours in the $n_s/r$ plane are basically reproduced.
Larger shifts of the contours in the $n_s/r$ plane (up to 0.8$\sigma$) arise
for nonstandard values of $N_{eff}$. We also provide forecasts for the future
CMB experiments COrE and Stage-IV and show that the incomplete knowledge of
neutrino properties, taken into account by a marginalization over $M_\nu$,
could induce a shift of $\sim0.4\sigma$ towards lower values in the
determination of $n_s$ (or a $\sim 0.8\sigma$ shift if one marginalizes over
$N_{eff}$). Comparison to specific inflationary models is shown.


title: Numerical methods for motion of level sets by affine curvature

abstract:
  We study numerical methods for the nonlinear partial differential equation
that governs the motion of level sets by affine curvature. We show that
standard finite difference schemes are nonlinearly unstable. We build
convergent finite difference schemes, using the theory of viscosity solutions.
We demonstrate that our approximate solutions capture the affine invariance and
morphological properties of the evolution. Numerical experiments demonstrate
the accuracy and stability of the discretization.


title:
RSA algorithm with a new approach encryption and decryption message text
  by ascii

abstract:
  In many research works, there has been an orientation to studying and
developing many of the applications of public-key cryptography to secure the
data while transmitting in the systems, In this paper we present an approach to
encrypt and decrypt the message text according to the ASCII(American Standard
Code for Information Interchange) and RSA algorithm by converting the message
text into binary representation and dividing this representation to bytes(8s of
0s and 1s) and applying a bijective function between the group of those bytes
and the group of characters of ASCII and then using this mechanism to be
compatible with using RSA algorithm, finally, Java application was built to
apply this approach directly.


title:
A Survey of High Level Frameworks in Block-Structured Adaptive Mesh
  Refinement Packages

abstract:
  Over the last decade block-structured adaptive mesh refinement (SAMR) has
found increasing use in large, publicly available codes and frameworks. SAMR
frameworks have evolved along different paths. Some have stayed focused on
specific domain areas, others have pursued a more general functionality,
providing the building blocks for a larger variety of applications. In this
survey paper we examine a representative set of SAMR packages and SAMR-based
codes that have been in existence for half a decade or more, have a reasonably
sized and active user base outside of their home institutions, and are publicly
available. The set consists of a mix of SAMR packages and application codes
that cover a broad range of scientific domains. We look at their high-level
frameworks, and their approach to dealing with the advent of radical changes in
hardware architecture. The codes included in this survey are BoxLib, Cactus,
Chombo, Enzo, FLASH, and Uintah.


title:
Role of structure in the alpha and beta dynamics of a simple
  glass-forming liquid

abstract:
  The elusive connection between dynamics and local structure in supercooled
liquids is an important piece of the puzzle in the unsolved problem of the
glass transition. The Johari-Goldstein beta relaxation, ubiquitous in
glass-forming liquids, exhibits mean properties that are strongly correlated to
the long-time alpha dynamics. However, the former comprises simpler, more
localized motion, and thus has perhaps a more straightforward connection to
structure. Molecular dynamics simulations were carried out on a
two-dimensional, rigid diatomic molecule (the simplest structure exhibiting a
distinct beta process) to assess the role of the local liquid structure on both
the Johari-Goldstein beta and the alpha relaxation. Although the average
properties for these two relaxations are correlated, there is no connection
between the beta and alpha properties of a given (single) molecule. The
propensity for motion at long times is independent of the rate or strength of a
molecule's beta relaxation. The mobility of a molecule averaged over many
initial energies, a measure of the influence of structure, was found to be
heterogeneous, with clustering at both the beta and alpha timescales. This
heterogeneity is less extended spatially for the beta than for the alpha
dynamics, as expected; however, the local structure is the more dominant
control parameter for the beta prcoess. In the glassy state, the arrangement of
neighboring molecules determines entirely the relaxation properties, with no
discernible effect from the particle momenta.


title: Large scalar multiplet dark matter in the high-mass region

abstract:
  We study two models of scalar dark matter from "large" electroweak multiplets
with isospin 5/2 (n=6 members) and 7/2 (n=8), whose scalar potentials preserve
a $Z_2$ symmetry. Because of large annihilation cross sections due to
electroweak interactions, these scalars can constitute all the dark matter only
for masses in the multi-TeV range. For such high masses, Sommerfeld enhancement
and co-annihilations play important roles in the dark matter relic abundance
calculation, reducing the upper bound on the large multiplet's mass by almost a
factor of two. We determine the allowed parameter ranges including both of
these effects and show that these models are as yet unconstrained by dark
matter direct detection experiments, but will be probed by currently-running
and proposed future experiments. We also show that a Landau pole appears in
these models at energy scales below $10^9$ GeV, indicating the presence of
additional new physics below that scale.


title: An Axion-induced SM/MSSM Higgs Landscape and the Weak Gravity Conjecture

abstract:
  We construct models in which the SM Higgs mass scans in a landscape. This is
achieved by coupling the SM to a monodromy axion field through Minkowski
3-forms. The Higgs mass scans with steps given by delta(m_H^2)= eta mu f, where
mu and f are the axion mass and periodicity respectively, and eta measures the
coupling of the Higgs to the associated 3-form. The observed Higgs mass scale
could then be selected on anthropic grounds. The monodromy axion may have a
mass mu in a very wide range depending on the value of eta, and the axion
periodity f. For eta=1 and f = 10^10 GeV, one has 10^{-3}eV < mu < 10^3 eV, but
ultralight axions with e.g. mu = 10^{-17} eV are also possible. In a different
realization we consider landscape models coupled to the MSSM. In the context of
SUSY, 4-forms appear as being part of the auxiliary fields of SUSY multiplets.
The scanning in the 4-forms thus translate into a landscape of vevs for the N=1
auxiliary fields and hence as a landscape for the soft terms. This could
provide a rationale for the MSSM fine-tuning suggested by LHC data. In all
these models there are 3-forms coupling to membranes which induce transitions
between different vacua through bubble nucleation. The Weak Gravity Conjecture
(WGC) set limits on the tension of these membranes and implies new physics
thresholds well below the Planck scale. More generaly, we argue that in the
case of string SUSY vacua in which the Goldstino multiplet contains a monodromy
axion the WGC suggests a lower bound on the SUSY breaking scale m_{3/2} >
M_s^2/M_p.


title: Stochastic phase slips in toroidal Bose-Einstein condensates

abstract:
  Motivated by recent experiments we study the influence of thermal noise on
the phase slips in toroidal Bose-Einstein condensates with a rotating weak
link. We derive a generalized Arrhenius-like expression for the rate of
stochastic phase slips. We develop a method to estimate the energy barrier
separating different superflow states. The parameters at which the energy
barrier disappears agree with the critical parameters for deterministic phase
slips obtained from dynamics simulations, which confirms the validity of our
energetic analysis. We reveal that adding thermal noise lowers the phase-slip
threshold. However, the quantitative impact of the stochastic phase slips turns
out to be too small to explain the significant discrepancy between theoretical
and the experimental results.


title: A Category Space Approach to Supervised Dimensionality Reduction

abstract:
  Supervised dimensionality reduction has emerged as an important theme in the
last decade. Despite the plethora of models and formulations, there is a lack
of a simple model which aims to project the set of patterns into a space
defined by the classes (or categories). To this end, we set up a model in which
each class is represented as a 1D subspace of the vector space formed by the
features. Assuming the set of classes does not exceed the cardinality of the
features, the model results in multi-class supervised learning in which the
features of each class are projected into the class subspace. Class
discrimination is automatically guaranteed via the imposition of orthogonality
of the 1D class sub-spaces. The resulting optimization problem - formulated as
the minimization of a sum of quadratic functions on a Stiefel manifold - while
being non-convex (due to the constraints), nevertheless has a structure for
which we can identify when we have reached a global minimum. After formulating
a version with standard inner products, we extend the formulation to
reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces in a straightforward manner. The optimization
approach also extends in a similar fashion to the kernel version. Results and
comparisons with the multi-class Fisher linear (and kernel) discriminants and
principal component analysis (linear and kernel) showcase the relative merits
of this approach to dimensionality reduction.


title: R\'enyi formulation of entanglement criteria for continuous variables

abstract:
  Entanglement criteria for an $n$-partite quantum system with continuous
variables are formulated in terms of R\'{e}nyi entropies. R\'{e}nyi entropies
are widely used as a good information measure due to many nice properties.
Derived entanglement criteria are based on several mathematical results such as
the Hausdorff-Young inequality, Young's inequality for convolution and its
converse. From the historical viewpoint, the formulations of these results with
sharp constants were obtained comparatively recently. Using the position and
momentum observables of subsystems, one can build two total-system measurements
with the following property. For product states, the final density in each
global measurement appears as a convolution of $n$ local densities. Hence,
restrictions in terms of two R\'{e}nyi entropies with constrained entropic
indices are formulated for $n$-separable states of an $n$-partite quantum
system with continuous variables. Experimental results are typically sampled
into bins between prescribed discrete points. For these aims, we give
appropriate reformulations of the derived entanglement criteria.


title:
Signature change in loop quantum gravity: General midisuperspace models
  and dilaton gravity

abstract:
  Models of loop quantum gravity based on real connections have a deformed
notion of general covariance, which leads to the phenomenon of signature
change. This result is confirmed here in a general analysis of all
midisuperspace models without local degrees of freedom. As a subclass of
models, 2-dimensional theories of dilaton gravity appear, but a larger set of
examples is possible based only on the condition of anomaly freedom. While the
classical dilaton gravity models are the only such systems without deformed
covariance, they do give rise to signature change when holonomy modifications
are included.


title:
A Quantum Hamiltonian Identification Algorithm: Computational Complexity
  and Error Analysis

abstract:
  Quantum Hamiltonian identification is important for characterizing the
dynamics of quantum systems, calibrating quantum devices and achieving precise
quantum control. In this paper, an effective two-step optimization (TSO)
quantum Hamiltonian identification algorithm is developed within the framework
of quantum process tomography. In the identification method, different probe
states are inputted into quantum systems and the output states are estimated
using the quantum state tomography protocol via linear regression estimation.
The time-independent system Hamiltonian is reconstructed based on the
experimental data for the output states. The Hamiltonian identification method
has computational complexity O(d^6) where d is the dimension of the system
Hamiltonian. An error upper bound O(d^3/N^(1/2))$ is also established, where N
is the resource number for the tomography of each output state, and several
numerical examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed TSO
Hamiltonian identification method.


title: Phase transitions in large deviations of reset processes

abstract:
  We study the large deviations of additive quantities, such as energy or
current, in stochastic processes with intermittent reset. Via a mapping from a
discrete-time reset process to the Poland-Scheraga model for DNA denaturation,
we derive conditions for observing first-order or continuous dynamical phase
transitions in the fluctuations of such quantities and confirm these conditions
on simple random walk examples. These results apply to reset Markov processes,
but also show more generally that subleading terms in generating functions can
lead to non-analyticities in large deviation functions of 'compound processes'
or 'random evolutions' switching stochastically between two or more
subprocesses.


title:
Fencing off Go: Liveness and Safety for Channel-based Programming
  (extended version)

abstract:
  Go is a production-level statically typed programming language whose design
features explicit message-passing primitives and lightweight threads, enabling
(and encouraging) programmers to develop concurrent systems where components
interact through communication more so than by lock-based shared memory
concurrency. Go can only detect global deadlocks at runtime, but provides no
compile-time protection against all too common communication mismatches or
partial deadlocks. This work develops a static verification framework for
liveness and safety in Go programs, able to detect communication errors and
partial deadlocks in a general class of realistic concurrent programs,
including those with dynamic channel creation, unbounded thread creation and
recursion. Our approach infers from a Go program a faithful representation of
its communication patterns as a behavioural type. By checking a syntactic
restriction on channel usage, dubbed fencing, we ensure that programs are made
up of finitely many different communication patterns that may be repeated
infinitely many times. This restriction allows us to implement procedures to
check for liveness and safety in types which in turn approximates liveness and
safety in Go programs. We have implemented a type inference and liveness and
safety checks in a tool-chain and tested it against publicly available Go
programs.
  Note: This is a revised extended version of a paper that appeared in POPL
2017, see page 13 for details.


title:
Single- and Multi-Task Architectures for Surgical Workflow Challenge at
  M2CAI 2016

abstract:
  The surgical workflow challenge at M2CAI 2016 consists of identifying 8
surgical phases in cholecystectomy procedures. Here, we propose to use deep
architectures that are based on our previous work where we presented several
architectures to perform multiple recognition tasks on laparoscopic videos. In
this technical report, we present the phase recognition results using two
architectures: (1) a single-task architecture designed to perform solely the
surgical phase recognition task and (2) a multi-task architecture designed to
perform jointly phase recognition and tool presence detection. On top of these
architectures we propose to use two different approaches to enforce the
temporal constraints of the surgical workflow: (1) HMM-based and (2) LSTM-based
pipelines. The results show that the LSTM-based approach is able to outperform
the HMM-based approach and also to properly enforce the temporal constraints
into the recognition process.


title: A Sound, Complete and Effective Second Order Game Semantics

abstract:
  We define a game semantics for second order classical arithmetic PA2 (with
quantifiers over predicates on integers and full comprehension axiom). Our
semantics is effective: moves are described by a finite amount of information
and whenever there is some winning strategy for the player defending the truth
of the formula, then there is some primitive recursive winning strategy. Then
we show that our game semantics is sound and complete for the truth assignment
for formulas of PA2. In our game model, the value of a predicate variable is
some family of "generic" games. This value is "unknown" during the play, but at
the end of the play it is used by a "judge of the play" to decide who is the
winner.


title:
Observation of Self-Cavitating Envelope Dispersive Shock Waves in
  Yttrium Iron Garnet Thin Films

abstract:
  The formation and properties of envelope dispersive shock wave (DSW)
excitations from repulsive nonlinear waves in a magnetic film are studied.
Experiments involve the excitation of a spin-wave step pulse in a low-loss
magnetic Y$_3$Fe$_5$O$_{12}$ thin film strip, in which the spin-wave amplitude
increases rapidly, realizing the canonical Riemann problem of shock theory.
Under certain conditions, the envelope of the spin-wave pulse evolves into a
DSW that consists of an expanding train of nonlinear oscillations with
amplitudes increasing from front to back, terminated by a black soliton. The
onset of DSW self-cavitation, indicated by a point of zero power and a
concomitant 180 phase jump, is observed for sufficiently large steps,
indicative of the bidirectional dispersive hydrodynamic nature of the DSW. The
experimental observations are interpreted with theory and simulations of the
nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation.


title:
Particle dynamics and spatial $e^-e^+$ density structures at QED
  cascading in circularly polarized standing waves

abstract:
  We present a comprehensive analysis of longitudinal particle drifting in a
standing circularly polarized wave at extreme intensities when quantum
radiation reaction (RR) effects should be accounted for. To get an insight into
the physics of this phenomenon we made a comparative study considering the RR
force in the Landau-Lifshitz or quantum-corrected form, including the case of
photon emission stochasticity. It is shown that the cases of circular and
linear polarization are qualitatively different. Moreover, specific features of
particle dynamics have a strong impact on spatial structures of the
electron-positron ($e^-e^+$) density created in vacuum through quantum
electrodynamic (QED) cascades in counter-propagating laser pulses. 3D PIC
modeling accounting for QED effects confirms realization of different pair
plasma structures.


title:
On the one-dimensional continuity equation with a nearly incompressible
  vector field

abstract:
  We consider the Cauchy problem for the continuity equation with a bounded
nearly incompressible vector field $b\colon (0,T) \times \mathbb R^d \to
\mathbb R^d$, $T>0$. This class of vector fields arises in the context of
hyperbolic conservation laws (in particular, the Keyfitz-Kranzer system).
  It is well known that in the generic multi-dimensional case ($d\ge 1$) near
incompressibility is sufficient for existence of bounded weak solutions, but
uniqueness may fail (even when the vector field is divergence-free), and hence
further assumptions on the regularity of $b$ (e.g. Sobolev regularity) are
needed in order to obtain uniqueness.
  We prove that in the one-dimensional case ($d=1$) near incompressibility is
sufficient for existence and uniqueness of locally integrable weak solutions.
We also study compactness properties of the associated Lagrangian flows.


title: Prime Labeling of Ladders

abstract:
  A prime labeling of a graph with $n$ vertices is a labeling of its vertices
with distinct integers from $\{1, 2,\ldots , n\}$ in such a way that the labels
of any two adjacent vertices are relatively prime. T. Varkey conjectured that
ladder graphs have a prime labeling. We prove this conjecture.


title:
Signature change in 2-dimensional black-hole models of loop quantum
  gravity

abstract:
  Signature change has been identified as a generic consequence of holonomy
modifications in spherically symmetric models of loop quantum gravity with real
connections, which includes modified Schwarzschild solutions. Here, this result
is extended to 2-dimensional dilaton models and to different choices of
canonical variables, including in particular the
Callan-Giddings-Harvey-Strominger (CGHS) solution. New obstructions are found
to coupling matter and to including operator-ordering effects in an
anomaly-free manner.


title:
Single- and Multi-Task Architectures for Tool Presence Detection
  Challenge at M2CAI 2016

abstract:
  The tool presence detection challenge at M2CAI 2016 consists of identifying
the presence/absence of seven surgical tools in the images of cholecystectomy
videos. Here, we propose to use deep architectures that are based on our
previous work where we presented several architectures to perform multiple
recognition tasks on laparoscopic videos. In this technical report, we present
the tool presence detection results using two architectures: (1) a single-task
architecture designed to perform solely the tool presence detection task and
(2) a multi-task architecture designed to perform jointly phase recognition and
tool presence detection. The results show that the multi-task network only
slightly improves the tool presence detection results. In constrast, a
significant improvement is obtained when there are more data available to train
the networks. This significant improvement can be regarded as a call for action
for other institutions to start working toward publishing more datasets into
the community, so that better models could be generated to perform the task.


title: Precession-torque-driven domain-wall motion in out-of-plane materials

abstract:
  Domain-wall (DW) motion in magnetic nanostrips is intensively studied, in
particular because of the possible applications in data storage. In this work,
we will investigate a novel method of DW motion using magnetic field pulses,
with the precession torque as the driving mechanism. We use a one dimensional
(1D) model to show that it is possible to drive DWs in out-of-plane materials
using the precession torque, and we identify the key parameters that influence
this motion. Because the DW moves back to its initial position at the end of
the field pulse, thereby severely complicating direct detection of the DW
motion, depinning experiments are used to indirectly observe the effect of the
precession torque. The 1D model is extended to include an energy landscape in
order to predict the influence of the precession torque in the depinning
experiments. Although preliminary experiments did not yet show an effect of the
precession torque, our calculations indicate that depinning experiments can be
used to demonstrate this novel method of DW motion in out-of-plane materials,
which even allows for coherent motion of multiple domains when the
Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction is taken into account.


title:
Personalized Risk Scoring for Critical Care Prognosis using Mixtures of
  Gaussian Processes

abstract:
  Objective: In this paper, we develop a personalized real-time risk scoring
algorithm that provides timely and granular assessments for the clinical acuity
of ward patients based on their (temporal) lab tests and vital signs; the
proposed risk scoring system ensures timely intensive care unit (ICU)
admissions for clinically deteriorating patients. Methods: The risk scoring
system learns a set of latent patient subtypes from the offline electronic
health record data, and trains a mixture of Gaussian Process (GP) experts,
where each expert models the physiological data streams associated with a
specific patient subtype. Transfer learning techniques are used to learn the
relationship between a patient's latent subtype and her static admission
information (e.g. age, gender, transfer status, ICD-9 codes, etc). Results:
Experiments conducted on data from a heterogeneous cohort of 6,321 patients
admitted to Ronald Reagan UCLA medical center show that our risk score
significantly and consistently outperforms the currently deployed risk scores,
such as the Rothman index, MEWS, APACHE and SOFA scores, in terms of
timeliness, true positive rate (TPR), and positive predictive value (PPV).
Conclusion: Our results reflect the importance of adopting the concepts of
personalized medicine in critical care settings; significant accuracy and
timeliness gains can be achieved by accounting for the patients' heterogeneity.
Significance: The proposed risk scoring methodology can confer huge clinical
and social benefits on more than 200,000 critically ill inpatient who exhibit
cardiac arrests in the US every year.


title: Tool and Phase recognition using contextual CNN features

abstract:
  A transfer learning method for generating features suitable for surgical
tools and phase recognition from the ImageNet classification features [1] is
proposed here. In addition, methods are developed for generating contextual
features and combining them with time series analysis for final classification
using multi-class random forest. The proposed pipeline is tested over the
training and testing datasets of M2CAI16 challenges: tool and phase detection.
Encouraging results are obtained by leave-one-out cross validation evaluation
on the training dataset.


title: The signless Laplacian spectral radius of subgraphs of regular graphs

abstract:
  Let $q(H)$ be the signless Laplacian spectral radius of a graph $H$. In this
paper, we prove that \\1. Let $H$ be a proper subgraph of a $\Delta$-regular
graph $G$ with $n$ vertices and diameter $D$. Then $$2\Delta -
q(H)>\frac{1}{n(D-\frac{1}{4})}.$$ \\2. Let $H$ be a proper subgraph of a
$k$-connected $\Delta$-regular graph $G$ with $n$ vertices, where $k\geq 2$.
Then
$$2\Delta-q(H)>\frac{2(k-1)^{2}}{2(n-\Delta)(n-\Delta+2k-4)+(n+1)(k-1)^{2}}.$$
Finally, we compare the two bounds. We obtain that when
$k>2\sqrt{\frac{(n-\Delta)(n+\Delta-4)}{n(4D-3)-2}}+1$, the second bound is
always better than the first. On the other hand, when
$k<\frac{2(n-\Delta)}{\sqrt{n(4D-3)-2}}+1$, the first bound is always better
than the second.


title: The Impact of Feedback During Massive Star Formation by Core Accretion

abstract:
  We study feedback during massive star formation using semi-analytic methods,
considering the effects of disk winds, radiation pressure, photoevaporation and
stellar winds, while following protostellar evolution in collapsing massive gas
cores. We find that disk winds are the dominant feedback mechanism setting star
formation efficiencies (SFEs) from initial cores of ~0.3-0.5. However,
radiation pressure is also significant to widen the outflow cavity causing
reductions of SFE compared to the disk-wind only case, especially for >100Msun
star formation at clump mass surface densities Sigma<0.3g/cm2. Photoevaporation
is of relatively minor importance due to dust attenuation of ionizing photons.
Stellar winds have even smaller effects during the accretion stage. For core
masses Mc~10-1000Msun and Sigma~0.1-3g/cm2, we find the overall SFE to be
0.31(Rc/0.1pc)^{-0.39}, potentially a useful sub-grid star-formation model in
simulations that can resolve pre-stellar core radii,
Rc=0.057(Mc/60Msun)^{1/2}(Sigma/g/cm2)^{-1/2}pc. The decline of SFE with Mc is
gradual with no evidence for a maximum stellar-mass set by feedback processes
up to stellar masses of ~300Msun. We thus conclude that the observed truncation
of the high-mass end of the IMF is shaped mostly by the pre-stellar core mass
function or internal stellar processes. To form massive stars with the observed
maximum masses of ~150-300Msun, initial core masses need to be >500-1000Msun.
We also apply our feedback model to zero-metallicity primordial star formation,
showing that, in the absence of dust, photoevaporation staunches accretion at
~50Msun. Our model implies radiative feedback is most significant at
metallicities ~10^{-2}Zsun, since both radiation pressure and photoevaporation
are effective in this regime.


title:
Effects of dimethyl sulfoxide on surface water near phospholipid
  bilayers

abstract:
  Despite much effort to probe the properties of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)
solution, effects of DMSO on water, especially near plasma membrane surfaces
still remain elusive. By performing molecular dynamics (MD) simulations at
varying DMSO concentrations ($X_{\text{DMSO}}$), we study how DMSO affects
structural and dynamical properties of water in the vicinity of phospholipid
bilayers. As proposed by a number of experiments, our simulations confirm that
DMSO induces dehydration from bilayer surfaces and disrupts the H-bond
structure of water. However, DMSO enhanced water diffusivity at solvent-bilayer
interfaces, an intriguing discovery reported by a spin-label measurement, is
not confirmed in our simulations. In order to resolve this discrepancy, we
examine the location of the spin-label (Tempo), relative to the solvent-bilayer
interface. In accord with the evidence in the literature, our simulations,
which explicitly model Tempo-PC, find that the Tempo moiety is equilibrated at
$\sim 8-10$ \AA\ \emph{below} the bilayer surface. Furthermore, the
DMSO-enhanced surface water diffusion is confirmed only when water diffusion is
analyzed around the Tempo moiety that is immersed below the bilayer surface,
which implies that the experimentally detected signal of water using Tempo
stems from the interior of bilayers, not from the interface. Our analysis finds
that the increase of water diffusion below the bilayer surface is coupled to
the increase of area per lipid with an increasing $X_{\text{DMSO}}$ $(\lesssim
10\text{ mol\%})$. Underscoring the hydrophobic nature of Tempo moiety, our
study calls for careful re-evaluation of the use of Tempo in the measurement on
lipid bilayer surfaces.


title: Betti multiplets, flows across dimensions and c-extremization

abstract:
  We consider 4d N=1 SCFTs, topologically twisted on compact constant curvature
Riemann surfaces, giving rise to 2d N=(0,2) SCFTs. The exact R-current of these
2d SCFT extremizes the central charge c_{2d}, similarly to the 4d picture,
where the exact R-current maximizes the central charge a_{4d}. There are global
currents that do not mix with the R-current in 4d but their mixing becomes non
trivial in 2d. In this paper we study the holographic dual of this process by
analyzing a 5d N=2 truncation of T^{1,1} with one Betti vector multiplet, dual
to the baryonic current on the CFT side. The holographic realization of the
flow across dimensions connects AdS_5 to AdS_3 vacua in the supergravity
picture. We verify the existence of the flow to AdS_3 solutions and we retrieve
the field theory results for the mixing of the Betti vector with the
graviphoton. Moreover, we extract the central charge from the Brown-Henneaux
formula, matching with the results obtained in field theory. We develop a
general formalism to obtain the central charge of a 2d SCFT from 5d N=2 gauged
supergravity with a generic number of vector multiplets, showing that its
extremization corresponds to an attractor mechanism for the scalars in the
supergravity picture.


title:
Giant variation of the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy at Fe/MgO
  interfaces by oxygen migration: a first-principles study

abstract:
  A characteristic dependence of voltage control of perpendicular magnetic
anisotropy (VCMA) on oxygen migration at Fe/MgO interfaces was revealed by
performing systematic {\it ab initio} study of the energetics of the oxygen
path around the interface. We find that the surface anisotropy energy exhibits
a Boltzmann sigmoidal behavior as a function of the migrated O-atoms
concentration. The obtained variation of the VCMA efficiency factor $\beta$
reveals a saturation limit beyond a critical concentration of migrated O, about
$54\%$, at which the anisotropy switches from perpendicular to in plane.
Furthermore, depending on the range of variation of the applied voltage, two
regimes associated with reversible or irreversible ions displacement are
predicted to occur, yielding different VCMA response. According to our
findings, one can distinguish from the order of magnitude of $\beta$ the VCMA
driving mechanism: an effect of several tens of fJ/(V.m) is likely associated
to charge-mediated effect combined with slight reversible oxygen displacements
whereas an effect of the order of thousands of fJ/(V.m) is more likely
associated with irreversible oxygen ionic migration.


title: Nonparametric modal regression in the presence of measurement error

abstract:
  In the context of regressing a response $Y$ on a predictor $X$, we consider
estimating the local modes of the distribution of $Y$ given $X=x$ when $X$ is
prone to measurement error. We propose two nonparametric estimation methods,
with one based on estimating the joint density of $(X, Y)$ in the presence of
measurement error, and the other built upon estimating the conditional density
of $Y$ given $X=x$ using error-prone data. We study the asymptotic properties
of each proposed mode estimator, and provide implementation details including
the mean-shift algorithm for mode seeking and bandwidth selection. Numerical
studies are presented to compare the proposed methods with an existing mode
estimation method developed for error-free data naively applied to error-prone
data.