title: Localized Optical Vortex Solitons in Pair Plasmas

abstract:
  The dynamics of short intense electromagnetic pulses propagating in a
relativistic pair plasma with small temperature asymmetry is of current
interest. Such pulses were shown to be governed by a nonlinear Schrodinger
equation with a new type of focusing-defocusing nonlinearity. We provide an
existence theory and numerical analysis for a special class of solutions, known
as "ring-profiled" optical vortex solitons. Our methods include both a direct
and constrained minimization. We give a necessary condition for the existence
of nontrivial solutions and a series of interesting estimates in terms of the
relevant parameters describing the electromagnetic pulse. Additionally, we use
the constrained minimization approach and a finite element formalism to
numerically study the behavior of the profiles of soliton solutions.


title:
Addendum to "Travelling waves for a non-local Korteweg-de Vries-Burgers
  equation" [J. Differential Equations 257 (2014), no. 3, 720--758]

abstract:
  We add a theorem to [J. Differential Equations 257 (2014), no. 3, 720--758]
by F. Achleitner, C.M. Cuesta and S. Hittmeir. In that paper we studied
travelling wave solutions of a Korteweg-de Vries-Burgers type equation with a
non-local diffusion term. In particular, the proof of existence and uniqueness
of these waves relies on the assumption that the exponentially decaying
functions are the only bounded solutions of the linearised equation. In this
addendum we prove this assumption and thus close the existence and uniqueness
proof of travelling wave solutions.


title: Hawking Radiation and Analogue Experiments: A Bayesian Analysis

abstract:
  We present a Bayesian analysis of the epistemology of analogue experiments
with particular reference to Hawking radiation. First, we prove that such
experiments can be confirmatory in Bayesian terms based upon appeal to
'universality arguments'. Second, we provide a formal model for the scaling
behaviour of the confirmation measure for multiple distinct realisations of the
analogue system and isolate a generic saturation feature. Finally, we
demonstrate that different potential analogue realisations could provide
different levels of confirmation. Our results provide a basis both to formalise
the epistemic value of analogue experiments that have been conducted and to
advise scientists as to the respective epistemic value of future analogue
experiments.


title: Parametric Object Motion from Blur

abstract:
  Motion blur can adversely affect a number of vision tasks, hence it is
generally considered a nuisance. We instead treat motion blur as a useful
signal that allows to compute the motion of objects from a single image.
Drawing on the success of joint segmentation and parametric motion models in
the context of optical flow estimation, we propose a parametric object motion
model combined with a segmentation mask to exploit localized, non-uniform
motion blur. Our parametric image formation model is differentiable w.r.t. the
motion parameters, which enables us to generalize marginal-likelihood
techniques from uniform blind deblurring to localized, non-uniform blur. A
two-stage pipeline, first in derivative space and then in image space, allows
to estimate both parametric object motion as well as a motion segmentation from
a single image alone. Our experiments demonstrate its ability to cope with very
challenging cases of object motion blur.


title:
Spin-orbital coupling effect on power factor in semiconducting
  transition-metal dichalcogenide monolayers

abstract:
  The electronic structures and thermoelectric properties of semiconducting
transition-metal dichalcogenide monolayers $\mathrm{MX_2}$ (M=Zr, Hf, Mo, W and
Pt; X=S, Se and Te) are investigated by combining first-principles and
Boltzmann transport theory, including spin-orbital coupling (SOC). It is found
that the gap decrease increases from S to Te in each cation group, when the SOC
is opened. The spin-orbital splitting has the same trend with gap reducing.
Calculated results show that SOC has noteworthy detrimental effect on p-type
power factor, while has a negligible influence in n-type doping except W cation
group, which can be understood by considering the effects of SOC on the valence
and conduction bands. For $\mathrm{WX_2}$ (X=S, Se and Te), the SOC leads to
observably enhanced power factor in n-type doping, which can be explained by
SOC-induced band degeneracy, namely bands converge. Among all cation groups, Pt
cation group shows the highest Seebeck coefficient, which leads to best power
factor, if we assume scattering time is fixed. Calculated results show that
$\mathrm{MS_2}$ (M=Zr, Hf, Mo, W and Pt) have best p-type power factor for all
cation groups, and that $\mathrm{MSe_2}$ (M=Zr and Hf), $\mathrm{WS_2}$ and
$\mathrm{MTe_2}$ (M=Mo and Pt) have more wonderful n-type power factor in
respective cation group. Therefore, these results may be useful for further
theoretical prediction or experimental search of excellent thermoelectric
materials from semiconducting transition-metal dichalcogenide monolayers.


title:
Physical parameters of IPHAS-selected classical Be stars. (I.
  Determination procedure and evaluation of the results.)

abstract:
  We present a semi-automatic procedure to obtain fundamental physical
parameters and distances of classical Be (CBe) stars, based on the
Barbier-Chalonge-Divan (BCD) spectrophotometric system. Our aim is to apply
this procedure to a large sample of CBe stars detected by the IPHAS photometric
survey, to determine their fundamental physical parameters and to explore their
suitability as galactic structure tracers. In this paper we describe the
methodology used and the validation of the procedure by comparing our results
with those obtained from different independent astrophysical techniques for
subsamples of stars in common with other studies. We also present a test case
study of the galactic structure in the direction of the Perseus Galactic Arm,
in order to compare our results with others recently obtained with different
techniques and the same sample of stars. We did not find any significant
clustering of stars at the expected positions of the Perseus and Outer Galactic
Arms, in agreement with previous studies in the same area that we used for
verification.


title: Coexistence of Bose condensation and pairing in Boson mixtures

abstract:
  We consider the problem when there are two kinds of Bosons with an attraction
between them. We find the system to consist of two Bose condensates with an
additional pairing order between the Bosons. The properties of this state are
discussed.


title:
A structure-exploiting numbering algorithm for finite elements on
  extruded meshes, and its performance evaluation in Firedrake

abstract:
  We present a generic algorithm for numbering and then efficiently iterating
over the data values attached to an extruded mesh. An extruded mesh is formed
by replicating an existing mesh, assumed to be unstructured, to form layers of
prismatic cells. Applications of extruded meshes include, but are not limited
to, the representation of 3D high aspect ratio domains employed by geophysical
finite element simulations. These meshes are structured in the extruded
direction. The algorithm presented here exploits this structure to avoid the
performance penalty traditionally associated with unstructured meshes. We
evaluate the implementation of this algorithm in the Firedrake finite element
system on a range of low compute intensity operations which constitute worst
cases for data layout performance exploration. The experiments show that having
structure along the extruded direction enables the cost of the indirect data
accesses to be amortized after 10-20 layers as long as the underlying mesh is
well-ordered. We characterise the resulting spatial and temporal reuse in a
representative set of both continuous-Galerkin and discontinuous-Galerkin
discretisations. On meshes with realistic numbers of layers the performance
achieved is between 70% and 90% of a theoretical hardware-specific limit.


title:
Gold-induced nanowires on the Ge(100) surface yield a 2D, and not a 1D
  electronic structure

abstract:
  Atomic nanowires on semiconductor surfaces induced by the adsorption of
metallic atoms have attracted a lot of attention as possible hosts of the
elusive, Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid. The Au/Ge(100) system in particular is the
subject of controversy as to whether the Au-induced nanowires do indeed host
exotic, 1D metallic states. We report on a thorough study of the electronic
properties of high quality nanowires formed at the Au/Ge(100) surface. High
resolution ARPES data show the low-lying Au-induced electronic states to
possess a dispersion relation that depends on two orthogonal directions in
k-space. Comparison of the E(k$_x$,k$_y$) surface measured using ARPES to
tight-binding calculations yields hopping parameters in the two different
directions that differ by a factor of two. We find that the larger of the two
hopping parameters corresponds, in fact, to the direction perpendicular to the
nanowires (t$_{\perp}$). This, the topology of the $E$=$E_F$ contour in
k$_{\||}$, and the fact that $t_{\||}$/$t_{\perp}\sim 0.5$ proves that the
Au-induced electron pockets possess a 2D, closed Fermi surface, this firmly
places the Au/Ge(100) nanowire system outside being a potential hosts of a
Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid. We combine these ARPES data with STS measurements of
the spatially-resolved electronic structure and find that the spatially
straight conduction channels observed up to energies of order one electron volt
below the Fermi level do not originate from the Au-induced states seen in the
ARPES data. The former are more likely to be associated with bulk Ge states
that are localized to the subsurface region. Despite our proof of the 2D nature
of the Au-induced nanowire and sub-surface Ge-related states, an anomalous
suppression of the density of states at the Fermi level is observed in both the
STS and ARPES data, this phenomenon is discussed in the light of the effects of
disorder.


title: Equivariant Structure on Smash Powers

abstract:
  We provide foundations for dealing with the equivariant structure of "smash
powers" of commutative orthogonal ring spectra. The category of commutative
orthogonal ring spectra $A$ is tensored over spaces $X$, so that $A \otimes X$
is a commutative orthogonal ring spectrum. If $X$ is a discrete space, this is
literally the smash power of $A$ with itself indexed over $X$, and we keep this
language also in the nondiscrete case. In particular $A \otimes S^1$ is a model
for topological Hochschild homology. We provide a framework where a
generalization of the cyclotomic structure of topological Hochschild homology
is visible in a categorical framework, also for more general $G$ and $X$.
  Similar situations have been studied by others, e.g., in Hill, Hopkins and
Ravenel's treatment of the norm construction and Brun, Carlsson, Dundas'
covering homology. In the case of non-commutative $A$ and $X=S^1$, the
situation is somewhat easier and has already been covered by Kro. We are
motivated by applications to $G$ being a torus in order to study the iterated
algebraic $K$-theory, and have to develop a categorical theory that in some
ways goes beyond what has been done before.
  Most of the material appeared in the last author's thesis which was defended
in 2011. We apologize for the delay.


title: Online Chromatic Number is PSPACE-Complete

abstract:
  In the online graph coloring problem, vertices from a graph G, known in
advance, arrive in an online fashion and an algorithm must immediately assign a
color to each incoming vertex v so that the revealed graph is properly colored.
The exact location of v in the graph G is not known to the algorithm. The
online chromatic number of G is the smallest number of colors such that some
online algorithm is able to properly color G for any incoming order. We prove
that computing the online chromatic number of a graph is PSPACE-complete.


title:
Temporal Offsets between Maximum CME Speed Index and Solar, Geomagnetic,
  and Interplanetary Indicators during Solar Cycle 23 and the Ascending Phase
  of Cycle 24

abstract:
  On the basis of morphological analysis of yearly values of the maximum CME
(coronal mass ejection) speed index, the sunspot number and total sunspot area,
sunspot magnetic field, and solar flare index, the solar wind speed and
interplanetary magnetic field strength, and the geomagnetic Ap and Dst indices,
we point out the particularities of solar and geomagnetic activity during the
last cycle 23, the long minimum which followed it and the ascending branch of
cycle 24. We also analyze temporal offset between the maximum CME speed index
and the above-mentioned solar, geomagnetic, and interplanetary indices. It is
found that this solar activity index, analyzed jointly with other solar
activity, interplanetary parameters, and geomagnetic activity indices, shows a
hysteresis phenomenon. It is observed that these parameters follow different
paths for the ascending and the descending phases of solar cycle 23. It is
noticed that the hysteresis phenomenon represents a clue in the search for
physical processes responsible for linking the solar activity to the near-Earth
and geomagnetic responses.


title: Multiplayer Games for Learning Multirobot Coordination Algorithms

abstract:
  Humans have an impressive ability to solve complex coordination problems in a
fully distributed manner. This ability, if learned as a set of distributed
multirobot coordination strategies, can enable programming large groups of
robots to collaborate towards complex coordination objectives in a way similar
to humans. Such strategies would offer robustness, adaptability,
fault-tolerance, and, importantly, distributed decision-making. To that end, we
have designed a networked gaming platform to investigate human group behavior,
specifically in solving complex collaborative coordinated tasks. Through this
platform, we are able to limit the communication, sensing, and actuation
capabilities provided to the players. With the aim of learning coordination
algorithms for robots in mind, we define these capabilities to mimic those of a
simple ground robot.


title: The singularities of $A_g^P$

abstract:
  We complete the proof given earlier by one of us that the singularities of
the perfect cone compactification $A_g^P$ of the coarse moduli space $A_g$ of
principally polarized abelian $g$-folds are terminal if $g\ge 6$, and canonical
if $g=5$.


title: Refocusing two qubit gates with measurements for trapped ions

abstract:
  Dynamical decoupling techniques are the method of choice for increasing gate
fidelities. While these methods have produced very impressive results in terms
of decreasing local noise and increasing the fidelities of single qubit
operations, dealing with the noise of two qubit gates has proven more
challenging. The main obstacle is that the noise time scale is shorter than the
two qubit gate itself so that refocusing methods do not work. We present a
measurement and feedback based method to refocus two qubit gates which cannot
be refocused by conventional methods. We analyze in detail this method for an
error model which is relevant for trapped ions quantum information.


title: Ultrafast all-optical shutter based on two-photon absorption

abstract:
  An ultrafast all-optical shutter is presented, based on a simple two-color
two-photon absorption technique. For time-resolved luminescence measurements
this shutter is an interesting alternative to the optical Kerr gate. The
rejection efficiency is 99%, the switching-off and switching-on speeds are
limited by the pulse length only, the rejection time is determined by the
crystal slab thickness, and the bandwidth spans the entire visible spectrum. We
show that our shutter can also be used for accurate measurement of group
velocity inside a transparent material.


title:
Buoyancy-driven inflow to a relic cold core: the gas belt in radio
  galaxy 3C 386

abstract:
  We report measurements from an XMM-Newton observation of the low-excitation
radio galaxy 3C 386. The study focusses on an X-ray-emitting gas belt, which
lies between and orthogonal to the radio lobes of 3C 386 and has a mean
temperature of $0.94\pm0.05$ keV, cooler than the extended group atmosphere.
The gas in the belt shows temperature structure with material closer to the
surrounding medium being hotter than gas closer to the host galaxy. We suggest
that this gas belt involves a `buoyancy-driven inflow' of part of the group-gas
atmosphere where the buoyant rise of the radio lobes through the ambient medium
has directed an inflow towards the relic cold core of the group.
Inverse-Compton emission from the radio lobes is detected at a level consistent
with a slight suppression of the magnetic field below the equipartition value.


title: Semialgebraic Splines

abstract:
  Semialgebraic splines are functions that are piecewise polynomial with
respect to a cell decomposition into sets defined by polynomial inequalities.
We study bivariate semialgebraic splines, formulating spaces of semialgebraic
splines in terms of graded modules. We compute the dimension of the space of
splines with large degree in two extreme cases when the cell decomposition has
a single interior vertex. First, when the forms defining the edges span a
two-dimensional space of forms of degree n---then the curves they define meet
in n^2 points in the complex projective plane. In the other extreme, the curves
have distinct slopes at the vertex and do not simultaneously vanish at any
other point. We also study examples of the Hilbert function and polynomial in
cases of a single vertex where the curves do not satisfy either of these
extremes.


title: The CBH characterisation theorem beyond algebraic quantum theory

abstract:
  The CBH theorem characterises quantum theory within a C*-algebraic framework.
Namely, mathematical properties of C*-algebras modelling quantum systems are
equivalent to constraints that are information-theoretic in nature: (1)
noncommutativity of subalgebras is equivalent to impossibility of signalling;
(2) noncommutativity of the whole algebra is equivalent to impossibility of
broadcasting; (3) the existence of entangled states is implied by the
impossibility of secure bit commitment (with the converse conjectured).
However, the C*-algebraic framework has drawn criticism as it already contains
much of themathematical structure of quantum theory such as complex linearity.
We address this issue by a generalising C*-algebras categorically. In this
framework, equivalence (1) holds, equivalence (2) becomes a strict implication,
and implication (3) fails in general. Thus we identify exactly what work is
being done by the complex-linear structure of C*-algebras. In doing so, we
uncover a richer hierarchy of notions of 'classicality' and 'quantumness' of
information than visible in the concrete case.


title:
Forbidden Set of the Rational Difference Equation $x_{n+1} = x_n
  x_{n-k}/(ax_{n-k+1} +x_n x_{n-k+1} x_{n-k})$

abstract:
  This short note aims to answer one of the open problems raised by F. Balibrea
and A. Cascales in \cite{bc}. In particular, the forbidden set of the nonlinear
difference equation $x_{n+1} = x_n x_{n-k}/(ax_{n-k+1} +x_n x_{n-k+1}
x_{n-k})$, where $k$ is a positive integer and $a$ is a positive constant, is
found by first computing the closed form solution of the given equation.
Additional results regarding the limiting properties and periodicity of its
solutions are also discussed. Numerical examples are also provided to
illustrate the exhibited results. Lastly, a possible generalization of this
present work is offered as an open problem.


title:
On the concept of fractality for groups of automorphisms of a regular
  rooted tree

abstract:
  The aim of this article is to discuss and clarify the notion of fractality
for subgroups of the group of automorphisms of a regular rooted tree. For this
purpose we define three types of fractality. We show that they are not
equivalent, by giving explicit examples. Furthermore we present some tools that
are helpful in order to determine the fractality of a given group.


title: Relative Cartier divisors and K-theory

abstract:
  We study the relative Picard group $Pic(f)$ of a map $f:X\to S$ of schemes.
If $f$ is faithful affine, it is the relative Cartier divisor group $I(f)$. The
relative group $K_0(f)$ has a $\gamma$-filtration, and $Pic(f)$ is the top
quotient for the $\gamma$-filtration. When $f$ is induced by a ring
homomorphism $A\to B$, we show that the relative "nil" groups $NPic(f)$ and
$NK_n(f)$ are continuous $W(A)$-modules.


title:
Electrically controlled mutual interactions of flying waveguide
  dipolaritons

abstract:
  We show that with a system of electrically-gated wide quantum wells embedded
inside a simple dielectric waveguide structure, it is possible to excite,
control, and observe waveguided exciton polaritons that carry an electric
dipole moment. We demonstrate that the energy of the propagating dipolariton
can be easily tuned using local electrical gates, that their excitation and
extraction can be easily done using simple evaporated metal gratings, and that
the dipolar interactions between polaritons and between polaritons and excitons
can also be controlled by the applied electric fields. This system of gated
flying dipolaritons thus exhibit the ability to locally control both the single
polariton properties as well as the interactions between polaritons, which
should open up opportunities for constructing complex polaritonic circuits and
for studying strongly-interacting, correlated polariton gases.


title: On the construction of Lyapunov functions with computer assistance

abstract:
  Computer assisted procedures of Lyapunov functions defined in given
neighborhoods of fixed points for flows and maps are discussed. We provide a
systematic methodology for constructing explicit ranges where quadratic
Lyapunov functions exist in two stages; negative definiteness of associating
matrices and direct approach. We note that the former is equivalent to the
procedure of cones describing enclosures of the stable and the unstable
manifolds of invariant sets, which gives us flexible discussions of asymptotic
behavior not only around equilibria for flows but also fixed points for maps.
Additionally, our procedure admits a re-parameterization of trajectories in
terms of values of Lyapunov functions. Several verification examples are shown
for discussions of applicability.


title: An exceptional locus in the perfect compactification of $A_g$

abstract:
  The line bundle $12M-D$ on the perfect compactification $A_g^P$ is nef; we
show here that in positive characteristic it is semi-ample and that in all
characteristics its exceptional locus is the closure of the locus of abelian
varieties with an elliptic factor.


title:
Study of Accretion processes Around Black Holes becomes Science: Tell
  Tale Observational Signatures of Two Component Advective Flows

abstract:
  An accretion flow around a black hole has a saddle type sonic point just
outside the event horizon to guarantee that the flow enters the black hole
supersonically. This feature exclusively present in strong gravity limit makes
its marks in every observation of black hole candidates. Another physical sonic
point is present (as in a Bondi flow) even in weak gravity. Every aspect of
spectral or temporal properties of every black hole can be understood using
this transonic or advective flow having more than one saddle type points. This
most well known and generalized solution with viscosity and radiative transfer
has been verified by numerical simulations also. Spectra, computed for various
combinations of the standard Keplerian, and advective sub-Keplerian components
match accurately with those from satellite observations. Standing, oscillating
and propagatory oscillating shocks are produced due to centrifugal barrier of
the advective component. The post-shock region acts as the Compton cloud
producing the power-law spectra. Jets and outflows are also produced from this
post-shock region, commonly known as the CENtrifugal barrier supported BOundary
Layer or CENBOL. In soft states, the CENBOL is cooled down by soft photons from
the Keplerian disk, and thus the outflow is absent. Type-C and Type-B QPOs are
generated respectively due to strong and weak resonance oscillations of the
CENBOL. Away from resonance, oscillation may be triggered when Rankine-Hugoniot
conditions are not satisfied and Type-A QPOs could be seen.


title:
Cluster Variables on Double Bruhat Cells $G^{u,e}$ of Classical Groups
  and Monomial Realizations of Demazure Crystals

abstract:
  Let $G$ be a simply connected simple algebraic group over $\mathbb{C}$, $B$
and $B_-$ its two opposite Borel subgroups, and $W$ the associated Weyl group.
It is shown that the coordinate ring ${\mathbb C}[G^{u,v}]$ ($u$, $v\in W$) of
the double Bruhat cell $G^{u,v}=BuB\cap B_-vB_-$ is isomorphic to the cluster
algebra ${\mathcal{A}}(\textbf{i})_{{\mathbb C}}$ and the initial cluster
variables of ${\mathbb C}[G^{u,v}]$ are the generalized minors
$\Delta(k;\textbf{i})$ by Berenstein, Fomin, Zelevinsky, Goodearl and Yakimov.
In the case that a classical group $G$ is of type ${\rm B}_r$, ${\rm C}_r$ or
${\rm D}_r$, we shall describe the non-trivial last $r$ initial cluster
variables $\{\Delta(k;\textbf{i})\}_{(m-2)r<k\leq (m-1)r}$ ($m$ is some
positive integer) of the cluster algebra $\mathbb{C}[L^{u,e}]$ in terms of
monomial realization of Demazure crystals, where $L^{u,e}$ is the reduced
double Bruhat cell of type $(u,e)$. The relation between $\Delta(k;\textbf{i})$
on $G^{u,e}$ and on $L^{u,e}$ is described as well. We also present the
corresponding results for type ${\rm A}_r$ though the results for all initial
cluster variables have been obtained by ourselves.


title: Persuasive Technologies for Sustainable Urban Mobility

abstract:
  In recent years, the persuasive interventions for inducing sustainable urban
mobility behaviours has become a very active research field. This review paper
systematically analyses existing approaches and prototype systems and describes
and classifies the persuasive strategies used for changing behaviour in the
domain of transport. It also studies the results and recommendations derived
from pilot studies, and as a result of this analysis highlights the need for
personalizing and tailoring persuasive technology to various user
characteristics. We also discuss the possible role of context-aware persuasive
systems for increasing the number of sustainable choices. Finally,
recommendations for future investigations on scholarly persuasive systems are
proposed.


title:
Circular Backbone Colorings: on matching and tree backbones of planar
  graphs

abstract:
  Given a graph $G$, and a spanning subgraph $H$ of $G$, a circular
$q$-backbone $k$-coloring of $(G,H)$ is a proper $k$-coloring $c$ of $G$ such
that $q\le \lvert c(u)-c(v)\rvert \le k-q$, for every edge $uv\in E(H)$. The
circular $q$-backbone chromatic number of $(G,H)$, denoted by $CBC_q(G,H)$, is
the minimum integer $k$ for which there exists a circular $q$-backbone
$k$-coloring of $(G,H)$.
  The Four Color Theorem implies that whenever $G$ is planar, we have
$CBC_2(G,H)\le 8$. It is conjectured that this upper bound can be improved to 7
when $H$ is a tree, and to 6 when $H$ is a matching. In this work, we show
that: 1) if $G$ is planar and has no $C_4$ as subgraph, and $H$ is a linear
spanning forest of $G$, then $CBC_2(G,H)\leq 7$; 2) if $G$ is a plane graph
having no two 3-faces sharing an edge, and $H$ is a matching of $G$, then
$CBC_2(G,H)\leq 6$; and 3) if $G$ is planar and has no $C_4$ nor $C_5$ as
subgraph, and $H$ is a mathing of $G$, then $CBC_2(G,H)\leq 5$. These results
partially answer questions posed by Broersma, Fujisawa and Yoshimoto (2003),
and by Broersma, Fomin and Golovach (2007). It also points towards a positive
answer for the Steinberg's Conjecture.


title: FRAPPE: Fast Replication Platform for Elastic Services

abstract:
  Elasticity is critical for today's cloud services, which must be able to
quickly adapt to dynamically changing load conditions and resource
availability. We introduce FRAPPE, a new consistent replication platform aiming
at improving elasticity of the replicated services hosted in clouds or large
data centers. In the core of FRAPPE is a novel replicated state machine
protocol, which employs speculative executions to ensure continuous operation
during the reconfiguration periods as well as in situations where failures
prevent the agreement on the next stable configuration from being reached in a
timely fashion. We present the FRAPPE's architecture and describe the basic
techniques underlying the implementation of our speculative state machine
protocol.


title: Bernstein-gamma functions and exponential functionals of Levy Processes

abstract:
  We study the equation $M_\Psi(z+1)=\frac{-z}{\Psi(-z)}M_\Psi(z), M_\Psi(1)=1$
defined on a subset of the imaginary line and where $\Psi$ is a negative
definite functions. Using the Wiener-Hopf method we solve this equation in a
two terms product which consists of functions that extend the classical gamma
function. These functions are in a bijection with Bernstein functions and for
this reason we call them Bernstein-gamma functions. Via a couple of computable
parameters we characterize of these functions as meromorphic functions on a
complex strip. We also establish explicit and universal Stirling type
asymptotic in terms of the constituting Bernstein function. The decay of
$|M_{\Psi}(z)|$ along imaginary lines is computed. Important quantities for
theoretical and applied studies are rendered accessible.
  As an application we investigate the exponential functionals of Levy
Processes whose Mellin transform satisfies the recurrent equation above.
Although these variables have been intensively studied, our new perspective,
based on a combination of probabilistic and complex analytical techniques,
enables us to derive comprehensive and substantial properties and strengthen
several results on the law of these random variables. These include smoothness,
regularity and analytical properties, large and small asymptotic behaviour,
including asymptotic expansions, bounds, and Mellin-Barnes representations for
the density and its successive derivatives. We also study the weak convergence
of exponential functionals on a finite time horizon when the latter expands to
infinity. As a result of new factorizations of the law of the exponential
functional we deliver important intertwining relation between members of the
class of positive self-similar semigroups.
  The derivation of our results relies on a mixture of complex-analytical and
probabilistic techniques.


title: On Tomonaga's Theory of Split-Anode Magnetrons

abstract:
  This article is meant to formulate the equations of motion of an electron in
a cavity magnetron using action-angle variables. This means following the
electron's path on its way from a cylindrical cathode moving toward a co-axial
cylindrical anode in presence of a uniform magnetic field parallel to the
common axis. After analyzing the situation without coupling to an external
oscillatory electric field, we employ methods of canonical perturbation theory
to find the resonance condition between the frequencies of the free theory w_r,
w_phi and the applied perturbing oscillatory frequency w. A long-time averaging
process will then eliminate the periodic terms in the equation for the now
time-dependent action-angle variables. The terms that are no longer periodic
will cause secular changes so that the canonical action-angle variables (J,
delta) change in a way that the path of the electron will deform gradually so
that it can reach the anode. How the ensemble of the initially randomly
distributed electrons forms spokes and how their energy is conveyed to the
cavity-field oscillation is the main focus of this article. Some remarks
concerning the importance of results in QED and the invention of radar theory
and application conclude the article.


title: Is 1+1=2 an empirical proposition?

abstract:
  The idea of meaning as use in language is explored in a mathematical and
physical context. Two possible scenarios of further analysis are presented:
Ordinal arithmetic and String theory.


title: Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure Pyramids and the Sun

abstract:
  In this paper we discuss the orientation of the Egyptian pyramids at Giza
with respect to sunrises and sunsets, using SunCalc.net software. We can see
that Khufu and Khafre pyramids had been positioned in a manner that, from each
pyramid, it was always possible to observe the points of the horizon where the
sun was rising and setting on each day of the year. A discussion for the
Menkaure pyramid is also proposed.


title: Cloud Cognitive Radio HetNets with Limited Feedback

abstract:
  In this paper we propose a cloud based interweave cognitive radio HetNets
which combines gain of cloud based radio that is increased rate for cell edge
users and better spectral efficiency of cognitive radio. Simulation results for
limited feedback shows approximately 100 % increase in rate for primary while
300 % for secondary cell edge users with same outage in cloud over conventional
cognitive radio network.


title: Noether's Theorem and its Complement: A Gateway to Particle Interaction

abstract:
  Noether's theorem has gained outstanding importance in theoretical particle
physics, because it leads to basic conservation laws, such as the conservation
of momentum and of angular momentum. Closely related to this theorem, but
unnoticed so far, is a complementary law, which requires the (virtual) exchange
of momentum between the particles of a closed multi-particle system. This
exchange of momentum determines an interaction. For a two-particle system
defined by an irreducible representation of the Poincare group, this
interaction is identified as the electromagnetic interaction. This sheds new
light on the particle interactions described by the Standard Model. It resolves
long-standing questions about the value of the electromagnetic coupling
constant, and about divergent integrals in quantum electrodynamics.


title: Labeled Multi-Bernoulli Tracking for Industrial Mobile Platform Safety

abstract:
  This paper presents a track-before-detect labeled multi-Bernoulli filter
tailored for industrial mobile platform safety applications. We derive two
application specific separable likelihood functions that capture the geometric
shape and colour information of the human targets who are wearing a high
visible vest. These likelihoods are then used in a labeled multi-Bernoulli
filter with a novel two step Bayesian update. Preliminary simulation results
show that the proposed solution can successfully track human workers wearing a
luminous yellow colour vest in an industrial environment.


title: Emission of entangled Kramers pairs from a helical mesoscopic capacitor

abstract:
  The realization of single-electron sources in integer quantum Hall systems
has paved the way for exploring electronic quantum optics experiments in
solid-state devices. In this work, we characterize a single Kramers pair
emitter realized by a driven antidot embedded in a two-dimensional topological
insulator, where spin-momentum locked edge states can be exploited for
generating entanglement. Contrary to previous proposals, the antidot is coupled
to both edges of a quantum spin Hall bar, thus enabling this mesoscopic
capacitor to emit an entangled two-electron state. We study the concurrence
$\mathcal{C}$ of the emitted state and the efficiency $\mathcal{F}$ of its
emission as a function of the different spin-preserving and spin-flipping
tunnel couplings of the antidot with the edges. We show that the efficiency
remains very high ($\mathcal{F}\geq 50\%$) even for maximally entangled states
($\mathcal{C}=1$). We also discuss how the entanglement can be probed by means
of noise measurements and violation of the Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt
inequality.


title: Magnetic monopoles in noncommutative quantum mechanics

abstract:
  We discuss certain generalization of the Hilbert space of states in
noncommutaive quantum mechanics that, as we show, introduces magnetic monopoles
into the theory. Such generalization arises very naturally in the considered
model, but can be easily reproduced in ordinary quantum mechanics as well. This
approach offers a different viewpoint on the Dirac quantization condition and
other important relations for magnetic monopoles. We focus mostly on the
kinematic structure of the theory, but investigate also a dynamical problem
(with the Coulomb potential).


title:
Photoproduction of hidden-charm states in the $\gamma p \to \bar{D}^{*0}
  \Lambda^+_c$ reaction near threshold

abstract:
  We report on a theoretical study of the hidden charm $N^*_{c \bar{c}}$ states
in the $\gamma p \to \bar{D}^{*0} \Lambda^+_c$ reaction near threshold within
an effective Lagrangian approach. In addition to the contributions from the
$s$-channel nucleon pole, the $t$-channel $D^0$ exchange, the $u$-channel
$\Lambda^+_c$ exchange and the contact term, we study the contributions from
the $N^*_{c \bar{c}}$ states with spin-parity $J^P = 1/2^-$ and $3/2^-$. The
total and differential cross sections of the $\gamma p \to \bar{D}^{*0}
Lambda^+_c$ reaction are predicted. It is found that the contributions of these
$N^*_{c \bar{c}}$ states give clear peak structures in the total cross
sections. Thus, this reaction is another new platform to study the hidden-charm
states. It is expected that our model calculation may be tested by the future
experiments.


title: Simple emergent power spectra from complex inflationary physics

abstract:
  We construct ensembles of random scalar potentials for $N_f$ interacting
scalar fields using non-equilibrium random matrix theory, and use these to
study the generation of observables during small-field inflation. For
$N_f={\cal O}({\rm few})$, these heavily featured scalar potentials give rise
to power spectra that are highly non-linear, at odds with observations. For
$N_f\gg 1$, the superhorizon evolution of the perturbations is generically
substantial, yet the power spectra simplify considerably and become more
predictive, with most realisations being well approximated by a linear power
spectrum. This provides proof of principle that complex inflationary physics
can give rise to simple emergent power spectra. We explain how these results
can be understood in terms of large $N_f$ universality of random matrix theory.


title: Nonlinear Dynamics of Dipoles in Microtubules: Pseudo-Spin Model

abstract:
  We perform a theoretical study of the dynamics of the electric field
excitations in a microtubule by taking into consideration the realistic
cylindrical geometry, dipole-dipole interactions of the tubulin-based protein
heterodimers, the radial electric field produced by the solvent, and a possible
degeneracy of energy states of individual heterodimers. The consideration is
done in the frames of the classical pseudo-spin model. We derive the system of
nonlinear dynamical ordinary differential equations of motion for interacting
dipoles, and the continuum version of these equations. We obtain the solutions
of these equations in the form of snoidal waves, solitons, kinks, and localized
spikes. Our results will help to a better understanding of the functional
properties of microtubules including the motor protein dynamics and the
information transfer processes. Our considerations are based on classical
dynamics. Some speculations on the role of possible quantum effects are also
made.


title: Optimal online escape path against a certificate

abstract:
  More than fifty years ago, Bellman asked for the best escape path within a
known forest but for an unknown starting position. This deterministic finite
path is the shortest path that leads out of a given environment from any
starting point. There are some worst case positions where the full path length
is required. Up to now such a fixed ultimate optimal escape path for a known
shape for any starting position is only known for some special convex shapes
(i.e., circles, strips of a given width, fat convex bodies, some isosceles
triangles). Therefore, we introduce a different, simple and intuitive escape
path, the so-called certificate path. This escape path depends on the starting
position s and takes the distances from s to the outer boundary of the
environment into account. Due to the additional information, the certificate
path always (for any position s) leaves the environment earlier than the
ultimate escape path, in the above convex examples. Next we assume that fewer
information is available. Neither the precise shape of the envir- onment, nor
the location of the starting point is known. For a class of environments
(convex shapes and shapes with kernel positions), we design an online strategy
that always leaves the environment. We show that the path length for leaving
the environment is always shorter than 3.318764 the length of the corresponding
certificate path. We also give a lower bound of 3.313126, which shows that for
the above class of environments the factor 3.318764 is (almost) tight.


title: What is orthodox quantum mechanics?

abstract:
  What is called "orthodox" quantum mechanics, as presented in standard
foundational discussions, relies on two substantive assumptions --- the
projection postulate and the eigenvalue-eigenvector link --- that do not in
fact play any part in practical applications of quantum mechanics. I argue for
this conclusion on a number of grounds, but primarily on the grounds that the
projection postulate fails correctly to account for repeated, continuous and
unsharp measurements (all of which are standard in contemporary physics) and
that the eigenvalue-eigenvector link implies that virtually all interesting
properties are maximally indefinite pretty much always. I present an
alternative way of conceptualising quantum mechanics that does a better job of
representing quantum mechanics as it is actually used, and in particular that
eliminates use of either the projection postulate or the eigenvalue-eigenvector
link, and I reformulate the measurement problem within this new presentation of
orthodoxy.


title:
Simplified derivation of the gravitational wave stress tensor from the
  linearized Einstein field equations

abstract:
  A conserved stress energy tensor for weak field gravitational waves
propagating in vacuum is derived directly from the linearized wave equation
alone, for an arbitrary gauge using standard general relativity. In any
harmonic gauge, the form of the tensor leads directly to the classical
expression for the outgoing wave energy. The method described here, however, is
a much simpler, shorter, and more physically motivated approach than is the
customary procedure, which involves a lengthy and cumbersome second-order (in
wave-amplitude) calculation starting with the Einstein tensor. Our method has
the added advantage of exhibiting the direct coupling between the outgoing
energy flux in gravitational waves and the work done by the gravitational field
on the sources. For nonharmonic gauges, the directly derived wave stress tensor
has an apparent index asymmetry. This coordinate artefact may be removed, and
the symmetrized (still gauge-invariant) tensor then takes on its widely-used
form. Angular momentum conservation follows immediately. For any harmonic
gauge, however, the stress tensor is manifestly symmetric from the start and
its derivation depends, in its entirety, on the structure of the linearized
wave equation.


title:
Interfacial instability of liquid films coating the walls of a
  parallel-plate channel and sheared by a gas flow

abstract:
  The stability of liquid films coating the walls of a parallel-plate channel
and sheared by a pressure-driven gas flow along the channel centre is studied.
The films are susceptible to a long-wavelength instability, whose dynamic
behaviour is found - for sufficiently low Reynolds numbers and thick gas layers
- to be described by two coupled non-linear partial differential equations. To
the best of our knowledge, such coupled fully non-linear equations for the film
thicknesses have not been derived previously. A linear stability analysis
conducted under the condition that the material properties and the initial
undisturbed liquid film thicknesses are equal can be utilized to determine
whether the interfaces are predominantly destabilized by the variations of the
shear stress or by the pressure gradient acting upon them. The analysis of the
weakly non-linear equations performed for this case shows that instabilities
corresponding to a vanishing Reynolds number are absent from the system.
Moreover, for this configuration, the patterns emerging along the two
interfaces are found to be identical in the long-time limit, implying that the
films are fully synchronized. A different setup, where the liquid films have
identical material properties but their undisturbed thicknesses differ, is
studied numerically. The results show that even for this configuration the
interfacial waves remain phase-synchronized and closely correlated for a broad
range of parameters. These findings are particularly relevant for multiphase
flow in narrow ducts, for example in the respiratory system or in microfluidic
channels.


title:
Computational Drug Repositioning Using Continuous Self-controlled Case
  Series

abstract:
  Computational Drug Repositioning (CDR) is the task of discovering potential
new indications for existing drugs by mining large-scale heterogeneous
drug-related data sources. Leveraging the patient-level temporal ordering
information between numeric physiological measurements and various drug
prescriptions provided in Electronic Health Records (EHRs), we propose a
Continuous Self-controlled Case Series (CSCCS) model for CDR. As an initial
evaluation, we look for drugs that can control Fasting Blood Glucose (FBG)
level in our experiments. Applying CSCCS to the Marshfield Clinic EHR,
well-known drugs that are indicated for controlling blood glucose level are
rediscovered. Furthermore, some drugs with recent literature support for the
potential effect of blood glucose level control are also identified.


title:
Maxima and minima of independent and non-identically distributed
  bivariate Gaussian triangular arrays

abstract:
  In this paper, joint limit distributions of maxima and minima on independent
and non-identically distributed bivariate Gaussian triangular arrays is derived
as the correlation coefficient of $i$th vector of given $n$th row is the
function of $i/n$. Furthermore, second-order expansions of joint distributions
of maxima and minima are established if the correlation function satisfies some
regular conditions.


title: A topological insight into restricted Boltzmann machines

abstract:
  Restricted Boltzmann Machines (RBMs) and models derived from them have been
successfully used as basic building blocks in deep artificial neural networks
for automatic features extraction, unsupervised weights initialization, but
also as density estimators. Thus, their generative and discriminative
capabilities, but also their computational time are instrumental to a wide
range of applications. Our main contribution is to look at RBMs from a
topological perspective, bringing insights from network science. Firstly, here
we show that RBMs and Gaussian RBMs (GRBMs) are bipartite graphs which
naturally have a small-world topology. Secondly, we demonstrate both on
synthetic and real-world datasets that by constraining RBMs and GRBMs to a
scale-free topology (while still considering local neighborhoods and data
distribution), we reduce the number of weights that need to be computed by a
few orders of magnitude, at virtually no loss in generative performance.
Thirdly, we show that, for a fixed number of weights, our proposed sparse
models (which by design have a higher number of hidden neurons) achieve better
generative capabilities than standard fully connected RBMs and GRBMs (which by
design have a smaller number of hidden neurons), at no additional computational
costs.


title:
Performance Evaluation of User Scheduling for Full-Duplex Small Cells in
  Ultra-Dense Networks

abstract:
  Full-duplex (FD) communication is an emerging technology that can potentially
double the throughput of cellular networks. Preliminary studies in single-cell
or small FD network deployments have revealed promising rate gains using
self-interference cancellation (SIC) techniques and receive processing.
Nevertheless, the system-level performance gains of FD small cells in
ultra-dense networks (UDNs) have not been fully investigated yet. In this
paper, we evaluate the performance of resource allocation in ultra-dense FD
small-cell networks using spatial stochastic models for the network layout and
3GPP channel models. More specifically, we consider various UDN scenarios and
assess the performance of different low-complexity user-scheduling schemes and
power allocation between uplink and downlink. We also provide useful insights
into the effect of the SIC capability on the network throughput.


title: Symbiotic stars in X-rays III: Suzaku observations

abstract:
  We describe the X-ray emission as observed with Suzaku from five symbiotic
stars that we selected for deep Suzaku observations after their initial
detection with ROSAT, ASCA and Swift. We find that the X-ray spectra of all
five sources can be adequately fit with absorbed, optically thin thermal plasma
models, with either single- or multi-temperature plasmas. These models are
compatible with the X-ray emission originating in the boundary layer between an
accretion disk and a white dwarf. The high plasma temperatures of kT$~>3$ keV
for all five targets were greater than expected for colliding winds. Based on
these high temperatures, as well as previous measurements of UV variability and
UV luminosity, and the large amplitude of X-ray flickering in 4 Dra, we
conclude that all five sources are accretion-powered through predominantly
optically thick boundary layers. Our X-ray data allow us to observe a small,
optically thin portion of the emission from these boundary layers. Given the
time between previous observations and these observations, we find that the
intrinsic X-ray flux and the intervening absorbing column can vary by factors
of three or more on a time scale of years. However, the location of the
absorber and the relationship between changes in accretion rate and absorption
are still elusive.


title:
Determining the radio AGN contribution to the radio-FIR correlation
  using the black hole fundamental plane relation

abstract:
  We investigate the 1.4 GHz radio properties of 92 nearby (z<0.05) ultra hard
X-ray selected Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) from the Swift Burst Alert
Telescope (BAT) sample. Through the ultra hard X-ray selection we minimise the
biases against obscured or Compton-thick AGN as well as confusion with emission
derived from star formation that typically affect AGN samples selected from the
UV, optical and infrared wavelengths. We find that all the objects in our
sample of nearby, ultra-hard X-ray selected AGN are radio quiet; 83\% of the
objects are classed as high-excitation galaxies (HEGs) and 17\% as
low-excitation galaxies (LEGs). While these low-z BAT sources follow the
radio--far-infrared correlation in a similar fashion to star forming galaxies,
our analysis finds that there is still significant AGN contribution in the
observed radio emission from these radio quiet AGN. In fact, the majority of
our BAT sample occupy the same X-ray--radio fundamental plane as have been
observed in other samples, which include radio loud AGN --- evidence that the
observed radio emission (albeit weak) is connected to the AGN accretion
mechanism, rather than star formation.


title: Thermal properties and evolution of the $U_A(1)$ factor for 2+1 flavors

abstract:
  Thermal evolution of the axial anomaly is investigated in the system of the
linear sigma model for $2+1$ flavors. We explore the functional form of the
effective potential and the coefficient of the `t Hooft determinant term. It is
found that the latter develops a non-trivial structure as a function of the
chiral condensate and grows everywhere with respect to the temperature. This
shows that mesonic fluctuations strengthen the axial anomaly at finite
temperature and it does not get vanished at the critical point. The phenomenon
has been found to have significance in the thermal properties of the mesonic
spectra, especially concerning the $\eta-\eta'$ system.


title: Nonlinear wave damping due to multi-plasmon resonances

abstract:
  For short wavelengths, it is well known that the linearized Wigner-Moyal
equation predicts wave damping due to wave-particle interaction, where the
resonant velocity shifted from the phase velocity by a velocity $v_q = \hbar
k/2m$. Here $\hbar$ is the reduced Planck constant, $k$ is the wavenumber and
$m$ is the electron mass. Going beyond linear theory, we find additional
resonances with velocity shifts $n v_q$, $n = 2, 3, \ldots$, giving rise to a
new wave-damping mechanism that we term \emph{multi-plasmon damping}, as it can
be seen as the simultaneous absorption (or emission) of multiple plasmon
quanta. Naturally this wave damping is not present in classical plasmas. For a
temperature well below the Fermi temperature, if the linear ($n = 1$) resonant
velocity is outside the Fermi sphere, the number of linearly resonant particles
is exponentially small, while the multi-plasmon resonances can be located in
the bulk of the distribution. We derive sets of evolution equations for the
case of two-plasmon and three-plasmon resonances for Langmuir waves in the
simplest case of a fully degenerate plasma. By solving these equations
numerically for a range of wave-numbers we find the corresponding damping
rates, and we compare them to results from linear theory to estimate the
applicability. Finally, we discuss the effects due to a finite temperature.


title:
Positive electron affinity of interfacial region in Polyethylene-MgO
  nanocomposite dielectric

abstract:
  Polymer-based nanocomposite dielectrics are expected to become essential in
future generations of high voltage electrical insulation. However, the physics
behind their performance is not yet understood. Here we investigate electronic
properties of the interfacial area in magnesium oxide-polyethylene
nanocomposite. We use density functional theory to calculate densities of
states for MgO (100) and hydroxylated MgO (111) interfaces with polyethylene.
We evaluate the role of silicon-based nanoparticle surface modification at the
electronic level and propose a new theory for charge trapping in
nanocomposites.


title: Generalization of the Majorana equation for real spinors

abstract:
  We show that the Dirac equation for real spinors can be naturally decomposed
into a system of two first-order relativistic wave equations. The decomposition
separates in a transparent way the real and imaginary parts of the Dirac
equation by means of two algebraic differential operators, allowing to describe
real spinors in any representation of the Dirac matrices maintaining the
reality condition $\tilde{\Psi}=\tilde{\Psi}^{*}$ unaltered. In addition, it is
shown that the Majorana wave equation is a particular case of the relativistic
system of equations deduced in this paper. We also briefly discuss how the
formalism can be extended to deal with complex (charged) spinors.


title: Airy plasmons in graphene based waveguides

abstract:
  In this paper, we propose that both the quasi-transverse-magnetic (TM) and
quasi-transverseelectric (TE) Airy plasmons can be supported in graphene-based
waveguides. The solution of Airy plasmons is calculated analytically and the
existence of Airy plasmons is studied under the paraxial approximation. Due to
the tunability of the chemical potential of graphene, the self-accelerating
behavior of quasi-TM Airy plasmons can be steered effectively, especially in
multilayer graphene based waveguides. Besides the metals, graphene provides an
additional platform to investigate the propagation of Airy plasmons and to
design various plasmonic devices.


title:
Lyapunov exponents of partially hyperbolic volume-preserving maps with
  2-dimensional center bundle

abstract:
  We consider the set of partially hyperbolic symplectic diffeomorphisms which
are accessible, have 2-dimensional center bundle and satisfy some pinching and
bunching conditions. In this set, we prove that the non-uniformly hyperbolic
maps are $C^r$ open and there exists a $C^r$ open and dense subset of
continuity points for the center Lyapunov exponents. We also generalize these
results to volume-preserving systems.


title: Primary operations in differential cohomology

abstract:
  We characterize primary operations in differential cohomology via stacks, and
illustrate by differentially refining Steenrod squares and Steenrod powers
explicitly. This requires a delicate interplay between integral, rational, and
mod p cohomology, as well as cohomology with U(1) coefficients and differential
forms. Along the way we develop computational techniques in differential
cohomology, including a K\"unneth decomposition, that should also be useful in
their own right, and point to applications to higher geometry and mathematical
physics.


title: Finding well approximating lattices for a finite set of points

abstract:
  In this paper we address the problem of finding well approximating lattices
for a given finite set $A$ of points in ${\mathbb R}^n$. More precisely, we
search for $\v{o},\v{d_1}, \dots,\v{d_n}\in \mathbb{R}^n$ such that
$\v{a}-\v{o}$ is close to $\Lambda=\v{d_1}\mathbb{Z}+\dots+\v{d_n}\mathbb{Z}$
for every $\v{a}\in A$. First we deal with the one-dimensional case, where we
show that in a sense the results are almost the best possible. These results
easily extend to the multi-dimensional case where the directions of the axes
are given, too. Thereafter we treat the general multi-dimensional case. Our
method relies on the LLL algorithm. Finally we apply the least squares
algorithm to optimize the results. We give several examples to illustrate our
approach.


title:
Generalized Gambler's Ruin Problem: explicit formulas via Siegumd
  duality

abstract:
  We give explicit formulas for ruin probabilities in a multidimensional
Generalized Gambler's ruin problem. The generalization is best interpreted as a
game of one player against $d$ other players, allowing arbitrary winning and
losing probabilities (including ties) depending on the current fortune with
particular player. It includes many previous other generalizations as special
cases. Instead of usually utilized first-step-like analysis we involve
dualities between Markov chains. We give general procedure for solving
ruin-like problems utilizing Siegmund duality in Markov chains for partially
ordered state spaces studied recently in context of M\"obius monotonicity.


title: Bounding the optimal rate of the ICSI and ICCSI problem

abstract:
  In this work we study both the index coding with side information (ICSI)
problem introduced by Birk and Kol in 1998 and the more general problem of
index coding with coded side information (ICCSI), described by Shum et al in
2012. We estimate the optimal rate of an instance of the index coding problem.
In the ICSI problem case, we characterize those digraphs having min-rank one
less than their order and we give an upper bound on the min-rank of a
hypergraph whose incidence matrix can be associated with that of a 2-design.
Security aspects are discussed in the particular case when the design is a
projective plane. For the coded side information case, we extend the graph
theoretic upper bounds given by Shanmugam et al in 2014 on the optimal rate of
index code.


title:
Human Sexual Dimorphism of the Relative Cerebral Area Volumes in the
  Data of the Human Connectome Project

abstract:
  The average human brain volume of the males is larger than that of the
females. Several MRI voxel-based morphometry studies show that the gray
matter/white matter ratio is larger in females. Here we have analyzed the
recent public release of the Human Connectome Project, and by using the
diffusion MRI data of 511 subjects (209 men and 302 women), we have found that
the relative volumes of numerous subcortical areas and the gray matter of most
cortical areas are significantly larger in women than in men. Additionally, we
have discovered differences of the strengths of the sexual correlations between
the same structures in different hemispheres.


title: Greedy Criterion in Orthogonal Greedy Learning

abstract:
  Orthogonal greedy learning (OGL) is a stepwise learning scheme that starts
with selecting a new atom from a specified dictionary via the steepest gradient
descent (SGD) and then builds the estimator through orthogonal projection. In
this paper, we find that SGD is not the unique greedy criterion and introduce a
new greedy criterion, called "$\delta$-greedy threshold" for learning. Based on
the new greedy criterion, we derive an adaptive termination rule for OGL. Our
theoretical study shows that the new learning scheme can achieve the existing
(almost) optimal learning rate of OGL. Plenty of numerical experiments are
provided to support that the new scheme can achieve almost optimal
generalization performance, while requiring less computation than OGL.


title: Q-Resolution with Generalized Axioms

abstract:
  Q-resolution is a proof system for quantified Boolean formulas (QBFs) in
prenex conjunctive normal form (PCNF) which underlies search-based QBF solvers
with clause and cube learning (QCDCL). With the aim to derive and learn
stronger clauses and cubes earlier in the search, we generalize the axioms of
the Q-resolution calculus resulting in an exponentially more powerful proof
system. The generalized axioms introduce an interface of Q-resolution to any
other QBF proof system allowing for the direct combination of orthogonal
solving techniques. We implemented a variant of the Q-resolution calculus with
generalized axioms in the QBF solver DepQBF. As two case studies, we apply
integrated SAT solving and resource-bounded QBF preprocessing during the search
to heuristically detect potential axiom applications. Experiments with
application benchmarks indicate a substantial performance improvement.


title:
Scale-Invariant Models with One-Loop Neutrino Mass and Dark Matter
  Candidates

abstract:
  We construct a list of minimal scale-invariant models at the TeV scale that
generate one-loop neutrino mass and give viable dark matter candidates. The
models generically contain a singlet scalar and a $Z_2$-odd sector comprised of
singlet, doublet and/or triplet SU(2) multiplets. The dark matter may reside in
a single multiplet or arise as an admixture of several multiplets. We find
fifteen independent models, for which the dark matter is a viable candidate and
neutrino mass results from a diagram with just one of the irreducible
scale-invariant one-loop topologies. Further "non-pure" cases give hybrid
one-/two-loop masses. All models predict new TeV scale physics, including a
singlet scalar that generically mixes with the Higgs boson.


title:
Bialgebras, the classical Yang-Baxter equation and Manin triples for
  3-Lie algebras

abstract:
  This paper studies two types of 3-Lie bialgebras whose compatibility
conditions between the multiplication and comultiplication are given by local
cocycles and double constructions respectively, and are therefore called the
local cocycle 3-Lie bialgebra and the double construction 3-Lie bialgebra. They
can be regarded as suitable extensions of the well-known Lie bialgebra in the
context of 3-Lie algebras, in two different directions. The local cocycle 3-Lie
bialgebra is introduced to extend the connection between Lie bialgebras and the
classical Yang-Baxter equation. Its relationship with a ternary variation of
the classical Yang-Baxter equation, called the 3-Lie classical Yang-Baxter
equation, a ternary $\mathcal{O}$-operator and a 3-pre-Lie algebra is
established. In particular, it is shown that solutions of the 3-Lie classical
Yang-Baxter equation give (coboundary) local cocycle 3-Lie bialgebras, whereas
3-pre-Lie algebras give rise to solutions of the 3-Lie classical Yang-Baxter
equation. The double construction 3-Lie bialgebra is introduced to extend to
the 3-Lie algebra context the connection between Lie bialgebras and double
constructions of Lie algebras. Their related Manin triples give a natural
construction of pseudo-metric 3-Lie algebras with neutral signature. Moreover,
the double construction 3-Lie bialgebra can be regarded as a special class of
the local cocycle 3-Lie bialgebra. Explicit examples of double construction
3-Lie bialgebras are provided.


title:
An upper bound for the Tarski numbers of non amenable groups of
  piecewise projective homeomorphisms

abstract:
  The Tarski number of a non amenable group is the smallest number of pieces
needed for a paradoxical decomposition of the group. Non amenable groups of
piecewise projective homeomorphisms were introduced by Monod, and non amenable
finitely presented groups of piecewise projective homeomorphisms were
introduced by the author in joint work with Justin Moore. These groups do not
contain non abelian free subgroups. In this article we prove that the Tarski
number of all groups in both families is at most 25. In particular we
demonstrate the existence of a paradoxical decomposition with 25 pieces.
  Our argument also applies to any group of piecewise projective homeomorphisms
that contains as a subgroup the group of piecewise $PSL_2(\mathbb{Z})$
homeomorphisms of $\mathbb{R}$ with rational breakpoints, and an affine map
that is a not an integer translation.


title:
Validation of Continuously Tagged MRI for the Measurement of Dynamic 3D
  Skeletal Muscle Tissue Deformation

abstract:
  A SPAMM tagged MRI methodology is presented allowing continuous (3.3-3.6 Hz)
sampling of 3D dynamic soft tissue deformation using non-segmented 3D
acquisitions. The 3D deformation is reconstructed by the combination of 3
mutually orthogonal tagging directions, thus requiring only 3 repeated motion
cycles. In addition a fully automatic post-processing framework is presented
employing Gabor scale-space and filter-bank analysis for tag extrema
segmentation and triangulated surface fitting aided by Gabor filter bank
derived surface normals. Deformation is derived following tracking of tag
surface triplet triangle intersections. The dynamic deformation measurements
were validated using indentation tests (~20 mm deep at 12 mm/s) on a silicone
gel soft tissue phantom containing contrasting markers which provide a
reference measure of deformation. In addition, the techniques were evaluated
in-vivo for dynamic skeletal muscle tissue deformation measurement during
indentation of the biceps region of the upper arm in a volunteer.


title:
Subexponential parameterized algorithms for planar and apex-minor-free
  graphs via low treewidth pattern covering

abstract:
  We prove the following theorem. Given a planar graph $G$ and an integer $k$,
it is possible in polynomial time to randomly sample a subset $A$ of vertices
of $G$ with the following properties: (i) $A$ induces a subgraph of $G$ of
treewidth $\mathcal{O}(\sqrt{k}\log k)$, and (ii) for every connected subgraph
$H$ of $G$ on at most $k$ vertices, the probability that $A$ covers the whole
vertex set of $H$ is at least $(2^{\mathcal{O}(\sqrt{k}\log^2 k)}\cdot
n^{\mathcal{O}(1)})^{-1}$, where $n$ is the number of vertices of $G$.
  Together with standard dynamic programming techniques for graphs of bounded
treewidth, this result gives a versatile technique for obtaining (randomized)
subexponential parameterized algorithms for problems on planar graphs, usually
with running time bound $2^{\mathcal{O}(\sqrt{k} \log^2 k)}
n^{\mathcal{O}(1)}$. The technique can be applied to problems expressible as
searching for a small, connected pattern with a prescribed property in a large
host graph, examples of such problems include Directed $k$-Path, Weighted
$k$-Path, Vertex Cover Local Search, and Subgraph Isomorphism, among others. Up
to this point, it was open whether these problems can be solved in
subexponential parameterized time on planar graphs, because they are not
amenable to the classic technique of bidimensionality. Furthermore, all our
results hold in fact on any class of graphs that exclude a fixed apex graph as
a minor, in particular on graphs embeddable in any fixed surface.


title:
Quantitative uniqueness for zero-order perturbations of generalized
  Baouendi-Grushin operators

abstract:
  Based on a variant of the frequency function approach of Almgren, we
establish an optimal bound on the vanishing order of solutions to stationary
Schr\"odinger equations associated to a class of subelliptic equations with
variable coefficients whose model is the so-called Baouendi-Grushin operator.
Such bound provides a quantitative form of strong unique continuation that can
be thought of as an analogue of the recent results of Bakri and Zhu for the
standard Laplacian.


title: Path categories and propositional identity types

abstract:
  Connections between homotopy theory and type theory have recently attracted a
lot of attention, with Voevodsky's univalent foundations and the interpretation
of Martin-Lof's identity types in Quillen model categories as some of the
highlights. In this paper we establish a connection between a natural weakening
of Martin-Lof's rules for the identity types which has been considered by
Cohen, Coquand, Huber and Mortberg in their work on a constructive
interpretation of the univalence axiom on the one hand, and the notion of a
path category, a slight variation on the classic notion of a category of
fibrant objects due to Brown. This involves showing that the syntactic category
associated to a type theory with weak identity types carries the structure of a
path category, strengthening earlier results by Avigad, Lumsdaine and Kapulkin.
In this way we not only relate a well-known concept in homotopy theory with a
natural concept in logic, but also provide a framework for further
developments.


title: Practical combinations of repetition-aware data structures

abstract:
  Highly-repetitive collections of strings are increasingly being amassed by
genome sequencing and genetic variation experiments, as well as by storing all
versions of human-generated files, like webpages and source code. Existing
indexes for locating all the exact occurrences of a pattern in a
highly-repetitive string take advantage of a single measure of repetition.
However, multiple, distinct measures of repetition all grow sublinearly in the
length of a highly-repetitive string. In this paper we explore the practical
advantages of combining data structures whose size depends on distinct measures
of repetition. The main ingredient of our structures is the run-length encoded
BWT (RLBWT), which takes space proportional to the number of runs in the
Burrows-Wheeler transform of a string. We describe a range of practical
variants that combine RLBWT with the set of boundaries of the Lempel-Ziv 77
factors of a string, which take space proportional to the number of factors.
Such variants use, respectively, the RLBWT of a string and the RLBWT of its
reverse, or just one RLBWT inside a bidirectional index, or just one RLBWT with
support for unidirectional extraction. We also study the practical advantages
of combining RLBWT with the compact directed acyclic word graph of a string, a
data structure that takes space proportional to the number of one-character
extensions of maximal repeats. Our approaches are easy to implement, and
provide competitive tradeoffs on significant datasets.


title:
Shape constrained kernel-weighted least squares: Application to
  production function estimation for Chilean manufacturing industries

abstract:
  In this paper we examine a novel way of imposing shape constraints on a local
polynomial kernel estimator. The proposed approach is referred to as Shape
Constrained Kernel-weighted Least Squares (SCKLS). We prove uniform consistency
of the SCKLS estimator with monotonicity and convexity/concavity constraints
and establish its convergence rate. The competitiveness of SCKLS is shown in a
comprehensive simulation study. Finally, we analyze Chilean manufacturing data
using the SCKLS estimator and quantify production in the plastics and wood
industries. The results show that exporting firms have significantly higher
productivity.


title: Quantum Mechanics in Pseudotime

abstract:
  Based on some results on reparmetrisation of time in Hamiltonian path
integral formalism, a pseudo time formulation of operator formalism of quantum
mechanics is presented. Relation of reparametrisation of time in quantum with
super symmetric quantum mechanics is established. We show how some important
concepts such as shape invariance and tools like isospectral deformation appear
in pseudo time quantum mechanics.


title: Star-planet interactions: I. Stellar rotation and planetary orbits

abstract:
  Context. As a star evolves, the planet orbits change with time due to tidal
interactions, stellar mass losses, friction and gravitational drag forces, mass
accretion and evaporation on/by the planet. Stellar rotation modifies the
structure of the star and therefore the way these different processes occur.
Changes of the orbits, at their turn, have an impact on the rotation of the
star.
  Aims. Models accounting in a consistent way for these interactions between
the orbital evolution of the planet and the evolution of the rotation of the
star are still missing. The present work is a first attempt to fill this gap.
  Methods. We compute the evolution of stellar models including a comprehensive
treatment of rotational effects together with the evolution of planetary
orbits, so that the exchanges of angular momentum between the star and the
planetary orbit are treated in a self-consistent way. The evolution of the
rotation of the star accounts for the angular momentum exchange with the planet
and also follows the effects of the internal transport of angular momentum and
chemicals.
  Results. We show that rotating stellar models without tidal interactions can
well reproduce the surface rotations of the bulk of the red giants. However,
models without any interactions cannot account for fast rotating red giants in
the upper part of the red giant branch, where, such models, whatever the
initial rotation considered on the ZAMS, always predict very low velocities.
For those stars some interaction with a companion is highly probable and the
present rotating stellar models with planets confirm that tidal interaction can
reproduce their high surface velocities. We show also that the minimum distance
between the planet and the star on the ZAMS that will allow the planet to avoid
engulfment and survive is decreased around faster rotating stars. [abridged]


title:
Calculation of phases of np- scattering up to Tlab=3 GeV for Reid68 and
  Reid93 potentials on the phase-function method

abstract:
  For calculation of the single-channel nucleon-nucleon scattering a
phase-functions method has been proposed. Using a phase-functions method the
following phase shifts of np- scattering numerically for 1S0-, 1P1-, 3P0-,
3P1-, 1D2-, 3D2-, 1F3-, 3F3-, 1G4-, 3G4- states are calculated. The
calculations has been performed using realistic nucleon-nucleon Reid68 and
Reid93 potentials. Obtained phase shifts for energy up to 350 MeV are in good
agreement with the results obtained in the framework of other methods. Using
the obtained phase shifts we have calculated the full cross-section np-
scattering.


title:
Supersymmetric Janus solutions in four-dimensional N=3 gauged
  supergravity

abstract:
  We construct supersymmetric Janus solutions using four-dimensional $N=3$
gauged supergravity with $SO(3)\times SU(3)$ gauge group. The $N=3$
supersymmetric $AdS_4$ vacuum with unbroken $SO(3)\times SU(3)$, identified
with the compactification of eleven-dimensional supergravity on $AdS_4\times
N^{010}$, provides a gravity dual of supersymmetric $N=3$ Chern-Simons-Matter
theory in three dimensions with $SU(3)$ flavor symmetry. The Janus solutions
accordingly describe supersymmetric conformal interfaces within this
Chern-Simons-Matter theory via the AdS/CFT holography. We find two classes of
Janus solutions preserving respectively $(2,1)$ and $(0,1)$ supersymmetry on
the $(1+1)$-dimensional conformal defects. The solution with $(2,1)$
supersymmetry preserves $SO(2)\times SO(2)\times SO(2)\subset SO(3)\times
SU(3)$ symmetry while the $(0,1)$ supersymmetric solution is invariant under a
larger $SO(2)\times SU(2)\times SO(2)$ symmetry.


title: A Monte Carlo method for integration of multivariate smooth functions

abstract:
  We study a Monte Carlo algorithm that is based on a specific (randomly
shifted and dilated) lattice point set. The main result of this paper is that
the mean squared error for a given compactly supported, square-integrable
function is bounded by $n^{-1/2}$ times the $L_2$-norm of the Fourier transform
outside a region around the origin, where $n$ is the expected number of
function evaluations. As corollaries we obtain the optimal order of convergence
for functions from the Sobolev spaces $H^s_p$ with isotropic, anisotropic, or
mixed smoothness with given compact support for all values of the parameters.
If the region of integration is the unit cube, we obtain the same optimal
orders for functions without boundary conditions. This proves, in particular,
that the optimal order of convergence in the latter case is $n^{-s-1/2}$ for
$p\ge2$, which is, in contrast to the case of deterministic algorithms,
independent of the dimension. This shows that Monte Carlo algorithms can
improve the order by more than $n^{-1/2}$ for a whole class of natural function
spaces.


title: Oriented Flip Graphs and Noncrossing Tree Partitions

abstract:
  In this paper, we study the lattice properties of posets of torsion pairs in
the module category of a family of representation-finite gentle algebras called
tiling algebras, introduced by Coelho Simoes and Parsons. We present a
combinatorial model for torsion pairs using polyogonal subdivisions of a convex
polygon. We use this model and the lattice theory to classify 2-term
simple-minded collections in the bounded derived category of the corresponding
tiling algebra. As a consequence, we obtain a characterization of c-matrices
for any quiver mutation-equivalent to a type A Dynkin quiver.
  Our model is developed using the dual tree of a polygonal subdivision. Given
such a tree, we introduce a simplicial complex of noncrossing geodesics
supported by the tree which we call the noncrossing complex. The facets of the
noncrossing complex may be given the structure of an oriented flip graph.
Special cases of the oriented flip graphs that may be expressed in this way
include the Tamari order, type A Cambrian orders, oriented exchange graphs for
quivers mutation-equivalent to a path quiver. We prove that the oriented flip
graph of any noncrossing complex is a polygonal, congruence-uniform lattice. To
do so, we express the oriented flip graph as a lattice quotient of a lattice of
biclosed sets.
  The facets of the noncrossing complex have an alternate ordering known as the
shard intersection order. We prove that this shard intersection order is
isomorphic to a lattice of noncrossing tree partitions. The oriented flip graph
inherits a cyclic action from its congruence-uniform structure. On noncrossing
tree partitions, this cyclic action generalizes the classical Kreweras
complementation on noncrossing set partitions. We show that the data of a
noncrossing tree partition and its Kreweras complement is equivalent to a
2-term simple-minded collection of the associated tiling algebra.


title:
Kinematic Structure of Molecular Gas around High-mass Star YSO, Papillon
  Nebula, in N159 East in the Large Magellanic Cloud

abstract:
  We present the ALMA Band 3 and Band 6 results of 12CO(2-1), 13$CO(2-1),
H30alpha recombination line, free-free emission around 98 GHz, and the dust
thermal emission around 230 GHz toward the N159 East Giant Molecular Cloud
(N159E) in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). LMC is the nearest active
high-mass star forming face-on galaxy at a distance of 50 kpc and is the best
target for studing high-mass star formation. ALMA observations show that N159E
is the complex of filamentary clouds with the width and length of ~1 pc and 5
pc - 10 pc, respectively. The total molecular mass is 0.92 x 10^5 Msun from the
13CO(2-1) intensity. N159E harbors the well-known Papillon Nebula, a compact
high-excitation HII region. We found that a YSO associated with the Papillon
Nebula has the mass of 35 Msun and is located at the intersection of three
filamentary clouds. It indicates that the formation of the high-mass YSO was
induced by the collision of filamentary clouds. Fukui et al. 2015 reported a
similar kinematic structure toward a YSO in the N159 West region which is
another YSO that has the mass larger than 35 Msun in these two regions. This
suggests that the collision of filamentary clouds is a primary mechanism of
high-mass star formation. We found a small molecular hole around the YSO in
Papillon Nebula with sub-pc scale. It is filled by free-free and H30alpha
emission. Temperature of the molecular gas around the hole reaches ~ 80 K. It
indicates that this YSO has just started the distruction of parental molecular
cloud.


title: On best rank-2 and rank-(2,2,2) approximations of order-3 tensors

abstract:
  It is well known that a best rank-$R$ approximation of order-3 tensors may
not exist for $R\ge 2$. A best rank-$(R,R,R)$ approximation always exists,
however, and is also a best rank-$R$ approximation when it has rank (at most)
$R$. For $R=2$ and real order-3 tensors it is shown that a best rank-2
approximation is also a local minimum of the best rank-(2,2,2) approximation
problem. This implies that if all rank-(2,2,2) minima have rank larger than 2,
then a best rank-2 approximation does not exist. This provides an easy-to-check
criterion for existence of a best rank-2 approximation. The result is
illustrated by means of simulations.


title: A note on cement in asteroids

abstract:
  Cement mineral tobermorite was formed in hydrothermal experiments on
alternation of calcium-aluminum-rich inclusions (CAIs) in carbonaceous
chondrite meteorites. Unidentified bands at 14 microns were measured for CAIs
and the matrix of the Allende meteorite sample, as well as for Hektor and
Agamemnon asteroids. The presence of cement nanoparticles may explain the
feature at 14 microns.


title:
Point process models for spatio-temporal distance sampling data from a
  large-scale survey of blue whales

abstract:
  Distance sampling is a widely used method for estimating wildlife population
abundance. The fact that conventional distance sampling methods are partly
design-based constrains the spatial resolution at which animal density can be
estimated using these methods. Estimates are usually obtained at survey stratum
level. For an endangered species such as the blue whale, it is desirable to
estimate density and abundance at a finer spatial scale than stratum. Temporal
variation in the spatial structure is also important. We formulate the process
generating distance sampling data as a thinned spatial point process and
propose model-based inference using a spatial log-Gaussian Cox process. The
method adopts a flexible stochastic partial differential equation (SPDE)
approach to model spatial structure in density that is not accounted for by
explanatory variables, and integrated nested Laplace approximation (INLA) for
Bayesian inference. It allows simultaneous fitting of detection and density
models and permits prediction of density at an arbitrarily fine scale. We
estimate blue whale density in the Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean from thirteen
shipboard surveys conducted over 22 years. We find that higher blue whale
density is associated with colder sea surface temperatures in space, and
although there is some positive association between density and mean annual
temperature, our estimates are consitent with no trend in density across years.
Our analysis also indicates that there is substantial spatially structured
variation in density that is not explained by available covariates.


title:
Realistic multiband k.p approach from ab initio and spin-orbit coupling
  effects of InAs and InP in wurtzite phase

abstract:
  Semiconductor nanowires based on non-nitride III-V compounds can be
synthesized under certain growth conditions to favor the appearance of wurtzite
crystal phase. Despite the reports in literature of ab initio band structures
for these wurtzite compounds, we still lack effective multiband models and
parameter sets that can be simply used to investigate physical properties of
such systems, for instance, under quantum confinement effects. In order to
address this deficiency, in this study we calculate the ab initio band
structure of bulk InAs and InP in wurtzite phase and develop an 8$\times$8 k.p
Hamiltonian to describe the energy bands around $\Gamma$ point. We show that
our k.p model is robust and can be fitted to describe the important features of
the ab initio band structure. The correct description of the spin splitting
effects that arise due to the lack of inversion symmetry in wurtzite crystals,
is obtained with the $k$-dependent spin-orbit term in the Hamiltonian, often
neglected in the literature. All the energy bands display a Rashba-like spin
texture for the in-plane spin expectation value. We also provide the density of
states and the carrier density as functions of the Fermi energy. Alternatively,
we show an analytical description of the conduction band, valid close to
$\Gamma$ point. The same fitting procedure is applied to the 6$\times$6 valence
band Hamiltonian. However, we find that the most reliable approach is the
8$\times$8 k.p Hamiltonian for both compounds. The k.p Hamiltonians and
parameter sets that we develop in this paper provide a reliable theoretical
framework that can be easily applied to investigate electronic, transport,
optical, and spin properties of InAs- and InP-based nanostructures.


title:
Carleson measures for Hilbert spaces of analytic functions on the
  complex half-plane

abstract:
  The notion of a Carleson measure was introduced by Lennart Carleson in his
proof of the Corona Theorem for $H^\infty(\mathbb{D})$. In this paper we will
define it for certain type of reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces of analytic
functions of the complex half-plane, $\mathbb{C}_+$, which will include Hardy,
Bergman and Dirichlet spaces. We will obtain several necessary or sufficient
conditions for a positive Borel measure to be Carleson by preforming tests on
reproducing kernels, weighted Bergman kernels, and studying the tree model
obtained from a decomposition of the complex half-plane. The Dirichlet space
will be investigated in detail as a special case. Finally, we will present a
control theory application of Carleson measures in determining admissibility of
controls in well-posed linear evolution equations.


title: Degravitation and the relaxed Einstein equations

abstract:
  The general idea to modify Einstein's field equations by promoting Newton's
constant $G$ to a covariant differential operator $G_\Lambda(\Box_g)$ was
apparently outlined for the first time in [12-15]. The modification itself
originates from the quest of finding a mechanism which is able to degravitate
the vacuum energy on cosmological scales. We present in this article a precise
covariant coupling model which acts like a high-pass filter with a macroscopic
distance filter scale $\sqrt{\Lambda}$. In the context of this particular
theory of gravity we work out the effective relaxed Einstein equations as well
as the effective 1.5 post-Newtonian total near-zone mass of a many body system.
We observe that at any step of computation we recover in the limit of vanishing
modification parameters the corresponding general relativistic result.


title: Critical Number of Fields in Stochastic Inflation

abstract:
  Stochastic effects in generic scenarios of inflation with multiple fields are
investigated. First passage time techniques are employed to calculate the
statistical moments of the number of inflationary $e$-folds, which give rise to
all correlation functions of primordial curvature perturbations through the
stochastic $\delta N$ formalism. The number of fields is a critical parameter.
The probability of exploring arbitrarily large-field regions of the potential
becomes non-vanishing when more than two fields are driving inflation. The mean
number of $e$-folds can be infinite, depending on the number of fields; for
plateau potentials, this occurs even with one field. In such cases, correlation
functions of curvature perturbations are infinite. They can, however, be
regularised if a reflecting (or absorbing) wall is added at large energy or
field value. The results are found to be independent of the exact location of
the wall and this procedure is, therefore, well-defined for a wide range of
cutoffs, above or below the Planck scale. Finally, we show that, contrary to
single-field setups, multi-field models can yield large stochastic corrections
even at sub-Planckian energy, opening interesting prospects for probing quantum
effects on cosmological fluctuations.


title:
On the derived category of quasi-coherent sheaves on an Adams geometric
  stack

abstract:
  Let $\mathbf{X}$ be an Adams geometric stack. We show that
$D(A_{qc}(\mathbf{X}))$, its derived category of quasi-coherent sheaves,
satisfies the axioms of a stable homotopy category defined by Hovey, Palmieri
and Strickland. Moreover we show how this structure relates to the derived
category of comodules over a Hopf algebroid that determines $\mathbf{X}$.


title: Tracking breather dynamics in irregular sea state conditions

abstract:
  Breather solutions of the nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation (NLSE) are known
to be considered as backbone models for extreme events in the ocean as well as
in Kerr media. These exact determinisitic rogue wave (RW) prototypes on a
regular background describe a wide-range of modulation instability
configurations. Alternatively, oceanic or electromagnetic wave fields can be of
chaotic nature and it is known that RWs may develop in such conditions as well.
We report an experimental study confirming that extreme localizations in an
irregular oceanic JONSWAP wave field can be tracked back to originate from
exact NLSE breather solutions, such as the Peregrine breather. Numerical NLSE
as well as modified NLSE simulations are both in good agreement with laboratory
experiments and highlight the significance of universal weakly nonlinear
evolution equations in the emergence as well as prediction of extreme events in
nonlinear dispersive media.


title: Constructive Preference Elicitation by Setwise Max-margin Learning

abstract:
  In this paper we propose an approach to preference elicitation that is
suitable to large configuration spaces beyond the reach of existing
state-of-the-art approaches. Our setwise max-margin method can be viewed as a
generalization of max-margin learning to sets, and can produce a set of
"diverse" items that can be used to ask informative queries to the user.
Moreover, the approach can encourage sparsity in the parameter space, in order
to favor the assessment of utility towards combinations of weights that
concentrate on just few features. We present a mixed integer linear programming
formulation and show how our approach compares favourably with Bayesian
preference elicitation alternatives and easily scales to realistic datasets.


title: The Virtual Element Method in 50 lines of MATLAB

abstract:
  We present a 50-line MATLAB implementation of the lowest order virtual
element method for the two-dimensional Poisson problem on general polygonal
meshes. The matrix formulation of the method is discussed, along with the
structure of the overall algorithm for computing with a virtual element method.
The purpose of this software is primarily educational, to demonstrate how the
key components of the method can be translated into code.


title:
Constructing error-correcting binary codes using transitive permutation
  groups

abstract:
  Let $A_2(n,d)$ be the maximum size of a binary code of length $n$ and minimum
distance $d$. In this paper we present the following new lower bounds:
$A_2(18,4) \ge 5632$, $A_2(21,4) \ge 40960$, $A_2(22,4) \ge 81920$, $A_2(23,4)
\ge 163840$, $A_2(24,4) \ge 327680$, $A_2(24,10) \ge 136$, and $A_2(25,6) \ge
17920$. The new lower bounds are a result of a systematic computer search over
transitive permutation groups.


title: Emergence of a low spin phase in group field theory condensates

abstract:
  Recent results have shown how quantum cosmology models can be derived from
the effective dynamics of condensate states in group field theory (GFT), where
'cosmology is the hydrodynamics of quantum gravity': the classical Friedmann
dynamics for homogeneous, isotropic universes, as well as loop quantum
cosmology (LQC) corrections to general relativity have been shown to emerge
from fundamental quantum gravity. We take one further step towards
strengthening the link with LQC and show, in a class of GFT models for gravity
coupled to a free massless scalar field and for generic initial conditions,
that GFT condensates dynamically reach a low spin phase of many quanta of
geometry, in which all but an exponentially small number of quanta are
characterised by a single spin $j_0$ (i.e. by a constant volume per quantum).
As the low spin regime is reached, GFT condensates expand to exponentially
large volumes, and the dynamics of the total volume follows precisely the
classical Friedmann equations. This behaviour follows from a single requirement
on the couplings in the GFT model under study. We present one particular simple
case in which the dominant spin is the lowest one: $j_0=0$ or, if this is
excluded, $j_0=1/2$. The type of quantum state usually assumed in the
derivation of LQC is hence derived from the quantum dynamics of GFT. These
results confirm and extend recent results by Oriti, Sindoni and Wilson-Ewing in
the same setting.


title:
Fundamental groups and good reduction criteria for curves over positive
  characteristic local fields

abstract:
  In this article I define and study the overconvergent rigid fundamental group
of a variety over an equicharacteristic local field. This is a non-abelian
$(\varphi,\nabla)$-module over the bounded Robba ring $\mathcal{E}_K^\dagger$,
whose underlying unipotent group (after base changing to the Amice ring
$\mathcal{E}_K$) is exactly the classical rigid fundamental group. I then use
this to prove an equicharacteristic, $p$-adic analogue of Oda's theorem that a
semistable curve over a $p$-adic field has good reduction iff the Galois action
on its $\ell$-adic unipotent fundamental group is unramified.


title:
Gauge-invariant extensions of the Proca model in a noncommutative
  space-time

abstract:
  The gauge invariance analysis of theories described in noncommutative (NC)
space-times can lead us to interesting results since noncommutativity is one of
the possible paths to investigate quantum effects in classical theories such as
general relativity, for example. This theoretical possibility has motivated us
to analyze the gauge invariance of the NC version of the Proca model, which is
a second-class system, in Dirac's classification, since its classical
formulation (commutative space-time) has its gauge invariance broken thanks to
the mass term. To obtain such gauge invariant model, we have used the gauge
unfixing method to construct a first-class NC version of the Proca model. We
have also questioned if the gauge symmetries of NC theories, are affected
necessarily or not by the NC parameter. In this way, we have calculated its
respective symmetries in a standard way via Poisson brackets.


title:
Thermodynamically consistent Langevin dynamics with spatially correlated
  noise predicts frictionless regime and transient attraction effect

abstract:
  While the origin of temporal correlations in Langevin dynamics have been
thoroughly researched, the understanding of Spatially Correlated Noise (SCN) is
rather incomplete. In particular, very little is known about the relation
between friction and SCN. In this article, we derive the formal formula for the
spatial correlation function in the particle-bath interactions. This expression
shows that SCN is the inherent component of binary mixtures, originating from
the effective (entropic) interactions. Further, employing this spatial
correlation function, we postulate the thermodynamically consistent Langevin
equation driven by SCN and the adequate Fluctuation-Dissipation Relation. The
thermodynamical consistency is achieved by introducing the spatially variant
friction coefficient, which can be also derived analytically. This coefficient
exhibits a number of intriguing properties, e.g. the singular behavior for
certain interaction types. Eventually, we apply this new theory to the system
of two charged particles in the presence of counter-ions. Such particles
interact via the screened-charge Yukawa potential and the inclusion of SCN
leads to the emergence of the anomalous frictionless regime. In this regime the
particles can experience active propulsion leading to the transient attraction
effect. This effect suggests a non-equilibrium mechanism facilitating the
molecular binding of the like-charged particles.


title:
Cavity piezomechanical strong coupling and frequency conversion on an
  aluminum nitride chip

abstract:
  Schemes to achieve strong coupling between mechanical modes of aluminum
nitride microstructures and microwave cavity modes due to the piezoelectric
effect are proposed. We show that the strong coupling regime is feasible for an
on-chip aluminum nitride device that is either enclosed by a three-dimensional
microwave cavity or integrated with a superconducting coplanar resonator.
Combining with optomechanics, the piezomechanical strong coupling permits
coherent conversion between microwave and optical modes with high efficiency.
Hence, the piezomechanical system will be an efficient transducer for
applications in hybrid quantum systems.