513,690 research outputs found
Characterizing Interdisciplinarity of Researchers and Research Topics Using Web Search Engines
Researchers' networks have been subject to active modeling and analysis.
Earlier literature mostly focused on citation or co-authorship networks
reconstructed from annotated scientific publication databases, which have
several limitations. Recently, general-purpose web search engines have also
been utilized to collect information about social networks. Here we
reconstructed, using web search engines, a network representing the relatedness
of researchers to their peers as well as to various research topics.
Relatedness between researchers and research topics was characterized by
visibility boost-increase of a researcher's visibility by focusing on a
particular topic. It was observed that researchers who had high visibility
boosts by the same research topic tended to be close to each other in their
network. We calculated correlations between visibility boosts by research
topics and researchers' interdisciplinarity at individual level (diversity of
topics related to the researcher) and at social level (his/her centrality in
the researchers' network). We found that visibility boosts by certain research
topics were positively correlated with researchers' individual-level
interdisciplinarity despite their negative correlations with the general
popularity of researchers. It was also found that visibility boosts by
network-related topics had positive correlations with researchers' social-level
interdisciplinarity. Research topics' correlations with researchers'
individual- and social-level interdisciplinarities were found to be nearly
independent from each other. These findings suggest that the notion of
"interdisciplinarity" of a researcher should be understood as a
multi-dimensional concept that should be evaluated using multiple assessment
means.Comment: 20 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication in PLoS On
From isovists to visibility graphs: a methodology for the analysis of architectural space
An isovist, or viewshed, is the area in a spatial environment directly visible from a location within the space. Here we show how a set of isovists can be used to generate a graph of mutual visibility between locations. We demonstrate that this graph can also be constructed without reference to isovists and that we are in fact invoking the more general concept of a visibility graph. Using the visibility graph, we can extend both isovist and current graph-based analyses of architectural space to form a new methodology for the investigation of configurational relationships. The measurement of local and global characteristics of the graph, for each vertex or for the system as a whole, is of interest from an architectural perspective, allowing us to describe a configuration with reference to accessibility and visibility, to compare from location to location within a system, and to compare systems with different geometries. Finally we show that visibility graph properties may be closely related to manifestations of spatial perception, such as way-finding, movement, and space use
Is the shell-focusing singularity of Szekeres space-time visible?
The visibility of the shell-focusing singularity in Szekeres space-time—which represents quasispherical dust collapse—has been studied on numerous occasions in the context of the cosmic censorship conjecture. The various results derived have assumed that there exist radial null geodesics in the space-time. We show that such geodesics do not exist in general, and so previous results on the visibility of the singularity are not generally valid. More precisely, we show that the existence of a radial geodesic in Szekeres space-time implies that the space-time is axially symmetric, with the geodesic along the polar direction (i.e. along the axis of symmetry). If there is a second nonparallel radial geodesic, then the space-time is spherically symmetric, and so is a Lemaître-Tolman-Bondi space-time. For the case of the polar geodesic in an axially symmetric Szekeres space-time, we give conditions on the free functions (i.e. initial data) of the space-time which lead to visibility of the singularity along this direction. Likewise, we give a sufficient condition for censorship of the singularity. We point out the complications involved in addressing the question of visibility of the singularity both for nonradial null geodesics in the axially symmetric case and in the general (nonaxially symmetric) case, and suggest a possible approach
Is the shell-focusing singularity of Szekeres space-time visible?
The visibility of the shell-focusing singularity in Szekeres space-time -
which represents quasi-spherical dust collapse - has been studied on numerous
occasions in the context of the cosmic censorship conjecture. The various
results derived have assumed that there exist radial null geodesics in the
space-time. We show that such geodesics do not exist in general, and so
previous results on the visibility of the singularity are not generally valid.
More precisely, we show that the existence of a radial geodesic in Szekeres
space-time implies that the space-time is axially symmetric, with the geodesic
along the polar direction (i.e. along the axis of symmetry). If there is a
second non-parallel radial geodesic, then the space-time is spherically
symmetric, and so is a Lema\^{\i}tre-Tolman-Bondi (LTB) space-time. For the
case of the polar geodesic in an axially symmetric Szekeres space-time, we give
conditions on the free functions (i.e. initial data) of the space-time which
lead to visibility of the singularity along this direction. Likewise, we give a
sufficient condition for censorship of the singularity. We point out the
complications involved in addressing the question of visibility of the
singularity both for non-radial null geodesics in the axially symmetric case
and in the general (non-axially symmetric) case, and suggest a possible
approach.Comment: 10 page
Quantum mechanical which-way experiment with an internal degree of freedom
For a particle travelling through an interferometer, the trade-off between
the available which-way information and the interference visibility provides a
lucid manifestation of the quantum mechanical wave-particle duality. Here we
analyze this relation for a particle possessing an internal degree of freedom
such as spin. We quantify the trade-off with a general inequality that paints
an unexpectedly intricate picture of wave-particle duality when internal states
are involved. Strikingly, in some instances which-way information becomes
erased by introducing classical uncertainty in the internal degree of freedom.
Furthermore, even imperfect interference visibility measured for a suitable set
of spin preparations can be sufficient to infer absence of which-way
information. General results are illustrated with a proof-of-principle single
photon experiment.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure
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