7,372 research outputs found
Recommended from our members
Parallel data compression
Data compression schemes remove data redundancy in communicated and stored data and increase the effective capacities of communication and storage devices. Parallel algorithms and implementations for textual data compression are surveyed. Related concepts from parallel computation and information theory are briefly discussed. Static and dynamic methods for codeword construction and transmission on various models of parallel computation are described. Included are parallel methods which boost system speed by coding data concurrently, and approaches which employ multiple compression techniques to improve compression ratios. Theoretical and empirical comparisons are reported and areas for future research are suggested
FRB 121102: A Repeatedly Combed Neutron Star by a Nearby Low-luminosity Accreting Supermassive Black Hole
The origin of fast radio bursts (FRBs) remains mysterious. Recently, the only repeating FRB source, FRB 121102, was reported to possess an extremely large and variable rotation measure (RM). The inferred magnetic field strength in the burst environment is comparable to that in the vicinity of the supermassive black hole Sagittarius A* of our Galaxy. Here, we show that all of the observational properties of FRB 121102 (including the high RM and its evolution, the high linear polarization degree, an invariant polarization angle across each burst and other properties previously known) can be interpreted within the cosmic comb model, which invokes a neutron star with typical spin and magnetic field parameters whose magnetosphere is repeatedly and marginally combed by a variable outflow from a nearby low-luminosity accreting supermassive black hole in the host galaxy. We propose three falsifiable predictions (periodic on/off states, and periodic/correlated variation of RM and polarization angle) of the model and discuss other FRBs within the context of the cosmic comb model as well as the challenges encountered by other repeating FRB models in light of the new observations
Causal Consistency: Beyond Memory
In distributed systems where strong consistency is costly when not
impossible, causal consistency provides a valuable abstraction to represent
program executions as partial orders. In addition to the sequential program
order of each computing entity, causal order also contains the semantic links
between the events that affect the shared objects -- messages emission and
reception in a communication channel , reads and writes on a shared register.
Usual approaches based on semantic links are very difficult to adapt to other
data types such as queues or counters because they require a specific analysis
of causal dependencies for each data type. This paper presents a new approach
to define causal consistency for any abstract data type based on sequential
specifications. It explores, formalizes and studies the differences between
three variations of causal consistency and highlights them in the light of
PRAM, eventual consistency and sequential consistency: weak causal consistency,
that captures the notion of causality preservation when focusing on convergence
; causal convergence that mixes weak causal consistency and convergence; and
causal consistency, that coincides with causal memory when applied to shared
memory.Comment: 21st ACM SIGPLAN Symposium on Principles and Practice of Parallel
Programming, Mar 2016, Barcelone, Spai
On the observability of T Tauri accretion shocks in the X-ray band
Context. High resolution X-ray observations of classical T Tauri stars
(CTTSs) show a soft X-ray excess due to high density plasma (n_e=10^11-10^13
cm^-3). This emission has been attributed to shock-heated accreting material
impacting onto the stellar surface. Aims. We investigate the observability of
the shock-heated accreting material in the X-ray band as a function of the
accretion stream properties (velocity, density, and metal abundance) in the
case of plasma-beta<<1 in the post-shock zone. Methods. We use a 1-D
hydrodynamic model describing the impact of an accretion stream onto the
chromosphere, including the effects of radiative cooling, gravity and thermal
conduction. We explore the space of relevant parameters and synthesize from the
model results the X-ray emission in the [0.5-8.0] keV band and in the resonance
lines of O VII (21.60 Ang) and Ne IX (13.45 Ang), taking into account the
absorption from the chromosphere. Results. The accretion stream properties
influence the temperature and the stand-off height of the shocked slab and its
sinking in the chromosphere, determining the observability of the shocked
plasma. Our model predicts that X-ray observations preferentially detect
emission from low density and high velocity shocked accretion streams due to
the large absorption of dense post-shock plasma. In all the cases examined, the
post-shock zone exhibits quasi-periodic oscillations due to thermal
instabilities, but in the case of inhomogeneous streams and beta<<1, the shock
oscillations are hardly detectable. Conclusions. We suggest that, if accretion
streams are inhomogeneous, the selection effect introduced by the absorption on
observable plasma components may explain the discrepancy between the accretion
rate measured by optical and X-ray data as well as the different densities
measured using different He-like triplets in the X-ray band.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication on A&
Head-Tail Clouds: Drops to Probe the Diffuse Galactic Halo
A head-tail high-velocity cloud (HVC) is a neutral hydrogen halo cloud that
appears to be interacting with the diffuse halo medium as evident by its
compressed head trailed by a relatively diffuse tail. This paper presents a
sample of 116 head-tail HVCs across the southern sky (d < 2 deg) from the HI
Parkes All Sky Survey (HIPASS) HVC catalog, which has a spatial resolution of
15.5 arcmin (45 pc at 10 kpc) and a sensitivity of N_HI=2 x 10^(18) cm^(-2) (5
sigma). 35% of the HIPASS compact and semi-compact HVCs (CHVCs and :HVCs) can
be classified as head-tail clouds from their morphology. The clouds have
typical masses of 730 M_sun at 10 kpc (26,000 M_sun at 60 kpc) and the majority
can be associated with larger HVC complexes given their spatial and kinematic
proximity. This proximity, together with their similar properties to CHVCs and
:HVCs without head-tail structure, indicate the head-tail clouds have short
lifetimes, consistent with simulation predictions. Approximately half of the
head-tail clouds can be associated with the Magellanic System, with the
majority in the region of the Leading Arm with position angles pointing in the
general direction of the movement of the Magellanic System. The abundance in
the Leading Arm region is consistent with this feature being closer to the
Galactic disk than the Magellanic Stream and moving through a denser halo
medium. The head-tail clouds will feed the multi-phase halo medium rather than
the Galactic disk directly and provide additional evidence for a diffuse
Galactic halo medium extending to at least the distance of the Magellanic
Clouds.Comment: MNRAS Accepted, 10 figures, 7 in colo
Near Optimal Parallel Algorithms for Dynamic DFS in Undirected Graphs
Depth first search (DFS) tree is a fundamental data structure for solving
graph problems. The classical algorithm [SiComp74] for building a DFS tree
requires time for a given graph having vertices and edges.
Recently, Baswana et al. [SODA16] presented a simple algorithm for updating DFS
tree of an undirected graph after an edge/vertex update in time.
However, their algorithm is strictly sequential. We present an algorithm
achieving similar bounds, that can be adopted easily to the parallel
environment.
In the parallel model, a DFS tree can be computed from scratch using
processors in expected time [SiComp90] on an EREW PRAM, whereas
the best deterministic algorithm takes time
[SiComp90,JAlg93] on a CRCW PRAM. Our algorithm can be used to develop optimal
(upto polylog n factors deterministic algorithms for maintaining fully dynamic
DFS and fault tolerant DFS, of an undirected graph.
1- Parallel Fully Dynamic DFS:
Given an arbitrary online sequence of vertex/edge updates, we can maintain a
DFS tree of an undirected graph in time per update using
processors on an EREW PRAM.
2- Parallel Fault tolerant DFS:
An undirected graph can be preprocessed to build a data structure of size
O(m) such that for a set of updates (where is constant) in the graph,
the updated DFS tree can be computed in time using
processors on an EREW PRAM.
Moreover, our fully dynamic DFS algorithm provides, in a seamless manner,
nearly optimal (upto polylog n factors) algorithms for maintaining a DFS tree
in semi-streaming model and a restricted distributed model. These are the first
parallel, semi-streaming and distributed algorithms for maintaining a DFS tree
in the dynamic setting.Comment: Accepted to appear in SPAA'17, 32 Pages, 5 Figure
- …