Models wagging the dog: are circuits constructed with disparate parameters?

In a recent article, Prinz, Bucher, and Marder (2004) addressed the fundamental question of whether neural systems are built with a fixed blueprint of tightly controlled parameters or in a way in which properties can vary largely from one individual to another, using a database modeling approach. Here, we examine the main conclusion that neural circuits indeed are built with largely varying parameters in the light of our own experimental and modeling observations. We critically discuss the experimental and theoretical evidence, including the general adequacy of database approaches for questions of this kind, and come to the conclusion that the last word for this fundamental question has not yet been spoken

Indirect Signals from Dark Matter in Split Supersymmetry

We study the possibilities for the indirect detection of dark matter in Split Supersymmetry from gamma-rays, positrons, and antiprotons. The most promising signal is the gamma-ray line, which may be observable at the next generation of detectors. For certain halo profiles and a high mass neutralino, the line can even be visible in current experiments. The continuous gamma-ray signal may be observable, if there is a central spike in the galactic halo density. The signals are found to be similar to those in MSSM models. These indirect signals complement other experiments, being most easily observable for regions of parameter space, such as heavy wino and higgsino dominated neutralinos, which are least accessible for direct detection and accelerator searches.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures; experimental sensitivities added to figure 2, revised version to appear in Phys. Rev.

Have Cherenkov telescopes detected a new light boson?

Recent observations by H.E.S.S. and MAGIC strongly suggest that the Universe is more transparent to very-high-energy gamma rays than previously thought. We show that this fact can be reconciled with standard blazar emission models provided that photon oscillations into a very light Axion-Like Particle occur in extragalactic magnetic fields. A quantitative estimate of this effect indeed explains the observed data and in particular the spectrum of blazar 3C279.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure, Proceeding of the "Eleventh International Workshop on Topics in Astroparticle and Underground Physics" (TAUP), Roma, Italy, 1 - 5 July 2009 (to be published in the Proceedings

One Loop Predictions of the Finely Tuned SSM

We study the finely tuned SSM, recently proposed by Arkani-Hamed and Dimopoulos, at the one loop level. The runnings of the four gaugino Yukawa couplings, the mu term, the gaugino masses, and the Higgs quartic coupling are computed. The Higgs mass is found to be 130 - 170 GeV for M_s > 10^6 GeV. If the Yukawa coupling constants are measured at the 1% level, this can determine the SUSY breaking scale to within an order of magnitude. Measuring the relationships between the couplings to this accuracy provides a striking signal for this model.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures; v2: Minor corrections to anomalous dimensions and beta functions. Numerical results are not significantly affected. v3: Minor changes to figures and references, as published in PR

Electric Dipole Moments in Split Supersymmetry

We perform a quantitative study of the neutron and electron electric dipole moments (EDM) in Supersymmetry, in the limit of heavy scalars. The leading contributions arise at two loops. We give the complete analytic result, including a new contribution associated with Z-Higgs exchange, which plays an important and often leading role in the neutron EDM. The predictions for the EDM are typically within the sensitivities of the next generation experiments. We also analyse the correlation between the electron and neutron EDM, which provides a robust test of Split Supersymmetry

Exploring the String Axiverse with Precision Black Hole Physics

It has recently been suggested that the presence of a plenitude of light axions, an Axiverse, is evidence for the extra dimensions of string theory. We discuss the observational consequences of these axions on astrophysical black holes through the Penrose superradiance process. When an axion Compton wavelength is comparable to the size of a black hole, the axion binds to the black hole "nucleus" forming a gravitational atom in the sky. The occupation number of superradiant atomic levels, fed by the energy and angular momentum of the black hole, grows exponentially. The black hole spins down and an axion Bose-Einstein condensate cloud forms around it. When the attractive axion self-interactions become stronger than the gravitational binding energy, the axion cloud collapses, a phenomenon known in condensed matter physics as "Bosenova". The existence of axions is first diagnosed by gaps in the mass vs spin plot of astrophysical black holes. For young black holes the allowed values of spin are quantized, giving rise to "Regge trajectories" inside the gap region. The axion cloud can also be observed directly either through precision mapping of the near horizon geometry or through gravitational waves coming from the Bosenova explosion, as well as axion transitions and annihilations in the gravitational atom. Our estimates suggest that these signals are detectable in upcoming experiments, such as Advanced LIGO, AGIS, and LISA. Current black hole spin measurements imply an upper bound on the QCD axion decay constant of 2 x 10^17 GeV, while Advanced LIGO can detect signals from a QCD axion cloud with a decay constant as low as the GUT scale. We finally discuss the possibility of observing the gamma-rays associated with the Bosenova explosion and, perhaps, the radio waves from axion-to-photon conversion for the QCD axion.Comment: 54 pages, 15 figures; v2: PRD version, small correction in eq. 48 and 53 as well as fig. 10, conclusions unchange