Bound particle coupled to two thermostats

We consider a harmonically bound Brownian particle coupled to two distinct heat reservoirs at different temperatures. We show that the presence of a harmonic trap does not change the large deviation function from the case of a free Brownian particle discussed by Derrida and Brunet and Visco. Likewise, the Gallavotti-Cohen fluctuation theorem related to the entropy production at the heat sources remains in force. We support the analytical results with numerical simulations

Heat fluctuations and fluctuation theorems in the case of multiple reservoirs

We consider heat fluctuations and fluctuation theorems for systems driven by multiple reservoirs. We establish a fundamental symmetry obeyed by the joint probability distribution for the heat transfers and system coordinates. The symmetry leads to a generalisation of the asymptotic fluctuation theorem for large deviations at large times. As a result the presence of multiple reservoirs influence the tails in the heat distribution. The symmetry, moreover, allows for a simple derivation of a recent exact fluctuation theorem valid at all times. Including a time dependent work protocol we also present a derivation of the integral fluctuation theorem.Comment: 27 pages, 1 figure, new extended version, to appear in J. Stat. Mech, (2014

The Story of the Puerto Rican-Chicano Committee

The concept or idea for The Puerto Rican-Chicano Committee (PRCC) came from UB student Alberto O. Cappas, who also was the original founder of PODER, at the time known as the Puerto Rican Organization for Dignity, Elevation, and Responsibility