1,875 research outputs found
Effective String Theory and Nonlinear Lorentz Invariance
We study the low-energy effective action governing the transverse
fluctuations of a long string, such as a confining flux tube in QCD. We work in
the static gauge where this action contains only the transverse excitations of
the string. The static gauge action is strongly constrained by the requirement
that the Lorentz symmetry, that is spontaneously broken by the long string
vacuum, is nonlinearly realized on the Nambu-Goldstone bosons. One solution to
the constraints (at the classical level) is the Nambu-Goto action, and the
general solution contains higher derivative corrections to this. We show that
in 2+1 dimensions, the first allowed correction to the Nambu-Goto action is
proportional to the squared curvature of the induced metric on the worldsheet.
In higher dimensions, there is a more complicated allowed correction that
appears at lower order than the curvature squared. We argue that this leading
correction is similar to, but not identical to, the one-loop determinant
(\sqrt{-h} R \Box^{-1} R) computed by Polyakov for the bosonic fundamental
string.Comment: 15 page
Effective String Theory Revisited
We revisit the effective field theory of long relativistic strings such as
confining flux tubes in QCD. We derive the Polchinski-Strominger interaction by
a calculation in static gauge. This interaction implies that a non-critical
string which initially oscillates in one direction gets excited in orthogonal
directions as well. In static gauge no additional term in the effective action
is needed to obtain this effect. It results from a one-loop calculation using
the Nambu-Goto action. Non-linearly realized Lorentz symmetry is manifest at
all stages in dimensional regularization. We also explain that independent of
the number of dimensions non-covariant counterterms have to be added to the
action in the commonly used zeta-function regularization.Comment: 21 pages, 4 figures, v2: typo corrected, references added, published
versio
Worldvolume Superalgebra Of BLG Theory With Nambu-Poisson Structure
Recently it was proposed that the Bagger-Lambert-Gustavsson theory with
Nambu-Poisson structure describes an M5-brane in a three-form flux background.
In this paper we investigate the superalgebra associated with this theory. We
derive the central charges corresponding to M5-brane solitons in 3-form
backgrounds. We also show that double dimensional reduction of the superalgebra
gives rise to the Poisson bracket terms of a non-commutative D4-brane
superalgebra. We provide interpretations of the D4-brane charges in terms of
spacetime intersections.Comment: 23 pages; references added, section 4 clarification
Second language user support
Computer users rarely experience entirely trouble-free interaction. The natural variety ofindividuals ensures that no software systems yield constantly fluent interaction for allusers. In consequence, software designers often strive to ameliorate this situation bybuilding 'user support' into their systems. User support can take different forms but,conventionally, each aims to assist the needy end-user by means of facilities directly supporting the performance of certain operations, or through supply of information thatadvises the user on available system functionality.The present paper briefly characterises a range of user support facilities before describingone requirement in greater detail. This aspect considers the needs of users whose mother-tongue is not English, but who are obliged to use English-based information systems. Inthis context, 'helping the user' must reasonably extend beyond mere advice on systemoperation to selective elucidation of information content. We regard this move as alogical extension of the user support concept, by seeking to address specific interactionneeds in a target user population. An example of this approach is described through aninformation system, in the domain of civil engineering, for native Chinese speakers ofEnglish
BPS States on M5-brane in Large C-field Background
We extensively study BPS solutions of the low energy effective theory of
M5-brane in large C-field background. This provides us an opportunity to
explore the interactions turned on by C-field background through the
Nambu-Poisson structure. The BPS states considered in this paper include the
M-waves, the self-dual string (M2 ending on M5), tilted M5-brane, holomorphic
embedding of M5-brane and the intersection of two M5-branes along a 3-brane.Comment: 25 pages, reference adde
On Non-linear Action for Gauged M2-brane
We propose a non-linear extension of U(1) \times U(1) (abelian) ABJM model
including T_{M2} (higher derivative) corrections. The action proposed here is
expected to describe a single M2-brane proving C^4/Z_k target space. The model
includes couplings with the 3-form background in the eleven-dimensional
supergravity which is consistent with the orbifold projection. We show that the
novel higgs mechanism proposed by Mukhi and Papageorgakis does work even in the
presence of higher derivative corrections and couplings with the background
field, giving the correct structure of the Dirac-Born-Infeld action with
Wess-Zumino term for a D2-brane. We also find half BPS solutions in the full
non-linear theory which is interpreted as an another M2-brane intersecting with
the original M2-brane. A possible generalization to U(N) \times U(N) gauge
group is briefly discussed.Comment: 19 pages, no figure, references added, typos correcte
Genotypic tropism testing by massively parallel sequencing: qualitative and quantitative analysis
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Inferring viral tropism from genotype is a fast and inexpensive alternative to phenotypic testing. While being highly predictive when performed on clonal samples, sensitivity of predicting CXCR4-using (X4) variants drops substantially in clinical isolates. This is mainly attributed to minor variants not detected by standard bulk-sequencing. Massively parallel sequencing (MPS) detects single clones thereby being much more sensitive. Using this technology we wanted to improve genotypic prediction of coreceptor usage.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Plasma samples from 55 antiretroviral-treated patients tested for coreceptor usage with the Monogram Trofile Assay were sequenced with standard population-based approaches. Fourteen of these samples were selected for further analysis with MPS. Tropism was predicted from each sequence with geno2pheno<sub>[coreceptor]</sub>.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Prediction based on bulk-sequencing yielded 59.1% sensitivity and 90.9% specificity compared to the trofile assay. With MPS, 7600 reads were generated on average per isolate. Minorities of sequences with high confidence in CXCR4-usage were found in all samples, irrespective of phenotype. When using the default false-positive-rate of geno2pheno<sub>[coreceptor] </sub>(10%), and defining a minority cutoff of 5%, the results were concordant in all but one isolate.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The combination of MPS and coreceptor usage prediction results in a fast and accurate alternative to phenotypic assays. The detection of X4-viruses in all isolates suggests that coreceptor usage as well as fitness of minorities is important for therapy outcome. The high sensitivity of this technology in combination with a quantitative description of the viral population may allow implementing meaningful cutoffs for predicting response to CCR5-antagonists in the presence of X4-minorities.</p
Activated Magnetospheres of Magnetars
Like the solar corona, the external magnetic field of magnetars is twisted by
surface motions of the star. The twist energy is dissipated over time. We
discuss the theory of this activity and its observational status. (1) Theory
predicts that the magnetosphere tends to untwist in a peculiar way: a bundle of
electric currents (the "j-bundle") is formed with a sharp boundary, which
shrinks toward the magnetic dipole axis. Recent observations of shrinking hot
spots on magnetars are consistent with this behavior. (2) Continual discharge
fills the j-bundle with electron-positron plasma, maintaining a nonthermal
corona around the neutron star. The corona outside a few stellar radii strongly
interacts with the stellar radiation and forms a "radiatively locked" outflow
with a high e+- multiplicity. The locked plasma annihilates near the apexes of
the closed magnetic field lines. (3) New radiative-transfer simulations suggest
a simple mechanism that shapes the observed X-ray spectrum from 0.1 keV to 1
MeV: part of the thermal X-rays emitted by the neutron star are reflected from
the outer corona and then upscattered by the inner relativistic outflow in the
j-bundle, producing a beam of hard X-rays.Comment: 23 pages, 7 figures; review chapter in the proceedings of ICREA
Workshop on the High-Energy Emission from Pulsars and Their Systems, Sant
Cugat, Spain, April 201
Telepresence and the Role of the Senses
The telepresence experience can be evoked in a number of ways. A well-known example is a player of videogames who reports about a telepresence experience, a subjective experience of being in one place or environment, even when physically situated in another place. In this paper we set the phenomenon of telepresence into a theoretical framework. As people react subjectively to stimuli from telepresence, empirical studies can give more evidence about the phenomenon. Thus, our contribution is to bridge the theoretical with the empirical. We discuss theories of perception with an emphasis on Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty and Gibson, the role of the senses and the Spinozian belief procedure. The aim is to contribute to our understanding of this phenomenon. A telepresence-study that included the affordance concept is used to empirically study how players report sense-reactions to virtual sightseeing in two cities. We investigate and explore the interplay of the philosophical and the empirical. The findings indicate that it is not only the visual sense that plays a role in this experience, but all senses
Boundary Conditions for Interacting Membranes
We investigate supersymmetric boundary conditions in both the Bagger-Lambert
and the ABJM theories of interacting membranes. We find boundary conditions
associated to the fivebrane, the ninebrane and the M-theory wave. For the ABJM
theory we are able to understand the enhancement of supersymmetry to produce
the (4,4) supersymmetry of the self-dual string. We also include supersymmetric
boundary conditions on the gauge fields that cancel the classical gauge anomaly
of the Chern-Simons terms.Comment: 36 pages, latex, v2 minor typos correcte
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