Gamma-ray emission from pulsars

We have attempted to devise a scheme by which it may be possible to identify pulsars which are likely to be γ-ray pulsars. We apply this test to a representative population of pulsars and identify the likely candidates for γ emission. We also discuss some individual cases including the Crab and Vela pulsars

Globular clusters as gamma ray sources

There are indications now that globular clusters contain a large number of low magnetic field millisecond pulsars. Since millisecond pulsars are expected to emit γ -rays due to curvature radiation, it is likely that globular clusters will themselves be sources of γ -rays bright enough to be detectable by present day instruments. Using the expression derived by Scharlemann, Arons & Fawley (1978) of the energy acquired by the electrons moving along the open magnetic field lines of the pulsars we have calculated the likely luminosity of γ -rays from globular clusters. We discuss our results in the light of the calculations reported in the literature based on some of the other models

Gravitational Lensing Bound On The Average Redshift Of Gamma Ray Bursts In Models With Evolving Lenses

Identification of gravitationally lensed Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs) in the BATSE 4B catalog can be used to constrain the average redshift $$ of the GRBs. In this paper we investigate the effect of evolving lenses on the of GRBs in different cosmological models of universe. The cosmological parameters $\Omega$ and $\Lambda$ have an effect on the of GRBs. The other factor which can change the $$is the evolution of galaxies. We consider three evolutionary model of galaxies. In particular, we find that the upper limit on$$ of GRBs is higher in evolving model of galaxies as compared to non-evolving models of galaxies.Comment: 23 pages,one plain LaTeX file with three postscript figures This is modified version with recent BATSE efficiency parameter and with the latest F paramete

Constraint On The Cosmological Constant From Gravitational Lenses In An Evolutionary Model Of Galaxies

We study the effect of the cosmological constant on the statistical properties of gravitational lenses in flat cosmologies (Omega_{0}+lambda_{0} = 1). It is shown that some of the lens observables are strongly affected by the cosmological constant, especially in a low--density universe, and its existence might be inferred by a statistical study of the lenses. In particular, the optical depth of the lens distribution may be used best for this purpose without depending much on the lens model. We calculate the optical depth (probabilty of a beam encountering with a lens event) for a source in a new picture of galaxy evolution based on number evolution in addition to pure luminosity evolution. It seems that present day galaxies result from the merging of a large number of building blocks. We have tried to put limit on the cosmological constant in this new picture of galaxy evolution. This evolutionary model of galaxies permits larger value of cosmological constant.Comment: Latex file with two figures, 24 page

Gravitational lensing constraint on the cosmic equation of state

Recent redshift-distance measurements of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) at cosmological distances suggest that two-third of the energy density of the universe is dominated by dark energy component with an effective negative pressure. This dark energy component is described by the equation of state $p_{x} = w \rho_{x}$ $(w \geq -1)$. We use gravitational lensing statistics to constrain the equation of state of this dark energy. We use $n(\Delta\theta)$, image separation distribution function of lensed quasars, as a tool to probe $w$. We find that for the observed range of $\Omega_m \sim 0.2 - 0.4$, $w$ should lie between $-0.8 \leq w \leq -0.4$ in order to have five lensed quasars in a sample of 867 optical quasars. This limit is highly sensitive to lens and Schechter parameters and evolution of galaxies.Comment: Modified results and inclusion of calculations with new set of parameter

Geological Field Trips

This field trip guide organized in the framework of the Goldschmidt Conference 2013, held in Florence from August 25 to 30, 2013, is here presented. The two-days field trip, shows some of the many geological, naturalistic and cultural features in the Fiorano area (Modena), in which history, geology and passion for Ferrari come together in a perfect marriage. The first excursion day is dedicated to visit the Natural Reserve of Salse di Nirano, where the mud volcanoes, produced by the cold mud, salt water and hydrocarbons - mainly methane- can be observed. The second day is devoted to visit the Ferrari Museum and goes on at the Spezzano Castle, hosting the Ceramics Museum. Clays are, in fact, abundant in the hilly margin, where they form badlands, characteristic narrow crests washed out by running waters. In the Castle there is also a Balsamic Vinegar producing Consortium, it’s a peculiar and typical product of Modena province. The itinerary ends with the tour to Enzo Ferrari’s Birthplace at Modena

Large Scale Benchmark of Materials Design Methods

Lack of rigorous reproducibility and validation are major hurdles for scientific development across many fields. Materials science in particular encompasses a variety of experimental and theoretical approaches that require careful benchmarking. Leaderboard efforts have been developed previously to mitigate these issues. However, a comprehensive comparison and benchmarking on an integrated platform with multiple data modalities with both perfect and defect materials data is still lacking. This work introduces JARVIS-Leaderboard, an open-source and community-driven platform that facilitates benchmarking and enhances reproducibility. The platform allows users to set up benchmarks with custom tasks and enables contributions in the form of dataset, code, and meta-data submissions. We cover the following materials design categories: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Electronic Structure (ES), Force-fields (FF), Quantum Computation (QC) and Experiments (EXP). For AI, we cover several types of input data, including atomic structures, atomistic images, spectra, and text. For ES, we consider multiple ES approaches, software packages, pseudopotentials, materials, and properties, comparing results to experiment. For FF, we compare multiple approaches for material property predictions. For QC, we benchmark Hamiltonian simulations using various quantum algorithms and circuits. Finally, for experiments, we use the inter-laboratory approach to establish benchmarks. There are 1281 contributions to 274 benchmarks using 152 methods with more than 8 million data-points, and the leaderboard is continuously expanding. The JARVIS-Leaderboard is available at the website: https://pages.nist.gov/jarvis_leaderboar