1,433 research outputs found
Verschraenkung versus Stosszahlansatz: Disappearance of the Thermodynamic Arrow in a High-Correlation Environment
The crucial role of ambient correlations in determining thermodynamic
behavior is established. A class of entangled states of two macroscopic systems
is constructed such that each component is in a state of thermal equilibrium at
a given temperature, and when the two are allowed to interact heat can flow
from the colder to the hotter system. A dilute gas model exhibiting this
behavior is presented. This reversal of the thermodynamic arrow is a
consequence of the entanglement between the two systems, a condition that is
opposite to molecular chaos and shown to be unlikely in a low-entropy
environment. By contrast, the second law is established by proving Clausius'
inequality in a low-entropy environment. These general results strongly support
the expectation, first expressed by Boltzmann and subsequently elaborated by
others, that the second law is an emergent phenomenon that requires a
low-entropy cosmological environment, one that can effectively function as an
ideal information sink.Comment: 4 pages, REVTeX
A guide for performing system safety analysis
A general guide is presented for performing system safety analyses of hardware, software, operations and human elements of an aerospace program. The guide describes a progression of activities that can be effectively applied to identify hazards to personnel and equipment during all periods of system development. The general process of performing safety analyses is described; setting forth in a logical order the information and data requirements, the analytical steps, and the results. These analyses are the technical basis of a system safety program. Although the guidance established by this document cannot replace human experience and judgement, it does provide a methodical approach to the identification of hazards and evaluation of risks to the system
Entrepreneurial capital, social values and Islamic traditions: exploring the growth of women-owned enterprises in Pakistan
Main ArticleThis study seeks to explore the variables contributing to the growth of women-owned enterprises in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Based on a previously established multivariate model, it uses two econometric approaches: first classifying variables into predetermined blocks; and second, using the general to specific approach. Statistical analyses and in-depth interviews confirm that women entrepreneurs’ personal resources and social capital have a significant role in their business growth. Further, it reveals that the moral support of immediate family, independent mobility and being allowed to meet with men play a decisive role in the sales and employment growth of women-owned enterprises in an Islamic country such as Pakistan
The Boltzmann Entropy for Dense Fluids Not in Local Equilibrium
We investigate, via computer simulations, the time evolution of the
(Boltzmann) entropy of a dense fluid not in local equilibrium. The
macrovariables describing the system are the (empirical) particle density
f=\{f(\un{x},\un{v})\} and the total energy . We find that is
monotone increasing in time even when its kinetic part is decreasing. We argue
that for isolated Hamiltonian systems monotonicity of
should hold generally for ``typical'' (the overwhelming majority of) initial
microstates (phase-points) belonging to the initial macrostate ,
satisfying . This is a direct consequence of Liouville's theorem
when evolves autonomously.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures. Submitted to PR
Nonextensive Thermostatistics and the H-Theorem
The kinetic foundations of Tsallis' nonextensive thermostatistics are
investigated through Boltzmann's transport equation approach. Our analysis
follows from a nonextensive generalization of the ``molecular chaos
hypothesis". For , the -transport equation satisfies an -theorem
based on Tsallis entropy. It is also proved that the collisional equilibrium is
given by Tsallis' -nonextensive velocity distribution.Comment: 4 pages, no figures, corrected some typo
The Hartree limit of Born's ensemble for the ground state of a bosonic atom or ion
The non-relativistic bosonic ground state is studied for quantum N-body
systems with Coulomb interactions, modeling atoms or ions made of N "bosonic
point electrons" bound to an atomic point nucleus of Z "electron" charges,
treated in Born--Oppenheimer approximation. It is shown that the (negative)
ground state energy E(Z,N) yields the monotonically growing function (E(l N,N)
over N cubed). By adapting an argument of Hogreve, it is shown that its limit
as N to infinity for l > l* is governed by Hartree theory, with the rescaled
bosonic ground state wave function factoring into an infinite product of
identical one-body wave functions determined by the Hartree equation. The proof
resembles the construction of the thermodynamic mean-field limit of the
classical ensembles with thermodynamically unstable interactions, except that
here the ensemble is Born's, with the absolute square of the ground state wave
function as ensemble probability density function, with the Fisher information
functional in the variational principle for Born's ensemble playing the role of
the negative of the Gibbs entropy functional in the free-energy variational
principle for the classical petit-canonical configurational ensemble.Comment: Corrected version. Accepted for publication in Journal of
Mathematical Physic
Bose-Einstein Condensation of Helium and Hydrogen inside Bundles of Carbon Nanotubes
Helium atoms or hydrogen molecules are believed to be strongly bound within
the interstitial channels (between three carbon nanotubes) within a bundle of
many nanotubes. The effects on adsorption of a nonuniform distribution of tubes
are evaluated. The energy of a single particle state is the sum of a discrete
transverse energy Et (that depends on the radii of neighboring tubes) and a
quasicontinuous energy Ez of relatively free motion parallel to the axis of the
tubes. At low temperature, the particles occupy the lowest energy states, the
focus of this study. The transverse energy attains a global minimum value
(Et=Emin) for radii near Rmin=9.95 Ang. for H2 and 8.48 Ang.for He-4. The
density of states N(E) near the lowest energy is found to vary linearly above
this threshold value, i.e. N(E) is proportional to (E-Emin). As a result, there
occurs a Bose-Einstein condensation of the molecules into the channel with the
lowest transverse energy. The transition is characterized approximately as that
of a four dimensional gas, neglecting the interactions between the adsorbed
particles. The phenomenon is observable, in principle, from a singular heat
capacity. The existence of this transition depends on the sample having a
relatively broad distribution of radii values that include some near Rmin.Comment: 21 pages, 9 figure
Constructing female entrepreneurship policy in the UK : is the US a relevant benchmark?
Successive UK governments have introduced a range of policy initiatives designed to encourage more women to start new firms. Underpinning these policies has been an explicit ambition for the UK to achieve similar participation rates as those in the US where it is widely reported that women own nearly half the stock of businesses. The data underlying these objectives are critically evaluated and it is argued that the definitions and measures of female enterprise used in the UK and the US restrict meaningful comparisons between the two. It is suggested that the expansion of female entrepreneurship in the US is historically and culturally specific to that country. UK policy goals should reflect the national socioeconomic context, while drawing upon good practice examples from a range of other countries. The paper concludes by discussing the economic and social viability of encouraging more women in the UK to enter self-employment without fully recognising the intensely competitive sectors in which they are often located
Understanding and addressing mathematics anxiety using perspectives from education, psychology and neuroscience
Mathematics anxiety is a significant barrier to mathematical learning. In this article, we propose that state or on-task mathematics anxiety impacts on performance, while trait mathematics anxiety leads to the avoidance of courses and careers involving mathematics. We also demonstrate that integrating perspectives from education, psychology and neuroscience contributes to a greater understanding of mathematics anxiety in its state and trait forms. Research from cognitive psychology and neuroscience illustrates the effect of state mathematics anxiety on performance and research from cognitive, social and clinical psychology, and education can be used to conceptualise the origins of trait mathematics anxiety and its impact on avoidant behaviour. We also show that using this transdisciplinary framework to consider state and trait mathematics anxiety separately makes it possible to identify strategies to reduce the negative effects of mathematics anxiety. Implementation of these strategies among particularly vulnerable groups, such as pre-service teachers, could be beneficial
Criticality in strongly correlated fluids
In this brief review I will discuss criticality in strongly correlated
fluids. Unlike simple fluids, molecules of which interact through short ranged
isotropic potential, particles of strongly correlated fluids usually interact
through long ranged forces of Coulomb or dipolar form. While for simple fluids
mechanism of phase separation into liquid and gas was elucidated by van der
Waals more than a century ago, the universality class of strongly correlated
fluids, or in some cases even existence of liquid-gas phase separation remains
uncertain.Comment: Proceedings of Scaling Concepts and Complex Systems, Merida, Mexic
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