Bogoliubov coefficients for the twist operator in the D1D5 CFT

The D1D5 CFT is a holographic dual of a near-extremal black hole in string theory. The interaction in this theory involves a twist operator which joins together different copies of a free CFT. Given a large number of D1 and D5 branes, the effective length of the circle on which the CFT lives is very large. We develop a technique to study the effect of the twist operator in the limit where the wavelengths of excitations are short compared to this effective length, which we call the 'continuum limit'. The method uses Bogoliubov coefficients to compute the effect of the twist operator in this limit. For bosonic fields, we use the method to reproduce recent results describing the effect of the twist operator when it links together CFT copies with windings M and N, producing a copy of winding M+N. We also comment on possible generalizations of our results. The methods developed here may help in understanding the twist interaction at higher orders. This in turn should provide insight into the thermalization process in the D1D5 CFT, which gives a holographic description of black hole formation.Comment: 51 pages, 2 figure

Infrared Non-detection of Fomalhaut b -- Implications for the Planet Interpretation

The nearby A4-type star Fomalhaut hosts a debris belt in the form of an eccentric ring, which is thought to be caused by dynamical influence from a giant planet companion. In 2008, a detection of a point-source inside the inner edge of the ring was reported and was interpreted as a direct image of the planet, named Fomalhaut b. The detection was made at ~600--800 nm, but no corresponding signatures were found in the near-infrared range, where the bulk emission of such a planet should be expected. Here we present deep observations of Fomalhaut with Spitzer/IRAC at 4.5 um, using a novel PSF subtraction technique based on ADI and LOCI, in order to substantially improve the Spitzer contrast at small separations. The results provide more than an order of magnitude improvement in the upper flux limit of Fomalhaut b and exclude the possibility that any flux from a giant planet surface contributes to the observed flux at visible wavelengths. This renders any direct connection between the observed light source and the dynamically inferred giant planet highly unlikely. We discuss several possible interpretations of the total body of observations of the Fomalhaut system, and find that the interpretation that best matches the available data for the observed source is scattered light from transient or semi-transient dust cloud.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, ApJ 747, 166. V2: updated acknowledgments and reference

Schenker’s First “Americanization”: George Wedge, the Institute of Musical Art, and the “Appreciation Racket”

A quarter of a century ago, William Rothstein first spoke of the “Americanization of Heinrich Schenker,” meaning the accommodation that had to be made to bring his ideas into the American academy. The focus of this process has largely been on activities following the Second World War. However, the earliest attempt at Americanizing Schenker seems to have come from an American-born pedagogue who had not studied with Schenker or his pupils: George A. Wedge, a theory instructor at New York’s Institute of Musical Art (a precursor to The Juilliard School). He started teaching something about Schenker in his classrooms as early as 1925, incorporated some of Schenker’s concepts into a popular harmony textbook in 1930–31, and subsequently distilled some of these ideas for the musical layperson, as part of a “middlebrow” or “appreciation” agenda that he and Olga Samaroff Stokowski advanced in books and at the Juilliard Summer School. Thus, Schenker’s route to Americanization took some previously unrecognized and “home-grown” turns along the way to the process outlined by Rothstein. In this essay, I document and contextualize Wedge’s activities in five principal sections. First, I present details about his career, and investigate how he came to encounter Schenker’s ideas. Second, I explore his writings in order to discern their Schenkerian influences (which must be filtered from related elements of American pedagogy). Third, I consider Wedge’s (and Samaroff’s) pedagogical agenda of the 1930s, which involved bringing musical education to a mass audience. Fourth, I contemplate how Wedge’s work was a portent of the “Americanized” Schenker pedagogy that developed in later years. Fifth and finally, I demonstrate how -- even beyond Wedge -- the Institute of Musical Art became a conduit for learning about Schenker, especially between 1925 and 1936/37, and I argue that its name should be added to the list of early institutions in New York at which Schenkerian ideas were communicated. This article is part of a special, serialized feature: A Music-Theoretical Matrix: Essays in Honor of Allen Forte (Part III)

The reliability of the New York Statewide Assessment Rubric for Badminton at the Commencement Level when used by a Master-Teacher, a Student-Teacher, and Peer.

The purpose of this study was to provide physical education professionals with empirical data that supports the current literature on authentic assessment. The recent literature points out the benefits of authentic assessment: it encourages students to think and perform at a higher level , relates to unit and curriculum goals, and it improves teacher and student accountability. A rubric is the most widely used authentic assessment tool in physical education and peer authentic assessment is a common assessment style. The New York Statewide Rubric at the Commencement Level in Badminton was the assessment tool used in the study and the students were assessed using peer assessment. Sixteen co-ed high school physical education students were involved in the study. A master-teacher, a student-teacher, and each peer used the New York Statewide Rubric at the Commencement Level in Badminton over a four day period. The results of the master-teacher, the student-teacher, and peers were put through a reliability analysis. The final statistical results support that the New York Statewide Assessment at the Commencement Level is reliable when used by a master-teacher, a student-teacher, and peer. Specific procedures and findings are presented along with a detailed discussion which includes future directions

Beyond the solid South: southern members of Congress and the Vietnam War

From the beginning of America\u27s involvement in Vietnam in 1943 to its disastrous end in 1975, southern members of Congress exerted a significant influence on and expressed divergent opinions about Cold War foreign policy. In part because of an enormous increase in military spending in the South fueled by prominent membership on military committees, congressional hawks were more inclined to support military aid for countries fighting communism and accept military over civilian advice in prosecuting the Cold War. Hawkish southerners embraced containment wholeheartedly, exhibited an intense patriotism, and concerned themselves with upholding personal and national honor. Therefore, with some prominent exceptions initially, hawks were more inclined to accept military solutions to contain communist aggression. When America became involved in Vietnam, southern congressional hawks advocated fighting a war without limits for a total victory. On the other hand, the southern doves were much smaller in number but still extremely influential. They did not abandon internationalism until very late, and preferred economic aid and multilateral solutions to Cold War problems. The leading doves, Senators William Fulbright of Arkansas, Albert Gore of Tennessee, and John Sherman Cooper of Kentucky, after enabling the United States to deepen its commitment in Vietnam, mounted a spirited dissent that legitimized protest and eventually helped end the war. They rejected American interference in smaller and weaker countries and also upheld a version of Southern honor that demanded that America admit its mistake in Vietnam. Therefore, the South, though solid on Civil Rights and other domestic issues, did not speak with one voice on Vietnam

To Allen Forte from His Former Advisees: Tributes and Reminiscences

Testimonials are collected from forty-two former doctoral advisees of Allen Forte, whose Yale graduation dates range from 1968 to 2002. Although the style and focus of individual tributes vary, many convey something about Forte, both professionally and personally, at the time in which the advisee studied with him. The results are ordered chronologically (by Ph.D. dates) so that collectively they suggest the evolution of Forte himself, as well as North American music theory, across the decades. The contributors include (in alphabetical order): Baker, James M.; Ballan, Harry R.; Beach, David W.; Bergman, Rachel; Bernard, Jonathan W.; Berry, David Carson; Black, Leslie; Boss, Jack F.; Brown, Stephen C.; Chapman, Alan; Check, John; Chrisman, Richard; Damschroder, David A.; Ewell, Philip; Galand, Joel; Girton, Irene M. [Levenson]; Graziano, John; Greer, Taylor A.; Hamao, Fusako; Hanson, Jens L.; Harrison, Daniel; Horlacher, Gretchen; Kowalke, Kim H.; Krebs, Harald; Latham, Edward D.; McNamee, Ann K.; Moreno, Jairo; Neumeyer, David; Nolan, Catherine; Rothgeb, John; Rothstein, William; Russom, Philip; Schmalfeldt, Janet; Schwanauer, Stephan M.; Shaftel, Matthew R.; Spicer, Mark S.; Stein, Deborah; Straus, Joseph N.; Wason, Robert W.; Wheaton, J. Randall; Yeston, Maury; and Yih, Annie K. This article is part of a special, serialized feature: A Music-Theoretical Matrix: Essays in Honor of Allen Forte (Part V)