Duality Symmetric String and M-Theory

We review recent developments in duality symmetric string theory. We begin with the world sheet doubled formalism which describes strings in an extended space time with extra coordinates conjugate to winding modes. This formalism is T-duality symmetric and can accommodate non-geometric T-fold backgrounds which are beyond the scope of Riemannian geometry. Vanishing of the conformal anomaly of this theory can be interpreted as a set of spacetime equations for the background fields. These equations follow from an action principle that has been dubbed Double Field Theory (DFT). We review the aspects of generalised geometry relevant for DFT. We outline recent extensions of DFT and explain how, by relaxing the so-called strong constraint with a Scherk Schwarz ansatz, one can obtain backgrounds that simultaneously depend on both the regular and T-dual coordinates. This provides a purely geometric higher dimensional origin to gauged supergravities that arise from non-geometric compactification. We then turn to M-theory and describe recent progress in formulating an E_{n(n)} U-duality covariant description of the dynamics. We describe how spacetime may be extended to accommodate coordinates conjugate to brane wrapping modes and the construction of generalised metrics in this extend space that unite the bosonic fields of supergravity into a single object. We review the action principles for these theories and their novel gauge symmetries. We also describe how a Scherk Schwarz reduction can be applied in the M-theory context and the resulting relationship to the embedding tensor formulation of maximal gauged supergravities.Comment: Review article. 122 pages. V2 Published Version in Physics Report

A numerical study of an inline oscillating cylinder in a free stream

Simulations of a cylinder undergoing externally controlled sinusoidal oscillations in the free stream direction have been performed. The frequency of oscillation was kept equal to the vortex shedding frequency from a fixed cylinder, while the amplitude of oscillation was varied, and the response of the flow measured. With varying amplitude, a rich series of dynamic responses was recorded. With increasing amplitude, these states included wakes similar to the Kármán vortex street, quasiperiodic oscillations interleaved with regions of synchronized periodicity (periodic on multiple oscillation cycles), a period-doubled state and chaotic oscillations. It is hypothesized that, for low to moderate amplitudes, the wake dynamics are controlled by vortex shedding at a global frequency, modified by the oscillation. This vortex shedding is frequency modulated by the driven oscillation and amplitude modulated by vortex interaction. Data are presented to support this hypothesis

Wake states and frequency selection of a streamwise oscillating cylinder

This paper presents the results of an in-depth study of the flow past a streamwise oscillating cylinder, examining the impact of varying the amplitude and frequency of the oscillation, and the Reynolds number of the incoming flow. These findings are presented in a framework that shows that the relationship between the frequency of vortex shedding fs and the amplitude of oscillation A* is governed by two primary factors: the first is a reduction of fs proportional to a series in A*2 over a wide range of driving frequencies and Reynolds numbers; the second is nonlinear synchronization when this adjusted fs is in the vicinity of N = (1 - fs/fd)-1, where N is an integer. Typically, the influence of higher-order terms is small, and truncation to the first term of the series (A*2) well represents the overall trend of vortex shedding frequency as a function of amplitude. However, discontinuous steps are overlaid on this trend due to the nonlinear synchronization. When fs is normalized by the Strouhal frequency fSt (the frequency of vortex shedding from an unperturbed cylinder), the rate at which fs/fSt decreases with amplitude, at least for fd/fSt = 1, shows a linear dependence on the Reynolds number. For a fixed Re = 175, the truncated series shows that the rate of decrease of fs/fSt with amplitude varies as (2 - fd/fSt)-1/2 for 1 < or egal fd/fSt < or egal 2, but is essentially independent of fd/fSt for fd/fSt < 1. These trends of the rate of decrease of fs with respect to amplitude are also used to predict the amplitudes of oscillation around which synchronization occurs. These predicted amplitudes are shown to fall in regions of the parameter space where synchronized modes occur. Further, for the case of varying fd/fSt, a very reasonable prediction of the amplitude of oscillation required for the onset of synchronization to the mode where fs = 0.5fd is given. In a similar manner, amplitudes at which fs = 0 are calculated, predicting where the natural vortex shedding is completely supplanted by the forcing. These amplitudes are found to coincide approximately with those at which the onset of a symmetric vortex shedding mode is observed. This result is interpreted as meaning that the symmetric shedding mode occurs when the dynamics crosses over from being dominated by the vortex shedding to being dominated by the forcing

The gauge structure of generalised diffeomorphisms

We investigate the generalised diffeomorphisms in M-theory, which are gauge transformations unifying diffeomorphisms and tensor gauge transformations. After giving an En(n)-covariant description of the gauge transformations and their commutators, we show that the gauge algebra is infinitely reducible, i.e., the tower of ghosts for ghosts is infinite. The Jacobiator of generalised diffeomorphisms gives such a reducibility transformation. We give a concrete description of the ghost structure, and demonstrate that the infinite sums give the correct (regularised) number of degrees of freedom. The ghost towers belong to the sequences of rep- resentations previously observed appearing in tensor hierarchies and Borcherds algebras. All calculations rely on the section condition, which we reformulate as a linear condition on the cotangent directions. The analysis holds for n < 8. At n = 8, where the dual gravity field becomes relevant, the natural guess for the gauge parameter and its reducibility still yields the correct counting of gauge parameters.Comment: 24 pp., plain tex, 1 figure. v2: minor changes, including a few added ref

Modification of three-dimensional transition in the wake of a rotationally oscillating cylinder

A study of the flow past an oscillatory rotating cylinder has been conducted, where the frequency of oscillation has been matched to the natural frequency of the vortex street generated in the wake of a stationary cylinder, at Reynolds number 300. The focus is on the wake transition to three-dimensional flow and, in particular, the changes induced in this transition by the addition of the oscillatory rotation. Using Floquet stability analysis, it is found that the fine-scale three-dimensional mode that typically dominates the wake at a Reynolds number beyond that at the second transition to three-dimensional flow (referred to as mode B) is suppressed for amplitudes of rotation beyond a critical amplitude, in agreement with past studies. However, the rotation does not suppress the development of three-dimensionality completely, as other modes are discovered that would lead to three-dimensional flow. In particular, the longer-wavelength mode that leads the three-dimensional transition in the wake of a stationary cylinder (referred to as mode A) is left essentially unaffected at low amplitudes of rotation. At higher amplitudes of oscillation, mode A is also suppressed as the two-dimensional near wake changes in character from a single- to a double- row wake; however, another mode is predicted to render the flow three-dimensional, dubbed mode D (for double row). This mode has the same spatio-temporal symmetries as mode A

AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF COCA ERADICATION POLICY IN COLOMBIA

We estimate an econometric model of coca production in Colombia. Our results indicate that coca eradication is an ineffective means of supply control as farmers compensate by cultivating the crop more extensively. The evidence further suggests that incentives to produce legal substitute crops may have greater supply-reducing potential than eradication.Political Economy,

Membranes with a boundary

We investigate the recently developed theory of multiple membranes. In particular, we consider open membranes, i.e. the theory defined on a membrane world volume with a boundary. We first restrict our attention to the gauge sector of the theory. We obtain a boundary action from the Chern-Simons terms. Secondly, we consider the addition of certain boundary terms to various Chern-Simons theories coupled to matter. These terms ensure the full bulk plus boundary action has the correct amount of supersymmetry. For the ABJM model, this construction motivates the inclusion of a boundary quartic scalar potential. The boundary dynamics obtained from our modified theory produce Basu-Harvey type equations describing membranes ending on a fivebrane. The ultimate goal of this work is to throw light on the theory of fivebranes using the theory of open membranes.Comment: 48 pages, Latex, v2 references adde

Selective Tooth Clipping in the Management of Low-Birth-Weight Piglets

A study was designed to test the potential benefits of selective tooth clipping (the practice of leaving the eye teeth intact in the smallest piglets of a litter to make them more competitive) under commercial conditions. A total of 346 litters were assigned to either the control treatment where all piglets had their teeth clipped, or the experimental treatment where one or more piglets of low birth weight had their teeth left intact. Piglets were weighed within 24 h of birth and at 7, 21 and 56 d. In litters of 12-14 animals, but not in smaller litters, the lower-birth-weight piglets had lower mortality in experimental than in control litters (32.0 vs. 39.8%), whereas higher-birth-weight piglets showed a trend in the opposite direction, with 14.4% mortality in experimental vs. 13.2% in control litters (P = 0.05. The weight gain of lower-birth-weight piglets was greater (166 vs. 143 g d‒1) in experimental than in control litters of 9-11 piglets, but the heavier piglets competing against the small litter-mates with intact teeth had lower weight gains than the controls (177 vs. 187 g d‒1) (P \u3c 0.02). Within-litter variance of 21-d weights was about 15% smaller (P \u3c 0.005) in experimental than in control litters. Thus, selective tooth-clipping does not improve overall growth and survival, but it contributes to more uniform weaning weights and may help the most vulnerable piglets to remain alive until fostering or other intervention can be accomplished