497 research outputs found
A mOOC prepared to make a difference
mOOC’s arguably form one of the most discussed topics in
education today providing the means possible to disperse
education to a widening audience, allowing Universities a new
mean of recruitment and delivery. The University of
Canterbury e-Learning Lab and OERu discuss their recent
collaborative experience
Phase Structure of QED3 at Finite Temperature
Dynamical symmetry breaking in three-dimensional QED with N fermion flavours
is considered at finite temperature, in the large approximation. Using an
approximate treatment of the Schwinger-Dyson equation for the fermion
self-energy, we find that chiral symmetry is restored above a certain critical
temperature which depends itself on . We find that the ratio of the
zero-momentum zero-temperature fermion mass to the critical temperature has a
large value compared with four-fermion theories, as had been suggested in a
previous work with a momentum-independent self-energy. Evidence of a
temperature- dependent critical is shown to appear in this approximation.
The phase diagram for spontaneous mass generation in the theory is presented in
space.Comment: 9 page
Optical control of photon tunneling through an array of nanometer scale cylindrical channels
We report first observation of photon tunneling gated by light at a different
wavelength in an artificially created array of nanometer scale cylindrical
channels in a thick gold film. Polarization properties of gated light provide
strong proof of the enhanced nonlinear optical mixing in nanometric channels
involved in the process. This suggests the possibility of building a new class
of "gated" photon tunneling devices for massive parallel all-optical signal and
image processing.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Brane Universes with Gauss-Bonnet-Induced-Gravity
The DGP brane world model allows us to get the observed late time
acceleration via modified gravity, without the need for a ``dark energy''
field. This can then be generalised by the inclusion of high energy terms, in
the form of a Gauss-Bonnet bulk. This is the basis of the
Gauss-Bonnet-Induced-Gravity (GBIG) model explored here with both early and
late time modifications to the cosmological evolution. Recently the simplest
GBIG models (Minkowski bulk and no brane tension) have been analysed. Two of
the three possible branches in these models start with a finite density
``Big-Bang'' and with late time acceleration. Here we present a comprehensive
analysis of more general models where we include a bulk cosmological constant
and brane tension. We show that by including these factors it is possible to
have late time phantom behaviour.Comment: 12 pages, 19 figures. Minor modifications to text, comments on
phantom behaviour added. References added. As submitted to JCA
A systematic review of the impacts and management of introduced deer (family Cervidae) in Australia
Deer are among the world's most successful invasive mammals and can have substantial deleterious impacts on natural and agricultural ecosystems. Six species have established wild populations in Australia, and the distributions and abundances of some species are increasing. Approaches to managing wild deer in Australia are diverse and complex, with some populations managed as 'game' and others as 'pests'. Implementation of cost-effective management strategies that account for this complexity is hindered by a lack of knowledge of the nature, extent and severity of deer impacts. To clarify the knowledge base and identify research needs, we conducted a systematic review of the impacts and management of wild deer in Australia. Most wild deer are in south-eastern Australia, but bioclimatic analysis suggested that four species are well suited to the tropical and subtropical climates of northern Australia. Deer could potentially occupy most of the continent, including parts of the arid interior. The most significant impacts are likely to occur through direct effects of herbivory, with potentially cascading indirect effects on fauna and ecosystem processes. However, evidence of impacts in Australia is largely observational, and few studies have experimentally partitioned the impacts of deer from those of sympatric native and other introduced herbivores. Furthermore, there has been little rigorous testing of the efficacy of deer management in Australia, and our understanding of the deer ecology required to guide deer management is limited. We identified the following six priority research areas: (i) identifying long-term changes in plant communities caused by deer; (ii) understanding interactions with other fauna; (iii) measuring impacts on water quality; (iv) assessing economic impacts on agriculture (including as disease vectors); (v) evaluating efficacy of management for mitigating deer impacts; and (vi) quantifying changes in distribution and abundance. Addressing these knowledge gaps will assist the development and prioritisation of cost-effective management strategies and help increase stakeholder support for managing the impacts of deer on Australian ecosystems
On the gravitational, dilatonic and axionic radiative damping of cosmic strings
We study the radiation reaction on cosmic strings due to the emission of
dilatonic, gravitational and axionic waves. After verifying the (on average)
conservative nature of the time-symmetric self-interactions, we concentrate on
the finite radiation damping force associated with the half-retarded minus
half-advanced ``reactive'' fields. We revisit a recent proposal of using a
``local back reaction approximation'' for the reactive fields. Using
dimensional continuation as convenient technical tool, we find, contrary to
previous claims, that this proposal leads to antidamping in the case of the
axionic field, and to zero (integrated) damping in the case of the
gravitational field. One gets normal positive damping only in the case of the
dilatonic field. We propose to use a suitably modified version of the local
dilatonic radiation reaction as a substitute for the exact (non-local)
gravitational radiation reaction. The incorporation of such a local
approximation to gravitational radiation reaction should allow one to complete,
in a computationally non-intensive way, string network simulations and to give
better estimates of the amount and spectrum of gravitational radiation emitted
by a cosmologically evolving network of massive strings.Comment: 48 pages, RevTex, epsfig, 1 figure; clarification of the domain of
validity of the perturbative derivation of the string equations of motion,
and of their renormalizabilit
Scalar brane backgrounds in higher order curvature gravity
We investigate maximally symmetric brane world solutions with a scalar field.
Five-dimensional bulk gravity is described by a general lagrangian which yields
field equations containing no higher than second order derivatives. This
includes the Gauss-Bonnet combination for the graviton. Stability and
gravitational properties of such solutions are considered, and we particularily
emphasise the modifications induced by the higher order terms. In particular it
is shown that higher curvature corrections to Einstein theory can give rise to
instabilities in brane world solutions. A method for analytically obtaining the
general solution for such actions is outlined. Genericaly, the requirement of a
finite volume element together with the absence of a naked singularity in the
bulk imposes fine-tuning of the brane tension. A model with a moduli scalar
field is analysed in detail and we address questions of instability and
non-singular self-tuning solutions. In particular, we discuss a case with a
normalisable zero mode but infinite volume element.Comment: published versio
On the thin-shell limit of branes in the presence of Gauss-Bonnet interactions
In this paper we study thick-shell braneworld models in the presence of a
Gauss-Bonnet term. We discuss the peculiarities of the attainment of the
thin-shell limit in this case and compare them with the same situation in
Einstein gravity. We describe the two simplest families of thick-brane models
(parametrized by the shell thickness) one can think of. In the thin-shell
limit, one family is characterized by the constancy of its internal density
profile (a simple structure for the matter sector) and the other by the
constancy of its internal curvature scalar (a simple structure for the
geometric sector). We find that these two families are actually equivalent in
Einstein gravity and that the presence of the Gauss-Bonnet term breaks this
equivalence. In the second case, a shell will always keep some non-trivial
internal structure, either on the matter or on the geometric sectors, even in
the thin-shell limit.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figures, RevTeX 4. Revised version accepted for
publication in Physical Review
An horizon scan of biogeography
The opportunity to reflect broadly on the accomplishments, prospects, and reach of a field may present itself relatively infrequently. Each biennial meeting of the International Biogeography Society showcases ideas solicited and developed largely during the preceding year, by individuals or teams from across the breadth of the discipline. Here, we highlight challenges, developments, and opportunities in biogeography from that biennial synthesis. We note the realized and potential impact of rapid data accumulation in several fields, a renaissance for inter-disciplinary research, the importance of recognizing the evolution-ecology continuum across spatial and temporal scales and at different taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional levels, and re-exploration of classical assumptions and hypotheses using new tools. However, advances are taxonomically and geographically biased, and key theoretical frameworks await tools to handle, or strategies to simplify, the biological complexity seen in empirical systems. Current threats to biodiversity require unprecedented integration of knowledge and development of predictive capacity that may enable biogeography to unite its descriptive and hypothetico-deductive branches and establish a greater role within and outside academia
Generalised Israel Junction Conditions for a Gauss-Bonnet Brane World
In spacetimes of dimension greater than four it is natural to consider higher
order (in R) corrections to the Einstein equations. In this letter generalized
Israel junction conditions for a membrane in such a theory are derived. This is
achieved by generalising the Gibbons-Hawking boundary term. The junction
conditions are applied to simple brane world models, and are compared to the
many contradictory results in the literature.Comment: 4 page
- …