3,210 research outputs found
An algorithm for counting circuits: application to real-world and random graphs
We introduce an algorithm which estimates the number of circuits in a graph
as a function of their length. This approach provides analytical results for
the typical entropy of circuits in sparse random graphs. When applied to
real-world networks, it allows to estimate exponentially large numbers of
circuits in polynomial time. We illustrate the method by studying a graph of
the Internet structure.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, minor corrections, accepted versio
Boundary Terms and Junction Conditions for Generalized Scalar-Tensor Theories
We compute the boundary terms and junction conditions for Horndeski's
panoptic class of scalar-tensor theories, and write the bulk and boundary
equations of motion in explicitly second order form. We consider a number of
special subclasses, including galileon theories, and present the corresponding
formulae. Our analysis opens up of the possibility of studying tunnelling
between vacua in generalized scalar-tensor theories, and braneworld dynamics.
The latter follows because our results are independent of spacetime dimension.Comment: 13 pages, Equation corrected. Thanks to Tsutomu Kobayashi for
informing us of the typ
Next generation ice core technology reveals true minimum natural levels of lead (Pb) in the atmosphere: insights from the Black Death
Current policies to reduce lead pollution in the air are based on the assumption that pre-industrial levels of lead in the air were negligible, safe or non-existent. This trans-disciplinary article shows that this is not the case, using ânext-generationâ laser technology in climate science, in combination with detailed historical and archaeological records in as many as 7 languages, from all over Europe.
We show that lead levels in the air have been elevated for the past 2000 years, except for a single 4-year period. This 4-year period corresponds with the largest known pandemic ever to ravage western Europe (the Black Death), resulting in a 40-50% reduction in population. This unprecedented historic population collapse was accompanied by dramatic economic collapse that halted lead mining and smelting, and related emissions in the air.
This trans-disciplinary study is a collaboration led by Harvard University and the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine, and researchers from the University of Heidelberg (Germany) and the University of Nottingham (UK). It uses next-generation technology and expertise in history, climate science, archaeology and toxicology, brought to bear in a highly detailed contribution to planetary health, with crucial implications for public health and environmental policy, and the history of human exposure to lead
A Wormhole at the core of an infinite cosmic string
We study a solution of Einstein's equations that describes a straight cosmic
string with a variable angular deficit, starting with a deficit at the
core. We show that the coordinate singularity associated to this defect can be
interpreted as a traversible wormhole lodging at the the core of the string. A
negative energy density gradually decreases the angular deficit as the distance
from the core increases, ending, at radial infinity, in a Minkowski spacetime.
The negative energy density can be confined to a small transversal section of
the string by gluing to it an exterior Gott's like solution, that freezes the
angular deficit existing at the matching border. The equation of state of the
string is such that any massive particle may stay at rest anywhere in this
spacetime. In this sense this is 2+1 spacetime solution.Comment: 1 tex file and 5 eps files. To be Published in Nov. in Phys.Rev.
Rigorous Inequalities between Length and Time Scales in Glassy Systems
Glassy systems are characterized by an extremely sluggish dynamics without
any simple sign of long range order. It is a debated question whether a correct
description of such phenomenon requires the emergence of a large correlation
length. We prove rigorous bounds between length and time scales implying the
growth of a properly defined length when the relaxation time increases. Our
results are valid in a rather general setting, which covers finite-dimensional
and mean field systems.
As an illustration, we discuss the Glauber (heat bath) dynamics of p-spin
glass models on random regular graphs. We present the first proof that a model
of this type undergoes a purely dynamical phase transition not accompanied by
any thermodynamic singularity.Comment: 24 pages, 3 figures; published versio
The Imperfect Fluid behind Kinetic Gravity Braiding
We present a standard hydrodynamical description for non-canonical scalar
field theories with kinetic gravity braiding. In particular, this picture
applies to the simplest galileons and k-essence. The fluid variables not only
have a clear physical meaning but also drastically simplify the analysis of the
system. The fluid carries charges corresponding to shifts in field space. This
shift-charge current contains a spatial part responsible for diffusion of the
charges. Moreover, in the incompressible limit, the equation of motion becomes
the standard diffusion equation. The fluid is indeed imperfect because the
energy flows neither along the field gradient nor along the shift current. The
fluid has zero vorticity and is not dissipative: there is no entropy
production, the energy-momentum is exactly conserved, the temperature vanishes
and there is no shear viscosity. Still, in an expansion around a perfect fluid
one can identify terms which correct the pressure in the manner of bulk
viscosity. We close by formulating the non-trivial conditions for the
thermodynamic equilibrium of this imperfect fluid.Comment: 23 pages plus appendices. New version includes extended discussion on
diffusion and dynamics in alternative frames, as well as additional
references. v3 reflects version accepted for publication in JHEP: minor
comments added regarding suitability to numerical approache
Large Scale Structures in Kinetic Gravity Braiding Model That Can Be Unbraided
We study cosmological consequences of a kinetic gravity braiding model, which
is proposed as an alternative to the dark energy model. The kinetic braiding
model we study is characterized by a parameter n, which corresponds to the
original galileon cosmological model for n=1. We find that the background
expansion of the universe of the kinetic braiding model is the same as the
Dvali-Turner's model, which reduces to that of the standard cold dark matter
model with a cosmological constant (LCDM model) for n equal to infinity. We
also find that the evolution of the linear cosmological perturbation in the
kinetic braiding model reduces to that of the LCDM model for n=\infty. Then, we
focus our study on the growth history of the linear density perturbation as
well as the spherical collapse in the nonlinear regime of the density
perturbations, which might be important in order to distinguish between the
kinetic braiding model and the LCDM model when n is finite. The theoretical
prediction for the large scale structure is confronted with the multipole power
spectrum of the luminous red galaxy sample of the Sloan Digital Sky survey. We
also discuss future prospects of constraining the kinetic braiding model using
a future redshift survey like the WFMOS/SuMIRe PFS survey as well as the
cluster redshift distribution in the South Pole Telescope survey.Comment: 41 pages, 20 figures; This version was accepted for publication in
JCA
Generalizing Galileons
The Galileons are a set of terms within four-dimensional effective field
theories, obeying symmetries that can be derived from the dynamics of a
3+1-dimensional flat brane embedded in a 5-dimensional Minkowski Bulk. These
theories have some intriguing properties, including freedom from ghosts and a
non-renormalization theorem that hints at possible applications in both
particle physics and cosmology. In this brief review article, we will summarize
our attempts over the last year to extend the Galileon idea in two important
ways. We will discuss the effective field theory construction arising from
co-dimension greater than one flat branes embedded in a flat background - the
multiGalileons - and we will then describe symmetric covariant versions of the
Galileons, more suitable for general cosmological applications. While all these
Galileons can be thought of as interesting four-dimensional field theories in
their own rights, the work described here may also make it easier to embed them
into string theory, with its multiple extra dimensions and more general
gravitational backgrounds.Comment: 16 pages; invited brief review article for a special issue of
Classical and Quantum Gravity. Submitted to CQ
Cognitive Performance in Midlife Type 2 Diabetes: Results form the ENBIND Study
Aims: To establish the impact of uncomplicated type 2 diabetes on cognitive and neuropsychological performance in midlife. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study of middle-aged adults with uncomplicated type 2 diabetes and a cohort of healthy control participants. General cognition was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment test and neuropsychological assessment was undertaken using a detailed neuropsychological assessment battery. Results: A total of 152 participants (102 with type 2 diabetes and 50 controls) were recruited (mean age 52 ± 8 years, 51% women). Participants with midlife type 2 diabetes were more than twice as likely to make an error on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment test [incidence rate ratio 2.44 (95% CI 1.54 to 3.87); P \u3c 0.001]. Further, type 2 diabetes was also associated with significantly lower memory composite score [ÎČ: â0.20 (95% CI â0.39 to â0.01); P = 0.04] and paired associates learning score [ÎČ: = â1.97 (95% CI â3.51, â0.43); P = 0.01] on the neuropsychological assessment battery following adjustment for age, sex, BMI, educational attainment and hypercholesterolaemia. Conclusions: Even in midlife, type 2 diabetes was associated with small but statistically significant cognitive decrements. These statistically significant decrements, whilst not clinically significant in terms of objective cognitive impairment, may have important implications in selecting out individuals most at risk of later cognitive decline for potential preventative interventions in midlife
No measure for culture? Value in the new economy
This paper explores articulations of the value of investment in culture and the arts through a critical discourse analysis of policy documents, reports and academic commentary since 1997. It argues that in this period, discourses around the value of culture have moved from a focus on the direct economic contributions of the culture industries to their indirect economic benefits. These indirect benefits are discussed here under three main headings: creativity and innovation, employability, and social inclusion. These are in turn analysed in terms of three forms of capital: human, social and cultural. The paper concludes with an analysis of this discursive shift through the lens of autonomist Marxist concerns with the labour of social reproduction. It is our argument that, in contemporary policy discourses on culture and the arts, the government in the UK is increasingly concerned with the use of culture to form the social in the image of capital. As such, we must turn our attention beyond the walls of the factory in order to understand the contemporary capitalist production of value and resistance to it. </jats:p
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