399 research outputs found
Classical Stability of the Galileon
We consider the classical equations of motion for a single Galileon field
with generic parameters in the presence of non-relativistic sources. We
introduce the concept of absolute stability of a theory: if one can show that a
field at a single point---like infinity for instance---in spacetime is stable,
then stability of the field over the rest of spacetime is guaranteed for any
positive energy source configuration. The Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati (DGP) model
is stable in this manner, and previous studies of spherically symmetric
solutions suggest that certain classes of the single field Galileon (of which
the DGP model is a subclass) may have this property as well. We find, however,
that when general solutions are considered this is not the case. In fact, when
considering generic solutions there are no choices of free parameters in the
Galileon theory that will lead to absolute stability except the DGP choice. Our
analysis indicates that the DGP model is an exceptional choice among the large
class of possible single field Galileon theories. This implies that if general
solutions (non-spherically symmetric) exist they may be unstable. Given
astrophysical motivation for the Galileon, further investigation into these
unstable solutions may prove fruitful.Comment: 23 pages, 3 figure
The quantum mechanics of perfect fluids
We consider the canonical quantization of an ordinary fluid. The resulting
long-distance effective field theory is derivatively coupled, and therefore
strongly coupled in the UV. The system however exhibits a number of
peculiarities, associated with the vortex degrees of freedom. On the one hand,
these have formally a vanishing strong-coupling energy scale, thus suggesting
that the effective theory's regime of validity is vanishingly narrow. On the
other hand, we prove an analog of Coleman's theorem, whereby the semiclassical
vacuum has no quantum counterpart, thus suggesting that the vortex premature
strong-coupling phenomenon stems from a bad identification of the ground state
and of the perturbative degrees of freedom. Finally, vortices break the usual
connection between short distances and high energies, thus potentially
impairing the unitarity of the effective theory.Comment: 35 page
Prolonged podocyte depletion in larval zebrafish resembles mammalian focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis
Focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) is a histological pattern frequently found in patients with nephrotic syndrome that often progress to end-stage kidney disease. The initial step in development of this histologically defined entity is injury and ultimately depletion of podocytes, highly arborized interdigitating cells on the glomerular capillaries with important function for the glomerular filtration barrier. Since there are still no causal therapeutic options, animal models are needed to develop new treatment strategies. Here, we present an FSGS-like model in zebrafish larvae, an eligible vertebrate model for kidney research. In a transgenic zebrafish strain, podocytes were depleted, and the glomerular response was investigated by histological and morphometrical analysis combined with immunofluorescence staining and ultrastructural analysis by transmission electron microscopy. By intravenous injection of fluorescent high-molecular weight dextran, we confirmed leakage of the size selective filtration barrier. Additionally, we observed severe podocyte foot process effacement of remaining podocytes, activation of proximal tubule-like parietal epithelial cells identified by ultrastructural cytomorphology, and expression of proximal tubule markers. These activated cells deposited extracellular matrix on the glomerular tuft which are all hallmarks of FSGS. Our findings indicate that glomerular response to podocyte depletion in larval zebrafish resembles human FSGS in several important characteristics. Therefore, this model will help to investigate the disease development and the effects of potential drugs in a living organism
On the rate of black hole binary mergers in galactic nuclei due to dynamical hardening
We assess the contribution of dynamical hardening by direct three-body
scattering interactions to the rate of stellar-mass black hole binary (BHB)
mergers in galactic nuclei. We derive an analytic model for the single-binary
encounter rate in a nucleus with spherical and disk components hosting a
super-massive black hole (SMBH). We determine the total number of encounters
needed to harden a BHB to the point that inspiral due to
gravitational wave emission occurs before the next three-body scattering event.
This is done independently for both the spherical and disk components. Using a
Monte Carlo approach, we refine our calculations for to include
gravitational wave emission between scattering events. For astrophysically
plausible models we find that typically 10.
We find two separate regimes for the efficient dynamical hardening of BHBs:
(1) spherical star clusters with high central densities, low velocity
dispersions and no significant Keplerian component; and (2) migration traps in
disks around SMBHs lacking any significant spherical stellar component in the
vicinity of the migration trap, which is expected due to effective orbital
inclination reduction of any spherical population by the disk. We also find a
weak correlation between the ratio of the second-order velocity moment to
velocity dispersion in galactic nuclei and the rate of BHB mergers, where this
ratio is a proxy for the ratio between the rotation- and dispersion-supported
components. Because disks enforce planar interactions that are efficient in
hardening BHBs, particularly in migration traps, they have high merger rates
that can contribute significantly to the rate of BHB mergers detected by the
advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Derrick's theorem beyond a potential
Scalar field theories with derivative interactions are known to possess
solitonic excitations, but such solitons are generally unsatisfactory because
the effective theory fails precisely where nonlinearities responsible for the
solitons are important. A new class of theories possessing (internal) galilean
invariance can in principle bypass this difficulty. Here, we show that these
galileon theories do not possess stable solitonic solutions. As a by-product,
we show that no stable solitons exist for a different class of derivatively
coupled theories, describing for instance the infrared dynamics of superfluids,
fluids, solids and some k-essence models.Comment: 4 page
Supersymmetric sound in fluids
We consider the hydrodynamics of supersymmetric fluids. Supersymmetry is
broken spontaneously and the low energy spectrum includes a fermionic massless
mode, the . We use two complementary approaches to describe
the system: First, we construct a generating functional from which we derive
the equations of motion of the fluid and of the phonino propagating through the
fluid. We write the form of the leading corrections in the derivative
expansion, and show that the so called diffusion terms in the supercurrent are
in fact not dissipative. Second, we use an effective field theory approach
which utilizes a non-linear realization of supersymmetry to analyze the
interactions between phoninos and phonons, and demonstrate the conservation of
entropy in ideal fluids. We comment on possible phenomenological consequences
for gravitino physics in the early universe.Comment: Modified introduction and discussion of diffusion terms in the
supercurren
Galilean symmetry in the effective theory of inflation: new shapes of non-Gaussianity
We study the consequences of imposing an approximate Galilean symmetry on the
Effective Theory of Inflation, the theory of small perturbations around the
inflationary background. This approach allows us to study the effect of
operators with two derivatives on each field, which can be the leading
interactions due to non-renormalization properties of the Galilean Lagrangian.
In this case cubic non-Gaussianities are given by three independent operators,
containing up to six derivatives, two with a shape close to equilateral and one
peaking on flattened isosceles triangles. The four-point function is larger
than in models with small speed of sound and potentially observable with the
Planck satellite.Comment: 23 pages, 6 figures. v2: minor changes to match JCAP published
versio
Remembering the âunwantedâ victims: initiatives to memorialize the National Socialist euthanasia program in Germany
Between 1939 and 1945, approximately 200,000 patients were murdered under the National Socialist euthanasia program in Germany and Austria. For many years, these victims were largely excluded from post-war commemorative culture and they are yet to attain legal equality with the victims of political or racial persecution. This article considers recent initiatives to commemorate the victims of euthanasia, focusing on three examples: 1) the national memorial and information point for the victims of National Socialist âeuthanasiaâ killings in Berlin; 2) the web portal http://www.gedenkort-t4.euâ www.gedenkort-t4.eu; and 3) the national competition âAndersartig Gedenkenâ, which invited young Germans to design their own memorial
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
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
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