2,168 research outputs found
Wilson loops, geometric operators and fermions in 3d group field theory
Group field theories whose Feynman diagrams describe 3d gravity with a
varying configuration of Wilson loop observables and 3d gravity with volume
observables at each vertex are defined. The volume observables are created by
the usual spin network grasping operators which require the introduction of
vector fields on the group. We then use this to define group field theories
that give a previously defined spin foam model for fermion fields coupled to
gravity, and the simpler quenched approximation, by using tensor fields on the
group. The group field theory naturally includes the sum over fermionic loops
at each order of the perturbation theory.Comment: 13 pages, many figures, uses psfra
Early Ceramics in Anatolia: Implications for the Production and Use of the Earliest Pottery. The Evidence from Boncuklu Höyük
Fragments of possible fired clay found at Boncuklu Höyük, central Turkey, appear to derive from rudimentary vessels, despite the later ninth- and early eighth-millennium cal. bc and thus ‘Aceramic’ dates for the site. This paper will examine the evidence for such fired clay vessels at Boncuklu and consider their implications as examples of some of the earliest pottery in Anatolia. The discussion will examine contextual evidence for the role of these fragments and consider their relative rarity at the site and the implications for the marked widespread adoption of pottery in southwest Asia c. 7000–6700 cal. bc
Environmental Stress and Aroma Production During Wine Fermentation
The sensory description of wine uses the widest range of descriptive terminology of all food products, reflecting the complex nature of a product whose character depends on the balance of hundreds of individual flavour-active compounds. There are many tools that can influence flavour profiles or wine styles, one of which is the choice of a specific yeast strain. Yeasts contribute to wine flavour by producing volatile metabolites with different flavour profiles. The impact of changing environmental conditions on the production of flavour compounds by yeast strains remains largely unexplored. This is the first study investigating the impact of two mild fermentation stresses, hyperosmotic and temperature stress, on aroma production in synthetic must by commercial Saccharomyces cerevisiae wine strains. Hyperosmotic stress was imposed by cultivation of the yeast for 21 days in the must containing either 0.3 or 0.5 M sorbitol. The transient temperature stresses were applied for 16 h at 8° or 37°C for either two or eight days after commencement of the fermentation. Greater glycerol and acetic acid levels were produced by most yeasts when only hyperosmotic stress was applied. Hyperosmotic and temperature stress conditions produced a limited number of significant changes to the profile of the esters, higher alcohols and volatile fatty acids. These changes differed significantly for each strain and stress treatment, suggesting that the fermentation conditions can significantly alter the aromatic profile of a wine, although these stress impacts cannot be predicted in general. The changes to the aromatic profile are specific to each individual wine yeast strain
Observables in 3d spinfoam quantum gravity with fermions
We study expectation values of observables in three-dimensional spinfoam
quantum gravity coupled to Dirac fermions. We revisit the model introduced by
one of the authors and extend it to the case of massless fermionic fields. We
introduce observables, analyse their symmetries and the corresponding proper
gauge fixing. The Berezin integral over the fermionic fields is performed and
the fermionic observables are expanded in open paths and closed loops
associated to pure quantum gravity observables. We obtain the vertex amplitudes
for gauge-invariant observables, while the expectation values of gauge-variant
observables, such as the fermion propagator, are given by the evaluation of
particular spin networks.Comment: 32 pages, many diagrams, uses psfrag
3d Spinfoam Quantum Gravity: Matter as a Phase of the Group Field Theory
An effective field theory for matter coupled to three-dimensional quantum
gravity was recently derived in the context of spinfoam models in
hep-th/0512113. In this paper, we show how this relates to group field theories
and generalized matrix models. In the first part, we realize that the effective
field theory can be recasted as a matrix model where couplings between matrices
of different sizes can occur. In a second part, we provide a family of
classical solutions to the three-dimensional group field theory. By studying
perturbations around these solutions, we generate the dynamics of the effective
field theory. We identify a particular case which leads to the action of
hep-th/0512113 for a massive field living in a flat non-commutative space-time.
The most general solutions lead to field theories with non-linear redefinitions
of the momentum which we propose to interpret as living on curved space-times.
We conclude by discussing the possible extension to four-dimensional spinfoam
models.Comment: 17 pages, revtex4, 1 figur
Photon-axion mixing and ultra-high-energy cosmic rays from BL Lac type objects -- Shining light through the Universe
Photons may convert into axion like particles and back in the magnetic field
of various astrophysical objects, including active galaxies, clusters of
galaxies, intergalactic space and the Milky Way. This is a potential
explanation for the candidate neutral ultra-high-energy (E>10^18 eV) particles
from distant BL Lac type objects which have been observed by the High
Resolution Fly's Eye experiment. Axions of the same mass and coupling may
explain also TeV photons detected from distant blazars.Comment: Revtex 10 pages, 6 figures. V.2: QED dispersion effects taken into
account; principal results unchanged. V3: misprints and sqrt(4*pi) factors in
Gauss to eV conversion corrected; conclusions unchange
Emergent non-commutative matter fields from Group Field Theory models of quantum spacetime
We offer a perspective on some recent results obtained in the context of the
group field theory approach to quantum gravity, on top of reviewing them
briefly. These concern a natural mechanism for the emergence of non-commutative
field theories for matter directly from the GFT action, in both 3 and 4
dimensions and in both Riemannian and Lorentzian signatures. As such they
represent an important step, we argue, in bridging the gap between a quantum,
discrete picture of a pre-geometric spacetime and the effective continuum
geometric physics of gravity and matter, using ideas and tools from field
theory and condensed matter analog gravity models, applied directly at the GFT
level.Comment: 13 pages, no figures; uses JPConf style; contribution to the
proceedings of the D.I.C.E. 2008 worksho
Coupling gauge theory to spinfoam 3d quantum gravity
We construct a spinfoam model for Yang-Mills theory coupled to quantum
gravity in three dimensional riemannian spacetime. We define the partition
function of the coupled system as a power series in g_0^2 G that can be
evaluated order by order using grasping rules and the recoupling theory. With
respect to previous attempts in the literature, this model assigns the
dynamical variables of gravity and Yang-Mills theory to the same simplices of
the spinfoam, and it thus provides transition amplitudes for the spin network
states of the canonical theory. For SU(2) Yang-Mills theory we show explicitly
that the partition function has a semiclassical limit given by the Regge
discretization of the classical Yang-Mills action.Comment: 18 page
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