56,402 research outputs found
Screening in Ionic Systems: Simulations for the Lebowitz Length
Simulations of the Lebowitz length, , are reported
for t he restricted primitive model hard-core (diameter ) 1:1 electrolyte
for densi ties and .
Finite-size eff ects are elucidated for the charge fluctuations in various
subdomains that serve to evaluate . On extrapolation to the
bulk limit for the low-density expansions (Bekiranov and
Fisher, 1998) are seen to fail badly when (with ). At highe r densities rises above the Debye
length, \xi_{\text{D}} \prop to \sqrt{T/\rho}, by 10-30% (upto ); the variation is portrayed fairly well by generalized
Debye-H\"{u}ckel theory (Lee and Fisher, 19 96). On approaching criticality at
fixed or fixed , remains finite with
but displays a
weak entropy-like singularity.Comment: 4 pages 5 figure
"The fridge door is open" : temporal verification of a robotic assistant's behaviours
Robotic assistants are being designed to help, or work with, humans in a variety of situations from assistance within domestic situations, through medical care, to industrial settings. Whilst robots have been used in industry for some time they are often limited in terms of their range of movement or range of tasks. A new generation of robotic assistants have more freedom to move, and are able to autonomously make decisions and decide between alternatives. For people to adopt such robots they will have to be shown to be both safe and trustworthy. In this paper we focus on formal verification of a set of rules that have been developed to control the Care-O-bot, a robotic assistant located in a typical domestic environment. In particular, we apply model-checking, an automated and exhaustive algorithmic technique, to check whether formal temporal properties are satisfied on all the possible behaviours of the system. We prove a number of properties relating to robot behaviours, their priority and interruptibility, helping to support both safety and trustworthiness of robot behaviours
Coexistence Curve Singularities at Critical End Points
We report an extensive Monte Carlo study of critical end point behaviour in a
symmetrical binary fluid mixture. On the basis of general scaling arguments,
singular behaviour is predicted in the diameter of the liquid-gas coexistence
curve as the critical end point is approached. The simulation results show
clear evidence for this singularity, as well as confirming a previously
predicted singularity in the coexistence chemical potential. Both singularities
should be detectable experimentally.Comment: 9 pages Revtex, 3 figures. To appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Heat capacity of the site-diluted spin dimer system Ba3(Mn1-xVx)2O8
Heat capacity and susceptibility measurements have been performed on the
diluted spin dimer compound Ba3(Mn1-xVx)2O8. The parent compound Ba3Mn2O8 is a
spin dimer system based on pairs of antiferromagnetically coupled S = 1, 3d2
Mn5+ ions such that the zero field groundstate is a product of singlets.
Substitution of non-magnetic S = 0, 3d0 V5+ ions leads to an interacting
network of unpaired Mn moments, the low temperature properties of which are
explored in the limit of small concentrations, 0<x<0.05. The zero-field heat
capacity of this diluted system reveals a progressive removal of magnetic
entropy over an extended range of temperatures, with no evidence for a phase
transition. The concentration dependence does not conform to expectations for a
spin glass state. Rather, the data suggest a low temperature random singlet
phase, reflecting the hierarchy of exchange energies found in this system.Comment: Full Publication Citation Include
The reward value of infant facial cuteness tracks within-subject changes in women’s salivary testosterone
“Baby schema” refers to infant characteristics, such as facial cues, that
positively influence cuteness perceptions and trigger caregiving and protective
behaviors in adults. Current models of hormonal regulation of parenting
behaviors address how hormones may modulate protective behaviors and
nurturance, but not how hormones may modulate responses to infant
cuteness. To explore this issue, we investigated possible relationships
between the reward value of infant facial cuteness and within-woman changes
in testosterone, estradiol, and progesterone levels. Multilevel modeling of
these data showed that infant cuteness was more rewarding when women’s
salivary testosterone levels were high. Moreover, this within-woman effect of
testosterone was independent of the possible effects of estradiol and
progesterone and was not simply a consequence of changes in women’s
cuteness perceptions. These results suggest that testosterone may modulate
differential responses to infant facial cuteness, potentially revealing a new
route through which testosterone shapes selective allocation of parental
resources
Neutron isotope reactions
The field of low temperature nuclear reactions has made slow but steady progress. Evidence has accumulated for production of energy at the level of a few watts, for production of helium in proportion to energy, for energetic particles, and for transmutations of elements. But there is no generally accepted theory for these phenomena. Progress requires a body of experimental evidence and a candidate theory through which theory and experiment can gain mutual support and acceptance. We explore the possibility that transfer of neutrons from neutron isotopes to ordinary nuclei, followed by beta decay of the neutron-enriched nuclei, facilitates a class of low-temperature transmutations. We have tested this possibility by comparing the implications of neutron isotope theory with the transmutations reported by Iwamura and associates. We find that experiment quantifies and supports the theory, and that theory clarifies and supports the experimental observations
Interfaces (and Regional Congruence?) in Spin Glasses
We present a general theorem restricting properties of interfaces between
thermodynamic states and apply it to the spin glass excitations observed
numerically by Krzakala-Martin and Palassini-Young in spatial dimensions d=3
and 4. We show that such excitations, with interface dimension smaller than d,
cannot yield regionally congruent thermodynamic states. More generally, zero
density interfaces of translation-covariant excitations cannot be pinned (by
the disorder) in any d but rather must deflect to infinity in the thermodynamic
limit. Additional consequences concerning regional congruence in spin glasses
and other systems are discussed.Comment: 4 pages (ReVTeX); 1 figure; submitted to Physical Review Letter
Entanglement in general two-mode continuous-variable states: local approach and mapping to a two-qubit system
We present a new approach to the analysis of entanglement in smooth bipartite
continuous-variable states. One or both parties perform projective filterings
via preliminary measurements to determine whether the system is located in some
region of space; we study the entanglement remaining after filtering. For small
regions, a two-mode system can be approximated by a pair of qubits and its
entanglement fully characterized, even for mixed states. Our approach may be
extended to any smooth bipartite pure state or two-mode mixed state, leading to
natural definitions of concurrence and negativity densities. For Gaussian
states both these quantities are constant throughout configuration space.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX 4, one figure. Further modifications in response to
journal referees, correction to expression for negativit
Stability of Elastic Glass Phases in Random Field XY Magnets and Vortex Lattices in Type II Superconductors
A description of a dislocation-free elastic glass phase in terms of domain
walls is developed and used as the basis of a renormalization group analysis of
the energetics of dislocation loops added to the system. It is found that even
after optimizing over possible paths of large dislocation loops, their energy
is still very likely to be positive when the dislocation core energy is large.
This implies the existence of an equilibrium elastic glass phase in three
dimensional random field X-Y magnets, and a dislocation free,
bond-orientationally ordered ``Bragg glass'' phase of vortices in dirty Type II
superconductors.Comment: 12 pages, Revtex, no figures, submitted to Phys Rev Letter
Women’s facial attractiveness is related to their body mass index, but not their salivary cortisol
Objectives: Although many theories of human facial attractiveness propose positive correlations between facial attractiveness and measures of actual health, evidence for such correlations is somewhat mixed. Here we sought to replicate a recent study reporting that women’s facial attractiveness is independently related to both their adiposity and cortisol.
Methods: Ninety-six women provided saliva samples, which were analyzed for cortisol level, and their height and weight, which were used to calculate their body mass index (BMI). A digital face image of each woman was also taken under standardized photographic conditions and rated for attractiveness.
Results: There was a significant negative correlation between women’s facial attractiveness and BMI. By contrast, salivary cortisol and facial attractiveness were not significantly correlated.
Conclusions: Our results suggest that the types of health information reflected in women's faces include qualities that are indexed by BMI, but do not necessarily include qualities that are indexed by cortisol
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