10,242 research outputs found
Unbounded-error One-way Classical and Quantum Communication Complexity
This paper studies the gap between quantum one-way communication complexity
and its classical counterpart , under the {\em unbounded-error}
setting, i.e., it is enough that the success probability is strictly greater
than 1/2. It is proved that for {\em any} (total or partial) Boolean function
, , i.e., the former is always exactly one half
as large as the latter. The result has an application to obtaining (again an
exact) bound for the existence of -QRAC which is the -qubit random
access coding that can recover any one of original bits with success
probability . We can prove that -QRAC exists if and only if
. Previously, only the construction of QRAC using one qubit,
the existence of -RAC, and the non-existence of
-QRAC were known.Comment: 9 pages. To appear in Proc. ICALP 200
Attentional capture by entirely irrelevant distractors
Studies of attentional capture often question whether an irrelevant distractor will capture attention or be successfully ignored (e.g., Folk & Remington, 1998). Here we establish a new measure of attentional capture by distractors that are entirely irrelevant to the task in terms of visual appearance, meaning, and location (colourful cartoon figures presented in the periphery while subjects perform a central letter-search task). The presence of such a distractor significantly increased search RTs, suggesting it captured attention despite its task-irrelevance. Such attentional capture was found regardless of whether the search target was a singleton or not, and for both frequent and infrequent distractors, as well as for meaningful and meaningless distractor stimuli, although the cost was greater for infrequent and meaningful distractors. These results establish stimulus-driven capture by entirely irrelevant distractors and thus provide a demonstration of attentional capture that is more akin to distraction by irrelevant stimuli in daily life
Distilling Non-Locality
Two parts of an entangled quantum state can have a correlation in their joint
behavior under measurements that is unexplainable by shared classical
information. Such correlations are called non-local and have proven to be an
interesting resource for information processing. Since non-local correlations
are more useful if they are stronger, it is natural to ask whether weak
non-locality can be amplified. We give an affirmative answer by presenting the
first protocol for distilling non-locality in the framework of generalized
non-signaling theories. Our protocol works for both quantum and non-quantum
correlations. This shows that in many contexts, the extent to which a single
instance of a correlation can violate a CHSH inequality is not a good measure
for the usefulness of non-locality. A more meaningful measure follows from our
results.Comment: Revised abstract, introduction and conclusion. Accepted by PR
The Detection of Outflows in the IR-Quiet Molecular Core NGC 6334 I(North)
We find strong evidence for outflows originating in the dense molecular core
NGC 6334 I(North): a 1000 Msol molecular core distinguished by its lack of HII
regions and mid-IR emission. New observations were obtained of the SiO 2-1 and
5-4 lines with the SEST 15-m telescope and the H2 (1-0) S(1) line with the ESO
2.2-m telescope. The line profiles of the SiO transitions show broad wings
extending from -50 to 40 km/s, and spatial maps of the line wing emission
exhibit a bipolar morphology with the peaks of the red and blue wing separated
by 30". The estimated mass loss rate of the outflow is comparable to those for
young intermediate to high-mass stars. The near-IR images show eight knots of
H2 emission. Five of the knots form a linear chain which is displaced from the
axis of the SiO outflow; these knots may trace shock excited gas along the path
of a second, highly collimated outflow. We propose that I(N) is a rare example
of a molecular core in an early stage of cluster formation.Comment: 4 pages, LaTeX, 3 ps figures, accepted by ApJ
The Formaldehyde Masers in Sgr B2: Very Long Baseline Array and Very Large Array Observations
Observations of two of the formaldehyde (H2CO) masers (A and D) in Sgr B2
using the VLBA+Y27 (resolution ~0.01") and the VLA (resolution ~9") are
presented. The VLBA observations show compact sources (<10 milliarcseconds, <80
AU) with brightness temperatures >10^8 K. The maser sources are partially
resolved in the VLBA observations. The flux densities in the VLBA observations
are about 1/2 those of the VLA; and, the linewidths are about 2/3 of the VLA
values. The applicability of a core-halo model for the emission distribution is
demonstrated. Comparison with earlier H2CO absorption observations and with
ammonia (NH3) observations suggests that H2CO masers form in shocked gas.
Comparison of the integrated flux densities in current VLA observations with
those in previous observations indicates that (1) most of the masers have
varied in the past 20 years, and (2) intensity variations are typically less
than a factor of two compared to the 20-year mean. No significant linear or
circular polarization is detected with either instrument.Comment: 20 pages, 3 figures, 5 tables, accepted to Ap
Resting state correlates of subdimensions of anxious affect
Resting state fMRI may help identify markers of risk for affective disorder. Given the comorbidity of anxiety and depressive disorders and the heterogeneity of these disorders as defined by DSM, an important challenge is to identify alterations in resting state brain connectivity uniquely associated with distinct profiles of negative affect. The current study aimed to address this by identifying differences in brain connectivity specifically linked to cognitive and physiological profiles of anxiety, controlling for depressed affect. We adopted a two-stage multivariate approach. Hierarchical clustering was used to independently identify dimensions of negative affective style and resting state brain networks. Combining the clustering results, we examined individual differences in resting state connectivity uniquely associated with subdimensions of anxious affect, controlling for depressed affect. Physiological and cognitive subdimensions of anxious affect were identified. Physiological anxiety was associated with widespread alterations in insula connectivity, including decreased connectivity between insula subregions and between the insula and other medial frontal and subcortical networks. This is consistent with the insula facilitating communication between medial frontal and subcortical regions to enable control of physiological affective states. Meanwhile, increased connectivity within a frontoparietal-posterior cingulate cortex-precunous network was specifically associated with cognitive anxiety, potentially reflecting increased spontaneous negative cognition (e.g., worry). These findings suggest that physiological and cognitive anxiety comprise subdimensions of anxiety-related affect and reveal associated alterations in brain connectivity
A Reanalysis of the Hydrodynamic Theory of Fluid, Polar-Ordered Flocks
I reanalyze the hydrodynamic theory of fluid, polar ordered flocks. I find
new linear terms in the hydrodynamic equations which slightly modify the
anisotropy, but not the scaling, of the damping of sound modes. I also find
that the nonlinearities allowed {\it in equilibrium} do not stabilize long
ranged order in spatial dimensions ; in accord with the Mermin-Wagner
theorem. Nonequilibrium nonlinearities {\it do} stabilize long ranged order in
, as argued by earlier work. Some of these were missed by earlier work; it
is unclear whether or not they change the scaling exponents in .Comment: 6 pages, no figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with
arXiv:0909.195
Finite Temperature Spectral Densities of Momentum and R-Charge Correlators in Yang Mills Theory
We compute spectral densities of momentum and R-charge correlators in thermal
Yang Mills at strong coupling using the AdS/CFT correspondence. For
and smaller, the spectral density differs markedly from
perturbation theory; there is no kinetic theory peak. For large , the
spectral density oscillates around the zero-temperature result with an
exponentially decreasing amplitude. Contrast this with QCD where the spectral
density of the current-current correlator approaches the zero temperature
result like . Despite these marked differences with perturbation
theory, in Euclidean space-time the correlators differ by only from
the free result. The implications for Lattice QCD measurements of transport are
discussed.Comment: 18 pages, 3 figure
Adaptation planning and the use of climate change projections in local government in England and Germany
Planning for adaptation to climate change is often regarded to be a local imperative and considered to be more effective if grounded on a solid evidence base and recognisant of relevant climate projections. Research has already documented some of the challenges of making climate information usable in decision-making but has not yet sufficiently reflected on the role of the wider institutional and regulatory context. This article examines the impact of the external institutional context on the use and usability of climate projections in local government through an analysis of 44 planning and climate change (adaptation) documents and 54 semi-structured interviews with planners in England and Germany conducted between July 2013 and May 2014. We show that there is little demand for climate projections in local adaptation planning in either country due to existing policy, legal and regulatory frameworks. Local government in England has not only experienced a decline in use of climate projections, but also the waning of the climate change adaptation agenda more widely, amidst changes in the planning and regulatory framework and severe budget cuts. In Germany, spatial planning makes substantial use of past and present climate data, but the strictly regulated nature of planning prevents the use of climate projections, due to their inherent uncertainties. Findings from the two countries highlight that if we are to better understand the usability of climate projections, we need to be more aware of the institutional context within which planning decisions are made. Otherwise we run the risk of continuing to provide tools and information that are of limited use within their intended context
The Supercooling of a Nematic Liquid Crystal
We investigate the supercooling of a nematic liquid crystal using fluctuating
non-linear hydrodynamic equations. The Martin-Siggia-Rose formalism is used to
calculate renormalized transport coefficients to one-loop order. Similar
theories for isotropic liquids have shown substantial increases of the
viscosities as the liquid is supercooled or compressed due to feedback from the
density fluctuations which are freezing. We find similar results here for the
longitudinal and various shear viscosities of the nematic. However, the two
viscosities associated with the nematic director motion do not grow in any
dramatic way; i.e.\ there is no apparent freezing of the director modes within
this hydrodynamic formalism. Instead a glassy state of the nematic may arise
from a ``random anisotropy" coupling of the director to the frozen density.Comment: Late
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