MC-TESTER v. 1.23: a universal tool for comparisons of Monte Carlo predictions for particle decays in high energy physics

Theoretical predictions in high energy physics are routinely provided in the form of Monte Carlo generators. Comparisons of predictions from different programs and/or different initialization set-ups are often necessary. MC-TESTER can be used for such tests of decays of intermediate states (particles or resonances) in a semi-automated way. Since 2002 new functionalities were introduced into the package. In particular, it now works with the HepMC event record, the standard for C++ programs. The complete set-up for benchmarking the interfaces, such as interface between tau-lepton production and decay, including QED bremsstrahlung effects is shown. The example is chosen to illustrate the new options introduced into the program. From the technical perspective, our paper documents software updates and supplements previous documentation. As in the past, our test consists of two steps. Distinct Monte Carlo programs are run separately; events with decays of a chosen particle are searched, and information is stored by MC-TESTER. Then, at the analysis step, information from a pair of runs may be compared and represented in the form of tables and plots. Updates introduced in the progam up to version 1.24.3 are also documented. In particular, new configuration scripts or script to combine results from multitude of runs into single information file to be used in analysis step are explained.Comment: 27 pages 4 figure

A classification of four-state spin edge Potts models

We classify four-state spin models with interactions along the edges according to their behavior under a specific group of symmetry transformations. This analysis uses the measure of complexity of the action of the symmetries, in the spirit of the study of discrete dynamical systems on the space of parameters of the models, and aims at uncovering solvable ones. We find that the action of these symmetries has low complexity (polynomial growth, zero entropy). We obtain natural parametrizations of various models, among which an unexpected elliptic parametrization of the four-state chiral Potts model, which we use to localize possible integrability conditions associated with high genus curves.Comment: 5 figure

Stochastic Light-Cone CTMRG: a new DMRG approach to stochastic models

We develop a new variant of the recently introduced stochastic transfer-matrix DMRG which we call stochastic light-cone corner-transfer-matrix DMRG (LCTMRG). It is a numerical method to compute dynamic properties of one-dimensional stochastic processes. As suggested by its name, the LCTMRG is a modification of the corner-transfer-matrix DMRG (CTMRG), adjusted by an additional causality argument. As an example, two reaction-diffusion models, the diffusion-annihilation process and the branch-fusion process, are studied and compared to exact data and Monte-Carlo simulations to estimate the capability and accuracy of the new method. The number of possible Trotter steps of more than 10^5 shows a considerable improvement to the old stochastic TMRG algorithm.Comment: 15 pages, uses IOP styl

Genetic Algorithm for the Weight Maximization Problem on Weighted Automata

The weight maximization problem (WMP) is the problem of finding the word of highest weight on a weighted finite state automaton (WFA). It is an essential question that emerges in many optimization problems in automata theory. Unfortunately, the general problem can be shown to be undecidable, whereas its bounded decisional version is NP-complete. Designing efficient algorithms that produce approximate solutions to the WMP in reasonable time is an appealing research direction that can lead to several new applications including formal verification of systems abstracted as WFAs. In particular, in combination with a recent procedure that translates a recurrent neural network into a weighted automaton, an algorithm for the WMP can be used to analyze and verify the network by exploiting the simpler and more compact automata model. In this work, we propose, implement and evaluate a metaheuristic based on genetic algorithms to approximate solutions to the WMP. We experimentally evaluate its performance on examples from the literature and show its potential on different applications.Comment: Accepted at GECCO 202

Symmetry, complexity and multicritical point of the two-dimensional spin glass

We analyze models of spin glasses on the two-dimensional square lattice by exploiting symmetry arguments. The replicated partition functions of the Ising and related spin glasses are shown to have many remarkable symmetry properties as functions of the edge Boltzmann factors. It is shown that the applications of homogeneous and Hadamard inverses to the edge Boltzmann matrix indicate reduced complexities when the elements of the matrix satisfy certain conditions, suggesting that the system has special simplicities under such conditions. Using these duality and symmetry arguments we present a conjecture on the exact location of the multicritical point in the phase diagram.Comment: 32 pages, 6 figures; a few typos corrected. To be published in J. Phys.

Interactive and multimedia contents associated with a system for computer-aided assessment

This paper presents a research study addressing the development, implementation, evaluation and use of Interactive Modules for Online Training (MITO) of mathematics in higher education. This work was carried out in the context of the MITO project, which combined several features of the learning and management system Moodle, the computer-aided assessment for mathematics STACK, the mathematical software GeoGebra, several packages from the type-setting program LaTeX, and tutorial videos. A total of 1962 students participated in this study. Two groups of students taking a Calculus course were selected for a deeper analysis. In regard to usability and functionality, the results indicate that MITO scored well in almost all aspects, which is fundamental for their introduction into formal university courses. The analysis of the data reveals that the use of MITO educational contents by students mainly occurs about one week and a half prior the evaluations. Moreover, there is a strong correlation between the results of online assessments on MITO in a continuous assessment model and the final grade on the course

Ethical Issues in Open Source Software

In this essay we argue that the current social and ethical structure in the Open Source Software (OSS) Community stem from its roots in academia. The individual developers experience a level of autonomy similar to that of a faculty member. Furthermore, we assert that the Open Source Software Community\u27s social structure demands benevolent leadership. We argue that it is difficult to pass off low quality open source software as high quality software and that the Open Source development model offers strong accountability. Finally, we argue that Open Source Software introduces ethical challenges for universities and the software development community

A Formally Verified NAT

We present a Network Address Translator (NAT) written in C and proven to be semantically correct according to RFC 3022, as well as crash-free and memory-safe. There exists a lot of recent work on network verification, but it mostly assumes models of network functions and proves properties specific to network configuration, such as reachability and absence of loops. Our proof applies directly to the C code of a network function, and it demonstrates the absence of implementation bugs. Prior work argued that this is not feasible (i.e., that verifying a real, stateful network function written in C does not scale) but we demonstrate otherwise: NAT is one of the most popular network functions and maintains per-flow state that needs to be properly updated and expired, which is a typical source of verification challenges. We tackle the scalability challenge with a new combination of symbolic execution and proof checking using separation logic; this combination matches well the typical structure of a network function. We then demonstrate that formally proven correctness in this case does not come at the cost of performance. The NAT code, proof toolchain, and proofs are available at https://vignat.github.io

Zientzia eskola egutegia 2024 (euskara)

El proyecto “Calendario Científico Escolar 2024” ha consistido en la elaboración de un calendario dirigido al alumnado de educación primaria y secundaria obligatoria. Cada día se ha recogido un aniversario científico o tecnológico como, por ejemplo, nacimientos de personas de estos ámbitos o conmemoraciones de hallazgos destacables. Además, el calendario se acompaña de una guía didáctica con orientaciones para el aprovechamiento educativo transversal del calendario en las clases, incluyendo actividades adaptadas a cada rango de edad y al alumnado con necesidades especiales. Se trata de la cuarta edición de este proyecto de divulgación científica.Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas; Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades; Instituto de Ganadería de Montaña (IGM, CSIC-ULE); Delegación del CSIC en Castilla y León; Universidad de León; Casa de la Ciència de Valencia (CSIC); Cátedra de Cultura Científica de la Universidad del País Vasco/ Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea (UPV/EHU); University of California-Davis; Academia de la Llingua Asturiana; Federación Española de Esperanto; Teagasc; Universidad de Granada; Universidad de Zaragoza; Casa Árabe; CSIC Delegació a Catalunya; CCULT.org; Museo Didáctico e Interactivo de Ciencias de la Vega Baja del Segura (MUDIC VBS-CV); Universidad Miguel Hernández; Unidade de Divulgación Científica e Cultural – Universidade da Coruña; Asociación Cultural Nogará ReligadaInstituto Geológico y Minero de España (IGME); Instituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología de Salamanca (IRNASA); Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa (CBMSO); Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO); Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA); Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN); Centre d'Estudis Avançats de Blanes (CEAB); Institut d’Investigació en Intel.ligéncia Artificial (IIIA); Institut de Microelectrònica de Barcelona - Centre Nacional de Microelectrònica (IMB-CNM); Institut de Ciències del Mar (ICM, CSIC). Discapacitodos; Mujeres con Ciencia; Comisión Mujeres y Ciencia de la Sociedad Geológica de España; Asociación Española para el Avance de la Ciencia (AEAC); PRISMA – Asociación para la diversidad afectivo-sexual y de género en ciencia, tecnología e innovación; Círculo Escéptico; Universitat de les Illes Balears (UIB); Asociaţia Secular-Umanistă din România; Civiencia; Universidad Autónoma de Madrid; Evento Ciencia; Europa Laica; Canaima; Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona; Fundación Odón de BuenPeer reviewe