Born-Infeld Theory and Stringy Causality

Fluctuations around a non-trivial solution of Born-Infeld theory have a limiting speed given not by the Einstein metric but the Boillat metric. The Boillat metric is S-duality invariant and conformal to the open string metric. It also governs the propagation of scalars and spinors in Born-Infeld theory. We discuss the potential clash between causality determined by the closed string and open string light cones and find that the latter never lie outside the former. Both cones touch along the principal null directions of the background Born-Infeld field. We consider black hole solutions in situations in which the distinction between bulk and brane is not sharp such as space filling branes and find that the location of the event horizon and the thermodynamic properties do not depend on whether one uses the closed or open string metric. Analogous statements hold in the more general context of non-linear electrodynamics or effective quantum-corrected metrics. We show how Born-Infeld action to second order might be obtained from higher-curvature gravity in Kaluza-Klein theory. Finally we point out some intriguing analogies with Einstein-Schr\"odinger theory.Comment: 31 pages, 4 figures, LaTex; Some comments and references adde

Mixture of Fluids involving Entropy Gradients and Acceleration Waves in Interfacial Layers

Through an Hamiltonian action we write down the system of equations of motions for a mixture of thermocapillary fluids under the assumption that the internal energy is a function not only of the gradient of the densities but also of the gradient of the entropies of each component. A Lagrangian associated with the kinetic energy and the internal energy allows to obtain the equations of momentum for each component and for the barycentric motion of the mixture. We obtain also the balance of energy and we prove that the equations are compatible with the second law of thermodynamics. Though the system is of parabolic type, we prove that there exist two tangential acceleration waves that characterize the interfacial motion. The dependence of the internal energy of the entropy gradients is mandatory for the existence of this kind of waves. The differential system is non-linear but the waves propagate without distortion due to the fact that they are linearly degenerate (exceptional waves).Comment: 30 page

Intracellular Zinc Activates KCNQ Channels by Reducing their Dependence on Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate

M-type (Kv7, KCNQ) potassium channels are proteins that control the excitability of neurons and muscle cells. Many physiological and pathological mechanisms of excitation operate via the suppression of M channel activity or expression. Conversely, pharmacological augmentation of M channel activity is a recognized strategy for the treatment of hyperexcitability disorders such as pain and epilepsy. However, physiological mechanisms resulting in M channel potentiation are rare. Here we report that intracellular free zinc directly and reversibly augments the activity of recombinant and native M channels. This effect is mechanistically distinct from the known redox-dependent KCNQ channel potentiation. Interestingly, the effect of zinc cannot be attributed to a single histidine- or cysteine-containing zinc-binding site within KCNQ channels. Instead, zinc dramatically reduces KCNQ channel dependence on its obligatory physiological activator, phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2). We hypothesize that zinc facilitates interactions of the lipid-facing interface of a KCNQ protein with the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane in a way similar to that promoted by PIP2. Because zinc is increasingly recognized as a ubiquitous intracellular second messenger, this discovery might represent a hitherto unknown native pathway of M channel modulation and provide a fresh strategy for the design of M channel activators for therapeutic purposes

Born-Infeld electrostatics in the complex plane

The complex method to obtain 2-dimensional Born-Infeld electrostatic solutions is presented in a renewed form. The solutions are generated by a holomorphic seed that makes contact with the Coulombian complex potential. The procedure is exemplified by solving the Born-Infeld multipolar configurations. Besides, it is shown that the attractive force between two equal but opposite charges is lower than its Coulombian partner; it decreases up to vanish when the charges approach each other below a distance ruled by the Born-Infeld constant.Comment: 15 pages, 4 figure

Development of a Space Bioreactor using Microtechnology

A miniature bio-reactor for the cultivation of cells aboard Spacelab is presented. Yeast cells are grown in a 3 milliliter reactor chamber. A supply of fresh nutrient medium is provided by a piezo-electric silicon micro-pump. In the reactor, pH, temperature, and redox potential are monitored and the pH is regulated at a constant value. The complete instrument is fitted in a standard experiment container of 63 x 63 x 85 mm. The bioreactor was used on the IML-2 mission in July 1994 and is being refurbished for a reflight in the spring of 1996

Dyonic BIon black hole in string inspired model

We construct static and spherically symmetric particle-like and black hole solutions with magnetic and/or electric charge in the Einstein-Born-Infeld-dilaton-axion system, which is a generalization of the Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton-axion (EMDA) system and of the Einstein-Born-Infeld (EBI) system. They have remarkable properties which are not seen for the corresponding solutions in the EMDA and the EBI system.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figures, Final version in PR

Scaling of the F_2 structure function in nuclei and quark distributions at x>1

We present new data on electron scattering from a range of nuclei taken in Hall C at Jefferson Lab. For heavy nuclei, we observe a rapid falloff in the cross section for $x>1$, which is sensitive to short range contributions to the nuclear wave-function, and in deep inelastic scattering corresponds to probing extremely high momentum quarks. This result agrees with higher energy muon scattering measurements, but is in sharp contrast to neutrino scattering measurements which suggested a dramatic enhancement in the distribution of the `super-fast' quarks probed at x>1. The falloff at x>1 is noticeably stronger in ^2H and ^3He, but nearly identical for all heavier nuclei.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, to be submitted to physical revie

Measurement of the Electric Form Factor of the Neutron at Q^2=0.5 and 1.0 (GeV/c)^2

The electric form factor of the neutron was determined from measurements of the \vec{d}(\vec{e},e' n)p reaction for quasielastic kinematics. Polarized electrons were scattered off a polarized deuterated ammonia target in which the deuteron polarization was perpendicular to the momentum transfer. The scattered electrons were detected in a magnetic spectrometer in coincidence with neutrons in a large solid angle detector. We find G_E^n = 0.0526 +/- 0.0033 (stat) +/- 0.0026 (sys) and 0.0454 +/- 0.0054 +/- 0.0037 at Q^2 = 0.5 and 1.0 (GeV/c)^2, respectively.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, as publishe