118 research outputs found
Are there really conformal frames? Uniqueness of affine inflation
Here we concisely review the nonminimal coupling dynamics of a single scalar
field in the context of purely affine gravity and extend the study to
multifield dynamics. The coupling is performed via an affine connection and its
associated curvature without referring to any metric tensor. The latter arises
a posteriori and it may gain an emergent character like the scale of gravity.
What is remarkable in affine gravity is the transition from nonminimal to
minimal couplings which is realized by only field redefinition of the scalar
fields. Consequently, the inflationary models gain a unique description in this
context where the observed parameters, like the scalar tilt and the
tensor-to-scalar ratio, are invariant under field reparametrization. Overall,
gravity in its affine approach is expected to reveal interesting and rich
phenomenology in cosmology and astroparticle physics.Comment: Review Article: matches the published version in IJMPD, 44 pages, 1
table and 2 figure
Eddington's Gravity in Immersed Spacetime
We formulate Eddington's affine gravity in a spacetime which is immersed in a
larger eight dimensional space endowed with a hypercomplex structure. The
dynamical equation of the first immersed Ricci-type tensor leads to
gravitational field equations which include matter. We also study the dynamical
effects of the second Ricci-type tensor when added to the Lagrangian density. A
simple Lagrangian density constructed from combination of the standard Ricci
tensor and a new tensor field that appears due to the immersion, leads to
gravitational equations in which the vacuum energy gravitates with a different
cosmological strength as in Phys. Rev. D {\bf 90}, 064017 (2014), rather than
with Newton's constant. As a result, the tiny observed curvature is reproduced
due to large hierarchies rather than fine-tuning
Separate Einstein-Eddington Spaces and the Cosmological Constant
Based on Eddington affine variational principle on a locally product
manifold, we derive the separate Einstein space described by its Ricci tensor.
The derived field equations split into two field equations of motion that
describe two maximally symmetric spaces with two cosmological constants. We
argue that the invariance of the bi-field equations under projections on the
separate spaces, may render one of the cosmological constants to zero. We also
formulate the model in the presence of a scalar field. The resulted separate
Einstein-Eddington spaces maybe considered as two states that describe the
universe before and after inflation. A possibly interesting affine action for a
general perfect fluid is also proposed. It turns out that the condition which
leads to zero cosmological constant in the vacuum case, eliminates here the
effects of the gravitational mass density of the perfect fluid, and the dynamic
of the universe in its final state is governed by only the inertial mass
density of the fluid.Comment: Accepted in Annalen der Physik journal. 7 pages, typos correcte
Induced Affine Inflation
Induced gravity, metrical gravity in which gravitational constant arises from
vacuum expectation value of a heavy scalar, is known to suffer from Jordan
frame vs. Einstein frame ambiguity, especially in inflationary dynamics.
Induced gravity in affine geometry, as we show here, leads to an emergent
metric and gravity scale, with no Einstein-Jordan ambiguity. While gravity is
induced by the vacuum expectation value of the scalar field, nonzero vacuum
energy facilitates generation of the metric. Our analysis shows that induced
gravity results in a relatively large tensor-to-scalar ratio in both metrical
and affine gravity setups. However, the fact remains that the induced affine
gravity provides an ambiguity-free framework.Comment: 7 pages, 1 table and 3 figures, matches the published versio
Integrating 3D Printing Technologies into Architectural Education as Design Tools
3D printing technology offers the chance to produce very small-scale, complex forms that could help to improve educational materials for architectural design. In this age of technological advances, architectural education needs to integrate modern teaching methods that could enhance students’ visual perception. This research thus examined the impact of computational design modeling and 3D printing technology on the spatial cognition of architecture students. It starts with the premise that the use of the 3D printed models will support design logic and improve the deep understanding of spatial perception among students. Thirty architecture students were asked about a designed project realized for the purpose of this study. They were presented both a project designed via computer modeling software and a printed model of the same project. The outcomes indicate that the use of 3D printing gave better results in the development of students’ spatial abilities. The findings also confirm that adopting this technology in the development of teaching tools will enhance students’ spatial perception and extend beyond the seamless materialization of the digital model which can continuously inform design ideation through emerging perception qualities
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