3,603 research outputs found
FollowMe: A Bigraphical Approach
In this paper we illustrate the use of modelling techniques using bigraphs to specify and refine elementary aspects of the FollowMe framework. This framework provides the seamless migration of bi-directional user interfaces for users as they navigate between zones within an intelligent environment
Towards FollowMe User Profiles for Macro Intelligent Environments
We envision an Ambient Intelligent Environment as an environment with technology embedded within the framework of that environment to help enhance an users experience in that environment. Existing implementations , while working effectively, are themselves an expensive and time consuming investment. Applying the same expertise to an environment on a monolithic scale is very inefficient, and thus, will require a different approach. In this paper, we present this problem, propose theoretical solutions that would solve this problem, with the guise of experimentally verifying and comparing these approaches, as well as a formal method to model the entire scenario
Evidence of a Mira-like tail and bow shock about the semi-regular variable V CVn from four decades of polarization measurements
Polarization is a powerful tool for understanding stellar atmospheres and
circumstellar environments. Mira and semi-regular variable stars have been
observed for decades and some are known to be polarimetrically variable,
however, the semi-regular variable V Canes Venatici displays an unusually
large, unexplained amount of polarization. We present ten years of optical
polarization observations obtained with the HPOL instrument, supplemented by
published observations spanning a total interval of about forty years for V
CVn. We find that V CVn shows large polarization variations ranging from 1 -
6%. We also find that for the past forty years the position angle measured for
V CVn has been virtually constant suggesting a long-term, stable, asymmetric
structure about the star. We suggest that this asymmetry is caused by the
presence of a stellar wind bow shock and tail, consistent with the star's large
space velocity.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication in A&
Spacelike distance from discrete causal order
Any discrete approach to quantum gravity must provide some prescription as to
how to deduce continuum properties from the discrete substructure. In the
causal set approach it is straightforward to deduce timelike distances, but
surprisingly difficult to extract spacelike distances, because of the unique
combination of discreteness with local Lorentz invariance in that approach. We
propose a number of methods to overcome this difficulty, one of which
reproduces the spatial distance between two points in a finite region of
Minkowski space. We provide numerical evidence that this definition can be used
to define a `spatial nearest neighbor' relation on a causal set, and conjecture
that this can be exploited to define the length of `continuous curves' in
causal sets which are approximated by curved spacetime. This provides evidence
in support of the ``Hauptvermutung'' of causal sets.Comment: 32 pages, 16 figures, revtex4; journal versio
Age of second language acquisition affects nonverbal conflict processing in children : an fMRI study
Background: In their daily communication, bilinguals switch between two languages, a process that involves the selection of a target language and minimization of interference from a nontarget language. Previous studies have uncovered the neural structure in bilinguals and the activation patterns associated with performing verbal conflict tasks. One question that remains, however is whether this extra verbal switching affects brain function during nonverbal conflict tasks.
Methods: In this study, we have used fMRI to investigate the impact of bilingualism in children performing two nonverbal tasks involving stimulus-stimulus and stimulus-response conflicts. Three groups of 8-11-year-old children - bilinguals from birth (2L1), second language learners (L2L), and a control group of monolinguals (1L1) - were scanned while performing a color Simon and a numerical Stroop task. Reaction times and accuracy were logged.
Results: Compared to monolingual controls, bilingual children showed higher behavioral congruency effect of these tasks, which is matched by the recruitment of brain regions that are generally used in general cognitive control, language processing or to solve language conflict situations in bilinguals (caudate nucleus, posterior cingulate gyrus, STG, precuneus). Further, the activation of these areas was found to be higher in 2L1 compared to L2L.
Conclusion: The coupling of longer reaction times to the recruitment of extra language-related brain areas supports the hypothesis that when dealing with language conflicts the specialization of bilinguals hampers the way they can process with nonverbal conflicts, at least at early stages in life
Billy Elliot The Musical: visual representations of working-class masculinity and the all-singing, all-dancing bo[d]y
According to Cynthia Weber, ‘[d]ance is commonly thought of as liberating, transformative, empowering, transgressive, and even as dangerous’. Yet ballet as a masculine activity still remains a suspect phenomenon. This paper will challenge this claim in relation to Billy Elliot the Musical and its critical reception. The transformation of the visual representation of the human body on stage (from
an ephemeral existence to a timeless work of art) will be discussed and analysed vis-a-vis the text and sub-texts of Stephen Daldry’s direction and Peter Darling’s
choreography. The dynamics of working-class masculinity will be contextualised within the framework of the family, the older female, the community, the self and
the act of dancing itself
Socially Induced Ovulation Synchrony and its Effect on Seabird Population Dynamics
Spontaneous oscillator synchrony is a form of self-organization in which populations of interacting oscillators ultimately cycle together. This phenomenon occurs in a wide range of physical and biological systems. In rats and humans, oestrous/menstrual cycles synchronize through social stimulation with pheromones acting as synchronizing signals. In previous work, we showed that glaucous-winged gulls (Larus glaucescens) can lay eggs synchronously on an every-other-day schedule, and that synchrony increases with colony density. We posed a discrete-time mathematical model for reproduction during the breeding season based on the hypothesis that pre-ovulatory luteinizing hormone surges synchronize by means of visual, auditory and/or olfactory cues. Here, we extend the seasonal model in order to investigate the effect of ovulation synchrony on population dynamics across reproductive seasons. We show that socially stimulated ovulation synchrony can enhance total population size and allow the population to persist at lower birth rates than would otherwise be possible. © 2011 Taylor & Francis
Spectral geometry as a probe of quantum spacetime
Employing standard results from spectral geometry, we provide strong evidence
that in the classical limit the ground state of three-dimensional causal
dynamical triangulations is de Sitter spacetime. This result is obtained by
measuring the expectation value of the spectral dimension on the ensemble of
geometries defined by these models, and comparing its large scale behaviour to
that of a sphere (Euclidean de Sitter). From the same measurement we are also
able to confirm the phenomenon of dynamical dimensional reduction observed in
this and other approaches to quantum gravity -- the first time this has been
done for three-dimensional causal dynamical triangulations. In this case, the
value for the short-scale limit of the spectral dimension that we find is
approximately 2. We comment on the relevance of these results for the
comparison to asymptotic safety and Horava-Lifshitz gravity, among other
approaches to quantum gravity.Comment: 25 pages, 6 figures. Version 2: references to figures added,
acknowledgment added
Applying causality principles to the axiomatization of probabilistic cellular automata
Cellular automata (CA) consist of an array of identical cells, each of which
may take one of a finite number of possible states. The entire array evolves in
discrete time steps by iterating a global evolution G. Further, this global
evolution G is required to be shift-invariant (it acts the same everywhere) and
causal (information cannot be transmitted faster than some fixed number of
cells per time step). At least in the classical, reversible and quantum cases,
these two top-down axiomatic conditions are sufficient to entail more
bottom-up, operational descriptions of G. We investigate whether the same is
true in the probabilistic case. Keywords: Characterization, noise, Markov
process, stochastic Einstein locality, screening-off, common cause principle,
non-signalling, Multi-party non-local box.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figures, LaTeX, v2: refs adde
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