Quantum Fluctuation Theorems

Recent advances in experimental techniques allow one to measure and control systems at the level of single molecules and atoms. Here gaining information about fluctuating thermodynamic quantities is crucial for understanding nonequilibrium thermodynamic behavior of small systems. To achieve this aim, stochastic thermodynamics offers a theoretical framework, and nonequilibrium equalities such as Jarzynski equality and fluctuation theorems provide key information about the fluctuating thermodynamic quantities. We review the recent progress in quantum fluctuation theorems, including the studies of Maxwell's demon which plays a crucial role in connecting thermodynamics with information.Comment: As a chapter of: F. Binder, L. A. Correa, C. Gogolin, J. Anders, and G. Adesso (eds.), "Thermodynamics in the quantum regime - Fundamental Aspects and New Directions", (Springer International Publishing, 2018

Acoel Flatworms Are Not Platyhelminthes: Evidence from Phylogenomics

Acoel flatworms are small marine worms traditionally considered to belong to the phylum Platyhelminthes. However, molecular phylogenetic analyses suggest that acoels are not members of Platyhelminthes, but are rather extant members of the earliest diverging Bilateria. This result has been called into question, under suspicions of a long branch attraction (LBA) artefact. Here we re-examine this problem through a phylogenomic approach using 68 different protein-coding genes from the acoel Convoluta pulchra and 51 metazoan species belonging to 15 different phyla. We employ a mixture model, named CAT, previously found to overcome LBA artefacts where classical models fail. Our results unequivocally show that acoels are not part of the classically defined Platyhelminthes, making the latter polyphyletic. Moreover, they indicate a deuterostome affinity for acoels, potentially as a sister group to all deuterostomes, to Xenoturbellida, to Ambulacraria, or even to chordates. However, the weak support found for most deuterostome nodes, together with the very fast evolutionary rate of the acoel Convoluta pulchra, call for more data from slowly evolving acoels (or from its sister-group, the Nemertodermatida) to solve this challenging phylogenetic problem

DFT-inspired methods for quantum thermodynamics

In the framework of quantum thermodynamics, we propose a method to quantitatively describe thermodynamic quantities for out-of-equilibrium interacting many-body systems. The method is articulated in various approximation protocols which allow to achieve increasing levels of accuracy, it is relatively simple to implement even for medium and large number of interactive particles, and uses tools and concepts from density functional theory. We test the method on the driven Hubbard dimer at half filling, and compare exact and approximate results. We show that the proposed method reproduces the average quantum work to high accuracy: for a very large region of parameter space (which cuts across all dynamical regimes) estimates are within 10% of the exact results

Wine and music (III): so what if music influences the taste of the wine?

A growing body of evidence, both anecdotal and scientifically rigorous, now points to the fact that what people taste when evaluating a wine, not to mention how much they enjoy the experience, can be influenced by the specifics of any music that happens to be playing at the same time. The question that we wish to address here is ‘So what?’ Why should anyone care that music (or, for that matter, specially composed soundscapes) exert(s) a crossmodal influence over the wine-tasting experience? ‘Why not just drink great wine and forget about the music?’ a sceptic might ask. Here, we outline a number of the uses that such research findings have been put to in the marketplace, in experiential events, in artistic performances, and in terms of furthering our theoretical understanding of those factors that influence the tasting experience. We also highlight how the latest in technology (think sensory apps and hyperdirectional loudspeakers, not to mention digitally augmented glassware) augurs well for those wanting to deliver the most stimulating, the most memorable, and certainly the most multisensory of tasting experiences in the years to come. Demonstrations of sound’s influence on wine perception will most likely be applicable to a variety of other drinks and foods too. Ultimately, the argument is forwarded that there are many reasons, both theoretical and applied, as to why we should all care about the fact that what we listen to can change the sensory-discriminative, the descriptive, and the hedonic attributes of what we taste