4,389 research outputs found
Regulating the Sharing Economy
In this introductory essay, we explore definitions of the ‘sharing economy’, a concept indicating both social (relational, communitarian) and economic (allocative, profit-seeking) aspects which appear to be in tension. We suggest combining the social and economic logics of the sharing economy to focus on the central features of network enabled, aggregated membership in a pool of offers and demands (for goods, services, creative expressions). This definition of the sharing economy distinguishes it from other related peer-to-peer and collaborative forms of production. Understanding the social and economic motivations for and implications of participating in the sharing economy is important to its regulation. Each of the papers in this special issue contributes to knowledge by linking the social and economic aspects of sharing economy practices to regulatory norms and mechanisms. We conclude this essay by suggesting future research to further clarify and render intelligible the sharing economy, not as a contradiction in terms but as an empirically observable realm of socio-economic activity
Capturing an Evolving Nebular Environment: A Petrographic and Geochemical Study of a Type A, B & C CAI
Calcium, Aluminum-rich Inclusions (CAIs) were the first formed solids in our Solar System, with mineral assemblages reflecting the first phases predicted to condense out of a hot nebular gas of Solar composition. Geochemical, textural and crystallographic information in CAIs can be used to constrain the temperature, pressure, and composition (e.g., oxygen fugacity) of the gaseous reservoir(s) from which they formed, as well as any secondary (nebular and parent body) processes they underwent. Coordinated geochemical and textural analyses provide information on nebular conditions (i.e., astrophysical environments and dynamics of nebular gas reservoirs) in which these CAIs formed. In order to better understand the evolution of nebular reservoirs at the time of CAI formation, we analyzed a Type A, B and C CAI using Electron Probe Micro-Analyzer (EPMA) and Electron BackScatter Diffraction (EBSD) at NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC)
An Exact Prediction of N=4 SUSYM Theory for String Theory
We propose that the expectation value of a circular BPS-Wilson loop in N=4
SUSYM can be calculated exactly, to all orders in a 1/N expansion and to all
orders in g^2 N. Using the AdS/CFT duality, this result yields a prediction of
the value of the string amplitude with a circular boundary to all orders in
alpha' and to all orders in g_s. We then compare this result with string
theory. We find that the gauge theory calculation, for large g^2 N and to all
orders in the 1/N^2 expansion does agree with the leading string theory
calculation, to all orders in g_s and to lowest order in alpha'. We also find a
relation between the expectation value of any closed smooth Wilson loop and the
loop related to it by an inversion that takes a point along the loop to
infinity, and compare this result, again successfully, with string theory.Comment: LaTeX, 22 pages, 3 figures. Argument corrected and two new sections
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Ferromagnetism in the Mott insulator Ba2NaOsO6
Results are presented of single crystal structural, thermodynamic, and
reflectivity measurements of the double-perovskite Ba2NaOsO6. These
characterize the material as a 5d^1 ferromagnetic Mott insulator with an
ordered moment of ~0.2 Bohr magnetons per formula unit and TC = 6.8(3) K. The
magnetic entropy associated with this phase transition is close to Rln2,
indicating that the quartet groundstate anticipated from consideration of the
crystal structure is split, consistent with a scenario in which the
ferromagnetism is associated with orbital ordering.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, added reference
Recoil Corrections of Order to the Hydrogen Energy Levels Revisited
The recoil correction of order to the hydrogen energy
levels is recalculated and a discrepancy existing in the literature on this
correction for the 1S energy level, is resolved. An analytic expression for the
correction to the S-levels with arbitrary principal quantum number is obtained.Comment: 17 pages, ReVTe
Two-Loop Self-Energy Corrections to the Fine-Structure
We investigate two-loop higher-order binding corrections to the fine
structure, which contribute to the spin-dependent part of the Lamb shift. Our
calculation focuses on the so-called ``two-loop self-energy'' involving two
virtual closed photon loops. For bound states, this correction has proven to be
notoriously difficult to evaluate. The calculation of the binding corrections
to the bound-state two-loop self-energy is simplified by a separate treatment
of hard and soft virtual photons. The two photon-energy scales are matched at
the end of the calculation. We explain the significance of the mathematical
methods employed in the calculation in a more general context, and present
results for the fine-structure difference of the two-loop self-energy through
the order of .Comment: 19 pages, LaTeX, 2 figures; J. Phys. A (in press); added analytic
results for two-loop form-factor slopes (by P. Mastrolia and E. Remiddi
Effects of diet on resource utilization by a model human gut microbiota containing Bacteroides cellulosilyticus WH2, a symbiont with an extensive glycobiome
The human gut microbiota is an important metabolic organ, yet little is known about how its individual species interact, establish dominant positions, and respond to changes in environmental factors such as diet. In this study, gnotobiotic mice were colonized with an artificial microbiota comprising 12 sequenced human gut bacterial species and fed oscillating diets of disparate composition. Rapid, reproducible, and reversible changes in the structure of this assemblage were observed. Time-series microbial RNA-Seq analyses revealed staggered functional responses to diet shifts throughout the assemblage that were heavily focused on carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism. High-resolution shotgun metaproteomics confirmed many of these responses at a protein level. One member, Bacteroides cellulosilyticus WH2, proved exceptionally fit regardless of diet. Its genome encoded more carbohydrate active enzymes than any previously sequenced member of the Bacteroidetes. Transcriptional profiling indicated that B. cellulosilyticus WH2 is an adaptive forager that tailors its versatile carbohydrate utilization strategy to available dietary polysaccharides, with a strong emphasis on plant-derived xylans abundant in dietary staples like cereal grains. Two highly expressed, diet-specific polysaccharide utilization loci (PULs) in B. cellulosilyticus WH2 were identified, one with characteristics of xylan utilization systems. Introduction of a B. cellulosilyticus WH2 library comprising >90,000 isogenic transposon mutants into gnotobiotic mice, along with the other artificial community members, confirmed that these loci represent critical diet-specific fitness determinants. Carbohydrates that trigger dramatic increases in expression of these two loci and many of the organism's 111 other predicted PULs were identified by RNA-Seq during in vitro growth on 31 distinct carbohydrate substrates, allowing us to better interpret in vivo RNA-Seq and proteomics data. These results offer insight into how gut microbes adapt to dietary perturbations at both a community level and from the perspective of a well-adapted symbiont with exceptional saccharolytic capabilities, and illustrate the value of artificial communities
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