20,214 research outputs found
Derived Subgroups of Fixed Points in Profinite Groups
The main result of this paper is the following theorem. Let q be a prime, A
an elementary abelian group of order q^3. Suppose that A acts as a coprime
group of automorphisms on a profinite group G in such a manner that C_G(a)' is
periodic for each nontrivial element a in A. Then G' is locally finite.Comment: To appear in Glasgow Mathematical Journal (2011). 11 page
Born-Infeld magnetars: larger than classical toroidal magnetic fields and implications for gravitational-wave astronomy
Magnetars are neutron stars presenting bursts and outbursts of X- and
soft-gamma rays that can be understood with the presence of very large magnetic
fields. Thus, nonlinear electrodynamics should be taken into account for a more
accurate description of such compact systems. We study that in the context of
ideal magnetohydrodynamics and make a realization of our analysis to the case
of the well-known Born-Infeld (BI) electromagnetism in order to come up with
some of its astrophysical consequences. We focus here on toroidal magnetic
fields as motivated by already known magnetars with low dipolar magnetic fields
and their expected relevance in highly magnetized stars. We show that BI
electrodynamics leads to larger toroidal magnetic fields when compared to
Maxwell's electrodynamics. Hence, one should expect higher production of
gravitational waves (GWs) and even more energetic giant flares from nonlinear
stars. Given current constraints on BI's scale field, giant flare energetics
and magnetic fields in magnetars, we also find that the maximum magnitude of
magnetar ellipticities should be . Besides, BI electrodynamics
may lead to a maximum increase of order of the GW energy radiated
from a magnetar when compared to Maxwell's, while much larger percentages may
arise for other physically motivated scenarios. Thus, nonlinear theories of the
electromagnetism might also be probed in the near future with the improvement
of GW detectors.Comment: 8 pages, no figures, accepted for publication in The European
Physical Journal C (EPJC
Investigating annual and monthly trends in precipitation structure: an overview across Portugal
This work investigates recent changes in precipitation patterns manifested in long annual and monthly precipitation time series recorded in Portugal. The dataset comprises records from 14 meteorological stations scattered over mainland Portugal and the Portuguese North Atlantic Islands of Madeira and Azores; some of the time series date back to the 19th century. The data were tested for trends using the Mann-Kendall non-parametric test and Sen's non-parametric method, searching both for full monotonic trends over the record period and for partial trends. Results provide no evidence for rejecting the null hypothesis of no trend in annual precipitation, when a monotonic linear model was used. Nevertheless, the analyses of 50 years' moving averages showed an increase over time, in the recent past, for many of the series in mainland Portugal and the Islands. For the longest time series this behaviour was preceded by a decrease over time. The analyses of partial trends in the time series suggested a sequence of alternately decreasing and increasing trends in annual and monthly precipitation, which are sometimes statistically significant. The trend changing points were identified
Monte Carlo Simulations of Some Dynamical Aspects of Drop Formation
In this work we present some results from computer simulations of dynamical
aspects of drop formation in a leaky faucet. Our results, which agree very well
with the experiments, suggest that only a few elements, at the microscopic
level, would be necessary to describe the most important features of the
system. We were able to set all parameters of the model in terms of real ones.
This is an additional advantage with respect to previous theoretical works.Comment: 7 pages (Latex), 6 figures (PS) Accepted to publication in Int. J.
Mod. Phys. C Source Codes at http://www.if.uff.br/~arlim
Sliding Blocks Revisited: A simulational Study
A computational study of sliding blocks on inclined surfaces is presented.
Assuming that the friction coefficient is a function of position, the
probability for the block to slide down over a length is
numerically calculated. Our results are consistent with recent experimental
data suggesting a power-law distribution of events over a wide range of
displacements when the chute angle is close to the critical one, and suggest
that the variation of along the surface is responsible for this.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures. submitted to Int. J. Mod. Phys. (Proc. Brazilian
Wokshop on Simulational Physics
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