Budget-restricted utility games with ordered strategic decisions

We introduce the concept of budget games. Players choose a set of tasks and each task has a certain demand on every resource in the game. Each resource has a budget. If the budget is not enough to satisfy the sum of all demands, it has to be shared between the tasks. We study strategic budget games, where the budget is shared proportionally. We also consider a variant in which the order of the strategic decisions influences the distribution of the budgets. The complexity of the optimal solution as well as existence, complexity and quality of equilibria are analyzed. Finally, we show that the time an ordered budget game needs to convergence towards an equilibrium may be exponential

Image Reconstruction with a LaBr3-based Rotational Modulator

A rotational modulator (RM) gamma-ray imager is capable of obtaining significantly better angular resolution than the fundamental geometric resolution defined by the ratio of detector diameter to mask-detector separation. An RM imager consisting of a single grid of absorbing slats rotating ahead of an array of a small number of position-insensitive detectors has the advantage of fewer detector elements (i.e., detector plane pixels) than required by a coded aperture imaging system with comparable angular resolution. The RM therefore offers the possibility of a major reduction in instrument complexity, cost, and power. A novel image reconstruction technique makes it possible to deconvolve the raw images, remove sidelobes, reduce the effects of noise, and provide resolving power a factor of 6 - 8 times better than the geometric resolution. A 19-channel prototype RM developed in our laboratory at Louisiana State University features 13.8 deg full-angle field of view, 1.9 deg geometric angular resolution, and the capability of resolving sources to within 35' separation. We describe the technique, demonstrate the measured performance of the prototype instrument, and describe the prospects for applying the technique to either a high-sensitivity standoff gamma-ray imaging detector or a satellite- or balloon-borne gamma-ray astronomy telescope.Comment: submitted to Nuclear Instrument & Methods, special edition: SORMA 2010 on June 16, 201

Barrier lake formation due to landslide impacting a river: A numerical study using a double layer-averaged two-phase flow model

A granular landslide impacting a river may lead to the formation of a landslide dam blocking the streamflow, and subsequently create a barrier lake. Should a barrier lake outburst, the flood may be destructive and spell disastrous consequences downstream. The last decade or so has witnessed a number of experimental and numerical investigations on barrier lake outburst flooding, whilst studies on barrier lake formation remain rare – a physically enhanced and practically viable mathematical model is still missing. Generally, barrier lake formation is characterized by multi-physical, interactive processes between water flow, multi-sized sediment transport and morphological evolution. Here, a new double layer-averaged two-phase flow model is proposed, which is an advance on existing continuum models that involve a single-phase flow assumption and presume a single sediment size, and discrete models that preclude fine grains and assume narrow grain size distributions. The proposed model is first validated against data from previous laboratory experiments of waves due to landslides impacting reservoirs and landslide dam formation over dry valleys. Then it is applied to explore the complicated mechanism and threshold for barrier lake formation. The water and grain velocities are shown to be disparate, characterizing the primary role of grains in driving water movement during subaqueous landslide motion and also demonstrating the need for a two-phase flow approach. The grain size effects are revealed, i.e., coarse grains and grain-size uniformity favour barrier lake formation. A new threshold condition is proposed for barrier lake formation, integrating the landslide-to-river momentum ratio and grain size effects. The present work facilitates a promising modelling framework for solving barrier lake formation, thereby underpinning the assessment of flood hazards due to barrier lakes

Black-odorous water bodies annual dynamics in the context of climate change adaptation in Guangzhou City, China

Black-odorous water (BOW) in urban areas has brought detrimental ecological effects and posed a threat to the health of surrounding residents. Identifying BOWs in urban areas is difficult because they are usually small in area, and discontinuous in spatial distribution. The efforts to adapt to climate change in cities have a direct connection to urban environment and may affect the dynamics of BOWs, but their relationship has seldom been addressed in previous research. This research builds a new urban BOW detection model using Gaofen (GF) images and ground-level in-situ water quality data to detect the spatiotemporal dynamics of BOWs in Guangzhou City's main urban area from 2016 to 2020, when comprehensive climate adaptation strategy has been implemented as a pilot metropolitan area in China. Spatial analysis in the study area with a total of 97 focused rivers revealed a decreasing trend in BOW occurrence (from 85.57% in 2016 to 21.65% in 2020) in the context of climate change adaptation efforts. Redundancy analysis between BOWs occurrence and environmental factors showed that across the entire study area, the contributions of anthropogenic factors (highest proportion at 14.3% for the area percentage of built-ups) to BOW, such as population density, agricultural water use, domestic water use, and so on, distinctly stronger than climatic drivers (largest contribution of 4.4% for temperature). The results suggested that climate change adaptation efforts help to decrease BOW occurrence in the study area, while exploring the response mechanism between climate change adaptation measures and the changes of BOWs is necessary in the future research. The findings were conducive to the development of targeted measures to decrease the occurrence of urban BOWs while improving adaptability of the city to climate change

Does femtosecond time-resolved second-harmonic generation probe electron temperatures at surfaces?

Femtosecond pump-probe second-harmonic generation (SHG) and transient linear reflectivity measurements were carried out on polycrystalline Cu, Ag and Au in air to analyze whether the electron temperature affects Fresnel factors or nonlinear susceptibilities, or both. Sensitivity to electron temperatures was attained by using photon energies near the interband transition threshold. We find that the nonlinear susceptibility carries the electron temperature dependence in case of Ag and Au, while for Cu the dependence is in the Fresnel factors. This contrasting behavior emphasizes that SHG is not a priori sensitive to electron dynamics at surfaces or interfaces, notwithstanding its cause.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure

Gravitational Correction and Weak Gravity Conjecture

We consider the gravitational correction to the running of gauge coupling. Weak gravity conjecture implies that the gauge theories break down when the gravitational correction becomes greater than the contribution from gauge theories. This observation can be generalized to non-Abelian gauge theories in diverse dimensions and the cases with large extra dimensions.Comment: 8 pages; minor correction and refs adde

Three-generation flavor transitions and decays of supernova relic neutrinos

If neutrinos have mass, they can also decay. Decay lifetimes of cosmological interest can be probed, in principle, through the detection of the redshifted, diffuse neutrino flux produced by all past supernovae--the so-called supernova relic neutrino (SRN) flux. In this work, we solve the SRN kinetic equations in the general case of three-generation flavor transitions followed by invisible (nonradiative) two-body decays. We then use the general solution to calculate observable SRN spectra in some representative decay scenarios. It is shown that, in the presence of decay, the SRN event rate can basically span the whole range below the current experimental upper bound--a range accessible to future experimental projects. Radiative SRN decays are also briefly discussed.Comment: 25 pages, including 7 figure