958 research outputs found
On detecting the gravitomagnetic field of the earth by means of orbiting clocks
Based on the recent finding that the difference in proper time of two clocks
in prograde and retrograde equatorial orbits about the Earth is of the order
10^{-7}s per revolution, the possibility of detecting the terrestrial
gravitomagnetic field by means of clocks carried by satellites is discussed. A
mission taking advantage of this influence of the rotating Earth on the proper
time is outlined and the conceptual difficulties are briefly examined.Comment: Talk given at the 32nd COSPAR Scientific Assembly, held at Nagoya,
Japan, 12-19 July 1998, 4 pages LATE
Cortical brain activity is influenced by cadence in cyclists
The importance of the central nervous system in endurance exercise has not yet been exhaustively investigated because of difficulties in measuring cortical parameters in sport science. During exercise there are a lot of artifacts and perturbations which can affect signal quality of cortical brain activity. The technical developments of surface electroencephalography (EEG) minimize such influences during standardized test conditions on a bicycle ergometer. The aim of this study was to investigate how movement frequency affects cortical brain activity and established physiological parameters during exercise. In cycling peak performance is affected by cadence. The analysis of brain cortical activity might lead to new insights in the relation of power and cadence. In a laboratory study sixteen male, endurance-trained cyclists completed a 60 min endurance exercise on a high-performance bicycle ergometer. Cadence was changed every 10 min (90-120-60-120-60-90 rpm). EEG was used to analyze changes in cortical brain activity. Furthermore, heart rate, blood lactate and rate of perceived exertion (RPE) were measured after each cadence change. The results indicate that heart rate, blood lactate and RPE were higher at 120 rpm compared to 60 rpm. The spectral EEG power increased statistically significantly in the alpha-2 and beta-2 frequency range by changing cadence from 60 to 120 rpm. By lowering the cadence from 120 to 60 rpm the spectral power dropped statistically significantly in all analyzed EEG frequency bands. The data also showed a statistically significant decrease of spectral EEG power in all frequency ranges over time. In conclusion, the analyzed EEG data indicate that cadence should be considered as an independent exercise normative in the training process, because it directly influences metabolic, cardiac and cortical parameters
On the theory of the skewon field: From electrodynamics to gravity
The Maxwell equations expressed in terms of the excitation and the field strength are metric-free and require an
additional constitutive law in order to represent a complete set of field
equations. In vacuum, we call this law the ``spacetime relation''. We assume it
to be local and linear. Then encompasses 36
permittivity/permeability functions characterizing the electromagnetic
properties of the vacuum. These 36 functions can be grouped into 20+15+1
functions. Thereof, 20 functions finally yield the dilaton field and the metric
of spacetime, 1 function represents the axion field, and 15 functions the
(traceless) skewon field \notS_i{}^j (S slash), with . The
hypothesis of the existence of \notS_i{}^j was proposed by three of us in
2002. In this paper we discuss some of the properties of the skewon field, like
its electromagnetic energy density, its possible coupling to Einstein-Cartan
gravity, and its corresponding gravitational energy.Comment: latex-file, 15 pages, 1 figur
A teleparallel model for the neutrino
The main result of the paper is a new representation for the Weyl Lagrangian
(massless Dirac Lagrangian). As the dynamical variable we use the coframe, i.e.
an orthonormal tetrad of covector fields. We write down a simple Lagrangian -
wedge product of axial torsion with a lightlike element of the coframe - and
show that variation of the resulting action with respect to the coframe
produces the Weyl equation. The advantage of our approach is that it does not
require the use of spinors, Pauli matrices or covariant differentiation. The
only geometric concepts we use are those of a metric, differential form, wedge
product and exterior derivative. Our result assigns a variational meaning to
the tetrad representation of the Weyl equation suggested by J.B.Griffiths and
R.A.Newing.Comment: 4 pages, REVTe
A gauge theoretical view of the charge concept in Einstein gravity
We will discuss some analogies between internal gauge theories and gravity in
order to better understand the charge concept in gravity. A dimensional
analysis of gauge theories in general and a strict definition of elementary,
monopole, and topological charges are applied to electromagnetism and to
teleparallelism, a gauge theoretical formulation of Einstein gravity.
As a result we inevitably find that the gravitational coupling constant has
dimension , the mass parameter of a particle dimension ,
and the Schwarzschild mass parameter dimension l (where l means length). These
dimensions confirm the meaning of mass as elementary and as monopole charge of
the translation group, respectively. In detail, we find that the Schwarzschild
mass parameter is a quasi-electric monopole charge of the time translation
whereas the NUT parameter is a quasi-magnetic monopole charge of the time
translation as well as a topological charge. The Kerr parameter and the
electric and magnetic charges are interpreted similarly. We conclude that each
elementary charge of a Casimir operator of the gauge group is the source of a
(quasi-electric) monopole charge of the respective Killing vector.Comment: LaTeX2e, 16 pages, 1 figure; enhanced discussio
ON NON-RIEMANNIAN PARALLEL TRANSPORT IN REGGE CALCULUS
We discuss the possibility of incorporating non-Riemannian parallel transport
into Regge calculus. It is shown that every Regge lattice is locally equivalent
to a space of constant curvature. Therefore well known-concepts of differential
geometry imply the definition of an arbitrary linear affine connection on a
Regge lattice.Comment: 12 pages, Plain-TEX, two figures (available from the author
Regge Calculus in Teleparallel Gravity
In the context of the teleparallel equivalent of general relativity, the
Weitzenbock manifold is considered as the limit of a suitable sequence of
discrete lattices composed of an increasing number of smaller an smaller
simplices, where the interior of each simplex (Delaunay lattice) is assumed to
be flat. The link lengths between any pair of vertices serve as independent
variables, so that torsion turns out to be localized in the two dimensional
hypersurfaces (dislocation triangle, or hinge) of the lattice. Assuming that a
vector undergoes a dislocation in relation to its initial position as it is
parallel transported along the perimeter of the dual lattice (Voronoi polygon),
we obtain the discrete analogue of the teleparallel action, as well as the
corresponding simplicial vacuum field equations.Comment: Latex, 10 pages, 2 eps figures, to appear in Class. Quant. Gra
Weyl's Lagrangian in teleparallel form
The main result of the paper is a new representation for the Weyl Lagrangian
(massless Dirac Lagrangian). As the dynamical variable we use the coframe, i.e.
an orthonormal tetrad of covector fields. We write down a simple Lagrangian -
wedge product of axial torsion with a lightlike element of the coframe - and
show that this gives the Weyl Lagrangian up to a nonlinear change of dynamical
variable. The advantage of our approach is that it does not require the use of
spinors, Pauli matrices or covariant differentiation. The only geometric
concepts we use are those of a metric, differential form, wedge product and
exterior derivative. Our result assigns a variational meaning to the tetrad
representation of the Weyl equation suggested by J. B. Griffiths and R. A.
Newing
Solvent contribution to the stability of a physical gel characterized by quasi-elastic neutron scattering
The dynamics of a physical gel, namely the Low Molecular Mass Organic Gelator
{\textit Methyl-4,6-O-benzylidene- -D-mannopyranoside (-manno)}
in water and toluene are probed by neutron scattering. Using high gelator
concentrations, we were able to determine, on a timescale from a few ps to 1
ns, the number of solvent molecules that are immobilised by the rigid network
formed by the gelators. We found that only few toluene molecules per gelator
participate to the network which is formed by hydrogen bonding between the
gelators' sugar moieties. In water, however, the interactions leading to the
gel formations are weaker, involving dipolar, hydrophobic or
interactions and hydrogen bonds are formed between the gelators and the
surrounding water. Therefore, around 10 to 14 water molecules per gelator are
immobilised by the presence of the network. This study shows that neutron
scattering can give valuable information about the behaviour of solvent
confined in a molecular gel.Comment: Langmuir (2015
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