944 research outputs found
IIB Soliton Spectra with All Fluxes Activated
Building upon an earlier proposal for the classification of fluxes, a
sequence is proposed which generalizes the AHSS by computing type IIB string
theory's group of conserved RR and also NS charges, which is conjectured to be
a K-theory of dual pairs. As a test, the formalism of Maldacena, Moore and
Seiberg (hep-th/0108100) is applied to classify D-branes, NS5-branes, F-strings
and their dielectric counterparts in IIB compactified on a 3-sphere with both
NS and RR background fluxes. The soliton spectra on the 3-sphere are then
compared with the output of the sequence, as is the baryon spectrum in Witten's
non-spin^c example, AdS^5xRP^5. The group of conserved charges is seen to
change during Brown-Teitelboim-like phase transitions which change the
effective cosmological constant.Comment: 34 pages, 7 eps figure
Marginal and Relevant Deformations of N=4 Field Theories and Non-Commutative Moduli Spaces of Vacua
We study marginal and relevant supersymmetric deformations of the N=4
super-Yang-Mills theory in four dimensions. Our primary innovation is the
interpretation of the moduli spaces of vacua of these theories as
non-commutative spaces. The construction of these spaces relies on the
representation theory of the related quantum algebras, which are obtained from
F-term constraints. These field theories are dual to superstring theories
propagating on deformations of the AdS_5xS^5 geometry. We study D-branes
propagating in these vacua and introduce the appropriate notion of algebraic
geometry for non-commutative spaces. The resulting moduli spaces of D-branes
have several novel features. In particular, they may be interpreted as
symmetric products of non-commutative spaces. We show how mirror symmetry
between these deformed geometries and orbifold theories follows from T-duality.
Many features of the dual closed string theory may be identified within the
non-commutative algebra. In particular, we make progress towards understanding
the K-theory necessary for backgrounds where the Neveu-Schwarz antisymmetric
tensor of the string is turned on, and we shed light on some aspects of
discrete anomalies based on the non-commutative geometry.Comment: 60 pages, 4 figures, JHEP format, amsfonts, amssymb, amsmat
Optical Properties of III-Mn-V Ferromagnetic Semiconductors
We review the first decade of extensive optical studies of ferromagnetic,
III-Mn-V diluted magnetic semiconductors. Mn introduces holes and local moments
to the III-V host, which can result in carrier mediated ferromagnetism in these
disordered semiconductors. Spectroscopic experiments provide direct access to
the strength and nature of the exchange between holes and local moments; the
degree of itineracy of the carriers; and the evolution of the states at the
Fermi energy with doping. Taken together, diversity of optical methods reveal
that Mn is an unconventional dopant, in that the metal to insulator transition
is governed by the strength of the hybridization between Mn and its p-nictogen
neighbor. The interplay between the optical, electronic and magnetic properties
of III-Mn-V magnetic semiconductors is of fundamental interest and may enable
future spin-optoelectronic devices.Comment: Topical Revie
M(atrix) Theory: Matrix Quantum Mechanics as a Fundamental Theory
A self-contained review is given of the matrix model of M-theory. The
introductory part of the review is intended to be accessible to the general
reader. M-theory is an eleven-dimensional quantum theory of gravity which is
believed to underlie all superstring theories. This is the only candidate at
present for a theory of fundamental physics which reconciles gravity and
quantum field theory in a potentially realistic fashion. Evidence for the
existence of M-theory is still only circumstantial---no complete
background-independent formulation of the theory yet exists. Matrix theory was
first developed as a regularized theory of a supersymmetric quantum membrane.
More recently, the theory appeared in a different guise as the discrete
light-cone quantization of M-theory in flat space. These two approaches to
matrix theory are described in detail and compared. It is shown that matrix
theory is a well-defined quantum theory which reduces to a supersymmetric
theory of gravity at low energies. Although the fundamental degrees of freedom
of matrix theory are essentially pointlike, it is shown that higher-dimensional
fluctuating objects (branes) arise through the nonabelian structure of the
matrix degrees of freedom. The problem of formulating matrix theory in a
general space-time background is discussed, and the connections between matrix
theory and other related models are reviewed.Comment: 56 pages, 3 figures, LaTeX, revtex style; v2: references adde
Locating the Social and Political in Secondary School Literacy
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/88064/1/RRQ.33.1.6.pd
Transport Properties of the Quark-Gluon Plasma -- A Lattice QCD Perspective
Transport properties of a thermal medium determine how its conserved charge
densities (for instance the electric charge, energy or momentum) evolve as a
function of time and eventually relax back to their equilibrium values. Here
the transport properties of the quark-gluon plasma are reviewed from a
theoretical perspective. The latter play a key role in the description of
heavy-ion collisions, and are an important ingredient in constraining particle
production processes in the early universe. We place particular emphasis on
lattice QCD calculations of conserved current correlators. These Euclidean
correlators are related by an integral transform to spectral functions, whose
small-frequency form determines the transport properties via Kubo formulae. The
universal hydrodynamic predictions for the small-frequency pole structure of
spectral functions are summarized. The viability of a quasiparticle description
implies the presence of additional characteristic features in the spectral
functions. These features are in stark contrast with the functional form that
is found in strongly coupled plasmas via the gauge/gravity duality. A central
goal is therefore to determine which of these dynamical regimes the quark-gluon
plasma is qualitatively closer to as a function of temperature. We review the
analysis of lattice correlators in relation to transport properties, and
tentatively estimate what computational effort is required to make decisive
progress in this field.Comment: 54 pages, 37 figures, review written for EPJA and APPN; one parag.
added end of section 3.4, and one at the end of section 3.2.2; some Refs.
added, and some other minor change
Black Holes as Effective Geometries
Gravitational entropy arises in string theory via coarse graining over an
underlying space of microstates. In this review we would like to address the
question of how the classical black hole geometry itself arises as an effective
or approximate description of a pure state, in a closed string theory, which
semiclassical observers are unable to distinguish from the "naive" geometry. In
cases with enough supersymmetry it has been possible to explicitly construct
these microstates in spacetime, and understand how coarse-graining of
non-singular, horizon-free objects can lead to an effective description as an
extremal black hole. We discuss how these results arise for examples in Type II
string theory on AdS_5 x S^5 and on AdS_3 x S^3 x T^4 that preserve 16 and 8
supercharges respectively. For such a picture of black holes as effective
geometries to extend to cases with finite horizon area the scale of quantum
effects in gravity would have to extend well beyond the vicinity of the
singularities in the effective theory. By studying examples in M-theory on
AdS_3 x S^2 x CY that preserve 4 supersymmetries we show how this can happen.Comment: Review based on lectures of JdB at CERN RTN Winter School and of VB
at PIMS Summer School. 68 pages. Added reference
Brain mechanisms of acoustic communication in humans and nonhuman primates: An evolutionary perspective
Any account of “what is special about the human brain” (Passingham 2008) must specify the neural basis of our unique ability to produce speech and delineate how these remarkable motor capabilities could have emerged in our hominin ancestors. Clinical data suggest that the basal ganglia provide a platform for the integration of primate-general mechanisms of acoustic communication with the faculty of articulate speech in humans. Furthermore, neurobiological and paleoanthropological data point at a two-stage model of the phylogenetic evolution of this crucial prerequisite of spoken language: (i) monosynaptic refinement of the projections of motor cortex to the brainstem nuclei that steer laryngeal muscles, presumably, as part of a “phylogenetic trend” associated with increasing brain size during hominin evolution; (ii) subsequent vocal-laryngeal elaboration of cortico-basal ganglia circuitries, driven by human-specific FOXP2 mutations.;>This concept implies vocal continuity of spoken language evolution at the motor level, elucidating the deep entrenchment of articulate speech into a “nonverbal matrix” (Ingold 1994), which is not accounted for by gestural-origin theories. Moreover, it provides a solution to the question for the adaptive value of the “first word” (Bickerton 2009) since even the earliest and most simple verbal utterances must have increased the versatility of vocal displays afforded by the preceding elaboration of monosynaptic corticobulbar tracts, giving rise to enhanced social cooperation and prestige. At the ontogenetic level, the proposed model assumes age-dependent interactions between the basal ganglia and their cortical targets, similar to vocal learning in some songbirds. In this view, the emergence of articulate speech builds on the “renaissance” of an ancient organizational principle and, hence, may represent an example of “evolutionary tinkering” (Jacob 1977)
The fuzzball proposal for black holes
The fuzzball proposal states that associated with a black hole of entropy S
there are exp S horizon-free non-singular solutions that asymptotically look
like the black hole but generically differ from the black hole up to the
horizon scale. These solutions, the fuzzballs, are considered to be the black
hole microstates while the original black hole represents the average
description of the system. The purpose of this report is to review current
evidence for the fuzzball proposal, emphasizing the use of AdS/CFT methods in
developing and testing the proposal. In particular, we discuss the status of
the proposal for 2 and 3 charge black holes in the D1-D5 system, presenting new
derivations and streamlining the discussion of their properties. Results to
date support the fuzzball proposal but further progress is likely to require
going beyond the supergravity approximation and sharpening the definition of a
"stringy fuzzball". We outline how the fuzzball proposal could resolve
longstanding issues in black hole physics, such as Hawking radiation and
information loss. Our emphasis throughout is on connecting different
developments and identifying open problems and directions for future research.Comment: 106 pages, invited review for Physics Reports; v2: references and
comments adde
An Integrated TCGA Pan-Cancer Clinical Data Resource to Drive High-Quality Survival Outcome Analytics
For a decade, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) program collected clinicopathologic annotation data along with multi-platform molecular profiles of more than 11,000 human tumors across 33 different cancer types. TCGA clinical data contain key features representing the democratized nature of the data collection process. To ensure proper use of this large clinical dataset associated with genomic features, we developed a standardized dataset named the TCGA Pan-Cancer Clinical Data Resource (TCGA-CDR), which includes four major clinical outcome endpoints. In addition to detailing major challenges and statistical limitations encountered during the effort of integrating the acquired clinical data, we present a summary that includes endpoint usage recommendations for each cancer type. These TCGA-CDR findings appear to be consistent with cancer genomics studies independent of the TCGA effort and provide opportunities for investigating cancer biology using clinical correlates at an unprecedented scale. Analysis of clinicopathologic annotations for over 11,000 cancer patients in the TCGA program leads to the generation of TCGA Clinical Data Resource, which provides recommendations of clinical outcome endpoint usage for 33 cancer types
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