26,087 research outputs found
Geometric RSK and the Toda lattice
We relate a continuous-time version of the geometric RSK correspondence to
the Toda lattice, in a way which can be viewed as a semi-classical limit of a
recent result by the author which relates the continuous-time geometric RSK
mapping, with Brownian motion as input, to the quantum Toda lattice.Comment: v2: minor correction
What Influences Open Defecation and Latrine Ownership in Rural Households?: Findings from a Global Review
In this review, the Water and Sanitation Program of the World Bank identifies commonalities and differences across sanitation market research studies it has conducted in eight countries since 2006 to determine factors that affect sanitation behaviors. Three specific behaviors -- open defecation, acquisition of toilets, and improvement of latrines -- are covered
Litigating reproductive health rights in the inter-American system: what does a winning case look like?
Remedies and reparation measures emerging from the Inter-American System of Human Rights in reproductive health cases have consistently highlighted the need to develop and subsequently implement, non-repetition remedies that protect, promote and fulfill women’s reproductive health rights. Litigation outcomes that result in violations of reproductive rights are a “win” for health rights litigation, but when implementation fails, is a “win” still a win? Although there has been considerable success in litigating reproductive health rights cases, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights are not adequately equipped to follow-up on cases after they have been won. Successful and sustainable implementation of reproductive health rights law requires incorporation of non-repetition remedies in the form of legislation, education, and training that seeks to remodel existing social and cultural practices that hinder women’s enjoyment of their reproductive rights. In order for a reproductive health rights case to ultimately be a “winner,” case recommendations and decisions emerging from the Commission and Court must incorporate perspectives provided by members of civil society, with the ultimate goal of developing measurable remedies that address underlying obstacles to domestic implementation
Random matrices, non-colliding processes and queues
This is survey of some recent results connecting random matrices,
non-colliding processes and queues.Comment: To appear in Seminaire de Probabilites XXXV
Proposed New Test of Spin Effects in General Relativity
The recent discovery of a double-pulsar PSR J0737-3039A/B provides an
opportunity of unequivocally observing, for the first time, spin effects in
general relativity. Existing efforts involve detection of the precession of the
spinning body itself. However, for a close binary system, spin effects on the
orbit may also be discernable. Not only do they add to the advance of the
periastron (by an amount which is small compared to the conventional
contribution) but they also give rise to a precession of the orbit about the
spin direction. The measurement of such an effect would also give information
on the moment of inertia of pulsars
The Equation of Motion of an Electron
The claim by Rohrlich that the Abraham-Lorentz-Dirac equation is not the
correct equation for a classical point charge is shown to be incorrect and it
is pointed out that the equation which he proposes is the equation
{\underline{derived}} by Ford and O'Connell for a charge with structure. The
quantum-mechanical case is also discussed
Stochastic Methods in Atomic Systems and QED
We show that treating the blackbody radiation field as a heat bath enables
one to utilize powerful techniques from the realm of stochastic physics (such
as the fluctuation-dissipation theorem and the related radiation damping) in
order to treat problems that could not be treated rigorously by conventional
methods. We illustrate our remarks by discussing specifically the effect of
temperature on atomic spectral lines, and the solution to the problem of
runaway solutions in the equation of motion of a radiating electron. We also
present brief discussions relating to anomalous diffusion and wave packet
spreading in a radiation field and the influence of quantum effects on the laws
of thermodynamics.Comment: Contribution to the Festschrift in honor of Professor Walter R.
Johnson on the occasion of his retirement after 50 years at the University of
Notre Dam
Fluctuations and Noise: A General Model with Applications
A wide variety of dissipative and fluctuation problems involving a quantum
system in a heat bath can be described by the independent-oscillator (IO) model
Hamiltonian. Using Heisenberg equations of motion, this leads to a generalized
quantum Langevin equation (QLE) for the quantum system involving two quantities
which encapsulate the properties of the heat bath. Applications include: atomic
energy shifts in a blackbody radiation heat bath; solution of the problem of
runaway solutions in QED; electrical circuits (resistively shunted Josephson
barrier, microscopic tunnel junction, etc.); conductivity calculations (since
the QLE gives a natural separation between dissipative and fluctuation forces);
dissipative quantum tunneling; noise effects in gravitational wave detectors;
anomalous diffusion; strongly driven quantum systems; decoherence phenomena;
analysis of Unruh radiation and entropy for a dissipative system.Comment: Presented at the SPIE International Symposium on Fluctuations and
Noise in Photonics and Quantum Optics (Austin, May 2005
The Ultraviolet Morphology of Galaxies
The vacuum ultraviolet offers a unique perspective on galaxy morphology,
stellar populations, and interstellar material which is of particular relevance
to interpreting high redshift galaxies and the history of cosmic star
formation. Here we review UV imaging studies of galaxies since 1990.Comment: 10 pages; tar.gz file includes LaTeX text file, 6 low-resolution
PostScript figures, and 3 style files. For *.ps.gz file with full res
figures, see http://www.astro.virginia.edu/~rwo/ Paper to be published in
"The Ultraviolet Universe at Low and High Redshift" ed. W. H. Waller (AIP
Press) 199
Decoherence in Quantum Systems
We discuss various definitions of decoherence and how it can be measured. We
compare and contrast decoherence in quantum systems with an infinite number of
eigenstates (such as the free particle and the oscillator) and spin systems. In
the former case, we point out the essential difference between assuming
"entanglement at all times" and entanglement with the reservoir occuring at
some initial time. We also discuss optimum calculational techniques in both
arenas.Comment: To be published in Proceedings of the 2004 IEEE NTC Quantum Device
Technology Workshop, IEEE Transactions on Nanotechnology, 4, 77, 200
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