3,109 research outputs found
Comprehensive Solution to the Cosmological Constant, Zero-Point Energy, and Quantum Gravity Problems
We present a solution to the cosmological constant, the zero-point energy,
and the quantum gravity problems within a single comprehensive framework. We
show that in quantum theories of gravity in which the zero-point energy density
of the gravitational field is well-defined, the cosmological constant and
zero-point energy problems solve each other by mutual cancellation between the
cosmological constant and the matter and gravitational field zero-point energy
densities. Because of this cancellation, regulation of the matter field
zero-point energy density is not needed, and thus does not cause any trace
anomaly to arise. We exhibit our results in two theories of gravity that are
well-defined quantum-mechanically. Both of these theories are locally conformal
invariant, quantum Einstein gravity in two dimensions and Weyl-tensor-based
quantum conformal gravity in four dimensions (a fourth-order derivative quantum
theory of the type that Bender and Mannheim have recently shown to be
ghost-free and unitary). Central to our approach is the requirement that any
and all departures of the geometry from Minkowski are to be brought about by
quantum mechanics alone. Consequently, there have to be no fundamental
classical fields, and all mass scales have to be generated by dynamical
condensates. In such a situation the trace of the matter field energy-momentum
tensor is zero, a constraint that obliges its cosmological constant and
zero-point contributions to cancel each other identically, no matter how large
they might be. Quantization of the gravitational field is caused by its
coupling to quantized matter fields, with the gravitational field not needing
any independent quantization of its own. With there being no a priori classical
curvature, one does not have to make it compatible with quantization.Comment: Final version, to appear in General Relativity and Gravitation (the
final publication is available at http://www.springerlink.com). 58 pages,
revtex4, some additions to text and some added reference
Potential of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) continues to attract both empirical and clinical interest due to its complex symptom profile and the underlying processes involved. Recently, research attention has been focused on the types of memory processes involved in PTSD and hypothesized neurobiological processes. Complicating this exploration, and the treatment of PTSD, are underlying comorbid disorders, such as depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Treatment of PTSD has undergone further reviews with the introduction of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). EMDR has been empirically demonstrated to be as efficacious as other specific PTSD treatments, such as trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy. There is emerging evidence that there are different processes underlying these two types of trauma treatment and some evidence that EMDR might have an efficiency advantage. Current research and understanding regarding the processes of EMDR and the future direction of EMDR is presented.
Superconductivity on the density wave background with soliton-wall structure
Superconductivity (SC) may microscopically coexist with density wave (DW)
when the nesting of the Fermi surface (FS) is not perfect. There are, at least,
two possible microscopic structures of a DW state with quasi-particle states
remaining on the Fermi level and leading to the Cooper instability: (i) the
soliton-wall phase and (ii) the small ungapped Fermi-surface pockets. The
dispersion of such quasi-particle states strongly differs from that without DW,
and so do the properties of SC on the DW background. The upper critical field
in such a SC state strongly increases as the system approaches the
critical pressure, where superconductivity first appears. may
considerably exceed its typical value without DW and has unusual upward
curvature as function of temperature. The results obtained explain the
experimental observations in layered organic superconductors
(TMTSF)PF and -(BEDT TTF)KHg(SCN).Comment: 7 page
Baryon resonances from a novel fat-link fermion action
We present first results for masses of positive and negative parity excited
baryons in lattice QCD using an O(a^2) improved gluon action and a Fat Link
Irrelevant Clover (FLIC) fermion action in which only the irrelevant operators
are constructed with fat links. The results are in agreement with earlier
calculations of N^* resonances using improved actions and exhibit a clear mass
splitting between the nucleon and its chiral partner, even for the Wilson
fermion action. The results also indicate a splitting between the lowest J^P =
1/2^- states for the two standard nucleon interpolating fields.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, talk given by W.Melnitchouk at LHP 2001 workshop,
Cairns, Australi
Quantitative Assessment of Deformation-Induced Damage in a Semisolid Aluminum Alloy via X-ray Microtomography
Semisolid tensile testing combined with X-ray microtomography (XMT) was used to characterize the development of internal damage as a function of strain in an aluminum-magnesium alloy, AA5182. Novel techniques were developed to allow the quantification of both the size evolution and orientation of the damage to determine mechanisms controlling the early stage growth and localization. During the initial stages of semisolid deformation, it was observed that strain was accommodated by both the growth of as-cast porosity and the detection of new damage-based voids. As the volume fraction of damage increases, the growth of voids occurs in an orientation perpendicular to the loading direction, both through expansion within the grain boundary liquid and void coalescence. The damage then localizes, causing failur
VELOS : a VR platform for ship-evacuation analysis
Virtual Environment for Life On Ships (VELOS) is a multi-user Virtual Reality (VR) system that aims to support designers to assess (early in the design process) passenger and crew activities on a ship for both normal and hectic conditions of operations and to improve ship design accordingly. This article focuses on presenting the novel features of VELOS related to both its VR and evacuation-specific functionalities. These features include: (i) capability of multiple users’ immersion and active participation in the evacuation process, (ii) real-time interactivity and capability for making on-the-fly alterations of environment events and crowd-behavior parameters, (iii) capability of agents and avatars to move continuously on decks, (iv) integrated framework for both the simplified and advanced method of analysis according to the IMO/MSC 1033 Circular, (v) enrichment of the ship geometrical model with a topological model suitable for evacuation analysis, (vi) efficient interfaces for the dynamic specification and handling of the required heterogeneous input data, and (vii) post-processing of the calculated agent trajectories for extracting useful information for the evacuation process. VELOS evacuation functionality is illustrated using three evacuation test cases for a ro–ro passenger ship
Coupling in situ synchrotron X-ray tomographic microscopy and numerical simulation to quantify the influence of intermetallic formation on permeability in aluminium–silicon–copper alloys
AbstractThe influence of the β-Al5FeSi intermetallic phase on permeability evolution during solidification in an Al–Si–Cu alloy with a columnar dendritic microstructure has been numerically studied at solid fractions between 0.10 and 0.85. The fluid flow simulations were performed on a semisolid microstructure extracted directly from a single solidifying specimen, enabling the first study of permeability variation on an individual microstructure morphology that is evolving in solid fraction. The 3-D geometries were imaged at the TOMCAT beamline using 4-D (3-D+time) in situ synchrotron-based X-ray tomographic microscopy. The results illustrate the major effect of intermetallic particles on flow blockage and permeability. Intermetallics that grow normal to the flow direction were found to have a greater impact on the flow field in comparison to intermetallics in the parallel flow direction. An analytical expression, based on the anisotropic Blake–Kozeny model, was developed with a particle blockage term that takes into account the effects of intermetallic particles on permeability. In the regime of primary-phase solidification, a good fit between the analytical expression and the simulation results is found
Higher Derivative Operators from Transmission of Supersymmetry Breaking on S_1/Z_2
We discuss the role that higher derivative operators play in field theory
orbifold compactifications on S_1/Z_2 with local and non-local (Scherk-Schwarz)
breaking of supersymmetry. Integrating out the bulk fields generates
brane-localised higher derivative counterterms to the mass of the brane (or
zero-mode of the bulk) scalar field, identified with the Higgs field in many
realistic models. Both Yukawa and gauge interactions are considered and the
one-loop results found can be used to study the ``running'' of the scalar field
mass with respect to the momentum scale in 5D orbifolds. In particular this
allows the study of the behaviour of the mass under UV scaling of the momentum.
The relation between supersymmetry breaking and the presence of higher
derivative counterterms to the mass of the scalar field is investigated. This
shows that, regardless of the breaking mechanism, (initial) supersymmetry
cannot, in general, prevent the emergence of such operators. Some implications
for phenomenology of the higher derivative operators are also presented.Comment: 29 pages, LaTeX. Added Section 4 ("Phenomenological implications:
living with ghosts?") and Appendix
Calibrated X-ray micro-tomography for mineral ore quantification
Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) based assessments are the most widely used and trusted imaging technique for mineral ore quantification. X-ray micro tomography (XMT) is a more recent addition to the mineralogy toolbox, but with the potential to extend the measurement capabilities into the three dimensional (3D) assessment of properties such as mineral liberation, grain size and textural characteristics. In addition, unlike SEM based assessments which require the samples to be sectioned, XMT is non-invasive and non-destructive. The disadvantage of XMT, is that the mineralogy must be inferred from the X-ray attenuation measurements, which can make it hard to distinguish from one another, whereas SEM when coupled with Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX) provides elemental compositions and thus a more direct method for distinguishing different minerals. A new methodology that combines both methods at the mineral grain level is presented. The rock particles used to test the method were initially imaged in 3D using XMT followed by sectioning and the 2D imaging of the slices using SEM-EDX. An algorithm was developed that allowed the mineral grains in the 2D slice to be matched with their 3D equivalents in the XMT based images. As the mineralogy of the grains from the SEM images can be matched to a range of X-ray attenuations, this allows minerals which have similar attenuations to one another to be distinguished, with the level of uncertainty in the classification quantified. In addition, the methodology allowed for the estimation of the level of uncertainty in the quantification of grain size by XMT, the assessment of stereological effects in SEM 2D images and ultimately obtaining a simplified 3D mineral map from low energy XMT images. Copper sulphide ore fragments, with chalcopyrite and pyrite as the main sulphide minerals, were used to demonstrate the effectiveness of this procedure
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