457 research outputs found
Evaluating system utility and conceptual fit using CASSM
There is a wealth of user-centred evaluation methods (UEMs) to support the analyst in assessing interactive systems. Many of these support detailed aspects of use – for example: Is the feedback helpful? Are labels appropriate? Is the task structure optimal? Few UEMs encourage the analyst to step back and consider how well a system supports users’ conceptual understandings and system utility. In this paper, we present CASSM, a method which focuses on the quality of ‘fit’ between users and an interactive system. We describe the methodology of conducting a CASSM analysis and illustrate the approach with three contrasting worked examples (a robotic arm, a digital library system and a drawing tool) that demonstrate different depths of analysis. We show how CASSM can help identify re-design possibilities to improve system utility. CASSM complements established evaluation methods by focusing on conceptual structures rather than procedures. Prototype tool support for completing a CASSM analysis is provided by Cassata, an open source development
Quantum Communication with Phantom Photons
We show that quantum information may be transferred between atoms in
different locations by using ``phantom photons'': the atoms are coupled through
electromagnetic fields, but the corresponding field modes do not have to be
fully populated. In the case where atoms are placed inside optical cavities,
errors in quantum information processing due to photon absorption inside the
cavity are diminished in this way. This effect persists up to intercavity
distances of about a meter for the current levels of cavity losses, and may be
useful for distributed quantum computing.Comment: 6 pages RevTex, 4 eps figures included. Revised calculation with more
details about mode structure calculation and the introduction of losse
Generalized Second Law of Thermodynamics on the Event Horizon for Interacting Dark Energy
Here we are trying to find the conditions for the validity of the generalized
second law of thermodynamics (GSLT) assuming the first law of thermodynamics on
the event horizon in both cases when the FRW universe is filled with
interacting two fluid system- one in the form of cold dark matter and the other
is either holographic dark energy or new age graphic dark energy. Using the
recent observational data we have found that GSLT holds both in quintessence
era as well as in phantom era for new age graphic model while for holographic
dark energy GSLT is valid only in phantom era.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figure
Quantum corrections to the entropy of charged rotating black holes
Hawking radiation from a black hole can be viewed as quantum tunneling of
particles through the event horizon. Using this approach we provide a general
framework for studying corrections to the entropy of black holes beyond
semiclassical approximations. Applying the properties of exact differentials
for three variables to the first law thermodynamics, we study charged rotating
black holes and explicitly work out the corrections to entropy and horizon area
for the Kerr-Newman and charged rotating BTZ black holes. It is shown that the
results for other geometries like the Schwarzschild, Reissner-Nordstr\"{o}m and
anti-de Sitter Schwarzschild spacetimes follow easily
Scalar-Tensor Gravity and Quintessence
Scalar fields with inverse power-law effective potentials may provide a
negative pressure component to the energy density of the universe today, as
required by cosmological observations. In order to be cosmologically relevant
today, the scalar field should have a mass
, thus potentially inducing sizable
violations of the equivalence principle and space-time variations of the
coupling constants. Scalar-tensor theories of gravity provide a framework for
accommodating phenomenologically acceptable ultra-light scalar fields. We
discuss non-minimally coupled scalar-tensor theories in which the scalar-matter
coupling is a dynamical quantity. Two attractor mechanisms are operative at the
same time: one towards the tracker solution, which accounts for the accelerated
expansion of the Universe, and one towards general relativity, which makes the
ultra-light scalar field phenomenologically safe today. As in usual
tracker-field models, the late-time behavior is largely independent on the
initial conditions. Strong distortions in the cosmic microwave background
anisotropy spectra as well as in the matter power spectrum are expected.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Cosmological model with interactions in the dark sector
A cosmological model is proposed for the current Universe consisted of
non-interacting baryonic matter and interacting dark components. The dark
energy and dark matter are coupled through their effective barotropic indexes,
which are considered as functions of the ratio between their energy densities.
It is investigated two cases where the ratio is asymptotically stable and their
parameters are adjusted by considering best fits to Hubble function data. It is
shown that the deceleration parameter, the densities parameters, and the
luminosity distance have the correct behavior which is expected for a viable
present scenario of the Universe.Comment: 6 pages, 8 figure
New mechanism to cross the phantom divide
Recently, type Ia supernovae data appear to support a dark energy whose
equation of state crosses -1, which is a much more amazing problem than the
acceleration of the universe. We show that it is possible for the equation of
state to cross the phantom divide by a scalar field in the gravity with an
additional inverse power-law term of Ricci scalar in the Lagrangian. The
necessary and sufficient condition for a universe in which the dark energy can
cross the phantom divide is obtained. Some analytical solutions with or
are obtained. A minimal coupled scalar with different potentials,
including quadratic, cubic, quantic, exponential and logarithmic potentials are
investigated via numerical methods, respectively. All these potentials lead to
the crossing behavior. We show that it is a robust result which is hardly
dependent on the concrete form of the potential of the scalar.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figs, v3: several references added, to match the
published versio
Transition from decelerated to accelerated cosmic expansion in braneworld universes
Braneworld theory provides a natural setting to treat, at a classical level,
the cosmological effects of vacuum energy. Non-static extra dimensions can
generally lead to a variable vacuum energy, which in turn may explain the
present accelerated cosmic expansion. We concentrate our attention in models
where the vacuum energy decreases as an inverse power law of the scale factor.
These models agree with the observed accelerating universe, while fitting
simultaneously the observational data for the density and deceleration
parameter. The redshift at which the vacuum energy can start to dominate
depends on the mass density of ordinary matter. For Omega = 0.3, the transition
from decelerated to accelerated cosmic expansion occurs at z approx 0.48 +/-
0.20, which is compatible with SNe data. We set a lower bound on the
deceleration parameter today, namely q > - 1 + 3 Omega/2, i.e., q > - 0.55 for
Omega = 0.3. The future evolution of the universe crucially depends on the time
when vacuum starts to dominate over ordinary matter. If it dominates only
recently, at an epoch z < 0.64, then the universe is accelerating today and
will continue that way forever. If vacuum dominates earlier, at z > 0.64, then
the deceleration comes back and the universe recollapses at some point in the
distant future. In the first case, quintessence and Cardassian expansion can be
formally interpreted as the low energy limit of our model, although they are
entirely different in philosophy. In the second case there is no correspondence
between these models and ours.Comment: In V2 typos are corrected and one reference is added for section 1.
To appear in General Relativity and Gravitatio
A-dependence of nuclear transparency in quasielastic A(e,e'p) at high Q^2
The A-dependence of the quasielastic A(e,e'p) reaction has been studied at
SLAC with H-2, C, Fe, and Au nuclei at momentum transfers Q^2 = 1, 3, 5, and
6.8 (GeV/c)^2. We extract the nuclear transparency T(A,Q^2), a measure of the
average probability that the struck proton escapes from the nucleus A without
interaction. Several calculations predict a significant increase in T with
momentum transfer, a phenomenon known as Color Transparency. No significant
rise within errors is seen for any of the nuclei studied.Comment: 5 pages incl. 2 figures, Caltech preprint OAP-73
Glassy Phase Transition and Stability in Black Holes
Black hole thermodynamics, confined to the semi-classical regime, cannot
address the thermodynamic stability of a black hole in flat space. Here we show
that inclusion of correction beyond the semi-classical approximation makes a
black hole thermodynamically stable. This stability is reached through a phase
transition. By using Ehrenfest's scheme we further prove that this is a glassy
phase transition with a Prigogine-Defay ratio close to 3. This value is well
placed within the desired bound (2 to 5) for a glassy phase transition. Thus
our analysis indicates a very close connection between the phase transition
phenomena of a black hole and glass forming systems. Finally, we discuss the
robustness of our results by considering different normalisations for the
correction term.Comment: v3, minor changes over v2, references added, LaTeX-2e, 18 pages, 3 ps
figures, to appear in Eour. Phys. Jour.
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