309 research outputs found
Black Hole Meiosis
The enumeration of BPS bound states in string theory needs refinement.
Studying partition functions of particles made from D-branes wrapped on
algebraic Calabi-Yau 3-folds, and classifying states using split attractor flow
trees, we extend the method for computing a refined BPS index, arXiv:0810.4301.
For certain D-particles, a finite number of microstates, namely polar states,
exclusively realized as bound states, determine an entire partition function
(elliptic genus). This underlines their crucial importance: one might call them
the `chromosomes' of a D-particle or a black hole. As polar states also can be
affected by our refinement, previous predictions on elliptic genera are
modified. This can be metaphorically interpreted as `crossing-over in the
meiosis of a D-particle'. Our results improve on hep-th/0702012, provide
non-trivial evidence for a strong split attractor flow tree conjecture, and
thus suggest that we indeed exhaust the BPS spectrum. In the D-brane
description of a bound state, the necessity for refinement results from the
fact that tachyonic strings split up constituent states into `generic' and
`special' states. These are enumerated separately by topological invariants,
which turn out to be partitions of Donaldson-Thomas invariants. As modular
predictions provide a check on many of our results, we have compelling evidence
that our computations are correct.Comment: 46 pages, 8 figures. v2: minor changes. v3: minor changes and
reference adde
Open String Attractors
We present a simple example of a supersymmetric attractor mechanism in the
purely open string context of D-branes embedded in curved space-time. Our
example involves a class of D3-branes embedded in the 2-charge D1-D5 background
of type IIB whose worldvolume contains a 2-sphere. Turning on worldvolume
fluxes, these branes carry induced (p,q) string charges. Supersymmetric
configurations display a flow of the open string moduli towards an attractor
solution independent of their asymptotics. The equations governing this
mechanism closely resemble the attractor flow equations for supersymmetric
black holes in closed string theory. The BPS equations take the form of a
gradient flow and describe worldvolume solitons interpolating between an AdS_2
geometry where the two-sphere has collapsed, and an attractor solution with
AdS_2 x S^2 geometry. In these limiting solutions, the preserved supersymmetry
is enhanced from 4 to 8 supercharges. We also discuss the interpretation of our
solutions as intersecting brane configurations placed in the D1-D5 background,
as well as the S-duality transformation to the F1-NS5 background.Comment: 37 pages, 6 figures. v2: small corrections, figure and references
adde
What is needed of a tachyon if it is to be the dark energy?
We study a dark energy scenario in the presence of a tachyon field
with potential and a barotropic perfect fluid. The cosmological
dynamics crucially depends on the asymptotic behavior of the quantity
. If is a constant, which corresponds to
an inverse square potential , there exists one
stable critical point that gives an acceleration of the universe at late times.
When asymptotically, we can have a viable dark energy scenario
in which the system approaches an ``instantaneous'' critical point that
dynamically changes with . If approaches infinity
asymptotically, the universe does not exhibit an acceleration at late times. In
this case, however, we find an interesting possibility that a transient
acceleration occurs in a regime where is smaller than of order
unity.Comment: 11 pages and 3 figures, minor clarifications added; final version to
appear in PR
Contrasting population genetic responses to migration barriers in two native and an invasive freshwater fish
Habitat fragmentation impacts the distribution of genetic diversity and population genetic structure. Therefore, protecting the evolutionary potential of species, especially in the context of the current rate of human-induced environmental change, is an important goal. In riverine ecosystems, migration barriers affect the genetic structure of native species, while also influencing the spread of invasive species. In this study, we compare genetic patterns of two native and one highly invasive riverine fish species in a Belgian river basin, namely the native three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and stone loach (Barbatula barbatula), and the non-native and invasive topmouth gudgeon (Pseudorasbora parva). We aimed to characterize both natural and anthropogenic determinants of genetic diversity and population genetic connectivity. Genetic diversity was highest in topmouth gudgeon, followed by stone loach and three-spined stickleback. The correlation between downstream distance and genetic diversity, a pattern often observed in riverine systems, was only marginally significant in stone loach and three-spined stickleback, while genetic diversity strongly declined with increasing number of barriers in topmouth gudgeon. An Isolation-By-Distance pattern characterizes the population genetic structure of each species. Population differentiation was only associated with migration barriers in the invasive topmouth gudgeon, while genetic composition of all species seemed at least partially determined by the presence of migration barriers. Among the six barrier types considered (watermills, sluices, tunnels, weirs, riverbed obstructions, and others), the presence of watermills was the strongest driver of genetic structure and composition. Our results indicate that conservation and restoration actions, focusing on conserving genetic patterns, cannot be generalized across species. Moreover, measures might target either on restoring connectivity, while risking a rapid spread of the invasive topmouth gudgeon, or not restoring connectivity, while risking native species extinction in upstream populations
Cyclic GMP-dependent protein kinase stimulates the plasmalemmal Ca2+ pump of smooth muscle via phosphorylation of phosphatidylinositol
Harmonic Analysis of Boolean Networks: Determinative Power and Perturbations
Consider a large Boolean network with a feed forward structure. Given a
probability distribution on the inputs, can one find, possibly small,
collections of input nodes that determine the states of most other nodes in the
network? To answer this question, a notion that quantifies the determinative
power of an input over the states of the nodes in the network is needed. We
argue that the mutual information (MI) between a given subset of the inputs X =
{X_1, ..., X_n} of some node i and its associated function f_i(X) quantifies
the determinative power of this set of inputs over node i. We compare the
determinative power of a set of inputs to the sensitivity to perturbations to
these inputs, and find that, maybe surprisingly, an input that has large
sensitivity to perturbations does not necessarily have large determinative
power. However, for unate functions, which play an important role in genetic
regulatory networks, we find a direct relation between MI and sensitivity to
perturbations. As an application of our results, we analyze the large-scale
regulatory network of Escherichia coli. We identify the most determinative
nodes and show that a small subset of those reduces the overall uncertainty of
the network state significantly. Furthermore, the network is found to be
tolerant to perturbations of its inputs
Reconciling seascape genetics and fisheries science in three codistributed flatfishes
Uncertainty hampers innovative mixed‐fisheries management by the scales at which connectivity dynamics are relevant to management objectives. The spatial scale of sustainable stock management is species‐specific and depends on ecology, life history and population connectivity. One valuable approach to understand these spatial scales is to determine to what extent population genetic structure correlates with the oceanographic environment. Here, we compare the level of genetic connectivity in three codistributed and commercially exploited demersal flatfish species living in the North East Atlantic Ocean. Population genetic structure was analysed based on 14, 14 and 10 neutral DNA microsatellite markers for turbot, brill and sole, respectively. We then used redundancy analysis (RDA) to attribute the genetic variation to spatial (geographical location), temporal (sampling year) and oceanographic (water column characteristics) components. The genetic structure of turbot was composed of three clusters and correlated with variation in the depth of the pycnocline, in addition to spatial factors. The genetic structure of brill was homogenous, but correlated with average annual stratification and spatial factors. In sole, the genetic structure was composed of three clusters, but was only linked to a temporal factor. We explored whether the management of data poor commercial fisheries, such as in brill and turbot, might benefit from population‐specific information. We conclude that the management of fish stocks has to consider species‐specific genetic structures and may benefit from the documentation of the genetic seascape and life‐history traits.publishedVersionUnit Licence Agreemen
Reconciling seascape genetics and fisheries science in three codistributed flatfishes
Uncertainty hampers innovative mixed‐fisheries management by the scales at which connectivity dynamics are relevant to management objectives. The spatial scale of sustainable stock management is species‐specific and depends on ecology, life history and population connectivity. One valuable approach to understand these spatial scales is to determine to what extent population genetic structure correlates with the oceanographic environment. Here, we compare the level of genetic connectivity in three codistributed and commercially exploited demersal flatfish species living in the North East Atlantic Ocean. Population genetic structure was analysed based on 14, 14 and 10 neutral DNA microsatellite markers for turbot, brill and sole, respectively. We then used redundancy analysis (RDA) to attribute the genetic variation to spatial (geographical location), temporal (sampling year) and oceanographic (water column characteristics) components. The genetic structure of turbot was composed of three clusters and correlated with variation in the depth of the pycnocline, in addition to spatial factors. The genetic structure of brill was homogenous, but correlated with average annual stratification and spatial factors. In sole, the genetic structure was composed of three clusters, but was only linked to a temporal factor. We explored whether the management of data poor commercial fisheries, such as in brill and turbot, might benefit from population‐specific information. We conclude that the management of fish stocks has to consider species‐specific genetic structures and may benefit from the documentation of the genetic seascape and life‐history traits.publishedVersionUnit Licence Agreemen
Aspects of Scalar Field Dynamics in Gauss-Bonnet Brane Worlds
The Einstein-Gauss-Bonnet equations projected from the bulk to brane lead to
a complicated Friedmann equation which simplifies to in the
asymptotic regimes. The Randall-Sundrum (RS) scenario corresponds to
whereas & give rise to high energy Gauss-Bonnet (GB) regime and
the standard GR respectively. Amazingly, while evolving from RS regime to high
energy GB limit, one passes through a GR like region which has important
implications for brane world inflation. For tachyon GB inflation with
potentials investigated in this paper, the scalar to
tensor ratio of perturbations is maximum around the RS region and is
generally suppressed in the high energy regime for the positive values of .
The ratio is very low for at all energy scales relative to GB inflation
with ordinary scalar field. The models based upon tachyon inflation with
polynomial type of potentials with generic positive values of turn out to
be in the observational contour bound at all energy scales varying
from GR to high energy GB limit. The spectral index improves for the
lower values of and approaches its scale invariant limit for in the
high energy GB regime. The ratio also remains small for large negative
values of , however, difference arises for models close to scale invariance
limit. In this case, the tensor to scale ratio is large in the GB regime
whereas it is suppressed in the intermediate region between RS and GB. Within
the frame work of patch cosmologies governed by , the behavior
of ordinary scalar field near cosmological singularity and the nature of
scaling solutions are distinguished for the values of .Comment: 15 pages, 10 eps figures; appendix on various scales in GB brane
world included and references updated; final version to appear in PR
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