2,116 research outputs found
Generic identifiability and second-order sufficiency in tame convex optimization
We consider linear optimization over a fixed compact convex feasible region
that is semi-algebraic (or, more generally, "tame"). Generically, we prove that
the optimal solution is unique and lies on a unique manifold, around which the
feasible region is "partly smooth", ensuring finite identification of the
manifold by many optimization algorithms. Furthermore, second-order optimality
conditions hold, guaranteeing smooth behavior of the optimal solution under
small perturbations to the objective
Probing The Lower Mass Limit For Supernova Progenitors And The High-Mass End Of The Initial-Final Mass Relation From White Dwarfs In The Open Cluster M35 (NGC 2168)
We present a photometric and spectroscopic study of the white dwarf (WD) population of the populous, intermediate-age open cluster M35 (NGC 2168); this study expands upon our previous study of the WDs in this cluster. We spectroscopically confirm 14 WDs in the field of the cluster: 12 DAs, 1 hot DQ, and 1 db star. For each DA, we determine the WD mass and cooling age, from which we derive each star's progenitor mass. These data are then added to the empirical initial-final mass relation (IFMR), where the M35 WDs contribute significantly to the high-mass end of the relation. The resulting points are consistent with previously published linear fits to the IFMR, modulo moderate systematics introduced by the uncertainty in the star cluster age. Based on this cluster alone, the observational lower limit on the maximum mass of WD progenitors is found to be similar to 5.1M(circle dot) - 5.2M(circle dot) at the 95% confidence level; including data from other young open clusters raises this limit to as high as 7.1M(circle dot), depending on the cluster membership of three massive WDs and the core composition of the most massive WDs. We find that the apparent distance modulus and extinction derived solely from the cluster WDs ((m-M)(V) = 10.45 +/- 0.08 and E(B-V) = 0.185 +/- 0.010, respectively) is fully consistent with that derived from main-sequence fitting techniques. Four M35 WDs may be massive enough to have oxygen - neon cores; the assumed core composition does not significantly affect the empirical IFMR. Finally, the two non-DA WDs in M35 are photometrically consistent with cluster membership; further analysis is required to determine their memberships.NSF AST-0397492, AST-0602288Astronom
Clarke subgradients of stratifiable functions
We establish the following result: if the graph of a (nonsmooth)
real-extended-valued function
is closed and admits a Whitney stratification, then the norm of the gradient of
at relative to the stratum containing bounds from below
all norms of Clarke subgradients of at . As a consequence, we obtain
some Morse-Sard type theorems as well as a nonsmooth Kurdyka-\L ojasiewicz
inequality for functions definable in an arbitrary o-minimal structure
A Search for Binary Stars at Low Metallicity
We present initial results measuring the companion fraction of metal-poor
stars ([Fe/H]2.0). We are employing the Lick Observatory planet-finding
system to make high-precision Doppler observations of these objects. The binary
fraction of metal-poor stars provides important constraints on star formation
in the early Galaxy (Carney et al. 2003). Although it has been shown that a
majority of solar metallicity stars are in binaries, it is not clear if this is
the case for metal-poor stars. Is there a metallicity floor below which binary
systems do not form or become rare? To test this we are determining binary
fractions at metallicities below [Fe/H]. Our measurments are not as
precise as the planet finders', but we are still finding errors of only 50 to
300 m/s, depending on the signal-to-noise of a spectrum and stellar atmosphere
of the star. At this precision we can be much more complete than previous
studies in our search for stellar companions.Comment: To appear in conference proceedings,"First Stars III", eds. B.
O'Shea, A. Heger & T. Abel. 3 pages, 5 figure
An empirical initial-final mass relation from hot, massive white dwarfs in NGC 2168 (M35)
The relation between the zero-age main sequence mass of a star and its
white-dwarf remnant (the initial-final mass relation) is a powerful tool for
exploration of mass loss processes during stellar evolution. We present an
empirical derivation of the initial-final mass relation based on spectroscopic
analysis of seven massive white dwarfs in NGC 2168 (M35). Using an internally
consistent data set, we show that the resultant white dwarf mass increases
monotonically with progenitor mass for masses greater than 4 solar masses, one
of the first open clusters to show this trend. We also find two massive white
dwarfs foreground to the cluster that are otherwise consistent with cluster
membership. These white dwarfs can be explained as former cluster members
moving steadily away from the cluster at speeds of <~0.5 km/s since their
formation and may provide the first direct evidence of the loss of white dwarfs
from open clusters. Based on these data alone, we constrain the upper mass
limit of WD progenitors to be >=5.8 solar masses at the 90% confidence level
for a cluster age of 150 Myr.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical
Journal Letters. Contains some acknowledgements not in accepted version (for
space reasons), otherwise identical to accepted versio
From error bounds to the complexity of first-order descent methods for convex functions
This paper shows that error bounds can be used as effective tools for
deriving complexity results for first-order descent methods in convex
minimization. In a first stage, this objective led us to revisit the interplay
between error bounds and the Kurdyka-\L ojasiewicz (KL) inequality. One can
show the equivalence between the two concepts for convex functions having a
moderately flat profile near the set of minimizers (as those of functions with
H\"olderian growth). A counterexample shows that the equivalence is no longer
true for extremely flat functions. This fact reveals the relevance of an
approach based on KL inequality. In a second stage, we show how KL inequalities
can in turn be employed to compute new complexity bounds for a wealth of
descent methods for convex problems. Our approach is completely original and
makes use of a one-dimensional worst-case proximal sequence in the spirit of
the famous majorant method of Kantorovich. Our result applies to a very simple
abstract scheme that covers a wide class of descent methods. As a byproduct of
our study, we also provide new results for the globalization of KL inequalities
in the convex framework.
Our main results inaugurate a simple methodology: derive an error bound,
compute the desingularizing function whenever possible, identify essential
constants in the descent method and finally compute the complexity using the
one-dimensional worst case proximal sequence. Our method is illustrated through
projection methods for feasibility problems, and through the famous iterative
shrinkage thresholding algorithm (ISTA), for which we show that the complexity
bound is of the form where the constituents of the bound only depend
on error bound constants obtained for an arbitrary least squares objective with
regularization
Semi-classical Green kernel asymptotics for the Dirac operator
We consider a semi-classical Dirac operator in arbitrary spatial dimensions
with a smooth potential whose partial derivatives of any order are bounded by
suitable constants. We prove that the distribution kernel of the inverse
operator evaluated at two distinct points fulfilling a certain hypothesis can
be represented as the product of an exponentially decaying factor involving an
associated Agmon distance and some amplitude admitting a complete asymptotic
expansion in powers of the semi-classical parameter. Moreover, we find an
explicit formula for the leading term in that expansion.Comment: 46 page
Determinants of short-period heart rate variability in the general population
Decreased heart rate variability (HRV) is associated with a worse prognosis in a variety of diseases and disorders. We evaluated the determinants of short-period HRV in a random sample of 149 middle-aged men and 137 women from the general population. Spectral analysis was used to compute low-frequency (LF), high-frequency (HF) and total-frequency power. HRV showed a strong inverse association with age and heart rate in both sexes with a more pronounced effect of heart rate on HRV in women. Age and heart rate-adjusted LF was significantly higher in men and HF higher in women. Significant negative correlations of BMI, triglycerides, insulin and positive correlations of HDL cholesterol with LF and total power occurred only in men. In multivariate analyses, heart rate and age persisted as prominent independent predictors of HRV. In addition, BMI was strongly negatively associated with LF in men but not in women, We conclude that the more pronounced vagal influence in cardiac regulation in middle-aged women and the gender-different influence of heart rate and metabolic factors on HRV may help to explain the lower susceptibility of women for cardiac arrhythmias. Copyright (C) 2001 S. Karger AG, Basel
Chemical Abundances For Evolved Stars In M5: Lithium Through Thorium
We present analysis of high-resolution spectra of a sample of stars in the globular cluster M5 (NGC 5904). The sample includes stars from the red giant branch (RGB; seven stars), the red horizontal branch (two stars), and the asymptotic giant branch (AGB; eight stars), with effective temperatures ranging from 4000 K to 6100 K. Spectra were obtained with the HIRES spectrometer on the Keck I telescope, with a wavelength coverage from 3700 angstrom to 7950 angstrom for the HB and AGB sample, and 5300 angstrom to 7600 angstrom for the majority of the RGB sample. We find offsets of some abundance ratios between the AGB and the RGB branches. However, these discrepancies appear to be due to analysis effects, and indicate that caution must be exerted when directly comparing abundance ratios between different evolutionary branches. We find the expected signatures of pollution from material enriched in the products of the hot hydrogen burning cycles such as the CNO, Ne-Na, and Mg-Al cycles, but no significant differences within these signatures among the three stellar evolutionary branches especially when considering the analysis offsets. We are also able to measure an assortment of neutron-capture element abundances, from Sr to Th, in the cluster. We find that the neutron-capture signature for all stars is the same, and shows a predominately r-process origin. However, we also see evidence of a small but consistent extra s-process signature that is not tied to the light-element variations, pointing to a pre-enrichment of this material in the protocluster gas.National Science Foundation AST-0802292NSF AST-0406988, AST-0607770, AST-0607482DFGW. M. Keck FoundationAstronom
Quantum graphs with singular two-particle interactions
We construct quantum models of two particles on a compact metric graph with
singular two-particle interactions. The Hamiltonians are self-adjoint
realisations of Laplacians acting on functions defined on pairs of edges in
such a way that the interaction is provided by boundary conditions. In order to
find such Hamiltonians closed and semi-bounded quadratic forms are constructed,
from which the associated self-adjoint operators are extracted. We provide a
general characterisation of such operators and, furthermore, produce certain
classes of examples. We then consider identical particles and project to the
bosonic and fermionic subspaces. Finally, we show that the operators possess
purely discrete spectra and that the eigenvalues are distributed following an
appropriate Weyl asymptotic law
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