319 research outputs found
Perspectives on the clonal persistence of presumed âghostâ genomes in unisexual or allopolyploid taxa arising via hybridization
Although hybridization between non-sibling species rarely results in viable or fertile offspring, it occasionally produces self-perpetuating or sexually-parasitic lineages in which ancestral genomes are inherited clonally and thus may persist as 'ghost species' after ancestor extinction. Ghost species have been detected in animals and plants, for polyploid and diploid organisms, and across clonal, semi-clonal, and even sexual reproductive modes. Here we use a detailed investigation of the evolutionary and taxonomic status of a newly-discovered, putative ghost lineage (HX) in the fish genus Hypseleotris to provide perspectives on several important issues not previously explored by other studies on ghost species, but relevant to ongoing discussions about their detection, conservation, and artificial re-creation. Our comprehensive genetic (allozymes, mtDNA) and genomic (SNPs) datasets successfully identified a threatened sexual population of HX in one tiny portion of the extensive distribution displayed by two hemi-clonal HX-containing lineages. We also discuss what confidence should be placed on any assertion that an ancestral species is actually extinct, and how to assess whether any putative sexual ancestor represents a pure remnant, as shown here, or a naturally-occurring resurrection via the crossing of compatible clones or hemi-clones.P. J. Unmack, M. Adams, J. Bylemans, C. M. Hardy, M. P . Hammer, A. George
Relational EPR
We study the EPR-type correlations from the perspective of the relational
interpretation of quantum mechanics. We argue that these correlations do not
entail any form of 'non-locality', when viewed in the context of this
interpretation. The abandonment of strict Einstein realism implied by the
relational stance permits to reconcile quantum mechanics, completeness,
(operationally defined) separability, and locality.Comment: Revised, published versio
Unitarity as preservation of entropy and entanglement in quantum systems
The logical structure of Quantum Mechanics (QM) and its relation to other
fundamental principles of Nature has been for decades a subject of intensive
research. In particular, the question whether the dynamical axiom of QM can be
derived from other principles has been often considered. In this contribution,
we show that unitary evolutions arise as a consequences of demanding
preservation of entropy in the evolution of a single pure quantum system, and
preservation of entanglement in the evolution of composite quantum systems.Comment: To be submitted to the special issue of Foundations of Physics on the
occassion of the seventieth birthday of Emilio Santos. v2: 10 pages, no
figures, RevTeX4; Corrected and extended version, containing new results on
consequences of entanglement preservatio
Einstein, incompleteness, and the epistemic view of quantum states
Does the quantum state represent reality or our knowledge of reality? In
making this distinction precise, we are led to a novel classification of hidden
variable models of quantum theory. Indeed, representatives of each class can be
found among existing constructions for two-dimensional Hilbert spaces. Our
approach also provides a fruitful new perspective on arguments for the
nonlocality and incompleteness of quantum theory. Specifically, we show that
for models wherein the quantum state has the status of something real, the
failure of locality can be established through an argument considerably more
straightforward than Bell's theorem. The historical significance of this result
becomes evident when one recognizes that the same reasoning is present in
Einstein's preferred argument for incompleteness, which dates back to 1935.
This fact suggests that Einstein was seeking not just any completion of quantum
theory, but one wherein quantum states are solely representative of our
knowledge. Our hypothesis is supported by an analysis of Einstein's attempts to
clarify his views on quantum theory and the circumstance of his otherwise
puzzling abandonment of an even simpler argument for incompleteness from 1927.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures, 1 recipe for cupcakes; comments welcom
Facts, Values and Quanta
Quantum mechanics is a fundamentally probabilistic theory (at least so far as
the empirical predictions are concerned). It follows that, if one wants to
properly understand quantum mechanics, it is essential to clearly understand
the meaning of probability statements. The interpretation of probability has
excited nearly as much philosophical controversy as the interpretation of
quantum mechanics. 20th century physicists have mostly adopted a frequentist
conception. In this paper it is argued that we ought, instead, to adopt a
logical or Bayesian conception. The paper includes a comparison of the orthodox
and Bayesian theories of statistical inference. It concludes with a few remarks
concerning the implications for the concept of physical reality.Comment: 30 pages, AMS Late
Melting and Dimensionality of the Vortex Lattice in Underdoped YBa2Cu3O6.60
Muon spin rotation measurements of the magnetic field distribution in the
vortex state of the oxygen deficient high-Tc superconductor YBa{2}Cu{3}O{6.60}
reveal a vortex-lattice melting transition at much lower temperature than that
in the fully oxygenated material. The transition is best described by a model
in which adjacent layers of ``pancake'' vortices decouple in the liquid phase.
Evidence is also found for a pinning-induced crossover from a solid 3D to
quasi-2D vortex lattice, similar to that observed in the highly anisotropic
superconductor Bi{2+x}Sr{2-x}CaCu{2}O{8+y}.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, 5 postscript file
Molecular dynamics simulation of the order-disorder phase transition in solid NaNO
We present molecular dynamics simulations of solid NaNO using pair
potentials with the rigid-ion model. The crystal potential surface is
calculated by using an \emph{a priori} method which integrates the \emph{ab
initio} calculations with the Gordon-Kim electron gas theory. This approach is
carefully examined by using different population analysis methods and comparing
the intermolecular interactions resulting from this approach with those from
the \emph{ab initio} Hartree-Fock calculations. Our numerics shows that the
ferroelectric-paraelectric phase transition in solid NaNO is triggered by
rotation of the nitrite ions around the crystallographical c axis, in agreement
with recent X-ray experiments [Gohda \textit{et al.}, Phys. Rev. B \textbf{63},
14101 (2000)]. The crystal-field effects on the nitrite ion are also addressed.
Remarkable internal charge-transfer effect is found.Comment: RevTeX 4.0, 11 figure
PHL 1445: An eclipsing cataclysmic variable with a substellar donor near the period minimum
PublishedThis is a pre-copyedited, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society following peer review. The version of record is available online via the DOI in this record.We present high-speed, three-colour photometry of the eclipsing dwarf nova PHL 1445, which, with an orbital period of 76.3 min, lies just below the period minimum of ~82 min for cataclysmic variable stars (CVs). Averaging four eclipses reveals resolved eclipses of the white dwarf and bright spot. We determined the system parameters by fitting a parametrized eclipse model to the averaged light curve. We obtain a mass ratio of q = 0.087 ± 0.006 and inclination i = 85°.2 ± 0°.9. The primary and donor masses were found to be Mw = 0.73 ± 0.03 Mâ and Md = 0.064 ± 0.005 Mâ, respectively. Through multicolour photometry a temperature of the white dwarf of Tw = 13 200 ± 700 K and a distance of 220 ± 50 pc were determined. The evolutionary state of PHL 1445 is uncertain. We are able to rule out a significantly evolved donor, but not one that is slightly evolved. Formation with a brown dwarf donor is plausible, though the brown dwarf would need to be no older than 600 Myr at the start of mass transfer, requiring an extremely low mass ratio (q = 0.025) progenitor system. PHL 1445 joins SDSS 1433 as a sub-period minimum CV with a substellar donor. The existence of two such systems raises an alternative possibility that current estimates for the intrinsic scatter and/or position of the period minimum may be in error.UK Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)FONDECY
Two-loop self-dual Euler-Heisenberg Lagrangians (II): Imaginary part and Borel analysis
We analyze the structure of the imaginary part of the two-loop
Euler-Heisenberg QED effective Lagrangian for a constant self-dual background.
The novel feature of the two-loop result, compared to one-loop, is that the
prefactor of each exponential (instanton) term in the imaginary part has itself
an asymptotic expansion. We also perform a high-precision test of Borel
summation techniques applied to the weak-field expansion, and find that the
Borel dispersion relations reproduce the full prefactor of the leading
imaginary contribution.Comment: 28 pp, 6 eps figure
Neutron scattering search for static magnetism in oxygen ordered YBa2Cu3O6.5
We present elastic and inelastic neutron scattering results on highly oxygen
ordered YBa2Cu3O6.5 ortho-II. We find no evidence for the presence of ordered
magnetic moments to a sensitivity of 0.003 Bohr magnetons, an order of
magnitude smaller than has been suggested in theories of orbital or
d-density-wave (DDW) currents. The absence of sharp elastic peaks, shows that
the d-density-wave phase is not present, at least for the superconductor with
the doping of 6.5 and the ordered ortho-II structure. We cannot exclude the
possibility that a broad peak may exist with extremely short-range DDW
correlations. For less ordered or more doped crystals it is possible that
disorder may lead to static magnetism. We have also searched for the large
normal state spin gap that is predicted to exist in an ordered DDW phase.
Instead of a gap we find that the Q-correlated spin susceptibility persists to
the lowest energies studied, 6 meV. Our results are compatible with the
coexistence of superconductivity with orbital currents, but only if they are
dynamic, and exclude a sharp phase transition to an ordered d-density-wave
phase.Comment: 6 pages 4 figures RevTex Submitted to Phys Rev B January 23, 200
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