Dipole anisotropies of IRAS galaxies and the contribution of a large-scale local void

Recent observations of dipole anisotropies show that the velocity of the Local Group (\Vec v_{\rm G}) induced by the clustering of IRAS galax ies has an amplitude and direction similar to those of the velocity of Cosmic Microwave Background dipole anisotropy (\Vec v_{\rm CMB}), but the difference | \Vec v_{\rm G} - \Vec v_{\rm CMB} | is still $\sim 170$ km/s, which is about 28% of |\Vec v_{\rm CMB} |. Here we consider the possibility that the origin of this difference comes from a hypothetical large-scale local void, with which we can account for the accelerating behavior of type Ia supernovae due to the spatial inhomogeneity of the Hubble constant without dark energies and derive the constraint to the model parameters of the local void. It is found as a result that the distance between the Local Group and the center of the void must be $(10 -- 20) h^{-1}$ Mpc, whose accurate value depends on the background model parameters.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figure, to be published in ApJ 584, No.2 (2003

Gravitational Lens Statistics and The Density Profile of Dark Halos

We investigate the influence of the inner profile of lens objects on gravitational lens statistics taking into account of the effect of magnification bias and both the evolution and the scatter of halo profiles. We take the dark halos as the lens objects and consider the following three models for the density profile of dark halos; SIS (singular isothermal sphere), the NFW (Navarro Frenk White) profile, and the generalized NFW profile which has a different slope at smaller radii. The mass function of dark halos is assumed to be given by the Press-Schechter function. We find that magnification bias for the NFW profile is order of magnitude larger than that for SIS. We estimate the sensitivity of the lensing probability of distant sources to the inner profile of lenses and to the cosmological parameters. It turns out that the lensing probability is strongly dependent on the inner density profile as well as on the cosmological constant. We compare the predictions with the largest observational sample, the Cosmic Lens All-Sky Survey. The absence or presence of large splitting events in larger surveys currently underway such as the 2dF and SDSS could set constraints on the inner density profile of dark halos.Comment: 22 pages, minor changes and references added, accepted for publication in Ap

Finite-size Scaling of Correlation Ratio and Generalized Scheme for the Probability-Changing Cluster Algorithm

We study the finite-size scaling (FSS) property of the correlation ratio, the ratio of the correlation functions with different distances. It is shown that the correlation ratio is a good estimator to determine the critical point of the second-order transition using the FSS analysis. The correlation ratio is especially useful for the analysis of the Kosterlitz-Thouless (KT) transition. We also present a generalized scheme of the probability-changing cluster algorithm, which has been recently developed by the present authors, based on the FSS property of the correlation ratio. We investigate the two-dimensional quantum XY model of spin 1/2 with this generalized scheme, obtaining the precise estimate of the KT transition temperature with less numerical effort.Comment: 4 pages, RevTeX4, to appear in Phys. Rev. B, Rapid Communication

Ionospheric effects in active retrodirective array and mitigating system design

The operation of an active retrodirective array (ARA) in an ionospheric environment (that is either stationary or slowly-varying) was examined. The restrictions imposed on the pilot signal structure as a result of such operation were analyzed. A 3 tone pilot beam system was defined which first estimates the total electron content along paths of interest and then utilizes this information to aid the phase conjugator so that correct beam pointing can be achieved

How long does telomerase extend telomeres? Regulation of telomerase release and telomere length homeostasis

Telomerase, the enzyme that replenishes telomeres, is essential for most eukaryotes to maintain their generations. Telomere length homeostasis is achieved via a balance between telomere lengthening by telomerase, and erosion over successive cell divisions. Impaired telomerase regulation leads to shortened telomeres and can cause defects in tissue maintenance. Telomeric DNA is composed of a repetitive sequence, which recruits the protective protein complex, shelterin. Shelterin, together with chromatin remodelling proteins, shapes the heterochromatic structure at the telomere and protects chromosome ends. Shelterin also provides a foothold for telomerase to be recruited and facilitates telomere extension. Such mechanisms of telomere recruitment and activation are conserved from unicellular eukaryotes to humans, with the rate of telomere extension playing an important role in determining the length maintained. Telomerase can be processive, adding multiple telomeric repeats before dissociating. However, a question remains: how does telomerase determine the number of repeats to add? In this review, I will discuss about how telomerase can monitor telomere extension using fission yeast as a model. I propose a model whereby the accumulation of the Pot1 complex on the synthesised telomere single-strand counteracts retention of telomerase via chromatin proteins and the similar system may be conserved in mammals

Long wavelength iteration of Einstein's equations near a spacetime singularity

We clarify the links between a recently developped long wavelength iteration scheme of Einstein's equations, the Belinski Khalatnikov Lifchitz (BKL) general solution near a singularity and the antinewtonian scheme of Tomita's. We determine the regimes when the long wavelength or antinewtonian scheme is directly applicable and show how it can otherwise be implemented to yield the BKL oscillatory approach to a spacetime singularity. When directly applicable we obtain the generic solution of the scheme at first iteration (third order in the gradients) for matter a perfect fluid. Specializing to spherical symmetry for simplicity and to clarify gauge issues, we then show how the metric behaves near a singularity when gradient effects are taken into account.Comment: 35 pages, revtex, no figure

Spin melting and refreezing driven by uniaxial compression on a dipolar hexagonal plate

We investigate freezing characteristics of a finite dipolar hexagonal plate by the Monte Carlo simulation. The hexagonal plate is cut out from a piled triangular lattice of three layers with FCC-like (ABCABC) stacking structure. In the present study an annealing simulation is performed for the dipolar plate uniaxially compressed in the direction of layer-piling. We find spin melting and refreezing driven by the uniaxial compression. Each of the melting and refreezing corresponds one-to-one with a change of the ground states induced by compression. The freezing temperatures of the ground-state orders differ significantly from each other, which gives rise to the spin melting and refreezing of the present interest. We argue that these phenomena are originated by a finite size effect combined with peculiar anisotropic nature of the dipole-dipole interaction.Comment: Proceedings of the Highly Frustrated Magnetism (HFM2006) conference. To appear in a special issue of J. Phys. Condens. Matte