Modeling cosmic ray anisotropies near 10(18) eV

A galactic magnetic field reversal near the Sagittarius spiral arm may be responsible for the southern excess (or northern shortage) of cosmic rays near 10 to the 18th power eV. The north-south asymmetry produced by such a reversal would increase with energy in the same manner as the observed asymmetry. The existence of a reversal has been inferred from analyses of Faraday rotation measures

Experimental aspects of cosmic rays

High-energy cosmic rays are detected as extensive air showers, and properties of the primary cosmic rays are deduced from measurements of those air showers. The physics of air showers is reviewed here in order to explain how the measurement techniques work. The Pierre Auger Cosmic Ray Observatory (near this school in Malargue) is used to illustrate the experimental methods. The Auger Observatory combines a surface array of water Cherenkov detectors with atmospheric uorescence detectors. This `hybrid' measurement technique provides high resolution and measurement cross-checks. In conjunction with a complementary site in the northern hemisphere, the Auger Observatory expects to map the arrival directions over the full sky as well as measuring the cosmic-ray energy spectrum and statistical properties of the mass distribution

Two-Qubit Separabilities as Piecewise Continuous Functions of Maximal Concurrence

The generic real (b=1) and complex (b=2) two-qubit states are 9-dimensional and 15-dimensional in nature, respectively. The total volumes of the spaces they occupy with respect to the Hilbert-Schmidt and Bures metrics are obtainable as special cases of formulas of Zyczkowski and Sommers. We claim that if one could determine certain metric-independent 3-dimensional "eigenvalue-parameterized separability functions" (EPSFs), then these formulas could be readily modified so as to yield the Hilbert-Schmidt and Bures volumes occupied by only the separable two-qubit states (and hence associated separability probabilities). Motivated by analogous earlier analyses of "diagonal-entry-parameterized separability functions", we further explore the possibility that such 3-dimensional EPSFs might, in turn, be expressible as univariate functions of some special relevant variable--which we hypothesize to be the maximal concurrence (0 < C <1) over spectral orbits. Extensive numerical results we obtain are rather closely supportive of this hypothesis. Both the real and complex estimated EPSFs exhibit clearly pronounced jumps of magnitude roughly 50% at C=1/2, as well as a number of additional matching discontinuities.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, new abstract, revised for J. Phys.

Seasonal Dynamics of Lipid Metabolism and Energy Storage in the Brazilian Free-Tailed Bat

As small, flying, mammalian endotherms, insectivorous bats are adapted to operate at high levels of energy expenditure. In response to seasonally variable challenges, we predicted that bats should balance energy budgets by flexibly adjusting aspects of their physiology or behavior in ways that elevate metabolic capacity. We examined variation in energy storage and pathways for oxidative metabolism in Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) related to estimated costs associated with reproduction and migration. We collected pectoral muscle and liver from female T. brasiliensis at six time points during the summer and fall and measured changes in the activity of four enzymes involved with lipid metabolism. Body mass varied substantially with life-cycle stage, suggesting that rapid accumulation and use of fat stores occurs in response to current and anticipated energy demands. Catabolic enzyme activity (carnitine palmitoyltransferase [CPT], 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase [HOAD], and citrate synthase [CS]) in the muscle was increased during lactation compared with early pregnancy but exhibited no change before fall migration. While there was no temporal change in lipid biosynthetic capacity in the liver, fatty acid synthase activity was negatively correlated with body mass. Variation in body mass and enzyme activity in T. brasiliensis during the summer suggests that stored energy is mobilized and lipid oxidative capacity is increased during periods of increased demand and that lipid biosynthetic capacity is increased with depletion of fat stores. These results suggest that bats are able to flexibly adjust metabolic capacity based on energy requirement to maintain energy balance despite high levels of expenditure

The spherical 2+p2+p spin glass model: an exactly solvable model for glass to spin-glass transition

We present the full phase diagram of the spherical $2+p$ spin glass model with $p\geq 4$. The main outcome is the presence of a new phase with both properties of Full Replica Symmetry Breaking (FRSB) phases of discrete models, e.g, the Sherrington-Kirkpatrick model, and those of One Replica Symmetry Breaking (1RSB). The phase, which separates a 1RSB phase from FRSB phase, is described by an order parameter function $q(x)$ with a continuous part (FRSB) for $x<m$ and a discontinuous jump (1RSB) at $x=m$. This phase has a finite complexity which leads to different dynamic and static properties.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure

500 TeV gamma rays from Hercules X-1

A signal (chance probability = .0002) with the 1.24 s period of Hercules X-1 has been observed using the Utah Fly's Eye. The signal's relatively long period and high shower energy conflict with some popular models of particle acceleration by pulsars. Optical and X-ray data suggest a picture in which energetic particles produce multi-TeV gamma rays by collisions with Hercules X-1's accretion disk