Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ising model conformal boundary conditions from open string field theory

Given a consistent choice of conformally invariant boundary conditions in a two dimensional conformal field theory, one can construct new consistent boundary conditions by deforming with a relevant boundary operator and flowing to the infrared, or by a marginal deformation. Open string field theory provides a very universal tool to discover and study such new boundary theories. Surprisingly, it also allows one to go in the reverse direction and to uncover solutions with higher boundary entropy. We will illustrate our results on the well studied example of Ising model.
Information on the structure of the a1 from tau decay

The decay $\tau\to \pi\pi\pi\nu$ is analysed using different methods to account for the resonance structure, which is usually ascribed to the a1. One scenario is based on the recently developed techniques to generate axial-vector resonances dynamically, whereas in a second calculation the a1 is introduced as an explicit resonance. We investigate the influence of different assumptions on the result. In the molecule scenario the spectral function is described surprisingly well by adjusting only one free parameter. This result can be systematically improved by adding higher order corrections to the iterated Weinberg-Tomozawa interaction. Treating the a1 as an explicit resonance on the other hand leads to peculiar properties.
Assessing science teachers’ understanding about the nature of scientific inquiry and its reflection in students’ responses using the VASI questionnaire

ABSTRACT This study assessed teachers’ understanding about the nature of scientific inquiry (NOSI) and whether this understanding was reflected in their students’ responses. The data were collected through the ‘Views About Scientific Inquiry’ (VASI) questionnaire, a reliable tool for assessing understanding about the NOSI. The sample included science teachers and students of grade X purposively selected from five ‘schools affiliated with the local board’ (SALB) and five ‘schools affiliated with the international board’ (SAIB) for external examinations in Pakistan. The responses on the VASI were graded for quality to find the means, frequency count, percentage, and t-test values. The findings revealed no significant difference in teachers’ understanding of scientific inquiry (SI) in both school systems. Generally, the teachers had informed views while students held naïve views. The VASI also identified participants’ understanding on eight aspects of SI. The SAIB teachers understanding of SI was reflected in their students’ responses in some aspects of SI, unlike the SALB teachers. The study recommends incorporating NOSI aspects in teacher education programs and helping science teachers integrate NOSI aspects in their science instruction.
Female Reproductive Fluid Increases the Opportunities for Postmating Sexual Selection by Prolonging the Egg Fertilization Window

Female reproductive fluid (the fluid that surrounds the eggs) has attracted increasing attention for its role in fertilization and postmating sexual selection through its effects on sperm traits. Surprisingly, however, only a few studies have investigated the effects of the female reproductive fluid on the eggs. Yet these effects might offer great potential to affect fertilization dynamics by, for example, increasing the opportunities for postmating sexual selection. Here, we determined whether the female reproductive fluid, by extending the egg fertilization window (the time available for egg fertilization), could also increase the opportunities for multiple paternity. Using the zebrafish (Danio rerio), we first tested the prediction that female reproductive fluid increases the egg fertilization window; then, using a split-brood design with the sperm of two males added at different time points after egg activation, we tested whether the degree of multiple paternity varies in the presence or absence of female reproductive fluid. Our results reveal the potential of female reproductive fluid to increase multiple paternity through its effects on the egg fertilization window, thus broadening our knowledge of how female mechanisms affect postmating sexual selection in externally fertilizing species.
NONLINEAR EVOLUTION OF GLOBAL HYDRODYNAMIC SHALLOW-WATER INSTABILITY IN THE SOLAR TACHOCLINE

We present a fully nonlinear hydrodynamic “shallow-water” model of the solar tachocline. The model consists of a global spherical shell of differentially rotating fluid, which has a deformable top, thus allowing motions in radial directions along with latitudinal and longitudinal directions. When the system is perturbed, in the course of its nonlinear evolution it can generate unstable low-frequency shallow-water shear modes from the differential rotation, high-frequency gravity waves, and their interactions. Radiative and overshoot tachoclines are characterized in this model by high and low effective gravity values, respectively. Building a semi-implicit spectral scheme containing very low numerical diffusion, we perform nonlinear evolution of shallow-water modes. Our first results show that (1) high-latitude jets or polar spin-up occurs due to nonlinear evolution of unstable hydrodynamic shallow-water disturbances and differential rotation, (2) Reynolds stresses in the disturbances together with changing shell thickness and meridional flow are responsible for the evolution of differential rotation, (3) disturbance energy primarily remains concentrated in the lowest longitudinal wavenumbers, (4) an oscillation in energy between perturbed and unperturbed states occurs due to evolution of these modes in a nearly dissipation-free system, and (5) disturbances are geostrophic, but occasional nonadjustment in geostrophic balance can occur, particularly in the case of high effective gravity, leading to generation of gravity waves. We also find that a linearly stable differential rotation profile remains nonlinearly stable.
Toward Precision Measurement of Central Black Hole Masses

Abstract We review briefly direct and indirect methods of measuring the masses of black holes in galactic nuclei, and then focus attention on supermassive black holes in active nuclei, with special attention to results from reverberation mapping and their limitations. We find that the intrinsic scatter in the relationship between the AGN luminosity and the broad-line region size is very small, ~0.11 dex, comparable to the uncertainties in the better reverberation measurements. We also find that the relationship between reverberation-based black hole masses and host-galaxy bulge luminosities also seems to have surprisingly little intrinsic scatter, ~0.17 dex. We note, however, that there are still potential systematics that could affect the overall mass calibration at the level of a factor of a few.
High-energy emission from galaxies: the star-formation/gamma-ray connection

Abstract The impact of non-thermal processes on the spectral energy distributions of galaxies can be dramatic, but such processes are often neglected in considerations of their structure and evolution. Particle acceleration associated with high mass star formation and AGN activity not only leads to very broad band (radio-γ-ray) emission, but may also produce very significant feedback effects on galaxies and their environment. The recent detections of starburst galaxies at GeV and TeV energies suggest that γ-ray instruments have now reached the critical level of sensitivity to probe the connection between particle acceleration and star-formation in galaxies. In this paper we will try to summarise this recent progress, put it into a multi-wavelength context and also discuss the prospects for more precise and sensitive γ-ray measurements with the upcoming CTA observatory.
Measuring the dynamical state of Planck SZ-selected clusters: X-ray peak – BCG offset

We want to characterize the dynamical state of galaxy clusters detected with the Sunyaev-Zeldovich (SZ) effect by Planck and compare them with the dynamical state of clusters selected in X-rays survey. We analyzed a representative subsample of the Planck SZ catalogue, containing the 132 clusters with the highest signal to noise ratio and characterize their dynamical state using as indicator the projected offset between the peak of the X-ray emission and the position of the Brightest cluster galaxy. We study the distribution of our indicator in our sample and compare it to its distribution in X-ray selected samples (HIFLUGCS, MACS and REXCESS). The distributions are significantly different and the fraction of relaxed objects is smaller in the Planck sample ($52 \pm 4 \%$) than in X-ray samples ($\simeq 74\%$) We interpret this result as an indication of different selection effects affecting X-rays (e.g. "cool core bias") and SZ surveys of galaxy clusters.
Validation of high throughput sequencing as virus indexing test for Musa germplasm: performance criteria evaluation and contamination monitoring using an alien control

High-throughput sequencing (HTS) technologies have brought tremendous improvements in the ability to detect plant viruses and have a great potential for application in virus routine diagnostics. The performance criteria of an HTS test need therefore to be estimated and compared to traditional virus indexing tests before it can be used in routine diagnostic. In this study, 78 Musa accessions previously indexed for viruses by molecular tests and/or electron microscopy were tested individually or in pools using an HTS protocol based on total RNA sequencing. The analytical sensitivity of HTS and RT-PCR was also compared by independent testing on serial dilutions of RNA extracts. In total, 136 libraries were sequenced in five batches, and the sequences analyzed for virus detection. The external alien control, a wheat sample infected by BYDV, monitored the contamination burden and determined an adaptative detection threshold. Overall, HTS test displayed a better analytical sensitivity compared to RT-PCR and a better inclusivity than the classical indexing protocol, as distant isolates and new viral species were only detected by the HTS test. Repeatability and reproducibility of virus detection were both of 100% although differences in number of sequencing reads per virus were observed between replicates. The diagnostic sensitivity was very high but false positive results were observed. Finally, the results also underlined the need of expert judgement in the interpretation of the results. In conclusion, the HTS test with an alien control and completed by expert evaluation has fulfilled the criteria of virus indexing protocol for Musa germplasm.
Existence of an absolute minimizer via Perron's method

In this paper the existence of an absolute minimizer for a functional \[ F(u,\Omega) = \underset{x \in \Omega}{\text{ess sup}} \, f (x, u(x), Du(x)) \] is proved by using Perron's method. The function is assumed to be quasiconvex and uniformly coercive. This completes the result by Champion, De Pascale and Prinari.
A global analysis of viviparity in squamates highlights its prevalence in cold climates

Aim: Viviparity has evolved more times in squamates than in any other vertebrate group; therefore, squamates offer an excellent model system in which to study the patterns, drivers and implications of reproductive mode evolution. Based on current species distributions, we examined three selective forces hypothesized to drive the evolution of squamate viviparity (cold climate, variable climate and hypoxic conditions) and tested whether viviparity is associated with larger body size.
Reconstructing the local potential of inflation with BICEP2 data

We locally reconstruct the inflationary potential by using the current constraints on r and ns from BICEP2 data. Assuming small and negligible αs, the inflationary potential is approximately linear in Δϕ∼ Mpl range but becomes non-linear in Δϕ∼ 10 Mpl range. However if we vary the value of αs within the range given by constraints from Planck measurement, the local reconstruction is only valid in the range of Δϕ∼ 0.4 Mpl, which challenges the inflationary background from the point of view of effective field theory. We show that, within the range of Δ ϕ ∼ 0.4 Mpl, the inflation potential can be precisely reconstructed. With the current reconstruction, we show that V(ϕ) ∼ ϕ2 and ϕ3 are consistent, while ϕ model is ruled out by 95% confidence level of the reconstructed range of potential. This sets up a strong limit of large-field inflation models.
Category Level Object Segmentation by Combining Bag-of-words Models and Markov Random Fields

This paper presents an approach to segment unseen objects of known categories. At the heart of the approach lies a probabilistic model of images which captures local appearance of objects through a bag-of-words representation. Bag-of-words models have been very successful for image categorization; however, as they model objects as loose collections of small image patches, they can not accurately predict object boundaries. On the other hand, Markov Random Fields (MRFs), which are often used in many low-level application for general purpose image segmentation, do incorporate the spatial layout of images. Yet, as they are usually based on very local image evidence they fail to capture larger scale structures needed to recognize object categories under large appearance variations. The main contribution of this article is to combine the advantages of both approaches into a single probabilistic model. First, a mechanism based on a bag-of-words representation produces object recognition and localization at a rough spatial resolution. Second, a MRF component enforces precise object boundaries, guided by local image cues (color, texture, and edges) and by long-distance dependencies. Gibbs sampling is used to infer the model parameters and the object segmentation. The proposed method successfully segments object categories, despite highly varying appearances, cluttered backgrounds and large viewpoint changes. Through a series of experiments, we emphasize the strength as well as the limitation of our model. First, we evaluate the results of several strategies for building the visual vocabulary. Second, we show how it is possible to combine strong labeling (segmented images) with weak labeling (images annotated with bounding boxes), in order to limit the amount of training data needed to learn the model. Third, we study the influence of the initialization on the model estimation. Last, we present extensive experiments on four different image databases, including the challenging Pascal VOC 2007 dataset on which we obtain state-of-the art results.
The non-linear matter power spectrum in warm dark matter cosmologies

We investigate the non-linear evolution of the matter power spectrum by using a large set of high-resolution N-body/hydrodynamic simulations. The linear matter power in the initial conditions is consistently modified to accommodate warm dark matter particles which induce a small scale cut-off in the power as compared to standard cold dark matter scenarios. The impact of such thermal relics is addressed at small scales with k > 1hMpc 1 and at z 0.5 keV. The role of baryonic physics (cooling, star formation and feedback recipes) on the warm dark matter induced suppression is also quantified. Furthermore, we compare our findings with the halo model and show their impact on the cosmic shear power spectra.
Evidence for electromagnetic granularity in polycrystalline Sm1111 iron-pnictides with enhanced phase purity

We prepared polycrystalline SmFeAsO1 − xFx (Sm1111) bulk samples by sintering and hot isostatic pressing (HIP) in order to study the effects of phase purity and relative density on the intergranular current density. Sintered and HIP processed Sm1111 samples are denser with fewer impurity phases, such as SmOF and the grain boundary wetting phase, FeAs. We found quite complex magnetization behavior due to variations of both the inter and intragranular current densities. Removing porosity and reducing second phase content enhanced the intergranular current density, but HIP processing reduced the intragranular current density, arising from the loss of fluorine and reduction of Tc. We believe that the HIP processed samples are amongst the purest polycrystalline 1111 samples yet made. However, their intergranular current densities are still small, providing further evidence that polycrystalline pnictides, like polycrystalline cuprates, are affected by weak-link problems.
Impact of initial models and variable accretion rates on the pre-main-sequence evolution of massive and intermediate-mass stars and the early evolution of H II regions

Massive star formation requires the accretion of gas at high rate while the star is already bright. Its actual luminosity depends sensitively on the stellar structure. We compute pre-main-sequence tracks for massive and intermediate-mass stars with variable accretion rates and study the evolution of stellar radius, effective temperature and ionizing luminosity, starting at $2\,M_\odot$ with convective or radiative structures. The radiative case shows a much stronger swelling of the protostar for high accretion rates than the convective case. For radiative structures, the star is very sensitive to the accretion rate and reacts quickly to accretion bursts, leading to considerable changes in photospheric properties on timescales as short as 100 - 1000 yr. The evolution for convective structures is much less influenced by the instantaneous accretion rate, and produces a monotonically increasing ionizing flux that can be many orders of magnitude smaller than in the radiative case. For massive stars, it results in a delay of the HII region expansion by up to 10,000 yr. In the radiative case, the HII region can potentially be engulfed by the star during the swelling, which never happens in the convective case. We conclude that the early stellar structure has a large impact on the radiative feedback during the pre-main-sequence evolution of massive protostars and introduces an important uncertainty that should be taken into account. Because of their lower effective temperatures, our convective models may hint at a solution to an observed discrepancy between the luminosity distribution functions of massive young stellar objects and compact HII regions.
Radiative corrections to polarization observables in electron-proton scattering

We consider radiative corrections to polarization observables in elastic electron-proton scattering, in particular, for the polarization transfer measurements of the proton form factor ratio $\mu G_E/G_M$. The corrections are of two types: two-photon exchange (TPE) and bremsstrahlung (BS); in the present work we pay special attention to the latter. Assuming small missing energy or missing mass cut-off, the correction can be represented in a model-independent form, with both electron and proton radiation taken into account. Numerical calculations show that the contribution of the proton radiation is not negligible. Overall, at high $Q^2$ and energies the total correction to $\mu G_E/G_M$ grows, but is dominated by TPE. At low energies both TPE and BS may be significant; the latter amounts to ~ 0.01 for some reasonable cut-off choices.
Phase diagram and momentum distribution of an interacting Bose gas in a bichromatic lattice

We determine the phase diagram and the momentum distribution for a one-dimensional Bose gas with repulsive short-range interactions in the presence of a two-color lattice potential, with an incommensurate ratio among the respective wavelengths, by using a combined numerical (density matrix renormalization group) and analytical (bosonization) analysis. The system displays a delocalized (superfluid) phase at small values of the intensity of the secondary lattice ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$ and a localized (Bose-glasslike) phase at larger intensity ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$. We analyze the localization transition as a function of the height ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$ beyond the known limits of free and hard-core bosons. We find that weak repulsive interactions disfavor the localized phase, i.e., they increase the critical value of ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$ at which localization occurs. In the case of integer filling of the primary lattice, the phase diagram at fixed density displays, in addition to a transition from a superfluid to a Bose glass phase, a transition to a Mott-insulating state for not too large ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$ and large repulsion. We also analyze the emergence of a Bose-glass phase by looking at the evolution of the Mott-insulator lobes when increasing ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$. The Mott lobes shrink and disappear above a critical value of ${\mathit{V}}_{2}$. Finally, we characterize the superfluid phase by the momentum distribution, and show that it displays a power-law decay at small momenta typical of Luttinger liquids, with an exponent depending on the combined effect of the interactions and of the secondary lattice. In addition, we observe two side peaks that are due to the diffraction of the Bose gas by the second lattice. This latter feature could be observed in current experiments as characteristics of pseudo-random Bose systems.
The clustering amplitude of X-ray-selected AGN at z ∼ 0.8: evidence for a negative dependence on accretion luminosity

The northern tile of the wide-area and shallow XMM-XXL X-ray survey field is used to estimate the average dark matter halo mass of relatively luminous X-ray selected AGN [$\rm log\, L_X (\rm 2-10\,keV)= 43.6^{+0.4}_{-0.4}\,erg/s$] in the redshift interval $z=0.5-1.2$. Spectroscopic follow-up observations of X-ray sources in the XMM-XXL field by the Sloan telescope are combined with the VIPERS spectroscopic galaxy survey to determine the cross-correlation signal between X-ray selected AGN (total of 318) and galaxies (about 20,\,000). We model the large scales (2-25\,Mpc) of the correlation function to infer a mean dark matter halo mass of $\log M / (M_{\odot} \, h^{-1}) = 12.50 ^{+0.22} _{-0.30}$ for the X-ray selected AGN sample. This measurement is about 0.5\,dex lower compared to estimates in the literature of the mean dark matter halo masses of moderate luminosity X-ray AGN [$L_X (\rm 2-10\,keV)\approx 10^{42} - 10^{43}\,erg/s$] at similar redshifts. Our analysis also links the mean clustering properties of moderate luminosity AGN with those of powerful UV/optically selected QSOs, which are typically found in halos with masses few times $10^{12}\,M_{\odot}$. There is therefore evidence for a negative luminosity dependence of the AGN clustering. This is consistent with suggestions that AGN have a broad dark matter halo mass distribution with a high mass tail that becomes sub-dominant at high accretion luminosities. We further show that our results are in qualitative agreement with semi-analytic models of galaxy and AGN evolution, which attribute the wide range of dark matter halo masses among the AGN population to different triggering mechanisms and/or black hole fueling modes.