cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Neutrino Mixing with Non-Zero $θ_{13}$ and CP Violation in the 3-3-1 Model Based on $S_4$ Flavor Symmetry
Creators: name: Van Vien, Vo
name: Long, Hoang Ngoc
name: Khoi, Dinh Phan
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The 3-3-1 model proposed in 2011 based on discrete symmetry $S_4$ responsible for the neutrino and quark masses is updated, in which the non-zero $θ_{13}$ is focused. Neutrino masses and mixings are consistent with the most recent data on neutrino oscillations without perturbation. The new feature is adding a new $SU(3)_L$ anti-sextet lying in doublet under $S_4$ which can result the non-zero $θ_{13}$ without perturbation, and consequently, the number of Higgs multiplets required is less than those of other models based on non-Abelian discrete symmetries and the 3-3-1 models. The exact tribimaximal form obtained with the breaking $S_4 \rightarrow Z_3$ in charged lepton sector and $S_4 \rightarrow \mathcal{K}$ in neutrino sector. If both breakings $S_4\rightarrow \mathcal{K}$ and $\mathcal{K} \rightarrow Z_2$ are taken place in neutrino sector, the realistic neutrino spectrum is obtained without perturbation. The upper bound on neutrino mass and the effective mass governing neutrinoless double beta decay at the tree level are presented. The model predicts the Dirac CP violation phase $δ=292.45^\circ$ in the normal spectrum (with $θ_{23}\neq \fracπ{4}$) and $δ=303.14^\circ$ in the inverted spectrum.
description: 23 pages, 6 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1402.1256
Inducing a map on homology from a correspondence
Creators: name: Harker, Shaun
name: Kokubu, Hiroshi
name: Mischaikow, Konstantin
name: Pilarczyk, Paweł
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2014
Subjects: subject: Algebraic Topology (math.AT)
subject: FOS: Mathematics
subject: 55M99, 55-04

description: We study the homomorphism induced in homology by a closed correspondence between topological spaces, using projections from the graph of the correspondence to its domain and codomain. We provide assumptions under which the homomorphism induced by an outer approximation of a continuous map coincides with the homomorphism induced in homology by the map. In contrast to more classical results we do not require that the projection to the domain have acyclic preimages. Moreover, we show that it is possible to retrieve correct homological information from a correspondence even if some data is missing or perturbed. Finally, we describe an application to combinatorial maps that are either outer approximations of continuous maps or reconstructions of such maps from a finite set of data points.
Protecting Freedom and Engendering Trust: A Capability Approach to Data Rights
Creators: name: Ramachandran, Vishnu
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2019

description: Personal data collection and processing is changing faster than the legal mechanisms and the social norms that should govern it, leading to violations of freedom and a deterioration of trust. The way data rights fit into existing institutions can preserve freedom and reap the benefits of information technologies. The history of social control through information processing and collecting points to the need for legislation to protect freedom. Although technology companies in the market are attempting to assuage fears about personal data misuse, their recommended practices will not sufficiently address data rights. The market’s emphasis on property rights does not address the challenges that data poses for ownership and consent. Additionally, the negative conception of privacy supported by technology companies is unfair, leading to suspicion of privacy-conscious individuals and requiring them to bear the heavy burden of policing personal data abuses. To counter the market trend, a data rights framework should enable trust in computing and allow individuals to pursue their conception of the good life without fear of abuse. The framework presented in this paper will (1) refocus discourse on how we can engender trust in data use so as to expand opportunity and (2) provide a mechanism for rights to contend with violations of freedom even as technology changes. Applying the framework will show that the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation insufficiently addresses personal data protection by not considering issues imposed by data ownership, technological change, government abuse, and undue manipulation.
Nanomechanical detection of the spin Hall effect
Creators: name: Boales, Joseph A.
name: Boone, Carl T.
name: Mohanty, Pritiraj
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: The spin Hall effect creates a spin current in response to a charge current in a material that has strong spin-orbit coupling. The size of the spin Hall effect in many materials is disputed, requiring independent measurements of the effect. We develop a novel mechanical method to measure the size of the spin Hall effect, relying on the equivalence between spin and angular momentum. The spin current carries angular momentum, so the flow of angular momentum will result in a mechanical torque on the material. We determine the size and geometry of this torque and demonstrate that it can be measured using a nanomechanical device. Our results show that measurement of the spin Hall effect in this manner is possible and also opens possibilities for actuating nanomechanical systems with spin currents.
description: 5 pages + 2 pages supplementary material, 4 figures total
Near optimal single photon sources in the solid state
Creators: name: Somaschi, N.
name: Giesz, V.
name: De Santis, L.
name: Loredo, J. C.
name: Almeida, M. P.
name: Hornecker, G.
name: Portalupi, S. L.
name: Grange, T.
name: Anton, C.
name: Demory, J.
name: Gomez, C.
name: Sagnes, I.
name: Kimura, N. D. Lanzillotti
name: Lemaitre, A.
name: Auffeves, A.
name: White, A. G.
name: Lanco, L.
name: Senellart, P.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Single-photons are key elements of many future quantum technologies, be it for the realisation of large-scale quantum communication networks for quantum simulation of chemical and physical processes or for connecting quantum memories in a quantum computer. Scaling quantum technologies will thus require efficient, on-demand, sources of highly indistinguishable single-photons. Semiconductor quantum dots inserted in photonic structures are ultrabright single photon sources, but the photon indistinguishability is limited by charge noise induced by nearby surfaces. The current state of the art for indistinguishability are parametric down conversion single-photon sources, but they intrinsically generate multiphoton events and hence must be operated at very low brightness to maintain high single photon purity. To date, no technology has proven to be capable of providing a source that simultaneously generates near-unity indistinguishability and pure single photons with high brightness. Here, we report on such devices made of quantum dots in electrically controlled cavity structures. We demonstrate on-demand, bright and ultra-pure single photon generation. Application of an electrical bias on deterministically fabricated devices is shown to fully cancel charge noise effects. Under resonant excitation, an indistinguishability of $0.9956\pm0.0045$ is evidenced with a $g^{2}(0)=0.0028\pm0.0012$. The photon extraction of $65%$ and measured brightness of $0.154\pm0.015$ make this source $20$ times brighter than any source of equal quality. This new generation of sources open the way to a new level of complexity and scalability in optical quantum manipulation.
Race, Socioeconomic Status and Representation: Redefining Affirmative Action in Chicago
Creators: name: Psenka, Renee
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2014

description: As the legal foundation of racial affirmative action in public education erodes,
alternatives to these policies must be examined where diversity is socially and pedagogically
valued. The purpose of this thesis is to determine if race-neutral, socioeconomic status-based
affirmative action policies can be applied to produce comparable levels of racial/ethnic
enrollment proportions within schools (versus racial affirmative action). My study examines the
Chicago Public Schools’ Admissions Policy for Magnet, Selective Enrollment and Other Options
For Knowledge Schools and Programs, which applied a SES-based admissions standard to the
Selective Enrollment High School program in 2011. Using data on Selective Enrollment High
Schools and CPS demographic enrollment, this thesis determines the treatment effect of the new
policy on enrollment proportions through multiple linear regression. The analysis provides
empirical evidence that SES-based admissions policies yield statistically significant decreases in
Black and minority student enrollment proportions, which are 5.8% and 7% lower than
enrollment under a racial affirmative action admissions policy, respectively. However, based on
anecdotal evidence, the CPS policy provides one of the strongest race-neutral affirmative action
policy formulas available to date, and nonetheless works to ensure the presence of a critical mass
of minority students.
Experimental Verification of Below-Cutoff Propagation in Miniaturized Circular Waveguides Using Anisotropic ENNZ Metamaterial Liners
Creators: name: Pollock, Justin G.
name: Iyer, Ashwin K.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Optics (physics.optics)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: This paper presents experimental verification of below-cutoff transmission through miniaturized waveguides whose interior is coated with a thin anisotropic metamaterial liner possessing epsilon-negative and near-zero (ENNZ) properties. These liners are realized using a simple, printed-circuit implementation based on inductively loaded wires, and introduce an HE$_{11}$ mode well below the natural cutoff frequency. The inclusion of the liner is shown to substantially improve the transmission between two embedded shielded-loop sources. A homogenization scheme is developed to characterize the liner's anisotropic effective-medium parameters, which is shown to accurately describe a set of frequency-reduced cutoffs. The fabrication of the lined waveguide is discussed, and the experimental and simulated transmission results are shown to be in agreement.
description: 9 pages, double column
Uniform expansivity outside the critical neighborhood in the quadratic family
Creators: name: Golmakani, Ali
name: Luzzatto, Stefano
name: Pilarczyk, Paweł
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Dynamical Systems (math.DS)
subject: FOS: Mathematics

description: We use rigorous numerical techniques to compute a lower bound for the exponent of expansivity outside a neighborhood of the critical point for thousands of intervals of parameter values in the quadratic family. We compute a possibly small radius of the critical neighborhood, and a lower bound for the corresponding expansivity exponent outside this neighborhood, valid for all the parameters in each of the intervals. We illustrate and study the distribution of the radii and these exponents. The results of our computations are mathematically rigorous. The source code of the software and the results of the computations are made publicly available at http://www.pawelpilarczyk.com/quadratic/..
description: 12 pages, 7 figures
Thalassionema frauenfeldii HK
Creators: name: Sabir, J. S. M.
name: Theriot, E. C.
name: Lobban, C. S.
name: Alhebshi, A. M.
name: Al-Malki, A. L.
name: Hajrah, N. H.
name: Khiyami, M. A.
name: Obaid, A. Y.
name: Jansen, R. K.
name: Ashworth, M. A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Chromista
Ochrophyta
Bacillariophyceae
Thalassionematales
Thalassionemataceae
Thalassionema
Thalassionema frauenfeldii

description: Thalassionema cf. frauenfeldii HK 372 (Figs 65–68)
 Material studied: —Wild and cultured (HK 372) material from the same collection: ECT 4120, collected from plankton tow at Hunting Island, South Carolina, USA (32° 20.56’ N, 80° 22.80’ W).
 Description: —Valves observed were 79.6–83.9 μm long, 2.7–3.1 μm wide, with areolar densities of 5–6 areolae in 10 μm along the margin. There was a rimoportula at the very end of each pole. Internally, each rimoportula appeared to be situated at the junction of the face and mantle, and its slit composed of symmetric coverings, which were tangentially arranged. Externally, the rimoportula opening was underneath a broad spine at one pole. Girdle bands were open and without pores.
 Remarks: —Measurements of specimens from the DNA voucher fit well within the published ranges of T. frauenfeldii and T. bacillare (summarized in Sugie & Suzuki 2015). It keyed out to T. frauenfeldii according to Sugie and Suzuki (2015). While it had the relatively simple areolar structure (each areola spanned by a simple unbranched bar) of T. frauenfeldii as illustrated by those authors and by Hasle (2001), its end poles were not strongly different from one another, and consequently it keyed out to T. bacillare in Hasle (2001). Sequences from this strain were reported in Lobban and Ashworth (2014a) as belonging to T. frauenfeldii strain HK 372.
description: Published as part of Sabir, J. S. M., Theriot, E. C., Lobban, C. S., Alhebshi, A. M., Al-Malki, A. L., Hajrah, N. H., Khiyami, M. A., Obaid, A. Y., Jansen, R. K. & Ashworth, M. A., 2018, Systematics of araphid diatoms with asymmetric rimoportulae or densely packed virgae, with particular attention to Hyalosynedra (Ulnariaceae, Bacillariophyta), pp. 1-49 in Phytotaxa 347 (1) on pages 25-26, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.347.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/13707999
Kinetic Magnetism at the Interface Between Mott and Band Insulators
Creators: name: Iaconis, Jason
name: Ishizuka, Hiroaki
name: Sheng, D. N.
name: Balents, Leon
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Strongly Correlated Electrons (cond-mat.str-el)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We show that the interplay of a high density two-dimensional electron gas and localized electrons in a neighboring Mott insulator leads to kinetic magnetism unique to the Mott/band insulator interface. Our study is based upon a bilayer Hubbard model at $U=\infty$ with a potential difference between the two layers. We combine analytic results with DMRG simulations to show that magnetism, and especially ferromagnetism, is greatly enhanced relative by the proximity of the two subsystems. The results are potentially relevant to recent experiments suggesting magnetism in $R$TiO$_3$/SrTiO$_3$ heterostructures.
description: 5 pages, 4 figures + Supplementary Information
020411.pdf
Creators: name: Rajput, Kumkum
Publisher: name: figshare
Year: 2023
Subjects: Agronomy

description: ABSTRACT Pauropsylla depressa Crawford (Homoptera: Psyllidae) infests Ficus glomerata Roxburgi and produces galls on its leaves, causing extensive damage to the foliage of the plant, (Mani, 1973). Galls are abnormal growth not only foreign organism, but also mechanical irritation, wounds and certain chemicals like mutagenic agents, various amino acids and excessive IAA and other plant growth harmones commonly induce the formation of gall. The gall formation by Pauropsylla depressa causing the changes in the histomorphology, ecology and biochemical components of the host plant. The galls are Green and pubescent at the beginning of bud expansion, but mature rapidly and soon after the emergence of the insects become dry, and turned brown. Hence, changes occur in FAA. The data clearly depict those healthy leaves process nine amino acids against clearly depict against 12 presents in galls. In this way in healthy leaves only Alanine, Cystine, Glutamate, Glycine, Histidine, Lysine, Methionine, Phenylalanine, Proline, Threonine, Tryptophan was present. The gall tissues also exhibited a market increase in the quantities of Cystine Lysine, Phenylalanine as compared to those of healthy tissues, in case of F. glomerata gall, the quantitative changes in amino acids spectrum in both healthy and infected leaves as shown in the result clearly indicated that healthy least process 9 amino acids as against 12 presents in galls. The additional ones are Alanine, Threonine and Tyrosine. According to results, gall tissues also exhibited a marked increase in the quantities of Cystine, Lysine and phenylalanine as compared to those of healthy tissues.
Burning and graphitization of optically levitated nanodiamonds in vacuum
Creators: name: Rahman, A. T. M. A.
name: Frangeskou, A.
name: Kim, M. S.
name: Bose, S.
name: Morley, G. W.
name: Barker, P. F.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Optics (physics.optics)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: A nitrogen-vacancy (NV$^-$) center in a nanodiamond, levitated in high vacuum, has recently been proposed as a probe for demonstrating mesoscopic center-of-mass superpositions \cite{Scala2013, Zhang2013} and for testing quantum gravity \cite{Albrecht2014}. Here, we study the behavior of optically levitated nanodiamonds containing NV$^-$ centers at sub-atmospheric pressures and show that while they burn in air, this can be prevented by replacing the air with nitrogen. However, in nitrogen the nanodiamonds graphitize below $\approx 10$ mB. Exploiting the Brownian motion of a levitated nanodiamond, we extract its internal temperature ($T_i$) and find that it would be detrimental to the NV$^-$ center's spin coherence time \cite{Toyli2012}. These values of $T_i$ make it clear that the diamond is not melting, contradicting a recent suggestion \cite{Neukirch2015}. Additionally, using the measured damping rate of a levitated nanoparticle at a given pressure, we propose a new way of determining its size.
description: Six pages and four figures
Examining the independent and combined effects of ocean warming and acidification on the corallite morphology of the Caribbean coral Siderastrea siderea
Creators: name: Thomasson, Bailey
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2019

description: Anthropogenic increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) are predicted to cause sea surface temperature to increase by 1 to 4°C and sea surface pH to decrease by 0.1 to 0.3 pH units. These ramifications of global change reduce calcification rates in a variety of coral species; however, little work has been done to investigate the underlying aspects of corallite morphology that influence observed calcification responses under these global-scale stressors. In this study, stereomicroscopy was used to investigate the independent and combined effects of ocean warming (28 and 31°C) and ocean acidification (ca. 280, 400, 700, 3200 µatm pCO2) on two aspects of corallite morphology, corallite height and corallite infilling, of Siderastrea siderea coral samples reared for 93 days in a controlled laboratory experiment. While neither corallite height nor corallite infilling were significantly impacted by elevated temperature or pCO2, trends suggest that corals in the elevated temperature show decreased height and infilling with increasing pCO2, indicating that the combination of increased temperature and pCO2 may have a greater impact on corallite infilling than either stressor alone. Corals from the inshore environment were found to have significantly taller corallite heights than those from the offshore environment in the control temperature treatments, but not at the elevated temperature; corallite infilling was not significantly different between reef environments. Together, these results indicate that S. siderea corals, especially colonies from inshore environments, may be robust and continue to calcify under projected end-of-century conditions, but that continued increases in temperature and pCO2 will ultimately decrease corallite height and corallite infilling. These changes in skeletal morphology may alter the growth patterns of S. siderea, potentially compromising skeletal function and overall reef presence.
Pairing of weakly correlated electrons in the platinum-based centrosymmetric superconductor SrPt3P
Creators: name: Shiroka, T.
name: Pikulski, M.
name: Zhigadlo, N. D.
name: Batlogg, B.
name: Mesot, J.
name: Ott, H. -R.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Superconductivity (cond-mat.supr-con)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We report a study of the normal- and superconducting-state electronic properties of the centrosymmetric compound SrPt3P via 31P nuclear-magnetic-resonance (NMR) and magnetometry investigations. Essential features such as a sharp drop of the Knight shift at T < Tc and an exponential decrease of the NMR spin-lattice relaxation ratio 1/(T1T) below Tc are consistent with an s-wave electron pairing in SrPt3P, although a direct confirmation in the form of a Hebel-Slichter-type peak is lacking. Normal-state NMR data at T < 50 K indicate conventional features of the conduction electrons, typical of simple metals such as lithium or silver. Our data are finally compared with available NMR results for the noncentrosymmetric superconductors LaPt$_3$Si and CePt$_3$Si, which adopt similar crystal structures.
description: 7 pages, 8 figures
Inverted Gabor holography principle for tailoring arbitrary shaped three-dimensional beams
Creators: name: Latychevskaia, Tatiana
name: Fink, Hans-Werner
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Optics (physics.optics)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: It is well known that by modifying the wavefront in a certain manner, the light intensity can be turned into a certain shape. However, all known light modulation techniques allow for limited light modifications only: focusing within a restricted region in space, shaping into a certain class of parametric curves along the optical axis or bending described by a quadratic-dependent deflection as in the case of Airy beams. We show a general case of classical light wavefront shaping that allows for intensity and phase redistribution into an arbitrary profile including pre-determined switching-off of the intensity. To create an arbitrary three-dimensional path of intensity, we represent the path as a sequence of closely packed individual point-like absorbers and simulate the in-line hologram of the created object set; when such a hologram is contrast inverted, thus giving rise to a diffractor, it creates the pre-determined three-dimensional path of intensity behind the diffractor under illumination. The crucial parameter for a smooth optical path is the sampling of the predetermined curves, which is given by the lateral and axial resolution of the optical system. We provide both, simulated and experimental results to demonstrate the power of this novel method.
Efficient simulation of sparse Markovian quantum dynamics
Creators: name: Childs, Andrew M.
name: Li, Tongyang
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Quantum algorithms for simulating Hamiltonian dynamics have been extensively developed, but there has been much less work on quantum algorithms for simulating the dynamics of open quantum systems. We give the first efficient quantum algorithms for simulating Markovian quantum dynamics generated by Lindbladians that are not necessarily local. We introduce two approaches to simulating sparse Lindbladians. First, we show how to simulate Lindbladians that act within small invariant subspaces using a quantum algorithm to implement sparse Stinespring isometries. Second, we develop a method for simulating sparse Lindblad operators by concatenating a sequence of short-time evolutions. We also show limitations on Lindbladian simulation by proving a no-fast-forwarding theorem for simulating sparse Lindbladians in black-box models.
description: 48 pages, 6 figures. v2: A complete proof of Proposition 2 is added
A Statistical Study of GRB X-ray Flares: Evidence of Ubiquitous Bulk Acceleration in the Emission Region
Creators: name: Jia, Lan-Wei
name: Uhm, Z. Lucas
name: Zhang, Bing
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena (astro-ph.HE)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: When emission in a conical relativistic jet ceases abruptly (or decays sharply), the observed decay light curve is controlled by the high-latitude "curvature effect". Recently, Uhm & Zhang found that the decay slopes of three GRB X-ray flares are steeper than what the standard model predicts. This requires bulk acceleration of the emission region, which is consistent with a Poynting-flux-dominated outflow. In this paper, we systematically analyze a sample of 85 bright X-ray flares detected in 63 Swift GRBs, and investigate the relationship between the temporal decay index $α$ and spectral index $β$ during the steep decay phase of these flares. The $α$ value depends on the choice of the zero time point $t_0$. We adopt two methods. "Method I" takes $t_0^I$ as the first rising data point of each flare, and is the most conservative approach. We find that at 99.9% condifence level 56/85 flares have decay slopes steeper than the simplest curvature effect prediction, and therefore, are in the acceleration regime. "Method II" extrapolates the rising light curve of each flare backwards until the flux density is three orders of magnitude lower than the peak flux density, and defines the corresponding time as the time zero point (t_0^II). We find that 74/85 flares fall into the acceleration regime at 99.9% condifence level. This suggests that bulk acceleration is common, may be even ubiquitous among X-ray flares, pointing towards a Poynting-flux-dominated jet composition for these events.
description: 68 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables, ApJS, in press
On the Bott index of unitary matrices on a finite torus
Creators: name: Toniolo, Daniele
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: Quantum Gases (cond-mat.quant-gas)
subject: Mathematical Physics (math-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: This article reviews the foundations of the theory of the Bott index of a pair of unitary matrices in the context of condensed matter theory, as developed by Hastings and Loring in J. Math. Phys. (51), 015214, (2010) and Annals of Physics 326 (2011) 1699-1759, providing a novel proof of the equality with the Chern number. The Bott index is defined for a pair of unitary matrices, then extended to a pair of invertible matrices and homotopic invariance of the index is proven. An insulator defined on a lattice on a 2-torus, that is a rectangular lattice with periodic boundary conditions, is considered and a pair of quasi-unitary matrices associated to this physical system are introduced. It is shown that their Bott index is well defined and the connection with the transverse conductance, the Chern number, is established proving the equality of the two quantities.
description: 24 pages. 1 figure. In v4 more details are provided for the proof of theorem 10. Accepted by Letters in Mathematical Physics
Marine debris in salt marshes and microplastic ingestion by Uca pugilator
Creators: name: Ertel, Bonnie
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2018

description: Marine debris is a direct anthropogenic impact on our ocean ecosystems. Debris is found in various marine ecosystems including the open ocean, seafloor and along coastlines, including estuarine ecosystems. There is limited scientific knowledge of the distribution and impacts of marine debris, particularly in salt marsh habitats. This research sought to: (1) understand factors controlling the presence, accumulation, and distribution of debris found in four North Carolina salt marshes; and (2) assess the incorporation of marine debris into estuarine food webs via Uca pugilator (sand fiddler crab) ingestion of plastic microbeads. From seven debris surveys, 378 items were collected; plastic was the most common debris-type (45%). Debris accumulated as quickly in marshes, with preliminary data showing debris accumulation rates of 7000 debris items / km 2 in 5 months. Debris distribution was positively correlated with a vegetation index that combined shoot height and density, indicating that vegetation likely aids in trapping and retaining debris. Plastic debris is of particular concern due to its tendency to deteriorate into microplastics, which alone can be toxic and can serve as vectors introducing additional toxins into coastal food webs. In a mesocosm experiment, I found a positive correlation between microplastic dosage and the abundance of 330 um microplastics ingested by both male and female fiddler crabs, in 24- and 48-hr trials. My findings suggest that plastics, with their toxins, can readily enter salt marsh food webs and thus, theoretically, bioaccumulate in estuarine ecosystems.
Semi-Automated & Collaborative Online Training Module For Improving Communication Skills
Creators: name: Zhao, Ru
name: Li, Vivian
name: Barbosa, Hugo
name: Ghoshal, Gourab
name: Mohammed
name: Hoque
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: Human-Computer Interaction (cs.HC)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: This paper presents a description and evaluation of the ROC Speak system, a platform that allows ubiquitous access to communication skills training. ROC Speak (available at rocspeak.com) enables anyone to go to a website, record a video, and receive feedback on smile intensity, body movement, volume modulation, filler word usage, unique word usage, word cloud of the spoken words, in addition to overall assessment and subjective comments by peers. Peer comments are automatically ranked and sorted for usefulness and sentiment (i.e., positive vs. negative). We evaluated the system with a diverse group of 56 online participants for a 10-day period. Participants submitted responses to career oriented prompts every other day. The participants were randomly split into two groups: 1) treatment - full feedback from the ROC Speak system; 2) control - written feedback from online peers. When judged by peers (p<.001) and independent raters (p<.05), participants from the treatment group demonstrated statistically significant improvement in overall speaking skills rating while the control group did not. Furthermore, in terms of speaking attributes, treatment group showed an improvement in friendliness (p<.001), vocal variety (p<.05) and articulation (p<.01).
Using Neural Measures of Risk Taking to Predict Binge Drinking Behavior in Late Adolescence
Creators: name: Burroughs, Melissa
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2019

description: Real-world risk-taking behaviors peak during the transition from high school to college, perhaps due to increased opportunity to engage in such behaviors. Examining longitudinal changes in the association between neural sensitivity to risky decision making and real-life risk-taking behavior may elucidate the underlying mechanisms that motivate increased risk-taking behavior during late adolescence. The goal of the present study was to understand how brain regions implicated in risky decision making differentially predict concurrent and longitudinal changes in real-life risky behavior. Forty college freshmen completed an experimental risk-taking task during fMRI, in which taking risks could benefit either themselves or their best friend, allowing us to understand risky decision making across different social contexts. Participants reported their frequency of binge drinking at the initial visit (n = 40) and a follow-up visit nine months later (n = 35). We first conducted logistic regressions to analyze the relationship between behavior on the fMRI task and concurrent and longitudinal changes in binge drinking. Our findings showed that task behavior predicts concurrent binge drinking behavior but does not predict longitudinal changes in binge drinking. Using the brain-as-predictor model, we conducted logistic regressions to analyze the relationship between brain activation in four a priori regions of interest during the fMRI task and concurrent and longitudinal changes in binge drinking behavior. Our findings showed that brain activation during the task does not significantly predict concurrent or longitudinal changes in binge drinking behavior. Future research should further probe the contexts in which brain activation is predictive of real-life risk-taking behavior – beyond binge drinking – during late adolescence.
Quantifying the Effect of Sentiment on Information Diffusion in Social Media
Creators: name: Ferrara, Emilio
name: Yang, Zeyao
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Social and Information Networks (cs.SI)
subject: Machine Learning (cs.LG)
subject: Physics and Society (physics.soc-ph)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Social media have become the main vehicle of information production and consumption online. Millions of users every day log on their Facebook or Twitter accounts to get updates and news, read about their topics of interest, and become exposed to new opportunities and interactions. Although recent studies suggest that the contents users produce will affect the emotions of their readers, we still lack a rigorous understanding of the role and effects of contents sentiment on the dynamics of information diffusion. This work aims at quantifying the effect of sentiment on information diffusion, to understand: (i) whether positive conversations spread faster and/or broader than negative ones (or vice-versa); (ii) what kind of emotions are more typical of popular conversations on social media; and, (iii) what type of sentiment is expressed in conversations characterized by different temporal dynamics. Our findings show that, at the level of contents, negative messages spread faster than positive ones, but positive ones reach larger audiences, suggesting that people are more inclined to share and favorite positive contents, the so-called positive bias. As for the entire conversations, we highlight how different temporal dynamics exhibit different sentiment patterns: for example, positive sentiment builds up for highly-anticipated events, while unexpected events are mainly characterized by negative sentiment. Our contribution is a milestone to understand how the emotions expressed in short texts affect their spreading in online social ecosystems, and may help to craft effective policies and strategies for content generation and diffusion.
description: 10 pages, 5 figures
Generation and Detection of Atomic Spin Entanglement in Optical Lattices
Creators: name: Dai, Han-Ning
name: Yang, Bing
name: Reingruber, Andreas
name: Xu, Xiao-Fan
name: Jiang, Xiao
name: Chen, Yu-Ao
name: Yuan, Zhen-Sheng
name: Pan, Jian-Wei
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Quantum Gases (cond-mat.quant-gas)
subject: Quantum Physics (quant-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Ultracold atoms in optical lattices offer a great promise to generate entangled states for scalable quantum information processing owing to the inherited long coherence time and controllability over a large number of particles. We report on the generation, manipulation and detection of atomic spin entanglement in an optical superlattice. Employing a spin-dependent superlattice, atomic spins in the left or right sites can be individually addressed and coherently manipulated by microwave pulses with near unitary fidelities. Spin entanglement of the two atoms in the double wells of the superlattice is generated via dynamical evolution governed by spin superexchange. By observing collisional atom loss with in-situ absorption imaging we measure spin correlations of atoms inside the double wells and obtain the lower boundary of entanglement fidelity as $0.79\pm0.06$, and the violation of a Bell's inequality with $S=2.21\pm 0.08$. The above results represent an essential step towards scalable quantum computation with ultracold atoms in optical lattices.
description: 12 pages, 10 figures
Homology stability for symmetric diffeomorphism and mapping class groups
Creators: name: Tillmann, Ulrike
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Algebraic Topology (math.AT)
subject: Geometric Topology (math.GT)
subject: FOS: Mathematics
subject: 55R80, 55S05, 55R40

description: For any smooth compact manifold $W$ of dimension at least two we prove that the classifying spaces of its group of diffeomorphisms which fix a set of $k$ points or $k$ embedded disks (up to permutation) satisfy homology stability. The same is true for so-called symmetric diffeomorphisms of $W$ connected sum with $k$ copies of an arbitrary compact smooth manifold $Q$ of the same dimension. The analogues for mapping class groups as well as other generalisations will also be proved.
description: to appear in Math. Proc. Cambridge Philos. Soc
AMS-02 fits Dark Matter
Creators: name: Balázs, Csaba
name: Li, Tong
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: In this work we perform a comprehensive statistical analysis of the AMS-02 electron, positron fluxes and the antiproton-to-proton ratio in the context of a simplified dark matter model. We include known, standard astrophysical sources and a dark matter component in the cosmic ray injection spectra. To predict the AMS-02 observables we use propagation parameters extracted from observed fluxes of heavier nuclei and the low energy part of the AMS-02 data. We assume that the dark matter particle is a Majorana fermion coupling to third generation fermions via a spin-0 mediator, and annihilating to multiple channels at once. The simultaneous presence of various annihilation channels provides the dark matter model with additional flexibility, and this enables us to simultaneously fit all cosmic ray spectra using a simple particle physics model and coherent astrophysical assumptions. Our results indicate that AMS-02 observations are not only consistent with the dark matter hypothesis within the uncertainties, but adding a dark matter contribution improves the fit to the data. Assuming, however, that dark matter is solely responsible for this improvement of the fit, it is difficult to evade the latest CMB limits in this model.
description: 16 pages, 2 figures and 1 table. Published in JHEP
Strong fields and neutral particle magnetic moment dynamics
Creators: name: Formanek, Martin
name: Evans, Stefan
name: Rafelski, Johann
name: Steinmetz, Andrew
name: Yang, Cheng-Tao
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Phenomenology (hep-ph)
subject: Classical Physics (physics.class-ph)
subject: Plasma Physics (physics.plasm-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Interaction of magnetic moment of point particles with external electromagnetic fields experiences unresolved theoretical and experimental discrepancies. In this work we point out several issues within the relativistic quantum mechanics and the QED and we describe effects related to a new covariant classical model of magnetic moment dynamics. Using this framework we explore the invariant acceleration experienced by neutral particles coupled to an external plane wave field through the magnetic moment: we study the case of ultra relativistic Dirac neutrinos with magnetic moment in the range of $10^{-11}$ to $10^{-20}$ $μ_\mathrm{B}$; and we address the case of slowly moving neutrons. We explore how critical accelerations for neutrinos can be experimentally achieved in laser-pulse interactions. The radiation of accelerated neutrinos can serve as an important test distinguishing between Majorana and Dirac nature of neutrinos.
description: 8 pages
Time to Wake Up: Reservations to the Istanbul Convention and the Role of GREVIO
Creators: name: Burek, Wojciech
Publisher: name: Freie Universität Berlin
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: Istanbul Convention
subject: GREVIO
subject: 300 Sozialwissenschaften::340 Recht::340 Recht

description: The question of whether the monitoring bodies have competence concerning reservations (alone or shared with state parties) is at the center of the discussion of reservations to human rights treaties that has occupied many international legal scholars over the last few decades. The Istanbul Convention’s treaty monitoring body, the Group of experts on action against violence against women and domestic violence (GREVIO), is the only human rights treaty monitoring and adjudication body with a direct competence (one that stems directly from the treaty) concerning reservations. However, as practice to date shows, it does not make much use of this power. This is a big disappointment considering all the efforts of other bodies in the past and the doctrinal positions of various scholars. The main aims of the article are threefold: to present GREVIO's practice to date concerning reservations, to provide a brief historical overview of how other human rights treaty bodies have approached their role concerning reservations, and finally, to attempt to explain why GREVIO has abandoned a more proactive position on reservations.
Stricosus Sabir and Theriot 2018, gen. nov.
Creators: name: Sabir, J. S. M.
name: Theriot, E. C.
name: Lobban, C. S.
name: Alhebshi, A. M.
name: Al-Malki, A. L.
name: Hajrah, N. H.
name: Khiyami, M. A.
name: Obaid, A. Y.
name: Jansen, R. K.
name: Ashworth, M. A.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Chromista
Ochrophyta
Bacillariophyceae
Licmophorales
Ulnariaceae
Stricosus

description: Stricosus Sabir and Theriot gen. nov.
 Diagnosis:—Valves generally lanceolate. Ocellulimbi deeply sunken and frequently tall; each vertical row usually with 5 or more pores. Bilayered construction, with the internal membrane complete except for a row of pores at the face-mantle junction, one pore between each pair of virgae. External pores formed into biseriate striae, when resolved, by vimines from each pair of virgae. Virgae densely packed. Internal coverings of the rimoportulae symmetric. One rimoportula at each pole.
 Type species: — Stricosus alfageehii Sabir and Theriot
 Etymology: —The name “ Stricosus ”, meaning featureless, refers to the simple nature of the valve in the light microscope, where only the sternum and outline are easily resolved, and to the general lack of defining characters visible in the light microscope.
description: Published as part of Sabir, J. S. M., Theriot, E. C., Lobban, C. S., Alhebshi, A. M., Al-Malki, A. L., Hajrah, N. H., Khiyami, M. A., Obaid, A. Y., Jansen, R. K. & Ashworth, M. A., 2018, Systematics of araphid diatoms with asymmetric rimoportulae or densely packed virgae, with particular attention to Hyalosynedra (Ulnariaceae, Bacillariophyta), pp. 1-49 in Phytotaxa 347 (1) on page 29, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.347.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/13707999
title: Μελέτη της επίδρασης των μέτρων αποφυγής διασποράς του COVID-19 στην ποιότητα της ατμόσφαιρας της Αττικής
title: Study of the impact of COVID-19 dispersion avoidance measures on the air quality of Attica
titleType: AlternativeTitle
Creators: name: Κουρουμπλής, Αναστάσιος
Publisher: name: Πανεπιστήμιο Δυτικής Αττικής
Year: 2023
Subjects: Ατμοσφαιρική ρύπανση
Αέρια ρύπανση
Ατμοσφαιρικοί ρύποι
Covid-19

description: Στη συγκεκριμένη διπλωματική εργασία θα μελετηθούν συγκεντρώσεις αέριων ρύπων και σωματιδίων που έχουν μετρηθεί από σταθμούς του Εθνικού Δικτύου Παρακολούθησης Ατμοσφαιρικής Ρύπανσης του Υπουργείου Περιβάλλοντος και Ενέργειας στην Αττική για δέκα (10) έτη. Θα διαπιστωθεί ποιοι ρύποι επηρεάστηκαν περισσότερο και θα συσχετισθούν οι μετρούμενες συγκεντρώσεις με τις πηγές εκπομπής αυτών (οχήματα, οικιακή θέρμανση, ναυσιπλοΐα). Το ζητούμενο στην συγκεκριμένη διπλωματική εργασία είναι να αναδειχτεί η σχέση μεταξύ των ανθρωπογενών πηγών εκπομπών και των μετρούμενων συγκεντρώσεων αέριων ρύπων και σωματιδίων καθώς και τα διαφορετικά χαρακτηριστικά των περιοχών του λεκανοπεδίου.
On quantization in light-cone variables compatible with wavelet transform
Creators: name: Altaisky, M. V.
name: Kaputkina, N. E.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: Mathematical Physics (math-ph)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Canonical quantization of quantum field theory models is inherently related to the Lorentz invariant partition of classical fields into the positive and the negative frequency parts $u(x) = u^+(x) + u^-(x),$ performed with the help of Fourier transform in Minkowski space. That is the commutation relations are being established between non localized solutions of field equations. At the same time the construction of divergence free physical theory requires the separation of the contributions of different space-time scales. In present paper, using the light-cone variables, we propose a quantization procedure which is compatible with separation of scales using continuous wavelet transform, as described in our previous paper Phys.Rev D 88(2013)025015
description: Latex, revtex, 10 pages
Variance Reduction in Global Illumination with Monte Carlo Methods
Creators: name: Kim, Raymond
Publisher: name: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University Libraries
Year: 2017

description: Monte Carlo methods are a class of numerical algorithms that depend on repeated samples
of random variables to obtain results; the numerical solution to the problem at hand can converge to
the analytical solution by increasing the number of samples. However, as the problem becomes more
complex, this procedure of reaching an accepted solution becomes inefficient: the problem may require
higher orders of samples to achieve a single order of accuracy. Thus, variance reduction techniques exist
to alter our method of performing the Monte Carlo method to achieve a faster convergence rate and
a more accurate approximation given the same number of samples. In this paper we evaluate several
variance reduction techniques of the Monte Carlo method and its application in the global illumination
problem in computer graphics.
Pairs and Groups of Genetically Related Long-Period Comets and Probable Identity of the Mysterious Lick Object of 1921
Creators: name: Sekanina, Zdenek
name: Kracht, Rainer
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We present the history of investigation of the dynamical properties of pairs and groups of genetically related long-period comets (other than the Kreutz sungrazing system). Members of a comet pair or group move in nearly identical orbits and their origin as fragments of a common parent comet is unquestionable. The only variable is the time of perihelion passage, which differs from member to member considerably due primarily to an orbital-momentum increment acquired during breakup. Meter-per-second separation velocities account for gaps of years or tens of years, thanks to the orbital periods of many millennia. The physical properties of individual members may not at all be alike, as illustrated by the trio of C/1988 A1, C/1996 Q1, and C/2015 F3. We exploit orbital similarity to examine whether the celebrated and as yet unidentified object, discovered from the Lick Observatory near the Sun at sunset on 1921 August 7, happened to be a member of such a pair and to track down the long-period comet to which it could be genetically related. Our search shows that the Lick object, which could not be a Kreutz sungrazer, was most probably a companion to comet C/1847 C1 (Hind), whose perihelion distance was ~9 R_sun and true orbital period approximately 8300 years. The gap of 74.4 years between their perihelion times is consistent with a separation velocity of ~1 m/s that set the fragments apart following the parent's breakup in a general proximity of perihelion during the previous return to the Sun in the 7th millennium BCE.
description: 26 pages, 8 figures, 11 tables; appendix with 2 tables