cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
A non-equilibrium equation-of-motion approach to quantum transport utilizing projection operators

We consider a projection operator approach to the non-equilibrium Green function equation-of-motion (PO-NEGF EOM) method. The technique resolves problems of arbitrariness in truncation of an infinite chain of EOMs and prevents violation of symmetry relations resulting from the truncation (equivalence of left- and right-sided EOMs is shown and symmetry with respect to interchange of Fermi or Bose operators before truncation is preserved). The approach, originally developed by Tserkovnikov (1999 Theor. Math. Phys. 118 85) for equilibrium systems, is reformulated to be applicable to time-dependent non-equilibrium situations. We derive a canonical form of EOMs, thus explicitly demonstrating a proper result for the non-equilibrium atomic limit in junction problems. A simple practical scheme applicable to quantum transport simulations is formulated. We perform numerical simulations within simple models and compare results of the approach to other techniques and (where available) also to exact results.
Competition for finite resources

The resources in a cell are finite, which implies that the various components of the cell must compete for resources. One such resource is the ribosomes used during translation to create proteins. Motivated by this example, we explore this competition by connecting two totally asymmetric simple exclusion processes (TASEPs) to a finite pool of particles. Expanding on our previous work, we focus on the effects on the density and current of having different entry and exit rates.
Small Forcing Makes any Cardinal Superdestructible

Small forcing always ruins the indestructibility of an indestructible supercompact cardinal. In fact, after small forcing, any cardinal κ becomes superdestructible —any further
On tensionless strings in 3 + 1 dimensions

Abstract We argue for the existence of phase transitions in 3 +_1 dimensions associated with the appearance of tensionless strings. The massless spectrum of this theory does not contain a graviton: it consists of one N = 2 vector multiplet and one linear multiplet, in agreement with the light-cone analysis of the Green-Schwarz string in 3 + 1 dimensions. In M-theory the string decoupled from gravity arises when two 5-branes intersect over a three-dimensional hyperplane. The two 5-branes may be connected by a 2-brane, whose boundary becomes a tensionless string with N = 2 supersymmetry in 3 + 1 dimensions. Non-critical strings on the intersection may also come from dynamical 5-branes intersecting the two 5-branes over a string and wrapped over a 4-torus. The near-extremal entropy of the intersecting 5-branes is explained by the non-critical strings originating from the wrapped 5-branes.
Large-N volume independence in conformal and confining gauge theories

Consequences of large N volume independence are examined in conformal and confining gauge theories. In the large N limit, gauge theories compactified on \( {\mathbb{R}^{d - k}} \times {\left( {{S^1}} \right)^k} \) are independent of the S 1 radii, provided the theory has unbroken center symmetry. In particular, this implies that a large N gauge theory which, on \( {\mathbb{R}^d} \), flowstoan IR fixed point, retains the infinite correlation length and other scale invariant properties of the decompactified theory even when compactified on \( {\mathbb{R}^{d - k}} \times {\left( {{S^1}} \right)^k} \). In other words, finite volume effects are 1/N suppressed. In lattice formulations of vector-like theories, this implies that numerical studies to determine the boundary between confined and conformal phases may be performed on one-site lattice models. In \( \mathcal{N} = 4 \) supersymmetric Yang-Mills theory, the center symmetry realization is a matter of choice: the theory on \( {\mathbb{R}^{4 - k}} \times {\left( {{S^1}} \right)^k} \) has a moduli space which contains points with all possible realizations of center symmetry. Large N QCD with massive adjoint fermions and one or two compactified dimensions has a rich phase structure with an infinite number of phase transitions coalescing in the zero radius limit.
Deep Chandra Observations of the Crab-like Pulsar Wind Nebula G54.1+0.3 and Spitzer Spectroscopy of the Associated Infrared Shell

G54.1+0.3 is a young pulsar wind nebula (PWN), closely resembling the Crab, for which no thermal shell emission has been detected in X-rays. Recent Spitzer observations revealed an infrared (IR) shell containing a dozen point sources arranged in a ring-like structure, previously proposed to be young stellar objects. An extended knot of emission located in the NW part of the shell appears to be aligned with the pulsar's X-ray jet, suggesting a possible interaction with the shell material. Surprisingly, the IR spectrum of the knot resembles the spectrum of freshly formed dust in Cas A, and is dominated by an unidentified dust emission feature at 21 μm. The spectra of the shell also contain various emission lines and show that some are significantly broadened, suggesting that they originate in rapidly expanding supernova (SN) ejecta. We present the first evidence that the PWN is driving shocks into expanding SN ejecta and we propose an alternative explanation for the origin of the IR emission in which the shell is composed entirely of SN ejecta. In this scenario, the freshly formed SN dust is being heated by early-type stars belonging to a cluster in which the SN exploded. Simple dust models show that this interpretation can give rise to the observed shell emission and the IR point sources.
A Universal Model for Halo Concentrations

We present a numerical study of dark matter halo concentrations in ?CDM and self-similar cosmologies. We show that the relation between concentration, c, and peak height, ?, exhibits the smallest deviations from universality if halo masses are defined with respect to the critical density of the universe. These deviations can be explained by the residual dependence of concentration on the local slope of the matter power spectrum, n, which affects both the normalization and shape of the c-? relation. In particular, there is no well-defined floor in the concentration values. Instead, the minimum concentration depends on redshift: at fixed ?, halos at higher z experience steeper slopes n, and thus have lower minimum concentrations. We show that the concentrations in our simulations can be accurately described by a universal seven-parameter function of only ? and n. This model matches our ?CDM results to 5% accuracy up to z = 6, and matches scale-free ?m = 1 models to 15%. The model also reproduces the low concentration values of Earth-mass halos at z 30, and thus correctly extrapolates over 16 orders of magnitude in halo mass. The predictions of our model differ significantly from all models previously proposed in the literature at high masses and redshifts. Our model is in excellent agreement with recent lensing measurements of cluster concentrations.
Permutation Tests for Infection Graphs

We formulate and analyze a novel hypothesis testing problem for inferring the edge structure of an infection graph. In our model, a disease spreads over a network via contagion or random infection,...
A short proof of the multilinear Kakeya inequality

We give a short proof of a slightly weaker version of the multilinear Kakeya inequality proven by Bennett, Carbery and Tao.
Neutrino oscillations in a trapping potential

A number of derivations of the standard neutrino oscillation formula are known, each one providing its own unique insights. Common to all treatments is the assumption that neutrinos propagate freely between source and detector, as indeed they do in all experiments thus far conducted. Here we consider how neutrinos oscillate when, contrary to the usual set-up, they are bound in a potential well. The focus in particular is on nonrelativistic neutrinos with quasi-degenerate masses, for which oscillations in free space are described by the same formula, to lowest order, as relativistic neutrinos. Trapping these particles engenders corrections to their oscillation frequencies because the interference terms are between discrete energy levels rather than continuous spectra. Especially novel is the frequency shift that occurs due to the dependence of the energy levels on the mass of the neutrino: this part of the correction is nonvanishing even in the extremely nonrelativistic limit, reflecting the fact that the neutrino mass states have different zero-point energies in the well. Building an apparatus that can trap neutrinos is a futuristic prospect to say the least, but these calculations nonetheless shine a light on certain basic aspects of the flavor-oscillation phenomenon.
Automated Phenotyping via Cell Auto Training (CAT) on the Cell DIVE Platform

We present a method for automatic cell classification in tissue samples using an automated training set from multiplexed immunofluorescence images. The method utilizes multiple markers stained in situ on a single tissue section on a robust hyperplex immunofluorescence platform (Cell DIVE™, GE Healthcare) that provides multi-channel images allowing analysis at single cell/sub-cellular levels. The cell classification method consists of two steps: first, an automated training set from every image is generated using marker-to-cell staining information. This mimics how a pathologist would select samples from a very large cohort at the image level. In the second step, a probability model is inferred from the automated training set. The probabilistic model captures staining patterns in mutually exclusive cell types and builds a single probability model for the data cohort. We have evaluated the proposed approach to classify: i) immune cells in cancer and ii) brain cells in neurological degenerative diseased tissue with average accuracies above 95%.
IDENTIFICATION OF A JET-DRIVEN SUPERNOVA REMNANT IN THE SMALL MAGELLANIC CLOUD: POSSIBLE EVIDENCE FOR THE ENHANCEMENT OF BIPOLAR EXPLOSIONS AT LOW METALLICITY

Recent evidence has suggested that the supernova remnant (SNR) 0104–72.3 in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) may be the result of a "prompt" Type Ia SN on the basis of enhanced iron abundances and its association with a star-forming region. In this paper, we present evidence that SNR 0104–72.3 arose from a jet-driven bipolar core-collapse (CC) SN. Specifically, we use serendipitous Chandra data of SNR 0104–72.3 taken because of its proximity to the calibration source SNR E0102–72.3. We analyze 56 Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer (ACIS) observations of SNR 0104–72.3 to produce imaging and spectra with an effective exposure of 528.6 ks. We demonstrate that SNR 0104–72.3 is highly elliptical relative to other nearby young SNRs, suggesting a CC SN origin. Furthermore, we compare ejecta abundances derived from spectral fits to nucleosynthetic yields of Type Ia and CC SNe, and we find that the iron, neon, and silicon abundances are consistent with either a spherical CC SN of a 18-20 M ☉ progenitor or an aspherical CC SN of a 25 M ☉ progenitor. We show that the star formation history at the site of SNR 0104–72.3 is also consistent with a CC origin. Given the bipolar morphology of the SNR, we favor the aspherical CC SN scenario. This result may suggest jet-driven SNe occur frequently in the low-metallicity environment of the SMC, consistent with the observational and theoretical work on broad-line Type Ic SNe and long-duration gamma-ray bursts.
COMPUTING HILBERT CLASS POLYNOMIALS WITH THE CHINESE REMAINDER THEOREM

We present a space-efficient algorithm to compute the Hilbert class polynomial H D (X) modulo a positive integer P, based on an explicit form of the Chinese Remainder Theorem. Under the Generalized Riemann Hypothesis, the algorithm uses O(|D| 1/2+e log P) space and has an expected running time of O(|D| 1+e ). We describe practical optimizations that allow us to handle larger discriminants than other methods, with |D| as large as 10 13 and h(D) up to 10 6 . We apply these results to construct pairing-friendly elliptic curves of prime order, using the CM method.
Identity types and weak factorization systems in Cauchy complete categories

It has been known that categorical interpretations of dependent type theory with Σ- and Id-types induce weak factorization systems. When one has a weak factorization system itself forms a display map category modeling Σ- and Id- (and possibly Π-) types. Thus, we reduce the search space of our original question from a potentially proper class to a singleton.
The Black Hole Mass Function Derived from Local Spiral Galaxies

We present our determination of the nuclear supermassive black hole (SMBH) mass function for spiral galaxies in the local universe, established from a volume-limited sample consisting of a statistically complete collection of the brightest spiral galaxies in the southern (δ < 0°) hemisphere. Our SMBH mass function agrees well at the high-mass end with previous values given in the literature. At the low-mass end, inconsistencies exist in previous works that still need to be resolved, but our work is more in line with expectations based on modeling of black hole evolution. This low-mass end of the spectrum is critical to our understanding of the mass function and evolution of black holes since the epoch of maximum quasar activity. The sample is defined by a limiting luminosity (redshift-independent) distance, D{sub L} = 25.4 Mpc (z = 0.00572) and a limiting absolute B-band magnitude, M{sub B}=−19.12. These limits define a sample of 140 spiral galaxies, with 128 measurable pitch angles to establish the pitch angle distribution for this sample. This pitch-angle distribution function may be useful in the study of the morphology of late-type galaxies. We then use an established relationship between the logarithmic spiral arm pitch angle and the mass ofmore » the central SMBH in a host galaxy in order to estimate the mass of the 128 respective SMBHs in this volume-limited sample. This result effectively gives us the distribution of mass for SMBHs residing in spiral galaxies over a lookback time, t{sub L} ≤ 82.1 h{sub 67.77}{sup −1} Myr and contained within a comoving volume, V{sub C} = 3.37 × 10{sup 4} h{sub 67.77}{sup −3} Mpc{sup 3}. We estimate that the density of SMBHs residing in spiral galaxies in the local universe is ρ=5.54{sub −2.73}{sup +6.55} × 10{sup 4} h{sub 67.77}{sup 3} M{sub ☉} Mpc{sup –3}. Thus, our derived cosmological SMBH mass density for spiral galaxies is Ω{sub BH}=4.35{sub −2.15}{sup +5.14} × 10{sup –7} h{sub 67.77}. Assuming that black holes grow via baryonic accretion, we predict that 0.0020{sub −0.0010}{sup +0.0023} h{sub 67.77}{sup 3} % of the universal baryonic inventory (Ω{sub BH}/ω{sub b}) is confined within nuclear SMBHs at the center of spiral galaxies.« less
Multidimensional Stability of Large-Amplitude Navier–Stokes Shocks

Extending results of Humpherys–Lyng–Zumbrun in the one-dimensional case, we use a combination of asymptotic ODE estimates and numerical Evans-function computations to examine the multidimensional stability of planar Navier–Stokes shocks across the full range of shock amplitudes, including the infinite-amplitude limit, for monatomic or diatomic ideal gas equations of state and viscosity and heat conduction coefficients $${\mu}$$ , $${\mu +\eta}$$ , and $${\nu=\kappa/c_v}$$ constant and in the physical ratios predicted by statistical mechanics, and Mach number $${M > 1.035}$$ . Our results indicate unconditional stability within the parameter range considered; this agrees with the results of Erpenbeck and Majda for the corresponding inviscid case of Euler shocks. Notably, this study includes the first successful numerical computation of an Evans function associated with the multidimensional stability of a viscous shock wave. The methods introduced can be used in principle to decide stability for shocks in any polytropic gas, or indeed for shocks of other models, including in, particular, viscoelasticity, combustion, and magnetohydrodynamics (MHD).
Modeling the Ionosphere with GPS and Rotation Measure Observations

The ionosphere contributes time-varying Faraday Rotation (FR) to radio signals passing through it. Correction for the effect of the ionosphere is important for deriving magnetic field information from FR observations of polarized cosmic radio sources, as well as providing valuable diagnostics of the structure of the ionosphere. In this paper, we evaluate the accuracy of models commonly used to correct for its effects using new observations of pulsars at low frequencies, which provide total rotation measures (RM) at better precision than previously available. We evaluate models of the ionosphere derived from modern digital ionosondes that provide electron density information as a function of height, as well as GPS-derived Total Electron Content (TEC) measurements. We combine these density models with reference global magnetic field models to derive ionospheric RM contributions. We find that the models disagree substantially with each other and seek corrections that may explain the differences in RM prediction. Additionally we compare these models to global TEC models and find that local high-cadence TEC measurements are superior to global models for ionospheric RM correction.
Possible Origin of the G2 Cloud From the Tidal Disruption of a Known Giant Star by Sgr A

The discovery of the gas cloud G2 on a near-radial orbit about Sgr A* has prompted much speculation on its origin. In this Letter, we propose that G2 formed out of the debris stream produced by the removal of mass from the outer envelope of a nearby giant star. We perform hydrodynamical simulations of the returning tidal debris stream with cooling and find that the stream condenses into clumps that fall periodically onto Sgr A*. We propose that one of these clumps is the observed G2 cloud, with the rest of the stream being detectable at lower Brγ emissivity along a trajectory that would trace from G2 to the star that was partially disrupted. By simultaneously fitting the orbits of S2, G2, and ∼2000 candidate stars, and by fixing the orbital plane of each candidate star to G2 (as is expected for a tidal disruption), we find that several stars have orbits that are compatible with the notion that one of them was tidally disrupted to produce G2. If one of these stars were indeed disrupted, it last encountered Sgr A* hundreds of years ago and has likely encountered Sgr A* repeatedly. However, while these stars are compatible with the giant disruption scenario givenmore » their measured positions and proper motions, their radial velocities are currently unknown. If one of these stars' radial velocity is measured to be compatible with a disruptive orbit, it would strongly suggest that its disruption produced G2.« less
IMPLICATIONS OF THE RENORMALIZATION GROUP EQUATIONS IN THREE-NEUTRINO MODELS WITH TWO-FOLD DEGENERACY

We obtain a complete set of one-loop RGE's for a set of combinations of neutrino parameters for the case of two-fold degenerate hierarchical three-neutrino models. The requirement of consistency of exact solutions to these RGE's with the two-fold degeneracy yields conditions which have previously been obtained perturbatively/numerically. These conditions, in the limit |Ueν3| = 0, are shown to lead to a strong cancellation in the matrix element of neutrinoless double beta decay.
The Luminosity Problem: Testing Theories of Star Formation

Low-mass protostars are less luminous than expected. This luminosity problem is important because the observations appear to be inconsistent with some of the basic premises of star formation theory. Two possible solutions are that stars form slowly, which is supported by recent data, and/or that protostellar accretion is episodic; current data suggest that the latter accounts for less than half the missing luminosity. The solution to the luminosity problem bears directly on the fundamental problem of the time required to form a low-mass star. The protostellar mass and luminosity functions provide powerful tools both for addressing the luminosity problem and for testing theories of star formation. Results are presented for the collapse of singular isothermal spheres, for the collapse of turbulent cores, and for competitive accretion.
Rubble Pile Asteroids

The moniker rubble pile is typically applied to all Solar System bodies >200 m and <∼10 km in diameter; in this size range, there is an abundance of evidence that nearly every object is bound prima...
The dynamics of the Schrödinger–Newton system with self-field coupling

We probe the dynamics of a modified form of the Schrodinger–Newton (SN) system of gravity coupled to single particle quantum mechanics. At the masses of interest here, the ones associated with the onset of 'collapse' (where the gravitational attraction is competitive with the quantum mechanical dissipation), we show that the Schrodinger ground state energies match the Dirac ones with an error of . At the Planck mass scale, we predict the critical mass at which a potential collapse could occur for the self-coupled gravitational case, Planck mass, and show that gravitational attraction opposes Gaussian spreading at around this value, which is a factor of two higher than the one predicted (and verified) for the SN system. Unlike the SN dynamics, we do not find that the self-coupled case tends to decay towards its ground state; there is no collapse in this case.
Making Non-Stochastic Control (Almost) as Easy as Stochastic

Recent literature has made much progress in understanding \emph{online LQR}: a modern learning-theoretic take on the classical control problem in which a learner attempts to optimally control an unknown linear dynamical system with fully observed state, perturbed by i.i.d. Gaussian noise. It is now understood that the optimal regret on time horizon $T$ against the optimal control law scales as $\widetilde{\Theta}(\sqrt{T})$. In this paper, we show that the same regret rate (against a suitable benchmark) is attainable even in the considerably more general non-stochastic control model, where the system is driven by \emph{arbitrary adversarial} noise (Agarwal et al. 2019). In other words, \emph{stochasticity confers little benefit in online LQR}. We attain the optimal $\widetilde{\mathcal{O}}(\sqrt{T})$ regret when the dynamics are unknown to the learner, and $\mathrm{poly}(\log T)$ regret when known, provided that the cost functions are strongly convex (as in LQR). Our algorithm is based on a novel variant of online Newton step (Hazan et al. 2007), which adapts to the geometry induced by possibly adversarial disturbances, and our analysis hinges on generic "policy regret" bounds for certain structured losses in the OCO-with-memory framework (Anava et al. 2015). Moreover, our results accomodate the full generality of the non-stochastic control setting: adversarially chosen (possibly non-quadratic) costs, partial state observation, and fully adversarial process and observation noise.
Exciton spin dynamics in GaSe

We analyze exciton spin dynamics in GaSe under nonresonant circularly polarized optical pumping with an exciton spin-flip rate-equation model. The model reproduces polarized time-dependent photoluminescence measurements in which the initial circular polarization approaches unity even when pumping with 0.15 eV excess energy. At T = 10 K, the exciton spin relaxation exhibits a biexponential decay with sub-20 ps and >500 ps time constants, which are also reproduced by the rate-equation model assuming distinct spin-relaxation rates for hot (nonequilibrium) and cold band-edge excitons.
Stable shapes of three-dimensional vesicles in unconfined and confined Poiseuille flow

In vitro experiments with red blood cells (RBCs) indicate that at high velocities RBCs take both symmetric parachute and asymmetric slipper shapes, while unconfined computations indicate only symmetric parachute shapes are observed. How do we resolve this anomaly?
Scaling Laws for Dynamic Solar Loops

The scaling laws which relate the peak temperature TM and volumetric heating rate EH to the pressure P and length L for static coronal loops were established over 40 years ago; they have proved to be of immense value in a wide range of studies. Here we extend these scaling laws to dynamic loops, where enthalpy flux becomes important to the energy balance, and study impulsive heating/filling characterized by upward enthalpy flows. We show that for collision-dominated thermal conduction, the functional dependencies of the scaling laws are the same as for the static case, when the radiative losses scale as T-1/2, but with a different constant of proportionality that depends on the Mach number M of the flow. The dependence on the Mach number is such that the scaling laws for low to moderate Mach number flows are almost indistinguishable from the static case. When thermal conduction is limited by turbulent processes, however, the much weaker dependence of the scattering mean free path (and hence thermal conduction coefficient) on temperature leads to a limiting Mach number for return enthalpy fluxes driven by thermal conduction between the the corona and chromosphere.
A metabolomic study of cervical dystonia.

Abstract Introduction Cervical dystonia is the most common of the adult-onset focal dystonias. Most cases are idiopathic. The current view is that cervical dystonia may be caused by some combination of genetic and environmental factors. Genetic contributions have been studied extensively, but there are few studies of other factors. We conducted an exploratory metabolomics analysis of cervical dystonia to identify potentially abnormal metabolites or altered biological pathways. Methods Plasma samples from 100 cases with idiopathic cervical dystonia and 100 controls were compared using liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry-based metabolomics. Results A total of 7346 metabolic features remained after quality control, and up to 289 demonstrated significant differences between cases and controls, depending on statistical criteria chosen. Pathway analysis revealed 9 biological processes to be significantly associated at p Conclusion This is the first large scale metabolomics study for any type of dystonia. The results may provide potential novel insights into the biology of cervical dystonia.
Revenue-Optimal Deterministic Auctions for Multiple Buyers with Ordinal Preferences over Fixed-Price Items

In this paper, we introduce a Bayesian revenue-maximizing mechanism design model where the items have fixed, exogenously-given prices. Buyers are unit-demand and have an ordinal ranking over purchasing either one of these items at its given price, or purchasing nothing. This model arises naturally from the assortment optimization problem, in that the single-buyer optimization problem over deterministic mechanisms reduces to deciding on an assortment of items to “show”. We study its multi-buyer generalization in the simplest setting of single-winner auctions, or more broadly, any service-constrained environment. Our main result is that if the buyer rankings are drawn independently from Markov Chain ranking models, then the optimal mechanism is computationally tractable, and structurally a virtual welfare maximizer. We also show that for ranking distributions not induced by Markov Chains, the optimal mechanism may not be a virtual welfare maximizer.
Revisiting the Entrepreneurial Commercialization of Academic Science: Evidence from “Twin” Discoveries

Which factors shape the commercialization of academic scientific discoveries via startup formation? Prior literature has identified several contributing factors but does not address the fundamental...
Kernel Bi-Linear Modeling for Reconstructing Data on Manifolds: The Dynamic-MRI Case

This paper establishes a kernel-based framework for reconstructing data on manifolds, tailored to fit the dynamic-(d)MRI-data recovery problem. The proposed methodology exploits simple tangent-space geometries of manifolds in reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces, and follows classical kernel-approximation arguments to form the data-recovery task as a bilinear inverse problem. Departing from mainstream approaches, the proposed methodology uses no training data, employs no graph Laplacian matrix to penalize the optimization task, uses no costly (kernel) preimaging step to map feature points back to the input space, and utilizes complex-valued kernel functions to account for k-space data. The framework is validated on synthetically generated dMRI data, where comparisons against state-of-the-art schemes highlight the rich potential of the proposed approach in data-recovery problems.
Ultra-Sensitive Radio Frequency Biosensor at an Exceptional Point of Degeneracy Induced by Time Modulation

We exploit the premises of exceptional points of degeneracy (EPDs) induced in linear time-periodic (LTP) systems to achieve extremely sensitive biosensors. The EPD is formed in a single LC resonator where the total capacitance is comprised of a time-varying capacitor in parallel to a biosensing capacitor. We use the time-periodic variation of a system parameter (e.g., capacitance) to achieve a second order EPD aiming at improving the sensitivity of liquid based radio frequency biosensors, leading to an intrinsic ultra sensitivity. We show the emergence of EPDs in such a system and the ultra sensitivity of the degenerate resonance frequency to perturbations compared to conventional RF sensors. Moreover, we investigate the capacitance and conductance variations of an interdigitated biosensing capacitor to the changes in the concentration of a biological material under test (MUT), leading to subsequent large changes in the resonance frequency of the LTP-LC resonator. A comparison with a standard LC resonator demonstrates the ultra-high sensitivity of the proposed LTP-LC based biosensor. In addition, we show the scalability of the biosensor sensitivity across different frequency ranges.
Barrier Functions for Multiagent-POMDPs with DTL Specifications

Multi-agent partially observable Markov decision processes (MPOMDPs) provide a framework to represent heterogeneous autonomous agents subject to uncertainty and partial observation. In this paper, given a nominal policy provided by a human operator or a conventional planning method, we propose a technique based on barrier functions to design a minimally interfering safety-shield ensuring satisfaction of high-level specifications in terms of linear distribution temporal logic (LDTL). To this end, we use sufficient and necessary conditions for the invariance of a given set based on discrete-time barrier functions (DTBFs) and formulate sufficient conditions for finite time DTBF to study finite time convergence to a set. We then show that different LDTL mission/safety specifications can be cast as a set of invariance or finite time reachability problems. We demonstrate that the proposed method for safety-shield synthesis can be implemented online by a sequence of one-step greedy algorithms. We demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed method using experiments involving a team of robots.
Anomaly Detection-Based Unknown Face Presentation Attack Detection

Anomaly detection-based spoof attack detection is a recent development in face Presentation Attack Detection (fPAD), where a spoof detector is learned using only non-attacked images of users. These detectors are of practical importance as they are shown to generalize well to new attack types. In this paper, we present a deep-learning solution for anomaly detection-based spoof attack detection where both classifier and feature representations are learned together end-to-end. First, we introduce a pseudo-negative class during training in the absence of attacked images. The pseudo-negative class is modeled using a Gaussian distribution whose mean is calculated by a weighted running mean. Secondly, we use pairwise confusion loss to further regularize the training process. The proposed approach benefits from the representation learning power of the CNNs and learns better features for fPAD task as shown in our ablation study. We perform extensive experiments on four publicly available datasets: Replay-Attack, Rose-Youtu, OULU-NPU and Spoof in Wild to show the effectiveness of the proposed approach over the previous methods. Code is available at: https://github.com/yashasvi97/IJCB2020_anomaly
Structural/Frictional and Demand‐Deficient Unemployment in Local Labor Markets

This paper uses data on unemployment rates and job vacancy rates to measure structural/frictional and demand-deficient components of unemployment rate differences across local labor markets. Data on occupational and industrial distributions of unemployed workers and vacant jobs, as well as on local wages, recent sales growth, Unemployment Insurance, and demographics are then used to help account for these components of unemployment across local areas.
Endogenous currency formation in an online environment: The case of Diablo II

This paper presents a case study of the emergence of currency from a barter economy in an online game community. We use this case study to attempt to shed light on the relative importance of various types of frictions that lead to the emergence of money in search-theoretic models of currency formation. In particular, our study highlights the importance of exchange frictions relative to epistemic frictions. Using the records of an online message board dedicated to facilitating trades within the game, we document the emergence of currency and its stability over time.
Proximity to a water supply reservoir and dams: Is there spatial heterogeneity in the effects on housing prices?

Abstract An understanding of the spatial variation in the impacts of living near reservoirs, dams, and undevelopable land is important in explaining residential property values. While there is a body of literature on the effects of proximity to dams and reservoirs on housing prices, little known research attempts to determine if various individual houses are impacted differently depending on their locations and years of sale. We examine properties in Barkhamsted, Connecticut that sold between 2000 and 2015. We utilize non-parametric regression to allow for the possibility that bodies of water, dams and undevelopable land areas, affect various house prices differently, depending on their locations and when they are sold. We find that in general, undevelopable land area is valued as a disamenity in this rural town. With our semi-parametric estimation approach, we find the signs of the effects of proximity to the nearest body of water vary – some properties benefit from proximity while others experience lower sale prices when they are closer to water. But on average, being far from the water lowers property values, after controlling for flood risk from being below the nearest dam. In other words, residents prefer to live near waterfronts. We also control for other key housing characteristics and environmental variables, such as elevation relative to the nearest dam, numbers of bedrooms and baths, age of properties, year of sale, square footage and acreage, and others. We plot the parameter estimates over time for some variables to demonstrate how the spatial heterogeneity changes after the recession that began in late 2008.
Sovereignty Under Siege: Corporate Challenges to Domestic Intellectual Property Decisions

Countries face a new threat that strikes at their ability to balance protection of intellectual property rights against other priorities, such as public health. They may have to pay substantial compensation to companies that dislike domestic intellectual property laws. This threat is much more significant than the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (“TRIPS”), a landmark international agreement concluded twenty years ago, that for the first time required all countries to provide “minimum” levels of intellectual property rights; before that time, countries were not obligated to provide any such rights at all. Since the conclusion of TRIPS, policymakers and scholars have strived to preserve local flexibilities to consider domestic policies, such as public health. However, those flexibilities may quickly evaporate if companies can bring claims against countries for compromising private investments under so-called “investor-state arbitration” claims. This is not a theoretical problem—Eli Lilly is currently seeking $500 million in compensation from Canada because Canadian courts invalidated two of its patents under prevailing law. In addition, there are unique issues raised by Eli Lily’s claim that transcend broader concerns raised by scholars and commentators concerning investor-state disputes. In particular, if Eli Lilly’s claim succeeds, it will disrupt internationally accepted norms that permit countries to have different standards of protection. This Article provides a detailed analysis of Eli Lilly’s case of first impression. In so doing, the Article both explains why an arbitration tribunal should reject Eli Lilly’s claims, and predicts the likely impending threats to domestic regulation of public health that intersect with the interests of pharmaceutical companies. This Article ultimately proposes specific language to incorporate in pending agreements to forestall such predicted harms. © 2015 Cynthia M. Ho † Clifford E. Vickrey Research Professor, Loyola University Chicago School of Law. I would like to thank Karen Cross, Christophe Douaire de Bondy, Susan Franck, James Gathii, Christi Guerinni, Yaniv Heled, Molly Beutz Land, Margaret Moses, and Jerome Reichman for comments or other assistance on earlier drafts, as well as participants at IPSC 2014. In addition, many thanks to the assistance of librarian Patricia Scott, as well as research assistant Jean Liu for their excellent help. 214 BERKELEY TECHNOLOGY LAW JOURNAL [Vol. 30:1
What’s Inside and Outside the Law?

In this article I take up a conceptual question: What is the distinction between ‘the law’ and the behavior the law regulates, or, as I formulate it, the distinction between what is ‘inside’ the law and what is ‘outside’ it? That conceptual question is in play in (at least) three different doctrinal domains: the constitutional law doctrines regarding the limits on the delegation of legislative powers; the criminal law doctrines regarding mistakes of law; and the constitutional rights doctrines that turn on the distinction between state action and the acts of non-state actors. I argue that legal doctrines should turn solely on normative considerations and should not turn on answers to conceptual questions. However, the doctrines I discuss appear to turn on the conceptual question regarding what is ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ the law. I show how each of these doctrinal areas appears to raise this conceptual issue, and I explain how the doctrines might or might not escape being held hostage to conceptual controversy.
Post-construction evaluation of traffic forecast accuracy

This research evaluates the accuracy of demand forecasts using a sample of recently-completed projects in Minnesota and identifies the factors influencing the inaccuracy in forecasts. Based on recent research on forecast accuracy, the inaccuracy of traffic forecasts is estimated as the difference between forecast traffic and actual traffic, standardized by the actual traffic. The analysis indicates a general trend of underestimation in roadway traffic forecasts with factors such as roadway type, functional classification and direction playing an influencing role. Roadways with higher volumes and higher functional classifications such as freeways are underestimated compared to lower volume roadways and lower functional classifications. The comparison of demographic forecasts shows a trend of overestimation while the comparison of travel behavior characteristics indicates a lack of incorporation of fundamental shifts and societal changes.
Earnings Management Using Classification Shifting: An Examination of Core Earnings and Special Items

This paper examines the classification of items within the income statement as an earnings management tool. Evidence is consistent with managers opportunistically shifting expenses from core expenses (cost of goods sold and selling, general, and administrative expenses) to special items. This vertical movement of expenses does not change bottom‐line earnings, but overstates “core” earnings. In addition, it appears that managers use this earnings management tool to meet the analyst forecast earnings benchmark, as special items tend to be excluded from both pro forma and analyst earnings definitions.
The effect of environmental regulation on plant-level product mix: A study of EPA's Cluster Rule☆

Abstract This paper examines the effect of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Cluster Rule on the product-mix decisions of plants in the pulp, paper, and paperboard industries. The Cluster Rule combines regulatory requirements from the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act that are based on plants altering their production processes away from chlorine-based bleaching agents. In addition to, or instead of, altering production processes, plants may plausibly comply with the regulation by reducing output of bleached products or dropping some of these products entirely. Using a difference-in-difference-in-differences approach, we find evidence that plants facing both air and water Cluster Rule regulation (treatment group) are more likely to drop bleached products relative to unbleached products compared to plants facing only air Cluster Rule regulation (control group). Furthermore, we find evidence that plants in the control group alter their product mixes toward bleached products.
Sex, Law, and the Sacred Precincts of the Marital Bedroom: On State and Federal Right to Privacy Jurisprudence

The article discusses why the right to privacy protected by the United States Constitution includes the right to marry a same-sex partner whether or not it includes the right to engage in sodomitical relations. The article focuses on different explications of Bowers v. Hardwick, suggesting that Supreme Court decisions before and after Bowers undermine the interpretation of that decision offered by same-sex marriage opponents. The article further suggests that particular states with more robust constitutional protections of the right to privacy than is offered in the Federal Constitution would seem compelled on state constitutional grounds to recognize the right to marry a same-sex partner, even were the argument concerning federal right to privacy protections rejected.
Short-Termism and Capital Flows

During the period 2005-2014, S&P 500 firms distributed to shareholders more than $3.95 trillion via stock buybacks and $2.45 trillion via dividends — $6.4 trillion in total. These shareholder payouts amounted to over 93% of the firms' net income. Academics, corporate lawyers, asset managers, and politicians point to such shareholder-payout figures as compelling evidence that “short-termism" and “quarterly capitalism" are impairing firms' ability to invest, innovate, and provide good wages.We explain why S&P 500 shareholder-payout figures provide a misleadingly incomplete picture of corporate capital flows and the financial capacity of U.S. public firms. Most importantly, they fail to account for offsetting equity issuances by firms. We show that, taking into account issuances, net shareholder payouts by all U.S. public firms during the period 2005-2014 were in fact only about $2.50 trillion, or 33% of their net income. Moreover, much of these net shareholder payouts were offset by net debt issuances, and thus effectively recapitalizations rather than firm-shrinking distributions. After excluding marginal debt capital inflows, net shareholder payouts by public firms during the period 2005-2014 were only about 22% of their net income. In short, S&P 500 shareholder-payout figures are not indicative of actual capital flows in public firms, and thus cannot provide much basis for the claim that short-termism is starving public firms of needed capital. We also offer three other reasons why corporate capital flows are unlikely to pose a problem for the economy.A prior version of this paper was circulated under the title “Short-Termism and Shareholder Payouts: Getting Corporate Capital Flows Right."
Religious Lawyering's Second Wave

The recent three-hour program on "Professional Responsibility and the Religious Traditions" at the annual meeting of the American Association of Law Schools ("AALS"), sponsored by the Section on Professional Responsibility and co-sponsored by the Section on Law and Religion, represents a milepost in the history of the religious lawyering movement and offers a valuable opportunity to reflect on that history. In 1998, only eight years ago, one of us defined the religious lawyering movement as "an emerging force" in legal ethics.2 In that short time, the movement has expanded dramatically and has received greater attention within the academy and the bar. It has developed the first institutional vehicles for disseminating and promoting conversations about religious lawyering, both among lawyers of the same faith and among lawyers of different faith traditions. Now the religious lawyering movement is increasingly confronting more complex and more difficult religious, legal and ethical issues; and is extending the religious lawyering conversation internationally. As the religious lawyering movement enters what we term its "second wave" of development, this essay begins with a look back to its "first wave" of path-breaking scholarship and its gradual shift toward more institutionalized structures and programs. It argues that the predominant characteristic of first-wave religious lawyering scholarship was to claim a space within the professional conversation for lawyers to
Sustaining Cooperation: Community Enforcement vs. Specialized Enforcement

We introduce the possibility of direct punishment by specialized enforcers into a model of community enforcement. Specialized enforcers need to be given incentives to carry out costly punishments. Our main result shows that, when the specialized enforcement technology is sufficiently effective, cooperation is best sustained by a “single enforcer punishment equilibrium,” where any deviation by a regular agent is punished only once, and only by enforcers. In contrast, enforcers themselves are disciplined (at least in part) by community enforcement. The reason why there is no community enforcement following deviations by regular agent is that such actions, by reducing future cooperation, would decrease the amount of punishment that enforcers are willing to impose on deviators. Conversely, when the specialized enforcement technology is ineffective, optimal equilibria do punish deviations by regular agents with community enforcement. The model thus predicts that societies with more advanced enforcement technologies should rely on specialized enforcement, while less technologically advanced societies should rely on community enforcement. Our results hold both under perfect monitoring of actions and under various types of private monitoring.