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Toward Local Madelung Mechanics in Spacetime
Get PDFIt has recently been shown that relativistic quantum theory leads to a local interpretation of quantum mechanics wherein the universal wavefunction in configuration space is entirely replaced with an ensemble of local fluid equations in spacetime. For want of a fully relativistic quantum fluid treatment, we develop a model using the nonrelativistic Madelung equations, and obtain conditions for them to be local in spacetime. Every particle in the Madelung fluid is equally real, and has a definite position, momentum, kinetic energy, and potential energy. These are obtained by defining quantum momentum and kinetic energy densities for the fluid and separating the momentum into average and symmetric parts, and kinetic energy into classical kinetic and quantum potential parts. The two types of momentum naturally give rise to a single classical kinetic energy density, which contains the expected kinetic energy, even for stationary states, and we define the reduced quantum potential as the remaining part of the quantum kinetic energy density. We treat the quantum potential as a novel mode of internal energy storage within the fluid particles, which explains most of the nonclassical behavior of the Madelung fluid. For example, we show that in tunneling phenomena, the quantum potential negates the barrier so that nothing prevents the fluid from flowing through. We show how energy flows and transforms in this model, and that enabling local conservation of energy requires defining a quantum potential energy current that flows through the fluid rather than only flowing with it. The nonrelativistic treatment generally contains singularities in the velocity field, which undermines the goal of local dynamics, but we expect a proper relativistic treatment will bound the fluid particle velocities at c
Who Do You Think is the Greatest-Ever Economist?
No full textDeciding who is the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) is a popular debate in sports. Is it Michael Jordan in basketball? Lionel Messi in fútbol? Muhammed Ali in boxing? Babe Ruth in baseball? (In case you are wondering, the answer is \u27yes\u27 in each category.)
Tyler Cowen, professor at George Mason University and co-publisher of the popular Marginal Revolution website, has come up with one of the most clever, entertaining ways to write a history of economic thought by selecting his favorite GOAT in economics
Unveiling the Librarian of Tomorrow: Why Librarians Are Needed Now More Than Ever
Get PDFI fell in love with Libraries the moment I set foot in the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Alexandria, Egypt, where I had the privilege of working for five enriching years. The Bibliotheca Alexandrina stands as a modern reincarnation of the legendary ancient library, a beacon of learning and exchange. Reflecting on its revival, I marvel at the timeless significance of libraries throughout history. From the fabled repositories of knowledge in Alexandria, Athens, and Constantinople to their contemporary counterparts, libraries have endured as bastions of enlightenment and progress. The spirit of international collaboration that birthed the Bibliotheca Alexandrina underscores the global significance of libraries, while their technical prowess ensures their continued relevance in the digital age
On Axially Rational Regular Functions and Schur Analysis in the Clifford-Appell Setting
Get PDFIn this paper we start the study of Schur analysis for Cauchy–Fueter regular quaternionic-valued functions, i.e. null solutions of the Cauchy–Fueter operator in . The novelty of the approach developed in this paper is that we consider axially regular functions, i.e. functions spanned by the so-called Clifford-Appell polynomials. This type of functions arises naturally from two well-known extension results in hypercomplex analysis: the Fueter mapping theorem and the generalized Cauchy–Kovalevskaya (GCK) extension. These results allow one to obtain axially regular functions starting from analytic functions of one real or complex variable. Precisely, in the Fueter theorem two operators play a role. The first one is the so-called slice operator, which extends holomorphic functions of one complex variable to slice hyperholomorphic functions of a quaternionic variable. The second operator is the Laplace operator in four real variables, that maps slice hyperholomorphic functions to axially regular functions. On the other hand, the generalized CK-extension gives a characterization of axially regular functions in terms of their restriction to the real line. In this paper we use these two extensions to define two notions of rational function in the regular setting. For our purposes, the notion coming from the generalized CK-extension is the most suitable. Our results allow to consider the Hardy space, Schur multipliers and their relation with realizations in the framework of Clifford-Appell polynomials. We also introduce two notions of regular Blaschke factors, through the Fueter theorem and the generalized CK-extension
Ensemble-Based Mutational Profiling and Network Analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike Omicron XBB Lineages for Interactions with the ACE2 Receptor and Antibodies: Cooperation of Binding Hotspots in Mediating Epistatic Couplings Underlies Binding Mechanism and Immune Escape
Get PDFIn this study, we performed a computational study of binding mechanisms for the SARS-CoV-2 spike Omicron XBB lineages with the host cell receptor ACE2 and a panel of diverse class one antibodies. The central objective of this investigation was to examine the molecular factors underlying epistatic couplings among convergent evolution hotspots that enable optimal balancing of ACE2 binding and antibody evasion for Omicron variants BA.1, BA2, BA.3, BA.4/BA.5, BQ.1.1, XBB.1, XBB.1.5, and XBB.1.5 + L455F/F456L. By combining evolutionary analysis, molecular dynamics simulations, and ensemble-based mutational scanning of spike protein residues in complexes with ACE2, we identified structural stability and binding affinity hotspots that are consistent with the results of biochemical studies. In agreement with the results of deep mutational scanning experiments, our quantitative analysis correctly reproduced strong and variant-specific epistatic effects in the XBB.1.5 and BA.2 variants. It was shown that Y453W and F456L mutations can enhance ACE2 binding when coupled with Q493 in XBB.1.5, while these mutations become destabilized when coupled with the R493 position in the BA.2 variant. The results provided a molecular rationale of the epistatic mechanism in Omicron variants, showing a central role of the Q493/R493 hotspot in modulating epistatic couplings between convergent mutational sites L455F and F456L in XBB lineages. The results of mutational scanning and binding analysis of the Omicron XBB spike variants with ACE2 receptors and a panel of class one antibodies provide a quantitative rationale for the experimental evidence that epistatic interactions of the physically proximal binding hotspots Y501, R498, Q493, L455F, and F456L can determine strong ACE2 binding, while convergent mutational sites F456L and F486P are instrumental in mediating broad antibody resistance. The study supports a mechanism in which the impact on ACE2 binding affinity is mediated through a small group of universal binding hotspots, while the effect of immune evasion could be more variant-dependent and modulated by convergent mutational sites in the conformationally adaptable spike regions
The Spiritual Prodigy, the Reluctant Guru, and the Saint: Mirabai and Collaborative Leadership at Hari Krishna Mandir
Get PDFThis article explores the life and influence of Indira Devi Niloy (1920–1997) who in 1949 began to encounter the sixteenth-century saint–poet Mirabai during her meditative trance states. She would recount songs, stories, and teachings that the saint gave to her as well as scenes from Mirabai’s life that she witnessed as an observer and at other times experienced directly as a participant. Their ongoing relationship would have a tremendous influence on Indira Devi as well as her guru Dilip Kumar Roy (1897–1980) and the increasingly international community that grew up around them. Their interactions and Indira Devi’s reports in turn would also significantly influence the reception and perceived continuing relevance of Mirabai as both inspiration and authorization for women’s self-realization. Additionally, Indira Devi’s own story reveals a mode of female guruhood, with a distinct absence of identification with shakti or divine incarnation, a more egalitarian model for the guru–disciple relationship, and an alternate bhakti mode of male–female collaborative leadership with Roy. Further their experiences with Mirabai offer insight into the ongoing engagement of women and men with such influential women of the past, the intersubjective nature of the traditions that surround them, and what Mirabai’s message might be for women (and men) today
Poor Oral Health is Associated with Inflammation, Aortic Valve Calcification, and Brain Volume Among Forager-Farmers
Get PDFPoor oral health is associated with cardiovascular disease and dementia. Potential pathways include sepsis from oral bacteria, systemic inflammation, and nutritional deficiencies. However, in post-industrialized populations, links between oral health and chronic disease may be confounded because the lower socioeconomic exposome (poor diet, pollution, low physical activity) often entails insufficient dental care. We assessed tooth loss, caries, and damaged teeth, in relation to cardiovascular and brain aging among the Tsimane, a subsistence population living a relatively traditional forager-horticulturalist lifestyle with poor dental health, but minimal cardiovascular disease and dementia. Dental health was assessed by a physician in 739 participants aged 40-92 years with cardiac and brain health measured by chest computed tomography (CT) (n=728) and brain CT (n=605). A subset of 356 individuals aged 60+ were also assessed for dementia and mild cognitive impairment (n=33 impaired). Tooth loss was highly prevalent, with 2.2 teeth lost per decade and a 2-fold greater loss in women. The number of teeth with exposed pulp was associated with higher inflammation, as measured by cytokine levels and white blood cell counts, and lower body mass index. Coronary artery calcium and thoracic aortic calcium were not associated with tooth loss or damaged teeth. However, aortic valve calcification and brain tissue loss were higher in those that had more teeth with exposed pulp. Overall, these results suggest that dental health is associated with indicators of chronic diseases in the absence of typical confounds, even in a population with low cardiovascular and dementia risk factors
Embracing the Wound of Contingency: Transcribing Reality in Supernatural Horror and Found Footage
Get PDFTo counter both the form of critical thought first outlined by Kant that dispels absolute knowledge, as well as the dogmatic necessitarianism that asserts the universe must be one way for an absolute originary reason, Quentin Meillassoux argues for the “non-facticity of facticity” to implicate an absolute contingency or unreason structuring reality: in effect, anything could happen for no reason at all. Meillassoux suggests the trauma of the contingent event and the sudden impossibility of inductive science in its wake may be explored in an “Extro-Science Fiction” text (XSF) – but limits his examples to science fiction literature. Framing the contingent rupture along Alain Badiou’s theory of the event, this paper argues Supernatural Horror media presents the possibility of an inhuman ethical attitude in the face of the contingent – an embrace of the insatiable wound of inductive skepticism (as outlined by David Hume) and the ulterior shock of the contingent event (as outlined by Meillassoux). These films generate a lucrative terrain to explore the contingent event and the ethical demands wrought therein, asking us – what does it mean to be in a world where positive (meta-)physical knowledge and inductive science become gratuitously and horrifically impossible? This embrace involves a decision between despair and quietism, or fidelity and scientific pursual.
Found Footage Horror will be analyzed as an urgent form of engagement with contingency through its continual re-inscription of the distance between image and unthought noumenal world, provoking an interest in contingency as a potentially cognizable real event. Subsequently, three Found Footage Horror texts will be analyzed as they outline three respective ethical attitudes facing the contingent: primal despair/avoidance in Grave Encounters (dir. Colin Minihan and Stuart Ortiz, 2011), mystic quietism/ineffability in Lake Mungo (dir. Joel Anderson, 2008), and finally a scientific ethics of fidelity, knowledge, and courage as outlined by Alain Badiou, apparent in Koji Shiraishi’s Senritsu Kaiki File Kowasugi (2012-2023) franchise
Asian, Pacific Islander, & Desi American Heritage Month: A Virtual Library Exhibit
No full textMay is Asian, Pacific American, & Desi American Heritage Month, a time to honor and celebrate the rich diversity of Americans with heritage linking them to Asia and the Pacific islands.[1] This broad category encompasses individuals from across the Asian continent and the islands of Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Several terms are commonly used to represent these diverse communities, including Asian Pacific American (APA) and Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI). Throughout this display, we will use the acronym APIDA, which stands for Asian, Pacific Islander, and Desi American. Desi refers to people and communities originating from the South Asian countries of Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka...
In this digital display, we highlight significant individuals and provide eBooks on APIDA health issues. There is also a list of online resources that provide more information, data, and statistics on APIDA health topics
Intolerable Masculinity: Screening Men\u27s Shame and Embracing Curious Futures
Get PDFThis thesis argues that to critique hegemonic masculinity and patriarchy in good faith, film and television must focus on the futures created through men’s ethical action in the present, rather than inert displays of men’s horrific behaviors that rely on audience shame as a tool for reclaiming men’s pride. Men’s freedom to change their situation is introduced through Manon Garcia’s (2022) notion of masculinity as an “impasse,” preventing men from authentic connection with others. This concept is furthered using David Buchbinder (2013), with the television examples Mad Men (Weiner 2007-2015) and Black Mirror (Brooker 2011-2023) each presenting a different masculine reaction to the notion of men’s responsibility.
Following this foundation of men’s situation as constructed and therefore open to change, this thesis presents contemporary films which appear to critique men’s socially significant status, but instead obscure their responsibility to change through a performance of shame. Referencing Sara Ahmed’s (2014) study of national performances of shame alongside Jacques Rancière’s (2021) notion of the intolerable image, men’s shame over their past actions is critiqued as disguising men’s responsibility, and drawing attention away from women’s experiences of oppression by men. Men (Garland 2022) and The Power of the Dog (Campion 2021) serve as examples, representing an extreme display of masculine shame in the former, and a stronger yet incomplete critique of men’s harmful behaviors in the latter. Finally, this thesis continues with Rancière, as well as Simone de Beauvoir’s (2015) notion of ambiguity, to examine contemporary films which inspire curiosity in the spectator over how men might act ethically. This curiosity is a refusal of the inward turn of shame, and is vi crucial to the analysis of Aftersun (Wells 2022) and The Green Knight (Lowery 2021), films which explore men’s ambiguous situation and freedom to act in the present, without indulging in shame as a means of reclaiming men’s prid