De Sitter space and perpetuum mobile

We give general arguments that any interacting non--conformal {\it classical} field theory in de Sitter space leads to the possibility of constructing a perpetuum mobile. The arguments are based on the observation that massive free falling particles can radiate other massive particles on the classical level as seen by the free falling observer. The intensity of the radiation process is non-zero even for particles with any finite mass, i.e. with a wavelength which is within the causal domain. Hence, we conclude that either de Sitter space can not exist eternally or that one can build a perpetuum mobile.Comment: 11 pages revtex, no figures. Added discussion to strengthen conclusio

The Schwinger Mechanism, the Unruh Effect and the Production of Accelerated Black Holes

We compute the corrections to the transition amplitudes of an accelerated Unruh ``box'' that arise when the accelerated box is replaced by a ``two level ion'' immersed in a constant electric field and treated in second quantization. There are two kinds of corrections, those due to recoil effects induced by the momentum transfers and those due to pair creation. Taken together, these corrections show that there is a direct relationship between pair creation amplitudes described by the Heisenberg-Euler-Schwinger mechanism and the Unruh effect, i.e. the thermalisation of accelerated systems at temperature $a/ 2 \pi$ where $a$ is the acceleration. In particular, there is a thermodynamical consistency between both effects whose origin is that the euclidean action governing pair creation rates acts as an entropy in delivering the Unruh temperature. Upon considering pair creation of charged black holes in an electric field, these relationships explain why black holes are created from vacuum in thermal equilibrium, i.e. with their Hawking temperature equal to their Unruh temperature.Comment: Revised version: expanded introduction and discussion of pair creation of black holes, 2figures added, 22 pages, Late

Aspects of Quantum Gravity in de Sitter Spaces

In these lectures we give a review of recent attempts to understand quantum gravity on de Sitter spaces. In particular, we discuss the holographic correspondence between de Sitter gravity and conformal field theories proposed by Hull and by Strominger, and how this may be reconciled with the finite-dimensional Hilbert space proposal by Banks and Fischler. Furthermore we review the no-go theorems that forbid an embedding of de Sitter spaces in string theory, and discuss how they can be circumvented. Finally, some curious issues concerning the thermal nature of de Sitter space are elucidated.Comment: 36+1 pages, 5 Postscript figures, introduction and section 6 extended, further references, final version to appear in JCA

Marginalization of end-use technologies in energy innovation for climate protection

Mitigating climate change requires directed innovation efforts to develop and deploy energy technologies. Innovation activities are directed towards the outcome of climate protection by public institutions, policies and resources that in turn shape market behaviour. We analyse diverse indicators of activity throughout the innovation system to assess these efforts. We find efficient end-use technologies contribute large potential emission reductions and provide higher social returns on investment than energy-supply technologies. Yet public institutions, policies and financial resources pervasively privilege energy-supply technologies. Directed innovation efforts are strikingly misaligned with the needs of an emissions-constrained world. Significantly greater effort is needed to develop the full potential of efficient end-use technologies

A study of patent thickets

Report analysing whether entry of UK enterprises into patenting in a technology area is affected by patent thickets in the technology area

Analysis of the FGF gene family provides insights into aquatic adaptation in cetaceans

Cetacean body structure and physiology exhibit dramatic adaptations to their aquatic environment. Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are a family of essential factors that regulate animal development and physiology; however, their role in cetacean evolution is not clearly understood. Here, we sequenced the fin whale genome and analysed FGFs from 8 cetaceans. FGF22, a hair follicle-enriched gene, exhibited pseudogenization, indicating that the function of this gene is no longer necessary in cetaceans that have lost most of their body hair. An evolutionary analysis revealed signatures of positive selection for FGF3 and FGF11, genes related to ear and tooth development and hypoxia, respectively. We found a D203G substitution in cetacean FGF9, which was predicted to affect FGF9 homodimerization, suggesting that this gene plays a role in the acquisition of rigid flippers for efficient manoeuvring. Cetaceans utilize low bone density as a buoyancy control mechanism, but the underlying genes are not known. We found that the expression of FGF23, a gene associated with reduced bone density, is greatly increased in the cetacean liver under hypoxic conditions, thus implicating FGF23 in low bone density in cetaceans. Altogether, our results provide novel insights into the roles of FGFs in cetacean adaptation to the aquatic environment.ope

Growing Up Tyrannosaurus Rex: Osteohistology Refutes the Pygmy Nanotyrannus and Supports Ontogenetic Niche Partitioning in Juvenile Tyrannosaurus

Despite its iconic status as the king of dinosaurs, Tyrannosaurus rex biology is incompletely understood. Here, we examine femur and tibia bone microstructure from two half-grown T. rex specimens, permitting the assessments of age, growth rate, and maturity necessary for investigating the early life history of this giant theropod. Osteohistology reveals these were immature individuals 13 to 15 years of age, exhibiting growth rates similar to extant birds and mammals, and that annual growth was dependent on resource abundance. Together, our results support the synonomization of “Nanotyrannus” into Tyrannosaurus and fail to support the hypothesized presence of a sympatric tyrannosaurid species of markedly smaller adult body size. Our independent data contribute to mounting evidence for a rapid shift in body size associated with ontogenetic niche partitioning late in T. rex ontogeny and suggest that this species singularly exploited mid- to large-sized theropod niches at the end of the Cretaceous

A thermal instability for positive brane cosmological constant in the Randall-Sundrum cosmologies

We describe a novel dynamical mechanism to radiate away a positive four dimensional cosmological constant, in the Randall-Sundrum cosmological scenario. We show that there are modes of the bulk gravitational field for which the brane is effectively a mirror. This will generally give rise to an emission of thermal radiation from the brane into the bulk. The temperature turns out to be nonvanishing only if the effective four dimensional cosmological constant is positive. In any theory where the four dimensional vacuum energy is a function of physical degrees of freedom, there is then a mechanism that radiates away any positive four dimensional cosmological constant.Comment: 14 pages. The discussion on the relation between temperature and effective 4d cosmological constant is changed. References are adde

The Effect of Gravitational Tidal Forces on Renormalized Quantum Fields

The effect of gravitational tidal forces on renormalized quantum fields propagating in curved spacetime is investigated and a generalisation of the optical theorem to curved spacetime is proved. In the case of QED, the interaction of tidal forces with the vacuum polarization cloud of virtual e^+ e^- pairs dressing the renormalized photon has been shown to produce several novel phenomena. In particular, the photon field amplitude can locally increase as well as decrease, corresponding to a negative imaginary part of the refractive index, in apparent violation of unitarity and the optical theorem. Below threshold decays into e^+ e^- pairs may also occur. In this paper, these issues are studied from the point of view of a non-equilibrium initial-value problem, with the field evolution from an initial null surface being calculated for physically distinct initial conditions and for both scalar field theories and QED. It is shown how a generalised version of the optical theorem, valid in curved spacetime, allows a local increase in amplitude while maintaining consistency with unitarity. The picture emerges of the field being dressed and undressed as it propagates through curved spacetime, with the local gravitational tidal forces determining the degree of dressing and hence the amplitude of the renormalized quantum field. These effects are illustrated with many examples, including a description of the undressing of a photon in the vicinity of a black hole singularity.Comment: 76 pages, jheppub.sty, 10 figures, small corrections. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1006.014