‘Factors of ignorance’ and the rationalized M.K.S.A. system of units

An attempt is made, by means of an allusive (rather than a systematic) historical account of the development of the subject, to exhibit the essentially unique character of the rationalized M.K.S.A. system of units. The establishment of this system involved one arbitrary decision—the determination to retain unaltered the size of the previously accepted unit of current. Thereafter, any choice of derived units, other than the choice actually made, would have destroyed the basic symmetry of the formulation.     

Comment on ‘Cr LVV Auger emission and photoreduction of hexavalent Cr oxides by A.G. Schrott,G.S. Frankel,A.J. Davenport,H.S. Isaacs,C.V. Jahnes and M.A. Russak’

A paper by Schrott et al. [Surf. Sci. 250 (1991) 139] on the Auger Cr LVV spectra of Al/Cr alloys is commented on.The area of major disagreement regards the hypothesis that Al-alloying suppresses the Cr LVV decay. It is pointed out that the surface chemical composition of the alloys should be considered in detail, and that instrumental factors and the presence of surface contamination would account for the negligible Cr LVV intensity.     

Large Deviations, Guerra’s and A.S.S. Schemes, and the Parisi Hypothesis

We investigate the problem of computing $$\lim_{N \to \infty}\frac{1}{aN}\log EZ_N^a$$ for any value of a, where Z _N is the partition function of the celebrated Sherrington-Kirkpatrick (SK) model, or of some of its natural generalizations. This is a natural “large deviation” problem. Its study helps to get a fresh look at some of the recent ideas introduced in the area, and raises a number of natural questions. We provide a complete solution for a ≥ 0.     

Dynamical Processes on Complex Networks,by A. Barrat,M. Barthélemy and A. Vespignani

The present state of theory and experiment on the gravity-induced electric field in metallic conductors and the electric field in accelerated metal conductors is reviewed. The relevant equations are derived in very simple approximations. The results depend on whether the deformation of the lattice of positive ions is neglected or is taken into account. Experimental results obtained with freely falling electrons in a cavity in the metal do not agree with the measurements of potentials on rapidly spinning metal rotors. Older direct measurements of the specific charge of carriers in metallic conductors are also mentioned.     

A Journey through Statistical Physics. Selecta of Jürg Fröhlich,edited by G. Felder,G.M. Graf and K. Hepp

Current activity in the field of magnetic separation is reviewed in fundamental terms. The diverse subject matter is ordered into four main groupings whose characteristics are described in terms of numerous devices, both of present-day and historical significance. Existing as well as potential areas of scientific and commercial operation are discussed. The basic principles of recent major developments in high intensity magnetic Separation are closely examined.     

俄国物理学家A.M.普罗霍罗夫去世

20 0 2年 1月 8日著名俄国物理学家Ａ .Ｍ .普罗霍罗夫在莫斯科的家中去逝 ,终年 85岁 .普罗霍罗夫和俄国物理学家巴索夫及美国物理学家汤斯一起 ,由于发明微波激射器和量子电子学方面开创性的工作 ,获得了196 4年诺贝尔物理奖 .普罗霍罗夫 1916年 7月 11日生于奥大利亚的昆士兰州 .192 3年和家人一起回到祖国前苏联 .他 1939年毕业于国立列宁格勒大学物理系 ,毕业后到莫斯科列别捷夫物理研究所当研究生 .他曾参加卫国战争 (第二次世界大战 )并两次受伤 ,后复原到列别捷夫物理研究所工作 .195 1年他在列别捷夫物理研究所获得博士学位 .2 0世…     

Ultracold Gases and Quantum Information: Lecture Notes of the Les Houches Summer School in Singapore,edited by C. Miniatura,L-C. Kwek,M. Ducloy,B. Grémaud,B-G. Englert,L.F. Cugliandolo,A. Ekert and K. K. Phua

Measurements of the Faraday magneto-optical effect and of optical absorption in magnetic garnet crystals and films are reviewed. Earlier work was restricted to measurements in the visible spectrum; these measurements showed that the transparency was sufficient to allow magnetic domains to be studied in relatively thick slabs. Within the last year or so interest has been renewed in extending magneto-optical measurements beyond the visible spectrum. In particular, extremely low absorptions are found in the wavelength range of approximately 1–5 microns. Thie work is, in no small way, spurred by the possibility of developing a light-beam modulator using the Faraday effect in this wavelength range. Recent measurements at very short wavelengths using garnet films are also reported. By extending the short wavelength measurements to 3000 Å, about two orders of magnitude increase in Fareday rotation and optical absorption are observed, compared with the visible spectrum measurements.

The Faraday effect has been used to measure magnetic hysteresis loops in single-crystal garnet slabs. Magneto-optical observation of the corresponding domain structures shows them to be particularly simple. Detailed correlation of domain structure and hysteresis loops is described; in addition, an estimate of the domain wall energy and its width is made from these measurements.

The garnets referred to in this review are yttrium iron garnet (YIG), gadolinium iron garnet (GdIG), and YIG doped with gallium (YGaIG).     

Dust in the Universe – Similarities and Differences,by K.S. Krishna Swamy

A simple microscopic deduction of Archimedes' principle as applied to gases is given in terms of the kinetic theory, and some conventional explanations of barometric effects are queried.