Asymmetric topological pumping in nonparaxial photonics

Topological photonics was initially inspired by the quantum-optical analogy between the Schrödinger equation for an electron wavefunction and the paraxial equation for a light beam. Here, we reveal an unexpected phenomenon in topological pumping observed in arrays of nonparaxial optical waveguides where the quantum-optical analogy becomes invalid. We predict theoretically and demonstrate experimentally an asymmetric topological pumping when the injected field transfers from one side of the waveguide array to the other side whereas the reverse process is unexpectedly forbidden. Our finding could open an avenue for exploring topological photonics that enables nontrivial topological phenomena and designs in photonics driven by nonparaxiality.

Nanostructural mechanisms of physicochemical reactions

It is generally accepted that physicochemical reactions are mainly molecular atomic. It was shown that liquid water consists of 12 % molecules and 88 % of ice nanocrystals. When melting, microcrystals of substances break down into nanocrystals and molecules or into nanocrystals and atoms. During the crystallization of liquids, the reverse process occurs. Based on the above physicochemical reactions, it is shown that nanostructural mechanisms prevail in their basis.

Improvement of Temperature Precision in Embryo-Incubator Chamber by Reducing Fluctuations

Temperature is one of the parameters that affects development of embryos. Therefore, it is important to keep stability of temperature in the chambers of embryo-incubators. In modern incubators, some accuracy of temperature has been achieved, although fluctuations are not eliminated yet. The aim of this research was to improve temperature accuracy by reducing of fluctuations. In modern benchtop incubators, a heating element is switched on and automatically shuts off when the desired value is reached. The heating element continues to heat up to a certain temperature after switching off, and the reverse process takes place during cooling. Inappropriate temperature may adversely affect the embryo. To control temperature more precisely, a new principle with infrared sensor has been developed, where power to heater is supplied with different PWM duty cycles. As the results, much more stable temperature with less fluctuations were achieved in comparison to modern systems using thermocouples and thermistors.

Why are there no infinite left-sided decimal expansions?

It was my nine-year-old daughter who got me interested in the title question. As she appreciates, multiplying an integer by a power of 10 is a cinch. To multiply 34 by 100, simply add two zeros at the end: 34 × 100 = 3400. Dividing 3400 by 100 is the reverse process: remove two zeros to obtain 34. More generally, to multiply an integer by 10N, for non-negative N, add N zeros to the end of its decimal notation, and to divide an integer by 10N remove N zeros from its end — so long as it has them. Easy-peasy; my daughter knows all that.

Prawo ochrony dziedzictwa kulturowego. Quo vadis?

Heritage protection law. Quo vadis? Heritage protection law is one of the youngest branches of law. It is still developing, like a child on its way to adulthood. By using the parallel narrative between the chosen literary works for children (The Snow Queen by Ch. Andersen, The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L.F. Baume and Pippi Longstocking by A. Lindgren) and future challenges for heritage law, the authors aim to present different directions of development relating to heritage identity, extending the field of protection by law (by encompassing intangible heritage and other areas), valuation of heritage, and the problem of bringing heritage to the public domain and the reverse process.

ANTHROPOSOCIAL EVOLUTION AND DEVOLUTION – OPPOSITE VECTORS OF BEING AND EDUCATION

The article presents an analysis of modern opposing concepts and ways of transforming a person and society. One group of concepts, reflecting the progressive evolution of man and society (Darwinism), was considered the most recognized in science until the end of the twentieth century. It proves the general progressive path of anthroposociogenesis. But since the second half of the twentieth century and at present, another, opposite group of concepts has become increasingly popular: devolution, or regressive ways of changing a person and society. According to her, anthroposocial life reaches a certain limit of development, and then there is a reverse process of degradation and primitivization up to the primitive forms of anthropoids and their social organization. The problem is considered in relation to education. The important role of education as personality perfection in these opposite processes is shown. It is substantiated that the primitivization and devaluation of education (training and upbringing) in modern society leads to the replacement of the vectors of anthropo-social transformations from progressive to regressive.

Age characteristics of the working memory

This paper raises the question of the relationship between two mechanisms of working memory - Retrieval-Induced Forgetting (RIF) and Retrieval-Based Learning (RBL) in ontogenesis. Working memory is an element of executive functions, the effectiveness of which predetermines the success of learning, which determines the importance of studying the mechanisms of its implementation. RIF is a deterioration in the reproduction of subsequent stimuli as a result of reproduction of previous stimuli that are similar in some parameter. RBL is the reverse process, in which each subsequent reproduction in the working memory leads to better memorization of information when the memory is repeatedly tested. Comparison of works representing specific ages of the subjects does not allow us to imagine the complete change in the interaction of the two mechanisms with age. This is what became the task of this study. An original computerized technique was used (Razumnikova et al., 2016) which had been designed to memorize visual objects presented on a computer screen. The technique included three series, during which the same set of simple objects were presented, but the order of the presentation varied from series to series. The study involved 201 children: 17 children who were 3-4 years old, 90 children who were 5-7 years old, 47 children 10-11 who were years old and 47 children who were 12-14 years old. It is shown that RIF processes are mostly formed in children 3-4 years old. The effectiveness of RBL increases with age and reaches its greatest values by adolescence.