Quantum mechanical rotation of a photon polarization by Earth’s gravitational field

We describe the quantum mechanical rotation of a photon state, the Wigner rotation—a quantum effect that couples a transformation of a reference frame to a particle’s spin, to investigate geometric phases induced by Earth’s gravitational field for observers in various orbits. We find a potentially measurable quantum phase of the Wigner rotation angle in addition to the rotation of standard fame, the latter of which is computed and agrees well with the geodetic rotation. When an observer is in either a circular or a spiraling orbit containing non-zero angular momentum, the additional quantum phase contributes 10−6 degree to 10−4 degree respectively, depending on the altitude of the Earth orbit. In the former case, the additional quantum phase is dominant over the near-zero classical geodetic rotation. Our results show that the Wigner rotation represents a non-trivial semi-classical effect of quantum field theory on a background classical gravitational field.

Technological innovations and the effect of ‘dualism’

The purpose of the research is to consider the effect of technological dualism for the Russian economy with an empirical demonstration that this effect has a different content. The research methodology consists of the neo-Schumpeterian theory of technological change, structural analysis, and empirical estimates that allow one to identify the characteristics of technological dynamics. The result of this research was a demonstration of the deviation from the classical effect of technological dualism of the Russian economy, which is caused by the existing structural and institutional characteristics of the functioning of activities various types. The main conclusion is that the classical recipes for stimulating technological innovation in the presence of the pseudo-effect of technological dualism will not become working tools with high action. We need systemic and institutional transformations that affect the incentives for technological renewal and the deployment of markets that accept products that embody the results of technological improvement and development. Thus, replacing the strategy of local technological innovations with a strategy of comprehensive incentives and large-scale technological innovations that improve the social parameters of life is an urgent task for the Russian economy.

Spider mite mothers adjust reproduction and sons' alternative reproductive tactics to immigrating alien conspecifics

Maternal effects on environmentally induced alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs) are poorly understood but likely to be selected for if mothers can reliably predict offspring environments. We assessed maternal effects in two populations (Y and G) of herbivorous arrhenotokous spider mites Tetranychus urticae , where males conditionally express fighting and sneaking tactics in male–male combat and pre-copulatory guarding behaviour. We hypothesized that resident mothers should adjust their reproduction and sons’ ARTs to immigrating alien conspecifics in dependence of alien conspecifics posing a fitness threat or advantage. To induce maternal effects, females were exposed to own or alien socio-environments and mated to own or alien males. Across maternal and sons' reproductive traits, the maternal socio-environment induced stronger effects than the maternal mate, and G-mothers responded more strongly to Y-influence than vice versa. G-socio-environments and Y-mates enhanced maternal egg production in both populations. Maternal exposure to G-socio-environments demoted, yet maternal Y-mates promoted, guarding occurrence and timing by sons. Sneakers guarded earlier than fighters in Y-environments, whereas the opposite happened in G-environments. The endosymbiont Cardinium , present in G, did not exert any classical effect but may have played a role via the shared plant. Our study highlights interpopulation variation in immediate and anticipatory maternal responses to immigrants.

Differentiation of different race face in micro time intervals

A study was conducted on the manifestation of the categorical effect of the perception of faces of the Caucasian and Mongoloid type under different time conditions of exposure of images. It was shown that at time intervals from 200 cm to 1 s, the effect of manifestation is different. It is shown that with increasing exposure time of stimulus images, the accuracy of solving the discriminatory AVX problem for all pairs of images in the transition series increases. Moreover, the manifestations of the classical effect of categorization of perception are observed only when demonstrating images for 200 ms. The hypothesis about the relationship between the accuracy of solving the discriminatory task and the individual characteristics of the subjects was also tested. In general, this hypothesis has not been confirmed. However, at the level of the trend, a relationship was found between individual accuracy in solving the discriminatory AVX problem and the strength of the nervous system, diagnosed using the Tapping test method.

Substituent effects in the so-called cation⋯π interaction of benzene and its boron–nitrogen doped analogues: overlooked role of σ-skeleton

By decomposing IQA atom–atom interaction energies to σ and π contributions, we have shown that the substituent effect in cation⋯π interactions is a nonlocal classical effect in which σ-polarization plays an important role.

New fundamental evidence of non-classical structure in the combination of natural concepts

We recently performed cognitive experiments on conjunctions and negations of two concepts with the aim of investigating the combination problem of concepts. Our experiments confirmed the deviations (conceptual vagueness, underextension, overextension etc.) from the rules of classical (fuzzy) logic and probability theory observed by several scholars in concept theory, while our data were successfully modelled in a quantum-theoretic framework developed by ourselves. In this paper, we isolate a new, very stable and systematic pattern of violation of classicality that occurs in concept combinations. In addition, the strength and regularity of this non-classical effect leads us to believe that it occurs at a more fundamental level than the deviations observed up to now. It is our opinion that we have identified a deep non-classical mechanism determining not only how concepts are combined but, rather, how they are formed. We show that this effect can be faithfully modelled in a two-sector Fock space structure, and that it can be exactly explained by assuming that human thought is the superposition of two processes, a ‘logical reasoning’, guided by ‘logic’, and a ‘conceptual reasoning’, guided by ‘emergence’, and that the latter generally prevails over the former. All these findings provide new fundamental support to our quantum-theoretic approach to human cognition.

Social context modulates the effect of physical warmth on perceived interpersonal kindness: a study of embodied metaphors

abstractPhysical contact with hot vs. iced coffee has been shown to affect evaluation of the personal warmth or kindness of a hypothetical person (Williams & Bargh, 2008). In three studies, we investigated whether the manipulation of social context can modulate the activation of the metaphorical mapping, kindness as warmth. After priming participants with warm vs. cold temperature, we asked them to evaluate a hypothetical ad-hoc ally or adversary on the kindness dimension, as well as on other qualities used as a control. We expected more extreme evaluations of kindness in the adversary than in the ally condition, and no effects on other ratings. We thus replicated the classical effect of physical warmth on kindness ratings and generalized it to a German-speaking population. In addition, when the two German studies were combined, we found evidence suggesting a contextual modulation of the temperature effect: only out-group members, namely adversaries, were judged as more kind when participants had experienced physical warmth; the effect was not evident in the ally (i.e., in-group) condition. These studies suggest that context can modulate metaphorical activation; they therefore represent an initial attempt to add nuance to our understanding of when embodied metaphors affect our decisions.

Nonsingular Einsteinian Cosmology: How Galactic Momentum Prevents Cosmic Singularities

It is shown how Einstein's equation can account for the evolution of the universe without an initial singularity and can explain the inflation epoch as a momentum dominated era in which energy from matter and radiation drove extremely accelerated expansion of space. It is shown how an object with momentum loses energy to the expanding universe and how this energy can contribute to accelerated spatial expansion more effectively than vacuum energy, because virtual particles, the source of vacuum energy, can have negative energy, which can cancel any positive energy from the vacuum. Radiation and matter with momentum have positive but decreasing energy in the expanding universe, and the energy lost by them can contribute to accelerated spatial expansion between galactic clusters, making dark energy a classical effect that can be explained by general relativity without quantum mechanics, and, as (13) and (15) show, without an initial singularity or a big bang. This role of momentum, which was overlooked in the Standard Cosmological Model, is the basis of a simpler model which agrees with what is correct in the old model and corrects what is wrong with it.

Discrimination of faces of the same and other race and gender modulated by familiarity

This study aimed to replicate, for the first time on Serbian population, the own-race bias (ORB), a classical effect from the face perception domain. The ORB was additionally contrasted with familiarity and the own-gender bias (OGB). Recognition accuracy for own race faces was higher in comparison both to African (Z=3.29, p<0.01) and Asian faces (Z= 2.59, p<0.01). The introduction of famous faces led to a significant drop in the ORB. However, in all of the conditions a ?seen before? effect was measured, suggesting better recognition for own race faces, independent of familiarity. The OGB was obtained for own-race faces (?2(28, 7) = 119, 34 p <0, 05), while there were no differences in recognition accuracy between the own and the other-race faces of the other gender. These results imply that the ORB could be explained, at least partially, by the OGB. However, these results were obtained on an exclusively female sample.