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This study examines, in the framework of variational regularization methods, a multi-penalty regularization approach which builds upon the Uniform PENalty (UPEN) method, previously proposed by the authors for Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) data processing. The paper introduces two iterative methods, UpenMM and GUpenMM, formulated within the Majorization-Minimization (MM) framework. These methods are designed to identify appropriate regularization parameters and solutions for linear inverse problems utilizing multi-penalty regularization. The paper demonstrates the convergence of these methods and illustrates their potential through numerical examples in one and two-dimensional scenarios, showing the practical utility of point-wise regularization terms in solving various inverse problems.

Fast Field-Cycling Nuclear Magnetic Resonance relaxometry is a non-destructive technique to investigate molecular dynamics and structure of systems having a wide range of applications such as environment, biology, and food. Besides a considerable amount of literature about modeling and application of such technique in specific areas, an algorithmic approach to the related parameter identification problem is still lacking. We believe that a robust algorithmic approach will allow a unified treatment of different samples in several application areas. In this paper, we model the parameters identification problem as a constrained $L_1$-regularized non-linear least squares problem. Following the approach proposed in [Analytical Chemistry 2021 93 (24)], the non-linear least squares term imposes data consistency by decomposing the acquired relaxation profiles into relaxation contributions associated with 1H-1H and 1H-14N dipole-dipole interactions. The data fitting and the L1-based regularization terms are balanced by the so-called regularization parameter. For the parameters identification, we propose an algorithm that computes, at each iteration, both the regularization parameter and the model parameters. In particular, the regularization parameter value is updated according to a Balancing Principle and the model parameters values are obtained by solving the corresponding $L_1$-regularized non-linear least squares problem by means of the non-linear Gauss-Seidel method. We analyse the convergence properties of the proposed algorithm and run extensive testing on synthetic and real data. A Matlab software, implementing the presented algorithm, is available upon request to the authors.

Accurate and efficient analysis of materials properties from Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) relaxation data requires robust and efficient inversion procedures. Despite the great variety of applications requiring to process two-dimensional NMR data (2DNMR), a few software tools are freely available. The aim of this paper is to present MUPen2DTool, an open-source MATLAB based software tool for 2DNMR data inversion. The user can choose among several types of NMR experiments, and the software provides codes that can be used and extended easily. Furthermore, a MATLAB interface makes it easier to include users own data. The practical use is demonstrated in the reported examples of both synthetic and real NMR data.

Selecting an appropriate statistical model to forecast exchange rates is still today a relevant issue for policymakers and central bankers. The so-called Meese and Rogoff puzzle assesses that exchange rate fluctuations are unpredictable. In the literature, a lot of studies tried to solve the puzzle finding alternative predictors and statistical models based on temporal aggregation. In this paper, we propose an approach based on mixed frequency models to overcome the lack of information caused by temporal aggregation. We show the effectiveness of our approach in comparison with other proposed methods by performing CAD/USD exchange rate predictions.

We are interested in the restoration of noisy and blurry images where the texture mainly follows a single direction (i.e., directional images). Problems of this type arise, for example, in microscopy or computed tomography for carbon or glass fibres. In order to deal with these problems, the Directional Total Generalized Variation (DTGV) was developed by Kongskov et al. in 2017 and 2019, in the case of impulse and Gaussian noise. In this article we focus on images corrupted by Poisson noise, extending the DTGV regularization to image restoration models where the data fitting term is the generalized Kullback-Leibler divergence. We also propose a technique for the identification of the main texture direction, which improves upon the techniques used in the aforementioned work about DTGV. We solve the problem by an ADMM algorithm with proven convergence and subproblems that can be solved exactly at a low computational cost. Numerical results on both phantom and real images demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach., Comment: 20 pages, 1 table, 13 figures

The problem of restoring images corrupted by Poisson noise is common in many application fields and, because of its intrinsic ill posedness, it requires regularization techniques for its solution. The effectiveness of such techniques depends on the value of the regularization parameter balancing data fidelity and regularity of the solution. Here we consider the Total Generalized Variation regularization introduced in [SIAM J. Imag. Sci, 3(3), 492-526, 2010], which has demonstrated its ability of preserving sharp features as well as smooth transition variations, and introduce an automatic strategy for defining the value of the regularization parameter. We solve the corresponding optimization problem by using a 3-block version of ADMM. Preliminary numerical experiments support the proposed approach., Comment: 7 pages, 1 table, 3 figures

We consider an urn model with multiple drawing and random time-dependent addition matrix. The model is very general with respect to previous literature: the number of sampled balls at each time-step is random, the addition matrix has general random entries. For the proportion of balls of a given color, we prove almost sure convergence results and fluctuation theorems (through CLTs in the sense of stable convergence and of almost sure conditional convergence, which are stronger than convergence in distribution). Asymptotic confidence intervals are given for the limit proportion, whose distribution is generally unknown.

'Rich get richer' rule comforts previously often chosen actions. What is happening to the evolution of individual inclinations to choose an action when agents do interact ? Interaction tends to homogenize while each individual dynamics tends to reinforce its own position. Interacting stochastic systems of reinforced processes were recently considered in many papers, where the asymptotic behavior was proven to exhibit a.s. synchronization. We consider in this paper models where, even if interaction among agents is present, absence of synchronization may happen due to the choice of an individual non-linear reinforcement. We show how these systems can naturally be considered as models for coordination games, technological or opinion dynamics.

We study a model of binary decisions in a fully connected network of interacting agents. Individual decisions are determined by social influence, coming from direct interactions with neighbours, and a group level pressure that accounts for social environment. In a competitive environment, the interplay of these two aspects results in the presence of a persistent disordered phase where no majority is formed. We sow how the introduction of a delay mechanism in the agent's detection of the global average choice may drastically change this scenario, giving rise to a coordinated self sustained periodic behaviour., Comment: 19 pages, 12 figures

A crucial issue in two-dimensional Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) is the speed and accuracy of the data inversion. This paper proposes a multi-penalty method with locally adapted regularization parameters for fast and accurate inversion of 2DNMR data. The method solves an unconstrained optimization problem whose objective contains a data-fitting term, a single $L1$ penalty parameter and a multiple parameter $L2$ penalty. We propose an adaptation of the Fast Iterative Shrinkage and Thresholding (FISTA) method to solve the multi-penalty minimization problem, and an automatic procedure to compute all the penalty parameters. This procedure generalizes the Uniform Penalty principle introduced in [Bortolotti et al., \emph{Inverse Problems}, 33(1), 2016]. The proposed approach allows us to obtain accurate relaxation time distributions while keeping short the computation time. Results of numerical experiments on synthetic and real data prove that the proposed method is efficient and effective in reconstructing the peaks and the flat regions that usually characterize NMR relaxation time distributions.

Sentiment Analysis (SA) refers to a family of techniques at the crossroads of statistics, natural language processing, and computational linguistics. The primary goal is to detect the semantic orientation of individual opinions and comments expressed in written texts. There are several practical applications of SA in several domains. In an educational context, the use of this approach allows processing students' feedback, aiming at monitoring the teaching effectiveness of instructors and enhancing the learning experience. This paper wants to review the different R packages that can be used to carry on SA, comparing the implemented methods, discussing their characteristics, and showing how they perform by considering a simple example.

Despite its undisputed position as the biggest social media platform, Facebook has never entered the main stage of altmetrics research. In this study, we argue that the lack of attention by altmetrics researchers is due, in part, to the challenges in collecting Facebook data regarding activity that takes place outside of public pages and groups. We present a new method of collecting aggregate counts of shares, reactions, and comments across the platform-including users' personal timelines-and use it to gather data for all articles published between 2015 to 2017 in the journal PLOS ONE. We compare the gathered data with altmetrics collected and aggregated by Altmetric. The results show that 58.7% of papers shared on Facebook happen outside of public spaces and that, when collecting all shares, the volume of activity approximates patterns of engagement previously only observed for Twitter. Both results suggest that the role and impact of Facebook as a medium for science and scholarly communication has been underestimated. Furthermore, they emphasise the importance of openness and transparency around the collection and aggregation of altmetrics., Comment: 27 pages, 9 figures

Low mass x-ray binaries (LMXBs), with either a neutron star (NS) or a black hole, show in their power spectra quasiperiodic oscillations (QPOs). Those at highest frequencies show up in pairs and are named twin peak high frequency QPOs (HF QPOs). Their central frequencies are typical of the orbital motion timescale close to the compact object. HF QPOs are believed to carry unique information on the matter moving in the extreme gravitational field around the compact object. In previous works we highlighted the work done by strong tides on clumps of plasma orbiting in the accretion disk as suitable mechanism to produce the HF QPOs. We showed that the upper of the twin peak HF QPOs seen in NS LMXBs could originate from the tidal circularization of the clump's relativistic orbit, while the lower HF QPO could come from the spiraling clump losing orbital energy. Here we focus on the tidal deformation of a magnetized clump of plasma once tides load energy on it. The likely evolution of the shape of the clump after tidal circularization of the orbit and its subsequent orbital evolution are investigated. In atoll NS LMXBs, a subclass of NS LMXBs less luminous than Z NS LMXBs, the lower HF QPO displays a characteristic behavior of its coherence $Q$ versus its central frequency $\nu$. $Q$ keeps increasing over the range of frequencies $\nu\sim$ 600-850 Hz and then drops abruptly at $\nu\sim$ 900 Hz. We note, for the first time, that such behavior is reproduced by magnetized clumps of plasma stretched by strong tides and falling onto the NS on unstable orbits. We emphasize the overall behavior of the lower HF QPO coherence as candidate to disclose the innermost stable bound orbit predicted by the general relativity theory in the strong field regime., Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review D

We propose a method, called ACQUIRE, for the solution of constrained optimization problems modeling the restoration of images corrupted by Poisson noise. The objective function is the sum of a generalized Kullback-Leibler divergence term and a TV regularizer, subject to nonnegativity and possibly other constraints, such as flux conservation. ACQUIRE is a line-search method that considers a smoothed version of TV, based on a Huber-like function, and computes the search directions by minimizing quadratic approximations of the problem, built by exploiting some second-order information. A classical second-order Taylor approximation is used for the Kullback-Leibler term and an iteratively reweighted norm approach for the smoothed TV term. We prove that the sequence generated by the method has a subsequence converging to a minimizer of the smoothed problem and any limit point is a minimizer. Furthermore, if the problem is strictly convex, the whole sequence is convergent. We note that convergence is achieved without requiring the exact minimization of the quadratic subproblems; low accuracy in this minimization can be used in practice, as shown by numerical results. Experiments on reference test problems show that our method is competitive with well-established methods for TV-based Poisson image restoration, in terms of both computational efficiency and image quality., Comment: 37 pages, 13 figures

High frequency quasiperiodic oscillations (HF QPOs) detected in the power spectra of low mass x-ray binaries (LMXBs) could unveil the fingerprints of gravitation in strong field regime. Using the energy-momentum relation we calculate the energy a clump of plasma orbiting in the accretion disk releases during circularization of its slightly eccentric relativistic orbit. Following previous works, we highlight the strong tidal force as mechanism to dissipate such energy. We show that tides acting on the clump are able to reproduce the observed coherence of the upper HF QPO seen in LMXBs with a neutron star (NS). The quantity of energy released by the clump and relativistic boosting might give a modulation amplitude in agreement with that observed in the upper HF QPO. Both the amplitude and coherence of the upper HF QPO in NS LMXBs could allow us to disclose, for the first time, the tidal circularization of relativistic orbits occurring around a neutron star., Comment: 13 pages, 5 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review D

This paper presents a real time control strategy for energy storage systems integration in electric vehicles fast charging applications combined with generation from intermittent renewable energy sources. A two steps approach taking advantage of the model predictive control methodology is designed on purpose to optimally allocate the reference charging power while managing the priority among the plugged vehicles and then control the storage for efficiently sustaining the charging process. Two different use cases are considered: in the former the charging area is disconnected from the grid, so that the objective is to minimize the deviation of electric vehicles charging power from the nominal value; in the latter the focus is on the point of connection to the grid and the need of mitigating the related power flow. In both cases the fundamental requirement for feasible control system operation is to guarantee stability of the storage's state of charge over the time. Simulation results are provided and discussed in detail, showing the effectiveness of the proposed approach., Comment: 6 pages

We obtain Central Limit Theorems in Functional form for a class of time-inhomogeneous interacting random walks on the simplex of probability measures over a finite set. Due to a reinforcement mechanism, the increments of the walks are correlated, forcing their convergence to the same, possibly random, limit. Random walks of this form have been introduced in the context of urn models and in stochastic approximation. We also propose an application to opinion dynamics in a random network evolving via preferential attachment. We study, in particular, random walks interacting through a mean-field rule and compare the rate they converge to their limit with the rate of synchronization, i.e. the rate at which their mutual distances converge to zero. Under certain conditions, synchronization is faster than convergence., Comment: 28 pages, submitted

The twin-peak high-frequency quasi-periodic oscillations (HF QPOs), observed in the power spectra of low-mass X-ray binaries, might carry relevant clues about the physics laws reigning close to a compact object. Their frequencies are typical of the orbital motion time-scales a few gravitational radii away from the compact object. The aim of the manuscript is to propose an intuitive model explaining that the energy carried by the lower HF QPO can be related to differences of potential energy released by clumps of plasma spiraling in a curved space-time. Our model provides estimates on both the size of clumps of matter that can survive to the strong tidal force and energy loaded by tides on the clump. We also have obtained some constraints on the mechanical properties of the plasma orbiting into the accretion disk. We note that the systematic behavior of the emitted energy as function of the central frequency of the lower HF QPO, observed in several sources with a neutron star, might give clues related to an innermost stable bound orbit predicted by the General Relativity theory in strong field regime., Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures. Accepted for publication in Physical Review D

We present the results of a spectroscopic follow-up of various puzzling variable objects detected in the OGLE-III Galactic disk and bulge fields. The sample includes mainly short-period multi-mode pulsating stars that could not have been unambiguously classified as either delta Sct or beta Cep type stars based on photometric data only, also stars with irregular fluctuations mimicking cataclysmic variables and stars with dusty shells, and periodic variables displaying brightenings in their light curves that last for more than half of the period. The obtained low-resolution spectra show that all observed short-period pulsators are of delta Sct type, the stars with irregular fluctuations are young stellar objects, and the objects with regular brightenings are A type stars or very likely Ap stars with strong magnetic field responsible for the presence of bright caps around magnetic poles on their surface. We also took spectra of objects designated OGLE-GD-DSCT-0058 and OGLE-GD-CEP-0013. An estimated effective temperature of 33,000 K in OGLE-GD-DSCT-0058 indicates that it cannot be a delta Sct type variable. This very short-period (0.01962 d) high-amplitude (0.24 mag in the I-band) object remains a mystery. It may represent a new class of variable stars. The spectrum of OGLE-GD-CEP-0013 confirms that this is a classical Cepheid despite a peculiar shape of its light curve. The presented results will help in proper classification of variable objects in the OGLE Galactic Variability Survey., Comment: published in Acta Astronomica

We consider a model of N two-colors urns in which the reinforcement of each urn depends also on the content of all the other urns. This interaction is of mean-field type and it is tuned by a parameter $\alpha$ in [0,1]; in particular, for $\alpha=0$ the N urns behave as N independent Polya's urns. As shown in [9], for $\alpha>0$ urns synchronize, in the sense that the fraction of balls of a given color converges a.s. to the same (random) limit in all urns. In this paper we study fluctuations around this synchronized regime. The scaling of these fluctuations depends on the parameter $\alpha$. In particular the standard scaling $t^{-1/2}$ appears only for $\alpha>1/2$. For $\alpha\geq 1/2$ we also determine the limit distribution of the rescaled fluctuations. We use the notion of stable convergence, which is stronger than convergence in distribution., Comment: Second version, 16 pages, submitted

Stochastic monotonicity is a well known partial order relation between probability measures defined on the same partially ordered set. Strassen Theorem establishes equivalence between stochastic monotonicity and the existence of a coupling compatible with respect to the partial order. We consider the case of a countable set and introduce the class of \emph{finitely decomposable flows} on a directed acyclic graph associated to the partial order. We show that a probability measure stochastically dominates another probability measure if and only if there exists a finitely decomposable flow having divergence given by the difference of the two measures. We illustrate the result with some examples. In fluid theory the Lagrangian description follows the trajectories of the particles while the Eulerian one observes the local flow. A coupling gives a Lagrangian description of the transference plan of mass while a flow gives an Eulerian one, Comment: Title still changed; same material reorganized

Twin peak high frequency quasi-periodic oscillations (HF QPOs) observed in the power spectra of Low Mass X-ray Binaries (LMXBs), with either a black hole or a neutron star, have central frequencies that are typical of the orbital motion time-scale close to the compact object. Thus, twin HF QPOs might carry the fingerprint of physical effects in a strongly curved space-time. We study the azimuth phase \phi(t) for orbital motion in the Schwarzschild metric and calculate the power spectra to check whether they display the features seen in the observed ones. We show that the timing of \phi(t) on non-closed orbits can account for the observed twin peak HF QPOs. The uppermost couple of peaks in frequency has the lower peak that corresponds to the azimuthal frequency \nu_{\phi}, the upper one to \nu_{\phi}+\nu_r. The azimuth phase temporal behavior \phi(t) on a slightly eccentric orbit in the Schwarzschild metric is described by a linear function of slope \nu_{\phi} plus an oscillating term at the relativistic radial frequency \nu_r. We deduce that the twin peak HF QPOs might originate from a frequency modulated (FM) signal driven by the kinematics of orbital motion in a curved space-time., Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. Accepted for publication in MNRAS Letters

We observed the Crab pulsar in October 2008 at the Copernico Telescope in Asiago - Cima Ekar with the optical photon counter Aqueye (the Asiago Quantum Eye) which has the best temporal resolution and accuracy ever achieved in the optical domain (hundreds of picoseconds). Our goal was to perform a detailed analysis of the optical period and phase drift of the main peak of the Crab pulsar and compare it with the Jodrell Bank ephemerides. We determined the position of the main peak using the steepest zero of the cross-correlation function between the pulsar signal and an accurate optical template. The pulsar rotational period and period derivative have been measured with great accuracy using observations covering only a 2 day time interval. The error on the period is 1.7 ps, limited only by the statistical uncertainty. Both the rotational frequency and its first derivative are in agreement with those from the Jodrell Bank radio ephemerides archive. We also found evidence of the optical peak leading the radio one by ~230 microseconds. The distribution of phase-residuals of the whole dataset is slightly wider than that of a synthetic signal generated as a sequence of pulses distributed in time with the probability proportional to the pulse shape, such as the average count rate and background level are those of the Crab pulsar observed with Aqueye. The counting statistics and quality of the data allowed us to determine the pulsar period and period derivative with great accuracy in 2 days only. The time of arrival of the optical peak of the Crab pulsar leads the radio one in agreement with what recently reported in the literature. The distribution of the phase residuals can be approximated with a Gaussian and is consistent with being completely caused by photon noise (for the best data sets)., Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics

Tidal effects on clumps of material during random non-stationary accretion onto a black hole produce phenomena with distinct temporal characteristics in observed light-curves. During such non-stationary accretion events, the shape of the accreting object evolves in time, and observable quasi-periodic phenomena with variable quasi-periods are produced. A number of characteristic light-curves, obtained with numerical simulations, will be shown. Their relevance to observed phenomena will be briefly discussed., Comment: 3 pages, 8 figures

CIEMAT has been working on the RF power extractor so-called PETS (Power Extraction and Transfer Structure) for the CLIC Test Facility 3 (CTF3) since 2007. The first contribution has been installed at the Test Beam Line (TBL). Additionally, a new PETS configuration is presently under fabrication at CIEMAT and will be installed in the Test Module at CTF3. This paper describes the PETS prototypes design, fabrication and assembly techniques. The characterization of the devices with low RF power is also described., Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables, 10 references. Work presented in the LCWS11

Recent results from the OPERA experiment reported a neutrino beam traveling faster than light. The experiment measured the neutrino time of flight (TOF) over a baseline from the CERN to the Gran Sasso site. The neutrino beam arrives 60 ns earlier than a light ray would do. Because the result has an enormous impact on science, it might be worth double-checking the time definitions with respect to the non-inertial system in which the neutrino travel time was measured. Potential problems in the OPERA data analysis connected with the definition of the reference frame and time synchronization are emphasized. We aim to investigate the synchronization of non-inertial clocks on Earth by relating this time to the proper time of an inertial observer at Solar System Barycenter(SSB). The Tempo2 software was used to time-stamp events observed on the geoid with respect to the SSB inertial observer time. Neutrino results from OPERA might carry the fingerprint of non-inertial effects. The CERN-Gran Sasso clock synchronization is accomplished by applying corrections that depend on special and general relativistic time dilation effects at the clocks, depending on the position of the clocks in the solar system gravitational well. As a consequence, TOF distributions are centered on values shorter by tens of ns than expected, integrating over a period from April to December, longer if otherwise. It is worth remarking that the OPERA runs have always been carried out from April/May to November. If the analysis by Tempo2 holds for the OPERA experiment, the excellent measurement by the OPERA collaboration will turn into a proof of the General Relativity theory in a weak field approximation. The analysis presented here is falsifiable because it predicts that performing the experiment from January to March/April, the neutrino beam will be detected to arrive 50 ns later than light., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters

We are developing fast photon-counter instruments to study the rapid variability of astrophysical sources by time tagging photon arrival times with unprecedented accuracy, making use of a Rubidium clock and GPS receiver. The first realization of such optical photon-counters, dubbed Aqueye (the Asiago Quantum Eye), was mounted in 2008 at the 182cm Copernicus Observatory in Asiago. Aqueye observed the Crab pulsar several times and collected data of extraordinary quality that allowed us to perform accurate optical timing of the Crab pulsar and to study the pulse shape stability on a timescale from days to years with an excellent definition. Our results reinforce the evidence for decadal stability of the inclination angle between the spin and magnetic axis of the Crab pulsar. Future realizations of our instrument will make use of the Galileo Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) time signal., Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures. To appear in Advances in Space Research, volume 47(2) - January 15, 2011; first volume of the Galileo Special Issue "Scientific applications of Galileo and other Global Navigation Satellite Systems"

This paper reports a detailed analysis of the optical light curve of PSR B0540-69, the second brightest pulsar in the visible band, obtained in 2009 (Jan. 18 and 20, and Dec. 14, 15, 16, 18) with the very high speed photon counting photometer Iqueye mounted at the ESO 3.6-m NTT in La Silla (Chile). The optical light curve derived by Iqueye shows a double structure in the main peak, with a raising edge steeper than the trailing edge. The double peak can be fitted by two Gaussians with the same height and FWHM of 13.3 and 15.5 ms respectively. Our new values of spin frequencies allow to extend by 3.5 years the time interval over which a reliable estimate of frequency first and second derivatives can be performed. A discussion of implications on the braking index and age of the pulsar is carried out. A value of n = 2.087 +/- 0.007 for the overall braking index from 1987 to 2009 is derived. The braking index corrected age is confirmed around 1700 years., Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS

Low Mass X-ray Binaries (LMXBs) with either a black hole or a neutron star show power spectra characterised by Quasi Periodic Oscillations (QPOs). Twin peak high frequency QPOs are characterised by frequencies that are typical for matter orbiting within 10 r_g from the compact object. We consider clumps of material orbiting a Schwarzschild black hole, that are deformed by tidal interaction. We present some preliminary calculations of corresponding light curves and power spectra. We were able to fit the simulated power spectra with the high frequency part of the power spectra observed in the LMXB XTE J1550-564 containing a black hole. Our numerical simulations reproduce the twin high frequency QPOs and the power-law. The lower peak corresponds to the Keplerian frequency, the upper one to the sum of the Keplerian and the radial frequency., Comment: 3 pages, 3 figures, to appear in the proceedings of the Symposium Simbol-X 2008 "Focusing on the hard X-ray universe"

Natural laser emission may be produced whenever suitable atomic energy levels become overpopulated. Strong evidence for laser emission exists in astronomical sources such as Eta Carinae, and other luminous stars. However, the evidence is indirect in that the laser lines have not yet been spectrally resolved. The lines are theoretically estimated to be extremely narrow, requiring spectral resolutions very much higher (R approx.= 10**8) than possible with ordinary spectroscopy. Such can be attained with photon-correlation spectroscopy on nanosecond timescales, measuring the autocorrelation function of photon arrival times to obtain the coherence time of light, and thus the spectral linewidth. A particular advantage is the insensitivity to spectral, spatial, and temporal shifts of emission-line components due to local velocities and probable variability of 'hot-spots' in the source. A laboratory experiment has been set up, simulating telescopic observations of cosmic laser emission. Numerically simulated observations estimate how laser emission components within realistic spectral and spatial passbands for various candidate sources carry over to observable statistical functions., Comment: Paper presented at the conference 'High Time Resolution Astrophysics', held in Edinburgh, Scotland, September 2007. To appear in D.Phelan, O.Ryan & A.Shearer, eds.,'The Universe at sub-second timescales', AIP Conf.Proc., in press, 2008 (American Institute of Physics, http://www.aip.org/proceedings). 9 pages, 3 figures, 36 references

We use the results of a high resolution N-body simulation to investigate the role of the environment on the formation and evolution of galaxy-sized halos. Starting from a set of constrained initial conditions, we have produced a final configuration hosting a double cluster in one octant and a large void extending over two octants of the simulation box. We present results for two statistics: the relationship between 1-D velocity dispersion and mass and the probability distribution of the spin parameter $P(\lambda)$. The \svm relationship is well reproduced by the Truncated Isothermal Sphere (TIS) model introduced by Shapiro et al. (1999), although the slope is different from the original prediction. A series of \svm relationships for different values of the anisotropy parameter $\beta$, obtained using the theoretical predictions by Lokas and Mamon (2001) for NFW density profiles are found to be only marginally consistent with the data. Using some properties of the equilibrium TIS models, we construct subsamples of {\em fiducial} equilibrium TIS halos from each of the three subregions, and we study their properties. For these halos, we do find an environmental dependence of their properties, in particular of the spin parameter distribution $P(\lambda)$. We study in more detail the TIS model, and we find new relationships between the truncation radius and other structural parameters. No gravitationally bound halo is found having a radius larger than the critical value for gravithermal instability for TIS halos (\rt $\ge 34.2 r_{0}$, where $r_{0}$ is the core radius of the TIS solution). We do however find a dependence of this relationship on the environment, like for the $P(\lambda)$ statistics. These facts hint at a possible r\^{o}le of tidal fields at determining the statistical properties of halos., Comment: 12 pages, 14 figures. Accepted by MNRAS. Adopted an improved algorithm for halo finding and added a comparison with NFW models