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1. THE BOUNDARY OF THE p -RANK STRATUM OF THE MODULI SPACE OF CYCLIC COVERS OF THE PROJECTIVE LINE

   https://doi.org/10.1017/nmj.2022.12  

   OZMAN, EKIN; PRIES, RACHEL; WEIR, COLIN (December 2022, Nagoya Mathematical Journal)

   Abstract. We study the p-rank stratification of the moduli space of cyclic degree ! covers of the projective line in characteristic p for distinct primes p and !. The main result is about the intersection of the p-rank 0 stratum with the boundary of the moduli space of curves. When ! = 3 and p ≡ 2 mod 3 is an odd prime, we prove that there exists a smooth trielliptic curve in characteristic p, for every genus g, signature type (r,s), and p-rank f satisfying the clear necessary conditions. 

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2. The Grayness of the Origin of Life

   https://doi.org/10.3390/life11060498  

   Smith, Hillary H.; Hyde, Andrew S.; Simkus, Danielle N.; Libby, Eric; Maurer, Sarah E.; Graham, Heather V.; Kempes, Christopher P.; Sherwood Lollar, Barbara; Chou, Luoth; Ellington, Andrew D.; et al (June 2021, Life)

   null (Ed.)

   In the search for life beyond Earth, distinguishing the living from the non-living is paramount. However, this distinction is often elusive, as the origin of life is likely a stepwise evolutionary process, not a singular event. Regardless of the favored origin of life model, an inherent “grayness” blurs the theorized threshold defining life. Here, we explore the ambiguities between the biotic and the abiotic at the origin of life. The role of grayness extends into later transitions as well. By recognizing the limitations posed by grayness, life detection researchers will be better able to develop methods sensitive to prebiotic chemical systems and life with alternative biochemistries. 

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3. The eigensplitting of the fiber of the cyclotomic trace for the sphere spectrum

   https://doi.org/10.1090/tran/8822  

   Blumberg, Andrew; Mandell, Michael (January 2022, Transactions of the American Mathematical Society)

   Let p ∈ Z p\in {\mathbb {Z}} be an odd prime. We show that the fiber sequence for the cyclotomic trace of the sphere spectrum S {\mathbb {S}} admits an “eigensplitting” that generalizes known splittings on K K -theory and T C TC . We identify the summands in the fiber as the covers of Z p {\mathbb {Z}}_{p} -Anderson duals of summands in the K ( 1 ) K(1) -localized algebraic K K -theory of Z {\mathbb {Z}} . Analogous results hold for the ring Z {\mathbb {Z}} where we prove that the K ( 1 ) K(1) -localized fiber sequence is self-dual for Z p {\mathbb {Z}}_{p} -Anderson duality, with the duality permuting the summands by i ↦ p − i i\mapsto p-i (indexed mod p − 1 p-1 ). We explain an intrinsic characterization of the summand we call Z Z in the splitting T C ( Z ) p ∧ ≃ j ∨ Σ j ′ ∨ Z TC({\mathbb {Z}})^{\wedge }_{p}\simeq j \vee \Sigma j’\vee Z in terms of units in the p p -cyclotomic tower of Q p {\mathbb {Q}}_{p} . 

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4. The Role of Dislocations in the Anelasticity of the Upper Mantle

   https://doi.org/10.1029/2025JB031674  

   Hein, Diede; Hansen, Lars N; Kumamoto, Kathryn M; Chen, Haiyan; Nehring, M Adaire; Goddard, Rellie M; Breithaupt, Thomas; Cross, Andrew J; Thom, Christopher A; Seyler, Caroline (October 2025, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth)

   Abstract Dislocation‐based dissipation mechanisms potentially control the viscoelastic response of Earth's upper mantle across a variety of geodynamic contexts, including glacial isostatic adjustment, postseismic creep, and seismic‐wave attenuation. However, there is no consensus on which dislocation‐based, microphysical process controls the viscoelastic behavior of the upper mantle. Although both intergranular (plastic anisotropy) and intragranular (backstress) mechanisms have been proposed, there is currently insufficient laboratory data to discriminate between those mechanisms. Here, we present the results of forced‐oscillation experiments in a deformation‐DIA apparatus at confining pressures of 3–7 GPa and temperatures of 298–1370 K. Our experiments tested the viscoelastic response of polycrystalline olivine—the main constituent of the upper mantle—at stress amplitudes from 70 to 2,800 MPa. Mechanical data are complemented by microstructural analyses of grain size, crystallographic preferred orientation, and dislocation density. We observe amplitude‐ and frequency‐dependent attenuation and modulus relaxation and find that numerical solutions of the backstress model match our results well. Therefore, we argue that interactions among dislocations, rather than intergranular processes (e.g., plastic anisotropy or grain boundary sliding), control the viscoelastic behavior of polycrystalline olivine in our experiments. In addition, we present a linearized version of the constitutive equations of the backstress model and extrapolate it to conditions typical of seismic‐wave propagation in the upper mantle. Our extrapolation demonstrates that the backstress model can explain the magnitude of seismic‐wave attenuation in the upper mantle, although some modification is required to explain the weak frequency dependence of attenuation observed in nature and in previous experimental work. 

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5. Seasonal Locking of the MJO’s Southward Detour of the Maritime Continent: The Role of the Australian Monsoon

   https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-22-0234.1  

   Kang, Daehyun; Kim, Daehyun; Rushley, Stephanie; Maloney, Eric (December 2022, Journal of Climate)

   Abstract This study investigates why the major convective envelope of the Madden–Julian oscillation (MJO) detours to the south of the Maritime Continent (MC) only during boreal winter [December–March (DJFM)]. To examine processes affecting this MJO detour, the MJO-related variance of precipitation and column-integrated moisture anomalies in DJFM are compared with those in the seasons before [October–November (ON)] and after [April–May (AM)]. While MJO precipitation variance is much higher in the southern MC (SMC) during DJFM than in other seasons, the MJO moisture variance is comparable among the seasons, implying that the seasonal locking of the MJO’s southward detour cannot be explained by the magnitude of moisture anomalies alone. The higher precipitation variance in the SMC region is partly explained by the much higher moisture sensitivity of precipitation in DJFM than in other seasons, resulting in a more efficient conversion of anomalous moisture to anomalous precipitation. DJFM is also distinguishable from the other seasons by stronger positive wind–evaporation feedback onto MJO precipitation anomalies due to the background westerly wind in the lower troposphere. It is found that the seasonal cycle of moisture–precipitation coupling and wind–evaporation feedback in the SMC region closely follows that of the Australian monsoon, which is active exclusively in DJFM. Our results suggest that the MJO’s southward detour in the MC is seasonally locked because it occurs preferentially when the Australian monsoon system produces a background state that is favorable for MJO development in the SMC. 

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