Cross Disciplinary Feasibility Account: Warwick Centre for Fusion Space and Astrophysics.
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Warwick
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
A central idea that we wish to pursue is the dynamic response of real world complex systems to 'shock or surprise'. Both the brain and financial systems (meaning markets, individual companies or sectors), are functionally comprised of many interacting elements which propagate and process information. A highly topical question is whether it is possible to quantify from available data when the response of a system to a 'shock' will be within normal bounds (normal response time to a neurological test task, a fluctuation in price) or will be highly correlated and catastrophic (a seizure, a stock market crash or company failure). Understanding this would lead to paradigm shifting insights into both brain function and financial system dynamics. Researchers within Warwick's interdisciplinary EPSRC and STFC funded Centre for Fusion, Space and Astrophysics (CFSA) have pioneered techniques to analyse 'real world' data from laboratory experiments for Magnetic Confinement Fusion and from astrophysical plasmas. These plasma systems can exhibit rather unpredictable 'bursty' behaviour and can self organise, that is, show large scale transitions from disordered to highly ordered, correlated behaviour. We propose to apply these ideas to focus on two cross-disciplinary 'grand challenges': brain function, and market dynamics, as captured by Magnetoencephalography (MEG) measurements of the brain, and by financial and other company data. This implies a high degree of cross- disciplinary working, between plasma physicists within CFSA, Warwick, neurologists within the MRC Cognition & Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge, and strategists within the Warwick Business School.In the framework of the physical sciences there is a direct and well understood mapping between quantifying such systems and modelling them. An open question that we will address is how such a mapping can be rigorously and usefully applied in the wider context. By building bridges between traditionally segregated disciplines (neuroscience, econometrics and plasma physics) we can tackle substantive interdisciplinary questions, for example, in what sense is a market crash like an epileptic seizure in the brain? Addressing such questions in a quantitative and predictive manner has the potential for far reaching impact in both clinical neuroscience and econometrics. This radical approach will enable physical models to be extended beyond their now mature application to contribute, and perhaps create, a far broader interface with the wider social sciences.
Planned Impact
The nature of the work being undertaken is highly speculative but has potential for far reaching impact. Clearly, any advance in our understanding of the response of financial markets and systems to 'shocks', or a diagnostic of neurological health based on non-invasive MEG technology will have the potential to make significant contributions to EPSRC's priority themes of security of energy supply and living with environmental change, and next generation healthcare. Who will benefit from the research and how will they benefit from this research? Development of new quantitative tools to assess how brain systems process information in healthy and disordered states will be of considerable interest to clinical neuroscience and psychiatry. Ultimately, quantitative insights into how MEG data relate to human brain function would lead to methods to diagnose cognitive function and disorders, with particular application to epilepsy and schizophrenia. The economic and social costs of brain disorders associated with impaired cognitive function and poor occupational performance are substantial. The annual costs of schizophrenia alone are estimated to be in the order of 7bn annually in the UK, of which about 2bn is due to direct healthcare costs. In tackling these disorders therapeutically, a key objective is to develop better models for how distributed brain systems normally process information and how pathological disruption of these systems can lead to impairment. The development of quantitative approaches to MEG that we propose would ensure that full scientific value is obtained from the major recent investments in neuroimaging infrastructure and it will potentially provide new diagnostic and predictive biomarkers of cognitive impairment that could be used to improve patient care and to support development of new pro-cognitive drugs. The importance of the proposed research from this perspective is that it includes data on well-established cognitive testing paradigms in healthy volunteers and people with schizophrenia. This means that the results will be immediately of interest to academic and industrial neuroscientists with potential for major impact on how cognitive disorders are understood theoretically and approached therapeutically. Quantifying the likely impact of news or events on markets and companies again has clear application to their monitoring and management. The current instability has cost some 475bn globally according to the IMF. Clearly any successful mitigation techniques would be valuable to business strategists and organisations from single investors to Governments (eg Risk Analysts, Company Director mentors, Financial strategists and Central Banks). There is also potentially a significant feedback to plasma physics based challenges in particular space weather applications and to understanding enhanced confinement modes of MCF with relevance to ITER operating regimes. What will be done to ensure that they benefit from this research? Cognitive researchers are typically also practicing clinicians, and business strategists in academia work closely with companies. Results and ideas flowing from this research would therefore quickly flow into potential applications where appropriate. We will also present and promote our results more formally at workshops open to practicing clinicians and to practicing business strategists. We will engage the wider community and press where appropriate. Warwick Ventures have a strategy and procedure in place to effect licensing and dissemination to the wider business community. There is also direct benefit to the training of young researchers and enhancement of interdisciplinary activity. We will provide training and introduction to patents, licensing and spin- out companies to the researchers supported on this grant.
Organisations
Publications
Hornsby W
(2011)
Interaction of turbulence with magnetic islands: effect on bootstrap current
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Mazzitelli G
(2011)
FTU results with a liquid lithium limiter
in Nuclear Fusion
Brady C
(2011)
An ion acceleration mechanism in laser illuminated targets with internal electron density structure
in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion
Foullon C
(2011)
MAGNETIC KELVIN-HELMHOLTZ INSTABILITY AT THE SUN
in The Astrophysical Journal
Botha G
(2011)
CHROMOSPHERIC RESONANCES ABOVE SUNSPOT UMBRAE
in The Astrophysical Journal
Cook J
(2011)
Wave-particle resonance and gyrobunching in the lower hybrid drift instability
in 38th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics 2011, EPS 2011 - Europhysics Conference Abstracts
Inglis A
(2011)
Instrumental oscillations in RHESSI count rates during solar flares
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Yuan D
(2011)
Leakage of long-period oscillations from the chromosphere to the corona
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Peeters A
(2011)
Overview of toroidal momentum transport
in Nuclear Fusion
Brizard A
(2011)
Exact momentum conservation laws for the gyrokinetic Vlasov-Poisson equations
in Physics of Plasmas
Chorley N
(2011)
Period persistence of long period oscillations in sunspots
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Terradas J
(2011)
Linear coupling between fast and slow MHD waves due to line-tying effects
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Lloyd B
(2011)
Overview of physics results from MAST
in Nuclear Fusion
Vértes PE
(2011)
Topological isomorphisms of human brain and financial market networks.
in Frontiers in systems neuroscience
Murawski K
(2011)
Entropy mode at a magnetic null point as a possible tool for indirect observation of nanoflares in the solar corona
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Antolin P
(2011)
TRANSVERSE OSCILLATIONS OF LOOPS WITH CORONAL RAIN OBSERVED BY HINODE /SOLAR OPTICAL TELESCOPE
in The Astrophysical Journal
Dura P
(2012)
Vorticity scaling and intermittency in drift-interchange plasma turbulence
in Physics of Plasmas
Kim S
(2012)
SLOW MAGNETOACOUSTIC OSCILLATIONS IN THE MICROWAVE EMISSION OF SOLAR FLARES
in The Astrophysical Journal
Watkins N
(2012)
Extreme Events and Natural Hazards: The Complexity Perspective
Brady CS
(2012)
Laser absorption in relativistically underdense plasmas by synchrotron radiation.
in Physical review letters
Dendy R
(2012)
Modelling local time evolution of strong heat pulses in magnetically confined plasmas
in 39th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics 2012, EPS 2012 and the 16th International Congress on Plasma Physics
Cook J
(2012)
Fully nonlinear kinetic simulations of fusion product-driven ion cyclotron emission from tokamak plasmas
in 39th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics 2012, EPS 2012 and the 16th International Congress on Plasma Physics
Osman KT
(2012)
Kinetic signatures and intermittent turbulence in the solar wind plasma.
in Physical review letters
Vasheghani Farahani S
(2012)
Nonlinear evolution of torsional Alfvén waves
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Ridgers CP
(2012)
Dense electron-positron plasmas and ultraintense ? rays from laser-irradiated solids.
in Physical review letters
Sych R
(2012)
Frequency drifts of 3-min oscillations in microwave and EUV emission above sunspots
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Crowley BJ
(2012)
Testing quantum mechanics in non-Minkowski space-time with high power lasers and 4(th) generation light sources.
in Scientific reports
Stepanov AV, Zaitsev VV, Nakariakov, VM
(2012)
Coronal Seismology: Waves and Oscillations in Stellar Coronae
Nakariakov V
(2012)
SAUSAGE OSCILLATIONS OF CORONAL PLASMA STRUCTURES
in The Astrophysical Journal
Nicol RM
(2012)
Fast reconfiguration of high-frequency brain networks in response to surprising changes in auditory input.
in Journal of neurophysiology
Turner AJ
(2012)
Nonaxisymmetric anisotropy of solar wind turbulence as a direct test for models of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence.
in Physical review letters
Yuan D
(2012)
Measuring the apparent phase speed of propagating EUV disturbances
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Gruszecki M
(2012)
Intensity variations associated with fast sausage modes
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
De Moortel I
(2012)
Magnetohydrodynamic waves and coronal seismology: an overview of recent results.
in Philosophical transactions. Series A, Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences
Reznikova V
(2012)
THREE-MINUTE OSCILLATIONS ABOVE SUNSPOT UMBRA OBSERVED WITH THE SOLAR DYNAMICS OBSERVATORY/ATMOSPHERIC IMAGING ASSEMBLY AND NOBEYAMA RADIOHELIOGRAPH
in The Astrophysical Journal
Vorberger J
(2012)
Dynamic ion structure factor of warm dense matter.
in Physical review letters
White R
(2012)
First observation of a transverse vertical oscillation during the formation of a hot post-flare loop
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Botha G
(2012)
Formation of magnetic flux tubes in cylindrical wedge geometry
in Geophysical & Astrophysical Fluid Dynamics
Srivastava A
(2013)
Simulation of the observed coronal kink instability and its implications for the SDO/AIA
in Advances in Space Research
Verwichte E
(2013)
CORONAL ALFVÉN SPEED DETERMINATION: CONSISTENCY BETWEEN SEISMOLOGY USING AIA/ SDO TRANSVERSE LOOP OSCILLATIONS AND MAGNETIC EXTRAPOLATION
in The Astrophysical Journal
Stainforth D
(2013)
Mapping climate change in European temperature distributions
in Environmental Research Letters
Zhu H
(2013)
Robustness of predator-prey models for confinement transitions in tokamak plasmas
in 40th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics, EPS 2013
Webster A
(2013)
The statistics of edge-localised plasma instabilities
in 40th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics, EPS 2013
Calderon F
(2013)
Low dimensional dynamics in type I ELMing in JET plasmas
in 40th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics, EPS 2013
Osman KT
(2013)
Proton kinetic effects and turbulent energy cascade rate in the solar wind.
in Physical review letters
Lai W
(2013)
Investigating the anomalous Doppler effect for suprathermal electrons in tokamak plasmas using self-consistent kinetic simulations
in 40th EPS Conference on Plasma Physics, EPS 2013
Verwichte E
(2013)
Statistical seismology of transverse waves in the solar corona
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
White R
(2013)
ANTI-PHASE SIGNATURE OF FLARE GENERATED TRANSVERSE LOOP OSCILLATIONS
in The Astrophysical Journal
Chapman SC
(2013)
On estimating local long-term climate trends.
in Philosophical transactions. Series A, Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences
Description | please see the relevant research papers |
Exploitation Route | please see the relevant research papers and grants |
Sectors | Aerospace, Defence and Marine,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Environment,Financial Services, and Management Consultancy,Healthcare |
Description | please see the relevant research papers |
First Year Of Impact | 2013 |
Sector | Energy,Environment,Financial Services, and Management Consultancy |
Impact Types | Economic |
Description | AFOSR |
Amount | $100,000 (USD) |
Funding ID | FA9550-17-1-0054 |
Organisation | Airforce Office of Scientific Research |
Sector | Public |
Country | United States |
Start | 03/2017 |
End | 03/2018 |
Description | Fulbright-Lloyd's of London Scholarship 2017/18 |
Amount | $60,000 (USD) |
Organisation | US-UK Fulbright Commission |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 10/2017 |
End | 09/2018 |
Description | NORKLIMA |
Amount | kr 900,000 (NOK) |
Organisation | Research Council of Norway |
Sector | Public |
Country | Norway |
Start | 01/2014 |
End | 01/2016 |
Description | Newton-CONICYT |
Amount | $1,438,000 (CLP) |
Organisation | Newton Fund |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2015 |
End | 10/2016 |