US-Egypt International Workshop on Frontiers in High Energy Astrophysics: From Neutron Stars to Gamma-ray Bursts, Alexandria, Egypt August 24-30, 2008

这个项目是为2008年8月24日至30日在埃及亚历山大举行的名为“从中子星到伽马射线暴的高能天体物理学前沿美埃研讨会”的美国-埃及研讨会准备的。美国的组织者是哈佛大学天文系的Jonathan Grindlay博士。埃及的联合组织者是埃及开罗大学的阿拉·易卜拉欣博士。研讨会将汇集来自美国、中东、北非和邻近地中海国家的天体物理学家，讨论中子星和伽马射线暴领域的新发展，向初级研究人员和学生介绍新的研究趋势和成果，并启动美国和地区科学家之间共同感兴趣的合作项目。研讨会将提供一个平台，就中子星（NSs）和伽马射线暴（GRBs）的前沿话题举办一系列特邀讲座，并为年轻研究人员提供机会，与资深科学家介绍和讨论他们的工作，以促进思想交流。主要讨论的主题包括：中子星结构、自旋和磁场演化，从各种天体物理设置的NSs推断；短grb中的NS合并；ns -黑洞界面和吸积系统与喷流系统的区别；以及理解伽马射线暴，使它们能够作为高z宇宙的探测器。首要的目标是将NS和GRB社区的高级和初级成员聚集在一起，共同讨论和互动，以促进新的理解，并发展高能天体物理学的合作研究和教育计划。智力优势：中子星是最奇特的天体物理形式的物质，而伽马射线爆发是最具能量的单一事件，可以直接研究。它们都是高能天体物理学研究在理论和观测方面正在经历重大发展和扩展的主要例子。美国国家科学院在其报告《新千年的天体物理学》（2001年）和《将夸克与宇宙联系起来：新世纪的11个科学问题》（2003年）中承认了天体物理学的前沿。讲习班方案将涉及许多这些核心问题，因为它们将为下一个十年进一步确定。讲习班对初级研究人员特别有用。更广泛的影响：讲习班将扩大该地区普遍代表性不足的科学家参与和参与的深度和广度。它还将促进少数民族、妇女、研究生和青年科学家（来自美国和该地区）的参与，以促进与高级研究人员正在进行和未来的合作。这些会谈将以数字方式录象，并制成DVD，与AIP出版的论文集一起单独分发给区域和美国的大学和研究机构。讲习班网站将提供一个在线版本，供更广泛的受众使用。此外，由于天体物理学研究中先进的信息技术工具在工程、商业和金融等许多其他领域也变得越来越重要，这次国际讲习班将通过提高区域国家的科学形象而产生附带效应。6名美国青年科学家和3名美国研究生将被支持参加本次研讨会。该项目得到了美国-埃及联合基金项目的支持，该项目向两国的科学家和工程师提供赠款，以开展这些合作活动。

0827133GrindlayThis project is for a U.S.-Egypt Workshop entitled "US-Egypt Workshop on Frontiers in High Energy Astrophysics from Neutron Stars to Gamma-ray Bursts" to be held in Alexandria, Egypt, August 24-30, 2008. The U.S organizer is Dr. Jonathan Grindlay, Department of Astronomy, Harvard University. The Egyptian co-organizer is Dr. Alaa Ibrahim, Cairo University, Egypt. The Workshop will bring together astrophysicists from the US, Middle East, North Africa, and neighboring Mediterranean countries to meet and discuss the new developments in the neutron star and gamma-ray burst fields, to expose and retrain junior researchers and students on new research trends and results, and to initiate collaborative projects of mutual interest between US and regional scientists. The workshop will serve as a platform to conduct a set of invited lectures on frontier topics on Neutron Stars (NSs) and Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs) and will also provide an opportunity for young researchers to present and discuss their work with senior scientists in order to foster exchange of ideas. Key topics to be discussed include: neutron star structure, spin and magnetic field evolution as deduced from NSs in a variety of astrophysical settings; NS mergers in short GRBs; the NS-black hole interface and distinctions as revealed by accretion vs. jet dominated systems; and understanding GRBs to enable their use as probes of the high-z Universe. The over-arching goal is to bring together senior and junior members of the NS and GRB communities for joint discussion and interactions to facilitate new understanding and to develop collaborative research and education programs in high energy astrophysics. Intellectual Merit: Neutron stars are the most exotic astrophysical forms of matter, and Gamma-ray bursts the most energetic single events, that can be directly studied. They are both prime examples of how research in high energy astrophysics is undergoing significant development and expansion, both on the theoretical and observational fronts. The National Academy of Sciences has recognized the frontiers in astrophysics in its reports Astrophysics in the New Millennium (2001) and Connecting Quarks with the Cosmos: Eleven Science Questions for the New Century (2003). The Workshop program will relate to many of these central questions as they are further defined for the coming Decade. The Workshop will be of particular usefulness to junior researchers. Broader Impact: The Workshop will broaden the depth and breadth of the participation and involvement of scientists from the region who are generally under-represented. It will also promote the participation of minorities, women, and graduate students, and junior scientists (from the US & the region) to facilitate ongoing and future collaboration with senior researchers. The talks will be digitally video-taped and made available on a DVD to be distributed separately with the published (by AIP) proceedings to regional and US universities and research institutions. An online version will be made available from the Workshop website for a broader audience. Furthermore, since the advanced IT tools in astrophysics research are becoming increasingly important also in many other fields, e.g., engineering, business, and finance, this international workshop will have spin-off effects by enhancing the scientific profile of the regional countries. Six junior U.S. scientists and 3 U.S. graduate students will be supported for participating in this workshop. This project is being supported under the US-Egypt Joint Fund Program, which provides grants to scientists and engineers in both countries to carry out these cooperative activities.