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We introduce a new feature matrix (FMx) to discriminate the acoustic signals with the help of their hybrid characteristics. The FMx has hybrid domain characteristics consisting of feature values such as distributional area (polygonal area), maximum values of the histogram and fundamental frequency of the difference-difference (d2d) vector. To show the performance of the FMx, three different datasets are used together with quadratic discriminant analysis (QDA), multiclass support vector machines (M-SVMs) and convolutional neural networks (CNN). The simulation results show that FMx provides effective and useful information for the discrimination of the signals into subclasses with the help of ReliefF and forward sequential algorithms. In simulations, the test accuracies with QDA, M-SVMs and CNN were obtained as 94.20%, 100% and 100% respectively. So, the results of the simulations support the effectiveness of the FMx for the acoustic signal classification with three different datasets compared to the previous studies.

We probe the properties of the transient X-ray pulsar MAXI J1409$-$619 through \textit{RXTE} and \textit{Swift} follow up observations of the outburst in 2010. We are able to phase connect the pulse arrival times for the 25 days episode during the outburst. We suggest that either an orbital model (with $P_{{\rm{orb}}} \simeq 14.7(4)$ days) or a noise process due to random torque fluctuations (with $S_r \approx 1.3 \times 10^{-18}$ Hz$^2$ s$^{-2}$ Hz$^{-1}$) is plausible to describe the residuals of the timing solution. The frequency derivatives indicate a positive torque-luminosity correlation, that implies a temporary accretion disc formation during the outburst. We also discover several quasi-periodic oscillations (QPOs) in company with their harmonics whose centroid frequencies decrease as the source flux decays. The variation of pulsed fraction and spectral power law index of the source with X-ray flux is interpreted as the sign of transition from a critical to a sub-critical accretion regime at the critical luminosity within the range of $6\times 10^{37}$ erg s$^{-1}$ to $1.2\times 10^{38}$ ergs s$^{-1}$. Using pulse-phase-resolved spectroscopy, we show that the phases with higher flux tend to have lower photon indices, indicating that the polar regions produce spectrally harder emission., Comment: 28 pages, 15 figures, revised version accepted for publication in MNRAS Main Journal

Using \emph{RXTE}, \emph{Chandra}, \emph{XMM-Newton} and \emph{Swift} observations, we for the first time construct the power spectra and torque noise strengths of magnetars. For some of the sources, we measure strong red noise on timescales months to years which might be a consequence of their outbursts. We compare noise strengths of magnetars with those of radio pulsars by investigating possible correlations of noise strengths with spin-down rate, magnetic field and age. Using these correlations, we find that magnetar noise strengths are obeying similar trends with radio pulsars. On the contrary, we do not find any correlation between noise strength and X-ray luminosity which was seen in accretion powered pulsars. Our findings suggest that the noise behaviour of magnetars resembles that of radio pulsars but they possess higher noise levels likely due to their stronger magnetic fields., 18 pages, 1 table, 4 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

We present timing analysis of the accretion powered pulsar SXP 1062, based on the observations of \textit{Swift}, \textit{XMM-Newton} and \textit{Chandra} satellites covering a time span of about 2 years. We obtain a phase coherent timing solution which shows that SXP 1062 has been steadily spinning down with a rate $-\,4.29(7) \times 10^{-14}$ Hz s$^{-1}$ leading to a surface magnetic field estimate of about $1.5 \times 10^{14}$ G. We also resolve the binary orbital motion of the system from X-ray data which confirms an orbital period of 656(2) days. On MJD 56834.5, a sudden change in pulse frequency occurs with $\Delta\nu = 1.28(5) \times 10^{-6} $ Hz, which indicates a glitch event. The fractional size of the glitch is $\Delta \nu / \nu \! \sim \! 1.37(6) \times 10^{-3}$ and SXP 1062 continues to spin-down with a steady rate after the glitch. A short X-ray outburst 25 days prior to the glitch does not alter the spin-down of the source; therefore the glitch should be associated with the internal structure of the neutron star. While glitch events are common for isolated pulsars, the glitch of SXP 1062 is the first confirmation of the observability of this type of events among accretion powered pulsars. Furthermore, the value of the fractional change of pulse frequency ensures that we discover the largest glitch reported up to now., Comment: 19 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

We analyze \emph{RXTE} and \emph{Swift} observations of SWIFT J1729.9$-$3437 after its outburst from 2010 July 20 to 2010 August 12. We calculate a spin frequency and spin frequency derivative of $1.8734(8) \times 10^{-3}$ Hz and $6.42(6) \times 10^{-12}$ Hz/s respectively from the quadratic fit of pulse arrival times. The quadratic fit residuals fit well to a circular orbital model with a period of $15.3(2)$ days and a mass function of about $1.3M_{\odot}$, but they can also be explained by a torque noise strength of $6.8 \times 10^{-18}$ Hz sec$^{-2}$. Pulse profiles switches from double-peaked to single-peaked as the source flux continues to decrease. We find that the pulse shape generally shows no strong energy dependence. The hardness ratios reveal that the source becomes softer with decreasing flux. We construct a single spectrum from all the available RXTE and Swift observations. We find that adding an \emph{Fe} line complex feature around 6.51 keV slightly improves the spectral fit and that this feature is more likely to originate from the source rather than the Galactic ridge. From the pulse phase spectral analysis, it is shown that that photon index and folding energy of the high energy cut-off vary with varying pulse phase., 15 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

We represent noise strength analysis of Anomalous X-Ray Pulsars (AXPs) 4U 0142+61, 1RXS J170849.9-400910, 1E 1841-045, 1E 2259+586 and Soft Gamma Repeaters (SGRs) SGR J1833-0832, SWIFT J1822.3-1606 and SWIFT J1834.9-0846 together with the X-Ray binaries GX 1+4 and 4U 1907+09 for comparison with accreting sources. Using our timing solutions, we extracted residuals of pulse arrival times after removal of spin down trends and we calculated assoicated noise strength of each source. Our preliminary results indicate that the noise strength is scaling up with spin-down rate. This indicates that, increase in spin-down rate leads to more torque noise on the magnetars. In addition, we present our analysis with Bayesian statistics on the previously reported transient QPO feature of 4U 1907+09., 5 pages, 2 figures, 11th INTEGRAL Conference Gamma-Ray Astrophysics in Multi-Wavelength Perspective, 10-14 October 2016, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

We analyse archival CGRO-BATSE X-ray flux and spin frequency measurements of GX 1+4 over a time span of 3000 days. We systematically search for time dependent variations of torque luminosity correlation. Our preliminary results indicate that the correlation shifts from being positive to negative on time scales of few 100 days., Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, 11th INTEGRAL Conference Gamma-Ray Astrophysics in Multi-Wavelength Perspective, 10-14 October 2016, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

We present analysis of RXTE--PCA observations of GX 1+4 between March 3, 2001 and January 31, 2003 together with the CGRO--BATSE X-ray flux and frequency derivative time series between 1991 and 1999. From the timing analysis of RXTE-PCA observations, we are able to phase connect pulse arrival times of the source within two different time intervals and obtain corresponding timing solutions. Using these pulse arrival times, we contribute to long term pulse frequency history of the source. We look for episodic correlations and anti-correlations between torque and X-ray luminosity using CGRO--BATSE X-ray flux and frequency derivative time series and find that correlation state of GX 1+4 seems to change on $\sim$ 100-200 days long intervals. We estimate torque noise of the source and observe flickering noise ($f^{-1}$). We achieve to measure the longest observed timescale for a noise process among accretion powered X-ray pulsars by extending the noise estimate for a time scale ranging from 31 days to 44 years. Spectral analysis of individual RXTE-PCA observations indicates a significant correlation between iron line flux and unabsorbed X-ray flux. Pulse phase resolved spectra of the source indicate a broadening of iron line complex at the bin corresponding to the pulse minimum., Comment: 20 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

In the first part of the research, we present the design of a vibration-based energy harvesting system. Robotic flexible arm having variable cross-section is investigated to overcome serious problems, e.g. insufficient bandwidth and model inaccuracies. Most of the energy harvesting systems are linear with unimodal characteristics. On the other hand, real vibrations can be modeled as random, multi-modal and time varying systems. Hence, unimodal linear systems can give highly unsatisfactory results under certain circumstances. However, non-linear systems can have multi-modal character with increased performance in real and practical situations. In this work, tapered links are preferred with nonlinear coupling setup to provide sufficient bandwidth and output power requirements for modern applications. Thus, the proposed scheme has been proven by simulated and experimental results successfully. In the second part of the research, we present design and experimental results of an electromagnetic harvester, energy source of which is single-phase household AC power with a nominal voltage of 220 V and a frequency of 50 Hz. In this case, energy harvesting is based on the induced electromotive force (EMF) as a result of the periodic variations of the magnetic field around the AC power cord. In this part, we also discuss basic principles of a wireless sensor network design powered by electromagnetically harvested energy obtained from household alternating current.

We analyse \emph{INTEGRAL} (between 2005 October and 2007 November) and \emph{RXTE} (between 2007 June and 2011 March) observations of the accretion powered pulsar 4U 1907+09. From \emph{INTEGRAL} IBIS-ISGRI and \emph{RXTE}-PCA observations, we update pulse period history of the source. We construct power spectrum density of pulse frequencies and find that fluctuations in the pulse frequency derivatives are consistent with the random walk model with a noise strength of $1.27\times10^{-21}$ Hz s$^{-2}$. From the X-ray spectral analysis of \emph{RXTE}-PCA observations, we find that Hydrogen column density is variable over the binary orbit, tending to increase just after the periastron passage. We also show that the X-ray spectrum gets hardened with decreasing X-ray flux. We discuss pulse-to-pulse variability of the source near dipping ingress and egress. We find that the source more likely undergoes in dipping states after apastron until periastron when the accretion from clumpy wind might dominate so that occasional transitions to temporary propeller state might occur.

We present a pulse-timing analysis of Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) observations of the anomalous X-ray pulsar 1E 2259+586 from its 2002 outburst to 2010 October. We have the following objectives: to extend the work on the recovery stage after the 2002 glitch; to investigate the variations caused by the second glitch that occurred in 2007; to look for other unusual events, if any, that arise in the regular spin-down trend of the source. We find that the fractional change in the spin frequency derivative after the 2002 glitch is not stable as it decreased by an order of magnitude, from −2.2 × 10 −2 to −1.278(3) × 10 −3 , in about 2.5 yr. Using a pulse-timing analysis, we discover two small frequency shifts with fractional changes �ν /ν = 3.08(32) × 10 −8 and �ν /ν =− 1.39(11) × 10 −8 . While the first of these shifts is not found to have a fractional frequency derivative change, the second has � u ν/u ν =− 2.9(2)×10 −2 . We interpret these frequency changes as positive and negative microglitches, similar to those seen in radio pulsars.

In this paper, we extend timing analysis of Baykal et al. (2010) of \src using RXTE-PCA observations between MJD 53724 and MJD 55113 together with a Chandra-ACIS observation on MJD 54897 with a 20 ks exposure. We also present X-ray spectral analysis of these RXTE and Chandra observations. We find that the spin-up rate of the source is correlated with the X-ray flux. Using this correlation, we estimate the distance and surface magnetic field of the source as $\sim 15$kpc and $\sim 9\times 10^{11}$Gauss respectively. From the spectral analysis, we found that power law index increases and Hydrogen column density decreases with decreasing flux.

We present timing and spectral analysis of RXTE-PCA observations of the accretion powered pulsar 4U 1907+09 between June 2007 and August 2008. 4U 1907+09 had been in a spin-down episode with a spin-down rate of $-3.54\times10^{-14}$ Hz s$^{-1}$ before 1999. From RXTE observations after March 2001, the source showed a $\sim 60$% decrease in spin-down magnitude and INTEGRAL observations after March 2003 showed that source started to spin-up. We found that the source recently entered a new spin-down episode with a spin-down rate of $-3.59 \times 10^{-14}$ Hz s$^{-1}$. This spin-down rate is pretty close to the previous long term spin-down rate of the source measured before 1999. From the spectral analysis, we showed that Hydrogen column density varies with the orbital phase., Comment: Published in MNRAS

We present timing and spectral analysis of \emph{Swift}$-$XRT and \emph{RXTE}$-$PCA observations of the transient Be/X-ray pulsar SWIFT J0513.4--6547 during its outburst in 2009 and its rebrightening in 2014. From 2009 observations, short term spin-up rate of the source after the peak of the outburst is found to have about half of the value measured at the peak of the outburst by Coe et al. When the source is quiescent between 2009 and 2014, average spin-down rate of the source is measured to be $\sim 1.52 \times 10^{-12}$ Hz s$^{-1}$ indicating a surface dipole magnetic field of $\sim 1.5 \times 10^{13}$ Gauss assuming a propeller state. From 2014 observations, short term spin-down rate of the source is measured to be about two orders smaller than this long-term spin-down rate. The orbit of the source is found to be circular which is atypical for transient Be/X-ray binary systems. Hardness ratios of the source correlate with the X-ray luminosity up to $8.4\times 10^{36}$ erg s$^{-1}$ in 3-10 keV band, whereas for higher luminosities hardness ratios remain constant. Pulsed fractions are found to be correlated with the source flux. Overall \emph{Swift}$-$XRT and \emph{RXTE}$-$PCA energy spectrum of the source fit equally well to a model consisting of blackbody and power law, and a model consisting of a power law with high energy cut-off. From the pulse phase resolved spectra and pulse phase resolved hardness ratios obtained using \emph{RXTE}$-$PCA, it is shown that spectrum is softer for the phases between the two peaks of the pulse., Comment: 18 pages, 10 figures; revised version, accepted for publication in MNRAS

Random number generator (RNG)'s utilize some source of entropy. Various RNGs; pseudo, quasi and true RNGs provide observed samples for given distributions which are necessary in statistical signal processing and simulations applications. True random number generators generally utilize the last insignificant bit of observed samples obtained from a source of entropy. In this work, samples obtained from an FM broadcasting are examined. Least significant bit is used to generate 16 bits observed samples. Randomness and goodness-of-fit test results are compared with the raw samples. It is shown that it is possible to generate true random numbers of sufficient merits using FM signals even when the band is occupied with broadcasting signals.

We analyzed RXTE archival observations of 4U 1907+09 between 17 February 1996 and 6 March 2002. The pulse timing analysis showed that the source stayed at almost {\bf{constant}} period around August 1998 and then started to spin-down at a rate of $(-1.887\mp 0.042)\times 10^{-14}$ Hz s$^-1$ which is $\sim$ 0.60 times lower than the long term ($\sim 15$ years) spin-down rate (Baykal et al. 2001). Our pulse frequency measurements for the first time resolved significant spin-down rate variations since the discovery of the source. We also presented orbital phase resolved X-ray spectra during two stable spin down episodes during November 1996 - December 1997 and March 2001 - March 2002. The source has been known to have two orbitally locked flares. We found that X-ray flux and spectral parameters except Hydrogen column density agreed with each other during the flares.We interpreted the similar values of X-ray fluxes as an indication of the fact that the source accretes not only via transient retrograde accretion disc (in't Zand et al. 1998) but also via the stellar wind of the companion (Roberts et al. 2001), so that the variation of the accretion rate from the disc does not cause significant variation in the observed X-ray flux. Lack of significant change in spectral parameters except Hydrogen column density was interpreted as a sign of the fact that the change in the spin-down rate of the source was not accompanied by a significant variation in the accretion geometry.

We analyzed spectral variations of $\sim 8.5$ days long RXTE monitoring observations of Her X-1 in December 2001. This set of observations enables, for the first time, frequent continuous monitoring (111 pointings in $\sim 8.5$ days) of the source with RXTE including $\sim 1.7$ days long low state part and the following $\sim 6.8$ days long short high state part. We used absorbed power law model with iron line energy complex modeled as a Gaussian to fit both the 3-60 keV PCA-HEXTE overall short high state spectrum and 3-20 keV individual PCA spectra. Additional partial cold absorber model was used for both cases. Using 3-20 keV individual PCA spectra, absorption in anomalous dips and preeclipse dips in short high state were compared. Decreasing ratio of unabsorbed flux to absorbed flux with increasing unabsorbed flux in anomalous and preeclipse dips was interpreted as an evidence of the fact that the regions causing opaque obscuration and soft absorption are not geometrically far away from each other. Higher iron line peak energies in low state and short high state ($\sim 6.6-6.9$ keV) were interpreted as a clue of the presence of iron line components other than K$\alpha$ emission line., Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS)

ROTSE IIId (The Robotic Optical Transient Experiment) observations of X-ray binary system 4U 0115+634/V635 Cas obtained during 2004 June and 2005 January make possible, for the first time, to study the correlation between optical and type II X-ray outbursts. The X-ray outburst sharply enhanced after periastron passage where the optical brightness was reduced by 0.3 magnitude for a few days. We interpret the sharp reduction of optical brightness as a sign of mass ejection from the outer parts of the disc of the Be star. After this sharp decrease, the optical brightness healed and reached the pre X-ray outburst level. Afterwards, gradual decrease of the optical brightness followed a minimum then a gradual increase started again. Qualitatively, change of optical lightcurve suggests a precession of the Be star disc around a few hundred days. We also investigate the periodic signatures from the archival RXTE-ASM (Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer - All Sky Monitor) light curve covering a time span of $\sim 9$ years. We find significant orbital modulation in the ASM light curve during the type I X-ray outburst., 5 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics

XMM-Newton observed SAX J2103.5+4545 on January 6, 2003, while RXTE was monitoring the source. Using RXTE-PCA dataset between December 3, 2002 and January 29, 2003, the spin period and average spin-up rate during the XMM-Newton observations were found to be $354.7940\pm0.0008$ s and $(7.4\pm0.9)\times10^{-13}$Hz s$^{-1}$ respectively. In the power spectrum of the 0.9-11 keV EPIC-PN lightcurve, we found quasi periodic oscillations around 0.044 Hz (22.7 s) with an rms fractional amplitude $\sim $6.6 %. We interpreted this QPO feature as the Keplerian motion of inhomogenuities through the inner disk. In the X-ray spectrum, in addition to the power law component with high energy cutoff and $\sim6.4$ keV fluorescent iron emission line (Baykal et al., 2002), we discovered a soft component consistent with a blackbody emission with ${\rm{kT}}\sim1.9$keV. The pulse phase spectroscopy of the source revealed that the blackbody flux peaked at the peak of the pulse with an emission radius $\sim 0.3$ km, suggesting the polar cap on the neutron star surface as the source of blackbody emission. The flux of the iron emission line at $\sim 6.42$ keV was shown to peak at the off-pulse phase, supporting the idea that this feature arises from fluorescent emission of the circumstellar material around the neutron star rather than the hot region in the vicinity of the neutron star polar cap., Comment: 16 pages 4 figures. Major revisions present. Accepted for publication in ApJ

Random number generators (RNGs) are one of the key tools necessary for statistical analysis and optimization methods such as Monte Carlo, particle swarm optimization (PSO) and the genetic algorithm. Various pseudo and true RNGs are available today, and they provide sufficient randomness. Unfortunately, they generate data that do not always represent the required distribution accurately, especially when the data length is small. This could possibly threaten the 'repeatability' of an academic study. A novel true RNG (TRNG) using the method of uniform sampling (MUS) is recently proposed. In this work, the Sun's RF emissions MUS-TRNG is comparatively tested with well known pseudo and true RNGs. It is observed that both randomness and very high goodness-of-fit qualities are possible.

We present a timing analysis of X Persei (X Per) using observations made between 1998 and 2010 with the Proportional Counter Array (PCA) onboard the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) and with the INTEGRAL Soft Gamma-Ray Imager (ISGRI). All pulse arrival times obtained from the RXTE-PCA observations are phase-connected and a timing solution is obtained using these arrival times. We update the long-term pulse frequency history of the source by measuring its pulse frequencies using RXTE-PCA and ISGRI data. From the RXTEPCA data, the relation between the frequency derivative and X-ray flux suggests accretion via the companion's stellar wind. However, the detection of a transient quasi-periodic oscillation feature, peaking at approximately 0.2 Hz, suggests the existence of an accretion disc. We find that doublebreak models fit the average power spectra well, which suggests that the source has at least two different accretion flow components dominating the overall flow. From the power spectrum of frequency derivatives, we measure a power-law index of approximately − 1, which implies that, on short time-scales, disc accretion dominates over noise, while on time-scales longer than the viscous time-scales, the noise dominates. From pulse profiles, we find a correlation between the pulse fraction and the count rate of the source.

We present the discovery of the orbital period of Swift J1626.6-5156. Since its discovery in 2005, the source has been monitored with Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer, especially during the early stage of the outburst and into the X-ray modulating episode. Using a data span of $\sim$700 days, we obtain the orbital period of the system as 132.9 days. We find that the orbit is close to a circular shape with an eccentricity 0.08, that is one of the smallest among Be/X-ray binary systems. Moreover, we find that the timescale of the X-ray modulations varied, which led to earlier suggestions of orbital periods at about a third and half of the orbital period of Swift J1626.6-5156., Comment: 12 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ

We analyzed RXTE-PCA observations of a recent outburst of the X-ray pulsar XMMU J054134.7$-$682550. We calculated the pulse frequency history of the source. We found no sign of a binary companion. The source spins up when the X-ray flux is higher, with a correlation between the spin-up rate and X-ray flux, which may be interpreted as a sign of an accretion disk. On the other hand, the source was found to have an almost constant spin frequency when the X-ray flux is lower without any clear sign of a spin-down episode. The decrease in pulsed fraction with decreasing X-ray flux was intrepreted as a sign of accretion geometry change, but we did not find any evidence of a transition from accretor to propeller regimes. The source was found to have variable pulse profiles. Two peaks in pulse profiles were usually observed. We studied the X-ray spectral evolution of the source throughout the observation. Pulse phase resolved analysis does not provide any further evidence for a cyclotron line, but may suggest a slight variation of intensity and width of the 6.4 keV iron line with phase., Comment: Published in MNRAS

We present timing and spectral analysis of RXTE-PCA observations of SMC X-1 between January 1996 and December 2003. From observations around 30 August 1996 with a time span of $\sim 6$ days, we obtain a precise timing solution for the source and resolve the eccentricity as 0.00089(6). We find an orbital decay rate of $\dot P_{orb}/P_{orb} =-3.402(7) \times 10^{-6}$ yr$^{-1}$ which is close to the previous results. Using our timing analysis and the previous studies, we construct a $\sim 30$ year long pulse period history of the source. We show that frequency derivative shows long (i.e. more than a few years) and short (i.e. order of days) term fluctuations. From the spectral analysis, we found that all spectral parameters except Hydrogen column density showed no significant variation with time and X-ray flux. Hydrogen column density is found to be higher as X-ray flux gets lower. This may be due to the increase in soft absorption when the pulsar is partially obscured as in Her X-1 or may just be an artifact of the tail of a soft excess in energy spectrum., Comment: 17 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS

SAX J2103.5+4545 has been continuously monitored for $\sim $ 900 days by Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) since its outburst in July 2002. Using these observations and previous archival RXTE observations of SAX J2103.5+4545, we refined the binary orbital parameters and find the new orbital period as P= (12.66536 $\pm $ 0.00088) days and the eccentricity as 0.4055$\pm$ 0.0032. With these new orbital parameters, we constructed the pulse frequency and pulse frequency derivative histories of the pulsar and confirmed the correlation between X-ray flux and pulse frequency derivative presented by Baykal, Stark and Swank (2002). We constructed the power spectra for the fluctuations of pulse frequency derivatives and found that the power law index of the noise spectra is 2.13 $\pm$ 0.6. The power law index is consistent with random walk in pulse frequency derivative and is the steepest among the HMXRBs. X-ray spectra analysis confirmed the inverse correlation trend between power-law index and X-ray flux found by Baykal, Stark and Swank (2002)., Comment: 23 pages, 7 figures, revised version accepted for publication in MNRAS

The high mass X-ray binary pulsar 4U 1538-52 was observed between July 31 and August 7, 2003. Using these observations, we determined new orbital epochs for both circular and elliptical orbit models. The orbital epochs for both orbit solutions agreed with each other and yielded an orbital period derivative $\dot{P} / P = (0.4 \pm 1.8) \times 10^{-6}$ yr$^{-1}$. This value is consistent with the earlier measurement of $\dot{P} / P = (2.9 \pm 2.1) \times 10^{-6}$ yr$^{-1}$ at the $1 \sigma$ level and gives only an upper limit to the orbital period decay. Our determination of the pulse frequency showed that the source spun up at an average rate of $2.76 \times 10^{-14}$ Hz sec$^{-1}$ between 1991 and 2003., Comment: Revised version. Accepted for publication in A&A

List of Participants. Preface. Part I: Formation of Neutron Stars. Neutron Star Formation C.L. Fryer, A. Hungerford.Young Neutron Stars and Their Wind Nebulae P. Slane. Part II: Neutron Star Structure and Magnetic Field. Neutron Star Superfluidity Dynamics and Precession M. Ali Alpar. A Biography of the Magnetic Field of a Neutron Star M. Ruderman. Elementary Processes in Strong Magnetic Fields J. Ventura. Drifting subpulses in PSR B0826-34 J. Gil et al. Temperature Distribution in Magnetized Neutron Star Crusts U. Geppert et al. Coupling of radial and non-radial oscillations of Neutron stars A. Passamonti et al. Part III: Neutrino Astrophysics. High-Energy Neutrino Astronomy F. Haizen. Gravitational wave interactions with magnetized plasmas J. Moortgat, J. Kujjpers. The Double-Neutron-Star Inspiral Rate and Expectations for GW Detection Chunglee Kim et al. Proto-Neutron Star Neutrino Emission A.L. Hungerford et al. Part IV: Cooling and Atmospheres of Neutron Stars. Observations of Cooling Neutron Stars J.E. Trumper. Optical Studies of Isolated Neutron Stars and Their Environments R.P. Mignani . Disks Around Radio Pulsars K.Y. Eksi, M. Ali Alpar. Radiation from Condensed Surface of Magnetic Neutron Stars M. van Adelsberg et al. Part V: Pulsars. Observations of radio pulsars N. D'Amico. Radio Pulsar Statistics D.R. Lorimer. Emission Mechanisms and Broad Band Spectra of Pulsars K.S. Cheng. Modeling Spectral Features from Isolated Neutron Stars Wynn C.G. Ho et al. Part VI: Binaries, Accretion. Formation and evolution of Neutron Stars in Binary Systems E.P.J. van den Heuvel. Accretion Disks H.C. Spruit. High mass X-ray binaries in LMC P. Shtykovskiy, M. Gilfanov. Astrophysics with Lobster Telescopes R. Hudec et al. The Stability of Magnetized Rotating Plasmas with Strong Toroidal Fields M.E. Pessah, D. Psaltis. Part VII: X-ray Binaries. Accretion Powered X-ray Pulsars A. Baykal. Delayed Iron Lines in GX 1+4 T. Kohmura, S. Kitamoto. Timing Neutron Stars M. van der Klis. Millisecond X-Ray Pulsars and QPOs F.K. Lamb. Part VIII: Gamma Ray Bursts and Magnetars. The Electromagnetic Spectrum of AXPs G.L. Israel et al. The distribution of kHz QPO frequencies in Sco X-1 T. Beioni et al. Part IX: Science with current and future X/gamma-ray missions. The Chandra X-Ray Observatory M.C. Weisskopf. The INTEGRAL mission S.A. Grebenev. Part X: Concluding Remarks. Concluding Remarks E.P.J. van den Heuvel.