Angular momentum loss and the evolution of binaries of extreme mass ratio

Results are presented for 10 evolutionary sequences of close binary systems of extreme mass ratio. Angular momentum loss associated with material outflow from the system, a consequence of the ineffectiveness of tidal torques, as well as gravitational radiation is included in the calculations. We find that a previously described mass transfer instability is extremely sensitive to the amount of angular momentum loss by material means. The application of our results to the millisecond pulsar PSR 1937+214 suggests that its origin does not involve the continuous accretion of matter in a low-mass X-ray binary system