Signals of Warped Extra Dimensions at the LHC

We discuss the signatures of the spin-2 graviton excitations predicted by the Randall-Sundrum model with one warped extra dimension, in dilepton and diphoton production at LHC. By using a specific angular analysis, we assess the ranges in mass and coupling constant where such gravitons can be discriminated against competitor spin-1 and spin-0 objects, that potentially could manifest themselves in these processes with the same mass and rate of events. Depending on the value of the coupling constant to quarks and leptons, the numerical results indicate graviton identification mass ranges up to 1.1-2.4 TeV and 1.6-3.2 TeV for LHC nominal energy of 14 TeV and time-integrated luminosity of 10 and 100~${\rm fb}^{-1}$, respectively.Comment: 8 pages, Talk given at QCD@Work - International Workshop on QCD - Theory and Experiment, 20 - 23 June, 2010, Martina Franca Ital

Linking the genomic signatures of human beat synchronization and learned song in birds

The development of rhythmicity is foundational to communicative and social behaviours in humans and many other species, and mechanisms of synchrony could be conserved across species. The goal of the current paper is to explore evolutionary hypotheses linking vocal learning and beat synchronization through genomic approaches, testing the prediction that genetic underpinnings of birdsong also contribute to the aetiology of human interactions with musical beat structure. We combined state-of-the-art-genomic datasets that account for underlying polygenicity of these traits: birdsong genome-wide transcriptomics linked to singing in zebra finches, and a human genome-wide association study of beat synchronization. Results of competitive gene set analysis revealed that the genetic architecture of human beat synchronization is significantly enriched for birdsong genes expressed in songbird Area X (a key nucleus for vocal learning, and homologous to human basal ganglia). These findings complement ethological and neural evidence of the relationship between vocal learning and beat synchronization, supporting a framework of some degree of common genomic substrates underlying rhythm-related behaviours in two clades, humans and songbirds (the largest evolutionary radiation of vocal learners). Future cross-species approaches investigating the genetic underpinnings of beat synchronization in a broad evolutionary context are discussed

Inflammation and Neurotransmission of the Vescico-Uterine Space in Cesarean Sections:

Collagen IV and laminin play a key role in regulating stiffness, elasticity and flexibility of the vescico-uterine space (VUS) tissue. The neurotensin (NT), the neuropeptide tyrosine (NPY) and the protein gene product 9.5 (PGP 9.5) possessing vasorelaxation and tissue vascularization activities, play key roles in cervical ripening, scar innervations and pain control. We propose that the integrity of these substances in VUS tissue is compromised after Cesarean section (CS), since wound healing disturbances and pelvic pain, as well as pregnancy and delivery complications, are related with lower uterine segment dysfunctions after CS. Therefore, the contents of collagen IV, laminin, NT, NPY and PGP 9.5 nerve fibres from the VUS tissue samples obtained during the first CS and the repeated CS were comparatively studied. VUS specimens were collected from 104 patients during CS and evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Collagen IV and laminin were mostly found in the vascular membrane bounds and their images were quantitatively evaluated by Quantimet Leica analyzer software. Differences of collagen IV, laminin, NT, NPY and PGP 9.5 values in VUS tissue between the first CS and the repeat CS samples were calculated by Student's Mest. Reduced laminin and increased collagen IV values were observed in the VUS scar tissue after the repeated CS in comparison with those of VUS intact tissue obtained during the first CS. Significantly higher values of nerve fibres, containing NT, NPY and PGP 9.5 were registered in intact VUS tissue samples, respectively 5±0.7, 7±0.6 and 5±0.9 CU, than those of VUS scar tissue samples obtained during the repeated CS, respectively 3±0.6,2±0.4 and 3±0.7 CU (p<0.05). The authors observed increased collagen IV and reduced laminin values after the repeated CS which might be the key signs of inflammatory damage of VUS scar tissue by CS. These findings were strengthened by the registration of decreased NT, NPY and PGP 9.5 values in the same samples, which are important neurotransmitters and are responsible for optimal wound healing, pain control and lower uterine segment functions

Contribution of the HMPID detector to the high-pT physics at LHC

The LHC will deliver unexplored energy regimes for proton-proton and heavy-ion collisions. As shown by the RHIC experiments, particle identification over a large momentum range is essential to disentangle physics processes, especially in the intermediate p$_T$ (1 $<p_{T}<5$ GeV/c) region. The novel design of the High-Momentum Particle Identification Detector (HMPID), based on large surface CsI photocathodes, is able to identify $\pi^{\pm}$, $K^{\pm}$, $p$ and $\bar{p}$ in the momentum region where bulk medium properties and hard scatterings interplay. Furthermore, measurement of resonance particles such as the $\phi \to K^+K^-$ could provide information on the system evolution. The HMPID layout and segmentation are optimized to study particle correlations at high momenta describing the early phase and the dynamical evolution of the collision. At LHC, the increased hard cross section will significantly be enhanced compared to RHIC. Jet reconstruction via Deterministic Annealing can address jet quenching and detailed measurements of jet properties. In this paper, we present these selected topics from the possible HMPID contributions to the physics goals of LHC.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, Contribution to QCD @ Work 2007: International Workshop on Quantum Chromodynamics Theory and Experiment, Martina Franca, Italy, 16-20 June 200

Charge collection measurements with p-type Magnetic Czochralski silicon single pad detectors

Abstract The charge collected from beta source particles in single pad detectors produced on p-type Magnetic Czochralski (MCz) silicon wafers has been measured before and after irradiation with 26 MeV protons. After a 1 MeV neutron equivalent fluence of 1 × 10 15 cm - 2 the collected charge is reduced to 77% at bias voltages below 900 V. This result is compared with previous results from charge collection measurements

Behavioral Modernity and the Cultural Transmission of Structured Information: The Semantic Axelrod Model

Cultural transmission models are coming to the fore in explaining increases in the Paleolithic toolkit richness and diversity. During the later Paleolithic, technologies increase not only in terms of diversity but also in their complexity and interdependence. As Mesoudi and O'Brien (2008) have shown, selection broadly favors social learning of information that is hierarchical and structured, and multiple studies have demonstrated that teaching within a social learning environment can increase fitness. We believe that teaching also provides the scaffolding for transmission of more complex cultural traits. Here, we introduce an extension of the Axelrod (1997} model of cultural differentiation in which traits have prerequisite relationships, and where social learning is dependent upon the ordering of those prerequisites. We examine the resulting structure of cultural repertoires as learning environments range from largely unstructured imitation, to structured teaching of necessary prerequisites, and we find that in combination with individual learning and innovation, high probabilities of teaching prerequisites leads to richer cultural repertoires. Our results point to ways in which we can build more comprehensive explanations of the archaeological record of the Paleolithic as well as other cases of technological change.Comment: 24 pages, 7 figures. Submitted to "Learning Strategies and Cultural Evolution during the Paleolithic", edited by Kenichi Aoki and Alex Mesoudi, and presented at the 79th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Austin TX. Revised 5/14/1

Genome-wide association study of musical beat synchronization demonstrates high polygenicity

Moving in synchrony to the beat is a fundamental component of musicality. Here we conducted a genome-wide association study to identify common genetic variants associated with beat synchronization in 606,825 individuals. Beat synchronization exhibited a highly polygenic architecture, with 69 loci reaching genome-wide significance (P < 5 × 10−8) and single-nucleotide-polymorphism-based heritability (on the liability scale) of 13%–16%. Heritability was enriched for genes expressed in brain tissues and for fetal and adult brain-specific gene regulatory elements, underscoring the role of central-nervous-system-expressed genes linked to the genetic basis of the trait. We performed validations of the self-report phenotype (through separate experiments) and of the genome-wide association study (polygenic scores for beat synchronization were associated with patients algorithmically classified as musicians in medical records of a separate biobank). Genetic correlations with breathing function, motor function, processing speed and chronotype suggest shared genetic architecture with beat synchronization and provide avenues for new phenotypic and genetic explorations

Charge collection and capacitance–voltage analysis in irradiated n-type magnetic Czochralski silicon detectors

Abstract The depletion depth of irradiated n-type silicon microstrip detectors can be inferred from both the reciprocal capacitance and from the amount of collected charge. Capacitance voltage ( C – V ) measurements at different frequencies and temperatures are being compared with the bias voltage dependence of the charge collection on an irradiated n-type magnetic Czochralski silicon detector. Good agreement between the reciprocal capacitance and the median collected charge is found when the frequency of the C – V measurement is selected such that it scales with the temperature dependence of the leakage current. Measuring C – V characteristics at prescribed combinations of temperature and frequency allows then a realistic estimate of the depletion characteristics of irradiated silicon strip detectors based on C – V data alone

Intraseasonal Dynamics and Dominant Sequences in H3N2 Influenza

Long-term influenza evolution has been well studied, but the patterns of sequence diversity within seasons are less clear. H3N2 influenza genomes sampled from New York State over ten years indicated intraseasonal changes in evolutionary dynamics. Using the mean Hamming distance of a set of amino acid or nucleotide sequences as an indicator of its diversity, we found that influenza sequence diversity was significantly higher during the early epidemic period than later in the influenza season. Diversity was lowest during the peak of the epidemic, most likely due to the high prevalence of a single dominant amino acid sequence or very few dominant sequences during the peak epidemic period, corresponding with rapid expansion of the viral population. The frequency and duration of dominant sequences varied by influenza protein, but all proteins had an abundance of one distinct sequence during the peak epidemic period. In New York State from 1995 to 2005, high sequence diversity during the early epidemic suggested that seasonal antigenic drift could have occurred primarily in this period, followed by a clonal expansion of typically one clade during the peak of the epidemic, possibly indicating a shift to neutral drift or purifying selection

Search for CP Violation in the Decay Z -> b (b bar) g

About three million hadronic decays of the Z collected by ALEPH in the years 1991-1994 are used to search for anomalous CP violation beyond the Standard Model in the decay Z -> b \bar{b} g. The study is performed by analyzing angular correlations between the two quarks and the gluon in three-jet events and by measuring the differential two-jet rate. No signal of CP violation is found. For the combinations of anomalous CP violating couplings, ${\hat{h}}_b = {\hat{h}}_{Ab}g_{Vb}-{\hat{h}}_{Vb}g_{Ab}$ and $h^{\ast}_b = \sqrt{\hat{h}_{Vb}^{2}+\hat{h}_{Ab}^{2}}$, limits of \hat{h}_b < 0.59$and$h^{\ast}_{b} < 3.02$ are given at 95\% CL.Comment: 8 pages, 1 postscript figure, uses here.sty, epsfig.st