Searches for Long-lived Particles at the Tevatron Collider

Several searches for long-lived particles have been performed using data from p-pbar collisions from Run II at the Tevatron. In most cases, new analysis techniques have been developed to carry out each search and/or estimate the backgrounds. These searches expand the discovery potential of the CDF and D0 experiments to new physics that may have been missed by traditional search techniques. This review discusses searches for (1) neutral, long-lived particles decaying to muons, (2) massive, neutral, long-lived particles decaying to a photon and missing energy, (3) stopped gluinos, and (4) charged massive stable particles. It summarizes some of the theoretical and experimental motivations for such searches.Comment: submitted to Mod. Phys. Lett.

The Relationship Between Being Uninsured and Having Poor Health Outcomes and Experiences in Eastern Kentucky

Objective: To examine health insurance and health outcome disparities in Eastern Kentucky since Kentucky’s implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Methods: Using data from County Health Rankings and Roadmap, rates of uninsurance will be compared before and a decade after implementation of the ACA in Kentucky (2013 and 2023). In addition, prevalence of certain health outcomes in Eastern Kentucky will be compared from 2013 and 2023 and correlation established between uninsured rates and particular health outcomes for 2023. Results: Since 2013, the percentage of those uninsured in Eastern Kentucky has seen a significant decline. While there is no correlation between the percent uninsured and health outcomes such as obesity, smoking, diabetes prevalence, poor or fair health, and poor mental health days in 2023, each of these outcomes saw significant changes from 2013 to 2023. Rates of smoking, diabetes, and poor or fair health all saw dramatic reductions while rates of obesity and poor mental health days significantly increased in Eastern Kentucky during this time

Searching for high speed long-lived charged massive particles at the LHC

The conventional way to search for long-lived CHArged Massive Particles (CHAMPs) is to identify slow (small $\beta$) tracks using delayed time of flight and high ionization energy loss. But at the 7-14 TeV center of mass energy of the LHC, a CHAMP may be highly boosted (high $\beta$) and therefore look more like a minimum ionizing particle, while for high momentum muons (more than $\sim$500 GeV/c) the radiative effect dominates energy deposition. This suggests a new strategy to search for CHAMPs at the LHC. Using energy deposition from different detector components, we construct a boosted decision tree discriminant to separate high momentum CHAMPs from high momentum muons. This method increases substantially the CHAMP search potential and it can be used to distinguish possible di-CHAMP or CHAMP-muon resonance models from di-muon resonance models. We illustrate the new method using a mGMSB model and a recently proposed di-CHAMP model and we give updated CHAMP mass limits for these two models using the recent CDF CHAMP results.Comment: version to appear in Eur. Phys. J.

High Tunnel Design, Site Development, and Construction

High tunnels are low technology plant growing structures that provide opportunity for season extension, severe weather protection, and modified environments to increase productivity and visual quality of harvested plant products. This publication describes high tunnel components, site selection, development, covering materials, installation, and operation. Experienced specialty plant growers can increase the quality of their products and the duration of their marketing of high- value crops through the use of high tunnels. High tunnels give growers the opportunity to plant earlier and include more sequential planting dates. This can result in early- season, high- dollar returns and the ability to offer their products for longer periods. High tunnels also provide environmental protection, which helps reduce blemishes and discoloration, improving visual appeal. For successful high tunnel crop production, decisions and actions before planting the first crop include choosing a structural design to meet specific needs, identifying the best site for locating the structure, initial soil preparation, and the method of construction